Light-based abilities

[nerulean]

One of our DMs is planning on running a no-stats game where each character is a member of a jedi-like organisation that have the power to control the elements. I've randomly generated light as the element my character will be able to control, and eventually, after a lot of character development, my bhuka will be able to pretty much manipulate light to do whatever she likes.

This is where I need help: I really can't think of much to do with this element. I can blind people, make shapes of light and make things glow and... then I'm stumped. The rest of the elements are producing the effects of high level spells and light seems to mainly duplicate cantrips. Any help you can offer to shore up my sadly waning creativity would be much appreciated: what would you do if you had complete control over light?

[martyboy74]

To quote Sandman, "...there's no such thing as a one-sided coin." Remember, control of light means that you have control over the dark.

Also, you can shoot lasers out of your eyes!

[Hario]

You can do something like what "The Mirror" does in Read or Die, and manipulate the light people see to make them see what you want them to see. IE disguise self.
You can heat Obejects up or fuel other sources like plants.

You Can bend the Color Spectrum however you want to how many effects you want, like see infrared to see body heat.

If you want to kill catgirls, with light you effect most sound depending on wavelengths or even cause harsh radiation. Light is an extremely powerful and open ended element, it has the power to control all the other elements.

[nerulean]

Eye-lasers are a possibility. Unfortunately, dark is a separate element in the system, so the darkest I can get a place is whatever the ambient light conditions are in the surroundings.

[Leadfeathermcc]

Well it is not inspired from anime, hollywood, or tolkien but you could make your character with powers similar to Dazzler from Marvel comics.


Apparently Dazzler must consciously or subconsciously will the light to leave her body. Otherwise, light would "leak" from her at all times, even when she was asleep or unconscious. Dazzler can produce numerous effects with the light she converts from sonic vibrations. She can simply cause a bright glow all about her body. She can create very simple patterns out of rays of light like circles, squares, triangles, and stars. With effort, she can even create holograms of human beings and other three-dimensional beings and objects. She can create a pulse of light on the order of several thousand watts seconds of power, which temporarily blinds people with its brilliance. She can create a chaotic cascade of sparkling lights and colors that severely upsets other people's equilibrium, or a pulsating strobe-light effect. By concentrating, Dazzler can generate a coherent beam of light, approximating a laser beam, with which she can cut through virtually anything.

Her training with the X-Men, especially with Cyclops, has taught her how to produce such laser-like beams with much less effort than it previously required of her. She generally directs the laser from a single finger when she requires precision in its use, since pointing aids her in defining its direction. But she can also direct laser blasts from both hands at once when she wishes, for example, to demolish a large structure.She most often uses her hands for directing her light effects, but she could also use other parts of her body.

Since studying with the X-Men, she has become adept at directing her blinding strobe light blast from her eyes. The Dazzler has also learned how to create a protective force field about herself with laser light that can deflect or vaporize oncoming projectiles. The most powerful manifestation of her abilities is a concentrated beam of solid photons she usually fires from her right index finger. The beam is extremely powerful and as a consequence uses a great deal of her energy reserves. However she has since learned how to produce these blasts without draining herself, but still providing them with considerable power. She has also recently shown the ability to form her photon emissions into a solid, sword-like construct. Dazzler's potential to convert sound to light is unlimited. Curiously, she cannot use her own unamplified voice as a source of sound for her transduction abilities. Dazzler's body, especially her eyes, shields itself against any injurious effects of her light transducing abilities, and against those of bright lights in general. Her ability to transduce sound also protects her from being deafened by loud noises.

[NotCC]

If you can control light then you can bend it. Predator anyone? Bend light around you to hide in plain sight.

Also, ever been to a night club? I don't know about you but strobe lights make me sick. So use your power to quickly pulse light flashes to sicken your enemies.

Use it like the Rainbow Pattern spell to mezmerize opponents.

[nerulean]

The other elements are fire, water, earth, air, dark, nature and magic. I don't think I'll be able to do anything that encroaches on any of them (excluding magic, which is just very ambiguous), so that puts heat-based effects out. I'd love to get sound-based effects, but I'd be surprised if I could sneak that one by my DM.

But heehee, Leadfeathermcc, Dazzler! Awesome. Though ironically, I always thought her power was a bit naff. :smallbiggrin:

[leperkhaun]

lets see. You can go invisible or make other things invisible by bending the light around them.

You can do damage via laser style (lasers isnt a heat thing).

You can change what colors someone precives (make a coat look blue instead of red for example).

building on the previous you could make visual illusions (ohh look there isnt a cliff there anymore).

You can make it go dark or really bright.

You could mess with someone's depth perception (make things appear closer or further away)

I think you'd be able to precive the other spectrums (say infred vision anyone?)

iffy but maybe turn into light and teleport?

