Quote from: JongWKI'm surprised no one has mentioned Midnight or Earthdawn.

What's the magic system like in Midnight?

Well, they're not really fantasy games but the best magic systems hands down, IMO, have been Mage: The Ascension and Deleria.  Otherwise Tunnels and Trolls for sheer fun

Quote from: GRIMOtherwise Tunnels and Trolls for sheer fun

"Take that you fiend" may be the best spell name ever.

Earthdawn- yes: you have threads, you have a matrix. Once you string the matrix, any energy that flows through it becomes a spell of the desired effect. It was very cool. And it was gameable because you had to manage your threads and power points, kinda.

But my favorite magic system is Magic: the Gathering. (wait, are we talking about RPGS only?)

Each spell (which is unique and predetermined/pre-designed, like a recipe) represents an alteration of the parameters of the game.

Quote from: jrients"Take that you fiend" may be the best spell name ever.

Except for "poor baby."

I agree with:

Quote from: RPGPundit... I love how they handle spells in WFRP 2e...

My only complaint is that WFRP 2e kept the D&D 'arcane/divine' split.  I wish Pramas had not done that.

Quote from: Mr. AnalyticalI really like the magic system in Buffy....

Yeah, it does a really good job.

Quote from: NicephorusTrue20 ...

A refreshing change from the 'Vancian' system in standard D&D (I like the Vancian system -- I just think it is nice that True20 offers something completely different).

Quote from: jrients... Call of Cthulhu's system is simple and most spells are delightfully unique.

Yes.  

I'm fond of Cloak of Steels "feat" magic too--it has flexible open ended minor feats that grow in scale (it reminds me of a flexible version of the magic from Final Fantasy Tactics.)

Talislanta uses something akin to Ars Magica these days but distinguishes the effect and the how a bit differently (Orders and modes) and I'm fond of it albeit I think some of the "logic" in the setting behind it is backwards (you know thousands of spells but don't make new ones--even though mechanically thats what your able to do.)

Gleichman would like this one but when I was still playing D&D the "stoneskin" spell was such a guaranteed argument starter that I started including it in my spell list as a meta-game distraction.

Namely if the GM had us in a tight spot I'd point out that I had stoneskin cast upon myself and the whole table would instantly be consumed in a gigantic argument at the end of which the GM would luck up and go "anyway... you're all back at the tavern and..."

Surprisingly effective and as a result I think it deserves props in any discussion of decent magic systems.

Quote from: One Horse TownWhat's the magic system like in Midnight?

Feat-based.

Magecraft is the basic prerequisite for everything. Every class can take it, though the Channeler (which replaces D&D's spellcasters) has it easier, as it is the path for those who want to develop their talent beyond some tricks.

The Spellcasting feat lets you learn spells from a school of magic every time you take it. The Schools are D&D's, though Evocation and Conjuring are divided between Lesser and Greater. Spellcasting only lets you take the Lesser of both.

Greater Spellcasting can be taken at level 7+, and allows you to pick Greater Conjuring and Evocation. This effectively puts a barrier for the "artillery" and "summon" spells (Gr. Evo. has the damage spells, Gr. Conj. has the summonings).

You get Spell Points instead of slots. Once you spend them, you can still "burn" Constitution as temporary damage. You'll be able to throw a lot of low level magic, but the higher-powered stuff becomes more uncommon.

As I said, the Channeler is the basic class. Prestige Classes include the Druid and the Wizard. It has decent BAB, d6 HPs and a good number of skill points. All in all, a Channeler never feels useless as a Sorcerer or Wizard would once they run out of spells.

There are no distinction between divine and arcane magic, by the way. When you take the Magecraft feat, you choose which mental ability (Int, Wis, Cha) is your primary one. Each ability is linked to a particular tradition flavour (hermetic, divine, charismatic).

Two other feats are Craft Spell Talisman and Craft Greater Spell Talisman. Talismans reduce the cost for casting specific spells (the first feat), or specific schools (the latter).

There's Ritual Magic, for those times when you need the extra mojo.

A Power Nexus is a material source of raw magical energy, usually a place. A volcano could give energy for fire spells, or help you craft a certain magic item, etc. Don't be too greedy or you could drain them forever.

Charms (minor, lesser, greater and true) are a new kind of item. They're usually one-shot, except for the True Charms. You can make them with a simple skill check, though you need a certain number of ranks in some skills. Your typical village witch could sell you a couple of these without becoming a "magic shop."

You won't see many +1 swords in Midnight, but you could find a Covenant Item. These are magic items that carry their own legend, and you learn their past to unlock their powers (if you've played Earthdawn, this will ring you a bell).

That's about it. You could use this system in your standard D&D campaign, and it wouldn't suffer from it. Hell, Iron Heroes could certainly use the Channeler.

It's not particularly creative, but I enjoyed the presentation of magic in Decipher's Lord of the Rings game: the subtlety and basic fidelity to the source material was appealing.

What, you mean that the magic was woefully underpowered to the extent that in some situations wizards would be better of throwing rocs than casting lightening bolts?

Quote from: Mr. AnalyticalWhat, you mean that the magic was woefully underpowered to the extent that in some situations wizards would be better of throwing rocs than casting lightening bolts?

There are rocs in Middle-earth? :confused:

I would imagine that it would take a mighty wizard indeed to throw them!  

Quote from: AkrasiaThere are rocs in Middle-earth? :confused:

I would imagine that it would take a mighty wizard indeed to throw them!  

Well there were the Eagle-Lords...

and their prince was friends with Gandalf...

To be fair to the system it was flavorful and the few "combat" magics were as effective as weapons to the basic health system in LOTR. That is if you didn't implement the mook rule--it was pretty much the same long whittle down the opposition effect.

Blue Rose. It's basically True20's magic system, but it has subtle differences. It is broken down into "talents", it includes a feat to allow non-adepts to use magic (although not nearly as well as an adept), and the Blue Rose companion includes magic items, place magic, and ritual magic.

I love Mage: the Awakenings magic system, it's a very refined and better Balanced version of Ascension's. I love them both for the fact thatAnything you can imagine is possible. I also love the fact that when you hit high levels, Magic becomes a battle of concepts. I love the risk of Paradox (although I don't think Paradox is a good name for it in Awakening) as a form of balance a reprecussion. All in all a good thing. It really only works in a game all about Mage's though, I'd hate to be stuck as a mortal Police officer or something in the game,
 
My second favorite is Unknown Armies. You generate charges through role-playing situations, taboo's destroy all your charges with roleplaying situations, you use charges to fuel the spells and rituals that you know. It's the opposite paradigm from Mage the Ascension, where a Pardox fuels your powers rather than destroys them.
 
I like the S&S Advance Players Guide skill based Magic system. At least in theory, I never got to play it. It made the different schhols of magic a skill check.
 
I like 3rd edition SR Magic (I haven't gotten to play with 4th). It was pretty free form and was always hilarious when a Mage Passed out.