Diamond Spear Posted August 12, 2003 Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 What do you think of allowing starting mages to have a VPP at the 20 pt. level (30 character points)? The restrictions would be that the player could not buy either the 0 phase or No Skill Roll needed advantages. This would help simulate mages who are more powerful when using “spells†but still capable of drawing on naturally occurring magical energy in a wide-ranging fashion. It would be most appropriate in a game where mages are uncommon (perhaps a ratio of 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 10,000). In my opinion it would alleviate the blasé mentality many people seem to have about mages and make them a little more mysterious and respected and a little less predictable and categorized. Comments? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slaughterj Posted August 12, 2003 Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 Seems like those with magic could still cast all the live long day, up to their END though. What's keeping them from casting frequently, any Side Effects? END battery with low recharge? Spells cost BODY to power? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamond Spear Posted August 12, 2003 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 SPells Yes but a VPP would allow them a much greater range to choose from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiger Posted August 12, 2003 Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 Re: SPells Originally posted by Diamond Spear Yes but a VPP would allow them a much greater range to choose from. The problem is that the active cost can't go over 20 points. If your running a low powered magic campaign it could work. But if a mage wants any kind of advantages added it really causes a problem at the 20point limit. No you could of course special rule something that could work out for a mage as well. Like the final cost can't exceed 20 or something similar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Citizen Keen Posted August 12, 2003 Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 One of the things I've been thinking of doing for my magic campaign (where "spells" are frequently hampered by Limitations) is to allow VPPs where the Power Pool limits the Real Cost, not the Active Cost, but the Control Pool has to be equal to the Power Pool instead of half of it. Edit: Oh, yeah, now I'm a Standard Hero... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ndreare Posted August 12, 2003 Report Share Posted August 12, 2003 I have often encouraged players to take V.P.P.’s to represent minor magical feats. This is in my opinion consistent with plenty of source material. The way I tend to do to encourage the feel I like is to allow players to have a V.P.P. of up to ego in strength then base all other magic stuff on INT I find it encourages players to spend more points on the mental attributes than the physical. But I also am thinking of creating one rule to limit all mages saying that a character cannot have magic unless they buy the power of “Sense Magic†which can only be bought during character creation. That way magic is a gift instead of a skill. I never liked the D&D idea that magic was a skill. I don’t see why people always believe that wizards have to be limited in their magic effects. After all I have read plenty of books where the primary limit on magic was simply the strength of the caster. I feel the desire to limit a players use of magic rather than just balance the magic system seems to be a roll over of DAD. In my opinion this is a less enjoyable play feel. Of course at the same time I have always been a fan of the GURPS and Palladium magic systems where mages have pools of energy they draw on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Carman Posted August 13, 2003 Report Share Posted August 13, 2003 Re: Re: SPells Originally posted by tiger The problem is that the active cost can't go over 20 points. If your running a low powered magic campaign it could work. But if a mage wants any kind of advantages added it really causes a problem at the 20point limit. No you could of course special rule something that could work out for a mage as well. Like the final cost can't exceed 20 or something similar You could also mix-and-match the magic system: buy the powerful spells as powers, complete with specific Advantages and Limitations. Then also allow a mage to have a small VPP for minor magical effects: just 10 Active Points, with varying Limitations worth at least -1. So a mage could pull off a variety of small magicks as needed, and have just a few of the big stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slikmar Posted August 14, 2003 Report Share Posted August 14, 2003 I am doing something similar, allowing all mages to have a free VPP of certain unmodified spell effects up to ego in active points for the spells (i.e. EB, RKA, armor, FF, etc.) dependent on special effects of the chosen college based on having a magic skill roll for that college, but am also allowing the characters to purchase a number, equaling their int/3, of higher powered spells but not exceeding a actual points of their ego. They may purchase these at a cost of 1 char point per 5 actual in the power: EX - character with a 18 int and a 20 ego would buy a 3/2 skill in one or more colleges(bought seperately). This would give them a 20 pt vpp of certain spell effects dependent on the college unmodified by advantages or limitations. They could also buy up to 6 (18/3) spells with an actual cost(after advantages and limitations) of up to 20 pts each for a cost of 1 per 5 in actual (meaning a 20 cost power will cost 4 character points) I will also allow the purchasing of more spells if the character wants at full cost with the same actual points limitation of not exceeding ego Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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