Sean Merwin

Then when they cast the spell, that power came out and they could not cast that spell again until they sat down, reread the book and delivered it back into their brains. And Gygax was obviously a fan. Vakna is also an anagram of Vance. And so that's how important Jack Vance's magic and his system and his stories were to the game.

Then when they cast the spell, that power came out and they could not cast that spell again until they sat down, reread the book and delivered it back into their brains. And Gygax was obviously a fan. Vakna is also an anagram of Vance. And so that's how important Jack Vance's magic and his system and his stories were to the game.

So what happened in AD&D was, based on your level, you could memorize a certain number of spells at each level. and also have a certain number of spells in your spell book. So after resting, before you went on your adventure, you would need to sit down and memorize spells. I think the first book said 15 minutes per spell level. So if you're a low-level caster, you're maybe spending

So what happened in AD&D was, based on your level, you could memorize a certain number of spells at each level. and also have a certain number of spells in your spell book. So after resting, before you went on your adventure, you would need to sit down and memorize spells. I think the first book said 15 minutes per spell level. So if you're a low-level caster, you're maybe spending

an hour, two hours. If you're a high level caster, you're spending most of your day.

an hour, two hours. If you're a high level caster, you're spending most of your day.

So another thing was. If you're used to playing more recent editions where you just have slots and you can slot in any spells that you have prepared, this was you had to pick the spell and you could memorize it once, twice, three times, four times, but that was what you cast. So say you had four slots that you could memorize a first level spell in.

So another thing was. If you're used to playing more recent editions where you just have slots and you can slot in any spells that you have prepared, this was you had to pick the spell and you could memorize it once, twice, three times, four times, but that was what you cast. So say you had four slots that you could memorize a first level spell in.

If you wanted to cast four magic missiles, you had to memorize four magic missiles. And if you got to a point where you needed to detect magic spell, you were out of luck. You should have memorized at least one detect magic instead of using all four of your potential slots to memorize magic missile. So as you can see, that was super limiting. And while I don't want to go as far as saying that

If you wanted to cast four magic missiles, you had to memorize four magic missiles. And if you got to a point where you needed to detect magic spell, you were out of luck. You should have memorized at least one detect magic instead of using all four of your potential slots to memorize magic missile. So as you can see, that was super limiting. And while I don't want to go as far as saying that

that the Vancian system limited storytelling, but it definitely shaped it. Now, over the years, we've gone from that truly Vancian system to a system of sort of you know, a Vance-like system.

that the Vancian system limited storytelling, but it definitely shaped it. Now, over the years, we've gone from that truly Vancian system to a system of sort of you know, a Vance-like system.

Right. You have slots and you can choose on the fly those slots as you go, which gives you a ton more flexibility than you had back in those first edition AD&D days. I don't want to say currently that it limits it, but it does provide a framework within which magic is supposed to work.

Right. You have slots and you can choose on the fly those slots as you go, which gives you a ton more flexibility than you had back in those first edition AD&D days. I don't want to say currently that it limits it, but it does provide a framework within which magic is supposed to work.

So you are limited by not just the Vancian memorize and forget slot system, but by there being spells in the first place. if that makes sense. So you can't just summon up a ball of magic and do anything you want with it. It has to go through one of these channels that says this is a spell.

So you are limited by not just the Vancian memorize and forget slot system, but by there being spells in the first place. if that makes sense. So you can't just summon up a ball of magic and do anything you want with it. It has to go through one of these channels that says this is a spell.

Yeah, it's not a hindrance to storytelling. It's the game has decided that this is the kind of story that the game will will provide. So within that structure. It does all the things that it's supposed to do. So you need to solve a particular problem. Here are the tools to solve that problem. That problem may be solved by a wizard spell or a ranger's ability to survive in the desert. Yeah.

Yeah, it's not a hindrance to storytelling. It's the game has decided that this is the kind of story that the game will will provide. So within that structure. It does all the things that it's supposed to do. So you need to solve a particular problem. Here are the tools to solve that problem. That problem may be solved by a wizard spell or a ranger's ability to survive in the desert. Yeah.

it may be solved by a spell or the rogue's ability to disarm a trap or open a lock. And so it gives you the tools to do the things that the stories you tell with the game are supposed to tell. Yep, yep.

it may be solved by a spell or the rogue's ability to disarm a trap or open a lock. And so it gives you the tools to do the things that the stories you tell with the game are supposed to tell. Yep, yep.