Casting Spells Through A Magickal Device

Scrolls & Books

1. The caster must be able to read the book or scroll at least fluently (TSC 65%+) and must be successful with a Read Language skill roll. The caster must then correctly read the trigger phrase written on the parchment. The time taken to cast the spell is as if the spell is a Cantrip.

2. The basic chance of casting the spell through a Magickal device is equal to the Method of Magick TSC% of the Magick User who wrote the scroll or book. On a failure, the scroll or page is discharged and the casting is unsuccessful.

3. If the spell is correctly cast, it now has to be targeted to the victim (see Targeting a Spell). Targeting chances are computed by taking into account the TSC% of the Magick User who created the scroll or book. Meditation cannot be used to increase Targeting of a scroll, but if part of the target was used as one of the Material Components then the spell gains a bonus of +15% to Targeting TSC%.

4. If the target is successful, the victim may be entitled to a try to save against the effects of the spell (see Resisting a Spell Effect – Optional Rules). Victims take into account the PSF% of the Magick User who created the scroll or book but saves cannot be reduced through Meditation and fasting.

5. Finally, if the victim fails his Save, he will be affected by the spell.

Other Devices

1. The caster must correctly remember the formula, as explained previously.

2. If the caster knows the spell at MR 0 then the casting is automatically successful. If the spell is not at MR 0, it is considered ‘unlearnt’ and the caster suffers from a penalty of -5% for each MR the spell is above 0. Of course, this penalty automatically applies to Non-Mages. The basic chance is equal to the Method of Magick TSC% of the Mage who made the device. On a failure, the casting is unsuccessful but the item loses one charge x MR of the spell.

3. If the spell is correctly cast, it has now to be targeted to the victim (see Targeting a Spell). Targeting chances are computed by taking into account the TSC% of the Magick User who created the device. Meditation cannot be used to increase Targeting of a Magickal device, but if part of the target was used as one of the Material Components then the spell gains a bonus of +15% to Targeting TSC%.

4. If the target is successful, the victim may be entitled to a try to save against the effects of the spell (see Resisting a Spell Effect – Optional Rules). Victims take into account the PSF% of the Magick User who created the Magickal device but saves cannot be reduced through Meditation and fasting.

5. Finally, if the victim fails his Save, he will be affected by the spell!

Commands and Charms cast through Magickal Devices

If the caster’s Second Attribute is Bardic Voice and the spell is cast through a Magickal device, then reduce save percentages by -5% for every 2 points over 14. i.e. if the Attribute is 17, then the save percentage will be reduced by 10% (17 -14 = 3 / 2 = 2 rounded up).

Illusions cast through Magickal Devices

When the spell is cast through a Magickal device, the use of smokes such as those produced by burning incense, fogs against which an Illusion can be projected, perfumes and essences to produces mysterious odours, or cauldrons of steaming brew can reduce the chances of a save by -10%.

Common Terms

MR: Magic resistance

PMF:To calculate the Personal Magick Factor (PMF) of a Magus, add together the following:

1. The Mage’s PSF% in his selected Mode of Magick, plus

2. His Aspect Bonus. This is +10 for Well and Poor Aspected Mages and +10 for Neutral Aspected Priest-Mages.

The PMF determines the Mage’s Magick Level (ML). This affects his ability to enchant materials and learn and cast spells. Table – Magick Levels shows the Magick Level (ML) gained for the various levels of PMF.

Cost: A Fatigue Point cost is typically associated with an Act of Faith and will be assessed against the person(s) named.

Crit Die Result: A certain result on the Spirit AR Crit Die is needed for Act of Faith to be successful or else there is an enhancement to the benefit received.

Time: This is the time needed to perform an Act of Faith, Sacred Ritual or Special Power. Duration: The length of time the effects of the Acts of Faith, Scared Ritual or Special Power last.

FP: Fatigue Points

Fatigue is a measure of a character’s endurance and general level of energy. Fatigue is measured in Fatigue Points (FP).

Determining Basic Fatigue Points

To calculate a PC’s Fatigue Points choose the most favourable of:

• The sum of the character’s Constitution and Strength attributes, or

• That of the character’s Constitution and Discipline Recovering Fatigue Points

Fatigue is typically quickly used up in highly stressful situations, particularly during combat or in during Magickal practice. The Fatigue Recovery Rate (FRR) reflects how quickly they can recover personal energy levels and is dependent on Constitution. After 10 minutes of rest a character will regain an amount of Fatigue Points, as shown in Table - Fatigue Recovery Rates. This is the amount of Fatigue Points recovered in the first 10 minutes of rest following any activity. The PC is simply required to rest and do nothing to 'get their breath back'.

This resting period can be extended up to a maximum of 1 hour to recover additional Fatigue Points. After the first 10 minutes of rest the recovery rate drops to 1 FP per 10 minutes of additional rest for PCs with CON 15 or less and 2 FP per 10 minutes of additional rest for those with CON 16+. If a PC wishes to recover more, sleep is required. Recovering Fatigue Points at the sleeping rate has no maximum time period.

Total Success Chance (TSC%)

By this point the character will have all the numbers necessary to calculate his chance to succeed in a skill. The Total Success Chance (TSC%) is calculated as follows:

1. Basic Chance of Success (BCS%) as shown in Table – Difficulty Factors (either skilled or unskilled as appropriate plus

2. The character’s Personal Skill Factor (PSF%) in the skill; plus

3. Any modifiers effecting the character’s performance of the skill, these may relate to the circumstances in which the skill is being performed, etc.

It is conceivable that a character that is highly skilled with many levels in a particular skill may possess a TSC% above the Maximum Chance of Success (Max%) for a skill at that DF. Table – Difficulty Factors shows the minimum and maximum chances of success available for each Difficulty Factor.

In this instance the TSC% is equal to the Maximum Chance of Success (Max%) for the given skill. The reverse may also be true in that a character’s TSC% may be lower than the Minimum Chance of Success (Min%) for a given DF especially if he is unskilled. In this case the character’s TSC% is equal to the Minimum Chance of Success (Min%) for the skill.

However, any amounts above or below the maximum and minimum levels are not ignored, they provide either bonuses or penalties to the Crit Die result. For further details see the section Min% and Max% Success Chances later in this Chapter.

Making a Skills Check

A skills check is made to find out whether a character succeeds or fails with a particular skill at a given moment. The skill check is made up of two elements, the result of the Percentile Pair or 1D100 roll and the result of the Crit Die or 1D10 roll.

The Percentile Pair (1D100)

The Percentile Paid are a paid of ten-sided dice with one die having '0' after the number (this is the 10’s die) and the other being the units die.

If you do not have these specialised dice, roll two ten-sided dice of different colours, one designated a ten’s die and the other the one’s die.

The Crit Die (1D10)

The third ten-sided die should be a different colour from the percentage dice. This is the Crit Die and it should be rolled at the same time as the Percentile Pair.

It is used to indicate the magnitude of the skill check, the larger the result the greater the magnitude of the skill check whether it is a success or failure. The Crit Die result is compared to the appropriate table and the result noted.

A 10 (or higher) result is always a Critical whether it is a Success or Failure. Certain occasions give modifiers to the crit die to increase the chance of a critical result for example using a charging Lance. A critical result brings its own special penalties and bonuses.

Example:

A Well Aspected Magus with a PSF 78% in his Mode of Magick will have a PMF of 78 + 10 = 88. This equates to a ML of 11. If the Magus gained a further 11 levels in his Mode his PSF% would increase to 111 which along with his Aspect bonus equates to a PMF of 121, giving him an ML of 16. When his PMF reaches 128 his ML increases to 17.