Elemental, Ghost, Cosmology

[Lloyd Dupont]

As I advanced my campaign, currently in a different world's from players' own, with lots the dark elves (who are consumed, craftsmen and spellcasters), dragonewt and giant insects, I feel I really need some clarification on how immaterial creature and elementals works. I came up with a few ideas and spell that I write here for comments and suggestions. It feels sort of messy and not quite right yet though...

Some of those idea do not need immediate clarification... but they will all come into play later...

 

First there was the classic elemental creature: fire / water / earth and air elementals.  But really those (according to my budding cosmology which I won't details too much here) are just energy / matter given shape and agency through magic more than anything else and are up to the caster imagination and circumstances.
I decided ghosts were sort of elemental too, of so called, "negative energy", and archons and the like would be elemental of "positive energy".

Negative Energy is decaying, rusting and chilling with dark color effect. Positive Energy is the burning holy fire of creation.

Most such elemental are "immaterial" and, as such, wouldn't be affected by normal weapon and would only take 1D2 from all energy source (i.e. project energy and other elementals), they also by pass armour (but reduced by appropriate energy protection). Conversely they have no armour either and are (weakly) directly affected by energy attack. The damage from Enhance Damage is always applied. The normal weapon damage is not rolled (unless mana strike, below).

Positive and Negative elementals can affect each other for a full D6 per might and can damage all material weapon (when parrying) and as if they have superior quality. And they can both fly and go through mater and they all have manastrike (can inflict normal weapon damage on top of their elemental damage)

The material solid elementals (earth, magma, etc..) have amour points equals to their thoughness (that also reduce energy attack damage) and, otherwise, are like normal (i.e. corporeal) creature.

Manastrike, new stunt, requires arcane knowledge / divine allegiance + 1 weapon trait
There is a close combat stunt that let you inflict normal weapon damage to immaterial creature. cost 1ep per attack as well.

Manablock, new stunt, requires arcane knoledge / divine allegiance + shield trait
Let the character imbue Resist Energy (any 1 energy of choice) up to shield normal parry value on a parry (cost 1ep per level)

Summon Elemental, new spell, might*, target*, Arcane, Divine
would let imbue physical primal element with form and agency if sufficient primal element is present (earth, air, water, fire, magma, mud..). Elemental have only one location and are dismissed on lethal damage. Elemental are magical with low intelligence and should be given directive (concentration action) for each task (i.e. target they are supposed to attack). Mental control is done against the controlling wizard if attempted.
Size Class, Toughness, Movement (optional AP) = spell might,
Elemental Might = spell might /2.
Combat Skills: Wizard's own + 30%.

Elemental Shape, new spell, might*, target*, Arcane, Divine
might should be at least equal to target's size. Could be the caster or allies or victims. Turn the taget(s) into elemental with advantage and weakness.

Project (Energy) addendum
Will do D2 damage on most elemental. 3 new (rare) variation:
- positive energy & negative energy: will inflict D6 on each other and destroy equipment
- void: black globe of nothingness (disintegration). permanent D6 on everything, can't be heal. Destroy armour and magic first.

Angels and Demons
Most of them will have a glorious / unholly form they can turn to at will which behave like a negative/positive energy elemental. (thoughness and elemental might as others)

ghost
would be like a might 0 negative energy elemental with a toughness of 6... 

Void Elemental
Natural occurrence in the astral sea. This are black globe of nothingess. Can only be destoryed by Negative/Positive Energy of another Void elemental. Inflict permanent damage (disintegrate). Destroy armour and magic first.

 

 

Summary & ghost:

Ghost are immaterial and by pass armour and, with their free manastrike, inflict normal weapon damage with their might.
They can only be damage with manastrike, elemental damage (D2/might, any element including kinetic or D6 for positive energy), and Enhance Damage (the flat damage bonus spell) and have no armour (just like they ignore armour, their armour is ignored). They can still have armour that reduce the might of elemental attack by some number. 

Ghost can be hard to damage without appropriate skills or magic.

 

One big problem:
Elemental can't damage themselves with toughness = spell might and elemental damage = spell might / 2 * (D2 against other elemental).
But not quite sure what to do here....

