Murphy's Rules: Your Favorite Game Is Weird

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Traditional Games > Murphy's Rules: Your Favorite Game Is Weird

Zemyla: Aug 6, 2008; I'll take her off your hands. Pleasure doing business with you!

If it's only usable 1-3 times a day, why not turn it into a ranged touch spell with Reach Spell, and then use Chain Spell to make it affect multiple creatures?

# ? Jul 8, 2015 08:34

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# ? Apr 26, 2024 09:40

PJOmega: May 5, 2009

Hog Inspector posted:

In 3.5 there�s a spell called Death Throes. It�s generally regarded as the worst spell in the entire game, for reasons that should be obvious:

Yeah. The problem is you can only cast it on yourself, and D&D (wisely) makes it near impossible to transfer a personal spell�s benefit. The only easy way to do so is to have a link with your familiar or animal companion, like a druid, but if one of those dies you take some annoying penalties, and you can�t get a new one for a while. There are, however, a couple ways to get around this, one of which (of course) is a prestige class.

The class �Spellguard� grants this ability:

But wait, Death Throes doesn�t qualify for this ability, since it doesn�t heal or buff. Well, there�s another feat you can take in Races of the Wild called �Magic of the land,� which grants the ability to imbue your spells with positive (healing) energy if you pass an easy knowledge skill check. The feat specifically says it doesn�t work on necromancy spells, but that�s okay because we can just be a specialized transmuter and exchange our level 5 wizard bonus feat for the �Spell Versatility� feat, which allows us to change any one spell type to Transmutation. Death throes now qualifies for a touch attack.

You can�t really get everything you need before level 11 or so, but that�s okay because at that point you have three casts of Death Throes per day. Now what you do is prepare three extended level 1 summons. Before you go into battle summon them, cast Death Throes on each of them as a touch spell, and send them ahead to engage the enemy. You probably want to back off at this point.

You�re level 11, so once the enemy kills one of your summons everything within 30 feet is taking 11d8 points of damage with no save. That�s including your other summons, which will then go off in a chain reaction. So that�s 33d8 damage to everything within 30 feet before you even enter the battle. The best part is the damage scaling doesn�t have a cap, meaning this will still be a viable tactic all the way to level 20. To be extra nasty you can use your touch abilities to turn your high level summons into powerhouses that will actually put up a decent fight even before their pyrrhic victory.

Note that animal suicide bombing may not be a good tactic if you have a druid in the party.

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# ? Jul 8, 2015 08:57

Alien Rope Burn: Dec 5, 2004; _{I wanna be a saikyo HERO!}

Hog Inspector posted:

Note that animal suicide bombing may not be a good tactic if you have a druid in the party.

Alternately, just summon demons, devils, or fiendish animals, as an easy way to sidestep the moral dilemma. It's a lot harder for folks to raise a fuss when your victims are literally and indisputably forces of evil. At that level you can just summon 1d4+1 hell hounds with a summon monster v, after all.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 09:07

Count Chocula: Dec 25, 2011; WE HAVE TO CONTROL OUR ENVIRONMENT
IF YOU SEE ME POSTING OUTSIDE OF THE AUSPOL THREAD PLEASE TELL ME THAT I'M MISSED AND TO START POSTING AGAIN

Hog Inspector posted:

was this ruleset made to specifically cater to a much younger audience? thats the only explanation I can think of that makes any sense

Or a much older one. I can see these new rules working for a drunken party game instead of a grognardy war game. That could actually be fun.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 13:01

Kurieg: Jul 19, 2012; RIP Lutri: 5/19/20-4/2/20

Someone just found a note in the rulebook about how Slanessh got captured and perhaps destroyed by the humans, so kid friendly I think it is.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 14:17

Stexils: Jun 5, 2008

Zemyla posted:

If it's only usable 1-3 times a day, why not turn it into a ranged touch spell with Reach Spell, and then use Chain Spell to make it affect multiple creatures?

Metamagic cost, mostly. Although once you level you could get a chain rod and Arcane Thesis and do that as 3 level 6 spells, and eventually however many level 8 spells you have.

