MUSHgicians elements
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People who are interested in such a game, what would you wish it to include/exclude?
"... you'll find the story doesn’t end how you think, and the most important characters aren’t who you expect.” - Penny 40 to Derek, The Magicians S04E07 ‘The Side Effect’
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@il-volpe I mentioned a few aspects in the other threads, but I'd also like to see the disciplines at Brakebills built out further than the Physical Kids.
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I think it would be really cool if part of the focus of the game was studying and learning magic, and as such, experience and advancement means you really have to, like, attend class (I am not saying 'have scenes be actual lectures by professors' but yes have a downtime system that informs how much time you're actually putting into your studies).
"Excuse the hell out of you. He's a bag of dicks. I'm a carefully curated box of cocks." -- to @GirlCalledBlu upon being misrepresented.
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@coin I'm not sure I'm wrapping my head around the concept. Are you suggesting rewarding the player for not playing the character while she's studying?
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@bad-at-lurking said in MUSHgicians elements:
@coin I'm not sure I'm wrapping my head around the concept. Are you suggesting rewarding the player for not playing the character while she's studying?
Not as such, no. I'm suggesting a system akin to, say, Arx's Action Points, wherein you can do things in your downtime, and the more you apply that downtime to your studies, the more your use of downtime increases your ability to improve your magic.
Going on a quest, for example, might get you a bunch of experience in certain things, but it'll take your away from class, where you're learning things, so you can't spend Downtime on that, etc. I'm suggesting a system that makes what your character does "off-screen" matter, too, and one in which what your character is studying in that downtime affects what your character can improve on. If your character is intensely studying SUMMONING in their classes (i.e. downtime) then they're probably going to be able to improve in that area with more ease than they will FIREBALL THROWING (nevermind that combat magic is a dicey thing socially in The Magicians setting, this is just an example--but actually really does work as one because combat magic being banned or at least not actively taught would be a great way to make it harder, and more expensive XP-wise, to learn, for example).
"Excuse the hell out of you. He's a bag of dicks. I'm a carefully curated box of cocks." -- to @GirlCalledBlu upon being misrepresented.
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@coin Ah! That makes sense. Thanks for the clarification!
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@bad-at-lurking NP.
It dovetails, too, in that: if you're gonna have a Magicians MU and you give actually learning magic any real presence in the game, then it would be really great to have a robust magic system, and I am not necessarily talking about the complexity of casting, throwing dice, etc., but rather the scope, subdivisions, etc. You want to make it something that can actually, feasibly be a thing that you could frame an entire university's worth of classes around. Mage, for example, doesn't have this--magic is relatively simple: ten Arcana, five levels each, Rotes are relatively cheap, each Practice is a level so... at the most you'd have 50 classes. I mean sure you could maybe add some with subdivisions (Spirit 403 'how to rell what kind of nature sprite you're actually dealing with'), but in the end it just kind of feels ehhhhhh.
"Excuse the hell out of you. He's a bag of dicks. I'm a carefully curated box of cocks." -- to @GirlCalledBlu upon being misrepresented.
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@coin It sounds like you want something as complex as Ars Magica, with its study rules and ratings for books and research, and a bunch of Verbs and Nouns to study.
However, the details are only going to be talked about IC if you learn in downtime, so who cares how many classes it takes to learn something? If you need more than 50, then make it take more than one class to learn a thing. Also, there is a ton of lore, countermeasures, an alternate forms like alchemy, etc to learn.
I have a waggish sense of humor.
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@coin said in MUSHgicians elements:
Not as such, no. I'm suggesting a system akin to, say, Arx's Action Points, wherein you can do things in your downtime, and the more you apply that downtime to your studies, the more your use of downtime increases your ability to improve your magic.
If you limit learning or progression in the magical arts to advancement points only achievable through Actions and/or Plots, then you would meet your goal system-wise.
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@misadventure said in MUSHgicians elements:
@coin It sounds like you want something as complex as Ars Magica, with its study rules and ratings for books and research, and a bunch of Verbs and Nouns to study.
However, the details are only going to be talked about IC if you learn in downtime, so who cares how many classes it takes to learn something? If you need more than 50, then make it take more than one class to learn a thing. Also, there is a ton of lore, countermeasures, an alternate forms like alchemy, etc to learn.
I feel dirty for typing the words but Coin has a pretty good idea there.
