Howdy,

I'm starting up a Sorcerer game with my wife. We've done it before, but I'm having a sad case of creative block this time around. Anyhow, I'm going to post the player's notes, her character, and some other stuff, and hopefully you fine folks can help me out.

I'll put the player's notes here, and the remaining info in follow up posts.






Humanity

Humanity will measure Love. Not the watered down, universal brotherly
love, but the love between family members, very close friends, and
romantic lovers. Humanity checks will result depending how a
character's acts serve to strengthen bonds of Love, either those
directly involving the character, or between third parties.

Reaching zero Humanity will cause a person to become unlovable by
others, as well as loving no one himself. This need not happen
instantly. A mother may think she still loves her zero Humanity son,
but through her actions it will be clear that she does not.

Player characters are somewhat exempt from this effect. A player may
decide that her character will continue to love a zero Humanity
person, or that her zero Humanity character will continue to love.
However, the player must be aware that doing so breaks the
metaphysical rules of the game world.


Demons

For the demons I'm imagining an odd mix of Lovecraft's cosmicism with
the classic notion of Hell Beasts Thirsting for Souls. Well, not
souls exactly. (For this game, any afterlife issues are strictly
unknowable by demons or humans.) Demons, instead, desire to steal
humans, body and mind, from this world. Also, there is apparently
some pecking order, or bragging rights, depending on whom the demon
takes. Stealing an everyday human gains almost no credit. Only
stealing sorcerers seems worth the effort. And stealing one's own
sorcerer, to whom the demon is bound? That is considered the premier
catch.

However, Demons can only steal people who are at zero Humanity. The
demon must match its Power versus the person's Stamina. If it fails
it may keep trying until it succeeds. Once it succeeds, it and the
human are gone. That demon can be summoned again. The human is lost.
Who knows what happens to him, but surely it's not pleasant. (Note
that it is not sufficient to kill the person. The demon needs to take
him alive.)

Now, here's the scary part. The demons (more or less) manage to keep
this stealing sorcerers thing secret, particularly from their masters.
Someone somewhere probably knows what's going on, but the characters
will not. They just go on, blissfully trading their fundamental
humanity for awsome cosmic power, unaware of an ulterior plans.

The demons still have their standard desires and needs. They still
love to come to our world and live and play among us. They're not
necessarily eager to steal a sorcerer and leave here, but it is an
underlying drive they all have.

NPC sorcerers at zero Humanity are pretty much doomed. Even if their
own demons don't endevor to take them, some other (perhaps unbound)
demon may decide to give it a shot. Sooner or later he will get
taken.

Player characters, on the other hand, have a thin spark of hope. I
mentioned before that a PC can continue to love even at zero Humanity.
If during the actual attempted stealing of the sorcerer, she does
something that would warrant a Humanity gain, then she immediately
gains one point of Humanity. This nullifies the demons ability to
steal her. Note that such a thing has never happened before, and the
demon will be quite surprised.


Setting

The game is set in the modern day world, in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale
area.

Her Sorcerer:

Name: Maggie
Telltale: Wears silver ring with leaf design
Stamina: 4 Athletic Regime
Will: 4 Social Competence
Lore: 2 Apprentice
Cover: 4 Executive assistant at radio station
Price: -1 Difficulty dealing with authority figures
Humanity: 3

Notes: Maggie is a young, attractive, and shockingly ambitious girl.
It is clear to anyone around her that she is not happy with her place
in the pecking order, and fully intends to run things, to hell with
whoever gets in her way. And now she has a demon to help her. Sure,
it came at the cost of cozying up to "Firecracker Greg", one of the
morning DJ's. He even fancies himself her master, which is fine
enough. She'll bide her time, get his knowledge, and certainly NOT
let him into her pants.

She is estranged from her parents, but they're seldom in town anyhow,
jetting around the country in a retirement travel binge. Her sister
is still around, and these days is Maggie's only distinctly human
relationship.

Her Demon:

Name: Magnus
Type: Possessor
Telltale: Hosts have dark red fingernails
Stamina: 5
Will: 6
Lore: 5
Power: 6
Desire: Creation and artistry
Need: Must enact a pantomime murder of his master at least weekly
Powers: Cover, Hop (+Ranged), Cloak, Confuse
Notes: Only possesses men. Currently hosted by Angel (see below).

Her Kicker:

At a food court three days back, Maggie noticed a small mote of light
weaving through the crowd. She lost sight of it, but then from the
direction it had gone she her screaming followed by gun shots. It
turned out that some guy had suddenly freaked out and shot his
girlfriend during lunch. There seems to be no logical explanation for
his action.

