Diabolist Ward Phrase Challege (ie a How to do X)

[ShadowLogan]

Diabolist Ward Phrase Challenge

What would Ward or Ward-Phrase look like (ie symbols involved) would be used to accomplish the following, or would such things not be even possible (and I'm not looking for use of the Permanence Ward combined w/Spell versions, only the pure Diabilst):

1. A diabloist equivalent of a "robot" (similar to a Golem, Zombie, Mummie, Animated Dead)? We know such a thing is potentially possible with the lore regarding the Scarecrow (lore establishes it was a Summoner/Diabolist, so 33% chance Diabolism was the sole reason and 66% chance it was partially involved given Summoners also use symbols). We also know that some other branches of magic involve the use of mystic symbols to create such things (Zombie has a pentagram drawn on it, the Animated & Control Dead Power Circle also). The phrase can be either as a "trap" (similar to a guardian stone) or the more classic mystic robots mentioned previously.

2. "Armor of Ithan" or "Energy Field" or "Magic Shield" Spell equivalents to be placed upon someone

3. Equivalent of Vision manipulation spells like "See the Invisible" upon someone

4. Equivalent of a "flight" spell upon someone like "Fly as the Eagle", "Float in Air", "Animate Object"

5. Equivalent of Illusion spells upon someone (or an object) like "Invisibility", "Multiple Image", "Shadow Meld", "Apparition", "Horrific Illusion", "Concealment", "Heavy Breathing", etc

6, Second Sight (I'm thinking it would have to be placed upon both ends)

7. Telepathic Link (I'm thinking each person involved has to be linked up at the same time)

8. "Giant" or "Reduce Self" or "Metamorphosis" Equivalent of spells upon someone/thing (thinking as long as the wards are intact they retain their new size)

9. Healing type magics ("Negate Poison/Toxin", "Heal Wounds", "Superhuman Speed/Strength"

[Library Ogre]

I bet you won't accept "Yeah, I put these new symbols in the MoM manuscript", either, huh?

Ok, let's give these a shot. Some of these will be BTB illegal combinations (like Inflict Undead); I figure these are "lost arts", and also combine mystic symbology to enhance the effects. I'm also throwing in "Magic" and "Power" to push some things past their usual limit.

1) Golem: Inflict Undead Charm Magic Power Permanence. Inflict Undead to create undead; Charm to place it under your control. Magic and Power to overcome the usual restrictions; Permanence so you don't have to do this every frickin' time you want an undead servitor. It might be wise to arrange your ward symbols into a star, for the reinforcing power of that mystic symbol; if you're going for golem instead of undead, you might want to use directed inward power, a sun (to evoke life), and the color green. Butterfly, Bull, or Hydra symbols are all useful.

2) Protection from Death, Agony, Magic, Power. Arrange in a cross; this protects the wearer from pain and death, using Magic and Power to push past the usual limitations. This won't keep you from taking damage, just from dying or feeling the pain.

3) See Invisible? Simple. Protection from Invisibility. It should be inscribed as part of a Mystic Knowledge symbol; the invisibility ward symbol should be the upper right part of the eye, while the Protection From symbol should be the circle surrounding the eye, with the "dash" on the protection from being the pupil of the eye.

4) Inflict Energy Magic Power, arranged to form the Air symbol. Draw Energy in Diamond, preferably mixed with some sort of red pigment, drawing upon the association with Air and Triumph.

5) Inflict Invisibility is the easy one; it's BTB. Inflict or Protection from Light Darkness Charm Area Affect Magic Power. Arrange into a Force/Outward symbol, or a Darkness (setting dark sun) symbol. Use yellow or black pigments in drawing. The combination of Light, Darkness, and Charm is to allow you to control the light and darkness you create; Area affect to give you space to work (you can omit this if it is to deal with a single person, like Concealment), but the Force/Outward symbology lets you move it outside yourself.

6) Second Sight: Inflict Knowledge, with the person's true name included. Might want Magic and Power. Should draw in the shape of Dimensions symbol, or Mystic Knowledge symbol. Yellow pigments for knowledge; be really good if you use a yellow butterfly to emphasize that you are connecting to their spirit.

7) Mind Link: Inflict knowledge, with the true name of everyone to be connected, arranged in the symbol of directed power. Again, yellow butterfly wings are useful in drawing the symbols. I would say that this one is tricky; you need to activate all the symbols VERY quickly; I'd say you have to do all of them within a melee round.

Size and shape change: This is a very hard one. I might allow Inflict Magic Power, using animal symbols, combined with colors when possible; a blue scorpion drawn in salt; black serpent drawn in onyx; bull drawn in iron, maybe rust (conflicting, there; weakness of rust, strength of brown).

9) Healing magic: Inflict Mystic Energy Drain Death Agony. Drawn in green, shaped into a Sun or Full Moon, with inward directed power.

So, my view of the three main branches of learned magic are this:
Spell magic is singing. You sing a prepared song. Composers write new spells; improvisational singing is very hard, especially since everything must be perfect.

