GURPS® Character Creation

CAMPAIGN TYPES

The Default

The standard SE campaign consists of a mixed group of Uukaptai and junior Initiates, plus perhaps a few exceptionally capable people of other, more unusual backgrounds. The PCs represent the cream of Denayi society, bound by common duty to the Circle, and called upon to deal with problems of some import, even as they intrigue and pursue private agendas at home. Most PCs will either come from a noble background, or be capable enough to mix with their social betters on near-equal terms.

Points values should be high, 300 points or more. Unenhanced characters like Initiates spies and nobility may not purchase attributes higher than 15 without an Unusual Background (at a level set by the GM relative to the attribute in question.) Enhanced characters may purchase physical attributes at any level. Disadvantages are the normal 40 points. All characters must purchase at least a 10 point Duty to the Circle, which does not count towards this limit. (A higher level Duty will count the extra points only against the limit.) Since the characters are significantly better than human, the Cinematic Combat rules are used.

CHARACTER TYPES

Initiates

Initiates represent the peak of Denayi society, and even a junior member of the ruling Circle will have some pricey advantages and skills.

Advantages: All Initiates have Initiate Magery at level 1 – that’s what makes them Initiates, and probably SE Channeling at least one level. A junior Initiate will have Status of at least 5; high ranking Initiates and members of the Inner Circle will go all the way up to 8. All Initiates have legal privileges; three levels of Legal Enforcement Powers, and two Levels of Legal Immunity. A high Administrative Rank would also be appropriate. Wealth will vary; an Initiate of humble origins may only be Filthy Rich, scions of old blood will probably be Multimillionaire or more. All Initiates would be Literate. Older Initiates shore up their bodies to prevent aging, and may have the Unaging advantage. (They will also need to purchase the Uukaptai hum, however.) Patrons and contacts are a good buy, too.

Disadvantages: All Initiates will have a Duty to the Circle; its level will depend on their perceived usefulness, reliability and discretion. The Circle is a fractious body; Enemies abound.

Skills: In additions to spells, Initiates probably also should buy Savoir Faire, Broadsword or Fencing skill, Riding, and some social skills befitting their Rank.

Uukaptai

Skills: Any Combat skills. The Uukaptai most commonly weapons are the cavalry sabre (treat as a broadsword), and flintlock muskets, rifles, and pistols. GMs may wish to use Style packages from GURPS Swashbucklers or Martial Arts. Of the Swashbuckler styles, the Old School and the Italian Style with their emphasis on the Broadsword seem most appropriate for a "standard" campaign; the French or Spanish schools emphasize Fencing and the Rapier or Smallsword, giving the campaign a less brutal and more swashbuckling feel. Any Martial Arts style, suitably renamed, would fit the SE universe, or the GM may wish to limit styles to two or three. Uukaptai Officers would do well to purchase social skills as well. For Cinematic campaigns, the Uukaptai would include several Masters teaching different Styles.

ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES AND SKILLS

Literacy: Semi-literacy is the norm for most people in the universe of Soul Engine. Thus Literacy is a 5 point advantage, Illiteracy a –5 point disadvantage. In the default campaign, characters are assumed to be elite members of Denayi society, and GMs may decide that Literacy is the practical default for such a campaign.

Rank: The Rank guidelines for GURPS Swashbucklers fit the ranks of Denayi armies well.

Status: The Republic has many different grades of status and nobility; PCs can buy almost any level of Status with justification. Peasants, slaves, criminals, locally despised racial groups or religious practicioners will be negative Status. Free farmers, townsmen, and so forth are Status 0, with mayors, minor civil servants, rich provincial businessmen and so forth Status 1. Local Nobility of single region, owners of continent-covering businesses, and so forth, are Status 1 or 2. The elites of a single World – mercantile or noble will be Status 2 to 4, as will lesser Denayi nobility. The high Denayi nobility will be Status 4 to 6, as will lesser Initiates, Governors, etc. The Inner Circle would be Status 7 and 8.

