Spell:Commanding the Beasts

Source: Book of the Emerald Circle by Brian Hon/Limited Reagent

Cost: 10m, 1wp

Circle: Emerald

Type: Simple

Keywords: Emotion, Servitude, War

Duration: Until the next full moon

Glittering streamers Essence only visible to those who can perceive the immaterial issue forth from the sorcerer to wrap around the nearby creatures carrying sorceries of peace, obedience and understanding. This spell affects only natural creatures. It can affect any number of creatures within (Essence x 100) yards at the time of its casting. The sorcerer may choose to limit how many creatures he affects (the spell will affect the nearest first) or limit his spellbinding however he sees fit, such as "red creatures," "carnivores," "creatures weighing 100 pounds or more," "or creatures owned by my enemy." Target creatures that are owned by others can attempt to resist this magic by spending (Essence) Willpower. Well-treated domesticated creatures are more likely to resist. It does not affect Wyld-tainted creatures, familiars, or otherwise supernatural creatures.

The affected creatures are automatically inflicted with a Servitude effect to obey the sorcerer's commands and an Emotion effect that imposes an automatic positive Intimacy toward him which cannot be eroded. When the spell ends, the Intimacy remains, although it can be eroded as normal. Spellbound creatures do not spend Willpower to resist the Servitude or Emotion effect. The magic enables them able to understand complex commands. By Touching a creature and spending five motes as a miscellaneous action, a sorcerer can also imbue it with the gift of speech, in any language he knows, for the duration of this spell. Spellbound creatures have a Control Rating of 0 (see Exalted, p. 154) with respect to the sorcerer.

By default, all spellbound creatures are testy around all people besides the sorcerer, imposing a -(Essence) external penalty on rolls to interact with them socially and have their natural Control Rating. However, the sorcerer can command them otherwise, reducing the penalty by as much as he wishes and reducing their Control Rating by as much as (Essence). Alternatively, the sorcerer can command the creatures to dislike his enemies, increasing their Control Rating by (Essence, maximum 6). Doing so can severely disrupt cavalry and other forces that rely on animals.

The sorcerer (and anyone to whom he entrusts his creatures) gains a +(Essence) dice bonus to interacting with them socially, including Survival rolls to train them.