Magic
Posted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 5:10 pmMagic
But I suppose that, for the purposes of the tale, some would say that there is a latent distinction such as once was called the distinction between 'magia' and 'goeteia'. Galadriel speaks of the 'deceits of the Enemy'. Well, enough, but magia could be, was, held good (per se), and goeteia bad. Neither is, in this tale, good or bad (per se), but only by motive or purpose of use. Both sides use both, but with different motives. The supremely bad motive is domination of other 'free wills'. The Enemy's operations are by no means all goetic deceits, but 'magic' that produces real effects in the physical world. But his magia he uses to bulldoze both people and things, and his goeteia to terrify and subjugate. Their magia the Elves and Gandalf use (sparingly): a magia, producing real results (like fire in a wet faggot) for specific beneficent purposes. Their goetic effects are entirely artistic and not intended to deceive: they never deceive the Elves (but may deceive or bewilder unaware Men) since the difference is to them as clear as the difference to us between fiction, painting, and sculpture, and 'life'.
- J.R.R Tolkien :: Letter #155 :: The Tolkien Letters
The core mechanic for magic, the kernel of enchantment used in Spellwoven is an open, freeform system. Spells are in three categories: Lesser spells have no effect on the game plot or story (e.g. a minor attack in battle, lighting candles, minor illusions. Greater spells have some effect (e.g. killing a minor opponent, creating a bridge over a river, minor healing). Elder spells have significant effects on plot (e.g. killing many minor opponents or one major enemy, misdirecting an army using mists, breaking open a fortress gate).
Cost: If Cost < Power then the spell is cast automatically without draining any Power. If Cost ≥ Power then spell is still cast on a successful Test of Willpower+Mind and Power is reduced by 1.
Casting: Always within line of sight.
Resisting: Goetia (enchantments or illusions) can be resisted. Test Mind+Willpower to resist (Enchantments=mind control, sleep etc. Illusions=trickery). Difficulty = 5 for Lesser spells, 10 for Greater spells and 15 for Elder spells. Magia cannot be resisted.
Armour: Cannot defend against magical attacks.
Theme: All Bards and Loremasters pick a theme (e.g. Air and Storms ▪ Birds and Beasts ▪ Ice and Snow ▪ Insight ▪ Darkness and Shadows ▪ Earth, Tree and Leaf ▪ Fire, Smoke and Light ▪ Water and Rains). When you describe a spell so that it matches your theme: reduce Cost by 3 (cannot drop below zero).
Wearing Armour: Does not affect spellcasting in a Tolkienesque setting, but may be inappropriate to your character concept.
Freeform Spell Casting
The default form of spellcasting is freeform. Freeform casting involves the Player stating the desired effect, described the spell (to identify theme) and the Gamesmaster deciding on the category, Lesser, Greater or Elder.
Lesser Spells: Cost 1 / Minor effect on plot only: 1× minor wound attack / cannot heal / goetia, enchantments or illusions last while mage concentrates
Greater Spells: Cost 5 / Moderate effect on plot: 2× severe wounds attack split any way (or similar) / heal 1 wound / goetia, enchantments or illusions last hours
Elder Spells: Costs 10 / Major effect on plot: up to 5× severe wounds split any way (or similar) / heal 3 wounds split any way / goetia, enchantments or illusions are permanent.
Injurious Magic
Use the following as a guide when devising injurious spells. Magic can cause physical injury (e.g. blast of fire), injury to Stamina (e.g. powerful cold winds) or Power (a psychic attack that drains away will and hope). Attacks against Power will usually incur a point of Shadow, at the Gamesmaster's discretion.
Lesser Spells
• 1× minor wound attack or
• 1 damage to Stamina or
• 1 damage to Power
Greater Spells
• 2× severe wound split any way or
• 4× minors wounds split any way or
• 4 damage to Stamina split any way
• 4 damage to Power split any way
Greater Spells
• 5× severe wound split any way or
• 10× minors wounds split any way or
• 12 damage to Stamina split any way or
• 12 damage to Power split any way
Formulated Spell Casting
Loremasters, but not bards, elves or descended powers that belong to other classes, can formulate spells. Players are allowed to devise formulated spells for their characters. Formulated spells take three weeks (four hours per day, 84 hours total) of dedicated effort on the part of the Character to refine and perfect, although this time can be broken up or spread out over a longer period. The key benefit of formulated spells is that they have a lower cost than freeform spells. Formulated spells require a Name, a Theme, Description and a Classification into Lesser, Greater or Elder (at the discretion of your Gamesmaster).
