Runic magic

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This article is about a system of magic used in Ultima Underworld and Ultima Underworld II. For other uses, see Runes (disambiguation).

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Runic magic is a system of spell casting which employs mystically charged rune stones rather than traditional reagents. It appears in Ultima Underworld and Ultima Underworld II.

Description

Although runic magic is a common arcane system on a number of worlds, it only functions in Britannia believed to be at places where the inter-dimensional barriers are worn thin, allowing the etheric properties of other planes to bleed through. Unlike traditional Britannian magic, it does not require reagents or a spellbook, drawing its power instead from the innate powers of rune stones and the precise gestures performed by its caster. While runic magic requires no indurable materials and offers a flexible system of devising incantations, the reliance on gesturing makes it at times unpredictable, and inexperienced mages may be injured should they botch the casting of a runic spell.

History

Runic magic first came to the attention of Britannians when Sir Cabirus attempted to establish a colony in the Stygian Abyss. As they explored the chasm, the mages of the settler group encountered a number of specially-prepared rune stones which had been imbued with magical energy, and from them they were able to infer the workings of runic magic. Later, this obscure art would become a topic studied in depth by the magician Nystul, who would reason that the success of runic spellweaving was related to the relative strength of inter-dimensional barriers.

It appears that runic magic has long been the standard method of spellcraft on other worlds. Tarna, Rhiannon, Talorus and the realms which house Killorn Keep, Scintillus Academy and the Pits of Carnage all appear to use rune-based casting as their primary magical system.

Required Materials

Rune Stones

Main article: Rune stones

Rune stones lie at the core of runic magic, as its very name already shows. Each of these potentized stones has a rune carved on one of its faces, corresponding to one of twenty-four traditional Words of Power. (There were no Xen or Zu stones available to the Avatar at least.) In runic magic, these runes are positioned in appropriate combinations of up to three characters between the fingers of the hand, such that they spell out the words of power needed to invoke a spell.

Fabrication of such stones, at least the simpler ones, does not need a mage, as shown by their industrial production on Talorus. The more powerful ones, especially the Flam and Vas stones, are highly valued.

Rune Bag

In order to utilize the powers of rune stones, however, they must be stored in an appropriately prepared receptacle. These rune bags will hold only such stones, and cannot be used as containers in any other capacity. Of note is that a rune stone cannot be permanently removed from the bag once inside it, and that duplicate rune stones are lost to the caster as they merge with stones of the same word of power. Thus if a spare rune stone is needed for another task, it should not be put into the rune bag.

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  A full set of rune stones

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  Discovering a rune bag and rune stones

Game Mechanics

In order to cast a runic spell, the player needs to select the correct combination of runes for a particular spell and click on the rune panel. So long as the spell is of a circle from which the player is able to cast (equal to one half of the character's current level rounded up), success is then determined by Casting skill. Spellcasting can either succeed, fail or backfire. A backfired spell means that the mana required for the spell is drained, but instead of the desired effect taking place, the player is physically injured.

