[OOC] [Mage: the Awakening 2E] The Supernal Suburbia

[crapcarp]

crapcarp leaving the invitation open to see if Phoenix wants to join or go pursue his Obsession, otherwise I can move us along to the cafe

Unless anything else happens in the church, Phoenix'll just follow Moonstone to Awake.

[rwknoll]

I'm enjoying the interactions and RP between you all! Let me know if you need any Storyteller input here.

Here are my current notes about all of the meetings and meet-ups everyone currently has planned. Let me know if I'm missing anything.

Moonstone:
Valentine - Sunday at noon, 9/11
Spade - TBD, as soon as possible
Ghost Dog - TBD, during the week
Ragnar - Space lesson, TBD?

Ragnar:
Dr. Langley - 10 am to 3 pm Sunday, 9/11
Mathias - Sunday evening, 9/11
Moonstone - Space lesson, TBD?

Phoenix:
TJ's Hunter cell - Saturday afternoon, 9/10
Boomer - dawn on Sunday, 9/11

Lynx:
Raven - At dusk on Saturday, 9/10

Ouroboros Ophis:
Dante - Saturday evening, 9/10

Binder:
Falling Blossom - TBD

[Caladriu]

Thanks for that! I was having trouble keeping that all straight.

Q: can I resolve the Alux-related Guilty condition through conversation here, or will it have to wait until actually banishing it?

[crapcarp]

Ophis:

"Ragnar, son..."

Phoenix: Pops didn't notice me...

[crapcarp]

Out of curiosity, if your characters found out about Phoenix being a Hunter, and one that almost exclusively hunted magic-users (Awakened included), how would they react and perceive him from then on (this doesn't exclude the NPCs by the way)?

[Thorbes]

I think Ophis would be both shocked and extremely dissapointed, but would be receptive to explanations.

[Kvitebjørn Kong Valemon]

Lynx would want to know if Phoenix had any intentions of harming the rest of the group, and also ask why he used to hunt other mages.

[rwknoll]

Q: can I resolve the Alux-related Guilty condition through conversation here, or will it have to wait until actually banishing it?

That's a good question. The condition came from this post as a result of a dramatic failure on a spellcasting roll, and I gave the Condition because of the social context in which your roll was happening (right after everyone was upset at you for summoning the Gulmoth).

Personally, I think it makes the most sense for your guilt to persist until you finally destroy (or at least make efforts to destroy) the Gulmoth. However, if Moonstone makes other concessions now, such as promising to make personal sacrifices or offer favors to others at personal expense because of his guilt over Alux, then I would let you resolve Guilty now. The Beat you earn is supposed to reflect your gained insight after paying a personal price or experiencing hardship/conflict. If you pay that price or experience the hardship now, then that's fine by me.

[MagicSwordsman]

Out of curiosity, if your characters found out about Phoenix being a Hunter, and one that almost exclusively hunted magic-users (Awakened included), how would they react and perceive him from then on (this doesn't exclude the NPCs by the way)?

I feel like Binder would be pretty concerned, especially if Pheonix has actually killed any, though it would be more of a "you're a murderer?" than a "you're a mage hunter?" thing, you know? He'd be at least a little receptive to any kind of "they were bad mages" explanation.

[Haberdasher]

Ragnar would definitely be shocked, but I think he would bide his time and just see how Phoenix behaves for the time being.

[rwknoll]

Caladriu - Out of curiosity, I'm wondering if you think Moonstone would have ever killed another person or mage before? Perhaps Scelesti or Seers? It's not clearly stated in your background or not, but it might be relevant and worth considering.

On a related topic, I've been thinking more about Moonstone and his role as a Sleepwalker, and I want to know if we could set some clearer boundaries around what accurate knowledge Moonstone should have and should not have in regards to Supernal magic and the supernatural more broadly.

