The College of TIME MAGIC Of the Branch of Entities ----------------------------------------------------------------- This is the first draft of this college and will therefore be far from perfect. Comments from readers will be welcome. Mark Sheppard. (Mark can be contacted via the Internet address: dallbutt@st.nepean.uws.edu.au ) The college of Time Magic deals with altering the flow of time, changing its effects on objects and entities, moving to different times, and viewing different times, and viewing different times. Obviously, an adept of the college of time deals with the past and the future, and has gained a general affinity to time and timing (ie. a Time mage will always know what time of the day or night it is, will never forget an appointment or special event etc.) At first glance, the adept of Time Magic seems to be an extremely powerful character. However, he or she is actually severely limited by the very nature of time. The adept is particularly limited when dealing with the future. This is because the future is not yet fixed. There are always an infinite number of possible 'futures', only one of which will actually come to pass (This lets the GM off the hook if things don't go how s/he expected them). This also makes it IMPOSSIBLE to travel into the future. The past, on the other hand, is a much surer thing. The past has already happened, and is therefore fixed. This means that an adept can look into (or travel to) the past with certainty. However, this does impose one very important limitation: IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO CHANGE THE PAST. Consider an adept who looks 100 years into the past and decides to go back and change it. The problem is, that just before the time that the adept was viewing, the adept appeared on the scene out of nowhere, influenced the events of the time and then dissapeared. So that the view of the past that the adept is viewing NOW, is actually the results of his actions 100 years ago. Thus, if any characters attempt to change history, various events must occur such that they fail or actually cause that 'history' to occur. This may call for some very quick and ingenious thinking on the part of the GM. Manipulating time requires a fairly substantial effort. As such, a large percentage of the abilities of this college come in the form of rituals. Except where stated otherwise, rituals last for one hour and require D10 fatigue points. TALENTS ------- T-1. Determine Aspect. The adept has a base chance of 2xPerception% (plus 4/rank) of determining the exact aspect of an entity. The adept must observe the entity for 11-Rank minutes. The experience multiple for this talent is 75. T-2. Forewarning. The adept always has a (very) vague sense of what is just about to happen. The result is that the adept can never be surprised. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE SPELLS ------------------------ G-1. Determining Age. RANGE: 10 feet + 10/Rank DURATION: Immediate EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 175 BASE CHANCE: 35% RESIST: Active only. EFFECT: This spell tells the adept teh exact age of an entity or object, even if the target's age has been magically disguised or hidden (or has been the object of ritual R-1 of this college). G-2. Slowness. This spell is identical in all respects to the spelll of the same name in the college of Ensorcelments and Enchantments. G-3. Quickness. This spell is identical in all respects to the spelll of the same name in the college of Ensorcelments and Enchantments. G-4. Lightning Reflexes. RANGE: 15 feet + 15/rank DURATION: 1 minute + 1/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 175 BASE CHANCE: 35% RESIST: Active and Passive EFFECT: This spell enables the target to react faster. The target's initiative value is increased by 1 (plus 1/rank). G-5. Remember. RANGE: 10 feet + 10/rank DURATION: 1 minute + 1/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 125 BASE CHANCE: 40% RESIST: Active and Passive. EFFECT: This spell enables the target to remember anything s/he has experienced or seen, no matter how long ago, as if it has just happened. G-6. Enhance Enchantment. RANGE: 15 feet + 15/rank DURATION: 10 seconds + 5/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 175 BASE CHANCE: 35% RESIST: Passive only. EFFECT: This spell has the same effect as spell S-7 of the college of Ensorcelments and Enchantments, except that it only effects DURATION. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE RITUALS ------------------------- Q-1. Simple Prediction. This ritual gives that adept an idea of what is going to happen in the near future. The adept will be unable to get any exact details (ie. s/he may be able to determine that a message will arrive on the third day from now, but not the exact time of arrival, or what the messenger will be wearing). The base chance of the ritual is 30% (plus 4/rank), but subtract 11 for each day into the future that the event the adept wants to know about is. When the ritual is used, the adept asks the GM a question about the future (eg. 'When will the messenger arrive?'). The GM may answer truthfully or not (using the excuse that the adept saw the wrong 'future'), or s/he may roll percentile dice to determine how accurate the 'prediction' is (the closer to 100, the more incorrect the information given). The experience multiple for the ritual is 200. Q-2. Relive the Present. This ritual allows the adept to see and hear what is happening at another location. The adept must have visited that location at some time in the past. The adept will see and hear things as if s/he was there right now, doing exactly what s/he was doing when s/he was at that location before. Thus, if the adept was sleeping, s/he would see nothing at all. THe effects continue until the adept stops concentrating. While the adept continues concentrating, s/he cannot 'freeze' what she was doing in the past: if the adept 'leaves' the room she is seeing before seeing what s/he wants, s/he will have to perform the ritual all over again (s/he will otherwise continue seeing things from the view of what s/he did after leaving the room). The adept begins viewing at the end of one hour of performing the ritual. The base chance of the ritual is 20% (plus 3/rank) and the experience multiple is 200. Q-3. View Past. This ritual enables the adept to see into the past. The adept can specify exactly how far into the past s/he wishes to view, and can change which point in time s/he is viewing, whenever s/he wants. The ritual can employ an object or person (which must be present throughout the ritual), in which case the adept will see events that happened to the object or person. Alternatively, it can employ a location (in which the adept must perform the ritual), in which case the adept sees events that happened within the area. Note that the adept will be able to see and hear what happened. The base chance is 15% (plus 4/rank). The cast chance is reduced by 1% for every 50 years in the past that the time the adept wishes to view is. The experience multiple is 300. The adept begins viewing the past after performing the ritual for 1 hour, and expends 1 fatigue point (in addition to the D10 points used to perform the ritual) for every 10 minutes spent viewing the past. Q-4. View Future. This is the same as Q-3, except that the adept views the future. The base chance is 10%, and the adept expends 1 fatigue point for every 5 minutes s/he views the future. (The GM does not have to be entirely truthful when describing the future that the adept sees.) Q-5. Talk to Predecessors. This ritual allows the adept to talk to the people who used to live in the area where s/he performs the ritual. S/He may talk to people who lived up to 200xRank years ago. The people the adept speaks to must be able to understand him/her (which means that if they lived too long ago, the adept will need to be at rank 10 in the language being used). The adept may only ask questions that can be answered with a yes/no answer. The people being spoken to may only answer about things which they know at the point in their lives at which they have been contacted (eg. they will not be able to tell the adept how they died). The base chance for the ritual is 20% (plus 4/rank) and the experience multiple is 400. SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE SPELLS ------------------------ S-1. Age. RANGE: 15 feet + 15/rank DURATION: 30 seconds + 30/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 200 BASE CHANCE: 20% RESIST: Active and Passive. EFFECT: The adept temporarily ages the target of the spell (living entities only) by Rankx5% of the lifespan of the target. If this takes the age of the taget past the age of death, the target dies. Otherwise, the target's abilities are affected according to the degree of aging (ie, reducing agility, strength, loss of memory). S-2. Youth. RANGE: 15 feet +15/rank DURATION: 30 seconds + 30/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 200 BASE CHANCE: 20% RESIST: Active and Passive. EFFECT: The adept temporarily reduces the age of the target (living entities only) by (Rank x 5)% of the target's current APPARENT age (thus it can be used to negate the Age spell). At rank 20, the target dies. If the target's age is reduced enough, it will lose agility, strength etc (or may gain them if the target is already old). S-3. Sense Future (Limited Precognition). RANGE: Self only. DURATION: 5 