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Inspired by the BG thread (and some things I've been pondering lately) what sort of things would you like as "Warrior Mage Utility".
I find myself lacking ideas here between the general theme that Warrior Mage magic is designed to blow things up or aid in blowing things up and the fact that familiars are already a slotless ability that provides the same utility as a number of combined utility spells.
-Raesh
"Ever notice that B.A.'s flavor text swells in direct proportion to how much one of our characters is getting screwed?" - Brian Van Hoose
When I think of WM Utility, I think "What things you can do on the battlefield can be useful to help others?". Fortress of Ice creating a sanctuary area comes to mind as something that I think is a perfect example of WM Utility. I'd like to be able to tell my familiar to guard someone (not like Paladin protect, more like when you type GUARD <player>). I'd like to be able to give someone else (or myself) retributive elemental damage that counterattacked when they were hit (similar to what Storm Bulls do or did). I miss the days of casting Ice Patch on a corpse to make them easier to drag. Being able to "mark" a room, and then being able to order your familiar to drag a body from wherever it is now to that location would be pretty boss for utility...WM's sending their fallen allies to Triage without having to leave the battlefield. Some sort of group Air-vortex that messed with projectile attacks for the area could give WM's an anti-arrow-volley niche.
I still want a way to light things on fire sans-naphtha, too.
- Starlear, Warrior Mage and Lieutenant of Ilithi's Crystal Vanguard -
I still want a way to light things on fire sans-naphtha, too.
- Starlear, Warrior Mage and Lieutenant of Ilithi's Crystal Vanguard -
I think you have a bigger problem in Utility being a bad skill.
Spells appear to be pulled into utility from more appropriate skills seemingly at random in order to create a utility suite. 'Healing' is utility, except fatigue healing which is augmentation. Many utility spells are split between two skills, and the utility exp tends to make even less sense in these cases. Some muddy the waters even worse. Dispel effects are utility, but also debilitation if you're a moon mage, and pure warding if you're a barbarian.
The fact that barbarians throw out the entire skill and still do utility effects is pretty awful.
That said: cauterize.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
Spells appear to be pulled into utility from more appropriate skills seemingly at random in order to create a utility suite. 'Healing' is utility, except fatigue healing which is augmentation. Many utility spells are split between two skills, and the utility exp tends to make even less sense in these cases. Some muddy the waters even worse. Dispel effects are utility, but also debilitation if you're a moon mage, and pure warding if you're a barbarian.
The fact that barbarians throw out the entire skill and still do utility effects is pretty awful.
That said: cauterize.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
Doublepost? Starlear has redeemed Utility in might sight. Utility for a war mage should be battlefield control!
War Mages need some more light crowd/engagement control to fill out the suite. Can Dragonrealms' engine even support this? I have no idea! Not my job epic shrug.
Sentinel: Esoteric Earth Utility, requires Sure Footing, Anther's Call. You raise an earthwork in the room that limits the maximum number of engagements with you at melee range to 3.
Countercurrent: Esoteric water utility. You floor the ground with a stream of water that increases the time it takes to advance or retreat in the area.
Wind Clan: Eoteric aether utility. You call up 1 to 3 aetheral shades to advance on your opponent. Their attacks do no damage and they are fragile, but they do impose multi-opponent and engagement penalites.
These have nothing to do with crowd control:
Tree of Magic/Agani Tayeu'a: Esoteric Electiricy Utility. You forcibly restore your attunement with a jolt to the nervous system. Has the effect of a kirmhiro draught.
Can we just steal Anti-Stun and make it an electricity spell? It could also shoot back.
Somethingsomething: Esoteric Aether ritual Utility/elemental transformation, requires Aether Cloak. You ground your very being into the aetherial web, reducing the preparation time of spells. Caster gains a ghostly after-image. Could also see this being Electricity.
Unrelated to utility: we still need a tactics buff. Revive Earth Sense for this prupose, no messaging even needs to change.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
War Mages need some more light crowd/engagement control to fill out the suite. Can Dragonrealms' engine even support this? I have no idea! Not my job epic shrug.
Sentinel: Esoteric Earth Utility, requires Sure Footing, Anther's Call. You raise an earthwork in the room that limits the maximum number of engagements with you at melee range to 3.
Countercurrent: Esoteric water utility. You floor the ground with a stream of water that increases the time it takes to advance or retreat in the area.
Wind Clan: Eoteric aether utility. You call up 1 to 3 aetheral shades to advance on your opponent. Their attacks do no damage and they are fragile, but they do impose multi-opponent and engagement penalites.
These have nothing to do with crowd control:
Tree of Magic/Agani Tayeu'a: Esoteric Electiricy Utility. You forcibly restore your attunement with a jolt to the nervous system. Has the effect of a kirmhiro draught.
Can we just steal Anti-Stun and make it an electricity spell? It could also shoot back.
Somethingsomething: Esoteric Aether ritual Utility/elemental transformation, requires Aether Cloak. You ground your very being into the aetherial web, reducing the preparation time of spells. Caster gains a ghostly after-image. Could also see this being Electricity.
