Rune Masteryv2.3

Rune Mastery

Rune Mastery Rune Mastery, the rather pretentious title for the limited skills practiced by a cadre of Human Wizards. These Wizards are the practitioners of a crude, debased form of the highest of all Dwarf arts, that of Runesmithing. The Wizards in question call themselves Rune Masters. However, the truth is these so-called Rune Masters have little skill when compared with the great Dwarf Rune Lords. The Lore studied by Rune Masters all stems from the teachings of the first Rune Master Dortmund Klauser, who penned “The Book of Runic Mastery” the seminal and extremely heretical work from which all subsequent Rune Mastery would be learned from.

The Origins of Rune Mastery The origins of Rune Mastery are something of a bone of contention, depending on whom you ask there are a number of different stories. All versions agree on a two points: Firstly that Dortmund Klauser was the first Rune Master and secondly that he learned his skills by studying alongside an unnamed Dwarf somewhere between the years 1340-1350. However, from this point onwards the stories disagree, there are three popular views: The first view is that of the Rune Masters themselves, which incidentally tallies with the official historical record of Ostermark the home province of Dortmund Klauser ( a successful Hard -20% Common Knowledge Empire Skill Test will reveal this information ). This version of the tale claims that Dortmund Klauser was a kind and honest scholarly Wizard with interest in metals and alchemy. One day while traversing the Axebite Pass in the Grey Mountains Klauser came across the remains of a dwarfen ore caravan that had met a brutal ambush. While checking for survivors Klauser found a badly injured Dwarf. Klauser cared for the wounded Dwarf and over a period of many months slowly nursed him back to something approaching health. The Wizard and the Dwarf had become firm friends during their time together and the Dwarf had revealed himself to be a Runesmith. The then Dwarf offered to teach Klauser the basic principals of Runesmithing as a way of thanking him for saving his life, Klauser gladly accepted. In time the Runesmith fully recovered and eventually returned to his home in the Grey Mountains. Klauser continued working on the runic theories he had formulated in conjunction with the Page 1

Rune Mastery Dwarf Runesmith for another five years before he met with success. Confident in his new found abilities it was now that Klauser returned to his native Ostermark, wrote his book “The Book of Runic Mastery” and took on a number of carefully selected trustworthy apprentices whom were trained in the arts of Rune Mastery. Dortmund Klauser died some twenty years later peacefully in his sleep after having led a full and productive life, having passed on his knowledge to several worthy successors. The Second view is that most commonly accepted by Dwarfs ( a successful Routine +10% Common Knowledge Dwarfs Skill Test will reveal this information ). However not even the Loremasters of Karak Norn or Karaz-a-Karak have anything more substantial than records of rumours from the time, strangely no credible written evidence was kept on the subject of human Rune Mastery. It has been hypothesised that the dwarfs kept no records because they wanted to hide the fact that humans could learn to inscribe runes. However in 1350 right around the time Klauser was creating Rune Mastery, an army from Karak Norn was crushed by Wood Elves at the Battle of Pine Crags it is entirely possible that all the dwarfs involved in the initial rune mastery incidents were killed. The dwarfen version of the story differs somewhat from the Rune Masters own history. The dwarfs believe that Dortmund Klauser did indeed encounter a Dwarfen Runesmith in the Grey Mountains. However, it was the vile Wizard Klauser along with a group of outlaws and mercenaries in his employ that had ambushed the dwarfen caravan. Purposely so that Klauser could capture the Runesmith. Klauser took the Runesmith prisoner and subjected him to the most excruciating torments imaginable in order to force him to reveal the secrets of Runic Magic. Despite the iron will of the dwarf, eventually after years of systematic torture the Runesmith cracked and began to instruct Klauser on the hidden mysteries of runes. Klauser had taken pains to keep the imprisonment of the Runesmith a secret, however rumours reached the hold of Karak Norn that a dwarfen craftsman was being held captive somewhere near the silver crafting town of Meissen and forced to work for a band of human criminals. A scouting party numbering half a dozen dwarfs was sent to investigate the claims. The dwarfs were horrified to discover the truth and immediately attacked Klauser’s complex. Klauser’s building was burned to the ground and many of his accomplices were killed, but the Rune Master himself escaped, in an act of cowardice Klauser fled during the battle leaving his allies to die, however the dwarfs of Karak Norn believing that Klauser had perished inside the burning workshop returned to the mountains. It was then that Klauser returned to Ostermark, where he set up a new workshop and trained a new batch of apprentices and the spread of Rune Mastery had begun. The third prevalent view is most popular with Witch Hunters and is presented as fact within the pages of the Sigmarite text “Luxquodatrum” ( a successful Academic Knowledge Theology Skill Test will reveal this information ). This view stipulates that the Klauser Runes were created with the help of a chaos dwarf from the Darklands who had come to the Empire to sow the seeds of future ruin. It is claimed in Luxquodatrum that the chaos dwarfs motivation for revealing the secret of runecraft was that the chaos dwarfs hoped to start a war between the humans and their cousins in the World Edge Mountains in which their kin would be so weakened that the chaos dwarfs would then be able to conquer the dwarf kingdoms. Luxquodatrum claims that Dortmund Klauser was a vile Warlock attempting to research, unlock and document the dwarfen art of Runesmithing for his own dark purposes. However, every dwarf Klauser tried to interview would not speak to him. It was after a failed attempt to persuade the dwarfs of Karak Norn to impart some of their knowledge that a dwarf claiming to hail from a great northern city called Zharr Naggrund located beyond the World Edge Mountains approached Klauser. The dwarf told Klauser that he would be willing to share some of the secrets of rune magic as long as Klauser did not name him. He explained that the other dwarfs were only standoffish because they feared losing their position as the Old Worlds foremost weaponsmiths and that he was worried about repercussions from his own people should they learn he had shared the knowledge of runes Page 2

Rune Mastery with mere humans. Klauser readily agreed and the dwarf began to instruct him in the arts of runecraft, after six months of study Klauser had made sufficient progress to continued alone, so the dwarf departed. Over the next few years Klauser developed his runic system and began to teach others his new art. It is recorded that a number of the smiths aiding Klauser in his research were found mysteriously dead with a strange unknown signal as the only mark upon their corpses, it is claimed in Luxquodatrum that this mark belongs to Hashut, the Bull God of the Chaos Dwarfs and is documented as one of his symbols. An interesting side note is that this mark has never been seen anywhere except on the bodies of Rune Masters, so although officially filed as such the mark has not been corroborated as one of Hashut’s signals. The record in the Luxquodatrum states that Klauser fled the town of Meissen after the authorities began to investigate the suspicious deaths of Klauser’s colleagues, burning his workshop to the ground before leaving to prevent the investigators from learning the truth of his activities. Klauser then returned to Ostermark where he re-equipped his workshop and took on a new draft of apprentices. With whom Klauser began crafting a whole array of cursed weaponry, slowly at first but later in sufficient quantities to arm legions that would one day raise them in the name of Hashut Father of Darkness.

