Sabriel (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bindsthedead) wrote2020-10-07 06:56 pm
bindsthedead) wrote2020-10-07 06:56 pm
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Charter magic info for Upcycle
So, one aspect of magic in Sabriel's world is that outside of certain bloodlines, magic isn't an inborn thing- and in the case of Charter magic, it's passed on through baptism. And Sabriel is willing to baptize people- more mages around, in her eyes, means a better chance of getting off the island.
In OOC terms, Characters will be limited to spells on the spell list (or risking a backfire on the RNG) until they get ten successes on the RNG roll for learning magic. They can roll twice a month, and roll with advantage if they have a teacher helping them.
So what's it like to use it? Using Charter magic means reaching into the Charter and drawing out symbols- simple spells may involve a single mark or a handful, and be quickly cast, but some powerful spells can include hundreds or thousands of marks. This explains it better than I can.
Touching a baptismal Charter mark lets the mage touching it determine if it's genuine/uncorrupted (if it is, they can feel the Charter through it), and get a sense of how powerful a mage the person they're touching is. How it feels is described a few times in the series, so here are some quotes to give you an idea of what it's like.
In Sabriel
Sabriel felt the familiar swirl of energy, and the feeling of falling into some endless galaxy of stars. But the stars here were Charter symbols, linked in some great dance that had no beginning or end, but contained and described the world in its movement. Sabriel knew only a small fraction of the symbols, but she knew what they danced, and she felt the purity of the Charter wash over her.
In Clariel, to give you an idea of how a less experienced mage describes it.
It was like falling into deep water. All of a sudden, the world ceased to exist. She was surrounded entirely by Charter marks, brilliant, shining, blinding marks that swirled and swam all around her, through her and inside her, marks that she did not know and felt she could never know, thousands, tens of thousands, millions of Charter marks-
In Goldenhand through the eyes of someone who's just received the mark.
"It is like swimming in the high lake," she said, grinning, her teeth white in the darkness. "The shock at first, the sudden cold, then it comes all around and you know what it is to be alive and you go under and it is so smooth and clear and it seems to be forever and it is not cold, but warm..."
And a different character, later in the same book, that shows what it's like to reach into the Charter deliberately, rather than just touching a mark.
A single Charter Mark blossomed in Lirael's mind. One small mark, an everyday mark, nothing in itself, one used for joining other marks together. But Lirael welcomed it joyfully, and then another followed, and another, and there was a trickle of marks, all ones she knew, and more and more came, until the full flood returned and she felt the ocean of marks, the multitude, more than could possibly be known crash down upon her and flow through every part of her being.
Spell List
The basics (no successes needed)
Light: In canon, this is considered the most basic spell. A single mark that provides illumination, and can be made to float around the caster, lighting their way. Elaborations on this spell (maybe not available right away) include attaching it to something solid and using it as a long lasting source of light, or setting a light spell to be triggered when touched or something passes nearby. The brightness can also be varied, either dimmed down to make the spell less noticeable, or bright enough to blind.
Lighting a fire: uses two marks. A yellow flame forms on the tip of a character's finger, not burning the skin, but easily setting any flammable materials it touches alight.
Drawing water out of the air: The caster traces the marks for the spell in the air and cups their hands below it as the marks turn into water/water condenses around the marks and drops down into their hands, or other container. Most effective in humid environments.
The Final Rites: Not a spell that's likely to see much use here, but Sabriel's likely to insist her students learn this on principle. It's a spell that has one purpose- cremating a corpse. It requires four marks- fire, cleansing, peace, and sleep, and will burn a body to ash within seconds. It probably says something about the current state of the Old Kingdom that this spell is considered something every mage should know.
Recording spell: Consists of three marks placed on a solid object. After tracing the marks, the caster places their hand on them, and sound is recorded for as long as they're touching the marks. After that, the recording cannot be altered in any way, and will be played back whenever a mage touches the marks. This spell will linger for as long as the marks are left intact. It can also be cast on a piece of paper!
Time telling spell: Lets the caster know how long it is until sunrise or sunset, whichever is arriving sooner.
Direction finding spell: allows a character to know which way is north and orient themselves from there.
Opening/unlocking Open a locked door, container, or latched window. Not effective against anything magically sealed/locked, or doors that are physically blocked from opening, either because of a deadbolt or the hinges are rusted shut.
Requires one success
Healing: There are a variety of healing spells in canon, and the most basic seems to be the most common- a spell that heals injuries on the level where you probably wouldn't see a doctor about them, just put antiseptic/a bandage/a cold pack on them. Cut yourself while chopping vegetables? Stub your toe? Get a nasty black eye or get a first degree burn? This will heal the damage and ease the pain. Against anything more serious? It might make things feel a little better, but the injuries will still require medical attention. Any injury that can be described as 'cursed' will be resistant to healing, although more powerful spells can purge malevolent magic and heal the damage inflicted, it's just more specialized than 'regular healing'.
