Magic System

Mage | List of Spells | List of Skills

Magic in Wyvern Rising has been approached rather uniquely. The thoughts and theories used in creating this magic system vary depending upon which particular aspects you examine. In general, however, we felt that the vast array of mages, magicians, and sorcerers exhibited in our favorite stories and movies were unable to be re-created in most of the LARPs we had seen or experienced. What is held within this section is the result of our efforts to approximate some of these characters. Although it is complex at times, we are satisfied with the results, and hope that you are too.

As alluded to in the introduction of mages, there are three basic aspects in the workings of magic: the Control, the Knowledge, and the Power. A character will likely purchase the Controls and Knowledges multiple times resulting in Knowledge or a Control expressed with a numeric value. That is to say that if a character chose to purchase the Arcane Knowledge Darkness six times, his character card would express this fact as Darkness 6. If we take the value of a single Control, and add it to the value of a single Knowledge, we get a total called the "Total Knowledge". Each spell in Wyvern Rising has a Total Knowledge Requirement (TKR), which is expressed as Control/Knowledge: number. In order to memorize any particular spell, a mages knowledge must be equal to or greater that the TKR of that spell. A character may have a Conjuration: 2 value, and an Elemental: 3 value, thus he has a Conjuration/Elemental: 5. When we look at the spell Burning Hands we see that the TKR is Conjuration/Elemental: 3. Therefore, this mage could memorize this spell if it were in his spell book. However, he could not yet memorize Fireball, which has a TKR of Conjuration/Elemental: 9.

This magic structure essentially removes the limits of "schools" of magic. It allows a character to choose if he/she wants to specialize in a type of magic, as dictated by the Arcane Knowledges or Controls, or wants to spread himself around and be a "Mage-of-all-trades".

As mentioned above, Control is the flavor, or type of spell. The Controls can be broken down into the following:

Controls

DIVINATION		The abstraction or concealment of knowledge, in or from, one's surroundings or an item.
ALTERATION		The changing of the nature or an aspect of an item or being. This is almost always a temporary change.
APPORTATION		The movement of a being or item. Sometimes this Control is used to oppose movement rather than initiate it.
CONJURATION		The creation or destruction of an item or energy. This is often not a true creation, but instead the concentration of that which already exists around us.

All common spells will fall into one of the above Controls. In fact, many spells will fall into more than one of the above categories. Acid Arrow, for example, relies on Conjuration, to spring into existence, but Apportation to reach its target. Nevertheless, one of the Controls is always dominant in common spells, and is therefore the one used in determining the TKR.

The Arcane Knowledges are what could be called the "schools" of spells, and usually spells with Knowledges in common, will have similar special effects. There are seven different known Knowledges, and there are occasionally rumors of someone finding another, but none of these rumors have ever been substantiated. There are also various legends about the "Lost Knowledges", but that is more of a fairy-tale that Master Magicians tell their young apprentices to get them to work harder. The Knowledges are listed below:

Knowledges

DEATH MAGIC		Magic that relies on the natural powers of Death and Decay. It is not always of an Evil aspect.
DARKNESS		Sometimes called "Black Magic". Taken from the Nightmares of the Tortured and the Dreams of the Demented. It is almost always of an Evil aspect. Insanity usually follows those who study it.
NON-LIVING		Those forces called forth from the normal, non-living Forces, Laws of our universe. Gravity and Magnetism are two examples.
MAGIKAL		Referred to as "True Magic", or "Father of all Magics". It involves manipulation of raw magical forces, as well of those forces from other planes, and universes.
ELEMENTAL		The "Primal Forces" of Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. Each slightly different, but all obeying the same, basic Quasi-Physical Laws.
LIGHT		Called "White Magic". As well as the manipulation of visible light, it is also the Purity and Goodness in the Universe. Some theorize a connection to the Divine Powers of Priests and Clerics.
LIFE FORCES		Magic connected with the ebb and flow of the Life energies around us. For reasons only partially understood, only limited healing is available by these practitioners.

This brings us to Power. Wyvern Rising uses a "Slot" system for magic. As the wise old master told his student in the introduction, this type of system relies on the theory that you must first be able to perform an easier task before being able to accomplish a more difficult one. What this means to a character is that a power structure must be constructed to gain access to more power.

