Common Magic casting rolls

[DramaticExit]

Hopefully an easy one.

Common Magic Magnitude 3 and above spells take multiple CAs to cast.

When do you make the roll to see if they're successful? Is it when you start casting or when you finish casting? If the former, is the casting stopped before completion so the future CAs are not wasted?

 

[butscharoni]

I would say you make the roll on the last CA, since you would not know when in the process of casting, if the spell works or not. Also, you could be interrupted by a sword in your back and what would happen to your otherwise successful roll then? So it is rolling just before the spell goes off.

 

[danskmacabre]

The rules state the casting roll and spell is complete ON the last CA.
So if a spell takes 1 CA, on that characters CA they roll and cast staight away.

 

[PhilHibbs]

At the end - you might need the roll result to resolve an opposed Resilience or Persistence roll.

Actually, I don't think the rules make clear how to handle multiple-CA actions. I've always assumed that if I'm doing something that takes two CAs, then it happens at the same time as everyone else's second actions, but it doesn't actually say this anywhere that I can find.

 

[DramaticExit]

Thanks for all the replies, at the end it is.

Actually, I don't think the rules make clear how to handle multiple-CA actions. I've always assumed that if I'm doing something that takes two CAs, then it happens at the same time as everyone else's second actions, but it doesn't actually say this anywhere that I can find.

Aye that was exactly it; I couldn't find it explicitly stated anywhere when to roll for multiple-CA actions.

 

[Pruneau]

I think that is because CA's are not a unit of time: some have 2 CA, some have 4, but the total time is 5 seconds anyway. I think it's something that requires flexible thinking: if knowing the exact instance a spell fires is required, you'll have to corroborate, and even then, it's still gonna be a matter of feeling: the extra CA granted by a shield does not make the character faster: I consider it a CA that takes place simultaneously with one of the other CA.

The closest I have gotten to a timing mechanism -only when needed to determine who hits first - is taking into account only the INT-DEX generated CA. Based on those, one could come up with a semblance of timing:

2 CA: 2,5 seconds - 5 seconds
3 CA: 1,7 seconds - 3,3 seconds - 5 seconds
4 CA: 1,25 seconds - 2,5 seconds - 3,75 seconds - 5 seconds

on draws DEX determines the order.

The result seems to be sound: the PC with the highest INT+DEX will be the first to act on CA 1. Again on CA 2. Again on CA 3. On CA 4 there is none else. Only thing that seems a bit off is that the first CA of a PC with 2 CA's takes place before the second CA of a PC with 4 CA's. To my feeling, it should be the other way around, since both events take place after 2,5 seconds, and the 4 CA PC has better INT+DEX. Then again, trying to think stsuff like this through often makes my head hurt. I just tend to go with the flow.

 

[PhilHibbs]

p.107: "A spell's result takes effect at the end of its last casting Combat Action."

 

[DramaticExit]

p.107: "A spell's result takes effect at the end of its last casting Combat Action."

Right, though that wasn't the question The question was when do you roll for it and, therefore, know that it's failed.

So something like "A spell's result takes effect at the end of its last casting Combat Action. The casting roll is made at this time."

 

[danskmacabre]

I just assumed the actual spell roll is done on the last round.
It just made sense to me to do it then, since if for example you're casting a 3 magnitude spell, thus taking 3 CAs. Anything could happen between the first CA and the last.
You might not even get a chance to cast the spell, your head might have been chopped off by a Psychopathic Broo by then!