Magics of the Archipelago

What are spells?

Spells are distinct magical affects with reliable and consistent results. When casting a spell, a spellcaster invokes a specific series of events either manipulating the underlying strands of magic or calling out to a creature / power for aid. All spells have several attributes that have been coined and catalogued by mages for teaching and record keeping.   Raw uncontrolled magic is still possible though far more unpredictable. Many spells have been crafted and lost to history, the Lost Magics are a good example. Only in more recent years has then been a boom in the standardization and teaching of magics where spells are becoming common place. The crafting of new spells is both art and science which often means only advanced mages craft new spells and even then it takes much longer for them to become mainstream.  

Spell Points

The pool of magic a creature pulls from to cast spells, commonly known as Mana, is an ethereal force. When crafting and standardizing spells, each spell is assigned a rank, or level, which represents the amount of magical energy required to cast the spell in its base form. A unit of magical energy is colloquially called a "Spell Point".  

Character Level	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Spell Points
1	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
2	4	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	4
3	5	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	9
4	5	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	11
5	5	4	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	19
6	5	4	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	22
7	5	4	3	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	26
8	5	4	3	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	30
9	5	4	3	3	1	-	-	-	-	-	39
10	5	4	3	3	2	-	-	-	-	-	44
11	5	4	3	3	2	1	-	-	-	-	50
12	5	4	3	3	2	1	-	-	-	-	50
13	5	4	3	3	2	1	1	-	-	-	57
14	5	4	3	3	2	1	1	-	-	-	57
15	5	4	3	3	2	2	1	1	-	-	71
16	5	4	3	3	2	2	1	1	-	-	71
17	5	4	3	3	2	2	2	1	1	-	87
18	5	4	3	3	3	2	2	1	1	-	92
19	5	4	3	3	3	2	2	2	1	1	110
20	5	4	3	3	3	3	2	2	1	1	116

  Characters have a pool of spell points (as seen in the table) and also have a maximum rank of spell they can cast. Current known spells range from 0 - 10 from simple minor charms and spells to powerful archmage level magic. 0-Rank spells are often called Cantrips as they require no magical energy and thus could be done at will.   Some spells allow you to "up-cast", or "cast at a higher level". What this means is that you may choose to spend additional spell points to amplify the power of the spell. You can only upcast a spell if you have the spell points available and it is equal to or less than the "Max Spell Level" for your characters level.   Rank 8-10 spells are extremely powerful and taxing to cast. Even if you have the points, you can only cast spells of Rank 8 twice (same for 9-10) and must complete a long rest to regain the ability to cast them again. You regain all spent Spell Points after completing a Long Rest. Some other magics and potions will also allow you to regain spent spell points.

Known Spells

As mages gain power through experience and study, your capacity for magical knowledge grows. Nearly all mages keep a spellbook handy that records the spells they know of. Character classes have the amount of cantrips and spells known listed. In special conditions, your character may know more spells than the number listed in the spells known column.  

Casting in Armor

Because of the mental focus and precise gestures required for spellcasting, you must be proficient with the armor you are wearing to cast a spell. You are otherwise too distracted and physically hampered by your armor for spellcasting.

 

Rituals - Review this

Certain spells have a special tag: ritual. Such a spell can be cast following the normal rules for spellcasting, or the spell can be cast as a ritual. The ritual version of a spell takes 10 minutes longer to cast than normal. It also doesn’t expend a spell slot, which means the ritual version of a spell can’t be cast at a higher level.   To cast a spell as a ritual, a spellcaster must have a feature that grants the ability to do so. The cleric and the druid, for example, have such a feature. The caster must also have the spell prepared or on his or her list of spells known, unless the character’s ritual feature specifies otherwise, as the wizard’s does.  

Spell Classifications

While spells are divided into various schools of magic, mages have also found that spells from various schools slot into another method of identification: a spell classification so to speak. These spell classifications define types of spells; a behavior or use the spell accomplishes. Some spells only target spells and effects of a certain classification: like shattering a ward or activating a delayed effect.  

Known Classifications Include:

Casting Time

Most spells require a single standard action to cast, but some spells require a swift action, a reaction, or much more time to cast. Should you cast a spell with a Casting Time of a Swift Action, you cannot cast another spell using Spell Points that turn.   Spells cast as a Reaction take a fraction of a second to bring about and are cast in response to some event. If a spell can be cast as a reaction, the spell description tells you exactly when you can do so.   Other spells require more time to cast: minutes or even hours. When you cast a spell with a casting time longer than a single action or reaction, you must spend your action each turn casting the spell, and you must maintain your concentration while you do so. If your concentration is broken, the spell fails, but you don’t expend a spell slot. If you want to try casting the spell again, you must start over.  

Range

The target of a spell must be within the spell’s range. Targets can include creatures, objects, or targets in space where an effect will occur. Once a spell is cast, its effects aren’t limited by its range, unless the spell’s description says otherwise.   Most spells have ranges expressed in feet. Some spells can target only a creature (including you) that you touch. Other spells affect only you and are marked with a range of "self".   Spells that create cones or lines of effect that originate from you also have a range of self, indicating that the origin point of the spell’s effect must be you.  

