MAGIC NEEDS MINI-PROBLEMS NOT MINI-GAMES: A Defense of Vancian Magic

Self-Portrait with Magic Scene by Pieter van Laer, 1635
Honestly, a really great painting- a meme before memes

With love, and in the style of the original post over at Among Cats and Books. And yes, yes insert the usual caveats for personal preference ect. ect. And if you're curious about my other thoughts on magic, check out my Practical Magic series.

Vancian Magic Is Based Because Magic Just Fucking Works

Dungeons and fucking dragons has Vancian magic and its been a joy and wonder in this game forever!

Not only have you this class-based restriction bullshit, so you are fucking special when you pull off shit no-one else can do, but every fucking spell is a standardized mechanic. You can just do! You're expected to just do it!

When you want to cast fucking fireball and blow the shit out of the lich's bullshit undead army- you just do it! "I cast fireball!" Boom! ~23 points of damage to however many boneheads you can cram in a 20' radius sphere 240 feet (!) away from you. A buddy that's a lot of undead dickheads.

That's right! Humans can fight or flee, but magic-users have an extra two "effs"-- fucking fireball. Oh wait, I guess I can also fly at the snap of my fingers! So three "effs". Amazing. Just like that. I want to fly- I can! I'm 2/3rds on my way to practically being a dragon- flying and spitting fireballs- which is in the title of this game and now I guess I know why! 

Just like Fern or Frieren, I shout "Zoltraak!" and light. a. dude. UP! Or just like in Final Fantasy, press "FIR3" and wooosh! Love it. Oh! In the last issues of Tower Dungeon, Lilicen absolutely blows the shit outa some leech thing. Gives me motivation to make it through 5 levels of d4 hit dice. That is an adventure and some bullshit!

I'll stop now. No one comes to this blog for that kind of energy- it's a young person's game.

Magic Doesn't Need Mini-Games, Magic Needs Mini-Problems

Turning magic into a mini-game is no different than trying to make lock-picking a mini-game via dice stacking or fighting a mini-game via Souls-like tactical rolling/combat. These sub-systems have always been proposed and rarely widely adopted. Just look at AD&D's spell rules, which did require a component use, but often ignored by a majority of players. But I think the big flaw here is not the specific system, but the solutions incorrectly identify where the boredom is. Its not in the "tool" or the mechanism of action/resolution; it's in the problems the tool is applied to.

I've been building terrain and painting miniatures recently. Using a hot glue gun is not interesting. Using a hot glue gun to build a ruined church out of cardboard and popsicle sticks IS interesting. Figuring out how to make things look like I want is the compelling piece- what I DO with a tool. Same with fireball or sleep; they are the means, not the end. And we shouldn't try to make them the end.

Players find it exciting to see the choices they make have impact and result in reward. Magic-Users especially, because their class power is a series of hacks and short cut. Playing an MU requires players to make a selection of spells at the beginning of a session, with limited slots, then maximize those spells when the opportunity arises during the adventure. When used creatively for maximum gain (i.e. treasure), a very joyful moment is created, even if that moment is a correctly anticipated threat. 

We need to write mini-problems in our adventures with magical solutions in mind. Using magic is boring when the choice is minimal, and the outcome is no different than a more mundane solution. It's boring to simply fireball a group of 5 skeletal guards in plate mail; it's far more exciting to fireball a group of 20 skeletal guards in plate mail. In the former situation, the fighter and cleric might easily defeat 5 enemies; in the latter case, destroying an overwhelming number of enemies is a highlight. But we can do better than simply dealing a lot of damage. 

A DM can use the existing spell lists to reverse engineer what sorta of problems an adventuring group might face in the underworld✤. Just consider what obstacles might be present that could be answered by the top triad of first-level spells light, charm person, and sleep✤✤. 

Floating disc seems worthless until you are hauling out a 400-pound gold idol to Moloch worth 4000xp at 1st level without having your dwarf and fighter carry it. Hold portal seems terrible until you can block an “offal” of 20 zombies with a door. Detect magic is underwhelming except when determining which clear pool is the magic one and which one is potentially acid. Invisibility is fun when, like Frodo, you are going to steal a piece of treasure from a sleeping dragon✤✤✤.

Daniel Gardner, 1775

A Ritual Or Component Should Be an Enhancement, Not A Requirement

Wolves on the Coast certainly demonstrates how ritual magic can be incorporated into an RPG, but a vast majority of players do not desire this setup. True, a DM could also set the magical problem to be more singular and climactic, but a player-desired hallmark of wizardry is also frequency of use. 

Players chafe at even Vancian magic because it is a limit. Just look at the evolution of the magic-user into 5e's warlock and sorcerer classes as examples. Designers seem to be attempting to create mechanical matches to more recent media that informs D&D. Or that some sorta spell point system or the GLOG's spell dice pool are attempts at allowing greater frequency of casting. Other broader examples include, most players even chafe at tracking encumbrance, light, arrows and other limiting factors to "the doing of adventure". In modern playstyles, bags of holding are given out quickly, darkvision is incorporated more broadly, and even a component pouch is just assumed.

