01-18-2022, 11:31 AM | #11 |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
Tried to come up with a list of enchantments that should be wizard-only and here's what I came up with: Adjustable Clothing, Dancing Weapon, Dancing Shield, Dopplegänger, Hideaway, Impression Blocker, Leak, Loyal Sword, Quick Draw, Simulacrum, and all "Wizardly tools". "Limiting enchantments" mostly seem appropriate for divine spellcasters. The spells Lich, Manastone, Powerstone, and Wraith should probably be unavailable to anybody.
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Handle is a character from the Star*Drive setting (a.k.a. d20 Future), not my real name. |
01-18-2022, 11:54 AM | #12 | |||
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
Quote:
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For example, perhaps an arcane* Place of Power is a sink rather than a source. This gives you a town that has normal or better mana, with a big juicy mana deposit at the center, but the outskirts are low mana and the environs surrounding the town are no mana. Monsters of a supernatural persuasion are going to be disinclined to go into the town, as they have to pass through a no mana zone to do so - which is uncomfortable for most (they don't have access to some of their "natural" abilities) and actively damaging to others (those with an outright Dependency) - and in a setting where most monsters are at least a bit magical, this is excellent defense for a town. It can also make for an interesting time of figuring out how to get a mana-dependent PC across without harming them, and if the area is larger than the town can patrol, it's a good place for mundane bandits to spring ambushes. Or, perhaps a divine* Place of Power is reliant upon an enshrined holy relic of some flavor (the big toe of a saint, the feather of a high-ranking angel, the Sword That Cuts Evil Into Tiny Pieces, etc), serving as a focus to draw in the energy of the townsfolk's prayers. The holy energies dissuade monsters from coming in (and perhaps even make inhabitants and visitors more peaceful, preventing violence), in addition to being a source of energy for the local priests to draw from. An obvious plot hook is the relic being stolen (needing recovery) or outright destroyed (needing replacement) - or (one or more of) the PC's being tasked with stealing/destroying. *Yes, I'm stealing terms from That Other Game, because they just work well here. Quote:
As for availability of second-hand magic items, I generally assume (and the magic item creation system I'll be using for Oubliette has explicitly defined) magic items are more robust than mundane ones, and require little to no maintenance (Oubliette magic items even heal themselves over time, so long as they aren't actually "killed"). This is necessary for ancient ruins and the like to still have magic items in working order. So, you've potentially got a large pool of items to draw from - those previously commissioned by adventurers (including those commissioned by adventurers who never came to pick up their order, on account of getting eaten by goblins or whatever before the item was complete) but sold off when they retired/got something better/really needed some money/broke their neck climbing a cliff, those recovered from ancient ruins and sold off because they weren't quite as good as what they already had, those created by enchanters for practice, those looted from battlefields (officers and/or their bodyguards may well have magic items), etc. But, yeah, if you commission a custom magic item, that's going to cost more - but on the bright side, you get exactly what you wanted, rather than being at the mercy of a random magic item generator (there is a wait involved, but acquiring the appropriate reagents - either by spending more coin or gathering them yourself - could reduce that markedly); for that, either a multiplier for the normal costs or something based on wages.
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GURPS Overhaul |
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01-18-2022, 02:15 PM | #13 |
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Portland, Oregon
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
I once had a character able to make magic items. Since the RAW enchanting rules were bare bones to say the least, I...elaborated.
You can find my write up (and it's considerable) here. It basically details out what an enchanter mage does all day, and uses the basic rules as a jumping off point. Something in there might be of use to you.
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Warmest regards, StevenH My current worldbuilding project. You can find the Adventure Logs of the campaign here. I try to write them up as narrative prose, with illustrations. As such, they are "embellished" accounts of the play sessions. Link of the moment: Bestiary of Plants. In a world of mana, plants evolved to use it as an energy source. It is also the new home of the Alaconius Lectures, a series of essays about the various Colleges of Spells. |
01-19-2022, 11:34 AM | #14 |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
If I use this in my games, I'll probably add Suspend Enchantment to the list of wizard-only enchantment spells, since Suspend Spell is wizard-only. OTOH I do think clerics and druids should be able to cast Remove Enchantment.
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Handle is a character from the Star*Drive setting (a.k.a. d20 Future), not my real name. |
01-19-2022, 01:35 PM | #15 |
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Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: far from the ocean
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
I'd change that to very high rather than high. High magic isn't that impressive. Very high magic is wildly powerful.
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Be helpful, not pedantic Worlds Beyond Earth -- my blog Check out the PbP forum! If you don't see a game you'd like, ask me about making one! |
01-19-2022, 03:13 PM | #16 |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
The significance of high-mana areas is normally modest, but I'm trying to justify the spell being extremely powerful in the hands of professional spellcasters in Town, but of limited utility to most PCs most of the time.
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Handle is a character from the Star*Drive setting (a.k.a. d20 Future), not my real name. |
01-19-2022, 10:01 PM | #17 |
Join Date: Aug 2007
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Re: [DF] World-building the magic item (and power item) industry
More dangerous than powerful. That's why you build vaults to hold charging Powerstones in VH Mana but don't go there otherwise.
Start casting spells in VH mana as fast as you can and the inevitable crit fails will kill you pretty quick. Like in 216 seconds or less. Perhaps 1200 seconds if you have a Stabilizing Skill. High Mana isn't so much for direct casting but does double the yield of the Power enchantment. It's an interesting place for self-powered magic items and a society that uses them.
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