Earthdawn 4E: Musing 06 — Creating Disciplines

This is the sixth Musing, an ongoing series about Earthdawn Fourth Edition. Introduction and Index.

Everything contained here is the work of a fan and not associated with FASA Games.


Be warned, "Musings" posts feature a lot of me wandering off-topic and semi-related thoughts. There's a lot more insight on the design — how things came to be, directions I want to explore, etc. — but you have to work for it. This one is exceptionally long.

This is the second in what I plan to be a three-part series to provide thoughts and guidelines on creating player-facing material for your home games. As always, it’s your game and you can and should do as you like. This is to guide you through some of the process I go through when designing this material.

Disciplines

Disciplines are the foundations of characters in Earthdawn. While this is true for all class-based fantasy adventuring games, they have a special place in Earthdawn and this creates special considerations when designing them. The introduction of Paths in Earthdawn Fourth Edition reduces their burden in terms of setting heavy lifting, while also creating additional scrutiny. The goal is to discuss Discipline design considerations to help homebrewers with their efforts.

Before diving in, there’s a recurring question regarding providing tools to design a variety of things (Disciplines, knacks, Paths, spells, etc.) at home: when will they be published? The short answer is: never. Not a popular answer. However, there are good reasons for it. While those tools were available in the past and increased the perception of accessibility for homebrewing, they contributed significantly to the decreased quality of material produced while giving it the perception of balance because it followed the guidelines. No tools and guidelines are perfect. I can provide the knowledge, but not the wisdom. Which is to say, being given a tool doesn’t inform how to use it appropriately.

In contrast, if you learn how to build these things from using the numerous examples provided, the sincere hope the user earns the wisdom as they gain the knowledge. Of course, there’s no guarantee of this, but this is my good faith effort to do what I can. With this preamble, let’s get to what you’re here for.

I started the series with variants and I’m working in increasing difficulty or complexity. As discussed previously, variants involve moving talents around within a set of guidelines so it’s still recognizable as the original Discipline. This is building one from the ground up. I’ve covered this process in some detail in previous posts, but I’m going to do it with additional guidance and a title that makes it very clear what’s going on.

This process assumes you already have a clear concept of what you want and the themes. Those pieces are required before you dive into this process. Getting into the details may help clarify and refine the core elements of the Discipline, it is likely to remove many extraneous pieces as you continue to cut it down, somewhat like a carver or sculptor shaping their medium to reveal what’s within.

Creating a Discipline is deceptively simple, but has more clarity to the structure in Fourth Edition once you look at the details. There are three broad categories informally called: Combat, Specialist, and Spellcaster. There aren’t official titles, so if you have a different term, that’s fine. They’re noted primarily by their Durability at 7, 5, and 3 respectively. “Specialist” Disciplines (Durability 5) also receive a free talent and an additional Karma ability at First Circle, “Spellcaster” Disciplines (Durability 3) receive two free Standard Matrix talents outside of the talent structure — these don’t count against talent options — and one of them is upgraded to an Enhanced Matrix at Fifth Circle. “Combat” Disciplines (Durability 7) get Durability 7. Sometimes quantity is its own kind of quality.

A brief discussion regarding Specialist Disciplines. The two benefits they receive shouldn’t be specifically combat-related. A combat-adjacent free talent is okay, such as Call Missile and Danger Sense, but not directly combat talents. As well, the free talent shouldn’t be something characters are going to want to improve at each Circle. The talent is something every adept of the Discipline should have, but not something like Awareness. Some of my side-project Disciplines experimented with unique talents here; I’m not certain if that’s the right plan. But also why they’re experiments. My suggestion is to wait until you have your talent list cut down and the choice may be obvious.

The ability to improve the free talent and get the Legend Points back is a kludge and not something I’m a fan of, but it’s there. Were I to do it again, I would describe the free talent as “You gain a free rank in the talent if it’s below your Circle in the Discipline when you advance in Circle.” This removes all ambiguity and edge cases.

Why is that? I don’t like the concept of refunding Legend Points as it starts making keeping detailed bookkeeping a necessity and I like keeping copious notes, including all Legend Point expenditures. However, I don’t want to force that onto other groups. Which is very real if it’s printed in the rules — even optional ones. This is really an unnecessary layer of complexity and a conceit of mechanics rather than setting. Much like converting skills into talents. Fine if you want it at your table, but it’s not appropriate for how the two are portrayed in the setting.

The Karma ability should showcase what the Discipline is about. Importantly, in a generally non-combat way. Being perfectly honest, I don’t think all of these Karma abilities in the Player’s Guide are right. There’s definitely room for improvement in some cases, while others are perfect. I discussed this in the Discipline variants post with regard to Air Sailor v. Venturer (that last “r” is important to me). Thief is probably the biggest issue — I wanted it to show another aspect of the Discipline without just doubling down on what it already does. Without hyperbole, I think I agonized over it for weeks before accepting I wasn’t going to get anything better in time and needed to move on. Those spells weren’t going to redesign themselves.

To continue, this Karma ability may be one of the most difficult pieces to design. I know it often is for me — how do you encapsulate the Discipline in a single, short ability? Try your best and maybe get some feedback. I’m not great about that last part for personal projects, but part of the idea is to put them out there and get feedback after seeing them in play.

Another note is Combat v. Specialist Disciplines. Keep the latter in your mind even if you think the former is the right answer. Going through the talent culling process and getting to those last, most difficult cuts may change your mind about what is the right answer. In many ways, Specialist is the most interesting category to play with because of how it can come together. Combat is the easiest because there’s less work in general. Unless you’re doing a Spellcaster that doesn’t require a new spell list. Basically nothing is more work than writing spells. Seriously.

Regardless of the type of Discipline you choose, there are some considerations for all Disciplines beyond talents:

• Artisan skills
• Bonuses
• Defense progression
• Discipline abilities
• Half-magic
• Important attributes
• Karma abilities
• Karma Ritual

I’m not tackling these in alphabetical order, I just like to make lists in that order.

What kind of art is a good fit for the Discipline? This is the central question. Artisan skills should be simple and these are suggestions, not requirements in my mind. Most adepts should be picking one of these because tradition is powerful, but something else is probably fine. I’m only wary when it gets into skills I don’t think should be artisan skills, but tradition is powerful and I didn’t change it. That’s on me.

Half-magic is complicated in part because different groups have differing interpretations of how much it should be able to do. The good news is you’re just writing this for your group, so you have a much better handle on what is appropriate to include here. My perspective is this is intended to fill in the gaps for the concept of the Discipline and what talents exist. It’s not intended to wholly replace skills, but can encroach a bit. For example, it’s reasonable to think a Beastmaster can use half-magic to approximate Physician on one of their animal companions. However, this is a limited replacement. I chose to make half-magic just the character’s Circle for simplicity, but I think this was a mistake in retrospect as it does too much to make it simply better than similar skills and talents. Going back to half-Circle opens up better options without making it strictly better than skills.

Important attributes are best handled after Discipline progression. Total up the attributes required for Discipline talents and also talent options, but halve the latter. This should give a rough approximation of what attributes show up most often. Also apply a sanity check to ensure it all makes sense. It gives you a chance to assess if this spread is right for the intentions of the Discipline. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the result not quite matching the goal, but some adjustment may be appropriate depending on the distance between those two poles.

