Volker's Fifth Age Magic System

AD&D (1e/2e) Rules

by The Red Dragon

For the Dragonlance: Fifth Age Game Setting, Version 2.0

The Fifth Age of Dragonlance has proven to be one of the most tumultuous in Krynn's history - the gods have disappeared, giant dragons war in the skies over Ansalon, and legions of mortals battle each-other for control of the major cities. But even more chaotic have been the Fifth Age gaming products themselves. First, they were released in a SAGA only format with sparse rules for converting the world over to traditional AD&D. After a number of boxed sets and a continuing outcry from fans, a dual format printing both the SAGA and AD&D statistics was adopted. This new format allows fans of both the new SAGA gaming system and the older AD&D second edition game to enjoy the world of Krynn.

But there is a snag in this dual format - a snag that has irked a number of AD&D players wanting to completely experience the Fifth Age of Dragonlance. That snag is Magic. With the disappearance of the gods, an entirely new system for casting spells has appeared on Krynn. Though the SAGA system embraces this new form of magic, the best advice dual-formatted products give to AD&D players is to either 1) continue to use AD&D magic rules, 2) just ignore spell memorization, or 3) to use the channeling rules presented in the Player's Option: Spells and Magic book. Alas, none of these options truly reflects the Sorcery and Mysticism of the Fifth Age, which is why Volker's Fifth Age Magic System was designed. Using the rules contained here, those who enjoy the core AD&D game will be able to experience the magic of the Fifth Age just as the SAGA players do.

Books Needed

Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Second Edition Player's Handbook for basic class requirements and rules. The Fifth Age boxed set (original, not the Hero expansions) for the basic magic rules (found on pages 70 - 91 of Book I).

Character Basics

In order to use Fifth Age magic, we must partially convert our characters over to the SAGA magic system. This is the simplest part of the process, though some may lament that their mages can no longer cast every spell.

Step 1: Choose a magical path. Those who practice magic in the Fifth Age do so in one of two ways: Sorcery or Mysticism. Sorcery deals with elements such as fire, ice, water, and rock. It also delves into such areas as teleportation, divination, and transmutation. Mysticism, on the other hand, deals specifically with living things. Healing spells, plant growth, and attribute enhancements are all part of Mysticism.

So which path should your character take? Traditional AD&D players should choose a path based on their class using the following recommendations:

• Sorcery: Mages and Bards.
• Mysticism: Clerics, Druids, Necromancers, Paladins, and Rangers.

Mages and bards wishing to use magic that more directly affects living things should be allowed to choose Mysticism as their path.

Step 2: Determine Magical Skill. Players should decide how skilled there character is with magic. Most of the time, this will be based on class. Choose a letter from A to D to determine a character's skill with magic, assigning an X if they have none. This letter is referred to as a character's Magical Skill Code. Use the following table to help make determinations:

• A: Most skilled. Such people spend the majority of their time studying magic. Mages, clerics, and druids fall into this category.
• B: Highly skilled. Those who spend a lot of time practicing magic but have other areas of knowledge as well fall into this category. Most bards will be here.
• C: Knowledgeable. Such characters learn magic slowly, only developing the necessary skill to cast spells at later levels. Paladins and rangers fit this description.
• D: Dabbler. Dabblers know something about magic, but not much. A thief or a warrior with a large number of mage or cleric non-weapon proficiencies would be here.
• X: Nothing. Someone that knows nothing about magic fits this bill. The typical fighter is at this level.

Step 3: Select Schools/Spheres. Similar to specialization in AD&D, a Fifth Age magic users can only learn spells in a limited number of areas within their path. Those who use a great deal of magic such as mages and clerics should select 3 schools from their path (called spheres in Mysticism). Specialist mages, bards, rangers, paladins, and anyone else whose scope of magic tends to be limited or specialized should select only 1. For complete information on the various schools and spheres, see Book I of the Fifth Age Box set, pages 81-87.

Step 4: Determine spell points. Spell points are what a magical character uses to "power" their spells. These points work to limit the number of spells a mage can cast the same way memorization does in AD&D. To determine Sorcery Points (those used to cast Sorcery Spells), divide the character's intelligence by 2 (rounding up) and then square the result. Example: A character with an 18 intelligence would have (18/2 = 9. 9*9 = 81) 81 Sorcery Points. To determine Mysticism Points use Wisdom in place of Intelligence.

Spell Basics

In the Fifth Age, magic spells are not so much learned and memorized as they are designed and manipulated. Magic-using characters should design spells using the same 5 steps that SAGA players do. The numbers and values, however, will change somewhat for AD&D players.

Step 1: Invocation time. Invocation time represents how long it takes to actually cast a spell, and translates into AD&D Casting Time. Spells with an invocation time of instant have a casting time of 1 (meaning they will go off in the same round cast, just during the next segment). Next, an invocation time of 1 minute equals a casting time of 10. Finally, an invocation time of 10 minutes translates into a casting time of 1 turn.

