GURPS Middle-Earth Magic

[Kelly Pedersen]

So, I'm going to be starting a Middle-Earth game in the next little while, and I need to start preparing.

What I'm thinking about right now is how to handle magic. This is going to be set in the very early Second Age, and it's built on high points (500), so I'm expecting there will be characters who can use supernatural powers (powerful Noldor and Sindar, skilled dwarven craftsmen, etc.).
My first thought on this is that the magic should probably be some version of syntactic magic. Middle-Earth magic seems to be very flexible. Despite instances of people like Gandalf talking about "knowing spells", most characters who actually do use overt magic in the books don't seem to have a particularly limited selection of effects they can draw on. This immediately suggests the flexiblity of a syntactic system to me.
My question is, should the syntactic system be more Verbs and Nouns, or something more along the Realm system presented in Thaumatology? Also, how should magic be categorized?
So far, the elements I think should be represented in a syntactic system are:

Air
Water
Fire
Earth
The Unseen
Illusion
Light
Darkness

I'm a bit iffy on including both Fire and Earth. On the one hand, characters like Gandalf clearly had power over fire that they didn't seem to have over stuff made of earth. On the other hand, Tolkein seemed to divide the into three realms pretty consistently, as demonstrated by where the Silmarils ended up: the air, the sea, and the earth.

The Unseen would cover spirits, wraiths, etc. - basically, everything that existed only in the "spirit world" rather than the material.

So, what do people think? Any other major categories of effect in Middle-Earth that I've missed? Are the categories I've got wrong? And would a verb/noun or realm system be better?

[Brandy]

What about some sort of Mind Control or Domination realm in addition to illusion? Wormtongue, at least, seems to have this ability even though he lacks his master's skill with Illusions.

[Vaevictis Asmadi]

I too am interested in how to model this.


Two types of magic need to be struck from the list of what player-characters can do: Gandalf and Saruman were Maiar and their magic is the demiurgic power of the Ainur. Likewise, I would not count anything that Luthien accomplished as within the realm of normal Elves to do, since she was half-Maia. Mere incarnates are not seen throwing fireballs, or anything else so showy.* I would keep all the Maiar and Valar strictly as NPCs and just declare what demiurgic effect they are producing, if they happen to show up in the campaign. If you do want to systematize the Maiar abilities, then something Syntactic is a good choice since each Vala has a definite Realm and Maiar can be neatly categorized as falling under the Realms of one (or sometimes more) Vala(r).

And if Wormtongue used magic (I don't remember if he did), then like some others who serve the Dark Lords, he must have learned some morgûl which is not the same thing as normal "magic." Unless your players will play agents of Sauron, I would make sure to clearly separate PC magic from NPC magic.


As for the "Elven magic" and Dwarven magic," in my opinion they are quite subtle, not showy, and are extensions of the abilities of very powerful craftsmen. I don't have Thaumatology and am not familiar with the magic systems in it, but my first instinct is to make the "magic" used by Elvish and Dwarvish artisans to be something that comes only through sinking lots of points into Crafts skills and getting up to more-than-human levels in them.

*Beorn's shapeshifting in the Hobbit, I have no idea why that works.

[whswhs]

Here's what I did in my Middle-Earth campaign, which was run in BESM and not GURPS, but may give some inspiration:

IV. New Attributes

Maker
Cost: 2 or 3 points/level
Relevant Stat: Soul

Maker works much like Mechanical Genius in standard BESM, but it enhances a crafts skill, such as Architecture, Artisan, Cooking, Performing Arts, Visual Arts, or Writing. It grants bonuses to one skill (for 2 points/level) or all skills (3 points/level). It also permits tasks to be performed far faster or more productively than normal. Finally, it can be used to create Items of Power, though great Items of Power consume some of the power of their makers, as the One Ring consumed much of Sauron's power. (Used with Architecture, it produces Places of Power; used with Performing Arts, it produces Magic, in the form of incantations or magically potent songs.)

