Rules reference

Equipment in Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary

Gear basics and how equipment impacts play. Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition is a tabletop RPG where you play as Awakened mages who can bend reality through the Spheres. As a mage, you belong to a Tradition (like the Order of Hermes, Verbena, or Virtual Adepts) and use your understanding of reality to cast magic, all while managing Paradox and Consensus.

Key points

Equipment changes what’s possible in the fiction: access, leverage, and risk management. This page focuses on the gear that matters most.

Copyable facts
  • 9 Spheres: Correspondence, Entropy, Forces, Life, Matter, Mind, Prime, Spirit, Time
  • 9 Traditions: Order of Hermes, Verbena, Virtual Adepts, Akashic Brotherhood, Celestial Chorus, Cult of Ecstasy, Dreamspeakers, Euthanatos, Sons of Ether
  • Arete system: Determines maximum Sphere dots usable in effects
  • Paradox mechanics: Accumulates from Vulgar magic
  • Coincidental vs Vulgar magic: Coincidental generates less Paradox
  • Quintessence: Fuels magical effects
Roll loop reminder

Mage (M20) is a dice pool game where your magical capability is expressed through Arete and Spheres. Coincidental vs Vulgar magic changes risk (Paradox).

  • Decide the effect and which Spheres apply.
  • Roll your pool (often Arete with modifiers) and interpret successes as effect/scale.
  • Track risk: Vulgar effects can generate Paradox and consequences.
Example: A coincidental effect is explainable; a vulgar effect is obviously impossible and carries higher risk.
Examples
Example: Gear as leverage

The best gear changes what’s possible: access, safety, speed, and options. Track what lets you do something you couldn’t do before.

Example: Use equipment to reduce risk

If a roll is dangerous, gear can change position: better tools, better cover, better information.

Common mistakes (smallest fix)
  • Mistake: Tracking too many tiny items. Fix: Track gear that changes options, safety, speed, or access.
  • Mistake: Buying gear without a use case. Fix: Ask: what scene does this gear make easier or safer?
Character creation
Step-by-step checklist.
Cheat sheets
Quick lookup while you play.

Mage FAQ

What are Spheres in Mage M20?
How does Paradox work in Mage?
What's Arete in Mage?
What's the difference between Coincidental and Vulgar magic?
What are Traditions?

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