Legacy: Daoine

Daoine
“XXXXXXXX.”

In their efforts to fulfill this task many Namers become caregivers of one sort or another, seeking employment in hospitals, nursing homes, or even on the field of battle. Once ensconced in these liminal places Scribes can minister to the dying and in the case of some, preserve a fragment of them for all time. Traditionally these records were carved into stone tablets, a habit that led to the development of the Legacy’s name, but in the modern day many different mediums are accepted by Namers. From hand bound manuscripts to freshly burnt CDs or thumb drives, all submissions have a place in the many Bibliotheca that the legacy maintains. While some of the more contemporary members consider it a pipe dream, the Scribes were founded with one clear objective in mind: to uncover ever more ancient Names, employing their arts to reach farther and farther back, until at the pinnacle of their work they can reconstruct the Final Names of those who fell with Atlantis itself.

Origins
Parentage:  Acanthus, Adamantine Arrow or Guardians of the Veil

Background:  For the majority of Namers, death has had a profound influence upon their lives. Some have Awakened because of it, others have had friends, lovers, or parents taken by it, but for all, its passage has been felt and mourned. Those who choose to embrace the path of the Scribes are the ones who after experiencing such loss have decided to accept this unavoidable ending, and rather than rail against it, choose instead to capture some fragment of the departed, preserving a relic of the deceased.

Appearance:  As befitting the seriousness of the task they hold as their solemn duty, most Scribes dress in a somber, elegant fashion as a mark of their reverence for their work. While the specifics vary according to the occupation of the individual, Namers as a whole are prone to choosing solid patterns and muted hues to avoid seeming frivolous or uncaring.

 

Doctrine
Prerequisites:  Space 2, Occult 2, and one of the following at 2 or higher: Academics, Stealth or Subterfuge.

Initiation:  Prospective members of the Good Folk must study under another member in order to prove their dedication to the legacy’s goals and to provide their mentor with a chance to test their mettle. Aspirants are often set seemingly endless lists of demeaning chores before even a single magical secret is imparted and any rebellion on their part can be considered grounds for disqualification from further study.

Organization:  The vast majority of Stone Scribes are members of the Mysterium, and as such are quite familiar with the hierarchical system employed by their parent order. When multiple Namers reside within a Consilium they will often petition the local Athenaeum for space to be set aside as a Bibliotheca, a library of Final Names that each can contribute to and maintain. Lone Scribes may curate a private collection of names, but are usually expected to provide a copy of their work to the nearest Consillium for safe-keeping. The bonds between mentor and apprentice within the legacy are considered especially important, and it is common practice for the pair to give each other a private appellation for use when they are working together. While seniority within the legacy is the ultimate determining factor in who has the greatest say in decisions for a gathering of their number, those who have amassed the greatest collection of Names, or contributed one of especial age or significance are often granted additional respect.

Magic
Ruling Arcanum:  Space

Yantras:  Balancing the Scales of Wyrd (+1), Naming a victim’s crimes before casting (+2, requires extra time as per high speech), Arranging a mundane trap or punishment before casting (+2), Remaining undetected while casting (+1)

Oblations:  Weaving at a loom, visiting a Faerie ring at the solstices or equinoxes, visiting mundane vengeance upon those who wrong you, rewarding the generosity of others in secret.

Attainments
The mystic arts of the Daoine focus on perceiving the Scales of Wyrd that guide their actions and punishing those who step outside their place in the balance. Daoine vengeance is seldom of the vulgar fireballs-and-thunderbolts variety (though the occasional transformation of an entire household into mice is not unheard of). The Good Folk like their vengeance both subtle and terrible. If a target can never be sure whether he is the victim of a Daoine and not just unlucky, they reason, their own mystique and aura of fear grows all the stronger.

 

First:  Eye of Judgement
Prerequisites:  Space 1, Initiation

Correspondence (Reach: Casting Time):

The most basic ability every Daoine must possess is the ability to sense and perceive the Scales of Wyrd that permetate the world. Many perceive these links as a vast and tangled tapestry that binds people together, and it is through these links that the Good Folk learn where karmic justice must fall. By taking a moment to stare intently at a target the Daoine may discern a number of their sympathetic connections equal to their Fate dots, beginning with the oldest and strongest.

Optional Arcanum:  Fate 1

Serendipity (Reach: Casting Time):

As their sensitivity to the Scales begins to develop Daoine gain the ability to detect vibrations through the tapestry of Fate, and by studying their tenor they may learn how best to proceed. After discerning a target’s sympathetic connections with The Eye, the Good Folk may spend a moment studying the quality of those connections to determine on which side of the Scales that individual falls. They receive an omen telling them whether that individual is due a turn of good fortune or ill.

