AEG's Magic presents a number of optional magic systems for d20 fantasy. The bulk of the book is devoted to new styles of magic, while the later sections introduce spell point and freeform magic systems, legendary items, Feats, and equipment.
I. First Appearances
The cover is an attractive portrait of an elven spellcaster. The book is a smooth, textured softcover with good corners, plenty of good, dark ink, and sturdy, flexible paper stock. The artwork is spare, and for the most part, nothing special, mostly in a comic magazine style. Some minor grayscale graphics adorn the pages, for the most part attractively and unobtrusively.
The text is well-written and entertaining. The content is necessarily dense for a work of this breadth.
II. Capsule Summary
Each chapter follows the same general format. First, there is a bit of fluff text. Then there is a description of the magical style, including suggestions for incorporating it into a campaign. Most chapters have a new base class, and most have a related prestige class as well. The last part section includes any relevant Feats, as well as a selection of magic items. The format works well.
Chapter One introduces Chronomancy. The base class is the Chronomancer. Essentially, this character is a Wizard, but instead of gaining bonus Feats or a familiar, this character gains access to a special spell list and gains a probably manipulation (a reroll) every four levels. In my view, the trade is more than fair; the Chronomancer is almost a Prestige Class from level one. However, it's probably not a campaign breaker strictly from that standpoint.
Chronomancy spells manipulate time in various ways. Some cause temporary agining, others cause items to fall out of time. All of them require the chronomancer to make a Saving Throw versus the ravages of the "guardians," mysterious creatures who react violently to tampering with the time stream. The penalty is typical bite-like wounds. For the most part, none of the spells allow the PCs to create paradoxical events until the 9th level spell Greater Time Travel. At that point, the campaign is likely to take on a whole new character. In any case, the guardians tend to preserve the general flow of time, regardless of the actions of individual beings. Time travel is assumed to follow the "strechy rubber destiny" model. That is, if you kill the evil King as a child, his brother, or some evil Queen, takes his place in the story of destiny. Apart from the existence of guardians, Chronomancy does not require any re-imagining of the campaign world.
Chapter Two introduces Elementalism. This is the weakest chapter in the book. Consider these two passages:
"Elementalists, even more than sorcerers, form their spells by channeling the power of the elements around and within them. By dealing directly with the raw forces of magic, they bypass the need to learn spells, and instead shape power as they see fit. However, this technique removes much of the finesse of casting a spell, and as a result, elementalists have far less access to the variety of effects that wizards, or even sorcerers, do, are capable of producing." - p.15
"Like wizards, elementalists keep a book of spells. They gain additional spells for their book exactly as wizards do and may add any sorcerer/wizard spells to their book... They may only cast a certain number of spells per level per day, and those spells must be prepared in advance." - p.16
I don't know what happened between the writing of that first and second passage, but something obviously did. The Elementalist is another Wizard variant. They do not get Scribe Scroll, a familiar, or bonus Feats. Instead, they gain an elemental familiar at 3rd level and they gain bonus spells in a similar fashion to a single Cleric Domain, based on one of four elements. They can also banish elementals in a similar fashion to the turning of undead by Clerics. The game information doesn't seem to live up to the promises of the flavor text. If anything, Elementalists are like Wizards with an edge when it comes to spell selection.
This chapter introduces the Elemental Adept, a Prestige Class for arcane casters. It grants full caster progression as well as a number of powerful abilities based on elmental specialization. While intended for Elementalists, it is explicitly written to be accessible to other arcane casters who can cast elemental spells (defined as a spell that belongs to the relevant Cleric domain). This is a very strong Prestige Class that sacrifices very little in exchange for versatile and above-average abilities, and has trivial entrance requirements. In that respect, I think it's not a very good Prestige Class.
Chapter Three presents Fetish Magic. This is one of my favorite sections. Fetish magic is described as a mid-point between Sorcery and formulaic Wizardry, with a few twists of the divine. Totemists use items that house "gods" that empower their spells.
The Totemist base class learns spells much as a Sorcerer. They have a fairly small spell list, but get some spells normally associated with Clerics and Druids. Their "charms" can't cast spells endlessly, but can be replaced, and as a bonus, can be used to increase their effective caster level at the risk of angering the god inside and causing an explosion. Totemists can be primitive magicians, or can be civilized scholars who have "gone native" while studying primitive magical methods. Totemists have two unique spells in their repertoire, create blast charm and charm shield, relatively self-explanatory spells that turn a Totemist's magical trinkets into armaments.
