Share Energy is a Regular Spell but there aren't distance penalties?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth

Even GURPS Magic was written by people who understood the idea of writing rules. If they didn't mean for the spell to be self-targeting, they wouldn't have defined it as such!

I submit that it's more likely they were aware of what they wrote than that they weren't...

I submit that isn't possible because a spell that genuinely has no (or infinite) range is not a Regular spell.

[Ulzgoroth]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

I submit that isn't possible because a spell that genuinely has no (or infinite) range is not a Regular spell.

I don't see what makes a spell that follows the Regular spell rules but also has restricted allowable targets can't be a Regular spell.

Granted it seems like a bad idea for Share Energy to be a Regular spell, since the only effect of that classification seems to be applying that obnoxious energy cost multiplier based on the caster/subject's SM.

I'm not sure whether there are any other 'self target only' spells for comparison?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth

I don't see what makes a spell that follows the Regular spell rules but also has restricted allowable targets can't be a Regular spell.

Granted it seems like a bad idea for Share Energy to be a Regular spell, since the only effect of that classification seems to be applying that obnoxious energy cost multiplier based on the caster/subject's SM.

I'm not sure whether there are any other 'self target only' spells for comparison?

Plant Form, Great Shapeshift, Hang Spell.

[Plane]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

You cannot specify a value greater than 5 by having Magery greater than 1. If you want to do that, it would be a different spell.

The term I was trying to remember was "Magery and Effect" from pg 9, the amount of FP you can lend seems like a 'level of effect' to me. Allowing someone with Healing Magery 6 to lend 6 energy probably won't break the game.

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Here, the person casting Share Energy is the caster, and the individual casting a spell using that shared energy is the subject, so it appears that you meant to say until the subject consents to accept your energy.

That's what I initially assume (like with Lend Energy or Lend Health) but Share Energy says you can only cast it on yourself, which means self is the subject, strangely enough.

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

nowhere in the description of Share Energy does it imply, let alone state, that the subject has any say in accepting or rejecting the shared energy

The say part would be "he may yield to that or deny it, paying the cost himself."

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

he would have to be a foolish wizard, as well as a bit of a jerk, to refuse the willing assistance of another wizard, especially knowing that the assisting wizard is going to have to pay something (1 FP) even if he did refuse (which again, he can't).

For the most part I agree, unless there are possibly ways to have caveates and riders to such an assistance.

I can't really think of one but there's lots of magic meta stuff that I haven't even thought of.

Possibly a corrupt version of this spell might be how Black Magic energy is sent from demons, which has bad side effects?

I guess one reason might be "no, don't waste 5 energy on me, you need it for this other purpose" in which case having them waste 1 energy instead of 2-10 energy keeps more energy for them.

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

As well, Share Energy can't be maintained, so it's strictly "use it now, or lose it now."

It seems like if they'er offering up 5 energy to you (which would cost them 10 energy to give) if you refuse it, they only end up spending 1 energy, unless of course they rolled a critical success (then it would be zero)

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

a failure in casting Share Energy ought to cost 1 FP, so you would want a skill high enough that it's a question of not "reading the situation" correctly [i.e., Bob's about to cast a spell] rather than, "Blast. I was sure I could help Bob out with 5 FP but I blew it so the energy just wasn't there."

It's unfortunate you can't reduce this via high skill because that'd be one reason I'd train it up, but it's specifically excepted for that.

Originally Posted by Tinman

IIRC Regular spells are at -1 per yard of range, unless specified differently.

Yes but it's a -0 penalty if you're targeting yourself, which is what the spell says to do.

Originally Posted by Calvin

This is a pretty big leap. I can see the case for it by a very specifically minded reading of the text of the rules, it is a possible interpretation, but I doubt it's what comes first to mind for most people.
The other thing to consider is that this interpretation is silly. Of course, there should be range penalties, it's a Regular spell.

What initially came to mind would be distance penalties to whoever you were trying to share your energy with, just the way it works with it's prerequisite Lend Energy.

But that was until I read the text with Share Energy saying you can only target yourself.

I guess we could say that's to exclude situations like "No Alphonse, you can't cast Share Energy on Billy to share Billy's energy with Cedric" (that'd require something complex like Reflex+Share Energy and Lend Spell) but maybe wasn't intended to mean something like "never apply range penalties since you cast it on yourself, you can share energy freely with anyone anywhere"

The latter (though till the letter) is a pretty big deal since you could have a bunch of weak acolytes who know this spell safely sucked away in your fortress channeling energy to you on the battlefield. Even though it's limited to 5 energy at a time, that's pretty useful.