minutes + 2/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 200 BASE CHANCE: 25% RESIST: Cannot be resisted. EFFECT: This spell is a more effective version of T-2. It allows the adept to gain a clearer indication of what may be about to happen to him/her in the next 10 or so seconds. Rather that just keeping the adept from being surprised, it gives the adept enough time and enought information to be able to act before teh event occurse. The adept doesn't know any exact details. For example, if the adept is about to set off a trap, s/he will get the impression that s/he is about to come to harm; if s/he is about to walk into an ambush, s/he will feel as if she is about to be attacked. S-4. No Wait. RANGE: 15 feet + 15/rank DURATION: 5 minutes + 5/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 300 BASE CHANCE: 20% RESIST: Cannot be resisted. EFFECT: This spell reduces the time it takes for any spell (or ritual) cast within range to take effect. For example, the time it takes for a summoned creature to arrive. At ranks 0-9 it reduces the time by one-half, at ranks 10- 19 by three-quarters, and at rank 20 by seven-eighths. S-5. Time Web. RANGE: 20 feet + 10/rank DURATION: Concentration/Max: 15 minutes + 15/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 250 BASE CHANCE: 20% RESIST: Passive only. EFFECT: This spell entangles all entities between the adept's fingertips and the target in a temporal web. Any entity caught in the web can do nothing (s/he becomes TOTALLY disoriented as his/her view of the world becomes flashes of past and future) until someon ELSE breaks the web (by inflicting 10 or more damage points with a B class weapon in a single strike). When an entity is released from the web, if any combat is continuing, s/he may have seen glimpses of the future combat and so may act on knowledge that s/he ordinarily would not have (eg. that reinforcements are hiding in the bushes). S-6. Temporal Displacement. RANGE: 5 feet + 1/rank DURATION: 1 hour + 1/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 350 BASE CHANCE: 15% RESIST: Cannot be resisted. EFFECT: This spell causes everything within range to be slightly displaced in time. Nothing from the outside can see or hear or communicate with anything within the displacement area, and vice-versa. Anything trying to pass into the displacement area (or out of it) is disintegrated. S-7. Negate the Passage of Time. RANGE: 15 feet + 15/rank DURATION: 5 minutes + 5/rank EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 325 BASE CHANCE: 15% RESIST: Cannot be resisted. EFFECT: Any spell cast within range that normally is limited due to the passage of time (such as Magic Divination), is no longer limited by the passage of time (cast chances receive no minuses). S-8. Hyperquickness. RANGE: 10 feet + 10/rank DURATION: 1 second + 1 additional for every 2(or fraction) ranks. EXPERIENCE MULTIPLE: 550 BASE CHANCE: 10% RESIST: Can be actively and Passively resisted. EFFECT: The target of the spell moves at (virtually) the speed of light. To the target, the rest of the world will apear to be in suspended animation. To the rest of the world, the actions of the target take place in an instant. The target can NOT cast spells (mana doesn't flow at the speed of light). If the target attacks anyone, the 'defender' has no defense (other than magical defenses), and the attacker adds 20 to his strike chance (for the 'defender' being prone). An assasin ALWAYS scores a grievous injury. A Warrior (see the warrior skill) ALWAYS scores an endurance hit. If the attacker doesn't have a full 5 seconds for his attack, (due to the Time Mage not having enough rank with this spell), his strike chance is multiplied by the number of seconds he does have divided by 5. Thus if a mage is hyperquickened for 3 seconds and his normal strike chance is 67%, his actual strike chance is: (67 + 20) x 3/5 - defender's magical defense. This, of course, doesn't affect Assasins, and only affect Warriors in their chance of scoring a grievous injury. SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE RITUALS ------------------------- R-1. Preservation. This ritual causes any object of the adept's choice (which must be present during the ritual) to be unaffected by the passage of time (ie. it will not decay, weather etc). This effect lasts indefinitely. Thi ritual is usually used to preserve items in tombs, but can also be used to preserve the dead (in which case it will only be effective for a number of days equal to the adept's rank with the ritual - and it must be cast within a number of hours equal to the healer's rank). This ritual can be used to preserve writing or engravings on walls etc, and can be used to preserve an entire building