The Blessing of Pier & Pre: Gwelliph
Contents
Introduction
The mark of Gwelliph appears as a glowing tattoo on the forehead of the individual. When first marked, it is a relatively small mark, but as the mark progresses, it trails down until it covers both eyes in glowing, swirling patterns.
Note: This mark deals with justice, crimes, and other abstract concepts. Sometimes, these are defined by the pc who receives the mark (in terms of equality) and are subjective to them and their personal moral codes. Other times, they are about legal codes and definitions of law and justice. What is important to the upkeep of this mark is that the pc is consistent in their morality and apply the same standards to all. So, for example, if a pc adheres to the law at all times, they must do so at all times. If they follow the law only in second place to their personal morals, that too must be consistent. And so on. Should the PC not maintain a level of consistency, or adhere to their own morals, then they will not progress in this mark and risk earning the ire of the Twins of Judgement.
The Blessing of Pier & Pre: Gwelliph
Favored
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
|---|---|
| This is the truth: (Minor) | The Blessed is able to influence someone’s perception of truth. When looking at an individual, the Gwelliph must concentrate on the words they say. They then attempt to inject their own truth ~ be that of a person, situation, etc ~ into an individual before ending with, "This is the truth." If the character is successful in convincing the individual of their "truth", the individual will respond back by saying, "This is the truth." At this level, it is hard for the character to convince anyone of their "truths". It is recommended that characters start with small forms of manipulation such as, "You want to buy me an ale, this is the truth." If the words the Gwelliph speaks are true to them, this strengthens the ability; at Favored this ability only works with statements which are true to the Gwelliph and can be deflected with expert level of meditation, deception, or discipline. When the Gwlliph reaches Adored, they can work in less absolute truths, and can only be defended against by someone of Master levels skill. Exalted Gwelliph can impart truth or lies with equal strength and the Champion of Pier and Pre may only be resisted by someone with Grandmaster levels of skill. When using this ability over the course of several days, the character will become mentally exhausted. Continued use will deteriorate the mental health of the character until they began to confuse their forced truths with reality. |
| Justified Skills | The character is granted an extra three skill points which may be spent only on the following skills: Socialization, Detection, or Investigation. Any skill points granted by this Mark can break the 250 (or 100 if fast track) point cap on skills. Within these skills, the points may be spent how the pc chooses. |
| Hear No Evil | This ability allows the character to decipher what is the truth and what are lies when communicating with other individuals. Regardless of language, the character will be able to tell lie from truth when they concentrate on the words someone else is saying. This is a kind of sense that the mark grants the character, the exact sensation of which is up to the PC. However, this sense has little effect on the dead or Wisps. This ability cannot work if the speaker is convinced of the lie itself. At Favored, the PC can be fooled by Expert levels of Deception. At Adored, it takes Master and Exalted are only blinded by those with Grandmaster of Deception. The ability is activated by the Blessed’s intent, and so happens immediately, and lasts for a break. |
| Self Reflection | Upon being granted this ability, the Gwelliph may dedicate a mirror to the twins and may use this to commune with the “essence” of the Immortals. While looking into the mirror, when faced with a decision, the Blessed speaks, apparently to their own reflection. This then replies and they are able to discuss with another how they should approach a situation. The “reflected self” is often quite opposite to the Blessed, reminiscent of how the twins themselves are. Should the mirror be broken, the Blessed may dedicate another ~ only one mirror may be in effect at any time. |
| Show Yourself | When this ability is used the eyes of the blessed turn a weird mesh of black and white, making it hard to hide. When thinking of a victim of any kind of abuse, attack or crime which the marked is aware of (they must know at least basic details), they sees a glowing red trail to the victim of that crime. This might lead the marked to a missing person, the owner of stolen property or to the body of a victim of a hidden murder. If the victim can not be found (perhaps their body has been destroyed, for example) the trail will take them to where the victim last was. The glowing red trail does not, however, take into account the environment and so is always in a single straight line directly towards the victim. There is no time limit on how long ago this crime was committed. This ability may be used once a trial and will last until the victim is found or the search abandoned. No more than three of these may be active at any one time at Favored, five at Adored and seven at Exalted. |
