• Citizenship: Active Players are expected to GM Contracts from time to time. If you have played as a Contractor in your most recent six Contracts, you are barred from playing in The Illumination again until you GM.
• Supernatural Powers: All non-mastery, non-concealed Powers must be obviously supernatural when activated or grant a mutation that marks the wielder as supernatural or bizarre if discovered.

The Nature of the Supernatural

The supernatural is hidden, but it has never truly left the world. Magic once flourished, shaping civilizations, but over time, it was systematically erased or naturally faded. Now, only a few humans can tap into magic—scholars of the esoteric, descendants of old mage bloodlines, or those who have stumbled upon forgotten knowledge. The existence of myths, magic, and supernatural entities is known only to those within the hidden world.

Myths—beings formed from stories—exist among us, shaping and being shaped by human belief. From ancient legends to urban folklore, they retain their powers, though their strength depends on the weight of their myth. Those who can pass as human blend into society, while others hide in secret enclaves like Fabletown or New Reverie. The fear of exposure keeps them from waging open war, but conflicts still brew in the shadows.

Mages, on the other hand, have adapted to the modern era. Their families control powerful magical resources, building research facilities over leyline nexuses and industrializing magic. Some cultivate Mythos spirits to bind them to their bloodlines, ensuring their control over legendary power. Others have turned to homunculi, ancient golems, and magical cybernetics to maintain their dominance. While mage families in Europe stay in the shadows, those in America and Australia have openly built and governed their own magical institutions.

The Hidden War

The supernatural world is embroiled in a Cold War. Open conflict is too dangerous—revealing the existence of magic and myths to humanity could shatter their carefully maintained secrecy. Instead, mage families and mythic factions engage in a quiet war of assassinations, sabotage, and espionage. The battles are fought over control of artefacts, leyline territories, and the most coveted resource of all: Mythoi themselves.

Mercenaries and freelancers navigate this dangerous world, working for the highest bidder while avoiding entanglement in the larger conflicts. Some are Mythos hosts—humans who have been chosen as the next incarnation of a legendary figure, gaining their power and destiny. Others are rogue mages, artifact hunters, or exorcists dealing with manifestations of fear-born legends. Some institutions, like the Clocktower in London or the Mages Guild of America, attempt to regulate this world, but even they bow to the will of the great mage families.

The Contractors and Harbingers

Contractors—those who take on supernatural jobs for profit—are a mixed bag. Some are independent, selling their skills for survival, while others operate under institutions or crime syndicates. Harbingers—those who awaken Mythoi or unearth dangerous knowledge—are feared and sought after. Some mage families cultivate them, seeing them as tools, while others hunt them down, fearing their unpredictability.

In this world, trust is a gamble, power is a currency, and every myth has a price.

Touchstones

Anime: Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night, Jujutsu Kaisen, Noragami, Hellsing Ultimate, Chainsawman

TV Show: American Gods, Sandman

Comic books: Sandman, American Gods, Fables

Books: Dresden Files