Sage

[Amanojyaku]

Contrary to what most berks seem to think, "simple" does not always mean "easy." The simplest path to power available to mortals lies within, though not all can reach it. Far from the killing fangs of the Vampires, the recycled souls spawned from Syrneth breeding projects, or even the will to power that begets a Paragon, the path of the Sage requires only an empty heart and a spark of enlightenment. The enlightenment of the Sage is the realization that power and destiny aren't goals to be reached, but stops and distractions on an infinitely longer road. Needless to say, most cutters just can't let go of what they have to make this realization.

The way of the Sage can be likened more to swimming with the current, rather than against it. By diminishing their ego, the Sage gains greater harmony with the rest of the Wheel. Sages rarely seek to kill, waging violence only to keep aggressors from harming others. They use their spiritual talents to distantly aid the small communities they attach to, and to exterminate the unholy creatures that would threaten their sense of harmony.

Sages are rare, but not because the Exaltation fails to promise the immortality offered by a mechanical body or the possession of a Daemon. Rather, Sages are rare because their awakening has two qualifiers. To become a Sage requires both an empty heart and a soul willing to understand the universe. As many have only one trait or the other, few would-be Sages ever attain the enlightenment needed to take the first step of their path.

Tell: As they spend Mana, Sages will feel as if they become one with the land. The people around them will also feel a growing sense of familiarity with nature, as if they had always been one with the turning of the Wheel.

Powers

Spirit Trance: You can spend 1 Mana to enter a special trance as a Full Action. While in this trance, you stand within both the Materium and the Umbra simultaneously, allowing you to see, hear, and physically interact with anything in either plane, though you can ignore traps and obstacles in one that don't exist in the other. This trance lasts for a number of rounds equal to your Enlightenment + your Composure, after which you return to the plane you started from as a Free Action.

Dispassionate Oracle: Your enlightenment comes at the cost of detachment from the day to day affairs of mortals. You cannot spend XP to improve your Backgrounds, and take a static penalty to Social tests - except for Animal Ken - against non-exalts equal to twice your Enlightenment.

Enlightened Mystic: You begin play with one free rank in any Magical School. The character may purchase ranks in that Magical School as if they appeared in any class progression he possesses. Whenever a Sage rolls for Psychic Phenomena, they do so at -(3*Enlightenment).

Seated Upon the Boundary: Begin play with Speak Language (Spirits). As long as you have meditated for at least an hour during the past day, you can also see into the Umbra as if it were overlaid over the Materium (allowing you to see magical auras or get a general "feel" of an area).

Power Stat: Enlightenment: For one who has attained Enlightenment, the only path to greater power is to walk the one already begun. The Sage's heart and soul are unburdened by worldly concerns, and only become more so as he increases his attunement to the Wheel.

Resource Stat: Mana: The mystical energy drawn from the Sage's harmony with the Wheel is called Mana. A Sage can have Mana equal to 4 * Enlightenment, and recovers 1 Mana for every 12 minutes spent in quiet meditation.

*Centered Soul: As long as you have meditated for at least one hour during the past day, you gain a static bonus equal to your Enlightenment on tests made to resist Fear or other Mind-Affecting abilities, and add twice your Enlightenment as a bonus to your Mental Defense.

**Thunderous Rebuke: Gain the feat Purge the Unclean. You can spend 2 Mana instead of a Hero Point to use it. Creatures affected by this power are Deafened for the duration of its effect.

***Awakened Senses: You cannot be Deafened, instead taking a -2k0 penalty to tests involving speaking or hearing whenever conditions would render you unable to hear. In addition, you no longer require food or water, as long as you meditate for at least an hour each day.

****Intensify Spell: When casting a spell, the Sage may spend any amount of Mana to add twice that number as a static bonus to the Focus Power test, any attack rolls for the spell, or any damage rolls for the spell.

*****Transcendent One: While in a Spirit Trance, add your Enlightenment as a bonus to your Static Defense, Mental Defense, Armor, and Aura. You can spend 1 Mana to add rolled dice equal to your Enlightenment to any single roll during a turn.

Sage Mantle Assets

Mantle of White Light
White mana represents order and protection, the triumph of civilization over chaos. The Sage with this mantle gives off a corona of light that grows brighter as he spends Mana.

• Material: As a Reaction, you can spend Mana to decrease the damage dealt to a character within 5m by the same amount.
• Spiritual: You take no penalty from Dispassionate Oracle on Command or Persuasion tests, and gain a static bonus equal to your Enlightenment on social attacks made to compel behavior.

Mantle of Blue Skies
Knowledge, curiosity, and an affinity for magic are associated with shades of blue, air and water long held to be the base elements closest to divinity. A gentle wind blows about the Sage with this mantle, growing ever more intense as he spends Mana.

• Material: As a Reaction, you can spend Mana to increase or decrease the TN of a spell or Spell Combo cast by someone else by the same amount.
• Spiritual: Add your Enlightenment as a static bonus on Common Lore, Academic Lore, and Forbidden Lore tests.

Mantle of Black Shadow
Black mana is associated with death and decay, the darkness that exalts the self and chokes the soul. Plants wither in the presence of this mantle, and light sources seem to dim as Mana is spent.

• Material: Once per Scene, you can spend Mana to have the target of your unarmed attack lose the same number of Hit Points instead of taking damage.
• Spiritual: You take no penalty from Dispassionate Oracle on Deceive tests, may use twice your Enlightenment in place of your Devotion, and are immune to Degeneration as a result of failed Alignment checks.

Mantle of Red Flames
Red is the color of emotion and freedom, stone and fire that exults in chaos and chafes under the rule of law. The Sage bearing this mantle is wreathed in motes of harmless flames as he spends Mana.

• Material: You can spend Mana to increase the Speed of a character within 5m by the same amount until your next turn.
• Spiritual: While in a Spirit Trance, your melee attacks deal E damage, and you gain a static bonus to damage rolls equal to your Enlightenment.

Mantle of Green Vistas
Green is the color of life and growth, the ascendancy of nature and acceptance of one's place within the Wheel. Flowers bloom at the Sage's feet, becoming more lush and vibrant as Mana is spent.

• Material: Whenever you spend Mana to restore Hit Points (your own or, with a Healing spell, someone else's), double the Hit Points regained.
• Spiritual: While in a Spirit Trance, you can add your Enlightenment to your Size. If this would double your Size (or add at least 3 to it), you also increase your Physical Characteristics by 1 until the trance ends.

Mantle of Golden Duality
All things are one, and the Sage who accepts that is one who can join philosophies as disparate as light and darkness. Choose two Sage assets. Gain the Material benefit of one, and the Spiritual benefit of the other.