Earthdawn: Anatomy of a Discipline 26 - Nethermancer Part 1, Spells

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

Overview

The heart of what a spellcaster brings to any Group is their spells. They determine most of the play style and focus for a given Discipline, but also can represent a significant task to wade through and weighing the various options. The goal of this post is to analyze the spell selections in the first five Circles and give some idea of how those options may inform the emphasis of the Discipline, play style, as well the relative use of a particular spell. The reason this will only address the first five Circles is that you get to pick spells at those Circles - starting at Sixth Circle, you are on your own and it is largely in your GM's hands.

Depending on the Optional Rules used in your game, how you address picking up new spells will change. If spells can be purchased and do not cost Legend Points, there is little reason to not learn everything you can get your fingers on. If they do cost Legend Points, you may want to be more selective of what you include in your grimoire.

First Circle

Astral Spear, Spirit Dart and Spirit Grip: These are your first combat spells and are going to be your best offensive options for a very long time. Learning how to capitalize on each of these throughout your career is going to make all the difference in how much you are able to impact a conflict with damage. The key to an effective strategy is knowledge. While they all target Spell Defense, there are other differences that make each of them more useful in a particular scenario.

Astral Spear has good damage (WIL+6), affects Mystic Armor and good range, but has a Thread; Spirit Dart has low damage (WIL+2), affects Mystic Armor and range, with no Threads; and Spirit Grip has good damage (WIL+6), affects Physical Armor and no range, with no Threads. In general, Mystic Armor tends to be lower, but not always. Knowing the Armor values is the most important thing to making the most of these spells; a high Mystic Armor (5+) may benefit most from Astral Spear or Spirit Grip (Depending on Physical Armor), while a low Mystic Armor would be most vulnerable to the constant attack with Spirit Dart. Right up until you get two Enhanced Matrices, at which point it is all Astral Spear, all day.

Bone Dance: A powerful control spell that can effectively remove a single target from combat, or at least make them an easier target. If their are environmental dangers, such as a cliff or Death's Sea, then there is significantly added danger.

Chilling Circle: Two threads, low damage and low area. Pass.

Command Nightflyer: Fun, but not terribly useful yet. There are later spells that will build on this one to expand its uses.

Detect Undead: To be honest, this spell generally seems like a waste of a Spell Matrix. If you have it around, you probably already suspect there are undead. When you most likely want it is when it probably isn't already in a Matrix.

Dry and Wet: If there is no cost associated with learning this spell, it's neat in ways that probably are not going to be useful outside of that one time it was awesome to have.

Experience Death: One of the best investigative powers in the game, hands down. There is a significant downside: you take the damage that killed someone, with the Effect Test offering a buffer. If your campaign is going to have any sort of mysteries surrounding corpses, this will be useful. Just make sure someone is around that can shove a healing potion down your throat.

Insect Repellent: See Dry and Wet above.

Mount Scare: It requires a Thread, but if you know you are going to encounter cavalry, such as scorchers, then this can effectively remove them from the fight. Outside of that, it's useless.

Putrefy: See Dry and Wet above.

Undead Struggle: This locks down a single undead target and doesn't have any Threads. The odds of coming out the winning party are stacked in the Nethermancer's favor. This is good whenever there are powerful undead about, regardless of your Circle. Not as useful against hordes of them.

Second Circle

Bone Circle: The is another spell that becomes more useful as you gain Circles and have additional ways to use it. It forms the basis of some of the more powerful Nethermacy.

Detect Nethermancy Magic: Wizards are able to just Detect Magic and this spell rarely sees much play. Since Astral Sight is a Discipline Talent for Nethermancers, when Detect Nethermancy Magic is applicable and the Astral Sight is not is something of a grey to non-existent area.

Ethereal Darkness: This is an interesting spell that blinds everyone except anyone with Nethermancy. Your Group may be very upset if you use this constantly and there are a considerable number of Horrors out there with Nethermancy. It also requires a Thread, which is often problematic in combat.

Fog Ghost: You summon a minion to do combat for you. Unfortunately, they aren't very powerful for two Threads. You would likely be better off supporting the Group in other ways. Also, they may attack your "friends".