Lesser Spells: Cost 0
Greater Spells: Cost 3
Elder Spells: Costs 7
An example of a formulated spell:
Name: Bitter Winds of Sorrow
Theme: Ice and Snow
Description: This is an injurious spell that conjures blades of ice on a bitter wind. The attack deals up to two severe wounds that can be split. The spell is Magia and falls within the domain of Magery.
Classification: Greater (Cost 3)
Arts of Magic
The following are loose descriptions of some of the arts of magic that are likely to be best suited to a Tolkienesque world.
Arts of Enchantment (Goetia): The illusions, bewildering charms and mind-easing magic that may be used by any worker of magic, but is in particular known to Elves. The Arts of Enchantment are used by Elves to make beauty in their homes and lands, but never mean these illusions to deceive--Elves always know an illusion for what it is and are never deceived by them (though they may still be harmed by illusions or phantoms that manifest in Places of Old Power). Some examples of enchantments include weaving beautiful magic into a dance to enthral onlookers, sewing sleep into a song or making a person forget all their history and purpose, inducing a trance, conjuring airy visions to entertain or beguile or enchant a person so that they become lost and wander towards you.
Barring of Ways (Goetia): A warding magic that can be used to prevent a person, spirit or beast from crossing into a place or trespassing. Barring of Ways could be used to prevent a dark spirit from entering a house or it might be used to stop a pack of wolves crossing a bridge or stop a dark wraith from crossing a river. It cannot be used to apply general bans, that is, it cannot prevent all wolves from ever crossing a specific bridge, rather it must have some specific target or targets in mind.
Binding (Goetia): A dark magic that can be used to bind a spirit or ghost into the flesh of a creature or into a place or object. This is the sort of dark magic used to create twisted creatures such as werewolves by binding evil spirits into the bodies of wolves, or twisted, watchful guardians, by binding spirits into immobile statues. Binding spells of Greater or Elder power always add one to the spell-weaver's Shadow. Binding can also be used to torment spirits or creatures and to torture the flesh into new and twisted forms. Orcs were created from abducted Elves by the Old Dark Powers through the use of Binding magic. Player Characters can only use Binding if they have the Talent Sorcerer.
Befriend of Spirit (Goetia): The opposite of Domination of Will that controls by crushing will, Befriend of Spirit allows a spellweaver, through acts of kindness and aid, to extend a magical connection to birds or beasts or the uncanny creatures of the earth. Befriend of Spirit can only be used on the living, and can be used both to establish a bond and to call for aid. This magic functions only if the magic-worker respects the free will of the target, it fails when a magician becomes selfish in desire or exploitative in demands.
Disguise (Goetia): Magic can be used to wear veils, disguise Elf as Orc or spy as friend. This is a simple illusion, related to Arts of Enchantment, but simpler in purpose and more practical.
Domination of Will (Goetia): A dark magic and one that will in time add to the Shadow of the spell-weaver. Living people and beasts, spirits and the dead can be chained as thralls to the will of one who has sufficiently great power. When it is shades of the dead, fell spirits or dark shadows are the bound thralls, Domination of Will is more frequently called necromancy. Any target of Domination of Will is allowed to resist the magic by Testing Mind+Willpower. If an attempt to resist Domination of Will fails, a Player Character is allowed to resist utterly by sacrificing all Power. If Domination of Will is resisted in this way, the sorcerer can never attempt to dominate the target of the spell again. Player Characters can only use Domination of Will if they have the Talent Sorcerer.
Foresight and Prophecy (Magia): This is a rare gift, and a Character must have the Talent Prophetic Gifts to tap into the flow of events, to see things that have been, things are are, and of things that may yet come to pass. Prophecy is always an inexact art--it does not provide to the profit visions of what are the most likely of all futures, rather it provides visions of various futures that may be or may not. Often there is a sense of how the futures may come to pass or be prevented but even this is uncertain.
