Spells and Magic
Only a hero with points in the Magic Special Skill can cast Spells. The maximum amount of Mana a Hero starts out with is equal to their Magic Special Skill Level. Each Spell belongs to a Circle of Magic, the higher the Circle of Magic the more difficult it is to cast, teach, learn, cast and decipher. Each spell has a Mana cost equal to the Circle of Magic it belongs to, which is removed from the casters current Mana when cast (if it was successful or not).
For Example: Zoltan the Warlock has Excellent Magic (Rank 7). He has 7 Mana. He can cast and learn spells of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Circle.
The Circles of Magic
Cantrips - Requires the caster to have Poor (1) Magic or higher. The caster must have 1 Mana or more to cast.
1st Circle of Magic - Requires the caster to have Poor (1) Magic or higher. Spells cost 1 Mana to cast.
2nd Circle of Magic - Requires the caster to have Humble (3) Magic or higher. Spells cost 2 Mana to cast.
3rd Circle of Magic - Requires the caster to have Fair (5) Magic or higher. Spells cost 3 Mana to cast.
4th Circle of Magic - Requires the caster to have Excellent (7) Magic or higher. Spells cost 4 Mana to cast.
5th Circle of Magic - Requires the caster to have Exceptional (9) Magic or higher. Spells cost 5 Mana to cast.
CASTING A SPELL
The caster must choose one of the spells that he knows. The caster may not cast a spell if his Mana will be reduced to below zero. Then he has to make a Magic skill check modified by the Circle of Magic the spell belongs to (see table below). On the roll of a double one he has a Critical Failure he must then roll on the Miscast Table.
RESISTING A SPELL
When a Spell is cast on a creature, or a creature is in an area affected by magic or Spells, the creature (or Hero) may make a Magic Resistance Skill Check, with a Success indicating that the creature (or Hero) is not affected by the spell. The best way to resolve this is to make an opposed roll with the casters Magic skill versus the target's Magic Resistance skill.
SELECTING STARTING SPELLS
The total Mana cost of a starting Hero's initial Spells must not exceed their Mana Score. The Hero must choose spells from the limitations of what Circles of Magic they can cast. The spell casting Hero may also select a number of Cantrips that they know equal to their Magic Skill Level.
For Example: Zoltan the Warlock has Excellent Magic (Rank 7). He has 7 Mana. He can cast and learn spells of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Circle.
For his starting spell selection Zoltan could choose seven different 1st Circle Spells, or one 4th Circle and one 3rd Circle Spell. or some other similar combination.
Also Zoltan may select 7 cantrips that he knows.
Miscast Table
2d6 2 - Spell fizzles, the caster's Mana is reduced to zero 3 - Spell fizzles, deduct double the Mana Cost 4 - Spell fizzles, deduct the Mana Cost 5 - Spell affects the caster 6 - Spell affects caster’s companion(s) 7 - Spell affects another creature 8 - Spell is reversed (light-darkness) 9 - Caster ages 4d6 years 10 - Caster turns into a toad (mouse, bird, etc) 11 - A very annoyed Greater Demon appears 12 - Caster disappears in a cloud of smoke |
Magic Checks
Circle of Magic Difficulty Cantrips Basic (Target Number 4) 1st Simple (Target Number 6) 2nd Easy (Target Number 8) 3rd Moderate (Target Number 10) 4th Hard (Target Number 12) 5th Very Hard (Target Number 14) |
LEARNING SPELLS
New spells may be gained in two different ways. A spell-caster can not learn a Spell that has a higher Mana cost than his Magic* Special Skill
Level.
When a spell-caster obtains a Spell-Scroll he may use it in one of two ways. Only Heroes with at least Poor (1) Magic* may use Spell-Scrolls.
When a Spell-Scroll is read out aloud the Spell on the Spell-Scroll is cast as if the reader had just cast it, even if the caster can not normally cast the spell. It does not use up any of the reader`s Mana as the magical energy is stored in the Spell-Scroll. The Spell-Scroll is destroyed during this process.
