magic and corruption

overview stat points costs list corruption

magic has a price.

The most powerful force in the world, Magic grants characters incredible abilities, but leads them down a path of ruin. As Mages accumulate strength, they are fouled by corruption that ends with the Mage twisted into a monstrous form. As magic is the only weapon capable of destroying the abominations Mages become, centuries of study have been devoted to curbing its corruption, and to the production of ever more powerful Mages to protect the kingdom from corrupted creatures.

To be a Mage is to wield reality-transforming power, and to constantly battle with consuming, distorting forces.

In Anathema, you are invited to create a character whose magic abilities are tailored to the story you want to tell, grow in a way that reflects their choices, and determines their ultimate destiny. Magic progression is the only stat system in the game, providing structure as your Mage character accumulates strength and tempts an irreversible transformation.

how magic is measured

Power measures the raw strength of an ability, i.e. creating a flame the size of a lit match versus a blazing inferno.
Discipline measures the control over one's magic, and the scope of different uses the magic has.
Cost measures the drawbacks to using a magic ability, and the toll it takes on the user.
Corruption measures a Mage's progress on the journey towards becoming a monster. Fully corrupt characters are retired from play, and trigger a Hunt as they become monsters to be destroyed by other Mages.

These stats are altered by your character's story choices and your purchases in the Shop. Will your character risk vast and reckless power, or will intense discipline unlock their true potential? Let your character's personality shape their growth!

Choosing your character's magic

There is no preset list of magic abilities for your character to choose from, so go wild! There truly is no limit on what your character's magic can be, as long as their abilities scale with stat points. Create your character’s abilities to suit them and their story, keeping in mind how you would like them to progress over time. Be sure that if the magic you are creating can potentially affect other characters (such as mind control), that you never attempt to use the magic on players' characters without asking permission and discussing the outcome with the other player(s) beforehand.

A character's magical ability cannot affect their own stat points, or the stat points of another user. For instance, your character's magic cannot give or take away points of Corruption.

Magic in Ivratian Culture

Public opinion of magic varies greatly across Ivras. Ivras's Mage Order serves the crown and supports a narrative that magic has been successfully tamed by the monarchy; the Order's most renowned mages have a strong presence in Ivras's social and political spheres, and perpetuate the appearance that everything is under control. Magic research by the Order has given Ivras sophisticated technology and architecture to far surpass their neighbors, but virtually no literature on magic is available to non-mages. In Faline and other urban centers, it's entirely possible for a non-mage to lead an entire life seeing only the wonders and benefits of magic and the Order.

Across the kingdom, however, the story is more complicated. Many have seen family members show signs of magical talent and be whisked away to Namarast never to be seen again, or have witnessed firsthand the destruction uncontrolled magic can cause. Survivors of monster attacks or raids by the clan's wild mages consider magic to be a volatile and dangerous force. With so little information about magic available to the general populace, many non-mages react to the mystical with caution and distrust.

understanding magic stats

Your character's magical ability is measured with three stats:

More Discipline will increase your character's control of their magic, as well as the variety of things their magic can accomplish. It can improve the precision, evolution, and breadth of an ability.
More Power will increase the raw strength of a character's magic. It can improve the size, range, duration, and intensity of an ability.
More Costs will increase the toll the magic takes on your character. The more Cost points a character has, the more a character's magic negatively impacts them.

While it is up to you how you'd like your character's magic growth to affect their story, stats provide a loose framework tracking that growth. When a mage is born, their Power and Discipline stats begin at 0. A mage with 0 stats is one that has yet to reveal their magic ability; having a 0 in Discipline is a total lack of control, and a 0 in Power is a total lack of magical strength. When a character's magic ability is first revealed, they can gain Discipline before Power (i.e., receive training before their abilities manifest), Power before Discipline (i.e. have magic they are initially unable to control), or level both stably.

There is no maximum for how many points you can earn or how strong your character can become. The starting stats below indicate what would be considered "average" for mages in the world of Anathema, including the Background bonus; 4-5 total stat points for a young adult, fully-trained mage is typical of NPCs. Mages played by members, of course, will probably surpass this and be considered above average.

There is no "wrong" way to level up your mage, but be sure to leave your character room to grow when creating them!

your character's starting stats

The stats your character will have in the beginning of the game are determined by two things: their age and their background. Your base points can be distributed between Power, Discipline, and (if you like) Corruption however you choose.

Character Starting Age	Starting Base Points	Starting Magic Cost
13 and younger	0	3
14-19	1	3
20-29	2	3
30-39	3	2
40-49	4	1
50-59	5	0
60-69	6	0
70-89	7	1
90 and older	8	2

Your mage’s Background also awards them a bonus to a specific stat:

Order Mages receive a +2 bonus to Discipline.
Wild Mages receive a +2 bonus to Power.
Hidden Mages receive a -1 bonus to Cost.

