Infinite Worlds and Cabal, how does their travel actually work?

[Boyboy180]

Recently I've been looking into using the Cabal in an IW game but the infinite worlds book doesn't actually explain enough of how they move from world to world without being lucky and finding a pre-made path.
Reading their original 3e book didn't help that much either.

So, I ask the following;
1. If it is possible to travel via the astral plane (As I have seen mentioned), how does the method work? (IE: Is it just "Plane shift to the astral, travel to the world you intend to go to and just... cast Plane shift again?)
2. If you can do that travel via the Astral, how far apart are different worlds? (Do you need to travel the length of the earth to get to the next one or is it something different)
3. What is the terrain in the Astral like between worlds? Would you need specialised transport?

And is there anything obvious I am missing? Things that would help me understand their method of world jumping?

PS: Are Cabal characters assumed to be able to use their magic on any world with mana they visit or do they lose access to it if the world doesn't naturally support that type of magic/mana? (Things like using the base magic system in a Monster Hunter setting instead of RPM)

[johndallman]

These things are not clearly explained in GURPS rules. When I started running Infinite Cabal, I had to decide on them. My answers are too long for a posting, but you can find them in issues 1 and 2 of the fanzine The Path of Cunning, available free of charge from the link below.

[ajardoor]

1) The Gates of Thoth.
2) Gate spells.
3) Reality Shards.
4) Captured supernatural creatures with the appropriate abilities.

[Boyboy180]

Originally Posted by johndallman

These things are not clearly explained in GURPS rules. When I started running Infinite Cabal, I had to decide on them. My answers are too long for a posting, but you can find them in issues 1 and 2 of the fanzine The Path of Cunning, available free of charge from the link below.

These are great! They even answer other questions I was thinking of asking.
The one thing that I can't seem to find is rules for if their magic can be used on any world with mana.
Is there a general rule that you can use to figure it out?

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Boyboy180

The one thing that I can't seem to find is rules for if their magic can be used on any world with mana.

My answer to that was "yes".

I had a number of no-mana worlds, but never found a reason to create a world that had magic of a fundamentally different kind. I was not running tours of all the GURPS settings, so the issue never came up.

[apoc527]

I love Path of Cunning -- any chance we'll see another issue or two?

Relatedly: how much would it mess things up to use RPM for Cabalists instead of the standard GURPS Magic system? I would imagine not much at all. Note that I would keep standard GURPS Magic for everyone else, just reinterpret Hermetic magic to be RPM...thoughts? Too much work?

[Apollonian]

Originally Posted by apoc527

Relatedly: how much would it mess things up to use RPM for Cabalists instead of the standard GURPS Magic system? I would imagine not much at all. Note that I would keep standard GURPS Magic for everyone else, just reinterpret Hermetic magic to be RPM...thoughts? Too much work?

I have put a lot of thought into this over the years. The short answer is that it works just fine, though I don't recommend spell magic for non-Hermetic magicians. In my experience it's easier to work with just one magic system... You could make Hermetic initiation a prerequisite for the Adept advantage(s) and that would go a long way toward giving the Cabal their edge.

My current thought is to create a path for each decan, but it's a lot of work

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by apoc527

I love Path of Cunning -- any chance we'll see another issue or two?

We have not abandoned it. I had to spend eight months away from home caring for my mother. That was pretty draining; as I was starting to recover from it , I caught COVID-19, and then developed heart trouble, which is now fixed.