Saturday 31 March 2018

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells V

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells V

We are going to be done with these spells soon. Soul Blight burns the subject's essentia. Soulbanned Zone stops all incarnum powers in the area. Soulmeld Disjunction unshapes and suppresses all shaped soulmelds. Steal Essentia drains essentia from the subject.

Friday 30 March 2018

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells IV

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells IV

Even more incarnum spells. Valiant Spirit is the last of the "spirit" buffs. Mass Guardian Spirit and Mass Valiant Spirit are the last mass buffs. Protection from Incarnum makes the subject resilient against incarnum attacks. Seek Incarnum lets the caster detect the nearest source of incarnum.

Thursday 29 March 2018

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells III

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells III

Even more incarnum spells. Incarnum Arc and Incarnum Bladestorm are incarnum-based area attacks. Mass Adept Spirit and Mass Animal Spirit are area versions of previous buffs.

Wednesday 28 March 2018

Sorcery: Symbol Magic

Sorcery: Symbol Magic


Symbol magic is a very interesting concept introduced in GURPS Magic and expanded in GURPS Thaumatology. Still, it does not see much use, especially in settings with other magic systems. I’ve been looking for an elegant way to convert it into a Sorcery variant and finally found inspiration in Pyramid #3-105 (“Gourmet Alchemy” by Michael Kreuter).

Tuesday 27 March 2018

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells II

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells II

More incarnum spells to justify the countermeasure part of the Incarnum power modifier. Detect Incarnum detect the presence of soulstuff. Divest Essentia removes all essentia-activated effects. Essentia Lock "freezes" the subject's essentia in place. Guardian Spirit infuses the subject with defensive abilities.

Monday 26 March 2018

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells

Sorcery: Incarnum Spells

This post will present a list of spells, some of which have the special Incarnum type. Spells with this special type can only be cast by characters with the new Incarnum Spellshaping perk (basically, a perk-level Unusual Background) and can only be cast by spending essentia or be enhanced by spending essentia.

Sunday 25 March 2018

Sorcery: Gem Magic

Sorcery: Gem Magic

My favorite worked example in GURPS Thaumatology is the gem injection magic (p. T239). Gems often are said to have supernatural powers, and this system lets characters inject addicting gem dust to cast spells. Let us try to adapt this to Sorcery.

Saturday 24 March 2018

Monster: Tsochar

Monster: Tsochar

The tsochar are a new aberration that was first introduced in Lords of Madness for D&D 3.5 and dedicated a whole chapter. In short, they are alien invaders obsessed with accumulation of magic items. They are collective creatures made up of several strands. They possess telepathy and parasitic possession.

Friday 23 March 2018

Alchemy: Exotic Preparations III

Alchemy: Exotic Preparations III

Some more special alchemical items converted from D&D. Sunrod is an alternative to the torch. Tanglefoot Bag can entangle a creature. Thunderstone creates a deafening blast on impact. Tindertwig lets you make fires quicker.

Thursday 22 March 2018

Alchemy: Exotic Preparations II

Alchemy: Exotic Preparations II

Here we have some non-magical alchemical substances. Alchemist's Fire was toned down compared to the one from GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 1 - Adventurers, because otherwise it would be a ridiculously priced grenade. Now it has no special effect on a direct hit. Antotoxin imbues the imbiber with resistance to poison. Holy Water and its variants damage beings outsiders. Smokestick is a good diversion.

Wednesday 21 March 2018

Sorcery: Lava Spells

Sorcery: Lava Spells

GURPS has surprisingly few rules about lava. While looking for anything about lava, I found two spells that I have missed before - Summon/Control Lava Lizard from GURPS Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 3 - Born of Myth & Magic. In addition to that, I have decided to make some more lava spells. Lava Bolt is a powerful cyclic damage missile. Volcanic Rain pelts the area with drops of lava. Transmute Rock to Lava can turn a cave into a furnace.

Tuesday 20 March 2018

Sorcery: Forgotten Spells II

Sorcery: Forgotten Spells II

I'm not done yet with spells that I have overlooked by accident. This time we have three necromantic spells from GURPS Banestorm - Abydos. False Resurrection resurrects a dead person temporarily. Ghost Wind is an area version of Death Vision. Lesser Zombie is used to animate small corpses.

Monday 19 March 2018

Sorcery: Forgotten Spells

Sorcery: Forgotten Spells

Looking through some GURPS books, I found several spells that I forgot to convert. This batch will cover four spells from GURPS Alphabet Arcane. All of the following spells are typically used as punishments for crimes or general curses.

Sunday 18 March 2018

Monster: Chuul

Monster: Chuul

The chuul is one of the monsters that I've always liked, but never got a chance to use. It's crabby, snappy, tentacly.

Saturday 17 March 2018

Fantasy Diseases

Fantasy Diseases

The topic of diseases rarely comes up in the games I play, which I find unfortunate, to be honest. GURPS does not have many diseases statted up, so I have decided to convert diseases from D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder, basing them on the examples from GURPS Bio-Tech. I wish that disease descriptions in the Dungeon Master's Guide weren't this short.

Friday 16 March 2018

Metatronic Enchanting

Metatronic Enchanting

After I had a long discussion about Sorcery and enchanted items in general, I decided to try to adapt my Metatronic Alchemy to generic enchanting. The goal here is to adapt the enchanting mechanics and find a simple formula that would dictate how long the enchantment takes. This all will be based around Metatronic Generators from Pyramid #3-46.

