39
votes
Accepted
Why keep your own Paradigm as a Mage?
Because of confirmation bias
The act of Awakening is not described as a coherent, logically sound philosophical reasoning that leads the Mage to believe in his paradigm over ones of his peers. ...
- 17.2k
28
votes
Accepted
Can we ignore or keep playing after the Apocalypse and keep canon?
Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition.
The sourcebook explicitly tells that there is no "fixed" canon history, you can play as you want to (the Avatar Storm didn't happen etc.), but it does ...
- 2,210
25
votes
Accepted
Where do the symbols for the Spheres in Mage: the Ascension come from?
As Guybrush McKenzie’s fine answer notes, Wikipedia claims these are alchemical symbols depicted in Symbols, Signs, and Signets by Ernst Lehrer, 1950. However, I haven’t been able to find a copy of ...
- 355k
17
votes
Accepted
About the Cosmology of Mage the Ascension
That image you're using is one I created for the Unofficial White Wolf Wiki. I founded the Wiki, work for the current publishers of Mage, and 2001's Guide to the Traditions was my first RPG credit. I'...
- 194
16
votes
Accepted
Is it possible to make a character who's a mixture of character types from the differnet World of Darkness games?
There are several crossovers, but note...
As it is, yes, there are ways to mix "templates", but these are very restricted.
(Please note that I am mostly interred in the 20th Anniversary editions)
...
- 176
16
votes
Accepted
Can people generate quintessence through prayer?
Drawing quintessence from the ambient environment calls for Prime ••••, and the prayers of the faithful could make a fine paradigmatic reason for that to work — and flavor the resonance appropriately. ...
- 55.4k
15
votes
Accepted
How to play Son of Ether without turning it into a comic relief?
Be a scientist
The Etherites are, first and above all, about science. Serious science (at least to them).
As a scientist, it is your job, nay, your duty to uncover the mysteries of the universe. You ...
- 2,470
13
votes
Accepted
Can attributes be permanently increased via magic?
Yes and No at the same time.
Yes, in case of shifting attributes around:
Life 3 allows to easily increase one physical attribute - for the cost of reducing another by the same ammount. This is "free"...
- 45.1k
13
votes
How can a mage implement a hammerspace?
First off: Why a magical solution, if a mundane is as good as any? Take a duffle bag. (If someone wants to search it, the good old "These aren't the droids you're looking for" is still an option.) Or ...
- 1,100
13
votes
Accepted
Can created creatures awaken?
It's happened before.
In the Sons of Ether tradition book, there's a NPC who's an analog to Frankenstein's Monster — Victor, by name — who is both a created being and an Awakened mage.
- 55.4k
13
votes
Accepted
Does magic that quickens healing help with damage dealt by Heart's Blood?
No, it precludes any and all magic
You found the exact correct spot. It says clearly, that you can not use magic to fix the pattern damage you did to yourself by spending your health levels as a ...
- 45.1k
13
votes
Is there a drawback to using Heart's blood rote repeatedly?
The health levels lost to Heart's Blood are not considered bashing damage.
The text of the rote isn't as you quoted it above; it reads as shown here. In both Mage Revised and in M20, Heart's Blood ...
- 55.4k
12
votes
Accepted
Does a mage need Spirit sphere along with Forces sphere to create sunlight against a vampire?
Classic Editions: Explicit Statement Not Found, But Implicitly No
Miracles of the Faithful Ones
According to the 64th page of the Choristers' Tradition Book, creation of sunlight is a Forces 2-3 plus ...
12
votes
Accepted
What spheres would a mage need to provide an endless supply of blood to a vampire?
Matter 3 can transmute water into blood.
Alter Form: Allows a mage to change the essential nature of a Mattern Pattern, changing its form or even compressing or expanding certain elements of its ...
- 4,726
11
votes
Accepted
Using Forces to invert movement vectors
Note: Given the clarification in the question's comments, the specific character breaks the rules. However, the combination of spheres is possible.
