Sorcery/GreenLantern
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Fugue of the Gale-Force Mind - Terrestrial Circle Sorcery -- GreenLantern
Cost: 15 motes
While many sorcerers are known for their skin of bronze, bones of stone, and draconically-inspired claws, these are not the spells that further the purest goals of sorcery. Those simple spells only serve to ameliorate the effects of hours spent in study, slaving over texts, and struggling to unlock answers from the tombs that contain them. Some sorcerers, realizing the futility of such effort, instead focus their efforts on improving their strengths, reducing the time needed in study and unlocking the mysteries within, rather than without. This spell is one such weaving, wherein the sorcerer expands their very consciousness like unto a storm, crackling and churning at many points simultaneously, with solutions and ideas brought forth on the resounding claps of thunder. Highly disorienting to those unexperienced with the spell, it provides a rush not unlike that of many high-priced stimulants, but one that can be controlled, exploited, and harnessed for personal gain. When cast, small traces of lightning can sometimes be seen arcing through the character's irises, and the character's mind expands. This adds the character's (Essence-1) to all mental attributes, and increases the character's MDV by 2. The character no longer suffers penalties for attempting to do complex theoretical work in inappropriate environs, as their notes are scrolled directly into their mind, and calculations carried along by the winds of thought, rather than the clack of an abacus. (This does not eliminate the need for appropriate source materials, such as a library, however). These heightened capabilities reduce the minimum ability requirements for a given task by 1 (to a minimum of 3), as well as reduce the time required for planning or design by a factor of 2, cumulative with other charms. The foreign nature of the character's thoughts and the purely logical nature of his mind imposes a difficulty interacting with others, however, granting 4 temporary Clarity (as per standard Alchemical rules). It is rumored that more powerful versions of this spell exist, not focusing on the elemental aspect of Air, but instead focusing on the elements of lightning and crystal. The effects of this spell last for up to 24 hours.
Flashing Crystalline Psyche - Celestial Circle Sorcery -- GreenLantern
Cost: 15 motes
Seeking ever-higher levels of enlightenment, the Copper Spiders of the First Age sought not only to improve their creations, but themselves. Taking a queue from the great Primordial himself, one enterprising young Twilight sought to emulate the very fabric of the Primordial's thinking process, transmuting their own nervous tissue into a lattice of crystal and lightning, granting them a unique perspective on the workings of Creation. While still limited by their own mortal viewpoint, a sorcerer who has so transmuted their own brain matter exceeds normal boundaries and limitations, gaining an additional (Essence) points of Craft(Anything), Lore, and Occult, that do not count as charm dice, and may result in values that exceed 5. Furthermore, the sheer foreign and calculating nature of their mental processes raises their effective Willpower by 2 while the transformation is in effect. At the same time, crystal is by no means a safe material to keep inside of ones body, especially in dangerous situations. The sorcerer treats all physically-induced bashing damage as lethal, and when rolling damage caused by things that are both bashing and piercing, automatically converts a single damage die to an automatic success. The transformation lasts until the sun next crosses the horizon three times, and causes the caster to gain 3 points of temporary Clarity.
Display of Unbridled Power - Celestial Circle Sorcery -- GreenLantern
Cost: 15+ motes
Sorcerers, as any lay person can tell you, are an impressive lot. Able to bind malicious demons, call forth waves of obsidian death, and even control the very weather itself, sorcerers are more than one step away from 'normal'. The sorcerer, on the other hand, recognizes the true weaknesses inherent in their work. With nearly a year of study spent devising a single incantation, and possibly dozens of sacrifices along the way, a sorcerer is often limited by the few spells they've managed to learn. While the ability to summon and bind the many types of demon is quite a help, as there are nearly as many types of demon as there are problem, it's often rather inconvenient to summon a demon in the middle of a heated battle, or at a perfectly polite social event suddenly turned sour. In those situations, a more generalized magic can prove quite appropriate indeed. This weaving is one such spell.
Devised during the early First Age, this spell used to be one of the most commonly wielded magics of the time. Useful in dozens of situations, taught almost as soon as a student learned to counter magic, almost any Exalt dabbling in the Occult knew this spell, or at least some variant on it. Now, in the intellectually weakened Second Age, only a few Sidereals and Lunars remember its workings, and are hesitant to give up its power. During the time the spell is woven, the player must designate a general scope of effect, such as "Create whips of fire from my hands", "Give the appearance of a Celestial event (such as Eclipse)", "Mimic the Terrestrial Spell Death of Obsidian Butterflies" or even just "Create a scene similar to that of a haunting, replete with screams, moans, flickering images, and moving objects". Once this basic objective is decided upon, the character rolls Manipulation+Occult to shape the magic. Relatively 'simple' effects such as obviously magical illusions, basic magical effects such as fires, rushes of wind, and the mimicing of simple mortal thaumaturgy can be generated with one success. More complex effects, such as mimicking a weakened version of a Terrestrial sorcery can be done with 3 successes. If 5 or more successes are rolled, the effect can be similar in scope to Terrestrial sorcery, though usually an observer familiar with the mimicked spell can tell the difference between an actual spell and an imitation.
The 'base' version of this spell costs 15 motes to cast, and can generate relatively weak effects. More powerful effects, such as mimicking other spells, costs noticeably more - mimicking an existing Terrestrial spell requires 10 mores more than casting the actual spell would. Due to the way the magic is woven for this spell, it can only be used to imitate short-term weavings, and those otherwise not requiring 'ritual' components. Thus, while this spell can easily mimic the Death of Obsidian Butterflies, or Terrestrial Countermagic, it cannot be used to summon demons or for other long-casting spells.
Comments
The limits of this are fuzzy enough that it can range from overly potent to rather weak depending on how broadly the Storyteller allows it to work, and it seems overly useful--being able to cast ANY Terrestrial Circle spell for only 10 motes over the normal cost. It's like having the first volume of the Book of Three Circles in your pocket. --JohnBiles
- Well, it's 10 motes and a Willpower, and an extra turn of casting. And there's the chance of failure, which knowing the spell doesn't have; those 5 successes could easily not show up unless you use more Charms and more Essence to get them for certain. And it doesn't work on ritual magic. I think it's okay. - FrivYeti
