Elements of Magic Is Intended to Be Magic Defines Fantasy
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Requires the use of a Roleplaying Game Core Book published by Wizards of the Coast® Contents Rune Magic 44 Powers of the Mind 44 Introduction 3 Fifty Character Ideas 45 So What’s Changed? 3 Poison 87 Sample Characters 47 Layout 4 Polymorph [Creature] 88 Conversion Issues 4 C 5: Polymorph [Element] 90 E M 51 Power Word 91 C 1: Preserve & Decay 92 C D C 6: S L Regeneration 92 Spellcasting Basics 5 Defining your Spells 53 Sight 93 Spell Lists 6 Prestidigitation 55 Spectral Hand 94 Spell Expertise 7 Abjure [Creature] 55 Summon [Element] 94 Magic Points 7 Abjure [Element] 56 Summon [Outsider] 95 Metamagic Feats and Spells 8 Abjure Magic 57 Telepathy [Creature] 95 Elemental Relations Abjure [Outsider] 58 Teleportation 96 and Damage Type 9 Alter Reality 58 Wall of [Element] 96 Elemental Side Effects 10 Animate Object 59 Blanket Changes Astral Projection 60 Credits to Magic Rules 14 Banish [Element] 62 Written by Schools of Magic Banish [Outsider] 62 Matt ‘Cyberzombie’ Blakeley and Spell Descriptors 15 Bind [Element] 63 Editors Bind [Outsider] 63 C 2: Mark Clover Charm [Creature] 63 S C Greg Dinkelman Command [Creature] 64 Mage 16 Aaron Morgan Companion [Creature] 65 Magical Subclasses 20 Russell Morrissey Compel [Creature] 66 Black or White Mage Ryan Nock Create [Element] Object 68 Green Mage Alex “Angramainyu” Wilson Cursecraft 69 Green Magic Artwork Disease 70 Grey or Red Mage Robin Blakeley Disjunction 71 Bard Chris Shepard Dominate [Creature] 72 Paladin Matt Blakeley Enervate & Restore 73 Ranger Aaron Morgan Enthrall [Creature] 73 Graphic Design and Typesetting C 3: Evoke [Element] 74 Duncan Fielden M S Evoke Area [Element] 76 Alchemy 34 Fast Healing 78 Dispel Magic 34 Figment 78 Divination 35 Infuse Creature with extra special thanks to Intuit Direction 37 with [Element] 79 Chris Shepard Scry 38 Infuse Object Spellcraft 38 with [Element] 81 Instill Emotion Natural Press is an imprint of C 4: in [Creature] 82 EN World. Please visit: W M Invisibility 84 http://www.enworld.org Other Useful Resources 40 Life & Death 85 for more information. Spellcraft and Worldcraft 41 Mass Compulsion Familiar Magic 42 [Creature] 86 Vancian Magic 42 Mass Projection 86 Arcane and Divine 43 Paralysis & Petrification 86 2 Introduction e Elements of Magic is intended to be Magic defines fantasy. Whether it is the modular, able to fit whatever role you want it timeless magic of unlikely heroes defeating to play. It can be added to an existing campaign fiendish plots, or the more tangible magic of that already has wizards, sorcerers, clerics, and sorcery and charms, it is the magical that makes druids, perhaps representing another, higher a normal story into a fantasy that delights sort of magic, or it can wholly replace the listeners, readers, and gamers by making all existing magic system, providing a whole new the impossibilities we can imagine come real. feel to your fantasy gaming. You will need a Dreams of magic can make even the most d20 core rulebook to use these rules, but this mundane day something to cherish, like a poem book will let you ignore the old, clichéd spells evoking the charm of the everyday world. presented in those books, and create your own But sometimes, just like poems, magic can works of magical art. become stale and clichéd. rough repeated exposure, its novelty can wear off, and certainly, So What’s Changed? thirty years of magic missiles and finger of e largest and most important change e deaths has been enough to render many fantasy Elements of Magic presents is that it eliminates gamers jaded. At its core, saying, “My love the spell memorization and preparation system is a dove,” in a poem is as trite as, “I cast entirely. Instead, this rules module uses a spell detect magic.” is is not to say that all core list and magic point system, which is more magic is clichéd, for some spells would flexible, letting you decide what the mechanics certainly qualify as classics, but many actually mean. are simply adequate. Detect magic may e division between arcane and divine be adequate, perhaps, but it is not as magic (and psionics, for that matter) has been evocative as “I whisper to my spirit done away with in an attempt to make these guide, asking for him to lend his rules as setting-neutral as possible. Of course, eyes, that I may see the realm of a spellcaster can always attribute his magic magic.” to whatever source he believes in, but such Already, Natural 20 Press’s possibilities should be determined by how the Wild Spellcraft has added a player and game master roleplay their world. greater sense of mystery and e rules for