History Characters / MageTheAscension

* SiblingYinYang: with the Taftani, the other mystic tradition from the Middle East. While the Batini try to hide their existence and try to make their magic as indectable as possible, the Taftani are proudly vulgar in their magic use and want everyone to know it.

--> Specialty Sphere: Entropy

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Miracle workers and priests who transcend any single religious faith %%- as a group, anyway. They believe that all faiths are merely fragments of "The One", and that all humans can achieve transcendence through prayer and faith.

* AncientConspiracy: In their heyday, they were this.

[[folder:Orphans]]
Orphans are a catch-all term for an independent mage who does not follow a formal Tradition, and has instead created his own unique paradigm. They have no particular strengths in any sphere of magick, but make up for it in flexibility. Efforts to unify them as a single group are repeated but short-lived.

* BlueCollarWarlock: Given the sometimes-traumatizing effect of the Awakening, several of them have fallen through the cracks in society and ended up poor, drug-addicted, homeless or some combination of the three. Even without states like these, Orphans are often characterized as mages of the street.
* FantasticSlurs: Orphan is a catch-all term, but it's also a condescending, infantilizing label for anyone who exists without the protection of a Tradition or a Convention. For this reason, some well-informed Orphans look upon it as offensive and refuse to use it to describe themselves.
* FantasticUnderclass: Many mages and technocrats treat Orphans condescendingly, either dismissing their work as invalid or trying to recruit the more "promising" ones into the Traditions or the Technocracy, sometimes minus their consent. However, because many exist without the support of a faction, Orphans are often killed by Technocracy hitsquads or preyed upon by Nephandi. The fact that several Orphans are impoverished or even homeless doesn't help.
* UrbanFantasy: The best representation of classical urban mages.

[[folder:Tai Hoi Li]]
A very small, very young craft based out of the Cú Chi tunnel system under Vietnam.

* DarkIsNotEvil: They live in isolated underground communities, and decades of living there has left them pale and sallow looking. They are completely non-aggressive, however, and are outright friendly as long as you don't attempt to invade their caves.
* OutOfFocus: To the extreme. They are given a short writeup in one Revised edition book and then never mentioned again, likely due in-universe to their extreme secrecy.
* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma: In their single canon writeup, no insight is given into their Paradigm, leaving questions of their cultural ancestry, motives, and even whether they are mystics, technomancers, both or neither up in the air.

[[folder:Uzoma]]
An organization compromised primarily (but not entirely) of sorcerers. Based out of West Africa, the Uzoma are a ''truly'' ancient coalition of mystics who revere the [[Myth/YorubaMythology Orishas]]. They maintain a distant but relatively friendly connection with the Bata'a, their cultural descendants, but have otherwise been politically quiet until fairly recently.

* DivergentCharacterEvolution: On a culture-wide level. The Bata'a began as Awakened slaves synthesizing half-remembered Uzoma lore mixed with the requisite amount of Catholicism for the time. Cut to four centuries, several generations of cultural exchange with indigenous American mages, and several national revolutions later, and the two are clearly still ''related'', but distinct organizations nonetheless.

! Defunct Organizations

[[folder:Craftmasons]]
The original architects of the Order of Reason, the Craftmasons were radical humanist mages who used mass education and civil engineering to elevate the Masses towards a rational utopia. Though they were the catalyst for the Order's inception, their idealism grated on the more pragmatic Conventions (particularly the High Guild, the proto-Syndicate) which led to their extermination.

* AmbiguousSituation: It's implied that some of their members and ideology survived their purge. Whether they continued as an independent Craft, were assimilated into the Sons of Ether, or quietly formed the Utopian faction of the modern Technocracy is unclear.
* GeometricMagic: Their specialty was Sacred Geometry.
* TheHeart: The Craftmasons were the moral center of the old Order of Reason, keeping them focused on social progress and the public good. After they were purged, [[JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope well...]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Their vision for the Order of Reason was, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the oppressive, hierarchical Technocracy it became.

