- Location
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The following build is to a degree a thought exercise; but mostly because of Clarity, Lesser. If truly convinced it preserves all I care for, none of the Drawbacks seem unreasonable and the benefits are vast.
[The Ordinator]
[O] Bestowal, Least [-1C]
[O] A Choice [-4C] - Tower of Dusk.
[O] Hallowed [-20C] - Hallowed Gift - Paraphernalia
[/] Clarity, Lesser [-9C]
[/] Sublime Fusion [-14C - Reserved for later usage.]
[/] Secrets Worth Keeping [-3C]
[/] Ring of Power - Variable(As in that's the Domain) [-50C]
[/] Lifeblood [-3C]
[/] Fruit of the Grove - Myriad Mulberry [-20C]
[/] Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue [-8C]
[/] The Traveler's Intercession [-16C]
[/] King of Arranor: Flame of Apprenticeship [-10C]
[/] The Undying King: Deathless [-20C]
[/] Drawback: Martyr's Doom [+15C] Sense of Sight.
[/] Drawback: Geassa [+27C]
[/] Drawback: Arborification [+15C]
[/] Drawback: Beast of Principality [+38C]
[/] Drawback: Charitable Works [+20 C]
Remitance unspent, for now; It's time to speak with the Hand.
The offer is clearly defined; 'become a spy of the Hand, reporting back information on crucial Alliance operations.'. Furthermore. for each 'morsel of information', a single boon is received. This seems to me to be a quite exploitable deal, without a single deception on any side! Although the information must be on 'crucial alliance operations', this doesn't require the information itself cause the alliance harm. Receiving this offer, I naturally go to my Patron to ask a simple question: What is the most useless piece of information on crucial alliance operations available? For instance, the current location of a stash of resources already scheduled to be moved the next day; A secret plan set to unfold on the morrow; how to bypass the defences on a fortress already depleted of might; the contents of a stash without revealing its location. Of course, in his wisdom my Patron will not inform me why this information is so useless, and the Hand has made no request about the specifics of the information given; even if he specifies the operation to learn of, there are so very many facets to any task. Fancies he the full troop dossier? very well; My patron may keep me busy until just before the shift change.
If this is unattainable, the build has nonetheless gone to the effort of making itself a particularly valuable recipient of an Expression by taking everything, so perhaps they can find something nonetheless worth the cost; and any costs to the alliance would be mitigated by them knowing-the-hand-knows, a lesser blow than a traitor true.
(An alternative version of this build instead receives the requisite crucial-yet-useless alliance information from the Oroborus's Secrets Worth Keeping. Regardless, the chosen benefit is Hand Over; or if this counts as being a Double Agent, Underhanded: Get Me An Unprincipled Expression Like Hand Over, With No More Than Two Years Of Wait Time.)
Regarding the Drawbacks- one eye is relatively mild, the Geassa are just a bunch of eventual favors, Arborification can be held back by the Alliance and so is less relevant the more powerful your build is as a whole; and Beast of Principality can be avoided using Deathless's minute-ahead death-sense coupled with a speedy use of Intercession, so long as there are no more than three 1 rolls in about 150 days; in the case of the 150 rolls I just did, there was only one (and the second 150 had none, as did the third, then 1 in the fourth, another in the fifth, and two in the sixth; so unless it takes them over two years, it ends up fine.)
Hallowed Gift's 'Paraphernalia' story revolves around variability- A tale whose essence is the amalgamation of disparate elements into an ununified whole, strengthened rather than weakened by thematic incoherence. Wielding practice and the power of a weak superhero, but also a ring of power, a duality of florally-enhanced self, some incidental power from the Traveler, Essence, a death-sense, the Luck of Dusk, and hopefully in time an Expression, the build already possesses an assortment of such things; The Gift's benefits enhance the ability to acquire more and their combined usage. It's fundamentally similar to Pure Progress, but focused on going wide and thereby building up; I'd also judge the narrative reasoning stronger, and it doesn't have a direct method of augmenting its own remit, but I'd expect it can find one somehow.
