The Nine Spheres of Knowledge.

The Two Basic Types of Magic.

There are essentially two types of magic available to the aspiring mage. One type utilizes natural forces that are bent to the will of the mage. This is known as Sphere Magic, as there are nine basic forces or Spheres of Power. The other type utilizes natural principles, forces or phenomena, given shape and intelligence by worshippers. The mage must conform to the principles and laws of the deity and its priesthood in order to utilize these powerful energies, and so this is known as Priest Magic. The Nine Spheres of Power.

Matter		Power drawn from the physical world.
Energy		Power drawn from raw energy.
Fields	Power drawn from the natural fields created by the motion and existence of energy and matter.
Life	Power drawn from the complexities of organic matter.
Mind	Power drawn from the workings of the brain.
Spirit	Power drawn from the spirit world, the "spark of life".
Dimensions	Power drawn from the fabric of space itself, and of other realities.
Time	Power drawn from the fabric of time.
Entropy	Power drawn from the natural progression towards disorder.

How the Universe (Multiverse?) Works. The universe is made up of Matter, which is the physical world and how it interacts. This matter is captured and static Energy, which can be released in a number of different ways and in turn affects the things around it. As energy and matter particles move they generate Fields around them, in fact some fields such as gravity do not require any movement and are themselves a property of matter. Matter can form enormous complexities in organic form, each collection of interacting objects and substances forming the basis for Life. Each organism is a complex ecosystem of smaller organisms in itself, as well as forming a part of a greater web of life. A consequence of large and complex lifeforms is the ability to process information and solve problems, and this leads to the functioning of Mind. This functioning, like anything else, can be altered and interfered with. Everything possesses a form of static energy that is not matter. The workings of a Mind can shape and order this energy into its own image, allowing the individual to continue conscious existence even beyond the destruction of the physical body and mind, and is called the "spark of life" or Spirit which seems to reside in a strange, otherworld. There are other otherworlds as well, and breaching the boundaries between one reality and the next involves crossing Dimensions, which can only be achieved by understanding the nature of one’s own space, in which everything resides and interacts. The way we perceive these interactions is through the progression of Time. And through time we see the progression towards oblivion, as Entropy, the underlying natural force of the universe, indeed the multiverse, slowly and progressively weakens and decays everything down to simpler forms. Spirits, Demons, Elementals and Gods. As the "spark of life" or Spirit derives from the workings of an intelligent life form, so too these static energies exist in everything else. With living things the Life produces the Mind which in turn shapes the static energies into the Spirit. Inanimate things have the static energies but no conscious Mind with which to shape them. However when numerous creatures possessing Spirit reside in the same place and share the same beliefs or attitudes they can shape the surrounding static energies into a new, non-organic Spirit. As these Spirits are generally the product of long periods of time and thousands or millions of lesser Spirits they are generally very powerful entities. These are called Deities.

Often the people of a place, region, or even the whole world will view a natural force or phenomenon as something with Spirit, and will try to enter into a bargain with these forces to gain power and influence in return for something else, usually worship. Thus the Spirit of the force or phenomenon is shaped to the minds and beliefs of those who worship them, and they take on the conscious personality expected by their worshippers. Thus a Forest Deity can be created by those who live in and near the Forest, providing its priests and shamans with powers and abilities in return for the benefits of worship. As more worship the forest deity it grows stronger, and as it grows stronger it can give its followers more power. So too can Fire Deities, Ice Deities, Mother Goddesses, Sky Gods, Storm Gods and all manner of entities come into existence. Some of these are small, such as elementals, angels and demons, often the spirits of loyal worshippers elevated after death or servants created by the deity from itself. But each area of significance has a single, powerful Spirit, powerful enough to earn the title of God.

On occasion the Gods will battle as earthly forces battle. Fire may rage against Forest, Water against Earth, Ice against Meadows. Sometimes similar gods from different places will meet and war, such as the kind Forest God of a kind people, and the cruel Forest God of a cruel People. Sometimes cities and kingdoms will have a strong enough identity to create their own Gods, a product of national or civic pride, and these Gods will rise and fall with the fate of their people or city. Sometimes time separates deities, as a long lost God, devoid of worshippers and slowly fading to nothing, finds a people worshipping a newer and similar God. Gods may fight and war, they may also ally and co-operate, they may even merge two or more into a single entity. But always they work best through their people and their priesthoods, who are skilled in the arts of war and use the deity’s power to its greatest effect.

Using Magic. Like everything else magic is a skill, but it is not a single skill any more than "Fighting" is a single skill. A warrior may have a number of skills with a number of different weapons, and in the same way a mage may have a number of skills with a number of different sources of power.

Sphere Magic contains nine skills, one for each of the Nine Spheres of Power. Each of these skills is general, and does not involve specific spells. Usually a mage will learn a few spells from his teacher, but he is not bound by these spells, and can come up with new ideas. Each level allows the mage to do certain things within his sphere, and how he formulates these into spells is mostly up to his (and his player’s) imagination.

Priest Magic is quite different. The power of a Priest (or Agent) comes from a specific god or spirit, and the mage is forbidden to acquire "skills" with other gods (there is nothing to actually stop him from seeking out the power of another god, although he must foreswear his powers from the original god, who may become peeved and send out agents to kill him). Priest Magic contains only one skill: Worship. This is the proven ability of the character to serve his god in the way in which the god wishes to be served. There is one Worship skill per god, but as transition between gods is rare and inadvisable this means that there is generally only one Worship skill (if a character does go to worship another god he loses his original Worship skill and starts afresh with his new god).