| Equality of Treatment | It is the duty of the Gwelliph to impart punishment upon those that have committed actions which go against the moral code the Gwelliph embodies. This does not necessarily mean that a crime has been committed but that the target of this ability has does something that the Gwelliph deems a sin or is not in line with their morality. The Blessed must make physical contact with the target in order to impart the effect of this ability, which may be used once a trial. Once touched a punishment will be dealt. This punishment is up to the Blessed, although at this level it will be no more severe than physical discomfort (pain, high fever, etc), physical restraint (such as being unable to move out of a small room that the Blessed has selected for a short period of time), or emotional discomfort (such as overwhelming feelings of remorse). The punishment is such that it would require expert levels of Discipline or Endurance to resist, and even then the target would be significantly affected by the punishment. The Blessed can determine how long it lasts, to a maximum of one break (Favored), ten breaks (Adored), one trial (Exalted) or up to five trials for the Champion. |
| Flames of Justice | Once a trial, the Blessed may call upon the Twins and this will lead to the Gwelliph seeing a single flame while they stand at the scene of a crime (as defined by law). This flame will point the blessed to the general direction of the perpetrator(s) of that crime, first one then the other, no matter how long ago it was nor how far away they are. In order for this to work, though, the Gwelliph must roughly know the details of the crime.They will not know exact details, but will know things like rough distance (very near, in this city, on the Southern continent etc) and direction. |
| Balanced Secrets | This power will allow the bearer to force someone to tell a secret that they know. The Gwelliph must ask the target directly ~ and the more detail they put in their question, the more they can direct the answer ~ if successful, the target must respond truthfully. At this level, someone of competency in a skill or magic that can make them resist can do so. At adored, this becomes Expert, Exalted becomes Master and a champion would require a Grandmaster or Revealed mage to resist this. This ability may be used once a season. |
| Final Moment | When working with a Vri-marked who is using the ability “Final Moment”, the Gwelliph can use this ability to work in tandem with the Bellinos. Final Moment allows the Vri-marked to share and experience the death of an individual; the Gwelliph is able to ‘tune in’ to this and do the same. When working alone, this ability is exactly the same as the “Final Moment” ability.
Final Moment Ability
A Favored of Vri has the ability to experience the last few minutes of a corpse’s life. They experience the death as if it were happening to them and only come out of the trance when the experience has ended. This is always a jarring and emotionally devastating ability to use as one can never quite get ‘used’ to dying, but it can reveal remarkable clues and insights as to the wishes or circumstances behind a death. A body must be presented, mostly intact (Within a Cycle or two of age), for the ability to work. However, by working in unison, the Gwelliph and Bellinos are both able to see, feel and fully experience the death of the individual and can also see their past. The whole life is opened up before the blessed, who has access to all memories and emotions of the deceased. This can be incredibly overwhelming and requires high levels of Discipline or Meditation in order to withstand. If either the Gwelliph or the Bellinos are overwhelmed during this process, it is likely to cause medium to long term psychological problems; these might be things such as getting memories confused, losing one’s own memories for a time etc. |
Adored
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
|---|---|
| This is the truth: (Moderate) | A character is further able to persuade someone’s perception of truth. The character must be looking directly at the individual when using this ability. Concentrating on the truth of the words they say to an individual, the Character attempts to inject their own truth of a person, situation, etc. into an individual before ending it with, "This is the truth." If the character is successful in convincing the individual of their "truth", the individual will respond back by saying, "This is the truth." With this development of their mark, the Gwelliph is much more able to convince almost anyone of their "truths".
