Omar's Gramarye Spells

Introduction

The Gramarye is a magic system for FUDGE by Carl Cravens, published in Grey Ghosts' A Magical Medley. It describes a system whereby spellcasters may improvise and cast spells on the fly, by combining a college (verb) with a realm (noun). Naturally, spellcasters will probably figure out some favorite spells, and keep track of how to cast them. Lists of spells that fit the Gramarye rules are an aid for characters and players alike.

The following spells are all my creation. They would be suitable in a FUDGE game which I was GMing... perhaps with some modification. Magic is a setting-dependent sort of thing; while the Gramarye attempts to be a setting independent meta-system, there are some judgement calls which will be left to each GM. I've made some judgement calls on the spells below. Sometimes I try to justify them in the description of the spell.

Naturally, these spells can be used as the basis from which a mage creates his own variations. Want to decrease the cost of a spell? Create a variant with higher difficulty or casting time. In each case, it is up to the GM to judge whether the spell is fair. Sometimes below I suggest limitations on such modifications, providing game balance and/or "thaumatobabble" reasons for the limitations.

Each spell is also listed as a "Simple", "Ordinary", or "Esoteric" spell. This has to do with my Gramarye Variant.

Note on Durations and Casting Times: The Gramarye as written is inconsistent. E.g., look at p. 90 in A Magical Medley. First it says "Increase Duration one level on Time Chart: +1 mana". Then, in the Time Chart, it says "1 level = 2 mana or 1 Difficulty Level". For these spells, I've gone with the former interpretation. Additionally, I use the "1 mana/level" rule for casting times– I don't want casters to get too big of a break for taking (say) an hour to cast a spell.

Spells by College

Breaking	Communiation	Control	Creation
Buckle Rubble Shards Smite Smite Shield	Read Magic	Delay Magelock Unlock	Lightning Bolt Zap
Enhancement	Healing	Knowledge	Movement
Speed Tremendous Speed	Heal Scratch Heal Wound Heal Serious Wound Heal Critical Wound	Detect Magic Lie Detector See Invisible Spirit Sight Spirit Trace Timescry Trace Passage	Minor Portal Portal Spider Climb Teleport Teleport Group Teleport Other Teleport Reliably Wallwalking
Protection	Transformation
Armor Smite Shield	Breathe Water Invisibility

Spells by Realm

Air	Animal	Body	Earth
Breathe Water Lightning Bolt Zap		Armor Heal Scratch Heal Wound Heal Serious Wound Heal Critical Wound Smite Speed Spider Climb Teleport Teleport Group Teleport Other Teleport Reliably Tremendous Speed Wallwalking	Buckle Magelock Rubble Shards Trace Passage Unlock
Fire	Illusion	Magic	Mind
	Invisibility See Invisible	Delay Detect Magic Read Magic Smite Shield	Lie Detector
Multiverse	Plant	Spirit	Time
Minor Portal Portal	Magelock Unlock	Spirit Sight Spirit Trace	Timescry
Water
Breate Water

Spells by Standard Mana Cost

1 – Heal Scratch
2 – Zap
3 – Heal Wound
4 – Buckle
4 – Smite Shield
4 – Speed
4 – Spider Climb
4 – Unlock
5 – Armor
5 – Breathe Water
5 – Read Magic
5 – Smite
5 – Wallwalking
6 – Heal Serious Wound
6 – Invisibility
6 – Lie Detector
7 – Detect Magic
8 – Lightning Bolt
8 – Magelock
8 – See Invisible
8 – Spirit Sight
8 – Trace Passage
9 – Heal Critical Wound
10 – Rubble
13 – Delay
14 – Spirit Trace
14 – Teleport
15 – Shards
15 – Timescry
17 – Teleport Group
17 – Teleport Other
18 – Minor Portal
19 – Teleport Reliably
25 – Tremendous Speed
28 – Portal

Spells Alphabetically

Armor
Breathe Water
Buckle
Delay
Detect Magic
Heal Scratch
Heal Wound
Heal Serious Wound
Heal Critical Wound
Identify Magic
Invisibility
Lie Detector
Lightning Bolt
Magelock
Minor Portal
Portal
Read Magic
Rubble
See Invisible
Shards
Smite
Smite Shield
Speed
Spirit Sight
Spirit Trace
Teleport
Teleport Group
Teleport Other
Teleport Reliably
Tremendous Speed
Timescry
Trace Passage
Unlock
Wallwalking
Zap

Armor

Protect Body; Ordinary; Good Effect (+4); Duration 2 Minutes (+2); Touch range (-1); Total mana cost: 5

This provides the target virtual magical armor with a Defensive Factor of 4 for the duration of the spell.

