From: gal502@huxley.anu.edu.au (Graeme Lindsell)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: RQ: illusions
Followup-To: rec.games.frp.misc
Date: 8 Jan 1993 05:29:07 GMT
Organization: RSC, Australian National University
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In article <loren.239@wmkt.wharton.upenn.edu>, loren@wmkt.wharton.upenn.edu
(Loren Miller) wrote:
> 
> I have a question about the illusion magic in RQ3. To me it seems extremely 
> restrictive, so much so that it is virtually (haha) useless. Even with the 
> errata, come on, you need an intensity 10 spell to make a SIZ 1 illusion 
> that looks solid? You need an intensity 23 spell to make a non-moving 
> illusion of a normal sized solid human? How many sorcerors can cast 
> intensity 23 spells? You need to have an INT of 23 at minimum, which is 2
> more than the human maximum and 5 more than the rollable human maximum, and 
> you need to have 23 magic points sitting around somewhere waiting for you to 
> use them. This is ridiculous when a venom spell with the same power could 
> kill a rune lord-priest with no trouble, and a telekinesis could get the 
> caster flying about as fast as a gryphon.

Sorcery illusions are certainly expensive. You could cast those more
powerful
spells, but you need matrices to do it. I wonder if the high cost is meant
to 
balance the fact that you can't disbelieve RQ illusions: they are a
temporary
part of reality. I agree that the SIZ costs for a visual illusion are too
high: 
after all, a purely visual illusion is really only able to decieve and 
misdirect - it can do no physical harm. Perhaps 3 or 4 SIZ per point of 
intensity would be better; this requires 14 MP for an opaque human sized
object.

 Of course, the ability to decieve and misdirect is the really fun thing
about illusions, especially for the GM.

 A possible addition to RQ Sorcery: The Hallucination spell. (Ranged
Temporal)  : If the intensity of the spell overcomes the victims current
magic points, you can force him/her/it to experience a single specific 
hallucination. All the senses are affected, since it only takes place
in the mind of the victim (and perhaps the caster?). If internal
evidence persuades the character that this is an hallucination, the
character could attempt an INTx3 roll to realise the event is not real.

 Usually an hallucination cannot directly kill the victim. If a 
particularly frightening effect is though up by the caster, or
it is a special personal fear of the victim, a failed CONx11 roll
indicates a heart attack. Of course, an hallucination of a bridge
can be much more dangerous.

 This spell needs concentation if the hallucination is doing
somthing active.

 I can really see a whole lot of uses for this spell. In a way, you
could say it's a weaker version of Dominate(species) - you're indirectly
trying to get the victim to behave in a certain way though this spell
has the advantage of being more universal. Trying to create a hallucination
for a troll is more diffucult if you don't have DarkSense yourself (bonus
to disbelieve?), and what effect an hallucination would have on something
like a dragonnewt is unpredictable.



> What do you use as the default SIZ of visual illusions? Do you do the 
> opaqueness measure or something else? I mean, hell, a darkwall is 2 magic 
> points but would cost a sorceror around 40 (!) to duplicate. Is there 
> anything else you change about visual and other illusions in the RQ3 magic 
> system?

Perhaps even 5 or 10 SIZ per intensity is justifiable: after all, its
only an image.

( "Camelot!","Camelot!","Camelot!","It's only a model.","Shh!")

> --
> +++++++++++++++++++++++23
> Loren Miller              LOREN@wmkt.wharton.upenn.edu
> Time am I, wreaker of the world's destruction, matured, grimly
> resolved here to swallow up the worlds.             -- Krishna

Graeme Lindsell a.k.a gal502@huxley.anu.edu.au
Research School of Chenistry, Australian National University
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.announce,news.answers