From nv91-asa@nada.kth.se Thu Sep 4 18:06:25 1995 Received: from omega.qmw.ac.uk (omega.qmw.ac.uk [138.37.6.5]) by mail.nada.kth.se (8.6.10/8.6.10) with SMTP id SAA26824 for ; Mon, 4 Sep 1995 18:06:22 +0200 Received: from QMWCC2.qmw.ac.uk by omega.qmw.ac.uk with SMTP-DNS (PP) id <15897-0@omega.qmw.ac.uk>; Mon, 4 Sep 1995 17:04:00 +0100 Received: from QMWCC2/MAILQUEUE by qmwcc2.qmw.ac.uk (Mercury 1.13); Mon, 4 Sep 95 17:10:07 GMT0BST Received: from MAILQUEUE by QMWCC2 (Mercury 1.13); Mon, 4 Sep 95 17:09:44 GMT0BST From: "C.THOMAS" Organization: Queen Mary and Westfield College To: ah4186@qmw.ac.uk, nv91-asa@nada.kth.se, atlasher@ix.netcom.com, sbabb@comp.uark.edu Date: Mon, 4 Sep 1995 17:09:34 GMT0BST Subject: Accessing Virtuals v2.0 - a much better version!! Priority: normal X-mailer: Pegasus Mail v3.22 Message-ID: <513B622669@qmwcc2.qmw.ac.uk> Status: RO X-Status: Hi guys!! OK, ignore the last one about accessing Virtuals, that was hideously rushed (I was trying to get it done before the computer room closed here) and full of cock-ups and incoherent stuff. This version's much better. It corrects all the niggly holes in the first draft (ie. Agents need to get to Earth via a Gateway, but don't need to get to Nexus using it - they can do this from anywhere on Earth) and reads a lot better too. Also, the Containment Procedure is described at the end, so you know how Containment works now. Any comments etc are welcome! Enjoy! Consty ===================================================================== ACCESS TO VIRTUALS AND NEXUS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Access to Virtuals from Nexus is limited. Natural access points between Virtuals and Nexus do exist, but these are the only points from which the Virtual can be accessed - these are known as PORTALS to Continuum Agents, as differentiated from those access points to MC Earth which are known as GATEWAYS. Portals appear in fixed locations in both Nexus and the Virtuals. Note however that the relative geographic locations of the Portals do not have to correspond to their positions in the other plane - Portals a few miles apart in a given Virtual may be separated by thousands of miles in Nexus. Portals appear in Nexus as shimmering brown windows into the other reality, a few metres across - however, they cannot be entered without the 'Virtual Travel' procedure, described below. Also note that Portals can only be seen in a Virtual using Time 1 - they are otherwise invisible on the Virtual side. The most common way to access and leave Virtuals is via the 'Virtual Travel' Procedure (ie. Rote - the Continuum retains much of their Technocratic terminology when dealing with Magick). Nexus itself can only be entered via the 'Nexus Entry' Procedure, a conjuctional Spirit/Time effect. These Procedures are described below: NEW PROCEDURES: Nexus Entry and Virtual Travel ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NEXUS ENTRY Spirit 3, Time 3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nexus Entry allows Agents to enter Nexus directly from any location within Main Corridor. Gateways (q.v.) are not required to enter or leave Nexus (unlike Portals). Agents always arrive in Nexus at the site of one of the two Gateways there - these are constantly guarded. [Both Spirit and Time are required since Nexus is surrounded by an unusual Gauntlet with both Spirit and Temporal components to it. Three successes must be rolled to penetrate this Gauntlet at difficulty 7]. VIRTUAL TRAVEL ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Individual Basic: Time 3, Spirit 3 Individual Targeted: Correspondence 3, Time 3, Spirit 3 Multiple Basic: Time 3, Spirit 4 Multiple Targeted: Correspondence 4, Time 3, Spirit 4 This Procedure allows the Agent to cross the Temporal Gauntlet that separates the Virtuals and Nexus from eachother. This Temporal Gauntlet is created as a natural side-effect of the basic Metaversal Law of Continuity. It can only be used from Nexus or a Virtual, and can only be used by an MC Mage or any Virtual Inhabitant with a Temporal Avatar - there is absolutely no effect if anyone else attempts it. The Procedure must also be initiated at the site of a Portal. There are two main ways this Procedure can be attempted - Single or Multiple - both of which are further subdivided into Basic and Targeted. Both Individual Procedures (ie. Individual Basic and Individual Targeted) only allow the Mage to transport himself, while the Multiple Procedures allow the Mage to bring others with him. 'INDIVIDUAL' PROCEDURES: The Individual Procedures allow the Mage to transport only himself and any items carried across the Temporal Gauntlet. The Individual Basic Procedure (Time 3, Spirit 3) transports the Mage across the Temporal Gauntlet. The Mage arrives on the other side of the Portal before which the Procedure is used, so should be prepared for any unusual climatic conditions at that site (eg. if a Portal is in the middle of an ocean in the Virtual, the Agent had best be prepared for a wet landing!). The Individual Targeted Procedure, which includes Correspondence 3, is more often used however. While not vital for the Basic Procedure to succeed, the Correspondence component makes it vastly more convenient - it allows the Agent to arrive at any location on the other side of the Portal - not necessarily at the site of the Portal. Note however that the Procedure must still be enacted at the site of the Portal on the 'departure side'. 