Alien Rope Burn posted:

Alternately, just summon demons, devils, or fiendish animals, as an easy way to sidestep the moral dilemma. It's a lot harder for folks to raise a fuss when your victims are literally and indisputably forces of evil. At that level you can just summon 1d4+1 hell hounds with a summon monster v, after all.

Grizzled wizard antihero cleaning up hell one monster at a time.

Stexils fucked around with this message at 14:23 on Jul 8, 2015

# ? Jul 8, 2015 14:18

Olesh: Aug 4, 2008; Why did the circus close?

A long, chilling list of animal rights violations.

Hog Inspector posted:

Grizzled wizard antihero cleaning up hell one monster at a time.

The real Murphy is that this explicitly would't work with summoned monsters, because in D&D spells like Summon Monster don't actually allow the summoned creature to die; if they are "killed" (like by a magical death effect) or otherwise brought to 0 or fewer HP, they're instead returned to their original location and dispersed for 24 hours, unable to reform or be summoned again. Summoned creatures never actually die and don't leave a body.

You could do it with a spell like Planar Binding or Planar Ally, which as a "calling" spell (as opposed to a "summon") conjures an actual creature which can be killed and leaves a body (and, in theory, treasure). Those spells have non-trivial gold/XP costs, however.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 19:24

Forer: Jan 18, 2010; "How do I get rid of these nasty roaches?!"

Easy, just burn your house down.

Olesh posted:

The real Murphy is that this explicitly would't work with summoned monsters, because in D&D spells like Summon Monster don't actually allow the summoned creature to die; if they are "killed" (like by a magical death effect) or otherwise brought to 0 or fewer HP, they're instead returned to their original location and dispersed for 24 hours, unable to reform or be summoned again. Summoned creatures never actually die and don't leave a body.

You could do it with a spell like Planar Binding or Planar Ally, which as a "calling" spell (as opposed to a "summon") conjures an actual creature which can be killed and leaves a body (and, in theory, treasure). Those spells have non-trivial gold/XP costs, however.

The summons are also willing to rush in and get gibbed because hey, who gives a gently caress I'm killin' and I won't die ever 'cause if I'm about to die I just get back to home!

Try getting a planar ally to agree to rushing into a swarm of people and dying because he'd make a great explosion as he died.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 19:28

Stexils: Jun 5, 2008

Well if you want to get really super pedantic

quote:

Summoning: A summoning spell instantly brings a creature or object to a place you designate. When the spell ends or is dispelled, a summoned creature is instantly sent back to where it came from, but a summoned object is not sent back unless the spell description specifically indicates this. A summoned creature also goes away if it is killed or if its hit points drop to 0 or lower. It is not really dead. It takes 24 hours for the creature to reform, during which time it can't be summoned again.

When the spell that summoned a creature ends and the creature disappears, all the spells it has cast expire. A summoned creature cannot use any innate summoning abilities it may have, and it refuses to cast any spells that would cost it XP, or to use any spell-like abilities that would cost XP if they were spells.

quote:

If you are killed, your body is instantaneously destroyed in an explosion that deals 1d8 points of damage per caster level to everyone in a 30-foot-radius burst. This explosion destroys your body, preventing any form of raising or resurrection that requires part of the corpse. A wish, miracle, or true resurrection spell can restore life.

The spell doesn't say you have to be dead, just that you're killed :shepface:

# ? Jul 8, 2015 19:38

Kwyndig: Sep 23, 2006; Heeeeeey

Then the real question is, does it explode here, or where it came from :v:

# ? Jul 8, 2015 19:53

90s Cringe Rock: Nov 29, 2006

The celestial badger explodes on the prime material plane, and is very confused about the 72 virgins chilling next to its celestial sett.

# ? Jul 8, 2015 19:55

Haystack: Jan 23, 2005

Kwyndig posted:

Then the real question is, does it explode here, or where it came from

Clearly it explodes, instantly deals damage to everyone nearby, and then it's body (which consists of just the unimportant physical, visual, and sonic elements of the explosion) instantly dissipates into whatever plane it came from.

So imagine a situation where a group of celestial monkeys runs up to a band of orcs, gets cut down, and then abruptly disappears, accompanied by only by the quiet thumps of orcs hitting the ground, dead from forces unseen.