At this level the Gwelliph is able to make their target behave in a way which is broadly within their own perception of the world. So, they can say, for example “You feel positively about that person, this is the truth,” and the target will feel positive. However, if the person then behaves in such a way as to make the target hate them, they will begin to doubt their own perception. All except the most fundamental beliefs can be shifted with this ability, and it requires Expert or above in Meditation, Discipline etc in order to resist. Continued use will deteriorate the mental health of the character until they began to confuse their forced truths with reality. |
| Justified Skills: | The character is granted an extra six skill points which may be spent only on the following skills: Socialization, Detection, or Investigation. Any skill points granted by this Mark can break the 250 (or 100 if fast track) point cap on skills. Within these skills, the points may be spent how the pc chooses. |
| See No Evil | This ability allows the character to decipher what is the truth and what are lies when communicating with other individuals. Regardless of language, if someone is lying in sight of the Gwelliph, the blessed individual will be able to see the truth behind the lie, and share it with those around by “projecting” the scenes. This will appear like an almost ghostly overlay, physically seeing the truth. For instance this could be used in a courtroom to display a crime in the form of an illusion for all to see, if the defendant is lying. |
| Weight of a Soul | When in the presence of an individual, the Gwelliph can summon forth special set of delicate scales that shall appear in the palm of their open hand. One side of the scales will be solid obsidian in hue, and the other side will be a bright ivory. When “Weight of a Soul” is activated the scales will tip in either direction depending on the past of the individual that the Blessed is targeting. If the individual has committed many crimes (by law) and / or done selfish things in their life, the scales will weigh heavier on the onyx side, whereas if the individual has worked to do good for most of their life then the scales will fall to the bright ivory side. This skill is used to weigh the worth of an individual and to see if they are worthy of redemption. This ability may be used once per trial. |
| I Am The Law | This ability allows the Blessed to be the Arbitrator in disputes. When listening to a disagreement between two people over a point of law, the Adored of the Twins is able to dispense justice in a way which is both absolute and final. They can make a judgement which has behind it the weight of the Twins and, as such is not argued with by those hearing it. Those receiving this judgement will know that the judgement is Truth, and as such will accept it - even if they disagree with it. This ability could be incredibly powerful if used correctly and makes Pier and Pre marked individuals known and respected as judges and adjudicators throughout Idalos. This can be resisted with a Expert level, or above, in Negotiation, but it would take the same in Persuasion for anyone else to hear a counter argument from another. It may be used as often as the Blessed chooses. |
| Cursed Reflection | It is the divine right of the Blessed to pass punishment and judgement on others. Cursed Reflection is a very special punishment that is reserved for the most vain and especially beautiful individuals. Some have even suggested that Edasha considers this curse an affront to her domain.
When the Blessed is in audible range on the target they must speak the words “May you see yourself as you truly are.” while locking their eyes on the target. Once this curse is cast the target will find that any time they gaze at their reflection they see their face transformed, as if it has been warped by all of their many sins and wrongdoings (as defined by the cursed - this ability is really about guilt). They will see that they have been punished by damaging the very thing about themselves which they value most. Beautiful, but vain, men and women will suddenly see their their skin has become pockmarked, wrinkled and scarred. For those that have committed especially terrible sins, they will find their reflection transformed into the visage of a monster. This ability may be used once per trial and will last for an entire cycle unless another Immortal or Pier and Pre remove it. |
| Kept for the Twins | This power will allow the bearer to mark a secret that they know. Once marked, they can not intentionally or unintentionally reveal the secret unless it is forced out of them, and this secret will be kept with them until they face the Twins. At this level, someone of Expert in a skill or magic that can make them tell a secret, such as Torture, will reveal the secret. An Exalted would require a Grandmaster or Revealed mage to make them expose their secret. One secret per season may be marked in this way. |
| Contradiction | When using this ability, the Blessed taps into the inherent contradictions of life and death. They are able to heal a physical injury (such as a cut, broken bone or infection, for example). However, they do this by passing on the injury to another - either themselves or a third party. This can be a form of judgement - or a mercy, or it can be transferring of a wound to an opponent. The blessed must be touching both parties and the ability takes one full bit to activate. Non-fatal wounds only can be transferred. This ability may be used once per trial. |
