Walker of Realms
Do you ever dream you are free-falling, the breath taken
from your lungs with a caress of weightlessness, that there is no way to stop
the impending doom you are coming upon? This is how a Walker of the Realm feels
in the early stages of this Legacy. Many onlookers covet the advantages this
power holds, but to the only Illuminae within the world, it can sometimes be
the most nightmarish and disadvantageous of abilities. The Supernal Realms hold
sway over the Realm Walker; until gaining the power to traverse the Realms at
will, the mage is in fear constantly of being whisked away into Spectra
Illuminos when the realm so desires his or her presence.
Each time a Scion of the Realms awakens within Arcadia,
Pandemonium, Stygia, the Aether, and the Primal Wild, an echo rings through the
sympathetic link to the Kingdom of Magnified Arcana, beckoning the Prismatic
Avatar to direct the flow of Ruling Arcana into the Diamond Lens for cleansing
and dispersion. One minute, the Realm
Walker can be playing a hand of Poker, the next he or she could be overlooking
the crystalline landscape of Spectra. Time has no binding within Spectra
Illuminos as well. Five minutes within the realm could be five seconds or five
months of passing within the Fallen World.
Until the Illuminae masters his or her control over the sympathetic link
to the Watchtower of the Diamond Lens, he or she is as the mercy of Spectra.
The Walker of Realms is an avatar of supernal power in its
most clean and concentrated form. There
are no common or inferior arcana to the one who walks the Path of Clarity and
Concentration; all Arcana are of Ruling nature. This may seem like a powerhouse
of an individual, but the Walker is limited by his or her counterparts within
the Realms, the Scions of the Realms.
The Walker of Realms can only gain access to the varying spheres once
the doors connecting the Realms to Spectra Illuminos are consciously open by a
Scion. If something were to ever happen to a Scion of the Realm, like the loss
of the soul or an untimely death, the door will close unless the soul is
retrieved or until another Scion from the next Cycle of Spectra Illuminos opens
the door again; in the latter notion, the Walker of Realms would be dead as
well. Anything that would cut sympathetic ties from the Scion to his or her
realm also severs the link that the Walker of Realms has. This Legacy has a bipolar aspect in regard to
its Illuminae.
Parent Path:
Illuminae from the Kingdom of Magnified Arcana, the Diamond
Realm, Spectra Illuminos, the Beacon of Supernal Brilliance, the Watchtower of
the Diamond Lens
Order:
Any. It is known from ancient tomes and scrolls that the
first Walker of Realms was of the Silver Ladder, the second of the Adamantine
Arrow, and the third was an apostate.
Nickname:
Prismatic Avatar, Realm Walker, Walker
Appearance:
Two words express the appearance of a Realm Walker: refined
and lustrous (in a manner of speaking for the latter of the two). An odd sense
of gained knowledge exudes from a Realm Walker, whether they are purposely forthcoming
in this appearance or not. A glint of intelligence sparks within the eyes of
one with a sympathetic connection to the Diamond Realm, and people sometimes
feel at ease in the Realm Walker’s presence.
No matter what condition the Prismatic Avatar is in whether healthy,
ill, vibrant, exhausted, clean, or soiled, he or she still displays an
appearance of clarity and concentration.
Background:
Only an Awakened whose journey lit the Beacon at the Watchtower
of the Diamond Lens can forge his or her soul with the strengths of this
Legacy. It is unknown whether others could awaken to the Diamond Realm while
one Realm Walker is already privy to the Path of Clarity and Concentration.
Written works and tomes speak little of the happenings with the Illuminae and
Spectra Illuminos, and all pertinent knowledge died with those who ushered in
the prior Cycles. Rumors have it that the last Prismatic Avatar somehow found a
way to gain everlasting life and that his soul stones hold the key to learning
the basics to this Legacy, but that is only a rumor.
Organization:
No hierarchy exists within the Legacy of the Walker of
Realms. Only one Realm Walker has been known to be within existence at a time.
The journey of a Walker is lonely, for no other Awaked will truly understand
what happens within Spectra Illuminos or what it is like to travel to the
Supernal Realms in physical form, rather than astral form. Exceptions do exist
to this rule however, which will be further explained within the explanation of
Attainments.
Suggested Oblations:
Oblations for a Walker of Realms coincide with the ideas of
clarity and concentration. Star Gazing, chores of cleaning, glassblowing,
precious gem cutting, scanning with a microscope, teaching others to understand
difficult theories, counseling others in mental health, and polishing precious
metals and gems have aspects that lead to clearer and cleaner observation.
These are just a few of many.
Concepts:
No concept truly exists for a Realm Walker, for only four
have been identified throughout history. It is known that all were born within
the same time of an annual cycle (same day of birth) and that each had a
pentagonal birthmark on some part of their body, signifying their place in the
center of the five Supernal Realms. It is through this center that Spectra
Illuminos cleans and concentrates the 10 Arcana, allowing a stronger push
through the Abyss.
Attainments:
A Walker of Realms gains attainments through the increase of
Gnosis, just as other mages do. This is much to the advantage of the mage
within this Legacy as others have deeper requirement. Unless the Illuminae has possession of a soul
stone that could essentially teach the attainments, a mage must do so on his or
her own. In the case of soul stones, a
mage can progress just like any other mage in a Legacy with a tutor (Gnosis 3,
5, and 7). If this is not the case, a mage must mold his or her soul alone,
mastering attainments at Gnosis 4, 6, and 8.