Components

A spell’s components are the physical requirements you must meet in order to cast it. Each spell’s description indicates whether it requires verbal (V), somatic (S), or material (M) components. If you can’t provide one or more of a spell’s components, you are unable to cast the spell.   Verbal (V) Most spells require the chanting of mystic words. The words themselves aren’t the source of the spell’s power; rather, the particular combination of sounds, with specific pitch and resonance, sets the threads of magic in motion. Thus, a character who is gagged or in an area of silence, such as one created by the silence spell, can’t cast a spell with a verbal component.   Somatic (S) Spellcasting gestures might include a forceful gesticulation or an intricate set of gestures. If a spell requires a somatic component, the caster must have free use of at least one hand to perform these gestures.   Material (M) Casting some spells requires particular objects, specified in parentheses in the component entry. A character can use a component pouch or a spellcasting focus in place of the components specified for a spell. But if a cost is indicated for a component, a character must have that specific component before he or she can cast the spell.   If a spell states that a material component is consumed by the spell, the caster must provide this component for each casting of the spell. A spellcaster must have a hand free to access a spell’s material components — or to hold a spellcasting focus — but it can be the same hand that he or she uses to perform somatic components.  

Duration

A spell’s duration is the length of time the spell persists. A duration can be expressed in rounds, minutes, hours, or even years. Some spells specify that their effects last until the spells are dispelled or destroyed.   Instantaneous Many spells are instantaneous. The spell harms, heals, creates, or alters a creature or an object in a way that can’t be dispelled, because its magic exists only for an instant.   Concentration Some spells require you to maintain concentration in order to keep their magic active. If you lose concentration, such a spell ends.   If a spell must be maintained with concentration, that fact appears in its Duration entry, and the spell specifies how long you can concentrate on it. You can end concentration at any time (no action required).   Normal activity, such as moving and attacking, doesn’t interfere with concentration. The following factors can break concentration:

Casting another spell that requires concentration. You lose concentration on a spell if you cast another spell that requires concentration. You can’t concentrate on two spells at once.

Taking damage. Whenever you take damage while you are concentrating on a spell, you must make a Constitution saving throw to maintain your concentration. The DC equals 10 or half the damage you take, whichever number is higher. If you take damage from multiple sources, such as an arrow and a dragon’s breath, you make a separate saving throw for each source of damage.

Being incapacitated or killed. You lose concentration on a spell if you are incapacitated or if you die.

The DM might also decide that certain environmental phenomena, such as a wave crashing over you while you’re on a storm-tossed ship, require you to succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw to maintain concentration on a spell.

Targets

A typical spell requires you to pick one or more targets to be affected by the spell’s magic. A spell’s description tells you whether the spell targets creatures, objects, or a point of origin for an area of effect (described below).   Unless a spell has a perceptible effect, a creature might not know it was targeted by a spell at all. An effect like crackling lightning is obvious, but a more subtle effect, such as an attempt to read a creature’s thoughts, typically goes unnoticed, unless a spell says otherwise.   A Clear Path to the Target To target something, you must have a clear path to it, so it can’t be behind total cover. If you place an area of effect at a point that you can’t see and an obstruction, such as a wall, is between you and that point, the point of origin comes into being on the near side of that obstruction.   Targeting Yourself If a spell targets a creature of your choice, you can choose yourself, unless the creature must be hostile or specifically a creature other than you. If you are in the area of effect of a spell you cast, you can target yourself.  

Areas of Effect

A spell’s description specifies its area of effect, which typically has one of five different shapes: cone, cube, cylinder, line, or sphere. Every area of effect has a point of origin, a location from which the spell’s energy erupts. The rules for each shape specify how you position its point of origin. Typically, a point of origin is a point in space, but some spells have an area whose origin is a creature or an object.   A spell’s effect expands in straight lines from the point of origin. If no unblocked straight line extends from the point of origin to a location within the area of effect, that location isn’t included in the spell’s area. To block one of these imaginary lines, an obstruction must provide total cover.   Cone A cone extends in a direction you choose from its point of origin. A cone’s width at a given point along its length is equal to that point’s distance from the point of origin. A cone’s area of effect specifies its maximum length. A cone’s point of origin is not included in the cone’s area of effect, unless you decide otherwise.   Cube You select a cube’s point of origin, which lies anywhere on a face of the cubic effect. The cube’s size is expressed as the length of each side. A cube’s point of origin is not included in the cube’s area of effect, unless you decide otherwise.   Cylinder A cylinder’s point of origin is the center of a circle of a particular radius, as given in the spell description. The circle must either be on the ground or at the height of the spell effect. The energy in a cylinder expands in straight lines from the point of origin to the perimeter of the circle, forming the base of the cylinder. The spell’s effect then shoots up from the base or down from the top, to a distance equal to the height of the cylinder. A cylinder’s point of origin is included in the cylinder’s area of effect.   Line A line extends from its point of origin in a straight path up to its length and covers an area defined by its width. A line’s point of origin is not included in the line’s area of effect, unless you decide otherwise.   Sphere You select a sphere’s point of origin, and the sphere extends outward from that point. The sphere’s size is expressed as a radius in feet that extends from the point. A sphere’s point of origin is included in the sphere’s area of effect.  

Saving Throws

Many spells specify that a target can make a saving throw to avoid some or all of a spell’s effects. The spell specifies the ability that the target uses for the save and what happens on a success or failure.   The DC to resist one of your spells equals 10 + your spellcasting ability modifier + half the rank of the spell (rounded down; minimum of 1)  

Attack Rolls

Some spells require the caster to make an attack roll to determine whether the spell effect hits the intended target. Your attack bonus with a spell attack equals your spellcasting ability modifier + your proficiency bonus.   Most spells that require attack rolls involve ranged attacks. Remember that you have disadvantage on a ranged attack roll if you are within 5 feet of a hostile creature that can see you and that isn’t incapacitated.  

Combining Magical Effects

The effects of different spells add together while the durations of those spells overlap. The effects of the same spell cast multiple times don’t combine, however. Instead, the most potent effect — such as the highest bonus — from those castings applies while their durations overlap, or the most recent effect applies if the castings are equally potent and their durations overlap.   For example, if two clerics cast bless on the same target, that character gains the spell’s benefit only once; he or she doesn’t get to roll two bonus dice.