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From: mccolm@ucla-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.games.frp
Subject: Re: Gaseous Form
Message-ID: <7225@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Date: Tue, 22-Oct-85 01:20:56 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.7225
Posted: Tue Oct 22 01:20:56 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 26-Oct-85 04:48:35 EDT
References: <676@hou2g.UUCP>
Reply-To: mccolm@ucla-cs.UUCP (Eric McColm)
Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
Lines: 60
In article <676@hou2g.UUCP> scott@hou2g.UUCP (Colonel'K) writes:
>If a character/creature is in "gaseous form", does he/she/it
>give off an odor?
Depends. When's the last time they bathed?
>If so, what happens to any portion of said character that is inhaled?
I thought someone would get around to this. Gaseous form is so nasty, and
if the rules are stretched, it can be a very unpleasant way to die. And think
on this: what if a vampire goes gaseous in the room with you? What a
stink! This guy's insides have been heavy-duty ickies for years!
>Or since someone in gaseous form has some control over the body
>(the character must at least be able to "stay together"), could
>he/she/it prevent being "inhaled" by another?
I see no reason to think this is necessary or justified; see below.
>Gruesome as it is, the next question is what if a character, in
>a supreme sacrifice, invades the lungs of a powerful enemy just
>before the spell/potion/scroll wears off? KABLOOEY?
Two choices: Teleport-style crocks or failsafes.
1) Teleport-style crocks. Can you "die" by being dissipated over too wide
an area, or do you just find yourself unable to re-integrate? What if
you reform while blowing on a breeze through a tree? Ingrown leaves and
twigs, and maybe trunks? If you're in a hurricane, can you come out
rearranged, asymmetric, or left-handed? If inhaled by someone just before
reforming, is there a dull crump and a strangled sound(s)? What if you're
currently floating through a series of ===>tiny slots<=== somewhere?
Would you live through it? Would you want to? This "deform-reform"
scenario is fraught with at least the hazards of the transporters in the
first "Star Trek" movie. Wizards made this up for their own use?
Remember, we're talking about people with high intelligence, here.
2) Failsafes. Nothing can go wrong. Hahahahahaha. Well, it's difficult
for something to go wrong by accident. Of course, if the user is stupid,
they're on their own. Things going wrong on purpose is frightening.
And if the time expires, and there isn't room to reform, you can't.
You stay there (or follow the air flow) or get ejected somewhere where
there's room, or whatever. So the way to trap the magician is to inhale
the gaseous form and exhale into a bottle. Instant Genie! Well, sort of.
I'd also add the rule that you can't be killed, or kill anyone, by being
inhaled while in gaseous form. Makes everything so much simpler.
What happens if you force a ghost, say, into gaseous form? Do they notice?
--fini--
Eric McColm
UCLA (oo' - kluh) Funny Farm for the Criminally Harmless
UUCP: ...!{ihnp4,trwspp,cepu,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!mccolm
ARPA: mccolm@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
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