AMIA ARCHIVE • View topic

Simple question here that I just got curious on:

1 - Can an arcane caster 'sense' the power in another arcane caster?
2 - What about a divine caster 'sensing' another?
3 - Could even an arcane/divine caster 'sense' the power of divine/arcane caster?

I'mma offer my best attempt at an answer:

Not directly. But, if a Magician was smart.. they could probably use a mixture of observation and extrapolation to estimate another Magician's power.

1. Not strictly, no.
2. Not strictly, no.
3. Not strictly, no.

You can't really sense it innately. However, the spell Arcane Sight allows you to discern "whether it (the target) has any spellcasting or spell-like abilities, whether these are arcane or divine (spell-like abilities register as arcane), and the strength of the most powerful spell or spell-like ability the creature currently has available for use."

The spell is wizard/sorcerer only.

Naturally, you must follow server rules regarding PnP for the spell.

Ref: http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/arcaneSight.htm

Thanks both of you.

I meant more if they can sense any sort of magical gift, so Nivo's hit that spot on. I figured as much, Grymia, or at least I would nope you couldn't just go 'Hey, you're x powerful' lol

No people don't have Dragonball-Z-esque Scouters to detect power levels. (Thank god)

Good and proper imperical observation is the way to go xD

lol That's for sure XD

Grymia wrote:

Good and proper imperical observation is the way to go xD

Pftt. Typical wizard answer. It's all about feeling.

Dark Immolation wrote:

Grymia wrote:

Good and proper imperical observation is the way to go xD

Pftt. Typical wizard answer. It's all about feeling.

Pfft... typical sorcerer answer.

Really, though.... Nivo was right. There isn't really a concrete way for people to tell the power level of others through anything other than specific rites or the all powerful power of observation.

There aren't any spells that mechanically do this either. Arcane Sight (A pnp spell that requires consent) can tell you if a being has any magical powers but that's about the extent of it.

Ravenovf wrote:

There aren't any spells that mechanically do this either. Arcane Sight (A pnp spell that requires consent) can tell you if a being has any magical powers but that's about the extent of it.

Arcane Sight does much more than that, and in fact it does everything the OP was asking for.

d20 SRD wrote:

If you concentrate on a specific creature within 120 feet of you as a standard action, you can determine whether it has any spellcasting or spell-like abilities, whether these are arcane or divine (spell-like abilities register as arcane), and the strength of the most powerful spell or spell-like ability the creature currently has available for use.

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/arcaneSightGreater.htm

I can't speak to it as a rule, but some DM's I have found will just let a person take a spellcraft roll to identify magical effects, spells or otherwise. Understandably so when 1) Arcane Sight generally isn't used even as a PnP spell on Amia and 2) Spells visually appear (or don't) so differently in NWN than they do in PnP.

When you think about it, because of how NWN shows spells, a novice adventurer can tell you all the spells that are on a caster just by looking at them just as well as an archmage could. Virtually, everyone has Detect Magic already, for better or worse. When I play one of my mundane PCs, I know I appreciate knowing that giant has a damage shield on them. But I can't feel but a little peeved my my mage walks into a settlement and every schmo automatically jumps on him to "dispel his magics" because Mind Blank, See Invis, and Premonition make a huge visual scene, when in a pure RP sense, there's nothing innate to them that would necessary mean they would.

While this is true to magical effects and RP conventions, identifying magical effects is different from ascertaining the spell-casting potential of a person or creature. For the former, spellcraft and WYSIWYG are good rules with precedent on the server. For the latter, Arcane Sight is the only means available to PC arcane casters to discern spell-casting potential. Aside from the obvious 'watching them do it.'

This may very well have been discussed before, as I'm new here, but is there not a way to remove spell effect visuals altogether (persistant buff spells only as obviously wouldnt want to remove -all- spell effects) from the spells themselves?

This would be a great feature, helping to eliminate potential OOC/metagaming information as mentioned above, but more importantly cutting down on screen lag when there are 6 party members fully buffed to the gills!

You can fiddle with your own files extensively to where you don't see VFX, but everyone else will still see them. There's no way to turn it off for everyone by default.

Talespinner wrote:

This may very well have been discussed before, as I'm new here, but is there not a way to remove spell effect visuals altogether (persistant buff spells only as obviously wouldnt want to remove -all- spell effects) from the spells themselves?

This would be a great feature, helping to eliminate potential OOC/metagaming information as mentioned above, but more importantly cutting down on screen lag when there are 6 party members fully buffed to the gills!

I've seen servers where lingering visual effects are removed from most spells. No floaty eyes, no stone or bark covering your skin, no floating gold or red bubbles. Mostly they are low-magic servers though. Not really sure I'd want them removed from Amia.

If it is a matter of cutting down screen lag, that is a client side change, as Dark Immolation mentioned. As for visual effects, the only circumstance I could think of wherein deriving IC information from a visual effect is meta-gaming, is the case with monk eyes.

Well, It's not so much -my- screen lag I was referring to, more of a generalization really; just thought with that it might help with server lag is all when there's a large group of buffed PCs all together in one area

Guess not!

Talespinner wrote:

This may very well have been discussed before, as I'm new here, but is there not a way to remove spell effect visuals altogether (persistant buff spells only as obviously wouldnt want to remove -all- spell effects) from the spells themselves?

Magic and You

Who is online