This is the power of the wilds, of flora and fauna. It is practiced by druids and other tree huggers, but also by many other mages, and does no have any strong spiritual connotations or an inherent code of ethics - those depend on your MagicTradition.
Backlash with the Nature schtick makes you behave more like a beast for the rest of the scene, losing a point of Charisma.
For animal attributes and abilities, see Animals.
Animal Effects
Animal Senses
You can use the senses of the animal in human form. You gain the smell of a dog, the night vision of a cat, the sonar of a bat, the balance of a monkey or the eyesight of a hawk, as appropriate. Replace your Perception with your Sorcery for that particular sense only. Each use of the sense requires a separate spell, so it is no good passively.
Using this costs a Magic point and lasts for one scene.
Communication
You can communicate with animals and plants, and speak their language fluently. Use Sorcery instead of your Charisma for purposes of dealing with them.
Assume that animals communicated with have the intelligence of small children, and that they can give fair recollections of what they have seen or experienced. The animals like you and will not attack you without provocation.
Plants are more limited in their perceptions. Time passes very quickly from the standpoint of a plant, so it is quite likely to have missed some random passers-by, but can give good accounts of events that took a long time. Speaking with plants also takes quite a bit of time.
Companion
If you befriend and train an animal companion, that animal can perform tricks and fight quite effectively. Use your Sorcery for actions appropriate to the type on animal; a cat can sneak and scout, a crow can scout and steal, a monkey can amuse and climb. The animal can attack using your Sorcery, but still defends using its regular Dodge. A companion can make an active dodge to use your Sorcery for defense.
You can have only one named animal companion, but several unnamed ones.
Merge
You can merge your consciousness with that of an animal or plant. Your body is in a trance while merging, and you are thus automatically surprised if attacked, but you can break the trance at will. While merged, you can communicate with the animal and sense everything the animal experiences. You mentally ride along as the animal moves. Except for Perception and detection powers, you cannot use your own abilities through the animal. This is not mind control.
Call Animals
You may summon animals, if any are present in the region. The difficulty depends on their scarcity. A number of animals appear equal to the Outcome. Solitary animals come a few at the time, only the first comes on time.
| Scarcity | Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Abundant | O |
| Common | 5 |
| Uncommon | 10 |
| Rare | 15 |
Plant Mastery
As a part of your affinity with nature, you learn the secrets of the flora.
Germination
Makes plant seeds germinate even in very barren soil conditions. This lasts a number of weeks equal to your action result. You can reverse the effect which will retard plant growth.
Growth
All plants in the vicinity grow wildly. You decide on a difficulty; you can control plant growth within a cube with sides this long, shaping them as you like. They don't grow fast enough to catch somebody who is not sleeping, but can fill the entire volume in one Sequence. If you make plants grow too fast or into unnatural shapes, they will wither and die in hours.
Withering
Just as you can cause growth, you can cause foliage to shrink away in the same manner.
Sense Nature
You can sense the presence of animals and plants within a hundred meters times your Sorcery action value. You only know that they are present until you can see them, whereupon you can sense their health and general well-being. Sensing an animal in this fashion requires an opposed Sorcery check against their Willpower.
Skin Shift
You can take on the shape of an animal for an indefinite period. This costs a Magic point each time you shift. Your clothes, weapons and other gear shift with you. You cannot speak and usually lack manipulative digits while in animal form. Your physical attributes (Body, Reflexes) change into those of a typical animal of the type. You keep skills that the animal form can use. You may not use any Sorcery schtick except this one in animal form, but can substitute Sorcery for MartialArts. Any other modifications your GM feels are sensible also apply, such as appropriate abilities (a scorpions deadly poison, for example) or disabilities at GMs discretion.
Totem
Not all nature sorcerers elect to use this effect. Once you choose a totem, the choice cannot easily be undone.
You choose a specific species of animal to have as a totem. You identify strongly with this type of animal, and this colors your magic. You can still commune with any animal, but can only expect help from your totem animal and friendly animal species. In general, animals will behave towards you as if you were a member of your totem species.
You can purchase and use the Transformed Animals Schticks of your totem animal.
Wilderness Lore
You can use your Sorcery as if it was Investigation and/or Intrusion in wilderness settings.