Danielle Lauzon, Meghan Fitzgerald, Kieron Gillen, Matthew

Herron, Neall Raemonn Price, Charlie Raspin, Lauren Roy, Malcolm

Sheppard, Monica Speca, Geoffrey Mc ey, era artanian, Tara Zuber
 Everyone liked Donnie. They always liked him.
Donnie served the girl her cappuccino. She
glanced down, and her eyes widened in delight.
Written in the froth, in perfect foam writing, was
the word “Brittany.”
“How did you know my name?”
Donnie shrugged a sculpted shoulder. “When
you walked in the door, I just looked at you and
thought... there’s a Brittany.” He unleashed his
matinee-idol smile for a second. “Was I right?”
Her cheeks reddened as she looked down at her
drink and then, with a calm determination, raised
her gaze.
“This isn’t a thing I’d normally do but…” she
said, “do you want my number?”
“I’m sorry. I’ve got a girlfriend,” said Donnie,
who didn’t.
This wasn’t enough to stop her. She pushed a
business card across the counter. “Well, if you
ever don’t have a girlfriend, call me.” She gave
him a smile that made him suspect she wanted
Donnie to call her, girlfriend or not, and left.
Donnie examined the card. Brittany was a
model. He could have guessed. She was, by any
reasonable standard, beautiful, but Donnie’s
standards were far from standard. Even in L.A.,
where every second barista looked like a sex-
symbol-in-waiting, Donnie was something else.
A week didn’t go by when someone didn’t try to
scout him for one agency or another. When he
told
2 SCION: ORIGIN
them about his life story — abandoned as baby,
terrible foster families, all the misery-porn human
interest a marketing department could ever hope
for — they offered to virtually bury him in cash to
convince him to sign.
Donnie always turned them down, much to
the annoyance and envy of his fellow model-ac-
tor-whatever baristas. That’s not what he came
to town for, he’d explain, though he was never
able to precisely articulate what he had come to
town for. The best he managed was that shoulder
shrug, his smile, and a vague “It just feels like it’s
where I’m meant to be.”
Donnie knew he’d �gure it out and, until then,
enjoyed the game of the place, the endless stream
of tiny offerings, digits he knew he’d never call
pushed across his coffee-shop altar…
His musing was disturbed by Martha. She was
the oldest barista, somewhere in her late 20s,
maybe even edging over the 3-0.
“Hey, Donnie — it’s your turn to close up to-
day,” she said. “Time to see if you can even make
mopping look good.”
Donnie locked eyes, then lowered his head faux
bashfully, looking at her through a rainforest of
lashes.
“Martha, do I have to? I had other plans…”
Martha froze, and then visibly melted, but just
at the moment when Donnie knew she was going
to let him off, she stiffened.
 “No, Donnie. You have to stay late tonight,”
she said, seemingly as surprised as Donnie at the
words coming out of her mouth.
She turned away, before Donnie even managed
to deploy a military-grade pout. This was un-
precedented. He’d done this job for a year, and
was yet to touch any mop other than his surfeit
of luxurious hair. He didn’t know why he was
doing this job, but it certainly wasn’t for dousing
the floor with... whatever you douse the floor
with when you’re mopping. It was only then that
Donnie realised he didn’t actually know how to
mop. He’d never had to. The normally iron-
willed Martha could never say no to him, for
obvious reasons. Few people could.
Everyone had always liked Donnie. Mostly
they really liked him. In Donnie’s universe,
“platonic friend” roughly translated to “friend
who is bid- ing their time.”
He sighed. He’d have to skip the gym. Not that
that was a huge problem — his friends were al-
ways shocked and envious at how little he had
to work out to maintain his body — but it was
always a good opportunity to gather a few more
digits.
APPLE
Donnie had stopped going by his given name
within a day and a half of arriving in L.A. A writ-
er had glanced at his name tag, up at his face,
then leaned across the counter to say, “Don’t you
think that’s a little on the nose, kid?”
Donnie smiled back and, when the writer had
left, googled “on the nose” and realized he
agreed.
Ever since then, Adonis went by Donnie.
• • •
While he didn’t necessarily want to repeat the
experience, staying after hours had its appeal.
