Metamagic is used to manipulate magical energies in the environment, specifically those of Sorcery. It is similar to, but more specialized than, Fertility.

If you have both Metamagic and Summoning, you can use metamagical effects to counter Creature Powers. If you have the Arcanowave skill to a value of 12 or higher, the same applies there.

A Backlash with Metamagic reduces your Magic attribute by one for the rest of the session. This is not the same as a spent Magic point.

Metamagical Effects

Dispel Sorcery

This cancels any currently active Sorcery. Difficulty equals the Sorcery Action Value of the character who caused the effect. The Sorcerer need only equal or exceed the Difficulty in order to completely neutralize the effect. This will not negate permanent magics, like those created using the Permanency effect of Fertility or Metamagic. Similar to the Fertility effect Restore Chi and the Creature Power Dispel Magic.

Remove Curse
Long-lasting curses and magical effects, like those created with the Fertility schtick Permanency, can always be negated by performing the correct deeds. This might involve taking a quest, making a net out of nettles or learning the secret name of a demon and speaking it backwards, but the laws of magic say that there is always a way to negate a curse. This effect is used to learn how. This is the same as the Divination effect of the same name.

Spell Shield
Make a Sorcery roll against a difficulty of 8; the Outcome becomes the diameter of a magic-protective sphere. Casting Sorcery against anyone inside this area has a minimum difficulty equal to your Sorcery action value; if the normal difficulty would be lower, increase it to that value. The sphere is immobile unless you elect to maintain it as a continuos action, in which case it is centered on you and moves along when you move.

Ranging

You can cast a single spell without range penalties, at the cost of a single Magic point. You must still see your target. Casting a spell through remote viewing (cameras, divination) causes a delay and a low rumble that prevents the target from being surprised (unless the spell is cast subtly), as well as a -5 Action Value penalty.

Channel
You may create a magical conduit between yourself and another character or even a place. You and your target must have a magical link of some kind, and you must either see your target, or you must both work simultaneously to create the effect. This requires communication or a previous agreement. Only you need know Metamagic.

Once this link is created, you can cast spells through the magical conduit, and the effect will originate from your linked character or object. Each such spell costs you a single Magic point, and both of you three shots. You are allowed to use the best Sorcery skill. The character actually in place does the targeting and the spellcaster decides which spells to cast, as the power gives very basic communication and no or vision.

Remote
You symbolically link yourself to something, and you can then cast spells through that object. You must touch the object and spend a Magic point to activate it for a session. Favorite objects are ritual dolls, holograms, illusions, statues or objects significant to your tradition, such as great trees for a druid. It cannot be small enough to count as a personal object, it must be cumbersome enough that somebody who wishes to protect it counts as defending somebody else.

Whenever you focus your attention upon this object, it starts to glow, hum or otherwise draw attention to itself, being about as noticeable as you would be if you were there and casting spells. Sublte magic might be a good idea. It counts as an unnamed character with your Sorcery as it's Dodge value, and you can cast spells through it using your Sorcery. If "killed'', it is rendered permanently harmless. You can actively defend the object with your Sorcery.

Note that the Remote has no sensory powers, so you must use some other power or device for targetting.

Sense Sorcery

Allows the sorcerer to see the flow of chi and magical energy in an area. The stronger a place's chi, the easier it is for the sorcerer to see. She can identify feng shui sites. She can instantly sense any active Sorcery and identify any spell cast in her presence. She can identify magic items after handling them. She can see and identify other chi-related effects, but in a more vague way.

Sustaining

When you use a magical effect of duration other than instant, you may spend a Magic point to extend the duration to a whole session. You must opt to do this before you roll any dice. There is a -5 Action Value penalty to such spells. This can be mighty useful, but the Gamemaster may not allow it for all effects.

Permanency
When you use a magical effect of duration other than instant, you may spend three Magic points to make the effect permanent. You must opt to do this before you roll any dice. There is a -5 Action Value penalty to such spells. If you fail, there is an automatic backlash. Permanent magic is locked into the world by some geas or riddle, that must be solved before the effect can be negated. It cannot simply be dispelled. See the Remove Curse effect under Divination or Metamagic. This effect is also available under Fertility.