Ohhh if you are in a jedi type setting and people are using blaster type weapons, well they just shoot lasers, which is light, so..........

[Wooter]

To quote Sandman, "...there's no such thing as a one-sided coin."

Unless you use Möbius strips and Klein bottles as currency. Which would be awesome.

[martyboy74]

Lightsabers! You could make a lightsaber!

[Leadfeathermcc]

Lightsabers! You could make a lightsaber!
This is made of win!

[Snadgeros]

Seems as though most of the powers would be focused in a few areas:

-Lasers, particularly of the eye
-Manipulation of lighting conditions
-Creating sparkles, shines, patterns, etc.
-Changing percieved colors
-Illusions (this is the biggie)

By manipulating light, you should be able to create incredibly realistic illusions, not just by altering your appearance, but this includes invisibility and transparency as well. I'd give you stuff ranging from prestigitization (the color changing) to full scale invisibility and alter self.

[weenie]

It would make sense that Light and Darkness would be te same element in your setting. Since one is the absence of the other and stuf.. Apart from that it's all been written down allready. You're basiclly an illusionist. Oh, and since radars work on electromagnetic waves as well you could also make yourself invisible to radar detection etc.

[Nerd-o-rama]

-Lasers
-Illusions/Holograms, which includes invisibility
-Just generally being able to focus or summon light
-Possibly force-fields, although this requires abuse of physics
-Countering Darkness-based abilities.
-Plant growth?

I'll assume you don't have control over all forms of electromagnetic radiation, since this is based on magic and classical elements.

If we're willing to go into metaphysical aspects of light:
-Magical healing
-Ressurection
-Abilities that banish or damage "evil"
-Mental clarity (including the ability to clear the minds of others)
-Clairvoyance is somewhere between here and an actual physical basis.

[Snadgeros]

-Possibly force-fields, although this requires abuse of physics

No it doesn't. Light is both a wave and a particle. Ergo, if you focus enough light together in a rigid form, you'd eventually make a solid. Of course, this would be a high-level power, given the sheer amount of light you'd have to control, and looking at light this condensed would probably blind anyone looking at it.

[Nerd-o-rama]

But...photons have no mass. But they can interfere with...

Oh, screw it, I'm not going to argue. Do whatever you like, I'll stick to high-power magnetic fields for my sci fi defenses.

[zakk2to2]

for the darkness you would not "control" the dark you would just have the light not go to the place you want dark because in the absence of light there is dark. you control the light so you can indirectly control the dark.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Look at it this way. There's Dark, and there's dark.

What the other element does is Dark. That's totally different.

Your dark is just absence of light.

I think illusions are the main tool for you.

[nerulean]

I'm hoping for illusions. It's vastly obvious, a pure manipulation of light, and yet I still think it might take some DM persuading. He has an idea that light should be all about clarity rather than false sight, so I suspect I'll end up with some sort of true seeing ability, but I might not get a fairly obvious use of light. Invisibility, I have no hope for whatsoever.

I might get some of the metaphysical stuff, restoration, healing, that sort of thing, which is a pity since I've just done a spell as a cleric.

[Leadfeathermcc]

You could also purposefully misinterpret what you DM intended.

Make a character that can make things lighter so things float away on a light breeze, or remove calories from food to make it marketable as "lite". Perhaps you can remove calories from you enemies and starve them to death really quickly. :smallwink:

[martyboy74]

I might get some of the metaphysical stuff, restoration, healing, that sort of thing, which is a pity since I've just done a spell as a cleric.

Is there someone playing Dark? If so, see how much of that you can hand off to him. After all, the dark makes things disappear. Like wounds...and...stuff.

[Mewtarthio]

The obvious applications include gamma rays and lasers right in your enemies' eyes. Plus you can give yourself a lovely, natural-looking tan.

[Corlis]

With some finesse you could sort of scry. Mentally reach out to a point in another room, then take the light entering that point and funnel it directly to your eyes, so you can see things as if you were actually in that spot.

[Artanis]

Just because it's worth repeating, I'll put in another vote for lasers.

[nerulean]

Lasers are pretty much guaranteed to happen, have no fear.

Scrying might actually also work, that's something I hadn't thought of, good pointer there.

Sadly, since I'm playing a bhuka, the tanning function of the power just won't work. I might be able to make some cash on the side by acting as a tanning bed for elves, though...

[13_CBS]

Would teleportation/fast movement work? You know, moving at the speed of light and all...

Also, to piggyback on scrying, would mind-reading also work? You know, shining a light into the dark recesses of someone's mind and all...

[Pronounceable]

Manipulation of light is what most of illusion spells do anyway, why would your DM object to it? You should be an illusioner, no question.

If you are getting cantrip illusion spells while other elements get high level spell equivalent powers, you're getting shafted. If DM refuses to give you illusion spells, besiege him with science: Laser and radioactivity.

