Character Spotlight: Starlight Glimmer

Spoiler alert for chapter 500 - Without Peer.

Lateral Movement picks up directly from where The Apple Falls Far From the Tree leaves off, which itself takes place only a short time after A Dangerous Sparkle, which was initially released during the long hiatus between the fourth and fifth seasons of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It's only recently that the plot has progressed enough to where events and characters from the fifth season are starting to make their appearance. First among them is a certain unicorn mare by the name of:

Starlight Glimmer, 6th-level magical prodigy

It doesn't take very much to alter the course of someone's life. For Starlight Glimmer, her path changed when her best friend Sunburst got his cutie mark. Whisked off to Canterlot, his absence devastated Starlight, setting her on an intense course of studying magic to try and meet up with Sunburst again. With no idea that her skills were progressing at an abnormally fast rate, Starlight developed incredible magical aptitude, with even her cutie mark being indicative of spellcasting prowess.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to let her reunite with Sunburst. By the time Starlight was ready to go join him at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, Sunburst had already flunked out, too shamefaced to return home (something his parents hid from their friends and neighbors, instead saying that he was pursuing an independent study abroad).

Losing her best friend a second time was more than Starlight could take. Blaming the cutie marks that had originally separated them, she silently declared war on them, as well as everything that made ponies different from each other. Developing a spell to suppress special talents, she's since set up an enclave where she can propagate her new philosophy of equality, presenting it as the cure to all of life's ills. Those ponies who embrace her ideals are welcomes into her community, and those that don't are encouraged to see the errors of their ways...with such "encouragement" being less and less gentle as time goes on.

Turning, you spot a unicorn mare. Her coat is a light purple, while her mane and tail are alternating shades of the same color, with only her eyes being true blue. Her cutie mark, rather oddly, is an equals sign, but you don't have much time to inspect it as she turns toward you with a bright smile. "Welcome!" she gushes. "I'm Starlight Glimmer. I hope that we'll become very good friends."

The following statistics are built with Eclipse: The Codex Persona to be compatible with Pathfinder First Edition:

Available Character Points: 168 (level 6 base) + 18 (levels 1, 3, and 6 feats) + 6 (restriction) + 6 (disadvantages) = 198 CP.

Starlight's restriction is that she may not wear armor. Her disadvantages are History (how she lost her best friend and came to hate cutie marks) and Secret (that she's kept her own cutie mark, despite that being against her philosophy, and has taken cutie marks by force and coerced ponies into accepting the loss). Should Starlight's secret be revealed, she'll gain the Hunted and Poor Reputation disadvantages (without receiving any further Character Points for them).

Ability Scores (32-point by): Str 11 (-2 racial = 9), Dex 11 (+1 level advancement = 12), Con 14, Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 15 (+2 racial = 17).

Never having been to Everglow, Starlight is built under D&D 3.5 conventions, rather than Pathfinder First Edition. This means that not only does she buy her ability scores using the 3.5 rules, but she doesn't gain 6 CP of starting traits, gains a feat at every third level rather than every other level, uses the 3.5 skill list, etc. Should she manage to spend some time training or adventuring on that world (or another world that operates under Pathfinder standards), she'll be able to retrain these into their more-powerful equivalents.

Unicorn Pony, Sorcerous (28 CP/+0 ECL race)

• Attribute Shift, +2 Charisma/-2 Strength (6 CP).

• Innate Enchantment, caster level x spell level 1 x 2,000 gp (7 CP; 6,000 gp)

  • Greater mage hand (2,000 gp).
  • Greater mage hand (2,000 gp).
  • Light (self-only; 700 gp).
  • Prestidigitation (1,000 gp).
• Immunity/stacking limitations when combining innate enchantment effects with external effects (common/minor/trivial; only covers level 0 or 1 effects) (2 CP).
• Immunity/the normal XP cost of innate enchantments (uncommon/minor/trivial) (1 CP).
• Immunity/needing to concentrate on spells (common/major/trivial – only for spells of level 0 or 1), specialized for half cost/only applies to innate enchantments (1 CP).
• Skill Focus/Spellcraft (6 CP).
• Eldritch, a unicorn’s horn glows when using innate enchantments or spellcasting, and a matching glow surrounds the target (0 CP).
• Hysteria/magic x2, specialized for double effect/may only be used for a +12 bonus to a particular [Rune] Casting and the corresponding [Rune] Mastery skill, corrupted for two-thirds cost/can only be used in conjunction (and so requiring that each be paid for accordingly) (8 CP).
• Accursed. Any damage, or other harmful effect, that befalls a unicorn’s horn (e.g. must target their horn specifically, rather than the unicorn overall) causes all innate enchantments and spells cast to immediately end. No more can be used until the effect is healed (-3 CP).

