Spirit Arts of Noctre Golus:

An Example FUDGE Magic System

Written by Todd LaRoche, with the help of A Magical Medley by Grey Ghost Games

But first...

About FUDGE, and Copyright Notices

ABOUT FUDGE

FUDGE is a role-playing game written by Steffan O'Sullivan, with extensive input from the Usenet community of rec.games.design. The basic rules of FUDGE are available on the internet via anonymous ftp at ftp.csua.berkeley.edu, and in book form or on disk from Grey Ghost Games, Inc., P.O. Box 838, Randolph, MA 02368. They may be used with any gaming genre. While an individual work derived from FUDGE may specify certain attributes and skills, many more are possible with FUDGE. Every Game Master using FUDGE is encouraged to add or ignore any character traits. Anyone who wishes to distribute such material for free may do so -- merely include this ABOUT FUDGE notice and disclaimer (complete with FUDGE copyright notice). If you wish to charge a fee for such material, other than as an article in a magazine or other periodical, you must first obtain a royalty-free license from the author of FUDGE, Steffan O'Sullivan, P.O. Box 465, Plymouth, NH 03264.

You must include at the beginning of each derivative work the following disclaimer, completed with your name, in its entirety.

DISCLAIMER

The following materials based on Fudge, entitled "Spirit Arts of Noctre Golus," are created by, made available by, and Copyright (C) 1999-2000 by Todd LaRoche, and are not necessarily endorsed in any way by Steffan O'Sullivan or any publisher of other Fudge materials. Neither Steffan O'Sullivan nor any publisher of other Fudge materials is in any way responsible for the content of these materials unless specifically credited. Original Fudge materials Copyright (C)1992-1995 by Steffan O'Sullivan, All Rights Reserved.

If you wish to distribute copies of all or portions of FUDGE or derivative works based on FUDGE for a fee or charge, other than in a magazine or other periodical, you must first obtain written permission from:

Steffan O'Sullivan
P.O. Box 465
Plymouth, NH 03264

"Spirit Arts of Noctre Golus" copyright 1999-2000 Todd LaRoche

I designed this system as an example of how A Magical Medley guides the design of new magical systems. Because of time constraints (my players wanted to play:)), I borrowed concepts from the African Magic and the Gramarye sections. The result is a point-based spell system that requires the participation of the spirits of the dead: the souls of the vengeful or evil in the case of the Necromancer and friendly spirits in the case of the Caretakers.

Background

In Charys, a land of tribal villages with an early Iron Age society, there are two competing schools of magic. There are the Caretakers, who are responsible for the care and maintenance of the souls of the dead and the governing of the living. The Caretakers represent a theocracy. They mediate disputes and oversee the lives of their flock.

The city state of Noctre Golus is renowned for its architecture. High walls perched like a squat bird on the side of a sheer cliff, it surveys the valley floor. Once the home of the Builders, it is now inhabited by a group of settlers. Living in the shadow of a civilization now gone, the Noctre Golans live and worship in halls and homes seemingly abandoned for centuries.

They are wrong. The souls of the Builders stir restlessly, their peace disturbed.

The Noctre Golans revere the dead. The primary leaders of the city's current occupants are responsible for the spiritual as well as civic health of the populace. They are the Caretakers, who build on the teachings of their forefathers and secrets gleaned from the very walls of Noctre Golus itself. The Caretakers have developed the skills required to care for the dead. Rituals to appease the restless and petition the benevolent provide the Caretaker with powers unavailable to the common populace.

But, where humans gather, they bring a host of evils. Noctre Golus is no exception. It has all of the problems common to a city its size, with the added problems caused by its newer and less sophisticated population. In places, corruption reigns and crime is out of control; particularly in the lower halls, away from the light, where the poor and less fortunate must prey on each other to survive. In a secret hall, deep within the cliff face, blasphemous images carved from the rock speak of a sinister past.

Out of these hidden places, reeking of a dark knowledge, come the assassin Necromancers.The Necromancers traffic with the angry dead. Searching out the souls of the wicked or the wronged, they learn and grow strong, drawing power from these lost souls.

But it is no easy life for the Necromancers. For all of their power, they are still hunted ruthlessly by the Caretakers. So, they must hide within the very fabric of Noctre Golan society.

The supernatural power of both the Caretaker and the Necromancer is gathered from the dead. Though it is denied by the Caretakers, both schools gather this energy in an identical manner.

• The "Petition" skill:
  By rolling against a Fair difficulty each level of success will equal 1 mana point. More points may be gathered by large rituals.
• The "Ritual" skill is used to create spells.
  Example: Beh Gazi the One-Eyed is petitioning the soul of a murderer for power. He wishes to create Karoo's Bone Dust, a spell which empowers specially made bone dust to create an area effect death spell. This requires 8 mana.
  Beh rolls: Good (1) + Fair (0) + Superb (+3) + Great (2) + Good (1) + Good (1)--6 rounds of petitioning has provided enough energy.
  Note: If Beh had failed a roll, he would have had to stop the ritual. He must use the energy or it is lost.
  

• Range:
  • 0-touch
  • 10 meters per 1 mana
• Duration:
  • 0-instant
  • 1 round per 1 mana (Superb = permanent)
• Effect: +1 damage/effect per mana
• Area effect: 10-foot radius = 1 mana
• Multiple use: +1 use = +1 mana
• Permanent spells require 1 additional "Ritual" roll at Superb difficulty. Failure means the spellcrafter must start over.
• Additional modifiers:
  • Focus: -1 mana cost. By placing the spell on a specially made component (e. g., bone dust), the cost may be reduced.
  • Components: rare/specially crafted components may reduce spell difficulty (GM decision).

Caretaker spells are created the same way. The main difference between the orders is the disposition of the spirits being petitioned. Caretakers interact with ancestors and family members who have died and been shown the proper respect. Necromancer assassins seek out murderers, the slain, accident victims and the like: any soul which for whatever reason is likely to want to lash out at the living. For example, places like concentration camps or mass graves are powerful places for Necromancers.

Most spells are focused to reduce their casting cost. But there are some that can be cast with only a word or gesture. These types of spells, the instant, are generally underpowered because of the shorter available petitioning time. This makes the use of dusts, potions, elixirs, and staves more common than the instant spell.

Spell Creation (required skill: "Ritual"):

A Ritual roll is required against each aspect of a spell. Thus:

• Range (+1) (10 feet) = Good difficulty because of its value
• Effect (+6) (+3 + +3) = 2 rolls of Superb or it can be broken down to 6 rolls of Good difficulty. This is risky as any failure results in the spell's loss.

If you playtest this, I would be interested in hearing how it goes. Please e-mail me and let me know.