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Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character sheet: every box explained
Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition uses the classic World of Darkness sheet: nine Attributes in a Physical / Social / Mental grid, Abilities split into Talents, Skills, and Knowledges, and the mage-specific Spheres section. Arete, Quintessence, and Paradox are the three numbers that define your magical capability.
Character identity
- name
Your mage's real name.
How to fill: Pick a name that fits the setting and your character concept.
Example: Dr. Adira Okafor
- concept
A short phrase capturing who your mage is.
How to fill: Combine their mundane role and magical approach.
Example: Skeptical neuroscientist who bends reality through equations
- tradition
Your magical faction (Tradition, Convention, or Craft), which shapes your paradigm and focus.
How to fill: Choose one: Akashayana, Celestial Chorus, Cult of Ecstasy, Dreamspeakers, Euthanatoi, Hollow Ones, Order of Hermes, Sons of Ether, Verbena, Virtual Adepts (or a Technocratic Convention, or Disparate Craft).
Example: Virtual Adepts
- focus
How your mage performs magic: the paradigm, practice, and instruments they use.
How to fill: Describe the belief system and tools. This is one of the most important creative choices in Mage.
Example: Hypertech: reality is code, hacked through custom devices and programming
- avatar_description
The nature and appearance of your Avatar: the fragment of the Prime that gives you magical power.
How to fill: Describe how your Avatar manifests (visions, a voice, a recurring symbol).
Example: A flickering holographic cat that appears in reflective surfaces
- nature
Your true inner personality archetype (grants Willpower recovery).
How to fill: Pick an Archetype (Caregiver, Rebel, Visionary, etc.). You regain Willpower when you act on it.
Example: Visionary
- demeanor
The personality you present to the world (may differ from Nature).
How to fill: Pick an Archetype. This is how others perceive you.
Example: Loner
- essence
Your Avatar's fundamental nature: Dynamic, Pattern, Primordial, or Questing.
How to fill: Choose one. Affects how your Seekings (Arete advancement quests) play out.
Example: Questing
- cabal
Your mage group's name.
How to fill: Decide with your group.
Example: The Midnight Protocol
- chronicle
The name of the chronicle or campaign you play in.
How to fill: Ask your Storyteller.
Example: Ashes of Prague
Attributes
- strength
Raw physical power.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 dots. Attributes start at 1; distribute 7/5/3 dots across Physical/Social/Mental (in any priority order).
Example: 2
- dexterity
Agility, reflexes, and coordination.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Physical priority.
Example: 2
- stamina
Endurance and toughness. Determines Health levels with Bruised through Incapacitated.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Physical priority.
Example: 2
- charisma
Charm, presence, and social magnetism.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Social priority.
Example: 3
- manipulation
Ability to influence and steer others through argument, deception, or subtlety.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Social priority.
Example: 3
- appearance
Physical attractiveness and presence (M20 uses Appearance, not Composure).
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Social priority.
Example: 2
- perception
Awareness, noticing details, and sensory acuity.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Mental priority.
Example: 4
- intelligence
Reasoning, memory, and analytical ability.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Mental priority.
Example: 4
- wits
Quick thinking and reacting under pressure.
How to fill: Rate 1-5 within your Mental priority.
Example: 3
Derived stats
- arete
Your enlightenment and magical skill: the number of dice you roll for magic.
How to fill: Starts at 1 (can buy up to 3 with freebie points at creation). Increases through Seekings (in-game quests).
Example: 2
- quintessence
Raw magical energy stored in your Avatar. Spent to fuel powerful Effects and reduce Paradox.
How to fill: Starting Quintessence equals your Avatar Background rating (0-5).
Example: 3
- paradox
Accumulated reality backlash from vulgar magic. High Paradox risks Paradox Backlash (reality punishing you).
How to fill: Starts at 0. Accumulates during play when you cast vulgar magic (especially with witnesses).
Example: 0 (at creation)
- willpower
Mental fortitude and determination. Spent to gain automatic successes or resist mental effects.
How to fill: Starts at 5 (can raise with freebie points). Maximum 10. Refreshes through Nature fulfillment.
Example: 5
Spheres
- correspondence
Sphere of space and connections: scrying, teleportation, correspondence sensing.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots. Starting mages get 6 dots to distribute across all Spheres (max 3 at creation). Your Tradition often suggests an Affinity Sphere.
Example: 2
- entropy
Sphere of fate, decay, probability, and disorder.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your 6-dot Sphere budget.
Example: 0
- forces
Sphere of energy: fire, electricity, gravity, light, sound, kinetic force.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 3
- life
Sphere of living things: healing, shapeshifting, biological manipulation.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 0
- matter
Sphere of inert physical substances: transmutation, crafting, destroying objects.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 1
- mind
Sphere of thoughts, emotions, and mental phenomena.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 0
- prime
Sphere of raw magical energy (Quintessence) and the Tapestry itself.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget. Needed to create lasting magical effects and channel Quintessence.
Example: 0
- spirit
Sphere of the Umbra (spirit world), spirits, and the Gauntlet.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 0
- time
Sphere of temporal perception and manipulation.
How to fill: Rate 0-5 dots from your Sphere budget.
Example: 0
Rotes & notes
- rotes
Your prepared rotes (spells) and their effects.
How to fill: One per line: the Sphere dots it needs, then the effect.
Example: Forces 2: Spark of Fire
- background
Your mage's history and personality.
How to fill: A few sentences: who you were before the Awakening and what changed.
Example: Raised in a Prague archive.
- notes
Anything else: equipment, contacts, open questions.
How to fill: Free text.
Example: Open question: who is the Third Lantern?
About Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary
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.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character sheet free?
Yes. You can fill in and save a Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character sheet on RPG Stack for free. An account is needed to keep the sheet between sessions.
What does the Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character sheet include?
The sheet has these sections: Character identity, Attributes, Abilities, Backgrounds, Derived stats, Spheres, Rotes & notes. Each box is explained in the field-by-field guide.
Can I export my Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character sheet?
Yes. Open a saved character and export or print the sheet, or share a link to it with your table.
Do I need to know the rules to fill it in?
No. Use the character generator to build a legal Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary character step by step, then edit the sheet directly.
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