20th anniversary of bog-standard magic.

[Qhue]

Consider this part three of my continuing dissatisfaction with how the concept of 'magic' is addressed in computer gaming in general and MMORPGs in particular.

In part one I talked about how magic has become more mundane than non-magical actions in recent games and how no one involved in game design seems to give a rats ass about the concept.

In part two I sat down, following a boring morning meeting, and weaved a metaphysics primer to show that it doesnt take much effort to come up with new ideas or at least different ways of approaching classic concepts.


**************************************************

Next Generation games always strive to do stuff bigger and better than the current generation. In making World of Warcraft or Vanguard or any other recent or up and coming title its necessary to show how it improves upon the status quo. Afterall if the "Next Generation" isnt a better game, why bother playing it? Graphics are compared and polygons/art teams are stressed to new heights in an effort to deliver a gaming experience that compels a player to toss aside the old for the new.

In terms of gameplay there has been a recent push to move away from some of the more ubiquitous standards in an effort to make things more interesting, especially for the melee classes. Much is made of how Warriors in World of Warcraft make use of stances and special skills instead of just clicking auto-attack. Everquest 2 also has "melee spells" as well as a complex combo-strike system and Vanguard shows signs of taking hit location into account as well. I can't begrudge this effort because one of the reasons I never played a melee class was because hitting "a" and then running around after a 30 foot tall critter never really struck me as entertaining. The primary skillset necessary to play a melee class in EQ afterall was "not falling asleep".

Consider then the following:

CONJURER SPELLS

Level 1

MAGE FLAME A small, mobile
"torch" will appear, and float above
the spell caster as he travels.


ARC FIRE A fan of blue flames will
shoot from the caster's fingers,
doing 1-4 hits of damage to a select
opponent, times caster's level.

SORCERER SHIELD The mage is
protected by an invisible "shield"
of magic, that turns aside many
blows that would otherwise hit him.

TRAP ZAP This spell will disarm
any trap within 30 feet, in the
direction the party is facing. It
will also disarm traps on chests.

Level 2

FREEZE FOES This spell binds
your enemies with a magical force,
slowing their movements and
making them easier to hit.

KIEL'S MAGIC COMPASS A
Compass of shimmering magelight
appears above the party, telling
the direction they face.

BATTLESKILL This spell increases
one of your party member's skill
with weapons, increasing the
accuracy and ferocity of his attacks.

WORD OF HEALING With the
utterance of a single word the
spell caster can cure a party
member of minor wounds,
healing 2-8 points of damage.

Level 3

ARCYNE'S MAGESTAR A bright
flare will ignite in front of a group
of your enemies, temporarily
blinding them and causing them
to miss the next combat round.


LESSER REVELATION This is an
extended "Mage Flame" spell
which also reveals secret doors.


LEVITATION Partially negates the
effect of gravity on the party,
causing them to float over traps
or up through portals.

WARSTRIKE Causes a spray of
energy to spring from the caster's
extended finger, sizzling a group
of opponents for 4-16 hits damage.

Level 4

ELIK'S INSTANT WOLF With this
spell the caster can make a real wolf
appear and join the party, fighting
in its defense.

FLESH RESTORE This powerful
healing spell will restore 6-24 hit
points to a party member and cure
poisoning and insanity.

POISON STRIKE This spell hurls
porcupine-sharp needles from the
mages finger into a selected
monster, poisoning it.

Level 5

GREATER REVELATION This
spell functions like a "Lesser
Revelation" spell, only it
illuminates a wider area.

WRATH OF VALHALLA Makes a
member of your party fight with the
strength and accuracy of ancient
Norse heroes for the entire combat.

SHOCK-SPHERE A large glove
of intense electrical energy
envelops a group of enemies,
doing 8-32 hits of damage.

Level 6

ELIK'S INSTANT OGRE This
incantation will cause a real ogre
to appear and join the party.


MAJOR LEVITATION This will
make the party levitate as does
the level 3 spell, but its effects
will last until dispelled.

Level 7

FLESH ANEW This spell behaves
like the "Flesh Restore" spell,
except that it will affect every
member of the party.

