Enlightened sorcery comparisons
Although the rules for sorcery in Enlightened Magic were largely reprinted verbatim from Liber Ka, there are some significant differences. Most notably is that the rules are written for the BRP rulebook, not Nephilim. POW replaces Ka (so no derived Ka-elements), power points replace ch’awe, there’s only four elements, no spell inscription (altho there are similar rules for enchanting items), cast spells have their own POW (POT), no Ka roll is needed to cast spells, the modifiers for astrology changed, plexi and nexi were replaced by nexus points, etc. While interchangeable or easily convertible for the most part, the rules have been streamlined, simplified, and generally cleaned up in places. Overall, I find most of these changes quite welcome and would like to retrofit select revisions to the Nephilim setting.
Some spells were renamed between LK and EM, while others changed their element (as moon element was removed) or were removed entirely. My preference is to use both versions, as I like the innovations from EM and have no problem with spells having multiple versions for different elements.
New and altered spells
First up are the entirely new spells introduced in Enlightened Magic that have no counterpart in Liber Ka. This doesn't include spells with a counterpart in LK but were assigned to a different element (see below).
- First Circle: Casual Magic
- Air: Intercept Transmission, Move Object.
- Earth: Brief Repair, Concealment Ward, Minor Armor.
- Fire: Glitch.
- Water: Manipulate Device.
- Second Circle: Ritual Magic
- Air: True Speaking.
- Earth: Tool Blessing.
- Fire: Weapon Blessing.
- Water: Tongue Twisting, Vanishing.
- Third Circle: High Magic
- Air: Ghostly Visitation, Whirling Winds of Protection, Attainment of New Knowledge, Touching the Collective Unconscious.
- Earth: Animate Object, Call the Land, Summoning [this is the closest thing to an official update for the summoning rules as we're gonna get].
- Fire: Blessing of Mars.
- Water: Flow Through Obstacles, Erase Memory.
Renamed and/or reassigned spells
The following spells were renamed, and in some cases reassigned to a different threshold and/or element (noted in parentheses), but otherwise have nigh-identical effect:
- First Circle: Casual Magic
- Air: Lesser Mind of Seshet, Perceive Aura and Testimonia Materia were renamed respectively to Boost Mental Skill, Read Aura and Minor Psychometry.
- Earth: Grounding the Fool, Lesser Sinews of Tatunen, Lesser Touch of Khensu and Shield of Khnum were renamed respectively to Grounding, Increase Physical Skill (Water), Minor Healing and Shielding.
- Fire: Counterblow of Hekenu, Lesser Arm of Sekhmet, Pyretic Fortitude, Tcheteb and Tumo were renamed respectively to Interference, Increase Combat Skill, Strength of Flames, Magic Bolt and Resist Environment.
- Moon: Deception of Moon's Cold Light, Glimpse of Khenti-Kheti and Lesser Lunar Veil were renamed respectively to Allurement (Fire), Distraction (Water) and Minor Hallucination (Water).
- Water: Obscuring Waves of Naunet and Waters of Marah were renamed respectively to Cloaking and Produce Ease or Discomfort.
- Second Circle: Ritual Magic
- Air: Ineffable Gossamer Cord and Tabula Est Terra were renamed respectively to Bonds of Connection and Discern Location.
- Earth: Beneficence of Neperit, Enfolding Arms of Bes, Greater Sa Ward of Tauret, Greater Touch of Khensu and Obsecration of Renenet were renamed respectively to Bless the Land, Protection of the Hearth, Intrusion Ward, Healing and Acquisition.
- Fire: Imprecation of Harshef, Invisible Teeth of Seker and Mighty Blast of Hekenu were renamed respectively to Curse, Invisible Attack and Banish Magic.
- Moon: Piercing Eye of Anhuret and Silver Mask of Khenti-Kheti were renamed respectively to Reveal Character (Air) and Disguise (Water).
- Water: Divert the Lionesses of Tefnut and Water the Seeds of Doubt were renamed respectively to Deflect Pursuit and Cause or Remove Gullibility.
- Third Circle: High Magic (Threshold in parentheses)
- Air: Flail of Shu (50) was renamed to Command the Weather (60).
- Earth: Restore the Flesh (50), Resurrection (80) and Warding the Wandering Ba (80) were renamed respectively to Restoration (30), Restore Life (90) and Eternal Warding (40).
- Fire: Flash of Illumination (40), Spontaneous Human Combustion (70), Sword of Seker (50) and Tongues of Flame (30) were renamed respectively to Flash of Inspiration (60), Spontaneous Combustion (90), Distant Death (30) and Touch of Flame (20).
