Spell Books

Each spellcaster has a spell book that shows what spells they have access. The spell book is written to allow the character to commit spells to memory, for casting at a time of the reader’s choosing. For NERO logistical purposes, the “book” is a small card listing all the spells. Each spellcaster’s individual book will have the spells that the caster does not know crossed off the card. This card must be kept with a real spell book physical representation.

If someone steals a spell book, they may keep the card but must turn the book over to Logistics for return to the player (unless otherwise stated by the player on the same page as the card). The out-of-game book is personal property. Spell books must be a bound book; a sheet of paper is not sufficient.

If you do not have a spell book with you when you study for your new spells at the end of the day, then you will have to borrow someone else’s or ask the respective Guild for the use of theirs. Be prepared to pay game money for the use of the book!

Some Guilds allow their members free use of the Guild’s book for studying, but guild membership and guild policy are handled in-game.

If your spellbook is lost or stolen, then you will probably want to get it replaced. The inks used in the writing of such a tome will cost a certain amount per level per spell that you are having copied into it. This cost also applies to getting a new spell copied into your spellbook from someone else’s book. You cannot get your spell(s) authorized until you have paid the requisite game money. You must have the original you are going to make the copy from, as well as the book you want the spell copied into.

You cannot cast spells from your spell book, nor may you copy scrolls into your spell book. Spell books and scrolls are two independent types of spell recording. A spell book is written to allow someone to memorize a spell for casting at a time of the reader’s choosing. A scroll is written so the reader may immediately cast the spell recorded on it.

Spell Packets

Spell packets are constructed with bird seed and fabric. The bird seed should be the small variety, with no large sunflower seeds or other heavy or sharp items that could hurt. Some players keep their packets in a pouch that has a residue of corn starch in it. A spell packet covered in corn starch will leave a mark on the target.

Do not use replacements! Rice can get wet and turn into a hardened ball, and many people are allergic to talcum powder. Rubber balls or tightly packed rubber bands will be too hard. If you are caught using something other than bird seed and your spell packets are coated in something other than corn starch, you will have your packets and spell tags confiscated and will lose your spells for the rest of the day.

The birdseed is placed in the center of the fabric, and the fabric is gathered around it and taped together or sewn shut. If there is a “tail,” it must not have sharp tape extending past the end of the tail, and no metal or plastic tie wraps may be used. Packets should be loosely packed—tight balls of birdseed can hurt!

The packet may be of any color except orange. (Orange packets are used to represent alchemical gas globes.)

You may want to personalize your spell packets in some way by using a distinctive cloth or writing on the packets. This is a good way to make sure you can get your packets back after a battle without arguing with other spellcasters about whose packets are whose.

You should never use so much material that the resulting packet cannot fit into a 35mm film canister. Packets that are larger than that will be confiscated by a marshal.

Spell packets are visible as an opaque colored aura of energy only when held in the hand. In-game they are visible but they do not produce any light. They are not in-game items and cannot be stolen, disarmed or removed.

Example one: Rand the fighter is walking down the road when he sees Irene the Healer coming towards him. He notices that she has a handful of spell packets. In-game, he sees magic energy floating around her fingertips and knows that she has “called up” the powers within her to be ready to cast at a moment’s notice if needed. “Hey, stop that!” says Rand. Irene frowns but puts the packets back in her pocket. In-game, Rand has seen her turn off the magic energy. She can still reach into her pocket and pull them out, but the extra time it will take her represents the channeling of energy needed to cast the spell.

Example two: The foul and evil liche Nogoodnik has captured our heroes and has placed them in a cell. He sees the party’s mage with magic energy floating around her fingers. “If you don’t call back that energy,” says the liche, “I will kill my captive.” The mage grudgingly pulls the energy back (by putting the packets back in her pocket.) The liche cannot take the packets away from the mage as they are not in-game.

You should not carry in your hand more spell packets than you can actually cast (although you can have plenty extra in your pouches or pockets). If you only have 3 spells, you cannot have a cauliflower hand with 42 spell packets between your fingers. You can carry packets to represent scrolls or magic items that require a thrown packet but those items must be readily available and not stashed away in a backpack.

