Topic: Sorcery questions
Started by: Riddlemaster
Started on: 7/28/2002
Board: The Riddle of Steel
On 7/28/2002 at 4:23am, Riddlemaster wrote:
Sorcery questions
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.
On 7/28/2002 at 5:34am, Lyrax wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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.
On 7/28/2002 at 8:30am, Bob Richter wrote:
Re: Sorcery questions
Riddlemaster wrote: 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.
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.
On 7/28/2002 at 11:05am, Wolfen wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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.
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.
On 7/28/2002 at 5:20pm, Sneaky Git wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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?
On 7/28/2002 at 5:48pm, Jake Norwood wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Sneaky Git wrote: 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?
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
On 7/28/2002 at 5:52pm, Sneaky Git wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Yes.. that was the question. At least, a part of it.
The second part was this: do the bonus dice immediately refresh?
On 7/28/2002 at 6:02pm, Jake Norwood wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Sneaky Git wrote: Yes.. 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]
On 7/28/2002 at 6:04pm, Lyrax wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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! :-]
On 7/28/2002 at 8:51pm, Brian Leybourne wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Wolfen wrote: 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.
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 :-)
On 7/28/2002 at 9:11pm, Jake Norwood wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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
On 7/28/2002 at 9:46pm, Brian Leybourne wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Jake Norwood wrote: 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.
<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.
On 7/29/2002 at 12:49am, Riddlemaster wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
LOL.. to be honest i say mage because its easier to spell the sorcerer
On 7/29/2002 at 1:57am, Wolfen wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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 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.
On 7/30/2002 at 5:28am, Silanthous wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
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.
On 7/30/2002 at 6:25am, Jake Norwood wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Silanthous wrote: 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.
Rick McCann would be proud.
Jake
On 3/31/2003 at 2:57pm, [FHE]dave wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
3 questions:
1: what is a "SPell of None"??? how does ist work? CTN?
2. What is this Air-shield composed of?
3. what can you do with the vagary sculpture???
On 3/31/2003 at 9:38pm, Brian Leybourne wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Dave,
As a general policy, threads that are nearly a year old should not be posted to, start a new thread and link back to the old one if you like, but avoid posting into a really old thread and "relivening it".
Thanks,
Brian.
On 3/31/2003 at 9:47pm, Shadeling wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Brian Leybourne wrote: Dave,
As a general policy, threads that are nearly a year old should not be posted to, start a new thread and link back to the old one if you like, but avoid posting into a really old thread and "relivening it".
Thanks,
Brian.
Here is a gripe I have Brian-'There is no established policy'. There, my gripe is done.
I say if anyone wants this enforced, a forum policy should be drafted up. Otherwise, things like this will happen.
On 3/31/2003 at 10:20pm, Brian Leybourne wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Shadeling wrote: Here is a gripe I have Brian-'There is no established policy'. There, my gripe is done.
I say if anyone wants this enforced, a forum policy should be drafted up. Otherwise, things like this will happen.
I don't know Jake's "specific to the TROS forum" policy, admittedly, but this is an established Forge policy that I have seen Ron bring up a number of times across the various Forge Forums.
Brian.
On 3/31/2003 at 10:31pm, Shadeling wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
Brian Leybourne wrote:Shadeling wrote: Here is a gripe I have Brian-'There is no established policy'. There, my gripe is done.
I say if anyone wants this enforced, a forum policy should be drafted up. Otherwise, things like this will happen.
I don't know Jake's "specific to the TROS forum" policy, admittedly, but this is an established Forge policy that I have seen Ron bring up a number of times across the various Forge Forums.
Brian.
This is the last I will say on this, as this isn't the place for it to be discussed...but new members aren't necessarily paying attention to the forge first page, nor searching for posts that say the said policy. Secondly, Ron has come on several times and said this is Jake's forum. That said that means Jake is responsible for the moderation of the forum, and Forge specific policies may not hold completely true. It is kind of like taking your TROS character from one GM's game to another GM's game-both might use different house rules, and therefore you might have to add or remove things your character has. So what Ron brings up on various forums may not hold true here. We are playing by Jake's house rules.
On 4/1/2003 at 12:17am, Wolfen wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
It should be mentioned on the TRoS boards, but I really doubt Jake has any intentions of bucking standard Forge policies, especially when they make sense. Perhaps this could be added to the "New to the boards?" sticky.
To answer dave (or not, really) You are going to have to get ahold of the book and read for yourself. These boards are useful for clarification, and helping kick around ideas, but it is generally not acceptable to ask for information that is readily available in the book.
Take my advice from the other thread. Get the book from your Seneschal, or buy your own copy. Or else, play something other than a sorcerer. You will not enjoy your experience playing without a full understanding, and you will not get a full understanding from these boards without reading through the sorcery chapter at least a couple times.
On 4/1/2003 at 4:47am, Jake Norwood wrote:
RE: Sorcery questions
We're getting an offical TROS rules thing up this week. It hasn't been needed before (I'm real light-handed), but I think now it's time. The boards are as busy as ever and more diverse.
Jake