Great White Games/Pinnacle Entertainment Group

[BluSponge]

Now that there are 3 or 4 different conversions out in the wild, putting together a Savage Dark Sun campaign has never been easier. And when I put it to the kids at the library game, you could practically see their eyes light up at the possibilities. So it looks like Dark Sun will be our next library campaign. So I've already started putting together my player bible for it.

And that brings me to magic. See, I've never been quite happy with how other folks have done the magic conversion for preservers/defilers with Savage Worlds. In my mind, it's all very simple: you can only drain so much from the environment without defiling it. So a preserver mage makes a spellcasting roll each round to draw 2 pps (+1 per raise) to power his spell. Defilers don't really care, and just take in whatever they need. And since a dedicated defiler isn't really an option for a PC, it all works out.

But the real kicker to this is how well it balances with cleric and druidic magic. I like the idea of keeping everyone on power points. But since divine magic doesn't have to be drawn from the landscape, does this make those characters who are restricted to a power point pool more powerful or less? And if you have it both ways, does the whole thing devolve into a big mess? One thing I've considered is giving Preservers an extra power to balance them out (assuming they need it).

One required change would be the "more Power Points" edge. Preservers (and defilers) wouldn't need that, so instead I'd add an "Better Preserver" edge that gave those casters a +1 per round PP draw that could be taken multiple times.

Arcane Backlash would be shaken and defile. Maybe a random roll on a d6 for increased degrees of trouble.

Preservers would have the option to throw caution to the wind in desperate times and defile when necessary.

What do the rest of you think? Does this balance out? Or is this just going to be a big PITA?

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[fanchergw]

Hi Tom,

I'm not particularly knowledgeable regarding Dark Sun, though it has always sounded interesting. Anyway, it occurs to me that one thing that might affect the balance between PP and PP-less casting in this system is how much mana is available in a local area. For example, the bad guys are led by a defiler and there is a preserver in the player party. How long can they cast spells before the local area is drained dry and they can no longer cast? Is this an issue (seems to me that it should be)? The other side of the coin is how you handle the PP-less casting; are there penalties to cast and how are those penalties reduced / negated. The details here will make a big difference in how balanced they are.

Personally, it's my impression that by-the-book PP and PP-less casting are fairly well balanced, but that kind of assumes a pretty standard fantasy setting.

Gordon

[Blogotron]

Tom, did you see my conversion of casters? Here:

http://savagesun.pbworks.com/w/page/25497987/FrontPage

In short it used PP and the Area of Effect templates for casters but applied modifiers to the spell check to use Defiling.

Basically i decided that Defiling was more taxing but ultimately more rewarding.
You can later the rules a bit so that defiling can be used Tactically by redirecting the AoE of the Defiling and creating an ash filled sinkhole.


In addition defiling can become a direct damage weapon via this edge:

Defiler: Veteran, Arcane Background: Magic, Mean or Bloodthirsty Hindrance
Benefits: When casting a spell you may choose to leave the ground untouched and actually siphon the lifeforce of your enemies (or allies if you don’t value them much). The target must be within direct line of sight.
The Defiler makes a Spirit roll vs. a target’s Guts roll. A success results in the target losing 1 fatigue point and the caster gaining 8pp. A raise doubles both the damage and the Power Points gained.

Defilers:
Any mage may be a defiler. Defiling is a matter of action, not status. Defiling nature to power your spells saps the very life essence from Athas rendering the immediate area infertile and almost inimical to life. At casting a mage may decide whether to defile the land or preserve it.

Why defile? Casting spells is strenuous work unless you have the patronage of powerful beings. Choosing the take magical energy from the earth retains your natural store of magical potential and can even prevent casting fatigue.

When you choose to use defiling magic you affect an area around you as large as a Medium template. That area becomes lifeless ash (roughly to a depth of 2 feet) unable to support life (some bards even claim to be able to fashion a poison from these ashes). On a raise that area increases to a large template.
Different terrains give you varying amounts of Power points.

Verdant (forest, oasis, garden): 8 pp
Scrub: 4pp
Desert: 2pp

A raise on the Spirit roll doubles the amount of Power Points gained and increases the Radius to a Large Template.

To defile the land the Caster must choose to do so at the moment of casting and then make a Spirit roll. If a caster rolls backlash during casting (of the "defiler" spell or any other) he or she may choose to roll Spirit to ignore the fatigue level and instead ruin the earth. It is said that great casters may devastate even larger tracts of land

Once an area has been defiled it is considered "lifeless" for a full week. If the caster wishes to defile again immediately he or she must move (or attempt to get a raise in a Spirit roll in which cast the PP gained is not doubled but the template used is “large”).

Power points gained by defiling remain for one hour so any unspent during the casting may be saved for a short time.

