Starting Equipment: spellbook, holy symbol, porcelain mask (10gp).
- A: Magic User Abilities, Cantrips, Ordained
- B: Prayer
- C: Holy Rites
- D: Monsignor
Magic User Abilities: as noted in the Magic Users section of the Classes page.
Cantrips:
- You can tell if the area you are in is hallowed, mundane or defiled and if the source is Lawful or Chaotic.
- You may take time to run your hands over yourself to clean and sanitize yourself.
- You can tell how long a body has been dead by sight.
Ordained: You are an ordained member of the Church, either a White Mask or a Black Mask; most know what you are and consider you someone reasonably competent and trustworthy. Being ordained in this way grants you the ability to cast Cleric Spells. When you wake up in the morning you decide whether or not to put on your mask. If you choose to wear your mask you must follow each of the four tenets of your order. If you choose to not wear your mask you can not cast Cleric spells, but are free to ignore tenets 2 – 5 and do not suffer any consequences for breaking them. If you put on your mask some time during the day, you can cast normally but your Dice only return on a result of 1 or 2.
Prayer: Once per day, you can beg for a divine favour. You have a 1-in-6 chance of receiving a single Magic Die and a spell, which you are expected to cast immediately. This will usually be an appropriate spell from your list. Your chances go up by 1-in-6 if your MD are completely exhausted, if you are below 0 health, and if you have been wearing your mask since you woke up.
Holy Rites: If you perform your spell as part of a three-hour ritual, you can cast it with one extra Magic Die which does not count towards Mishaps. If you have a second Cleric to assist you or are on hallowed ground, it takes only one hour.
Monsignor: Your actions have been recognized by the Church. It is likely you will be canonized upon death.
Tenets of the White Mask
- Do not, through action or inaction, allow any innocent to come to harm. Ignore all other tenets if they would interfere with this, your most important goal.
- Do not under any circumstances initiate violence. You may use an appropriate level of force to dissuade others who have initiated violence against you, and you may take any necessary steps to protect the innocent, but you must never start a fight.
- Obey your superiors in the Church, unless this would violate the first tenet.
- Do not use or carry bladed implements, unless failing to do so would violate any other tenet.
White Mask Spells
A cleric’s spells are not wild spirits. They are the personal angelic servants of the Authority and serve the clerics at His pleasure; they can not be bred or mutated and may only be cast by ordained Clerics.
- Heal
R: Touch T: an injured person D: immediate.
The target is healed for [sum] hitpoints. If you invest more dice you can choose to forgo the healing for a different benefit.
If two dice is invested, this is a Lesser Restore, and can close a flesh wound or knit a broken bone.
If three dice are invested, this is a Restore, and can repair a mangled eye or regrow a missing ear.
Four dice invested result in a Greater Restore which can reattach a recently-severed limb or regrow fingers and toes.
Five dice make this spell a Miracle, which can regrow essential organs or missing limbs, and can cure any number of diseases.
This is a very good spell, and implies a world with a very different idea of “lethal wound”. Might not be appropriate for your game.
- Bless
R: Touch T: a person, or [dice]*2 rations D: [sum] minutes.
A human target receives a Blessing. For the duration of the spell, they add [dice] to every d20 they roll. Characters have advantage on saves against poisons or diseases from blessed rations.
Generic but effective clericalism.
- Kindle
R: touch T: a creature or object D: immediate
Target takes [sum] points of fire damage. Can only be cast immediately after hitting a target with a melee weapon. Inanimate objects are automatically hit.
Objectively worse than a Fireball, but you can cast it as part of a normal attack. Especially effective against creatures which resist normal weaponry.
- Message
R: [dice]*5 miles T: a person you know the name of D: immediate
This spell allows you to send a message of [sum] words or fewer to a person you know. You can choose to have this happen immediately or at some point within the next 24 hours. If the target is asleep, you can choose to have the message delivered by an angel in their dream, or normally when they awake.
Crafty spell. You can send your friends at least a one-word warning from miles away. Your superiors might expect frequent updates, which might have to be relayed through several other clerics — read a bunch of old telegrams and get good at saying more with less.
- Light
R: 10*[dice]’ T: an object or a person D: [sum] minutes
The target sheds a dim ethereal light within range, and is visible for miles in the darkness or through several hundred feet of water. Evil illusions reflect the light wrong, and a trained eye can detect discrepancies.
