D&D meets Dragon Age

[tedcahill2]

If I wanted to run a game inspired by from Dragon Age (arcane magic coming from the fade, the Tranquil, Templars, the Circle of Mages, etc) would other types of magic (divine and psionics specifically) have any place in the world?

Dragon Age puts a lot of emphasis on mages being watched and ruled over and forced into circle. So if that is how arcane casters are treated how would divine or psionic magic treated? The same? Should they exist at all? Should all magic come from the fade?
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ove all the ideas, but we're getting deeper than I was thinking.

I'm not trying to duplicate classes or races from Dragon Age, but one thing that generic D&D lacks is that magic comes at a price. There is no cost of doing magic, not monetary, but something physical that the caster needs to manage. Now in the Dragon Age games it never feels like there's a cost to magic when you're playing, but there is a very real cost as far as the lore of magic. Demon possession, requirement of being bound to a circle, or hunted as an apostate, the taint of blood magic and subsequent persecution, death by lyrium, etc.

The major question I have here though is how I should handle the different types of magic. Dragon Age has no concept of divine magic or psionics. All magic comes from the Fade, and it would most accurately be described as arcane magic. So I want to hear ideas on how a world like D&D, with multiple types of magic, can fit into a setting like Dragon Age, where all magic is arcane.

[animewatcha]

WOuld something like this run alongside the generic classes like Warrior, Expert, etc. ? A question to add into the mix.

[Mendicant]

So far as I've seen, all magic in Dragon Age comes from the fade, and there is no distinction between divine and arcane magic. Honestly, I feel like a combination of ToB maneuver-type mechanics and some form of ritual casting would translate DA's magic the most faithfully.

FWIW, there is a Dragon Age PnP game already available (https://freeronin.com/dragon_age_rpg/DragonAgeRPGQuickstartGuide.pdf) from Green Ronin. It is not a d20 system game though.

[RedWarlock]

The Tranquil are created through basically a ritual-based template that strips the spells and caster level from a Mage. (Given than anything with a caster level is apparently susceptible to demonic possession, it's a legitimate method, even if the result is akin to a fallen 3e paladin.)

Templars basically have some built-in anti-caster Supernatural abilities. I could see a PrC or even a base class built around it, with built-in SR, a counterspell action, or even an ability to forcibly lower an enemy's caster level. (Cullen mentions Templars can 'weaken' the breach with their abilities in order to enable the Inquisitor to close it, versus the Mages being able to pump power into the mark to enable it to overpower the Breach.)

Edit: Divine magic doesn't seem to exist as such. While Templar orders are built from the faithful, there's nothing divine in how their powers seem to work, just discipline. Healing magic does exist, but seems to be slotted in alongside other arcane powers.


The dwarven titan DLC seems to imply that dwarves have some kind of ability which seems more psychic/psionic in nature than magical, IMO. The dwarf who accompanies you into the titan seems to awaken as a psion from the contact. Templars are implied to have a similar powerset, derived from an artificial connection to the same power source.

As speculation for DA4, I think it's possible Dwarves might get their own variant-Mage class of a psionic nature in the future, with the Templar being akin to a half-caster of that type.

[Gildedragon]

Circle Mages are Generic Prepared Spellcasters. Access to all lists. A penalty to saves v demonic possession. Penalty to diplomacy.

Apostate Mages are Generic Spontaneous ones. Higher penalty to their saves v possession because they haven't gone through the ritual.

Whatever Wynne Was: Celestial Chanelling OR Binder

Templars: Spell-Less paladins with Detect Magic instead of Detect Evil, and Dispel instead of Turn Undead. They can create the blood phylactery thing which either gives a sort of bearing to find the Mage whose blood is used OR allows for no-save scrying

Tranquil: PRC, trade spells for capacity to make magic items with UMD checks, immune to possession, and perpetually under an Ex Calm Emotions effect.

Dwarves: Slap the Karsite template on them.
Have the possibility of going into Renegade Mastermaker and turning into Warforged. But instead of being +1 existing spellcasting class, it has the +1 to class features of stuff like Uncanny Trickster

Alternatively Warforged is a template one gets via something like the Dragonborn's Rite of Rebirth

No rezzing, no reincarnating...

[RedWarlock]

That's WAAAY beneficial than I figured Tranquil would be. It felt more like a punishment than a prc benefit.

Where's the warforged/renegade mastermaker thing coming in from, what source/game? That's news to me.

[Reprimand]

WOuld something like this run alongside the generic classes like Warrior, Expert, etc. ? A question to add into the mix.

@op if you do this and say add "feat" every few level to the generic classes that can either be spent on class features from other classes including prestige classes or a feat as normal it allows a lot of freedom for you and players to get something closer to the dragon age source material. Also its a lot easier to write a few dragon age flavored abilities than it is to write entire new classes imo so using this as a base can be really helpful.

I personally use fighter bonus feat levels (1, 2, 4, 6, etc) for expert/warrior and wizard bonus feats for caster (1, 5, 10, 15, 20) This allows for a for a lot more versatility when character building and allows you to get something much closer to dragon age classes without completely changing systems or writing a ton of homebrew.

