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Old 03-07-2018, 09:27 AM   #1
Dolarre
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Default 'Weapon Master' for spells

Looking for advice over power level. I am experimenting with a few new advantages for standard magic and have drafted the following:


Battle Magic Master [variable]

The spellcaster’s version of Weapon Master; you are astonishingly adept with a particular set of spells in combat.

• All spells! [40 points]
• All spells of one class (usually Blocking or one of the Combat classes: Jet, Melee, or Missile) [30 points]
• All spells of one college. (Ex: Fire college) [30 points]
• Two closely related spells. (Ex: Fireball and Explosive Fireball) [25 points]
• One specific spell only. [20 points]

This conveys the following benefits to qualifying spells.

• Add +1 per die to basic damage, if the spell causes damage. Add +2 per die if your base skill is IQ + Magery +2 or more.
• Reduce your subject’s Resistance by 1 if your base skill with a Resistible spell is IQ + Magery +1. Reduce Resistance by 2 if your base skill is IQ + Magery +2 or more.
• Reduce the penalties associated with Rapid Spell from -6 to cast and attack, to -3.
• Reduce the cumulative penalties for using multiple Blocking spells for which you have Blocking Spell Mastery from -5 to -3.
• Reduce the penalty to cast additional spells when holding a Melee Spell charge or Missile for which you have Melee or Missile Spell Mastery from -3 to -1 (now merely considered a ‘spell on’ like most temporary spells.)
• Halve the penalties for Rapid Strike (and the penalty for multiple parries if you possess the Substantial Jet perk) for any Jet spell you know.


New Perks

Rapid Casting
You can cast and attack with a Combat spell in the same turn. In the final second of concentration of a Melee, Jet, or Missile spell, you can choose to take a -6 penalty on the casting roll. If you do so, you may make an immediate attack roll using that spell also at a -6 penalty. You must specialize by specific Combat spell.

Substantial Jet
A specific Jet spell can be used to parry as a normal melee weapon at innate attack (beam) /2 +3.

Does this seem costed correctly? Are there elements I might be missing, or repercussions I might not see?

Thanks for your help in advance.

Last edited by Dolarre; 03-07-2018 at 09:31 AM.
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Old 03-07-2018, 09:34 AM   #2
Phantasm
 
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Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

I'd add to these the following Perk:

Improved Counterspell - Your knowledge of a particular college of magic is such that you can identify spells in your college that you don't know, and can use the Counterspell and Ward spells against them. Must specialize by college, and you must know six spells from the college to qualify for the perk.
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Old 03-07-2018, 09:50 AM   #3
Dolarre
 
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Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

Quote:
Originally Posted by Phantasm View Post

Improved Counterspell - Your knowledge of a particular college of magic is such that you can identify spells in your college that you don't know, and can use the Counterspell and Ward spells against them. Must specialize by college, and you must know six spells from the college to qualify for the perk.
Thanks! I like it. Consider it snagged.
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Old 03-07-2018, 11:51 AM   #4
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

No, I think that the advantage is abusive because it increases damage without increasing FP cost, and it violates the entire concept of Weapon Master being used for muscle-powered weapons only. Now, if you want to make a spell version of Gunslinger, that might be something that would make an interesting addition to GURPS.
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Old 03-07-2018, 04:37 PM   #5
Dolarre
 
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Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

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Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
No, I think that the advantage is abusive because it increases damage without increasing FP cost, and it violates the entire concept of Weapon Master being used for muscle-powered weapons only. Now, if you want to make a spell version of Gunslinger, that might be something that would make an interesting addition to GURPS.
Is there any point cost where you think it would be balanced, or are you opposed to any mechanics of this sort?
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Old 03-07-2018, 05:06 PM   #6
Refplace
 
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Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

There was a Spell slinger variant in a Pyramid by Christopher Rice but its not inn the issues I checked.
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Old 03-07-2018, 05:33 PM   #7
johndallman
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Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

Quote:
Originally Posted by Refplace View Post
There was a Spell slinger variant in a Pyramid by Christopher Rice but its not inn the issues I checked.
Pyramid #3/109, p32. It's tied to Incantation Magic.

Edit: There's also an RPM version in Pyramid #3/66, p14.

Last edited by johndallman; 03-07-2018 at 05:42 PM.
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Old 03-07-2018, 06:57 PM   #8
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dolarre View Post
Is there any point cost where you think it would be balanced, or are you opposed to any mechanics of this sort?
Not really. The reason why WM is balanced for its cost is that weapons are difficult to hide, can be broken, can be stolen, have cost, and have weight. In effect, GMs possess a range of options to control WM, which they cannot use to control a spell-version of WM. Now, if you made it so that the spell-version of WM required a different consumable components for each spell, even if they ended up costing $1 and 0.05 lbs per casting of the spell, then it would be balanced (since the components of each spell could be stolen, destroyed, etc).

In that case, Weapon Mastery would be Component Mastery instead, which would allow characters to use components to enhance the effectiveness of their spells. Characters would spend $1 per casting of the spell for basic components, or they could spend more money for higher quality components that would grant a -1 FP per doubling of cost ($32 for components that reduce FP cost by 5 FP per casting of the spell or $1,024 for components that reduce FP cost by 10 FP per casting of the spell).
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Old 03-07-2018, 07:45 PM   #9
Dolarre
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

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Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
Not really. The reason why WM is balanced for its cost is that weapons are difficult to hide, can be broken, can be stolen, have cost, and have weight. In effect, GMs possess a range of options to control WM, which they cannot use to control a spell-version of WM.

<interesting speculation concerning component variant>
Alright, I understand your concern, but don’t necessarily agree with it. For the sake of argument, would you think the costs are fair if there was an added restriction that the benefits are attached only to spells cast through a weapon enchanted with the Staff spell?
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Old 03-07-2018, 08:17 PM   #10
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: 'Weapon Master' for spells

Well, I think that it would still be unbalanced (the average staff with a Staff-15 enchantment only costs $40). Now, if you made it so that the WM used the lower of the Staff of the staff or the practitioner's level in the spell, I think that would be balanced because the practitioner would need a more powerful Staff to enhance more powerful spells.
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