Tomb Entrance

Thoughts on Kabbalism

In game terms, the below quote is an idea to work towards. That is of course post-grad level.

Kabbalism is either written, chanted, or gestured or a combination thereof.

It is a cross between Le Guin's name magic from the Earthsea trilogy and the weirding way from Dune.

PAUL
This is part of the weirding way that we
will teach you. Some thoughts have a
certain sound... that being the equivalent
to a form. Through sound and motion you
will be able to paralyze nerves, shatter
bones, set fires, suffocate an enemy or
burst his organs....

From the Dune motion picture.

More on mesmerism

The Illusionist like class is taken over by either mesmerism or a specialized form of Kabbalism (letter/symbol magic).

Assume illusions don’t cause physical damage – save for insanity (Bart Simpson: “Cool, I broke his brain.”) or death from a heart attack (the horse in the dean’s office in “Animal House”) at a high TN.

Mesmerism takes care of everything inside the mind: Sleep, Stun, Blindness, etc...., one caveat, no spell can preclude the target's free will; that puts Charm, Suggest, and the like out of the running. Spells can trick but not control a target's mind.

The free standing, outside the mind, illusions are made with symbols of varying complexities, so most will need special rules to be combat ready.

Mesmerism is more controlled hallucinations than anything else. In this milieu, magic is powered down but more accessible, more flexible; I was shooting for finesse over force to take a break from rote magic. Oddly enough I've run across the same complexity problem.

I solved the problem by getting rid of mesmerism. And I'm having second thoughts.

Mesmerism's strengths are that it is combat ready - even the more complex hallucinations, although higher on a difficulty level, are thrown as fast as the simpler hallucinations, and the whammy is flexible. (a mesmerist can cloak a anvil from the mind of an Orc, so that he runs full tilt into it. Think Bugs Bunny bull fighting)

Its weaknesses are that it's usually Mano-a-Mano, (mass hallucinations, as well as induced psychoses are post-grad level) so the mesmerist had better have a plan; and that lower level hallucinations are easy to shake. (if you whammy Orc A with a Mask hallucination to believe Orc B is a sneaky human - Orc A unleashes one shot, then gets to make a saving throw. Only a critical failure means the Mask is still in place)

Mesmerism is incredibly useful in concert actions, if the situations allow, though if a mesmerist succeeds in enthralling a non-sentient beast, the mesmerist can't perform any other action.

Reconsidering Mesmerism

We dropped mesmerism from Risus of Arabia because it was always abused by players in the second incarnation, lifting much from the D&D Illusionist class. Mind control does not fit in the Arabia, free will is necessary for sin and redemption; however, there are jinns who can trixies the faithful from the path.

I'm thinking of re-instating mesmerism as a cliche or a skill. Need to have a some guidelines worked out to steer it way from the D&D Illusionist class.

Mesmerism. (usually a one throw contest)

Using a mesmeric whammy to hurt a sentient monster or NPC is a one throw combat. Illusions don’t cause physical damage – save for insanity (Bart Simpson: “Cool, I broke his brain.”) or death (the horse in the dean’s office in “Animal House”). Intent must be stated before hand and the combat won by a spread or the use the ‘wild dice’ from the WEG D6 rules. Non-sentient monsters are enthralled not mesmerized. Mass mesmerism is either at a higher TN (usually +1 per target) or simple enthrall at the normal TN.

Risus of Arabia goblinoid list

Risus of Arabia goblinoid list

Goblinoids being the non-magical foot soldiers of the underworld.

The number appearing depends on the dice pool of the party.

Mountain + 1D
Crag + 2
Cave +1

Desert + 1D
Dune + 2
Sand + 1

Fire (special bonuses)

The Ogre race has, to some measure, shapeshifting and/or illusion abilities.


Iblees (5) Ogre

Ogre (4) Bugbear

Ghul (3) Hobgoblin

Kutrub (2) Orc

Gheddár (1) Goblin


Sealáh (3) Gargoyle

Narahs (2) Lesser Gargoyle

Deevs (1) Minor Gargoyle

Africa Savannas Bestiary

Template.

