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[Dataweaver]

I do. In many ways, this is the book's mandate; and while I don't expect them to address how every edge-case of A interacts with B, I do expect that the big issues will be addressed....

[Dataweaver]

I’ve been waiting for that one. Now I just have to wait for the first Mage 2e supplement…

[Dataweaver]

The first manuscript release is (of course) the introduction, and the “social splats”: the Sworn and the False. If the book outline is being followed in order, next week should give us Vectors and Plagues, Interstitial and Otherwise. Following that should be Storytelling, five chapters of Contagious fiction, and Outbreak Sites (a dozen settings worldwide).

I’m wondering at what point in the outline we’ll start getting the crossover rules (as in, how do existing elements of game A interact with game B). My guess is that it will start with the Storytelling chapter: Vectors...

Re: Fields of the technocracy and my thread: http://forum.theonyxpath.com/forum/m...ropy-redundant

I don't see a tight summation of your Fields for the Technocracy. Your new 8 groups described in bits and bobs over a whole thread, with the initial post having 12 fields. If you start a new thread or reference a more recent one I can give better comments on what you've decided on.

[Dataweaver]

Primal Utility doesn't let you create glowing swords of Primal Energy, as far as I can tell.

[Dataweaver]

While I agree with others that the notion of fate as being something that can be woven is entirely appropriate for the mystical factions of the Ascension War, I'd very much be interested in your feedback for my Fields for the Technocracy idea. The premise is to work up an alternative to the Spheres that's more in tune with the way the Technocracy thinks. Last I checked, I had settled on: Space, Time, Void, Material, Energy, Systems, Data, Mind, and Utility.

Note that these don't align precisely with the Spheres, even when you might think that they would: Material deals with flesh...

[Dataweaver]

Fair enough. The full extent of what M20 says about them is “in game terms, they're exactly the same as the regular Spheres.” This isn't quite true of the MRev Qlippothic Spheres; but it's really close (and the mechanical differences aren't clearly spelled out; they're just vaguely described along the lines of “this Sphere has a harder time doing this rather than that”), and I'm perfectly fine with M20 going all out on this point — which renders moot the question of who can have them.

But even if Book of the Fallen changes that and we end up with actual mechanical differences, I...

[Dataweaver]

Every reference to date comes from a pre-M20 edition, where faction was used as the determiner of paradigm. Mass scientist? You must be an Etherite. Witch? You're a Verbena. And so on. In that context, it makes sense to tie the Qlippothic Spheres directly to the Nephandi.

But with M20 taking pains to decouple Focus from faction (in the sense that while every faction has a Focus, not everyone with that Focus belongs to that faction), I won't be surprised if Book of the Fallen opens the door a bit and presents the Qlippothic Spheres as something anyone with a suitable warped mindset...

[Dataweaver]

The thing about Sphere variants, whether they're Technocratic or Qlippothic, is that they're also Focus-dependent: Data requires that you at least somewhat believe that Everything is Data; Dimensional Science requires that you accept something akin to Tychoidean Cosmology; Primal Utility requires that you but into Hypereconomics; and the Qlippothic Spheres require you to have the sort of mindset that the Nephandi have. This replaces earlier editions' notions of certain Sphere variants belonging to certain groups.

[Dataweaver]

That said, my main point wasn't so much about what shouldn't be considered Supernal as it was about what should be: [b]Scion[/I]'s Overworld maps nicely to “other parts of the Supernal”, with different mythologies (called “Pantheons” for historical publishing reasons) serving the same sort of role that the Paths serve in Mage: with Olympus, Asgard, and so on being Emanations of their respective mythologies, with Terra Incognitae being there equivalent of Supernal Verges, and with Axis Mundi connecting these “Supernal Verges” to their “Emanations”. As well, the various Guides and...

[Dataweaver]

And rightfully so. If I recall correctly, nearly every recent Kickstarter has included a 99% complete manuscript (though the latest ones have released said manuscript in pieces over the course of the Kickstarter) – so if this Kickstarter is like that, we'll have the nearly-complete text in our hands by the end of April.

[Dataweaver]

To clarify, the Kickstarter will begin by the end of March.

[Dataweaver]

Consider replacing the Cemetery with the Underworld. The original Book of the Dead suggested the possibility of Stygia being in the deeper reaches of the Underworld; and while that's been ditched where Supernal Stygia is concerned, it could still work with your notion of there being a non-Supernal Stygia.

[Dataweaver]

As for groups breaking away from the Technocracy, I don't see the break happening along Convention lines. Rather, I agree with the split that M20 has hinted at with Navalon and the talk of an upcoming purge and reorganization. Personally, I wouldn't call the breakaway faction “Navalon”; I would prefer that they reclaim “the Order of Reason”. But the new Order of Reason would include expatriates from Iteration X, the Progenitors, the Void Engineers, the New World Order, and the Syndicate.

And I don't see them joining the Traditions, either. I can see a greater willingness to work...

[Dataweaver]

You see them as a cancer; I see them as having a cancer, just like every other Convention. But, just like every other Convention, they sense a vital role in the Union....

[Dataweaver]

Also, Mage makes a distinction between the Realms Invisible, which include the Shadow and the Underworld (and, presumably, the Hedge) and Astral Space, which it sometimes refers to as “Inner Realms”. Astral Space is a “soulscape”: you can variously think of it as existing inside your soul or if your soul as being an extension of it. In general, you project your consciousness into Astral Space instead of visiting it physically, though there are (as always) exceptions. Paraphrasing a quote from the last Harry Potter novel: “of course it's all in your head; but why in the world would that...

[Dataweaver]

Frankly, I think it might need a little more structure, and integration into the existing Chronicles of Darkness cosmology. Mage has backed off of the notion of there being Supernal Realms, per se; what you have instead are:

1. The Supernal World, which is like the original World of Darkness's Penumbras, but split five ways rather than three: it's a fivefold overlay of the Fallen World.

2. Supernal Verges, where the connection to the Supernal World is strong enough to have manifestations that are noticeable even to Sleepers.

3. Supernal Emanations. This...

[Dataweaver]

It has been a while. In fact, it's been so long that all of your older content seems to have vanished. Where can I find it?

[Dataweaver]

If the Syndicate left the Union, the Technocracy would collapse.

[Dataweaver]

I'm listening to it now. One thought that occurred to me as Gentlemen Gamer was describing the premise behind Contagion Chronicle is that one possible vampiric Contagion would be that the Infected start to sparkle in the sunlight…