Sphere Magic uses power from mindless natural forces, and the mage’s abilities are limited only by his skill in using that force and the amount of energy his Aura can handle. This is done in Magic Points, and generally speaking a character has 3 magic points for each level of Aura (thus Aura 4 = 12 magic points). When a player character is first generated (or when the referee creates an important NPC) the player instead rolls 1d6 for each level of Aura. If this is greater than Aura x 3 then the character has this number of magic points, if it is less then he simply takes the normal Aura x 3. Thus PCs and important NPCs may have a greater ability to cast spells.

To cast a spell a Sphere Mage works out the spell effects, what he is trying to do, along with any parameters such as range, duration, damage etc. The referee then determines whether the character has the necessary skill to cast this spell, and if so works out its cost in magic points. Cost is usually 1 MP per level of the spell, skill 4 being required for 1st level spells, skill 5 for 2nd level, skill 6 for 3rd level and so on. Boosting the spell by increasing normal ranges, durations etc. will increase the cost, but not usually the level. If the mage has the MPs left he can cast the spell, using up those MPs.

MPs are regenerated through rest. A good night’s sleep will normally regenerate MPs back up to their full level. Casting spells reduce the number of MPs, and eventually cause harmful effects. When MPs fall to 0 the mage is exhausted and, although still conscious, is like a runner who has just finished an Olympic marathon - do not expect much from him. If MPs fall below 0 the mage falls unconscious, and remains unconscious for one hour for every negative MP. This unconsciousness regenerates the negative MPs, so that when he regains consciousness he has 0 MPs. In this way a mage can cast powerful spells even though he does not have the MPs to do so normally. Going into the negative can also have detrimental effects, such as the unpleasant effects of Entropy magic.

A mage can never cast a spell if this will take him beyond -12 MPs. Going beyond -6 MPs may also be fatal. If the mage falls to -1 through -6 then he simply sleeps for the 1 to 6 hours and regains consciousness. If the mage falls to -7 then he rolls 1d6 - on a roll of 1 he has died. At -8 a roll of 1-2 means he has died, and so on, increasing the chance by 1 for every further MP. Although Fate Points can be used to ensure survival (if he rolls and "dies" the player may use a fate point to reverse this and ensure that he has survived) going beyond -12 is not possible, and a mage cannot cast a spell that will do so. At -12 itself a roll of 1-6 will kill the mage, which is automatic, therefore a Fate Point must be used or the mage dies. -13 is simply not possible, if casting a spell would take the character to -13 or below then the spell may not be cast.

0 MPs	still conscious but exhausted	-7 MPs	dies on a 1, or unconscious for 7 hours
-1 MP	unconscious for 1 hour	-8 MPs	dies on a 1-2, or unconscious for 8 hours
-2 MPs	unconscious for 2 hours	-9 MPs	dies on a 1-3, or unconscious for 9 hours
-3 MPs	unconscious for 3 hours	-10 MPs	dies on a 1-4, or unconscious for 10 hours
-4 MPs	unconscious for 4 hours	-11 MPs	dies on a 1-5, or unconscious for 11 hours
-5 MPs	unconscious for 5 hours	-12 MPs	dies on a 1-6, or unconscious for 12 hours
-6 MPs	unconscious for 6 hours	-13 MPs	may not cast a spell to drop to this level

Magic Points can be stored in magic items. Certain materials, notably crystal gemstones, may hold MPs up to a certain value. Generally these items have a limit to the number of MPs they contain, and can only be recharged by the caster putting his own MPs into them (e.g. to recharge an item by 2 MPs he must effectively cast a 2nd level spell, losing 2 MPs for no other gain). These items can allow a mage to cast spells using less of his own energy. Any spell, however, must contain at least 1 MP from the caster’s own store, any number up to the required amount for the spell may come from the item.

The balance is this. If you use MPs from your own store you are more likely to quickly run out and fall unconscious or exhausted. However after a good night’s sleep these MPs are all regenerated. If you use MPs from the item it saves your own and so allows you to cast more spells. However the MPs in the item do not regenerate, and after a good night’s sleep to regenerate your own store you must use this to recharge the item. Thus you may be at a weakened level for a day or more afterwards. What is best depends on your situation.

Casting Priest spells is quite different. Each god supplies the mage with a number of spells according to his Worship skill, the higher the Worship the more and more powerful the spells he has at his disposal. These spells have specific effects and specific limitations, and the mage cannot twist them to perform differently.

How they are used, however, is quite different. Each Priest has what is called Favor. This is measured in points and is essentially the degree to which he has found favor in the eyes of his god. This favor is limited, and he is allowed to use Favor Points to cast spells or for specific effects, after which he is lost. Even a character well-loved by his god will eventually be abandoned if he relies too much on the god’s power.

A starting character has Favor Points in the same way as Magic Points, but based on his Worship skill. Thus a player rolls 1d6 for each level of his Worship skill, and if this is higher than his Worship x 3 then this is his total Favor Points, if not then he has Worship x 3 Favor Points. Unlike MPs, which can never rise beyond this limit, FPs are dynamic, and can go as high as the mage can get them. Thus although a character may start off with, say, 24 FPs, he can increase these to 50, 100, 200, 1,000, or as high as he wishes and is able to. Unlike MPs, however, FPs do not regenerate. FPs can only be gained by performing the god’s work, by behaving correctly, by sending souls to him, and by fervent prayer. Likewise wrong behavior and transgressions can result in a reduction of FPs. Exactly what actions increase or decrease FPs is dependent on the god.

