When and how does the power show up for sorcerers and oracles?

[HyperMissingno]

For backstory purposes I was wondering when a sorcerer or an oracle would show their powers (and curse in the oracle's case) in their lifetime and how it would show up. Do they start accidentally using cantrips/orisons or is it something different?

[Deadmanwalking]

That's up to you the GM, to some degree. However, based on starting ages, humans generally can be considered 1st level Sorcerers or Oracles between the ages of 16-19, so the powers probably show up within a few years of that.

Stretching that a bit puts them right around puberty or so, which also meshes well thematically with a variety of source material, so that's what I'd go with.

[Luthorne]

This is somewhat covered for Alahazra, the iconic oracle. Seoni's manifestation isn't covered as well, but it seems suggested that her tattoos manifested due to her sorcerous power. Personally, I think there's probably as many ways for it to manifest as stories you'd like to tell, given the variety of oracle curses and mysteries and sorcerer bloodlines.

Perhaps their powers begin to manifest as you describe it, or perhaps their body begins to change, or perhaps it was something more purposeful, like a ritual that unlocked dormant power, or undergoing a supernatural experience that 'awoke' something slumbering inside them, or having a personal encounter with a deity or a deity's servant that purposefully granted the power...perhaps in a dream?

I could definitely imagine an arcane sorcerer as a small child imitating their wizard mother or father (or both?)...much to the shock of said parent. Or a creepy child who began building with his blocks using mage hand...or someone who had a traumatic experience and developed a second personality that took over to handle things the original personality couldn't, the original personality - now emotionally stunted and eternally child-like - finding a conduit to arcane power hidden in their own mind and teaching their other self of magic in strange, surreal dreams...

...like I said, probably as many ways as stories you'd like to tell...

[Westphalian_Musketeer]

I imagine a lot of them are quite a bit like the X-men franchise.

[HyperMissingno]

Westphalian_Musketeer wrote:

I imagine a lot of them are quite a bit like the X-men franchise.

You'll have to clarify this one as all I know about X-men is superheroes that get powers through genetics.

[Westphalian_Musketeer]

I was going to link the scene where a teenaged Rogue (Anna Paquin is the actress) from the 2000 movie, but FOX has that stuff locked down.

Instead have Magneto's first manifestation of mutant powers instead.

Link

[wraithstrike]

I would say a sorcerer would start to show signs around puberty, but it might take a while to control it.

As for an oracle it just depends on when the entity(ies) take notice of them.

X-men(mutants) notice/gain their powers at different ages. They might still be kids, or they might be teenagers.

[Paladin of Baha-who?]

In Seoni's backstory, the tattoos are part of the varisian sorcery tradition.