This racial build is presented as being a "sorcerous" unicorn to distinguish it from my original take on unicorns. That's necessary because the version on that blog post was written with mainstream "Vancian" spellcasting in mind, eschewing the other types presented in Eclipse. Since [rune] magic fits native Equestrian spellcasting better than Vancian casting does (more on this below), I've altered the unicorn racial write-up to better match this style of magic.

That's only half the story, however. The other half is that Starlight is somewhat more talented from your typical unicorn pony, as her Hysteria ability hints at. While she's worked hard to develop what she can do, she's always had greater potential than most other unicorns. From an in-game standpoint, her ability to use sudden bursts of tremendous power – typically catalyzed via fits of strong emotion – is actually due to her being able to briefly expand her body's magical channels, enabling them to temporarily allow much greater amounts of power to move through (this is the magical equivalent of an hysterical strength allowing someone to briefly lift a car). She has this ability due to being the distant descendant of a certain spellcaster of tremendous power.

Basic Abilities (90 CP)

• Proficiencies: None (0 CP).
• Hit Dice: 6d8 (24 CP).
• BAB: +6, corrupted for two-thirds cost/no iterative attacks (24 CP).

• Saving Throws:

  • Fortitude: +2 (6 CP).
  • Reflex: +5 (15 CP).
  • Will: +5 (15 CP).
• Skills: Fast Learner, specialized for double effect/only for skills (6 CP).

Starlight's use of Fast Learner lets her gain 2 skill points per level automatically. As a character built under 3.5 auspices, any mechanics that grant her skill points for free (including her Intelligence bonus) are quadrupled at 1st level. The end result is that this use of Fast Learner, as of 6th level, has earned her 18 skill points by itself.

Once in a Generation (60 CP)

• Advanced Improved Augmented Bonus/gains (Charisma modifier) skill points per level, specialized for double effect and corrupted for two-thirds cost/only through level 6, may only spend those points on [rune] magic skills (12 CP).
• 6d6 (21) Mana, specialized and corrupted for triple effect/no form of natural magic, may only be used to power [rune] magic (36 CP).
• Rite of Chi with +20 Bonus Uses, specialized and corrupted for one-third cost/may not take negative levels for additional uses, requires 8 hours of rest to use (12 CP).

These abilities demonstrate Starlight's incredible mastery of native Equestrian spellcasting. The first bullet point grants her an astonishing 54 skill points that can only be spent on [rune] magic skills, while the second grants her 63 spell levels' worth of casting. The last bullet point is enough to replenish all of the Mana she has (including the small amount in the next section) after she rests. But even this isn't the full extent of her power.

Building on Talent (18 CP)

• 3d6 (10) Mana, specialized and corrupted for one third cost/no form of natural magic, may only be used to power Hysteria (6 CP).
• Great modifier to racial Hysteria (6 CP).
• Extended modifier to racial Hysteria (6 CP).

This is where we see just how strong Starlight really is. By itself, her racial Hysteria is a latent ability, since her racial abilities provide no way to activate it. Here, however, we find that not only has Starlight developed the means to do so, she's also refined and strengthened her innate ability to enhance her magic. This allows her to, up to five minutes each day (in 1-minute increments) literally double both her caster level and the maximum level of spells that she can use. However, it doesn't increase her reserves, meaning that it's all too easy for her to burn herself out if she abuses this power.

Genius Wizard (12 CP)

• Luck, specialized and corrupted for triple effect/only for spell research rolls with Spellcraft, may roll 3d20 and add the results (6 CP).
• Improved Augmented Bonus/adds Intelligence modifier to spell DCs (12 CP).

Although she directs her magic with her force of will, Starlight also understands her spells inside and out, casting them adroitly as well as artfully, and so they're notably difficult to resist. She's also extremely skilled in developing new spells (as per the Spell Research section of The Practical Enchanter), even without much in the way of funding, equipment, or assistance (though she'll often stick to variants of spells she already knows, as she has a much better chance of success than when she's trying to invent an entirely new spell out of thin air).

Pushing Limits (12 CP)

• Body Fuel with the Efficient modifier, specialized for one-half cost/may only use physical ability scores (6 CP).
• Immunity to being unable to upgrade active spells to higher-level versions (uncommon/major/great), specialized for one-half cost/only for [rune] magic (6 CP).

Although it's rare for her to need to do so, Starlight is capable of driving her body beyond its natural limits in order to dredge up additional power.

The second bullet point is one that requires some explanation. If Starlight casts a non-instantaneous spell, before its duration expires she can convert it to another spell of the same basic effect and a higher level by spending Mana equal to the difference. The "same basic effect" of a spell is one that requires adjudication from the GM, though spells that are built from the same spell template obviously qualify, as do spells that have built-in metamagic (see The Practical Enchanter for more on these).

