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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Loonook" data-source="post: 4003640" data-attributes="member: 1861">Good Gaming: Let’s Get Down to Business Part 3The Curious Case of Sir Phineas Aldman The first sound you heard when you entered into the Order’s chambers was the pinging which came from the Magister’s chest.  Or the grinding of his gauntlet-like left arm, the gears catching and turning as he sat crushing walnuts or other hard pieces.  Known as Phineas Nutcracker by the wags in the court, Sir Phineas Aldman was appointed by the Empress Elizabeta III over forty years ago as the Knight of the Malleus, and when he was granted the station of Magister Malleus he became the leader of the Order in name.  The title meant nothing; the clockworks that powered Phineas were well-earned on the battlefield, and the previous Magister (a foppish courtier known as the Fat Grouse in some quiet circles) hadn’t been on campaign in over a decade.  Phineas fought for the Imperials at Hangman’s Brace, Crosstree Manor, and the Siege of Lichenstone, and earned his nom de guerre long before his official title.  The legends floated around him; some said he was found naked and bellicose at the High Gate one night, telling of another world.  Others say he was a bastard child of the Lesser Crown, brought forth to the Imperials as scutage.  Though no one could be sure of his leanings, all were sure that he carried a hatred for the Art and its practice, and used his sharp mind to form a group of like-minded and talented nobles and laymen to overcome the problems of the magi and their spectacular weapons.  Today, he is doing his best to cast down any thoughts of supremacy amongst the new recruits.  The shine of the apparatus which replaced his shield arm glints into the eye as he walks around his men.“You think you understand your enemy?  Ha!  I have no love for them, but I have respect as well as hatred.  It is said that in the capital of the Lesser Crown the King of the Stars Himself has mastered over two score ways of laying a platoon to waste by thought.  His war council has perfected Arts beyond our own reckoning . . . but we have some tricks for them.  When you are outfitted by our Doctors you will be their match in war; perhaps, if you survive long enough, you will also be their match in wit.  We will outfit the best in our skin-plate, and grant charges of magebane grenades to each of you.  But until you know our tools, you’ll be worthless to us on the field . . .”Probably one of the best players  I have ever had the honor of DMing is known by his friends (and strangely enough, some of his family) as B.  B was the one who first presented Phineas and the Order of the Blessed Hammer to my main play group at the outset of 3rd Edition.  We had been playing in a game for several months, just at the start of our group’s forays into 3rd Edition, when we had a long conversation over a few beers at the bar I had had the pleasure (and pain) of working in while looking for other employment.  Over a few IPAs we came up with some interesting solutions, and over the interim we have been trading some of our ideas back and forth.  Indeed, Phineas Aldman, Magister Malleus, was to become the impetus for this series of articles which have been brewing for the last few years.I had really gotten tired of DMing your standard games.  Yeah, every once in awhile we’d have a few interesting ones; perhaps a gladiatorial games setup, or run a new-fangled foray into the belly of some beast.  But what I really found was that the most interesting games don’t need gimmicks; rather, they need characters like Phineas (and players like B) that make our games worth playing.  The collaboration supplied by a good solid group will inspire a lot of forethought by both players and DMs, and get the blood moving again when it comes to new locations, settings, and the like.B hated mages, but became nearly obsessed with how it all worked.  Over the course of that evening we set down, from our shared knowledge (both being register-jockeys at a long-closed occult/’New Age’ bookstore, gaming) and unique understandings (my background in history, theology and the philosophy of mysticism, his background as the youngest in a family of believers in hoodoo, and studies of grimoire and similar workbooks of ‘real world’ magic) how exactly magic may tick in your average setting.  Though I only have the hazy memories and a few pages of notes left from that conversation, I feel that it has influenced how I view magic and its use in roleplaying games.  Some of the conceits we explored during that period were as follows:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Magic doesn’t necessarily break the laws and theories of science, but rather operates in a higher realm of understanding of such.