Complex Magic

[Bricingwolf]

So, how does one build a spell?

We all know that the pyromancer burns things, and that's very well and we all cheer when the bad guy goes up in flames of the campfire bursts into life from wet wood with no real effort.

However, what if one wants to create a more complex effect? Perhaps one which involves multiple skills, delayed execution, triggers, trigger exceptiopns, "if, then" parameters?


My thought as of now is that instead of trying to come up with tomes full of individual spells, we create some spell categories, and component parts.

For instance, categories could include things like long and short range, personal (ie, affects the caster), damage, support, control, and utility, which would include things like movement spells, weather control, preserving food or purifying water, communication, etc)

Components (which need a less dnd name) would include optional notes on physical component types (option in the sense that you don't have to track them, but you can), damage, range, effect type, duration, casting action or time, additional costs (AP, usually).

Then, you'd have each component have a basic value, and usually at least one upgrade and one downgrade value. The basic spell would be:

Range: Short or Self
One of: Damage or Effect. Some damage types instead do less damage, but include a minor effect.
Duration: Immediate or Shake It Off (determined by choice of Damage or Effect). If range=Self, duration=1 full round
Action: Standard
Cost: none
Physical Components: Determined by other categories.


This models most basic uses of skills, from a basic weapon attack, to a setting someone on fire or shocking them with electromancy, to using Parkour to move around/over obstacles at full speed.

From there, You can choose to upgrade one or more category, and each one has one or more associate cost, and also options to downgrade to pay for an upgrade elsewhere. If there are more than one listed cost options, you choose one. So, you might make a spell that costs 2AP, or 1AP and an extra Quick Action, or 1AP and part of the effect of the spell is downgraded, etc.

SO, if shocking someone looks like:

Range: Short
Damage: 1d6 and target is dazed
Duration: Shake It Off, Easy
Action: Standard
Cost: none
Physical Component: none (or a bit of conductive metal, like copper, not consumed. this type of component is often built into things like wands, staves and grimoires)

A "chain lightning" type spell might look like:

Range: Long
Damage: 1d6, Dazed, Arc (roll 1d4. result equals number of targets within 10 yards hit by Arc, and the amount of damage they take. Secondary targets are not Dazed)
Action: Standard +1 Quick Action
Duration: Shake It Off, Moderate. Failed attempts result 1d4 damage to primary target, and in another Arc effect, identical to the first. Successful attempt (or target death) allows caster to Surge (spend Quick Action and 1AP, repeat this spell attack against a target that has been hit by an Arc during this scene.)
Cost: 2AP
Physical Component: Copper, at least a few grams in weight, turns to ash when spell ends.

So, the spell was upgraded four times. Long range, Arc, Moderate DC, Surge. Upgrade cost was +1 Quick Action, 2AP and Surge has a built in cost of a Quick Action and was upgraded at the cost of 1AP. Without the upgrade, Surge would just be a secondary electromancy attack against one target within 10 yards of the first.


If a player really likes a spell, but doesn't want to keep paying such a steep price for it, they can study and practice it as an Endeavor, or learn it by spending Character Points. I figure the upgrade cost might determine point/time cost for learning a spell. Learned spells cost 1 Standard Action and 1AP, generally. If the spell is upgraded to only cost a Quick Action, but more AP, then it either costs more to learn, or costs the same, but still costs at least 2AP.
Obviously the specifics need iteration and playtesting. First, I want to get the rules for making spells down. Then we can worry about learning costs and all that.


So, thoughts? Any of it seem too complicated to use? It's meant as an advanced option, but it should remain usable by people of normal intelligence and familiarity with the system.

Anything I need to make more specific in order to make sense of how this is supposed to work in a general sense?

[Bricingwolf]

It occured to me while discussing this with Alison that this system needn't be limited to spells. There's no reason this wouldn't work for non magical or semi magical techniques, as well.

ALso, this system would add, I think, to worldbuilding depth, particularly when building factions and traditions, like knightly orders, martial arts traditions, schools of alchemists, etc. SHould be fairly easy to port the system to work for crafting, as well. The main difference would be what goes in the cost category, I think.

Anyway, imagine most factions having relevant techniques that you can learn, and they're built differently. Perhaps even with lower ranked and higher ranked versions, where you learn a fairly ineffecient spell or technique at first, and as you gain rank in the tradition, you learn better, more difficult to master, but more efficient to use and/or more powerful versions of that same spell or technique.
Hell, you could even have whole multi branched traditions based on one or two basic spells/techniques.


back on track: where do skills fit in? I figure there's a primary skill, Electromancy in the case above. Unless the specific ability can only work with one specialty skill, the ability lists the Broad Skill. Some abilities would have secondary skills. Perhaps a mechanic wherein you roll 1d10 for the secondary skill, and there's a very simple table for what happens depending on that roll? Like, if the ability above worked with a weapon attack instead of a shock attack, so you had to hit with a weapon, and it does 1d6 shock damage and dazed instead of the normal 1d10 weapon damage, the Arc might require a d10 roll: 1-3= target takes 1d4 shock damage, nothing else. 4-8= as described above. 9-10= roll 2d4 when determining damage and number of targets for arc.

IDK, that's a level of complexity i'm unsure of.

[Bricingwolf]

The guiding principle here for costs, I think, is that 1 Quick Action, and 1AP are the same "value" as most individual upgrade options (ie, bigger damage, second target, etc) and that most downgrade options should be about in line with that exchange (ie less damage, noticeably limited range).

[Bricingwolf]

Or not. Ok, so the idea should instead be, I think, that stuff costs additional AP. Also, I think the key might be to make this a purely downtime thing. During combat, if you want to do weird shit, it's a really simple system. ie, you just use the normal action economy, unless you spend extra AP to consolidate multiple actions into one dice roll, maybe.
IDK.