This question highlights the divide between ...
- 7,108
11
votes
Is it possible to make a character who's a mixture of character types from the differnet World of Darkness games?
Outside of particularly proscribed limits, no.
The drive to mix-and-match has always been pretty strong, so many of the signature abilities are restricted to a given character type. (To use Spheres, ...
- 55.4k
11
votes
Accepted
How is a character's health determined?
Sorcerer: Revised Edition is not a complete game, it's a supplement/sourcebook for Mage: The Ascension. You'll need to get a copy of the corresponding edition of MtA to learn how the game mechanics ...
- 48.8k
11
votes
Accepted
Managing a technocrat group
There are no such rules
The books that deal with these closest are Guide to the Technocracy and Convention Book: Void Engineers. However, neither go in any great detail about the leadership level, ...
- 2,279
11
votes
Accepted
Any spells that would allow a mage to breathe while buried alive?
The simplest way is through Life 3 (Alter Self), changing the way the mage's lungs take in air, or through Matter 2, turning the carbon dioxide exhaled back into oxygen.
- 55.4k
11
votes
Where do the symbols for the Spheres in Mage: the Ascension come from?
They are derived from alchemical symbols
Several sources, including those cited on the Wikipedia article for Mage: The Ascension, match the sphere symbols to specific alchemical symbols. Some of the ...
11
votes
Accepted
Does using magick to reversing aging accrue permanent paradox?
There's a fine line between reversing age and just halting aging or considerably slowing it to extend the lifetime.
Aging backward
Aging backward is a Time-Life-Magick effect and is very vulgar. This ...
- 45.1k
10
votes
Accepted
Could a Virtual Adept create a virtual sanctum?
Question 1: Can a Virtual Adept create a virtual sanctum?
Sure. That's carving out a spirit realm, which is Spirit •••••, Forge Ephemera. Doing so lets you make a pocket of digital space that remains ...
- 55.4k
10
votes
Accepted
Did Ahl-i-Batin expect a mage of status to have several wives?
Short version: unless there's a WoD sourcebook that specifically addresses this point, there's room for you/your storyteller to play this however you would prefer.
back in the Middle Ages, as ...
- 4,638
10
votes
Accepted
Is the Maison Liban continuing to hide in the modern era necessary?
Tremere? Maybe not. Order of Hermes? Definitely not.
The Order of Hermes these days has issues large enough that if anything, the Maison Liban would look like natural allies. For that matter, ...
- 25.7k
10
votes
Any spells that would allow a mage to breathe while buried alive?
Some ways to survive to being buried alive could imply some effects of (including the examples in @Jadasc's answer)
Time 3 / Life 3 to enter in state of suspension (How do you do that,
page 113).
...
- 859
10
votes
Accepted
Character creation for more experienced mages
In Mage, the "elder" equivalent is "archmage."
And you can find the rules for making those in Masters of the Art. Character creation rules in that book start on page 81 — like elder vampires, they ...
- 55.4k
10
votes
Accepted
What decides who awake?
Mage: The Ascension sourcebook identifies that everyone has a spark of potential, and anyone who realizes or activates that potential awakens. The book places no limits on who can awaken or what they ...
- 4,726
10
votes
Accepted
Are there any mechanical differences between how tradition mages and technocratic mages use magick?
Technocrats have a mix of advantages and disadvantages compared to other Mages.
The first, and most obvious, difference between Technocrats and other Mages is that they have access to the variant ...
- 14.1k
10
votes
Are there any known methods for a Mage to strengthen their avatar?
Talk to your Storyteller
Avatar is a background. To raise a background, you need to talk to your GM, and they decide what you need to do to raise the background.
As mentioned earlier under the ...
- 45.1k
10
votes
Is there a drawback to using Heart's blood rote repeatedly?
It's always Pattern Damage and with Heart's Blood has never been Bashing damage
The rote does not do bashing damage and never did, it has always done damage to the underlying pattern and always had ...
- 45.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible