Magic ideas, Geased Aspects and Projection metamagic? Options

[Eyeless Blond]

I've got a couple of odd ideas that I'd like some opinions on. Maybe they'd even be things you guys might like to steal for your own games.

The first idea I came up with when I saw the Shamanist Geas in MitS. Since this is exactly the same thing as the Shamanist aspect for aspected mages, I was wondering if it could be possible to take *any* Geas and make it into a hard limit of sorts for an Aspected mage. Of course such a Geas could never be broken in the way a normal Geas can, and I might even go so far as to say forcing aspected mages to take two geasea would be more balanced, but what do you think of the idea?

The second idea I had was to let aspected mages learn to astrally project as a metamagic technique when they initiate. Access to the metaplanes would probably have to be its own seperate technique. Would that be a good idea or a bad idea?

[Connor]

I think allowing the aspected mages to learn how to project and what not as initiates makes some sense. I don't think it'd be unbalancing in any way at that point either.

I may have to offer my players that option before chargen in an upcoming game.

[Moonstone Spider]

I like the idea of a projection skill but rather than a metamagic technique why not make it a normal magic skill like enchanting or sorcery?

This would make it possible for aspecteds to go astral and also make it more skill-oriented, extra successes could let a player stay astral longer.

[Eyeless Blond]

My real motivation with the projection thing was so that aspected mages could gain access to the metaplanes without having to make bargains with free spirits. Do you think such a thing is worth a second metamagic technique or should it simply be a part of the knowing how to project thing?

As for making projection a skill, that's an interesting idea. It would mean that it's no longer a difference between aspected mages and full mages, though, so it'd make aspected mages more powerful than they already are, so that would have to be a consideration.

[Connor]

I think a single metamagic technique for projection/metaplane access is fair. I doubt it would impact things negatively, and can't really see how it would. It would just make being an aspected mage a bit more sane at higher levels.

I never thought there was much of a reason to keep aspected mages from the metaplanes and the astral the way it's done in canon. Giving them access as initiates makes plenty of sense to me. And it might actually let me see someone play an aspected mage for once...heh.

[Eyeless Blond]

So how about my other idea? Do you think it would be interesting to make certain other types of geasea into aspects for magical adepts? I mean sure, some geasea would be rather munchkin-y as aspects, like a Gesture-aspected mage, but others might be interesting.

[Moon-Hawk]

Slight suggested modification:
I like the idea of gaining projection as a metamagic technique. But getting astral projection at the same time as metaplane access seems a bit off. Perhaps something like this:
Initiate - choose astral projection as metamagic technique
Initiate again - gain access to metaplanes for free, plus one metamagic technique
This gives them projection as a metamagic, but gives them access to the metaplanes in a way more similar to full mages; they're already familiar with astral space, so when they initiate they gain metaplane access. With this revision, they have to spend a metamagic to become familiar with projection at all, then their next initiation they get full metaplane access.
This is really just a weak justification for slowing them down a little bit. Since they don't start with projection, they're a step behind full mages. If they initiate once, then using the first system both the aspected and the full mage now have full access to astral space AND the metaplanes. Using my suggested system, the aspected magician stays one step behind the full mage.

On to your other idea: I think it's really cool, if I understand it right. Take for example, the geas that you can only use magic at night. If you try to use magic during the day, you break the geas and take a penalty. With this system, you take the geas in an unbreakable way, but are considered aspected. So you save on the point/priority cost, but now you can ONLY use your magic at night, and not at all during the day. Have I got it right? Same deal with a gesturing geas, or a location geas? Very interesting idea.

[Eyeless Blond]

Right, that's exactly what I was thinking. I think it would be a great way to help define a mage as well; one mage casts spells by reciting some sort of mantra (Incantation Aspect), another is a druid-like mage, only able to cast spells when surrounded by nature (Location Aspect), another can only cast spells while carrying a wizard's staff of sorts (Talisman Aspect), etc etc.

I also like your idea about limiting metaplane access until the initiation after you gain projection. The big thing that annoyed me was that a tenth level adept couldn't access the metaplanes no matter how hard he tried without making a deal with a spirit, but a first level full mage could.

[RedmondLarry]

I like a hard-and-fast line between what a Priority "A" (Full) magician can do, compared to a Priority "B" (Aspected) Magician. You guys appear to be trying to blur that line. Why?

If someone wants to Astrally Project ever, why not just tell him he has to take an "A" in magic at the time he creates his character? And that a Physad-Magician (Pathy of the Magician), although he is Priority "A" in magic, will never get to Astrally Project.

I like it that Full Magicians turn down their noses at Aspected Magicians, calling them "groggies" or "half-awakened".

[Eyeless Blond]

Hmm. I guess I'm not. I perfer to think of "groggies" or "half-Awkened" as people who, for whatever reason, have a sort of psychological block over their abilities, or simply haven't developed enough to become fully Awakened. I personally don't see any problem with an aspected mage eventually, through hard work and much Karma-spending, overcoming their limitations and eventually becoming fully Awakened (possibly using the IC mechanism of initiation.) Nor do I se a problem with a mundane spending Karma, perhaps SURGE-ing into Astral Sight, and eventually (again, possibly through the IC mechanism of initiation) becoming a severely aspected mage, and eventually a fully-Awakened mage. I happen to really love the idea that noone is fated into anything that they cannot overcome, and if I can't always have that IRL then I'll damn well have it in my games. :)

[Arethusa]

As much as I like the concept, I don't think canon takes that stance at all, and instead prefers a more dehumanizing dynamic of locking some people into being mundane and others being awakened. This is not only gritty; to some degree, it's arguably just more believable. Some people are smarter, some people are more in tune with magic. It's a bit like Star Wars with some people just being more in tune with the force.

[shadd4d]

I'm also not sure that the differences are in terms of degree, but in basic abilities. I'd also go with letting the aspected magician learn a technique just for the metaplanes, but they're not doing the out of body thing any time soon. Probably never. It's a limitation of their gift that they're born with (or chose during char gen). For instance, I'm not changing my blood type anytime soon. I'm born, live, and die blood type A. I'm not going to become type O anytime soon, in fact never. Same goes for aspected magicians.

Initiation could, however, open up the metaplanes, but it's not changing A (aspected) into O (full magician).

Don