Area attacks

[imported_Rasyr]

It seems to me that the best method of including area attacks is to include it as a casting option on the various bolt spells (and no, Arcane Bolt , a Universal spell, does NOT get an area attack option)

For example, for Infernal Bolt, the area attack option will be an Infernal Ball attack (+10 CTN total, +3 SP total) and it is resolved as follows:

If the casting option, Infernal Ball, is used, the attack may be used to hit a specific person or to hit a location. If used to hit a location, the caster will have to attack the location and beat a DEF of 15, total damage will be figured from there. All who are within the radius of the spell when it hits are automatically hit, but they may make a Saving Throw vs. Dex (TN 15), with success meaning that they take half damage from the attack. A character's Armor Rating (AR) may then be applied against the remaining damage. In this sort of attack, a shield's bonus to DEF is counted as additional AR.

If the ball attack targets a specific person, the attack will be against the target's DEF and he will not get a Save for half damage. All others within the radius of the attack will be treated as if the attack were against a specific location (this uses the same roll as against the targeted person, the total damage is simply figured separately.

And don't forget, the casting roll and the actual attack roll are not two separate rolls, but only a single roll read in two different way..

In other words the CTN of an Infernal Ball is 27 and costs 4 SP.

If the caster has 10 ranks in Spellcasting and a stat bonus of +3, that gives him a total casting bonus of +13.

If the caster targets a location, and say he rolls a 16 on the dice, that gives him a total roll of 29. Successfully casting the spell.

In attacking a location (DEF 15), he easily hits and deals 7 points of Base Damage, and 14 points of scaled damage for a total of 21 points. Those that make their save vs. Dex will only take 11 points of damage (before AR is figured in).

In attacking a specific target (who has a DEF of 22), the target takes 7 hits of Base Damage and 7 hits of Scaled damage, 14 hits of damage in total without any Save vs. Dex, and everybody else within the radius will take 21 hits of damage (11 if they Save) before AR kicks in (figured as above).

Thoughts? Comments?

[Fidoric]

The mechanics seem sound to me. I will have to playtest it a little bit to confirm.
I wonder if you could add additional spell shapes as casting options like :

- Cone or Burst : the attack covers an cone-shaped area originating at the caster location and potentially dealing damage to everyone within a 60° arc and for example 10'. I see it as a reflex casting, the caster creating a sudden burst of elemental energy (maybe in self-defense) causing the same damage as a bolt attack.

- Boltlets : cause a shower of hundreds of dart-like elemental attacks to spring from the caster's hand toward a single target. I envision them as harder to avoid (ignore speed bonus to DEF ?) or maybe as using the lower AR of any part of the target as they effectively attack every part of the target at once.

I did not playtest this, but I will certainly do so soon.

[imported_Rasyr]

Hmm... Cone is a possibility, and maybe burst...

Boltlets on the other hand, not to sure, especially since one attack spell already does something like this (and works like a normal bolt, the damage being how many darts actually hit). So basically, boltlets would be a cosmetic preference more than anything else

[imported_Rasyr]

After a little more thought (and the chance to sleep on it), I think that I am going to not include anything more than the current options in the core rules.

To add a cone, it would either be prohibitively expensive in terms of CTN and SP (adding enough additional radii to fill in a cone), or I would have to go back and modify Libram Novus #1 again, to include a Cone option.

Burst presents even more issues, as you seem to suggest that it use the Fast Casting options, and having a nearly instantaneous attack is always problematic as it becomes the "standard" attack because it is harder to defend against (this would also be an issue for how you described boltlets...)

Now, as I am sitting here typing this, I am thinking that perhaps, I may need to make some minor changes to Libram Novus #1 (adjust the costs of a few things), and perhaps add in a new Universal Option called "allow Casting Options", which increased the CTN of spells by 1 point across the board, but removed the need to have the current "Unlocking" option be listed and used for every spell.

Now, if I did this, I would then simply use the Improv costs for casting options (which would allow the Unlock to use the Codified costs when modifying spells using the Spell Bases..... Thus preserving the benefits of using the Modifying spells rules...

Thoughts? Comments?

[Fidoric]

I did not pay any attention to the volume of a cone-shaped spell. That could make it difficult to cast indeed.
As for the boltlet concept, the idea was to trade damage against accuracy (maybe something like : ignore enemy speed bonus to DEF, no base damage). Now I realise that may not be very easy to do in Novus where your accuracy directly influence the damage you deal (scaled damage) and that's one of the many things I like in Novus.

If I understand, you propose :

• using "allow casting options" to make spells with casting options, making them have a +1 CTN, all casting options then use the Improv cost
• using "unlock" with spell bases only. It increases CTN by +3 (thus +1 SP), all added options then use the Codified cost

A fireball (firebolt spell with 5' radius), when made with the casting options system is CTN 19+1+10=30 and has SP=5. If created via a spell base, its CTN is 19+3+5=27, SP=4.
Is this right ?[/list]

[imported_Rasyr]

Close....

I would be changing the Unlock option to cost only +1 to CTN.

So, any spell in the current version of the rules, to which I add Casting Options, would have its base CTN increase by 1 (this would be MOST spells). In some cases (not many but a couple), this would increase the base SP cost by 1 as well as it moves the CTN into a higher bracket..

The CTN cost of using a casting option would then be the same as the Improv costs. Additional SP would be required (1 + 1 for every 3 points added to CTN beyond the first -- i.e. 1-3 =+1 SP, 4-6 = +2 SP, 7-9 = +3 SP, etc.)  Also note: that the revised rules also state that if you give a spell a Casting Option that increases something that it already has a cost for (such as increasing range from 10' to 20', that you use the Improv cost for 20' minus the Improv cost for 10' (the same principle would apply to using the Spell Bases to Modify spells, but using the Codified costs..

Then to use Spell Bases to modify a spell, you Unlock it (+1 to CTN), and then use the Codified column for option costs.

Thus, the spells and casting options reflect rote learning, not a real understanding of the underlying principles. Once you learn one or more Spell Bases, that gives the underlying principles, and thus allows the cheaper modifying...


Side Note: I have been going into Libram Novus #1 and adjusting some of the costs a bit, to make it easier overall in certain cases (and I have added a Cone option to attack -- base of cone width is 3' for every 10 of length (thus a 50' cone has a width of 15' across its wide end), and cones will work in the same manner as using the area attack against a location.

[Fidoric]

Crystal clear now. Thanks Rasyr.