Magic/Rituals

Ritual Rules
Ritual Magic is a form of casting for spells with particularly complex preparation, rituals, or components that makes them less of a combat resource and more of a source of utility.

Regardless of if a caster is prepared or spontaneous, the complexity of a ritual requires the user to own a ritual book. Similar to a spellbook for a prepared caster, a ritual book contains all the rituals for that person. A ritual book and the rituals within are attuned to the individual spellcaster requiring expensive components to even copy one into the book. Creatures attempting to read a ritual book that they do not own requires a Knowledge(Arcana) check DC 15 + the SPB of the caster it belonged to. Prepared spellcasters may choose to store their rituals within their spell source.

Rituals are very similar to spells, but do not count against the talents a creature knows, meaning any creature with the spellcasting class feature may qualify to learn to use rituals. Ritual casting requires the Ritual Casting Initiate (Magic) feat to begin inscribing spells into a ritual book. A GM may decide ritual casting is common enough within their world that all spellcasters automatically start with this feat.

The cost of the ritual is the representation of the cost to purchase the ritual to add it to one’s ritual book. If a ritual is found then the cost to copy a ritual is 10% of the ritual’s cost.

Casting time indicates the amount of time for the ritual to be set up and complete. Setup and the actual casting are included in this time, but it means interruptions to any portion of this may require the caster to start from the beginning of the ritual.

Component cost is any additional GP cost of components that must be supplied to the ritual for completion. Usually this is represented in a simple GP cost, though a GM may require the players to obtain these costly materials to perform the ritual. Components for a ritual are not consumed until the ritual is complete, meaning interruptions; unless they’re particularly destructive, do not waste the components.

Rituals and Meta Talents
Rituals may have a meta talent applied to them if applicable. Each meta talent applied adds 100% of the base casting time of a ritual to the overall casting time (2 meta talents would increase it by 3x the base casting time for example). Any spell point adjustments increase the ritual cost by an additional 10%. Meta talents that reduce the casting time of a spell may not be applied.

Rituals and Use Magic Device
Creatures with ranks in use magic device may substitute their ranks for the BCB requirement of a ritual in order to cast it. The creature must still make Knowledge(Arcane) checks to read a ritual book that is not their own.

The creature must still make a DC 15 UMD check to emulate any missing affinity talents a ritual may require.

Alter Corpse
Keywords: Wind

Cost: 250 gp

Casting Time: 10 Minutes

Component Cost: 15 gp

Prerequisites: Dark, Cold, or Nature affinity

Duration: 1 hour per BCB

Description: This ritual grants the caster the ability to alter a corpse in a number of ways:


 * Cause a corpse that is still mostly intact to lose signs of decay and take on the appearance of the creature as if it had recently died. This may also be used to hide wounds, bruisings, or other effects that would indicate how a creature died.
 * Alter the appearance of the corpse, changing aspects such as gender, age, even height. Make a disguise check on the corpse at a +10 bonus; using the normal disguise bonuses and penalties for creatures to see through the disguise.
 * Cause the corpse to decompose down to only a skeleton.

This spell may not be used on animated corpses such as undead.

Overland Flight
Keywords: Wind

Cost: 5,000 GP

Casting Time: 10 Minutes

Component Cost: 1,800 gp

Target: (see text)

Prerequisites: BCB 8th, Wind or Fire Affinity talent

Duration: 1 hour per BCB

Description: This ritual grants the ability to fly at a speed of 80 feet as a full-round action, with a bonus on fly skill checks equal to half your BCB. This spell affects the caster plus one additional medium creature per 2 BCB; 4 medium creatures count as 1 large (4 large count as 1 huge creature, etc..). Each creature wishing to utilize this flight must spend a full-round action each round to continue to fly. If a creature does not spend the full-round action they instead fall a mere 60 feet per round and take no damage upon landing while the spell is in effect; if the spell would expire during this fall the normal rate of falling resumes. A creature may resume flight at any time while the spell is active by spending full-round actions again. A creature who is unable to take a full-round but can still take standard actions (such as being staggered) may still fly as a standard action, but the speed of the flight is reduced to 40 feet. When using this spell for long-distance movement, you can utilize this without tanking nonlethal damage; this means you can cover 64 miles in an 8-hour period.

Greater Teleport
Keywords: Entropic

Cost: 10,000 gp

Casting Time: 1 hour

Component Cost: 2,500 gp

Prerequisites: BCB 14th, Dark or Entropic Affinity talent

Duration: Instantaneous

Description: This spell instantly transports you to a designated destination, with no range limit. Interplanar travel is not possible. You can bring along objects as long as their weight doesn’t exceed your maximum load. You may also bring one additional willing creature of medium size or smaller creature (carrying gear or objects up to its maximum load) per three BCB levels. A Large creature counts as two Medium creatures, a Huge creature counts as four Medium creatures, and so forth. All creatures to be transported must be in contact with one another, and at least one of those creatures must be in contact with you. As with all spells where the range is personal and the target is you, you need not make a saving throw, nor is Spell Resistance applicable to you. Only objects held or in use (attended) by another person receive saving throws and Spell Resistance.