Defiler Stench:
Desecrating life for your own gain has its perils. For one day per defiling Spirit roll (successful or not) the mage suffers a -2 to Charisma (though a +1 to Intimidate).Though mundane people do not know why they instinctively loathe and avoid the defiler (thus why most of these foul abominations live in caves). Typically such people feel uneasy, as if they are being watched or nauseous.

Druids, Mages and Templars can sense the stench with a Spirit roll (automatic free action). Particular Templar orders have so developed this sense it is said that they may actually track defiling mages through the wastes. Whether this is rumor or not remains to be seen.

Defiler Deformity: Over time, if a Defiler uses his powers unchecked, thee mages tend to accumulate mutations; webbed fingers, flabby lips, strange patches of hair etc. Though cosmetic mutations are the norm on Athas a Defiler's deformities are so arresting in nature he or she suffers a permanent -4 to Charisma and a +2 to Intimidate. Defiler deformities will be awarded by the GM at will though if you want a system i would say keep track of PP gained through defiling and at 50 PP I would award a deformity. I would even say that Deformities stack in such a way that penalties and bonuses accrue at 1 point apiece per additional deformity.
_________________
Savage Worlds doesn't even have a bell curve. It has a probability line that looks like it was drawn by a blind person in an earthquake. Anything can happen.

[BluSponge]

[BluSponge]

Now that I've reviewed SWD's no PPs setting rules, I'm thinking I may do a hodge podge of both, with a dash of SK thown in for good measure.

Spells have a PP cost and a casting modifier equal to 1/2 their PP cost. For every round spent casting the spell, you reduce this penalty by -1 point. Certain power edges can help alleviate these penalties. This applies to all spellcasting characters, as all of them must siphon energy from the environment, spirits, or an elemental source.

Defilers, being NPCs, get a +2 bonus to spellcasting actions. This helps alleviate the casting penalty and reflects the "quicker, easier" mode of reckless spellcasting.

PC preservers *can* opt to defile, but do not get a constant +2 bonus. Instead, they simply forgo all casting modifiers.

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[amerigoV]

[BluSponge]

Going by the original DS rules, there are a couple of different ways to solve the problem. Yes, Shaken would be easiest, but you are right in that it is problematic.

Solution 1: all characters within the radius of the defiled aura are dealt a second initiative card and must go on the lower of the two. This is a very literal translation of the rules.

Solution 2: all characters within the aura must make a Vigor roll. If they fail, they suffer a -2 to their next action.

Solution 3: all within the aura are at -2 to parry until their next action.

Solutions 2 and 3 could be tied to a raise on the defiler's spell casting roll.

4e DS has a feat called theft of courage that ties the defiler's aura to a morale check of sorts. That would also be an interesting variation.

Adding a leadership edge that makes you allies immune to your own defiler's aura seems like a no brainer. Not very fair, but then again, this is DS after all.

Also, the defiler's aura only effects living things. So undead and constructs wouldn't have to worry about the effects.

I'd like to keep the defiler's aura to a medium burst template (maybe expanding to large with the second spell). A new power, Raze, would be added that allowed the defiler to destroy a large burst template of vegetation and effect those within. Maybe a variation of blast.

Tom

Edit: oh, and a dragon magic power for sorcerer kings and defiler's would have the energy drained from living things, not vegetation. But a lot of this can be hand-wavy. I don't foresee defiler as a real PC option.
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[BluSponge]

In addition to the More Power Points edges, which would be valid now, I'm adding the following Power edges to the DS conversion.


Arcane Defiling
Requirements: Seasoned, Arcane Background (Arcanist)
In your greed and lust for power, you have secretly studied the techniques of defiler magic. When you choose to defile to activate an arcane spell, the casting modifier is reduced by 2, to a minimum of 0. In addition, power point costs are reduced by 1. These bonuses only apply when your character explicitly chooses to defile the landscape to power your spell.

Initiate
Requirements: Seasoned, Arcane Background (Any)
Your character has toiled to master the techniques of his Arcane Background. All casting modifiers are reduced by 1, to a minimum of 0.

Master
Requirements: Veteran, Initiate
Your character has become a true master of his Arcane Background. All casting modifiers are reduced by 2, to a minimum of 0. This bonus includes that received by the Initiate edge.

Veiled Arcana
Requirements: Novice, Arcane Background (Arcanist), Agility d6+
Your character receives +2 to Stealth rolls to conceal the somatic gestures required of arcane spellcasting. This edge does not diminish the physical effect of your spells’ trappings, and will not apply to certain Powers (Burst, for instance). It will also not hide or disguise a defiler aura.

And here is the Leadership edge:


Un-defiled
Requirements: Veteran, Command, Inspire
Skilled leaders can motivate their troops to fight on even in the face of the horrifying corruption of defiler magic. Allies under your command do not suffer Trait penalties when exposed to a defiler aura.
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[amerigoV]

[BluSponge]

[Blogotron]

I would be curious to see how you approach magic thematically.

