Elements of Magic - Mythic Earth (post-release proofread complete!)

[Thomas5251212]

Nope. That was one of the greatest complaints from EOM-R. Touch attacks were just better than saves in most instances. You can still use Attack to enhance

Glad to see you realized that. I remember bringing that up on here back when I was looking at using EoM in a campaign, and no one seemed to understand why I thought so.

 

[donm61873]

Moonsword - thanks for the comments...

I started with Temporary Hit Points being in Attack because they fit with the attack and damage modifiers from EoMR. However, you're right - it fits ME better being in cure.

Preserve, on the other hand, should stay in Cure because Purify Food is already in Cure (apparently, that's an Affliction).

Enhance Ability Score: separated as you suggested...

I'm still stuck on the Illusion effects. I've started leaning towards Create, because I want the light and darkness to actually exist. Any one have any other suggestions?

Bearing these changes in mind, here's what I've done so far:

SRD Level 0 Spells

Acid Splash: Attack 1/Gen 1 short-range acid spell (1d6).
Arcane Mark: Transform 2/Gen 20 touch mark spell, lasts one month.
{Note that this effect just doesn't work well. Any ideas?
Create Water: Create 1/Gen 1 short-range create water spell.
Cure Minor Wounds: Cure 2/Gen 1 short-range cure spell (1d6).
Dancing Lights: Create 1/Gen 3 medium-range illumination spell (20-ft, 10 minutes).
Daze: Charm 1/Gen 1 short-range daze spell.
Detect Magic: Divine 1/Gen 3 concentration reading magical auras (30-ft. radius).
Detect Poison: Divine 1/Gen 1 short-range concentration dowse poison (60-ft. radius).
Disrupt Undead: Attack 1/Gen 1 short-ranged death spell (1d6).
Flare: Attack 2/Gen 1 short-range dazzle spell (1 minute).
Ghost Sound: Illusion 1/Gen 1 short-range simple auditory glamer spell.
Guidance: Attack 1/Defend 1/Divine 1/Gen 0 touch +1 enhancement bonus to any single attack roll, saving throw, or skill check.
Inflict Minor Wounds: Attack 1/Gen 0 touch direct damage spell (1d6).
Know Direction: Divine 3/Gen 0 brief remote viewing (world) discerns north.
Light: Create 1/Gen 0 brief illumination spell (20-ft, 10 minutes).
Lullaby: Charm 1/Gen 4 medium-range concentration daze spell (10-ft. radius).
Mage Hand: Move 1/Gen 1 short-range concentration telekinetic movement (5 lb.).
Mending: Transform 1/Gen1 short-range brief cosmetic object repair.
Message: Illusion 1/Gen 3 medium-range short duration simple auditory phantasm (10 minutes, 150 ft.).
Open/Close: Move 3/Gen 1 brief short-range telekinetic movement (25 lbs.).
Prestidigitation: Transform 1/Create 1/Gen 3 one-hour cosmetic transform/create object.
Purify Food and Drink: Cure 2/Gen 0 purify food (4 lbs.).
Ray of Frost: Attack 1/Gen 1 short-range cold spell (1d6).
Read Magic: Divine 3/Gen 1 short duration translate spell (10 minutes).
Resistance: Defend 1/Gen 1 short duration saving throw (+1 to all saves) spell (10 minutes).
Summon Instrument: Create 3/Gen 1 short duration create spell (20 gp or less, 10 minutes)
Touch of Fatigue: Attack 1/Gen 1 short duration touch fatigue spell (10 minutes).
Virtue: Cure 1/Gen 1 short duration temporary hit points spell (+3 hp, 10 minutes).

I'd like to see comments on this before I progress to the level 1 SRD spells...

 

[Moonsword]

For the Enhance Ability Score, I really meant for it to be one entry that is effectively two different effects, depending on the choice made, but your way is probably less confusing to less literal-minded people than me.

