How can you lose your gift?

[Argentarium]

Hello everybody!

One of my players chose Dark Secret for his character, and since the saga is set in 790 A.D. I'm thinking of making him somewhat responsible for Mercere's drama. I'm new to fifth edition, so I was wondering if the books describe how can a magus lose his gift. Can you help me with that?

Thank you,
Argentarium.

[callen]

I'm not counting sacrificing the Gift here:

• Criamon: Path of Strife
• Potentially a PeVi ritual. (Might require research.) We know InVi can detect the Gift, so the Gift can be affected in some ways by Vim. I don't think a PeVi ritual destroying it would violate anything, and it seems in line with destroying Might. But there is nothing saying there is any understood guideline allowing for it at the moment.
• False Gifts can be lost, which applies if it had been such. Infernal ones can be lost through turning to the Divine. Faerie ones can be lost if your homunculus is found.

[Sanctaphrax]

Pretty sure it's supposed to be possible through a lab accident.

Amazon sorceresses can do it with Papaios Zoi.

And of course miracles can do anything.

[DeedNay]

A really, really bad Twilight experience could theoretically do it...

[Berengar]

@Argentarium

One of my players chose Dark Secret for his character, and since the saga is set in 790 A.D. I'm thinking of making him somewhat responsible for Mercere's drama.

@HoH:TL p.80f

While working with Bonisagus in the lab, Mercere’s Gift was destroyed, removing his ability to work any of his magic. Some say this was an accident, brought about by a flaw in the Parma Magica or his weak Gift, while others say Mercere gave it up voluntarily in pursuit of greater magical mysteries. Hermetic records of that time state that Bonisagus tried to restore him, but did not succeed, and that he considered this his greatest failure. He wrote that it was “a sign of the inherent evil of this world, that magic can so easily destroy what only God can create.”

So the character might have been a supernumerary assistant in Bonisagus' lab in Durenmar at this time, and involuntarily caused the accident. While Bonisagus felt responsible.

ArM5 p.42 Failed Apprentice shows, that such lab accidents happen still.

Making this into a Dark Secret Flaw requires some further work of the troupe. Just why should somebody blame the character, after Bonisagus took the responsibility? Did somebody sometime forge Hermetic records to cover up the accident?

Cheers

[Argentarium]

Thank you so much, this is all very useful!

One Shot, I’d like to put some mystery behind the mishap, probably some cospiracy. And the player character, Firmus filius of Guernicus, will be compromised.
A first draft:

Bonissagus and Mercere are working on something in their lab.

Someone wants to harm one of them, or both, or their work.

Firmus is working there as a lab assistant and does something that triggers the disaster.

He may or may not know who set him up.

He probably doesn’t know why this person wanted the accident to happen.

He may or may not know what the consequences will be. If he does, he’s probably been blackmailed into it, or threatened, or enchanted, or persuaded, or bribed.
Anyway, for some reason the details about the accident are not revealed, and Firmus isn’t pubblicly blamed for it. Nobody seems to be very willing to talk about what happened and why. Bonissagus takes it on himself, probably to stop the talking, and maybe because he thinks Firmus has not done that on purpose, and he doesn’t want to spoil a promising apprentice.

Bonissagus is extremely sorry for his friend Mercere, even more than expected. Maybe he knows it’s also his fault. What they were searching in that lab? Something that no one must know about? Is it something that called for what followed? Has Bonissagus put Mercere (and himself) in a dangerous situation? Or viceversa? Maybe the lab activity isn’t the point… Maybe someone wanted to kill Bonissagus for political reasons. Or Mercere for private reasons.

The mystery lingers, and sooner or later Firmus or the whole troupe will be pulled into it.
In the meanwhile Firmus keeps on with his study and passes the gauntlet. He always does the right thing, behaves well and displays wisdom and diplomacy, earning the respect and acknowledgment of many magi. But there are people around that know at least a bit of what happened. The one/s that set him up, Bonissagus, Mercere and their closests friends, and someone else who may have overheard. Every now and then, someone looks at him with a less than friendly stare. Sometimes a word is spoken to remind him of what happened. All this won’t go away until the mystery is solved.

---

I'm still working on the details and I would appreciate any idea, especially about the motivations behind the people using Firmus as their puppet.

[Berengar]

Best show the player this thread now, and then have him/her make a proposal.

Cheers

[Argentarium]

Will do