Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Dec 31, 2019 3:29:12 GMT
Energy Blast So what's a point of Blast worth? Well that's a difficult question to answer, because more than any other powers in the book, Energy Blast, Flight, Killing Attack, and Force Wall seem to have the greatest variations in special effects. Don't get me wrong: that's perfectly fine! However, it does drive home the depressing fact that few people put a lot of thought into non-combat power builds. Makes you wonder why RPGs ever bothered climbing up out of the primordial soup of wargaming, doesn't it? So what's the primary goal of Energy Blast, anyway? Hurt people! Yeah! Really? Because I've used them to blow out walls to allow people alternate escape routes from bad situations. So let's change it to "apply destructive / damaging force!" Yeah! So what does one point of EB get you? I suppose, like the cantrips for EGO Attack, at it's heart, it gives you 5/6 of a pip of STUN damage, rounded to 1. Well, ...no.... I mean, don't get me wrong: I am totally cool with the idea of "it does one pip of STUN." In fact, one of the submissions here will do just that. However, later editions, in they ever-increasingly-fun-consuming rush to find the fictional game balance through mathematical purity took a wedge, wrote "Damage Classes" on it, and have been beating it into the game with bigger and bigger hammers with each edition. As a result, fans of "Damage Class" editions may have a hard time swallowing "it does one pip of STUN" because we now have a mathematical progression through these "Damage Classes" that tells us precisely when something does one pip, does a half-die, does a pip plus a half die, rolls over and begs, and all sorts of other things. I largely ignore that. I encourage you to at least consider abandoning mathematical precision (just how _does_ the ability to "breathe fire at the unworthy" scale against being able to "fly like a goshawk", anyway? Where does Teleport strike a perfect interchangeability with Telekinesis?). I am in favor of "close enough, without sacrificing fun or adding confusion." I won't tell you what the point _is_, because I expect it's different for all of us. So here we go: Poke: this cantrip delivers to the target the sensation of having been poked very hard. The caster is free to poke someone wherever he wants (presuming he's not doing something truly offensive to someone at the table): chest, throat, soft underbelly, left eye-- have fun with it. The typical character, player or otherwise, will have at least one PD, and so will not actually take damage, but just like being poked in the chest, it's physically unpleasant and sometimes even painful, if relatively harmless. Following the rules Range = 5x pts, the caster may poke someone up to ten meters away. Energy Blast: 1 pt. Reduced END (to Zero); Invisible Power Effects; Gestures: hand signs (one handed, dominant hand) followed by a quick thrusting motion. Incantation: must state target's name. Variants include one of the following Limitations: must make eye contact with target; must not be seen by target. ------------------------ Wake: This cantrip allows the caster to send a relatively harmless (but markedly unpleasant) spark of lightning to jolt the target. A favorite of cranky professors to recapture the wandering attentions of students and popular amongst battle mages to rebuke troops, it has been used to spectacular effect by the wizard Cailen of the Second Age of Man who, upon no longer having the strength to to enchant the swordsmen at the front of the lines, lashed into them with repeated strikes of this cantrip. Being hit by their own mage with lightning that had little effect on them began a placebo effect, and the men surged forward, fighting like demons, turning the tide of a losing battle. It was not until he lay on his deathbed that he ever revealed what he had done. Energy Blast: 1 pt. Reduced END (to Zero), Gestures; Incantations; does not work on characters who are free of contact with a surface (highly uncommon situation in our campaigns, but could be the norm in yours) ------------------------- Now as I noted above, the real variety in Energy Blast comes not so much in how you use the mechanical construct-- it's meant to do one thing, and that's inflict damage. The variety comes in the special effects-- the _kind_ of damage. That's when you can really dig in to see what sort of things might a single pip of EB be useful for. I've done it twice already (and I swear, i am trying to not make it a habit), but I'm going to include a couple more EB-based cantrips from our old spell book, simply because there are _so many_..... Aflame: This cantrip allows a user to ignite a campfire, torch, opponent's spell book, or other combustible material from up to ten meters away. Note that it does _not_ guarantee ignition: it is the equivalent to touching the target material briefly with a torch: it may catch; it may not. It may catch in a few sparks and immediately die right back out. Dampness and other factors will help the GM to decide just how likely one STUN Pip is to ignite a particular target. GMs are, however, encouraged to simply let things like torches and campfires, oils, etc, catch and burn brightly in a moment or two. Be more cautious about setting other things (spell books, clothing, wigs, etc) on fire instantly, lest this become a one-point attack power that sees regular use. Energy Blast: 1pt. Gestures (a quick snap of the fingers to create a spark, then a gentle toss or a hard flick of the fingers to send the spark to the intended combustible always looks nice). ----------------- Memory of Flames: This cantrip allows the caster to take any cooking vessel that has been used over open flame (i.e., pretty much all of them you might be traveling with) and cause it to heat up to cooking temperature as if it were again over the last campfire over which it was used. No fire is necessary, allowing characters to cook tasty meals without the telltale glow of an actual fire. EB: 1 pt. Costs 1 END /hr. Invisible Power Effects, Incantations; Reduced Range: 1"; cookware must have been recently used over a fire (-0 in most campaigns). ------------------ Flare: This cantrip allows the caster to send a small burst of energy 40 meters into the air, visibility as per the special effect declared at the time the cantrip is "learned," or as per the special effect force up-- uh, taught to him; GM's call. In keeping with the "three senses" rule of later editions, a Flare should be brilliant, noisy, and appeal to strongly to one other sense: perhaps it's white-hot if someone was unfortunate enough to be near it, or perhaps it smells incredibly badly. Personally, I've always found two senses to be reasonable, but hey-- if you're signaling, why not go for all seven? EB: 1 pt. Increased Range (two doublings of the initial 10 meters). Long-Lasting (use whatever modifiers are appropriate to your campaign to make the Flare last a full Turn). Focus of opportunity: any wooden object (sticks are a favorite): focus must be enchanted. When enchantment is released, focus will surge skyward like a bottle rocket and begin to burn / explode / signal repeatedly for a full Turn, at which point it will have burned out completely. Yes: focus is consumed by this spell, so try to use someone else's stick). Increased END (one doubling of END determined by AP, all END / Mana costs paid in one lump when Focus is enchanted) Incantations for one full Turn to enchant the focus. Limited Uses: the caster may use this cantrip only once every four hours. Side Effects (of a sort): the focus may be prepared in advance for release at a later time (Delayed Effects is a great way to model this). The item will remain enchanted for up to twelve hours (alternatively: level of success on "to hit" roll to enchant item x 2 hours), at which time the flare will release itself with or without the caster's assistance. Focus cannot be disenchanted by any means; the Flare _will_ go off, either on your schedule, or on it's own. Now that one, if I were to re-write it for a game today, would probably feature a build using Fuel Charges or something like that. However, this notebook is from a campaign in.... '92, I think? I don't think I'll need to re-write it again anytime soon. ------------------------------------ Fear the Thunder: a simple cantrip designed to get attention and look impressive (designed as a relatively harmless but impressive PRE Attack booster for "violent action," it also makes a _great_ distraction). The caster can call down upon himself a massive (but relatively harmless; it's all about abusing SFX to impress the gullible) bolt of lightning, paired with a near-deafening crash and roll of thunder. It looks, to all watching, as if the Gods themselves have tried and failed to smite the caster. Use it as you will, but try to have a _great_ speech committed to memory. EB: 1 pt. Indirect. No range (it will hit the caster or a hex adjacent to him). Side Effects: caster takes the full pip of STUN damage, regardless of his defenses. (You can't have everything ) ------------------------------- And I could go on and on, but I won't. Mostly because it is my hope that one day other posters will want to play, too, and I don't want to use it all up!