Unrelated to utility: we still need a tactics buff. Revive Earth Sense for this prupose, no messaging even needs to change.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
Having utility tied into elements would be cool. If I had to think of what utility for a war mage would mean I would think of like other non direct damage/debilitating spells you see in some wizards spellbooks in other crpgs. A couple of them have been sorta mentioned like an elemental mirror image type spell, different types of summon elemental spells that can be for anti-CC like an earth elemental that pulls whoever the spell is cast on back to their feet if they've been knocked down. Bonus if we can have like a spell that sets like rechargeable electrical caltrops at pole range around a person that can do damage/brief stun if they're tripped. Or mines. Let me set fire mines around Crossing.
Some interesting ideas here (Some more technically feasible than others...) but note a lot of them are debilitation.
General guidelines (We weren't spectacular about following them during 3.0, though I think most were corrected by 3.1)
Augmentation - This directly improves the target's performance. Skill and stat boosts are the classic example, but also includes things like balance boosts. There's been some debate on if things like weapon enhancement should be Augmentation or Utility - I think Utility needs it more personally, and no one is lacking augmentation spells.
Target - This is any spell that causes damage (plus a few oddball non-TM spells like Paralysis). This skill is intended to be trained in combat exclusively.
Debilitation - Anything that directly hinders, without harming, the target. Skill/stat debuffs (Though these are far less common than buffs), spells that knock down, hinder, disable, and so forth. This skill is intended to be trained in combat exclusively.
Warding - Spells that protect the caster from incoming harm. Generally these are barrier spells (And one of the hardest types of spell to develop, thus the barrier review project since most of the existing ones are too broad).
Utility - Everything else. This makes it actually an incredibly broad skill but Utility spells should have little or no combat applications
Fatigue recovery, as mentioned, is a debatable point. Vitality/Wound healing is definitely utility, but it many ways fatigue healing gets treated as a combat buff like a balance booster (Which would be Augmentation). I could get behind converting Fatigue recovery over to a function of utility.
-Raesh
"Ever notice that B.A.'s flavor text swells in direct proportion to how much one of our characters is getting screwed?" - Brian Van Hoose
General guidelines (We weren't spectacular about following them during 3.0, though I think most were corrected by 3.1)
Augmentation - This directly improves the target's performance. Skill and stat boosts are the classic example, but also includes things like balance boosts. There's been some debate on if things like weapon enhancement should be Augmentation or Utility - I think Utility needs it more personally, and no one is lacking augmentation spells.
Target - This is any spell that causes damage (plus a few oddball non-TM spells like Paralysis). This skill is intended to be trained in combat exclusively.
Debilitation - Anything that directly hinders, without harming, the target. Skill/stat debuffs (Though these are far less common than buffs), spells that knock down, hinder, disable, and so forth. This skill is intended to be trained in combat exclusively.
Warding - Spells that protect the caster from incoming harm. Generally these are barrier spells (And one of the hardest types of spell to develop, thus the barrier review project since most of the existing ones are too broad).
Utility - Everything else. This makes it actually an incredibly broad skill but Utility spells should have little or no combat applications
Fatigue recovery, as mentioned, is a debatable point. Vitality/Wound healing is definitely utility, but it many ways fatigue healing gets treated as a combat buff like a balance booster (Which would be Augmentation). I could get behind converting Fatigue recovery over to a function of utility.
-Raesh
"Ever notice that B.A.'s flavor text swells in direct proportion to how much one of our characters is getting screwed?" - Brian Van Hoose
Elemental mines:
Require base spell in earth
metaspell in fire for additional fire dmg
metaspell in water for flash freeze(no dmg) mine
metaspell in electric for stun (no dmg) mine
Mines last based on utility, pre and post planting. Planting mines in justice triggers justice.
Plant with arcana skill. Arcana or locksmithing to disarm/harvest.
Any advancing in a room can trigger a mine. Perception to see a mine, tactics to avoid triggering while advancing.
"Game balance is sobbing over in the corner as it considers the ramifications of AoE Blufmor Garaen. Your spell slots send their condolences." - GM Raesh
Require base spell in earth
metaspell in fire for additional fire dmg
metaspell in water for flash freeze(no dmg) mine
metaspell in electric for stun (no dmg) mine
Mines last based on utility, pre and post planting. Planting mines in justice triggers justice.
Plant with arcana skill. Arcana or locksmithing to disarm/harvest.
Any advancing in a room can trigger a mine. Perception to see a mine, tactics to avoid triggering while advancing.
"Game balance is sobbing over in the corner as it considers the ramifications of AoE Blufmor Garaen. Your spell slots send their condolences." - GM Raesh
> Inspired by the BG thread (and some things I've been pondering lately) what sort of things would you like as "Warrior Mage Utility".
A few ideas.
1. Empower familiar (Esoteric - Aether). Speed up travel, let them pick up bigger things, train them to pick up your weapon / search for help (do they still do this - make it more effective?) automatically if you die.
