Re: (TFT) House Rules: Staves?

[Thorn <edt@dopey.ne.mediaone.net>]

John Paul Bakshoian wrote:
> 
> If the wizard is dead, he no longer has a say in what happens to his staff.
> It is no longer a staff.  Unless he is now a ghost and can still command
> magic.

Agreed, with all of that.  The staff of a wizard 'lost' while Astral
would remain empowered, too.

Scenario seed:  Wizard X was off Astral, and his body has now died.  But
his staff remins empowered...  The party must find whatever has trapped
his spirit, and release it to its rest/restore it to the body (in
stasis, I hope)/capture it into the provided gem/whatever.  I feel a
post on Astral Projection coming on...


> Also, I would say that a wizard has to actively empower the staff to
> activate it into trapping a victim.  By that I mean, he has to put a trace
> of attention on the staff.  If he is in bed and his servants are mopping his
> laboratory and knock it down, it won't blow up.

A perfectly legal interpretation.  Unfortunately, the player whose
wizard served time for his staff blowing the arm off a guardsman would
become insufferable if our local interpretation changed.  :)


> If he is in bed asleep and a theif gets past all his defenses and takes the
> staff with out the wizards knowing, it won't blow up.

I think it is exactly this scenario which the spell is intended for. 
Which is why locally we always ruled otherwise.  It never occurred to us
to consider otherwise.

> Going back to the dead wizard story...I would also let the magic of a staff
> leach out soon after the wizard dies.  If the wizard did not want to die,
> but departs (as in 'he is killed'), then this would allow the staff to
> explode during a rampaging battle and perhaps a little after during the
> looting process.  If its several days later, I would have it be a regular
> piece of wood that used to be a staff.

I agree it would eventually become a hunk of inert wood.  Exactly when
would depend on the local game's concept of the spirit world.

> Now about that shape.  Though the idea of a door being a staff is bizarre,
> and a living tree as a staff is a bit much, I don't like the idea of a
> cosmic force making a piece of wood into the "right shape" of Stave, staff,

No 'cosmic force'.  It's a Staff spell, right?  Not "Empower Wood".  It
could force the shape.  And Cas' conjecture that the various cylindrical
shapes are the only ones that can be held in one hand while a wizard
gestures is a nice connection.  Bravo, Cas.

I never thought a mage could have a 'staff' shaped like a door, small
shield, or whatever.  (Though the Codex seems to.)


> or wand.  I think that the item chosen is up to the personality of the
> wizard.  I have a wizard that does not like to advertise that he is a
> wizard.  His staff is a pole that has a silver pigsticker at the end.  It is
> aged to look like iron.  He has no poleweapon talent, but since a staff does
> 1 die damage, it looks like he knows how to use a poleweapon.

Hmmm...  Not in my campaign.  Staff is a pole, no problem.  Silver
weapon head seems to dodge the 'iron is bane of magick' thread that runs
inconstantly through TFT.  But the spell would _not_ make you look like
a spearman.  You'd look like a guy swinging a stick without finesse, but
with a _lot_ of force.

BTW, a regular quarterstaff with a Staff spell cast on it does 2 dice of
damage.  Locally, we always ruled _any_ club got a boost from Staff. 
Just seemed to make sense.

> Another point:  would levitating the staff make it go off?  I think I'll
> have the Illusion pick it up as long as others are watching.

Telekinesis woudl not set off the staff.  And Illusions can't pick
things up, period.  If I had to GM the scene, the mage would either
'allow' the touch, or be very surprised when the staff did not
detonate.  But regardless, the Illusion would not pick it up, or even
seem to.


> Hey, why does the wizard care if anyone else gets his staff anyways.  Don't
> the rules state that only the wizard who creates the staff can use its
> power.  I can see using the "Blow Up" rule if other wizards could share his
> staff, but its useless to other wizards, so why would they want it unless
> for adornment.

Why did they write the spell that way?  "Because if a couple thieves get
blown up, the rest will leave our elaborately-carved and bejeweled
staves alone."

> How about letting a mage have the ability to use other wizards staffs?  Any
> wizard with Staff talent can use another wizards staff.

Well...  With a Spell Shield, you _might_ be able to touch a staff long
enough to cast another Staff spell on it.  But I really think the intent
of the Staff spell is that none but the owner have access to the weapon,
or to whatever spells may have been added to it.  I would not lock _my_
efforts behind a lock so easily picked.

> By the way, I really do love the 'what ifs' we come up with.  It helps put
> the parameters of the item in perspective.  The door staff or the living
> tree help broaden the concepts.

Yeah, the list is a great place to bend these ideas until they break. 
:)


> "If anyone other than the owner of a staff picks it up against the owner's
> will, it explodes, doing the fool who touched it 3 dice damage."

So it is written, so mote it be.
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