Grimoire of Metaphysics

The Power Within

You may have noticed during the character creation process that Aegis is an interesting attribute that has nothing to do with actual metaphysical power. It is an essence of self, a fundamental grounding of a character’s being to the reality they currently find themselves in. As such, even truly mundane characters with a power rating of 0 still find themselves with some measure of Aegis. Storytellers are encouraged to use this attribute in times when metaphysical weirdness abounds and they aren’t quite sure what else to roll.

Ultimate Cosmic Power!

Of course, it is totally acceptable to allow a character to learn the Ultimate as a reward for mastering the rest of the tree. However, as few ascend to such heights of power and understanding, it might be worth considering how exactly a character acquires this ultimate power, especially if the paradigm is a place where metaphysical powers aren’t incredibly common… 
Did someone say epic sidequest?

Metaphysical Effects

Imbuement

Runes

Creating a Rune

Arming and Disarming a Rune 

Triggering Conditions

Destroying Runes

Walls and Barriers

Metaphysical Items

Battery

Conduit

Focus + Battery 

Focus + Conduit

Battery + Conduit

Focus + Battery + Conduit

Attunement

I have the Power!

Whether it’s Excalibur, the Immovable force, or a Holy hand grenade, some of the more powerful enchanted items require attunement. Presently, the need for attunement and the required power to attune to an item are at the Narrator’s discretion.

Air

Breeze

Earth

Lay of the Land

Fire

Create Fire

Burst

Shape Fire

Pyrotechnics

Smoke and Shadow

Incendiary Cloud

Firebolt

Resist Fire I

Blazing Step

Imbue Fire

Resist Fire II

Flame Thrower

Flame Dancer

Incendiary Rune

Resist Fire III

Fireball

Fire Cage

Burning Sphere

Blasting Rune

Inner Warmth

Fire Volley

Flame Barrier

Burning Guardian

Inner Fire

Immolate

Rain of Fire

Fire Form

Pyroclasm

Avatar of Fire

Healing

Give Life

Bodily History

Second Wind

Resuscitate

Healing Touch

Reinvigorate

Diagnose

Resist Disease

Healing

Life Link

Raise

Resist Poison

Healing Pool

Absorb Status

Perfect Patient

Cure Disease

Greater Healing Touch

Cure Status

Healer’s Rest

Heal Self

Cure Poison

Fast Restore

Retribution

Regrow

Poison / Infect

Panacea

Create Affliction

Revive

Resurrection

Mana

Detect Mana

Lend Mana

Mana Shield

Mana Lash

Increase Resistance

Mana Beacon

Mana Bolt

Imbue Mana

Mana Ward

Arcane Magnet

Mana Network

Mana Armor

Dispel Mana

Backlash Absorb

Arcane Burst

Create Foci

Greater Mana Ward

Channel Backlash

Identify

Quick Cast

Create Backlash Sink

Counterspell

Backlash Levee

Arcane Storm

Create Mana Bank

Null Field

Backlash Recharge

Redirect

Awaken

Water

Find Water

Move Water

Create Water

Reflect

Fog

Magnify

Stream

Resist Heat / Cold

Douse

Propulsion

Displace

Cutting Stream

Rainmaker

Breathe Water

Shape Water

Ice Armor

Deluge

Crush Resistance

Aquatic Step

Atmospheric Deflection

Steam

Ritual of the Mariner

Neptune’s Strength

Maelstrom

Ice XVIII

Tsunami

Cavitation

Water Elemental

Avatar of Water

Nature

Identify Nature

PowerInformation Revealed
1-3The name of the plant or animal. For example, “This is an Elm tree.”
4-6General information about the plant or animal. For example, “The Nightjar is a nocturnal bird, typically native to British Columbia and as far south as Northern Mexico. Unlike other birds in the region, Nightjars are exclusively insectivores.
7-10The health and well-being of a plant or animal.
11-17If there is an illness, disease, or abnormality the wielder can identify its cause and the best way to treat it.

