Optional Sorcery Rules
By:
Through the months that I have read the magic section of the BtVs RPG I have begun to feel that
the rules pertaining to Sorcery are weak at best. After reading them I discovered that purchasing levels of Sorcery beyond
rank 5 is quite pointless. You only receive +1 to your
telekinesis or spell rolls up to this level and receiving no bonuses after that
to support buying future levels.
*While it says optional rules this
is not entirely accurate as I truly only create one
rule. This option is however very versatile and Directors may pick and choose which, if any, options they wish.
This is a simple addition to any magical cast member in a
campaign. This rule is quite simple. It is that after a witch has 5 levels of sorcery the witch may choose a new bonus to
their magical menagerie. When a witch goes two levels beyond five
she may choose a new bonus. She may then choose another one after an additional
two more levels. Below are just some of the options and I
encourage cast members to discuss and create new ones on your own.
This option while simple is quite powerful. Basically
a witch decides to buckle down an practice her spell craft or practice
more with the witch power that she
has. This means that they have honed their skills to the point where they gain
a +1 on all spells and witch power rolls. The same witch may take this more than once.
This explains why witches grow and are able to do new things. This
idea gives you a new power either from the list given
or one from the directors or cast members making. These new powers when
acquired take time to develop, as such they may only get a +1
the first time they use it and then every additional time they receive another
+1 until they are up to their maximum Sorcery bonus. This also can act as
optional witch powers to begin with rather than just the same old telekinesis.
This is why we will refer to the beginning power a witch has as her witch power.
This is the same as what is presented in the BtVS RPG core rulebook.
Yes, this is the official Phoebe visions thing. While also called psycometry
it is a useful power to have. When a person touches an
object there is a chance that that object will tell something about the past or
future. This can not be force however and will only
happen when the Director wishes it. It is a bit like the Psychic Visions quality but this can be quite a bit more powerful.
When the vision happens the witch must make a
willpower + Sorcery roll to determine the depth in which her vision is seen.
This can range from foggy to extreme clarity where you are practically there
living it. This has the same penalty system as telekinesis.
This is a power that in not unlike many spells used to astral
project themselves onto the astral plane. However the
main difference is that with this you soul leaves your body leaving it there
and causes you to appear in another place of your choosing so long as you are
at least somewhat familiar with it. While there is no roll this power is often
dangerous to use. Dangers include leaving your body with no way to protect
itself. Also the spirit may only use witch powers to
affect the real world and can not use any other means. Also
normal things can attack your spirit and once it has sustained half of your
total life points in damage it immediately returns to the body where you must
rest to repair your soul. Penalties are acquired as above.
Telepathy
(telepathic communication)
With this power you are able to project
your thoughts into another person. This is most commonly used for sending
people messages. This power depends heavily on how well you know this person or
how well you know how they think. This is rolled just like a normal witch power
roll (Sorcery + Willpower) this is then modified by the following table:
Familiarity level
|
Bonus/ Penalty
|
Friend or
Relative (see every day, familiar with)
|
+1
|
Distant
Friend (see once a month)
|
+0
|
Very
Distant friend (see once a year)
|
-1
|
Long lost
Family member (saw twice
or so)
|
-3
|
Stranger
(Never seen before)
|
-5
|
This is the ability to delve into a person’s psyche and extract
information on what they are thinking. This power is used just as Telepathy
(Sending) with the same modifiers from the table above however the number of
success equals the depth of which you were able to get to.
For instance one success may be only emotional
feelings while six could be their entire childhood. Directors are to use their
best judgment on this one but to use it as a story telling tool is always a
good idea. People may want to resist a person entering their mind in which case
they must beat the witch on her power roll using their willpower doubled.