More generic clericalism. Not as effective as a proper lantern, but certainly better than stumbling blind in the dark.
- Turn
R: 20*[dice]’ T: [sum] enemies D: up to [dice] hours.
Targets within range are compelled to flee the presence of the cleric. Intelligent creatures get a save to resist this; unintelligent undead do not. Intelligent creatures are also smart enough to take potshots at the cleric from beyond the range of the spell. If the cleric takes any damage the spell immediately ends.
If you invest three dice or more, you can destroy any number of Unburied within range in addition to the normal effects of the spell.
Different from the standard Turn Undead. Effective against anyone, but vulnerable to intelligent foes
- Hallow
R: 30[dice]’ T: a valid square area at most 30[dice]’ to a side, or [dice] corpses D: [dice]*6 hours, or permanent.
This spell can only be performed as a ritual.
A valid area has four solid corners and something to serve as an altar. In a pinch, four piles of rocks and a big rock will do, but four corners of a room and a real altar is preferable. Rituals performed in this area only take one hour. If this spell is cast with four dice (plus the extra ritual die) then the area is permanently consecrated.
If you are targeting corpses they will not rise as Unburied, and cannot be raised by any caster of lower level than you.
A cleric’s bread and butter. Makes churches, sanctuaries, and prevents the creation of undead.
- Hold
R: 30’ T: a door, person, end of a rope or anything that makes sense. D: [sum] rounds.
The target is held in place by a supernatural force. This force is as strong as an adult human with 12 + [dice]*2 Strength, who also has a good grip and a firm place to stand.
- Move
R: 120’ T: a door, person, end of a rope or anything that makes sense. D: [sum] rounds.
The target is shoved around by a supernatural force. This force is as strong as an adult human with 10 Strength, who also has a good grip and is capable of flight.
These two are two takes on the same idea. Which one is more useful depends on the circumstance.
- Lightning
R: 300’ T: anything exposed to the sky D: immediate.
Target saves or is blasted by a lightning bolt for [sum] lightning damage. Inanimate objects and people wearing metal armor do not get a save. Can only be cast during a storm.
Another spell which is objectively worse than a Fireball. Very dramatic, though. A lightning bolt or two is probably grounds for a Morale check from the unfortunate opponents.
Emblem:
- Raise
R: touch T: a corpse D: variable
You touch a corpse and return it to some form of life.
If one die is invested, this is called Question Dead and must be cast on a corpse dead for fewer than 24 hours. The corpse will answer [sum] yes-or-no questions you ask it. They will probably tell the truth, but are under no obligation — if you kill someone there is no guarantee they will be cooperative to questioning.
If two dice are invested, this is Speak with Dead and must be cast on a corpse dead for fewer than three days. The corpse returns to life for [sum] rounds and can hold a conversation with you. They are under no obligation to answer your questions and might attack; if you receive damage the spell ends immediately.
If three dice are invested, this is Raise Dead and must be cast on a corpse dead for less than a week. The corpse returns to life for [sum]*2 hours. They may have suffered some ability-score damage from decay, but otherwise are completely functional.
If four dice are invested, this is Resurrection and must be cast on a corpse dead for less than a year. The corpse returns to life for [sum] days. Decay is halted, memories are retained, and the spell may be cast again when the duration is up — but remember that the time limit is from the first death.
Five dice would make this spell a True Resurrection, castable on anyone dead for less than a century. In theory this would return someone to true life; in practice the risks are too high to make the casting practical, and it is against most laws anyway (what would the Emperor do if someone raised his grandfather from the dead?)
You could keep bringing a dead friend back to life with this. At least until they run out of time permanently. The ability to interrogate the dead can make an investigation trivial, though their testimony is inadmissible hearsay in most countries.
- Sticks to Snakes
R: touch T: a piece of wood you can hold in one hand D: permanent.
This turns your staff or walking stick into a snake with [sum]+[dice] hitpoints. The snake is a loyal and intelligent minor angel, capable of retrieving items and biting people very hard. If you have it return to your hand, or if it ever gets more than one mile away from you, the spell immediately ends and the snake is once more a stick. If the snake is reduced to 0 hitpoints it is immediately reduced to splinters. If something is eating the snake when it happens, they take 4d6 damage from the internal bleeding.
This isn’t really overwhelming, but a loyal angelic servant is a big flex. Even heathens are hesitant to attack someone walking next to a visible favour of G_d.