2. Boost (Basic - Air). Empower your feet with the power of air. Jump to immediately return you to pole or range.
3. Singe/Deluge (Basic - AOE Fire/water). Changes or negates the weather effects in the area. Singe + rain = normal cost for fire spells. Deluge + rain = much lower mana requirements for water spells, much higher for fire. Singe + sunny day = much lower mana costs for fire spells, much lower for water.
4. Magnetic ripple (Esoteric - earth). Cast on your weapon or ammo to magnetize it. This helps you make contact with creatures you can barely hit, but doesn't help you with creatures you can easily hit (effectively a missile/melee mastery buff) when using an empowered weapon.
A few ideas.
1. Empower familiar (Esoteric - Aether). Speed up travel, let them pick up bigger things, train them to pick up your weapon / search for help (do they still do this - make it more effective?) automatically if you die.
2. Boost (Basic - Air). Empower your feet with the power of air. Jump to immediately return you to pole or range.
3. Singe/Deluge (Basic - AOE Fire/water). Changes or negates the weather effects in the area. Singe + rain = normal cost for fire spells. Deluge + rain = much lower mana requirements for water spells, much higher for fire. Singe + sunny day = much lower mana costs for fire spells, much lower for water.
4. Magnetic ripple (Esoteric - earth). Cast on your weapon or ammo to magnetize it. This helps you make contact with creatures you can barely hit, but doesn't help you with creatures you can easily hit (effectively a missile/melee mastery buff) when using an empowered weapon.
>>Singe/Deluge (Basic - AOE Fire/water). Changes or negates the weather effects in the area. Singe + rain = normal cost for fire spells. Deluge + rain = much lower mana requirements for water spells, much higher for fire. Singe + sunny day = much lower mana costs for fire spells, much lower for water.
While I like this idea it would require some heavy revamp of the existing weather system (Which is something I have some nifty ideas for but, unfortunately, I don't see it working it's way to the top of my plate anytime soon). I do question how it would be that much different from creating a water/fire domain.
-Raesh
"Ever notice that B.A.'s flavor text swells in direct proportion to how much one of our characters is getting screwed?" - Brian Van Hoose
While I like this idea it would require some heavy revamp of the existing weather system (Which is something I have some nifty ideas for but, unfortunately, I don't see it working it's way to the top of my plate anytime soon). I do question how it would be that much different from creating a water/fire domain.
-Raesh
"Ever notice that B.A.'s flavor text swells in direct proportion to how much one of our characters is getting screwed?" - Brian Van Hoose
Tying Elemental Charge in with Utility would be something that could extend that system some. Being able to "Link" spells with our charge could be a great way to extend use of Summoning skill.
-Add charge to spells via some utility cast prior to extend power/duration/training exp ranges
-Combining different elements together to have different damage/looks
-Link familiars with the element we're aligned with to assist with spells (my eagle-owl familiar is too awesome looking, but I use my leopard because the fire alignment)
I feel like a lot of what is being mentioned fits way more in with Augmentation kind of spells. Boosts = Aug to me, utility more controls or shapes the spells and abilities we are using.
I'm always a fan of setting up combos with spells. Example RoS at pole and PW things back to get stabbed. Might not be super quick efficient kill em all quick but it's fun. Tingle weapons then take them and Flashpoint them. Someone else told me they like to Tingle then Gust of Wind. Utility to link abilities and spells together would be amazing.
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
-Add charge to spells via some utility cast prior to extend power/duration/training exp ranges
-Combining different elements together to have different damage/looks
-Link familiars with the element we're aligned with to assist with spells (my eagle-owl familiar is too awesome looking, but I use my leopard because the fire alignment)
I feel like a lot of what is being mentioned fits way more in with Augmentation kind of spells. Boosts = Aug to me, utility more controls or shapes the spells and abilities we are using.
I'm always a fan of setting up combos with spells. Example RoS at pole and PW things back to get stabbed. Might not be super quick efficient kill em all quick but it's fun. Tingle weapons then take them and Flashpoint them. Someone else told me they like to Tingle then Gust of Wind. Utility to link abilities and spells together would be amazing.
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
Weren't the sentinels supposed to have ties to the elemental planes that would allow brief visits/visions?
Finish those with some utility (surviving the planes) spells to gather elemental materials for crafting.
"Game balance is sobbing over in the corner as it considers the ramifications of AoE Blufmor Garaen. Your spell slots send their condolences." - GM Raesh
Finish those with some utility (surviving the planes) spells to gather elemental materials for crafting.
"Game balance is sobbing over in the corner as it considers the ramifications of AoE Blufmor Garaen. Your spell slots send their condolences." - GM Raesh
I pulled all my effects from existing utility abilities, at least.
The skill currently covers: Dispel, stun/status clear, calm, rt reduction (principally in khri form), pulsing search, creature creation, item creation, mana boost, weapon enhancement, healing, teleporation, invsibility, clairvoyance and anti-clairvoyance, and spells that in and of themselves do nothing.
