Quick rules reference

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Nov 4, 2023 7:49 pm

You have 6 stats

[ +- ] stats

Brains: This stat determines how book-smart a character is. This will determine how well they understand problems, how well they did or are doing in school, and how quickly they’re able to solve academic problems.
Example: I know there’s a hidden door somewhere in this room. I’m going to apply what I learned in our Magical Architecture class to try to find it!

OOC:

For magic: Your Brains stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to reveal something hidden, understand something mysterious, or see into a different place in space or time. Common spells include things like finding hidden passages, astral projection, or decoding magical messages. Classes that teach this include History of Magic, Divination, and Astronomy.

Brawn: This stat determines how much brute strength a character has. It does not
determine how well they can fight—just how well they can lift things and how much physical damage they can take. It also determines how physically intimidating a character is.
Example: I want to move that giant pillar that fell in our way, so I’m going to try to push it out of the way!

OOC:

For magic: Your Brawn stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to move an object or keep something protected. Common spells include things like levitation, magically locking doors, or binding opponents. Classes that teach this include History of Magic, Charms, and Brooms.

Fight: This stat determines how good a combatant a character is with whatever weapons or fighting skills you decide your character knows. Also, they’ll be able to learn how to use new weapons and fighting skills more easily, if given proper training.
Example: I want to clock this bully, so I’m going to swing at his jaw!

OOC:

For magic: Your Fight stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to attack enemies, break curses, or blast through obstacles. Common spells include things like disarming an opponent, causing a target harm, or making something explode.
Remember, accidents happen at magic school. If you’re going to learn to defend yourself, you’ll need to apply that knowledge practically, trying to ward off some dangerous spells. You might get hurt, and one student might accidentally hurt another, even under the guidance of a careful, responsible teacher. But anyone who runs around intentionally harming others will find themselves in serious trouble—at least with the school and likely with The Council for the Ethical Use of Magic. Classes that teach this include Defense Against Malicious Magic, History of Magic, and Potions.

Flight: This stat determines how fast a character is—as well as how skilled they are at evading their problems (both literally and figuratively). Characters with a high Flight stat will be fast and tough to trap both physically and verbally.
Example: I want to get out of the way of the troll’s club, so I’m going to dive out of the way!

OOC:

For magic: Your Flight stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to hide yourself, avoid being hurt, or use your broom to navigate. Common spells include things like deflecting dangerous magic, moving in magical ways, or blending into your surroundings. Classes that teach this may include Defense Against Malicious Magic, Transfiguration, History of Magic, and Brooms.

Charm: This stat determines how socially adept a character is and how good they are at reading the emotions of another person or group of people. Characters with a high Charm stat will be able to talk themselves out of tough situations and into good ones with relative ease—within reason.
Example: I want to explain that I was out late exploring the Cursed Forest, so I need an extension on my Potions lab report!

OOC:

Magic: Your Charm stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to influence someone’s thinking, create an illusion, or modify your appearance in some way. Common spells include disguising yourself, being allowed into somewhere you normally aren’t, or projecting images from your mind into reality.
Remember, magically influencing an unwilling person’s emotions, except in the direst of circumstances, is likely to have two very bad consequences. First, when they realize they’ve been magically influenced, they’re likely to be very upset with you. Second, this use of Charm magic is against the rules for most schools.
Classes that teach this include History of Magic, Charms, and Transfiguration.

Grit: This stat determines how hard it is to break a character emotionally or physically. Characters with a high Grit stat will be able to keep a level head in the worst of situations and will be able to keep their cool even when pushed hard. Finally, this stat also determines how street-smart a character is.
Example: The curmudgeonly Wards teacher is reading my homework out loud to the class to make fun of me. I want to look like this isn’t bothering me at all when it really is!

OOC:

Your Grit stat is generally used to cast magic when you want to keep someone safe either mentally or physically. Common spells include blocking your mind from being peered into, dispelling magic that’s already been cast, or healing someone who has been hurt.
Classes that teach this include History of Magic, Potions, and Defense Against Malicious Magic

Each stat is assigned a die d4,d6,d8,d10,d12 and d20 from your most terrible stat to your best.
Rolling high is good!

Here is the difficulty number and their explanations

Difficulty	Explanation
20 or greater	A task at which only the most incredible could even possibly succeed—but if they succeed, it will be one of the most impressive things a person has ever done. This is a nearly guaranteed failure.
17 to 19	A task where success would be incredible and impressive. This, too, is a nearly guaranteed failure.
13 to 16	A task where success is extraordinary—but decidedly possible for those who are truly skilled at it.
10 to 12	A task where success is impressive—but expected for those skilled at it.
7 to 9	A task where success is certain for those very skilled at it— but not for those who aren’t.
3 to 6	A task where success is likely for all but those who aren’t skilled or have a low stat in that field.
1 to 2	A task where success is nearly guaranteed except in extreme cases.

Your roll is open-ended, which means if you roll a maximum on your die, and haven't reached the Target number, then you are having a lucky break, and can roll the die again and add them together

OOC:

Target is 8. You roll a d6. You get a "6" can roll again, roll another 6 and then your final roll is 6+6=12 and have bested the target number.

The higher you best the target number the better

OOC:

In our example from before, the target was 8 and your total was a 12, which is a +4

Quote:

The character succeeds but not impressively. Any benefits they gain above and beyond the success should be quite limited, if present at all.

