[oxfordgamers] Re: Fantasy gaming

Who are you and what have you done with John's proofreading skills?

The prerequisites aren't as many as you might think, except as you mentioned
in the making and breaking realm of magic.  For the most part it is the most
powerful spells in a school of magic that will really stretch your skill
points.

The fatigue costs aren't nearly as rough as I thought they would be.  Chad
let me have a few small manna crystals because I thought that my mage would
need them to keep his spells flying.  However I ended up slinging spells
every round in combat, especially fireballs, and only racked up a small cost
for fatigue.  In fact I did not end up tapping my crystals at all during the
adventure.  My skill levels were average for an adventuring mage, but it was
enough to drop my fatigue costs down to a very manageable level.  I was also
very free with the spells I cast outside of combat (such as animating my
quill so that I could dictate to my journal) and again had no fatigue costs
to worry about.

Spell casting isn't that slow in GURPS either.  With one initial round of
concentration I can sling a 1d fireball every single round until I decide to
stop.  That's much better than an archer's rate of fire and does decent
damage, plus if you have a reasonable skill level it costs no fatigue.  For
every round I hold the fireball, up to three, I can add 1d of damage.  That
does cut my rate of fire down but a 3d attack in a normal GURPS game packs a
hell of a punch, a lot more than most warriors can do with a two handed
sword.  If I fire a 2d fireball every other  round that gives me a rate of
attack equal to someone using a mace or an axe (unless they have a very high
strength) with a competitive damage output.  Other spells, like sleep,
worked out to be just as fast.  The great speed equalizer is that the
concentration maneuver can be done at the end of a round, after your actions
have already been taken.

We followed the fatigue rules straight up when Chad ran his last game and we
had two spell casters of dramatically different natures.  Play went fast,
worked very well, and I was certainly impressed with how well the system
worked.

Give it another shot the next time you get a chance.  

> ----------
> From:         John Phillips
> Reply To:     oxfordgamers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Sent:         Wednesday, July 31, 2002 2:54 PM
> To:   'oxfordgamers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx'
> Subject:      [oxfordgamers] Re: Fantasy gaming
> 
>   My first big problem with it is the interlocking mess of prerequisites
> makes character creation an absolute mess unless you are very familiar
> with GURPS rules and also makes it hard to produce characters with
> specific limits. (As you look to gain depth in one school of magic, it is
> very hard not to have to add other schools.) This is particularly true if
> you want things like healing or making and breaking.
>   Beyond that, it's OK for the levelless spell system that it is. I agree
> that they do a ggod job of the balance, largely by making much of spell
> casting very slow and also by having hefty fatigue costs for big effects.
> I think it makes it very important to actually use fatigue in actions and
> combat, though, and that burden is my second big problem with it.
>   I know in the Supers, fatigue is handled loosely at most, how about in
> the fantasy you were doing?
>                       John
> 
> On Wed, 31 Jul 2002, Bolenbaugh, Tom wrote:
> 
> >
> > Having now played a spell caster in GURPS, I do not agree with you.  Now
> > that I've done it I find it quite playable and easy to get the hang of.
> > It's also quick to run.  I find that they have struck a good balance
> between
> > magic and non-mages and have a nice variety of spells.  If you want to
> play
> > with the optional rules like rune magic or improvised spells you can add
> new
> > dimensions to the system.  I was skeptical until I actually got to try
> it,
> > but now I think it is one of the better systems available for sword and
> > sorcery magic systems.
> >
> > GURPS Voodoo is still my favorite magic system of all time, but it isn't
> > really in genre for traditional Tolkien style fantasy.
> >
> > > ----------
> > > From:     John Phillips
> > > Reply To:         oxfordgamers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > > Sent:     Tuesday, July 30, 2002 10:19 PM
> > > To:       oxfordgamers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > > Subject:  [oxfordgamers] Re: Fantasy gaming
> > >
> > >   I've never been a fan of the GURPS system for fantasy unless there
> are
> > > going to be no spell casters in the group. The spell system is a pain.
> > >                   John
> > >
> > > On Tue, 30 Jul 2002, S. Mollett wrote:
> > >
> > > > I'd like to get in on a D&D type adventure using the GURPS system.
> I'd
> > > like
> > > > to recreate and trot out my old halfling thief, "Nebbish" again.
> > > >
> > > > -Steve
> > > >
> > > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > > From: <CWilson@xxxxxxxx>
> > > > To: <oxfordgamers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > > > Sent: Tuesday, July 30, 2002 10:44 AM
> > > > Subject: [oxfordgamers] Fantasy gaming
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > You know, no matter what other games we play, be it super heroes,
> > > sci-fi,
> > > > > horror or vampire, I still miss being in a fantasy campaign, ala
> D&D
> > > > style.
> > > > >
> > > > > --
> > > > > Chad Wilson
> > > > > Computer Support/Analyst
> > > > > McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital
> > > > > Ph: (513) 524-5583
> > > > > E-Mail: cwilson@xxxxxxxx
> > > > > --
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Poetry
> > >
> > > ...musical thought.
> > >
> > >                   Thomas Carlyle
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> 
> 
> 
> The image of myself which I try to create in my own mind in order that I
> may love myself is very different from the image which I try to create in
> the minds of others that they may love me..
> 
>                       W. H. Auden(1907-1973)
> 
> 
> 
>

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