Spells

Essentially an extremely powerful, specific form of the basic spell Summon, Call the Spirit allows a shugenja to summon any particular spirit, regardless of its realm, to have a discussion. You may use this spell to summon any spirit from any of the spirit realms, although realm denizens that are not spirits (such as Fortunes) are immune. If you know something specific about the spirit, either having seen it before or having intimate knowledge of its actions (for example, "the spirit that killed my father"), you may summon that spirit in particular. The nature of the spell prevents the spirit from attacking you unless you attack first, but it will not necessarily be friendly. The spirit disappears as soon as the spell's duration expires. This spell can potentially summon extremely dangerous creatures, such as oni, and should be used with caution.

The prayer commonly known as Castle of Water protects the caster by creating a physical barrier of water kami to obstruct attackers. The Castle of Air, by contrast, protects the caster by creating a cunning illusion that confuses and bewilders attackers. The Air kami create a circular barrier of false sounds and images, making it incredibly difficult for attackers to actually perceive the correct location of anyone within the bounds of the Castle of Air. An attacker may believe he is striking at the caster when he is actually swinging at empty space.

The circular barrier of illusions is centered on the caster. Once cast, it remains in place regardless of whether or where the caster moves. The illusions can only be fully perceived by those who were outside of the Castle of Air when it was cast; those within the Castle when it appears can easily perceive the shadowy, insubstantial nature of the illusions. If foes from outside the Castle attempt to attack those within it, the illusions will try to misdirect or fool them. Mechanically, such attackers must make a Contested Roll of their Perception against the Caster's Air each time they try to attack someone within the Castle. A success means they manage to briefly see through the illusion and may attack normally for that Round (only). A failure means the illusion tricks them and they suffer a -5k0 penalty to their attack rolls that Round. The illusions cannot affect enemy spells, since the Air kami cannot fool other kami.

The greatest masters of the wind can create illusions of such beauty and clarity that those affected by them might truly believe they were somewhere else. You can completely alter the appearance of the terrain within the area of effect of this spell. You can make a miserable swamp loo, sound, and smell like a beautiful garden, or vice versa. Although these illusions can be extraordinarily intricate and completely convincing to all other senses, they still have no substance and cannot be touched.

This ritual was originally devised by the Kitsu sodan-senzo, but due to its widespread applicability it quickly spread to other shugenja families and schools. The Kitsu wished all Rokugani to properly venerate the ancestors, and thus had no difficulty sharing their discovery with the Isawa and the other clans as well. For those who do not have Kitsu blood, this spell is one of the very few ways in which shugenja can actually communicate with the ancestors while in Ningen-Do.

The spell is actually an hour-long ritual prayer which can only be performed in the company of a recently deceased individual's relative within twenty four hours of the funeral (which both the shugenja and the relative must have participated in properly). Other shugenja may assist in the ritual if they also know the spell; they do not need to make Spellcasting rolls, but are still considered to use up a spell slot. Once the prayer is properly completed (a successful Spellcasting Roll by the lead shugenja), the caster and the relative may both converse for a few minutes with the spirit of the recently departed. (If extra shugenja assist in the ritual, each assisting shugenja adds +1 minutes to the duration of the spell.)

Typically, this ritual is only used in situations where the living relatives want to make quite sure they are properly remembering and honoring their newly-departed ancestor. The exact results of communing with the departed relative are at the discretion of the GM, but could include learning important information, receiving advice and guidance, or taking up a task which the dead samurai left incomplete.

The ultimate gift of the wind spirits is to become like the wind itself; unseen. The wind kami surround you and render you completely invisible. No non-magical vision can detect your presence. You can still be touched, heard, and smelled, but unless you attack someone else, you remain invisible for the duration of the spell. The kami consider attacking someone to be ruining the joke, and immediately end of the spell's effect if you do so.

This spell calls on the power of Isora, the Fortune of the Seashore, to unleash a blast of storm-wracked air and lightning that smites an area within range. The sudden roaring onslaught of wind, rain, and lightning inflicts 3k2 damage on everyone within the area of effect, and they must roll their Earth at TN 30 or be Fatigued by Isora's howl. The spell also damages weak or vulnerable physical objects - paper walls will be blown out, scrolls soaked with water, etc.

Those who are fortunate enough to be blessed by the Blood of Osano-Wo are immune to the effects of this spell.

Although the ultimate secrets of the human mind are hidden ever to the winds, air kami can pluck the most immediate thoughts from the minds of others and whisper them to those who carry their favor. For the duration of this spell, you essentially hear the surface thoughts of the spell's target. You only learn things they are actively thinking about. For example, if you ask the name of the target's daughter, that name would appear in their mind instantly even if they had no intention of speaking it aloud. A Contested Roll using your Perception against the target's Awareness will also allow you to assess their true emotional state, regardless of how they appear physically.

