Differences in Sorcery

[Tywyll]

I've been looking over old RQ stuff trying to prepare for the coming of BRP.

While doing so, I've come across several different versions of Sorcery. There is the original one, in RQ3, the updated one in RQ4, Sandy Petersen's take, and finally, the MRQ one.

Trying to keep them all in my head is making my eyes bleed.

Could someone who is familiar with them tell me about them, their differences, which are easiest to play with in game and any other bits and bobs worth mentioning? I'll admit that of my limited RQ experience, Sorcery got the least attention back in the day (no direct damage spells, and I was coming from d&d).

[frogspawner]

Sorry, I only use the RQ2 version...

[Tywyll]

Originally Posted by frogspawner

Sorry, I only use the RQ2 version...

There is a sorcery version that predates Avalon Hill's? Where is that one?

[soltakss]

RQ2 didn't have sorcery.

There was a Chaosium product called "Worlds of Wonder" that contained an early version of sorcery. You can probably find a copy on the web.

[Tywyll]

thank, I have.

So, can you shed any lights on the differences and benefits of the various systems?

[soltakss]

Not really.

I never used a lot of sorcery in my campaigns.

RQ3 sorcery wasn't too bad, but Free INT meant that a beginning sorcerer and a master sorcerer could cast the same strength spell, it just took the beginner longer.

I looked over the sorcery in Worlds of Wonder but wasn't particularly impressed.

I have read Sandy Petersen's Sorcery rules but didn't understand them and didn't like some of his rules.

RQ4 had some improvements in sorcery, as I recall, but they weren't drastic improvements.

RQM has a lot of sorcery, as it covers the God Learners/Jrusteli. It has a lot of sorcerous schools each with specialist spells. There are sorcery spells spcifically aimed at making HeroQuesting easier.

As to the differences between them, I don't really know. I'm not that interested in sorcery and haven't gone into things in great depth.

[Tywyll]

Originally Posted by soltakss

Not really.

Well, actually you gave me a pretty good run down right there.

I've read and understand MRQ pretty well. The stuff in Sandy Petersen's stuff seems interesting, but perhaps more complicated than its worth. I've not had a chance to read through RQ4 in detail, and I was always underwhelmed by RQ3's Sorcery.

[Shaira]

The MagicWorld stuff has made it into BRP as "Magic"; the "Sorcery" stuff is actually the Sorcery from Stormbringer 5th Edition, and has nothing to do with any of the RuneQuest version.s

BRP Sorcery is actually a very simple and tidy system - basically anyone with POW 16+ can use sorcery, sorcery spells can have 1-4 "levels" (though most just have 1), and you can hold in your memory as many levels of sorcery as your INT. You can store all other sorcery spells you own in your Grimoire, and swap them in and out of memory as required.

Casting Sorcery spells costs 1PP per level of spell. They always work (ie no % roll like Magic), but may require a Resistance Roll (usually PP vs PP) to take effect against a resisting target.

That's pretty much it. BRP gives you a basic list of spells, but the system is very modular and its easy to plug in new ones. For ease of use it's reminiscent of RQ2 Battle Magic, but includes some cool stuff like group sorcery workings, summonings, and so on.

Hope that helps,

Sarah

[Aycorn]

Sandy's sorcery rules aren't actually difficult, but have to be read carefully and thought about. I went through them a few years ago, wrote out some examples and realized that it can actually be used in game play very simply, but to read about it seems laboriously complicated. I like his rules very much.

[RosenMcStern]

As the "Safelstran man" here, I have played with ALL the versions and can give you a nice account of the four variations (I'll not count RQ4 in although it has its merits). To avoid confusion, I'll refer to Sorcery as Malkioni Magic, as BRP's Sorcery is the equivalent of Divine Magic in RQ.

Original RQ3: a sorcerer in RQ3 was in fact the weakest of magicians, and required 100+ stored Power Points to be viable. His role was just that of the supporting character who used to cast long-lasting spells to enhance the party's characteristics, as it took him two melee rounds to cast a spell that could disable an opponent, whereas a simple Befuddle acted in two strike ranks. Skill only affected how many times you had to retry before your spell worked, and an Adept without a decent array of Intellect Spirits was even weaker than a beginner due to the flawed Free INT rule (yes, RuneQuest had flaws, too )

RQ3 with errata (or Games Workshop): the revised Multispell rules finally made Malkioni Magic superior in combat to other magic systems. A powerful wizard was able to take down a squad of men with a single spell, and this was more fun to play.

Sandy's Malkioni Magic: this was intentionally aimed at Glorantha, and worked decently. You have to introduce a new score for characters, Presence, and this requires additional bookkeeping, but your power is now connected to adherence to some principles ("vows"), which is more Malkioni, and skill at casting, not Free INT. I used it for Henotheists and Stygians as secondary cult magic instead of Spirit Magic and it worked fine, as players were forced to roleplay their cult vows to get more magic. Sorcerous Humakti with permanent Damage Boosting on their swords are .... scary

Warning: do not read further. You might not like what you read.










You were warned. Especially the One who Breeds Amphibians.

Mongoose Sorcery: it is by far the best incarnation of RuneQuest Malkioni Magic, if you accept the fact that a half dozen spells are totally botched and need total rewriting. A wizard reacts faster than a theist magician, and once he reaches a good skill with magic he can cast devastating spells at a cost of one or two Power Points, plus cantrips for zero Power Points. This is the first BRP magic system that allows you to have a powerful magician that does not rely on external Power Point sources. This is The Way it was Meant to Be.

(waits for the people with the tar and feathers)