“Look around you. Everything you see, touch and taste, this is the Mortal Realm, the land of matter and certainty. Yet behind this mundane facade, a hair’s breadth from our fingers, lies the Immortal Realm. Home of the Gods, and the sphere of magic and its infinite possibilities.”

The Ninth Age is proud to announce the release of the Full Magic Paths book! Within you will find all the background on our newly redesigned magic paths as well as some stunning artworks depicting the magic of T9A!

Recently, version 1.2 was released, and with it a completely revamped magic path system was implemented. Gone are the days of multiple overlapping and redundant paths, allowing for our new design of ten unique paths that each focus on different aspects of the game.

You can find all the details in the Full Magic Paths book, but to give you a taste, the new paths are:

• Alchemy – “Excellency, I have worked with warlocks, flame callers, priests, and all manner of hedge wizards, and I would trade all of them for a skilled alchemist. Not only will they bring fire and death on the battlefield, but they’ll aid in mending arms and armour, and when the fighting’s done, finding the enemy’s loot.” – Captain Grigori of the Aegis and Blade Mercenary Company
• Cosmology – “In this institution, you will learn the ways of balance. You will discover how to shape the equilibrium, the ease with which the hand of Cosmos grasps, or the world slides towards Chaos. Yet always you must ensure its return to harmony” – Lecture given to new students at Canreig University by Master Dratume
• Divination – “A diviner’s greatest strength does not lie in their individual gifts, but when those powers are united. Acting as a conclave, they can see across half the world, and follow a family lineage back to its progenitor” – Memoirs of Peter Tiele
• Druidism – “The true source of druidism is not the soil but the very lifeforce of nature itself. A skilful druid taps the pure essence of Cosmos – locked within the earth at the dawn of time – whom they view as the primaeval Mother figure” – Dr. Freidrich Fischler
• Evocation – “This is the path of the world lying behind the mirror of life! There’s no secret beyond death hidden to us, for we are the Lords of the Souls! We know the Hidden One himself, for we are the masters of the most secret essences! We know the Truth of Names” – Grimoire of the Lords of Souls
• Occultism – “Leave ye not the shadows, ye who dabble in the Hidden Art. Get thee to the gallows, where thief and murderer leave their heart. Seek ye not the open roads, where common man can make his way, for the power of our ancient codes suffer not the light of day” – Occult Creed
• Pyromancy – “Rise, rise oh fire, born with light and inside us with effulgence, lord of the offerings, of sacrifice and transformation, bringer of Truth! You are the inner power of the Cosmos, you the fundamental principle and ultimate reality of life!” – Preparatory hymn for the initiation of a Pyromancer
• Shamanism – “The songs of the spirit that cause my chest to swell, the great howls of the northern wolves which make warriors grown lose their nerve. I know the hearts of the warriors, and I know the fifty two scars that can be called on to keep the mind from clouding. I will take these gifts you have given me master and I use them to keep my kin alive” – Memoires of Yakub Sulaimann
• Thaumaturgy – “I cannot fail the Gods of Volskaya. Nothing can stand between me and my faith in Gods: there can be no ego or selfishness, there can be no doubt or fear, for I am a Thaumaturge, an instrument of death and war in the hands of the beloved Gods of the Volskali“ – the Diary of Vladimir Efimovic
• Witchcraft – “Their witches were able to bring up fogs from nowhere, lead us on wild chases, and confound sailors who were as salt as any you’ll find sailing the world. And that was nothing compared to what they could do if they met your gaze, its as if every shame and secret you hold is laid out in front of them. Let me fight a man or a dwarf any day, at least they’ll just kill me, a witch will just make you wish it were so” – Sgt. Matthias Neshil

Alongside the new magic path system, there were a number of base rulebook and armybook changes. Most significant in this are new army composition guidelines specific to each army and what they specialise in. Some armies will be able to field a true monster mash army, while others focus more on elite infantry. This allows each armybook to be balanced more easily, while retaining the true individuality for each and every army in T9A. Head on over and check the changes out!

We have also had some Content Team members wade into reviews of both changes to magic and the rulebook changes. You can take a look at their reviews here: Tremendous Weekly Content Review

If the Full Magic Paths book has wet your appetite, you can look forward to the Full Basic Rule Book, which will introduce the background of 9th Age with atmospheric stories and stunning artworks. It’s going to be released on December 24!