Difference between revisions of "Thus Spake Zaraborgstrom/SolarMentalInfluence"

Latest revision as of 20:00, 12 June 2010

From RPGnet, 2/4/08: [Exalted] Mechanics: Solars and Lunars

-- Originally Posted by Rachel Cartacos --

<< Yes they will figure it out, because you told them what you want to do. But it's the normal speech that tells them, not the magic from the charm.

In this case I am speaking of Mental Invisibility Technique. No speech or any clues at all involved, just (from the Mooks point of view) a raw mental attack. >>

I'd be much happier if you think of it as follows.

There is an experience that people have when they feel that noticing something and facing it consciously would be a bad idea. A kind of anxiety and mental turning-away-from. A kind of knowing-without-knowing. There has to be or the idea of a "don't notice me" power doesn't make sense.

You can look at this as an *effect*.

It's something that's happening to you, that you're experiencing. There's a qualia of "don't notice this" in your head. A black mouse of anxiety that whispers in your thoughts. A soft pink fuzz of "I don't have to care."

Think of it as something that's there, in your head, whether caused by yourself, ordinary influence, or an Exalt.

Unnatural mental influence means that whatever that effect is, it's charged with Essence. It's brilliantly bright.

So instead of a little black mouse of anxiety telling you that maybe you shouldn't think about the fact that your boss is stealing office supplies, there's this howling spinning demon-void whirlpool of anxiety in your thoughts crying, "DO NOT NOTICE THIS PERSON. HERE BE MONSTERS."

Or instead of a soft pink fuzz, there's this

SUDDEN GLORIOUS SUNRISE of HAPPY GUARD IS HAPPY NOT WORRYING ABOUT THAT PERSON

It's much the same with the other effects.

Unnatural mental influence doesn't make enemies (when misused) because it's "mind control."

It makes enemies because your reaction to the influence is always---whether you spend the WP or accept the effect---on the same scale as the influence.

Someone sets off a bomb of delight in your head, you're *gonna* choose between "wow, thank you" or "#$6& you, you #@$*%$ bastard, I didn't want a bomb of delight."

Someone shows you in a way you can't escape just how wrong slavery is, you're going to go, "Wow, you're right" or "filthy Anathema mind control!"

Someone shows you in a way you can't escape just how incredible and cool you are, you're going to melt and go "Wow," or hate them as a liar.

It's fine to conclude that it's mind control, but please don't categorize it so quickly that you prevent the rules from working. I chose to locate the super-convincing effects in the target's mind so that players could always *choose* to say, "I think that's mind control, and I reject it!"---but I think that it's vital to be able to recognize phenomena that are mind control or are not mind control based on circumstances, personalities, and how the people involved choose to interpret them at the time of the effect.

Rebecca

See Also

Thus_Spake_Zaraborgstrom