Breathe Water

Transform Water to Air; Ordinary; Good effect (+4); lasts 1 hour (+4); must touch target (-1); 2 minutes to cast (-2). Total mana cost: 5

For the duration of the spell (default: 1 hour), the taget can breathe without trouble under water. (What happens is that as the target inhales, an appropriate volume of water is converted to air before it enters his respiratory track. The volume of water converted is negligible.)

I rationalize that this is merely a Good rather than a Great effect. Normally, transforming something to a different composition is a Great effect. However, here it's being done just for a single purpose: breathing. It doesn't grant free action, it can't affect anything else. Consequently, I steped down the effect by a single increment.

Buckle

Break Earth; Ordinary; Fair Effect (+3); Short Range (+1). Total mana cost: 4.

Causes the earth, stone, or metal underneath where somebody is standing to buckle slightly and temporarily. This will cause that person to fall over. Resisted by Agility.

Delay

Control Magic; Ordinary; Great effect (+8); lasts 5 hours (+5). Total mana cost: 13.

The Delay spell is for the mage who wants to leave a magical trap or message behind. He casts the Delay spell and a second spell. The Delay spell is cast on a specific person, location, or item. During the casting of the spell, he specifics the conditions under which the second spell will be released. The second spell will then be held until those conditions are met. The conditions must be within Close range of the thing upon which the Delay is cast. (Different ranges can be specified using the Gramarye modifiers table on p. 90 of A Magical Medley.)

The base cost for the spell assumes a 5 hour duration. If the Delay is not triggered by the time it expires, the second spell is lost. Since the mage may no longer be present when the Delay is triggered, he must supply enough mana to power both the Delay and the second spell at the time of initial casting. The second spell must be cast immediately after the Delay. Once both are cast, the mage may forget about both spells; he begins to regain mana as normal. Note that in order to extend (i.e. maintain) the Delay, the mage must be within range of wherever he left the spell behind.

The "Great Effect" is based on the following. Normally, in order to hold a spell, the mage would have to spend mana every 5 combat rounds. By casting a Delay, the mage spends all the mana at once, and gets a price break on the mana cost (probably just a Fair or Good effect). However, when holding a spell, a mage does not regain mana, and he still must be present when he releases the spell. When he casts a Delay, he does regain mana, and need not be present when the spell is triggered: hence, the Great effect.

Suggested limitation: Do not allow the casting time to be increased beyond 10 minutes. The real reason for this is that doing so makes the creation of magical traps too easy. The thaumatobabble reason for this is that a Delay which takes too long to cast loses meaningful connection with the second spell cast immediately after it.

Detect Magic

Know Magic; Simple; Good Effect (+5); Room-sized area of effect (+2); Total mana cost: 7

This will allow the spell caster to determine if there is magic at work within the area of effect. It will not tell the caster anything about the magic beyond a very vague sense of how strong it is. Magic items, spells in force (including people under the influence of spells) will detect positive for magic.

A variant of this spell may be cast on a single person (or person-sized object) for 5 mana, or on a small object for 4 mana.

Heal Scratch

Heal Body; Simple; Mediocre Effect (+1); Total mana cost: 1

Heals a Scratch, if it needs to be healed....

Heal Wound

Heal Body; Simple; Fair Effect (+3); Total mana cost: 3

Heals a Hurt wound, or reduce a Very Hurt wound to a Hurt wound (which cannot be healed further by the same spell caster).

Heal Serious Wound

Heal Body; Ordinary; Good Effect (+6); Total mana cost: 6

Heals a Very Hurt wound, or reduces an Incapacitated wound to a Hurt wound (which cannot be healed further by the same spell caster).

Heal Critical Wound

Heal Body; Ordinary; Great Effect (+9); Total mana cost: 9

Heals an Incapacitated wound, or reduces a Near Death wound to a Hurt wound (which cannot be healed further by the same spell caster).

Identify Magic

Know Magic; Ordinary; Great Effect (+10); Small target (-1); Casting Time: 2 Minutes (-2); Total mana cost: 7

Cast upon a single small object (+1 to the mana cost of cast upon a man-sized object, greater mana cost for even larger objects), this will identify the nature of the spells on the object. A succesfull spell will identify all the colleges and realms and in what combination (if there are multiple enchantments) are on the object. A result of Superb or better on the spell caster's roll will also let the caster know the detailed nature of each spell on the object.

