Magic and becoming a Spellcaster
Spellcasters
A spellcaster is an individual who has bound their soul to one of the realms in which they draw power from. The process of binding is a long and tedious road that the new caster has to follow to gain their magical abilities. The caster has to fully trust the realm and it’s powers and in return, the realm also has to trust the wielder. The realm wants the caster to treat the powers given to them with the respect it deserves. In order to gain the trust of a realm, the caster has to fully surrender to the element the realm they’re bonding with represents. This is done through meditation, study and trials. Upcoming Geomancers can be found meditating on top of mountains or in deep caves while Pyromancer can be found meditating within a burning forest or a charred building.
Becoming a Mage
Becoming a mage or being taught how to become one is a sacred step for every apprentice. Most often such apprentices are chosen by older mages and are taught simple rituals and the rules and laws around the magical arts and crafts. Yet, at one point the apprentice is ready to strengthen their bond with the representing realm.
OOC: The player who wants to become a mage has to seek out a mentor. A mentor is a Lvl 3+ mage who is registered as a teacher. Teachers can only have one student at a time and they will have to notify the staff team of them taking on a student. The student can only become a spellcaster after they are registered, have the “GO” from the lore team and pass their first levelling trial. The teacher does not have to request the first bonding trial, this will automatically be set up after the student is accepted.
For the student, please fill out the spellcaster application form: [Link]
For the teacher, please fill out the new student form: [Link]
Please note that mentors can only train students up to 2 levels below their own unless they are max level (Lvl: 5) EX: Lvl 3 teacher can only get the student to Lvl 1.
Strengthening the Bond
When the student is ready to strengthen the bond with the realm and use more advanced magics, the mentor can decide that the student is ready for their next bonding trial. The students' bond and knowledge about the realm will be put to the test. The student has to fully surrender themselves to the realm and trust that whatever happens, the realm will provide and the caster will survive. If the bond is strong enough, this will happen. If not, the caster will have to give up and continue their studies before trying again.
OOC: The bonding trials are mini events organised by loremasters for the student. In this event, the player will be tested on knowledge, emote quality and some rolling related stuff. If the caster succeeds and “wins” the event, they will advance to the next level. If they fail, they will remain at their current level and can try again within a time decided by the Loremaster running the event. The minimum time until another bonding trial can take place is one week. Other information can be found in the individual lore pieces.
A bonding trial can be requested through here: [Link]
Catalysts and Ingredients
The casting of magic is often described as something mysterious since most often a sacrifice or catalyst is needed to open a tear and call forth the energy required to cast a spell. Every caster needs an item to cast their spells, this can be a staff, ring, weapon etc. At the beginning of their travels the apprentice will receive their first catalyst from their mentor, however, during their training and travels the apprentice, like most mages, will often create new catalysts themselves.
While catalysts are most commonly used a few selected forms of magic are using naturalistic ingredients instead. Such ingredients can vary from blood to herbs and more. Due to such some forms of magic are described as crueler than others, due to the requirements to cast a spell.
OOC: An apprentice/student will be given their first catalyst after the first bonding ritual from a loremaster. If the mage desires they can always request a loremaster to get their own customized catalyst approved.
Learning Magic / Spells
When casting a spell the mage will need to open a tear in between the realm of Eden and the realm they desire. Upon doing so the mage can compress the freed energy and release it in their desired shape. To control said energy the mage is often tasked to study new spells from the ancient tomes, which can be found in Eden, and master the texts within those books.
But that does not mean that all magical knowledge has been rediscovered yet. Some tomes may lie crumbling and forgotten in ancient ruins or the bottom of the ocean. Maybe the newer generations of spellcasters may one day find a way to reinvent the ancient forms of magic or even create their own.
OOC: A mage can only cast a spell from their respective lore. Every spell has a level from one to five, symbolizing the complexity of the spell and also the required level to cast said spell. The higher the spell’s complexity, the higher level a caster must be to cast that spell.
Casting a spell
When a spellcaster casts a spell they will have to do a series of rolls and emotes before the spell is actually cast. This section will explain the basics of spellcasting that all casters need to follow.
When a mage casts a spell, the first thing they do is open a tear to the realm they want to draw energy from. This has to be done through an emote. This is the preparation emote. This emote let’s the players around the caster know that they intend to cast a spell. The emote can be as detailed as the caster wants to make it.
The caster will now need to roll a D20 to determine if their cast was successful. After their initial roll the caster needs to add their intelligence modifier and any spellcasting bonuses, which can be found in the respective lore pieces of their magic.
| Intelligence Modifier | |
|---|---|
| Intelligence Level: | Modifier: |
| 0 | -3 |
| 2 | -2 |
| 4 | -1 |
| 6 | +0 |
| 8 | +1 |
| 10 | +2 |
| 12 | +3 |
| 14 | +4 |
Example: The caster rolls a five, but has an intelligence level of fourteen. The mage is also level three in their respective magic and gets the state bonus (Stated in the magic lore) of three. As such the final number would be twelve.
After the preparation emote and the first rolling of numbers the mage will need to compare their final result with the casting value of the spell they want to use, which can be found in all magic lore. If the value is equal or above the required casting value they will be successful in their casting, activating their desired spell. Now the casting emote takes place. The caster describes the casting of the spell itself and, if necessary, the target of the spell.
Lastly the mage will need to determine the effectiveness of their spell. To do so the mage needs to roll a D20 and add their intelligence and level modifier to this roll as well. The outcome of the roll will determine if the cast spell fails, succeeds or gets strengthened.
| Spell Effectiveness | |
|---|---|
| Dice roll result: | Effect: |
| 0 - 6 | Critical Failure |
| 7 - 15 | Success |
| 16 - 20 | Critical Success |
After the effectiveness and possible damage is determined, the target has to perform an emote reacting to getting hit by the spell. If there is no target because the spell is a buff or spell that affects a non player object, the caster has to make a final emote describing the spell's effects.
Counterspells and Spell Defence
There are a few options when another caster or player wants to block the spell's effect.
Other casters who might want to block a spell can try to cast a counterspell. This can be done after the casting player did their second emote and before the effectiveness roll was made. If a caster wants to counter a spell it is expected of them that they do an emote before and after their counterspell roll. The first emote has to be done before the counterspell and has to contain the opening of a quick tear and the attempt to counter the incoming attack. If a caster wants to make a counterspell they roll a D20 + Intelligence bonus + Level bonus. If the roll is greater to the casting roll of the caster the unbinding caster is trying to counter, the spell is countered. If both mages roll the same numbers they will need to roll again. After their counterspell they will need to do the second emote, describing their tear closing straight away.
Another option to block magic is the natural spell defence that every character has. If a player is targeted by a spell and is not a spellcaster themselves and don’t have any means of countering a spell or has anyone else to do it for them, they can still attempt to block or dodge a spell. This can be done by rolling a D20 + Intelligence bonus. This has to be done after the casting player did their second emote and before the effectiveness roll is made. If the dodging or countering player rolls higher as the initial roll of the mage they will be able to dodge or block the spell.
| Magic | |
|---|---|
| Elemental Magic | Pyromancy · Aquamancy · Aeromancy · Geomancy |
| Chaotic Magic | Hemomancy · Necromancy |
| Other Magic | Currently None |