Warlords Of Kruhl 3e EN:Magic

Contents

All magic in Warlords Of Kruhl is either arcane or sacred. Spell casters do not have set spell lists: they can cast any appropriate spell if they have the power to fuel that spell, and if they succeed at their skill roll to cast it.

Arcane Casters

Arcane casters manipulate the raw essence of the universe through a combination of training, education, and inherent ability. The entire spectrum of magical practice is available to arcane casters, with one exception: restoration magic. Arcane casters can't use magic to heal or to restore lost attributes.

An arcane caster has Arcane Power, which is an expendable resource used to empower their spells. The character's maximum Arcane Power is equal to their Power Level ×3. The character regains all of their spent Arcane Power after a solid night's rest. They may also regain a partial amount by studying their magical texts and meditating. Once per day, they may recover half of their spent Arcane Power (rounded up) by studying their magical texts and meditating for about an hour.

Sacred Casters

Unlike arcane casters, sacred casters do not rely on education or training. Sacred casters channel the power of their god or gods to perform miracles. Sacred casters focus on the spheres of influence of their gods, and are not able to cast spells which would directly undermine their gods' authority or importance.

A sacred caster has Sacred Power, which is an expendable resource used to empower their spells. The character's maximum Sacred Power is equal to their Power Level ×3. The character regains all of their spent Sacred Power after a solid night's rest. They may also regain a partial amount by studying their religious texts and meditating. They may recover half of their spent Sacred Power (rounded up) by studying their religious texts and meditating for about an hour.

The Cost Of Magic

The more complex the spell, the more it drains the caster's reserve of magical power. However, it is possible to reduce that cost, up to a point.

Aspects

By default, a spell:

• Affects a single target, or less than a two meter diameter area
• Can create an ordinary object of mediocre quality, up to 5 kg
• Inflicts or restores at most 1 Endurance damage
• Has a brief duration (less than a round for combat spells, less than an hour for noncombat spells)
• Can move a 5 kg object up to 5 m (but not as an attack)
• Has hand-to-hand range
• Can cause a noise, odour, taste, image, or other simple sensory effect (but not as an attack)
• Has a result that is found in nature
• Has an otherwise ordinary effect that would take a person with proper tools and training less than an hour to accomplish

A spell of this kind is called "petty magic" or a "cantrip". Petty magic does not require a skill roll unless the target is a person or creature, and it does not cost Arcane Power or Sacred Power.

The more aspects a spell has, the greater its cost in Arcane Power or Sacred Power. The number of aspects a spell has is sometimes called its "circle" or "level". Each aspect increases the Arcane Power or Sacred Power cost by 1.

• Area: spell affects everything within an area (maximum area based on the caster's Power Level)
• Creation: Creates an ordinary object of good quality (maximum mass based on the caster's Power Level)
• Damage: Spell inflicts +1 Endurance damage, if the spell is successful and if it inflicts at least one point of Endurance damage.
• Duration: spell lasts beyond a single round (maximum duration equal to "general effect", based on the caster's Power Level; rounds for combat spells, hours for noncombat spells)
• Motion: Move an object to a location (maximum mass and range based on the caster's Power Level)
• Penetration: The spell is penetrating (any of the defender’s dice that show a "5" or "6" are re-rolled until each die rolls lower than 5)
• Range: Spell has range beyond hand-to-hand (maximum range based on the caster's Power Level)
• Salvo: spell affects multiple people simultaneously (maximum number of targets equal to "general effect", based on the caster's Power Level)
• Sensation: Creates a convincing illusion with all associated sensory effects (maximum area based on the caster's Power Level)
• Summoning: Spell summons a creature to aid the caster (maximum attributes of creature equal to "general effect", based on the caster's Power Level)
• Travel: Move a person or creature to a location (maximum range based on the caster's Power Level)
• Unnatural: Spell has a result that does not occur in nature
• Utility: Spell has an otherwise ordinary effect that would take a person or persons with proper tools and training more than an hour to accomplish

If the aspect of the spell is greater than 0 (before any reductions for technique, below), the spell always requires a skill roll to cast. The spell is either resisted by the intended target, or it is a remarkably difficult (DV 6) task when the target is not a person or creature.

When the target is a person or creature, the target's defense roll is either Hand-to-hand Combat, Ranged Combat, or Magic Resistance. Every person and creature automatically has the Magic Resistance skill. Magic Resistance is the skill used for defending against unnatural attacks (those which do not inflict ordinary Endurance damage). Magic Resistance is usually based on Presence. Unlike other skills, characters may not buy expertise with Magic Resistance (however, some creatures have it naturally).

Techniques

Each technique used reduces the cost of the spell by 1 Arcane Power or Sacred Power. The cost in Arcane Power or Sacred Power can be reduced by up to half (rounded in the character's favour, to a minimum of 1).

• Ritual (2d6 * 10 minutes)
• Uncommon materials (materials one does not normally have at hand, which are consumed by the casting of the spell)
• Gestures and incantations (impossible to conceal the casting of the spell)
• Personal focus (wand, staff, amulet, holy symbol)
• Sacrifice (an animal... usually)
• Contagion (an item important to the target, or a part of the target itself)