Hallowing (Goetia): Spellweavers of considerable power who have no Darkness in them, may work Hallowing magics that make a thing or place good, so that all who are near benefit from it. Hallowed places may bestow some small healing powers or magics of calmness or happiness. Objects of hallowing will not let dark creatures or evil things touch them unharmed, scorching and withering the flesh of an evil thing. Graves of powerful, good Men or Elves can acquire their own Hallowing over time, and can become places avoided by Orcs and other evil things, however an evil creature can make a Test of Mind+Willpower to ignore the repelling effects of a hallowed place.
Healing (Magia): Most commonly an Elven art, Healing is slow, methodical and can only ever achieve so much. Healing may staunch bleeding or relieve disease enough to allow a person's own body to recover, it may lift dark and harmful magic or allay the effects of a poisoned or charmed weapon. In game terms, Healing can prevent death and decline but cannot make an injured person suddenly whole or fit, nor can it make a sick person leap unnaturally out of bed in moments. Life cannot be conjured out of nothing--when working a healing spell, the Character must either sacrifice a rank of Toughness or take one point of Shadow.
Insight (Goetia): The reading of thoughts. At its lowest level of power, this is a simple ability to read intention from the light in the eyes, a subtle magical knack that can be inherited and is represented by the Talent Light of Eyes. At more sophisticated levels, Greater and Elder magic can be used to read the very words that are being thought by a person, spirit or creature, or even to see through to the true heart of a person, so deep beyond their own mist of words that they themselves may not know such deeper truths about their heart's desires. Insight can also be used to send thoughts to another, so that your voice will appear to be inside their own mind. Where a magical artefact has a will or intention of its own, for example a sword made for the bane of trolls, then insight can also be used to gain an understanding of the object's will.
Magery (Magia): The purest form of magia involves the summoning and channelling of energies, airs and forces such as fire, fog, light, cold, darkness, lightning, motion, sound or concussion. Magia cannot be used to summon or conjure solid materials or objects such as stone, water, wood or metal--nothing 'real' can be conjured out of thin air. However, because Magia is manipulating reality itself, this is a very exhausting form of magic and Greater spells always cost the spell-weaver 1 sta. while Elder spells cost 3 sta. to cast. A common use for Magery is to put on a show of power that is intended to demonstrate to others present that the spell-weaver is not one to be trifled with, though this may actually entail little more than deepening of shadows or flares of light, a booming voice or a twisting of perspective.
Oaths and Curses (Magia): Any character can make or bind an oath or lay a curse on another. The Character does not need to be a Bard or Loremaster. However, there are oaths and there are oaths, there are curses and there are curses. True oaths and curses are powerful, binding magic and should not be taken lightly. Oath-swearing or laying a curse costs Three Doom and reduces your Power to zero. Oath-Binding: If another Character makes a vow to you, you may make it a true oath by sacrificing the appropriate Doom and Power. Oath-Taking: You may make your own oath true by doing the same. This is a good act and reduces your Shadow by one so long as you keep the oath. Curse-Laying: You may put a curse on a Character in the same way. Curses do not require that the target of the curse be present. However, Curse-Laying is a dark act and adds Three to your Shadow.
Curses and oaths exercise an all-encompassing power. An oath-breaker becomes cursed. Curses may have any of the following effects at the Gamesmaster's discretion:
Barren: Cursed person cannot produce children.
Blighted: Cursed person becomes diseased. Reduce Might by 1 and permanently reduce Toughness by 3.
Hounded: Ghosts or other darker things follow the cursed one, slowly hunting, slowly whispering hate.
Pass into Shadow: The cursed person gradually turns into a wraith or similar shadow-thing.
Undeath: Especially in the case where an oath has been broken, the cursed Character may return as a dead shade until the day when the oath is fulfilled.
Unwelcome: No-one will take in the cursed person, shelter is always refused, no amount of gold will make an inn-keeper provide a bed.
Withered: Cursed person withers thin and skeletal. Reduce Might to 1.
Skin-Changing (Magia): Distinct from Disguise, in that whereas Disguise is an illusion meant to deceive, Skin-Changing entails the actual transformation of a Character into another shape, usually a bird or beast. Typically, a person can transform into only one shape, a bear or raven, a wolf or shadow-winged thing. Player Characters can only use Skin-Changing if they have the Talent Shape-Change.