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 3, 2020 4:31:28 GMT
Enhanced Senses is a big one. I mean, not only are there the PER bonuses, but the special senses themselves. No; I am not going to do two possibilities for every permutation of the Enhanced Senses. I will select a few sort-of randomly. I say "sort of" because this whole thing wasn't done in pencil. There is some ink, some of which has smeared, blurred, or been been saturated and smeared. Some of the pencil has blushed so badly as to be illegible, and sometimes I was wearing extra-stiff shoes, making it difficult to hold my pen (my penmanship is horrible enough with bare feet). Nor am I going to pass on every legible Enhanced Senses cantrip. To be honest, we didn't have a _lot_ of cantrips for Enhanced Senses beyond just PER bonuses; the actual strange senses were usually spells all to themselves-- full-on spells as opposed to cantrips. Eh; it's just one of those things: not a lot of players wanted just a tiny piece of an enhanced sense. Anyway: Raptor's Vigil: The targeted character (you can use this on others) has a +1 sight PER roll, but _only_ to notice movement. Why? Well because buying a +1 to a PER roll for a single sense in 2e was 3 points. So for one point you should expect it to be less effective. Raptors (the birds; we can't really test the giant lizards, and if enough scientists have seen all five of those movies about why we shouldn't try, then we hopefully never _will_ be able to test it. Hubristic bastards. The movie guys, I mean) and cats of all sizes are wired this way: it has something to do with their particular RAS; it cues on the subtlest of movements in a way that humans have trained ourselves out of). Enhanced Vision: 1 pt. Only to detect movement. Incantation. Time Limit: effect lasts 4 hours. -------------------------- Minor Night Nimble: Character will not stumble in the dark, and may make half moves across any terrain without fear of running into a tree or tripping over a cow. Normal PER checks are allowed to spot trip hazards (that is, normal for a character moving at full tilt with a limited range of sight, as, while the character's night vision is flawless, it's limited to two meters (hence, full moves are dangerous as they can outrun your perception range). This range is sufficient to allow stealth and other non-magical forms of silent movement to occur without the potential of stepping on a stick, breaking or slapping a branch, etc. Ultraviolet Vision: 1 pt. Usable on others. Conditional Limitation: There must be visible stars in the sky. Ritual (this is essentially Gestures, but includes a bit more-- either more time, or more people than just the caster. Yes: you can combine Gestures and "extra time to cast" to get the same result. We felt that giving that combination its own name added flavor). In this case, the Ritual for the cantrip ("Minor") version involves staring at the stars with the eyes and hands wide open. Starlight is "captured" in the hands and face, then rubbed into the eyes. The ritual for the Minor version takes one full phase to complete. Limited Time: Minor version lasts two Phases. ---------------------------- Archer's Eye: Archers, particularly longbow archers, are renowned for their ability to place an arrow in an open joint of plate mail at distances from which most men would not have even seen such an opening, let alone be able to target it. This cantrip, originally created as a training aid for the blue-and-red clad archers of the walled city of Tumeay (known throughout the region for their terrifying skill and the accuracy of their en massed arrow launch into oncoming armies, and referred to by many an enemy army as "the Reaper's Rain." ), has, over the generations found other uses. The full spell, sadly, has been lost to time, for after the capture of Tumeay, the Archer's Guild of the city, to a man, died fighting the invaders or took their own lives rather than have their skills used under another banner. It is rumored that some of Tumeay's military archers were about in the country, unable to return in time to aid the city, but likely this is just a rumor. None who claim to have seen these deadly bowmen that can provide a location, and it has been generations since any war party fell victim to the Reaper's Rain. Still, it's a fanciful enough story that it attracts many young children to the bow.... Little is known of the full Archer's Eye spell, save that it is rumored to not only have once existed, but to be the reason the Bloody Azure Bowmen were so successful. The cantrip version allows one to experience what is believed to be the effect of the Spell, most briefly, and with a terrible price to be paid for its use by the unwise. A character enchanted by this cantrip may see great detail at great distances (as if he were 1/10 the distance to to the thing he is viewing) for up to one full Minute. The enchanted character may dismiss the cantrip at any time by tightly squeezing his eyes, opening them wide, and repeating this once more. However, he must make a CON roll upon dismissing the cantrip. This roll is modified by -1 for every Phase he was using the Archer's Eye cantrip. Should he fail this roll, he will be completely blind for the balance of that turn, as well as completely blind for an additional full Turn for every Phase he was using this power. The user may make another CON roll (with the same modifiers as the first _and an additional -1 per full Turn of blindness he has endured. Yes; it gets harder to shake the blindness the longer it endures) in his first Phase of every successive Turn in which he suffers from the blindness. The blindness is dismissed either when it has run its course or he has made a successful CON roll. Telescopic Vision: 1 pt. Usable by Others. Spellement (arrow _or_ bow; having both does not alter the spell). Gestures (caster must stoke the bow or the arrow in such a way as to suggest straight and accurate flight of an arrow; user must sight along the arrow or as though he were aiming the bow). Side Effects (nasty ones. See description) --------------------------------- The Walls have Eyes: The caster may lay hands upon any wall of any thickness and become aware of the position of anyone within 4" (8 meters: 2e) of the point on the exact opposite side of the wall Note that he will only know their position (and number, if there is more than one within that range); he will not know who or what they are. He will not know anything else about the room (or hall or farm field or what-have-you) on the opposite side of wall. He will only know the position of living things the size of a human child or larger within the area specified. Man, this little cantrip lead to _so many_ 5 and 6" guard shacks with the guard tucked away in the corner.... :rofl: This cantrip cannot penetrate magical barriers of any kind, to include various spells of protection in effect on either the caster's side or on the opposite side. N-Ray Vision: 1 pt. Gestures throughout (be creative on getting the spell off the ground, but the "throughout" part means that the caster must have both hands pressed firmly against the wall), Concentrate Throughout (1/2 DCV; anything drawing his focus back to his side of the wall will break the spell instantly). Extra Time: Caster must remain in contact with the wall for two full Segments: the full phase it takes to cast the spell and the following Segment. He will not be able to perceive through the wall until the end of the second Segment. Costs END (3 pts per Phase the spell is in use. What? It's based on a 30-pt power! Even a "tiny version" of that is pretty potent!) ------------------------------ That's four. That should be enough to constitute "my turn" at this point.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 12, 2020 20:33:51 GMT
It's been a great little while, hasn't it? Well, it's been a lengthy little while. It wasn't so "great" for certain sets of [great] used to express enjoyment or appreciation. It was a _lousy_ long little while for some of us. However, I've found myself with a few moments (in spite of the fact that I should be doing something else, but you know how that goes) that I can move on to the next one. Ugh.... the next one.... I keep hoping others will join in the game here, but I know traffic is a lot lighter on this board than the other (though the environment seems to be a lot friendlier and welcoming here, so I keep coming back. I think I'm almost done on the other one (again). I will probably stay here, though. Gah-- my personality-defining digressions are at it again! As I was saying: "Ugh... the next one....." Yeah. I never did really find anything satisfactory for one single point of Entangle, in spite of all the years I tried. That's one of the reasons I was hoping for other players: I'd like to see someone just totally _nail_ it! Don't ge me wrong: I've found things. I've found lots of things! But invariably, they always end up being better represented (and eventually changed) to some other sort of build. In light of the fact that I don't have a really killer single-point build for Entangle, I will offer up the one we still use, and then of course another cantrip version we use, though it's a teeny bit pricier at the "three-point-level." Distraction: The target, if moving, will feel something tugging him back. Is it someone tugging his cloak? Is his riding cape caught on a bramble? Is someone picking his pocket, or trying to wordlessly get his attention? Well, you decide. The cantrip creates any one these effects, or anything similar to it, and the caster decides which version he is learning when he learns it. Perhaps he wishes to use his cantrip on a still target. If the target is not moving, when he begins to move, he will feel as if something is resisting his movement, ever-so-slightly. Is he weaker? Tired? Heavier? The effect is easily overcome (do one single pip of STR or Move-Through "damage", no roll required), but there is no doubt that _something_ was different just then... GMs may allow an SFX for this cantrip that can affect moving or stationary targets ("tugging hands" works great); I know I do. I mean: it's a _point_, for Pete's sake! HA! Remember that this cantrip has no hope of actually restraining someone. However, because of the sensations of "not quite restraint" that it creates, it has the potential to serve as a momentary distraction if the caster has a need for someone to turn his attention for the briefest instant. The effect is based on 1pt of Entangle, which gets the character 6/10 of a die's worth of Entangle, which rounds to one pip. A roll of one pip on Entangle dice of effect means zero Body. There is less than ten points at play, so there is zero DEF. If you're keeping up with the 2e rules, it should be noted that this 0 DEF _is_ Resistant, so you can apply all none of it to Killing Damage as well. Entangle: 1pt. Increased Range (3 doublings to 20"); gestures to cast (caster pantomimes the thing that the target believes he is feeling: tugging at a sleeve, pressing him back into a chair, etc). Cantrip does not work if target is able to perceive gestures (very minor nuisance, but it must be accounted for), Burnout for multiple uses against the same target by the same caster: starts at 11-, increases by one for every use by the same caster against the same target; Burnout roll resets to 11- in one week. ------------------------------------------------- Tanglefoot: The caster may create a trip line. It may be mystical energy, and enchantment upon an arrow that leaves it's "trail" behind, a root or vine may rise from the ground at just the right height to snag an unwary passerby. The base cantrip allows for a trip line of no more than two meters in length, and the caster may create it no more than 30" inches from his location (though adding additional Range to this cantrip is not uncommon, nor is increasing the size of the trip line via "Area of Effect: Line"). Because of the specific placement required, the caster takes an additional -1 Range Penalty NOTE: Remember, please, that this is 2e. It doesn't start with -1 at this range then -2 at double that then -3 at double that---- range penalties are straight from 2e: the normal range penalty for Entangle is -1 /3". Those casting Tanglefoot will suffer -1 / 2". Of course, appropriate skill levels can offset or even improve the range penalty an individual user may be subject to. Back on track: This cantrip creates a trip line of whatever nature the caster decides. The trip line is 0 DEF, 1 BODY (meaning it's remarkably easy to break, and meaning that this three points is not going to let the caster trip up an entire army, unless they are all walking abreast and he has purchased a _very_ long line). Characters crossing the trip line make a base DEX roll, with a penalty equal to the level of success the caster enjoyed when casting the spell (to simulate his ability to place it "just so" for maximum effectiveness and unobtrusiveness). An acrobatics roll may be made instead of the DEX roll; those succeeding this first roll are considered to have missed the trip line and do not stumble nor lose their footing. Those failing this first roll (Dex or Acrobatics) have stumbled and must make a second roll to retain their footing. A Breakfall roll may be substituted instead. Those failing this roll are assumed to have fallen to the ground; those failing by half or more have fallen face-first. Rules for prone characters and getting up off the ground apply. Regardless, all those who have stumbled are at 1/2 OCV and DCV until their next Phase _unless_ they were using the Acrobatics or Breakfall skills in place of a raw DEX roll. Those who stumbled but succeeded at a Breakfall or Acrobatics check are at -1 OCV and DCV until the start of their next Phase. For those who are wondering: Yes: this is a lot of utility for 3 points of Entangle, and can play havoc with a parade, marching column, or a horse cart. This is precisely why those subject to the trip line have _two_ rolls to keep their feet: once to simply not manage to get tangled, and once to keep their feet if they do get tripped. It's not because I'm particularly into lots of dice rolls: it's to reduce the odds of stopping an entire armored column in it's tracks with a simple cantrip. This is also why the Tanglefoot spell is dismissed / trip line is destroyed in the first Phase in which it is hit. There. Now you know. Entangle: 3 pts. Increased Range (two doublings to 60 meters). Increased Range Penalty (-1 / 2"). Concentration (1/2 DCV) _or_ Gestures to cast (player decides when the character learns the spell. If one of these limitations is mandatory in your campaign, then select the other one).