Gadfly: One Thread and you can render a target Harried. This is particularly effective in encounters with small numbers of powerful opponents.

Life Circle of One: This seems useful, but in general it takes a certain amount of desperation for it to gain value. Also time - this spell has two Threads and may take a number of them to keep safe. It can be great for a dramatic moment, but not so much for regular use.

Pocket Guardian: It mostly prevents pickpocketing. This may or may not be a thing for you.

Repel Animal: See Dry and Wet above.

Shadow's Whisper: If you are in a game with intrigue, this is an excellent spell. If you are raiding kaers and/or spend all of your time in the wilderness, not so much.

Shield Mist: Every Nethermancer should have this spell. It should also be the first one to get an Enhanced Matrix. Seriously - this will save your life.

Third Circle

Arrow of Night: The nature of this spell means that it isn't likely to see much use. It requires an archer (preferably an Archer) and has a Thread for +8 damage to the missile. There are few instances where loading up a single big attack is the way to go, generally against a big target that has a high armor. Unless you are planning to use this ahead of time, it is unlikely to get a spot in a Matrix.

Dark Messenger: One of the spells that makes use of Command Nightflyer to deliver relatively short range messages. It's fun and will likely find some use in the right circumstances - spells that can be used outside of combat benefit from the ability to attune them as needed, which greatly increases their usefulness since they aren't occupying a valuable Matrix when unneeded.

Death Trance: This is a spell infinitely more likely to be used by an NPC than a PC.

Death's Head: The Nethermancer has a number of powerful control style effects that remove opponents from the area. This particular one has a Thread, but can be used each turn as a Simple action over a duration (Spellcasting Rank + 5 Rounds), making it excellent for crowd control and one of the two most useful spells for this Circle. This will not affect things immune to fear.

Dispel Nethermancy Magic: Similar to Detect Nethermancy Magic above, but likely to see significantly more use. Definitely a useful spell to have in your arsenal, but not the must have for this Circle.

Fog of Fear: Very similar to Death's Head above, this has two Threads and affects everyone (including allies) in the area immediately. It is great for clearing the vicinity, but lacks that critical "control" element which makes these kind of control effects so useful. While it has its uses, there are significantly better options.

Grave Message: One of the spells that makes use of a Bone Circle, this allows Nethermancer pen-pals to stay in touch. If you don't have a Nethermancer you want to send messages to over a distance that regularly hangs out at a specific Bone Circle, cemetery, or location that spirits are active, you won't get much use from this spell.

Pack Bags: See Dry and Wet above.

Pain: With no Threads, this is a great single target lockdown spell. Until you get Willforce, the Effect Test can be dicey (unmodified WIL), but the target is effectively helpless and gets no actions. Outside of Horrors and their ilk (constructs and undead), bonuses to resist pain are rare, unlike bonuses to resist fear. This is a great spell.

Preserve: Along the same lines as Dry and Wet above, this spell often sees considerable use in my games because my players end up playing with... things that decay. It's fun and certainly worth learning, but there are definitely some better choices to go after first.

Shadow Meld: With two Threads and a duration of Spellcasting minutes, this spell can be difficult to use as an escape, or in support of subterfuge. Generally, this is a great way for things to go wrong. For some, that may be a feature.

Spirit Double: Ever wonder what happens when you stick your arm in that hole, but know it probably is going to turn out poorly? If those kinds of thoughts are commonplace for you, then this is your spell! This spell is essentially an expendable humanoid. If you have use for such a thing, it would be worth getting this spell at some point.

Summon Bone Ghost: Another spell that makes use of a Bone Circle. If your campaign spends most of its time in a particular area where you have an established Bone Circle, there may be some use for this spell. If you are a more typical adventurer and spend most of your time as a vagabond, then it is unlikely you will find much use here.

Fourth Circle

Animate Skeleton: Ever wish that you had a group of skeletons at your command for a limited time? This will get you there. It has two Threads, must be cast where there are skeletons to animate in the first place, they don't last for very long, and are pretty weak, but you will have skeletons. All said, it's not that useful, but there is no denying the panache. Some Namegivers look poorly at their dead being animated, just sayin'.

