Grim Tales Magic Book...

[Andur]

SB w/ Tables vote here too.

And to take the skulls suggestion one step further, could ya do a "base sampling" of spells, say one "iconic" spell from a "school" and zero to three skull it. So like "ye ol Fireball" would be a base two skull and then give an example of a one skull and three skull. Then do it for a defensive and utility spell from other schools to round out the "concept".

 

[Conaill]

"Grimoire." (Agreed completely with the "it fits, but it's overdone..." opinion on that....)

How about "Grimmery" or "Grimmerie" for an unusual twist? A plausible anglicized bastardization of "Grimoire", and in my personal opinion it ties in even better with "Grim".

(Note sure if this word was ever used for real, but it *does* show up in the alternative Wizard of Oz musical "Wicked". There's even a book titled "Wicked: The Grimmerie, a Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Hit Broadway Musical")

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

Grimnoir.

 

[fuindordm]

I pretty much agree with the consensus that there should be a 'spellbook' of pre-statted spells in addition to clear mechanics on how to modify spells or create new ones.

But, as a long-time player of the HERO system as well as D&D, I'd like to caution against making the spellbook too standardized. It's all well and good to say, "the spells given detail the game effects only and are named as such, feel free to create more colorful names and appearances for your spells", but the fact of the matter is that players and DMs rarely pay attention to this. And the end result is that the magic system feels bland and lifeless.

So, in addition to Minor Spell, Lesser Spell, Spell, Greater Spell (which I think is a great way of organizing the spellbook--kind of a cross between paths and domains), I would encourage you to come up with a selection of spells which fall outside the system to some degree--that are more magical in flavor and might be difficult or impossible to design from the ground up.

Maybe you could come up with a small set of such unique spells for each era--say a dozen or so--just to reinforce the feeling of that setting.

Ben

 

[fuindordm]

For example:

Post-apocolyptic era spellbook (drawing on Saberhagen and Thundarr the Barbarian imagery)

Foul Technology: a simple spell that causes mechanical weapons and devices to fail.

Possess Technology: a spell like animate object, perhaps with some interesting side effects.

Embrace the Tainted Land: a spell that allows you to store poison and radiation within your body with no ill effects for a certain time, and release it either harmlessly or as an attack later, but that gives you a mutated/wasted appearance until the harmful substance is released.

Graft Machine a spell that allows the caster to permanently replace lost body parts with salvaged technology,
with guidelines for balancing the advantages and side effects. This is a little like cyberware, I know, but I'm thinking of that wizard in Thundarr who had some kind of wheeled chariot for his lower body, or a wizard who replaces his lost eyes with a salvaged security camera... this should be a spell that encourages its user to take on an unsettling appearance.

Echoes of the Past: a spell that recalls a shadow of past disasters into the present, essentially an attack spell that depends on the environment in which it's cast: fire if you're at a bombing site, disease in a town destroyed by plague, etc.

Ben

 

[Turanil]

How about "Grim Grimoire: Down & Dirty Guide to Magic".

Foul Technology; Possess Technology; Embrace the Tainted Land; Graft Machine; Echoes of the Past

By the way, could be the Grim Tales magic book be dark... While not especially seeking evil spell, I would like to see magic that sounds dangerous and infamous. More "black magic" than anything else; and if you throw "gray and white magic" in it, no need to make it bland vanilla D&D spells that buff, deal d6s of damage, or what not. I would like something different (which by the way would be an incentive to buy such a book amidst tons of Relics & Rituals types of spellbooks); something CoC d20 in spirit. For example: I like the spells above (by fuindordm), but the archetypal fireball? Well, make it a ball of exploding green fire with an atrocious stink, and the green fire only affects living tissues, withering and burning them at the same time, and thereafter remains a foul smoke with the effects of a Stinking Cloud for 1d4 rounds...

Otherwise: 88-144 pages? Mmmmhh... Could not that be 250 pages full of spells instead?

 

[Old One]

It's a little more than you're expecting, then. We'll have several interrelated components that you can choose from. Each component details how players learn spells, how they cast spells, and what are the effects of spell burn. In GT, spell burn is enacted as ability damage, but obviously there are other options: lethal or non-lethal damage, sanity loss, fatigue, and so on.

You could even use multiple spell burn systems for different kinds of spells. All "Healing" spells might cause non-lethal damage, for example, all Evocations could cause fatigue, and all Necromancy could cause sanity loss. All of these components are independent of the specific rules component that determines the amount of spell burn itself-- you just carry that factor over to the spell burn side effect that suits you.

Wulf

Now this is interesting. Different affects for different lines of magic. BTW, what was your suggested non-lethal damage if you choose to sub that for ability damage (1d6, 1d8)? I can't remember.

~ OO

 

[Hjorimir]

Personally, I have no interest in charts to calculate new spells on the fly. It just makes the experience feel more mechanical and less organic (just a personaly preference). However, I am very excited about this product. I am especially looking forward to see the alternate burn types!!!

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Now this is interesting. Different affects for different lines of magic. BTW, what was your suggested non-lethal damage if you choose to sub that for ability damage (1d6, 1d8)? I can't remember.

~ OO

For Grim Tales, 1d6 is good. This is equal to the standard Hit Die of each of the three "spellcasting classes."

If you're bolting GT-magic onto D&D, where clerics (for example) have a bigger Hit Die, you might want to play with it a little bit.

Of course, you could also crank it right up to 1d10 regardless. That'll teach em.

 

[Starglim]

Well, I could use some help.

Crunch-wise I'm fine (of course) but I am having a hard time deciding the best, most useful approach to presentation.

I'm not liking the layout of the skill-based casting at all.

Would folks prefer:

a) Spell effects and modifiers, with increasing DCs, in a TABLE format ("Black Company" style)

b) Sample spells at discreet spell levels, with diminished or heightened effects and DCs for each, in a SPELLBLOCK format ("Arcana Unearthed" style)

I'm also still open to suggestions on the title and ideas on the cover.

I think that Grim Tales magic needs to vary widely by the specific setting, so I'd like to see a focus on use as a toolkit. The table format sounds good provided that it gives enough detail for each effect/component - it might need explanatory text afterwards, something like the PHB Equipment section.

There should be some sample spells as well, for two purposes: a core set of utility and generic spells as a quick start for any campaign, and interesting examples of how to use many of the spell effects.

I'd like to see overall tweaks for each spellcasting tradition also - for example, different casting methods that reduce or complicate casting times (or require further skill checks), focuses and trappings, symbolic systems, forbidden effects, or cost reductions for effects in which the tradition has a special emphasis or insight.