The Legacy of Dortmund Klauser: The Rise of Rune Mastery The first glimmers of Rune Mastery as a separate widespread form of magic began just under a thousand years ago during the time of Three Emperors some two hundred years after Klauser first struck a rune. At this time the Empire was in a state of near constant unrest and upheaval, with each of the Imperial Electors striving to gain the upper hand. Early in the year of 1542 the Emperor in Talabheim had been showcased a human made runic sword by human Rune Master Albrecht the Maker who gave assurances that more could be made with the correct support. While the sword was not nearly as powerful as the Emperor’s own Runefang it had impressed the Emperor. So the in the summer of 1542 the Emperor ordered that all the Rune Masters in the Empire be brought to Talabheim. Where they were set to work making the armaments that would soon be used to crush the pretenders in Nuln and Middenheim. Alongside this command went another silent order that any Rune Master that refused the call to Talabheim should be killed, lest their skills fall into the hands of others. In these tasks both the agents and assassins of Talabheim proved most successful, by the close of 1544 almost every Rune Master in the Empire was either labouring in Talabheim or dead. It was at the beginning of the campaign season of 1545 that strange yet powerful weapons and artefacts began to appear within the ranks of the soldiers of Talabecland. It had long been known that the dwarfs had the ability to craft weapons of great power that no human craftsman could ever hope to match, indeed each of the Electors held one of the legendary Runefangs as a badge of office and very occasionally other dwarfen runic items would surface in the lands of men. But this was different, entire companies were armed with nightmare weaponry that burst into balls of fire or cut through their opponents armour as if it were made of parchment. The Emperor of Talabecland had unleashed the stockpile of deadly rune weapons on to his enemies and woe befell them. The Emperor of Nuln having no idea about the legion of human Rune Masters slaving away in Talabheim immediately concluded that the dwarfs of the World Edge Mountains had abandoned their strict code of neutrality towards the various factions within the Empire and formed an alliance with Talabecland to equip the armies of the East with power weapons. The Reikland Alliance took great pains to capture one of the “Dwarf” weapons and compare it to their own Runefang. Even to their untrained eyes it was clear that the captured sword was not of the same level of craftsmanship as a Runefang, but the sword was unmistakably inscribed with runes. The Reikland Page 3

Rune Mastery princes had always claimed a far greater kinship with holy Sigmar and therefore took the alliance of men and dwarfs far more seriously than some of the other imperial states. So it was decided that an expedition led by knight Sir Sigmund Woclauen and Sigmarite Lector Gunthar Reisohre would travel across the Empire, through enemy territory and into the World Edge Mountains to seek out the dwarfen seat of power, Karaz-a-Karak to discover the nature of the bargain that the Emperor of Talabheim had struck and why the dwarfs would break their vow of neutrality after so many years. The trip was long and perilous but eventually the Reiklanders arrived at the dwarf capital. Where they identified themselves as representatives of Sigmar’s Empire and were granted an audience with the High King. At the audience Lector Gunthar presented the “Rune Sword” to the Dwarf King, before the Lector could even begin to ask his own questions the Dwarf King demanded to know where the sword had come from. Lector Reisohre explained that it had been taken in battle from the army of Talabecland and that their reason for visiting Karaz-a-Karak was to ask the dwarfs about the sword. The High King summoned his councillors which included several Rune Lords to examine the so-called Rune Sword. It was quite obvious to them that the Sword was not the work of any dwarf. One of the venerable Loremasters recalled that once a life time before there had been a report of human attempts at copying the art of runesmithing, it had been believed that these attempts had never come to anything, but obviously they had. The Dwarf King was already facing a number of problems in his own kingdom but would never ignore such a slight to dwarf honour and if an accommodation could not be reached he would be forced to take the dwarfen race into a war against mankind. At this point the Human inscribing of runes was added to the great Book of Grudges. So it came to pass that in 1547 a treaty of friendship was agreed with only the Emperor of Nuln, among other agreements the treaty stipulated that the human making of runes and the trading of human made runic items was thereafter outlawed and punishable by death, any human made runic item was to be confiscated and destroyed. Failure to comply with this edict would result in a state of open warfare with the entire dwarfen race. The Emperor in Middenheim learning of the treaty quickly sent an ambassador to Karaz-a-Karak to pledge his fellowship to dwarfkind and wholeheartedly agreed to the dwarfs terms for a treaty of mutual protection. The Emperor in Talabheim now facing the prospect of an all out war with both the dwarf kingdom and the other electors wasted no time in sending an appeasement party to the Dwarf King, pledging friendship and also not only agreeing the outlaw of human runes but suggesting the elevation of this crime to that of heresy. Within the province of Talabecland the iron claw of the Witch Hunters descended on the Rune Masters so recently employed by the same ruler. Many Rune Masters or suspected Rune Masters were burned for their heresy, first amongst them was Albrecht the Maker the Rune Master that originally brought the prospect of rune weapons to the Emperor and had presided over the construction of Talabecland‘s fearsome array of weaponry. Officially the entire stock of human made rune weapons was destroyed, but rumours have abounded ever since that a cache of the most powerful runic items still exists under lock and key somewhere within the Electors Palace. Some small lucky few Rune Masters escaped the carnage and lived to continue their practices in secret, passing down the traditions of Rune Mastery even until the present day, but never again would the Rune Masters unite.

The Life of a Rune Master It is impossible for a Rune Master to operate openly within the boundaries of the Empire, Bretonnians are naturally suspicious of anything mystic, Kislev is bounded by it’s own tradition of Ice Magic, even within the largely lawless Border Princes a Rune Master must Page 4

Rune Mastery beware of dwarf reprisals. So a modern Rune Master lives in shade and shadow and will most often be found working under the guise of a legitimate career as either a craftsman or of a licensed wizard. Most often runic items are passed off as the work of dwarfs. But to much trade arouses suspicion. So a trick adopted by many Rune Masters has been to conceal the inscribed rune, many swords that would have once proudly born a rune upon their blades now have them concealed beneath the leather wrapped hilt, armour is marked on the inside and so on. Runes are sometimes concealed amongst other meaningless ornamentation added to an item to conceal the true inscription. Even with these tricks up their sleeves all Rune Masters live in constant fear of discover, they rarely stay in one place for more than a few years at a time and try to avoid dwarfs at all costs. Most modern Rune Masters have given up attempting to create new runes, as by all accounts no Rune Master except Klauser has ever had the ability to created a rune from scratch, although some still try. Rune Masters today still learn the catalogue of runes Klauser crafted and copy them. The legitimate magical colleges of the Old World officially have absolutely no contact with Rune Masters but in recent years a rumour surfaced around the Colleges of Magic that the accident that robbed Supreme Patriarch Balthasar Gelt of his face was caused by a failed experiment involving a dwarfen rune weapon and that Gelt is secretly a Rune Master attempting to crack the secrets of rune magic. Whether this is true or simply malicious gossip spread by Gelt’s jealous rivals is unknown, although it seems highly unlikely that a heretical Rune Master would have been allowed to become the head of an Order, let alone Supreme Patriarch.

Advances of Rune Mastery Although Rune Mastery may be a poor-relation to true Runesmithing, Dortmund Klauser did establish some remarkable breakthroughs in his life time: Real dwarfen runesmiths always manufacture the items that they are going to inscribe as they view the inscription of runes as part of the creation process and in order to engrave the runes correctly a dwarf must have made the item from scratch. Human Rune Masters do not understand the intricacies of runesmithing, they view the manufacture of an item and it’s inscription as two separate tasks. As a result a human Rune Master may inscribe Klauser runes on to items that were crafted by others. However, if the Rune Master does craft the item to be inscribed himself he will find it easier to work with as the Rune Master will have formed a bond with the item while crafting it, the longer spent crafting the item the easier it will be to inscribe ( See the Inscription Roll Modifiers Table below ). True dwarfen Runesmiths have many rules to obey when it comes to which runes to inscribe and the combinations they may be inscribed in, such as the rule of three and the rule of pride ( See p210 Realms of Sorcery for more details ). Human Rune Masters have no rules on combination as they do not understand the relationship between different runes, Human Rune Masters may also inscribe as many Klauser runes to a given item as they dare ( See Creating a Runic Item below ). A true dwarfen Runesmith takes pride in his work, every rune is inscribed with the proper care and attention to make sure that every detail is exactly right, so that the finished rune is a work of art in it’s own right. This does however take a great deal of time a dwarfen Runesmith may labour for years to inscribe a single perfect rune. The Human Rune Masters with their imperfect grasp of inscribing runes and lesser craftsmanship have lower standards as no human Rune Master could ever hope to match the craft level of a Page 5

Rune Mastery dwarf Runesmith, this brings the advantage of being able to inscribe Klauser Runes far faster. A human Rune Master can often finish inscribing several Klauser Runes on to an item in less time than a dwarfen Runesmith takes on a single rune. Dwarfs have no ability to channel the Winds of Magic and therefore rely on the use of the Anvils of Doom to aid them by focusing magical energy for them to entrap within a runic item. Humans however do have the ability to channel the Winds of Magic as a result of this Klauser was able to discover a method by which Rune Masters could inscribe items without the need for an Anvil of Doom to focus the mystic energy, meaning that a Human Rune Master can work with a normal forge.

