WhoTheHeckity
But no one ever asks HowTheHeckity
- Location
- Murica 🦅
[X] Plan: Expanding Outward
Punching through the Masquerade (Modern Magical Cultivation Quest)
- Thread starter Useless Writer
- Start date
Winged One
Not the Simurgh
- Location
- definitely the ground
- Pronouns
- They/Them/It
-[X] Work your regular shifts at Allmart
-[X] Ask around for extra shifts
-[X] How big is my brazier anyway?
--[X] 1
-[X] How important is the medium?
-- [X] Butcher's paper (No cost to your finances)
-[X] How do I shoot fire?
My intention is to do clay next turn, and work extra shifts so we don't fuck over our finances with it. That's why I gave the plan that name. As for taking fire this early, our cultivation method clearly has historical animosity with at least the Catholic Church, and that's how I'm justifying my paranoia that combat can happen at any time for any reason.
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Camilla has the biggest brain apparently which is great.
[X] Plan: Expanding Outward
[X] Plan: Expanding Outward
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Plan: Expanding Outward
Yeah, I think I want to get the big one out of the way.
Yeah, I think I want to get the big one out of the way.
CedeTheBees
Probably high right now
- Location
- Somewhere
- Pronouns
- They/Them
That's literally my plan already
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[X] Plan: Expanding Outward
Fire Based Divination from the text of the Option? That sounds fun.
Fire Based Divination from the text of the Option? That sounds fun.
Winged One
Not the Simurgh
- Location
- definitely the ground
- Pronouns
- They/Them/It
Whoops. Not that we're going to win, it seems, but I'll try to pay more attention.
[X] Plan: Working Up To Better Mediums
...wait a second, you edited that plan into your post after I posted mine.
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CedeTheBees
Probably high right now
- Location
- Somewhere
- Pronouns
- They/Them
I edited the bolded words in to make the actions more obvious since they were a little hard to spot in the wall of text
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[X] Plan: Working Up To Better Mediums
- Location
- Midway
[X] Plan: Working Up To Better Mediums
Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
Vote closed, refresh this page in a few minutes to recieve roll results.
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Better than Average, Excellent, and Average Results.
Camilla continues to be just cleaving through this nonsense like a hot knife through better. Clutched the most important roll too with great results (A 20 with a max result of 24? Yes please)
(Specifically, we got 11 on a max of 18, 20 on a max of 24, and 9 on a max of 18 , so our rolls continue to be not-terrible when average is what we need, and fantastic when we need them most)
Camilla continues to be just cleaving through this nonsense like a hot knife through better. Clutched the most important roll too with great results (A 20 with a max result of 24? Yes please)
(Specifically, we got 11 on a max of 18, 20 on a max of 24, and 9 on a max of 18 , so our rolls continue to be not-terrible when average is what we need, and fantastic when we need them most)
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Turn 2 Results (Mistakes were made, disregard this post)
Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
((New order of action results is as follows. Occult-Research-Social-Work, side note, I apologise for the delay, things happened. I don't know if I'll get turn 3 options out tonight, but I'll try))
You devoted the better part of a day carefully inscribing the Symbol onto the sheets of clean printer paper you'd selected from the rapidly dwindling pack you'd had lying around. More than a few crumpled failures littered the tabletop as you regarded the final survivors of your inquisitive eyes and their judgement. Two inscribed sheets sat side by side upon the baking sheet you'd placed between them and the table while a third lingered off to the side. As a precaution you were wearing your most disposable clothes and stand upon another baking sheet to minimize potential scorching should you overheat like you did the first time you... what were you going to call this? Kindling? That sounded passable for now.
With a sharp pricking sensation, the needle pierced the flesh of the tip of your index finger and bright red blood welled forth. With little ceremony you flicked your bleeding finger twice over the two inscribed sheets, a droplet of blood beading off and falling with the same odd slowness you'd noticed the past few times you'd kindled before igniting the sheets. The Embers inside of you rocked twice in quick succession, each time spliting off a single Ember. You flipped your bleeding hand upwards, to prevent any spare blood from falling as you pulled the third inscribed sheet over and placed it atop the ashen remains of the previous sheets.