Then two days ago she saw the same mote of light flash by when she was
waiting to cross the street. Moments later a driver lost control of
his car and crashed into a pole. The driver and his two children were
killed.

Yesterday morning she again saw the mote, now hovering outside her
building. When she got home from work that afternoon, there was
police tape blocking the door of the apartment above hers. She found
out the guy who lived there had hung himself. He'd just got a new job
a few months back, and seemed to be doing really well.

It's now morning, and she's woken up to see that very same mote of
light hovering just beyond the foot of her bed.


Important NPC:

"Firecracker Greg": Goes by Gregory among his friends. He's a
hot-shot morning DJ, but hitting his mid-thirties is getting somewhat
past him prime. He's divorced, collects overpriced Harley Davidson
motorcycles, and smokes smuggled Cuban cigars. He's tall, a bit
gaunt, but still has a full head of hair. Oh yeah, and he practices
the Blood Sorcery of Thuul, which he first learnt from the
preposterously titled Black Book of Bones. No one was more surprised
than him when the magic worked.

He has mainly used his powers to get chicks, money, and set himself up
with a sexy job. But it is getting old. He took on an apprentice,
this yummy little number who works upstairs. He just wanted to bag
her, but inexplicably his demons insisted that he teach her stuff.
Anyhow, she's been a quick study and actually has pulled of some magic
of her own. But "Firecracker" is getting tired of waiting for,
y'know, the Big Payoff.


Anne: Anne is Maggie's sister. She is a shade past thirty, has short
dark hair, wears faux-intellectual black-rimmed glasses, and dresses
rather conservatively in greys and earthtones. She's a partner in a
small advertising agency (12 employees), and lives in an apartment in
the trendier part of Coconut Grove. She has a new boyfriend, who she
met at church, Richard. He's an architect from Coral Gables.

Anne is actually a pretty solid person, and has kept up with Maggie
throughout all the problems in the family. She's taken on the rather
thankless role of peace-maker. The girls manage to have lunch
together at least a couple times a week.


Angel: Angel is a young Biscayne Boulevard street-walker, and also
currently host to Maggie's demon. Maggie has cleaned him up pretty
well and dressed him nicely. He's in rather poor shape physically,
HIV positive, and off his meds since the demon took him. He's still
alive in there, and although is personally has been pretty well
suppressed, he can still sense what is going on around him. He's very
afraid.

The mote of light is, of course, a demon. I don't have all of its details clear yet, but I'm pretty sure it will have Taint, Special Damage (non-lethal), Travel, and maybe Psychic Blast (waves of sorrow). Oh, and it's particularly vulneralable tennis rackets and the like. However, at this point I have no idea what it is up to, and why it's (seemingly) killing people.

I'm having trouble putting together a solid backstory. There are a few things I'm sure of:

1. Her sister is cool and certainly not involved in any sorcerous plots, being a good Christian girl and all. She will no doubt get dragged into things, but only as Maggie does. (And if Anne's b/f Richard does NOT get possessed by Magnus by the end of the tale I'll cry.)

2. "Firecracker Greg" is no true friend to Maggie, but neither is he a malicious foe. This guy uns on all the cheap aftertaste of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll. It's sad, really.

That means that the two major people in her life are not wrapped into the backstory in any way. And every idea I come up with is some version of "An Evil Arch-Sorcerer Wants to Destroy Her", which is so lame it frightens me. And "The Demons are Trying to Drain Her Humanity" is a given; I need more than that.

So, if anyone out there can pitch a few story seeds at me by appreciation of you will know no bounds. :)

Thanks in advance.

Hi Jeffrey,

Holy cats. As you might imagine, this will take a little while to sort out and process. And I hate to say it, but in many ways, this is Sex & Sorcery big-time, so I find myself dumbly gesturing toward my text instead of coming up with useful forum advice. With any luck your book will arrive soon and prove helpful.

So as I review and gesture (dumbly), anyone else's input will be vastly appreciated. Go to it.

Best,
Ron

Well, one thing that immediately came to my mind is the idea of Maggies Ambition. Beyond being stated...where is it.

My first suggestion would be to detail the office politics of the radio station...there are plenty of movies and such to draw upon for inspiration, not to mention old WKRP episodes. Make it as sad sack lame as Greg, or as high power corporate as desired.

The mote thing is VERY cool, but its not doing it for me as her kicker, but maybe that's just me coming at it from a different angle.