APPORT ARCANE Allows the
party to teleport anywhere within a
dungeon, except for places
protected by teleportation shields.

MAGICIAN SPELLS

Level 1

VORPAL PLATING This spell
causes the weapon (or hands) of a
party member to be covered with a
magical field, which causes him to
do an additional 2-8 points of damage

AIR ARMOR This spell will make
the air around the spell caster
bind itself into a weightless suit
of "armor."

SABHAR'S STEELIGHT SPELL
Causes all metal near the party
to glow with a magical light, illum-
inating the surrounding area.

SCRY SITE The walls themselves
will speak, under direction of this
spell, revealing to the spell caster
his location in the labyrinth.

Level 2

HOLY WATER A spray of water
will emanate from the mage's
fingers, doing 6-24 points of
damage to any undead foe
( e.g. skeleton, zombie, vampire)

WITHER STRIKE Any foe at whom
this spell is cast is likely to be turned
old, thus reducing his ability to
attack and defend in combat.

MAGE GAUNTLETS Makes a party
member's hands (or weapon) more
deadly, adding 4-16 points of
damage to every wound he inflicts.

AREA ENCHANT This spell will
cause the dungeon walls within
30 feet of a stairway to call out,
if the party is travelling toward it.

Level 3

YBARRA'S MYSTIC SHIELD
The air in front of the party will
bind itself into metallic hardness,
and will accompany the party when
it moves, as a sort of invisible "shield."

OSCON'S OGRESTRENGTH
Allows a member of your party to
damage monsters as if he were
as incredibly strong as an ogre.

MITHRIL MIGHT Increases the
armor protection of each party
member by enhancing their armor's
natural strength by magic.

STARFLARE The air surrounding
a group of your enemies will
instantly ignite, causing them to
be burnt for 6 to 24 damage points.

Level 4

SPECTRE TOUCH This spell will
drain a single enemy of 12 to 48
points of damage, as if touched
by a spectre.

DRAGON BREATH Allows the
mage to breathe fire at a group of
foes, doing 8 to 32 points of
damage to each.

SABHAR'S STONELIGHT SPELL
Makes all stone and earth within
range of the party glow with magical
light, revealing even secret doors.

Level 5

ANTI-MAGIC Causes the
ground to absorb a portion of the
magical energies cast at the
party, frequently allowing the
members to escape all damage.
Also aids in disbelieving illusions and in turning
back magical fire, like a dragon's breath.

AKER'S ANIMATED SWORD
A magical sword will appear and
fight like a summoned monster
in defense of the party.

STONE TOUCH This spell will often
turn an enemy to stone, or a stone
monster from living stone to dead
stone. But it doesn't always work.

Level 6

PHASE DOOR This incantation
will alter the structure of almost any
wall directly in front of the party,
turning it to air for exactly 1 move.

YBARRA'S MYSTICAL COAT OF
ARMOR Causes an effect like
"Air Armor" to cover every member
of the party, lasting indefinitely.

Level 7

RESTORATION Makes all wounds
disappear as your entire party is
reforged into unflawed bodies.
Also cures poisoning and insanity.

DEATHSTRIKE This incantation
is very likely to instantly kill one
selected enemy, big or small.


SORCEROR SPELLS

Level 1

MANGAR'S MIND JAB The mage
casts a concentrated blast of
psychic energy at one opponent
doing 2-8 hits of damage for each
experience level of the mage.

PHASE BLUR The entire party
will seem to waver and blur in the
sight of the monsters, making the
party very difficult to strike.

LOCATE TRAPS In a state of
magically-heightened awareness,
the spell caster will be able to sense
a trap within 30 feet, if he faces it.

HYPNOTIC IMAGE If successfully
cast, this spell will make a group of
your enemies miss the following
attack round.

Level 2

DISBELIEVE This spell will reveal
the true nature of any illusion
attacking the party, causing it to
instantly vanish.

TARGET-DUMMY A magical illusion
appears in the party's special slot.
Unable to attack, it will serve to
draw enemy attacks to himself.

MANGAR'S MIND FIST A higher
power "Mind Jab," does 3-12 hits
of damage to one foe, times the
experience level of the mage.

