>From: Benedict Adamson <yahoo_at_...>
>About right for non-magic keywords if all its listed abilities are
>considered related to play or back story, and increasing all the listed
>abilities was equivalent to increasing the keyword itself (which it is
>not).
I wanted to address this since it's the second time it's come up...
When using the Saga System there are a lot of things that one has to consider in terms of implementation - it's simply not as easy as adding points to keywords on the sheet. One thing that's important is to consider what this does to the abilities contained in the keyword. The obcious thing is to elevate them all as well. And generally I advocate this. But there are some excpetions.
Most importantly, some abilities are what I'd call "loosely" associated with keywords. That is, they are set at the level of the keyword at start of play, because of a notion that they "would" go up as quickly as the other abilities, should they be taken. But you can tell the "loose" ones because they are the abilities that have to be picked up at 13 always, instead of at keyword level.
This is an implicit structure in HQ, but an important one to recognize. If the Narrator deems it appropriate, I can spend a HP, and elevate a theorietical "Maintain Weapons" ability from my Warrior keyword, spending one HP to make in one higher than the keyword (not that there's an oddity where Common Magic starts here at 17, instead, for that one point). Now, also interestingly, as it happens, an initiate starts with each and every affinity at the level of his keyword. So there's no time where we have to wonder whether or not he could do the same thing with the affinity as we did with the Maintain Weapons above. Until you raise the keyword.
See, I had to find this all out the hard way.
Now, it would be easy enough to say, "yeah, sure, go ahead," but there are rules that make it seem otherwise. Namely, there are rules for how you pick up affinities. So, apparently, reading closely, if I took a character who, for some reason, didn't have all three of his god's affinities to start, and then wanted to pick that last one up during play, what happens? Well, the affinity starts, not at keyword level, but explicitly at 13.
Hmmm, says I.
Well, is this the only case? Nope, followers are the same way. If I can argue that "I knew him all along," then sure, he's a 17. If not, and I think the implication is that anyone after start should be handled this way, the new character starts, like any other at 13. Certainly, if the character is a new aquaintance, then this makes sense. No? Though I suppose one could argue that they keyword contained in it an affinity for all others associated with the keyword. Apparently that's not how it works, however.
So, in a way, you can see the logic with magic, too. A magic keyword, only applies to magic that has been learned. Initiate of Destor doesn't indicate an overall ability with all theist magic. If you pick up a subcult, then you have to start it at 13 again. So magic abilities aren't directly linked to magic keywords.
Well, interestingly, this "solves" the problem with the costs for both magic and followers with regards to the Saga System. Basically these can only be raised with HP, as they aren't associated with the keywords directly.
Now, you can ignore this, if you want those abilities to go up along with the keyword - it's not hard to argue that you could be developing them, too. But in that case, I think it stands to reason that these special abilities get a special cost. Two alternate methods: either charge "Keyword Levels" with a cost indicated by the HP cost table (a level of a theist keyword costs 6, or 3 if concentrated, for instance), or simply make the individual magic abilities cost one keyword level to increase.
Anyway you slice it, it's not going to come out perfectly clean. But I think it's still quite useable.
Mike
Powered by hypermail