NPC Mentoring – Ritual Magic & Artifice

[herogoethKeymaster @herogoeth]

Ladies & Gentlemen,

Our Rules Officer, Chris Gomez, would like to Play-Test a new method of NPC Proficiency Training for Ritual Magic and Artifice.

Here is how it works, with the Play-Test becoming effective immediately –

If your character has entered into an active apprenticeship-style relationship with an NPC for learning Ritual Magic or Artifice, then you can send an email to the plot team letting us know that your character is pursuing your apprenticeship between adventures from time-to-time, and asking if your character can receive a +5% [Mentor Increase] to all Proficiency Rolls related to the skill that they are teaching to your character.

The Plot Team would then discuss your request, and they would make a determination to decide whether the NPC Mentor (or even, potentially, a retired PC character) is proficient enough with Ritual Magic or Artifice to grant you a consistent bonus. If the Plot Team determines that the NPC Mentor is impressively skillful or highly accomplished, then we’ll respond to your email to let you know that your character can begin to receive a +5% [Mentor Increase] to all future Proficiency Rolls related to the Proficiency Training.

Please note that receiving this benefit does not require your character to enter into the type of ‘Apprenticeship’ which is described in the core rulebook.

For in-game Role-Play purposes, this +5% would represent the occassional instruction which your character receives from the NPC Mentor between adventures. We’ll ask that you mention your apprenticeship in your downtime emails or downtime discussions with the Plot Team, but you shouldn’t expect your apprenticeship to take up very much of your downtime (unless you want it to). If your character needs additional assistance with a particularly challenging Infusion, Expertise Group, or Ritual Spell, then you’ll still be able to reach out to your mentor directly to ask them to come to Northwatch and help you. When visiting in-game during an event, NPC Mentors may be able to grant a boost of up to +15%, so there is definitely still reason to ask for their assistance directly.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mike

[Marley SageParticipant @jaerc]

A few other notes.

1. [Mentor] Bonuses, while typically either 5% or 15%, will sometimes also include 1-4% and 6-14% and in very very rare cases might exceed that.

2.

Quote:

… but you shouldn’t expect your apprenticeship to take up very much of your downtime (unless you want it to).

Emphasizing Mike’s words: sometimes you will be presented with the choice to have it take very much or all of your Downtime.

3. We’d like to know if you’d like the idea that Mentors might also make accidents or even sabotage your efforts resulting in a [Mentor] penalty? At least during this Playtest we won’t be trying that out yet.

OOG: Marley Sage Gable, Staff Director & Plot Team Member

PC: Rigel - Asurkian Bard ~ Alchemist Artificer

[Grant MModerator @valeron]

I think sabotage would be an interesting mechanic, but it would be hard to represent that without it being completely obvious that they were being sabotaged by their mentor.

I actually would like to see an accident modifier added to mentoring rituals and such. I would say tie the accident% based off of how much skp the mentor is in.

Example:
1-50 skp burned: 25% chance of accident
51-80 skp: 15%
81-125 skp: 10%
126-200 skp: 5%
201+ skp: 0%

The issue with implementing all of this is that we will need to have all rolls be done by someone who knows all of these values for the character in question and if there is sabotage, or accident’s to take into account. We could get around this by having them roll for everything during an open house, and you roll the number of times you PC’d during that month… but again more micromanagement is needed then.

Grant Martin
Please see my profile for contact information
Characters:
Valeron Avarici, Human, Merchant Guild Leader
Kovac Baford, Elentari, Member of Brotherhood of the Dark Star
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