Editing GURPS Magical Styles Fan Netbook (section)

=Ancient and Celestial Verses =

Cost:  22 points

Style Prerequisite: IQ  13+, Magery, (not One College Only).

The Ancient and Celestial Verses are the magical/religious writings of the Order of the Oaken Wand. The Oaken Wand are self-described “wise folk”, offering their services as advisors, diviners and dream-interpreters to the powerful. Their vows forbid them from becoming rulers in their own right, but they often seek to be the power behind the throne, offering their expertise in the art of managing people, and in particular, of managing them in such a way that they do not attract ill-fortune or the disfavor of the gods. Their tradition is descended from nature magic and nature continues to lie at the heart of their religious and magical training. While they are not “nature worshippers”, the gods tend to be understood as personifications of natural forces and their holiest places are sites of natural beauty or wonder, not temples or cathedrals.

Required Skills: Diagnosis, Dreaming, Esoteric Medicine, First Aid, Hazardous Materials (Magical), Herb Lore, Hidden Lore (Spirits), History, Literature, Musical Instrument (Any), Naturalist, Occultism, Physician, Religious Ritual, Thaumatology, Theology, Veterinary, Weather Sense.

Required Spells: Beast-Soother, Seek Plant, Ward.

Perks: Astrological Ceremonies, Blood Magic, Elixir Resistance, Frightening Side Effects (Any), Huge Subjects, Intimidating Curses, Intuitive Cantrip (Eye of the Storm), Intuitive Cantrip (Friendly Undergrowth), Intuitive Cantrip (Good with Animal, any mundane), Knower of Names, Life Force Burn 1-5, Obscure True Name, Scroll Reading, Secret Spell (Blood Dreaming, Rites of Harvest Sacrifice, Roar of Madness or Whisper of Leaves), Secret Words, Shaman’s Trance, Staff Attunement.

Optional Traits

Attributes: Improved IQ, Religious Rank.

Advantages: Autotrance, Channeling, Luck, Medium, Oracle, Outdoorsman, Reputation (Wise Sage), True Faith, Voice.

Disadvantages:  Dreamer, Enemies (Offended Spirits), Overconfidence, Reputation (Arrogant Dreamer), Vows (various personal ones).

Skills:  Animal Husbandry, Cryptology, Farming, Public Speaking, Savoir-Faire, Symbol Drawing, Teaching.


Apprentices enter the Order of the Oaken wand at the level of Supplicant.  This entitles them to learn the following ten spells.

Supplicant

Beast-Soother, Counterspell, Detect Magic, Find Direction, Seek Plant, Seek Water, Sense Danger, Sense Foes, Sense Life, Ward.

A mage who has learned 6 Supplicant spells, including Beast-Soother, Seek Plant and Ward becomes an Acolyte, entitling them to learn the following twenty-three spells.

Acolyte

Amulet, Beast Summoning, Detect Poison, Foolishness, Forgetfulness, Great Ward, Haste, Identify Spell, Identify Plant, Ignite Fire, Mage Sight, Mage Stealth, Neutralize Poison, Night Vision, Purify Water, Quick March, Seek Food, Sense Emotion, Sense Mana, Sense Observation, Sense Spirit, Silence, Talisman.

A mage who has learned 8 Acolyte spells including Identify Plant and Neutralize Poison becomes one of the Blessed, entitling them to learn the following twenty-two spells.

Blessed

Analyze Magic, Beast Speech, Bless Plants, Command, Heal Plant, Hide Path, Hush, Pathfinder, Permanent Forgetfulness, Plant Vision, Pollen Cloud, Plant Growth, Relieve Sickness, Remove Contagion, Resist Disease, Resist Poison, Seeker, Shape Plant, Stop Bleeding, Trace, Truthsayer, Turn Spirit.

A mage who has learned 8 Blessed spells including Bless Plants and Turn Spirit becomes one of the Anointed, entitling them to learn the following twenty-two spells.

Anointed

Blight, Blossom, Coolness, Cure Disease, Divination (Augury), Divination (Extispicy), Divination (Oneiromancy), False Tracks, Forest Warning, History, Pestilence, Plant Form, Plant Sense, Plant Speech, Predict Weather, Relieve Paralysis, Remember Path, Shapeshifting, Stop Paralysis, Tangle Growth, Walk Through Plants, Warmth.

