Recently Awakened to Mage

[Salbazier]

After reading some campaign journal at rpg.net (The Soul Cage) I got interested and give Mage book again, this time actually finished it (sort of).

Sooo, is there anything you can tell to a newbie to Mage (For that matter, to WoD in general)? Mage and WoD seems to be quite deep from my impression, the Soul Cage does give that kind o vibe. Is that true for Mage games in general? That really seems interesting but it also look like there's need to be quite a lot work needed on making character.

Crunch-wise, is there anything one should pay attention in making character in Mage. You know, the usual traps and opti-fu thing.

Lastly, how I should go in selling this to other people? I seemed to finally managed to find some people with interest in PnP RPG and I may want to introduce this to them sometimes later.

[TheOOB]

Just to clarify, which Mage are you talking about? There are two different Mage games released by White Wolf that are more different than similar.

[Salbazier]

Ah, I'm talking about Mage The Awakening

[TheOOB]

While I won't claim to be a mage expert, one thing I can say for sure is don't neglect your skills. Magic is useful, but also dangerous and frankly unreliable until your stats get up, if you can accomplish a task with mundane skills, it is usually better to do so. For example, it's much more efficient to shoot someone in the face with a gun than a fireball, guns don't cause paradox. Not to say fireball isn't a good spell, you don't always have a gun and it's nice to be able to take out vampires.

I would also personally try to focus your character on one or two arcana for the most part. That doesn't mean you should never branch out, but keep in mind that most arcana are very similar at low levels, and to be truly powerful you need higher level spells.

[Fouredged Sword]

Rule one - Be prepared. Pick rotes that are flexible and pan ahead. Scry scry scry and ask questions. An informed wizard is a alive wizard.

Rule two - A mundane solution is better than a magic one. A solution that is magic but looks mundane is better still. You can knock down a wall with a death spell or a sledgehammer. You can do it even faster by turing that lost shoe into c4 and a detonator while everyone's back is turned. The first option turns your guts inside out with paradox, the second option takes to much time, option three is a nice, medium between them.

Rule three - Guard your bed. Sleep only in safe locations. Preferably in a sealed, warded, steel plated bunker, guarded by a small army of ghosts and spirits. You are a wizard, makeing a normal garden shed into such a location shouldn't take more than a few hours of work. The one time you forget to turn your bed into a bunker you will wake up in someone else's dnamse with your magic blocked.

[Reluctance]

WoD as a whole sells itself on story over crunch. This goes back to the early days of the company, and appeals to a certain type of player. Just be aware that the mechanics might not support the fluff. Or be all that balanced. (E.G: The core book gives examples of things like a bonus on certain checks for the shoes you're wearing. This requires either ridiculous levels of detail, or players describing why their characters have just the right tools handy for whatever needs doing.)

[Yuki Akuma]

The best way to get players for a game of Mage is to do PbP, because there's tons of Mage fans here.

:smallwink:

[Lord Raziere]

I've just got Mage the Awakening. its awesome, and I'm planning on making a List of Forbidden Spells- basically a bunch of vulgar spells that do the stupidest things that are not worth it, but are nevertheless invented, like making someones head explode, or making someones clothes spontaneously disappear.
or conjuring an anvil to fall on someone. basically a bunch of spells that make the Guardians of the Veil facepalm themselves repeatedly.

[DJDizzy]

I've just got Mage the Awakening. its awesome, and I'm planning on making a List of Forbidden Spells- basically a bunch of vulgar spells that do the stupidest things that are not worth it, but are nevertheless invented, like making someones head explode, or making someones clothes spontaneously disappear.
or conjuring an anvil to fall on someone. basically a bunch of spells that make the Guardians of the Veil facepalm themselves repeatedly.

Pfft, thats what creative thaumaturgy is for. Teleport balse trees inside people!

[One Tin Soldier]

I've just got Mage the Awakening. its awesome, and I'm planning on making a List of Forbidden Spells- basically a bunch of vulgar spells that do the stupidest things that are not worth it, but are nevertheless invented, like making someones head explode, or making someones clothes spontaneously disappear.
or conjuring an anvil to fall on someone. basically a bunch of spells that make the Guardians of the Veil facepalm themselves repeatedly.

Like Oubliette? The spell that explicitly says it will probably cause Wisdom degeneration?