Thursday 15 March 2018

Monster: Choker

Monster: Choker

The choker is a halfling-sized cavern dweller with rubbery arms and a penchant for grappling and choking. Instead of giving it Altered Time Rate 1, how their D&D ability would suggest, I gave it a huge Basic Speed bonus.

Wednesday 14 March 2018

Monster: Sand Giant

Monster: Sand Giant

Sand giants in my fantasy setting rule over their kingdom and own throngs of human and gnoll slaves. Sand giants have a magical ability that allows them to create a heat shimmer around themselves. Also, they use sand blasters - exotic weapons that blast forward a cone of irritating sand.

Tuesday 13 March 2018

Monster: Sy-Daemon

Monster: Sy-Daemon

I've played Dark Colony a lot during my childhood. Genetically engineering war machines is a common trope in science fiction, and that particular RTS game featured quite a few of them. Of course, realistic options from GURPS Bio-Tech are not sufficient here, and some of the features are not allowed even for TL 12 in that book. In the end, we have a fast and strong monster that can cut up infantry with ease and even tackle on battlesuits and light vehicles. Hardened skin should protect him from small arms, but not from more heavy weaponry.

Monday 12 March 2018

Monster: Chimera

Monster: Chimera

Chimera is a low-mid level monster in D&D, but when converted to GURPS it is a serious threat, especially in melee range. Flight does not help either.

Sunday 11 March 2018

Sorcery: Poison Spells V

Sorcery: Poison Spells V

And the final batch of poison spells. Sting is a weak poisoned missile spell. Toxic Rupture is a variant of Poisoning. Venom Bolt is a variant of Spit Venom. Venomous Intoxication transforms venom into alcohol.

Saturday 10 March 2018

Sorcery: Poison Spells IV

Sorcery: Poison Spells IV

Even more poison spells. Slow Poison changes the rate of poison damage, keeping the number of cycles intact. Sobriety is another spell useful for alcoholic wizards. Spit Venom is useful for naga mages or other innately poisonous magical creatures.

Friday 9 March 2018

Sorcery: Poison Spells III

Sorcery: Poison Spells III

More converted poison spells. Increase Potency makes poisons harder to resist. Obscure Poison makes Detect Poison not very reliable. Poisoning allows the caster to directly poison the victim. Remove Hangover is a good spell for alcoholic mages.

Thursday 8 March 2018

Sorcery: Poison Spells II

Sorcery: Poison Spells II

More poison spells. Decrease Potency makes poisons easier to resist. Extract Poison instantly extracts poison. Ignite Poison causes poisons in the area to burst into flames. Illusory Poison makes the subject believe that it was poisoned.

Wednesday 7 March 2018

Sorcery: Poison Spells

Sorcery: Poison Spells

Some spells are going to be wonky. Alcohol Tolerance is a party wizard spell. Alter Poison changes the poison's type. Analyze Poison tells the caster details about the poison. Apply Poison instantly applies poison to a weapon.

Tuesday 6 March 2018

Sorcery: Gravity Spells III

Sorcery: Gravity Spells III

And here we have the last gravity spells. Reverse Gravity is a very expensive spell that turns gravity around. Resist Gravity provides protection from gravity-based attacks (very useful at high TLs). See Gravity lets the subject see gravity fields. Seek Gravity lets the subject detect gravitational anomalies. Selective Gravity lets the subject decide if he want to be affected by gravity or not.

Monday 5 March 2018

Sorcery: Gravity Spells II

Sorcery: Gravity Spells II

More gravity spells. Increase Gravity increases the local gravity level. Mass Distortion increases the subject's mass without strengthening his bones. Redirect Gravity is a very costly spell that redirects the gravity in any direction. Reduce Gravity reduces the local gravity level.

Sunday 4 March 2018

Sorcery: Gravity Spells

Sorcery: Gravity Spells

It is time to convert my Gravity College to Sorcery. Dispel Gravity creates a zone of 0G. Gravity Crush crushes the victim with internal vibrations. Gravity Push pushes the victim in any direction. Gravity Tolerance adapts the subject to the local gravity level.

Saturday 3 March 2018

Sorcery: Assorted Spells III

Sorcery: Assorted Spells III

Here we have last four (for now, at least) D&D/PF core spells that I felt were in need of a conversion, and two GURPS spells I missed. Black Tentacles is a constricting area binding spell. Disjunction is the ultimate dispel. Essential Gunpowder is a spell from Pyramid #3-111. Form of the Dragon is a draconic shapeshifting spell. Globe of Invulnerability is an anti-hostile-magic spell. Transfer Water is a spell from GURPS Thaumatology - Urban Magics.

Friday 2 March 2018

Sorcery: Illusion and Creation Spells II

Sorcery: Illusion and Creation Spells II

Here we have a few illusion and creation spells from D&D/PF. Illusory Wall conjures an ephemeral barrier. Instant Summons recalls an object to your hand. Should probably by a Gate spell instead. Invisibility Purge disallows any use of invisibility in the area. Mirror Image conjures an army of your illusory copies.

Thursday 1 March 2018

Sorcery: Healing Spells VII

Sorcery: Healing Spells VII

Here we have a few healing spells ported over from D&D/PF and one GURPS healing spell forgot to convert. Bleed makes an unconscious creature bleed. Breath of Life resurrects the subject temporarily. Clone creates a copy of the subject. Reincarnate resurrects the subject, but in a different body. Partial Resurrection is a spell from Pyramid #3-92 that brings the subject back to "life" as a non-mindless zombie.