Spells

In Trilhamarga , the manifestations of the hidden powers wielded by sorcerers and other kinds of mages are called spells.

MAGES: If a character is at least Average (+1) in Occultism , they can be a mage: a scholar capable of casting spells. During character creation , a mage can acquire spells for 250 coins.

Acquiring Spells

New spells can be found in places of adventure such as ruins and dungeons, lost libraries, or with strange and mysterious sorcerers, in the form of scrolls, inscriptions, tomes, and the like, and they must be registered in a grimoire .

Material Support

When found in ancient ruins or dungeons, a spell may be inscribed on three kinds of material support:

FRAGILE: A scroll, a sheet of papyrus, or a clay tablet.

HEAVY: An ancient tome, a carved stone, or an inscribed metal plate. Takes up 2 inventory slots.

FIXED: Inscriptions on a wall, a bas-relief on an altar, or symbols painted on the ceiling of a chamber. Cannot be carried.

Registering Spells

To register a spell in a grimoire , the character must make an Occultism check with difficulty 7 + the number of spells already registered in that grimoire. To register a spell on other kinds of material support , the difficulty varies according to the available space.

For example, registering a spell on a wall with plenty of blank space can be just as hard as registering it in a barely filled grimoire (difficulty 8), whereas registering a spell on a few centimeters of scroll may prove a much greater challenge (difficulty 12).

The whole process takes one shift and consumes one unit of ink and quill . On a success, the character registers the new spell correctly. Otherwise, the attempt consumes the materials used, including the space taken up on the material support, but the spell is registered incorrectly and, as a result, does not work.

If the original spell's material support is fragile, any attempt to register it also destroys it, whether the attempt succeeds or fails. For the other kinds of material support, any subsequent attempt by that character to register the same spell must be made with a negative chance for each previous failure.

Casting Spells

To cast a spell that is registered in a grimoire or on some other material support that the character can read aloud, they make an Occultism check with difficulty 8. The spell's power level (PL) equals the success level of the Occultism check to cast it. On a failure, the character suffers one level of arcane fatigue . If the spell is registered on fragile material support, it is destroyed.

A character can cast spells that are not available on any material support at the moment, as long as they have registered the spell before, but they take a negative chance on the Occultism check to do so.

Arcane Fatigue

For each level of arcane fatigue they accumulate, a character takes a negative chance on Occultism checks .

Once per short rest , they can meditate instead of recovering Stamina and remove one level of arcane fatigue . At the end of a long rest , they remove all levels of arcane fatigue they have accumulated.

Spells That Heal or Deal Damage

When not stated explicitly in the spell, the amount of healing or damage it deals varies according to the type of target and the spell's PL:

Sustained Spells

Sustained spells are those that require concentration to keep their effects active. For each sustained spell a mage keeps active, they suffer one level of arcane fatigue that dissipates when the spell's effect also dissipates.

If the mage takes damage while maintaining a sustained spell and the spell's PL is lower than half the damage taken, rounded up, they break concentration and the spell dissipates.

The duration of a sustained spell is up to 1 minute per level of Occultism of the mage.

Resisting and Avoiding Spells

When offer resistance to a spell that affects the mind, the character uses their Will to impose a difficulty on the opponent's Occultism check ; that is, if the result of the opponent's Occultism check is lower than 7 + the character's Will , they fully resist the effects of that spell.

Likewise, a character subjected to the effect of a spell that deals physical damage can use their Dodge to fully avoid that damage.

Spell List

Below is the list of spells that mages can acquire over the course of their adventures. Spells marked with the symbol ◎ are sustained spells.

Alarm

You create a circular area with a radius of PL × 10 feet centered on yourself. Any creature that enters this area triggers an alarm.

Arcane Eye◎

You project one of your eyes, making it move like a character with 30 feet of speed.

Arcane Shield◎

You create a magical barrier that grants Magic Protection equal to PL to a target you touch.

Chill Touch

When you touch a target, you deal necrotic damage to them according to PL, using the table below:

Command

A creature that can hear you obeys a one-word order that is not lethal to itself and that it can carry out in a single action.

Cone of Cold

Creatures in a cone PL × 5 feet long from you take cold damage according to the PL and become slowed for one turn .

