Magic

Magic, some say, is the crux of the world of Arena. It is potent, vital, and deadly to the uninitiated. Spells in Tamriel, unlike some other worlds, are extremely unforgiving. they are wielded with no limitations such as memorization, rewquired objects or components, hand-gestures, etc. There are no level limitatons, nor are there strictures on what type of spells can be cast or used. A mage need only have the magical energy to cast a spell, and he or she can cast it. For this reason, a Mage is not only high respected, but greatly feared as well. There are over 50 standard spells known throughout the Empire. These spells can be researched and purchased at the Mages Guild. For those who wish, the Mages Guild also allows the creation of spells for a Mage's personal spellbook. This effectively gives you an unlimited amount of spells to choose from.

The Spellmaker

The Spellmaker will come up as a scroll. At the top will be printed the PC's name and level. Creating a spell is relatively simple, once the different effects are understood. There are a few rules to remember:

The Spell must have a name.
You may combine up to three (3) effects in one spell.
Left click with the mouse on the field next to each of the entries in order to edit it. If the field cannot be edited, nothing will happen. You can edit: Spell Name, Target, Effects, and Save Vs.
When you are satisfied, click Buy Spell and the spell will be written into your spellbook.

Effects

This field is where you decide what are the actual spell effects. The following list will give each effect you can pick from and a brief description of thet effect. A spell can have up to three (3) effects merged together. As you pick effects, other effects from the list may disappear. This is because certain effects would cancel each other out in the same spell. We have taken them out to avoid confusion.

To create a spell, left click the Effects field with your mouse. You will get a pick list from which you can pick different effects. Once you select an effect, another pop up box will appear, asking you to enter ranges, numbers, percentages, or perhaps all three. Enter the appropriate data you wish for your particular spell. At the bottom of the pop up box you will see the current cost for the spell you are designing. This is the cost in gold for that particular effect. Leaving this box by clicking the exit will print a brief summary of what you selected on the parchment, and the total cost of the spell can be seen next to the Spell Cost field. If this is confusing, don't worry, we have provided an example.

Example 1: Creating a spell in the Spell Maker

Steps to create a Fireball spell: Items can be selected by double left clicking with the mouse.

Click on the Spell Name field. A cursor will appear. Type in Fireball. Hit enter when you are finished.
Click Target:. A choice of targets will appear. Pick 1 target at range with your mouse.
Click Save vs.: You will get a pick list of different elements. Choose Fire off of this list.
Click Effects. You will get a list of effects (see Effects). Choose Damage. You will then see another list that will have the following listed: Health, Fatigue, Spell Poinst. Choose Health.
A pop up box will appear. On it you will be asked to choose a range of numbers for initial damage to health. Click on the arrow keys to increase or decrease the values in the boxes. Make the initial range 1-20 pts. of damage.
A second box is under the first. This is the range in which this spell will gain power as you rise in levels. The range means how many additional points of damage will be assessed on the target per level of the caster. Make this range 1-5 pts. of damage per 2 levels.
Click Exit.
You should be back at the Spell Maker parchment.
1. To buy this spell, click Buy Spell.
2. To create a new spell and dump this one away, click New Spell.
3. To exit this menu, click Exit.
4. To ,odify the current effects, click the Effects: field again. You will be given a choice to Add, Modify, or Delete an effect on a spell.

Remember, keep an eye on both Spell Cost (gold) and the Casting Cost (spell points.

It's that simple! If you now look on the Spell Maker parchment you will see under Effects:,

Damage:

1 to 20 pts. damage to health +1 to 5 pts. per 2 level(s).

You just created a Fireball spell that will do 1-20 points of damage to 1 target at range plus an additional 1 to 5 points per every 2 levels of the caster. If you want to continue experimenting, be our guest. You can edit this spell by clicking the Effects: field again and then following the onscreen prompts.

New Spell:

Clicking this will erase the spell in memory and allow you to create a new spell from scratch.

Buy Spell:

This option will purchase the spell currently shown (provided you have named it) for the amount listed next to Spell Cost:. That amount will be deducted from your gold and the spell will be added to your spellbook. Your spellbook can hold all the default spells available plus an additional total of 32 spells you create. If you try and create a spell after having purchased all the available default spells, you will be prompted to delete a spell first from your spellbook. The choice of spell to delete will always be from one of the spells you created.

Exit:

Takes you back to the Mages Guild menu.

A word about Spell Points:: Keep an eye on the Casting Cost displayed on the Spellmaker sheet. this tells you how many spell points it takes for you at your current level to cast this spell. With the exception of Sorcerers, the most spell points a mage can ever have is 200. If the number in this field is above that, you cannot cast the spell displayed. This is not to say that you will never be able to cast it. As you rise in levels, the Casting Cost will drop. This is just to make sure you understand that at your current level you cannot cast this spell.