If there's magic and all that, you should get illusion. If there's physics, you should get laser and radiactivity (and maybe all of electromagnetism).

[zakk2to2]

if lightsabers exist then shields and stuff should not be a problem. the reason is because not to allow such things would disallow a main symbol of the jedi. having the ability to basicly be a living lightsaber probably wont go to well. try having it start out where it cant harm anything and is more of a energy shield then a weapon.

[Armads]

Wait...you can manipulate light in any way you choose?

Okay, you can make yourself invisible by directing light away from everybody else's eyes, you can make rooms dark by drawing light away from stuff, you can also see stuff from behind a corner or a wall, since you can make light bend around the corner to your eyes.

[Lemur]

If your DM won't give up on the clarity angle, you have a strong position to bargain not just for scrying, but anything that lets you pierce illusions, true sight, and early detection in general.

I'd also echo the comment on lightspeed transit, i.e. teleportation.

Also, strobe light 'em into seizures! Or just stunning. That works too.

[seedjar]

Radiation comes to mind; microwave your opponents to death. A high level spell could be a very small fission explosion. You could also debuff with radiation poisoning.
~Joe

[Devils_Advocate]

I'm hoping for illusions. It's vastly obvious, a pure manipulation of light, and yet I still think it might take some DM persuading. He has an idea that light should be all about clarity rather than false sight, so I suspect I'll end up with some sort of true seeing ability, but I might not get a fairly obvious use of light. Invisibility, I have no hope for whatsoever.
Well, you might point out that illusions aren't inherently deceptive or anything. E.g. when I watch a video, I'm basically watching things that aren't there, but that doesn't make me think that they are there. Illusions can be used to illustrate concepts for educational purposes. Heck, pictures are basically illusions of a sort. "Fooling" the senses can actually help to convey accurate information.

(I've given a bit of thought to how a thaumaturgically advanced D&D society would function. It seems to me that illusion spells would be one of the most common types of magic, and only infrequently used to actually deceive. Gnomes, as skilled illusionists in particular and the geeks of demihumanity in general, would tend to pretty much run things. Though by "things", I do mostly mean inatimate objects and not so much actual people, at least not directly...)

Even if you're only given a bunch of divination powers, though, that could still be pretty useful.

[Benejeseret]

Fun things to do:

1) Deny your party members wavelengths of blue light. Their circadian rythm will falter and the sleep cycle miscues may lead to narcoleptic episodes.

2) Leave every enemy alive with some part of his body glowing as your trademark.

3) Go into marketing and make tonnes of money advertising products by making permanent neon-type signs everywhere.

4) Create the aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwe movie effect around you whenever you walk into a room and get the nature person to make birds chirp and flowers bloom so that everyone thinks they are falling in love with you at first sight.

5) Create the aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwe movie effect around you along with a halo and team up with the fire guy (grant you a flaming sword) and the nature guy (give you wings) and come to wield the entire power of the catholic church at your disposal.

[MagicPrime]

http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/cartoons/green_lantern_rebirth2.jpg

Manipulate Light say you?

The power of controlling "Light" is really power of the Electro-Magnetic Spectrum. Meaning everything from Infrared to Ultraviolet. Microwaves, X-Rays, all are in effect "Light"

[ALOR]

I have to agree with the majority of the other posters. You character should be able to bend light to make illusions and go invisible. Thats like one of the big things. Unless your dm is thinking of "light" more in terms of "holy" in which case then that makes sense.

[Tengu]

You could be the ultimate undead killer, since most of them don't really like light much. Also, shafts of pure light coming from the sky and such things are a great way of inspiring your allies and hindering the opponents' sight at the same time - the return of Gandalf at the end of the Two Towers movie, anyone? And yes, I know it was just a natural sunrise, but without his inspiring presence I'm sure it would have much less of an effect.

Is this DND, just without rules, or a completely homebrew setting?

[nerulean]

Fun things to do:
...

4) Create the aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwe movie effect around you whenever you walk into a room and get the nature person to make birds chirp and flowers bloom so that everyone thinks they are falling in love with you at first sight.

5) Create the aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwe movie effect around you along with a halo and team up with the fire guy (grant you a flaming sword) and the nature guy (give you wings) and come to wield the entire power of the catholic church at your disposal.

Hehehe, it was my last character who did the whole 'everyone's falling in love with you' thing, but that was just because of an insanely high charisma score.

As for the setting, it's one we've used before for standard D&D. Fairly generic setting as far as races, classes, gods etc go, except for the eight spirits that control the elements and will be providing us with powers for the statless campaign.

The inspirational effect is something I might get away with.

[Ferreon]

Could you duplicate prismatic effects, with the power of light?


might be worth checking with your DM

[zakk2to2]

look into the old comic Cloak and Dagger. while cloak is not usefull for you Dagger is a good source of light type attacks and stuff.