Darkness

The entire area within a radius of PL × 5 feet from you is engulfed in an area of magical darkness, completely blocking vision for PL minutes.

Detect Magic◎

You perceive the presence of magic in objects and creatures within your field of view.

Dispel Magic

Nullifies a magical effect equal to or lower than PL on an object or creature you touch.

Feather Fall

PL targets within a radius of 30 feet from you float as they fall, avoiding falling .

Fireball

Blows up everything within a radius of PL × 5 feet from a point up to 60 feet away from you, dealing damage according to the PL .

Fly◎

You or a target you touch can fly with a speed of 30 feet.

Fog

The entire area within a radius of PL × 10 feet from you is filled with a dense fog, partially blocking vision for PL minutes.

Form of [Animal]

When you acquire this spell, determine the type of animal . You can transform and remain in that animal's form for up to PL × 10 minutes. While transformed, you keep your mind but gain the animal's physical attributes and abilities.

Globe of Invulnerability◎

Creates a barrier around a target you touch, blocking spells with a PL less than or equal to this spell's.

Haste◎

You or a target you touch gains extra actions according to PL. When they take a major action , the character can use an extra action to take another major action , a minor action , or a movement .

Healing Word

Restores a target's Stamina according to the PL .

Hold Creature◎

A character that can see you becomes paralyzed for the duration of the spell. You can only paralyze a target if their Will is equal to or lower than the limit set by the spell's PL.

Illusion◎

Creates an illusory image of up to PL × 5 cubic feet. Perception check to notice the illusion.

Invisibility◎

You or a target you touch becomes invisible for the duration of the spell or until you perform a major action .

Knock/Lock

When you acquire this spell, determine its form:

OPEN: You open any mundane locked object you touch, or a magically locked object with a PL less than or equal to this spell's.

LOCK: You magically lock an object you touch. The lock has a difficulty of 9 + PL to undo by non-magical means.

Light

An object you touch emits light equivalent to a torch for PL × 10 minutes.

Lightning Bolt

Fires a bolt of lightning in a straight line from you, PL × 5 feet long, dealing damage according to the PL to each creature in its path as if it were a single-target spell.

Magic Missiles

You fire PL bolts of energy that automatically hit targets up to 60 feet away, dealing 1d2 damage each. It cannot be avoided.

Mirror Image◎

Creates illusory duplicates of yourself according to PL. An attacker must roll 1d6; if the result is less than or equal to the number of remaining duplicates, they hit a duplicate instead of you and the duplicate vanishes.

Misty Step

You teleport instantly to a visible point up to PL × 10 feet away.

Polymorph◎

Transforms a target up to 30 feet away from you into a harmless animal for the duration of the spell or until it is wounded. The target's mind is replaced by the animal's mind. You can only transform a target if their Will is equal to or lower than the limit set by the spell's PL.

Shatter

Creatures and objects within a radius of PL × 5 feet from you take sonic damage according to the PL . Fragile objects break automatically.

Silence◎

Creates an area of silence reaching anything within a radius of 30 feet from you, blocking sounds and spells for PL minutes.

Sleep

All creatures within a radius of 30 feet with a combined total Stamina of up to PL × d6 fall asleep for 10 minutes or until they take damage. Count the creatures with the least Stamina first.

Slow◎

A target you touch becomes slowed for PL turns .

Summon [Creatures]◎

When you acquire this spell, determine the type of creature it summons among Imp , Skeleton , or Zombie . It summons a number of those creatures according to PL, up to 30 feet away:

Take Control◎

You take control of a character that can see you for the duration of the spell or until it is wounded. You can only take control of a target if their Will is equal to or lower than the limit set by the spell's PL.

Telekinesis

Moves an object or creature you can see PL × 5 feet from its starting position. Physique to resist.

Vampiric Touch

When you touch a target, you deal necrotic damage to them according to PL, using the table below, and recover that amount of Stamina .

Web◎

Covers a space with a radius of 5 feet that has a ceiling up to 10 feet high with thick, sticky webs, turning it into an ensnaring difficult terrain with an increased difficulty to cross according to PL. Physique check to break free.