Dungeons the Dragoning 1.6

CHAPTER VIII:
MAGIC

Psychic Strength

Fettered Unfettered Push

Sanctioned Sorcerer No roll for psychic If the sorcerer keeps any ex- Make a check on the psychic

phenomena. ploded dice in his Focus phenomena table at +5 per

Power Test, roll on the Psy- die desired, up to a maxi-

chic Phenomena table. mum of +3/+15

Unsanctioned Sor- No roll for psychic If the sorcerer keeps any ex- Make a check on the psychic
cerer
phenomena. ploded dice in his Focus phenomena table at +10 per

Power Test, roll on the Psy- die desired, up to a maxi-

chic Phenomena table at +5 mum of +4/+40

per level of the spell.

cess. Focus Power is the catch-all phrase used examples range from creating illisions, to firing
to encompass the many Tests that may be re- bolts of energy, to seeing the future, to rarer
quired - varying by the action it takes to use, arts like animating the dead, summoning dae-
the characteristic required, and occasionally mons from the warp, and the transmutation of
other factors. As with all other Tests, the char- matter. These abilities usually begin as a basic,
acteristic determines the number of kept dice. almost rudimentary form of the power - the
Some spells require a Magic School and a first level of spells in each Magical School.
Power Stat. Whenever you cast one of these Over time, a sorcerer can learn more ways to
spells, the Power Stat is what determines the fine tune that power for a variety of effects.
number of kept dice.
This chapter represents nine Magical
Cumulative Effects Schools in detail which are most prevalent
among the Sanctioned Sorcerers through the
Modifiers, Characteristic Bonuses, Great Wheel.
and other effects generated by spells do not
stack, only the highest applies. *Abjuration: Abjurations are protec-
tive spells. They create magical or physical
Range and Line of Sight barriers, negate magical or physical abilities,
harm trespassers, or even create a point for
Unless noted in their descriptions, your own magical effects to trigger off on later.
spells that are targeted directly against other
individuals require the sorcerer to either have *Conjuration: Conjuration is the art
line of sight or otherwise be 'aware' of the tar- of moving objects, creatures, or some form of
get of his powers, as well as the target to be in- energy through the warp. A creature or object
side of the power's stated range. summoned with a conjuration effect cannot
appear inside another creature or object, nor
Detecting Magical Effects can it appear floating in an empty space. It
must arrive in an open location on a surface
Sorcerers are attuned to the warp capable of supporting it.
around them and that includes the currents
and eddies caused by other sorcerers dipping *Divination: The art of reading the
into the flow of the warp. All sorcerers can past, present, and future. In addition, this dis-
Test Arcana + Wisdom (TN 20) when spells cipline also encompasses the art of influencing
are in effect in their presence in order to de- fate and destiny.
termine their source.
*Enchantment: Enchantment spells
Magical Schools affect the minds of others, influencing or con-
trolling their behavior. Many attempt to
There are many different spells that a charm or force an individual to do something,
sorcerer can possess, for the mutability of the and can be resisted by those with enough
warp is as limitless as imagination itself. Some willpower.

*Evocation: Evocation spells manip-
ulate energy or tap an unseen source of power

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to produce a desired end. In effect, they create School (Level)
something out of nothing. Many of these spells Beneath the spell name is a line giving
produce spectacular effects, and evocation the school of magic that the spell belongs to
spells can deal large amounts of damage. and the level of that spell.
Focus Power Test
*Healing: Healing spells enhance a The type of Test the spell requires.
subject's abilities, often granting them super- This will typically be the spell school and a
human strengths and curing them of even the characteristic or a power stat. Remember that
most deadly wounds. rolling doubles on the focus power Test in-
vokes psychic phenomena unless the power is
*Illusion: Illusion spells deceive the being used at fettered psychic strength.
senses or minds of others. They cause people Target Number
to see things that are not there, not see things The TN is the threshold to activate
that are there, hear phantom noises, or other- the spell. Many powers gain in strength as you
wise experience things that are unreal. get raises above the spell's base TN.
Action
*Necromancy: Necromancy spells Most spells have a casting time of a
manipulate the power of death, unlife, and the half action. Others take a full action, and oth-
life force. Spells that enhance the powers of ers take a reaction action or merely a free ac-
vampires are obviously common, as Vampires tion.
developed and exclusively use the school of Keywords
Necromancy. These rules use the following key-
words to describe qualities of a spell.
*Transmutation: Transmutation Attack: This spell counts as an attack
spells are about change, both in the caster and against the target.
in the world around him. The school of trans- Combo-OK: You can use this spell to
mutation relies on the caster's own ability to build a Combo.
change shape, drawing on that mutable core Focus: This spell requires a focus, a
to power its effects. material object that, if destroyed, instantly
ends the spell.
LEARNING SPELLS Language Dependent: In order for
this spell to function, the caster and target
Whenever a character gains a dot in a must share a common language.
spell school, he learns one of the spells in that Material: When casting this spell you
school of the appropriate level. Most of the require some material components which are
time, this will mean making a choice as to consumed in casting the spell.
which spells you want to learn and which Mind-Affecting: This spell affects the
you're willing to give up. Some feats might mind of the target, and so can only be used on
allow you to choose additional spells to learn. targets that are sentient.
Once you've chosen which spells to learn, you Ranged Touch: To affect a target
may not change these spells later - each one with this spell requires hitting the target with
isn't just a representation of effort, but of the a ranged attack (Dexterity + Ballistics).
magic becoming an intrinsic part of your char- Saving Throw: This spell allows the
acter. target to make a Test to resist its effects. If the
target resists its effects, they become aware of
SPELLS the spell, even if it has the Subtle keyword.
Unless otherwise listed, the TN of the Saving
The spells available to characters are Throw is equal to the FP test used to cast it.
listed and described below. The description of Social: This spell is often used in so-
each spell is presented in a standard format. cial situations and cannot be used during com-
Each category of information is explained and bat.
defined below.

Name
The first line of every spell description
gives the name by which the spell is generally
known.

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PSYCHIC PHENOMENA (1D100)

01-03 Dark Foreboding: A faint breeze blows past the sorcerer and those near him, and everyone gets the feeling
04-05 that somewhere in the galaxy, something unfortunate just happened.
06-08 Warp Echo: For a few seconds, all noise causes echoes, regardless of the surroundings.
09-11
12-14 Unholy Stench: The air around the sorcerer becomes permeated with a bizarre and foul smell.
15-17
18-20 Warp Mind: The sorcerer suffers 1 Insanity Point as his own inherent phobias, suspicions, and hatreds surge
21-23 to the surface of his mind in a wave of negative emotion.
24-26 Hoarfrost: The temperature plummets for an instant, and a thin coating of frost covers everything within
27-29 3d10 meters.
30-32
33-35 Aura of Taint: All animals within 1d100 meters become spooked and agitated.
36-38
39-41 Memory Worm: All people within line of sight to the sorcerer forget something trivial.
42-44
45-47 Spoilage: Food and drink go bad in a 5d10 meter radius.
48-50
51-53 Haunting Breeze: Wind whips up around the sorcerer for a few seconds, blowing light objects about and gut-
54-56 tering fires within 3d10 meters.
57-59
60-62 Veil of Darkness: For a brief moment (the remainer of the round) the area within 3d10 meters is plunged
63-65 into immediate darkness.

66-68 Distorted Reflections: Mirrors and other reflective surfaces within a radius of 5d10 meters distort or shatter.

69-71 Breath Leech: Everyone (including the sorcerer) becomes short of breath for one round and cannot make
any Run or Charge actions.
72-74 Mask of Fear: For a fleeting moment, the sorcerer takes on a terrible appearance and gains a Fear rating of
1 for the rest of the round.
75+
Unnatural Decay: All plant-life within 3d10 meters of the psyker withers and dies.

Spectral Gale: Howling winds erupt around the sorcerer, requiring him and anyone within 4d10 meters to
make a TN 10 Dexterity or Strength Test to avoid being knocked to the ground.

Bloody Tears: Blood weeps from stone and wood within 3d10 meters of the sorcerer. If there are any pictures
of statues of people inside this area, they appear to be crying blood.

The Earth Protests: The ground suddenly shakes, and everyone (including the sorcerer) within a 5d10 meter
radius must make a TN 15 Dexterity Test or be knocked down.

Psy Discharge: Static electricity fills the air for 5d10 meters around the sorcerer causing hair to stand on end
and unprotected electronics to short out.

Warp Ghosts: Ghostly apparitions fill the air for 3d10 meters around the sorcerer, flying about and howling
in pain for a few brief moments. Everyone in the radius must Test against fear 1.

Falling Upwards: Everything within 2d10 meters of the sorcerer (including him) rises 1d10 meters into the
air as gravity briefly disappears before falling to the ground after a second or two.
Banshee Howl: A deafening keening sounds out across the immediate area, shattering glass and forcing every
creature in the area to make a Constitution Test (TN 15) or be deafened for 1d10 rounds.

The Furies: The sorcerer is assailed by unseen horrors. He is slammed to the ground and loses 1d5 hit points
and must Test against Fear 2.

Shadow of the Warp: For a split second the world changes in appearance and everyone within 1d100 meters
has a brief glimpse of the shadow of the warp. Everyone in the area (including the sorcerer) must make a TN
20 Willpower Test or gain 1d5 insanity points.

Tech Scorn: The electromagnetic discharge created by the spell causes all tech devices within 5d10 meters
to malfunction momentarily and all ranged weapons jam. Characters with cybernetic implants (and
prometheans) must pass a TN 15 Constitution Test or lose 1d5 hit points.

Warp Madness: A violent ripple of tainted discord causes all creatures within 2d10 meters (with the exception
of the sorcerer) to become Frenzied for a round unless they pass a TN 20 Willpower Test.

Perils of the Warp: The warp opens in a maelstrom of energy. Roll on the Perils of the Warp table instead.

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PERILS OF THE WARP (1D100)

01-05 The Gibbering: The sorcerer screams in pain as uncontrolled warp energies surge through his un-
protected mind. He must make a TN 20 Willpower Test or suffer 1d5+1 Insanity points and is
06-09 stunned for 1d5 rounds.
10-13
Warp Burn: A violent burst of energy from the warp smashes into the sorcerer's mind, sending
him reeling. He loses 1d5 Hit Points and is stunned for 1d5 rounds.

Psychic Concussion: With a crack of energy, the sorcerer is knocked unconscious for 1d5 rounds,
and everyone within 3d10 meters must make a TN 15 Willpower Test or be stunned for one
round.

14-18 Psy-Blast: There is an explosion of power, and the sorcerer is thrown 1d10 meters into the air,
falling to the ground.

19-24 Soul Sear: Warp power courses through the Sorcerer's body, scorching his soul. The sorcerer can-
not use any powers for one hour.

25-30 Locked In: The power cages the Sorcerer's mind in an ethereal prison. The Sorcerer falls to the
ground in a catatonic state. Each round thereafter, he must spend a full action to Test Willpower
(TN 15) On a success, his mind is freed and restored to his body.

31-38 Chronological Incontinence: Time warps around the sorcerer. He winks out of existence and reap-
pears in 1d10 rounds and suffers 1d5 Insanity Points.

39-46 Psychic Mirror: The Sorcerer's power is turned back on him. Resolve the spell's effect as normal,
but the spell targets the Sorcerer instead. If the spell is beneficial, it instead makes the sorcerer
lose 1d5 Hit Points and the beneficial effect is cancelled.

47-55 Warp Whispers: The voices of daemons fill the air within 4d10 meters of the sorcerer, whispering
terrible secrets and shocking truths. Everyone in the area must make a TN 25 Willpower Test or
suffer 1d10 Insanity Points.

56-58 The Darkness: The area is cloaked in terrible screaming darkness, rendering everyone within 5d10
meters of the sorcerer blind and deaf for the next 1d10 rounds.

59-67 Teleport Storm: Mystical lightning strikes the ground in a terrible displacement storm. Everyone
within 3d10 meters of the sorcerer switches places with someone else at random.

68-72 Rending the Veil: The air vibrates with images of cackling daemons and the kaleidoscopic taint of
73-78 the warp is rendered visible. All sentient creatures within 1d100 meters must Test against Fear 3.
79-82 This effect lasts for 1d5 rounds.
83-86
87-90 Blood Rain: A magical storm erupts, covering an area of 5d10 meters in which everyone must pass
91-99 a TN 15 Strength check or be knocked to the ground. The skies rain blood and any Spells cast in
the area automatically invoke a Perils of the Warp check for the next 1d5 rounds.

Cataclysmic Blast: The sorcerer's power overloads, arcing out in great bolts of energy. Anyone
within 1d10 meters (including the sorcerer) loses 1d5+2 Hit Points. The sorcerer may not cast
any spells for 1d5 hours.

Power Drain: The sorcerer's power glitches and tries to draw power from the spirits of others.
Everyone within 3d10 meters of the sorcerer lose all unspent hero points.

Reality Quake: Reality buckles around the sorcerer, and an area radiating out 3d10 meters from
him is sundered: everything rots, burns, and freezes, and everything in the area takes 3d10 Rending
damage.

