Magic is the manipulation of Mana, which can be crudely thought of as "life force" or "spiritual energy" (although it is not necessarily limited to living beings). Mana is certainly generated in the body of living creatures, but it can also become associated with things - such as a venerated shrine, a haunted castle or an item which has been owned and valued for many generations. Properly used - or abused - Mana allows the alteration of normally inviolate physical laws. Thus, a spellcaster can - after long and arduous training - manipulate Mana to fly, or generate lightning. A soldier dying on a bloody battlefield, where much Mana has been released can sometimes use it - by sheer force of will - to stave off death, becoming a ghost.
Practice of all the sorcerous arts is dangerous - if the flow of Mana required for an enchantment is insufficient, then it will be torn from the mage's body. This most often manifests as sudden, premature aging (perhaps accounting for the fact that your stereotypical mage is wizened and bent) or if the Mana loss is of sufficent magnitude, death. It takes strength of body as well as mind to master the way of the sorceror. For game purposes then, Mana points are treated exactly the same as BOD points. To cast any spell requires 1/10th of the active cost in BOD - which is lost when the spell is cast, and regained at the normal healing rate. Note this is *only* to cast the spell - not on succeeding phases for a spell which is continous or constant. This is a general rule for most spellcasting and is awarded a -1/4 limitation. It's clearly not (quite) as dangerous as a required Side Effect, which does 1d6 of damage (on average 1 Bod *and* 3-4 stun) for every 10 points at the -1/2 level (and more for smaller spells, since the lower limit on Side Effect is 30 points or 6d6 EB). Obviously, to cast even minor magics would soon be crippling or lethal to a normal person, and to be a successful mage, a very high BOD score is required. Different schools of magic overcome this limitation in different ways, which are detailed below.
Some Mages seek to increase the amount of Mana they can generate within their own body. This means that they do not become dependant on external sources of power, and this self sufficiency and body knowledge is thought to be an important step on the road to true self awareness. To simulate this in game terms, many mages buy extra points of BOD with the -1 limitation "Only for spellcasting". Such increased BOD is subject to the limitations of Normal Characteristic Maxima, of course. Mages may also buy the advantage "Trigger" on their spells so that they can cast them in safety, and rest to regain their strength - those spells can then be called forth later on when needed. Of course, this has the disadvantage that once triggered, those spells are gone until the mage has the time to meditate and restore his Mana, and the casting of the spells can be very debilitating. Alternatively, many mages - and especially sorceror priests - increase their Mana by prolonged meditation, which is simulated in game terms by a BOD Aid. Generally, this is bought with a reduced rate of return so that the benefits of meditation are not quickly lost, although some mages accept the loss of Mana and meditate to regain their strength afterwards. However, as with other types of magic, meditation is regarded as a spell and so requires Mana loss itself, making this a slow process.
Most Mages, however, rely on external sources of Mana. This is most easily obtained by taking Mana from other sources. To do so by force is not a good act - nevertheless, many mages use animal sacrifices to power their art. To take Mana from a human is almost universally regarded as an evil act and only employed by wielders of the darker arts.
Tapping Mana by sacrifice might be done like this:
However, it is inconvenient to have to make a sacrifice every time you want to cast a spell, so most practitioners of magic who use sacrifices trap the Mana for later use (in game terms, that means building the spell with the advantage Trigger, +1/4) or put it into forms where it can be later recovered (ie: buy BOD with focus or recoverable charges limitations). This allows them to build up reserves for spellcasting when it is needed.
Alternatively, a spellcaster can learn to drain power directly from his victims, without the need for physical sacrifice. "The Hand of Soul-eating" created by Talmage the Deathless, is such a spell and is the darkest magic indeed:
A safer route is to get someone else to provide it for you - which is why many mages train apprentices. The first spell almost any apprentice learns is some form of Mana transfer spell - for example:
This spell not only allows the recipient to cast powerful spells, but also can heal a body depleted of Ki by injury or use of magic. It can be used to power the apprentices own spells or to transfer power to his master.