[[folder:Solificati]]
* AlchemyIsMagic: The major practitioners focus their powers into the practice called "Alchemy," allowing them to create reality-warping effects with it.
* FoodPills: One of their inventions. They use Life Magick/Alchemy to concentrate the nutrition into a much smaller volume.
* ForgivenButNotForgotten: The Solificati are eventually allowed back into the Traditions post-Avatar Storm, albeit in reduced capacity as House Solificati in the Order of Hermes (allowing the Etherites to retain the Seat of Matter). Everyone watches them very carefully.
* HealingPotion: With knowledge of Life and their focus on creating potions, they can create elixirs that heal people very rapidly.
* LovePotion: With knowledge of Mind and/or Life, they can create substances that induce emotions associated with love or desire. Their focus on Alchemy means this is frequently
* TheMissingFaction: They held the Seat of Matter on the Council at its founding, until one of their exemplars betrayed their cabal to the Order of Reason, triggering an internal rift over whether the betrayal had been justified, and the Solificati collapsed, surviving as the Children of Knowledge craft.
* PhilosophersStone: They complete their apprenticeship by transmuting lead into gold. It's a metaphor for the Mage themself being the stone, with unlimited potential.
* PhlebotinumPills: They frequently place magickal effects, including enhancements, into something they can quickly eat.

[[folder: Valdaermen]]
Norse rune mages whose knowledge comes directly from Odin Allfather himself. They were a proud and independent lot during the Dark Ages, but the ascendancy of other powers in the region forced them to throw in their lot with the Verbena during the Convocation Era.

* GeometricMagic: The ''Futhark'' weren't their only practice, but certainly one of the most distinctive.
* HornyVikings: {{Subverted}}. The Valdaermen were generally masculine and hardy, but were also introspective and quite erudite and cultured, albeit not in a way that would be recognizable to the more urban mages of the era.

* GenieInABottle:

* GodzillaThreshold: Like any right-thinking person, they're scared shitless of the [[TabletopGame/WerewolfTheApocalypse Rokea]]. However, they do possess techniques for getting their attention, if they're confident they have something wereshark will want to kill more than the meddling ''kahuna'' that summoned them.

! Defunct Organizations

[[folder:Craftmasons]]
The original architects of the Order of Reason, the Craftmasons were radical humanist mages who used mass education and civil engineering to elevate the Masses towards a rational utopia. Though they were the catalyst for the Order's inception, their idealism grated on the more pragmatic Conventions (particularly the High Guild, the proto-Syndicate) which led to their extermination.

* AmbiguousSituation: It's implied that some of their members and ideology survived their purge. Whether they continued as an independent Craft, were assimilated into the Sons of Ether, or quietly formed the Utopian faction of the modern Technocracy is unclear.
* GeometricMagic: Their specialty was Sacred Geometry.
* TheHeart: The Craftmasons were the moral center of the old Order of Reason, keeping them focused on social progress and the public good. After they were purged, [[JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope well...]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Their vision for the Order of Reason was, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the oppressive, hierarchical Technocracy it became.

* PopCulturedBadass: The younger generations of Pan-Dimensional Corp drop Franchise/StarTrek references like it's their job, and enough members of the Earth Frontiers Division watch WesternAnimation/Futurama that they've come to refer to their custodial and maintenance department as "Scruffies".

! Defunct Organizations

[[folder:Craftmasons]]
The original architects of the Order of Reason, the Craftmasons were radical humanist mages who used mass education and civil engineering to elevate the Masses towards a rational utopia. Though they were the catalyst for the Order's inception, their idealism grated on the more pragmatic Conventions (particularly the High Guild, the proto-Syndicate) which led to their extermination.

* AmbiguousSituation: It's implied that some of their members and ideology survived their purge. Whether they continued as an independent Craft, were assimilated into the Sons of Ether, or quietly formed the Utopian faction of the modern Technocracy is unclear.
* GeometricMagic: Their specialty was Sacred Geometry.
* TheHeart: The Craftmasons were the moral center of the old Order of Reason, keeping them focused on social progress and the public good. After they were purged, [[JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope well...]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Their vision for the Order of Reason was, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the oppressive, hierarchical Technocracy it became.

[[folder:Lions of Zion]]
A group of proud Jewish magi who study the {{UsefulNotes/Kabbalah}} and protect the downtrodden.

* BadassIsraeli: Based out of Israel and as badass as any other mage.
* OutOfFocus: They were described in the Sorcerer's Crusade Companion and the revised Storytellers Handbook, but did not return with the Disparate Alliance in M20.

[[folder:Orphans]]
Orphans are a catch-all term for an independent mage who does not follow a formal Tradition, and has instead created his own unique paradigm. They have no particular strengths in any sphere of magick, but make up for it in flexibility. Efforts to unify them as a single group are repeated but short-lived.

