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Old 05-04-2022, 08:42 AM   #1
Prince Charon
 
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Default Divination as Contacts

Recently I was wondering how to represent 'precognition that manifests as a spirit showing up and telling you a somewhat confusing prophecy' on a character sheet, and then it occurred to me that if you can try to summon the spirit on purpose to ask questions, that's basically a strange Contact. (If you can't, then it's more like Visions with a Nuisance Effect.) So, here is one possible example:

Spirit Contact (Prognostication; Skill 13; Appears on 12 or less; Special Abilities (Spirit); Unreliable (Speaks in riddles); Spirit, -25%) [3]

'Unreliable (Speaks in riddles)' basically means that instead of actually being untrustworthy like a normal Unreliable Contact, the spirit just has trouble communicating with mortals (presumably including the PC), thus phrasing the answers in confusing ways, but is indeed sincerely trying to help.

Another variant that I considered but haven't statted out is an astral entity as a contact, having information about both the future, and about events on the astral plane (if you're in a game where that could be important).


Thoughts?
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Last edited by Prince Charon; 05-04-2022 at 11:31 PM.
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Old 05-04-2022, 08:49 AM   #2
Witchking
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

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Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
Another variant that I considered but haven't statted out is an astral entity as a contact, having information about both the future, and about events on the astral plane (if you're in a game where that could be important).


Thoughts?
Information about the future, kewl; but which future?

Difficult to see, the future, always in motion.

That could build in a whole other level of unreliable.
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Old 05-04-2022, 09:40 AM   #3
Refplace
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

I would add Special Abilities here. It might be too powerful but the riddle or cryptic natire mollifies that and it could be a fun tool for a GM who was good at making riddles or other ways to make it a puzzle.
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Last edited by Refplace; 05-04-2022 at 09:47 AM.
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Old 05-04-2022, 10:11 AM   #4
Lovewyrm
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

That's pretty cheap, but on a meta level.
Simply because the GM probably doesn't want to send you on a completely dead end goose chase that derails everything. ^^

And if the GM does not want to do that, then maybe the spirit is more reliable than it looks on the accountbook.

Perhaps it would be more practical (even as the player) to have some sort of adjusted luck advantage flavor thing?
You beseech the spirit to gain an advantage, after all.

That said, on the flipside, it could give the GM adventure hooks and the ability to actually bring the party back on track.
Depends on what the priorities and game style are, I'd say.

The more freeform and sandboxy the more fun the spirit could be.
In a more focused campaign, would you really want to play contact slot machine? (If the GM plays it straight and really goes unreliable on it)
What if it's wrong, or simply too obtuse 49 times in a row? And only tells something worthwhile the 50th time?

Concept is really fun, though, but how about play flow?

Last edited by Lovewyrm; 05-04-2022 at 10:15 AM.
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Old 05-04-2022, 11:16 AM   #5
Michael Thayne
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

I didn't have the "speaks in riddles" idea, but I was looking at how to do spirit contacts recently and you should probably add +1 to the base cost for "supernatural abilities" (i.e. price the spirit contact as if it has skill-18). Unless the PC can only contact the spirit in one specific shrine or similar, I would also add Highly Accessible, +50% (originally an enhancement for Patron, but GURPS Social Engineering: Keeping in Contact made it canonical for Contacts too). That makes the cost 4 points, which I don't think is totally unreasonable assuming appropriate GM adjudication. Compare Precognition (Dreaming, -70%; Passive Only, -20%) [5] (see Psionic Powers).
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Old 05-04-2022, 11:31 PM   #6
Prince Charon
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael Thayne View Post
I didn't have the "speaks in riddles" idea, but I was looking at how to do spirit contacts recently and you should probably add +1 to the base cost for "supernatural abilities" (i.e. price the spirit contact as if it has skill-18). Unless the PC can only contact the spirit in one specific shrine or similar, I would also add Highly Accessible, +50% (originally an enhancement for Patron, but GURPS Social Engineering: Keeping in Contact made it canonical for Contacts too). That makes the cost 4 points, which I don't think is totally unreasonable assuming appropriate GM adjudication. Compare Precognition (Dreaming, -70%; Passive Only, -20%) [5] (see Psionic Powers).
Yeah, I've been thinking about editing the cost for something like that. Mind you, 'can only be contacted at specific locations' seems pretty reasonable for a spirit, but Special Abilities should have been there all along, and was only absent because I was rather tired at the time. Going to edit that in.
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-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
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Old 05-05-2022, 12:18 AM   #7
Witchking
 
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

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Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
Yeah, I've been thinking about editing the cost for something like that. Mind you, 'can only be contacted at specific locations' seems pretty reasonable for a spirit, but Special Abilities should have been there all along, and was only absent because I was rather tired at the time. Going to edit that in.
Well another possible discount might be found if you added 'Requires Offering' to the Advantage. Propitiating Spirits with an Offering as part of attempting contact is as I understand it a part of many traditions.
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Old 05-05-2022, 11:19 AM   #8
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

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Well another possible discount might be found if you added 'Requires Offering' to the Advantage. Propitiating Spirits with an Offering as part of attempting contact is as I understand it a part of many traditions.
Which might just be treated as bribes and favors the spirit might like, which is already a feature of contacts (see "Money Talks" basic set 44-45, under the Contacts advantage description.)
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Old 05-05-2022, 11:50 AM   #9
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

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Which might just be treated as bribes and favors the spirit might like, which is already a feature of contacts (see "Money Talks" basic set 44-45, under the Contacts advantage description.)
Fair I forgot about that one.
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Old 05-05-2022, 12:26 PM   #10
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Default Re: Divination as Contacts

the MH Crusader has the option to buy a Contact Group (local spirits). I've generally always assumed that this is what that advantage was for and was meant to model. Put that up there with the patron of Divine Favor, and a few other social advantages and you've got most of mysticism.
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