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 13, 2020 2:15:29 GMT
Okay, folks. I put up one post, and the views go up by six. That's more than just Chris and me. So one of two things is going on here: 1) this stuff is absolutely _terrible_, and everyone is just tuning in for a good laugh. And really: that's _fine_. No; I don't mean that the way your significant other does. :lol: It straight-up doesn't bother me, because I'm not expecting anyone to actually take this as handed-from-on-high legitimate rules anyway. But seriously: even if you're only doing this for a laugh, toss something up. It's a game of sorts-- albeit it a long-winded one. If you just want to avoid discussions about how you price things in your games, then do what I'm doing: list the base power and how many points of it, any advantages, any disadvantages, and don't bother putting up the values you've assigned those modifiers _or_ putting up the final cost. (for what it's worth, most of mine work out to be one or less; I charge a minimum of one point _unless_ you have a larger spell from which the cantrip can be derived, in which case it's free. There. Now you know that, too) 2) we have ghosts. I'm pretty sure one of those things has a much higher likelihood of being true. It's a game, and it's for fun, so don't be bashful. I don't _think_ anyone here is going to mock you openly. I know _I_ won't; I _like_ to see how other people do things. It gets the creative juices going, you know? After Entangle, we have Extra Limb. Again, let's remember 2e rules: Extra Limbs add additional OCV in HtH; otherwise, they are the same as other incarnations of this power. Now I will be using a "cantrip" version of this power, so let me just say right off: no OCV bonuses for EL "lite." Vashiir's Hand of Helping: This cantrip is particularly helpful to the traveling mage who tends to travel with an insufficient escort. So many of the best spells out there require the caster to busy his hands with gestures, making the wielding of a defensive weapon-- or even the holding of a spell book!-- difficult at best. Vashiir, many decades ago, decided that enough was enough. Vashiir wasn't a traveling mage. In fact, he was a scholar at one of the largest research colleges of his day. However, he found attempting to hold scrolls (and in some cases even bound books) open to a place and take notes to be... problematic. Pages turned; scrolls rolled. He was struck with inspiration, and created a spell that allowed him to grow two additional arms and a tail. Certainly it was all in great fun, but it was exhausting to use for any length of time, and unsettling to the custodians. Still, he enjoyed the ability to exert more control over what he was doing, and set about to create a cantrip that would at least allow him to hold a scroll open, or perhaps to take dictation as he held the scroll himself. Vashiir's Hand of Helping appears as an ethereal disembodied hand that is almost perfectly a duplicate of the caster's dominant hand, save that it has three fingers and two opposing thumbs on opposite sides of the fingers. A silver glow traces itself from the hand to the caster-- not necessarily to his chest or forehead: it may often trace itself to a shoulder or to his navel or his spine; it seems to vary based on just what the hand is doing. The trace that connects the hand will not exceed the length of the caster's longest limb (usually a leg, which is odd, but there it is) and the hand itself is completely under the caster's control. It is capable of anything that the caster can do with any of his own limbs, save that it has a STR of 0 (maximum lifting ability of roughly 50 lbs). Thus, it might even be able to wield a small weapon, though it will not be able to add STR damage of any sort. This cantrip may seem similar to Ethereal Servitor, but it is markedly different. The hand works as though it were the caster's own: he will not have to give it instructions, etc. The hand has only the range of the caster's longest limb, meaning it can't wander off and do something across the room. Most importantly, if the hand _or_ the tendril of magic connecting it to the caster are attacked, the caster will take damage as if this were a flesh-and-blood limb. Any results of "bleeding" damage for the limb will refer not to STUN (though BODY damage from bleeding is possible) will result first in the loss of "Mana" or whatever magic juice your campaign uses (some use straight-up EGO) in place of STUN. Bleeding wounds from this limb can be cured by simply dismissing the cantrip. If this cantrip is derived from a Telekineses spell or magical ability, it is still subject to all the limitations given here. Extra Limb: 1pt. Incantation to cast (though gestures throughout would be hilarious!). Shines like a beacon (+2) for any "Detect Magic" used in the area. Time Limit: the cantrip lasts only for one hour, after which time it may not be cast again for one hour (I think we call this "Lock out" now?) Caster must make Skill roll every Phase to control the tail, else it does nothing until his next Phase. --------------------------------- Tails; You Lose: As you have probably guessed, we never found a really good name for this particularly ugly cantrip, likely because only one character ever used it, and we found it to be... far more effective than it should have been for it's cost.... Re-costing it, or perhaps even just rebuilding it with the modern tendency to add a grocery list of modifiers, may address this. However, I never got around it because I never needed to use it again. (Hallelujah!) The caster may force a target to grow a prehensile tail. This tail is not particularly strong, but it is _not_ under the owner's control; it is controlled by the caster (via EGO or Magic attack rolls, as your campaign requires). The target has a STR-1 tail that will do it's best to trip, choke, or otherwise hamper him at every opportunity (those opportunities being when the caster has an action Phase available, lest he forget). The tail will remain for one full Turn, or until the caster stops spending END / Magic stuff on maintaining it. Extra Limb: 1pt. Range; Extended Range ((two doublings for 20" range), Usable on Others (only), Costs END/Mana/Magic (2 pts / Phase), Time Limit: one full Turn, after which the target cannot be targeted for this spell again for one full Month (again, I think this is Lockout now?), Incantation to cast; Gestures throughout: caster pantomimes the movements of the tail. I will also freely admit that if I had to recreate this cantrip, I'd use Telekinesis as the base. Thirty years ago, "Extra Limb" seemed so obvious..... Okay. That's two. Good night, all.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 14, 2020 3:08:11 GMT
I have failed you all.
I have disappointed you.
Let you down.
I did not- I _cannot_-- live up to my promise.
I have gone through this beat up old spiral book twice, and at no time did we ever write up a cantrip for Faster than Light Travel. To be sure, I don't think we ever had a fantasy game in which we _used_ FTL; I certainly can't remember any where it would have been _appropriate_, at any rate....
Still: I don't want to disappoint. I'll just whip something up:
Vanish: This cantrip is unique amongst cantrips and even amongst full-fledged spells of great power, as no one can ever be certain that they are teaching correctly or learning it correctly. Thus far, no one who has ever used it has returned to teach it to anyone else. All knowledge of this cantrip exists only in writing. At some point, the caster will decide to use this cantrip and simply _disappear_. No one knows where he goes, why he doesn't return, or if he cast the spell correctly. It's perplexing, and mysterious enough that every year, there are one or two students of magic around the world that set out to solve the mystery, hoping to master something which no one before them has ever controlled.
FTL: 1 pt. Gestures to activate. Incantation to activate.
Upon casting this cantrip, the character is torn free of his gravitic lock to the earth beneath his feet and the globe will continue traveling at it's normal speed. He will no longer be traveling with it. The instant deceleration from .... lots of hexes per Phase does one pillow case full of D6, Killing Attack. If he survives this, as the planet continues in its orbit around its primary sun it will move away (quite rapidly) from the character, leaving him exposed to the cold vacuum of space and the intense raw radiation of the sun and any other nearby stars. These will do another pillow case full of D6, Killing, each. Per segment of exposure. use with extreme caution. Please note that these speeds, while tremendous, are not superluminal. To be fair, though, it's only one point of FTL, and even then it seems like a pretty generous deal, movement-wise. The rest kind of sucks, unless you can talk someone else into casting it.... (just sayin'.....)
--------------------------------------------
What? No! Of course there's no "alternate build" for this cantrip! What else can you do with it? I mean, other than go from "die from sudden lack of movement" to "die from sudden excessive movement?" You know what? Fine. It's just _fine_, okay? Here you go: Major Ascension: First off, this cantrip comes with a warning! Do _not_ confuse it with "Greater Ascension!" There. You have been warned.
