Solar spells?

One of the conceits of the setting is that there is no solar magic, at least not available to the PCs. The entire point of pursuing Agartha is to finally develop an understanding and mastery of Solar-Ka at the end of the path.

Mortals cannot perform magic with their Solar-Ka. They can assist immortals who are casting (Liber Ka p57-8), even steal Ka to cast under their own power (Nephilim rulebook p191-2), but they cannot use Solar-Ka directly to perform magic (p190). They cannot even resist magic without being awakened, and then only at half capacity (p139). Even the Mithradites have only developed a handful of solar techniques that cannot be considered spells as such (see Secret Societies p73).

A contradiction to this rule is that there are a few spells explicitly labeled “Element: Sun”: Awaken Orichalka, Create Elixir, and Create Homunculus (see Secret Societies p37-9). However, the first must be cast on Saturdays a la saturnian spells and the third uses lunar alchemy powder. I get what the rules were going for: you wanted the secret societies to do these things on their own without elemental magic and it doesn’t make sense for elemental magic to transmute orichalc anyway. So these effects are solar techniques rather than normal spells, not unlike the Mithradites’. [In the Ex Oculis drafts written by ex-freelancers, the elixir creation spell was a lunar spell. So there goes that…] I’d make a compromise: awakening orichalc would be a Saturnian spell and the other two Lunar spells, regarding astrological modifiers and such, but I would let casters substitute their Solar-Ka where necessary due to being solar techniques. I will explore these spells further in my upcoming post on converting these spells to Enlightened Magic. 

Some fluff text for fun: “While the spells for creating elixirs and homunculi are some of the few spells better known among the secret societies than among the nephilim, the arcana do know these are lunar spells. This lead to heated debate amongst the few morbid nephilim who know these spells and no doubt contributed to further distrust against Onirim.”

Aside: In the French version, Ar-Kaïm were introduced in 3e who had “talents” (basically superpowers) that included solar-ka powered effects. I don’t have the books to check, but it’s remarkable that something like that was introduced and I’d think the nephilim would be very interested. Unfortunately in 5e the Ar-Kaïm are only mentioned in passing and it’s said they all mysteriously up and vanished. I don’t speak French and I didn’t keep up with the French fandom, but that strikes me as an extremely strange way to handle a metaplot development that had been cooking since 2e. But I digress.

I intend to introduce my own take on Ar-Kaïm, but they won’t have solar magic per se. Solar techniques, on the other hand…

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