Blasting Rod? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Blasting Rod? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Cpt. Reed
03-10-07, 06:09 PM I've never posted in this section before so here it goes.
I don't know how much I will catch for this one, but I want to do a game where magic is more like it is the Dresden Files, yeah I know... :rolleyes:

I wanted to do a something like the blasting rod he carries with him in the books and I didn't know exactly how to do it, so any ideas? And ideas for any of his other equipment would be nice, if we can discuss this here, can we?
MagusBlack
03-10-07, 11:09 PM It might be better to use D20 Modern for that. Dresden has a cane sword, a .44 revolver; his duster (probably +3 and light fortification);his staff (with spells like telekinesis and fireball); he also currently owns a holy sword that he cant use...that and a talking human skull named Bob.:D

A blasting rod might be similar to a rechargeable wand with a maximized hellfire (BoVD) spell.

As a matter of fact you might alter the Disciple of Mephistopheles (also BoVD) to fit the campaign..
Cpt. Reed
03-11-07, 02:37 PM I know it would work better in that setting, I just mean that I wanted to do things more like it magic wise. Like putting circles for some spells, although this might disrupt the entire balance of it. Anyone got any ideas on that one?
Oh and about the blasting rod, I was wondering if it would be more like adding a spell caster level or two for all evocations. I know that might be a little powerful...
ArcTan
03-11-07, 04:13 PM It depends on how you want to convert the magic system over -- as with nearly all actual fantasy novels, Dresden's magic is a lot easier to use and a lot less depenent on "preparation" than the cumbersome Vancian system of a D&D Wizard -- but I actually think the existing D&D item, the staff of fire, works fine for Dresden's blasting rod. Even the part where it has finite charges -- remember that Dresden's blasting rods tended to wear out and he had to periodically remake them. The blasting rod doesn't literally make Dresden's fire magic more *powerful* -- he can still do things like conjure a wall of fire without it -- it just makes it much faster and easier for him to access such magic, which fits the idea of what D&D staffs do.

FWIW, I think Dresden is a lot closer to a D&D Sorcerer in how his magic works than a Wizard, and that Dresden is probably a multiclassed Sorcerer/Rogue. (Note that "intelligence", as such, doesn't have much to do with how he uses his magic, which seems to work by force of will and energy, and that a constant theme in the series is him using his actual smarts rather than raw magical power. Yes, the Dresden books do use the term "wizard" and "sorcerer", but the books' distinction between wizards and sorcerers is really much more like the distinction between PC spellcasters and Magewrights/Adepts in D&D, or the distinction between high-level spellcasters and low-level ones.)
ArcTan
03-11-07, 04:15 PM Two of Dresden's signature items, by the way, exist in D&D -- a ring of force shield and a ring of the ram.
Knute
03-11-07, 08:28 PM The blasting Rod doesn't really blast. Its a metamagic rod that allows him to concentrate and direct his spell energy much better and with more accuracy.

The big difference for the books is that Dresden claims that without his rod it is very difficult to cast the spells properly.

In D&D Terms- Maximized metamagic rod. The rod allows casting spells 3levels higher than original. eg MM becomes fireball. No charges. This item greatly increases the power of the wizard.
Cpt. Reed
03-11-07, 08:29 PM Two of Dresden's signature items, by the way, exist in D&D -- a ring of force shield and a ring of the ram.

Yeah you are right, I hadn't thought about that.
Anyway I thought that the Blasting rod just made it easier to focus on the spell.
Sorry I had just posted this and then saw that you had just posted, sorry.
ArcTan
03-12-07, 12:51 AM The blasting Rod doesn't really blast. Its a metamagic rod that allows him to concentrate and direct his spell energy much better and with more accuracy.

The big difference for the books is that Dresden claims that without his rod it is very difficult to cast the spells properly.

It's tough to know quite what this means, though, since Dresden's spellcasting mechanic is more like recharge magic or mana points magic than preparing spell slots. The rod making it "easier" for him to cast "difficult" spells could easily be a form of replacing spell slots with charges.

In D&D Terms- Maximized metamagic rod. The rod allows casting spells 3levels higher than original. eg MM becomes fireball. No charges. This item greatly increases the power of the wizard.

