Yagura:SRD:Learning Spells
Contents
Learning Spells[edit]
There are a few methods spellcasters use to gain new spells: #Spellbooks, #Divine Inspiration, #Experimental Learning
Spellbooks[edit]
Some spellcasters, such as the wizard, keep their list of spells in a spellbook. This is a special tome filled with magical writing, usually prepared by the caster who uses it.
Preparing Spells From Spellbooks[edit]
When attempting to prepare spells you must first know the spell, which can only be accomplished by recording it in a spellbook. If you know the spell then preparing it requires you to reference your spellbook to memorize the information necessary to cast the spell.
If you do not have access to your spellbook you can use a borrowed spellbook to prepare a spell you already know, but preparation success is not assured. First, the you must decipher the writing in the book. Once a spell from another spellcaster’s book is deciphered, you must make a INSERTSKILLHERE check (DC 15 + spell’s level) to prepare the spell. If the check succeeds you can prepare the spell. You must repeat the check to prepare the spell again, no matter how many times you have prepared it before. If the check fails, you cannot try to prepare the spell from the same source again until the next day. (However, as explained above, you do not need to repeat a check to decipher the writing.)
Adding Spells to a Spellbook[edit]
Recording a spell in a spellbook requires you to have a casting ability score of at least 10 + the level of the spell.
Some classes that use a spellbook automatically gain spells upon earning a new level in the class, in which case the spell instantly appears in the spellbook, filling the appropriate number of pages.
Once you understand a new spell, you can record it into your spellbook. The process takes 24 hours, regardless of the spell’s level, and requires that you cast the spell (either casting from a scroll or by preparing it first and casting normally). A spell takes up one page of the spellbook per spell level. Even a 0-level spell takes one page. A spellbook has one hundred pages. Materials for writing the spell cost 100 gp per page unless the spell is gained for free through a class feature.
In most cases, spellcasters charge a fee for the privilege of copying spells from their spellbooks. This fee is usually equal to the cost of buying a scroll of that spell.
Replacing and Copying Spellbooks[edit]
You can record a known spell in a spellbook any number of times, allowing you to copy a spellbook or replace one that is lost (assuming you can cast the spells that were in the lost spellbook). The process is the same as when normally recording spells, however once you have learned a spell and recorded it for the first time, recording it again becomes much easier. The time requirement and cost per page are halved.
Selling a Spellbook[edit]
Spellbooks can be sold for a gp amount equal to one-half the cost of inscribing the spells within (that is, one-half of 100 gp per page of spells). A spellbook entirely filled with spells (that is, with one hundred pages of spells inscribed in it) is worth 5,000 gp.
Magical Writings[edit]
To record a spell in written form, a character uses complex notation that describes the magical forces involved in the spell. The writer uses the same system regardless of language or culture. However, each character uses the system in a unique way. Another person’s magical writing remains incomprehensible to even the most powerful spellcaster until time is invested to study and decipher it.
To decipher a magical writing (such as a single spell in written form in another’s spellbook or on a scroll), you must make a INSERTSKILLHERE check (DC 20 + the spell’s level). If the skill check fails, you cannot attempt to read that particular spell again until the next day. A read magic spell automatically deciphers a magical writing without a skill check. If the person who created the magical writing is on hand to help the reader, success is also automatic.
Once you decipher a particular magical writing, you do not need to decipher it again. Deciphering a magical writing allows you to identify the spell and gives some idea of its effects (as explained in the spell description). If the magical writing was a scroll and you can cast that spell, you can attempt to use the scroll.
Divine Inspiration[edit]
Divine spellcasters who have a connection with powerful beings and forces outside of themselves are given their new spells by the being that empowers the spells. Usually this is the entire list of spells on that class's spell list, bestowed as soon as the level of the spell becomes able to be cast. However it is possible that spells could be specially granted or taken away by the patron of the spellcasting power, though this is quite rare.
Divine inspiration only occurs if you have a casting ability score of at least 10 + the level of the spell.
Experimental Learning[edit]
Some classes, such as the sorcerer, gain a certain number of selected spells based on the spellcasting class. Learning a spell through experimentation requires you to have a casting ability score of at least 10 + the level of the spell.
Spellcasters who learn by experimentation spend a at least a few minutes each day experimenting with magical effects. New spells learned tend to be (but do not have to be) similar to the spells already known or spells the caster has witnessed.