Base Cliché:

# appearing: Lone = 1, Group = 1 - 4, Herd = 5 – infinity.

Size: small 1 oz. – 100 lbs, medium = 100 lbs to 300 lbs, Large = 300 lbs +

Africa Savannas Bestiary

African elephant – (10) Never forgetting and being afraid of mice.

Notes: The largest living land animal, strong social bonds, average about 10 feet (3 m) tall at the shoulder, weighing roughly 6 tons (5,400 kg). Both males and females have tusks (large, pointed ivory teeth).

African wild cat – (1) Playing with yarn and coughing up hairballs.

Notes: Small, fierce cats that live in forests, grasslands, and brush lands in Africa and the Middle East, generally nocturnal, excellent climbers, and are about 50 percent larger than domesticated (tame) cats.

Baboon - (2) Baring fangs and flinging poo.

Notes: The largest type of monkey, noisy, ferocious, lives in groups called troops which vary in size from a few individuals to up to several hundred members; grow to be about 35 inches (90 cm) long. Baboons weigh from 30 to 100 pounds (14 to 45 kg).

Buffalo – (4) stampedes and good eatin’

Notes: Usually lives in large herds of up to a thousand animals. Cape Buffalo can run up to 37 miles per hour (60 kph).

Cape hunting dog – (2) humping legs, pinching loafs.

Notes: A rare wild dog that wanders the plains, grasslands and lowland forests very social animal that lives in groups, can run over 30 mph (48 km per hour),

has large ears, sharp eyes, and a keen sense of smell. Adults weigh 45-80 pounds (20-36 kg) and are 30-38 inches (76-112 cm) long.

Cheetah – (3) Haulin’ ass, eatin’ Cheetos

Notes: The fastest land animal can run up to 65 miles per hour (100 kph) in short bursts when they are hunting. Shy and are not very sociable with each other.

are up to 7 feet (2.15 m) long, weighing up to 125 pounds (55 kg

Hyena - Laughing, picking scraps

Notes: live in Africa, south of the Sahara Desert, and in parts of the Middle East and Asia. They are territorial, social animals that live in large groups called clans,

strong runners weigh from 82 to 190 pounds (37-86 kg).

Jackal – (2) Having a ‘day’

Notes: live singly or in pairs, but are sometimes found in loose packs of related individuals.

Leopard – (3) Not changing their spots.

Notes: They hunt mostly at night; fast runners, good swimmers and excellent tree climbers, grow to be about 3.5-5.5 feet (1-1.7 m) long weigh from 65 to 175 pounds (30-80 kg).

Lion – (5) Being King of the jungle, singing ‘cycle of life’.

Notes: grow to be up to 6 feet (1.8 m) long and weigh up to 420 pounds (190 kg

prides have up to 25 lions in them. The home territory of a pride can cover 100 square miles (260 square km). Lions are nocturnal (more active at night).

Rhinoceros - (7) Playing the horn, putting out fires

Notes: a large, fast moving mammal with thick skin and one or two nose horns, are from 3 1/2 feet to 6 1/2 (1 to 2 m) tall at the shoulder and weigh from 2,400 to 5,000 pounds (1000 to 2300 kg).

Pulp, not Fantasy.....

Just a note.

If you are going to lift from RPG resources on the web; lean toward Supernatural Pulp, rather than High Fantasy.

Case in point this totally neat Terra Incognita site.

http://nagssociety.com/resources/resources.htm


It seems so obvious now, The Nights are more Supernatural Pulp than High Fantasy in tone and temperament; real people in a supernatural world, not supernatural people in the real world.
I was brought up on D&D and I thought that would be the way to build an Arabian game. Realization came to me while I was deconstructing the D&D Illusionist class to see what useful bits would fit into the Arabian milieu. While gutting the spell list I remembered that Jeff's Cliffhangers adventure was much easier fit; in cooking it's always better to add than subtract.

Unanswered Questions....