'MULTIPLE' PROCEDURES: The 'Multiple' Procedures are more complicated, but allow the Agent to take passengers with him across the Temporal Gauntlet. The Multiple Basic Procedure uses a Time 3/Spirit 4 combination to weaken the Temporal Gauntlet within a radius of a few metres around the Agent, thus allowing any within this area to travel with the Mage. As with the Individual Basic Procedure though, the group arrive at the site of the Portal on the other side of the Temporal Gauntlet. The Multiple Targeted Procedure adds a Correspondence 4 component which allows the group to arrive at any location on the other side of the Temporal Gauntlet, not necessarily at the site of the Portal there. Regardless of the direction of travel (Virtual to Nexus or vice versa), the Temporal Gauntlet of the Virtual must be successfully negotiated in order to enter AND leave. The strength of the Temporal Gauntlet around a Virtual is determined by its Energy Rating (see the Updated Virtual Classification Scheme). Virtual's Energy Successes needed Difficulty rating 1 2 5 2 3 6 3 4 7 U Add + 1 to successes needed Add + 1 to Difficulty Thus, to enter Neverland (a 1U Virtual), the Agent must roll 3 successes for the Procedure at Difficulty 6. The number of successes shown above is required to travel through the Portal - travel time is instantaneous. A Failure (ie. no successes, or less than the required number of successes) means that the Agent cannot enter the Portal on this attempt, and must wait an hour for the Portal to stabilise fully. A Botch means the Agent has become stuck in the Temporal Gauntlet - a very hazardous experience since agents of the Darkness often prowl this interface, looking for trapped travellers. On a Catastrophic Botch (a result of '1' on all dice), the Agent may open a gateway directly to the Darkness instead.... More often than not, this Procedure is built into a purposely- made Device - a Virtual Travel Bracelet (described below) - given as a matter of course to Field Ops in Nexus. All such Devices have a Timepiece [the Continuum's focus for Time] of some sort incorporated into them, giving them the appearance of complicated wrist-watches or pocket clocks. To enact the Procedure, the Agent adjusts the Bracelet while concentrating [meditating - the focus for Correspondence and/or Spirit] on the Portal. Remember that all Continuum Agents require these foci when attempting this Procedure, since as Technomages they cannot ignore their foci until they reach Arete 6. Note that this Bracelet is not essential to use the Virtual Travel Procedures - the Agent does NOT need to specifically have a Travel Bracelet to cross the Temporal Gauntlet. However, he must have the necessary Spheres required for the Procedures, and must still use the relevant foci. VIRTUAL TRAVEL BRACELET *** Arete 5 Quintessence 15 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inbuilt Effects: Sense Portal (Time 1) Sense Timestone (Time 1) Nexus Entry (Spirit 3, Time 3) Individual Targeted Virtual Travel (Correspondence 3, Time 3, Spirit 3) Multiple Targeted Virtual Travel (Correspondence 4, Time 3, Spirit 4) Standard issue among Continuum Agents operating in Nexus and the Virtuals, these bracelets allow the Agent to travel across Virtuals. Each bracelet allows the Agent to perform the Single and Multiple Targeted Virtual Travel procedures (allowing him to take passengers if needs be, and arrive at any location at his destination), though they still must be performed at the site of the Portal. It also allows the Agent to enter Nexus direct from Earth via the 'Nexus Entry' Procedure. Additionally, it contains an indicator that shows the direction and distance to the nearest Portal - especially useful within a Virtual. In almost all cases, the bracelet is disguised as a normal watch or other easily portable timepiece. This not only makes it less conspicuous to Virtual natives, but also provides a free Timepiece focus for the Agent. However, it should be remembered that Timepieces are Unique Foci, so Agents should look after their Travel Bracelets! Every Bracelet also contains a small piece of Timestone. If another setting on the bracelet is activated, the direction/distance indicator shows the location of the nearest piece of Timestone - this is most useful when tracking down other Agents missing in the Virtuals. In addition, the settings of each Portal must be recorded in a Bracelet. Each bracelet can hold up to 5 Virtual Settings. Thus, an Agent may have a Bracelet which has memorised the settings for Sauron, Aegypt, Lemuria, Neverland and Lucifer. If he wishes to enter another Virtual, he must erase a previous setting and replace it with the new one. The settings for new Virtuals are programmed in simply by adjusting the Bracelet within a few metres of a Portal to the desired Virtual. Note that Agents themselves do not need to memorise 'settings' for Virtuals, since they can cast the Virtual Travel Procedure in person at the Portals. Note that the setting for Nexus itself need not be recorded - all Bracelets are capable of returning to Nexus (using the inbuilt 'Nexus Entry' Procedure) for free. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Quarantined Virtuals: The Temporal Gauntlet around Quarantined Virtuals (Danger Code Q) have been strengthened by Continuum Specialists. The Difficulties to enter or leave these Virtuals is set at 9, though the number of successes required remains the same. Sealed Virtuals: The Temporal Gauntlet around Sealed Virtuals (Danger Code Z) has been increased to such an extent that the Difficulty to enter or leave them is increased to 15! Additionally, a total of 5 successes on the Procedure roll must be gained to penetrate - otherwise the Seal holds. Thus, only the most powerful magicks can penetrate the Seal, and even then a large amount of Quintessence must be burned to reduce the difficulty. Most Seals are heavily guarded, and all have magickal monitors built into them that can detect attempts to penetrate it and alert the guards if a penetration attempt is made (even if it fails). Note that the Seal is not broken, even if it is penetrated - those leaving the Virtual must again roll 5 successes against difficulty 15 to leave. Timestone Exposures: Timestone is a rare glassy, shimmering translucent brown rock found in the depths of some mountain ranges in Nexus. It appears to be the barest foundation on which Nexus is constructed - solid Space-Time. Timestone exposures are unusual in that Virtuals can be seen within them - however, the Virtuals 'behind' the exposure shift randomly. Nevertheless, these Virtuals can be entered if the 'Virtual Travel' Procedure is enacted before the exposure. Effectively the Timestone exposure becomes a Portal to the Virtual it shows. On leaving the Virtual, the Mage arrives on Nexus at the site of that Virtual's natural Portal. In many cases, the Virtuals shown by the exposures are previously undiscovered - thus, the Agent has not only to survive the dangers of the Virtual itself, but also arrives back in Nexus in an unknown location (since the Portal to the Virtual would not have been discovered previously and mapped). TEMPORAL AVATARS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Those Virtual natives with Temporal Avatars are able to cross into Nexus from the Virtual by either accidentally passing through the site of the Portal in the Virtual itself (see below) or, if they are capable of using magick, they may alternatively chance upon the combination of Spheres required for Virtual Travel (see above), whereupon they arrive at the site of the Portal to their Virtual on Nexus. Upon arrival, special Target Neutralisation Teams are sent to either pick them up and introduce them to their expanded world, or to 'Contain' the new arrivals and return them to their Virtual if they are undesirable elements. Occasionally, the Continuum has to hunt down and kill a dangerous native who has managed to escape from a Sealed Virtual. As described earlier, Portals are completely invisible on the side of the Virtual - they can be detected only by using Time 1 magick. However, on the Virtual side the Portals have an additional unusual property - any Virtual inhabitant with a Temporal Avatar who actually passes through a Portal at any time will be automatically 'pulled through' by the Portal itself, a process known as AUTOENTRY (this is rolled as an Individual Basic Virtual Travel Procedure, at Arete 3). This is believed to be a reaction between the Portal and the Temporal Avatar itself. Note however that those with Temporal Avatars cannot simply walk through the Nexus side of the Portal back into their own reality - AutoEntry is effectively one-way to them, and they cannot return to their Reality unless they use magick. Also note that all other Virtual inhabitants (ie. those without Temporal Avatars) are subject to AutoEntry, and cannot perceive the Portal at all (even with Time 1). If a vehicle of some sort touches the Portal, then all those within who have a Temporal Avatar can be pulled in (AutoEntry is rolled separately for each person). In a Virtual, the vehicle itself is never affected however, unless specific Procedures have been used to enable it to pass through the Portal (ie. unless it has been 'enchanted'). Those without Temporal Avatars in the vehicle are still unaffected, and just see their comrades vanish without a trace! *AutoEntry only works from the Virtual that the inhabitant was born in*. This effect cannot occur at the sites of any Portals in other Virtuals, or on the Nexus side of ANY Portal (even the home one). Note also that AutoEntry can fail or even botch, though it will occur again if the native passes through the Portal again later. GATEWAYS AND ACCESSING NEXUS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nexus is usually accessed from any site on Earth (not just at the Gateways) or anywhere else in the Near Umbra by using the 'Nexus Entry' [Spirit 3, Time 