In terms of rules, the Storyteller and player can either run through the hacking process using the normal hacking rules presented above, or else play it out as a normal adven ture, using the appropriate Traits for the type of access she’s employed to enter the Web. (For details, see Digital Web Systems, Mage 20, pp. 466-473.) In the first situation, narrate out the hacking job as if it’s an adventure; in the second case, just run through it normally, considering the adventure to be an elaborate computer simulation.
Instead of Dexterity and Brawl rolls, an astrally immersed hacker employs Wits, Perception, or Intelligence + Computer in order to get things done. Other Abilities might come in handy, too – say, Enigmas in place of Intimidation or Cryptography for Streetwise. Under either rules option, however, failed or botched rolls lead to icon death; the trap snaps shut, the guards shoot you, you mis-time your leap, and so forth. For obvious reasons, then, hackers hesitate before trying to bust a system from the inside out.
Example in Play: Computer Hacking (BoS p. 127)
Kyle, an experienced Virtual Adept, plans to expose some nasty goings-on at Hammer Security Response. Going off a tip from a friend, he employs a bit of social engineering to score a password, works up some cracking software, and prepares to dig for dirt…
In game terms, Kyle’s player Jesse has Kyle work an angle over at Hammer to get the information he needs. After a bit of roleplaying, Jesse’s Storyteller tells him to make a resisted Manipulation + Computer roll to get the information out of the Hammer tech Kyle has pumped for info. Three successes later, Kyle has the information he’d gone after: a password worth -2 to his difficulty and two fewer hours of work on the system.
Having scored the password, Kyle goes home to write some crack-exploitation code. Jesse makes an Intelligence + Computer roll to reflect the quality of that code. Since he’s specifically targeting the Hammer Response system, the diffi culty is 6. Jesse scores two successes. Between the crack and the password, the difficulty of Kyle’s hacking attempt is reduced by -4, and he saves himself several hours of work. Like any good Virtual Adept, Kyle’s got a Trinary computer. That’s another -2 reduction, for a total difficulty reduction of -6.
Now comes the hard part. Hammer’s computer system is a military-grade mainframe with serious protection. Under normal circumstances, a hacker would need 10 successes at
Following text (BoS p. 128)
difficulty 8 just to get inside, with five hours’ worth of work to bypass the firewall. Thanks to Kyle’s prep work, though, the difficulty is 2, with only an hour or so necessary for the initial attack. He still needs 10 successes, but that’s easy enough to get with an extended roll. Jesse has Kyle spend two more hours on the attack (three hours total), giving Jesse three rolls to accumulate those successes.
Mage Tricks: The Sorcerer’s Mechanic (BoS p. 128)
Oh, crap! Hammer’s got Trinary computers in their system, too. There goes that bonus Kyle had expected. What should be a difficulty 2 attack is going to be difficulty 4 instead. That’s a clue that Hammer is more than they appear to be.
Jesse rolls Kyle’s Intelligence 4 + his Computer 4 (a total pool of eight dice) against difficulty 4. The first hour’s roll
scores four successes; the second hour nets three; the third hour gets four more successes, getting Kyle inside and giving Jesse his full pool of eight dice to work with.
It’s an active system, but Kyle expected that. He’s trawling for dirt, so he figures it will be hidden (difficulty 7), maybe even classified (difficulty 8). Dodging all that security is going to take time too. “Clock’s ticking, Kyle,” says the Storyteller. “Better get cracking… so to speak.”
Jesse makes another Intelligence + Computer roll – eight dice, difficulty 7, two hours or so to scan what he finds. The software reduces his difficulty by -2, but still… One hour, one roll, eight dice, difficulty 5… Jesse takes the dice in hand and rolls…
Possible, yes… but tricky. Very, very tricky…
Resonance: Physics of Consequence (BoS p. 129)
As ye sow, so too shall ye reap. That Nazarene principle, found in most mystic practices, is considered a metaphysical law. Karma – often translated as “deed” or “action” – can use that law to span lifetimes. Even material physics has its own version of that principle in Newton’s Third Law of Motion: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. And so, just as no mage exists in total isolation, so no mage conducts his or her Arts in a vacuum. The things you do influence the world through which you move… and that world, in turn, influences you as well.
Signature: The Expressions of Resonance (BoS p. 129)
In Mage, we call that effect Resonance.
