Staff Magic
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"I should've known. It's always the staff."
-Buffy, BtVS 7.15 Get It Done
Staff
(Variable Quality)
Your character has a magic staff, the source of much (if not all) of her magical power. In fact, it is intrinsically woven into her soul, and is literally a part of her being.
Creating a staff is a long and involved process. First, the character must build the staff - she doesn't need to do all the work herself, but should at least personalize it somewhat with her own hands. Most staves are wood covered with minute carvings, inset with stones, gems and precious metals, or decorated with feathers, strips of leather, or other similar elements. Of course, a plain wooden stick is just as usable; it's really a matter of personal style more than anything else. The only hard and fast rule is that it must be a large, substantial (and more than a little cumbersome) object, at least as tall as the character.
Once the staff is formed, the character needs to imbue it with her essence in a Power Level 5 ritual that takes about three hours to complete. The ritual may be performed again if the roll fails; if the roll succeeds but with three or fewer Success Levels, the staff is destroyed and for one day per Power Level of the would-be staff the caster loses any levels of Sorcery and suffers a -2 penalty to spellcasting. Destruction of an exceptionally powerful (Power Level 18+) staff in this fashion could also result in a permanent loss of one or more levels of Sorcery. If the roll is four Success Levels, the staff is still formed, but gains a Drawback Aspect (see below).
A staff extends its owner's touch - while she's holding it, she feels anything it touches as if it were a part of her own body (which can be disconcerting at first). If the owner has Impaired Sense (Touch), her staff does not compensate for this Drawback unless it has the Acute Sense (Touch) Aspect. In addition, if a spell requires the owner to touch her target, she may touch it with her staff instead (convenient for dealing with the slimier creatures out there), and any spell effect that is projected from the owner's hand may instead be projected from the staff.
A caster may only have one staff at a time, and losing or destroying it is a very dangerous proposition. Nobody but the owner can access the powers of a staff, but if someone else holds it and casts a spell targeting the owner, she automatically gains a +4 bonus to the roll. Fortunately, an owner always knows where her staff is - unless it is hidden by some powerful magicks, she need only concentrate for a second or two (no roll required) and she will know the direction and rough distance. Additionally, she automatically knows if anyone other than herself is touching it. If the staff is destroyed (snapped, sawed, burned, etc.), the owner takes an equivalent amount of damage (so if someone deals 15 Life Points of damage to a staff, the owner immediately loses 15 Life Points). The ensuing explosive magical backlash is risky to everyone near the staff, though: roll on the Spell Side Effects Table for everyone nearby (with a modifier equal to the staff's Power Level). Even if there's no immediate harmful effect, being at ground zero for a staff explosion could have almost infinite unforseen consequences... It takes 10 points of Slash/stab or Fire damage or 20 points of Bash damage to destroy a normal staff, which also has an Armor Value of 1 (this can be increased or decreased by certain Aspects). Improving (or replacing) a staff may done through a Power Level 4 ritual similar to the spell that creates it in the first place (with the same results if there is a failure or improper casting).
Note that it is only necessary to go through the enchanting process if the character is gaining her staff during play. If the character is starting with a staff, just determine the Power and point cost. A Drawback or two may be added for flavor during character creation.
A staff may be used in combat without too much worry about damaging it - unless it has any levels of the Flimsy Aspect, it's tougher than your typical chunk of wood anyway. A normal staff is a quarterstaff, a staff with one level of Convenient Size is a club, and a staff with two levels of Convenient Size is a slightly flimsy wooden stake.
The cost of the Staff Quality is determined by its Power Level. A basic staff (one that does nothing, but is still linked to its owner as described above) is Power Level 1. Additional powers and effects cost more, however. Each Aspect increases the staff's Power Level (and thus the cost of the Staff Quality) by a certain amount. Nearly any combination of Aspects is possible, unless they would be directly contradictory. Unless otherwise noted, the Aspect only applies to the owner, and only while she holds the staff.
