Role-playing was never mandated in the rules, why should it? If you refuse to roleplay, cause it's not in the rules, you are playing the wrong game.
If your Street Sam with his code of honor sees something like this, he will be furious.
Setting someone on fire will have similar consequences, but throwing a fireball in the heat of the combat is generally "excepted" like shooting a bullet. Agian, this is part of your roleplay, not the rules. Nothing weird about it BTW.
My point is that the book determines the social mores and norms within which you base your roleplay. If you were playing a roleplaying game set in the 1700's, and a girl walked around in a miniskirt, then the "normal" reaction for most characters would be for them to be shocked, and to feel that she was being highly inappropriate, while if you are playing a roleplaying game set in 2013, the "normal" reaction would be that no one would think twice.
That doesn't mean that EVERYONE would react that way. There would be a few individuals in the 1700s who might not care, and a few individuals today who thought that the skirt was too short, and that she was being inappropriate - but that isn't the norm.
In the book, the only thing it says about people's reaction to magic (on page 277) is
"What has remained the same, even after all this time, is the public’s ignorance of magic. They’re less nervous about magic than they’ve been in the past,thanks to the desensitizing effects of newsworthy (and,
on one occasion, electable) dragons, spirits, fictional and documentary trids, and even ads featuring or catering to mages, but their understanding of how magic works is still very limited."
It goes on to say that
corporations are nervous about them, but not people - and even that is just them being nervous about Awakened in general and not with something specific that they do:
"The authorities seem to think that any unapproved discussion between magicians will eventually lead to chaos and/or destruction. They are not entirely wrong."
"Some corporations and governments take their regulation of magic to extreme levels, requiring the Awakened not only to register but also to provide a tissue sample. This means magicians and adepts can be tracked down if they step out of line, or do anything that pisses off the authorities."
But that is about Awakened practitioners in general - not people who use Control Manipulations.
In fact the only thing it mentions as far as specific practices of the Awakened thare are considered "evil" are:
"The worst part of it is that the authorities have a good reason to be worried about magic, as some spellslingers and adepts are doing some pretty nasty drek. The legal term for illegal magic is maleficium, and it can get pretty
ugly. From toxic magic that summons spirits from the bubbling filth of the most polluted corners of the Sixth World to blood magic where casters drain an unsuspecting victim to add power to their spells, magic can go to
some twisted places."
So my point is where is this social norm described anywhere in the book that the characters should react to Control magic any differently than they would be reacting to a Fireball?
And as a follow up to that, not every character is going to follow social norms, and not every code of honor is the same. If my code of honor is that I do not kill women and children, then the fact that the mage caused some security guard to shoot himself doesn't impact that at all.
Ultimately it means that as a "penalty" - it isn't supported by the way the world is described as a "normal" reaction to magic. Now, when the 5e magic book comes out and something says that Control Magics are considered highly despised compared to other magics, then that is something to consider - but until then, the "normal" reaction is either you don't like Magic, or you do. Sure there will be some characters who find Control Magics offensive, and some who don't care - but having characters who don't care isn't "refusing to roleplay" any more than having characters who don't care about someone setting someone on fire with a fireball is "refusing to roleplay".
"Don't forget, you'll need to keep the target in your sight. It's not in the RAW but it has alway been this way ..."
- your wording isn't RAW either, don't say "this is not RAW" and them come with a houserule
- this being a houserule and not RAW is exactly what i said"
What do you mean my wording is a houserule? My wording is
exactly the rules as written.
Page 281 - Choose the Target
The next thing you must do is choose target(s). You need
to be able to establish a link with your target—depending
on the spell, you’ll need to be able to see or touch the target
in order to establish the mystical link..
Ok - so I am dead on so far.
Page 282
If you sustain the spell (that is, if you want the effect
of a Sustained spell to continue), you take a –2 dice
pool penalty to all tests while it is sustained. You can
sustain multiple spells, but the –2 penalty is cumulative
for each spell.
Page 283
This describes how long the spell’s effect
lasts. Sustained (S) spells last
as long as you keep them going.
Page 292
Keep track of your net hits, as they determine
how long you can sustain the spell. While the spell is
sustained, the target may take a Complex Action on
their turn to resist by making a Logic + Willpower Test
with a dice pool penalty equal to the spell’s Force; every
hit the target gets reduces the caster’s net hits by 1. The
one being controlled can take this action even if they
wouldn’t get an action because of the spell. The spell
ends when your net hits are reduced to zero.
So tell me again how this statement:
"There is nothing in the 5e rules indicating that you need to remain in LOS of your target to sustain the spell. You need to have him in LOS to cast the spell at him, but after that you can sustain it as long as you like, assuming you continue to take the -2 dice penalty. (or, if he still has dice to roll after applying a dice pool penalty, he is able to roll enough successes over time to make the spell stop)."
Is a house rule?
While there is absolutely nothing in the rules AT ALL to support your statement that
"Don't forget, you'll need to keep the target in your sight. It's not in the RAW but it has always been this way .."
Still pertains to 5e? In fact, it didn't apply to 4e either. I did apply in 3e, but it hasn't been canon for years (I can go back and find the 4e quotes as well if you need me to)
