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Unearthed Arcana
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“It all began with the forging of the Great Rings. Three were given to the Elves; immortal, wisest and fairest of all beings. Seven, to the Dwarf Lords, great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine, nine rings were gifted to the race of Men, who above all else desire power. For within these rings was bound the strength and the will to govern over each race. But they were all of them deceived, for another ring was made. In the land of Mordor, in the fires of Mount Doom, the Dark Lord Sauron forged in secret, a master ring, to control all others. And into this ring he poured all his cruelty, his malice and his will to dominate all life. One ring to rule them all.”
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
- The lucky penny that brings a great bargain, but must be passed along to another. The old key that opens up a lockbox filled with money, but at the price of your own safe being unlocked at the wrong time of day. The wardrobe that always provides you the "right thing to wear" for that special occasion, but the clothes will almost always get dirty at the end of the night, Fae lore is filled with stories of objects bestowed with magical powers. These items are either “liberated” from former masters in Arcadia or discovered deep within the Hedge. Some of these items are even forged by skilled changeling craftsmen. Seemingly mundane to the mortal eye, the Lost see these double-edged objects for what they are.
But it’s not all gold spun from straw. The magic inside a token is some of the same magic that pumps inside the hearts of the True Fae, and while powerful, it is in part corrupt. Every token comes with a drawback, a small curse or additional cost that use of the token invokes. Below are just a few Tokens invented and crafted by the Speaker for the Dead and member of Autumn courtier.
Random Notes of Wonderous Possibilities...
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| Question |
Concept |
Focus |
End Result...
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| How to read what is unreadable?
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Translator for the eyes
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Custodians
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Lexicon Lenses
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| How to hear lanuages not your own?
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Magical Google Translate
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Custodians
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Ear Worms
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| Easilly navigate locks?
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Better lockpicks
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TBD
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Skeleton Key
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A Treasure Trove of Trinkets and Tidbits
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Lexicon Lenses (Token   )
- Mortal Mask: A cheap pair of costume glasses found at any convenience, clothing, or party store. Costing no more than $9.99 at most. The plastic lenses are usually scratched up a bit, having nothing protecting them from the elements.
- Faerie Mien: The arms of the glasses become more gossamer in nature. Strong enough to hold the lenses in place, but fragile looking. The lenses take on a more blue-silver ephemeral glow to them once the magic of the Lexicon Lenses is in effect.
- Activation: The lenses always appear to be caked with dust, dirt, and other airborne bric-a-brac, as well as severely scratched. The wearer must fog up the lenses once on each lens, then clean them with a black cloth. Upon activation, the lenses of the glasses appear clear and perfectly usable for the wearer.
- Function: Translates any written language into a language understood fluently by the wearer of the Lexicon Lenses. This does not grant the user of the Token to automatically know the written language. So if someone does not speak Ancient Greek, wearing the lenses doesn't automatically grant them knowledge of the language--just the ability to translate words and sentences into a language the wearer does speak. The language is based on Mortal, non-magical languages only.
- Drawback: When removing the Lexicon Lenses, the wearer suffers a -1 to all Wits rolls for the next 24hrs, as the wearer endures the similar effects of a migraine. Using a magical means of translating illegible words that the reader doesn't know in other words (that the reader understands/comprehends) can be weary on the person's eyes.
- Catch: Using the Lexicon Lenses without proper due to the Wyrd causes the wearer to find it difficult speaking clearly. As though the words are on the tip of their tongue, but diminish before they truly come to clear thought. Similar to a mild case of aphasia. This will last for 24hrs.
Ear Worms (Token )
- Mortal Mask: A cheap Bluetooth earpiece used for cell phones. Costing no more than $10.99 at most. The earpiece should have a set up that allows for it to wrap around the ear for a secure fit.
- Faerie Mien: Fashioned from the bone and some sinew of a worm-like Hedgebeast, the bone forms the interior of the earpiece that fits snug within the wearer's ear and ear canal. The more flexible material curls itself around the outer ear. Once the magic of the earpiece is in effect, the bone within the ear canal widening just a bit. Not enough to cause damage to the wearer, but you wouldn't want anything thinking it's a small cavernous dwelling either. Then there is the wetness of a slick like an appendage that wiggles itself further into your ear, giving the sensation of the world's worst (or best depending on how you look at it) Wet Willie. The remaining part of the Ear Work that rests on the outside of the ear hardens and looks like a calcified ear brace.
