Weather magics deal with natural conditions such as precipitation and cloud cover. As magic, it is most practical when invoked over a small area. It can be quite useful in that it can alter the battlefield itself, rather than the abilities of the combatants, evening the odds in an unfair fight by preventing the use or overwhelming odds or allowing escape from a hopeless battle.

The Backlash from any Weather effect causes severe migraines, giving one point of Impairment for the rest of the session. This is cumulative if you fumble several Weather effects, but not with other sources of impairment.

Weather Effects

Manipulate Weather

This is the effect the same name from Feng Shui, p 120.

The sorcerer can manipulate weather effects. Difficulties for all of these effects depend on the degree of change between current, normal weather conditions and the desired condition. The Difficulty varies depending on how extreme conditions you want. The following examples are based on changing a typical dry and windless summer day or indoor environment.

The time it takes for a weather change to come into effect depends on the area affected. Affecting a room or other limited area is instant, while a few city blocks takes an hour or so and a whole city takes about a day. The weather will change back normally, so drastic changes in small areas last but a few Sequences. Weather unnatural to it's environment, like rain in the desert, lasts even shorter.

Causing rain to fall on a heavily overcast day would be a slight change. Causing rain on a partially cloudy day with a low chance of precipitation would be a dramatic change. Causing a downpour on a cloudless day would be an extreme change. Similarly, turning rain into snow would be a slight change on a cold day, a dramatic change on a mild day, and an extreme change on a sweltering day.

Cold
Sends people inside in search of shelter. Forces opponents to don awkward and constraining heavy coats, scarves, and gloves. Causes guards to huddle together around heaters and garbage-can bonfires, abandoning their posts. (No, this isn't mind control: these are things that might naturally occur as a result of cold weather.)

Heat and Humidity
Causes suffering to opponents wearing armor or heavy coats to conceal their portable arsenals. Accelerates rot and decay.

Mist
You can create a cloud of vaporous mist or a thick and concealing fog. Provides concealment for you and your allies. Causes your enemies to be confused and separated. A really heavy fog halves Move and all Perception tests and ranged attacks suffer a penalty of one per meter in the fog. Seeing more than a meter through this fog is hard. Similar to the Weather effect Fog.

Rain
Mires enemy vehicles in mud. Clears the streets of pesky bystanders. Puts out any persistent fires.

Snow
Snarls traffic. Causes flight cancellations. Obscures vision. Can cause sleet, making the ground treacherous to walk on. Anyone stepping on sleet must make an Agility task check with your Magic as the difficulty in order to avoid taking a fall. Any movement or actions contemplated automatically fail in this case.

This is similar to the Blast effect Foul Spew: Slippery Slime and the Ice effect Sleet.

Thunder
Impresses mooks and other underlings. Obscures sounds. Causes animals to stampede in terror.

Wind
Blows away light objects. Damages buildings, knocks down trees and power lines. Creates sandstorms, which obscure vision and demoralizes foes.

A directional blast of wind can blow out torches, capsize small boats, blow away the dust and debris of ages and power a ship. It is mainly used for distracting stunts in non-combat situations. To distract someone, make a Sorcery roll against your target's Dodge or Agility. Each point of Outcome means he will be distracted for one minute while he gets his stuff in order. This will not prevent him from engaging in combat or from an immediate response to immediate problems for more than a single shot. An Outcome equal to his Perception means he has lost some vulnerable gear, such as torches, veils, skirts, maps or cloaks. Similar to the Wind effect Gust of Wind.

Weather Resistance

A weather sorcerer is always immune to discomfort caused by the weather. He can walk naked in a snowstorm and won't break a sweat in the Sahara. He still cannot see through snow, mist and similar obstructions, however. This immunity can be conferred on a number of comrades equal to the sorcerer's Magic attribute for a Magic point.

Weather Prediction

A sorcerer can roughly predict the weather a number of days into the future equal to his Magic attribute, and give detailed predictions an equal number of hours in advance. These predictions will dramatically change if another sorcerer alters the upcoming weather.