* BlueCollarWarlock: Given the sometimes-traumatizing effect of the Awakening, several of them have fallen through the cracks in society and ended up poor, drug-addicted, homeless or some combination of the three. Even without states like these, Orphans are often characterized as mages of the street.
* FantasticSlurs: Orphan is a catch-all term, but it's also a condescending, infantilizing label for anyone who exists without the protection of a Tradition or a Convention. For this reason, some well-informed Orphans look upon it as offensive and refuse to use it to describe themselves.
* FantasticUnderclass: Many mages and technocrats treat Orphans condescendingly, either dismissing their work as invalid or trying to recruit the more "promising" ones into the Traditions or the Technocracy, sometimes minus their consent. However, because many exist without the support of a faction, Orphans are often killed by Technocracy hitsquads or preyed upon by Nephandi. The fact that several Orphans are impoverished or even homeless doesn't help.
* UrbanFantasy: The best representation of classical urban mages.

! Defunct Organizations

[[folder:Craftmasons]]
The original architects of the Order of Reason, the Craftmasons were radical humanist mages who used mass education and civil engineering to elevate the Masses towards a rational utopia. Though they were the catalyst for the Order's inception, their idealism grated on the more pragmatic Conventions (particularly the High Guild, the proto-Syndicate) which led to their extermination.

* AmbiguousSituation: It's implied that some of their members and ideology survived their purge. Whether they continued as an independent Craft, were assimilated into the Sons of Ether, or quietly formed the Utopian faction of the modern Technocracy is unclear.
* GeometricMagic: Their specialty was Sacred Geometry.
* TheHeart: The Craftmasons were the moral center of the old Order of Reason, keeping them focused on social progress and the public good. After they were purged, [[JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope well...]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Their vision for the Order of Reason was, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the oppressive, hierarchical Technocracy it became.

* NakedNutter: According to the ''The Sorcerer's Crusade: Infernalism,'' potential mages who have Awakened under the guidance of the Nephandi often undergo a period in which they give vent to all the desires they previously denied. In rural areas, Fallen mages may end up stripping naked, eating raw meat and living among animals, degenerating into bestial madness until they either die or move onto better things.

* TokenEvilTeammate: Surprisingly, the Order of Hermes are probably the closest to an 'evil' Tradition though the do still have plenty of genuine heroes as well. They have an egotistical Mage-supremist streak to the point that they actively want Mages to rule over Sleepers (though with the [[EveryoneHasStandards caveat that they still want Sleepers to be protected and treated well]]) along with a DecadentCourt which some vampires would be disturbed by. They aren't as bad as they were during the Dark Ages, but they haven't moved as far past the flaws which caused the Order of Reason to try to destroy them as one may think.

[[folder: Go Kamisori Gama]]

[[folder: Lions of Zion]]
A group of proud Jewish magi who study the {{UsefulNotes/Kabbalah}} and protect the downtrodden.

* BadassIsraeli: Based out of Israel and as badass as any other mage.
* OutOfFocus: They were described in the Sorcerer's Crusade Companion and the revised Storytellers Handbook, but did not return with the Disparate Alliance in M20.

[[folder:Orphans]]
Orphans are a catch-all term for an independent mage who does not follow a formal Tradition, and has instead created his own unique paradigm. They have no particular strengths in any sphere of magick, but make up for it in flexibility. Efforts to unify them as a single group are repeated but short-lived.

* BlueCollarWarlock: Given the sometimes-traumatizing effect of the Awakening, several of them have fallen through the cracks in society and ended up poor, drug-addicted, homeless or some combination of the three. Even without states like these, Orphans are often characterized as mages of the street.
* FantasticSlurs: Orphan is a catch-all term, but it's also a condescending, infantilizing label for anyone who exists without the protection of a Tradition or a Convention. For this reason, some well-informed Orphans look upon it as offensive and refuse to use it to describe themselves.
* FantasticUnderclass: Many mages and technocrats treat Orphans condescendingly, either dismissing their work as invalid or trying to recruit the more "promising" ones into the Traditions or the Technocracy, sometimes minus their consent. However, because many exist without the support of a faction, Orphans are often killed by Technocracy hitsquads or preyed upon by Nephandi. The fact that several Orphans are impoverished or even homeless doesn't help.
* UrbanFantasy: The best representation of classical urban mages.