For example, if Starlight casts a shield spell on herself, and wants to upgrade it to a 2nd-level version (which she's already developed, since she has to learn each spell as a discrete unit as outlined below) that is the same save for granting a +6 bonus rather than +4, she could pay 1 additional point of Mana to upgrade the spell before its duration expired, rather than casting it separately for a cost of 2 Mana. If she then wanted to upgrade it into a resilient sphere around herself and her friends (presuming she knew that spell also), she could pay another 2 points of Mana in order to do so.

When upgrading an active spell this way, the new spell replaces the old one in every regard. Any duration already used is counted against the upgraded spell. Using this option requires an action equal to the new spell's casting time, and provokes an attack of opportunity if not cast defensively. Spells can only be upgraded to higher-level spells in this way; they cannot be changed into lower-level spells to recover Mana.

Derived Stats

• Hit Points: 8 (1^st level d8) + 22 (levels 2-6, d8) + 12 (Con bonus) = 42 hp.
• Initiative: +1 (Dex bonus) = +1.
• Speed: 30 ft.

• Saving Throws:

  • Fortitude: +2 (base) +2 (Con bonus) = +4.
  • Reflex: +5 (base) +1 (Dex bonus) = +6.
  • Will: +5 (base) +0 (Wis bonus) = +5.
• Armor Class: +1 (Dex bonus) = AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10.
• Attacks: +6 (BAB) +1 (Dex) = +7 ranged.

• Skills points: 18 (Fast Learner) + 27 (Int bonus) + 54 (Augmented Bonus; [rune] skills only)

  • Bluff: 5 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +8.
  • Diplomacy: 0 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) +2 (synergy (Bluff)) = +5.
  • Disguise: 0 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) +2 (synergy (Bluff) to act in character) = +3 (+5 to act in character).
  • Concentration: 9 (ranks) +2 (Con bonus) = +11.
  • Hide: 2 (ranks) +1 (Dex bonus) = +3.
  • Intimidate: 2 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) +2 (synergy (Bluff)) = +7.
  • Knowledge (arcana): 5 (ranks) +3 (Int bonus) +2 (synergy ([Rune] Casting) to checks related to her fields of [rune] magic) = +8 (+10 to checks related to her fields of [rune] magic).
  • Knowledge (history): 2 (ranks) +3 (Int bonus) = +5.
  • Knowledge (local): 2 (ranks) +3 (Int bonus) = +5.
  • Listen: 2 (ranks) +0 (Wis bonus) = +2.
  • Move Silently: 2 (ranks) +1 (Dex bonus) = +3.
  • Sense Motive: 2 (ranks) +0 (Wis bonus) = +2.
  • Spellcraft: 9 (ranks) +3 (Int modifier) +3 (Skill Focus) +2 (synergy (Knowledge (arcana))) +2 (synergy ([Rune] Casting) to checks related to her fields of [rune] magic) = +17 (+19 to checks related to her fields of [rune] magic).
  • Spot: 2 (ranks) +0 (Wis bonus) = +2.
  • Swim: 1 (ranks) -1 (Str modifier) = +0.

The above are Starlight's "class" skills, in addition to the [rune] magic skills listed below. She should technically also be able to speak three additional languages thanks to her Intelligence bonus. From the show, we know that one of those is Olde Ponish; the others are undefined. Note that, as per the Eclipse rules, any skill which Starlight has six or more ranks in becomes a class skill.

[Rune] Magic skills

All of Starlight’s [rune] magic ranks (and only the ranks, not any other bonuses) are specialized for double effect/she can only use [rune] magic for specific spell effects, which she must learn before use (including via spell research). As she's effectively sunk four-and-a-half ranks into each of the twelve skills listed below, this gives her an effective 108 ranks in the following skills:

• Abjuration Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Abjuration Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Conjuration Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Conjuration Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Enchantment Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Enchantment Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Evocation Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Evocation Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Illusion Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Illusion Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Transmutation Casting: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.
• Transmutation Mastery: 9 (ranks) +3 (Cha bonus) = +12.

[Rune] Magic Review

While the rules for [rune] magic take up only a single page in Eclipse (page 97, to be specific), Starlight's various supplementary abilities, restrictions, and alterations to those powers are rather complicated, particularly since they're spread out across her character sheet. As such, here's a brief overview on the salient points of [rune] magic.

One thing to note is my use of brackets around the "rune" part of [rune] magic, something that doesn't appear in the text for Eclipse. That's because I want to highlight a particular point that's easy to overlook: this particular form of magic has nothing to do with the use of runes. Rather, that name is a placeholder. While runes were used in this magic system's original presentation, by the time it migrated over to Eclipse it had removed itself from those roots. As it stands now, the specific field that each particular application of [rune] magic is used toward replaces the bracketed word, which is why Starlight's [rune] magic skills are called things like "evocation casting" and "illusion mastery." She doesn't need to make use of runes when using her magic.