Invisibility

Transform Illusion; Ordinary; Good Effect (+5); Duration 2 minutes (+2); Must touch target (-1); Total mana cost: 6.

The target becomes invisible. The spell effectively makes the target transparent, but operates by converting any light emitted or reflected by the target into the light which was incident upon the opposite side of the target. (This can also simply be thought of as a Complex Illusion– but a "negative illusion" that is exactly whatever the person is normally doing, only cancelling out the normal vision of that.)

Lie Detector

Know Mind; Ordinary; Good Effect (+4), duration 2 minutes (+2). Total mana cost: 6.

When cast upon a subject, the mage will know whether or not the subject believes what he says to be true for the duration of the spell.

Lightning Bolt

Create Air; Ordinary; Good Effect (+4); Short Range (+1); Affects several (+2); Limited Mundane Defense (+1); Total mana cost: 8

The spell caster creates a bolt of lightning. The bolt starts within short range of the caster, and is either a single bolt extending 10 yards in length (encompacing up to 10 people in a line– if there are more, the first 10 absorb all the force of the blow), or a forking bolt 2 yards wide and 5 yards in length (again encompacing at most 10 people). It does 8 points of electrical damage to anybody in the area of effect. Anybody can attempt to do a "dodge and drop" sort of maneuver to receive only half damage. Non-metallic armor protects normally, but metallic armor doesn't help at all.

Magelock

Control Earth orControl Plant; Ordinary; Good Effect (+4); Duration 1 hour (+4); Total Mana Cost: 8

Magically locks a door. The Unlock spell won't unlock it, nor will any mundane lockpicking effort. However, the door may still be physically destroyed.

The spell is Control Earth for stone or metal doors, Control Plant for wooden doors (two different spells).

Minor Portal

Move Multiverse; Esoteric; Superb Effect (+16); Affects Several (+2); Total Mana Cost: 18

This opens up a temporary portal to an ajacent plane. E.g., in the Planescape setting, this could be to another layer of the same plane, to the Outlands from the top layer of any Outer Plane, or to the Astral Plane from the Prime or from the top layer of any Outer Plane. The portal stays open until 10 people have gone through it, or until 30 seconds elapse, whichever comes first.

Portal

Move Multiverse; Esoteric; Superb Effect (+26); Affects Several (+2); Total Mana Cost: 28

This opens up a temporary portal to any other plane (assuming portals may be opened to that location; e.g., in Planescape, nobody may open a portal to Sigil. The portal stays open until 10 people have gone through it, or until 30 seconds elapse, whichever comes first.

Read Magic

Communicate Magic; Simple; Fair Effect (+3), duration 10 minutes (+2). Total mana cost: 5.

This spell allows a mage to read magic script that she has not seen before. Once she's read a given page once with this spell, she will be able to read it thereafter without magical aid (so long as she retains her supernomal power of magery). The duration of the spell gives the mage time to read through a couple of pages of magical script.

Rubble

Break Earth; Ordinary; Good Effect (+7; Affects 1 m^3 (+3). Total mana cost: 10.

Reduces one cubic meter of stone to a collection of pebbles.

See Invisible

Know Illusion; Ordinary; Good Effect (+5); Short Range (+1); Duration 2 minutes (+2); Total mana cost: 8

Within the range of the spell, the mage will be able to see anything which is invisible. The natural counter to the Invisibility spell.

Shards

Break Earth; Ordinary; Great Effect (+12); Affects 1m^3 (+3); Total mana cost: 15

Reduces 1 cubic meter of metal to useless scrap. The shards are not by default sharp or particularly dangerous, although at high velocity they make nice shrapnel.

A 12-mana version of this same spell will destroy the metal armor that an opponent is wearing.

Smite

Break Body; Simple; Fair effect (+2); short range (+1); no mundane defense (+2). Total mana cost: 5.

When the mage casts Smite, a bolt of magical energy leaps from his hand to the target, wounding the target. Normal armor provides no protection against a Smite.

The base Smite does 4 points of damage. To increase the damage of a smite, the mage may spend mana at the normal rate described in the Gramarye modifiers table (A Magical Medley, p. 90). However, increasing damage to 6 points makes this an Ordinary spell, and increasing damage to 8 points makes it an Esoteric spell; the damage of Smite may not be increased past 8 points.