You must have some clear idea of the location and layout of the destination. The clearer your mental image, the more likely the teleportation works. Areas of strong physical or magical energy may make teleportation more hazardous or even impossible. If you attempt to teleport with insufficient information (or with misleading information), you disappear and simply reappear in your original location and the ritual is wasted.

Resurrection
Keywords: Healing

Cost: 35,550 gp

Casting Time: 1 hour

Component Cost: 12,250 gp

Prerequisites: BCB 16th, Light or Water Affinity talent

Duration: Instantaneous

Description: This spell restores to life a deceased creature within close range. The remains may be in any condition as long as some portion of the creature’s body still exists, and the portion used was part of the creature at the time of death; bodies completely disintegrated or destroyed are unable to be restored. The creature cannot have been dead for longer than 5 years per BCB. The caster must remain touching the remains for the duration of the spells.

Upon completion of the spell, the creature is immediately restored to full hit points with their body fully restored. The creature raised immediately gains one permanent negative level; if the target is 1st level it instead takes 2 points of constitution drain, if this constitution drain would reduce the creature to 0 constitution it cannot be resurrected.

This spell may resurrect a creature who has been ruined into an undead creature. If targeting an undead creature the creature is subject to a will save attack, if the undead creature was destroyed (but a portion of them still remain), they are instead resurrected as normal. This spell cannot resurrect a creature who has died of old age.

Renew Life
Keywords: Healing

Cost: 1,750 gp

Casting Time: 10 minutes

Component Cost: 550 gp

Prerequisites: BCB 5th, Light or Water Affinity talent

Duration: Instantaneous

Description: Each creature that participates in this ritual converts any permanent negative levels that it has into temporary negative levels which are removed after 24 hours.

Plane Shift
Keywords: Divination

Cost: 8,000 gp

Casting Time: 1 hour

Component Cost: 1,500 gp

Prerequisites: 12th BCB, Dark or Entropic affinity talent

Duration: Instantaneous

Description: This ritual moves the caster to another plane of existence or alternate dimension. You may also bring one additional willing creature of medium size or smaller creature (carrying gear or objects up to its maximum load) per three BCB levels. Plane Shift is imprecise and transports creatures between 5 and 500 miles from their intended destination (5d100). The creature casting plane shift must have some knowledge of the destination plane (usually through research or have been to the plane previously); if the creature knows of the plane but has no specific destination within the destination plane, the location becomes random, though usually is within a similar environment the creature transported from as this is a place the caster is familiar with. Creatures must cast plane shift again to return to their home plane.

Planar Adaptation
Keywords: Divination

Cost: 5,500 gp

Casting Time: 10 minutes

Component Cost: 1,500 gp

Prerequisites: 14th BCB, Dark or Entropic affinity talent

Duration: 1 day per 5 BCB

Description: This ritual protects the caster as well as one additional creature per 2 BCB. The  creature choses a single plane of existence as part of casting this ritual; the creature and all other targeted creatures gain protection such as lack of air, extreme temperatures, toxicity, or other such hazardous conditions. This protection only functions on the selected plane, and can never be chosen for the creature’s home plane.

Clairvoyance
Keywords: Divination

Cost: 2.000 gp

Casting Time: 10 minutes.

Component Cost:  150 gp

Prerequisites: 5 BCB, Light, Earth, Or Water affinity talent.

Duration: 1 minute per BCB Description: This ritual upon completion creates an invisible magic sensor at a specific location that allows the caster to hear or see as if they were in the location. The targeted location must be a location familiar to the caster, but otherwise the caster does not need line of effect. Once selected the sensor does not move, but can rotate to offer different directional views to the caster. This spell does not allow magic or supernatural senses to work through it; for example if a creature’s darkvision is granted through magic and is not normally available to the creature, they will be unable to see anything in a location that would be too dark to see without darkvision. This spell only works on the plane the creature is currently occupying.

Speak with Dead
Keywords: Divination, Necromancy

Cost: 1,250 gp

Casting Time: 5 minutes

Component Cost: 150 gp

Prerequisites: 4 BCB, Dark or Entropic affinity talent.

Duration: 1 minute per BCB

Description:  Once completed this ritual causes a single corpse within reach to answer questions. The caster may ask one spell per two BCB they possess. The corpse’s is only aware or has knowledge of events that occurred during its life. Answers from the target are usually brief or cryptic, and if the creature would’ve been hostile or opposed you in life they may even attempt to deceive you. When talking to the dead the creature may use Bluff as if it were alive to deceive you if it would wish, but cannot otherwise refuse to answer a question. The creature only is capable of speaking in languages it knew when it was alive, and can only speak if the corpse has a mouth to speak with. Once a corpse has been affected by speak with dead it cannot be targeted again.