FPs may fall to 0 without any bad effect. At 0, however, the character feels lost and alone, abandoned by an uncaring god (at 0 the god does no longer care about him).

If FPs fall below 0 the character incurs the god’s disfavor. At -1 to -10 the character has fallen into disfavor, and can no longer call upon his deity for any purpose (i.e. he can’t use FPs any more). He is generally given a quest by the temple, or must undertake some quest himself, to redeem himself. Although he cannot use FPs for spells or other effects he may still gain or lose them through his actions. When he again reaches 0 the ledger is even, he is no longer in disfavor, and can use his FPs for spells and other effects again.

If FPs ever fall to -11 to -20 then the god is most annoyed, and will send a servant (elemental, demon, agent, priest-assassin etc.) to kill him. If he manages to kill the assassin the character is immediately struck down by the god for his audacity, his soul devoured. If he manages to get back to -10 or above before the servant kills him then the servant will be withdrawn, and he can redeem himself with a normal quest.

If FPs every fall to -30 then the god intervenes personally and strikes him down, devouring his soul. Needless to say any spell that drops him that low will fail, so it is pointless trying to cast a spell that drops you below -30. Normally only a heinous act will cause such a drop.

Although the god can always send servants after the character to kill him, it is only able to strike him down directly while he is a servant of that god himself. At any time a character can renounce his god, thus removing his Worship skill permanently and incurring an immediate penalty of -50 FPs. This will normally make the god hopping mad (only a very high level of favor can survive this act without having a servant sent out), but it also removes its ability to strike the character down.

If the player so desires his character can convert Fate Points into FPs, at a rate of 50 FPs per fate point. He may only do this if his total FPs are 0 or less, and only enough to bring it into the positive. In this way the god misses the transgression, or sees it but forgives it because the character’s a helluva guy.

Effects and Abilities. Mages use their magic in two ways: as an Effect, or as an Ability.

An Effect is something that requires a spell to be cast, and therefore a 3d6 roll. As with all skills the skill level, plus any penalties or bonuses, is added to the 3d6 roll, a result of 15 or higher is a success.

An Ability is something that the mage can inherently do. The most common of these are senses, the ability to sense time, the ability to sense danger and so on.

While all abilities are specified the player may claim that this ability should allow him to do something that is not specified. Whether this is so is up to the referee.

Effects may be listed quite precisely, but are more a guide than any limitations. A player who believes that his character’s skill level should allow him to cast a particular spell may request to do so. The referee must then determine which skill or skills at which level or levels are required to cast the spell. If the character has the necessary skills then he may do so. Note that some effects may be possible only with a combination of two or more skills.

Basic Parameters. While Priest spells generally have their parameters (i.e. range, duration, damage etc.) specified, Sphere spells do not. With Sphere spells the player specifies what he wants his mage to do, confers with the referee to make sure he has the skill to do it, and then works out what parameters he will need. The nature of the spell and its effect will determine which parameters are required, whether it affects an area, a volume, a mass, has a range and so on. As the actual areas, volumes, ranges etc. are not specified a basic value is required for each to determine what extra cost in MPs will be required to increase that parameter.

A spell will normally cost its level in MPs, plus whatever is required to boost it to the desired parameters. Remember that the base parameters are maximums, a mage can cast a spell of lesser effect without penalty or bonus for doing so.

Duration: Base is 1 minute or 5 turns. Boosting cost is 1 MP per 1 minute or 5 turns. Range: Base is 12 metres. If using a square grid this is 8 squares. Some spells can only be cast on the self, and some are Touch spells, requiring physical contact. Which spells fall under this category is up to the referee, but should be reasonably obvious. Individual Effect: Where a spell affects an individual directly (rather than an area, volume etc.) only one individual is affected. If the referee considers it appropriate to allow the spell to affect more than one it costs 1 MP for each extra individual. If they can resist (and they probably can) then both will roll to do so. Linear Effect: Base is 3 metres. If using a square grid this is two square edges. Although a line can be twisted into any desired shape it cannot be split into two or more parts with the same spell. Boosting cost is 1 MP per extra 3 metres. Area Effect: Base is 9 square meters (3m by 3m). If using a square grid this is 4 squares. Although an area can be any desired shape it cannot be split into two or more parts with the same spell. Boosting cost is 1 MP per extra 9 square meters (4 squares). Volume Effect: Base is 27 cubic metres (3m by 3m by 3m). If using a square grid this is 4 squares, up to normal ceiling height. Although the volume can be any desired shape it cannot be split into two or more parts with the same spell. Boosting cost is 1 MP per extra 27 cubic metres. Combination Range: If casting an area, volume or linear effect spell to a particular range, ALL of the line, area or volume must be within range. You cannot, therefore, cast a linear spell out to 12m and get an extra 3m for the line. Temporal Range: When casting Time spells the "distance" through time is limited by the spell’s range. The base maximum range is 1 year. Boosting increases range by a factor of 4, thus +1 is a maximum of 4 years, +2 is a maximum of 16 years, +3 is a maximum of 64 years, +4 is a maximum of 256 years, +5 is a maximum of 1024 years, and so on. Locuses. There will be places where a particular sphere will operate strongly, where the powers converge. These are termed Locuses (or Loci). Within a locus a mage may cast a spell at half cost. Sometimes locuses are temporary and will vanish quickly, sometimes they are permanent places of wonder and mystery. They may be the size of a room or encompass an entire island or mountain. Any mage can instantly recognise a locus (seeing it as a colored haze) of a sphere he has skill in. The existence and nature of locuses is generally a part of a specific mystical location, a scenario, or a device used by the referee. Sphere Magic - The Levels. Sphere magic spells come in five levels, numbered 1 to 5. A skill of 4 in a particular sphere is required to use spells at level 1, so adding 3 to the spell level gives you the minimum Skill level required.

