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Sorcery questions

Started by Riddlemaster, July 28, 2002, 12:23:15 AM

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Riddlemaster

OK  need yoru help here got many questions about sorcery and hope you guiys can help


1.  Mage gets jumped in alley.. assuming no suprise he and the mugger square off.  There in melee range.  How do i determine who goes first??

2.  Asuuming that Mage doenst go first can he throw his whole CP into dodging then just blast the offender with his spell pool?

3.  It says that spells of longer then CT 2 can't be used in hand ot hand combat.. anybody make a spell yet that is less then 4 CT that effect humans

4.  FInally Ive made this spell and need to knwo if im doing it right
Spell Feather Dart
DESCRIPTION:  Mandi the sorcers likes birds so when she attacks someone at range she blows a feather at them.. for hopefully devesatting results

Vagries
Movement : 3
Aclerates Feath to speed of light
T:3 (animals and humans)/R:2(line of sight)/V:1(for the feather)D:0(instantaneous)

CTN=9??

ok i cast spell does the dart auto hit or do I need to use a MP.. sorry it confusing here...

Also can i use an effect like just acelrate a breeze to lightspeed.. just bypassing the feather all together??

Sorry for teh long post but combat is easy this is the pain.  I can see though if you leave a sorcer alone in the back while you fight his "normal buddies" your going to be very dead very quickly.
If yo take away my guns can I usemy swords instead?

Lyrax

1) You determine who "goes first" simply as though the sorceror were a warrior, by throwing initiative.  However, unless the sorceror casts a CTN 1 or 2 spell, fights with a weapon or runs away, he will be killed very easily.  If the sorceror tries to fight and cast at the same time, make him roll a check much like the noisy environment one, only make him do it at 1 or 2 dice penalty.

2) Yes and no.  If the mage can do this with a simple, quick spell during a dodge, then he can.  If he has to use a Spell of Three, or has dependence upon gestures, then no.

3) It's not so much a rule as a good idea... a spell longer than 2 seconds will leave one very open during combat.  Formalized spells, however, can become that quick.

4) Your spell doesn't effect animals.  It effects a feather, which is an inanimate object (unless it is still attached to a bird!).  Your CTN here is 7.  I would probably make the character use missile pool, but maybe with a bonus (or a penalty!) because it's going at the speed of light.
Lance Meibos
Insanity takes it's toll.  Please have exact change ready.

Get him quick!  He's still got 42 hit points left!

Bob Richter

Quote from: RiddlemasterOK  need yoru help here got many questions about sorcery and hope you guiys can help


1.  Mage gets jumped in alley.. assuming no suprise he and the mugger square off.  There in melee range.  How do i determine who goes first??

2.  Asuuming that Mage doenst go first can he throw his whole CP into dodging then just blast the offender with his spell pool?

3.  It says that spells of longer then CT 2 can't be used in hand ot hand combat.. anybody make a spell yet that is less then 4 CT that effect humans

4.  FInally Ive made this spell and need to knwo if im doing it right
Spell Feather Dart
DESCRIPTION:  Mandi the sorcers likes birds so when she attacks someone at range she blows a feather at them.. for hopefully devesatting results

Vagries
Movement : 3
Aclerates Feath to speed of light
T:3 (animals and humans)/R:2(line of sight)/V:1(for the feather)D:0(instantaneous)

CTN=9??

ok i cast spell does the dart auto hit or do I need to use a MP.. sorry it confusing here...

Also can i use an effect like just acelrate a breeze to lightspeed.. just bypassing the feather all together??

Sorry for teh long post but combat is easy this is the pain.  I can see though if you leave a sorcer alone in the back while you fight his "normal buddies" your going to be very dead very quickly.

1) Unless the Mage has some kind of (ordinary) fighting capability, he's very likely quite dead. Even a common footpad has enough Combat Pool dice to probably put him away for good, while he won't be able to get off a spell for a number of seconds. A CTN 2 spell (a spell of zero, like Lightning, for example) might be usable in the timeframe of a melee round), but anything else...

With a Lightning (which anyone, pretty much, can cast) I'd say the thug would be taken totally by surprise -- he doesn't expect magic, even when the mage is gesturing and muttering under his breath. Kung-Fu, maybe, but not MAGIC!

2) I'd say no. You can dodge, and dodge, and dodge, but if you never end up going first, you'll probably have to let him stab you before you'll be able to finish the spell and fry him.

