Questions about Magic

Discuss rule quandaries, supplements, or anything else OVA related here.

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markodude
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Questions about Magic

Post by markodude »

Hello... I played a lot of Ova but I never used the Magic (Arcane) attribute in my games so now I have some questions:

1) how di you make special/unusual effects such as divination/scrying or form of shadow? (Well for the latter I made a custom ability similar to Invisibility). The question is if this makes magic too strong...

2) Do you set a limit for the number of spells available? (Like double level or ability lvl +2)

3) Can I add for example "Elaborate gestures" (I have less doubts with other flaws/limits) to the spell in order to reduce the EN cost? I usually want to have it < 0 ...but I do not know if the ability itself assumes that the character has to move freely to do magic or not.
Malancthon
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Re: Questions about Magic

Post by Malancthon »

I've been playing around with Magic, so I think I can answer some of them.

1) Magic is still basically using the Abilities to generate the effect. So for something like Scrying, that'd probably require a new Unique Ability to cast. Alternatively, I could see you just using your Magic Levels to roll. It'd still require the Endurance cost as per normal, but you'd roll 2+ how many Magic levels you cast. For Shadow Form, again, look first to what Abilities would replicate what you are trying to do. I could see Art of Invisibility, Insubstantial, and Invisibility all being possibilities.

2) I generally don't set a limit of spells available. The Endurance cost is the real limiter, but like attacks, I could see a person with Magic being able to cast any spell within reason. And like attacks,you might want to jot down 2-6 'key' or signature spells for quick reference.

3) I would not see any reason why Elaborate Gestures would not work with Magic. So, yes, it should. As I mentioned, Endurance costs is the real limit for Magic, and having it at just level 1 is a real killer (A level 1 spell costs 20 Endurance, half your base amount). So might as well use any Flaw you can to help mitigate the Endurance cost. Or just start at level 2 or 3.
markodude
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Re: Questions about Magic

Post by markodude »

Oh thanks for the help... unfortunately most player I had were looking for "attack magic" so I used the Attack ability, this is the first time someone wants to play an "utility" mage!

for Shadow Form I created a new ability: he was not Invisibile or Insubstantial, but he could climb flat surfaces, run on ceilings and floors and he was invisible but only among shadows. I'll probably do the same for other skills since I see that there were other examples (suche as "Illusion" if I am right).
you might want to jot down 2-6 'key' or signature spells for quick reference
This. And I usually like to make the number depending to the skill, for example a nr. of signature attacks equal to skill+1 (I did this for Attack, so that the players have some options to choose from without making all the possibilities available...ok I guess it depends on the players you have, some needs some fixed rules or they abuse them :wink: )
Clay
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Re: Questions about Magic

Post by Clay »

One thing to keep in mind about Magic is that, just because you have the Magic Ability, doesn't mean every spell you cast has to be powered by the Magic Ability itself. If you look at Auren, you'll see his attack spells don't use Magic at all, they're just Attacks.

Likewise, if your character is turning invisible ALL THE TIME, or flying ALL THE TIME, it may be worthwhile to consider buying such Abilities outright. Magic is more of a catch-all for anything else the character might want to do.

Now on to your actual questions:

1) You could create a new Unique Ability, yes, but depending on how powerful this Scrying is you might can use something like Perceptive or Intuitive for the purpose. To be honest, super-duper "I can tell the future!" type stuff can be problematic at the table when it's something a character can use at any time, if for no other reason the Game Master CAN'T read the future to always tell you things.

2) No limit, though if somebody has like 30 spells, you might want to have a talk about figuring out what the character's focus is.

3) Yes, you can apply Elaborate Gestures to magic. In fact, that's more or less what the Flaw was created for.
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