- Moon: Glamour of Isis (50) and Shadows of the Wild Hunt (20) were renamed respectively to Charismatic Presence (40, Fire) and The Wild Hunt (30, Water).
- Water: Deep Shadows of Naunet (20), Tilt the Scales of Shai (40) and Upset the Scales of Shai (80) were renamed respectively to Undetectability (20), Influence Local Events (70) and Influence Global Events (90).
Overall, I prefer the renames. They communicate the purpose of the spell much better to players. The flowery names should be reserved for roleplaying, not confusing the players.
Reassigned spells
The following spells were reassigned to a different element without renaming:
- Second Circle: Ritual Magic
- Moon: Dream Sending (Water).
- Water: Bond of the Senses (Air), Ties of the Heart (Fire).
Removed spells
The following spells were removed entirely:
- First Circle: Casual Magic
- All: Dowse Plexus.
- Air: Winds of Confusion was folded into Winds of Reason.
- Earth: Caress of Lilith, Lesser Sa Ward of Tauret. Durability of Sand was folded into Durability of Stone.
- Fire: Pyretic Lassitude was folded into Strength of Flames.
- Moon: Incantesimo, Tenebrismo.
- Water: Disguise Aura, Lesser Eyes of Aker and Rigidity of Ice were folded respectively into Read Aura (Air), Boost Mental Skill (Air) and Waters of Agility.
- Second Circle: Ritual Magic
- Air: Greater Mind of Seshet.
- Earth: Greater Sinews of Tatunen.
- Fire: Greater Arm of Sekhmet.
- Moon: Alter the Bonds of Emotion, Mirror’s Wandering Reflection.
- Water: Greater Eyes of Aker.
- Third Circle: High Magic
- All: Manifest Plexus.
- Air: Spear of Iskur.
- Earth: Ministering Caress of Khensu.
- Moon: Shards of Madness.
The removals seemed to have various reasons. Some were specific to the cosmology of the Nephilim setting, while others may have overpowered, underpowered, exceptionally niche, too blatant, otherwise inappropriate, couldn’t be fit for whatever reason, or were simply redundant. For example: the second circle spells Greater X of Y were the first circle spells Lesser X of Y cast as rituals (see LK p61-2, EM p37), while the spells that decreased characteristics were variations of the spells that increased characteristics.
Oddly, both of the Touch of Khensu spells were reprinted as Minor Healing and Healing.
Reintroducing cut spells
- Caress of Lilith becomes Pleasurable Feeling.
- Lesser Sa Ward of Tauret becomes Minor Intrusion Ward.
- Incantesimo and Tenebrismo respectively become Charm of Moonlight and Modesty of Shadow.
- Mirror’s Wandering Reflection becomes Spying Reflection.
- Spear of Iskur becomes Lightning Bolt.
- Ministering Caress of Khensu becomes Major Healing. (Although it’s technically redundant to Restoration.)
- Shards of Madness becomes Cause Madness.
Converting spells from the first edition
There are number of spells from the first edition that were never converted to Liber Ka, presumably because they weren't appropriate for the subtler more specialized nature of the new magic system... or due to space constraints, since Enlightened Magic introduced a number of new spells (see above). However, some groups may want to convert old spells whose effects weren't replicated anywhere but might still fit (see LK p84, 88). Fortunately, Joshua Wright from the mailing list shared a pamphlet that may be downloaded at this link. The full document contains a number of goodies, but on pages 13-4 are conversion guidelines for spells from the Nephilim rulebook. I've copyedited those guidelines here, removed redundant spells that were already converted, and incorporated innovations from Enlightened Magic.
I don't think that necessarily every spell needs conversion, as some effects may simply be inappropriate for the subtler enlightened magic. Furthermore, the spells in the rulebook are just a partial selection of those that were available in the French version. Indeed, the spell lists in the rulebook are deliberately incomplete and were filled out by further supplements for sorcery, summoning, and alchemy that were only ever released in French. As such, I feel it makes the most sense to start fresh rather than try to emulate the original. Most of the time it shouldn't even be necessary to convert a more blatant spell effect, unless it's something like needing Mole Bore to enter an underground chamber (longtime fans will know what I'm referencing there).
But on we go!
For reference: the names of the first, second, and third circles different between the Nephilim rulebook and Liber Ka. The former contains Lower Magic, Higher Magic, and Grand Secret. The latter contains Casual Magic, Ritual Magic, and High Magic. Don't confuse Higher Magic with High Magic!