! Defunct Organizations

[[folder:Craftmasons]]
The original architects of the Order of Reason, the Craftmasons were radical humanist mages who used mass education and civil engineering to elevate the Masses towards a rational utopia. Though they were the catalyst for the Order's inception, their idealism grated on the more pragmatic Conventions (particularly the High Guild, the proto-Syndicate) which led to their extermination.

* AmbiguousSituation: It's implied that some of their members and ideology survived their purge. Whether they continued as an independent Craft, were assimilated into the Sons of Ether, or quietly formed the Utopian faction of the modern Technocracy is unclear.
* GeometricMagic: Their specialty was Sacred Geometry.
* TheHeart: The Craftmasons were the moral center of the old Order of Reason, keeping them focused on social progress and the public good. After they were purged, [[JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope well...]]
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Their vision for the Order of Reason was, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the oppressive, hierarchical Technocracy it became.

* DrugsAreBad: It's implied that this trope was created to discredit them. It's mostly played straight though as drugs help them tap into magic precisely ''because'' their so dangerous.

* TheMan: The Technocratic Union is the establishment and their paradigm is currently the defining one... but they're not completely in control. Ultimately, it's humanity that decides where to go.

* MightMakesRight: For all the division in their ranks, a shared ethos is that you're either a predator or you're prey. Their name even means 'the Eaters of the Weak', and while some Nephandi throw their lot in with even more powerful predators like demons or [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch Abominations]], their is always a shared idea that you must eat others or be eaten yourself.

* BlackSpeech:

* CardCarryingVillain: Nephandi are not misguided, uninformed, or misunderstood. Becoming a Nephandus requires a deliberate choice to invert one's Avatar and serve their monstrous overlords by causing death and destruction.

* NotSoDifferent: While they have improved tremendously, in the old days they acted literally exactly like the Technocracy, forcing other societies to accept Western religion and culture against their will.

* NotSoDifferent: As some of the other Traditions are inclined to point out, the Hermetics' focus on hierarchy and formulae in their magic is often distressingly similar to that of the Technocrats.

** NotSoDifferent: Much as they'd like to pretend it didn't happen, the Verbena had a shockingly large number of [[{{Ghostapo}} Nazi defectors]] during World War II, something they share with their nemeses.

* NotSoDifferent: Just like their bitter Technocratic rivals, the Progenitors, they collaborated the most heavily of their faction as a whole with the Third Reich before the Nephandus bomb dropped... and just like them, they haven't ''really'' dealt with the innermost flaws that led to that decision as thoroughly as they think they have. Just as the Progenitors champion a philosophy that endorses genocide as a solution to all the world's problems, too many Verbena for it to be called a fringe movement within the Tradition still embrace [[SocialDarwinist a brutish and naturalistic code of ethics, often combined with outright eugenics, that calls for "culling" the human race to elevate the strong in a world where the weak do not deserve to live]].

* NotSoDifferent: ''Some'' sources indicate many Adepts have paradigms that effectively is part of the overall Technocratic paradigm -- the Adepts' fierce disagreement with the Technocracy is mostly political. It's a ''very'' fierce disagreement, but so far as many Technocratic constructs are concerned what the average VA get up to is hyper-science while Etherites tend to get hindered the same as outright mystics.

* NotSoDifferent: One of the reasons why the Order of Reason hated Mages so much is because they tried to rule over Sleepers. In modern times the Technocracy is now a group of [[HunterOfHisOwnKind Mages]] who rule over Sleepers, even if they, themselves, would bristle at the accusation (and indeed, their 'style' of ruling at least provides the illusion of freedom for Sleepers, rather than the outright {{Sorcerous Overlord}}s of the Dark Ages).

* ArchEnemy: Out of all the Traditions, the Syndicate seems to hate the Euthanatos the most. This probably has something to do with their combination of fanatical (read: hard to subvert) beliefs, their habit of destroying things the Syndicate put a lot of cash into building and, worst of all, the fact that they are [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking completely unmarketable.]]
** NotSoDifferent: On the other hand, the two share more similarities than either wants to admit: both specialize in the Entropy Sphere, both have Paradigms that their allies sometimes have trouble following and both are considered to be the TokenEvilTeammate of their respective faction by many. Also, each is the most likely to have money (as commerce is in part ruled by Entropy).

* {{Archenemy}}: They ''despise'' the Technocracy for rampaging through their islands while trying to force the locals to adopt Western culture. They also hate the Celestial Chorus for doing [[NotSoDifferent literally the exact same thing]].