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Seraphine_Harmonium 07-24-07, 12:13 AM

The Four Circles of Magic In the time before the One God, the Sun and the Moon were the keepers of Magic. It was they who first sparked life on Avayevnon. The adu’jas rose; creatures that were both animal and plant, and in their in-between contained a power to manipulate the Earth. They saw spirits in the stag, the raven, the boar; in the oak and mistletoe, and all the world was of their ancestors. All the spirits were to them as gods. The adu’jas found petitioning the gods on behalf of the woods met with their gracious answer, and so they found peaceful power there. But the magic of the Sun and Moon was different: It flowed in and out of nature, altered it. It could mend and could destroy, it could conceal, but also could reveal. So Sun and Moon controlled the magic called The Flow. But magic’s fluidity meant power too could flow. An arrow from a Mehan Bow struck down the Sun, sending shockwaves through the flow. The Sun’s blood flooded Avayevnon washing the Mehani off its face. Thus splintered magic and what was The Flow ceased to be one river but was three. Swallowing Sun’s magic-infused blood, the One God gained great power and shone bright, to take his place up in the sky. That blood that stained the earth and that that was the source of God’s power was the same and when the blood had hardened into stones they were a channel for his influence. The One God was the Sun reborn and gained power over light, healing, and miracles. When the moon wept forth a sea of tears at the death of the Sun, she watered all the world a full sea’s depth. The scattered tears formed stones of crystalline, which glowed at night with her soft purity. And through these stones thus Lugra’s power was channeled, like New Sun’s. And Lugra held dominion over night—she wept and grew bitter controlling such magic as of sight, of deep emotions, of secrets dark as night, and knowledge as she knew the new Sun’s crime. But still a certain magic went unclaimed, the force of death itself, of destruction. It was the magic that could unmake nature, could harm a person, composed of selfish power. Magic of domination, pleasure and hate, of jealousy and anger, of lethargy and decay it was. Vile magic of evil, left unclaimed and dormant, at least for now. When the One God’s angels went to war and seven of the fourteen banished were, the new formed demons festered in The Pit and stripped of godly gift found a new power. Through the Pit ran gruesome River Styx that ran sluggish, thick with coagulated blood and tortured souls. In this river ran the evil magic. Black magic full of cruelty and vice. Numinous Foci The term “Numinous Foci” refers to the set of magical focuses that must be used to channel magical power through each of the deific figures that control the fragments of The Flow and the Spirit Magic of the Druids. These come in a variety of forms specific to the power relevant. Bloodstones: These ancient stones are from the blood of the first Sun and channel the One God’s power on Avayevnon. They resemble rubies in their deep red luster. They function only for the faithful who have devoted their lives to the One God’s holy service. Set within the holy symbol of the One God: the blazing sun, they are requisite to magical casting for Clerics, Monks, and Paladins. Moonstones: Formed from the tears of Lugra, Moonstones channel the Moon’s power on Avayevnon. They would resemble diamonds were it not for their smooth teardrop shape and luminosity. They function for those who reject the One God and seek to unlock truth through magic. Often set atop a staff or in a pendant, they are requisite to arcane casting for Sorcerers and in Alchemists experiments. Spirit Focus: Druidic magic has no single focus. The deed determines the necessary focus. Deeds of strength require a boar’s tusk, protection an oak twig. Many things can serve as a focus, most of them quite ordinary. Whatever focus is required, druidic magic cannot be cast without it. Essence: The corruptive Black Magic of the demons has no focus. One does not simply thrust oneself into evil magics, one must come to it slowly. Some are born with evil tendencies and reach their malicious potential easily, but Black Magic is a corruption of other magics. One must stray into it from another path. A dark priest’s Sun symbol becomes darkened, tarnished, and the stone turns black. A moonstone looses its glimmer, dulls and dies. Spirit foci wither and decay. The price to cast black magicks is a terrible one: a piece of one’s soul. The further one digs into dark magic the more of themselves they must give over. Magical power is amplified, but the caster slowly withers away in poorer and poorer health until they become a shadow, a soulless husk, completely under their demonic master’s bidding. It is the price that all must eventually pay. On the Dangers of Magic The casting of spells is a complex process for a magic-user that involves a body, mind, and soul. A strong souled caster is a better conduit for magical power, drawing on a greater flux of essential energies, but this can also be a danger to the caster if implemented improperly. Inexperienced casters often try to focus more energy than they can handle, which can damage both body and mind. Exerting too much energy at once is a dangerous risk to take. When this occurs, at best the magic-user loses consciousness as his exhausted mind reverts to a comatose state for recovery. In some cases this results in permanent damage and a permanent loss of spell casting capability. A spell caster must be able to properly focus and control his magical ability through force of will. Each spell he casts taxes his mind as he forces the ambient energies he channels into palpable form. Each spell lays a burden on his mind and the casting of many spells, or single powerful spells, puts a heavy strain on the will. A caster must have a mighty will to sustain heavy casting. Thankfully the foci used in casting relieve part of this strain, helping the caster to avoid damaging his mind, but these foci only do so much. In theory, one who possessed the gift of magic could cast spells without a focus, but lacking the lightning rod of their foci would make such an attempt a perilous one indeed. --From the Grimoire Arcanis, translation by Garcin Leblaque So, with all that brought forth, I am trying to work out a mechanic for spellcasting. I will be using a mana-based system to begin with. I am thinking that I want casting to be draining on the caster and to have a sort of Stamina-Exertion system. I have the following so far: Stamina and Exertion:Stamina is the capacity to sustain strenuous activity, and Exertion is the measure of physical activity a character sustains. When a character’s exerts one fourth of their stamina they become dazed for one round, and each time they exert themselves further they become dazed for another round. When a character exerts one half of his stamina he is fatigued. When a character’s exertion equals his stamina he becomes exhausted. A character may attempt an action in which the exertion exceeds his current stamina, and may succeed, but the attempt, successful or not, leaves the character incapacitated. A mage with enough mana points in his arsenal to cast a spell with a higher exertion than he has stamina could attempt to cast the spell. If his concentration check succeeds, the spell is cast as normal but regardless, the mage is incapacitated afterwards. I don't know how to work out stamina levels or exertion amounts. I could use some input. I would appreciate suggestions as to how to work Black Magic so that it mechanically gives a caster augmented abilities at the cost of their soul. Also, if there's anything else anyone wants to comment on that's cool too.