A mage purchases the Gather Power skills to build this structure, obviously beginning with Gather Power Rank 1. This then represents a mage's ability to memorize as well as retain the power necessary to cast any given Rank 1 spell provided, of course, that the TKR of the spell is met. In order to progress to Gather Power Rank 2, the mage must purchase Gather Power Rank 1 twice. Likewise, in order to progress to Gather Power Rank 3, the mage must be able to Gather Power Rank 2 twice, there by necessitating that he/she be able to Gather Power Rank 1 three times. This gives way to a pyramidal structure, which will look something like this:

While you must always follow the pattern to increase the maximum power in your structure, you are not restricted in the number of slots in lesser ranks. It is possible for a mage to have five, or ten, or even a hundred first Rank spell slots, while never purchasing even one Rank Two slot. If that mage then wants a Rank Four slot, however, he/she will need to have two Rank Three slots, as well as three Rank Two slots.

A mage in Wyvern Rising must purchase these spell slots, but never has to purchase the spells he/she learns. If a mage finds a given scroll, he/she may write the spell on that scroll directly into his/her book, even if he/she can't cast it. This process would, however, destroy the scroll. He/She would then probably begin purchasing the Arcane Knowledge and/or Control necessary to allow him/her to cast it.

How Does This All Really Work?

This leaves us with the question, "How does Spell Slinging really work?" The answer is not quite as complex as the theory of the system, but can be best explained by comparison to other types of systems. Perhaps an example of typical Spell-Slinging type of Mage is the best place to start.

Example:Our example mage is named Qwerty. Qwerty has purchased the following skills:

These are Qwerty's basic statistics that we will be discussing. In addition to these facts we will be making a few assumptions about his Spell Book. At the beginning of the event John, Qwerty's player, enters logistics to begin log in. After completing that chore, John visits with the on-duty Magic Director, Keyth. Keyth looks at John's character card for Qwerty and asks John to select his spells. He asks for Feign Death (TKR: Divination/Death-4) twice, Detect Life (TKR: Divination/Life-3), and Detect Lie (TKR: Divination/Life-4). John then hands over Qwerty's Spell Book. All these spells are in the Book, so Keyth hands over the tags for these spells. John then asks for Weakness (TKR: Alteration/Death-7) to fill his two (2) 2nd Rank Slots, and shows Keyth that this spell is in the Spell book. Keyth notices that Qwerty has no points in Alteration, therefore he refuses to give Qwerty these tags because he does not meet the TKR. John apologizes for the mistake and requests two (2) Cause Wounds tags and points out that spell. Lastly, John requests Instill Bravery (TKR: Conjuration/Life-12) and produces a scroll for that spell. Keyth explains that while Qwerty meets the TKR, and has a copy of the spell, it is not in his spell book. Being generous, Keyth gives John a few minutes to copy the scroll into Qwerty's Spell Book after which he confiscates the scroll and hands over the appropriate tag. At Period change, or slightly before, John will have to visit the on-duty Magic Director to recharge his Spell Structure with new spells, thereby receiving new tags for them.

This is a relatively simple scenario, and shows an example of most of the basic concepts of Spell-Slinging. We can see how TKR works, how Spell Slots work within the Spell Structure, and how valuable and important an up-to-date Spell Book is. As far as actual game play goes, let us continue our adventure with Qwerty the Mysterious.

Words of Power and the Magician's Wand

In our experiences, we at Wyvern Rising have noticed many things about mages. One of the most consequential is that, in the heat of battle, mages spouting off verbals are hardly ever noticed. We have seen people who practice saying the verbals as quickly as is humanly possible, and often end-up sounding like Alvin, or one of his chipmunk buddies. The verbals are often indiscernible, and therefore meaningless. It is our view that these verbals are in place to lend to the atmosphere of the game, act as a limitation to counter-balance the power mages can control, and generally have the potential to sound really cool and intimidating as you stare down the enemy. Noble ideas, one and all, but they just have a tendency to get lost.

We have therefore decided to eliminate all verbals. It is not necessary to spout off "By The Incontrovertible Sands of Time That Flow Through the Eternal Hour-Glass into the Current Days of Our Miserable Lives, I cast Percivel's Pungent Plaxion" and then throw a spell packet. All those words get jumbled together anyway and all desired effects are lost. Not to mention that not everyone is going to know the effect of the stated spell. In Wyvern Rising you simply state the name of the spell as loudly and clearly as possible, throw your spell packet, and then give a brief synopsis of the spell's effect. Our friend Qwerty would say "Cause Wounds," throw a packet at the Thrull trying to slice him, and then point at the affected Thrall and say, "Four damage." At the end of combat, Qwerty is responsible for handing over the tag for this spell, as well as any other spells he may have cast.