The Cleric Eldjeron the Significantly Humble of the last Age spent his entire life attempting to commune with his deity. After nearly a hundred years of ceaseless study and prayer, he began to beg for direct contact from any deity, which actually sort of miffed the deity to whom he had previously devoted his life. He decided that the quickest way to deal with this betrayal was to summon Eldjeron to his presence, and so bequeathed unto him the knowledge of the Major Ascension. Well, most of it. No; that's not right. He gave him everything he needed to be in the presence of his deity, he had simply failed to arrange any means by which Eldjeron was to have continued to exist when he got there. No; that's not right, either. He hadn't _forgotten_; he simply hadn't done it. let Eldjeron beg one of those other gods he had been trying to warm up to lately. _Then_ he'd know just how much those others _really_ cared. Briefly, anyway. Unfortunately, Eldjeron thought he had made a massive breakthrough with his deity, and spent several weeks writing and transcribing numerous copies of this cantrip, selling most of them for a tidy sum. He also spent a few weeks bragging to anyone with ears just what he had managed to do, and how he was going to soon be in the presence of his deity. Soon the day came that had run through the tidy sum and people were starting to tire of the story and started pushing harder for some proof. So there, inside the roofless hilltop temple, Eldjeron the Significantly Humble drew a crowd, cast his cantrip, and was nearly _flung_ into the sky, not appearing to so much "rise" as to instantly go from a gloating, bubblingly-overjoyed cleric with a crooked smile to a teeny, tiny fleck of black against the noon sun, and then apparently out of existence.
People still talk about this, even into this very Age. Someday, some say, Eldjeron will return, filled with knowledge given to him by his god. Others say that he has returned already, and in distant lands who have not yet heard the teachings of his lord does he spread the word and worship. There are those who say something else: that Eldjeron has become one with his god's world, and that at all times does he surround them. These people-- these are the people who are most correct, but only half way.
Major Ascension: FTL 1 pt. Not exactly as above, but it might as well be. Gestures, Incantations, then POOF! You're a memory.
There you go, folks! Not one, but _two_, as promised, cantrips based on 2e FTL! Avoid them at all costs, unless you're saving them to give to someone else.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 15, 2020 1:14:21 GMT
This will be a quick entry, for reasons. I am anxious to get something up, though, to get my momentum going. Flash. Because Flash mandates counting BODY on the dice for effect, the minimum "effective level" of Flash is not simply one die, but one die roll of 2. Because a character can spend 10 points for a die of Flash and still roll a 1 and have no effect at all (it's possible, if highly improbable, to buy ten dice and have no effect at all). Accordingly, I don't allow for this cantrip (essentially purchasing one-third of a die) to automatically have an effect. Instead, it is treated as a D2, meaning a fifty-fifty chance of actually having a result. Because we are simulating a D2, that result will never be more than a single Phase. To increase the odds, at the five-point level, this cantrip provides a d3, allowing a two-in-three chance of success. At 7 points, should you really want to do that, it becomes a D4. As before, that success will never exceed 1. None of that is vital; it's just a look at the philosophy behind the approach. Keep it in mind, though, as it gets used several times in different ways. It seems odd to have so many levels of a Flash cantrip, but when you get down too it, there aren't a lot of different things you can pull out of Flash: no matter what the SFX, the end result is temporary deprivation of a particular sense. In actual play, this became a sort of way to "save up" to buy Flash while still getting some small amount of immediate utility for the points being banked. The one thing I have done with these cantrips is to reduce the effectiveness: a successful "hit" doesn't reduce the target to 0 CV, but to 1/2 DCV (because they are more "distracting annoyance" than "totally overwhelming"). All other Flash rules apply. Dazzle: this cantrip creates shower of colored lights of uncomfortable intensity that both draws attention and causes the target to shield his eyes against the brilliance. If caught off-guard, (ie, the die yields an effect result), then the intensity of the light disadvantages the target, reducing his DCV by half. The target must be within one meter (1/2") of the Dazzle; the Dazzle has a range of 15 meters. Flash: 3pts. Gestures or Incantation to activate (if one is mandatory in your campaign, use the other); Delayed Effect: Dazzle explodes into being at the beginning of the caster's next Phase. --------------- Fetid: this spell generates a disgusting rotten scent not unlike sour earth and carrion. The stench will appear at a point designated by the caster, but will spread out in a "ring" fashion: it generates an Area of Effect- slowly--with a hole in the middle. The hole increases in size as the edge of the ring moves outward such that the affected area is never more than 1 hex across. There is little doubt that cantrip was created by students at some college or other, as it is absolutely perfect for several low-brow practical jokes. Victims affected by Fetid will be instantly (but briefly) nauseated, usually covering their faces against inhaling the scent and often times bowing toward the floor in preparation for an unpleasant review of their most recent meal. While the scent itself lingers, the intensity drops almost immediately as the "ring" moves outward. Flash: 3 pts. Continuous for 4 Phases. Area of Effect with Hole in Middle. Area affect has "Extra Time" limitation as described above. Hole in Middle is both oversized (see above) and is also subject to Delayed affect as it does not appear until the second Phase. Fetid occupies one hex the first Phase, then that hex becomes the hole while Fetid occupies all adjacent hexes. The third phase, those areas become part of the hole, etc. Extended range: two doublings to 60" range. Gestures to activate. Spellement: small amount of mulch from a swampy area and a small amount of ash from a wood fire extinguished with water. "gestures" is wetting these two items then grinding them together in the palms until they are a paste. Spellements are consumed: they will disappear when the cantrip is successful. Extra time to cast: full Phase to cast; spell takes effect the end of the next Phase. Be careful allowing this cantrip: some players can use it to create a room-clearing diversion; others will use it to create social embassasment for each other. You know your people better than I do.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 16, 2020 3:55:18 GMT
Just a quick one from the "I've been up too long already and still haven't gotten the laundry finished" department, posted because, as I said, I need to get the momentum back. (I've thumbed through this spiral binder several times, trying to get a wide sampling, but at this point, I've worn the warmth of the old memories, and it's becoming a chore. I need to get back into the mood.) Flight: Flight breaks down to opts per hex, or one point per meter. It also makes you wonder why running twice is fast is just as good as flying the same speed, points-wise. :-\ a couple of cantrips derived from this: Levitate: In our original spell book, this cantrip version was clerical magic; is shows in the build. The caster may raise himself into the air and hover. The speed is per the Flight rules with a maximum speed of 1/2" per Phase. Handy for reaching places that have no stairs, or making a rope climb look extremely easy. Caster may (slowly) cross chasms, etc. Flight: 1 pt. Persistent (stays in effect until dismissed by caster: great for sleeping off the ground). Prayer for blessing to activate (Incantations). Gestures to activate (make the appropriate gesture of holy supplication). Activation: 11- (modified up or down by recent history of adherence to religious practice and dogma). Extra Time: Activation roll is not made until next Phase. If successful, caster will begin to rise slightly above the ground. If activation roll is made exactly, cantrip costs END (personal END: the deity is allowing this magic, but it draws upon personal END as a sign that caster need adhere more closely to dogma. ----------------------- Move: This cantrip is used to move an unwilling target. The movement is not fast; the target moves at 1 meter / phase (see Movement: Flight in 2e rules). Target may be lifted no more than 1 meter off the ground (which is great for preventing a move-through!) and retains his momentum (if he has any). His momentum can be altered or changed by applying the movement factor of 1/2" per Phase to either arrest, impart, or increase the target's momentum. Target cannot exceed 100 KG. Other than being able to walk or run, target is not otherwise impeded (hope he's lousy with a weapon). Flight: 1 pt. Useable Against Others (only). Range: (4 doublings to 80") If target is moved beyond maximum range, cantrip is instantly dispelled. Must touch target with spellement to activate (this is a bit more than just "Gestures" I feel). Increased END (x4 Magic or personal END, as is campaign-appropriate). Spellement: one downy feather that has been floated in the smoke and heat of an open fire (Not "rare," but not easy to get, either. Generally you have to make them yourself). Spellement is consumed. ------------------------------------- Lesser Wizard's Walk: a non-clerical alternative to Priest's Path, though not as effective (at least, not in cantrip form). The caster can create a lighted "step" in thin air, and one beyond that. As he moves forward, the step behind him disappears and a new one appears in front. The pace is slow at 1 meter per Phase, and there is little change of altitude possible: altitude may vary only 1 meter per _Turn_, so it doesn't make good stairs. However, it can be used to provide safe passage over chasms, rivers, etc, for up to six people simultaneously, each with his own path, so long as they are within range of the caster. There is no weight limit; a caster, if he could train him to tolerate it, could theoretically ride a horse across the Wizard's Walk. Flight: 1 pt. Area of Effect (6" radius), Selective up to six (or Usable by Others, up to six others: must be within 6" of the caster. Whichever feels more "right" to you. Personally, I'm not a big fan of AOE: Selective-- or auto fire "selective" or any other "selective" except for hearing and memory. ). Costs END up to x6 (caster pays END / magic separately for each person using the Walk. inaction and Gestures to activate (stamp foot onto firm footing while incanting. Light will appear and raise the caster (and anyone else affected) into the air slightly; the second step will appear while the first rises.). Limited Range: no more than 120" (total between all users) can be traversed with this cantrip in a single day. There's three. Good night.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 17, 2020 4:48:04 GMT
