Re: Augmenting to Augment?

From: Paul Andrew King <paul_at_...>
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 2004 23:53:25 +0000

>
>Say Brute McHulk wants to augment his leader's Bargain.
>
>He stands behind his leader, Smoothie Ap Talk, and is Huge 20 while
>Looking Scary
>2W.
>
>I've run this as Huge augments Looking Scary = 4W, which is the
>final target number Brute
>uses to augment Smoothie. So Brute augments +2 if he goes for the
>automatic gain.
>
>In the Play by post game I'm reading, Brute gets to augment Smoothie with EACH
>appropriate skill, so Brute's Huge and Scary Looking both add +2 to
>Smoothie. That's twice
>the effect.
>

I'd say that both are potentially valid. If the abilities should contribute directly and independently to the contest then allow it. Otherwise if they overlap I would allow only one to be used (I accept that it is valid to allow augments to the augmenting ability, but I prefer to simplify rather than modifying abilities used for augments). For instance I recently allowed only one running-related ability to contribute to a jump on the grounds that the overlap between what they could offer was too great in that situation.

In the example given I would definitely allow both to apply if the leader was trying to intimidate instead of bargain or if intimidation was a major part of the leaders tactics. If the leader was trying a friendlier approach I am less sure - probably I would only allow the higher but it might depend on my assessment of the opposition as well.

-- 
--
"The T'ang emperors were strong believers in the pills of 
immortality.  More emperors died of poisoning from ingesting minerals 
in the T'ang than in any other dynasty" - Eva Wong _The Shambhala 
Guide to Taoism_

Paul K.