Winding is a style of Magic that focuses the energies of the "winds" of the Between, the multi-colored flows of Vim that make the 'Tween so strange but beautiful to gaze upon.

Winders are quite flexible in their capabilities, but the winds of Vim are fickle and not entirely reliable...or safe.

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Lores

Winders believe that different colors of winds should be focused to accomplish different tasks and organize their studies of what they call "Lores" accordingly. The most common Lores associated with Winding and the kinds of Magic they make available are:

Winding Lores

Wind	Magic	Example Effect
Red	Energy	Folderol's Flaming Fireball, Dynamic Dissipation
Yellow	Life	Healing Hands, Darvvin's Devolver
Orange	Mind	Jasmer's Monstrous Mind Wipe, Group Hypnosis
Green	Nature	Feast of Crows, Abershi's Timely Tamer
Blue	Divination	Augur of Doom, Eyes of Farseeing
Purple	Illusion	Shadowy Invocation, Tom Tom's Tom-foolery
Indigo	Death	Undermyr's Cruel Demise, Souldrain
Violet	Travel	Dimensional Jaunt, Fleetness of Foot

Mechanically a Winder buys each Lore that they know as a 5 point Custom Lore talent. A Winder must know at least one Lore talent to use their magic at all, but can know as many as they can afford. It generally takes at least a year of study and introspection to learn a new Lore talent, but advanced students can shorten this considerably.

Starting characters can start with as many Lores as they can justify with their background, and can afford.

Lore ({Color} Winds)

Real Cost: 5 points

Example: Kerahl the Winder has the Lore (Red Winds), Lore (Yellow Winds), and Lore (Blue Winds) talents; this costs him 15 Real Points. He is able to cast Winding spells related to Energy, Life, and Divination; thus he could cast a fireball or lightning bolt, heal the wounded, and see things from far away or maybe even the future. He cannot however cast Winding spells that charm animals, read thoughts, create illusions, teleport, or kill directly as he does not know the applicable Lores.

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Casting Spells

Each type of Lore gives access to a variety of spells related to the focus of the Lore, and an individual Winder can attempt to cast any spell within that Lore at will as long as they are powerful enough (their VPP is large enough to hold the spell).

However, each spell has a target number that the Winder must achieve by rolling their available Magic dice (described below). The target number of a spell is raised for a Winder who has only indirect knowledge of the spell, or is making up a new spell.

Thus a Winder can theoretically attempt to cast any spell within their Lore if their VPP is large enough, but some spells have sufficiently high target numbers that they are effectively impossible to cast unless a character has extra Magic dice.

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Magic Dice

The number of Magic dice available to a Winder is the true measure of their potency as the more dice they can roll the more likely they will succeed when casting spells.

"Magic" dice are a special form of the Luck Power. This form of Luck is not used in either the normal fashion of Luck in the HERO System or any of the optional uses. Instead whenever a Winder wants to cast a spell they must roll one or more of their Magic dice and add the face of the dice together. If the total equals or exceeds the Active Points divided by 3 (AP/3) of the spell being cast they successfully cast the spell; if not they fail to cast the spell.

There is no limit per day on how often a Winder may use their Magic dice in this fashion, but they may not use them for any other purpose.

The number of Magic dice a Winder can have is directly constrained by the size of their Magic VPP as described below, but in summary a character a Winder must have exactly 1d6 "Magic" Luck (no more, no less) for every 10 Pool in their VPP.

Example: Cheral the Young has a 10 Pool Winding VPP and 1d6 Magic dice. His master Rogar the Mighty has a 60 Pool Winding VPP and 6d6 Magic dice.

Magic Die: 1d6 "Magic" Luck

Real Cost: 5 points per d6

Example: Kerahl the Winder has 3d6 "Magic" Luck as defined above which costs him 15 Real Points.

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Number Of Dice To Roll

A Winder can roll as many Magic dice as they have, but it is often safer to roll only as many as necessary. Rolling fewer dice reduces the probability of success, but rolling more dice increase the probability and potential magnitude of dangerous Vim-storms (described below). Managing this risk and the dramatic tension it creates is one of the most compelling aspects of this Magic System.

