The first section here is specific to the sectioning of chapter ten in the D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, but the rest (most) is general notes SPELL RESISTANCE We have the traditional Fivtorian mana-reduction form of magic resistance for some purposes. For example, something that was built specifically to counter powerful magic, but shouldn't be totally immune to mid-range magic, cannot be done with 3rd Ed SR. The standard SR (like 1st Ed magic resistance) has little effect on powerful casters while blocking weaker casters, regardless of spell level. The Fivtorian norm has been a reduction in the caster's effective level, so the most likely spells to fail are those at the limit of the caster's ability, and those most likely to succeed are low-level spells cast by high-level characters. There is a very different feel to the two mechanics. COMPARISON OF SPELL RESISTANCE AND MAGIC RESISTANCE Spell Resistance (SR) is the "slippery" avoidance of spell effects. This is what creatures in the Monster Manual have. But those entities that are specifically hardened versus magic, or that are specifically anti-magic, have Mana Resistance (MR), which is ported from ~1st Edition Fivtoria house rules. The two would be cumulative only in that MR would lower the effective caster level for an SR check. The DMG specifies that it takes a standard action to suppress one's SR for a round. In the case of either SR or MR in Fivtoria, this is instead a free action, or a standard action to open a single hole, such as for a friend to cast a spell on you while you remain resistant to enemy spells. It is a free action to create such a hole for one's own spells and spell-like abilities, but (house rule) not for magic items and such external magical abilities. (That's why demons and gods don't use items of new magic.) Any reduction of or hole in SR or MR lasts until the beginning of the creature's initiative turn the following round. Magic resistance (like SR, I suppose) generally applies to a creature and anything worn or carried. Unlike SR, MR can be applied to a spell that is already running. The likely result is a reduction in the spell's area of effect and/or duration where contact is made. If either becomes inadequate, a hole is formed in the spell (or perhaps a Polymorphed creature's hand reverts to normal upon shaking hands with the creature with MR). MAGIC RESISTANCE Any amount of MR will reduce the caster level of a magic effect by 1. For example, a spell of caster level 8 will become a spell of caster level 8 - something, which is less than 8 no matter how small the MR. For reductions of more than 1 caster level, use the costs from the spell point system, subtracting the MR from the spell power of the caster. A lowered effective caster level, as before, reduces all characteristics of a spell (range, damage, etc) and can cause a spell to fail (wherever it is that the MR is having an effect, possibly just on one creature) if the caster's effective level is reduced enough to either reduce it below the minimum to cast the spell, or reduce it to the point that the effect is no longer large enough to include the resistant person/object/space. Spells cast unprepared might have a Free Casting check to still get the spell to work in such situations. Once you've figured out how large a caster-level penalty to apply, you need to determine what effect the reduction has. First, if the caster level is still high enough for the spell as it was prepared, then compute the variables of the spell based on the new caster level, and apply them as normal. Note that if the range has shortened to the point of excluding an intended target, then the spell fails to affect that target. This is the simple case in which the spell functions normally. What follows is the complicated case - when the spell's caster level is no longer high enough for the spell as it was prepared, and something must be sacrificed for the spell to function. One advantage of the Arcane School Focus feat of Fivtoria house rules is that the +1 bonus on the caster level of spells offsets one level of reduction due to MR. So when a specialist Wizard with Arcane School Focus casts a spell in his specialty that he is barely high enough level to cast, the spell is *not* reduced below its minimum caster level by minimal MR. In every other case, a Wizard casting a spell that he is just high enough level to use is very vulnerable to having it greatly weakened or cancelled altogether. FADED SPELLS If the spell's adjusted caster level is too low for the slot the spell required, the spell may fail. Reduce the spell to a spell-level slot for which the caster level is adequate, without regard to whether there is a free slot at that spell level. This is the