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Magic is a codified practice of creating results, similar to any other science, and should be treated as such in any world.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Magic can benefit from the addition of technology.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> On the other hand, a society of magicians would seek out ways to weaken or disable the ability to perform magic, in any way possible.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Magic relies on belief that the effect will work, concentration, a strong force of will, and unique sympathetic objects (expressed in D&D by Concentration, Level, and material components/foci.)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> It is a logical fallacy that one must ‘fight fire with fire’ when it comes to magic; though a good offense is the best defense (mage v. mage), there would logically be some development of ‘common’ materials which could affect magic.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Those who have a natural tolerance or ability to be unaffected by magic would survive longer in a society which is reliant on magic, and pass on these traits (expressed as Spell Resistance observable in Drow, certain Outsiders, etc.)</li> </ul>B and I came to the conclusion that the best ‘common’ materials to deal with a mage would be something to affect his concentration.  Phineas began to look for possible materials to perform this task which would be usable by the masses, and not rely on the ability to hit and damage to trigger a Concentration check.  The character was relentless; using his natural talents in Gather Information, Diplomacy, and Knowledge of the Art, along with a cohort who enjoyed using his talents in Alchemy and a stipend afforded him by the Grouse (and later, though finagling, the College Imperial) he (and we) finally found the answer.  Teargas.  It seems extremely simple, but of course in-game it was revelation.  For six months of in-game seeking during a lull in our campaign (the winter months are unkind to marching armies, and a plague swept the cities surrounding making for poor conditions for large traveling groups of militia) Phineas, his cohort, and the party Loremaster hit pay dirt.  A combination of agents, including alchemical processes, and a small alchemical ‘charge’ (similar to a tindertwig or controlled powder burn) could cause the dispersal from a grenade of a noxious cloud, which would irritate the mucous membranes to a point of agony.  Most effective against mages, it could easily affect other targets too.  We could create a version which would cause a Concentration check to maintain casting potential, around the levels of a good hit from a weapon (DC: 15-20, 14 + 1d6 [the d6 for potency of the specific grenade at dispersal).  The tear gas would not be overpowering but definitely a surprise (gusts of wind would become a battlefield necessity, for instance).    However, it would be prohibitively expensive due to the amount of alchemical items involved (we came out at a cost approaching 160-200 gp/unit, market price of 320-400 gp) to issue them to every soldier.  Therefore, elite soldiers expecting contact with the enemy’s spellcasters would be outfitted, along with any nobleman.  The devices were considered contraband for anyone who was not part of the Imperial Guard, with strict penalties for carriage of the weapons . . . of course, the group was allowed to purchase them at a slight markup from the master-of-arms until a point where they arose to a status in the Peerage.  Now, this doesn’t tip the scales against mages.  In fact, there are plenty of easy solutions to the issue that a group of individuals boasting genius IQs should be able to puzzle through in a few hours (theoretically) and have finished in a few weeks.  The first battle using the magebane prototypes was a rout when it came to the casters; several failed their saves outright, while others failed in intervening rounds.  Thus was born the tradition of Gust of Wind being an important enough spell for land AND sea casters to keep in their spellbook for further use.  Technology trumped magic, but magic advanced faster.Later, there were additional inventions; a slow-burning narcotic haze which would reduce Intelligence, in essence ‘locking out’ mages from using spells in social situations while heightening the enjoyment of revels by the Empress’s courtiers.  Then came the possibilities implied by acids and other irritating and damaging liquids to force Concentration checks.  The cohort, Phineas, and his group of R&D minions advanced the cause of anti-mage warfare over the next 5 in-game years to a point where, with the proper equipment, mages could be counteracted on the battlefield handsomely.  A new player, obsessed with constructs and grafting, began performing research into grafting armored plating to soldiers… culminating in the first appearances of ‘living construct’ analogues in the setting.  