Family Magic

**WHAT IS HERITAGE MAGIC**

When a family has been in the magic scene for a long time, they accrue proficiencies in certain types of magic or even develop their own signature “style” of magic. This knowledge is passed down from generation to generation and is improved upon each time, eventually leading to its version today. This ability can be almost anything, from pyromancy to necromancy (within reason, obviously).

Unlike normal practitioners, heritage magicians do not need to barter with spirits, which is fortunate for spirits do not like to barter with them either. They have a well of internal power and a library of magic at their command. Or at least some form of keeping notes, because as much as heritage magic is in their blood, it must still be learnt.

No abilities will manifest on their own, they require intense study and practice. With time they will also be lost again. Even the sharpest mind can not hold a spell forever, so details will begin to slip and at some point, they will have to be read up again.

**WHAT CAN IT ACCOMPLISH**

A heritage magician relies solely on their families magic most of the time, which provides them with a great variety of abilities. Not infinite variety, though. They must be linked by a common purpose and approach.

**The Purpose** is the goal of your family's magic. It is what all your spells lead toward and enable. Possible purposes might be

* Explosions
* Making oneself look more favourable in the eyes of others
* Teleportation
* Creating barriers
* Manipulation of metal

and many more.

**The Approach** is how you go about reaching those goals. There are four general ways of doing so. Executions include but are not limited to:

* **Spellslingers** have a handful of spells and are quick to use them. They can cast whichever spell suits their needs at a moments notice, making them the most versatile of approaches. In exchange, though, their spells are the most fleeting of them all. Every Spellslinger has one action that must be performed to call on their magic. Some must speak a word of power, some perform gestures, some sing. Whatever the case, without the ability to perform that action, they can not cast. This will replace any costs.
* ( -1 to force on all spells)

* **Alchemists** brew potions, prepare contraptions or enchant objects in their workshops. Instead of Spells, they have recipes they can create in their free time and then bring the results of those no their next adventure.  The more prep time an Alchemist has, the more dangerous they are. However, they are limited by their access to materials. Everything they make requires certain ingredients, as nothing in magic is free. Examples could be a hellborns horn, a rare, dryad-grown plant or a fire Jinns breath.

* (Special ingredients can give you a +1 on one of your creation’s stats. Can stack up to +3. There had to be a risk or a cost in acquiring them. All their creations are single-use consumables.)

* **Ritualists** are slow in the use of their magic, but they can accomplish the most with it out of all the other executions. They mostly focus on long-lasting area effects or enchanted objects. A Ritualist's spells require a serious investment of time and resources to be completed, but once they are, their effects can span neighbourhoods and last for years. Even their simplest tricks are more powerful but necessitate the drawing of complex diagrams, as well as certain phrases and ingredients.
* (Spells have increased cost; +1 to reach or longevity of all spells)

* **Morphologists** are members of families that have worked for centuries to change and expand the human form. They do not use magic to change their surroundings, but rather themselves, changing their body and their senses. Approaches vary wildly in this field, with some families able to turn their changes on and off, some having changes that are nigh impossible to spot and others again transforming themselves into something new and barely human. Morphologists are often one-trick ponies, but that trick can be incredibly powerful and will always be accessible.
* ( Can have no more than three spells, accessible from the beginning. Choosing less spells gives you an equivalent amount of extra points to spend during spell creation. They can not invent new spells later, but can upgrade those they have)

Heritage magicians mostly start out with a single spell, but they can expand over time, either learning old ones from their families scripts and scrolls or exploring their natural talent in new ways. Whatever the case, both will require intense study, experimentation and, most importantly, practice I.e the use of your abilities during RP. You will have to cite at least two RPs as inspiration for a new spell. You can’t use the same RP twice and you must be able to explain how those events have helped you in developing a new spell.

    **THE CREATION OF SPELLS**

A Spells power can be measured in three categories.

**Force** determines how strong the effect is, how completely it can reach its Purpose.

***Level 1***: Effects are negligible under most circumstances.

* Your illusion is nothing but a  translucent husk
* You can see through walls, but only vague outlines and shadows
* Your summoned vines are thin and frail, with just enough power to tug at someone’s arm.

***Level 2***: Effects can hurt or distract people, sensations are comparable to normal human senses. The spell can accomplish the rough equivalent of what a trained human could do.