WORD OF FEAR This incantation
will make a group of your enemies
shake in fear, reducing their ability
to attack and do damage.

Level 3

WIND WOLF This spell creates an
illusionary wolf to join the party.
This and other illusions are only
effective as long as an enemy
"believes" them. Depending on
power and location, the monster may
see through the illusion, and cause it
to vanish.

KYLEARAN'S VANISHING SPELL
The mage casting this spell will turn
nearly invisible in the eyes of his
enemies, who will have great
difficulty in striking him.

SECOND SIGHT The mage will
experience heightened awareness
and be able to sense stairways,
special encounters, spell negation
zones, and other unusual occurrences.

CURSE Causes a group of your
enemies to fear you greatly,
lessening their morale and their
ability to hit and damage you.

Level 4

CAT EYES The members of the
mage's party will all receive perfect
night-vision, which will last
indefinitely.

WIND WARRIOR This spell will
create the illusion of a battle-
ready warrior that joins your party.

KYLEARAN'S INVISIBILITY SPELL
This invocation will perform a
Vanishing Spell on the entire
party.

Level 5

WIND OGRE This spell will create
the illusion of an ogre, which will
accompany and fight with your
party.

DISRUPT ILLUSION This spell will
destroy any illusion fighting the
party, and any new illusions created
later in the combat. It will also point
out any dopplegangers in the party.

MANGAR'S MIND BLADE A sharp
explosion of psychic energy that
inflicts10 - 40 hits to each and
every enemy you face.

Level 6

WIND DRAGON This incantation
will create an illusionary red dragon
to fight with your party.

MIND WARP This spell will make a
member of your party go totally
insane. Useful for possessions.

Level 7

WIND GIANT This spell will create
an illusionary storm giant, to join
with, and fight for, your party.


SORCERER SIGHT This spell
functions the same as the Second
Sight spell, but it will last
indefinitely.


BARD SONGS

1. FALKENTYNE'S FURY
This tune increases the damage your party will do
in combat, by driving them into a berserker rage.

2. THE SEEKER'S BALLAD
This song will produce light when exploring,
and during combat it will increase the party's
chance of hitting a foe with a weapon.

3. WAYLAND'S WATCH
This song will sooth your savage foes, making
them do less damage in combat.

4. BADH'R KILNFEST
This is an ancient Elven melody, which will heal the
Bard's wounds during traveling, and heal the
party's wounds during combat.

5. THE TRAVELLER'S TUNE
This melody makes the members of your party
more dexterous and agile, and thus more difficult
to hit.

6. LUCKLARAN
This song sets up a partial "anti-magic" field, which
gives party members some increased protection
against spell casting.

excerpted from the manual for "The Bards Tale: Tales of the Uknown"

MANUAL BY MICHAEL CRANFORD AND BING GORDON, © 1985 ELECTRONIC ARTS

Look at that list. Take a GOOD look at that list (I even skipped one of the 4 magic user classes) You have single target and area target attack spells. You have healing spells. You have mezzes, short and long duration buff spells, party transportation spells, DoTs, and the idea of an entire class of "magic user" that doesnt use "spell points". This "Bard" instead sings one song at a time and can sing a number of songs equal to his level before he has to go have a drink to whet his whistle.

That list is from the very first Bard's Tale game which was released in the summer of 1985 ... twenty years ago.

Twenty years ago. I know Im severely dating myself but I remember being horribly addicted to this game in junior high and yet there are now people on the development team for "next generation" games that werent even alive when the game was released!

Not only can you find the ancestor of every spell in World of Warcraft in that list but the spells all have more interesting names. Despite the lack of cutting edge high polygon 3D graphics and sparkly visual effects I still have a more poignant and visceral reaction to "Star Flare" than I do "Fireball (rank 4)"


In virtually every other category if you placed Bard's Tale on a commodore 64 in a booth next to Vanguard at E3 the difference would be laughable and you'd ask why anyone would ever play such a horrible looking title with 4 direction grid movement and a completely keyboard based UI (mouse?? what the hell is a mouse??!) yet when it comes to magic gameplay there has been almost no innovation in the past 20 years.

