Seelie Spellcaster- Help Please

[Katarn]

I'm working on an Emissary of a Faerie Court, but not a Knight.  However, she does use sponsored magic in her task.  Is there a way to apply refinement to sponsored magic (specifically Faerie magic)?

[Fenrir423]

You could make an argument for the basic -1 for 2 Focus Slots. Specializations won't go very far just because of the need for a pyramid structure and there being only one "element" on the evocation side and thaumaturgy at evocation speed is enough of a power boost anything more might be overkill.

[jadecourtflunky]

I don't think so... unless your character was already a wizard/sorceror or he/she was under the tutelage of an experienced seelie magic user within the court.

[Katarn]

Alright then, how would a (un)seelie spellcaster advance their magic in general? Lea didn't reach her magical levels overnight (I assume).

[devonapple]

Alright then, how would a (un)seelie spellcaster advance their magic in general? Lea didn't reach her magical levels overnight (I assume).

If nothing else, from skill advancements. Which is not to say I have any stance on whether they should or should not purchase Refinements.

[Sanctaphrax]

I would allow Refinement for item slots but not for specializations. If you want specializations (and you should, they're awesome) you need to take Evocation or Thaumaturgy or both.

By the way, there's a writeup of Lea on the Resources board. She has Evocation, Thaumaturgy, and Unseelie Magic.

EDIT: here's the link. http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,16552.msg838513/topicseen.html#msg838513

[Katarn]

^That's around the lines of what I was looking for, thanks.

[sinker]

You could in theory break your spellcasting up into elements (Air, Cold, Darkness, etc) so as to support a pyramid. It's not RAW but if you really want a way to expand sponsored casting there it is.

[Richard_Chilton]

Have you taken a good look at lesser Glamour? If memory serves your PC could take it.

Richard

[Amseriah]

I don't think that Lesser Glamour counts as magic for purposes of refinement, it is just a special thing that fae or people empowered by the fae can pick up.  It is really awesome and definitely a good thing to have though.  I say that it wouldn't qualify for refinement because it doesn't require a hit on the mental stress track to use, you just make illusions happen.  If you changed it so that you did have to take a mental stress everytime you used it then I could buy that it is magic, but really you can do everything that it can do with thaum. so why spend the refresh.

[Katarn]

You could in theory break your spellcasting up into elements (Air, Cold, Darkness, etc) so as to support a pyramid. It's not RAW but if you really want a way to expand sponsored casting there it is.

Actually, the way I'm handling this is as follows:

Erika Stallings is a young spellcaster, exclusively an evocator.  She specializes in air to the point of refininment, though she also knows fire and spirit.  After several years, she comes to Chicago to come visit her uncle, John Stallings.  She finds him (unknowingly) dead to rights with supernatural thugs (behind veils ready to strike).  "By chance" a mysterious being offered her the necessary power to fell her uncle's hidden opponents.  She accepted the offer with learning her benefactor: Oberon, King of the Spring Court.  She still does not know his identity.

Adseelie (Spring) Magic is primarily air-based.  However, Erika already has considerable power in air magic.  Oberon's benefit is +2 to air spirit and +2 air control.  Due to its benefactor and sponsored nature, it does not count for the pyramidal evocation powers (in other words, Erika's +3/+3 Air is counted as +1/+1 for the pyramid, since Oberon's power is external and theoretically temporary).  Other spells also have some air effects to them as well.

[AlexFallad]

I could actually use a little help wrapping my brain around (Un)Seelie magic in general...

I grasp how basic Ev/Th work, but I'll go into so I can get a...focused answer to my problem...

At chargen, let's say my Wizard has Evocation and Thaumaturgy.  I pick three elements for Evocation (say Fire Water Spirit) and spec into Fire/Power.  For Thaumaturgy, I spec in Divination.  I get free focus items for each.

So at chargen, how do I distill a Seelie spellcaster down to these basic choices?

Thaaaaaanks!

[Sanctaphrax]

You don't choose elements for Sponsored Magic. You automatically get the appropriate sponsored element for evocation and the appropriate sponsored field for thaumaturgy.

@Katarn: +2 air power and control is probably too strong a benefit for Sponsored Magic. (I assume that "air spirit" means "air power").

[sinker]

To elaborate this is how it works in the same context. The character picks up sponsored magic and gains Channeling (un/seelie magic) and ritual (un/seelie magic). Thus they can cast any spell (evocation or thaumaturgy) that fits within their un/seelie theme (for unseelie that would be air, cold, darkness, decay, death and for seelie light, fire, earth, growth, life). As per channeling and ritual the character does not gain specializations, but does get focus items/enchanted items.

[devonapple]

I haven't had to deal with the next part of the rules yet: in which ways does adding (Un)Seelie Magic to someone who already has full Evoc/Thaum help the spellcaster, aside from the obvious benefit of getting Thaumaturgy-as-Evocation when using appropriately-aligned magic?