Introduction | Tremere Thaumaturgy | Koldunic Sorcery | Mortis | Sihr

Introduction

These are the dark ages. Magic exists.

Magic was there, at Delphi, as the Oracles looked into the future. It was there, in Egypt, as priests created amulets to ward off evil and placed curses on the tombs of dead Pharaohs. It was present the first time a goat was sacrificed to ensure a good harvest and the first time a young woman drank a potion to gain the attention of the man of her dreams. One could even say it was there when Jesus turned water into wine, for as long as there as been magic, it has been tied, in one way or another, to religion.

People know that magic exists. They have as much faith it as they do in anything else. Whether you are calling on forces of nature, spirits of the dead, or old (and sometimes new) gods, those who practice magic seek to gain some sort of favor through sacrifices, spells, chants, and rituals. Even the Church acknowledges that magic exists, and that it is a powerful force to be reckoned with. Otherwise, they wouldn't spend so much time trying to turn people away from it.

It should therefore come as no surprise that as long as there have been Kindred, there have been Kindred who practice ritualized magic. Much of this was cultural, related to the religions and ways of the Kine where the Kindred was from. And even as the old ways fall before the new in the War of Princes, there are those who still know how to call upon a storm or divine into the future. There are still those who know that the blood is not the only way to advance one's powers.

Of course, there are also the Tremere, mages who claimed the Embrace for themselves and still fashion themselves masters of the arts. As the old ways slowly fade, the Tremere will become the face of blood magic. During the dark ages, however, they are simply the most recent addition to a long tradition.

This is our take on magic as we lay out the place it has in our game and the possibilities for you, as a player, to have it be apart of your character. Magic is not for everyone - those who practice it are not a common lot. Those who are familiar with it realize it comes with a heavy price attached: magic is not like the other disciplines, it draws its power from more then just the blood of Caine. And sometimes those other forces can unleash more then the magic user was bargaining for.

There are four main realms of magic that we are going to touch on here with a brief summary of each and links to more expanded rules where necessary. For clarity sake, we are only going to use 'thaumaturgy' to refer to the hermetic magic of the Tremere. Instead, we are simply referring to magic paths as just that: magic paths. We will also take a look at Koldunic Sorcery of the Tzimiscie, Mortis of the Cappadocians, and then the Islamic Sihr.

It is our intention here not just to help with the rules behind these magics, but also the cultures and history behind them. The reason for this is simple: not all magics are alike. In fact, they are all vastly different with a different philosophy behind them. Because of this, it is very difficult for a Koldonic Sorcerer to learn Tremere Thaumaturgy and so on. This does not mean it's impossible (except where we specifically state that it is, as in Sihr magic). However, it would be a major undertaking on behalf of the magic user, and it could have very dire consequences.

The four magical philosophies listed above are not, by any means, the only magic known by Kindred. There are tales told of Gangrel who can call upon storms and of Arabic sorcerers who have so expanded upon blood sorcery that their powers vastly outstrip anything known in the West. And one can easily imagine that the Setites, who claim Egypt and its heritage rich in magic, have their own fundamental understanding of the art. However, for the purpose of our game those are just tales, legends, and stories, and supposition. It is not something that is going to be available to characters at character creation.

General rules:

• All paths use mental challenges.
• You must have up to an intermediate level in your primary path before you can take a secondary path.
• Unless otherwise stated, paths use Occult as a retest.
• All magic takes a mental action to use, and can not be used "at speed" with celerity.
• Metal traits spent on rituals can not be refreshed with a willpower. They return only after a days rest.
• Our main source book is Faith and Fire. In as much as possible, we are going to use the rules in Faith and Fire as far as rituals and paths go. We are also using the High and Low Clans book to supplement this and have adapted sihr from Viel of Night. Any other paths or rituals in any other books may be used, but only with prior ST approval.
• Rituals found in Faith and Fire are available to everyone who practices some form of magic.

Tremere Thaumaturgy:

Background: While the Tremere themselves do not have the history that the other Clans can claim, their knowledge of magic traces back to ancient times. This magic, Hermeticism, goes all the way back to the cults of Mercury and may even predate Socrates and the other Greek sages. They flourished in Alexandria in the second century B.C., and adapted much of Egyptian knowledge to their magics. Eventually this drive to search out powerful places of magic lead the Tremere to Eastern Europe and their ultimate fate.

Upon their embrace, however, the Tremere found themselves cut off from the magic of their mortal days. They have had to develop, through rather painful trial and error, a new way to practice their hermetic rites and rituals. The thaumaturgy they developed is still steeped in their Latin/Egyptian traditions of their past and it is road of knowledge that has taken more than a century of study and experimentation.

As they did as mortal mages, most Tremere reside in Chantries where they can conduct their magical experiments and passed on their knowledge to their acolytes. Not only does this structure provide a wealth of knowledge to even the youngest neonate, but it also protects them from an outside world that is often hostile to the Tremere's very existence.