Example: Badire the Cautious is attempting to cast a spell with a Target Number of 10 and has 5d6 Magic dice available to him. If he were to roll all 5 dice, he would have a 98% chance of successfully casting the spell but runs a significant risk of creating a Vim-storm. If he only rolls 3d6 he still has a 63% chance of success and lessens his risk of a Vim-storm. Being risk-averse, Badire's player opts to roll 3d6 rather than the full 5d6 available to him.

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Target Numbers

All Winding spells have a Target Number which represents the threshold a Winder has to equal or exceed with the result of their Magic dice in order to successfully cast that spell.

The standard Target Number for a spell is Active Points divided by 3 (AP/3). However, this can be modified circumstantially or deliberately.

Winding Target Number Formula:

Spell's Active Points divided by 3 

(AP/3)

Example: A spell with 33 Active Points has a Target Number of 11. A Winder rolling 3d6 Magic dice is able to cast this spell successfully 62.5% of the time. A Winder with 2d6 Magic dice can successfully cast this spell roughly 8% of the time (the chance of rolling 11 or 12 on 2d6). A Winder with only 1d6 of Magic dice cannot successfully cast this spell as they cannot successfully roll 11 or higher on 1d6.

Example: A spell with 15 Active Points has a Target Number of 5. A Winder rolling 1d6 Magic dice will succeed 33% of the time, while a winder rolling 2d6 Magic dice will succeed 83% of the time, and a Winder rolling 5d6 Magic dice will always succeed (as the minimum roll of 5d6 is 5).

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Modifying Target Numbers

The GM can impose penalties by increasing the Target Number, thus making it harder to reach. The player can reduce the Target Number of a given spell by spending character points.

Impediments

The following standard penalties apply to Target Numbers:

• Casting a spell that is made up on the spot: +10
• Casting a spell with only indirect knowledge (have heard of or read about it; ie it exists in the setting): +8
• Casting a spell with direct knowledge of it (have directly seen it in use): +5
• Casting a spell with training (have studied it thoroughly or been instructed by an expert): +3
• Casting a spell that has been previously cast: no modifier

Mastery

Though Winders can attempt to cast any spell they like (within their Lores) and never bother to study or train to learn a particular effect, they can also choose to be more disciplined and study individual spells so as to master them.

To do this a Winder studies spells books, does research, experimentation, and so forth as a role playing or off-screen exercise (as an individual play group prefers). Mechanically the Winder pays for a Custom Skill, defined as applying to a specific spell; each point spent on this skill reduces the Target Number of that spell by one for that Winder.

Example: Barzim has mastered the Flickering Flames of Folderol spell; he has spent 5 points on a Flickering Flames of Folderol skill, which reduces his Target Number for that spell by 5. If the spell were 60 Active Points its Target Number would normally be 20, but for Barzim it is only 15.

The GM may or may not impose limits on this as they see fit; however a Target Number can never be reduced to 1 or less.

As part of learning a new spell and if the GM allows it, a player could opt to purchase some number of points of Mastery for that spell which would apply to reduce the initial difficulty when casting it for the first time (see Impediments above). However, this is entirely under the discretion of the GM, including any required investment of time and resources, and if its even allowed at all.

Spell Skill: Reduces the Target Number of the Spell by 1 per level

Real Cost: 1 point per level

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Winding Magic Pool (Variable Power Pool)

Winding is built on a semi-cosmic Variable Power Pool (VPP). Winders buy their pool in 10 point levels, and the number of unrestricted Magic dice the can have is required to equal their Pool / 10. Thus a Winder with 30 Pool can have no more and no less than 3 Magic dice.

As a Winder gains Experience Points and advances their Variable Power Pool, they can put points into it as they like, but they can't use more Pool until they have completely paid off the next 10 point increment and also bought another Magic die. Effectively the next level of VPP and it's corresponding Magic die are on lay-away until the character can completely pay for them both.

Example: The Winder Verakin has a Winding Magic VPP with 30 Pool and 3d6 Magic dice. As time passes Verakin's player puts another 10 points into the VPP Pool increasing it from 30 Pool to 40 Pool and from 45 Real Cost to 60 Real Cost. However in the meantime while he is paying for the increase, Verakin can only use 30 Pool and 3d6 Magic dice. Finally, 20 experience points later, Verakin's player finishes paying off both the 15 points to get from 30 Pool to 40 Pool, and 5 points to buy another Magic die. Verakin immediately has 4d6 Magic dice and 40 Pool available to him, allowing more reliable casting and more powerful spells.

First Rank: Variable Power Pool 10 Pool; No Skill Roll Required to Change Powers (+1), 0 Phase Change (+1); 1/2 DCV Concentration (-1/4), RSR: Requires Magic dice (Luck Roll; Dice Total vs AP/3 Target Number; -3/4),SE: Vim-storm!; Suffer SE equal to -1/4 per Matching Die Of Luck Roll (-3/4), Must Have Appropriate Lore Talents (-1/4);

Real Cost: 15 points

Second Rank: Increase Variable Power Pool to 20 Pool

Real Cost: +15 points (30 points total)

Third Rank: Increase Variable Power Pool to 30 Pool

Real Cost: +15 points (45 points total)

Fourth Rank: Increase Variable Power Pool to 40 Pool

Real Cost: +15 points (60 points total)

Fifth Rank: Increase Variable Power Pool to 50 Pool

Real Cost: +15 points (75 points total)

Sixth Rank: Increase Variable Power Pool to 60 Pool

Real Cost: +15 points (90 points total)

There is no hard limit on the maximum size of the VPP; each "Rank" costs +15 points for +10 Pool, and an additional Magic die must be purchased along with it. However, individual GM's might prefer to cap the VPP at 60 Active Points, or some other limit.

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Limitations

Vim-storm! Side Effect

Messing about with the winds of the 'Tween is not to be undertaken lightly, for there is great risk involved.

Each time a Winder rolls Magic dice in addition to the normal function of totaling the dice to determine if a spell is cast successfully, an additional resolution occurs to determine if the Winder has stirred up a "Vim-storm". A Vim-storm is a situation in which a Winder has pulled too much energy from the Vim or otherwise caused a localized destabilization by their meddling.

A Winder does not get to apply any protection to any damage caused by their own Vim-storms; however innocent bystanders do get the full benefit of their defenses.

To determine if a Vim-storm has occurred, the matching face values of all Magic dice rolled are considered (including Channeling dice, the 'Tween die, and other dice unless otherwise indicated). Thus, if on four dice three 3's were rolled it would constitute three matches.

Each set of matches counts, and generates a Vim-storm effect roll. Thus, if using the provided charts, two pairs would generate two rolls on the 2 match chart while a 2 match and a 4 match would generate a total of two rolls on the 2 match chart and one roll on the 4 match chart (as the 4 match chart requires a roll on the 2 match chart as part of its total effect).

The more matches the greater the severity of the resulting Vim-storm, left largely to the GM's discretion. The following default charts are provided, but individual GM's are free to substitute their own. Note that to avoid any misunderstandings a GM should make sure that any player considering playing a Winder has a sense of what sorts of side effects their potential character would be subject to upfront.

Vim-storm (2 matches): Roll 1d6:
1-2) a large, noticeable display of Vim swirls around the Winder for 1d6 x 1d6 Segments.
3) The Winder's hair stands on end for 1d6 x 1d6 Segments.
4) The Winder suffers a -1 Magic die penalty to all spell rolls for 1d6 x 1d6 Segments. 
5) The Winder must roll an extra Magic die with all spell rolls for 1d6 x 1d6 Segments; 
   it does not add to casting totals but does count for purposes of determining 
   subsequent Vim-storms.
6) The GM secretly rolls 3d6; on a 3 a new conduit to a reasonably benign dimension 
   tears open near the Winder; on an 18 the same thing happens but the dimension is not 
   benign. On any other roll, roll a 1/2d6 on the 3 matches chart below.