1st:
Prismatic Savant
Prerequisites: Gnosis 4 (or 3 with a soul stone from a
previous Walker of Realms)
Awakening from Spectra Illuminos leaves a mage nearly
defenseless once returned to the Fallen World; the Arcana are not readily
available for a Walker to learn and use as sword or shield in dire times. This may seem limiting at first, but an
Illuminae still has a great deal of ability in understanding the mysteries and
the properties of each arcana. In game terms, at character creation, an
Illuminae can essentially buy the Gnosis needed to obtain this Legacy since the
Arcana are not available at first. House
rules on purchasing during character creation for an Illuminae are explained in
the Path description, which will come later. Once the doors of sympathy are
opened within Arcadia, Pandemonium, Stygia, the Aether, and the Primal Wild in
conjunction with Spectra, the Walker of Realms is fully aware of the power now
available to command.
A Prismatic Avatar grasps the fundamentals of the mysteries
much easier than other mages. With this ability, the mage can master any Arcana
if he or she so desires. Though having a
teacher of the Mysteries is very beneficial, the Illuminae can learn on his or
her own the workings of the Arcanum. The Awakened world is a sea of possibilities
once the Scions of the Realms and the Walker of Realms come together. The following are rules for experience point
expenditures for a Walker of Realms, indicating why this attainment is referred
to as a Prismatic Savant.
Ruling
Arcana*: New dots x 5
Rote:
1 point per dot**
Gnosis:
New dots x 7
Wisdom:
New dots x 2
*For
an Illuminae, no Arcana are considered Common or Inferior; all are Ruling. The
mage must have access to the Arcana through the assistance of a Scion of the
Realms though. For instance, if a Thyrsus Scion opens his or her door into
Spectra Illuminos, the Walker of Realms will only have access to Life and
Spirit but nothing else. Other Scions must open their own corresponding doors
for a Walker to obtain access to their Ruling Arcana.
**
Rotes are rated by the highest Arcanum dot used, so a Forces 3 rote would cost
3 experience points to learn for an Illuminae. Learning rotes may be easier for
a Walker of Realms, but he or she must still be taught or create them on his or
her own in the same way other mages do.
2nd:
Embodiment of Spectra
Prerequisites: Gnosis 6 (or 5 with a soul stone from a
previous Walker of the Realms)
If ever the Walker of Realms is left wanting for mystic
strength because Scions have lost souls or perished, the Kingdom of Magnified
Arcana provides its avatar basic mystical properties of insight and protection
to live another day.
Once this attainment is molded, a mage can invoke the
Embodiment of Spectra at will. As an instant action, the mage is provided a
version of mage sight and mage armor from the echoes of Resonance from Arcadia,
Pandemonium, Stygia, the Aether, and the Primal Wild, even if the Ruling Arcana
are severed from Spectra Illuminos. This Prismatic Sight and Prismatic Armor
mimic the effects of the other types of Mage Sight and Armor. Only one affect
can be sustained at a time. These
effects last one hour after invoking the attainment. If the mage wishes to
change the functionality of the sight or armor, he or she must release the
effects as an instant action and then reactivate it in another aspect. This
Attainment can be used as often as the mage wishes.
Prismatic Sight functions the same as other Mage Sight
effects. For example, an Illuminae can view the world with “Dark Matter” or
“Grim Sight”, but only with one effect in place at a time.
Prismatic Armor provides the same protection per the law of
the Arcana used, but the strength does not depend on the dots in the Arcana but
the dots in Gnosis for the mage. For
every 2 dots a mage has in Gnosis, a +1 bonus is added to the corresponding
effect. For example, an Illuminae may
wish to use Entropic Guard as his practice of Shielding, with his Gnosis
governing the potency of the protection.
Walking into a bar with the potential for a fight to erupt, the mage can
drop the Entropic Guard and erect and Unseen Shield instead.
3nd:
Walking the Realm
Prerequisites: Gnosis 8 (or 7 with a soul stone from a
previous Walker of the Realms)
With this attainment, an Illuminae has the ability to
control the ebbs and flows that Spectra Illuminos holds over him or her. No
longer is the mage subject to the needs of the Path of Clarity and
Concentration, he or she can now walk freely within the Realm of Spectra.
Once per session, a PC may be able to activate this attainment
as an instant action. His person, clothing, items, and any other material items
(but not living, sentient beings) he is touching physically disappear and
reappear within the Realm of Spectra Illuminos at the Watchtower of the Diamond
Lens. With this amount of control, the
Illuminae’s time within Spectra flows as it does in the Fallen World. The
effects last one scene or one hour, whichever comes to a close first. The PC
will then reappear in the spot he or she disappeared from with a replenished pool
of mana soaked up from the Supernal Realm.
Be wary though; this kind of travel exhausts the sympathetic link
between the mage and Spectra. Abilities like this strain the probability of
travel from the Fallen World, through the Abyss, into Spectra, and then back
again. For the next 24 hours, the Illuminae cannot take advantage of this
attainment. He or she is also struck with a mystical backlash, weakening the
link between the Illuminae and other Realms. When casting any kind of spell
within that 24 hour period after, the player must spend one mana to activate
the spell (rote or improvised) and does so at a -1 dice pool penalty.
Optional Arcana: Space 4
With the use of Space 4, the Illuminae can designate where
he or she appears when leaving Spectra for the Fallen World, just as long as
the mage has a sympathetic connection with the place he or she wishes to return.
4th Attainment:
Possibility does exist to mold a fourth attainment as a
Walker of Realms. Theory points to the
Walker traversing to the Supernal Realms at any time he or she wants, taking
living beings into Spectra Illuminos, and for longer periods of time. This
attainment could also steel the Illuminae’s sympathetic connection to the
Supernal World, negating the backlash effect that occurs once the Realm Walker
returns to the Fallen World. There is even theory suggesting that this
attainment could allow the Prismatic Avatar paths into Arcadia, Pandemonium,
Stygia, the Aether, and the Primal Wild.
No comments:
Post a Comment