From: blake1001@technologist.com Subject: [M:tA]Foci, Merits & Flaws [long] (last one, I promise) Date: 06 Oct 1998 00:00:00 GMTMessage-ID: <6ve0g7$qd9$1@nnrp1.dejanews.com> To: MAGE-L@ORACLE.WIZARDS.COM Organization: Virtual Adepts For definitions of Transcedence, Control, Integration, etc... see my previous post on DejaNews: http://www.dejanews.com/[ST_chan=rec]/getdoc.xp?AN=397208699.1 or the original "Resolving Foci" post on my web page: http://www.oocities.org/Area51/1317/resolve.html I promise, this is my last long-winded post on the subject. The following are Merits & Flaws that modify how mages go about Resolving thier foci, or are otherwise related to that subject. As usual, I'm looking for feedback of any kind... ------------------------------------------------------------- Dogmatic: (1,2,3pt Flaw) You believe very strongly in your Tradition's paradigm. All others are clearly wrong. You tend to ridicule other traditions and study only with your own kind. You may occasionally admit that there is something to be learned by studying the 'superstitions' of others but, even then you gain only half the experience you would have otherwise [1st Ed: you learn from them with a minus five penalty to study points (instead of the usual minus three)]. Of course, you probably won't be able to find many masters willing to teach you anyway. This flaw also colors your understanding of the Metaphysic of Magick. At the 2pt level, you can never choose Transcendence or Diversification when Resolving a focus. At the 3pt level, your belief in your paradigm is so inflexible that you cannot ever perform magick without the prescribed methods and trappings of your Tradition, nor can you gain the insight necessary to Integrate one of your foci into the larger paradigm - Control is the only option available to you. You can not take the Merit: Paradigm Flexibility. Paradigm Flexibility: (1-5pt Merit) You have an easy time understanding other paradigms and adapting elements of them to your own. [1st Ed: When learning from mages of other traditions, you reduce the study point penalty by your rating in this Merit. You can even learn some spheres from non-mages (Werewolves, Vampires, Mummies, etc). Generally, a base study point penalty of 5 is assumed, so if you have Paradigm Flexibility at the maximum level you can learn anything anyone has to teach at no penalty.] Whenever you face a penalty due to paradigm differences, that penalty is reduced by your points in this merit (though you never get a bonus, of course). Your investigation of alternate paradigms may well affect your realization of the Metaphysic of Magic, as well. At the 3pt level, you can learn to use rote-specific foci from other paradigms, one at a time, even if you have not yet Diversified the Sphere(s) in question. At the 5pt level, all of your spheres are considered Diversified. And, though you never gain the -1 difficulty for returning to your 'native' focus, as you advance in Arete, you can Resolve spheres, gaining the ability to use any focus you've learned for such a sphere with any other Resolved sphere. You cannot take the Merits: Tradition Natural or Grand Theorist nor the Flaw: Dogmatic. Willworker (5 or 7tp Merit) You perform all your magick without the use of foci - you have never needed foci to utilize your understanding of the spheres, and going through the motions of learning and using them is a waste of time to you. You do not have the raw, uncontrolled power of a Wild Talent but, like so-called 'Madwands,' you are almost certainly an Orphan. At the 5pt level, you count as having Transcended all your foci, including the corresponding danger of subconsciously cast magick. At the 7pt level, you have no such drawback. In neither case do you gain the -1 difficulty when using an unneeded focus, as you have no original foci to fall back upon. Though you can learn to 'use' foci (that is, go through the motions), they are never of any benefit to you. You cannot take the Merits: Tradition Natural, Technomancer/ Magologist, Talented Amateur, or Grand Theorist, nor the Flaws: Rotes Only or Path Dedication. You can take the Flaw: Dogmatic at the 1pt level, in which case, you look down upon, and have trouble learning from, any mages who use foci. Tradition (or Convention or Craft) Natural (4pt Merit) You take to the foci, rituals, techniques, and beliefs of your mentor as though born to them. Perhaps it is the result of fanatical study, inborn aptitude, or perhaps this incarnation is only the latest of many spent in similar studies. For whatever reason, you use all your spheres as if you had Resolved them and chosen 'Control.' Thus, you have a -1 to all your magickal difficulties, but will always be dependent on your foci. You also have the disadvantages detailed under the Flaw: 'Dogmatic' - though you don't have to be haughty and acerbic about it. You may not take the Merits: Paradigm Flexibility, Willworker, Technomancer/Magologist, Talented Amateur or Grand Theorist nor the Flaw: Path Dedication. Grand Theorist (5 or 7pt Merit) You have a central theory or insight that you use as the core of all your magickal (or Tecknological) workings. Furthermore you can see ways to Integrate that theory into the broader paradigm of Consensual Reality. At the 5pt level, all of your spheres count as Integrated, though you also