TL for Skills: The universe of Soul Engine is Early TL 5, about equivalent to our earth at about 1900. (Flintlock weaponry is freely available, but other characteristic advances like steam engines, telegraph, percussion-cap weapons &c are not. Some medical technologies are as advanced as the late 19^th century – germ theory is widely accepted and antiseptics and simple analgesics are widely known.) The Circle and senior Uukaptai are familiar with higher tech levels (up to about TL 7), but actively suppress technological progress. Characters in the default campaign will thus purchase most of their skills at TL 5, but characters with a Status of 5+, Uukaptai of Rank of 4+, or anyone who shells out for a 10 point Unusual Background may purchase skills at TL 6 or 7. If these skills represent practical knowledge (like Pilot) the character must have or have had access to the technology in question sometime in the past. There are plenty of less developed areas in Denayi territory, from TL 4 (not especially different in most respects from early TL 5) all the way down to TL 0 in the remote locations.

Wealth: Denayi society experiences vast extremes of wealth, and the Wealth advantage represents much greater Wealth per level than it would in other game worlds. Any character of very wealthy or better probably owns a smallish estate: one the size of Liechtenstein. Rich and Multimillionaire characters might own continents or even worlds. Even a comfortable character could afford a luxurious townhouse. GMs shouldn’t worry about wealthy PCs being able to afford things; as long as it is reasonable to their background and role, don’t bother with tedious bookkeeping and starting wealth. Wealth also represents extremely limited access to higher tech items; Wealthy characters can have one small, non-combat item of up to TL 7 with the GM’s approval. Characters who are Rich may have several small, non-combat items, one large one, or one personal combat item (ie, a few boxes of plastic sheeting, a copy machine or a bolt action rifle, but not a helicopter or a Tiger Tank.) GMs might consider letting the Multimillionaire character have that tank or airplane. Any item will have supplies to keep it running for a short while only; say enough ammunition, gas or electricity for a 1d uses. When these supplies are gone, it should be difficult or impossible to replace them -- certainly the search would be a minor quest in itself.

The Uukaptai templates use the following Style, adapted from fencing styles in GURPS Swashbucklers and Martial Arts. Players are encouraged to substitute other styles from those books or of their own invention, if they wish, making appropriate changes to the templates

Primary: Black Powder Weapons (Flintlock Musket), Broadsword, Fencing (Rapier), Karate

Secondary: Main Gauche , Philosophy (Uukaptai), Riding (Horse), Savoir-Faire (Uukaptai, Two-handed Sword

Optional: Black Powder Weapons (Flintlock Rifle), Black Powder Weapons (Flintlock Pistol),  Body Language, Cloak, Combat Art/Sport (For any Primary, Secondary or Optional Weapon Skill), Riding (Horse), Spear

Maneuvers: Aggressive Parry (Karate), Close Combat (Broadsword), Feint (Broadsword or Fencing, or any Secondary Weapon Skill), Flèche, Hit Location (Broadsword or Fencing), Lunge, Neck Snap (Karate), Off-Hand Weapon Training (Main-Gauche)

Cinematic Skills: Acrobatics

Cinematic Maneuvers: Hand Clap Parry (Karate), Enhanced Dodge, Enhanced Parry (Broadsword or Rapier), Roll With Blow (Karate), Whirlwind Attack

NEW ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES

New Advantages:

Initiate Magery (1 to 3 levels, 25 points for the first level, 10 per each additional level)

This advantage represents the ability of Initiates to draw on the Pylon to cast spells. Initiates treat mana levels of low or above as normal. Initiates gain + 1 skill to their soul engine spells for each level. Initiate Magery does not grant any bonus to normal GURPS magic (if used) or vice versa.

Rationale: the base cost is the same as Magery (15), plus the cost of Mana Enhancer (25), minus a few points because it affects only the Initiate (-5) and because it prevents them from benefiting from mana levels above normal (-5). The advantages of being linked to other Initiates is as potentially dangerous as helpful (0), and the changes to the critical failure chart do not make it significantly more dangerous (0). Other changes merely limit possible capacities and are worth (0).

Soul Engine Channeling (1 to 5 levels, at 10 points/level)

Only Initiates may take SE Channeling. SE Channeling is a learned ability, not a talent, and can be increased during character advancement. For each level of Channeling, an Initiates gains up to one 1 "free" point of energy a turn. Each point must immediately go towards the cost to cast or maintain a spell, and cannot be saved or stored.

