Buying Spells

[LoneWolf]

The big limitation weapons have is STR minimum.  This makes it a lot harder to add damage to the weapon because you need a certain amount of STR just to use it.  A broad sword has a STR Min of 12 Meaning you have to buy up your STR by 2 to even use it.  To add a single DC you need a 17 STR.  That is 3 away from the point where you pay double per point of STR.  A great sword has a STR Min of 17.  Increasing the damage on that is even harder.  

 

While it is not an actual limitation all weapons do physical killing damage.  This means the defense against it is the most common in the game.  Almost any combat worthy character is going to have some resistant DEF and all characters will have PD.  But things like Flash DEF, Power Def, Mental Def are a lot harder for the average NPC to get.  This does not even factor in such things as autofire NND or any of the other options spells have.

[archer]

18 hours ago, theinfn8 said:

 

I know, I am getting a little on the extreme side, but the question is still valid. Why not? Is there really any reason other than genre conventions?

 

If anyone can buy a spell that can do most anything, that's going to make a hash out of figuring out murder mysteries and other whodunnits.

 

For all the adventurer's know, the murderer's great-great-grandfather could have bought the spell which did the deed over a century ago and it's been sitting forgotten in a trunk in an upstairs attic.

[assault]

10 minutes ago, archer said:

For all the adventurer's know, the murderer's great-great-grandfather could have bought the spell which did the deed over a century ago and it's been sitting forgotten in a trunk in an upstairs attic.

 

That sounds like a very cool plot twist.

 

Fortunately my Second Sight will pick it up.

[theinfn8]

3 hours ago, archer said:

 

If anyone can buy a spell that can do most anything, that's going to make a hash out of figuring out murder mysteries and other whodunnits.

 

For all the adventurer's know, the murderer's great-great-grandfather could have bought the spell which did the deed over a century ago and it's been sitting forgotten in a trunk in an upstairs attic.

 

That sounds like an awesome game... O.O

[archer]

4 hours ago, theinfn8 said:

 

That sounds like an awesome game... O.O

 

Thanks. I sometimes come up with awesome ideas.

 

Figuring out how to lead the PC's into being able to solve the mystery, unfortunately, is the tough part.

 

They all tend to turn out like:

 

Investigator #1: "So Mr. Green did it in the Conservatory with Ms. Scarlet."

 

Investigator #2: "Okay but the subject is trying to figure out who committed the murder, not figuring out who did it with who." 

[theinfn8]

9 hours ago, archer said:

 

Thanks. I sometimes come up with awesome ideas.

 

Figuring out how to lead the PC's into being able to solve the mystery, unfortunately, is the tough part.

 

They all tend to turn out like:

 

Investigator #1: "So Mr. Green did it in the Conservatory with Ms. Scarlet."

 

Investigator #2: "Okay but the subject is trying to figure out who committed the murder, not figuring out who did it with who." 

 

Yeah, the intricacies of a good murder mystery game are worthy of their own topic in the forum. And some players just aren't wired for them.

[theinfn8]

On 8/22/2021 at 11:33 AM, mallet said:

 

This is a bit different then your original concept of "Spells" being purchased like/instead of Equipment, and used similarly. Originally it was buying a sword vs buying a spells that does damage. That is a very specific one for one change/concept. 

 

But, mastering the Stealth skill vs casting a "stealth spell" is very different. There is no Stealth item/object a character can buy (normally in a fantasy game) that gives them stealth. It is not an item or object like a sword is. So buying a stealth spell is not the same a buying an item like a sword or a ladder or food. 

 

It is one thing to buy an attack spell to replace a sword or bow, or buy a food spell to replace buying rations, but if you can also buy spells to replace all the skills in the game it is going to be very different. First, what will characters spend their xp on? Just stats and skill levels I guess. Very soon everyone is going to have 21's in every stat. And as for the setting, you would see a lot less schools, universities, books, etc... Why learn anything when there is a semi-permanent spell you can just buy and keep for ever pretty much (unless you go out adventuring where it might be dispelled). 

 

 

 

Sorry for taking a bit to respond, but I had to really think about this one. For context, I meant more like a Darkness type effect for the thief, but skill additions are a completely legit way to "spell" that out...

 

My take on it is that, with exceptions, maybe you don't allow skills as spells. Or maybe you do. The cost would be pretty high though, as the demand would be high. Maybe it takes a vial of blood from a master of the craft, which also severely limits supply. I don't see this necessarily being something that couldn't be avoided from being game breaking.

 

On the other hand, I'm starting to see a "spellpunk" setting coming together. Factories filled with poor producing goods by being given a skill potion every morning. Work, consume, sleep, repeat. Never getting ahead because you never actually learn a trade. Spell/item creation with toxic by products. "Power stations" built on top of magical hot spots transporting it to cities or bottling it to sell independantly. High speed mass transit gliding along ley lines.

 

Skill potions wouldn't be that far from the Shadowrun/cyberpunk idea of skill wires. In which you can literally buy a skill at a decently high level with money. Actually, you have to buy your spells too, thinking about it...

[Chris Goodwin]

On 8/22/2021 at 8:07 PM, Duke Bushido said:

I can't bring myself to call it "mana" because in my own lexicon, mana was essentially bread that fell from Heaven to feed the Jews during their 40 years in the desert.  I can't take "bread-powered magic" seriously; I just can't.   

 

That's "manna".  Mana is a Polynesian word meaning something like "power" that got co-opted by Westerners to represent magical power. 

[Ninja-Bear]

1 hour ago, Chris Goodwin said:

 

That's "manna".  Mana is a Polynesian word meaning something like "power" that got co-opted by Westerners to represent magical power. 

Not quite. Mana is a Polynesian word however the concept for which it represents is almost universal.  So maybe the Polynesians stole the concept?

[L. Marcus]

Mana mana ...

[Christopher R Taylor]