Encyclopaedia Arcane - Star Magic

[Messageboard Golem]

Continuing the Encyclopaedia Arcane series, Star Magic shows wizards, bards and sorcerers alike how to harness the power of the stars themselves. By matching the constellations in the sky and channelling their power to the world below, any arcane spellcaster can unlock the very forces of creation.

 

[GameWyrd]

I was won over by Star Magic – Wisdom of the Magi; I was suspicious at the start, worried that the book was suggesting a lot of work for little reward but through both persistence and completeness the author changed my mind.

Completeness is important. I’m under the impression that most of the new schools of magic introduced for the d20 system are incomplete. I might be incorrect but something’s gone wrong and gone wrong often enough to leave me with this impression. The pit trap is with school of magic specialisation. When you create a new school of magic it needs to be tied into the balance mechanism that regulates specialist mages. If you’re a specialist mage then you loose access to Star Magic. If you specialise in Star Magic then you loose access to Necromancy and one other school of your choice. There. Done. Complete. It’s just about fair too because although this seems to make Star Magic rather rare... well, it’s actually rather convenient if you’re introducing the new rules into your campaign world.

Mongoose Publishing have been rattling off the Encyclopaedia series rather quickly. This is the eleventh book from the collection already. I was wondering whether a dozen interesting sounding names were put together over beer and pizza one night and then thankless writers outsourced to put 64 pages of appropriate material together. A quick check to the Designer’s Notes which often appear in Mongoose books pushed this concern away. Star Magic has been an established part of the author’s own campaign world for many years even if its only recently been converted into d20 mechanics.

There are no new spells in Star Magic. Rather than learning spells as such the magi learn and study stars. By understanding these stars and by being able to cast, at least, first level spells the magi can channel magical effects from the stars. This is effectively casting spells but with a different flavour to your game. There is flavour in this book and it’s a welcome off set to what would otherwise be a very crunchy supplement. The use of these stars often includes a flavour rich caveat at the end. For example, "Channelling the powers of the star of death carries great risks. Although not strictly forbidden, most magi regard it as dangerous knowledge. Furthermore its use seems to attract the attention of the gods of death as through they could sense a magician tampering with their domain." Stars don’t have a level either; instead they have a minimum casting level (which is always 1st in the book but I suppose there’s room for scary GM introduced stars) and take up an appropriate spell slot. If the magus wants he can assign the star to a higher spell slot than the minimum required and this will increase the potency of the magic but not the casting time.

This is just the first level though and after this Star Magic really does become different from the usual routine of assigning magical effects to spell slots. The magi can build Constellations. Constellations are as you would expect. Astrologers will link different stars in the night sky together and then named as a constellation. Magi can channel different stars together and create greater magical effects which are known as a Constellations. It’s the Constellations that have the more demanding minimum caster level and it’s the Constellations that produce the more specialised and powerful magic effects. You can assign a Constellation to a higher than required spell slot too. The magi would call this "over-channelling". Initially the new lingo was a pain but its easy to pick up and its more game friendly to talk about Stars, Constellations and Channelling in-game than have your wizard mutter awkwardly about ‘spell slots’.

The spell caster doesn’t have to be a wizard. A star can be studied, mastered and its arcane secrets inscribed safely into a spell book but sorcerers and bards can learn Star Magic too. Sorcerers and Bards just have a slightly more awkward balancing act to ensure that they learn the Stars which will be key components in the Constellations they’re likely to want to channel most often. Wizards, Sorcerers and Bards have different maximum level caps for Constellations. A Bard cannot learn a Constellation over 5th level whereas a Wizard can learn all the way up to 9th level Channelling.