Haystack fucked around with this message at 23:18 on Jul 8, 2015

# ? Jul 8, 2015 23:14

Dareon: Apr 6, 2009; by vyelkin

Silent, but deadly. :yosbutt:

# ? Jul 9, 2015 06:51

Nickoten: Oct 16, 2005; Now there'll be some quiet in this town.

Hog Inspector posted:

In 3.5 there�s a spell called Death Throes. It�s generally regarded as the worst spell in the entire game, for reasons that should be obvious:

Yeah. The problem is you can only cast it on yourself, and D&D (wisely) makes it near impossible to transfer a personal spell�s benefit. The only easy way to do so is to have a link with your familiar or animal companion, like a druid, but if one of those dies you take some annoying penalties, and you can�t get a new one for a while. There are, however, a couple ways to get around this, one of which (of course) is a prestige class.

The class �Spellguard� grants this ability:

But wait, Death Throes doesn�t qualify for this ability, since it doesn�t heal or buff. Well, there�s another feat you can take in Races of the Wild called �Magic of the land,� which grants the ability to imbue your spells with positive (healing) energy if you pass an easy knowledge skill check. The feat specifically says it doesn�t work on necromancy spells, but that�s okay because we can just be a specialized transmuter and exchange our level 5 wizard bonus feat for the �Spell Versatility� feat, which allows us to change any one spell type to Transmutation. Death throes now qualifies for a touch attack.

You can�t really get everything you need before level 11 or so, but that�s okay because at that point you have three casts of Death Throes per day. Now what you do is prepare three extended level 1 summons. Before you go into battle summon them, cast Death Throes on each of them as a touch spell, and send them ahead to engage the enemy. You probably want to back off at this point.

You�re level 11, so once the enemy kills one of your summons everything within 30 feet is taking 11d8 points of damage with no save. That�s including your other summons, which will then go off in a chain reaction. So that�s 33d8 damage to everything within 30 feet before you even enter the battle. The best part is the damage scaling doesn�t have a cap, meaning this will still be a viable tactic all the way to level 20. To be extra nasty you can use your touch abilities to turn your high level summons into powerhouses that will actually put up a decent fight even before their pyrrhic victory.

Note that animal suicide bombing may not be a good tactic if you have a druid in the party.

This is what I read this thread to see, thanks!

# ? Jul 10, 2015 21:42

Taciturn Tactician: Jan 27, 2011; The secret to good health is a balanced diet and unstable healing radiation; Lipstick Apathy

Do video games count if they're explicitly based on pen and paper? Vampire: The Masquerade- Bloodlines has a bunch of :psyduck:

things that come completely from the underlying facsimile of VtM that powers the RPG aspect rather than some kind of programming aspect.

Failing that, D&D 3rd Edition has a weird rule relating to the dagger. It's got a little asterisk that indicates it has special rules, but when you check the descriptions, you only get this:

quote:

Dagger: The dagger is a common secondary weapon. You can use the Weapon Finesse feat (see page 86) to apply your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to attack rolls with a dagger.

The description of the Weapon Finesse feat is thus:

quote:

You are especially skilled at using a certain weapon, one that can benefit as much from Dexterity as from Strength. Choose one light weapon. Alternatively, you can choose a rapier, provided you can use it in one hand, or a spiked chain, provided you're at least Medium-size.
Prerequisite: Proficient with weapon, base attack bonus +1 or higher.
Benefit: With the selected weapon, you may use your Dexterity modifier instead of your strength modifier on attack rolls. [..]

So the special rules for a dagger are that... you can use a feat with it that you already could. I think the idea was for if some reason you had a character with a size category below Small, you could still use Weapon Finesse with a dagger even though it's not a light weapon for you, but RAW you can't actually take Weapon Finesse(Dagger) if a dagger isn't a light weapon for you, so being able to use it is kind of moot.

3e also has a few spells that are permanent. Take for example Arcane Mark

quote:

Arcane Mark
Universal
Level: Sor/Wiz 0
[..]
Duration: Permanent
Saving Throw: No
Spell Resistance: No

This spell allows you to inscribe your personal rune or mark, which can be no taller than 6 inches in height and consist of no more than six characters. The writing can be visible or invisible.. An arcane mark spell enables you to etch the upon any substance (even stone or metal) without harm to the material upon which the mark is placed. If an invisible mark is made, a detect magic spell causes it to glow and be visible (though not necessarily understandable). See invisibility, true seeing, a gem of seeing, or a robe of eyes likewise allows their users to see an invisible arcane mark. A read magic spell reveals the words, if any. The mark cannot be dispelled, but it can be removed by the caster or by an erase spell. If cast on a living being, normal wear gradually causes the mark to fade in about a month.[..]

