The Magus

29 May, 2026

The Magus

Magi form a sub-class of magic-users, representing those through which arcane energy flows naturally. Some intelligence is required for working their innate magics, but far less so than other magic-users; while some may be scholarly sorts, or become so in old age, most are likely to be from the school of experience. A magus must have an intelligence of no less than 9, a minimum dexterity of 13, a minimum constitution of 11, and charisma of at least 15. Magi do not gain any experience bonus for having high scores in their required abilities.

The racial stock of magi (with limitations) is as follows: Humans (U), Elves (8), Skuld (Half-Elves) (11), and Horkos (Half-Orcs) (6). Horkos may consider their charisma when dealing with orcs for the purposes of qualifying to be a magus. Magi can be of any alignment.

Demi-human characters may multi-class Magus with either one of the Fighter classes or the Thief, so long as they qualify for both classes chosen. Multi-class magi cannot utilize shields while casting spells, but may wear armor otherwise permitted by their second class. Magi multiclassing with Thief must still abide by armor restrictions of that class, as usual.

Magi have a decent array of options for weapons and armor when compared to the typical magic-user, but this is restricted to those that do not require much skill or training to use. They use the thief matrix for attacks and magic-user for saving throws.

Armor & Weapons Permitted; Proficiency

• Armor: padded, leather, studded leather
• Shield: none
• Weapons: axe (hand), club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, dart, hammer, knife, mace, sling, spear, staff
• Oil: yes
• Poison: GM discretion
• Initial Number of Weapons: 1
• Non-Proficiency Penalty: -4
• Added Proficiency Per Level: 1/5 levels

Magi (Magic-Users) Table I.

365,000 experience points per level for each additional level beyond the 9th

Magi gain 1 HP per level after the 9th

Spells Usable by Class & Level - Magi (Magic-Users)

The starting age of a magus tends to be more variable than other classes, reflecting that their powers can manifest earlier or later in life, and the time it takes to master.

• Humans: 14+1d8
• Elves: 99+1d100
• Skuld: 22+2d12
• Horkos: 11+1d10

Beginning at the 10th level of experience, a magus may build a tower and rule an area as a magic-user might, though they gain no special followers from doing so.

Magi are very limited in how many spells they know, possessing knowledge of only one (1) spell to start, determined randomly and automatically learned, and learning or working out one (1) new spell upon reaching each new level, following the same procedure for learning a spell as a magic-user would. A high intelligence may add additional spells known (see the chart on this page), but otherwise only a wish may grant more, if worded properly. Spells are cast in a manner similar to other classes, but a magus never "forgets" a spell, as they are tricks hard learned over time. Unlike other spellcasting classes, the magus does not need to prepare each casting of a spell; they may freely and spontaneously assign a spell to a spell slot for casting. Material components are likewise ignored unless there is a gold cost associated with it. Spell slots are regained through rest, as with the other spellcasting classes; for example, to regain first or second level spell slots, they must rest for 4 hours, then meditate 15 minutes per level of spell slot desired.

Pertaining to magic items, magi may utilize most useable by magic-users, save for those of a written nature useable only by a magic-user. Since they do not memorize spells as other spellcasters do, magic items such as the rings of wizardry or pearls of power are of no use to magi. A magus may only make use of magic-user scrolls if they know read magic. Magi may also use magic weapons and armor of the types allowed by the sub-class.

Magi are generally not as skilled or learned as other magic-users at making items. They may brew potions as a magic-user can, but they lack the facility of the mage or clergy with the written word, only able to scribe scrolls upon attaining the 14th level of experience, at which point they scribe as a magic-user does. Magi can also create charged or temporary magic items at this level, such as wands, staves, rods, etc. Truly permanent items remain beyond their abilities, though (at the GM's discretion) the aid of magical devices may be of use. This can result in unique items, such as a mace bearing charges of enchanted weapon or a suit of leather armor that could invoke fireshield spells. Such items would generally only be usable by magi or multiclass magic-users.

Spells Known Adjustments by Intelligence & Spell Level*

* These adjustments are not cumulative, and are only gained at the appropriate experience level that the spell levels become available to the magus.

Magi are beholden to the spell level limitation derived from intelligence. A magus with 9 intelligence is limited to 4th level spells, up to the 14 intelligence required for 7th level spells.

Should anyone under the effects of detect magic gaze upon a magus, they will see that they give off magical radiation and, if allowable to them, detect an intensity based on the level of the magus, beginning at dim and increasing one step every third level (3rd, 6th, etc.). Should the school be important, they emanate the school of their last used spell.

