Shaktar Utathya
Paradigm & Style
To Shaktar, like most Hermetic mages, magick is both a science and an Art. It is considered a science because of the precision and education one needs to wield it properly. But it is also an art, for unlike science the potential of magick is boundless. For those of House Criamon, magick is an academic examination of one's internal and external awareness of the cosmos. While other Hermetics focus on divining and commanding the elements by will, those with Criamon background are more interested in defining how those elements work...and why. This requires an especially keen intellect, one that borders on madness. Like his brethren, Shaktar seems a little bit odder than most Hermetics as a result.
The secrets of the elements of the world -- and by that, Shaktar is concerned with every little detail (not the four "classic" elements, nor the periodic table of chemistry) -- are not truly magickal. In actuality, they're parts of reality, of nature itself, than most people cannot recognize or comprehend. Yet they identify these secret factors everyday: the human mind is always on the cusp of awareness. The secrets are concealed in the syntax of language. The most ancient languages and codes of man contain the most fundamental truths of so-called magick. When spoken or read with the syntax inflected, a mage taps this hidden power to exact what the untrained eye calls magick.
And what are words but standardized images and symbols? Hence, the use of tattoos common to all Criamon magi. This fuses the knowledge to the flesh itself, ingraining the truth to oneself to make it permanently accessible and to test the wits of others -- both Awakened and Sleeper. Who might guess at those tattoos' meanings? Who will read the syntax? Who will know the answers to these visual enigmas?
The will's and would's are what House Criamon are really concerned with. That's why Time is their specialty. And time is not a linear force, but a circular one. More importantly, it is a force, a definable flow of energy currents. The temporal forces of reality move with matter, not alongside it like some distinct and alien thing. All things, in fact, can be broken down into core forms of energy, Criamon argue (presenting their argument in a flowery riddle, usually!). Time is no different. And recognizing that fact makes controlling it that much easier, which is a practical thing for a House so interested in research.
Other vital forces of reality include Quintessence, or ojas. In fact, this is the base energy of all reality, including the intangible currents of time and space, mind and spirit. Paradox is another recognized (and feared) force of nature. And like any other force, reaching into its Quintessential roots allows a mage powerful enough to do so to avoid its bite. This force, Paradox, is little more than a Consensus-enforced, Technocracy-driven mass belief system. It can be overcome! Indeed, those of House Criamon predict it will fall...with all of society...
Shaktar has an intimate comprehension of this doom. By accepting that death is the ultimate doom of all things, of all forces even time, the dire visions a seer can suffer are that easier to tolerate. It also makes it easier to look beyond the nadir of fate and to a brighter future. Like they say, once you hit rock bottom, there's only one direction to go: up! By just reading others' dire predictions, or offering his own dismal omens up, Shaktar embraces the entropy inherent to all reality without falling prey to its corroding touch (and becoming barrabi). Shaktar is a speaker of doom, not a minion of corruption. Either way he does it, speaking aloud and offering others his troubling insights is necessary for Entropy.
Curiously, Shaktar lets his fingernails grow quite long -- a few inches long, in fact! A special herbal solution his House developed keeps them from chipping off easily, though they're still subject to forced breakage. But he doesn't grow nails just for the creepy mandarin look. On the contrary, they're not painted black or white. Instead, Shaktar inks them with unique designs and symbols -- like miniature temporary tattoos. In those specially prepared sepia inkings are the secret codes for the manipulation of Forces. Forces is the second state of evolution of all things, taken from its rawest form of Quintessence. All other things (and Spheres) come after Forces. And all things retain the currents of energy within as one form or another. Thereby, all things can be moved, shifted, rebuilt, and destroyed by the summoning of Forces...even the perceptions of things. For Shaktar, an initiated Criamon, the meaning of the symbols he inscribes on his fingernails are memorized and truly understood. The fingernail inkings are not necessary. But often he retains or inscribes fresh designs for the same reason Criamon sport tattoos in the first place: to challenge viewers' intellect and make them wonder.
Through the advanced training and education Shaktar received, his mind was opened to much more than the average person (Sleeper) can understand. Through the practice of these special meditation and prayer ceremonies, Shaktar focuses his own mind and will to reception and wisdom. By staying on an echelon above the common man, Shaktar grasps what others cannot. Consequently, he can affect their unguarded minds much more readily when he taps the syntax of psychic energies through the secret languages. Still a beginner in the Sphere of Mind, these ceremonies of meditation and prayer remain necessary to his practice.
As vital to his House's study as Forces, the Art of Time was always Shaktar's specialty. Indeed, his inclination towards soothsaying made him a natural practitioner of this Sphere. As noted before, time is not linear nor is it an alien element of reality. It is a circular form of energy that can be controlled and manipulated like any other. Of course, temporal realities are convoluted on levels the common mind cannot begin to comprehend. Even enlightened scholars of House Criamon are troubled, as are all magi. But it is the duty and joy of the Awakened to solve this puzzle. The secrets of how lie in the syntax of man's breathing languages. Those words are hidden in the expressive and fascinating tattoo designs that decorate his back and legs. For Shaktar, who was practically born knowing this Sphere, reading aloud the incomprehensible meaning of his tattoos is no longer necessary.
Avatar
While other mages see various entities, Shaktar dreams and meditates upon a string of ancient and unintelligible symbols, characters, and words. This infinite-seeming string of words hold the secrets to reality (or even demi-divinity). Shaktar yearns to delve deeper into their meanings and grasp these most ancient depths of knowledge. Slowly but surely, the astute Criamon is figuring this puzzle out and coming closer to greater fundamental truths. He is content with deciphering the riddle of his Avatar for his own and perhaps his House's edification. But his Path may bring him to offer this forgotten lore to his whole Tradition and benefit all magi.
Resonance
Dynamic (Whimsical)
Shaktar's offbeat yet upbeat nature gives him a whimsical demeanor hard to deny. He's good at inciting joy in others through his behavior or nonsensical comments (-2 difficulty to related Social rolls). But he finds it harder to be taken as a serious and responsible individual in society; he comes across too much as a weirdo and vagabond (+2 difficulty to Social rolls where he claims responsibility).
Mystickally, Shaktar finds amusing and entertaining applications of his Arts -- known as prestidigitation -- is easier (-1 difficulty to related Arete rolls). But using the same knowledge to evoke raw and blasting energies is harder. Not all Hermetics are warriors; +1 difficulty to related Effects.
Entropic (Dire)
This Criamon has always had a knack for doomsaying. It's not something many people appreciate either. But he's had plenty of practice either way. When it comes to persuading people of the veracity of dire omens, Shaktar is a talented spokesman (-3 difficulty to related Social checks). But attempting to turn around and sound hopeful, or otherwise offer an encouraging viewpoint of a dark omen, is harder for this Criamon (+3 difficulty to such Social rolls).
This has direct implications in his Arts. Quite simply, Shaktar can tell a bad, dark, or dismal omen easier than foretelling positive outcomes (+1/-1 difficulties to respective Arete checks).
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