You've been recruited into a cult, something small that turned out to be just a little bit more. However you can't just leave, you agree with their points after all. The world is crooked and there are things older than the history that is known. A shame that most people aren't likely to see it that way.
Earth Bet, a place where you can forge your own future and live a peaceful life. Despite all the new changes, that idea still holds true. Even though monstrous beings stalk the streets and, entire towns are condemned. It matters not who you are; there is a path forward, the idea that has made your nation what it was for so many years.
But that's the thing, it was just an idea…
Is that really how things are? Does hard work really get you anywhere? It has been proven wrong once before. Good deeds and horrible acts can ascend somebody beyond what they were before. Alexandria and the car crash, Legend and the lynch mob, Eidolon, and the falling building—all of them have taken a step beyond the mortal through deeds that have emblazoned them across the minds of humanity.
The idea that hard work and good luck could improve your lot in life has been disproven, cast aside as a new parahumanity rose up. If that idea, that fact that dwelled in the marrow of this world for millennia could be disproven in a mere thirty years, couldn't other ideas be disproven as well.
Perhaps the idea that psychics as it is, facts laid down by greats from centuries past. Does flight not contest with Newton? Does conjuring lasers from your fingertips not disprove Einstein? The mere existence of these powers has shattered old facts and old sciences that were thought rock solid have been cast aside as new ideas rose to the forefront.
Those ideas are powerful things that have crept into the minds of humanity. This is an exception, they crow. Just because one thing is different doesn't mean anything else is different, they cry. Yet they are blind, dismissing anything greater. Even as they delve into parahumanity, their old ideas have grown roots in their souls, impossible to pull out.
However, those ideas are wrong, both old and new. There are older laws, older times than can be charted through soil, and powers older than a mere thirty years. You just have to open your eyes and step out of the shadows. The light may be merciless, but it also holds truth.
And just isn't that an idea?
You wake up, you can feel it in your bones. Something is going to happen today, something special. You can't help but think back, back to where this all began and how you got wrapped up in all of it.
It was a little over a year ago, December 31st, 2002. An angel had come down from the heavens and looked over the city of Lausanne. A song, a gentle melody from her lips, had crooned out and wrapped around the ears of everybody in the city.
People were wary, but as the day passed and nothing, they grew bold and brave. Parties were set up, congregations flocked to the streets to celebrate an angel of the lord, people arrived outside the city to peer upon her majesty.
Then she screamed, her former melody twisting as she twisted everybody inside the city. Within the day, everybody inside was dead or mad, and soon after, it was declared that the entire city would be walled off, left to die. You had left, departing from your home upon hearing that information, and found a bar, someplace to just have a drink and try to forget.
The bits and pieces of the story grew and coalesced as you sat there at the counter, drinking as you tried to forget the faces you saw in the cameras. Nobody truly knew what happened either; ideas and theories floated around, but none of them seemed to click.
"Why so glum?" a voice asked, and you looked up from your drink. A man had sat next to you with an easygoing smile on his face.
"An entire city died," you had replied, morse and not all that wanted to listen to this man. Perhaps you had a bit too much to drink, but you didn't just stand up and leave as your vision fuzzed; you sat there and listened instead as he spoke again.
"And things happen all the time. Why does this affect you so much?" he asked once again, his smile fading somewhat as he poked and prodded. Your vision blurred as you spoke once again.
"This is a change, it could have been something good and it was bad," you told him, this time your voice wasn't as calm. It was an angel who had drifted down from behind the clouds and sung to the people of that fine city. You had hoped this change, one among many would have been good. Yet the city was demented; they turned against each other because of that same person who sang for three days and nights.
"Ah, so it's the change that brought you down," he said, contentedness in his voice as he seemingly settled on the problem.
"No, no," you had told him, "It's that all these changes are bad. All these upheavals of the world just make things shitty," you had slurred. Looking back, you remembered how he had smiled, a coy small thing, as he leaned in closer to you.
"Are all changes bad, are all of these mysteries such an awful thing?" he had asked and for the first time you hadn't responded, he reached out and tapped your lips silencing you.
"Are all of these changes new or just a return to older times?" he asked once again as you finally looked up from his drink as he kept speaking, whatever he had seen inside of you resonating with the words he spoke.
