From: owner-rq-rules-digest To: rq-rules-digest@hops.wharton.upenn.edu Subject: RQ Rules Digest: V2 #149 Reply-To: rq-rules Errors-To: owner-rq-rules-digest Precedence: bulk Content-Return: Prohibited Return-Path: owner-rq-rules-digest RQ Rules Digest: Tuesday, 2 January 1996 Volume 02 : Number 149 TABLE OF CONTENTS Alain_RAMEAU_at_03__paris__t MP Matrix Enchantment vs Binding Enchantme rstaats@mail.lmi.org Spells in Melee, time saving efforts Kevin Rose Sandy's Sorcery Stuff Sandy Petersen Shamanism Sandy Petersen Sorcery and expiring spells RULES OF THE ROAD 1. Do not include large sections of a message in your reply. Especially not to add "Yeah, I agree" or "No, I disagree." Or be excoriated. If someone writes something good and you want to say "good show" please do. But don't include the whole message you praise. 2. Use an appropriate Subject line. 3. Learn the art of paraphrasing: Don't just quote and comment on a point-by-point basis. When paraphrasing you demonstrate exactly how well you understand the point someone was trying to make. 4. There is no number 4. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Alain_RAMEAU_at_03__paris__tep@internet.total.fr Date: Tue, 02 Jan 96 15:16:06 MET Subject: MP Matrix Enchantment vs Binding Enchantment I have some concerns with MP Matrix Enchantment and Binding Enchantment. For a few sacrified POW (generally 2 for a POW and INT creature), a Binding Enchantment allow to stock indirectly a lot of MP (through a huge Power Spirit for example). On the other hand, to obtain the same result, the number of POW to sacrify in a MP Matrix Enchantment is much bigger. Is there still a value for MP Matrix Enchantment ? In order to compensate both, I consider that a bound creature is no more in direct link with the Spirit Plane, so it cannot regenerate its MP as quickly as normal. As a rule of play, it regenerates MP at the rate of 1 MP/day instead of all MP in 24 hours. For MP Matrix, I maintain the rule of transfer of MP into the matrix from holder (who, himself, generally regenerates all his MP in 24 hours). Best Wishes. Alain ------------------------------ From: rstaats@mail.lmi.org Date: Tue, 02 Jan 96 09:49:27 EST Subject: Re: Spells in Melee, time saving efforts Greetings! For complicated melees (six or more combatants and heavy spell use), I just use a big sheet of white paper and write the spell name, which character is effected, and when it wears off. I also give the spellcaster a 3x5 card with the same information on it at the end of the round the spell takes effect. I call off the strike ranks one at a time by round. It sounds like it would slow down melee, but in fact, it **speeds it up**, because there are no questions about whether or not something is being tracked properly, and it only takes a moment to scribble the key points down. I use colored blocks and the hexed acetate that Lou Zocchi sells to represent figures. It works well to give the players a tactical sense while being cheaper than buying minatures. These two conventions let the players focus on the role-playing or tactics, depending on the group and situation, rather than on bookkeeping. For simple melees, I just swag it. "OK, Blunder chops! Does he hit? Schmaele is surrounded by a purple flash which seems to dispell that gray fuzz on his blade..." Just my two clacks! Rich Staats ------------------------------ From: Kevin Rose Date: Tue, 2 Jan 1996 10:40:24 -0600 (CST) Subject: Sandy's Sorcery Stuff Sandy: Nice set of rules, but I have a couple of questions. When the phrase "as before" is used for the spell description does this refer to the AIG description or the RQ3 description? I would presume that an illuminated sorcerer could break vows with no adverse effect (unless someone powerful noticed). Is this correct? As you dropped the Saint list I would assume that the Tales list is the current list to be used? Thanks Kevin Rose ------------------------------ From: Sandy Petersen Date: Tue, 2 Jan 96 13:38:36 -0600 Subject: Re: Shamanism Bo >Both the sorcery- and divine magic systems has seen various >attempts of improving, but what about shamanism? Is anyone working >on that? I have been, and I have a 3/4 finished version of it, but my Sorcery and Mysticism efforts are higher priority for now. Sandy P. ------------------------------ From: Sandy Petersen Date: Tue, 2 Jan 96 17:33:45 -0600 Subject: Re: Sorcery and expiring spells > Spirit Magic lasts 5 minutes. That's 25 melee rounds. I don't think > I've _ever_ had a melee last that long. Joerg wonders >Wow! No movement between the spell-casting and the fight? Do your >characters never get involved in house combat? Don't you ever worry >about Slowed enemy berserkers? We have lots of movement between spell-casting and fight, and plenty of maneuvering in the midst of a combat. However, remember how short 5 minutes is. The vast majority of the fights my PCs get into fall into one of three categories -- 1) Ambushes (the most common -- not that my PCs are always ambushed, but they also Ambush in turn). In ambushes, one side rarely has any spells cast. In the opening stages of the ambushes, it usually becomes clear who's going to win and the other side begins to run. If the other side is able to keep up, the ambush turns into the second type of fight -- a running fight. 