Another idea is to allow ways for wizards to spend less ST on a
spell. Maybe if the spell is a certain number of points below their
IQ level, it costs less, similar to the way that the farther a spell
is below a wizard's IQ level, the less he has to do physically in
order to cast it. Or, you could allow "specialization", the in-game
logic being that if a wizard knows a lot of similar spells, he gains
better understanding of how those spells work, allowing him to use
less ST to cast them. This would enable the stereotypical old,
frail, high-IQ wizard to still have access to things like summoning
large dragons.
Still, I definitely would rather have the number of spells a wizard
can cast linked to ST, not IQ. Just seems better balanced. The ST-
battery staff is a rule I've played with once or twice, and it's
nice. In the standard rules, a staff is pretty much just an
implement of self-defense, but that rule gives it a dual-
functionality which is very convenient. Tends to mitigate the "one-
shot wonder" syndrome a little.
Of course, when the wizards do decide to go for the one-shot wonder
(14-die Lightning bolts, etc.), it just makes it that much more
spectacular...
- Meg
On Mar 12, 2011, at 2:49 PM, David O. Miller wrote:
Brad,
We've played with ST split into two categories, normal "Hit Points"
and "Magic" points. For a fighter this means nothing changes, it
only effects Magic Users.
From my web site:
Wizards ST: Wizards ST is broken into Normal ST and Magical ST.
Normal ST is used to record wounds against while Magical ST is used
to cast spells. I know doing this has its advantages and
disadvantages but the main advantage is to keep a wizard who has
cast all but one of his ST points from being killed by a simple
wound that does only a few points of damage. I never liked the idea
that casting a spell somehow hurts a wizard or causes so much
fatigue that a simple wound will kill him. This solution (while not
ideal) works well enough during regular play.
ST as Damage to Wizard: Another idea concerning Wizards ST is
that after a Wizard is completely out of Magical ST he (or she) can
continue casting spells but at a considerable, physical strain.
After depleting the normal Magical ST the Wizard becomes fatigued.
To continue casting spells at this point now physically hurts the
Wizard. To represent this let the Wizard mark off two Normal ST
hits as internal wounds to gain one point of Magical ST to power
spells. This basicaly doubles the cost of all spells. I liken it to
an emergency situation where a Wizard starts giving up some of
himself to manipulate the powers that produce magic. Makes for
great role playing moments as well.
We've also toyed with the idea of a spell that allows a Magic User
to permanently gain two extra Magic ST points for every 1 Normal ST
he permanently sacrifices. This way you can have weak ST, old magic
users that are extremely powerful magically. It gets you away from
the Conan the magic User syndrome.
Dark City does something similar to these rules by adding in
Magical Staffs. These are used as "Power" batteries that can be
drained to cast spells. It's pretty much the same thing. Both split
ST in two and both require a little extra paperwork. The exception
is that in the Dark City rules a wizards staff could be taken away
from him, in effect cutting his reserve magic power in half. Makes
for good role playing situations. However, personally I simply
prefer magic energy coming from within, not from an external
battery. Of course there's nothing wrong with just using both of
these concepts. I have played with "Power Stones" (basically
reservoirs of magical energy). These are similar to Soul Gems in
"Oblivion" if you've ever played that video game and similar to
Dark City's Magical Staffs.
Dark City also has you roll spells against IQ instead of DX. This
is an old idea that in some cases this makes a lot of sense. Spells
that require mental energy should be rolled against IQ, like
illusions. Manipulative Spells like missile spells could still be
rolled against DX. Just adds more complexity though.
Anyway, those are some of my thoughts. Hope they are helpful!
David O. Miller
On Mar 11, 2011, at 10:25 PM, Brad Long wrote:
I am toying with the following adjustments to Wizard ...
Wizards get SP (Spell Points) equal to their IQ (not ST).
When SP is depleted they can no longer cast spells.
I realise these ideas are not new and others on this list have
made similar suggestions/adjustments and incorporated them into
their house rules.
Any thoughts?
Does this make wizards too tough - I don't think so - but I need
to playtest a lot more. Maybe others have already drawn
conclusions from their own experimentation of this style of
change. =====
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