Additionally, no more than two magi may ever operate together at any time, else their radiations would feed off one another to cataclysmic results. Similarly, areas of dense magic may pose special risks to a magus.

These quirks are caused by their origin. Mere centuries ago, in a forgotten part of the world that now surely lies in ruin, an order seeking to bypass the normal laws of spellcasting performed a dangerous and intricate ritual to beseech a higher power to facilitate this. Amused at their hubris, the being granted their wish; arcane energies would flow through them like a font, but with so many unchecked sources of magic in the same area in bodies not capable of handling them, they all exploded.

A side-effect of this wish-granting is that there are now those rare few in the world that awaken to a similar power, albeit at a trickle instead of a rush, allowing the body to acclimate to the power flowing through them as ever more is gathered.

Magus Spell List

1st Level

1. Affect Normal Fires
2. Audible Glamer
3. Burning Hands
4. Dancing Lights
5. Detect Invisibility
6. Detect Magic
7. Feather Fall
8. Flame Arrow
9. Friends
10. Forget
11. Jump
12. Light
13. Magic Missile
14. Mending
15. Message
16. Protection from Evil (or its reverse)
17. Ray of Enfeeblement
18. Read Magic
19. Shatter
20. Shield
21. Shocking Grasp
22. Sleep
23. Spider Climb
24. Unseen Servant

2nd Level

1. Blindness
2. Blur
3. Charm Person
4. Comprehend Languages
5. Darkness
6. Enchanted Weapon
7. Enlarge (or its reverse)
8. ESP
9. Fire Trap
10. Fog Cloud
11. Hypnotic Pattern
12. Identify
13. Knock
14. Levitate
15. Locate Object
16. Magic Mouth
17. Mirror Image
18. Monster Summoning I
19. Phantasmal Force
20. Protection from Normal Missiles
21. Rope Trick
22. Strength
23. Web
24. Wizard Lock

3rd Level

1. Blink
2. Clairaudience
3. Clairvoyance
4. Continual Light (or its reverse)
5. Detect Illusion
6. Dig
7. Dispel Magic
8. Extension 1
9. Fear
10. Fireball
11. Fire Charm
12. Hold Person
13. Ice Storm
14. Improved Phantasmal Force
15. Infravision
16. Invisibility
17. Lightning Bolt
18. Monster Summoning II
19. Plant Growth
20. Remove Curse (or its reverse)
21. Stinking Cloud
22. Suggestion
23. Tongues
24. Water Breathing

4th Level

1. Animate Dead
2. Cloudkill
3. Cone of Cold
4. Confusion
5. Conjure Elemental
6. Dimension Door
7. Extension II
8. Emotion
9. Fly
10. Fire Shield
11. Haste
12. Invisibility, 10' Radius
13. Lower Water
14. Mass Morph
15. Minor Creation
16. Monster Summoning III
17. Move Earth
18. Paralyzation
19. Reverse Gravity
20. Slow
21. Stone Shape
22. Wall of Fire
23. Wall of Ice
24. Wizard Eye

5th Level

1. Airy Water
2. Animal Growth (or its reverse)
3. Charm Monster
4. Contact Other Plane
5. Death Spell
6. Extension III
7. Glassee
8. Minor Globe of Invulnerability
9. Hold Monster
10. Improved Invisibility
11. Magic Jar
12. Major Creation
13. Mass Suggestion
14. Monster Summoning IV
15. Part Water
16. Passwall
17. Polymorph Other
18. Polymorph Self
19. Wall of Stone
20. Wall of Iron

6th Level

1. Charm Plants
2. Control Weather
3. Delayed Blast Fireball
4. Disintegrate
5. Geas
6. Glassteel
7. Legend Lore
8. Mass Invisibility
9. Maze
10. Monster Summoning V
11. Power Word Blind
12. Power Word Stun
13. Project Image
14. Repulsion
15. Stone to Flesh (or its reverse)
16. Teleport
17. Transmute Rock to Mud (or its reverse)
18. Vanish
19. Veil
20. Wall of Force

7th Level

1. Antipathy (or its reverse)
2. Anti Magic Shell
3. Astral Spell
4. Mass Charm
5. Meteor Swarm
6. Mind Blank
7. Monster Summoning VI
8. Phase Door
9. Polymorph Any Object
10. Prismatic Spray
11. Temporal Stasis
12. True Sight

#adnd #homebrew #ttrpg