The Constellations make appearances throughout the entire book. Much of the artwork in the book are illustrations of Tarot like cards which represent the Constellations in a similar manner to Major Arcana. Instead of "the Star" or "the Sun" the cards depict illustrations for the likes of "the Hound" and "the Hunter" which are names for the Constellations. Fred Rawles’ art particularly caught my attention in the Wisdom of the Magi; his near-anime style with solid lines and sheer black backgrounds certainly standards out from the lighter line drawings which is more common in Mongoose books. Most of the new feats are directly tied to the Constellations too. The feat "Sign of the Hunter" doesn’t mean you’re any better at channelling the Hunter Constellation but means you were born under the Hunter and in this case the benefit is a +1 to damage when wielding two weapons from a specific list. You don’t need to be a magus to find that the Constellations are important to you and I rather like that. There are feats with a magical bent though; Natural Lens is a Metamagic feat which due to the free way in which the light of the stars flows through you there’s the option of sacrificing a spell of any level to give you a second chance Concentration role while trying to channel Star Magic.

It makes a change to find the Prestige Classes tucked so far back in an Encyclopaedia Arcane. As is more typical with the series there are four prestige classes. Two of the prestige classes are detailed fully – that is to say through ten levels. Two of the prestige classes are only worth five levels. The term Magus is put forward by Star Magic for the name of the spell caster who specialises in Star Magic and rather strangely the Magus prestige class is only five levels. The other "half" prestige class is the Astrologer who’s rather good at reading the future from the stars. The other two classes, the full prestige classes, are the Nomad Shaman and the Guardian of the Secret Path. These two are slightly less scholarly than the shorter classes, each with d6 hit dice per level rather than d4. The Nomad Shaman is entirely independent of Encyclopaedia Divine: Shamans but is a fair class nonetheless. The Guardian of the Secret Path wins the prize for best named prestige class for this particular book and are far more interesting than the other three. "Out beyond the stars lies darkness. Beyond that darkness one can find places unimaginable, places both foul and fair. For their own reasons, the denizens of these places seek to come to the world. Some come to assist mortals. Others come to enslave them. All find their way barred by the guardians of the secret path." Juicy, huh?

There’s a section on calendars too – rather, a section on how the span of time can see stars rise above the horizon, shine directly overhead, disappear over the horizon and even lurk annoyingly on the wrong side of the planet/sphere/plane. As an optional rule but a suggestion rule for those GMs who do manage and want to track time Star Magic suggests that channelling Stars which are ascendant benefits the Magus (+1 to the effective caster level) and channelling a star that’s descendent will produce weaker effects (-1 to the effective caster level, minimum of 1st level) and there’s neither a benefit or penalty to impose while the particular star is hanging around near the horizon.

Star Magic can specially target items, weapons and armour and this gives rise to the list of magic items in the book. It’s quite a nice idea. Let’s not have another magic sword. Let’s have a star magic sword that glows in an impressively cinematic way. There are rules for screwing up people’s night vision with such glowing weapons but I would have liked to have had a short note on whether the glow counts as sunlight. The fighter with the shield that glows with star magic will want to know if he’s hiding behind sunlight while fighting a vampire.

This particular Encyclopaedia doesn’t use the back "inside" cover for content (there’s a look at some other Mongoose front covers instead) but there is a page or two of rule summaries and tables in the last few pages of the book and I always find that sort of things handy in RPG reference books (which Star Magic essentially is).

Star Magic – Wisdom of the Magi does what you’d hope every RPG supplement you buy will do; it puts forward a new idea and implements it cleanly, effectively and professionally. It’s not a wonderful book but it does what it says it’s going to do and it does that well. It’s a good book.

* This GameWyrd review was first published here.

 

[Simon Collins]

This is not a playtest review.

Star Magic is part of the Encyclopaedia Arcane series from Mongoose Publishing. This one focuses on the stars, astrology, and calendrical magic.

Star Magic comes in at $14.95 for 64 pages. Though the font and margins seem slightly larger than average, both inside covers are used. There is some white space here and there, particularly towards the end of the book. The mono internal art runs from average to good. The external cover art and the colour piece on the inside cover make interesting use of light and shadow. The quality of writing is good, whilst editing is average, with regular minor typos.

