** Forces ** Prime
Base difficulty: 5 (Coincidental);
Threshold: 2
"Every Action has an Equal and Opposite Reaction", according to most accepted physics texts. Building on this very principle, the energized anti-kinetic field of this nano-fiber woven into a flight suit or medic's coat resists deflection, meets the force of a kinetic impact with an equal but opposite kinetic force, up to the inherent limit imposed by the nature of minor forces effects. Thus, while the force of a punch, a thrown stone, or a speeding bullet would be effectively returned for as long as a charge remains in the batteries, overwhelming damage resulting from a massive impact (say, from a car, a 150 pound anvil dropped from the third floor or above, a heavy falling safe, a bag containing 10,000 bowling balls, or some dark-haired Dorothy dropping a house on your head) exceeds the protection offered by this effect, although the resulting damage would be reduced to the limit of the rote's ability to protect the medic.
Example: Ol' Doc Jones gets a call for help in the rougher part of town, so he wisely prepares by activating (casting) Minor Anti-Kinesis on his favorite flight suit. He scores 4 successes, twice what he had needed, for 8 levels of soak, plus 1 more because this is a forces effect. He gathers his trusty medic bag, slips on the 9 point protective coat, and makes his way to the seedy side of town.
"Back-blast Sam", named for his lovely MO of shooting victims in the back with a 12 gauge shotgun before running over them with his car, has been waiting for any EMS personnel to take the bait: a convenience store cashier that he's kneecapped in front of the Qwiki-Qwiki Mart. Sam pumps off his remaining three three rounds, managing to hit Doc exactly once, imposing a kinetic threat of a whopping 4 points of damage. The shot strikes the coat, the fibers resist deflection or tearing, and the shot flattens against the coat. Doc is unhurt, his ears are ringing, and the battery is depleted for 4 out of the 9 points.
Next, Sam leaps into his 1974 Cadillac Coupe DeVille. He starts the engine, drops the car into gear, and backs into Doc for a 6 points of potential damage. Because the car impact is considered a major force, Doc cannot automatically soak all the damage; instead, he rolls his 5 remaining dice against a difficulty of 7, getting 3 successes; the coat exhausts its remaining charge protecting him but he's knocked away from the impact. When the dust settles, Doc is bruised from the impact and the subsequent fall, the car is a breached and structurally unsound deathtrap (5 out of 8 structural points of damage), and the batteries are exhausted. (But the coat still looks good!)
Forces allows the direction of minor forces to be diverted, or reversed. In this case,
kinetic energy is exactly reversed on a vector back to its point of origin.
Should the source of kinetic energy be the equivalent of car-size or bigger,
(i.e. major force) a roll all the remaining number of successes,
(difficulty 7, threshold of 2) for the protection to activate in time. Keep
physics in mind...
Prime fuels and sustains the effect.
Focus: Nanotech interface
You may continue reading or quit.