Vim-storm (3 matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first, then roll 1d6 on this chart and apply the effect 
directly to the Winder:
1) 1/2d6 EGO Attack
2) 2d6 Flash (Hearing)
3) 1d6 Normal Damage, Energy, No Knockback
4) 1d6 Flash (Sight)
5) 1/2d6 Drain Endurance
6) 1 pip Killing, no STUN multiple, No Knockback

Vim-storm (4 matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first, then roll 1d6 on this chart and apply the effect 
directly to the Winder:
1) 1d6 EGO Attack
2) 3d6+1 Flash (Hearing)
3) 2d6 Normal Damage, Energy, No Knockback
4) 2d6 Flash (Sight)
5) 1d6 Drain Endurance
6) 1/2d6 Killing, x1 STUN multiple, No Knockback

Vim-storm (5 matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first, then roll 1d6 on this chart and apply the effect 
directly to the Winder:
1) 3d6 EGO Attack
2) 6 1/2d6 Flash (Hearing)
3) 6d6 Normal Damage, Energy, No Knockback
4) 4d6 Flash (Sight)
5) 3d6 Drain Endurance
6) 1d6+1 Killing, x2 STUN multiple, No Knockback

Vim-storm (6 matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first, then roll 1d6 on this chart and apply the effect 
directly to the Winder:
1) 4d6 Drain Endurance, Explosion
2) 8d6 Hearing, Smell/Taste, Touch and Mystic Groups Flash, Explosion 
3) 8d6 Normal Damage, Energy, Explosion, No Knockback
4) Sight Group Flash 8d6, Explosion
5) 3d6 Drain Endurance, Constitution, Recovery, Explosion
6) 2d6 Killing, Explosion, No Range, x3 STUN multiple, No Knockback

Vim-storm (7 matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first, then the 6 match chart, then roll 1d6 on this chart 
and apply the effect directly to the Winder:
1-4) The Winder gains a 5 point Disadvantage / Complication of the GM's choice.
     The Winder also gains a Vim-touched Magic die (see below); the 5 points gained from
     the Disadvantage / Complication are spent to pay for this ability.
     In the event that all of the Winder's Magic dice are already Vim-touched, treat this roll  
     as a 5 instead (see below)
5)   The Winder is reduced to -10 STUN. When they recover, they find that one of their Lore 
     Talents has been lost (the GM determines randomly), but the Lore Talent applicable to 
     the spell they were casting that caused this effect is enhanced; the Lore die associated 
     with this Lore is now treated as a normal Magic die and adds to the effect total directly 
     rather than being used to replace a Magic die roll; this increases the cost of that Lore 
     die to 5 points. If the Winder does not have a Lore die for that Lore, they gain one. 
     In the event that the Winder has points left over from the lost Lore talent, they may 
     re-spend those points later. In the event that the Winder only knows one Lore talent in 
     the first place, treat this roll as a 6 instead (see below).
6)   The Winder immediately slips into a coma for 1d6 x 1d6 hours and is helpless until they recover.
     When (if) the Winder recovers they have been forever changed by overexposure to Vim; they 
     never roll a 'Tween die thereafter, but also do not suffer a -1 Magic die penalty for casting 
     outside of the 'Tween. Mark this on the Winder's character sheet as a 0 point "Vim-touched" 
     line item. If the Winder has undergone this process before, they instead absorb the Vim-storm
     harmlessly and are otherwise unaffected.

Vim-storm (8+ matches): 
Roll on the 2 match chart first and add (the number of matches - 7) to the roll; in the event 
of a modified roll of 7+ roll again on the next higher chart and add the modifier to it as well. 
A series of high rolls can result in the effect getting bumped up to the next higher list, up to 
the 7 match chart.  

Example: Uaerto the Magnificent rolls 9 matches and is beset by a Vim-storm of extraordinary 
magnitude; the GM rolls a 5 on the 2 match chart and adds (9-7 = +2) to it which results in a 
modified effect of 7. Thus the GM re-rolls on the three match chart and adds +2 to that roll as 
well; if the result of that is also a 7+, the GM would re-roll on the four match chart, and so on. 

After the effect of the modified roll is resolved, the GM rolls again on the 6 match chart, and then 
again on the 7 match chart; these two rolls are unmodified. 

Other Limitations

Because the VPP is effectively Cosmic, and spells can be brought in and out as needed, there isn't a large need to apply further Limitations to individual spells. Primarily such Limitations should be applied to appropriately model effects rather than to lower the Real Cost. One benefit of applying Limitations however is that constant spell effects can be maintained over time while still allowing active spell casting.

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More Magic Dice

In addition to the normal Magic dice required to use this magic system, there are a few other varieties of Magic dice that may apply to Winding rolls; some are optional and some not.

