There are a number of aspects to Salems mage game. The consillium politics and politics between orders (sometimes within orders) allow for a very cutthroat style of political play. Intellectually focused mages always have the option of looking for secrets that are buried Salem's land and people. Finally for the combative mages there is always the ever present threat of the banishers. While these three styles of play are the norm for most World of darkness games they are by no means the only styles of play that are acceptable here.

Mage is run in such a way that it is very player driven, meaning that the characters goals and accomplishments are more important then any story idea I want to throw out there. I want people to take the initiative and try to fulfill their goals no matter how mundane or extravagant they are.

Instant play characters - Only new mages with no restricted issues will be instant play
New mages - New mages begin at 0 experience. No exceptions.
Established mages - Established mages are mages that have experienced something in the world of darkness. This can be something that happened to them before the awakening (and if so all that xp is applied to non mage attributes, skills, merits, etc as if you were playing a mortal character who just awakened) but more often then not it is the experiences and journey they have had after they awakened (in which case the experience can be spent on anything). Established mages are 1-35 xp characters but are not instant play and require a backstory explaining why they have that experience and preferably some goals that they hope to accomplish
Veteran mages - Veteran mages are mages that range from 36-75 xp and will have a great deal of influence in an order or the consillium. They have survived a lot in the world of darkness and likely have as many enemies as friends. Veteran mages (at the time of this writing) can not be native to salem, the awakened have just not been around Salem long enough to realistically allow Salem natives to play a veteran mage. Playing veteran mages is a privilege and the honor will only be given to people who:
1. Have agreed to have their character take up a special position (examples include Provosts, Curators, or the Adamantine Arrow colonel's that are in charge of guarding their seal of the three wings).
2. Are people who have proven themselves in the game to be roleplayers looking for stories and not powergamers only looking for the most bad ass toon they can make.
3. Are people who have earned my trust to not abuse the power and position
Heroic mages - Heroic mages are mages that have seen more then most mages ever will. They range from 76-100 xp and are usually leaders of orders or major players in the consillium. Making a new mage of Heroic level is strictly forbidden in the game but Heroic mages will be allowed to transfer in from other games with the understanding that they will be played solely here and that any further actions on other websites/tables will not count in the game. Furthermore I require that the GM of the mages game get in touch with me for a talk about the character and player
Legendary mages - Legendary mages are mages that have over 100 xp and have seen more and sacrificed more then anyone can dream of. Their stories should be able to fill multiple novels and their accomplishments have effected entire regions (or in some cases the entire world). Creating a new legendary mage is strictly forbidden in this game nor will I allow legendary status mages to transfer in from other games. The only way to earn a legendary mage is:
1. Have a lower ranked mage work their way up to the 100+ xp bar
2. Be given an invitation by me to play one

The restricted list

1. Characters with attributes at 5 unless its given by the path bonus dot or bought with extra experience
2. Attributes at 1
3. Mages with more then 2 dots in order and/or consolim status
4. Mages with Status in multiple orders
5. Dots in the destiny merit
6. Dots in the Dream merit
7. 4 or more dots in the hallow merit
8. Dots in the Thrall merit

Custom stuff

I do allow players to make Custom legacies, rotes, spells, etc but they must be approved by me before they can enter play. To get something approved send me a Private message with a full write up and I will get back to you within 1 week and let you know if its approved, not approved, or needs work. If something is approved it will be posted in the custom section by me (with credit given to the author)

The narration system

The narration system was an idea that would allow for people to run minor storylines and a way for the staff to find talented storytellers. A narrator is a temporary storyteller that runs a single cabal through a story. At the end of said story the cabal in question is required to give a report on the narrators performance as a storyteller. Mostly favorable reports allow the privilege of being a narrator to continue. Unfavorable reports will make me think twice before bestowing this privilege again. Consistent favorable reports will lead to benefits beyond the 1-3 bonus xp I offer for a person taking on this challenge

Rules for being a narrator

1. You will tell 1 story for 1 cabal at a time
2. Once a story is completed, and if you wish to continue narrating, you will tell another story for a different cabal. Under no exceptions will the same narrator run a story twice in a row for the same cabal. This should help avoid cliques
3. Narrators are required to give me a rough draft/outline of the story to be told before it gets started. Its ok if the story takes a turn not listed in the outline but I want to have a rough idea of what the plan is for the story