So it's a spell to let you deface things. You can use it on anything and nothing can stop you. No spell resistance, no saving throw, cannot be dispelled. But it can be Erased.

quote:

Erase
Transmutation
Level: Brd 1, Sor/Wiz 1
[..]
Target: One scroll or two pages
[..]

Erase removes writings of either magical or mundane nature from a scroll or from up to two pages of paper, parchment, or similar surfaces. It removes explosive runes, glyphs of warding, sepia snake sigils, and arcane marks, but it does not remove illusory script or symbols. Nonmagical writings are automatically erased if you touch them and no one else is holding them. Otherwise, the chance is 90%. Magic writings must be touched, and you must roll 15+ on a caster level check (1d20 + caster level) to succeed. (A natural 1 or 2 is always a miss on this roll.) [..]

So first off, it's a first level spell rather than a cantrip. Second off, unlike dispel magic, it can't be done in an area. Lastly, even if the world's greatest archmage is trying to Erase something, there's a 10% chance of the spell failing.

Consider for a moment a wizard's school. A talented wizard, by the power of using lower level spells in higher level slots, can cast Erase anywhere from 1 (level 1 wizard, 11 intelligence) to 49 (level 20 18 intelligence wizard with a Transmutation speciality) times. Meanwhile, a 10 intelligence level 1 wizard can throw out 4 Arcane Marks a day. Let's say the teachers are along the lines of level 5 not-Transmutation specialists with less than 18 int, putting them somewhere around 6-9 casts of Erase. What this means is unless you have a school with either a tiny student-teacher ratio, or teachers who are all living gods of magical prowess, the student population can cover everything and everyone in drawings of dicks and the teaching staff can do absolutely nothing about it.

Taciturn Tactician fucked around with this message at 14:42 on Aug 3, 2015

# ? Aug 3, 2015 14:39

LawfulWaffle: Mar 11, 2014; Well, that aligns with the vibes I was getting. Which was, like, "normal" kinda vibes.

Taciturn Tactician posted:

Do video games count if they're explicitly based on pen and paper? Vampire: The Masquerade- Bloodlines has a bunch of things that come completely from the underlying facsimile of VtM that powers the RPG aspect rather than some kind of programming aspect.

You know the rules. :justpost:

# ? Aug 3, 2015 15:08

Taciturn Tactician: Jan 27, 2011; The secret to good health is a balanced diet and unstable healing radiation; Lipstick Apathy

LawfulWaffle posted:

You know the rules.

The OP says "no video games" so I'm not sure if it's allowed.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 16:39

Paper Kaiju: Dec 5, 2010; atomic breadth

Taciturn Tactician posted:

Consider for a moment a wizard's school. A talented wizard, by the power of using lower level spells in higher level slots, can cast Erase anywhere from 1 (level 1 wizard, 11 intelligence) to 49 (level 20 18 intelligence wizard with a Transmutation speciality) times. Meanwhile, a 10 intelligence level 1 wizard can throw out 4 Arcane Marks a day. Let's say the teachers are along the lines of level 5 not-Transmutation specialists with less than 18 int, putting them somewhere around 6-9 casts of Erase. What this means is unless you have a school with either a tiny student-teacher ratio, or teachers who are all living gods of magical prowess, the student population can cover everything and everyone in drawings of dicks and the teaching staff can do absolutely nothing about it.

The obvious solution is that every wizard school requires a huge custodial staff consisting of epic-level wizards with nothing but Erase spells prepared (as well as some cleaning cantrips).

Either that, or Erasing duty is some kind of community service punishment for high-level wizard misdemeanors.

gently caress, there's some good world-building material in there for someone better at it than I am.

Edit: VVV You're no fun.