System:

• Tremere do not have any limitations regarding which path they take as their primary path.
• The Tremere have, at their disposal, the path magic that they have developed. This includes the paths in Faith and Fire, as well as others approved by the ST'ers. There are plenty of paths out there, but you should ask before taking one not in F&F.

Koldunic Sorcery:

Background: The ties between the Tzimisce and their lands is one that goes back to the very beginnings of their Clan, when Tzimisce himself made packs of blood with the old gods of the earth, creating a kinship with the land and his lineage. Koldunic sorcery is, then, an ancient form of magic that reflects this strong tie. It draws its power from the living earth and the most basic elements that are an integral part of nature.

Setting themselves up as dark gods in the East, the Tzimisce have long been renowned (or feared) as master sorcerers. However, there is little set organization to those who practice koldunic sorcery, and few of the paths or rituals are actually written down. They are taught from one koldun to another, passed down through generations.

As the Tzimisce are not known to be gentle rulers of their voivods, koldunic sorcery is not gentle or kind to the earth. The kolduns warp the land and nature to serve their own ends and inspire terror in the Kine around them. Furthermore, the sorcery of the kolduns is far from subtle in its effects: they call upon powerful storms, churn the earth, and create rivers of fire.

System:

• Tzimisce start with koldunic sorcery in our game, since we don't use vicissitude.
• Koldunic sorcery encompass the following paths which are unique to the kolduns: the Ways of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. LARP rules for these paths can be found at: Ways of Koldunic Sorcery.
• Koldunic sorcerers can start with any of the Koldunic paths as their initial path.
• Koldunic sorcery also includes Rego Tempestas (Weather Control), Creo Ignem (Lure of Flames) and Rego Motus (Movement of Mind). These are not, however, interchangeable with the thaumaturgy paths of the same name.

Mortis

Background: There are many different explanations offered for the many mysteries that surround Cappadocius: where he came from, what place he was to have among the third generation, or even what his true name was. What is certain, however, is this: Cappadocius has been driven to understand the nature of death, and the study of this has been passed down to his progeny in the form of Mortis.

Those who dismiss the Cappadocians as mere grave robbers who are obsessed with the dead are not entirely correct. Cappadocians understand that time effects all things and that death is the only real certainty. Therefore, if one is to understand death, then one is to understand all things. Mortis allows them to channel the forces of decay, research the relationship between the dead and undead, and even bring the dead back to life.

This drive for knowledge is almost universal among the Cappadocians, and so rituals and paths are shared freely among the Clan. Even the Nigrimancy of the Giovanni has begun to spread, although this is the result more of the willingness of the Giovanni to barter secret for secret then any great desire to share knowledge with others.

System:

• Cappadocians have at their disposal the three paths of Mortis: the Graves Decay, The Corpse in the Monster, and Cadaverous Animation. The paths of the Giovanni, Nigrimancy and the Path of Haunting, are also generally available, although with some limitations, among non-Giovanni Cappadocians.
• Non-Giovanni Cappadocians must choose their primary path from one of the three Mortis paths. Giovanni Cappadocians start with Nigrimancy as their primary path.
• Graves Decay and Corpse of the Monster retest with medicine, not occult.

Sihr (Islamic Blood Magic)

Background: Islam openly recognizes the existence of magic but warns its adherents against seeking the aid of sorcerers. To do so is to demonstrate a lack of faith in Allah, who is only absolute power in the universe. Similarly, those who practice magic, particularly in divining the future, are seeking to usurp some of His power and thus commit blasphemy, barring them from entry to Heaven.

This isn't to say that Islam regards all magic as inherently evil. Enchantments, charms, and illusions of benign nature are called sihr and are seen as harmless (although still indicating kufr, or unbelief). Magic used to exploit people or to cause harm is referred to as sorcery and shunned by the faithful.

There are some Islamic kindred, or Ashirra, however, who practice a form of magic they believe to be in line with Allah's will. They argue that unlike mortal sorcerers, what they practice is an innate ability linked to their bodies rather then a learned ability in contravention of Allah's will. To the faithful, Islamic blood magic thus avoids the proscriptions on magic use (unlike Tremere Thaumaturgy, which is a fusion of the hermetic arts and blood magic and thus kufr). Many nonbelievers argue that this is semantics and that there is little to distinguish between the various practices of blood magic. Nonetheless, it is a vital distinction to Muslim practitioners.

System:

• Gifts of Faith (Hedayat Iman) and Gifts of the Heart (Hedayat el-Qalb) are the principal sihr paths.
• Ashirra also practice versions of Creo Ignem (Gifts of Flame, or Hedayat el-Nar) and Rego Tempestas (Gifts of the Wind or Hedayat el-Hawa).
• Ashirra can take either of these four paths as their primary path.
• The faith requirements of the sihr oblige all practitioners to have a theology rating equal or greater than that of the power or ritual they seek to use.
• Sihr retests with theology, not occult.
• Though superficially similar, sihr and other magic paths are not compatible, and this is particularly true of the hermetic magic of the Tremere or the Koldunic sorcery of the Tzimisce. The sihr practitioner can not learn other paths, nor can other magic users learn sihr paths.