3] Procedure that allows the Agent to enter Nexus directly from anywhere in Main Corridor or its Branches. Agents always arrive at the site of one of the Gateways on Nexus, and can only LEAVE Nexus from the Gateway site there. The Time component to the Procedure is essential, as the Gauntlet around Nexus and the Virtuals has an unusual Temporal Resonance to it that defies penetration by Spirit magick alone - effectively, this separates it from the rest of MC. The Difficulty to penetrate Nexus' hybrid Gauntlet is 7, and three successes are needed. In addition, this Gauntlet is continually monitored by Continuum Sentries. These are Constructs designed to detain (or attack, if they prove hostile) any entities entering Nexus without clearance. Anyone entering Nexus from any other location in Main Corridor will arrive at the site of one of the heavily guarded Gateways near Central Office. Security is paramount to the Continuum, both to keep intruders out of the realm, and to prevent some of the more dangerous entities that live there from escaping.... The Gateways themselves are natural doorways directly connecting Main Corridor to Nexus. Effectively, they are Spirit Wormholes that transport objects through the Gauntlets separating them, allowing direct passage from one realm to the other to the Non-Awakened. Gateways themselves are invisible on Earth, but can be detected there with a (Spirit 1 Time 1) conjunctional effect. On Earth, Gateways occupy a columnar volume of space a few hundreds of metres across at its base and about forty miles high - thus they are very different in structure from the two-dimensional Portals. This configuration means that they can capture aeroplanes that accidentally cross the Gateway (see below). Only two Gateways are known to exist on Nexus, both of which connect to MC Earth. On Earth, one is situated within what is known as the Bermuda Triangle, while the other lies off the coast of Japan, in the Devil's Sea - however, access to and from both has been restricted by the Continuum in recent years. Both are located a few miles from Central Office in Nexus itself. Gateways behave in a similar way to Portals, with one key exception - because anyone from MC (even the non-Awakened) can potentially access Nexus, AutoEntry can affect everyone that passed through the Gateway. Most of the time, the Gateway lies dormant - however, when an MC native (ie. Humans, Vampires, Mummies and Garou) or a vehicle containing them (such as ships or planes) pass through or over the Gateway, it opens and AutoEntry can occur. Gateway AutoEntry is rolled as a Sprit 3/Time 3 conjunctional effect at Arete 3 and Difficulty 6. AutoEntry is applied to the vehicle directly, and if successful then the vehicle itself and all those aboard are carried into the Gateway. If they survive the rough landing in Nexus (the Gateways in Nexus are situated in the dry plains surrounding Central Office, so ships are beached and probably holed, while aeroplanes suddenly find themselves at ground level where they invariably crash at flying speed - a usually fatal experience), any survivors find themselves trapped in Nexus, as Gateways (like Portals to a Virtual native) are one-way affairs to the Non-Awakened - they can only be entered from the Nexus side via Time/Sprit magick. Gateways have an unusual side-effect on Earth - their presence (even when dormant) creates some bizarre visual and environmental effects, including wildly varying magnetic fields (which affect compasses), negative imagery (ie. black appears white, and white appears black), strange lights and flashes in the sky, sudden lightning flashes, disorientation, dizziness, hallucinations and other such effects, all of which combine to make the approach to a Gateway a rather terrifying experience. However, these 'special effects' around the Gateway are actually completely harmless in themselves. Most people caught in the unstable area do panic though, and land up either accidentally flying or sailing through the invisible Gateway somewhere in the unstable zone itself, or losing control of their vessel and crashing it into the sea. Any survivors arriving in Nexus through the Gateway are adopted by the Continuum and often work as Acolytes. This explains the spate of disappearances so often associated with the Bermuda Triangle and the Devil's Sea. In recent years however, the Continuum has largely succeeded in closing off the Gateways (essentially as a consequence of the wreckage that was accumulating on the Nexus side of the Gateways as the vessels crashed there, and the fact that the Continuum viewed the Gateways as a weak spot in its defences). While the Continuum has made a tidy monetary profit from the cargoes of those vessels declared lost around the Gateway areas on Earth, it has found that the Gateways provide a very easy access point to anyone from MC, even their enemies. Much of the wreckage around the Gateways on Nexus has been removed - no mean feat considering that some ships that have arrived weighed in at several tens of thousands of tons displacement! However, the wrecks of the five Navy Avenger bombers of Flight 19 (which