The Charm Master Prestige Class is open to Totemists, or to other casters who gain exposure to a primitive magic tradition. The Charm Master gets full caster progression and some bonuses to Concentration and some Cha skills. The Charm Master also does not risk his charms "wearing out" from casual use. He also becomes eligible for the Craft Greater Charm Feat, which allows the creation of some Metamagic-like items as well as the Greater Totem, a big monument with a variety of god powers. Totem poles rule.
Fetish Magic is flavorful as well as seemingly balanced. The Charm Master is an obvious choice for a Totemist, but no moreso than Archamge for Wizard. I will happily replace NPC Adepts with Totemists in many of my campaigns.
Chapter 4 is Flesh Magic. The Flesh Mage is a self-polymorphing caster, in many ways reminiscent of a psionic character. They don't risk arcane spell failure, and their magic is generally alien to normal casters. They can also sculpt creatures with their magic, granting them permanent abiltities at the cost of some grotesqueness. Overall, the class leaves me wondering, "What the...?"
The Beast Maker is a Prestige Class for arcane casters or flesh mages. Such characters gain bestial traits as well as full spellcasting for 5 levels. My guess is that the author is a big fan of the Gangrel and Tcimiscze Clans in Vampire.
I'm not sure I'd let Flesh Magic into my campaign without a specific purpose in mind.
Chapter Five presents Forge Magic. The Mage Smith base class casts much like a Sorcerer and uses the same list, although they have a new trademark spell. Their spellcasting is based on Constitution. All their spells must have a somatic component, which means they are ironically ill-suited to the role of armored mage. They can craft magic armor and weapons, and have the ability to create some unusual items such as blunt swords, piercing quarterstaves, or sickles made of cold. They get several abilities and restrictions tied in with being a member of a guild. There is nothing preventing them from prestiging into a spellcasting class, but the base class is tied to an apprenticeship until 7th level, and is not truly his own man until 13th. The idea of tying spellcasting to Constitution raises some questions of balance, but this is more than mitigated by their limited spell selection, their lack of combat-oriented special abilities, and the fact that Intelligence still governs their Skill Ranks.
The Mason of the Black Seal is a Prestige Class for those who practice the dark art of Soulbinding. Despite the language in the text, this Feat actually appears much later in the book, under Intelligent Items. The Masons are a group of renegade magesmiths who had a brush with the evil of Spirits Made Flesh, a book of great magical power and evil. The Masons specialize in harvesting souls and using them to craft magical items or empower themselves. They are kind of cool as a variant on the theme of an evil cabal of spellcasters. It's also an attractive class for evil PCs.
Forge Magic would probably fit into most campaigns in a limited capacity. If the magic is common, some changes to the game world are in order, to reflect the ready availability of elemental or magical weaponry. Forge Magic could be a dwarven and hobgoblin speciality, practiced by only a handful of humans and elves. That would lend itself to a more Norse interpretation of the dwarf race than the pious dwarves of Greyhawk or the Forgotten Realms. Soulbinding could be inserted into a campaign with or without the Mage Smith class. Soulbinding works well for villainy, or to add a dark swords-and-sorcery flavor to the campaign. It is also possible that most Soulbinding involves voluntary subjects, in which case, powerful weapons might actually contain the souls of their famous wielders.
Chapter Six introduces Ki Magic. This Arcane Monk is a variation on the monk class that retains many of the signature abilities, but casts spells and does not gain certain immunities and have other minor differences. They can be used instead of the monk class, or in addition to it. They have a very slim spell list. I was not overly impressed, but the class seems playable enough. In short bursts, they are probably more powerful than monks, but their spell use and monk-like abilities tie them to a fairly narrow path of advancement. For instance, joining most caster prestige classes would leave their martial arts abilities underdeveloped, while monk classes would leave their spellcasting behind. Still, there is probably an angle to work there.
Once ordinary monks, the Monks of the Cloaked Fist have inadvertently unlocked their mystical heritage through their study of ki. They have minor spellcasting ability, and began to resemble a powerful magical ancestor, demonic, angelic, draconic, or divine. They continue to impove AC, unarmed damage, and movement rate. They straddle the line between monk and sorcerer, and would be interesting as either a PC or an NPC villain or mentor. Curiously, Monks of the Cloaked Fist have no access to the Arcane Monk spell list. They are an alternative, rather than supplemental, approach to the arcane-casting monk.
