by Chad Underkoffler (chadu@yahoo.com)
"I feel the need-the need for speed!"
-- Maverick, Top Gun
"He's a demon, and he's gonna be chasing after someone!"
-- Speed Racer
There are people out there who feel most alive when they are moving fast. These are the sorts of people who become fighter or test pilots, professional racers, or even the local punk kid drag racer who's the "King of the Strip." Of those people, some have figured out that in a way, they are more alive when moving at high speed, and that they can do... things... that they normally couldn't. These are the Acceleromancers, also known in the Occult Underground as racers and speed demons.
Thought to be a sub-school of Entropomancy, Acceleromancy is more about speed
itself, rather than the risk involved. It's also about inertia, which symbolizes
the central paradox of Acceleromancy: Acceleromancers must always be in motion,
be it physical, mental, or philosophical. An Acceleromancer sets his Goal, whether
it be "win this race," "break the sound barrier," or "assassinate Alex Abel."
A Goal must be something attainable: "Protect my city from crime" is not an
achievable Goal. Any setback or cessation of forward movement upon this goal
causes the speed demon to lose charges. See Taboo (below) for a fuller exploration
of this idea.
Goals tend to make Acceleromancers rather single-minded people.
Acceleromancy Blast Style: The speed demon can impart some of his speed to an object, and "throw" it like a projectile at his opponents. Smaller objects move faster, must as for the blast style of Dipsomancers. It can also be targeted at inanimate objects, and shares the same damage effects (a minor blast is equivalent to a strong kick, and a significant one is like a gunshot).
This blast works exceptionally well when the speed demon is moving at a high
rate of speed; for every 60 mph the speed demon is moving, you may roll another
die of damage. This damage is added to both minor and significant blasts.
STATS:
Generate a Minor Charge: Acceleromancers generate charges by moving fast. Going faster than 120 miles per hour for one minute is worth a minor charge. You get the minor charge for crossing the boundary line of 120 mph; if you went 240 mph for a minute, you would not get 2 minor charges. However, if you went 120 mph for a minute, dipped below 120, then accelerated again over 120 mph for a minute, you *would* get 2 charges. Please note that this holds true only if you are the driver or pilot of the vehicle; if you are a passenger, the time required to build the charge is increased to 10 minutes of high speed! Win a fair race.
Generate a Significant Charge: Break the sound barrier, or travel at 120 mph for a minute in a historically significant or famous vehicle (the Spirit of St. Louis, the 20th Century Limited Railroad Engine, the Popemobile). Win a professional race, whether track and field, Indy 500, marathon; the Olympics count for significant charges.
Generate a Major Charge: Achieve escape velocity. Alternately, become known as "the Fastest Man Alive." Puts a whole new spin on all that jockeying in *The Right Stuff*, doesn't it? Break a world speed record in something.
Taboo: An Acceleromancer loses a charge if he ceases forward motion in pursuit of his Goal (mentioned above). This is not simply physical motion, however, though sometimes it can amount to such. If Bob the Acceleromancer's Goal is plotting to rob the First National Bank, any action or thought that he takes that does not contribute directly to planning or preparing to rob that bank is risking the loss of a charge. The GM has Veto here, of course, on what actions contribute directly to a Goal. Every time a speed demon deviates from the path of achieving his goal, he loses a charge. When Speed stops during the Race Around the World to help Racer X out of a sinkhole, he loses a charge. Significant and Major charges can be "changed" to get minor charges to pay this fine.
If an Acceleromancer ever abandons his Goal, either outright or for a new Goal, he loses all of his current charges.
Random Magick Domain: Speed, motion, and inertia.
Starting Charges: Newly-created Acceleromancer have four minor charges.
Acceleromancy Minor Formula Spells
Overdrive
Cost: 1 minor charge
Effect: This spell allows a speed demon to double his rate of speed, for any
one action or task. It could be to escape a burning building, climb a rope,
take a test, whittle a fork, etc. Essentially, whatever it is, he either goes
twice as fast as normal, or he finishes in half the time. In combat, this
is worth a +30% shift to all combat-related skills (including initiative) for
the next turn only. When under the influence of this spell, a speed demon
may not generate charges.
Shortcut
Cost: 1 minor charge
Effect: Because of his connection to the concepts of speed, motion, and inertia,
the Acceleromancer can sense the fastest and simplest path to follow to reach
his destination. This may not always be the best way to go, but it will always
be the one that will get you there the fastest. This spell also works on less
topographic routes as well: a speed demon asking "How do you get to Carneige
Hall?" when casting this spell could receive a "vision" of which streets to
follow to reach the building, if that's what he meant, or if he wanted to play
Carneige Hall he might receive the response "Practice, practice, practice,"
if that is the shortest way. Of course, the shortest way for the latter may
be something like "Go and marry the stage manager of the Hall," or some other
advice akin to that.