3) A Held or Dormant spell could come in handy here, as it's already CAST, and thus takes literally no time to fry someone with it.

Other than that, use Lightning. To my knowledge, it's about as useful of a CTN2 spell as you can make, for direct combat.

4) Nope. you're not doing it right.

a) Don't make your feather go the speed of light. Not only will that burn it up, but it will actually destroy the Universe in a wave of relativistic violation. Pick a sane speed, like Mach or something, that's plenty to kill someone. :)

b) You're not effecting animals, only a feather (inanimate object.)

c) a Range of touch is probably more appropriate, since I imagine you'll be holding the feather, unless you're also using Maneuverability to ensure its flawlessly hitting the target.

Use MP, with a disgusting bonus for how fast its travelling, or just use Maneuverability to assure flawless accuracy (though this is actually CTN 7 as opposed to CTN 6)

We've had spells ranging from strong winds who blow people over to universe-destroying plasma fireballs with Movement 3...A lot of this stuff is really up to the Seneschal.

I don't recommend Sorcery for the novice. tRoS is a lot of fun without it, and can be really messed up by it.
So ye wanna go earnin' yer keep with yer sword, and ye think that it can't be too hard...

Lance D. Allen

Quote2) I'd say no. You can dodge, and dodge, and dodge, but if you never end up going first, you'll probably have to let him stab you before you'll be able to finish the spell and fry him.

I think you're assuming total evasion here, Bob. It's quite possible the Sorcerer does a partial evasion, in which case he'd gain initiative on the next round if he succeeds. If he is throwing his whole CP into the evasion, then he's got a decent likelihood of winning initiative. Once he gets initiative, he could very easily "blast the offender with his spell pool" via a Spell of None or a very quick Spell of One.
~Lance Allen
Wolves Den Publishing
Eternally Incipient Publisher of Mage Blade, ReCoil and Rats in the Walls

Sneaky Git

I have a quick question for you.. actually two that are somewhat related.  

Sorcery Pool.  You use dice from this to cast a spell, and then resist aging.  Let's assume you had an SP of 12, and use 8 dice.  Now you have 4 left.. and the remaining 8 (you just spent) refresh at a rate of 1/hour.  Correct?

What about with Spells of Three/Many and the bonus to your SP (Art & Discipline) you get for each?  If you were to cast a Spell of Three, using only the "bonus" dice from your Art and any Spiritual Attibutes that apply.. could you then expect to have /all/ of your SP /and/ your "bonus" Art dice (and perhaps those from Spiritual Attributes) for you next spell?
Molon labe.
"Come and get them."

- Leonidas of Sparta, in response to Xerxes' demand that the Spartans lay down their arms.

Jake Norwood

Quote from: Sneaky GitI have a quick question for you.. actually two that are somewhat related.  

Sorcery Pool.  You use dice from this to cast a spell, and then resist aging.  Let's assume you had an SP of 12, and use 8 dice.  Now you have 4 left.. and the remaining 8 (you just spent) refresh at a rate of 1/hour.  Correct?

What about with Spells of Three/Many and the bonus to your SP (Art & Discipline) you get for each?  If you were to cast a Spell of Three, using only the "bonus" dice from your Art and any Spiritual Attibutes that apply.. could you then expect to have /all/ of your SP /and/ your "bonus" Art dice (and perhaps those from Spiritual Attributes) for you next spell?

I'm not positive that I understand the question, but if I'm not mistaken, the answer is "yes." You could cast a spell of three or many with only the bonus dice, and hold on to your actual SP for later.

Jake
"Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split, as a general thing." -R.E. Howard The Tower of the Elephant
___________________
www.theriddleofsteel.NET

Sneaky Git

Yes.. that was the question.  At least, a part of it.

The second part was this:  do the bonus dice immediately refresh?
Molon labe.
"Come and get them."

- Leonidas of Sparta, in response to Xerxes' demand that the Spartans lay down their arms.

Jake Norwood

Quote from: Sneaky GitYes.. that was the question.  At least, a part of it.

The second part was this:  do the bonus dice immediately refresh?

They're bonus dice. They're available every time you cast a spell of three or many.

