Hello all. So I'm working on my homebrew RPG. For power sources (class analogs mainly though more broad), I've been contemplating what an RPG might be like if you flipped the role of arcane and martial characters.
That is, typically in D&D, martial types are thought to do things everyone else can do, but do it better, while arcane types do things noone else can do, as well as enhancing themselves with things everyone can do.
Here, I'm thinking of having it so that anyone can use magic if they learn/find it -- as in, rituals, magic devices, scrolls, etcetera -- via skills/mind tests, arcane characters can do it better and get more bang for their buck. In contrast, martial characters would have a variety of special abilities, similar to spells in other RPGs, but typically conveyed through weapon range.
Thoughts?
Note also that arcane types could be warriors of a sort (specializing in bringing out the properties of magical weapons and armor would be suitable for an arcane character), and not all chars fall into either category. There wouldn't be cross pollination between the two power sources, however, as martial powers would be mainly as a way to make a non-magic oriented character dynamic to play.
wait, the one on the right is a "him"?
>>43750122
I sort of ran a 3.5 D&D campaign like that, where the only books allowed were Expanded Psionics Handbook, Magic of Incarnum, and Tome of Battle.
Just about everybody had at least one psionic power through the Hidden Talent feat, but only a rare, elite few had access to maneuvers.
It was pretty fun. The players ended up using an audience of drugged slaves as bait to draw out an insane opera singer so they could kick her shit in.
>>43750233
I think so. Not sure. Does it say?
>>43750305
Its not so much that I want to emulate 3.x or whatever, but it does give one ideas how different things would be if arcane and martial used the opposite design concepts.
I was also thinking resurrection and teleportation rituals would be researched per target.
>>43750122
Seems like it could work. Give magic users a simple blasting spell they can use for damage, and make magic a sort of skill-based system where you have to make checks to use magic items for a task.
Like, if you find a staff of vines, you'd roll your Druidism skill to try and trip or restrain someone with them.
Maybe even have spells as feats where you can get another ability more permanently with some investment.
Of course, then there's the matter of flipping this around for Martials. I'd suggest something like a Stamina or Endurance pool to mirror Spell Points, and various maneuvers available to different classes that would cost different amounts and offer utility.
Like, a Fighter could use some Stamina to Jump over a massive gap risk-free, while a Mage could make a skill check to levitate themselves across, with a chance of failure if they lose focus, but the ability to do so any number of times each day.
You'd want to fiddle with the numbers to make sure things don't end up as imbalanced as 3.5, but it could be an interesting spin on the whole thing.
>>43750122
So martials fire and forget but casters are hoping the roll is good enough?
>>43750122
Or, or, you could actually balance the two instead of just turning the tables.
>>43751324
Well, casters in 3.x already are roll dependent, its just on the target's roll (a saving throw). Here, its more like they reduce their failure chance when using magic items and rituals to, typically, an insignificant level, and can squeeze a lot more mileage out of an item activation or a ritual effect. But whatever utility rituals/effects exist, anyone can get (they're typically more restricted than in D&D, as I don't like super utilitarian everything).
Martial types would have separate "spell point" pools for stamina, willpower, and 'combat advantage' (since this is heavily 5e associated I'm looking for a better name). The latter is the most powerful, and to summarize it, the idea is that non martial types have the raw numbers to participate in combat (like in 4e, everyone has the raw numbers to hit their foes and not die instantly), but only martial types capitalize on combat modifiers. So, for example, 10 martial advantage points can be traded in for a free attack, and where in another RPG you'd get an AoO (if a foe moves past you, etc.) here, you'd just get the 10 martial advantage. Similarly, attacks that miss, for martial chars, are classified as feints and give medium amounts of martial advantage, and attacks that hit and do no damage give high amounts of martial advantage. So they're always either whooping enemies or generating advantage for their next offensive.