Chapter Seven gives us Madness Magic. The Adept of the Awakened Eye base class has an approach to magic completely different than a conventional arcane caster. They use idocyncratic incantations, and do not require somatic components. Additionally, their spells ignore spell resistance, in that respect behaving more like supernatural abilities. As he gains levels, he gains a number of special abilities related to insight, and with each one, a new taint of madness. Adepts of the Awakened Eye are likely to have an unpredictable effect on a game as a PC, but as villains are much like any opponent with many supernatural abilities. Their style of magic may or may not be appropriate for a given campaign. They would excel as a campaign event, harbingers of ripples in the fabric of space and time. Or perhaps they are obscure seers, descendents of a magical tradition brought from some of the more chaotic corners of the Outer Places. They have a somewhat pared-down spell-list, primarily very spectacular effects like reverse gravity and incendiary cloud. The organization of the text is confusing, so that you really have to examine the level-by-level chart to figure out what are special abilities of the class and what are Aspects of the Eye you can choose as you level.
The God-Touched is a Prestige Class that grants similar benefits, but builds onto a traditional spellcasting class. The character, having come into close contact with a powerful being such as a deity, has gone a little bit nuts, but has gained mystical insight from the experience. It grants three caster levels over five levels. Unlike the Adept of the Awakened Eye class, each new ability is not paired with a taint, so the third level of this class, which grants a taint but no new ability, is not very attractive.
Both the Adept and the God-Touched have access to some madness-based Feats. One, for instance, makes the character immune to spells or spell-like abilities that cause confusion or insanity. They seem like a reasonable compensation for being a nutter.
Chapter 8 presents Number Magic. The Number Magician is another Wizard variant. He gets a familiar as usual, and gets a bonus Metamagic Feat at 3rd level and every four levels (faster than a Wizard). As he progresses, he gets free natural 20s on various rolls a certain number of times per day or week. He can also tailor a spell to a specific target; if his definition is wrong (he tailors a lightning bolt to affect elves, but his opponent is a human sorcerer in digusise), he receives severe penalties (-5 DC and the loss of metamagic improvements), but if he tailors a spell correctly, he can increase the DC or reduce the metamagic cost. In short, the Number Magician is clearly more powerful than a standard Wizard, and more versatile, and would have little incentive to enter even most Prestige Classes.
Also introduced in this chapter is the concept of planar doubles. This is the idea that the Planes are populated by beings with lives and natures similar to your own. Some, however, may actually be an antithesis. For instance, a human Paladin may discover he has a Tiefling Blackguard double living in the Abyss. The Concordants are planar predators, killing their own doubles for power, like in that rotten Jeti Li movie, The One. The Concordant is structured as a Prestige Class, but each increase must follow the slaying of a double. Each level offers a hefty benefit for this act: a Feat, +2 to an ability, or caster advancement. It offers three good saves and medium BAB, much like an Outsider. At 5th level in this class, he actually transforms physically into a weird-looking Outsider with the Evil subtype.
The idea of planar doubles would require some changes to the game world assumptions of most games. It's definitely an intriguing concept, however. The number magician by itself is pretty straightforward, but severely overpowered.
Chapter Nine is Rune Magic. Runewrights are a variant arcane caster who manifests magic through inscribed or carved runes. They have a limited but versatile spell list and can cast in armor. They can summon a familiar. Their most interesting ability is to scribe runes on items that are activated with use. For instance, a touch spell may be scribed on a weapon, that once activated, will affect the next person struck.
The Dwarven Runesmith continues the advancement of Runewright abilities to some extent, and also offers tremendous advantages in the forging of magical armor and weapons. A 5th level Runesmith can craft a weapon as though it's enhancement bonus were one less, and then reduces the time and XP required by half. While this poses few problems for PCs (the character's casting ability is otherwise unimpressive), this poses some concerns for NPCs (who constitute the majority of this class). Such characters could easily flood the market with their specialty items, or reap vast profits by undercutting traditional casters. However, Runesmiths of such a level are few. Like the Mage Smith, this class offers a variant interpretation of the dwarves, making them considerable arcane casters, as in the Norse and Germanic legends.
Chapter 10 introduces Shadow Magic. Shadow Mages are another not-quite-caster who use spells, but are not magicians in the traditional sense. They use shadows to create a variety of effects. As they grow in power, however, they they begin to take on the Taint of the Shadow, manifesting as sunlight sensivity or insubstantiality.
The Shadow Master Prestige Class takes this transformation further. A special ritual infuses him with the Shadow. His body becomes spectral and his mind alien. He gains the ability to merge with the Shadow, making him dangerous and subtle.