Requires three successes
Blindness What it says on the tin. Temporarily blind someone for up to fifteen minutes. Easily blocked by other magics
Mark of Warding/counterspell Someone casting a spell at you? This will block it, if cast it in time. Not effective against a spell stronger than it, or against anything cast on an area, rather than specific targets. Will not dispel magic that's already been cast.
Mark of immobility Immobilizes the target for around five minutes. Will last for a shorter period if the target has greater than human strength. Will break if you try to move the target, or if they're struck with a significant amount of force. (Poking is fine, punching is not).
Spell of the silver blades: Pretty self explanatory! Conjures three silver blades that fly forward with considerable force (enough to put fist-sized holes through an animated corpse and reduce a piece of lumber to wood chips) and vanish once they hit their target. The incantation (often shouted) is "Anet! Calew! Ferhan!" Very effective against the undead, less so against some other supernatural entities. Described as an old, basic combat spell in canon.
Mark of Attachment The caster can magically stick one thing to another thing- like a coin to a desk... or their attacker's feet to the ground. Can be pretty easily counter spelled, and sufficient pulling will be able to detach the objects, especially if done with superhuman force.
Diamond of protection: Gets used a lot in canon- it's good if you're staying in one place for a while and want to be shielded. Four marks are drawn- one at each of the cardinal directions. Once the four marks are completed, lines of light run between them, surrounding the area inside in protective magic- it's possible to protect a small campsite with a single diamond, and a casting by an experienced mage was able to last for weeks. It's impossible to enter from outside- or to physically or magically harm those within, and leaving the diamond from inside breaks the spell. Given characters using it will still be learning, I'll say that it only lasts for up to twelve hours and can protect no more than an eight foot by eight foot square, until characters get ten successes. It also takes several minutes to cast. This is a spell cast to stay out of trouble, rather than get out of trouble.
Warmth: Keep yourself warm or one other person warm, even when it's freezing cold. Can protect against frostbite, but the spell requires concentration to sustain, and is draining to use for prolonged periods of time.
More advanced magic (available after rolling five successes)
Stronger healing This will heal injuries of a level that would require medical attention, but aren't immediately life-threatening. Broken bones, second degree burns, cuts deep enough to require stitches- that sort of thing. Most of the injury will be healed immediately, and wounds will close right away, but the character being healed should plan on a day or two of light activity to let the healing finish, or they might disrupt the spell and find their wounds reopening. Using it on more serious wounds will buy time, and might help stabilize them enough to be moved, but the character will still need medical attention. As noted previously, any wounds that can be described as 'cursed' are resistant to healing magic. At this level, the caster can also learn about how to purge poison from the body.
Fire or Lightning Elemental magic! the caster can shoot a bolt of lightning or blast of fire from their hand/weapon.
Basic wards Spells placed on a building or area to ward off the Dead and similar restless spirits, along with other supernatural nastiness. Not effective against mundane or physical threats. Something sufficiently powerful could break through though, and the wards can fade with time, or can be worn down by repeated attempts to breach them.
Protective spell A spell the caster can place on themself or another, that will protect them from malign magic once. (Although to put in in RPG terms, it will protect characters from a debuff or status effect type spell. It won't do anything to save them from someone chucking a fireball at them, and if the danger is a continuous magical effect, it won't protect them for very long.) Will fade after one hour.
Item enchanting The caster can enchant a weapon to actually harm spirits and other entities normally immune to mundane physical weapons. It won't deal enhanced damage, but it's better than nothing. Will not work on guns or bullets- the caster can try, but any gun with the spell cast on it or an enchanted bullet placed in it will stop working until the spell is removed or the bullet taken out. The caster can also imbue the protective spell above into one small object made of silver, which anyone can wear on their person. The spell won't fade, but it will have only one 'charge' and once that's used up, the spell will need to be recast.
Other notes: Charter magic can be used to enchant objects! The most common kind of magical items seen in canon are various weapons enchanted to harm the Dead as well as anything immune to mundane force, ranging from bodiless Dead to weirder supernatural creatures. Lesser versions of this seem to be standard equipment for anyone whose job involves dealing with the supernatural, while the most powerful versions take a skilled mage and many months to make.
Another detail about Charter magic is that it can be cast cooperatively. A group of mages can touch each other and pool their strength, allowing them to cast a single spell with more power and a greater chance of success than if they tried individually.