Paper Kaiju fucked around with this message at 19:41 on Aug 3, 2015

# ? Aug 3, 2015 19:04

PantsOptional: Dec 27, 2012; All I wanna do is make you bounce

Given that the initial caster can remove the Arcane Mark, I think that at a certain point the most effective method to clean up the graffiti at Dongwarts is a loud reminder that Fireball is in the official faculty spellbook.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 19:29

girl dick energy: Sep 30, 2009; You think you have the wherewithal to figure out my puzzle vagina?

Paper Kaiju posted:

gently caress, there's some good world-building material in there for someone better at it than I am.

When it really gets interesting is when you realize that you can make wands of Erase that anyone with basically any arcane talent can use. They cost a lot, (350ish gold for fifty uses, IIRC), but is that more or less than it'd cost to just have a wizard on payroll just to erase things? You could also make a permanent magic item that can use it at-will with no talent required, though it'd be even more expensive. Going by the magic item crafting rules in 3.5e, The Wizard Clean Magic Eraser (1st level x 1st level, use-activated) would cost 2000 gold pieces, which is a little bit more than the cost of a suit of magic chainmail. Wizards would take their graffiti-cleaning tools very seriously.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 19:58

Ardeem: Sep 16, 2010; There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.

Do walls and desks even count as similar enough to paper or parchment for the erase spell to even be able to target them? Or does this only work for schools in places with paper walls?

# ? Aug 3, 2015 20:08

Freaking Crumbum: Apr 17, 2003; Too fuck to drunk

Ardeem posted:

Do walls and desks even count as similar enough to paper or parchment for the erase spell to even be able to target them? Or does this only work for schools in places with paper walls?

good catch. since RAW erase is only intended for written language on documents, i imagine any d&d world that has a sufficient history of arcane casters looks a lot like a newbie area in a dark souls game where there are just hundreds of overlapping messages left behind LIAR AHEAD SECRET WALL AHEAD TRY TONGUE BUT HOLE AMAZING CHEST WEAKNESS: ATTACK FROM BEHIND

# ? Aug 3, 2015 20:20

Taciturn Tactician: Jan 27, 2011; The secret to good health is a balanced diet and unstable healing radiation; Lipstick Apathy

PantsOptional posted:

Given that the initial caster can remove the Arcane Mark, I think that at a certain point the most effective method to clean up the graffiti at Dongwarts is a loud reminder that Fireball is in the official faculty spellbook.

There's another version of the same concept with the level 2 spell Continuous Flame which can't be erased but can be dispelled, and can't be dismissed by the caster, but it's a lot less likely for a bunch of wizard students to be able to cast 2nd level spells than cantrips. Either way you can spam it out more than an equally powerful wizard can dismiss it. Which means that unless they're more devoted than you, eventually it'll start to pile up everywhere. Hope you like glowing classrooms.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 20:22

CCKeane: Jan 28, 2008; my shit posts don't die, they multiply

Taciturn Tactician posted:

There's another version of the same concept with the level 2 spell Continuous Flame which can't be erased but can be dispelled, and can't be dismissed by the caster, but it's a lot less likely for a bunch of wizard students to be able to cast 2nd level spells than cantrips. Either way you can spam it out more than an equally powerful wizard can dismiss it. Which means that unless they're more devoted than you, eventually it'll start to pile up everywhere. Hope you like glowing classrooms.

Continual Flame has a material cost, though, so they might just be able to bankrupt you in the process.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 20:24

Rulebook Heavily: Sep 18, 2010; by FactsAreUseless

Taciturn Tactician posted:

The OP says "no video games" so I'm not sure if it's allowed.

I asked before posting the thread and was advised to put that in there, but at this point who knows :v:

# ? Aug 3, 2015 20:47

Mairn: Jan 6, 2011

Arcane Mark is even more hilarious in pathfinder because the wizard can cast it at-will. Erase is still a first level spell though.

Students can place unlimited dicks.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 22:15

RandallODim: Dec 30, 2010; Another 1? Aww man...

