Unicorn talents

So I was browsing the list of unicorn talents and realized that there wasn't a teleportation option. In fact, it was almost conspicuous by its absence considering how often we see Twilight (and even Celestia) do it, so I was wondering if there was a design decision made not to include it for some reason. On the off chance that it was a simple oversight, I thought I'd try my hand at coming up with some new utility talents.

Teleportation – 5/day
Preparation Time: 10 seconds
You may make an Arcana check at a base DC of 20 to teleport yourself to a location that you are either able to see or know well such as a home, workplace, etcetera. You may also teleport an inanimate object (up to 10 with a combined weight of less than 25 lb if you also have Precise Ponykinesis) in addition to or instead of yourself, however each additional object you attempt to teleport adds 1 to the DC. Objects to be teleported must be visible at the time the spell is cast. An unsuccessful teleportation means that nothing goes anywhere and the caster takes 1d4 of damage. A borderline success (a check that exactly meets the DC) performs the teleportation successfully, but the caster flips a coin. If the coin flip is lost, the caster takes 1d4 of damage. Note: any apparel the caster is wearing does not count as an additional object.

Talented Teleporter – 3/day
Preparation Time: 1 minute
Prerequisite - Teleportation
You may teleport up to 5 willing creatures in addition to or instead of yourself to a location you can either see or know well. Each additional willing creature adds 3 to the DC, and must be visible at the time the spell is cast. If the teleportation is unsuccessful, nopony goes anywhere and everypony takes 1d4 of damage for each party involved in the attempt. A borderline success check exactly at the DC performs the teleportation successfully, and each party involved takes only 1d4 of damage. Inanimate objects may not be teleported simultaneously, although any apparel or gear the party is wearing is fine.


Some notes on the thought process here:
–Teleportation. Even a pony with 10 Knowledge, training, and a cutie mark in Arcana (+18) won't be able to pull off a successful teleport every time, but they should be successful 90% of the time. On the flip side, a minimum Arcana pony with no bonus should only succeed about 25% of the time. Most ponies, of course, will be somewhere in the middle and will have a moderate chance of failing. Trying to teleport more than a few objects at the same time will also increase the difficulty pretty quickly.

–Talented Teleporter. Trying to teleport an additional creature or two doesn't increase the difficult too much, but trying to teleport a whole party definitely will. A unicorn trying to teleport an entire party of 6 ponies (including the caster) would have a DC of 35 – a Master level according to the Pony Handler's guidebook, and the second-highest listed for normal actions. A +18 Arcana unicorn could do it successfully about 15% of the time, but they only get three tries per day, with potentially hefty damage penalties for failure. Most ponies wouldn't be able to reach it on their own at all, requiring some help with Magic points and assists.

–General.

[Edit: After some thought, I removed the damage, as that sort of thing should probably be up to the GM.]
[Edit 2: Bumped base DC of Teleport up to 20, but decreased additional cost for teleporting willing creatures from +4 to +3. Changed Teleport from At Will to 5/day.]

Anyway, let the discussion begin!

First, I know Dan's trying to keep combat separate from non-combat. If it's non-combat, it shouldn't be doing damage to anyone.

Second, what warrants this being distinct enough to not be covered under "It's Witchcraft"?

I'll just drop this off here....

*Fogscreen
--Magic point. Create a thick cloud of fog (expanding 20 feet radius and lasting 18 seconds).

Videocrazy wrote: what warrants this being distinct enough to not be covered under "It's Witchcraft"?

"It's Witchcraft" modifies existing spells. This is simply teleportation. You could modify the teleportation (if you're fast enough and skilled enough) with "It's Witchcraft", but you can't actually teleport with "Witchcraft" by itself.

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:

Videocrazy wrote: what warrants this being distinct enough to not be covered under "It's Witchcraft"?

"It's Witchcraft" modifies existing spells. This is simply teleportation. You could modify the teleportation (if you're fast enough and skilled enough) with "It's Witchcraft", but you can't actually teleport with "Witchcraft" by itself.