However, when you attempted to flip you hand back over and kindle with the last sheet, you find yourself... incapable. Sure, you had wanted to a moment ago, but you found yourself... hard pressed to even try. Your Brazier felt very crowded with four Embers rattling around inside you, you felt like you might be able to fit a fifth, but anymore then that would simply spill out. Feeling that this was good enough for now. You recorded your results and stepped out of your baking sheet before turned to your other studies.
It was several days before you even thought of cleaning up the mess you'd left. And another day after that before you could find the time.
(Discovered the limit of your brazier, discovered that Kindling exhausts your Yellow Bile, gained one Inscribed Sheet (Printer Paper))
The passion that had possessed you when learning for so long was gone. A few moments of trying to read a webpage on your phone or read through a chapter of the books you'd gotten out of the local library and you found yourself drifting off onto other things. What few notes you could make were disjointed words rather then short, detail-oriented paragraphs. By week's end you found yourself with maybe a page of notes and no desire to return to studying pyromancy. At least for now.
(Research mechanic revealed: The Difficulty checks of Research actions are influenced by your Yellow Bile, the higher your Yellow Bile, the Easier a task is, This research action was failed due to the new difficulty of the check as a result of Exhausting you Yellow Bile. Due to Frustration, this research action is locked for four turns, new research options have become available)
Work passed from day to day, a dull haze of customers and concerned coworkers, they kept saying you'd changed. One of the new girls had even said you looked... Hollow. Her saying that had sparked an ounce of concern from your malaise. Causing you to cast your mind's eye back on the uncharacteristic behavior you'd exhibited in the past week. Anger and confusion fueled your cognition as you saw for a moment the pale shadow of yourself that you'd become.
It was only on sunday morning, as you awoke from your sleep with a desire to make breakfast that you made the connection. Kindling these Embers had somehow consumed your passion, which fortunately returned slowly.
Shit.
With a sharp pricking sensation, the needle pierced the flesh of the tip of your index finger and bright red blood welled forth. With little ceremony you flicked your bleeding finger twice over the two inscribed sheets, a droplet of blood beading off and falling with the same odd slowness you'd noticed the past few times you'd kindled before igniting the sheets. The Embers inside of you rocked twice in quick succession, each time spliting off a single Ember. You flipped your bleeding hand upwards, to prevent any spare blood from falling as you pulled the third inscribed sheet over and placed it atop the ashen remains of the previous sheets.
However, when you attempted to flip you hand back over and kindle with the last sheet, you find yourself... incapable. Sure, you had wanted to a moment ago, but you found yourself... hard pressed to even try. Your Brazier felt very crowded with four Embers rattling around inside you, you felt like you might be able to fit a fifth, but anymore then that would simply spill out. Feeling that this was good enough for now. You recorded your results and stepped out of your baking sheet before turned to your other studies.
It was several days before you even thought of cleaning up the mess you'd left. And another day after that before you could find the time.
(Discovered the limit of your brazier, discovered that Kindling exhausts your Yellow Bile, gained one Inscribed Sheet (Printer Paper))
The passion that had possessed you when learning for so long was gone. A few moments of trying to read a webpage on your phone or read through a chapter of the books you'd gotten out of the local library and you found yourself drifting off onto other things. What few notes you could make were disjointed words rather then short, detail-oriented paragraphs. By week's end you found yourself with maybe a page of notes and no desire to return to studying pyromancy. At least for now.
(Research mechanic revealed: The Difficulty checks of Research actions are influenced by your Yellow Bile, the higher your Yellow Bile, the Easier a task is, This research action was failed due to the new difficulty of the check as a result of Exhausting you Yellow Bile. Due to Frustration, this research action is locked for four turns, new research options have become available)
It was only on sunday morning, as you awoke from your sleep with a desire to make breakfast that you made the connection. Kindling these Embers had somehow consumed your passion, which fortunately returned slowly.
Shit.
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*Looks at our Absurdly good research Roll*
Oh that is some HOT BULLSHIT.
Welp that's not good. At least we found out about this early on.
No Seriously, this was an Unknown and Unknowable Mechanic, that then Locks Research for 4 Turns. On an action that Cost 3 Actions.
This reeks of, Players did better than expected and I need to Knee Cap them. Saw that too often in another quest.
Seriously, are there any other Secret Mechanics just waiting to Fuck us Over @Useless Writer? I want to know if I should just abandon this before I get too invested, because this level of fuckery Turn 2 is not good.
This reeks of, Players did better than expected and I need to Knee Cap them. Saw that too often in another quest.
