Mysterians

Drake Bale is an example Mysterian.

Mysterians are practitioners of an ancient art sometimes known as Enigmystra, Hedgecraft, Mysterium, and various other esoteric names; eventually the term Ars Mysteria was retro-applied as Hermetic practices diverged and factionalized in the mid and late Middle Ages.

Unlike Spellbinders who channel raw energies directly at great risk or filter those wild forces through matrices that they've bound within themselves, or Wizards who express their mastery of lore and theory via rotes and rituals to safely but slowly work conceivably any kind of magic, Mysterians focus on mastering specific types of magic sufficiently to "work their Mysteries" quickly and without danger.

Consequently Mysterians tend to get by very well in the modern world as long as they are careful, and many Mysterians learn to work their magic unobstrusively or to disguise it in some form of mundane activity. Additionally Mysterians tend to excel at using their magic in unsettled and dangerous situations, which often affords them a significant advantage in violent circumstances compared to many other types of Mystics.

Mysteria was largely supplanted by Wizardry over the course of the Dark Ages and is thus fairly uncommon. However, there are still sufficient practitioners around the world that it is not in any danger of fading out entirely, and as a practice it has been on a quiet upsurge over the last century. Mysteria is traditionally passed on via the master / apprentice arrangement, but it can also be learned from arcane primers and grimoires and some Mysterians are partially or entirely self taught.

There are also a few small, reclusive boarding schools where it is taught; one in a out of the way hamlet in England, another in Belgium, and a third in New Hampshire in the US. These schools were all independently founded and have no common organizing principle, but being the only fish in a very small pond they do have some communication and a loose working relationship.

The Mysteries

The Mysterian tradition consists of the collection of Ability traits listed below, which are referred to by Mysterians as the "Greater Mysteries", and to a lesser extent by Signature Exploits taken for the Mysterian Vocation (decribed below), which are referred to by Mysterians as the "Lesser Mysteries".

The Greater Mysteries

• Air
• Conjuration
• Counterspell
• Earth
• Fire
• Hex
• Illusion
• Invisibility
• Polymorph
• Mentalism
• Shield
• Summoning
• Teleport
• Transmutation
• Warding
• Water

The Greater Mystery Ability traits must be taken in a Mysterian Ability Set, and are understood to be Mystical traits in such a context. Each Greater Mystery represents a broad area of study and mastery, not a one-off trick or gimmick.

For instance, conceptually a Mysterian with the Counterspell Ability trait doesn't know one "spell" that they just cast over and over again with universal applicability. Rather, they know a variety of techniques for blocking, cancelling, picking apart, draining, siphoning, and otherwise countering opposing magic which they apply judiciously in nuanced ways when relevant.

While a high tier Mysterian can potentially have every Greater Mystery, at low and middle tiers a typical Mysterian might have between three to five of them at a d6 step or better. Generally speaking, Mysterians prefer quality over quantity, sublime mastery of a few things over dabbling in many. Thus an aspiring Mysterian with a lot of low step Greater Mysteries and little else would not be as respected as a Mysterian with impressive mastery over a few Greater Mysteries and other supporting abilities (Lesser Mysteries, SFX, other parts of the character), presenting a well rounded total package.

No Spells Trait

Note that the Spells trait is not included in the list of Greater Mysteries; this is intentional. While they do work magic and in a general sense are "casting spells", Mysterians do so using the specific Ability traits listed rather than using the abstracted Spells trait (or any of its variants such as Necromancy) as an emulator.

Thus, instead of taking Spells and stepping it down to emulate Conjuration, a Mysterian instead just takes the Conjuration trait and uses it directly at whatever step they have it at. The downside of this is, while the Spells trait allows the emulation of conceivably any trait at stepped down potency, a Mysterian can only do the things they have the specific Ability traits for. Also, it costs more Advances to take a lot of Ability traits instead of just advancing one Spells trait.

However, the upside is Mysterians tend to be really good in their areas of expertise, don't suffer the slowness to cast built into the Spells trait, and can dial in each trait to a step that fits their concept. By giving up some flexibility, Mysterian's gain more design space for individual expression during character creation and advancement, and better economy of action during play.

Vocation

The basis of Mysterian practice is represented on a character by taking the Mysterian Vocation at a step appropriate to the character's level of mastery. An apprentice would take the Mysterian Vocation at a d4, a journeyman at a d6, a master at a d8, and a grand master at a d10.