After a brief introduction and flavour text in diary form, the book gives an overview of Star Magic - the ability to channel the energy of certain powerful Stars to earth, and meld that energy into a magical effect. The importance of recording star movements over generations is impressed upon the reader - therefore, long-lived races are more suited to the use of star magic. Also, the star mage needs to dedicate his life to learning the secrets of star magic - it is not for the weak-willed.

The structure of star magic follows the basic rules for arcane magic - each Star or Constellation represents a specific spell, star mages cast them using verbal and somatic components, and such aspects as spell knowledge, spells per day, and save DCs remain intact. What changes is that each spell can be cast at different levels (there is a minimum casting level), and Constellations (3rd level or higher spells) are 'built' from the knowledge of Stars (1st level spells). Each Constellation has a prerequisite set of Stars that must be known to be able to utilise the Constellation's energy. The use of star magic as a supplemental magic for bards, sorcerers, and wizards is discussed. Essentially, bards and sorcerers are more flexible in casting, whilst wizards can learn more, and more powerful, spells.

The mechanics of Star Magic are then dealt with in more detail. The higher the spell delivered, the more complex the Constellation is (built up of more Stars) and the higher the minimum level required. A Star's energy rises and falls as the year turns, and this modifies the energy it can provide - a glossary is provided to define the meaning of unusual astronomical terms for the star's position in the sky and thus its power. There is a short discussion of the effects of metamagic feats on star magic. The remainder of this section gives the spell lists for Stars and Constellations. These are limited to 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th levels spells. Even-level slots are used to learn additional Stars or Constellations from earlier odd-numbered levels. The spells seem to be orientated towards emotion and elemental effects, though these options tend to be expanded at higher levels to creation of objects and energy. The section ends with some advice on creating your own Stars and Constellations.

A section on Feats offers 16 star magic-related feats with a mix of General feats that have the constellation you were born under have a game influence (these feats can only be taken at 1st level), and Metamagic feats that enhance various aspects of star magic.

The section on prestige classes offers four new ones related to star magic:
* The Astrologer - a 5-level PrC who specialises in studying the stars to learn secrets of forthcoming events and peoples motivations.
* Guardian Of The Secret Path - a 10-level PrC focused on protectin the material world from the planes that lie between the stars.
* Magus - a 5-level PrC specialising in Star Magic and gaining bonuses to this area at the cost of knowledge in other arcane areas.
* Nomad Shaman - a 10-level PrC focused on communicating with the spirits of the stars, gaining wisdom and insight along the way.

Illuminated Items are items that have focus the magical light of a Star or Constellation. The section begins with some interesting weapon and armour special qualities such as shrouded weapons (which use shadows to gain power) and frosted armour (which deals cold damage if touched by anyone other than the wearer). Magical lenses are used to focus the magical light of a Star or Constellation.

The next section gives a seasonal calendar showing the different Stars in their positions in the sky.

There is some advice for GMs on integrating Star Magic into their current campaign, in terms of both introducing the concept through adventures and places where magi who study and use star magic can be found.

After the traditional 'Designer's Notes' section, which informs us that Star Magic was adapted from a non-d20 system used in the author's homebrew campaign. The book ends with a rules summary.

Conclusion:
Much like the new magic systems in Atlas Games' recent Occult Lore, the usefulness of this book depends much on your interest in finding a greater role for the stars and astrology in general in your campaign setting. The conversion from the non-d20 system seems surprisingly well integrated into the d20 rules, but it does take a little getting used to some of the concepts introduced in the book. The utility of the system is increased by allowing any arcane magic user access to star magic above and beyond her own standard arcane class abilities. There are also plenty of ideas in the book that can be used outside of the system with a little work, such as the 'spells' presented and the weapon and armour special qualities.

 

[Messageboard Golem]

Star Magic: Wisdom of the Magi is the 11th book in Mongoose Publishing's Encyclopaedia Arcane series. Like its predecessors, the 64-page book delves into the mysteries of a specific form of arcane magic; in this case, the magic derived from the Stars in the Heavens.