What did he see inside you?
(This will choose the cult's primary principal of the cult you are joining. This cannot be changed without a monumental amount of time and effort. Your initial principal will align with your cults. However, that can be changed much more easily as you learn more about the world and its secrets.)
[] He spoke of this world, how many other worlds are known to exist, and the passageways between them. Figuratively between nations and literally when speaking of the other worlds that have been discovered. (KNOCK is the principle of openings, and of finding hidden passages and portals. It entails secrets that both locksmiths and burglars share, even if they do not realize it.)
[] He spoke about knowledge, and about how some realizations can be so shocking that normal people might even shy away from trying to discover them. He wondered aloud about how people could claim to know so much and yet not even be able to answer a question as simple as "From where do powers come from?" (LANTERN is the principle of knowledge and of its light that is both illuminating and unkind. It entails secrets that are held by oracles, even if they do not realize it, and scholars, even if they later regret it.)
[] He spoke about change, and its necessity. After all, it is not enough to keep a tool sharp for it to be useful, sometimes it is necessary to smelt it down and forge a new one. And about the fact that, surely, that must also hold true for greater principles. Perhaps even the world itself, no? (FORGE is the principle of transformation, fire and destruction, and of reshaping on all levels, be them physical or spiritual. It holds the secrets that both blacksmiths and rebels share deep down in their cores).
[] He spoke about conflict and how even in times of peace it is inevitable. Everything from competition between children, the daily clashing of life and even combat a burden being borne but the new parahumanity. But what rewards might be reaped from conflict, if it is so natural? (EDGE is the principle of violence and cunning, and of strengthening through confrontation, no matter what shape it takes. Its secrets are shared by soldiers and merchants, and any creature who sees itself as a predator.)
[] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[] He spoke about life, and its unceasing energy and continuity. About how all creatures seem to be dancing a grand dance in pace with the heartbeat of the world itself. Neither his words nor his smile stopped for even a moment, and during the whole conversation her fingers kept beating against the bar top. The rhythm was almost hypnotizing. (HEART is the principle of life, preservation and protection, as well as of the dance that must never cease. It is known, even if subconsciously, by any creature that knows happiness and perseverance in the face of adversity, and it is put into practice by dancers.)
[] He spoke about how dry and dull the world truly was, even if nobody was willing to admit it. About how nothing new is ever created by people, only maintained, and about how the world itself seems to have forgotten about what can be learned from the satisfaction of desire. Your eyes almost didn't leave his while she spoke, to the point where you almost didn't listen to what he was saying. (GRAIL is the principle of desire, seduction and thirst. It knows about all things succulent and treats both charisma and seduction as the most pleasant of tools.)
[] He spoke about secrets, about how the world hides its own in the most unusual of ways, and about how those secrets change and transform while the world isn't looking. He didn't talk in circles, but he didn't talk in a straight line either, and at the end of it you were left with the irrevocable impression that something was in the wrong shape. Although you couldn't tell if it was the world, or yourself. (MOTH is the principle of unreason, secrecy and change. It understands chaos by understanding nothing at all and can only be learned by following your own whims. But inevitably, it leads you to where you truly desire to be.)
[] He spoke about the history of this world, and how it sometimes looks more like a knot than a straight line, and about how sometimes it even contradicts itself. It is a commonly held belief that the present can go towards many futures, but is it also possible for the present to be connected to many pasts? (SECRET HISTORIES is the principle of the world itself. It is the study and knowledge of the frailty of cause and effect, and of the secret places where more than one possibility took place.)
I have returned to Cultist Simulator after quite a long time and it has hooked me again. I also have read quite a few other combinations of Worm and that game. So I'd thought I'd try my hand at it. The basic premise is that you have been recruited into a cult about a year ago and just now are they starting to make moves. However just because your cult disagrees with how things are doesn't mean that your personal goals align, just that they do for now. This vote will be held upon for around a day and after that will be character creation.
Biographical information But what does that mean?
Name: Michael Donovan
Nationality: Polish
Age: Younger than the war, older than Parahumanity
Gender: Male
Appearance: A well dressed man with raven black hair. Sharp hazel eyes and a face that is thin like a knife.
