Dark Ages: Mage magic use?

[Bean Wack]

So we have started a Vampire the Masquerade game and I have made a Mage.
So I am using the Dark Ages: Mage book for the creation of my mage.
For the most part, the game is fairly difficult compared to D&D, but my GM has been fairly cooperative in helping me the best he can,
but he has never made a mage before either. (I'm the only mage in the party)

I am an Ahl-li-batini, because they seemed the best kind of mage that didn't hate any vampire.
Anyway, the issue I have currently is that I simply don't know what to do with my magic.

Can somebody give me some really good examples other than teleporting?
More than just the base descriptions that the pillars described.
Also, can I only do magic of my pillars, or could an Ahl-li-batini attempt to
shoot a bolt of lightning out of his hands?
Any clarification would be helpful.

[JeenLeen]

I own and have read most of Dark Ages: Mage, but I haven't run the game or played it, so take some of this with a grain of salt. I have played a Middle Ages Vampire and modern Mage, though, so I have some experience.

From my understanding, you can only learn your Pillars. Magic is based on belief, and you literally do not believe magic can work otherwise; other mages are wrong (centuries later most mages get more tolerant of one another). I don't have the book in front of me, but I imagine there are damaging things you can do. Most mage books are written with the powers very vague. In some points, the book may even contradict itself about what powers can do.

I would recommend reading through the Pillars in detail, then going through them with your DM and discussing what each can do. Some should be able to, one way or the other, do damage (probably successes rolled damage.)* Maybe even you teleport stone on top of people to drop it on them, or create acid if a pillar deals with alchemy, or... well, whatever fits the Pillars. Or if you have any sort of spirit-related Pillar, you could have an Ally (background) of an umbrood you work with, who you can summon (using your magical action) and it deal successes damage.

I'd also recommend letting you soak lethal damage like vampires can (but not halve bashing), or at least using some magic that alters your body, enable you to enchant yourself thus. Just too easy to die otherwise.

*Future mage books do a LOT more damage (1 success = 0; 2 = 2; 3 = 6; 4 = 8; 5 = 10; 6 = 18..., but in Dark Ages it's successes rolled, as far as I could tell. I think how Dark Ages does it is better if you are in a party with vampires.

[Asmodai]

You are limited in what your Pillars can do in what you can do. It's a methodology to flavour your Magic based on your paradigm...

Most Mages don't really like Vampires. The Batini as a group work towards Unity of men and Vampires aren't the most... harmonious of individuals. You can expect the Batini to have an angle, they are most likely using the Vampires to an end, and may turn on them once they have served their purposes

As for their methodology, the Batini are a wondrous group that offers quite a bit of options beyond mere teleportation. You can find all about them by looking into the Lost Paths book or just reading the Pillar descriptions in the DA: Mage book, but I'll try and give you some guidelines

Al-Anabiya - Mastery of Fate
- prophecy
- influencing people and or/events that may or may not happen
- sensing the significance of an item/person and its influence on Fate


Al-Fatihah -Mastery over minds
- personal mastery
- detection of people
- detecting/influencing emotions and actions of people
- Creating/altering memory
- hive mind
- communication across vast differences
- mastery of all languages and bestowing (or taking away) the same from others

Al-Hajj - Mastery of Space
- awareness of space around you and everything in it (hidden or not)
- scrying and warding off scrying
- teleportation of self or others
- existing at multiple places at the same time
- creating permanent or semi permanent gateways
- travelling to non space or umbral locations (think other worlds)

Al-Layl -Mastery of Secrecy
- stealth, hiding and detection thereof
- silence
- people forgetting you or someone else ever existed
- not leaving traces
- becoming someone else
- creating codes

Now the trick here is that you need to take the concepts of your Pillars and then mix it up. The principle is that you take the concept behind the pillar and then think on how it can be used. The storyteller will be the final adjuticator of how much you'd need for something, but the book has a pretty decent set of guidlines of what you can expect.

For instance with Al-Layl you could make a King that noone can remember and who is treated as a foreigner in his own court, or make an army miss a city the size of Constantinopole because they couldn't notice it.

On the other hand you could use Al-Hajj to have that whole army stuck in a everlasting loop of travel, until they lose their rations and die before ever reaching the city.

It's loads of fun once you relax and just open your mind to dynamic magic :)

[Bean Wack]

Ah, thank you very much. I also noticed something called Rotes, and the editable pdf names several that were not in the Dark Ages: Mage book.
They seem very interesting. Are those examples of what you can do with your power or just very specific spells, and where can I view all of the Rotes for my character?
Also, the GM said that i was probably the most powerful person in the party(don't worry it won't go to my head), but I am a bit confused to why.
I understand that the mages powers are about what ever you can make up within your pillar, but I am still very mortal and if you botch, he makes it sound like its game over. Is there a way I can permanently make my self a little less kill-able like the vampires. I'm not expecting to be immortal like them but what can I do for some protection?