As an audience member, what *I'd* rather see as a kicker is something like:

"A major national radio corporation just bought out the local radio station. New bosses, new format, new corporate priorities, maybe even new DJs...if I'm ever going to get anywhere, now is the time".

Now you have something that has Maggie DOING something rather than reacting to "the evil mote coming to get me". She's ambitious she wants to move up...great...here's the opportunity...What's she going to do?

Simulataneously you have 'ole Firecracker whose comfortable life has just been shattered...he sees the handwriting on the wall and after a drunken binge of self pity realizes "he doesn't have to go soft into that good night"...he's a sorcerer damnit...and his priorities for dealing with his new bosses might just put him at odds with his young apprentice...

That's the angle I'd go with it anyway.

Edited to note the cross post with Ralph.

Bad economy means cuts at the radio station. Who will be let go? Or it turns out the program director has left (or is killed by the mote which follows Maggie to work) and there's a promotion to be had. Who'll get it?

A radio mogul is touring the station today thinking about buying it. Or a celebrity with the power to make carrers in media is visiting the station. Who'll turn his head? Or be assigned by station management to handle this person?

Another sorcerer trying to chase the mote shows up, and insists that Maggie is to blame for it not liking him and that she must help him summon it (essentially keep it in one place long enough to bind it). What can she wrangle in exchange?

Maggie's boyfriend accuses her of cheating because she's been hanging around Greg so much lately.

Maggie's parents return and want to see her (don't let players dictate their families out of their character's lives). They need her to sign off on some papers releasing her aunt's fortune to them. One parent want's to bribe her, but the other wants to reconcile (though they both think her carreer choice is sordid).

Greg gives her a sex for lore ultimatum.

The ghosts of the car accident come back to haunt her to get rid of the mote.

Anne's boyfriend hits on Maggie.

Anne fails to show for a lunch date. Greg, or the mote, or Angel or someone's using her as bait, hostage, etc.

Angel has some sort of episode at an unfortunate moment (socially) requiring hospitalization.


Remember, bangs, not plots.

Mike

Hi Jeffrey,

Dude, you so need a relationship map to be working with. You need it so bad it hurts.

Try this, from John D. MacDonald's A Purple Place for Dying:

Husband A and wife B, plus wife's lover C
Father D of wife B, long dead, was husband's best friend
Sister E of wife's lover
Long-ago lover F of husband A (long before he married the wife)
Their daughter G, unknown to husband A
F's current husband H
Their two sons I and J

In the book: B and C are eloping, but A doesn't mind (contrary to everyone else's POV). F, I, and J are angling for inheritance from A; they kill B and C but keep it secret, then plan kill A later and step forward to claim the intestate inheritance.

Take the above "in the book" part and tweak everything as you see fit. Hell, change it all; the map itself offers tons of potential interpersonal conflict and agendas once you draw it and look at it.

Then: assign parts in the map to some (not all!) of the NPCs so far, including the murder victims. It seems to me perfectly reasonable for the demonic mote to be the agent used by F, I, and J to do the killing - hell, it could even replace I or J, probably a good idea.

So why are they after our sorceress now? Easy peasy. The mote demon and the Possessor demon are in cahoots for demonic purposes of their own.

Remember! The point is not for the sorceress to "discover" all or even any of this material. It shouldn't be hidden from investigation, nor should it be prioritized by the GM. It's just stuff to work with to give all the NPCs something to do, much of which gets in the sorceress' face; sooner or later, the player will get interested enough in one or another NPC for the sorceress to start doing stuff.

Best,
Ron

Oh yeah,

Jeffrey, make sure to catch the very weird old film, Incubus. It stars William Shatner (pre- Star Trek) and it's in Esperanto of all things.

But watch it, you'll see why.

Best,
Ron

This is great. Thanks guys.

In no particular order:

Ralph,

I'll run that kicker by her and she if it sounds more interesting to her. About her ambition, currently it's rather unfocused in her mind, which leaves me little to work with. She does seem to pull this stuff out during actuall play, thouch, so I'm not super concerned. Your kicker idea would put it into high gear.


Mike,

Goint point on her parents. She (my wife, that is) has a habit of making disconnected characters and its been a problem in the past, so getting her sister involved was progress. Family will play a big part, I think.

As with Ralph's idea, the office politics stuff is cool.


Ron,

Yeah, I've been avoiding doing a map for, uh .... well ... no good reason really. BTW, I'm pretty free to tweak the exact details of who gets killed in the kicker, so I could have B&C be the folks in the car, maybe. All that is really fixed is that is be a murder, an accident, and a suicide. I'm not sure why; it just seemed cool to have one of each.

