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© 1994 by Scott Gray and Sharon Tripp. These pages may not be reproduced for profit. They may be copied, provided they are not altered and the authors' names remain attached.

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Components and Rarity

The GM should select components which have total "rarity values" equal to or greater than the rarity rating of the formula. One of the components should have a rarity rating equal to at least half the rarity rating of the formula (rounded up).

  Rarity:
     0    Components which are considered free and easy to find,
          or just so inexpensive as to be negligible.
     1    Components purchasable through logistics at low cost   
          (under 10 farthings).
     2    Components which are uncommon, and for which only a
          chance exists of finding them through logistics, and
          then at high cost (10 farthings or more).  
     3    Rare components which must be found ingame. 
     4    Very rare components which must be found ingame.  
     5    Components which are only rumored to exist, and which
          might only be found in fairy tales (depending upon what
          the GM decides to include in the campaign), are
          referred to as mythical components.

Tools

Sometimes there is a requirement of certain things (cauldrons, ovens, alchemical or medical tools, marble statues, etc.) which are not expended as part of a formula or ritual. Components which are reusable are referred to as tools. A tool only counts for half its actual rarity value (rounded up) when adding up the rarity of components needed for a ritual.

Example: A diamond might be ranked as rarity 4. It will always be rarity 4 throughout the campaign, which means that it is not obtainable through logistics, but must be gotten ingame through one means or another. If a ritual calls for "a diamond, to be pounded to a fine dust" then the diamond is being used as a component (it is used up in the ritual). Therefore, it would have a rarity value of 4. However, if the diamond was to be used to "focus the light of the full moon upon the item being enchanted" then it is being used as a tool. The original item remains intact, and so, unless the ritual expressly states otherwise, may be used to perform the ritual again in the future. Since the mage would not have to obtain a new diamond each time the ritual is cast, it only counts for the half its rarity value as a component. The diamond, used as a tool, would only count as a rarity of 2 for the purposes of the ritual (although would still be every bit as difficult to obtain as a rarity 4).

Remember that animal, mineral and vegetable "components" -- i.e., those things with component tags -- are not the only things with use as components. Normal items, such as an iron dagger, or slightly more exotic ones, such as a dagger used in the murder of a holy person, might be major or minor components or tools.

Component List

Rarity: The number represents availability in Uruk.

Uses: The mundane uses are listed for most components. The most widely attributed magical properties are listed for some, but it is hardly meant to be an exhaustive (or even thoroughly accurate) list.

Animal

Animal components vary greatly in terms of expiration; if an animal is kept alive and cared for, it might last years. Animal parts tend to spoil fairly quickly.

Name                     Rarity    Uses

Ants' eggs               3
Basilisk, new hatched    5
Bat's wing 
Black widow spider
Brown Recluse Spider
Butterfly (Monarch), in 
 cocoon
Carp
Cat's eye
Chicken                
Cock, with feathers 
 black as midnight
Crocodile
Crow that flew freely
Dolphin, pure white
Elephant's ivory tusk
Entrails from a bird of prey
Female canine, pregnant, 
 living and full health
Frog's tongue 
Human, willing, under no 
 threat or unnatural 
 compulsion
     Blood of a pure and 
      innocent human 
      (GM's discretion)
     Fingernail clippings
     Strand of hair
Jackal's tooth
Leeches
Maggots that fed off of 
 a man dead of leprosy
Man o' war (Jellyfish)
Medusa (Jellyfish)
Newt's eye 
Owl, snowy
Pufferfish
Salamander's tail
Scorpion's poison gland
Skunk musk 
Snake
     Fang
     Poison gland
     Skin, whole, shed 
      naturally in wild
Squid of unusual size
Swan, black
     Excrement
Termites (carnivorous), 
 an active hive
Tortoise, new hatched 
Viper
---
Heart of a lycanthrope, removed intact while it lived (requires a
chirurgeon)

Mineral

Most mineral components have no expiration date.

