Dusk - Balancing Spellcasters without their spells.

[monboesen]

cleric, druid, wizard and sorcerer characters in Dusk

Thats just names. Couldn't they all be from the same spellcaster class with the right difference in feats and multiclassing.

 

[Michael Morris]

That's what I was thinking. But whatever I use, I don't want it to require several hours to understand enough to play. Enough to exploit maybe, but not to simply play.

 

[Mordane76]

Maybe you should start with beginning statistics somewhere between the druid/cleric and the wizard/sorcerer.

Go with the Int +4 Skill points, go to d6 HD (up from wizard/sorcerer, down from cleric/druid), keep Wizard/Sorcerer saves.

Use skill lists to separate the classes. Skill lists should be easy enough to tailor to particular classes.


Or, just go with one class. It's really the easiest - what you call yourself just attaches the world-view of the setting for that particular moniker, as well as the expectations from outsiders of what you SHOULD be, but not necessarily what you are. This might be a hard concept for some to grasp at first, but it's fairly elegant.

 

[Philip]

I haven't costed all the spells (a Herculean task that I don't really want to do alone but no one will help me). Further, much of the system's balance hinges on the costing. However, if it's pulled off correctly this allows for a very flexiable way of allocating the various spells in the game.

You called? I have begun a similar task, so I am glad to help out costing spells and discussing color placement! I think I am using roughly the same premise as you do, but I haver never seen your system up close, and am unfamiliar with Dusk (just now browsing the reference from the link you provided). From what you've posted here I gather that my cost system is slightly different.

For example, I also make use of (to use the magic terminology) 'colorless' mana that characters gain when they are levelling. Most casters gain colored mana every odd and colorless mana every even level, so that spells cost between 1 and 20 'mana'. Generally 1st lvl core D&D spells cost 1 mana, 2nd lvl spells cost 3 mana etc. I introduced the colorless basically to partially solve the non-stackability of spellcasting and non-spellcasting classes. I can now give fighters colorless mana at certain levels, making them unable to cast spells unless they take a level in a spellcasting class (since all spells require colored mana), but when they do, they get a bigger pool when they do switch, although they are unable to cast strongly affiliated spells (spells costing multiple colored mana). Undoubtely there are also a number of other differences, but I think the basic premises match sufficiently for some mutual assistance.

 

[Michael Morris]

I'd rather stick to one sphere per spell level including cantrips. Also, this is an acquisition cost system - the spells have no mana costs when they are actually cast.

 

[Michael Morris]

Costing..

Ok, I'm going to use a formulae to cost the spells. I think I have one that will work and be clean enough to be easy to use.

A spell's total cost is its level + 1. The portion of that cost that is "colorless" is determined by how many of the core classes could use the spell: bard, cleric, druid, sorcerer/wizard, ranger, or paladin. If more than 4 classes can use the spell, use the entry for 4. If the spell is only available to prestige classes or to a certain domain, use the 0 entry.

	-----	No of Classes	-----
Level	0	1	2	3	4
1	0	0	1	1	1
2	0	1	1	2	2
3	0	1	2	3	3
4	0	1	2	3	4
5	0	2	3	4	5
6	0	2	3	5	6
7	0	2	4	6	7
8	0	3	4	6	8
9	0	3	5	7	9

Magic Missile: RR
Cure Light Wounds: 1W
Mage Armor: 1W
Fireball: 1RRR
Antimagic Shell: 3WWWW

And so on. Comments?

 

[Terath Ninir]

Sounds reasonable to me. Especially since it's a mechanic that anyone can adapt to use for 3rd party or non-Core WotC spells.

 

[Michael Morris]

Sounds reasonable to me. Especially since it's a mechanic that anyone can adapt to use for 3rd party or non-Core WotC spells.

That's a key concern

 

[Sollir Furryfoot]

Sounds like a simple, yet brilliant compromise you've made there, I'm all for it *thumbs up*

 

[the Jester]

Michael, the more I see of the stuff you're working on for Dusk the more impressed I am. Keep up the good work. This system seems very well-thought out. Have you playtested at all yet?