Imperfectionist

Progressive Arcanum

Well, I'm planning on having regular outings, so a few basic details would be nice... As a corollary, how much time would an older student be forced to spend in the Academy? Is there a point where research becomes self-directed, or does every student have a grueling, regimented schedule up until graduation?

Progressive Arcanum

Mm, I have a question. How close is the Academy to the nearest city? Is there even any city nearby?

Progressive Arcanum

Well, one of the main purposes of the craft is to act as a conduit between spirits and mortals, so even if he cannot perform the magic himself, there is nothing stopping him (or others) from seeking out the knowledge of great and terrible beings...

Progressive Arcanum

Being an Akashic-Deviant would, in my humble opinion, likely require the intervention of some great Divine spirit, the imparting of knowledge from the dawn of existence... Sounds like a job for an Ouramancer! At the very least, ancestors and gods can be consulted on such things.

It seems all of our characters might fit together, or at least that the Outsorceror and Shifter's determined inferiority-complex guy would both have reason to seek out and make use of my Ouramancer's talents! Maybe they've all met and become acquainted before the story begins, each of them with their own goals and long-term issues that play off the others. :) Things are turning out nicely.

Progressive Arcanum

Well, that's what I thought. Yay for cantrips.

Progressive Arcanum

Ah, very well. Magestrava are magical jacks-of-all-trades, whereas the Sepcarim (and Ouramancers, I suppose) are specialized and limited. While I'm thinking about it, is there another type of magic that Ouramancers can learn, or are they pretty much stuck with what they've got?

Progressive Arcanum

Odd. What stops a Magestrava from crafting a bond like that? What if they wish to live as a Shaman, and they don't want to "trick" Nature, as you say? If it's all the same energy, why can't the Magestrava use Karma in the same fashion, without using the other energies? In fact, why can't Magestrava perform the abilities of all of the Sepcarim, if it's all the same energy?

Progressive Arcanum

Komamisa said
From what I understood, a bloodline can also gain the Ouramancer disposition by having a history of interactions with Magical Beings, or having a sufficiently powerful ancestry for the spirits to form a minor guardian deity.

That being said, both situations require plenty of luck, or ludicrous amounts of hard work that won't even pay off for the immediate participants. On that note, due to my planned character backstory (should it be approved), it's quite possible that my character's possible future children, grandchildren, etc. would inherit the ability to perform Ouramancy.

Mm, my idea for Ouramancers is that if a bloodline that has gained such abilities continues to practice the mysticism they originated from, every child in that line who would have been a general Magestrava become Ouramancers instead. So, they are much rarer than the general populace, but the numbers are altogether more predictable, as there are only a few families in each area who boast such power (maybe magic, specifically Ouramancy, is more common among these families, as well?).

:) As for your character background, do you think you might be able to blend it with mine a little? After all, my character's family is one of the few in Lismos with the "gift", as it were, and yours (she? he?) would have to have observed it in action somewhere, right? What if they knew each other before being enrolled in the Academy? I always like it when characters have pre-established rapport.

Komamisa said
May not be the answer our dear GM would make or have in mind at all. But in a sense, the spirits/energy of nature tend to prefer a "natural order" to things. That meaning: nature is a fickle thing. While natural disasters naturally occur, forcing something as vast, moody and powerful as nature to take an unnatural course through magic is like trying to control fate itself. So, in a more direct definition, the destruction brought about by a natural disaster is just a matter of course, while destruction using forces of nature via manipulation of the Karma that constitutes it is destruction—otherwise, it can also be thought of as the destruction of the natural order.

If we wanted to get truly philosophical, we could start inquiring as to whether or not the actions of humans constitute the "will" of natural order, or if humans are innately unnatural and all actions taken by humans are subject to nature's scrutiny.

Reasonable, except that Magestrava are specifically noted as being able to control the forces of nature quite well, seemingly without repercussions beyond the problems with overuse of Karma... Maybe that's what makes them so badass? Because they have access to all three forms of energy, Outsorcerors can just flip Mother Nature the bird and throw as many fireballs and lightning bolts as they want. Hmm.

As for the actions of humans, I've honestly never heard any inquiries of that sort. From my experience, it's civilization, and its progenitor, agriculture, that are considered unnatural. Humans, after all, are just animals. It is when we tame the planet for our own selfish needs that the nature spirits would probably get pissed.

Progressive Arcanum

Does magic run through bloodlines? For example, could my Ouramancer come from a line of such Magestrava, with the talent skipping generations every so often?

Is it more metaphysical than that?

EDIT: The idea of nature abhoring destruction confuses me...

Progressive Arcanum

Komamisa said
Highly proficient in Outsorcery, an athletic character that also has a keen interest in Pythomancy. There would be interest in Ouramancy, but the aptitude and predisposition just aren't there. Despite what being athletic and skilled in outsorcery may imply, the character is more than muscles.

Well, that's kind of funny, we've come up with opposites. I'm intending my character to be a rather frail and sickly Ouramancer, without a lick of talent in Outsorcery (though not for lack of trying). She studies Pythomancy in hopes of partnering with magical creatures to substitute for the outward, physical magic she lacks (and for protection from unseen forces... she's a bit paranoid), and would be very jealous of someone like that.

Having spirits, ancestors, gods and devils in your head from an early age isn't the healthiest way to grow up, and she has some distinct instabilities and neuroses, again being jealous of someone who can so easily control the world around them...