Name                     Rarity    Uses

Amethyst                 2?        love charm, sleeping aid, 
                                   guard against thieves and 
                                   drunkenness
Amiantus                 ?
Chalk                    1         plaster, drawing symbols
Clay                     0         bricks
Copper                   ?
Diamond                  4         impressing lady friends
Emerald                  3
Gold, ore                2
Gold, worked             2
Granite                  ?
Graphite                 ?
Iron ore                 ?
Jade                     3
Lapis lazuli             2         pigment
Lodestone                ?
Marble                   ?
Mud                      0
Opal                     ?
Quicksilver              4         poisons
Saltpeter                1         gunpowder, explosives
Sandstone                ?
Sapphire                 ?
Sea salt                 ?
Silver, ore              ?
Silver, worked           ?
Sulphur (brimstone)      2         gunpowder, explosives
Tin                      1
Topaz                    ?
Turquoise                ?

Vegetable

Most vegetable components have an expiration of one week to one month from when harvested. However, the GM should remember that the characters are not necessarily getting them at the beginning of this period. Vegetable components can be preserved for up to two months with the dry herbs skill or alchemical preservative.

Name                     Rarity    Uses

Aconite (wolvesbane)     4         poison, pain reliever
Aloe                     1         treatment of burns
Angelica                 3         wards off evil spirits and 
                                   sorcery, protection against 
                                   poison, recovery from illness
Arnica                   3         oil for muscles (physical 
                                   therapy)
Autumn crocus            2         poison
Basil                    1         love potion
Black hellebore          4         warding, invisibility
Borage                   0         relieve fever
Chamomile                0         adrenalate
Cinnamon                 1         antidote, treat infection
Comfrey                  2         poultice used for healing 
                                   wounds and mending broken
                                   bones
Deadly nightshade        4         poison, hallucinogen,
                                   paralysis, feign death,
                                   demon summoning
Ebony                    2         
Elderberry               2         warding, all-cure
Fennel                   1         suppress magic or drain mana
Flax                     1         adrenalate, paralysis, poison
Foxglove                 3         paralysis, poison
Garlic                   1         warding, stops infection, 
                                   prevents disease, speeds 
                                   healing
Ginseng                  3         aphrodisiac, fertility,  
                                   adrenalate, heals all ills
Hemlock                  3         poison
Hop                      1         alcohol, depressive,     
                                   preservative
Horehound                1         dispel magic
Hyssop                   0         healing salve
Lavender                 0         adrenalate, smelling salts, 
                                   aphrodisiac, anti-aphrodisiac
Lovage                   3         adrenalate
Madder                   1         eases childbirth, strengthens 
                                   bones, helps wounds to heal
Mandrake                 5         practically anything magical
Mugwort                  1         prevents possession, wards off
                                   evil spirits
Nettles                  1         paralysis antidote
Peat                     1         
Pennyroyal               1         poison, abortion
Potentilla               0         break fevers
Rose thorn, wild         3         wall of thorns, magical sleep
Rue                      1         warding vs. enchantment, 
                                   induces abortion, poison 
                                   antidote and preventative
Sabra                    1         masks other tastes,      
                                   alcoholic beverage
Serpentwood              3         treat mental disorders
Tansy                    3         prevent miscarriage, poison,
                                   fertility
Valerian                 1         pain reliever, break fevers, 
                                   depressive
Vervain (verbena)        3         healing, stops bleeding
Willow                   1         gunpowder, break fever,  
                                   pain reliever
Wormwood                 3         strong intoxicant, paralysis, 
                                   poison, hallucinogen
Yarrow                   2         protects from all sorts of 
                                   magic, used in divination

Miscellaneous

(fits more than one category)

Name                     Rarity    Uses

Coral                    3?
Honey                    1
Honeycomb                2?
Intact paper wasp hive,  3?
 empty
Sand dollar              1
Sea shells               0
Relic holy to the        ?
 Guiders (GM's 
 discretion)
Relic holy to the        ?
 Tepharites (GM's 
 discretion)
Intact spider web        4
Silk                     2