There's a few interesting options for the Remitance and Sublime; for instance, Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue limit-severed to include every system he knows in time, then fused with Paraphernalia for obvious synergy. Or perhaps Severing Sublime's limits that new magics may be combined into the singular whole over time, an inverse version of Paraphernalia- a single magic with a thousand forms, rather than a thousand forms forming a mass.
(If this build's Hand Engagement should involve a roll, the result is, as it happens, a 9/10.)
[Power At The Right Time]
[R] Sever The Limit [-1R]
[The Ordinator]
[.] Bestowal, Least [-1C]
[.] A Choice [-4C] - Dusk or Midnight
[O] Hallowed [-20C] - Radial Abstraction.
[o] Sublime Fusion [-14C] Minor Bullshit + Fruit
[.] Secrets Worth Keeping [-3C]
[o] Ten Fetters [-12C]
[.] Lifeblood [-3C]
[O] Fruit of the Grove [-20C] - Custom?
[.] Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue [-8C]
[o] The Traveler's Intercession [-16C]
[O] The Undying King: Deathless [-20C]
[o] King of Arranor: Flame of Apprenticeship[-10C]
[x] Drawback: Geassa [+27C]
[ x ] Drawback: Arborification [+15C]
[X] Drawback: Beast of Principality [-38C]
(13 Coins left over)
Regarding Drawbacks, the build is unchanged, save that the absence of Clarity requires the removal of Charitable works, and the specifics of numbers mean Martyr can be safely removed. Sever the limit is not assigned because I'm not sure which part of the plan will require further empowerment; 13 Coins are deliberately left over on the principle that presumably the supply of Lifeblood isn't limited to 5 drops in the whole Alliance, and with one Fruit being worth 20 Coins, doubling it is worth more than 6 Coins.
(Alternatively, it can swap Favored to Ouroborus, take Martyr with a full sense, and get Ring. But it's meant to be a build I'd maybe actually take, in addition to its other properties, so Martyr is only viable with at most an eye.)
Minor Bullshit chooses a magic system revolving around the creation of marks through which the user can perceive and act to some degree, including across universes; the associated fruit might be the Mulberry again, or might need to be customised for the desired results(which include increased ability to monitor those, and increased ability to act through those, as trainable qualities).
The Hallowed power of this build is a cohesive effect with two relevant consequences: That when by my action something is [changed in the favor of my side as a whole even if not otherwise me personally], a portion of the benefit redounds to me in versatile form; and that I also can swiftly and intuitively discern the size of whatever I consider for such purposes.
(Justified through Arborification and Beast's Coin loot for the former; the latter is mostly a matter of implementation.)
Alone, as a singular individual engaging in rampant progression, this build is folly. But this is no solitary journey, but a war. It is more than power that governs; consider the Hand's offer, power for information. Information matters. But information without power is nothing; a silent observer. What you need, is power at the right time.
What matters your might in idleness? What matters your sloth in battle? What matters your ingenuity in the wake of assassination? Whensoever a soldier, an ally, a mage dies, that precise moment is when a great deal of value has been lost; There must power be placed. Whensoever the enemy strikes at a fortification, that is when its artillery must be present; not before, not after. When an opening is presented, that is when you must act. A spear at the right moment can outdo a boulder that falls too late.
In time, reserves of Abstracted might grow ever-vaster, as the watcher grows in discernment and simultaneous cognition; Their baseline capabilities, though growing, gradually eclipsed by the weight of everything they have accomplished, a weight invested only when more shall be yielded than was lost. Through hundreds of mental portals into distant lands, they watch for critical moments, and intercede only when the time is right.
It is not fate, but done perfectly will greatly resemble it to the unaware; enemies just a bit too injured to launch their one last attack, steps just a tad swifter than rockfall behind.
(In terms of rolls, the Beast doesn't show up in the first 150 days; but does show up on the 170th, 174th, 247th, and 304th if not killed before then and in the absence of luck effects. This is arguably survivable depending on how Choice is implemented (by using that as an escape method), but the beast then shows up around the 370th day.).)
