Make the Lag from their spells and songs come BEFORE the spell goes off.

After all they are casting and singing to get an effect, doesn't it stand to reason that effect would come at the conclussion?

Also, quaffing, reading potions and eating pills has a small amount of lag, doesn't it make more sense of this lag come first, while the item was being consumed/used?

Wands/Talismans. In most genre's they are activated with magic words making them quicker to use. How about less lag here?

Since this kind of delay would make it very difficult to land any spells/songs against murder;flee type opponents.

You could potentially apply it only to A/B/S. And maybe all potions. I don't think the A/B/S change would do much, except prevent super-buff mages from just zapping themselves and fighting when they're ambushed. Changing potions, though, would nerf the "flee/quaff" tactic. Some people (not necessarily me) would welcome that change.

Have you ever played an AP that used Charge of the Morosa frequently?

Have you ever tried to initiate with it on an awake, unlagged victim?

Tell me how that worked out for you.

Why are mages just as or more physically tough than warriors.

I personally think they should be less capable in one on one encounters than warriors. I think a warrior who clashes with an unprepped mage should win, period. But I don't think a Preped mage should be all but unbeatable. Having an initiative disadvantage might make standing and fighting a fully shielded mage possible without completely negating the mages ability to fight.

In AD&D spells have casting times which we sort of see with one and two round lag after casting. Magic missile and Power words were 1 segment spells, meaning instant, so there would be no initial lag. More powerful spells could take a full round to cast.


So you could initiate with quick spells then break out the big boys.

I'm not sure why you think they need to be even stronger relative to mages. Sure, the mage can stack on ABS and wreck the house - but a warrior can seal kills more effectively, and that's what really counts.

If you're arguing in terms of AD&D rules requiring casting times, you might as well say that warriors need to close distance before attacking, whereas mages can cast at a long range. The fact that it's a text-based game has made implementation of 'range' difficult, so mages need some other mechanic to make up for what is usually the pro-mage mechanic (distance) in graphical MMORPGS.

Nothing to serious, just throwing out ideas.

They have less base hp.

What with damage reduction basically = greater ability to soak damage.

There quite a few exceptions to this I realize.

Mages block a lot less blows than warriors do. When warriors and mages are ranking together, it generally isn't the mages that tank for the group.

I'd call a fully prepped invoker one of the best tanks in the game, on par with defensive shifter and fully prepped healer. I just think its really interesting how mages shift from being glass cannons at low ranks to the tankier damage sponges at 51 with full preps, while warriors undergo the opposite transformation.

What with damage reduction basically = greater ability to soak damage.

There quite a few exceptions to this I realize.

Given that all bard songs are "area" abilities and thus not targeted, it's hard enough to time them as-is when enemies are moving around, sneaking, and so on. If I had to worry about singing a song at the right time and then hoping my intended target is still there a couple rounds later I would probably never play a bard again.

Almost as much as shapeshifters. But I love them as ranking partners above all others.