Shaping the Personality
How do you define your magi? What has he experienced? Who has he met? What are his outlooks on life? Answer these questions, and maybe you know a bit more about your character.
Based on the article, Current Questions for magi development that Jeremiah Genest posted in Gaming Outpost.
Apprenticeship and before
- What was your life like previous to apprenticeship?
- What is your first memory?
- How old were you when you became an apprentice?
- Who was your master and what was he like?
- It is common for one's view of authority to develop in their adolescent years. What is your view of authority, and what event most affected it?
- What did your master expect you to become, and what did you actually become? Are you a disappointment?
- Besides your master who was important to you during your apprenticeship? Another apprentice? A different magus?
- What is your first memory as an apprentice?
- What is your favorite memory from apprenticeship?
- What is your worst memory from apprenticeship?
Lineage
- What was your lineage like?
- Who was your paren, and what are they like?
- Do you have hermetic sibling? What were they like?
- What's the worst thing one of your siblings ever did to you? What's the worst thing you've done to one of your siblings?
- Did you ever meet any other lineage members? Who were they? What did you think of them?
- When's the last time you saw any member of your lineage? Where are they now?
Full Magehood
- What was your Gauntlet?
- What is your relationship with your mater/pater now that you are a full magus?
- What do you expect to gain by studying magic?
- How confident are you about your understanding of magic?
- What is your eventual goal? How do you intend to use your magical powers?
- How do you feel about your powers?
- How do you work your magic?
- What are your specialties, magical and scholastic?
- What are your opinions about the Order? Your House? Your Covenant? How would you rank them in order of importance?
- How do you view the other Houses in the Order?
- Are you more Traditionalist, Transitionalist, or other?
- Do you belong to a secret society? What is your opinion of it?
Morality Questions
- What one act in your past are you most ashamed of? What one act in your past are you most proud of?
- Have you ever been in a magical fight before? Over what, with who, and who won?
- What do you feel most strongly about?
- What do you pretend to feel strongly about, just to impress people?
- What trait do you find most admirable, and how often do you find it?
- Do you have any feelings in general that you are disturbed by? What are they? Why do they disturb you?
- What is your religious view of things? What religion, if any, do you call your own?
- Do you think the future is hopeful? Why?
- Is an ounce of prevention really worth a pound of cure? Which is more valuable? Why do you feel this way?
- What's the worst thing that can be done to another person? Why?
- What's the worst thing you could actually do to someone you hated?
- Are you a better leader or follower? Why do you think that?
- What is your responsibility to the world, if any? Why do you think that?
- Do you think redemption is possible? If so, can anyone be redeemed, or are there only certain circumstances that can be? If not, why do you think nothing can redeem itself?
- Is it okay for you to cry? When was the last time you cried?
- What do you think is wrong with MOST people, overall?
- What is the thing that has frightened you most? Do you think there is anything out there that's scarier than that? What do you think that would be?
Social Life
- What do you look like?
- How do others see you?
- What names have you gone by? Prior to apprenticeship, during apprenticeship, your Hermetic name, any nicknames...
- What are your quirks?
- How do you feel about the common folk, the nobility, the church, the fae?
- Who do you love? Who are your friends, allies and contacts?
- Who rules you? Who do you owe allegiance, favors, etc.?
- From your character's point of view, in relations with socii, is it better to be loved than feared? Or better feared than loved? Would the answer be any different with any other group of people? If so, who?
- Your character gets into a discussion about death and dying. How would your magus describe the perfect death?
- What one word best describes you?
- What is something you had to learn that you hated?
Abstract Issues
- What is your faith? Do you believe in God, the devil, the Old Ones, the pure light of philosophy, or something else?
- What do you value? Are you honest, or do your morals shift when convenient?
- What does it take to change your mind?
- Do you trust in God/Fate/etc to guide you, or do you make your own way?
- What would you do to get what you want? What would you do to those who stand in your way?
- What do you fear most?
- What are your driving goals, long-term hang-ups, short-term wants?
- Has anyone or anything you've ever cared about died? How did you feel about it? What happened?
- What was the worst injury you've ever received? How did it happen?
- What is your current long term goal?
- What is your current short term goal?
- Do you have any bad habits? If so, what are they?
- How private of a person are you? Why?
- What is the most frightening potential handicap or disfigurement you can conceive of? What makes it so frightening?
- Where have you traveled? For what reason?
As a thinking, probably generally philosophically bent person, you’ve probably considered the following questions at least in passing, if not thoroughly obsessed over them.