With that established, [rune] magic works as follows: pick a particular thematic area that you want your magic to focus on, such as ice or healing or necromancy. That's the focus of your [rune] magic. Each particular application of rune magic uses two skills: [Rune] Casting and [Rune] Mastery. Your total bonus in [Rune] Casting, divided by 2 (rounded down), is your effective caster level. Your total bonus in [Rune] Mastery, divided by 4 (rounded down), is the maximum spell level that you can use. Spells that boost your skills do not add their bonus to [rune] magic skills, and magic items that boost skills add only half their bonus; this is due to the magic of those skills interfering with the magic from outside sources. Armor check penalties apply to all [rune] skills, unless you have an ability to circumvent this.

In order to cast a [rune] spell, you must expend Mana (see page 36 of Eclipse). Specifically, one point of Mana per level of the spell you want to cast. Because [rune] magic is thematic in nature, you don't need to come up with specific spells ahead of time. Rather, you simply propose an effect, and the GM adjudicates its spell level. [Rune] magic does not require any particular somatic or verbal components, takes a standard action, and provokes an attack of opportunity unless you cast defensively. All other aspects of concentration checks apply normally.

Those are the basics. But Starlight has kicked things up a notch.

In her case, she's earned a large number of skill points to spend exclusively on [rune] magic. This has given her a +12 bonus on all of her various [Rune] Casting and [Rune] Mastery skills, which means she can cast up to 3rd-level spells at caster level 6. However, for up to 5 minutes per day (in 1-minute increments), she can – thanks to her Hysteria racial power, the upgrades she's subsequently taken, and a small amount of Mana set aside specifically for this purpose – double these bonuses to +24. This allows her to cast up to 6th-level spells at caster level 12. Needless to say, this is a powerful ability, and is how she was able to give Lex and so many of his allies such trouble!

Her powers come with one major drawback, however, which is that Starlight can't just propose effects within the thematic area of each type of [rune] magic that she knows. Rather, she needs to come up with each spell individually. This isn't too difficult for her, thanks to her high Spellcraft bonus and her ability to roll 3d20 when trying to invent new spells, but it still puts limits on what she's capable of, though her ability to scale up active spells by paying the difference helps to ameliorate this.

Finally, the spells that Starlight knows aren't listed here, as that would require too large of an accounting due to how many she likely knows. For a very rough guideline, assume that Starlight knows four spells of each level for spell levels 0 through 3 for each type of [rune] magic that she knows, half that many spells for each level of levels 4 through 6 (all drawn from the sorcerer/wizard spell list), and has invented 1d4-1 variants of each such spell that she knows (which is one hundred thirty-two spells known and one hundred ninety-eight variations thereof!). As mentioned previously, variants should be built using a combination of the spell templates found in chapter one of The Practical Enchanter and/or the rules for built-in metamagic found on page 114 of that same book.

Further Development

While Starlight has pushed her mastery to Equestrian magic to levels that would astound even the alicorn princesses, her specialization has come at a cost. Her low hit points, middling saving throws, and terrible Armor Class mean that she'll need to spend a considerable portion of her magical resources buffing her defenses if she encounters any serious opposition. Nor can she last very long if she begins expending a lot of high-level spells, which would burn through her reserves quickly. And of course, with only Equestrian resources at her disposal, she has no magical gear – or even useful mundane gear – to draw upon. All of these are areas that she'll need to address as she continues to advance.

Worst of all, however, is that Starlight has hit the point of severe diminishing returns where her skill with Equestrian magic is concerned. Having tapped her innate talent to its fullest, it's going to be much harder for her to keep improving her magical skills, represented by her no longer receiving a large swath of free skill points to raise her [rune] magic skills with. While she can put the skill points she gains normally into them (particularly since they're still specialized for double effect), she's going to find it much harder to push her limits from here on out, to the point where she's likely better off diversifying her abilities than specializing further.

Comments

[Not so New Brony]

So in a way, she's reached her peak in terms of power as an individual and can only grow(diversify) with help from those around her just as in the canon series. Shame she'll probably receive no such treatment from Lex and I doubt he'll entertain the idea of letting her go even if Twilight suggests such a thing...well, provided things don't escalate too much after Rainbow makes her 'entrance'

[Alzrius]

5328568 That's pretty much it. While Starlight could in theory continue to try and push her magic to new levels, she's not going to achieve anything close to the results she's used to, even with dedicated effort. Her combination of talent and dedication has taken her to unprecedented heights, but the former isn't limitless, and the latter can only go so far.

Of course, she has more immediate concerns to worry about, since Lex fully intends to make sure she's no threat to anypony for the foreseeable future. But then again, he had the same antagonistic relationship with Garden Gate, and she thinks the world of Lex now. So really, anything could happen...especially with a certain group of ponies bound for Vanhoover.