A Whole New Magic System?

[TerraDave]

So something like, say, this?

Elements of Magic - Revised

And its on sale! (seriously, buy it now).

Green Ronin also has some products you may wish to look at. True Sorcery was mentioned above. Their is also the Psychics Handbook (the system is reprinted in the Advanced Player's Manual), and the system in True 20 (which I guess is similar to that in Mutants & Masterminds). All of the later are "powers" based, and more flexible then standard D&D spells.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Me and my players want to show up for D&D and play. We don't want to have to design our own spells or stuff like that. Personally I like the D&D system, its specifics and its flavors.

:\

Once again with the 'existence of options precludes having premade material' thing. I personally would like to see premade spells in the PHB - but spells made with a spell construction system, which is included in the DMG. You get your premade pick-and-play spells, I get my ability to make my own with an effects-based system.

 

[Meowzebub]

I second (or is it third at this point) Elements of Magic. It is a little work to master the learning curve. But if you want flexibility. I LOVED designing my own spells for a shadow/void mage who cast spells through his crossbow.

 

[Ogrork the Mighty]

Sounds interesting. I'll have to take a look.

 

[Pbartender]

You get your premade pick-and-play spells, I get my ability to make my own with an effects-based system.

Elements of Magic and True Sorcery both work that way... They've got the modular adjustable build-your-own spell toolkit, but at the same time, they have a whole list of pre-made sample spells included.

 

[Woas]

Sounds like you'd be interested in the Ars Magica magic system.

 

[buzz]

A disreputable bloke on another forum named these sorts of systems one of those "things in RPGs that sound cooler than they are." I tend to agree, a bit. I mean, barring debate of Ars Magica, these systems never seem to take off.

(I don't count HERO's power-building system here. Even in that system, you generally build your spells first, and then use them as-is in game... unless you're one of the two people on earth who can use VPPs effectively on the fly. )

D&D's "pick from a list" works well because it's pretty simple to use. You go through the available spells and pick the ones you want tour PC to have. During the game, you can then just say, "I cast X," and you're done. You also have a specific set of relevant rules for each spell that help eliminate ambiguity.

What I do like seeing are systems that build on D&D's to add some flexibility, but without tossing the baby out with the bathwater. E.g., Arcana Evolved's hightened/lessened spells, some of the new spells in PHB2 that vary in effect depending on casting time, Warlocks, and so on.

 

[greywulf]

Put my vote in for Elephants of Magic too. And HERO System. And Ars Magica. And there's also four-by-five magic system for FUDGE. And lots of story-telling games too

That's the thing with all the bestest ideas; they've already been taken.

Full kudos for thinking it though - it's a sign of an exploring mind. And that's always a good thing, innit?

 

[Aeric]

My friend and I once tried coming up with a system like this, based on the idea of Spheres from White Wolf's Mage: the Ascension. In the end, we scrapped it, feeling that it was too versatile, it gave wizards too much power.

 

[RangerWickett]

Put my vote in for Elephants of Magic too.

I am totally stealing that idea. Magic elephants will be all the rage in the next book I write.