Rationale: Two additional levels of Mana Enhancer (50 points) would grant the character the effects of very high mana – or completely cost-free spells. SE Channeling is less useful because it effects only the Initiate, and is capped by level, but SE Channeling doesn’t turn ordinary failures into critical failures, which is a huge advantage. Assuming that these balance out (more or less) the result would be 10 points/ level, which seems about right in when compared to such useful abilities as Magery (10/level), Body of Metal (9/level), a racial Group Skill Bonus (6/level), or Strong Will (4/level).

Disadvantages:

The Uukaptai Hum (-5 points):

Enhancement binds spiritual energies into human flesh. Any Enhanced character’s body moans softly with the spirits of those bound into it. Quite noticeable up close, it effectively prevents an Enhanced character from concealing their true nature. Any character with a physical attribute of more than 15 should buy the Hum, as this is assumed to be the source of their superb HT, DX or ST. Characters who wish to be of naturally high HT, DX or ST should buy an Unusual Background. Characters with advantages granted by Enhancement, like Unaging or Racial and Super Advantages, must also buy the Hum. Some advantages like Combat Reflexes, High Pain Threshold, and Toughness may or may not be natural, and the GM may rule that they also require the Hum or an Unusual Background.

SE INITIATE MAGIC

These modified GURPS rules are only an approximation of the way Soul Engine magic "really" works – the way they work in my novel, for example. The fit’s only about 90%, but that’s close enough for horseshoes, hand grenades and role-playing games.

Rules Changes:

o Initiates cannot cast in a no-magic area; they suffer no penalty for casting in a low-mana area.

o Initiates cannot use Soul stones or other mana-storing items besides their Pylon

o Initiates do not gain the Mage’s Touch from wands or staves.

o Initiates cannot have familiars.

o Initiates can only chose spells from the modified spell list below.

o Initiates roll critical failures on a modified Critical Spell Failure Chart.

o If an Initiate’s Pylon is destroyed, he or she loses the ability to cast spells.

o No Power for skill exchange in ceremonial magic

o No Item Creation allowed for most spells. Exceptions as noted in spell list.

o Items created do suffer from the ill effects of a low-magic world

o Spells that affect the mind, when cast by one Initiate onto another of the same Circle never have a distance penality.

o Spells cast from one World to another have a –10 distance penalty.

Spell Guidelines:

o The SE universe is, throughout a low-mana world, where the only usual source of magical energy is spiritual energy created by a sentient creature – in other words, its soul. If normal GURPS magic is also used in the game, then every spell cast by a "normal" Mage must also be accompanied by a human sacrifice.

o All energy used in casting comes from the pylon itself regardless of where the points come from in the rules. ST or HT "mana" comes from the Pylon as much as the "free" channeling mana. The damage is just a side effect of more energy being channeled through the Initiate’s body than he or she can handle. If a spell goes down in cost, it does not "really" use less mana, but long familiarity allows the Initiate to Channel more efficiently with that spell.

o Spirit Energy can be used to Infuse physical materials, but it will quickly dissipate from anything except flesh or a Pylon.

o Spirit Energy works by mechanical efficacy not by sympathy. It has no inherent moral logic, only the amoral physics of a natural law.

o Initiates of the same Circle are all connected through each other through their Pylon, and they can access each others minds and spirits through it.

o Initiates can make psychic contact with people (and animals) who are not bound to the Pylon but it is difficult.

o Spirit Energy cannot create anything permanent. Dense spirit energy dissipates quickly; thus all illusion or creation spells must have a limited duration.

o Spirit energy cannot turn one substance into another.

o An initiate’s spells can only perform "smart" operations if it puts a bit of a sentient spirit into them.

o An spirit removed from the Pylon must return there; thus all possessed statues, zombies, smart spells, animated statues and so forth must be of limited duration.

o Spells whose prerequisites have been omitted take the prerequisites of their omitted prerequisite.

MODIFICATIONS TO THE GURPS MAGIC SPELL LIST

The basic college is Elemental: Spirit. Create Raw Spirit Energy and Shape Spirit Energy are the basic spells allowing the channeling of caustic spirit energy. Shape Spirit Energy allows use of Animal Control, Communication and Empathy, and Mind Control spells. Create Refined Spirit Energy allows use of Elemental College: Air and Movement Colleges . Create Subtle Spirit Energy allows use of Body Control, other Elemental Spells, Illusion (only), Knowledge, Light And Darkness, Making and Breaking, Meta, Protection and Warding, and Sound Spells. Create Dense Spirit Energy allows use of Creation Enchantment and Healing Spells. Channel Spirit allows Creation and Necromantic Spells.

