Grimoires

AlexanderHowl · 02-07-2019, 03:50 PM

So, I was wondering what was the utility of grimoires in your campaigns? In my experience, grimoires tend to have one or more of the following functions:

1. They allow people to learn one or more spells or rituals at a self-taught pace (up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

2. They allow people to learn one or more spells or rituals as if taught by an instructor (up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

3. They allow people with specialized knowledge to cast one or more spells or rituals as if they already knew the spell or ritual (at a penalty to a VH skill and only up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

4. They allow people with general knowledge to cast one or more spells or rituals as if they already knew the spell or ritual (at a penalty to a H skill and only up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

5. They give people with specialized knowledge the spell or ritual without penalty (up to the lesser of the person's level in a VH skill or the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

6. They give people with general knowledge the spell or ritual without penalty (up to the lesser of the person's level in a H skill or the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire).

7. They give a bonus to skill level when casting a specific spell or ritual known to the person.

8. They allow one or more of the above for magical abilities.

In addition, the size of grimoires tend to vary quite a bit. For example, I generally have a grimoires mass 1 lb per spell or ritual or 1 lb per CP of a magical ability. So a grimoire that gave a character with Thaumaturgy the ability to use a 20 CP magical ability without penalty would be a tome that weighs 20 lbs.

What about you? What are your experiences with grimoires?

Shostak · 02-07-2019, 04:52 PM

Grimoires might also store mana for casting the spells they contain.

Grimoires have non-magical uses, too. PCs who can't (or don't want to) magically use grimoires can turn them into cold, hard cash or use them to leverage NPCs into doing something the PCs want done or to garner favors with the right NPC or group. In one game, a large grimoire was used to as a weapon to render a wizard unconscious.

arnej · 02-08-2019, 04:05 PM

In my campaign I had a house rule that in addition to any other side-effects from a critical spell-casting failure, you would 'forget' how to cast that spell. A period of study with your notes (like overnight) could restore it.

It gave mages a big reason to travel with a grimoire with all their spells in it.

It also gave PCs a big reason to attack enemy mages - to learn new spells!

(E) · 02-08-2019, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arnej

In my campaign I had a house rule that in addition to any other side-effects from a critical spell-casting failure, you would 'forget' how to cast that spell. A period of study with your notes (like overnight) could restore it.

It gave mages a big reason to travel with a grimoire with all their spells in it.

It also gave PCs a big reason to attack enemy mages - to learn new spells!

I use similar house rules, for similar reasons.
Rather than have spells forgotten through critical failures I go with "mages slowly forget details of spells over time" and "the underlying magical fabric of the world is slowly changing based on astrological influences and so forth, frequent updating of spells with information from astronomical tables is recommended"

Starship777 · 02-14-2019, 09:03 PM

To me a Grimoire is more than just a book of spells or a magic item. It is an intelligent familiar. Unlike animal familiars they can't share fatigue or senses. Grimoires choose their owner rather than being summoned. Each has its own personality and quirks. Some of them have been 'alive' for a very long time and more than a few of them are highly opinionated. They are usually large heavy books about the size of an English dictionary. Most of them:

Can communicate telepathically with its owner
Can speak out loud if it chooses to
Can open to any page in itself or resist being turned to a certain page

Each Grimoire is unique in what powers it has but some common ones are:

Grant its owner some Advantage
Fly but no further than a certain distance from owner (usually 5 feet)
Detect spirits/ghosts
Detect magical Ley Lines
Be a Mana Enhancer (almost always aspected)
Is supernaturally resistant to stains, water damage, fire, vermin damage

Not all Grimoires have a rare ability but if they do it is almost always just one. Some examples are:

Project a force field barrier
Turn itself invisible
Control the environment (such as making it colder)
Open a Warp portal
Open a World Jumper portal (usually only to one specific world and back)
Permanently bestows Magery (very rare!)

