unGOD Magica Core System Document (Working Draft v0.4) High Concept unGOD Magica is a tabletop roleplaying game about hidden practitioners of magic who live mundane lives for most of the year, training, scheming, and surviving in secrecy. A campaign follows player characters through a three-month pilgrimage toward the city hosting that year's Walpurgisnacht—the one night when the Moon's influence erases mundane memory of magic, allows open arcane conflict, and grants one Wish to the practitioner who prevails or pays the highest price. Magic is inherited, competitive, dangerous, and political. Power is shaped by Bloodline, Class, Background, and risk-taking under pressure. Core Pillars Secrecy is mandatory outside Walpurgisnacht Mundane life matters mechanically—your job, your relationships, your cover Magic is modular and player-defined—choose your Practices, build your style Risk is rewarded—push harder, gain more Legacy pressures player choice—your Bloodline has expectations Part I — Core Resolution When a character attempts something risky or uncertain, they make a Character Roll. The Roll Procedure GM sets a Danger Class (DC)—the target number the player must reach or surpass. Determine Base Power: Start with your Base Power (Metre + Limit). Note: This should be pre-calculated on your character sheet. Build Your Pool: Add Class Abilities + Asset Tags + Spell Tags. This is the "Puzzle Phase": Decide what resources you are willing to risk (Assets) or spend (Stress) to hit the Target Number. Consult the Roll Curve: Find your Total Dice Power on the table to determine your dice. Roll: Roll against the DC. The Roll Curve Dice Power Dice Rolled 1 1d4 2 1d6 3 1d8 4 1d10 5 2d6 6 2d8 7 2d10 8 3d8 9 3d10 10+ 4d8 Success Bands Below DC: Failure. The action doesn't achieve its goal, and complications may arise. DC to DC+2: Success with Consequences. You achieve your goal, but there's a cost or complication. DC+3 or higher: Clean Success. You achieve your goal without complication. DC+10 or higher: Critical Success. Clean success plus you gain one Arcana Asso. Part I.1 — Character Creation You are a practitioner of hidden magic, living two lives. For most of the year, you are mundane—a student, a nurse, a drifter. But as Walpurgisnacht approaches, you are drawn to the pilgrimage, moving toward the city where the Moon will rise, the Veil will thin, and one Wish will be granted. Follow these steps to build your character. Step 1: Choose Your Bloodline (Familia) Your Bloodline defines where your magic comes from and what history burdens you. It does not restrict your choices, but it applies pressure and incentives. Merlin: The architects of magical society. Choose this if you want to lead, command respect, and shape the world through raw power. Nostradamus: The burdened prophets. Choose this if you want to know the future, even if you are powerless to change it. Galileo: The empirical rebels. Choose this if you want to treat magic as a science and challenge traditional authority. Houdini: The escape artists. Choose this if you want to be slippery, untrustworthy, and impossible to pin down. Disney (Apocryphal): The storytellers. Choose this if you believe perception is reality and want to weaponize belief (and marketing). Paracelsus: The alchemists of change. Choose this if you want to transform bodies, matter, and situations. Tesla: The masters of transmission. Choose this if you want to control information, electricity, and the flow of power. Crowley: The transgressors. Choose this if you want to break taboos, summon demons, and survive the consequences at any cost. Rasputin: The survivors. Choose this if you want to be the last one standing when the dust settles. Record on Sheet: * Your Affinity Practices (Primary & Secondary). * Your Signature Effect. * Your Doctrine (How you earn XP). +2 Step 2: Define Your Mundane Lives (Backgrounds) You are on a Pilgrimage, but you still exist in the mundane world. Select 1 Primary Background and 1 Secondary Background. Student: You have universal academic courtesy. You can access libraries and archives in any city, but deadlines follow you everywhere. Service Worker: You belong to the invisible workforce. You can access the "back of house" in any venue or hotel, but financial instability is a constant threat. Noble: You speak the language of privilege. You can buy entry into exclusive spaces anywhere, but your family watches your every move. Caretaker: You are a trusted presence. You can access medical or domestic spaces easily, but you are compelled to help strays you meet on the road. Outcast: You live in the margins. You can disappear into the underground of any city, but you are always treated with suspicion. Step 3: Choose Your Class Your Class is not a spell list; it is how you approach conflict, secrecy, and risk. The Heir: Burdened by legacy. You use inherited formulas and family names to open doors. The Striver: Self-made and desperate. You push limits, overreach, and burn yourself out to win. The Keeper: The janitor of the supernatural. You protect the Veil, cover tracks, and clean up messes. The Veilwalker: The infiltrator. You maintain multiple identities and vanish from sight. The Duelist: The warrior. You seek formal combat, honor, and mastery of the fight. The Oracle: The seer. You act before the threat arrives and shape outcomes. The Mediator: The dealmaker. You leverage secrets, connections, and social pressure. The Transgressor: The rule-breaker. You use forbidden magic and accept corruption to do the impossible. Record on Sheet: * Choose 2 Abilities from your Class list to start. Step 4: Assign Stats (Metres & Limits) Your stats determine your Base Dice Power. Metres are your macro-approaches (Motorics, Anatomics, Psysionics, Cognetics). Limits are specific skills within those Metres. A. Assign Metre Scores Distribute the following array among your four Metres: 2, 1, 1, 0 B. Assign Limit Points You have 6 Points to distribute among your 12 Limits. Constraint: No Limit can be higher than its parent Metre. Note: A Limit of 0 is fine. Design Note: A starting character with Metre 2 + Limit 2 = Base Power 4. This gives them a 50% chance of failure on a standard check. To reach the "Competent" tier (Power 5), they must leverage an Asset or a Class Ability. Step 5: Select Your Practices & Spells Magic is modular. You build your own style. Choose 4 Practices: These are the schools of magic you can learn. It is recommended to pick the two Affinity Practices from your Bloodline, plus two others of your choice. Examples: Kinetics, Binding, Prediction, Materia Sciences, etc.. Learn Starting Spells: You begin with 2 Spells from your chosen Practices. One Spell at RC-0 (Cantrip). One Spell at RC-1 (Standard). Important Rule: RC-0 Tags are Free. When you cast a spell using only RC-0 Tags, it costs 0 Stress. As soon as you add an RC-1 Tag (or higher), the spell costs Stress equal to the number of RC-1+ Tags used. Step 6: Equip Assets Assets are the tools you are willing to break to survive. Choose 3 Starting Assets. You may define them yourself or choose from the list. Assets begin with 1 Tag (e.g., Sword of Wisteria: "Sharpened Blade"). Suggestion: Pick one Weapon/Tool, one Mystical Item, and one Social Resource/Vehicle. Remember: You can add +1 Dice Power by "leveraging" an Asset Tag, but doing so risks breaking the item. Step 7: Final Numbers Fill in your derived statistics: Stress Track: 9 Boxes. Wound Slots: 5 Slots. Veil: Starts at 6 (The world is currently unaware). XP Bank: 0 (Max 12). You are now ready for the Pilgrimage. Part II — Metres and Limits Metres are the four macro-statistics representing broad approaches to action. Limits are the twelve micro-statistics representing specific breaking points within each approach. Metres are capped by Character Level. Limits are capped by their parent Metre. Metre Limits Motorics Reaction, Coordination, Adjustment Anatomics Force, Endurance, Throughput Psysionics Resilience, Stability, Recovery Cognetics Analysis, Aptitude, Interfacing Metre Descriptions Motorics governs the quality of movement—speed, precision, and adaptation. Anatomics governs raw physical capacity—peak output, sustained output, and efficient output. Psysionics governs resistance and recovery—what you can withstand, what destabilizes you, and how quickly you return to baseline. Cognetics governs thinking and connection—reasoning through problems, capacity for learning, and ability to interface with people, systems, and magic. Part III — The Economy Three resources govern magical action: Stress, Arcana Assi, and Seals. Stress Stress is a track of 9 points. It is the default cost for casting spells. Each spell costs Stress equal to the number of Tags used. Stress can be healed during downtime, but rarely in battle. When the Stress track is full, all new Stress becomes Wounds instead. Wounds Characters have 5 Wound Slots. Wounds are taken when Stress overflows, or from direct harm. When all 5 Wound Slots are filled, the character is down and vulnerable to death. Arcana Assi Arcana Assi are tokens earned through Critical Successes (rolling DC+10 or higher). They are divided into four suits matching the Attunements: ? Pikes, ? Hearts, ? Diamonds, ? Flowers. Spend a matching Asso to cast a spell without paying Stress. The momentum loop: roll well ? earn Asso ? cast big spells for free ? roll well again. Seals Seals are rare resources gained only under the full moon. Used to power Class Abilities, critical story moments, or clutch spellcasting. Their slow recharge makes them valuable tension tools. Part IV — The Veil (Secrecy System) The Veil is a shared group resource representing how intact the barrier between mundane and magical remains. It is a countdown clock. Veil Rules The Veil starts at 6 at the beginning of a campaign. When magic is witnessed by mundanes, the Veil drops by 1 (or more for spectacular displays). When practitioners are sloppy (leaving evidence, getting photographed), the Veil drops. Veil Thresholds Veil 6–4: Normal operations. Mundane world remains oblivious. Veil 3: Mundane attention intensifies—investigators, journalists, conspiracy theorists begin to circle. Veil 1: The Masquerade is cracking—other Familias send "cleaners," rivals gain leverage. Veil 0: Catastrophic exposure—the GM introduces a major complication that persists past Walpurgisnacht. Part V — Backgrounds Backgrounds represent the character's non-magical life and social footprint. Each character selects 1 Primary Background and 1 Secondary Background. Backgrounds are always relevant and generate pressure. Background Structure Access: What the character can reasonably do without magic. Pressure: A recurring mundane complication tied to that life. Resource: A limited-use benefit (typically once per session). Backgrounds The Classics 1. Student Access: Universal Academic Courtesy. Access libraries/archives in any city. Pressure: Deadlines and condescension from elders. Resource: Gain advantage on research/recall (1/session). 2. Service Worker Access: Back of House. Access staff areas/kitchens in any venue. Pressure: Financial instability; invisibility. Resource: Declare you were present and unnoticed (1/session). 3. Noble Access: Purchased Entry. Access VIP areas/high society via demeanor. Pressure: Family surveillance; ransom target. Resource: Solve a mundane problem with money (1/session). 4. Caretaker Access: Trusted Presence. Access medical/domestic spaces by offering help. Pressure: Compulsion to help strays/delays. Resource: Negate a consequence for a protected NPC (1/session). 5. Outcast Access: The Underbelly. Access homeless networks/squats in any city. Pressure: Police harassment; suspicion. Resource: Disappear from attention (1/session). The Professionals 6. The Driver Access: Logistics. You can acquire a vehicle in any city and navigate without maps. You know the fastest route out of town. Pressure: Vehicle maintenance; you are always the designated getaway. Resource: Getaway. Automatically escape a mundane pursuit (1/session). 7. The Fixer Access: Black Market. You know the code words to find illegal goods (weapons, drugs, fencing) in a new city. Pressure: Criminal debts; paranoia. Resource: I Know a Guy. Produce a specific mundane illegal item within the hour (1/session). 8. The Suit (Corporate) Access: The Algorithm. You have credentials that work in office parks and corporate HQs everywhere. You blend into the bureaucracy. Pressure: Constant communication (emails/calls); corporate ethics. Resource: Expense Account. Absorb a financial cost or bribe without tracking (1/session). 9. The Techie Access: Digital Skeleton Key. You can bypass basic electronic locks and access public surveillance feeds. Pressure: Digital trail; hardware dependency. Resource: Loop. Erase the last 5 minutes of digital evidence of your presence (1/session). 10. The Journalist Access: Press Pass. People talk to you because they want to be heard. You can enter crime scenes or press conferences. Pressure: The drive to publish; danger from exposing truths. Resource: The Scoop. Learn a mundane secret about an NPC or location (1/session). The Performers & Socialites 11. The Influencer Access: Social Currency. You can mobilize a flash mob or get into clubs because "it's good exposure" for them. Pressure: The audience is always watching; loss of privacy. Resource: Viral. Direct public attention toward or away from a specific event (1/session). 12. The Artist Access: Bohemian Circle. You are welcome in galleries, squats, and elite parties alike. You speak the language of the avant-garde. Pressure: Melancholy; need for inspiration. Resource: Critique. Unnerve a social opponent by deconstructing their appearance or taste (1/session). 13. The Athlete Access: Physical Peak. You can access gyms, stadiums, and training facilities. People respect your discipline. Pressure: Injuries; dietary restrictions; recognition. Resource: Push. Succeed on a mundane physical feat that should be impossible (1/session). The Fringe 14. The Believer (Clergy/Cultist) Access: Sanctuary. Religious institutions (of any faith) will offer you shelter and food. Pressure: Moral obligations; crisis of faith. Resource: Confession. An NPC trusts you with a burden or truth they wouldn't share otherwise (1/session). 15. The Conspiracy Theorist Access: Pattern Recognition. You notice surveillance, dead drops, and codes that others miss. Pressure: Paranoia; nobody believes you. Resource: Connect the Dots. The GM links two seemingly unrelated clues for you (1/session). 16. The Veteran Access: Tactical Assessment. You can identify security blind spots and weapon types at a glance. Pressure: PTSD triggers; vigilantism. Resource: Suppress. Intimidate a mundane threat into backing down without violence (1/session). 17. The Drifter Access: Ghost. You leave no paper trail. You can sleep anywhere and eat anything. Pressure: No roots; no backup. Resource: Scavenge. Find a useful mundane item in the trash or environment (1/session). 18. The Tourist Access: Innocence. You are invisible because you are obvious. You can stand in the middle of a crisis taking photos and no one perceives you as a threat. Pressure: Naivety; easy mark for grifters. Resource: Lost. Accidental entry into a secure location because you "took a wrong turn" (1/session). Part VI — Classes Classes define how the character approaches power, secrecy, and conflict. They are behavioral archetypes, not spell lists. Each Class includes 8 Abilities; choose 2 at character creation. The Heir Theme: Legacy, obligation Play Pattern: Use inherited power, risk reputation Core Tension: Your name opens doors — but it also owns you. Abilities 1. Inherited Formula: You begin play with one spell at RC-2 that has been passed down through your bloodline. This spell costs 1 less Stress to cast (minimum 0). However, your family knows when you use it — describe the tell. 2. Ancestral Override: Once per session, when you fail a roll involving magic, you may invoke your bloodline's legacy to succeed instead. The GM will tell you which ancestor's voice you hear and what they demand in return. 3. Name Weight: When you reveal your family name to someone who would recognize it, roll Cognetics + Interfacing. On a success, they treat you with the respect (or fear) your bloodline commands. On a consequence, your presence here will be reported to someone who matters. 4. Prepared from Birth: Your training began before you could walk. You start with +1 to Aptitude (this can exceed your Cognetics cap by 1). However, you must choose a Limit that was neglected in your upbringing — it starts at 0 and cannot be raised until you reach Character Level 3. 5. Burden of Expectation: When you act in a way that upholds your family's Doctrine, you may clear 1 Stress. When you act against it and someone from your bloodline learns of it, take 2 Stress. 