suffer the drawbacks of that form of Resolution. At the 7pt level, you gain the benefits of Integration without the usual drawback. In neither case, do you get the -1 difficulty for using your foci personally ("what difference would that make? we're dealing with natural laws here!"). You cannot take the Merits: Paradigm Flexibility, Willworker, Technomancer/Magologist, Talented Amateur, or Tradition Natural. You cannot take the Flaws: Rotes Only or Path Dedication. Talented Amateur (3 or 5pt Merit) Often derided as a 'casual mage' or 'whoopee witch' or, among the Conventions, reprimanded for 'not following procedure,' you never took your study of the spheres too seriously. Maybe magick just comes too easily for you, maybe it's actually intense study and brilliant insight that lets you get away with apparently inadequate preparation. Whatever the source of your talent, you can generally get by without using the full- blown foci of your Tradition. At the 3pt level, all your spheres are considered 'Abbreviated,' so you can get by with very simple versions of the standard foci - if you're a Son of Ether you can skip the Abacus and do the calculations in your head, if you're a Verbena instead of sacrificing a black cock at a crossroads at the dark of the moon you do the ritual using a frozen chicken leg in your driveway on whatever night your significant other decided to stay out late - though you won't always get the standard result either - so it was Bast instead of Hecate who showed up, she still helped you out, and you've got this cool Abyssinian cat familiar now. At the 5pt level, you use equally Abbreviated foci for all your spheres but, your magick, almost miraculously, still works the way it's supposed to. In neither case can you gain a -1 difficulty for using your Tradition's full-blown foci, since you never really mastered them, anyway. Unlike some similar Merits, you can go on to Resolve your spheres - you can choose to Diversify a sphere, allowing you to use a broader range of Abbreviated foci, or to Transcend your already Abbreviated focus for a sphere. You still don't ever get that -1 difficulty, though. You cannot choose Control or Integration. You cannot take the Merits: Willworker, Tradition Natural, or Grand Theorist nor can you take the Flaws: Dogmatic or Path Dedication. Technomancer/Magologist (3 pt Merit) You are neither a Mystic nor a Mechanist. You may be an Iterator who sees spiritual meaning in the gears and pistons of the great machine or a Chorister who can't believe that God would 'play dice with the universe.' Most likely, you are a Virtual Adept or a Son of Ether. Normally, a mage will choose a single 'path' when Resolving his foci, even when that is not the case, a mage can't normally choose to Transcend one focus while Integrating another - you can. Further, when you use a conjunctional effect involving spheres you have Resolved, in different ways, you can choose which method of resolution that particular effect will use. For instance, if you have Integrated Forces and Transcended Prime, you could cast a fireball without using foci at all, or build a laser gun useable by your acolytes. You cannot take the Flaws: Dogmatic or Path Dedication, nor the Merits: Willworker, Grand Theorist, Talented Amateur, or Tradition Natural. You can take the Merit: Paradigm Flexibility, but not at the 5pt level. Because of your 'balanced approach,' your Storyteller might let you take the Merit: Perfect Resolution at the 4pt level - but don't bet on it. Path Dedication (2pt Flaw) You have a narrow view of the Metaphysic of Magick (in as much as such a thing is possible), and will Resolve all your foci in the same way, regardless of the drawbacks or benefits of doing so. You cannot take the Merits: Willworker, Grand Theorist, Tradition Natural, Technomancer/Magologist or Talented Amateur. You can take either Dogmatic at the 1pt level or Paradigm Flexibility for 1 or 2pts. Perfect Resolution (2 or 4pt Merit) When you Resolve a sphere, you aren't subject to the usual Drawback for that form of Resolution. At the 2pt level, this only applies to one type of Resolution (you could take 'Perfect Transcendence' or 'Perfect Diversification,' for instance). At the 4pt level, it applies to all forms of Resolution. Note that there is no such thing as 'Perfect Control' (Control doesn't have a Drawback). Note also that taking Perfect Resolution makes your character kinda boring and that your Storyteller more than likely won't let you have it. (In fact, I wonder why I even wrote the silly thing.) Wild Talent: (7pt Merit) Your ability to use magick is not limited by your knowledge of the Spheres. You can cast effects from spheres you do not know or do not have the necessary foci to use. The only limitation is that the effect you evoke cannot require any sphere with a level greater than your Arete. However, whenever you throw such an effect, you must make a Willpower roll (difficulty is the highest sphere in the effect +3, no modifiers apply). As long as you make more successes on your Willpower roll than on your Arete roll, the effect manifests normally. Otherwise, the effect gets away from you in some way, becoming more or less powerful, affecting unintended targets, or going Vulgar. On a botched Willpower roll, the effect backlashes on you (either an actual Paradox Backlash, or