Magick Rules

These new rules for magic users skip all levels, types of wizards and magic points. Instead of using magic points, the magic users his will power to draw upon the winds of magic. But each casting weakens them and make the next spell a little harder to cast as well as it perhaps can not be at full power as the caster tires. There are three kinds of spellcasters, priests, wizards and alchemists.

Wizards | Alchemists | Priests | Religious Modifiers
Learning Spells | Casting Spells | Ingredients | Power Level
Magic Points Racial Modifiers | Recovering Lost Stats
Alternate Learning Rule | Alternate Casting Rule | Alternate Level Usage

Wizards:

All the rules are the same as before except what is stated below. All wizards follow the same career, the levels have been removed and there is only one advance scheme. There are no levels, just one profile and they can learn spells of any level of the following types: Battle, daemonic, dark, elemental, illusion and necromantic. All are wizards but they are called Battle mages, Daemonologists, Dark mages, Elementalists, Illusionists and Necromancers depending on what their preferred study is, and ultimately what they call themselves.

Skills - Arcane language (Daemonology, Dark magick, Druidic, Dwarvish, Elemental magick, Elvish, Illusionist magick, Necromancy), Astronomy, Cast spells (Battle, Daemonic, Dark, Elemental, Illusion, Necromantic, Petty), Daemon lore, Dousing, Evaluate, Herb lore, Hypnotise, Identify magical artifact, Identify plants, Identify undead, Magic sense, Magical awareness, Manufacture drugs, Manufacture magic items, Manufacture potions, Manufacture scrolls, Meditation, Metallurgy, Prepare poison, Rune lore, Scroll lore.

All the same rules apply to hedge wizards as before.

Alchemists:

All the rules are the same as before except what is stated below. The levels have been removed and there is only one advance scheme. They still cannot learn or cast 4^th level spells.

Skills - Arcane language (Dwarvish, Elvish, Magick), Cast spells (Battle, Petty), Chemistry, Herb lore, Identify magical artifact, Magic sense, Magical awareness, Manufacture drugs, Manufacture magic items, Manufacture potions, Manufacture scrolls, Meditation, Metallurgy, Prepare poison, Rune lore, Scroll lore.

Priests:

These are either clerics or druidic priests. All the rules are the same as before except what is stated below. The levels have been removed and there is only one advance scheme. Priests roll on the advance table whenever the GM desires, giving the appropriate modifiers and ignoring what says about the level advancement.

Skills - A cleric can learn all the skills at all the old levels.

Religious Modifiers:

Following are additional modifiers that should be applied to the priest advance scheme. Each religion has it's own different modifiers depending on the views of the deity.

Manann - None
Morr - None
Myrmidia - +10 WS/BS, +1 W/A, -10 Dex/Int/WP/Fel
Ranald - +10 Dex, -10 BS
Shallya - +10 Int/WP/Fel, -10 WS/BS, -1 S
Sigmar - +10 WS, +1 W, -10 Dex/Int
Taal - None
Ulric - +10 WS/BS, +1 W, -10 Int/WP/Fel
Verena - +10 Ld/Int/WP, -10 WS/BS, -1 S

Learning Spells:

This is pretty much same as before. Priests must have been granted spells in right order, having been granted at least 2 per level before being able to be granted spells of next higher level.

At least half of a wizard’s known spells at any given time must be of a single type. Others he can choose freely from but if he knows only one elemental magic spell, he can never learn necromantic or daemonology spells and vice versa. He then suffers from a –10 penalty to learn any spells outside his chosen field. Also, similar spells must be learnt in the right order or there is a –20 penalty to learn them. E.g. Fireball – Lightning bolt – Blast, if blast is learnt first, there is a –20 penalty to learn it. Other spell sequences include Cure light injury – Cure severe wound, Strength of combat – Strength of mind, Aura of resistance – Aura of protection and Summon skeleton champion – Summon skeleton minor hero – Summon skeleton major hero. Hedge wizards do not suffer from the above restrictions.

The maximum number of known spells is determined the same way as before, using the power level instead of the career level (which was basically the same thing). Int points lost due to spellcasting (see below) does not lower the maximum number though.

Casting Spells:

Wizards tune in to the winds of magic and priests tune in to the energies of their deity along side the winds of magic. Gathering this energy and controlling it is succeeded automatically by the spellcaster. In some difficult situations, a WP test might be required.

Each casting or attempt at it weakens the spellcaster. When a spell is cast successfully, the caster loses the same number in all %-characteristics as the appropriate number of magic points. For each 10 points lost, he also loses 1 in S and M. A failed spell causes the caster to lose half of what he would lose if the spell had been successful. The stats never go below 20%/1 in this way. If the casters WP ever should go below 20 this way, he must make an immediate Cl and T tests and the spell fails. If the Cl check is failed, he gains d3 insanity points and if the T check is failed, he takes d6 wounds.

Ingredients:

Ingredients must be used as by the book. When the right ingredients are used, there is not spell casting roll. Also, ingredients that are similar to those listed can also be used (like, scalp of an ogre instead of scalp of giant or vial of beer instead of vial of pure alcohol) but then a test against WP +10 must be made to successfully cast the spell. Using no ingredients is possible but the spellcasting roll is made at -10.

Power Level:

Power level of spellcasters is determined by their WP score, known spells and time. A wizard must know at least three spells of each level before being able to rise to next power level and at least a whole year must pass between rises. Racial modifiers apply to dwarves and halflings (see below) making them less effective spellcasters than humans, which in turn are less effective than elves. Note that those with WP 29 or less cannot become wizards (39 or less for halflings and 49 or less for dwarves). Determine the power level as follows: WP 31-40 = Level 1, WP 41-50 = Level 2, WP 51-60 = Level 3 and WP 61+ = Level 4.

When the spellcasters casts spells, he loses WP and his power level slowly drops. Thus, his spells become gradually less effective along with him becoming more mentally and physically spent.

Magic Points:

There are no magic points when using this system.

Racial Modifiers:

Dwarven wizards and alchemists (not priests) have an extra -30 and halflings -20 to the spell casting roll and to the power level. Making their spell casting rolls and power levels 10 lower than a humans' (and 20 lower than an elves') on average. This also applies when determining whether a member of these races can at all become a wizard or alchemist.

Recovering Lost Stats:

The spellcaster can regain lost stats in several ways, both actively and passively.

Meditation - One point per d6 turns.
Sleep - One point per 6 turns.
Rest - One point per 10 turns.
Normal* - One point per 60 turns.
Activity - No points are regained.

*Normal is doing no work more difficult than walking at a normal pace.

Alternate Learning Rule:

Skills and spells can be learned according to the power level. Therfore, a wizard with 45 WP can learn any skills and spells that, according to the original rules, are of level 2 or lower.

Alternate Casting Rule:

A WP test is always required to see if a spell is cast successfully. Instead, no ingredients are required. This means that it becomes increasingly difficult to cast spells as the WP score drops. The spellcasting roll is modified depending on the level of the spell and the power level of the caster. The caster cannot cast spells of level higher than his power level but if he casts spells of lower level than his power level, he gains a bonus of +5 per level difference. The magic user can increase his chance of succeeding the ‘to cast’ roll. To gain each +5 he is weakened by an additional 1% in all %-characteristics.

Alternate Level Usage:

Alternatively, if you prefer, you could use levels as before. Then the only change these rules make are the removal of the Magic points and the reduction of stats when casting spells, along with the racial modifiers. Also the Religious modifiers should be easy to implement into the levels, just apply them to every level (ignoring negatives of course).