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dom6:astral

Astral

Astral is a Sorcerous path of Magic. Among the eight traditional paths, it's in some respects the purest of them all, handling the power and understanding of existence itself.

Astral magic typically deals in light and positive energies, unlike Death. It engages with higher orders and functions than mere survival, unlike Nature. And unlike Glamour, what it pulls on is real and true to this order, existing whether or not we perceive it.

The world is not made of pure concepts, however; practical things and their interactions hold sway, and understanding of Astral magic beyond mere astrology is incredibly limited in the Early Ages. By the start of the Middle Ages, an "enlightenment" of sorts has elevated Astral above the other paths, coinciding with the decline of the rest. And though the great Astral Mages of that era are lost by the Late Ages, competent understanding of the path proliferates to nearly every corner of the world.

Astral Spells

Astral has a somewhat-short list of spells, around as long as Glamour's. Among these are the basic Communion spells, however, which most nations will find useful. Its higher-order spells benefit from Communions, while its expensive spells benefit from its gem, the astralpearlAstral Pearl, being the easiest to produce via Gem Alchemy.

Most offensive Astral spells deal in "pure" Magic damage. Being untyped, and often Armor-Negating, the only defense against it is often Magic Resistance. Some Astral spells don't even allow this protection, though they have other restrictions.

Oftentimes, the best counter to an Astral Mage is another Astral Mage, or more. This is clearest in the Evocation school; those with greater skill levels can defeat lesser mages with little risk, but even a dabbler may find and undo a god-like wizard who isn't careful.

Pure Astral

Skill Level Early Research (0 - 3) Medium Research (4 - 6) Late Research (7 - 9)
astral 11 (a dabbler) Limited Fate-Cheating
Passive Astral Projection
Little Light Spells
Limited Magic Resistance
"Blinking"
Communion
Limited Etherealness
Self-Empowering
Paralyzing Attackers
Site-Searching
Dueling Astral Mages
astral 22 (average) Anti-Magic Missiles
Horror Marking
Sunlight-Focusing
Psychic Mind-Damaging
Teleporting Home
Psychic Paralysis Attacks
Magic Resistance
Safe Scrying
Priest-Making
History-Gathering
Stellar Radiation
Teleporting Home Safely
Teleporting Items
astral 33 ("mastery") Teleporting Gems All-Empowering Starlight
Light Army-Healing
Long-Ranged Teleporting
Cursed Star Beckoning
Space-Perforating
Psychic Soul-Punting
Limited Dispel
Greater Site-Searching
Enslaving Magic Beings
Deleting Magic Beings
Greater Magic Resistance
astral 44 ("god-like") Active Astral Projection
Fate-Cheating
Psychic Enslavement
Shielding Provinces
Limited Army-Teleporting
Sacred-Making
Army-Cursing
Teleporting Armies Home
Global Enchantment Analysis
astral 55 Spectator Mode Greater Fate-Cheating
Wall-Enchanting
Sun-Intensifying
Magic-Stealing
Dispel
Commander-Making
Battlefield Psychic Damage
Mobile-Temple-Making
Army-Teleporting
astral 66 Undoing Local Magic Beings
Time-Stopping
Global Enchantment Gatekeeping
Greater Dispel
astral 77 Advanced Astral Projection
Enslaving Local Magic Beings
astral 88 Magic Recycling
Full-Army Enslavement
astral 99 Wishing for stuff

That is a lot of different effects. There aren't many summons, however, and there also aren't that many "buffing" spells or damaging spells.

Crosspaths

Most other paths can "color" Astral magic for different sorts of effects. Some even provide access to beings of other planes of existence, which were cut off from our own for various reasons. These will list the effects with Astral as the primary path.

  • Astral/Fire creates unusual flames that burn the "essence" of things, thus ignoring Fire Resistance.
  • Astral/Air, if raised high enough, lets a god smite those who slight them with lightning from anywhere.
  • Astral/Water eventually lets fellows call Beholder-esque Abominations from distant realms from beneath existence.
  • Astral/Earth lets a fellow build astral constructs, such as a bridge to the Nexus; or they can carpet-bomb foes with meteors.
  • Astral/Death confers Spirit Sight, power over peculiar negative energies, and the keys to various Astral gateways sealed for good reason.
  • Astral/Nature creates warm light that heals at long ranges.
  • Astral/Glamour lets mages bewilder Horrors, possibly keeping them away…

Indirect Magic

A mage with astral 33 doesn't have any extra-special traits, but a mage with astral 44 or higher has +1 Magic Resistance. This is presumably because their higher understanding of "pure" magic (as a lesser Astral "god") helps them grapple with the rest.

An Astral Mage is capable of perceiving things in the Astral Planes, and thus has a 40% chance per level to catch another Astral Mage snooping via Astral Projection. Thus, a "master" (astral 33 or higher) will always catch one of these people.

Last but not least, every level of Astral skill gives a mage 20 Magic Leadership. This is more than what every other path of magic provides per-level.

Path Boosting

There are twelve Astral path-boosting items, though seven of them are Artifacts. Of the five that aren't, one requires air 55blood 55 instead of any Astral talent, and one requires astral 22earth 22; this one requires only Construction Level 5. For an Astral nation without Earth, that leaves the Starshine Skullcap (with astral 22), the Ring of Sorcery (with astral 66), and the Ring of Wizardry (with astral 77), all at Level 7.

dom6/astral.txt · Last modified: 2024/06/19 17:49 by fenrir