A fine shop with magic for sale:
Nine healing herbs from the Pale
Six madstones telluric
Three potions sulfuric
And poison to end any tale.
Some of the rubrics and tokens of Visla offer lasting, dependable functions—spells and objects of power, for example, can be used again and again. Those that cannot, however, collectively earn the moniker ephemera. Ephemera are items or abilities that are fleeting at best. They have a single use before they are consumed utterly or they disappear into the ether like so much smoke.
Three kinds of ephemera exist. The first kind are objects. These are straightforward, taking the forms of potions, elixirs, talismans, pills, marks, fetishes, or trinkets with a bit of power to them. These are also among the most common sorts of ephemera and—usually—are items whose powers can be used by anyone. They can sometimes be bought or sold, or perhaps more commonly traded with other vislae.
The other two types of ephemera are versions of a magical practice often called incantations. Incantations hold a special place in the field of magic because they represent magic not learned, but gained. A vislae who meditates quietly for an hour can gain knowledge of an incantation (if they’re not already at their limit of ephemera).
Incantations work essentially like spells and follow all the same rules, but they cost nothing to cast and they disappear like so much gossamer afterward. It’s not so much that they are formulae that disappear from your mind as they are whispered secrets that once made sense but don’t anymore. Some vislae have likened them to magical bits of meringue candy that melt away almost immediately after you pop them in your mouth. Perhaps even more accurately, others describe them as bits of last night’s dream that fade from your mind even as you try hard to recall them.
But we said there were two types of incantations, didn’t we? Although the two work similarly, they are very different. The first type, called acquiescent incantations, are gained through meditative ecstasy. They represent a vislae’s willingness to allow the universe to bestow power upon them in a form the universe decides. The other are conation incantations, and they represent the opposite—a vislae imposing their will upon the universe to gain the power they wish.
At first, vislae can only receive acquiescent incantations. The vislae meditates, and the GM chooses the incantation that comes to them. Eventually (usually through advancement in one’s order), a vislae gains the ability to choose conation incantations. Typically, a vislae must have previously gained the incantation as an acquiescent incantation before it can be gained as a conation incantation, or else they must be general requests (meaning a vislae can choose a defensive incantation, or an incantation that grants some kind of telekinesis, but not a specific incantation).
The word “incantation” implies a spoken invocation. Words. (For that matter, so does the word “spell.”) These two types of incantations, then, are literally “allowing the universe to speak through you,” and “speaking truth or will to the universe.”
Any incantation in this chapter can be gained as an acquiescent or a conation incantation unless marked otherwise.
The limit on how much ephemera a vislae can have at once is hard and fast. The power of ephemera is linked strongly to the possessor in a way that, say, the power of an artifact is not. A vislae who tries to have more ephemera than their limit feels overwhelmed at the magical power involved, and simply finds they cannot surpass it. If a vislae with a limit of three tries to pick up a bag that holds four potions, they feel a surge of dangerous power and one of the potions is destroyed. If a vislae with a limit of three who already has an incantation picks up an amulet and two trinkets, the incantation fades.
If the situation arises where a vislae’s limit means that one (or more) of their ephemera is destroyed, incantations always go first. If there are no incantations in the mix, the most powerful ephemera disintegrates, disappears, or loses all power.
When you use an ephemera, whether object or incantation, it’s much like casting a spell that costs you no Sorcery. However, you cannot use your own power to increase the level of the effect—the level is set. Just like with a spell, you can add additional Sorcery, but in this case, all a bene of Sorcery does is add +1 to the venture or grant additional damage or an additional effect.
Characters using ephemera that can be aimed to make a physical attack can use bene from Accuracy rather than Sorcery if they wish.
Whether purchased, found, made, stolen, or traded, ephemera objects always command the attention of vislae.
In general, an ephemera object must be used to be activated. A potion must be drunk, an amulet worn, a mark made, an icon held and gazed upon, and so on. This requires an action. Unless otherwise noted, though, an ephemera never costs the user anything to use it other than that action.
Once used, the ephemera object is consumed by the magic released (again, unless otherwise noted).
Ephemera objects come in many forms. Is the form important?
Yes.
Creatures that cannot drink cannot use potions. Those that do not eat cannot swallow pills. The form of an ephemera object is the most important part of its essence. The objects are literally magic given form, so the form cannot be ignored.
Ephemera object forms do not preclude other objects in the same form. You can wear three amulets, for example.
Is it possible to find an ephemera object that has the powers of one kind but the form of another? Can an amulet hold the power of a philtre? Can an herb confer the abilities of a talisman? It’s likely. The ways of magic are weird and varied, and the Actuality is a very big place, filled with wonders. The forms presented here are simply the most common.
Makers (and others) can craft some ephemera. Potions are brewed, talismans fashioned and imbued with power. Trinkets and icons are instilled with a magical ability by a crafter of some kind. Other ephemera possess inherent power. A magical herb’s ability is part of its nature, not granted by someone. Likewise madstones and spiritstones, which are found, not made, and bezoars and creature parts, which likely come from some sort of dissection.