* Your illusion is realistic in both appearance and how hard it can hit you
* You can see through walls as if they weren’t even there
* Your summoned vines whip at trespassers and cause small but painful cuts.

***Level 3***: Effects can cause serious injury and perhaps even death. You can take in more information than normally possible. They can accomplish what up to three trained humans could do.

* Your illusions seem realer than real. It would be impossible to ignore them, unless that is what you want.
* You can see through everything within the range of your spell, immediately locating whatever you search for.
* Your vines can break bones with a few strong strikes.

***Level 4***: Effects are complete and irresistable. They can accomplish what up to ten trained humans could. **(Only accessible through approach boni)**

* Your illusion is all-encompassing, as long as it lasts, it is truth.
* You can not just see everything within the range of your spell, you know it, deeply and intimately, every smallest detail present in your mind.
* With one quick whip, the vines have separated the opposing practitioner’s arm.

**Durability** determines how long your spell lasts, how difficult it is to dispel, or how often you can use it before it needs to recharge. Less of one grants more of the other.

***Level 1***: Your spell can be easily destroyed by force or simply questioning it. It last from a few seconds up to a day. Items have only on charge.

* You have frozen the speeding car in time, but in a few seconds, the effect will stop.
* Your Talisman can ward off one attack, before its magic needs to be replenished.
* You have bewitched your opponent to believe everything you say, but as soon as he starts to question your claims, it will fall apart.

***Level 2***: It takes a strong punch or a concerted mental effort to dispel your spell. It lasts from a day up to a week. Items have up to three charges.

* You have frozen the speeding car in time, but it will only last a few minutes
* Your Talisman can ward off three attacks, before its magic needs to be replenished.
* You have bewitched your opponent to believe everything you say. Unless anyone interferes, it will hold.

***Level 3***: Nothing short of a gunshot, a strike with a sledgehammer or a dedicated counter ritual will disrupt your spell. It lasts from a week up to a Month. Items have up to five charges.

* You have frozen the speeding car in time, it will stay there for days.
* Your Talisman can ward off five attacks, before its magic needs to be replenished.
* You have bewitched your opponent to believe everything you say. Unless you slip up and contradict yourself, It will hold.

***Level 4***: Your spell will withstand all but the combined efforts of multiple magicians. Effects can last years. Items have up to ten charges. **(Only accessible through approach boni)**

* The occupants of the car are now trapped in a timeless prison, until someone bothers to free them.
* You walk over the battlefield, spells and gunfire pearl off of you like rain, as the power of your talisman protects you.
* Your spell worked. The poor man seems to hold everything you say as gospel and even vehemently argues if someone contradicts you.

**Reach** determines how distant a target it can affect, both in space and time..

**Level 1:** Inconvenient. The spell functions in a very limited radius, the user must be uncomfortably close to the target or projectiles fizzle out after a few meters

* Your hand begins to sizzle, as it heats up to rival an oven. Whoever you touch with this will have serious burns.
* A magic mirror that can show you who in the last three days has stood where you are standing.

***Level 2***: Average. The Spell gets the job done, no more and no less. The radius is serviceable, targets can be at an acceptable range or different rituals can link up over a useful distance.

* Sparks fly off of your hand setting fire to whatever they hit. They will fizzle out after but a few meters.
* A magic mirror that can show you anyone that has come through this room in the last few days.

***Level 3***: Strong. The Spell has a superior range, giving the user a clear advantage. The radius is great and hinders your enemies, targets can be effected without line of sight and observations spells can survey large areas of ground.

* A ball of fire shoots out of your palm to reduce your enemies to scinder.
* A magic mirror that lets you locate anyone within a 20m radius around you.

***Level 4***: Overwhelming. The Spell controls its surroundings to such a degree that the source becomes nigh untouchable without the combined effort of multiple magicians. Areas of effect can encompass entire neighbourhoods, targets can be affected from kilometres away and connections can be established over huge distances.

* The whole block is on fire. What have you done?
* Your mirror flashes a short burst of colour. It has detected that one of your enemies just left their house.