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The 'Tween Die

When in the Between, a Winder must roll an extra Magic die each time they use their magic. This die does count for purposes of resolving a Vim-storm, so this process is not without danger. This does not cost a Winder any points; it is a constant of the Magic System itself.

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Lore Dice

A Winder can opt to buy an additional Magic die specific to each Lore they know, but no more than one die per Lore. Unlike the 'Tween Die which adds directly to the roll to successfully cast a spell, a Lore die can optionally replace any other rolled Magic die, if the player wishes to use it.

This can be done to avoid or reduce a Vim-storm as well as to hit a successful target number. The decision to do this is entirely in the hands of the player; they can opt to ignore the result of their Lore die if it is not beneficial to them.

A Lore die only counts for purposes of Vim-storm matches if it is used to replace another die's roll, and any die replaced by a Lore die does not count towards a Vim-storm match. Again, one of the most beneficial purposes of using a Lore die is giving the player an opportunity to break up or reduce a Vim-storm match by replacing a die with the lore die's result.

Example: Barzim the Archmaster Winder has a 60 Pool VPP and six normal Magic dice, a Lore die for each Lore he knows, and is casting in the 'Tween. Casting a spell he must roll the 'Tween die at a minimum, and may choose to roll one to six of his normal Magic dice, plus a Lore die. Deciding to go all out on a powerful spell with 60 Active Points, Barzim rolls all 8 dice available to him; 6 of one color to represent his Magic dice, 1 of a different color to represent his 'Tween die, and 1 of a third color to represent his Lore die.

Barzim's 'Tween die and all six Magic dice come up as 3's for a total of 21, so he succeeded at casting his spell (60 AP / 3 = Target Number of 20, thus a 21 succeeds), but seven 3's means Barzim has stirred up a major Vim-storm. However, Barzim's Lore die came up as a 2; and Barzim's player opts to use it to swap out one of the 3's, for a total of 20 (3+3+3+3+3+3+2 = 20; still enough to succeed). This reduces the number of matches from seven to six; the Vim-storm is still going to be bad but at least not as bad as seven matches would have been.

The player should use a die of a different color or size to differentiate their Lore die; however they can choose to roll it at the same time as they roll their other Magic dice, or roll it afterward as they prefer.

Lore die: 1d6 "Magic" Luck; One Lore Only (-1/2); Only To Replace Another Die's Roll (-1)

Real Cost: 2 points

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Channeling Die

Winders can opt to buy an additional Magic die to allow themselves to focus their minds on channeling the winds of Vim and avoiding Vim-storms. To use Channeling dice a Winder must spend the Full Phase prior to their spell casting focusing their mind; if they do so then when they make their subsequent Magic dice roll they may choose to re-roll one die per Channeling die they have purchased. In all such cases the second roll stands. This can be done to avoid or reduce a Vim-storm as well as to hit a successful target number. A Winder cannot have more Channeling dice than they have standard Magic dice, but can use Channeling dice to re-roll Magic dice, the 'Tween die, and even a Lore die (though this would rarely make sense to do); however no die can be rerolled more than once no matter how many Channeling dice are available.

It takes one Full Phase to Channel whether a Winder has one Channeling die or many; thus if a Winder is going to have any Channeling dice at all it is generally more efficient to purchase more than one to maximize the benefit.

Example: Jarfa the Winder has a 30 Pool VPP and 3 normal Magic dice and is casting out of the 'Tween. He also has a Channeling die. Attempting to cast a spell with 30 AP, Jarfa opts to spend a Full Phase Channeling. In his next Phase he rolls only two dice (he is out of the 'Tween and thus not only is he not rolling a 'Tween die he is suffering a -1 die penalty; see below). He rolls a 4 and a 5 which is enough to cast a spell with 27 or fewer Active Points. Failure! However, Jarfa has a re-roll coming to him thanks to Channeling; if he can re-roll the 4 and get a 5 or a 6 he will successfully cast the spell.

Channeling Die: Reroll 1d6 of "Magic" Luck ; Re-roll Only (-1); Extra Time (Full Phase; - 1/2)

Real Cost 2 points

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Vim-touched Dice

Some Winders develop a special affinity for Winding. One (or more) of their standard Magic dice are upgraded to become a Vim-touched die instead, which in addition to working like a normal Magic die (adding its roll to an effect total for purposes of hitting a target number) also cancels out a match with one other non Vim-touched die, thus lessening the chance for a Vim-storm.

