In general, the following should be
true of magic practiced at this power level and genre:
(1) Magic is Difficult
Basically no one should be casting
spells at the drop of a hat. Typically this will be represented by
requiring skill rolls, cost personal Endurance or require the use of
props or other foci. Also things like Gestures & Incantations
can help with the flavor of this.
(2) Magic Takes Time
The more powerful the spell, the longer
it usually takes to cast. In general, the rough scale I use is:
The exception to this are spells that
can be pre-prepped but require a lengthy setup time (similar to how
Alchemy works in the Fantasy Hero Grimoire).
(3) Magic is Inherently Dangerous
Like taking time, this is more true of
the higher powered spells. In general, however, there should be some
risk when using magic. Side Effects are the obvious limitation for
this, but other things like 0 DCV concentration or Increased
Endurance Cost work as well.
(4) Magic Uses the Spell Limitation
All magic makes use of the Spell
limitation (FH pg 246). Here's a quick summary of what that entails:
Magic circles may be layered. You
must declare the order in which the circles are drawn (which circle is
inside which other circle).
Example: You could place a
Magic Circle of Focus inside a Magic Circle of Power which is inside a
Magic Circle of Protection. Anyone inside the circle would get
the benefits of all 3 circles. Also, anyone outside the circles
would first have to get through the Magic Circle of Protection in order
to use magic to mar either of the other two circles.
Example: You could place a Magic
Circle of Magic Damping inside of a Magic Circle of Containment.
Anything inside the circle would have its power damped and would have
to break through the MCoC to use magic on anything outside the
circles. If the circles had been layered the other way, the Magic
Circle of Magic Damping would reduce the effectiveness of the Magic
Circle of Containment.
Alternatively, Magic Circles can be directly combined. This has
the advantage that counting the layering is always done in the most
advantageous way possible (to the caster) for any given effect (with
the above combined Magic Damping and Containment circles you'd always
have to overcome the Containment before you could try to mar the
Damping no matter which direction you come from but the Damping would
never suppress the Containment). Doing this requires both circles
to be created simultaneously (which would require a large enough
Multipower Reserve if these are in a Multipower) taking full time for
all combined circles and a single Create Magic Circle roll is made with
the combined Active Point penalties.
Example: The combined Magic
Circle of Magic Damping and Magic Circle of Containment would take at
least 2 minutes to draw and has a combined Active Point total of 277
for a -28 Magic Roll penalty. You might want to layer on a few
bonuses before drawing this one (taking extra time, having some
assistants to make Complimentary rolls, and find some good quality
magic circle drawing tools).
Magic Circle Skills
Create Magic Circle:
This is an INT-based 3-point skill that allows the creation of Magic
Circles. The GM will make this Skill Roll in secret. If you
fail, you will be informed that you messed up the circle somehow.
However, if you critically fail, you will not be informed of the
failure until use of the circle is attempted. If you critically
succeed, the effects of the circle will be boosted by roughly 30 or so
Active Points. This skill cannot be used to identify any magic
circle you cannot create yourself. Extra Time may be taken with
this skill as normal. KS: Magic Circles can be used as a
Complimentary Skill.
KS: Magic Circles:
This skill gives you a knowledge of various types of magical circles
and will potentially allow you to identify one that was created by
someone else. If it is a circle that you can create yourself,
then you will get a +2 to the roll to correctly identify the unknown
circle. KS: Wards, KS: Signs & Sigals and similar skills may be used as a substitute for this skill at
-2 to -6. The GM will make this roll in secret. If you succeed,
you will be told the purpose of the magic circle. If you
critically succeed, you'll also be able to learn a few things about
it's creator based upon his personal style. If you fail, you'll
be unable to identify the circle. If you critically fail, you'll
identify it as the wrong type of circle.
Special Implements
* - Ink should also take Charges.