So, we are working on the wizard lore in our campaign.

So, we are working on the wizard lore in our campaign.

So, we are working on the wizard lore in our campaign. We have this concept that wizards in training are taught to use an item as the focus for their casting, but with the concept that this will become a hindrance to them until they learn to channel their magic without this focus device.

So, I came up with this idea for an item… is it broken, or does this sound reasonable?

Staff of the Initiate (Will get a cooler name that fits our lore)

This gnarled staff is polished to a sheen, having obviously been held by hundreds of hands over time. At the tip of the staff is embedded a rather large focus crystal.

Ability – When the Initiate focuses his energy through the crystal, the cast spell ability gains a +1 in addition to any other modifiers based on player stats. You must declare use of the focus before rolling.

On 10+, the staff gains 1 hold

On 7-9, the staff gains 2 hold

On 6-, the staff gains 3 hold

Resolving hold. Once the staff reaches 3 hold, it can no longer be used as a focus and all cast spell rolls must be cast with intent to resolve this hold.

In order to resolve hold, you must successfully (10+) make a cast spell roll minus the number of hold you wish to resolve. (so, if it has 3 hold, you can roll -1, -2, or -3, but will only resolve that much hold)

(I see this bouncing at 2-3 hold, only resolving that one point to make the staff usable again)

Does this sound workable to you or is it hopelessly broken?

(cross posted on /r/DungeonWorld)

8 thoughts on “So, we are working on the wizard lore in our campaign.”

  1. Personally I would just handle this with fiction. For one thing I am always suspicious of magic items that give + bonuses because … well I’ve written while articles on why that’s a problem but it’s too easy to stack with ability, aid, and +1 forwards. For another I don’t like moves that directly interact with other established moves. (It’s ok when they trigger each other obv.) If you want to make it mechanical I suggest a usage die (per the Black Hack). Start at d8. You get the staff at first level. On a 3+ the staff allows you to shift the die results one step. On a 1-2 the die shrinks. When it shrinks as a d4 the staff (or any foci) is not useable by that wizard. That way you risk the staff with each use. It would be very powerful even so. But not necessarily broken.

  3. Or you could just let them start with a wand or whatever focus you want them to have. And just let them limit themselves via role play. If they are on board with it, you could also just have them using magic against them trigger a soft move, even if they roll a 10. But they suffer both penalties on a 7-9.

  4. When you wield an initiate’s focus, you can ignore 1 point of penalties to Cast a Spell but also gain 1 Crutch.

    When you study your spellbook, reduce the total level of spells you can prepare by your current Crutch, then reduce Crutch to 0.

  5. I really like Ray’s suggestion of a usage die. I think I’m going to do something along this line:

    Uber Staff of the Apprentice

    This gnarled staff is polished to a sheen, having obviously been held by hundreds of hands over time. At the tip of the staff is embedded a rather large Apprentice focus crystal.

    When making the cast spell move, the wizard can choose to attempt to use the focus. The apprentice focus crystal only applies to spells of level 1 and cantrips. Roll your focus die.

    The staff starts with a focus die of d8

    On 3+, the caster gains focus, thereby being granted +1 on their cast spell roll. This ability does not stack with other non-stat based + to rolls. (Forwards, etc)

    On a 1 or 2, the focus fails and the usage die shrinks (d6, then d4)

    Additionally, on a 1, the caster suffers a -1 to their cast spell roll.

    Finally, if the usage die falls below d4, the focus is drained and can no longer be used.

    Each time the wizard successfully makes camp, the focus will recharge 1 usage die.

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