Mage Awakening Spellcasting Steps

Example: Nicodemus, an Acanthus Silver Ladder, is going to work a spell against a trio of enemies that threaten him and his cabal.

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Step One: "I cast Rotting Flesh, a Death ••• spell. I have four dots of Death, so that gives me 2 free Reaches. The primary factor for this spell is Potency, so I cast it at Potency 4. I have a Gnosis of 4, giving me a dice pool of 8. I have open Spell Control slots." (Dice Pool: 8)

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Step Two: "This costs me 1 Mana, because Death isn't an Acanthus arcanum. I spend 1 Reach to use the spell's extra Reach trait, which inflicts a -1 die to the target's Social rolls each rank of Potency inflicted, maximum of -3." (Dice Pool: 8 • Mana Spent: 1 • Reaches Spent: 1)

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Step Three: "I spend 1 Reach to cast it as an Instant spell." (Dice Pool: 8 • Mana Spent: 1 • Reaches Spent: 2)

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Step Four: "I am using only my ritual tool, which gives me a +1 bonus to the dice pool." (Dice Pool: 9 • Mana Spent: 1 • Reaches Spent: 2)

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Step Five:

Step One: Declare Spell

• Spell & Arcanum Rating: Declare the spell, by name and arcanum rating
• Free Reaches: Declare how many free Reaches this gives you (you gain 1 Reach for having the dot in the arcanum necessary to cast the spell, plus one additional Reach for each dot above that).
• Primary Factor: Declare the spell's primary arcanum, and the automatic rating you get in that. (You start with a total number of steps in that spell equal to your rating in the arcanum used to cast it.)
• Dice Pool: Declare your starting dice pool, which is your Gnosis + Arcanum of the spell being cast.
• Spell Control: If you have enough Spell Control slots, you can cast the spell. If all your spell control slots are filled, you must spend 1 Reach per spell you currently control in excess of your limit.

Step Two: Declare Cost

• Spell Mana Cost: Declare any Mana Cost listed in the spell description.
• Non-Path Arcanum (1 Mana): If the arcanum used is not one of your Path Arcana, it costs 1 Mana. (Ignore this if the spell is a Rote or Praxis spell.)
• Spell Reaches: Declare any Reaches spent on spell traits.

Step Three: Declare Casting Time

• Rituals (Default): All spells default to Ritual Casting.
• Instant Casting (1 Reach): Spend 1 Reach to cast a spell as an Instant Casting.

Step Four: Declare Yantras

• Determine Yantras: Declare which Yantras you will use, and how long it will take.
  • Reflexive First Yantra: You may use your first Yantra (except for High Speech) as a reflexive action, as part of casting your spell.
  • Additional Yantras: Each yantra after that takes one action to utilize.
  • Ritual Yantras: Yantras other than High Speech add no time to Rituals. Using High Speech adds 30 minutes.

Step Five: Declare Potency (if not Primary)

• Type: Decide whether you wish to use standard Potency, or Advanced Potency.