Places of Old Power (Goetia): There are places of the earth where Old Powers hold sway, bleak swamps, dark forests and mist-bound mountains. Where old magic is powerful, where an Old Power dwells, magic may manifest in the form of illusions and phantoms that have solidity and will of their own that make them deadly. Waters may be filled with shadows and bewilderment. A region of woodland may turn into a place of dread and enchantment where phantoms of terror strangle trespassers or strike them blind.
Weather-Mastery (Magia): The shaping, changing, calling forth and banishing away of winds, storms, snows, rain and fogs. Weather-Mastery is generally limited to conjuring up the sort of weather that is plausible. It could be used to speed a ship on its way with a favourable wind, or conjure a storm to sink a ship off the coast, but is difficult to use in a way that is combative. Lightning bolts cannot be summoned from a blue sky (but see Magery, above) and winds cannot be much worse than might be expected during the normal course of seasons. Generally speaking, Weather-Mastery will only work outside.
Natural Laws of Magic
Applying guidelines and in-world 'rules' to freeform systems is a good way to add to the feel, mood and theme of a setting. For example, a simple rule to help govern necromancy might be that it is only possible to raise the shade or ghost of a slain person if the sorcerer is either at the grave of the deceased or is holding an object that was once owned by the person. As the Gamesmaster you can either decide that none of the following suggested Natural Laws are true, or that all of them are, or that some are, but Players will have to figure out what is true and what is not as the game proceeds.
Magery
- Only forces and insubstantial phenomena can be conjured with Magery: light, darkness, fire, cold etc. No solid physical thing (rock, water, earth) can be conjured out of thin air.
- Any attempt to use Magery to conjure something solid results in an illusion. A mortal mage may even be tricked by their own illusion if they are ignorant of this natural law (elves are never tricked by illusion).
Necromancy
- Necromancy is a form of Domination of Will
- Raising a person through necromancy requires that you be at that person's grave when casting the spell
- Raising a person through necromancy requires that you possess something that the person owned in life
- Lesser dead, gasts and the like, cannot speak unless first given fresh blood to drink. The blood of any animal will do.
Healing
- Life cannot be conjured out of nothing--when working a healing spell, the Character must either spend 2 Stamina in addition to any other spell costs.
- Healing magic can only be worked in conjunction with other healing arts, herbs or potions
- Only Elves or those of Elven ancestry can use Healing magic
- Healing cannot 'magically' close up or cure wounds, only prevent bleeding and death
- Healing can cure poisons, diseases, magical curses and injurious magic in general, but only slowly and with rest
- Normally, Healing cannot remove Shadow, but under some circumstances, where the spell is of an Elder sort or the Healer is powerful and wise, this might occur.
- Healing is always restricted to Lesser spells unless the magic is conducted on hallowed ground or in elf-enchanted lands
Illusion
- Illusions do not cast reflections
- Illusions do not work on elves
- Illusions work best on those who want to believe them
- Illusions have image, sound, smell and may even have some power to seem solid, but cannot harm or kill, support weight, impart sustenance (i.e. in the form of food) or undertake any sort of real labour
- If something happens to contradict an illusion, the illusion is shattered. If there is an illusion of a bridge and a goblin falls through the bridge after running onto it, the illusion drifts away
Skin-Changing
- A worker of magic can only change into the form of an animal while wearing a cloak or belt made of that animal's pelt
- A worker of magic can only nominate a single animal that he or she can turn into. The magic worker becomes, so to speak bound to an animal form.
- No worker of magic can change their real form into that of another person. When a magic-worker appears to do this, it is in fact an illusion
- When in the form of an animal, the Skin-Changer may retain their human strength. This is an advantage when changing into a smaller creature like a crow or otter
- When in an animal form, the Skin-Changer has suffers injury as the natural animal would. This makes changing into small beasts, ravens, sparrows or mice, very risky
- Skin-Changers can only take on the form on natural beasts or birds that were a part of the world at the beginning of all things. The shape of creatures, like dragons, that were created by evil after the world, cannot be assumed.
- When in animal form, Skin-Changers cannot talk
- A person cannot change forms while being watched by another. The change must be in secret.
But I suppose that, for the purposes of the tale, some would say that there is a latent distinction such as once was called the distinction between 'magia' and 'goeteia'. Galadriel speaks of the 'deceits of the Enemy'. Well, enough, but magia could be, was, held good (per se), and goeteia bad. Neither is, in this tale, good or bad (per se), but only by motive or purpose of use. Both sides use both, but with different motives. The supremely bad motive is domination of other 'free wills'. The Enemy's operations are by no means all goetic deceits, but 'magic' that produces real effects in the physical world. But his magia he uses to bulldoze both people and things, and his goeteia to terrify and subjugate. Their magia the Elves and Gandalf use (sparingly): a magia, producing real results (like fire in a wet faggot) for specific beneficent purposes. Their goetic effects are entirely artistic and not intended to deceive: they never deceive the Elves (but may deceive or bewilder unaware Men) since the difference is to them as clear as the difference to us between fiction, painting, and sculpture, and 'life'.
- J.R.R Tolkien :: Letter #155 :: The Tolkien Letters
The core mechanic for magic, the kernel of enchantment used in Spellwoven is an open, freeform system. Spells are in three categories: Lesser spells have no effect on the game plot or story (e.g. a minor attack in battle, lighting candles, minor illusions. Greater spells have some effect (e.g. killing a minor opponent, creating a bridge over a river, minor healing). Elder spells have significant effects on plot (e.g. killing many minor opponents or one major enemy, misdirecting an army using mists, breaking open a fortress gate).
Cost: If Cost < Power then the spell is cast automatically without draining any Power. If Cost ≥ Power then spell is still cast on a successful Test of Willpower+Mind and Power is reduced by 1.
Casting: Always within line of sight.
Resisting: Goetia (enchantments or illusions) can be resisted. Test Mind+Willpower to resist (Enchantments=mind control, sleep etc. Illusions=trickery). Difficulty = 5 for Lesser spells, 10 for Greater spells and 15 for Elder spells. Magia cannot be resisted.
Armour: Cannot defend against magical attacks.
Theme: All Bards and Loremasters pick a theme (e.g. Air and Storms ▪ Birds and Beasts ▪ Ice and Snow ▪ Insight ▪ Darkness and Shadows ▪ Earth, Tree and Leaf ▪ Fire, Smoke and Light ▪ Water and Rains). When you describe a spell so that it matches your theme: reduce Cost by 3 (cannot drop below zero).
Wearing Armour: Does not affect spellcasting in a Tolkienesque setting, but may be inappropriate to your character concept.
Freeform Spell Casting
The default form of spellcasting is freeform. Freeform casting involves the Player stating the desired effect, described the spell (to identify theme) and the Gamesmaster deciding on the category, Lesser, Greater or Elder.
Lesser Spells: Cost 1 / Minor effect on plot only: 1× minor wound attack / cannot heal / goetia, enchantments or illusions last while mage concentrates
Greater Spells: Cost 5 / Moderate effect on plot: 2× severe wounds attack split any way (or similar) / heal 1 wound / goetia, enchantments or illusions last hours
Elder Spells: Costs 10 / Major effect on plot: up to 5× severe wounds split any way (or similar) / heal 3 wounds split any way / goetia, enchantments or illusions are permanent.
Injurious Magic
Use the following as a guide when devising injurious spells. Magic can cause physical injury (e.g. blast of fire), injury to Stamina (e.g. powerful cold winds) or Power (a psychic attack that drains away will and hope). Attacks against Power will usually incur a point of Shadow, at the Gamesmaster's discretion.
Lesser Spells
• 1× minor wound attack or
• 1 damage to Stamina or
• 1 damage to Power
Greater Spells
• 2× severe wound split any way or
• 4× minors wounds split any way or
• 4 damage to Stamina split any way
• 4 damage to Power split any way
Greater Spells
• 5× severe wound split any way or
• 10× minors wounds split any way or
• 12 damage to Stamina split any way or
• 12 damage to Power split any way
Formulated Spell Casting
Loremasters, but not bards, elves or descended powers that belong to other classes, can formulate spells. Players are allowed to devise formulated spells for their characters. Formulated spells take three weeks (four hours per day, 84 hours total) of dedicated effort on the part of the Character to refine and perfect, although this time can be broken up or spread out over a longer period. The key benefit of formulated spells is that they have a lower cost than freeform spells. Formulated spells require a Name, a Theme, Description and a Classification into Lesser, Greater or Elder (at the discretion of your Gamesmaster).
