Might Soak: too weak, fine, or overpowered?

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

Might Soak of (Might/2): too weak, fine, or overpowered? (Relating to RAW fluff)

  • Too weak, I would use a higher soak.
  • Fine, don't change it.
  • A little too strong, I'd use 2*(Might/5).
  • Too strong, I'd use (Might/5).
  • Way too strong, I'd not use it at all, RAW is fine.
  • Too strong, but the change to multicast would lessen this.
  • Too strong, and the change to multicast would increase this.

0 voters

Some people here may be aware of the notion of Might soak I use to lessen the power of Might Strippers against creatures.

Here's the rough idea (keep it simple!): The effectiveness of any Might Stripper used on a creature is lowered by a fraction of its Might score.
For example, it might be reduced by 3*(Might/5).

Now, over in Canaries are dying, I proposed we use it. The GM proposed a Might Soak of (Might*2) which, IMO, is fine.
This means that, for example, a creature with MM 20 is unaffected by Might Strippers under 10.

(For the record, I also proposed a multicast fix, in which additional copies piled on a target, instead of counting as separate spells, added a magnitude of effect when applicable. This means that, among other things, 2 multicast lvl 10 DEO would act as lvl 15, affecting the above creature for -05 might, but it was largely ignored, so let's mostly ignore it)

Now, some people found this way too powerful, meaning that only powerful and specialized characters would be able to affect the more potent creatures.
IMO, this is perfect, since this means that only archmagi can strip the might of Princes of Hell (Might 30-50), Powerful Dragons (41-50) and Astra Planeta (40), that Arcane and Sympathetic connections become all the more important, and that you need rituals, or items, if you want to deplete the Blessed Virgin Mary.

But, well... When one is wrong, one can't usually see it. So I may be. So here's to you, gents.

2

I am not sure if I like this or hate it. A triple-cast lvl 5 DEO would be as strong as your double-cast, with better penetration. It has strong implications.

3

Well, it depends, it changes things quite a lot, which is why it's probably better to mostly keep it out of the poll, since the discussion alrgely ignored it.
We can still open a separate thread ofr this, if you want.

For exemple, let's assume damage 10 vs soak 0 (this is the case of RAW might strippers), and 3 multicast, foregoing any eventual dice rolls

  • RAW: take 3 times 10 damage. For might strippers, this is equal to losing 45 might.
  • HR: take 1 time 20 damage (10 + 5/copy)
    For Damage 10 vs Soak 10
  • RAW: take 3 times no damage (well, one can assume eventually 1-2 times 1 damage, but that's all)
  • HR: take 10 damage (10 + 5/copy - 10)
    And, for damage 10 vs soak 15:
  • RAW: takes 3 times no damage
  • HR: take 1 time 05 damage (10 + 5/copy - 15 soak)
    Oh, for the record:
    RAW: Damage 20 vs soak 0: Take 3 times 20 damage
    HR: Take 1 time 30 damage

In short:

  • When outclassed, you can gnaw somewhat at your ennemy's defenses, which gives you a fighting chance. This also means that favorite spells, like PoF, can still be used against bigger creatures without ressorting to the kind of tricks Erick Tyrrell used with Ranulf.
  • When you're stronger, the stronger you are, the more it weakens you. It always weakens multicast might strippers. For damage spells, you'll inflict 1 more severe wound instead of multiple lesser ones. This tends to make them stronger or equal for low levels of mastery (1-2), and weaker for higher levels (3+). For exemple, take a major wound instead of 2 medium ones.
    More important IMO, it means that when multicasting on someone some PeIg "lose fatigue because of cold" spells, he won't pass out instantly (which makes this better than supposedly stronger cold damage spells), but instead that the cold will be so severe he'll actually take damage, acting in that fashion exactly like "colder" spells. For some, this is bad, but for me, this is good :wink: