Here is where I am putting the odds and ends people might like to see.
Your PC Is Now A Spirit
You are now a common spirit of the element you've chosen.
- You must wear a spirit hat, you can adopt more fay markings and keep the ones you have, and otherwise can use the kit you already have or change it for more spirity stuff if you like.
- Your armour is now cosmetic. You benefit from the highest level of armour you can regardless of physrep and it doesn't affect your mana pool.
- You retain all of your memories and personality, tinged with the element you've now become. You're aware that your name is now inappropriate and should choose a new one.
- You gain first circle channeling of your element and Ascendancy if you didn't already have it as innate skills (and also any second circle skills and mastery if you had them). You retain access to any other skills you had before you became a spirit through some means you don't understand (you realise it's not innate, but the knowledge and skills are available at will somehow).
- You can participate as a power source in rituals of your allied elements and Evocation (but not rituals you lead).
- You can drop to the spirit world at will, and remanifest in Arginet at will, and you will always drop to the spirit world if executed, dismissed or you bleed out.
- Manifesting in Arginet without being summoned and contributing to rituals as a power source costs some personal power (which we're not going to exhaustively track, but be aware these things are not totally free).
- You may bind to a person if they have common evocation, or to a common spirit anchor if you wish, for an effect we'll discuss with you if you want to do it. You can receive sacrifice and make bargains. Any bargain you make in return for sacrifice is binding upon you.
The bit of this only the refs saw
Those that ascend through the crazy magiscience route are initially spirits with humanity bolted on. Their former human souls are attached to them exactly as if they had been sacrificed to them. They can access their human skills and old personality by using their sacrificed human soul. Detect Magic on these people shows them as a Common Spirit with sacrified human soul. Further investigation with Divination or Inspiration will show the human soul is diminished because it's missing the part of their personality that's their chosen element (so, a lot of it). From there they can:
- keep their soul attached and use it, staying as they are (this is a stable configuration, but some may complain that it's unethical).
- they can release their human soul to the spirit world, in which case they become pure common spirits and lose access to their skills other than innate, and lose Ascendancy and Mastery (Guide should explain that this will happen!)
- they can consume their human soul for power, becoming a pure spirit similar to option 2 but increasing in power a lot.
- There is a discoverable fourth option, which Hill at least knows about, which is to spiritually unify your humanity with your elemental nature and become a unified human/spirit, likely by contacting a totem for assistance.
- Or it's probably possible to undo the process and make them fully human again, but they'd still be dead. Could be necromantic bound back in to their body.
- Or something else if they players are creative.
Hill is already a unified human/spirit. Detect Magic shows him to be a spirit with something... more to him. Inspiration or Divination shows him to be a spirit with a humanity woven through him, as a complete unified being.
Wood Plague
- A wood organism that amps up your metabolism and makes you stronger and more energetic and feel great. The downside is that it makes you hungrier and hungrier the more advanced it gets.
- It takes a bit of energy from its host to feed and grow itself, so it gets more advanced over time on its own.
- At first it seems to be great, until you realise you're spending more and more of your time finding food and eating.
- It keeps taking energy from you, so if you fail to eat enough to feed yourself and it, it'll kill you.
- While it doesn't explicitly influence you to eat anything you wouldn't normally, some might naturally turn to... unusual... food sources if they can't get enough normal food.
- A minor side effect is that you want to spend time socialising, exploring new places and talking to new people.
- Inoculation probably possible with metal magic if (bwim when) it gets out of hand.
- This is Ravening Jaws' work. Ravening Jaws gets a teeny tiny bit of the energy it takes, it'll eventually add up to a lot if it spreads far (oh boy, promotion to Greater Spirit here I come!)
- When exposed to the disease, we give people a "You Feel Great!" card, which might be active, or might just make them feel great.
- Surgery can remove the "You Feel Great!" cards as a stack before they get 3 of the Fun ones.
- If the treating doctor doesn't take special precautions to prevent infection, they get exposed.
- Once they get 3 "You Feel Great!" Fun cards, they become properly infected, and get "Wood Plague: Stage 1".
- People with full Wood Plague no longer receive a "You Feel Great!" card when exposed.
- Full Wood Plague must be cured with Surgery AND a Rite of Cleansing earth channeler or earth spirit.
- And is touch infectious, exposing anyone who makes close contact.
- Each DT, anyone with "You Feel Great!" receives a Fun "You Feel Great!" before the interactive.
- Each DT, anyone with "Wood Plague: Stage N" receives "Wood Plague: Stage N+1"
Infection vectors:
- The 3 infected villagers they sent to Fiveways without curing them.
- The infected body the Eternal Vigil dragged away to reanimate as a golem.
- Pharazon infected his doctor by getting them to cure him without warning them what it is.
- Guinevere infected a bunch of people this DT.
- Including her smuggler friends.
- Who now live in Diana's town house. :)
You Feel Great!
- You feel great!
- Mechanical effect: "None", or "+1 HP and if you have 3 of these see a ref"
- Surgery will remove all of the instances of this card from sufferer.
Wood Plague: Stage 1
- You feel AMAZING! You feel stronger, more energetic and full of life. You feel noticably more hungry than usual.
- You feel a slight desire to socialise, go to new places and meet new people.
- Mechanical effect: +3 HP
- This wound requires Surgery in conjunction with a Rite of Cleansing (earth channelers or earth spirits can perform this). See a ref before curing.
Wood Plague: Stage 2
- You feel REALLY AMAZING! You feel strong, very energetic and full of life. You feel much more hungry than usual.
- You feel a desire to socialise, go to new places and meet new people.
- Mechanical effect: +4 HP, +1 stamina.
- This wound requires Surgery in conjunction with a Rite of Cleansing (earth channelers or earth spirits can perform this). See a ref before curing.
Wood Plague: Stage 3
- You feel ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE! You have trouble staying still. You feel hungry all the time (which is distracting but not all-consuming).
- You feel a strong desire to socialise, go to new places and meet new people.
- Mechanical effect: +5 HP, CLEAVE resist to TRIPLE, +2 stamina.
- This wound requires Surgery in conjunction with a Rite of Cleansing (earth channelers or earth spirits can perform this). See a ref before curing.
Wood Plague: Stage 4
- You can barely stop moving, are unable to sleep and are consumed with hunger.
- You are physically energised but mentally exhausted due to your inability to sleep, and this makes it very difficult to think complex thoughts.
- Mechanical effect: +6 HP, CLEAVE resist to TRIPLE, +3 stamina.
- This wound requires Surgery in conjunction with a Rite of Cleansing (earth channelers or earth spirits can perform this). See a ref before curing.
Wood Plague: Stage 5