Smite Shield

Break Magic or Protect from Magic; Simple; Fair effect (+2); lasts two minutes (+2); Total mana cost: 4.

A Smite Shield is a magic shield that will stop a Smite spell or a similar Break Body spell which does normal damage. The default version of the spell will reduce the damage from a Smite spell by 4 points of damage; each increase in protection of +2 costs an additional +1 of mana.

Speed

Enhance Body; Ordinary; Fair Effect (+3); Duration: 2 minutes (+2); Close Range (must touch target) (-1); Total Mana Cost: 4

This increases the target's Speed attribute by one step for the duration of the spell. For an increased mana cost of 3 (bringing the base cost to 7), the Speed attribute can be increased two steps. If Speed affects initiative during combat rounds, this will help there; it will also allow the target to run faster. It will not in any event grant multiple attacks; see Tremendous Speed.

Spider Climb

Move Body; Ordinary; Fair Effect (+2); Duration: 10 minutes (+3); Close Range (must touch target) (-1); Total mana cost: 4

This spell allows the user to cling to walls and ceilings like a spider. All four limbs are necessary for movement, and movement is at crawling speed (or half crawling speed if only three limbs are used). A more advanced verson of this spell is Wallwalking.

Spirit Sight

Know Spirit; Ordinary; Great Effect (+8); room-sized area (+2); takes 2 minutes (-2); Total mana cost: 8

For a few moments, this spell allows the caster to see any spirits, ghosts, or similar non-corporeal entities lurking in his immediate area. Note that if the spirit itself would be invisible to other spirits or those who normally see such things, then the caster will not necessarily see them!

Spirit Trace

Know Spirit; Ordinary; Great Effect (+15); room-sized area (+2); takes 10 minutes (-3); Total mana cost: 14

The caster will be able to briefly see the psychic residue left behind by the presence of spirits or ghosts upon the immediate area. It is up to the GM to decide how long the residue lasts and remains visible to this spell. The duration should be related to the significance of the spirit's activities. A spirit merely passing through an area may only leave a trace visible for a few hours; striking terror into the heart of a mortal may leave a residue visible for days; directly causing the death of a mortal may leave signs visible for years.

The caster may not know the exact meaning of the residue he sees. He will get a sense for it's "strength," and perhaps a feeling or "timbre" associated with it. Interpretation of these sensations may be possible through the use of an Occultism or other similar skill.

Teleport

Move Body; Ordinary; Great Effect (+10); Extreme Range (+4); Total mana cost: 14

This spell allows a caster to instantaneously relocate himself (and a reasonable amount of gear) to elsewhere on the same plane. The destination must be a location the caster knows; if the caster does not know the destination well, disaster may strike. When the caster teleports, immediately roll a Situational Roll; that result determines what happens.

Situational Roll –>	Terrible-	Poor	Medicore	Fair	Good	Great	Superb+
Caster intimately familiar with destination	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success
Caster has visited destination	Safe Miss	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success
Caster has seen destination (scrying, photograph) and has a (good) map of the destination	Too High	Safe Miss	Success	Success	Success	Success	Success
Castor has seen destination or has a map of the destination	Too Low	Too High	Safe Miss	Success	Success	Success	Success
Castor given good description of destination	Utter Miss	Too Low	Too High	Safe Miss	Success	Success	Success
Castor given vague or poor description of destination	Plane Travel	Utter Miss	Too Low	Too High	Safe Miss	Success	Success

Plane Travel: The castor slips through a crack in the mulitverse and ends up on a completely different plane, chosen at the sadistic whim of the GM.
Utter Miss: The castor ends up somewhere completely different on the same plane; this could be thousands of miles away from the intended destination.
Too Low: The castor ends up below the surface of the ground, with his feet 6+4dF feet below the surface. Any rock or stone that was occupying the immediate space will be magically displaced, but the caster could well find himself buried alive and quicky suffocated to death. If he's lucky, there's an underground passage. Spend a Fudge Point to turn this into either an Utter Miss or a Plane Travel (chosen secretly by the GM via Situational Roll).
Too High: The caster ends up 6+4dF feet above the surface at his destination. He then falls to the ground, unless he's lucky and ended up on the second floor of a building....
Safe Miss: The castor arrives on the surface and safe, but 10×(10+4dF) feet away from where he intended to arrive in a random direction.
Success: The castor ends up standing on the surface at his intended destination.

