Crafting a Mage

1. Magic Core: Determining a mage’s magic core (Water, Air, Earth, Fire, Life, and Entropy) helps to determine the rest of their affinities. Each magic core has natural stat affinities and skill abilities, so this choice is important to a lot of character creation. Stat affinities will be determined in the Rolling Stats portion of this list. Starting core traits will be detailed in the Core Traits subpage

2. Rolling Core Stats: Roll 5d4 for each of the six core stats (strength, dexterity, vitality, acuity, presence, and intelligence) and add the sum of the roll results. That 5d4 result is one of your totals. You can put this total into any of your stats or roll in order, so long as you roll the 5d4 totals 6 times, once for each stat. You gain an extra point to your core stat total. You can use these numbers to determine your stat bonuses and saves as follows. 

   1. 1. 1. • Stat Bonus = (Stat total - 10)/2 

              • 1. • Round down to the nearest whole number

            • Stat Save = (stat bonus)*5

3. Background feats: Your mage starts with a Background feat, which includes any feat in the list that can be earned without any other requirement. They're listed in the Background and Requirementless Feats page. Alternatively, you can take two free points to spend or save on any skill, ability, feat, or stat as listed in the "Spending Free Points" section further down on this page. 

4.  Proficiencies: Every character at level one gets one skill proficiency level to invest in a skill associated with their core stat (ie, if your core element is air, your core stat would be dexterity, so you might take a level of proficiency in dodge.) In addition, the mage gets one proficiency in any weapon, armor, and language they choose and one proficiency in their spellbook. The basic options for these proficiencies are listed in the Proficiency Options Lists further down this page, but your setting or GM may allow others. If you would like to take a proficiency not on the basic lists, communicate with your GM and see if it would be an option in your campaign. Calculating saves for proficiencies is as follows:

   1. 1. 1. • Skill Saves = (skill proficiency * Mage Level) + Assotiated stat save (if any)

            • Weapon damage = a number of weapon damage dice equal to proficiency level + stat bonus associated with weapon type

              • 1. • Do not add proficiency to attack saves. Attack saves are determined by the weapon type.

5.  Free Points: Every level one mage starts with 13 free points. In addition, every time a mage levels, they gain a number of free points equal to their new level (ie, at level 2 you gain 2 free points, at level 3, you gain 3, at level 4, you gain 4 free points, and so on). You do not have to spend all your free points every time you level, but you can only spend them while leveling up your character, including to the first level, unless otherwise specified by your GM. They can be spent as follows:

   1. 1. 1. • 1 free point -> Single Proficiency level in any skill

              • 1. • Note: You cannot have more proficiency levels in a single skill than your level+2

            • 2 free points -> New Spell

            • 3 free points -> One feat or ability that the player meets the requirements for.

              • 1. •  Note: You cannot use free points to take worship levels, but you can use them to take an ability from a fighting style that you are not a part of, so long as you meet all the other associated requirements

            • 5 free points -> One additional point to any core stat total

6.  Hit Point Calculation and Hit Dice: 

   1. 1. 1. •  Hit point max = (Vitality Bonus + 10)* Character Level

            •  Hit die = 1d4 per vitality bonus point (d6 at level 10, d8 at level 20, d10 at level 50)

7.  Mana Point Calculation and Magic Dice:

   1. 1. 1. •  Mana Point max = (Core Stat Bonus +10)* Character Level

            •  Mana die = 1d4 per core stat bonus point (d6 at level 10, d8 at level 20, d10 at level 30)

8. Speed and Armor Class Calculations: 

   1. 1. 1. •  Speed = 10 + (Dexterity Bonus * 10)

            •  Armor class (before Armor bonuses) = 2*Vitality Save + (Dex bonus*lvl) = AC (Minimum 20)

              • 1. If your character has unarmored proficiencies then add an aditional (Unarmored proficiency level+vitality bonus) for each unoccupied armor slot (not including cloaks)

9. Spellcasting Calculations: 

   1. 1. 1. •  Spellcasting bonus = Core stat save + spellbook save

            •  Spell save DC = Core stat save + Spellbook save + 20

            • Starting Spells: A Number equal to your core stat bonus with a minimum of one plus one spell associated with your core stat

10. Mage's Familiar: Every human mage has a familiar, a magical assistant born from their magic core that they usually find shortly after their core sparks. For familiar rules, please see the Familiars page. For non-human characters, see the Non-human Races page.