You can use the Arcana skill to perform magic or fiddle with magical effects, such as attempting to dispel an enchantment or attempting to open a closed magical portal. You can use this talent to fiddle with magical effects in just about any way you can imagine, however – just like trying to physically force an object or deftly manipulate its mechanics gets harder the more drastically you want to change things; so does using a unicorn’s Arcana to manipulate magical effects. Both how drastic a change the unicorn wants to make and how fast you want to make the change affect the difficulty of the Arcana DC.

It also covers casting magic.

It probably would clear things up if Witchcraft had a few example uses listed.

Haven't read the utility talents suggested yet, but let me clear up "It's Witchcraft".

It's Witchcraft is indeed a catch-all use for unicorn magic. In my D&D games, I let spellcasters break the Arcana skill in half. They can use it to improvise magical effects that aren't covered by existing talents, such as something minor sending a signal light to the rest of the group or something major - like abusing an existing time-travel field the group was within (think like in the game 'braid') to jump back in time a few seconds.

The way I balance it is to decide how useful the game effect the player is trying to create is, then apply a DC that seems appropriate. If the effect is minor, like temporarily concealing a single item or the above-mentioned signal light, use a Moderate check. If it's a significant advantage for the group, apply a Difficult, Expert, Master, Grandmaster or higher check as appropriate. I could easily see DM's setting DCs at 100 or more for some things that simply shouldn't be possible.

In order to make Arcana more fair in Pony Tales, I applied the "It's Witchcraft" utility talent, so the versatile skill would at least come with some costs.

So yes, everything will mirror it. However, unlike "It's Witchcraft" - skills like the above Teleport ideas are sure things. They're relevant because, while narrow, you don't need to max the arcana skill to reliably perform them. Trying to Teleport with "It's Witchcraft" would be a very, very, very high DC. Likely Master.

The line of thought on the Teleportation utility actually brought up a character creation issue. Who'd a thunk? What I'm getting it is how much does a pony weigh? I bring this up because of the potential combo of Master Ponykinesis, the theoretical Teleportation, with maybe Precise Ponykinesis. A 100lb is a lot, but is it enough for a fully grown pony?

So either a straight up answer from up top( I'm pretty sure that means Stairc), or a heated community discussion. Either ways fine

Now please comments, criticisms, and muffins

ps. i have no idea if this goes here or in some far off thread on the edges of the forum, if not here please relocate as you see fit

Force Field - Daily
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Conjures a mostly-transparent spherical force field around a location, object or creature, preventing others from passing through. You may assign at the start of the spell which objects or creatures can cause the force field to automatically open a small gap for, allowing them entry or exit. Other creatures can enter or exit the force field through these openings as well. You can also manipulate the force field yourself, opening holes in it. The field lasts 10 minutes on its own, but it can be manually maintained (Precision check) for up to 4 hours by the caster. The field is large enough to encompass a small building. It cannot be repositioned after it is cast. If cast in the air, it floats, immobile. The field forms around other solid objects, wrapping around them, or stopping if it is blocked (e.g. it forms a semicircle on the ground, and you can dig under it). Air can pass through the shield, allowing for breathing. The field can shatter if enough force is applied to it. Size is irrelevant for shield durability: All shields can take the same amount of force. It can be broken instantly by a very powerful projectile (e.g. getting hit by a cannon-fired Tom), or gradually weakened and eventually shatter from repeated forces (e.g. Pony with a sledgehammer). A caster can maintain a shield while it's being assaulted to keep it repaired and stable: this requires a precision check, depending on the assaulting force. The shield can be partially disrupted by anything that can disrupt magic. The shield can roughly take between 1000-2000lbs (Roughly a ton, half a ton).

