Post:Test Instance: New PP Model (Lunar) - 6/17/2009 - 15:52:15

Test Instance: New PP Model (Lunar) · on 6/17/2009 3:52:15 PM	10707
Finally, let's talk Moonie. The Lunar mana model saw substantial changes. In addition to the goals listed in the overview post, we designed the new Lunar mana model to continue to emphasize the variability over time that is the selling point of the system, which unfortunately gets lost due to the scaling of the planetary contribution to mana. Formerly, the Lunar model had two components: variable moon-based mana and largely static planetary mana. The new model has three components: moon mana, solar mana, and planetary mana. Moon Mana: The three moons are the primary contributors to Lunar mana. Compared to other magic users, the moons define your "room mana" and operate under the same rules (everyone gets its total value, regardless of PP). In addition to the obvious differences, the value of the moons is greater than a room. The worst possible moon provides more mana than the worst possible room, and the best possible moon provides more mana than the best rooms in the game. The price, of course, is that you don't get to choose your room or go somewhere else when the moons decide to not play nice. A moon's mana contribution comes from three attributes. The phase of the moon is the strongest factor and the single most important one in the entire system. Full moons provide max contribution for this factor, new moons the minimum. There is no difference between waxing and waning moons, beyond giving you an idea how the moon is trending. The second strongest factor is whether the moon is above the horizon. Simple, binary check here. The final factor is the distance of the moon from Elanthia. Distant moons provide less mana than when they're up and personal. These three factors combine to create the base "room value" of the moon. Oppositions and conjunctions are then applied on top of this, due to their rarity. Oppositions influence both moons, conjunctions influence the closer of the two. These provide a rare and significant spike in available mana, usually beyond normal room limits. Solar Mana: A new concept in the Lunar mana system, Solar mana is the Moon Mage version of the new drawing adjacent mana system. It gives you a slow but steady mana growth over skill that is completely removed from the rest of the solar system hijinks. However, it has two significant differences from the room-based model. First, Solar mana kicks in at 100 ranks of Power Perception (when you can reach the sun). Thereafter you will see the sun when you use the PERCEIVE PLANETS command. Below 100 PP, you get no benefit. Second, Solar mana is heinously inefficient. Moon Mages gain less from Solar mana than even Magic Tertiaries draw from adjacent areas. It provides you with a small, steadily growing baseline supply that is immune from the whim of the solar system, but is not meant to be relied on as a primary supply. For that we have... Planetary Mana: The third component to Lunar mana has no analog in the room-based system, it is the Moon Mage ace in the hole. Planets provide a percentage bonus to your Moon and Solar mana, depending on how far within your perceivable range the planet is. There are four ranges: barely within, within, well within, deep within. This bonus is cumulative, increasing with each planet you can perceive. The size and mass of the planet do not matter. Due to this, Planetary mana will increase your available mana over skill, but respect the relative power of the moons. Let's use a fictional example. Xibar is providing 100 units of mana. Katamba is providing 200 units of mana. You have a Planetary bonus of 2x mana. Your mana has gone up compared to when you were a novice (not even considering Solar mana), but the relative difference between the moons has not changed. No matter what your Power Perception skill is, Psychic Projection (Xibar dominant) is going to be noticeably weaker than Moonlight Manipulation (Katamba dominant). Spellbooks and Misc.: Lunar mana changes from spellbook to spellbook, based on different weighted averages of the moons. For example, Psychic Projection relies heavily on Xibar's "room value" and a little bit of Yavash's. This overall system has not changed. The only spellbook that has changed is the Stellar Magic book, which has been nerfed. Stellar Magic values will now fall into the same general range as the rest of the spellbooks. All other spellbooks use the same moons and weights that they previously had. -Armifer
This message was originally posted in Abilities, Skills and Magic - Magic - Suggestions, Discussions and Thoughts, by DR-ARMIFER on the play.net forums.

Also See

• Post:Test Instance: New PP Model (Overview) - 6/17/2009 - 15:50:50
• Post:Test Instance: New PP Model (Room-Based) - 6/17/2009 - 15:51:28‎