Soul Eating

Spell — see Magic and Spellcasting for the rules and the Spell Index for the full list.

This spell is considered contraband in Sair.

Arcane 6 Type: death, necromancy

Range: touch Duration: 1 day

The caster can draw and devour the soul from a living target, temporarily gaining a fraction of the victim’s knowledge and vigor. The spell is usually cast on bound and helpless victims. The target must make a Death saving throw.

Even if the saving throw succeeds, the target is still slain, but his soul eludes the caster’s grasp. If the saving throw fails, the target is slain, and his soul is eaten by the caster. Targets whose souls are eaten cannot be restored to life by any means short of a miracle or wish. The caster immediately gains 1d10 temporary hit points + 1 hp per level of the target. In addition, the caster learns some important knowledge possessed by the target, either a specific set of facts that the caster was seeking, or some random knowledge chosen by the Judge. The knowledge learned can be quite complex, equivalent to a single rank in a proficiency, a class power, a spell formula, or a language.

The temporary hit points will disappear at the expiration of the spell’s duration, while the knowledge will fade as if it was a barely remembered dream. Nothing prevents a caster from writing down the knowledge gained from this spell before it fades, however.

While soul eating is in effect, the spellcaster is treated as an inherently evil creature for purposes of discern evil and holy circle effects. A successful counterspell, dispel evil or dispel magic spell will strip the caster of his temporary proficiency and hit points.