hollow

    Contrary to beliefs of most Tradition mages, the Hollow Ones do have their own set of beliefs. The primary difference is that most Hollow Ones do not discuss their mutual beliefs with other mages. Many deny that Ascension is a true aspect of reality, preferring to live in the here and now instead of focusin their attentions on the future. The Hollow Ones, more than any other Tradition, reflect the mass-media's beliefs in the occult. As the media is -- for the most part -- ignorant about the truths of the supernatural, the Hollow Ones feel a powerful need to learn for themselves about the realities beyond the legends of werewvoles, vampires, and wraiths.
     To a follower of the Hollow Tradition, the most important aspect of magick is the vast knowledge that can be learned. Mind you, no Hollow One would ever admit anything of the sort to one of his peers. To this end, they are more likely to to use a ouija board or a deck of tarot cards than to use a cauldron or wand; they are so enwrapped in the general beliefs of magick as perceived by the media that what most of the Awakened would disdain as parlor games work quite well as foci for them. More than a few of the Hollow Ones have been known to use a black silk top hat for more than the production of a rabbit. Most Traditions assume that the Goth mages need no foci, but that is usually because their foci are harder to locate with ease and normally take the form of jewelery or fashion accessories. The Hollow Ones realize that magick without foci is possible and some even disdain the use of foci. Those that choose not to find a focus for their magick, however, find learning new Spheres difficult.
     Hollow Ones are very much the slaves of fashion, but only if fashion represents the darkness and decay that surrounds them. No Hollow One likes to admit to being less than knowledgeable, especially in the presence of the other Traditions. While they will deny vehemently a need to be accepted as equals -- normally claiming that they are above such pettiness -- the followers of the Hollow Tradition are as susceptible to the feelings of rejection and inadequacy as any of the Awakened.
     The Hollow Ones believe in the emptiness they all feel inside, the void that they cannot fill no matter how hard they try. This emptiness, or more appropriately, this hollow feeling, is the primary motivating factor in followers of the Tradition. The clothes they wear, the attitudes they carry, all mirror the desolation and longing that many of the Hollow Ones feel.
     The followers of the Hollow Tradition prefer to stay in areas populated by people, preferably those that follow the same Gothic mentality in both dress and lifestyle. In many cases, the bars where Hollow Ones hang become the modern equivalent of opium dens. These punk bars and thrash dance halls are often so filled with Sleepers hopped up or knocked out on drugs that vulgar magick can be used with a lessened risk of suffering Paradox. As often as not, the magick performed is less impressive than what the Sleepers are already seeing.