Like many other fantasy worlds, the world David Eddings created in The Belgariad has its own share of things that wouldn't have any effect in most other worlds or that simply work completely differently. The biggest example of such in this world is the way magic works. In basic GURPS the magic system requires that you have the Magery advantage and learn a different skill for each spell, using a very complicated prerequisite system. In this world there is no such complicated spell system, no actual magic in fact. Even the word Sorcery, used by the worlds inhabitants, doesn't properly describe the ability. The best way to describe what happens when a Sorcerer makes use of his talent is to call it the Will and the Word. By focusing his Willpower to an end the Sorcerer manipulates the surrounding world to create the desired effect. As such, it is often as difficult to do something by that method as it would be to do it otherwise. This talent does require a certain amount of training to use however. The first use by someone who has the talent usually involves them being angry at something and commanding it to "Be not" or some other similar phrase, and if you remember the World History you know what happens when someone does that. Those who survive the initial discovery of their talent usually learn how to use it fairly well. A fairly major drawback to the usage of the talent however is that it creates a "noise that can be heard by others with the same ability. The more controlled and slow the release of one's will when using Sorcery the quieter the noise it makes. The skills that a person using Sorcery has to learn are very general things, not like the extremely specific spells in the basic GURPS magic system. A full listing of such skills and the way in which Sorcery works in game terms is below.
Advantages and Powers
Sorcery - 35 points for one level, 20 points per level afterwards
Because of how varied the results allowed by using Sorcery each level costs 20 points. The 35 points at level 1 includes a mandatory Unaging. Each level determines how much fatigue you can expend when you use the ability. For every fatigue you spend you are able to do one die in damage or move (translocate) 50 pounds. For more ambiguous uses (starting or dousing a fire, making something grow, detoxing food or water) the fatigue drain required should be proportional to the difficulty of the task. Time required is also very variable. The base time required is one round of concentration before the effect occurs, just like basic GURPS magic. If the player wants to take longer then the level required to perform the action can be effectively reduced. For every 2 seconds extra taken the level required can be reduced by 1 with a penalty of -1 to the skill roll for each reduction. This skill roll is made on every even numbered second with the appropriate reduction. This simulates skill over power. Note that the same amount of fatigue must be expended either way.
Ex. Young Geran isn't very powerful with Sorcery, having only a level 1 power. He wants to douse a burning house, which requires a level 5 power. Luckily he is very skilled with his abilities with a 16 in creation. He stands and concentrates for 1 turn and then slowly releases his Will over the following 8 rounds, a roll vs. 16 on round 2, vs. 15 on round 4, vs. 14 at round 6, vs. 13 at round 8 and finally vs. 12 on round 10. If he fails at any point he can simply wait 2 more rounds and reroll his last attempt, but even the failed attempt uses a fatigue.
If, in the above example, Geran had a level 2 power in Sorcery then the first 2 turns delay would have used 2 extra fatigue and done as much to help douse the flames, which would have requred him to expend only 1 more fatigue to completely douse the fire.
Priestly Sorcery - 15 points for one level, 10 points per level afterwards
This power is similar to the basic Sorcery, but can only be taken by someone who is a member of one of the various churches in the world and is limited to working within the boundaries of his God's lands.
Skills
Unless otherwise noted the following skills cannot be at a higher level than their prerequisites.
Translocation (M/VH, default: Physics-6) - The skill of moving something with the power of Sorcery. This skill is VH because of the complex physics that it involves and thus also requires that you have the Physics skill to learn.
Creation (M/H, default: IQ-6) - This skill, while not difficult to learn, is very difficult to employ. This is due to the fact that all the energy for the creation is taken from within the creator. The other skills, such as translocation, draw in energy from around the Sorcerer to create the effect. There are times when it seems that creation is at work, such as in the above example with Geran and the burning house, when in fact the Sorcerer is simply altering what is already in the area to create the effect (above Geran condensed water out of the atmosphere). Whereas Geran can condense 50 pounds of water out of the atmosphere for 1 fatigue, if he were creating the water he could only make 10 pounds per point of fatigue spent.
Growth (M/H, default: Biology-5) - This skill involves accelerating the growth of plants and other similar lifeforms. The growth can be accelerated by 1 day per power level put into the acceleration. Knowledge of general Biology is required for this skill to be learned.
Alteration (M/VH, default: Physics-6) - This is a catch-all skill for anything that involves a chemical transformation. Examples include condensation, purifying water and food and other similar effects. This skill requires the Physics skill.
ESP (M/VH, default: IQ-7) - This does exactly what it says. A Sorcerer with this skill can see, hear, speak, etc. at a distance away from himself. The range is 50 yards per power level and cannot be extended through extending casting time.
Transformation (M/H, default: Biology-5) - This skill must be learned seperately for each form the user wishes to transform himself into. After the initial transformation the Sorcerer retains all knowledge of the language of the creature transformed into (assuming that he spoke to another of the species during that time) and while in the alternate form he retains his normal knowledge and mental skills, but has to fight the instincts of the creature transformed into.
Mind Reading (M/VH, default: Psychology-6) - This is not exactly what the name implies. It allows the user to scan the surface of the target's thoughts, nothing very deep. It can also be used to determine what race/culture the target belongs to if the user has had a chance to learn such mental signitures. Knowledge of general psychology is needed to properly learn this skill.
Drasnian Sign Language (M/A) - This skill can is only known to Drasnians at character creation and few Drasnians will teach it to a non-Drasnian, and even fewer to a non-Alorn. The Drasnians use this skill to discuss two different topics at the same time in order to facilitate their "national industry." While this skill is known of in merchant and royal circles a skilled practitioner can hide its use from nearly all but the person he is signing to.