Jess summoned an anubin demon (3), I allowed her to pump the demon by one die (keeping the 3 to 1 ratio) for a critical combat making it a demon (6). After the successful combat I rolled the demon's Will roll to make a bid for freedom. I rolled for 5D for the demon, being bound to a ring is a -1D penalty. Still it was demon (5) against Jess's Learned Summoner (3) and she couldn't pump because Test of Wills is a one throw contest. She lost the demon creation die and the pump die.

Need to think through the whole pumping summoned creatures thing.

So if the demon didn't make the Will role would Jess have a demon (6) at her beck and call? Could she rebind the demon to the ring to make it a fair fight in a battle of Wills? Or as previously stated the demon is a temporary magic item and she could at any point reclaim the pump die?

Enchantment and such......

We haven't worked out separate rules for Enchantment, Illusions, and Shapeshifting. These were cover by a second tier Letter Magic in the second incarnation and by complex rules in the first.

Titles

This was something I found about Arab titles. It's a poor fit but it adds more titles than 'prince' or 'princess' to the mix.

Caliph - While essentially a religious title, the position corresponds to that of emperor, with caliphs ruling over caliphates composed of subordinate sultans and emirs.

ARABIC EQUIVALENTS OF SCA TITLES OF NOBILITY

(from the list compiled by Master Wilhelm von Schlüssel,
Mulai ech Tachfin and Da'ud ibn Auda)

Male Titles of Nobility		Female Titles of Nobility
King Prince Duke Count Viscount Baron Knight Master Lord	Malik/Sultan Amir Mushir (Musaitir) Qadi Naquib (Naqib) Shayk (Sheik) Faris Mu'allim( Maulan) Sayyid	Queen Princess Duchess Countess Viscountess Baroness Knight Mistress Lady	Malika/Sultana Amira Mushira(Musaitira) Qadiya Naquiba (Naqiba) Shayka (Sheika) Farisa Mu'allima (Maulana) Sayyida

http://heraldry.sca.org/laurel/names/arabic-naming2.htm

Note on Summoning rules

A creature summoned using a magic circle can gain bonus dice, but the creature is a one use deal.

Unanswered Questions....

I found notes on questions Jess asked and we never answered.

We never decided on the use of familiars,

If a summoner can summon and bind - can she also invoke and banish?

Or whether normal people or animals can be bound, summoned, or invoked or banished.

And whether angels can be summoned, bound, or invoked or banished.

Can a demon or spirit be bound to a tattoo? (I assume to give the PC supernormal powers)

More Thoughts on Summoning

From a file at Risustalk by Stefan Shirley aka Peregrine Brightmeadow

Risus Summoner

Summoner

A Summoner (actual Cliché may vary) uses elaborate rituals to call forth creatures from other dimensions to assist him and his compatriots. This Cliché can be bought as a Double-Pump, but doesn’t need to be.

Tools of the Trade

Proper tools are extremely important to the Summoner. Specific rituals for different types of creatures are required. Depending on the setting specific circles and wards may be required as well. Then there are sacrifices and offerings, what material all this stuff is made from, possible priceless ancient grimoires, and all the ritual paraphernalia. I’m thinking of incense, athames, rods, staffs, and wands, and ritual garb. The utility and power of the Summoner will depend on how strict and specific a GM wants to be.

Procedure for Summoning

The Preparation Roll

This roll acts to aid The Summoning Roll. Sixes are added to the next roll much like the "Teaming Up" rules. Note that this will not always be possible, and the GM decides when it is both appropriate and possible.

The Summoning Roll (Now also the Binding, Control, and Dismissal Roll!)

The Summoner decides what kind of creature (or creatures) they want to summon. If the GM approves it the creature is built with the "Sidekicks and Shield-Mates" rules (1:3) and a number of dice equal to the Summoner’s Cliché (if the Summoning Roll is pumped then the number if dice equals the pumped total). All of these dice need not be spent.

The Summoning Roll is a Risus Combat. If the Summoner wins, the creature performs as intended. If the creature wins… Fear the merciless GM. Attempts can be made by the Summoner to gain control of their summoned creature or dismiss it, but these rolls will be at the Cliché total after the pump.