On the Illusion effects, I second moving them to Create. They really would belong to an Evoke verb IMO but Create is the closest thing in EoM:ME for this purpose.

New Spells:
Ray of Frost shouldn't be that powerful, but there's not much that can be done there, either.

Detect Magic is a little high in level but that can be dealt with without too much trouble. Also, maybe detecting magical auras should be reworked anyway since most mages would have to be able to do that for spellcasting in some genres.

Cure/Inflict Minor Wounds: See Ray of Frost.

Arcane Mark: Again, probably needs to be reworked. I can't remember exactly what it does but I think it's in the Universal college, right? If so, maybe it and Detect Magic should be reworked into basic abilities of all mages rather than spells.

Summon Instrument: For a direct 0th conversion, that's a little high. For what it actually does, just fine, IMO, for the balance. Conjuring something like that shouldn't be that easy.

Overall, it looks good. Keep in mind that I'm not a 3.5 GM (or 3.5 player, for that matter) so I'm not familiar with whatever changes were made between editions so there may be something I'm missing. I also haven't worked directly with the core spell system from 3.0 in a while either, since I've been running Arcana Unearthed lately, which has a different spell system.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Just want to say to donm61873 and Moonsword- don't stop!

I would love to see more SRD spells converted- I would especially like to see epic spells done in EoM:ME style. But if you start with the cantrips and move up, it might be a while.

I just don't want you guys to get discouraged by the quietness of the thread- you are doing good work, and it is appreciated!

 

[RangerWickett]

I'm quite pleased with what I'm seeing. I've just been keeping quiet because I want to encourage you all to create stuff, and I was afraid that me popping in might seem like I was approving or disapproving. I say keep up the work.

 

[donm61873]

Actually, before I moved up to level 1 spells, I wanted some feedback on what I'd done. The more I'm thinking about light and sound effects, if they are "REAL", ie, not disbelievable, they should be create effects.

Arcane Mark is just strange. I've never actually seen anyone use that spell, either in play in a campaign, in RPGA events, or in convention events. Have I built it wrong, or is it really that odd?

RangerWickett -- we're hacking at your system, so at some point I'd like to see comments, at least on the things I added, if not the spell builds. The idea I'm following is to add to the mechanics as required to replicate SRD effects, then write a level, then post

Moonsword -- ideas on how to rework Detect Magic? I'll admit that I actually don't mind the cost; it means a cantrip level Detect Magic is going to be a touch thing instead of a 30' radius, and I kind of like that change.

Now I'll go edit the other two posts...

Ray of Frost/Cure Minor Wounds - we'll have to see how the higher level spells convert to see if these need fixing...

Summon Instrument - I'll admit, I can live with this as is.

 

[Cheiromancer]

I wouldn't worry about the fact that some spells don't quite fit. I'd make thinks like Arcane Mark belong to a category of "legacy spells" - they cannot be made spontaneously (except at ridiculous cost), but have to be discovered and learned by rote.

As for illusion, I think that spells like audible glamer allowed a saving throw or the listener would hear only a faint sound. I think spells that create appearances (sight, sound, smell, taste) should be illusions.

Although I hesitate about illusory light. Unless it makes the colors of things turn out wrong, and makes small objects invisible or has things visible that aren't really there, or otherwise fails to "really" illuminate an area beyond what a candle would.

Imagine having a faint picture of a room in which only a few details can be seen and drawing a picture of what the room might look like if brightly lit. That's what you'd see with illusory light- the picture version. But you might bump into things if you walked around inside of a room lit by illusory light!

Or you could go with create.

I like the idea that a cantrip level detect magic would work by touch. I suppose an alternative would be to make it like detect poison so you could know that something is magical from a distance, but with less detail.

 

[genshou]

Got it–I'll work out a couple of examples that should illustrate this a little better.

