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Organisation of text in all printings is conceptually in four parts; definition and use, Channeling spells, Essence spells, and Mentalist spells. Being Rolemaster, there is also a number of tables to supplement the text for the various attack rolls, critical and fumble results and base spell resolution. Last printing had a very useful index. By the time a character is mid-level with a half-dozen or more spell-lists the possibility of the player forgetting their character's abilities is high and increasingly so.
The core concepts in Spell Law involves realms and lists. Spells are grouped into realms of power which define the source of magic energy and largely determines the type of magic; Essence is the force that permeates the world, Channeling is the power received from the gods or other sources of power, and Mentalism is derived from the individual's force of will. Inert material reduces the ability to cast Essence spells, metal reduces the ability to receive the power for Channeling spells (perhaps like an orgone accumulator) and Mentalism, not surprisingly, is more difficult when wearing headgear. Note that these are not necessarily blanket restriction but rather they enhance the possibility of suffering "extraordinary spell failure", which is also used for casting spells faster than the norm, or casting without somatic movements (Spell Law does not have verbal or material requirements). So if your low-level wizard wants to cast fireball in a single round whilst wearing plate armour with his hands tied behind his back; go right ahead. Of course, if he ends up inhaling it that might be a problem.
Magic realms are also strongly linked to the profession classifications used in Rolemaster. "Pure" (Cleric, Mentalist, Magician etc) spell users are those who have specialist profession lists and who derive their powers from a single realm. Magicians, Clerics and Mentalists also have evil twins with their own specialist lists, which we presume are examples and not just limited to those professions. "Hybrid" spell users (Sorcerer, Astrologer, Mystic) also have the specialist lists, and have some ability in the open and closed lists of two realms. "Semi" spell users (Bard, Ranger, Monk) have some basic abilities tied to a single realm, whereas "Non" spell users (Fighter, Thief etc) aren't particularly inclined towards magic at all. The two types of healer (one Channeling, one Mentalist) are particularly interesting; one transfers their patient's wounds to themselves and then engages in the cure and the other animates prosthetics.
Apart from realms of power, spells are also organised into lists which are groups of common spells of increasing power according to the spell level. These lists are defined as "Open", the simplest and most basic to the realm, "Closed", representing magics common to a realm but rarer, more difficult to learn and more powerful, and "Base" lists which are mostly exclusive to each profession. Spell lists are learned in blocks according to the level and realm of the magic-user; it is quite common to know a spell, but lack the sufficient power to cast it. Even spell-using specialists can only learn the most basic spells of another profession from another realm and even then at great cost; there is a great deal of adaptability, but there are also limits. It would have been preferable to continue on the chart, even to prohibitively expensive levels. Something that is clearly missing is the limitation of lists, professions and even realms according to societal type or, to give a practical example, do non-literate societies have wizards? Although rules are given for learning (new) spells, the only requirements are given in terms of game mechanics and game time with vague references to "ancient tomes" and so forth.
There are a total of 162 spells lists and over 2000 spells in total, although in many cases the spells are merely expansions on the core concept of the list, for example: Summons I, Summons II, Summons III etc or, in a few cases, with similar effects replicated in different realms . Nevertheless, it is a pretty comprehensive collection that not only engages in the sort of magics that are universal to all roleplaying games (e.g., teleportation, fireballs, healing, invisibility, illusions, curses, detections etc), but also with the specifics that arise from Rolemaster's descriptive effects (e.g., various spells to repair organs, stop blood loss, fix broken bones). The levels of spell power are from 1-10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 50 and, somewhat surprisingly given the sheer quantity, do seem to be largely balanced with each other. The graduations also allow various expansions on mainstream spells in interesting ways, for example casting lightning bolts that go around corners and the like. Also of particular note is the clarity by which illusions are explained and the production of magic items from the alchemical lists.
Spell resolution requires the expenditure of power points which are derived from a caster's Intuitiuon (Channeling), Empathy (Essence) or Presence (Mentalism) which normally means that a spell-caster will have between zero and three power points per level (one to two is normal), and occurs as per the description in Arms Law/Claw Law with most spells taking between one and three rounds to cast, depending on the level of the caster and the level of the spell. In most cases a spell casting roll and a resistance roll is required, with the results of the former effecting the latter; spell failures are also resolved at this stage with a clear demarcation between "attack" and "non-attack" spells which is reflected in the effects. In most cases spell failure is not likely to be crippling unless the character is trying to do something like the wizard-in-plate example previous given. Various elemental attacks (fire balls, water bolts etc) have their own attack tables and critical tables, as per Arms Law/Claw Law with similar sorts of effects, benefits and occassional problems.
Spell Law is a solid product, very good when it came out and just as usable today. It has a clear perspective on the different realms of magical power with significant scope and a fairly good method of organising individual spells. The sheer quantity can prove to be difficult in actual play and it is not helped by the fact that individual spells are quite variable in terms of duration, range and so forth. The physical organisation of the text is as expected, although the writing - and the spell system itself - is a little on the dull side, although this is invariably made up by the magic-rich games that Spell Law tends to produce. Finally, the resolution system method is flexible and appropriately powered in both successes and failures.
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