SolarBureaucracy/LordAuran
Invincible Declaration of the Season of the Duck
Cost: 3 motes, 1 Willpower Duration: Instant Type: Simple Min. Bureaucracy: 5 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: Indolent Official Charm
The PC is deeply enlightened about the effects of bureaucracies upon their followers, and may shape essence directly into bureaucratic force. The PC makes a simple declaration, and all characters within earshot react to the statement as if it carried the full weight of a respected and powerful bureaucracy; all targets will understand this declaration to be part of "The Rules", with disciplined and legalistic characters being most vulnerable. Targets may resist the effects of this charm with a successful Wits+Bureaucracy roll, difficulty equal to the PC's essence. The PC may freely state "fact" and make policy, but he may not give orders with this charm, though he may modify existing orders or rules of which he is specifically aware. Example: An Immaculate monk is ordered by his superior to hunt down all Solars in Nexus. He first encounters a Solar with this charm. The Solar may *not* simply order the Immaculate to leave, or to drop his weapon. However, he may state that "Practice of Immaculate Martial arts is forbidden in Nexus", assure the Immaculate that "The Immaculate Order is satisfied that I am the only Solar in Nexus", or even modify the Immaculate's orders to "hunt down all Lunars in Nexus". Once a target fails to save against this effect, he may need to spend Willpower and/or fail appropriate Virtue rolls to avoid respecting the percieved "rules" as stated. This will depend on the target's repect for authority and his Nature.
Comments
This is such a great Charm! I love it! (And even the name raises a chuckle) B-) Have Fun... Nikink
Duck Season! Rabbit Season! Duck season! Rabbit season! Rabbit Season! Duck Season, FIRE!!! - Scrollreader
Some thoughts: I might make the prerequisite for this both Indolent Official Charm and Bureau-Rectifying Method, insofar as it is not just concerned with slowing a Bureaucracy, but effectively changing it. I'd also increase the Essence prerequisite to 4 - this is a level of abstraction above those other charms. The modification of existing orders needs some limitations or guidelines (otherwise, any existing orders allow the Solar to 'modify' orders so that they are whatever the Solar wants, bearing no relationship at all to the original orders). Honestly, I'd probably get rid of the order modification - Bureaucracy is more about the rules than the orders. - Szilard
I would have liked a more potent prerequisite charm, but I felt that Bureau-Rectifying Method wasn't appropriate, since this charm doesn't actually modify a bureaucracy. Essence prerequisite 4 seemed too high at first for a charm of this power level, but upon reconsidering, I think you're right. I'll add the requirement that the PC be *specifically aware* of the orders he's modifying, but I think the basic order modification effect is vital to the charm. The reason that the PC can modify but not issue orders is that while bureaucracy doesn't govern the issuing of commands, it does govern the execution of commands by members of a hierarchy. Thanks for the feedback, everybody. - LordAuran