Disadvantages of Rune Mastery Dortmund Klauser may have made a number of breakthroughs but even he could not grasp many of the fundamental principles of Runesmithing. Klauser only ever learned to engrave runes which requires hard materials such as metals. Klauser never managed to understand how to inscribe runes into soft items such as cloths. As a result Klauser never created runes for banners or clothing, this means that all Klauser runes must be inscribed on to either metallic items or gemstones. Another problem that this created was that because Klauser could only seal mystical energy inside engraved runes he could never master temporary runes, so although Klauser was able to engrave permanent runes faster than any dwarf every rune had to be permanent. The biggest disadvantage of Rune Mastery is simply the lack of power. Klauser’s imperfect knowledge of runecraft directly affected how much energy he could seal within a rune as a result the runes available to a human Rune Master are generally far less powerful than those of the true dwarfen Runesmiths.

The Legend of Vlax Manslayer The name and origins of the Dwarfen Runesmith who taught Dortmund Klauser his secrets has never been reliably accounted. But amongst both Dwarfs and Rune Masters exists the legend of Vlax Manslayer. Vlax is as his name would suggest a Slayer, however he specialises in hunting down and slaying human Rune Masters. The true identity of Vlax is a mystery, some claim he is the original Runesmith who trained Klauser kept live for over a thousand years by the strength of his grudge, others claim he was the Runesmith’s brother, father or son, another claim is that he is merely an unconnected dwarf or that he is in fact a succession of Slayers all taking it upon themselves to rid the world of the abomination of Rune Mastery, a further claim still is that any time any dwarf kills a Rune Master he claims that “Vlax Manslayer did it”. What ever the truth of the matter the name Vlax Manslayer is well known and rightly feared by all Human Rune Masters.

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Rune Mastery

Rune Master Careers, Skills & Talents Career: Rune Master’s Apprentice Note: Only Humans can enter this Career. At the GM’s approval this career may be substituted for that of Apprentice Wizard or Hedge Apprentice. WS

BS

S

T

Ag

Int

WP

Fel

A

W

SB

TB

M

Mag

IP

FP

+5

-

+5

+5

+10

+10

+10

-

-

+2

-

-

-

+1

-

-

Skills: Academic Knowledge ( Klauser Runes ), Channelling, Drive or Ride, Evaluate or Perception, Magical Sense, Read/Write, Rune Mastery, Speak Arcane Language ( Mystic Khazalid ),Trade one of:( Armourer, Jeweller, Smith, Weaponsmith ). Talents: Coolheaded, Klauser Runes ( any two ). Trappings: Leather Jack, Leather Apron, Trade Tools ( as appropriate ), Access to a copy of “ The Book of Runic Mastery ” by Dortmund Klauser. Career Entries: Apprentice Wizard, Artisan, Forger, Hedge Apprentice, Scholar, Student. Career Exits: Apprentice Wizard, Hedge Apprentice, Rune Master, Scribe, Student.

Career: Rune Master Note: Only Humans can enter this Career. WS

BS

S

T

Ag

Int

WP

Fel

A

W

SB

TB

M

Mag

IP

FP

+10

-

+10

+10

+20

+15

+20

+5

-

+3

-

-

-

+2

-

-

Skills: Academic Knowledge ( Klauser Runes, Runes ), Channelling, Drive or Gossip, Common Knowledge ( any two ), Evaluate or Read/Write, Magical Sense or Perception, Ride or Swim, Rune Mastery, Speak Arcane Language ( Mystic Khazalid ), Speak Language ( Classical ), Trade ( any two ). Talents: Aethyric Attunement, Artistic, Hardy, Klauser Runes ( any four ), Seasoned Traveller. Trappings: Small Anvil, Good Quality Trade Tools ( as appropriate ), 2 Runic Items, Good Quality Clothes, a Copy of “ The Book of Runic Mastery ” by Dortmund Klauser, 20gcs. Career Entries: Apprentice Rune Master. Career Exits: Apprentice Wizard, Artisan, Hedge Apprentice, Runic Grand Master, Student. Page 7

Rune Mastery

Career: Runic Grand Master Note: Only Humans can enter this Career. WS

BS

S

T

Ag

Int

WP

Fel

A

W

SB

TB

M

Mag

IP

FP

+10

+5

+10

+10

+25

+25

+25

+10

-

+4

-

-

-

+3

-

-

Skills: Academic Knowledge ( Engineering, Klauser Runes, Runes, Science ), Channelling, Common Knowledge ( any two ), Evaluate or Haggle, Gossip or Swim, Magical Sense or Perception, Read/Write, Rune Mastery, Speak Arcane Language ( Mystic Khazalid ), Speak Language ( any two ), Trade ( any three ). Talents: Controlled Channelling, Klauser Runes ( any ten ), Savvy, Strong-Minded. Trappings: Large Well Equipped Workshop, Best Quality Trade Tools ( as appropriate ), 4 Runic Items, Several Sets of Best Quality Clothing, 100gcs, Respectable Façade, Aversion to Dwarfs. Career Entries: Rune Master. Career Exits: Apprentice Wizard, Artisan, Engineer, Hedge Apprentice, Merchant, Scholar.

New Skills and Talents Academic Knowledge ( Klauser Runes ) Skill Type: Advanced. Characteristic: Intelligence. Description: Use this skill to identify unknown runes and recall details about their manufacture and traits. Note: This Skill confers no ability with true dwarfen runes. If faced with an unknown dwarf rune a successful test against this skill will only reveal that the rune is not one of Klauser’s runes. Related Talents: None. Reference: Rune Mastery fanmade document. Rune Mastery Skill Type: Advanced. Characteristic: Will Power. Description: Use this skill to empower magical runes. Rune Mastery is the basis of the Rune Masters abilities. This Skill allows you to trap mystic forces within a rune creating enchanted items of great power. Human Rune Masters can only empower runes inscribed on to hard materials such metals or gemstones. They may not inscribe soft materials such as cloths. All Klauser Runes are permanent. Note this Skill is not used to identify runes nor does it confer any ability to create or inscribe true dwarfen runes. Related Talents: None. Page 8

Rune Mastery Reference: Rune Mastery fanmade document. Speak Arcane Language ( Mystic Khazalid ) Skill Type: Advanced. Characteristic: Intelligence Description: Use this skill to help in the creation of runes infused with mystical power. Rune Masters perform the chants and rituals necessary for rune empowerment in the Mystic Khazalid language. Mystic Khazalid is a combination of Arcane Dwarf, Common Khazalid and Reikspiel. Knowledge of Mystic Khazalid does not require or indicate any ability to speak any of the parent languages. Related Talents: None. Reference: Rune Mastery fanmade document. Klauser Rune ( Talent ) Description: You have unlocked the secret of a magical rune and now provided that you have gained the Rune Mastery Skill you can inscribe an object with it. Klauser Rune is unusual in that it is not one talent but many, and each must be acquired individually. Each Klauser Rune talent is a separate proficiency with its name noted in parenthesis. For example, Klauser Rune ( Flight ) is a different talent than Klauser Rune ( Swiftness ). All Klauser Rune Talents must be picked from The Catalogue of Klauser Runes ( See Below ). Klauser Runes can be learned without restriction by any human even if they have already learned other forms of magic. Reference: Rune Mastery fanmade document. Controlled Channelling ( Talent ) Description: After a great deal of practice you have become skilled in the arts of channelling mystical energies to be trapped within runes. From now on when making your Inscription Roll you may choose how many dice to roll instead of being forced to roll as many dice as possible. Note: You must still roll an extra dice that counts towards Tzeentch’s Curse and you must still deduct the score of the highest dice from your total. Note: This Talent may only be gained by Rune Masters. Reference: Rune Mastery fanmade document.