Lost to the Warp: The sorcerer must make a TN 30 Willpower Test or he is dragged into the warp
by a daemon immediately for purposes unknown. He reappears 1d10 weeks later on an inhabited
planet with only dim, horrific memories of what happened. He suffers 3d10 Insanity Points and
all future Perils of the Warp Tests are made at +10.

00 Destruction: The sorcerer is sucked screaming into the Warp, never to be seen again. He is no
more.

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Somatic: This spell has Somatic com- EXAMPLE SPELL COMBO
ponents. It cannot be used if the caster is
bound, grappled, or otherwise unable to move Mistress Scarlet has saved up some
freely. XP and has decided to use some of her
downtime to develop a new spell combo.
Subtle: The effects of this spell are not Mistress Scarlet has Illusion 2 and Evocation
immediately obvious. Other spellcasters can 3, and looks over her spell list. She chooses
Test Arcana + Wisdom (TN 20) to notice it. to combine Invisibility and Energyball to
create a spell that will let her blow someone
Touch: A touch spell requires the up and vanish at the same time.
caster to touch the target in order for the spell
to take effect. Touching an unwilling target re- Mistress Scarlet has an Intelligence
quires an unarmed attack Test (using Brawl.) of 3 and a Charisma of 4. Since spell combos
use the lowest of the magic school ratings
Verbal: The spell has verbal compo- and characteristics involved, this spell
nents. It cannot be used if the caster cannot combo uses Illusion and Intelligence.
speak, and the caster must speak in a clear,
loud voice for the spell to take effect. Invisibility doesn't have a minimum
TN, but Energyball has a TN of 25. Since
Duration this combo includes 2 spells, the TN is in-
The length of time the spell lasts. creased by 5, so this combo has a total TN
Spells can measure their duration in real units, of 30 - Mistress Scarlet is going to have to
such as days, or game units, such as rounds or push this spell pretty hard to have a good
scenes. Indefinite spells have no fixed duration chance of success.
- they last until the caster cancels the effect.
Instant spells happen in an instant, like the ex- Developing Combos
plosive burst of a fireball. When a spell's du-
ration is listed as Concentration, it will include Characters develop combos through
the action that the caster must spend each long exercise of their powers, devoting hours
round in order to maintain its effect. An (E) of effort toward integrating their abilities and
after the spell duration means that the spell understanding their spells and how they inter-
can be expended, and how it can be expended act. Because of the sheer amount of effort and
will be listed in the spell description. danger required to make a Combo, a character
Description cannot purchase spell combos during charac-
This portion of a spell description de- ter creation.
tails what the spell does and how it works. If
one of the previous entries in the description During play, a character can develop
included "see text" this is where the explana- combos through arduous practice. The expe-
tion is found. If the spell you're reading about rience point cost of Combos developed during
is based on another spell, you might have to play is equal to 50 xp per level of each spell in
refer to a different spell for the "see text" in- the combo. However, Story Masters don't
formation. have to let a character learn a Combo just be-
cause the player has enough XP saved up.
SPELL COMBOS Combos are hard - they're less a studied
method of using the power of the warp and
With long practice and focus, it's pos- more trying to manipulate it on the fly.
sible for a spellcaster to combine spells to-
gether, becoming able to cast multiple spells General Guidelines
at once. For example, A sorcerer who has mas-
tered the combo of Stun and Energy Burst can Using a combo allows a character to
blast a target for damage and reduce his ac- use two, three, or more spells with a single ac-
tions. Combos represent a level of magical tion. Don't worry if this seems like it could get
power above simple spells, and are more dan- confusing. This section will go over the rules
gerous for the spellcaster to use, but far more for using combos in detail.
effective.
The Test for using a combo uses the
lowest of the characteristics and magical

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schools that apply to the spells in the combo. Somatic, or Material components, then the
The TN of the combo is that of the entire combo will fail if the caster can't provide
those components. Language Dependency,
highest TN spell in the combo, plus five for Mind-Affecting, and being an Attack are han-
every spell beyond the first. dled per effect rather than on the combo as a
whole, and if a Saving throw would negate one
A Combo cannot be used with a Fet- part of a combo, it doesn't negate the entire
tered focus power Test. Most of the time, a thing. Attacks are rolled separately for each
combo will need to be Pushed to have much part of a combo, and a miss doesn't cause the
chance of success. If psychic phenomena whole combo to collapse. Unless all spells in a
occur, add +5 to the roll for every spell in the combo are subtle, the combo is not subtle as a
combo, in addition to any additions to the roll whole.
from Pushing the power or being Unsanc-
tioned. The same spell cannot be used twice
in a combo - the spells chosen must be differ-
A Combo takes an action equal to the ent spells. So no doubling a spellÊs effect just
longest action of spells in the combo. by making a combo.

Duration and range of the spells in
the combo are handled separately.

If one spell requires a Focus, Verbal,

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Abjuration School

Shield Mage Armor

Abjuration 1 Abjuration 3
Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower
Target Number: 10 Target Number: 20
Action: Reaction Action Action: Half Action
Keywords: Somatic Keywords: Somatic, Touch
Duration: Instant Duration: One Day
You may use the result of this spell as a parry The touched creature gains Armor Points
Test. equal to your Level. For every raise you get on
the Focus Power test, the value of the granted
Armouring Aura Armor Points goes up by one to a maximum
of three times your level. The armor provided
Abjuration 1 by this spell does not stack with nonmagical
Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower armor, but it requires no proficiency to use.
Target Number: 10
Action: Half Action Glyph
Keywords: Somatic, Touch
Duration: One Scene Abjuration 3
The touched creature gains Aura 1. For every Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower
raise you get on the Focus Power test, the Target Number: 25
value of the granted Aura goes up by 1 to a Action: Full Action
maximum of three times your Level. Keywords: Focus, Somatic, Touch
Duration: One day
Knock You touch an object or person and create a
Glyph. You may cast spells at the glyph with-
Abjuration 2 out having line of effect, though it must still
Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower be within range of the spell. For example, you
Target Number: 20 could put a glyph on a rock, throw it over a
Action: Half Action wall, then cast fireball targeting the glyph, ex-
Keywords: Somatic, Touch ploding anything behind the wall without pok-
Duration: Instant ing your head over to look.
You unlock a touched door, disabling all non- Focus: A small gem.
magical locks on it.
Exploding Runes
Dispel
Abjuration 4
Abjuration 2 Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower
Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower Target Number: 30
Target Number: 15 Action: Full Action
Action: Reaction Action Keywords: Social, Somatic, Touch
Keywords: - Duration: Indefinite (E)
Duration: Instant You inscribe a series of runes on an object. If
You may use this spell as a reaction to counter anyone except you and anyone else you name
a spell being cast, with the target number of as safe during the casting of this spell reads
this spell equal to the Magic roll of the caster these runes, they explode, dealing 4k4 damage
of the target spell. to everyone within 3m.

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Disjunction Contingency

Abjuration 4 Abjuration 5
Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower Focus Power Test: Abjuration + Willpower
Target Number: 20 Target Number: 30
Action: Reaction Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: - Keywords: Social, Somatic, Touch
Duration: Instant Duration: Indefinite (E)
This spell functions as Dispel, but if you suc- On the completion of this spell, you must im-
ceed on the counter attempt, the target cannot mediately cast another spell. That spell does
cast spells until the end of your next turn. not take immediate effect. Under a condition
chosen at the time of casting, that spell takes
immediate effect. Targets must be chosen
when the spell is cast, though they may be left
vague (for example, you might cast fireball and
set the target at 'what I am pointing to'). A
character may only have one Contingency ac-
tive at a time.

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Conjuration School Blink

Invisible Servant Conjuration 1
Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower
Conjuration 1 Target Number: 15
Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower Action: Half Action
Target Number: 15 Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic
Action: Full Action Duration: Instant
Keywords: Social, Verbal You teleport to a spot you can see within 40m.
Duration: One hour
You summon an invisible roaming animating Lesser Servant
force. It can perform any task that doesn't re-
quire a skill check, and has effective rating of Conjuration 2
1 in each characteristic. It lasts for one hour, Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower
and is often used for cleaning and simple tasks. Target Number: 20
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Material, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: One minute per caster level
You summon a weak creature to aid you. It
has a rating of 2 in all characteristics and 2
ranks in any relevant skills.
Material: A candle

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Call Item Greater Servant

Conjuration 2 Conjuration 4
Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower
Target Number: 20 Target Number: 30
Action: Full Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Touch, Social Keywords: Material, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: Indefinite Duration: One minute per caster level.
You cast this spell on an item you can hold in As Lesser Servant, except the summoned crea-
one hand. You may teleport that item into ture has 4 in all characteristics and 4 in all rel-
your hand at any time, from any distance, as a evant skills.
free action. You may have only one item pre- Material: A candle
pared in this way at a time.
Teleport
Porte
Conjuration 4
Conjuration 3 Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower
Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower Target Number: 30
Target Number: 20 Action: Full Action
Action: Half Action or Reaction Action Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic, Verbal
Keywords: Somatic Duration: Instant
Duration: One day per Caster level. As Blink, but with no maximum distance, and
You create a portal large enough for a person you may teleport anywhere you have seen be-
to walk through in a place you can see within fore. Unless you are extremely familiar with
100m. The portal must be placed on a rela- the destination, you must make a Wisdom +
tively flat surface, but can otherwise be set at Perception check against TN 25 (The SM
any angle. If the surface moves, the portal van- may raise the TN for locations you've only
ishes instantly. You must cast this spell twice seen once or have seen only from a distance or
for it to have much effect. The portals are like through divination spells). Teleport cannot be
a doorway - there's no real space between used to teleport through Crystal Spheres or
them, entering one immediately puts you out into shielded ships.
the other. You can hang halfway through a
portal, though if one is closed you're expelled Gate
through the open side. Momentum is con-
served through the portals. You may have only Conjuration 5
two portals open at once. If you attempt to Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower
open a third, you must choose which of your Target Number: 35
existing portals closes. Action: Full Action
Keywords: Social, Somatic
Jaunt Duration: One day per Caster Level.
As Porte, save you don't need to have line of
Conjuration 3 effect to the target for the portal opening. This
Focus Power Test: Conjuration + Willpower portal counts as one of the two open portals
Target Number: 25 you may have and otherwise follows all the
Action: Reaction Action rules of Porte. Unless you are extremely famil-
Keywords: Combo-OK iar with the destination, you must make a Wis-
Duration: Instant dom + Perception check against TN 25 (The
You instantly teleport up to 10m away. If used SM may raise the TN for locations you've only
in reaction to an attack, you can use this as a seen once or have seen only from a distance or
dodge attempt. through divination spells).

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Divination School Scry

Augury Divination 3
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom
Divination 1 Target Number: 25
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom Action: Full Action
Target Number: 20 Keywords: Focus, Social, Somatic, Verbal
Action: Full Action Duration: Concentration (Half)
Keywords: Material, Social To cast this spell, you must have an object that
Duration: Instant belongs to the target you wish to scry, or a part
You get a general idea of if your current course of their body (like a lock of hair). The target
of action is likely to have positive or negative may roll Arcana + Willpower to resist. If this
results for you. A failure on this spell still ap- spell is successful, you can see and hear the
pears to function, but gives a false result. target and their surroundings out to about 10
Material: Dice, cards, runes, or some other meters. You must spend a half action every
means of telling a fortune. round to maintain this effect.
Focus: A mirror, crystal ball or scrying pool

Whisper Precognition

Divination 1 Divination 3
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom
Target Number: 15 Target Number: 25
Action: Free Action Action: Half Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Subtle Keywords: Combo-OK, Subtle
Duration: Instant Duration: One scene (E)
You send a short message (a sentence or so) You may reroll one failed roll. For every raise
to a target you can see. No one but the target you get on this spell's magic Test, you get one
can hear the message. additional reroll. You may use these in addi-
tion to any other rerolling ability and may use
Forsee as many of these as you like on a given Test.

Divination 2 Mind Net
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom
Target Number: 15 Divination 4
Action: Reaction Action Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom
Keywords: Somatic Target Number: 30
Duration: Instant Action: Full Action
You may use this spell in place of a dodge test. Keywords: Mind-Affecting, Subtle
Duration: One scene
Luck You create a telepathic network between your
allies. Until the end of the scene, you and any
Divination 2 allies you name on casting this spell can speak
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom through this network silently and instantly.
Target Number: 20
Action: Half Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Subtle
Duration: One scene (E)
Until the end of the scene, you gain 1 extra
'floating' rolled die that you may apply an ac-
tion. For every raise you get, you gain one ad-
ditional floating die. You may use a number
of these floating die up to your level on any
one roll. Once used, they vanish.

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Unluck Commune

Divination 4 Divination 5
Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom Focus Power Test: Divination + Wisdom
Target Number: 30 Target Number: 30
Action: Half Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Saving Keywords: Focus, Language Dependent, Ma-
Throw, Subtle terial, Mind-Affecting, Social, Verbal
Duration: One scene Duration: One minute per level.
Choose a target within 10m. He loses one You begin a conversation with anyone you
rolled die from all rolls, plus one for every raise name, regardless of distance or barriers be-
on the magic Test. The target may resist with tween you. The target may end this conversa-
Arcana + Willpower. tion at any time. It lasts for up to five minutes.
Focus: A scrying pool, crystal ball or mirror.
Material: Incense.