Grimoires often have Teaching along with other skills. Usually Thaumatology but they could have any skill. Some common ones are History, Languages, Engineering, Strategy, Philosophy, Mathematics, Law, etc.

That's probably a bit more high fantasy than what you have but I'm working on a Sorcery setting so I think they would fit in there.

02-07-2019, 03:50 PM	#1
AlexanderHowl Join Date: Feb 2016	Grimoires So, I was wondering what was the utility of grimoires in your campaigns? In my experience, grimoires tend to have one or more of the following functions: 1. They allow people to learn one or more spells or rituals at a self-taught pace (up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 2. They allow people to learn one or more spells or rituals as if taught by an instructor (up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 3. They allow people with specialized knowledge to cast one or more spells or rituals as if they already knew the spell or ritual (at a penalty to a VH skill and only up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 4. They allow people with general knowledge to cast one or more spells or rituals as if they already knew the spell or ritual (at a penalty to a H skill and only up to the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 5. They give people with specialized knowledge the spell or ritual without penalty (up to the lesser of the person's level in a VH skill or the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 6. They give people with general knowledge the spell or ritual without penalty (up to the lesser of the person's level in a H skill or the skill level of the person who wrote the grimoire). 7. They give a bonus to skill level when casting a specific spell or ritual known to the person. 8. They allow one or more of the above for magical abilities. In addition, the size of grimoires tend to vary quite a bit. For example, I generally have a grimoires mass 1 lb per spell or ritual or 1 lb per CP of a magical ability. So a grimoire that gave a character with Thaumaturgy the ability to use a 20 CP magical ability without penalty would be a tome that weighs 20 lbs. What about you? What are your experiences with grimoires?

02-07-2019, 04:52 PM	#2
Shostak Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: New England	Re: Grimoires Grimoires might also store mana for casting the spells they contain. Grimoires have non-magical uses, too. PCs who can't (or don't want to) magically use grimoires can turn them into cold, hard cash or use them to leverage NPCs into doing something the PCs want done or to garner favors with the right NPC or group. In one game, a large grimoire was used to as a weapon to render a wizard unconscious.

02-08-2019, 04:05 PM	#3
arnej Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Ft Collins, CO	Re: Grimoires In my campaign I had a house rule that in addition to any other side-effects from a critical spell-casting failure, you would 'forget' how to cast that spell. A period of study with your notes (like overnight) could restore it. It gave mages a big reason to travel with a grimoire with all their spells in it. It also gave PCs a big reason to attack enemy mages - to learn new spells!

02-14-2019, 09:03 PM	#5
Starship777 Join Date: Jan 2019	Re: Grimoires To me a Grimoire is more than just a book of spells or a magic item. It is an intelligent familiar. Unlike animal familiars they can't share fatigue or senses. Grimoires choose their owner rather than being summoned. Each has its own personality and quirks. Some of them have been 'alive' for a very long time and more than a few of them are highly opinionated. They are usually large heavy books about the size of an English dictionary. Most of them: Can communicate telepathically with its owner Can speak out loud if it chooses to Can open to any page in itself or resist being turned to a certain page Each Grimoire is unique in what powers it has but some common ones are: Grant its owner some Advantage Fly but no further than a certain distance from owner (usually 5 feet) Detect spirits/ghosts Detect magical Ley Lines Be a Mana Enhancer (almost always aspected) Is supernaturally resistant to stains, water damage, fire, vermin damage Not all Grimoires have a rare ability but if they do it is almost always just one. Some examples are: Project a force field barrier Turn itself invisible Control the environment (such as making it colder) Open a Warp portal Open a World Jumper portal (usually only to one specific world and back) Permanently bestows Magery (very rare!) Grimoires often have Teaching along with other skills. Usually Thaumatology but they could have any skill. Some common ones are History, Languages, Engineering, Strategy, Philosophy, Mathematics, Law, etc. That's probably a bit more high fantasy than what you have but I'm working on a Sorcery setting so I think they would fit in there.