SE Elemental: Spirit College Dependency Chart


	Create Raw Spirit Energy
	Shape Spirit Energy
		allows -> Animal Control spells
	        allows -> Communication and Empathy spells
		allows -> Mind Control spells.
		Cone of Force
		Beam of Force
		Wall of Force
	Create Refined Spirit Energy
		allows -> Elemental College: Air Spells
		allows -> Movement spells
	Create Subtle Spirit Energy
		allows -> Body Control Spells
		allows--> Elemental College Spells: Fire, Water, and Earth
		allows -> Food Spells
	     	allows -> Illusion (only) spells
		allows -> Knowledge spells
		allows -> Light And Darkness spells
		allows -> Making and Breaking 
		allows -> Meta spells 
		allows ->, Protection and Warding spells   
		allows ->, Sound spells.
	Create Dense Spirit Energy  
		allows -> Creation spells  
		allows -> Enchantment spell  
		allows -> Healing Spells Produce Spirit
		allows -> Creation spells 
		allows-> Mind-Control Spells 
		allows -> Necromantic Spells

Animal Spells

Initiates can use energy from the Pylon to impress their will upon animals by using their augmented spirit to overwhelm the animal’s natural responses. Because the caster’s mind must "jump the gap" of empty air between the target and himself, Initiates suffer a –5 penalty to all Animal spells. (This penalty does not apply if the animal has been bound to the Pylon – but such an animal will have been driven mad by the screaming souls anyway.) Shape Spirit Energy is a prerequisite for all an Initiate’s Animal Spells.

All except Beast Speech, Shapeshifting, and Shapeshift Others.

Beast Soother M23 has the additional prerequisite Shape Spirit Energy

Rider, Rider Within and Beast Possession M24 have the additional prerequisite Produce Spirit

Body Control

Create Subtle Spirit Energy is a prerequisite for all of an Initiate’s Body Control spells.

All.

Alter Visiage and Alter Body can only be cast as permanent Enchantments.

Communication and Empathy Spells

All Initiates of the same Pylon can access each other’s minds and spirits through the Pylon. There is no distance penalty for Communications and Empathy spells cast on a member of one’s own Circle. However, an Initiate must "jump the gap" of empty air to contact people who have not been so bound, and suffer a –5 penalty when attempting to do so in addition to the normal distance modifiers. Shape Spirit Energy is a prerequisite for an Initiate’s Communication and Empathy spells.

All

Produce Spirit is a prerequisite for Control Person and its dependant spells Possession, Permanent Possession and Exchange Bodies.

Elemental: Air Spells

Initiates can easily use refined spirit energy to push air around. Create Refined Spirit Energy is a Prerequisite for all Air Spells. The subject of the spell will be visibly surrounded with refined Spirit Energy unless the caster also knows Create Subtle Spirit Energy at 12 or better.

All except Create Air, Body of Air, Predict Weather, Breathe Water, Earth to Air

Shape Air (Purify Air replaces Create Air as a prerequisite)

Elemental: Earth Spells

Create Subtle Spirit Energy is a Prerequisite for all Earth Spells

All except Walk Through Earth, Create Earth, Flesh to Stone, Stone to Flesh, Body of Stone, and Stone Missile.

Create Refined Spirit Energy is a Prerequisite for all Earth Spells

All spells with Create Earth as a prerequisite take Earth to Stone as a Prerequisite instead.

Elemental: Fire Spells

Create Subtle Spirit Energy is a Prerequisite for all Fire Spells

All except Create Fire and Essential Fire.

All spells with Create Fire as a prerequisite take Ignite Fire as their Prerequisite instead.

Elemental Spirit Spells

There are no Elementals in the Soul Engine Universe. Therefore Summon Control and Create [Type] Elemental spells are unavailable.