Reading those definitions though, I return my vote to deleting the utility skill, it fails the skill test badly. Barbarians do many of these effects with other skills, unlike TM which they cannot replicate. This is bad. Although comparing the above list to 'little combat application' I am bemused.
OR maybe rename the skill Conjuration. It would more closely reflect what the skill actually does (Make stuff, fix stuff, move stuff). Invisbility should probably be augmentation, it's a skill boost flat-out.
Dispel, status clear, calm, RT reduction, creation, mana boost, weapon enhancement, and healing are all pretty problematic as things you don't generally have any desire to do out of combat. If you remove those there's not a lot of utility spells left at all... DR is a combat game, non-combat abilities get dropped because nobody picks them.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
The skill currently covers: Dispel, stun/status clear, calm, rt reduction (principally in khri form), pulsing search, creature creation, item creation, mana boost, weapon enhancement, healing, teleporation, invsibility, clairvoyance and anti-clairvoyance, and spells that in and of themselves do nothing.
Reading those definitions though, I return my vote to deleting the utility skill, it fails the skill test badly. Barbarians do many of these effects with other skills, unlike TM which they cannot replicate. This is bad. Although comparing the above list to 'little combat application' I am bemused.
OR maybe rename the skill Conjuration. It would more closely reflect what the skill actually does (Make stuff, fix stuff, move stuff). Invisbility should probably be augmentation, it's a skill boost flat-out.
Dispel, status clear, calm, RT reduction, creation, mana boost, weapon enhancement, and healing are all pretty problematic as things you don't generally have any desire to do out of combat. If you remove those there's not a lot of utility spells left at all... DR is a combat game, non-combat abilities get dropped because nobody picks them.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
I got lucky for a while before 3.1 and got an Aesandry Darlaeth scroll drop I used for a long time for easy cyclic Aug/Util training. That spell is beyond amazing, let's get something like that! Empaths won't mind ;)
https://elanthipedia.play.net/mediawiki/index.php/Aesandry_Darlaeth
Aesandry Darlaeth forces your muscles and nerves to react much more swiftly than they normally would. As long as you maintain this spell, your reaction time will markedly decrease, improving your reflexes and making it easier to maintain your balance in combat. Such a quickness also means that your movement will not be obstructed by anything for long.
Effect:
+reflex, +recovery from balance/immobilization/webbing
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
https://elanthipedia.play.net/mediawiki/index.php/Aesandry_Darlaeth
Aesandry Darlaeth forces your muscles and nerves to react much more swiftly than they normally would. As long as you maintain this spell, your reaction time will markedly decrease, improving your reflexes and making it easier to maintain your balance in combat. Such a quickness also means that your movement will not be obstructed by anything for long.
Effect:
+reflex, +recovery from balance/immobilization/webbing
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
>>Finish those with some utility (surviving the planes) spells to gather elemental materials for crafting.
Most of the Elemental Planes are singularities of elemental law and potential. You'd have better luck in a black hole.
The Elemental Plane of Electricity is different, with investigations showing actual space/time/matter inside it. Perhaps one day we'll see a way to explore it.
-Armifer
"Perinthia's astronomers are faced with a difficult choice. Either they must admit that all their calculations were wrong ... or else they must reveal that the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters." - Calvino Italo
Most of the Elemental Planes are singularities of elemental law and potential. You'd have better luck in a black hole.
The Elemental Plane of Electricity is different, with investigations showing actual space/time/matter inside it. Perhaps one day we'll see a way to explore it.
-Armifer
"Perinthia's astronomers are faced with a difficult choice. Either they must admit that all their calculations were wrong ... or else they must reveal that the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters." - Calvino Italo
> Most of the Elemental Planes are singularities of elemental law and potential.
It's a common misconception that we at the Institute visit the elemental planes. The truth is quite complex, but could be better described as saying that the elemental planes visit us. By connecting Abiding with one of the planes, in a manner not unlike the well known spell Fissure*, we allow a small fragment of the plane to infuse a part of our own. Always in a controlled environment, we stress. The plane instills some of its laws upon our own, resulting in a hybrid region under the sway of two planar principles. While undoubtedly an expression of the foreign plane's elemental nature, such helpful concepts as time, space and identity are preserved.
Of course, the extraplanar infused region (or "Conflux", as we have taken to calling it) is still incredibly hostile. Extremes of temperature are only the first concern an explorer needs to contend with. But we are making great progress in designing appropriate protective spells to outfit our graduate assistants with. We expect to have the fatality rate below 10% within the year.
And the benefits of such exploration cannot be understated. Strange and wonderful materials occur within a conflux, with remarkable properties that we are only beginning to understand. We expect the analysis of such to be a fruitful path of research for years to come. And of course there's the priceless opportunity to better understand the nature of the elemental planes.
There has been one oddity, however. Naively, one might expect the terrain of a conflux to resemble the underlying terrain of Abiding, but with an elemental cast. For example, a fire conflux should be very hot, with a great deal of fire. And indeed we do see this. However, we also see other, stranger landscape which have no relation to the original terrain and no obvious connection to the element in question. Almost as if the elemental plane had a topography of its own, and was simply lacking the concept of space to express it in. Regardless, further studies (and further grants) are required.