Here's the thing, the very flawed perception of TROS magic: Remember that TROS magic is not "combat magic," although it has applications for such. It is *lethal* on a real battlefield, where a sorcerer has time. So many folks seem to feel that Spells of One are the default spell. Yeah, they're faster, but the fact is that it's dangerous to cast a spell of one, but casting a spell of three or many, despite the time commitment, is the way to go! Power guys! I'm telling you...

Jake

[edit: content]
"Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split, as a general thing." -R.E. Howard The Tower of the Elephant
___________________
www.theriddleofsteel.NET

Lyrax

Yes and no.  By this I mean yes, you can immediately use them, but no, you can't, because you can only use them with Spells of Three or Ritual Spells (Spells of Many), which take some time to cast.  Rather, by the next time you cast a Spell of Three or Spell of Many you will be able to use them.

This is because the bonus dice represent your ability to "cast a spell" while using less of your own energy than with a Spell of One because of the extra time you have to prepare.

However, unless it is a VERY simple spell, you will find that the bonus dice alone are not enough to keep you from aging.

[Edit - Dagnabbit, Jake!  Here I was, typing up my answer to somebody's question, and you come blasting in, answering it for him!  :-]
Lance Meibos
Insanity takes it's toll.  Please have exact change ready.

Get him quick!  He's still got 42 hit points left!

Brian Leybourne

Quote from: WolfenI think you're assuming total evasion here, Bob. It's quite possible the Sorcerer does a partial evasion, in which case he'd gain initiative on the next round if he succeeds. If he is throwing his whole CP into the evasion, then he's got a decent likelihood of winning initiative. Once he gets initiative, he could very easily "blast the offender with his spell pool" via a Spell of None or a very quick Spell of One.

Remember that on a partial evasion, you only get initiative if the other guy fails/botches his attack (i.e. gets no successes) or you beat him and then spend 2CP dice. This makes it a little trickier for the sorcerer because he only has his CP-2 to partial evade with, and his CP may well not be that high.

Otherwise I agree with you fully :-)
Brian Leybourne
bleybourne@gmail.com

RPG Books: Of Beasts and Men, The Flower of Battle, The TROS Companion

Jake Norwood

I have to say it, though. He's dead meat. He shouldn't have been caught in an alley. Sucks to be him. He's not a mage, he's a sorcerer, and they don't use magic in a fight. They run, then anhiliate their enemies and their ememies' familes for 3 generations in both directions.

Jake
"Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split, as a general thing." -R.E. Howard The Tower of the Elephant
___________________
www.theriddleofsteel.NET

Brian Leybourne

Quote from: Jake NorwoodHe's not a mage, he's a sorcerer, and they don't use magic in a fight. They run, then anhiliate their enemies and their ememies' familes for 3 generations in both directions.

<laughs out loud and makes his co-workers look at him strangely>

Damn you Jake Norwood, you're trying to get me sacked for browsing on company time :-)

Brian.
Brian Leybourne
bleybourne@gmail.com

RPG Books: Of Beasts and Men, The Flower of Battle, The TROS Companion

Riddlemaster

LOL.. to be honest i say mage because its easier to spell the sorcerer
If yo take away my guns can I usemy swords instead?

Lance D. Allen

QuoteWhat about with Spells of Three/Many and the bonus to your SP (Art & Discipline) you get for each? If you were to cast a Spell of Three, using only the "bonus" dice from your Art and any Spiritual Attibutes that apply.. could you then expect to have /all/ of your SP /and/ your "bonus" Art dice (and perhaps those from Spiritual Attributes) for you next spell?

I believe, unless I read it incorrectly, that you must use at least 1 point of SP to be able to use Bonus dice. I *know* you are required to have at least a single point of SP to get the bonus dice, so I would imagine that you would need to use it to qualify.

All the same, using only a single SP to cast a fair powerful spell is a nice side-bonus.
~Lance Allen
Wolves Den Publishing
Eternally Incipient Publisher of Mage Blade, ReCoil and Rats in the Walls

Silanthous

Guy, guys, guys. it's a very simple situation. Carry a dormant Air Shield spell at all times, and when the rogue attacks you release it. then stand there Laughing at him as he futily stabs your shield again and again. then begin chanting, don't cast a spell, just chant and wiggle your fingers. Then laugh again as he runs to save his worthless hide. then decide if you want him dead or not. see, simple.
Silanthous Silverbreeze, AKA Robert Zoccoli. Archmage of high Order.