Realms of Power: Magic Chapter Seven: Magic Spirits

Spirits make up an important part of the magical world, both as natives of the Magic Realm and as the unseen inhabitants of the earth. However, because spirits are by their nature insensible to most physical beings, and have a limited ability to interact with them anyway, they are largely ignored by the inhabitants of Mythic Europe, magi included. Of those few Hermetic magi whose interest lies with the spiritual world, many are descendants of Ancient Greek traditions, and so much of the common terminology of the spirits is derived from the Greek language. However, magi and wizards alike from all over Mythic Europe are aware of the Invisible World, and use their magic to placate, coerce, and exploit the spirits.

Taxonomy of the Invisible World The word spirit (from the Latin spiritus, meaning “breath”) is a general term used to describe a being with no material existence. However, the term confuses two quite distinct phenomena. There are the spirits that were created as such, and the spirits that were created as human but have since ceased to be material beings. To distinguish these two, the word genius (pronounced “GAIN-ee-oos” to distinguish this Latin word from the English word) is used for the former kind, and animus for the latter. In this book, when we refer to “spirits,” we include both genii and animi in this category; however, where a rule pertains to just one of these beings, we will use the appropriate term. The genii technically include all things that never had a physical existence; but angels and demons are usually considered separate from genii. Some genii exist in the sublunar regions (the demons and the genii proper), and some in the Heavens (the angels). The genii who dwell in the Magic Realm itself are powerful beings called Daimons, or Named Spirits; whereas those spirits on earth are of much lesser power and are called Airy Spirits.

Spirits as Characters

The body of a spirit is pure form, and involves no matter. Without the exercise of its supernatural powers, a spirit cannot affect matter in any way; and without magical assistance, a material being cannot sense or interact with a spirit either. Spirits ignore the restrictions of the physical world, such as sources of damage and deprivation, and are not constrained to walk upon the surface of the world, but can fly through the air or solid objects with equal ease. Further, they are truly immortal, and do not suffer the perils of aging or disease.

Lacking a physical existence, a spirit also lacks the features of informed matter, such as color, weight, and size, and therefore produces no sensory species. When magic is used to sense the presence of a spirit (this includes the Supernatural Ability of Second Sight), the viewer’s imagination supplies details for the incomprehensible species supplied by the magic, and so a spirit may be perceived by such characters in very different ways. As visual creatures, humans usually “see” spirits under the influence of such magic, but those with no capacity to see are not barred from sensing spirits, if they have the appropriate magic. For want of a better term, a spirit’s communication with physical beings is called Silent Speech, for such impulses are usually received as auditory species, but it could be interpreted as smells or feelings on the skin, and still be understood with no difficulty.

Inherited Virtue: Magic Spirit

Concept

Like other creatures, spirits have scores in the eight Characteristics, and these should be determined like other characters. A human-shaped spirit has the Characteristics of a human, an animal spirit has the Characteristics of an animal, and so forth. For plants and spirits of non-living objects, assume that all Characteristics begin at zero and apply 7 characteristic points in the usual fashion. Note that the physical Characteristics of spirits are only used when interacting with other incorporeal creatures; spirits must possess the Donning the Corporeal Veil Power to interact with material beings.

A spirit occupies no physical space and has no weight; therefore Size is meaningless. Those who are able to sense a spirit perceive it in its natural form, which may be of any apparent size (although those with a high Presence often appear bigger than those with a low score in this Characteristic). A spirit that adopts a physical form acquires a Size along with its Physical Characteristics (see the Donning the Corporeal Veil Power, below).

As noted in the Characters chapter, all spirits have the Magical Air Flaw. In their native form they can sense other spirits without needing the Second Sight Virtue.

Season and Abilities

Simple spirits of material things such as plants or elements are often Spring characters, as are ghosts who have not yet come to terms with their death. Spirits of more complex concepts and most of the self-aware ghosts are Summer characters. A Daimon is never a Spring character, and often of the Autumn or Winter season. The Theoi — those spirits who were worshiped as gods — are usually Winter characters.

Spirits have little need for Abilities pertaining to physical actions, and rarely have the option to learn Academic or Arcane Abilities, so they often have the Reduced Abilities Inferiority. Spirits that have the ability to take material form can use any Abilities they possess in that form.

Might and Qualities

The typical Might scores of different types of spirits are listed in the sections below. Most categories of spirits have a wide range of Might scores, and so can play potentially any role in a saga.

