Alternate Magic Systems

Has anyone thought about guidelines for alternate magic systems?

I know a few people who love the Warlock so I've been toying with the idea of how to port over the concept of the Warlock and its associated add-on traditions like Hexblade. I'm having some issues with the mechanics though. Technically I suppose it could just be another Magic Tradition with its Spell Lists determined by the Pact chosen but that really doesn't cover the main flavor of the warlock, which includes things like the Eldritch Blast and at-will Invocations rather than true spells.

For instance, for Eldritch Blast I first thought about it simply being an Evoke Cantrip, but:
a) limited uses per day, which defeats the warlock's Blast from being it's primary weapon.
b) touch range without it costing a bunch of MP.

Then I thought about using the Psi-Blast from Psionics as the template for Eldritch Blast, which does seem to fit a bit better thematically being range 5, but the damage is higher than a cantrip but costs Health.

Then I thought of perhaps a new system that gave Spell-Like Abilities in the same manner as Psionics (so a maximum of 4-5 per Warlock tradition) mixed with a very limited spell list (2-4 primary [i.e. Evoke, Charm] most likely).

For an ability like Eldritch Blast, would it really hurt to have an at-will magical attack that replaces the use of a weapon, especially when a bow does 2-3 dice? What I had in mind was something like this...

Warlock (1d6 years)
Prerequisite: Cha 4+, MAG 0
* MAG 0 = thus you can't pick this Tradition up later just for the invocations. You can however branch our from warlock into other magical traditions.
Attributes: MAG only +1 per grade like wizard

I: You gain the Eldritch Blast warlock invocation. (or Cantrip?)

ELDRITCH BLAST | Force MP 0
Warlock Invocation
Range: Short (30ft.)
Area of Effect: 1 Target in range
Duration: Instant
Actions: 1
Checks: MAG vs. AGI
This is a crude magical attack that is granted to all warlocks. It is a projection of raw magical force energy (that reflects the nature of the warlock's pact) that deals 1 die points of damage.
Enhancements:
* Damage (1MP per +1 die of damage)
* Range (2MP = medium 100'; 3MP = long 500')
(* other meta as usual)


The only real issue with this would be having to write/convert a lot of warlock invocations over, assuming the concept works.

Currently this is just a rough idea. Thoughts?

Sure, there's no reason a unique attack form can't be part of a tradition. Or, alternatively, you could just say that Warlocks get to use an unlimited number of Evoke cantrips with a bonus range of 30'. Either approach would give the same approximate result.

I'm not so sure about the MAG = pre-requisite. I mean, there's technically nothing wrong with that, but I don't see why having someone take the tradition later is an issue. If you really want it to be someone's first tradition, you could perhaps make it a starter tradition.

I think it is a good start.

Not sure I would use CHA 4+ as a prerequisite. I'd probably switch it to WIL 4+. The warlock archetype, imo, has a blazing will but not that attractive or charismatic.

The Warlock Evocation (Eldritch Blast) could be any appropriate Evoke list based on where he gets his power from. I agree that unlimited Evoke cantrips would be a good 1st grade power. I'd say the warlock could add meta enhancements to it on the spot but those would cost MP as normal. As a balance, the Warlock Evocation could take up two signature spell slots. Also, limit the spellcasting so that the warlock can only cast signature spells. So the warlock has a pre-made list of thematic 'invocations' that can change between adventures.

Thanks for the replies.
[MENTION=1]Morrus[/MENTION]: I like that you are open to the idea of the Blast as a Tradition power simply by Removing existing restrictions. That makes it much easier. I wasn't sure how well that would fly, but the more I think about it Exception based rules are simpler than new rules.

As to the Prerequisite, it was just something i was toying with. I haven't completely decided how I want the Warlock to go. On one hand their is the inclusive school of thought that says, "hey , why can't I be both a Warlock and a Wizard?" On the other hand is the more flavor-text side that asks, "If you're already magically capable, why would you sell your soul?" (Well, for more power of course.) So yeah, making it inclusive is probably better.
[MENTION=40413]GlassEye[/MENTION]: The CHA is just a current holdover from the original since the idea is that you were Charismatic to enough to strike a deal with these enormous mysterious power and not only came out alive but with "power" on the positive side.

On a related note, these are the stats I was looking at on the first dry run (and trying to stick to my own recommendation to balance traditions at +6/grade):
* END +1 (warlocks are tougher than most casters; "forged in the fires" per say)
* WIL +2 (for exactly the reason you mentioned)
* MAG +1 (on par with Wizard - they'll get more "free" spells though)
* REP +1 (warlocks get reputations)
* LUC +1 (anyone capable of handling the power of a pact with an entity like a Sidhe or a Djinn has some luck to spare)

I'll post more when I flesh this idea out a bit more.

Very Nice Start on the Warlock

Khaalis, This looks really great esp. with Morrus' suggested approach. I do wonder if different pacts ought not to be their own traditions. The pacts are the core character building piece for the Warlock and the idea of the nature of the pact becoming a more and more pronounced part of the characters makeup over time is attractive. Having multiple traditions allows pacts to radically diverge from one another in how they impact the character. Thanks for the great work.

terryz said:

Khaalis, This looks really great esp. with Morrus' suggested approach. I do wonder if different pacts ought not to be their own traditions. The pacts are the core character building piece for the Warlock and the idea of the nature of the pact becoming a more and more pronounced part of the characters makeup over time is attractive. Having multiple traditions allows pacts to radically diverge from one another in how they impact the character. Thanks for the great work.

Click to expand...

So instead of a single Warlock Tradition that details the different pacts as line items, do a different tradition for each pact like Fey Warlock, Infernal Warlock, etc.? Not a horrible idea, if a lot of work. Though I'm not certain there is enough differentiation between pacts to warrant a full tradition for each. Especially when one of the key differences will simply be Spell List access. I'll have to think on it.