Counter Magic

[Zotzz]

THis is a question for one of you who has had an early look at the companion book.

Are the spells for Divine magic and sorcery tracked in spell magnitudes? And if so what range are they in? :?:

The reason I am asking is that there are several Rune spells such as "Counter Magic" that have differrent effects based upon the magnitude of the spell they are interacting with. I am trying to gauge the effectiveness of the rune spells in the Core book so that I can add a few more to fill in a few holes while i wait for the Magic book later this year. I am new to RuneQuest so I am not familure with the power of the Rune spells in the past but based on everything I have read online and on this forum it seems that Rune magic is intended to be a minor magic common available to anyone who gets thier hands on a rune and someone to teach them a spell or two.

Based on that criteria, If the Rune spell Counter magic could be used to block the spells cast by a powerul sourcer, it would be way over powered.

Of course you have spells in the book like Skybolt which can do 18 points of armour avoiding damage that any low level cultist with a Chaos rune and pocket full of silver can afford. :shock:

 

[Richard]

Best to change these spells quick. I'm going to drop Skybolt to 2d6 damage. It is listed under the Storm King cult which suggests, as does the name, that it was maybe intended as an Air rune spell. This would at least make the vaporising of heroic player character's less likely!

 

[Zotzz]

Even if you lower skybolt to 2d6 it still seems over powered. You get to blow someones limb off for a 3 spell points.

Take a look as some of the other damage causing spells:

Dragon Breath - mag 1, 1d8 points of damage but armour blocks it. This is that same as a short bow with the exception that hte attack is magical and fire based.

Fire Arrow - mag 2, 1d10 points of damge that armour blocks. Same as a nomad bow with the exception that is is magical and fire based.

Now Skybolt - mag 3, 3d6 points of damge that avoids armour. Looking at the damage in comparison to the cost to cast it seems like it should either be 1d12 points of damage that armour blocks or 1d6 points damge that avoids armour.

It also seems like the more powerful spells should be harder to cast. A -10% per point of Magnitude might make sense.

 

[algauble]

I believe the equivalent in earlier RQ: Divine Magic had a 2:1 ratio with Spirit and Sorcery. That is, 2 points of Sorcery or Spirit would stop one point of Divine, and vice versa.

A little off topic, but along related lines, I was thinking about trying to use a hybrid RQ3/MRQ magic system. What I have in mind:

You would integrate runes more or less as written, but they'd be a bit rarer than the current rules imply, and a bit more special.
Instead a few points of Spirit Magic here or there would be commonplace.
Having the appropriate rune would grant you a bonus to cast the spell, or maybe a reduced MP cost. You'd also get the normal special abilities from rune integration. Maybe to integrate with a rune you'd first have to beat the rune in spirit combat... (instead of the persistence test)
I haven't figured out the details yet. Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[simonh]

Are the spells for Divine magic and sorcery tracked in spell magnitudes? And if so what range are they in? :?:

They will have a magnitude that can be compared to Countermagic, and that magnitude should scale from very low to very high. A powerful sorcerer, priest or shaman should be able to cast very highly rated spells, and remember any spell can have it's basic magnitude augmented with extra MPs for the purposes of blasting through countermagic, and similar spells.

..based on everything I have read online and on this forum it seems that Rune magic is intended to be a minor magic common available to anyone who gets thier hands on a rune and someone to teach them a spell or two.

Yes, but it looks like rune magic is fairly extensible and some of the spell effects are very powerful, actualy far too powerful. RQ3 shamans used spirit magic, which was the equivalent of Rune Magic in MRQ, but had ways of learning very high magnitude versions of the spells. They could be potent magicians.

Based on that criteria, If the Rune spell Counter magic could be used to block the spells cast by a powerul sourcer, it would be way over powered.

Even a beginner rune magician with 15 POW, casting a 1 point spell at you can boot it by 13 MPs (total cost 14 MPs), which will blast through a 13 point countermagic. Don't worry, powerfull sorcerers will have ways of defeating it, at a cost of course.


Simon Hibbs