Other

Vitality from the caster of the spell (permanent fatigue loss)
Power from the caster of the spell (permanent strength loss)
Life force from the caster of the spell (permanent health loss)
Life of the caster (the caster may still use magical means of
prolonging his/her life -- reincarnation, life after death, etc.)
Soul of the caster (the caster may not use magical means of
prolonging his/her life, but it might not be claimed immediately,
only upon death)
Prized possession of the caster (evaluated by the GM)
Power of a demon (perhaps gained temporarily through striking a
deal with one, perhaps gained through the "seal away" rite of
faith)

Sample Components

Note that components are listed for their rarity in Uruk; in other settings the rarity may differ.

Reputed uses are just that; this is the folklore concerning such things, and though it often reflects at least somewhat upon reality, the reputed uses need not have any basis. For instance, it may be that only certain vampyres can be warded off with garlic, or none at all; but it is the common belief that garlic has that property.

The standard expiration times for vegetable and animal matter should be relatively short, ranging between several days and several months. The expiration date for mineral components is usually unlimited.

COMPONENT NAME:  Kempouian pot-bellied pig
RARITY:  4 (3 in Kempou)
APPEARANCE:  Small black pig, angry and fanged.
TIME IT CAN BE KEPT ALIVE IN CAPTIVITY:  730 days
UPKEEP COSTS TO KEEP ALIVE IN CAPTIVITY:  1 brass farthing / 10
days
COMPONENTS IT MAY BE CONVERTED TO BEFORE DEATH:  Kempouian pot-
bellied pig fangs, Kempouian pot-bellied pig hooves
COMPONENTS IT MAY BE CONVERTED TO UPON DEATH:  Kempouian pot-
bellied pig adrenal glands (only extractable with animal lore)
COMPONENTS IT MAY BE CONVERTED TO AFTER DEATH:  Kempouian pot-
bellied pig fangs, Kempouian pot-bellied pig hooves 

COMPONENT NAME:  Kempouian pot-bellied pig fangs
RARITY:  4 (3 in Kempou) 
APPEARANCE:  Small tooth
REPUTED USES:  Kempou only; warding off young harmless maidens.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Kempouian pot-bellied pig hooves
RARITY:  4 (3 in Kempou)
APPEARANCE:  small hoof
EFFECTS, COOKED, FIRST TASTE:  Disgusting!
EFFECTS, COOKED, SECOND TASTE:  Stomachache.  Depressive L1. 
After one minute, lose one fatigue point for one hour.
EFFECTS, UNCOOKED, FIRST TASTE:  Disgusting!
EFFECTS, UNCOOKED, SECOND TASTE:  Stomachache.  Depressive L1. 
After one minute, lose one fatigue point for one hour.
REPUTED USES:  Kempou only; ground up they make powerful
aphrodisiacs.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Kempouian pot-bellied pig adrenal glands
RARITY:  5 (4 in Kempou)
APPEARANCE:  Small organ
EFFECTS, COOKED, FIRST TASTE:  Yummy!
EFFECTS, COOKED, SECOND TASTE:  Adrenalate L1.  One minute after
consumed, will add one fatigue point for one hour.
EFFECTS, UNCOOKED, FIRST TASTE:  Disgusting!
EFFECTS, UNCOOKED, SECOND TASTE:  Quick poison L1.  One minute
after consumed, take one health point damage.  Adrenalate L2. 
One minute after consumed gain one fatigue point, after a second
minute gain a second point; these fatigue points disappear after
one hour.
REPUTED USES:  Useful in making adrenalates and magical rituals
to forget or become confused.
EXPIRATION: Usable as "uncooked" up to 5 days, "cooked" up to 10.

