{"id":"mage/power/rote/instant-fake-ids","type":"power","system":"rote","line":"mage","name":"Instant Fake IDs","sources":[{"source":"HDYDT","page":74}],"entries":["Anyone with the right tools and know-how – which, granted, are much harder to obtain in this age of magnetic strips and instant-access data – can craft a fake ID without using magick. Such mundane IDs will pass most forms of casual observation, especially if the mage adds a mental push to the transaction. A mage who wants to be sure about getting through, however, or one who needs to ghost up some fake credentials on the spot, needs a little extra mojo…","• A simple {@sphere Entropy|M20} or {@sphere Forces|M20} 2 Effect will keep the ID card from scanning. While this won’t let a person get past security in itself, a mage could then add a mental “push” to convince a guard to just let her pass through. (“Stupid scanner’s on the fritz again… go on ahead!”) This won’t grant access to high-security areas, but might let her pass though the first line of bank, club or airport security.","• A Data 2/ {@sphere Forces|M20} 2 Effect can fool most ID-scanning equipment if enough successes get rolled by the mage who’s trying to bypass security. This trick will NOT work with the {@sphere Correspondence|M20} Sphere; only Data will do, as that Sphere works directly with the principles and contents of computerized information.","• An {@sphere Entropy|M20} 3/ {@sphere Forces|M20} 2 Effect can alter probability so that the ID card reads right even when it’s not supplying the correct information. A failed roll, however, rejects the ID, and a botch probably wrecks the ID and disrupts the system itself… which is bound to set off alarms.","• The Black Card/ Little Black Box Adjustment (referred to above) allows a mage to hack the system itself. This tactic, though, generally takes more time than a simple ID scan, and may go horribly wrong.","Unless the mage is being a complete idiot (like trying to use a paper card instead of a magnetized plastic one), these tricks are essentially coincidental.","Most mundane security scanners (used at banks, airports, clubs, and police traffic-stop checks) can be fooled with three successes or more. Special security scanners (like those used in restricted-access facilities or Technocratic installations) demand five successes or more. This, of course, assumes that the mage has the right kind of ID – a bank-card won’t function as a fingerprint-based ID badge.","A failed roll rejects the ID, and a botched roll sets off an alarm. Certain places, like Technocratic installations, will have alarms go off if anything fails to pass the ID scan… in which case, the would-be trespasser is kinda screwed."],"tags":["hdydt","feat"],"_qa":{"flags":[],"parser":"headed_entries","confidence":0.9,"extracted":"2026-10-12","job":"hdydt-feats"},"level":null,"_links":{"self":"/api/v1/records/mage/power/rote/instant-fake-ids","html":"/records/mage/power/rote/instant-fake-ids","parent":null,"children":"/api/v1/records/mage/power/rote/instant-fake-ids/children","sources":[{"abbr":"HDYDT","page":74,"folio":74,"title":"How Do You DO That?"}]},"_db":{"title":"Instant Fake IDs","props":[],"parent_id":null,"level":null,"category":null,"summary":"Anyone with the right tools and know-how – which, granted, are much harder to obtain in this age of magnetic strips and instant-access data – can craft a fake ID without using magick. Such mundane IDs will pass most","tags":["feat","hdydt"],"children":[]}}