FrivYeti/EnliThaumWard
The Science of Warding
Roll: Intelligence + Occult
Warding is the Science of protecting people and places from other people and places. At its most simple, it lays down protections against magics and dangers, but as it grows in power, it can nigh-completely seal off an area from those who would endanger it.
When casting a Ward, characters divide successes between Duration, Area, and Power. Power's effect varies from Ward to Ward.
If no successes are spent on Duration, the ward lasts a number of ticks equal to the character's Essence. If one success is spent, the duration is the character's Essence in minutes. Two successes increase this to the character's Essence in hours, three measure the duration in days, four in months, five in years, six in decades, seven in centuries, and eight in millenia. The character may not spend more successes than her Essence +2.
Area determines how large a radius the effect can cover. No successes can only ward a single object or person. One success covers an area with a 1 yard radius, or a line two yards long. Each success past that multiplies the radius or length by 5. The character must decide on area and spend successes there before rolling, not afterwards. Note that wards are normally two-directional; they cannot be crossed in either direction. A character may make the ward one-way, either in or out, for +2 difficulty.
Characters may choose to spend extra time crafting wards to perfect them. A character may increase the casting time to 1 hour, in which case she gains one automatic success in Power, Duration, and Area. Alternately, if she succeeds on a difficulty 2 Stamina + Resistance roll, she may spend a full day (24 hours) casting, and gains two automatic successes in Power, Duration, and Area. The character need not spend all automatic successes, but may not move them into other areas.
Many of the wards below are listed as 'generic'. Generic wards must be purchased seperately for each being that the character wishes to protect against. The choices are: Humans, demons, spirits, fair folk, ghosts, and animals.
Finally, a character may designate either a password, or a number of beings or objects up to her Essence which can bypass the wards. This increases the difficulty of the effect by 1. The caster is never affected by her own wards.
Student Wards
Detection Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 4 Difficulty Modifier: +1 Resources Cost: 1
This simple ward baffles and confuses the senses, leaving people uncertain. It cannot be applied to objects or people, only to areas. Any attempt to make a Perception-based roll through the ward suffers from an internal penalty equal to the Power of the ward.
<b>Student Essence Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 4 Difficulty Modifier: +0 Resources Cost: 1
The character lays out the materials for a warding, and channels it to protect against magic. This is a generic ward. Affected beings who wish to use Charms or other Essence-driven effects within the ward must spend double the usual amount of Essence to do so. The Power of this Ward determines the Essence rating of the beings that it can affect.
Adept Wards
<b>Alarm Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 6 Difficulty Modifier: +1 Resources Cost: 2
These wards function by detection, not by protection. This is a generic ward. Whenever a being of the appropriate type crosses the ward, there are either a loud physical sound, or a mental warning in the mind of the caster(chosen when the ward is placed).
<b>Adept Essence Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 8 Difficulty Modifier: +1 Resources Cost: 2
This is a more costly, but more powerful version of the Essence Wards taught to students. This is a generic ward. It functions as Student Essence Ward, but affected beings lose 1 mote for every tick that they spend within the warded area in addition to the increased mote cost for effects.
<b>Repulsion Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 10 Difficulty Modifier: +2 Resources Cost: 2
The most famous of the wards, this ward simply prevents certain sorts of beings from approaching. This is a generic ward. Affected beings with Essence and Kismet lower than or equal to the ward's Power cannot enter the warded area, although they can use ranged attacks and Charms and interact normally with those inside the area.
Master Wards
<b>Kismet Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 10 Difficulty Modifier: +3 Resources Cost: 2
With this powerful effect, the character hardens destiny over the area that she is in. Kismet may not be spent within this ward, nor can any Essence-driven effects that alter destiny. Its Power determines the Kismet ratings of beings that can be affected by this ward.
<b>Master Essence Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 12 Difficulty Modifier: +2 Resources Cost: 3
This is the most powerful Essence-repelling ward known to . This is a generic ward. It functions as Student Essence Ward, but triples the cost to use magic within the area, and affected beings lose 2 motes for every tick that they spend within the warded area.
<b>Master Repulsion Ward</b>
Essence Cost: 15 Difficulty Modifier: +3 Resources Cost: 3
A more powerful version of the Repulsion Ward, this ward functions as a Repulsion Ward, but also prevents any affected being from affecting beings within the warded area in any way. Not even their speech will penetrate the ward.