Another example is that in 3.x and 4e, vs will effects are the strongest. Here, willpower is likewise the main form of defense, and just about all hits deduct willpower, similarly to deducting HP. The effect is generally caused through the pain of being hit (there's provision for 'realistic' injuries but its mostly about defeating foes through pain). Mind influencing spells check your current willpower in lieu of a save; physical attacks typically deplete willpower.
>>43751437
>Or, or, you could actually balance the two instead of just turning the tables.
Of course I'm balancing the two, there is no "or" here.
Its a seperate RPG, not even d20. The thing is, as mentioned, that they are flipped in the sense that arcanists are mainly about getting more mileage from tools (magic devices, scrolls, ritual/incantations, etc.) that potentially anyone can use, and martials mainly center around highly reliable special abilities.
They're also only 2 out of 12+ power sources, and both relatively low power. Relatively.
>>43750233
As someone who's seen this anime, yeah, it's a "him". Although most of the time he still dresses like he was a character from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.
>>43753447
Those tits look like separate appendages. I just can't take them.
>>43753447
Quite the titties. Also didn't know this was an animu.
>>43755175
Magi: Labyrinth of Magic is the mango/animu's name.
The anime will never catch up.
Main protagonist is a vaguely trappy shota wizard Aladdin and his sidekicks, Alibaba whom is a swell guy with a lot of despair in wait for him, and Morrigan whom is a monstrously powerful ex-slave. The setting is set between the conflicts of not-Arabia ruled by Sinbad the Mary Sue, not-Rome ruled by Loli Wizard, not-Imperial China ruled by idiots and throw in Wizard Israel ruled by Gandalf the Black. Main antagonists are a cult of sociopaths that want to resurrect God. Everyone gets bad ends.
>>43755175
Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic is the name of the first season. Magi: The Kingdom of Magic is the second.
The manga (just titled "Magi") is better than both.
>>43750122
So xianxia monks vs spellsword jack of all trade wizards?
Just go with the internal ''power core'' and say martials get a Qi core which allows them to use those spells/skills you mentioned while wizards get their ''magic core'' which allows for their spells and some other perception and memory related stuff.
Also make it so that practicing Qi is much more difficult than practicing ordinary magic but is much better in single combat.
>>43755216
Gandalf the Black did nothing wrong.
Alibaba is a nice change up from normal shonen protagonists because he doesn't cry and become a Sasuke.
Morgianna was interesting until Alibaba and Aladdin became competent and her reason for existing pretty much disappeared.
Everyone else sorta sucks. Thankfully the War Arc (at least in the manga) didn't take nearly as long as it looked like it was going to. It'll probably eat an entire season of the anime unfortunately.
>>43755279
>Gandalf the Black did nothing wrong.
Using goyim as fuel is not exactly right anon.
>>43755231
>power core
Do you mean a core power set or a metaphysical explanation for their powers?
>>43755302
That sounds like the words of someone who plays lame Martial classes in their tabletop games.
Don't be jelly casters are supreme.
>>43755302
At the risk of sounding like /pol/, it is worth noting those people basically contributed nothing to society and were living on the equivalent of welfare. A large number of them were actually there willingly, because being harvested for energy was easier than getting a real job or being a functioning member of society.
Although forcing the kids who were born into that cycle to stay there was pretty wrong.
>>43755405
>At the risk of sounding like /pol/, it is worth noting those people basically contributed nothing to society and were living on the equivalent of welfare.
You say that like they had the option to contribute. Not to mention those born into the lowest class have no option to escape to be servants or soldiers.
>A large number of them were actually there willingly, because being harvested for energy was easier than getting a real job or being a functioning member of society.
There's also the part where they're drugged with magic to be addicted to being used as a meat battery for the upkeep of civic sorcery.
>>43755405
>>43755420
You're both also talking about a world where Slavery was a normal and accepted part of many societies. Pretty sure they had it better than Morgianna if her flashbacks are any indicator.
Not saying that makes it right, but it also doesn't make Magnostatd the most evil country to exist in the setting.