highest-level slot the spell may occupy. If there is a metamagic feat that can be removed from the spell to account for a spell list reduction of at least that large, then remove that metamagic feat and the spell will operate as described above ("caster level is still high enough"). Metamagic feats that already had their effect, such as Quicken Spell, Silent Spell or Still Spell, cannot be removed from the spell to keep it viable. Metamagic feats that change rather than enhance the spell cannot be removed, so a spell with Energy Substitution will not revert to its native energy form in order to stay viable, nor will a spell with an altered shape revert to its native shape. Only metamagic feats that have not yet been accounted for can be removed. Enlarge Spell is one such feat, but removing it reduces the spell's range, and if the new (unenhanced) spell range is inadequate to reach the target, the spell fails for that target. Always remove the highest-cost available metamagic feat first (choosing randomly in case of a tie), until the spell becomes viable. If there is *not* a metamagic feat that can be removed to keep the spell viable, then the spell is weakened beyond its normal minimum. In this case, for every unit of caster level reduction beyond spell viability, subtract the excess MR from the DC of the spell. If the spell has no save, subtract 5% times excess MR from its chance of success, instead. In both cases, "excess MR" is the amount of MR beyond that which reduces the spell to minimum viability. The spell's save DC is not reduced to account for a spell being effectively moved to a slot of a lower level, except of course that removing the Heighten Spell feat will remove that feat's effects, including the would-be increase to the spell's DC. Only excess MR directly reduces the spell's save DC, and the DC reduction (or failure chance) is only for those targets who are being shielded by the MR (i.e. who either possess the MR, are on the right side of the MR, or are being personally shielded by (treated as a possession of) the one with MR). Example: A 5th-level Wizard casts a Fireball that includes Myrna, who has MR 2 due to the Mana Cloak spell. The caster level of the spell is reduced by the MR from 5 to 4 (from power 10 to power 8). In the world of Fivtoria, Fireball does full damage only in the center, and it is not important for this example where Myrna is - she takes 2d6 less damage (on a failed save), regardless of her location in the spread of the fire. Furthermore, since Fireball is a 3rd level spell and our caster is not a specialist, 5 is the minimum caster level for his use of the spell. Since the caster level has dropped below the minimum of 5, the DC for Myrna to save (for half damage) is reduced by 2 (spell-point power for minimum caster level is 10, minus current spell power 8). If, in the above example, the spell had been Dispel Magic, in addition to lowering the spell's caster level for its caster level check, the MR would also result in a 10% failure chance (5% times what would have been the reduction of the save DC, if Dispel Magic allowed a save). TODO Figure out whether a priest of a fire god should get 3rd Edition fire spells at the same level as Druids, or at level-1 compared to Druids. PHB3 indicates same level (i.e. the spell list is 1 higher, but Druids are fire specialists). (Druids specialists in animal, plant, fire and electricity?...) See which old 0th-level spells need to be preserved. Start a list of 3rd Ed spells taking the place of their 1st Ed equivalents. For example, Bull's Strength replaces the 1st Ed Strength spell. OTHER SPECIALIST CASTERS can use any normal spell of their specialty at -1 spell level. (Illusion, Animal, Plant at least some Conjuration spells, and possibly most divine Elemental:Fire and Elemental:Air spells are listed at what I consider to be their specialist spell level, so those all move up 1 spell level for the non-specialists.) The odd spells (not in the PHB) have generally not been available outside the specialty, so they are available to other casters or the appropriate type (divine or arcane) at +2 or +3 spell levels. A Wizard can specialize in one school by giving up 2 others, while a Cleric can specialize in any sphere appropriate to the religion at double the per-sphere cost laid out in the AD&D 2nd Edition book Players Option: Skills and Powers. SPELL ATTUNEMENT An Attuned spell is one that is intended specifically to overcome the spell resistance and/or saving throw of a particular creature or group of creatures, or to avoid overcoming the spell saving throw of a particular individual or group. This is a very powerful capability, and is limited mostly by the difficulty of acquiring personalization resources (e.g. fresh