Creating a Runic Item First of all the Rune Masters must have a Magic Characteristic of +1 or higher as well as having learned the Channelling, Rune Mastery and Speak Arcane Language ( Mystic Khazalid ) Skills along with having learned at least one Klauser Rune Talent. Secondly the Rune Master must have the item to be inscribed with the runes. This can either be made by the Rune Master himself or bought from another craftsman. Once a Rune Master has his item he can begin inscribing. Human Rune Masters can only successfully inscribe Klauser Runes on to hard materials such metals or gemstones. Each Klauser Rune has an Empowerment number this indicates how many successful Rune Mastery Skill Tests must be completed in order to successfully inscribe that specific Klauser Rune. A human Rune Master may take a Rune Mastery Skill Test once per day provided that the Rune Master has spent at least four hours of that day working on inscribing the rune, failure indicates that the Rune Master must try again the next day and that days work did not count towards the Page 9

Rune Mastery Empowerment total. Once the required number of successful Rune Unstable Energy Mastery Tests has been achieved the Rune Master must attempt to Dwarf Runesmiths use the Anvils of Doom to focus the seal the Rune, this is done in the form of a single Test. Each Klauser magical power required to create runes, resulting in a Rune has an Inscription Number this statistic is similar to a Casting very stable source of channelled energy. Human Rune Number but slightly different. The Rune Master must roll equal to or Masters channel the magic themselves, this coupled higher than the Inscription Number using a number of d10’s equal to with the humans inherent lack of true understanding of his Magic Characteristic plus one additional dice, the dice with the runecraft makes Rune Mastery far less stable than True highest score is then deducted from the total, but counts for the Dwarfen Runecraft. To represent this lack of control purposes of Tzeentch‘s Curse. Next consult the Inscription Roll when a Rune Master tries to seal a rune by rolling equal Modifiers table below to determine the final total. If the Inscription Roll to or higher than the Inscription Number he must use as is successful the Klauser Rune is successfully inscribed and the item many dice as possible ( I.e. the same number as his becomes enchanted. If however the Inscription Roll is successful but the Rune Master triggers Tzeentch’s Curse not only does the Rune Magic Characteristic ) plus an additional one. The dice Master suffer the ordinary affects of Tzeentch’s Curse, but the Klauser with the highest result is then dropped and only counts rune has been inscribed with a Flaw. The Klauser Rune works as for the purposes of Tzeentch’s Curse. The most skilled expected but each time you use the rune you must roll a d1000 on the Rune Masters do gain some degree of control over the Klauser Rune Flaws table below to determine the side effects caused amount of magical energy they channel in the form of by the Flaw. If the Inscription Roll is failed the energy becomes the Controlled Channelling Talent. unstable and the item explodes, Use the small template to determine who is hit, any one caught in the explosion takes a damage 6 hit, Armour and Toughness protect as normal. The Item is totally destroyed by the blast.

Inscribing Multiple Klauser Runes to one Item In theory an item may be inscribed with as many Klauser Runes as the Rune Master wishes, it simply becomes progressively more difficult and dangerous as well as more time consuming to keep inscribing additional Klauser runes. When inscribing an extra Klauser Rune on an item already bearing one or more Klauser Runes the Empowerment Numbers of all the Klauser Runes is added together to equal the number of successful Rune Mastery Still Tests that must be achieved in order to successfully inscribe the additional rune. In a similar manner the Inscription Numbers of all the Klauser Runes are added together to give a new Inscription Number that must be equalled of surpassed in order to successfully seal the additional rune. For Example if a Rune Master were to inscribe a Klauser Rune of Cutting and Smashing ( Inscription Number 8, Empowerment 4 ) he would need to pass 4 Rune Mastery Tests and then roll an 8 or higher on his Inscription Roll. If the Rune Master were then to decide to inscribe a Klauser Rune of Flight ( Inscription Number 6, Empowerment 3 ) he would be required to pass 7 Rune Mastery Tests and then roll 14 or higher on his Inscription Roll.

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Rune Mastery

Table of Inscription Roll Modifiers Conditions the Klauser Rune is Inscribed Under

Modifier to Inscription Roll

Rune Master crafted the item to be inscribed himself

+1

Rune Master crafted the item to be inscribed himself and the item is of a level of Good Craftsmanship.

+2

Rune Master crafted the item to be inscribed himself and the item is of a level of Best Craftsmanship.

+3

Rune Master successfully passes a Channelling Test

+ Mag Characteristic of the Rune Master

Rune Master uses Best Quality Trade Tools during the Inscribing process

+1

Rune Master uses Poor Quality Trade Tools During the Inscribing Process

-1

Rune Master is under the effects of Alcohol or Drugs

-10

The Rune Master has previously successfully inscribed this specific Klauser Rune 5 times or more

+1

The Rune Master has never successfully inscribed this specific Klauser Rune before

-2

The Catalogue of Klauser Runes The Runes invented by Dortmund Klauser are still the limits of what a Rune Master can achieve. The Klauser Runes are presented in a similar form to the true dwarfen runes found in the Realms of Sorcery supplement. However all Klauser Runes are permanent as human Rune Masters have never developed the skill of inscribing temporary runes. So all the descriptions below can be considered to be for permanent runes. Klauser Rune of Armour Type: Armour. Inscription Number: 6 Empowerment: 4 Description: When this rune is inscribed to a piece of metallic armour it confers a +1 bonus to the number of Armour Points that the armour bestows. This can raise the total number of Armour Points on any given location to Page 11

Rune Mastery above 5. The effects of more than one of these Klauser runes are cumulative. Klauser Rune of Blindsight Type: Talisman. Inscription Number: 9 Empowerment: 7 Description: When this Klauser Rune is inscribed to an item usually a medallion or pendant, the wearer gains the Keen Senses and Night Vision Talents. If the wearer already has either talent he cannot claim any extra bonus to them. Klauser Rune of Cruel Metal Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 16 Empowerment: 11 Description: This Klauser Rune can only be inscribed on to a weapon with a sharpened metal edge such as a sword or axe. Injuries inflicted by weapons bearing this rune remain open and continuing to bleed for days after the wounds were inflicted. Any hit from a weapon bearing this rune that causes Wound loss will cause the victim to lose 1 additional Wound in every subsequent round. If the victim survives the battle he may staunch the blood flow. However the victim will continue to lose 1 Wound Point per day that cannot be healed until he has received medical attention. Magical Healing, Healing Draughts and the like will restore the usual amount of Wounds but will not stop the bleeding. A successful Heal Skill Test is required to stop the bleeding but it will not restore any lost wounds. The following day the victim will begin to heal again as normal. Klauser Rune of Cutting and Smashing Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 6 Empowerment: 4 Description: When inscribed on to a weapon this rune adds a +1 damage bonus to all blows dealt by that weapon. If this Klauser rune causes a wound that would not have been caused without it, the rune will cease to function until sunrise of the following morning. The effects of more than one of these Klauser runes are cumulative. Klauser Rune of Fearful Flight Type: Armour. Inscription Number: 10 Empowerment: 4 Description: This Klauser rune must be inscribed on to a metallic helm. When the rune is activated via a mental command from the wearer, he gains the Frightening Talent for the next 15 minutes. After which the rune will cease to function until sunrise of the next day. Page 12

