[Sorcerer] Travel and Transport

[Moah]

Hi,

I've recently reread Sorcerer, to prepare a session for tonight, and my players almost all picked Travel as a demon power. I had read that Travel was exclusively a "demon target" power (ie the demon can only use it on itself), and that you needed Transport to have the demon carry you around, so you could benefit from the Travel too.
However they read it correctly as Travel is a power that targets the user (who doesn't have to be the demon, but can be the master). On the spot, I ruled my misinterpretation as the correct one, but I'm now wondering, what's the exact interaction between these two powers as written.
More precisely, what is Transport good for. If you don't have Travel, your demon is only moving at the same speed as you would (more or less), and if you take Travel, you just have to specify the user to be you (the master), and you can be traveled without problem.
Why ever take Transport then? Only to allow your demon to take more than one passenger?

Thanks,
Gwenael.

[jburneko]

Consider that I want a demon that lets me "Walk through walls."  That demon would have the Travel (Walk through walls) ability and it confers to me (or rather my character).  But now let's say that I want my character to be able to take his friends with him when he walks through walls.  Well, then, the demon needs the Transport ability (which confers as well).

Make sense?

Jesse

[Ron Edwards]

Hiya,

Transport is the "carry passenger" ability that permits the demon to carry more than its other scores would indicate. If you want a demon that's a ship or a car, for instance.

If the demon confers it to another user, then it's like the superhero power that permits them to fly the whole team somewhere, or open up a dimensional gate they can all work through.

Best,
Ron

[Frank T]

I was wondering about those two powers as well. Say I take "travel", specified as entering into any given mirror and appearing out of any other given mirror (with a corresponding "perception" power), and both powers confer to the sorcerer... does that mean he cannot take his demon with him? And, related: Does the demon have to be close in order for the sorcerer to use the power? (In other words: how does he get back?)

Or is this totally up to the group?

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Frank,

As for bringing the demon with him, this depends on what sort of demon and how the two are physically associated. This is partly up to the group, in terms of the shared look & feel of sorcery in that game, but that's not the same as saying "the rules don't matter."

Let's consider Travel without Transport. That does not mean the character using Travel has to go naked and unaccompanied. He or she (or it) can take along whatever is reasonably associated with his (etc) body - that might include a Parasite demon, a gun, or even someone carried in his arms. As long as it can be carried by his Stamina level without, say, staggering under the weight of a small vehicle on his back. But the person doing the Traveling is just the one character. That is key.

Let's consider Transport without Travel. That means the Transporter (heh) can carry one or more others along without any hassle or extra effort. Without Travel, that means normal human movement. Someone doing this could walk or run along with a number of others floating along beside him as he sees fit. It could also mean a big ol' riding lizard-demon who can carry a number of passengers on its back. With this ability, think of passengers as effectively moving too, without impetus of their own, based on the movement of the Transporter.

See the difference? They really are two different things, and in combination, make a third thing.

Final point: do not forget that Travel and Transport, as abilities, do contribute to demonic fatigue. The units of use (i.e. what constitutes a Stamina point) should be thought of in terms of commitment, not yards or hours or miles, as with all demon abilities.

Best,
Ron

[Frank T]

Thanks Ron! That makes sense. In my case, the demon is Inconspicious. I imagine him as just a slight glitter in the air, materializing as a demonic mask in mirrors. Kind of hard to "carry". Maybe I'll change it around a bit, or even make it an Object or Parasite.

- Frank

[Andrew Cooper]

Frank,

Just chiming in here.  But if you were in a group with me, given that your demon is inconspicious and already has a tie to mirrors in its telltale, I'd probably be alright with the demon just going with you when you Travel.  Perhaps your group is different but I'd at least bring it up before changing the type of the demon.

[Ron Edwards]

I'm with Gaerik, Frank - that demon seems tailor-made to accompany the character through the mirrors. Don't make it harder than it is ...

Best,
Ron

[Frank T]

Don't make it harder than it is ...

Me? Never.

- Frank