Do you think its imperative to have the other victims fit into the map? Might their killings just be, well, senseless?

Thinking out loud here, perhaps the murder of B&C was motivated by the mote's master, but the others were added in to fit some grand spectacle of death that Mote (needs a name) just enjoys so. Perhaps. Hmmm.

Another possibility is for A to have had a really nasty past and make the other victims possible (however not obvious) rivals for the inheritance. (Actually I like the first idea better.)

Oh, and do I have to know Esperanto? :)

Hi Jeffrey,

Couple-three points ...

1. Never fuck with a player's stated Kicker. I've done it in the past and I've always regretted it. If it's kind of light in terms of what Ralph would like to see, then it's merely an opportunity for you to "spike" it during the first session. See my dialogue with Tor in the back of The Sorcerer's Soul.

Personally, I consider this player's Kicker to be perfectly adequate and full of fun things to do. Think of anything vague about it to be a request on her part to you.

2. Yes, by all means, permit some of the killings to be senseless or at least not connected to the map. I'm a big foe of having everything in a scenario be connected and significant. You could combine your two options, you know, such that B & C are the targets, one of the other killings is a kind of an ego toss-off ("Oh yeah, get that bitch who sneered at me in the seventh grade, too"), and let the others be essentially innocent bystanders.

3. Fortunately Incubus is subtitled. Although somehow that seems to me to underscore the basic tragic underpinning of Esperanto and any similar endeavor ... "What if we threw a party celebrating world peace and nobody came?" But I digress.

Best,
Ron

ehhh, regarding kickers couple of points.

1) While I agree you don't fuck with a player's kicker, (that is the point of kickers after all) there's nothing that says the process can't be collaborative with suggestions and ideas going back and forth.

2) Before making a blanket statement of "Never", I'd distinguish between a kicker that a player is really enthused about and thinks would be really cool, and one that got created because that was the point in character creation when the GM said "ok, now give me a kicker" and this was what got written down. Obviously, I don't know how devoted she is to the mote idea.

As to the over all concept what didn't work for me was that there were two completely seperate things going on. On the one hand you have a pretty cool set-up with a radio station and a DJ and a pretty clear if undeveloped concept of the character as possessing great career ambition. On the other hand, you have the mote thing which is pretty cool, but seems entirely seperate and unrelated to the radio station thing.

My advice would be to pick one and go with that. My idea above was a suggestion to pick the radio thing and leave the mote idea in the creative woodpile for later. On the other hand, focusing on the mote would be pretty cool, but at that point you've pretty much reduced the radio station to background color that doesn't seem particularly important...she could be anyone and have the mote event happen to her. This to me is the core of the problem Stim's having in not being able to tie the backstory into it without being contrived.

Hiya,

Ralph, point taken about the "Never." The trouble is when the GM gets a little too invested in "making the perfect Kicker," all the while insisting that this is an example of player author-power. It happens a lot with new Sorcerer GMs who are trying to be ultra-Ron-ish and frustrates the hell out of players. I'd prefer them to err on the other end of the spectrum.

So this is where the GM gets to be ... well, what people think of when they say "GM." Jeffrey's free to tack that mote (as well as the map I was talking about) into any and all aspects of that radio station as far as he wants to. Your presentation makes it sound like either/or, and I'm suggesting that the one be folded into the other. I provided the map as a tool for that purpose.

Best,
Ron

Absolutely. That's why I prefaced my first post with what would be interesting to me as an audience member. It certainly was not a prescription for the "right way" to do it.

The folding the ideas together may be a fantastic way to go. From where I'm sitting though it seems like it could equally go the other way. Sort of like if you're watching The Secret to My Success and watching MJ Fox go through all the gyrations of corporate ambition while flirting with his love interest and then midway through they introduce a murder investigation that takes over the whole story. It would leave me thinking "whoa, where'd that come from from, what happened to this other stuff I was getting into"

I mention that only to provide context for why I made the suggestion I did, just to bring a little focus to things.

I liked the idea about the corporate takeover at the station, and Greg deciding to make damn sure he remains viable in the new market by using sorcery... Do we know who Greg's demon(s) are?

I also like the tying together of the mote with the radio events... which you can do DURING play if you want, without revising the kicker. Just tie them together whenever it seems appropriate.

