Magic permeates the world of Londolon, channeled by its living inhabitants. Magic behaves differently based on what type of being is working the magic. However, it is divided into two overarching categories:
Arcane Magic and
Spiritual Magic.
Arcane Magic comes from the self -- it is determined by individual effort, disciplined study, and imagination.
Spiritual Magic comes from outside -- it is determined by connection to and reverence for other beings and the nature of the universe itself.
When a character casts any spell, the same basic rules are followed, regardless of what type of magic the character wields or the spell's effects.
Each spell description begins with a block of information, including the spell's name, rank, school of magic or spell domain, casting time, range, components, and duration. The rest of a spell entry describes the spell's effect.
Subtopics below:
Spells In Combat
Spellcasters such as human
wizards and
priests and priests, as well as many other
creatures, have access to spells and can use them to great effect in
combat.
In order to visualize a spell into existence, a short ritual which usually includes verbal and somatic
components is necessary on the part of the caster. Sometimes, a material component is also necessary to act as a representation of the spell effect in the caster’s mind. The casting ritual helps a spellcaster mold magical energy to make the spell real.
To symbolize this ritual, each spell has a
Casting Time, which specifies whether the caster must use an
action, a
reaction, minutes, or even hours to cast the spell. Casting a spell is, therefore, not necessarily an
action. Most spells do have a casting time of 1 action, so a spellcaster often uses his or her action in
combat to cast such a spell.
In order to cast a spell, the caster must first have access to the spell through cosmic revelation or recording in a spellbook, and then have learned to perform the spell's ritual.
Spellcasting Checks
Unless otherwise noted on the character sheet, when attempting to cast a spell a wizard or priest must roll a
Spellcasting Check with a
DC of 8+ the rank of the spell attempted, adding their spellcasting
ability modifier and
proficiency bonus to their roll. If they fail the check, then the spell fails and their
action and
spell points are wasted.
A
wizard who rolls a 1 on their Spellcasting Check rolls on the
Wild Magic Surges table to create a random magical effect. Priests rolling a 1 do not create such a surge.
When casting a spell that includes a
Spell Attack Roll, you do not need to roll a spellcasting check.
If you are
improvising a spell modification or
casting while depleted, you must make a Spellcasting Check even if you otherwise wouldn't.
Combining Magical Effects
The effects of different spells add together while the
Durations of those spells overlap. The effects of the same spell cast multiple times don't combine, however. Instead, the most potent effect -- such as the highest bonus -- from those castings applies while their durations overlap.
For example, if two
priests cast
Bless on the same
target, that character gains the spell's benefit only once; he or she doesn't get to roll two bonus dice.
Casting a Spell at a Higher Rank
When a spellcaster casts a spell using more
spell points than are necessary to cast the spell, the spell assumes the higher rank for that casting. For instance, if Umara casts
Magic Missile using two spell points, that magic missile is 2nd rank. Effectively, the spell expands to match the number of points dedicated to the spell.
Some spells, such as
Magic Missile and
Cure Wounds, have more powerful effects when cast at a higher rank, as detailed in a spell's description.
Casting in Armor
Because of the mental focus and precise gestures required for spellcasting, you must be
proficient with the
Armor you are wearing to cast a spell. You are otherwise too distracted and physically hampered by your armor for spellcasting.
Perceiving Spellcasting
Many spells create obvious effects: explosions of fire, walls of ice, teleportation, etc. The effects of these spells are visible at a range determined by the size of the effect, audible at a distance determined by the volume of the noise effect of the spell, and subject to a
Wisdom (
Perception)
check by anyone within sensory range of the effect.
Other spells, such as
Charm Person, display little visible, audible, or otherwise perceptible sign of their effects, and could easily go unnoticed even at close range. However, characters could still perceive the spellcasting process itself. if the caster attempts to
cast it subtly by making a
Dexterity (
Sleight of Hand)
check, they can avoid such spells from attracting notice -- and get the jump on creatures by denying them a
Reaction to a flashier spell.
Unless a character attempts to
cast a spell subtly, it is assumed that all
creatures in the vicinity will notice the casting.
Every spell description includes its casting perception modifiers, as well as size and type of sensory effects. Read more about perceiving spellcasting in the
Casting Subtlety article.
Identifying Spells
Sometimes a character wants to identify a spell that someone else is casting, or that is currently in effect.
In order to identify a spell, the character must first know of the spell’s existence -- they must have seen it before or heard tell of its use. Second, they must perceive its casting or its effect. However, identifying the spell does not require any action on the part of the character.
The character simply rolls an
Intelligence (
Arcana)
check to identify the spell. The
DC equals 8 + the spell’s rank. If the character making the check knows and is able to cast the spell themselves, they automatically pass the check.
Monster Spellcasters
A
creature with the Spellcasting special trait has a class level and
spell points, which it uses to cast its spells of 1st rank and higher.
The
creature has a list of spells known or prepared from a specific
class. The creature is considered a member of that class when
attuning to or using a
Magic Item that requires membership in the class or access to its spell list.
A
creature can cast a spell from its list at a higher rank if it has the
spell points and a spellcasting class level high enough to do so.
Comments