if it is cast enough times. The base chance of the ritual is 30% (plus 4/rank), and the experience multiple is 200. R-2. Renew. This ritual causes any object of the adept's choice (which must be present during the ritual) that has been damaged by the passage of time (ie, decay, weathering etc) to be restored to pristine condition. The base chance is 20% (plus 4/rank), and the experience multiple is 250. R-3. Prolong Life. This ritual can be used to lengthen the life span of an entity. It lengthens the life span of th entity by Rankx5% of the average life span of an entity of that race. At rank 20, the entity's life is prolonged indefinetely. The spell can be broken by casting a special knowledge counterspell of the college of Time Magic onto the entity. If the spell is broken, the entity will revert to it's real age. If this age is past the age of death, the entity dies. An entity can be under the effect of only one prolong life ritual at an time. if a new prolong life ritual is cast on an entity, the one with the greater rank takes effect. The base chance is 20% (plus 3/rank) and the experience multiple is 325. R-4. Suspended Animation. This ritual causes everything within 5 feet (plus 5/rank) to be held in a state of suspended animation for 10 years (plus 10/rank; indefinitely at rank 20). The only way to break the spell is for a namer to perform a Ritual of Dissipation. Any entity entering the suspended area after the ritual is in effect will be caught up in the suspension. Whilst casting, the adept remains at the location that s/he wants to be the centre of the suspended area, and, just before completing the ritual, moves outside the area (otherwise s/he will be caught in suspended animation). The base chance of the ritual is 10% (plus 4/rank), and the experience multiple is 350. R-5. Slow Time. This ritual causes time outside of an area around the adept (at the time of performing the ritual only) of radius 5 feet (plus 1/rank) to slow down to one quarter of it's normal rate. R-6. Time Travel. This ritual is used to travel through time. The adept can only travel into and back from, the past. Attempting to travel into the adept's future will result in the adept (and everything or everyone travelling with him/her) to cease to exist (this is because the future does not yet actually exist). All items on the adept's person travel with the adept, as do any entities (and their items) that are in physical contact with the adept or some item or entity that is in contact with the entity. All entities (except the adept) travelling through time will suffer 2D10 fatigue points and D10 endurance points of damage. The adept, however will use up all his/her fatigue points and suffer D10 endurance points of damage. The adept can travel through time a number of years equal to 200 times his/her rank. Travel is very accurate: the adept will appear within a week of the desired time. Travelling back to the present from the past is perfectly accurate (because the adept will be naturally drawn to the time in which s/he belongs. Note that only time is traversed: the adept will appear in the same location, but at a different time. The base chance is 5% (plus 3/rank - add 30% if the adept is returning to his/her real time) and the experience multiple is 400. A backfire results in the adept ending up at the wrong time (but may still return to his/her own time). R-7. Summon Hero. This ritual is used to summon a hero out of the past. The adept must know the exact time and location at which the hero exists. The hero may try to passively resist. Once the hero arrives, there is no guarantee that s/he will help (or even be civil towards) the adept. The adept can only reach back a number of years equal to 200 times his/her rank. The hero remains until sent back by the adept or a Namer in the same manner as any other summoned entity. The base chance is 15% (plus 3/rank) and the experience multiple is 400. R-8. Summon Father Time. This ritual is used to summon Father Time. Father Time's appearance is that of a human male, but his age seems to change from very young to ancient. Father Time knows the past, present and future like the back of his hand, and is extremely wise. The adept may ask Father Time any question he wants, but whether or not Father Time will answer (or answer truthfully) is up to the GM. Father Time will leave the adept when he jolly well pleases, although he is very patient. Father Time is immune to all time-related magic, and can do just about anything he wants with time as well (ie. uses all spells and rituals of this college as if they are talents and at a higher rank than any character ever could). The base chance is 10% (plus 3/rank) and the experience mutliple is 450.