The World of Darkness

The World of Darkness is a secret world living alongside our own. One you have touched a thousand times but only briefly. One filled with vampires and werewolves, fey and monsters. They lived alongside us. Sometimes protecting us, sometimes preying upon us, often both. The world of darkness has many things to offer, knowledge, power, adventure, etc. but it is equal in dangers.

(I will post here for Lore updates as things are discovered however for the sake of character creation I'm going to post about mages and their "Paths." So people can get an idea of how to start. The setting is New York City, New York)

Mages are perhaps the most human of the secret world's denizens. Truely, this is because of the many changes they undergo they are at their core still human. Merely containing an awakened soul. A mage is formed when a mortal, usually possessing some temperament or persuasion find an Arcanum Pathway or Gate, in the blink of an eye they are wisked away to the towers of Arcanum given an opportunity to make their mark, and return to the world with open eyes. Possessing unimaginable power, they now see the strings that tie the supernatural and natural together and are left to discover what happens when those strings are plucked.


Acanthus is a magical path whose ruling Arcana are Fate and Time. Mages on this Path are also known as the Witches and the Enchanters on the Path of Thistle, Scions of the Watchtower of the Lunargent Thorn in the Realm of Arcadia, Kingdom of Enchantment and Abode of the Fae and the realm of illusion, enchantment and constant change. Their approach to the Supernal is one of Choice and Consequence.

They are characterised by their Awakened companions as flighty, reckless and irresponsible. Using the arcana of Time and Fate allows the Acanthus to sidestep the setbacks and perils that many other Awakened and all Sleepers must endure or overcome. While this can be to the mage's benefit, it can also be detrimental to his/her development. They fail to remember that we learn more through our failures then our triumphs. They seem to rely overmuch on themselves - their uncanny timing and luck. Since theirs is the Arcana of foresight and fortune, this open-minded attitude serves them better than it does most; however they are at times impatient, lack the ability to plan properly, and because of that they often lead into strife by their refusal to plan ahead.

Mortals tend to awaken to the Acanthus Path at moments of extreme luck and timing, whether good or ill, natural or unnatural. It could be a lightning strike in a ditch or breaking the bank at a casino.


The Mastigos are a magical Path whose ruling Arcana are Mind and Space, their weak Arcanum Matter. They are also known as the Warlocks on the Path of Scourging, Scions of the Watchtower of the Iron Gauntlet in the Realm of Pandemonium, Kingdom of Nightmares and Abode of Demons. Their theme is Triumph Over Adversity and their mood is Antagonism. They approach the Supernal through Transgression and Confrontation.

The Mastigos or Warlocks are those who gain their magical power from the realm of Pandemonium, the Realm of Demons, nightmares, and punishment. Mastigos have a reputation for being deceptive, manipulative, and evil, and in some cases, this reputation is fully deserved. However, many Warlocks take great pains to remain on the path of virtue and as many more are as difficult to categorise as simply good or evil as anyone else. Many Mastigos believe that they function in a Darwinian role, exposing the weaknesses of their fellow mages, that these mages may improve themselves. This sounds callous to outsiders, but in the quest for ascension, any weakness unknown to the mage may be exploited by their enemies, so it is best to expose and remove as many of one's weaknesses as possible.

Mastigos Mages awaken when both personal and physical crossroads intersect. When forced to make both a lifestyle and and directional choice.


The Moros are a magical path whose ruling Arcana are Death and Matter. They are also known as the Necromancers on the Path of Doom, Scions of the Watchtower of the Lead Coin in the Realm of Stygia, Kingdom of Crypts and Abode of Shades. Their theme is Death, their mood Respect and Contemplation. They approach the Supernal through Permanence and Transition.

Moros mages are calm, almost eerily so, even while discussing or witnessing truly gruesome acts. Having experienced the moment of death, if not the aftermath, they are aware that pain and suffering are transitory, mere moments after which comes a long period of quiet. Moros, therefore, don’t tend to be fearful or easily shocked. Chaos and disorder, however, disturb the Moros. Too many things all changing at once gives them too much to focus upon, and not enough time to study a given transition before it changes again.

Moros mages form in grim moments where the typical response is to scream, cry, flee or fight. These individuals instead accept and move forward.


The Obrimos are a magical path whose ruling Arcana are Forces and Prime. They are also known as the Theurgists on the Path of the Mighty, Scions of the Watchtower of the Golden Key in the Realm of the Aether, Kingdom of the Celestial Spheres and Abode of Angels. Their theme and their mood is Hope. The Obrimos specialise in the Arcana of Forces and Prime, and suffer penalties when studying the Arcanum of Death. They approach the Supernal through Power and Command.

The Obrimos, often called Theurgists, are of the awakened who draw their power from the Realm of Aether, the realm of angels, gods, and magic unbound. The Obrimos are mostly thought of as arrogant, self-absorbed, and zealously moralistic. Indeed, a great many of those who walk the Path of the Mighty live up to this stereotype perfectly. Many, however are of a far more pleasant bent. They can be virtuous paladins, stalwart defenders of mankind, simply people who wish to do the right thing by other people, yet more are as morally indefinable as anybody else. Though they don't all believe in the same god or gods, and many don't believe in such entities at all, the Obrimos path as a whole is devoted to making the will of the Divine manifest on Earth, though how they define “the Divine” seems to vary drastically. Some feel the Divine to be a patriarchal god of judgment. Others sense the Divine as a manifestation of immanent Nature, while still others feel it to be an ongoing sentient process of self-aware coincidence. Whatever they feel the Divine to be — and many take years trying to discern just what force it is they serve — the Mighty all agree that they were Awakened to serve as Its warriors.

Obrimos Mages come from moments of crucial moral dilemmas ones that would agonize the average moral person. But the mortal simply does the right thing with no second thought.



The Thyrsus are a magical path whose ruling Arcana are Life and Spirit, and suffer penalties when trying to learn the Arcanum of Mind. They are also known as the Shamans on the Path of Ecstasy, Scions of the Watchtower of the Singing Stone in the Realm of the Primal Wild, Kingdom of Totems and Abode of Beasts. Their theme is Instinct and their mood is Passion. They approach the Supernal through Boundaries and Intercession.

Mages who Awaken with a link to the Realm of the Primal Wild tap directly into the primordial forces of vitality that drive creation. Their hearts beat with the pulse of the world, and they are moved by a passion and vigor that sets them apart from their Awakened peers. The emphasis on impulse, instinct and urge often gives Thyrsus mages an inclination toward powerful emotions, and some of these mages are more capable of controlling their passions than others. Those who gain a modicum of control of their impulses can manage to be just as socially acceptable as any other mage, but those who isolate themselves grow unaccustomed to wearing the polite (or, as they see it, fake) mask of society and may find it difficult to interact with others. Such isolated mages are, unsurprisingly, blunt in their appraisals of others, not just with regard to criticism, but just as commonly in their appreciation of physical beauty and the like. When something has a Thyrsus mage’s attention, the mage’s intensity is hard to match (or keep up with). Others find the Thyrsus’ laser-like focus uncomfortable, and though it can be inconvenient under some circumstances, it also makes those on the Path of Ecstasy incredibly diligent in whatever task they have set for themselves. When a mage on the Path of Ecstasy invests herself in a task, she devotes herself to it wholeheartedly (some say obsessively).

The Thyrsus path opens to those who have been overcome by a moment of pure instinct or peace, most often in nature.