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Old 10-21-2017, 02:09 PM   #1
Michael Cule
 
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Default GURPS Spell Construction Kit

Things would be a whole lot easier if GURPS Magic had a system to it.

I mean looking back on it we might still have had the plethora of Magic systems Thaumatology rounded up (and all those which have come up since) but if they had started out with a system that told you how much being an Area spell affected cost and difficulty, what sort of chain of prerequisites you should build up for a particular effect, what level of Magery a spell should require... If there was a why to all that rather than just winging it my life would be easier than it is just now.

My (decades old) project to find a system for Tekumel that I like and can actually run went plotz again last week when I realised that FATE wasn't going to be the answer I was hoping for.

And my players, annoying simulationists the lot of them, looked at me and asked why I couldn't use GURPS.

It's the magic system (I told them as I have a thousand times). I can't use the core GURPS system: to keep the flavour of the world I need to convert the idiosyncratic spells of the source material. I can take the Psychic Magic and turn it into a set of GURPS Powers, no problem But the Ritual Magic is a bitch.

No, Ritual Magic in the GURPS sense won't work: it relies on the corpus of standard GURPS spells. Nor will Ritual Path Magic: the various temples keep knowledge of their specialities separate to increase their own power. There's no Thaumatological reason a Karakan worshiper can't learn the secrets of Wuru, purely social ones.

So are there any other systems for constructing spells in GURPS? Even unpublished amateur efforts.

You may assume I have looked at all the ideas in THAUMATOLOGY and have yet to be inspired by them.
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Old 10-21-2017, 02:34 PM   #2
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

Sorcery, perhaps?
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Old 10-21-2017, 02:44 PM   #3
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael Cule View Post
Things would be a whole lot easier if GURPS Magic had a system to it.


You may assume I have looked at all the ideas in THAUMATOLOGY and have yet to be inspired by them.
Check your email - sent you a message via email through SJGames. :)
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Old 10-21-2017, 03:22 PM   #4
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

GURPS magic does go into some detail I think page 6 and 7 on making new spells and Thaumatology helps. I used those as the basis for several of my magic systems.
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Old 10-21-2017, 03:23 PM   #5
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

Failing other options, if you were to describe broadly how the ritual magic of Tékumel should feel in play, I imagine the brains trust here would be able to come up with a variety of ways of doing it.
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Old 10-21-2017, 03:35 PM   #6
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

You should be seeking out Brett Slocum (blog), who has extensive experience with both Tékumel and the default GURPS Magic system (writing for Roleplayer back in the day).
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Old 10-21-2017, 03:47 PM   #7
hal
 
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

For what it is worth, I had a spell that I converted over from DRAGONQUEST where the caster inscribes the name of a demon on a slip of paper, and then hands it over to the intended victim. The demon, even if defeated the first time around, will show up 30 days later to keep on trying until it succeeds. The only way to get around from the curse is to either have it removed via REMOVE CURSE, or by handing the slip of paper to someone else. Throwing it away and someone else taking it doesn't count - you have to GIVE it away and someone has to accept it. Energy cost to cast is 10, PLUS 1 Hit point (Blood) to activate the curse. Name of the Demon has to be its true name. As a consequence of that, the demon itself is not too happy that someone knows its true name and will usually find a way to gun for the one who cast the curse/spell. Prerequisites were "Summon Demon" and "Curse" and Magery 2.

Technically, the spell was "indefinite" and lasted until the target (or A target if the paper was handed off) was killed.

So - just about anything can be converted into use with GURPS.
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Old 10-21-2017, 03:54 PM   #8
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

The myGurps site has a system for modifying the standard gurps magic system. Its by PK, who wrote it before he was hired by Steve Jackson games.

Gurps Thaumatology actually has a pretty impressive tool set to let you build magic spells and magic systems, though it doesn't look like that if you just start reading at the beginning.

And as roger said, we'd be happy to build something if you could describe the initial system to us.
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Old 10-22-2017, 12:24 PM   #9
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Default Re: GURPS Spell Construction Kit

GURPS Magic: Death Spells has something of a start for spell development kit for GURPS Magic.
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Old 10-22-2017, 06:58 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Taneli View Post
GURPS Magic: Death Spells has something of a start for spell development kit for GURPS Magic.
Can you elaborate, please?
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