Wizard

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Welcome back!

In my last post, I chatted about some of the difficulties I was having with Divine magic and how rituals fit into the mix.

Warrior, Rogue, & Mage has a few different parts to the magic system. You have Mana, which is the magical energy a caster can use to create a magical effect. You have a personal spellbook containing spells from the various Circles of magic. Each higher Circle basically provides a bit more gusto for your effects. Add to that the concept of Enhancements, which are basically Mana-fueled power-ups, and Rituals, which allows a single caster to cast higher level spells when in a group.

Pentagram with a circle around it
Image via Wikipedia

Seems pretty reasonable doesn’t it?

However, as per usual, I seem to have painted myself into a box and created artificial boundaries. I was so happy that I found WR&M that I used it to build a new set of walls around myself. The rules are great, but I found myself wondering how to shoehorn a few things in.

Today I was reminded by Corvus that you have to take a risk sometimes – or as he put it – “No guts, no glory.” :)

As a result of this FACEPALM moment, it came about that perhaps these aren’t walls at all, but doors instead. And maybe it’s time for a little remodeling. The upshot is that for Divine spells of the priesthood I’ll end up with three or four Circles of spells and a 5th Circle of ritual-only spells that can’t be cast by a single caster. I won’t know for sure that’s going to be the final approach I’ll take for Divine magic, but it’s a start. And with a little playtesting, I ought to see any kinks that show up.

Once I get Divine and Superstitious spells fleshed out a bit, I’ll need to do some serious playtesting anyway.

So that brings me to the second part of this ramble. Would anyone be interested in a WR&M campaign online in an IRC chat one night a week? I’m thinking with one session for a couple of hours a week, we could explore the port town of Rivergate and see how the rules work in the setting.

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

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What is Lesser Wizardry? Does it mean you’re less of a wizard than someone who practices something greater? Not at all.

Old BookThink of Lesser Wizardry as the training wheels for a beginning wizard. Lesser Wizardry provides an opportunity for apprentices and students to learn the basics of wizardry without setting their hair on fire attempting to cast a ball of fire at an opponent.

So what is Lesser Wizardry good for? All those little tasks that might not seem like much, but can do many things for a budding wizard:

  • Add a bit of flair to your appearance when you’re out in public, such as providing a well-timed breeze to ruffle your robes to get the attention of those around you or to make sure your clothes are clean, hair combed, and hair shaved so you always look your best
  • Handle those little onerous tasks such as cleaning the dishes or wrapping a gift perfectly every time
  • Make sure you always have a pen handy, never lose your place in a book, or get up on time for an appointment after a long night researching in the lab

Beyond that, there are those little tricks that might make your enemy’s day a little worse with just a little thought from you:

  • Distract an opponent just long enough to slip by unnoticed
  • Ensure that a rival mumbles at just the right time to not speak a spell correctly or when addressing a crowd of her peers
  • Turn a clean, tidy room into a disorganized mess to drive even the most well-adjusted neat freak over the edge

Lesser Wizardry is one of the oldest forms of magic known to the humanoid races. When the first wizards were trying to harness the magical energy of the universe, they were very cautious in their approach and used as little magic as possible. They didn’t want to do any damage for fear of destroying themselves in the process or incurring the wrath of the gods. After a while, it became a game for some wizards to see just how little magic they would need to create a particular effect.

These are the spells that wizards create to simplify things in their lab, ensuring that equipment stays clean and spell components are where they can be easily found. But don’t let that fool you. The most powerful wizards skilled in Lesser Wizardry can drive wizards skilled in other areas quite insane.

One of the best parts of casting Lesser Wizardry spells? No components to mess with! Each and every Lesser Wizardry spell relies exclusively on the focus and energy of the caster. No muss, no fuss.

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