Seriously, are there any other Secret Mechanics just waiting to Fuck us Over @Useless Writer? I want to know if I should just abandon this before I get too invested, because this level of fuckery Turn 2 is not good.
Winged One
Not the Simurgh
- Location
- definitely the ground
- Pronouns
- They/Them/It
Cultivation is full of pitfalls for the unwary... though I'm admittedly not used to that actually applying to protagonists.
Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
it only locks that particular research option for 4 turns. Frustration applies to specific research options, not the whole category. I'll have to word future posts more carefully it seems.
I wanted to give the impression that the process of Cultivation was dangerous and had noticeable costs, especially given the lack of other cultivators or people you can bounce ideas off of. And thusly give your character a reason to explore society a bit. Forging forth from the mundane halls of work and home where a disabled bookworm might not usually venture.
Y'all are rolling really well, which I actually like at this point since it means we spend less time cooped up in the apartment throwing shit at a wall to see what sticks and more time out in the world and interacting with the characters I have set up. gives me an excuse to spend more time setting up the background details.
Makes sense the MC is doing magic blind which seems insanely dangerous even if she has a talent for it.
That's much more Palatable, I note that you haven't run many quests before, so Please Be aware there can be a fine line between showing Difficutly and slapping your Players in the Face.
Having A hidden Mechanic that is linked to a Stat not even Linked to the Option, and then giving absolutely Nothing, and not just that but locking the option for several turns despite rolling extremely Highly? That's a Slap in the Face. A One Turn Frustration Lock would be understandable, Two would be a stretch, Four Turns though? That Reads as Outright Malice.
There are better ways to do this, have a friend mention something off hand, a ad for a local book club or Say an ad for a Pop Occult Store. Something not obvious that could give us a Hook, rather than a smack with the Stick.
I'll give you a bit more, but I'm still not thrilled with this.
Edit: If it sounds like I'm being Harsh, it's because the Last Quest I saw this happen was with a Newbie QM that people wanted to Coddle and not call out blatant railroading and Mechanic Manipulation. He Dropped the Quest when people finally Snapped and started listing how he fucked up. Best to get this out of the way now.
Edit 2: Double Checking previous Turn Options, There wasn't even a Social option to be had, or one in the First Turn. That really makes your Explore Society answer read as something of a cop out.
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Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Hoo boy.
Okay, right, while this isn't a dealbreaker, do note that it looks really bad for you to change the order of operations for a turn at the same time that new order of operations closes the door on an excellent roll.
I'm not going to hold this against you, but keep in mind that you need to declare things like this before the vote is made, not afterwards. Even if you're perfectly well meaning, that's a very bad look, doubly so when the thing that got locked out is exactly what we needed to actually go out and start gaining some direction on where to look, see?
Anyway, it'll be fine as long as it doesn't put us in a position where we're flailing around for direction. I'm fine with going out and engaging with the setting.
Okay, right, while this isn't a dealbreaker, do note that it looks really bad for you to change the order of operations for a turn at the same time that new order of operations closes the door on an excellent roll.
I'm not going to hold this against you, but keep in mind that you need to declare things like this before the vote is made, not afterwards. Even if you're perfectly well meaning, that's a very bad look, doubly so when the thing that got locked out is exactly what we needed to actually go out and start gaining some direction on where to look, see?
Anyway, it'll be fine as long as it doesn't put us in a position where we're flailing around for direction. I'm fine with going out and engaging with the setting.
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Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
So, after some due consideration after feedback, I'm going to redo the turn results here real quick. Previous turn results have been removed to apocrypha.
Turn 2 Results
Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
You devoted the better part of a day carefully inscribing the Symbol onto the sheets of clean printer paper you'd selected from the rapidly dwindling pack you'd had lying around. More than a few crumpled failures littered the tabletop as you regarded the final survivors of your inquisitive eyes and their judgement. Two inscribed sheets sat side by side upon the baking sheet you'd placed between them and the table while a third lingered off to the side. As a precaution you were wearing your most disposable clothes and stand upon another baking sheet to minimize potential scorching should you overheat like you did the first time you... what were you going to call this? Kindling? That sounded passable for now.