I can see attempts to banish a demon prone to gambling using an "Inappropriate Cliché." Summoners often form teams to summon powerful creatures, but only the Team Leader’s dice count towards the creatures construction. In this case a team member might not even be able to summon, but still have an appropriate Cliché. " Mad Cultist Sorcerer" and "Fanatical Cultists" forming a Team to summon their "Blasphemous God."

Bonus Dice

A generous GM may award bonus dice for having exceptional Tools (+1d) to work with or the Creature’s True Name (+2d). Not that this is a two way street, too. Summoners do not want the creatures they summon to discover their own true name!

Example Character

Lieutenant Augustus Hadley, AKA Wilbur B. Skite New Englander Summoner (4), Reluctant Confederate Officer (3), Grifter Masquerading as a Southern Gentleman Gambler (3) Questing Dice (avoiding vengeful pursuers) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]

Sidekick: Sgt. Tom Salt; soldier, secretary, Yankee Spy?! (3)

Hook: On the run from the real gentleman, his family, his neighbors, their families, and the gentleman’s daughter who still hasn’t quite figured out what is going on…

Tale: Lt. Hadley (whose real name is Wilbur B. Skite) never wanted to be an officer, let alone actually be involved in this dreadful war. However, he was able to convince some officers that he was part of their unit to escape pursuit, but now he can’t quite figure a way out of this new mess. The gentleman and his friends and family won’t dare move against him in the military for fear of the publicity it might attract, but poor "August" is stuck in a situation where he has to keep writing "his darling belle" and keeping up appearances or he’ll be hung as a spy. The alternative... Well at least his secretive secretary has expressed no desire to send him to battle or hang him from a magnolia tree!

Wilbur’s summoned creatures are of three types: homing pigeons (usually eaten, but never very filling), sea devils (at least that’s what Wilbur calls them), and spectral headless horsemen (usually used as a distraction). He learned his arcane art an upstart college in Massachusetts…

Wilbur has not yet caught on that Sgt. Salt is actually more of an ally than he realizes…

(forgive me; I’ve been reading a lot of Twain this semester. Augustus has been adjusted for this new iteration.)

Senile Mullings

My friend reminded me that the Gizmo advantage is ripe for abuse. As are most rules. In the second incarnation we used Hindu and Egyptian gods as the template for demons. When the group was up against it one player suddenly remembered he had a +2 Kali demon (minor avatars) bound to a ring. Then tried to argue the GM into letting him keep it.

A few links

THE WORLD OF THE ARABIAN NIGHTS

http://novaonline.nv.cc.va.us/eli/eng251/arabstudy.htm

Islamic Empires (a good collection of basic links)

http://sd71.bc.ca/sd71/school/courtmid/Library/subject_resources/socials/isla...

Lawrence of Arabia

http://www.pbs.org/lawrenceofarabia/

The Book of One Thousand and One Nights

http://xahlee.org/p/arabian_nights/index.html

The Thousand Nights and a Night

http://www.wollamshram.ca/1001/index.htm

Senile Musings

In the first incarnation, Sorcerer was a job title, a package deal of cascade skills, and the magic system for higher magic was complex. It looked better on paper. Still the biggest drawback was that the complexity allowed mages to tweak a more D&D like set of spells. We removed most the control mechanics in the magic me we used; the plumber’s nightmare of magic rules were only understood by my friend and me. So we had to simplify and set guidelines for an honor system. We dropped elemental magic, control and manipulation of the four elements necessary for higher alchemy, outright. We kept wind and earth command as magic objects made with letter magic. We also set up a task chart similar to the Risus Target Number Chart for summoned jinns or demons.

Random notes on alchemy for Risus of Arabia.

Paring down the first incarnation our transmutation scheme is tricky. Simple Transmutation uses the four elements; Etheric Transmutation is for masters only and adds Ether into the mix. For further complication Element Control was another sort of magic needed in conjunction to make transmutations more useful. In The Nights, Solomon’s ring gives him control over the winds, control over the elements may mean control over the weather, and there are many instances of earth being manipulated, so we assumed talismans for Element Control.