6. Legacy Debt: Your family has old arrangements. Once per session, you may call in a favor from an NPC connected to your bloodline's history. The GM determines what they want in return — it's never money. 7. Inherited Rival: Name another bloodline your family has opposed for generations. You have +1 Dice Power against members of that bloodline, but they have the same against you. When you meet, conflict is expected. 8. Blood Remembers: When you touch an object or location significant to your bloodline's history, roll Psysionics + Stability. On a success, you experience a flash of ancestral memory — the GM tells you something your ancestor knew here. On a consequence, the memory doesn't let go easily; take 1 Stress. The Striver Theme: Ambition, self-made power Play Pattern: Push limits, accept fallout Core Tension: You'll get there on your own — no matter what it costs. Abilities 1. Overreach: When you cast a spell, you may increase its Risk Class by 1 without having unlocked that tier. The spell works, but on anything less than a clean success, you take Stress equal to the new RC (not the original). 2. Refuse the Ceiling: Once per session, when someone tells you something is impossible for someone of your standing, skill, or bloodline, you may attempt it anyway with +2 Dice Power. If you fail, you cannot attempt this specific thing again until next session. 3. Burn the Candle: You may convert Wounds to Stress at a 1:2 ratio, or Stress to Wounds at a 3:1 ratio. Describe what you're pushing through or what finally gives out. 4. Improvised Formula: When you attempt a magical effect you don't have a spell for, roll Cognetics + Aptitude at -2 Dice Power. On a success, the effect works this once. On a clean success, you may spend XP at end of session to learn it permanently as a spell. 5. Obsessive Focus: Choose a goal at the start of each session. When you take an action that directly advances that goal, you may reroll one die in your pool. If you end the session without meaningful progress toward the goal, take 2 Stress. 6. Nothing to Lose: When your Stress track is at 6 or higher, you gain +1 Dice Power to all rolls. When it's at 9 (full), you gain +2 instead. You're most dangerous when you're almost broken. 7. Rivalry Engine: Name a rival — PC or NPC — who has something you want or represents where you refuse to stay. Once per session when you act to surpass, undermine, or outperform them, gain +2 Dice Power. If they ever surpass you in return, take 1 Stress. 8. Self-Written Legacy: You have no famous ancestors, but you will be one. When you accomplish something no one believed you could, the GM marks it. At the end of the campaign, the number of marks determines how your name is remembered — and whether the next generation will have an Inherited Formula from you. The Keeper Theme: Secrecy, containment Play Pattern: Prevent escalation, manage damage, protect the Veil Core Tension: You clean up everyone else's messes — but who cleans up yours? Abilities 1. Containment Protocol: When you act to conceal evidence of magic from mundane witnesses, roll Cognetics + Interfacing. On a success, the Veil does not drop from this incident. On a clean success, you may also plant a false explanation that witnesses will accept. On a critical, restore 1 Veil. 2. Hidden in Plain Sight: When you remain still and unremarkable in a space where you have reason to be, you cannot be noticed by mundane attention unless you act or someone specifically calls you out by name. This does not work against magical perception. 3. Controlled Exposure: When magic is about to be witnessed and you choose to become the witness's focus instead, the Veil drops by 1 instead of the normal amount, and you choose what the witness believes they saw. You take 1 Stress from maintaining the deception. 4. Redundant Wards: You always have a minor protective ward running. Once per session, when you would take Stress or a Wound from a magical source, you may negate it entirely. Describe how your ward absorbed the blow — and what visible sign it leaves that you'll need to explain later. 5. Archivist: You have access to records others don't. When you research a magical topic, bloodline, or historical event, you may declare that you have a relevant source. Roll Cognetics + Analysis — on a success, the GM provides a useful fact. On a clean success, you also learn something dangerous that someone wants kept hidden. 6. Silent Correction: When someone in your presence makes a magical mistake that would drop the Veil, you may spend 1 Stress to intervene before it fully manifests. The spell or effect still occurs, but its visible/audible signature is suppressed. The caster owes you one, and knows it. 7. Watchful: You cannot be surprised by mundane threats. When you enter a new location, you may ask the GM one question from this list and receive an honest answer: What here is not what it appears to be? Who here is paying attention to me? What's the fastest way out? What would the Veil cost us here? 8. Last Resort: Once per Walpurgisnacht (or by spending a Seal at any time): When the Veil would hit 0, you may prevent the drop entirely. Describe the drastic measure you take — a memory wipe, a staged disaster, a sacrifice. The GM will tell you what it costs beyond the Seal: a relationship, a resource, a piece of yourself. The Veilwalker Theme: Double lives, infiltration Play Pattern: Move between worlds unseen Core Tension: You belong everywhere and nowhere. Even you might forget which face is real. Abilities 1. Perfect Cover: You have a fully established mundane identity separate from your magical life. It has documentation, history, and witnesses who believe it. Once per session, you may leverage this cover to access a location or resource your real identity couldn't reach. 2. Split Identity: You may maintain two separate "selves" with different names, appearances, and social circles. Magical tracking or divination must specify which identity it's targeting — the wrong one returns nothing. If the two identities ever meet someone who knows both, roll Cognetics + Interfacing to keep them separate; on a failure, the Veil drops by 1. 3. Walk Unnoticed: When moving through a space where you have a plausible reason to be, you may roll Motorics + Adjustment to become effectively invisible to casual observation. You're still physically present — but attention slides off you. Sudden action or magical senses break the effect. 4. False Signal: When someone attempts to scry, track, or magically locate you, you may spend 1 Stress to redirect them to a false location of your choice within the same city. You know when this triggers. 5. Soft Revelation: When you reveal a magical truth to a mundane, roll Cognetics + Interfacing. On a success, you control exactly how much they understand and believe. On a clean success, you may implant a specific false context ("it was a trick," "you were dreaming"). On a consequence, they believe more than you intended. 6. Under the Moon, Still Hidden: During Walpurgisnacht, when magic is open, you may still choose to suppress your magical signature. You register as mundane to detection. Casting a spell breaks this until the next phase. 7. Prepared Alias: You have three emergency identities prepared — name one when you first use this ability. Each can be burned exactly once for: instant escape from a social situation, plausible reason to be somewhere you shouldn't, or an alibi for the last 24 hours. Once burned, that alias is gone. 8. No One Knows the Whole Truth: When someone attempts to compel you to reveal information through magic, social pressure, or threat, roll Psysionics + Stability. On a success, you may choose what truth you offer — it must be true, but you decide which truth. On a clean success, they believe they got everything. The Duelist Theme: Ritual conflict, mastery Play Pattern: Seek confrontation and control terms Core Tension: You live for the fight — but a fair fight means you're not trying hard enough. Abilities 1. Formal Challenge: When you issue a formal challenge to a practitioner, they must either accept, decline publicly (losing face and giving you +1 Dice Power against them until Walpurgisnacht), or meet your terms for refusal. You may specify the time, place, and constraints of the duel. 2. Measured Opening: In the first round of any conflict, you may choose to act last. If you do, gain +2 Dice Power on your first action — you've been watching. 3. Read the Opponent: When you observe someone in conflict (even briefly), roll Cognetics + Analysis. On a success, learn one: their highest Limit, their lowest Limit, or one ability they have. On a clean success, learn two. 4. Escalation Clause: When a conflict increases in Risk Class (RC-1 to RC-2, etc.), you may immediately take an action for free — but it must be at the new Risk Class or higher. 5. Clean Resolution: When you defeat an opponent in a duel with formal terms, no Veil is dropped regardless of what magic was used — the ritual contains it. This only works if both parties agreed to terms beforehand. 6. Honor Bound: You cannot break a formally given word without taking 3 Stress and losing this ability until you make amends. In return, when someone breaks their word to you, your next action against them has +3 Dice Power. 7. Signature Technique: Name a specific spell or combat maneuver as your signature. When you use it, you may reroll up to 2 dice in your pool. Other practitioners may recognize you by it. 8. Crowd Memory: When you duel before witnesses, their memory of the event is preserved through Walpurgisnacht's erasure — they remember you, specifically. This cuts both ways: victory builds legend, defeat builds infamy. The Oracle Theme: Foresight, inevitability Play Pattern: Act early, shape outcomes Core Tension: You see what's coming — but seeing it doesn't mean you can stop it. Abilities 1. Predictive Read: At the start of each session, roll Cognetics + Analysis. On a success, the GM gives you a single image or phrase about something that will happen this session. On a clean success, you may ask one yes/no question about it. 2. Seen This Before: Once per session, when a situation occurs that matches one of your visions (GM discretion), you act first and have +2 Dice Power on your first action. You were already moving. 3. Probability Bias: When you assist another character's roll, they add your Analysis to their Dice Power instead of the normal +1. You're not helping — you're tilting fate. 4. Deferred Action: Once per session, you may declare that a preparation you made "earlier" is relevant now. The GM will tell you what it cost in time or resources, but it exists. You saw this coming. 5. Warning Signs: When danger approaches you or someone in your presence, the GM must give you one non-specific warning before it arrives. The warning is never clear — but it's never absent. 6. Unwelcome Truth: When you tell someone their future and they refuse to believe you, mark it. If your prediction comes true, you gain +2 Dice Power against them for the rest of the session. Cassandra's curse has teeth. 7. Avoid the Worst Case: Once per Walpurgisnacht (or by spending a Seal at any time): When you or an ally would die, be erased, or suffer permanent magical consequences, you may declare you foresaw this — and took a different path. The GM describes how you narrowly escaped, but something else is lost instead. 8. Burden of Foresight: You sometimes see too much. When you witness a significant event, the GM may tell you an unwanted truth about someone present — a betrayal to come, a secret shame, a death you cannot prevent. Take 1 Stress. You cannot share this knowledge without taking another Stress. The Mediator Theme: Influence, leverage Play Pattern: Resolve conflict socially Core Tension: Everyone trusts you to be fair — which means no one can know whose side you're really on. Abilities 1. Read the Room: When you enter a social situation, roll Cognetics + Interfacing. On a success, the GM tells you the most significant tension present. On a clean success, you also learn who has the most to lose. 2. Careful Wording: When you make a promise or agreement, you may specify the exact wording. If someone later accuses you of breaking it, you may roll Cognetics + Analysis to demonstrate you technically upheld your words. Whether they forgive the technicality is another matter. 3. Binding Agreement: When two or more parties make a deal in your presence and you witness it formally, all parties take 2 Stress if they break the agreement. They know this when they agree. 4. Pressure Point: When you learn a secret about someone, you may "bank" it. When you later use that secret as leverage, gain +3 Dice Power on a social roll against them. Once used, the secret is spent — they know you know. 5. Escalation Control: When a social situation is about to become violent, you may spend 1 Stress to delay it by one exchange. Everyone must hear you out. What they do after is their choice. 6. Leverage Web: You have connections everywhere. Once per session, you may declare that you know someone relevant to the current situation — a contact, a debtor, an old friend. Roll Cognetics + Interfacing to determine how pleased they are to see you. 7. Words Carry Weight: When you formally vouch for someone's character or intentions, your reputation is on the line. They gain +2 Dice Power on social rolls with those who heard you vouch. If they betray that trust, you lose this ability until you publicly denounce them. 8. Nobody Leaves Happy: When you mediate a dispute and both parties accept your resolution, clear 2 Stress. The resolution must cost both parties something. A good deal is one where everyone's equally unhappy. The Transgressor Theme: Taboo, forbidden magic Play Pattern: Break rules and survive consequences Core Tension: You've touched what shouldn't be touched. You can't untouch it now. Abilities 1. Forbidden Formula: You know one spell that is outlawed, forgotten, or should not exist. It functions at one RC higher than its listed level for purposes of effect, but always costs full Stress of the higher tier. Name it and describe why it's forbidden. 2. Accept the Cost: When you cast a spell, you may choose to take 1 Wound instead of paying Stress. You're not managing the power — you're letting it burn through you. 3. Cross the Line: Once per session, you may attempt something that should be impossible within your Practice's domain — an effect that breaks the rules as understood. Roll at -3 Dice Power. On any success, it works. The GM will tell you what rule you've broken and who noticed. 4. Unstable Insight: When you encounter a magical phenomenon, you may touch it directly and roll Psysionics + Stability. On a success, you understand something about it that conventional analysis would miss. On a consequence, it understands something about you. 5. It Works Once: You may cast any spell you've witnessed another practitioner cast, exactly once, without knowing how. It functions at your RC level, costs double Stress, and you cannot learn it properly afterward — you broke it by forcing it. 6. Scars of Power: Your transgressions have marked you. You have a visible sign of your forbidden work (describe it). Practitioners who see it know you've crossed lines. Once per session, you may invoke your scars to intimidate a practitioner — they know what you're capable of. 7. No Going Back: When you take a Wound from magical backlash, you may convert it to a permanent minor change instead (GM discretion — a streak of white hair, an eye that sees too much, a hand that's always cold). You cannot have more of these than your Resilience score. Each one is a story. 8. Survive the Impossible: Once per campaign: When you would die from magical causes, you don't. Something else happens instead — something that should have been worse than death but somehow wasn't. The GM decides what you become, briefly. You come back, but something came back with you. Part VII — Bloodlines (Arcana Familias) Bloodlines represent ancestral magical legacy. They do not restrict choice, but apply pressure and incentives. Bloodline Structure Affinity Practices (2): Primary grants reliability bonus; Secondary grants situational advantage Signature Effect: Minor rule-bend (1/session or Walpurgisnacht only) Doctrine: Following or defying it grants XP differently Ancestral Pressure: Recurring narrative/mechanical complication Walpurgisnacht Edge: Special ability active only during the event Merlin The First Name. The Weight of All Beginnings. The Merlin bloodline claims descent from the architect of modern magical society. Whether or not the original Merlin existed as legend describes, the family's influence is undeniable — they were there when the rules were written, and they've never let anyone forget it. Affinity Practices Primary — Tempomechanics: When casting Tempomechanics spells, you may reroll one die in your pool. Secondary — Authority: When casting Authority spells against someone of lower Character Level, gain +1 Dice Power. Signature Effect — First Formula: Once per session, when you cast a spell, you may declare it is the "original form" of that magic. The spell cannot be countered, redirected, or modified by another practitioner's magic — only resisted directly. Doctrine: Power Should Shape the World Uphold: When you use your magic to change a situation's outcome in a way that benefits your agenda, mark XP. Defy: When you deliberately hold back your power to let others solve a problem, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Expected to Lead: Other practitioners look to you for direction whether you want it or not. When a group of practitioners faces a crisis and you do not take charge, roll Psysionics + Stability or take 1 Stress from the weight of disappointed expectation. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Act First: During Walpurgisnacht, you always act first in any conflict unless another participant also has this ability (in which case, roll Motorics + Reaction as normal between you). This applies to each phase's first conflict. Nostradamus The Burden of Knowing. The Curse of Being Right. The Nostradamus bloodline carries the gift — and weight — of prophecy. Their visions are famous for being accurate and useless in equal measure: they see what will happen, but rarely in time or clarity to change it. Other bloodlines fear them, consult them, and blame them. Affinity Practices Primary — Prediction: When casting Prediction spells, you may ask the GM one yes/no question about the vision's accuracy before committing Stress. Secondary — Cognition: When casting Cognition spells to observe or analyze the past, gain +1 Dice Power. Signature Effect — Obscure Warning: Once per session, you may deliver a prophecy to another character (PC or NPC). Speak it in metaphor or symbolism — never plainly. If the prophecy comes true this session, clear 2 Stress. If it doesn't, take 1 Stress — the future shifted and you felt it. Doctrine: Foreknowledge Demands Action Uphold: When you act on a vision, even if others doubt you, mark XP. Defy: When you see something coming and choose not to intervene, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Blame Magnet: When things go wrong, practitioners look for someone who "should have seen it coming." When a plan fails or disaster strikes in your presence, roll Cognetics + Interfacing or become the target of blame — justified or not. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Retroactive Foresight: Once during Walpurgisnacht, after a roll is made (yours or another's), you may declare "I saw this." The roll is rerolled completely. You must accept the new result. Galileo Truth Over Consensus. Reality Over Tradition. The Galileo bloodline descends from practitioners who insisted that magic, like nature, follows laws that can be observed, measured, and exploited. They are empiricists in a world of inherited dogma, and this makes them dangerous to established power. Affinity Practices Primary — Spacial Dynamics: When casting Spacial Dynamics spells, your range estimates are always accurate, and you gain +1 Dice Power when positioning matters. Secondary — Materia Sciences: When casting Materia Sciences spells to analyze or deconstruct (rather than create), gain +1 Dice Power. Signature Effect — Empirical Correction: Once per session, when another practitioner makes a claim about how magic works, you may challenge it. Roll Cognetics + Analysis opposed by their roll. If you succeed, the GM confirms whether their claim is true, false, or partially true. Doctrine: Truth Over Authority Uphold: When you contradict accepted magical knowledge and prove yourself right, mark XP. Defy: When you accept a traditional explanation you know is incomplete because challenging it isn't worth the cost, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Institutional Opposition: The old bloodlines remember what happens when Galileos start asking questions. When you challenge established magical practice, a representative of tradition will push back. You have enemies in high places. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Redefine the Battlefield: Once during Walpurgisnacht, you may spend an action to analyze the space you're in. Until the end of the current phase, you may declare one environmental feature to be other than it appears — a wall is an illusion, a floor is unstable, a shadow is a passage. Houdini Nothing Holds Forever. Especially You. The Houdini bloodline is young by magical standards — barely a century — but they've made their mark. They are escape artists, boundary-crossers, and professional skeptics. Other bloodlines find them slippery and unreliable; the Houdinis consider this a compliment. Affinity Practices Primary — Binding: When casting Binding spells to release, unbind, or escape (not to bind others), gain +2 Dice Power. Secondary — Interfacing: When casting Interfacing spells to bypass security, locks, or wards, you may attempt it even without the spell — roll at -2 Dice Power as an improvised effect. Signature Effect — No Lock Holds: Once per session, you may escape any physical restraint, containment, or binding — magical or mundane — without a roll. Simply describe how you do it. This does not work on metaphysical bindings (oaths, curses, soul-bonds) without GM permission. Doctrine: Nothing Should Be Permanent Uphold: When you free someone or something from a binding, contract, or imprisonment, mark XP. Defy: When you create or enforce a lasting bond, agreement, or restriction, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Trust Is Conditional: You come from a line of escape artists — people assume you'll slip away when things get hard. When you make a commitment to another practitioner, they may demand collateral, witnesses, or magical enforcement. Your word alone is worth less than others'. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Remove Self from Danger: Once during Walpurgisnacht, when you would take a Wound or suffer a magical effect, you may simply... not be there. You reappear somewhere safe within the same area at the start of the next round. You cannot attack on the round you reappear. Disney (Apocryphal) Belief Is Magic. Magic Is Belief. The Story Is the Spell. The Disney bloodline's legitimacy is hotly contested. Traditionalists insist Walter was a mundane who simply understood marketing. The family's practitioners smile and let the argument continue — after all, the debate itself spreads their influence. Affinity Practices Primary — Authority: When casting Authority spells on groups rather than individuals, gain +1 Dice Power per additional target (max +3). Secondary — Synchronization: When casting Synchronization spells to coordinate mundanes (not practitioners), the spell costs 1 less Stress (minimum 0). Signature Effect — Mass Appeal: Once per session, when you take an action in front of mundane witnesses, you may declare what story they'll tell about it later. Their memory of the event will align with your narrative rather than objective reality — within plausibility limits. Doctrine: Belief Creates Reality Uphold: When you change what people believe and that belief has real consequences, mark XP. Defy: When you reveal an uncomfortable truth that destroys a comforting illusion, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Maintain Public Persona: The Disney bloodline's power depends on their image. You have a public-facing identity that must remain untarnished. When your actions would damage that persona, roll Cognetics + Interfacing to spin it — on failure, your Authority spells suffer -1 Dice Power until you repair the damage. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Actions Remembered: Your actions during Walpurgisnacht are remembered more clearly by practitioners than anyone else's. After Walpurgisnacht, you may ask the GM what story is being told about you. This cuts both ways: victory builds legend, defeat builds infamy. Paracelsus Transformation Is the Only Truth. Nothing Is Fixed. The Paracelsus bloodline descends from alchemists who understood that all things are in flux — matter, spirit, self. They are transformers, healers, poisoners, and philosophers of change. Other bloodlines find them unsettling. Affinity Practices Primary — Materia Sciences: When casting Materia Sciences spells to transform one substance into another, gain +1 Dice Power and the transformation lasts twice as long. Secondary — Regeneration: When casting Regeneration spells involving potions, elixirs, or consumable magic, the creation costs 1 less Stress (minimum 0). Signature Effect — Universal Solvent: Once per session, you may dissolve a magical effect, enchantment, or ward by touch. Roll Cognetics + Analysis against the original caster's RC. On success, the effect ends. On failure, you understand what it would take to end it, but take 1 Stress. Doctrine: Transformation Is Sacred Uphold: When you fundamentally change something — a substance, a situation, a person — mark XP. Defy: When you preserve or protect something from change, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Nothing Is Stable: Your bloodline's philosophy affects your body. You have a minor physical quirk that shifts over time — eye color, hair texture, skin temperature. When you go too long without transformative work, it becomes noticeable. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Transmutation Under the Moon: During Walpurgisnacht, your Materia Sciences transformations can affect living beings. You may offer to transform a willing target — healing wounds as transformation (convert 2 Wounds to 1 permanent minor change) or granting temporary abilities at the cost of temporary instabilities. Tesla The Current Connects All Things. Transmission Is Power. The Tesla bloodline emerged from the electrification age and never looked back. They understand that magic, like electricity, flows through paths of least resistance — and that control over the flow is control over the destination. Affinity Practices Primary — Signal Proxes: When casting Signal Proxes spells, you may extend the range by one category (touch ? near ? far ? distant) without increasing RC. Secondary — Electrodynamics: When casting Electrodynamics spells to create paths, connections, or conduits, gain +1 Dice Power. Signature Effect — Wireless Transmission: Once per session, you may cast a spell on a target you cannot see but can connect to — through shared objects, communication lines, or any established link. The target must have interacted with something you're touching within the last 24 hours. Doctrine: Information Must Flow Uphold: When you share knowledge, reveal secrets, or establish communication where none existed, mark XP. Defy: When you sever a connection, block transmission, or hoard information for advantage, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Too Many Signals: You're sensitive to the invisible web of transmissions that surrounds the modern world. In heavily networked areas (cities, server farms), you must roll Psysionics + Stability when trying to focus. On failure, take 1 Stress from the noise. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Broadcast: During Walpurgisnacht, you may cast a single Authority or Synchronization spell through any broadcast medium — radio, television, internet stream. The spell affects all practitioners who perceive the broadcast, at -2 Dice Power per step of separation (live = 0, recorded = -2, re-broadcast = -4). Crowley Do What Thou Wilt — And Accept What Comes. The Crowley bloodline is either a cautionary tale or an inspiration, depending on who you ask. They are transgressors by philosophy, practitioners who believe that rules exist to be tested, limits exist to be found, and consequences exist to be survived. Affinity Practices Primary — Binding: When casting Binding spells to summon, compel, or negotiate with entities, you may treat your RC as one higher for purposes of what you can attempt. Secondary — Somatics: When casting Somatics spells involving forbidden or taboo body modifications, gain +1 Dice Power but the spell always leaves evidence. Signature Effect — Acceptable Losses: Once per session, when you would suffer a consequence from magic (Stress, Wounds, Veil drop), you may redirect it to someone else present — willing or unwilling. They may resist with Psysionics + Stability; if they succeed, you take the consequence as normal plus 1 additional Stress. Doctrine: Will Is the Only Law Uphold: When you break a rule, taboo, or restriction and face the consequences, mark XP. Defy: When you submit to authority or follow rules you could break, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — Reputation Precedes You: The Crowley name is infamous. When you interact with practitioners who know your bloodline, they assume the worst. First impressions start hostile. Those who work with you anyway are either desperate, curious, or equally transgressive. Walpurgisnacht Edge — Beyond the Pale: During Walpurgisnacht, you may attempt one action that violates the understood laws of magic — not just high-RC casting, but conceptually forbidden effects. The GM will tell you the cost before you commit. If you pay it, the effect occurs. No one else could have done this. Rasputin What Doesn't Kill You Teaches You Something About Dying. The Rasputin bloodline is small, secretive, and remarkably hard to eliminate. Their founder survived what should have been unsurvivable, and the bloodline has made survival into a philosophy. They are endurers, last-standing presences at every conflict. Affinity Practices Primary — Regeneration: When casting Regeneration spells on yourself, the effects last twice as long and you may reroll one die. Secondary — Adaptation: When casting Adaptation spells to resist environmental hazards or ongoing damage, gain +1 Dice Power. Signature Effect — Still Standing: Once per session, when you would be taken out (Wounds full, killed, or incapacitated), you remain standing for one more round. You may take one action, then collapse. If that action removes the threat or changes the situation, you stabilize instead of going down. Doctrine: Survive to See Tomorrow Uphold: When you endure suffering that would stop others and continue anyway, mark XP. Defy: When you sacrifice long-term survival for short-term victory, mark XP. Ancestral Pressure — They'll Try Again: Your bloodline has enemies who've tried to end you before. At the start of each Walpurgisnacht, the GM names someone who wants you dead this year. They'll make at least one attempt. This is in addition to any rivals you've earned personally. Walpurgisnacht Edge — The Harder to Kill: During Walpurgisnacht, the first Wound you take each phase is negated entirely. Your body simply refuses it. Describe the attack that should have hurt you and how you're still standing. This does not apply to Stress. Part VIII — Practices (Magic Disciplines) Magic is divided into Practices: functional domains rather than spell schools. Practices are modular and flavor-agnostic. Each character chooses four Practices. All Familias have favorite Practices, but you choose your own. Practice List Kinetics: Motion, force, momentum, impact Thermodynamics: Heat, cold, energy transfer, combustion Electrodynamics: Electricity, magnetism, conductivity Materia Sciences: Matter, substances, transformation, alchemy Acoustics: Sound, vibration, resonance Somatics: Body, flesh, physical form Regeneration: Healing, restoration, growth Degradation: Decay, entropy, breaking down Adaptation: Change, evolution, environmental response Cognition: Mind, thought, memory, perception Signal Proxes: Communication, transmission, interference Prediction: Foresight, probability, divination Synchronization: Coordination, timing, group effects Interfacing: Connection, interaction, systems Authority: Command, influence, compulsion Binding: Summoning, anchoring, contracts, restraint Spacial Dynamics: Space, positioning, distance, dimensions Tempomechanics: Time, sequencing, duration, causality Spell Structure Spells are categorized by Risk Class. A spell's Risk Class determines its Stress cost, the number of Tags it can have (RC+1), and its danger level. Example Practice: Binding Definition: Manipulation of physical or quasi-physical existence. Spells: Materialization — create objects Summoning — call entities Anchoring — fix in space Shaping — alter form Linking — bind entities or objects Persistence — extend duration Part IX — Risk Class System All spells and effects are assigned a Risk Class (RC). Risk Class determines power, cost, and danger. You spend XP to unlock higher Risk Classes for your spells. RC Level Description Availability 0 Safe Minor effects, cantrips Always 1 Routine Standard magic Always 2 Dangerous Significant effects Pilgrimage cap 3 Severe Major magic Hunt phase+ 4 Catastrophic Reality-altering Duel phase only Risk Class Effects Stress Cost: Equal to Risk Class (RC-2 costs 2 Stress) Fallout: Higher RC means worse consequences on failure Moon Attention: Higher RC attracts more attention during Walpurgisnacht PPart V — Spell System Spells are the primary expressions of magical power. Each spell is a structured effect defined by its Practice, Attunement, and Risk Class Tags. Spell Structure Practice: The school of magic the spell belongs to (18 total). Attunement: The suit that determines which Arcana Asso can pay for it. Tags (5 slots): One Tag per Risk Class (RC-0 through RC-4), unlocked sequentially. Attunements (The Four Suits) Each spell is attuned to one of four suits. Arcana Assi of the matching suit can pay the spell's Stress cost. Suit Symbol Suggested Themes Pikes ? Destruction, force, harm, offensive magic Hearts ? Life, healing, protection, body, support Diamonds ? Mind, perception, knowledge, precision, information Flowers ? Creation, connection, structure, transformation, space/time Practices (18 Schools) Each character chooses 4 Practices as their specialties. You can only learn spells from your chosen Practices. Attempting magic outside your Practices is possible but requires table negotiation. Kinetics, Thermodynamics, Electrodynamics, Materia Sciences, Acoustics, Somatics Regeneration, Degradation, Adaptation, Cognition, Signal Proxes, Prediction Synchronization, Interfacing, Authority, Binding, Spacial Dynamics, Tempomechanics Learning Spells Starting Spells: Begin with 2 spells—one at RC-0, one at RC-1. Gaining Spells: Gain 1 new spell per level up. Upgrading Spells: Spend XP to unlock higher RC Tags for existing spells. Spell RC Advancement Costs RC Upgrade XP Cost RC-0 ? RC-1 2 XP RC-1 ? RC-2 3 XP RC-2 ? RC-3 4 XP RC-3 ? RC-4 5 XP Casting Spells When you cast a spell, you choose how much power to put into it by selecting which Tags to use. Choose Tags: Select which unlocked Tags to use (limited by current phase's RC cap). Table Approval: The table confirms the Tags apply to your intent. Gain Dice Power: Add +1 Dice Power per approved Tag. Pay Cost: Take Stress equal to Tags used—OR spend a matching Arcana Asso or Seal to cast for free. Tags Stack: Using multiple Tags combines their effects (Ignite + Burn + Scorch = a fire that starts, spreads, and causes serious damage). Phase Restrictions Pilgrimage: RC-2 maximum. Cannot use RC-3 or RC-4 Tags even if unlocked. Hunt Phase: RC-3 unlocked. Duel Phase: RC-4 unlocked. All power available. Spell Tag Pattern Each spell's 5 Tags follow an escalation pattern from minor utility to legendary power: RC-0 (Cantrip): Minor, utility, safe RC-1 (Standard): Combat-viable, reliable RC-2 (Dangerous): Significant, costly RC-3 (Severe): Major, reality-straining RC-4 (Catastrophic): Legendary, world-scarring Part VI — Spell Grimoire This section contains all 99 spells across 18 Practices. Each spell lists its Attunement and all 5 RC Tags. Kinetics Motion, force, momentum, impact Impulse (? Pikes) Apply sudden force to a target RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Gentle push, move small objects, jostle aim 1 Shove Knock a person back, deflect thrown objects, slam doors 2 Slam Break bones, shatter wood, launch a target across a room 3 Cannon Demolish walls, flip vehicles, concussive blasts 4 Cataclysm Level structures, shockwaves ripple for blocks Redirection (? Diamonds) Change direction of existing motion RC Tag Effect 0 Deflect Slightly alter a projectile's path, redirect a stumble 1 Curve Bend attacks around corners, ricochet bullets 2 Return Send projectiles back at attackers, reverse charges 3 Orbit Trap objects in looping paths, create defensive rings 4 Invert Completely reverse all motion in an area, turn gravity Dampen (? Hearts) Reduce movement effects RC Tag Effect 0 Soften Cushion falls, reduce impact noise 1 Absorb Negate minor impacts, dampen recoil 2 Nullify Stop bullets mid-air, halt charging enemies 3 Dead Zone Create areas where kinetic force dissipates entirely 4 Stasis Field Freeze all motion in a large area, stop explosions Transfer (? Flowers) Move force from one object to another RC Tag Effect 0 Shift Pass momentum between held objects 1 Channel Redirect impact from yourself to nearby surface 2 Siphon Drain kinetic energy from moving targets 3 Exchange Swap momentum between distant objects 4 Cascade Chain transfer across multiple targets simultaneously Lock (? Flowers) Prevent change in current motion RC Tag Effect 0 Steady Stabilize hands, prevent wobble 1 Fix Lock an object's velocity, maintain trajectory 2 Freeze Halt a target's movement entirely 3 Perpetual Make motion self-sustaining, endless momentum 4 Absolute Lock Nothing can alter the motion state, immune to all forces Accumulator (? Pikes) Store kinetic energy for later release RC Tag Effect 0 Gather Store small impacts for minor boost later 1 Bank Absorb hits to power up next strike 2 Reservoir Build significant charge from sustained damage 3 Overcharge Store dangerous amounts, risk uncontrolled release 4 Singularity Compress unlimited force into a single devastating point Thermodynamics Heat, cold, energy transfer, combustion Heat Up (? Pikes) Raise temperature of a target RC Tag Effect 0 Warm Comfortable heat, dry wet clothes, warm food 1 Burn Inflict burns, ignite flammables, heat metal uncomfortably 2 Scorch Serious burns, melt plastics, combust materials 3 Incinerate Reduce to ash, melt steel, create firestorms 4 Solar Plasma-level heat, vaporize matter, scar reality Cool Down (? Diamonds) Lower temperature of a target RC Tag Effect 0 Chill Refresh drinks, cool a room, numb minor pain 1 Freeze Create ice, frostbite exposure, slow targets 2 Flash Freeze Instant ice, shatter frozen materials, hypothermia 3 Cryo Absolute cold, freeze fire itself, cryogenic suspension 4 Entropy's End Approach absolute zero, halt molecular motion entirely Containment (? Hearts) Prevent heat exchange RC Tag Effect 0 Insulate Keep drinks hot/cold, minor temperature protection 1 Barrier Shield from environmental heat/cold 2 Fireproof Complete immunity to normal fire and ice 3 Thermal Lock Trap heat inside targets, prevent cooling of fires 4 Perfect Seal No energy can enter or exit, thermodynamic isolation Shift (? Flowers) Change state of matter via temperature RC Tag Effect 0 Melt Soften ice, liquify butter, condensation 1 Phase Ice to water to steam rapidly, control transitions 2 Sublimate Skip states entirely, solid to gas directly 3 Plasma Push matter into plasma state, ionize air 4 Exotic States Create impossible states of matter, Bose-Einstein condensates Gradient (? Diamonds) Create directional heat flow RC Tag Effect 0 Direct Make heat flow in specific direction 1 Funnel Concentrate dispersed heat into a point 2 Siphon Draw heat from one target to another 3 Vortex Create thermal currents, wind from temperature difference 4 Engine Perfect heat engine, extract work from any temperature differential Spike (? Pikes) Induce rapid and localized thermal shock RC Tag Effect 0 Jolt Sudden temperature change, startle, minor discomfort 1 Shock Thermal stress cracks, painful burns/frostbite 2 Shatter Explode glass, crack metal, severe tissue damage 3 Thermobaric Explosive temperature differential, fuel-air effects 4 Nova Instant extreme thermal event, localized sun/void Electrodynamics Electricity, magnetism, conductivity Charge (? Pikes) Apply electrical charge RC Tag Effect 0 Static Hair stands up, small sparks, shock doorknobs 1 Shock Painful jolt, stun briefly, power small devices 2 Lightning Dangerous electrical discharge, cardiac risk 3 Storm Multiple arcs, chain lightning, overload systems 4 Megavolt Industrial-scale electricity, instant death, EMP Channeler (? Diamonds) Direct electrical flow RC Tag Effect 0 Path Guide current along safe route, prevent shock 1 Conductor Make materials conductive, create circuits 2 Arc Guide Control lightning's path precisely 3 Network Create complex electrical systems instantly 4 Neural Web Interface directly with nervous systems Generator (? Flowers) Create electromagnetic field RC Tag Effect 0 Buzz Minor magnetic field, compass disruption 1 Field Attract/repel small metal objects, disrupt electronics 2 Pulse EMP burst, wipe data, disable vehicles 3 Barrier Magnetic shield, deflect metal projectiles 4 Monopole Create impossible magnetic configurations, reality strain Disrupt (? Pikes) Interfere with electronic systems RC Tag Effect 0 Glitch Minor static, dropped calls, screen flicker 1 Scramble Disable phones, corrupt files, jam signals 2 Fry Permanently damage electronics, data destruction 3 Blackout Shut down power grid sections, total darkness 4 Dark Age Permanent regional electronics death, technological regression Polarity (? Flowers) Invert magnetic/electric orientation RC Tag Effect 0 Flip Reverse compass, confuse navigation 1 Repel Push metal away, electromagnetic levitation 2 Invert Swap positive/negative, reverse current flow 3 Chaos Field Randomize electromagnetic properties in area 4 Antimagnetic Create zones where electromagnetism doesn't function Materia Sciences Matter, substances, transformation, alchemy Reinforcement (? Hearts) Increase material strength RC Tag Effect 0 Toughen Make fabric tear-resistant, harden skin slightly 1 Fortify Wood becomes steel-hard, strengthen armor 2 Adamant Near-indestructible materials, bulletproofing 3 Mythic Legendary material strength, sword that cuts anything 4 Unbreakable Absolute material integrity, nothing can damage it Weakening (? Pikes) Reduce material integrity RC Tag Effect 0 Fray Loosen threads, weaken joints, minor wear 1 Brittle Materials crack easily, armor becomes fragile 2 Crumble Stone becomes powder, metal flakes apart 3 Disintegrate Rapid material breakdown, dissolve structures 4 Unmake Matter loses cohesion entirely, atomic dissolution Dense (? Flowers) Alter mass-to-volume ratio RC Tag Effect 0 Heavy Make objects slightly heavier, weighted strikes 1 Compress Double density, sinking objects, crushing weight 2 Ultra-Dense Extreme compression, bulletproof through mass 3 Neutronium Impossible density, gravitational effects 4 Singularity Approach infinite density, micro black holes Surfacing (? Diamonds) Modify texture or friction RC Tag Effect 0 Smooth Polish surfaces, reduce friction, slippery floors 1 Grip Perfect traction, stick to walls, non-slip 2 Razor Monomolecular edge, cut through anything 3 Phasing Selectively permeable surfaces, pass through solids 4 Frictionless Absolute zero friction, perpetual motion possible Recomposition (? Flowers) Change material type RC Tag Effect 0 Tint Change color, minor surface alteration 1 Convert Wood to stone, water to oil, basic transmutation 2 Transmute Lead to gold, any material to another 3 Create Synthesize materials from nothing, pure creation 4 Philosopher's Perfect transmutation, violate conservation laws Acoustics Sound, vibration, resonance Emission (? Flowers) Generate controlled vibration RC Tag Effect 0 Hum Create ambient sound, mask footsteps 1 Tone Specific frequencies, break glass, communication 2 Blast Sonic attack, disorientation, shatter materials 3 Scream Devastating sound waves, rupture organs 4 Word of God Reality-shaking vibration, reshape matter with sound Tuning (? Diamonds) Amplify specific frequencies RC Tag Effect 0 Listen Enhance specific sounds, eavesdrop 1 Boost Amplify whispers to shouts, enhance signals 2 Resonate Find resonant frequency, shatter specific targets 3 Harmonic Perfect pitch control, counter any frequency 4 Universal Tone Access the frequency of anything, sympathetic destruction Cancel (? Hearts) Negate sound or vibration RC Tag Effect 0 Muffle Reduce noise, quiet footsteps 1 Silence Zone of no sound, stealth operations 2 Void Perfect silence, no vibration can exist 3 Dampen All Negate shockwaves, stop earthquakes locally 4 Stillness Absolute vibrational death, entropy through silence Propagation (? Pikes) Transmit force via sound waves RC Tag Effect 0 Push Sound pressure moves small objects 1 Wave Knockback through sonic force 2 Shockwave Concussive blast, stun groups 3 Quake Ground-shaking vibrations, structural damage 4 Worldsong Vibrations that reshape geography Harmonics (? Flowers) Stabilize or destabilize resonant systems RC Tag Effect 0 Steady Calm vibrations, stop rattling 1 Sync Bring systems into harmony, enhance coordination 2 Discord Destabilize structures through resonance 3 Cascade Chain resonant failures, domino destruction 4 Symphony Perfect control of all vibration in area Somatics Body, flesh, physical form Motor Amp (? Hearts) Increase physical output RC Tag Effect 0 Energize Minor strength boost, shake off fatigue 1 Enhance Double strength, enhanced reflexes 2 Superhuman Beyond normal limits, Olympic performance 3 Monstrous Terrifying physical capability, bend steel 4 Titan Godlike strength, move mountains Motor Down (? Pikes) Reduce voluntary movement RC Tag Effect 0 Sluggish Slow reactions, clumsy movements 1 Weaken Halve strength, difficulty with basic tasks 2 Cripple Severe motor impairment, near paralysis 3 Paralyze Complete voluntary movement loss 4 Puppet Cut Sever mind-body connection entirely Inhibition (? Hearts) Suppress pain response RC Tag Effect 0 Numb Reduce minor pain, comfort 1 Block Ignore significant pain, function while injured 2 Deadened Complete pain immunity, risk of unnoticed injury 3 Beyond Limits Body ignores damage warnings, dangerous overexertion 4 Undying Will Function until physically impossible, ignore death Delay (? Diamonds) Slow neuromuscular response RC Tag Effect 0 Lag Slight delay in reactions, fumbled catches 1 Stagger Noticeable response delay, combat disadvantage 2 Disconnect Seconds of lag, body doesn't respond 3 Desync Massive delay, actions happen long after intent 4 Temporal Nerve Mind and body exist in different timeframes Acceleration (? Hearts) Increase reaction speed RC Tag Effect 0 Alert Heightened awareness, quicker startle response 1 Quick Faster reactions, catch thrown objects easily 2 Lightning Act before others can perceive 3 Bullet Time World seems to slow, perfect reaction speed 4 Precognitive Speed React before events happen Override (? Pikes) Force specific bodily action RC Tag Effect 0 Twitch Cause minor involuntary movements 1 Compel Force simple actions—drop weapon, step back 2 Control Puppet a limb, force complex movements 3 Possess Full body control, ride along in flesh 4 Rewrite Permanently alter autonomic responses Regeneration Healing, restoration, growth Repair (? Hearts) Restore damaged tissue RC Tag Effect 0 Mend Close small cuts, ease bruises 1 Heal Seal wounds, mend broken bones over time 2 Restore Rapid healing, regenerate significant damage 3 Regrow Restore lost limbs, rebuild organs 4 Perfect Form Complete bodily restoration, reverse any damage Recovery (? Hearts) Increase healing rate RC Tag Effect 0 Rest Enhance natural healing during sleep 1 Accelerate Days of healing in hours 2 Rapid Hours of healing in minutes 3 Instant Heal as fast as damaged, near-immortality 4 Phoenix Regenerate from nearly anything, come back from death Stabilization (? Hearts) Halt further damage RC Tag Effect 0 Clot Stop bleeding, prevent infection 1 Stasis Freeze current condition, prevent deterioration 2 Preserve Indefinite stabilization, suspended animation 3 Lock State Body cannot change from current state 4 Eternal Permanent preservation, stop aging Growth (? Flowers) Stimulate controlled growth RC Tag Effect 0 Nurture Speed plant growth, strengthen hair/nails 1 Cultivate Rapid tissue growth, enhanced healing 2 Expand Grow extra tissue, temporary size increase 3 Evolve Develop new biological features 4 Genesis Create new life from flesh, spawn organisms Unscar (? Hearts) Remove lasting damage markers RC Tag Effect 0 Smooth Fade recent scars, improve skin 1 Erase Remove old scars, restore appearance 2 Purge Eliminate chronic conditions, nerve damage 3 Revert Return body to prior healthy state 4 Pristine Perfect restoration, as if damage never occurred Degradation Decay, entropy, breaking down Breakdown (? Pikes) Induce cellular decay RC Tag Effect 0 Wilt Plants droop, minor tissue damage 1 Rot Flesh begins to decay, food spoils instantly 2 Necrosis Rapid tissue death, gangrenous effects 3 Consume Body devours itself, catastrophic organ failure 4 Entropy Accelerate heat death locally, matter dissolves Fatigue (? Pikes) Increase exhaustion RC Tag Effect 0 Tire Minor fatigue, yawning, sluggishness 1 Exhaust Significant tiredness, reduced performance 2 Drain Debilitating exhaustion, collapse likely 3 Hollow Complete energy depletion, comatose 4 Soul Drain Exhaust the vital essence itself, wither existence Age Accel (? Pikes) Advance biological wear RC Tag Effect 0 Weather Add years of wear to objects, slight aging 1 Age Decade of aging in moments, grey hair, wrinkles 2 Wither Severe aging, frailty, organ decline 3 Ancient Near death from age, body failing 4 Dust Age to death and beyond, crumble to nothing Necrotic (? Pikes) Propagate tissue failure RC Tag Effect 0 Taint Introduce