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Mage: The Ascension is a game about having insane power, playing with the fabric of the universe itself (and then some) while trying to stay anchored to the world that is but a plaything... but it's sometimes hard to grasp what that actually looks like to the actual characters when you're debating what Spheres are needed for what Effect, and tallying up Successes. It's a beast of a system to wrap one's head around, and harder still to really visualize what Mages are doing beyond barking out "Okay, using Forces 3 and Prime 2 I..."
Yet, without a single mention of Arete rolls or asking how many dots someone has in a given Ability or Sphere, Steps on the Path is a masterclass of "show, don't tell" on everything from Tradition world-views to how lengthy Rituals function, from the perspective of the Awakened themselves.
With five short stories this collection illustrates beautifully the simultaneous highs and lows that success brings Mages as they trod along that Fragile Path in the World of Darkness. This is an excellent companion piece to the existing official material, and also a very good on-road for any who might be curious as what Mage: The Ascension can bring to a table.
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