Risus’s TN system simplifies the Plus/Minus system we used, however useful the end product is determines the TN.

An Alchemist forms a Sand Dagger with an Earth talisman, then can transmute it into stone, glass, iron, or steel. Each funtion adds a bump to the TN.

Alchemists can create Homunculi, Golems, and Egregores. Egregores are a ‘thought-form’, supposedly like the Buddhist Tulpa or the Id Creature from Forbidden Planet, an Invisible Stalker made by, and from, sheer force of Will.

Thoughts on Golems

An idea we didn't playtest.

Alchemists can animate wood or stone statues (a single task temporary magic item), can they create golems (multi-task temporary magic item) ?

A golem like bronze mechanical man appears The Nights. The letter magic in The Nights is a take on Jewish Kabbalism; and there are Jewish magicians in The Nights.

In game terms it's much like the Summoner's ability to bind demons into service. Traditionally a golem is shaped from clay and brought to 'life' with a special symbol marked on its forehead. To make the golem alchemist specific there is a 'gathering' formula.

Keeping with the clay motif there are four golems: dust, sand, clay, and stone. We didn't work out cost, duration, and the like, so for argument's sake just assume the task complexity for golems are the TN levels.
Dust = 5
Sand =10
Clay = 15
Stone = 20

Risus of Arabia Bestiary

In the first incarnation the bestiary was divided by region, era, culture, and such, using the Cthulhu rule of thumb that the older the entity the more powerful it is. It was long and well over-thought.

In the second incarnation we used the Harryhausen rule. Any creature animated by Harryhausen could be used. This was a more Greco-Roman themed bestiary.

Types of monsters.

Hybrids: Half and halfs like centaurs or Nagas and/or chimeras – beasts of many parts.

Melds: a Moreau-esque manimals, werewolves, lizardmen etc….

BTL: Bigger than life. Large or giant creatures.

There are no undead in The Nights or Egyptian mythology. The mummy’s curse was a product Victorian England.

In the second incarnation demons were based on the Hindu and Egyptian pantheons, demons are minor aspects of the deities, mini avatars.

Nagas
Base Cliché: (3) slithering, listening to reedy music, hypnotizing birds….
Notes: bite, claw, whip with tail.
Can lunge.
Slow reptilian brain.
Tastes the air over short distances, heat sense.

Half man half snake, usually solo.

Anubins.
Base Cliché: (2) running in packs, having a ‘Day’, using curved bladed weapons.
Notes:. Jackelmen as from ‘The Mummy Returns’.

Sand Snake: Large snake (4)
Notes: Surprise attack
A really impressive hood.
Ambush hunter

General notes on Jinn. They were created from smokeless fire (humans were created from clay) and seem to be the missing link between angels/demons and men. They have a parallel society, marry, have families, hold slaves, and have jobs. They can pass for human, have sex with humans, and have the same emotional range as humans; though being created from fire, they are more passionate. The most common enchantments are shapeshifting, illusions, charm, fly, element control, talk to animals, and pass through walls. All are dependent on the jinn’s class and power.

A by no means authoritative list of jinn-kind.

Classes of Jinn
Marid: A large jinn. (10)
Notes: All jinn abilities and then some.
All knowing, all seeing.
Wise, and well disposed towards polite company.
Fewest in number, strongest, solitary. Live near the coast and are masters of the weather, may appear as a wise old man or a porpoise, or a horse, leading travelers to wise courses.



Ifrit:
Base Cliché: Well meaning hothead(6)

Notes: illusions, fly, element control, talks to animals, and pass through walls.
Highly intelligent, have a quite evil temper, make homes in abandoned or desolate places. May appear as a soldier, or a great dog, often move across land as a great tornado of dust, or on magical camels made of sand and evil magic. They may also strike as giant serpents or scorpions spitting fire.


Shaitan
Base Cliché: Joe Average jinn (3)
Notes: illusions, charm, fly, talk to animals, and pass through walls.
The longest lived of all the jinn, masters of deception, and can disappear in a cloud of smoke, traveling on clouds of hot air from place to place. They are well known for their pride, and are known to have human worshipers and slaves.