COMPONENT NAME:  Clay
RARITY:  0
APPEARANCE:  It looks like mud.
REPUTED USES:  Arts and crafts.  A good conduit for spirit, soul
jars and golems.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Mithiril
RARITY:  5
APPEARANCE:  Even as raw ore, it appears as the finest refined
silver.  Any person with geology skill will be stunned by the
quality of the metal.
REPUTED USES:  Making adamnantite (an alloy which helps in the
creation of superior quality weapons and armor), construction of
magical tools and fetishes, construction of golems.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Saltpeter
RARITY:  1
APPEARANCE:  White powder.
REPUTED USES:  Gunpowder and other explosives, matches, food
preservative.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Sulphur (brimstone)
RARITY:  2
APPEARANCE:  Brittle, pale yellow substance.
REPUTED USES:  Gunpowder and other explosives, matches.
EXPIRATION:  Unlimited

COMPONENT NAME:  Mandrake root
RARITY:  5
APPEARANCE: A tan, gnarled root with four shoots and a single
knob, roughly resembling the human form.  Tendrils grow from the
knobby "head."
EFFECTS, FIRST TASTE:  L6 paralysis.  Hallucinogen.  Other -- see
GM.
     After one minute, muscles will tense up, and the character
will be under all of the effects of a character wounded to 0
health (regardless of how many health points or levels of ignore
wounds the character has) for one hour.  After ten minutes, or
after being revived normally, the character will be conscious of
his/her surrounding, but will still not be able to move or speak
loudly until one hour has passed.
     During this hour, the character will imagine and dream all
sorts of things.  The player may choose what form these
hallucinations take, to suit his or her character and the
situation.
     In addition, mandrake root may have other effects on any
person imbibing it.  These effects may take place any time from
when ingested until months or years later.  Make sure that a GM
is made aware of the fact that the character ate mandrake root,
so (s)he may administer its effects.  Some samples of additional
effects include:  Sleep for many days; fall madly in love with
the next living (whatever gender or species, but not plants)
being seen; grants force one or two warding against one type of
magic for a period of time; understand language of animals
(roleplaying effects, plus extra rumor sheets); become pregnant;
become host to some sort of parasitic creature; gain magery (or
an increase in magery) for a few days; develop an addiction to
blood; a deformity develops -- the GM will set certain makeup
requirements; the character becomes a hermaphrodite, losing or
gaining all primary and secondary signs of gender; etc.
REPUTED USES:  Nearly everything magical.  Especially enchanting.
EXPIRATION:  60 days

COMPONENT NAME:  Sabra
RARITY:  1 
APPEARANCE:  Spiny cactus fruit, which must be extracted from
tough spiny skin.  It looks and tastes much like yellow
watermelon.
REPUTED USES:  Useful in masking tastes of certain bitter herbs
and poisons.  Ferments well for a tasty alcoholic beverage.
EXPIRATION:  5 days

COMPONENT NAME:  comfrey
RARITY:  2
APPEARANCE:  broad, tear-shaped leaves, clusters of bell-shaped
flowers.
REPUTED USES:  Useful in healing wounds and mending broken bones. 
Used as a poultice to apply to the injuries, not ingested.
EXPIRATION:  Two weeks

COMPONENT NAME:  deadly nightshade (also: atropa belladonna)
RARITY:  4
APPEARANCE:  heart-shaped dark green leaves with pale green
undersides, bell-shaped dull purple flowers, round dark-colored
berries
EFFECTS, FIRST TASTE: person tasting may detect the presence of
the poison unless not in full possession of his/her senses
EFFECTS, SECOND TASTE:  quick poison level ?
REPUTED USES:  Very strong paralysis and quick poisons may be
made from this plant, as well as being useful (though risky) for
feign death concoctions.  It is also of use in spells of
summoning.
EXPIRATION:  Two weeks

COMPONENT NAME:  garlic
RARITY:  1
APPEARANCE:  White bulb consisting of multiple cloves
REPUTED USES:  Useful for numerous purposes; as well as fighting
infection and illness, it is also said to speed healing.  It
wards against many forms of magic, most notably transmuting, and
wards off vampyres.
EXPIRATION:  2 months

COMPONENT NAME:  hop
RARITY:  1
APPEARANCE:  Twining vine with cone-shaped flowers.
REPUTED USES:  The most common use is for making beer, with the
side effect of being a depressive.  Also acts as a preservative.
EXPIRATION:  Three months

COMPONENT NAME:  willow
RARITY:  0
APPEARANCE:  Piece of wood
REPUTED USES:  Gunpowder
EXPIRATION:  6 months

Conditions and Frequency

The formula for each magical ritual will include a certain number of conditions. Sometimes, a ritual may be broken down into discrete parts, of which success or failure of each part of the ritual is determined separately.