[The Ordinator]
[O] Bestowal, Least [-1C]
[O] A Choice [-4C] - Tower of Dusk.
[O] Hallowed [-20C] - Hallowed Gift - Paraphernalia
[/] Clarity, Lesser [-9C]
[/] Sublime Fusion [-14C - Reserved for later usage.]
[/] Secrets Worth Keeping [-3C]
[/] Ring of Power - Variable(As in that's the Domain) [-50C]
[/] Lifeblood [-3C]
[/] Fruit of the Grove - Myriad Mulberry [-20C]
[/] Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue [-8C]
[/] The Traveler's Intercession [-16C]
[/] King of Arranor: Flame of Apprenticeship [-10C]
[/] The Undying King: Deathless [-20C]
[/] Drawback: Martyr's Doom [+15C] Sense of Sight.
[/] Drawback: Geassa [+27C]
[/] Drawback: Arborification [+15C]
[/] Drawback: Beast of Principality [+38C]
[/] Drawback: Charitable Works [+20 C]
Remitance unspent, for now; It's time to speak with the Hand.
The offer is clearly defined; 'become a spy of the Hand, reporting back information on crucial Alliance operations.'. Furthermore. for each 'morsel of information', a single boon is received. This seems to me to be a quite exploitable deal, without a single deception on any side! Although the information must be on 'crucial alliance operations', this doesn't require the information itself cause the alliance harm. Receiving this offer, I naturally go to my Patron to ask a simple question: What is the most useless piece of information on crucial alliance operations available? For instance, the current location of a stash of resources already scheduled to be moved the next day; A secret plan set to unfold on the morrow; how to bypass the defences on a fortress already depleted of might; the contents of a stash without revealing its location. Of course, in his wisdom my Patron will not inform me why this information is so useless, and the Hand has made no request about the specifics of the information given; even if he specifies the operation to learn of, there are so very many facets to any task. Fancies he the full troop dossier? very well; My patron may keep me busy until just before the shift change.
If this is unattainable, the build has nonetheless gone to the effort of making itself a particularly valuable recipient of an Expression by taking everything, so perhaps they can find something nonetheless worth the cost; and any costs to the alliance would be mitigated by them knowing-the-hand-knows, a lesser blow than a traitor true.
(An alternative version of this build instead receives the requisite crucial-yet-useless alliance information from the Oroborus's Secrets Worth Keeping. Regardless, the chosen benefit is Hand Over; or if this counts as being a Double Agent, Underhanded: Get Me An Unprincipled Expression Like Hand Over, With No More Than Two Years Of Wait Time.)
Regarding the Drawbacks- one eye is relatively mild, the Geassa are just a bunch of eventual favors, Arborification can be held back by the Alliance and so is less relevant the more powerful your build is as a whole; and Beast of Principality can be avoided using Deathless's minute-ahead death-sense coupled with a speedy use of Intercession, so long as there are no more than three 1 rolls in about 150 days; in the case of the 150 rolls I just did, there was only one (and the second 150 had none, as did the third, then 1 in the fourth, another in the fifth, and two in the sixth; so unless it takes them over two years, it ends up fine.)
Hallowed Gift's 'Paraphernalia' story revolves around variability- A tale whose essence is the amalgamation of disparate elements into an ununified whole, strengthened rather than weakened by thematic incoherence. Wielding practice and the power of a weak superhero, but also a ring of power, a duality of florally-enhanced self, some incidental power from the Traveler, Essence, a death-sense, the Luck of Dusk, and hopefully in time an Expression, the build already possesses an assortment of such things; The Gift's benefits enhance the ability to acquire more and their combined usage. It's fundamentally similar to Pure Progress, but focused on going wide and thereby building up; I'd also judge the narrative reasoning stronger, and it doesn't have a direct method of augmenting its own remit, but I'd expect it can find one somehow.