Astral Flare: Two Threads is steep, but this is a great way to stick it to Horrors. It is common for them to perceive both physical and astral space at the same time. Outside of that, it is likely to be of limited use - but that is a helluva use.

Blood Servitor: This one of those fun spells that has little to no use in combat. It has a good duration (Spellcasting Rank hours) and range (Spellcasting Rank miles), and creates a small flying minion that will do whatever you want. You can even perceive what they perceive! The only downside is your commands have to be simple, with no more words than your Spellcasting Rank. This is one of my favorite spells.

Dark Spy: Another spell that expands on Command Nightflyer, this allows you to see through its eyes. While more subtle than Blood Servitor and the various effects that can build on the original are fun, I generally prefer Blood Servitor.

Evil Eye: At two Threads, this debuff is powerful (-5 to Action Tests), but possibly of limited use compared to some of the other control spells. This spell is most useful when used against a single, powerful target.

Fatal Food: Most useful for NPCs, there is still some value in intrigue games where the PCs are not terribly nice people. 

Friend or Foe: This peculiar spell is most useful when you want to stop everyone involved from fighting, unless they don't care much who they are killing, so long as they are killing. The narrow application of this spell makes it unlikely to see any use.

Last Chance: Let's face it, this is the best spell this Circle, if not one of the best spells period. You are going to want this, and you are going to use this.

Nightflyer's Cloak: Yet another spell that expands on Command Nightflyer. This is great for the Nethermancer that is often irritated by the constraints of Command Nightflyer and wants to get in there on their own. Good for scouting and also has the amusing possibility of the Nethermancer being commanded by Command Nightflyer as well. Every Nethermancer that takes this spell has to know it is going to happen at least once.

Spirit Servant: While this is probably not useful in the strictest sense, this spell is endearing in a way that is hard to articulate unless you have had a faithful spirit butler Named Jeeves. It is so thematic for a Nethermancer, that I cannot actually think of playing one without this spell. That being said, there are a couple of spells from this Circle I would get first.

Viewpoint: This is a great spell for gathering information, and a must have for any game that features any amount of intrigue. It allows you to create a one-way "window" through a wall. There is almost certainly a situation where that will be useful.

Visions of Death: Similar to Pain above, this spell has one Thread, but does not require concentration to keep up. A big downside is that it is a fear effect, instead of a pain effect, and there are considerably more ways to get bonuses to that, or be outright immune.

Fifth Circle

Animate Spirit Object: Sorcerer's Apprentice, anyone? With a good duration (Spellcasting Rank x 10 minutes) and considerable versatility, this is a handy spell to have around for "just in case". Be careful, you GM is given some latitude to mess with you as the spirit is capricious and mischievous. 

Astral Horror: Illusion Nethermancy spells are rare, which makes them more effective in general, and this summons a fairly powerful (if illusory) monster to fight for you. It has three Threads, which makes this an investment to cast and useful only in the most protracted conflicts (or where you have a few rounds to prepare). While there is nothing strictly wrong with it, there are probably more useful spells in general to take.

Astral Mount: A very useful spell for travelling. It can get your entire Group mounted without worrying about what happens to the mount when you leave it alone (typically: gets eaten). There is considerable upside to this spell.

Astral Whisper: This spell is an invitation for the GM to screw with you and there is little obvious benefit. Eavesdropping on a Horror? Best case scenario, you find out who it is taking to the prom or plans to torture first. Worst case scenario, you are driven insane by what you hear. There is probably a good use for this, but as a GM, I kinda hope my player takes this because it seems like fun. For me.

Blind: A powerful debuff that does exactly as advertised and is remarkably difficult to counter. With three Threads, it had better be; this is also the biggest downside to this spell. Another benefit is that this is more likely to be effective against Horrors than the other control options, but by no means a guarantee (they have to have eyes, after all). If you have gotten a lot of mileage from the numerous control options available to you, this may be a good addition to your arsenal. If you only have Death's Head or Pain, I would suggest getting the other one before this.

Circle of Astral Protection: To be honest, I'm not a fan of any effect that limits your mobility. This is especially true since most attacks that target Mystic Armor are also ranged and this neutralizes any melee retaliation from the PCs. At three Threads, this also requires some advance planning to put into place.

