Dark Arts
There can be no mistaking the evil inherent in the Dark Arts tradition; each spell makes the world a bit worse. They create suffering, sickness, and sorrow. A tradition of last resort for people seeking unlimited power—no matter the consequences, studying the Dark Arts stains the soul and increases the population of the Netherworld by one upon the caster’s death. Efforts to stamp out the Dark Arts should make discovering the tradition a challenge, yet its secrets have a way of surviving the bonfires and purges to infect more and more with its false promises and cruel effects.
Fiends in the Netherworld introduced the Dark Arts to mortals, offering potent and harmful magic in return for souls. It’s believed that the gods despise the Dark Arts and that knowledge of even a single spell from this tradition will doom a soul to the Netherworld. For this reason, the Dark Arts tradition is a poor choice for heroes. Sometimes, though, casters find evil a powerful weapon for use against its authors, and thus these insidious spells might find their way into a spellcaster’s arsenal.
Dark Arts Talents
CONSTRUCT POPPET(Magical): If you have a few strands of hair, a drop of blood, or a bit of nail all from the same creature, you can perform a ritual to construct a doll in that creature’s likeness. When you finish, you expend the required materials. The doll is Size 1/8, has Defense 0, and Health 5. The doll remains until it’s destroyed.
When you cast a spell that normally targets one creature, you can choose to lose 1 Health and target the doll instead. In doing so, you transfer the spell’s effects through the doll to the creature it represents provided that creature is within 100 miles of you.
In addition, if you deal damage directly to the poppet, the creature it represents becomes vulnerable (luck ends). If you destroy the poppet, the creature it represents makes a Will roll. On a failure, it becomes stunned (luck ends).
FORKED TOUNGE (Magical): Your tongue bifurcates. Whenever you would pass off a lie as the truth in a social situation, each creature that can hear you makes an Intellect roll with 1 bane. On a success, the creature becomes immune to this talent for 24 hours. On a failure, the creature believes what you say to be true, even if presented with evidence to the contrary, for 1 hour. On a critical failure, the creature believes anything you say to be the truth for 24 hours.
HEX (Magical): You can use an action to draw a fiery red pentagram with your finger in the air and send it flying from you. Target one creature within 5 yards. The target becomes cursed until the end of your next turn.
At level 3, the target becomes cursed (luck ends). At level 7, the target becomes cursed and vulnerable (luck ends both).
PUNGENT STENCH (Magical): You can use this talent when you cast a Dark Arts spell. From your body emanates a foul odor that sickens nearby creatures. For 1 minute, enemies inside a Size 3 space centered on you, and that moves with you, are Strength impaired. Creatures immune to the poisoned affliction ignore this effect. You can use this talent once, twice at level 3, and three times at level 7. You regain expended uses after you rest.
Novice Dark Arts Spells
All-Consuming Fires of Hell
Castings: 3
Target: One creature within 15 yards
Duration: Instant
Screams fill the air as the black fires gathered in your hands streak toward the target. Make an Intellect roll against its Agility. On a success, the target takes 3d6 damage and catches fire (luck ends); it makes rolls to end this effect with 1 bane. If your Intellect roll results in a failure, either the target takes 1d6 damage or you can choose to lose 2 Health to turn the failure into a success. On a critical success, you also regain the expended casting of this spell.
Exquisite Agony
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 15 yards
Duration: Instant
Pain grips the target. Make an Intellect roll against the target’s Will. You can choose to lose 2 Health to make the roll with 1 boon. On a success, the target becomes cursed for 1 minute. While cursed in this way, whenever the target falls prone, takes damage, or loses Health, it becomes weakened (luck ends). On a failure, you regain the expended casting of this spell after 1 minute. On a critical success, the effect lasts 1 hour instead of 1 minute.
Flesh Blight
Castings: 1
Target: One flesh-and-blood creature within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
Blisters appear all over the target’s body. Make a Will roll against the target’s Strength. You can choose to lose 2 Health to make the roll with 1 boon. On a success, the target takes 2d6 damage and becomes cursed for 1 minute. While cursed in this way, the target is also weakened.
If the target takes damage from an attack by a creature in its reach and the attacker’s weapon lacks the Long trait, a bubo on the target’s body bursts to spray the attacker. The attacker makes an Agility roll and, on a failure, becomes affected as if you had cast this spell on it.