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Enchantment Command

School Enchantment 1
Test: Enchantment + Charisma
Charm Person Target Number: 15
Action: Half Action
Enchantment 1 Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Language
Test: Enchantment + Charisma Dependent, Mind-Affecting, Saving Throw,
Target Number: 15 Verbal
Action: Half Action Duration: Instant
Keywords: Mind-Affecting, Social, Subtle Deliver a one-word command to the target,
Duration: One scene. which they must attempt to obey with their
The target likes you for no reason at all, treat- next action if they fail an Arcana + Willpower
ing you like an old friend and granting +2k0 roll. Targets will automatically resist obviously
to all social rolls. The target may resist with self-destructive commands like 'Suicide' or a
Arcana + Willpower. If you treat a charmed command to jump from a bridge. If they can-
target well, they might just continue to think not complete the action with their next action
of you as a friend. in combat, they will attempt to do their best
given the time they have.

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Stun Awe

Enchantment 2 Enchantment 3
Test: Enchantment + Charisma Test: Enchantment + Charisma
Target Number: 20 Target Number: 25
Action: Half Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Saving Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Saving
Throw, Somatic Throw, Somatic
Duration: Instant Duration: Instant
The target, a creature within 10m, may only This works as Stun, except on all creatures
take a half action on his next turn. He may re- within a 10m radius.
sist this effect with Arcana + Willpower. If he
fails by 5 or more, he loses his entire action in- Encore
stead.
Enchantment 4
Attraction Test: Enchantment + Charisma
Target Number: 30
Enchantment 2 Action: Half Action
Test: Enchantment + Charisma Keywords: Mind-Affecting, Verbal
Target Number: 20 Duration: One round per level. (E)
Action: Full Action The target must Test Arcana + Willpower
Keywords: Mind-Affecting, Saving Throw, every turn, or else he must repeat the same ac-
Social, Subtle, Touch tions he took in his last turn if possible.
Duration: One hour.
The touched object or creature generates an Blindness
aura that just draws attention from everyone
around. Creatures passing within 30m can't Enchantment 4
help but stop and look. If it's a person, they Test: Enchantment + Charisma
hang on his every word, giving +1k1 to all so- Target Number: 30
cial rolls. People will attempt to interact with Action: Half Action
this object - opening doors, reading signs, and Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Saving
so forth. This effect lasts up to one hour, and Throw, Somatic
may be resisted with Arcana + Willpower. Duration: One day.
The target touched becomes blinded if they
Dominate fail to resist with Arcana + Willpower. This ef-
fect lasts for one day.
Enchantment 3
Test: Enchantment + Charisma Geas
Target Number: 25
Action: Full Action Enchantment 5
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Language Test: Enchantment + Charisma
Dependent, Mind-Affecting, Saving Throw Target Number: 20
Duration: Concentration (Half) Action: Half Action
You control the actions of target creature Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Language
within 10m. You must spend a half action Dependent, Mind-Affecting, Saving Throw,
every round to maintain this effect. The crea- Subtle, Verbal
ture may Test Arcana + Willpower to resist. If Duration: One Scene. (E)
you ask the creature to do something outside This works as Command, save the target will
of its nature, it gets a free raise to that roll. If follow suicidal commands if they fail their Test
you force it to do something self-destructive or to resist and the target may undertake ex-
violent towards an ally, it gets three free raises. tended actions rather than just using their next
action, up to the duration of the scene.

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Evocation School Energy Grasp

Magic Missile Evocation 2
Test: Evocation + Charisma
Evocation 1 Target Number: 20
Test: Evocation + Charisma Action: Half Action
Target Number: 15 Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Touch, So-
Action: Half Action matic, Verbal
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Somatic Duration: Instant
Duration: Instant Your hand glows with an awesome power.
One target within 30m takes 2k1 damage. For You may make an unarmed melee attack. Roll
every raise you gain on this roll, you may copy Evocation + Charisma as damage.
this spell and attack the same or a different tar-
get. The target may not dodge this attack. The Energy Ray
maximum number of copies of this spell you
may make is equal to your level. Evocation 2
Test: Evocation + Charisma
Energy Burst Target Number: 20
Action: Full Action
Evocation 1 Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Ranged
Test: Evocation + Charisma Touch, Somatic
Target Number: 15 Duration: Instant
Action: Half Action Make a ranged attack with a maximum range
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Ranged of 50m per level. This attack deals 5k3 dam-
Touch, Somatic age.
Duration: Instant
Make an attack with Blast 2 that deals 3k2
damage, plus 2 damage per level, at a range of
up to 30m.

164

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MAGIC

Energyball Energy Bits

Evocation 3 Evocation 4
Test: Evocation + Charisma Test: Evocation + Charisma
Target Number: 25 Target Number: 5
Action: Half Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Material, Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Ranged At-
Ranged Touch, Somatic tack, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: Instant Duration: One Scene (E)
Make an attack with Blast 10 that deals 2k1 Create one sphere of energy plus one for every
damage per level, at a range of 30m. raise you get on this roll. These spheres last
Material: A pinch of gunpowder. until the end of the scene. You may expend
any number of these spheres at the beginning
Energy Aura of your turn as a free action. For each sphere
you expend, make a ranged attack with a range
Evocation 3 of 50m that deals 4k2 damage. You may not
Test: Evocation + Charisma attack the same target with more than 2
Target Number: 15 spheres per turn.
Action: Reaction Action
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Focus, So- Energy Meteors
matic, Verbal
Duration: One scene. Evocation 5
Create an aura that deals 1k1 +3 damage/level Test: Evocation + Charisma
to everyone in melee range of you at the end Target Number: 30
of your turn or who you hit in melee which Action: Full Action
lasts until the end of the scene. Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Ranged
Touch, Somatic, Verbal
Energy Wall Duration: Instant
Make an attack with Burst 10 that deals 6k4
Evocation 4 damage at a range of up to 120m. Copy this
Test: Evocation + Charisma spell for each dot you have in Evocation.
Target Number: 25
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Attack, Material, Somatic
Duration: One scene
Create a wall that is 10 meters long, plus five
meters for every raise you get on this roll. Peo-
ple can see and target through this wall. Any-
one who passes through this wall takes 4k2
damage. This wall lasts until the end of the
scene.
Material: A vial of oil.

165

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MAGIC

Healing School

Cure Light Wounds Cure Moderate Wounds

Healing 1 Healing 3
Test: Healing + Wisdom Test: Healing + Wisdom
Target Number: 15 Target Number: 25
Action: Half Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic, Touch, Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic, Touch,
Verbal Verbal
Duration: Instant Duration: Instant
If the caster spends a resource point while The caster may spend any number of resource
casting this spell, the target is healed for one points while casting this spell. If they do, the
hit point. touched target is healed for that many hit
points.
Boon
Rebuke
Healing 1
Test: Healing + Wisdom Healing 3
Target Number: 15 Test: Healing + Wisdom
Action: Half Action Target Number: 25
Keywords: Combo-OK, Verbal Action: Half Action
Duration: One Minute (E) Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Verbal
All allies within 10m get +1k0 on their next at- Duration: Instant
tack roll. This bonus is lost if it isn't used Choose a target within 10m. If that target wor-
within one minute. ships the same god as you, this spell has no ef-
fect. Otherwise, the target loses one hit point
Regeneration and loses one unspent hero point.

Healing 2 Consecrate
Test: Healing + Wisdom
Target Number: 20 Healing 4
Action: Full Action Test: Healing + Wisdom
Keywords: Social, Somatic, Touch Target Number: 30
Duration: Instant Action: Full Action
You touch a target. If used on a target that is Keywords: Material, Somatic, Verbal
missing a limb, and they spend a week getting Duration: See text.
bed rest, they may regrow one missing limb You create an area 50m in radius. Those
during that time. within this area who worship the same god as
the caster gain +1k0 on all rolls. The caster
Boost may spend a half action every round to merely
maintain this area. This area's size degrades by
Healing 2 5m every minute after the caster stops.
Test: Healing + Wisdom Material: Holy water or incense.
Target Number: 20
Action: Half Action
Keywords: Verbal
Duration: Instant
Choose an Ally within 10m. That ally may im-
mediately take a half action. This does not
change that ally's place in the initiative order.

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Holy Weapon Resurrection

Healing 4 Healing 5
Test: Healing + Wisdom Test: Healing + Wisdom
Target Number: 30 Target Number: 35
Action: Half Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Material, Somatic, Touch, Verbal Keywords: Social, Somatic, Touch, Verbal
Duration: One day. Duration: Instant
The touched weapon deals +1k1 damage to The caster spends five resource points. If he
enemies of your god and counts as a magical does, the touched corpse is returned to life at
weapon. This effect lasts for one day. En- 0 hit points. The subject loses one dot of Con-
chanting a new weapon ends the previous ef- stitution. If they had only one dot of Consti-
fect immediately. tution to begin with, the spell fails and they
Material: A sharpening stone. cannot be returned to life.

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Illusion School Ghost Sound

Image Illusion 2
Test: Illusion + Intelligence
Illusion 1 Target Number: 20
Test: Illusion + Intelligence Action: Half Action
Target Number: 15 Keywords: Combo-OK, Subtle
Action: Full Action Duration: Instant
Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic You create a sound from a source up to 20m
Duration: Concentration (Half) away an in your line of sight. If you get at least
You create an image up to 3m cubed within one raise on this roll, you can create intelligible
10m. You must spend a half action on each of speech. If you get two raises, you may mimic
your turns after the first to maintain it. If you a specific person's voice. This sound can be
spend a full action, you may make the image from as quiet as a whisper to loud as a shout.
move, though it cannot leave the 3m cube it
was created in - an illusion of a man could be Silence
made to blink and shift his weight, for exam-
ple, instead of being static. A Wisdom + Per- Illusion 3
ception Test allows viewers to tell it is unreal. Test: Illusion + Intelligence
Target Number: 25
Disguise Action: Half Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic.
Illusion 1 Duration: One minute per level.
Test: Illusion + Intelligence A touched object or person radiates an aura of
Target Number: - silence out to 5m. Stealth Tests involving
Action: Half Action sound within this area automatically succeed,
Keywords: Material, Social, Somatic and sounds from outside the area simply stop
Duration: Concentration (reaction) at the border. This effect lasts for up to 1
You may use this spell instead of the Disguise minute per level.
Skill in order to disguise yourself, the result of
the Magic Test being the quality of your dis-
guise. You must spend one reaction action per
turn to maintain this disguise.
Material: A pinch of rouge.

Invisibility

Illusion 2
Test: Illusion + Intelligence
Target Number: -
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Subtle
Duration: One minute per level.
You become invisible, and may use the result
from this magic Test in place of stealth rolls
involving sight. This effect lasts up to one
minute per level, but ends immediately if you
make an attack.

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Mirror Image Programmed Image

Illusion 3 Illusion 4
Test: Illusion + Intelligence Test: Illusion + Intelligence
Target Number: 25 Target Number: 30
Action: Full Action Action: Full Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic, Verbal Keywords: Social, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: One scene (E) Duration: One hour per level.
You create duplicate images of yourself that This works as Image, but it lasts for up to one
distract enemies. These images remain close hour per level, and you may program it to
to you. You create one image on a success at react to a number of stimuli up to your Intel-
casting this spell, plus one for every raise ligence. This spell may also produce sounds,
gained, to a maximum of your level. Whenever including intelligible speech.
you are attacked, the attacker must roll ran-
domly between you and your images to see Permanent Image
what he hits. An image struck by an attack is
destroyed. Illusion 5
Test: Illusion + Intelligence
Improved Invisibility Target Number: 35
Action: Full Action
Illusion 4 Keywords: Somatic, Verbal
Test: Illusion + Intelligence Duration: Indefinite
Target Number: - This works as Image, but you do not need to
Action: Full Action maintain it. It lasts until dispelled.
Keywords: Subtle
Duration: One minute.
This functions as Invisibility, save its maxi-
mum duration is only one minute and making
an attack does not immediately end the spell.