* Which, we hasten to remind the reader, was a product of research very similar to our own.
It's a common misconception that we at the Institute visit the elemental planes. The truth is quite complex, but could be better described as saying that the elemental planes visit us. By connecting Abiding with one of the planes, in a manner not unlike the well known spell Fissure*, we allow a small fragment of the plane to infuse a part of our own. Always in a controlled environment, we stress. The plane instills some of its laws upon our own, resulting in a hybrid region under the sway of two planar principles. While undoubtedly an expression of the foreign plane's elemental nature, such helpful concepts as time, space and identity are preserved.
Of course, the extraplanar infused region (or "Conflux", as we have taken to calling it) is still incredibly hostile. Extremes of temperature are only the first concern an explorer needs to contend with. But we are making great progress in designing appropriate protective spells to outfit our graduate assistants with. We expect to have the fatality rate below 10% within the year.
And the benefits of such exploration cannot be understated. Strange and wonderful materials occur within a conflux, with remarkable properties that we are only beginning to understand. We expect the analysis of such to be a fruitful path of research for years to come. And of course there's the priceless opportunity to better understand the nature of the elemental planes.
There has been one oddity, however. Naively, one might expect the terrain of a conflux to resemble the underlying terrain of Abiding, but with an elemental cast. For example, a fire conflux should be very hot, with a great deal of fire. And indeed we do see this. However, we also see other, stranger landscape which have no relation to the original terrain and no obvious connection to the element in question. Almost as if the elemental plane had a topography of its own, and was simply lacking the concept of space to express it in. Regardless, further studies (and further grants) are required.
* Which, we hasten to remind the reader, was a product of research very similar to our own.
I felt creative, and I absolutely LOVE the idea of WM utility spells being not traditional utility spells, but rather battle-related utility spells. We're useless outside of combat, but we control the flow of what's going on inside it! So here are some ideas I had.
Distant Thunder - A utility metaspell for Shockwave. Allows the spell, after being targeted, to be cast at someone else, allowing the knockback effect to occur on creatures engaged to a target other than the mage. Or, if you're feeling really generous, fold this back into Shockwave. Please?!?!
Earth Tomb - Contingency spell. When your health goes below a certain point the earth grabs you and pulls you down beneath the ground for several second. During this time the body is in stasis - the condition does not deteriorate or worsen - after which it is spit out, if possible, in an adjacent location that is free of any enemies or any players recently engaged with the mage. If not, it does the best it can.
Lightning's Dance - A controversial spell, not for what it does, but for what it appears to do. With the assistance of an elemental spirit lying dormant within the target, the spell allows a dead body to move itself, if poorly, even after death. When cast on a target, the spirit is bound to the location cast. If the target dies, be it the mage herself or another target cast, elemental electricity will be used to stimulate the body to shamble / crawl back to the bound locaton, after picking up its dropped weapon, and then become inert once more. This spell will cause additional injury to the body and the duration may be limited. Mostly useful for invasions, protecting weapons from losing them in difficult to deal with areas, or for that mage who's just GOTTA be raised to keep that scroll.
In addition, since I don't think this has enough kick for a spell to stand alone, it could also have an included ability to INVOKE the spell for a brief emergency effect, with Aesandry Darlaeth-like effects - Causes the muscles to spasm more strongly than they otherwise would be able to in order to escape immobilization/webbing effects, causing damage to the body and burning off the spell all at once. If we're feeling really generous, this could also be used to apply to Athletics checks. The Invoked ability would have a very brief duration and a cooldown, making it unusuable to navigate long stretches of difficult terrain. In other words, it won't allow you to bypass the skill wall for the Gondola, but may get you up that one stubborn climb.
Driving Gale - Cyclic, perhaps to control the effects and keep slot cost low? Makes it difficult to engage, attack, or fire at a person thus protected, but equally difficult for the person inside to do the same. Helpful for investigating those difficult areas you've never been to or spectating during an invasion for the mage, or can be cast on someone else for protecting the target in combat - so long as the mage is able to handle him or herself!
Additionally, with increasingly large amounts of mana used, additional individuals grouped with the mage can be protected as well, allowing multiple people to be protected in the eye of the storm. Targets must be within the mage's group when the spell is cast, or they will be unable to breach the winds to join.
Stoneskin - Contrary to the misconceptions of some, stoneskin does little to actually protect the mage in combat. Stoneskin dulls the nerves in the body, preventing the pain from the wounds from affecting the mage, and bolstering his muscle and sinew to compensate for his injuries. This spell comes with a warning - several mages have died on their feet from the wounds they did not feel after its effects wore off!
- Spell reduces hindrance from injuries (including nerve damage), and reduces chances of a stun. Longer duration than Anti-Stun, but less effective, not a Battle Spell. The spell also diminishes bleeding while in effect, though they come back stronger once the spell has worn off. (Sorry, Cauterize is just too narrow!)