2) running fights (in a city's streets, when riding overland, or at sea, on ships) In these fights, there are long periods of pursuit, rear-guard actions (in which a few defenders stay behind to make their pursuers stop, cast spells, get ready to fight, after which the defenders try to get away, having slowed down the enemy and cost them some MPs), and occasional sharp conflicts. We have a LOT of these, and the pursuit parts of the fight typically last plenty long enough that I either say (when the PCs catch up to the baddies or vice versa) "Your spells have worn off" or "Your spells are still up". If the spells are down, the PCs have plenty of time to recast them before they're caught, unless they're fighting in a built-up area, where the enemy generally come upon you by surprise and neither side knows where the others are for long. 3) formal or semi-formal stand-up fights. These are rare, usually happening in places like houses or small caves, where it's hard to hide or flee away. These fights are usually way too short for spirit magic spells to expire. My PCs rarely participate in large-scale open-field battle. That's a job for armies. Joerg >Still, spells expiring within combats aren't that rare in my >refereeing, the above examples are only the most noteworthy. Okay. Fair's fair. Spells expiring are rare in my own refereeing, but even if they were not, it's far easier to have spells that all last a fixed time (like spirit magic) instead of figuring each individual spell out separately (like old time sorcery) > I'd probably just forget about when the spells were cast > and just have them last till the fight ended. >>That would have taken some of the fun or drama out of the fights >>mentioned above. Now Joerg, in both the cases you described, the characters were taking actions intended to delay one side until spell expiration occurred. This is perfectly simple to imitate. If one of the sides takes such action, all I need to do is to start keeping track as you do, saying "It takes 3 rounds to cross the green. If you want to dodge from side to side while cross, to lessen the archer's chances, it will take 5 rounds." or "It will take 15 rounds to chop down the door with your unmagicked sword." and such. This is even common with some enemies in my campaigns -- they'll ambush the PCs, then when they see the PCs casting their spells, they fade back into the bushes, only to ambush them again six minutes down the road, when the spells have expired, thus wasting the PCs MPs. But in any case, the problem doesn't lie with battle magic, which is highly standardized, but with sorcery Joerg now describes a gross case of abuse of the Duration rules, demonstrating his essential support of my theory. Thanks, Joerg. >On the other hand, a regimental sorcerer ought to be able to >maintain a medium-sized Damage Boost on the entire first rank's >spears for the duration of a battle, with the help of some variant >of Multispell. >I haven't seen Sandy's new system (yet), is such a thing possible? No other magic-types can do this, so perhaps the comparison is a bit unfair, but let's see. By my rules a typical middle-aged sorcerer, with maybe 40 Presence and no Maintained spells could keep 40 points worth of Boost Damage on the front rank spears, divided up as he needed. That could be 40 1-point spells, or 20 2-point spells, etc. He could significantly increase his effectiveness by using some tricks of the trade -- invoking St. Josselyn's Blessing for 1 POW increases a single Boost Damage's Intensity by 15-18, and makes the spell cost no Maintenance. Thus, after casting a big Boost Damage, the sorcerer could cast another, and keep doing to until his POW was used up, never maintaining a thing. Other tricks are to use magic items, have familiars or bound spirits cast and Maintain some of the spells, and similar manipulations. So let's take a realistic example. The INT 15 sorcerer has 100% at Boost Damage + 60% more from a matrix, knows St. Neuteboom's Blessing, and has a familiar. He needs to provide a Boost Damage for the men in the front rank of his regiment. He decides he needs a Boost Damage 6 to be credible, and Multispells it using not only his own Presence, but also both St. Neuteboom's and St. Daly's Blessings at the same time (this costs him 2 POW and adds the sorcerer's INT to the Multispell plus causes the spell to cost no Presence to maintain, but it must be dropped after one day). Assuming he's smart enough to cast this at first light, before the Regiment must form ranks, (sort of a pre-combat Mass), all the candidates may crowd around him, forgoing any need for Range. He can get off a spell with Intensity 6, Multispell 25, costing him 16 MPs (thanks to the Blessings). He then casts two more Intensity 6, Multispell 10 spells (no Blessings this time -- 2 POW is enough of a loss for one battle), costing him an additional 32 MPs. 32 of his Presence is used up, so he finishes with an Intensity 6, Multispell 2, using up all of his Presence, and covering a grand total of 47 soldiers. Total cost 56 MPs. Now almost 50 soldiers each have a 6-point Boost Damage -- nothing to be sneezed at. The price paid is that the sorcerer has spent 56 MPs (not unreasonable), 2 POW (ouch), and can cast no more spells without dropping some of the Boosts. Dunno if this will satisfy Joerg's needs. Sandy ------------------------------ End of RQ Rules Digest: V2 #149 ******************************* This is the bottom of the RuneQuest Rules Digest. RuneQuest is a trademark of Avalon Hill, and Glorantha is a trademark of Chaosium. With the exception of previously copyrighted material, unless specified otherwise all text in this digest is copyright by the author or authors, with rights granted to copy for personal use, to excerpt in reviews and replies, and to archive unchanged for electronic retrieval. Send electronic mail to Majordomo@hops.wharton.upenn.edu with "help" in the body of the message for subscription information on this and other mailing lists. 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