Conditional Magic

In this system of priestly magic, deities grant the ability to cast spells based on the priest’s need, not just on form or prayer. A faithful priest following his patron power’s tenets will usually receive the spells he requests, but a priest who strays from the path will soon find that his patron no longer supports his actions. While the urgency of the priest’s request is a consideration, the deity’s primary concern is whether or not the use of that particular spell will benefit the deity’s own purposes and causes at that moment. The priest’s spell powers will vary with the interest and support of his deity.

The following option is used for conditional magic:

Spells belonging to a minor sphere of access are more costly than spells from a major sphere, as described earlier. Priests may request free or fixed theurgies by meeting the normal spell point costs.

Many of the normal priest restrictions are still in place for priests using conditional magic. First of all, priests must still “memorize” any spell that he wishes to have access to. After all, if the priest is granted the ability to cast the spell, then he should be familiar with exactly how to go about doing so! Secondly, while the priest can cast spells at a higher character level than his own, he cannot use spells from spell lists above his own spell level.

Before a priest actually begins play using this system of magic, the player and the DM should take some time to define positive and negative conditions for that priest’s faith. These are situations or guidelines that define the deity’s interests and ensure that the priest only invokes his god’s power in pursuit of the deity’s aims. Here are some examples of conditions:

Positive Conditions

The priest is engaged in combat against a traditional enemy of the god or the faith, such as giants for a priest of Thor, or orcs for the priest of an elven god.

The priest is located in a place sacred or special to the deity, such as a mountaintop for a god of the air, or a deep forest for a druidical power.

The priest is engaged in a situation favorable to

the deity; fighting for a god of war, trading for a merchant power, committing theft or burglary for a god of thieves, or in the open during a storm for a storm god.

The priest’s spell will directly benefit another worshipper of the same deity, such as healing a paladin of the same faith or using spells to protect townspeople who follow the priest’s religion.

The spell fulfills a traditional role or guideline of the power—starting a fire for a fire god, sowing deceit for a god of mischief, or offering advice or guidance in the case of a god of wisdom or knowledge.

Negative Conditions

The spell aids or supports a traditional enemy.

The priest is located in a place inimical or opposed to his power (a wind priest adventuring underground, a fire priest venturing out on the ocean, etc.)

The priest is involved in a situation distasteful or opposed to his patron power (a priest of chaos using his spells to restore order, a priest of healing attempting to injure someone with his spells, a priest of battle trying to avoid or escape from a fight).

The spell will directly or indirectly injure or discomfit a fellow worshipper or the temple’s interests.

The priest has failed to observe one of his patron’s holy days or rites, has violated his alignment, or has generally misrepresented his patron recently.

As an example of how these conditions might work, consider the case of a priest of Tempus from the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. (Tempus is a chaotic deity of battle and storms.) For his positive conditions, he selects casting spells in battle, casting spells during a storm, and casting spells that enhance or augment a warrior’s ability to fight, such as bless, emotion, and other such enchantments. For his negative conditions, he selects casting spells outside of a fight, avoiding or fleeing a battle, and spells that aid lawful characters. Naturally, the DM can either set up these conditions himself or allow the player to set them

up and then approve the conditions.

Any time the priest casts a spell, the player should compare the number of positive conditions that apply to the number of negative conditions, and consult Table 32 : Effects of Conditions.

Maglas, the priest of Tempus previously described, is locked in battle with an ogre during a thunderstorm. Deciding that things aren’t going his way, he decides to cast an obscurement spell to cover his escape. Since he is in battle, and the weather is appropriate, he has two positive conditions. On the other hand, he’s getting ready to flee, which is a negative condition. There is a net +1 positive condition, which means that Maglas can cast the spell normally.

In this system, if a priest casts a spell, it’s still expended until he can re-memorize it . . . but saving spell points may allow the character to find room for an extra free theurgy. For example, if Maglas manages to save 8 spell points by casting several spells in favorable conditions, he may now add a 1st-level free theurgy to his spell repertoire for the day.

Recovering Spell Points: Priests who use conditional magic recover their spell points normally (see Recovering Spell Points ) and may change their spell selection any time they rest eight hours and spend the time to pray for new spells.

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