Fun fact! I went to the LAM
[1] yesterday. And, well... my thought trains were set on certain predictable paths. And then this happened
[2]. Commentary below the writeup:
Collar of Semastri
Artifact 3, Special Attune (mutual 4-dot Principles of love)
Who was Semastri? None can say, for only their name survives in the Age of Sorrows. But some light may be shed on their tastes by the artifact named for them. The Collar of Semastri is ancient beyond imagination - thought to date from before the Shogunate. An intricately patterned fabric band with a golden clasp, it is woven from threads of trust and submission; concepts made manifest through long-lost arts. When attuned by a couple whose love for one another is strong enough, it can be placed around the neck of one willing partner and sealed. As soon as the clasp locks, the collar sinks into its wearer's skin, becoming a tattoo that mirrors the beautiful knotted patterns and interwoven threads of the fabric. Should their love falter, it will deattune automatically.
Once on, the collar cannot be removed by characters other than the wearer or owner without the aid of powerful magic. Either partner may reflexively interrupt its effects at any time, ignoring any mental influence that would stop them from doing so. This does not come without cost - deactivating the collar for a scene causes both partners to lose 1wp from psychic shock, while reflexively breaking attunement without properly removing it causes a 3wp backlash. Should either partner not have sufficient temporary willpower to pay this cost, they take points of bashing damage instead.
Safewording in this way is not usually necessary, though. Under normal circumstances, the collar grants four boons to the partners who make use of it:
- Should one partner have a longer lifespan, the other ages physically at the same rate. Their own longevity is not increased, but they will remain outwardly young until they die.
- The collar is connected to an immaterial leash that leads to the owner's hand; visible to the couple and any other characters that can see the immaterial. The bearing and brightness of this ribbon of light indicate the direction and distance to each partner, allowing the couple to always find their way to one another. Anti-scrying wards interrupt the leash and prevent any powers that function through it.
- Within a radius of (master's Enlightenment x 10) metres, the leash is strong enough that the couple may communicate silently through thought and feeling - though their words are audible to those who can hear the immaterial. At this distance, the couple may take mental Defend Other actions for one another as though the defender was the target of any mental influence directed at their partner.
- Additionally, within this radius the attuned owner's will can subjugate their submissive's. The owner can freely subject the wearer to Compulsions and sensory Illusions - orders that must be obeyed, phantom touches or vivid waking fantasies. Unacceptable orders may not be given in this manner, and the Compulsions cannot prevent the wearer from reflexively breaking the collar's bond.
So yeah, I am
pretty sure I worked out the balance and costs for this. It uses the Principle system, and 4-dot Principles are
not cheap - that's "you killed my father; prepare to die" or "Tristain and Isolde" level territory; most social magic can only create 2- or 3-dot stuff without
considerable effort applied. The dominant also has to care as much about the sub as the sub does about them, which limits potential abuse a bit more, and the safeword is baked in - the sub can always shatter the link; nothing can stop that (though then there's sub/top-drop and both need to be cuddled to regain wp).
I originally had trouble with mechanical balance, but eventually fixed the "socialite puts it on a fighty person and handles their MDV" problem by a) range-limiting it, b) making it interruptible by anti-scrying wards and most importantly c) making the leash a giant obvious glowing ribbon pointing to where the socialite is so that people can go stab them if they're trying to hide. So no hiding in a cave and sending your sub out to do stuff for you; you need to stay close and be findable and stabable. Rating-wise, it's pretty niche/narrow-focus and requires a willing subject, so 3 dots. Thanks to
@Shyft for advice on that point as well as suggesting Special Attunement for the cost (though the Principles were my idea~).
So, that all said; whee magic D/s collar, yay.
[1] London Alternative Market - much kinky, many sexy, very fetish, wow.
[2] I'm not sorry. : 3