With a sharp pricking sensation, the needle pierced the flesh of the tip of your index finger and bright red blood welled forth. With little ceremony you flicked your bleeding finger twice over the two inscribed sheets, a droplet of blood beading off and falling with the same odd slowness you'd noticed the past few times you'd kindled before igniting the sheets. The Embers inside of you rocked twice in quick succession, each time spliting off a single Ember. You flipped your bleeding hand upwards, to prevent any spare blood from falling as you pulled the third inscribed sheet over and placed it atop the ashen remains of the previous sheets.
However, when you attempted to flip you hand back over and kindle with the last sheet, you felt a crackling sensation within your skull. As if the Embers within you were seeking a source of fuel that was now gone. It occured to you that fire had been stereotypically cast in the old stories as all consuming. The thought that making more Embers might consume parts of you was chilling, to say the least.
Caution won out over scientific curiosity. You bandaged your bloody finger and put the final Inscribed sheet away with your rather limited stock of occult paraphernalia before sitting back to consider how you felt physically. The Embers clustered in your Brazier felt crowded, perhaps you could squeeze one more into the spiritual container, but for now it felt like your limit was five. Why that was was a fascinating question. But the vague feeling of danger you felt every time you looked at the last inscribed sheet convinced you it wasn't worth it.
For now.
((Discovered the limit of your brazier, discovered that you can kindle without consequence as many times as the present number of your Yellow Bile stat, kindling more then that will damage your Yellow Bile as the Embers consume your passion and drive for fuel, Fully exhausting your Yellow Bile will not stop you from Kindling further, but it will consume your Black Bile stat, which will cause physical damage. gained one Inscribed Sheet (Printer Paper))
The thing you discover, after a week of mundane research, is that modern references do very little to discuss how Pyromancy was done. Entire books were given to discussing the cultural and religious significance of pyromancy, but only bare sentences were given to how ancient priests and sorcerers went about doing it. Which, while irritating in the extreme, is still something you can work with. The one thing that all the books agree on is that, rather unsurprisingly, fire is required.
Luckily, you have an internal store of exactly that. The only question that remains is how you'll go about trying to test this potential new tool.
The irritation lingered for far longer than you might like to admit. It'd admittedly been a while since you'd seriously tried to investigate soemthing. It'd only been your desire to learn more that had allowed you to succeed where you had.
(New occult options unlocked. Research mechanic revealed, Research Difficulty Checks are affected at least partially by your Yellow Bile stat, as your passion drives you to work harder where your admittedly significant intellect might have failed you. Future difficulty check numbers when researching a subject will be revealed in the Choice section)
Work passed well enough, though you found yourself ruminating on the close call you had with Kindling earlier in the week. What you're doing can be charitably referred to as playing with matches in a dark room. With no idea where the casks of gunpowder or oil spills might be lying in wait for an errantly discarded match. It might be prudent to get someone else involved in your experimentation, if only to have someone on hand with a fire extinguisher in the event you catch fire again.
Furthermore, the attempts you made to research pyromancy taught you that what's available to the public might not be useful for mystical knowledge. While you can't be sure as to the usefulness of it, you should at least start poking around the metaphysical shops and seeing what, if anything, has survived into modernity of the mystical practices of old.
(New options have become available, no change to financial situation, no negative events have occured at work)
With a sharp pricking sensation, the needle pierced the flesh of the tip of your index finger and bright red blood welled forth. With little ceremony you flicked your bleeding finger twice over the two inscribed sheets, a droplet of blood beading off and falling with the same odd slowness you'd noticed the past few times you'd kindled before igniting the sheets. The Embers inside of you rocked twice in quick succession, each time spliting off a single Ember. You flipped your bleeding hand upwards, to prevent any spare blood from falling as you pulled the third inscribed sheet over and placed it atop the ashen remains of the previous sheets.
However, when you attempted to flip you hand back over and kindle with the last sheet, you felt a crackling sensation within your skull. As if the Embers within you were seeking a source of fuel that was now gone. It occured to you that fire had been stereotypically cast in the old stories as all consuming. The thought that making more Embers might consume parts of you was chilling, to say the least.
Caution won out over scientific curiosity. You bandaged your bloody finger and put the final Inscribed sheet away with your rather limited stock of occult paraphernalia before sitting back to consider how you felt physically. The Embers clustered in your Brazier felt crowded, perhaps you could squeeze one more into the spiritual container, but for now it felt like your limit was five. Why that was was a fascinating question. But the vague feeling of danger you felt every time you looked at the last inscribed sheet convinced you it wasn't worth it.
