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Message: <blockquote data-quote="AbdulAlhazred" data-source="post: 4667873" data-attributes="member: 82106">Seems to me that it would certainly be fine to allow for a bunch of non combat type bonuses with no real issue. I agree with the idea that instead of a 'casting time' it should be described as either being usable in a short or extended rest. That's an easier mechanic to fit into the game. Basically the casting time thing devolves down to that anyway. A 10 minute ritual is essentially a 'short rest' ritual, a 1 hour one is an extended rest ritual, and a longer ritual is one you only use when bunkered down in your 'base of operations' or some other highly secure location you can afford to remain in for a period of time.Component costs are a bit more problematic. They COULD fit in to the fluff for some of these things, like something that provides a way to use equipment in an enhanced way, but it doesn't really mesh too well with the original 'kata' sort of concept where the character is meditating or something like that. Game mechanics wise it works OK, but it just has the wrong flavor.I am also not too fond at this point of designing Marshal Rituals that do 'feat like' things. That is if you want a combat bonus of some kind, take a power or a feat. Otherwise the ritual caster feat WILL end up being a 'swiss army knife' for marshal characters, just as it seems to threaten to become for Clerics and Wizards. I'd say there could be a few categories of things that would make sense to allow:1) Rituals that allow an attribute check bonus, like increasing your str bonus for the next attribute check you need to make ONLY. So you could 'summon inner strength' and break down a door. It might be ok to extend it to attribute bonus applied to a single skill use as well, like you meditate and then can get a plus to escape bonds. Those are things that right now are not really addressed by existing feats/powers much and at worst the ritual is less good than say Endurance, which is always in effect.2) Rituals that bend other non combat rules somewhat, like 'forced march' where the character can increase his overland move rate somewhat for a day.3) Rituals of obeisance that could be used to improve the morale or other capabilities of an NPC under the player's command in a general way. That might be modeled by giving the NPC an action point or an extra surge use or just encourages the DM to increase the NPCs willingness to follow an order it might not otherwise follow (granted this is one of those things where the game does not supply explicit mechanics, but most DMs probably model these as skill check or straight charisma checks anyway and then it is pretty simple).I think that covers the MAIN sorts of things that might be desired. Using an HS as the cost also seems to me to work well within both the mechanics and the flavor of the thing. Not only is the character giving up some other feat they could have had to get Ritual Casting, but they also pay a not insignificant and concrete cost to actually use the feat. Remember, existing rituals don't have these kinds of penalty (one or two do, but they are all LONG casting time anyway and not really something you'd use on most adventures).As a sort of aside, I just don't like the whole casting cost mechanism to begin with. Money is really a rather secondary consideration in FRPG. It is hard to track and players are never quite sure how much they have and etc. Residuum just adds an entire second set of mechanics on top of THAT to deal with, and fluff wise is hokey as all get out to boot. Personally I think the good old 'components' mechanism is the nicest. It was a bad idea for spells, but for rituals and magic item creation it works great. You want to make a suit of Elderscale armor, then you are going to have to come up with the scales of an elder dragon! If the DM wants that to be a money cost item, then he can let you buy it, but otherwise its a plot hook. Same with casting some super powerful ritual, you want to use Shadow Walk, then maybe you need some Spectre Dust or something like that.</blockquote>

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