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[DL] New Invention for Hucksters (long)
Quiet around the List, last couple of days... almost... too quiet...
Anyway, here's a little somethin' I've been tinkering with. Now, I don't play Hucksters (and I don't yet have the Revised sourcebooks, though Christmas is coming...), so bear with me. I'd like some opinions: good concept? too powerful? not powerful enough? too perilous to use? too complicated? I'm looking for constructive criticism from those who know the
system better than I do.
Derek D. Bass
Etheric Musings - The Science of the Sons of Ether
http://www.SteamEngineChaos.com/
Here 'tis:
Wangenstein's Holdout Rig (a.k.a. the Huckster’s Best Friend)
Hand: Full House
Price: $1,500
Reliability: 18
While the ability of some to draw upon heretofore unknown energies through the use of playing cards remains a mystery to most scientists, some are catching on and building devices that aid and shape those abilities. The Holdout Rig is a prime example of new technological advances that assist a Huckster in casting Hexes.
The Huckster’s Best Friend looks and functions exactly like a gambler’s holdout rig. It is perfectly capable of providing an additional, pre-chosen card to the gambler’s hand when playing cards. Using the Rig to cheat allows a -2 TN bonus when attempting Sleight of Hand rolls to replace a card in his hand. However, if the gambler is discovered to be wearing the device, even if he didn't use it to cheat, his fellow players aren't going to react kindly. A Reliability roll is required when using the Holdout for mundane cards. The Malfunctions below still apply, with the natural reaction of the Huckster's gambling companions substituting for that of the Manitou.
Of course, this isn't any ordinary holdout rig. The materials and design used to construct it are somewhat… exotic, as it's also a sophisticated antenna, one that concentrates the spiritual energies of the local area onto the Huckster.
Using the Rig to cast a Hex requires a Fair (5) Sleight of Hand (Spirit) roll. Note that this roll uses the Huckster's Spirit die-type, rather than his Deftness. (Remember, this ain't no drunken cowpoke you're playin' against.) If the roll succeeds, the Huckster gets to draw an additional card to determine his hand. For every Raise, he gets another. He has to take these cards, regardless of any other Edges, etc. that say otherwise. You don't call on the power of the spirits unless you intend to use it. Also, if the Holdout is used to cast a Hex during an actual game of cards, an additional Fair (5) Sleight of Hand roll is needed to hide his use of the Rig from the other players while his focus is on casting the Hex.
Malfunctions
Minor: The Holdout Rig jams, and refuses to activate. Fortunately, the Manitou doesn’t notice… this time. Using the Holdout again will require 10 minutes work to unstick and a Foolproof (3) Tinkerin’ roll. In a mundane game, none of the other gamblers notice either.
Major: The Rig functions normally, but refuses to retract completely. The Manitou suspects that the Huckster is somehow cheating, and the Huckster must make an Onerous (7) Sleight of Hand (Spirit) roll to cover himself, or else the Manitou drops a random Backlash on him and the Hex fails. The Rig can be used again, but will operate under the above conditions until
repaired. Any further Malfunctions before the Holdout is repaired will incur an automatic Catastrophic Malfunction. Repair takes 30 minutes and a Fair (5) Tinkerin’ roll. In a mundane game, the Huckster must make an onerous (7) Sleight of Hand roll to prevent anyone from seeing the Rig; otherwise he may be caught.
Catastrophic: The Holdout extends out about a foot further than it should and stays there or strikes the Huckster’s cards, spilling them. Either way, the Huckster is revealed as a dirty cheat. The Manitou immediately unleashes a random Backlash on the Huckster and the Hex fails. Nobody likes a cheater, so no Manitou will answer the Huckster’s challenge for the next hour. For the next 23 hours after that, the Huckster’s hexes will be cast at a -2 penalty, thanks to a temporarily poor reputation among the spirits. In a mundane game of cards, the Huckster is also revealed as a cheat, much to the detriment of the Huckster. Repair of the Rig takes at least an hour and an
Onerous (7) Tinkerin’ roll.
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