Jann
Base Cliché: Cherub of jinn-kind (2)
Notes: Illusions, charm, fly, talk to animals, and pass through walls
The most individualistic, could hide an oasis from those who had previously mistreated them or shown disrespect.

Qareen:
Base Cliché: Impish jinn (1)

Notes: illusions, charm, fly, and pass through walls.
According to Islamic literature, these are evil spirits, analogous to a personal demon, intent on tricking people into acts of sin. Binding a Qareen to someone is a form of a Hex.


Jinn are beings of flame or air that are capable of assuming human or animal form and are said to dwell in all conceivable inanimate objects—stones, trees, ruins—underneath the earth, in the air, and in fire. They possess the bodily needs of human beings and can even be killed, but they are free from all physical restraints. Jinn delight in punishing humans for any harm done them, intentionally or unintentionally, and are said to be responsible for many diseases and all kinds of accidents; however, those human beings knowing the proper magical procedure can exploit the jinn to their advantage.

Ghul
Base Cliché: Hillbilly cousin of jinn-kind (3)
Notes: shape shifting, charm.
Stalk the trackless wastes of the desert and prey upon the living and the dead. They can change into vultures, Their alternative forms always have asses' hooves The only way to kill Ghul is to strike them with a single blow, since striking them twice will invest within them new life.
There is a debate as to whether ghuls are jinns, sometimes they are referred to as ‘ogres’. For games purposes, a family tree of less magical ghuls formed the workhorse / cannon fodder for players to stomp (much like the goblinoid monsters in D&D).

Risus of Arabia

Risus: the Anything RPG, © S. John Ross 1993-2001 http://www222.pair.com/sjohn/risus.htm

“First principles, Clarice. Simplicity. Read Marcus Aurelius. Of each particular thing ask: what is it in itself? What is its nature?”



Hannibal Lecter

Disclaimer.

I should take a closer look at TSR’s Al-Qadim; but I am shying away from all things AD&D. That and I have become a D6 bigot.

Second Disclaimer.

This is another attempt to untangle the Gordian Knot that is the Arabian Adventure campaign a friend and I started (and abandoned after a year and change of over thinking the whole process) for GURPS.

To avoid problems, long ago we started using Fate in place of God, Allah, or Mohammad.

For simplicity’s sake, the characters are generic Islamic Arab. The era is ‘The Golden Age of the Islamic Empire’. All other races, creeds, nationalities are fit only for villains or comic relief.

The inspiring cliché is The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, mostly.

Setting Cliches

Jinns in bottles on the beach.

Flying carpet careening through the minaret crowned skyline of Baghdad.

Lost cities in the sands of trackless deserts.

Dancing girls in diaphanous harem clothes.

A dhow in full sail in the seven seas.

Cliches for the various lands of the Land of Fate.

Maghreb (Saharan Africa): Powerful Berber Mages, Salt caravans, Timbuktu, Barbary pirates, Algiers, Morocco, Casablanca

Egypt (historically the center of the Arab world): Tombs, tombs, tombs, barging down the Nile, Nubian gold mines,

Abyssinia (East Africa): King Solomon’s Mines, the slave trade, She Who Must Be Obeyed, Mountains of the Moon.

Arabia: riding camels, sailing Dhows, resting in oases, sand swept ruins of lost civilizations.

Persia: Like Arabia, only with mountains.

Anatolia (Turkey): Like Persia, only on the Mediterranean Sea.

India: Ornate temples of Doom, jungles, the Ganges, Thugges.

Spice Islands: old men who like piggyback rides, headhunters.

Risus of Arabia Adventure Seeds

several themes: “powerful demon stories, talisman stories where a magical object protects and guides the hero, quest stories, transformation tales, and tales of demons under restraint”

The two main travel motivators in the nights are to find treasure or break an enchantment; the usual RPG ‘need and greed seeds’.

I defer to The Big List of RPG Plots by S. John Ross.

http://www.io.com/~sjohn/plots.htm

Risus of Arabia characters.

Characters are built on ten dice.

Options at the GM’s whim.

