Modding the Number of Guaranteed Spells?

[b0rsuk]

I don't like the idea of 11 books, or any other high number. For me, books = more spells. I know at 4 books you are capable of learning any spell in the realm, although with only 4 you only get very few big ones and will have to get the rest from lairs and nodes.

So my answer to "what should 10, 11 books do" is: wrong question. I think the number of books you can have in a single realm should be capped. At 7 books, because 8 is where the discounts begin.

Specialization would actually be a combination of factors:
- 7 books in a realm
- 4 picks in perks. (To specialize in magic, you could get Channeler for 2, Mastery, Mana Focusing for example)

I think it's a mistake to try to come up with "effects for 8-11 books". If you were offered 15 picks at character creation, would you be proposing effects for 12-15 spell picks ? How about the poor AI ? On higher difficulties, AI can get more than 11 picks. Can it get 12+ picks in the same magic ? Why there's no effect for that ? 8+ books makes design all over the place, duplicates functionality. Channeler, * Mastery, Conjurer offer discounts. Mana Focusing offers more mana. Archmage has similar function, because it allows to cast more spells in the same time. Sage speeds up research.

- 10 books = 30% discount
- 11 books = 40% discount
....
- 15 books = 80% discount

Way to go ! It's AI liberation, kyrub support me ! :-)

[kyrub]

For me, books = more spells.

I think the discussion of better wizard setup must reflect the approach to the whole game. While 11 books strategies are apparently broken, it's not the only aspect. Giving the player many starting spells is not the desirable trait for me, it was a mistake from 1.31. Starting with a few spells or none at all would be the right answer to making the early game tense / interesting. This was discussed to death in Catnip.


For me books =
1) potential acquired knowledge from spell exchange or from lair; no other pick can give you this. Although spell exchange is a questionable feature per se.
2) potential researched knowledge; no other pick can give you this.
(These 2 should be the greatest bonus, but since the spells are mostly mediocre / same, it loses its appeal.)
3) spell discount. This is questionable since other picks can give it, but I still prefer it to many concrete starting spells given to the player.
4) something else. I would prefer the "is hard to dispell" to be moved here from picks, proportionally to the number of books. You may be lucky in getting Chaos Rift with 3 books from a lair, but it probably won't stand a feeble dispell from the enemy.

Specialization would actually be a combination of factors:
- 7 books in a realm
- 4 picks in perks.

The idea of books restriction still seems the most natural solution, I agree.
I am kept at 11 books only by:
- the player's tradition
- the "gambit" of taking no picks - all books, which is a nice variant to the game. Your 7 books / 4 picks variant loses the appeal.

[Asfex]

4) something else. I would prefer the "is hard to dispell" to be moved here from picks, proportionally to the number of books.

Proportionaly books -its awful. But the idea to have chaos mastery + runemaster in order to gets spells 4x harder to dispell is nice.(or the other cumutative retort). In the 1.21 patch the runemaster got this bonus. at least in the combat. The overland dispel strength can be game-breaker.

About subj: i like to start a game with one rare or uncommon spell ready to cast.Not due to the discount.