Light Powers (FiD)

Starfox's Blades in the Dark fan page

Light is both physical and spiritual light, inspiring deeds of charity and benevolence. Light is opposed to darkness.

Light is the power of ethics, inspiration, and enlightenment. It involves physical light, insight, and meaning. It gives meaning to the blind forces of order and flux, and drives away the darkness. Light powers serve to inspire, awe, and enlighten.

Light attacks are beams of coherent light, like lasers, lights words, and holy light. They are usually good against Darkness but may have problems against purely physical creatures.

Light Power Effects Table

Action	Basic No minimum 3 Stress	Advanced Minimum 2 Dice 5 Stress	Master Minimum 4 Dice 7 Stress	Apex Minimum 6 Dice 13 Stress
Attune	Light Lens You can detect creatures and powers of light. Creatures of light are called angels and have a halo of light.	Dismiss You can force any that is native to another plane of existence to return to that plane, or to end the operation of an ability of any power.	Summon You can call an angel from a place of your power. You never truly control angles, but they will cooperate in good deeds. Learning who to summon may require study or be a a score in itself.	Gate You can create a portal that allows travel to and from the plane of light for a limited time.
Command	Communicate You can communicate with angels even if normally couldn't, allowing you to use the command action normally on them.	Radiant Rejection You and allies can communicate with angels. You can communicate with normal folk to make break free of evil domination.	Celestial Calling You can give commands to angels, as if you were their superior. This does not remove existing loyalties, which can lead to conflicts.	Angelic Archway You can permanently bind angels to stay on your plane. Unless affected by other powers, they will stay in one location and act according to your instructions, very loyal and very literal-minded.
Consort	Radiant Raiment You can change your clothes and accessories by imbuing them with light. This can mask your identity or create fabulous outfits.	Angelic Alteration You assume the form of an angel. Add 1d to one action and subtract 1d from all actions covered by an attribute except if you just raised one of them.	Celestial Conversion You can shapechange a willing creature of good nature into an angel. A target can end the effect at any time.	Legion of Light You can transform a large number of willing and good-natured creatures into angels for a limited time.
Finesse	Radiant Roam You can move and see regardless of the level of light or darkness. Enemies can still hide in shadows.	Radiant Riposte You can use the power as a fine and potent close-range attack, similar in effect to a fine potent dueling sword or pistol, or you can give your friends the Ride ability for the duration of a score.	Radiant Reach You can do fine manipulation of light, allowing you to do small and exact manipulations at range. This allows you to trigger or hinder mechanisms or perform other minor manipulations, as long as the target is sensitive to light or heat.	Radiant Rain Your power manifests like a rain of searing rays, suppressing the effect of multiple opponents and acting as a fine potent weapon.
Hunt	Ethereal Eye You can track creatures with strong good or bad intentions.	Radiant Ray You can use your power to attack, similar in effect to a fine and potent laser rifle.	Celestial Cascade You can use your power to attack similar to a fine and potent laser bomb. This allows you to fight many creatures in the same area very effectively, but there is a risk of collateral damage.	Celestial Cannonade You call down the equivalent of a fine potent artillery laser barrage, attacking everything and everyone in a wide area. This can raze buildings and create rubble. Usually enough to provide cover for any escape.