blood, secret name) to attune a spell. As a result, this capability depends heavily on GM judgement. There are 3 feats for spell attunement: Attune Spell to Body, Attune Spell to Heart and Attune Spell to Mind. In the Fivtoria universe, a spirit has 3 parts: heart, mind and body -- each of these feats enables the attunement of a spell to one part of the spirit. When applied very well, spell attunement can make the most powerful of creatures utterly helpless to avoid the effects of a spell. But when applied minimally, it does not have this effect on weak creatures. This is in conflict with how most modifiers work in D&D, since an enormous save DC modifier would be required to effect the most powerful demons yet a starting character could be frustrated by even the slightest modifier. So the mechanic I'd like to propose is one of proportional save adjustment. Each of the 3 forms of attunement causes a percent reduction in the target's save bonus and SR-over-10. The effects of all 3 attunements are cumulative, but can never do more than eliminate the bonus and reduce SR to 10. (It has no effect on MR.) Spell attunement can even offset magical bonuses, since the effect is to bypass resistance, rather than to overcome it. For the save bonuses that are effected, I'm thinking it should include bonuses for level, of course, plus resistance bonuses and perhaps all other bonuses except "luck" and perhaps "morale". Each of the 3 forms of attunement can lower the target's resistance by up to 50%. Only something intensely personal will give the full -50% adjustment for one form of attunement. The total resistance reduction can not exceed 100%. For attunement to members of a group, rather than to an individual, is the best total attunement possible (with all 3 forms combined), but is unlikely to exceed about -20%. ADJUSTMENT BODY ATTUNEMTNT -50% fresh, clean blood -40% fresh blood taken from a weapon -40% hair taken directly from the target -30% blood, slightly dried before preservation -30% the target is fooled into accepting a token -20% recent hair taken from the target's pillow -20% fresh blood taken from an immediate relative -10% fresh blood taken from a less-close relative (<8 steps) -5% fresh blood taken from a creature of the same race -5% older hair, skin flakes, etc. -0% recently-collected hair from a creature of the same race ADJUSTMENT HEART ATTUNEMENT -50% spell cast by target's "true love" -50% a token of target's deepest hopes and dreams -20% a token of target's religion (if totally devoted) -10% a token of target's religion (if very devout) -5% a token of target's religion (if more than just observant) -5% a token of target's pantheon (if very devout) -0% a token of target's pantheon (if mostly observant) ADJUSTMENT MIND ATTUNEMENT -50% target's very private "true name" -40% a big secret about the target -30% target's personal favorite music, food, etc. -20% target's common (but personal) name -20% a moderate secret about the target -20% a big secret about a group the target is in -10% a moderate secret about a group the target is in -10% a minor secret about the target -5% cultural (group) favorite music, food, etc. -5% a well-worn alias or name that isn't very personal -0% a correct name that isn't at all personal The spell has a lessened effect on anyone it is not attuned to. For each attunement feat used with the spell and that does not apply to a target, subtract 2 from the DC and from a roll to bypass SR. It is not too difficult to minimally attune a spell to your enemy (perhaps giving him a -1 to save), while giving your friends as much as -6 DC (which is like a +6 to save). Spells that allow a Reflex save generally cannot be attuned. Spells that allow a Will or Fortitude save struggle to overcome some characteristic of the target creature(s), while spells that allow a Reflex save are ones you simply want to get out of the way of. (I can't think of any valid examples of an attuneable spell with a Reflex save.) The tokens personal to the creature or group to be attuned to must be used in preparation for the spell. This process normally takes a full day. The Fast Spell Attunement feat reduces preparation time to 1 hour. If the required day is not spent in preparation, the individual attunement percentages (but not the limit) are all halved. If someone with Fast Spell Attunement does not take the required hour in preparation, the individual attunement percentages are cut to 3/4. For a caster who uses "prepared" spells, the preparation is done at the end of the day (or hour, or spell preparation time), and the spell slot is filled as normal with the attuned spell until it is either cast or discarded. For a caster who normally uses "unprepared" spells, that spell slot is still