Resisting Charm or you're cute and nice, but not to die for.

[Jon A. Lambert]

On Tue, 7 Apr 1998, s001gmu at nova.wright.edu wrote:
> 
> On Tue, 7 Apr 1998, Ben Greear wrote:
> 
> > I have spells that will open a portal to another PC, and which will
> > remain open for a short amount of time.  It is a one-way path at mid 
> > levels, but higher levels can open two-way portals.  I got so caught up
> > in the coding that I didn't think too much about what this would do to 
> > game play.  However, I don't see it as disasterous....
> 
> Heh... famous last words.  ;)  Seriosuly, though, we had a 'gate' spell on
> EoD, way back when.  I beleive it had to target a person.  The version of
> DIKU that we used as our base had it coded so that if you put in a bum
> name, it opened a bum gate (heck, it'd sometimes do that anyway, if you
> didn't quite make that roll... >:-).  Walking through the bum gate
> resulted in a very quickly dead character, with no corpse to go retrieve.
> A favorite use of this was in combination with a charm spell...
>

And about that Charm spell....  

In a GM adjudicated RPG, ala D&D, Ars Magica and many others, there are 
spells that have less than absolute mental effects.  D&D's version of Charm 
is one of these spells where the affected creature will supposedly become 
trusting and friendly to the caster.  However, the afflicted will have the charm 
dispelled if the caster requests them to perform an action which is either 
life-threatening or totally against their strongest proclivities.  Also many
of these spells are broken by direct or indirect attack by the caster.  Much
of this is necessarily vague, situational, and subject to your GM's personal
whims.  

Admittedly, Diku-like Charm is usually equivalent to robotic control for the 
spell duration.  This also has serious consequences on game play and perhaps
as dramatic as the aforementioned gate/teleport spells.  Most often I've seen
it implemented as a "digital" charm so-to-speak, rather than an "analog" charm.
It's either on or off.  

Wouldn't this spell and those like it be more interesting and unpredictable
it resistance to charm was attempted after each requested action?  Especially
in a strong RP environment where such spells often cross the boundaries 
of player consent/non-consent.  Player characters could be offered the option
to attempt to resist or go along with the requested action.  A given action might
even be successfully resisted, yet the afflicted still remains entranced.

Thoughts and ideas anyone?
 
>    > Charm bubba
>    Bubba looks at you and smiles.
>    Bubba now follows you.
> 
>    >cast gate hell
>    An unstable looking gate opens.
> 
>    >say 'buh-bye bubba'
>    You say, "buh-bye bubba"
> 
>    >order bubba enter gate
>    Bubba walks into an unstable looking gate.
>    Bubba screams in agony as his body disintigrates.
>    Bubba no longer follows you.
> 
>    >chuckle
>    You chuckle.
> 
>    Bubba tells you, "Grumble... yer goin down!"
>

Amusing, yet strangely disturbing.  Bubba speaking directly into in your head
after you witnessed the destruction of his corporeal existence.  I gives me the
shivers.  Yeah, yeah I know...(re-start permadeath and telepathy threads)   

:)

JL