Prowl	Halo Haze You can become invisible in strong light.	Luminous Leap You can move in a flash. This allows you to teleport short distances to a spot you can see.	Celestial Conveyance You can bring allies along when you use Halo Haze and Luminous Leap.	Ethereal Express You and allies can teleport from one brightly illuminated to another. This is regional travel, you stay within the same city or region.
Skirmish	Radiant Rapier You can use the power as a close-range laser attack, similar in effect to a melee weapon or pistol.	Luminous Lance Same as Skirmish Attack, except the weapon is fine and potent.	Luminous Labyrinth Your power creates distractions and obstructions that prevents the enemy from benefiting from numbers and otherwise works as a fine potent weapon.	Bright Blitz Your light strikes out in all directions, attacking all enemies in a wide area.
Study	Angelic Appraisal You can sense the use and result of powers.	Luminescent Lore You know the powers and abilities of something you use Angelic Appraisal on.	Radiant Recall You read the past events of something you analyze with Luminescent Lore. This includes previous owners and how the object has been moved around as well as significant scenes.	Divine Discovery You use Luminescent Lore on everything in a wide area. This is easy to do where you are, more difficult at range. You can then use Radiant Recall on some of these targets.
Survey	Angelic Awareness You can sense strong good and evil intentions as well as physical illumination. This works even when you can't see the target, but both range and information suffers.	Gleaming Gaze Choose a glowing object that you have detected; you can perceive as if you were at that spot. You cannot use your Survey action for anything else when doing so.	Radiant Revelation Choose a location or creature. You gain a sensor at the nearest glowing object, which is often close enough to perceive the target.	Illuminated Insight You perceive from all glowing objects at once over a wide area. As long as you concentrate you retain this perception and can report what you see to others.
Sway	Radiant Rapport You can communicate with angels even if normally couldn't, allowing you to use the sway action normally on them.	Luminous Lexicon You and allies can communicate with angels. You can communicate with normal folk to make them do good.	Cricket Voice You can post suggestions in the mind of a creature manifesting your power, which will be triggered under conditions you specify. These suggestions must be to make them do good or to break free of evil domination.	Seraphic Subjugation You change the personality and motivations of intelligent creatures. This power is permanent, but blatant. The target remember their past, but regard it as unimportant compared to their new motivations.
Tinker	Celestial Crafting You can handle light, lamps, lasers, and holiness as if you had the appropriate tools and protective devices.	Radiant Reshaping You can shape light, lasers, and holiness as if they were of clay, and they will retain their new shape for some time even if they would normally not, such as light and lasers.	Radiant Creation You can handle light, lasers, and holiness out of nothing, or transform an object from one material to another as long as you know the power required for both the starting and final form. This can create complex tools, such as fine and potent items appropriate to the power(s) used.	Radiant Replication This is similar to create, above, but you mass produce objects, even a set of different objects. You can also make something large, such as a vehicle or building.
Wreck	Gleaming Grasp Light cuts and welds like a laser and chases darkness away. You can wield this power like a sledgehammer. Noisy and leaves a twisted object in place.	Radiant Ravage Similar to Gleaming Grasp but with increased effect. Works as a fine potent sledgehammer in combat.	Ethereal Erasure Similar to Radiant Ravage, but destroyed targets silently disappear or are reduced to a fine dust.	Heavenly Holocaust Similar to Radiant Ravage, but over a large area. This can level a city block, empty a canal system of water, raze a city wall, and similar massive destruction.

