GURPS Elenium: Magic

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Magic

Magic is the gift of the gods. A magical effect occurs when a magician appeals to his god with a prayer in Styric and weaves mystical patterns in the air with his hands. Hand motions may be omitted or done with one hand and soft speech but with the penalties described in the alternate magic ritual rules in the sidebar of GURPS: Magic, p. 7.

All magic in the Elenium uses the Unlimited mana rules with the following modifications: starting THRESH is 15 and RR is 15 and THRESH cannot be exceeded. In addition magicians in the Elenium setting can use the Option to Spend expansion.

Styric Magic

The most famous of magicians are the Styrics. Many of the spells in GURPS Magic and GURPS Grimoire are available to Styric magician PCs except for those in the forbidden lists below. Additionally, the Styric gods do not wish to directly kill their enemies, rather they prefer to let nature itself kill in its own time, therefore, Styric spells will not work if they will directly kill their subject.

The pupils of the Styric mages, the Church Knights, start only with basic training in the secrets. To simulate this, starting Knights are not taught spells that are deeper than two levels in the GURPS spell flowcharts or in other words, no spells are allowed that have as a prerequisite a spell that has itself a prerequisite. Knights may receive more instruction later in their careers.

Forbidden colleges:
Animal (except for Beast Speech and its prerequisites)
Enchantment
Plant
Elemental Spirit
Technology

Here is a list of GURPS spells that were used in the Elenium and Tamuli trilogies in general order of appearance:

The Diamond Throne: Suspended Animation, Minor Disease, Might, Persuasion, Pain, Strike Blind, Mind Reading, Hide Thoughts, Beast Speech, Perfect Illusion, Simple Illusion, Long March, Insignificance

The Ruby Knight: Sense Foes, Seeker, Trace, Sleep, Possession, Exorcism, Heat, Light, Lend Language, Levitation, Flight

The Sapphire Rose: Telepathy, Find Direction, Illusion Disguise, Stone to Earth, Shield, Lightning Bolt

Domes of Fire: Light, Freeze, Apportation, Fireball, Explosive Fireball, Perfect Illusion, Possession, Deathtouch

The Shining Ones:

The Hidden City: Alter Self (Delphaeic), Alter Other (Delphaeic), Flying, Create Water, Utter Dome

New Styric Spells

Minor Disease
Sphere: Healing
Duration: 3 + 1d days
Cost: 1 (minimum 1)
Prerequisite:

This spell allows the caster to inflict a very minor disease on someone such as boils, carbuncle or acne. The spell cannot cause any damage or have any long term effects. The effect will remain until it heals naturally (the time given in the duration) or a counterspell is used.

Sparhawk used this spell on the annoying courtier at the beginning of the Diamond Throne.

Zemoch Magic

Zemoch mages also have the same selection of spells that Styrics do but without some of the moral restrictions. Zemoch spell casters can and do use spells that will kill.

Some of the known Zemoch spells are: Simple Illusion, Complex Illusion, Shield, Poison, Lighting

Zemoch Spells

Ritual of Power
Sphere: Necromancy
Duration: Permanent
Cost: Equal to the amount of character points the advantage or knack costs and see below
Casting Time: 1 hour Prerequisite:

This ritual will give the target a character advantage or spell knack. In exchange, the target must take mental disadvantages equal to twice the advantage gained. In addition the target become an extension of Azash, what the target knows Azash knows. Azash then begins the target in the instruction and perversions of Zemoch magic. A person may only be under the effects of one one ritual at a time.

The ritual takes about an hour to perform, requires a clay replica of Azash and has an energy cost equal to character advantage or spell knack gained. The ritual also requires all the blood of a freshly sacrificed adult human. If the sacrificed has the magery advantage, then the target of the ritual only has to take disadvantages equal to the cost of the advantage gained in the ritual.

The power of the ritual may be broken if the Azash statue is found and destroyed.

For example: Bellina underwent the ritual to give her the Very Beautiful advantage (25 points). The ritual took one hour, cost 25 energy points and several pints of human blood. Bellina gained the following disadvantages: Odious personal habits: Cannibalism (-15 points), Sadism (-15 pts), Compulsive Behavior: Cannibalism, 1/week (-15 points). The direct contact with Azash then allowed her to learn several spells from the Mind Control college.

Magic Items

There are very few magic items that were mentioned in the Elenium. The following are some items that might be the object of a quest.