Camouflage

Nature’s Stride

Bounty of Nature

Stick

Hunter’s Stealth

Haven

Additionally, this manifestation also creates a perimeter alarm, alerting the wielder and all inhabitants when the threshold has been crossed.

Natural Remedy

Stalk

Heightened Sense

Overgrowth

Resiliency

Nature’s Grasp

Animal Empathy

Barkskin

Living Wall

Nature’s Wrath

Fang and Fur

Lay of the Land

Transference

Spore and Poison

  • Spore: The wielder issues a stream of toxic spores. Upon casting, the target receives Disease points equal to the manifestation’s power.
  • Poison: The wielder spews noxious poison at a target. Upon casting, the target receives Poison points equal to the manifestation’s power.

Communicate with Animals

Commune with Nature

Example: Elara, is trying to locate a hidden enemy encampment deep in the jungle. Elara decides to invest her full 20 power into the manifestation, extending her sensory range to 2000 meters.

The narrator describes Elara’s ritual as “Her senses merge with the jungle. She feels the pollution of human presence in a nearby stream, observes a clearing in the dense jungle canopy through a flock of overhead birds, and senses the anguish of trees under the assault of axes. The disturbed undergrowth tells tales of numerous footfalls; one set is significantly larger and heavier than others with a pronounced dragging limp.”

Reincarnate

Description: The wielder alters the natural cycle of life and death, choosing one of the following effects:

  • Reincarnation: allows the wielder to bring a target back to life as a random creature, determined by the Narrator. The reincarnated character retains their mental attributes but assumes the physical traits of the new creature. This transformation is effectively permanent and can only be reversed by specific interventions. Example: In a dire situation, Alaric uses Reincarnate on Thalen. The Narrator decides that Thalen is reborn as a honey badger. While Thalen retains his mental attributes, he now has the physical characteristics of a honey badger. This permanent change introduces new dynamics and challenges for the party’s adventures.
  • Preserve: The wielder captures and stores the essence of a dying being in another living creature. The original character is unplayable until their essence is restored to a suitable form. Example: Lira is mortally wounded. Elara decides to cast Reincarnate to save Lira by storing her essence in a nearby owl. Lira becomes unplayable until her essence can be restored to a human form. This situation presents a unique challenge for the party, as they now must protect the owl and seek a means to bring Lira back.

Nature Elemental

Summon Animal

If the wielder does not put enough power into the manifestation, they will fail to summon the desired creature, but instead will attract something of an appropriate size per the Narrator’s discretion.

While the manifestation is maintained, the summoned creature(s) is inherently friendly towards the wielder with a contact rating equal to twice the power of the manifestation.

This rating reflects the strength of the bond and control the wielder has over the animal. Additionally, by spending XP equal to the contact rating, the wielder can forge a lasting bond with the animal, making the contact points permanent.

Biome

While the wielder chooses what type of environment is created, the exact layout is random and wild.

Shape Change

Death

Decay Blossom

Eternal Rest

Corruption

Last Rites

  • Hallow: The corpse is made more resilient to the effects of spiritual or necromantic manipulations. Any attempt to manipulate the corpse is done with an adjustment penalty equal to the power of the ritual.
  • Profane: The corpse is made more susceptible to the effects of spiritual or necromantic manipulations. Any attempt to manipulate the corpse is done with an adjustment bonus equal to the power of the ritual.

Death’s Embrace

Wither

Turn Undead

Find Body

Curse

Resist Necrotic

Greater Turning

Exploding Corpse

Blight Aura

Greater Resist Necrotic

Command Undead

Speak with Dead

Recently deceased: While maintained, may communicate with a corpse that has been dead no longer than 1 day for each point of the manifestation power.

Long time dead: Using a ritual with one roll per hour upon completion and while maintained, the wielder may communicate with a corpse deceased for 1 year per point of manifestation power.

