I have had several questions on the subject of compound magic since the publication of Harnmaster. It seems that I have created a lot of confusion out there by raising the issue and then not fully explaining it. I actually suspect that this is not the kind of subject that can be fully explained, but I will at least try to clear up some of the confusion. The issue will be more fully covered in a later publication "Tome of the Esoteric Mysteries of the Ancient Orders of the Shek-Pvar" (this is a working title, and might get shortened?).
The issue of compound magic goes to the very heart of Pvaric Philosophy, the foundation of Harnic arcane lore. It is, and should be a subject for careful consideration, both by player and GM.
As I see it, there are two basic types of compound magic:
Spell-Chaining is simply the casting of two or more successive spells which share a common object several spells acting one after another to create, enhance or alter an effect. Each spell in the chain makes its own contribution to the whole and probably involves a different force or principle. Each spell may be reasonably simple and involve low energy. The spells in the chain may be cast by one or by several cooperating sorcerers. The spells may be "off the shelf" or specially developed for the purpose. (For an example of cooperative spell-chaining see: KANDAIR.TXT under Common Knowledge.)
Spell-Chaining is generally the easier of the two methods. Each component spell is separately mastered and separately cast, thus minimizing the risk of failure and misfire, and simplifying (although not hastening) the learning process. If the sorcerer chooses/designs his spells carefully, they can be the components of multiple compound chains. This could be termed the building block method. Some of the spells provided in Harnmaster are designed soleley for chaining: Maintain [Neutral/II], Enhancement [Neutral IV], and False Soul [Common/III] are examples. A Lyahvi Shek-Pvar might find a spell to create a spark from nothing quite useful for Spell-Chaining.
The big drawback in chaining is fatigue. Because the spells are cast consecutively, FP accumulation will make each chained spell successively harder to cast, and since there is a tendency for spell to get more complex the further along the chain one gets, this can utterly devastate the caster. Suppose for example, a sorcerer wished to cast three successive spells whose MLs were 75, 65 and 40 with FP accumulation of 10, 10 and 15. He would cast the fist spell at ML75 and acquire 10FP, cast the second at ML55 and acquire 10FP and cast the third at ML20 (acquiring 15 more FP which would not affect the chain). A chain of six or seven spells, even low energy ones, could have very little chance of success.
The other major drawback is time. Several simple spells generally take longer to cast than one complex one (assuming more or less equal MLs). This means that spell-chaining is of limited use in emergencies (which PCs are apt to get into) the caster must maintain his concentration throughout the process.
A compound spell is a single spell that invokes several distinct principles, and achieves several effects. The principles involved might, if the spell's creator were a grey sorcerer, be of different convocations or neutral.
Compound Spells generally have shorter casting times and can generally be learned more quickly one spell can be mastered more quickly than five. Also, once mastery is achieved, the overall FP cost is generally lower than would be the same effect(s) through chaining. The fatigue benefit may be indirect: A Compound spell that takes 20FP is more likely to succeed than a chain of 4 x 5FP spells, for the simple reason fatigue accumulates like compound interest: the 2nd, 3rd and 4th spells are penalized and the 1st is not. A chain of four 5FP spells would penalize the caster's EML by 5 on the 2nd, 10 on the 3rd and 15 on the 4th (this is an NET penalty of 30). There are also four chances to fail with the chain and only one with the compound spell.
Compound Spells have several drawbacks:
Bonus Effects
ML21+ Immediately upon successful triggering the caster is informed of the complexity level of the incoming magic.
ML31+ Immediately upon successful triggering, the caster is informed of the nature of the incoming spell, if he knows the same or a similar spell.
ML46+ Immediately upon successful triggering, the caster is informed of the general nature of the incoming spell, whether or not he personally knows any similar magic.
ML56+ Provided that no bonus effects higher than this one are employed, Force of Kail will remain in place for successive uses up to the limit of duration. In other words, simple detection does not expend the spell. Subsequent uses will, however, require additional success rolls.
ML66+ Upon learning of the incoming magic, the caster has the option to create interference to hinder it. The interference reduces the EML of the incoming spell by the caster's Index x1 (MS) x3 (CS).
ML81+ Immediately upon learing of the incoming spell, the caster has the option to dispell some/all of the incoming effect(s). The effects are dispelled (at GM discretion) according to the Complexity Level of the incoming spell and the success achieved with Force of Kail:
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Complexity Level [MS] [CS]
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I-IV 100% 100%
V-VII 75% 100%
VIII-IX 50% 75%
X 25% 50%
XI 0% 25%
XII+ 0% 0%
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ML96+ Provided that 100% of the incoming effect(s) have been
dispelled, the dispelled effect(s) may be turned upon the source of
the incoming magic. This is a caster option.
FATIGUE: 35-(3xIndex)
TIME: 20-Index minutes
RANGE: n/a
DURATION: 1xIndex hours (dormant)