The reason I like this system is that it forces the player to make organical and meaningful choices. Do they improve their raw understanding of magic and improve on their skillsets (think: Hermione Granger) or do they work on their practical applications and become better field agents, sacrificing something in the process (obviously think: Harry Potter).
They are both very useful aspects if done right, just in different ways, and finding the balance you want for your character adds depth on both the systemic and roleplaying end. So it matters very much.
- He who takes offense when not intended is a fool. He who takes offense when intended is a greater fool.
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Double post! The key in implementing something like this would be to never let the system get in the way of someone actually going out to have fun, participate in PrPs, etc. It should only cover downtime.
To use the same example as before, Hermione went on plenty of adventures herself. The difference is how she spent the rest of her time; she hit the books while Harry flew around on a broomstick and shit.
- He who takes offense when not intended is a fool. He who takes offense when intended is a greater fool.
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@arkandel said in MUSHgicians elements:
To use the same example as before, Hermione went on plenty of adventures herself. The difference is how she spent the rest of her time; she hit the books while Harry flew around on a broomstick and shit.
And no one should be penalized for not wanting to RP through reading books and shit. This is why Downtime / Action Points are important for games.
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I second what people have said about using downtime/action points to allow people to note what their characters are doing off screen that are important.
I also want to add a magic system that is robust, but maybe, just maybe, a bit less difficult to wrap one's mind around than Mage. Maybe a focus on individual spells?
Finally, I would really like to see more games adopt/modify Arx's +plot and +clue systems. I think these really add to the RP experience.
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@lisse24 I like how the guy asked "HEY WHAT WOULD BE A COOL NAME" and we were like "HERE IS A LAUNDRY WISH LIST OF THE GAME I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR".
- He who takes offense when not intended is a fool. He who takes offense when intended is a greater fool.
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@arkandel said in MUSHgicians elements:
@lisse24 I like how the guy asked "HEY WHAT WOULD BE A COOL NAME" and we were like "HERE IS A LAUNDRY WISH LIST OF THE GAME I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR".
Well, no, because this is a separate thread in which he asked for what we are currently providing.
Gawd, Ark, please read for comprenhension on your own forum. JFC, what an embarrassment(?)
"Excuse the hell out of you. He's a bag of dicks. I'm a carefully curated box of cocks." -- to @GirlCalledBlu upon being misrepresented.
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@coin MSB is a write-only forum.
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Wait. I have a question.
...what system are you looking at using to begin with? Or is this going to be brand new, customized for the game?
https://whatiswrongwith.me/Mia
There were never any good old days. They are today. They are tomorrow. It's a stupid thing we say, cursing tomorrow with sorrow. -- Gogol Bordello -
I think in any system for Magicians, you need to take into account how the magic they do actually tends to work.
When they're starting out, they can do relatively little on their own. They rely on pre-formulated spells and such, and it takes them a long time to acquire knowledge.
But as they advance, they tend to be able to improvise within their discipline more than they could as a beginner. They can eschew words, gestures, can make shit up on the fly (see: pretty much the entire point of studying at Brakebills South).
So you'll still need a system that can eventually account for that. You could modify mage's system for this. Your Physical Kids can study Physical stuff and eventually be able to improvise in that system, but outside of that they are going to be able to improvise very little, and will need to rely on the tried-and-true spells that other people have formulated. But they should be able to freeform some of their stuff, even if they take a significant penalty for it (the study at BBS was not exactly easygoing, after all).
But improvisation can lead to really cool stuff. Like this.
Racism isn't Tinkerbell. It doesn't need you to believe in it for it to exist.
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Yep, this is the place for a laundry-list. To help me fill in the gaps in what I've got in mind, or find out that what I've got in mind isn't what's wanted (so far, not so.)
@aria I will use FS3, 'cause I can't code for crap and it's easy to customize enough to work, or so I believe.
"... you'll find the story doesn’t end how you think, and the most important characters aren’t who you expect.” - Penny 40 to Derek, The Magicians S04E07 ‘The Side Effect’
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@il-volpe I've had a pretty solid experience with FS3, myself, and like it for a fair number of things. I think that you'll definitely need to put some thought into a magic system beyond that, though, or how to best apply it to a magical system in order to ensure players can explore that aspect of the game. Personally, I don't think it needs to be particularly complicated, but I'm pretty biased there. I've never been a fan of complex mechanics and will shout "BURNING WHEEL, MOTHERFUCKERS" at pretty much anyone who asks for my opinion and quite a few people who don't, so....