The example Karma ritual shows one way the Discipline connects with their magic. It should be fairly iconic and ideally something that can be accomplished in any setting. Some of us recall the old arguments over the example Air Sailor Karma ritual. Not everyone believes these are examples. Since this Discipline is ostensibly for your game, it’s not something to necessarily agonize over. The further you intend for it to travel from your group, the more many of these concerns come to the fore about how other people will interpret what’s written here.

Now we get into the engine room of Discipline design.

There are two different options for Defense progression, the balanced and standard progressions. Most Disciplines use the standard progression, but currently two use a balanced progression (Gauntlet and Swordmaster) to show how they’re balanced between two aspects. This can give more nuance to characters and how they’re presented. Or it could just be looked over and mostly ignored.

Standard progression assigns each Defense (Physical, Mystic, and Social) a priority from 1 to 3. While a balanced progression has the total benefits from priorities 1 and 2 equal, but one receives the bonuses first. Below are when Defense increases are received for each progression.

Standard Progression:

• Second Circle: Defense [1] +1
• Fourth Circle: Defense [2] +1
• Sixth Circle: Defense [1] +2
• Eighth Circle: Defense [1] +3
• Tenth Circle: Defense [2] +2
• Eleventh Circle: Defense [3] +1
• Twelfth Circle: Defense [1] +4
• Thirteenth Circle: Defense [2] +3
• Fourteenth Circle: Defense [1] +5
• Fifthteenth Circle: Defense [3] +2

Balanced Progression:

• Second Circle: Defense [1] +1
• Fourth Circle: Defense [2] +1
• Sixth Circle: Defense [1] +2
• Eighth Circle: Defense [2] +2
• Tenth Circle: Defense [1] +3
• Eleventh Circle: Defense [3] +1
• Twelfth Circle: Defense [2] +3
• Thirteenth Circle: Defense [1] +4
• Fourteenth Circle: Defense [2] +4
• Fifthteenth Circle: Defense [3] +2

Assigning bonuses is a similar process to Defenses in that you give each of the potential bonuses (Initiative, Mystic Armor, and Recovery Tests) a priority from 1 to 3. I don’t recall making a Discipline with a balanced progression, but it isn’t complicated to do so. A hypothetical balanced progression still needs priorities to give the overall order, but the final bonus is +2 for each. Below are when bonus increases are received for each progression.

Standard Progression:

• Seventh Circle: Bonus [1] +1
• Tenth Circle: Bonus [2] +1
• Twelfth Circle: Bonus [1] +2
• Thirteenth Circle: Bonus [3] +1
• Fourteenth Circle: Bonus [2] +2
• Fifteenth Circle: Bonus [1] +3

Balanced Progression:

• Seventh Circle: Bonus [1] +1
• Tenth Circle: Bonus [2] +1
• Twelfth Circle: Bonus [3] +1
• Thirteenth Circle: Bonus [1] +2
• Fourteenth Circle: Bonus [2] +2
• Fifteenth Circle: Bonus [3] +2

Next are Karma abilities. These are generally straightforward at lower Circles, but can become increasingly complicated at higher Circles. This is because the lower Circle abilities are providing basic competencies up through Ninth Circle. After that, it’s more about refining the concept of the Discipline and what it’s about. Here’s a list of the “basic” Karma abilities:

• Initiative tests
• Interaction tests
• Recovery tests — every Discipline eventually gets this ability at Ninth Circle if they didn’t receive it previously.

Karma abilities are gained at the following progression with any special notes for the particular Circle. The Specialist Karma ability was discussed ad nauseum previously and won’t be covered here.

• Third Circle
• Fifth Circle: This ability should be core to how the Discipline functions and is often combat-related.
• A damage ability with some requirement is very common here. Don’t worry about absolute parity, the goal is to capture the flavor of the Discipline, not make it better. See the various damage abilities across the Disciplines.
• It enhances spellcasting in some fashion for Spellcasters, but be wary of making it too combat-specific for them since that’s not their specialty. This should be applicable to non-combat situations as well. Because of that versatility, it should have less absolute power for spellcasters.
• Ninth Circle: If the Disciplines doesn’t have it already, this should be for Recovery tests.
• Eleventh Circle: Generally a more specific ability that is more niche and gives the ability to spend Karma on something new, but carries a requirement appropriate to the Discipline. It explores a constant theme, but perhaps one that isn’t as front-and-center as other themes.
• Thirteenth Circle: This is only +1 Karma Step, but every Discipline gets it.

The last thing before we get to talents are Discipline abilities. These are gained at each new tier (Fifth, Ninth, and Thirteenth Circles) and should be unique to each Discipline. In one instance, Sky Raider Journeyman, it explicitly doesn’t need to be unique since they gain an additional benefit if they gain that ability again. As expected, they increase in power at each tier and build on the primary themes of the Discipline. Being perfectly honest, these can be very difficult to get just right. Like many things, I would do some of them differently if I could go back and do them again with what I know now. I tried to create general patterns in the benefits provided at each tier to give homebrewers a place to start and an outline for their creations.

Now we’re at the main event in terms of what you need to do: talents. These are the core of a Discipline and define what they do in the most explicit way. Their structure is clear and consistent: five Discipline talents at First Circle and one Discipline talent each following Circle. There are 2n+2 talent options at each tier where n is the number of Circles in the tier. This means 10 talent options at Novice, Journeyman, and Warden, and 8 at Master. The number of talent options at each tier isn’t arbitrary, but the math getting you there is a little.

I picked these numbers because they provide strict limitations and I feel those limitations give rise to better character and definition. It requires thinking carefully about what should belong and making difficult choices. Adding even two more talent options per tier changes how the various Disciplines feel. There are a few innovations I would include — some I wanted at the time and others I designed later — such as creating the category of “weapon talents” as a single option to open up some of the Combat and Specialist Disciplines a bit more, rather than just having so many options taken up with weapon talents. This wouldn’t be true for all Disciplines, as some should have their weapon options limited for various reasons.

Ideally, talent options should provide two or three different directions for a Discipline to be developed outside of its primary focus. An extremely focused Discipline like Warrior defines how it enacts violence as the “different direction.” This is really an exception rather than the rule.

When looking at which talents to include, be careful of making it just a “greatest hits” collection. Which is, don’t just load up a Discipline with all the most powerful talents, taking what is perceived as the “best” in each category. Including Air Dance when there’s no air elemental theme to be seen. This was a very common issue with the Discipline design guidelines from the days of yore and a big reason never to include “official” instructions on how to do it. As I mentioned before, it gives a false sense of competency. I don’t have to look far into the Earthdawn Journal before I wince. That’s not a judgment on people who played and enjoyed them, but every time I hear a comparison of the Gauntlet to the Mystic Warrior, I frown deeply.

A particular note: Everyone gets Second Chance as a Master talent option. It’s never a Discipline talent, always an option.

Talents are informally restricted to various tiers and usually shouldn’t show up before one of the existing Disciplines gains access to it. For example, Air Dance shouldn’t be showing up before Third Circle, when Warriors get access to it. In fact, it really shouldn’t be showing up before Journeyman. Other talents are somewhat unique to their Discipline. For example, don’t spread Claw Frenzy anywhere else. It was a mistake.

