Introduction
Spellcasting
Self-Defense
Party Defense
Attack
Cleaning Up
Introduction
Spellcasting
Self-Defense
Party Defense
Attack
Cleaning Up
Number of visitors with graphical browsers since
November 29th, 1995:
Eventually, I got around to thinking about the typical sort of battle that a magus faces -- alone, with a shield grog and a handful of companions, against opposition that's usually stronger in terms of numbers, at the very least.
What follows is a list of ideas suitable for this sort of battle. The terminology is that of Ars Magica; the ideas, however, ought to be applicable to any RPG that utilizes typical fantasy magic. The power levels dealt with are relatively low (in Ars Magica terms); this is meant to be applicable to the sort of magus one typically sees in the early/middle stages of a Saga.
It is, obviously, best to have Formulaic spells prepared. They should be as low-level as possible, so that they can be cast without expending Fatigue. You should, preferably, be able to cast them without words or gestures, so they can be used while maintaing an Invisibility of the Standing Wizard (PeIm 15). The spells listed below are all level 25 or below; I've tried to keep as many of them as possible to level 20 or below.
Fast-cast defenses are frequently a waste. If you need to fast-cast, you've probably already done something wrong. You shouldn't be fast-casting against weapon attacks; that's what your shield grog, and ward spells, are for. If you spend your rounds fending off weapon attacks, you're not contributing to anything other than self-defense, and you're Fatiguing yourself to boot.
Fast-casting against magical attacks isn't a great idea, either; in order to stop the attack, you have to achieve half its Penetration Total or greater. This means, for defense against spells cast by other Hermetic magi, that, effectively, your spellcasting total must be equal to the attacker's. If you're not a specialist in the same sort of defense that's applicable to the other fellow's probably-specialized attack, the fast-cast is going to be worse than useless. Better to invest skill points in Parma Magica instead, and get your Corpus, Mentem, and Ignem scores up (since most magical attacks blocked by Parma take one of these three Forms). Fast-cast attacks against other Hermetic magi are likely to be ineffectual unless you're a specialist or your opposition has a Parma weakness.
You can help matters by having ward spells prepared. Repel the Wooden Shafts (ReHe 10) and similar spells are extremely useful. These spells should preferably be at level 15 or 20; if all you're doing is blocking a single attack, you might as well just have your shield grog do it, unless you're just looking for a bit of extra reassurance. Since these wards are Concentration-duration, you'll want Maintain the Demanding Spell (ReVi Gen). I think level 15 is about ideal for these spells; this makes it fairly unlikely that you'll become Fatigued from casting them.
Wizards, particularly wizards shooting bolts of flame, might as well have large signs painted over their heads saying Kill Me. Being inconspicuous, therefore, is highly advantageous. The obvious trick is going invisible; Invisibility of the Standing Wizard (PeIm 15) does this trick nicely, but it prevents you from moving. (As stated above, this is why it's good to have spells that you can cast without words or gestures.) Shroud Magic (MuVi Gen), at level 10 or 15 (it affects up to double its own level), complements this nicely, making it difficult to tell where magical effects are coming from.
The Concentration skill is an absolutely necessary investment. Being able to make the requisite 9+ roll for casting Vim meta-magics is important.
Similarly, one can simply not be where the attack hits. Image from the Wizard Torn (ReIm 20) can prove useful, as long as you don't mind not being able to cast further spells. Wizard's Sidestep (ReIm 20) is even better than ward spells, since it's Sun, not Concentration, duration, and deflects any number of attacks each round.
Finally, there's Circling Winds of Protection (ReAu 20); while this makes attacking you very difficult, it also makes it difficult for your shield grog to protect you. However, since you can simply cast this and not Concentrate (it last for five rounds after you stop concentrating), it can be somewhat more useful than standard ward spells.
Putting a barrier between yourself and the enemy is reasonably good way to go; it forces the combat to turn to missiles, and it protects those people in the party who lack combat skills. Spells which immobilize the enemy are even better.