Incessant Talking: Truly a strange spell that isn't subtle enough to be really useful in social situations, since you have to babble along. It's biggest value is to prevent another spellcaster from casting spells that have a verbal component, but there are a lot of spells without that. Also, other magicians are unlikely to have much trouble resisting the effects. At three Threads... if you are willing to look like a fool to make someone else look like a fool?

Pass Ward: An interesting spell that is most likely to see use from an NPC, but it certainly isn't out of the question for a PC to make use of it. The biggest downside to this spell is that the damage isn't going to be particularly significant to determined enemies of a similar Circle and the ward goes away after being triggered.

Sculpt Darkness: Groups that spend time laying in wait will find this useful, otherwise this is more likely to be used against the PCs. It is pretty fun and gives some nice bonuses to hiding, but is of limited broad application.

Sense Horror: Since Horrors are almost certainly a part of any Earthdawn game, this is likely to be useful. In a traditional exploration game, the presence of a Horror probably won't need this kind of confirmation, but in a setting with intrigue, this would be very useful.

Shadow Hunter: Useful if an enemy has escaped and you have one of their possessions. While they are competent in a fight, they aren't that powerful. For best results, try and follow them to your quarry.

Spiritual Guidance: Fun, but be prepared for a trip. It is also worth noting that not all GM's like to be put on the spot and may respond best when this is used in-between games.

Star Shower: This seems powerful on paper, but it requires a considerable amount of coordination to setup. The physical damage is a small downside, but the fact it affects all of your companions in the radius is a thing. You are probably in a bad way if you need to use this.

Target Portal: For four Threads, you can increase the range of a non-touch spell by 1000 yards. That is still a lot of Threads.

Tears of the Scourge: There are not many better spells for incapacitating a group of targets, though you and your allies cannot harm them when they are incapacitated with this spell. This is best when used to end a fight where you don't want to kill your foes, but they are making that a very difficult proposition.

Whisper Through the Night: Any ability that can gather information is a valuable one, and this is no exception. This is one of my favorite (and the most useful, imho) spells from this Circle.

Wither Limb: This is a very powerful spell and approaching permanently debilitating if it causes a Wound (which is rather likely given the WIL+8 Effect Test). When any side starts to deploy this spell, things have gotten ugly and were probably already personal. If they weren't before, they are now. Don't expect this to end well.

Earthdawn: Part 5 - Thread Magic

This is the fifth part in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

As has been stated before, magic is everywhere in Earthdawn. It is the heart of the setting and the system. If you ever talk to a fan of Earthdawn, it will not take long for the conversation to quickly turn to the magic. The threads of magic weave together to create a complex pattern, which is unique to Earthdawn. Magic touches the life of every Namegiver in Earthdawn, whether they are an adept exploring the strange and often broken world, or a villager still utilizing the fertility of the kaer as they try to build a new life.

There are two forms of magic in Earthdawn, common magic and Thread magic. Common magic can often be created through alchemy which is a skill that anyone can use. It is practical science in a world of high magic. Thread magic is where you begin to manipulate the fabric of reality. At the risk of sounding cliche, it is where the real magic resides.

Previous articles have been incorporating some of the various concepts that are important for magic in Earthdawn. They have danced around the topic and informed some of the primary ways that characters interact with it. Hopefully it has given some reference for the metaphysics underpinning the setting and system. Now we're going to get at the meat of the subject: Thread magic.

The basis of all Thread magic begins with a Pattern. Each Pattern is unique and has a Name. Interacting with a Pattern on a fundamental level involves Weaving Threads to it. Only adepts can perform this feat, using the Thread Weaving Talent. Each Discipline has their own variation of that Talent (e.g. War Weaving for Warriors, Threadsmithing for Weaponsmiths and Wizardry for Wizards), but they are largely the same, though there are some differences which will be addressed later.