So just like any public school, really.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 23:23

Jedit: Dec 10, 2011; Proudly supporting vanilla legends 1994-2014

Taciturn Tactician posted:

Consider for a moment a wizard's school. A talented wizard, by the power of using lower level spells in higher level slots, can cast Erase anywhere from 1 (level 1 wizard, 11 intelligence) to 49 (level 20 18 intelligence wizard with a Transmutation speciality) times. Meanwhile, a 10 intelligence level 1 wizard can throw out 4 Arcane Marks a day. Let's say the teachers are along the lines of level 5 not-Transmutation specialists with less than 18 int, putting them somewhere around 6-9 casts of Erase. What this means is unless you have a school with either a tiny student-teacher ratio, or teachers who are all living gods of magical prowess, the student population can cover everything and everyone in drawings of dicks and the teaching staff can do absolutely nothing about it.

There's also very little stopping wizards incinerating passers-by, so presumably the first thing you learn at Wizard School is the ethics of not drawing mystical wangs everywhere. That, or Tolkien thought "Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, or you will spend the rest of your life with "I'M GAY" written across your forehead in indelible 96-point font" lacked a certain je ne sais quoi.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 23:44

saltylopez: Mar 30, 2010

Mairn posted:

Arcane Mark is even more hilarious in pathfinder because the wizard can cast it at-will. Erase is still a first level spell though.

Students can place unlimited dicks.

One of the players in our pathfinder game is playing a faerie wizard trickster that uses arcane mark to put up crude drawings of himself on anything and everything around him at all times. He then uses enter image to spy on everybody/everything in a 300ft radius.

Another player has taken to systematically defacing these images or destroying his stuff whenever he finds the marks on something he owns.

# ? Aug 3, 2015 23:54

Coward: Sep 10, 2009; _{I say we take off and surrender unconditionally from orbit.

It's the only way to be sure}

.

What I'm worried about is that unless it's put on a living being, the implication is that the only way to get rid of the mark is by the caster's choice, or the Erase spell.

This means that even if they tear down and disintegrate the Statue of Our Founder Now Covered With Dongs down, the dongs will stay there.

Edit: It also mentions "your personal rune or mark". How is this determined? Do I get a choice? Am I stuck with it? If I'm a 16 year old apprentice and I think dickbutt is hilarious, will I be stuck with this when I'm a 60 year old Master Wizard and needing to sign my ~~threats~~correspondence?

Coward fucked around with this message at 01:30 on Aug 4, 2015

# ? Aug 4, 2015 01:21

MadDogMike: Apr 9, 2008; Cute but fanged

Coward posted:

What I'm worried about is that unless it's put on a living being, the implication is that the only way to get rid of the mark is by the caster's choice, or the Erase spell.

This means that even if they tear down and disintegrate the Statue of Our Founder Now Covered With Dongs down, the dongs will stay there.

Edit: It also mentions "your personal rune or mark". How is this determined? Do I get a choice? Am I stuck with it? If I'm a 16 year old apprentice and I think dickbutt is hilarious, will I be stuck with this when I'm a 60 year old Master Wizard and needing to sign my ~~threats~~correspondence?

I seem to recall that spell came from Forgotten Realms, where it was intended as basically a signature more than a method to graffiti things. If my very vague memories about wizard symbols in that setting apply you could eventually change your symbol over time (can't remember if there was any requirement to resemble the older one though; perhaps you must add a sombero to make Senor Dickbutt your personal sigil of arcane might). On the other hand it had a version of mystic copyright applied to it supported by the gods of magic to prevent forgery, so if you did decide to make the world tremble at the sign of the Archmage Ultra-Gandalf's dickbutt symbol, Mystra would be responsible for making sure nobody could use your symbol in vain, so no other mage in the world could draw a dickbutt on something lest they receive divine justice. This may in fact actually include erasing it, so even the teachers of your Hogwarts equivalent might not be able to clean it up without getting the gods mad. Which, given the gods of Faerun follow the traditional Greek model of being total assholes, kinda fits really.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 02:00

Nessus: Dec 22, 2003; After a Speaker vote, you may be entitled to a valuable coupon or voucher!