Earth Sense - I have nothing really new here, but I'd like to see the spell back in some form, both granting a perception boost and letting the mage know there are things there that they can't see, even if the mage can't see them with the spell.
Distant Thunder - A utility metaspell for Shockwave. Allows the spell, after being targeted, to be cast at someone else, allowing the knockback effect to occur on creatures engaged to a target other than the mage. Or, if you're feeling really generous, fold this back into Shockwave. Please?!?!
Earth Tomb - Contingency spell. When your health goes below a certain point the earth grabs you and pulls you down beneath the ground for several second. During this time the body is in stasis - the condition does not deteriorate or worsen - after which it is spit out, if possible, in an adjacent location that is free of any enemies or any players recently engaged with the mage. If not, it does the best it can.
Lightning's Dance - A controversial spell, not for what it does, but for what it appears to do. With the assistance of an elemental spirit lying dormant within the target, the spell allows a dead body to move itself, if poorly, even after death. When cast on a target, the spirit is bound to the location cast. If the target dies, be it the mage herself or another target cast, elemental electricity will be used to stimulate the body to shamble / crawl back to the bound locaton, after picking up its dropped weapon, and then become inert once more. This spell will cause additional injury to the body and the duration may be limited. Mostly useful for invasions, protecting weapons from losing them in difficult to deal with areas, or for that mage who's just GOTTA be raised to keep that scroll.
In addition, since I don't think this has enough kick for a spell to stand alone, it could also have an included ability to INVOKE the spell for a brief emergency effect, with Aesandry Darlaeth-like effects - Causes the muscles to spasm more strongly than they otherwise would be able to in order to escape immobilization/webbing effects, causing damage to the body and burning off the spell all at once. If we're feeling really generous, this could also be used to apply to Athletics checks. The Invoked ability would have a very brief duration and a cooldown, making it unusuable to navigate long stretches of difficult terrain. In other words, it won't allow you to bypass the skill wall for the Gondola, but may get you up that one stubborn climb.
Driving Gale - Cyclic, perhaps to control the effects and keep slot cost low? Makes it difficult to engage, attack, or fire at a person thus protected, but equally difficult for the person inside to do the same. Helpful for investigating those difficult areas you've never been to or spectating during an invasion for the mage, or can be cast on someone else for protecting the target in combat - so long as the mage is able to handle him or herself!
Additionally, with increasingly large amounts of mana used, additional individuals grouped with the mage can be protected as well, allowing multiple people to be protected in the eye of the storm. Targets must be within the mage's group when the spell is cast, or they will be unable to breach the winds to join.
Stoneskin - Contrary to the misconceptions of some, stoneskin does little to actually protect the mage in combat. Stoneskin dulls the nerves in the body, preventing the pain from the wounds from affecting the mage, and bolstering his muscle and sinew to compensate for his injuries. This spell comes with a warning - several mages have died on their feet from the wounds they did not feel after its effects wore off!
- Spell reduces hindrance from injuries (including nerve damage), and reduces chances of a stun. Longer duration than Anti-Stun, but less effective, not a Battle Spell. The spell also diminishes bleeding while in effect, though they come back stronger once the spell has worn off. (Sorry, Cauterize is just too narrow!)
Earth Sense - I have nothing really new here, but I'd like to see the spell back in some form, both granting a perception boost and letting the mage know there are things there that they can't see, even if the mage can't see them with the spell.
Perhaps this instead of Earth Sense. Might be more WM-appropriate...
Flare - The anti-Rising Mists. This spell lights an area brightly, hindering hiding and invisibility and providing a light source. In addition, it could provide the ability to shoot flares up into the sky, allowing signalling with different types of flares to tie into a mass combat system. Obviously each guild would have a part to play for that, and different slices of the pie would be allocated to specific guilds. I'm thinking there could be a "universal code" for all clears, etc.
I was given the idea for this one by the suggestion by Navesi in the Tactics folder here. http://forums.play.net/forums/DragonRealms/Combat%20-%20Weapons%20and%20Armor/Tactics/view/1035
Flare - The anti-Rising Mists. This spell lights an area brightly, hindering hiding and invisibility and providing a light source. In addition, it could provide the ability to shoot flares up into the sky, allowing signalling with different types of flares to tie into a mass combat system. Obviously each guild would have a part to play for that, and different slices of the pie would be allocated to specific guilds. I'm thinking there could be a "universal code" for all clears, etc.
I was given the idea for this one by the suggestion by Navesi in the Tactics folder here. http://forums.play.net/forums/DragonRealms/Combat%20-%20Weapons%20and%20Armor/Tactics/view/1035
>The Elemental Plane of Electricity is different, with investigations showing actual space/time/matter inside it. Perhaps one day we'll see a way to explore it.
