Balance is the measure of how well one of the Amenti understands the nature of Ma'at. It is somewhat analogous to a vampire's Humanity.
Overview[]
As an agent of Ma'at in the world, a mummy has a Balance rating that measures the strength of his understanding and relationship with universal justice, balance and rightness. A mummy starts out with only a limited Balance, which is granted by the joining and the rite that gives him with eternal life. As he studies and progresses, proving himself worthy through his words and deeds, he can strengthen and deepen his understanding of this universal principle. An Amenti with a deep understanding of Balance is capable of amazing feats, since those in harmony with Ma'at know that the force of the universe is behind their deeds.
Gaining and Losing[]
A mummy character begins with one point in his Balance score. Gaining Balance is a combination of facing one's mistakes, learning from the wisdom of the Judges of Ma'at and honoring the designs of the divine. Anubis leads a first-time mummy before the Judges of Ma'at, and the mummy learns the primary lessons of balance.
Should one of the Resurrected fall from grace, the judges strip him of any undeserved power. In game terms, a mummy may have his Balance rating reduced immediately, but he retains his current Attributes, Abilities and Hekau until the next time he encounters the judges. At that time, the Judges of Ma'at reduce any of the character's Attributes or Abilities above five that exceed the penitent's present Balance rating. Additionally, any of the character's Hekau paths higher than his current Balance rating are reduced equal to his Balance score, even if this amount is less than five points.
A mummy who has obtained great power and fallen from grace may decided to estrange himself from the judges. It is said that a few of the Ishmaelites and Cabiri thwart the will of Osiris in just such a manner. A refugee from the justice of Ma'at drifts ever further from true balance until he is no more enlightened that the typical person, at best ... or until he falls to the jaws of the Corrupter. The judges deal harshly with such a fugitive mummy should he someday appear before them. Depending upon how long the mummy has chosen to defy the justice of Ma'at, this penalty most likely results in a reduction to Balance 2, along with the accompanying Trait reductions as mentioned previously - unless his crimes merit even worse punishment.
Hierarchy of Sins[]
Offenses are rated according to their seriousness. Less enlightened mummies are accorded a certain measures of understanding by the judges, but with greater understanding to Ma'at comes both greater power and greater responsibility. Those who have a higher Balance are held to a higher standard. Offenses that might have once been tolerated become punishable by a loss in power and prestige. At the most advanced levels, the Reborn become living embodiments of Ma'at, leaving behind the foolish behavior of their earlier ignorance.
| Balance Rating | Offenses |
| 1 | Offenses against individuals, including murder, rape, torture and similar crimes. Any deliberate act that leads to death or permanent harm of a living person who lives in harmony with Ma'at. The lives of all persons living in accord with Ma'at must be honored and respected. |
| 2 | Any of the above intentional offenses against any living creature living in accord with Ma'at. Allowing any of the above offenses to take place without trying to prevent it. |
| 3 | Causing harm to any person out of hatred, jealousy, fear, or the like (although self-defense is acceptable). Destroying particularly valuable or inspirational objects such as ancient ruins or religious icons. Causing harm to yourself, including destructive patterns of behavior, addiction, and so forth. |
| 4 | Doing intentional harm to personal or public property without just cause. Impassioned harm against any living creature. Inflicting emotional harm on another person intentionally. |
| 5 | Doing harm to another person through ignorance, negligence, or thoughtlessness. |
| 6 | Theft, deception, or betrayal against any person. |
| 7 | Doing harm (physical, emotional or spiritual) to any person, for any reason other than self-defense or the upholding of Ma'at. |
| 8 | Doing harm to any living creature, for any reason other than self-defense or the upholding of Ma'at. |
| 9 | Allowing any of the previous offenses to take place in your presence without making an effort to prevent it. |
| 10 | Doing anything less than your absolute best to uphold and embody Ma'at at all times. |
Osiris does not tolerate abuse of his gift of eternal life. If a mummy falls below Balance 1, one of two possible outcomes occurs. The first possibility is that the Judges of Ma'at will consider the mummy unworthy of eternal life. They cast the mummy's soul to Amemait, and the mummy is no more.
The second option and the only chance of the mummy's continued existence is for the Amenti to renounce Osiris and Ma'at and agree to serve Apophis. Making this decision is obviously a horrendous insult to Osiris and all his followers. A mummy who's become so corrupt that such a decision actually seems appealing likely doesn't care much what the Lord of Life thinks. In this eventually, the Corrupter appears and tempts the mummy the next time he enters the Shadowlands. If the mummy agrees to turn to Apophis, the dark serpent changes the Undying spirit to suit its needs. The mummy loses his Balance rating and all benefits of Balance. Instead of receiving the benefit of Osiris, the mummy now gains power from dread Apophis itself.
Benefits[]
The Balance rating affects a number of things in the game:
- Strength of Conviction. A player can roll Balance in order for his character to resist ant temptation or force that tries to get him to take action against the natural order. The scope of this roll includes the influence of Social Attributes and Abilities as well as supernatural powers such as a vampire's Dominate Discipline or a wizard's Mind magic. The Storyteller rates the difficulty depending on the degree of the influence applied to the mummy and how far the act diverges from the natural order. In cases in which the Storyteller allows a Willpower roll in order to avoid a given effect, a mummy's player may add the Balance rating to his Willpower score for the roll.
- Upholding Ma'at. A mummy can use the strength of his Balance to protect the natural order from unnatural changes. In game terms, doing so grants the character a dice pool equal to his Balance score that he may use to oppose true magic spells that mortal wizards cast. Performing this countermagic requires the character to take an action and the player rolls Balance against difficulty 8 to reduce or negate a spell cast by a mage. This ability does not apply against Hekau or a vampire's supernatural abilities.
- Personal Development. The mummy can have Attribute ratings equal to his Balance score, so a character whose Balance goes above five can spend experience to increase his Attributes to superhuman levels. Similarly, a mummy's magical skill it limited by his adherence to the path of Ma'at. No Hekau can exceed his Balance score.
- Power. A character's Balance determines how much Sekhem he can have at any one time. A mummy can only attain a greater Sekhem rating through the use of Hekau.
- Forbiddance. The Reborn can use the power of Ma'at to drive away malign supernatural influences. The character takes an action and a resisted roll occurs against difficulty 6. If the mummy is successful, the malign supernatural influence cannot attack, and it must leave the immediate area as soon as possible. If the two players tie or if the opponent rolls more successes, nothing happens. The precise definition of "malign supernatural influences" is up to the Storyteller. At the very least it includes vampires, ghosts, the walking dead, Banes, fomori, spectres, Nephandi and Marauders.
Other Mummies[]
The Wu T'ian trait of Quest and the Teomallki trait of Direction are functionally almost the same as Balance. The primary differences is that these Reborn are not subjected to the Judges of Ma'at. Instead, the Wu T'ian look to the Eight Immortals for an increase (or decrease) in Quest, while the Teomallki experience visions that lead them to increase their Direction.
References[]
- MTR: Mummy: The Resurrection Rulebook, p. 67, 141-142, 225
- MTR: Mummy Players Guide, p. 73, 77
- cMET: Laws of the Hunt: Players Guide, p. 42, 109