In Argosa, sorcery is relatively rare, mysterious, and perilous. Spell casters are few and far between; most villages don’t have one, and even the largest cities conceal but a few. ## Spell Casting Casting a spell requires the following: - An **action**, including **clear speech** and at least one **free hand** to gesticulate with. At the GM’s discretion, characters might be able to cast stealthily with a **Dex (Sleight of Hand*) vs Perc (Detection)** check. - **Line of sight** and **range** to the target. - A successful **Int (Arcane Lore)** check. - Whether the casting check is successful or not, a ***[[Dark and Dangerous Magic|Dark & Dangerous Magic]]*** (“[[Dark and Dangerous Magic|DDM]]”) check must be made. The kind of die rolled varies according to the caster (see over). - A Magic User (or similar) cannot cast the **same spell** more times than their **Int mod** per day (they must refresh their memory by studying their spellbook overnight). Results will vary according to the casting check: | Spell Casting Check | Result | | ------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Great Success | The spell is extra potent (see spell description). Make a [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|DDM]] check. | | Success | The spell works as intended (see spell description). Make a [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|DDM]] check. | | Failure | The spell fails. Make a [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|DDM]] check. | | Terrible Failure | The spell fails, and a [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|DDM]] effect is automatically triggered. | --- ## Spell Limits Magic is a powerful force, but there are some things mortal sorcery **cannot** achieve. Amongst these are teleportation, time travel, resurrection, and the curing of Madness or Addiction. The referee may impose other limits on sorcery. ## Spell Duration Most spells have **instant** durations, causing an immediate effect. Other spells last a number of **rounds, minutes,** or **hours** as noted in their description. A caster may end a spell early by spending an action to dismiss it. This also applies to users of magical items. Unless a spell description suggests otherwise, if the caster dies or is rendered unconscious, any ongoing spells immediately end. ## Sensing Magic Any character with the **Arcane Lore** skill may spend a few minutes attempting to sense magic in a Close area by making an **Int (Arcane Lore*)** check. If successful the character senses there is magic either present or absent, perhaps as a tingling through their spine, a barely perceivable hum in the air, or some other fleeting quality that vanishes after only a moment. **Illusion magic** cannot be detected in this way, part of its power includes fooling rudimentary detection methods of this kind. ## Illusions Some magical effects create illusions fooling vision, hearing, smell, taste, and sense of temperature. No illusion can mimic the sense of tactile sensation however, and interacting with one will reveal the ruse, for example by passing a hand or object through it. At any time, a character may attempt to disbelieve a suspected illusion, which may require an **Int check** at the GM’s discretion. If successful, the character observes the figment as a transparent overlay covering the real creature, object, or terrain.