Post:Shocking Debilitation - 06/08/2014 - 09:07

Re: Shocking Debilitation · on 06/08/2014 09:07 AM CDT	1764
>>Neat thanks. What's the plan on what debilitations are and aren't shocking? It's kind of a complex question that has to be handled on a case by case basis by a GM who understands the shock lore. For instance, a thing that stuns someone wouldn't be shocking (probably) if it used a flash of light as the 'stun' mechanism (dazzle). It would be shocking if it induced acute psychic pain (mind shout, maybe?). A spell that induces sleep like NB is not shocking, a spell that induces sleep by dropping a tree on your head while leaving you miraculously uninjured would nevertheless be shocking. A spell that creates a poison cloud around someone would (probably) be shocking. A spell that summons a giant bee faerie that stings the heck out of the target would not be shocking. It basically comes down to the lore of the spell (in a lot of cases) rather than the actual effects of the spell. If the empath, by casting the spell, is the agent of direct, physical harm to another living entity, then generally that will be shocking. Sometimes non-physical harm can also be shocking, though. The devil is in the details. Is extreme nausea a physical harm? What if you make someone go completely numb, causing them to be more likely to hurt themselves? What if you shift one of their legs to be just a little shorter than the other, causing them to be slightly off balance? Is that direct, physical harm? What if you were able to, somehow, reawaken someone's latent empathy, causing them to experience the pain of all those around them? Is making someone into an Empath a direct harm to them? It's a tough call sometimes. Melete
This message was originally posted in The Empaths \ General Discussions - Empaths, by DR-MELETE on the play.net forums.