decay at wound sites 1 Spread Necrosis expands from initial point 2 Plague Rapid spreading decay, infectious 3 Cascade Failure spreads to connected systems 4 Death Touch Instant total necrosis on contact Intolerance (? Diamonds) Lower tolerance limits RC Tag Effect 0 Sensitive Reduce pain threshold, increase discomfort 1 Vulnerable Lower resistance to damage, amplify harm 2 Fragile Severe vulnerability, minor impacts cause major damage 3 Glass Body cannot withstand any stress 4 Allergic to Existence Everything causes damage, reality itself hurts Adaptation Change, evolution, environmental response Resistance (? Hearts) Gain defensive adaptations RC Tag Effect 0 Acclimate Adjust to temperature, altitude, minor hazards 1 Harden Resist specific damage type, develop immunity 2 Armored Significant damage resistance, natural armor 3 Reactive Automatically adapt to counter current threat 4 Immune Complete immunity to chosen damage type Tuning (? Diamonds) Adapt to hostile conditions RC Tag Effect 0 Adjust Function in uncomfortable environments 1 Survive Thrive in hostile conditions—underwater, vacuum briefly 2 Thrive Perfect environmental adaptation, no penalties 3 Native Become suited to impossible environments 4 Omni-Adapt Function perfectly in any environment instantly Mutation Trigger (? Flowers) Induce random biological change RC Tag Effect 0 Quirk Minor harmless mutation, cosmetic changes 1 Shift Functional mutation, extra features 2 Evolve Significant beneficial mutation 3 Chimera Major transformation, monstrous features 4 Apotheosis Transcend current biological form entirely Selectivity (? Diamonds) Adapt to imitate other life forms RC Tag Effect 0 Mimic Copy minor features—voice, coloring 1 Blend Camouflage, appear as different person 2 Shapeshift Take on complete other form 3 Perfect Copy Identical duplication, fooling even magic 4 Become Actually become target, gain their abilities Overadaptation (? Pikes) Push beyond stable limits RC Tag Effect 0 Push Exceed normal limits briefly, mild strain 1 Strain Significant overperformance, damage accumulates 2 Break Limits Dangerous enhancement, body suffers 3 Burn Out Extreme power at extreme cost 4 Final Form Ultimate adaptation, may be permanent/fatal Atavic (? Flowers) Retain adaptations long-term RC Tag Effect 0 Remember Body remembers recent adaptations 1 Store Bank multiple adaptations for later 2 Permanent Make temporary changes permanent 3 Library Access any previous adaptation instantly 4 Evolutionary Memory Access ancestral adaptations, species memory Cognition Mind, thought, memory, perception Access (? Diamonds) Retrieve stored information RC Tag Effect 0 Recall Perfect memory of recent events 1 Dig Recover forgotten memories, buried knowledge 2 Extract Pull memories from others (willing) 3 Raid Forcibly access others' memories 4 Omniscient Access any memory that exists anywhere Bottle (? Diamonds) Block recall RC Tag Effect 0 Fog Make memories hazy, uncertain 1 Block Prevent specific memory access 2 Seal Lock away memories completely 3 Erase Delete memories permanently 4 Blank Complete memory wipe, tabula rasa Cognitive Accel (? Diamonds) Increase thought speed RC Tag Effect 0 Focus Enhanced concentration, clearer thinking 1 Quick Faster mental processing, rapid calculation 2 Genius Superintelligent processing speed 3 Parallel Multiple simultaneous thought streams 4 Infinite Process unlimited information instantly Interference (? Pikes) Disrupt reasoning RC Tag Effect 0 Distract Break concentration, lose train of thought 1 Confuse Scramble logic, poor decisions 2 Madden Temporary insanity, irrational behavior 3 Shatter Break mind completely, catatonia or psychosis 4 Unmake Mind Destroy the ability to think entirely Injection (? Pikes) Impose false correlations RC Tag Effect 0 Suggest Plant minor ideas, nudge conclusions 1 Convince Create false beliefs, gaslighting 2 Implant Deep false memories, identity alteration 3 Rewrite Completely restructure belief systems 4 New Reality Target believes whatever you design Isolation (? Hearts) Block external mental input RC Tag Effect 0 Shield Resist minor mental intrusion 1 Fortress Block mental attacks, telepathy resistance 2 Void Complete mental isolation, untouchable mind 3 Mirror Reflect mental attacks back at source 4 Sovereign Absolute mental autonomy, cannot be influenced Signal Proxes Communication, transmission, interference Input Up (? Diamonds) Enhance sensory perception RC Tag Effect 0 Sharpen Slightly better hearing, sight, smell 1 Enhance Superhuman senses, see in darkness 2 Extend Sense beyond normal range, detect magic 3 Omnisense 360-degree awareness, nothing hidden 4 Cosmic Perceive across dimensions, sense anything Filter (? Diamonds) Remove specific stimuli RC Tag Effect 0 Muffle Reduce distracting input, focus senses 1 Block Completely filter out chosen stimuli 2 Selective Only perceive what you want to perceive 3 Immunity Cannot be harmed by sensory attacks 4 Pure Signal Perceive only truth, filter all deception Double (? Flowers) Create false sensory input RC Tag Effect 0 Whisper Minor illusions, phantom sounds 1 Image Visual illusions, fake images 2 Full Sense Complete sensory illusion, all senses 3 Reality Illusions that can affect physical world 4 True Lie Illusions indistinguishable from reality permanently Bandwidth (? Pikes) Overload perception RC Tag Effect 0 Static Minor sensory noise, distraction 1 Overwhelm Too much input, disorientation 2 Flood Sensory overload, temporary blindness/deafness 3 Whitenoise Complete sensory shutdown 4 Infinite Input Mind-breaking sensory infinity, permanent damage Cloak (? Flowers) Prevent detection RC Tag Effect 0 Dim Harder to notice, blend into background 1 Hide Invisible to casual observation 2 Vanish Complete invisibility, undetectable 3 Nonexist Erased from perception, cameras and magic 4 Null Does not exist to any form of detection Prediction Foresight, probability, divination Fate Modeling (? Diamonds) Estimate probable results RC Tag Effect 0 Hunch Gut feeling about outcomes 1 Odds Know probability of immediate events 2 Forecast Predict complex outcome chains 3 Certainty Know exact outcome before action 4 Omniscient See all possible outcomes simultaneously Causality (? Diamonds) Identify source of events RC Tag Effect 0 Trace Find immediate cause of recent event 1 Chain Follow cause-effect backwards 2 Root Find original cause of any situation 3 Web See all connected causes and effects 4 Prime Mover Perceive the first cause of anything Snapshot (? Diamonds) View near-term state RC Tag Effect 0 Glimpse See seconds into the future 1 Preview View minutes ahead, avoid immediate danger 2 Window See hours ahead, plan around events 3 Vision See days ahead with clarity 4 Oracle See any point in the future with perfect clarity Risk Projection (? Diamonds) Evaluate failure chances RC Tag Effect 0 Caution Sense danger level of immediate action 1 Analysis Know specific failure points 2 Mitigation See how to reduce risk 3 Perfect Intel Know all risks and how to avoid them 4 Zero Risk Identify path with no possibility of failure De-Uncertain (? Flowers) Stabilize random elements RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Slightly bias random outcomes 1 Weight Significantly affect probability 2 Fix Determine outcome of random events 3 Lock Make probability outcomes certain 4 Determinism Remove randomness from reality locally Synchronization Coordination, timing, group effects Alignment (? Flowers) Synchronize multiple agents RC Tag Effect 0 Rhythm Keep time together, coordinate movements 1 Sync Act in perfect unison, team coordination 2 Hivemind Share intentions instantly, perfect teamwork 3 Unity Multiple beings act as one organism 4 Gestalt Merge consciousness temporarily, combined being Desynchronization (? Pikes) Disrupt coordinated action RC Tag Effect 0 Stumble Mess up timing, minor coordination issues 1 Discord Break team coordination, miscommunication 2 Scatter Groups cannot work together 3 Chaos Coordinated systems fall apart entirely 4 Entropy Nothing can coordinate, absolute disorder Delay (? Diamonds) Slow coordinated systems RC Tag Effect 0 Lag Slight timing delays, off-beat 1 Stagger Significant delays, poor reaction time 2 Halt Systems pause, coordination freezes 3 Suspend Coordinated actions held indefinitely 4 Time Lock Freeze coordinated systems outside of time Resonalink (? Flowers) Share states across targets RC Tag Effect 0 Echo Share sensations briefly 1 Bond Share status effects, damage 2 Mirror What happens to one happens to all 3 Distribute Spread effects across group evenly 4 One All linked targets are effectively the same being Cascade (? Pikes) Chain reactions through alignment RC Tag Effect 0 Ripple Small effects spread to nearby 1 Chain Effects jump between connected targets 2 Domino Triggered chain reactions 3 Avalanche Exponentially growing effect spread 4 Apocalypse Unstoppable cascade affecting everything Interfacing Connection, interaction, systems Access Grant (? Flowers) Establish interaction channel RC Tag Effect 0 Knock Establish basic connection, request access 1 Link Create stable communication channel 2 Integrate Full interface with systems 3 Merge Become part of the system temporarily 4 Universal Access Interface with anything, no restrictions Access Denial (? Hearts) Block interaction attempts RC Tag Effect 0 Lock Basic barrier to connection 1 Firewall Block unauthorized access 2 Fortress Impenetrable to normal access attempts 3 Void Connection attempts cease to exist 4 Unreachable Cannot be accessed by any means Bias (? Diamonds) Shift outcome probabilities RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Slight advantage, lucky breaks 1 Tilt Noticeable probability shift in your favor 2 Stack Heavily weighted outcomes 3 Rig Virtually guaranteed favorable results 4 Fate Dictate outcomes, luck is yours Override (? Pikes) Bypass standard rules RC Tag Effect 0 Bend Stretch rules slightly, minor exceptions 1 Break Violate normal restrictions 2 Hack Completely bypass system rules 3 Rewrite Change how systems operate 4 God Mode Ignore all rules, absolute override Persistence (? Flowers) Maintain influence over time RC Tag Effect 0 Linger Effects last slightly longer 1 Hold Maintain connection without concentration 2 Permanent Effects become semi-permanent 3 Eternal Effects last indefinitely 4 Absolute Cannot be ended, effects are forever Authority Command, influence, compulsion Compel (? Pikes) Influence to comply RC Tag Effect 0 Suggest Gentle nudge toward compliance 1 Persuade Strong urge to obey suggestion 2 Command Direct order, difficult to resist 3 Dominate Overwhelming compulsion to obey 4 Absolute Cannot disobey, total compliance Attention (? Flowers) Force target to attend to caster RC Tag Effect 0 Notice Draw eye, hard to ignore 1 Focus Target cannot look away, captivated 2 Fixate Complete attention, oblivious to else 3 Obsess Consuming focus on you, nothing else matters 4 Worship You are the only thing that exists to them Weight (? Diamonds) Bias target decision making toward an outcome RC Tag Effect 0 Incline Make an option seem slightly better 1 Favor Strongly bias toward your preferred outcome 2 Inevitable Choice seems obvious, resistance feels wrong 3 Destiny They believe they always wanted this 4 Rewrite Will Their desires become your desires Command (? Pikes) Force target into a simple action RC Tag Effect 0 Twitch Minor involuntary action, blink, flinch 1 Act Force simple action—sit, stand, drop 2 Perform Force complex action sequence 3 Puppet Complete control of physical actions 4 Meat Suit Ride their body like a vehicle Inhibitor (? Diamonds) Prevent a specific action RC Tag Effect 0 Hesitate Target pauses before action 1 Block Cannot perform specific action 2 Forbid Action is impossible, body won't obey 3 Taboo Even thinking about action causes pain 4 Unthinkable Action ceases to exist as a concept Terminality (? Pikes) Issue an absolute command that disregards self-preservation RC Tag Effect 0 Urge Strong impulse despite risk 1 Override Fear Target ignores danger to comply 2 Death Order Target will die to obey 3 Absolute Law Command supersedes all survival instinct 4 Word of God Reality itself enforces your command Binding Summoning, anchoring, contracts, restraint Materialize (? Flowers) Create an object of defined size, mass and function RC Tag Effect 0 Form Create small simple objects, temporary 1 Craft Create functional tools, weapons, lasting 2 Build Create complex mechanisms, vehicles 3 Architecture Create structures, buildings 4 World Craft Create anything physical, permanent Summoning (? Flowers) Bring a chosen entity into the present and here temporarily RC Tag Effect 0 Call Summon minor spirits, small creatures 1 Invoke Summon significant beings, bound service 2 Conjure Summon powerful entities, negotiate terms 3 Gate Open portal for major beings 4 Throne Summon anything from anywhere, gods included Anchor (? Flowers) Fix an object or entity in space, preventing movement or removal RC Tag Effect 0 Pin Hold small objects in place 1 Fix Lock position of person-sized targets 2 Immobilize Nothing can move target, immutable position 3 Dimensional Lock Cannot be moved by any means, including teleport 4 Eternal Position Fixed in space-time permanently Shaper (? Flowers) Alter form, configuration or arrangement of an object or entity RC Tag Effect 0 Mold Minor shape changes, cosmetic alterations 1 Reform Significant reshaping, functional changes 2 Transform Complete form alteration 3 Transmute Change fundamental nature while reshaping 4 Unmake/Remake Destroy and recreate in any form Link (? Flowers) Bind objects or entities to share properties RC Tag Effect 0 Thread Minor connection, sense each other 1 Bond Share sensations, communicate 2 Sympathetic What affects one affects both 3 Soul Link Deep binding, share life force 4 Unity Become one entity in two bodies Extend (? Flowers) Extend duration and autonomy of creations or summons RC Tag Effect 0 Sustain Keep summons/creations active longer 1 Stabilize Summons act independently briefly 2 Autonomous Creations sustain themselves 3 Permanent Summons/creations become permanent 4 True Life Creations become truly alive, independent Spacial Dynamics Space, positioning, distance, dimensions Compress (? Flowers) Reduce space between targets RC Tag Effect 0 Close Bring objects slightly closer 1 Shrink Halve distances, cramped spaces 2 Crush Compress space dangerously, pressure damage 3 Singularity Collapse space to a point 4 Void Space ceases to exist between points Expand (? Flowers) Increase space between targets RC Tag Effect 0 Stretch Increase distances slightly 1 Gap Create significant space, miss attacks 2 Chasm Vast distances appear instantly 3 Infinite Distance becomes effectively infinite 4 Unreachable Target cannot be reached by any means Swap (? Diamonds) Exchange locations RC Tag Effect 0 Switch Swap position with nearby small object 1 Exchange Swap position with willing target 2 Force Swap Swap with unwilling targets 3 Chain Swap Multiple simultaneous position exchanges 4 Universal Swap Exchange position with anything anywhere Topo-fold (? Flowers) Connect non-adjacent spaces RC Tag Effect 0 Shortcut Create brief minor spatial shortcut 1 Portal Door to nearby location 2 Gate Stable portal to known locations 3 Rift Portal to anywhere you've been 4 Everywhere Connect any points in existence Boundary (? Hearts) Define impassable limits RC Tag Effect 0 Line Minor barrier, slow passage 1 Wall Solid spatial boundary 2 Cage Complete enclosure, no exit 3 Dimension Separate pocket of space 4 Absolute Nothing can cross, not even gods Tempomechanics Time, sequencing, duration, causality Uptick (? Diamonds) Speed up local time flow RC Tag Effect 0 Hasten Slight speed increase, quick tasks 1 Accelerate Double speed, rapid actions 2 Blur Extreme speed, hard to perceive 3 Flash Near-instant action, time dilation 4 Eternity in Seconds Experience years in moments Downtick (? Diamonds) Slow local time flow RC Tag Effect 0 Drag Slight slowdown, delayed reactions 1 Slow Half speed, molasses movements 2 Crawl Near-frozen, extreme slow motion 3 Suspend Almost stopped, moments last hours 4 Frozen Time stops for target completely Pause (? Diamonds) Halt progression briefly RC Tag Effect 0 Hesitate Brief pause, skip a beat 1 Stop Halt for seconds, frozen moment 2 Freeze Frame Extended pause, minutes of stillness 3 Time Lock Target locked outside time 4 Eternal Moment Pause indefinitely, remove from time Reorder (? Diamonds) Alter action order RC Tag Effect 0 Shuffle Minor initiative change, act sooner 1 Priority Act first in sequence 2 Interrupt Insert action into another's turn 3 Causality Break Effect before cause 4 First and Last Act at beginning and end simultaneously Revert (? Hearts) Return target to prior state RC Tag Effect 0 Undo Reverse last few seconds of change 1 Restore Return to state minutes ago 2 Reset Revert to state hours ago 3 