magic in Dungeon World (Apocalypse D&D)

I've been out of the house since late afternoon, and was concerned I was going to miss posting today, but thanks to Bauhaus Books & Coffee being open late (until 1 am), I was able to stop here on my way home and get a post done. Plus, coconut-raspberry muffin!

I don't actually have anything in mind to post, however. Since I was just out playing Tony's "Apocalypse D&D" game (also now known as "Dungeon World"), I should probably write something about gaming. And since I was playing my wizard character tonight, I might as well continue from my first post about magic in AD&D with my analysis of how Tony's version of the spellcasting rules altered the AD&D conception of magic. I should explain that a "move" in this case is a game term from the Apocalypse World system that Tony's adapting, and basically means either that the player is taking an action that has risks and consequences—and so, this is a point when the player is rolling dice to find out what happens—or that the game master is applying the consequences of a dice roll to the situation in the game. 

Looking first at the current 3.0 draft, not the new Spellcasting rules posted above, the Cast a Spell move tells me:

• Magic is unreliable. I have to make a roll to see whether I cast the spell successfully, fail altogether, or get an unexpected result, and even if I'm successful it may still misfire.
• Magic is dangerous. The consequences of a spell misfire include possibly causing direct harm to the caster and also possibly attracting the attention (and anger) of dangerous entities.
• Magic may not be avoidable or resistible—there's no provision for saving throws, so it's unclear how to handle that.

The new spellcasting rules (3.1 draft) offer a revised set of moves: the Miscast Table is basically for the game master, while the others are for players. Again, the standard AD&D assumptions apply unless explicitly superseded, and the Apocalypse 3.0 assumptions that magic is unreliable and dangerous also still apply.

• Cast a Prepared Spell tells me:
  • Magic is difficult to do quickly and spontaneously. You are limited in how many spells you can prepare for fast casting. This replaces the regular rules for memorization.
• Focused Casting tells me:
  • Magic is more accessible/available than in AD&D. You can use Focused Casting to cast spells that you have in your spellbook but haven't prepared in advance for fast casting.
  • Magic can be more safely and controllably cast by taking time and using the correct implements and rituals, but it's still risky and misfires can still happen.
• The Miscast Table tells me:
  • Magic is wildly unpredictable with potential for anything from minor annoyances to serious disaster. You should think long and hard before using magic. Isn't there a better, more reliable way you could accomplish your goals?
• And the Saving Throw table tells me that yes, magic is still sometimes avoidable or resistible. This means using magic as a means for accomplishing your goals is even riskier and even less reliable than it already appears.

When I wrote that part of the analysis, I hadn't yet played under the rules. After doing so tonight, I think I'm overstating the case for magic being risky and unreliable. It certainly is, but the potentially unpredictable results don't necessarily mean you'll fail at what you're attempting to do, just that new complications may arise. And complications are what keep the game interesting.

Once again, as I'm trying to get this posted under the wire, there's a lot more to be said but this will have to do for now.