V. Magic

Magic takes the form of mastery of specific effects. Often these effects require knowledge of spells; that is, specific phrases must be spoken, often in Quenya or the Black Speech. Saying the spell or performing the magic can confer the effects of any of the following attributes: Animal Friendship, Art of Distraction, Contamination, Damn Healthy!, Environmental Control, Exorcism, Gun Bunny, Healing, Heightened Awareness, Heightened Senses, Illusion, Invisibility, Kensei, Metamorphosis, Mind Control, Mind Shield, Precognition, Shape Change, Sixth Sense, Spirit Ward, Stealth, Telepathy, or Weapon Attack. Other effects seem to have been known at one time, including Artificial Intelligence and Flight, but are no longer known.

A special case is the effect Energy Bonus. Contrary to the published rules, magic can provide an Energy Bonus, but the bonus can't be used to cast spells; it serves only to increase Stats or Health temporarily.

Dynamic Sorcery is not generally available, but a few extraordinary beings have forms of it; Tom Bombadil is the most noteworthy example.

The attribute Maker can be used to create certain forms of magical effects, even by races who normally don't do magic, such as dwarves.

Bill Stoddard

[Figleaf23]

Theories to reconcile Tom Bombadil, anyone?

[Stormcrow]

There are many forms of magic in Middle-earth, and I have often thought about how to model them in GURPS. I strongly recommend reading the first issue of Other Minds, which tackles the question of how to model Middle-earth magic in RPGs.

One thing I am sure of: the idea of "spells" in Middle-earth is quite literal to its traditional and etymological roots: it specifically refers to words uttered to produce an effect. As you have pointed out, Gandalf mentions knowing opening-spells. The dwarves lay spells on the trolls' treasure in The Hobbit. Spells probably don't do anything visible; when Gandalf ignites pine cones with his staff or blasts the Nazgûl with light he isn't using a spell; it's another kind of power that only the Wizards seem to have, so far as we are ever told.

Another kind of power, which may or may not be called "magic," is that of will. Will is almost a palpable thing in Middle-earth. Gandalf battles both Denethor and the Balrog with his will. One of the key tools of both Morgoth and Sauron is their ability to dominate the wills of their servants and to command others. Notice that Gandalf uses what he calls a Word of Command in trying to hold back the Balrog.

What hobbits call elvish magic is really more like technology so advanced it is indistinguishable from magic. The elf of Lórien is quite serious when he tells Sam that he could have taught him much of the elvish art of rope-making. In the Silmarillion, several of the Edain live with the Eldar and learn their crafts, often surpassing the elves themselves. The dwarven toys at Bilbo's party are likewise described as "obviously magical," but we are not told exactly what they are. For all we know, they are simply advanced mechanical devices that hobbits don't understand, and so label as "magic."

On the other hand, Rings of Power must be actually magical, according to any definition we can muster ourselves, as they can manipulate

But there are still plenty of other kinds of magic in Middle-earth, and classifying them all for gaming purposes is very hard. When attempting to do so, remember that language is all-important to Tolkien (he was a professor of philology), and it is so in Middle-earth. Names are everything. Song is everywhere, even with the Shadow. Also remember not to try too hard to distinguish between the magical and natural worlds—they are just different ways of looking at the same thing. Those with very high skill levels may be looked upon by others with only ordinary skills as doing magical things when using those skills.

[Kelly Pedersen]

Originally Posted by Bookman

What about some sort of Mind Control or Domination realm in addition to illusion?

Definitely a good point - there's definitely mental magic going around, and it seems legitimately separate from the other categories.

Originally Posted by Bookman

Wormtongue, at least, seems to have this ability even though he lacks his master's skill with Illusions.

In this case, though, I'm not sure you need to invoke magic. I'd call Wormtongue more a matter of high skills in things like Acting, Fast Talk, and Psychology, trained by Saruman. Remember, Wormtongue had years to work on Theoden, slowly leading him into dependence and despair.

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

Two types of magic need to be struck from the list of what player-characters can do: Gandalf and Saruman were Maiar and their magic is the demiurgic power of the Ainur.

True. Ainur characters are out at this power level (actually, I could probably fit Gandalf into 500 points. But there's no "embodied" Maiar around at this time, so it's moot).

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

Likewise, I would not count anything that Luthien accomplished as within the realm of normal Elves to do, since she was half-Maia.

This, I'm less sure of. Certainly, anything we see her and no other elves doing is probably due to her heritage from Melian. But I'm pressed to think of anything she does that qualifies. She does illusions, but Finrod can do those (he disguised himself, Beren, and their company when they were trying to sneak by Sauron). She's got the magical sleep thing, but we've seen Wood-elves do that (they put magical sleep on several party members in The Hobbit). The incredible power she can put into her song is certainly impressive, but it's more a difference in quantity than quality from what other elves can do. Is there any other powers she demonstrated?