Finally, while Charter mages are sensitive to magic, and can sense spells and their residue, as well as inherently magical beings... aside from touching Charter marks, they can't sense other magic-users unless they're actively using magic. And a new mage's sense of magic will initially be very weak, and grow stronger as they learn. (Or in OOC terms, get successes on the RNG page for learning magic).
If you have any further questions, ask them here, or at![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
sarahthesilent
In OOC terms, Characters will be limited to spells on the spell list (or risking a backfire on the RNG) until they get ten successes on the RNG roll for learning magic. They can roll twice a month, and roll with advantage if they have a teacher helping them.
So what's it like to use it? Using Charter magic means reaching into the Charter and drawing out symbols- simple spells may involve a single mark or a handful, and be quickly cast, but some powerful spells can include hundreds or thousands of marks. This explains it better than I can.
Touching a baptismal Charter mark lets the mage touching it determine if it's genuine/uncorrupted (if it is, they can feel the Charter through it), and get a sense of how powerful a mage the person they're touching is. How it feels is described a few times in the series, so here are some quotes to give you an idea of what it's like.
In Sabriel
Sabriel felt the familiar swirl of energy, and the feeling of falling into some endless galaxy of stars. But the stars here were Charter symbols, linked in some great dance that had no beginning or end, but contained and described the world in its movement. Sabriel knew only a small fraction of the symbols, but she knew what they danced, and she felt the purity of the Charter wash over her.
In Clariel, to give you an idea of how a less experienced mage describes it.
It was like falling into deep water. All of a sudden, the world ceased to exist. She was surrounded entirely by Charter marks, brilliant, shining, blinding marks that swirled and swam all around her, through her and inside her, marks that she did not know and felt she could never know, thousands, tens of thousands, millions of Charter marks-
In Goldenhand through the eyes of someone who's just received the mark.
"It is like swimming in the high lake," she said, grinning, her teeth white in the darkness. "The shock at first, the sudden cold, then it comes all around and you know what it is to be alive and you go under and it is so smooth and clear and it seems to be forever and it is not cold, but warm..."
And a different character, later in the same book, that shows what it's like to reach into the Charter deliberately, rather than just touching a mark.
A single Charter Mark blossomed in Lirael's mind. One small mark, an everyday mark, nothing in itself, one used for joining other marks together. But Lirael welcomed it joyfully, and then another followed, and another, and there was a trickle of marks, all ones she knew, and more and more came, until the full flood returned and she felt the ocean of marks, the multitude, more than could possibly be known crash down upon her and flow through every part of her being.
Spell List
The basics (no successes needed)
Light: In canon, this is considered the most basic spell. A single mark that provides illumination, and can be made to float around the caster, lighting their way. Elaborations on this spell (maybe not available right away) include attaching it to something solid and using it as a long lasting source of light, or setting a light spell to be triggered when touched or something passes nearby. The brightness can also be varied, either dimmed down to make the spell less noticeable, or bright enough to blind.
Lighting a fire: uses two marks. A yellow flame forms on the tip of a character's finger, not burning the skin, but easily setting any flammable materials it touches alight.
Drawing water out of the air: The caster traces the marks for the spell in the air and cups their hands below it as the marks turn into water/water condenses around the marks and drops down into their hands, or other container. Most effective in humid environments.
The Final Rites: Not a spell that's likely to see much use here, but Sabriel's likely to insist her students learn this on principle. It's a spell that has one purpose- cremating a corpse. It requires four marks- fire, cleansing, peace, and sleep, and will burn a body to ash within seconds. It probably says something about the current state of the Old Kingdom that this spell is considered something every mage should know.
Recording spell: Consists of three marks placed on a solid object. After tracing the marks, the caster places their hand on them, and sound is recorded for as long as they're touching the marks. After that, the recording cannot be altered in any way, and will be played back whenever a mage touches the marks. This spell will linger for as long as the marks are left intact. It can also be cast on a piece of paper!
Time telling spell: Lets the caster know how long it is until sunrise or sunset, whichever is arriving sooner.
Direction finding spell: allows a character to know which way is north and orient themselves from there.
Opening/unlocking Open a locked door, container, or latched window. Not effective against anything magically sealed/locked, or doors that are physically blocked from opening, either because of a deadbolt or the hinges are rusted shut.
Requires one success
Healing: There are a variety of healing spells in canon, and the most basic seems to be the most common- a spell that heals injuries on the level where you probably wouldn't see a doctor about them, just put antiseptic/a bandage/a cold pack on them. Cut yourself while chopping vegetables? Stub your toe? Get a nasty black eye or get a first degree burn? This will heal the damage and ease the pain. Against anything more serious? It might make things feel a little better, but the injuries will still require medical attention. Any injury that can be described as 'cursed' will be resistant to healing, although more powerful spells can purge malevolent magic and heal the damage inflicted, it's just more specialized than 'regular healing'.