Every Namegiver has a Pattern and as discussed previously, it is through their actions that other things gain Names and Patterns. Places of significance can earn a Name, and thus a Pattern. The province of Barsaive received its Name from the Therans when they claimed it as a part of their empire. Prior to that it was a collection of tribes and cities, though nothing of importance. It was through that Name and Pattern that Barsaive became a thing. The province gained a cohesion that had never been known before. Barsaive itself became a living thing with rudimentary desires, and the Namegivers living there felt the new bond of identity. That is the power of a Name. Items can also gain Patterns and Names, whether they are intentionally created with a Pattern, or they earn them through legendary deeds.

The Patterns of people and places will generate Pattern Items over time as their legend grows. These items are important somehow to the legend of that Namegiver or place. They do not have a Pattern of their own, but are an extension of the greater Pattern they represent. As the legend of the original Pattern grows, new Pattern Items may be formed and/or old Pattern Items may grow in importance. It is through these items that you can Weave Threads to the core Pattern. If you have access to a Pattern Item of significant enough importance, you can affect major changes to the basic nature of the Pattern and Rename it. Blood Wood is the most famous example of this action, becoming a macabre reflection of what was once beautiful by misguided hubris.

By Weaving these Threads you can gain power while acting in that location, against that person (including Named Horrors), or give strength to the person through your Thread. For these reasons the Pattern Items for places of importance are highly sought after and protected, and there is great danger in having your Pattern Items stolen. Entrusting a comrade with a Pattern Item is a display of significant trust, often accompanied by a Blood Oath. Through such a partnership both parties can benefit significantly.

One option that adepts have available to them is creating a Group Pattern. It is a special type of Pattern that requires all involved to swear a Blood Peace with each other - they may take no action against those they share this bond with. The Group will need a Name and a sigil, and each member will need to select an item of importance to them in relation to their role within the Group. These will often be related to the events that brought the Group together, or their early exploits. The items will become Pattern Items for the Group and for each adept. Through this Group Pattern, the adepts may strengthen their abilities when acting as a part of, or in the direct interests of, the Group by Weaving Threads to their Group Pattern Item. This provides a framework to show the importance of cohesion and that the adepts are not a collection of individuals, but a part of something greater than the sum of its parts. There is a definite change once the Group Pattern is formed, though it is not uncommon for some players to initially abstain. In general, it doesn't take long for them to take the oath as the benefits can be significant.

Though Pattern Items and Thread Items are similar, they are different in how they function. Pattern Items are only an extension of a larger Pattern and through that connection they grant access to the greater Pattern. Thread Items have their own Pattern and are special on their own, even the most generic Thread Item metaphysically has a unique identity and a Name. Thread Items are the equivalent in Earthdawn to magic items in other settings, though so much cooler. They have a legend, not necessarily an extensive one, but that just leaves more room for the item to grow with you. As above, your items can spontaneously generate a Pattern through involvement with your legend, taking abilities associated with your exploits. Items that already have a Pattern can generate new Ranks based on your Legend. This is why magic items in Earthdawn are often spoken of so highly: they have personality, and they are yours in a way that a +1 flametongue never will be.

Before you can Weave a Thread to a Pattern, you first must know about the Pattern. In the case of your own Pattern, this is rarely going to be an issue. For your Discipline, you are learning about it by walking its path and meditating on what it means. In-game this is represented by raising Talents, performing your Karma Ritual, and ultimately training for a new Circle when you have mastered your current curriculum. For Pattern and Thread Items, this means learning Key Knowledges.

Key Knowledges are pieces of information about the Pattern that are integral to the legend that formed it. The first Key Knowledge is always the Name of the Pattern. For weaker Patterns, that may be the only Key Knowledge, but by the same token the Threads that can be Woven will be weak as well. The more legendary the Name, the more powerful the Pattern and the more Key Knowledges that must be learned to Weave ever stronger Threads to the Pattern. This is particularly true of Thread Items and will represent a significant portion of many adepts' activities: tracking down Key Knowledges. The catch to a Key Knowledge is that it must be learned through some action. Simply reading it in the Great Library might work for a Name, but after that point you have to get your hands dirty and begin to walk the path of the legend. Sometimes even engaging in Deeds that relate to the legend: performing actions that the item was originally used in to build its legend.

