Powerstone

Enchantment 
Infuses mana into an object for later use by a wizard. Traditionally, a gemstone serves as the subject of this spell (for this reason, “Powerstone” is the generic word for an object containing stored mana), but any object can potentially be used. Any wizard touching a Powerstone may take any or all of the energy it contains, using it instead of his body’s own energy to cast a spell.

Each Powerstone is said to have a “capacity.” This is the maximum amount of energy it can hold. Since a wizard can only use one Powerstone at a time, a large Powerstone is more useful than a handful of small ones. A large Powerstone can be used to cast a large spell; a group of small ones can be used one at a time to help maintain a spell, but cannot be used all at once. A Powerstone “recharges” itself after use, by absorbing mana from the surrounding area. The rate of recharge varies with the area’s mana level.

A Powerstone does not recharge if it is within six feet of a larger Powerstone. Stones of the same size split the available mana and recharge at slower speed. This unfortunate fact means that the owner of several Powerstones must let some of them out of his sight to get them recharged! A Powerstone is enchanted one step at a time. The first time Powerstone is cast on an object, it becomes an uncharged Powerstone with capacity 1. Each additional casting increases its capacity by 1. Thus, 15 castings would create a Powerstone with a capacity of 15. But note that with this many castings, there would be a cumulative chance of nearly 1 in 4 that a critical failure would be rolled at some point, destroying the stone. For 60 successive castings, the cumulative chance of critical failure is 2 in 3!

Further, each ordinary failure while casting puts some sort of magical “quirk” on the stone. Thus, it is possible for work for months and end up with a 20-energy Powerstone that smells like fish and can only be used on Wednesdays . . . This makes big stones without serious flaws more valuable than others of the same strength. The quirks of a Powerstone are set by the GM, and can be used as a tool for campaign balance. Most of them will be peculiar, arbitrary limitations on how the stone can recharge (e.g., only while bathed in bat blood) or how it can be used (e.g., only on Fire spells; only by a green-eyed virgin; not by anyone wearing a hat). A severe quirk affects the user of the stone (e.g., renders him mute for an hour). The caster knows if his spell has failed, but not what quirk his Powerstone now has. The Analyze Magic spell can determine what quirks a Powerstone has. Two failures in a row indicate that no further growth is possible for that stone.

Any object may be used to produce a Powerstone. However, it is easier to enchant a Powerstone using an item with intrinsic value. The cost to cast Powerstone is quadrupled if the item being enchanted has a value of less than $10xP2 + $40xP, where P is the target capacity of the Powerstone. This is one reason gemstones are popular; a valuable stone is compact and durable.

A Powerstone is uncharged when created (though if it already contained energy, that energy is unaffected by a casting to increase its capacity). The energy from a Powerstone cannot be used for further enchantments on that stone – a Powerstone cannot be used to help enchant itself!

Energy cost for each casting: 20. 
Prerequisite: Enchant (VH).

“Dedicated” Powerstones

If a Powerstone is attached to an item before that item is enchanted, the Powerstone becomes a part of the magical item. It is then a “dedicated” Powerstone. The item’s user may tap its energy – but only to power the spells cast by or through that item. If a dedicated Powerstone is removed from a magical item, the magical item is automatically broken and loses its enchantment, but the Powerstone is intact, and becomes a “normal” Powerstone again. (Of course, if the Powerstone is built into the item in some way – e.g., set in a magic ring – a successful skill roll may be required to remove it without breaking it.)

The advantage of a dedicated Powerstone is that its energy, being specifically channeled, is used twice as efficiently. A one-point dedicated Powerstone gives two points of energy (but still recharges in one day in a normal-mana area).

“Exclusive” Powerstones

An item can also be made with a built-in Powerstone, in such a way that only its integral Powerstone(s) can power it. This is done exactly as for dedicated Powerstones, but the energy of an exclusive Powerstone is three times as efficient – i.e., a one-point exclusive Powerstone delivers three points of energy, but then the item is useless until the stone recharges.

One-College Powerstones

This is a variation that follows all normal Powerstone rules. A One-College Powerstone is enchanted in such a way that it can provide energy only for spells of a particular college. One-College Powerstones may not be Dedicated or Exclusive. The advantage of a One-College Powerstone is that each casting only requires 12 energy, not 20.

Also see Power Items.