If your Will roll results in a failure, you regain the expended casting of this spell after 1 minute.
Insidious Vexation
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 10 yards
Duration: 1 minute
Dark splotches appear all over the target’s body and then fade. You can target additional creatures with this casting of the spell: lose 4 Health to target two creatures or 8 Health to target three. A target becomes cursed for the duration. While cursed in this way, each time the target gets a success on an attribute or luck roll, roll a d6 to see what happens:
| D6 | Result |
|---|---|
| 1 | The target falls prone. |
| 2 | The target takes 1d6 damage. |
| 3 | The target becomes weakened until the end of its next turn. |
| 4 | The target, or your choice of one of its allies within 5 yards of it, takes 2d6 damage. |
| 5 | The target, or your choice of one of its allies within 5 yards of it, becomes confused (luck ends). |
| 6 | The target, or your choice of one of its allies within 5 yards of it, takes 4d6 damage. |
One True Love
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 15 yards
Duration: Instant
The target’s eyes turn black and then return to normal a moment later. Make an Intellect roll against its Will. On a success, the target sees you as its one true love for 1 hour. The target is your ally until you harm it, its friends or loved ones, or its property. The spell also ends if the target learns it is affected by this spell or witnesses you perform an act it would find objectionable. On a failure, the target becomes your enemy if it is not already and, henceforth, makes rolls against you with 1 boon. After you cast this spell, you can choose to lose 2 Health and regain the expended casting.
Recall Soul
Castings: 1, perform a ritual
Target: One dead creature within reach
Duration: Special (see the effect)
The soul belonging to the target returns to its body, causing it to animate and behave in a manner appropriate to someone that knows it has died and desperately wants to live. Each creature that can see the target, other than you, makes a Will roll. On a failure, the creature becomes frightened of the target until the spell ends or the creature overcomes the affliction with a successful Will roll.
When you cast the spell, and once each round on your turn, you can ask the soul one question. The soul answers truthfully by speaking with the target’s mouth, gesturing, or writing, and uses the knowledge it had in life. When not answering queries, it blubbers, complains, and begs for help.
At the end of each round, roll a d6. On any number other than 6, the spell ends unless you choose to lose 2 Health.
Expert Dark Arts Spells
Appaling Hemorrhage
Castings: 3
Target: One injured flesh-and-blood creature within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
Blood suddenly gushes from the target’s wounds. The target takes 4d6 damage. Then, make an Intellect roll against the target’s Strength. On a success, the target loses 4d6 Health, and blood spraying from its body creates light obscurement within 5 yards of it. On a critical success, the target loses an extra 2d6 Health. After you cast the spell, you can choose to lose 4 Health and regain the expended casting.
Freedom Delusion
Castings: 3
Target: One creature within 10 yards
Duration: 1 minute
For a moment, the target stiffens. You can target additional creatures with this casting of the spell: lose 4 Health to target two creatures or 8 Health to target three. A target becomes cursed for the duration, or until it overcomes the affliction with a successful luck roll. While cursed in this way, each time the target takes a turn within 10 yards of you, it chooses either to become controlled by you until the end of the round or to take 4d6 damage.
Part Bone From Flesh
Castings: 1
Target: One Size 1 flesh-and-blood creature within 5 yards
Duration: Instant
The bones in the target’s body begin moving around. The target takes 6d6 damage. Then, make a Will roll against the target’s Strength. On a success, the target takes an extra 6d6 damage. On a critical success, the target takes an extra 12d6 damage instead. If the damage incapacitates the target, it dies and, at the end of the round, an animated skeleton of the target’s Size pulls itself free from the corpse and stands up. The animated skeleton is a creature under the Sage’s control and treats all other creatures as enemies. The Sage has rules for the animated skeleton in Secrets of the Weird Wizard.
The Certainty Of Fools
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
A queer expression appears on the target’s visage. You can target additional creatures with this casting of the spell: lose 4 Health to target two creatures or 8 Health to target three. For each target separately, make a Will roll against its Intellect. On a success, the target becomes confused and Intellect impaired (luck ends both). On a critical success, the target also becomes stunned until the end of your next turn.
