Sorcery Variants
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Hypothetical question: What if telekinesis is the most common manifestation of witchy powers, but not the only one? Sure, Willow, Tara, Catherine Madison and powered-up Giles all flung stuff around without touching it, but that doesn't mean that's how everyone's Sorcery Quality works.
The following ideas for variations on the Sorcery Quality assume that there are a few other "schools" of witchcraft in the Buffyverse, and that it's possible to learn another power in place of telekinesis. Naturally all of these variants are subject to Directorial approval, and Directors should feel free to add a prerequisite for learning these in place of the standard Quality. Appropriate requirements would be things like Demonic Tutor, Magical Family, Magical Group, or just a 1-point "Unusual Background" Quality that does nothing but allow access to Sorcery variants.
In all cases, the change to the Quality merely replaces Sorcery's normal telekinesis power - quick-casting and magic bonuses work normally. A Sorcery variant has the same 5-point/level cost as the normal Sorcery Quality. Characters may only have one kind of Sorcery Quality. Witches with the same Sorcery variant may combine the Success Levels of their powers the way "normal" witches can with telekinesis.
Below some of the variants are optional Qualities that witches may take (at the Director's discretion) to modify their Sorcery powers. For an equivalent for Sorcery (Telekinesis) see the Sorcerous Levitation Quality.
Divination
Witches with this power can tell the future on demand, and with a bit more accuracy than your typical psychic hotline. Roll Perception + Sorcery and compare the result with the Psychometry Chart (just change times like "within the past week" to "within the next week." The results can be vague, but prediction is always a bit tricky. The witch must use a divinatory aid (e.g. tarot cards, crystal ball, steaming entrails) or the roll suffers a -4 penalty. There is an additional -2 penalty if the person whose fortune is being told is not present and participating. Repeated attempts to tell the same person's future within a short period of time suffer a cumulative -2 penalty. These witches also automatically gain the 1-point Psychic Visions Quality.
Energy Blast
A witch with this power can project energy from her hands. Attacking requires a Dexterity + Sorcery roll, and can be Dodged like normal ranged attacks. The witch can dictate the blast's shape (orb, beam, arrow, lightning bolt etc.) and color (almost anything visible) at will, although every user has a "natural" shape that she shoots by default. The energy blast causes 5 points of Bash damage per level of Sorcery. This power suffers a cumulative -2 penalty every time the witch uses it without a substantial cooling-off period (about an hour).
Cluster Blast
(4-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Energy Blast) 5+
The witch may throw multiple weaker energy blasts at an area, similar to an automatic weapon on burst fire. Each Success Level in the attack roll means the witch has fired off one effective blast. No two targets may be more than ten feet from each other, and each target may Dodge normally. Cluster Blasts cause half damage (although special effects from Elemental Blasts usually apply).
Elemental Blast
(2-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Energy Blast)
The witch has the option of producing an energy blast with additional properties. This power may be taken more than once, although the witch may only use one set of abilities at a time and the Director has final say on any restrictions, and what form the attack takes.
- Flame: The attack does one and a half times normal damage, all Fire instead of Bash.
- Frost: The attack does normal damage and drains the target's Dexterity by 1. (If Dexterity is reduced to 0, refer to the Freeze Ray rules in The Magic Box.)
- Pearl: The attack does double damage to undead creatures, and half damage to living beings and most demons.
- Shadow: The attack does double damage to living creatures, and half damage to undead and most demons.
- Storm: The attack does Fire damage instead of Bash, and stuns its target for one Turn: she may take no actions unless she passes a Survival Test with a penalty equal to the Success Levels of this attack. (At the Director's discretion, undead and demons do not suffer this penalty.)
Energy Shell
Some witches have the ability to project nearly invisible bubbles of protective energy around themselves. The witch rolls Willpower + Sorcery, and the Success Levels become the "Strength" of the shield effect. The shield is centered on the witch, and has a diameter of Strength yards, and an Armor Value of 2x Strength and Damage Capacity of 5x Strength (from both sides). When creating it, she may choose to make the shield smaller or weaker than this, but not larger or stronger. The shield is a roughly oblate spheroid around the witch, but it conforms to walls and doorways that it encounters and cannot be moved once it is formed. If the shield is "popped" due to damage, the witch cannot erect another for a number of Turns equal to the Strength of the old shield, but she can choose to lower the shield with one Success Level on another Willpower + Sorcery roll.
Floating Shell
(4-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Energy Shell) 5+
The witch may move her shield through the air at a speed of 2 mph per Success Level. Anyone or anything in the shield rests on the bottom. The shield may support 20 pounds for each point of Damage Capacity - if this is ever exceeded, the shield pops. Flight maneuvers are controlled with a Willpower (doubled) roll with a penalty equal to the Strength of the shield - the more powerful a shield, the harder it is to move.
Regrowing Shell
(3-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Energy Shell) 3+
The witch may create a shield that regenerates Damage Capacity equal to her Sorcery level at the end of every Turn.
Remote Shell
(3-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Energy Shell) 3+
The witch may create a shield centered on a creature or point up to 2x Strength yards away instead of on herself. Creatures that know what's happening and don't want to be inside the shield may choose to Dodge (vs. the Willpower + Sorcery roll) to escape the area, but they cannot stop the shield from forming. The witch still has her normal control over the shield, while other beings inside it do not.