Star Magic, though, presents the reader with something of a conundrum. Why does the subject require a book at all? Within its pages, the reader is presented with an array of stars, constellations (both just spells by another name), Feats and Prestige Classes but there are no distinctive effect contained with Star Magic. Although the necromancer can raise the dead, the battle mage can lay waste to whole armies and the chronomancer divine the future (to mention just a few types of arcane magic previously detailed in the series) there is no effect or achievement unique to Star Magic that sets it apart from the other schools of magic. Some Game Masters will be uncomfortable setting aside an entire system of magic that only replicates the effects already available in the game. A player desiring a wizard or sorcerer character that draws his power from the Stars could certainly do so without this book (write it on the character sheet, purchase a few spells with the word star in the title and spend a few skill points on Knowledge: Astrology and your on your way) but what this book offers is the author's vision, and it is a truly inspiring vision indeed, one capable of making almost any reader want to play one of these unique and colourful miracle workers.

The book begins with the now tradition Overview chapter. Four pages in length, the chapter starts with a brief description of Magi (the practitioners of Star Magic), how they spend their time and the philosophy behind their spell casting. The chapter describes the stars as the tools of creation, left over by the Gods when they completed their great endeavour. By focusing the light of special stars onto the world, the Magi can cause that light to have effects similar to those other arcane spellcasters achieve with normal spells. The overview moves on to describe the types of cultures that give rise to Magi, to set Star Magic apart as a separate school of magic and finishes by describing permanent channels or foci (laying the ground work for a new type of magic item to be outlined later in the book). In all, the chapter does a good job of describing how stars could power arcane effects and lays down the cornerstones of a unique worldview for a wizard or sorcerer to follow.

The second chapter, Playing with Fire, takes the reader through the peculiarities of Star Magic for each of the principle spellcasters of the d20 game; the Bard, Sorcerer and Wizard. It is good to see all three arcane spellcasters addressed instead of concentrating solely on the Wizard as many similar d20 books do. The chapter is clear and concise and outlines all the rules that a character of each class will need, accompanied by a simple table for quick reference (always a useful tool in a book of this type). It is here, though, that some Game Masters might become concerned about the rules. Wizards can specialise in Star Magic at the expense of necromancy and one other school. Since the school of star magic includes elements of almost all the normal schools, this hardly seems a limitation. An astute player will simply determine which stars and constellations he wishes to purchase ahead of time and choose the school that most closely resembles those abilities to sacrifice.

The heart of the book and the largest chapter by far (27 pages), Star Magic Mechanics presents the rules for "channelling" stars and constellations in all their glory. The chapter begins by outlining star magic's peculiar terminology: stars and constellations instead of spells, channelling instead of casting etc. Although seemingly superfluous, a reader can pick up the terminology easily enough and it does add a unique flavour to the system. Its far more interesting to talk about channelling the star of death than preparing and casting it. Again, there are places where game balance wavers uncertainly, though there is nothing outrageous presented in the chapter. Ignoring the specialisation outlined in the previous chapter, there is nothing here for a wizard that seems unbalanced but Game Masters might have problems with Sorcerers and Bards. Sorcerers, having learnt a star at 1st level, can cast it at any spell level, with increasing effectiveness at each level. Every star outlined in this book can be considered nine spells in one, nine very similar spells but still nine spells and Sorcerers learn all of them with the expenditure of one spell slot. Bards have the same problem but also gain complete access to the Star Magic spell list up to 5th level. This allows Bards access to a type of magic that is far more diverse and offensive than the normal bard spell list, an important limitation on that class's spell use.

Leaving the issue of game balance to one side for a moment, the stars and constellations as presented are well written, accompanied by well thought out "flavour" text that adds to the depth and texture of the mythology that makes Star Magic what it is. The spells tend toward the less offensive, avoiding elemental effects and instead concentrating on bonuses to skills, the summoning of special forms of protection and similar effects, although there are a few powerful offensive spells. Few characters would survive the attentions of the Death Star for long. There is something almost clerical about the nature of Star Magic though the author has avoided healing magic as is appropriate for any type of arcane magic. In all, the stars and constellations retain a distinctive flavour that does set them apart from the spells that other arcane spellcasters use.

