SolarInvestigation/Reyemile

Ghost Magistrate's Search

 Cost: 6 motes
 Duration: Instant
 Type: Supplemental
 Minimum Investigation: 3
 Minimum Essence: 2
 Prerequisite Charms: Ten Magistrate Eyes

Activating this charm, an Exalt forms a perfect picture of a location in her mind, enabling her to restore every paper, drawer, and doodad to it's original location after she has completed a search. Assuming she doesn't steal anything, she leaves no physical evidence behind after the fact; this is a perfect effect.

Her search can still be detected by charms and magic that reconstruct a scene entirely from traces in local essence flows. Also, she does not become any stealthier while she is actively searching; just because no one will notice her investigation doesn't mean that no one will notice her.

Comments:

Nice! I like this effect. If you wanted to, a larceny prereq at 1 might also be appropriate, but I'm not sure, maybe it's better pure like this.
-- Darloth

I think I might have to delete this charm, actually-- It turns out that Ten Magistarate Eyes provides auto successes to all investigation roles, including the role to conceal your search, making this charm entirely redundant. However, its power level might make it appropriate for another exalted type.
-- Reyemile

Remove the auto-successes and make it a perfect effect, and it probably works better as a Solar Charm. -- BillGarrett

Made it perfect, and raised the cost from 3 to 6 to compensate. I'm thinkng about what Darloth said, though; is this a Larceny charm or an Investigation charm?
-- Reyemile

Hmm. I'd say it's more Larceny. You could use this to conduct burglarys or safebreakings, not just paper-searching. -- Xarak

Larceny already has "steal really well" Charms. As it stands, the Charm is ideal for more political games where searching someone's quarters or personal effects will be a regular part of the action. You could certainly combine this WITH Larceny Charms... -- BillGarrett

Bureaucracy. - Arafelis

Bureaucracy? -- Reyemile

Bureaucracy covers knowing when to do a search. Larceny covers getting past the locks or other owner-supplied security. Stealth covers not being heard doing so. Bureaucracy or Presence can also cover getting people not to be listening around there to begin with. Investigation covers locating what you need. Seems pretty clear to me. :) -- BillGarrett

The uses for this Charm in a bureacracy are endless. Even if someone DOES notice the Exalt shuffling through the papers in a desk, since 'nothing is disturbed' they can say, "I was just looking for the Quill of Infinite Ink I dropped!" You could make it so that a missing paper isn't noticed for at least Essence in hours and that it looks like the Exalt is doing nothing more than a casual flip-through of material (as if looking for something dropped or on top). - Arafelis

True dat. -- BillGarrett

I think I'll add my voices to those who say this is a Larceny Charm. As an alternative, perhaps you could make an investigation charm that allows someone to "search" an area without actually disturbing it-- visualizing the Essence flows that make up the reality of an area, right down to the strokes of poetry that make up the nature of calligraphy, etc., etc.? -- IsawaBrian