Matt Wagner's Mage Avatars as UA Avatars?

[Ian Young]

Chad writes...

> Has anyone looked at the comic book MAGE II: The Hero Defined, by Matt
> Wagner, and tried to work up UA rules for the Avatars they represent?
			[...snip...]
> I don't know, these are just some ideas. Does anyone else find this
> interesting?

Well, I certainly find Matt Wagner's MAGE (both I and II) interesting, and
I couldn't help but make a connection between Wagner's heroes and UA
avatars.  However, as you pointed out, the MAGE heroes are far more
"cinematic" than a UA avatar, though I'd go as far as calling them
straight-forward superheroes (but far classier than most).

I think it might prove difficult to use MAGE or characters therefrom as
direct models for a UA game, because they are so much more epic and
legendary in scale.  I think that's where a significant difference lies --
UA avatars aren't heroes, they're distillations of collective traits that
humanity, as a whole, exhibits, for good or ill; Wagner's heroes represent
legends come alive, the embodiment of ideals and lofty goals that humanity
may wish it had, but may not have ever achieved.  While I think the action,
magick and avatar rules could lend themselves quite well to playing a MAGE
game, following the MAGE storyline would be an ill fit for the UA setting.

On the whole, though, I'd happily recommend MAGE as a very good comic book
to read, and a definite possibility as inspiration for a UA game.

Gone,
Ian