For now.
((Discovered the limit of your brazier, discovered that you can kindle without consequence as many times as the present number of your Yellow Bile stat, kindling more then that will damage your Yellow Bile as the Embers consume your passion and drive for fuel, Fully exhausting your Yellow Bile will not stop you from Kindling further, but it will consume your Black Bile stat, which will cause physical damage. gained one Inscribed Sheet (Printer Paper))
The thing you discover, after a week of mundane research, is that modern references do very little to discuss how Pyromancy was done. Entire books were given to discussing the cultural and religious significance of pyromancy, but only bare sentences were given to how ancient priests and sorcerers went about doing it. Which, while irritating in the extreme, is still something you can work with. The one thing that all the books agree on is that, rather unsurprisingly, fire is required.
Luckily, you have an internal store of exactly that. The only question that remains is how you'll go about trying to test this potential new tool.
The irritation lingered for far longer than you might like to admit. It'd admittedly been a while since you'd seriously tried to investigate soemthing. It'd only been your desire to learn more that had allowed you to succeed where you had.
(New occult options unlocked. Research mechanic revealed, Research Difficulty Checks are affected at least partially by your Yellow Bile stat, as your passion drives you to work harder where your admittedly significant intellect might have failed you. Future difficulty check numbers when researching a subject will be revealed in the Choice section)
Work passed well enough, though you found yourself ruminating on the close call you had with Kindling earlier in the week. What you're doing can be charitably referred to as playing with matches in a dark room. With no idea where the casks of gunpowder or oil spills might be lying in wait for an errantly discarded match. It might be prudent to get someone else involved in your experimentation, if only to have someone on hand with a fire extinguisher in the event you catch fire again.
Furthermore, the attempts you made to research pyromancy taught you that what's available to the public might not be useful for mystical knowledge. While you can't be sure as to the usefulness of it, you should at least start poking around the metaphysical shops and seeing what, if anything, has survived into modernity of the mystical practices of old.
(New options have become available, no change to financial situation, no negative events have occured at work)
Third week of March, Turn 3
Useless Writer
He who should not access the interwebs...
- Location
- Somewhere between Wolf 359 and Courscant
The consideration of who might serve as an adequate research assistant proves to be quite the conundrum. Your parents are unfortunately right out as they'd not taken well to a childhood dalliance with Gary Trotter books. The extra visits to church had not been fun given the pastor's insistence on long tirades about the evils of witchcraft. Your friends from college were also out, as neither of them were still on the same continent. Ultimately, you were left with one candidate. A coworker by the name of Matt, a nebbish nerd with an obsession with tabletop roleplaying games. Of all the people in your life, he seemed the most likely to take this new development in stride and approach it with enthusiasm. Which, come to think of it, was more a commentary on your social isolation then his suitability. Furthermore, you had managed to find a few potential spots where the mystical might congregate in the suburban hellscape surrounding your tiny apartment. An occult bookshop, a crystal and herb shoppe, and the local order hall of the Esoteric order of the Silver Dusk.
The only question that remained, as you drank your morning tea on this dreary sunday morning, was how you were going to spend your week.
(You have five actions this turn)
Work: Gotta pay the bills somehow. (You can only use one action here at present)
[ ] Work your regular shifts at Allmart: Another week in retail hell (Covers your living expenses, the paltry change left after bills are dealt with is barely enough to buy a few candy bars, or a bottle of cheap wine once a month if it's on sale and you haven't incinerated a set of work clothes)(Uses Blood and Black Bile)(May upgrade stats used by this job) (Costs one action)
Social: Talking to people isn't so bad, if they can stop staring at your cane for two minutes
[ ] Ask around for extra shifts: While the thought of spending more time behind a register then you have to is almost physically painful, you also need money. Asking your coworkers if anyone wants to give up a shift might get you a little deeper into the black or out of the red. (Opens up the possibility of working more next turn, granting some disposable income, possibly improves relationship with coworkers, locks in additional actions should you agree to take on the extra shifts) (Uses Blood)(Costs one action, possibly more next turn)
[ ] Ask to be put on the overtime desired list: While likely to cut significantly into your free time. Your manager is always looking for real go-getters willing to break their backs for a few extra hours. (Guarantees a variable number of extra shifts at Allmart for the next four turns, likely to damage health from lack of rest, improves relationship with manager, slightly improves chance of promotion) (Uses Blood) (Costs one action)
[ ] Suck up to the Manager: While he's an irritating, self-important little shitheel. Trying to get along with your manager will improve your odds of actually getting promoted at this shitty job. (improves relationship with manager, significantly improves chance of promotion, potentially damages relationship with your coworkers) (Uses Blood and Yellow Bile) (Costs one action)
[ ] Approach Matt about being your wizard's apprentice: The only person you can think of at present who could help and wouldn't start tossing around prayers and holy water. You really need to meet more people. (Reveals your mystical capabilities to a mortal, potentially gains their aid in future occult endeavors) (Potentially Dangerous?) (Uses Blood) (Costs one action)
Research: You discovered a way to create new embers, and with that a whole new variety of possibilities, but perhaps there's more you could learn?