Each sphere has two different levels, the Simple Sphere and the Complex Sphere. This is a divide between the things of the sphere that are relatively basic and simple and the things that are complex and more difficult.

All Sphere spells follow the same basic pattern:

Level 1 (Skill 4)	Awareness	The character can cast spells to be aware of the presence, nature and parameters of the sphere using basic range (12m) as a radius. For example Matter skill 4 allows the character to be aware of all matter within 12m, its mass, its density, its composition and so on.
Level 2 (Skill 5)	Manipulate Simple	The character is able to manipulate the nature, shapes, patterns and amounts of the simple sphere that are present. This effect requires touch, however a 1 MP boost allows a basic range of 12m. In addition the Awareness effect of level 1 becomes an Ability, within 12m. Over 12m (but within 24m) it is an effect but requires no boost. Every 12m beyond that requires a 1 MP boost.
Level 3 (Skill 6)	Create Simple	The character is able to create new amounts of the simple sphere from nothing, calling it into existence.
Level 4 (Skill 7)	Manipulate Complex	The character is able to manipulate the nature, shapes, patterns and amounts of the complex sphere that are present. This effect requires touch, however a 1 MP boost allows a basic range of 12m.
Level 5 (Skill 8)	Create Complex	The character is able to create new amounts of the complex sphere from nothing, calling it into existence

Matter. Simple: Simple matter is essentially uniform substances, such as iron, wood, stone and the like. Manipulation allows the increase or decrease in mass, density, size or nature of existing uniform matter (e.g. changing a stone door into water, doubling the mass of a silver goblet, and so on). This only affects a single substance, however. Creation is of a single substance in a single form, such as an iron axehead, a cloud of poisonous gas, or a litre of water. Complex: Complex matter is mixed or integrated forms of more than one substance. For example water is simple matter as is salt, however salt water is complex as it is a mix of two or more substances. Likewise a steel car body is simple, but a car, made from steel, plastic, rubber, oil, petroleum etc. is complex. Mass: All matter effects use a basis of 10 kilograms, boostable on a power of 2. To affect a 100kg iron door, for example, the spell must be boosted with 4 MPs (no boost affects up to 10kg, +1 MP affects up to 20kg, +2 MPs affects up to 40kg, +3 MPs affects up to 80kg, and +4 MPs affect up to 160kg). Energy. Simple: Simple energy is that which is a property of or affects matter. This includes heat (the agitation of molecules), electricity (the motion of electrons from one atom to another), kinetic (the motion of objects) and so on. Complex: Complex energy is pure energy, of which matter is made. Thus the release of atomic energy is complex, as is the energy released by matter annihilation. Fields. Simple: Simple fields are those generated over a volume that become weaker as distance recedes. This includes magnetic fields and gravity. Complex: Complex fields are those which form specific barriers at a specific point, for example force fields and fields of magical protection. A force field, for example, is like a shell which stops things from passing through it one or both ways. It therefore has a point where it begins its effect and a point where it stops, unlike a magnetic field which starts at the source and gradually becomes weaker the further from the source you are. Life. Simple: Simple life is everything at the cellular level and below. It includes viruses, bacteria and uniform cells of larger creatures. For example a simple Life spell may affect the muscle tissue of an enemy, but it could not affect muscle tissue AND skin tissue. Complex: Complex life covers multicellular and multifunctional life forms. For example a complex life spell could affect an entire human, or horse, or dog, or beetle. Resistance: If a Life spell is cast on an unwilling subject then that subject will resist it. The victim rolls 3d6 and adds his Body. If the result is equal to or higher than the Spell roll then the spell has been successfully resisted and has failed. Mass: When cast on a lifeform or continuous quantity of life forms (e.g. a mass of slime, a swarm of bees) then up to 80kg can be affected without boosting. Every 80kg beyond this requires an extra MP boost. Mind. Simple: Simple mind covers singular functions of thought. A simple Mind spell, for example, might erase a memory, or create a strong desire to urinate, or remove the sensation of pain. Complex: Complex mind covers interacting multiple functions of thought. A complex Mind spell, for example, can be used to alter a behaviour pattern, to gain total mind control over someone. Resistance: If a Mind spell is cast on an unwilling subject then that subject will resist it. The victim rolls 3d6 and adds his Mnd. If the result is equal to or higher than the Spell roll then the spell has been successfully resisted and has failed. A character with a Mind spheres skill may use this in place of his Mnd to resist a Mind spell. Special Ability: The mage is capable of considerable mental tasks, such as perfect memory, amazing computational speed, mental control over the autonomous nervous system and so on. This is an Effect at level 1 and an Ability at level 2 and higher. Telepathic Abilities: At level 2 the mage can sense the presence of minds and the emotional feelings of others, and transmit emotional impulses to influence their behavior. He can send images or single words to another’s mind, but nothing more. At level 3 the mage can communicate telepathically with others. Every individual beyond the first he is attempting to contact with the one spell causes a difficulty factor of -1 (or alternatively no difficulty factor but contact is made with up to [score - 14] individuals). At level 4 the mage can invade the thoughts and memories of a single person. The mage must choose the kind of thoughts he is scanning: memories, surface thoughts, emotional ties, subconscious desires, sensory impulses etc. The victim will experience the memories or emotions the mage conjures, seeing them from outside and unable to control their issue. He is also able to project false images and thus create illusions. The complexity of the illusion depends on the score, or the difficulty penalty applied. The mage is also able to control the thoughts of another individual. He can also induce insanity, change memories or set up perceptual barriers. At level 5 the mage is able to untether his mind from his body and travel astrally. The untethered mind can travel around 500 mph. The mind is connected to the body by a "silver cord", an astral lifeline. Combat may occur in astral form between two minds, treated like normal combat but using Mind Skill as the combat skill, doing astral damage equal to Aura (i.e. level = Aura), and taking astral damage against Astral Hit Points, which is three times Aura. If current astral hit points drop to 0 the cord is severed and the body dies. Spirit. Spirit and Dimension spells handle the levels slightly differently.

