Mana Point Progression

[Steerpike]

Without further delay, here it is:

 

[Ireth]

Okay... so since we decided Liadan was level 4 as far as magic was concerned (with a base of 2 for fighting and such) to start with, she had 13 MP (11+2 WIS). Since she's now leveled up and is on a base of 3, does that mean magic-wise she's at level 5 with 17 MP? I don't recall what our decision was for her levels merging.

EDIT: Also, is it just me, or is there a goof in the numbering? The mana numbers seem to be going up in intervals of x+1, x+2, x+3, etc., but really instead of x+3 there's another x+2. If 6+1=7 and 7+2=9, then next should be 9+3=12. That throws off the rest of the numbers, even though the pattern stays the same (11+4=15, 15+5=20, etc.).

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

I saw that too. I think the best solution is to pretend Liadan started at 5+MOD MP when her magic was lv.1. That means she leveled up correctly, unlike other lv.4 mages.

 

[Ireth]

That just makes matters more confusing, IMO, if we're still using the table as-is. Or are you suggesting we lower the base MP for all the levels under 4, so they now read 5, 6, 8, 11, etc.? That could work, though why it would affect only Liadan is up to Steerpike to decide, I think. We do have other low-level magic-users, after all.

 

[Steerpike]

C&C tends to lower the power level at low levels. I suspect the decision for the progression to go +1, +2, +2, +4, +5... was a conscious choice to keep mana slightly lower at those low levels. But it could be a typo as well...because if it was intentional it seems like +3 would have been next. The mana system is an alternate system, not the primary system the game uses (which is the D&D system of memorizing spells).

I can't remember off-hand what we decided about Liadan. I have it in my notes at home. If you can remind me how her progression went, I may know (I have to look everything up to remember it ahaha).

 

[Ireth]

C&C tends to lower the power level at low levels. I suspect the decision for the progression to go +1, +2, +2, +4, +5... was a conscious choice to keep mana slightly lower at those low levels. But it could be a typo as well...because if it was intentional it seems like +3 would have been next. The mana system is an alternate system, not the primary system the game uses (which is the D&D system of memorizing spells).

I can't remember off-hand what we decided about Liadan. I have it in my notes at home. If you can remind me how her progression went, I may know (I have to look everything up to remember it ahaha).

I don't have that info in my PMs anymore, unfortunately. Stupid space restrictions. Didn't even think of backing it up. All I know is she started the game at level 2 (4 for magic), and we decided the levels would eventually merge. Though I can see a bit of sense in having her base level increase as normal and her magic stay the same until she gets to level 4, and then just going forward normally from there.

 

[Steerpike]

How about if we give her +2 at every level, and +3 at 6 so she'll be even with the mana chart at that point? I threw in the higher mana level because I think the party needed it, but if we keep the mana progression two levels ahead of her actual level the whole way, she'll end up way ahead of the other magic classes.

Alternatively, we could require her to his the level 4-5 XP progression before leveling in magic, and just let her level up in other areas like HP until she hits what she needs to move to level 5 on magic. Since the XP table is progressive, the base and magic levels will even out that way as well.

Do you have a preference for either of these or another approach?

 

[Ireth]

Your second idea is pretty much the same as my second one. ^^ I think I like the first one better though.

Just to make sure I've got this straight... when you said +2 or +3 above regarding her MP increase, that was NOT factoring in the MOD bonus she gets for WIS, right? So she'll go from 13 to 15 MP for level 3, then to 17 for level 4, 19 for level 5, and 22 for level 6. If we do factor in the MOD, that's going from 13 to 17 at level 3, then 21 at level 4, then 25 at level 5 and 30 at level 6. But there's a huge discrepancy there, and that doesn't seem right. Maybe it's just my bad math, though.

 

[Steerpike]

The modifier isn't additive with each level. The table shows the total mana at any given level. It would be as follows:

Prior level (base 2): 11 + 2 = 13
Base 3: 13 + 2 = 15
Base 4: 15 + 2 = 17
Base 5: 17 + 2 = 19
Base 6: 20 + 2 = 22

That means when her base level hits 6 she's even with what is shown on the table. Does that make sense? Of course, if she obtains any magic that increases her WIS modifier, the numbers will go up accordingly.

 

[Ireth]

Oh, yeah, that makes sense. Thanks for clearing it up!

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

That just makes matters more confusing, IMO, if we're still using the table as-is. Or are you suggesting we lower the base MP for all the levels under 4, so they now read 5, 6, 8, 11, etc.? That could work, though why it would affect only Liadan is up to Steerpike to decide, I think. We do have other low-level magic-users, after all.

I wasn't making a serious suggestion. It doesn't need to be fixed since it's not broken, just odd.

The disrupted pattern doesn't really bother me, but it does strike me as odd if it's intended, since the 1+2+2+4+5… and 1+2+3+4+5… are only 1 MP off in the long run. That doesn't balance anything. And actually, in the long run you get the 1 MP back at level 19, so then you're not off. If you continue that pattern for one more level, you'd have gained 300 MP since level 1 (306 MP total @ Lv.25)—which is where you'd be if you followed the pattern that's sort of in place.

Like I said, it's not a thing that I think needs fixing. I'm just surprised that a system created by nerds who are good at math would have this mathematical oddity, unless they did it to mess with the heads of other nerds who are good at math. If so, consider my nerdy head successfully messed with.