Lesser Spells: Cost 0
Greater Spells: Cost 3
Elder Spells: Costs 7
An example of a formulated spell:
Name: Bitter Winds of Sorrow
Theme: Ice and Snow
Description: This is an injurious spell that conjures blades of ice on a bitter wind. The attack deals up to two severe wounds that can be split. The spell is Magia and falls within the domain of Magery.
Classification: Greater (Cost 3)
Arts of Magic
The following are loose descriptions of some of the arts of magic that are likely to be best suited to a Tolkienesque world.
Arts of Enchantment (Goetia): The illusions, bewildering charms and mind-easing magic that may be used by any worker of magic, but is in particular known to Elves. The Arts of Enchantment are used by Elves to make beauty in their homes and lands, but never mean these illusions to deceive--Elves always know an illusion for what it is and are never deceived by them (though they may still be harmed by illusions or phantoms that manifest in Places of Old Power). Some examples of enchantments include weaving beautiful magic into a dance to enthral onlookers, sewing sleep into a song or making a person forget all their history and purpose, inducing a trance, conjuring airy visions to entertain or beguile or enchant a person so that they become lost and wander towards you.
Barring of Ways (Goetia): A warding magic that can be used to prevent a person, spirit or beast from crossing into a place or trespassing. Barring of Ways could be used to prevent a dark spirit from entering a house or it might be used to stop a pack of wolves crossing a bridge or stop a dark wraith from crossing a river. It cannot be used to apply general bans, that is, it cannot prevent all wolves from ever crossing a specific bridge, rather it must have some specific target or targets in mind.
Binding (Goetia): A dark magic that can be used to bind a spirit or ghost into the flesh of a creature or into a place or object. This is the sort of dark magic used to create twisted creatures such as werewolves by binding evil spirits into the bodies of wolves, or twisted, watchful guardians, by binding spirits into immobile statues. Binding spells of Greater or Elder power always add one to the spell-weaver's Shadow. Binding can also be used to torment spirits or creatures and to torture the flesh into new and twisted forms. Orcs were created from abducted Elves by the Old Dark Powers through the use of Binding magic. Player Characters can only use Binding if they have the Talent Sorcerer.
Befriend of Spirit (Goetia): The opposite of Domination of Will that controls by crushing will, Befriend of Spirit allows a spellweaver, through acts of kindness and aid, to extend a magical connection to birds or beasts or the uncanny creatures of the earth. Befriend of Spirit can only be used on the living, and can be used both to establish a bond and to call for aid. This magic functions only if the magic-worker respects the free will of the target, it fails when a magician becomes selfish in desire or exploitative in demands.
Disguise (Goetia): Magic can be used to wear veils, disguise Elf as Orc or spy as friend. This is a simple illusion, related to Arts of Enchantment, but simpler in purpose and more practical.
Domination of Will (Goetia): A dark magic and one that will in time add to the Shadow of the spell-weaver. Living people and beasts, spirits and the dead can be chained as thralls to the will of one who has sufficiently great power. When it is shades of the dead, fell spirits or dark shadows are the bound thralls, Domination of Will is more frequently called necromancy. Any target of Domination of Will is allowed to resist the magic by Testing Mind+Willpower. If an attempt to resist Domination of Will fails, a Player Character is allowed to resist utterly by sacrificing all Power. If Domination of Will is resisted in this way, the sorcerer can never attempt to dominate the target of the spell again. Player Characters can only use Domination of Will if they have the Talent Sorcerer.
Foresight and Prophecy (Magia): This is a rare gift, and a Character must have the Talent Prophetic Gifts to tap into the flow of events, to see things that have been, things are are, and of things that may yet come to pass. Prophecy is always an inexact art--it does not provide to the profit visions of what are the most likely of all futures, rather it provides visions of various futures that may be or may not. Often there is a sense of how the futures may come to pass or be prevented but even this is uncertain.