Rune Mastery Klauser Rune of Flame and Ash Type: Talisman, Weapon. Inscription Number: 16 Empowerment: 9 Description: When this Klauser Rune is inscribed on to an Item it will erupt into flames at the owners mental command, the owner of the item can give the command from up to 12 yards away ( the definition of owner of the item is the last person to have possession of it for 24 hours ). When the Item bursts into flames it causes a damage 4 hit to everything within a three yard radius and ignites any flammable objects struck by the flames. The runic item is unharmed by the flames. This Klauser Rune is most often inscribed on throwing weapons, but has been rather nastily inscribed on pieces of jewellery, given as gifts and then used as firebombs within the day. This Rune ceases to function until sunrise the following day after being used once. Klauser Rune of Flight Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 6 Empowerment: 3 Description: When this Klauser rune is inscribed on a weapon it will ensure that when the weapon is thrown it will always hit the intended target. Normal range limits apply. After one use this Klauser rune will cease to work until sunrise of the following day. However the thrower of the weapon need not use the power of the Klauser rune until he wishes, For Example a throwing axe could be thrown three times using the Ballistic Skill Characteristic as normal but the fourth time the thrower decides to use the power of the Klauser Rune and automatically hits, the Klauser rune then ceases to function until sunrise. Klauser Rune of Greater Constitution Type: Talisman. Inscription Number: 14 Empowerment: 6 Description: The wearer of an item bearing this Klauser rune gains a +10% bonus when dealing with Disease and Poison Tests. This can be cumulative with the Resistance to Disease and Resistance to Poison Talents. Klauser Rune of Great Death Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 50 Empowerment: 90 Description: A weapon inscribed with this Klauser Rune will kill any being that it wounds. This Klauser Rune is recorded in The Book of Runic Mastery, a footnote beside it’s description reads “ that only a god may inscribe this rune ” .There is no mention of which god and Page 13

Rune Mastery this has added fuel to the fire as far as Witch Hunters are concerned. Although this Klauser rune is listed no known weapons have ever been found to bear it. Several Rune Masters that have attempted the inscription of this rune have later been found dead without an obvious cause. Note: It is left up to the GM exactly how to implement this Klauser Rune. Klauser Rune of Lesser Death Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 29 Empowerment: 30 Description: This Klauser rune is always inscribed on a weapon, the rune empowers the weapon with the ability to inflict an automatic Critical Hit on that location ( roll 1d10 to determine severity of the Critical Hit ) regardless of remaining Wounds to any member of a specific race with a single blow provided that the blow causes at least one Wound Point of damage. Each Klauser Rune of Lesser Death affects one group of creatures such as Chaos Creatures, Elves, Greenskins etc... Note: In order to inscribe this Klauser rune the Rune Master must have killed at least one creature from the group in question at some point in their lives. Klauser Rune: Hint of Death Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 19 Empowerment: 14 Description: This Klauser rune is always inscribed on a weapon, the rune empowers the weapon with the ability to inflict an automatic Critical Hit on that location ( roll 1d10 to determine severity of the Critical Hit ) regardless of remaining Wounds to any member of a specific racial group with a single blow provided that the blow causes at least one Wound Point of damage. Each Klauser Hint of Death rune affects one specific racial group of creatures such as High Elves, Orcs, Imperial Humans etc... For Example a sword inscribed with a Klauser Hint of Savage Orc Death would cause an automatic Critical Hit against Savage Orcs but count as an ordinary weapon against Common Orcs. Note: In order to inscribe this Klauser rune the Rune Master must have killed at least one creatures from the racial group in question at some point in their lives. Klauser Rune of Protection Type: Armour, Weapon, Talisman. Inscription Number: 9 Empowerment: 7 Description: This Klauser rune may be inscribed on to any type of object, as long as the runic item is in the bearers possession he will gain a +10% Will Power bonus to all Tests to resist the affects of magic. The effects of more than one of these Klauser runes are not cumulative.

Page 14

Rune Mastery Klauser Rune of Recovery Type: Talisman. Inscription Number: 8 Empowerment: 2 Description: This Klauser rune allows the wearer to recover +2 Wounds a day through natural healing instead of the usual +1 Wound per day. Klauser Rune of Refracted Light Type: Armour. Inscription Number: 13 Empowerment: 7 Description: When this rune is activated via a mental command from the wearer a multihued bubble of distorting light forms around him making him hard to see clearly. The wearer’s opponents receive a -10% penalty to their Weapon Skill and Ballistic Skill when attempting to hit the wearer. This rune will work for one hour after being activated, at the end of this period the rune will cease to function until sunrise of the following day. Klauser Rune of Renewal Type: Armour, Weapon, Talisman. Inscription Number: 11 Empowerment: 3 Description: This simple Klauser rune may be inscribed on to any type of object. This Klauser rune has the power to renew any other rune that has cease to function. Any time another Klauser rune ceases to function the rune bearer is allowed a single Will Power Test to revive the dormant rune which on a successful test can be used again. This Klauser rune will never be found inscribed alone. Klauser Rune of Return Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 5 Empowerment: 4 Description: When this Klauser rune is inscribed on to a weapon it will empower the weapon with the ability to fly back to it’s owners hand. If the runic weapon is thrown or dropped it can be commanded just by thought to return to it’s owners hand. This Rune ceases to function until sunrise the following day after being used once. Klauser Rune of Shinning Defence Type: Armour, Talisman. Inscription Number: 3 Page 15

Rune Mastery Empowerment: 1 Description: At the bearer’s mental command this rune will shoot out a blinding burst of white light directly at one creature within 4 yards of the rune bearer. The creature must pass a Challenging ( -10% ) Agility Test in order to avert their eyes in time. If the Test is failed the creature is blinded for 2 rounds. This rune will then cease to function until sunrise the following day. Klauser Rune of Speed Type: Talisman. Inscription Number: 7 Empowerment: 8 Description: The bearer of this Klauser rune may move at an accelerated rate. The bearer gains a +1 bonus to his Movement Characteristic while the runic item is in his possession. The effects of more than one of these Klauser runes are not cumulative. Klauser Spell Rune Type: Armour, Weapon, Talisman. Inscription Number: 14 + the Casting Number of the Spell to be Inscribed. Empowerment: 13 Description: Dortmund Klauser was a Wizard prior to developing the art of Rune Mastery, this Klauser rune allows any object to be inscribed with a spell of the Rune Masters choice and grants the rune bearer the ability to cast the spell with no Casting Roll and no chance of Tzeentch’s Curse. The rune bearer need not be a spell caster to use this rune. To cast a spell in this way takes the same number of actions as it normally would. This Rune ceases to function until sunrise the following day after being used once. The Rune Master must have the ability to cast the spell he wishes to infuse the Klauser rune with. The base Inscription Number for this Klauser Rune is 14 but when making the Inscription Roll to seal the rune the Rune Master must add the Casting Number of the Spell to be trapped within the Klauser rune to gain the true Inscription Number. For Example if a Rune Master wished to inscribe a Spell Rune with a Lightning Bolt Spell ( Casting Number 10 ) then the Inscription Number of the Spell Rune would be ( 14 + 10 )= 24. Klauser Rune of Swiftness Type: Weapon. Inscription Number: 7 Empowerment: 9 Description: This Klauser rune may only be inscribed on to a weapon, it grants the weapon the Fast Quality or in the case of weapons with the Slow Quality such as great weapons it simply negates the Slow Quality. The effects of more than one of these Klauser runes are not cumulative. Klauser Rune of Water Walking Type: Talisman. Page 16

Rune Mastery Inscription Number: 8 Empowerment: 5 Description: Once activated via a mental command this Klauser rune allows the bearer to walk upon water or any other wet ground such as a marsh at the normal rate for 10 minutes. At the end of this period the rune will cease to function until sunrise of the following day.