Description of Effects:

Cause Curse:: Percentage chance to reduce target(s) Intelligence, Willpower, Personality, and Luck. The chance and the amount of the reduction are determined in the Spell Maker.
Cause Disease:: Percentage chance to reduce target(s) Strength, Agility, Speed, a´nd Endurance. The chance and the amount of the reduction are determined in the Spell Maker.
Cause Paralyzation:: Will attempt to paralyze any creature for a certain amount of time selected in the Spell maker.
Cause Poison:: Percentage chance to cause a virulent poison in target(s) system. The chance and the amount of the reduction are determined in the Spell Maker.
Create Shield:: Create a magical barrier between you and your foes. Strength is determined by caster in the Spell Maker.
Create Wall:: Creates a wall out of the surrounding area. Useful for blocking pathways. The number of walls is determined in the Spell Maker.
Create Floor:: Creates a floor out of the surrounding area. Useful for bridging gaps over chasms. The number of floors is determined in the Spell Maker.
Continuous Damage Fatigue:: Will continuously damage target(s) health for a period of time as defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Continuous Damage Spell Points:: Will continuously damage target(s) spell point reserve for a period of time as defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Cure Poison:: Percentage chance to clear caster's system of any virulent poison. Chance is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Cure Disease:: Percentage chance to clear caster's system of any disease. Chance is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Cure Paralyzation:: Percentage chance to clear caster's system of any paralyzation. Chance is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Cure Curse:: Percentage chance to clear caster of any curses. Chance is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Damage Fatigue:: Will do damage to target(s) fatigue, the amount is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Damage Health:: Will do damage to target(s) health, the amount is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Damage Spell Points:: Will do damage to target(s) spell points, the amount is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Designate as Non-Target:: Caster will be ignored by foes during combat. Caster can opt to be able or not to be able to cast spells while designated as non-target. Chance is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Destroy Wall:: Will destroy targeted wall(s). The amount is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Destroy Floor:: Will destroy targeted floor(s). The amount is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Drain Attribute:: Ability to drain target(s) of their attributes such as Strength, Intelligence, Willpower, etc. The attribute is drained, the amount, and the rate at which recovery occurs is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Elemental Resistance:: Caster is resistant to a particular element, such as Fire, Shock, Cold, Magic, or Poison. The percentage chance to resist is defined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Fortify Attribute:: Will increase an attribute above current maximum, such as Strength, Intelligence, Willpower, etc. The attribute increased, the amount, and the rate at which the attribute returns to normal is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Heal Attributes:: Will heal attributes such as Strength, Intelligence, Willpower, etc. that have been drained on caster. The attribute, and the amount of healing are defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Heal Fatigue:: Will restore lost fatigue points on caster. The amount that is healed is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Heal Health:: Will restore lost health points on caster. The amount that is healed is defined in the Spell Maker by the caster.
Invisibility:: Will turn caster invisible for a duration determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Levitate:: Will levitate the caster for a period of time determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Light:: Will create a ball that will shed light in an ambiance level selected by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Lock:: Will magically lock a door or chest, the strength determined by caster's current level in the Spell Maker.
Open:: Will attempt to open a locked or magically held door or chest, the chance determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Silence:: Will silence target(s), making it impossible to cast audible spells, but not ompossible to use objects. The caster defines the chance and the duration in the Spell Maker.
Spell Absorption:: Percentage chance that caster can absorb the incoming spell points of a spell. Chance determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Spell Reflection:: Percentage chance that an incoming spell can be reflected back at the target. Chance determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Spell Resistance:: Percentage chance caster can ignore spell effects cast at them. Duration and strength determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Regenerate:: Caster will begin regenerating lost health points for duration and amount determined by the caster in the Spell Maker.
Transfer Attribute:: Chance to directly transfer an attribute from target(s) to caster as defined in the Spell Maker.
Transfer Figured Attribute: Health; Spell Points, Fatigue: Chance to directly transfer a figured attribute from target(s) to caster as defined in the Spell Maker.

Casting Spells

Casting spells is quite simple. Simply left click the Cast icon, which looks like a sunburst, or hit C on your keyboard. A picklist of spells from your spellbook will appear. Select the spell, then follow the onscreen prompts. Targeted spells or range spells will shoot towards the cursor when the cursor is an X on the screen.

You can left click the sunburst again to pick a new spell, for ease of casting right click the sunburst and cast the same spell again.

Most spells have a duration. For simplicity's sake we have expressed this in rounds. One round equals 5 seconds of real time. This is important not to forget, whether you are selecting spells for combat, or creating spells in the Spellmaker, or buying spells from the Mages Guild.

You can inspect a spell from the Character sheet: Spellbook

While in the character sheet, clicking the Spellbook button will bring up a picklist with the currently known spells and their current spell points needed to cast based upon Character's level and total Spell Cost. Clicking a spell will bring up a sheet showing that spell and its individual effects.

Using a magical (or mundane) item while walking around:

Click the Use item icon which looks like a hand grasping a tool. A list of your current inventory will appear. Select the item by double clicking it and it will be used. Follow any onscreen prompts for items that have targets, such as a Wand of Fireballs.