magic

[hawkwing]

I just got the core book and am working my way through it.
My question is what kind of magic is in the game? Are there some type of mages or similar caster class?
My gaming comes from Pathfinder and D&D.

[Angelalex242]

The short answer is no. Gandalf and Saruman are 'Istari', or Maia, and beyond the scope of PCs.

However, Dwarves, Mirkwood Elves, and High Elves can be considered 'partial casters', like a Paladin or Ranger, if they take the right virtues.

[Rocmistro]

Hi Hawk, and welcome to the forums.

If you're looking for overt, flashy magic, this isn't really the game or the setting for that, unfortunately. Of course, there is always the mighty houserule to get around any perceived inadequacies

[hawkwing]

Nope Im good with this game just wanted to make sure that its a low magic (no magic) setting.
More concerned that I missed something

[Rocmistro]

If/when you pick up the Rivendell Sourcebook, there is a section devoted to enchanted items, largely broken down into 2 categories: Woundrous Artefacts and Famous Weapons & Armor. That's probably the most codified, defined example of magic in the game.

[Stormcrow]

There is no "spellcasting system" such as might appear in another game. You cannot play a wizard.

Some characters have magical abilities. These are relatively few. An elf of Mirkwood might choose to learn to shoot a Stinging Arrow, which can fly twice the normal range or be more likely to pierce the defenses of an opponent. A Beorning might learn to project himself as a spirit-bear. A dwarf of the Lonely Mountain might learn to recite spells of opening and shutting. These are cultural virtues, and there are other examples.

There are pieces of gear with subtly magical properties called cultural rewards. For instance, woodmen might possess feathered armor blessed by Radagast to be silent. More obviously magical items are introduced in the Rivendell sourcebook.

[Glorelendil]

Nope Im good with this game just wanted to make sure that its a low magic (no magic) setting

You have passed the test. You may go into the West, and remain Hawkwing.

[zedturtle]

Nope Im good with this game just wanted to make sure that its a low magic (no magic) setting

You have passed the test. You may go into the West, and remain Hawkwing.

If, by chance, you are looking for more magic but still want something appropriate for Middle Earth, both Robin S and myself have done work on this subject. You can see my work in progress here.

[Tantavalist]

The One Ring remains true to the original source material that Tolkein wrote by being a very low magic setting. It's a deliberate feature that often the players won't be sure OOC if a given effect is due to a magic spell, or because of the innate skill of a character or an item's fine workmanship. Only a handful of effects are blatantly magical, and all of these are very low-level (1st level spells at most in D&D/Pathfinder terms).

As for house-ruled magic systems for TOR...

My own favourite so far has been the version produced by Daniel Vacaflores for Issue 13 of the Other Minds e-zine (available here). It does have some issues mechanically- I suspect the author hadn't fully grasped how the Hope/Shadow economy was supposed to work and thought they were meant to rise and fall like Endurance/Fatigue do, as not only does every spell cost Hope but some actually give Hope back. But for pure atmosphere, it fits the game like none of the other Spellcasting systems do. I think that adjusting the rules for this system would work much better than creating a new one outright.

[Glorelendil]

If you want to preserve the "low magic" flavor but want some more options, Zedturtle's work is excellent.