Status The body, the soul and, all the things in between
Mundane Status
Status
Total
Base
Esoteric Bonus
Martial
18
17
+1 EDGE
Diplomacy
9
8
+1 GRAIL
Stewardship
7
7
None
Intrigue
8
8
None
Piety
8
8
None
Learning
8
8
None
(Status scale: 8 is an average person, 10 is somebody trained in that field, 15 is an expert and 20 is a world renowned master)
Current/Maximum Health: 4/4 Combat Bonus: +43 (+18 Martial, +5 Well Built, +5 Soldier Parents, +5 Heritage, +10 EDGE) Current Funds: 444 (+100 Funds/Month) Current Inventory:
Combat Gear: Weapons and armor, to kill and maim (+5 to personal combat when you initiate combat)
EDGE Level 3 "A roll of barbed quills the length of your forearm. When struck by them, the wound refuses to close until forced shut by a vast quantity of stitches and even then the wound weeps.
Appraised Cost: 200 Funds
Special properties: Wounds dealt with this artifact require two successes to heal. After dealing three wounds this artifact is expended.
Esoteric Status:
KNOCK
Perks:
Gain access to the Mansus
+5 when attempting to open something
-Level 0: You understand that there are other Worlds, and secret paths between them. But the only one you know is the World in your dream, the Mansus, and perhaps that is the only World that matters. (Allows access to the Mansus)
-Level 1: Not every door is a wound, but every wound is a door. Things can be both opened and closed, you have learned how to tell the diffrence and just how to permit passage even when the door may want otherwise. (+5 when attempting to open something)
-Level 2: Progress: 0/2
LANTERN
Perks:
+1 when attempting to learn the secrets that are within an object
-Level 0: You know that there is more to knowledge than the simple sciences and magics known to mankind, and although you have no idea what it is you have been warned that it can easily blind the careless. (+1 when attempting to learn the secrets that are within an object)
-Level 1: Progress: 0/1
FORGE
Perks:
+1 when attempting to destroy something
-Level 0: You have heard that nothing is truly eternal, and yet nothing can be truly destroyed. While the true meaning of that still eludes you, you have heard that fire can whisper you the answer. (+1 when attempting to destroy something)
-Level 1: Progress: 0/1
EDGE
Perks:
+10 to Personal Combat
+1 to Martial
-Level 0: You have learned that conflict is not only inevitable, but also natural. There is a certain sobriety to be gained from that realization. (+1 to Personal Combat)
-Level 1: Combat is not merely to take, or to end, or to divide. It is not only cunning, or strength, or agony. But there is also no way to describe combat without being intimate with all of those. (Further +4 to Personal Combat)
-Level 2: Every person is a confluence of edges, scraping and clashing against each other to form a greater whole. You can see that and see your own edges, and just how that makes you the man you are today. You may just hate those edges. (Further +5 to Personal Combat, +1 to Martial)
-Level 3: Progress: 0/3
WINTER
Perks:
+5 when resisting things that would harm your mind)
-Level 0: You know that death is not the end, although you know not how you came to learn that. (+1 when resisting things that would harm your mind)
-Level 1: There is something curious about stillness. When the air is still you have quiet, when the mind is still you have peace, but what might happen when the spirit is still? Whatever the answer is, you know that it must not be taught with words, for if the answer breaks the quiet then it is, by principle, incorrect. (Further +4 when resisting things that would harm your mind)
-Level 2: Progress: 0/2
HEART
Perks:
+5 when resisting things that would harm your body
-Level 0: There is a dance that never ceases, and those who dance it cannot be ceased. You know it rhymes with heartbeats and rolls with the beating of drums, but apart from that you know nothing else. (+1 when resisting things that would harm your body)
-Level 1: You've danced that dance of life, the dance that never ceases, never stops. You know that as your heart thrums through your veins and pounds in your ears like thunderbolts that so long as you dance the world will dance with you. (Further +4 when resisting things that would harm your body)
-Level 2: Progress: 0/2
GRAIL
Perks:
+10 when attempting to convince someone of something
+1 Diplomacy
-Level 0: You have heard whispers that there is never any wrong in accepting one's own nature. Your rationality denied such a thing, and yet your body agreed. There might be some deeper knowledge to that. (+1 when attempting to convince someone of something)
-Level 1: You have supped of crimson blood, partaking in one of the worst crimes, minorly at least. You know now that their is power in such unspoken crimes, in the reddest of desires. (Further +4 when attempting to convince someone of something)
-Level 2: Desire is a painful thing, wanting so much can strain the heart, mind and soul. You know that pain will only provoke deeper desires as it settles and is stoked anew. (Further +5 when attempting to convince someone of something)
-Level 3: Progress: 0/3
MOTH
Perks:
+5 when attempting to evade someone, or when you do not want to be found
-Level 0: Everything within our minds is a part of us, being something that was both made by us and something that makes us, even the parts we do not understand. What can be learned from them? (+1 when attempting to evade someone, or when you do not want to be found).