Donnie had never seen how the amber light of
sunset almost miraculously transformed the
workaday cafe. As much as a Santa Monica coffee
place could look magical, it did. It distracted him
so much, it took until the floor was as clean as
it was going to get for Donnie to notice the cell
phone.
He couldn’t see how he had missed it. He
couldn’t see how anyone could miss it. It was
gold-plated, wafer-thin, and beautiful. He didn’t
recognize the model. He couldn’t even identify
the brand until he flipped it over, and saw a crisp
apple logo. Perhaps a prototype that someone in
3
 R&D had left? He scoured the locked phone for
any sign of identi�cation.
On the back, there was an inscription carved in
its metal casing:
For The Prettiest One
The door opened. Donnie could have sworn he
locked it, and was halfway through saying that
they were closed before he turned around and
momentarily lost control of all language.
In the doorway was the most beautiful woman
Donnie had ever seen. He would have guessed
she was in her late 30s, but as exquisitely
preserved as Greek marble. The business suit was
simple, a picture frame on her Mona Lisa. Her
hair was ar- ranged in thick braids, a crown high
on her brow. For the �rst time since he was 16
and had met that impossibly lithe Russian
gymnast, he felt the urge to offer someone his
digits. Back then, the athlete had pre-empted him
by passing Donnie his �rst, but now, Donnie
could feel himself reaching for a pen and a
napkin...
“I think you have my phone,” she said.
Donnie came around. A conversation. He re-
membered these. He could handle a conversation.
He raised the phone, glinting in the light.
“I may have. Do you have any ID?”
She made the sort of expression Donnie could
imagine her offering someone who interrupted
a business meeting to tell an extended fart gag.
She sighed, and then aimed one inevitably perfect
�nger at her face.
“I think you’ll �nd this is all the identi�cation I
need.” She smiled for the �rst time, a cold moon
rising on a chill paradise.
Donnie found himself about to pass her the
phone when they were interrupted.
“Oh god, don’t listen to her, Donnie. It’s not her
phone,” said the new voice, “It’s mine.”
Small matters like how the newcomer knew
his name, or the fact that the door hadn’t opened
again, were forgotten as Donnie glanced in her
direction. She had the sort of self-con�dence that
could make Donnie imagine her running a gym
or a laboratory, or else ruling a library where
there was little reading and much pining. She had
the sort of looks that made him want to dive into
a thesaurus in hope of �nding better words to
cap- ture them.
She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful
woman he had ever seen.
4 SCION: ORIGIN
Donnie glanced back at the �rst woman.
Actually, maybe not. It was hard to tell.
“My phone. I’ll take it now…unless you want
things to get rough,” said the second woman,
hand outstretched, “but I really don’t want that.”
Donnie was a half-foot taller than her, but felt
sure that in any �ght, this woman would kick his
ass. If he was pressed, he’d admit that actually
added to her allure. But was she more beautiful
than the regal business woman? It was dif�cult
to tell but was, as far as dilemmas to consider go,
an enjoyable one. He was no closer to a decision
when a third voice interrupted.
“Oh, darling. Don’t. It’s so obviously my
phone…”
Donnie turned towards the new voice. That it
was the third time in as many minutes this had
happened didn’t diminish his sense of awe in
the slightest. She was the youngest of the three,
with neither the grandeur of the �rst or the ap-
pealing threat of the second, but instead radiated
lightness and joy. Her smile was a promise: dawn
when it was cold, rain when it was hot, whatever
you wanted, whenever you wanted it, better than
you could ever have wished.
Yes, it was the most beautiful woman he had
ever seen. There were a lot of them around.
“If you threaten my boy, I’ll make you wish
you were never born,” she said, before laughing.
“Oh, I’m sorry — of course, you were never born,
Little Miss burst-from-Daddy’s-brow.”
“Don’t try to do clever. It’s not your thing. It’s
my thing,” said the second woman to the new-
comer, before turning to the �rst. “Why did you
never teach this blond bastard her place?”
“Do not be too proud of yourself,” said the
original. “You thought it wise to enter a contest
of beauty against the queen of all heavens and the
Goddess of sex. That third place is the best you
can hope for is hardly the strongest argument for
you being ‘Goddess of Wisdom’.”