Maybe the people killed by the Mote were obstacles to Greg's continued success? Maybe they were listeners to the station who had called in to complain about his show. Maybe they were family members of the corporate bigwigs who moved against him, or rival DJs, or whatever. Maybe the only reason he's held off letting it take the PC is because he's waiting to get laid (or because he fears her own sorcerous revenge if he fails).

Just my 2c. =>

See, Nev's got it.

The point is that the player has given the GM the mote. Now it's the GM's job to pretend (I guess you can look at it that way) as if the mote was his idea from the start, and not only that, his cherished and favorite idea.

Best,
Ron

Howdy folks,

I thought I'd give an update on all this.

First off, thanks for all the ideas. Everyone was a huge help.

I let the various suggestions stew around in my head for a week and came up with this. Ralph's ideas about politics at the station were just too good to pass up, so I integrated them into the situation, but managed to keep the kicker more-or-less in tact. I'm pretty happy with what I have. So, without further ado ....

The player's notes remain the same, except for the "Important NPC's" section, which has been redone (see below). There was a minor change in the kicker. In the original a boyfriend shot his girlfriend at the food court. In the new version is was a husband shooting his wife.

So, here is the Important NPC's section. I will give my GM notes in the next post. The player gets to read this stuff as you see it.



"Firecracker Greg"

Goes by Gregory among his friends. He's a hot-shot morning DJ on
"Power Rock Radio WYRD!", but hitting his mid-thirties is getting
somewhat past him prime. He's divorced, collects overpriced Harley
Davidson motorcycles, and smokes smuggled Cuban cigars. He's tall, a
bit gaunt, but still has a full head of hair. Oh yeah, and he
practices the Blood Sorcery of Thuul, which he first learnt from the
preposterously titled Black Book of Bones. No one was more surprised
than him when the magic worked.

He has mainly used his powers to get chicks, money, and set himself up
with a sexy job. But it is getting old. He took on an apprentice,
this yummy little number who works upstairs. He just wanted to bag
her, but inexplicably his demons insisted that he teach her stuff.
Anyhow, she's been a quick study and actually has pulled of some magic
of her own. But "Firecracker" is getting tired of waiting for,
y'know, the Big Payoff.


Anne:

Anne is Maggie's sister. She is a shade past thirty, has short dark
hair, wears faux-intellectual black-rimmed glasses, and dresses rather
conservatively in greys and earthtones. She's a partner in a small
advertising agency (12 employees), and lives in an apartment in the
trendier part of Coconut Grove. She has a new boyfriend, who she met
at church, Richard. He's an architect from Coral Gables.

Anne is actually a pretty solid person, and has kept up with Maggie
throughout all the problems in the family. She's taken on the rather
thankless role of peace-maker. The girls manage to have lunch
together at least a couple times a week.


Bobby:

Bobby is Greg's always down on his luck brother. Currently he is
working for a rental outfit doing small engine maintenance, but he
gets stoned at work and will likely lose his job soon. Gregory is
constantly having to bail him out of tough situations, for which Bobby
shows little appreciation. He doesn't live with Greg anymore, having
been thrown out a few years back, but still lurks about the place.


Jen:

Jen is Gregory's ex-wife. She was a real hottie at age nineteen, but
is now hitting thirty and starting to show a bit of age. She makes up
for it with really great clothes. She lives off the divorce
settlement, doesn't have to work, and keeps a few trophy boyfriends
around. She knows all the "right people", and regularly sees
Greggory, where she is sure to show off her latest hunk. She can be
"had", if supplied with cocaine.


Mr. Adams:

Mr. Adams is the district manager of Farx Communications. This means
that he manages a half dozen local radio stations all owned by one
nationwide media company. He is the boss of Maggie's direct boss.

There has been much pressure, both from corporate and within the local
offices, to change the WYRD format. Firecracker Greg would likely
lose his job if this happened. Mr. Adams has been the one consistent
voice resisting this change.


Silvia:

Silvia is the local director of marketing. However, it is well known
that she is also the eyes and ears of the corporate office, sort of an
intra-company spy reporting on goings on in the stations which don't
get officially reported. She is a vocal critic of the WYRD format.


Ricardo:

Ricardo is a Latin music DJ, currently languishing on an AM station.
He would just kill to get an FM spot, and hopes that the now
vulnerable WYRD may change to a Latin format giving him an opening.
There are rumors that he is sleeping with Silvia.