Personal Force Field - 3/Day
Prequisite: "Force Field"
Preparation time: 1 minute

Creates a miniature version of a force field. All the rules for force fields apply to it, with the following changes:
- You can choose which creatures will be unaffected by the field. It doesn't open for them, they just walk through it.
- You can move it at will, or have it encompass and follow another creature.
- It lasts for 2 hours without being maintained, or 24 hours with maintenance. No precision check is required.
- You can allow other magic users to maintain the field or move it around.
- The field is big enough to encompass six ponies
- The field doesn't block or pass through solid, immobile objects (you can walk freely through buildings).
- You can make up to six fields at once at the cost of size: One pony per shield.
- Slow moving objects can pass through the shield, fast ones cannot. Other creatures are blocked completely. The shield will not crush other creatures against other obstacles, but it pin them to it.
- A 100lb object can damage the shield, 200lbs will break it easily.
- Other magic users can attempt a precision check to dispel the shield, or to gain control of it's movements.

Masterful force field
Prequisite: "Force Field"
Preparation time: 15 minutes

You have mastery of force field conjuration. Your "force field" utility talent can now be used 3/day, can take double the amount of force (2000-4000lbs, around 2 tons), lasts twice as long (20 mins, or 8 hours maintained) and can either be invisible to anyone you haven't allowed to use it, or be made non-transparent to creatures outside it. Allowed creatures can simply walk through it, rather than cause gaps to open in it, and it cannot be dug under. In addition, with a precision check, you can attempt to modify your shield in the following ways:
- Make it non-spherical, or adhere and wrap around a object. (Complex shapes increase DC)
- Quickly shrink and expand the field, fast enough to have it knock creatures away or reduce the impact of objects. You cannot shrink/expand it for less/more than half it's usual max size. (Higher DC for pushing things)
- Make it "eject" objects or creatures already within the shield: They get forcibly pulled out of the area of the shield, as though gravity is reversed. (DC depends on creature)
- Have it detect and block specific types of creatures or objects, regardless of disguises or appearance, e.g. Changelings in pony form.
- Hide the objects and creatures within the field with an illusion, making the field invisible and the area within it appear empty. (Very high DC)
- Have it act like a mirror against certain projectiles, spells and effects. (Very high DC)

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Haven't read the utility talents suggested yet, but let me clear up "It's Witchcraft".

It's Witchcraft is indeed a catch-all use for unicorn magic. In my D&D games, I let spellcasters break the Arcana skill in half. They can use it to improvise magical effects that aren't covered by existing talents, such as something minor sending a signal light to the rest of the group or something major - like abusing an existing time-travel field the group was within (think like in the game 'braid') to jump back in time a few seconds.

The way I balance it is to decide how useful the game effect the player is trying to create is, then apply a DC that seems appropriate. If the effect is minor, like temporarily concealing a single item or the above-mentioned signal light, use a Moderate check. If it's a significant advantage for the group, apply a Difficult, Expert, Master, Grandmaster or higher check as appropriate. I could easily see DM's setting DCs at 100 or more for some things that simply shouldn't be possible.

In order to make Arcana more fair in Pony Tales, I applied the "It's Witchcraft" utility talent, so the versatile skill would at least come with some costs.

So yes, everything will mirror it. However, unlike "It's Witchcraft" - skills like the above Teleport ideas are sure things. They're relevant because, while narrow, you don't need to max the arcana skill to reliably perform them. Trying to Teleport with "It's Witchcraft" would be a very, very, very high DC. Likely Master.

Okay, that makes a lot of sense. (Also, how in Equestria did I miss that "perform magic" bit in "Witchcraft"? I'm missing things all over the place...)

Zarhon wrote:Force Field - Daily
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Conjures a mostly-transparent spherical force field around a location, object or creature, preventing others from passing through. You may assign at the start of the spell which objects or creatures can cause the force field to automatically open a small gap for, allowing them entry or exit. Other creatures can enter or exit the force field through these openings as well. You can also manipulate the force field yourself, opening holes in it. The field lasts 10 minutes on its own, but it can be manually maintained (Precision check) for up to 4 hours by the caster. The shield is large enough to encompass a small building. It cannot be repositioned after it is cast. If cast in the air, it floats, immobile. The field forms around other solid objects, wrapping around them or stopping if it is blocked (e.g. it forms a semicircle on the ground, and you can dig under it). Air can pass through the shield, allowing for breathing. The field can shatter if enough force is applied to it. Size is irrelevant for shield durability: All shields can take the same amount of force. It can be broken instantly by a very powerful projectile, or gradually by hitting it repeatedly. A caster can maintain a shield while it's being assaulted to keep it repaired and stable: this requires a precision check, depending on the assaulting force. The shield can be partially disrupted by anything that can disrupt magic.