It is often said that positive incentives are better ways to encourage behavior than negative ones. So instead of assigning negative bonus values to strength scores to encourage magic-users, a system should incorporate positive bonus values to intelligence scores instead. Or for encumbrance, instead of penalizing movement/actions for carrying too much, provide bonuses to movement/actions for carrying almost nothing at all.

So instead of components being required to cast a spell, let's collect them to enhance a spell a MU can already cast. This provides the "eye of newt and toe of frog, wool of bat and tongue of dog" aspect of ritual magic and strongly incentivizes collection. As always for things like this, d4 Caltrops comes to our aid with a beautiful list of components derived from D&D monsters. This is not the first I've thought about this method of play before, and in my previous post about "dungeon cooking", I wanted to put a lot of the work on players.

But perhaps another way of going about it might be to assign a defined effect when a spell is powered by a related component. Here are the MU 1st level spells plus fireball:

Santiago Caruso

• Narcissus Flower: Charm Person- Everyone treats you as a friend, but if you catch your own reflection (2:6 around mirrors, pools of water) you will be wholly preoccupied for a week with it
• Caged Pixie: Detect Magic- Alters the spell to also detect secret doors, but 3:6 chance the captured pixie disolves in a puff of pink smoke
• Bound Sprite: Floating Disc- The disc is now be held in place but can be moved vertically; is dispelled if liquid is poured in; bound sprite dissolves in a puff of smoke at end of spell
• Withered Gecko Limb: Hold Portal- Attaching to the target portal will cause creatures of 3HD or more to open in 2 rounds of effort; more limbs does nothing; 4+ animates the door
• Fire Beetle Glands: Light (Reversible: Darkness)- Light becomes a soft ball that can be thrown, kicked, or swatted around for the duration of the spell; illumination as spell, range as spear
• Arrow That Has Slain: Magic Missile- A singular missile deals 2d4+1 dmg; component is destroyed; 3:6 to recover an intact arrow from a slain opponent
• Spell Cast on a Risen Skull: Protection from Evil- Holder of the skull becomes the target of the spell; profane; all non-chaotic PC holders take 1d6 dmg
• Elf Tongue: Read Languages- Target can speak unknown languages in a trance & can't remember what was said; can be purchased in goblin & ghoul markets
• Two Giant Spider Eyes Affixed with Silver Wire: Read Magic- Allows the casters to read magic from sun up to sun down; non-fire light, however brief, ends the effect
• Zombie Heart: Shield- Caster is protected against level drain from 3*HD or lower undead but takes 1d4 damage instead due to biting cold; profane, all non-chaotic PCs take 1d6 dmg; must be worn; consumed at end of spell; protect in lieu of normal description
• Crushed Midnight Moths: Sleep- Can affect 4+1 HD creatures, however, everyone but the caster must save vs Spell or fall asleep
• Small Statue: Ventriloquism- When placed in a room, all but the caster must save vs Spells or become nervous, wry and convinced the statue is possessed for the duration of spell
• Hellhound Liver: Fireball- Reroll all "1"s; MU takes 2 dmg for each re-rolled "1"

By assigning effects, there is already prealignment on what a component can do while still leaving a lot of choice to the player. Some tables are great at DM-PC negotiations, but sometimes it eats up too much time in a "mother-may-I-situation". Also the above components could be known in starting spellbooks, but also be something MUs have to research.

✤The problems might be free-form like these from Goblin Punch or these from All Dead Generations. 

✤✤ I also don't think this is a bad thing to do with a standard dungeon equipment list either.

✤✤✤ I think its also noteworthy that designing this way shows how even low-level players have access to cool solutions to very fantastical problems!

DELICIOUS IN DUNGEON: Let the Players Do The Creative Cooking

But seriously, "D-in-D" IS a good manga

Jumping again on the gravy train that is Delicious in Dungeon posting. Here is a post by Grinningrat looking at how to do a Delicious in Dungeon setup, but pointing out that one issue is that most systems are reactive instead of listing in the monster manual what ingredients are found on/in each monster. They lay out 3 nice versions of how to do monster parts.

BUT TO ME, THIS PROCESS TAKES TOO LONG: Each monster might have ~3-5 ingredients and, for instance, the Level 1 monster encounter table for BX D&D includes 20 monsters. This means that a DM would be generating up to ~60-100 unique “things”. I’d rather make a 60-100-room dungeon if I am going to come up with so many things. 

But before I tell you might alternative, the fantastic blog d4 Caltrops of course already has d100 tables for this sorta thing here (Monster Parts for Magical Research) and more distantly related here (Magical Marginalia). The AD&D DMG also has a listing of properties associated with gems that could be useful as well.

MAKE PLAYERS DO THE COOKING: The key piece: let the players provide the connection between the raw material harvested and its use. To me, that connection should be alchemical, occult, religious, or use dream-reasoning and not scientific (they can also use anything of IRL myths). Then write it down in your house-rules doc if you agree. This cuts a lot of time and offloads the creative work while also adjusting the depth of this “crafting” to the level of involvement your players want. If you have real Bobby (S)lay on your hands then they can have at it- you have a campaign to run!