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Necromancy School Draining Touch

Flush of Life Necromancy 2
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence
Necromancy 1 Target Number: 20
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence Action: Half Action
Target Number: 15 Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Somatic,
Action: Half Action Touch
Keywords: Social, Subtle, Touch Duration: Instant
Duration: One Scene Make an unarmed melee attack that deals 2k2
Until the end of the scene, the touched corpse damage. If you are a vampire, you gain one
breathes, look less pale, and otherwise seems Vitae for each Wound this attack causes.
to be alive (but in a coma) to even detailed ex-
amination. If you are a vampire, you may use Torment
this spell on yourself.
Necromancy 3
Rot Test: Necromancy + Intelligence
Target Number: 25
Necromancy 1 Action: Half Action
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Saving
Target Number: 15 Throw, Somatic, Verbal
Action: Half Action Duration: Instant
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Somatic All creatures within 10m lose half of their re-
Duration: Instant maining Hit Points. This includes the caster
This causes items to age and rot. You may tar- and his allies. Creatures may roll Arcana +
get a 1m cube within 20m. Items within that Constitution to resist. Undead creatures
cube are subjected to terrible powers. Food (Vampires, skeletons, zombies, etc) get a free
spoils, water becomes stagnant. If you get one raise on their rolls to resist.
raise, wood crumbles and rots. Another raise,
and even metal rusts and flakes away. Rot does Raise Dead
not affect attended items like a personÊs equip-
ment. Necromancy 3
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence
Speak with Dead Target Number: 25
Action: Full Action
Necromancy 2 Keywords: Material, Social, Somatic, Touch,
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence Verbal
Target Number: 20 Duration: Indefinite
Action: Full Action Spend a Resource Point. The touched hu-
Keywords: Focus, Language Dependent, So- manoid corpse becomes a terrible undead
cial, Somatic, Touch, Verbal creature, a mockery of life. If it is in good con-
Duration: Instant dition, it can pass for a (sick) living creature
The touched corpse answers one question. It for a short time. Regardless of the creature
can only answer one question per day in this that it comes from, it uses the statblock for one
manner. While the answer must be truthful, it of the WalkinÊ Dead in Chapter 17.
can be vague or obfuscated. Material: A black gem.
Focus: A metal disk inscribed with runes.

170

Corrupted Earth CHAPTER VIII:
MAGIC
Necromancy 4
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence 171
Target Number: 30
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Material, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: See text.
You create an area 5m in radius. Those within
this area who don't worship the same god as
the caster suffer -1k0 on all rolls. By spending
an additional full action in his next round, the
caster increases the radius of this area by 5m,
to a maximum of 50m. The caster may instead
spend a half action every round to merely
maintain this area. This area's size degrades by
5m every minute after the caster stops main-
taining it.
Material: Holy water or incense.

Consume Soul

Necromancer 4
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence
Target Number: 30
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Attack, Combo-OK, Somatic,
Touch
Duration: Instant
When this spell is cast on a recently (less than
one minute) deceased creature, you consume
its soul, making it impossible for that creature
to be brought back with resurrection spells for
as long as you're alive (or, well, an undead
mockery of life).

Necromutation

Necromancer 5
Test: Necromancy + Intelligence
Target Number: 35
Action: Full Action
Keywords: Focus, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: See text.
When the Caster casts this spell, his hit points
are reduced to 0 and he cannot benefit from
healing effects for the rest of the scene. The
caster becomes immune to hit point loss for
1d10 rounds +1 for each raise he gets on the
spell.
Focus: A medallion inscribed with a symbol of
a solar eclipse.

CHAPTER VIII:
MAGIC

Transmutation Animal Power

School Transmutation 2
Test: Transmutation + Wisdom
Swift Change Target Number: 20
Action: Half Action
Transmutation 1 Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic, Touch,
Test: Transmutation + Wisdom Verbal
Target Number: 15 Duration: One scene.
Action: Free Action The target creature gets +1 to one physical
Keywords: Combo-OK, Somatic characteristic (Strength, Dexterity, or Consti-
Duration: Instant tution). For every two raises on this roll, the
You may change into any clothing or armor creature gets an additional +1 to the statistic.
youÊre carrying in an instant. If you have a nat-
ural shapechanging ability (such as a were- Magic Fang
wolfÊs shifting) you may use that as
well. Transmutation 3
Test: Transmutation + Wis-
Treesong dom
Target Number: 25
Transmutation 1 Action: Half Action
Test: Transmutation + Wis- Keywords: Combo-OK,
dom Somatic, Touch, Verbal
Target Number: 15 Duration: One scene.
Action: Half Action The touched creature's
Keywords: Somatic, natural weapons and un-
Touch, Verbal armed attacks deal an ad-
Duration: Instant ditional kept die of
You shape living wood damage and count as
into a simple shape, such magic weapons.
as what you could form
out of clay. You may ef- Polymorph
fect up to 1 cubic meter
of wood, and it remains Transmutation 3
in the shape you form Test: Transmutation +
it into permanently. Wisdom
Target Number: 25
Dedication Action: Full Action
Keywords: Material, So-
Transmutation 2 matic, Touch, Verbal
Test: Transmutation + Wisdom Duration: One scene.
Target Number: 20 The touched creature
Action: Full Action may assume wolf form. Obviously, in wolf
Keywords: Material, Somatic, Touch, Verbal form the character cannot speak, manipulate
Duration: Indefinite all but the simplest objects, or do other things
The caster touches an item and a character most humans take for granted. However, they
with an ability to change shape. While nor- gain +1k1 to all perception checks involving
mally items are dropped or shredded when the scent. +2 to Dexterity, -1 to Size, and a bite
character changes shape, the dedicated item attack for 1k1 damage.
instead transforms with them. Material: A lock of your hair.
Material: A pinch of Silver dust.

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Primal Power Dragon Form

Transmutation 4 Transmutation 5
Test: Transmutation + Wisdom Test: Transmutation + Wisdom
Target Number: 30 Target Number: 35
Action: Half Action Action: Half Action
Keywords: Material, Somatic, Touch, Verbal Keywords: Focus, Somatic, Verbal
Duration: One scene. Duration: One Scene
This works as Animal Power, except instead This spell temporarily transforms the caster
of choosing a characteristic, the bonus applies into a dragon. While he's a dragon, gains +3
to all three physical characteristics. to size, -1 to Dexterity, +2 to Strength, a bite
Material: A tooth from a predatory animal. attack that deals 2k2 damage, Flyer (2x
Speed), and a breath attack that uses the at-
Earth Song tack profile as a Flamer that they may use once
per round. While in dragon form the caster
Transmutation 4 may cast spells normally, speak, and be very
Test: Transmutation + Wisdom tall and lizardy.
Target Number: 20 Focus: A jade circlet.
Action: Half Action
Keywords: Somatic, Touch, Verbal
Duration: Instant
You shape stone into a simple shape, such as
what you could form out of clay. You may ef-
fect up to 1 cubic meter of stone, plus one ad-
ditional meter per raise on this spell and it
remains in the new shape permanently.

173

Lance stepped out of the elevator, checking left and right with his laspistols.
Glass shattered as another volley of fire came at him from below. Lance took cover
behind a support beam and threw a grenade blindly towards the gunner. The blast
shattered the rest of the windows on that floor. He spotted movement out of the
corner of his eye and fired, arrows of light streaking towards the guard as both
men fired on each other.

The guard dropped, a pool of bright red blood spilling under him. Lance
dropped one of his laspistols as the pain hit him. Blood trickled down his left arm.
The wound staggered him, the pain almost making him black out. The elevator
behind him pinged. He turned, bringing his gun up. A plasma pistol was already
aimed at him. And holding it was...

"Jim!" Lance said, surprised. The dragonborn gunman stepped around him
and fired a bolt of white-hot plasma at another guard as he appeared behind
Lance. The bolts blasted through the man's light armor and sent him to the ground
in a cloud of fire and smoke.

"Where's Kharne?" Lance asked.
"Top floor. This way!" Jim led the way, Lance nursing his injury and watch-
ing the massive dragonborn's back. He tossed another grenade back the way they
had come, collapsing the corridor on two unfortunate men who had been follow-
ing.
Jim unlocked the express elevator with his multitool. As Lance caught up
to him, a dark shape appeared at the end of the hallway, hefting a heavy weapon.
"Jim!" Lance screamed. The dragonborn turned just as the heavy bolter
opened up, filling the air with screaming steel. Lance threw himself to the ground
and fired wildly. The bolter fell silent as Lance's shots struck true. Lance ran over
to Jim as the dragonborn collapsed, split open by the explosive shells of the heavy
bolter.
"Kharne... he's got to be stopped..." Lance gasped. He smiled through the
pain. "I was waiting... for you to come back and take over." He dragonborn went
limp as he finally bled out.
Lance took the express elevator up. There were no guards on the top floor.
He could feel Kharne waiting for him. A blast rocked the station. The entire pent-
house roof disintegrated. Force fields snapped into place, just barely holding back
the vacuum.
"So," Kharne said. "You're finally awake." Lance stepped through the
smoke and rubble. The Mark of Bahamut on his chest burned. He could make
out the crimson light shining from the Mark of Khorne that Kharne bore. "I told
you before, Lance. I'm the only one who can kill you and set you free."
"Those words apply to you as well, Kharne." Lance smiled grimly. "Either
way, it's going to end here." He raised his laspistol, his vision blurry with fatigue.
Kharne's chainaxe rumbled. It would all be over soon, one way or the other.

IX
SWORD
SCHOOLS

The Sublime Way. The Nine Disci- MARTIAL ADEPT LEVEL

plines. Blade Magic. All of these are terms that Some effects of Advantages and Re-
have been used to describe the almost super- strictions will reference a character's Martial
human fighting abilities that are the hallmark Adept level. A character's martial adept level
of heroic combat. The uncanny power of the is equal to the number of dots he has in his
Sublime Way springs from a blend of physical highest level Sword School. Where Magic
skill, mental self-discipline, and adherence to Schools have little overlap (as represented by
distinct martial philosophies. Many of the Ad- the way that each magical school is rolled as
vantages of the various martial disciplines its own skill), the sword schools can be used
aren't magic at all - they are simply demonstra- together, and so a character's full Martial
tions of superhuman skill and training. Al- Adept level is always used regardless of from
though many of the Advantages and methods whence a particular advantage came from.
taught by the Sublime Way are mundane in
execution and effect, their results can some- Special Attacks
times rival spells.
Special Attacks are the core of the
The warriors who study the Nine Dis- Sublime Way. Unlike spells, which are codi-
ciplines are Martial Adepts, capable of battle- fied and separate effects that can be combined
field feats beyond those that a traditionally by a skilled spellcaster, the skills of swords-
schooled and trained warrior can hope to ac- manship flow into one another, build on one
complish. The typical fighter might display another, with Martial Adepts adapting ele-
great skill in a weapon's basic cuts, thrusts, and ments of each Sword School they know into
parries, but a student of the Sublime Way be- their own personal fighting style.
lieves that mastering a weapon requires self-
discipline and spiritual austerity in addition to The maneuvers of the Sublime Way
learning the correct postures and movements. are not given as simple combat actions. Each
school teaches special Advantages and Restric-
tions that can be used to create your own spe-
cial attacks.

175

CHAPTER IX:
SWORD SCHOOLS

Advantages are special bonuses that a martial adept gains access to the Universal
are applied to an attack action. It might give Advantages and Restrictions, and may use
an enemy a Condition, apply a property to the Standard Attack actions to build Special At-
attack, or just increase the damage dealt by the tacks. These represent the basic training and
blow. Advantages from different schools can universal abilities that all adepts can access.
be used together to build attacks that tran-
scend the nine schools and are truly a 'style Every Advantage on an attack costs a
without style'. certain number of Style Points. While a Mar-
tial Adept has Style Points equal to their Mar-
Restrictions are flaws in an attack - tial Adept level to use on attacks he buys,
this may represent overextending yourself to going beyond that requires him to gain style
strike deeply at an opponent's most vulnerable points by adding Restrictions to his attack.
location or striking lightly with extra precision. Where an Advantage gives an attack additional
No matter how skilled a martial adept be- ability or utility, a Restriction imposes a
comes, the more specialized they make their penalty on the attack - this might be less dam-
attacks, the more flaws they're forced to ac- age, less accuracy, or a number of other things.
cept. You can gain extra style points equal to your
Martial Adept Level with restrictions - if the
HOW TO BUILD A SPECIAL restrictions youÊve chosen are worth more than
that, the ÂextraÊ points are lost.
ATTACK
It's possible to both buy and improve
Special Attacks start with choosing an attacks. Buying an attack is fairly inexpensive,
action to base it on. You add Advantages and costing fifty XP per Style Point of the attack
Restrictions to increase the power and utility with a minimum cost of fifty XP. Improving
of said attack, buying it with XP. There are an attack you already have costs, naturally,
some Universal Advantages and Restrictions fifty XP per style point you're adding to it.
that can be used by any Martial Adept, but the
majority of Advantages and Restrictions come Some weapon types (such as Ordi-
from the Nine Disciplines. nary and Syrneth) have proficiencies that
apply to both ranged and melee weapons. Spe-
Each attack is built on a specific ac- cial Attacks can only be used when making
tion using a specific weapon. As a base, for ex- melee attacks with these weapons.
ample, you might select making a normal
attack with a fencing weapon. The types of You cannot add Advantages or Re-
weapon you may select to use are restricted by strictions to an attack that would have no ef-
the Sword Schools you have learned. Which fect - reduced damage to an action that causes
actions you can use are similarly restricted by no damage, modifiers to accuracy for an attack
the Sword Schools you know. that has no attack roll, and so on.

At the first level of any sword school,

EXAMPLE SPECIAL ATTACK

Rocky is a Martial Adept with Setting Sun 2 and Iron Heart 3. His Adept level is 3, so he has
3 Style points to spend on special attacks. He's decided to build a new special attack.

