Thursday, January 22, 2015

Learning Spells

Many an old time D&D player is familiar with the default method for learning spells in spells in D&D yuo copy them from book to book, there may be fiddly extra rules but it all boils down to copying from book to book with the most common exception being nebulous "spell research". I think there should be a few different ways to for a Magic-User to learn new spells. The followign are three methods to acquire and learn new spells fro Magic-Users



Brains, sweet sweet brains.
Eating another MagicUsers brain exposes a MU to a veritable smorgasbord of new tricks. Consuming the entirety of another Magi-Users brain allows a MU to freely pick from one of the spells from the spells the MU had last memorized/prepared and consider that spell to be known to them. If the consumed brain had higher level spells in it than the dinning MU is currently able to prepare/memorize there may be horrible consequences such as possession by the dead MU's spirit, madness, and worse.

Here's a suggested way to handle such overeating:

If a Magi-User eats the brain of another Magic-User and there are higher level spells than those the magi-user can normally cast the diingin Magi-User must make a save vs death or suffer the consequences below.

Magic-User Brain Over Eating 
Die Roll (1d20+spell level)
Brain Consumption Issuses
1-5
Sickness, rendered helpless by weeping of the orifices and a blurry third eye. Helpless for next 7-12 hours.
6-10
Vomit till you burst something in your third eye. Helpelss for 1-3 hours and then unable to cast any spell requiring the MU see for next 1-3 days.
11-15
Unnatural aging. The MU ages one year per level of the highest level spell in brain eaten. Bedridden for 1-2 weeks afterward.
16-18
Involuntary Etherialism. The MU’s body but nothing non-magical worn or carried shifts into an ethereal state. If the Mu has no means to reverse this he is stuck in this state and unable to rest, heal or prepare new spells for 1-4 days
19-21
Cerebral Consumption Dysfunction Syndrom. The Magic-Use suffers this baleful condition that requires the consumption of an intelligent beings brain to prepare the highest level spells they may normally prepare. The syndrome lasts for as many weeks as the highest spell level in the orignal brain that caused the trouble in the first place or until twice as many brains are consumed.
22-24
Sudden Onset Vamprisim. For as many days as the highest spell level in the consumed brain the MU must make a save the first time they feel the rays of the sun each day or transform into a vampire. Clearly transforming into a vampire in the sunlight has some very serious shortcomings.  The vampiric MU must feed on a living victim to be able to prepare/memmorize new spells. Once the vampire PC has eaten more victims then they have levels they become an NPC.
25-27
Rapid Onset Explosive Cerebral Ossification.
The dinning Mu’s brain hardens and expands causing horribly painful spikes of bone to shoot from their brains, suffering 1d6 damage pear spell levee to self and spraying those nearby. Anyone within 30’ can save vs wands for no effect. The MU loses 1 point of Intelligence and Wisdom
28+
Arcane Possession. The spirit of the magic-user’s brain begin eaten intrudes takes over. If not exorcised in as many weeks as the highest level spell causing the problem the possession is permanent and the dinning MU’s spirit is dislodged. It should be noted the possessing MU will normally do everything they can to avoid being exercised but is there is some means available to restoret their dead (and now brainless) body to life it might be possible to bargain with them.



Enlightening Deathstoke
When you slay a magic-user all that pent up energy has to go somewhere.
When a MU is killed the DM should randomly select a spell from their remaining spells and if the slayer killed them by magic or is within 60 feet that spell will attempt to leap into the slayer. A save is vs spells is allowed and if successful nothing intersting happens beyond a slight play of arcane energy. If the ave fails 1d4 damage is suffered by spell level but if a character is able to cast spells they will now be a bale to sue that spell once or record it into their spell book for future use as if they had otherwise learned it succesffuly.

Spell Jacking
If am MU can interrupt another MagicUser while he/she/it is casting a spell there is a small chance of stealing the spell. Firstly it is only possible to steal a spell if you would normally be able to cast it and have a free spell slot after resting (it can't be "free" beause of recent spell casting). Secondly :successfully interrupt the MU's spell casting as allowed in your campaign.  Thridly you must beat the opponent MU in a power roll ( I recommend 2d6+ caster level for each, a roll of two 1's fails no mater level difference) and if won the spell is stolen from the opposing MU and may be cast later as if prepared normally or recorded for later use. Failing to beat the other MU with the power roll stuns the would-be spelljacker for 2-7 rounds.



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