Shadow Magic seems a little weird to me, but might be useful for creating unique characters. It might have relevance in a campaign that emphasizes planar travel or psionics. It somewhat reminds me of the shadow magic described in Fantasy Hero for the 4th edition, which makes me wonder if there's a primary source I'm not familiar with.
Chapter Eleven introduces Technomancy. Tinkers are experts at building contructs, and can also use their unusual knowledge to create magic items much like an arcane caster. They cast spells from a specialized list. This chapter includes a number of templates for creating mechanical creatures, gearworks, and other Tinker specialties. "The pinnacle of the tinker's art" is the Steam Giant, a mechanical behemoth with powerful attacks and defenses.
Obviously, Technomancy introduces an element of steam-fantasy and whimsy into a campaign. Some campaigns may use Technomancy as a replacement technology and resemble a pre-industrial or railroad-era Earth. In others, Tinkers might be members of an obscure race, or perhaps the scions of a fallen civilization.
Chapter Twelve describes Thaumaturgy. Thaumaturgy was invented by a conjurer intent on duplicating healing spells through arcane magic. His madness eventually became complete, but he achieved modest success. From his notebooks, an order of Wizards began to cautiously expand on his findings. Essentially, Thaumaturgists are Wizards who seek knowledge through the study of arcane and divine magic. Their familiars have slightly different characteristics than a Wizard's (why this is so, but not true for the Shadow Mage or Runewright, I cannot say). The class is a Wizard variant, with Scribe Scroll, but no bonus Metamagic or item creation Feats. They cast Wizard spells, but are capable of converting other spells through Thaumaturgic theory. Such spells become arcane spells belonging only to the Thaumaturge class. Divine foci are replaced with expensive components, and the spells may acquire odd quirks. Spelcius' seminal works, forever, include a spell that, while effective, causes a permanent hit point loss. These dubious advances may be taught, at great difficulty, to conventional Wizards.
Thaumaturgy is an intriguing chapter in that it offers a story behind Wizards' inability to cast cure light wounds rather than a hand-waving forbiddance. It is therefore appropriate for a strongly traditional D&D game that nonetheless allows for high-grasping Wizardry, touching the powers of the Gods. On the other hand, it is inappropriate for games in which a Wizard's lack of cure or alignment-based spells is a matter of professional focus rather than theoretical limits. A Thaumaturge might undertake missions to study with powerful Bards or dragons, who could offer insights into arcane healing magic.
Chapter 13 is Theurgy. The Theurgist is a prestige arcane caster who practices religious devotion. Becoming a Theurgist means swearing fealty to a deity. The Theurgist gets good Will and Fortitude saves, and continues to advance in spellcasting in their original class. He gains a Cleric's Domains and the abilities they offer. Many of his spells that contact other planes are replaced with the Cleric version. His familiar becomes a celestial creature at high levels, and he eventually becomes an outsider.
This is another good version of the arcane caster who practices "white magic" (or black magic, as the case may be), much like similar classes in AEG's Good or Wizards' The Book of Exalted Deeds. Pious casters have various advantages, and come equipped with a variety of story hooks. While theurgists would be considered a rarity in a standard campaign world, they might be the norm in others.
Chapter Fourteen introduces Witchcraft. Witches are practical, intuitive magicians. They use the freeform magic system described later in the book. Apart from their specialties and a somewhat different skill list, little distinguishes a Witch from a Sorcerer or Wizard using the freeform magic system. Their greatest utility, then, is to inject freeform magic into a conventional campaign. This chapter also introduces a few Feats elevant to Witchcraft.
The Witchknight is a Prestige Class for Witches' protectors, skilled warriors with a few arcane talents. They use defined spell list, but use the spell point system described later in the book.
Chapter Fifteen is entitled simply Arcana. Rather than a new magic system, it offers a number of variants on the standard magic system as well as new material.
First is the Spell Point System. Basically, spell slots are replaced with a pool of points. The way caster level is determined is modified, and there are caps on repeating spells to mimic the balance of a spell slot system. Nothing special, but it seems fairly well thought-out. Since it largely mimics the way the traditional spell slot system works, it does raise the question of whether the rules are worth the effort of learning.
Freeform magic provides a framework for arcane casters to modify or substitute spells on the fly. Freeform magic is resolved by making three Skill Checks, Knowledge (arcana), Spellcraft, and Concentration. The DC is based on the complexity of the spell, and whether it is being modified or substituted.