Elemental: Spirit Energy Spells

Initiate draw their power from the vast reservoirs of spirit energy stored their Circle’s Pylon. Their form of magic is based on channeling this energy from the Pylon into the physical world. Therefore, the Spirit Energy College is first college they learn, and the principles learned in it then form the basis for more subtle effects.

Create Raw Spirit Energy (Area)

Produces a hex or more of whirling, caustic spirit energy filled with the gibbering whisps of insane souls. Anything (or anyone) within the hex takes damage as though it were filled with fire. p. B 129-30. However, raw spirit energy will not set flammable objects alight. The wailing spirits might also be grounds for a fright check at the GM’s whim.

Duration: 1 minute

Base Cost: 1. Cost to maintain: Half the cost to create.

Shape Spirit Energy (Regular)

Lets the caster modify the shape of any of the four types of spirit energy. Raw, Refined and Subtle energies move at 5 hexes a turn. Dense spirit energies move at only 3 hexes a turn.

Duration: 1 minute

Cost: 1 per hex of energy moved; 1 per hex to maintain.

Prerequisite: Create Raw Spirit Energy

Jet of Raw Spirit Energy (Regular)

Lets the caster shoot a Jet of Raw Spirit energy from his finger, fist or palm. Use the Magic Jet skill to hit. It may be dodged or blocked but not parried. Each target hit will suffer the spells base kinetic damage as well as the effects of raw spirit energy.

Duration:1 second.

Cost: variable. If the jet is only large enough to hit a single target, the base cost is 1 point for 1d of basic kinetic damage. The cost is multiplied by times the number of hexes effected if the jet is made wider or longer. The jet’s range in hexes is equal to its base damage. Unlike other "jet" spells it is infinitely scalable.

Prerequisite: Shape Spirit Energy

Beam of Raw Spirit Energy (Missile)

Lets the caster shoot a thin beam of raw spirit energy at a target. SS 12, Acc +3, 1/2 Dmg at 50, Max 100.

Cost: 1 to 3. Does 1d per point spent.

Time to Cast: 1 to 3 seconds. 1 per point spent.

Prerequisite: Shape Spirit Energy

Create Refined Spirit Energy (area)

Produces a hex or more of refined spirit energy. Refined spirit energy is visible as a vapor, and it moans audibly. If moved, it can push or pull a solid object, but it is not caustic to the touch.

Duration: 1 minute

Base Cost: 1. Cost to maintain: Half the cost to create.

Prerequisite: Shape Spirit Energy

Create Subtle Spirit Energy (area)

Produces a hex or more of subtle spirit energy. Subtle spirit energy is a gas of whatever color and opacity the caster desires, or it can be invisible. It whispers softly in a way that is audible only to someone in the same hex. If moved, it can be used to push or pull a solid object, but it is not caustic to the touch.

Duration: 1 minute

Base Cost: 1. Cost to maintain: Half the cost to create.

Prerequisite: Create Refined Spirit Energy

Create Dense Spirit Energy (area)

Produces a hex or more of dense spirit energy. Dense spirit energy can be of whatever level of solidity, viscosity and overall color the caster desires, so long as these are invariant throughout the substance. Dense spirit energy moans and gibbers softly but is completely inert, without odor texture or taste and cannot be made to have nutritional value. It cannot be summoned inside a person’s body.

Duration: 1 minute

Base Cost: 1. Cost to maintain: Half the cost to create.

Prerequisite: Create Refined Spirit Energy

Produce Spirit (Regular)

This spell permits the caster to pull a bit of sentience out of its resting-place in the Pylon. The spirit is not confined to the hex to which it was summoned and can move itself at 1 hex per second. It is intangible and non-caustic. It can also speak, but whether it has anything coherent to say is another matter. The caster gets a spirit of whatever level of sophistication he paid for, but he cannot request a specific individual. The caster has no control over what the spirit does once it is summoned.

Duration: 1 minute

Cost: 1 for a mindless or completely mad entity, 2 for an insane one capable of speech, 3 for a reasonably sane, coherent personality. Cost to maintain: Half the cost to create.

Prerequisite: Create Subtle Spirit Energy

Elemental: Water Spells

Create Subtle Spirit Energy is a Prerequisite for all Water Spells.

All except Create Water, Breathe Water, Essential Water, and Body of Water.

Spells with Create Water as a prerequisite have Purify Water as a prerequisite instead.