When converting first edition-compatible spells from books or fan-made sources, keep in mind that some of these effects may not be perfectly balanced against the rules for enlightened magic. See "Creating New Sorcery Spells" (LK 84, EM p60-1) and "Elemental Effects" (LK p88) for advice. Some of these effects may be more appropriate for enlightened alchemy (see the Slaying the Dragon draft or EM p63) or enlightened summoning [my revisions to summoning will be detailed in a future post].
New Casual Magic spells (and rituals)
Some Lower Magic spells may be adapted to Casual Magic spells fairly easily, while others should become Ritual Magic spells (see that section below for details). Again, I leave it up to the GM to decide what is appropriate.
The following Lower Magic spells were already adapted (and sometimes renamed) in LK itself: Dowse Plexus, Pyretic Fortitude, Mercuriality (Winds of Reason), Caduceus Press (Touch of Khensu), Vita Robust (Durability of Stone), Dexterous Liquidity (Waters of Agility), Incantesimo, Lunar Veil. The following Higher Magic spells were adapted to Casual Magic spells with reduced effects: Caress of Lilith (which isn't stated to be addictive in LK) and Grounding the Fool (although the White Stone alchemy procedure Draught of Healing provides the rulebook's effect).
The following Higher Magic spells become Casual Magic spells with the corresponding limitations on parameters, but may be cast as Second Circle rituals (see LK p61-2, EM p37) to increase their parameters. The following spells may need little to no adjustment: Ka-Shout, Visage of Terror.
The spells Sword of Sun Tzu, Spear of the Valkyrie, Drill of Pluto and Slashing of the Shark, otherwise known as the Elemental Weapon spells, become variations of the Casual Magic spell Lesser Arm of Sekhmet (LK p42) aka Increase Combat Skill (EM p26) and the Ritual Magic spell Weapon Blessing (EM p45). The Casual Magic spells increases the target's skill in Melee Weapon (Sword), Melee Weapon (Spear), Melee Weapon (Club) or Melee Weapon (Axe), respectively. The Second Circle rituals bless physical weapons that may be shared with others: a sword, spear, club or axe, respectively. The spells as written in the rulebook would obviously be High Magic spells (see below). When this spell is enchanted into a corresponding weapon, not another item, then effect is constant without needing a Casual Magic roll.
Blinding Orb of Artemis is the lunar version of Elemental Weapon. The Casual Magic spell creates a glowing ball of luminous light (only visible to mystic vision) in the caster's hand that may be thrown with a roll of the Throw skill. Upon striking a target it mimics the effect of Magic Bolt, Winds of Confusion, Durability of Sand, Pyretic Lassitude, Rigidity of Ice or Tenebrismo depending on the result of a 1d6 roll. The effects are not cumulative other than Magic Bolt: in that case, the GM rerolls for a different effect on that strike.
The Shoal spells (Shoal of Air, Shoal of Fire, Shoal of Earth, Shoal of Moon and Shoal of Water) become variations of the Casual Magic spell Minor Armor (EM p25) and the Ritual Magic spell Shield of Protection (EM p42-3). Although the Casual Magic spells exist, the Shoal spells are usually cast as rituals.
(Aside: The Elemental Weapon and Shoal spells were presumably removed so that offensive and defensive effects could be respectively specialized for Fire and Earth spells, making the spell lists more diverse and less homogeneous. Again, I leave it up to GM’s to decide what’s appropriate.)
The spell Hidden Flow becomes a variation of the Casual Magic spell Increase Physical Skill (EM p27) aka Sinews of Tatunen (LK 45, 69) that only only applies to the Hide and Stealth skills. If cast as a ritual, then it may or may not be redundant with the Ritual Magic spell Vanishing (EM p47).
New Ritual Magic spells
The following Lower Magic spells become Ritual Magic spells: Balance the Humors, Babel Unbound, Purify Matter. The following spells have adjustments in parentheses: Choking Vapor (blows a tiny bit of smoke way out of proportion), Monotonic Tinnitus (amplifies a sound or affects an object or area for a while), Pyretic Limb (amplifies an already burning fire). Instead of creating elemental effects, these amplify an existing environmental one. A good example of how to rebalance spells for subtlety!
The following Higher Magic spells become Ritual Magic spells, at least: Scry of the Wise, Hermetic Satori, Voice of the Earth, Grounding the Fool, Watery Deluge, Mirror of Thoth, Deception of the Moon's Cold Light. These are cast as rituals, as normal for Ritual Magic spells. Some are more powerful versions of Casual Magic spells that get a boost by being cast as rituals (see LK p61-2, EM p37). Note: Some may be more appropriate as High Magic spells. E.g. Grounding the Fool is the opposite of Shards of Madness.