[ ] Write in Reading option; There are a thousand possible lines of inquiry you could pursue with the new revelations you've uncovered, it's so hard to tell which ones might be relevant. (GM's note: You currently have access to what might be found in your local library. Subjects that may require rare tomes might be incredibly limited in what you can find given your current lack of academic credentials and disposable income. Write in what subject you intend to research, what you might hope to find and how many actions you wish to commit.) (Uses Phlegm)
Occult: While a part of you might find it silly to call what you're capable of doing Magic, there's no real better way of describing it... for now...
[ ] Kindling Embers: You feel fairly full, but you might need more Embers, inscribe some printer paper and get to work. (Creates new Embers) (Requires you have at least one Ember) ( Uses Yellow Bile and Black Bile) (Costs one action) (Current Embers 4/5)
- [ ] Specify the number of Embers you wish to create (Can create two safely, can create two at the cost of your Yellow Bile, can create one at the cost of your Black Bile)
[ ] How important is the medium?: You are able to create a single Ember from a sheet of printer paper, pencil lead, and blood. While the blood feels vital for the process, what about other possible mediums? (Reveals whether or not a particular medium is more or less useful for creating Embers) (Requires that you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm) (Costs one Action per medium tested)
- [ ] Butcher's paper (No cost to your finances)
- [ ] Clay (Moderate affect on your finances)
- [ ] Brass (Major affect on your finances) (Possibly dangerous)
[ ] How do I shoot fire?: You were able to hold an Ember in your hand, while theoretically you could just huck that at someone or something if the need arose, from the descriptions in the inquisitor's diary imply that you can do more then just chuck firey balls around. (Unlocks an offensive spell) (Requires you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm) (Costs one action)
[ ] How do I see the future?: Pyromancy requires only flame apparently, you happen to have some of a more mystical bent then is normally available. Set some shit on fire and see what you See. (Unlocks a form of divination) (Requires you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm and Blood) (Costs one action)
Exploration: There are a couple of interesting locales nearby, shake a leg and see what's what. (Exploring the world beyond your apartment is a bit more involved then occult experimentation, and can be unsafe as it exposes you to the deeper world.)
[ ] The Secret Script: A well-reviewed Occult book shop close to your apartment, even if the books within prove to be no use, the people might just make it worth the trip. (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
[ ] Crystal Gardens: An herbalist supply shop and crystal emporium. Perhaps something of use can be found in this converted warehouse? (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
[ ] The Order Hall of the esoteric order of the Silver Dusk: While not exactly common knowledge, the Esoteric order of the Silver Dusk has been around for a while. Claiming to study the mystic arts, there might be some worth in seeing how much they actually know. (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
(Exploration turns trigger after the rest of the actions on this turn have been resolved, allowing preparations to be made before delving into the proverbial dragon's den)
(Half hour moratorium)
The only question that remained, as you drank your morning tea on this dreary sunday morning, was how you were going to spend your week.