filled, though the caster gets none of the other effects of preparation (e.g. short casting times). In either case, the tokens used in preparation must still be used in casting the spell, and their quality at casting time determines how well they work. An attuned spell that an appropriate target is fooled into accepting has an even greater effect. The attunement modifier for each form of attunement is doubled, but is still limited to -50% per form. There are specific requirements for the creature to "accept" the spell. First some token (not necessarily meaningful to the target) must be prepared with the attunement as the token of acceptance. Second, the token must come relatively directly from the caster to the target; a gold piece found on the floor or carried by a messenger is inadequate. And finally, the target must accept it the way he might accept a gift. Mere holding, storing or passing on is not enough -- he must take it for himself. ------------ Heighten Spell is the only metamagic feat whose benefits are automatic for a spell researched at a higher level. (It also is a free effect for spells cast at a higher level by witches and priests.) All other metamagic feat effects should be equivalent to researching a spell at a higher level to begin with, except that you lose the freedom to make interesting variations and the potential to get small efficiencies specific to that type of spell. BONUS SPELL POINTS For those using the optional spell-point system, below is a table of bonus spell points for high Wis/Int/Cha that is equivalent to the 3rd Edition bonus table (Table 1-1: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells) in the PHB, but converted to spell points. MODIFIER SPELL POINT BONUS BY CASTER LEVEL 1 3 5 7 9 11 +0 - - - - - - +1 4 4 4 4 4 4 +2 4 10 10 10 10 10 +3 4 10 20 20 20 20 +4 4 10 20 35 35 35 +5 8 14 24 39 61 61 +6 8 20 30 45 67 97 ------------ SPELL POINTS I'd like to do spell points just as I've been doing them in Fivtoria pre-3rd-Ed, but with the number of bonus spell points based on 3rd Edition: INT/WIS/CHA SP BONUS 10-11 2 ( 3 at 11) 12-13 4 ( 7 at 13) 14-15 10 (15 at 15) 16-17 20 (27 at 17) 18-19 35 (49 at 19) 20-21 63 22-23 97 24-25 147 26-27 212 28-29 302 30-32 338 Here are the costs of casting spells, by level [redundant]. Use of a metamagic feat will slide a spell down on the cost table (higher cost) (which is why 10th+ spells are relevant... see the Epic Level Handbook from Wizards of the Coast). Note that augmented ritual casting rules from Relics & Rituals are kinda implemented here by unprepared casting of spells: LIST PREP'D UNPREP'D 0 2 4 1 4 8 2 6 12 3 10 20 4 15 30 5 22 44 6 30 60 7 40 80 8 50 100 9 60 120 (10 70 140, etc.) Spell casters get spell points corresponding to their level, based on the table below [redundant]. SCRAP THIS. CALCULATE POINTS FROM PHB3 SLOTS, AND MOVE ABOVE. LEVEL POINTS LEVEL POINTS 1/4 2 10 150 1/2 4 11 200 1 9 12 250 2 13 13 300 3 20 14 350 4 30 15 400 5 45 16 475 6 60 17 550 7 75 18 625 8 95 19 700 9 120 20+ +100/level beyond Here is a caster's spell power (the maximum a caster can use in casting a single spell, excluding continued maintenance and some rituals), by level. Notice that the spell power shown here is what determines what levels of spell a caster can use: LEVEL POWER LEVEL POWER 1/4 1 10 26 1/2 2 11 30 1 4 12 35 2 5 13 40 3 6 14 45 4 8 15 50 5 10 16 55 6 12 17 60 7 15 18 65 8 18 19 70 9 22 20+ +10/level beyond ------------ TEAMWORK The rules for Combined Ritual casting from Relics & Rituals are effectively implemented here with the magic teamwork rules I've been using in Fivtoria. There are two forms of teamwork: ring-pattern and star-pattern. In both cases, the team has a group of casters in contact for the duration of the spell's casting (and during additional maintenance, if any is done with teamwork). For arcane magic, this is physical contact unless they are aided by a spell to take the place of physical contact. For divine magic, the religion usually provides the medium of contact. One caster is designated as the leader of the team for a particular spell, and must remain the leader during the entire casting (but not during additional maintenance, if any). The leader casts and must make a successful Team Casting skill check, while the others just contribute spell points. Even if you aren't using the optional spell-point rules, the calculations for teamwork still must be done in terms of spell points. Afterwards, the player of the slots-based caster can determine which unfilled spell slots (that add to the correct number of spell points, or higher) will be used up for that day. Team casting is common for parish priests and witch covens, but rare otherwise. RING-PATTERN TEAMS Only the people in the shortest