If the caster completes a series that casts a spell, intentionally or unintentionally, the spell must be cast.
Most of these are shot off to nowhere if not required but some cannot be easily discarded.
For example fire storm gets you no matter where it is released.
Note also that some of the larger spells have smaller ones incorporated within their casting series.
All spells and monsters need a target, someone or something to be the victim.
Usually the target is obvious.
Normally enchantments and damaging spells are cast at on your opponent's wizard, whereas protection and summoning spells are cast on your wizard.
However, if your target is not the usual one, it must be noted along with the gestures
For example, you may wish to cast a counter-spell on your own monster to stop a charm monster spell from making it attack you.
The target need not exist at the time the gestures are made. "The elemental he's about to create" is a valid target but if it still doesn't exist when you actually cast the spell then the spell is discarded (but, once again, recall that certain spells cannot be discarded).
Monsters will usually attack their master's opponent but if the target is different, e.g. another monster, then it must be written down along with the monster's action.
Spells can be aborted at any point during their development simply by performing a gesture which breaks up the series for that spell.
There is no penalty, save having wasted some time.
Note that no spells contain stab or nothing.
Also note that nonsense (Zen?)( gestures such as (C with just one hand are considered the same as nothing (which is a fairly Zenlike concept, in and of itself).
Consequently, after one of these options is taken, all spells must start from scratch.
Note also that wizards carry only one dagger and so cannot stab with both hands at the same time.
Wizards can, however, change hands for stabbing without wasting time.
Such are the disadvantages of physical violence.
Certain spells cancel one another if they take effect simultaneously.
An obvious example is finger of death and raise dead.
Cancellation occurs when the subjects of the spells concerned are the same, although there are some of the heat versus cold variety which don't care who is the subject.
Most other spells which cancel harmlessly are contradictory enchantments (e.g. a wizard cannot both repeat last turn's gestures and give a random gesture with one hand when amnesia and confusion are cast at the same time).
If two spells seem to cancel yet are not mentioned explicitly in the section on spells, use your common sense and you can't go far wrong (henceforth this will be known as the Cosmic Encounter Rule).
Since spells detonate simultaneously, there is occasionally confusion over spells which don't cancel yet which seem to depend on which happened first.
The best example is when a monster is created and, on the same turn, hit by a fireball, or something else sufficient to kill it.
Since both are simultaneous, the monster will attack that turn whilst being destroyed.
There are some examples explicitly mentioned in the final section.
For example, ice elementals in an ice storm and counter-spell or dispel magic versus all other spells.
Another seeming conflict occurs when a target that is resistant to fire has both a remove enchantment and fireball cast on them.
The enchantment is removed as the fireball explodes (since they are simultaneous) hence the poor victim is fried.
If the target were not resistant to fire and was hit by a resist fire and fireball then they would start to resist fire just as the fireball exploded and be saved.
Before the battle commences, the referee casts a dispel magic followed by an anti-spell at each of the wizards so they cannot commence gesturing prematurely in order to nearly finish a spell when they start the battle.
For the same reason, being made resistant to fire in your last battle doesn't do you any good in the next.
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Winning
Each wizard can sustain 14 points of damage but dies when 15 or more points of damage are done.
The surviving wizard (if any) is declared the winner.
Simultaneous death is a posthumous draw.
Damage to wizards and monsters is cumulative (so you don't have to do it all in one go!).
Dead monsters take no further part in the game.
Wizards may also choose to surrender.
This is not a spell, but a pair of P gestures made by both hands at the same time signals your surrender.