(You have five actions this turn)
Work: Gotta pay the bills somehow. (You can only use one action here at present)
[ ] Work your regular shifts at Allmart: Another week in retail hell (Covers your living expenses, the paltry change left after bills are dealt with is barely enough to buy a few candy bars, or a bottle of cheap wine once a month if it's on sale and you haven't incinerated a set of work clothes)(Uses Blood and Black Bile)(May upgrade stats used by this job) (Costs one action)
Social: Talking to people isn't so bad, if they can stop staring at your cane for two minutes
[ ] Ask around for extra shifts: While the thought of spending more time behind a register then you have to is almost physically painful, you also need money. Asking your coworkers if anyone wants to give up a shift might get you a little deeper into the black or out of the red. (Opens up the possibility of working more next turn, granting some disposable income, possibly improves relationship with coworkers, locks in additional actions should you agree to take on the extra shifts) (Uses Blood)(Costs one action, possibly more next turn)
[ ] Ask to be put on the overtime desired list: While likely to cut significantly into your free time. Your manager is always looking for real go-getters willing to break their backs for a few extra hours. (Guarantees a variable number of extra shifts at Allmart for the next four turns, likely to damage health from lack of rest, improves relationship with manager, slightly improves chance of promotion) (Uses Blood) (Costs one action)
[ ] Suck up to the Manager: While he's an irritating, self-important little shitheel. Trying to get along with your manager will improve your odds of actually getting promoted at this shitty job. (improves relationship with manager, significantly improves chance of promotion, potentially damages relationship with your coworkers) (Uses Blood and Yellow Bile) (Costs one action)
[ ] Approach Matt about being your wizard's apprentice: The only person you can think of at present who could help and wouldn't start tossing around prayers and holy water. You really need to meet more people. (Reveals your mystical capabilities to a mortal, potentially gains their aid in future occult endeavors) (Potentially Dangerous?) (Uses Blood) (Costs one action)
Research: You discovered a way to create new embers, and with that a whole new variety of possibilities, but perhaps there's more you could learn?
[ ] Write in Reading option; There are a thousand possible lines of inquiry you could pursue with the new revelations you've uncovered, it's so hard to tell which ones might be relevant. (GM's note: You currently have access to what might be found in your local library. Subjects that may require rare tomes might be incredibly limited in what you can find given your current lack of academic credentials and disposable income. Write in what subject you intend to research, what you might hope to find and how many actions you wish to commit.) (Uses Phlegm)
Occult: While a part of you might find it silly to call what you're capable of doing Magic, there's no real better way of describing it... for now...
[ ] Kindling Embers: You feel fairly full, but you might need more Embers, inscribe some printer paper and get to work. (Creates new Embers) (Requires you have at least one Ember) ( Uses Yellow Bile and Black Bile) (Costs one action) (Current Embers 4/5)
- [ ] Specify the number of Embers you wish to create (Can create two safely, can create two at the cost of your Yellow Bile, can create one at the cost of your Black Bile)
[ ] How important is the medium?: You are able to create a single Ember from a sheet of printer paper, pencil lead, and blood. While the blood feels vital for the process, what about other possible mediums? (Reveals whether or not a particular medium is more or less useful for creating Embers) (Requires that you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm) (Costs one Action per medium tested)
- [ ] Butcher's paper (No cost to your finances)
- [ ] Clay (Moderate affect on your finances)
- [ ] Brass (Major affect on your finances) (Possibly dangerous)
[ ] How do I shoot fire?: You were able to hold an Ember in your hand, while theoretically you could just huck that at someone or something if the need arose, from the descriptions in the inquisitor's diary imply that you can do more then just chuck firey balls around. (Unlocks an offensive spell) (Requires you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm) (Costs one action)
[ ] How do I see the future?: Pyromancy requires only flame apparently, you happen to have some of a more mystical bent then is normally available. Set some shit on fire and see what you See. (Unlocks a form of divination) (Requires you have at least one Ember) (Uses Phlegm and Blood) (Costs one action)
Exploration: There are a couple of interesting locales nearby, shake a leg and see what's what. (Exploring the world beyond your apartment is a bit more involved then occult experimentation, and can be unsafe as it exposes you to the deeper world.)
[ ] The Secret Script: A well-reviewed Occult book shop close to your apartment, even if the books within prove to be no use, the people might just make it worth the trip. (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
[ ] Crystal Gardens: An herbalist supply shop and crystal emporium. Perhaps something of use can be found in this converted warehouse? (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
[ ] The Order Hall of the esoteric order of the Silver Dusk: While not exactly common knowledge, the Esoteric order of the Silver Dusk has been around for a while. Claiming to study the mystic arts, there might be some worth in seeing how much they actually know. (Costs one action) (Starts exploration turns)
(Exploration turns trigger after the rest of the actions on this turn have been resolved, allowing preparations to be made before delving into the proverbial dragon's den)
(Half hour moratorium)