Astute readers of the Mage's Introduction may have already guessed what the price is for the dismissal of verbals. The counter-balance for the elimination of spell verbals, is the re-introduction of the tried-and-true classic: the Wand. Everyone certainly remembers some story, somewhere that involved a magician and his magic wand. Regardless of current popular culture, wands have been magicians' weapons for centuries.

In our case, it is not actually the Wand itself that performs magical acts, however. Rather, it is a tool used to accomplish a certain job, much like a carpenter's hammer, for instance. A wand holds the Mage's Rune of Focus. The Rune of Focus aids in the construction of spells, and helps the forces of magic to convene into a more viable form as shaped by the spell caster. Every Spell-Slinger starts out using a wand because of the need for the Rune of Focus. It can be thought of as a "modem connection" necessary for "surfing" the Mystic energies of the Universe.

Almost as important as the Rune of Focus, is the fact that the wand can be inscribed with additional Runes, which hold additional spells. This allows a Mage to essentially have "Free Slots", but these slots are limited to specific spells. Different materials have different attributes with respect to the Runes that are placed on them. Most mages jealously guard their secrets when they find out about new materials, so sometimes experimentation is necessary to find the optimum material for your needs.

Advanced Magic

We have, at this point, covered the fundamentals of Spell-Slinging, and are ready to graduate to advanced magic skills. The most technical part of the magic system has already been covered. What follows are the skills and abilities that truly define and differentiate Wyvern Rising's magic system from all others. If you have followed us so far, then the rest of this should be a piece of cake. Here is where the really neat stuff begins.

To begin with are the second-tier skills Donate Energy and Classify Ambient Power. Donate Energy, looking at the Skill Path, leads onward to Rituals and further onward towards Artifacts. It is a skill that is often taught to Apprentices by their Masters so that the youngsters can assist in Rituals, which often exhaust the Masters even with help. It allows a Mage not only to gather power necessary in the casting of spells, but also to direct that power to an outside source before shaping it into a tangible form. It is important to note that the gathered power remains in its rawest, most primal form, and is directed toward someone, or something, else, which then transforms that energy into something more substantial. Some examples of what the possible end results might be include assisting in a Ritual, or creating a Rune or a scroll.

Classify Ambient Power is a useful skill, which is relatively easy to teach. Once one knows how to Gather Power and shape it into a viable form, it becomes a relatively simple matter of looking for the tell-tale signs within the fabric of Power around you to discern what type of magic is being employed. That is to say that a mage can ask for the Arcane Knowledge and the Control of the spells and enchantments around him. A Game Director, if he has access to that information, can give it to him. It is, at times, an unreliable skill that is variable to three factors. First, how long ago was the spell used? Second, how many other spells have been used since? And finally, how familiar is the mage with the Knowledge and/or Control being employed?

Next comes the third-tier skill, Mage Shield. This skill allows a Mage to concentrate gathered energy into a small disc about 10 to 14 inches in diameter. This energy effectively dissipates any spells that it contacts. The Mage Shield will last for five minutes. It will only work against spells, not against swords and other weapons, and not against prayers. This basically means that a mage can use the Mage Shield to block incoming spell packets. Spells that have already hit a legal target will not be effected by a mage shield. The Mage Shield phys-rep that a character intends to use must meet all safety requirements that a normal shield must meet, and must be of a bright, unnatural color, such as neon green. A Frisbee is generally an ideal size. To use Mage Shield, a player calls, "Mage Shield", and then places the disc in his/her hand, ready to be used. Every time Mage Shield is invoked, that player must sacrifice one of his/her Rank 2 or higher spell slots. Qwerty the Mysterious is about to face his long time nemesis, Kaylop the Well-Known. Knowing that Kaylop is a powerful caster himself, Qwerty intones, in a loud voice, "Mage Shield!" John, Qwerty's player decides to jettison his Instill Bravery spell to power this Shield, even though it is in his Third Rank Slot. John keeps this in mind, and remembers not to cast Instill Bravery in his upcoming mage's duel.