I want to see a game that makes me snicker at the spell list above just as I snicker at 8-bit pre-VGA graphics.

[Elgonn]

The spell lists in the early versions of Rogue through to Moria and eventually Angband have mostly been better than current MMORPGs as well.

I'm still waiting to be able to cast Genocide!

EDIT: I'd like to see a current MMORPG implement Angband Gravity Hounds. Just a pack of those with their gravity breath and you'd have the hardest raid target ever created. God damn those bastards.

[Ahnkosis]

The real question is how do you make a new and innovative magic system without getting bogged down in intricacy or management? The current magic systems in games work because they're made so that even stupid people can learn then and use them.

I was hopeful that WoW was going to have some innovation in the form of rituals, but even that fell flat. I think ritual magic could work in a big way if you get multiple spellcasters. EQ2 sort of has something like that with the Heroic opportunities system, but it is still far too situational.

If a system of contributions was added, meaning that if you cast Mind Flay with a priest and they Fireball with a Mage on the same target, the contributed spell would become Fire Flay or some shit, doing a different effect.

I think Qhue does strike at the heart of the issue. In every game, there's teleports, mezzes, direct damage, damage over time, buffs, etc, with no real changes to the foundations of spellcasting. But the real question is how can you replace a system that works as well as this does? What improvments can be made and where?

[0hz]

Originally posted by Qhue
I want to see a game that makes me snicker at the spell list above just as I snicker at 8-bit pre-VGA graphics.

When are you going to post a design document that outlines and supports the type of innovations you'd like to see?

So far, I haven't seen anything but snide criticism and jealous jabs at the people you envy.

[Kolle]

I would agree that magic systems definately need to take a few 'next steps'.

I've posted ideas about this stuff for a long time, but I doubt anyone making games pays attention to me. I've come to believe it's just a complete waste of time to give detailed ideas about this kinda thing because it's just wasted time and effort on my part. Might as well enjoy the idea by myself, I suppose.

So I can understand why someone might not put a ton of effort into displaying detailed systems or plans for things. I've already done that many times and it's just a big waste. Not to mention it can be stressful putting yourself out there, exposed on forums where the best that will come of what you post is someone simply not flaming you.


Obviously some game Devs read FoH boards, but I have no reason to believe they'd take anything any of us post seriously in terms of forming the basis for their magic systems. They have their own 'vision' and that's what their game will be. Most of what posters say is pointless.

[Braen]

One of the biggest issues I see is that we won't see anything truely innovative from an "mana system" stand point from a major developer.

The "Mana System" has been so beaten into the average MMO players play-style that to do something completely different could alienate a good part of your player-base.

You need to find a small company with 1 or 2 devs that have a "Vision" and the rest make that Vision come to light. That was happening with the original "Vision" of Horizons before the company was ripped form the creators control.

The company has to have the attitude, "Hey! We can survive with 10,000 players. Let's make sure we keep those people deeply interested in our game" And if they get 500,000 subscribers than so much the better. Sort of like EQ1 pre Luclin....

One thing I would like to see is Magic: The Gathering type system. No not cards. But different types of mana based on different schools of magic. Maybe the mage has collect the mana form different sources.. or different areas of the world have different levels of mana making certain spells or rituals more or less potent. Maybe different classes can overlap or even augment other classes with their specialization of the different mana...

[Nevergone]

Honestly I think there have been innovations to the traditional magic system.

Take a game like City of Heroes for spell variety. There are some powers that cover an area of ground with slippery ice, causing enemies to fall repeatedly. Or powerful blasts of wind that fling enemies back several dozen feet. There's even powers that allows you to pick up your enemy, and push them into other opponents, gathering them as you go until you have a giant ball of bad guys.

While you can probably say that some of these powers were inspired in earlier games, I think the execution has become very different as technology has advanced.

The question is - what do YOU want? You want some great and complex metaphysical structure to be designed so that the average player has to, in reality, be a student of the arcane arts? Magic can only get so complex before the masses becoming disinterested with the mechanics.

Eh, maybe a system like the one found in Arx Fatalis will be used in an upcoming title, but I doubt it.

