ANDERS MAGE PAGE 2.0

Seal of the Void (Prime 5, Relevant Sphere 5)

This is one of the few symbols both the Traditions, Umbrood and Nephandi all respect. They have to. It is a symbol which will seal a pact or an oath with an unbreakable seal. This is literal, the Seal cannot be broken by anything. There are rumors that Oracles have tried, with disastrous consequences. Essentially, when integrated into something, the Seal will bind it into reality with an infinite force. Attempts at breaking the Seal will cause Paradox and will not succeed. Why the Seal works is unknown, and what it signifies. According to the Nephandi, who are rumored to know the most about it, it is the symbol of the perfect Void which underlies all things. If something is written in the Void, it is unerasable and can never be changed.

Writing the seal is quite simple, but requires an intense concentration as the mage pours quintessence into it. The Seal seems to suck it up like a black hole and etches itself (and whatever it is connected to) into reality. The shape must be approximately correct (it's not very complicated) and can be written, drawn in the air or even imagined by a clear-headed mage. The physical representation may be damaged, but the Seal itself seems to reside somewhere else. Some mages have tried integrating the Seal into their magick to create permanent effects, but the resulting disasters have caused many Masters to outlaw such experiments in their domains.

The Technomancers don't know or understand the Seal and would regard it as mystical mumbo jumbo. The Marauders rage against its unchangeability and try to deface it whenever they can. The Order of Hermes and the Nephandi have studied it at length (many traditions regard it as Nephandi magick and punish those who use it). Especially the Nephandi have used it as a horrible punishment for offenders or failing Barabbi: they write a pact which is impossible to fulfill (like counting all sand in the ocean before midnight), make the victim sign it and then seal it with the Seal of the Void. When the victim fails, he is destroyed by Paradox.

Note that the Seal cannot add anything to reality, it can only cause things to not happen and punish deviations from a pact with Paradox. Since it can create extremely nasty logical paradoxes which arouse some of the most hideous Paradox beings unimaginable, those who know it use it with extreme caution. It has especially been used by the Nephandi to sign their pacts with their Lords.

The Sign of Koth (Spirit 4)

This sign is placed on doors and openings to seal them from umbrood beings. When drawn, the mage must infuse it with Tass to connect it to Koth, whoever or whatever that is. Most Umbrood, even many of the most powerful, respect it since they fear the power of Koth. However, there is a catch. If the door is opened, it lets the beings in and out. There is the added danger and fear of whatever Koth is, and what happens when the mage contacts it. The Nephandi know, but they don't tell anyone...

The Brand of Evil (Spirit 4)

This sign is used by the Nephandi to brand people that have angered them. It is a violent, radical rune which is drawn in the air against them, painted on objects which are given to them or actually branded into their skins. It makes all Umbrood recognize that the bearer has angered the Forces from Beyond, and most beings either try to make his life as miserable as possible, or avoid him. The taint of the Nephandi can be felt around him and it is rumored that if the Avatar is branded, it will be sucked out into the Outside after the bearer's death...

Sign of Protection (Spirit 4)

This sign is the opposite of the Brand of Evil, it shows that the bearer is under the protection of the Forces from Beyond. Anyone harming him risks retribution from Them. Most beings simply avoid the bearer and some may become hostile. The strength of the protection depends upon the strength of the powers invoked by the drawer, and if they are willing to give their protection. However, it is hard to tell if a sign is backed up or not, so bluffing is possible.

Rune of Ownership (Matter/Life 4, Spirit 4)

This spiritual sign is drawn on an item (or being), which will be marked forever as a possession of the mage. This will work as long as the mage doesn't sell, give away or free the marked. To mark something, the mage must own and control it at least for the moment. Even Avatars can be marked in such a way if the person in question truly agrees about his servitude with the marker for a moment. This is the way many Nephandi collect Avatars for their masters (who may have the ownership of their souls). It is also used by some normal mages to mark their possessions. In old times many mages marked their possessions before their death to be able to bring them with them into the Underworld.

Rite of Transmutation (Spirit 4)

This rote is fortunately uncommon, but it allows Powers from Beyond to enter the normal world on a large but subtle scale. When performed, the presence of the things become stronger around the mage, and will start to influence reality. Normally this is a coincidental effect, as living beings develop rare and surreal diseases, plants mutate, animals and humans are born malformed and the normal flow of events turns subtly strange. An area so affected will over time become more and more eerie. If done slowly and carefully, the Nephandi can transmute the region more and more without undue Paradox. In the end, such a region will become a warped nightmare, where plants and animals have become hideous and surreal creatures, where the normal laws of physics have become warped and the Gauntlet weakened. Such blights can grow in secret, and when they have become large enough, their influence will start spreading of its own volition.

Rite of Null (Corr. 2, Spirit 5)

This infamous rite is performed at certain occasions by Nephandi mages who want to gain deeper insight into the Void. The participants dance around a pool of shadow and the mage finally dances into the darkness. When performed, the mage immerses himself into the total Void which underlies all things and sees beyond. This experience invariably drives Sleepers insane, and most mages become more or less unhinged by what they see or surmise of the truth.