Something I can’t teach well, but only note is to consider how talents interact with each other and the themes of the Discipline. If the Discipline isn’t intended to go early and doesn’t receive an Initiative improving talent, they may not get anything out of Acrobatic Defense and Anticipate Blow. Maneuver can still provide some value between the Attack bonus and knacks, but be prepared for people endlessly talking about it. These considerations are a lot more important if you start delving into the realm of custom talents and knacks. Evaluating potential interactions is important when establishing limitations to how the talent functions.

With all this done, let’s do an example. This isn’t going to be a “real” Discipline I’m posting, this is just an example of how to put everything into practice.

Example

I’m going to make the Sentinel Discipline. The premise is a Combat Discipline who focuses on using a body shield to protect themselves and their allies. They’re going to need some detection abilities to spot trouble and social talents to comport themselves when duty requires. I see them having earth, fire, and wood as potential elemental themes, but I’m not committed to this yet.

This concept could easily work as a Path, a society dedicated to protecting people and/or causes. The details on how it functions needs to be worked out, but that’s something for another week.

Artisan Skills

Going through my list, what kind of art is important to them? I feel rune carving on the face of their shield could be relevant and I also like the idea of tattoos as an expression of their service. Half-magic is difficult here and I don’t have a solid idea of everything these adepts are about, so I’m going to revisit the rest of this later.

Defense and Bonus Progression

Next, Defense progression. This Discipline is using the standard progression with Physical (1), Mystic (2), and Social (3). Their bonus progression is Recovery Tests (1), Mystic Armor (2), and Initiative (3). While I may want social abilities for them, they aren’t as likely to be lethal if they land compared to Physical or Mystic attacks.

Talents

Now I’m going to make a list of all the talents which I think could apply and arrange them by tier. This gives me an idea of the cuts I need to make. Remembering the number of talents you need to choose per tier: Novice (18), Journeyman (14), Warden (14), and Master (11).

Novice:

1. Acrobatic Defense
2. Air Speaking
3. Anticipate Blow
4. Avoid Blow
5. Awareness
6. Battle Shout
7. Conversation
8. Danger Sense
9. Distract
10. Empathic Sense
11. Etiquette
12. Fireblood
13. First Impression
14. Guardian’s Service
15. Heartening Laugh
16. Maneuver
17. Melee Weapons
18. Mystic Pursuit
19. Shield Bash
20. Speak Language
21. Steel Thought
22. Tactics
23. Thread Weaving
24. Tiger Spring
25. Unarmed Combat
26. Wood Skin
27. Wound Balance

Journeyman:

1. Astral Sight — This is generally a Journeyman talent for non-Spellcasting Disciplines.
2. Battle Bellow
3. Blood Share
4. Cold Purify
5. Crushing Blow
6. Disarm
7. Earth Skin
8. Fire Heal — I prefer to keep this as a Journeyman talent unless exceptionally appropriate. It also falls in the “greatest hits” category.
9. Graceful Exit
10. Inspire Others
11. Iron Constitution
12. Lasting Impression
13. Leadership
14. Life Check
15. Lifesight
16. Lion Heart
17. Momentum Attack
18. Power Mask
19. Resist Taunt
20. Second Attack
21. Spot Armor Flaw
22. Steely Stare
23. Temper Flesh

Warden:

1. Burning Vigor
2. Champion Challenge
3. Chilling Strike
4. Critical Hit
5. Defensive Posture
6. Eagle Eye
7. Echolocation
8. Ethereal Weapon
9. Lion Spirit
10. Rally
11. Relentless Recovery
12. Resist Pain
13. Safe Thought
14. Spirit Strike
15. Storm Shield
16. Thought Link
17. Unflinching Fortitude
18. Vine Armor
19. Vital Strike

Master:

1. Aura Armor
2. Multi-Strike
3. Second Chance
4. Soul Aegis
5. Stone Skin
6. Vicious Wound
7. Vital Ward

That’s way too many talents! Which is typically how this goes. Now comes the process of pruning the talents that don’t fit. Master tier is the only one with less than its allotment of talents (11). This is also typical and a lot of talents from Warden get pushed up to Master.

Let’s start with Novice and make some easy cuts:

• Acrobatic Defense — A defensive talent, but not a good fit for the general concept.
• Air Speaking — I like the idea of giving them secure communication, but this doesn’t feel like the right fit.
• Battle Shout — Applying penalties is great, but this feels too overtly aggressive for a primarily defensive Discipline.
• First Impression — There are other social talents more appropriate for a steady character like this.

Moving to easy cuts for Journeyman:

• Battle Bellow — Same fate as Battle Shout even as it has group support built in, which I like.
• Cold Purify — The battlefield medic role isn’t inappropriate, but cuts are necessary and this is an easy one.
• Inspire Others — I like to limit access to this talent and I think this Discipline has other things to do.
• Lasting Impression — Social, but it fits best for Disciplines with a traveling feel to them.
• Leadership — This Discipline probably isn’t going to be the type to command soldiers.
• Power Mask — It’s a fun idea to slip under the radar, but cuts are needed and this isn’t a great fit.

Here’s Warden’s easy cuts:

• Chilling Strike — Not the right fit.
• Critical Hit — Too much focus on offense.
• Ethereal Weapon — I don’t see the mystic themes enough to support this, nor the focus on using a weapon.
• Spirit Strike — Same as Ethereal Weapon.
• Vital Strike — They need their Recovery Tests for healing if they’re going to protect their allies as intended.

Finally Master:

• Multi-Strike — I don’t think they need this particularly.
• Vicious Wound — Not a great fit.

Where does this leave us now?

Novice:

1. Anticipate Blow
2. Avoid Blow
3. Awareness
4. Conversation
5. Danger Sense
6. Distract
7. Empathic Sense
8. Etiquette
9. Fireblood
10. Guardian’s Service
11. Heartening Laugh
12. Maneuver
13. Melee Weapons
14. Mystic Pursuit
15. Shield Bash
16. Speak Language
17. Steel Thought
18. Tactics
19. Thread Weaving
20. Tiger Spring
21. Unarmed Combat
22. Wood Skin
23. Wound Balance

Journeyman:

1. Astral Sight
2. Blood Share
3. Crushing Blow
4. Disarm
5. Earth Skin
6. Fire Heal
7. Graceful Exit
8. Iron Constitution
9. Life Check
10. Lifesight
11. Lion Heart
12. Momentum Attack
13. Resist Taunt
14. Second Attack
15. Spot Armor Flaw
16. Steely Stare
17. Temper Flesh

Warden:

1. Burning Vigor
2. Champion Challenge
3. Defensive Posture
4. Eagle Eye
5. Echolocation
6. Lion Spirit
7. Rally
8. Relentless Recovery
9. Resist Pain
10. Safe Thought
11. Storm Shield
12. Thought Link
13. Unflinching Fortitude
14. Vine Armor

Master:

1. Aura Armor
2. Second Chance
3. Soul Aegis
4. Stone Skin
5. Vital Ward

We’re looking good at Warden and Master, but Novice and Journeyman still have too many. Again, very normal and why many lower tier talents get pushed up — they’re a good fit as a whole, but there are better fits earlier. Also, there are at least two more talents that need to be cut since the total is two over. And I want to create at least one new talent for them — they should have some Master capstone since I cut Multi-Strike and the remaining talents don’t feel significant enough — which is at least three talents to cut.

Let’s look at moving some of the Warden talents to Master, since it needs more to be filled out and inevitably things will be pushed to Warden.

