[Design] Starting things off... The Problems with the Theme

The RPG Design competition has begun, and I plan on using this blog as a means of charting my progress through RPG Design. I've never fully designed an RPG before, though I have made a few attempts at severe re-workings. So, you can bet I'm excited at the prospect at tackling this challenge!

Today, the theme for the RPG Design Competition was announced, and that theme is "magic". At first, I felt that this theme was a cop-out, that it was so broad that it really covered nothing. After all, almost all RPGs have something that could be classified as "magic", right? Every fantasy system by definition has some element of the magical in it; many horror games (such as Call of Cthulu) have a magical element that cannot be explained by science; even many so-called science fiction games have psychic powers or mutations that fall under the umbrella of "magic" (for example, Shadowrun or Star Wars).

But, the more I think about it, the more I realized that the stated theme really has to be central to the design. And that makes things different, and a tad more difficult.

After all, how many games have magic as one of the central tenets of the game? Earlier editions of Dungeons and Dragons do not, really; most of the classes lack magical powers, and the game doesn't really depend upon magical items. If my group consists of all fighters, and all I throw at you are human brigands, the game plays more as a medieval simulation of sorts!

So, I want a game where the magic is always present within the game, to capture that "whoa..." moment when players first realize how this setting is... different.

The problem with the theme is that, since the beginning, RPGs have had an element of 'magic'. It sometimes seems that, for an RPG to succeed in the market, there needs to be a magical element added (how many completely magic-less RPGs are there?). Sometimes, I think games that don't necessarily need a magical element add them just to draw in players - d20 Modern springs instantly to mind, and I sometimes think Shadowrun would have been a lot more fun if it was like Cyberpunk. Since magic has become associated with RPGs in general (both pen and paper and computer RPGs - there are even fewer magic-less CRPGs than traditional RPGs), it becomes rather difficult to attach a sense of wonder to a magic system.

In other words, magic is no longer "magical".

And that's the problem with the theme. It really wants the designer to introduce magic in such a way that it causes the players' collective eyebrows to raise an inch or two. The problem is, how do we do that?

With that in mind, I know that I want my game to follow a few key rules:

1) The magic in the game must be at least a little original: I want the magic system in my game to work in a way that doesn't make players think "Oh, this is like the magic system in game X" and then promptly be forgotten. I want a magic system that works oddly, both mechanically and thematically. However, it cannot be too creative - the second you get overly original, players feel like there is nothing solid to stand upon, and they can't ground their own original ideas.

I don't want a game that's based on the Greek Elements, which has been done to death, but I also don't want a game where a character's powers are taken from the dying dreams of a long-dead god and shaped in the realm of Phynisia to effect temporary changes on the mortal realm in a process that has been ongoing since Creation - that's a bit too much. Right now, I'm leaning more towards "Psychic Powers that come from Dangerous Surgery" (such as from the video game Mass Effect) or "Magic that springs out of drug use" (Akira springs to mind).

2) The Setting's Magic and the Game Rules must intertwine: I hate games that introduce a magic system that doesn't mesh well with the game rules. Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, while it has a dark magical element, seems sometimes to be too magical compared to the world portrayed, and the rules don't really mesh well with the game presented. The magical system in the d6 System is similar, in that the magic (with the option to add effects to spells at increased difficulty) is another one - the system seems "tacked on", and very boring.

Ideally, I want a magic system that is inherent in the game rules. I have an idea that magical power is somehow tied to the initiative rules - certain phases of the round grant bonuses to certain spheres of magic. I also want magical power to be a derived characteristic (in the same way that fortitude and reflex are derived from a character's class and abilities in 4th Edition), though the exact process for this is still in the air.

3) Magic has to play fast: I want my game system to be fairly rules-light (after all, I've only got 50 pages to work with, and I don't really want to spend more than 15 pages or so directly detailing the game rules), and rules-light usually means relatively fast conflict resolution. I want my magic rules to resolve just as quickly. No reading up spell effects as in far too many games.

I always hated having to halt play and pop open the Player's Handbook when the wizard cast a spell to figure out the finer points of the effect. In my game, I want magic to be just as easy to resolve as an attack roll, or a skill check.

4) Magic has to be open to interpretation: What I mean here is, magic cannot just be a rule in the game. Too many games list magic as "When spell X is cast, effect Y happens", and leave it at that. For example, in Dungeons and Dragons, can you use magic missile for anything but direct damage? Probably not. And many spells work in just that way - the casting of a spell has a direct effect that is not open to interpretation.

I want my magic to have broad magical effects - "Create Fire" instead of a dozen fire-based attack- and utility- spells; "Restoration" instead of a dozen healing and curing spells; and "Manipulation" instead of all those charm- and fear- spells.

Of course, I have no idea how to do that yet, without causing the game to become horribly broken.