Magic Vegas Design Example

:Also see Babylonian Tradition (Magic Vegas) and Babylonian Myth
v60 Chapter 3 continued
=== Example Tradition Design: Babylonian ===
Mesopotamian mythology spans nearly 4000 years, encompassing Sumerian, Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Canaanite, Chaldean, Elamite, Hebrew, and pre-Islamic Arab civilizations. As empires grew, waned, and resurged, outsiders who conquered the region militarily were conquered in turn by its culture. Each city was a state, and each state had a god, which is to say a path of magic. As the cities assimilated into empire, a ritual tradition assimilated their discoveries. 
With so many civilizations, over such a long period of history, all of the gods have many names. The most important were “the seven gods who decree” (sounds like the right number): The primary triad of Anu, Enlil, and Enki, the secondary triad of Suen, Shamash, and Ishtar, and Enki’s wife Ninmah. Anu and Enlil have the same portfolio, though, and Suen and Shamash are pretty close as well, so the tradition needs a couple more. Marduk came later in history and became the most important, but his portfolio isn’t focused except to the degree that it overlaps the others, so he’s a better candidate for a patron god of the tradition as a whole. Irkalla is the goddess and/or realm of the dead, an important role in any religion, so she’s in, and for the final slot, the sibling pair Tammuz and Geshtinanna for agriculture and more. 
Many creation myths feature primordial gods with an explanatory role though they don’t seem to have been actively worshiped; in other words, nobody was performing rituals in their name. Some of these primordial gods sound more like places than people, a good source for the worlds from which paths channel. One such is Abzu, the father of Enki, a watery subterranean realm. So the path of Enki channels the world-law of Abzu. Anu isn’t exactly a primordial god, but while Enlil is the god of the sky, Anu his father is the sky personified, so the path of Enlil channels the world-law of Anu. Irkalla is likewise a place, ruled by her consort Nergal, so the path of Nergal channels the world-law of Irkalla. Suen (the moon, god of wisdom and light) and Shamash (the sun, god of justice and even more light) are another father-son team, but neither is clearly a place; they share a path because of their association, their overlap as gods of light, and because together they provide a portfolio of three partial paths. Ishtar is the daughter of Suen, but her portfolio of love and war is broad enough for a path of her own. Ninmah is basically Mother Nature, and one of her names is Ninhursag, Lady of the Sacred Mountain, so Hursag is the world whose law her path channels. Tammuz and Geshtinanna govern agriculture (animals and plants respectively), and a complicated story explaining the seasons associates them with dreams as well. These names are primarily Babylonian versions on the theory that those of the most recent great empire are still in use by magicians who preserve the tradition. 
Other gods suitable as patron spirits include Marduk as mentioned above (leadership), Dagon (farming), Gula (healing), Nabu (scholarship), and Ninurta (battle). As a primordial creator goddess, Tiamat doesn’t quite fit the bill for a Horror, but when Enki imprisoned her husband Abzu, she got mad and birthed a legion of monsters to take revenge, only to be killed by a champion among the gods (Marduk, in the Babylonian version). However, her son Kingu, whom she gave special powers over destiny to lead this legion, could be a Horror with partial paths of Corruption, Fate, and Strategy. Lesser Mesopotamian spirits are known as utukku, sometimes translated as “demon” though they’re not necessarily evil. Their ghosts include vampires, and their sundry Monsters include fiery rock giants, fire-breathing avian wind demons, scorpion-men, and many with unique attributes. Babylonian Nymphs are suited to clerical and housework but sexless, in stark contrast to the Classical archetype. Babylonian Totems are the animals associated with the various gods: Bull, Fish, Fly, Fox, Goat, Lion, Serpent, and Vulture. Little in the mythology quite suggests Familiars, but one relief of a goddess depicts her flanked by owls who might serve that role. Statues of a tradition’s Monsters and Totems typically Embody Sphinx, and tradition makes no mechanical difference for Djinn, Dryads, Eidolons, or Poltergeist. The path of Allies also includes a couple of characteristic means of Divination, and in the Babylonian case, they’re Astrology and Numerology. 
