The Laws of the Invisible Dead
It should be noted that whilst you are using the levels of Obfuscate, you are still physically present and as such any use of recording equipment will register your presence when viewed later on (but not at the time of recording), the minds of those immediately perceiving you (even if watching through a device at the time, such as CCTV) are altered to not notice that you are present and thus make you effectively invisible (or unrecognisable for the level 1 power). Any action which brings attention to you will cause you to drop out of Obfuscate (except for the Level 1 power) such as making a loud noise, tripping over something, interacting with your surroundings while being viewed, or wielding a weapon ready to strike or pull a trigger.
Mechanically, place one finger in the air to indicate that you are physically present but cannot currently be seen.
Auspex is used as a direct counter to Obfuscate of any level; a call of Auspex equal to or greater than your Obfuscate level will reveal you to whoever made the Auspex call, this includes the level 1 power. Note however that it’s expected you would have a good reason to use Auspex to scan the area, and simply abusing the power to immediately see anyone that you notice Out Of Character is considered bad play.
In the cases where a player wishes to attempt to see a player or NPC that may be hidden in Obfuscate, the player would make a call of their total Auspex level while looking in the direction of the player or NPC they intend to try and see. If the Auspex call is equal to or greater than the Obfuscate level of the player or NPC that the user of the Auspex call is trying to see, the player or NPC should announce themselves as revealed to whoever made the Auspex call and that player alone, even if using Auspex level 1 in which case the true form of the person using Mask of a Thousand Faces is revealed. Note however that it’s expected you would have a good reason to use Auspex to scan the area, and simply abusing the power to immediately see anyone that you notice Out of Character may be considered meta-gaming.
Auspex is counted as the aggressor when being used to see through Obfuscate. Using Auspex to attempt to see invisible characters does not count as one of the five levels of Auspex and is instead simply called by approaching the person Out Of Character, declaring your Auspex level, and asking if you can see them.
If you approach the Obfuscated target In Character and come into physical contact with them In Character, their Obfuscate breaks. Physical contact includes hitting the person with a ranged attack. However, simply seeing the person in Obfuscate or calling out their position won’t break their Obfuscate, only physical interaction with the Obfuscated target.
Once an Obfuscated character has been revealed to a user of Auspex, they can no longer gain the benefits of Obfuscate from that character until they activate a level of Obfuscate of a higher level than the Auspex call that was made to reveal them. For example, if an Auspex call of 4 was made against a character, they could not benefit from obfuscate levels of 4 or less against the individual making the Auspex call but would re-enter obfuscate if they activated Obfuscate level 5.
When entering Obfuscate, you do not ‘suddenly vanish’ from the sight of people who might be looking at you at the time, and instead seem to simply slip away without them noticing. When your Obfuscate drops, however, you immediately appear and being seen by a mortal to simply pop into existence may cause a Masquerade Breach (or a very unhappy Keeper wondering why you’re using disciplines in their Elysium). This depends on if you drop your Obfuscate in a subtle manner, or if you accidentally draw attention to yourself and your Obfuscate breaks.
Having your Obfuscate seen through by someone using Auspex, does not immediately break your Obfuscate but rather outs you to the people who observe you by using Auspex. They may choose to keep quiet about your presence, or they might make physical contact with you (which includes shooting you) and thus break your Obfuscate to everyone.
Inanimate objects may not be hidden unless you are actively carrying them. Other people may not be hidden unless they are included when using the Level 5 ability. An item carried between two users of obfuscate is considered obfuscated with them until one lets the item go. This act will cause the obfuscate of the player who dropped the item to break as well as the player who did not as attention will be drawn to both.
A vis-rep of a face covering, mask or scarf with “OB 1” clearly written on it, is required when using the level 3 power Mask of a Thousand Faces to clearly distinguish when someone is using the power.