When creating a spell, Magicians can draw from 4 points, plus or minus any modifiers from Approaches or Tools, to select their spells power. Each level costs one point, so a normal starter spell would have one level 2 category and two level 1s. Note that you can weaken all your spells on the fly. If you have a fireball that would explode its surrounding area, but only want to use it to start your fireplace, you can weaken it without needing to re-submit it.

**Examples:**

**Name:** Fireball

**Force/Durability/Reach:** 2/1/1 ( -1 Force for Spellslinger, +1 for Implement,)

**Effect:** A ball of fire, one meter in diameter, shoots out from the practitioners palm. After a distance of 5 meters, it dissolves.

**Cost:** A simple hand gesture (Spellslinger bonus)

**Weakness:** Can be easily countered by any barrier or simply dodging aside

**Inspiration:** Bartering with the Fire Jinn at the Spirit well,

**Name:** Voodoo doll

**Force/Durability/Reach:** 1/2/3 ( +1 reach for Ritualist, +1 for Demesne)

**Effect:** The target of the doll will feel whatever the Practitioner does to the doll as soon as he does it. Sensations will be muted, though, and it can not cause real harm.

**Cost:** Hair of the target, three days worth of work, a drop of blood.

**Weakness:**  Sensations will be muted, about half as painful as the real thing, and it can not cause real harm. Any kind of protection magic can easily ward the effects off. The Doll retains its magic for a Week, after which it becomes entirely mundane. The target must be within a 50m radius around the magician.

**Inspiration:** Getting beat up by (other character) in the oleander casino. Testing my spell 'Quick Sympathy' in the fight at the wisteria cemetary.

**Name:** Aura detection

**Force/Durability/Reach:** 2/1/3 ( +2 from Morphologist since I give up my other two spells)

**Effect:** The User can always perceive the rough emotional state of  everyone they can see as a coloured aura. Subtle variations of the shape indicate what causes their current mood. They have two colourful, translucent butterfly wings sprouting from their back

**Cost:** Nothing (Morphologist bonus)

**Weakness:**  The user can become overwhelmed when surrounded by too many people. This can quickly lead to severe headaches.

**Inspiration:** None (starting magic)

**Name:** Aura detection V2

**Force/Durability/Reach:** 3/1/3 ( +2 from Morphologist since I give up my other two spells, +1 from Implement)

**Effect:** The User can always perceive the rough emotional state of  everyone they can see as a coloured aura. connections to their surroundings indicate how they influence their moode. With a little application of willpower, the user can pluck at the connections and cause them to feel more or less strongly about certain things.

They have two colourful, translucent butterfly wings sprouting from their back

**Cost:** Nothing (Morphologist bonus)

**Weakness:**  The user can become overwhelmed when surrounded by too many people. This can quickly lead to severe headaches. He can not make people care about things they didn’t care about in the first place or make them not care about things they normally care about.

**Inspiration:** Rp in grimes-bar and wisteria city bank.

**THE THREE TOOLS OF THE TRADE**

Implement, Familiar and Demesne work differently for Heritage Magicians than for others, since their magic itself works fundamentally differently. In general, each provides **1 extra point** to spend during Spell creation.

**Implements** still help the magician channel and facilitate their magic. Spellcasters can use it instead of their usual trigger to cast their magic. A Ritualist or Alchemist could use it as a tool during their work. Morphologists have little use for the simple power it grants.

**Demesnes** Are a place for you to rest and research. A space that completely belongs to you in every sense of the word, to the point that you can even bend the rules of gravity or space within it.

**Familiars** are difficult to obtain for a Heritage magician, as Spirits dislike dealing with them. Once obtained, though, they will act as a constant companion and (un)willing servant, offering all the benefits they normally would.

**A PATH SET SINCE BIRTH**

Beware that playing a Heritage Magician will be a fundamentally different experience from the standard Practitioner. As already mentioned, everything in magic has a cost. The cost of freeing yourself from the necessity of negotiating with Spirits is that, should you ever feel the need to do so anyways, Spirits will be unwilling to negotiate with you. Acquiring a familiar through anything but force will be nigh impossible, and some if not most Spirit forced into servitude will do everything short of breaking its word to free itself.

Furthermore, be warned that the **Purpose** and **Execution** you choose will irreversibly define your characters Practice. You will be unable to pursue any other kind of magic, sacrificing versatility in exchange for easier access. Your choice of Implement and Demesne will also be greatly influenced by it.