I thought most wizards were homeschooled. Dickbutt would be occurring on dungeon walls.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 02:03

Dareon: Apr 6, 2009; by vyelkin

MadDogMike posted:

I seem to recall that spell came from Forgotten Realms, where it was intended as basically a signature more than a method to graffiti things. If my very vague memories about wizard symbols in that setting apply you could eventually change your symbol over time (can't remember if there was any requirement to resemble the older one though; perhaps you must add a sombero to make Senor Dickbutt your personal sigil of arcane might). On the other hand it had a version of mystic copyright applied to it supported by the gods of magic to prevent forgery, so if you did decide to make the world tremble at the sign of the Archmage Ultra-Gandalf's dickbutt symbol, Mystra would be responsible for making sure nobody could use your symbol in vain, so no other mage in the world could draw a dickbutt on something lest they receive divine justice. This may in fact actually include erasing it, so even the teachers of your Hogwarts equivalent might not be able to clean it up without getting the gods mad. Which, given the gods of Faerun follow the traditional Greek model of being total assholes, kinda fits really.

I had actually thought of that, but I couldn't find all the info I needed from a quick google, and gently caress digging out my 2E FR box set right now. But essentially, it's based on willful intent to defraud. If you just arcane sketch Dickbutt the Ineluctable's sigil on a dungeon wall without having ever heard of him, you're good. If you see something Dickbutt the Ineluctable signed and go "Who the gently caress drew a dick with a butt that also has a dick on this" and Erase it, you're fine. If you draw a dickbutt, wave it at a guard and say "I hold signed orders from Dickbutt the Ineluctable! The city's supply of bat guano is required for his war magicks!", then bam, Threefold Curse of Mystra. Save versus the really nasty stuff (I think it starts at petrification and goes up from there?) or take Str damage. If you don't immediately recant, save or take Int(?) damage and lose spells. Then save or take Wis(?) damage and other poo poo. I don't recall the mechanics.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 03:41

Cthulhuchan: Nov 10, 2005; Rose: Sip martini thoughtfully.

Such as this one.

Just a tiny sip couldn't hurt...

Nessus posted:

I thought most wizards were homeschooled. Dickbutt would be occurring on dungeon walls.

While apprenticeship is common, every so often a wizard will get it into their head to begin a wizard school. Massive graffiti vandalism is clearly the downfall of such institutions.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 04:39

Daeren: Aug 18, 2009; YER MUSTACHE IS CROOKED

Nessus posted:

I thought most wizards were homeschooled. Dickbutt would be occurring on dungeon walls.

Kilroy Was Here, only with a dick for a nose, and a wizard hat.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 04:41

CannonFodder: Jan 26, 2001; Passion’s Wrench

Rulebook Heavily posted:

That leads into what is, genuinely, the initial and so far current competitive meta: Bringing N+1 Fateweavers. Literally as many as fit on your side of the board. Hope you picked the deployment zone with less terrain.

Did I mention that Fateweaver is supposed to be a unique character yet? Yeah. No restriction.

The competitive meta should be beard size, and fake beards count if they are worn the entire time.

# ? Aug 4, 2015 14:31

girl dick energy: Sep 30, 2009; You think you have the wherewithal to figure out my puzzle vagina?

You know, if I didn't know better, I'd think that the new Warhammer edition was a performance art about how competitive tabletop gamers are self important and incapable of whimsy .

# ? Aug 18, 2015 22:09

Golden Bee: Dec 24, 2009; I came here to chew bubblegum and quote 'They Live', and I'm... at an impasse.

Unexpected Monsterhearts Synergy:

As a Mortal or a Queen, take both these moves:

quote:

...And Your Enemies Closer: When someone betrays you, gain a String on them.
&
Sympathy is My Weapon: Every time you forgive someone for hurting you, and excuse their base nature, take a String on them.

Who knew the best way to survive Monster Academy was to be Christlike?

# ? Aug 19, 2015 00:04

GimpInBlack: Sep 27, 2012; That's right, kids, take lots of drugs, leave the universe behind, and pilot Enlightenment Voltron out into the cosmos to meet Alien Jesus.

Golden Bee posted:

Unexpected Monsterhearts Synergy:

As a Mortal or a Queen, take both these moves:

Who knew the best way to survive Monster Academy was to be Christlike?

"Survive."

(Seriously though, that's cool and totally in-genre for Teenage Drama Bullshit.)

# ? Aug 19, 2015 00:10

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 26, 2024 09:40

Green Intern: Dec 29, 2008; Loon, Crazy and Laughable

I'm imagining the captain of the school Spirit committee. Pun intended.

# ? Aug 19, 2015 00:11

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Traditional Games > Murphy's Rules: Your Favorite Game Is Weird

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