The forth tier contains the skill Unravel Spell. Much like Mage Shield, Unravel Spell is powered by spell slots. In this case however, it requires a Rank 3, or higher, Power Slot to be activated. In a game setting, this skill will be called after another mage casts a spell and throws his packet. It retroactively counters the spell just cast, and play continues as if the first spell had not happened. It is called as "Unravel Spell- [spell to be unraveled]" and must be called within 3 seconds of the original spell being cast. Qwerty decides not to power a Mage Shield against Kaylop. Once again, though, he faces his hated enemy. When Kaylop calls, "Sun Strike. Seven Fire!" and hits Qwerty square in the chest with his packet, Qwerty, knowing this is the end of him, instantly calls, "Unravel Spell-Sun Strike!" As in the previous example, Qwerty knows he will not be able to cast Instill Bravery, since it has gone to power his Unravel Spell.

Focus Power is the next skill available for Spell-Slingers. A mage who purchases this skill has mastered the ability to focus the power around him/her. The mage no longer needs a Rune of Focus, and thereby, he/she no longer needs a wand. He/she may still choose to carry one though, so that any other Runes that may be inscribed on the wand are still available for use. Mages with this skill become very dangerous foes indeed. Simple shackles are no longer all that is necessary to make him/her powerless. And if you try to tease such a mage with his/her own wand, you are likely to be reduced to ashes.

Lastly on this section of the skill path is Ascend: Arch-Mage. This is a skill that represents a Mage's ability to transcend the normal limitations that restrict his/her peers. The names of the true Arch-Mages through out history are names that will never be forgotten. Jar'ph'lenx, the Primal: the first mage to truly master the four elements, and is credited with creating most the Elemental Knowledge that we study today. Frederic, the Haggard: first to study the properties of gems and crystals with respect to magical energies. Rollen Leafsong, the Chaotic: True Elven Mage who is credited with elevating the magic that early humans had studied to a level resembling what the contemporary Elves had. The list goes on. It is relatively short, but very distinguished. It has some saintly mages, such as Chandri, the Life Giver, most powerful mage ever to employ healing magic. And some very, very evil mages, such as Kaylith, the Sable, who is said to have sold his soul to a Demon King for his powers over Darkness. Even He whose name is lost to history, He whose name has been stricken from all records, He whose name shall never be uttered, The Unnamed One, was an Arch-Mage. There is much speculation on what is actually involved in Ascension because no one really seems to know the truth, but it is known that it comes with a high price. If one is ever to learn the true name of an Arch-Mage, the name that is given to him when he Ascends, then the Arch-Mage is forever powerless against that person. Also, there seems to be no set guidelines in what happens when one Ascends, it seems dependent upon the mage's natural abilities and power.

Runes, Rituals, And Impressed Spells

While already very different than many magic systems in most LARPs, Wyvern Rising felt compelled to go even further in mimicking some classic magicians from well-known stories. We have developed a system for spell casters to build fantastic devices, as well as to perform mystical rituals for summoning supernatural creatures. We will begin, however, with a tried and true classic-Runes.

Runes have been mentioned several times now, and perhaps we should begin by answering the question: "What is a Rune, anyway?" The answer is simple; a rune is a symbol that possesses special properties in an in-game setting. Runes may hold magic energies, contain specific spells, or help a character to cast spells or perform rituals just to name a few possibilities. Runes can basically be broken down into two different categories. They are Spell Runes and Non-Spell Runes. The Rune of Focus is a prime example of a Non-Spell Rune. These are Runes that serve no specific purpose, but instead assist in the general workings of Magic. In modern terms Non-Spell Runes might be compared to a calculator. They are generally helpful in doing math, but still able to perform several different functions (i.e. Multiply, Divide, Add…etc.) The disadvantage to these Runes is that they usually require activation energy of some kind to be useful.

Spell Runes, on the other hand, require no real activation energy, but are ready to be used at any time, instantly. Once exhausted, however, they will need to be recharged. If the above comparison were to be carried through, a Spell Rune would be like a calculator that could find the square root of 1,475,689 instantly, but that's all, and only once. In a more game-related sense, however, these Runes are spell-specific. A specific Rune might hold the spell Adrenaline, for example, and someone who knew how to activate that Rune could then cast Adrenaline at any time. Once used, though, that Rune would need to be recharged.

