Date: Mon, 17 Oct 1994 10:57:31 -0700 (MST)
From: Paul Beakley <ADPYB@ACVAX.INRE.ASU.EDU>
To: mage-l@wizards.com
Subject: Re: The fashioning of Reality, and other musings
Message-ID: <01HIDOZW0GS2000E97@ACVAX.INRE.ASU.EDU>

So *I* said:

>The Catholics call that Sin by Omission.

And Jack von Dracula replied:

>And how many of the characters in people's Chronicles are
>guilty of the same thing?

Ha!  I laughed out loud at this!  This is an endemic problem, I think,
in many peoples' Mage games.  At least in MINE, the story has (unfortunately)
devolved into a running gun fight of sorts.  They're so busy avoiding the
Pogrom that they don't have TIME to think about the so-called Ascension
War.

So I guess that means the Technocracy wins again: just keep the enemy BUSY
and you win the war.  Back to that ol' thing about doing nothing at all
and how it helps the enemy.

Here are some thoughts for ambitious young Magi who haven't been broken yet:

1) Never take your eye off The Big Picture.  Whatever that picture may be,
don't forget about it.  Be idealistic -- you can afford to be!  Nothing in
this reality is limited to you...if you're careful.  A Magi with any dots
in any sphere can, with a little thought, feed-clothe-shelter herself without
having to get sucked into the Syndicate nightmare of the American Dream.

2) Don't be ashamed to hide.  Hide for a really long time if you need to.
Find a supportive chantry, create a tiny horizon realm bolt-hole, travel
the Umbra for a few years.  Whatever.  The Technocracy doesn't forget, but
it DOES have a budget to maintain.  If they're hemmoraging $$$ tracking
you down to no avail, maybe you become a second-priority target.

3) Don't get on the Pogrom in the first place.  This usually happens because
the Mage DID NOT EXPECT the Spanish Inquisition (NOBODY expects...).  I'm here
to tell you know that this is a very, very real threat.  Find someone older
and wiser and stick to them like glue.  If they go away, find a good hiding
place and go to number 4.

4) Gather information.  This is true of any magickal tradition: internal,
external or ritualistic.  No matter.  The enemy is always the same, and this
can work to your advantage.  Gain as much information as you can about your
enemy and share notes with other trusted Magi.  Follow the ants back to their
hill: where are their orders coming from?  The Technocracy's cronies are
notoriously ill-equipped to handle independent planning, and count on orders
coming from someone ELSE.  Of course, this falls flat on its face when a 
Real Live Technomancer decides you're an interesting research subject.

5) Never, EVER hit them head-on.  Just don't do it.  It's stupid.  They
hve robots, clones, paradox spirits and credit ratings for THEIR counterattack.
What do YOU have?  A fireball.  So -- if you're gonna hit back, and YOU ARE
going to if you don't lose sight of the Big Picture (see 1) -- always, always
have a back door.  If you have gathered enough information (see 4), you'll
know their most likely response to an attack.  Based on this, if you've
taken the time to secure a hidey-hole (see 2), you can get there without
leading Them back to HQ.

6) Pay attention to synchronicity.  If you're worth your weight as a Mage,
you'll recognize that there are precious few coincidences.  If things are
going your way, chances are you've earned the protection of a more powerful
mage who's working behind the scenes to help out.  If things ARE NOT going
your way, don't forget the Technocracy has the same tools as you do and are
probably much better at using them.

That's it for now.

Paul Beakley
adpyb@acvax.inre.asu.edu