Christian Magic

[Mercule]

I've been toying with some ideas in this arena. Nothing substantive, yet, as I'm still running another campaign, but a couple of ideas.

The biggest one that's popped into my head is to get rid of arcane magic entirely. All magic is divine, it's bestowed by some other entity. That can either mean losing half the spells in the PHB, or openning up the clerical list. Which way you went would depend on how subtle you wanted magic to be in your setting. For more "realism", I'd suggest just dropping the wizard/sorcerer list entirely.

 

[HalWhitewyrm]

I'm gonna second (or third?) that suggestion for Green Ronin's Medieval Player's Manual. I just got it this weekend and have been reading through it, and have found it to be the best d20 approach to our history yet. It's simple but it manages to cover all the bases you seem to be looking for, allowing you to customize certain mechanics to deal with different systems, such as divine "miracles" and theurgic "magic." Truly an excellent book.

 

[Torm]

Didn't he start out as a sun god? If so, you might add Sun to those. Also maybe War, to keep crusaders in his portfolio. I'd say Death too, if it were less about making undead and more about the hereafter.

If you want a more gnostic or mystic christian god, give him all the domains.

He started out as a fertility deity according to some, so maybe the Plant domain?

And I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss His role in making undead - He made Dracula the way he is, after all, according to Bram Stoker.

 

[Piratecat]

Sidetracking things into a discussion of God's gender is absolutely off-limits, folks. Please don't do that.

 

[Torm]

It would also be valid to say, now that I think about it, that "Plant" would be appropriate based on the fact that farmers in many places pray for rain and their crops.

Really, I can't think of a domain, based on that sort of thing, that should be left out - omniscient, omnipotent, and all....

 

[kirinke]

well, since we're discussing a game version of God, i'd really limit his clerics to casting spells from those spheres I listed earlier and completely nix the idea of letting em have access to the flashier spells, reserving them for his messengers/chosen (ie Saints). And, i'd not let any cleric have access to ressurection like spells.

 

[Torm]

Really, I can't think of a domain, based on that sort of thing, that should be left out - omniscient, omnipotent, and all....

More in this vein, I'm finding it hard to think of a good magic or prayer system that doesn't end up being unpredictable for the player - because it seems to me that any system that is properly differential should probably have divine or magic effects coming into play at G-d's will, rather than at the behest of the players....?

 

[kirinke]

hm.
why not make it unpredictable and introduce a bit of the wild-magic rules into it?
After all, God may decide that the cleric shouldn't cast detect poison on something or another and substitute another spell, simply to make sure that he doesn't get complacent and use his divine favors as a crutch. Life is uncertain after all.

 

[Torm]

The biggest one that's popped into my head is to get rid of arcane magic entirely.

Maybe replace it with a primitive alchemy\chemistry system? Certain effects that are currently magic in the PHB, but are achieved through intelligent, difficult, yet mundane means there? Like bags of 'fireball' powder - made of mundane components, have to be lit and thrown, have the same effect as the Fireball spell, but have to be aimed, have a chance of doing damage to the thrower, but - have NO spell resistance for targets.

And to keep just anyone from using them, give Alchemists proficiency with Alchemical weapons, and anyone else has to buy proficiency as though they are exotic weapons - 1 feat per. It makes a certain amount of sense that each type of Alchemical device would require special, trained handling to use properly. To me, anyway.

 

[Piratecat]

Torm, thanks for the explanation, and if I was a little quick on the draw I apologize -- but religious-esque threads have a lower threshhold for moderation than normal.