Spellcasting
Spellcasting is one of the most common forms of magic. It consists of prompting spirits into taking action on your behalf. In order to perform spellcasting, all you need is:
- At least one readied, non-exhausted Spell Die. You can get 1 free SD even if you have no Ranks in the Magician Class by buying some magician’s clothes from a market.
- A Totem containing a spell or spirit. You can source spirits by killing your enemies & extracting their souls; spells can also be obtained via capture in the wild, by gaining Magician ranks, or possibly by persuading other Magicians to sell you their spares.
- Enough HP to survive the consequences of the Casting Action.
The rules for spellcasting are covered by the Casting Action.
Duration:Instant
Trigger:When you want to cast a spell from a Totem.
Casting is an Instant Save Action. There are two casting methods to follow depending on the kind of spirit you have. There are two kinds of spell-spirits:
- Spells are little spirits. They are captured or tamed & used as lenses for power by magicians of similar mindset & character.
- Souls are the spirits of more powerful entities. They are largely fixed in nature & cannot be changed simply by dumping power into them, but given an appropriate sacrifice will act on your behalf.
Both kinds of casting are dangerous.
After you cast a spell, you cannot heal HP until you spend at least a full day Resting.
Spell-casting
To cast a spell, you must have at least one personal Fact that resembles the nature of the spell. A geomancer needs to be Obsessed With Mathematics before he can use an organizational spell. An avian wizard needs to be Flighty to fly. The relationship can be poetic. More than half the relevant Players, GM included, have to agree. A Fact stating you are part of a Tradition that possesses the spell is always acceptable.
Assuming this condition is met, the process is as follows:
- Have a Totem containing a spirit held in a hand in front of you (it doesn't have to be your hand), with one of your hands free for gestures & invocation.
- Decide how many Spell Dice you want to invest into the casting.
- Roll all invested SD & determine the spell's effects (i.e. choose targets). The number of SD you invest is the [Dice] variable; the sum of all rolled values is the [Sum] variable.
- For each pair of doubled results rolled on your SD, suffer a Mishap from the Mishaps table. If you only invested 1 SD, a 6 causes a Mishap.
- Each invested SD that rolls 4–6 is exhausted.
Soul-casting
To cast a soul:
- Have a Totem containing a soul held in a hand in front of you (it doesn't have to be your hand), with one of your hands free for gestures & invocation.
- Take Damage equal to the spirit's Power. This Damage is called your sacrifice.
- Choose a benefit you wish to invoke from the spirit's list of Features:
- Roll a single d6 die. On a 1, the spirit-casting fails. On a 6, you suffer a Mishap from the Mishaps table. On any other value, the casting works as expected.
Mishaps
| 1d6 | Mishaps |
|---|---|
| 1 | After this, no Spirit will respond to you until you spend a full day Resting. |
| 2 | The spell targets you (if harmful), an enemy (if beneficial), or fizzles (otherwise). |
| 3 | Suffer whatever incapacitating or painful Condition is most conceptually related to the Spirit for 1d6 Rounds, as determined by the GM. |
| 4 | Take [Spirit Power] Damage (if soul-casting) or [Sum] Damage (if spell-casting), ignoring Armor. |
| 5 | Suffer a permanent random Mutation. |
| 6 | Roll again on this table, twice. |