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Old 06-16-2016, 12:11 PM   #1
Fossilized Rappy
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Default Limited Scope Illusions

Simple thread for a simple question: how much would you price a limitation for the Illusion advantage from GURPS Powers that limited the scope of what illusions you could create?

I'm not talking things like auditory or visual only, obviously, as those are already in the book. What I'm referring to is the idea of having a limitation price for reducing Illusion to only creating certain types of image.

For an example, the levels I was thinking of would be a broad category (E.G. "only animals"), a large category within a broader category ("only mammals"), a small category within a larger category ("only felines"), and then finally a highly specialized tiny category (you can only create the illusion of a house cat, nothing else).

Feel free to tell me some existing limitation I'm missing if that works just as well, of course.
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Old 06-16-2016, 05:12 PM   #2
johndallman
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Default Re: Limited Scope Illusions

Animals seems like a fairly clear case of Aspected, -20%.
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Old 06-16-2016, 07:24 PM   #3
Fossilized Rappy
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Default Re: Limited Scope Illusions

That seems like a good place to start, thank you. Would it be reasonable to go be 20s on the way down? -40% for the next category below that, -60% for the one below that, and -80% for just one very specific illusion?
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Old 06-17-2016, 01:05 AM   #4
johndallman
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Default Re: Limited Scope Illusions

I think that may be going too fast, but I haven't found convincing reasoning either way.
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Old 06-17-2016, 11:59 AM   #5
dfinlay
 
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Default Re: Limited Scope Illusions

I'd use Accessibility. First, guesstimate what percentage of the time that you would want an illusion, this will be useful, then use the Accessibility chart in Powers.

Note that this isn't the same as what percentage of things you can make as an illusion. Most of the time, being able to make one huge monster is the same as being able to make several different types - you can scare someone.

For your examples:

Animals only does limit what you can do a fair amount - no making walls, though you can make scary animals guarding the way. No making opulent riches, though pets in a menagerie might be able to suffice in some situations. I'd say it's usable in about 50% of the situations you could use Illusions as a rough guess, which gives johndallman's -20%.

Mammals hardly limits it any more. Most uses for animals can be done with mammals. It blocks you from using it for flying animals, restricts you underwater and prevents you from getting specific animals in the rare case that you need this exact animal. I'd drop the 50% to a 40%, which makes the limitation a -25%.

Felines fills the two big roles animals are useful for - big scary things and cute, innocuous things, but it definitely does cost you in versatility. No plausible riding animals, no livestock, etc. I'd drop it to 25% of the time, or a -30% limitation.

House cats is suddenly a huge restriction because you lose "big, scary animal" and even "unusual thing to see here" in most locations (cats are most places). I'd say it's only useful about 5% of the time you'd want to use illusion, so a -40% limitation.
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Old 06-17-2016, 12:33 PM   #6
Fossilized Rappy
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Default Re: Limited Scope Illusions

That seems like a solid base for the others. I hadn't actually thought about using Accessibility as a basis for that sort of thing!

I very much appreciate the feedback on the topic. It originally started because I was thinking of some limited sorcery spells, but I eventually started thinking about other things that might use limited scope illusions, and I just had a big urge to figure out what the best solution might be.
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