path around the ring are counted for the team effort. (Trying something like a figure-eight with the team leader at the nexus would be risky, but may be necessary for some true rituals...) If there are only two team members, they still must make contact at two locations on the leader's body (e.g. the helper with a hand on each of the leader's shoulders). The effect of casting a spell in this way is that the leader's ability is used for the spell, but the spell point cost (and possible XP cost) is divided up. The leader can personally pay any amount desired (often zero) up front, then the rest is evenly among the team members, including the leader. (When this does not divide evenly, the leader chooses how to divide the remainder among the team members.) Each member of a ring can independently decide how many spell points and/or experience points he is willing to spend. This means a single weak or uncooperative member of a ring can sabotage the entire team effort. This shouldn't be a problem for a congregation (see below for the definition of "congregation"), since the members of the ring can be determined on-the-fly. A team that is a congregation can do ring-pattern team casting without physical contact. They are linked through their religion. Casting with a ring of 4 or more members is more difficult than casting with a ring of 2 or 3, because there are members with whom the leader is not in direct contact. This can lead to instability, and is reflected in a -4 to the Team Casting skill check. That check suffers a further -1 penalty for every 8 members of the ring. A congregation does not suffer this penalty. STAR-PATTERN TEAMS Each source of spell points (usually individuals, but possibly sub-teams) is independently in contact with the team leader. Each must be a single contact. Every member of the team (each point of contact with the leader, and the leader himself) spends the full number of spell points required for the spell. The effect of the teamwork is that the spell is cast with more power than the leader alone could muster -- add the square-root of the helpers' spell power to the leader's spell power, and do a reverse lookup of the power to determine the caster-level equivalent. (Adding the square-root of helpers' cumulative power worked with the Tree system, but it doesn't appear to work for D&D magic. I'm inclined to replace it with something like "add the cube-root of the helpers' levels, minus one." Unfortunately, the closest I've gotten to what I'm looking for is the square-root of (sum-of-helper-levels / square-root of leader's level) ). This elevated equivalent level is used for range, duration, area, damage, saving-throw DC, dispel resistance and overcoming spell resistance. It should not be applied (GM's discretion) to skill-based variables, like the attack plus of a spell effect that lets the caster mentally wield a conjured weapon as though he were a fighter. Casting with a star of 6 or more members is more difficult than with 2-5 for most creatures, assuming a creature with 4 major limbs. For every member of the star beyond 5, the Team Casting check suffers a penalty of -1. TEAM INTERFACES A Wizard's arcane magic power is unaspected, so Wizards who otherwise have nothing in common can work as a team. This is untrue of some arcane magic power, and of all divine magic power. For example, the magic of outsiders may well be aspected, and can contribute only to teams casting a spell with that aspect. The same is true of any cooperation across religions: two Clerics of different fire gods could team up usefully for a more powerful fire spell, but probably not for divination or protection. In general, assume that same-aspect magic ("fire") is 100% cumulative, that similar-aspect magic (same alignment or same pantheon) is 50% cumulative, and that different-aspect magic is 0% cumulative. The basic arcane-magic team is a group of casters in physical contact. The basic divine-magic team is a group of people in a congregation, where a "congregation" is defined here as a religious gathering on consecrated ground in which all the participants can follow the same lead -- they can hear the lead caster speak, can sing hymns in (near) unison, etc. It is possible to connect multiple congregations into a mega-team, but it is said that only the god can do this. A congregation can be organized as either star- or ring-pattern team. Typically, the non-casters would form a ring, with the ring-leader being a junior priest, and that ring and the other casters would form a star lead by the high priest. When teams mix arcane and divine casters, the type of the team is determined by what the leader is casting. A divine caster contributes only half as much as he tries to as part of an arcane-magic team (i.e. he spends 2 spell points for every 1 that is counted, and his power is counted as 50% of actual). An arcane caster contributes only one-fourth as much as he tries to as part of a divine-magic team. COVENS Witch covens are the most well-explored examples of arcane-magic teamwork. A coven of 3, especially siblings, is excellent for starting witches. Even when experimenting (effective caster level 1/4), a star-pattern gives the leader +1 effective level, and they can cast as a team without needing ranks in the Team Casting skill. Assuming they are all the same level, starting at 4th the leader gets +2 effective levels. Beyond that, a coven of 3 witches is less effective with star-pattern casting, not getting +3 effective levels until 21st level. A coven of 5 is more challenging for ring-casting, but works better for star-casting than does a coven of 3. Assuming all members are the same level, at 1st level they get +2 effective levels, at 6th +3, and at 16th +4. A coven of 7 works well with 1 of high skill, 2 of medium skill, and 4 of low skill. The two medium-skill witches each lead a ring of 2 novices, while the senior witch brings the two rings together in a star. This demands very little skill in Team Casting, and lets the senior witch include and educate a group of students. A coven of 10 or 13 works very much like a coven of 7, just with more rings. Usually a novice witch will either join a coven of 7+, or will form a coven of peers with 2 or 4 fellow novices. By 7th level, the witches in a coven of peers are starting to outgrow their group, and either set off on their own or start a teaching coven (size 7 for those who like (or are stuck with) small groups, and size 13 for those who like large ones). MORE COMPLICATIONS Team casting could theoretically result in a low-level caster having a huge cost for his part in a spell. This can be especially drastic for a star-pattern team casting a spell with an XP cost (e.g. a 1st level character were expected to pony up 5,000+ XP for a Wish spell). In the casting of a divine spell, a team member can choose to drop to as low as -1000 XP. However, any drop below 0 XP results in the character's death when the spell is done, with that person's life having been sacrificed to the god (or to the religion, if you believe the atheists). Team-member martyrdom does not work for arcane casting, or for teams who are not congregations (e.g. mixed religion or not on sacred ground). Any member of a team who is injured must make the usual Concentration skill check to continue "casting" (to remain a member of the team). The DC is 10 + spell level + damage taken. Any member who falls unconcious, becomes unable or unwilliing to give any more, or otherwise ceases to contribute is automatically dropped from the team. The lost member is considered to have not contributed at all to the team effort. (The team works enough recovering from the surprise to make up for any help it had gotten from the lost member.) For every member who drops out of the team, an additional Team Casting check is required, at a -2 penalty. (When several drop out in the same round, make one check with a cumulative penalty.) An extra check is required, but at no penalty, when someone arrives or when someone departs in a properly coordinated and controlled manner. TEAM CRAFTING OF ITEMS Teamwork can help with making a magic item in much the same way that it helps with casting a spell. Often, this is done with a ring pattern, and while the leader takes the entire spell-point/slot cost of the spell, he divides the XP cost so as to avoid a negative level (and to share the burden with those who are unable to make such an item). Dividing the XP cost like this also results in the loss being recovered much more quickly, because multiple casters are recovering their loss in parallel. If a team member drops out, his contribution for that day only is lost. If a team member joins, he can contribute in later days, but not on the day of his arrival. The use of the term "contribute" above means the expenditure of spell points (or spell slots if you use the standard accounting scheme) and/or experience points (XP) to the team effort. But there is another way in which a team member can help: by providing a prerequisite skill that the leader lacks. This only works in a ring-pattern team, where any member is equally suited to being the focus of the team's activity. As long as any member of the team has the prerequisite for the crafting of an item, the team itself is considered to have that prerequisite. If the prerequisite is responsible for only a portion of the item's "base price" (see DMG3 page 242), then the person who provides that prerequisite need be there for only that fraction of the time. For example, if