Fast Jimmy wrote...
In Exile wrote...
Rotward wrote...
Yea, the magic feels very limited. I don't think it's the magic system that's at fault though. Rather, there's very little opportunity to cast unique, prepared, or utility spells. When was the last time we saw a mage light a campfire, or prepare a ritual to bypass some ancient ward, or whatever? It's like magic is just an alternative to swords, most of the time.
Magic is an alternative to swords. A superior alternative. There's very little a game could do with magic that would be possible in an RPG.
I'd point to the Quest for Glory games as an RPG/adventure hybrid that had a great use of stats, skills and utility (as well as combat) magic. But those games were not party-based.
The Quest for Glory series is a wonderful example of an RPG (albeit an RPG/Adventure hybrid) that used its stats, and abilities (spells) for more than just combat. Combat applications were there, and viable, but nearly every spell had purpose beyond combat. The duel with the Shaman in Quest for Glory III: Wages of War challenged you to a form of combat that begged you remember the alternative effects of your spells (especially since you could only use each spell once, in that particular duel).
Spoiler below, so take care for anyone that hasn't played the QfG series and might want to:
For example, Dazzle could blind an opponent or light an area, but it could also shatter an illusion. At one point the duel ring is shrouded in darkness, and you might immediately jump to use Dazzle to break the darkness, but later in the duel an illusionary snake assaults you. You needed to save Dazzle to deal with the snake, and use your Juggling Lights spell to break the darkness.
Other things like Trigger activating a magical function of an echantment in an area, like revealing a hidden ladder or dispelling a magical bush blocking your way, but also releasing all the magic in a magicall staff (causing a mass magical explosion) you could summon. All things you needed to keep in mind at different points in the series.
The detect magic spell worked well in revealing magic in an area that you might need to cast trigger on. The open spell could open things, much like a thief picking a lock, but they could do this at range and it could apply to more than doors (like the thorn cage in the magic duel in III). The Fetch spell could fetch a distant object to you, but it could also move an object from one location, to another, without bringing it all the way to you (great for the puzzle with the bells in Trial by Fire).
Reversal is an interesting one because it deflects/reflects spells cast directly at you, but not spells cast at you indirectly. This not only protected you from direct spells, but could reflect a damaging or form changing spell back at an enemy, afflicting them with the effect instead.
Calm is another great one. It could calm an opponent, making them sit down or wander off or just take a nap. Too close and a monster might just 'calmly' eat you. Used more intelligently Calm could dampend the heat of a fire, so that it died out or was simply less dangerous. Great for AoE fire spells that were not directly launched at you, but instead lit the ground beneath you on fire, or ringed you in fire.
Even your typical combat spells like Flame Dart and Force Bolt had applications beyond combat. Force Bolt could bounce several times off of surfaces before running out of energy (great for the Glacier blocking your path during the Wizard trials in II). Flame Dark could be combined with Frost Bite (another combat spell) to rapidly cool down/heat up an object to make it more brittle/easy to shatter.
Then there's the Magical Staff ritual, that you have to get multiple ingredients for, perform a ritual to create, and then infuse all your spells into it. The spell then summons a staff that allows you to cast your spells for free at a power equal to the skill level you have in summoning the magical staff. A catch is that you can't move while it's summoned. Once encounter has a Demonic Wizard fetch your staff away from you, and he's about to use it against you, forcing you to sacrifice your staff entirely to defeat him by casting trigger on it, since your magic isn't powerful enough to defeat him directly.
Levitate is a neat one. You go up and down. Well, you're able to levitate up and down. It's useful for getting up to a high place. You can't move around though. However, the smart hero can figure out a way to use wind and a bit of cloth to give them spell a bit of extra use, in certain situations.
Then you have Augment, which increases the skill level of a particular spell even if said spell's skill level is maxed out. Glide lets your feet, well, glide across water. There's also fascination, a spell that fascinates enemies, luring them toward it. It's great for distractions. You can combine Fascination with Boom (a spell that lobs a skull to a location, that will detonate when an enemy comes near it) to lure enemies to one one of the skulls. There's also RIP which lets a hero rest in peace, out in the wild, where otherwise they might be interrupted/attacked at night while sleeping in the wild.
Even attack spells like Dragon Fire, that don't have extra uses, have limitations and risks like being able to hurt yourself with them, and the fact that it will not work underwater. Thought to the spells and their functions, where and how they function and what the results can be.
Quest for Glory, as a series, did this very well.
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