Teleport Other

Move Body; Ordinary; Great Effect (+13); Extreme Range (+4); Total mana cost: 17

This is just like Teleport or Teleport Group, except that the mage need not go along. Chances of missing when sending the target to an unknown location (to the caster) are as for Teleport. If the target is unwilling, the spell is resisted as an Opposed Action between the caster's effective skill with the spell and the target's Will.

The extreme range of the spell is for the destination; the caster must touch the target to send it away.

Teleport Group

Move Body; Ordinary; Great Effect (+12); Extreme Range(+4); Few Targetrs (+1); Total mana cost: 17

This spell is just like Teleport, except that the mage may bring up to three other huamn-sized creatures with him. Chances of missing are the same as in a normal teleport spell; everybody teleported will miss similarly. For the cost of an additional mana point (bringing the cost up to 18), up to 10 total people may be teleported, but the spell will not work for larger groups. (There are rumors of an ultrasecret Esoteric spell that can teleport whole crowds, but those rumors are vague and unsubstantiated.)

Everybody to be teleported together must be touching, e.g. holding hands in a circle, or clustered in an unruly mini-mob.

Teleport Reliably

Move Body; Esoteric; Great Effect (+15); Extreme Range (+4); Total mana cost: 19

This spell is just like Teleport, except that all the caster requires is enough of a description of the location to specify it; there is no chance of ending up in the wrong place. By spendiung additional mana, the spell caster may bring others with him: one mana point for up to three others, two mana points for up to nine others.

Timescry

Know Time; Esoteric; Great effect (+12); room-sized area (+2); lasts 10 minutes (+3); takes 2 minutes (-2); Total mana cost: 15

This spell allows the casting wizard to see and hear what happened in the past at his current location. By default, the wizard can see events that happened up to one day in the past. He can increase this range by adding +2 to the mana cost for each step on the Gramarye's Time Chart.

Sample props: appropriately enchanted crystal ball or gold-framed mirror (major value, similar: -3); large bowl of still water (similar, -1). The similarity comes from a crystal ball performing like a lens: focusing and showing light through the object. Reflections, as from a mirror or bowl of water, likewise show light and sights which do not come from the object itself. If the mirror, crystal ball, or bowl of water is not properly enchanted, it will shatter at the end of the spell's duration.

Tremendous Speed

Enhance Body; Ordinary; Superb Effect (+24); Duration 2 minutes (+2); Must touch target (-1); Total mana cost: 25

For the duration of the spell, the target's Speed attribute is increased four levels. This will (regardless of the exact level where it ends up) give the spell recepient double attacks during every combat round (unless limited by equipment). This is a very costly spell, and as such the caster will usually want to use props; even then, only a very accomplished mage who really has the need to speed somebody up is going to blow the mana on it.

Trace Passage

Know Earth; Esoteric; Good Effect (+7); Affects small space (+1). Total mana cost: 8.

Allows the mage to know the number, weight, and general nature (humanoid, quadraped, etc.) of the last group of or the last several creatures to have passed over a given spot of ground. It will trace as far back as 1 month in time, although the caster will only get information about the several most recent creatures to have passed.

Unlock

Control Earth or Control Plant; Ordinary; Good Effect (+4); Total mana cost: 4

This will unlock any mundane (non-magical) simple lock. More complex locks may require a greater mana expenditure (as the effect becomes more and more Good or even Great). A basic tumbler door lock, a barred door, etc. would be considered a normal lock. The spell is "Control Earth" if the lock is primary constructed of stone or metal, and "Control Plant" if it is primarily constructed of wood.

Wallwalking

Move Body; Ordinary; Fair Effect (+3); Duration: 10 minutes (+3); Close Range (must touch target) (-1); Total mana cost: 5

This spell allows the user to cling to walls and ceilings, similar to Spider Climb, accept that the target can move normally along the walls and ceilings (i.e. only with feet, and at full movement rate).

Zap

Create Air; Ordinary; Fair Effect (+3); Must touch target (-1); Total mana cost: 2

The mage creates a static discharge in his hand. Once the spell is cast, it lasts for one round; if the mage touches something succeptible to electricity within one round, he does 6 points of damage to it. Otherwise, the static electicity dissapates, and (even though the mana is spent) the spell does nothing. The duration of this spell may not be extended (although there are rumors of an Esoteric spell that allows that). Metal armor does not protect against the damage, but non-metallic armor protects with its normal Defensive Factor; even plain clothing which usually has no armor value imparts a Defensive Factor of +1.