[Asmodai]

Al-Fatihah 1 can protect you from all vampiric mind influence powers
Al-Anabiya, Al-Fatihah or Al-Hajj 2 can make it much harder to hit you, while Al-Hajj 3/4 can literally work as "they hit where you stand but their hits don't touch you".

Rotes are trademark spells traditionally used as examples of different paradigms. They are simply the ones you practice the most. They get a fixed effect and get a -1 difficulty break on the spell-casting roll. There are infinite rotes in existence and it's not mandatory to have them.

More examples of Batini Rotes can be found in DA:Grimoire and Lost Paths Vol.1. Again, they are more useful as examples of what you can do then as spell-lists. Please, please, don't fall into the D&D trap of going with a lot of fixed spells, you'll just hinder yourself from actually thinking up cool stuff on the fly.

And yes, Mages are insanely powerful, especially if they have time to prepare or cast their spells from the safety of their domiciles. Nothing stops you from enchanting yourself with a spell before going somewhere, you only need to collect enough successes to make the duration as long as you need it. Your powers are infinitely more adaptable and you can do things not even elder vampires could. I mean... compare AL-Layl and Obsfucate? Obsfucate cannot make it like someone else never existed, hide places or make yourself completely disconnected from the flow of perception while removing each and every trace you existed.

[Bean Wack]

Do you have to spend a point to obtain a rote or is it something that, if you have the skill for it, you can just do it?
Also, and this will be my last question, but could I attempt to try magic that I'm not yet capable of doing easily yet. For example, could I attempt to teleport with only one point in Al-Hajj even though it says that you can't really until about 3 dots. Could I try it at a higher difficulty check or is this just simply up to GM?

[Asmodai]

No. You cannot cast effects of higher complexity then your pillar rating. It comes down to comprehension and knowledge. You don't have either, yet.

Rotes are usually free. I've seen some ST's charge them 1XP, but there isn't an official requirement for this. The catch with Rotes is entirely a RP thing. You either develop a rote on your own through roleplay and trying something out, or you need to find someone to teach you the Rote. This opens up some interesting avenues of play - from seeking out Masters to pillaging ancient libraries and doing the Indiana Jones shtick.

[tomcastle]

Hello! These are from the Dark Ages Mage and the Mage Grimoire. I read them and wrote the spells down, mostly simple spells and added some spells of my own :D I hope you find it useful.

Here you can find the Ahl-i-Batin spells and rotes: http://media.wix.com/ugd/22e4ab_f04f...228f604050.pdf

Here you can find the Order of Hermes spells and rotes: http://media.wix.com/ugd/22e4ab_f04c...c89a9fdcf4.pdf

Check out my site http://tomcastles.wix.com/sheetsandrotes

TomCastle

[CombatOwl]

So we have started a Vampire the Masquerade game and I have made a Mage.

You must not like the storyteller very much.

So I am using the Dark Ages: Mage book for the creation of my mage.

I'm assuming it's dark age vampire? It's a shame you're not doing this later in the year, since Mage 20th Anniversary will be out by then.

For the most part, the game is fairly difficult compared to D&D, but my GM has been fairly cooperative in helping me the best he can,
but he has never made a mage before either. (I'm the only mage in the party)

Oh god. The humanity! Seriously, mages are stupidly hard to fit into a vampire game. Vampires are basically inconsequential if you have a chance to prepare. Even one scene of prep time puts you head and shoulder above a coterie of vampires.

I am an Ahl-li-batini, because they seemed the best kind of mage that didn't hate any vampire.
Anyway, the issue I have currently is that I simply don't know what to do with my magic.

Things relating to connections and space, with side dish of entropy and time. Anything else depends on your particular batini.

Can somebody give me some really good examples other than teleporting?

Sensing--anything. Tracking--anything. Spying on the prince's most secret conversations. Uncovering all of the Primogens' secret plots with a ritual. Hide yourself from anything a Cainite can do. Bend space around you and laugh as you dis-join yourself from any sort of spatial relationship with their weapons. Whatever. Space is your bitch.

Also, can I only do magic of my pillars, or could an Ahl-li-batini attempt to
shoot a bolt of lightning out of his hands?

Mages can do anything they believe they can, if they have the knowledge and strength of will. Whether that is a limitation or an opportunity is up to the individual. Even Dark Age mages. In mechanical terms, you can do it if you have the pillar ratings.

[tomcastle]

Hello! These are from the Dark Ages Mage and the Mage Grimoire. I read them and wrote the spells down, mostly simple spells and added some spells of my own :D I hope you find it useful.

Check out my site http://magedoc.wix.com/darkages

TomCastle

[tomcastle]

I'm working on the rotes and spells as much as I can.

You can download these rotes&spells (pdf): Ahl-i-Batin, Order of Hermes, Messianic Voices

Valdaerman spells&rotes are on 80%
Old Faith spells&rotes are on 80%
Spirit Talker spells&rotes are on 80%
Circle Of Red spells&rotes are on 0%
Craftmasons spells&rotes are on 0%
​And I'm working on a new tradition based on necromancy and warlocks.

http://magedoc.wix.com/darkages