I treated Druidism as a subset of Clerical Magic. I envisioned Druids as able to traverse the divide between elements which took time, study and dedication. Clerics, under my rules, are animist shamans who lead cults of personality rather than codified religions.

Psi's are the only trustable Arcane Background since they can't defile, attract the attention of Sorcerer Kings, or are beholden to something beyond the tribe/race/town.

Defiling is more like a drug addiction or a pact with demons. it grants power but it burns you in the end.

How do you address each of the ABs? What powers are you linking to the ABs and are you using Wild-Talents?
_________________
Savage Worlds doesn't even have a bell curve. It has a probability line that looks like it was drawn by a blind person in an earthquake. Anything can happen.

[BluSponge]

First up, everyone draws power from something. This is why there is always a casting modifier. Sorcerers draw from the land, clerics draw from elemental spirits, Druids from spirits of the land, psionicists focus their will, and Templars draw from the sorcerer kings.. The only folks who don't have to worry about casting mods are defilers. Their spells also cost one PP less. Does it burn you in the end? Yes. Defilers have no friends.

I ditched the terms "cleric" and "Druid" in favor of eemmental cultist and shaman respectively. Both are more historically neutral and, IMNSHO, fit the setting better.

I brought elemental pacts straight over from Earth, Air, Fire, and Water (nice work Shane).

Every AB has a few unique powers to it. Greater Healing, for instance, is only available to shamans and water cultists, though psionicists can use it on themselves. As expected, sorcery has the most diverse list.

Those are the major points so far.

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[Rerun941]

Here's what I came up with for my own Defiler/Presever conversion. I can't take full credit, I found the basis for this on a DS blog.

Defilers
These wizards have learned to strip magical energy from the ground itself in order to fuel their spells. As a result of this abuse, Most of Athas is a barren wasteland, and all wizards (preservers included) are criminalized and hunted almost universally. Why do so many choose to lead such lives? The answer is simple: power. Defilers have access to more powers than most arcane backgrounds, and have effectively unlimited resources with which to use them.
When a Defiler uses a power, he doesn’t lose power points (in fact, defilers have no power points to lose). Rather, as a defiler sucks the life force out of the planet itself, vegetation wilts and soil turns to ash in a wide circle around his feet. The size of the affected circle is a one-inch radius for every power point the spell normally costs. In certain lush terrain (such as in verdant belts or near an oasis), this radius is reduced by one inch (though even a spell with a “zero” radius causes the ground at the caster’s feet to turn). In the dense jungles of the Forest Ridge, a defiler’s radius is reduced by two inches.
When casting multiple spells from the same location (when the caster is still within the circle of defiled ground), the area of ruined earth continues to grow outward, its radius expands by half the distance it would if the spell were cast on “fresh” ground.
Preservers
The few responsible wizards on Athas cast spells exactly as “normal” wizards, described in the Savage Worlds rulebook. Preservers have access to any power as a spell, but have to pay their own power points to cast them.
The one exception is that a Preserver has the option of throwing care to the wind and casting a spell exactly as a defiler does. No preserver would do this unless he was out of power points and in serious danger (otherwise he wouldn’t bother being a preserver in the first place). Each time a Preserver does this, he has to make a Spirit roll or lose the ability to preserve forever. This roll has a –1 penalty for every time the preserver has defiled in his lifetime. There are some stains that don’t wash off.

[BluSponge]

[BluSponge]

Ok, so moving on from the Arcane Backgrounds, lets talk powers. First up, everything in SWD is in the game. Second, all the remaining extras from the FC are in the game. But I am adding a few extras that just feel Dark Sun to me that (I don't think) are covered by the core powers list. I want to post them here for feedback and to (hopefully) eliminate power redundancy.

Here are the originals:

Body Weaponry (Psionics only)
Rank: Seasoned
Casting Modifier: –1
Power Points: 2
Range: Self
Duration: 3 (1/round)
Trappings: Transformation of the flesh

Some initiates of the way can will their own flesh into weapons of war. One of the caster’s arm contorts and transforms into the form of a bladed or blunt weapon, such as a sword or hammer. The flesh becomes as hard as steel, as sharp as any blade. The caster wields this weapon as he might any other. Disarming the caster requires severing of the limb. Any damage done to the limb is done as if it was the weapon of the initiate’s choosing. Once the duration of the spell has expired, the flesh returns to its original state.

Phantasm (Sorcery Only)
Rank: Seasoned
Casting Modifier: –2+
Power Points: 3 (Special)
Range: Sight
Duration: 10 minutes (1/minute)
Trappings: Shadow stuff, smoke and mirrors, heat mirage

Phantasms are illusions that deceive the senses.