The Hand of Fate rule lets a player call a Mulligan once a session The HoF can be affected by the Five Pillars of Islam; or they can simply be milieu texture.

Characters should be mindful of Family, Honor, Hospitality, and Piety. They can form a bonus system or simply be milieu texture.

No classes; pick a job and work outward.

Merchant

Scholar

Caravan outrider

Dancing girl

Etc...

Fakir is a tall dark and handsome manly man. He is always on the move. Good with pack animals and horses; not so good with people.

Hook and Tale: Bad Case of Wanderlust. Pathological Need for ‘Me’ Time.

He grew up fast in the streets and alleys of Baghdad. His survival mentality is built around ‘keep moving and trust no one’. Stowed away on a ship and has been moving ever since.

Taciturn Caravan Outrider (4) was an Agile and Cunning Street Urchin (3) and left the streets as An Able Seaman (2). Is also a Well Traveled Dilettante Scholar (2) which allows him Universal Mage Abilities, and a Break Even Gambler (1).

Princess Shalimar / Taura

Little Nell’s Dancing Girl: ‘Lithe of limb, light of touch, and fleet of foot.’ She is a renowned dancer with the ability to enthrall men as if they had drunk deeply of wine. She is also a gifted thief, pickpocket, con artist, and gambling cheat.

Wiley Gypsy Peasant (4) which allows her Universal Mage Abilities, Stunning Gypsy Princess (4), Savvy Merchant (2) Itinerant Bon Vivant (2).

Tale and Hook: Price on Her Head. Secret Identity. Compulsive Thief

She is a gypsy princess who fled her tribe because a traditionally evil uncle usurped power and wants to a) marry her off to some halfwit cousin then, b) kill her off so he can take over. She was taken in by a group of traveling gypsies where she learned her trades. She can weave mesmerism through her dance, and uses her dance and social skills to locate loot and the best means to get said loot.

Risus of Arabia Magic

In the Tales, powerful sorcerers were trumped by Fate or cunning; and a butcher’s daughter was learned in enchantments. Magic is useful, and accessible; but not overwhelming. This magic is more enchantment than spell flinging. For a taste of magic from the Tales read the Second Kalandar’s Tale.

Magic objects can be handled like the ‘Gizmo’ advantage for the Gadgetteer in GURPS Cliffhangers; devices, objects, and equipment are prepared before hand and can fill only five of the ten regular Gear Slots*. A set number of rings, vials, flasks, amulets, etc… are not committed before a session, but are committed once they come into play; however the uncommitted slot must be named ‘ring, vial, flask, amulet, etc…. One ring and one necklace can be ‘at the ready’ for a PC, each costs a Gear Slot. No spell lists, decide what needs to be done and work out the mechanics.

(*see Vincent Diakuw’s Dungeonautica)

Summoner/Demonologist or Alchemist is taken as the cliché. With augury and letter magic as skills in either. Both Summoner/Demonologist and Alchemist clichés can be taken but only one can be double pumped.

The division between Summoner/Demonologist and Alchemist was a personal preference; it was done solely to diffuse mage power, feel free to combine them. Note: most magic takes one or two turns to prepare. Being ‘combat ready’ is tricky for a mage. Mages can have passable to excellent combat skills – still it’s a good to have a trick, or two, up his or her sleeve.

Summoning/Demonology: summoning/binding demons and jinns, exorcising evil spirits….

Summoned jinns and demons can be treated as temporary magic items* . For game purposes, jinns, as a rule, don’t do physical combat; the lower powered jinns can use their innate magic abilities to perform magical tasks. Higher level jinns can cast spells and enchantments. Demons, due to their less magical nature, are more suited for combat and physical tasks. And no, jinns and demons can’t be summoned at the same time. Questing Dice can be tied to the Summoner cliche.

(see Minute-Made Magic (M3) for summoning options)

Note: Demons are only vaguely referred to in The Nights; and the souls of the departed are in the hands of Allah, so no séances or ghosts or ghosts-like apparitions. Spirits are mentioned in The Night, these are animistic hold overs from pre-Muslim Arab beliefs.

