Mindcrafter
This is a career guide for players intending to create a mindcrafter character. For mindcraft in general, see Mindcraft.
What is a mindcrafter?
In Tazlure, certain people are able to use a different kind of magick. Although routed in the same energies that all other magick uses, this style of magick differs strongly because it relies completely on the power of one's mind. Mindcrafters use their mental prowess and willpower in the same way that a magician uses incantations and gestures; they live a disciplined life, honing their concentration and mental acuity. Because they use their mind for spellweaving, mindcrafters can cast spells with mere gazes. Their spells might not be as powerful as those of an experienced sorcerer, but their stealth and unique mental edge make them formidable spellcasters in their own right. Sample mindcrafters from Tazlure include Lady Rioja and Ashari Gywien.
How is a mindcrafter trained?
First of all, potential mindcrafters must possess some sort of talent. Even more so than all other styles of magick, mindcraft requires its users to have several gifts by birth: an analytical mind, strong willpower, and a knack for magick. Many mindcrafters found in their youth that they could float small items if they concentrated really hard, or that they people they really hated suddenly started to develop chronic headaches. Eventually, such youths strike out to seek magickal training. Many end up learning sorcery instead, as their talent for mindcraft is mistaken for a general talent for magick; a few are encountered by trained mindcrafters and receive proper training.
Mindcraft training is very much a training of the mind. The effects they employ - in the realm of empathy, telepathy, telekinesis or mindspeech - come naturally to them as they hone the magickal powers of their mind. Students of mindcraft learn about meditation and mantras of calming; they are taught about mind-over-matter subjects, are given difficult puzzles and riddles to solve, and, in the final stages of their training, experience gruelling ordeals to train their mental endurance.
Where can you get mindcraft training?
There is only one established location where mindcrafters congregate and oversee training in classes; unfortunately, none have yet found where it is, as its location is a closely guarded secret. Most mindcrafters learn their trade from wandering mentors. There exists a system whereby, in order to spread the practice, each mentor instructs his or her pupils for free, with the sole condition that they pass their training onto other pupils for free, should they encounter a talent. Nobody is exactly sure why this is done, but the general consensus is that the mindcrafters serve some purpose in the greater scheme of things, and that their numbers need to grow for this to work out as it should.
What skills does a mindcrafter normally take?
Mindcrafters take well to any skill that is all or mostly mental in nature. Any skill that is handy in puzzle-solving or self-discipline comes naturally to them as extention of their training. Most experienced mindcrafters pick up some teaching-related skills because of the mentor scheme, and traveling and practical lore skills often result from their wanderings across Tazlure.
Aside from this, a couple of general skills make sense for most mindcrafters. These are:
- Literacy: Like all magicians, mindcrafters benefit from lores and practical casting instructions that are written down. A mindcrafter who cannot read or write robs himself of this valuable source of information, and is usually not taken very seriously by his peers.
- Inner Calm: The ability to calm the mind even under extremely distracting circumstances is a vital ability for most mages, but is especially suitable for mindcrafters, since they hone their mental skills above all.
- Resolve: Willpower is almost a prerequisite to becoming a mindcrafter, so this skill is strongly recommended.
- Meditation: many mindcrafters choose to forego sleep permanently, instead finding rest and recharging themselves by means of a few hours of meditation.
- Alchemy: Few appreciate the full utility of mental stimulants as much as the mindcrafter. When drained from mental exercise or casting, stimulants and other restoratives are quite valuable, and many traveling mindcrafters learn how to brew these from the ingredients offered by their surroundings.