Force Field I'm afraid that this is one of those powers that we haven't done anything special with. I mean, we have a "cantrip version," but really, no matter what flavor you put with it, it is one single point of Force Field; caster decides if it's resistant PD or resistant ED at time of casting. The only difference between the different write-ups we have are a few limitations and advantages (for what it's worth, we try to keep them sort of "balanced" so the final cost is still one point or so). I could write them up, but honestly, just reading them, it would be sort of insulting to anyone reading this thread: if you can play this game, you can jigger with a single point of Force Field. Time limit comes up a lot. All builds of this cantrip (these cantrips?) require END / magic expenditure. The 3-pt cantrip is the same, save it's three points of resistant Defense, defined at time of "learning the spell." Since that as kind of a dud, let's move on to Force Wall: Leobahn's Shield: This cantrip allows the caster to create a mystical shield in front of him; SFX vary depending upon the variant of the spell the caster has learned. The shield floats in the air 1/2 meter in front of the caster. It is always oriented in front of the caster, even if he moves. it is scarcely 1 meter by 1 meter, so it doesn't impeded the caster's ability to perceive or to fight. Owing to its size and its autonomy (the caster does not move it, either physically of by force of will: it simply attempts at all times to place itself in front of the caster. It will bobble a bit here and there to better protect the caster), it is not one-hundred-percent reliable. Once it is cast, it will remain for up to one full Turn, unless dismissed or overwhelmed. If dismissed, it can be cast again immediately; if overwhelmed, it cannot be cast again for a full minute. Further, if Leobahn's Shield is overwhelmed, the caster must immediately pay the balance of the END/Magic for the entire Turn (minor side effect). Force Field: (1 pt resistant Defense, applies to any defense, but only against magic: 3pts. Power Word and Hand Sign to activate, Increased END (1 END / Phase) Side Effect: see description, Activation 14- increased END: 1 END / Phase This is a terrible place to explain this, so here goes: We use a lot of "Power Word" for cantrips (oddly, I don't think I've chosen any other Power Word cantrips so far) and for really massive spells (go figure; we don't use it much in between those two extremes). A "Power Word" limitations is essentially incantations, but at 1/2 the listed value. Why? because you can still gag someone or otherwise keep them from speaking, but they don't have to go through a litany or anything like that: it's a single word that triggers the power (that, and the caster's desire to summon the magic, of course). "Hand Sign" is a limitation akin to gestures, but again: only at 1/2 the normal value: it's much harder to prevent someone from making a particular hand / finger pose than it is to stop them from actually making gestures, so Hand Sign is not as much of a Limitation as is Gestures. Any defense, but only versus magic: I think the first time I finally saw something like this in print was just a few weeks ago when I finally got my copy of Ultimate Energy Projector. My only thoughts were "About damned time!" Especially considering the big deal the game makes about SFX (at least the early editions did: they understood that SFX could have a situational edge just by their nature, and encouraged playing that up. But defenses didn't really work that way: the just grouped to pre-determined damage types. Yes; I understand because there is just no way to build a character with 30 pts Lightning Defense, 30 pts Fire Defense, 30 pts Laser Defense, 30 pts Disintegrator Defense, etc, etc. More practical to define "categories of damage." I get that. My groups get that. But still, sometimes you just want to be fireproof in a _useful_ way as opposed to a Life Support "incidental" kind of way. So we decided a player could define his defenses as being against PD, ED, EGO (MD), etc-- and buy them that way, or he could _instead_ opt to make them versus a particular SFX. The Defense then provides PD, ED, etc, as needed, but _only_ against a particular SFX. A narrow, single SFX-- say "electrical" was a -0 Limitation. A broader category was a +1/4 Advantage (only +1/4 because it still _really sucks_ against anything not in that category). If the category happened to be extremely common (like say "magic" in a fantasy game), it was a +1/2 to +1 Advantage (a lot of that value was determined by not just the category, but the amount of defense provided: if you have a lot of Defense available _and_ the SFX is extremely common in the game at hand, the Advantage becomes much more expensive, because you're likely to get a _lot_ of utility out of it. The cantrip above used the -0 Limitation (or +0 Advantage, if you're a "half-full" kind of person) build, as it wasn't so powerful as to make much of a difference. Still, sometimes that 1 pt is the difference between "hurt real bad" and "never gonna move again." ------------------------------------------------ Ledge: Caster can create a platform up to 1/2m square and 1 inch thick, in any dimensions (limited by the 1/2m square; 1 inch thick description) It can be used in anyway his imagination desires: a step, a ledge, a place to set his goblet; a place to rest his weary bones (i.e., a seat)-- creative characters have hung grapples from them. Once cast, the ledge does not move. If the caster moves out of range of the Ledge (3 pts x 5 hexes = 30m), the Ledge will simply cease to be and anything on it will fall to the next whatever-is-under-it place. The Ledge will last up to 30 minutes unless dismissed sooner. The Ledge will support up to 100 kg; END pushing can double this to 200 kg Force Wall: 3 pts. Reduced END (to zero END). Incantation to active (1/2 Phase). Extra Time: Ledge appears at start of caster's next Phase. Time Limit: 30 minutes if not dismissed sooner. Once placed, the Ledge cannot be moved. To reposition the ledge, it must be dismissed and re-cast at the new location. Good night, all.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 19, 2020 4:11:08 GMT
Okay, now that those are out of the way-- Yeah; we're doing Force Wall again. You see, I promised "randomly selected" examples from our old spell book; the two examples given (and most of the others) were picked by a sort-of random process: open the notebook at a random page and read forward until bumpinginto example 1; read backward until bumping I to example 2. Not _exactly_ random, but random enough to serve our purposes here. There are two others I wanted to put up specifically, if only because they focus on the sort of things I like best in cantrips: minor, almost pure-flavor abilities that ha e little more than quality of life functions. For the record, these are the sort of "three points for five from this list" kinds of things I love players coming up with. One of them is actually how we created the build for one of the examples given in the thread on the official boards that inspired me to create this thread here. Also, I managed to find one based on Force Field (last entry next post). Shelter: This cantrip allows a caster to create a shelter resistant to both strong winds and heavy rains, as well as provide a dry surface upon which to sleep or stow gear. The shelter created will be roughly dome-shaped (GM may rule otherwise-- I'm going to be honest with you: I originally ruled "dome-shaped" because I could simply circle a hex on the map and call it the Shelter. . Now you know. At any rate, the dome will have a two-meter diameter and is roughly one meter high in the center. I also wish to explain the gestures involved (to avoid confusion when you see them detailed) : this cantrip was created by a player running a druid-ish (druish?) character whose magic was essentially sympathetic magic. Thus, the SFX were plants and vines rising from the ground and tree limbs bending to join the cluster of growth, all coming together to make a sort of living tent. As always, you can define this any way you would like. Getting to it: yes; this is _way_ larger than 3 pts of Force Wall should reasonably allow. However, the trade-off for getring here seemed worthwhile: first, it offers _no_ defense. None. The shelter is not hard; it's not even particularly well-defined. There are no walls as such: the local vegetation just arranges itself in such a way as to shed water away from one hex and deflect winds from that same area. A floor of reasonable "sleeping surface"- a hammock floor of vines or an overgrowth of moss; whatever seems right at the moment--rises enough to keep any ground water from disturbing anything on the "floor.". But again, it's not rigid enough to allow even a single un-resistant PD, and more often than not, the characters (up to three, but more than two is crowded) aren't even well-concealed within it. The shelter can hold heat, but strong winds will limit this ability. Also, as the shelter is delicate (zero Def; zero BODY), it will not protect from (though it may lessen the severity; GM's option) severe or extreme winds, rain, or cold. All of that sacrifice, I felt, was sufficient enough to not limit the size to less than "reasonable accommodation for two characters.". If you disagree, build it differently. Remember that my goal, ultimately, was not to build super-powers but to use their model to build neat magic spells. I rather like this one. Other notes: The Shelter described was designed specifically for use by one class of magic users in a particular environment. The sky's the limit for other options; the GM and the player can hash out anything reasonably appropriate for the game at hand from a cave rising from the ground to a translucent tent of magic composed entirely of the aurora borealis. This cantrip costs END /Magic. However, the END cost is so low (rounds up to 1/Phase in 2e; if using this with 4e or later, add the Limitation "Costs END; 2x END to get 1 END /Phase) that it the Caster's REC is usually able to more that create the needed END to power it. Do remember that this effectively reduces his REC while the shelter is up. Once cast, a Shelter may not be moved, nor may it be dismissed and recast elsewhere, as the spell is unavailable for ten hours after having been cast once. Even after dismissal, the assembled SF of the shelter will not dissipate / return to normal immediately. While it will immediately begin to deteriorate or "return to normal," it will upon dismissal or reaching the time limit lose its ability to provide shelter (a considerable amount of the protection provided is the work of raw magic; the SFX are simply those things to which the magic is adhered or the magic uses to minimize the amount of magic required), it will take between a day and a month (generally two weeks for the SFX described here) for the environment to return to normal. A "tent of pure magic" would, obviously, vanish much sooner than would a cleft appearing in a stone cliff face. The instant the spell is dismissed, the remains of the Shelter no longer register on any Detect Magic spell as magical. They may be detected with woodcraft or similar appropriate skill, depending on how far along the area is toward returning to normal. The "Free" version of this may be derived from either Force Wall or Change Environment, and is only available for special effects appropriate to manipulating the current environment. Larger shelters are not created by adding more Force Wall, but by adding AOE to the cantrip. This is one of the more unusual (and therefore more "distinctly not a Champions Power with a paint job") and that' probably why I absolutely love it: it feels more like a magic spell than any Energy Blast ever will. Force Wall: 3pts. Persistent. Time limit (12 hours or the caster runs our of END. Spellement: green twig with a single leaf attached cut from the immediate vicinity. Spellement is consumed. Gestures to activate (both hands through activation period: one hand performs a gesture of blessing and supplication of the forest sprits while the other forms the sapling cutting into a bent ring such the single leaf will cover the ring (required a DEX roll for this gesture is a possibility for more control over the use of this cantrip, but we don't require it in our groups.)). Extra Time: casting ceremony takes a full minute. Leaves a trace for roughly two weeks. Other limitations per the description. _______ I'll get the others up in the morning. I have to turn in.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 19, 2020 17:04:07 GMT
Shed Water: This cantrip does little more than keep the rain of the caster, allowing him to stay relatively comfortable in the heaviest rains and still keep both hands free. As with Shelter, this cantrip sacrifices all Defense in exchange for being a bit larger than the points cost would suggest. The caster may place a magical barrier either over a full 2-meter hex that is sufficient for him and his mount or him and a second character, providing they are remain extremely close to one another. The barrier curves a bit, preventing rain from accumulating on top and will position itself so as to accommodate for wind direction and still provide protection in all but the most extreme of conditions. Snow will not accumulate but will instead melt and run off. While the barrier is not visible to the naked eye (Detect Magic will find it easily enough), this cantrip is still "visible" in that it's clear that rain is striking a surface of some sort and running down it. The magical barrier will position itself so as to accommodate for wind direction and still provide protection in all but the most extreme of conditions. Snow will not accumulate but will instead melt and run off. The spell centers on the caster and the barrier moves with him. This cantrip costs only 1 END per hour, but the caster may not recover so long as it is running. This cantrip will dismiss either at caster's whim or if caster loses consciousness. As with Shelter, larger water sheds are created not through the addition of Force Wall, but the application of AoE.
