If you look closely at the front and back covers of "Progenitors",
you can tell there's going to be trouble. Anyone who follows "Mage: the
Ascension" has some idea of what the Technocracy are like. They're
hard-nosed, technology-oriented (as the name implies), pro-status quo and
anti-magick. So what does the cover art show? A man disintegrating
someone with a hand gesture. What happened to the technology part of this?
Where's the device that allows him to do this? And if you think that's a
problem, wait till you get to the back and see "New spells...for the
Progenitors". Technocrats don't work with "spells". They aren't pulling
out arcane tomes and wriggling their fingers while chanting strange Latin
phrases (that's the Order of Hermes).
Unfortunately the inside is everything the outside promises.
The Progenitors are, at their most basic, Technocrats who work with
Life magick. They're doctors, drug-designers, genetic engineers, and
everything around and between. As the back of the book implies, they have
the potential to be absolutely terrifying. The catchphrase is "Masters of
the Body...Monsters of the Soul." So why doesn't the book deliver? I have
a deep and abiding love of horrific plots in M:tA campaigns, but darling,
these ain't they.
I did like one section of "Progenitors". There's a group within
the Progenitors called the FACADE Engineers. They do the whole
cloning/replacing/body-snatching thing. It's an interesting section that
certainly brings to mind a whole number of devious plots. Unfortunately,
not far after it we have the plot whereby the Progenitors are causing all
the women in the world to spend lots of money on cosmetics and weight-loss
programs.
There's a section called "Devices: Technomancer Talismans." I
looked through it hoping to find lots of nifty techno-gadgets like they had
in "Void Engineers". After all, most Technocrats rely on technology to
focus their Effects. Instead, there's the ring you wear that lets you do
various Life effects. This is where I figured the authors must be used to
D&D, because this is a Magic Item. It certainly isn't a Device.
Also, when looking through the sample characters, beware. The
power levels are way out of line with other Convention books. If you want
a decent idea of how many Spheres a character should have, or what Arete,
I'd suggest looking in "Technocracy: New World Order" instead.
The one really positive thing I can say about "Progenitors" is
that, in a really roundabout way, it made me come up with some of my best
plots and characters for my Mage chronicle. I was so determined that it
could be done *right* that I had to do it myself. If you're as stubborn as
I am then I recommend trying to find this book on sale; it could do your
campaign a world of good. Otherwise, buy some other book instead
(Euthanatos would be a good place to start, especially if you like the
afore-mentioned horrific plots).
Style: 1 (Unintelligible)
Substance: 1 (I Wasted My Money)
