06-22-2021, 09:06 AM | #1 |
Join Date: May 2010
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[Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
Yesterday I started thinking about how to convert blocking Gate spells from GURPS Magic into defensive buffs, and the more I think about it the more the rule against sorcerous Blocking spells looks. It's not like the Powers system couldn't possibly support such spells: you just need something like Emergencies Only, either with Reflexive or just a note saying to use the rules for Power Defense. Similarly, it seems like the rule against Blocking spells rules out a sorcerous spell based on Warp (Blink) (or Warp (Blink Only) from Psionic Powers). But there's a loophole: the main Sorcery book says that sorcery's answers to blocking spells is defensive buffs. So it seems like there's no reason a sorcerer couldn't Afflict Warp (Blink Only) or Insubstantiality (Reflexive, Unconscious Only, Uncontrollable). This honestly just seems like a very strange rule! Can anyone see a rationale for it that I'm missing?
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06-22-2021, 10:13 AM | #2 |
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
Possibly relevant is the fact Sorcery spells are built off Alternate Abilities, or Modular Abilities if improvising, and those usually don't allow you to swap between them when it isn't your turn. I can certainly see justification to be able to do so, of course, but perhaps the author(s) of GURPS Thaumatology: Sorcery didn't want to rock the boat too much there.
And I'd be hesitant to allow a Sorcery spell to grant someone an active ability like Warp (Blink Only or otherwise). It seems more appropriate to have it grant more passive abilities, or at least abilities that aren't momentary - giving someone a flaming sword is fine, giving someone the ability to summon a flaming sword not so much. That's more a flavor thing than a game balance thing, however.
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06-22-2021, 11:26 AM | #3 | ||
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
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06-22-2021, 11:30 AM | #4 | |
Join Date: Sep 2007
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
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Or 3/N -- as Merlin in the second Amber series points out, a good sorceror has one attack, one defense, and one escape spell ready at all times. |
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06-22-2021, 12:13 PM | #5 |
Join Date: Mar 2013
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
I've wondered about this also. I do understand the initial reasoning, but blocking spells are too useful.
I am thinking of allowing blocking spells for an additional 2 FP. How does this sound?
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06-22-2021, 12:23 PM | #6 |
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
Are those spells that grant the target the ability to Warp/Jump/TimeJump, or are they spells that force the target to do so once? It sounds like they'd be the latter, in which case that's just Affliction with Fixed Duration and enough Reduced Duration to only last a moment - you cast it, the target vanishes (going wherever/whenever you sent them), and that's the end of it.
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06-22-2021, 12:31 PM | #7 | |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
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06-22-2021, 12:50 PM | #8 | |
Join Date: Jun 2013
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
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As for Reduced Duration, I'm really not clear on exactly how Affliction (Warp) is meant to work as a sort of "Teleport Other" ability. Normally, Afflicting someone with an Advantage would mean they gain said Advantage for the Duration. The "Teleport Other" variant is one where you hit the target with the Affliction and they immediately teleport where you designate. Does Duration apply there - that is, if it lasts 3 minutes, are you able to just have them warping all over the place during those 3 minutes? How does this interact with the need to concentrate for a time and pay FP when warping - are those ignored, does it force the target to concentrate and pay FP, does the original caster concentrate and pay FP, or what?
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06-22-2021, 07:13 PM | #9 | |||
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
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06-23-2021, 10:52 AM | #10 |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: [Sorcery] Why no sorcerous Blocking spells?
Looking into the Insubstantiality thing: I don't think there's a RAW-based way to make Insubstantiality "instantaneous", but it looks like you could make the duration "1 second, starting whenever the subject would be hit by an attack".
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