NECTARS, SALTS, BILES, HUMORS, & ESSENCES: Monsters, creatures, and undead of the dungeon produce nectars, salts, biles, humors, & essences. 

• Nectars are from “plants” only or plant parts of monsters: e.g. yellow musk creepers or violet shriekers

• Salts are from rock/stone only, including things monsters turn into stone (I’d also put ground gems in here): e.g. living statues or victims of medusas

• Biles might have to be squeezed or processed out of some “organ” including venoms/poisons: e.g. paralyzing substance from carrion crawler or dragon breath weapons

• Humors would be liquids present in the corporal body: e.g. blood from giant rats which will putrify anything

• Essences might be from things like incorporeal undead, “cloud”-type things, or semi-liquid things like oozes/puddings that don’t have a real differentiated body. Essences could also be from things that are astral or ethereal in origin which might require special equipment to harvest: e.g. black pudding or displacer beast

These categories are not my own, but I think was another good blog post that I can’t seem to find– please, dear readers, if you know the post I’d love to link it. 

Distilling components takes time, prep, & skill

MANUFACTURE OF MAGICAL MONSTER MATERIAL

RAW MATERIALS PRESENT (2-in-6): This is the base chance that a character has to obtain the raw ingredients from the corpse/remains of some dungeon creatures that’s just been hacked apart in melee. Things are a mess and it is likely the desired part/organ has already been butchered by the end of combat. OR it might be the body quickly decomposes, dissolves, disappears, or detonates depending on the creature and can't be gotten to quickly enough.

RAW MATERIAL REFINING TO COMPONENT (DOWNTIME ACTION): During downtime roll 1+1d4 to determine how many raw materials can be processed (if a PC has multiples). Then spend 100sp for each chosen raw material and the DM rolls 1d20 (plus INT bonus) to determine the results of these efforts.  The character may add their level to the d20 roll, but a natural “1” is always “EXPLOSION!”. Gain 100 xp per successful component manufactured. Each refined component takes up a slot.

01 | EXPLOSION! No component & replace equipment, lodgings, and answer to the guard

02 | WHAT’S THAT SMELL? No component & your suspect activities land earn a guard visit

03 | POISON… yeah best not use that…

04-07 | RENDERED INSERT. Bubble, bubble, toil, and trouble…for nothing. No component.

08-17 | SUCCESS! Manufacture 1 unit of nectar, essence, bile, salt, or humor

18-19 | IMPROVED YEILD: 3-in-6 chance manufacturing 2 units otherwise 1 unit

20 | DOUBLE YEILD: Manufacture 2 units of substance

Notes: “POISONS” can be used offensively, but likely will also endow the target with a monstrous property in a very negative, monkey’s paw sorta way. “WHAT’S THAT SMELL?”: remember until a PC gets their own domain space, they are essentially trying to cook fantasy meth in the village– this can have consequences in a world where magic is real/dangerous. If a PC would like to somehow modify some aspect of the process or take shortcuts, perform the same procedure as above, but roll 1d10 (if its really on the fly, 1d8).

HOW TO USE YOUR MYSTICAL SPICE RACK: Again this should be a conversation between the DM and player, but letting the player take the lead and provide the occult rationale as to why these components can be used or used in lieu of time/money/skill in the preparation of something. Here are also a couple of other thoughts on components:

• A substitute for 100 sp or 1 week of time when writing a scroll

• Enhance the spell if used during casting (+1 target, re-roll a “1”, or increase duration 1 turn)

• Speed up the creation of a spellbook

• 3 components to manufacture a potion at no cost provided the components are harmonious

• 1 component for each of the five senses is needed to create a magic weapon/item

• Be sold to a NPC MU for some negotiated amount (at least 100sp)

THIS POST WASN'T ABOUT FOOD! It wasn't. The post above has leaned more toward things a Magic-User (or Elf) PC might want to do mainly because it provides them with a way to enhance and augment their early-level magic. But this system could still be used for a cooking bit too. Same deal as above. Collect raw materials (meat). And prepare it rolling a 1d20 (+ WIS bonus) to see how well you did:

01 | W.T.F! No rations. Meat has gone wrong & something tracked the smell (roll on encounter table)

02 | WHAT’S THAT SMELL? No rations. The cooking might have attracted attention (encounter check)

03 | POISON… No rations. Yeah don't eat that...

04-07 | BURNED. But it looked so easy when nan did it. No rations.

08-17 | DELICIOUS! Feed everyone; +1 to HP and next hireling loyalty check

18-19 | THIS IS AMAZING!: Feed everyone; +1 to HP and hireling loyalty improves +1

20 | (SPEECHLESS STUFFING THEIR FACES): Feed everyone; next single save or death & dismemberment is at advantage

Ah, dungeon food. Delicious in dungeon.