RECOLECCION, PROCESAMIENTO Y ANALISIS DE INFORMACION

As mentioned on p. 191, all Sleepers will see of a Duel Arcane is two mages staring at each other until one is defeated. In live-action, all the other players will see are two players shuffling cards and muttering to each other. Duels are usually big events, so don’t be afraid to ham it up. Use the descriptions above to describe attacks and defenses. (An attack with a Sword of Forces: “My bolt of

lightning arcs toward your chest, attempting to stop your heart and singe your flesh!” A successful defense with a Shield of Fate: “Your lightning arcs toward

the metal table to my right, missing me completely!”) Mime your actions, showing the thrust of a sword or a near-parry — without weapon props, of course. The Duel Arcane is a theatrical way to resolve conflicts between mages,

so make it a little more entertaining for your fellow players — remember that they’re your audience as well.

193 Chapter Three: Magic

THE CONTEST

Once the dueling circle is formed and the contestants have chosen sword and shield Arcana, the Duel Arcane begins in earnest. The mage who lost the contest of wills at the start of the duel strikes first, or he can choose to yield first strike to the other duelist (although there is no real benefit for doing so). Once the first attack is made, the duelists alternate back and forth between offense and defense with each attack requiring an instant action.

Gnosis + sword Arcanum is used as the test for the attacker after subtracting the defender’s shield Arcana. If the attacker succeeds, the defender loses one Willpower point per success. The defender can choose to forego his attack to devote all his energy to defense against the opponent’s attack, in which case the defender’s shield Arcanum is doubled before subtracting it from the attacker’s test pool.

RESOLUTION

The Duel Arcane continues until one participant chooses to yield or is reduced to zero Willpower points or the Duration of the Squaring the Circle spell runs out. The winner — whoever loses the least amount of Willpower points — regains one point of Willpower as a surge of confidence from the victory. The loser of a Duel Arcane is expected to yield the point of contention to the victor, who is, in turn, expected to gracefully accept and allow the loser to depart peaceably and not pressing the advantage. Traditionally, a Duel Arcane settles a particular dispute for good. The loser should not challenge the winner over the same matter again (although others may do so). Failure to observe these rules can result in a loss of face for the mage and possible censure or mistrust from peers — see “Sins Against the Consilium,” p. 131.

A mage who has lost a Duel Arcane is weakened, usually with no Willpower points. Taking advantage of a vanquished foe in such a state is considered an infraction against the Lex Magica, worthy of convening the Ruling Council to decide on punishment (usually reparation to the injured party or incarceration of the offender).

D

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Mages can fight a Duel Arcane past mere exhaustion of their Willpower points. If a mage chooses to fight on regardless, any additional damage from the duel is real (affecting Health), and the contest ends when one duelist yields or dies. Duels to the death are relatively rare, but they do happen, usually in cases in which a mage prefers death to surrendering to a bitter enemy. Still, many find their courage wanting: they then break off the duel and yield before the final blow is struck.

CHEATING

Of course, mages can and do sometimes ignore the rules of the Duel Arcane. They attempt to cheat to gain an advantage in the struggle or lure an enemy into a duel and then spring a trap.

Cheating in a Duel Arcane essentially involves doing anything other than using magic to attack or defend in the normal fashion, or used before or during the duel to give the mage an unfair advantage. A mage who casts such a spell forfeits the honor and protection of the duel, and the other mage is entitled to use whatever means to settle the matter from then on. Of course, proving that the other mage cheated can be a somewhat more difficult matter. If cheating can be proven or is evident to onlook-

ers, the offender might be brought up on charges before the Consilium — punishment varies from mild reprimands to incarceration for truly dishonorable acts.

Generally, cheating requires a mage to give up his attack for that turn of the duel in order to cast another spell or to take some other action, but some carefully planned cheats, especially involving prepared spells or allies, may be done more subtly.

OPTIONAL RULES:

CREATIVE THAUMATURGY

With enough knowledge and power, a mage can make anything he imagines real with magic. Mages are not limited to the spells described for the 10 Arcana; a mage can invent his own. The act of creating new magic is called thaumaturgy. Creative thaumaturgy is really no different from any improvised magic — creative thaumaturgy simply covers spells that aren’t described in the Arcana descriptions in Chapter Four.

The Storyteller must sometimes make his own call about whether a proposed spell is possible for a mage at his current level of development. Accordingly, Storytellers might want their players to wait until everyone in the game is familiar with the system before creating new spells. Unfamiliarity can cause the game to get bogged down in niggling details as players argue over what characters should and should not be allowed to do with magic. It’s best to put off these questions until everyone has mastered the spellcasting basics. Thus, a Storyteller can always refuse the use of creative thaumaturgy and ask a player instead to stick to established spells and rotes, if creative thaumaturgy would disrupt or interfere with the flow of the game.

Use the following steps when creating new spells.