MRQ Sorcery Revisions
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What's this all about?
The intent is to create a minimal set of fixes for the native sorcery system in MRQ. Clearly there will never be consensus and this is not a page for creating alternates, extending MRQ sorcery or recreating RQ3 sorcery. The idea is that this page represents patches to MRQ sorcery. As such I see the need for three main things:
- System fixes
- Terminology
- Revising problematic spells
If it helps, think of this as MRQ Sorcery 1.1; everything in MRQ Sorcery stays the same unless overridden here.
System Fixes
Casting Failure
If a Sorcery spellcasting test results in a failure, the spell fails and the sorcerer loses 1 Magic Point, in addition to the Magic Point cost for any Manipulation effects.
Notes: this is the simplest structural fix to prevent abuse of the 0 MP cost of spells. This way a beginner can still cast sorcery spells but will usually require several attempts and the spending of a few MPs. There are other popular fixes that have been proposed but it is a feature of MRQ sorcery that sorcery spells can be cast as "cantrips" by experienced sorcerers; i.e. that if you're 90% or so in a spell then you can cast it at magnitude 1 for (usually) 0 MPs.
Overcharging Sorcery Spells
Sorcery spells cannot be overcharged.
Notes: With the Player's Update, overcharging no longer makes sense in sorcery so it is deleted.
Terminology
Charging: some (revised) spells require a spell to be charged with additional Magic Points in order for it to take effect. This does not effect the Magnitude of the Spell. These MPs are not lost if the spell fails.
Notes: just being legalistic. For example, a proposed revison of Dominate (Species) is that the sorcerer must charge with spell with MPs at least equal to the target's MPs or else it is automatically resisted.
Spell Traits
Active. If a spell is active then if the target of the spell moves outside of the spell's range then the spell ceases to effect the target. If all targets move outside of the spell's range then spell ends. By default, all spells with the Concentration and Duration (Concentration) traits are active spells.
Duration (Concentration). The spell stays in effect for its normal Duration but, the caster must concentrate while manipulating the spell. If the caster’s concentration is broken while they are manipulating the spell, the spell ends.
Duration (Tigger). As per the Trigger trait, the spell will lie dormant until an event stated in the description takes place. The spell then takes effect and is expended. However, if the spell is not triggered before the duration ends then the spell ends without effect.
Magnitude X. A spell with Magnitude X is more powerful than a normal spell, more difficult to cast and more draining to the sorcerer. A spell with Magnitude X must be cast at a magnitude at least equal to X and the Magic Point cost of the spell is X instead of the usual 0. Thus a Magnitude 5 spell will need to be cast at a minimum of Magnitude 5 and will cost the sorcerer 5 MPs (in addition to the normal Manipulation costs). If a Magnitude X spell fails, it costs the sorcerer X Magic Points instead of the usual 1. Note that a Magnitude X spell can be cast at higher Magnitude than X, the X simply measures the absolute minimum needed to successfully cast the spell.
Ritual (X). The casting time for this type of spell is measured in hours, not combat actions. If there is a value given for X, then the sorcerer must sacrifice X of their personal POW as part of the cost of the spell.
Enchant. Any spell with the Enchant trait requires the caster to roll under their Enchant skill as well as the normal spell skill otherwise the spell fails. An Enchantment is also a Ritual and the amount of POW that needs to be spent will be found in the spell description.
Summon. Any spell with the Summon trait requires the caster to roll under their Summon skill as well as the normal spell skill otherwise the spell fails. A Summoning is also a Ritual but as a default it doesn’t require any POW to be sacrificed.
Revised Spell Descriptions
Only the actual revisions are given here. Anything which is not explicitly changed, remains the same.
Animate (Substance)
Active, Casting Time 3, Duration (Concentration)
Each point of Magnitude allows the caster to animate one SIZ (roughly 5kg or 5 ENC) of solid substance or one cubic metre of an ethereal substance (like darkness).
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The animation stays under the caster’s control until the spell ends but the caster must concentrate while having the animation perform activities. If the caster's concentration is broken while animating the substance, the spell immediately ends.
