Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Zappo" data-source="post: 1407588" data-attributes="member: 633">One concept I'd like to develop if I'll ever have time to start another campaign is the following.  Basically, there are lots of very different types of "magic". Each of them shares little or nothing with the rest, they are based on different principles, draw on different power sources, use different methods, and have different effects. However, each of these traditions has very few adepts and is massively less versatile and powerful than the typical nigh-omnipotent d&d magic. Each of them would also have one or two special rules to add to the flavor.  For example, some corner of the world could have a cabal of summoners; they can only cast summon monster and planar binding spells, as well as magic circles and a few other summoning-related thingies; they use highly ritualized spellcasting, taking a lot of time, but they can "overcast" and summon more powerful creatures running the risk of not controlling them.  Another place has developed elementalism, each elementalist having a favored element depending on his family or natural attitude. They only cast elemental spells, and they are more powerful with their favored element.  Around the world, a bunch of dark practitioners of necromancy exist. They are very ritualistic, and they risk their health and mind by dealing with undeath.  The wandering war mages use non-flashy magic to enhance their combat skills - attribute boosters, enhanced healing, magical weapons and armor. Fast casting, reduced armor penalty, but not much direct magical power.  Then there are diviners, there are healers, there are witches, there are alchemists, there are illusionists, there are bards, there are druids, the possibilities are numerous. Each of them doesn't understand anything about the others' methods or powers, not any more than a fighter understands a wizard. A character that deals with two styles of magic is effectively multiclass. This separation gives a powerful flavor and lowers the overall magic level (because no single spellcaster is all-powerful). You could make all spellcasters PrCs with 10 levels, so that you don't have to dilute things too much among 20 levels, and you further lower the magic level (because a spellcaster doesn't start as such, and is forced to multiclass).</blockquote>

Verification