First Edition[]
The Mad are completely insane, even more so than the Banishers. Victims of a broken soul (which is thankfully difficult to do, as souls are extremely difficult to permanently damage), the Mad are walking vortexes of destructive magic with the inherent ability to mask themselves from magical scrutiny,[1] following a strict logic known only to themselves, killing all in their way.[2] While not a blatant threat to the Fallen World and the Awakened like the Marauders, they are perhaps more feared for their utterly unpredictable and amoral use of magic, and the Tulpas they summon; living spells born from the sheer unrestrained power in their souls leaking out into the world.[3]
Second Edition[]
The Mad were renamed The Rapt to better describe their condition, which is wholly occult and is not equivalent to mundane mental illness.[4]
Each Enraptured mage is a walking wound in reality spilling uncontrolled magic. Their Nimbuses leak raw Supernal power, cloaking them from Sleepers and causing bizarre phenomena in their wake. An Enraptured mage labors under the weight of a Fault, an arcane compulsion that dictates their behavior or an obsession turned spiritually cancerous.[4]
Rapture results from the loss of all Wisdom. Most Enraptured mages fall through repeated abuses, slowly losing any ability to judge or reason when it comes to using magic. They commit Acts of Hubris until what they would once have thought monstrous or irresponsible is the new normal.[4]
Some Rapt hold onto superficial control of themselves, realizing that discovery and persecution would deny them future freedom to pursue their Faults. These are often the most dangerous. Suppressing the Fault’s drive builds up arcane pressure called Stress within the Enraptured mage’s soul. Left unsated, it spills out through her Nimbus as a Tulpa — uncontrolled manifestations of her magic — often in devastating fashion. No matter how much an Enraptured sorcerer may want to hold back, if she cannot indulge her Fault, the Tulpa force the issue.[5]
Tulpa are manifestations of pure magic that erupt from an Enraptured mage’s Nimbus when her Fault is too long denied. Lesser Tulpa are the uncontrolled power of an Arcanum lashing out in often-destructive fashion across an area, whereas Greater Tulpa are actual Supernal beings drawn into the world through the Rapt’s Fault. The nature of the Fault and its linked Arcanum determine how Tulpa manifest.[5]
There are several types of the Rapt:
- Savants - the most common kind - their Faults are manifestations of their Obsessions, which they pursue to the exclusion of all else. Many savants succumb due to soul-related crimes. [5]
- Malefactors - these Rapt have Faults that were caused by non-magical crimes in the pursuit. The most common kind are serial murderers.[6]
- Walkers - the rarest kind of Rapt. Their souls inhabit their Tulpas, leaving their bodies comatose or catatonic. Since they cannot indulge in their Fault, they always erupt as a Tulpa that let them act on their urges.[6]
The Bellerophon Group[]
The Bellerophon Group[7] is an international network of Awakened, mostly from the Adamantine Arrow, who specialize in researching Rapture and dealing with those who succumb to it. Founded in 1945, Bellerophon shares information and expertise, and keeps vigilant watch for serious incidents caused by Rapt activity.
Usually, an Enraptured magician only comes to Bellerophon’s attention after a disaster is already over, but its members still see value in examining the aftermath. These investigations allow them to learn what they can for future calamities and gather evidence to find and capture the mage responsible. Even now, the Pentacle doesn’t truly understand the full implications of Rapture, and it’s the Bellerophon Group’s duty to assemble a complete picture.
Notable Rapt[]
- Cxaxa Querephis, Demon-Queen of the Sundered Age
- Spiral, the Primal Avatar, a Hive-Claimed Thyrsus
- Thalia, Storm of the Century, a Walker who's Tulpa manifests hurricanes, tornados and wild storms
- Cleodora, Who Reaches for the Depths, a Savant who is Obsessed with opening a Scar to the Lower Depths
References[]
- ↑ MTAw: Left-Hand Path, p. 45
- ↑ MTAw: Left-Hand Path, p. 43
- ↑ MTAw: Left-Hand Path, p. 44
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 MTAw: Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed, p. 64
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 MTAw: Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed, p. 66
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 MTAw: Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed, p. 67
- ↑ MTAw: Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed, p. 65