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Message: <blockquote data-quote="willpax" data-source="post: 318458" data-attributes="member: 1602">I've been playtesting such a system for a while now, and am in the middle of a third set of revisions. The main differences between my system and what is being described in this thread are as follows: 1. There are only eight feats, one for each school of magic, and all skills have prerequisite feats in one or more schools (fire is evocation, phantasm req. illusion and divination, and so on). 2. I made the magical skills a bit broader than you have defined in order to preserve some of the flexibility that Brightshadow disscusses. For example, the fire skill allows fireballs, bolts, warming things, and creating light sources. I always found it absurd that it was possible for someone to have the power to incinerate an entire room but be unable to light a torch (I know, all magic is absurd on some level; I'm just describing my taste). 3. I developed a couple of scaling systems (linear progression, factorial progression, and a hybrid 1,2,4,6,9,12 (+1 increment every two levels) to help make the upper level effects harder to power. Two examples: the classic fireball (5d6, 20' radius) would cost 19 VP in this system: each d6 of damage costs 3 VP, and I scale area of effect by the hybrid system (+5' radius per level, so 20' requires +4 VP). The advantage of doing this is that it allows for some flexibility in damage intensity and area of effect that the current system doesn't handle as well. Transformation (a transmutation/polymorph self skill) uses a base # of vitality points, and allows the caster to "memorize" one shape for each rank in the skill. The vitality cost is dependent on the degree of change in terms of size and power. 4. I allow material components to "stand in" for a certain amount of vitality cost. Components of negligible value can contribute one, while more expensive components can contribute more. It also allows for items that give bonuses to spell skill rolls, that store vitality (like the psionic crystals, or like wands, which are re-conceived as storage devices for vitality that are dedicated to one skill only). 5. Saving throws are computed as (number of mana invested in basic effect) + 10. So the fireball above would need a 25 to save against: the +15 VP for the 5d6 (the +4 VP for area of effect doesn't affect the save DC). This makes spells significantly harder to save against, and allows some spells to scale with level that don't currently (such as sleep, which is one effect within the enchantment skill charm now). 6. I give my "scholar" class d6 HD, 6 + int bonus skill points per level, no BAB, and bonus feats as fighter that can be used for skill focus, lore, and magical feats or divine gifts. Bards and clerics get fewer bonus feats that are "magic eligible." Mechanically, any character could select magical feats and skills, but they are class skills for scholar and bard only. Although they aren't integral to the system, I also have incorporated a "magical awareness" skill that can detect the use of active magic over some distance (which means that using magic entails the risk of revealing your magical presence to others) and a madness/corruption mechanic for using spells that dominate another's will or cause direct harm (based in the conceit that magical powers come from a life force, and using that force to destroy life carries certain risks). As I said, they coud be dropped from the system easily, but I like the idea that magic is risky. When I finish the last revision, I would be happy to email the file to anyone who is interested. I would also be quite interested in seeing what others have done.</blockquote>

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