-Level 1: Chaos and yearning are two principals that everybody holds within them, that circle around humanity like buzzards. This chaos can be big or small, even something as simple as removing a lock of hair from your head is enough to have power. (Further +4 when attempting to evade someone, or when you do not want to be found).
-Level 2: Progress: 0/2
SECRECT HISTORIES
Perks:
+1 when attempting to find something
-Level 0: You have been taught that the history of this world is neither an open book nor a strand of rope, and yet it is full of knots, and parts where it has been written over by scribbles. (+1 when attempting to find something)
-Level 1: Progress: 0/1
Traits
Positive:
Well Built: You are robust and tower half a head over most people. (+2 Martial, +5 on tests that require physical strength, and personal combat)
Healthy: Your heart beats louder and your skin is more resilient. (+1 Health)
Negative:
Compromised: Something happened, you overstepped or just pure bad luck. Your cult bailed you out. (You have a personal debt to the master of your cult)
You cannot be denied, not without effort (+4 Martial +5 to Personal Combat, something stirs within)
Regular contacts are classified as one of the following categories, in this specific order:
Acquaintance -> Friend -> Close Friend -> Confidante -> Minion
[Acquaintance]: Anybody you just met will immediately become an acquaintance. This is the first step of most relationships. And unless special narrative circumstances apply, you are reliably able to contact an acquaintance to further your relationship.
[Friend]: Interacting with an acquaintance under almost any circumstances, even if you do not spend an action to do so, will usually upgrade them into a friend.
You may invite a friend to participate in your actions through a "write-in" during the turning phase. But friends can deny those invitations, and they might interact (or even hinder) your planned action in an unpredictable way, depending on the narrative.
[Close Friend]: Spending time and effort (read: actions or funds) on a Friend may upgrade them to a Close Friend.
Close Friends can be relied to have your best interests in mind, and are honestly interested in helping you. They will not purposefully hinder an action that they are involved in, and will generally be more useful/willing to help as the narrative allows.
[Confidante]: A Close Friend can become a Confidante if you inspire loyalty, admiration, or a debt towards you. Usually after you perform an action of great personal relevance to them.
Confidantes are loyal to you. Their moral compasses are not altered, and they will not act in a way that is improbable or out of character. But other than that, they will follow your lead.
Confidantes provide one action point per turn for you to use.
[Minion]: A Minion is a character who is completely under your control. They are willing to kill, die, or perform any other action under your direction.
There are no socially acceptable ways to transform a Confidante into a Minion, and this tier is should be purely hypothetical.
Alicja [SHE IS YOUR ENEMY]
-Lore [UNKOWN]
-Info: A woman a few years younger than you, she got caught up in some of your old business. She's made it her goal to track you down and ensure you pay.
Charlotte
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lore: [UNKOWN]
-Info: A perpetually smiling woman who is your secretary. She tends to care for the people around her, and doesn't like her help being refused. Although the two of you have reached an agreement of sorts regarding what help she gives you.
Fred
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lore: [UNKOWN]
-Info: The head of PR in Houston, and a bit of a portly man. He's jovial and does his job with scary competence, although you don't know much else about him.
Director Carol
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lore: [UNKOWN]
-Info: Your direct boss, a stern and unrelating woman who has shaped the Houston Protectorate around her. She tends to recruit strong personalities with a long past and ensures they work for the good of the Protectorate to quite good succuss.
William (Dispatch)
-Level: [Friend]
-Lore: [UNKOWN]
-Info: A new transfer to Houston with the ability to create bubbles of sped up time he has a chip on his shoulder and a disregard for authority. However he's willing to work under you and likes you despite being a quote "Stick in the mud spook"
The Master
-Lores:[WINTER] [EDGE]
-Info: A young waif of a girl, with flowers woven into her hair. She walks silently and speaks rarely but when she does you feel you heart freeze over and the pain of total unmaking. You have a debt to her, one she will call upon at some point.
Anatoly Ivanov
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lores: [UNKOWN]
-Info: An older Russian man, he speaks little and seems to prefer paperwork to people. Yet he is the closer to the Master.
Ai Hayashi
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lores: [UNKOWN]
-Info: A quiet yet playful woman from the east.
Jane Doe
-Level: [Acquaintance]
-Lores: [UNKOWN]
-Info: A woman with a clear fake name who enjoys talking.
Arch
-Level: [Close Friend]
-Lores: [LANTERN] [UNKOWN]
-Info: A smarmy and well dressed British man who doesn't know when to stop digging. He's quite smart and prone to obsessions in his chosen field of mathematics, however despite never voicing it he is thankful for your aid.
Combatants
-Bonuses: +6 to personal combat
-Info: The fighters, the folks who can carry a bat or shot a gun. They have been trained in the basics of Edge
Politicians
-Bonuses: +6 to some political or high class Actions
-Info: The wealthy and bureaucratic elite who run the city. the more eccentric have been lured into the cult with honeyed words.
Followers
-Bonuses: +1 on tests that require physical strength, and personal combat. +4 to a some Actions
-Info: The nameless people who make up the base of your cult, not practically skilled in much but useful nonetheless
The Battered Grimoire Rites, Rituals and the Things that use them
LORES
Knowledge is a a measure in how well you understand it, or how much of its power you carry
-Your Knowledge bonus is always your Lore level times 10, or the level of your strongest Aspect-related Artifact available times 10
-Your Knowledge bonus is applied to surpass hurdles in the Mansus (something blocking your in the Mansus, a Mansus-borne curse, etc)
-Your Knowledge bonus is also applied when performing Rituals
Application is how well you can practically use your understanding
-You gain character bonuses, such as to combat or convicting depending on your Lore level
-These bonuses are applied to "broadly described" tests, and even in unexpected niche circumstances if the narrative allows it.
-Carrying an artifact, even if it is stronger than your personal Lore level, will NOT influence or boost your Application bonus.
Current known trend of the Application bonus:
-Level 0, an entry point: you gain +1 on specific tests.
-Level 1, a subtle hint: you gain +5 on specific tests.
Improving Lore
You gain a scrap of Lore by either learning or going through a certain experience.
You can only gain scraps from a source that is your Lore level or greater, if you are level 4 for example you cannot gain any scraps from a level 1 source. In addition you may have to pass a test to properly learn from the experience.
The rules for learning from books follow the bellow
Study in general
-You only gain scraps if the source is equal or higher to your current level
-You gain an additional scrap for every 2 levels the source is above yours. So if you are level 1 and study a level 3 book you'll gain 2 scraps.
Reading a book
-You roll against a DC of 50, using Learning and Lantern gaining a scrap of Lore on a success
-The book will not be destroyed on a failure, you have merely failed to learn from it
Deciphering a book
-You must fill the progress bar of the book, using Learning and Lantern
-Upon completion the book is read and you will gain a scrap of Lore, additional effects may vary
Studying an Artifact
-You roll against a DC of (50+10 per Lore level), using Learning and Lantern
-This will determine it's effects, if it's cursed or otherwise dangerous to use.
-Upon completion you will gain a scrap of Lore
Influences
Influences give both a Knowledge and Application bonus of +10, +20, +30, +40.
These bonuses apply to every roll except for ritual rolls, which are too delicate for the overbearing nature of influences to apply
Rituals
Rituals require you passing a few DC's, using the respective Lore. You can boost your roll via sacrifices as shown below.
LIFE
Humans: ???
