I’m looking for what would be appropriate shape bonuses for a spear.
A spear is basically the same shape as a staff, so you can get the shape bonuses of a staff.
(See example in core rulebook p33 for this.)
When thinking about the spear, yes, it’s sort of a staff with a dagger or sword at the end but it’s just one item so giving all the options for both Staff and Sword doesn’t make a lot of sense, I’d make a hybrid one taking the most appropriate from Staff and most appropriate from Sword (being one of the only weapons listed) and the staff part makes many of the dagger options seem less appropriate. Here would be my thinking here: One of the bonuses for a Staff, +4 to Control at a distance, makes less sense to me for a spear than swapping it with a Sword’s +4 to harm human and animal bodies and so you’d end up with something similar to but not exactly a Staff.
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Yeah, even though the core example gives it, I do feel kinda cautious about saying 'a spear is basically the same shape as a staff'. Creates kind of a precedent I don't like. That said, I'm assuming Darius of Flambeau enchanted his talisman AS a staff, and then added the spear head.
IMO, Magic cares about the syngergy between shape and effect, but a spearman will happily stab you in the chest with a pointy-tipped staff.
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Odin's spear Gungnir was rune-carved and magical, so Odin associations would be possible, especially for a mage from the northlands. Odin used it to break the weapons of warriors who were doomed to die in that battle. So weapon-breaking and bad luck could be appropriate associations.
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Based on a mystical qualities of the Platonic Form of a Spear I would list the following as shape bonus:
- Harm big game (like deer, boar, bear) +4
- Killing strike +3
- Guard +3
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