Post by Lorekeeper on Mar 3, 2007 2:24:09 GMT -8
Soothsay (The Art of Dán)
An incredibly ancient Art, Soothsay allows the practitioner to observe and affect the strings of destiny, dán, and fate. The manipulation of destiny is a staple amongst the legends of the fae, and covers many types of blessings and curses. Soothsayers are subtle but powerful fae, though they owe their skill to the Norns or Fates themselves. Legends tell of users of this Art that refused to at least acknowledge the power of the Fates and soon found their magicks backfiring in terrible ways.
Omen (Pronouncement of Delphi) •
A Soothsayer first learns to probe into the destiny of others on a surface level. Invoking this power tells the caster numerous things about the fate of the subject. This can involve learning about the target from what her situation will likely be within the next few years (based on her current goals and ambitions), whether she has any blessings or curses afflicting her, whether she is being manipulated by other powerful entities, and whether she has some kind special fate planned out by higher powers.
Each success on the casting allows the Soothsayer to ask one question about the subject focusing on the above and related areas. The more involved an answer required beyond yes or no, the more cryptic the response. Also, casting this power on the same subject more than once in the span of a month will result in increasingly cryptic answers to queries.
Since this power involves reading the weave of fate, only subjects with magicks protecting such scrying will have any idea that they are being read, though someone watching the caster might have a good idea.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject whose fate can be divined, with Space being useful for divinations at range.
Tattletale (Revelation of Mimir) ••
After learning to read broad strokes in a subject’s fate, the next step is to uncover that target’s more obvious but secret realities. By casting this power, the Soothsayer sees the subject as she exists in the weave of fate. This allows the caster to bypass illusions, see the target’s true form if shapeshifted, see the subject’s aura, and to get an idea of what her inner personality is like. Successes on the roll are used as dice to counter the target’s various powers of concealment, and the effect lasts for the duration of concentration.
Since this power gives an image of the subject, it can be used to scry on her with use of the Space Realm. Doing this gives a clear view of the subject and what she says, but gives only a hazy and indistinct impression of her location and those she is interacting with, especially in areas of high Mists. Like the previous level, the scrying finds the subject’s presence in the weave of fate so can only be detected if she has powers in place to prevent such scrying.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject to be scryed.
Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair (Attention of Bast) •••
Once fate can be thoroughly read, the caster learns to make minor alterations to a subject’s destiny. This power allows the caster to alter the target’s luck for a period of time. A subject granted good luck has minor good things happen unexpectedly, finds the thing she tries to do succeeding more quickly, and has about twice the probability of good things happening that are purely based on chance. A subject cursed with bad luck has bad things happen unexpectedly, fails at tasks that she should find successful, and has about twice the probability of bad things happening that are purely based on chance. A character with good luck can add three successes to one roll per session that would benefit from chance. A character with bad luck will have one failure per session turned into a botch by the storyteller. The effect lasts one day per success, but can be extended with Time.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject blessed or cursed.
Dance of Destiny (Protection of Atropos) ••••
Where the previous power granted simple good or bad luck, this power offers very specific protection against the effects of cripplingly bad destiny. The subject of this power is temporarily immune to the worst effects of chance and fate, and can thus skate through life without worrying about cruel misfortune. Each success on this power grants the target a temporary reprieve from bad fortune that can be called in at any time. These can be spent to negate a botch, avoid a circumstance that would cause death (though it may still maim), or otherwise escape from a situation that is personally very harmful. A subject who does not use all of his reprieves may pass them on down his bloodline, thus starting rumors of family lines blessed by the faeries to lead a charmed existence. However, a subject who is frequently put under the effects of this power may anger the fates and find that while she is immune to the ravages of destiny, her friends, possessions, and success are not. Abuse of the power is not recommended.
Realm: The Realm indicates who is protected by the fates.
Fate Fire (Judgement of Ma’at) •••••
Masters of Soothsay learn to bend probability to accelerate a subject’s destiny. A target fated to meet a bad end finds signs of that end bearing down on her, while a subject destined to do great things sees her life’s work becoming quickly accessible.
The first step to casting this power is to observe the intended subject, either mundanely or through use of Omen and Tattletale, and gain an idea of where her life is heading on its current course. Once this information is at hand, the caster specifies an event or series of events based on that trend to occur within the next few days. These events can serve as a warning or punishment for those on a bad course, a reward for those who have stuck to a path that does not seem to be going anywhere, or something similar. Many subjects have multiple directions that their life could take, and the caster can specify which of these should be highlighted. The success on the invocation determines the strength of the events woven into the subject’s fate. A small event that serves as a simple omen of the way things are going typically requires only one or two successes, while life altering events can cost up to five successes, and truly, immediately harmful results require more successes than that. Multiple events can be strung together, as long as the successes will cover the entire chain of events.
For example, assume a subject of the casting that is in the process of contemplating a major crime. The caster can expend two successes to have the currently innocent subject imprisoned on suspicion of that crime such that she will be let go after seeing what her punishment would be like. For another four successes the caster might have included in the effect that if the subject goes through with the crime anyway, she immediately gets caught by the police who were still watching her after the arrest. If the subject decides not to commit the crime, or at least not to do so within the next few weeks without better planning, she does not suffer the rest of the chain of events.
As another example, the subject could be an artist that has not been able to get any of her work purchased and is on the verge of Banal burnout. Three successes is sufficient to get her a contact that puts her foot in the door, while five successes might get her picked up for a major show out of the blue.
