Sunday, September 15, 2019

Waypoints

Waypoints are magical locations, etched into the ground and lit with blue fires. Waypoints are like milestones or checkpoints along routes, but are mystically anchored to the location and help travelers. In order to use a waypoint, you must stand in the center of a waypoint, point at another waypoint on a map or hold its image in your mind, and begin the journey. You can only use a waypoint if you've already physically visited its location once. Every day you travel from a waypoint to another waypoint, you reduce the chance of wandering encounters by -1 or give a chance to ignore all encounters by rolling a 1 in 6 chance when you break camp in the morning. The sky just seems friendly and peaceful. Additionally, for every 2 weeks of travel, you arrive 1 day earlier.

The distance between waypoints doesn't matter, as long as you continue to follow it along the main roads or more-or-less in a constant path. Waypoints be on islands, landmasses, or even in alternate realities or dimensions, but the rules remain the same. If you spend more then a day off the path or at a single location, the charm ends.

Create Waypoint - 3rd level
Waypoints are created using this spell. The caster must designate a single location to be the waypoint, and create a cleared circle or small location. Then, they must light blue flames either with magic or special blue candles. The waypoint is a permanent fixture. The candle flames are invisible to those who have not visited the waypoint once before, but do not give off any significant heat or helpful light to the surrounding area, and cannot be blown out by mundane wind or rain.

The spell ends when the waypoint location is destroyed; either intentionally through trampling, putting out the fires, or if an object falls on top of the waypoint and is not removed within a few days. Destroying the waypoint of a conquered city is a popular tactic in magical wars; it prevents the enemy forces from returning to their homeland for revenge as easily.

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