Combine your character's age total with their background bonus. Your starting stat points will be distributed between Power, Discipline, and (if you choose) Corruption. Corruption is totally optional, but is allowed if you wish to play a character who has already started on a corrupted path.

Your cost total will be the number of costs you choose for your character from the next tab!

Should you choose, you are allowed to give your character fewer stat points and/or higher costs than the listed starting totals for storytelling purposes! Stats and Cost cannot go below 0.

logging your stat changes

As you participate in Anathema, your character will gain additional stat points from prompts, events, and from the shop! When you gain (or lose) stat points, add the change to the 'Log' section of your Mage's profile, and include a link to the image, literature, event, or purchase that caused the change. Here, also give a brief description of the effect of the stat change. Some examples:

"+1 Discipline: Merlin can now create lightning bolts in new shapes, allowing him to strike two different targets instead of just one."

"With his +1 Power, Merlin's lightning strikes further and brighter than ever."

"The selfishness of choosing his own power over his friend's life Corrupted Merlin +1 further."

special character types

Anathema players who have earned a Ley Token can use their token at the Ley Lodge to create special kinds of mages. These rare mages have unique relationships to make that change their magic and their methods of accumulating stat points.

You can find more information on these special mages and how to acquire them on the Ley Lodge page.

costs list

Once you know your character's Cost total, select one or more costs from the lists below to apply to your character's magic. You may "mix and match" from the cost levels, if you so choose. For instance, if you have a cost total of 3, you may select three level 1 costs, one level 3 cost, etc. as long as the totals match!

When your character's Cost total increases or decreases, you may re-select an entirely new combination of costs to match your new total, if you so choose!

1 point costs

Magic takes a long time or requires a lengthy ceremony to cast.
Magic use fatigues the caster.
Magic use reduces the caster's mobility or reflexes.
Magic somewhat impairs or reduces one or more of the caster's senses while it is in use.
Magic use has a short-term adverse effect on the caster's mood/frame of mind.
Magic is weakened under specific circumstances.

2 point costs

Magic use is painful for the caster.
Magic use consumes a valuable material.
Magic slightly impairs the caster's memory, so that they may not remember using it, or be confused afterward.
Magic disables one or more of the caster's senses while it is in use.
Magic use has a long-term adverse effect on the caster's mood/frame of mind.
Magic does not work or has no effect except under specific circumstances.

3 point costs

Magic does permanent physical damage to the caster with every use.
Magic has a constant adverse physical effect on the caster, whether it is in use or not.
Magic has a constant adverse emotional effect on the caster, whether it is in use or not.
Magic has or gives the caster an appearance that frightens or disgusts others.
Magic causes permanent memory loss, and the caster sacrifices knowledge with every use.
Magic permanently alters, stops, or replaces an essential function of the caster's body.

corruption

Corruption points track your character's progress on the path towards becoming a Monster. When a character reaches 10 Corruption, they are considered fully corrupted, and become the target of the next Great Hunt.

How corruption affects your character's appearance, magic, familiar, or personality is entirely up to you. As your character accumulates Corruption, you may choose to have them keep it a secret, or you can have it twist their design and their powers in a way that's visible to the world. Corruption can manifest itself in many ways, so feel free to be creative!

Gaining corruption

Corruption is gained by completing rituals at Fortune's shrine, completing story prompts that have Corruption as a reward, and choosing Corruption options during events.

Reducing corruption

If you aren't quite ready to have your character fully corrupted, you can complete a cleansing ritual at Destiny's Shrine that will reduce your mage's Corruption by 1 point. Cleansing rituals can only be performed twice, as Destiny is known to be fickle with their gifts.

Using corruption

Corruption may in some cases be useful. During a Great Hunt, the corruption stat gives your character extra strength and a higher damage output: +1 for each corruption point they currently have.

Lich Mages, a special type of mage you can read more about on the Ley Lodge page, use corruption to gain additional stat points, at a terrible cost to themselves.

Becoming a Monster

When your character reaches 10 corruption points, they make an irreversible transformation into a monster. At this point, your Mage character is retired from the game, and you are given a Summoning Circle to create a new mage, as well as a bonus that is based on your character's stats. When you reach 10 corruption, send a DM to Modmail on the Anathema discord server, and you will receive top secret instructions. 👀

The creation of a new monster will trigger a Great Hunt, and a monster based on your character will be the target. You will assist staff in creating the design, abilities, and behavior of your character's monster form, as well as decide the fate of your character's familiar(s), if applicable. However, once the hunt begins you will no longer be able to 'play' the monster, nor decide which characters land the Killing Blow on it.

When your character is retired, their Anathema profile will be moved to the 'Corrupted' character folder for display. You may choose to display their monster form there and describe their corruption/transformation there if you wish. Like all content submitted to Anathema, this optional art/writing can be redeemed for Gold!

Magic & Corruption