Among the moonlit groves and marble acoustoria of the elder courts, certain elves train their hearts, lungs, and aetheric nerves to shape reality through pure resonance. These practitioners are known as Sound Mages. Where a runesmith etches sigils and a pyromancer bends flame, a Sound Mage hums, chants, and trills - coaxing the winds to hush, shattering iron with a whispered harmonic, or lulling wounded comrades to sleep beneath a lattice of calming chords. Their art is equal parts music and sorcery; every spell begins as a note vibrating in the mage’s chest and ends as a pulse that ripples through earth, water, or bone.
"His song was no louder than a sigh, yet the arrow turned aside as though ashamed of its own violence."
- Captain Lyria Ashthorn, Royal Guard of
Queen Eleanor Rani of Farenia
Becoming a Sound Mage
Not every elf can master the discipline. Initiates must possess an ear capable of separating seven over-tones within a single bell-strike and lungs strong enough to sustain a clear note for the length of a minute-glass. Apprentices spend their first decade learning to listen - to the rhythm of sap inside tree-trunks, to subterranean rumbles echoing in caverns, and to the quiet thrum of their own lifeblood. Only once they can match those hidden rhythms do they begin vocal training, practising vowel shapes so precise that a mis-formed syllable can fracture wine-glasses or snap bow-strings. Mastery culminates in the
Silent Vigil: a three-night trial during which the candidate utters no sound at all, yet must weave a warding sphere purely from the resonance of their heartbeat within the aether. Should the barrier hold against conjured phantoms till dawn, the elf earns the first silver chimes of a Sound Mage’s torque.
A Sound Mage’s Torque
Sound Mage Torque by Tillerz using MJ
The torque is a narrow, open-ended neck-ring of polished white-oak overlaid with etched moon-silver - a visible badge of the craft that every Sound Mage receives at the moment of formal induction. Strung along its lower rim hang tiny tubular bells, no longer than a little finger, each tuned to a different overtone of the "root note" the mage discovered during training.
First Silver Chimes: The pair of bells awarded after the Silent Vigil mark the apprentice’s passage into full practice. Because they are the first pieces of metal ever added to the otherwise wooden ring, masters call them "the first silver chimes."
Purpose: When a Sound Mage vocalises, the torque resonates in sympathy; the bells vibrate but do not audibly ring unless the mage chooses, serving as a living tuning fork and a subtle focus for channelled resonance.
Progression:
Journeymen add a third bell of slightly darker alloy;
masters add a fourth etched with spiral runes; archacousts may inlay the entire torque with thread-thin
Aeum filaments. One can thus judge seniority at a glance by counting chimes and noting the depth of their sheen.
Symbolism: Silver is prized for clarity and lunar association, mirroring the ideal that a Sound Mage’s voice should be luminous yet controlled. The bells’ silent quiver reminds observers that the true power of the art thrums beneath the surface, audible only when intentionally released.
"One day the Chord of Dawn will sound, and on that note all hatred will resolve into peace."
- Archacoust Sorilien, High Conservator of Echoes
The Tale of the First Accidental Sound Mage
The oldest grove chansons seldom agree on dates, yet they all linger over the tale of Caelith Silverbreeze, whose frightened teeth birthed an art. Caelith was little more than an untested fawn of nineteen summers - too young for conscription, too restless for courtly tutors - when a sudden blizzard herded him from a hunting path into the black mouth of a limestone cave. Snow sealed the entrance behind him like a drunkard's bar door, and as night smothered what little light remained, he realised he was not alone. From the far end of the cavern glimmered the eyes of a lone wolf, ribs stark beneath its winter coat, breath misting in slow, famished shivers.
Cold gnawed Caelith first, fear second. His cloak was thin, his tinder wet, and so his body did what every trembling body must: his teeth began to chatter. The sound started as a simple staccato - bone meeting bone in rapid, helpless clacks - but the wolf shied at the noise, drawing back as though the rhythm stung its ears. Desperation turned to curiosity; Caelith clenched his jaw, then released, experimenting with tempo. He found that if he focused on an imagined melody - some cradle-song half-remembered from childhood - the chatter shifted from random percussion into something almost measured.
The young elf pressed deeper, coaxing his own terror into pattern. He closed his eyes, pictured warmth, pictured the cave walls opening like amphitheatre wings and the night air vibrating in answer. Soon the clack of teeth dropped below the threshold of ordinary hearing, but Caelith could feel the pulse humming in the air, a rippling pressure that prickled the fine hairs on his forearms. The wolf's ears flattened; it snarled once, confused, then turned tail and vanished into a tunnel veined with pale, singing ice.
By dawn a rescue party had dug through the snow to find Caelith sitting cross-legged beside a heap of undisturbed wolf tracks, his cheeks blue yet his eyes fever-bright with revelation. In the years that followed he sought out natural echoes - river hollows, crystal chambers, the flute-voices of breaking icicles - and learned to weave them with breath, tongue, and thought. Word spread from fireside to fireside and soon a group of curious elves became his first pupils. Thus, from a night of frozen fear and the simple rhythm of chattering teeth, the discipline of Sound Magic took its hesitant first note.
