Diving back into things I decide that I need to provide magic using types that suit the Arthurian mythos. For a start that seems to suggest to me that I differentiate between the normal human magic using types and those of Faerie, including humans that are part Faerie, like Merlin and Morgana.
Of course this means stepping back and changing one of the fundamental decisions when writing C&S Essence. Historically C&S has had many magic using modes, of differing utility (Alchemists, at higher levels, are not player character types) but I decide that I would have just one, generic magic user. My idea was, does it matter how you get there, the effect is what matters, besides C&S Essence was originally 4 sides of paper after all. Even when expanded, I kept the one magic class, but added the Shaman priest-mage from my Darken campaign for C&S E.
My worry is this. At the back of my head is idea that magic users do magic, garnering spells and rituals from whereever, and that the division of “types” is an artificial ones by gamers who need to impose some kind of order and “balance” onto the universe. The description of what the person is might then depend on the observer makes of the activities of the mage.
If I go back to “modes of magic” is this just an artificial structure for sake of a game, or does it make sense for the game world. I have, so far, gone down the route of modes of magic, but I am not so sure I won’t change my mind and return to the earlier ideas.
A while back I was trying to write a Fantasy adaptation for the Crusader wargames rules. My original idea was to create a generic set of fantasy rules, but I found that unsurmountable. So I decided to write a specific set, and then I could use the experience for that to expand it to a generic set. That was for my benefit, I asked around for assistance but met with disinterest and a little hostility from the members of the group. I did get comtacted by the rules author, who I think was just reassuring himself I wasn’t just rewriting Warhammer and dragging his game into something he didn’t want. Since I wasn’t, that was that. Crusader have their fantasy rules in progress, but not mine.
However, the thing I took from that is, you can pursue a direction that seems to work, write it, practice it, playtest it, and, even though it seems to work, it can still be wrong. So. I have decided to pursue the idea of importing full C&S “modes of magic” into my Essence rules. If it doesn’t work, then take a step back and try something else.
Whatever happens, experience is teaching me that no writing is a waste, you never know when you can use the idea somewhere else.