Donnie looked between the three, and then
back at the golden apple on the phone, and he
started to understand. Three Gods, a dif�cult
decision... and something bad happened
afterwards? Paris? Something about going to
Paris, maybe? Donnie didn’t think that sounded
too bad. Paris was great. Maybe it had rained
when they were there?
But the other part, the most important thing:
The latest arrival had called him “my boy.”
 The �rst was Hera. The second was Athena.
The
third was Aphrodite.
And Aphrodite was his mother.
He was a Scion of the Gods. He was a Scion
of the Gods, and his blood was aflame. He was
a Scion of the Gods; his heart was �lled with an
endless choir of boys and girls like Brittany sing-
ing for him, and only him. He was a Scion of the
Gods, and his name was the accelerator to the
world’s pulse, He was a Scion of the Gods, He
Who Breaks Hearts, He Who...
In the abstract, Donnie knew what a word like
“demigod” meant. The general knowledge was
revealed to be as meaningless as knowing the sun
is merely a ball of hydrogen and helium. True,
but oh so small, so insigni�cant to the purging
incan- descence consuming his every part.
He’d always had an interest in extreme sports,
but everything paled to this. Divinity was the ul-
timate high.
By the time Donnie had returned to something
resembling consciousness, he was shocked to
�nd his knees still worked. The women watched,
patient as only the eternal can be. As he tried to
recover a passing facsimile of his easy charm, his
golden blood sang a warning song to him.
This choice? This petty, shallow, vain little
decision?
It was the most important of his life. “So…
girls. I get it. I have to give this phone to
who’s the most beautiful,” he smiled, remember-
ing how this story went. “Aren’t you meant to try
and offer me a little motivation?”
They all looked at Donnie at once, equally
harshly, then glanced away, innocent. The phone
vibrated in his hand, a new message on the
screen.
The only gift worth having. Power. Only I can make
this world yours. – Hera
Hera met his eyes, dark as a million shadowy
boardrooms.
The phone vibrated again.
Strength and the wisdom to know how to use this
strength. Imagine your perfection. – Athena
APPLE
Athena had folded her arms. Her expression
implied that if he was considering any other offer,
she’d think him a fool.
The phone vibrated once more.
Someone as beautiful as you are, my child. – Aphrodite
Aphrodite winked. Donnie was aware from
how the world treated him that such temptations
are always the sweetest.
Donnie turned from the women, face hidden
from them as he came to his decision. He knew
this would entirely de�ne his future. Those he
didn’t pick would despise him. He’d have hum-
bled them, and the one thing he knew about these
women is that they would never, ever forgive
him.
Did he really want to live with this?
He smiled. Of course he did.
Donnie turned back, holding up the phone.
“I’m sorry ladies, but there’s clearly been some
confusion,” he said. “You’re all extremely beau-
tiful, of course, but this phone is for the prettiest
one.”
He put his thumb on the reader. The phone
unlocked.
“This is my phone.”
The temperature in the room dropped several
degrees. Literally. A sheen of ice covered the
windows, the surfaces of the tables, the badly
mopped floor.
“You don’t know what enemies you’ve made
today, boy,” said Hera.
“Oh, I do,” said Donnie with absolute sincerity,
feeling alive for the �rst time, like the rest of his
life had just been a prologue. “I’ve made the best
enemies a man can have.
“You’ve got my digits. Don’t be strangers,”
he said as he held the door open for the three
Goddesses. “Now get out.”
Everyone liked Donnie.
And he was oh, so bored of that.
5
CREDITS SPECIAL THANKS TO
Writers: Danielle Lauzon, Meghan Fitzgerald, Kieron Aimee Celeste, for all those weekends while I worked.
Gillen, Matthew Herron, Neall Raemonn Price, Charlie
Rose Bailey, Dave Brookshaw, Tyler Schlecker, John
Raspin, Lauren Roy, Malcolm Sheppard, Monica Speca,
Snead, and Stew Wilson, for helping all of us through
Geoffrey McVey, Vera Vartanian, Tara Zuber
Sardonyx. We did it!