• Champion Challenge — I solid thematic fit, but perhaps something they’re better suited for later.
• Eagle Eye — Perception at a distance is less conceptually important for this Discipline and could be cut overall.
• Echolocation — A better fit than Eagle Eye on the whole, so it’s unlikely to be cut, but it could be pushed back.
• Safe Thought — Another good, thematic talent around protection, but could be available later due to the lack of a mental or mystic theme.
• Thought Link — It’s a difficult move, but this is in a similar situation to Safe Thought and can be moved to Master.

This cleared up space in Warden for Journeyman moves; though cuts still need to be made.

• Astral Sight — I like it, but I’m kicking it back further. It may end up cut entirely, but not yet.
• Crushing Blow — This could be moved, but I’m going to sit on it here for now.
• Disarm — This is getting cut. It’s a decent fit and made it through the first round, but this Discipline doesn’t have the right feel for it.
• Lifesight — An appropriate talent, but it could be pushed back to make space.
• Momentum Attack — Another good candidate to be moved back a tier.
• Resist Taunt — Appropriate for the Discipline, but a better fit for Warden.

Now onto Novice:

• Empathic Sense — Generally better as a Journeyman talent anyway.
• Maneuver — This is probably going to the chopping block at the end of the day.
• Mystic Pursuit — Better suited for Journeyman here.
• Speak Language — Cut.
• Steel Thought — More appropriate at Journeyman.
• Tactics — Another good candidate to be pushed back a tier.

Let’s evaluate how things look now:

Novice:

1. Anticipate Blow
2. Avoid Blow
3. Awareness
4. Conversation
5. Danger Sense
6. Distract
7. Etiquette
8. Fireblood
9. Guardian’s Service
10. Heartening Laugh
11. Maneuver
12. Melee Weapons
13. Shield Bash
14. Thread Weaving
15. Tiger Spring
16. Unarmed Combat
17. Wood Skin
18. Wound Balance

Journeyman:

1. Blood Share
2. Crushing Blow
3. Earth Skin
4. Empathic Sense
5. Fire Heal
6. Graceful Exit
7. Iron Constitution
8. Life Check
9. Lion Heart
10. Mystic Pursuit
11. Second Attack
12. Spot Armor Flaw
13. Steel Thought
14. Steely Stare
15. Tactics
16. Temper Flesh

Warden:

1. Astral Sight
2. Burning Vigor
3. Defensive Posture
4. Lifesight
5. Lion Spirit
6. Momentum Attack
7. Rally
8. Relentless Recovery
9. Resist Pain
10. Resist Taunt
11. Storm Shield
12. Unflinching Fortitude
13. Vine Armor

Master:

1. <<Capstone>>
2. Aura Armor
3. Champion Challenge
4. Eagle Eye
5. Echolocation
6. Safe Thought
7. Second Chance
8. Soul Aegis
9. Stone Skin
10. Thought Link
11. Vital Ward

Things are looking pretty good. Warden needs another talent and Journeyman has too many. This Discipline is going to be shield-focused and likely wear some heavy armor. Which means low Initiative — and I put the Initiative bonus at priority 3. However, they really need to have at least a decent Initiative to do their thing. To that end, I want to give them a Journeyman Initiative replacement, but those currently in existence don’t fit. Which means a custom talent and I need to cull three talents from Journeyman.

Journeyman:

• Crushing Blow — You’re getting moved to Warden to emphasize this isn’t a damage dealing Discipline.
• Graceful Exit — Not an easy cut, but we’re beyond easy cuts. This Discipline is less about running away and more about a last stand allowing their allies to escape.
• Mystic Pursuit — Like other mystic talents, this one simply doesn’t fit when push comes to shove.

This closes out our talents. Next step is assigning Discipline talents. Before that, an aside about Discipline talents and the talent “tree” structure.

There’s a decent chance you’ve read this from me before, or read parts of it. We’ve seen three different, official methods for Discipline advancement. First and Second Edition had a tree where two or three talents were available at each Circle (except First) and you had to pick one. Classic used this as the default and introduced the talent option system as an optional rule. Third and Fourth Editions use the talent options system with “Using All Talents to Advance” as an optional rule, which retrofits the advancement table for First Edition onto the talent option system. This is likely the most popular system in Fourth Edition, but it creates some weird results.

Ultimately, I think all three of these options are various degrees of not great for different reasons. The 1E system creates the illusion of choice from beginning to end, and some of the choices are terrible. A random example: Sixth Circle, do you want Disguise or Missile Weapons? You have to take one. Next Circle (Seventh) is Detect Weapon and/or Throwing Weapons. Did it get mentioned Throwing Weapons is a Discipline talent that shows up so very late? This scheme is awful and I do not understand the logic behind how it’s arranged. However, it does have choices. Not necessarily good ones, but it does have them.

The talent option system of 3E and 4E has required talents, which may rub some players the wrong way. I put a lot of effort into the Discipline talents of 4E to ensure they’re good choices and should fit the Discipline regardless of the direction. However, nothing is perfect. Using All Talents to Advance largely fixes this, but can also produce characters who don’t really look like their Discipline, but are the product of using the Discipline to create some specific build. It also means some talents are unintentionally gated because they’re Discipline talents from a higher Circle. So a less appropriate talent is available earlier because of the Discipline talent structure. Some talents are deliberately gated because of intentional advancement, but this system doesn’t discriminate between them.

Which brings us to the hybrid, “alternate advancement” system I proposed as an alternate rule. I like it because it takes the best of all worlds, providing a structure that requires talents core to the concept of the Discipline, while giving considerable freedom in what talents the character takes as Discipline talents to advance. It allows for deliberate gating, but removes unintentional gating. Since talents chosen for Discipline talents (rather than those required) have to be a new talent, it also reduces the ease of multiple Disciplines. I’m not actively discouraging the practice, but I think it should be a little more difficult and encourage more breadth rather than allowing characters to really focus. This has the knock-on effect of making Versatility more useful as a low-cost option for doing the same thing. Assuming you’re just after some talents.

There are other changes I want to the structure, but these are deeper cuts and really require a new edition to implement. The end result would be toward more clarity of “Discipline identity,” but also more freedom to explore within those boundaries.

With that exceptionally long digression out of the way, let’s proceed. I’m going to collect the most appropriate talents from each tier, then divide them up by Circle.

Novice [8]:

1. Anticipate Blow
2. Avoid Blow
3. Awareness
4. Danger Sense
5. Guardian’s Service
6. Melee Weapons
7. Thread Weaving
8. Wound Balance

Shield Bash and Tiger Spring are also good choices here, but the above are better and there are only eight spots.

Journeyman [4]:

1. <<Custom Talent>>
2. Life Check
3. Second Attack
4. Temper Flesh

There are plenty of good choices here and Second Attack isn’t the most appropriate. However, it needs to be gated, so it appears on the list. Steel Thought might be better than Temper Flesh, but I wanted Steel Thought to be available early and Temper Flesh to be gated slightly. This is betraying the weaknesses inherent in the system.

Warden [4]:

1. Defensive Posture
2. Rally
3. Relentless Recovery
4. Unflinching Fortitude

The focus for many Disciplines at Warden are more generic options since so many of the talents build on earlier talents. For example, Storm Shield and Vine Armor require Wood Skin and Shield Bash respectively. However, there’s no guarantee an adept took either of those, so they cannot be Discipline talents. This causes the curious effect where a Discipline with one as a Discipline talent (e.g. Warrior and Vine Armor) learns it at a later point and with Using All Talents to Advance, it means they can even use that talent to advance. Effectively making it a Discipline talent.