Others: ??? "Blood is the price, always"
ARTIFACT
Destroy an Artifact, it's level (times 10) will apply to the roll "Break it, burn it, call upon it's nature in a single ending"
REAGENTS
Consume an Reagent, it's level (times 10) will apply to the roll "Everything ends, this one was designed to do so quickly"
Single Circle Rituals
"An overbearing focus, for when delicacy is not needed. It draws attention to us so that it may be wielded"
This Ritual Circle cannot accept sacrifices
The Attention of the Laws
DC: None
Cost: None
Duration: Until the end of the Turn
Effect: Pick a single Lore and double its Application Bonus for a single action. You cannot stack this effect on the same Lore, however you can cast it multiple times on different Lores.
Expedition Rules:
-You choose to undertake an Expedition when planning your Turn. Later a specific vote will be opened to decided the specifics, such as the leader, artifacts to bring and such.
-Summoned Creatures, Confidents and above and you. If you are not there one of them will be the leader.
There are three levels of Expeditions, as seen below.
Expedition Type
Leader Actions required
Confidante/Summon required
Expected duration
Short
1
Free
5 Days
Medium
2
1
10 Days
Long
3
2
15 Days
-All Expeditions require you to spend a certain amount of Funds per day per creature. You must have this amount before you set out. The formula for the amount is (Number of creatures going X Expected duration X base cost)
-If it is completed before spending all the Funds the excess are refunded. If they spend more time than expected a vote will be held to continue or turn back.
-An expedition is a sequence of hurdles that must be defeated, which can range from a mundane forest to an esoteric curse.
-A single "hurdle" will be faced per day, and generally there are less hurdles than there will be days set for an expedition (leaving some room, however small, for failure). If the expedition fails to surpass the hurdle, they will try again on the next day, until they run out of resources.
-A hurdle will always be countered by one (or more) kinds of Lore. This will not be a use of "Application" or "Knowledge" bonus. Instead, the total sum of the Lore level, across all creatures involved, will be used. Regardless if that Lore level is innate from a creature, or due to an equipped artifact.
-A hurdle will have a specific DC. The creature who has the highest "base" advantage against it will roll against the hurdle, and ALL creatures who have Lore levels on the requisite Lore will help.
--Artifacts taken will be "wielded" by a single creature. So, if a creature with Heart 2 is going alone on an expedition, and he takes a Heart 3 artifact, he will be treated as if he had Heart 3. If another creature with no Heart levels join him, that new creature will wield the artifact instead to "optimize" their total Heart level.
-Combat hurdles will begin a regular combat.
Available Wake Expeditions
Location: You do not need a specific location, but you must suspect where your enemy is.
Difficulty: Variable
Expected Actions: 1 (Short Expedition)
Base cost: 5 Funds
Mansus Expeditions
-Only a single may be attempted each Turn.
-You cannot bring anybody else along
-They will always be near the end of the Turn.
-They only cost a single Action as they take place in dreams
Available Mansus Expeditions
Location: The Woods
Difficulty: Unknown, at least a red liquid flecked with gold to be overcome by immersing in greater wants or fought off with stoicism
Lantern to know. Knock to travel. Forge to create. Edge to fight. Winter to silently witness and end. Hearth to move forever more. Grail to indulge in hedonism. Moth to eraticly act.
[X] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[X] He spoke about how dry and dull the world truly was, even if nobody was willing to admit it. About how nothing new is ever created by people, only maintained, and about how the world itself seems to have forgotten about what can be learned from the satisfaction of desire. Your eyes almost didn't leave his while she spoke, to the point where you almost didn't listen to what he was saying. (GRAIL is the principle of desire, seduction and thirst. It knows about all things succulent and treats both charisma and seduction as the most pleasant of tools.)
Let's make the world remember what it is to enjoy life.
We can also use the Grail to try to subdue Zion in the future. In the sense of filling his heroism with the true pleasure of helping people.
[X] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[X] He spoke about change, and its necessity. After all, it is not enough to keep a tool sharp for it to be useful, sometimes it is necessary to smelt it down and forge a new one. And about the fact that, surely, that must also hold true for greater principles. Perhaps even the world itself, no? (FORGE is the principle of transformation, fire and destruction, and of reshaping on all levels, be them physical or spiritual. It holds the secrets that both blacksmiths and rebels share deep down in their cores).
