Sorcery: Clerical Spellcasting

Sorcery: Clerical Spellcasting

Sorcery can be modified to represent clerical spellcasting. Let us see how it is done.

First, Sorcerous Empowerment by default has the Magical, -10% limitation included, but we will replace it with Divine, -10% for this advantage and for the Sorcery, -15% power modifier itself. This does not change the cost, obviously.

The new power modifier requires you to take a -10-point disadvantage that will represent a code of conduct of your faith. For a good deity this might be Honesty (12), Sense of Duty (Coreligionists), a major Vow, or something else related to the patron’s dogma. Benevolent deities usually will not cut you off if this would endanger you, but they will suspend your powers should you transgress when the moment is right. Atonement requires a significant deed – a month of fasting, a major quest, a large donation, or equivalent.

Evil deities usually require such disadvantages as Intolerance or a heinous major Vow (for example, “Sacrifice a living human on the night of the full moon”). As long as you do not transgress, an evil deity usually lets you do as you please, but it will revoke your power instantly should you forget to perform the required deeds. It usually will turn on you, cursing you or making your life difficult in a different way, but getting the favor back should be relatively easy – a single killing or desecration, for example.

Neutral or uncaring deities provide you with a relative freedom of action, but usually require you to have some principles, such as Code of Honor (Respect nature and oppose those who do not). Should you transgress, it will revoke your power instantly, but you can get back in good standing by completing a minor quest.

This also makes the spells depend on sanctity instead of magic. See GURPS Powers, p. 176 for details.

Second, some spells require somatic, verbal, and/or material components. This is accomplished by adding the Requires Magic Words, -10%, Required Gestures, -10%, and/or Requires Material Component, -10% limitations to the spells. The combinations of these limitations may vary from spell to spell. This will make clerical spellcasters easier to counter. The material component is usually the cleric’s holy symbol that he must be touching to cast the spell.

Third, FP cost should not be always 1 FP. This will add a bit of bookkeeping, but is useful for balancing powerful spells, such as Teleport. The same applies to casting times.

Fourth, the caster’s spell repertoire must be limited to the deity’s sphere of influence. This applies the Limited Scope, Deity’s Domain, -X% limitation to Sorcerous Empowerment. The limitation value depends on the broadness of the deity’s sphere of influence. For example, a cleric of Tharizdun, the deity of elemental evil, will be able to cast all elemental spells (roughly equivalent to four colleges of magic), and the limitation value will be -10%. On the other hand, a cleric of Elyvilon, the god of healing, will be able to only cast healing spells (roughly equivalent to one college), and the limitation value will be -40%. Despite this, all clerics should have access to generic divine spells, such as Bless, Curse, Detect (Ethical Category), while non-divine casters should not have access to those.

For hardcore improvisation, clerical spellcasters use Religious Ritual instead of Thaumatology.
Advantages granted by divine Buff spells should have the Divine, +0% modifier, because they do not require the subject to act according to the deity’s code of conduct, but still depend on sanctity.