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Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells - Powers Backlash

When The Gifted channels the energy necessary to manifest a power but fails to control it appropriately, it turns against him and his allies. That’s called a Backlash, and it can happen when a character fails the Willpower test to manifest his powers.

In game terms, the Overlord has the freedom to determine what exactly happens, and he can base his decision on the power being used, its PL, the character’s Concept, and the situation at hand. Uncontrollably manifesting a fire based power on a rocky wasteland and on a dry field covered with leaves and sticks might have drastically different consequences. Generally, the higher the PL used for the power, the direr the consequences.

Powers that damage enemies could damage the sorcerer of his allies for by 1 point per PL. Powers that confuse the senses could fool the user or his allies that something is true while it actually isn’t for half the duration of the intended power.

If necessary, the Overlord can roll on the following tables to determine more generic Backlash effects when he cannot immediately think of an appropriate one. To determine the result, the player rolls 1d6 and adds the intended PL of the power he was trying to manifest.

Having determined the PL of the spell as 4, Xazim makes a d20 roll as gets a 3. Meaning the spell fails to work as intended, and he has to decide if he will lose the spell for the day or if he keeps the spell and a Backlash happens. He chooses the later, and the Overlord decides that, accidentally, he creates a weak shield around every enemy within short range.

1d6+PL
Sorcery Backlash
2
Energy from the Void is not properly released and the character has the Difficulty of his next Willpower test to cast a spell increased by 1.
3
The currents of energy are altered and the Difficulty to cast spells is increased by 2 for 1d3 turns.
4
The Void currents have changes and it will take some time to adapt to it. The character receives a Negative Die to cast the spell that provoked the Backlash for 1d3 hours.
5
Character becomes blind as he only sees the infinite Void for 1d6 rounds.
6
The energies channeled turn against the sorcerer and cause 1 point of damage per PL used.
7
Darkness originated from the Void blurs the senses of the sorcerer and allies up to short distance, imposing a Negative Die to all actions that rely on vision and other senses. This lasts for 1 round per PL.
8
The character is blocked from the Void, and cannot cast spells for PL turns.
9
The horrors of the Void assault the character’s soul and he falls unconscious for PL turns.
10
The accumulated energized from the Void  interferes with the casting of the next PL spells, increasing its Difficulty by 5.
11
Crackling entropic energy from the Void blasts the sorcerer and his companions within short distance for 1d6 points of damage per PL of the spell used. This damage maybe divided among the caster and his allies affected as they decide.
12
The channel through which the character channels the energies from the Void is compromised and he new needs to sacrifice an additional 1d6 Vitality points for every spell he casts for a full day.
13
The energies from the Void become unstable and the character will receive a Negative Die to cast spells for a full day.
14
Every time the character casts a spell, the Void demands more and more energy, making the allies of the caster within short distance pay the same amount of Vitality points as him.
15
The Void drains the life energy of the caster and his allies within short range to power his forces. Everyone affected suffers 1d6 points of damage distributed between their Physique or Agility.
16+
The character accidentally summons an entity from the Void, possessing PL HD and 1d6 Special Abilities defined as the rules in Chapter 9: Aliens, Robots and Other Creatures. The entity is determined to devour him and his allies.

1d6+PL
Psychic Backlash
2
The character’s mind is not focused and the next time someone can resist one of his psychic powers, he receives a Positive Die to do so
3
Voices from the Void enter the character’s mind and his concentration is broken. The Difficulty to manifest his powers is increased by 1 for 1d3 hours
4
The character’s psychic energy is released uncontrollably, confusing his allies within short range, who receive a Negative Die on their next action.
5
The character’s mind is invaded by the consciousness of an entity from the Void, imposing a Negative Die on all actions requiring concentration for the next turn (including manifesting powers).
6
The closest nearby ally of the mentalist suffer PL points of damage, as a psychic blast hits him.
7
The character creates a link between his and all his allies’ minds, but they can’t control it. They thoughts get in the way of each other, making them receive a Negative Die for all actions for 1d6 rounds.
8
The character accidentally broadcast his intentions for 1d6 rounds the next time he faces an foe this day, giving this opponent a Positive Die to act against him.
9
The character’s psychic waves put nearby ally unconscious for PL turns.
10
The character’s brain lost its synchronization with the Void and now all psychic powers manifestation test will have its Difficulty increased by 1d6 for a full day.
11
The character’s body suddenly becomes more vulnerable to the harmful energies of the Void and every power used consumes 1 point of either Physique or Agility. This damage can be healed through normal resting.
12
A strong and uncontrolled psychic blast hits he character and everyone within short range of him for PL damage.
13
The energies from the Void are interfering with the character’s brain waves, making All Willpower tests to manifest psychic powers twice as hard, doubling their Difficulty.
14
Manifesting powers becomes painful and taxing not only to the mentalist but to his allies too. Every time he manifests a power, his allies will have to sacrifice the same number of Vitality points, which they can divide amongst themselves.
15
The character’s mind is taken by an entity from the Void that will attack everyone within short distance for 1d6 rounds. Every target will need to make a Willpower test with a Difficulty equal to PL or suffer 1d6 points of damage.
16+
An psychic copy of the mentally and 1d6 of his allies appear from out of the Void and attacks in the hopes of taking over their bodies. They have the same statistics as their originators.

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