For outdoor situations, where there's fertile earth around, Trap of the Entwining Vines (CrHe 15) makes for a good immobilization spell, and Wall of Thorns (CrHe 20) makes an excellent barrier spell. Weaver's Trap of Webs (CrAn 20) is even better, though, particularly since it can perform the functions of both of those spells, without needing fertile earth around (though making the webs into a wall requires something to hang it from). Trap of the Entwining Vines only catches those who are within the area when the spell is cast; Weaver's Trap of Webs continues to act like a barrier and entraps those who walk into it even after the spell is cast. The web strands from the latter are as strong as iron; the Strength roll, as with the vines spell, is 12+, and it takes three rounds of edged-weapon attack to hack a victim free, as opposed to the Strength roll of 9+ or four Body Levels' worth of edged-weapon damage to force one's way through the Wall of Thorns, thus making the Animal spell far more effective, particularly since fire is ineffectual against the webs, but quite effective against the plants.
Rampart of Protecting Earth (CrTe 20) is fairly useful, also, but it certainly doesn't pack the punch of any of the three spells listed above. The Earth Split Asunder (ReTe 25) is a far superior alternative; placing this in a semi-circle arc in front of the party is extremely useful. Note, however, that this does require Concentration for all three rounds of the spell, but is not Concentration in duration; thus, it cannot be maintained via Maintain the Demanding Spell. Therefore, if you cast this, make sure you have sufficient Concentration (able to make a 15+ roll) to be able to continue casting spells in subsequent rounds. Pit of the Gaping Earth (PeTe 15) is a poor man's alternative; this is useful if you're just trying to slow down pursuit behind you, or the like.
These sorts of spells can also be used to prepare an attack, allowing you to set up your chosen battlefield in whatever manner you wish. Clever applications of Shroud Magic can do wonders for ambushes, as can Image Phantom (MuIm 20).
The classic attack spell is, of course, Pilum of Fire (CrIg 20). It is, however, only really effective at Near range or less, and only affects a single target. Arc of Fiery Ribbons (CrIg 25) is only really effective at five paces or less, though it's a nice spell for sheer flashy effect. Ball of Abyssal Flame (CrIg 30) is a great attack spell, of course, but it's too high-level for our purposes here.
A far better alternative to the Pilum is Mighty Torrent of Water (CrAq 20). Not only is it a cone efffect, but it lasts for five rounds and the target can be changed each round; it does, however, suffer from the same Concentration limitation as The Earth Split Asunder, above. Better yet, there's no penalty for range; granted the damage is only equivalent to a Pilum at ten paces, but the knockdown effect is extremely valuable. Finally, this is a great spell to use against enemy archers; wet bowstrings are useless.
An excellent area-attack spell is Talons of the Winds (MuAu 20); it covers a 20x40-pace area, and though it doesn't do sufficient damage to really hurt someone in armor, it works for scattering the classic torchlight parade, and making the life of enemy archers somewhat more difficult.
Destroying the enemy's ability to fight is also worthwhile. Against a mounted opponent, Panic of the Elephant's Mouse (ReAn 15) can be effective, though if you're trying to run away, it might be more effective, timewise, to simply put a barrier between you and your pursuers. Destroying bows, which are generally made of wood, is trivial; Curse of the Rotted Wood (PeHe 5) will do the trick, and, multi-cast, it can easily destroy the effectiveness of an entire group of archers. Destroy metal weapons is a matter for Obliteration of the Metallic Barrier (PeTe 20); this spell, however, can be more effectively employed against armor, since that also causes the target to take a substantial amount of damage.
The Obliteration is an example of the best sort of damage-causing spell -- one that ignores the effects of armor. Curse of the Desert (PeAq 25) is excellent for this; in fact, it's a better direct-damage spell than any of the standard Perdo Corpus spells. Blessing of Childlike Bliss (PeMe 25) reduces the target's mind to that of a child, effectively putting him out of a fight. The latter two spells can be boosted to Sight range with vis; this makes them extremely useful for taking out vital targets from afar, though the cost in vis is obviously not insignificant.
Note that with all attack spells, the major limiting factor is usually range. Few spells have anything greater than Near range, without the use of vis to boost them; many missile weapons easily have double or triple the Near range of effectiveness.