Pause Death

Necrotic Rune

Diagnose

Destroy Undead

Animate Dead

This animated corpse is not classified as undead. Its physical attributes are reduced to 50% of their original value while alive, to a maximum of the manifestation’s power level.

This manifestation cannot target undead creatures.

Drain Life

Stasis

Create Unlife

Upon completion, the created undead become self-motivated NPCs, controlled by the narrator.

The created undead can understand and, if physically capable, speak the language of the wielder.

Upon creation, the wielder begins a contact rating with the undead equal to the power of the manifestation. This contact score is not static and will change as the wielder interacts with the new unlife.

Raise Dead

The corpse can be dead no longer than 1 day per point of manifestation power. The physical attributes of the animated corpse are 50% of what they were while alive, to a maximum of the manifestation’s power x 2.

Each round requires a simple action to command the minion; if the wielder chooses not to spend the action, the minion will continue to carry out the last action given. For example, if the minion was directed to attack a target and was not given a new command, it will continue to attack the same target, even if it’s already dead.

Drain Bolt

Zombify

Upon completion of the ritual, the target becomes Zombified. While Zombified, the target does not suffer exhaustion from a lack of food, water, or sleep. But the affected creature is still a living creature and will eventually need food, water, and rest, otherwise, it can literally work itself to death. The affected will perform simple commands and tasks, assuming that they understand the language of the commands.

The target may make a cumulative resolve roll per day, subtracting the results from the total number of ritual points generated by the wielder. When the resolve total exceeds the ritual total, the manifestation ends.

Siphon Kismet

Resurrection

The manifestation requires some amount of viable body tissue of the deceased, such as a fragment of bone, a blood-stained strip of cloth, a lock of hair, etc. and the more of the original body the wielder has access to, the easier the ritual becomes.

To calculate the goal points required to resurrect a body:

  1. 2000 x years dead (min 1).
  2. Divides number by % of the body remaining- Note the body does not need to be in one piece.

Example: A party member was caught in a terrible explosion. Their body armor was enough to protect the head and torso, leaving the rest of the body little more than a gory smear. The narrator estimates that the party has about 40% of the corpse in their possession.

2000 x 1 (less than a year deceased)

Knowledge

Relentless Investigation

Find

Hidden Message

  • Arcane Note: The wielder inscribes a note with a length of one word per manifestation power on any solid surface at a size of their choosing. This note remains invisible and undetectable except to the wielder or designated recipients.
  • Hidden Subtext: The wielder writes a mundane missive or message within which a secret, metaphysically encoded text is embedded. This hidden message can only be deciphered by individuals chosen by the wielder during the creation of the text. The wielder may write one sentence per point of the power of the manifestation.

Read Object

Identify

Read Language

Expedient Scribe

Missive Scrambling Technique

Document’s AgePower
Freshly Drafted3
Drafted < 1 week5
Drafted < 1 month7
Drafted < 1 year10
Drafted < 10 years13
Drafted < 100 years17

Schematics

ComplexityPower
Simple (no moving parts)2
Minor (simple moving parts)3
Moderate (two-stage moving parts)5
Major (multiple precise moving parts)7
Convoluted workings (powered devices, ie., electrical, steam, combustion, arcane)10
Advanced (something from the future)13
Beyond comprehension (alien artifact)17

Diagnostics

Guide

Diplomacy

  • Socialite: Enhances the wielder’s ability to engage others with tact and charm. This effect provides a bonus to etiquette, charm, oration, and read-non-verbal, providing a right skill shift equal to the power of the manifestation.
  • Interrogator: The wielder becomes adept at extracting information using intimidation, providing a right skill shift equal to the power of the manifestation.

Quick Study

Unplain Speak

Arcane Perception

Living Wall

Detect Lie

Parrot Tongue / Natural Local

  • Parrot Tongue: After listening to a target speak for at least one minute, the wielder can perfectly imitate their voice, dialect, and inflection.
  • Natural Local: The wielder adopts the dialect, mannerisms, and customs of an observed group.