Introductory Fiction by: “Apple,” by Kieron Gillen;
Richard Thomas, for giving me a shot.
“Eileen” by Lauren Roy
Joseph Carriker, for recommending me for that shot.
Developer: Neall Raemonn Price
Dixie Cochran, for seeing it all through, among other
Editor: Dixie Cochran
things.
Artists: Shen Fei, William O’Brien, Patrick McEvoy,
Grzegorz Pedrycz, Eric Lofgren, Claudio Pozas, Preston
Stone, Aaron Riley, Felipe Gaona
Cover Artist: Michael Komark
Art Director: Mike Chaney
Creative Director: Richard Thomas
Storypath System by: Rose Bailey, David Brookshaw,
Meghan Fitzgerald, Danielle Lauzon, Matt Miller, Neall
Raemonn Price, Lauren Roy, Malcolm Sheppard, Stew
Wilson

© 2018 Onyx Path Publishing. All rights reserved. References to other copyrighted material in no way
constitute a challenge to the respective copyright holders of that material. “Scion” and all characters, names,
places, and text herein are copyrighted by Onyx Path Publishing.

Keep up to date with Onyx Path Publishing at theonyxpath.com.

6 SCION: ORIGIN
FICTION: APPLE 2 Touchstones
An Incomplete Map of Terra Incognita
38
39
Athens, Greece 39
INTRODUCTION 10 Boston, Massachusetts 39
Themes 1 Kyoto, Japan 40
Relationships 12 Manitoulin Island, Ontario 40
Modern Myths 12 Memphis, Egypt 41
Myths in the Modern Day 12 Mexico City, Mexico 42
Moods 12 New York City, New York 43
How to Use this Book 12 Reykjavik, Iceland 43
An Introduction to Storytelling Games 12 Sao Salvador da Bahia, Brazil 44
The Pantheons 14 Wudangshan, China 45
Media 14 Varanasi, India 45
For Further Reading 15 The Titan Wars 46
Lexicon 16 Loosening the Chains 46
Scion Terms 16 Shaking the Chains 48
Clashing Divine Wills 49
CHAPTER ONE: THE WORLD
18 FICTION: EILEEN BRAN 52
The Way of Things 19
The Titanomachy 20
CHAPTER TWO:
Fate 20 STORYPATH SYSTEM 56
Scions and their Journey 21 The Core Mechanic 57
The World 22 When to Roll Dice 57
All Myths Are True 22 Building a Pool:
History of The World 22 Skills and Arenas 58
All The World’s a Stage 26 Skills 58
Religions and Cults 28 Arenas 61
Types of Cults 29 Approaches 62
Terra Incognita 30 Attributes 62
Lands of The World 30 Dice Pools for Mixed Actions 62
History, Science, and Myth 30 Rolling the Dice 63
The Otherworlds 31 You Against The World 63
The Underworld 31 Difficulty 63
Midrealms 32 Complications 63
The Overworld 33 Enhancements 64
Realms of The World 34 Scale 65
Strange Places 35 Conditions 66
Paths and Doors 36 Threshold Successes 67
Gates 36 Complex Actions 69
Axes Mundi 37

TABLE OF CONTENTS 7
 Failure 69 Warrior 11
Consolation 70 Character Advancement 1 2
Momentum 70 Experience 1 3
Botch 70
The Three Areas of Action 71 CHAPTER FOUR:
Time
Action-Adventure
71
71
COMBAT 114
Initiative 71 Initiative 1 5
Actions 72 Action Phase 1 5
Movement 72 Attack Resolution 1 5
Chases 73 Defending 1 6
Procedurals 73 Defensive Stunts 1 6
Information Gathering 73 Attacking 1 6
Crafting 75 Close Combat Attack 1 6
Intrigue 77 Grapple 1 7
Attitude 78 Ranged Attack 1 7
Influence 78 Thrown Attack 1 8
Bonds 79 Other Combat Actions 1 8
Complicate Action 1 8
CHAPTER THREE: Throwing 1 8