Personal Force Field - 3/Day
Prequisite: "Force Field"
Preparation time: 1 minute

Creates a miniature version of a force field. All the rules for force fields apply to it, with the following changes:
- You can choose which creatures will be unaffected by the field. It doesn't open for them, they just walk through it.
- You can move it at will, or have it encompass and follow another creature.
- It lasts for 2 hours without being maintained, or 24 hours with maintenance. No precision check is required.
- You can allow other magic users to maintain the field or move it around.
- The field is big enough to encompass six ponies
- The field doesn't block or pass through solid, immobile objects (you can walk freely through buildings).
- You can make up to six fields at once at the cost of size: One pony per shield.
- Slow moving objects can pass through the shield, fast ones cannot. Other creatures are blocked completely. The shield will not crush other creatures against other obstacles, but it pin them to it.
- A 100lb object can damage the shield, 200lbs will break it easily.
- Other magic users can attempt a precision check to dispel the shield, or to gain control of it's movements.

Masterful force field
Prequisite: "Force Field"
Preparation time: 15 minutes

You have mastery of force field conjuration. Your "force field" utility talent can now be used 3/day, can take double the amount of force (2 tons), lasts twice as long (20 mins, or 8 hours maintained) and can either be invisible to anyone you haven't allowed to use it, or be made non-transparent to creatures outside it. Allowed creatures can simply walk through it, rather than cause gaps to open in it. In addition, with a precision check, you can attempt to modify your shield in the following ways:
- Make it non-spherical, or adhere and wrap around a object. (Complex shapes increase DC)
- Quickly shrink and expand the field, fast enough to have it knock creatures away or reduce the impact of objects. You cannot shrink/expand it for less/more than half it's usual max size. (Higher DC for pushing things)
- Make it "eject" objects or creatures already within the shield: They get forcibly pulled out of the area of the shield, as though gravity is reversed. (DC depends on creature)
- Have it detect and block specific types of creatures or objects, regardless of disguises or appearance, e.g. Changelings in pony form.
- Hide the objects and creatures within the field with an illusion, making the field invisible and the area within it appear empty, or . (Very high DC)
- Have it act like a mirror against certain projectiles, spells and effects. (Very high DC)

Looks pretty good! I'd like to see how much force the force field can take on Force Field, since that's the prerequisite, but otherwise, this looks pretty good! I especially like how you can fiddle with the field via Masterful Force Field (although you might want to add base DCs to some of these).

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:Looks pretty good! I'd like to see how much force the force field can take on Force Field, since that's the prerequisite, but otherwise, this looks pretty good! I especially like how you can fiddle with the field via Masterful Force Field (although you might want to add base DCs to some of these).

I'm thinking that a pony with the "Mind over matter" (ponykinesis 1000lbs object) utility talent could break the regular field in a single good roll, several solid hits, or a hit on a already-weakened shield. Cutie mark criticals could also shatter it easily.

As for base DCs, I have no idea what values to put.

Zarhon wrote:

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:Looks pretty good! I'd like to see how much force the force field can take on Force Field, since that's the prerequisite, but otherwise, this looks pretty good! I especially like how you can fiddle with the field via Masterful Force Field (although you might want to add base DCs to some of these).

I'm thinking that a pony with the "Mind over matter" (ponykinesis 1000lbs object) utility talent could break the regular field in a single good roll, several solid hits, or a hit on a already-weakened shield. Cutie mark criticals could also shatter it easily.

As for base DCs, I have no idea what values to put.

So maybe about 1000 lbs worth of force, probably a little more?

As for base DCs, I'd just post your best guesstimate and see what everypony else has to say about them. Then again, your call.