The incorporeal, immortal, and tireless form of a spirit does not need to be purchased as a Magical Quality. Spirits have no capacity to be seen by normal humans without buying a Power such as Eidolon, and they cannot influence the material world without Powers such as Ghost Touch or Donning the Corporeal Veil. Magical Qualities such as these are almost essential for player character spirits. It is not unusual for the majority of a spirit’s Qualities to be spent on Powers.

Spirits as a Source of Vis The intangible bodies of spirits contain raw vis, typically 1 pawn of an appropriate Form per magnitude of their Might, although spirits with a Might less than 5 do not have sufficient power to represent even a single pawn. If the spirit is slain while in immaterial form, the vis may be automatically distilled into a physical receptacle; this usually only occurs if the spirit has a strong tie to the material world, such as a ghost, a spirit of the elements, or a genius loci. Many spirits do not have such ties, however, and upon their death the vis remains in non-material form, and must be converted to physical form (using a variant of Gather the Essence of the Beast) for it to be used by a physical being. If an Aspect of a Daimon is destroyed, it can choose whether or not to recall the immaterial body; only if the body remains does the vis remain. Use of magic that destroys the Might of a spirit also reduces the amount of vis accordingly, so a spirit totally destroyed in this manner leaves no vis behind at all. The power Donning the Corporeal Veil (see below) creates a physical body, which if slain contains normal material vis. The Presence Power (see below) results in vis accumulating in the spirit’s habitual haunt, and harvesting this vis does not harm the spirit (although it might annoy it).

Daimons The Daimons, or Named Spirits, embody the elements of creation, from the mighty Protogoni and the Intelligences of the Planetary Bodies, right down to the spirits of sacred groves. Ascended Magi and Heroes of Old (see The Mysteries Revised Edition, pages 137–140) are also included within the Daimons. While they are known as the Named Spirits, this does not mean that other spirits do not have personal names, rather it is the complex series of syllables and ritual gestures that make up a True Name (see Spirits and Magic below) that is indicated. New Virtue: Daimon Free, Social Status (spirits only) This free Virtue is possessed by all Daimons. All Daimons have a Confidence Score of at least 1. A Daimon is a permanent resident of the Magic Realm and cannot enter the material world; instead, it creates an Aspect as its agent on Earth. An Aspect may be created or destroyed with a moment’s thought, and costs no Might points to create. Each Aspect is like an independent spirit, with some or all of the characteristics and powers of the original spirit, but its own Might score (usually a mere fraction of the parent Daimon), and its own pool of Might points. An Aspect cannot recover spent Might points, rather it is dispelled when exhausted and replaced (if necessary) with another Aspect. Defeating or destroying the Aspect has no impact on the originating Daimon, except perhaps on its disposition towards the perpetrators of these acts. No permanent changes can be made to any Aspect, as they never last. Only the Aspect is ever trapped or bound by magic, and the Daimon can escape by discarding the Aspect. An Aspect cannot appear within several miles of another Aspect of the same Daimon, and no Aspect can return to the same location (as defined by the storyguide) within a day of leaving it. Not all Aspects created by the same Daimon need be identical; designed for different functions, they might have different powers and Mights. An Aspect is a constant Arcane Connection of indefinite duration which is in constant mental contact with its Daimon. While an Aspect may be used to target spells of Arcane Range against its parent Daimon, few magi have sufficient power to make such spells penetrate the larger Might of the Daimon itself. A failed attempt to target a Daimon in this fashion can prove very dangerous for the impertinent magus!

Powers of the Spirits

Spirits typically have one to five supernatural powers, and this section details many of the most common ones. General guidelines for powers can be found in Chapter 4: Magic Characters. Some of these powers are similar to those available to the Forest Spirits in Guardians of the Forests: The Rhine Tribunal. The details given here revise and update those descriptions. These powers may also be used for creatures other than spirits. Naturally, any power that affects another being must penetrate its Magic Resistance. Powers that are similar to Ritual spells permanently reduce the spirit’s Might score as well as Might pool; Might Score can be restored according to the mechanism detailed in Chapter 4: Magic Characters.

