A Clarification on Mages: Casting time and physical strength/ability

[GDPR 014 48]

Hi, guys-- friendly not so friendly MAT here. This is just to clarify a few things that have been discussed. So, there is a common misconception that mages are effectively degraded stick men that can’t wear armor or wield weaponry. Well, that isn’t true. Mages can use weapons, and wear armor, both within reason (as in no overly heavy armor or BUSTER SWORDS, mages are still weak, and they aren’t strong men.) There’s more to this too, but we’ll get to that after rectifying armor and weapons.

 

-The physical stuff, weapons and armor-

On Armor:

 

Mages can wear armor, the thing is that it has to be light, or needs to be made in a way where the weight is equally distributed along the body, which effectively lightens the load. A good example of something light would be leather armor. Something that has its weight distributed would be fitted plate. Although a mage cannot wear full platemail (which is plate that has an entire set of chain-mail under it, and then some with padding and whatnot) they can still protect themselves quite well. The thing is, the heavier the armor, the more stamina it is to wear-- which means you could get exhausted if you keep running around in plate.

 

Tl;dr: Mages can wear armor, it just can’t be overly heavy. The more weight means the easier it is to tire if you keep moving around.

 

On Weapons:

Oh boy, basically mages can use weapons within reason (nothing huge and weighs like 1000 pounds and has a point of balance at the tip of the weapon), though not as effectively as a seasoned warrior. While they can retain the knowledge and practice of the weapon, they will most likely not be better than the seasoned warrior.

 

Tl;dr: So long as the weapon is reasonable, a mage can wield it. Just, most likely, a seasoned warrior can overpower them.

 

A very important rule of thumb: Mages aren’t starved African children. While magics that really deteriorate the bodies will make using both armor and weapons more difficult, it is still in the realm of possibility.

 

-The casting-
 

Now! Onto the next topic. Emotes don’t equal time. What I mean by this is that if someone does “draws sword, rushes jim, slashing wildly” Jim Darkmagic the mage can blast the guy with what he was charging. Effectively, actions make for time. Though, it has to be in reason. What I mean by that is that a mage can’t instantly cast a spell that would usually take a really long time to cast if they are in the situation above.

 

Example of what you can do:

 

Jim the mage glances at his opponent, doing his tell. Given he’s a master/is decent in his art, sparks emit from his hand.

Saiko dedliest warrior draws his massive uchikatana, made of nippon steel. He swiftly rushes the mages, closing in the far distance whilst he slashes wildly.

 

Jim’s flames amass, and within the time Saiko does such actions, he is able to unleash a torrent of flames.

 

Other example:

 

George the master swordsman draws his longsword, swiftly closing in the distance of 10 meters.

 

Jon the mage, knowing that such a pace would involve some time, would issue whisps of energy. As George gets closer, the energy discharges in a magic missile.

 

 

Example of what not to do:

 

Saiko glares, his battleaxe ready as he steps forward, priming for a strike.

 

Jim swiftly flicks his palms, flames amassed and unleashes in a cone of flame, immolating all it touches.

 

((Doesn’t work, Saiko did not warrant an instacast.))

That’s all, folks! Thank you, and happy RPing!

[GDPR 014 48]

If you have any questions, please feel free to PM me or another MAT member!