This supplement adds to the standard GURPS magic system, with spells
designed to destroy hordes of minor opponents.
These are missing from the standard magic system in order to give
warriors something to do; but if warriors are powered up with martial
arts moves, there's no reason wizards can't be too.
The first chapter has a conceptual overview, and notes on how the
spells were created (there isn't and never will be a formal spell
design system, because there's so much prior art that wouldn't fit
into it). Then, with the overall brief of "cause a bit of damage to
lots of people, quickly", the 50 spells in this book run through
various ways of doing that: Air spells are a Cloud of Doom (contact
poison), Falling Sky (explosive pressure wave) and Twisting Terror
(micro tornado), Earth has the obvious Boulder Barrage and Sand Blast
but also Seismic Shock, Mind Control has Mass Mutilation, and so on.
As in Death Spells these are all Very Hard, generally with
substantial prerequisites. That and their high casting costs will mean
they shouldn't dominate a game; at some point I'd like to try them
against fighters armed with modern firearms to see whether either
makes the other obsolete (as those weapons already do most standard
GURPS spells).
There'a a lot to unpack here (and no requirement to use all of it at
once); it makes me want to contemplate a modern-magic campaign again.
GURPS Magic: Artillery Spells is available from
Warehouse 23.
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