Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="1Mac" data-source="post: 5743664" data-attributes="member: 48998">Changing the subject just a bit here.I really want to get away from this kind of thinking. I agree that magic should feel different from mundane combat, but not if it means replacing an elegant Attack vs. Defense d20 roll with a convoluted, overwrought, and problematic subsystem like Vancian magic (and I realize, LurkAway, that you weren't necessarily endorsing Vancian magic).Rather, I say, use the same basic mechanic for (most) magic as you would for attacks and skills (d20 vs. DC), and make the difference in the effect, not the mechanic. Let magical attacks work basically like regular attacks, but have them do things like set enemies aflame, or check them in place by unseen forces, or turn them into a newt (before getting better, of course).The same basic mechanic can evoke a magical "feel" if the effects are properly designed, and you don't have to construct a shambling grotesque of an alternative mechanic when you have a basic mechanic that works just fine. And to turn it back to the OT, if magic requires the same sort of dice checks as attacks and skills, then the results of failure can also be base off the same mechanics as well, i.e. critical failures and the like.</blockquote>