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Old 01-09-2023, 06:52 AM   #1
hcobb
 
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Default Write Scroll from book

Do you allow this, and if so what's the impact of wizards being able to write scrolls for themselves from a reference?
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Old 01-09-2023, 07:46 AM   #2
Axly Suregrip
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

No. ITL 30, "The wizard must know both the Write Scroll spell
and the spell to be written on the scroll."
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Old 01-09-2023, 09:45 AM   #3
Bill_in_IN
 
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This kind of feeds a criticism of TFT about the usefulness (or lack thereof) scrolls and books. I must say that I'm inclined to understand such criticism. It hasn't been very practical to include them in general TFT play. This has been my observation for both Classic and Legacy TFT.

Books and scrolls are usually found and occasionally used and not created by PCs.

Last edited by Bill_in_IN; 01-10-2023 at 07:13 AM.
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Old 01-09-2023, 02:03 PM   #4
Axly Suregrip
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

Bill,
I get with your criticism of scrolls. Overpriced (assuming list price) and player never seek them out.

Books on the other hand are very useful. I have had players go this route. A wizard just needs a backpack with his kit in it and a book of a handful of spells. These are all non-combat spells that require no rush. Unlocking a chest, detecting magic, and so on. It makes the wizard so much more helpful in this situation and allows the wizard to pick more combat spells since the book is for the less urgent stuff.
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Old 01-09-2023, 05:37 PM   #5
David Bofinger
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

Wizard books can get very large: Detect Magic, Light, Aid, Dark Vision, Look Your Best, Summon Scout, Clearheadedness, Close Vision, Far Vision, Lock/Knock, Meal, Minor Medicant, Stalwart, Trailtwister, Ward, Delete Writing, Ferment, Persuasiveness, Reveal/Conceal, Scour, Analyze Magic, Drain Strength, Pathfinder, Repair, Soothe, Flight, Open Tunnel, Scrying, Telekinesis, Duplicate Writing, Glamor, Restore Device, Telepathy are all worth having if you can afford it. Even more useful if you could forget spells and use the IQ to learn new ones.
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Old 01-09-2023, 06:33 PM   #6
hcobb
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

Usually you can get a magic item or potion that everybody can use and does the job better and cheaper than the scroll.

https://www.hcobb.com/tft/scrolls_suck.html
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Old 01-10-2023, 12:10 AM   #7
Axly Suregrip
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

Quote:
Originally Posted by David Bofinger View Post
Wizard books can get very large: Detect Magic, Light, Aid, Dark Vision, Look Your Best, Summon Scout, Clearheadedness, Close Vision, Far Vision, Lock/Knock, Meal, Minor Medicant, Stalwart, Trailtwister, Ward, Delete Writing, Ferment, Persuasiveness, Reveal/Conceal, Scour, Analyze Magic, Drain Strength, Pathfinder, Repair, Soothe, Flight, Open Tunnel, Scrying, Telekinesis, Duplicate Writing, Glamor, Restore Device, Telepathy are all worth having if you can afford it. Even more useful if you could forget spells and use the IQ to learn new ones.
Exactly. Those you need to memorize are determined by IQ and XP. Those you need in a book is strictly determined by $. Your wizard can have an adventuring book and a book for when in town.
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Old 01-10-2023, 07:56 AM   #8
Bill_in_IN
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

This discussion has heightened my interest in Wizard's Books. I have understood their use. Perhaps, a Wizard book discussion thread should be started because this one is specific to writing scrolls from books.

A book is not really for the spells that a wizard knows. It seems that there is little functional use for a wizard to write down the spells that they know (have memorized) unless they want them available to others outside of the Guild and can profit from it themselves.

Of course, if they don't know the spells themselves, they have to purchase them in either a small book with just that spell or a book with multiple spells. Such books can also be found but that would be rare due to the books being very protected items that are not likely to be simply lost.

Per ITL, page 141, just about all of the practical aspects of a book are discussed such as number of pages, price, and DX adjustment. It didn't mention the ST cost for casting. Unless otherwise stated, I would assume that the stated ST cost for each spell would apply.

There seems to be an implication that, even though IQ 14 spells are the highest level that can be cast from a book, IQ 15 and above can be in the book for reference. This implies that a literate wizard could learn the spell himself provided that he knows the language in which it is written and has the appropriate IQ. So, how long would it take for the wizard to teach himself the spell? I think that I read that somewhere in ITL.
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Old 01-10-2023, 08:47 AM   #9
hcobb
 
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

The only place in Legacy that covers training time is The Thieves’ Guild (ITL 60) where it seems to be three months to the memory point.

Any wizard can research a spell they've seen (ITL 144) in IQ level weeks, but having reference materials on hand should at least halve that. Hence IQ 8 spell from a book in 4 weeks to 10 weeks for an IQ 20 spell. If the reference materials only take out the risk without speeding up the process then that's 8 weeks for IQ 8 to 20 weeks for IQ 20.
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Old 01-10-2023, 09:49 AM   #10
Axly Suregrip
 
Join Date: Jun 2018
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Default Re: Write Scroll from book

Quote:
Originally Posted by hcobb View Post
Usually you can get a magic item or potion that everybody can use and does the job better and cheaper than the scroll.

https://www.hcobb.com/tft/scrolls_suck.html

This is a handy list. Sometimes the scroll is a lot cheaper (Invisibility).

Another reason to have a scroll instead of a potion is to prevent others from using it. An orc wizard with a scroll in orcish is safe from it being used against himself by anyone that cannot read or does not know orcish or is not a wizard (they would need all three attributes to use it). That is hardly a good reason but may fit with characters that are paranoid.

Some scrolls are handy because the spell is not often needed but when it is, it is important (and no potion available). Because this kind of spell is needed so rarely, memorizing the spell seems a waste of a slot. And the situation would require it to be more urgent than a book would allow or too high an IQ spell for a book (take off backpack, remove book and magic kit, then cast spell from book adds up). Remove Thrown Spell and Magic Rainstorm come to mind.
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