This mechanic for Thread Items creates instant adventure. It gives every player a stake in the world and an active interest in engaging in it. Thread Items can be used to tell entire stories unto themselves, reveal secrets, set adepts onto righting ancient wrongs, or any number of campaign developments. At the very least, Thread Items add considerable color to the world and represent a chance for each character to leave their mark on the setting. The downside to this is that Thread Items represent a considerable amount of work. Handcrafting them is an investment, both in the mechanics and the setting material. Despite that, I have always found it to be worth the trouble. There is something about finding a Thread Item in Earthdawn that is hard to define. Since improving Threads to the item is limited by Key Knowledges (and Legend Point costs), it is not a big deal to hand out powerful items early on. The advancement of the item is easily controlled, but there is a certain joy in having your things grow with you. The entire experience has powerful mojo. I can guarantee that any Earthdawn player will be more than happy to tell you all about their Thread Items.

To help with the extensive work surrounding Thread Items, I will be writing a series of articles regarding how I go about creating a Thread Item. As well, there will be additional posts on specific types of magic, such as blood magic, spellcasting and crafting items.

Earthdawn: Part 2 - Disciplines

This is the second part in an ongoing series about Earthdawn. Introduction and Index.

The information presented here has been updated for Earthdawn Fourth Edition (ED4).

The path these posts take may seem haphazard, but there is a method to my madness! To continue the trend of taking good advice when I hear it, the plan is to write about the aspects of Earthdawn that I find the most compelling, that are always in my head. To really engage in that, there is some groundwork that needs to be laid first. A subtle aspect of Earthdawn is how intertwined the various elements are. Each topic requires an understanding of attendant concepts and separating them can be tricky. Where this is going: if something doesn't make sense, leave a comment and I will provide some context and try to ensure it is covered sooner than later. The mechanics will be expressed from the perspective of Earthdawn Third Edition and Fourth Edition (ED3 and ED4 respectively) since it is currently they are the most recent editions. Changes from previous editions can be found here: 1E, 3E and Revised.

Magic is everywhere in Earthdawn; it pervades every aspect of the system and setting and is awesome. Magic is based around the concept of threads, it is the basic unit in which magic is expressed. Using magic involves weaving these Threads, and anything that is permanently magical has a pattern, which generally means that it has a Name. These are important concepts and will be covered in detail another time. For now: magic involves weaving threads to patterns which have Names.

Every PC is an adept, someone that can use magic, and every adept expresses their magic through their discipline. A discipline is an archetypal concept that has developed a Name and a pattern, examples include the Swordmaster, Warrior, and Weaponsmith. They are the foundation of every Earthdawn character, which is hardly unique to any class-based system. What makes a discipline different is how it is addressed within the system and the setting. By following a discipline the adept is aligning their pattern with the pattern of their discipline. The threads to the discipline pattern take the form of talents (abilities powered by magic).

Like many things in Earthdawn, disciplines exist in and out of game. If you were to inform another Namegiver that you are a Weaponsmith, this would communicate something specific and intrinsic about you. Telling them you are a Swordmaster versus a Warrior would communicate something very different. The Names are more than just adjectives. Each discipline is also a philosophy, a way of life - truly requiring dedication and focus to follow. Each expression of that philosophy is personal, though often passed from master to apprentice. What this means is that there are certain behaviors which are expected and those which are largely prohibited. Falling outside of these expectations will put the adept into a crisis where their talents will begin to fail them. This is a big deal and will require sacrifice of some kind on the part of the adept, a re-dedication to their discipline and what it means.

Let's take a look at Swordmasters and Warriors to get something of a feel for these differences and what they mean. Both are combat disciplines, but how they go about that and how they see the world is different. The Swordmaster dedicates themselves to the blade, sometimes even one specific weapon, and views life as an adventure, a story yet to be told. They tend to be full of energy and excitement, dedicated to living each day to the fullest and getting in the most fun kind of trouble. Warriors tend towards being more solemn and it is not uncommon for them to gather in monastic brotherhoods. They are more interested in camaraderie than bragging rights, and victory over panache. A Swordmaster that engages in dishonorable combat or without embellishment is in danger of a crisis. A Warrior that betrays their comrades or fails to eliminate a traitor would be in similar danger. This is an example of how these Names, and Names in general, within Earthdawn have meaning, and those meanings are important.