Expanded Light Powers

Expanded descriptions of effects that differ significantly from Typical Powers.

Attune

The consequences depends entirely on what happens around you when you do it. If a powerful creature resists being dispelled or dismissed, its at least risky. In a general melee against strong opponents, the situation becomes desperate. Having helpers and bodyguards improves position, and sometimes the situation is calm or a creature wants to be dismissed and the position is controlled.

Light is a very high-utility version of attune. You can detect, dispel, and dismiss all powers and creatures tied to all powers.

Light Lens You can detect powers and creatures linked to creatures and powers. This applies to all powers, not just light.

Light Lens is usually used to spot a disguised creature, but it can also help identify a creature's connection to powers. Limited effect suffices against a creature you can clearly see. You need greater effect against against a creature that is hidden (standard effect) or behind a wall (great effect). The position usually starts controlled, with the usual consequence that you cannot try again or only try again at greater risk. If you have an additional level of effect, you can identify what power you are detecting, and gain some insight into what kind of creature it is. For more detailed informations, see Survey and Study.

Light Lattice You can force a creature to return to its plane of origin, or to end the operation of an ability of any power.

Dispelling powers is usually easier, but not always. Dispelling can be used as a defense against others' use of power, or it can be used to break the continuing effects of powers.

Dismissing a creature requires great effect, and if the creature is of a higher tier, as they often are, might require that the creature is weakened by combat, interactions, or by being set up. It is often used as a setup action to help another character in a situation when the opposition is using powers. Limited effect creates an opening that makes the supported action potent. Normal effect improves the position of the supported action. Great effect improves both position and effect of the supported power.

You usually don't have to play around with effect when dispelling, but the final result of your action depends on how vulnerable the target is to losing its powers, even momentarily. The result usually starts out at limited effect unless the opponent is relying on powers for their safety. Against an opponent that uses power to fly or even breathe you can have a better effect. When a power is the crux of the situation, dispel wont end that power but instead give you a clue to what you need to do to resolve the situation.

Celestial Call You can call an angel from heaven. You never truly control angels, but they will cooperate in good deeds.

Angels come in all forms, some looking light elementals made of light, sometimes forming glowing glyphs or text. Others have animal, humanoid, or even mechanical forms. All are moral, and have intellect enough to judge morality, or perhaps a supernatural sense for what is good.

Depending on your degree of effect the creature is willing to do different things. Limited effect allows you to ask questions of an intelligent creature or demand a short period of physical labor from a simple creature. The creature will not fight for you. If forced into a fight due to circumstances, it will simply disappear.

Standard effect allows you to ask for any service appropriate to an angel. The creature will heal, bless, carry messages of peace or challenges against evil, and give just judgement. This includes dangerous tasks such as combat if the angel has such abilities, which most of them do.

Great effect allows lengthy service, like summoning the creature to guard against evil for as long as it can, but still does not allow morally questionable actions.

The position is controlled unless the situation around you is dangerous. An angel may require you to promise future good deeds or to accept a quest or mission. It might pose moral questions that you need to answer.

Glorious Gate You can create a portal that allows travel to and from heaven for a limited time.

This is only really useful under exceptional circumstances. Heaven may accept pilgrims or refugees for a time, but not permanently. There are also things that are possible to do on in heaven that are not allowed in the regular world, light effects are reduced one step in difficulty, from advanced to basic, master to advanced, and apex to master, opening the possibility of new super-apex powers that have to be negotiated with the game master. Such effects rarely reach outside heaven, but if they affect creatures in heaven, the effect may remain when you return to the mundane world. This may apply to some other effects, such as Life used to heal

Gating can allow access to angels too powerful to summon, so you instead go to heaven to ask for an audience. The creature may then use the gate to come to you, call you into its presence, or just communicate with you.

Using a gate to adventure in heaven is played out as a score, which means there is an engagement roll.

Command

Celestial Command You can use command on angels even if you normally couldn't.

You can admonish creatures and suggest a better path to them across language and culture barriers. This allows the use of the Command action restricted only by your intent, you must genuinely wish them well.

Celestial Call You can communicate with angels over long distances or to send messages of hope.

You must know the name of the creature you communicate with, or to have met them in person. A message of hope is something to lift their spirits, influence them to be moral, or perform good deeds. This has supernatural influence over them, they must choose their own actions.

Angelic Authority You can give commands to angels, as if you were their superior.

Angels won't do evil deeds. They might do neutral deeds if they seem a chance of redemption or other a positive result, which can be used to trick them. This does not remove existing loyalties, which can lead to conflicts if they already have a task or master.

Angelic Allegiance You can bind angels to permanent service.

They will generally stay in one location and act according to your instructions, like very loyal and literal-minded stooges.

This won’t work unless the task is one that aligns with the principles of light. The effect is similar to Angelic Authority but potentially permanent. An angel will not usually break free, but might disobey part of your instruction for the greater good.

Consort

Consort powers changes your form and later that of other creatures. Often Consort rolls are not actually made when you use the power to change your appearance or form, it is rolled when in the social situation and effect and position is decided at this critical point. This will often give a bonus to effect or improved position or even allow an action that an outsider could not do. These powers might also be used as a set-up action for a later Consort roll.

Consequences might reveal your disguise, but only if the position is risky or desperate.

Radiant Raiment You can change your clothes and accessories by imbuing them with light.

