Goodman Games

Most of my players only have level one characters so far, but already I have noticed that nobody is getting any corruption/misfires. So I wondered if I am ruling it correctly? I know a natural 1 is a corruption/misfire roll. However, I have found that my players simply spend the 1 luck point to get off of the "1" on the spell table, and get it to "2". This avoids the corruption. So my question is, whether or not you can use luck to undo the corruption/misfire results of the natural 1 roll.

See page 116.

They can also volunteer for corruption to get a bonus on the casting, as an alternative (pg 126).

After re-reading page 116 several times, this still is a bit confusing and unclear to me. It states that luck can be used to avoid corruption after the corruption result is rolled, and that luck can not be used to avoid a misfire. However, this can be interpreted several ways:

* Does this mean that if the player doesn't like the corruption result, they allocate one point of luck to the original spell check roll, to get it off of "1", therefore avoiding the corruption?

* Or does it mean that if the player doesn't like a particular type of corruption, that they can allocate luck points to modify the corruption table roll, to get a less severe type of corruption...thus avoiding "That" corruption roll, not the corruption as a whole?

* If it is the first option, can a player expend enough luck to get a successful spell check, if they want to spend that much...even if they rolled a natural 1? I understand this wouldn't work on a misfire, but can you spend enough luck to make a corruption into a success? In theory on a to hit or ability check, you can spend up to your total luck to improve the roll, so is it different with spell checks?

DM Cojo,

I think the player has the option to avoid the corruption by using a luck point. They do not avoid the "1" role, just the corruption element that comes from it if that is the outcome. And they do have the benefit of opting to use the luck point after the corruption has been selected by random die.

Misfires will still be a problem for wizards and elves, but the more they burn their luck the harder the fall will be when they really needed that lucky role.

I've not the experience in this game as many on this forum board, we only have a few first level characters and they have not got much adventuring with these PCs, but it seems to me a wizard that plays fast and lose with luck burning at low levels will be in for a world of hurt as he gains levels and wants to use the higher level spells with a low luck ability. Their mercurial magic rolls will be affected and the corruptions of higher level spells seem worse. Without a positive luck score they will not be happy campers.

JediOre wrote: I think the player has the option to avoid the corruption by using a luck point. They do not avoid the "1" role, just the corruption element that comes from it if that is the outcome. And they do have the benefit of opting to use the luck point after the corruption has been selected by random die.

This is how I have been running it. However, I am considering a house rule that will impact how much luck must be burned to get out of the corruption. I am thinking maybe one luck point per level of the spell, or something like that. I would like to see more corruption in my game...

DM Cojo wrote:...I am considering a house rule that will impact how much luck must be burned to get out of the corruption. I am thinking maybe one luck point per level of the spell, or something like that. I would like to see more corruption in my game...

Make things harder. Keep the choice to burn Luck 'affordable' but make the 'need' to burn Luck more frequent. Then it's the player's choice when and why they want to burn Luck, e.g., "I'm going to take the corruption, because I may need the Luck to stave off death!"

And remember, low Luck actively draws trouble... Which could lead to more spellcasting to escape trouble, which could lead to more corruption...

I have little experience with wizards honestly, but I didn't tell my players that corruption could be avoided I like corruption. It's cool.

We play a story-oriented game though, so spellcasting is not that frequent. Most game sessions we cast only a few spells.