Enchantment Spells

Spirit energy does not easily inhere to any substance, tending to leak away over time. It will only adhere permanently to human flesh and to certain types of ritually prepared stone. Thus while Initiates may learn the Enchant spell, they may not use it to create items from the standard spell list except where otherwise noted.

Create Dense Spirit Energy is a prerequisite to all Enchantment Spells

Enchant, Remove Enchantment, Suspend Enchantment

Enchant cannot create items from the spell list, and it must be cast at the Pylon itself.

New

Soul Bind (Enchantment)

This spell binds the subject’s soul permanently to a Pylon. It is used both to prepare ritual sacrifices and to Initiate candidates into the Circle. The caster must cut a sigil into the bare flesh of the victim then smear the blood from this wound onto the Pylon. Thus, it does at least 1 point of damage to the victim and possibly much more depending on the type of instrument and amount of care the caster uses.

On a failed roll, the victim is not bound to the Pylon. On a critical failure the victim dies. On a success, the victim must immediately make a fright check at –5 and a will roll to avoid passing out for 1d6 hours. If the will roll is a critical failure, the subject involuntarily sprays the area with a Jet of Raw Spirit Energy until he runs out of fatigue and health or is otherwise subdued.

The ritual works effectively only on humans: an animal bound to the Pylon will go mad or have its fragile soul ripped to pieces. (This is also why animal sacrifice cannot substitute for human sacrifice – their souls are too puny.)

Duration: Eternal

Cost 1

Create Uukaptai (Specialty) (Enchantment)

This spell allows the caster to surgically alter and reinforce the human body to confer one particular modification or advantage. It is usually cast as a quick and dirty enchantment using the nearly infinite energies of the Pylon. (After all, the Circle has plenty of potential candidates, so a failure every now and then is acceptable.) Any character who gains an advantage or attribute from this spell must immediately pay the point cost and acquires the Uukaptai "hum."

Duration: Permanent

Cost: The point cost of the advantage or attribute improvement x 100.

Prerequisites: Enchantment, Alter Body

Create World Gate (VH) (Enchantment)

This spell allows the Circle to create a permanent gate between two Worlds (or two locations on the same World). Such a rare event only takes place once in a century, requires the effort of an entire Circle, and hundreds of thousands of sacrificed souls. Plus a fair sized castle to protect the real estate. Thus, I leave its use up to the cruel whim of the GM rather than provide mechanics. (See the background sections for more information.)

Duration: Permanent

Cost: A lot.

Prerequisites: Enchantment, Find World

Create Pylon (Enchantment)

This spell exists, but its use is even rarer than Create Gate. It can be used in two ways: 1) to create a secondary Pylon for use by an existing Circle or 2) to create an entirely new Pylon for an entirely new Circle. In the latter case, the spell is a normal GURPS magic spell that must be cast under the restrictions of a low magic world. The souls of millions must flow to cast such a spell. Thus, I leave its use up to the cruel whim of the GM rather than provide mechanics.

Duration: Permanent

Cost: A lot.

Prerequisites: Enchantment

Food Spells

Spirit energy cannot make permanent physical objects. Thus very few food spells are available to Initiates. Create Subtle Spirit Energy is a prerequisite for Initiate’s Food Spells.

Seek Food, Decay, Ferment, Distill

Modified

Seek Food has no prerequisite

Healing Spells

Healing spells have Create Dense Air as a prerequisite for Initiates.

All except Suspended Animation, Instant Restoration, Instant Regeneration and Resurrection.

Modified

None

Illusion and Creation Spells

All Illusions made by an Initiate are in fact crafted from subtle spirit energy. All Creations made by an initiate are dense spirit energy. An Initiate’s Illusion spells have Create subtle energy as a prerequisite, while all Creation spells have Create Dense Spirit Energy. Also all of an Initiate’s Illusions or creations will have the "Uukaptai hum," making them detectable for what they are, but may not be "disbelieved."

All

An Initiate can only use Control Illusion or Control Creation if the target spell was originally cast by a member of his own Circle.

Knowledge Spells

All an Initiate’s Knowledge spells have Create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

All except Seeker, History, Ancient History, Divination, See Secrets, Wizard Eye, Invisible Wizard Eye

Trace has replacement prerequisites of Magery, IG 12+ and two "Seek " Spells.