At the end of each round the target is impaired in this way, its Intellect score is reduced by 1. A target whose Intellect score was reduced in this way regains 1 point every 24 hours from the last time this spell reduced its Intellect score.
Vile Tentacles
Castings: 1
Target: One Size 5 space within 15 yards
Duration: 1 minute
Unfurling from thin air, three hideous tentacles covered in suckers lash your enemies. When the tentacles appear, and again at the start of each of your turns, the tentacles attack up to three creatures in the target space. For each target separately, make an Intellect roll against the target’s Agility. On a success, the target takes 3d6 damage and becomes grabbed by the tentacle. If the target is already grabbed by a tentacle, it takes an extra 3d6 damage instead and remains grabbed until the end of the tentacle’s next turn.
A tentacle counts as an object with Defense 12 and Health 10. Once three tentacles have been destroyed, the spell ends early.
Vivisection
Castings: 1
Target: Up to three creatures all in one Size 3 space within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
You fling out your hands and lines crisscross the targets’ bodies. Each target takes 4d6 damage and makes a Strength roll with 1 bane. On a failure, the target takes an extra 4d6 damage. On a critical failure, it takes an extra 8d6 damage instead. If this damage incapacitates the target, it dies, and its body slides apart into hundreds of ultrathin slices. The target’s vitality covers the ground in a Size 3 space centered on it with challenging terrain. You can choose to lose 4 Health to regain the expended casting of this spell.
Master Dark Arts Spells
Body Puppet
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
The target’s body moves in an unsettling nature. If the target has Health 60 or less, it becomes cursed until you or the target dies. If you choose to lose 8 Health, you can instead affect a target with Health 100 or less; such a target becomes cursed (luck ends). When a target cursed in this way takes a turn, you can use a reaction to exert your will over the target if it is within 10 yards of you and in your line of sight. Make a Will roll against the target’s Will. On a success, the target becomes controlled by you until the start of its next turn. On a failure, the target takes 8d6 damage.
Into the Oubliette
Castings: 1
Target: One creature within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
You make the target a prisoner of its own body. Make a Will roll against the target’s Intellect. On a success, if the target has Health 60 or less, it becomes cursed (luck ends). While cursed in this way, the target is stunned, cannot use any of its senses, and takes half damage from all sources. When the spell ends, the target makes a Will roll, and on a failure, becomes frightened of you until you become incapacitated.
A target with a Health score greater than 60 is cursed (luck ends). While cursed in this way, the target is also held, vulnerable, and weakened.
If you get a failure on your roll, you can choose to lose 8 Health to regain the expended casting of this spell.
Liquefy Flesh
Castings: 1
Target: One flesh-and-blood creature within 15 yards
Duration: Instant
The target’s skin turns to liquid and drains away. The target loses 20d6 Health. You can choose to lose 8 Health to increase the Health loss to 30d6. If the loss reduces the target’s Health score to 0, it melts into a reeking puddle that dries a few days later.
Part Soul From Flesh
Castings: 1
Target: One Size 1 or smaller creature within 5 yards
Duration: Instant
You hook your finger at the target to wrench free its soul. An angel, creation, demon, faerie, and fiend ignores this spell. A target with Health 60 or less falls prone and dies. If you choose to lose 8 Health, you can instead affect a target with Health 100 or less in this way. When the target dies, a ghost appears in the air above its body.
The ghost is a creature under the Sage’s control and treats all other creatures as enemies. The Sage has rules for the ghost in Secrets of the Weird Wizard.
Pillars of Salt
Castings: 1
Target: Any number of creatures inside a Size 5 space within 15 yards
Duration: Instant
Salt crystals form on each target’s body. A target with Health 40 or less freezes in place, turns into salt, and then dies. If you choose to lose 8 Health, you can instead affect targets with Health 60 or less in this way. A target with a Health score greater than this threshold instead takes 10d6 damage.
Release The Demon
Castings: 1
Target: One Size 1 space within 10 yards
Duration: Instant
A black hole opens in the target space and from it clambers forth a type I demon. The demon is an enemy under the Sage’s control. The Sage has rules for demons. When it is incapacitated, the demon disappears.
If you choose to lose 8 Health, when the demon appears, you can make a Will roll against its Will. On a success, the demon becomes controlled by you for 1 minute, after which time it returns to the Void. On a failure, you regain the casting of this spell after 1 hour.