Force Wall: 1 pt. AoE: one hex. Red End (one level, fudged to 1/hr. Additional AoE may affect END/ Magic cost). Centers on Caster and moves with him. Gestures to activate. Caster may not take Recoveries to his END/ Magic pool while cantrip is in effect. Torrential rains / extreme winds may reduce or nullify protection. Provides no protection against temperature save the benefit of keeping clothing dry. This is not a Limitation worth points; it's simply something that came up in a game, and to go ahead and put it out there before it comes up again: No. This cantrip may not be used as a boat.
And the one that was derived from Force Field (I over-looked or misread it the first time through. Sorry about that)
Dry: Water won't touch the caster. If it rains, it rains around him. It's like a tiny area in which rain does not fall centers just around him, giving the appearance that the caster somehow "walks between the drops" in the rain. Alternative versions feature a magical barrier that simply stops the rain just before it hits him. Dry protects the caster and his worn or carried items. It also prevents the caster from getting wet even should he ford a river or submerge himself completely. Dry offers no DEF against damage: should he be smashed with the front of a deluge, he will take damage as normal from the force of the water; he simply won't get wet.
Should the caster get wet, he can use Dry to "push" the water from his clothing and worn items (it will not work in this fashion for carried items).
Dry: Force Field: 1 pt. Only versus "being wet" (no DEF of any kind, not even against water-- just "being wet."
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 19, 2020 19:54:21 GMT
Gliding: Honestly, Gliding doesn't have any really wonderful cantrips in our old spell book, at least nothing useful. There are a couple of amusing "how to screw someone over" entries, but they're the results of staying up too late and playing too long: sort of a relaxation exercise done in ink. Still, there were a few entries that may or may not be of any validity. The problem wasn't that we didn't have _spells_ based on Gliding, No; we had those ("Feather Fall," that old classic, was done with Gliding, to name one). The problem was the almost total lack of utility for 1" of Gliding compared to it's cost (5/4 of a cp means either 1 CP for a meter-and-a-half or 2" of Gliding for 10/4=2.5 cp, which the rules say rounds to 2 pts. In fact, this would be a terrible thing to allow, as players would begin buying their Gliding spells in 2" increments, saving a point with every other purchase, as the rules list the cost specifically at 5 cp / 4". An unhappy GM could mandate a minimum build of 3" for 15/4 (3.75 cp, or 4cp), but at that point, you're right there: the book-legal (or "Spell Level" in our Fantasy HERO parlance) is 5cp for 4", so why bother anyway? Same problem with Flash Defense. Flash defense just _was_ a cantrip in our FH games (usually). The cost for the minimum possible effect: 1 DEF-- was 1 cp! I doesn't get "lighter" than that! There is just no way to apply 1/2 a pt of Flash Defense... So we declared it a cantrip, with the requirement that you have no more than 3 pts of DEF and this cantrip applied against no more than any one sense (as a cantrip) and the final cost was no more than 1 pt (i.e., add appropriate limitations to get the cost down to 1 pt). So we found, over-all, the best way to simulate a "cantrip version" of Gliding was to just cripple it. Remove something from it to make a lower cost more appropriate. Usually, this was the ability to gain height, but not always. Anyway, Gliding as catnip: Drift: No one likes to fall from a great height, but if you're going to have to, then you might as well put some practicality into it. This cantrip allows the target to move 1" in any direction of his choosing for each 1" that he falls. I still sounds bad, what with that part about having to fall, but if you can fall onto a bridge twenty feet below, or fall into an open window across the courtyard, your odds are still better than they would be to fall the full eighty feet to the ground, and definitely better than falling into the molten magma way, way down in the crater. Gliding: 1pt. Gestures or Incantations throughout. Character must be in free fall to use. Does not slow rate of fall; cannot be used to gain altitude. No NCM. ----------------------- Greater Drift: as above, but character may move forward 2" per meter falling. Greater drift slows the rate of descent by using part of the movement in an attempt to counter the fall. Character declares a "full move" of 1" and applies the remaining inch against his rate of fall. It's not much, and it's certainly not Feather Fall, but it may help to reduce the pain of landing. _May_ help. If nothing else, it may allow the character to find a landing point without having to fall nearly as fall. Gliding: 3 pts.(2"). Cannot be used to gain altitude. Gestures or Incantations throughout. Must be in free fall to use. No NCM. If used to slow rate of descent, character burns 1 END / Magic per 5" of reduced momentum. GM's note: Drift and Greater Drift can be used to tack another inch or two onto any leap in which the character clears 1m in height. -------------------------------------------- Kite: Caster is able to drift on the breeze as if he were tuft of thistle seed. So long as there is breeze enough to float a tuft of thistle, character will stay aloft. His ability to gain altitude is function of the wind speed and his DEX roll. That is, any time he wishes to change altitude, he must make a Dex Roll. If successful, he may gain any amount of altitude the GM deems appropriate for the conditions (a reasonable suggestion is to allow him to ascend 1" per point his roll was successful in light breezes; 1 hex or more in stiffer winds. In all cases, he should rise at least 1"). If he is unsuccessful, he will lose a number of meters in altitude equal to the amount by which he failed his roll. The character may apply relevant Skill levels against this roll. When the character attempts to "level off," he must make a DEX roll once per _Turn_ (usually on his first Phase) to maintain his current altitude, unless the GM rules otherwise (steady, constant wind speed, thermals, etc). The character may land at any time without difficulty. The character's direction of movement and speed are not under his control, and he will be carried in the direction that the wind blows, at roughly the same speed, accelerating at 1" per segment until he reaches wind speed. Should the winds fail, he will lose altitude and glide safely down. Truly clever characters can tie themselves to a suitable anchor and travel aloft to study things far, far in the distance. Under any condition, the character must make a DEX roll when landing to land on his feet (DEX roll at -1 if character is roped to an anchor). A rare moment of design philosophy, or "I don't like the DEX roll for magic!" The Magic is not in the character being carried aloft. The magic is in the wind itself, becoming capable of lifting a character, or in the character, suddenly so devoid of physical consequence as to no longer be proof against blowing away. The DEX roll is the character taking active, physical advantage of the situation, turning, leaning, and bending his body so as to be carried aloft (and stay there) rather than bouncing painfully along the cobbles like a tumbleweed. If you still don't like the DEX roll, then pony up for the "true spell" version of this: Sail. Glding: 1 pt. Character has no control over direction or speed, and little control over distance (unless the winds hold up). Requires a Skill roll: DEX roll (or a custom skill that simulates experience with Kiting or spell sailing) to change altitude and to land. Costs END (real, personal END): each DEX roll costs END for the DEX used. Incantation to activate. Extra Time: character incants for a full Turn before seeing the effects of the cantrip. Gestures (as per Spellement). Spellement: dry downy seed, which are cast into the air during the incantation. The spell caster immediately seizes those he can catch and eats them. There you go. The only three (seriously: that's all three) cantrips (we have a few spell builds) cantrips in our entire book that are built on Gliding. Enjoy.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 20, 2020 4:27:24 GMT
Well let me start over because I'm stupid and hit hit the "x" instead of the "-" just as I was done and double-checking something. GAH!