Regression Return to state days/weeks ago 4 Origin Return anything to any previous state Buffer (? Hearts) Delay consequences RC Tag Effect 0 Postpone Delay effect for moments 1 Hold Store consequences for minutes 2 Suspend Delay effects for hours 3 Escrow Hold consequences indefinitely, release at will 4 Never Consequences never arrive, deleted from time Part VII — Asset Tag System Assets are significant items, tools, or resources in a character's possession. Each Asset has 1-3 Tags — short phrases describing qualities that can be leveraged for advantage. Asset Structure Name: The item's identity Tags (1-3): Qualities that can be invoked for Dice Power Condition: Ready or Broken Assets start with 1 Tag and can be upgraded to a maximum of 3 Tags by spending XP. Leveraging Assets Declare which Assets you're using and which Tags are relevant. Table approves whether each Tag applies. Add +1 Dice Power per approved Tag to your total. The Break Roll After resolving your action, roll one d6 for each Asset leveraged. If the die shows equal to or lower than the number of Tags used, the Asset is Broken until the next Refresh Phase. Tags Used Break On Break Chance 1 Tag 1 ?17% 2 Tags 1-2 ?33% 3 Tags 1-3 50% Refresh Phases Short Refresh: A few hours of rest or reaching safety. Restores all Broken Assets. Long Refresh: Extended downtime. Restores Broken Assets AND clears Stress. Part VIII — Campaign Structure A campaign follows player characters through the three-month pilgrimage toward the city hosting that year's Walpurgisnacht. The Pilgrimage (Months 1–3) Risk Class capped at RC-2 Emphasis on secrecy, positioning, resource gathering Bloodline pressures and Background complications drive drama Walpurgisnacht Structure Phase I — Preparation: RC-2 cap. Positioning, sabotage, alliance-building. Phase II — The Hunt: RC-3 unlocked. Tracking, scrying, indirect conflict. Phase III — The Duel: RC-4 allowed. Open magic, full confrontation. Phase IV — The Wish: One Wish granted to the victor. Part IX — XP System XP track holds a maximum of 12 stored XP. Mid-Session XP (Repeatable, Max 3) Did you take a meaningful risk to advance your goals or maintain the secret masquerade? Each YES = 1 XP (max 3/session). End-of-Session XP Did you advance or defy your Bloodline Doctrine? Did your mundane life complicate your magic? Did you escalate a lasting conflict? Each YES = 1 XP Part X — Spell System Spells are the primary expressions of magical power. Each spell is a structured effect defined by its Practice, Attunement, and Risk Class Tags. Spell Structure Practice: The school of magic the spell belongs to (18 total). Attunement: The suit that determines which Arcana Asso can pay for it. Tags (5 slots): One Tag per Risk Class (RC-0 through RC-4), unlocked sequentially. Attunements (The Four Suits) Each spell is attuned to one of four suits. Arcana Assi of the matching suit can pay the spell's Stress cost. Suit Symbol Suggested Themes Pikes ? Destruction, force, harm, offensive magic Hearts ? Life, healing, protection, body, support Diamonds ? Mind, perception, knowledge, precision, information Flowers ? Creation, connection, structure, transformation, space/time Practices (18 Schools) Each character chooses 4 Practices as their specialties. You can only learn spells from your chosen Practices. Attempting magic outside your Practices is possible but requires table negotiation. Kinetics, Thermodynamics, Electrodynamics, Materia Sciences, Acoustics, Somatics Regeneration, Degradation, Adaptation, Cognition, Signal Proxes, Prediction Synchronization, Interfacing, Authority, Binding, Spacial Dynamics, Tempomechanics Learning Spells Starting Spells: Begin with 2 spells—one at RC-0, one at RC-1. Gaining Spells: Gain 1 new spell per level up. Upgrading Spells: Spend XP to unlock higher RC Tags for existing spells. Spell RC Advancement Costs RC Upgrade XP Cost RC-0 ? RC-1 2 XP RC-1 ? RC-2 3 XP RC-2 ? RC-3 4 XP RC-3 ? RC-4 5 XP Casting Spells When you cast a spell, you choose how much power to put into it by selecting which Tags to use. Choose Tags: Select which unlocked Tags to use (limited by current phase's RC cap). Table Approval: The table confirms the Tags apply to your intent. Gain Dice Power: Add +1 Dice Power per approved Tag. Pay Cost: Cost Calculation: Each spell costs Stress equal to the number of RC-1 or higher Tags used. Cantrips (RC-0): Using only RC-0 Tags costs 0 Stress. These are your mundane, reflexive uses of magic (lighting a cigarette, sensing a draft, steadying your hand). Escalation: As soon as you add an RC-1 Tag (or higher) to the stack, the spell begins to tax your Stress track. Example: Casting Ignite (RC-0) is free. Casting Ignite + Burn (RC-1) costs 1 Stress. Tags Stack: Using multiple Tags combines their effects (Ignite + Burn + Scorch = a fire that starts, spreads, and causes serious damage). Phase Restrictions Pilgrimage: RC-2 maximum. Cannot use RC-3 or RC-4 Tags even if unlocked. Hunt Phase: RC-3 unlocked. Duel Phase: RC-4 unlocked. All power available. Spell Tag Pattern Each spell's 5 Tags follow an escalation pattern from minor utility to legendary power: RC-0 (Cantrip): Minor, utility, safe RC-1 (Standard): Combat-viable, reliable RC-2 (Dangerous): Significant, costly RC-3 (Severe): Major, reality-straining RC-4 (Catastrophic): Legendary, world-scarring Part VI — Spell Grimoire This section contains all 99 spells across 18 Practices. Each spell lists its Attunement and all 5 RC Tags. Kinetics Motion, force, momentum, impact Impulse (? Pikes) Apply sudden force to a target RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Gentle push, move small objects, jostle aim 1 Shove Knock a person back, deflect thrown objects, slam doors 2 Slam Break bones, shatter wood, launch a target across a room 3 Cannon Demolish walls, flip vehicles, concussive blasts 4 Cataclysm Level structures, shockwaves ripple for blocks Redirection (? Diamonds) Change direction of existing motion RC Tag Effect 0 Deflect Slightly alter a projectile's path, redirect a stumble 1 Curve Bend attacks around corners, ricochet bullets 2 Return Send projectiles back at attackers, reverse charges 3 Orbit Trap objects in looping paths, create defensive rings 4 Invert Completely reverse all motion in an area, turn gravity Dampen (? Hearts) Reduce movement effects RC Tag Effect 0 Soften Cushion falls, reduce impact noise 1 Absorb Negate minor impacts, dampen recoil 2 Nullify Stop bullets mid-air, halt charging enemies 3 Dead Zone Create areas where kinetic force dissipates entirely 4 Stasis Field Freeze all motion in a large area, stop explosions Transfer (? Flowers) Move force from one object to another RC Tag Effect 0 Shift Pass momentum between held objects 1 Channel Redirect impact from yourself to nearby surface 2 Siphon Drain kinetic energy from moving targets 3 Exchange Swap momentum between distant objects 4 Cascade Chain transfer across multiple targets simultaneously Lock (? Flowers) Prevent change in current motion RC Tag Effect 0 Steady Stabilize hands, prevent wobble 1 Fix Lock an object's velocity, maintain trajectory 2 Freeze Halt a target's movement entirely 3 Perpetual Make motion self-sustaining, endless momentum 4 Absolute Lock Nothing can alter the motion state, immune to all forces Accumulator (? Pikes) Store kinetic energy for later release RC Tag Effect 0 Gather Store small impacts for minor boost later 1 Bank Absorb hits to power up next strike 2 Reservoir Build significant charge from sustained damage 3 Overcharge Store dangerous amounts, risk uncontrolled release 4 Singularity Compress unlimited force into a single devastating point Thermodynamics Heat, cold, energy transfer, combustion Heat Up (? Pikes) Raise temperature of a target RC Tag Effect 0 Warm Comfortable heat, dry wet clothes, warm food 1 Burn Inflict burns, ignite flammables, heat metal uncomfortably 2 Scorch Serious burns, melt plastics, combust materials 3 Incinerate Reduce to ash, melt steel, create firestorms 4 Solar Plasma-level heat, vaporize matter, scar reality Cool Down (? Diamonds) Lower temperature of a target RC Tag Effect 0 Chill Refresh drinks, cool a room, numb minor pain 1 Freeze Create ice, frostbite exposure, slow targets 2 Flash Freeze Instant ice, shatter frozen materials, hypothermia 3 Cryo Absolute cold, freeze fire itself, cryogenic suspension 4 Entropy's End Approach absolute zero, halt molecular motion entirely Containment (? Hearts) Prevent heat exchange RC Tag Effect 0 Insulate Keep drinks hot/cold, minor temperature protection 1 Barrier Shield from environmental heat/cold 2 Fireproof Complete immunity to normal fire and ice 3 Thermal Lock Trap heat inside targets, prevent cooling of fires 4 Perfect Seal No energy can enter or exit, thermodynamic isolation Shift (? Flowers) Change state of matter via temperature RC Tag Effect 0 Melt Soften ice, liquify butter, condensation 1 Phase Ice to water to steam rapidly, control transitions 2 Sublimate Skip states entirely, solid to gas directly 3 Plasma Push matter into plasma state, ionize air 4 Exotic States Create impossible states of matter, Bose-Einstein condensates Gradient (? Diamonds) Create directional heat flow RC Tag Effect 0 Direct Make heat flow in specific direction 1 Funnel Concentrate dispersed heat into a point 2 Siphon Draw heat from one target to another 3 Vortex Create thermal currents, wind from temperature difference 4 Engine Perfect heat engine, extract work from any temperature differential Spike (? Pikes) Induce rapid and localized thermal shock RC Tag Effect 0 Jolt Sudden temperature change, startle, minor discomfort 1 Shock Thermal stress cracks, painful burns/frostbite 2 Shatter Explode glass, crack metal, severe tissue damage 3 Thermobaric Explosive temperature differential, fuel-air effects 4 Nova Instant extreme thermal event, localized sun/void Electrodynamics Electricity, magnetism, conductivity Charge (? Pikes) Apply electrical charge RC Tag Effect 0 Static Hair stands up, small sparks, shock doorknobs 1 Shock Painful jolt, stun briefly, power small devices 2 Lightning Dangerous electrical discharge, cardiac risk 3 Storm Multiple arcs, chain lightning, overload systems 4 Megavolt Industrial-scale electricity, instant death, EMP Channeler (? Diamonds) Direct electrical flow RC Tag Effect 0 Path Guide current along safe route, prevent shock 1 Conductor Make materials conductive, create circuits 2 Arc Guide Control lightning's path precisely 3 Network Create complex electrical systems instantly 4 Neural Web Interface directly with nervous systems Generator (? Flowers) Create electromagnetic field RC Tag Effect 0 Buzz Minor magnetic field, compass disruption 1 Field Attract/repel small metal objects, disrupt electronics 2 Pulse EMP burst, wipe data, disable vehicles 3 Barrier Magnetic shield, deflect metal projectiles 4 Monopole Create impossible magnetic configurations, reality strain Disrupt (? Pikes) Interfere with electronic systems RC Tag Effect 0 Glitch Minor static, dropped calls, screen flicker 1 Scramble Disable phones, corrupt files, jam signals 2 Fry Permanently damage electronics, data destruction 3 Blackout Shut down power grid sections, total darkness 4 Dark Age Permanent regional electronics death, technological regression Polarity (? Flowers) Invert magnetic/electric orientation RC Tag Effect 0 Flip Reverse compass, confuse navigation 1 Repel Push metal away, electromagnetic levitation 2 Invert Swap positive/negative, reverse current flow 3 Chaos Field Randomize electromagnetic properties in area 4 Antimagnetic Create zones where electromagnetism doesn't function Materia Sciences Matter, substances, transformation, alchemy Reinforcement (? Hearts) Increase material strength RC Tag Effect 0 Toughen Make fabric tear-resistant, harden skin slightly 1 Fortify Wood becomes steel-hard, strengthen armor 2 Adamant Near-indestructible materials, bulletproofing 3 Mythic Legendary material strength, sword that cuts anything 4 Unbreakable Absolute material integrity, nothing can damage it Weakening (? Pikes) Reduce material integrity RC Tag Effect 0 Fray Loosen threads, weaken joints, minor wear 1 Brittle Materials crack easily, armor becomes fragile 2 Crumble Stone becomes powder, metal flakes apart 3 Disintegrate Rapid material breakdown, dissolve structures 4 Unmake Matter loses cohesion entirely, atomic dissolution Dense (? Flowers) Alter mass-to-volume ratio RC Tag Effect 0 Heavy Make objects slightly heavier, weighted strikes 1 Compress Double density, sinking objects, crushing weight 2 Ultra-Dense Extreme compression, bulletproof through mass 3 Neutronium Impossible density, gravitational effects 4 Singularity Approach infinite density, micro black holes Surfacing (? Diamonds) Modify texture or friction RC Tag Effect 0 Smooth Polish surfaces, reduce friction, slippery floors 1 Grip Perfect traction, stick to walls, non-slip 2 Razor Monomolecular edge, cut through anything 3 Phasing Selectively permeable surfaces, pass through solids 4 Frictionless Absolute zero friction, perpetual motion possible Recomposition (? Flowers) Change material type RC Tag Effect 0 Tint Change color, minor surface alteration 1 Convert Wood to stone, water to oil, basic transmutation 2 Transmute Lead to gold, any material to another 3 Create Synthesize materials from nothing, pure creation 4 Philosopher's Perfect transmutation, violate conservation laws Acoustics Sound, vibration, resonance Emission (? Flowers) Generate controlled vibration RC Tag Effect 0 Hum Create ambient sound, mask footsteps 1 Tone Specific frequencies, break glass, communication 2 Blast Sonic attack, disorientation, shatter materials 3 Scream Devastating sound waves, rupture organs 4 Word of God Reality-shaking vibration, reshape matter with sound Tuning (? Diamonds) Amplify specific frequencies RC Tag Effect 0 Listen Enhance specific sounds, eavesdrop 1 Boost Amplify whispers to shouts, enhance signals 2 Resonate Find resonant frequency, shatter specific targets 3 Harmonic Perfect pitch control, counter any frequency 4 Universal Tone Access the frequency of anything, sympathetic destruction Cancel (? Hearts) Negate sound or vibration RC Tag Effect 0 Muffle Reduce noise, quiet footsteps 1 Silence Zone of no sound, stealth operations 2 Void Perfect silence, no vibration can exist 3 Dampen All Negate shockwaves, stop earthquakes locally 4 Stillness Absolute vibrational death, entropy through silence Propagation (? Pikes) Transmit force via sound waves RC Tag Effect 0 Push Sound pressure moves small objects 1 Wave Knockback through sonic force 2 Shockwave Concussive blast, stun groups 3 Quake Ground-shaking vibrations, structural damage 4 Worldsong Vibrations that reshape geography Harmonics (? Flowers) Stabilize or destabilize resonant systems RC Tag Effect 0 Steady Calm vibrations, stop rattling 1 Sync Bring systems into harmony, enhance coordination 2 Discord Destabilize structures through resonance 3 Cascade Chain resonant failures, domino destruction 4 Symphony Perfect control of all vibration in area Somatics Body, flesh, physical form Motor Amp (? Hearts) Increase physical output RC Tag Effect 0 Energize Minor strength boost, shake off fatigue 1 Enhance Double strength, enhanced reflexes 2 Superhuman Beyond normal limits, Olympic performance 3 Monstrous Terrifying physical capability, bend steel 4 Titan Godlike strength, move mountains Motor Down (? Pikes) Reduce voluntary movement RC Tag Effect 0 Sluggish Slow reactions, clumsy movements 1 Weaken Halve strength, difficulty with basic tasks 2 Cripple Severe motor impairment, near paralysis 3 Paralyze Complete voluntary movement loss 4 Puppet Cut Sever mind-body connection entirely Inhibition (? Hearts) Suppress pain response RC Tag Effect 0 Numb Reduce minor pain, comfort 1 Block Ignore significant pain, function while injured 2 Deadened Complete pain immunity, risk of unnoticed injury 3 Beyond Limits Body ignores damage warnings, dangerous overexertion 4 Undying Will Function until physically impossible, ignore death Delay (? Diamonds) Slow neuromuscular response RC Tag Effect 0 Lag Slight delay in reactions, fumbled catches 1 Stagger Noticeable response delay, combat disadvantage 2 Disconnect Seconds of lag, body doesn't respond 3 Desync Massive delay, actions happen long after intent 4 Temporal Nerve Mind and body exist in different timeframes Acceleration (? Hearts) Increase reaction speed RC Tag Effect 0 Alert Heightened awareness, quicker startle response 1 Quick Faster reactions, catch thrown objects easily 2 Lightning Act before others can perceive 3 Bullet Time World seems to slow, perfect reaction speed 4 Precognitive Speed React before events happen Override (? Pikes) Force specific bodily action RC Tag Effect 0 Twitch Cause minor involuntary movements 1 Compel Force simple actions—drop weapon, step back 2 Control Puppet a limb, force complex movements 3 Possess Full body control, ride along in flesh 4 Rewrite Permanently alter autonomic responses