Thoughts on FH Magic Systems: The Gift and Arts Arcane

[arcady]

Both of these two systems, that appear in the FH book, give significant discounts on the costs of magic.

I've just picked up a copy of FH under this edition, and it's pretty different in look than the old game.

For those who've been around the block with it, any opinions of these two systems?


I seek to model where magic works around four gender-typed elements. You're born with the talent or not. If you train it up you learn predictable spells, if you go 'wild' you're magic is different every time. Even a trained mage though, can learn a new spell simply by observing it being cast (but not if it was cast by a wild mage).

Magic would have prohibitively high END costs, to the point that many young mages would burn out their stun or body casting. Mages can pool energy to fuel spells, and can use this to push beyond their normal limits. Mages can also drain their own apprentices dry to fuel magic - even killing them at whim.

Magic gets out of control easily. A spell never really fails to cast - a failed casting just gives something different.

I'm modelling it up for BESM, BESM d20, and thought I'd see if I could do it for Hero as well.

In thinking on how I would do this, the two mentioned systems from the book looked closest, and I figured the community here is bound to have experience in their merits and flaws by now. :p

[AlHazred]

This is a pretty involved question; let's see if we can break it down.

For those who've been around the block with it, any opinions of these two systems?
No real opinion. I looked 'em over and decided against them because they didn't fit anything I needed at the time. I may end up using the Arts Arcane in a Cross-Dimensional game we started up.

I seek to model where magic works around four gender-typed elements.

Are you talking the classic Greek elements of fire, water, earth and air? Which one is which gender?

You're born with the talent or not.

So, characters can only purchase magic talents in character creation? Another option is to let people "discover" they've been magical all along, and let them spend the points then.

If you train it up you learn predictable spells, if you go 'wild' you're magic is different every time. Even a trained mage though, can learn a new spell simply by observing it being cast (but not if it was cast by a wild mage).

Two different styles. It looks like Wild Magic is a VPP, while in Trained Magic individual spells are purchased; a Trained Mage can purchase any spell he sees someone cast, as long as it isn't from a Wild Mage.

Magic would have prohibitively high END costs, to the point that many young mages would burn out their stun or body casting.
Easy enough to do. If you allow them to burn BODY, you should consider restricting active or easy access to Healing, so that the sacrifice means something.

Mages can pool energy to fuel spells, and can use this to push beyond their normal limits.
This sounds like an Aid END power that mages learn outside of their normal spells. Maybe using the Ritual modifier? Any idea how potent you want to let them get?

Mages can also drain their own apprentices dry to fuel magic - even killing them at whim.
And this is another power they learn outside of normal spells, a Transfer END/BODY.

Magic gets out of control easily. A spell never really fails to cast - a failed casting just gives something different.
Side Effects.

Hmm... This will require thought. How powerful do you want 150-point spellcasters to be?

[arcady]

Maybe I should talk about my own system in a seperate thread?

Leave this one to ask about the two systems in the book.

[Killer Shrike]

I havent used either, but I really like The Gift from a systemic perspective. If I ever wanted to model Ars Magica in the HERO System, Id do it with a variant of The Gift.

I dont like the arbitrary complexity of the Arts Arcane. It just feels clunky to me.