Frequency refers to how often the condition is likely to be met. Whether it's something the mage can do at will, whether it requires preparation, luck or patience on his/her part, whether it depends on season, conjunction of planets, etc. Frequency is a much looser thing in many cases than rarity; the GM must judge how likely/often (s)he thinks it is that the condition can be met.

Frequency: 
     0    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 0 would be "at sunrise,"
          "read the text aloud," "draw the symbol," "keep eyes closed for 15 
          seconds" or "the caster may not wear metal during the casting 
          of the ritual." 
     1    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 1 would be
          "on the night of the new moon," "communicate with the target
          of the spell for five minutes," "touch the target for
          fifteen seconds" or "give the target the prepared item." 
     2    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 2 would
          include "on either equinox" or "the target must be
          intoxicated." 
     3    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 3 would
          include "on the day of the winter solstice," "on a
          battlefield where over 20 humans died within the past month 
          or "the target must make a threat against the caster's
          life."
     4    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 4 would be
          "once in a blue moon" or "only through tricking the demon
          into saying its true name backwards."
     5    Examples of conditions with a frequency of 5 would be
          "when the Morningstar shines brighter than the sun" or
          "while juggling twelve lethal items, as named in the
          components sections of the ritual, for a period of at least
          five minutes."

What follows is a list of the types of conditions that might be involved in casting a ritual. In rare instances the ritual itself "enforces" the condition and the caster is magically compelled to follow it (if, for example, concentration were "compelled" the caster would be unable to divert his/her attention to anything -- even if his/her own life is in danger -- once (s)he has begun the ritual).

Actions. Including drawing mystic symbols, remaining perfectly still for five minutes, singing, mixing a poison, or other such actions. In some instances the GM must determine the accuracy and/or skill with which the action is accomplished.

Actions by target. Including things which the target of the spell must do before the ritual may take effect. "And even then, your target will be safe until he or she is foolish enough to threaten you..."

Concentration. The caster may pay no heed to or attention to anything outside the ritual. In order to gain the benefits of concentration, the caster must not perform any actions unrelated to the ritual, including even an acknowledgement of the existence or presence of others.

Continuity of steps. Continuity involves the period of time which may (or must) go by between one portion of a ritual and another. Some rituals may require that all steps be performed one after another, while other rituals might be begun one night and continued the next -- or a year later, or ten!

Level of magery. Most rituals require the caster possess a certain level of magery in order to have any chance of success. With some rituals, the chance of success is increased if the level of magery is higher than that required.

Other abilities or skills. This requires that the caster have one or more other abilities or skills, as named in the ritual, in order satisfy the condition. Perhaps chirurgery and/or zoology would work well for fortunetelling by entrails, or alchemy for the mixing of magical potions.

Place. The places in which this ritual can or must be done. "A battlefield", "anywhere in the rain", "in a defiled monastery", "under an oak tree", etc.

Proximity of target. How close the target must be (physically) for the spell to be cast, to either the caster or item/site prepared for the ritual.

Spell present in grimoire. The spell is in written form, and the caster has the ability to read and understand it.

Spell memorized. The caster has learned the skill for the spell.

State of caster. "The caster must be drunk", "the caster must have one of his/her limbs missing", "the caster must be wounded", "the caster must be at full health", etc.

State of target. "The target must be drunk", "the target must be wounded", "the target must have been on good terms with the caster (and been betrayed)".

Time. "High noon", "the new moon", "any solstice or equinox", "sunrise", "when pigs fly", etc.


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