First, he decides what weapon and action to use as a base. Rocky fights mostly with his bare
hands, so he'll use Unarmed as his weapon choice. He wants to keep it simple this time, so his action
choice will be a simple Standard Attack, something all Adepts have access too.

Now he chooses advantages. He decides to go with Hammer of the Emperor from Iron Heart,
Knockout Blow from Setting sun, and +2k0 damage from the First Damage Improvement universal
advantage list. This comes to six points of advantages, which means he'll need to choose three points
of restrictions.

The first restriction he chooses is Opening the Path. That's worth two points, so he only needs
to choose one more. He decides to go with the Difficult restriction for one point, so he can only use it
every other turn.

Lastly, he names the attack. He's decided to call it Exploding Burst Fist. He spends 300xp (6
Style Points)

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Sword Schools school's ultimate secret technique, the most
powerful Advantage that the school can give.
There are nine Sword Schools in the There are almost no Grandmasters to learn
Sublime Way. These same schools and tech- this secret technique from, and nearly every
niques have been discovered and rediscovered person who has achieved this level of mastery
in different places and times throughout his- has done so through their own training and
tory. Some have even unlocked their secrets personal perfection of the school's teachings.
through intense personal meditation and
study, with no teacher to guide them save their Universal Advantages
own desire to be the very best, like no other
warrior ever was. Name Cost Effect

There are five levels of mastery to First Damage 1* Add +1k0 to damage.
each school, represented by the number of Improvement 3* Add +0k1 to damage.
dots you have in the school. The five levels of
mastery are, in order, Apprentice, Initiate, Second Damage
Journeyman, Master, and Grandmaster. At Mastery
each level of mastery, the Martial Adept un-
locks new secrets of the Sword School. First Accuracy 1* Add +1k0 to the attack
Improvement roll.
At the first stage of mastery, the Ap-
prentice learns the use of the school's chosen Second Accuracy 2* Add +0k1 to the attack
weapon type and combat action. A martial Mastery roll.
adept can only use the weapons and actions he
has unlocked in this way in order to build spe- Penetration For every style point
cial attacks - without this level of training, he Mastery 1* you spend, add 2 to the
simply doesn't have the true zen of it.
attack's Penetration.
At the second stage of mastery, the
Initiate begins learning the true secrets of the Universal Restrictions
school. He learns the school flaw, a Restriction
that is exclusive to that particular sword Name Cost Effect
school, and the first school Advantage, which
tends to be a core part of the school's style and Difficult Strike You may not use this
teachings. (-1) attack if you used it in
Last Resort
In the third stage of mastery, the Jour- Restrained the last round.
neyman learns to incorporate the school's fa-
vored skill into his techniques, allowing him to Force (-2) You may only use the
use a skill Test with that skill as a restriction Unbroken Skin attack once per scene.
on his attacks. He also learns the second
school Advantage, which further solidifies the Inaccurate (-1)* This attack deals -
style of the school. (-2)* 1k0 damage.
Overextended (-1)*
In the fourth stage of mastery, the Non-Penetrat- This attack deals -
Master is just that, as master. They learn a 0k1 damage.
special Mastery ability that they can always ing
use, even if they're not making a Special At- The attack roll is
tack, that represents the sheer amount of train- made at -1k0.
ing they've put into the Sword School. They
also learn a new Advantage for their school, a (-2)* The attack roll is
powerful ability that even most martial adepts made at -0k1.
never see.
(-1) This attack has 0
Finally, if a Martial Adept manages to penetration.
get to the fifth stage of mastery, they gain the

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Desert Wind

Speed and mobility are the hallmarks of the Desert Wind discipline. Desert Wind ma-
neuvers often involve blinding displays of sword skill, quick charges, and agile footwork. Some
maneuvers from this school, however, draw power from the supernatural essence of the desert
and allow and adept practitioner to scour his foes with fire.

The key skill for Desert Wind is Athletics. The odd weapons of the Syrneth are the tra-
ditional weapons used in Desert Wind special attacks. It's thought that the Syrneth were the first
to use this fighting style, which isn't unlikely given the supernatural effects of the school.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Syrneth weapons with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Syrneth) - Use Called Shot actions in martial maneuvers.
Action (Called Shot)
Do not add your weapon's damage to this attack. It
Level 2: Initiate
(-2) deals no damage. You may only apply this to actions
Empty Hand that include an attack with a weapon - you cannot apply

Blistering Flourish this to an Aim action, for example.
Level 3: Journeyman
1 If this attack hits, the target is dazzled for one round for
Skill (Athletics) every raise you get on the attack roll.
Burning Blade
(-1) As part of this attack, make an Athletics check against
Level 4: Master the static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails
Mastery (Zephyr Dance)
Leaping Flame 1 Your attack deals E type damage instead of the
weapon's damage type.
Level 5: Grandmaster
- When making a charge attack, you do not need to move
Holocaust Cloak in a straight line.

1 You may teleport 5m either right before or right after
making this attack.

As part of this attack, everyone within 2m of you takes

4 2k2 E damage. If you move during this attack, this af-
fects everyone that you come within 2 meters of. A tar-

get can only be affected by this effect once per round.

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Devoted Spirit

Faith, piety, and purity of body and mind are the wellsprings of a warrior's true power.
Devoted Spirit attacks harness a practitioner's spiritual strength and her zealous devotion to a
cause. This Sword School includes energies baneful to a creature opposed to the Martial Adept's
cause, abilities that can keep an adept fighting long after a mundane warrior would fall to his
enemies, and strikes infused with vengeful, fanatical power.

Medicae is the key skill for Devoted Spirit. Devoted Spirit adepts are trained in the use
of the Flail, an difficult and awkward weapon for most to use. It has been suggested that the
original masters of the Devoted Spirit school were taught by their gods themselves.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice

Weapon (Flails) - Use Flail weapons with your martial maneuvers.

Use Aid Another actions in martial maneuvers. If you

Action (Aid Another) - use this to aid another characterÊs attack, any attack-re-
lated benefits from the special attack apply to the aided

attack.

Level 2: Initiate (-2) Make an alignment check with a +2 bonus as part of
Devotion this attack.
Revitalizing Strike
1/3 For 1 point, heal an adjacent ally for 1 Hit Point. For 3
Level 3: Journeyman points, heal the ally for 2 Hit Points.

Skill (Medicae) (-1) As part of this attack, make a Medicae check against the
Foehammer static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.

2 If you roll a 10 on damage with this attack, roll an ad-
ditional 2 dice for the exploding die instead of just one.

Level 4: Master

Mastery (Ox Body Technique) - Your maximum Hit Points increases by 4.

For every time you take this advantage, an adjacent ally

Covering The Phalanx 1* gains +2 to their static defense until your next turn. This
bonus can be applied to one ally or divided among as

many as can fit in melee range with you.

Level 5: Grandmaster 4 If this attack hits the head or gizzards it deals additional
Castigating Blow damage equal to your devotion.

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Diamond Mind

True quickness lies in the mind, not the body. A student of the Diamond Mind disci-
pline seeks to hone his perceptions and discipline his thoughts so that he can act even in slivers
of time so narrow that others cannot even perceive them. A corollary of this speed of thought
and action is the concept of the mind as the battleground. An enemy defeated in his mind must
inevitably be defeated in the realm of the physical as well.

Scrutiny, the ability to read another person, is the key skill for Diamond Mind. Martial
Adepts focused in Diamond mind use Fencing weapons, light and fast enough to move as fast
as their user. It's said that this Sword School was developed by a Mortal as a means to defend
himself from and even defeat the Exalted.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Fencing weapons with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Fencing)
Use Feint actions in martial maneuvers. Any attack-re-
Action (Feint)
- lated advantages you apply to the special attack apply
Level 2: Initiate to the normal attack made after a feint. That attack may
Backhanded Blade
Dipping Swallow not be a Special Attack of its own.

Level 3: Journeyman (-2) This technique can only be used either as an opportu-
Skill (Scrutiny) nity attack or a delayed action.
Flurry of Blows
2 Gain a free raise on all parry attempts made until your
Level 4: Master next turn.
Mastery (Open Form Motion)
Weakening Grip Technique (-1) As part of this attack, make a Scrutiny check against the
static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.
Level 5: Grandmaster
3* Make an additional attack with your weapon as part of
Essence Draining Strike this attack.

- You may use any sort of attack after a successful feint,
not just a standard attack action.

4 If this attack hits, the opponent must make a Dex check
(TN 20) or drop whatever they're holding.

You may take advantage up to five times on one attack.
2* An opponent hit by this attack loses 1 resource point for

every level you have of this advantage.

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Iron Heart

Absolute mastery of the sword is the goal of the Iron Heart discipline. Through unending
practice and study, the Iron Heart adept achieves superhuman skill with her weapons. Iron Heart
Special Attacks are demonstrations of uncanny martial skill - weaving patterns of steel that dizzy,
confuse, and ultimately kill with no recourse.

The key skill for Iron Heart is Perception, the ability to see the flaws in your own stance
and the defenses of others. Iron Heart weapons are Ordinary weapons, and like the school itself,
what seem like ordinary attacks are polished and brought to supernatural levels.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Ordinary weapons with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Ordinary)
Use Aim actions in martial maneuvers. Any attack-re-
Action (Aim)
- lated advantages applied to this special attack are ap-
Level 2: Initiate plied to the attack that benefits from the aim bonus.
Opening the Path
Steel Wind That attack may not be a Special Attack.

Level 3: Journeyman (-2) After making this attack, your static defense is lowered
Skill (Perception) by 10 until your next turn.

Hammer of the Emperor 2 Your attack gains the Tearing property.
Level 4: Master
(-1) As part of this attack, make a Perception check against
Mastery (Mithril Blade) the static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.
Exorcism of Steel
2 This attack deals X damage instead of the weapon's nor-
Level 5: Grandmaster mal damage type.
Strike of Perfect Clarity
- Opponents get -1k0 on all of their responses to your at-
tacks.

4 This attack gains the Power Field property.

5 This attack cannot be dodged or parried.

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Setting Sun

Strength is an illusion. Adherents of the Setting Sun philosophy understand that no war-
rior can hope to be stronger, quicker, and more skillful than every one of her enemies. Therefore,
this discipline includes Advantages that use an adversary's power and speed against him. Setting
Sun maneuvers include weakening blows and the ability to stun and distract an opponent. The
highest forms of the Setting Sun allow you to turn an opponent's weapon against him, turning
the strongest opponent into the most vulnerable.

Deceive is the key skill for the Setting Sun discipline, the ability to trick and outmaneuver
an opponent with fast hands. The weapons of the Setting Sun school are no weapons at all, using
unarmed strikes to damage an opponent. It's said that the Setting Sun school was founded by
halflings who were facing extermination and oppression.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Unarmed attacks with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Brawl) - Use Fight Defensively actions in martial maneuvers.
Action (Fight Defensively)
(-2) You may only use this attack as part of a grapple.
Level 2: Initiate
Eagle's Claw 2* Anyone hit by your attack takes a level of fatigue, even
Knockout Blow if they lose no hit points.

Level 3: Journeyman (-1) As part of this attack, make a Deceive check against the
static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.
Skill (Deceive)
2 Anyone damaged by this attack takes -1k0 to all rolls
Distraction Method until your next turn.

Level 4: Master - Gain a free raise to all initiative checks.
Mastery (Wind Step) 4 This attack gains the Shocking property.
Shocking Bullet Fist
2 You may use your opponent's weapon as the base dam-
Level 5: Grandmaster age of this attack.

Fool's Strike

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Shadow Hand

Never show an adversary what he expects to see. The Shadow Hand discipline empha-
sizes deception, misdirection, and surprise. The most effective blow is one struck against an
enemy who does not even know he is in danger. Because the study of the deceit as a philosophy
often leads into darker practices, some Shadow Hand maneuvers employ supernatural effects
such as the manipulation of shadows.

The key skill of the Shadow Hand school is Stealth, hiding your own attacks and sur-
prising your enemy. Shadow Hand weapons are parrying weapons, small and easily-concealed
weapons that can be carried almost anywhere. The original practitioners of the Shadow Hand
school were assassins, using the attacks of the school to disable and kill their enemies before they
even knew they were in danger.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Parrying weapons with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Parrying)
Use Ready actions in martial maneuvers. Any attack-re-
Action (Ready) lated advantages applied to this special attack instead
- are applied to your next standard attack if you use this
Level 2: Initiate action to ready a weapon and use that weapon in your
Death Blow attack. That attack may not be a Special Attack.
Mosquito's Bite
(-2) This attack may only be used on someone unaware of
Level 3: Journeyman you or helpless.
Skill (Stealth)
Ring The Temple Bell 1 Delay this attack's effect for up to one minute. The tar-
get is unaware of the attack until it effects him.
Level 4: Master
Mastery (Sheathed Blade) (-1) As part of this attack, make a Stealth check against the
Curving Shadows Attack static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.

Level 5: Grandmaster 1* This attackÊs range increases by 5m for every time you
CobraÊs Venom Technique take this Advantage.