all spellcasters are the same, and danger to magic. Now e this system does not presuppose anything. Elements of Magic opens Magic can be a gift from the gods, the ancient the world of magic to you, lingering spirit-energies of dead dragons, a letting you create almost power innate in the world, or whatever else you any type of magic-user choose. Perhaps the most interesting possibility you’d like. Magic is an is to make magic as mysterious in your game artform, like poetry, as it is in the real world, where everyone has an and any good poem opinion, but there might be no single truth to is never content what magic is. to merely recite While the schools of magic from the core the works of rules are used, they have not been strictly others. maintained. e necromancy school has been 3 dropped entirely, most divination spells have magic system to represent the specific tone of been turned into magic skills, and some spells your game world, we also present several sample are placed in different schools than they would variations of the Mage, all of which emphasize be in the core rules. e Evoke Life list, for the various spell elements. Finally is a revision example, is roughly equivalent to the cure spells, of the bard and ranger to these new rules. but it is in the evocation school rather than Chapter ree: Magical Skills – conjuration (healing). presents two new skills, as well as new uses for e alignment system, while not entirely five skills from the core rules. All seven skills dropped, has been de-emphasized. e Life and gain extra abilities when used with magic. Death magical elements below, despite their names, have no alignment. Death magic is no Chapter Four: Worlds of Magic – more inherently evil than flaming someone to a gives advice on creating interesting and crisp, and Life magic is used as much by villains compelling forms of magic in your game, and as heroes. Alignments are used primarily for provides tons of ideas for creating your own magic that deals with outsiders, since such spellcasting character, along with three sample entities are assumed to be nearly the physical characters. embodiment of their alignment. is move away Chapter Five: Elemental Monsters – from the alignment system is intentional, since presents rules on new elementals for use with most settings other than the core d20 Fantasy this book. e .rtf file included in this zip file settings do not use alignment. While the moral- contains combat statistics for all 20 elementals absolutism of alignment is appropriate for the at all 10 power levels. d20 core rules, it is not appropriate for most settings, especially a modern or futuristic one. Chapter Six: Spell Lists – Unless, of course, the game master says presents the descriptions of the spell lists, in a otherwise. e Elements of Magic is intended to format very similar to the spell descriptions of make it easy for you to create the fantasy world the core rules. you desire, with minimal tinkering. We have done all the work of rules for you. All you have Conversion Issues to do is add whatever tone and descriptions You may wonder how adding a new magic you want, and you can make these scattered system will affect all the magic-using creatures, elements of magic manifest into a striking and magic items, and NPCs already in your game. intriguing fantasy. For most purposes, however, you should be able to plug this book into your campaign with little Layout difficulty. Spellcasting characters and monsters Since this book uses a very different magic can be converted to a spellcasting class from system than the core rules, you might need a this book if you feel like going to the effort, but little help navigating it. since the new magic system is balanced with the older magic rules, no conflicts should arise if Chapter One: Concepts & Definitions – you use an old spell. Most spell-like abilities and explains the workings of the new magic system. magic items can be kept unchanged, though you Once you have some familiarity with this can convert them to a related spell list from this chapter, most of the rest of the book follows book if you’d like to add some new spice. Our easily from there. goal is to eventually create a sequel book with Chapter Two: Spellcasting Classes – additional ideas for new monsters using these covers the new core spellcasting class, the Mage. rules, but we don’t doubt that you’ll be tinkering Additionally, as examples of how to utilize this in the meanwhile. 4 hough many artists can be quite skilled creature, or outsider type. ere are 20 types of by simply letting their muse guide their elements, 12 types of creatures, and 9 types of craft, the great masters are those who outsiders in all.