Master [3]:

1. <<Capstone>>
2. Aura Armor
3. Soul Aegis

Next is assigning these to discrete Circles. The first concern is deliberate gating which can be for power reasons (e.g. Second Attack) or to keep access more on par with established Disciplines. With talent options, this doesn’t always work out. After that, I prefer to alternate talent types as appropriate to give a little variety in advancement. Along with this comes a sense of building complexity and competency. Lead characters through what it means to be an adept of the Discipline and put the complexity at an incline and avoid frontloading it.

First Circle Discipline Talents: Avoid Blow, Awareness, Danger Sense, Melee Weapons, Thread Weaving (Sentinel Weaving)

Second Circle Discipline Talent: Anticipate Blow

Third Circle Discipline Talent: Wound Balance

Fourth Circle Discipline Talent: Guardian’s Service

Fifth Circle Discipline Talent: <<Custom talent>>

Sixth Circle Discipline Talent: Temper Flesh

Seventh Circle Discipline Talent: Life Check

Eighth Circle Discipline Talent: Second Attack

Ninth Circle Discipline Talent: Defensive Posture

Tenth Circle Discipline Talent: Rally

Elevent Circle Discipline Talent: Unflinching Fortitude

Twelfth Circle Discipline Talent: Relentless Recovery

Thirteenth Circle Discipline Talent: Aura Armor

Fourteenth Circle Discipline Talent: Soul Aegis

Fifteenth Circle Discipline Talent: <<Capstone>>

There’s two talents to write and three Discipline abilities to create. I’m not going to do all of this and create a finished Discipline because this is only intended as a demonstration and otherwise people would try to use it. Which really isn’t what I’m going for here.

The first talent is an Initiative replacement talent to enable Anticipate Blow, but I want it to be defensive in nature. Here’s a first draft:

Protector’s Reflexes

Step: Rank+DEX

Action: Free

Strain: 2

Skill Use: No

Keywords: Defensive. Exclusive. Karma. Replacement.

The adept is preternaturally aware of the unfolding conflict and uses that knowledge to evade rather than press the attack. This calmness and mental state allows them to overcome hindrances when properly harnessed. The adept substitutes their Protector’s Reflexes Step for their Dexterity Step when making their Initiative test, suffering penalties as normal, as well as applying any other bonuses to Initiative (e.g. Discipline bonuses). This result is compared against Difficulty 10 and the adept gains +1 Physical Defense per success until the end of the round against opponents with a lower Initiative.

If the adept is in the Defensive Stance, they don’t suffer Initiative penalties from their armor or shield. Successes on Initiative can only be spent on the talent and its knacks.

This builds on the idea of being a defense-oriented Discipline, using heavy armor and a shield, while also going fast to control or react to the battlefield more readily. Testing is required to know if the effects are too good, or not good enough.

Important Attributes

At this point, let’s go back and figure out the important attributes. Below is an occurrence count for each attribute in the Discipline talents:

• Dexterity: 6
• Strength: 1
• Toughness: 2
• Perception: 3
• Willpower: 3
• Charisma: 1

Here is a similar count for talent options:

• Dexterity: 4
• Strength: 3
• Toughness: 5
• Perception: 6
• Willpower: 5
• Charisma: 8

We don’t know the capstone talent — and we won’t — so this will have to be good enough. Applying the math I suggested earlier gets us this:

• Dexterity: 8 (6+2)
• Strength: 2.5 (1+1.5)
• Toughness: 4.5 (2+2.5)
• Perception: 6 (3+3)
• Willpower: 5.5 (3+2.5)
• Charisma: 5 (1+4)

This is a fairly balanced distribution, which is good and means a variety of different approaches and Namegivers can be successful. While the talent options change things, they don’t change the frontrunners from the Discipline talent count, which is good. The important attributes are: Dexterity, Perception, and Willpower.

Discipline Ability

Next, I’m going to put together a draft of a potential Journeyman Discipline ability.

Sentinel Stance: As a Free action for 1 Strain, the adept may adopt the Sentinel Stance — a variation of the Defensive Stance. Sentinel Stance appears different for each adept based on their training and personality, but always appears purely defensive. Perhaps the adept moves loosely as though flowing with water, or takes a rigid position and appears forged from steel. They make a Sentinel Weaving (10) Action test. Each success reduces the penalties from Defensive Stance by 1 until the end of the round. This ability must be used when Defensive Stance is announced.

This ability further develops the idea Sentinels spend their time in Defensive Stance, working with their custom talent. The ability gets better over time, roughly reducing the penalty by 1 each tier. Or the adept can spend Karma to get a little more out of it. It could be too powerful, but that requires actual testing rather than white room guessing to figure out.

I’m leaving the capstone talent and other two Discipline abilities unwritten for the aforementioned reasons of having this be deliberately incomplete. Also, it’s very long.

Karma Abilities

With things coming together, I’m going to do a first draft on Karma abilities. These can see a lot of revision to get them just right. Given how different this Discipline is, this could be difficult.

Third Circle Karma Ability: Recovery tests

Fifth Circle Karma Ability: Once per round, any test when in Defensive Stance

Ninth Circle Karma Ability: Once per round, any test when adjacent to an ally in combat

Eleventh Circle Karma Ability: Once per round, any test performed by an adjacent ally

This list clearly shows what they’re about, but it’s also fairly limited and the back half requires them to be around their allies. Which doesn’t support the concept of them standing alone against the tide. It’s a decent place to start, but it needs more work. One option is to build out how many times they can spend while in the Defensive Stance. This furthers that angle, but it’s not terribly interesting and doesn’t say anything new about them.

Karma Ritual

A difficulty here is this Discipline isn’t action based. It’s defensive and reactive. Which means there isn’t as natural a way to close out the Karma ritual as other Disciplines. However, there are numerous ways to approach this.

The adept stands stoically, feeling their feet planted to the ground. They hear, see, and smell everything around them. Their senses extend through their feet into the ground so they can feel everything around them. Each movement is tracked as a potential threat and the adept assesses them, slowly working through the area. Once they are completely aware of their surroundings and all potential threats after 30 minutes, the ritual is complete and this supernal awareness leaves with it.

Half-Magic

Finally coming back to half-magic, I have a better idea of what this Discipline is about.

Sentinels use half-magic when caring for and repairing their weapons and armor, and knowledge of various military, mercenary, and bandit companies. They also use half-magic to perform basic first aid, such as staunching bleeding. This doesn’t heal damage, but prevents things from getting worse.

Hopefully this gives a better understanding of the various processes and thoughts that go into designing a new Discipline. If it doesn't, I'm at a loss as to what will.

Earthdawn: Anatomy of a Discipline 30 - Shaman Part 2, Talents

This is part two of the thirtieth Anatomy of a Discipline in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

Overview

An introduction: As with the first part of this entry, this is going to read differently than the other entries in the series. There are a number of reasons for this. One is when this is being written in relation to the bigger picture. Quite simply, things have changed. With 4E coming out, this is less of an advice column of sorts, and more of a retrospective. This will become more relevant in a moment. The final entry has taken so long to be written (10 months) because I don't like this discipline. There are a many reasons for this. Many, many reasons. From themes, to consistency, and in on to mechanics, it is nothing but problems. So, this becomes in part a review, but also a look to see what is wrong with the end goal of maybe, possibly, fixing the problems. Be warned, this discipline makes me frustrated and grumpy. If you are a big fan of the Shaman as written, you may want to stop here.