I'd love to see the ability to travel around Elanthia via lightning. Nothing as precise as teleport, though. Casting it would move the user from their current location to a room somewhere near where he or she intended to go. Perhaps there could be buildings with lightning rods that would aid WMs in this ability. I also feel this should be a much higher spell level than Teleport is for moon mages. And it should be far more dangerous - with the risks and accuracy of the spell improving as one's magical abilities increase. Maybe a few meta-spells to allow a player to fine-tune control over the spell.
It appears that Clarify Gem has vanished from the game. Perhaps we could get purify gem and purify metal spells - though I think they'd work better as an ability for a well trained fire / earth mage instead of taking a spell slot.
An improve familiar skill would be good, too. Would allow us to change our familiars in a similar way that empaths shift PCs. We could change the descriptor and animal type. Particularly skilled WMs could get additional descriptors and animals not in the normal familiar system.
Also, as mentioned earlier, Cauterize - but as a black fire spell.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
I'd love to see the ability to travel around Elanthia via lightning. Nothing as precise as teleport, though. Casting it would move the user from their current location to a room somewhere near where he or she intended to go. Perhaps there could be buildings with lightning rods that would aid WMs in this ability. I also feel this should be a much higher spell level than Teleport is for moon mages. And it should be far more dangerous - with the risks and accuracy of the spell improving as one's magical abilities increase. Maybe a few meta-spells to allow a player to fine-tune control over the spell.
It appears that Clarify Gem has vanished from the game. Perhaps we could get purify gem and purify metal spells - though I think they'd work better as an ability for a well trained fire / earth mage instead of taking a spell slot.
An improve familiar skill would be good, too. Would allow us to change our familiars in a similar way that empaths shift PCs. We could change the descriptor and animal type. Particularly skilled WMs could get additional descriptors and animals not in the normal familiar system.
Also, as mentioned earlier, Cauterize - but as a black fire spell.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
Another utility spell / idea: We should have something from the fire or electricity book that acts like a torch. Perhaps Ignite would cause or weapons to give off light like a torch.
Would also be cool if we could combine Ignite (or a new spell of a different elemental spell that worked like Ignite) with Bless from a Cleric to make a holy fire (holy ice, holy wind, etc.) weapon buff.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
Would also be cool if we could combine Ignite (or a new spell of a different elemental spell that worked like Ignite) with Bless from a Cleric to make a holy fire (holy ice, holy wind, etc.) weapon buff.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
> Mantle of Flame lights rooms
Aha! I thought there was a spell that does that.
The two side effects of MoF though - light a room / damage while brawling - I wish they weren't relegated to a level 50 spell. Would be nice if they could be moved to Ignite - perhaps needing a metaspell and / or advanced magical skill to pull off.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
Aha! I thought there was a spell that does that.
The two side effects of MoF though - light a room / damage while brawling - I wish they weren't relegated to a level 50 spell. Would be nice if they could be moved to Ignite - perhaps needing a metaspell and / or advanced magical skill to pull off.
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"Technically correct" is the worst kind of correct.
>Aha! I thought there was a spell that does that.
For some reason I thought one of the cantrips did also. Maybe im just thinking of Burning Touch and using it on torches and other stuff.
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
For some reason I thought one of the cantrips did also. Maybe im just thinking of Burning Touch and using it on torches and other stuff.
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
>It appears that Clarify Gem has vanished from the game. Perhaps we could get purify gem and purify metal spells - though I think they'd work better as an ability for a well trained fire / earth mage instead of taking a spell slot.
Clarify Gem vanished because very few people wanted to spend spell slots on it. I expect that war mages players are going to be even less likely to spend spell slots on a non-combat spell.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
Clarify Gem vanished because very few people wanted to spend spell slots on it. I expect that war mages players are going to be even less likely to spend spell slots on a non-combat spell.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
We might see Clarify Gem come back with massive QoL improvements as a Trader spell eventually. Maybe. Probably not. But at least thematically that's where it'd go if it ever sees the light of day again. Which it might not.
-Armifer
"Perinthia's astronomers are faced with a difficult choice. Either they must admit that all their calculations were wrong ... or else they must reveal that the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters." - Calvino Italo
-Armifer
"Perinthia's astronomers are faced with a difficult choice. Either they must admit that all their calculations were wrong ... or else they must reveal that the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters." - Calvino Italo
>Prep Clarify Gem
You raise your arms skyward, chanting the actuarial table of the Clarify Gem spell.
>Cast
You Gesture.
A deathly silent circle of light spins into being, whirling and bristling with glistening spines until it coalesces into a dark crystalline spike.
>shrug
You shrug.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
You raise your arms skyward, chanting the actuarial table of the Clarify Gem spell.
>Cast
You Gesture.
A deathly silent circle of light spins into being, whirling and bristling with glistening spines until it coalesces into a dark crystalline spike.
>shrug
You shrug.
>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
> We might see Clarify Gem come back with massive QoL improvements as a Trader spell eventually. Maybe. Probably not. But at least thematically that's where it'd go if it ever sees the light of day again. Which it might not.