Lore

“

In the first years of our settlement here in the Abyss, our mages have learned much about the nature of magic in this most strange place. What is written below is meant for the guidance of those pilgrim mages who may wish to join our company, lest you bring with you those items of great expense which will be useless to you here. (Many thanks to Seer Danlock, who has advised me in places where my natural gifts and learning failed me.) The magically-attuned among our original colonists quickly discovered that the rules of magic as known in the rest of the world do not apply to our new underground home. As any student of our world’s history must be aware, many titanic and dramatic events have unfolded in the vicinity of the Great Stygian Abyss — indeed, the chasm and the isle itself originated in energies arcane! Our foremost mages believe that the release in past times of enormous mystic energies here has worn the dimensional fabric thin, allowing the laws of other worlds to mingle with and even negate certain of the mystic principles. Firstly, the casting of magic while within the Abyss does not require the use of reagents. Bring no sulfurous ash, ginseng, spider silk, nightshade, black pearls, blood moss or garlic — you will have no need for arcane ingredients in our community. Secondly, new colonists should leave behind their spellbooks. We have discovered a way to cast magic which works only in the Abyss, and which does not require the user to carry a cumbersome tome with him. There are, scattered among the corridors in the depths, special stones charged with mystic potency. Each of these stones is inscribed with a rune identifying its nature. These rune stones are similar in function to the syllables of magic used in ordinary Britannian magic. Any spell can be cast by a mage who possesses the rune stones pertaining to that spell, unless the caster lacks the experience to utilize the spells of that Circle. Thirdly, rune stones can only be used when they are placed in a suitable receptacle. Our seers have enchanted special bags for this purpose, and will provide you with a rune bag upon your arrival. Fourthly, mages in the depths must develop proficiency in the physical gestures associated with spell-casting. We have noted spell failures here when all other conditions have been satisfied, and we attribute these disappointments to a lack of casting skill on the part of the wizard. Lastly, it is just as important for a Runic Mage to possess Mana as it is for any other Britannian Mage, for this is the power which must be channeled into all wizardry. The mystic energy is restored when a mage sleeps, or sometimes by the use of arcane objects such as scrolls. – from Memoirs of Sir Cabirus (Ultima Underworld)

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In the practice of runic magic, there are no reagents to act as physical ingredients to the spell, and no magic syllables to be spoken. The principal component of runic sorcery is the runestone, a small rock inscribed with one of the twenty-four known runes. Each of these runes has its own significance, a particular meaning and application, which when combined with other runes becomes articulated in a spell, a focused release of magical energy which accomplishes a particular effect on the world. The casting of the spell is accomplished through a complicated set of hand gestures. Even if a runic mage obtains all the correct runestones for a given spell, the appropriate gestures may yet be beyond his or her skill. It is a mastery of this element of the casting process that separates the accomplished mage from the neophyte. Currently, runic magic is still too weak, too alien to the known laws of Britannian magic to be effective. If, however, there were to be another weakening of the interdimensional walls, the knowledge might become useful. However, if this were to occur it would be impossible to foresee how the rules of runic magic might alter, which spells would become easier or more difficult to cast, and whether new spells might become possible. – from A Safe Passage Through Britannia (Ultima Underworld II)

Spells

Below are listed the known runic spells which feature in Ultima Underworld (UW1) and Ultima Underworld II (UW2):

Spells of the First Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Bounce	Uus Des Por	Duration	Allows the caster to rebound into a jump at the end of a fall	UW2 (undocumented)
	Create Food	In Mani Ylem	Instantaneous	Creates a piece of fresh food	UW1, UW2
	Detect Trap	Wis Jux	Targeted	Detects nearby traps	UW2
	Light	In Lor	Duration	Generates light equivalent to that of a torch	UW1, UW2
	Locate	Bet Wis Ex	Instantaneous	Reveals the mages location on the map	UW2 (undocumented)
	Luck	Bet Ort	Duration	Theoretically improves caster's chance of succeeding at assorted tasks	UW2
	Magic Arrow	Ort Jux	Targeted	Casts a magical projectile at the magician's foes	UW1, UW2
	Resist Blows	Bet In Sanct	Duration	Temporarily grants the caster the same protection as wearing head-to-toe armour	UW1, UW2
	Stealth	Sanct Hur	Duration	Prevents the caster from making any noise	UW1

Spells of the Second Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Cause Fear	Quas Corp	Instantaneous	Causes a foe of the caster to flee	UW1, UW2
	Deadly Seeker	Ort Wis Jux	Targeted	Creates a magical missile which seeks out nearby targets	UW2
	Detect Monster	Wis Mani	Instantaneous	Informs the caster as to the presence of nearby creatures	UW1
	Jump	Uus Por	Duration	Allows the caster to jump great distances	UW1 (undocumented), UW2
	Lesser Heal	In Bet Mani	Instantaneous	Heals the caster's minor wounds	UW1, UW2
	Dispel Hunger	Quas Mani Ylem	Instantaneous	Causes the caster to feel "well fed"	UW2 (undocumented)
	Rune of Flame	In Flam Jux	Permanent, until disturbed	Creates an enchantment on a fixed location which will burst into flames should anything disturb it	UW2
	Rune of Warding	In Jux	Permanent, until disturbed	Creates an enchantment on a fixed location which will report to the caster should anything disturb it	UW1
	Slow Fall	Rel Des Por	Duration	Allows the caster to fall slowly and to avoid injury when jumping from great heights	UW1, UW2
	Valor	Quas An Corp	Duration	Improves a casters abilities in combat (20% weapon proficiency increase)	UW2 (undocumented)