Nature Unity
The witch has an innate understanding of the natural world, and can understand the needs, wants and sensory impressions of certain plants and animals. She must roll Perception + Sorcery to commune with the organisms - she can sense within 50 yards per Success Level. This is not true two-way communication with a specific creature, but rather the witch opening up her mind in a form of potent but limited empathy with all appropriate creatures in range. The witch can commune with one species of plant or animal for each level of Sorcery. (Assume a broad informal definition of species - "dogs" would be okay, but would not apply to wolves, foxes and coyotes; "trees" is too vague, but "oak trees" is fine.) She also adds her Sorcery level to any Influence or Notice roll concerning a chosen species. As a rough guide, the less common the creature the more sophisticated its perceptions and the more likely it is to relate actual valuable information. Usually animals and plants are most concerned with immediate problems like "I'm hungry," "I'm thirsty," and "What are all those strange dead-smelling humans doing?"
Shadow
The witch can decrease the light level to the equivalent of an overcast moonless night (and if it's already very dark, almost pitch black) for an area one yard per level of Willpower per Success Level in a Willpower + Sorcery roll. The effect lasts for one Turn per Success Level. The area begins centered on the witch, but does not move with her if she moves. While the darkness effect is active, the witch may roll her Willpower + Sorcery again to focus all the darkness on one target within the area. The target is shrouded in darkness and gains a bonus to Dodge and sneaking rolls equal to the Success Levels of this roll for one minute per Success Level, but only if she stays in the shadows - direct light negates this bonus. The darkness effect ends when the witch attempts to focus the field. The roll to create the field of darkness suffers from -2 repeated use penalties if used multiple times without resting. The focusing roll is always made with the same penalty as the creation roll, and does not suffer from or contribute to repeated use penalties.
Deeper Shadow
(3-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Shadow) 3+
The witch may deepen her field of darkness to the point of total opacity with a Willpower + Sorcery roll. Anyone in the area effect receives a penalty to visual Perception rolls equal to the Success Levels in this roll, and nobody outside of the field may use vision to detect anything within it. This suffers from the field creation roll's repeated use penalties.
Shadow Limbs
(3-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Shadow) 3+
With a Constitution + Sorcery roll the witch may focus her field of darkness into tendrils of pure shadow, which may attack and grapple as if they were physical. The tendrils can manipulate objects with a Strength equal to the Success Levels of this roll. They have a range of 3 yards per level of Willpower, and can do 2x Success Levels Bash damage. Most actions require Dexterity + Sorcery rolls. The tendrils last one Turn per Success Level. Creating the tendrils suffers from the field creation roll's repeated use penalties.
Sixth Sense
The witch can detect magical signatures within Perception x 20 yards per level of Sorcery. This does not enable her to see magic like she could with the Sight, but instead acts as a sixth sense alerting her to the presence of magical events near her. Sensing a surge of magic (i.e. a spell being cast) within range requires no roll - it's automatic, but provides no information as to direction or distance. With a Perception + Sorcery roll, she can get a fair idea of exactly where in this range the spell was cast, and with four or more Success Levels she can even tell approximately what Power Level the spell is. This power can also detect more overt psychic and demonic powers, at the Director's discretion.
Sunlight
The witch can increase the light level to the equivalent of bright sunlight (and if it's already bright and sunny, it gets almost blindingly bright) for an area one yard per level of Willpower per Success Level in a Willpower + Sorcery roll. The effect lasts for one Turn per Success Level. The area begins centered on the witch, but does not move with her if she moves. While the light effect is active, the witch may roll her Willpower + Sorcery again to focus all the light on the eyes of one target within the area. The target resists with a Constitution + Perception roll - if the witch wins, the target is blind for one Turn per Success Level. The radiating light effect ends when the witch attempts to focus the field. The roll to create the field of light suffers from -2 repeated use penalties if used multiple times without resting. The focusing roll is always made with the same penalty as the creation roll, and does not suffer from or contribute to repeated use penalties.
Purifying Light
(4-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Sunlight) 3+
The witch may imbue her field of light with some of the qualities of real, direct sunlight. Vampires (and other creatures that suffer damage from sunlight) take damage equal to the witch's Willpower + Sorcery at the end of every Turn spent in the field. The vampire may attempt to cover for partial damage at the Director's discretion.
Ray of Light
(4-point Quality)
Prerequisite: Sorcery (Sunlight) 3+
The witch may focus her field of light into a beam of laser-like energy with a Dexterity + Sorcery roll. The beam does Fire damage equal to Willpower x Success Levels, and is armor piercing - divide any armor by the Success Levels of the attack roll. As with other Sunlight powers, this suffers from the field creation roll's repeated use penalties.
Xenoglossia
The witch has a supernatural gift with languages. For each level in Sorcery, she automatically learns two languages with native fluency. These need not be chosen immediately - the witch doesn't necessarily know that she speaks a new language until she encounters it. Assuming the witch is literate, she automatically knows how to read and write her new languages in their most common written forms. If she lacks the proper physical mechanisms to reproduce exotic demon languages (like skin that changes color or two mouths or waving tentacles), she can still understand them when the demon uses them. She also adds her Sorcery level to any Language, Occultism or similar roll to translate or otherwise work with an unfamiliar language, even if she does not have extra language "slots" available. (Ciphers, codes and programming languages generally don't count as "languages" for either of these purposes, while constructed languages and sign languages do.)
