Magical Tradition

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Your character has studied a particular Sleeper occult tradition, its body of beliefs and spellcraft, and can glean special magical benefit from working within that tradition. Knowledge of a tradition itself is represented by the Academics or Occult Skill Specialty, while this Merit represents a special kind of knowledge available only to the Awakened that allows a mage to learn the rote spells of that tradition. Whereas Sleepers cannot evoke magical results from these rotes (although they might erroneously believe the spells do work in some unseen fashion), mages with this Merit can divine the Supernal echoes reverberating in the tradition’s myths and symbols, and so gain special magical benefit from them.

When casting a magical tradition rote, the mage gains the following benefits:

• Sleeper Acceptance: When the Storyteller is checking for a Paradox for a vulgar spellcasting, he does not add the +2 dice bonus for Sleeper witnesses.
• Conditional Duration: Tradition rotes benefit from the Fate 2 “Conditional Duration” modifier ^[1]. Even if the casting mage does not know Fate 2, he can incorporate a conditional duration into the tradition rote casting.
• Spell Tolerance Mitigation: Tradition rotes seem more tightly woven into the fabric of the Fallen World; they don’t cause as much mystical interference as other spells or rotes. The first tradition rote cast upon someone does not count toward that person’s Spell Tolerance. Any successive tradition rotes cast upon him will count normally — until the first spell expires, and then the next active tradition rote in line inherits its Spell Tolerance mitigation effect, and so. So, the first one’s free, the rest levy a cost as normal.

Naturally, however, these benefits do not come with- out a price. The drawbacks of culture-bound magic are as follows:

• Foci: The mage must use a culturally appropriate focus to cast the tradition rote. Suggestions are provided in the descriptions of the magical traditions in chapters one through four.
• Environment: Some rotes require that the spell be cast at a particular time (midnight) and/or in a particular type of place (cemetery).
• Tradition rotes cannot be cast as a combined casting with non-tradition rotes.
• All those participating in a group casting ritual must know the relevant Magical Tradition Merit (in addition to the usual Arcana requirements), although only the group leader must know the rote.

Each time this Merit is purchased, it applies to a different magical tradition. This Merit may be purchased only once per dot of Gnosis.

Sample Traditions

• Appalachian Hoodoo, a magical style based around conjure-men and root work from rural Appalachia in the United States.
• Entheogen Cults, the "shamanic" styles involving the use of hallucinogens to explore and interact with the world of spirits.
• Kabbalah, a style of Jewish mysticism.
• Taoist Sorcery, the eclectic magical styles of Chinese taoism.
• The Templar Treasure, the Christian Mysteries as handed down by the Knights Templar.
• Theosophy and Its Inheritors, from the Spiritualist teachings of Madame Blavatsky and the Theosophical Society of the Victorian era.
• Santeria -- La Regla de Ocha, a primal fusion of old West African mysticism with Catholicism.

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  Retrieved from "http://nwod.org/wiki/index.php/Magical_Tradition"
  Categories: RAW | Merits | Information
  Facts about Magical TraditionRDF feed

  Character Type	Mage  +
  Merit Dots	2  +
  Merit Type	Power  +
  Page has default formThis property is a special property in this wiki.	Merit Editor  +
  Parent	Magical Traditions Sourcebook  +
  Permission	Allowed  +
  Prerequisite	Occult Skill  +, and Academics Skill  +
  Source	Magical Traditions Sourcebook  +