Control Human
2 points, Init equal to Qik, Mentem
R: Touch, D: Conc, T: Ind

If this power penetrates, the spirit exerts direct control over the target. It can issue commands that the target carries out to the best of his abilities; however, the target can attempt to break the control of the spirit every time he is asked to do something complex (something that would involve the use of an Ability, spell, or magical power), dangerous, or which goes contrary to the target’s nature. To break free, the target makes an Intelligence roll against an Ease Factor equal to 9 + magnitude of spirit’s Might. This Intelligence roll is modified by any appropriate Personality Trait of the target. For example, a character ordered to fight is penalized by his Aggressive Personality trait, but might be aided by his Cowardly Personality Trait. Where multiple traits might apply, use the one that gives the largest modifier, whether positive or negative. If the Intelligence roll fails, the target must obey the spirit but receives a +1 cumulative bonus to his next attempt to break the spirit’s control.

(ReMe 30 (base 20, +1 Touch, +1 Conc): Greater Power (30 levels, –1 Might cost, +3 Init))

Donning the Corporeal Veil
5 points, Init equal to Qik – 3, appropriate Form (Lesser Power) OR
0 points, Init equal to Qik – 1, appropriate Form (Greater Power)
R: Touch, D: Sun, T: Ind

Produces and animates a body of flesh, wood, or elemental matter. A spirit with this power has a single corporeal form that it can adopt; although some spirits have this power more than once, and can therefore form more than one physical shape, such spirits can still only use one body at a time. The body created with this power has the same physical statistics as the spirit, but can have a maximum Size of +1. Creating a larger body requires an additional magnitude for every additional 3 points of Size, and thus requires that another Greater or Lesser Power Magical Quality is bought to account for the additional levels.

A spirit may maintain the body indefinitely, recreating it every time the duration expires, but it is subject to aging, disease, and deprivation (but not fatigue) just like a living being. The body lasts until slain or dissolved by the spirit. If slain in material form, the spirit (or Aspect) is also destroyed, and the body will contain pawns of vis equal to that within the spirit’s spiritual form. A spirit whose body is sorely injured usually dissolves it to prevent its own death. The body formed with this power may have intrinsic powers; a body formed of fire, for example, has the same features as the Body of Fire power of fire elementals.

(Cr(Re) Form 25 (base 5, +1 Touch, +2 Sun, +1 requisite): Lesser Power (25 levels)) OR
Cr(Re) Form 25 (base 5, +1 Touch, +2 Sun, +1 requisite): Greater Power (25 levels, –3 Might cost, +2 Init))

Eidolon
0 points, Init equal to Qik, Imaginem
R: Touch, D: Conc, T: Ind

Creates an illusionary form that is visible and audible to material beings. The spirit can create a single form with each version of this power it possesses. The image can move and speak as directed by the spirit, and lasts until the spirit has no further use for it.

(CrIm 15 (base 2, +1 Touch, +1 Conc, +2 move at command, +1 intricacy): Greater Power (15 levels, +2 Init, –2 Might cost; 15 levels surplus))

Ghost Touch
Variable cost, Init equal to (Qik – Might points spent), Terram
R: varies, D: varies, T: varies

Moves objects that are not held by another or fastened down. For 1 Might point, a maximum of 5 pounds can be moved; every additional Might point doubles this weight limit. If the item is hurled with force, the spirit requires the Thrown Weapons Ability, and it inflicts +5 damage per Might point spent. If the spirit has a Martial Ability, it can enter combat with an object when using this power (most weapons weigh less than 10 pounds), and uses its Characteristics to calculate combat totals as normal. All physical attacks with this power need to penetrate Magic Resistance. The power lasts until the object is released by the spirit.

(ReTe 25: Focus Power)

Manifestation
4 or more points, Init equal to (Qik – Might points spent), Animal or Herbam
R: Touch, D: Conc, T: Ind or Group

Manifests the spirit’s consciousness among animals or plant life it touches, temporarily granting them a Might score equal to the Might points spent, and controlling their actions. It is a Rego Herbam effect of Level 20 to control a plant that is a pace in diameter (costing 4 Might points), and a Rego Animal of Level 25 to control a single creature of Size +1 (costing 5 Might points). For an extra 2 Might points, a group of ten standard creatures or plants (or the equivalent mass) can be controlled. For each additional 2 Might points spent, the mass of creatures or plants controlled is multiplied by 10. The spirit cannot spend more Might points on this power than the magnitude of its Magic Might. Plants can be animated (see Chapter 8: Magic Things, Magic Plants) or made to grow with unnatural speed. For instance, a patch of weeds can spring up overnight, whereas a tree can grow from a seeding in a month. Humans and other sentient beings cannot be controlled by this power. This power is particularly suitable for genii loci, who are considered to be touching any plants or creatures within their domain.

