tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post8656182883394556872..comments2024-03-28T22:28:01.028-07:00Comments on B/X BLACKRAZOR: Magic in 5AKJBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03263662621289630246noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-61237932305477643182013-02-11T01:16:27.107-08:002013-02-11T01:16:27.107-08:00Have you seen the Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorc...Have you seen the Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea implementation of the magic-user (Magician)? It's excellent, as it provides at 1st level:<br />1- bonus spells for high int<br />2- the magician can have a familiar as a class ability; having a familiar increases the hit points of the magician AND provides him more spells (one more per spell level). So a magician with high int and a familiar can cast 3 1st level spells at 1st level.<br />3- read magic as a class ability<br />4- scribe scrolls as a class ability.<br />5- he is not proficient with armour, but he can wear one if he wants, at the expense of spellcasting failure (1/6 for light armour, 2/6 for medium, 3/6 for heavy armour.)<br />6- he starts with proficiency in dagger, dart, quarterstaff and sling, but he can add any other weapons he desires (at 4th, 8th and 12th level.)<br /><br />I think this is the best old-school magic-user class to date, and in play it works very well.Antoniohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17258180992723371727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-57374256335516244072013-02-10T03:13:20.848-08:002013-02-10T03:13:20.848-08:00indeed DCC is almost spot on, only it went a littl...indeed DCC is almost spot on, only it went a little too far, and to have one table for each spell seems a little too much for too little gain. Still a lot of good ideasFabio Milito Pagliarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13043436735116048822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-57091074719507997672013-02-10T03:05:57.035-08:002013-02-10T03:05:57.035-08:00I think that you are on the right track and we are...I think that you are on the right track and we are still moving on parallel lines :)<br /><br />waiting to read your 5AK :)Fabio Milito Pagliarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13043436735116048822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-81596906005596955622013-02-08T10:24:52.710-08:002013-02-08T10:24:52.710-08:00Thanks for answering my question JB, you got right...Thanks for answering my question JB, you got right down to the point, playing a level one magic-user does not feel very...well... magical. You have also increased my interest in your version of the great game. It has a lot in common with some tinkering I was playing around with. <br /><br />If you will forgive me a brief indulgence to outline my current line of thought. I liked the idea of how casting worked in DCC, but disliked having the individual table per spell, and also thought to make casting just a bit more dependable.<br /><br />To that end, a Mage can memorize a number of spell levels at a time. A casting check is required (Mage level + INT mod) vs a target number equal to 10 + SpellLevel * 2. On success the spell is not lost, and in addition to the total roll setting the DC of any saves against the spell effect, it also boosts the spell effects. But in a much easier to remember method, such as: Magic Missile, fires one missile plus an addition per 5 points over the target number.<br /><br />Failure by up to 5 indicates the spell is delayed, the caster rolls again next round, but suffers a penalty equal to any damage suffered between now and then.<br /><br />Upon failure by more than 5, the mage can either let the spell go, thus losing it until they can rememorize it, or internalize it. Internalizing a spell causes damage equal to the spell level and dazes the mage and can cause corruption. Add in Fumbles/Crits on 1's and 20's to taste.<br /><br />This is all based on the idea that spells are alive, and spells can be granted by certain objects or beings of power or even stolen from the mind of other mages. A memorized spell however cannot be written down, so spells granted in this method are truely lost once they are lost. A feature certain corrupting entities use to their advantage, teaching powerful black magic to mages, knowing the amount of corruption it will cause as the mage continually internalizes it to prevent losing it.<br /><br />I will spare the urge to elaborate further, it is strangely tempting to want to write it all down in some massive comment. The bottom line is that rule changes of this magnitude are quite a bit of work. So I often stop and try to find something that hews closer to the rules as written. I want my mages to be magical, not punished early on with boredom for the promise of power later.<br /><br />Thank you for the great post, and looking forward to 5AK.Stacktracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05778633676064958982noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-88967143151418338152013-02-08T04:32:34.582-08:002013-02-08T04:32:34.582-08:00@ DuBeers:
As I never gamed with the man (nor met...@ DuBeers:<br /><br />As I never gamed with the man (nor met him/chewed his brain), I really couldn't say; certainly I'm just making an assumption in my blog post.<br /><br />Having said that, if all my games were with long-standing campaigns (where PCs already had levels under their belts) or "pickup" games, when would there ever be a time to use the rules for 1st (or 2nd) level characters? In my experience, many long-run campaigns still begin with "pickup" games and the introduction of new PCs into existing campaigns generally entails giving the guy a couple (or a few) extra levels to "bring him up to snuff" with the others.<br /><br />I suppose 1st and 2nd level rules would always be useful for new henchmen/hirelings...though that's not how the rules are presented. And who would want to retain a 1st level magic-user anyway?JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-17998970988968337272013-02-08T03:35:02.662-08:002013-02-08T03:35:02.662-08:00I seem to recall Gary started players at third lev...I seem to recall Gary started players at third level because he ran a lot of pickup games, not because first level characters were somehow broken. Piperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12770517741281593733noreply@blogger.com