As I mentioned previously, I decided to use Savage Worlds for my Andport pbp. And if I didn't mention it previously I'm mentioning it now.
Like many "generic" RPGs out there Savage Worlds allows for modularity in what kinds of magic a GM will allow for his setting. Other games, like D&D for example, are written under the assumption that certain forms of magic are ubiquitous from setting to setting. The basic assumption of Savage Worlds is that all forms of magic will have access to the same list of powers on a meta-game level, but in the world these powers will take on different skins, or "trappings". The "armor" spell may appear in the form of the symbol of a priest's god when cast by someone with the Arcane Background: Miracles. That same "armor" spell may appear in the form of dead bone, muscle, and sinew when cast by a necromancer with the Arcane Background: Magic.
I came into setting creation with only two preconceptions of magic:
1) There would be some kind of divine magic. For some reason I just feel naked thinking about a fantasy world without divine magic. As of yet I don't have a list of deities that those native to Andport worship (and the other free cities it shares the peninsula with), so I'm not exactly sure how this is going to be expressed in the world. But Arcane Background: Miracles is definitely in.
2) Arcane magic cannot be learned. It's an idea that I'm kind of fascinated with, magic being something that's in you, a part of you. It's not that unlike the Jedi but their powers feeling more like fantasy magic and also without all of their philosophy. The innate magic found in Arcane Background: Sorcery (in the Fantasy Companion) was a perfect match for this.
Even after pinning down mechanics for those two ideals for magic I felt something missing. It was the phantom limb where you can usually find wizards in a setting. But with the rule of "arcane magic cannot be learned" there was some difficulty in filling that void. Well, in doing the basic overview write-ups for the factions it hit me. Gadgets.
I quickly decided that there is a rare element in the world, probably not even native, that can be manipulated and worked into devices that can emulate magical powers. Arcane Background: Weird Science, anyone?
This does a few things for me. First and most obvious, it brings back a theme of the wizard that with proper knowledge you can access a powerful supernatural effect. It differs from the wizard in that it's not true magic. Even the trained lose access to the powers if they can't access their devices. The second thing it does is create a new dynamic by introducing this powerful resource.
So with my forms of magic chosen I wrapped up the search. I actually settled on magic in the middle of coming up with factions for Andport. Which I did before even coming up with a map, contrary to pretty much every piece of advice I've read. I found that by doing it this way the city already has tons of character before it has form. I'm looking forward to seeing how it progresses.
I like the idea of Weird Science being a kind of Weird Alchemy!
ReplyDeleteIf you want Miracles but arent sure about native Deities... why not move miracles and religion apart?
You could have AB:M be tied to Causes and have people serve as Avatars for some cause. So if you are "The Defender of the City Docks" you can call down Miracles when appropriate (and it'd tie in to your idea of Factions)
That's a good idea. It also doesn't preclude the notion that Miracles can be tied to gods. It would just be that the miracle worker's cause would be the god's cause.
ReplyDeleteIt would also allow the player some flexibility in how these powers manifest (not that they couldn't before). There are only a finite number of deities, which could limit trappings. But there could be as many causes as there are people in the world, each with their own style of manifesting powers.