Circle magic is stage direction. You are building a story and a stage on which to tell it. Colors and symbols are important, but you might be able to fudge a bit and still get something workable (if you don't have emerald, green glass might work... but it will have side effects for not being exactly right).

Ward Magic is poetry; you combine words, and sometimes shapes and symbolism, to evoke a certain feeling in the universe. In a way, it is similar to creating a spell, or speaking like a Tamarian, with allegories and symbols, understood by the audience (the universe and the diabolist) to have certain meanings... but the combination of symbols can create new meanings. Because you don't activate the poem until you have perfected it, you can build it the way you need to.

When a magic-user sings, directs, or composes their magic, they have two audiences... themselves and the universe. They have to speak in the language the universe understands (power words and symbols), but they can shape it with their own understanding.

And, again, these are not BTB; these are advanced techniques most diabolists don't know.

[GoliathReturns]

So, our neighborhood Librarian answered pretty well, and in more detail than I would have, so, I'm just going to toss a few copper into this...

3- "protection from" + "invisible". Just those two wards, and it's 1 minute per level.

5- "inflict" + "invisible". Again, 1 minute per level, and just two wards.

All of the others would take some.. creative work. But those two are by-the-book easy. What follows isn't RAW, it's interpretation.

Myself, I take the book as the "commonly known" wards. I routinely include wards like "remote viewing" and "preservation", both from Gersidi.

I also allow diabolists to create the inverse of any card in the book- a complicated process, as they need to which way to draw it (upside down, backwards, backwards AND upside down) and which power words to use.

As an example, a reversed "death" ward becomes "life", and inflict + life = heals 1d6 per level of the diabolist.

I've even allowed a "inflict sight", which granted vision to a person whose eyes had gone blind (but they still had to have their eyes).

After all, anything that exists must also have a reflection- the universe is about balance; matter and antimatter, yin and yang.

Further, I'll allow any diabolist of 7th level or higher to "experiment" and figure out how to attach wards to any given spell with a physical aspect (that lasts long enough to interact with- a fireball, for example, doesn't take enough time); as well as how to attach wards to the magic of scrolls, without reading the scroll to trigger it (not all wards are applicable- a permanence ward, for example, won't work on a scroll, but a power ward might. Meanwhile, if a wizard casts armor of ithan, you could attach a permanence ward to it, making it last forever. Of course, that wouldn't regenerate the SDC on it, so it's a giant waste of components and time).


Again, just my two coppers.

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GS


While I agree with Ogre's description of wizardry and circle magic, I disagree about diabolism.

IMO, it's more akin to sculpture. As a sculptor shapes clay or stone to evoke emotions and feelings within viewers, a diabolist seeks to create a response from the universe. They do this, like the sculptor, through careful use of shapes, symbols, and colors.

[Library Ogre]

IMO, it's more akin to sculpture. As a sculptor shapes clay or stone to evoke emotions and feelings within viewers, a diabolist seeks to create a response from the universe. They do this, like the sculptor, through careful use of shapes, symbols, and colors.

I don't think those are necessarily incompatible views, just different emphases. You could also call them painters, or woodcarvers. The key element being that they create something outside themselves, that has meaning and existence without their active participation.

A wizard sings their spells; without a wizard to sing it, there is no spell. It can live on a page forever, but there it has no power unless it is sung. A summoner sets their stage, but without actors to bring it to life, it is just a set, just a place, just things. A diabolist creates a thing, then sets that thing out in the world to exist and act on its own. Once the ward is created, it lives on its own until it is found. I emphasize language in ward magic, because I see the symbols as words in a phrase, and as phrases in stanza, and stanzas in a poem. You can add words to give it meaning or change its impact, but the meaning comes from the words you carve.

I tend to see them as poets because their medium is so often flat... they are writing a thing upon a surface. Many of the symbols are associated with certain words or ideas... this shape (ward symbol) means "Undead", as does this other shape (mystic symbol); you use them in different places because they have different impacts, different connotations, may even be different parts of speech. But I also can't deny that part of their work is explicitly carving a thing... permanence ward symbols are the most obvious.

BUT that's also my view; I didn't see, but I can now, see the interpretation of them as sculptors. They use symbols, colors, and materials to represent a thing, and that thing then acts on its own upon the viewer. Perfectly valid interpretation.

[GoliathReturns]

The poetry description has merit too; its how individuals interpret.

Of course, I could also see a variety of magic "school" akin to the various fencing schools and styles, each describing it differently.

"Oh, you view it as poetry? You must have studied under Vanderberg, in Caer Itom. Myself, I'm of the Tariflan School, where we know it's like sculpture. Ignore my friend Lucious. He studied under the wolfen Ice-Fang, and views the Art as something like a snowball fight..."

--
GS

[GoliathReturns]

**snip** see magic as art thread

[Hell Hound]

Great phat thread! Thanks to all!