The Shaman is a spellcaster focused primarily on nature and their "tribal" community. Except for the Shamans who choose to spend their time not with a community. Which makes the big focus on being tribal leaders and bearers of wisdom somewhat irrelevant (much like the Leadership talent you'll be picking up at Eighth Circle). I like to call the Shamans which spend their time away from their home, wandering the land "player characters".

Socially (for those who reside within a tribe), they fill a very similar role to the Weaponsmith for cultures that don't have agriculture and domesticated animals. They are spiritual leaders, but also tend to fall into the role of a community organizer. Sometimes they a put in charge during times of war (which doesn't necessarily make sense - if you have adepts kicking around, why not pick a Warrior, they might be pretty good at the whole "war" thing). 

While their magical purview is very similar to the Elementalist, it differs in that they do not see the world as a collection of discrete elements, but as the whole of those combinations. Which is all fine and good, except the system pretty much supports the former over the latter. Except for the spirits added in the Shaman section just for the Shaman.

It is pretty sparse here with actual text, but unfortunately there isn't much to say. These guys really don't (officially) have a lot going on here. There is a lot to be frustrated about because the concept could have some legs, but it simply wasn't developed. This is a knee-jerk exposition of a Shaman based entirely around conceptions of the word, rather than trying to find an interesting niche for them to possess and clearly giving room for them to exist side-by-side with other spellcasters (even disciplines) within the same tribe. Honestly, I think the fact they have been relegated to only "tribal" is a significant part of the problem. This makes them entirely a cultural discipline, which does no favors. By this I mean they are tied to a cultural concept, rather than a more broadly applicable archetypal concept.

For example, it is fairly simple to take the discipline of an Elementalist and transport them to nearly any setting. Though this is somewhat cheating since it is such a broad concept. Significantly more specific is an Air Sailor. While the Name is specific, the concepts it deals with are less so: travel, combat, teamwork. The only piece which needs adaptation is how they travel.

When creating a Shaman, the primary external character element should be their tribe. Developing the tribe, customs, location, themes, images, important people, family, etc. All of these can help in developing the character. Extending beyond that, the Shaman's relationship with their tribe. Why did they leave? What are the looking for? What drives them?

Discipline Violations

These are best employed not as a stick, but as a chance for the player to take a deeper look at what it means to follow their Discipline. The key elements to a Shaman are about balance and respecting nature. The only official ways to go wrong with this discipline are through favoring civilization over nature and by harming nature. So much for balance between civilization and nature?

Beyond those, their should probably be some considerations for how a Shaman interacts with their tribe and others from similar cultural backgrounds. This sense of community could easily extend to their group and any small towns and villages they visit. Particularly those which live closely with the natural world.

Talents

Initiate
Talent Options: Creature Analysis, Silent Walk, Speak Language, Spell Fetish, Tracking

First Circle
Discipline Talents: Create Fetish, Karma Ritual, Spellcasting, Spell Fetish, Thread Weaving [Shamanism], Wilderness Survival

Novice
Talent Options: Arcane Mutterings, Borrow Sense, Dominate Beast, First Impression, Heartening Laugh, Spell Fetish (2)

Second Circle
Discipline Talents: Durability (4/3), Astral Sight

Third Circle
Discipline Talent: Spirit Talk

Fourth Circle
Discipline Talent: Spirit Hold

Journeyman
Talent Options: Cold Purify, Empathic Sense, Enhanced Fetish (2), Fire Heal, Steel Thought, True Sight, Willforce

Fifth Circle
Discipline Talent: Summon [Nature Spirits]

Sixth Circle
Discipline Talent: Blood Share

Seventh Circle
Discipline Talent: Leadership

Eighth Circle
Discipline Talent: Safe Path

It is worth specifically calling out how these magicians work differently from the other four: spell fetishes. Instead of having a spell matrix, they create physical objects to contain their spells. Instead of Read and Write Magic, they use Create Fetish. Mechanically, there isn't a lot of difference, ignoring the fact a spell fetish can be attacked directly with physical attacks. There can be (and have been) arguments regarding how these are fundamentally different from spell matrix objects. The only good answer seems to be: because the mechanics say so.

Beyond the spellcasting talents, the Shaman's discipline talents involve spirts and a tribal lifestyle. The latter terminology isn't perfect, but it fits. Astral Sight, Spirit Hold, Spirit Talk, and Summon are all in support of their connection to the spirit world. Blood Share, Leadership, Safe Path, and Wilderness Survival are for their tribal role.

As an aside, I personally find the pushing of their tribal themes to be a little heavy handed and unnecessary. If other spellcasting disciplines exist alongside Shamans in the same tribe, why do they function differently and in what seems like a purposefully backwards fashion? I have serious and fundamental problems with this discipline and many stem from a feeling of laziness when putting it together. It doesn't have a good identity of its own, existing somewhere between an Elementalist and a Nethermancer (leaning much more strongly to the former), but at no point does the Shaman ever manage to be its own thing. How does this discipline fulfill a role which the other two cannot? There is room for something along these very broad lines, but this is not it.

Also, Leadership is not a good discipline talent in general. For this discipline, it also means the "kook who lives alone in the wilderness and is horribly antisocial" is also a phenomenal leader and may have to waste a bunch of Legend Points every Circle. Some players may enjoy it, but it shouldn't be for everyone.

The theme of "tribal lifestyle" stretches into their talent options. By which I mean it is the only theme explored. Besides additional spell fetishes, they pretty much get talents for either surviving in the wilderness or being social leaders.

When it comes to the Initiate talent options, there is a tragedy to be had: there is only one answer, but there are a number of okay choices. Specifically, spell matrix is the answer. You may see something else here you like, but it is almost certainly going to want.

• Creature Analysis - This is thematic to their nature themes, so it has that going for it. However, since they don't do Mystic damage, it is highly likely you will find something more appealing, like additional fetishes. Which is one of the few times that particular sentence will be written.
• Silent Walk - Everyone likes to be part of the black op, even if they don't have much to contribute.
• Speak Language - They have the dubious distinction of the only magician without Read and Write Language to go with this. Savages, amirite? It's not like they are portrayed as the keepers of their tribe's history and knowledge, or anything. And as such may have interest in what other cultures have to say (or even, write, as such things tend to be done) those topics.
• Spell Fetish - This one. You are going to want this one here. You might be okay with just two for a long time, but you are going to need at least two fetishes and it's a long time to Fifth Circle. Yeah, I know, the fetish thing is just as weird to write as it is to read.
• Tracking - If no one else in the group has this, it is probably the best non-fetish talent in which to invest. 

Novice tier is when all spellcasters have the most latitude with their Talent Options. Not much, just some:

• Arcane Mutterings - This is a curious Talent and can be used in support of your comrades by being "the creepy guy" during social interactions, or by weirding out someone bothering you enough to get them to leave. Outside of that, it's pretty useless and will cost a Karma.
• Borrow Sense - This can be a fun talent, but it tends to work best with a character who has pets in the first place. While it can be combined with Dominate Beast, this is an unreliable combination. It may not be unexpected for some of your companions (and other players) to frown on using this against unwilling targets. There is a reason Hollywood avoids hurting animals unless the character is being portrayed as a monster.
• Dominate Beast - Beyond the fetishes (there it is again), this is one of the two best choices. It is thematic and can be pretty useful in certain circumstances. Depending on your view of this talent in general, this may paint a broader picture as to some of the problems with this discipline.
• First Impression - Outside of those things-you-stick-spells-in-which-are-not-matrices (hah!), this is my first choice. It is always good to have a character who can make with the talking, or even a back-up if the group already has one.
• Heartening Laugh - For the price, this probably isn't worth it.
• Spell Fetish (2) - While you may not want both of these, you will probably want one. Each of these gives you another option, and that is powerful.