There are other ways to increase the availability of Mana, however. Geomancers locate places where the earth's Mana can be most easily tapped and arrange their environment to maximise the flow of Mana. While this is relatively benign, Geomancers tend to be limited in the areas where they can work magic. Alchemists seek to use Mana derived from both the earth and from living creatures, by distilling and trapping it in objects of power (potions, powders and artifacts) that are portable. An example might be:
Other means include potions which can restore or augment Mana when drunk. These use Mana-rich ingredients such as dragon's blood and giant's sweat. An example of such a potion might be:
Use of such restoratives of course renders the mage dependant on them. There are other sources of Mana, including one which is easily tapped, but which the most dangerous and limiting of all, and that is demonology. There are many malign spirits who in exchange for certain services, are capable of supplying power to their servants. However, an evil spirit will make an evil master....
Inherent magical powers are those possessed by supernatural creatures such as ghosts and demons. They are aspects of their being, and as such, totally natural to them. Such powers are thus are not subject to the rules on BOD loss given above for Mana use, which can make these beings very powerful (and thus deserving of respect). Normally however, such creatures are restricted in other ways - ghosts draw on the power of darkness and cannot survive the light, Demons are normally restricted in their access to the world of humans and so on. Inherently magical creatures are therefore not suitable for player characters.
Regardless of how they get their mana, most Mages choose a field in which to specialise. The various fields of magical endeavour are given below:
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Alchemy (Al) |
Alchemists are able to devise a variety of mystical effects by the sprinkling or imbibing of magical essences, oils, potions, etc. |
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Animal Magic (Am) |
Practioners of this art (often called shamans, druids, or the like) are able to control animals, shapeshift into animal forms or even take on certain characteristics of some beast. |
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Artifice (Ar) |
Artificers are those mages who specialise in the construction of magical devices rather than the casting of spells at specific targets. |
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Divination (Dv) |
Diviners (also called mediums) are those who specialise in the spells of detection - they can scry the past, the future or the present. |
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Enchantment (En) |
Enchanters are those mages who specialise in the arts of the mind - also called Thaumaturges, Mentalists, etc. |
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Elementalism (El) |
It is something of a misnomer to define this as one art since it is used to define those mages who work with the control of a particular manifestation. It can be one of the 8 cardinal elements such as Fire (pyromancy) or Flesh (Biomancy) or a more restricted field such as Ice and Cold (the Olmai Wintermagi, for example). A fuller description of the elements and elemental sorcery is here. |
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Illusion (Il) |
The art of illusion, or glamour, partakes of equal parts enchantment and summoning, since Illusions can be completely illusory, quasi-real, or even briefly, quite real. |
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Metamagic (Mm) |
This is the branch of magic concerned with other magic - its detection, suppression and alteration. It is not generally considered a branch of magic on its own, but is subsumed into other fields. It is mentioned here because it is sometimes taught as a seperate field at advanced colleges of magic. |
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Necromancy (Ne) |
Necromancers are experts in the arts of decay and the spirit. For this reason they are generally mistrusted, but not all are evil, since the dead can also be questioned or bought back to aid the causes of good and some necromantic spells deal with the reversal of entropic effects. Some necromancers are in fact solitary crusaders against those who would use their art for evil. |
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Plant Magic (Pm) |
Practioners of this art (often called shamans, druids, or the like) are able to speak to or control plants, and generally know much of the secret lore of nature. |
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Summoning (Su) |
Summoners (also called Conjurers or Invokers) are able to draw power from other planes or places. By the reversal of their spells (evocation or abjuration) they are able to project people (themselves or others) - or powers - thus enabling travel outside of normal dimensions of space and time. |
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Nature Magic (Nm) |
Practioners of this art specialise in spells controlling natural phenomenon - the powers of Geomancy, Maromancy (sea magic), Weather control, etc. |