Awareness:

Spirits may reside in the material plane (i.e. the real world) but once the body has died they pass through a barrier called the Gauntlet into another matterless plane called the Spirit World. The Spirit World is close to the material plane and corresponds with it in most areas. As a result spirits can see things happening in the real world, and a mage with Spirit skill can see things happening in the Spirit World. The Spirit World appears as a vague superimposed image over the Real World (the Real World appears the same way from the Spirit World). Simple: Simple Spirit spells involve communication with spirits in the material world or across the gulf to the spirit world. Level 2 (Skill 5) allows the mage to communicate with spirits voluntarily. Level 3 (Skill 6) allows the mage to compel the presence of a spirit, pull it into the real world or prevent its entry into the real world. It also allows the spirit of the mage to leave his body and travel across the real world, interacting with other spirits within the real world, and even attacking an enemy’s spirit without having to deal with his body. Complex: Complex Spirit spells involve travel between the real world and the Spirit World. Level 4 (Skill 7) allows the spirit of the mage to leave his body and travel into and across the spirit world. Thus instead of observing the spirit world from outside he can actually enter it and move around as his body could in the real world, interacting with other spirits there. Level 5 (Skill 8) allows the mage to bind other spirits to material objects (and thus keep them in the real world) and compel the actions of other spirits on either plane. The Silver Cord: When a spirit leaves a still living body the body goes rigid and comatose. The spirit is unaware of what is happening to his body while he is travelling in spirit form, and has no control over it. He is connected to his body by a "silver cord" of ether, and may snap back to his body instantly at any time. If the cord is cut, however, the body remains a comatose soulless vegetable, while the spirit is forever separated from its material link. Resistance: If a Spirit spell is cast on an unwilling subject then that subject will resist it. The victim rolls 3d6 and adds his Aura. If the result is equal to or higher than the Spell roll then the spell has been successfully resisted and has failed. A character with a Spirit spheres skill may use this in place of his Aura to resist a Spirit spell. Fetishes: At level 4 (skill 7) the mage can create small realms of spirit in objects, thus allowing them to hold spirits. Such objects, once they house spirits, are called fetishes. Pocket Worlds: With some time and considerable effort mages of skill 7 (level 4) can create their own little pocket spirit worlds, accessible only from one point (usually somewhere within the mage’s home, or in some holy place). Here things can be stored or the mage himself can hide, without others being aware (unless they use Spirit Sight, of course). Barriers: At level 4 (skill 7) the mage may also manipulate the strength of the Gauntlet. It may be weakened to allow anyone, even the unenlightened, into the spirit world. This breach in the gauntlet may be closed by the mage at any time. Strengthening the Gauntlet can be used to trap spirits in the real world, or to prevent scrying from the other side, his roll -14 becoming a difficulty modifier for anyone trying to pass through or scry through the Gauntlet at that point. At this level exorcism of trapped spirits can also be achieved by weakening the Gauntlet and driving the errant spirit through to the other side. Dimensions. Spirit and Dimension spells handle the levels slightly differently.

Aside from the real world there are many other planes of existence (including the Spirit World), which include entirely different "real worlds". Dimensions deals with the barriers between these planes and how they can be traversed. In the real world Dimensions involves the nature of space itself.

