Mage: The Awakening? (noob questions)

[Yogibear41]

So a guy I know has talked about starting up(potentially) a Mage: the Awakening game soon, besides a few things he has told me and what I have read on wikipedia I know next to nothing about it, so that led me to do some searching, and I seems that it, werewolf the forsaken, and vampire: the Requiem are all published by the same company and are all apart of the same universe(world of darkness) does this mean that all of these books can be used together and combined into one game or no? If not then back to questions about just Mage, is pretty much everyone a human wizard or some other magical class variant or are there other races/classes/templates? Examples being werewolf/vampire mages or player characters of non magic using classes or at least different? Anyway to be different from everyone else?

In addition to this any advice for new player?

[Neverman]

All the books are compatible system-wise. However, each gameline has a bit different themes and the power levels of each splat differ. That is why, as a beginner, you should insist all your players play Mage characters only. Having characters of different splats is much more of a challenge, if each of them is to have an equal impact on the plot. Also, supernatural powers are modelled differently in every gameline, which could further complicate matters. Using other creatures as NPCs, however, is an entirely different matter. If you think the game will be better for them, you should throw them in. Fortunately, cross-overs are not mandatory and merely an option. The Mages could be the only major splat to exist in your game.

Also, each Mage is expected to be fully human. It is a rule that supernatural lineages do not mix. Vampires do not Awaken as Mages and Mages cannot be Embraced as Vampires. It is possible to give them pre-existing or homebrew merits to represent some minor quirks. Also, the standard character creation system already allows for some variety. By default, each Mage belongs to one of five Paths (has an affinity for certain magical symbols) and most likely to one of five Orders (politicians, soldiers, secret police, scholars, modernist-reformers). Also, each mage can adopt a Legacy, which is basically a Prestige Class. It gives you some neat benefits and lots of plot hooks. Basically, a Mage can be anyone - from a respected Professor of Chemistry who mixes up alchemical potions in his spare time to a musician travelling with his friends and fighting demons with the Power of Rock.

One thing about the Core Book - it's bland. The gameline took speed with the release of expansion books. "Tome of the Mysteries" made Magic better, while "Seers of the Throne" and "Left-Hand Path "fleshed out the antagonists. You should decide what do you want in your game and check the respective books. Also, you totally should get to know some of the Awakening actual plays:
http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?279847-Actual-Play-Mage-The-Awakening-The-Broken-Diamond-(contains-Reign-of-the-Exarchs
http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?375715-Mage-The-Awakening-The-Soul-Cage
http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?591295-Mage-the-Awakening-The-Man-Comes-Around

[Alejandro]

So a guy I know has talked about starting up(potentially) a Mage: the Awakening game soon, besides a few things he has told me and what I have read on wikipedia I know next to nothing about it, so that led me to do some searching, and I seems that it, werewolf the forsaken, and vampire: the Requiem are all published by the same company and are all apart of the same universe(world of darkness) does this mean that all of these books can be used together and combined into one game or no? If not then back to questions about just Mage, is pretty much everyone a human wizard or some other magical class variant or are there other races/classes/templates? Examples being werewolf/vampire mages or player characters of non magic using classes or at least different? Anyway to be different from everyone else?

In addition to this any advice for new player?

Not really, no. WoD usually wants all the players to be playing the same thing (a party of mages, party of vampires, etc) depending on which game is being played. It's actually a big reason I ended up disliking it.

[Yogibear41]

Yeah, I usually enjoy playing things like werewolves and such, but the fact that everyone is one takes all the fun out of being "special"

[The Glyphstone]

Being a Mage in Mage is like being an adventurer in D&D - everyone is one by default, or you wouldn't be playing. You are 'special' in the Path and Order you choose and how you use them - the difference between a Thyrus life-mage and an Acanthus fate-mage is the difference between a Druid and a Rogue. People who come from a D&D-heavy background where being something like a werewolf or vampire is actually unusual often seem to have a hard time understanding that.

Now, even if you do understand the idea, WoD games are far from anything one would call 'balanced', and the problem gets far worse if you try to go Superfriends, and Mage is by far the worst of the lot. But it's a lot more nuanced than just saying it's like playing D&D where everyone has to be a Sorcerer.

[Yogibear41]

I see, I think I need to see if I can get a hand on the main book then to have an idea of how things work then.

[Kiero]

You could also talk to the GM about the lesser templates; in our short-lived Mage game (The Unforgiving (http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/18thCenturyMage)), I played a Proximus, which is a human with a magical bloodline. There's loads of other types.

[Yuki Akuma]

I think it's important to note that, unlike some other nWoD games, a Mage is actually mechanically unable to take All The Powers and render his party members superfluous. With enough XP, a Werewolf can take All The Gifts, a Promethean can take All The Transmutations, etc.

Mages can't. You can only ever max out eight out of ten Arcana, and even that requires Gnosis 10. At normal play levels you'll probably only be able to max out one or two Arcana (and in fact you need Gnosis 3 to even max out one), meaning that for the really high-end stuff you'll need to work together with your friends.

[SiuiS]

Being a Mage in Mage is like being an adventurer in D&D - everyone is one by default, or you wouldn't be playing. You are 'special' in the Path and Order you choose and how you use them - the difference between a Thyrus life-mage and an Acanthus fate-mage is the difference between a Druid and a Rogue.

Elaborating on this, a Thyrsus life Mage and an acanthus Life Mage are sufficiently different as to play like different classes. Heck, two Thyrsus Life Mages are aufficiently different!

I've had two thyrsus in recent memory with life/spirit and a secondary in prime. One is a retired marine shape shifter martial artist who ended up faking his way into a werewolf clan to learn their ways, the other is currently playing Shaman King an working with a Korean dragon spirit to be a guerrilla rebel in Hong Kong, building a spirit army by running a night club and drawing out the emotions of raves and underground dance offs.

Both of these guys are the exact same class.


Now, even if you do understand the idea, WoD games are far from anything one would call 'balanced', and the problem gets far worse if you try to go Superfriends, and Mage is by far the worst of the lot. But it's a lot more nuanced than just saying it's like playing D&D where everyone has to be a Sorcerer.

Yes. World of darkness games are less about trying your best to succeed as a player, and more about the character trying to succeed and the player telling a good story. It's okay to make bad decisions if they are in character, and the latest edition of the rules actively encourages it by giving you experience when you make big mistakes! (Note: talk to your GM about what characters are okay, because "I murdered the party because it's in character" is almost always bad, and you shouldn't play that character).

It's a storytelling game. Your story is about being a normal, flawed human who learns the secrets of the universe and gets sucked into partisan wizard politics and never told the whole story. It's a pretty nice set up, but it's hard coming from a dungeon crawl background. Took me a good two years to wrap my brain around it, and I still sometimes just want to get back to D&D.