- Attacks made with a weapon you drew this turn are
made at +2k1.

3 This attack gains the Flexible property.

3 This attack gains the Toxic property.

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Stone Dragon

The strength and endurance of the mountains epitomize the Stone Dragon discipline.
The methodical and relentless application of force allows a student of this philosophy to defeat
any foe. Strikes of superhuman power and manifestations of perfect, idealized force make up
the Stone Dragon's Advantages.

Intimidate is the key skill for the Stone Dragon, overwhelming others with the force of
your personality as well as the strength of your blows. Two Handed weapons are the most com-
mon in use among Stone Dragon adepts, as they're extremely efficient at the hurting of people.
Squats, with their strong ties to the earth, were the first to develop the Stone Dragon school.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Two Handed weapons with your Special Attacks.
Weapon (Two Handed) - Use Bull Rush actions in martial maneuvers.
Action (Bull Rush)
(-2) When you use this attack, you gain one level of fatigue.
Level 2: Initiate 3 This attack gains the Snare property.
Weight of the Mountain
Foot-Trapping Blow (-1) As part of this attack, make an Intimidate check against
the static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.
Level 3: Journeyman
Skill (Intimidate) 1* Gain 1 armor until your next turn for every point of this
advantage.
Stone Skin Concentration
Level 4: Master - Your resilience is increased by one while your feet are
firmly planted on solid earth or rock.
Mastery (Strength of Granite)
Treat your opponentÊs resilience as two less for the pur-
Felling Giants Blow 6 pose of determining hit points lost from this attack, to a

Level 5: Grandmaster minimum resilience of 1.
Earth Shattering Attack
1* This attack gains Blast (X), where X is twice the num-
ber of times you take this Advantage.

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Tiger Claw

Consciousness is the enemy of instinct. The Tiger Claw discipline teaches that martial
superiority can be achieved by discarding the veneer of civilization, along with the higher
thoughts that fetter a warrior's actions. Tiger Claw maneuvers emulate the strikes, leaps, and
pounces of animals. Tiger Claw strikes are explosively powerful and variable, as wild and ener-
getic as the adepts of the style.

The key skill of the Tiger Claw style is Acrobatics, required for the intensely physical
and always-moving style. Chain weapons, with their rows of sharp teeth, are the favored weapons
of the style. Tiger Claw is one of the most wide-spread styles, as many of its practitioners learn
the movements from watching animals in the wild.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice - Use Chain weapons with your martial maneuvers.
Weapon (Chain) - Use All Out Attack actions in martial maneuvers.
Action (All Out Attack)
(-2) If this attack misses, or it is dodged or parried, you fall
Level 2: Initiate prone.
Death From Above
Razor Sharp 2 If you hit with two or more raises, double this attack's
Penetration.
Level 3: Journeyman
Skill (Acrobatics) (-1) As part of this attack, make an Acrobatics check against
the static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.
Unstable Sword Skill
Level 4: Master After you roll damage for this attack, roll 1d10. On a 1,
2 this attack deals half damage. On a 10, this attack deals
Mastery (Brutal Reserve)
double damage.
Demonic Weapon Attack
- After making an All Out Attack you may still use reac-
Level 5: Grandmaster tions, but at a -2k2 penalty.
Blood In The Water
You may spend a hero point when making this attack.
If you do, ignore any effects (such as armor) that would
5 reduce damage from it and halve the target's size,
rounding up, for the purpose of determining Hit Points
lost from the attack's damage.

4 The dice from this attack's damage explode on 9s and
10s.

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White Raven

No warrior fights in isolation. Cooperation, teamwork, and leadership can give two war-
riors the strength of five, and five warriors the strength of twenty. The student of the White
Raven masters techniques that combine the strengths of two or more allies against a common
foe. Shouts and battlecries to draw the attention of enemies and get them into the perfect spot
to finish them off.

Command is the key skill of the White Raven school, giving orders to others and know-
ing which orders are the right ones to give. The White raven school focuses on Cavalry weapons,
which are good for those on the move or charging. The White Raven school originally developed
among the commanders of infantry groups on the battlefield.

Name Cost Effect

Level 1: Apprentice

Weapon (Cavalry) - Use Cavalry weapons with your martial maneuvers.

Action (Charge) - Use Charge actions in martial maneuvers.

Level 2: Initiate (-2) You may not use this attack unless your target moved
Perfect Positioning since your last turn.

Road-Clearing Technique Allies who attack this enemy gain +1k0 to their attacks
2* until your next turn for every time you take this advan-

tage.

Level 3: Journeyman

Skill (Command) (-1) As part of this attack, make a Command check against
the static defense of the target. If it fails, the attack fails.

Knight's Movement Concentra- 2 If you move as part of this attack or after it, you do not
tion provoke opportunity attacks.

Level 4: Master

Mastery (Marked Target) - Opponents within melee range of you get -1k0 on at-
Attention Drawing Strike tacks made against allies.

Level 5: Grandmaster 3 Opponents hit by this attack cannot make parry or
Wolf Pack Technique dodge actions until their next turn.

5 Opponents hit by this attack provoke an opportunity at-
tack.

186

X

BACKGROUNDS

Backgrounds tell a lot about a char- goals. If your character constantly asks for help
and gives nothing in return, they will abandon
acter. They tie him to the world and describe her. Allies do what they can to help, but they
advantages of birth, circumstance, and oppor- won't risk their lives. And they'll almost always
tunity. Material possessions, social networks want something in return.
and the like. Backgrounds are external to your
character. You should always rationalize how Background Effects: Each dot in this
your character came to have the backgrounds background typically represents one ally ap-
they possess and what they represent. proximately equal to a starting character in
power. More powerful allies require higher
You can't improve backgrounds with ratings.
XP (except at character creation). If they go
up or down is up to the SM and what your ARTIFACT
character does to earn them through play.
In both the distant past and the mod-
Most characters begin play with seven ern day, sorcerers created all manner of items
dots of backgrounds, though certain feats or of power, ranging from magical weapons and
abilities might change this. armor to flying vehicles or enchanted dis-
guises. A character with the Artifact back-
ALLIES ground possesses one or more such items.
Most Syrneth artifacts were lost or destroyed
Allies are close friends and trusted millenia ago, and much of the knowledge of
companions. Unlike Followers, allies are never how to make such items has also been lost.
mere faceless NPCS. Most are Exalted (of any Today, all artifacts are rare and precious.
type), Daemons, or other magical beings that
are at least as powerful as a starting character. Consider carefully how your character
They may alternatively be exotic beings like acquired her artifacts. She may have been rich
intelligent animals, rogue AIs, or exceptionally or powerful enough before hearing the call of
skilled or powerful mortals. Characters don't a hero to have some trappings of the glory of
have to buy Allies to represent the rest of the the old empires. Or perhaps she followed
party - allies are always NPCs. Also, allies are prophetic dreams after rising to power and
independent people with their own lives and found the artifacts in some lost fortress-tomb.

187

CHAPTER X:
BACKGROUNDS

Perhaps she stole it or took the artifact from friendship as long as it doesn't put their lives
the body of one of her foes. on the line, a Contact won't work for free.

Background Effects: Your character Each dot in this background repre-
can purchase this Background multiple times, sents both minor and major contacts. Major
once for each artifact she owns. Each artifact contacts are individuals you are on a first-
has a rating between 1 and 5, and this is the name basis with, people in positions where
background cost of that particular artifact. Ar- they are useful. High-ranking military officers,
tifacts with ratings of 4 and 5 are now excep- powerful courtiers, faction members in posi-
tionally rare and will be coveted greatly by the tions of influence, and so forth. Minor con-
Hero's foes. A character may only have up to tacts simply represent overall connectedness.
five total dots of Artifacts at character creation. They aren't as useful, but you can use Con-
tacts + (Charisma or Fellowship) to gather in-
BACKING formation and find minor help.

Your character is an important mem- Background Effects: Each dot of this
ber of an organization, such as a government, Background provides one major contact and
an army, the Harmonium or a powerful un- one dice for finding minor ones.
derground Syndicate such as the Doomguard.
The higher your character's Backing, the FAME
higher her rank is in this organization. At your
SM's discretion, you may take Backing multi- You enjoy widespread recognition in
ple times for rank in different organizations. society, for better or worse. People know your
Neglecting duties can easily result in demotion name and face and they may enjoy just being
or worse. seen with you. This will open a lot of doors in
some places, but also means that it can be dif-
Background Effects: ficult to avoid attracting attention. It's defi-
X: None. Your character has no con- nitely a mixed blessing in some ways,
nections to any governments or factions. Why? especially if you've made enemies.
Backing 1: Your character is a lower
officer or a minor functionary. Background Effects:
Backing 2: Your character is a mid- X: None. Your character either hasnÊt
level officer, the head of a small department or done anything of note or has been working
some similarly intermediate position. hard to keep their identity secret. Why?
Backing 3: Your character is moder- Fame 1: You're known to a select
ately powerful and has many people working subculture or city.
under her. Fame 2: You have nationwide
Backing 4: Your character is ex- renown. Perhaps you're a politician or a minor
tremely powerful, often directly reporting to star.
the highest ranking of power in her organiza- Fame 3: Nationally famous, every-
tion. body knows something about you.
Backing 5: Your character is one of Fame 4: You're an internationally
the leaders of her organization, a general or famous media icon.
admiral, a Factol of one of Sigil's 15 factions, Fame 5: You're so famous that even
or a similarly powerful position. other crystal spheres buzz with news about
you.

CONTACTS FOLLOWERS

In addition to friends and Allies, Your character has one or more loyal
many characters know people in various sec- assistants, oathbound warriors, devoted
tors of society. Contacts use their talents, in- acolytes, or similar companions. These people
formation, or resources to help your character, are exceptionally devoted to her. They might
but they'll always expect a similar favor in re- worship her, might regard her as their best
turn. Where an Ally will help you out of hope to achieve some lofty goal, or they might

188

CHAPTER X:
BACKGROUNDS

simply be willing to follow her to have some Holdings 3: Your character owns a
fun. Followers are almost always merely mor- medium ship (like, say, a Bird of Prey) or a
tals. small castle or a large business with some off-
world contacts (an importing company or
Regardless of exactly what they do for mining operation for example)
a living, they're always exceptionally loyal.
Poor treatment or neglect will strain and break Holdings 4: Your character owns a
that loyalty quickly, and will end in abandon- large ship (think the Enterprise or a Whitestar
ment or revolt. However, with care and re- ship) or a huge castle or a corporation with op-
spect, most will gladly lay down their lives for erations on several worlds.
you. Part of treating them well is caring for
their needs. Your character needs Wealth, Holdings 5: Your character owns a
Backing, or Holdings equal to her dots in Fol- powerful and ancient ship (think a kilometer-
lowers in order to support them all. long battleship) or a massive castle or a mega-
corporation with ties on many worlds (like
Background Effects: ExoGeni Corporation or Weyland-Yutani)
X: None. No one is willing to follow
your character, or she pushes everyone away INHERITANCE
who tries. Why?
Followers 1: Provides up to 5 follow- You begin play with something be-
ers. yond your means to normally acquire. There
Followers 2: Provides 20 followers. are many things that are almost impossible for
Followers 3: Provides a loyal band of a normal person to get their hands on - Syrne
100 followers. artifacts, power armor, deadly weapons - and
Followers 4: Provides a small army of you've somehow gotten one of these rare and
1000 followers. precious items.
Followers 5: Provides a mighty force
of 10000 followers. Consider carefully how your character
acquired her Inheritance. Perhaps an ancestor
HOLDINGS passed it down to her, or she looted it from a
forgotten ruin on some lost world floating
You own property or a spelljamming around a dead star, or maybe she stole it, or
ship. This might be a family or business hold- took it from the body of a foe.
ing, but it is both a potential base of operations
and a resource by itself. A holding is always a Background Effects:
safe place to rest, a home that many of the Ex- X: None. The character has nothing
alted simply don't have. To support a Holding, but their normal starting gear. Why are they
you'll need to hire staff or crew, requiring Fol- left with nothing but the clothes on their back?
lowers, Backing, or Wealth equal to the Hold- Inheritance 1: Begin play with one
ings in order to support it. Uncommon, two Common, four Very Com-
mon, or eight Ubiquitous items
Background Effects: Inheritance 2: You begin play with
X: None. The character has no per- one Rare item, or two choices from Inheri-
manent holdings. Why doesnÊt he have this tance 1.
kind of lasting connection? Inheritance 3: You begin play with
Holdings 1: Your character owns a one Very Rare item, or two choices from In-
very small spelljammer (as large as a shuttle- heritance 2.
craft, for example) or an average house or a Inheritance 4: You begin play with
small local business (a repair shop or restau- one Mythic Rare item, or two choices from In-
rant, for example) heritance 3
Holdings 2: Your character owns a Inheritance 5: You begin play with
small spelljammer (a smuggling ship, per- any one non-artifact item or two choices from
haps?) or a small manor home or a successful Inheritance 4.
local business (a major local construction firm,
a repair dock for ships, or so forth)

