Science! is nothing without Imagination. The Sons of Ether are a strange group to exist in the Council of Nine, but their open approach to the possibility of anything makes them a staunch ally against the Technocracy.
Often labelled as Mad Scientists, the Etherites rely on pseudo-science and barely-understood theories to create effects that exist only in the realm of science fiction. Jetpacks and rayguns are common to the stereotype, but for every crackpot Etherite, there is a member who uses more “grounded” theories to power their effects.
Their understanding of science makes them interesting allies against the technocracy, as the Etherites can understand the workings of Enlightened Procedures used by the Technocracy and subvert it with a little bit of tweaking.
Magic
The Etherites bear an affinity to the Matter Sphere. This allows them to perform a dazzling array of effects by simply adding or subtracting characteristics of one type of matter to another. Running on water, for example by bestowing qualities of non-newtonian fluids to the surface, or imparting the excellent electrical conductivity of gold to wood.
Weaknesses
The Sons of Ether are composed of unique individuals with their own special theories. This in turn makes for a poor union as members occasionally clash with others in hopes of discrediting each other’s work, and their preference for odd or outdated technologies make it difficult for people to take them seriously.
Opportunities
In this day and age of rapidly accelerating technology, the Etherites are finding it easier to ride the wave of innovation. Crowdfunding websites like Kickstarter are allowing them to release experiments to the general public, and winning acceptance from the consensus thanks to innovations done by Sleepers themselves. There was a time when people used to think that wearing Ether Goggles would be too obvious, but in the age of Google Glass, that might just change.
Character Concepts
Crowdsourcing Genius – You knew that the Sleepers were onto something with Kickstarter. The very concept of Crowdsourcing was a marvel, getting people to vote with their wallets and fund something even before it actually existed was novel in itself, but the underlying concept beneath it was better: They were participating in the creation process. It was subtle at first, how your inventions could tweak a little bit of reality, a faster processor, a refined fuel… but with each Backer, the device in question functioned better, experienced a reduced risk for paradox. Now you’re working on injecting the component parts of more complicated machines, letting the Sleepers work on skimming Paradox off the little parts so that the big project… the real project, can finally get off the ground.
Pseudo-Psychologist – Handwriting analysis, color theory, facial analysis, if there was a personality test that became a fad before, you knew it by heart. What has been largely debunked by modern Psychology is your playground. Unlike the narrow-minded practicioners of the science today, you possess the imagination to truly make accurate readings using these tests. What’s better, you don’t even have to resort to talking to a subject about anything remotely related to the topic you’re investigating. Seriously, there’s nothing wrong with these tests… it’s all in the interpretation.
King of Restoration – It’s all in knowing a thing. You’ve never had any difficulty identifying the use of an object, so it was just a little jump to become a restorer of… unique items. From broken artifacts to ruined charms, you’ve made a name for yourself by being able to restore something to the point that it was good as new.
Life and Times of a Philippine Gamer 