A spell-caster may Scribe a Spell-Scroll if Mana cost of the Spell on the Scroll does not exceed the his Magic* skill. The process takes one hour per Mana cost of the spell. Then he has to make a Magic* skill check modified by the Circle of Magic the spell belongs to (see table below). On a Critical Success the scroll is not destroyed, on a Critical Failure the scroll is destroyed he did not learn the spell and he must then roll on the Miscast Table. On successful Magic* check the Scroll is destroyed during the process, but the spell caster now understands and is able to cast the spell and noted the new Spell in his List of Spells (see Hero Sheet).
A spell caster may learn a new Spell from another spell caster (usually from the Wizards Guild) at the cost of 100 GP per Mana cost of the Spell. The teacher must know and be able to cast the Spell and the student`s Level in Magic* must be equal to or greater than the Mana cost of the Spell being taught. The process will take a number of days equal to the Spell`s Mana cost.
New spells may be gained in two different ways. A spell-caster can not learn a Spell that has a higher Mana cost than his Magic* Special Skill
Level.
When a spell-caster obtains a Spell-Scroll he may use it in one of two ways. Only Heroes with at least Poor (1) Magic* may use Spell-Scrolls.
When a Spell-Scroll is read out aloud the Spell on the Spell-Scroll is cast as if the reader had just cast it, even if the caster can not normally cast the spell. It does not use up any of the reader`s Mana as the magical energy is stored in the Spell-Scroll. The Spell-Scroll is destroyed during this process.
A spell-caster may Scribe a Spell-Scroll if Mana cost of the Spell on the Scroll does not exceed the his Magic* skill. The process takes one hour per Mana cost of the spell. Then he has to make a Magic* skill check modified by the Circle of Magic the spell belongs to (see table below). On a Critical Success the scroll is not destroyed, on a Critical Failure the scroll is destroyed he did not learn the spell and he must then roll on the Miscast Table. On successful Magic* check the Scroll is destroyed during the process, but the spell caster now understands and is able to cast the spell and noted the new Spell in his List of Spells (see Hero Sheet).
A spell caster may learn a new Spell from another spell caster (usually from the Wizards Guild) at the cost of 100 GP per Mana cost of the Spell. The teacher must know and be able to cast the Spell and the student`s Level in Magic* must be equal to or greater than the Mana cost of the Spell being taught. The process will take a number of days equal to the Spell`s Mana cost.
CREATING NEW SPELLS
The players and the GM should work together to create new spells. The player should decide on the name of the spell and write a description of what the spell does. The GM may modify this and then convert it into the game mechanics. The GM then decides on the Mana cost of the spell and the Circle of Magic it belongs to. If the GM feels that the spell is to powerful and will unbalance game play then he may not allow the new spell in his games. The new spell will take time and money and may not always be successful. The new spell will require the hero to study and research the spell over a period equal to one day per Mana cost of the new spell. Expenses in spell components, research material and other items will cost 150 times the Mana cost of the new spell in gold pieces. Once all this this complete the hero has to make a Magic* skill check modified by the Circle of Magic the spell belongs to (see table below). On a successful roll he has succeeded, on a Critical Failure the attempt was a failure and he must then roll on the Miscast Table.If he fails, he can try to create the new spell again by spending the same amount of time and money before attempting another Magic* Special Skill Check.
The players and the GM should work together to create new spells. The player should decide on the name of the spell and write a description of what the spell does. The GM may modify this and then convert it into the game mechanics. The GM then decides on the Mana cost of the spell and the Circle of Magic it belongs to. If the GM feels that the spell is to powerful and will unbalance game play then he may not allow the new spell in his games. The new spell will take time and money and may not always be successful. The new spell will require the hero to study and research the spell over a period equal to one day per Mana cost of the new spell. Expenses in spell components, research material and other items will cost 150 times the Mana cost of the new spell in gold pieces. Once all this this complete the hero has to make a Magic* skill check modified by the Circle of Magic the spell belongs to (see table below). On a successful roll he has succeeded, on a Critical Failure the attempt was a failure and he must then roll on the Miscast Table.If he fails, he can try to create the new spell again by spending the same amount of time and money before attempting another Magic* Special Skill Check.