Acute Sense (+1)
The owner gains one Acute Sense (which is determined when the staff is created). If she already has that Acute Sense, the effects are not cumulative. It will, however, cancel out a corresponding Impaired Sense.
Aegis (+1)
The owner gains 1 point of Armor Value. This armor is mystical, protecting her whole body and stacking with any from the normal sources (tweed coats and whatnot).
Aplomb (+2)
The owner gains the Nerves of Steel Quality. (If she already has the Quality, the benefits do not stack.)
Athame (+1 to +4)
The staff is bladed in some way. All athame blades do Slash/stab damage, and standard two-handed damage bonuses apply.
Small (2x Strength): +1
Medium (3x Strength): +2
Large (4x Strength): +3
Overkill (5x Strength): +4
Awareness (+1)
The owner gains the Situational Awareness Quality. (If she already has the Quality, the benefits do not stack.)
Celerity (+1)
The owner gains the Fast Reaction Time Quality. (If she already has the Quality, the benefits do not stack.)
Convenient/Inconvenient Size (+3/-3)
This Aspect only affects the staff, not the owner. The staff is either much smaller or much larger than normal. A Convenient staff is small enough that it can be carried around at all times - a cane, or bulky baton - but can only absorb half as much damage before being destroyed. An Inconvenient staff is too large to hold in one hand, and can absorb twice as much damage before being destroyed. This Aspect may be taken a second time, resulting in a small wand, or a totem pole.
Drawback (-1)
The staff has some flaw. Whenever the caster uses (or benefits from) one of the staff's Aspects, she must succeed at a Willpower (not doubled) roll or acquire a Drawback for the next day. Any of Bad Luck, Covetous, Emotional Problems, Impaired Senses, Magic Magnet, Mental Problems, Reckless and Recurring Nightmares would be possible. The flaw that causes this Drawback could exist because of multiple failed castings, or damage dealt to the staff that was insufficient to destroy it, or a myriad of other reasons. No single Drawback is worth more than -1 Power, and the leveled Drawbacks usually only take the mildest form.
Energy Source (+1/Level)
The staff may provide magical energy to the owner. It is, in effect, a mystical battery that the owner can tap into for extra power when she needs it. Every level of the Aspect gives the character one Success Level that may be added to a casting roll (this must be announced before the roll is made). Once a charge is spent, it takes a day for the staff to build up the power again, and only one charge is restored per day in this manner.
Joint Ownership (+4)
The staff is linked to two or more owners instead of just one. All owners gain the benefits (and drawbacks) from the staff's Aspects whenever they touch it, and all are spiritually linked to it. All characters in the joint ownership must contribute at least one Quality point to the total cost, and the sum of points from all members must equal the staff's Power Level.
Light (+1 or +2)
At the owner's command, the staff glows with a luminescence equivalent to a 100 watt incandescent bulb (+1) or a 400 watt high-intensity bulb (+2). This glow lasts for one minute per Success Level in the owner's Willpower (doubled) roll. This roll suffers from and contributes to cumulative casting penalties.
Pacifist (-1/Level)
Prerequisite: No levels of Flimsy or Inconvenient Size
The staff does not particularly "want" to be used in combat. It may still be used to cast offensive spells, but if the owner attempts to use it as a weapon (i.e. as a quarterstaff, club, spear, stake, knife, etc.) the attack roll suffers from a penalty equal to the level of this Aspect.
Only a staff capable of being used as a weapon - by the Director's judgement - may have this Aspect.
Resistance (+1)
The owner gains two levels of a Resistance Quality, determined when the staff is created. This Aspect may be taken more than once. Its effects stack with the Resistance Quality.
Second Sight (+2)
The owner has the Sight, and may detect magical auras and effects with a Perception (doubled) roll.
Sense of Eyes (+2)
With a successful Perception + Willpower roll, the owner knows if, and from what direction, she's being watched. Only someone who is intently observing the character will be detected while the driver in the car behind her will not.
