You are here: start » savage » powers » mystic_intervention

Mystic Intervention

Mystic Intervention

Mystic Intervention

Rank: Legendary

Power Points: 20

Range: Special

Duration: Special

Example Trappings: Prayer, rituals, sacrifices, relics

Sometimes even a wizard’s best spell o r a cleric’s greatest miracle isn’t enough. In times of great need, casters must turn to greater powers than their own and ask a patron to take a personal hand in the affairs of mortals.

Mystic intervention allows a caster to trigger a great event of some sort. The event should be epic in proportions, such as saving a city from a siege, causing an earthquake to level a city, raising a legendary creature such as the Century Beast, bringing a centuries-dead hero to life, or closing the gate to some terrible and otherworldly dimension.

The caster must stand in a magical ring, divine circle, sacred site, or other place of power and use the Ritual Magic rules to cast. (Power Points are listed for that purpose—it can never be cast without ritual magic.)

If successful, he’s Exhausted for the next five days but some version of the desired effect, narrated by the Game Master as she sees fit, happens with a great display of magical energy.

If the ritual’s Dramatic Task fails, the caster is Exhausted as above and may not attempt the ritual again for five days or until some narrative goal is met (finding rare replacement components, the conjunction of the moons, or whatever the GM feels is appropriate). A Critical Failure also causes 5d6 damage in a 20” (40 yard) radius as well.

Mystic intervention should give the heroes respite from major events but shouldn’t short circuit the Game Master’s entire campaign. For example it may not slay a powerful foe outright, but may provide a weapon that aids in the fight against it. Or a besieging army might be swept away by a great flood—but another approaches in a month. The city of a great enemy might be leveled by an earthquake, but the citizens begin to rebuild mere hours afterwards.

Finally, the power can’t override free will. It can’t make a good person evil, fall in love with someone they’re not, or otherwise change their nature. It might give an individual new perspective or a moment of empathy somehow, but true change is always a choice.