✦✦ Potions or elixirs
✦✦ Oils
✦✦ Talismans or amulets
✦✦ Pills
✦✦ Marks
✦✦ Fetishes or trinkets
✦✦ Icons or zemis
✦✦Madstones
✦✦ Spiritstones
✦✦Herbs or mushrooms
✦✦ Remedies or poultices
✦✦ Bezoars
✦✦ Creature parts
People try to sell ephemera objects all the time. It’s easier said than done, because most people don’t have the funds (or the right kind of funds) to purchase them. So vislae find swap markets for ephemera as often as those looking for coin.
Most people selling ephemera are vislae, so they want to be paid in magecoins. Not only does this limit their market primarily to other vislae, but it causes a problem—the least powerful ephemera aren’t really worth even 1 magecoin, and there’s no way to divide that currency further.
Trading is easy. A level 1 ephemera can be traded for another level 1 ephemera. A level 3 for a level 3. And so on. If an exchange is desired but the levels don’t match, the party trading the lower-level ephemera probably has to put up a few magecoins. But barter is all about compromise, and you might find someone willing to take your level 1 madstone in exchange for their level 2 potion.
In the very broadest of strokes, the value of an ephemera can be summed up as follows:
Level 1–3 1 magecoin
Level 4–5 2 magecoins
Level 6 3 magecoins
Level 7 5 magecoins
Level 8 8 magecoins
Level 9 15 magecoins
Level 10 20 magecoins
A vislae knows whether an object is an ephemera just by touching it—sometimes just by looking at it. They can attempt an identification action (modified by Intellect, and probably using the skill magical lore) to learn its name, level, and properties.
Some potions and powders are actually poisons. Poisons are always indicated as such in the line describing their form. The descriptions for the poisons are presented in the format of the rest of the ephemera objects, talking about how they affect “you,” but that doesn’t mean that the owner drinks or uses them. Whomever ingests the poison—in most cases, the victim the owner of the ephemera wishes to poison—is the “you” of the description.
Unlike standard potions, magical poisons usually have very specific ways to end their effects rather than just using rest actions.
You either impose your will on the universe, or the universe imposes its will on you. That, at least, is the idea behind the two different types of incantations. Acquiescent incantations and conation incantations are sometimes called submissive and dominant incantations, respectively, and it’s not hard to understand why. Do you open yourself to magic’s will, or do you tame and command it?
At first, vislae can only obtain acquiescent incantations. This is done through meditation, supplication to higher powers, and sometimes the ingesting of certain substances like ivum. The GM should choose an incantation or—if desired—determine one randomly by pulling a card from the deck.
Eventually, vislae gain the ability to choose one, and then perhaps two conation incantations. They can do this in two ways. If a vislae has already gained an incantation as an acquiescent incantation, they can seek it as a conation incantation. If not, they can ask for a general type of conation incantation (offensive, movement, defensive, deception, and so on), rather than a specific one. Either way, the conation incantation cannot be of a higher level than the highest-level spell the vislae knows.
No two vislae working together can get the same incantation (either type) at the same time. Further, no vislae can gain the same incantation (either type) two days in a row.
It takes about an hour to receive an incantation. You cannot get more incantations in a given day than your total ephemera limit. So if you can handle three ephemera and currently have no ephemera objects, you could meditate for three hours and receive three incantations, but no more until the next sunrise.
On the other hand, if your limit is three and you possess two ephemera objects, you could receive one incantation, cast it, meditate again, get another, cast it, and meditate again.
Categorizing an incantation as acquiescent or conation simply indicates its origin (or the will behind its origin). In form and effect, both types are identical.
Ivum is a drug that is made from powdered spells. Specifically, when spell energy strikes solid matter, it sometimes creates a crystalline substance not unlike fulgurite. Normally it’s quite rare, but in areas of Satyrine damaged during the War, the substance is common enough that scavengers and miners seek it out to make ivum.
When a vislae inhales ivum, it allows them to use the acquiescent incantation process as if it were the conation process. In other words, the vislae can request a specific incantation (or a specific type of incantation) when they meditate, even when that shouldn’t be possible (such as if the vislae’s degree is not high enough or they have reached their limit of conation incantations).
To succeed, the vislae attempts an Intellect action, with the challenge equal to the level of the incantation. Failure means that the vislae gets no incantation at all.
Ivum is extremely addictive physically. After the first use, the vislae must take a Withstand defense action with a challenge of 4 plus 1 for every ivum dose they’ve taken in the last week. Failure means that the vislae now needs ivum every time they want to get an incantation of any kind. The length of time they spend meditating steadily increases. Eventually, the need for the drug intensifies and without a daily dose, the vislae begins to suffer escalating mental damage until they go mad. There are said to be cures for ivum addiction, but they have varying degrees of success.
Ivum is sometimes called “power powder,” and addicts are given labels like the magic-mad, dust-dreamers, and powder-heads. A dose of ivum costs about 6 to 8 crystal orbs. It is not illegal in Satyrine (Satyrine does not control substances in that way), but it is looked upon with distrust or disgust by many.