The fourth chapter is dedicated to new Feats. It is in this chapter that non-spellcasting characters will find something useful with special Feats for those born under auspicious star signs, granting all manner of minor bonuses. These general feats are all reasonably balanced, can only be taken at 1st level but offer a great deal of roleplaying opportunity. Sign of the Sword particularly will likely be a favourite among heroic fighters in games where destiny and fate play an important role. Although some of the metamagic feats presented are powerful, they seem balanced though some Game Masters might feel uncomfortable limiting them to Magi characters when other arcane spellcasters cannot use them.

The Prestige Class chapter presents four new classes: the Astrologer, the Guardian of the Secret Path, the Magus and the Nomad Shaman. The chapter is smaller than perhaps it could have been, presumably due to space constraints. The Astrologer is a particularly well thought out prestige class that can easily be slipped into any game where Star Magic is being used (or any other with a little modification) and would probably be of great interest to bard characters wishing to settle down. The Guardian of the Secret Path is a full 10-level prestige class that offers a wide array of abilities (some combat orientated, some magical) useful for combating outsiders. The class is well thought out and seems completely balanced, seamlessly combining combat and magic. Of all the classes presented in this chapter, the Guardian of the Secret Path could have done with a more detailed background, perhaps with some details on the motivations and agendas of the Guardians and why everyone else seems so intent on stopping them.

The Nomad Shaman is an interesting arcane spellcasters found in the wilderness. Again, the class is balanced with a diverse selection of class abilities spread throughout the ten levels but a little more information on how to use them in a roleplaying sense might have been useful. Finally, we come to the Magus. The Magus, according to the designer's notes in the back of the book, began development as the principle user of Star Magic. The class is described as the master of the Star Magic, the pinnacle of an education in this form of magic. Unfortunately, the Magus prestige class is probably the single most disappointing part of the book. The book, until this point, works through its ability to present us with a flavourful and engaging view of the mysteries of Star Magic. In contrast, the Magus class offers nothing new and interesting. The abilities the class presents are unbalanced and "bland", making it a strangely poor addition to an otherwise engaging book.

Illuminated Items is a small chapter, four pages, and it has very little background text. Instead, it delves into a colourful and interesting array of magic items, weapon special abilities and wondrous items that continue to add flavour to the concept of Star Magic. The classic item types are outlined, including the wonderful "Wealthy" weapon ability that presents so many opportunities for low level roleplaying, it deserves an adventure book all to itself. In addition, Lenses and Focusing Places are detailed, the permanent channels mentioned above. Lenses offer a small bonus to the character's casting level while channelling a particular star or constellation. Focusing Places are a form of artefact (being as no Magi knows how to create them), specific places that offer the benefits of a lens at particular times of the year, although the bonus can be must higher than a normal lens. The book offers these places as story hooks and meeting places for Magi characters.

The book finishes with a little help for the Game Master. First, we have a one-page entry on the use of calendars in the game, something of great importance to the casting of stars since the time of year can change their effectiveness. Secondly, the book finishes with a two-page chapter entitled "Help for Games Masters". In keeping with the overall tone of the book, the chapter includes a few suggested story ideas including Star Magic, principally for introducing this style of magic to the game and than finishes with a few words on where Magi gather and how they live. Nothing particular fascinating, this last chapter might seem a bit of anti-climax but it is still useful in its own way. The only complaint I have is that the book did not offer the Games Master some more advice on how to incorporate Star Magic into the rules, especially with regard to the problem of balancing Sorcerers and Bards when the system.