Looking on the Mage Skill Path, next comes the Third Tier skill Imbue Rune. This is the skill that allows a Mage to charge a given Rune. As mentioned before, Runes are spell-specific and the Mage must be able to cast the spell for which the Rune is intended. Qwerty, our friend from earlier, encounters his good friend Jezzina who happens to have a Rune of Detect Lie on her mace. She happened to use this Rune earlier when interrogating a blasphemous Orc, so she asks if Qwerty can recharge it. If he has the skill Imbue Rune and is able to cast the spell Detect Lie, Qwerty could happily say "Yes" and then make a mental note that Jezzina owes him one, possibly in the form of some healing in the future.

In most cases, the Rune will be affixed to the item or weapon in such a way that there is room to slide the spell-tag behind the Rune to denote that it is charged. If a Rune is charged and the spell-tag falls out along the way, then the rune is considered to have lost its charge. The unfortunate character must find a mage who can recharge it, yet again. If a Rune is invoked during a battle and at tag exchange a character finds that the spell-tag is missing, then that player immediately falls to the ground and is in the Third stage of his/her Death Count and the Rune is destroyed. This symbolizes the mystical energies backlashing through the meta-physical planes and exploding onto our physical plane with devastating force.

The Forth Tier skill Inscribe Rune is the skill that is required to initially put a Spell Rune onto an object. In order for an object to accept a Rune, it must be of High Quality, or better. (For more information on High Quality items, please turn to the section on Smithing) Also required is the precious stone Jonquil. Jonquil is a transparent stone that is light yellow in color. The number of these stones needed is dependent upon the Rank of the spell, and the stones are consumed in the Inscribing process. Inscribing a Rune is a very tedious and time consuming process, and can take most of a month, and sometimes even longer.

Similar in theory to Imbue Rune is the skill Impress Spell. Impress Spell also allows a spell to be held within a specific item. The item, in this case, is almost always a gem or semi-precious stone. A professional gem cutter must cut the gem or stone, and gems of various materials accept the spells from the different Arcane Knowledges. Diamond and amethyst, for example, accept Light and Magikal spells respectively. Once again, an Impressed Spell's tag is kept with the gem until used. However, only a Mage can release the spell. The gem is always destroyed when a spell is released. If a player calls an Impressed Spell in combat, and cannot find the tag during tag exchange, that player immediately falls to the ground, and into the third stage of his/her Death Count (just like over expending ability points). Even if the spell is unsuccessful due to a lost tag, the gem is still destroyed.

Also on the Third Tier is the beginning of the Ritual Ranks. Each rank of this skill has two basic effects. First, it allows a character to preside over a Ritual of the stated Rank. Any given Ritual will have certain requirements that may include, but are not limited to: role-playing, TKR, ritual components (i.e. rare herbs or elements, or other such items), candles, etc. Also involved in any ritual, is what is called the Ritual's Control Factor (or minimum Control level). This represents the amount of Control necessary in shaping the powers involved in the Ritual into the end form. A Ritual's Power Factor will be expressed as a number. The Presiding Mage (i.e. the character who will be overseeing the Ritual) then compares the value of the Control named in the TKR to his/her value in that Control. If his/her value in the appropriate Control meets or exceeds the Power Factor, then all is well, and the Mage can proceed with the ritual. If not, then he/she must look for some help, preferably someone with the Donate Energy skill.

Another mage with the Donate Energy skill is able to burn any of his/her available spell slots to help raise the Presiding Mage's Control up to a level that allows the Ritual to be cast. Multiple mages may continue to Donate Energy until the presiding page's Control is up to the appropriate level. However, once a mage Donates his/her energy, he/she is now a part of the Ritual, and must see it through to the end, or the Ritual fails. The presiding mage's Control is increased by +1 per Rank of each spell slot donated. Therefore, a Rank 3 spell slot adds +3 to the presiding mage's control. A character may only Donate as many points towards the Control Factor as he/she has in the Control named in the Ritual's TKR. That is to say that if a character has only two points in Apportation, then he/she may only ever Donate two points to that type of ritual. Jhag'ma the Sethen mage is attempting to cast the Ritual "Spell Squelch", which will ensure that no one may successfully cast a spell in his home. The Ritual is Third Rank, and has a TKR of Conjuration/Magikal: 34, and a Power Factor of 16. He has the skill Ritual Rank 3, and values in Conjuration and Magikal of 9 and 26 respectively. While his TKR is in order, he has not met the Control Factor. He therefore calls on his colleague Qwerty. If we look at our friend's skill list from above, we see that Qwerty has the skill Donate Energy and is therefore able to assist in the Ritual. If he burns two (2) Second Rank Spell Slots, and three (3) First Rank Spell Slots he can add seven (7) to Jhag'ma's Control. [2(2)+3(1)=7]. If Jhag'ma had needed one more point in Control, he would have had to find yet another mage to help in his ritual, because seven (7) is the value Qwerty has in Conjuration, and therefore the maximum he could add to Jhag'ma's own value of nine (9).