Let it be cast on a full and tied pouch, and I guarantee you traders would be interested in it. For warrior mages, you could go the opposite direction: "destabilize gem". Moltenize the internal gem to turn them into rare quality sling ammo or explosive arrowheads. They have one shot. Then they hit and explode. I don't know, maybe that's better suited to the enchanting system.
utility spell to make simple carving tools? or increase stone tools' quality/durability?
icy tongs and electric sewing machine? open an icy fissure and shove your fist in to freeze an item like an uncholai bucket, or cook it in a fire domain like a stove, with a little hand scuffing? impress the ladies, cook the WM way!
___________________
You make a few adjustments to the Zoluren, and you feel confident that it will recognize you as its owner.
icy tongs and electric sewing machine? open an icy fissure and shove your fist in to freeze an item like an uncholai bucket, or cook it in a fire domain like a stove, with a little hand scuffing? impress the ladies, cook the WM way!
___________________
You make a few adjustments to the Zoluren, and you feel confident that it will recognize you as its owner.
I'm just coming back after some time away, but figured I'd shotgun some ideas that have played in my head surrounding the 3.0 changes and onwards without trying to duplicate other class abilities:
Warmages are masters of magic in combat, and as such we have some very desirable buffing spells. What about a utility spell (or metaspell) that allowed us to cast our buffs (SW, SUF, Substratum... maybe even extend to MAF, Ease, YS and TW?) on our entire group, similar to ES. Great for buffing for invasions, instead of having to cast a dozen spells to cover everyone.
Other utility, being able to adjust or shape our Aether Cloak to again allow our familiars and ourselves to be undetectable (POW FAMILIAR and Locate, respectively). It used to do this.
There's the obvious line of Ignite for the other elements.
I'd love to see new crafting have more tie-ins to magic, and us being lore secondaries. Bards have the crafting buff spell, what about an air or electricty spell that would reduce crafting RT's? I think somebody else (barbs?) get a forging specific buff too, maybe a stone spell to give a mining or shaping buff? I'm sure any sort of crafting tie-ins are super hard to get approval for though.
Some sort of spell that would just extend the duration of all our buffs by a bit? Not to make them last longer than cap, but once they are below cap to add some time to them. We have a lot of self-cast spells.
Warmages are masters of magic in combat, and as such we have some very desirable buffing spells. What about a utility spell (or metaspell) that allowed us to cast our buffs (SW, SUF, Substratum... maybe even extend to MAF, Ease, YS and TW?) on our entire group, similar to ES. Great for buffing for invasions, instead of having to cast a dozen spells to cover everyone.
Other utility, being able to adjust or shape our Aether Cloak to again allow our familiars and ourselves to be undetectable (POW FAMILIAR and Locate, respectively). It used to do this.
There's the obvious line of Ignite for the other elements.
I'd love to see new crafting have more tie-ins to magic, and us being lore secondaries. Bards have the crafting buff spell, what about an air or electricty spell that would reduce crafting RT's? I think somebody else (barbs?) get a forging specific buff too, maybe a stone spell to give a mining or shaping buff? I'm sure any sort of crafting tie-ins are super hard to get approval for though.
Some sort of spell that would just extend the duration of all our buffs by a bit? Not to make them last longer than cap, but once they are below cap to add some time to them. We have a lot of self-cast spells.
>on our entire group
I don't honestly think group casting I enough of a concern to bother with this personally. Leave the leading to Paladins.
>There's the obvious line of Ignite for the other elements.
100% completely wish I could type explicit words to support this. Its really the most obvious utility to a utility that we have. One thing though PLEASE don't make this low level anyone can ignite a weapon with any element. Even if you tied it to Summoning and you alignment. I am so bored with nothing new 100+.
>new crafting have more tie-ins to magic
Elemental tools that straight buff whatever makes sense would be awesome or the ability to "ignite" tools. Fire/Electric make thing faster, Earth durability, Air maybe like a 'cleaner carve/poud/etc? if that's doable? isn't quality of action a thing in crafting?" Aether who knows what it is, its Heart from Captain Planet (except AC and ALA. Cool cyclic Aether TM needed too! <3)
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
I don't honestly think group casting I enough of a concern to bother with this personally. Leave the leading to Paladins.
>There's the obvious line of Ignite for the other elements.
100% completely wish I could type explicit words to support this. Its really the most obvious utility to a utility that we have. One thing though PLEASE don't make this low level anyone can ignite a weapon with any element. Even if you tied it to Summoning and you alignment. I am so bored with nothing new 100+.
>new crafting have more tie-ins to magic
Elemental tools that straight buff whatever makes sense would be awesome or the ability to "ignite" tools. Fire/Electric make thing faster, Earth durability, Air maybe like a 'cleaner carve/poud/etc? if that's doable? isn't quality of action a thing in crafting?" Aether who knows what it is, its Heart from Captain Planet (except AC and ALA. Cool cyclic Aether TM needed too! <3)
[20:11] Chatter[Arathael] Usually only get skill when it's successful.
[20:13] Chatter[Morpion] Thats why Arathael has 0.00 ranks in Getting Girls
[20:14] Chatter[Arathael] =(
