Intro to Mage: the Ascension

Mage the Ascension 20th Anniversary on Discord

About the adventure

Mage: The Ascension is a game in which the players take on the role of mortals with magical ability, having awakened to the their power to manipulate the fabric of the universe. On one hand, this gives them immense power your typical human could hardly imagein. On the other? The universe bites back. In Mage, reality is not fixed, but rather a set of agreed upon assumptions enforced by the collective will of humanity, the Sleepers. Mages are those people who recognize that reality is not static, and realize that through the application of their will, usually channeled through rituals or other similar "mystical" or "scientific" practices, reality can be changed. The specifics of their own belief, called a Paradigm, guides them into joining either one of the nine mystical Traditions (an ancient fellowship of mages of varying points of view), one of the five conventions of the Technocracy (an organization founded at the beginning of the age of reason to bring science and truth to humanity), or to strike out on their own as Disparates (unaffiliated mages). The central theme of Mage is the search for Ascension, not only for the individual but for all of mankind. What Ascension is, and how it is achieved is purposely left undefined. Utilising the 9 Spheres of magic, mages make their way through a world not entirely unlike our own as they reach for their own personal vision of Ascension. This demo is of the 20th Anniversery Edition.

Additional Details

How to prepare

You will need a mic, but a webcam is option. Reading the rules ahead of time is helpful, but as this is a demo, a primer on everything you need to know will be included at the beginning of the game. Pre-made characters will be made available through google docs/sheets and can be swapped out for another at any point until we begin the game, or you may make your own character and send it to me before the session for approval. You will need 6-10 10 sided dice or an app/program capable of rolling such.

What I provide

GM can provide pre-made characters on request. GM will provide blank fillable character sheet pdfs should the player want to make their own. GM will provide an info packet with information your character would know for ease of reference.

Gameplay details

My games tend to be pretty relaxed as far as rules go, and players are highly encouraged to take whatever action feels right for their character. Mage has a more open magic system which encourages you to think about how and why your character does magic.

Content warnings

(none)

Safety tools used

Breaks
Open Door
Session 0

How will character creation work

Characters can be provided, or may be prepared beforehand with Storyteller approval. All characters are made with the standard new character build in the core book, with an additional free Arete point. Once made, the DM will provide links to google docs with all required info for playing the character for ease of use.

Players can expect

• Find a game to join solo or search for a professional game master for you and your friends/coworkers/family.
• Book your session and wait for the Game Master to approve you.
• If you don't have a blast with your first game, your next game is on us.