Clutch of the Soil

A signature spell of the adepts of the Tal, in the dry north. The caster shapes a hand (and part of an arm) out of the ground and causes it to move as if it were an extension of their own body. While its most famous use is in dueling, many practical applications present themselves.

The base difficulty is d6, and for each point of strain taken, the earthen limb has one point of size. The cost can be halved, once, by increasing the difficulty by a step. The Strength and HP of the limb are double that of the caster, while the Dexterity is equal to the caster’s. All of these qualities together can be increased by two in return for a one-step increase in the spell’s difficulty, or any of them can be raised on a one-for-one basis by increasing the cost in strain.

The spell can be maintained and manipulated – performing skill checks and other rolls as appropriate, with difficulties increased by two steps for fine manipulations – for as long as concentration is maintained. After the spell ends, though, the release brings fatigue equal to the number of rounds it was maintained. (Again, this cost can be halved by increasing the difficulty.)