While I think Moonstone could very naturally serve in an advisory role to the other mages in the cabal, I also don't want to buy into the assumption that Moonstone would have perfect, or even accurate, knowledge about a number of topics related to Awakened magic or society. I am quite confident that the Knights of Alhambra would have shielded him with ignorance from certain topics out of necessity, or perhaps because of their own biases against non-Awakened beings.

The Adamantine Arrow book (Mage 1E) gives little guidance or mention to Sleepwalkers. It seems that the Arrows generally pay little attention to Sleepers as well, unless they show signs of Awakening or are somehow involved in supernatural events. Moonstone has Occult 4 (soon to be 5 with the bonus dot from joining an Order), so clearly that should be reflected in his in-game knowledge. I just don't want Moonstone to be the Mary Sue of newly Awakened mages.

We've already established that Moonstone has knowledge of Abyssal and Supernal entities (at the very least by virtue of serving with Rose of Sharon); Goetia, ghosts, and familiars; and Scelesti. Personally, I'd like to say that he has not met or interacted with Kindred or Uratha -- that would take away some of the surprise factors related to some story lines I have been brewing, and possibly detract from opportunities for other PCs to be in the spotlight. Moonstone could have knowledge about a variety of topics, reflected by successes on any Occult rolls I call for, and his training would simply give him a higher chance of success on such rolls.

I'd be curious to hear your take on this.

[Caladriu]

I think he's killed someone in combat before, given his duties. Like a Scelestus or their servants, something he could justify easily enough as a Really Bad Person, and only in tandem with others. And he's experienced violence of the "knives in a bus terminal" variety in his life, not just the clean setting of swords at dawn. He's never like, assassinated someone.

I'm glad you brought up limits on supernatural knowledge, actually, because I've been realizing that's a problem myself. I was just thinking about it when bringing up summoning in that last IC post. I definitely don't want to come off as playing a Mary Sue type PC, and I feel like Moonstone has been tilting in that direction throughout the game, or just being a spotlight hog.

I've been taking cues from the Sleepwalker appendix in the 2E book which presents them as being potentially pretty integrated into the Orders, at least in a certain way. When I've brought up stuff like goetia and Supernal entities IC, it's partly because I assumed that's general setting knowledge that an average mage character would be broadly familiar with, and partly just that I like those game elements and wanted to move them into the sphere of possibility.

I do think it's much more interesting if Moonstone knows a lot less about the Awakened world than he thinks he does, and he's seeing it with new eyes or discovering things for the first time, and I want to cleave that way in the future. Like, he knows basically nothing about the Guardians, and I'm hoping to play that as a new environment and Order and people he doesn't know showing him just how little he knows. "All thrones are false, forget everything you thought you knew."

There's a very Mage-relevant idea in a lot of religions and mystery traditions, especially Buddhism, that a total novice or layman can intellectually "know about" a complex scripture or concept like reaching enlightenment, but actually "knowing" and understanding that truth beyond an intellectual awareness is something very different. I think the Sleepwalker appendix actually calls that idea out by mentioning Buddhist nuns.

I also really don't mean to be the center of attention or have some kind of plot armor, Moonstone has kicked off more than his share of stuff already. I'd be overjoyed if another PC was taking initiative more, and/or I can play more of a supporting "along for the ride and helping others' goals" role. I can absolutely dial it back and give everyone else more space to breathe and take the lead or just enjoy the scenic route.

What can I change to be less of a spoiler and maybe walk back some of the knowledge Moonstone has shown?

[rwknoll]

I've had kind of a crazy work week so I haven't been able to reply to your questions, Caladriu. I'll try to get back to you today or tomorrow.

It seems like this scene is starting to draw to a close. Assuming the PCs are on board with forming a cabal, you guys do still need to come up with a name for it.

[Thorbes]

Oh, right. Names, names, names...

[Haberdasher]

Moonstone pointing out the big gay elephant in the room. I'm at a bit of a loss for names. Maybe something relating to the High Storm that most of us met in, or an allusion to the upcoming fight with Alux.