Modifiers to Attack/ Defense Actions 1 8
CHARACTER CREATION 82 Range Modifiers 1 9
Ready-Made Characters 83 Surprise Attacks 120
Eric Donner 84 Resolving Damage 120
Emanuel Montero 86 Bruised 121
Hassan al-Hakim 88 Injured 121
Rashmi Bhattacharya 90 Maimed 121
Rhiannon Jernigan 92 Taken Out 121
Character Creation 94 First Aid 122
Step One: Concept 94 Difficulty 122
Step Two: Paths 95 Scale 122
Step Three: Skills 97 Damage and Scale 122
Step Four: Attributes 97 Weapons and Armor 122
Step Five: Calling and Knacks 97 Weapon Tags 122
Step Six: Finishing Touches 98 Armor Tags 124
Tweaks 99 Diseases 125
Paths 99 Poisons 125
Concept 99 Poisoned 125
Twists of Fate 99
Connections 100 FICTION: EILEEN BRAN 126
Origin Paths 100
Role Paths 103
CHAPTER FI E:
Supernatural Origin Paths
Knacks
104
104
STORYGUIDING 130
Knack Skills 105 The Storyguide’s Role 131
Momentum Expenditure and Enhancement 105 Table Advice 132
Any 105 Reinforce Themes 132
Creator 106 Use All Five Senses 132
Guardian 106 Googling the Myth 132
Healer 107 Rulings, not Rules 133
Hunter 107 The Plot Engine 133
Judge 108 The Seed 134
Leader 109 The Pitch 134
Liminal 109 Deeds and Arcs 134
Lover 1 0 Urban Fantasy (Myth Level: Iron and Heroic) 134
Sage 1 0 Making an Urban Fantasy World 135
Trickster 11 A World of Signs and Wonders 136

8 SCION: ORIGIN
 Heroes’ Journeys 137
On the Threshold 139
APPENDIX:
From the Outside, Looking In 139 SUPERNATURAL PATHS 162
Mythic Tropes 140 Saints 162
The Rule of Three 140 Virtue 162
Home Town Advantage 140 Saint Knacks 163
Stick to the Roads 140 Kitsune 163
Virtue is its Own Reward 141 Kitsune Knacks 164
Beauty is Only Skin Deep 141 Satyr 164
Purity and Defilement 141 Satyr Knacks 164
Fantastic Children 141 Therianthrope 165
Riddle Me This 141 Therianthrope Knacks 166
Wolf-Warrior 166
CHAPTER SIX: Wolf-Warrior Knacks 166
ANTAGONISTS 142 Cu Sith
Cu Sith Knacks
167
167
Archetypes 143 Adjusting Supernatural Origin Paths 167
Archetype Listings 144 Modified Wolf-Warrior: Classical Amazon 167
Major Storyguide Characters 145 Modified Wolf-Warrior: Dahomey Amazon 168
Qualities 146 Modified Wolf-Warrior: Shieldmaiden 168
Attack 146 Modified Satyr Path: Deer Woman 168
Defense 147 Modified Satyr Path: Hulder 168
Utility 147
Social
Occult
147
148
APPENDIX 2: PANTHEONS 170
Sandbags 148 ÆSIR 170
Flairs 148 The Norse Gods 170
Attack 149 MANITOU 171
Defense 150 The Algonquian Pantheon 171
Utility 150 THEOI 171
Support 151 The Greco-Roman Pantheon 171
Social 152 NETJER 172
The Egyptian Pantheon 172
Principles of Antagonist Design 153
KAMI 173
Tension 153
The Japanese Gods 173
Spending Tension 153
TUATHA DÉ DANANN 173
Example Antagonists 154
The Irish Gods 173
Beat Cop 154
ÒRÌSHÀ 174
SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) 154
The YorUbA Pantheon 174
Men in Black 154
DEVÀ 175
Amazon 155
Centaur 155 The Gods of South Asia 175
Kitsune 157 SHEN 175
The Chinese Pantheon 175
Satyr 158
TEOTL 176
Sorcerers 158
Strange Folk (Aos Si) 159 The Aztec Gods 176
Troll
Vodyanoy (Water Spirits)
159
160
APPENDIX 3:
Werewolf (Therianthrope) 161 1E TO 2E DICE ROLLING 178

TABLE OF CONTENTS 9