it takes 10 days to make a suit of magic armor, and the rustproofing enchantment is responsible for only 10% of the cost, then the one member who has the rustproofing spell would need to be in the team for only 1 day. ------------ TRUE RITUALS I like the true ritual rules from Relics & Rituals (by Sword & Sorcery Studios (i.e. White Wolf). There are a couple of Wizard true rituals in the book I don't like, and there are presumably dozens of additional true rituals known in the game world, but most of them are out of the PCs' reach, still. ------------ SLOW CASTING AND FREE POINTS Spells can be cast with free spell points. These are points beyond those which are tied up in prepared spells. Since a spell cast with these free points isn't prepared it lacks the benefits of preparation, namely quick casting (e.g. as a standard action) and low spell-point cost. An unprepared casting (a free-point casting) costs twice as many spell points as a prepared casting of the same spell. It also takes a number of consecutive full-round actions equal to the spell list (plus the normal casting time, if that was a full round or more). There are several advantages to offset these two disadvantages. First, you can keep spell points in reserve until you know what spell you want to cast with them. Second, variables that are normally set at the time of preparation can instead be set at the time of casting. Third, it allows for team casting. Fourth, an unprepared spell can be maintained as long as the caster provides spell points, even without the Extend Spell feat. Finally, there are some casters (Witches) who are unable to cast prepared spells. ------------ MAINTENANCE Spells can be maintained with more spell points. If you use the Extend Spell feat to prepare a spell at 50% higher spell-point cost, you cast it with the duration extended by 50%, as well. The use of the feat does not have a spell-list limit -- you can make some spells last a very, very long time by preparing the spell with your entire spell point pool (and even longer with teammates in a ring pattern). This is more expensive than by-the-book use of Extend Spell, but gives much more flexibility. If a spell is cast unprepared, the Extend Spell feat is unneeded as long as the caster stays conscious and keeps feeding spell points to the spell. The level of attention necessary is similar to that needed to walk slowly (i.e. take a 5' step every round), so only the deepest concentration and most stressful encounters will disrupt it. (If the caster takes damage, he needs to make a Concentration skill check at a base DC of zero.) With the Extend Spell feat, none of this effort is needed -- the caster can simply add enough spell points to the spell (in a lump sum) for it to run a while, and go to sleep (or whatever). PRIEST-SPECIFIC addition: If a priest chants[*] from the moment of casting a spell, the limited duration of the spell does not start counting down until the priest stops. In effect, he is having the rest of his church maintain the spell for him. This also means that his church's standards of acceptable behavior are somewhat higher than usual for the spell the church is helping with. (If it's morally questionable, it'll probably fail.) [*]: The term "chanting" is taken mostly from the 1st edition Chant spell, and refers to any form of concentration with prayer. Singing, chanting, spoken prayer, and even dancing all work. In this state, the priest cannot fight or cast any other spells. The limit to activity is walking (speed once per round), muttering a few words to bystanders, and generally acting very absent-minded or distracted. Some conversation is possible while in this state. ------------ CASTER LEVEL BONUSES FOR OTHER CLASSES When you advance a level in Wizard, your base attack bonus and skills increase, giving a boost to other classes in which you may have levels, such as Fighter. By the standard rules, the reverse is not true. In Fivtoria, levels in other classes *do* contribute to your caster level. (*********** tentative ************) For arcane casters, add 1/2 the levels in divine spell-casting classes or classes that include supernatural abilites. For classes without such attributes, at 1/4 the levels. (This is the "magic rating" option from Unearthed Arcana.) For divine casters, the contribution depends very much on the religion. Classes particularly in tune with the religion (e.g. Paladin) add fully to the caster level, classes that are compatible add 1/2, and classes that aren't particularly compatible add 1/4. ------------ NEW SPELLS Extinguish Magic - Deterministically cancels magic with a power lower than that of the caster. Extinguishing spells uses up spell points, so Extinguish Magic is usually good for only one spell.