Logomancy
by Matthew R. Norwood (rowan@media.mit.edu)
POLONIUS: What do you read, my lord?
HAMLET: Words, words, words.
Logomancy is a school of magick that derives from the power of words
and language. In keeping with the idea that magick arises form the
non-standard use of standard things, the logomancer is someone who has
come to recognize words for what they are in and of themselves, independent
of the meanings we attach to them. Logomancers use language in ways
that transcend the everyday communication that the uninitiated engage in.
Logomancers come from all over the place: Zen Buddhists, linguists,
and poets all live in a world where words are not what most of us take
them for. They tend to talk and write in highly metaphorical, often
paradoxical statements and questions.
Logomancy Blast Style: Similar to Plutomancy's blast, Logomancy
causes the target to harm himself. The spell, "That's no lady..."
can cause the target to engage in self-destructive behavior by forcing
him to believe that he can fly, that getting hit by a car would be really
cool, that life is meaningless and he ought to kill himself, etc.
Stats:
Generate a Minor Charge:
Generate a Significant Charge:
Generate a Major Charge:
Taboo: A Logomancer loses all of her charges whenever she uses
language in a straightforward fashion: a statement or question with no
metaphor, no double meanings, phrased as directly as possible. This
often happens in combat, when a shouted warning or call for help pushes
the adept to resort to language in its base, banal, everyday function.
Random Magick Domain: Anything that deals with words and their
meaning can be manipulated with Logomancy.
Starting charges: Starting Logomancers have four minor charges.
Logomancy Minor Formula Spells
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If you know what I mean
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Cost: 1 minor charge
Effect: This spell allows the Logomancer to communicate with
one other person through a secret language or code. To others, their
conversation will sound normal, but the actual meaning will be concealed.
They can leave notes for each other, talk on the phone, or even pass messages
through another person, as long as the words are transmitted verbatim.
The effect lasts one hour, but notes and other records remain intelligible
for a week.
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Read between the lines
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Cost: 2 minor charges
Effect: This spell allows the logomancer to determine general
information about someone from the way they write or talk. If exposed
to a few minutes of someone's speech or a few paragraphs of their text,
the Logomancer can determine the speaker or writer's goals, emotional state,
background, and current situation. This is widely left up to the
GM's discretion.
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Minor Blast: Mercenary Will
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Cost: 4 minor charges
Effect: See Plutomancy. The target must hear or read the
command to be executed.
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Cryptomancer
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Cost: 1 minor charge
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Effect: The adept can use this spell to completely and instantly
break a code, getting at the underlying information. It can also
be applied to a foreign language, allowing instant translation for one
hour.
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Whatchoo talkin' about Willis?
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Cost: 1 minor charge
Effect: For one minute, the adept can control exactly what the
target understands when reading or hearing words. An order from a
superior can be heard as something completely different, an commercial
on the radio can be turned into a news bulletin about an earthquake, or
a greeting from a comrade can be heard as an insult. This doesn't
change a speaker's conversational style, just the meaning of his or her
words. It also doesn't change the words used by the target in response.
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A hero ain't nothin' but a sandwich
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Cost: 3 minor charges
Effect: This spell changes the meaning of one word in the target's
vocabulary. The target can relearn the word's "standard" meaning,
but it will take a little while to remember what it's supposed to mean.
In the meantime, interesting effects can be created by making "yes" mean
"no" or something similar.
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Logomancy Significant Formula Spells
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Instant Aphasia
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Cost: 4 significant charges
Effect: The target of this spell suddenly loses the ability
to communicate verbally with other people in one language, permanently.
He speaks and hears gibberish, although he hears himself speaking normally.
This will probably result in some Helplessness and Isolation stress checks.
The target can relearn the language by listening to people around him --
the grammar remains the same, only the words change meanings -- but it
will take lots of time. Assume that the target can relearn the language
as a skill, with 10% plus (General Education/10) as a native level.
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Significant Blast: Bankrupt Will
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Cost: 1 significant charge
Effect: see Plutomancy. The target has to hear or read
a command to harm himself. On the up side, however, this means that
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I Believe The Lies
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Cost: 3 significant charges
Effect: see Cliomancy. For Logomancy, however, the statement
to be believed must be heard or read by the target.
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spell
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Cost: significant charge
Effect:
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spell
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Cost: significant charge
Effect:
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spell
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Cost: significant charge
Effect:
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spell
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Cost: significant charge
Effect:
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Logomancy Major Effects