Hallowing (Goetia): Spellweavers of considerable power who have no Darkness in them, may work Hallowing magics that make a thing or place good, so that all who are near benefit from it. Hallowed places may bestow some small healing powers or magics of calmness or happiness. Objects of hallowing will not let dark creatures or evil things touch them unharmed, scorching and withering the flesh of an evil thing. Graves of powerful, good Men or Elves can acquire their own Hallowing over time, and can become places avoided by Orcs and other evil things, however an evil creature can make a Test of Mind+Willpower to ignore the repelling effects of a hallowed place.
Healing (Magia): Most commonly an Elven art, Healing is slow, methodical and can only ever achieve so much. Healing may staunch bleeding or relieve disease enough to allow a person's own body to recover, it may lift dark and harmful magic or allay the effects of a poisoned or charmed weapon. In game terms, Healing can prevent death and decline but cannot make an injured person suddenly whole or fit, nor can it make a sick person leap unnaturally out of bed in moments. Life cannot be conjured out of nothing--when working a healing spell, the Character must either sacrifice a rank of Toughness or take one point of Shadow.
Insight (Goetia): The reading of thoughts. At its lowest level of power, this is a simple ability to read intention from the light in the eyes, a subtle magical knack that can be inherited and is represented by the Talent Light of Eyes. At more sophisticated levels, Greater and Elder magic can be used to read the very words that are being thought by a person, spirit or creature, or even to see through to the true heart of a person, so deep beyond their own mist of words that they themselves may not know such deeper truths about their heart's desires. Insight can also be used to send thoughts to another, so that your voice will appear to be inside their own mind. Where a magical artefact has a will or intention of its own, for example a sword made for the bane of trolls, then insight can also be used to gain an understanding of the object's will.
Magery (Magia): The purest form of magia involves the summoning and channelling of energies, airs and forces such as fire, fog, light, cold, darkness, lightning, motion, sound or concussion. Magia cannot be used to summon or conjure solid materials or objects such as stone, water, wood or metal--nothing 'real' can be conjured out of thin air. However, because Magia is manipulating reality itself, this is a very exhausting form of magic and Greater spells always cost the spell-weaver 1 sta. while Elder spells cost 3 sta. to cast. A common use for Magery is to put on a show of power that is intended to demonstrate to others present that the spell-weaver is not one to be trifled with, though this may actually entail little more than deepening of shadows or flares of light, a booming voice or a twisting of perspective.
Oaths and Curses (Magia): Any character can make or bind an oath or lay a curse on another. The Character does not need to be a Bard or Loremaster. However, there are oaths and there are oaths, there are curses and there are curses. True oaths and curses are powerful, binding magic and should not be taken lightly. Oath-swearing or laying a curse costs Three Doom and reduces your Power to zero. Oath-Binding: If another Character makes a vow to you, you may make it a true oath by sacrificing the appropriate Doom and Power. Oath-Taking: You may make your own oath true by doing the same. This is a good act and reduces your Shadow by one so long as you keep the oath. Curse-Laying: You may put a curse on a Character in the same way. Curses do not require that the target of the curse be present. However, Curse-Laying is a dark act and adds Three to your Shadow.
Curses and oaths exercise an all-encompassing power. An oath-breaker becomes cursed. Curses may have any of the following effects at the Gamesmaster's discretion:
Barren: Cursed person cannot produce children.
Blighted: Cursed person becomes diseased. Reduce Might by 1 and permanently reduce Toughness by 3.
Hounded: Ghosts or other darker things follow the cursed one, slowly hunting, slowly whispering hate.
Pass into Shadow: The cursed person gradually turns into a wraith or similar shadow-thing.
Undeath: Especially in the case where an oath has been broken, the cursed Character may return as a dead shade until the day when the oath is fulfilled.
Unwelcome: No-one will take in the cursed person, shelter is always refused, no amount of gold will make an inn-keeper provide a bed.
Withered: Cursed person withers thin and skeletal. Reduce Might to 1.
Skin-Changing (Magia): Distinct from Disguise, in that whereas Disguise is an illusion meant to deceive, Skin-Changing entails the actual transformation of a Character into another shape, usually a bird or beast. Typically, a person can transform into only one shape, a bear or raven, a wolf or shadow-winged thing. Player Characters can only use Skin-Changing if they have the Talent Shape-Change.