Also, a skill of my own:

Want It, Need It -1/session
Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
An object of your choice (pony size or smaller) within your sight becomes irresistible to all who see it, save for you. Victims will do almost anything to get and keep the object, although if they are about to perform a major breach of their moral standards, the spell is broken. You can terminate the spell whenever you wish so long as you have line of sight; otherwise, the effect lasts for 1d20 hours. Due to the immensely violating and mind-altering nature of the spell, affected ponies must make a Perception check to avoid losing a Sanity Point for every hour they are affected by the spell.

Once in a free-form RP, a shipper character of mine convinced her unicorn marefriend to cast a Want It Need it spell on a pony because she and another pony were obviously in love and just needed a little push.

That ended poorly.

Masterweaver wrote:Once in a free-form RP, a shipper character of mine convinced her unicorn marefriend to cast a Want It Need it spell on a pony because she and another pony were obviously in love and just needed a little push.

That ended poorly.

I should think so!

...am I a bad person for wanting to see and laugh at the ensuing chaos?

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:...am I a bad person for wanting to see and laugh at the ensuing chaos?

Maybe. But the pony who was cast upon was hosting a Nightmare Night party so....

ANYWAY

Failsafe Spell
Perquisite: It's Witchcraft
Magic, daily.
Roll a single opposed arcana check against every spell in a fifty foot radius. If the roll is a success, the spell ends.

Yeah, more idea then mechanic for now, but...

Masterweaver wrote:

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:...am I a bad person for wanting to see and laugh at the ensuing chaos?

Maybe. But the pony who was cast upon was hosting a Nightmare Night party so....

ANYWAY

Failsafe Spell
Perquisite: It's Witchcraft
Magic, daily.
Roll a single opposed arcana check against every spell in a fifty foot radius. If the roll is a success, the spell ends.

Yeah, more idea then mechanic for now, but...

Okay, forget the guilt, I want to see that! That must've been the funniest thing ever!

Actually, I don't think you need much more than that, save adding that the DC depends on the spell in question. It's solid, simple, and stands pretty well on its own.

Masterweaver wrote:

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:...am I a bad person for wanting to see and laugh at the ensuing chaos?

Maybe. But the pony who was cast upon was hosting a Nightmare Night party so....

ANYWAY

Failsafe Spell
Perquisite: It's Witchcraft
Magic, daily.
Roll a single opposed arcana check against every spell in a fifty foot radius. If the roll is a success, the spell ends.

Yeah, more idea then mechanic for now, but...

Still going through the above posts, but let me add a quick polish to this. =)

Failsafe Spell - Daily
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 1 Minute
For the next five minutes, you may reroll all natural 1s on Arcana checks and you gain a +10 bonus to Arcana checks you make when attempting to dispel magic effects.

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Still going through the above posts, but let me add a quick polish to this. =)

Failsafe Spell - Daily
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 1 Minute
For the next five minutes, you may reroll all natural 1s on Arcana checks and you gain a +10 bonus to Arcana checks you make when attempting to dispel magic effects.

Personally, I think it ought to be more instantaneous, since that was the implication from the show. Still, this looks like it works okay.

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Still going through the above posts, but let me add a quick polish to this. =)

Failsafe Spell - Daily
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 1 Minute
For the next five minutes, you may reroll all natural 1s on Arcana checks and you gain a +10 bonus to Arcana checks you make when attempting to dispel magic effects.

Personally, I think it ought to be more instantaneous, since that was the implication from the show. Still, this looks like it works okay.

I'm mostly trying to avoid combat-implications for utility talents - hence preparation times which make them unusable in combat. However, considering the advanced combat options for DM's I'm going to be writing about soon... It's tempting.

Any more thoughts on this?

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:I'm mostly trying to avoid combat-implications for utility talents - hence preparation times which make them unusable in combat. However, considering the advanced combat options for DM's I'm going to be writing about soon... It's tempting.

Any more thoughts on this?

Well, preparation time is fine, but making it last ten minutes rather than just a blanket spell canceling in the area doesn't make sense to me, based on what the show has implied.

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:I'm mostly trying to avoid combat-implications for utility talents - hence preparation times which make them unusable in combat. However, considering the advanced combat options for DM's I'm going to be writing about soon... It's tempting.