The number of senses the caster wishes to deceive determines the Power Point cost. A base phantasm costs 3 Power Points and affects two senses. For each additional sense, the point cost is increased by one. The senses a phantasm can affect are: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. Spending double the number of Power Points allows the caster to animate the illusion.

Those who encounter phantasms must make an opposed Smarts roll against the caster’s Sorcery skill to recognize the deception. Alternatively, if the phantasm dealt with something so covered (a knowledge skill, for instance), the GM might call for a skill roll on the part of the target.

Raze (Sorcery Only)
Rank: Seasoned
Casting Modifier: 0
Power Points: 1
Range: Self
Duration: Instant
Trappings: A creeping swath of destruction radiating from the sorcerer.

Raze is an area effect power that duplicates the life-draining effects peculiar to defiling magic. The spell may be cast by a defiler or a preserver; the effect is identical.

The area effect is a Large Burst Template, centered on the sorcerer. The spell causes all vegetation in that area to instantly give up its magical potential and turn to ash. Unlike the natural destruction of defiling magic, raze affects all vegetation within the radius of the spell, regardless of the terrain. If the sorcerer is a defiler, the area of effect is also considered a defiler aura in regards to living creatures within the range of the spell.

The ash created is black and grey, completely devoid of life or life-giving elements. Nothing will grow there for half a year, leaving a lifeless circular scar on the ground.

Tree of Life (Sorcery and Shaman)
Rank: Heroic
Casting Modifier: Special
Power Points: Special
Range: Smarts
Duration: Special
By means of this spell, a wizard or shaman can enchant a living sapling to become a magical tree of life. The sapling must have already sprouted from the ground, though the wizard can transplant such a sapling before casting the spell. It will grow to its full size in only one week, but has its full powers and capabilities immediately after the spell is cast. Any tree less than one year old will suffice; this spell cannot be cast on an older tree. The properties of a tree of life are described in the Trees of Life sidebar.

The Tree of Life power works slightly differently than other powers. The power is more of a ritual than a spell, and has special casting time and power point considerations. Working alone or part of a group of like spellcasters (shamans and sorcerers may not lend their talents to the cause), the creator must invest the sapling with a full 60 power points over the course of the week to nurture the tree into maturity. This requires a period of time no less than 1 hour each day. The base casting difficulty to “feed” the tree is –6. This penalty is reduced by 1 for every additional hour spent at the task.

Any defiler magic that affects the tree before it reaches maturity kills the tree instantly, and all efforts to create it are lost. For this reason, shamans and sorcerers both guard the sapling zealously until the ritual is complete.

I'd also like to adapt the Storm power (50 Fathoms) or Tempest power (solomon kane) to create a Scirocco power, but haven't quite figured that one out yet. If anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear em.

From 50 Fathoms:
Quake
Wilderness Walk

From Sundered Skies:
Battle Lust
Battlelord's Blessing (renamed Sorcerer-King's Blessing)
Elemental Choke

From DLR:
Conjure Item

And if you can think of any other powers that just need to come along with Athas, list em.

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.

[BluSponge]

Ok. I think I'm happy with this.


Scirocco
Rank: Veteran
Casting Modifier: –4
Power Points: 8
Range: Large Burst Template
Duration: 4+d8 rounds
Trappings: A gesture of arms and a gentle breath, throwing ashes into the wind.

This power summons up a small but violent scirocco, the burning desert wind of legend. When the spell is cast, a blast of scorching wind emanates from the caster and sweeps along the ground before him, whipping up small objects and particulate matter, and carrying them along at tremendous speed. Calling up a Scirocco is dangerous, because the priest can not control it once it is summoned.

Creatures of size +2 and smaller caught in the storm must make a Strength roll –4 or be knocked prone by the force of the wind. All items caught in the storm (including metal) are abraded by flying grit and suffer 3d4 damage per round. Magical items apply their bonuses added to their Object Toughness. Water carried is fouled, as is any foodstuff unless contained in specially sealed containers. Living creatures suffer 2d10 points of damage per round of exposure.

The only way to escape a scirocco is to move outside its area of effect. The Pace of all creatures inside are reduced to 1; all other movement (except innate teleportation or planar travel) is impossible. Killing the caster or rendering him unconscious will not end the spell, and he cannot end it prematurely even if he wishes. The caster is not bound to remain in place after the spell has been cast. Neither is he immune to the effects of the storm.

Once the scirocco has started, it will begin to drift in a random direction every round. Each round, select a direction to be 12 o’ clock, and roll a d12. The scirocco will move 2d4” in the indicated direction.

(Based heavily on the spell from Earth, Air, Fire and Water)

Tom
_________________
Lewisville Public Library Roleplaying
You control the character. You make the story. You are the legend.
The only limit is your imagination.