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Mutant Draft Board: Difference between revisions
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** Similar to a [[Real Life]] test for a radio operations job back in the old days when Morse code was a necessity: applicants were told to go to a particular waiting room, and they would be called in. So they went and waited, listening to the piped-in muzak. Except that buried within the muzak, several decibels lower, were Morse-code instructions to leave and go to a ''different'' room. Testing for Morse competency and picking out signal from noise (or even worse, signal from signal) at the same time!
* The Psychology Service from James H. Schmitz's Hub stories uses a semi-voluntary version of this, similar to the above. The Service ostensibly exists in order to tag and control all telepaths, but is actually another arm of the Overgovernment. In order to maintain its semi-monopoly on telepathy and psionics, telepathic machines are installed in all spaceports, and if the device gets a response from a telepath, the telepath is tagged and implanted with a compulsion that strongly suggests the individual in question seek out the Service to learn about themselves. A few, such as Telzey, are able to overcome the compulsion, and the Service will generally leave them alone (or actively work with them) if the telepath has demonstrated that they know the rules and will not muck things up.
** And the rules are actually very permissive. The Psychology Service routinely turns a blind eye to psis who use their powers to enrich themselves, even to the point of felony
* The Bondsmagi of Karthain from the [[Gentleman Bastard]] series are part this, part criminal family. The whole venture started when one powerful mage went to a less-powerful mage and said, "Join or die." The two worked their way out to three, and so on. They have an exclusive monopoly on sorcery in the world, and if they find anyone practicing who doesn't want to join with them... well, they aren't going to be practicing much longer.
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== Tabletop Games ==
* In ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'', [[Humans Are
** Though the ones who are used for said purpose are actually apparently the best treated psykers in the Imperium, being sacrificed to preserve the life of a [[Physical God]] is apparently treated by the Imperial Priests similarly to [[Martyrdom Culture|martyring oneself to help the Imperium]].
* While the core ''[[Mutants and Masterminds]]'' game doesn't usually invoke this trope, the spin-off Paragons universe has it in spades including two competing Christianity-based cults, multiple mercenary and terrorist groups, and even the Paranormal Professionals Society, which is a combination legal fund and temp employment agency for paranormals complete with a Las Vegas trade show. The degree to which the various groups [[Gotta Catch Em All]] is, of course, up to the GM.
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** This does not stop Apostates and mercenary mages from being dreadfully common, and sometimes absurdly more powerful than mages with formal training (either due to the use of [[Blood Magic]] or by becoming abominations). Additionally, several members of the Circle are semi-openly cooperating with the illegal mages.
** It should be noted that each nation has their own Circle and templars, except for the remnant of the [[Vestigial Empire|Tevinter Imperium]]. It is also not the case with the Dalish elves, but only because they're always on the move and damned hard to find. They don't see mages as evil, but only their Keepers are trained in the use of magic.
*** Dragon Age: Inquisition reveals that the Dalish are less benevolent than they seem; if they have 'excess' mages beyond a Keeper and their apprentice (i.e., beyond what they can practicably keep under control), they deal with the excess by dumping them out of Dalish society and letting the civilized nations deal with the problem. As the 'excess' Dalish mages are abandoned as small children, it usually doesn't end well for
*** Even Tevinter still has both. The difference there is that the Circle was eventually used to bring the Magisters back to power, and the templars are under their control.
*** In this case the Draft Board ultimately falls during the events of [[Dragon Age II]] after centuries of oppression and purges against dissident mages. The catalyst is {{spoiler|Hawke defeating Knight-Commander Meredith after her attack on the Circle of Kirkwall}} which causes the mages of every Circle to [[Late Arrival Spoiler|rise up against the Templars and start a war]]. [[Foreshadowing|Years before this happens]] one Templar even notes the recent increase in mages means they are too numerous to police properly.
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