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...the Building Blocks of a Spell in Torg Eternity

If the goal of systematizing spell design in Torg: Eternity is to succeed, we need to examine the components of a spell so they can be accounted for. This is my attempt to define and quantify these elements. Most of these were covered in the original Torg: Roleplaying the Possibility Wars game but may need adjustments to account for Torg Eternity's simplifications.

Spell Pattern

Spell patterns are based on two things: the magic skill used and the arcane knowledge involved. The degree of complexity of the magic skills is well known. From most complex to least, they are: conjuration, alteration, apportation, divination.




The link above has the original Knowledge Chart, which gives the original relationships between the Arcane Knowledges. Torg Eternity doesn't use this chart, except that it determines which of the four main dedicated lists (Elements, Essences, Kindred, Principles) it began in, based on the spell's main focus. But from the chart, we can deduce a complexity rating of the categories (from most to least):
  • Essences (death, life, time, true knowledge)
  • Principles (darkness, inanimate forces, light, living forces, magic)
  • Kindred (aquatic, avian, earthly, elemental, enchanted, entity, folk)
  • Elements (air, earth, fire, metal, plant, water)
Although the Knowledge Chart listed equal complexity for Kindred and Elements in the original Torg, for this purpose, Kindred involves living beings, and so should be more complex than Elements. 

Spell Power (Effect)

Spells do things. When it comes to a damage spell, the effect value is obvious. For other spells, it can be trick to determine: How much of an effect is needed to light an area with mage light or cause someone to become Stymied through fear? 

In addition, spells that naturally affect an area are more potent than those that target a single object or being. Taking a single-target spell and applying it to multiple targets is already handled through Multi-Target rules, but area spells naturally affect more than one target and a spell design system needs to take that into account. 

Range and Speed

The nature of a role playing game is that, for the most part, participants expect a spell that is cast to have immediate effect. The fireball is meaningless if the time it takes for the spell to reach its impact point allows the targets to simply escape the area. So, for the most part, spells assume that the speed is fast enough to allow the spell to reach immediately. Those that can naturally allow a delay (such as messenger hawk) should be easier than those who require the effect to have the same range but affect the target immediately.

Duration and Added Effects (Focused and Ward Spells)

Spells only exist for as long as their duration lasts. This does not mean the effects of the spell necessarily revert to previous state once the duration expires. Let's examine how each magic skill reacts when its duration expires:

Divination

A divination spell trades on information, so its duration only needs to be as long as it is needed to gain that information. Once gained, the information remains, although it may change. For example, a divination could reveal the current temperature to the caster. Once the spell ends, the caster won't forget the answer given by the spell, but that won't stop the temperature from changing by other means, nor will it allow the caster to monitor the temperature after the spell expires. 

Apportation

Nature concedes the movement of physical mass. So a physical object moved by an apportation spell will remain where it was moved after the spell is complete.

Torg: Roleplyaing the Possibility Wars allowed apportation to move abilities from one being to another. So far, this has not been put into a spell, so it is unclear if this interpretation of apportation still holds. But if this is considered a valid use of apportation, then the abilities so moved will not remain once the spel expires. 

Alteration

"Nature conceces the destruction of anything, but the construction of nothing." This is the primary reason magic is never used to heal, as healing is a constructive endeavor, and so will fade after the duration expires.

Applying this to alteration, damage dealt by spells remains after the spell expires, but enhancements to a creature or object will not. The diminish spell is not damage; it suppresses an attribute. This is considered the creation of a suppression field, and thus will fade once the spell expires. 

Conjuration

As the main use of conjuration is to make things, it is rare for such spells to last beyond the duration. The rare exceptions are normally handled as separate Perks. 

Focused and Ward spells

Spells only have their intended effect; unplanned effects or non-effects are a result of insufficient will and planning. The default setting for spells is that, once cast, they start working immediately and remain with the caster who keeps the effect going with her own will until the duration expires. If the target of the spell leaves the range, or if the caster wanders to far away from the target, the spell stops working on that target. 

These two default settings (immediate startup and staying with the caster) can be altered, but finding those patterns is harder because they are less common in the supernatural archive. A spell can be focused, meaning that the effect, once attached to the target, remains with that target for the duration; having the caster or the target separate no longer matters. All range and area size consideration are now determined from the target's perspective on a focused spell. 

A spell that doesn't start immediately but instead waits for a condition to begin is called a ward. Wards may or may not be focused; a ward that warns the caster if something is approaching his person would not be focused, while a ward that gives a warning if his castle is being attacked while he is away would be. The condition for a ward must be something the caster could detect if he were present and alert. 

Cast Time

For this purpose, longer cast times should make the spell easier. But for these purposes, anything that has a cast time of 1 action or as a reaction to another action is effectively the same. 

Trappings and Design Skill

Trappings in this case refer to the accompanying words, gestures, spell components, and other limitations associated with casting the spell. These trappings should affect the difficulty of the spell if they are actual limitations to casting the spell. If not, it's just eye candy and needs no adjustment. A description of trappings is scheduled to appear here at some point.

Design skill refers to separate skills or Perks that make one or more aspects above easier to incorporate. A description of potential design skills is scheduled to appear here at some point. 

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