In addition to presiding over Rituals, a character with Ritual Rank 'X' is able to cast spells of 'X' Rank or lower, directly from his/her spell book. This Ritual Casting does not expend a spell slot, and does not require any memorization of a spell. Meeting the TKR is still necessary, however. In the case of spells cast in this fashion, the Control Factor (minimum Control level) is equal to one-half of the TKR value. All ½ points are rounded up. Also inherent in any Ritually cast spell is that one-minute of role-playing is required per rank of the spell. During the casting time, the mage must role-play the casting by reading from his/her book. The mage must concentrate on the casting, and so may not run or dodge weapon blows, for example. If the caster is wounded or otherwise disrupted he/she must begin the casting anew. In order for a character to be able to Ritually Cast the spell Stone Skin, he must have the skill Ritual Rank 2. He must have an Alteration/Elemental total of at least 6, and he must have an Alteration value of 3 or more (or know some one who has Donate Energy, and enough Alteration to bring his own value up to 3). He must also role-play the ritual casting for at least two (2) minutes.

More specific information about Rituals will be made available to players who traverse this section of the pathway, although some examples of Rituals that are possible include:

• Summoning of extra-planar creatures (i.e. Elementals).
• Binding of spirits to corpses and objects (i.e. Un-Holy).
• Permanently enchanting an object (although Disenchantments are also possible).
• Scrying Magic (Searching for people, places and things through magical means. Similar to using a Crystal Ball).
• Transportation into different dimensions and planes, or to distant locations.

Creating Artifacts and Scrolls

Reading from magical scrolls is a staple in many fantasy stories. A scroll is a magical spell, which is written upon parchment with special ink. Scrolls do not use spell slots, but are consumed after they are used, whether it is to release the spell contained therein, or to copy the spell into one's spell book. In order for a character to use a scroll, he must have the skill Read Magic, and possess a value of at least one (1) in both the Arcane Knowledge, and in the Control that is named by the spell on the scroll. Casting from a scroll can be very dangerous, however. A spell cast from a scroll may be Unraveled just as any other spell. However, a scroll-spell is subject to Backlash. This means that the caster takes damage equal to the TKR of the original spell. A Scroll must be in-hand when being used, but its use is otherwise identical to normal casting.

Refine Object is a Fifth Tier skill, which is the gateway to the Artifact Ranks. Refine Object is actually a catchall skill that refers to a number of various processes that will prepare an object for use in an Artifact or a Ritual. This includes placing Non-Spell Runes, drawing astrological symbols, preparing a chamber for use as a Ritual site, etc. Perhaps the most important use for this skill is the creation of a wand. This process is relatively simple for those who know it, and a wand can usually be created in about a week. However, if rare or exotic materials are used, the process can become much longer. In general, if an Artifact requires "…the bones of a dozen Orcs cleansed in the light of a full moon", then this is the skill that allows a character to know that a silver bowl must be used to collect the moonbeams, or some such thing, as the case may warrant.

The final skill to be considered is Artifact Rank 'X'. These skills allow a character to interpret arcane prints and then build Artifacts of corresponding Rank and difficulty. Artifacts usually take a very long time to construct, but are incredibly useful items. Artifacts can be nearly anything, from Golems, to magikal jewelry, to Alchemical brewing machines, to magical cups, to nearly anything that can be imagined. Rumors around the Empire say that the Emperor is even working on an Artifact ship that will make crossings to the New World safer. The build costs of the Artifact Ranks are extremely high, but the proper Artifacts can literally change the face of the world. Whole plots can exist around the construction of an artifact, and the possibilities for artifacts are endless.

This is a very comprehensive magic system, which challenges players to be creative in their use of skills and abilities. The system is designed to allow for constant growth and change. Player innovation and initiative can have long-lasting effects of great magnitude on the Wyvern world.