This can mask your identity or create fabulous outfits. Allows the creation of effects like halos and mandorlas or even a mask of diffuse light bright enough to conceal your identity. You do not physically change yourself, you accessorize and change your outfit or add an aura.

Angelic Alteration You assume the form of an angel. Add 1d to one action and subtract 1d from all actions covered by an attribute except if you just raised one of them.

This is a true physical transmutation. You need not assume the form of an existing creature, as long as the table agrees your new form is appropriate for a creature of light. This can give you new abilities, but these are things you could already do using Light powers.

To represent what your new form is good at, you have the option to add 1d to one action appropriate to the assumed form and subtract 1d from all actions covered by an attribute. If the buffed action is covered by the penalized attribute, only apply the bonus, you are specializing that attribute on this particular action.

Example Yadech uses Angelic Alteration to turn himself into a cherub, of the winged head Christmas card variety. He gains a +1 bonus to the Consort action, but suffers a -1 penalty to Attune, Command, and Sway actions. He does not suffer the penalty on Consort, as that is the action that was improved. If the penalty had instead been applied to Insight, the Attune, Command, Consort, and Sway actions would all have suffered the penalty.

With limited effect you can transform into yourself into how you would look as an angel. Those familiar with you will recognize you. Standard effect can make you a generic angel, very hard to recognize as yourself. Great effect allows you to assume the shape and some of the personality of a specific angel you have studied.

Celestial Conversion You can apply Radiant Raiment and Angelic Alteration to a willing creature of good nature. A target can end the effect at any time.

Legion of Light You can transform a large number of willing and good-natured creatures into a host of angels.

This power mimics the effects of Angelic Alteration and Angelic Authority. You can transform a group of willing or non-sentient creatures into an angelic host. Targets must be willing or non-sentient, and they cannot be evil or aligned with the Darkness power, nor several tiers below your own tier.

The transformed creatures will enthusiastically carry out tasks assigned by you. They primarily excel in pursuit and containment rather than direct combat. Alternatively, they can serve as obedient servants, akin to an angelic choir depicted in a nativity scene painting.

Finesse

Exact control of physical light to move, fight, and control your environment. Finesse has little relation to spiritual alight, but Light attacks might still work better against creatures of the Dark.

Radiant Roam You can move and see regardless of the level of light or darkness. Enemies can still hide in shadows.

Enables you to ignore darkness or blinding light. However, your vision remains sensitive to contrasts between light and darkness, which may allow creatures to hide from you unless the environment is uniformly dark.

Radiant Riposte You can use the power as a fine and potent close-range attack or you can give your friends the Radiant Roam ability for the duration of a score.

The attack is similar in effect to a fine potent dueling sword or pistol. Light attacks are usually good against Darkness but may have problems against purely physical creatures.

Radiant Reach You can do fine manipulation of light, allowing you to do small and exact manipulations at range. This allows you to trigger or hinder mechanisms or perform other minor manipulations, as long as the target is sensitive to light.

You can play with sunspots and light effects, which are good at setting the mood. You can trigger light-sensitive devices like photocells and laser sensors. You can replicate the effects of a laser communications device you are familiar with.

Radiant Rain Your power manifests like a rain of searing rays, overcoming scale.

You create and use weapon like Radiant Riposte above, and also create distractions. The effect is like having a number of trusty defensive allies in the fight. This negates any scale advantage enemies might have.

Hunt

Track, attack, and unleash devastating barrages with the power of Light. As you advance, the scope of your attacks becomes greater, allowing you to control significant areas and cause widespread destruction. At short range, this can be dangerous to you and yours.

Ethereal Eye You can track creatures with strong good or bad intentions.

Track based on the mood and ethics of your target. A very good or bad creature is easier to track, as is someone in a violent or vengeful mood. People just out on a casual stroll can't be tracked this way.

Consequences here are mainly to lose the trail, but depending on the environment and targets, it might lead you to get lost, into traps, or even into an ambush.

Radiant Ray You can use your power to attack, similar in effect to a fine and potent laser rifle.