Spell Design provides a mechanical framework to dramatize the spell research process. Since it raises the value of Knowledge Skills above prerequisites to Prestige Classes, it's an attractive system. This section provides a description, with an example, of the process. While a good-sized bite to digest at once, a couple of read-throughs revealed the system to be, at heart, a simple one.
Arcane Dueling provides guidelines on dueling etiquette and protective measures available to rival casters in the arena.
Intelligent Magic Items has two parts. The first is Intelligent Item Personalities. These are general types of items and suggestions for the traits they would have. One interesting inclusion is the Alien Item, a magical item that is actually a living being placed in the form of an inanimate object. The second section, Legendary Magic Items, provides a system whereby wielders can unlock great powers from special items. Page 170 reads, "Legendary magic items do not gain experience points. When they are crafted, they possess the full potential of their 20th-level abilities. However, over time the intellect stored within the weapon sinks into hibernation if the item goes for an extremely long time without use. Each time the legendary weapon's wielder gains a level, the weapon also gains one." Essentially, as they gain levels, the weapon becomes smarter and unlocks powers equivalent to a certain number of gp. Pardek's Hammer, for instance, eventually becomes a powerful, intelligent weapon with numerous extraordinary abilities. The Deep Scout's Cloak mimics the qualities of a number of different cloaks, such as the cloak of elvenkind and the cloak of arachnida, and gradually gains intelligence.
Magical and Mundane Item Templates allow you to customize equipment and treasures. Items may be Gnomish, Diabolic, or be of Ancient, mysterious construction.
Infusing Souls discusses the process of Soulbinding. The Soulbinding Feat allows a character to use souls to forge magic items, while the infuse soul spell traps a soul into a magic item. Either method can produce tortured, intelligent magical items with unpredictable motives. These items are a good way to inject a little evil into a game, or to give magical items a history.
Souled Constructs apply this concept to the forging of artificial bodies. The caster loses some spellcasting ability and suffers the limitations of his new forms, but gains a great deal of durability, as well as near immortality. While CR adjustments are given, Level Adjustment is not.
Spellcasting Gear covers various cool and noxious materials for spellbooks, inks and holy symbols. It also describes magesteel and shadowsteel. Magesteel is a nearly weightless material that provides good protection from magical weapons with no armor check penalty or chance for arcane spell failure, but is useless against mundane threats. Shadowsteel creates weapons that deal difficult to heal wounds that resist magical healing.
The Arcane Devourer is a spellcaster who drains spell points and possesses vampire-like traits. The Exalted Prophet is a chosen leader of his faith. Both use the spell point system described in this chapter.
Some New Feats relate to the Spell Point system. Some allow divine casters to trade turning for spell points, or spell points for turning. Favored Weapon allows the Theurgist to wield his deity's chosen weapon with Cleric-like BAB based on his arcane caster level.
III. Evaluation
This book was written under the 3.0 rules. In some cases, minor conversions are necessary, but for the most part, this product works seamlessly with 3.5. Some sections are gems, others are good ideas gone awry, as described above. I think almost any d20 fantasy game could find something in this book worthwhile to incorporate. On the other hand, many of the options described should be kept from the eyes of players of some campaign worlds. For instance, Number Magic has no place in Krynn, nor Theurgy in a traditional swords-and-sorcery setting. The Spell Points and Freeform Magic systems are workable, but not spectacular. While other systems, made whole-cloth, might be better, these systems have the advantage of preserving maximum compatibility with other d20 products. For instance, Oriental Adventures characters can be converted to Spell Points in a snap; not so for a custom spell-point based system with a unique spell list.
I think any Greyhawkian game could be spiced up with one or two of the variant magic systems, especially Fetish Magic, Force Magic, or Thaumaturgy. Theurgy and Rune Magic seem like naturals for a game with an epic high fantasy flair. Technomancy or Madness Magic seem like a good starting point for a more unusual campaign. More than simple mechanics, this book brims with ideas. I could create a Kingdom where six robed Theurgists advise the King. What if orcs made use of Forge Magic? A Legendary Weapon might lead to a treasure trove of Ancient treasures, that in turn send the PCs venturing into deep tunnels, beset by Shadow Mages, where they discover ancient Technomancy and the masters of Soulbinding that destroyed that civilization.
What this game does not offer is one model for campaigning. It is probably impossible to include all the magical systems in one game world. While this means individual GMs are left to do the "work," the upside is choosing elements out of this book a la carte.
I encourage any GM looking for something different, or any sort of d20 collector, to have a look at this imaginative sourcebook.
Review Summary