New High Magic spells
The following Higher Magic spells easily become High Magic spells (Power Threshold in parentheses), if they're allowed at all: Pyromancy (70), Pyretic Body (30), Winds of Lifting (10), Companion Winds (20), Mole Bore (10), Spring of Lamneth (15), Chameleon-Skin (10), Evasion of the Earth’s Seduction (20).
Wright's doc suggested new "pure" Elemental Weapon spells that work like the Higher Magic spells in the rulebook, conjuring the weapons from the magic fields, as new High Magic spells. These are (Power Threshold and Element in parentheses): Fiery Sword of Shang/Dong (10, Fire), Lighting Spear (15, Air), Icy Blade of Atlantis (15, Water), Stone Mace of Ur (10, Earth). No lunar weapon was listed, but I'm sure that's easy to invent: just use the original rules for Blinding Orb of Artemis!
Naturally, Grand Secret spells always become High Magic spells. Several were already replicated by Liber Ka and Enlightened Magic, such as: Manifest Plexus, Pyretic Consumption (as Tongues/Touch of Flame and Spontaneous [Human] Combustion), Stigmatic Idea (as Erase Memory), Typhoon Thrust (as Flail of Shu aka Command the Weather), Resurrección (as Resurrection aka Restore Life), and Wahnsinn (as Shards of Madness). The unconverted spells are Eruption, Seismic Concussion, Grasp of the Invisible Octopus, Tidal Wave, and Eclipse, which basically boil down to artificially creating minor and major natural phenomena of their respective elements (see Gamemaster's Companion p45). Refer to the guidelines for creating new spells, I guess?
Bonus: A word on blatancy and Elemental Effects
Some Lower Magic spells may not be appropriately subtle for Casual Magic and thus might need to be raised to Ritual Magic (or even High Magic!), adjusted to be subtler (e.g. only visible to mystic vision), may be more appropriate as "Elemental Effects" (see Liber Ka p88) or are adequately covered by certain Metamorphosis Traits (e.g. the Triton’s Pragmatic personality Trait lets him breathe underwater; see Chronicle of the Awakenings for details). This includes the following Lower Magic spells that weren't adapted in Liber Ka: Pyretic Palm, Pyromantic Temper, Aerial Whispers, Purify Air, Translucent Veil, Terra Mobile, Liquefaction, Mobile Aqua, Pelagic Survival, Seething Aqua, Lunar Crescent, Spleen.
To recap: the explicitly optional rule for "Elemental Effects" allow a Nephilim to briefly invoke a tiny effect related to their Dominant Ka with a Ka roll, limited to a range of Touch, no stronger than a 10% Threshold Lower Magic spell, costs 3 Ch'awe points per effect, and probably risks a Khaiba roll during an unfavorable Astrological Modifier. A Pyrim could produce a lighter flame in their palm (Pyretic Palm), an Onirim could produce a lambent glow like a dim lightbulb (Lunar Crescent), an Eolim could produce a puff of breeze, a Hydrim could purify or produce a few ounces of water (Seething Aqua), and a Faerim could produce a small quantity of sand, soil, or even moss. [Wright's doc suggested several new Casual Magic spells inspired by this: Puff (Air; generates a little breeze), Dirty Handprints (Earth; hands become grimy with loamy earth), Drip (Water; produces a dripping of dampness).]
In the Ex Oculis drafts (archived at the current home of the mailing list), Elemental Effects were renamed "HeKa" or "Raw Magic" and their capability was expanded. By spending more Ch'awe, the Nephilim could increase the parameters of the effects. This only allowed gross manipulation of the physical manifestations of the element, not mental or spiritual: air and other gases; earth, stone, and metals; heat, flames, and electricity; light and darkness; water and other liquids. The effects could get pretty powerful, replicating a number of Lower Magic effects and even some Higher Magic effects, but were extremely costly to maintain and thus were only really useful in very desperate situations.
I leave it up to GMs to decide if they want more powerful elemental effects. As Liber Ka states, the point of the revision was to make magic subtler and closer to real world occultism rather than the fantasy magic presented in the rulebook. I think the Elemental Effects rule as given in Liber Ka is sufficient as is and provides a good basis for explaining how Nephilim develop magic in the first place. [Even in the French version, a "Rosenkreutz Effect" was added in the 5e that caused secret societies to take an interest if the PCs used too much blatant magic in one place. I think the Liber Ka revisions synergize nicely with that idea.]
Stay tuned! I will present an expanded post on "Elemental Effects" and "Raw Magic" in the future, as a companion to this post.
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