Birthright: Chimaeron

DM Juan wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 06, 2019 1:50 pm

The basic question is, should we allow leyline to sea zones to cast realm spells at sea?
eg: Leyline + Defect Ships, Mass Destruct Ships, Ward the sea zone to disrupt ship movement... etc

So last game I said no since we were several naval engagements in and the previous guidance had been no.

With the new game comes a fresh start and I'd like to look at this again.

With the extensive naval aspects, this seems it would be a good thing to allow. The biggest question, if allowed, is whether each spell should have a naval variant to be effective or if the baseline could be used?

To allow naval realm spells, The question I have: is a ship a unit?

Does a ship equal the time investment of training armies targeted by spells like defection?

Does losing a ship to mass destruction match the GB invested in armies.

Naval ley lines makes mechanical sense.
Rogues have trade routes to parts unknown.
Will priests include adjacent sea zones for spells like despell magic.

Juan's sea zones are big. Does that make ward too powerful at sea. Maybe consider spells that can target ships, can target crews, can target GB on a traderoute.

Base rules if a crew is lost (they fight as irregulars) they were replaceable for 1 GB.

Ships are in a province if they are on a river, or traveling the coast. These should be safe from naval magic, and vulnerable to land based.


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I say sure we can cast them into the sea.... But every realm spell cast has a 50% chance of summoning the KRAKEN!

In coastal engagement, perhaps, standing on the land casting but otherwise? Pref not.

Not unless you have some way to transport your own source out there(should be no actuall sources out there.)

Possibly a one sided leyline that disperse after a turn like any without anchors on both ends I guess. But rather not on that too. Didnt leylines have trouble going over water?

Thematically, bloodlines, true magic and realm magic are bound to the land. Seas and ships are not. I think the seas should be free from realm magic, and probably hostile to Sidhelien and wizards in general, too.

Eimhir was supposed to be exceptional because her relatively strong Masela bloodline (and decent con score) kept her from dying from being at sea for weeks, but she went to sea to get away from ruling sources and casting realm magic.

Thematically, at the time, most of the campaign settings focused on the land areas and the primary tribes. The intended naval supplement died on the vine along with a multitude of other products with the buyout by WotC.

Simply because the setting didn't expand upon the seas doesn't mean we should not.

Stationary sources atop the sea are unlikely, however there is nothing to prohibit short-lived (or potentially even permanent focal points on specialized sea phenomena) from being created.

From a rules standpoint the sea zones each have a name and can be tracked for purposes of spells and effects.

Additionally, there were a multitude of blooded sea creatures and special abilities each could bring to the fore. Magic and the sea went hand in hand and was primarily lost to common knowledge with the destruction of the Masetian people.

Cities of the Sun had fairly detailed naval rules. I don't think a naval supplement should have focused on realm magic at sea.

I see room for the ability to create a ley line that crosses a sea zone as an ability requiring special knowledge, and such a leyline could have a hook-up placed in the sea zone, which could allow spells to be cast there... This would mean that casting realm magic at sea would be very involved and limited to locations between two provinces with sources held by the wizard, which would not reasonably allow realm magic to be cast anywhere in the sea zone--only from the point where the hook-up was created.

we just nee more ship types. turtle ships when

I had one last game.

You can leyline across sea. As a mid point that isn't a bad idea, you need to have a leyline (which always takes the shortest most direct route) across the sea zone which can then have an action spent to temporarily add a hookup in the sea zone which could then be used to cast spells in the sea zone.

I agree defection/mass destruction has to be less powerful at sea (in unit #s per ship), because ships are probably relatively harder to acquire.