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though, the best of all possible preparations is to choose thecourse of action that will avoid conflict and peril altogether.While diviners aren’t cowards (at least not all of them), feware likely to rush headlong into a fight before every otheroption has been exhausted. Diviners are students not onlyof the arcane workings of spells and magical lore but also ofthe mechanisms of nature, the arts and sciences, and evenhuman behavior. Few are better judges of character thandiviners.In addition to being thoughtful and orderly in their affairs,diviners prize the quality of objectivity. A mind closed to anypossibility (however remote or distasteful one may be) is amind that might be closed to the truth, for the truth is notalways simple or pleasant. Diviners are therefore stronglyinclined toward neutral alignments, and usually favor lawover chaos. Good diviners use their powers to anticipate andprevent harm to others; evil diviners use the knowledge theyaccumulate for their own gain.Diviners are not predisposed to the adventuring life, andmany accept such a career only reluctantly. Still, with herjudgment, cunning, and common sense, a diviner makes avaluable addition to most adventuring parties. In combat,though, diviners sometimes hesitate, overly conscious of theconsequences of making the wrong choice when life anddeath are on the line.Diviners are loners at heart and do not make close friendseasily. Even those who live in great cities tend to remain aloofand apart from their neighbors, avoiding interactions in thepresent to better study the past and the future. Althoughthey show little interest in material possessions, divinersoften cover their research and living expenses by chargingfor their services as seers, fortunetellers, and finders of lostobjects and people.ENCHANTERSThe mind is the ultimate power. Any fool can oppose an enemy byphysical means, but to halt a foe through the sheer force of one’swill—or to turn a most hateful enemy into a loyal ally—is thepurest and most subtly effective manifestation of arcane might.Charismatic, sensitive, and passionate, enchanters tendto be personable and attractive, enjoying fine arts and goodconversation. Even the most blackhearted enchanter can be amesmerizing individual—confident, self-assured, and holdingothers in thrall with manner and word even before thefirst syllables of his charm spell are uttered. Other enchantersare distant and clinical, viewing themselves as coldly rationalstudents of the only subject worth studying—the mind.Enchanters have few predilections in alignment, thoughtheir belief that individual will is the strongest force in themultiverse slants them slightly toward chaos over law. Evilenchanters believe that those who lack the ability to overcomeor resist the power of the mind deserve to be servants tothat power, existing only to be commanded by those withthe ability to do so. Good enchanters adopt the viewpointthat bending another being to one’s will is rarely right, butis preferable by far to killing. A good enchanter deprives anenemy of his volition only as long as he needs to, and, whensuch is warranted, often takes pains to return the subject tohis normal state in such a way as to avoid a traitor’s punishmentat the hands of his comrades or people.Enchanters are commonly the voice of reason in anadventuring party; they view physical combat as a last resortand work hard to devise options and solutions to problemsthat might otherwise elude their companions. Excellentteam players, shrewd negotiators, and superb bargainers,enchanters favor frequenting, or living in, large towns andcities where they easily find many minds that they can study(or manipulate) with impunity.EVOKERSThe universe is the interplay of impersonal forces—some spiritual,some political, some moral, some elemental, and some whose natureshave yet to be revealed. Beneath the surface of the merely physical,fundamental energies form the true nature of all things.The school of evocation attracts the most serious-minded,intense, and determined wizards, devoted to the mastery oftheir craft to the exclusion of almost all else. Notable asceticsin their personal habits, evokers favor spartan surroundings,simple garb, and plain fare, eschewing clutter and luxury asdistractions that deaden one’s perceptions of the real world.In personality, evokers are decisive, forthright, and oftenstubborn. Good evokers perceive evil as an unbalancing forcethat must be opposed, while neutral or evil evokers tend tobe heartless, seeing the trials and ordeals of mortals as thesuperficial results of a larger unseen world at work.Good evokers undertake adventures in response to thecurrents and forces they perceive in the world, striving torespond when and where evil stirs. Evil evokers, not contentto settle for reaction to the universal forces around them,seek to manipulate those forces, altering their ebb and flowthrough their own actions. Regardless of alignment, evokersare natural leaders—fearless, inspiring, and authoritative.Among wizards, their courage on the battlefield has noequal.Evokers prefer quiet and plain homes, seldom dwellingamong large numbers of people. More than a few are hermits,choosing to live in the most rugged and forbidding naturalsites. Common people leave evokers alone, fearing their powerand the danger their reputation suggests—a reputation thatmany evokers do little to discourage.ILLUSIONISTSThe universe is all in the mind that perceives it, and sensation isthe first and only reality. If a tree falls in the forest with no creatureto hear it, then there is no tree.Illusionists tend to be flamboyant, outgoing, and selfassured,many exhibiting a hedonistic streak that can leadto dark and cruel practices in the pursuit of rare and unusualperceptions. Remarkably creative, illusionists enjoy art,literature, poetry, and music, and many are accomplished artistsin their own right. Although their aptitude for scholarlypursuits is as great as that of any other specialist, illusionistsCHAPTER 7ARCANECAMPAIGNS167