189

CHAPTER X:
BACKGROUNDS

MENTOR Status 4: Powerful, other Exalts may
flock to you and follow your lead.
Although most Exalted meet their
new life without a guide, you found one. The Status 5: Luminary, there are few who
mentor is a patron, a teacher, a defender, and can match the respect that goes with your
a friend. However, the mentor expects your name.
character to obey her, though they will always
act in what they see as your character's best in- WEALTH
terests. Your character is the mentor's student,
ward, or apprentice, not her equal. Your personal financial resources, or
your access to such. A high Wealth reflects
Background Effects: your liquid assets, how much cash flow you
X: None. Either your character was generate. This background also describes your
forced to go through their Exaltation alone or standard of living, your possessions, and your
they were abandoned. Why? buying power. No dots in wealth means that
Mentor 1: Your character's mentor is you have the clothes on your back and not
just a bit more worldly and wise than her. much more, and probably rarely eats well.
Mentor 2: Your character's mentor is
someone of minor note or an exceedingly im- Where your wealth comes from is
portant individual who has little time for your something you should detail. It may be a trust
character. fund, income from a job, or income from
Mentor 3: Your character's mentor is holdings. Depending on events, it may be in-
wise, influential, and considerably more pow- creased, reduced, or cut off entirely. Like
erful than your character. fame, few Exalted have problems acquiring
Mentor 4: Your character's mentor is wealth, through one means or another.
an exceedingly important individual whose
words and deeds shape the course of history. Background Effects:
Mentor 5: Your character's mentor is X: None. Your character is destitute
exceedingly powerful and he takes great inter- and poor. What has left them in this condi-
est in your welfare. However, he expects much tion?
from you and his enemies will likely see you as Wealth 1: Middle class, your charac-
a way to get to him. ter lives comfortably if not particularly well.
He rarely has spending money in any signifi-
STATUS cant amount.
Wealth 2: A larger savings means that
You have something of a reputation you have quite a bit more leeway in your
and a standing (earned or not) within the com- lifestyle. You likely have a domestic servant of
munity of Exalts. This may be for great deeds, some kind and can afford to eat what you like.
prophesy, or simply because you've made Wealth 3: Being actually wealthy is
yourself well-known at gatherings. This does- even better. You probably have several ser-
n't cover rank in an organization or fame vants and life a life of luxury, dining in fine
among the wider population. restaurants if you don't have a private chef and
having more than enough left over for any sort
Background Effects: of entertainment.
X: The character has no status among Wealth 4: This is where you become
other Exalts. Are they merely new and clue- fabulously wealthy - a merchant prince, a ban-
less, or are they trying to avoid attention? dit king, a mercenary lord, you have vast riches
Status 1: Known by some, even if and if you don't have an army at hand you can
they haven't met her before. rent one at need.
Status 2: Respected, her words carry Wealth 5: You have so much money
weight in serious discussion. that there are no longer little things like limits.
Status 3: Influential, the character is You have only your imagination and a nearly
often asked to consult. endless supply of wealth to support your de-
sires.

190

XI
ALIGNMENT

When you choose an alignment, ment than the others can disrupt a party of he-
roes and, frankly, make the game less fun for
you're indicating your character's dedication everyone involved.
to a set of moral principles. In a cosmic sense,
it's the team you believe in and fight for most DEVOTION
strongly. There are three main forces in the
Great Wheel: The Ruinous Powers, The How dedicated you are to your ideals
Blessed Pantheon, and The Gray Council. is determined by your Devotion score. Every
character starts with a Devotion of 6 before
Alignments are tied to universal forces spending starting experience. The higher your
bigger than deities or any other allegiance you devotion, the more is expected of you in keep-
might have. They are an intrinsic part of the ing up your ideals and standing for them.
universe, as real as gravity, time, or magic. Whenever you go against the commandments
Most of the people in the Great Wheel don't of your alignment, the DM can call for an
worship any one deity in particular, but they Alignment Check.
do devote themselves to one of the broad
ideals. In a galaxy at war, there is no place for An Alignment Check is made by
those who believe in nothing. rolling one die and comparing it to your De-
votion score, adding any bonuses you have
When you choose an alignment for from class feats or assets. If you match or ex-
your character, you'll want to make sure that ceed your Devotion score, you pass the Align-
you read over the description for that align- ment Check and nothing bad happens. If you
ment. Every alignment has a set of guidelines fail, however, you permanently lose one point
to help guide roleplaying and let you know of Devotion. This can be bought again with
when you're pleasing your god or properly XP, but as you can imagine, the greater a char-
holding your ideals. acter's devotion the more is expected of them
and the harder it is to maintain it.
Check with the other players while
you're deciding on an alignment for your char- Given that it's difficult for most to
acter. While a good group can make nearly any keep their Devotion high unless they walk the
combination of alignments work in a party, line carefully, it may be tempting to just let
having a character of wildly different align- your Devotion slip. However, that is a danger-

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ous prospect. As your Devotion falls you risk RAISING DEVOTION
Degeneration, a type of terrible corruption.
It's possible to reverse your character's
DEGENERATION slide into damnation and insanity through
concerted effort and contrition. A character's
Whenever you fail an Alignment Devotion can be increased primarily by spend-
Check, you risk something even worse, De- ing XP, but Devotion can only be increased by
generation. Degeneration represents the way a maximum of one point at any given time.
that going against their moral code can break SMs are encouraged to require that characters
and eventually destroy someone. When you demonstrate the desire to redeem themselves
lose that Devotion point, if it brings you to 6 with concrete acts of contrition before a De-
Devotion or less, make a second alignment votion increase is warranted.
check against your new score. If you pass, you
don't suffer Degeneration. You got off lightly. When a Degeneration is assigned to a
If you fail this second check, you don't lose an- Devotion point, that ailment is overcome
other point of Devotion. That would be too when the next, higher point is gained. The ex-
easy. Instead, you suffer Degeneration. perience spent to gain a Devotion dot repre-
sents your character's efforts to come to terms
When you suffer Degeneration, roll with her sin and thus free herself of her condi-
on the Degeneration chart to determine its ef- tion. She might also undergo a ritual of cleans-
fects, then write the result down next to your ing or simply forgive herself.
new Devotion score. For example, if your
character manifests a Palsy when she drops CHANGING ALIGNMENT
from 6 to 5 Devotion, write 'Palsy' on the line
associated with 5 Devotion. This will help you It may come to pass that a character
keep track of what Degenerations you have wants or needs to change their alignment. This
and, more importantly, let you know when isn't something that should be taken lightly - a
you've overcome them. character's alignment says a lot about their
worldview and the way that the world sees
Repeated Degeneration and Align- them, not to mention the patronage of a pow-
ment rolls that fail cause your character to erful warp entity that probably won't take well
incur more and more or worse and worse con- to a character going and playing for another
ditions. If you roll the same Degeneration team.
twice, reroll that degeneration until you get a
degeneration you don't already have. When- If a character switches from one deity
ever a degeneration indicates a reduction in to another in the same pantheon, they lose two
one of your characters Characteristics, this points of devotion, to a minimum of Devotion
doesn't simply reduce the character's dots in 1. Thankfully, though, the fact that the gods
that characteristic. It represents a more serious are at least vaguely on the same side and have
affliction. While a character has a characteris- bigger things to worry about means that their
tic reduced by Degeneration, it's impossible new patron can shield them from the wrath of
for the character to improve that characteristic their old deity. They're on shaky ground for a
with experience points until he rids himself of while, but it's not too difficult to recover.
that degeneration.
On the other hand, if the character's
If your character descends so far that alignment switches so drastically that the new
her Devotion drops to zero, she is immediately deity isn't even in the same pantheon, well,
removed from play. The curses of the gods that's when the character starts to have some
have fallen too heavily on her, either killing her real issues. First, his devotion is set to 4. No
irrevocably or else driving her irrevocably in- matter how well or poorly he served his last
sane or even mutating her into some terrible patron, he's starting from square one (and as
chimaeric horror. a former heretic) with this new god. Secondly,
they cannot escape the wrath of their old deity.
Roll on the Degeneration Chart and write in
that Degeneration next to Devotion 7. To be

192

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ALIGNMENT

DEGENERATION CHART

Roll Effect
(1d100)

Palsy: The character suffers from numerous minor tics, shakes, and tremors with no med-
01-07 ical cause. Reduce his Dexterity by 1.

08-11 Dark-Hearted: The character grows increasingly cruel, callous, and vindictive. Reduce his
12-21 Fellowship by 1.
22-28
29-32 Ill-fortuned: The SM may force you to reroll any one roll per session that isn't an Align-
33-41 ment Check.

Skin Afflictions: The character is plagued by boils, scabs, weeping sores, and the like. He
takes a -2k0 to all social Tests.

Morbid: The character finds it hard to concentrate as his mind is filled with macabre vi-
sions and tortured, gloom-filled trains of thought. The character's Intelligence is reduced
by 1.

Witch-mark: The character develops some minor physical deformity or easily concealable
mutation. It is small, but enough to mark him as cursed.

42-45 Wasted Frame: The character's pallor becomes corpse-like and his muscles waste away.
46-54 The character's Strength is reduced by 1.
55-58
59-62 Horrific Nightmares: The character is plagued by visions in his sleep. He gains the Night
Terrors hindrance. If he already has it, reroll this result.
63-69
Poor Health: The character constantly suffers petty illnesses and phantom pains, and his
70-76 wounds never seem to heal fully. The character's Constitution is reduced by 1.
77-80
81-85 Malign Sight: The world seems to darken, Tarnish, and rot if the character looks too long
86-90 at anything. The character's Wisdom is reduced by 1.
91-00 Ashen Taste: Food and drink hold disgusting tastes and offer little sustenance for the char-
acter, and he can barely stomach eating. The character doubles the effects for levels of Fa-
tigue.

Blackouts: The character suffers from inexplicable blackouts. When they occur and what
happens during them is up to the ST.

Distrustful: The character cannot conceal the distrust and antipathy he has for others. The
character's Charisma is reduced by 1.

Fell Obsession: The character is obsessed by a strange or malign focus that occupies his
mind at all times. The character's Willpower is reduced by 1.

Mood Swings: The character's mood rapidly and unpredictably swings from one extreme
to another. The character's Composure is reduced by 1.

Blighted Mind: The character's mind snaps under the weight of his sins. He gains a new
minor derangement.

cured of this affliction, a character will have to someone betraying their own again and again.
prove themselves worthy of their new god's A ST should only allow a character to change
personal attention. alignments for strong In Character reasons. A
quest for their new patron is appropriate, with
Regardless of how drastically a char- the theme based on how much the character
acter switches alignment, a character can only must change to serve their new deity.
do so once. The gods do not take well to

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ALIGNMENT

DEITIES Khorne - The god of battle. The
blood god. He enjoys killing dudes. Khorne is
Deities are the most powerful immor- a god of honorable combat and slaughter. Of
tal creatures, powerful entities of the Warp. battles fought for glory alone and for dirty,
They are created and sustained by the emo- drawn out fights for life and country. Khorne
tions and souls of every living creature of the loves every type of warfare found in this world.
material universe. Of course, they also claim Worship of Khorne is purely through blood-
to have created those same living creatures, shed, either from one's enemies in victory or
leading to something of a paradox. They ap- one's own through earnest struggle. Khorne
pear in dreams and visions to their followers has only a few simple commandments for his
and wear countless different faces, and art- followers:
work depicting them shows them in a variety
of forms. Their true nature is beyond any * Spill blood in his name. It can be
physical form. Corellon is often depicted as an your blood or the blood of your enemies, but
Eldarin, but he is no more an Eldarin than he do not shy from violence.
is a fey grox - he is a god, and he transcends
the physical laws that bind even Daemons to * Do not trust in sorcery, and do not
their concrete forms. seek to learn its secrets - magic is the way of
the weak.
The Deities can be divided into three
groups (pantheons) depending on their gen- * Fight in honorable combat, not
eral views, though it should be noted that sim- against the weak or helpless.
ply being in the same pantheon doesn't mean
that the gods necessarily work towards the Slaanesh - The god of excess. Sex,
same ends or even get along. Many deities drugs and rock and roll. Slaanesh is all about
have contradictory versions of how the Wheel doing what you enjoy, and not holding back
should turn, and even worshippers of the same for anyone. The drive to be perfect, the love
deity can come to blows over different inter- of doing something just to do it. The excite-
pretations of their god's will. ment of the novel. The joy of art. That's what
Slaanesh is about. Worship of Slaanesh is ex-
Most people revere more than one tremely varied, ranging from simple hedonism
deity, praying to different gods at different to elaborate and exacting rituals that take days
times and generally follow the teachings of to complete. Slaanesh orders its followers
whatever pantheon goes along with their cul- thus:
ture or basic morality. Adventurers, on the
other hand, are more likely to worship a spe- * Turn away from no new experience,
cific god, enjoying the greater benefits of that
personal attention along with the greater risk.