Obviously, due to this effect, Vim-touched dice themselves never count for purposes of generating a Vim-storm.

Example: Barzen the Wise has 4 normal Magic dice, and 1 Vim-touched die. Rolling for effect the four standard Magic dice come up as 6,4,4, and 2; the Vim-touched die is also a 4. In addition to adding to the effect for a total of 20, the Vim-touched die also cancels out one of the 4's for purposes of determining a Vim-storm; in this case there is no Vim-storm effect at all as canceling one of the 4's nullifies the match entirely.

When rolling their Magic dice a player should use a different color or size die to represent any Vim-touched dice.

This effect costs 10 total point, and is a +5 point upgrade to a normal Magic die. A GM may or may not allow Winders to purchase this ability directly as they see fit.

Vim-touched Die: 1d6 of "Magic" Luck ; Vim-storm Mitigation (+1)

Real Cost 10 points; +5 points to an existing Magic die

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Less Magic Dice

In some situations Winders are less able to tap the winds of Vim, which is represented as a die penalty to their magic rolls. The following are cumulative.

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Not In The 'Tween

When in some other dimension or plane other than the Between, not only does a Winder not get to roll a 'Tween die, they roll one fewer Magic die.

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Wearing Armor, Encumbered

Armor or bulky clothing interferes with a Winder's ability to channel Vim, as does being encumbered in any way. In all such cases a Winder rolls one fewer Magic die. Note that if a Winder is wearing Armor and is also Encumbered, they only lose one Magic die rather than two.

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Injured

Winding is difficult, demanding, and dangerous. Winders that are below one quarter BODY must re-roll their highest Magic die effect for all spells until they have recovered or are healed.

The re-rolled value stands and cannot be further modified or re-rolled.

The Injury re-roll occurs last, after any other extra dice or re-rolls are resolved. A Lore die cannot be rolled after the Injury re-roll has occurred.

Example: Darae the Winder has 10 BODY max; in an altercation he suffers 8 BODY worth of damage. Trying to cast a spell to extricate himself he rolls four total Magic dice for 5,4,3,3; which would normally equal 15. However as Darae is currently below 25% BODY he must re-roll the highest die, the 5 in this case, and the second roll stands.

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Other Abilities

In addition to the core mechanics of the magic system, there are also some other associated abilities that a GM might consider allowing Winders to take.

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Persistence of Vim

Some Winders develop the ability to channel a controlled vortex of Vim about their person which offers them a degree of protection from harm but increases the risk of Vim-storms.

While using this effect the Winder is surrounded by swirling colored ephemera of the Vim, and the air around them is charged with magical potential that solidifies to turn aside blows, hostile magic, and other attacks. However the energies are volatile, and increases the chances that the Winder will draw too much power from the Winds and create a Vim-storm; when rolling their Magic dice while this effect is active the Winder must roll an extra die that does not add to the total effect but does count for matches to determine if a Vim-storm occurs.

Persistence of Vim (5e); base effect:

Force Field (1 PD/1 ED/1 Power Defense/1 Flash Defense: Hearing Group/1 Flash Defense: Sight Group), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2) (10 Active Points); Side Effects, Always On (Only When Using Winding Magic; While this effect is active the Winder must roll an additional Magic die when using their Winding magic; this die does not add to the effect but does count for purposes of determining Vim-storms; -1/2)

Real Cost: 7

The defense levels of Persistence of Vim must be raised together (i.e. to get to 2 PD the effect must also have 2 ED, 2 PowD, 2 FD (Hearing) and 2 FD (Sight)). The defense level cannot exceed the Winders VPP Pool total divided by 10; thus a Winder with 30 Pool and 3 Magic dice could also have a 3 PD / 3 ED / 3 PowD / 3 FD (Hearing) and 3 FD (Sight) Persistence of Vim ability if they chose to invest the points in it.

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One with the Vim

Some Winders have become so exposed to Vim that they have been permanently changed by it. A Winder that has become Vim-touched can, with GM permission, purchase Life Support (Longevity) up to any level the GM allows (at full normal cost).

Magic Systems