Any more thoughts on this?

Well, preparation time is fine, but making it last ten minutes rather than just a blanket spell canceling in the area doesn't make sense to me, based on what the show has implied.

Aha! Now I know what you mean. I figure that Twilight's actual arcana attempt to try and dispel everything was the instantaneous burst shown in the show. The Failsafe Spell was giving her the above bonuses while she tried it. That said, you're right - it's very waffly. I do like the design of the above talent, but I'm not sure it fits the show perfectly. Perhaps if it was a 5/day bonus you can trigger for one check?


Failsafe Spell - 5/Day
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 30 Seconds
On your next arcana check, you may reroll natural 1s. You also gain a +10 bonus to the check if you're using it to attempt to dispel a magical effect.

Less elegant to read, but how does that look?

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Aha! Now I know what you mean. I figure that Twilight's actual arcana attempt to try and dispel everything was the instantaneous burst shown in the show. The Failsafe Spell was giving her the above bonuses while she tried it. That said, you're right - it's very waffly. I do like the design of the above talent, but I'm not sure it fits the show perfectly. Perhaps if it was a 5/day bonus you can trigger for one check?


Failsafe Spell - 5/Day
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 30 Seconds
On your next arcana check, you may reroll all natural 1s. You also gain a +10 bonus to check if you're using it to attempt to dispel a magical effect.

Less elegant to read, but how does that look?

Ah, yes, this is the sort of thing I was thinking of!

The Warrior of Many Faces wrote:

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Aha! Now I know what you mean. I figure that Twilight's actual arcana attempt to try and dispel everything was the instantaneous burst shown in the show. The Failsafe Spell was giving her the above bonuses while she tried it. That said, you're right - it's very waffly. I do like the design of the above talent, but I'm not sure it fits the show perfectly. Perhaps if it was a 5/day bonus you can trigger for one check?


Failsafe Spell - 5/Day
Prerequisite: It's Witchcraft
Preparation Time: 30 Seconds
On your next arcana check, you may reroll all natural 1s. You also gain a +10 bonus to check if you're using it to attempt to dispel a magical effect.

Less elegant to read, but how does that look?

Ah, yes, this is the sort of thing I was thinking of!

Excellent. A version of that will definitely get added in. Now I'll look at these teleporting options.

Hmm... A lot of thought has clearly gone into teleport. How about we make things elegant?

Teleport - 5/Day
Preparation Time: 30 Seconds
You or target ally can teleport to a location up to 25 feet away. You must be able to clearly see the location you're trying to teleport to.

SimpleZen wrote:The line of thought on the Teleportation utility actually brought up a character creation issue. Who'd a thunk? What I'm getting it is how much does a pony weigh? I bring this up because of the potential combo of Master Ponykinesis, the theoretical Teleportation, with maybe Precise Ponykinesis. A 100lb is a lot, but is it enough for a fully grown pony?

Honestly, I'm not sure what the ruling should be on this. In real life a pony weighs around 800 lbs. Any thoughts folks?

Stairc -Dan Felder wrote:Hmm... A lot of thought has clearly gone into teleport. How about we make things elegant?

Teleport - 5/Day
Preparation Time: 30 Seconds
You or target ally can teleport to a location up to 25 feet away. You must be able to clearly see the location you're trying to teleport to.

SimpleZen wrote:The line of thought on the Teleportation utility actually brought up a character creation issue. Who'd a thunk? What I'm getting it is how much does a pony weigh? I bring this up because of the potential combo of Master Ponykinesis, the theoretical Teleportation, with maybe Precise Ponykinesis. A 100lb is a lot, but is it enough for a fully grown pony?

Honestly, I'm not sure what the ruling should be on this. In real life a pony weighs around 800 lbs. Any thoughts folks?

Er, Twilight can teleport to places she can't see but is familiar with. As for the weight issue... teleportation seems to work on more of a volume basis then a mass basis. You could teleport a pillow and a turkey with equal ease, they're about the same size, but teleporting a pillow is harder then teleporting a sword, even though the sword's heavier.