You might also want to add skill rank/level reqs for certain class features.

Also if you want blood magic rules the best I've ever found in a D&D homebrew or official wizard of the coast source book as been the blood magic/bloodied spell metamagic feats from bow and blade which is a 3.0 source book that is all about elves but the feats themselves are not race specific and their actually really well balanced and serve as meta magic reducers/enchancers for hp damage/fort save vs con damage and are really flavorful options you can slap on pretty much any caster and have it work well mechanically.

[Gildedragon]

That's WAAAY beneficial than I figured Tranquil would be. It felt more like a punishment than a prc benefit.

Where's the warforged/renegade mastermaker thing coming in from, what source/game? That's news to me.

Golems

As to it being more beneficial. Sorta. Yeah. Though the tranquil are called out as being particularly adept at making magic items

[RedWarlock]

Ah, yeah. (Did some research)

That feels more like a take on the Dwarf Ancestor golems from.. FR? (They did a miniature for it in DDM, a large construct that looks like a stone dwarf.) Not really a PC option, but I could see a Warforged via Rite of Rebirth as a good counterpart.

[Sariel Vailo]

Its fun i had a game set in origins with a dwarf casteless and a tal va shoth work together i even helped the qunari pick a qun based name. Even the race guide was fun

[tedcahill2]

Love all the ideas, but we're getting deeper than I was thinking.

I'm not trying to duplicate classes or races from Dragon Age, but one thing that generic D&D lacks is that magic comes at a price. There is no cost of doing magic, not monetary, but something physical that the caster needs to manage. Now in the Dragon Age games it never feels like there's a cost to magic when you're playing, but there is a very real cost as far as the lore of magic. Demon possession, requirement of being bound to a circle, or hunted as an apostate, the taint of blood magic and subsequent persecution, death by lyrium, etc.

The major question I have here though is how I should handle the different types of magic. Dragon Age has no concept of divine magic or psionics. All magic comes from the Fade, and it would most accurately be described as arcane magic. So I want to hear ideas on how a world like D&D, with multiple types of magic, can fit into a setting like Dragon Age, where all magic is arcane.

[Waker]

The major question I have here though is how I should handle the different types of magic. Dragon Age has no concept of divine magic or psionics. All magic comes from the Fade, and it would most accurately be described as arcane magic. So I want to hear ideas on how a world like D&D, with multiple types of magic, can fit into a setting like Dragon Age, where all magic is arcane.

Mechanics aside, I don't think that in-game they would differentiate between the different systems. A cleric might say they draw power from Andraste or something else, but everyone else would just say "It's magic." You do magic, ergo you're a mage.

[Gildedragon]

Love all the ideas, but we're getting deeper than I was thinking.

I'm not trying to duplicate classes or races from Dragon Age, but one thing that generic D&D lacks is that magic comes at a price. There is no cost of doing magic, not monetary, but something physical that the caster needs to manage. Now in the Dragon Age games it never feels like there's a cost to magic when you're playing, but there is a very real cost as far as the lore of magic. Demon possession, requirement of being bound to a circle, or hunted as an apostate, the taint of blood magic and subsequent persecution, death by lyrium, etc.

The major question I have here though is how I should handle the different types of magic. Dragon Age has no concept of divine magic or psionics. All magic comes from the Fade, and it would most accurately be described as arcane magic. So I want to hear ideas on how a world like D&D, with multiple types of magic, can fit into a setting like Dragon Age, where all magic is arcane.

Casters: all are generic casters. Yeah some say the gods give them power etc... Some dabble in taint (ie blood magic) to boost their spells. All the lists being available what differentiates casters is their particular load out and specialization

Binders: they're Channeling spirits from the fade. The chantry would be SUPER against that. No chance to be a circle mage with that sorta thing... Even though one might be channeling the virtuous spirits. Note that it works with the lore as is: each vestige is a class of spirit. Naberius is an arrogance demon, Leraje a spirit of healing...

Warlocks: Pact or No Pact? If no pact: circle mage. Treat as a V focused caster that specializes in fewer things but can go all day long. If pact: treat as binder

Dragon Disciples: Probably as Binders

Meldshapers: Shaping soul-stuff. Probably treat as mages. Just another discipline... Or treat as binders where they are channeling spirits.

Truenamers: Mages that didn't succeed in their harrowing.

Shadowcasters: possibly seen as a bloodmagic discipline. Possibly elvish. Sounds like something Morrigan would use

Infusion users: as casters or the tranquil

[Florian]

The major question I have here though is how I should handle the different types of magic.

Setting rules are always more important than core rules, so you´ve got adapt the later to fit the former.

In this case, the setting rules are: There is only magic without subtypes, all magic comes from the Fade and you can only be a Circle Mage or Renegade.

So you basically end up with the same situation as d20 Rokugan: Only one caster class, one template for corrupted casters, rules for being corrupted and all classes lose their spellcasting.