Learnable vs. Inborn Magery

[DrTemp]

Originally Posted by sanguine

[...]
There's nothing wrong with making your PCs the rare, exceptional types. They're already the weirdos who go out saving the world, or looting dungeons, or trading with fantastic magical beings, or whatever.

That I'd say, depends on the campaign type. While for my current campaign, I'd agree with you, there are other, more "standard" ones, where I would not, such as the "typical adventurer-mercenary" campaign so many published adventures from various sources propose. If Magery cannot be raised, except by Just Another Wandering Wizard (and then again one once a new player joins or someone switches characters), the assumption of rare high Magery becomes somewhat implausible.

[DrTemp]

Originally Posted by Wedhro

[...] I charged an additional Unusual Background as prerequisite to Magery [...]

That's, of course, another approach: Make it inborn, but make it more expensive, too, so as to mirror the actual rarity. How expensive was the UB you'd charge for a "Very Rare Magery" campaign such as, say, one with 1/0.1/0.01/0.001% distribution?

How about additional 20 CP per level, so that it's usually cheaper to by up IQ in order to raise your effective skill with spells? Such as:

M0: 25 CP (5 CP Magery + 20 CP UB)
M1: 55 CP (15 CP Magery + 40 CP UB)
M2: 85 CP (25 CP Magery + 60 CP UB)
M3: 115 CP (35 CP Magery + 80 CP UB)

Or would this be over the top?

[Wedhro]

Originally Posted by DrTemp

How expensive was the UB you'd charge for a "Very Rare Magery" campaign such as, say, one with 1/0.1/0.01/0.001% distribution?

I used Magery 0 for inborn attitude, and higher levels for enlightenment and awareness gained through research, ascetism AND supernatural experience, with an additional UB flat cost of 10 points for levels above 0 (i.e. 5/25/35/45 points).
Since magic in my campaign was a well guarded secret, a wizard could pick his starting spells in a restricted list (the simpler 40-50 spells in Magic and Griomoire), then he had only three possibilities to let his grimoire grow:
- Find a tome with arcane magic procedures written in it (an adventure in itself);
- Invent a new spell (spending much time and money, and risking a disastrous Critical Failure);
- Find a secret society of mages and pass whatever test required to join it (that is, a Rank).
I could have charged more points as UB, but since my campaign started at 100 points I didn't want to limit my players too much.

Originally Posted by KlausPrinceOfThe Undeads

Remember that requiring UB without giving any advantage in change means actually to increase the point cost of a trait. So, if Magery 3 is no more useful in your game world that in an high-magic word, your players are going to hate you - and for a good reason, IMHO.

Well, in a world where magic is rare and kept secret by its few users, the ability to use it is quite advantageous... The wizard in the party won several battles using simple spells like Ignite Fire or Apportation, because most of his foes surrendered or ran away in front of such an inexplicable phenomenon!
Later he developed more powerful spells and gained a reputation of dangerous individual, so he was no more bothered by common thugs and similar annoying guys. When almost everybody in the world has Mundane Background, being a mage is an advantage in itself, 'cause gives you an edge over others even if you cannot do much more than some vicious tricks!

[RyanW]

Originally Posted by KlausPrinceOfTheUndeads

Remember that requiring UB without giving any advantage in change means actually to increase the point cost of a trait. So, if Magery 3 is no more useful in your game world that in an high-magic word, your players are going to hate you - and for a good reason, IMHO.

If PCs are required to take an Unusual Background with Magery, that implies that Magery is rare. Rarity can itself be the advantage.

Mages are often the best counter to mages (either in person with counterspells, or in support with defensive amulets), and if the GM keeps magic as rare as the UB suggests it should be, mage PCs get their points worth. If the GM charges a 50 point UB and then throws in a battlemage with every group of random mooks, then the mage player has a reason to be upset.

RyanW

[Verjigorm]

And if magic is known, and t's a "science", then people wil ldevelop methods for dealign with it. If magic is unknown, then people will be clueless as how to deal with it.

[zorg]

I prefer a raisable Magery, combined with some effect which makes long-term magic use unhealthy or corrupting.

[isf]

I use a mixture of different mageries.

The main empire categorizes magery into two types: wild magic (usually inherent magery and other mana-using powers) and ordered magic (learnable magery based on channeling mana through magical infrastructure which creates a high mana region for imperial citizens).

[Ze'Manel Cunha]

Originally Posted by DrTemp

So I'd like to know what approaches to "being or becoming attuned to supernatural powers" you use in your game? Classic "Supers" (irreproducible circumstances make you powerful), or one of the above, or something entirely different? And why?

I use Arcane Rituals, individual, involving major sacrifice and/or divine favors.

[Chunk]

In all my fantasy campaigns, Magery is learnable but only for levels 1+. Magery 0 is an inborn advantage and if your character doesn't have it upon generation, he cannot learn/raise Magery (with a few exceptions i.e. Greater Wish, Divine Intervention, etc.)

[JAW]

I think in this case it's possible to eat the cake and sawe it too. MAgery could be inbornd but it might not always manfest at same age and not usually immediately at full power..

So it would be entirely possible for 30 years old character to manifest magery 0 and manifest higher lewels later.. That way for PCs you could increase magery later by simply paying the CPs and the campaing world's rarety of high lewel mages could still be set arbitarily.

The only side effect would be that most high lewel mages would logically be older. (If it's possible and not so unusual to for magery level to increase by time in an individual it would follow that high magerry is more commonly found on old individual than a young one..) If that side effect is desired one or not is matter of taste but it certainly fits the generic fantasy convention of most powerful mages being old geezers.. (If it was only about the time used to learn spells it would follow that the top mages should not be wery much older than the top professionals of any fields - especially since with new rules about the prereequisites one doesn't hawe to sink insane num,ber of points in prerequisite spells to learn the most complex spells ewen if one isn't particularly smart or magically apt.. and if we assume that at some point of life the points in skills will be capped - ie ones skills ore "rusting" at the same rate one is learning new skills and spells would be like any skills... )