Cleric spells/playstyle

[rhys8866]

This one has always been something I would like to see in MSC.

The Rejuv and Healing scroll are pretty superb as they are, but it has always bugged me how they are (I think, I'm probably very wrong) based on divination, but they don't level it. Although the healing scroll takes some effort to aquire (as it should) but also requires you to put effort into leveling your SC high enough to use it. Which isn't too difficult I suppose, if you set your mind to it.

But back on topic, I often wonder what it would be like to have healing spells that are setup for support of both the caster and his allies. Like further shielding from Ice Shield if the players stick closer together, or the combined divination level of a group divided between them to further increase the amount that can be healed with a healing spell.

I liked the way rejuv works, that you have to have the spell active to regenerate, then heal yourself or others for extra mana. I just never really liked that you couldn't make a playstyle out of healing others, I guess you could, but you gain nothing from it without going away and leveling your character. There also don't seem to be many buff spells other than Ice Shield itself.

It would be nice to see another magic category based entirely on cleric type magics. That gain exp for healing others rather than yourself. Instead of yet another magic group that levels from killing.

I'm not suggesting you add buff spells that negate the point of having potions, or changing the way magic levels, it would just be nice to see spells that benefit from players sticking together and working as a unit. Or allow the player to build and play as a healing/buffing support roll and benefiting from it.

I know that the healer is quite a typical role in an RPG game, and most of the time with a healer by your side, your party becomes almost invincible, depending on the skill of the player and how the game handles the class. But I think it's something that is missing from MSC.

 

[Thothie]

The idea for support Titles, loathed though I am to bring up this distant fantasy again, included the concept of adding a portion XP for Healer/Buff Titles for each mob their beneficiaries killed (going to divination, or the appropriate magic stat, depending on the effect). Similar for Titles capable of gathering XP for casting non damaging de-buffs on hostile mobs.

As it stands now, however, the only advantage is that those who cast heal/iceshield on other players is extra Damage Points (which usually translates to better loot). There's not much in the way of non-damaging de-buffs... Though I should probably add damage points for secondary spell effects, if I could somehow separate secondary spell effects caused by weapons from those caused by actual spell casting (which is usually considerably less damaging, in addition to providing no parry, and thus at a disadvantage, damage point wise).

(And yes, the effectiveness of healing spells and circles is dictated by Divination... Though in the next patch, it'll also be affected by the hp of the target - for Rejuv, at least. Rejuv is also always more effective when cast on another target.)

 

[rhys8866]

That does sound pretty neat. Just the idea of being able to support teammates and benefit from it, rather than (most of the time) run in and rack up as much damage as you can for yourself to nab better loot.

Thanks for shedding a little light on that for me too, at least now I know. I just got a healing scroll a month or so back, hopefully I'll be using it soon, it'd be nice if I could figure out how the blasted magic system level is calculated, people tell me different things, or I forget. It just never seems to add up whenever I use the formula that someone else says it uses.

 

[Thothie]

...Seriously though, if you have a specific question, I'll try to answer it.

Oh, and SC is (all your magic skills+2) / 7... Healing Circle requires Level 20.

 

[rhys8866]

Ahaa, I'll have to make a note of that. I guess it's just rounded up to the nearest integer then. Wish I could level Div faster so I could bolster my magic level a bit, needing the ore for my golden axe. Still after that damn poison cloud spell too, I hate having to use charges on weapons to level SC other than with Hoarfrost and Nova, it's too damn slow with anything else (No offence). Thanks though, I look forward to the new patch. Hopefully I'll get playing again.

 

[Thothie]

Blah...

I would suggest, for starters, gathering a Rebuke Undead Scroll or Tome (not hard to find on certain lower-mid level maps). Then go to a place with lots of mid level skeletons to grind on, such as Calruins or Bloodrose. Collect some Greater Holy Arrows while you are at it. ...I'm assuming you lack the skills for a Holy Lance, or I'd suggest that too.

More importantly, gather some players together, and hit some place with a f*ckload of chests, to increase your odds of getting that ore. Then you just need to spend some cash and start hopping into swarms of undead with your shiny new axe.

Be grateful, however, that you only need SC 20... Not Divination 20 - so you can still qualify without training in Divination at all. That might change with a new spell system - although we'd also probably have the same number of level'able holy spells as every other category had.