Esoterica gathers the supernatural rules of Song of Heroic Lands: the standing mystical conditions a character carries, and the mystical acts they perform. This introduction explains the two kinds of thing the rest of the section is built from, how mystical acts are tested, and the general mysteries that belong to no single tradition. The particular powers themselves are organised by tradition — see Arcane, Divine, and Spirit.
Mysteries and Mystical Abilities
The supernatural is carried by two different kinds of thing, and the distinction between them matters at the table.
A Mystery is something a character is: a standing supernatural condition, gift, or connection. A character does not “use” their birthsign or their piety in the moment — those simply describe how the character stands in relation to the unseen world, and they colour other rolls in the background. A Mystery may name an associated skill it works upon, may carry a Level measuring its strength, and may track charges.
A Mystical Ability is something a character does: a spell, rite, prayer, or invocation that is deliberately performed to produce a specific effect. Invoking one is an act, resolved with a test, and it either works or it doesn’t.
Most mystical traditions combine the two. A spirit-worker is bonded to spirits (Spirit Powers, a kind of ability that stands ready) and does perform rites and spirit actions through them; a priest has piety (a Mystery) and performs ritual actions and incantations (Mystical Abilities) that draw on it.