How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

[Teflon Billy]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

This is one of those cases in which it turns out that an apparently simple D&D ability is actually extremely powerful' date=' and probably undercosted in D&D.[/quote']Or conversely, overly complicated and costly to reproduce in Hero.

 

Not trying to rag on the system, but there are certain aspects that could use a widening of the seams.

 

I started a whole thread on the subject where I think Hero could stand to add a few basic Powers to the base system.

 

TB

[prestidigitator]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

This is one of those cases in which it turns out that an apparently simple D&D ability is actually extremely powerful' date=' and probably undercosted in D&D.[/quote']

Indeed. This D&D ability is also poorly defined and extremely hard to arbitrate in all but the most simple, straightforward of situations. Trust me. (Never give your D&D PCs a Ring of Free Action! )

[Curufea]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

In the Fantasy Hero rulebook it discusses treating magic as a third power - PD, ED and MD. If you treat magic as a distinct type of thing - similar to physical or energy, it becomes much simpler to simulate-

You can have magic defense similar to mental defense. You can have a drain against MD, or an aid to it. You can supress the magical SFX.

[Plucky]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

Personally I don't stat-out anything a God does. I can't see the point.

 

Oh, I didn't mean to say that it's a god/NPC. Actually, it's a minor avatar/PC of the god with that ability as his one claim to fame. (And it only works most of the time.)

 

And no...I wouldn't bother stating out a god as well...unless this is a campaign of Fantasy Hero gods...hmm....

[prestidigitator]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

In the Fantasy Hero rulebook it discusses treating magic as a third power - PD, ED and MD. If you treat magic as a distinct type of thing - similar to physical or energy, it becomes much simpler to simulate-

You can have magic defense similar to mental defense. You can have a drain against MD, or an aid to it. You can supress the magical SFX.

The problem I have always had with that is that I really like spells working against PD or ED. A Hailstorm spell might work against PD and a Flamestrike spell might work against ED. If you keep that part and have a MagicD that works against all magic, it becomes doubly effective. If you don't keep magic working against the different normal defenses, you lose some flavor in the magic system. The same applies to applications that would normally work against PowD, FD, MentalD, etc.

 

I much prefer not defining a new defense for magic. Remember that the magical aspect of a spell is always going to be part of its Special Effects, so you can always define Adjustment Powers and Frameworks in terms of those SFX as usual.

 

The hole that exists for a catch-all magical defense type thing would really be covered if you allowed Suppress to work defensively like Dispel does. Then you could just define a (Persistent?) Suppress against, "all magic simultaneously," that can only be used defensively and have it reduce the value of any incoming spell/magical effect. Spells are then still free to work against PD, ED, PowD, FD, etc. as usual.

[Erkenfresh]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

That sort of sounds like "globe of minor/major invulnerability". Cool.

[prestidigitator]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

That sort of sounds like "globe of minor/major invulnerability". Cool.

Sure. Especially if you add in Area of Effect I suppose.

[Thia Halmades]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

Well, the easiest way to build a Globe of Invulnerability is to build it as a Force Field, absolute effect, only vs. magic up to X Active Points. For example, in my world 3rd level magic is 60 AP. So your Minor Globe would be built as a 60pt. AoE Force Field, Only vs. Magic (-1) SER (+0) and since no 3rd level spell can be over 60 points, voila. Done. But I have that built into the system.

 

If your Avatar is knocking about and difficulty to hold down, then I'd have to say that Desolidify, Only to Avoid Limited Movement (character is not actually 'desolidified') -1, All Possible Instances as Variable Effect (+2), Fails at the Worst Possible Time (Activation Roll 14-). Does that roughly simulate what you're going for? That's... good grief. 120 Active?

 

Eep.

[Blue Jogger]

Re: How to Create Spell: Freedom of Movement

 

Indeed. This D&D ability is also poorly defined and extremely hard to arbitrate in all but the most simple' date=' straightforward of situations. Trust me. ([i']Never[/i] give your D&D PCs a Ring of Free Action! )

 

Hmm.

 

Aquatic Movement 3 points

10"Teleport, 0 END, Only to move as if one had a Ring of Free Action on -1/2, 20 points

Power Defense (10), Only against those that affects movement -1, 5 points

 

Ok, that's about 28 active points.

 

I think that covers most of the situations. If you are entangled or grabbed, you can just "walk" out (or Dive for Cover via teleport). Under water, you have your full DCV. Even if your legs are too encoumbered to move or you don't have enough STR to move, your teleport has 0 END.

 

DEX, SPEED, and Movement Drains get 10 points of Power Defense stopping them.

 

Although there are no rules for escaping mental entangles via teleport, most mental entangles don't have Stops Teleportation. So technically, you can just teleport out of them.