THE RUINOUS POWERS

The Ruinous Powers of Chaos are
powerful and divisive. By the standards of
most societies, the anarchic and random be-
havior of Chaos worshippers is seen as danger-
ous at best and a crime in some places. While
the powers of Chaos don't necessarily encour-
age their followers to go out and hurt people,
they do encourage their followers to do what
they want, and not worry about how it effects
others. The gods of Chaos are almost con-
stantly at war with one another within the
Warp, vying for power amid the immaterial
planes.

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ALIGNMENT

unless it would kill you - try everything once. are generally expected to follow until they self-
* Stand out from those around you. destruct:

To blend in with the crowd is to lose who you * Hate gives you strength. Learn to
are. truly hate those that oppose you. No mercy.

* Tempt others with what you enjoy - * Destruction is the fate of all that ex-
share drink, invite them to lavish meals, and ists. Destroy all that is.
turn them to hedonism.
* Betrayal can get you what you want.
Tzeentch - The god of change. If people can't defend themselves, that's their
Change we can believe in. Tzeentch is also the own problem.
god of hope, because hope is nothing more
than wishing for the future to change. In his
mind Tzeentch listens to the hopes and plans
of every mortal and every nation; and through
his own complex plots and manipulation he al-
ters the course of history to achieve some great
plan beyond mortal knowledge. Tzeentch asks
for his followers to do the following:

* Be flexible with your plans. You
must always be open to change as it is needed.

* Change what you don't like in your-
self. Use sorcery! All the sorcery!

* Follow your own goals. Take com-
mand of your destiny.

Nurgle - The god of despair. He cares THE BLESSED PANTHEON
about you and all your diseases. Seriously. He
loves you. He's like the lazy, smelly grandpa Where the Ruinous Powers represent
who is always there with a smile, who makes Chaos, the Blessed Pantheon represents the
you laugh, and is there to hold you when you force of Law and Order. They are a stabilizing
need a shoulder to cry on. He also dabbles a force that promotes civilization and commu-
bit with death, rot, disease, and so forth. Nur- nity where chaos is more about self. The
gle doesn't interfere with his followers too Blessed Pantheon could roughly be called
much, but he does have a few simple things he 'good', if you want, but some consider their
asks of his worshippers: teachings to be stifling and oppressive. The
Blessed Pantheon are the most tied to the
* Don't bother seeking help. Fail or physical realm. Where the Chaos gods seek to
succeed through your own perseverance. bring the change and power of the Warp into
the real space of the Wheel, the Blessed Pan-
* You can only escape suffering theon oppose this and would prefer to seal the
through faith. Warp off for all time.

* Be kind to those who are facing Sigmar - A wrathful and vengeful god,
death. They cannot be saved, but there's no protector of his followers. He is a warrior king
reason not to make them more comfortable. and a great unifier, the god of stable civiliza-

Malal - The only sane thing to do is
to BLOW IT ALL UP! Malal is a renegade
god, the embodiment of Chaos' indiscriminate
destructive urge, even of itself and its own
agents. He is hated by the other gods, and
spits in their faces, feeding off their own power
and turning it against them. Malal has a few
commandments for his followers, which they

195

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ALIGNMENT

tions and of putting the common good ahead Moradin - Stoic, loyal, big on family
of yourself. He is the most commonly wor- and bigger on hard work. Moradin is a creative
shipped god among humans, and has a large god, and his followers are encouraged to make
number of dwarf followers as well. He com- a mark on the world by making something
mands his worshipers to: lasting. He expects loyalty to family, friends,
and leaders, in that order. He's stoic and tena-
* Work with others to achieve your cious, like the very rock itself. Dwarves from
goals. Community and order are always all walks of life follow him. He demands these
stronger than the disjointed efforts of lone in- behaviors of his followers:
dividuals.
* Meet adversity with stoicism and
* Tame the wilderness to make it fit tenacity.
for habitation, and defend the light of civiliza-
tion against the encroaching darkness. * Demonstrate loyalty to your family,
your clan, your leaders, and your people.
* Seek out new ideas, new inventions,
new lands to inhabit, new wilderness to con- * Strive to make a mark on the world,
quer. Build machines, build cities, build em- a lasting legacy. To make something that lasts
pires. is the highest good, whether you are a smith
working at a forge or a ruler building a dy-
Bahamut - God of nobility and the nasty.
just use of power. He is known as the platinum
dragon and worshipped by those in power. Cuthbert - He will track you down
Once, Bahamut sought to unite the stars in his himself if you break a promise. That's not a
name, but now his ambitions are cooled to threat, that's a fact. Cuthbert is a god of eter-
merely guiding civilizations. Monarchs are nal bonds and trust, of promises and the way
crowned in his name, and his worship is most that entire cultures are built upon the trust be-
popular among the Dragonborn. He com- tween people. Common superstition holds
mands his followers to seek out power, and to that if his name is invoked in a contract, he will
use it for the right reasons: personally curse anyone who breaks from the
contract. He is strict with his followers, and
* Uphold the highest ideals of honor orders them to do the following:
and justice.
* Your word is your bond. Never
* Be constantly vigilant against evil break it for any reason.
and oppose it on all fronts.
* Never allow your fear to gain mas-
* Protect the weak, liberate the op- tery over you, but drive it into the hearts of
pressed, and defend just order. your foes.

Pelor - God of mercy and kindness * Repay betrayal with the sword.
and turning the other cheek. Associated with Trust others until they break that trust, and
the sun, and bringing light into dark places. only give them that trust again when it is re-
Pelor encourages people to make the world a paid.
better place with acts of kindness, and gener-
ally to not be a dick. That is actually more rad- THE GRAY COUNCIL
ical an idea than you think. Pelor directs his
followers thus: The Gray Council is something of a
catchall for the gods that don't align them-
* Alleviate suffering wherever you selves with the Ruinous Powers or the Blessed
find it. Pantheon, remaining mostly neutral from the
conflict of law and chaos. Most ultimately
* Bring Pelor's light into places of serve only their own goals, like any other god.
darkness, showing kindness, mercy, and com- The powers of the Gray Council are some of
passion. the most worshipped gods in the Great Wheel,
as they don't urge their followers to action
* Be watchful against evil. against the other gods, and so can be found in

196

CHAPTER XI:
ALIGNMENT

nearly every corner of the Great Wheel and work of the faithful to ensure that change is for
not face opposition. the better.

Acererak - A God of Magic itself. * Strike back against those who would
Legend says he gave away his body piece by rob you of your freedom and urge others to
piece to learn all the secrets of the world, leav- fight for their own liberty.
ing him only a skull. He knew the secret to im-
mortality and godhood at that point, of course, * Do not fear or condemn the sav-
so it didn't really inconvenience him as much agery of nature. Live in harmony with the
as you'd expect. His commandments are also wild.
teachings:
Corellon - He is essentially the god of
* Seek the perfection of your mind by excellence, and one of the very few living El-
bringing reason, perception, and emotion into darin gods. He cannot abide failure in any
balance with one another. form - but constantly reminds his followers
that they haven't failed until they refuse to try
* Accumulate, preserve, and keep se- again. He asks those who worship him to al-
cret knowledge in all forms. Pursue education, ways be willing to try no matter the odds, and
build libraries, and seek out lost and ancient to never quit. He urges his followers thus:
lore.
* Cultivate beauty in all that you do,
* Never reveal all that you know. whether you're casting a spell, composing a
saga, strumming a lute, or practicing the arts
The Raven Queen - Things die all the of war.
time. When they die, the Raven Queen is there
to handle it. She pulls souls into the Warp * Seek out lost magic items, forgotten
when its their time, and lets them out when it's rituals, and ancient works of art. Corellon
time for them to be born again. She isn't too might have inspired them in the world's first
fond of letting them out, but it's still part of days.
her job. And she's very serious about it.
Deadly serious. She expects her followers to * Show neither pity nor mercy to
abide by these commandments: those who are caught underfoot as you climb
your way to power. Failures do not deserve
* Hold no pity for those who suffer compassion.
and die, for death is the natural end of life.
Vectron - By his golden wings, praise
* Bring down the proud who try to him! Vectron is a very real and not completely
cast off the chains of fate. As the instrument made up god who has worship going back
of the Raven Queen, you must punish hubris fifty- no, a THOUSAND years! Yeah! And
where you find it. and... he's really awesome. What is he the god
of? Well, conveniently, he is the god of what-
* Keep to the shadows, avoiding the ever seems like you need help with right now,
blazing light of zealous good and the utter so get in there and yell some praises! Vectron's
darkness of evil. commandments are vague and often change,
but are generally agreed to be something like
Luna - Luna is a fickle and everchang- this:
ing deity. It can be impossible to tell just what
she'll do. She can be savage, loving, violent, all * Do not question the validity of Vec-
the true faces of people behind the masks they tron as a god. He's the biggest, best god, and
wear for society. Luna commands people to that's all there is to it.
follow their own paths and not to let others
rule them, no matter where that path takes * There is no problem that cannot be
them, and especially no matter what social solved by praising Vectron loudly enough and
conventions would demand. Her strictures are giving it another go.
these:
* Make sure to let people know Vec-
* Change is inevitable, but it takes the tron helped you. Try and convert others into
the flock.

197

"So bear with me here," Armstrong said, adjusting his grip on his staff.
"That archdaemon over there-" He nodded behind the group, indicating the
giant draconic thing overflowing with the powers of the Warp that was leading
the army of incarnate daemons flooding the Crystal Sphere they had become
trapped in.

"Can I wolf with you instead?" Traya asked, holding back a giggle.
Iniga's eye twitched.

"That was a bad pun and you should feel bad for making it," Iniga
said. "Can we maybe finish this soon? It's almost dawn and I don't want to
burn to death."

"Can I finish?" Armstrong asked. "Anyway, like I was saying, to banish
the archdaemon we need to complete some ritual that involves human sacri-
fice, according to the old book I found."

"Pfft. Books. I don't trust books." Traya folded her arms. "Let's just
go krump it." Jacov nodded.

"I have to agree," Jacov said. "We aren't going to sacrifice anyone.
We'll find another way to deal with this thing." He adjusted his plate armor.
They were all covered in muck and blood. Traya was the only one who didn't
seem to mind. The tiefling was almost always covered in muck and blood
anyway.

"We at least need some kind of plan," Iniga said. "If we just go at that
thing screaming we'll end up splattered across six dimensions. Or worse! You
have no idea what a greater daemon could do!"

"How about we throw a rock at it?" Traya said, excited. Three pairs
of eyes turned to give her blank looks. "A big rock?" She looked down. Traya
was not exactly known for her great planning ability.

"The ship we hired doesn't have anything that will reach from orbit,"
Armstrong muttered. "I hope the captain hasn't just buggered off and left us
here after the trouble started."

"Anyway, here's what I'm thinking," Iniga said. "I'll toss down a couple
of fireballs to get its attention, then you can go all wolfy and- Jacov! You're
thinking about sacrificing yourself!"

"Well I wasn't necessarily..." Jacov looked down. "If someone needs
to die, I can't let any of you make that sacrifice." Iniga facepalmed.

"Idiot," Iniga said. "Now, like I was saying- Where the hell is Traya?"
"She went all wolfy and ran off," Armstrong said. He pointed. There
was screaming as a very large and angry werewolf was busily and happily tear-
ing apart dozens of lesser daemons.
"Raven Queen help me... doesn't anyone respect my plans?!"

XII EQUIPMENT

The darkened era of the 41st Millen- a weapon in a teeming metropolis. Each piece
of equipment or service has an associated
nium can be the stuff of nightmares as hellish Availability, ranging from Very Common to
war, predatory xenos, insurrection, and con- Very Rare. SMs can use the following guide-
flict threaten those who live in the Great wheel lines as a starting point for determining
on all sides. These and other threats can be whether a world's traders possess a particular
even more dangerous for those who seek out item or not. If the present location does not
adventure, as explorers face not only the offer an item or service, then a Hero must ei-
known and cataloged dangers of the various ther arrange passage to a world whose markets
crystal spheres but also a host of new threats do offer it or else go on a quest in search of it
unimagined save for the ravings of deranged - and either option turns a simple purchase at
seers and other madmen. market into an adventure.

The better armed and equipped a Some things are not just hard to find
party, the better their chances of survival in on certain worlds, but impossible. For in-
dread voids - and the better their prospects for stance, while a lasgun might be a common
achieving the quests they set for themselves. piece of equipment in most parts of the Wheel,
This chapter outlines some of the many types you are unlikely to find one anywhere on a
of weapons, armor, and gear existing in the feral world. The SM can decide to either make
Great Wheel, ranging from standard muni- an item harder to find or even impossible to
tions to rare and magical weapons. acquire because it uses technology not readily
available at the present location.
AVAILABILITY
Characters searching for a particular
Desired goods or services are not al- item must make a Wealth Test. A Wealth Test
ways immediately at hand. Squalid medieval is made by rolling dice equal to your wealth -
worlds are a lot less likely to offer rare goods and yes, if you have zero dots in wealth it
and services than the sophisticated markets of means that you can't afford anything beyond
an industrialized city-world. Moreover, find- the bare necessities. The TN of the Wealth
ing a high-quality weapon on a backwater Test is determined by the rarity of the item:
planet is far more difficult than locating such

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