Pure Focal Magic

[Asperion]

Imagine a reality in which magic does exist, but can only be accessed through some form of non-weapon focus. This can be things like staffs, wands, crystals, coins, and clothing. Things like swords, clubs, arrows, shrukin, darts would not be able to be a focus.

 

Here are some questions that I was thinking about:

 

1 - What experiences do people have who have run such a campaign like this?

2 - How would the players (including GM) react to this campaign?

3 - What is the effect that the restrictions on weapons will have on this campaign?

4 - Any other comments would be appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance.

[mhd]

This reminds me a lot of a previous RoleMaster campaigns, where your staff/amulet/ring served as a power point multiplier. So it wasn't an absolute must, but if someone got at your precious item, you were reduced to a third of your power, and soon out of play. So I'd expect even more focus-grabbing and -smashing in a campaign where this is even more important. I'd almost recommend that one of the primary abilities of a focus is that its indestructible.

 

Accessibility is another big issue. If I can freely choose between staff, clothing or ring and cast the same amount of spells through it, I'm going to go for the ring or magical underpants, as this really reduces my risk of suddenly losing my casting ability. So something has to be done in that area. Either the type of focus is tied to the type of spell (clothing -> protective, staff -> attack) or the amount of power is proportional to its size and structure (END reserves, staff -> 50 pts, ring -> 10 pts.). Or something more colorful like side effects (on spell failure, the item can get really hot, which is okay with a wand you can drop but not okay with your magical nipple stud).

 

And the rest really depends a lot on the amount of magic. In my current FH campaign, there are almost no magic weapons at all, so a group used to that wouldn't consider this a big loss, just a reinforcement of magic user fashion choice tropes.

But if we assume a D&D-ish level of power, this would be different.

 

Which brings me to my next question: Is it just that no weapons can serve as focus in HERO terms (i.e. no magical items of that kind) or that you actually need "magic users" for 90% of the magic? If it's just the former, then I would suspect that life, uh, finds a way: Instead of a "+1 sword", you'll get "+1 Bracers Of Sword Pwnage", a "+1 Ribbon of Spear Enhancement" and a "+1 Scabbard of Flamey Blades". Or an influx of minor spellcasters who'll just use charges from their "+1 Wand of Weapon Empowerment" prior to combat.

 

Or just a lot of +1 DC martial artists, if that's easier/cheaper.

 

Or spellcasting will involve more buffs. Which could lead to even more focus-grabbing, as nullifying the source of weapon power of one side becomes paramount to any good combat strategy.

 

But in general nothing really exotic, and I would expect most groups to be okay with that. At least it's not like you get your magic from something inherently squishy like a familiar or even a regular person (like in Guy Gavrial Kay's Fionavar series).

[Lucius]

First point, a staff IS a weapon. So you appear to contradict yourself at the start, unless there's a restriction that a magical staff can't be used to strike.

 

Second point, why the ban on weapons as a Focus? I can think of some good reasons but I don't know what your reasoning is.

 

Third point, are we talking personal Focus or universal Focus?

 

Oh, and Fourth point, how Obvious are these Focuses?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary says focus is something I need to learn to do

[Christopher R Taylor]

I think he's not saying "you can't have enchanted weapons" but rather "you can't cast spells without a focus and that focus has to be non-combat"  So a quarterstaff is out, but a walking stick is in.

[Asperion]

Some good points -

 

While most staffs do have powerful combat use I was mainly referring to the traditional walking staff. I do realize that people use this in combat, but that is not its primary purpose - that is to aid in walking. As a result, I felt that it does not belong with the weapons but with the travel aids and as a result can be used as a focus.

 

As for the weapon ban I got tired of all the special enchanted weapons that everyone seems to find everywhere. I was wondering if a total ban or saying that they are extremely difficult to make and or use as result would not be found everywhere.

 

Most of the foci would be universal, but to be able to use it properly the caster needs to make a magic skill roll - especially if the spell used might have some beneficial combat use. This does not mean that someone without magic training cannot use them, but the possibility of negative backlash is WAY high (8- roll). Also it will be fairly obvious that the spell is coming from the focus, but since things like rings and clothing can be used it can get difficult to remove them.

[Markdoc]

A very simple approach is - as GM - don't give away tons of magic items.

 

I usually don't bother, as a GM to craft things like "+1 sword" anyway. Essentially that's just adding a skill level to a sword and any mundane can do that with some sweat and some practice. Mages tend to craft items like "Sword that can cut through anything" or items they can use themselves like "Wand of Mental Agony". They tend to be much more expensive - and therefore much rarer - becoming the objects of legendary quests rather than something you find hidden in the midden after killing some goblins.

 

As for crafting magic items, I use a simple rule: in addition to the mundane and magical skills needed to craft the item in question, the crafter has to put sufficient Xp into it to create the item - losing them himself, in the process. That alone prevents the large-scale production of magic items: any mage who did that, would soon end up with to few Xps to do anything at all.

 

cheers, Mark

[IndianaJoe3]

As for crafting magic items, I use a simple rule: in addition to the mundane and magical skills needed to craft the item in question, the crafter has to put sufficient Xp into it to create the item - losing them himself, in the process. That alone prevents the large-scale production of magic items: any mage who did that, would soon end up with to few Xps to do anything at all.

 

Does the character get a cost break for this (like the old Independent Limitation)?

[Markdoc]

Yup. Indeed, I still use Independent pretty much as written. This has been discussed in threads elsewhere, but Independent can be used apart from focus - it could be used, for example to enchant a stream, or a person.

 

That way, I differentiate between a focus, which is simply a way for a specific person to use their power and an independent item, which is actually the power itself in transferable format. A mage who puts a spell into a universal focus can give (or lose) that focus - and thus the power - to another character, but he doesn't lose the points and, you could say, the power is still connected to him. He could, with time, make a new focus and the old one would simply cease to function at that point. If he was killed, it would also cease to function. And so on. In that regard, a focus, even a universal one, is not the same an an independant magical item.

 

cheers, Mark

[Lucius]

Some good points -

 

While most staffs do have powerful combat use I was mainly referring to the traditional walking staff. I do realize that people use this in combat, but that is not its primary purpose - that is to aid in walking. As a result, I felt that it does not belong with the weapons but with the travel aids and as a result can be used as a focus.

Knives, axes, and hammers, are all tools. So they could be used as a focus?

 

As for the weapon ban I got tired of all the special enchanted weapons that everyone seems to find everywhere. I was wondering if a total ban or saying that they are extremely difficult to make and or use as result would not be found everywhere.

I was looking for an in-game justification. Something like "The physical object is an anchor or manifestation point for the psychic energy of a spell, which pattern of energy is disrupted by exposure to the rage and fear focused through it by using it as a weapon, and the pain and fear flowing back through it when it is used to injure."

 

Or you could even say that using a magical tool for any practical purpose other than magic itself compromises the object's integrity of purpose - that would rule out using a magical staff for a walking stick, perhaps.

 

Then again, P.E.I. Bonewits (and he's the expert on magic, he's got the degree) said "I prefer to categorize hiking as a magical act" in regards to his own staff.

 

Most of the foci would be universal, but to be able to use it properly the caster needs to make a magic skill roll - especially if the spell used might have some beneficial combat use. This does not mean that someone without magic training cannot use them, but the possibility of negative backlash is WAY high (8- roll). Also it will be fairly obvious that the spell is coming from the focus, but since things like rings and clothing can be used it can get difficult to remove them.

Spellcasters are going to be trying to swipe one another's tools as much as possible then, to increase their own power.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Crafting an Independent Palindromedary