[X] He spoke about how dry and dull the world truly was, even if nobody was willing to admit it. About how nothing new is ever created by people, only maintained, and about how the world itself seems to have forgotten about what can be learned from the satisfaction of desire. Your eyes almost didn't leave his while she spoke, to the point where you almost didn't listen to what he was saying. (GRAIL is the principle of desire, seduction and thirst. It knows about all things succulent and treats both charisma and seduction as the most pleasant of tools.)
[] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
Love me some Winter. Let's be a necromancer and summon monsters from mirrors! Also, literally an entropy cult vs. parahumans/entities is pretty thematic.
As much as I like the narrative of HEART, it can't really be used to attack, can it?
[] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[X] He spoke about life, and its unceasing energy and continuity. About how all creatures seem to be dancing a grand dance in pace with the heartbeat of the world itself. Neither his words nor his smile stopped for even a moment, and during the whole conversation her fingers kept beating against the bar top. The rhythm was almost hypnotizing. (HEART is the principle of life, preservation and protection, as well as of the dance that must never cease. It is known, even if subconsciously, by any creature that knows happiness and perseverance in the face of adversity, and it is put into practice by dancers.)
I wonder what aspects shards and entities have from the point of view of the cultist simulator?
If I were to assume that it would be Lantern because they devote all their time to research and the Edge is due to the fact that their method of solving their problems is fighting and provoking conflict.
Probably the shards would also have a third aspect depending on their specialization.
It would not be a very conceptual confrontation. Winter says that even what died has not completely gone away and that even being dead it is possible to die even more. So such a prospect is not scary, for them it will just be a specific way of life.
There are no harmless Principles, they are all very dangerous and each can be used for an attack, just everyone has their own form of this attack.
The Heart even describes a canonical case of an attack with its help. When the priestess drove a whole group of attackers crazy with the help of drumming. If we take into account the fact that among the aspects of the Heart there is also skin removal, as well as lightning and storms, then this Principles is by no means harmless.
Edit: I completely forgot, but I also think it's worth noting that in addition to the esoteric methods of attack, the cultists of the "Heart" always have their own very strong and hardy body. Although it does not seem significant, do not underestimate the power of a powerful blow that breaks the skull like an eggshell.
[] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[X] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
I like both Grail and Winter, but Winter a little more.
[X] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[x] He spoke about life, and its unceasing energy and continuity. About how all creatures seem to be dancing a grand dance in pace with the heartbeat of the world itself. Neither his words nor his smile stopped for even a moment, and during the whole conversation her fingers kept beating against the bar top. The rhythm was almost hypnotizing. (HEART is the principle of life, preservation and protection, as well as of the dance that must never cease. It is known, even if subconsciously, by any creature that knows happiness and perseverance in the face of adversity, and it is put into practice by dancers.)
[x] He spoke about life, and its unceasing energy and continuity. About how all creatures seem to be dancing a grand dance in pace with the heartbeat of the world itself. Neither his words nor his smile stopped for even a moment, and during the whole conversation her fingers kept beating against the bar top. The rhythm was almost hypnotizing. (HEART is the principle of life, preservation and protection, as well as of the dance that must never cease. It is known, even if subconsciously, by any creature that knows happiness and perseverance in the face of adversity, and it is put into practice by dancers.)
[X] He spoke about life, and how it inevitably leads to death. About stories, and how they inevitably lead to endings. And how all of that was so very beautiful. But whenever you tried to recall his words, you realized he didn't speak much at all. (WINTER is the principle of endings, cold, beauty and silence. It encompasses all things that have already ended and waits patiently for all things that will end. But one knowledgeable on its ways might figure out how to work around endings, and perhaps death itself.)
[x] He spoke about life, and its unceasing energy and continuity. About how all creatures seem to be dancing a grand dance in pace with the heartbeat of the world itself. Neither his words nor his smile stopped for even a moment, and during the whole conversation her fingers kept beating against the bar top. The rhythm was almost hypnotizing. (HEART is the principle of life, preservation and protection, as well as of the dance that must never cease. It is known, even if subconsciously, by any creature that knows happiness and perseverance in the face of adversity, and it is put into practice by dancers.)