Casting Spells

To cast a spell, the caster must have a spell packet in hand. The hand and arm with the spell packet in it must be “free” (Hands that are holding something else, are broken, or are tied or bound either physically or with a binding spell are not “free”). The caster must then correctly recite the short phrase associated with the spell in a voice loud enough to be heard by the intended target. Within two seconds after finishing the verbal, the caster must then throw the packet and hit the target or the target’s direct possessions, including cloaks, shields, weapons, pouches, or a carried creature or other object.

The short phrase or “incantation” of the spell is spoken in plain English so the victim will know what spell has been cast. In game, these words are understood by anyone, but have a “magical effect” associated with them that makes them different from normal speech. Even though you can speak the language, you cannot “fake” a spell incantation or otherwise bluff the casting of a spell. You also cannot as a bluff “start” the incantation to a spell you do not have memorized.

Spellcasters lose the power to cast a spell as soon as the incantation has begun. You cannot start the incantation for a spell, change your mind, and then still have that spell. You must wait until the following game-day to restudy and store the mystic power to cast the spell again.

If the caster takes any body damage from the start of the incant until the packet is thrown, then the spell is ruined. An active Bless, Greater Bless, Shield or Greater Shield spell will protect the caster, as will Magic Armor or a suit of armor.

Touch-Casting

Touch-casting is performed by holding a packet and placing it against the target you wish to affect. The obvious advantage to this is that there is no chance of missing and wasting your spell.

In such a case, the spell recipient may choose to “accept” the spell, thus letting it past their Spell Defenses such as Shield Magic or Reflect Magic. The recipient must be conscious to “accept” a spell without triggering the Spell Defenses.

You may never “accept” a thrown spell. The decision to accept a spell through touch-casting is made immediately after the spell is cast. This is to prevent a caster from tricking an unsuspecting victim.

The recipient of a touch-cast spell can always refuse the spell by saying “refused.” This will use up the spell, but have no effect whatsoever on the recipient. Whenever attempting to touch-cast, you must abide by all NERO safe conduct rules.

You may not touch-cast if both of your hands are bound in any way, either physically or through binding effects such as Bind, Confine, Imprison, Paralyze or Web. You are allowed to touch-cast when your feet are bound, or under a Pin effect, since you have at least one hand free enough to perform the casting. This includes touch-casting on yourself.

For example, Truxton is hit with a Bind spell. He has a Release spell in memory but he cannot cast it (or even touch-cast it) so he’s just plain stuck.

Touch casting can only be used for spells and cannot be performed with gasses or special abilities that use packets, unless the special ability includes a complete incant of a spell. For example, most monster abilities, like 10 Elemental Fire, can never be touch-cast.

Schools of Magic

Whenever your character begins learning magic, either celestial or earth, you must select which of the two is your primary school of magic. The other will be the secondary, costing more to buy. There is nothing preventing you from learning both earth and celestial magic but a separate spell pyramid must be built for each school.

Spell Rules

Identical spells may not be stacked. No person may have a second copy of the same spell actively affecting him or her unless the spell description states otherwise. For instance, you may have a total of three of the following spells in any combination: Endow, Delayed Endow, Flame Blade, and Enchanted Blade.

If you are hit with a second effect that isn’t stackable, the call is “got it”. Calling “No effect” in this situation is incorrect. This definition is extended to include all identically named NERO game effects, not just spells. Identical effects are not stackable, unless noted in the effect’s description.

Spell defenses carry over from adventure to adventure. A fighter who still has a Greater Shield spell on him at the end of a NERO adventure weekend will still have that spell at the beginning of the next weekend or module (if he has not lost his tags between events!). This rule applies only to spells that are “indefinite” in duration. There can be no Wards or Wizard Locks active when the game starts.

In-game, Spell Defenses are visible as a flash when they go off. It is obvious to anyone looking at you that you were protected from an attacking spell. You must state what the defense is at the time by saying “Reflect Magic” or “Shield Magic” for example, thus informing all observers that the spell was unsuccessful. Saying “flash” or “no effect” is not allowed. (Spells such as Bless and Shield which merely add hit points do not have to be so announced.)