That’s a good start on the game mechanics, but how about symbolism? The language of the tradition as presently practiced is ancient Babylonian, dating to the 4th century AD, but pretty much anything with a cuneiform script will do, along with Classical Arabic or Hebrew (or the dead Elamite language). Cultural weapons include chiefly the composite bow and epsilon axe, the shield, and also the club (or mace), spear, and net as these were the weapons that Marduk used to defeat Tiamat. Swords of the era and region were small, more like a long knife in game terms, or later broadsword-sized sickle-swords (like a streamlined khopesh). These are the weapons that a magician with the Path of Heroes can use with Weapon Adaptation, so they also serve as symbols for use in rituals. The raiment of a priest resembles the scales of a fish, so a modern practitioner could use a sequined garment, and scale armor will also serve. Unlike the misrepresented Vikings, Babylonians favored horned helmets (or horned crowns, or conical hats). Another common symbol of divine authority is the rod and ring, held together in one hand so that together they resemble the old letter thorn (þ) now represented as “th” in most languages that once used it. Untipped arrows serve for divination, as do dice, especially tetrahedral varieties, and boards from games, implying that gambling may have a role in ceremonies, as do sex and the consumption of intoxicants. Sacrifices are burned, so smoking a joint counts twice! Knots are a recurring symbol of protection, so that’s for Countermagic, with specific patterns for each ritual, and a knot frays when its protection fails. (Symbol-Drawing serves to tie knots for ritual purposes, no need for Knot-Tying skill, but ritual knots won’t stay your sheets.)
If there’s one theme that runs through Babylonian mythology, it’s obsession with immortality, strongest in the Epic of Gilgamesh but present in other tales as well, so that’s the Mark of Power accompanying Ritual Magic skill in the tradition. The obsession can manifest as a vain attempt to stay young or the desire to leave an indelible mark on history, and it can lead the most senior magicians, whose time is short, to look into the Horror path of Kingu (for Exchange Bodies). 
====Enki====
As a consistent major god throughout Mesopotamian history, Enki saw his portfolio grow over time, but the most consistent element is that he is the god of water, both ocean and fresh, and creation (especially of mankind), and of “magic” which is a bit hard to pin down but creation qualifies as well as anything. His primary symbol is the capricorn (front half goat, back half fish), so a statuette or relief of a capricorn is the minimum requirement for magic of this path. His animals are fish and reptiles. Thinking about which animal rituals apply to which animals, the main thing to do with fish is find them, before casting a net or line, while snakes can make subtle spies and assassins for one who can summon, command, and interrogate them. However, the god himself turns into a fish in one of the myths, so Skinchange is in. Enki includes partial paths Creation, Sea, and Water, and gate rituals for the watery realm of Abzu, a choatic realm wherein all manner of things come briefly into existence before turning into fish, but turbulent water predominates. When considering a world, where all the rituals of a path (except the gate rituals themselves) apply continually to everyone, that’s the time to look for conflicts (like Firecalm with Conjure flame), but there are none here. While Enki makes mistakes, there’s no obvious character flaw in the tales of him, but he acts as a benefactor to humans when Enlil wants to kill them all, so the Mark of Enki is concern for humanity or perhaps some other aspect of creation (i.e., environmentalism). At the level of a Quirk, Sense of Duty to humanity as a whole doesn’t require goodwill to any particular member thereof! 
====Enlil====
In many polytheistic religions, the chief of the pantheon is the sky or sun god. Babylonian religion has it both ways, with Enlil the sky god as the ruler of the universe, and Shamash the sun as the god of justice in the affairs of men. The minimum symbol for the path is a winged disk or wheel, perhaps with a depiction of an archer in the middle, and a crown of horns is also helpful. As the ruler of the natural order as well as the gods themselves, Enlil enforces time and hence the mortality of men. His animals are the eagle and bull, and his path also includes Rule, Sky, Time, and gate rituals for the realm of Anu, a realm of air with no solid land, where all fragile things turn to dust in time and all the inhabitants are sleepless eagles capable of speech, and their comments to each other carry the power of magical Suggestion, making every conversation a contest of wit and will. (In a realm of air, flight is necessary, hence Skinchange to eagle form, and Lightning and Thunerbolt have a limitation that they only strike targets on the ground.) When Enlil found humans irritating, he decided to wipe out the whole species, so wrath is his Mark. 
====Ishtar====
The goddess of love and war gets around, presented as the consort of most of the male deities, including her own brother, with mortal lovers besides. As Ashereh, she’s even depicted as the consort of Yahweh in some ancient Hebrew temples. Love in her context refers to sex, and she’s more known for impetuosity than maternal devotion, yet her portfolio expanded to include good fortune as well. Her symbol is the eight-pointed star, and her animal is the lion, pulling her chariot. Her path consists of partial paths Battle, Prosperity, and Sex, excluding Fertility (because she’s clearly not a mother goddess) and Panic (for it conflicts with Lust). Ishtar’s gate rituals lead to Xanadu, the subtle hell where everyone is superhuman but consumed with Lust, and satisfying it leads to Unbearable Pleasure, so nothing ever gets done, and anyone who gets left out is willing to fight. Ishtar is impetuous, especially with regard to lovers, so that’s her Mark. 