Shorter version:
Growth has issues similar to Density Increase. 2e gave away a lot of stuff with Growth. I think I have found three cantrips that interpreted a "lesser" form of Growth three different ways. Considering how much typing went into them, I think I'm only going to post one of them tonight, having just erased all three a moment ago. GAH! again!
The first method is simply dividing what can be divided by the amount of CP I want in this cantrip (which is one point). And here is the result of that:
Imposing physique:
The caster may bestow upon himself or a target a boon of physical prowess. With a blessing and a quick laying of hand to flesh, the target of the cantrip will gain seven inches in height (assuming he's roughly human sized. If not, then he will gain an additional 1/10 of his normal stature) and three stone (42-ish pounds) of muscle (well, the lesser of that or 1/5 his current mass), making him quite intimidating to his opponents. He will also gain +1 PRE, both because he is much more intimidating, and because of the boost of confidence and rush of power that accompany this spell. If the character is hit for knock back, he may make a DEX roll, modified by the number of hexes of KB done. If successful, the knock back is reduced by 1" (We don't usually use KB in fantasy, save where it's important to certain spells, but there it is: the best way I could split 1" of knock back Resistance down to 1/5 of it's normal utility.)
To use this cantrip, the caster must decide how long he wishes it to last prior to blessing his target and pay all END for that period at the time of casting. (this cantrip uses 1 END/magic per turn). The spell will run until the END runs out, at which time the target will revert to his usual physical form. The target pays all END for the use of the additional STR, if it is used.
Growth: 1pt. Usable by others. Costs END/ magic: by 2e rules, with an average speed of 3, this spell would use roughly 1/2 END per Turn. Thus, "Costs END, x2 END," roughed off to 1 END / Turn. If using 4e or later, take two doublings of Increased END cost to achieve 1 END/Turn). Caster must decide the duration of the enchainment and pre-pay _all_ END /magic required to sustain that duration (this was something we did to prevent the abuse potential of just making giant warriors left and right). Caster may not recover this END until after the enchantment has faded. unconscious targets will retain their size until the duration has expired. Incantations (blessing) to activate; must touch hands to bare flesh to enchant (even if the caster is using the spell on himself).
Okay, one more with the RAT MASH method (see cantrips based on Density Increase for a tiny bit more information on that). Rat mash takes the total of 7.5 cp worth of attributes and divides _that_ by five--well, by 2/5, in this case, as this cantrip is based on 2 pts of Growth, and gets 3 cp to spend on the listed attributes in any way that does not exceed the maximum level provided by the minimum buy-in (5 pts of Growth). We end up with the following cantrip:
Totem: The target gains an additional 1/10 of his height (roughly 7" for a man-sized creature) and adds an additional 1/5 of his normal mass. His flesh becomes firm and takes on the properties of wood, save that he is as limber as he was prior to the enchantment. He gains +1 PD and +1 BODY while enchanted.
Growth: 2 pts. Usable as Attack (only). Increased END: 1 END / Magic paid by caster on each of the greater of Caster's or Target's Phases. Spellement: wooden fetish of shape an proportion similar to the race of the target character. Gestures: fetish is to be worried throughout enchantment (single handed gesture). Concentration (1/2 DCV). Caster may enchant two targets at once (though he will need a fetish in each hand and will be reduced to Concentration: 0 DCV, and will have to pay the END for two enchantments). Range is 10". If enchanted character moves out of range, enchantment is broken and will fade at the end of the target's next Phase. The spell may be recast if the target moves back in range.
And an example of simply picking one major aspect of the power (or perhaps two or three minor ones, or one major and one minor) at full normal-buy-in utility and forgoing all other aspects, we have:
Stout:
A character enchanted with Stout becomes particularly study; he will find his mass has doubled and he is much more difficult to move, and even more difficult to harm. Stout grants him double his mass, a few inches of height, -1 to his Knockback, and +1 PD. His flesh takes on a dull grayish pallor, reminiscent of pewter, and will be cold and smooth to the touch. (and he probably tastes like pewter, but what kind of person finds that out?)
Growth: 2 pts. Range= line of Sight. Usable by others (caster pays END / magic costs of 1 END on the greater of his or the user's Phases). Spellement: small waver of pewter, to be held in the user's mouth. Incantations; Extra Time: Caster must spend one full Minute enchanting the pewter wafer prior to each use. Caster must also "cleanse" the wafer after each use (ten minutes). If the wafer is not cleansed, it cannot be re-enchanted. As with Imposing Physique, the caster must pre-pay the END / magic used in one lump up front, during the enchantment of the pewter wafer. Side Effect: caster cannot Recover the END used to enchant the wafer until after the enchantment is over. Caster may enchant all the wafers he has on his person, so long as he can afford the END / magic.
There ya go.
Three cantrips from Growth, and each one an example of the various build philosophies behind them.
Hope it proves at least inspirational to some.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 21, 2020 3:32:39 GMT
Tonight's entries will be very short: I worked fifteen hours today, and I'm beyond ready for bed.
The timing couldn't be better, though, and here's why:
Tonight's entries are Killing Attack-- HtH and Ranged.
You see, when we began playing other genres using Champions.... well, there was only Champions. There was no "HERO System," or Fantasy HERO, or any of that. Years and years after the fact, we discovered that there _was_ Espionage, but we'd never heard of it until some time just before the release of 5e. I became the first person in _any_ of my groups to own it when I bought it last year. (Yes: it was _very_ used, but still a fun read! All that lovely 2e-era style, and that almost-attainable Mark Wiliams art that I appreciate so much more than anyone else seems to....)
Anyway, the reason these entries are short is because our "cantrips" aren't legal for newer editions (though we still use them; we don't play newer editions).
Put bluntly: For 15 pts, a character could buy a die of Killing Attack (HtH). He got to add his STR damage, but had no range. For 15pts, he could buy Ranged Killing Attack, and it had range, but he could not add his STR damage. This always struck us that this sort of suggested a 10 pts / die base with either the +1/2 Advantage "Can add STR for damage" _or_ +1/2 Advantage "Ranged."
Newer editions introduced "Damage Classes (which, no matter how you slice it, was a dumb damned thing to do, for lots of reasons, most of which lead the charge of "math more important than feel," which ultimately means "math more important than fun." This rant goes on for pages and pages and several decades at this point, so let's just skip it and point out that dividing KA up into three "damage classes" made it possible to buy KA at 5pt increments, which just flat _wrecks_ the "math must be equal" thing that so many of the few remaining fans are all about. I mean, clearly KA is simply three damage classes, each worth five points. So how do "add STR" and "use at range" figure into that?
Well, they _don't_, unless we postulate that the initial build is 10 pts _per DC_, one with the -3/4 Limitation "can't use at range" and the other with the -3/4 Limitation "can't add STR damage. The problem with this model-- using limitations rather than Advantages, is that it implies the existence of a 30-pt die of Kiling Attack which can be used at range _and_ add STR damage. Why the hell aren't we buying those?!
Wow. Fell into it anyway. Fortunately, I caught myself quickly, and will now move on without (I hope) any further interruption from me.
Originally, we had a five-point cantrip: Killing. This was an enchantment that could be used to enhance something (and attack of some sort) already in play. It added nothing; it simply changed your STR damage into Killing damage, or your normal ranged attack into Killing Attack. Or, to put it another way, it meant that only Resistant Defenses prevented damage. (There was no STUN multiplier with this cantrip). You used Ranged Killing for things that were thrown, tossed, or otherwise not melee; you used HtH Killing for bare knuckles or hand-to-hand weapons.
The problem with newer editions was two-fold: First there was the pricing issue, mentioned (but not discussed; you're welcome ) above, but also that stupid damned Damage Class thing: five points of Killing Attack actually gave you some Killing Attack! And of course, for HTH, you could add your STR, and that, too, was Killing. Either way, it seemed that our five-point cantrip was just out the window, particularly since it would now do damned little on a ranged attack: a low-damaged ranged Killing Attack already existed: you paid five (or ten) points for it. Our five point cantrip was useless in this new world of Damage Classes and irreconcilable new pricing problems brought about by a.... less than ideal decision.
Still, there you go: Cantrips based on Killing Attack. The only way to reconcile a "cantrip version" in any Damage Class edition is to make it cost three points (or less), and I just feel that's an awful lot of utility for 3 points, particularly since I'm not a big fan of combat-related cantrips anyway.
Shortest entry ever.
[EDIT] Almost forgot:
Killing: 5 pts. Usable by Others (only). Caster pays END(magic fuel) costs (1 END/Magic of the attack being made plus 1 END for the "Killing" Cantrip each time an attack is made that has been blessed by this cantrip to become "Killing." Thus, for a STR10 punch with "Killing" added, caster would pay 3 END / magic (remember that 2e charges 1 END / 5 AP) each time such a punch is thrown). Does not add to damage. Power Word, Must touch target; enchantment lasts six Turns unless dismissed sooner by caster. Must touch enchanted person to dismiss cantrip.