The Art throughout the book is of a generally higher quality than the other Encyclopaedia Arcane books with a spectacular colour picture of an astrology peering at a star in the heavens on the inside front cover. The Stars Magic Mechanics chapter includes six black and white "card style" pictures that seem particularly well conceived, each capturing the essence of one of the presented spells, including a beautiful picture of the Hunter. These pictures alone present the player with a wealth of imagery that can be used with her Magi character and ingenious players will surely copy these card pictures for use during the game when they "channel" their favourite stars.

Although the idea might not warrant a separate school of magic (particularly one that can be specialised in at so little cost), Star Magic: Wisdom of the Magi brings to life an interesting and previously unexplored type of arcane magic that would be a welcome addition to any fantasy game. The stars and constellations can, without exception, easily be assigned to one of the original schools of magic if that proves to be a problem and other game balance issues seem as easily addressed. Even if you decide not to use the system as presented, each page of this book shines with the vision of star magic as something far more than a simple game mechanic. That alone, makes the Magi are worthy addition to any game that will have them.

 

[Messageboard Golem]

Publisher: Mongoose Publishing
Author: Shannon Kalvar

Pluses
+ Quality professional-level game supplement.
+ Provides a unique and alluring system of magic based on cosmic myth and legend.
+ Superb streamlined and organized rules system.
+ Nice price.

Minuses
- Slow advancement to reach equivalent levels of power with standard wizards and sorcerers; not recommended for bard players seeking power over role-playing opportunities.
- Requires careful decision-making and patience to benefit from advancement.

The language used in Star Magic is breathtaking. This fantastic game supplement contains not just a simple and viable rules system but a mystic quality all its own. The designer obviously wrote this work with such sensitivity and love for the topic that introducing the system into your campaign should be a pure joy. While the text does seek to provide a new rules system it does so without reading like a set of stereo instructions. Star Magic manages to teach the rules while using inspiring images of celestial mechanics that become sapient and almost liquid. The system will allow the characters in your game to reach up and drink in the light of the universe to one day bristle with cosmic, timeless power. It is the wait that may be concerning to your players though. Still, interwoven with imagery and ideas from philosophy, mythology, nature and the seasons, human emotion, the tarot, ancient timekeeping, cosmology, history and more, the stars and even the black places in the night sky become mystical and alive. The night sky is no longer just something the characters ride or camp under on the way to their next adventure. This work offers the possibility of energizing your game with a whole new way of thinking about magic.

Physical Details
The supplement is 64 pages in length as with other books in the Encyclopedia Arcane series. The cover features a pair of characters standing in a ruin, bathed in the light of a rod topped with a green glowing crystal. The female figure examines a set of runes or glyphs on a wall while holding the glowing rod. The second figure, a large humanoid with a sword, stands with his back to her, allowing her to take notes on his back, on a piece of parchment. A few indistinct sword-wielding red-eyed shadowy figures menace the two from the cliffs above. The cover has a luminescent quality more than appropriate to the subject. The work costs $14.95, not a bad price for a new magic system. The inside cover features a robed figure gazing through a telescope at the first star to appear in a sunset sky. The black and white interior art is excellent in places and just so-so in others; some pieces could appear in any book on magic. The tarot cards in the Star Magic Mechanics section (i.e. the spells section) fit best. There are an unusual number of typos when compared to other Mongoose publications, none of which seriously hamper comprehension or enjoyment. The writing style is elegant, poetic, succinct and uncomplicated. The arrangement of elements is good though the repetition of the spell lists and rules summary at the end seems unnecessary. Still this is a professional product with just a few minor flaws.

Content Details
Star Magic is divided into several enjoyable sections:

The Introduction is brief and to the point. The designer shows some care here in pointing out that the system is not for every player which is elaborated on later. An interesting and entertaining adventuring diary of a magus - this is what star wizards are called - also starts in this section.

