Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > GURPS

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-09-2020, 10:32 PM   #1
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default A New Version of Ritual Magic [Thaumatology/RPM]

One of my primary beefs with the standard spell system is that you are often stuck with useless spells as prerequisites and you end up either going unconscious or killing yourself casting a large spell. While the ritual magic system solves the former problem, it does not solve the latter problem. While the spirit-assisted or threshold-limited seems to solve the latter problem, they are even worse than the standard spell system when it comes to casting large spells, as they either cost you your soul or reality kicks you in the teeth.

I think that a hybrid system between ritual magic and RPM could take care of both issues. It would look something like the following:

1. Ritual Magic would be the core skill and Symbol Drawing would grant a bonus to effective skill equal to (margin of success/2, rounded down).

2. The Colleges would replace the Paths, would have a maximum default equal to the IQ of the practitioner, and would have a maximum level equal to the lesser of (12 + Magery) or Ritual Magic.

3. Magery would increase maximum skill, increase the number of conditional rituals, and provide an energy reserve equal to (Magery x 3). Non-mages could learn Colleges as if they had Magery 0, but they suffer an additional -5 to effective skill.

4. College Adept would replace Ritual Adept.

5. Ritual Magic would have not use the effects of RPM, the base cost of a ritual would be equal to (the prerequisite count of the spell + 1), but they would use the elements and parameters of RPM. Additionally, energy would be gathered as it is in RPM. Hard spells would be lesser effects while Very Hard spells would be greater effects (with an additional greater effect per Very Hard prerequisite).

6. Alchemy would default to Ritual Magic-6 or IQ-7 while Ritual Magic would default to Alchemy-6 or IQ-7.

7. Magical items would purchased as magical gadgets and grimoires would exist, just like with RPM.

8. Practitioners could maintain a maximum of (Ritual Magic + Magery) conditional spells and a maximum of (Alchemy + Magery) potions.

What do you think? Would you be interested in using such a system? What else would you add to such a system if you did decide to use it?

Last edited by AlexanderHowl; 05-09-2020 at 10:53 PM.
AlexanderHowl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-10-2020, 01:08 PM   #2
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: A New Version of Ritual Magic [Thaumatology/RPM]

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
One of my primary beefs with the standard spell system is that you are often stuck with useless spells as prerequisites and you end up either going unconscious or killing yourself casting a large spell. While the ritual magic system solves the former problem, it does not solve the latter problem. While the spirit-assisted or threshold-limited seems to solve the latter problem, they are even worse than the standard spell system when it comes to casting large spells, as they either cost you your soul or reality kicks you in the teeth.
One way to have a character that casts large spells without getting knocked out in the standard system is to just have a high FP or ER score, assuming that the GM is willing to set a high enough cap, or just uncap it.

Of course 'casting a large spell will knock you out and may injure you' may well be entirely consistent with how the GM wants their setting to run.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-11-2020, 07:52 PM   #3
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: A New Version of Ritual Magic [Thaumatology/RPM]

An example of note would be Resurrection. Resurrection possesses a prerequisite count of 9, so the base cost would be 10. It is a VH skill with 4 VH prerequisites (the shortest path), so it would have a ×11 modifier for 5 greater effects. Since only damage dealt and damage healed are permanent effects in RPM, the Resurrection would require a duration modifier, and it would require a mass modifier, usually +3 for 300 lbs. A typical casting would have modifier base cost of 34 (Resurrection [10] + Duration, 1 year [+21] + Subject Weight, 300 lbs [+3]) and a final cost of 374 energy (34 x 11)

Another example would be Create Gate. Create Gate has a prerequisite cost of 16, so the base cost would be 17. It would probably require 10 minutes of duration (+1 energy), have a radius of 2 yards (+2), and a maximum subject weight of 300 lbs (+3), it would have for a modified base cost of 23. Since it is a VH spell with 3 VH prerequisites (the shortest path), it would count as 4 greater effects, for a x9 modifier, for a final cost of 207 energy (23 × 9).
AlexanderHowl is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 11:01 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.