[Play by Post] Better Angels - No Soul Left Behind

@malkav11 so should we make updates on our character sheet immediately for that sort of thing?

Probably best. Otherwise I can foresee things getting lost in the shuffle.

Tag away.

I think you can slide a point over from any of your virtuous strategies to the corresponding sinful strategy. Only when the demon activates it and slides from sinful to virtuous does it say to make it the associated strategy, far as I can tell. But you could certainly decide to slide off Insightful.

(BTW: demons can activate aspects even if they’re not invoked. But the aspect won’t turn on if you have no points in its associated strategy. I assume this is mainly for if they’re able to watch while not invoked - i.e. your primary strategy is high enough.)

Doesn’t that kind of beg the question though, if demons are basically in sensory deprivation when not invoked, how they would know an advantageous time to activate an aspect? Ah, never mind, I see it now.

I assume they could just turn it on for shits and giggles even in sensory deprivation mode, but it would probably be kind of a dumb move.

I don’t have the rules in front of me but I thought it went with the specific strategy that was named with the aspect. Thus Ghost Form would move a point from Patient to Cunning making Maria Cunning 2 / Patient 0.

I looked and it says “the human slides a point off a Virtuous Strategy”. It does not specify which, so I assume it’s up to you. The slide off a Sinful Strategy that happens when a demon activates it is definitely the one named with the Aspect.

Ah, ok. I though Ghost form was devious because it uses devious on it’s rules. I will keep the Devious slide though if it’s allowed.

Sure, go right ahead.

More rule discussion. If the human does the sliding then doesn’t it make being dragged to Hell really unlikely as the human just never slides the final bit?

Sinning can cause slides too, I think. Demons have to get PCs to sin, not just use powers.

Sinning doesn’t slide, it adds. It’s the main source of new points and definitely the biggest way you approach hell. The demon has to be able to see it for it to count though. Sliding towards sinful stats happens more because of conflict. If someone tags you with a low to middling set, you slide off the targeted stat. Aspects are not the main way any of that happens, but it’s there to make them something to be cautious about using. Strategies are harder to add with sin or slide in a virtuous direction than tactics, also, so keep that in mind.

I’m not trying to be argumentative but I just found (well, reread_ the fight between Axe-Hole and Shinning Diamond on the Arcdream website and it seemed to include shifting Devious for ghost form without any discussion of choice.

Shrug.

BTW Jose is more or less done if all we are doing is talking to demons. Since we are saying we know something about the powers he would really like to retrocognition a little but I’m holding off on that since it sounds like something is going to happen before I can act.

Yeah Thomas is done as well @malkav11. There is definitely a thought of doing something splashy, but that requires the right moment (which may not come). Just note that, if the proper situation presents, False Memories or Psychic Objects may be invoked to make certain persons look very good.

Both places where it talks about how to activate an Aspect it just says “a” Virtuous Strategy if the human requested it, whereas it specifically says “the governing strategy” if the demon does it on their own. I don’t know why the example of play seems to contradict that but I would go with the version that’s got more support in the text.

Again, Ghost form is stated as Cunning, yet all its rules relate to Devious. It might be an error and Devious might be its real governing strategy.

Anyway, I go with the GM here. Humans decide what to slide, Demons have to slide what the book says it governs. At least its a ruling we can all abide with (and gives humans more leeway)

Go with the GM is fine by me. I just through it out as we all seemed somewhat unsure.

FYI, I’m also playing wait and see mode here for both the demon and character.

So that’s three who are ready to move on - we good on our other two as well?