Sorcery (+4/Level)
The staff provides the owner with additional levels of Sorcery while she holds it. This Sorcery acts just as if the character had purchased the levels normally. This includes Telekinesis, and this Aspect combined with the Sorcery Quality may not provide more than a +5 total bonus to spellcasting rolls. If the character does not have any other levels of Sorcery, this Aspect also grants the ability to Quick Cast.
Spell Catching (+3)
If the owner is aware of a spell being cast on her, she can attempt to intercept it with her staff. If she succeeds in a counter-casting (treat it as dispelling), the energy is absorbed into her staff. If the staff has the Energy Source Aspect, this energy replenishes one charge per Power Level of the caught spell. Any additional Power Levels may be treated as extra Energy Source, but dissipate at the rate of one charge per Turn if not spent. This is also what happens if the spell does not have Energy Source.
Spell Parrying (+3)
Prerequisite: Athame
If the owner is aware of a spell being cast on her, she can attempt to intercept it with her staff's blade. If she gets one or more Success Levels in a Dexterity and Getting Medieval - 2 roll (with an additional penalty equal to the Power Level of the spell she is attempting to Parry) she deflects the spell energy harmlessly into space (or some nearby surface). If she gets a number of Success Levels equal to the Power Level of the spell, she may attempt to redirect it at any target within range. Unless totally unaware, said target gets the chance to Dodge (or possibly even Parry back). Redirected spell energy inflicts one point of damage per Success Level in the Parrying roll in addition to any other spell effects.
Using a Wild Card (Spell Parrying) Skill instead of Getting Medieval eliminates the base -2 ranged Parry penalty and reduces the Power Level penalty by one.
Spell Storage (+2/Level)
The owner may cast spells "into" her staff for use at a later time. The staff can hold one spell Power Level per level of this Aspect. At the time of casting, she completes the ritual in its entirety, and then stores the power in her staff an instant before it goes into effect. Spells that require a continuous chanting or something similar to maintain their effects, or that produce some sort of object or potion, may not be stored in this manner. The casting roll is made at the time the spell is placed into the staff, rather than when it is extracted later.
To release a spell from the staff, the owner need only recite a keyword (determined when the spell is cast). Even owners without Sorcery may Quick Cast in this manner, and spells that can't normally be Quick Cast may be stored. Theoretically spell energy can be stored indefinitely, but in practice it can be dangerous: any damage to the staff will release all stored spells at once in an orgy of mystical destruction.
Sturdy/Flimsy (+1 or -1/Level)
This Aspect only affects the staff, not the owner. Each level adds or subtracts 5 damage points and one point of Armor Value from the staff's capacity, making it easier or harder to break. (It's impossible to have a negative Armor Value or a damage capacity of less than one.)
Telekinesis (+2/Level)
The owner has a bonus to Telekinesis rolls equal to the level of the Aspect. This stacks with Telekinesis from the Sorcery Quality (or Aspect) or the Telekinesis Quality.
Sample Staves
Wizard's Staff
The traditional magical walking stick favored by fantasy magicians the world over.
Power Level: 15
Aspects: Energy Source 10, Light 2, Spell Catching
Combat Staff
A staff designed by its owner to be an effective weapon rather than an aid to spellcasting.
Power Level: 10
Aspects: Aegis 5, Awareness, Celerity, Sense of Eyes, Sturdy 1
Traditional Athame
A double-edged black-handled dagger used by old-school witches in their rituals.
Power Level: 7
Aspects: Athame 1, Convenient Size 1, Energy Source 5, Pacifist 5, Spell Parrying
Coven's Altar
The center of worship for a small group of witches.
Power Level: 25 (5 points apiece from the five members of the coven)
Aspects: Energy Source 10, Inconvenient Size 2, Joint Ownership, Second Sight, Sorcery 3, Sturdy 1
