Paradigms
One of the things that was touched apon in Mage: the Ascension but not really adequately explained in the first few editions was the idea of a paradigm. Everyone has a paradigm, it's basically the underlying set of beliefs that define your interpretation of reality. A Christian paradigm generally believes in an all powerful God who made the universe and who constantly guides it (but then you get into numerous sub-paradigms depending on the specific denomination followed). A geocentric paradigm believing that the earth is the centre of the universe stands in direct constrast to a heliocentric paradigm believing that the sun is the centre. A paradigm defines a world view, and sometimes these views come into conflict.
The thing about a paradigm is that it's more than just a belief. It's informed by reality. Science is a paradigm, a belief that through measurement, research, and hypothesis, a greater understanding of the universe will be achieved, and eventually all the secrets will be unravelled.
Mage said that all members of the awakens community had a paradigm, but it was only in the later editions of the game that this really meant anything. From this perspective, a paradgm is an understanding of not only reality, but also the nature of magic within that reality. In this game I'm working on, Familiars simply understand that magic exists, they don't need to come up with ideas about what magic is, or why it exists... it's just a fundamental part of the universe (or multiverse) that they inhabit. Familiars don't awaken the mortals who work magic in the world, they catalyse the potential within those mortals. The belief that they can change the world is a source of their power, and it is a part of their belief system that defines their understanding of how they can change the world.
One mystic might believe that they have mutant powers that allow them to manipulate subatomic particles. Another might believe that they have an arcane heritage that allows them to see loopholes in reality, ready to be exploited by the conscious mind. A third mystic might believe that they don't have any power of ther own, but they have mastered the recipes and concoctions necessary to awaken the untapped potential in their targets. Yet another might assert that reality is a complex simulation and they're going through the process of learning "cheat codes" that activate benefits beyond the access of the mundane masses around them. These various mystics might be able to do exactly the same paranormal thing, but they each have a different understanding of how they achieve it.
Trying to define every type of paradigm that drives a mystic would be a sisyphean task. I can easily think of a dozen, and with a bit of thought and time culd probably develop a dozen more...then there would be another two dozen that my playtesters might consider, and even these would barely scratch the surface of the viable options. So there's not much point trying to describe them all, allocate key magical words that might be advantageous if you understand the world in a specific way, or other words that a difficult to contextualise from specific paradigm perspectives.
Instead I'm thinking that paradigms should be developed by the players, to help define what the character understands the world to be. As a part of this, the player should describe how the character draws their power from the world. A self-identifying superhero might draw power from a sanctum/workshop (their secret lair), as well as alchemy (in the form of a "super soldier serum"), and maybe increases their community connection (gaining strength from a voice in the back of their head that drives them to bring justice to the world around them). Not all of these connections will be available to them all the time, but that becomes a part of their story... eventually they may transcend their understanding of the world and adopt a new paradigm, that coud be the basis for this character's story.
The same can be said of a mystic's familiar. What does the mystic think of their companion? Do they even realise that they have a companion? With the superhero concept in mind, remember that Batman had "Ace", Superman had "Krypto", and Wonder Woman had "Kanga".
The thing about a paradigm is that it's more than just a belief. It's informed by reality. Science is a paradigm, a belief that through measurement, research, and hypothesis, a greater understanding of the universe will be achieved, and eventually all the secrets will be unravelled.
Mage said that all members of the awakens community had a paradigm, but it was only in the later editions of the game that this really meant anything. From this perspective, a paradgm is an understanding of not only reality, but also the nature of magic within that reality. In this game I'm working on, Familiars simply understand that magic exists, they don't need to come up with ideas about what magic is, or why it exists... it's just a fundamental part of the universe (or multiverse) that they inhabit. Familiars don't awaken the mortals who work magic in the world, they catalyse the potential within those mortals. The belief that they can change the world is a source of their power, and it is a part of their belief system that defines their understanding of how they can change the world.
One mystic might believe that they have mutant powers that allow them to manipulate subatomic particles. Another might believe that they have an arcane heritage that allows them to see loopholes in reality, ready to be exploited by the conscious mind. A third mystic might believe that they don't have any power of ther own, but they have mastered the recipes and concoctions necessary to awaken the untapped potential in their targets. Yet another might assert that reality is a complex simulation and they're going through the process of learning "cheat codes" that activate benefits beyond the access of the mundane masses around them. These various mystics might be able to do exactly the same paranormal thing, but they each have a different understanding of how they achieve it.
Trying to define every type of paradigm that drives a mystic would be a sisyphean task. I can easily think of a dozen, and with a bit of thought and time culd probably develop a dozen more...then there would be another two dozen that my playtesters might consider, and even these would barely scratch the surface of the viable options. So there's not much point trying to describe them all, allocate key magical words that might be advantageous if you understand the world in a specific way, or other words that a difficult to contextualise from specific paradigm perspectives.
Instead I'm thinking that paradigms should be developed by the players, to help define what the character understands the world to be. As a part of this, the player should describe how the character draws their power from the world. A self-identifying superhero might draw power from a sanctum/workshop (their secret lair), as well as alchemy (in the form of a "super soldier serum"), and maybe increases their community connection (gaining strength from a voice in the back of their head that drives them to bring justice to the world around them). Not all of these connections will be available to them all the time, but that becomes a part of their story... eventually they may transcend their understanding of the world and adopt a new paradigm, that coud be the basis for this character's story.
The same can be said of a mystic's familiar. What does the mystic think of their companion? Do they even realise that they have a companion? With the superhero concept in mind, remember that Batman had "Ace", Superman had "Krypto", and Wonder Woman had "Kanga".
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