Edited September 22, 2019 by Lloyd Dupont

[Lloyd Dupont]

As I was afraid this was too big a post for comment.... Really what I mean and was asking for comment

1. some of the mechanic that work for elemental work for ghost (I guess the immaterial part and immunities)
2. what could be the size, toughness, might of an elemental
3. what damage do they take from other sources (normal weapon, elemental attach, enhance damage)

I guess I could just pull some arbitrary numbers.. but I was looking for something that fell ok.. I guess we all have different idea here... but I'd like to know yours first!  

[RosenMcStern]

Most of this sounds sensible and fun to play. I think you are starting to grok the system; Lloyd. Quick comments:

• the mana strunts should be part of a Martial Arts school; I see them as secrets that only some monks in reclusive monasteries should know. Ordinary adventurers should resort to weapon enhancement spells to fight incorporeal threats, except maybe those few  who manage to bribe some monks to teach them the secrets.
• your Ghost is essentially what uses to be called a Wraith in RuneQuest. Its base Toughness might be 3 (same as a plain vanilla skeleton, to which the average skeleton. This would make it vulnerable to the ubiquitous Bladesharp 4 or a small weapon with Manastrike. However, Wraiths with higher Toughness should exist and not be too rare. As the creature is not really corporeal, its Toughness should not depend on Size Class, STR or CON. It should instead receive a Bonus from high WIL. A really angry Wraith could have a WIL of 30 and a Rage Trait that functions like Willpower or Endurance, meaning that it would be extremely difficult to affect with a spell, and its Toughness would be 7, requiring a Damage Enhancement 8 to take it out.
• the standard rule in the International Edition will have Project [Magical Energy] as doing d4 damage per Might and being unaffected by any defense except Resist Magic (or the very rare Absorb Magic).

I'll talk about elementals in the other thread.

[Lloyd Dupont]

Thanks hey!

yeah manastrike would be an exclusive to some order, I might not be able to introduce it to the player for a while given the current circumstances...

I wonder.. how would Elemental or Wraith be affected by energy / elemental attack, such as Project Fire?

Yeah.. l quite like the project [magical energy] would be for my Archon or Wraith then? Cool idea, sounds great, I wanted to give them a little something different!

Edited September 24, 2019 by Lloyd Dupont

[Zit]

I guess that a salamander would become stronger if hit by a Project Fire !

You may try to build a kind of circle where water projection hurts fire elementals, fire projection hurts earth elemental, earth hurst air, air hurts water.

[Lloyd Dupont]

Hey Zit!

I thought along those lines initially, of elemental dominance and opposition. And this also seems to beg elemental are creature summoned from the elemental planes.

But after more thinking I decided I was not going that way. Instead, I should have say "Construct Elemental" spell where the magic just amalgamate some random matter (mud, water, ice, magma, you name it) and follow some basic guidelines to tweak their characteristic depending what they are made of on the fly. And yes, sure water and fire damage each other more... I think that's it. And maybe it pulls some spirit from the astral plane to control it , or not.
And maybe energy elemental (fire?) would be harder to learn. And attak (if they do any damage) simply destroy (the integrity) of the .. "thing" / elemental.

 

While we are at it....  

I decided no multiple infinite planes, only 2 (prime and astral) which are like all mushed up together.. so, going through the astral plane, one can reach distant planet on the prime plane, and vice versa....
And the astral plane wouldn't have starts and planet, but pocket plane like structure, like the discworld, or Cthulhu's dream world, or Marvel's Valahla, or even just a small floating rock... And would behave sort of like the dream world, where things can be just made up with the "dream / astral" skill. And creature do not follow normal biology rule but more dream / narrative one, i.e. unique creatures, which always bother me in fantasy game (because a species need many individual just to perpetuate), would be common there. So I can pull any demon I like from the astral plane without need to make demon "category" or "species" or wondering of its place of origin.

I decided the astral plane would also have star like formation, occasionally. Fountain of primordial creation's fire. Which would be part of a later campaign and how one would become an immortal (i.e lesser divinity), or incinerated at the soul level, it depends...  And also create and sustain larger astral plane realms.
Realm could also be sustained through the worshipper -  god relationship (the more followers, the bigger the realms).

Edited September 25, 2019 by Lloyd Dupont