Realm: The Realm indicates what subject is affected.
An incredibly ancient Art, Soothsay allows the practitioner to observe and affect the strings of destiny, dán, and fate. The manipulation of destiny is a staple amongst the legends of the fae, and covers many types of blessings and curses. Soothsayers are subtle but powerful fae, though they owe their skill to the Norns or Fates themselves. Legends tell of users of this Art that refused to at least acknowledge the power of the Fates and soon found their magicks backfiring in terrible ways.
Omen (Pronouncement of Delphi) •
A Soothsayer first learns to probe into the destiny of others on a surface level. Invoking this power tells the caster numerous things about the fate of the subject. This can involve learning about the target from what her situation will likely be within the next few years (based on her current goals and ambitions), whether she has any blessings or curses afflicting her, whether she is being manipulated by other powerful entities, and whether she has some kind special fate planned out by higher powers.
Each success on the casting allows the Soothsayer to ask one question about the subject focusing on the above and related areas. The more involved an answer required beyond yes or no, the more cryptic the response. Also, casting this power on the same subject more than once in the span of a month will result in increasingly cryptic answers to queries.
Since this power involves reading the weave of fate, only subjects with magicks protecting such scrying will have any idea that they are being read, though someone watching the caster might have a good idea.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject whose fate can be divined, with Space being useful for divinations at range.
Tattletale (Revelation of Mimir) ••
After learning to read broad strokes in a subject’s fate, the next step is to uncover that target’s more obvious but secret realities. By casting this power, the Soothsayer sees the subject as she exists in the weave of fate. This allows the caster to bypass illusions, see the target’s true form if shapeshifted, see the subject’s aura, and to get an idea of what her inner personality is like. Successes on the roll are used as dice to counter the target’s various powers of concealment, and the effect lasts for the duration of concentration.
Since this power gives an image of the subject, it can be used to scry on her with use of the Space Realm. Doing this gives a clear view of the subject and what she says, but gives only a hazy and indistinct impression of her location and those she is interacting with, especially in areas of high Mists. Like the previous level, the scrying finds the subject’s presence in the weave of fate so can only be detected if she has powers in place to prevent such scrying.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject to be scryed.
Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair (Attention of Bast) •••
Once fate can be thoroughly read, the caster learns to make minor alterations to a subject’s destiny. This power allows the caster to alter the target’s luck for a period of time. A subject granted good luck has minor good things happen unexpectedly, finds the thing she tries to do succeeding more quickly, and has about twice the probability of good things happening that are purely based on chance. A subject cursed with bad luck has bad things happen unexpectedly, fails at tasks that she should find successful, and has about twice the probability of bad things happening that are purely based on chance. A character with good luck can add three successes to one roll per session that would benefit from chance. A character with bad luck will have one failure per session turned into a botch by the storyteller. The effect lasts one day per success, but can be extended with Time.
Realm: The Realm indicates the subject blessed or cursed.
Dance of Destiny (Protection of Atropos) ••••
Where the previous power granted simple good or bad luck, this power offers very specific protection against the effects of cripplingly bad destiny. The subject of this power is temporarily immune to the worst effects of chance and fate, and can thus skate through life without worrying about cruel misfortune. Each success on this power grants the target a temporary reprieve from bad fortune that can be called in at any time. These can be spent to negate a botch, avoid a circumstance that would cause death (though it may still maim), or otherwise escape from a situation that is personally very harmful. A subject who does not use all of his reprieves may pass them on down his bloodline, thus starting rumors of family lines blessed by the faeries to lead a charmed existence. However, a subject who is frequently put under the effects of this power may anger the fates and find that while she is immune to the ravages of destiny, her friends, possessions, and success are not. Abuse of the power is not recommended.
Realm: The Realm indicates who is protected by the fates.
Fate Fire (Judgement of Ma’at) •••••
Masters of Soothsay learn to bend probability to accelerate a subject’s destiny. A target fated to meet a bad end finds signs of that end bearing down on her, while a subject destined to do great things sees her life’s work becoming quickly accessible.
The first step to casting this power is to observe the intended subject, either mundanely or through use of Omen and Tattletale, and gain an idea of where her life is heading on its current course. Once this information is at hand, the caster specifies an event or series of events based on that trend to occur within the next few days. These events can serve as a warning or punishment for those on a bad course, a reward for those who have stuck to a path that does not seem to be going anywhere, or something similar. Many subjects have multiple directions that their life could take, and the caster can specify which of these should be highlighted. The success on the invocation determines the strength of the events woven into the subject’s fate. A small event that serves as a simple omen of the way things are going typically requires only one or two successes, while life altering events can cost up to five successes, and truly, immediately harmful results require more successes than that. Multiple events can be strung together, as long as the successes will cover the entire chain of events.
For example, assume a subject of the casting that is in the process of contemplating a major crime. The caster can expend two successes to have the currently innocent subject imprisoned on suspicion of that crime such that she will be let go after seeing what her punishment would be like. For another four successes the caster might have included in the effect that if the subject goes through with the crime anyway, she immediately gets caught by the police who were still watching her after the arrest. If the subject decides not to commit the crime, or at least not to do so within the next few weeks without better planning, she does not suffer the rest of the chain of events.
As another example, the subject could be an artist that has not been able to get any of her work purchased and is on the verge of Banal burnout. Three successes is sufficient to get her a contact that puts her foot in the door, while five successes might get her picked up for a major show out of the blue.
Realm: The Realm indicates what subject is affected.