Empedocles
2012-05-28, 12:39 AM
Inspired largely by this. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=244139)
The idea has been brought up many times: a world where adventures are fundamentally more powerful then the average person. Not by virtue of a higher base attack bonus, or better saves, but by universal access to a supernatural power source. For purposes of this thread, incarnum.
Each class can manipulate incarnum in various ways, keeping the basic idea behind it (a finite power source spread out as seen fit) but changing it from being mostly soulmelds to powers specific to that class. For example, at the most basic level, a rogue could invest incarnum in sneak attack for +1d6 or a fighter could invest it in his sword for an effective +1 weapon.
But that's really, really boring. In fact, all it does is give everyone a meaningless stat increase.
How it could be made more interesting with melee characters is something I'll be getting back to.
Spellcasters are more important for now, because they are fundamentally separate from the Incarnum system, which is more or less designed for skill monkeys (Incarnates)/gishes (Totemists and, uh, Soulborns...). Translating that into spellcasting is difficult.
The way I envision it, spellcasters would have several resources to invest essentia into, possibly determined by school. That's easy with a summoner (he invests it in his summoned creature) or a necromancer (he gets x skeletons) but gets a little bit more tricky with everyone else. Inevitably, the spellcaster gets toned down quite a bit, having a limited number of magical resources that he can power.
Thoughts? This is like the barest skeleton of an idea right now...
The idea has been brought up many times: a world where adventures are fundamentally more powerful then the average person. Not by virtue of a higher base attack bonus, or better saves, but by universal access to a supernatural power source. For purposes of this thread, incarnum.
Each class can manipulate incarnum in various ways, keeping the basic idea behind it (a finite power source spread out as seen fit) but changing it from being mostly soulmelds to powers specific to that class. For example, at the most basic level, a rogue could invest incarnum in sneak attack for +1d6 or a fighter could invest it in his sword for an effective +1 weapon.
But that's really, really boring. In fact, all it does is give everyone a meaningless stat increase.
How it could be made more interesting with melee characters is something I'll be getting back to.
Spellcasters are more important for now, because they are fundamentally separate from the Incarnum system, which is more or less designed for skill monkeys (Incarnates)/gishes (Totemists and, uh, Soulborns...). Translating that into spellcasting is difficult.
The way I envision it, spellcasters would have several resources to invest essentia into, possibly determined by school. That's easy with a summoner (he invests it in his summoned creature) or a necromancer (he gets x skeletons) but gets a little bit more tricky with everyone else. Inevitably, the spellcaster gets toned down quite a bit, having a limited number of magical resources that he can power.
Thoughts? This is like the barest skeleton of an idea right now...