Aberrant RPG - Screwing Around with Chrysalis

[metaphysician]

Reading an old thread reminded me of the fact that, by canon, you can't really *do* anything much to mess around with a nova undergoing Chrysalis. Even dissection doesn't really disrupt or alter the process?

This in turn, reminded me of the one exception to such known in the campaign I play in, involving a powerful time controller using his abilities to speed up a chrysalis. It worked ( will work; the time sequence is vague ), though it really messed up the time controller.

Has anyone else ever tried to alter the duration or results of someone else's Chrysalis? If so, how? And what happened?

[Alex Green]

Reading an old thread reminded me of the fact that, by canon, you can't really *do* anything much to mess around with a nova undergoing Chrysalis. Even dissection doesn't really disrupt or alter the process?

I'm not sure about that. We don't have rules that say dissecting a nova messes things up. But we don't have rules saying that about it messing up his Q-Gadget or Art Project either.

[metaphysician]

Put another way, the books haven't said anything about Fong being horribly screwed by the 'exploratory surgery' Proteus was doing, nor did her chrysalis spontaneously detonate.

[Alex Green]

Put another way, the books haven't said anything about Fong being horribly screwed by the 'exploratory surgery' Proteus was doing, nor did her chrysalis spontaneously detonate.

Sure, but all that means is with how bad she is, they couldn't make her any worse. Considering how bad she already is that's not saying much. Then we have the whole "regen" thing.

[metaphysician]

Like I implied, "worse" could include "your cutting around caused the nova and chrysalis to explode in some horrible high quantum effects." That said, I do believe you can *kill* a nova in chrysalis.

Anyway, some powers that could likely alter the progression of a Chrysalis:

-Quantum Authority and Supremacy: chrysalis is a quantum transformation, it'd only make sense that these could alter its length or consequences, though it'd probably be dicier than doing similar effects on a normal state nova

-Stuff like Aberration Transfer or Sin Eaters Taint Manipulation. Admittedly, these would probably be even more unpredictable. . .

[Alex Green]

Node Spark + Attune 5.

[metaphysician]

Node Spark + Attune 5.

Gah! Only if you *want* to blow the guy up. . .

Though, huh, *could* you use Node Spark and Attunement to effect someone else, as opposed to simply extending the powers effects on you to them?

[Alex Green]

You can argue it both ways so it's ST call.

But in theory Attune lets you affect the attuned object as though it were apart of your body as far as power use goes.

In theory and in practice your node doesn't need to be in your head (various bodymods let you distribute organs).

There's no reason why someone with those bodymods can't have NS.

So in theory you can spark any node that's a part of you.

[metaphysician]

Huh, sounds plausibly. I'd still be inclined to say "doing this to a nova in chrysalis will have horrible, unpredictable consequences on the nova, you, and anyone else in a mile radius. Do you wish to proceed?"

[Alex Green]

Just one mile? How about...

"You find Divis' Chrysalis, he still has his 2x Mastery INV and Armor since those are perm powers. Do you want to use NS on him or walk away?"

[metaphysician]

Hahaha, though you'd have to consider whether you want to put a planetbusting 'weapon' in play like that. ::wink

That said, probably a false dilemma in this case, as one of Divis' invulnerabilities is almost certainly 'quantum manipulation'. And I, at least, would let you use such an invulnerability to stop someone else from Node Sparking you.

[Alex Green]

RE: INV

Ya, point.

RE: Planet busting

Do it on Mars.

[metaphysician]

"The good news: Divis Mal didn't actually explode."

"The bad news: the massive release of quantum energy just caused surviving bacterial spores deep under the surface to spontaneously develop into an entire civilization, complete with high tech giant walkers and a penchant for warfare and conquest."

[Alex Green]

Yes, there are risks, but leaving him out would have been even riskier. After all, AFAWCT, it's not like he can create a universe to his own liking and leave.

[SkyLion]

That was sarcasm right Alex?

[metaphysician]

I think what he means is, *if* some non-Terats found Divis Mal's chrysalis ( and somehow weren't killed by Scripture, or whatever ungodly defense systems I'm sure surround it ), taking it to Mars and then doing something absolutely insane is safer than just letting a mad god wander around free.

In practice, it'd probably turn out a complete disaster, but the people involved don't really know that, ultimately, Divis Mal won't end up *doing* all that much before ultimately going off to make his own world. So, "risk of blowing up Mars" is less than "risk Mal might blow up Earth one day."

[Alex Green]

Metaphyscian has it. And if it does get ugly and if we do lose Mars, well, we weren't doing much with it.

The core problem is Divis is unbeatable and he's probably going to create his own world by reshaping ours. I think the Terat book even says something to that effect, create a new world by destroying the old one.

[metaphysician]

Either that, or someone needs to figure out a way to temporarily negate taint and chrysalis aberrations. . .

Divis Mal: ". . .huh, what was I doing just now?"

[Alex Green]

Sounds like a job for Plank Scaling. ::devil

[metaphysician]

If you have Plank Scaling, you don't *need* clever tricks to defeat Divis Mal.

Though, technically, you could build a Gadget with Plank Scaling, if you stuck enough weaknesses on it. . .

[Alex Green]

If you have Plank Scaling, you don't *need* clever tricks to defeat Divis Mal.

For him I'd use both, just in case.

Though, technically, you could build a Gadget with Plank Scaling, if you stuck enough weaknesses on it. . .

Now why does this sound like a *bad* idea? ::devil ::laugh

[Finbar]

But it does explain all of those bad Marvel Moments...

FR

[metaphysician]

Now why does this sound like a *bad* idea? ::devil ::laugh

Because its oh-so-totally a Hermes plan? ::cool

"We need lots of weapons quickly. . . I know! I'll build a device to generate a persistent zone of fast time!"

*cough*

More seriously, yeah, if you build something like that when your not at least Q8 yourself? Don't drop it. Try not to fail any rolls. Don't get creative with how its used. And for the sake of everyone on your planet, don't botch.

[Alex Green]

I think we had someone in the Prof's game try to do this... and the Devries Mega-Int 5 tech babe claimed the mostly likely result was an extinction level event. We were pretty lucky in that we only lost one city.

[metaphysician]

Sounds about right.

In the case I mentioned, there were two notable side effects of *normal* operations:

1. Don't actually activate, or finish assembling, any gadgets that generate a slow or stop time effect in the field. The expected result is "space/time rift that dumps everyone nearby into the White Void."

2. The thing apparently acts as something of a beacon to anybody with advanced temporal powers. Which is to say, any of the Q6+ time travellers who happens to pass through or near the era, can instantly sense "Hey, someone is screwing with time over there." This turned out to be very bad. . .

I imagine an actual *botch* activating the thing would have dumped us, and a large portion of the city, into the White Void, *and* summoned the slathering ghost-zombie critters made out of pure temporal paradox that occasionally hound time travellers, in horde quantities.