Abilites
Signature Abilities
| Ability | Description |
|---|
| Perfect Pitch | The mage can detect the slightest deviation in tone - whether in a choir, a creaking door, or the hum of an Aeum crystal. Mechanically, this grants an Asset/ +10 on any task that relies on hearing subtleties, from detecting lies to tuning enchanted instruments. |
| Echo Sense | By humming a sub-audible note, the mage "pings" the surroundings and interprets the returning resonance. Within Short / 20 yds they can map hidden alcoves, spot invisible foes, or judge water depth - even in total darkness. |
| Sonic Pulse | A focused burst of compressed sound launched from mouth or tuning-fork. It strikes a single target like a battering ram: 1d10+Willpower bonus (WFRP) or 3 damage ignoring 1 Armour (Cypher). The pulse may also shove smaller objects off ledges. |
| Harmonic Ward | By sustaining a low chord, the mage surrounds themselves and nearby allies with a shimmering "wall" of counter-vibration. The ward absorbs or deflects mundane missiles and muffles explosions, counting as +1 AP to all hit locations (WFRP) or +1 Armour to allies in Immediate range (Cypher) for ten minutes. |
| Resonant Heal | A gentle triad sung directly over a wound accelerates clotting and numbs pain. Heals 1d5 Wounds or 4 points to any Pool; if used on Fatigued characters, removes one level of Fatigue instead. |
| Shatterglass Shriek | A razor-edged cry that exploits the resonant frequency of brittle materials. Unenchanted glass, crystal, thin ice - or an enemy’s ceramic armour - splinters within a 6-yd cone. Living targets take 1d10 Damage (ignoring armour made of such materials) and must test Cool/Intellect or be Deafened for one round. |
Common Spells
| Spell | Description |
|---|
| Whisper Veil | Dampens all sound in a ten-yard radius for one minute. Footsteps, spoken words, and even clashing steel are reduced to muffled thuds, granting a +20/2-step Asset to Stealth but preventing allies from shouting warnings. |
| Echo Dart | A palm-sized bolt of compressed resonance hurled at a single foe. Range: 30 yds. Deals SB +3 / 3 damage and ignores most cover short of solid stone. The dart produces no visible light, making it ideal for covert strikes. |
| Lullaby of Rest | A soothing melody that seeps into weary muscles. Removes the Fatigued condition (WFRP) or grants an immediate ten-minute Recovery roll (Cypher). Targets must be willing or unconscious. |
| Resonant Shield | Projects a soft harmonic field around the caster and up to two adjacent allies, adding +1 Armour Point (+1 Armour) for ten minutes. The effect hums audibly; stealth is hindered while active. |
| Shriek of Splintering | A harsher cousin to Shatterglass Shriek, tuned for wood and bone. Causes brittle weapons to crack and wooden doors to groan apart. On living targets, inflicts normal spell damage plus a Stunned test due to disorienting pain. |
| Song of Silence | Cancels one ongoing sound-based spell, bardic performance, or magical alarm within 20 yds. If the target effect is higher-tier/level, the Sound Mage must win an opposed Channeling/Intellect test to over-ride it. The cancellation lasts for one hour or the original duration, whichever is shorter. |
Advancement (WFRP4e)
| Tier | Status | Characteristic Advances | Skills (add one per level) | Talents (choose one per level) | Trappings |
|---|
| Apprentice | Brass 3 | Fel +5 | Language (Magick), Perform (Sing), Cool, Perception | Perfect Pitch, Aethyric Attunement | Torque of silver chimes, pitch-pipe |
| Journeyman | Silver 1 | Fel +10, WP +5 | Lore (Sound), Entertain (Storytelling), Stealth (Rural), Channeling (Lore: Sound) | Acute Hearing, Suave, Petty Magic (Sound) | Runed tuning fork |
| Master | Gold 1 | Fel +20, WP +10 | Leadership, Intuition, Intimidate | Instinctive Diction, Trance, Mighty Channeling | Crystal focus, apprentice chorister |
| Virtuoso | Gold 3 | Fel +40, WP +20 | Evaluate, Gossip | Petty Magic (Arcane), Unshakeable, War Wizard | Personal acoustorium, library of score-scrolls |
Career Exits: Court Mage, Battle Mage, Loremaster, Composer, Arcane Scholar
Advancement (Cypher)
Cypher Focus: Conducts Resonant Magic
You weave vibration into power.
| Tier | Ability |
|---|
| 1 | Echo Strike (1 Intellect): sonic blast for 2 damage; Perfect Pitch grants an Asset on hearing-based tasks. |
| 2 | Resonant Ward (2 Intellect): create a Short-range aura; allies gain +1 Armour for 10 minutes. |
| 3 | Silence Field (3 Intellect): dampen all noise in Immediate area for one minute; ranged attacks against you are hindered while active. |
| 4 | Harmony Heal (4 Intellect): sing a chord that restores 4 points to any one Pool of a creature within Short range. |
| 5 | Sonic Shatter (5 Intellect): disrupt a Medium object or inflict 6 damage ignoring Armour on a living target. GM intrusion: violent feedback dazes you for one round. |
| 6 | World-Note (6+ Intellect): unleash a concussive crescendo in Long range, dealing 6 damage in a Small area and forcing an immediate Intellect defence or be stunned (tasks +2 steps) for one round. Allies take half damage. |
Suggested Equipment: tuning fork (counts as light weapon - sonic), crystal chime set, cloak woven with silvered thread.
The concept of sound mages is so cool. I love the origin story - imagine turning away a wolf with your chattering teeth! :D
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