When a priest invokes this incantation, the Air kami gather together and form a mystical lens through which the shugenja may see the world as the spirits themselves perceive it. The lens lasts only a few moments and the caster can normally only use it to observe one person or creature. That brief moment of observation, however, allows the caster to learn the target's 2 lowest Rings and the values of their constituent Traits, in effect showing part of the person's Elemental composition. Additional Rings may be learned with Raises. (If the character's Rings are all equally balanced, the spell reveals them randomly.) However, the spell cannot and will not reveal the target's Void, for that level of understanding and perception is only possible through mastery of Ishiken-do.

Although it requires great favor, the air kami are willing to coalesce into a solid form for a short period of time if they are fond enough of the priest asking them. You may create a small object out of the air itself, something that can be held in one or both hands and that does not weigh more than twenty pounds at most. This creation is an illusion, but it can be used functionally, including damage if it is a weapon. The object disappears completely at the end of the spell's duration.

This spell is a subtle illusion used to conceal a shugenja's trail from pursuers. The spell convinces mischievous Air kami to hide the tracks of the shugenja (and his mount, if any), along with any other evidence of his passage (such as broken branches). In their place it create a false trail of similar evidence leading in a completely different direction for the same distance. The illusionary trail will follow a reasonable route (e.g. it will not go straight up cliffs or directly into a lake, for example) and will normally be flawless to others' perception; however, someone tracking by scent will be able to sense the original trail, and skilled trackers can potentially see through the illusion by rolling Hunting / Perception against the caster's Spellcraft / Air.

Powerful shugenja can persuade the kami to conceal the trails of their companions (and mounts) as well as themselves, as well as lengthening the amount of trail which is concealed and replaced.

Priests of the kami are capable of inscribing powerful wards that invoke the power of the elements against all who attempt to pass them. A Symbol of Air must be inscribed on a solid object, most often a door, window, gate, or other passageway. Anyone attempting to pass through this passageway or otherwise pass by the area protected by the Symbol is affected by the protective ward. Such persons must succeed at a Contested Roll using their Earth against the caster's Air. Those who fail are affected by a powerful drowsiness, and must succeed at a Willpower Roll against the total of the Spell Casting Roll used the create the ward or fall into a deep sleep for one hour. Those affected by the spell cannot be woken by normal means, but will awaken instantly if subjected to any attack or form of harm, as the kami will not be party to such humorless tricks. You may only have one Symbol of Air in existence at any time, and Symbol spells of different elements may never affect the same area. This spell may be dispelled by another casting of Symbol of Air from any shugenja, or y destroying the surface where the Symbol was etched.

Named after the Fortune of Scribes, this powerful invocation was originally created by the Unicorn and derived from their secret Meishodo magic. So far as anyone knows, the spell has never been taught to anyone outside of the Unicorn Clan. The spell persuades the Air kami to carry the true meaning of words to the caster's ear, allowing him to perceive the tongue of foreigners. for the duration of the spell, all audible human speech within the area of effect is made intelligible to the caster, regardless of what language is used. The spell does not grant any enhanced hearing (so whispers still cannot be heard), nor does it bestow any capacity to speak in return.

Men's memories are shaky, distant things, lodged deep within their minds, and nearly all mortals possess some past sin, some shame they would rather have forgotten. This spell, a favorite of the Scorpion, causes Air kami to evoke the memories and visions of past crimes. The constant painful memories distract and distress the victim of the spell, making it difficult for him to accomplish anything. For the duration of the spell, he must call one Raise for no effect on any Skill rolls or Spellcasting rolls which he makes. if he has 3 or more points in Mental or Social Disadvantages, he must call 2 Raises instead.

It may be noted that there are a handful of stalwart souls in Rokugan who truly do not have any sins haunting their past. Such rare persons are immune to the effects of this spell; it is left to the GM's discretion whether a particular target is truly noble enough to shrug off the Whispers of the Forgotten.

Some priests of a more ascetic nature have also been known to cast this spell on themselves in order to remind themselves of their past failings and the need for humility in the face of their human frailties.

This prayer invites the kami of the Air into the mind of the shugenja himself, enhancing the shugenja's mind and thoughts, causing him to be able to make better use of his skills and knowledge. For the duration of the spell, the caster gains 1 Rank in all Skills hie normally possesses, and may benefit from any Mastery Abilities that this would award. This can only grant ranks in Skills the shugenja already possesses - the Air kami cannot evoke knowledge the caster does not possess. When the duration of the spell expires all benefits are lost and any memories of the knowledge or insight which the shugenja gained during the spell's duration are at best fuzzy; no precise or detailed account can ever be given, and severe headaches are known to plague those who try too hard.

The benefits for this spell only apply to Skills which the caster actually knows - it cannot increase the Rank of Skills which the caster has temporarily acquired through magic, nor can it combine with Advantages such as Crafty.