Rather than casting spells under their own power, clerics call upon their deities to request that miracles be performed on their behalf. The chance of success is dependent upon many factors, but the level of the character's Faith is central.
Faith can be augmented by carrying a holy relic of the deity. Relics have Faith scores of their own, which are added to the Faith of the possessing character, provided that both Faiths are oriented towards the same deity. With or without the influence of relics, it is possible (although rare) for a single character to have Faith in multiple deities, provided that the deities are friendly towards one another. A character could have Faith in both Taal and Ulric, for instance, but not in both Sigmar and Khorne.
The chance of a miracle being granted is calculated from the following table:
| Faith * 15% | Base chance of miracle |
| -NM | Nuisance modifier |
| +PM | Piety modifier |
| +30 | Request is very suitable to deity's goals and character |
| +10 | Request is suitable to deity's goals and character |
| -10 | Request is slightly unsuited to deity |
| No chance | Request is opposed to deity's character or goals |
| +10 | Requested aid is needed to complete a divine quest |
| +10 | Dire personal need |
| +20 | Dire need of several characters friendly to the deity |
| +30 | Dire need of a large segment of the deity's cult |
| -10 | Character has unwillingly, unknowningly, or accidentally violated deity's strictures, per instance (penalty remains until violation is attoned for) |
| No chance | Character has deliberately violated deity's strictures (penalty remains until violation is attoned for) |
Initiates and level 1 clerics who have not yet obtained the Faith skill may request miracles, but all bonuses are halved with the exception of the Piety Modifier.
The "Nuisance Modifier" (I'm really trying to find a better name for it; please let me know if you have any suggestions) reflects the tendency of gods to get annoyed with people who are constantly asking them for miracles. Each time a character requests a miracle, his Nuisance Modifier is increased by 10. The Nuisance Modifier is reduced by 5 points per day, to a minimum of 0.
The Piety Modifier is an indication of how well the character has been following the deity's will. Making sacrifices (Note that "sacrifices" need not be monetary - observing the spirit of the deity's strictures as well as their letter, even in difficult situations, is an effective sacrifice as well) or serving others well in the deity's name will increase the character's Piety Modifier, while taking actions which displease the deity will reduce it, even if these actions do not directly violate a stricture. Whether positive or negative, the Piety Modifier moves 5 points towards 0 each day. The Piety Modifier is also applied to rolls on the Cleric Advance Table when the character attempts to increase his Faith, taking the place of the roleplaying modifier suggested in the official rules.
A character's Nuisance and Piety Modifiers apply only to a single deity. Rather than actively tracking them for every deity in the game world, the GM may choose to estimate them as needed for gods with whom a character does not interact regularly.
Once the chance of a miracle is known, roll against that chance. If this roll succeeds, the deity's response will have a level of effect equal to 1 per full 10 points the roll was made by. If the roll is a critical success, the level of effect is increased by 1d10.
| Level of Effect | Example Miracles |
|---|---|
| 0 | Character receives a sign that his request was heard, but no actual aid is granted |
| 1 | Cancel the effects of a failed Psychology test; cancel a sustained magical effect |
| 2 | Cause Instability in foes; change the weather gradually; provide food or water |
| 3 | Cure a disease or poisoning; render friendly summoned forces immune to Instability |
| 4 | Determine truth or falsehood of a statement or situation |
| 5 | Restore or cripple one sense; walk on water; change the weather instantly; destroy/dispel summoned foes |
| 6 | Eliminate healable aftereffects of critical damage |
| 7 | Cripple a limb; cure an insanity |
| 8 | Restore a crippled limb |
| 9 | Provide reinforcements to rescue character |
| 10 | Regrow a severed or amputated limb |
| 11 | |
| 12 | Provide forces to fight for character |
| 13 | |
| 14 | |
| 15 | |
| 16 | Strike a foe dead |
| 17 | |
| 18 | |
| 19 | |
| 20 | Resurrect the dead |
Stat Increases: Miracles may also take the form of temporary increases to stats. +1W or +5 to a percentage stat will generally equal 1 level of effect. A +1 to S or T is 2 levels of effect. +1M or +1A is 3 levels of effect.
Dice Bonuses: One level of effect will grant +10 to a single roll of d100 or +1 on a d12, d10 or d8 roll. Two levels will give +1 on a d6 or d4 roll. Higher bonuses must be paid for cumulatively - 6 levels of effect could give +10 on 6 rolls, +20 on 2 rolls, or +30 on one roll. Alternately, a foe's rolls may be penalized by the same amount, but, in an opposed roll, only one side may be affected.
Healing: One level of effect can be used to do any one of the following: stop bleeding, restore 1d3W, improve a character's condition from Heavily Wounded to Lightly Wounded or Severely Wounded to Heavily Wounded.
Any character who has entered a religious career or attained the Faith skill by other means may request the guidance of his deity at any time. The chance of receiving guidance is calculated as if he were requesting a miracle, but with an additional +25% modifier. Each request for divine guidance increases the character's Nuisance Modifier by 5.
If the request is granted, the character must still make an Int test (+10 for Theology skill) to interpret it correctly.
A character with Faith may roll 1d10 any time he is to be affected by a spell which his deity may disapprove of. (GM's discretion is final; note that the deity's interests may not be the same as the character's - even if it would be certain death, Ulric is likely to approve of a hostile wizard casting Cause Frenzy on one of his priests.) If this roll is less than or equal to the character's Faith, the spell has no effect on him whatsoever. As far as the Faithful character is concerned, the spell was never cast.
This roll is completely passive and is not affected by Nuisance or Piety Modifiers, but does suffer a -1 for each unatoned unwilling, unknown, or accidental violation of strictures and is not made if the character has willfully violated a stricture and not yet atoned.
Although the gods of the Warhammer world are not omnipotent, their ability to manipulate the Winds of Chaos and their available stores of energy are orders of magnitude beyond any mortal (or undead) spellcaster's. Because of this, magic can never contradict a miracle - miracles cannot be countered or dispelled by magic and magic can never overcome a miraculous defense.
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