Places of Old Power (Goetia): There are places of the earth where Old Powers hold sway, bleak swamps, dark forests and mist-bound mountains. Where old magic is powerful, where an Old Power dwells, magic may manifest in the form of illusions and phantoms that have solidity and will of their own that make them deadly. Waters may be filled with shadows and bewilderment. A region of woodland may turn into a place of dread and enchantment where phantoms of terror strangle trespassers or strike them blind.
Weather-Mastery (Magia): The shaping, changing, calling forth and banishing away of winds, storms, snows, rain and fogs. Weather-Mastery is generally limited to conjuring up the sort of weather that is plausible. It could be used to speed a ship on its way with a favourable wind, or conjure a storm to sink a ship off the coast, but is difficult to use in a way that is combative. Lightning bolts cannot be summoned from a blue sky (but see Magery, above) and winds cannot be much worse than might be expected during the normal course of seasons. Generally speaking, Weather-Mastery will only work outside.
Natural Laws of Magic
Applying guidelines and in-world 'rules' to freeform systems is a good way to add to the feel, mood and theme of a setting. For example, a simple rule to help govern necromancy might be that it is only possible to raise the shade or ghost of a slain person if the sorcerer is either at the grave of the deceased or is holding an object that was once owned by the person. As the Gamesmaster you can either decide that none of the following suggested Natural Laws are true, or that all of them are, or that some are, but Players will have to figure out what is true and what is not as the game proceeds.
Magery
- Only forces and insubstantial phenomena can be conjured with Magery: light, darkness, fire, cold etc. No solid physical thing (rock, water, earth) can be conjured out of thin air.
- Any attempt to use Magery to conjure something solid results in an illusion. A mortal mage may even be tricked by their own illusion if they are ignorant of this natural law (elves are never tricked by illusion).
Necromancy
- Necromancy is a form of Domination of Will
- Raising a person through necromancy requires that you be at that person's grave when casting the spell
- Raising a person through necromancy requires that you possess something that the person owned in life
- Lesser dead, gasts and the like, cannot speak unless first given fresh blood to drink. The blood of any animal will do.
Healing
- Life cannot be conjured out of nothing--when working a healing spell, the Character must either spend 2 Stamina in addition to any other spell costs.
- Healing magic can only be worked in conjunction with other healing arts, herbs or potions
- Only Elves or those of Elven ancestry can use Healing magic
- Healing cannot 'magically' close up or cure wounds, only prevent bleeding and death
- Healing can cure poisons, diseases, magical curses and injurious magic in general, but only slowly and with rest
- Normally, Healing cannot remove Shadow, but under some circumstances, where the spell is of an Elder sort or the Healer is powerful and wise, this might occur.
- Healing is always restricted to Lesser spells unless the magic is conducted on hallowed ground or in elf-enchanted lands
Illusion
- Illusions do not cast reflections
- Illusions do not work on elves
- Illusions work best on those who want to believe them
- Illusions have image, sound, smell and may even have some power to seem solid, but cannot harm or kill, support weight, impart sustenance (i.e. in the form of food) or undertake any sort of real labour
- If something happens to contradict an illusion, the illusion is shattered. If there is an illusion of a bridge and a goblin falls through the bridge after running onto it, the illusion drifts away
Skin-Changing
- A worker of magic can only change into the form of an animal while wearing a cloak or belt made of that animal's pelt
- A worker of magic can only nominate a single animal that he or she can turn into. The magic worker becomes, so to speak bound to an animal form.
- No worker of magic can change their real form into that of another person. When a magic-worker appears to do this, it is in fact an illusion
- When in the form of an animal, the Skin-Changer may retain their human strength. This is an advantage when changing into a smaller creature like a crow or otter
- When in an animal form, the Skin-Changer has suffers injury as the natural animal would. This makes changing into small beasts, ravens, sparrows or mice, very risky
- Skin-Changers can only take on the form on natural beasts or birds that were a part of the world at the beginning of all things. The shape of creatures, like dragons, that were created by evil after the world, cannot be assumed.
- When in animal form, Skin-Changers cannot talk
- A person cannot change forms while being watched by another. The change must be in secret.