Bind, Confine, Imprison, Paralyze, Pin, and Web are all visible to any viewer while they are in effect, so long as they take the time to observe them (they must ask the affected player). The spells Wall of Force, Wizard’s Lock, Ward, and Circle of Power are also visible, provided that the physical representation (rope, building or otherwise) can be seen and the viewer takes the time to observe them.

You cannot call a Hold to determine whether any visible effects are present. The amount of time it takes to ask if your character sees the effect is the amount of time it took your character to notice the effect.

The spellcaster is not immune to his or her own spells, nor can they automatically dispel or deactivate their own spells, unless specifically noted in a spell’s description.

Example one: Ki’Riuna the mage casts a Web spell at Grumpy the goblin. She then questions him while he is standing there webbed. She cannot at the end of her questioning say “I hereby cancel the spell.” She must cast a Dispel Magic or Release spell or must leave the area as required by the spell.

Example two: Ki’Riuna has no spell defenses left after a fierce battle with undead. She finally sees the evil necromancer who has been leading the undead and she throws a Web spell at him. However, the necromancer has a Reflect Magic spell active which “bounces back” the Web spell to Ki’Riuna. Even though the Web was her own spell, she is still affected by it, so she becomes webbed. Since a Web spell will remain in effect as long as the caster is within “line of sight,” Ki’Riuna will remain webbed unless someone else gives her a Release spell, or until she becomes unconscious.

Eldritch Power

Many of the spells call upon an energy called eldritch power. This is a type of energy that only affects beings that are alive or animated.

If you cast a Flame Bolt spell at someone and miss and hit a tree, the tree will not catch on fire. Nor can you use an Ice Bolt spell to keep your ice cream cold. These spells can only affect creatures that are alive or animated.

Healers vs. Undead

In the battle against the foul undead, the healer has a very powerful weapon. Undead creatures are the reverse of living beings, and so are affected by healing spells in a reversed manner. Any curing spell cast upon an undead will instead do damage to them equal to double the amount of healing. Any damage-causing necromantic spell will heal the undead for double effect.

Thus a Cure Light Wounds spell will do 4 points of damage against an undead, and a Cause Wounds spell will heal the undead for 8 points.

Reversible Spells

Many earth magic spells are reversible (for example, Cure Disease and Cause Disease). These spells do not have to be learned or “memorized” separately. In fact, there is no way to separate the two spells. If you know the spell Cure Wounds, you automatically also know Cause Wounds. You cannot “forget” how to cast necromantic spells or otherwise claim to only know one side of a reversible spell.

You can decide at the moment of casting which spell effect you will use (with the proper incantation, of course).

The reverse of many healing spells are necromantic, identifiable by the word “chaos” in their incant. Beware however, that in-game laws might exist against necromancy; if you are discovered casting necromantic spells such as Create Undead, you’d better be ready to face the in-game consequences.

Necromancy

Is necromancy evil? Not every person on Tyrra thinks so—in fact, it is perfectly legal in some places. However, necromancy is illegal in most parts of the world because many people believe it draws upon the decaying and dying aspects of the earth and thus prevents the earth from acting “naturally.”

The most accepted in-game explanation is this: Imagine the planet going through its seasons normally from year to year. Healing spells “go with the flow” of this cycle and do not disrupt the orderly process of living and dying that are part of this orderly system. Necromancy “goes against the flow” of this cycle by tapping into the chaotic forces that are not part of this system. Creating undead, for example, requires that a spirit behave in ways that are contrary to the orderly flow of the cycle.

This in-game “theory” has been used in the past to explain large numbers of undead randomly appearing (“The chaos in this area is so strong that the cycle is being completely disrupted!”) as well as aberrant weather (“This cold wave this time of year can only be explained by too much necromancy being cast in the area!”)

Of course, there are many scholars who believe that this theory is a load of goblin dung and that bad weather and undead rising are all part of the normal cycle. It is up to you to decide as your character how you feel about the issue.

Assume for game purposes that there are many learned treatises on both sides and that people have been arguing the point for many hundreds of years.