Your favourite magic system?

[moldymaltquaffer]

3e Ritual Magic or 4e Path/Book

3e Psionics.
(Yes, you really need to charge an "unusual background" fee for every power taken. But it's so flexible and elegant! Surely, I'm not the only one who loved it and misses it.)

[Ed the Coastie]

4e Path/Book magic...especially Book magic, which is the magic system I usually use in my games.

Alchemy

3e Psionics

[copeab]

Originally Posted by roguebfl

that's in 4e as an option (Magic p.9)

Ah, nice. It's a very good option ;)

[Crakkerjakk]

I'm running a house-rule currently where for every MoS 5 you have on you spell roll it costs 1 FP less. Plus you can take penalties and bonii for casting faster/slower, without rituals or with flamboyant rituals, etc. Makes FP costs a little variable, but still makes it a good idea to take extra time and wave your hands around a lot shouting if you're low on spell juice.

[Ed the Coastie]

One change I do make when I use the "standard" 4e magic rules is to remove the prerequisites -- other than Magery -- from Throw Spell. (In fact, Throw Spell itself becomes a prerequisite for Catch Spell.) When combined with a couple of tweaks involving wands, this allows a pretty fun simulation of the Harry Potter-esque magic that my daughter enjoys playing.

[Kuroshima]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

I also much prefer 3e Psionics. Your character can do useful and varied stuff with more than one power on a modest points budget eg [50] (for the psionics).

4e Psionics is a blunt instrument by comparison, you pay a very large number of points to be quite good at doing just one thing (which begs the question why bother).

Luckily it shouldn't be much work to weld 3e Psionics onto 4e.

Well, get GURPS Psionic powers, and you'll see how wrong you are.

Now, under 3er ed, psi was too cheap (except psychokinesis at very low levels, where it was barely usable. Once you got to the point where 5 points gave you 10 points of effective ST, that was way too cheap. In fact with went from overpriced to underpriced in the span of 1 power level, with no middle term), so if you expect the same amount of usefullness out of a similar amount of points, you're in for a rought ride.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVED the 3rd ed psi, but it had balance problems that poked holes one could drive a yacht through. The idea was pure genius, the execution was not. GURPS Psionic Powers, however, goes back to the idea, and gives us good mechanics for it.

[moldymaltquaffer]

<ears perk>

Dangit.
I'm going to have to make an investment now, aren't I?

[Edges]

Originally Posted by moldymaltquaffer

<ears perk>

Dangit.
I'm going to have to make an investment now, aren't I?

It's worth it. : )

[Refplace]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

I have GURPS Psionic Powers. It doesn't help, 4th Ed Psionics is still rubbish. It just doesn't give the flexibility that the 3rd Ed one gave.

I really like having multiple powers each of which is bought in levels, and then skills for the different things you can do with each power. It also gives you the option to buy a power at low level with one or no skills as a starting character and then develop it in play, either as your only power or as a secondary to a primary power you've got lots of points in.

The points cost of 4th Ed Psionics is completely unjustified. Compare it for example to the cost of Magic, either standard or Ritual.

There is a significant difference there. Magic as skills is very cheap compared to any other option. Of course that is a world based on magic and for full benefit one that has access to lots of spells. Psi however is typically meant for a SciFi game is tech heavy and is more balanced as regards cost in that setting.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Owen Smith

I have GURPS Psionic Powers. It doesn't help, 4th Ed Psionics is still rubbish. It just doesn't give the flexibility that the 3rd Ed one gave.

I really like having multiple powers each of which is bought in levels, and then skills for the different things you can do with each power. It also gives you the option to buy a power at low level with one or no skills as a starting character and then develop it in play, either as your only power or as a secondary to a primary power you've got lots of points in.

The points cost of 4th Ed Psionics is completely unjustified. Compare it for example to the cost of Magic, either standard or Ritual.

Shall I do it with the kind of spell skill levels required to duplicate the effective range (and reduced fatigue cost) of a typical psi power?