Angel:

Angel is a young Biscayne Boulevard street-walker, and also currently
host to Maggie's demon. Maggie has cleaned him up pretty well and
dressed him nicely. He's in rather poor shape physically, HIV
positive, and off his meds since the demon took him. He's still alive
in there, and although is personally has been pretty well suppressed,
he can still sense what is going on around him. He's very afraid.


Sister Maria:

Sister Maria is a modern day nun. She doesn't dress like a penguin,
but does wear very modest clothes. She spends most of her time
involved in local Catholic charities, helping people and stuff. It
turns out she is Angel's real life sister, and is perhaps singularly
responsible for keeping him on his meds and not in too much trouble.
Since his possession she has had no contact with him, and is very
worried. She calls him "Angelo", with a soft g.

Still reading all of this? :)

Ok, so here are my GM notes, detailing the situation, and a list of potential bangs. I didn't stat out each NPC. Those not included will simply roll 2 or 3 dice for everything, as I see fit. I surely won't use all the bangs; some are mutually contradictory, but I expect I have enough not be left without ideas during play.

GM notes. The player does not see this.

The situation:


A few months back Greg failed in performing a summoning. But actually
he didn't fail, the demon did arrive after Greg had turned away. His
brother, Bobby, was lurking about, saw what was going on, and bound
the demon. Bobby is now fixated on getting back at his brother for
all the unfairness in life. The demon spies on Greg, and has taken to
ruining his life.

The events in Anne's kicker are related to this. The woman (Jenny)
shot by her husband (Mike) was having an affair with Mr. Adams. The
young man who suicided (Jake) was his illegitimate son (from another
relationship) who Adams was paying off to keep the whole thing quiet.
Greg knew this stuff (from his own devices) and was using them as
low-grade blackmail to ensure Adam's support in keeping WYRD alive.
Bobby is throwing a big wrench into this situation. The man killed in
the car, however, was a customer of Bobby's who had complained about
his smoking pot at work. In each case the demon used a combination of
Taint and Suggestion to drive the victims mad.

Bobby also thinks that Greg is in love with Maggie, and is messing
with her.


NPC's


Name: Firecracker Greg
Telltale: Gold ring of bones
Stamina: 3 Natural Vigor
Will: 5 High self esteem, Zest for life
Lore: 4 Adept
Cover: 5 Radio DJ
Price: -1 on any roll that requires he trust another person
Humanity: 2

Greg's demons:

Name: Lucio
Type: Inconspicuous
Telltale: Low mumbling
Stamina: 4
Will: 5
Lore: 4
Power: 5
Desire: Competition
Need: Time on air
Powers: Cover (funny guy), Fast, Sp. Dam (lethal, claws), Big
Bound: Gregory +1
Notes: tiny, lives on Greg's person. Is a regular "guest" on
Greg's show.

Name: Moonbat
Type: Parasite
Telltale: Host has extra "voice" in his laughter
Stamina: 3
Will: 4
Lore: 3
Power: 4
Desire: Mayhem
Need: An occasional bar fight
Powers: Vitality, Protection (from all poisons), Perception (hearing)
Bound: Gregory +2
Notes: when not in host appears as bubbling mist.


Name: Anne
Stamina: 4 Clean living
Will: 6 Belief system (Evangelical Protestant), High self esteem
Lore: 0
Cover: 6 Advertiser
Humanity: 8


Name: Bobby
Telltale: "Haunted look"
Stamina: 3 Natural vigor
Will: 3 Rageful and vengeful
Lore: 1 Naif
Cover: 3 Mechanic
Price: -1 Pothead
Humanity: 1

Name: Moebius
Type: Inconspicuous
Telltale: Mote of light
Stamina: 5
Will: 6
Lore: 5
Power: 6
Desire: Corruption
Need: To cause suffering
Powers: Travel, Sp. Dam (non-lethal, shock), Taint,
Psychic Force (whispered suggestion),
Perception (dark secrets)
Bound: Bobby -3
Notes: The Psychic Force manifests itself as a whisper-in-the-ear
effect. Its "damage" only effects attempts to resist
suggestion. Combined with Taint, this can lead to rather
unfortunate behavior by the target.


Name: Mr. Adams
Stamina: 2
Will: 5 High self esteem, Zest for life
Lore: 0
Cover: 5 Business Executive
Humanity: 4


Name: Angel
Telltale: Dark fingernails (see Magnus)
Stamina: 2 HIV Positive
Will: 4 Zest for life
Lore: 0
Cover: 4 Street walker
Humanity: 0
Notes: When Sister Maria is with Angel, or at least seeing him on a
daily basis, his humanity is raised to 1. Magnus's cloak
won't work on Sister Maria when Angel is the host.