Beneath all the following descriptions, terms and rules, the key to Resonance is simple: You get back what you put in. If your character walks through life with a chip on her shoulder, the world responds with an attitude of its own. If she moves through it with love and joy, then loving, joyful Resonance follows her. “Punch a wall,” one saying goes, “and the wall punches you back.” Resonance manifests your state of mind and action… most especially when you’re a mage.
As explained throughout Mage 20 (especially Chapters Two, Three, Six, and Seven), Resonance echoes a mage’s actions and intentions, sending them out into the world at large. That “echo,” in turn, bounces back to the mage, setting up a field of metaphysical energy vibrations that often intensify the original effect. Strong actions trigger strong reactions. Eventually, the mage acquires notable characteristics of his attitude: the callous mystic gets a stony voice and a “chilly” presence; the animal shapeshifter grows more feral; the crazy inventor has frizzy hair and always seems to have a thunderstorm going in the background when he works. At the lowest levels of Resonance, these characteristics remain subtle. Folks who court potent Resonance, however, embody the consequences of their actions to an uncanny degree.
And yet, as the Christ suggests, Resonance is universal. It’s not limited to mages, but echoes the actions of every living entity. Those echoes, in turn, alter the “feel” of places and things. A battlefield has Resonance; so does a church. Areas and objects that have provided a focus or setting for huge expenditures of life-force and emotional energies hold that Resonance long after the deeds themselves have ended. When folks speak of “good vibes” or “bad feelings,” they’re commenting upon Resonance. Although magick certainly intensifies its effect, Resonance’s principles are bigger than magick.
As discussed in Mage 20 (see pp. 333, 560-561, and 646647), Resonance can affect your character’s overall appearance or impression. Because it “echoes” around a mage’s proximity, it can influence Backgrounds like Blessing, Demesne, Destiny,
Legend, Sanctum, and Totem, and will certainly “flavor” her magick, Quintessence, and Paradox. In many regards, Resonance is a symptom of Paradox – a “vibe” of personal energy that gets intensified by the reality-changing powers of a mage. The more your mage affects her world, the stronger her Resonance – for good and ill – becomes.
Originally, the Mage rules handled Resonance as a “spe cial effect” that came through in roleplaying, Storytelling, and sometimes the Flaw: Echoes. Sorcerers Crusade ties it to Virtues and Vices, but that moralistic system seems more appropriate to the late-medieval setting of Sorcerers Crusade than to the existential mythos of Ascension. As of Mage Revised, Resonance becomes a Trait… but the expressions of, and rules for, that Trait changed constantly, contradicted themselves, and added new levels of complexity to an already complicated game.
Despite these inconsistencies, the existence of Resonance – and a rule-system for it – provides some excellent opportunities for roleplaying and story elements. And so, this section features potential optional rules and guidelines for using Resonance within your Mage chronicle. If these rules complicate things too much for your tastes, however, then please feel free to ignore them.
If you’ve ever felt like something was “right” or “wrong” about a place, if you’ve noticed how your skin crawls or your pulse beats faster in the presence of certain people, then you’ve experienced the effects of Resonance. Some folks call it chemistry or vibes or energy, and all those definitions are true. For now, just think of such impressions as signatures – that is, as expressions of Resonance.
Low-level energies have vague, easily missed signatures. Stronger ones have more obvious signatures, and powerful energies have signatures that almost anyone can spot. In game terms, a successful Perception-based roll with the Awareness Talent (see Mage 20, pg 276) lets your character notice signa tures, and to possibly identify them also, if the energies are strong enough.
– and its optional affiliated essence, Synergy (described in the sidebar) – cast signatures that suit the energy in question. Those signatures echo the cause of the Resonance; tragic events or depressed people cast Sorrowful signatures, cheerful parties cast Joyous signatures, battles and fighters carry Warlike signatures, and so it goes.
Those signatures, in turn, bring their energies to the environment around them. Depressing Resonance carries the emotional weight of sorrow, perhaps manifesting in drooping
Following text (BoS p. 130)
posture, constant rain, or the sound of sobbing that apparently comes from nowhere. Nurturing Resonance makes everything feel comfortable and safe. In game terms, a signature grows stronger at higher levels of that energy. And although it tends to manifest as narrative descriptions and roleplaying choices, it can also provide small modifiers – as shown on the M20
