SOURCE: Where does your power come from? A Cleric might say “the Gods”, a Necromancer “Shadow” “the Dead” and/or “Pact with Dark Powers” and a Wizard might say “the aether” or “the Universe”.
USE: How are your spells performed? A Cleric might say “presentation of my holy symbol and spoken prayer of invocation” and a Sorcerer “the wand and the word”.
STYLE: How does your magic look and feel? What would the special affects be like? A Cleric might say “divine light and a comforting presence”, a Necromancer “tendrils of unholy darkness” and a Wizard “manifests glowing humming runes”.
LIMITATIONS: You must choose a reasonably common circumstance in which your abilities don’t function as expected or as well as you would hope. A cleric might find performing miracles more difficult on unholy ground and a wizard might have to consult with their grimore every night. You will have to self impose these limits during play.
There is a lot of leeway here to create the caster you want.
If you are going to play a caster you will have to be willing to roll with what may be inconsistent interpretations of your tradition by different moderators. We are all on the same team, but when there isn’t a single GM to ensure that consistency things can get a little loose. Just remember: Magic is an art, not a science ;)
In addition to the mechanical aspects you should also spend some time considering the social aspects.
- Where is your tradition practiced? (also specify what Realm or Realms)
- How well known is it?
- How did become a student? Why did you choose the tradition you did?
- How were you taught? Was there a school? Did you have a mentor?
- What sort of reputation do practitioners of your tradition have, is that reputation deserved or is it based on misconceptions?
Work with the staff on all of this. Once you create a Tradition it exists in the setting and other characters may choose to learn it.