Find World (Information)

This spell allows the caster to project his soul out into the void of possibilities between worlds. Roll twice: once to put yourself into the trance and again to see what you find.. On a successful first roll, the caster prepares himself and then goes into a trance for 2d6 days. On a failure, nothing happens. A critical failure rolls on the miscast chart, as usual. Make the second roll. On a critical success or one that succeeds by at least 8, the caster finds the resonance of human minds that indicate an inhabited parallel earth. On a success by less 8 or more, the caster successfully travels the void, and returns safely but finds nothing. On a failure the caster is gets unexpectedly lost. Add 1d6 days to the length of the trance and make a roll on the Fright Check at –5 when you return. On a critical failure, something horrible goes wrong. The caster wakes at the normal time, rolls on the Fright Table at –10, and takes 1d damage.

Once a suitable world has been located, the caster can find it again with a normal success. Prolonged observation will allow him to sense the size of its population and make a guess at its TL, but determining more will require someone to make a Gate to the new world.

Duration: 1d6 days

Cost: 6

Prerequisites: Pathfinder, Telepathy

Divination

Not available. There is neither fate nor any cosmic moral principal at work in the universe of Soul Engine.

Light and Darkness Spells

An Initiate’s Light and Darkness Spells take create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite

Available:

All except Invisibility and See Invisibility.

None.

Making and Breaking Spells

An Initiate’s Making and Breaking Spells all take create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

All except Copy and Knots.

Restore (and thus its dependent spells) has Create Dense Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

Meta Spells

An Initiate’s Meta-Spells work normally on spells cast by members of his own Circle, but are at –5 if they target a spell powered by the Initiate of another Pylon. An Initiate’s Meta Spells take create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

All except Activate Runes, Pentagram, Bless, Curse, Drain Mana and Restore Mana

Linking Spells all have the additional prerequisite of Produce Spirit, and the linked spells decay after 2d6 days.

Mind Control Spells

All Initiates of the same Pylon can access each other’s minds and spirits through the Pylon. There are no distance penalties for Mind Control spells cast on a member of one’s own Circle. However, an Initiate who wishes to control people who have not been so bound suffers a –5 penalty in addition to the normal distance modifiers. Produce Spirit is a prerequisite for an Initiate’s Mind Control spells.

All.

None.

Movement Spells

Refined Spirit Energy is an additional prerequisite for all an Initiate’s Movement spells. The subject of the spell will be visibly surrounded with refined Spirit Energy unless the caster also knows Subtle Spirit Energy 12.

All except Wallwalker, Air-Golem, Flight, Hawk Flight, Teleport, Blink, and Telepot Other, Ethereal Body, Blink

None

Necromantic Spells

All of an Initiate’s Necromantic Spells have Produce Spirit as an additional prerequisite.

Available:

All except Turn Zombie, Steal Youth, Summon Shade, Soul Jar, Summon Demon, Planar Summons and Banish.

Modified:

Sense Spirit and Control Zombie work normally with spirits summoned from the Initiate’s own Pylon, but at –5 when affecting spirits or Zombies from another Pylon. SE Zombies decay rapidly.

Summon Spirit works only on he spirits of those deceased who have been bound to the Initiate’s own Pylon and are not currently summoned elsewhere. Most are likely to be mad, incomplete, or otherwise less than useful as sources of information. If the target spirit had the SE Magery Advantage in life (and has not forgotten it), gains it as a bonus to IQ to resist spells, but it may not cast spells

Plant Spells

All of an Initiate’s Necromantic Spells have Create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

Available:

All except Identify Plant and Plant Form.

Heal Plant has Seek Plant as a prerequisite instead of Identify Plant. Animate Plant Requires Produce Spirit.

Protection and Warning Spells

All of an Initiate’s Protection and Warning Spells have Create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

All except Sense Danger, and Teleport Shield.

Spells with Sense Danger as a prerequisite have Sense Foes as a prerequisite instead.

Sound Spells

All of an Initiate’s Sound Spells have Create Subtle Spirit Energy as an additional prerequisite.

Available:

All Except Scribe, Invisible Wizards Ear, Wizard Ear, and Delayed Message

None