Fifth Circle, when you first get to Journeyman, is going to have the most agonizing choice you may ever have to make - especially when looking at Talent Options. Which do you get first, Enhanced Matrix or Willforce? Beyond that, there are some other okay talent options here, but one rises above the rest.

• Cold Purify - [Ed note: As an aside, it's just weird to have to remember what the 3E versions of some talents do, as opposed to the 4E version] To put this in perspective, you get four talent options at this tier. One is Willforce, two are enhanced not-matrices, and the fourth is yours to do with as you please. Just to be clear, this talent is pretty limited in application (only useful against poisons). So, don't take this one unless you already have Empathic Sense and Fire Heal.
• Empathic Sense - This is my second choice for this tier, besides the obligatory talents. It supports First Impression (my favorite from the previous tier) and general group cohesion. Since this is part of their theme, it is a good pick.
• Enhanced Fetish (2) - Odds are reasonable you will want both of these. After all, you want to cast a couple Shaman spells which has a thread without spending a turn Weaving. I don't know what those spells are, but they probably exist.
• Fire Heal - So this is the talent you want. After those other three. Eighth Circle, pick this one up. Assuming you don't already have it. This gives you additional Recovery Tests, and potentially a whole bunch of them. I hear they are pretty useful.
• Steel Thought - Yes, I know it is iconoclastic to dislike active defenses like Avoid Blow, but if you cannot spend Karma, it is a pretty narrow band where they are better than just your straight-up Spell Defense for a magician. Getting there requires a lot of investment and dedicated investment throughout the life of the character. Instead, you can get Fire Heal.
• True Sight - Unless you deal with a lot of Illusionists (which is a sign your GM may not like you much), there isn't anything to see here.
• Willforce - Take this. It supercharges your spells and is arguably the most powerful Talent in the game for its sheer versatility (barring Versatility, of course). The biggest dilemma is do you get Willforce or Enhanced Matrix first? Willforce pretty much always wins.

Spells

If I had to use only one word to describe the Shaman spell list, and it couldn't be negative, it would be "naturey-ish". It is the only real theme running through what is otherwise a very, um, "eclectic" selection. Since they don't have a true list of their own (boo!), they draw from all of the other disciplines lists. All of them. Mostly Elementalist and Nethermancer, but it does not take long to find Illusionist and Wizard spells. If the spell is vaguely related to nature, it was probably stuck on their list. Or a Fourth Circle healing spell.

They have an interesting selection of non-combat spells, but of particular note is their combat spells. Which is even worse than an Elementalist. They do get Ice Mace and Chain, so that is something.

Races

Elves, humans and windlings tend to bring the most (mechanically) to a Shaman (as well as my house-ruled dwarfs). Elves have a bonus to Perception and Willpower, by far and away the two most important attributes. Humans have Versatility; they can be good at anything. Windlings get a bonus to Perception, increased physical defense, flight, and their penalties to strength and size are pretty much meaningless.

What the other Namegivers have to offer isn't of much use to a Shaman. Dwarfs get a bonus to Strength. Orks get the same, but also a penalty to Willpower. The benefits that both obsidimen and trolls get (increased size, Strength) are of little use to a Shaman, and each get a penalty to Perception. T'skrang don't have any penalties, but their bonuses aren't extremely helpful and a Shaman has no real need for Tail Combat.

While these can be effective Shaman (these differences start to become less meaningful as you advance in Circle), it is important to be well informed about your decision. This pretty much goes for everything.

Equipment

Equipment for spellcasters is of minimal concern compared to all other Disciplines. On the plus side, there are no restrictions on what armor you can wear - an espagra scale cloak on top of other armor is always in style.

Earthdawn: Anatomy of a Discipline 29 - Illusionist Part 2, Talents

This is part two of the twenty-ninth Anatomy of a Discipline in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

Overview

On the surface, the Illusionist appears as a charlatan out to deceive the unwary, and take advantage of the blind. In reality, this is almost entirely true, though they will take deep offense to being called a charlatan. You don't really want to offend an Illusionist - they can make your life very uncomfortable.

Illusionists view those activities as a sacred duty, an obligation to those around them. They certainly delight and entertain with their displays, but there is always something else at work. Through all of this, their goal is to teach. To help those around them better understand the fundamental differences between truth and lies.

These adepts view the world as a dangerous place, full of the unscrupulous that are more than willing to take advantage of those around them. In a best case scenario, they are a petty crook and not much damage is caused, though the victim will become hardened to the world. Even worse, they can be left destitute by a heartless conman. At the worst, they can come under the sway of a Horror. The protection of their fellow Namegivers is what motivates these spellcasters. If they do not help others to learn the critical thinking necessary to see beyond these illusions, they may become a victim in the worst kind of way.

In the interest of better understanding the nature of truth and lies, Illusionists travel to see the world, explore new things, and have new experiences. Expanding their horizons is the only way that they can better grasp what it means to be true or false. This is fundamentally important, though not commonly discussed. In general, Illusionists prefer to maintain the facade that they have perfect clarity in such matters. Astute students will suspect otherwise, and those so duped may be fleeced for a few coins for their trouble. The lesson must hurt a little to be learned, after all, and it is far kinder to cause a little pain now and prevent grievous injury later; right?

They don't have much in the way of traditions, even handed down from mentor to student. These adepts tend to be spontaneous and adaptable, since rote repetition is simple to outmaneuver and teaches little about truth. Simply how to do exactly as those who came before you did. When playing an Illusionist, consider that, but also how they prefer to go about things. Is there imagery or tales that they particularly enjoy? Have they learned any painful lessons that brought them on this path? How much of their history that is shared is truth and how much is a lie? 

Discipline Violations

These are best employed not as a stick, but as a chance for the player to take a deeper look at what it means to follow their Discipline. Like most Disciplines, there are a few ways that an Illusionist can run afoul of their own way of life. The simplest is by relying on non-illusion ("real") magic too often, though the same can be said of relying exclusively on illusion magic as well. Given that an Illusionist is dedicated to understanding how to recognize the space between the two, they must practice both regularly.

A beguiling violation is the hubris of assuming that you recognize truth and lies in all things. To accept anything at face value is dangerous and goes against the ethos of the Illusionist. Along similar lines is approaching a problem in a straight-forward fashion. It goes against the way these adepts work - by facing it head on, you will never see behind the curtain and find the truth.

The final potential violation is experiencing new things. Illusionists must always seek out new sensations and experiencing then in new ways. They need to find truth and lies. To create a better lie and to know the truth, they must have a broader set of experiences. You cannot craft a convincing illusion about something you have never seen or felt, and it becomes significantly more difficult to see the truth behind something you do not understand.

