I had mentioned before in a prior post the strengths and weaknesses to Vancian Magic. While I still defend it I am in no way married to the concept.

Certainly I think thee are better magic systems, and those systems will be talked about on this Blog, such as Ars Magica, GLOG, and Mage: The ascension.

However I wanted to offer a couple alternative systems one could run in an OSR D&D system that does not require you to uproot the entire Vancian paradigm, but rather shift it’s focus.

All three systems I will present are totally compatible with the traditional spell format and levels, it’s merely the casting method we are changing here.

Roll to Cast

This one is a very strong alternative casting system because addresses the major criticism of Vancian magic, being that it is too safe and reliable.

How to Cast:

Spellcasters Have a spell casting bonus equal to INT Mod + Class Level/2. (rounded down)

Spellcasting is done by rolling a D20 + Spellcasting Bonus.

Spell DC is equal to 12 + Spell Level.

Rolling at or above the DC means the spell goes off as intended.

rolling below DC means the spell fizzles and fails to cast and cannot be cast until rememorized.

Rolls of a natural 1 means the spell goes off but botchs and has a backlash effect as well as fizzles.

This one was devised more around use in BX clones and Basic fantasy, if you run a retroclone or system that has spell levels that run from 1 to 9 the formula for Spell DC should be 10 + Spell Level

Botch Table

On the event of a botch consult this table, this is a fairly vague/flexible table but can always be expanded or altered.

2d6 Results Botch
12 Totally insane random effect.
10-11 Spell rebounds or does the opposite of intentions.
8-9 Lose control of spell, effect is changed or harmful
7-6 Hits the wrong target or goes off in a wild angle
4-5 Spell does Minimal damage, lasts shortly or less potent effect
2-3 A surprisingly useful side effect or benefit happens

Memorizing Spells

A Spellcaster can memorize a number of spells equal to their INT Mod + Class Level/2. (Minimum of 1)

It requires 10 minutes X Spell Level to memeroize a spell.

This is a pretty simple and low key way of handling the memorizing of spells. though it does mean an 18 INT Wizard at level 20 only has a max of 13 spells memorized at any given time.

However, I you want a slightly harsher but also gentler way of handling it. You could do it as INT Ability Score + Class Level/2.

It’s nicer in that a Wizard with an INT score of 18 can have a total of 28 spells in their memory.

but this does mean the difference in ability scores for spell casters is way harsher. so a wizard of INT 9 is going to have notably fewer spells at the ready than an INT 16 wizard.

Ritual Casting | Optional

Not sure how I feel about this option as it doe reduce the risk factor in casting, however it mechanically fits pretty well in this setup as well. Take it or leave it.

It basically allows you to take your time to cast, and even cast things you don’t think your likely to cast but in a safe way.

10 Minutes x Spell Level = Casting Time

Very simple, so a 6th level spell takes an hour to cast. Not entirely sure how I feel about that but whatever.

Fickle Foci Casting

I took this idea from Zee Bashew from Youtube.

Basically casting is untied to classes now and is imbued into artifacts called Foci they act as minor deities in their own right and give you great control over certain concepts or elements but require a source of energy and some stipulations as to how you behave to access their powers.

So for example a Foci of Water requires a power source of moving water, and the stipulation that you never purposefully damn or stop water from moving.

Or a Foci of Flame might require a power source of fire, the bigger the better, but the stipulation is that You must never snuff out or stop a fire willingly.

I also Imagine Foci do not let you cast opposite effects, a Foci of shadow would not let you cast the light spell, and a Foci of war would not let you cast healing.

It also means the best way to defeat a magic user is to cut them off from their source by either disarming them of their Foci, or by stopping the source of power in some way.

Lets go over a three example write ups.

Foci of Water

Shapes: Compass, Telescope, Bucket, Triton. Power Source: Moving Water. Stipulation: Cannot damn, block or prevent flowing water.

Source Level
Waterskin, small flow 1st Level
Leaking Barrel, sewer outlet 2nd Level
Pouring faucet, light drizzle 3rd Level
Flowing creek, decent rain 4th Level
Rushing River, heavy rain 5th level
Open Ocean, Waterfall, Pouring Rain 6th Level

Foci of Fire

Shapes: Candlestick, Lighter, Torch, Branding Iron. Power Source: Moving Water. Stipulation: Cannot snuff out or purposefully stop a fire.

Source Level
Candle fire 1st Level
Fireplace 2nd Level
Barrel Fire 3rd Level
Bonfire 4th Level
Burning House 5th level
Street on Fire 6th Level

Foci of Death

Shapes: Skull, Dagger, Urn.

Power Source: Nearby dead.

Stipulation: Cannot heal or help recover the sick or injured.

Source Level
single Corpse 1st Level
3 or more bodies 2nd Level
6 or more bodies 3rd Level
Small graveyard 4th Level
Big graveyard, battlefield 5th level
Catacomb Tomb, Large Battlefield 6th Level.

Spell Points

The least inspired and detailed of the three although notable it doesn’t really solve the “issues” of Vancian magic, but it does make it easier to understand and cast.

You have spell points you spend on spells, so whatever level the spell is, that is what it costs.

Example: Magic Missle is a first level spell, David the Wizard has 3 spell points, thus he could cast Magic missle three times.

The Numbers for it I’ve taken from Ray Allen’s take on the Sorcerer Class for Basic Fantasy, so credit to him for that.

Level Spell Points Max Spell level
1 1 1
2 2 1
3 3 1
4 4 2
5 5 2
6 7 2
7 8 3
8 10 3
9 11 3
10 14 4
11 16 4
12 18 4
13 19 4
14 20 5
15 21 5
16 22 5
17 24 5
18 25 6
19 26 6
20 27 6

Meta Magic

If you use spell points, one way of flavoring the system is using a universal meta magic system.

Special added effects you can pay to slap on in addition to any spell you are casting.

Boosts you can give to your spell to bump up their powers, this is also how you can make different types of spell casters feel different in this setup as they’d have access to different Meta Magics.

You gain one new Meta Magic at levels 4, 7, 10, 14 and 18.

Lets go over some quick examples.

Subtle Spell

Cost: 2 SP

Obfuscates the source and origin of the spell, as well negates the needs for verbal incantations or gestures.

Delay Spell

Cost: 1 SP per 10 minutes.

The effect and manifestation of the spell can be put on a timer for 10 minutes per every spell point invested, at any time the spell can be triggered by the caster.

Swap Element

Cost: 2 SP

Allows the caster to change the spelle elemental energy of a spell, such as turning Fireball into Iceball or LighteningBall.

Max Damage Cost: 3 SP

Maximizes the amount of damage a spell does to whatever the highest amount the spell can do.

Twin Spell

Cost: 5 SP

Allows the Caster to cast any spell twice in a single turn. This does not stack the effects of spells, merely the casting of them.

Defensive Casting

Cost: 4 SP

You weave the excess energy of your casting into a defensive buffet against attacks, the level of the spell you cast gives you a AC bonus equal to it’s level for 1 turn.

Targeting Spell

Cost: 5 SP

Aimed spells gain a small mind of their own and seek out the target, gaining +4 to hit.

Double Area

Cost: 4 SP

Area of effect spells have their radius or length increased by double for the duration of their effect.