Now your trope and age will give you a modifier to your stat roll, and your wand will give modifiers to your magic roll. Those are added together on your character sheet

runekyndig

Nov 4, 2023 7:57 pm

Quick rules reference

Casting spells

When you want to cast a spell, take the following steps to do a "Spell Check", which will be elaborated on below:
1. You describe to the GM what you want the spell to do.
2. The GM determines the type of magic and calculates the difficulty of the spell using the tables on pages 54 and 55.
3. You roll the Stat Die you use for that type of magic and a d4 for the Magic Die (discussed on page 53). Add any stat or magic bonuses that apply.
4. You narrate the success of your spell, or the GM narrates the failure of your spell, in keeping with the guidelines on pages 56-57.

MAGNITUDE OF EFFECT
Natural +1:	Could naturally happen
Unnatural +3:	Could happen, but not naturally
Reality-Bending +5:	Bends the rules of reality
Reality-Breaking +7:	Breaks the rules of reality

AREA OF EFFECT
Tiny +1:	A book or smaller
Small +3:	A person or smaller
Big +5:	Bigger than a person, smaller than a classroom
Massive +7:	A classroom or bigger

DURATION OF EFFECT
Instantaneous +0:	Instantaneous
Minute-Long +1:	A Few Minutes
Hour-Long +2:	One Hour
Day-Long +3:	One Day
Week-Long +4:	One Week
Permanent +6:	Permanent

EXPERIENCE WITH THE SPELL
Mastered +0:	You’ve cast this spell many times before.
Cast +1:	You’ve cast this spell a few times before.
Witnessed +3:	You’ve seen someone else cast it or you’ve read about it.
Inexperienced +5:	You’ve never seen anyone cast this spell or read about it.

OOC:

Example from page 57 in the book

Quote:

For example, as the shadowy figure spreads its tendrils toward Gray’s temples, Paul pulls
his wand from his robes. Not knowing what the shadowy figure is capable of, he doesn’t
want to attack it directly, but he knows that if he does nothing, no good will come. He
decides that shadows hate light, and casts a spell to make a fist-sized light source as bright
as daylight appear between Gray and the figure. Ama looks at the chart and decides that
the spell is a Reality-Bending (+5, because light is coming from nowhere), Tiny (+1,
because Paul wants to create a light source the size of a fist), Minute-Long (+1), spell
that he has Cast (+1). The total difficulty is 8. Paul decides that he’s casting this spell with
Brains, manipulating the rules of the universe by understanding them deeply. He also
gets to roll the Magic Die. He gets a 7 on his d8 Brains die and a 3 on the d4 Magic Die,
for a total of 10. The spell succeeds, doing exactly what he wanted it to do. The shadowy
figure is startled but not stopped. Strangely, both Gray and Professor Saucer notice that
even in the bright light, the figure is no less shadowy. "Oh, the hell with this," Gray spits,
taking out their wand.

Roll vs target for spellcasting

(Roll + Modifiers) - Target	Guidelines for Success or Failure for Spell Checks
+10 or higher	The character seems to cast the spell effortlessly. It looks like the character is just showing off, like this is a spell the character could do in their sleep. The spell functions perfectly.
	For example, the caster glances casually over their shoulder at a cup of tea, makes a small flick of the wand, and steam starts to quietly rise out of the cup.
+5 to +9	The character casts the spell quite impressively. To anyone watching, it seems like this is a spell the character has mastered. The spell functions perfectly.
	For example, the caster raises their wand, points it at the cup of tea for a few seconds, and steam starts to rise out of the cup.
+1 to +4	The character casts the spell but not impressively. Sure, it works, but it’s clear that the character put serious effort into making it succeed. The spell functions as expected.
	For example, the caster turns their attention to the cup of tea and furrows their brow. They raise their wand steadily at the cup, murmur the correct incantations, and, as they hold the wand there, it takes a few moments for the tea to come to a boil. A few beads of sweat appear on their brow.
0	The character casts the spell—but just barely. The strain of casting the spell is clear for everyone watching, and the spell might not function perfectly, but it gets the job done.
	For example, the caster’s wand wavers as they focus their attention on the cup of tea. With sweat pouring from their brow, they repeat the incantation many times until, finally, the tea starts to bubble. It’s a bit too hot to drink now, but it will cool soon.
-1 to -4	The spell simply fails. At the GM’s discretion, it may appear that the spell is about to work but then does not. Narratively, there will be no impact on the story from this failure...beyond the caster not achieving their stated goal.
	For example, the caster strains, but their spell does not heat the cup of tea. Only one small wisp of steam rises off the surface.
-5 to -9	The spell fails in a benign burst of magic. At the GM’s discretion, there may be some minor, incredibly brief unexpected effects. Narratively, there may be some slightly embarrassing effects if anyone’s there to witness them.
	For example, the tea in the cup turns for a moment to water, and the caster’s hair stands on end.
-10 to -14	The spell fails in a dangerous burst of magic. There will certainly be some minor effects as described above and, at the GM’s discretion, the effect of the spell might work, but on the wrong target. Narratively, there might be some short-term impact to the direction the game.
	For example, nothing happens to the tea in the cup, but the cup itself shatters and the caster finds that they have first-degree burns where they were holding their wand. They now will want to get to the school’s infirmary to have their injury treated.
-15 or lower	The spell fails in an incredibly dangerous way. There will certainly be bad effects as described above, and perhaps quite a bit worse. Narratively, such a failure should alter the course of the game. Remember, such failures will only occur when a character is incredibly reckless in their use of magic.
	For example, the tea cup explodes violently, and the caster is cut by some of the shards. In addition, part of the table the cup was on bursts into flames, which they’ll have to contend with immediately. That’s made all the more difficult, though, because they have second-degree burns covering their entire hand that held the wand.

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Quick rules reference

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