The Fiery Path

Art by www.athelu.com

This is one of the first sorcery cults I did up. It’s designed around a very common idea to provide a common image to those looking to build new cults of their own. It has a straightforward structure, some flavorful alterations, and builds in power as it gains in cult ranks.

The skills of the pyromancer school are mostly what you would expect, save for perhaps Insight and Seduction. These two skills flavor the pyromancers as more than just raw combatants and give them an edge in matters of the heart. I picked seduction as a metaphor for “the fire in the heart”, and Insight as a counter for it. Thus, they understand other kinds of fire and how to stoke them. A simple change of these skills can alter the feel of the school more than one would expect – substitute in Dance and Art (Fire Performance) and you would have a very different sort of pyromancer.

The extensive use of Folk Magic spells early in the cult ranks allows for a great deal of utility without pulling in the larger magics. The addition of Fire Arrow or Flameblade to party weaponry gives them an extra punch while keeping the sorcerer off the front lines themselves. Surreptitious use of Ignite can allow for a surprising amount of combat potential and chaos-making. Rounding out their list of utility, Dry and Warmth make the pyromancer a very useful companion to have in certain climates, including cold, dank dungeons. 

A notable thing about Folk Magic is that the school doesn’t offer training in Folk Magic. They expect you to come with some knowledge and invest in your own time. This gives the school the feel that they are focused on higher magics. The Mage Gift emphasizes this point, giving them a no cost thing but they still need to roll their skill to succeed.

Apprentices are not left out in the cold for combat, able to bring to bear Starve the Beast on their foes. While lacking the immediacy of Fire Strike, it also lacks the potential for collateral damage to equipment that can be collected. It is also a fair bit more discrete, only manifesting as a bit of quickly dissipated smoke. A quick casting of Perceive the Embers allows an adventuring party to cheaply maintain the cover of darkness in their discretion.

Adepts begin to show their power over fire, with Fire Dance and Flame Sculptor. Many don’t even make it past this point in the cult, finding plenty of utility in torches lit with Ignite and flame gouts animated and shaped onto their foes. Some develop exceptional skill in Craft (Fire shapes) and make beautiful and lucrative fire sculptures. Others find no reason to create anything more exotic than humanoid-shaped “elementals” to frighten off threats.

The inclusion of Fire Strike seems obvious, as what good would a fire wizard be without the ability to make blasts of fire from nothing. The important note here is that it deviates from the core Mythras Wrack spell, in that it does not ignore armor. As it is, it is exceptionally powerful, allowing the sorcerer to rain down gouts of fire and force evasion for lightly armored foes. Thus, the addition of armor brought it down to a more reasonable level. For lower powered games, try restricting Fire Strike to an instant spell, with no duration component, or requiring the Intensity to be paid for with Shaping points.

Archmages gain their last two spells which alter how fire moves through space, leaping distances via Call the Flame or allowing the archmage and companions to leap the space themselves. Their “Gift” is unique, as it can be a danger to those around them and encourages a spartan lifestyle.

Setting Suggestions

The pyromancer is a clear combatant sorcerer in most settings. Whether the Empire’s Red Wizards, scholars studying the sun and channeling its power, or a street mage who happened upon a tome of flame in the dusty stacks of a corner enchanter’s shop, they are likely to find a place for their skills. Perhaps the most interesting ones are where their skills are focused outside of combat, replacing their Insight and Seduction skills – perhaps to survival as a guide with Survival and First Aid skills, or a firefighter with Athletics and Engineering.

Mythos and History

Cultures have been fascinated with fire since its discovery. Myth and legend have been created around it, recognizing its creative, seductive, and destructive power. Eventually, those who feel a connection develop magic to control it, harness its power - perhaps to protect themselves and others, and perhaps to wreak burning destruction on their enemies.

Nature

The pyromancy school learns to look deeply into the flame and discern the mysteries therein. Similarly, it learns to emulate fire, inflaming passions, and drawing others to them. Those who follow are bound by their passion for fire, often bordering on pyromania. This makes the cult dangerous and feared by some, though some rulers have seen their value in military conflict - someone who can control the fires that the enemy hurls and create their own is an invaluable asset.

Organization

The school is a loose one, largely made up of pairings of masters and apprentices in stone towers found away from civilization, for safety reasons. A few larger schools in stone buildings have been founded in larger cities, with suitable protections placed around them. 

Membership

Though there are no common members, often members of this cult have had some traumatic experience with fire before joining, and those who have received severe burns are frequently scouted by the cult. There is also active recruitment by larger armies, as fire is frequently a useful weapon of war.

Restrictions

Standard. To join, you must demonstrate skill in one of the folk magic spells offered by the cult. Note, the cult does not actually provide training in Folk Magic, only in the spells once you have shown your ability.

Skills

Insight, Invocation (Pyromancy), Seduction, Shaping, Willpower

Magic

Apprentices are taught the Folk Magic spells Dry, Extinguish, Fire Arrow, Fireblade, Heat, Ignite, Light (manifesting as a flame), and Warmth, as well as the sorcery spells Perceive the Embers (Perceive (Fire)), giving Infravision) and Starve the Beast (Smother, manifesting as smoke in the lungs). 

Adepts are additionally taught Fire Dance (Animate [Fire]) and Flame Sculptor (Shape [Fire]). 

Mages learn Fire Strike (Wrack [Fire]). This spell differs from most versions of wrack in that armor does protect. However, if damage is done through worn armor, any garments, hair, or other flammable items may be ignited. The Intensity of this fire is half the intensity of the spell. Fire Strike can also target objects.

Archmagi learns Call the Flame (Attract [Fire]) and Jump the Firebreak (Portal). The Pyromancer may only open portals between two fires large enough to accommodate the creatures using the portal. The fires will not harm those using the portal for the duration of the spell.

Gifts

Those who achieve the Mage rank start to show the fire within them, allowing them to use the Ignite folk magic spell at touch range without expending magic points. Archmagi are barely able to contain the fires within themselves, gaining the Burning Chaos Feature for 1d3 rounds whenever they score a critical success on an Invocation (Pyromancy) roll. The Archmage is immune to the burning effect, but their equipment gains no such benefit from the Archmage.