Ghostly Movement (page H20) is super creepy, super fun to fight, and even more fun to wield.
I've been playing a character (a monster hunters crossroads witch) with Ghostly Movement for the past four years. We've had to rule on some weird questions about how it works. I'll list some of those questions and our house-rulings for your consideration and comment. It's become clear there are two distinct interpretations of the advantage, with important differences in what they can and can’t do. I'll expand on that with write-ups of two variants of the advantage.
First, the questions. Quotes are from Horror pg 20.
- Barrier limits:
Quote:
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You can get anywhere within Move yards, provided that nobody is looking and that you could have gotten there “the hard way,” given sufficient time.
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Consider: You stand facing the center of a glass wall a hundred meters wide and tall. You could get to the other side the hard way, given enough time, by merely strolling around. Can you Ghostly Move to the other side? This question arises more commonly when faced with a window that doesn't open, but views into or out of a building with a distant but unsecured door.
- Time limits:
Quote:
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Requires a Move maneuver in combat… As a special effect, any mundane requirements for getting from A to B replace Warp’s usual success roll, and Warp fails if you can’t meet them.
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Are the rules for Taking Less Time required for these rolls? E.G. With the given example of Lockpicking to get through a locked door, would you roll at the penalty for the difficulty of the lock, or that and the -10 for doing so instantly?
- Distance limits: How does this advantage interact with Superjump, Enhanced Move, Flying Leap etc? What if you just want to Warp further?
The answers depend on the power source – is it a special effect of being
just that good E.G. Batman, or is it the literal ghostly movement of a supernatural being? The original text allows for both possibilities but does not distinguish between them. Lets try:
Variants
Ghostly Movement (Cinematic Speed)
Your movement is the result of ninja-like skill. You can only move through barriers that you could conceivably pass using your skills in one second. Make the skill rolls for each obstacle as you discover them, moving sequentially through the obstacles exactly as if you were doing so without the Warp advantage. For example, to pass a wall, the wall must have an air-vent that you might fit through and you must have enough Move to reach the vent and get through it. You actually unscrew that vent and climb through it, you just do so very quickly. You get perception rolls to notice complications, may apply additional skills, and can stop whenever you choose. For example, if the vent has a laser tripwire, then you first roll to open the vent, then to notice the wire, then to disarm it, and you may stop at any time, leaving you that far into the process. Any failed roll produces its normal consequences.
Ghostly Movement (Pathed Warp)
Your movement is the result of being a Threshold Entity, or some other Power. You can pass any barrier as long as you know a long way to get past it, can pass the skill rolls, and the destination hex is within Move yards from the starting hex. Not only do you leave no traces, but you literally don’t pass the intervening space. The GM makes all the skill rolls to pass the obstacle(s) in advance of beginning the Warp, auto-failing any perception rolls to notice complications, such as if you knew about a door but didn’t know it was trapped. If any roll fails, including Perception, then the Warp fails and you don’t know why. This leaves you where you started, with no memory of the attempt except that it didn’t work.
Powering Up
Powering Up to go further requires changing two of the original writeup’s limitations:
- Accessibility, Only places you could walk/climb to, given time, -20%
- Range Limit, -50%
Cinematic Speed: You will need other traits that let you go further in one second, such as Enhanced Move, Superjump, or Flight. If you have one of these, you’ll need to change the Accessibility to: Accessibility, only places you could otherwise reach given time, -10%, and pay the point difference. Don’t buy down the Range Limit! It is interpreted as Range Limit: Your Move in One Second, -50%.
Pathed Warp: You don’t need additional advantages. Instead, just buy down the Range Limit. You can warp further!
In conclusion: I'm comfortable with these answers to questions 1 and 3, but I have no idea about question number 2. What do you think?
Have you played with Ghostly Movement? Did you encounter these questions? What were your answers? See anything I missed? Cheers!