Sandbox

Gate

Effect: This ritual allows the caster to interact with teleportation circles in two distinct ways:

Variant 1: Create a Gate

This version of the ritual establishes a permanent or semi-permanent teleportation circle that serves as a stable anchor point for magical travel. Unlike the Teleportation Circle power, this ritual enhances the circle with protective wards and linking glyphs, making it resistant to tampering and destruction.

Variant 2: Activate a Gate

This version utilizes an existing teleportation circle to create a direct passage between two circles. Once the ritual is complete, the caster and any companions may step through the circle and instantly arrive at the connected circle.

Requirements: Rare components attuned to the destination’s properties, such as astral dust or shards of precious metals from the target location, worth 5 coin. A focus imbued with personal arcane energy is also necessary.

Cost: The caster takes 4 stress for creating a gate and 6 stress for activating a gate. Each use of the ritual strains the boundary of the planes slightly, attracting attention from beings that dwell in liminal spaces.

Basic Parameters: - Range: Activation requires knowledge of the exact pattern and location of the target teleportation circle. - Duration: A created Gate remains open for up to 1 hour, or longer with additional complexity. - Travel Limit: Up to 10 individuals or a similar volume of goods may travel per activation.

Complexity Roll Considerations: - Creating a Gate: The caster must etch complex sigils around the teleportation circle, tying it securely to a specific arcane signature. - Activating a Gate: Establishing a stable link between two circles requires precise knowledge of both circles’ patterns.

Consequences of Failure: - Misdirection: Failure in activation could send travelers to an unintended circle, possibly in a dangerous or hostile location. - Temporal Flux: Time may flow differently for travelers, causing them to arrive earlier or later than intended. - Dimensional Bleed: Unstable connections might allow extradimensional entities to slip through the gate uninvited.

Points of Interest at the Ritual Site: - Astral Anchor: The Gate can be attuned to celestial events, enhancing its stability when performed under specific stellar alignments. - Whispering Glyphs: Those near an active Gate hear faint whispers, remnants of the arcane energy used to power the ritual. - Phantom Trails: The site where a Gate is activated might show ghostly imprints of travelers who have passed through.

Notes: - Network Expansion: A series of linked Gates could establish a vast teleportation network, though maintaining such a network requires significant resources and vigilance. - Fey Interference: Activating a Gate in proximity to a Feywild-aligned circle may attract fey creatures, who view the act as an invitation or challenge.

Gate: Creation

Effect: This ritual establishes a permanent teleportation circle, enhanced with powerful arcane wards and linking glyphs. The circle serves as a stable anchor for magical travel. Once created, this Gate can be used as a destination for teleportation powers and rituals.

Requirements: Rare components attuned to the local planar energy, such as ground gemstone powder or leyline-infused ink, worth 6 coin. The ritual also requires the caster’s personal focus item.

Cost: The caster takes 5 stress. The ritual requires 8 hours of uninterrupted work, during which the caster carves or inscribes the Gate's unique pattern.

Basic Parameters: - Stability: This Gate is resistant to tampering or environmental wear, though it can still be destroyed through deliberate actions. - Activation: The Gate remains inactive until powered by teleportation rituals or powers.

Complexity Roll Considerations: - Magnitude: Affects the durability and intricacy of the Gate. More complex patterns can support multiple linked destinations or specific time-based activations. - Area: The circle’s size determines how many entities can pass through simultaneously.

Consequences of Failure: - Arcane Instability: The circle may destabilize, creating dangerous magical feedback. - False Anchor: The Gate might form incorrectly, linking to random or hazardous locations.

Gate: Activation

Effect: This variant utilizes an existing teleportation circle, activating it to create a temporary portal to a linked Gate. The portal allows near-instantaneous travel between the two circles for a brief period.

Requirements: A piece of the target circle’s pattern (or its detailed schematic) and a token tied to its planar energy, worth 4 coin.

Cost: The caster takes 6 stress. The portal remains open for up to 10 minutes, or longer with additional complexity.

Basic Parameters: - Range: The linked Gate must be within the same plane or a closely adjacent one (e.g., Feywild, Shadowfell). - Capacity: Up to 10 individuals or equivalent cargo may pass through.

Complexity Roll Considerations: - Distance: The farther the destination Gate, the higher the complexity required. - Duration: Prolonging the portal’s openness increases the stress cost and complexity.

Consequences of Failure: - Errant Path: Travelers might emerge at a random location instead of the intended Gate. - Planar Rift: Unintended tears in the fabric of reality could invite hostile entities or unleash chaotic energies.

Additional Effects: - Spectral Surge: Upon activation, the portal emits a pulse of energy visible to magical senses for miles around. - Echo of Passage: Residual arcane traces may linger for days, potentially allowing skilled trackers to trace the portal’s usage.

Gate: Activation Progress

Effect: You activate an existing teleportation circle, creating a temporary portal to a linked Gate whose pattern you know. The portal allows near-instantaneous travel between the two circles for a brief period. Each gate has a unique geometric pattern that