Just an impression I'm getting whenever they talk about spells in the Game Informer videos and articles. Like spells are something that you unlock as you level your skills or something. They never come out and say it but I'm having a hard time understanding how you're supposed to purchase or customize spells with the way they're talking. For instance the sound guy was working on that one spell sound for a specific spell. Not a spell effect. The spell had a name and everything. Since when do whole spells get their own sound effect? And if you could create your own spells, what sound effect would they make?

I'm not saying buying and making spells is out but the way they're talking it's got me a little concerned.

I started thread about this a while back. The prospect of not being able to make spells actually worries me a bit. It was one of my favorite features.

I am going to curl up under my bed and die if this is true.

That would take all the fun out of magic. And all the elder scrolls experience out of magic as well.
Thats why it cant be true, it cant be.
Wouldnt be an elder scrolls game if it was.

Argh.

Other than that what other feeling makes you think there won't be spell customization?
That could have been the name of a spell and the spell effect, like there was telekinesis spell effect AND as a spell name.

Im not getting the same feeling you are, so help me see so I can better answer

Elaborate, because I'd discuss how much it disgusts me if I could feel the same sense of foreboding as you...
(Please?)

I can see that being problematic in a lot of ways, but also understand that it removes a lot of exploits. Personally, I loved doing a low damage, fire, ice, and shock damage over 5 seconds on touch with 7 seconds of invisibility on self. That way I could sneak up to an enemy, do tons of damage while completely cloaked then use the extra two seconds of Invisibility to overlap the spell and spam it til the enemy dies, all while going completely undetected. Was that well balanced? No. Was it still fun and rewarding? Yes.

I can see both sides of the argument, but feel spell customization was the primary reason magic was fun. Perhaps the two hand system will add a level of customization and fun, but I don't know if it will bridge the gap.

I have the mag and have read all the information given through the hub and twitter and I never saw anything that even talked about how you will get spells or creating spells. So I don't know where this talk about not being able to make spells or buy them comes from. I highly doubt they will make it where you don't buy spells since you've always been able to buy spells.

I agree but there has been no discussion of spell making!

So? That just means that its likely that nothing has changed. They have only discussed changes really, and barely touched on them. Lets wait before we assume that it doesn't exist because they haven't mentioned it. Thats like the people who say attributes have been removed. Its possible, but its absurd. Its far more likely they didn't bother stating the obvious...

Any other "evidence"?

Agree.

This is a key feature of TES series games. I doubt they would get rid of it.

Pete Hines replied when asked about the "85 spells" that the number was more like the number of magical effects. So at leas that system of magic effect vs. actual spell seems to be back for good.

@DCDeacon Pete, please answer this. In GI article, it mentions 85 spells, isn't 85 effects? I still want to create a fireball with 100 area! (Silvade14)
@Silvade14 Right, more like effects. (Pete Hines)

But he does say "like" spell effects, making me think it is somewhere in the middle or something new entirely.

Maybe you can not make spells, but you can customize the ones they give you. Which is a bit different.

If I find out I can't make spells, and that all spells are "whole" spells and "spell effects" are gone, I'm not buying the game. That would be a deal breaker for me. The ONE and ONLY THING that made TES stand out in my mind from other games was its fluid and highly flexible magic system. 99% of other RPGs have preset spells that you can't change or manipulate. TES' "spell effect" system and ability to almost limitlessly mix and match magical effects to make truly unique spells was one of the very top things on my very small list of things that made the series amazing to me. To do away with this system would spell the final doom of TES series and its final assimilation into pop-culture fantasy. I think I would die inside.

But as it is, I also think that noise was just a "spell effect" noise, and it sounds like that spell "Ironskin" or whatever it was called will just be a circinate "shield/armor" spell, and that that sound will probably be the sound that all spells with the "shield/armor" effect will make.

And the Dragon Shout spells are the only other ones we've really heard much about, and they sound more like unique abilities you learn eventually, like some of the spells you could learn in Morrowind, like the Centurion Summon spell you get from reading that one Dwemer book.

I know what you mean. In the GI article when they talk about spells (not spell effects but SPELLS) they claim there are 80 in all for "collectors". I really, realllllllllllly hope they are not making static spells.

I'd be pretty upset if they took out custom spells. What kind of magic user can't make their own spell? = Lamecore.

when they are scripted

Apparently we are stressing over nothing. Probably



this is from the twitter thread:


@DCDeacon Pete, please answer this. In GI article, it mentions 85 spells, isn't 85 effects? I still want to create a fireball with 100 area!
@Silvade14 Right, more like effects.


Not exactly certain who silvade14 is but he/she/they is supposed to be a dev (thats what the thread is about http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1159110-info-from-twitter/ )

I wouldn't buy it either, considering I only play pure mages, pretty much. I can't imagine it not being in, though. It's a series mainstay.

Forgive me please but what's this about spells and effects? What's the difference between 85 spells and 85 spell effects?

It seems though that Howard has talked a lot about customization by the player such as leveling your character and even facial and body customization. Surely this goes into spells as well. Maybe they didn't mention a lot about it because they have something they want to keep under wraps for now. Let's hope.

the difference is that with 85 spells, you could get "minor flame", "flame", "greater flame" to be 3 separate spells. with 85 spell effects, the three that I said would still be in the same effect, so that still leaves 84 other spells, instead of 82

and BTW, I'm sure they'll give us the option to create our own spells. though I wouldn't really care a I mostly play warriors and assassins

Thanks for the clarification. The tweet by pete confirms they meant effects and not spells so that's comforting to know.

Well I'm pretty sure they will put spell making back in the game but I'm not sure you will be able to combine magic effects. Because it has been speculated that if you have a spell in each hand and you cast them at the same time they make combo effects. But for all we know, we can make a spell that uses all three damage types and use it in both hands and then they will have a massive combination blow out hehe.

OMG THEY DIDN'T TALK ABOUT RATS!!!!!!! THERE WON'T BE ANY MORE RATS IN THE GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 NO SNEAK!?!?!!? WTFFFFFFFFF

(I removed half of the repeated characters because it seemed a slight bit excessive.)

best way to express my opinion

85 effects in 5 schools equals 17. If they manage to come up with 17 effects in each of the five (rest in peace Mysticism ) schools, maybe divided into perk levels in that school they end up with around 3-4 spell effects per perk (given 5 perk levels, gives 5*18 skills = 90 perks). It makes sense to me to divide spell effects into how powerful and difficult to learn, then modify its power and duration by the skill. I.e. Light would be entry level, and possibly even weaker than a torch (making *them* more useful, even for a low level spell caster), but very powerful and long lasting when school is mastered. What is easier, Charm or Command?

The problem today is the amount of spells you gather and can't "forget". Why would I want to have a light feather spell as well as a high powered feather spell? I'd rather just have access to casting the effect and be done with it, instead of a huge list of spell I no longer use.