a reverse/harmful effect). Sphere levels that you have actually learned can be used normally. And, once you have learned a sphere, you can choose to Resolve it as you advance in Arete. Wild Talents often have merits like Ars Vulgaris, and Active Avatar. Wild Talents always start play as Orphans, though they can be adopted into a Tradition later, and do not get the 5 initial dots in spheres. Id Monsters (2,3 or 5pt Flaw) The power of your avatar is accessible to your subconscious mind. This is not a good thing. When you are under extreme stress or suppressing intense emotions, the Storyteller may ask you to make a Willpower roll. If you fail, an effect related to the nature of your subconscious or emotional difficulties will manifest. The effect actually uses up your Arete pool for that turn, and will often be vulgar. At the 3pt level, you are aware of what's going on - the manifestations are a sort of momentary loss of control - and may spend a Willpower to seize control of an involuntary effect, directing it more appropriately or keeping it from going vulgar (this is basically the same as the drawback of the Transcendening a focus). At the 5pt level you are unaware that you are the source of the effects - and will probably deny it, both vocally and to yourself, if confronted with the idea. If you have Transcended foci in at least one sphere, or if you have the Willworker Merit at the 5pt level, you can choose to take this Flaw for 2pts - in which case you are unaware of and/or unable to seize control the involuntary manifestations related to that sphere - or, you can take it at the full 3 or 5pt levels, in which case you receive no Willpower roll - effects manifest whenever the Storyteller decides they do. You cannot take the Merit: Willworker at the 7pt level. Black Sheep (1 or 2pt Flaw) You're on the outs with your own Tradition. It's not as severe as Notoriety, but you're generally looked down upon as a second rate example of your Tradition's style of magick. For 2pts, this is because you lack a certain level of talent with or faith in your Tradition's paradigm - you do not get a discount when buying up your Tradition's specialty sphere and cannot use the 'Disbelief' form of Countermagick. This is similar to the Drawback of Diversifying a Sphere. If you ever do Diversify a sphere, your Black Sheep Flaw is upgraded to full Notoriety within your Tradition. Rotes Only (3 or 7pt Flaw) You can only use previously researched Rotes, improvisational magick is impossible for you. At the 3pt level, you can know as many Rotes as your player wishes to design, and you still learn spheres normally. At the 7pt level, you do not learn or use spheres at all. Instead, you must buy each Rote individually. You start out with 12 dots that you can distribute to starting rotes - each rote takes one dot per sphere level in the rote (Ignes, for instance, at Forces 3, Prime 2 is 5 dots). You can get additional dots of Rotes with Freebie points on a one to one basis. Once the game starts, learning new rotes costs 2x the level of the Rote for your Tradition's specialty sphere and either 3x the level of the Rote or the total of all spheres involved in the Rote for others. In either case, you can still Resolve your foci, but may only choose Control or Abbreviation. You may not take the Merits: Willworker or Grand Theorist. You can take either Paradigm Flexibility up to the 3pt level or Dogmatic at the 1pt level. Loose Cannon (2pt Flaw) Maybe you're sloppy, maybe you're just unlucky, but your magick definitely doesn't always work the way it's supposed to. The problem could even be implicit in your paradigm: you may just see magick as innately unpredictable or you may work exclusively on the 'bleeding edge' of Tecknology. Whenever you roll more 1s than 10s when casting an effect (and don't botch), your effect is skewed slightly in an unpleasant or disadvantageous way. The effect still works, just not exactly as intended. When you roll more 10s than 1s, the effect is slightly askew again, but in a way that might benefit you - or at least won't be embarrassing. This is basically the same as the Drawback associated with Abbreviation. If you Abbreviate a focus or take Talented Amateur at the 3pt level, your effects are always a little off - flip a coin or roll high/low to determine if it's in a good or bad way. Note that it can get very tiring to have to up with something odd or comical every time you cast an effect. You cannot take the Merit: Tradition Natural or the Merit: Talented Amateur at the 5pt level. Unenlightened (4pt Flaw) You have no grasp of the Metaphysic of Magick, possibly you adhere to some other concept. You can never Resolve any of your spheres as your Arete increases. Your chances of Ascension are unchanged, however, in spite of the name. You cannot take the Merits: Willworker, Wild Talent, Grand Theorist, Tradition Natural, or Talented Amateur nor the Flaws: Loose Cannon or Id Monsters. You can take either up to two points of Paradigm Flexibility or the Flaw: Dogmatic at the 1pt level, if you wish. ------------------------------------------------------------- Questions? Comments? Derisive Laughter? --Blake 1001, Virtual Adept, Disciple http://www.oocities.org/Area51/1317/ | ---|-. '-|--- | Screaming into the Void...
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