Table of Klauser Rune Flaws If the Rune Master successfully inscribes a rune but suffers from Tzeentch’s Curse when rolling for the Inscription Test to seal the Klauser Rune, the rune in question works as it should do unless stated otherwise, but develops a Flaw. Often the Flaw is a result of an imperfect seal which in turn causes magical energy to seep out into the world. This wild magic has highly unpredictable consequences. Every time the Rune is used Roll a d1000 and consult the table below to determine the effects of the Flaw. d100 Result

Description of Flaw

01-100

No Effect: The Klauser Rune works as expected with no usual side affects.

101-115

Attraction of Destiny: The magical forces seeping into the world via the imperfect seal of the Klauser Rune ever so slightly warps reality around the rune bearer. The rune bearer gains 1 Fortune Point, which must be spent before the end of the day of else it is lost anyway. Note: The Fortune Point is only gained for one day it is not restored the following day.

116-130

Nausea: The rune bearer suffers from mild nausea. The rune bearer must take a -5% penalty to his Toughness until he has rested for at least an hour.

131-145

Aethyric Attraction: When this Klauser Rune was sealed it did not have quite enough magical energy to stabilise fully. As a result the mystic energy trapped within the rune has created a temporary invisible vortex to absorb more energy from the Winds of Magic surrounding the bearer. The bearer of this rune receives a +1d10 bonus to all Will Power Tests to resist the effects of magic as incoming spells have a portion of their power absorbed. However, if the rune bearer is a spell caster he receives a -5 penalty to all Casting Rolls and a -10% penalty to all Channelling Tests for the next hour unless the bearer abandons the runic item.

146-150

Worst Case Scenario: During the Inscribing of this Klauser Rune the soul of a Daemon was accidentally channelled and sealed inside the rune ( the type of Daemon is either decided on by the GM or generated at random see p236 Tome of Corruption for details on Daemon creation). The Daemon attempts to take control of the bearer of the runic item. The bearer must win an Opposed Will Power Test against the Daemon or else the Daemon takes control of his body. Everyday the possessed character can attempt another Opposed Will Power Test to regain control of his body.

151-165

Dwarfen Hatred: Klauser Runes and Dwarfs are old enemies. The Klauser Rune shares the feelings of hatred the dwarfs feel towards them with the rune bearer. For as long as the rune bearer is in possession of the item inscribed with this Klauser Rune he will gain the a +5% bonus to his Weapon Skill and Strength Characteristics when fighting Dwarfs.

166-180

Great Understanding: A surge of magical energy fills the rune bearers mind, allowing him for a short time to view the world with far more clarity than ever before. However the price for this mental high can take a severe toll. The rune bearer gains a +3d10% bonus to his Intelligence Characteristic for the next 5 Minutes, at the end of which the rune bearer must pass a Will Power Test or else lose 1d5% from his Intelligence Characteristic permanently (the afore mentioned Will Power Test is considered to be resisting the effects of a magical attack and any bonuses to resisting magic apply as normal).

181-190

Dazed and Confused: When this Klauser Rune was sealed the energy inside did not stabilise correctly and sometimes extra energy is discharged when the rune is used. The bearer of this Klauser Rune must pass an Routine ( +10% ) Will Power Test or else be stunned by the backlash of the escaping magic. Stunned characters are unable to act in any way for 1 round after which they recover automatically.

Page 17

Rune Mastery 191-205

Bad Luck: The Klauser Rune is bleeding power and affects the run of chance in the material world. The rune bearer loses 1 Fortune Point.

206-220

Melody: The Klauser Rune becomes unstable an begins to vibrate, the resonance between the rapidly moving runic item and the air causes a soft musical sound. This causes no harm to the rune bearer, however Skills such as Silent Move become impossible to use.

221-235

Minor Cosmetic Change: The rune bearer’s eyes change colour for the rest of the day. Brown eyes turn Blue, Blue turn Green and Green turn Brown.

236-250

Fuel for the Flame: The magical energy within the Klauser Rune fluctuates. Without enough energy available to perform it’s function the rune draws on energy from the rune bearer. The bearer of this runic item must lose 3 Wounds. Any Critical Hits are assumed to be to the Body

251-265

Weak Bladder: The bearer of this Klauser Rune develops a weak bladder, every couple of hours the bearer must stop and urinate, if the bearer sleeps for more than two hours at any one time he or she will wet the bed. This may be socially embarrassing but does not in fact cause any lasting harm to the bearer of the Klauser Rune. The bearers bladder will recover with one week.

266-275

Nightmares: The magical energy contained within this rune is fractured and unstable, at times the energy flares, projecting disturbing scenes of the Chaos Realm into the bearer of the runic item’s mind. The bearer of the item inscribed with this Klauser Rune will be afflicted with crazy nightmares the next time he tries to sleep. The next time he sleeps he must pass a Challenging ( -10% ) Will Power Test or else gain 1 Insanity Point. Failure by 3 degrees or more indicates that the nightmares have been especially horrific and the rune bearer gains 1d5 Insanity Points as a result.

276-290

Heat of Forge: The item bearing this Klauser Rune becomes amazingly hot when used as the power sealed within the flawed rune rages throughout the item seeking a way to escape. The heat will sear the bearer even through thick leather, wood or metal less than two inches thick. After using the item bearing this Klauser Rune the bearer must drop the item or else receive a damage 1 hit from burns. The item will remain to hot to handle even with gloves for 1d10 rounds.

291-300

Anxious: The mystic force contained within this Klauser Rune seeps out due to the imperfect sealing. The movement of this energy makes the bearer’s skin crawl, he is constantly uneasy, distracted and finds it hard to concentrate. The bearer suffers from a -5% penalty to all Tests based on the Intelligence, Will Power and Fellowship Characteristics for the next 24 hours regardless of whether the runic item is still in their possession.

301-310

Stomach Cramps: The rune bearer suffers from terrible abdominal pain and must take a 1d10% penalty to all of his percentage based Characteristics for the next 6 hours.

311-325

Knowledge is Power: The mystic forces contained within the Klauser Rune allow the rune bearer to see a vision of his life. After reviewing his life the rune bearer has a better idea of his own short comings and of the steps needed to improve his situation. The next time the rune bearer wishes to change Career he need only pay 1d10x5 xp instead of the normal xp cost.

326-335

Nice Hair: The bearer of the item inscribed with this Klauser Rune finds that his hair turns an alarming shade of bright blue over the course of the next week. While this does not harm the rune bearer in any way it may prove to be a problem socially. Witch Hunters tend to investigate abnormalities no matter how slight and the last thing a bearer of a heretical item wants is to be noticed, and suspected mutants have been burned for less than an unnatural hair colour. In the case of females their hair turns a luminous shade of pink.

336-350

Shattered Rune: With a sound like shattering glass the mystic forces contained within this Klauser Rune rip free and dissipate into the surrounding environment. The Klauser Rune is destroyed, it can never be used again. This does not affect any other Klauser Runes inscribed on the same item.

351-355

Mutation: The inscribing of this Klauser Rune was a disaster, the Rune Master has accidentally channelled raw dhar magic into the rune and then failed to fully seal the rune. As a result the bearer of this Klauser Rune is exposed to the warping power of dark magic. The bearer of this runic item must pass a Toughness Test or else gain a random Mutation.

Page 18

Rune Mastery 356-370

Tongue Tied: The energy contained within this Klauser Rune bleeds out and scrambles the rune bearers speech pattern, leaving the rune bearer mumbling gibberish when he attempts to speak. For the next 1d10 rounds the rune bearer’s speech becomes completely incomprehensible. This also extends to Spell Casting, a Tongue Tied character cannot form the correct incantations necessary to cast spells.

371-385

Insanity: The waves of mystical energy projected by the imperfect Klauser Rune assail the rune bearer’s mind rupturing his psyche. The rune bearer gains 1d10 Insanity Points.

