True20 Freeport: Magic

[Mach5RR]

I've just picked up the True20 rules about a month ago, so I'm still fairly new to them, and Freeport strikes me as the setting I can most get my players interested in.

But this has been driving me nuts. Maybe I'm missing the obvious. I've tried looking through the message archives but my search skills are weak.

Freeport Magic splits itself between between Arcane and Divine. Which I'd be fine with just for a background fluff reason for why Adepts do what they do. Heck, factor in "Chi" abilities for the Martial Artists from the Far East as well.

But it also wants to split the levels an Adept gains between the two if the Adept states they draw on both (ie a 3rd lvl Adept:Arcane and 2nd lvl Adept:Divine).

But without a compelling reason to do so (Arcane/Divine only feats[which I could only find one of] or Arcane/Divine only Powers) I'm better off just utilizing the base Adept class, disallowing/modding the powers I don't think fit, and just letting the players determine his source of abilities as background fluff.

[Nonei]

I also am new to True20, and have only read the book (rather than actually playing it). I am sure that one of the more experienced posters will be able to answer your question more thoroughly.

However, what it may be referring to is the optional class point-buy system in one of the chapters. (Basically build-your-own class). You (the narrator) can narrow down the list of powers available in order to reduce the 'point' cost of that part of the class - enabling the class to have a better, for example, combat progression, and also allowing the character to have a more focused power ability. So if you multi-class in to classes that each are limited, then the 'levels' wouldn't stack for which spells you know.

They probably, to reflect the D&D origins of Freeport, separated the powers into 'arcane' and 'divine' and went from there.

[timemrick]

In previous incarnations of Freeport (D&D 3.0 & 3.5), arcane and divine magic were very distinct and separate from each other. The passage you cite attempts to maintain that distinction, in order to keep the flavor of the setting. but that rule is very inconsistently applied throughout the book. (IIRC, the Denizens chapter simply stats up all spellcaster types as adepts, without the arcane/divine labels.)

Personally, I wouldn't penalize adepts who use draw from more than one source by making them split their levels. Adepts with Int as their key ability are usually wizards, those with Wis as their key ability are usually priests, and those with Cha as their key ability are usually psychics. The tradition rules in the Adept's Handbook may be a better solution for making wizards, clerics, and other adepts distinctive from each other.

[timemrick]

Mach5RR, I've added your comment and my reply to my Errata & Notes page for the True20 Freeport Companion. I've elaborated on the last sentence as follows:

The tradition rules in the True20 Adept's Handbook offer another method for making wizards, clerics, and other adepts distinctive from each other. Diabolism, Divination, Druidism, Elementalism, Hermeticism, Illusion, Monotheism, Necromancy, Polytheism, Shadow Magic, Sorcery, Spell Singing, Theurgy, and Witchcraft are all perfectly appropriate for Freeport, as are (arguably) Astral Magic, Blood Magic, and Enochian Mysticism. A few others may be particular to specific regions of the World of Freeport: Heka (Hamunaptra), Psionics (Naranjan), Rune Casting (northern barbarians), Taoism (far eastern lands), and Vodun (island tribesmen). However, Chaos Magic, Mesmerism, and Thelema are 19th- and 20th-century traditions and thus not appropriate--at least not without some tweaking--while Technomancy is obviously too high-tech for Freeport.

[The Shadow]

Enochian Mysticism is pretty recent, also.

[timemrick]

True, but Dee himself is contemporary with the golden age of piracy.

[landis]

That paragraph confused me, so we also ended up just going with the supernatural philosophies from the Adept's Handbook. It's unfortunate, perhaps, but none of us has any experience with Freeport before True20; other than expanding things beyond arcane/divine, it does seem to work pretty well. With the addition of the madness track the flavor seems good even if it's not wholly accurate to the original setting.

I'm new around here, is it alright if I bring up another item on my mind related to magic in Freeport? This is the only active thread remotely related to the subject, as far as I could see.

I also have a couple thoughts on the errata (thanks for that!), is there another thread discussing this?

[The Shadow]

I'm new around here, is it alright if I bring up another item on my mind related to magic in Freeport? This is the only active thread remotely related to the subject, as far as I could see.

You're worried about making a post on-topic for the thread? Ah, me lad, with a hundred like you I could conquer the Internet! :lol:

Generally we don't worry about such things, though if a discussion starts veering too far off-topic we'll make a new thread to hold it.

[landis]

Well, some boards want you to adhere to the OP as well so I wanted to be sure.

Anyway, I think I kind of answered my own question. Elemental Ammunition, the way I initially read it was that it was geared more towards modern/scifi settings. In retrospect however, 'guns' is pretty broad and I suppose it makes sense that a flintlock in Freeport would serve just as well since the intent seems to be more about having a barrel to focus energy through. In other words, I think I was overthinking it.

One of my players is using the Elementalist philosophy and Elemental Ammunition is on its canonical powers list.

[timemrick]

I also have a couple thoughts on the errata (thanks for that!), is there another thread discussing this?

I've started a thread here with links to my errata pages for the role handbooks and True20 Freeport books. (Some are still being compiled, but I'll post links there as I finish them.) Feel free to comment either here or there. If you post it in the main errata sticky-thread, I can't guarantee I'll see it, because it's literally been a couple years since I was caught up there.

As written, Elemental Ammunition only applies to guns, but a Narrator may want to expand it to include other weapons that use ammunition, such as bows, crossbows, and slings. There doesn't appear to be a power that explicitly imbues those missiles with energy--and they are certainly more common in Freeport than firearms are.

[Mach5RR]

Hey, I appreciate all of the responses. I just wanted to confirm that:

a) I Wasn't missing the obvious
b) This wasn't something fleshed out via official errata
c) That someone else hadn't already re-invented this wheel.

I guess this means the concept of "Preternatural Powers" (a misused term in this case) from Pg 25 of the FP:C hasn't really been defined either.

[timemrick]

I guess this means the concept of "Preternatural Powers" (a misused term in this case) from Pg 25 of the FP:C hasn't really been defined either.

No, it hasn't.