The measure of how aligned an adept is with their discipline is called their circle (virtually the same as a level) and those are divided more coarsely by tier (Novice, Journeyman, Warden, and Master). All of these, including talent ranks, are actual things within the setting. When I first encountered that so many years ago (so very many...) it was a breath of fresh air to me. The cagey dance around classes and levels had grown weary, how to explain your level and class while remaining in-character?

Digression aside, the greater your circle, the more overtly magical your abilities and the higher standard you tend to be held to within your discipline. However, with that experience comes a level of comfort and self-awareness. Through your discipline you understand yourself better and how your perspective can be altered to accommodate competing philosophies. Essentially you can add additional disciplines so long as your paradigm is accepting of the new path.

Given the inherent magical nature of each discipline, some traditional assumptions regarding areas of effectiveness are different. For example, the Warrior is an absolute beast in combat; nothing else can really compare. Spellcasters do not shine in a fight, at least not consistently. They are more likely to prey on the weaknesses of particular enemies, or support the more combat-savvy members of the group. It is outside of combat where their spells begin to carry the day. This explicit nature of what you see is what you get also works for me. There are very distinct cues that tell you what your character is about, however there are also very subtle ones that will guide you on how they work through their Talent interactions.

Here is a list of the core 15 disciplines and a brief description (full list here):

• Air Sailor: Deeply invested in the ideals of teamwork and civilization, these swashbucklers of the skies are consummate travelers. Abilities in combat and social settings, they are particularly team-oriented in their capabilities.
• Archer: Very focused with an emphasis in direction and vision in all things, they are the masters of missile weapons. Missile combatants with a number of perception/searching abilities.
• Beastmaster: Often attended by a collection of animals they share a bond with, they tend to find greater comfort in natural surroundings and are fierce unarmed combatants with their claws.
• Cavalryman: Deeply bound to their mount of choice, these mounted warriors are fearsome and varied. They heavily emphasize mounted combat with some social elements.
• Elementalist: Spellcasters that gain their power from manipulating the basic elements. They are more support-based than the other spellcasters.
• Illusionist: The most social of the spellcasters, they emphasize deception in their pursuit of truth. Tricky to master, but they have some of the most interesting spells.
• Nethermancer: Specializing in the magic of other planes, they are considered to be a little "off". Much of their magic is oriented towards undead, Horrors and Horror constructs, they tend to have the most combat applicable spells.
• Scout: Gathering information and blending into the surroundings, whether it be the city or wilderness, no one is their peer in this regard. While they can engage in archery, combat is not particularly an emphasis.
• Sky Raider: Ruthless sky pirates that favor strength and honor in all things. Typically, but not always trolls, very few are their peers in combat and none in sheer power. These guys base jump without a parachute onto other airships.
• Swordmaster: The classic swashbuckler, emphasizing swagger and style in all things. They favor a grand entrance and shun stealth. In addition they have excellent access to social and combat abilities. In combat they specialize in one-on-one confrontations and have a more complicated playstyle than most.
• Thief: Whether stealing out of greed or to teach a lesson about the attachment to material possessions, stealing is what a thief does. They fulfill all of the classic thief tropes: sneaking, traps, backstabbing, etc.
• Troubadour: Entertainers and scholars, they travel the land spreading knowledge and gathering the same. The most social Discipline and also the best access to information.
• Warrior: Often trained in monastic groups, they know all too well that violence is best used as the last resort, but are never afraid to do what is needed. Honor and loyalty are vital concepts and the understanding of death becomes important as comrades are claimed. All-around the most competent in combat, varied emphases depending on preferences.
• Weaponsmith: Often the central figure in any community, the Weaponsmith places a high value on the trust given to them in that role. They are relatively balanced in access to knowledge and social abilities, along with some combat options eventually. Their greatest contribution to any group is the ability to improve weapons and eventually gain access to spells and crafting magical items.
• Wizard: The classic spellcaster has a place, they emphasize knowledge over the others. Their spells are varied and often eclectic in application.