Fastball
Cost: 2 minor charges
Effect: This is the Acceleromancy Minor Blast. As described, the speed demon
may impart some of his speed into an object , which flies towards the target
of the spell. For every 60 mph the Acceleromancer is going when he casts this
spell, he may add another die of damage.
Cruising Along
Cost: 2 minor charges
Effect: By spending two charges, the speed demon can keep moving indefinitely,
without the need to rest or refuel. This effect works on both a being running
or a vehicle. If an Acceleromancer cast this upon a car he was driving, it would
stop using the gas in the tank, would never overheat, and the tired would be
immune to normal road wear. This effect lasts until the runner comes to a stop
(or a vehicle's engine is shut off).
Inertial Flywheel
Cost: 3 minor charges
Effect: Once the Acceleromancer casts this spell upon himself, all physical
damage-including gunshots, but not magickal- that he takes during the next 3
combat rounds is split: the speed demon takes half of the damage normally, and
the other half is directly applied as a Speed shift (at a 1 damage point per
+1% rate), until the next time he sleeps. Odd results are rounded up for damage
and down for the Speed shift.
Example: Billy-Bob whacks Maverick the Acceleromancer with a lead pipe, rolling a 48 against his Whup-Ass skill of 55%. He would normally do 4 + 8 + 3 (for being heavy) = 15 points of damage to Maverick. However, Mav cast Inertial Flywheel upon himself last turn, so he would only take 8 points of damage, and would gain a +7% shift to his Speed until the next time he sleeps. If Billy-Bob whacks him again next turn for 12 points of damage, Mav would still take only 6 points damage, and gain an additional +6% shift, for a total of +13%. Unfortunately, if Billy-Bob hits him on subsequent turns, Mav will take full damage, since Inertial Flywheel is effective only for three turns.
There is a persistent rumor that casting Inertial Flywheel before a high-velocity
crash is a sure ticket to join the Invisible Clergy as the archetype of the
Runner. It would, however, take impeccable timing...
Acceleromancy Significant Formula Spells
Afterburner
Cost: 1 significant charge
Effect: Much like Overdrive, but allows a speed demon to quadruple his rate
of speed, for any one action or task. He goes four times as fast as normal,
or he finishes in one-quarter of the time. In combat, this essentially
doubles the Acceleromancer's actions: he could attack twice in the same round,
dodge once and attack once, or even dodge twice. When under the influence of
this spell, a speed demon may not generate charges.
Steal Speed
Cost: 1 significant charge
Effect: Because of his connection to the concepts of speed, motion, and inertia,
the Acceleromancer may "bleed off" speed from a system, a force, or an event,
forcing things to shift down to a slower pace, or even seemingly shift into
"slow motion." A green traffic light may have it's speed stolen to extend the
length of time it remains lit; a freeway can have speed stolen to cause a traffic
jam; a security guard may have his speed stolen to slow his reactions to the
alarm bell going off on his console. Animate beings suffer a -40% shift to their
Speed; and at minimum a -10% shift to time-dependent skills. The "siphoned speed"
is automatically used to help generate some of the effects of this spell, but
because of the Law of Transaction, an Acceleromancer still needs to put in a
significant charge to jump-start the effect.
Speeding Bullet
Cost: 2 significant charges
Effect: This is the Acceleromancy Significant Blast. As described, the speed
demon may impart some of his speed into an object , which flies towards the
target of the spell. For every 60 mph the Acceleromancer is going when he casts
this spell, he may add another die of damage.
Easy Road
Cost: 2 significant charges
Effect: No matter how unstable a surface is, this spell makes it seem flat and
smooth as glass for the speed demon (or his vehicle). This allows the speed
demon to run up walls as if they were a sidewalk, dispel air turbulence around
his jet, drive his car over sheets of ice... or even water. The effect lasts
for 15 minutes. At the GM's option, this may also make switch-backs and hairpin
turns seem like straight shots for the Acceleromancer... Witnessing something
like this is a rank-3 stress check against The Unnatural.
Irresistible Object
Cost: 4 significant charges
Effect: Once this spell is cast, the Acceleromancer becomes a juggernaut, unable
to be stopped, or turned, or swayed in his passage for the next 15 minutes.
(This also affects any vehicle the speed demon is piloting when he casts this
spell.) He can plow through walls, fall down a chasm, run through a hail of
bullets, swim through a lake of burning oil, take repeated anti-aircraft missiles,
absorb enough damage to take him to beyond the point of death-and still, somehow,
continues on his path... until his time runs out. If the 15 minutes ends with
the speed demon at 0 Wound Points or less, he's dead. Game over. Witnessing
something like this is a rank-7 stress check against The Unnatural.
Acceleromancy Major Formula Spells
Teleportation. Maybe even break the speed of light? Slow or speed up time for a number of people. Perform an action as if everyone around you were frozen in time.