I suggested the GM went withe flow and even without rules, but he’s the GM. He can deny and limit magic for the players at any point.
That’s his job and his prerogative anyway, and he or she’ll have that prerogative no matter what’s in the rules. So why bother with a complex set of rules ? That’s all I’m saying.
At least while you’re building your world and setting. You can always add the system later or different systems. If the rule is: no healing magic and fire magic is dangerous. It doesn’t matter what system I’m using. Everybody understands that magic doesn’t heal for instance. And I didn’t choose a game system. GMs can adapt these choices to their own game systems.
Btw, there’s very little magic in Lord of the Ring. It’s epic, yes, but not magical. Nobody is throwing fireballs around. Magic is in the world, not something available to the PCs.
Modern readers keep thinking of magic as a kind of science and I’m still saying it’s (could be, depending on the setting) an art. And of course, no, I’m not thinking about art in a modern scientific way like you are. 😉
Now, in a D&D setting, since there’s a rulebook somewhere with plenty of spells, it’s going to be a science. With art comes doubt.
That’s what new artistic schools keep doing: changing or ignoring the previous established rules of art, just because they an. 🙂
Oh, I definitely think magic needs to be explained… to the GM. Which is to the buyer if you write down your setting for commercial purpose.
I said it doesn’t need to be explained in game terms. That’s different.
Nah, Low-level magic is fine too. I’m GMing both very (and I mean very, wait for it 😉 ) high level of magic, in supers settings, so that’s far beyond fantasy, and low-magic settings in howardian fantasy ambiance were magic is something you shouldn’t play with unless you’re ready to deal with demons.
To me, anything is okay if players and GM are fine with it. But I’m being consistent with the principles of the setting. Nothing not appropriate to the “mood of the world”. ie: no elves or fire bolts in hyboria. Howard never did that. (And I can do that without game system, once again 🙂 ).
About the rules as rules. d20 next may be fine. Never read it. And if I do, tbh, that will be because of some generic version applied to something I’m doing (same thing happened with OGL/d20 so I’m talking out of experience there 😉 ). But it’s crazy complex and with so many spells and feats and etc… that’s an awful lot of work if you want to adapt it to a setting of your own.
That’s why I was suggesting you didn’t forget about other stuff. Just because they might be simpler and easier to use than a several hundred pages long rulebook. 😉 😛
I’m nostalgic of those times where everything was in V&V’s 45 pages rulebooks 😉