I never got around to doing those examples. If someone gives me the relevant stats for a couple of magic users of about the same character level, I'd be happy to run a mock spellduel and share/explain the results. The two magic users should be fairly close in level but have some degrees of variance in their abilities.

 

[Bayonet_Chris]

CURE
Preserve (+1). The spell prevents 5 lbs. of food, body organs, plants and similar objects from decaying or rotting for 24 hours. For +5 levels, the duration extends to one week. For an additional +5 levels, the duration increases to one month. Each additional +1 level doubles the weight preserved.

I'd actually put this under Create Time, personally.

 

[Night Watchman]

HEX
The Hex magical skill weakens defenses. Unwilling creatures can resist with a Will save.

Hex Enhancements
Armor Class (+2). Affected creatures gain a –1 penalty to armor class. This penalty can be improved by –1 for each extra spell level, to a maximum of –5 at 6th level.
Binding (+5). Creatures must succeed a Will save to leave the area of effect, either physically or by traveling dimensionally. It can also attempt to use its spell resistance to bypass the barrier. Each minute it may make one attempt at each, and if the creature fails, it is stuck inside for at least another minute. The binding effect prevents the creature from making melee attacks out of the area, but it can still use ranged attacks and spells. A bound creature cannot use any Compel effects on creatures outside the area of effect. If the creature is not entirely inside the area of effect when the spell takes effect, it is not bound. If a creature attacks or otherwise deals damage to the bound creature, it is free to retaliate, but is still bound spatially. If you attack the bound creature, it is freed entirely from the binding. For an additional 2 spell levels, none of the bound creature’s attacks, spells, or abilities can cross the area of effect.
Damage Reduction (+2). Affected creatures have their DR reduced. The type of material required to bypass the DR does not change. Each 1 additional level reduces the DR by –1. For 2 additional levels, creatures affected by that reduction also can have their DR penetrated by a weaker effect. Reduce the material one step, from epic, to special material, to magic. The DR can now be bypassed by both the original and the weaker material, so a lycanthrope affected by this could be harmed either by magic or by silver.
Drain Ability Score (Varies). Choose an ability score. Affected creatures gain a penalty to that ability score. Consult the table below to determine by how much the ability score is penalized. Unwilling creatures receive a Will save to negate.
Level Penalty
+3 –2
+5 –4
+7 –6
+10 –8
+13 –10
+16 –12
+20 –14
Drain Skill (+1). Choose a single specific skill. Affected creatures gain a –1 penalty to checks with that skill. You may choose this enhancement multiple times.
Energy Buffer (+1). Choose an energy type — acid, cold, death, electricity, fire, mental, or sonic. Reduces the level of protection provided by an energy buffer by 5 points of damage of that energy type dealt to each affected creature. This does not effect energy resistance. This enhancement can be chosen any number of times, applying to the same or different energy types.
Energy Resistance (+2). Affected creatures have their energy resistance of a chosen energy type — acid, cold, death, electricity, fire, mental, or sonic — reduced by 5 points of damage of that energy type each round. This enhancement can be chosen up to four times for each energy type.
Saving Throws (+1). Affected creatures gain a –1 penalty to one saving throw — Fortitude, Reflex, or Will. This enhancement may be chosen up to 5 times. For an additional 1 level, this bonus applies to all three saving throws (so giving –3 to three saves requires 4 levels).
Spell Resistance (+4). Affected creatures lose SR 10. Each 1 additional level decreases the SR by 1.
Weaken Attack (+1). Place this spell on a creature or item. Unarmed and natural attacks made by that creature or weapon attacks made with that item have a –1 penalty to attack rolls. You may choose this enhancement up to 5 times.
Weaken Damage (+1). Place this spell on a creature or item. Unarmed and natural attacks made by that creature or weapon attacks made with that item have a –1 penalty to damage rolls. You may choose this enhancement up to 5 times.

LOVE IT!!!

Has anyone been had the opportunity to use this in their game? How did it work out?