Awareness:

Awareness of Dimensions allows total awareness of space itself. Thus an awareness effect (or ability) allows a mage to be aware of the precise measurements of spatial object (i.e. how tall, wide, thick, deep etc. something is, within range of course). This may provide bonuses to shooting rolls, precision maneuvers and so on, anything for which such a precise knowledge might increase the chance of success. Simple: Simple Dimension spells involve two basic effects. Firstly Dimensions deals with communication with the entities of other planes (such as elementals and demons), both in the real world or across the gulf to the entity’s own plane. Secondly Dimensions allows the manipulation of space in the real world. Level 2 (Skill 5) allows the mage to communicate with entities in other planes voluntarily. It also allows the manipulation of space to increase or decrease dimensions or the distances between things. This actually affects space itself, so, for example, a box could not be stretched out without stretching out what was in the box as well (unlike a similar Matter spell). All ranges applicable here are measured prior to the spell, so that something within 12m may be brought closer to 3m or pushed away to 20m without requiring any boosting. Level 3 (Skill 6) allows the mage to compel the presence of a planar entity, pull it into the real world or prevent its entry into the real world. It also allows the mage to change his physical location (teleport) instantly within the desired range. Complex: Complex Dimension spells involve travel between the real world and other planes. Level 4 (Skill 7) allows the mage to create windows into other planes through which he can physically travel. Some planes are hostile to the mage’s body and will destroy it if he enters that plane (leaving his disembodied spirit), but he will be aware of this before he enters the plane. The matterless spirit plane can be reached with Dimension spells, but it is hostile to matter and will destroy his body. Level 5 (Skill 8) allows the mage to compel the actions of the entities of other planes. Resistance: If a Dimension spell is cast on an unwilling subject (as opposed to the space he occupies, which he cannot resist) then that subject will resist it. The victim rolls 3d6 and adds his Aura. If the result is equal to or higher than the Spell roll then the spell has been successfully resisted and has failed. Time. Time functions differently to other sphere magic and follows the pattern of Awareness-Manipulation-Freeze.

Awareness:

Awareness allows knowledge of the precise age of anything within range. From this you can easily work out someone’s birthday, tell how long ago that fire was put out or how long ago that foot print was made, and so on. As always this is an effect at level 1 (skill 4) and an ability at level 2 (skill 5). At skill 5 the additional effect of being able to see into the future and past is gained. Seeing into the past is absolute, and a mage can seek a particular time to see the events that occurred then, or seek a particular event within the time span of the spell. Seeing into the future is by no means certain, as the act of seeing the future changes it. It is useful, however, for seeing dangers that may befall the mage should he not avoid them. The mage must have the place he desires to see in another time within his range (i.e. a New Yorker could not observe events in Imperial Rome without travelling there first). Manipulation: At level 3 (skill 6) the mage is able to cast volume effects that create a space running at a different rate of time from the rest of the world. This area is fixed to a location (it may not move), anything moving into the volume alters its time to the internal rate, and anything coming out alters back to the real world’s rate. Freeze: At level 4 (skill 7) the mage can create volumes that operate as with manipulation, except that time stops completely in the area cast over. At level 5 (skill 8) the mage can do the opposite, creating a volume in which time continues at an infinite speed while, to those inside, the rest of the world is frozen.

Temporal Ranges:

When viewing the past the base time is limited to 1 year with 1 MP boost per factor of 4. Thus up to 4 years can be viewed with a boost of 1 MP, 16 years with a boost of 2 MPs, 64 years with a boost of 3 MPs, and so on. When viewing the future the range is 1 hour, with a 1 MP boost per factor of 4. However the further into the future the mage’s sight moves the less accurate the prediction is likely to be. Dilation Limits: When slowing or speeding time the mage can double or halve the rate without boost, each 1 MP boost giving a further factor of 2. Thus with 1 MP boost time can be dilated by anything from a quarter to four times, 2 MP boost an eighth to eight times, 3 MP boost a sixteenth to sixteen times, and so on. Durations: When playing with time the obvious question concerns duration, namely which time is the duration measured by, the affected time or the real world time? Generally speaking real world time is always used, with one exception: the level 5 infinite time rush. When the rest of the universe is frozen while the affected area continues along at its own pace it is the time in the affected area that is limited by duration. Flashes: Any mage who uses precognition or postcognition a lot (referee’s decision) is likely to get involuntary flashes of the past or future, sometimes appearing in dreams, sometimes as a deja vu effect, sometimes just a flash image. The occurrence, frequency and nature of these is not under the mage’s control, any such flashes and their content are determined by the referee. Such an occurrence can be useful ("Don’t go around that corner!") or it can be irritating or even dangerous (if a flash occurs while fighting, for example). Entropy. Awareness: The mage can sense the weakest parts of objects. This skill only provides knowledge, so after ascertaining the weaknesses of an enemy other measures must be used to exploit them. However after ascertaining an enemy’s weaknesses all hits in combat by the character will do +1 damage. The mage may also detect the most disordered segments of an organisation, thus acquiring vital knowledge that can be used to infiltrate it or bring it down. Simple: Simple Entropy spells involve the effect on a uniform substance, such as iron, wood, marble, etc. Manipulation means the rate of entropy can be accelerated or decelerated. For example, if an iron sword would normally rust away in 2 months a spell can increase the rate and make it rust away in one month, or decrease the rate and make it rust away in 4 months. Creation of Entropy is a more immediate effect, it allows the immediate (i.e. within seconds) decay and disintegration of an object. For example the iron sword can be made to rust in 1 month rather than 2 with a level 2 spell, but can be made to rust into fine powder in a matter of seconds with a level 3 spell. Complex: Complex spells affect non-uniform substances and complex substances such as organic life. Again manipulation (level 4) causes an increase or decrease in the natural rate of decay, while creation (level 5) causes instant destruction. For example a simple spell at level 3 can make a car body rust away but will leave the engine, seats, chassis, wheels etc. A complex spell at level 5 can make the entire car disintegrate. Range: All Entropy effects (other than Awareness) are inflicted by touch. They may not be boosted to allow ranged effects - the entropy effect ALWAYS requires the physical touch of the mage. Mass: All entropy effects use a basis of 10 kilograms, boostable on a power of 2. To affect a 70kg human, for example, the spell must be boosted with 3 MPs (no boost affects up to 10kg, +1 MP affects up to 20kg, +2 MPs affects up to 40kg, and +3 MPs affects up to 80kg). Rates of Decay: Without boosting a rate of decay can be halved or doubled. Rates can be boosted on a power of 2. For example, if the normal rate of decay destroys something in 8 months this can be made 4 months (or 16 months) with no boosting, 2 months (or 32 months) with a 1 MP boost, 1 month (or 64 months) with a 2 MP boost, ½ month (or 128 months) with a 3 MP boost, and so on. Duration: Any spell on an object or substance will last until total destruction is achieved, or until it is reversed or dispelled by another spell. Thus decreasing the rate of decay and thus increasing the time taken to disintegrate from 1 month to 2 months, means the spell will last for 2 months. The Life/Entropy Effect. When some spells are cast there is an effect called the Life/Entropy Effect. When casting spells a mage draws to him or drives away from him the very forces that he is using or affecting, and this can have a physical effect on his own body. Being a living being the mage is affected only by Life spells and Entropy spells, the former which affects living organisms and so can also affect his own body, and the latter which is a basic force of everything, and so can have a similar effect.

