In at least some settings, magical or otherwise non-real-world abilities are depicted as inherently corrupting, maddening or otherwise coming with seriously nasty side effects. I've been thinking for a while about this trope, which I do not like at all, and been wondering how to represent a setting in which magic, generally speaking, is an ennobling pursuit, meaning that a selfish or worse, malicious, magician isn't going to get very far. The idea is that once you get going as a magician you have to clean up your soul to become more powerful. On the positive side, as you become more powerful, it tends to get easier. I'm thinking that mechanically, a magician has certain Virtues, and magical actions are limited to a rating no higher than the lowest Virtue. However, efforts to raise those Virtues are increased by the character's Magic rating (yes, this can be higher than the character's Virtues). Of course, the Virtues must be properly reflected in character play, or they get lowered. Attempts to tempt/force a magician to go against their Virtues also take a penalty equal to the character's Magic rating.

Possible Virtue sets could be the Cardinal Virtues, the [mental/personal] "Qualities of a Lensman" (range, force, scope, drive, power, and above all, absolute integrity), the virtues shown in sentai shows (loyalty, discipline, wisdom, justice, truth), or any other set that the the players and ST can agree to. The basic idea is that instead of giving mechanical drawbacks to undesirable actions/characterizations, you give mechanical benefits to desirable ones.

Then why isn't the setting a Utopia?  It seems like eventually you'd get such a good person that they would attain the power to be essentially a magical benevolent dictator ensuring the best world for all.

That's why The Prize in Highlander works, you could be the Kurgan or be the Highlander and still get it, and it's really damn important that it isn't the Kurgan.  Or why Jedi and Sith work, or many other examples.

So, if you wanted to follow this way of thinking for some form of magical power, then there probably should be some other form of attaining power, otherwise there is no credible threat for the ennobled wizard to deal with.

That depends on just how strong and how common of a power magic actually is. If it's the only power, then you're pretty much right. If it's not, then things might be more complicated. I'm not sure exactly how to balance things on a setting level so that non-magical power is still meaningful; the simplest would be for magic to require qualities that are scarce, such as extreme intellect, or extremely strong will.

Quote from: Whitewings;961091the simplest would be for magic to require qualities that are scarce, such as extreme intellect, or extremely strong will.

True, but eventually, someone will have that and Batman gets a Green Lantern ring.

Ironically, I'm willing to bet most of humanity actually wouldn't want such a magical savior, and the kind of people that usually rise to the highest levels of power - greedy, selfish, narcissistic socio/psychopaths certainly wouldn't.  It would be like Kirk arguing with the Organians that the Federation deserves the right to go to war.

Once such a paragon archmage figure rises, he'd have to be careful or end up on the cross or burnt at the stake just like the last 7 did.

Quote from: CRKrueger;961094True, but eventually, someone will have that and Batman gets a Green Lantern ring.

In one issue, Batman does wield a Green Lantern ring, briefly. He has a lot more respect for Kyle after that experience. In a later issue, a Sinestro Corps ring tries to choose him. He forces it away. Think about that one: he intimidated a ring that's powered by fear.

Quote from: CRKrueger;961094True, but eventually, someone will have that and Batman gets a Green Lantern ring.

True. Though maintaining a Utopia is probably impossible, since utopia and dystopia are very much subject to point of view. For deliberately extreme examples, let's imagine a place where all women are beautiful, bisexual, and extremely sexually submissive. Lots of guys would think it's great, and so would more women that would admit to it. But for a dominant woman, or a sexually submissive straight guy, it would be awful. Swap the sex roles, and it's paradise for dominant women and submissive guys, but misery for anyone else. Amusingly, if you had both societies near each other, with free movement between, you're getting close to a utopia (in the aspects under discussion). And of course, some people have really nasty ideas of their ideal society, like "I have all the wealth and women and power and everyone else exists only to serve me, and the poorer they are, the better I like it."

Theres a few games where magic power corresponds to the equivalent of your karma rating. Or ones where attaining real power is very limited.

Example in AD&D you needed an INT score of over 16 to access high level spells. 12 to access level 6, 14 for 7, 16 for 8 and 18 for 9.
Clerics needed a high WIS score too. 17 for level 6, 18 for level 7.
Even with AD&D's r4h3 method for stats an 18 is still relatively rare.(1 in 12 characters rolled up.)