Yeah, except the blasting rod doesn't work on anything except fire magic. It doesn't turn magic missiles into fireballs -- it just lets Dresden cast more fireballs. It doesn't help him at all when casting anything else -- not casting "earth magic" (i.e. magnetic telekinesis and levitation), or divinations, or summonings, or whatever.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Cpt. Reed 03-10-07, 06:09 PM	I've never posted in this section before so here it goes. I don't know how much I will catch for this one, but I want to do a game where magic is more like it is the Dresden Files, yeah I know... :rolleyes: I wanted to do a something like the blasting rod he carries with him in the books and I didn't know exactly how to do it, so any ideas? And ideas for any of his other equipment would be nice, if we can discuss this here, can we?
MagusBlack 03-10-07, 11:09 PM	It might be better to use D20 Modern for that. Dresden has a cane sword, a .44 revolver; his duster (probably +3 and light fortification);his staff (with spells like telekinesis and fireball); he also currently owns a holy sword that he cant use...that and a talking human skull named Bob.:D A blasting rod might be similar to a rechargeable wand with a maximized hellfire (BoVD) spell. As a matter of fact you might alter the Disciple of Mephistopheles (also BoVD) to fit the campaign..
Cpt. Reed 03-11-07, 02:37 PM	I know it would work better in that setting, I just mean that I wanted to do things more like it magic wise. Like putting circles for some spells, although this might disrupt the entire balance of it. Anyone got any ideas on that one? Oh and about the blasting rod, I was wondering if it would be more like adding a spell caster level or two for all evocations. I know that might be a little powerful...
ArcTan 03-11-07, 04:13 PM	It depends on how you want to convert the magic system over -- as with nearly all actual fantasy novels, Dresden's magic is a lot easier to use and a lot less depenent on "preparation" than the cumbersome Vancian system of a D&D Wizard -- but I actually think the existing D&D item, the staff of fire, works fine for Dresden's blasting rod. Even the part where it has finite charges -- remember that Dresden's blasting rods tended to wear out and he had to periodically remake them. The blasting rod doesn't literally make Dresden's fire magic more powerful -- he can still do things like conjure a wall of fire without it -- it just makes it much faster and easier for him to access such magic, which fits the idea of what D&D staffs do. FWIW, I think Dresden is a lot closer to a D&D Sorcerer in how his magic works than a Wizard, and that Dresden is probably a multiclassed Sorcerer/Rogue. (Note that "intelligence", as such, doesn't have much to do with how he uses his magic, which seems to work by force of will and energy, and that a constant theme in the series is him using his actual smarts rather than raw magical power. Yes, the Dresden books do use the term "wizard" and "sorcerer", but the books' distinction between wizards and sorcerers is really much more like the distinction between PC spellcasters and Magewrights/Adepts in D&D, or the distinction between high-level spellcasters and low-level ones.)
ArcTan 03-11-07, 04:15 PM	Two of Dresden's signature items, by the way, exist in D&D -- a ring of force shield and a ring of the ram.
Knute 03-11-07, 08:28 PM	The blasting Rod doesn't really blast. Its a metamagic rod that allows him to concentrate and direct his spell energy much better and with more accuracy. The big difference for the books is that Dresden claims that without his rod it is very difficult to cast the spells properly. In D&D Terms- Maximized metamagic rod. The rod allows casting spells 3levels higher than original. eg MM becomes fireball. No charges. This item greatly increases the power of the wizard.
Cpt. Reed 03-11-07, 08:29 PM	Two of Dresden's signature items, by the way, exist in D&D -- a ring of force shield and a ring of the ram. Yeah you are right, I hadn't thought about that. Anyway I thought that the Blasting rod just made it easier to focus on the spell. Sorry I had just posted this and then saw that you had just posted, sorry.
ArcTan 03-12-07, 12:51 AM	The blasting Rod doesn't really blast. Its a metamagic rod that allows him to concentrate and direct his spell energy much better and with more accuracy. The big difference for the books is that Dresden claims that without his rod it is very difficult to cast the spells properly. It's tough to know quite what this means, though, since Dresden's spellcasting mechanic is more like recharge magic or mana points magic than preparing spell slots. The rod making it "easier" for him to cast "difficult" spells could easily be a form of replacing spell slots with charges. In D&D Terms- Maximized metamagic rod. The rod allows casting spells 3levels higher than original. eg MM becomes fireball. No charges. This item greatly increases the power of the wizard. Yeah, except the blasting rod doesn't work on anything except fire magic. It doesn't turn magic missiles into fireballs -- it just lets Dresden cast more fireballs. It doesn't help him at all when casting anything else -- not casting "earth magic" (i.e. magnetic telekinesis and levitation), or divinations, or summonings, or whatever.