disappeared from Earth in 1945) have been kept in their original sites as a memorial to those who lost their lives through the Gateway, and to those Continuum Agents who were killed in the Perpetual War. Nowadays, the two main Gateways are all but closed off. Their Gauntlet Difficulty is set at 10, and the unstable zones have now been stabilized. However, AutoEntry still occurs - it is just more difficult. Additionally, other smaller, more temporary Gateways sometimes spontaneously appear in other locations around the world where the Gauntlet rating is low - however, these rarely last for longer than a few days. ===================================================================== NEW PROCEDURE: Temporal Containment ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Prime 5, Spirit 4, Time 1, Mind 4) Temporal Containment is the means by which the Continuum prevents those 'undesirable elements' with Temporal Avatars from entering Nexus. Often, these are the Virtual Inhabitants who somehow manage to enter Nexus from Quarantined or even Sealed Virtuals, though it has been used on others in the past. Containment is however treated on a case by case basis, though most are Contained and returned to their Virtual otherwise unharmed, having no memory of Nexus at all. If any are not Contained, they are always adopted into the Continuum, often as informal Continuum spies in their home Virtuals. Containment is a complex Procedure that blocks the inhabitant's Temporal Avatar, preventing it from entering Nexus again by any means (even magick). It works by making the Temporal Avatar completely opaque to the Temporal Gauntlet. In addition, the memory of how the target arrived at Nexus is removed and a permanent mental block is set up to prevent him from doing so again. This Mind manipulation includes the removal of ever having been Contained in the first place. Containment can only be detected by Mages from Main Corridor, using a Time 1 Spirit 1 Prime 1 conjunctional effect - Virtual Mages cannot detect Containment, and so cannot try to remove it. Containment can only be removed by powerful magicks cast by MC Mages, but anyone attempting to do so must possess all the Spheres at least at the levels used in the Containment (ie. Prime 5, Spirit 4, Mind 4, and Time 1) - anything less and the Containment cannot be removed. Containment cannot be attempted on an Avatar originating in Main Corridor - it is only effective on those originating in a Virtual. [Temporal Containment is a very complicated Rote. First, Prime 5 is used for two purposes - to set up the Containment itself, and to actually affect a living Pattern. A conjunctional (Spirit 4, Time 1) effect is then applied to render the target's Temporal Avatar totally opaque to the Temporal Gauntlet - this prevents him from ever passing through the Temporal Gauntlet again. Finally, Mind 4 is used to remove all knowledge of Nexus, the Containment itself and how the target arrived there. This is cast as a single Rote, often by a group of Continuum Specialists. Five successes must be gained between those casting the effect to make the effect Permanent, and all must possess the required Spheres. The effect can be countered as normal as it is being cast (though in most cases the target is rendered unconscious at the time). It can only be removed afterwards by an MC Mage possessing the Spheres used to cast the Containment - ie. Prime 5, Spirit 4, Mind 4, and Time 1 - so he can fully perceive the magick he is attempting to remove. Virtual Mages cannot attempt remove Containment themselves, since they are unable to perceive the Containment to begin with - an MC Mage must do this for them, and no Continuuum Mage will do so unless directly contradicting Central Office and risking the wrath of a Continuum Tribunal. A Contained Temporal Avatar remains trapped in his home Virtual until such time as the Containment is removed. He retains no memory of Nexus at all, or of ever having gone there. In addition, a subliminal suggestion is implanted that always persuades him away from ever trying to enter Nexus again. Contained Avatars can only be detected by MC Mages using a conjunctional (Sprit 1, Time 1, Prime 1) rote. Obviously, the Continuum can only Contain those undesirable Virtual inhabitants who enter Nexus somehow - these are usually those from highly xenophobic, warlike, or otherwise dangerous races. Containment is performed in Nexus itself, once the 'undesirable' has been captured and Contained, he is then returned to his home Virtual (Containment does not prevent Temporal Avatars from LEAVING Nexus, only from entering it) by the Continuum, with no memory of his experience outside his reality. However, not everyone coming in through the Quarantined Portals is undesirable - some for example are refugees from the Virtual. These are often adopted for some purpose in the Continuum]. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Constantine Thomas / Do redheads have more fun? ah4186@qmw.ac.uk \ "Dunno. I'm a dyed redhead." Space-Doggin' on the Internet! / - Tori Amos --------------------------------------------------------------------- Deny Everything