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If I haven't already used up my question allocation for this month, I have a few questions relating to the use of demon abilities in combat:

1. It is said in the "Demons in Combat" section of the Sorcerer rulebook that each use of a demon ability in a scene over the demon's Stamina imposes a 1-die penalty. But what counts as a "use" of an ability?

For many of the abilities- like Special Damage, Confuse and Boost- I assume each action involving employement of the power constitutes a "use". But what about things like Armor, Big, Cloak, Command, Protection and Shapeshift, which seem to be states enduring over time? In the case of these latter abilities, do I assume correctly that the demon is not marking down one "use" per round for each of these abilities that are currently"switched on"? Would one instead count one "use" for initial activation of the power, but nothing for leaving it running? Or would it be a case of one "use" each time the ability is tested- such as each attack on Armor or Protection, or each perception attempt against cloak?

2. Do I understand correctly that Boosting stamina in combat is of limited use in combat because each Boost is for one round only, and Boosts in successive rounds will result in confusion?

3. As Boost is never conferred but used by the Demon, is it the case that the Boost does not become active until the Demon has had its action in a given turn? Thus if a character gets initiative ahead of the demon in a round in which the demon is trying to Boost the character's stamina, the character will not have the benefit of Boost that round, but will recieve it instead in the following round?

4. Is there a limit of 1 demon ability actived per turn per user? In other words, if a character has, say, Armor, Cloak and Protection conferred upon him, can he activate all of these in a single action, or would he have to spend 3 rounds preparing for a fight to ensure that these 3 abilities were all up and running before a fight (say)?

5. How does Fast work in this context? I assume it cannot consume an action of the user just to have it work in a given turn, as this would remove almost all the advantage it might confer. Does one spend an action just before the start of a fight to "turn on" Fast with it then lasting for the rest of the fight, or can it be invoked at will without constituting an action?


Marcus

Hi Marcus!

Quote1. It is said in the "Demons in Combat" section of the Sorcerer rulebook that each use of a demon ability in a scene over the demon's Stamina imposes a 1-die penalty. But what counts as a "use" of an ability?

You got it. If a demon uses (e.g.) Hold three times in a scene, that's three uses. But if it switches on Armor for that scene, sustained during that whole time, that's one use.

Quote2. Do I understand correctly that Boosting stamina in combat is of limited use in combat because each Boost is for one round only, and Boosts in successive rounds will result in confusion?

You do understand correctly, but I'll try to clarify that "limited" is not "useless." A well timed extra handful of dice can be very significant. Also, don't forget that a demon's Power drops to 1 while it's Boosting someone.

Quote3. As Boost is never conferred but used by the Demon, is it the case that the Boost does not become active until the Demon has had its action in a given turn? Thus if a character gets initiative ahead of the demon in a round in which the demon is trying to Boost the character's stamina, the character will not have the benefit of Boost that round, but will recieve it instead in the following round?

Exactly! Boost represents the most extreme case of what we discussed in a previous thread, regarding activating a demon ability prior to a confrontation vs. kicking it on during the confrontation.

Quote4. Is there a limit of 1 demon ability actived per turn per user? In other words, if a character has, say, Armor, Cloak and Protection conferred upon him, can he activate all of these in a single action, or would he have to spend 3 rounds preparing for a fight to ensure that these 3 abilities were all up and running before a fight (say)?

Since they don't require rolls to activate, the demon can turn them on simultaneously. However, that's not a "free" action; if it happens during combat, it's a time-requiring action like any other.

The good news is that I usually consider a demon who's getting along decently with its master to have the brains to kick on these abilities just before the fight/confrontation starts, removing that particular problem.

Quote5. How does Fast work in this context? I assume it cannot consume an action of the user just to have it work in a given turn, as this would remove almost all the advantage it might confer. Does one spend an action just before the start of a fight to "turn on" Fast with it then lasting for the rest of the fight, or can it be invoked at will without constituting an action?

This as well as some more details about your other questions can be found at:
Questions on Fast and Parasite Stamina
Question about demons conferring abilities
More on initiative and aborts

Let me know if I've missed anything - given that "user" and "target" are not the same things necessarily, and given that abilities' use is either just done by the demon or ordered to be done, most of these questions are like a little matrix of what-if's rather than just one apiece.

Best,
Ron

Thanks, Ron, for neatly answering my first four questions.

In relation to my fifth question, the threads you cite (the first of which I had read before posing my question) contain much useful information, but I don't think they actually answer the question I posed. In essense, I am asking whether Fast:

1. Is like Armor, in that it is turned on once as an action at the start of a combat (at the cost of 1 "use"), but then continues to work without the need for any action (and without costing any further "uses"; or

2. Does not need any action- either to "turn on" initially or use in any given round- but each round the user uses it counts as  1 "use"?


Marcus

Oh. Fast is like Armor. It's turned on once as an action at the start of a combat (or prior to the combat, given a demon with some brains and/or prep), and then continues to work without the need for further actions, and it all counts as one use.

Best,
Ron

Everything answered. Thanks heaps!

Marcus