[ArM5] The magic spoon thingy (was: intro & a couple ofquestions)

[Matthew L. Seidl]

On Fri, 7 Jan 2005 11:49:49 -0800, "Erik Dahl" writes:
>Matthew L. Seidl (>) wrote: 
>
>> Assume no penetration for all of this.
>>
>> I can a spell at at X.  X can now either penetrate my
>> parma (A) or can't (B).
>>
>> Magus Beta casts a spell at X.  X can now either
>> penetrate my parma (C) or it can't (D).
>>
>> if (C) - X can now get through my parma for free. So
>> I've opened a hole for others to exploit.  Be it via
>> spells, mendane means, whatever.  There's now a hole.
>
>That's correct, although only X can get through; if I cast another spell to
>throw X at you, you can resist that spell, even if you can't resist X. This
>is like the situation where the normal rock is thrown by magic; you can't
>resist the rock, but you can resist the force. The rock drops at your feet,
>and likewise X cannot hit you.

O.k.  I see where you're going now.

>Look at it like this: for as long as your spell lasts (or perhaps only until
>you perform your Parma ritual again), for the purposes of penetrating your
>Parmae, X is not considered a magical object. If I picked X up and threw it
>at you, or stuck you with it, or convinced it to attack you somehow, your
>Parma would not resist it.

If the above were via non-magical means.  If I magically picked it up,
you could resist that magic.

>I think we'll explore the ramifications of this idea better if we use
>specific examples. Here's a couple to get us started:
>
>1. Two magi ("you" and "me") are fighting. I create a wild boar with CrAn,
>and it attacks you. You resist it, because it's magical and you have a good
>Parma. Then you magically control the boar with ReAn, throwing it at my
>head. I resist that, because your spell creates magical force and that
>magical force cannot automatically pass through my Parma, and the boar
>slides off of me and lands, dazed. The next round, you cast a Sun ReAn spell
>that makes the boar obey your instructions, and you tell it to attack me. I
>take a heavy wound from its tusks, because it ignores my Parma. I'm very
>good at Animal, though, and next round I give the boar an overriding command
>to attack /you/ instead. This time the boar can ignore your Parma, because
>it's still affected by your ReAn spell. My CrAn spell only lasted for a
>diameter, and the boar vanishes, leaving us both badly wounded.

So, I could pick up the boar and drop it on you, as the boar is
non-magic, and thus can knock you down from on high.  Of course, you
can try to dodge, and if I aim the boar with Rego, it becomes resisted
again.

I guess the difference between mental control and physical control was
part of my missunderstanding of where you were going with this.  That
my mental control both makes me vulnerable to the physical boar, but
isn't something that normally interacts with parma at all.  

How about this example.  The above boar, after being ping-ponged
between our various mental controls, gets a CrIg spell cast to make
his tusks sheathed in fire.  Would that get through the parma's as its
part of the boar, or be resisted as a new spell?  What about spells to
make the boar better/stronger/more purple?

How about this.  You make yourself a cottage to sleep in with CrHe.
During the night, I come by and knock down your house with CrAu (I
huff and puff and blow it down).  You're crushed in the wreckage and
don't get parma to save yourself from the house, correct?

How about this one.  If spells from items act like they were cast be
the person who used the item, I make an item that puts polkadots on
all metal within voice range, unlimied uses.  And I hand it to my
shield grog.  First action in teh fight the shield grog activates
this.  Sure, the polkadots can get through his (non-existant) parma,
but can they get through mine?  If it goies by the creator of the item
instead of user, I just make one for someone else's shield grog, and
they make one for mine.

For other effects, let me think on this.  Starting to get later in teh
afternoon for me, and brain less sharp. :) But its good to think on
it.

-=- Matthew L. Seidl 		email: seidl at wraith.com                     =-=
=-= Research Scientist 			Project . . . What Project?	    -=-
-=- http://www.wraith.com/seidl                          -Morrow Quotes     =-=
=-= My friends tell me I lead far too interesting a life.                   -=-