Regeneration Healing, restoration, growth Repair (? Hearts) Restore damaged tissue RC Tag Effect 0 Mend Close small cuts, ease bruises 1 Heal Seal wounds, mend broken bones over time 2 Restore Rapid healing, regenerate significant damage 3 Regrow Restore lost limbs, rebuild organs 4 Perfect Form Complete bodily restoration, reverse any damage Recovery (? Hearts) Increase healing rate RC Tag Effect 0 Rest Enhance natural healing during sleep 1 Accelerate Days of healing in hours 2 Rapid Hours of healing in minutes 3 Instant Heal as fast as damaged, near-immortality 4 Phoenix Regenerate from nearly anything, come back from death Stabilization (? Hearts) Halt further damage RC Tag Effect 0 Clot Stop bleeding, prevent infection 1 Stasis Freeze current condition, prevent deterioration 2 Preserve Indefinite stabilization, suspended animation 3 Lock State Body cannot change from current state 4 Eternal Permanent preservation, stop aging Growth (? Flowers) Stimulate controlled growth RC Tag Effect 0 Nurture Speed plant growth, strengthen hair/nails 1 Cultivate Rapid tissue growth, enhanced healing 2 Expand Grow extra tissue, temporary size increase 3 Evolve Develop new biological features 4 Genesis Create new life from flesh, spawn organisms Unscar (? Hearts) Remove lasting damage markers RC Tag Effect 0 Smooth Fade recent scars, improve skin 1 Erase Remove old scars, restore appearance 2 Purge Eliminate chronic conditions, nerve damage 3 Revert Return body to prior healthy state 4 Pristine Perfect restoration, as if damage never occurred Degradation Decay, entropy, breaking down Breakdown (? Pikes) Induce cellular decay RC Tag Effect 0 Wilt Plants droop, minor tissue damage 1 Rot Flesh begins to decay, food spoils instantly 2 Necrosis Rapid tissue death, gangrenous effects 3 Consume Body devours itself, catastrophic organ failure 4 Entropy Accelerate heat death locally, matter dissolves Fatigue (? Pikes) Increase exhaustion RC Tag Effect 0 Tire Minor fatigue, yawning, sluggishness 1 Exhaust Significant tiredness, reduced performance 2 Drain Debilitating exhaustion, collapse likely 3 Hollow Complete energy depletion, comatose 4 Soul Drain Exhaust the vital essence itself, wither existence Age Accel (? Pikes) Advance biological wear RC Tag Effect 0 Weather Add years of wear to objects, slight aging 1 Age Decade of aging in moments, grey hair, wrinkles 2 Wither Severe aging, frailty, organ decline 3 Ancient Near death from age, body failing 4 Dust Age to death and beyond, crumble to nothing Necrotic (? Pikes) Propagate tissue failure RC Tag Effect 0 Taint Introduce decay at wound sites 1 Spread Necrosis expands from initial point 2 Plague Rapid spreading decay, infectious 3 Cascade Failure spreads to connected systems 4 Death Touch Instant total necrosis on contact Intolerance (? Diamonds) Lower tolerance limits RC Tag Effect 0 Sensitive Reduce pain threshold, increase discomfort 1 Vulnerable Lower resistance to damage, amplify harm 2 Fragile Severe vulnerability, minor impacts cause major damage 3 Glass Body cannot withstand any stress 4 Allergic to Existence Everything causes damage, reality itself hurts Adaptation Change, evolution, environmental response Resistance (? Hearts) Gain defensive adaptations RC Tag Effect 0 Acclimate Adjust to temperature, altitude, minor hazards 1 Harden Resist specific damage type, develop immunity 2 Armored Significant damage resistance, natural armor 3 Reactive Automatically adapt to counter current threat 4 Immune Complete immunity to chosen damage type Tuning (? Diamonds) Adapt to hostile conditions RC Tag Effect 0 Adjust Function in uncomfortable environments 1 Survive Thrive in hostile conditions—underwater, vacuum briefly 2 Thrive Perfect environmental adaptation, no penalties 3 Native Become suited to impossible environments 4 Omni-Adapt Function perfectly in any environment instantly Mutation Trigger (? Flowers) Induce random biological change RC Tag Effect 0 Quirk Minor harmless mutation, cosmetic changes 1 Shift Functional mutation, extra features 2 Evolve Significant beneficial mutation 3 Chimera Major transformation, monstrous features 4 Apotheosis Transcend current biological form entirely Selectivity (? Diamonds) Adapt to imitate other life forms RC Tag Effect 0 Mimic Copy minor features—voice, coloring 1 Blend Camouflage, appear as different person 2 Shapeshift Take on complete other form 3 Perfect Copy Identical duplication, fooling even magic 4 Become Actually become target, gain their abilities Overadaptation (? Pikes) Push beyond stable limits RC Tag Effect 0 Push Exceed normal limits briefly, mild strain 1 Strain Significant overperformance, damage accumulates 2 Break Limits Dangerous enhancement, body suffers 3 Burn Out Extreme power at extreme cost 4 Final Form Ultimate adaptation, may be permanent/fatal Atavic (? Flowers) Retain adaptations long-term RC Tag Effect 0 Remember Body remembers recent adaptations 1 Store Bank multiple adaptations for later 2 Permanent Make temporary changes permanent 3 Library Access any previous adaptation instantly 4 Evolutionary Memory Access ancestral adaptations, species memory Cognition Mind, thought, memory, perception Access (? Diamonds) Retrieve stored information RC Tag Effect 0 Recall Perfect memory of recent events 1 Dig Recover forgotten memories, buried knowledge 2 Extract Pull memories from others (willing) 3 Raid Forcibly access others' memories 4 Omniscient Access any memory that exists anywhere Bottle (? Diamonds) Block recall RC Tag Effect 0 Fog Make memories hazy, uncertain 1 Block Prevent specific memory access 2 Seal Lock away memories completely 3 Erase Delete memories permanently 4 Blank Complete memory wipe, tabula rasa Cognitive Accel (? Diamonds) Increase thought speed RC Tag Effect 0 Focus Enhanced concentration, clearer thinking 1 Quick Faster mental processing, rapid calculation 2 Genius Superintelligent processing speed 3 Parallel Multiple simultaneous thought streams 4 Infinite Process unlimited information instantly Interference (? Pikes) Disrupt reasoning RC Tag Effect 0 Distract Break concentration, lose train of thought 1 Confuse Scramble logic, poor decisions 2 Madden Temporary insanity, irrational behavior 3 Shatter Break mind completely, catatonia or psychosis 4 Unmake Mind Destroy the ability to think entirely Injection (? Pikes) Impose false correlations RC Tag Effect 0 Suggest Plant minor ideas, nudge conclusions 1 Convince Create false beliefs, gaslighting 2 Implant Deep false memories, identity alteration 3 Rewrite Completely restructure belief systems 4 New Reality Target believes whatever you design Isolation (? Hearts) Block external mental input RC Tag Effect 0 Shield Resist minor mental intrusion 1 Fortress Block mental attacks, telepathy resistance 2 Void Complete mental isolation, untouchable mind 3 Mirror Reflect mental attacks back at source 4 Sovereign Absolute mental autonomy, cannot be influenced Signal Proxes Communication, transmission, interference Input Up (? Diamonds) Enhance sensory perception RC Tag Effect 0 Sharpen Slightly better hearing, sight, smell 1 Enhance Superhuman senses, see in darkness 2 Extend Sense beyond normal range, detect magic 3 Omnisense 360-degree awareness, nothing hidden 4 Cosmic Perceive across dimensions, sense anything Filter (? Diamonds) Remove specific stimuli RC Tag Effect 0 Muffle Reduce distracting input, focus senses 1 Block Completely filter out chosen stimuli 2 Selective Only perceive what you want to perceive 3 Immunity Cannot be harmed by sensory attacks 4 Pure Signal Perceive only truth, filter all deception Double (? Flowers) Create false sensory input RC Tag Effect 0 Whisper Minor illusions, phantom sounds 1 Image Visual illusions, fake images 2 Full Sense Complete sensory illusion, all senses 3 Reality Illusions that can affect physical world 4 True Lie Illusions indistinguishable from reality permanently Bandwidth (? Pikes) Overload perception RC Tag Effect 0 Static Minor sensory noise, distraction 1 Overwhelm Too much input, disorientation 2 Flood Sensory overload, temporary blindness/deafness 3 Whitenoise Complete sensory shutdown 4 Infinite Input Mind-breaking sensory infinity, permanent damage Cloak (? Flowers) Prevent detection RC Tag Effect 0 Dim Harder to notice, blend into background 1 Hide Invisible to casual observation 2 Vanish Complete invisibility, undetectable 3 Nonexist Erased from perception, cameras and magic 4 Null Does not exist to any form of detection Prediction Foresight, probability, divination Fate Modeling (? Diamonds) Estimate probable results RC Tag Effect 0 Hunch Gut feeling about outcomes 1 Odds Know probability of immediate events 2 Forecast Predict complex outcome chains 3 Certainty Know exact outcome before action 4 Omniscient See all possible outcomes simultaneously Causality (? Diamonds) Identify source of events RC Tag Effect 0 Trace Find immediate cause of recent event 1 Chain Follow cause-effect backwards 2 Root Find original cause of any situation 3 Web See all connected causes and effects 4 Prime Mover Perceive the first cause of anything Snapshot (? Diamonds) View near-term state RC Tag Effect 0 Glimpse See seconds into the future 1 Preview View minutes ahead, avoid immediate danger 2 Window See hours ahead, plan around events 3 Vision See days ahead with clarity 4 Oracle See any point in the future with perfect clarity Risk Projection (? Diamonds) Evaluate failure chances RC Tag Effect 0 Caution Sense danger level of immediate action 1 Analysis Know specific failure points 2 Mitigation See how to reduce risk 3 Perfect Intel Know all risks and how to avoid them 4 Zero Risk Identify path with no possibility of failure De-Uncertain (? Flowers) Stabilize random elements RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Slightly bias random outcomes 1 Weight Significantly affect probability 2 Fix Determine outcome of random events 3 Lock Make probability outcomes certain 4 Determinism Remove randomness from reality locally Synchronization Coordination, timing, group effects Alignment (? Flowers) Synchronize multiple agents RC Tag Effect 0 Rhythm Keep time together, coordinate movements 1 Sync Act in perfect unison, team coordination 2 Hivemind Share intentions instantly, perfect teamwork 3 Unity Multiple beings act as one organism 4 Gestalt Merge consciousness temporarily, combined being Desynchronization (? Pikes) Disrupt coordinated action RC Tag Effect 0 Stumble Mess up timing, minor coordination issues 1 Discord Break team coordination, miscommunication 2 Scatter Groups cannot work together 3 Chaos Coordinated systems fall apart entirely 4 Entropy Nothing can coordinate, absolute disorder Delay (? Diamonds) Slow coordinated systems RC Tag Effect 0 Lag Slight timing delays, off-beat 1 Stagger Significant delays, poor reaction time 2 Halt Systems pause, coordination freezes 3 Suspend Coordinated actions held indefinitely 4 Time Lock Freeze coordinated systems outside of time Resonalink (? Flowers) Share states across targets RC Tag Effect 0 Echo Share sensations briefly 1 Bond Share status effects, damage 2 Mirror What happens to one happens to all 3 Distribute Spread effects across group evenly 4 One All linked targets are effectively the same being Cascade (? Pikes) Chain reactions through alignment RC Tag Effect 0 Ripple Small effects spread to nearby 1 Chain Effects jump between connected targets 2 Domino Triggered chain reactions 3 Avalanche Exponentially growing effect spread 4 Apocalypse Unstoppable cascade affecting everything Interfacing Connection, interaction, systems Access Grant (? Flowers) Establish interaction channel RC Tag Effect 0 Knock Establish basic connection, request access 1 Link Create stable communication channel 2 Integrate Full interface with systems 3 Merge Become part of the system temporarily 4 Universal Access Interface with anything, no restrictions Access Denial (? Hearts) Block interaction attempts RC Tag Effect 0 Lock Basic barrier to connection 1 Firewall Block unauthorized access 2 Fortress Impenetrable to normal access attempts 3 Void Connection attempts cease to exist 4 Unreachable Cannot be accessed by any means Bias (? Diamonds) Shift outcome probabilities RC Tag Effect 0 Nudge Slight advantage, lucky breaks 1 Tilt Noticeable probability shift in your favor 2 Stack Heavily weighted outcomes 3 Rig Virtually guaranteed favorable results 4 Fate Dictate outcomes, luck is yours Override (? Pikes) Bypass standard rules RC Tag Effect 0 Bend Stretch rules slightly, minor exceptions 1 Break Violate normal restrictions 2 Hack Completely bypass system rules 3 Rewrite Change how systems operate 4 God Mode Ignore all rules, absolute override Persistence (? Flowers) Maintain influence over time RC Tag Effect 0 Linger Effects last slightly longer 1 Hold Maintain connection without concentration 2 Permanent Effects become semi-permanent 3 Eternal Effects last indefinitely 4 Absolute Cannot be ended, effects are forever Authority Command, influence, compulsion Compel (? Pikes) Influence to comply RC Tag Effect 0 Suggest Gentle nudge toward compliance 1 Persuade Strong urge to obey suggestion 2 Command Direct order, difficult to resist 3 Dominate Overwhelming compulsion to obey 4 Absolute Cannot disobey, total compliance Attention (? Flowers) Force target to attend to caster RC Tag Effect 0 Notice Draw eye, hard to ignore 1 Focus Target cannot look away, captivated 2 Fixate Complete attention, oblivious to else 3 Obsess Consuming focus on you, nothing else matters 4 Worship You are the only thing that exists to them Weight (? Diamonds) Bias target decision making toward an outcome RC Tag Effect 0 Incline Make an option seem slightly better 1 Favor Strongly bias toward your preferred outcome 2 Inevitable Choice seems obvious, resistance feels wrong 3 Destiny They believe they always wanted this 4 Rewrite Will Their desires become your desires Command (? Pikes) Force target into a simple action RC Tag Effect 0 Twitch Minor involuntary action, blink, flinch 1 Act Force simple action—sit, stand, drop 2 Perform Force complex action sequence 3 Puppet Complete control of physical actions 4 Meat Suit Ride their body like a vehicle Inhibitor (? Diamonds) Prevent a specific action RC Tag Effect 0 Hesitate Target pauses before action 1 Block Cannot perform specific action 2 Forbid Action is impossible, body won't obey 3 Taboo Even thinking about action causes pain 4 Unthinkable Action ceases to exist as a concept Terminality (? Pikes) Issue an absolute command that disregards self-preservation RC Tag Effect 0 Urge Strong impulse despite risk 1 Override Fear Target ignores danger to comply 2 Death Order Target will die to obey 3 Absolute Law Command supersedes all survival instinct 4 Word of God Reality itself enforces your command Binding Summoning, anchoring, contracts, restraint Materialize (? Flowers) Create an object of defined size, mass and function RC Tag Effect 0 Form Create small simple objects, temporary 1 Craft Create functional tools, weapons, lasting 2 Build Create complex mechanisms, vehicles 3 Architecture Create structures, buildings 4 World Craft Create anything physical, permanent Summoning (? Flowers) Bring a chosen entity into the present and here temporarily RC Tag Effect 0 Call Summon minor spirits, small creatures 1 Invoke Summon significant beings, bound service 2 Conjure Summon powerful entities, negotiate terms 3 Gate Open portal for major beings 4 Throne Summon anything from anywhere, gods included Anchor (? Flowers) Fix an object or entity in space, preventing movement or removal RC Tag Effect 0 Pin Hold small objects in place 1 Fix Lock position of person-sized targets 2 Immobilize Nothing can move target, immutable position 3 Dimensional Lock Cannot be moved by any means, including teleport 4 Eternal Position Fixed in space-time permanently Shaper (? Flowers) Alter form, configuration or arrangement of an object or entity RC Tag Effect 0 Mold Minor shape changes, cosmetic alterations 1 Reform Significant reshaping, functional changes 2 Transform Complete form alteration 3 Transmute Change fundamental nature while reshaping 4 Unmake/Remake Destroy and recreate in any form Link (? Flowers) Bind objects or entities to share properties RC Tag Effect 0 Thread Minor connection, sense each other 1 Bond Share sensations, communicate 2 Sympathetic What affects one affects both 3 Soul Link Deep binding, share life force 4 Unity Become one entity in two bodies Extend (? Flowers) Extend duration and autonomy of creations or summons RC Tag Effect 0 Sustain Keep summons/creations active longer 1 Stabilize Summons act independently briefly 2 Autonomous Creations sustain themselves 3 Permanent Summons/creations become permanent 4 True Life Creations become truly alive, independent Spacial Dynamics Space, positioning, distance, dimensions Compress (? Flowers) Reduce space between targets RC Tag Effect 0 Close Bring objects slightly closer 1 Shrink Halve