Age of Dragons: Physical Adept

Age Of Dragons: Main Page -> Age Of Dragons: Lifepaths -> Physical Adept

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Overview

Shaping the Clay

He was Lord Valerius of Arrantis, but he was also Ugruk-Kar of the Orcish Twelve Skull Tribe, Longtooth the Shadow-Wolf and Tika-Maal, the Elfwarden of the Gray Vale. He had also been Chases-the-Sirocco of the Storm Dragons, Light-of-Piety of the Pure Dragons and Phantom-Father of the Ghost Dragons. His real name, if you could call it that, was Shadow-Mask of the Velvet Dragons, and he was a Physical Adept.

He was Lord Valerius at present, and at Imperial council with a cluster of humans oblivious to his true identity. He smiled to himself, happy that the fools around him had no idea who he really was.

Across the chamber, Ambassador Matteus watched him. He was Matteus of the Gold Coast, but he was also Samael the Wise of the Lizardman Kingdoms, Dawnwing the Great Eagle and occasionally Angel's-Descent of the Sable Dragons. His true name was Guardian-Eye of the Solar Dragons, and he had the infiltrator in his sights.

The Solar Dragon knew that he had to eliminate the spy, but that he could not expose him here, as a conflict in the council chambers would both cost human lives and panic the mortals unnecessarily at the thought that their security was so frail.

When Council was over, and Lord Valerius returned to his manor, there would be a reckoning.

The Physical Adept Lifepath

In the first Age draconic students observed how the Mother Goddess and her twelve children were able to shape the clay of the earth into different forms, breathing life from mud and rock with their magics.

Legend says that the Mother Goddess told these first Shapers that their studies could not continue, as to shape earth into Soma was a First Age magic, and had no place in ages to come. To ease their disappointment, she taught them another secret instead - how to shape their own Soma into other shapes. The first Physical Adepts took great joy in this small magic, and soon refined the tricks they had been taught so that they could run the land as wolves, swim the sea as fishes, crawl into small places as insects or walk and talk amongst the mortals as humans.

As ages have passed the secrets of polymorphing have been retained and refined. Sadly, in this day and age, the darker applications of this study have been refined as well. The inoccuous title of "physical adept" incorporates spies, assassins, infiltrators and impersonators. What was once a mere academic study has practical purposes in an age of war.

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Milestones

Lifepath Sphere Variations

• Manyface (50 XP)

Your Dragon has practiced at the art of deception, impersonation and false identity. He gains +1 dice on all tasks relating to false identity and lying, including disguise, mimicry, forgery and other espionage-related skills.

• Tooluser (50 XP)

Your Dragon has accustomed himself to humanoid tools and weapons, and mastered them to a greater degree than most actual humanoids. He gains +1 dice on all tasks relating to using humanoid tools and weapons. This includes adding +1 dice when fighting using humanoid weaponry.

• Watcher (50 XP)

Your Dragon has learnt skills in counter-infiltration and basic security. He gains +1 dice on all tasks relating to counter-espionage, including spotting false identities, interrogation, detecting lies, detecting forgery, setting up security measures and the like.

• Wildshaper (50 XP)

Your Dragon has focused on blending into the animal world, and functioning in animal shapes. He gains +1 dice on all tasks relating to taking advantage of his animal forms, passing as an animal of his polymorphed type, knowing about and enacting their behaviour, etc. This also gives +1 dice to fighting with an animal form's natural weaponry.

Talents

• Quick Change (15 XP)

If you have this Talent, you can cast the Polymorph Form spell in fifteen minutes instead of the usual 1 hour. You cannot take this Talent unless you have learnt the Polymorph Form spell at least once.

• Quick Reversion (15 XP)

If you have this Talent, you can cast the Polymorph Form spell in one battle action instead of the usual 1 hour, but only when using the spell to return to your original form. You cannot take this Talent unless you have learnt the Polymorph Form spell at least once.

• Retain Dragonbreath (15 XP)

If you have this Talent, you can still cast fire-breathing spells while in Polymorph Form. You cannot take this Talent unless you have learnt the Polymorph Form spell at least once, as well as a fire-breathing spell.

• Retain Strength (15 XP)

If you have this Talent, your Soma rating while Polymorphed is enhanced marginally. If the subject form's normal Soma rating is usually 1 or 2, you gain +1 to Soma in that form. If the subject form's normal Soma is normally less than 1 or more than 2, you do not gain this benefit. You cannot take this Talent unless you have learnt the Polymorph Form spell at least once.

Arcane Lore

• Eye of Revelation (25 XP)

When you cast this spell, you must whisper the words "reveal to my eyes the true form" and look directly at a single subject within line of sight. Roll Pneuma (TN4+) to determine the power of the spell. You immediately become aware if the target's form has been magically altered, as well as what their usual appearance is, but only if you roll more successes on your casting roll then was rolled on the spellcasting roll to change form. If you roll less successes, the eye of revelation still reveals that the target's form has been magically altered, but the target's usual appearance is not revealed.

• Polymorph Form (25 XP)

When learning this Lore, you must select a single subject who you are taking as your template to copy. This subject must be a living breathing being of some sort and you must be able to be able to study and observe their naked form from all angles for at least a full day, but otherwise there is no limitation. Once you have studied that form, and spent the XP, you are considered to "know" that form from that point on.
Changing your form takes an hour of uninterrupted meditation, and you can change into any form you know, or back into your own form. Roll Pneuma (TN4+) to determine the power of the spell (this is relevant only with regards to Eye of Revelation above). If the meditation is interrupt you snap (painfully) back into your own form. When you adopt the form, you appear exactly as the form at the time of study, naked and unequipped. The changes that take place are in physical form only - you retain your own Pneuma and Sophis scores, and gain the target's Soma score. This cannot cause your Soma score to increase - if the target's Soma is higher than your own, you retain your own Soma score instead. You gain any natural weaponry (such as poisonous bites, claws etc.) but not any supernatural benefits (no birthrights or magic, etc.). Specifically, taking the form of a Hunter Dragon does not give you the benefits of improved claws or toughness, as this is as much a supernatural quality as a physical one.
You retain your draconic immunity to fire, but lose the ability to cast any spells (apart from Polymorph Form) while in the new form.
You can learn any number of Polymorph Forms, learning this spell anew each time.
While in the new form, there is no mundane physical way to tell you apart from an ordinary member of the species (or for that matter, the original subject being impersonated).

Lifepath-specific Milestones

• Linguist (1XP per language)

Each time you take this Milestone, select a language. You can now speak and write that language as well as a local. To learn a language you must have some social contact with others who speak that language, or access to comprehensive texts that can teach you the language. Note that some mystical languages (such as Voidtongue cannot be learnt through this Milestone.)

• Mastery of Many Forms (1 XP)

This Milestone can only be taken once your character has learnt at least 5 different Polymorph Spells. Once you have this Milestone you receive a 50% XP break on all future purchases of the Polymorph Spell.

• Xenoculturalist (4XP per culture)

Each time you take this Milestone, select a culture, either mortal or draconic. You now know about that culture as well as one of its members. To learn about a culture you must have the opportunity to directly observe that culture, or access to comprehensive texts about it.

Lifepath Resources

• Resource

25 years.

• Resource

50 years.

• Resource

100 years.

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