Second:  Mantle of the Righteous
Prerequisites: Space 2, Occult 3

Break Boundary (Reach: Casting Time):

Once they have decided to carry out the sentence that the Scales have decreed, there is little that can stand in the way of the Daoine. When encountering a physical obstacle that bars them from pursuing their cause, the Good Folk may demand that it permit them passage. While some claim that this ability is a remnant of the legacy’s Fae beginnings and that members pass through the edges of Arcadia to avoid the whatever bars their path, no one can say for certain that this is in any way true. This ability requires only a short declaration from the Daoine commanding the obstacle to give them passage and a laying of their hand upon it to permit them to slip through it in the blink of an eye.

Optional Arcanum: Fate 2

Warding Gesture (Reach: Advanced Duration):

In order to ensure that their target cannot sway them from the path set by the Scales of the Wyrd, the Daoine cloak themselves in armor forged from their resolution. After taking time to align themselves to the will of Fate, the Good Folk are protected from manipulation of their purpose, be it by geas, supernatural compulsion, or magical manipulation of their destiny. Such powers must achieve more successes on a Clash of Wills than the Daoine has Fate dots in order to take effect.

Third:  Words of Warning
Prerequisites: Space 3, One of Academics, Stealth or Subterfuge at 3

Isolation (Reach: Advanced Duration, Sensory Range, Casting Time):

By turning their baleful gaze upon one who has tipped the balance of the Scales of Wyrd, the Daoine may show that individual a glimpse of the distance they have put between themselves and the rest of the world. This acts as the Isolation spell, persisting for 24 hours after activation with a Potency equal to the Good Folk’s Space dots minus the target’s Composure.

Optional Arcanum: Fate 3

Oaths Fulfilled (Reach: Advanced Duration, Sensory Range, Casting Time):

Once a Daoine has singled out an individual as having significance to the balance of the Scales of the Wyrd they may attune themselves to the unique vibrations that person generates in the tapestry, listening for the thrum of a duty fulfilled. With a moment of concentration the Good Folk may define an outcome they wish to watch for in regards to any person they can see. Should the target of this attainment meet that defined goal the Daoine instantly becomes aware that it has happened. Once established this link persists for a duration based on the Good Folk’s Fate dots using Advanced Duration.

Fourth:  Slings and Arrows
Prerequisites:  Space 4, Occult 4

Cut Threads (Reach: Casting Time):

In order to mitigate some of the consequences of acting to balance the Scales of the Wyrd, the Daoine must occasionally cut a target from the tapestry of the world. By laying hands on either end of a sympathetic connection, the Good Folk may sever it provided the Withstand of the link is no greater than their Space dots.

Optional Arcanum: Fate 4

Exceptional Luck (Reach: Advanced Duration, Sensory Range, Casting Time):

For a Daoine who has studied the Scales of the Wyrd intently, it takes little effort to tip them one way or another. By setting their baleful gaze upon a target the Good Folk may levy a hex upon them with a Potency equal to their Fate dots minus the subject’s Composure. Once enacted this curse remains for up to a week, or until discharged.

Fifth:  The Doom of Promise
Prerequisites: Space 5, One of Academics, Stealth or Subterfuge at 4

Forge No Chains (Reach: Advanced Duration):

At the pinnacle of their art the Daoine truly embody the mysterious nature of the Fae. They leave no sympathetic connections behind them and cannot forge new ones while they remain under this aegis. Any space magic cast by the Good Folk while under this veil acquires an Opacity increase equal to their Space dots. Spells or supernatural effects attempting to read such connections provoke a clash of wills on which the Daoine gets automatic successes equal to their Space dots. Should the Good Folk wish it they may dispel this barrier, walking the world and forging connections as any mortal might, but to wreathe themselves in their mantle once more they must perform a ritual invoking the Aegis of the Wyrd.

Optional Arcanum: Fate 5

Grave Misfortune (Reach: Advanced Duration, Sensory Range, Casting Time):

By proclaiming a target’s impending doom, the Daoine may seal their fate, tipping the Scales of the Wyrd to ensure a swift end. With a spoken curse and an act of will the Good Folk may target any person they can see with this power. The cursed individual suffers the effects of the Grave Misfortune spell with a Potency equal to their Fate dots +2 Withstood by Composure. This hex lasts for the rest of the Scene, or until discharged.