*(Risus Magic Objects by Jason Puckett)

for summoning options)

Alchemy: potions, elixirs, devices, acids, explosives, tear gas, transmuting stuff, animating statues, make and use The Philosopher’s Stone, create homunculi (‘do it yourself’ Sidekick – Companion page 51), and golems, (a Sidekick as a temporary magic item), etc…

Sample potions: heroism, speed, strength, healing, flash vial, paralyzation, polymorph, cure disease, regeneration……. As well as powders for illusions and invisibility.

Alchemists can carry five vials or two flasks per Gear Slot.

Universal Mage Abilities

(see Risus Magic by Jason Puckett and S. John Ross)

• Sensing magic items upon seeing or touching them
• Sensing other wizards on sight
• Sensing other wizards nearby, whether or not they're visible ("I feel a disturbance in the Force...")
• Sensing spells cast nearby
• Detecting the nature (necromancy, fire magic, good/evil/hostile/friendly magic) of magic items or spells in the area
• Dispelling other mages' spells *
• etc.

* Dispelling an enchantment is a regular theme in The Nights, often involving time, effort, and travel. There is also a tacit ‘hands off’ agreement among all magic user, both mages and Jinns. There is a tenuous connection between the caster and the enchantment so he or she knows when it is being tampered with. It also serves as an automatic Lojack for magic objects until the enchantment is cloaked, altered, or broken. Also a door can be given a slight enchantment to act as a silent alarm (a variation of Magic Mouth).

Also:

Augury: Astrology/Geomancy (sand writing, akin to reading tea leaves), ask the oracle simple questions … (a shameless tool for the GM to use)

Letter Magic. - wards and glyphs, making amulets (protective) and talismans (empowering) to control the elements (not elemental spirits, animistic spirits are a pre-islamic belief), control the weather, talk to animals, draw magic circles, create illusions, write home for help ... (necessary for making magic objects) Letter magic can be written or chanted (the 'intelligible words' often spoken in The Nights) Letter magic is fundamental to most magic in The Nights.

(Note: Enchantment, Illusions, and Shapeshifting are covered by a second tier of Letter Magic difficulty. We still need to suss out a few rules.)

(Note: illusions are just trickery, the sort minor jinn engage in to mislead humans.No mind control involved.)

Wards and glyphs can be traced on walls or doors to make barriers or traps: flash, stun, confuse, enthrall, etc… At higher levels letters can be traced in the air and cast like runes.

(Note: Sleep is milieu passable; Charm, Suggestion, and other mind control spells are not.)

(Note: I don’t remember if mesmerism is a part of The Nights; however, jinns could work illusions, mirages, and hallucinations; but not direct mind control, that would preclude free will. Mesmerism was included in the earlier incarnation of this game as a concession to a player who wanted an 'always ready' wammy.)

Universal Mage Abilities can be a skill in an appropriate cliché: a Gypsy Princess, Gypsy Peasant, Occult Scholar, etc… with adjusted TNs. Or not. As a rule dilettante Universal Mage Abilities levels top out at either (2) or (3) no matter how high the cliche goes.

There is a Spellflinger conversion chart; most ‘classic’ spells can be replicated with this system – the point is to have a broader use of magic. To cover the biggest bugbear, there are no Magic Missiles, Fireballs, Webs, or the like. Cure Wounds or Cure Disease are handled through other skills. (although in the second incarnation of this game Little Nell used a minor ‘bind’ glyph to staunch a bleeding wound and a ‘hold’ glyph to stop the progression of paralysis)

Augury covers ESP, Clairvoyance ….

Letter Magic covers: Light, Protection from Evil, Hold Portal, Shield (detailed rules), Wizard Lock…

For Starters

This is a back up blog for my Risus campaign worlds: Risus of Arabia (set in the Arabian Nights), Two-Fisted Risus (simplified GURPS Cliffhangers), and Risus Dark Conspiracy (Wushu/Black-Ops/Illuminati).

Credit where it's due.

Risus: the Anything RPG, © S. John Ross 1993-2001

http://www222.pair.com/sjohn/risus.htm