386-400

Lamp Light: After being activated the Klauser Rune begins to glow with a light similar in brightness to a oil lamp. The Klauser rune glows for 6d10 Minutes.

401-420

Electrical Discharge: A bolt of electrical energy shoots from the Klauser rune in a random direction and hits the first solid object (including creatures) within 5 yards beyond this distance the bolt dissipates. Any object struck by the bolt receives one damage 4 hit. Roll 1d10 to determine the direction of the bolt. d10 Result Direction of Electrical Bolt 1 North 2 North-East 3 East 4 South-East 5 South 6 South-West 7 West 8 North-West 9 Straight Upwards 10 Straight Down(Often hits the Rune Bearer, GM to rule exact trajectory of the bolt).

420-430

Power Surge: Magical Energy surges from the Klauser rune into the rune bearer temporarily filling him with strength. The Rune bearer gains +2d10% Strength for the next 6 Rounds.

431-445

Recharge: The Klauser Rune’s energy is seriously depleted. The Klauser Rune ceases to function for 1 week while the Klauser rune restores it’s powers. The Rune of Renewal cannot be use to avoid this effect. A successful Academic Knowledge (Klauser Runes) will reveal how long the Klauser Rune will remain inactive. Note: Additional Klauser Runes inscribed on the same item function as normal.

446-465

Self-Correction: The flawed Klauser Rune has managed to correct itself. As of now it no longer counts as Flawed and may be used without rolling on this table.

466-475

Freezing Wind: An icy wind blows around the runic item, freezing all liquids. Use the large template centred around the runic item every liquid caught in the wind freezes solid.

476-485

Debilitation of Self: A backlash of energy rocks the rune bearer making him feel slow and dull witted as if thinking under a heavy fog. The rune bearer loses 2d10% from his Intelligence Characteristic. The effects last for 1d10 Rounds.

Page 19

Rune Mastery 486-495

Rune Transference: As the Klauser Rune is activated the Rune Bearer feels a warm sensation somewhere on his body. The Klauser Rune disappears from the runic item and reappears on the rune bearer’s body. The runic item permanently loses the use of this Klauser Rune. If discovered, a Witch Hunter may well take this rune as proof of Witchcraft. Roll a d100 and consult the hit location table to determine where on the rune bearer’s body the Rune has appeared. The Rune confers no special abilities to the rune bearer.

496-505

Loss of Power: The Klauser Rune’s energy is seriously depleted. The Klauser Rune ceases to function for 1d10 Months while the Klauser rune restores it’s powers. The Rune of Renewal cannot be use to avoid this effect. A successful Academic Knowledge (Klauser Runes) will reveal how long the Klauser Rune will remain inactive. Note: Additional Klauser Runes inscribed on the same item function as normal.

506-510

Heart Attack: The energy given off by the Klauser Rune rages through the rune bearer triggering a massive coronary. The rune bearer takes an immediate Sudden Death Critical Hit (See p133 of the Core Rulebook). Roll 1d10 to determine the strength of the Sudden Death Critical Hit. If the rune bearer survives the heart attack he is still stricken and counts as prone for the next 2d10 Minutes while he recovers.

511-515

Corruption of Metals: All metals surrounding the Klauser Rune buckle, twist and corrode until only dust is left. Use the large template centred on the runic item to determine the extent of the affected area. All non magical items made from metal within the affected area including those in the rune bearer’s possession and those that would not normally tarnish instantly corrode away to dust. The runic item is unaffected.

516-525

Surge of Speed: The Klauser Rune fills the rune bearer’s muscles with limitless energy. The rune bearer gains a +1 bonus to his Move Characteristic and a +2d10% bonus to the Agility Characteristic. The effects last for 2d10 rounds.

525-535

Unseen Enemy: An invisible force manifests from within the ether and rakes the rune bearer with it‘s razor like claws. The rune bearer suffers a single damage 7 strike on the torso.

536-540

Runic Domination: The Klauser Rune just activated begins to dominate the runic item, the rune will not permit the use of any other Klauser Rune. If the runic item holds more than one Klauser Rune all other runes become dormant and cease to confer any special abilities, this extends to Klauser runes that are permanently active such as Lesser Death Runes. If this Rune is ever destroyed the runic item will regain the ability to use the dormant Klauser Runes.

541-555

Dark Hallucination: The rune bearer sees a vision of the massacre of the Rune Masters of Talabheim at the hands of the imperial Witch Hunters. The rune bearer gains 1 Insanity Point and for as long as he is in possession of an item bearing a Klauser Rune the rune bearer will treat all Witch Hunters as if they have the Frightening Talent.

556-565

Calming Peace: Waves of calming energy emanate from the Klauser Rune, making the rune bearer feel calm and collected. The rune bearer gains the Coolheaded and Fearless Talents. The effects last for 2d10 Minutes.

566-570

Blinding Pulse: The Klauser Rune releases a brilliant flash of eye searing light . Use the small template centred around the runic item. Any one caught in the flash of light is allowed an Agility Test to avoid being blinded. Those blinded are afflicted for 2d10 days at the end of which they must pass a Toughness Test to regain their sight. Failure denotes that their blindness becomes permanent. The flash of light projects away from the rune bearer, as a result he remains unaffected by the light.

Page 20

Rune Mastery 571-580



Aethyric Deluge: The leaking seal of the Klauser Rune saturates the rune bearer with mystical energy. In the case of Characters with a Magic Characteristic of +1 or more. Their Magic Characteristic is increased by 1 for the next 24 hours in addition to this they receive a +10% bonus to all Channelling Skill Tests for the same period. In the case of characters with a Magic Characteristic of 0 who have no form of magical outlet. The aethyric deluge causes Mutation unless the rune bearer passes an Easy +20% Toughness Test.

581-595

Winds of Change: The magical power contained within the Klauser Rune becomes so unstable that it loses all structure and collapses into itself only to reform as a new perfectly formed Klauser Rune. The new Klauser Rune is either determined randomly or chosen by the GM. The new Klauser Rune is Flawless.

596-605

Aethyric Resistance: The Klauser Rune wraps the rune bearer in a bubble of aethyric energy which protects him from harm. The rune bearer gains 2 Armour Points to all locations and the Resistance to Magic Talent. These effects last for 1d10 Minutes.

606-620

Butterfly Effect: Minor Unnoticed Event: The Klauser Rune appears to work just fine with no ill effects. However due to a chain reaction of unnoticed events caused by the effects of the wild magic bleeding from the Klauser Rune somewhere in the world a small animal’s heart exploded. Death is instantaneous.

621-640

Rune of Dust: The material form of the runic item is insufficient to contain the magical forces trapped inside any longer. The runic item crumbles to dust and is utterly destroyed.

641-655

Temporal Shift: The magical forces leaking from the Klauser Rune warp time and space, the runic item disappears and reappears 2d10 yards away in a random direction in 1d10 rounds time. If the runic item reappears within a solid object (including creatures) it deals a single damage 9 blow (that ignores Armour Points) to the object as it rips apart enough space for itself to manifest. The runic item may well still be trapped inside of a solid object after it has reappeared. Roll 1d10 to determine the direction the item reappears in. d10 Result Random Direction 1 North 2 North-East 3 East 4 South-East 5 South 6 South-West 7 West 8 North-West 9 Straight Upwards 10 Straight Down(Often manifests within a solid object). Note: Only the runic item shifts the rune bearer is unaffected.

656-675

Disabling Weakness: The Klauser Rune sucks much of his strength out of the rune bearer. The rune bearer loses 2d10% Strength and 1d10% Toughness. These effects last for 2d10 hours.