A mage who has learned 8 Anointed spells, including Forest Warning and Predict Weather becomes an Elder, entitling them to learn the following eleven spells.

Elder

Ancient History, Delay, Enchant, Dispel Magic, Great Haste, Great Shapeshift, Lesser Geas, Powerstone, Remove Curse, Staff, Suspend Curse.

A mage who has learned 6 Elder spells becomes a Matriarch or Patriarch, entitling them to learn the following ten spells.

Patriarch / Matriarch

Bless, Blood Dreaming, Curse, Great Geas, Hang Spell, Link, Reflex, Rites of Harvest Sacrifice, Roar of Madness, Whisper of Leaves.


Secret Spell:  Blood Dreaming (VH)    Information

When a mage casts Blood Dreaming, they work themselves into a state of mystic ecstasy in order to gain insight.  The ceremony climaxes with the mage drinking the blood of a bull, then passing out for a night of vivid dreams.  The GM should never feel compelled to give information or to make the dreams clear – dreams sent by the gods are never as reliable as that.  However, the spell will only be worth taking if it sometimes offers insights not available through ordinary divination.

The bull’s blood must be fresh.  Anything taken over ten minutes ago will no longer suffice, regardless of mundane or magical attempts to preserve it.

Cost:  6

Time to Cast:  2 hours.


Secret Spell:  Rites of Harvest Sacrifice (VH)    Regular

By sacrificing an animal (or human!) to the gods of the underworld, a mage of the Oaken Wand brings good fortune to the harvest.  A separate blessing may be offered to each “field” of land.  For the sacrifice of a very small or unintelligent animal, such as a mouse, a snake or a fowl, farmers working that field will be at +1 to effective Farming skill (which may not sound like much, unless your Farming skill is what feeds your family).  For the sacrifice of a larger mammal such as a badger, weasel, or cat, the bonus is +2.  For the sacrifice of a dog, a cow, a pig, or such, the bonus is +3, for a fine horse or a bull +4 and for a sentient life form +5.  Only young and healthy animals are sacrificed – to offer something old or sick would be an insult to the gods.  Mages of the Oaken Wand are divided on the moral lines that should be drawn when using this spell.

Duration:  Until the next harvest, or one year, whichever comes first.

Cost:  3

Time to Cast:  1 hour.


Secret Spell:  Roar of Madness (VH)    Regular, Resisted by Will+3

The mage unleashes a howl of rage that terrifies weak-minded enemies and sends allies into a violent fury.  Enemies who fail their resistance must make a Fright Check at a penalty equal to the margin of failure.  Allies who do not resist or fail their resistance may go berserk as if they had the Berserk Disadvantage (GURPS Characters p.124).  For as long as they are berserk, they do +1 basic damage and enemies are at -1 to defend against their attacks.  The roar affects everyone within twenty feet who can hear it.

Cost:  4

Time to Cast:  1 second.


Secret Spell: Whisper of Leaves (VH)    Regular

The mage enters the forest alone at night and communes with the spirits of the trees, some of which are nature spirits and some of which are human ghosts.  These spirits will not act on the mage’s behalf, but may have useful information if they feel like providing it.  Generally indifferent to the concerns of others, the spirits can be difficult to motivate to help, particularly since making threats would undoubtably bring the mage bad luck.  Human ghosts inhabiting trees no longer crave fleshly things, but may still be concerned about their families and descendents, so may be easiest to bribe.  On the other hands, there are some things so secret that only the nature spirits know them.

As for what the tree spirits know, that is up to the GM.  Certainly, they will have a long memory of things that have occurred right there in the forest, even if it was not in the immediate vicinity.  After all, trees whisper all night and gossip about strange things happening in the forest travels fast.  However, trees might know all sorts of interesting facts that have nothing to do with the forest.  These dark and mysterious spirits are associated with the dead and the underworld, with the fae, and distantly with the gods, and may see into the past and future, or across dimensions.

Duration:  1 hour

Cost:  5

Time to Cast:  3 hours