A long-range attack power using light, good against Darkness but may have problems against purely physical creatures.

Daylight' You light a large area bright as a sunny day.

Dispels all kinds of darkness, even that created with the Darkness power. It does not dispel other Darkness effects. The light is diffuse, it does not blind and leaves few shadows, making it harder to hide.

Celestial Cascade You can use your power to attack similar to a fine and potent laser bomb. This allows you to attack many creatures, but there is a risk of collateral damage.

Similar to Radiant Ray, but can both overcome scale and hurt many enemies at once.

Prowl

Halo Haze You can become invisible in strong light.

Luminous Leap You can move in a flash. This allows you to teleport short distances to a spot you can see.

Celestial Conveyance You can bring allies along when you use Halo Haze and Luminous Leap.

Ethereal Express You and allies can teleport from one brightly illuminated area to another. This is regional travel, you stay within the same city or region.

Skirmish

Radiant Rapier You can use the power as a close-range laser attack, similar in effect to a melee weapon or pistol.

Luminous Lance Same as Skirmish Attack, except the weapon is fine and potent.

Luminous Labyrinth Your power creates distractions and obstructions that prevent the enemy from benefiting from numbers and otherwise works as a fine potent weapon.

Bright Blitz Your light strikes out in all directions, attacking all enemies in a wide area.

Study

Angelic Appraisal You can sense the use and result of powers.

Luminescent Lore You know the powers and abilities of something you use Angelic Appraisal on.

Radiant Recall You read the past events of something you analyze with Luminescent Lore. This includes previous owners and how the object has been moved around as well as significant scenes.

Divine Discovery You use Luminescent Lore on everything in a wide area. This is easy to do where you are, more difficult at range. You can then use Radiant Recall on some of these targets.

Survey

Angelic Awareness You can sense strong good and evil intentions as well as physical illumination. This works even when you can't see the target, but both range and information suffers.

Gleaming Gaze Choose a glowing object that you have detected; you can perceive as if you were at that spot. You cannot use your Survey action for anything else when doing so.

Radiant Revelation Choose a location or creature. You gain a sensor at the nearest glowing object, which is often close enough to perceive the target.

Illuminated Insight You perceive from all glowing objects at once over a wide area. As long as you concentrate you retain this perception and can report what you see to others.

Sway

Radiant Rapport You can communicate with angels even if normally couldn't, allowing you to use the sway action normally on them.

Luminous Lexicon You and allies can communicate with angels. You can communicate with normal folk to make them do good.

Cricket Voice You can post suggestions in the mind of a creature manifesting your power, which will be triggered under conditions you specify. These suggestions must be to make them do good or to break free of evil domination.

Seraphic Subjugation You change the personality and motivations of intelligent creatures. This power is permanent, but blatant. The target remembers their past, but regards it as unimportant compared to their new motivations.

Tinker

Celestial Crafting You can handle light, lamps, lasers, and holiness as if you had the appropriate tools and protective devices.

Radiant Reshaping You can shape light, lasers, and holiness as if they were of clay, and they will retain their new shape for some time even if they would normally not, such as light and lasers.

Radiant Creation You can handle light, lasers, and holiness out of nothing, or transform an object from one material to another as long as you know the power required for both the starting and final form. This can create complex tools, such as fine and potent items appropriate to the power(s) used.

Radiant Replication This is similar to create, above, but you mass produce objects, even a set of different objects. You can also make something large, such as a vehicle or building.

Wreck

Gleaming Grasp Light cuts and welds like a laser and chases darkness away. You can wield this power like a sledgehammer. Noisy and leaves a twisted object in place.

Radiant Ravage Similar to Gleaming Grasp but with increased effect. Works as a fine potent sledgehammer in combat.

Ethereal Erasure Similar to Radiant Ravage, but destroyed targets silently disappear or are reduced to a fine dust.

Heavenly Holocaust Similar to Radiant Ravage, but over a large area. This can level a city block, empty a canal system of water, raze a city wall, and similar massive destruction.