Step 2: Range. Range represents the distance between the caster and their target, and translates into AD&D range. Personal Range means that the caster must touch the target and requires a successful THAC0 roll (it is at the DMs discretion whether or not armor values should be applied, and will most likely vary from spell to spell depending on the effect). Melee Range is the same distance as in AD&D - the range an opponent is close enough to be hit by a melee weapon in (though no THAC0 roll is needed). Near Missile Range translates into an AD&D range from roughly 1 to 5. Far Missile Range is the AD&D range from 6 to 20. Artillery Range spreads from 21 to 100. All ranges should be decreased at the DM's discretion if bad weather conditions exist or if the caster has vision problems. Note: AD&D ranges are in yards. For more information, see The Player's Handbook.

Step 3: Duration. Duration is how long a spell lasts, and translates into AD&D spell duration. Instant Duration means that the spell hits and then dissipates, though any affects the spell had on the objects around it (such as lowered HPs, burned clothing, etc.) remain. For all other durations, every minute translates into one combat round. Note: It is sometimes hard to figure out why some spells are considered instant and others are considered permanent. For instance, a simple healing spell seems to have a permanent effect when it restores hit points, yet it is an instant spell. Such a seeming paradox is explained by saying that healing spells aren't replacing lost hit points, but rather are causing a person's body to repair itself. A good rule of thumb is to say that duration effects are those that create or augment something (making silk as strong as steel), while instant effects are those which have secondary results (the HP loss suffered by a person hit by a fireball is directly caused by the fire, not the spell).

Step 4: Area of Effect. Area of Effect is divided into 3 categories: Group, Place, and Temporal. In most cases, only 1 of these categories should be chosen - the most fixed one. A fireball spell, for instance, has a fixed size but can affect multiple people. Such a spell should use the Place category since the size of the fireball will always be the same, yet the number of creatures affected by it could differ. Only in rare and extreme circumstances should multiple Areas of Effect be used, most of which deal with the temporal category.

Step 5: Effects. Effects represents what exactly the spell does. There are three categories: Numeric Adjustment, Healing Spells, and Other. More than one category can be used to determine a spell's effects, though each needs to be paid for separately.

Numeric Adjustment

Numeric Adjustment is one of the hardest areas to translate into AD&D terms. Though the damage spells cause easily convert, other value adjustments do not. To help us better translate these numbers, we need to divide them up again into 3 new subcategories: Damage, Minor Stat, and Major Stat.

Damage represents how much destruction a spell causes. It can be determined in by on of three methods:

• Method #1: Multiply the largest number in each category of the Numeric Adjustment Chart from page 77 of the Fifth Age boxed set by 2. This determines the "Maximum AD&D Hit Points" a spell can remove. Use the largest die possible (or combination thereof) equal to the "MHP" if the caster wants the spell to have the potential for maximum damage.
• Method #2: The caster can also choose to use multiple dice to determine damage rather than just one large die, but at the price of decreased damage. With this method, the caster uses 2 to 4 dice with sides totaling roughly four-fifths (4/5) of the MHP.
• Method #3: Finally, the caster can choose not to roll any dice and "set" a specific amount of damage for the spell. Use roughly 1/4th of the Maximum Hit Points for the damage when using this method.

The following is an example table that should be used as a guideline for the above methods:

Minor Stat should be used when dealing with derived statistics or "high value" numbers. Increasing or decreasing movement points is a good example of a "Minor Stat". Continue to use the Numeric Adjustment Chart found on page 77 of the Fifth Age Boxed Set, but divide the largest number by 2 (rounding up).

Major Stat numbers are extremely important values such as a character's 6 ability scores and THAC0. Due to serious differences in how SAGA and AD&D treat such numbers, the Nature of Spell Effect chart (Fifth Age Boxed Set Book I, page 78) should be used instead of the Numeric Adjustment Chart. The result is 1 difficulty point for ever 1 point a Major Stat is advanced. Example: A spell that increases the caster's Strength by 1 point would have +1 difficulty, while a similar spell increasing the caster's strength by 5 points would have +5 difficulty.

Healing Spells

Healing Spells have a relatively simple conversion: for every 1 difficulty level, 1d6 hit points can be healed. Players and DMs may wish to discuss ways of decreasing the size of the die yet increasing the number of dice rolled in a fashion similar to how Damage Effects are handled.

Other

"Other" effects are one of the most wide- ranging and interesting aspects of Fifth Age magic. They include such things as causing a steel sword to melt, creating a bridge out of ice, or protecting one's self by pulling a wall of rock from the earth. The guidelines given in Book I of the Fifth Age Box Set will also work for AD&D players.

