Potential changes to Fear, Panic, and Terror

Back in my post on Panic, one of my players / GURPS book author Kevin Smyth had this to say about a possible way to handle these spells:

"Fear: Regular; R-Will; Base Cost 2 to cast, 1 to maintain; Duration: 1 minute.
If the subject fails to resist, they become afraid of the caster. In combat, they suffer a penalty equal to their margin of failure to take any action against the caster other than 'run away'. Outside of combat, the caster gets a bonus to Intimidation rolls (but a penalty to all other social rolls) equal to their margin of success.

Panic: Area; R-Will; Base Cost 3 to cast, 2 to maintain; Duration: 1 minute.
As Fear, but over an area. The area is not persistent; the duration applies to subjects in the area when the spell is cast, but new subjects can enter the area afterward.

Terror: Area; R-Special; Base Cost 4; Duration: Instantaneous.
Subjects in the area must immediately make a Fright Check.

This makes Fear useful, brings Panic in line with your goals, and sets up Terror so it's not resisted twice (my beef with Terror is that you R-Will... then Fright Check, which is R-Will *again*) - it's not quite a buff, since it takes away the -3 penalty on the Fright Check."


These spells are still wierd. One is a one-person spell for scaring someone kinda, the other an attack spell to chase foes away, and the last inflicts a fright check.

Fear isn't bad. I don't have a problem with Fear or see a need to upgun it even for additional cost. I do think it should be an Intimidation roll itself.

Panic needs some tweaking.

Terror doesn't seem very useful. I don't love the idea of automatically inflicting Fright Checks; what about Magic Resistance? Does that add double the level to the check? Does it exceed the cap for Fright Checks? Or does it reduce the roll on the table? And do we even need a spell that inflicts a Fright Check? Just because a check exists doesn't mean a spell needs to be able to inflict one, especially in DF. Monsters can just get the Terror advantage, and PCs don't cast this spell.

Here is a possible way to handle them:

Fear
As written, but also acts as a successful Intimidation roll as under Taunt and Bluster, Exploits p. 58. Fearlessness adds to to Will to resist it.

Panic

As written, but note that it affects subjects within the target area immediately, and then persists on those who fail to resist, per Spells p. 53. This is also subject to the usual rules on turning and fear for Felltower; treat failing to resist Panic as inflicting a -4 on all skill rolls if the subject chooses to stand and fight (or is forced to.)

(In general, Fodder will flee. Don't use this on orcs and rats and wolves and goblins in the hopes they'll fight back at a -4.)

Delete Terror.

That might be workable. I need to give it some more thought.