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

If you do want to systematize the Maiar abilities, then something Syntactic is a good choice since each Vala has a definite Realm and Maiar can be neatly categorized as falling under the Realms of one (or sometimes more) Vala(r).

I'm not sure it really breaks down like that, though. The Valar really seem more to have fields of interest more than "Realms", as such. Aule is the Vala most concered with the earth, for example, but I have no doubt at all that he can see the Unseen, manipulate wind and water, and so on, with far greater facility than any human or elf could do. The Valar aren't their portfolios - their interests and skills define what parts of the world they concern themselves with, rather than vice versa.

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

he must have learned some morgûl which is not the same thing as normal "magic."

See, this I'm unsure of. I tend to lean towards morgûl being similar in practice to the use of "regular" magic, but twisted in intent and outcome. I think that works better with Tolkien's cosmology. Tolkien didn't believe in evil as a separate, opposite thing to good - it was the absence or corruption of good, instead. The difference between the forms of magic is that good magic doesn't diminish you, whereas using magic to a bad end, you diminish yourself.
For example, both Morgoth and Aule created new races. Aule created the dwarves. He couldn't animate them, but once he gave them to Iluvatar, he was not diminished in power. Morgoth, on the other hand, reduced himself every time he used his power to corrupt an elf into an orc.

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

As for the "Elven magic" and Dwarven magic," in my opinion they are quite subtle, not showy, and are extensions of the abilities of very powerful craftsmen.

Definitely. Craft-based magic is high on my list, don't worry. :-) Although, I'd point out that First Age/Second Age elves, while not exactly "showy", do use more overt magic than is common in the Third Age, it seems.

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

*Beorn's shapeshifting in the Hobbit, I have no idea why that works.

There are just weird abilities that some people have, I guess. If someone wants to play a bear shapeshifter, I guess I won't object. :-)

Originally Posted by whswhs

Maker
Cost: 2 or 3 points/level
Relevant Stat: Soul

I am thinking of something along these lines, yes. I'm thinking of an advantage similar in spirit to Weapon Master or Gunslinger, but for crafting, one that lets you do normal crafting easier, and gives access to some new abilities. I'm contemplating something along the line of devotional enchantment, except with smithwork standing in for the devotion. So you labor over your masterwork for 8 hours, and get the equivalent of 1 energy point towards enchantment.

[Figleaf23]

Gandalf's pyrotechnic abilities were attributed to his Elven ring, IIRC.

Also, IIRC, Gandalf's freeing of Theoden appears to relieve a magical befuddlement, presumably inflicted by Wormtongue.

[Rocket Man]

Originally Posted by Figleaf23

Also, IIRC, Gandalf's freeing of Theoden appears to relieve a magical befuddlement, presumably inflicted by Wormtongue.

It's funny, but until the films came out, I never really interpreted Theoden's situation as magically inflicted -- he was simply an old man who had been kept penned up by a trusted adviser and fed a diet of despair for far too long, making him feel even more ancient than he actually was. I wouldn't give Wormtongue ANY magic ... just very high Fast-Talk, Acting and other subterfuge-related skills.

Now Gandalf's rapid restoration of him -- that I would attribute to magic, aided strongly by the ring Gandalf bears (which has the power to ignite the hearts of men) and the "magic of the land" that a king can call on, and that Gandalf is finally giving him the chance to reconnect to.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by Rocket Man

Now Gandalf's rapid restoration of him -- that I would attribute to magic, aided strongly by the ring Gandalf bears (which has the power to ignite the hearts of men) and the "magic of the land" that a king can call on, and that Gandalf is finally giving him the chance to reconnect to.

Right. The fundamental power of each of the three is to preserve and restore one aspect of the past, and ultimately of the Elder Days.

Narya, the ring of fire, rekindles failing wills and spirits. The command over the physical element of fire is just a byproduct.
Vilya, the ring of air, preserves the lore of the Elder Days, which is why Rivendell is the world's greatest center of ancient knowledge.
Nenya, the ring of water, preserves the actual life of the Elder Days, which explains why Lorien is what it is.

Bill Stoddard