The way this is handled is like this. Whenever a mage casts any Life spell, other than a spell which destroys or breaks down life in any way, he gains a number of Life points equal to the MPs that he used to cast the spell. When a mage cast an Entropy spell that actually preserves something (i.e. he is driving away entropy) he also gains Life points equal to the MPs used to cast the spell. However when a character casts Entropy magic that uses entropy, or Life magic that destroys life, he acquires a number of Entropy points equal to the number of MPs used to cast the spell. MPs that are drawn from talismans and other objects of power do NOT attract Life or Entropy points.

Life and Entropy points are directly opposed to each other, and cancel each other out. If a character, for example, has accumulated 27 Entropy points and uses 5 MPs to cast a Life spell, he reduces his Entropy total to 22.

The effect of these balances only holds sway while the Life or Entropy total is at a particular level. Thus the effects of Entropy can be negated by Life points, and vice versa.

For every 10 points of Life a character has he ages 1 day less. Thus a character who is 72 years and 94 days old who has a Life total of 380 points is physically only 72 years and 56 days old.

For every 10 points of Entropy a character has he ages 1 day more. If the above character had an Entropy total of 380 points he would physically be 72 years and 132 days old.

This effect is not overly huge, and will normally be ignored by the players unless they rack up a rather hefty total. However Entropy has another effect far more immediate. When a character gains an Entropy total of 100 points the referee rolls on the Mutation Table. At this point the character has started to notice the effects of the rolled mutation, although he may not know what it is (e.g. if the mutation is growing an extra arm the referee might describe the effect as a strange lump on his ribs under his arm). By the time the character reaches 200 Entropy points the mutation has reached full form. Until then it shifts between the just noticed and the full form (e.g. at 150 points the extra arm will be a half length stump with half-developed fingers).

At 300 Entropy points the referee rolls for a second mutation, which is fully developed by 400 points. At 500 a third is rolled for, which is fully developed by 600 points. And so on. If Life points reverse a mutation back beyond its beginning then it ceases to exist, and if Entropy pushes it again over this total a new mutation is rolled for. For example, a character reaches 102 Entropy points and the referee roll up Rotting Flesh. The character then casts Life spells and drops to 96 points. The Rotting Flesh is gone and he is healthy again. The character then uses a bit of Entropy and goes back up over 100. The referee rolls again and gets a Third Eye.

The Mutation Table.

<tbi

The Things You Can Do With Spheres.

Virtually every conceivable magic spell in every magic system can be done using Sphere magic. Most spells will fall clearly under one Sphere. Some spells can be performed in different ways in different Spheres. And some spells require a combination of Spheres to perform.

The normal way for a Sphere mage to cast a spell is for the player to tell the referee what he wishes to achieve (and perhaps what Sphere skills he thinks he can use to do so). The referee then tells the player if he can cast the spell, how he can do so, what effects he will have, and how many MPs it will cost. As a guide for referees a number of common spell effects are listed below, and what can be used to achieve them. These are not "rules" and are not binding on referees, but they give both player and referee an idea of how the Sphere magic system works.

Using Two Spheres: Using two (or more) spheres requires two (or more) spells to be cast at their various levels. This is treated as a single spell so far as time and ultimate success goes. If either roll fails the combined spell fails, if both succeed then the spell succeeds. For example, turning flesh into stone (see Transmutation below) requires a Life spell at level 4, and a Matter spell at level 2. If this is not boosted in any way the total flesh to stone spell would cost 6 MPs (4 for the Life and 2 for the Matter). The character would then cast his spell as he would any other spell, but make two rolls instead of one, one on his Life skill and one on his Matter skill. If both rolls succeed then the flesh turns to stone (remember that the flesh might resist this with a Body roll and therefore make the Life roll fail if the flesh rolls higher). If either or both fail then the spell fails.

Thus using two spheres to achieve a complicated effect requires two skills and therefore more training, two rolls and therefore more chance of failure, and costs more MPs. But it can be done.