This is one of the most power full powers a
witch can get. With her very thought she can create fire and incinerate huge
area if she is strong enough. Directors beware and think before giving this
power to a cast member. Remind them how much damage it can do and not to go
showing off their new found strength. This power
demands respect and if used properly it can be very useful. Basically
this power can be used for anything from lighting candles to
incinerating vamps. This power when used to attack the witch must make
Willpower + Sorcery roll the number of successes becomes the strength of the
attack. They must then make a Dexterity + Sorcery (or Wild Card Firebolt) to attack the target. If it hits the target takes
the strength level of the attack and multiply four plus the total number
successes on the attack roll in damage. They are also on fire
and will take fire damage each round until put out. You may want to
limit the damage more by making the damage the strength level of the attack
times half the number of successes of the attack roll and also have fire damage
applied each round as usual.
This also acquires penalties normally as per telekinesis.
This power is always helpful for getting those old spell books off
the top row of your bookshelf. While its uses may be
limited levitation is still a useful thing to have. It requires no roll and
thus has no accumulating penalties besides the one for the number of spells you
have cast per day. This basic power allows you to move up and down at your
discretion in the air. I would not suggest using it
anywhere in public or else you might have news reporters at your door.
Another one of those powers that once you have them you could not
live without. Through the use of
this power you are instantly transported from one place to another in the blink
of an eye. The mechanics of this power are easy. You roll your Intelligence
+Sorcery if you get the required number of successes you are transported there
instantly. If you get below it you don’t quite get
there and you may do anything from reappearing where you were teleporting from
to appearing on a busy highway during rush hour. It is all up to the Director.
Do not use this to kill off Cast Members but use it as a tool for story line. Also you must have been to the place you are teleporting to
even if it was just once. Here is the table to determine minimum successes for
teleportation:
|
Distance |
Successes
needed |
|
5-19 yards (moving between rooms) |
1 |
|
20-100 yards |
2 |
|
101yards - 1mile |
4 |
|
2-3 miles |
5 |
|
4-10miles |
7 |
|
14+ miles |
+1 per 4 miles |
Penalties are accumulated as normal.
This option is deals with the common sense of with time the witch
has been able to hone her abilities with one specific power that she had that
she is able to do it easier and perhaps even better. What follows are
additional abilities that a witch may do with her power. This can only be done
with the original witch power that
she had and only with other powers when she has accumulated five levels of
sorcery after acquiring it. This means that only the most powerful witches will
be able to do this.
This refers to the penalties that are acquired from using the
power. If you take this in lew of everything else you may permanently reduce the modifier for using this
power additional times by one. So instead of accumulating the –2 for using the power more than once today you now receive
a -1 penalty. You may only take this once.
You may once per adventure make a willpower + sorcery roll. These
successes may be added on to any future premonition rolls that will take place
during the course of the adventure.
Spiritual
Projection
You now may now effect both your body and
your soul sides. This can in theory cause you to be in
two places at once. This extreme stress on both halves means that you must make
a willpower doubled roll. For each success
it lowers the penalty of functioning both at the same time by one. The penalty
begins at –5, so if a witch scores five successes she
functions without penalty. The penalty that is left is applied to everything
that both sides do.
Telepathy
(telepathic communication)
Your bonus is simple. Lower the penalties of the chart from this
ability by 1and increase the bonuses by the same amount.
Telepathy
(mind reading)
When you successfully roll to gather information in a person’s mind
you receive an extra success to do so as your powers have grown to do this one
thing.
Sadly people who come to this power level
in this ability are practically a danger to everyone around them. If you are
using the first option for damage increase the multiplier by one making it x5.
If using the second choice for damage make the multiplier one
half the attack rolls successes then adding the full success levels of
the attack roll on top of the multiplied number. However, anything within ten feet
of the witch is set on fire usually incinerated by the power that she wields.
This is often why pyrokinetics often become sequestered and antisocial.
In addition to being able to levitate horizontally
you may now control you movement vertically as well giving you the full
experience of flying. While I still warn against using this power in public it is something that can become useful when fighting
vamps. The downside to this is that you now acquire a –1 penalty for each
series of takeoff and landing that you perform. This penalty is added to any
spell roll. So, while the power may not be effected
the energy used to fuel it will not be there for spells.
Lower the success levels needed to teleport a certain distance by
one to a minimum of one.