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).

Magic: Sample Symbol Lexicons

Magic: Sample Symbol Lexicons

GURPS Thaumatology suggests symbol magic as one of the possible flexible magic systems. The caster inscribes symbols on a parchment, an object, traces them in the air, or constructs a symbol spell from the tokens he has, and activates it, producing the intended effects. This is a slow process. Each symbol has a base cost, but the book also provides other pricing guidelines, including just finding the most similar spell in GURPS Magic, taking its casting cost, and adding 1 or 2 points for extra flexibility.

Since I'm preparing for a game where I planned to use symbol magic alongside the vanilla magic and Sorcery, it's a good time to make some sample lexicons.