Short-term spell-resistance in tattoo/etching forms, cribbed from the use of tattoos as use-activated magic items in a primitive culture outside of the Imperium’s holdings, became de rigueur amongst noblemen. All of these ideas were filtered, altered, and became a sort of technological Renaissance for the game.  Thousands of years of magical and anti-magical researches came to the fore.  Spellcasters began researching long-range spells, curses, and other non-artillery spells to bring the fight to these Young Turks.  Phineas took some real damage (suffering a fearsome Heartclutch at Crosstree Manor, and having his left arm torn off by the demon assistant of a mastermind demonbinder who had hired on to train the Lesser Crown’s sorcerers in the arts of Summoning at Lichenstone) but he’s still pounding it out in the setting.  I talked to B a few nights ago about how I should frame this article.  He agreed that it would be easier to present the narrative, along with our asides, and explain some of the interesting things which pop up when you actively develop your further thoughts on magic.  In twenty years, perhaps the Lesser Crown or the newly-crowned Empress Deliah IV will have new methods of construction and warfare built from these simple sciences.  I do not advocate that all of the ideas present in this setting would work for all settings; however, this is an exploration through one DM’s eyes of items which could assist you.  Below, I’ve placed some simple write-ups for some of the items listed above, or given current analogues in published materials (with citation).  If anything, this will give your fighters something to lob at the local mages.  However, maybe I’ve helped to open your eyes to some unique tools for fighting mages.  As Always . . .Good Gaming,Slainte,-LoonookSir Phineas Aldman (Rough 3.5 Compatible Build) Old Human Fighter 3 (Thug Variant)/Rogue 4/Occult Slayer 5 with Able Learner and Mage Slayer Feats.  Phineas has the Heart of Steel (<a href="http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=51636" target="_blank">Faiths of Eberron</a> p. 157) and Mighty Arm (<a href="http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=51636" target="_blank">Faiths of Eberron</a> p. 158).  Phineas has taken the Slow Flaw (due to the weightiness of his arm and the strain on the body of his mechanical heart, <a href="http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=3734&it=1" target="_blank">Unearthed Arcana</a>  p. 91 ) to grant himself an additional feat.  This flaw has been subsumed by his later acquisition of a magic item to boost his base speed.  His normal armor is a mithral (or similar material) breastplate which has Spell Resistance properties.  He also carries a blade known as the Coldiron Cleaver (a uniquely-crafted +2 greater spell-storing longsword with a Greater Dispel placed into it upon request and payment of ½ the normal cost) and the Magister’s Mallet (a +1 Disrupting Warhammer).  His wealth is unusually high due to his connections in the Imperial Court.His cohort (Bryce Stallingsworth) is a courtier (Bard 6/Rogue 2) with an extensive knowledge of magic and alchemical processes.Magebane Grenades (current) are as listed in the article.  The current schematic is derived from the Teargas Grenade description (<a href="http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=28720&it=1" target="_blank">d20 Modern</a> P. 105) with adjustments as noted in the article.Qishi, a extract incense derived from a plant found in the province of Qishin, has properties of a mildly (low) addictive drug (for addiction stats/fort saves see <a href="http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=3734&it=1" target="_blank">Unearthed Arcana</a>  p. 203-204).  When burned and inhaled, Qishi causes mild euphoria and a tingling, pleasant sensation which makes focusing on spellcasting difficult; a spellcaster must make a Concentration check (DC: 15 + spell level + 2*(hrs. of exposure)) to successfully perform a spell while under the effects of Qishi. This effect dissipates after an hour without exposure to the drug. The overdose for Qishi is 5 hours of exposure in a 48 hr. period.  Standard Fortitude Save rules apply, and upon failure the exposed individual suffers 1d8 temporary ability damage to a random mental score.  Common Qishi costs 25 gp/dose if available.Royal Qishi, a more refined form of the drug, can be burned; this drug causes a greater level of euphoria, along with a mild hallucinatory side effect.  The effects of Qishi last longer in the system (6 hrs. from exposure), and its effect is stronger (DC: 20  spell level + 3*(hrs. of exposure).  Royal Qishi is a highly addictive drug.  The exposure overdose is the same as Common Qishi, however, the ability damage is 1d8 to two mental stats.  Royal Qishi is prohibitively expensive, at 250 gp/dose if available.</blockquote>

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