Page 21

Rune Mastery 676-690


Runic Vision: As the Klauser Rune is activated the rune bearer has a vision revealing an insight into the inscribing of runes. If the rune bearer is also a Rune Master he may purchase a single Klauser Rune not already known to him of the GM’s choice for 50xp as opposed to the normal 100xp.
If the rune bearer is not a Rune Master the concepts the vision reveal harm his psyche. The rune bearer must pass a Will Power Test or gain 1 Insanity Point.

691-705

Headache: After using the Klauser Rune the rune bearer develops a splitting headache. The rune bearer must lose 1d10% from his Intelligence and Will Power Characteristics. The headache lasts for 5d10 Minutes.

706-720

Nameless Terror: The energy bleeding out from the Klauser Rune resonates with the rune bearer’s deepest secret fears and brings them to the fore of his thoughts. The rune bearer must pass a Hard (-20%) Terror Test or else turn and flee screaming from an imaginary horror. Each subsequent round the rune bearer is allowed another Hard (-20%) Terror Test to overcome these effects.

720-740

Butterfly Effect: Major Destructive Event: The Klauser Rune appears to work as intended without any side-effects. However due to a chain reaction of unnoticed events caused by the effects of the wild magic bleeding from the Klauser Rune a manmade structure somewhere in the world exploded in a huge ball of blue flames.

741-755

Sensorary Deprivation: The rune bearer temporarily loses the use of one of his five senses. Roll 1d10 to determine which sense is lost. The sense is lost for 2d10 Minutes. d10 Result Random Sense 1-2 Touch 3-4 Sight 5-6 Smell 7-8 Hearing 9-10 Taste The exact details of the penalties incurred are left to the GM.

756-775

Rapid Degradation: The Klauser Rune’s energy is seriously depleted. The Klauser Rune ceases to function for 1 Month while the Klauser rune restores it’s powers. The Rune of Renewal cannot be use to avoid this effect. A successful Academic Knowledge (Klauser Runes) will reveal how long the Klauser Rune will remain inactive. Note: Additional Klauser Runes inscribed on the same item function as normal.

776-790

Numbing Shock: Tendrils of black light shoot out from the Klauser Rune and strike the rune bearer, paralysing the location hit and rendering it useless. Roll a d100 and consult the hit location table to determine where on the rune bearer’s body has been struck. In the case of an Arm or Leg hit the limb becomes useless. A Body hit paralyses the rune bearer from the neck down. A Head strike renders the rune bearer completely helpless although still fully aware. The effects of the paralyses last for 1d10 Minutes.

791-800

Rage of the Encaged Beast: The magical energies trapped within the Klauser Rune strain to be free, the rune bearer’s psyche picks up on this rage and acts on it. Unless the rune bearer passes a Routine (+10%) Will Power Test he becomes subject to Frenzy and immediately attempts to attack the nearest living creature to him. The effects of this rage last for 1d10 Rounds after which the rune bearer will return to normal.

Page 22

Rune Mastery 801-820

That’ll Leave a Mark: As the Klauser Rune is activated the rune bearer feels a sudden sharp pain somewhere on his body, the rune bearer must lose 1 Wound. When he later checks a rough version of the rune has burned itself on to his skin. If seen, a Witch Hunter may well take this mark as proof of Witchcraft. Roll a d100 and consult the hit location table to determine where on the rune bearer’s body the mark has appeared. The Rune confers no special abilities.

821-840

Explosion: The Flaw in the Klauser Rune has become so unstable that it explodes. Use the small template centred around the item bearer to determine who is caught in the blast. Everyone caught in the blast receives a damage 6 hit, Armour and Toughness protect as normal. The Runic Item is completely destroyed.

841-855

Withering Drought: Use the large template centred around the runic item, all plant life within the effected area appears to spontaneously dry up, crack, turn black and wither to dust.

856-870

Sickness: After using the Klauser Rune the rune bearer feels incredibly nauseous. The rune bearer must pass a Challenging (-10%) Toughness Test or else immediately spend 2 rounds vomiting furiously. The stricken rune bearer counts as prone for these to rounds.

871-885

Shaking Hands: The waves of magical energy surrounding the Klauser Rune leave the rune bearer’s hands tingling and shaking. The rune bearer must take a -10% penalty to his Weapon Skill, Ballistic Skill and any Test involving manual dexterity. The effects last for 2d10 rounds.

886-900

Migraine: After using the Klauser Rune the rune bearer develops a terrible migraine. The rune bearer must lose 2d10% from all of his Percentage Based Characteristics. The Migraine lasts for 3d10 Hours.

901-920

Future Sight: The rippling waves of mystic forces surging around the imperfect Klauser Rune clear to show the rune bearer a vision of what may come. The rune bearer gains a +20% bonus to the next Perception Test that he must take. Note: This bonus only applies to the next Perception Test the rune bearer takes.

921-940

The Butterfly Effect: Unnoticed Event: The Klauser Rune appears to work perfectly with no side-affects. However due to a chain reaction of unnoticed events caused by the effects of the wild magic bleeding from the Klauser Rune somewhere in the world a sentient creature’s heart explodes. Causing instant death unless a Fate Point is used to avoid these effects.

941-945

Runic Melding: The Klauser Rune on this object shimmers and blurs, as the runic item fuses itself to what ever it is currently touching. In theory the runic item still functions as normal but may well need to be cut free in order to used. If the runic item fuses to the rune bearer it will require an Impossible (40%) Heal Test to cut the runic item free without causing irreversible damage to the rune bearer. A failed test denotes that the rune bearer must take an immediate Critical Hit to the location the runic item fused itself. The strength of the Critical Hit to be determined by rolling 1d10.

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Rune Mastery

946-950

Major Temporal Displacement: The magical forces leaking from the Klauser Rune warp time and space, both the runic item and the rune bearer disappear and reappears 2d100 yards away in a random direction in 1d10 rounds time. If the runic item reappears within a solid object (including creatures) it deals a single damage 9 blow (that ignores Armour Points) to the object as it rips apart enough space for itself to manifest. The runic item may well still be trapped inside of a solid object after it has reappeared. If the rune bearer reappears within a solid object he is instantly killed. Roll 1d10 to determine the direction the item and bearer reappear in. d10 Result Random Direction 1 North 2 North-East 3 East 4 South-East 5 South 6 South-West 7 West 8 North-West 9 Straight Upwards 10 Straight Down(Often manifests within a solid object).

951-960

Chaos Item: The energy within the Klauser Rune has become too unstable to retain it’s given form. Chaos takes control as the runic item twists, expands, contracts, writhes, melts and reforms into a completely new form. Use the rules in the Tome of Corruption Chapter 14- Chaos Armoury to randomly generate the new Chaos Item. The runic item is completely destroyed by this transformation process and any additional Klauser Runes inscribed on the item are also lost.

961-970

Vacuum: All the air around the rune bearer including that inside his lungs ceases to exist rendering the rune bearer unable to breathe for a few moments as the vacuum is filled. The rune bearer is stunned for 2d10 rounds while he recovers his breathe. This does not affect creatures that do not need to breathe such as Vampires.

971-000

GM‘s Choice: The GM may pick from the table or devise his own.

The Mixing of Runes: A Cautionary Tale Most Rune Masters avoid dwarfs and there works like the plague, but occasionally a human Rune Master will obtain a True Dwarfen Runic Item with a view to enhancing it’s power by further inscribing it with Klauser Runes. To say this is a mistake is a gross understatement, the human Rune Masters do not have the skill to alter the delicate balance of energies sealed within the dwarfen items. Any attempt to inscribe a item already bearing a Dwarf Rune with a Klauser Rune will unleash the energies sealed within in the form of an explosion. As the dwarfen runes contain far more power than the Klauser runes the explosion will be far more powerful than that caused by a failed Klauser inscription. If any Rune Master is foolish or insane enough to tamper with a dwarfen runic item use the large template to determine whom is hit by the blast, any one caught in the blast receives 1d10x damage 8 hits. Rune Masters you have been warned. Page 24