[Elgonn]

Originally posted by Nevergone
The question is - what do YOU want?

Hell if DDO just actually had all the spells in the PHB it would have a larger variety of effects than any MMORPG to date.

[Cadrid]

There's a delicate balance that has to be struck with innovation and user friendliness. My first MMORPG was EverQuest, and after a few years I felt like branching out. I decided I would try out AC, since it was the only other real MMORPG out at the time. I read about the magic system and at first thought it would be awesome to create my own spells using reagents and combining them in different ways. But I soon found it to be down-right frustrating.

Without going onto a spoiler site, I would have to spend days just to find a new spell. Not to mention every single spell required components to cast, to make it more mystical than mere finger-wiggling. It was too much of a pain, despite being a respite from EverQuest's system, to be fun.

I think that many games have handled magic and mysticism correctly, but only in pieces. AC's system made magic more personal and involved, having to figure out the incantations and/or reagents needed for spells; WoW's rituals have hinted at more powerful spells needing multiple casters to cast it; Black and White's gesturing system was both innovative and simple; Vanguard's proposed system of having allies' actions allow another's abilities become useable; WoW's Energy, Combo Points, and Rage meters took a step in the right direction, but 6 classes with the same mana bar stole away some class uniqueness.

I, too, think that magic is handled a bit too casually in games these days. More innovation with how spells are cast, when they are available, who can use them, and so-forth would certainly be tempting to me for new games that come out, MMO or not. How about a single-player game that has voice recognition and the player needs to actually say the incantations? Or on the PS2, use the EyeToy and have the player use gestures? What about some temporary debilitating effects from extensive use of magic instead of just "needing a med break"?

Make magic magical again!

[Ahnkosis]

Ok, here's one idea for getting rid of mana for Arcane spellcasters.

Introduce a wild magic system. Your wizard starts with a full bar of "Arcane focus". Arcane focus is used to determine the effectiveness and success rate of your spellcasting. At a full bar, your success rate and effectiveness are both 100%. As you cast spells, they decrease the Arcane focus by a certain amount depending on the spell.

What happens when Arcane focus gets lower? As the Arcane focus pool gets lower (as you know it will by casting multiple spells), the effectiveness and success rate of additional spells cast goes down.

For example:

You start with 100 focus and cast a fireball, doing 6d6 damage. The fireball reduces focus by 4. The next fireball you cast does 6d6-3 dmg and only has a 96% chance to succeed.

What happens when a spell fails? This is where game makes can become really innovative in their magic system and impose a sort of penalty for continual magical abuse. While pacing your casting and keeping track of your focus, you will not set off the spell failure. However, continual spellcasting, chain casting if you will, will have a much higher chance to trigger this.

If a spell fails, a random magical effect occurs to either you, an enemy, or a party member. It could transmute you or someone into a frog or similar for a few rounds, or have you spewing foul breath, reducing the atk of all nearby party members. The penalty (or bonus on a rare occasion) would not have to be permanently detrimental, but serious enough to make it so that you don't just run around throwing out 15 fireballs on every group of mobs you see.

A similar system could be put in place for melee characters....kind of like a stamina system for special melee abilities. Sure, you could chain Mortal Strike 8 times, but your energy would be so low, you'd do crap for damage and have a chance to drop your weapon or expose yourself to an attack of opportunity or something similar.

Well, how's that for a start of an overhaul?

[Fammaden]

I think backfiring spells is a good idea in some ways. Didn't rain AoE's in EQ damage other players as well as mobs? The backfires could not be random or it would go from a novel concept to a highly annoying bit of irrelevancy in record time. Tying them in to a focus bar would merely result in the casters being told not to cast at all after a certain %. Maybe if mob abilities and traits were integral to the system then some strategy would be involved. Say, counter spells or spell shields that might reflect the spell back at the caster or party member(s). Maybe if you cast a fire spell on a fire elemental it would heal the mob for the amount that you intended to damage it and cause an AoE that damages all nearby players for the amount of the spell's damage roll.

