Spellbook

Spellbooks are used by illusionists and mages to store spells, allowing the daily study of symbols and diagrams too complex to be memorized or retained once a spell has been cleared from the caster's mind. Illusionists and mages must therefore have access to a written form of their spells in order to use them again, making a spellbook their most important possession. Its loss can greatly reduce a caster's power for a time.

It is common for illusionists and mages to possess more than one spellbook, including copies kept hidden in secure locations in case of loss. Spellbooks are often stored in sealed metal containers to protect against fire and similar dangers. At minimum, a spellbook should have a leather cover, which must fail its save before the pages within are affected. As an alternative, spells may be stored on scrolls kept in strong cases and carried on the caster's person. Some consider this safer than carrying books in a pack.

Composition

Spellbooks and scrolls are measured in "quires," consisting of four sheets folded to create eight leaves. Each leaf has a front and back page, so that a quire equals 16 pages. Twenty quires form a "ream," equal to 320 pages. A page is defined as 108 square inches, or 9 by 12 inches. A cantrip requires one half page, so that 32 cantrips fill one quire. A spell requires one page per spell level, so that 16 spell levels fill one quire. Because book sizes vary, spellbooks are described by the number of quires they contain rather than by page size. Larger pages are still measured in standard quires, so that only total capacity matters. Quires also provide a consistent measure of weight.

When a spellbook is filled, the caster must obtain another. As a caster gains levels, multiple books become necessary, since powerful spells consume large portions of a quire. The caster knows which spells are in each book, but should identify them clearly if any are at risk. Spells gained early in a career will not be found in later volumes.

If scrolls are used, more must be acquired as spells increase. A typical scroll is 9 inches wide and long enough to equal one quire, though smaller pieces may be used if desired.

How Spells are Written

When a caster gains a level and first understands a new spell, it may be argued that the spell should not be used until it is written into a spellbook. This would require access to a suitable town, a supply of magical ink (one 2 oz. pot writes two spell levels), a prior copy of the spell in ordinary ink and six hours per level to complete the work.

This requirement is not enforced. It is assumed that such work has been completed outside the campaign. The presence of the spell in the caster's book is accepted without tracking the process. It may be assumed that the caster maintains a small reserve of magical ink for this purpose, without the need to record it.

However, when copying spells into additional books, the process must be carried out in play. The caster must acquire the materials and spend the time to complete the work. This allows the creation of reserve copies stored in safe locations. Without such preparation, replacing a lost spellbook requires copying from the books of other casters, which is possible but inconvenient and sometimes difficult.

A spellbook can be replaced, though not easily. A caster may return to a former master to recover spells learned in training. However, the loss of a spellbook does not allow the caster to choose new spells. The caster remains limited to the spells previously known.

See also,
Illusionary Spell Acquisition
Magical Spell Acquisition
Player Characters
Spellcasting