Gnosis is a primary element for gameplay in mage, revolving around spellcasting and all general magical effects
Gnosis affects Numerous factors in gameplay:
- When ritual casting, Gnosis determines the amount of time a spell takes to cast. At the lowest levels of Gnosis, any ritual casting will take hours at least, and force a mage to stay awake for greater spells. As Gnosis increases, ritual casting becomes quicker.
- Gnosis builds the foundation for spellcasting dice pools. Whereas a mundane action uses an Attribute and a Skill, the “Attribute” in spellcasting is Gnosis, while Arcanum is the “Skill.”
- Gnosis determines your character’s maximum traits. Normally, a character is limited to five dots in Skills and Attributes. However, at Gnosis 6+, your character can achieve higher Attribute and Skill ratings.
- Upon Awakening, a mage can only use two Yantras in a given spellcasting. At higher Gnosis levels, she becomes able to integrate more Yantras into her casting.
- Gnosis determines how many spells your character can have active before she needs toReach. This is direct, one-for-one. Every dot equals a spell.
- Gnosis determines the number of Obsessions your character may have at once.
- Legacy Attainments are limited by Gnosis. As the character’s Gnosis increases, the number of potential Attainments does as well; the Arcanum limits of the specific Attainments also increase.
- Gnosis determines the number of Paradox dice that are incurred for eachReach above Arcanum limits.
- Gnosis allows your character to combine multiple spells into a single casting, to get around limitations on numbers of active spells. At Gnosis 3, a mage can combine two spells into one casting. At Gnosis 6, she can combine three. And at Gnosis 9, she can combine four spells
- Gnosis limits the upper limit of a mage’s Arcana. A mage’s highest Arcanum can be three dots at Gnosis 1, four dots at Gnosis 3, and five dots at Gnosis 5. That mage’s other Arcana are limited to a maximum of two dots at Gnosis 1, three dots at Gnosis 2, four dots at Gnosis 4, and five dots at Gnosis 6.
- Gnosis acts as a mage’s “power trait” and adds to Supernatural Tolerance rolls. In contested rolls to resist some supernatural powers, Gnosis adds to the dice pool.
- Gnosis determines how much Mana a mage can contain within her Pattern, and how quickly she can process it. The chart notes a maximum Mana, and how much she can spend in a turn at her level of Gnosis.
- A mage’s Nimbus is partially determined by her Gnosis.
- Every dot of Gnosis comes with a free Praxis.