Eventholders and Magic
One of the most intricate and possibly event derailing aspects of any event is magic. There are a lot of things to cover when it comes to our magic system; there is much that requires the attention from an eventholder. And magic is the thing that makes our game fantasy based instead of just being a combat simulation. While I personally believe combat is the backbone of our game, magic is what makes it special. That being said, let’s take a look at how magic affects an eventholder…
Regionals
All spellcasters love regional magic. Some like it because it is the unexpected, some because many regional spells tend to be more powerful than their regular counterparts and some because they hope the spells will give them an edge over the plot for that particular event. As an eventholder there are a few things to consider.
Need- Is there a real need for regional magic at our event? Not all events require regionals. If it will not enhance your event then there is no need to include it, thus saving you some extra work. If you are not going to provide specialized regional spell lists then you will need to decide how to compensate those you have regional magic spells (or not). A couple of ways to do this is to give the equivalent spell in the path the regional spell is in, allow a 1-cost buydown across the board or give the player nothing in its place.
Balance- Most new spells added to our game system go through playtesting and a brutal vetting process at the Event Holder’s Meeting. Thus many regional magics can be unbalanced initially. One way to avoid this is to write up your complete list. From there compare the spells to each other and then to spells already in our game system. Check and see if the new regional magic spell is imbalanced with each other and the regular spell system. Unless of course you want the regionals to be unbalanced with the rest of the system; in that case go for it!
Type of Event- Some regional spells are of more use at one type of event than at others. Increased fortunetelling magic at a tourney event is bound to be useless but great for a quest event. The ability to wield a larger weapon for 5 minutes is great for a tourney event but not as useful at an extended quest event.
Usefulness- Continuing the previous thought, try and make your regional spells useful. Nothing is more frustrating for a spellcaster than gaining an ability that can never be used effectively. You are actually better off giving the caster no regional spell than something of no use. This does not mean you have to make sure it comes into play, but it should be effective when it does.
Event Specific- The best types of regional spells are those that tie directly into your plot. The players will feel as if they are a part of the plot and that they will be able to affect change in the plot through their regional spells. Everyone wants to feel important and regional spells are another way to give the players that.
New Combat Calls
Some will likely argue on this point but I firmly believe you want to limit the number of special combat calls; I recommend no more than one or two. While new combat calls can enhance an event it can also slow things down and add a level of confusion best avoided. It is fairly easy for a player to remember one or two new combat calls, but anything more than that and things get confusing. Players will forget what one of the calls does or think one call does something another call does. Combat will grind to halt as players stand around questioning each other about what they should do in response to the new combat call. This is compounded even more if a bunch of players came into the event after the effects of the combat calls were announced at the beginning of the event.
One idea is to publicly post the combat calls near the reg desk so players can see them on check-in or can easily refresh their memory of the calls without bothering event staff. This should be done even if you posted the new calls in the event write-up as not everyone reads or remembers the exact wording from the write-ups.
Another option is to add new combat calls only for limited times and specific locations. For instance, if the only time you need to bind the player’s feet is during one encounter then quickly explain to the players the special call as they approach that location. Of course you can only use this method if there is a convenient time to do this explanation without severely disrupting play (such as during a linear dungeon crawl).
Make sure you explain all the new combat calls. There are a few combat calls that “everyone knows” but are not in the Omnibus at all. Fireball and Shatter are two examples of this; they are not in the rules and yet “everyone knows them”. However, not everyone knows them, particularly newer players. At the very least there are variations which will need clarifying (does Fireball destroy armor and items it hits?). If you are going to include such calls make sure you explain them anyway.
Part 2 next time!