distances, cramped spaces 2 Crush Compress space dangerously, pressure damage 3 Singularity Collapse space to a point 4 Void Space ceases to exist between points Expand (? Flowers) Increase space between targets RC Tag Effect 0 Stretch Increase distances slightly 1 Gap Create significant space, miss attacks 2 Chasm Vast distances appear instantly 3 Infinite Distance becomes effectively infinite 4 Unreachable Target cannot be reached by any means Swap (? Diamonds) Exchange locations RC Tag Effect 0 Switch Swap position with nearby small object 1 Exchange Swap position with willing target 2 Force Swap Swap with unwilling targets 3 Chain Swap Multiple simultaneous position exchanges 4 Universal Swap Exchange position with anything anywhere Topo-fold (? Flowers) Connect non-adjacent spaces RC Tag Effect 0 Shortcut Create brief minor spatial shortcut 1 Portal Door to nearby location 2 Gate Stable portal to known locations 3 Rift Portal to anywhere you've been 4 Everywhere Connect any points in existence Boundary (? Hearts) Define impassable limits RC Tag Effect 0 Line Minor barrier, slow passage 1 Wall Solid spatial boundary 2 Cage Complete enclosure, no exit 3 Dimension Separate pocket of space 4 Absolute Nothing can cross, not even gods Tempomechanics Time, sequencing, duration, causality Uptick (? Diamonds) Speed up local time flow RC Tag Effect 0 Hasten Slight speed increase, quick tasks 1 Accelerate Double speed, rapid actions 2 Blur Extreme speed, hard to perceive 3 Flash Near-instant action, time dilation 4 Eternity in Seconds Experience years in moments Downtick (? Diamonds) Slow local time flow RC Tag Effect 0 Drag Slight slowdown, delayed reactions 1 Slow Half speed, molasses movements 2 Crawl Near-frozen, extreme slow motion 3 Suspend Almost stopped, moments last hours 4 Frozen Time stops for target completely Pause (? Diamonds) Halt progression briefly RC Tag Effect 0 Hesitate Brief pause, skip a beat 1 Stop Halt for seconds, frozen moment 2 Freeze Frame Extended pause, minutes of stillness 3 Time Lock Target locked outside time 4 Eternal Moment Pause indefinitely, remove from time Reorder (? Diamonds) Alter action order RC Tag Effect 0 Shuffle Minor initiative change, act sooner 1 Priority Act first in sequence 2 Interrupt Insert action into another's turn 3 Causality Break Effect before cause 4 First and Last Act at beginning and end simultaneously Revert (? Hearts) Return target to prior state RC Tag Effect 0 Undo Reverse last few seconds of change 1 Restore Return to state minutes ago 2 Reset Revert to state hours ago 3 Regression Return to state days/weeks ago 4 Origin Return anything to any previous state Buffer (? Hearts) Delay consequences RC Tag Effect 0 Postpone Delay effect for moments 1 Hold Store consequences for minutes 2 Suspend Delay effects for hours 3 Escrow Hold consequences indefinitely, release at will 4 Never Consequences never arrive, deleted from time Part XI — Asset Tag System Assets are significant items, tools, or resources in a character's possession. Each Asset has 1-3 Tags — short phrases describing qualities that can be leveraged for advantage. Asset Structure Name: The item's identity Tags (1-3): Qualities that can be invoked for Dice Power Condition: Ready or Broken Assets start with 1 Tag and can be upgraded to a maximum of 3 Tags by spending XP. Leveraging Assets Declare which Assets you're using and which Tags are relevant. Table approves whether each Tag applies. Add +1 Dice Power per approved Tag to your total. The Break Roll After resolving your action, roll one d6 for each Asset leveraged. If the die shows equal to or lower than the number of Tags used, the Asset is Broken until the next Refresh Phase. Tags Used Break On Break Chance 1 Tag 1 ?17% 2 Tags 1-2 ?33% 3 Tags 1-3 50% Refresh Phases Short Refresh: A few hours of rest or reaching safety. Restores all Broken Assets. Long Refresh: Extended downtime. Restores Broken Assets AND clears Stress. Example in Play Situation: You're fighting a demon. Your Dice Power from Metre + Limit is 4. Leverage: You invoke your Sword of Wisteria, using 2 Tags: Sharpened Blade and Anti-Demon. The table agrees both apply. Roll: Your Dice Power is now 4 + 2 = 6. Consulting the Roll Curve, you roll 2d8. Break Roll: After resolving the action, you roll 1d6 for the sword. It shows a 2. Since 2 ? 2 (Tags used), the Sword of Wisteria is Broken until your next Refresh. Refresh Phases Broken Assets become Ready again during a Refresh Phase — a period of rest, resupply, or downtime. Short Refresh: A few hours of rest, reaching a safe location, or a night's sleep. Restores all Broken Assets to Ready. Long Refresh: Extended downtime (a full day or more). Restores Broken Assets AND clears Stress. Upgrading Assets Assets can be upgraded by spending XP during downtime. When adding a Tag, describe how the Asset has changed, improved, or revealed a new quality through use. Upgrade XP Cost Add 2nd Tag 3 XP Add 3rd Tag 5 XP Example Assets Weapons Sword of Wisteria (3 Tags) Sharpened Blade — cuts through physical materials Anti-Demon — extra effective against demonic entities Great at Cutting Fruit — surprisingly useful at social gatherings Grandpa's Service Revolver (2 Tags) Loud and Final — intimidating, decisive Six Shots, No More — reliable, limited The Argument Ender (brass knuckles, 1 Tag) Concise — ends conversations quickly Tools Forensic Kit (3 Tags) Trace Evidence — finds what others miss Scene Reconstruction — piece together what happened Mundane Explanation — provide cover stories for magical events Burner Phone Collection (2 Tags) Untraceable — can't be tracked back to you Disposable Identity — each phone is a different "person" Grandmother's Sewing Kit (1 Tag) Repairs Anything — fabric, wounds, relationships Mystical Items Nostradamus Family Tarot (3 Tags) The Cards Know — bonus to Prediction Unsettling Accuracy — people believe the readings Won't Lie — always shows truth, even unwelcome Bottled Moonlight (2 Tags) Illuminates the Hidden — reveals magical concealment Limited Supply — precious and irreplaceable Chalk of Binding (1 Tag) Quick Circles — fast ritual preparation Social Resources The Family Name (3 Tags) Opens Doors — access to exclusive spaces Old Money — assumed wealth and taste Expectations — people assume you'll behave a certain way Press Credentials (2 Tags) Access All Areas — get into places you shouldn't Asking Questions Is My Job — interrogation without suspicion Regular at the Crossroads Bar (1 Tag) I Know a Guy — someone here can help Vehicles The Inheritance (vintage motorcycle, 3 Tags) Fast Exit — escape velocity Unmistakable — everyone knows this bike Sentimental Value — you will not leave it behind Unmarked White Van (2 Tags) Invisible in Plain Sight — nobody looks twice Room for Activities — mobile workspace, transport Information The Dossier (3 Tags) Leverage — someone's secrets Verified — this information is accurate Insurance — released if something happens to you City Maintenance Maps (1 Tag) Underground Access — sewers, tunnels, forgotten paths Part XII — Campaign Structure A campaign of unGOD Magica follows the player characters through the three-month pilgrimage toward the city hosting that year's Walpurgisnacht, culminating in the event itself. The system is designed for shorter campaigns. The Pilgrimage (Months 1–3) The journey to the host city. Characters travel, prepare, scheme, and survive. Mundane life pressures compound with magical rivalries. The Veil must be maintained. Risk Class capped at RC-2 during pilgrimage Emphasis on secrecy, positioning, resource gathering Bloodline pressures and Background complications drive drama Walpurgisnacht Week The final week before and during the Night. Tension escalates. Rivals converge. The Moon rises. Walpurgisnacht Structure Walpurgisnacht is a formal multi-phase game state. The rules change. Magic is unleashed. One Wish awaits. Phase I — Preparation Risk Class capped at RC-2 Mundane actions dominate Positioning, sabotage, alliance-building XP Question: Did you meaningfully prepare? Phase II — The Hunt RC-3 unlocked Tracking, scrying, indirect conflict Bloodline pressures intensify Phase III — The Duel RC-4 allowed Open magic, full confrontation Death, erasure, exile all possible outcomes Phase IV — The Wish One Wish granted to the victor The Wish can be literally anything — it is the campaign's closing narration Others may interfere once Aftermath Mundane memory erased (Veil resets to 6) Magical consequences persist Part XIII — XP System XP track holds a maximum of 12 stored XP. Mid-Session XP (Repeatable, Max 3) Did you take a meaningful risk to advance your goals or maintain the secret masquerade? Each YES = 1 XP (max 3/session). End-of-Session XP Did you advance or defy your Bloodline Doctrine? Did your mundane life complicate your magic? Did you escalate a lasting conflict? Each YES = 1 XP Part XIV — Expansion: Bloodlines The Bloodline Creation Kit If the Great Houses (Merlin, Nostradamus, Crowley) do not fit your concept, use this system to forge a new Arcana Familia. Step 1: The Concept Choose a name—a historical figure, a mythical entity, or a modern concept. Define the Core Tension (e.g., "Control vs. Chaos" or "Observation vs. Action"). Step 2: Affinity Practices Select two Practices from the list of the original 18. Primary Affinity: Grants reliability. Typical benefit: Reroll 1 die when using this Practice. Secondary Affinity: Grants potency. Typical benefit: Gain +1 Dice Power when using this Practice in a specific way (define the condition). Step 3: Signature Effect Choose one of the following archetypes for your 1/session ability. Customize the flavor to match your Bloodline. The Absolute (Merlin/Crowley Style): Once per session, your spell ignores a fundamental rule of magic (Counterspells, Range, or Consent). +1 The Safety Valve (Houdini/Rasputin Style): Once per session, negate a specific type of consequence (Physical Harm, Restraint, or Death) aimed at you. +1 The Truth (Nostradamus/Galileo Style): Once per session, force the GM to reveal a hidden truth about the current situation, or force an NPC to speak honestly. The Override (Disney Style): Once per session, dictate how a scene is remembered or perceived by mundane witnesses. The Exchange (Mediator Style): Once per session, swap a resource (Stress, Position, Item) with another character instantly. Step 4: The Doctrine Define how your bloodline views power. This determines your XP Trigger. Uphold: When you [Action that reinforces your philosophy], mark XP. Defy: When you [Action that sacrifices advantage for morality/pragmatism], mark XP. Step 5: Ancestral Pressure Define a complication that haunts you. Social: Rivals, expectations, bad reputation (e.g., Crowley). Psychic/Physical: Madness, sensory overload, physical mutations (e.g., Paracelsus/Tesla). +1 Step 6: Walpurgisnacht Edge Select a Walpurgisnacht Edge from the list of the original 18. Appendix — To Be Developed Full Class Ability write-ups with mechanical triggers Complete Practice spell lists by Risk Class Additional Bloodlines Additional Backgrounds Asset Tag system GM guidance for Danger Class setting Example characters Quickstart scenario Appendix — Player Dashboard PLAYER DASHBOARD 1. CALCULATE POWER [ Base Power ] + [ Spell Tags (RC-1+) ] + [ Asset Tags ] = TOTAL POWER 2. THE ROLL CURVE (Lookup) | Power | Dice | Note | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | 1-3 | 1 Die (d4-d8) | Cannot Clean Success (9+) on Standard DC | | 4 | 1d10 | 50% Fail rate on Standard DC | | 5 | 2d6 | The "Competent" Baseline | | 6 | 2d8 | Reliable | | 7 | 2d10 | Heroic | | 8+ | 3d8+ | Legendary | 3. CHECK RESULT (vs DC) < DC: Failure (Complications arise). DC to DC+2: Success with Consequence (You do it, but pay a price). DC+3: Clean Success. DC+10: Critical (Earn Arcana Asso). 4. BREAK ROLL (If Assets Used) Roll 1d6. If result is ? Tags Used, the Asset Breaks. 1 Tag: Breaks on 1. 2 Tags: Breaks on 1-2. 3 Tags: Breaks on 1-3. Appendix — unGOD Magica: GM Guidance & Probability This section outlines the core mechanics for setting difficulty and managing outcomes, rooted in the dramatic shifts of the Roll Curve.-----I. Setting the Danger Class (DC) The probability curve in unGOD Magica changes drastically because Dice Power scales the type and number of dice rolled (from 1d4 up to 4d8). The Golden Rule: DC 6 is Standard. For a standard, competent character (Dice Power 5, rolling 2d6), DC 6 provides the most tension: a high likelihood of success, but a frequent chance of "Success with Consequences." DC Difficulty Mechanical Benchmark Context Examples 4 Routine Fail-safe. Standard for Power 1-3. Automatic for Power 5+. Picking a simple lock, noticing a tail, casting a cantrip in a safehouse. 6 Risky The Standard. Power 4 (1d10) is a coin flip. Power 5 (2d6) succeeds, but usually at a cost. Hacking under pressure, casting combat magic, lying to a detective. 8 Severe Specialized. Requires Power 6+ (2d8) to attempt safely. Single-die rolls (1d4-1d10) cannot achieve a Clean Success. Banishment rituals, resisting high-level magic, intricate surgery in a moving van. 10 Extreme Heroic. Requires Power 7+ (2d10). Clean Success is rare; Criticals are nearly impossible without significant dice pools. Defying a Bloodline Elder, rewriting local reality, surviving a point-blank blast. 12+ Divine Miraculous. Impossible without spending rare resources (Arcana Assi, Seals) or breaking multiple Assets. The stuff of legends. -----II. The Consequence Gap The system is engineered to frequently land on a Success with Consequences (a roll within DC to DC+2). When this happens, the character succeeds, but the GM introduces a complication related to the magical Practice used. Practice-Specific Consequence Examples (Flavor) Kinetics: Recoil throws the character prone; debris injures an ally; hands shake (-1 Coordination next turn). Thermodynamics: Room temperature plunges/spikes; the focus overheats (take 1 Stress); smoke obscures critical vision. Somatics: Muscle tear (take 2 Stress instead of 1); temporary monstrous mutation (-1 Interfacing); the user feels the target's pain. Binding: The entity obeys literally (a dangerous loophole); the user must remain motionless to sustain the binding; something unwanted slips through the door opened. Interfacing: All tech on the user's person is fried; a magical digital footprint is left behind; the user hears everyone's thoughts (white noise Stress). -----III. Critical Failure: The Spiral When a roll is a catastrophe (DC-4 or Snake Eyes on 2d6), roll 1d6 on the table below: 1d6 Name Effect 1 Lethal Feedback Magic collapses internally. Take 1 Wound (ignores Stress). 2 Catastrophic Break The Asset used Breaks automatically (skips the Break Roll). If no Asset was used, lose access to a Class Ability for the rest of the scene. 3 Veil Tear The Veil drops by 1 immediately. The magic was too loud or visible to the mundane world. 4 Inversion The original intent flips entirely. Damage becomes healing; concealment becomes a beacon; truth becomes a lie. 5 Blood Debt The caster dug too deep. Their current Metre is reduced by 1 until the next Long Refresh. 6 Marked Something noticed the user. The GM notes a future threat (rival, spirit, hunter) that now knows the user's location. -----IV. The Math of Desperation (Design Intent) unGOD Magica utilizes a Sum Dice system, which creates a deliberate "ceiling" for low-power characters. The Single Die Trap: Characters with Dice Power 1-4 roll a single die (max 1d10). With a Standard DC of 6, it is mathematically impossible for them to achieve a Clean Success (9+) or a Critical Success (16+). They are limited to scraping by or outright failing. The Asset Jump: To overcome this ceiling, players must leverage Assets. Adding Asset Tags increases Dice Power. Example: Going from Power 3 (1d8) to Power 5 (2d6) increases the maximum possible result from 8 to 12. Design Intent: Competence is not just about raw stats; it is about what you are willing to break to win. -----V. Play Example: The Jump Situation: Roxy (The Striver) must decipher a magical ward on a rival's door before a security patrol returns. The Roll: The GM sets DC 6. The Problem: Roxy's base Power is Cognetics 1 + Analysis 2 = Power 3. Consulting the Roll Curve, Power 3 grants 1d8. Max result: 8. Clean Success requirement: 9 (DC+3). Conclusion: Roxy cannot achieve a Clean Success. She will either trigger an alarm (Consequence) or fail. The Gamble: Roxy pulls out her stolen Nostradamus Tarot (Asset). She invokes 2 Tags: "The Cards Know" and "Won't Lie". New Power: 3 (Base) + 2 (Tags) = 5. New Dice: 2d6. The Result: Roxy rolls 5 and 4. Total: 9. This is a Clean Success. The ward dissolves silently. The Cost: Because she used 2 Tags, she must make a Break Roll. She rolls a 2 on a d6. Since 2 ? 2 (Tags used), the Tarot deck is Broken. The cards blacken and are useless until a Long Refresh. Roxy succeeded perfectly, but she sacrificed her gear.