There's a few interesting options for the Remitance and Sublime; for instance, Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue limit-severed to include every system he knows in time, then fused with Paraphernalia for obvious synergy. Or perhaps Severing Sublime's limits that new magics may be combined into the singular whole over time, an inverse version of Paraphernalia- a single magic with a thousand forms, rather than a thousand forms forming a mass.
(If this build's Hand Engagement should involve a roll, the result is, as it happens, a 9/10.)
[Power At The Right Time]
[R] Sever The Limit [-1R]
[The Ordinator]
[.] Bestowal, Least [-1C]
[.] A Choice [-4C] - Dusk or Midnight
[O] Hallowed [-20C] - Radial Abstraction.
[o] Sublime Fusion [-14C] Minor Bullshit + Fruit
[.] Secrets Worth Keeping [-3C]
[o] Ten Fetters [-12C]
[.] Lifeblood [-3C]
[O] Fruit of the Grove [-20C] - Custom?
[.] Minor Bullshit Magic Catalogue [-8C]
[o] The Traveler's Intercession [-16C]
[O] The Undying King: Deathless [-20C]
[o] King of Arranor: Flame of Apprenticeship[-10C]
[x] Drawback: Geassa [+27C]
[ x ] Drawback: Arborification [+15C]
[X] Drawback: Beast of Principality [-38C]
(13 Coins left over)
Regarding Drawbacks, the build is unchanged, save that the absence of Clarity requires the removal of Charitable works, and the specifics of numbers mean Martyr can be safely removed. Sever the limit is not assigned because I'm not sure which part of the plan will require further empowerment; 13 Coins are deliberately left over on the principle that presumably the supply of Lifeblood isn't limited to 5 drops in the whole Alliance, and with one Fruit being worth 20 Coins, doubling it is worth more than 6 Coins.
(Alternatively, it can swap Favored to Ouroborus, take Martyr with a full sense, and get Ring. But it's meant to be a build I'd maybe actually take, in addition to its other properties, so Martyr is only viable with at most an eye.)
Minor Bullshit chooses a magic system revolving around the creation of marks through which the user can perceive and act to some degree, including across universes; the associated fruit might be the Mulberry again, or might need to be customised for the desired results(which include increased ability to monitor those, and increased ability to act through those, as trainable qualities).
The Hallowed power of this build is a cohesive effect with two relevant consequences: That when by my action something is [changed in the favor of my side as a whole even if not otherwise me personally], a portion of the benefit redounds to me in versatile form; and that I also can swiftly and intuitively discern the size of whatever I consider for such purposes.
(Justified through Arborification and Beast's Coin loot for the former; the latter is mostly a matter of implementation.)
Alone, as a singular individual engaging in rampant progression, this build is folly. But this is no solitary journey, but a war. It is more than power that governs; consider the Hand's offer, power for information. Information matters. But information without power is nothing; a silent observer. What you need, is power at the right time.
What matters your might in idleness? What matters your sloth in battle? What matters your ingenuity in the wake of assassination? Whensoever a soldier, an ally, a mage dies, that precise moment is when a great deal of value has been lost; There must power be placed. Whensoever the enemy strikes at a fortification, that is when its artillery must be present; not before, not after. When an opening is presented, that is when you must act. A spear at the right moment can outdo a boulder that falls too late.
In time, reserves of Abstracted might grow ever-vaster, as the watcher grows in discernment and simultaneous cognition; Their baseline capabilities, though growing, gradually eclipsed by the weight of everything they have accomplished, a weight invested only when more shall be yielded than was lost. Through hundreds of mental portals into distant lands, they watch for critical moments, and intercede only when the time is right.
It is not fate, but done perfectly will greatly resemble it to the unaware; enemies just a bit too injured to launch their one last attack, steps just a tad swifter than rockfall behind.
(In terms of rolls, the Beast doesn't show up in the first 150 days; but does show up on the 170th, 174th, 247th, and 304th if not killed before then and in the absence of luck effects. This is arguably survivable depending on how Choice is implemented (by using that as an escape method), but the beast then shows up around the 370th day.).)