Stifle

Know Person

True Sight

Tier: 7
Type: Maintained
Range: Power
AoE: Self
Description: While maintained, endows the wielder with the ability to see the true nature of their surroundings; this includes perceiving invisible entities, objects concealed by magic, and seeing through illusions, etc.

To penetrate an illusion, the wielder must succeed in a contested roll using the manifestation’s power vs the rating of the obfuscation or illusion.

Oath Binding

Communicate with Object

Explosive Outburst

Tier: 7
Type: Instant
Range: Power x 2
AoE: Power
Description: The wielder creates a cacophony of nonsensical sounds and bewildering visual effects, overwhelming the senses of all creatures within the AoE. Creates the daze condition with a rating equal to 2x the power of the manifestation.

Find Person

ConditionPower
Knows the target well or the wielder has a physical piece of the target.10
Has met the person or the wielder has an item intimate to the target.17
The target has been described in great detail, or the target has an item intimate to the wielder.24
The wielder has only seen a picture or been given a basic description34

Voice of Command

Universal Language

Ward Rune

HistoryPower
Up to 1 Day6 points
Up to one week10 points
Up to one month17 points
Up to 1 year25 points
Up to 2 Years34 points
Up to 5 Years46 points
Up to 10 Years60 points
Up to 25 Years78 points
Up to 100 Years100 points

Mind-Illusion

Empathy

Dread Visage

Charm

Confusion

Tier: 3
Type: Maintained
Range: Power
AoE: Target
Description: Bombards a target with a series of minor illusions that distort the target’s perception of reality. The target suffers distraction points equal to the manifestation’s power.

Glamor

Improve Instincts

Shape Emotion

Nightmare

Mind Spike

Project Self

Project Fear

Shape Dream

Phantasm

Mind Shield

Suggest

Sleep

While the manifestation is maintained, affected creatures must make an awareness roll to awaken normally when exposed to something that would normally rouse them from sleep.

True Sight

Mirage

Read Thoughts

Amnesia

Dream Walk

Note: We will not begin to attempt to define the shape and nature of dreams. However, from a playability standpoint, we recommend that if the entire party is not within the dream that events be handled with a 1:1 timing, matching the flow of time outside the dream.

Illusion Rune

Telepathy

Command / Control

  • Command: The target regards the wielder as though they had a contact rating equal to the power of the manifestation x 2.
  • Control: The target must make a resolve test vs. the power of the manifestation or perform the commanded action. This can be something the target would not be inclined to do naturally, including self-harm or violating a direct loyalty. In lieu of a resist roll, the target may choose to take stun damage equal to 2x the power of the manifestation.

Mind Prison

Shape Reality

Control Memory

  • Alter a specific memory or set of memories of the target. An unwilling person may make a resolve check against the power of the manifestation to attempt to preserve their memories. If the target fails, the wielder may alter some details of the memory. For example, the wielder may corrupt the precise sequence of a launch code or obscure their physical description from the memory of a witness attempting to describe them.
  • Recall a memory, including those that have been blocked, repressed, or metaphysically altered.

Mind Palace

The mind palace may be shaped however the wielder wishes and may be changed or altered as they desire. Every memory housed within the mind palace may be recalled perfectly and interacted with as the wielder chooses.

While in the mind palace, the wielder is resilient to mind effects and gains 3x the power of the manifestation added to any resolve roll. When the character is not actively in their mind palace, they gain the benefit of MIND SHIELD equal to the power of the manifestation.

While in the mind palace, the wielder’s body is immobile, and the wielder has complete control over their autonomic functions. As a simple action, the wielder can switch between the mind palace and their body.

Mind palaces can be linked and communicate with each other. The wielder must have a minimum contact rating of 3 with the owner of another mind palace in order to create this link.