The Star Magic - Overview discusses the channeling of stars in campaign terms. The section also points out that careful planning and selection is required to reap the rewards of study as well. Most of all, the unusual idea of channeling Stars (i.e. casting individual spells from single stars) and Constellations (i.e. spells consisting of combinations of previously learned stars) is presented. The mindset of wizards that pursue this difficult body of knowledge and what these wizards believe to be true about the world is also discussed. The section offers some good perspective on how this form of magic fits into the lives of individual wizards, campaign society, and humanoid and primitive cultures too. There are no rules in this section, just good backdrop information.

The Playing With Fire section is brief and continues the next section by highlighting some of the general rules. The next few subsections are fascinating and primarily focus in on two things: the character classes that study star magic (bards, sorcerers, and wizards) and the four levels of commitment or dedication to that study (ignorant, dabbler, scholar, and magus). The section ends with a very useful table summarizing the rules for quick reference.

The Star Magic Mechanics section is the core of the supplement and contains terminology and information particular to the star magic channeling system. All the Stars (lowest level spells) and Constellations (higher level spells) are also housed here and this is the most exciting and exhaustive part of the work. Here is just a small fraction of the more exciting stellar-specific effects: conjure a bow and arrow made of starlight, create a zone of darkness and cold, create a hypnotizing wave of light and fire, call demons from hell to attack, fill an area with star light that reveals invisible creatures, create a protective windstorm that moves the caster away from harm, predict emotions, dominate others, read information about targets from the stars, change skill rolls and/or improve bonuses, create light that harms undead and necromancers. There are a total of 50 spells! The section ends with guidelines for creating your own Stars and Constellations either from scratch or from existing core spells.

Most of the Feats are useful in any campaign. The designer incorporates the idea of being born under particularly favorable stars, a unique and interesting idea that aids character development. The feats are well thought out and interesting. There are a total of 15.

There are four stimulating Prestige Classes including the astrologer, who studies the stars in depth to learn more about the world; the guardian of the secret path, who keeps the balance of the planes by denying egress to or from the material plane; the magus, who wields great star power; and nomad shamans, living proof that knowledge of the stars does not just exist in musty old tomes in civilized lands.

The Illuminated Items section contains guidelines for the creation of stellar magic items. The weapon and armor properties are particularly imaginative. Some other very fine magic items are also provided, including magical lenses that aid in the channeling of Stars. There are a total of 15 magic item descriptions.

The Using the Calendar section presents extremely brief and thankfully simple instructions for determining the horizon of the stars (above, on, or below) that essentially has an effect on the power of individual stars.

The Help For Games Masters section is a welcome discussion of useful adventure ideas and ideas for how to introduce Star Magic into your campaign.

The Designer’s Notes is a brief discussion of the designer’s long journey toward the final product. As with other works in the Arcane Encyclopedia series, this section adds some nice personal perspective.

The Rules Summary is simply a repeat and summary of information presented earlier.

Overall Comments
The most prevalent image of wizards in pop culture today depicts an old man with a conical hat and robe sewn with stars and moons - and yet the idea of calling down magical power from the heavens is only just now being presented for d20 games in this little powerhouse. How many times in fiction have the words, “the planets are not in alignment” or the “stars are not in position” been used to somehow represent access to the magic present in the universe? There has never been a game supplement like this one, giving players and game masters the rules for pretending with classic primordial power as old as the cosmos itself. How exhilarating is that!? It just goes to show you that even new ideas and game systems can reverberate off the old icons and fictions. Case in point: does anyone remember an old 1981 box office flop turned classic called Dragonslayer? Strangely, and quite out of left field, I was reminded of this movie as I read parts of Star Magic. Some of the spell effects in the work are reminiscent of things that happen in the movie, particularly a distant shooting star (just over the wizard’s shoulder) and perhaps even the lightning and wind with which the wizard battles the dragon. In any case Star Magic makes it possible to return to the roots of fictional magic, drawn from the most distant and mysterious realm known to man even today. The work never uses the modern term but even the concept of black holes is present in the spells that gather shadow and cold. The point is that embodied in this work are classic ideas reborn in a new system of magic that is sure to enhance any campaign.