This replaces Sorcery and Conjuration from the Amber DRPG rules. Basically, it involves the ability to collect and manipulate the magical energies local to a Shadow to create structured magical effects, which are limited largely by the confines of the immediate Shadow, the energy available, and the amount of time and effort you are willing to put into your spells and enchantments. The rate at which you can gather magical energy depends on your Psyche and the local magical ambiance (it is always faster with a high Psyche and a high magic level), while how long you can keep gathering it depends on your Endurance. The power also includes the ability to sense and analyse magical phenomena - such sensitivity is also Psyche-dependent.
Rituals can be bought in two stages:
Novice (5 points)
(Requires Chaos ranked Psyche)
Allows you to sense magical energies, and to contribute to
magical rituals. You can perform simple rituals on your own,
but the ritual will take long than that of an adept, and the
results will tend to be temporary and will leak magic like
mad. You can in theory mess with other people's magic (like
working out how to defuse a warding), but you should probably
avoid trying to do this if you have Bad Stuff.
Adept (10 points)
(Requires Novice)
Full-blown ritual magic as described in the rest of this section.
Time Limitations
The big difference between Rituals and Amber Rulebook Sorcery is
that you cannot hang spells. All spells take time to cast,
varying from just a couple of minutes to hours or even days,
depending on the scale of the ritual. Spells that manipulate
existing materials and forces generally take less time than
spells that play about with physical laws. There are ways of
speeding things up a bit (other than by buying more Psyche),
which involve the use of artefacts, such as magical
accumulators which can gather the magical energies for you,
or magical foci which can be used to provide shortcuts during
casting. However, even these will rarely do more than knock
about a third off the casting time, and are not always easily
portable (see below). It may also be possible to speed things
up by drawing on local Power sources, if such exist, or
by drawing on your own psychic energy (again, see below).
Spell Effects
The effects of spells are generally limited to the area in
which they are cast. Spells are also normally "line-of-sight"
things, in the sense that you must be able to see or otherwise
pin-point the target of the spell before you can cast it. Even
with things like scrying or summoning rituals (which can
sometimes reach beyond the confines of the immediate area), you
still need something to focus on (usually an object connected
with the target of the spell, or failing that a very good
psychic impression of the target).
Enchantment
Enchanting an object (or a place) is not simply a matter of
making a few mystic passes over it - you frequently need to
spend more time preparing the ritual (collecting the right
materials, researching the most advantageous conditions,
performing preliminary rituals etc.) than conducting the main
ritual itself. A simple enchantment (e.g., making a sword
sharper and tougher) might take hour or so. A major enchantment
(like creating a permanent transportation portal) would take
days.
Resistance to magic
Magic is weak compared to any of the major Powers (Pattern,
Trump, Chaos Powers). A touch of Pattern energy is usually all
it takes to disrupt or dispel any spell or enchantment. Real
people (like Amberites) also have a certain resistance to magic,
which means that casting invasive spells on them requires a
reasonable Psyche advantage. It also means that you cannot
enchant them either (enchanting an intelligent Shadow being is
possible with a Psyche advantage). Items containing a Real
Power can only be altered or manipulated magically if you are
already able to combine magic with that Power. Which you
currently cannot.
Foci and Accumulators
Generic terms for magical tools used by sorcerers and
enchanters. A focus for a ritual has the overall “shape” of the
ritual “hardwired” into it, saving the user time in the last
stages of casting. It does not substitute for the casting of
the ritual, but allows the user to take shortcuts. The
disadvantage is that foci are specific to particular kinds of
ritual (e.g., summoning, warding, weather control, teleportation
and portals, scrying etc.). If you use a focus, you will need to
specify which type of magic it is specific to. An accumulator
constantly draws in magical energy, allowing the user to
concentrate more on the shape and form of the spell than on
gathering energy for it. (Accumulators tend to be drained when
moved from Shadow to Shadow, and even when moved to another
magical Shadow will still need time to recharge). The most
powerful foci and accumulators are often locations rather than
artefacts - a stone circle, an altar, a sacred grove etc. - and
so are not very portable. It usually takes days or weeks to
enchant a focus or an accumulator.
Specialisation
You can, if you wish, specialise in a particular style of magic,
such as necromancy, mind-control magic, scrying, daemonology,
control of the elements, etc. etc. This is basically a character
thing, reflecting the character’s interests. It does not mean
that you are necessarily bad at other aspects of magic, only
that other specialists may be more knowledgeable in areas
where you are not. In game terms, it simply means that you
will know about your area of specialisation, and will find
it easier to analyse and create new spells of that type.
Specialisation gives you no benefits in terms of casting
times etc.
Using Rituals
I intend to run this power in a fairly freeform manner – tell
me what you want to try and do, and I’ll tell you whether you
think you can do it, and if so, how long you think it’ll take.
Within the limitations stated above, you can create pretty much
any spell you want - there is no need to provide me with a list
of spells, although you may want me to OK any ideas you might
have. Also, a brief word on magical tactics: Flash-bang or
combat-oriented spells are impractical – no self-respecting
target is going to wait 5 minutes for you to wind up a
lightning bolt to throw at them. This does not mean that
rituals are useless in combat - you just need to plan ahead.
A more practical ritual would be one that summoned up a small
storm, which you could then manipulate to cast lightning where
you wanted it. This would still take up to 5 minutes to wind up,
but at the end of it you have an offensive ability continuously
on tap.