Spells of the Third Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Bleeding	Jux Mani	Instantaneous	Causes a targeted enemy to lose blood, causing it injury	UW2
	Conceal	Bet Sanct Lor	Duration	Obscures the caster to others	UW1
	Cure Poison	An Nox	Instantaneous	Removes any toxins in the caster's blood	UW1 (see 5th circle), UW2
	Dispel Rune	An Jux Ort	Permanent	Removes a magical rune such as a Rune of Flame or a Rune of Stasis	UW2
	Lightning	Ort Grav	Targeted	Hurls a bolt of arcane electrical energy at a foe	UW1, UW2
	Night Vision	Quas Lor	Duration	Allows the caster to see without the benefit of a light source	UW1, UW2
	Repel Undead	An Kal Corp	Instantaneous	Causes undead to flee in terror, unless being cornered	UW2
	Speed	Rel Tym Por	Duration	Decreases the speed of others thereby making the caster relatively faster	UW1, UW2
	Strengthen Door	Sact Jux	Permanent	Spikes a door	UW1
	Water Walk	Ylem Por	Duration	Allows the caster to walk on water	UW1 (undocumented), UW2

Spells of the Fourth Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Flameproof	Sanct Flam	Duration	Renders the caster invulnerable to flame	UW1 (appears as Resist Fire), UW2
	Frost	In An Flam	Instantaneous	Throws multiple iceballs at the foes surrounding the caster	UW2 (undocumented)
	Heal	In Mani	Permanent	Heals the caster of more grievous wounds	UW1, UW2
	Missile Protection	Grav Sanct Por	Duration	Renders the caster invulnerable to missile weapons	UW1 (see 5th level), UW2
	Poison	Nox Mani	Instantaneous	Poisons the targeted creature	UW1
	Poison Weapon	Nox Ort Ylem	Permanent	Renders the caster's weapon poisonous	UW2
	Remove Trap	An Jux	Permanent	Negates a targeted snare	UW1, UW2
	Study Monster	Wis Mani	Instantaneous	Informs the caster as to the properties of a targeted creature	UW2
	Thick Skin	In Sanct	Duration	Thickens the caster's skin to protect from blows.	UW1, UW2 (undocumented)

Spells of the Fifth Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Cure Poison	An Nox	Instantaneous	Removes any toxins in the caster's blood	UW1, UW2 (see 3rd circle)
	Fireball	Por Flam	Targeted	Hurls a flaming missile at a targeted creature	UW1, UW2
	Levitate	Hur Por	Duration	Allows the caster to move upward and downward in a fixed spot	UW1, UW2
	Mending	Rel Sanct Ylem	Permanent	Repairs damaged equipment. Restores others, such as refilling a lantern	UW2 (undocumented)
	Missile Protection	Grav Sanct Por	Duration	Renders the caster invulnerable to missile weapons	UW1, UW2 (see 4th circle)
	Name Enchantment	Ort Wis Ylem	Permanent	Reveals the true nature of a targeted item	UW1, UW2
	Open	Ex Ylem	Permanent	Opens a locked door or chest	UW1, UW2
	Rune of Stasis	In Tym Jux	Permanent, until disturbed	Creates a floating rune. Any foe touching it is immobilized	UW2 (undocumented)
	Smite Undead	An Corp Mani	Instantaneous	Delivers a crushing blow to a targeted undead being	UW1, UW2
	Telekinesis	Ort Por Ylem	Duration	Allows the caster to manipulate or pick up a single item at a distance	UW1 (see 6th circle), UW2