Name: Sister Maria
Telltale: Rune scarred on leg
Stamina: 3 Denial of the flesh
Will: 6 Belief system (Catholic), High self esteem
Lore: 4 Follows all manner of Caribbean occultism (Santoria, etc.)
Cover: 6 Nun
Price: -1 Problems keeping dogma straight
Humanity: 8
Notes: Has a crucifix set up as a Contain with 7 dice.




Big Bandolier of Bangs

* Mr. Adams does not come to work, but lots of police show up asking
questions about him. (They've connected some dots.)

* While Maggie is with Anne, Magnus/Angel shows up and makes very
inappropriate remarks to Anne. He also acts as if he's Maggie's
kinky lover.

* Magus demands that Maggie provide his need RIGHT NOW!

* While Magus is acting out his need on Maggie, Anne walks in.

* Greg demands that Magnus possess Mr. Adams to prevent him from
revealing the blackmail to the police.

* Greg demands that Maggie help in killing Silvia and Ricardo.

* Or, Silvia and Ricardo are murdered, and it is clear to Maggie that
it was done by Greg. (Perhaps she finds a body, or gets dragged in
by police for questioning.)

* Greg delivers an ultimatum to Maggie to stay at his house this
weekend (for obvious reasons).

* If Magnus leaves Angel, Greg and/or Magnus try to kill Angel to stop
him from talking about what he's seen.

* Same as above, but for any other possession victims.

* For any number of reasons, Greg attacks Maggie.

* Bobby tries to turn Maggie against Greg.

* The police notice that Maggie is a common element in the current
goings on and and begin harassing and tailing her.

* Sister Maria recognizes Angel in public somewhere.

* Sister Maria manages to capture Magnus in her Contain and takes him
back to her convent for a formal Banishment.

* Out of spite, Magnus possesses Richard, and begins playing his
little need games with Anne.

* Moebius shows up to cause trouble.

* Jen shows up to cause trouble. She has been zapped down to zero
Humanity by Moebius.

* Greg murders Bobby, binds Moebius, and uses it against Maggie to
break her down, for obvious reasons.

* If Maggie and Greg are together, and both pretty banged up (hehe),
Bobby shows up with Moebius and gives his "Mom always loved you
best" speech. Then he tries to kill them, Maggie first.

Hi Jeffrey,

Here's what I found I'd scribbled in the margins, after I'd printed out this thread and read through it.

1. Lucio and Moonbat need to be up to something, or invested in something interesting, whether it's connected to the relationship map or not. Might they be competing to see who'll be the one to nab Greg?

2. Moebius is key. What's its agenda? We know Bobby's, but, frankly, so what? Perhaps it does not intend to kill Maggie at all, but rather would prefer her as a master. Or perhaps it badly needs help. Give this demon a starring role!

(and later, in the Bang section) - Don't forget that the opening scene is Moebius + Maggie, and no one else except maybe Magnus/Angel. The GM better have a strong handle on playing Moebius to generate passion, interest, and excitement. "I'm a mysterious mote of light" isn't going to cut it. [and the bandolier-entry that says "Moebius shows up to cause trouble" gives me a distinct twitch; it implies to me that all the GM is ready to do is "be mysterious"]

3. What's with the ultra-high Humanity for so many NPCs?

4. Regarding the Bang bandolier, I'm seeing a lot of confrontations for Maggie. I suggest mixing it up with appeals to her from people who need her on their side or who are just plain in trouble. Or whole new avenues ... say the police begin tailing her. Why not play a given police guy as a straight-up, decent, handsome fellow? If the player takes to him, there you go - a whole new thing going on.

I'm also seeing a distinct lack of the demon agenda - shouldn't at least a few potential Bangs be the attempted capture of a sorcerer by his or her demon?

Best,
Ron

Hey Ron,

Good point on the demons. Up to now I haven't thought of them as characters per se, just sort of, y'know, "demons". I see why that's a problem.

"Ooooo ... I'm a mysterious mote of light!!!" :)

On high Humanity, I'm not really sure on what scale NPC Humanity should fall. As in, what was Ghandi's Humanity score? Looking again, however, Anne's should probably be dropped down. I'm pretty sure I want Sister Maria's score to be quite high, given who she is.

I didn't list demons capturing their sorcerer in the bangs, but I did have that idea in mind, just that it would follow naturally from a zero Humanity sorcerer.

