From: esper@cs35b.cs.umn.edu (Dave Sherohman)
Subject: Re: Shadowrun Mages too powerful?
Organization: University of Minnesota
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 1992 19:40:02 GMT

After reading this message, I just couldn't stay silent on the topic of SR
super-mages...

In article <uplink.724759011@cwis> uplink@cwis.unomaha.edu (uplink 2099) writes:
>	When we were still using SRI rules, the greatest spells had
>to be Increased Reaction +4, Increased Willpower +4, Shapechange,
>and Control Thoughts.  Every mage in our game had them.

Those spells should be tough to get...  Sounds like they aren't.  And guess
what?  If they're so easy to come by, every enemy mage should have them too!
Suggestions:  1) Only a few NPC magicians know these spells.  Good luck
finding one.  2) According to the Grimoire, spell formulas take longer to
design and cost more to buy (at least in 1ST ed, the magical prices table
vanished from Grimoire II) if they have a higher base drain.  Maybe this means
they also take longer to learn, and perhaps even require higher pay for your
instructor...  Maybe they even cost more karma...  3)  As has been recently
discussed, SR magical mechanics don't allow for teleportation.  For the same
reasons, I doubt that shapechange spells could alter the subject's mass.  Also
note that you can only shapechange to a mundane animal.

>Plus, they cast the Increase spells on the Phys Adepts and there went
>the basic advantages the Samurai had.

I certainly hope your GM remembered that the PAs could only use one source
of reaction increase at a time...

>  When we complained to the GM,
>his only response was, "Hey.  You can use SHADOWTECH to increase your
>stuff.  You can get BETAWARE.  You're a lot more powerful than the
>mages!"

Sounds like a clueless GM.  Betaware and Increase Reaction +4 should both be
damn near impossible to find, and cost you an arm and a leg (at least
figuratively) even if you can find them.

>  With the spellcasters and Adepts gaining
>Initiate levels like crazy, and all us poor Samurai could do was save
>our nuyen a few ten thousand at a time.

But what were the poor sammies doing with all the karma they weren't using to
initiate?

>  My Rigger was
>a hell of a lot more powerful than those mages, though; when I tore
>through a Lone Star Heavy Response Team with my Wandjina RPV, they
>were suitably impressed.

Ah, yes.  An example of the "my character's ability to obliterate all that he
sees is the only measure of his worth" school of thought.
>
>There is no way my character, or any other of the non-spellcasting
>characters, can compete.

Gee, I hope the mages enjoy getting +2 per sustained spell on all their target
numbers (+4 with the reaction and willpower boosts - you do know that an
increase willpower spell doesn't help with other magical activities (like
drain resistance), don't you? - and another +2 each if they're shapeshifted or
controlling thoughts)...  Oh, they use spell locks or quickening?  Well, in
that case, I hope they enjoy having astral beings use the locks/spells to ground
attacks into the mages.  Elementals sustaining the spells?  Well, then the mage
has to take time at the start of the fight to cast the spells (probably taking
drain in the process), plus the elementals aren't available to perform other
services (like fighting) because they're too busy sustaining the spell...

I'm currently on my second SR campaign (the first lasted about 8 months before
I got fed up with the wimpy combat system where LMG rounds bounced off armor
jackets), and I have yet to run into problems with any type of character being
overpowered.  Remember - if something is very powerful, it's either a) going
to be hard to get or b) everyone will have it.  And everything has its drawbacks
- cyberware is actually less of a problem for the user than magic; you lose
essence for implanting it, but that just limits how much you can have; it
doesn't open you up to any new types of attacks; it's always there for you
(and practically never causes drain or anything of the sort); and it doesn't
make it harder for medics to patch you up.

esper@ima.umn.edu
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