Dominate (Species)
Active, Casting Time 2, Resist (Persistence)
This spell allows the caster to gain control over a creature belonging to a specific species. In addition to the normal cost of the spell, the sorcerer must charge the spell with an additional number of Magic Points that are least equal to the target’s Magic Points or else the spell is automatically resisted.
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Any time a dominated creature is ordered to perform an activity which would cause it severe harm or expose it to severe danger it may make an opposed roll of its Persistence versus the Spell’s Magnitude*10. If the attempt succeeds the spell is broken. If the dominated creature fumbles the attempt, the stress kills it instantly.
Some dominated creatures can be forced into an appropriate binding enchantment although this act counts as potentially severely harming the creature and can be resisted as above.
Although the spell is active, the active range of the spell once cast is measured in km not metres.
Fly
Active
Each point of Magnitude can levitate up to 15 ENC of a single object, 3 SIZ of a single living being or can increase the movement speed of the target by 1m. For the purposes of the spell, treat 5 ENC as equivalent to 1 SIZ. As a guideline assume that 1 SIZ equals roughly 5kg. Example: to fly someone with a SIZ of 13 who is carrying 12 ENC would require enough magnitude to fly the equivalent of 16 SIZ, which is to say 6 Magnitude.
The caster can only levitate one object or person per casting of this spell – if he wants to Fly more people at the same time, he needs to use Manipulation (targets).
Form/Set (Substance)
Active, Casting Time 3, Duration (Concentration)
Each point of Magnitude allows the caster to shape up to 5kg (5 ENC)
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The caster must concentrate while manipulating the shape and if their concentration is broken while doing so, the spell immediately ends.
Phantom (Sense)
Casting Time 2, Duration (Concentration)
I suggest that the scales are changed so that the effects listed at Magnitude 20 are actually available at Magnitude 12. Remember, Magnitude 12 requires 120%. Also I suggest that Phantom Touch notes that 1 SIZ=5kg.
Shapechange (Species) to (Species)
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The spell needs 1 Magnitude for each 3 points of SIZ (or portion thereof) of the target. If the spell is successful, the target will be biologically changed but will retain its original characteristics. At the time of casting, however, the caster may charge the spell with any number of Magic Points. Each MP charged this way allows the caster to add or subtract one point from the target’s STR and SIZ in its new form. Its characteristics cannot be reduced below 1 using this spell. The target’s other Characteristics cannot be changed in this way and the target retains its memories and abilities (though it may be unable to use some of those abilities in its new form). Most sorcerers who use this spell prefer to combine it with Enhance or Diminsh spells in order to save on Magic Points.
Example: to change a SIZ 13 man (STR 11, CON 12, DEX 15, INT 13, POW 10, CHA 9) into a SIZ 1 mouse the spell needs to be cast at magnitude 5 and the caster would need to spend an additional 12 Magic Points which would leave the target as a STR 1, CON 12, DEX 15, SIZ 1, INT 13, POW 10, CHA 9 mouse. If on the other hand, the sorcerer wished to change the target to a SIZ 22 bear, then it would cost an additional 9 Magic Points and the target would end up as STR 20, SIZ 22 bear.
It is recommended that the target’s clothing be removed before undertaking this spell…
Smother
... Each point of Magnitude will cover three points of SIZ – thus a Magnitude 4 Smother would be enough to cover a SIZ 12 target. For the duration of the spell, the target will be unable to breathe, essentially drowning on dry land. When the spell begins, if the target fails to resist but scores a Partial Success (i.e. they made their Persistence test but lost the opposed roll) then it is able to gasp in one last breath before Smother cuts off the ambient oxygen supply otherwise it will start drowning in the next Combat Round.
Tap (Characteristic)
Casting Time 3, Instant, Resist (Persistence), Touch
Tap will only work if its Magnitude is greater than the target’s specified Characteristic. For each point of Magnitude in excess of the Characteristic, the target loses 1 point of the Characteristic permanently. Thus a Magnitude 6 Tap Strength spell cast against a target with a STR of 4 would tap 2 points of STR from the target. Tap spells have no effect when used against Fixed characteristics such as INT and CHA for animals.
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If the sorcerer gains more Magic Points through Tap than his normal maximum, they will disappear at a rate of 1 per minute after the spell is cast.