Killing (ranged) 5pts. Usable by Others (only). Caster pays END (magic fuel) costs (1 END / Magic, plus any END (paid from magic fuel) the attack so blessed uses. Power Word. Enchanter must touch item (arrow, sling stone, etc) being used to deliver the damage. Yes, each use). Item remains enchanted for 6 Turns unless dismissed sooner by caster. Must touch item to remove enchantment.
There you go. Our Killing Attack Cantrips, from back when they were... "legal?..." At any rate, back when KA's balanced with each other.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 23, 2020 3:43:51 GMT
Lack of Weakness isn't being skipped. It's just that it's another literally one-for-one power, so all we did was set a threshold of sorts: If you had less than 5 pts (the minimum "buy in" level listed in the 2e book), then you had a cantrip. Okay. So that is now the record holder for shortest entry ever. :lol: So let's get started with Life Support. Yeah. All right, this needs a tiny bit of explaining. We, like I am certain most all of you, noticed pretty quickly that Life Support, with it's "price goes up 5 pts every time you move down the chart" thing, and it's "you automatically get everything above that as well" thing suggested that each individual piece of Life Support was in fact a mere 5 pts. per piece you wanted. Honestly, this one came up really, _really_ quickly, like the first time someone wanted to build a super with survive in space or high pressure (which, for the record, we broke into individual pieces), but still wanted hi to have to breathe and be vulnerable to inhaled gasses and skin absorbed toxins. I won't call early life support a "bad build," because it seems (from what I can tell) to follow the comic book source material pretty well: every character I've ever seen with any one of those items seemed to have all the ones below it, too. Go figure. Our original cantrips bought you "ten minutes" of whatever ability it was that you wanted to buy for 1 pt; it bought you one hour for 2 pts. We rarely stepped it up further because "one day" of it-- or even 12 hours-- was plenty enough to get through most any in-game situation, so why would anyone buy a "full spell" version of this stuff. However, there were those concepts that lead us to create the 3 pts for a week's worth of it. (Guess which one? When Jim picked up 3e's "Scourge of the Deep," which contained the first-ever in-print rules for Drowning, we changed them a bit to align with Drowning / END rules, etc. We liked the various builds a limited Life Support for supers and even _some_ heroic, but it just flat didn't feel like _magic_, so we reverted pretty quickly to the ten minutes, one hour, all-in model. A lot like "Killing," above, now that you know that little bit, there's not much reason to go further into it. Season to taste with Advantages and Limitations to get the real cost at or below the stated cost, and charge the stated cost. (Yeah: my magic spells-- cantrips in particular and mostly-- have a lot of "screw the rules / math; I think they're decent guidelines, but I'm not going to pray to them to make a tiny spell" built in. I remind the reader that I noted very early on that I was not expecting anyone to take any of these offerings as some sort of HERO-based Gospel.) Still, I promised a couple, so here we go: Turtle's Lungs: This simple cantrip is a blessing that bestows upon him the ability to be active and unharmed for up to one hour. There are no gills and no fanfare. The target simply finds that once he takes a breath, there is no automatic urge to exhale and breath in again. He may exhale very, very slowly, or even just in shallow bits across a span of time, but no matter his exertion, he will not feel the urge to draw in a fresh breath for on hour. Life Support: 2 pts. Usuable by others. Gestures (laying of hands, in particular touching to face, throughout, and back of the torso) Incantations (there is a prayer that goes with the Blessing version; there is a hypnotic chant that goes with the non-clerical cantrip; either must be performed during the Gestures, combining them into a single Ritual. Extra Time: Ritual takes a full Turn. ----------------------------------- Righteous Stamina: This blessing allows the target to go without food or drink for up to one week (aw, you guessed! :lol: ). He will suffer no ill effects from this lack of food (though anything else that created Fatigue or END loss still has it's regular effect). He will feel neither hunger nor thirst until the blessing (or cantrip; there is a non-clerical version) wears off. If the character does not receive a filling meal the day the enchantment ends, he will lose 5 pts of CON. After the CON penalty is assessed, he must make a CON roll (at the new value) each day that he does not eat). Every day he fails this roll, his REC and END will drop by the lesser of 5 pts or 20% of it's current value and has his BODY score reduced by 1. Once the character has a filling meal (of _real_ food, you sneaky dirt-eaters!), this degradation will cease, and the character will "heal" any BODY and END based on his current REC rate. His REC will return at the rate of 1 pt per day that he continues to eat well. Life Support: 3 pts. Usuable by others (and self). incantations (prayer or magical invocation). Must touch hand to the bare flesh of the target, even if target is self. Side Effects (as detailed above). --------------------------------------------------- Pallor of Death: This cantrip provides an immunity to extreme cold (environments, not attacks). The character will take on a grey / blue cast, not unlike a corpse, and will have no discernible body temperature: he will, if a method of measurement can be found, be whatever temperature the air around him is. He still functions normally, but looks very much like a member of the undead. Character must roll a CON check every post-segment 12; should he fail, then for the next Turn his SPD is reduced by 1. This penalty is not cumulative and will never exceed 1. Character may re-roll every post-12. It's entirely possible to change SPD every Turn. The cantrip may be dismissed with a Power Word by either the caster of the target himself (should he happen to know the Power Word. This cantrip lasts up to one week. Life Support: 3 pts. Usuable on others (and self). Side Effects as noted.
|
|
Duke
Triple Digit Mad Dog
Affable Moron
Posts: 162
|
Post by Duke on Jan 24, 2020 2:46:47 GMT
Mental Illusions This one was akin to Fear the Lightning, in as much as it's more about playing with the special effects of the power than having any serious ability toward the point of the power itself. That is to say, as 2e worked in "multiples" of success, and you needed 1x the target's INT for any effect whatsoever, right off the bat you'd want to buy a minimum of 3d6 just to fairly certain that at least a completely normal person would perceive the image, and five-- or perhaps even six-- dice to have your image affect the typical adventure character. It gets ridiculously expensive to simply create an "obviously fake" illusion: six dice was thirty points! Thus, the cantrips aren't based so much on the ability to convincingly deceive someone as much as they are simply using the SFX and concept of the power: putting an artificial insertion into their reality. Right off, we know that it won't fool them, and for most of our cantrips, that's fine. What's important is that we can put something directly into their mind. What works really well is that, since this is an EGO-based power, the range defaults to Line of Sight. Here we go! Distant Whisper: This cantrip allows a person to place a a simple sentence or phrase directly into a person's awareness. The receiver will hear the "attacker" speaking to him, clearly, and if he knows the voice will recognize it immediately. For all the world, it will seem as if the speaker is standing right next to him, speaking normally. He will also know that the speaker _isn't_ next him, have a solid idea in which direction to find the speaker, and that he is being spoken to via magical means. There is _no_ chance that the receiver will fall for some sort of "ghost voice" trick. Communication, obviously, is one-way. This cantrip is unaffected by Mental Defense, as the receiver's mind will always recognize this as completely harmless and allow the sound illusion to process to the receiver. Mental Illusions (Spoken Word) 2 pts. Invisible Power Effects. Gives away location of sender. "Gestures:"Caster must speak his message aloud, even if softly. Anyone in an 2" radius (4m) will be able to hear him. Concentrate: 1/2 DCV ------------------------------------------------- Recall: The caster may recreate in exquisite detail any memory he holds and display the scene, image, painting, person, etc, as a three-dimensional image he holds in his cupped hands. It will be visible to anyone viewing from the arc (3 hex faces) in front of the caster up to 2 hexes (4m) away. It is visible up to 4" (8m) away, but it is indistinct as more than a handful of colored light. The level of detail depends entirely on the recall of the caster, as does the accuracy. if the image is perfect (successful INT roll with modifiers assigned by the GM for things like attention paid when the memory was made, time elapsed, etc), then it might even offer useful information to others who chose to study the image. Mental Illusions: 3 pts.Area Affect: Special (only affects the 7 hexes at the caster's front arc). Usable by others (Caster pays all END: 1 per Phase). Visible: observers have a +2 PER to notice that "something is going on." Visible: +2 on any Detect: Magic. Concentrate: User is at 1/2 DCV. Extra Time: it takes one full turn to achieve the correct state of trance to retrieve the memory. Characters with any Mental Defense must voluntarily lower it to create or perceive the image. -------------------------------------------------- Tranquility: Caster may help soothe other characters or even aid sleep or increase restfulness by creating a subconscious soundtrack of "white noises" such as running water, birdsong, etc. While not _quiet_ discernible to the recipient, there is some positive effect. Effect is totally at the discretion of the GM (yes, people; it's possible to trust the GM. seriously; what kinds of GMs do you people have?!), but suggestions include a +1 REC while the effect is going on, or an additional benefit to a restful sleep, or perhaps even simply an appreciate of the caster that results in more favorable judgement of his or her character. Effect lasts until desired result is achieved or eight hours have elapsed. Mental Illusions: 2 pts. Continuous. 0 END. Time Limit: automatically dismisses at the sooner of desire result or eight hours. incantations: soothing concentration. Extra Time: speaking-- not necessarily to, but in the presence of the target for at least 15 minutes. It's almost hypnosis, but it's actually magic. That's all for tonight. Did we make page 3 yet?
|
|