Casting

The greatest difference between the Fifth Age and traditional AD&D magic can be seen when casting a spell. AD&D magic has nothing like the difficulty numbers and spell point costs that exist within the Fifth Age magic system. The following rules will allow AD&D characters to cast spells in a way similar to those used in the SAGA system.

Step 1: Initiative. Determine your initiative as norm, making sure to take into account the casting time if you are using the individual initiative rules. Casting time for SAGA spells is discussed in the "Spell Basics" section of this document.

Step 2: Difficulty. The base difficulty for a spell should have been determined when the spell was designed. If the spell is one that has a negative effect on the target or is being resisted, add the target's level (if applicable) or hit dice (if a monster) to the difficulty number. Though SAGA adds in one of the characters ability scores, level and Hit Dice more accurately reflect the AD&D system.

Step 3: Spell Point Cost. The difficulty number also represents how many spell points it takes to cast the spell. Subtract the difficulty from the either the Sorcery Points (for a Sorcery Spell) or the Mysticism Points (for a Mysticism Spell). If the caster has fewer points than the difficulty of the spell, it can not be cast.

Step 4: Make the roll. Roll 1D20. If the spell is Mystical in nature, add 1/2 the character's Wisdom to the roll. If the spell is from a school of Sorcery, add in 1/2 of the character's Intelligence. If the roll is equal to or greater than the difficulty, the spell succeeds.

Step 5: Determine Affects. The DM decides what happens when the spell is cast and describes it to the players. Saving throws, damage rolls, and all other effects are done now.

Optional Rules

Once players and Dungeon Masters are familiar with the basic conversion rules, here are optional rules that may be used to enhance game play.

MASC.

The Magically Active Skill Chart, or MASC, reflects how the abilities of characters in the AD&D system advance from level to level. Working somewhat like THAC0, MASC adds itself to the 1D20 roll characters make to hit a spell's difficulty number. To find what a character's bonus (or penalty) is, consult the following chart using their Magical Skill Code (from "Character Basics) and level.

Note that when using MASC, a character does not add 1/2 their Wisdom or Intelligence to their roll. They do receive a bonus of +1 for each point above 15 their Intelligence (Sorcery) or Wisdom (Mysticism) is, but that is all.

More Power.

At the DM's discretion, a caster can make a spell harder for the target to resist at the cost of a higher difficulty number. Such increases happen at a 1:1 ratio. Thus, a spell with a -2 penalty to save also has a +2 added to the difficulty number.

Open 20.

Whenever a character rolls a natural 20 on their Spell Difficulty Roll, they may roll another 1d20, the total of which is added to the original 20. This imitates the SAGA trumping rule.

Friendly 20.

If a spell would normally succeed and a natural 20 is rolled on a Spell Difficulty Roll, the mage gets 1/2 of the spell points they spent on the spell back. This rule works well with the Open 20 rule.

Rule of 1.

Rolling a natural 1 on the Spell Difficulty Roll means that the spell fails no matter what. Nasty DMs may decide that the caster must pay the Spell Point cost a second time or lose control of the spell, causing it to hit friendly units or some other unwanted effect of the DM's choosing.

Resistance Difficulty.

In order to simulate the additional spell points that SAGA requires to overcome an opponent's defenses, the DM might want to add a "Resistance Difficulty" value to the cost of all resisted spells. Use the following formula on the most powerful character being targeted by a spell to get the Resistance Difficulty:

(20 - Save vs. Spell) / 2

The caster should allocate enough spell points to cover the Resistance Difficulty whenever a spell requires a saving throw. The DM can decide to keep the Resistance Difficulty a secret (thus forcing the caster to guess at the number) or to share it with his/her players (which tells the NPC's exact saving throw).

Leveling Notes: Spell Points

In SAGA, a character's Spell Points are determined by their Ability Scores, not their level. To reflect the nature of more spells per level in AD&D, DMs might decide to give their AD&D characters additional Spell Points each level. Giving characters points each level based on their Magical Skill Code seems to work the best (A:4, B:3, C:2, D:1, X:0), but DMs should be aware that this can cause a magical overload at higher levels. Most players will find that using the optional MASC system gives their characters enough of a bonus per level without needing additional enticements.

Final Thoughts

Volker's Fifth Age Magic System is certainly not traditional AD&D magic, yet it does preserve the feel of AD&D leveling while allowing players to completely experience the Fifth Age. If a part of the system seems to allow characters to become too powerful, simply tweak the system as you see fit. As always, the DM has final say.

Where to Go From Here? Those that want to know more about magic in the Fifth Age might enjoy the Heroes of Sorcery and Heroes of Hope boxed sets. The Citadel of Light boxed set is also a good choice, as it details one of the foremost mystical research centers in the Fifth Age.

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