- Activation: The earpiece always appears to have some sort of with dust, dirt, and other airborne bric-a-brac inside the small hollow that goes inside the wearer's ear. The wearer must blow into the earpiece (like you use with old NES games). Once placed inside the ear, one must tap the earpiece three times while saying "Testing! 1...2...3" for the Token's magic to activate.
- Function: Translates any spoken language into a language understood fluently by the wearer of the Ear Worm. This does not grant the user of the Token to automatically know how to speak the language. So if someone does not speak Ancient Greek, wearing the Ear Worm doesn't automatically grant the ability to verbally speak the language--just the ability to translate spoken words and sentences into a language the wearer does audibly comprehend. The language is based on Mortal, and magical languages do not apply.
- Drawback: When removing the Ear Worm, the wearer suffers a -1 to all Resolve rolls for the next 24hrs, as the wearer endures a strange inner-ear disorder that makes sound echo funny within one ear (the ear that wore the Ear Worm). Using a magical means of translating illegible words that the listener doesn't know into other words (that the listener understands/comprehends) can be strenuous on the person's hearing, making it difficult to hear things correctly for a time.
- Catch: Using the Ear Worm without proper due to the Wyrd causes the wearer to find it difficult hear and make out sounds clearly. As though the sounds are coming in and out of volume, pitch, and tone. Similar to a mild case of diplacusis. This will last for 24hrs.
Skeleton Key (Token )
- Mortal Mask: Skeleton Keys always take the form of an antique/vintage lever lock key, like the ones used in old Victorian homes. Rumors persist of some Changelings that have had this token appear as the form of hotel card keys bearing names of hotels no longer in existence (or never opened, to begin with). Its traditional form has ivy filigree around the stem and collar, with a skull of some form or fashion inlaid onto a solid bow (the top of the key used to turn it inside the lock). The more card-key form still has these designs and stylings on the key in some fashion. Skeleton Keys always looks tarnished, unused, worn out, and barely holding together.
- Faerie Mien: The Skeleton Key looks to be made of a polished bone with ivy from the Hedge that has been laid inside small grooves within the stem. The pin, where the key's teeth/bits are is also a flattened bone with arcane symbols etched onto both sides. When activated, the inlaid ivy begin to move around the grooves of the key's stem. As the user whispers to the skull at the base of the key, the eyes of the skull and the etched symbols of the key take on a blue-silver ephemeral glow once the magic of the Skeleton Key is in effect.
- Activation: Before putting the Skeleton Key into use, one first must place whisper the following lines to it: "So if you seek beneath our floors / A treasure that was never yours, / Thief, you have been warned, beware / Of finding more than treasure there!" (from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)
- Function: When activated and placed in the lock, the Skeleton Key allows a changeling to open/access entry through locked doors. This token can only unlock an already established door, and cannot be used to lock any doors, even if it previously unlocked it; or create doorways. Although this will permit the changeling entry, it does nothing to disable any alarms or traps that may have been set upon the door, and in this case, it is likely that going through the doorway will set off any such systems in place. When confronting doorways that are created within the Hedge (i.e. Hollow Doors), the changeling can make a contested Resolve + Composure + Wyrd roll against the one who set any Hollow Wards, gaining entry to the chambers beyond only if the changeling achieves more successes. This only allows the changeling passage through the wards but leaves the wards in place for any others that would seek entry. As in the case of mundane traps and alarms, magical ones will still be unaffected when the changeling opens the door and will "go off" as they normally would.
- Drawback: Whenever this key is used to open a door, the skull within the key comes to life and bites into the flesh of the changeling to drink some of its blood in payment. This causes one bashing wound.
- Catch: The skull within the key bites deeper, upgrading the bashing wound usually received into a lethal wound. Additionally, the owner of the doorway unlocked in this manner will immediately become aware that someone has done so. Though they will neither know who (or what) specifically nor how many people are coming through the unlocked doorway. Also, having circumvented a lock with the Skeleton Key causes one's own doors to not lock for 24 hours. No matter how hard one secures their doors, someone will always find a means pass (ie. the lock never fully locks or is stuck open, or the security tape loses its strength, etc.)
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