2 minutes ago, lyinggod said:

because I want the magic system to have a certain flavor that the simplified Genesys magic system doesnt quite capture.

Exactly!

in a setting with magic, the magic system is the easiest way to tailor a particular flavor, because we don’t have a concrete example to base it on. What magic is like is different for everyone and everyworld and the rules for it SHOULD be modified to fit the GMs vision for the setting.

1 hour ago, lyinggod said:

Not because its not like another magic system, but because I want the magic system to have a certain flavor that the simplified Genesys magic system doesnt quite capture.

and rightly done so ... *thumbs up*

My formative days role-playing were spent with AD&D 2nd Edition, where you had specialist mages who had to forego certain other schools, or clerics who had access to certain spheres of influence based on the deities they worshipped.

An easy way to adjust the basic system would be moving away from generic Arcane, Divine and Primal magic skills to specific skills like:

Magic (Evoker) that gives access to Attack, Barrier, Dispel, and Utility, for example

Magic (Cleric of Mishakal) that gives access to Augment, Barrier, Heal, and Utility, for example

Thus, bringing the magic much more into focus. I think that going the way of individual spells places a huge burden on the GM for coming up with such spells, and also limits the player's creativity.

There always seems to be the need to limit magic-users in games. But I am asking why is that? A warrior can swing any weapon (especially with the way Genesys handles combat skills) for any amount of time. The system as written already limits magic-users by having them suffer strain. But inherently, the magic is also balanced by the guideline to demand a higher difficult for a magic skill check. Which is something I can understand, otherwise magic becomes the go to skill for any and all solutions.

You could also express more detailed proficiency with different types of spells by the use of either Boost/Setback dice.

For instance an Evoker might gain something like this:

That's a fantastic idea to model schools of magic within the existing rules. It definitely increases complexity, but would be worth exploring for the right kind of setting.

I am also contemplating subdividing the caster types. By way of example. I have a Druid class which deals with animals/plants and a Shaman class which deals with spirits. They both would have access to the same Primal spells but their spells would, as appropriate, only affect or have an appearance based their respective areas. Druid Attack spells would manifest as plants and animals attacking the target and their Augments could only affect plants and animals. Shamans would be similar regarding spirits. I am still working on the details. Arcane casters will be similar. Talents will allow a Primal caster to affect both Spirits and Plants/Animals. There are about 10 or so spells between CRB and fan created plus whatever additional spells the Terrinoth book will have. I am further contemplating creating additional Primal and Arcane sub-caster groups that have access to 4-6 of these available spells in different combinations to expand on caster options and make magic more flavorful.

12 hours ago, JohnChildermass said:

There always seems to be the need to limit magic-users in games. But I am asking why is that?

because if you look close enough in (A)DnD, a Warriors progression is somewhat linear (THAC0, Saves, etc), but a spell-casters progressions are "at worst" linear, actually mostly quadratic or exponential

i'd refer you to these articles: LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards , how-are-fighters-linear-but-wizards-quadratic , and linear-fighters-vs-quadratic-wizards

12 hours ago, JohnChildermass said:

The system as written already limits magic-users by having them suffer strain.

Simple Magic can do Damage over Time (DoT) and Area/Multi-Target Effects, which a single Warrior with a single Sword cannot (not counting Talents on both sides of the equation).

although i find the Magic RAW somewhat lacking, but heck it is "Toolbox Rules", and for that it is a good compromise in power level.

you can always adapt the RAW to your milage ...

12 hours ago, JohnChildermass said:

My formative days role-playing were spent with AD&D 2nd Edition

and even then i dont want PCs running around "Contingencied" like Elminster. (i skipped that gaming crew 20 years ago)

There is nothing wrong with defining magic in a specific way to meet the needs of your setting. The book is largely vague in every aspect of game play and magic is not an exception.
Not expanding on the magic in your setting is like not adding new weapons and gear to a sci-fi setting and just running the 8 weapons that are defined in the core rulebook.

There many ways to customize Magic and creating spells lists is one of them and just fine. The same setting could treat arcane casters like traditional D&D with spell lists for wizards and then let Sorcerers have access to a limited number of magic actions but not be bound to tomes and scrolls. You can allow characters that are wizards to cast free-form (maybe via a talent) but increase the difficulty and/or strain required.

The new article touches on the Rune Caster which requires a specific implement to cast spells and can be a starting point for something akin to Holy Symbols in the D&D realm.

Magic straight out of the book without any counter balance can be extremely powerful and a clever player will find unexpected uses that may throw carefully laid plans of your GM turned upside down (maybe literally). It also may be too daunting for some players to have the ability to create anything they can imagine and need more structure to guide them on the right path.

These are all considerations for you as a GM and your players, and neither approach is wrong.

Ok, so here's a totally off the wall concept for a different type of magic. This is a loose formed concept that I'm just tossing out.

What if you added Magic Characteristics to the list? Lets use the defaults Arcane, Divine Primal and maybe add Psi or Chi. You can only have one and they're an optional Characteristic (aka you can have a 0 in them). You could boost everyone's XP pool by 30 so you could have a 2 in said Characteristic, or if you don't take it could boost a current 2 to a 3.

Then you'd have a talent that lists what skills can be linked to that new Characteristic rather than the normal Characteristic? No more need for spells that duplicate skills. You'd have things like Arcane + Charm, Divine + Medicine, Psi + Melee, etc.

Again just a random thought inspired by some other systems.