Spells of the Sixth Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Charm	Quas Rel Wis	Instantaneous	Renders a hostile enemy friendly	UW2
	Daylight	Vas In Lor	Duration	Provides bright illumination	UW1, UW2
	Gate Travel	Vas Rel Por	Instantaneous	Teleports the magician to the nearest moonstone	UW1, UW2
	Greater Heal	Vas In Mani	Instantaneous	Restores the caster to full health	UW1, UW2
	Invisibility	Vas Sanct Lor	Duration	Renders the caster invisible	UW1 (see 7th circle), UW2
	Map Area	Wis Ex	Permanent	Maps the area surrounding the mage. The scope of the mapping in proportion to the mage's experience	UW2 (undocumented)
	Paralyze	An Ex Por	Instantaneous	Prevents a targeted creature from moving	UW1, UW2
	Sheet Lightning	Vas Ort Grav	Instantaneous	Summons an electrical storm to sweep the area	UW1 (undocumented), UW2
	Telekinesis	Ort Por Ylem	Duration	Allows the caster to manipulate or pick up a single item at a distance	UW1, UW2 (see 5th circle)

Spells of the Seventh Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Ally	In Mani Rel	Permanent	Causes the targeted creature to attack the last enemy it saw the caster attack	UW1
	Enchant Item	Vas Ort Ylem	Permanent	Can enchant weapons and armor. Also improves an already existing enchantment. If it fails, the item is destroyed.	UW2 (undocumented)
	Fly	Vas Hur Por	Duration	Allows the caster to fly	UW1, UW2 (appears as an 8th circle spell)
	Invisibility	Vas Sanct Lor	Duration	Renders the caster invisible	UW1, UW2 (see 6th circle)
	Magic Satellite	Ort Por Grav	Permanent, until it attacks	Creates a magic satellite near the caster which attacks nearby foes	UW2
	Mass Confusion	Vas An Wis	Instantaneous	Causes all foes to become befuddled	UW1 (appears as "Confusion"), UW2
	Portal	Vas Ex Ylem	Instantaneous	Transports the caster seven feet forward	UW2
	Reveal	Ort An Quas	Instantaneous	Reveals hidden objects and concealed doors	UW1, UW2
	Shockwave	Jux Hur	Instantaneous	Creates a wave of destruction around the caster	UW2

Spells of the Eighth Circle

	Spell	Words of Power	Type	Description	Games
	Armageddon	Vas Kal Corp	Permanent	Ends all life everywhere, trapping the caster in a dead and desolate world	UW1 (undocumented), UW2 (undocumented)
	Flame Wind	Flam Hur	Instantaneous	Creates a mighty wave of fire, damaging all creatures in the vicinity	UW1, UW2
	Freeze Time	An Tym	Duration	Stops the flow of time for all except the caster	UW1, UW2
	Iron Flesh	In Vas Sanct	Duration	Renders the caster nigh invulnerable to all damage	UW1, UW2
	Restoration	Vas Mani	Instantaneous	Instantly restores the caster to full health	UW2
	Roaming Sight	Ort Por Wis	Duration	Allows the caster to view the world from a bird's-eye view	UW1, UW2
	Smite Foe	Vas Jux Mani	Instantaneous	Heavily damages the targeted foe. Only works on living creatures, not magical constructs or the undead.	UW2 (undocumented)
	Summon Daemon	Kal An Mani	Instantaneous	Summons a hostile daemon which immediately attacks the caster	UW2 (undocumented)
	Tremor	Vas Por Ylem	Instantaneous	Creates a vast upheaval, causing the ground to quake and rocks to fall	UW1, UW2

References

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Magic Systems
Sosaria	Sosarian magic
Britannia	Britannian magic ☥ Britannian spells ☥ Ascension magic ☥ Rituals ☥ Ultima VII (SNES)
Serpent Isle	Serpent Isle magic ☥ Serpent Isle spells
Pagan	Pagan magic ☥ Pagan spells ☥ Necromancy ☥ Tempestry ☥ Theurgy ☥ Sorcery ☥ Thaumaturgy
Other	Runic magic ☥ Runic spells ☥ Savage Empire magic