Destruction:

This most common of desired spell effects, the complete destruction of an enemy, can be achieved in many ways. Firstly, Matter CANNOT be used against a living enemy. The difference between Life and Matter is the difference between biology and chemistry, anything that counts as chemistry is affected by Matter spells, anything that counts as biology is affected by Life spells. Matter can be used to shred the inanimate, either simple (level 2) or complex (level 4). Life can be used to shred a living enemy, and since few characters have a grudge against viruses this is generally complex manipulation (level 4). Bear in mind, however, that shredding life using Life spells has a Life/Entropy effect. Likewise Entropy can be used to shred a living creature or inanimate object (also drawing Entropy points) at level 5. It is often easier to destroy an opponent by other means (try shooting him, or hurling a fireball). Transmutation: The simple aim of alchemy to turn one substance into another generally requires the use of Matter, at level 2 (simple) or level 4 (complex). Dead biological things such as wood or wine are no longer in the realm of Life, and so count as complex matter. Thus water into wine would be a Matter spell at level 4. Transforming flesh into stone (or vice versa) would require the manipulation of flesh (complex Life, therefore level 4) AND the manipulation of stone (simple Matter, therefore level 2). In addition casting the Life part of the spell against anything will generally result in a resistance roll by the victim, based on Body. Shapechanging: The cousin of transmutation, however this involves changing the Life pattern of a creature (often the mage himself) into a different Life pattern. The new form is real, and imbibed with all the general instincts of the new creature, while retaining his spirit and therefore his thought processes. Thus a mage who turns himself into a bird will know how to fly, and yet retain his own thought processes and skills. He has the body of a bird, the speed of a bird, the attacking ability of a bird, and the hit points of a bird. Remember, however, that Matter affects Spirit over time; if the mage remains as a bird for too long (we’re talking months to years here) his Spirit will eventually be twisted to conform with the bird’s Mind. If shapechanging an unwilling subject they will resist with their Body. Creation of New Substances: At level 3 a mage can create new simple substances, at level 5 new complex substances. This is not just limited to creating new amounts of known substances, it also means creating entirely new substances. These substances can be given virtually any property the mage wishes: density, rigidity, tensile strength, melting and boiling points, transparency, and so on. Thus he can create castles of paper-thin walls, or wear fine clothes that protect like half-inch steel plate. Of course there are limitations, the more remarkable the substance the greater the difficulty, and the referee should apply difficulty factors (i.e. additional MP cost) for each remarkable property. Teleportation: The most obvious way to teleport from one place to another is by use of Dimensions (level 3 spell). The same effect can be achieved by using higher levels of Dimensions and creating gates into another plane, then from that plane back to the desired destination, which can be anywhere. This requires two spells (one to get to the other plane, and one to get back) at a higher level (Dimensions level 4), but it does get around the limitations of range. Increasing/Decreasing Weight: This is a curious effect that can be achieved in two different ways with differing parameters. Imagine you are faced with an ogre, about four times the weight of a man and occupying four squares using the square grid system. You might want to slow this fellow up so you can escape his clutches by doubling his weight. If you have Life skill you can actually double his mass, but that means increasing it by four human-weights, requiring a boost of +3 MPs. On the other hand if you have Fields you can simply double the effect of gravity in the four squares he occupies, with the same effect but not requiring any boosting. (Alternatively you can use Matter to increase the weight of his armor or clothes, Time to slow his speed down and so on.) A similar spell against a huge slime creature that is only a foot high, the weight of a man, but spread out over sixteen squares would have the opposite effect. The Life spell to double its mass would require no boosting (as you are doubling human weight). However the Field spell would require a boost of +3 (for the extra 12 squares). Invisibility: This can be achieved in numerous ways. With Energy light can be manipulated around the object to make it invisible. Fields can be used in the same way, the field created having the same effect on passing light. With Mind those around can be manipulated into not seeing the object. With Life or Matter the object (or perhaps its clothes) can be made to blend in with its background, thus giving it perfect camouflage. Time can be used to make the object move so fast that it cannot be seen. Dispersal of Gas/Smoke: When confronted by smoke or poison gas a number of different spheres can be used to get rid of it. Clouds of gas naturally disperse, therefore Entropy can be used to accelerate that dispersal. Time can be used to speed up dispersal, however as this affects a volume of space (rather than the gas itself) the effect could be costly. Manipulating Energy (kinetic energy) in the cloud could speed up its dispersal. Fields can keep the gas or smoke out of (or in) a certain space. Dimensions can be used to channel the smoke somewhere else, or to make the distance the gas or smoke has to cross to get to the mage much greater. Controlling Random Events: Entropy is the natural progression towards disorder, however it is also the natural sequence of time. By controlling Entropy the mage can control minor seemingly random occurrences such as dice rolls, card shuffling and so on. He can control such things as who a waiter will serve first, who picks the shortest straw, whether a coin comes down heads or tails, and so on. This is limited by reality however, a fresh, unshuffled deck of cards will always turn the king of hearts first. All games of chance are easily controlled by the mage by use of his spells, and successful casting determines their outcome as the mage wishes. This manipulation is treated as simple when the event is simple (e.g. the turn of a card) or complex when the event is complex. Intellectual Entropy: A mage can use Entropy to affect the survival of ideas and technology. An individual’s idea can be destroyed by making him question and doubt it, look for inherent weaknesses, and then discard it as unworkable. This can happen to a theory or concept, and ideal, or even the thought of a particular action. Passion and enthusiasm can also be destroyed. Intellectual entropy is treated as complex manipulation (level 4).

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