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So, I saw that you can use the stealth skill to cast with subtlety. Can you also use the deceit skill? For example, a bard casting healing word could say something to make it sound like he is a divine caster (in the name of Larissa be healed!) A wizard could cast burning hands while saying May Nier’s flames burn you to cinders!!! A sorcerer could cast Fog Cloud saying “I call upon the spirits to hide our passage”. (That last one might get your in trouble for being a dirty savage and shaman, but avoid the notice of the Harvesters.)
I just wanted to confirm that there might be other ways to cast with subtlety to avoid those nasty notices.
Lucas
![\"8-)\"](\"{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_cool.gif\" "\\"Cool\\"")
I thought so. I was going to go lore bard, but valor bard legionnaire seemed an especially good fit.
![\":D\"](\"{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_biggrin.gif\" "\\"Very")
It is a good idea, just realize you’re not talking about casting with subtlety.
Casting with subtlety as a mechanic increases the CTN by 6 and the speed by 2. It automatically requires a Stealth (Primary) roll vs. either Passive Perception if not actively being observed or opposed check against Perception (Insight). If successful, no one notices you casting a spell or depending on the spell may not be able to tell the spell’s origin. Some spells will get situational benefits such as casting a darkness spell when already in shadows or a penalty – casting a gladius of light in the darkness. Some spells you can’t completely hide the effect of, even if you can conceal where it originated.
What you’re talking about doing is bluffing about the Source of the spell. There are no mechanical adjustments so casting the spell using this approach is as easy as it would be normally. Discern Residue can determine the Tradition the spell is from, though not the source. If you call out “May Nier’s flames burn you to cinders!” as long as it’s on the other list you can potentially get away with it. You still draw attention to yourself, potentially more than you would have otherwise for having cried out, but may be able to convince folks that things are as you say. However, confronted with someone who is capable of casting the spells in the Source you claim may prove a lot harder to persuade. The cants of each church are specific, so a priest of Cadic can probably tell listening to you or watching you if you’re invoking Cadic’s power in the way He intended. If not, you may be treated as a heretic for attempting to masquerade as a member of the Church when you’re not.
Far easier with the unwashed masses than the enlightened.
![\":)\"](\"{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_smile.gif\" "\\"Smile\\"")
From personal experience and mapping out progress, casting with subtlety costs you basically 1.5 Tiers of casting prowess at a slower speed. With the Adaptation: Rapid Spell, you can effectively turn a +7 CTN into a Speed +1, Strain +2 spell modifier and not be noticed. Playing a caster as intended by the way the world works, can be really challenging. I find it quite fun to figure out ways to try and do that effectively – such as you’ve proposed – to help make it worthwhile to offset the loss of effectiveness.
With a sweep of his hat,
Paul
(Hat, it’s the 5e board, not the ARG one
![\";)\"](\"{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_e_wink.gif\" "\\"Wink\\"")
)Wow! ARG sounds complicated.
At the risk of topic drift (avoiding the attention of Ymandragore) i would just like to note that A:RRG is really not all that complicated vis-a-via D&D. Its just different.
To my mind the big three differences are:
(1) you holistically build your character rather than have a class which largely defines you mechanically (instead you will have talents that largely determine what kind of cool stuff you can do beyond a basic attack, and skill ranks which will largely determine how well you do your stuff)
(2) long term, there are no finite resources. Hit points are called Stamina and if you can take a short 5 minute rest then they refresh. Spells, like martial maneuvers, can be used over and over again within the limits of strain (casting too many spells in a short period of time hurts you). So PCs that win a fight go back to “full strength.”
(3) initiative is handled differently than D&D. There is a master clock that records “ticks,” One, two there…after your first action you calculate the cost in ticks and don’t go again till the master clock catches up with you. Every action you take has a cost in “ticks.” So its possible to take more (faster) actions over the same number of ticks than someone who is doing something with a high cost. (For example stabbing someone with a dagger is usually 3 ticks. Stabbing someone with a bastard sword is usually 5 ticks. Moving usually costs 3 or 4 ticks. The bastard sword does more damage per hit than the dagger, but the dagger-wielder attacks more often).With all that said … The rules for casting without attracting the attention of Ymandragore will vary somewhat between the systems, but the principles are the same. (A) Better not to be seen casting arcane spells in public. Ever. (B) Having a lie/cover story in place if you are seen is a lot better than nothing. And a good plan B. (C) Hope that the module writers didn’t put anything in about Ymandragore.
![\":P\"](\"{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_razz.gif\" "\\"Razz\\"")
(sometimes true, too often not)
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