Overall I am content with the tired old spell types I just want some freedom and control back. Remember being able to nuke yourself? Anyone who spent much time quadding has snared themselves at least once. Ever have the wrong spell set memmed and accidentally PBAoE the bankers in your hometown when you meant to hit a port? Why have we moved toward "protecting" players from themselves? Let the spells have potential to fuck up your day or your party's pull. I really hope VG brings back some of that type of dynamic that EQ had once upon a time and expands upon it. Magic users, especially the up and coming initiates, are only human vessels for channeling and studying the powers of the arcane, no matter how you write your game's metaphysical lore. There should be potential for the spells they attempt to blow up in their faces. This candy ass shit where mages run around spamming explosions like little fairies is weak. Frost nova should root the casters feet in place sometimes too. Blink should have potential to land your ass inside a tree or rock dead sometimes and requiring a druid to help you get your body back. Hell, extend it to melee too. Why doesn’t a rogue ever stab himself in the leg when learning a tricky new attack move? Of course the max level characters should be practiced enough to avoid most of the random accidental pratfalls, but that would require max level to actually mean something again. I am getting away from myself now, but my point is that I think we can accept the commonplace frequency of magic users in our virtual worlds a little easier when they are usually closer to Gargamel than Gandalph.

[Zehn - Vhex]

I suggested pretty much something akin to that for WoW. Different magic systems for different casting classes. Unfortunately, mana is easier to work with from a dev standpoint because you don't have to be creative.

Anyways...

Elaboration of the magic effects brings a degree of skill into the game. Simply put, physically directing where damage will go takes more 'skill' then just targeting a mob and pushing 3. (think Pillar of Lightning and other targeted AE's in EQ vs. Grenades/blizzard in WoW.) Or casting a fireball in morrowind vs. casting a fireball in pretty much any MMO. One requires aiming, the other requires a working index finger.

It won't, however, change the overall effect on gameplay. You're still just doing 500 damage to a group of enemies. It doesn't matter if you have to pick up the bucket of white paint and drop it on the invisible demon, you're still just casting "see invis." Covering an area in ice? Still just snare/root.

As games progress we'll see more control where we cast our spells, but the effects will pretty much still be the same damn thing.

The question really is, how much of a good thing is this? Being able to control just where I throw a grenade is fun to a degree, but if I had to do it with the frequency I did in EQ, I'd have gone fucking insane.

It's an issue of how much micro-management do you want. Do you want to be able to rip a chunk of rock from the ground and manually toss it around...or do you just want to click a button and watch the animation play out and do 200 dmg to your target?

It's like that horse-grooming as a tradeskill thread. While I'd like to be able to take more control over my favorite aspects of the game, sometimes you just go overboard with micro-management.

[Elgonn]

Originally posted by Fammaden
Ever have the wrong spell set memmed and accidentally PBAoE the bankers in your hometown when you meant to hit a port?

I still feel bad knowing that I once accidentally gated out of Fear while trying to nuke.

I definitely agree that the amazingly hardcoded 'friendly, neutral, enemy' states get annoying. Back in WoW beta when you actually had to raise magic skills it would have been nice to be able to nuke myself.

EDIT: The largest new magic system will easily be in the first game that actually has collision between players and spells. Will DDO have Wall spells?

[Nevergone]

I think that a lot of flavor can be added to games in general just by finally souping up AI. Seriously, how long are we going to play against enemies that have predictable actions during every single fight? I think the most mundane of fights comes when fighting NPC spellcasters, at least in most games. I'm not talking about some big scripted raid encounter with carefully planned mechanics; I'm talking about charging into a group of enemies and having the opposing mage repeatedly cast Fireball, or Ice Blast, or Root. Those bastards should be switching targets constantly, flinging stuns at your priests, mezzing/polymorphing your melee types.

They should also realize that their asses are about to get nuked, so they load up thier "Shifting Shield of Elemental Protection" - basically it's a spell that surrounds them in an orb that continually changes color; if it's blue, they're momentarily very resistant to ice spells but vulnerable to fire. If it's green, they're probably going to resist poison, but could be disoriented by a stun for an increased duration.

[Camerous]

All casters worth their salt have nuked themselves, gotten a crit, and died to it. Or snared themselves on a quad of giants and been smacked around like a small child. It makes the game more fun. :-)