Talents

Initiate
Talent Options: Astral Sight, First Impression, Read/Write Language, Silent Walk, Spell Matrix

First Circle
Discipline Talents: Karma Ritual, Read/Write Magic, Speak Language, Spellcasting, Spell Matrix, Thread Weaving [Illusionism]

Novice
Talent Options: Arcane Mutterings, Frighten, Haggle, Mimic Voice, Spell Matrix (2), Winning Smile

Second Circle
Discipline Talents: Disguise Self, Durability (4/3)

Third Circle
Discipline Talent: Dead Fall

Fourth Circle
Discipline Talent: False Sight

Journeyman
Talent Options: Enhanced Matrix (2), Graceful Exit, Hypnotize, Resist Taunt, Slough Blame, Steel Thought, Willforce

Fifth Circle
Discipline Talent: True Sight

Sixth Circle
Discipline Talent: Engaging Banter

Seventh Circle
Discipline Talent: Fast Hand

Eighth Circle
Discipline Talent: Power Mask

The majority of their Discipline Talents are based around deception in some fashion, whether directly (Disguise Self, Dead Fall, Fast Hand and Power Mask), by improving their illusions (False Sight), or defeating other illusions (True Sight). They have the good access to social Talents in general, mostly through their Talent Options, though Speak Language supports that and Engaging Banter is on the fence between a deception-oriented Talent and a social Talent.

Combat is by far the biggest weakness for this Discipline. These adepts don't get any Discipline Talents or Talent Options that are combat oriented. Even their spells often fall short in a direct confrontation. Which isn't to say that they cannot contribute, they have some good spells available, simply that their most effective contributions are unlikely to be through a direct application of force. That's simply not their style.

What is their style is approaching problems laterally. They have a strange toolbox at their disposal, all of it favoring an indirect approach. Playing an Illusionist is similar to staring at a round hole with a bunch of different tools that may, or may not, be useful, but the odds are good if you come at it in the right way, with the right pieces, your square peg is going to fit. It is pretty much their job to change the shape of the game and how it is occurring. This is not an easy job, but it sure can be a lot of fun.

In a combat intensive game, which features more wilderness and abandoned kaers than civilization, this is unlikely to be a good fit. There are going to be enough circumstances where all of the tricks are your disposal will be for naught. If your game features interaction and espionage (especially that), then the Illusionist is going to shine. The archetypal "balanced" game between the various elements (exploration, combat, diplomacy, espionage, etc) is going to test all of these adepts' abilities and be rewarding for someone up to the challenge.

When it comes to the Initiate Talent Options, there is a tragedy to be had: there is only one answer, but there are a number of good choices. Specifically, Spell Matrix is the answer. The odds that you come back here at Novice are nearly a certainty.

• Astral Sight - You will be back for this (unless you are a windling, or already have it). This Talent is crucial for any spellcaster and can provide a wealth of information.
• First Impression - I like Talents that encourage social interaction, it adds another way for the character to contribute, and this is a solid one.
• Read/Write Language - There are a lot of good Talent Options available and the skill is pretty much just as good as the Talent. The only exception is if you want to read every language you speak.
• Silent Walk - Yet another good Talent Option. This one is always popular when it shows up because everyone wants to go on the black op. 
• Spell Matrix - This one. You are going to want this one here. You might be okay with just two for a long time, but you are going to need at least two Matrices and it's a long time to Fifth Circle.

The Novice tier Talent Options are something of a mixed bag, which just means there will be more opportunities to slip back into Initiate:

• Arcane Mutterings - This is a curious Talent and can be used in support of your comrades by being "the creepy guy" during social interactions, or by weirding out someone bothering you enough to get them to leave. Outside of that, it's pretty useless and will cost a Karma.
• Frighten - It costs Karma and while not bad, there are better Talent Options available. There are certainly spells that have similar effects as the end result.
• Haggle - No, just not worth it.
• Mimic Voice - In theme and can be very fun to use in conjunction with many of the Illusionist spells and Talents. Unfortunately, there are a lot of good Talent Options to choose from.
• Spell Matrix (2) - While you may not want both of these, you will probably want one. Each of these gives you another option, and that is powerful.
• Winning Smile - Not as good as First Impression, it is still something to consider if you are building an adept with a strong social component.

Fifth Circle, when you first get to Journeyman, is going to have the most agonizing choice you may ever have to make - especially when looking at Talent Options. Which do you get first, Enhanced Matrix or Willforce? Beyond that, there are some other good Talent Options here as well, but even then one rises above the others.

• Enhanced Matrix (2) - Odds are reasonable you will want both of these. There are a number of good spells that become better when you don't have to Weave a Thread first (Memory Fog).
• Graceful Exit - I have never seen a player use this Talent. There are definitely better Talent Options.
• Hypnotize - This Talent fits perfectly with the Illusionist themes and is quite powerful. Also, not many Disciplines get access to it; highly recommended.
• Resist Taunt - Until you reach fairly high Circles, it is hard to get any real use (by which I mean, success) from active defenses that aren't Discipline Talents.
• Slough Blame - It costs a Karma, but that just means you get to spend it. This is a fantastic Talent and almost guaranteed to get mileage out of it.
• Steel Thought - What goes for Resist Taunt goes for Steel Thought, even if the effects tend to be much nastier. It is difficult to rely on it to save you at all and requires a significant investment to even get to the point where you have a chance of success.
• Willforce - Take this. It supercharges your spells and is arguably the most powerful Talent in the game for its sheer versatility (barring Versatility, of course). The biggest dilemma is do you get Willforce or Enhanced Matrix first? Willforce pretty much always wins.

Spells

Like every magician, their spells are what they are really about. The Illusionist spell list is one of the most difficult and rewarding to master. While primarily illusions (and being excellent at them with False Sight), they have a significant number of spells that affect the mind, or provide other, stranger effects that could prove useful in the right circumstances.

Which is really what their spells are about: having just the effect to solve a problem in a very strange fashion. Getting to know your spells inside and out is going to be vital to success, also always be on the lookout for the spells you don't have that could be useful.

There is a lot to like about the Illusionist spells; it is probably the most thematic list of spells out there, truly making an Illusionist feel different than a wizard with more illusions than normal. They go about solving problems differently than any other Discipline not because they choose to, but because those are the options available to them.

A fair warning: you will naturally be bringing out the Sensing and Disbelief rules and learning them well. They are likely to be a little cumbersome at first, but once they become familiar things will go more smoothly (it's not like grappling or anything). 

Races

Elves, humans and windlings tend to bring the most (mechanically) to a Illusionist (as well as my house-ruled dwarfs). Elves have a bonus to Perception and Willpower, by far and away the two most important attributes. Humans have Versatility; they can be good at anything. Windlings get a bonus to Perception, increased physical defense, flight, Astral Sight and their penalties to strength and size are pretty much meaningless.

What the other Namegivers have to offer isn't of much use to a Wizard. Dwarfs get a bonus to Strength. Orks get the same, but also a penalty to Willpower. The benefits that both obsidimen and trolls get (increased size, Strength) are of little use to a Nethermancer, and each get a penalty to Perception. T'skrang don't have any penalties, but their bonuses aren't extremely helpful and a Wizard has no real need for Tail Combat.

While these can be effective Wizard (these differences start to become less meaningful as you advance in Circle), it is important to be well informed about your decision. This pretty much goes for everything.

Equipment

Equipment for spellcasters is of minimal concern compared to all other Disciplines. On the plus side, there are no restrictions on what armor you can wear - an espagra scale cloak on top of other armor is always in style.