A handsome decent cop. Hmmmm. It turns out I have a hard time doing sympathetic male characters. I'm sure that fact is up to its elbows in Sex and Sorcery implications, given that I'm playing with my wife. I do see what you're saying, though, with appeals for help and such. I'll probably have to let it stew for a few days until something hits me.

Anyhow, thanks again. All of this is invaluable.

Hi Jeffrey,

Regarding Humanity scores, remember, do not use Humanity as a a "goodness" meter. Given your Humanity definition, think of it as the character's history of love.

Quotin' you:

Not the watered down, universal brotherly love, but the love between family members, very close friends, and romantic lovers.

* sound of hand slapping forhead *

Of course! You're right about the Humanity thing. Looks like I'll have to lower Sister Maria's Humanity quite a bit, and otherwise rethink her.

Now, to put you on the spot, what Humanity score would you give Anne? As in the exact number? Not that I'll slavishly follow you're recommendation. I just want to get a feel for your scale. Keep in mind she's: solid with her parents; solid (so far) with her sister, even throughout the family issues; in a good relationship; and so on. Is 8 stratospheric?



Here are some thoughts on the demons. I'm just "thinking out loud" here. (And, for others reading this: Don't make my mistake! Remember that the demons need to be fully realized characters.)

Their desires:

Lucio: Competition
Moonbat: Mayhem
Moebius: Corruption
Magnus: Creation and Artistry

So, I'm thinking Moebius is a real bad apple, even by demon standards. The thing is, Moebius hasn't been on Earth that long and rather likes it. It would like to delay the whole "steal a sorcerer" thing for at least a little while. However, it's clear that Bobby is on a collision course, so Moebius is looking around for a new master. Its choices: Greg or Maggie. Maggie is the more stable of the two, so it is going to temp her to help it break from Bobby (or just take him out) and bind it. It's not going to be honest, of course. I think its first line might be, "Please help me. I'm enslaved."

(By the way, the -3 binding strength means 3 dice in the demon's favor. It's hardly enslaved. Also, its current need doesn't work. It could just kill Bobby and supply itself. I'll have to fix that.)

Now Moebius has a problem. It wants a more stable sorcerer, and it desires corruption. I don't think it can maintain both. This is fine with me. I see no reason that a demon should be wise regarding its desires (to say the least). The question is, can its master weather the storm?

OK, I like Moebius.

Moonbat likes violence. He isn't a very deep character. I shall allow myself the luxury of one simplistic demon.

Now Lucio. Lucio likes competition. Hmmmmm. With whom? Moonbat is a pushover. Magnus? Aha! Moebius of course!

See, Lucio wanted Greg to summon Moebius. Told him all about it: this demon that had all the abilities Greg would need for the looming political fracas at the station. Lucio is bored and wants Greg to fall apart soon, and wants the extra honor of beating a worthy opponent when stealing Greg. And it was dopey, loyal Moonbat who screwed up the summoning. And when Lucio finds out that Moebius is actually here .... well something will happen.

Now Magnus. Creation and Artistry is a bitch. I mean, do we really want a demon setting up a bunch of pink islands in Biscayne Bay? So, I've been thinking of it as a rather aesthetic version of Corruption. It views its need as performance art, and wants its art to be seen. This is, I confess, rather thin.

Magnus clearly needs to have an opinion on Moebius.

Hi Jeffrey,

I'd put Ann's Humanity at the highest of either her Stamina or Will, just goin' by the basic character creation rules. No sweat, no strain. You might be going a little far with your "... Must ... justify ... every NPC's ... scores!" habits.

Hey, you know what you're resisting? Liking Magnus. Exactly - clearly you like this demon. Clearly you feel some guilty pleasure in what it's about, even knowing that its presence as-a-demon is a negative thing for Humanity/Love. Know what to do now? Indulge your darkest self when playing it. By "darkest," I do not mean your capacity to gross out other people (which is what most people do when they try to be "dark"). I mean, read over what you just wrote about Magnus. Now apply it to Maggie's ambitions about the radio station - radio is art, man! Totally! Appealing, in a kind of sick way, huh?

Cool. Do that.

Now, thinking about that upcoming first scene, you have these Moebius (whom you also like) and Magnus face to face. Are you ready to put these two "parts of your brain" together as a player, by playing these two demon characters simultaneously? Are you ready then, as a GM, to do so in such a fashion that your fellow player sees her character protagonized, i.e., given massive crisis for major decisions? Are you ready as a husband to communicate all of this to your actual wife, using any and all real-life relationship cues to make it the absolute center of your shared attention?

Best,
Ron