Mage

You cast spells of blasting fire, magical protection, and force at a distance. As a spellcaster, you’re always on the lookout for new arcane secrets, magic lore, and spells you can add to your repertoire. You understand that the most powerful spells—those that can alter a creature’s form, open pathways to other worlds, or kill with a single word—are jealously guarded secrets even among friendly spellcasters, including between master and apprentice. But that only makes you willing to brave nearly any threat to search for such things, even in dangerous locations far below ground. You’re happy to rely on the physical protection provided by others in your group who are more armed and armored, leaving more esoteric threats and puzzles to your elevated talents. And any time potentially enchanted loot or treasure is discovered, others in the group are likely hoping you, with your intelligence and experience, can explain their function. That’s not to say you’re not a threat in your own

right—you know at least one spell capable of magically blasting foes, and if you survive, you hope to learn even more.

Background Options

• You spent your early years studying in a magical academy, until a covetous god sent her followers to sack it.
• A few days ago, the spellcaster you apprenticed under was murdered.
• You apprenticed under a cruel teacher who you barely managed to escape—but he still seeks you after all these years.
• You bid on a rare book of arcane lore at last week’s auction but lost to a masked wizard.
• A trinket your sister called her lucky charm was delivered to you yesterday with no note.
• You learned your spells from an old book left to you by your uncle who disappeared mysteriously, and you still keep an eye out for news about him.
• More by accident than choice, you saved the life of the mayor’s adventure-seeking son.
• A demon who taught you one of your spells showed up last week to call in a favor.

Mage Abilities

You gain all of the following benefits: Able to take two more minor wounds and one more moderate wound Add +1 to Speed Pool Add +3 to Intellect Pool Add +1 Edge in Pool of your choice Cannot freely use any armor Gain one weapon of your choice

At tier 3 and tier 6, choose an ability from the Fantasy Genre Abilities list

Blast (1+ Intellect): You emit a short-range blast of energy inflicting 4 damage on a target with a successful Intellect attack roll. Work with your GM to determine the type of energy comprising your blast (fire, cold, and so on). If given a few rounds to concentrate, you can use the energy to slice through material of up to level 5 that’s no more than 1 foot (30 cm) thick. Each level of Effort you apply increases the level of the material you can cut through by 1. Effort: Gain fine control over the effect, allowing you to vary the intensity as you wish within immediate range (for instance, you could use it to warm the area, cook food without burning it, provide bright light in the area, and so on); fine control lasts until you use a ten-minute or longer recovery. Action for attacking; Last action to initiate fine control or cutting.

Mage Armor (1 Intellect): An invisible field of energy surrounds you until you use a ten-hour recovery. This allows you to try blocking attacks with an eased Intellect defense roll instead of a Might defense roll; if you succeed, you reduce the severity of the wound by one step. At tier 3, your Intellect defense roll to block an attack is eased by two steps total. Action.

Prepare Spell: Each day you can pick a different magical effect and cast it as a spell. Choose a low-

power manifest cypher. After spending ten minutes preparing, you gain that cypher’s effect as a spell (a character special ability). You can cast that spell as an action, costing 2 Intellect. This spell does not count toward your cypher limit. Unlike when using a cypher, you do not lose this spell after casting it. As part of making a ten-hour recovery, you can change which cypher you’ve taken as a spell. At tier 3, you can use this ability to choose a low- or medium-power cypher as a spell. You can cast a medium-power cypher spell as an action, costing 4 Intellect. At tier 6, you can use this ability to choose a low-, mid-, or advanced-power cypher as a spell. You can cast an advanced-power cypher spell as an action, costing 6 Intellect. You can select this ability up to three times (allowing you to choose one, two, or three cyphers each day as spells). Ten minutes to prepare a cypher as a spell; action to cast a cypher as a spell.

[!example]

Mage Equipment Bundle

Choose the following equipment bundle to quickly outfit your character, or assemble your own starting equipment. A dagger, appropriate clothing, a spellbook (which also serves as a field journal for taking arcane notes), pen, ink, a backpack, a bedroll, 50 feet (16 m) of rope, matchsticks (10), a magnifying glass, three torches, three days of rations and water, two flasks of oil, and enough extra currency to buy a moderately priced item.

Part of Dungeon Fantasy