Requires three successes
Blindness What it says on the tin. Temporarily blind someone for up to fifteen minutes. Easily blocked by other magics
Mark of Warding/counterspell Someone casting a spell at you? This will block it, if cast it in time. Not effective against a spell stronger than it, or against anything cast on an area, rather than specific targets. Will not dispel magic that's already been cast.
Mark of immobility Immobilizes the target for around five minutes. Will last for a shorter period if the target has greater than human strength. Will break if you try to move the target, or if they're struck with a significant amount of force. (Poking is fine, punching is not).
Spell of the silver blades: Pretty self explanatory! Conjures three silver blades that fly forward with considerable force (enough to put fist-sized holes through an animated corpse and reduce a piece of lumber to wood chips) and vanish once they hit their target. The incantation (often shouted) is "Anet! Calew! Ferhan!" Very effective against the undead, less so against some other supernatural entities. Described as an old, basic combat spell in canon.
Mark of Attachment The caster can magically stick one thing to another thing- like a coin to a desk... or their attacker's feet to the ground. Can be pretty easily counter spelled, and sufficient pulling will be able to detach the objects, especially if done with superhuman force.
Diamond of protection: Gets used a lot in canon- it's good if you're staying in one place for a while and want to be shielded. Four marks are drawn- one at each of the cardinal directions. Once the four marks are completed, lines of light run between them, surrounding the area inside in protective magic- it's possible to protect a small campsite with a single diamond, and a casting by an experienced mage was able to last for weeks. It's impossible to enter from outside- or to physically or magically harm those within, and leaving the diamond from inside breaks the spell. Given characters using it will still be learning, I'll say that it only lasts for up to twelve hours and can protect no more than an eight foot by eight foot square, until characters get ten successes. It also takes several minutes to cast. This is a spell cast to stay out of trouble, rather than get out of trouble.
Warmth: Keep yourself warm or one other person warm, even when it's freezing cold. Can protect against frostbite, but the spell requires concentration to sustain, and is draining to use for prolonged periods of time.
More advanced magic (available after rolling five successes)
Stronger healing This will heal injuries of a level that would require medical attention, but aren't immediately life-threatening. Broken bones, second degree burns, cuts deep enough to require stitches- that sort of thing. Most of the injury will be healed immediately, and wounds will close right away, but the character being healed should plan on a day or two of light activity to let the healing finish, or they might disrupt the spell and find their wounds reopening. Using it on more serious wounds will buy time, and might help stabilize them enough to be moved, but the character will still need medical attention. As noted previously, any wounds that can be described as 'cursed' are resistant to healing magic. At this level, the caster can also learn about how to purge poison from the body.
Fire or Lightning Elemental magic! the caster can shoot a bolt of lightning or blast of fire from their hand/weapon.
Basic wards Spells placed on a building or area to ward off the Dead and similar restless spirits, along with other supernatural nastiness. Not effective against mundane or physical threats. Something sufficiently powerful could break through though, and the wards can fade with time, or can be worn down by repeated attempts to breach them.
Protective spell A spell the caster can place on themself or another, that will protect them from malign magic once. (Although to put in in RPG terms, it will protect characters from a debuff or status effect type spell. It won't do anything to save them from someone chucking a fireball at them, and if the danger is a continuous magical effect, it won't protect them for very long.) Will fade after one hour.
Item enchanting The caster can enchant a weapon to actually harm spirits and other entities normally immune to mundane physical weapons. It won't deal enhanced damage, but it's better than nothing. Will not work on guns or bullets- the caster can try, but any gun with the spell cast on it or an enchanted bullet placed in it will stop working until the spell is removed or the bullet taken out. The caster can also imbue the protective spell above into one small object made of silver, which anyone can wear on their person. The spell won't fade, but it will have only one 'charge' and once that's used up, the spell will need to be recast.
Other notes: Charter magic can be used to enchant objects! The most common kind of magical items seen in canon are various weapons enchanted to harm the Dead as well as anything immune to mundane force, ranging from bodiless Dead to weirder supernatural creatures. Lesser versions of this seem to be standard equipment for anyone whose job involves dealing with the supernatural, while the most powerful versions take a skilled mage and many months to make.
Another detail about Charter magic is that it can be cast cooperatively. A group of mages can touch each other and pool their strength, allowing them to cast a single spell with more power and a greater chance of success than if they tried individually.
Finally, while Charter mages are sensitive to magic, and can sense spells and their residue, as well as inherently magical beings... aside from touching Charter marks, they can't sense other magic-users unless they're actively using magic. And a new mage's sense of magic will initially be very weak, and grow stronger as they learn. (Or in OOC terms, get successes on the RNG page for learning magic).
If you have any further questions, ask them here, or at