====Nergal====
The war god of plague, who brings death, also became ruler over the dead, forcefully taking Irkalla as his bride. He also brings death by fire and heat, the scorching desolation of high summer in the Near East, and since he’s identified with Satan, the adversary of Christianity, an inverted pentegram will do for his symbol though there’s no attestation of what else it might have been during Babylon’s heyday. Ironically, the partial path of Death is a poor fit, for Babylonian mythology doesn’t seem to mention Zombies. Nergal’s beasts are the lion, vulture, and insects, so his path includes animal rituals plus partial paths of Aging, Fire, Plague, and gate rituals to Irkalla. The place sounds dreary even before Nergal’s conquest: It’s the land of the dead, and if the living go there, they will die in agony unless protected by magic. For consultation with a ghost, summoning involves less hassle. Nergal’s domineering and ruthless, so that’s his Mark. 
====Ninmah====
Surviving tales of Ninmah mostly involve Enki as well, but they depict her involvement in the creation of both plants and humans, giving birth to multiple gods, and healing Enki. She seems to have more to do with wilderness than agriculture, albeit a plentiful wilderness that some might call paradise. Her symbol is omega from the Greek alphabet (but she had it long before the Hellenes), its shape representing a womb, and her animals the goat and fox, so her path includes the relevant animal rituals, partial paths Healing, Land, and Mother, and gate rituals to idyllic Hursag, the sacred mountain. It’s a splendid place to rest and enjoy nature; the only drawback is the lack of non-magical fire, but electric heating works fine. Ninmah is above-all nurturing and especially protective of women, so that’s her Mark. 
====Suen and Shamesh====
Father and son, gods of light, Shamash rides his chariot (the sun) through the sky and sees all that happens by day while Suen knows all that happens by night. Again due to portfolio overlap, Suen gives his name to the world and Shamesh to the path, and together they form the symbol, crescent moon over solar disk. Shamesh is also judge (of men, gods, and the dead). The path comprises animal rituals for lions and cattle, partial paths of Light, Wisdom, Justice (omitting Entombment) and gate rituals to Babylonian heaven. It’s full of light, so there are literally no shadows in a physical sense, but there are also none in a metaphorical sense, no privacy. People there are in a constant state of mental communion, reading each others’ thoughts with language no obstacle. Two people who visit Suen together will leave with mutual blackmail. Shamesh is famed for generosity and fairness, so either could be his Mark. 
====Tammuz and Geshtinanna====
The god of shepherds and the goddess of plants share the agricultural portfolio, but plants include the wine grape expanding Geshtinanna’s role, plus she is the dreamer giving her name to the dream-world. The path includes Borrow Skill for Assyriology, Psychology, or any agricultural or artistic skill, partial paths of Agriculture, Dream, and Inspiration. These have 19 rituals between them, and the á la carte method admits a score, leaving room for one more, Garble (from the tower of Babel story). Vigor is quite a desirable ritual and one that fits the theme of renewal, and besides, there’s no other place to squeeze it in, so replace Lust (the degree Tammuz feels it has been attributed to Ishtar). Gate rituals lead to another realm unattested in mythology, visitors isolated to dreams, but if they woke, they’d behold a surprisingly barren world that might have foreshadowed desertification of the once-Fertile Crescent, for all the water is wine. Geshtinanna is famously loyal to her brother, as Tammuz is to his consort Inanna (Ishtar), so loyalty is the Mark of this path. 
====Evaluation====
How evaluate the final result? There’s a fair selection of weapons to benefit from the path of heroes and a fair selection of symbols with which to characterize rituals in narrative. The Marks conflict, but the contradictions are readily resolved by tribalism directing the nice traits within the tradition and the mean-spiritedness beyond. Most of the worlds are fit only for punishment, or perhaps a test of mettle, but Hursag is a great place for a hidden headquarters and magical academy, especially with modern electrical appliances replacing the need for fire. No tradition is comprehensive, and Babylonian lacks some rituals which are quite desirable, such as Know Fault and Read Memories, and while it lacks physical illusions, the next best thing is Obscurity. Fine-tuned as a conditional ritual under the control of an expert system, it allows the magician to interact with people while they ignore the weird things about him. For instance, he could walk around in ritual garb or carry a weapon without remark. 
There’s plenty more to like. Obscurity can also protect criminal operations from investigation, and speaking of which, agricultural magic is great for crops that can’t be grown openly. The path of Nergal also has a great set of graduated curses ranging from warning shots like Retch to making a gruesome example with Rotting Death. The tradition’s also great with healing and personal enhancement, good with blessings and protection, decent with divination, productivity, and mental influence. Enki’s ability to create most anything makes up for the inability to Reshape or Repair, and Dream Visitor is immersive Telepathy. The market for such services is excellent.