(ReHe 20 or more (base 10, +1 Touch, +1 Conc) or ReAn 25 or more (base 15, +1 Touch, +1 Conc): Focus Power x 2)

Material Anchor
1, 2, 3, or 4 points, Init equal to (Qik – 2x Might cost), Vim
R: Touch, D: Mom, T: Ind, Ritual

This ritual-like power either forms an Arcane Connection to a particular person or place, or makes an object into an Arcane Connection to the spirit itself. If the connection is to last for hours or days, then it costs just 1 point; a connection that lasts for weeks or months costs 2 points; years or decades costs 3 points; and indefinite Arcane Connections cost 4 points. The spirit must be in the physical location of the object it is making into an Arcane Connection, and must penetrate Magic Resistance as usual.

(No Hermetic equivalent: Ritual Power)

Presence
0 points, constant, Imaginem
R: Arc, D: Sun, T: Ind

Grants awareness of everything that happens within the bounds of a specific domain chosen by the spirit. In essence, the spirit is coterminous with its associated landscape feature, so it is present simultaneously everywhere within its boundaries. Double the Might of a spirit with this power for the purposes of calculating Tether Strength (see Formation of Magic Auras). The spirit’s Might score determines the size of area possible: a Room (5–10 Might), a Structure (15–25 Might), or a standard Boundary (30+ Might). For Daimons, every 5 Might above 30 adds 1 size modifier to the base Boundary; an Airy Spirit or animus can only ever control a base Boundary, regardless of Might. The area controlled by the spirit can produce a yearly harvest of (Might/10) pawns of vis of an appropriate Form, which manifests as physical objects within the controlled region. Harvesting this vis does not erode the spirit’s Might. This power is possessed by all genii loci, and many ghosts.

(InIm 35 (base 2, +4 Arc, +2 Sun, +1 constant effect, +1 non-Hermetic effects): Greater Power (35 levels, –3 Might cost))

Regio
15 points, Init equal to (Qik – 30), Vim
R: Arc, D: Mom, T: Boundary, Ritual

This power is only suitable for spirits with the Presence power. Upon using the power, a Magic regio forms at a part of the landscape inhabited by the spirit. The regio has a single layer, which has a Magic aura 1 point higher than the Magic aura of the landscape from which it came (an aura of 1 forms if there is no supernatural aura or a Divine, Faerie, or Infernal aura). This power can be used more than once to create additional layers to the regio; each additional layer has an aura 2 points stronger than the previous layer, up to a maximum of 10. The contents of each layer are determined by the spirit, but are always strongly related to its nature. The spirit controls access to the different levels of the regio, and can make an effective trap or hiding place by retreating to the second or greater layer and sealing the first layer entirely. Might points spent on this Ritual Power are permanently removed from the spirit’s Might Score as well as its Might pool.

(No Hermetic equivalent: Ritual Power x 3)

Stasis
10 points, Init equal to (Qik – 20), Vim
R: Arc, D: Mom, T: Boundary, Ritual

The spirit can cause a defined area with a Magic aura, such as a cave, a glade, or a regio level to become so remote and closed off from the outside world that the passage of time itself is altered. A mortal resident here still makes Aging rolls as normal, using the Aura strength as a Living Conditions modifier. However, any aging points are applied to the character as Warping points instead. An aging result that results in either sufficient aging points to reach the next level of Decrepitude or a Crisis, instead inflicts sufficient Warping points to reach the next level of Warping Score. Magi must still check for Twilight if they suffer two or more Warping points as a result of aging in this manner. The character’s perception of the passing years and memories of his prior life gradually become hazy. Keep track of the total number of Warping points gained instead of aging (rather than from other sources); if 50 or more points are accumulated in this manner (equivalent to a Decrepitude of 4 or more), the character cannot leave a Magic aura without dying from the sudden accumulation of his missed years, but he can move from the protected area as long as he remains within a Magic aura. This might allow for legendary figures from centuries past to still endure, hidden deeply in a secret location and protected by a powerful spirit. Might points spent on this Ritual-like power are permanently removed from the spirit’s Might Score as well as its Might pool.

(No Hermetic equivalent: Ritual Power x 2)