| A Vision of Demise | This ability works in conjunction with the Bellinos-granted ability of the same name. When working alone, this is fundamentally the same ability
However, if working together then the Bellinos and Gwelliph can now both extend this ability - the Blessed can initiate a trance in which the victim will experience any aspect or experience of one of the lives the Blessed has stored. So, should they initiate a trance with a slaver, for example, they might impart the arcs of slavery they have experienced from one of their victims. This can be resisted, to some extent, by Expert level Discipline or above - but it makes the emotional impact less, does not stop the experience. Vision of Demise Ability
The marked of Vri are connoisseurs of ends. With the first ability, Final Moment, the marked begins to collect the deaths experienced by those around him. A Vision of Demise is an evolution of Final Moment to a terrifying potential. Initiated by touch, a marked of Vri can initiate a trance in which the victim will experience a death that the marked has recorded. While mostly intended as instructive, this ability can be used to torture and end hostilities. While this ability is active, both the marked and the subject are locked in a trance and unable to do anything else. So long as contact is maintained, this ability cannot be escaped. Both the marked and the subject experience the full death before being released. |
Exalted
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
|---|---|
| Record Keepers | As the judges of the dead, Pier and Pre are also the keepers of the records. It is said that everyone has a book of their life held by the twins, in which every action and thought is recorded. With this ability, the Exalted is given their own book in which they can record what manner of things they choose. The book is indestructible, and will return to the Blessed within one Trial of being lost / stolen. It can be opened by no one but them. This book may be shared, either with another Gwelliph marked or a Bellinos, imparting the words written in the book immediately into the other’s mind. |
| Harbinger of Judgement | Traveling Idalos as a judge involves inherent dangers and hardships which the Blessed may face along the way. This ability allows the Blessed to conjure a cloak which they wear. This acts as a suit of masterwork steel plate armour, although it weighs only as much as a cloak would. Whilst wearing it they are never too cold or too hot and those who would enact violence against them are deterred from doing so. The cloak gives the Blessed an aura of protection, experienced either as threatening or pacifying, depending on the person observing them. This will not stop active attacks, but makes a random threat much less likely. |
| Justified Skills | The character is granted an extra nine skill points which may be spent only on the following skills: Socialization, Detection, or Investigation. Any skill points granted by this Mark can break the 250 (or 100 if fast track) point cap on skills. Within these skills, the points may be spent how the pc chooses. |
| What Shall Be | The Blessed has the unique ability to try and redeem those who they believe have fallen from grace. The nature of Pier and Pre is to bring about balance and to restore what was lost to an individual. This ability may be used once a trial and must be done when in physical contact with the target. The Blessed when touching an individual may enact “What Shall Be” which will plunge the Marked and the target into a trance where the target individual is able to see what they believe to be their potential future if they continue along their current path. This trance is highly subjective and depends on the target’s perception of themselves along with the Blessed’s judgement of them. But the target and the Blessed will be able for a few bits to see what the target could become should they not change their ways. The aim of this ability is to encourage the targeted individual to make better choice in life so that they may redeem themselves in the future. |
| Redemption | Life and death, truth and lies, justice and ruin are the remit of the twins and, in this duality lies their power. The Blessed is able to judge an individual and impart on them a task which will “balance out” a specific wrong in their life. The individual must clearly state what wrong they are seeking redemption for and the judgement given will be immediate and irrevocable. If the individual completes this “Redemption Task”, then they will indeed have the bad removed from them at their time of judgement. However, should the individual not complete this task, then the mark on their soul at judgement will be doubled. |
| Rebirth | When all else fails and redemption seems unattainable for an individual it is possible for the Blessed to wash away the memory of all perceived wrongdoings, or actions which are regretted, allowing a person to begin their life anew. This ability must be done only with the permission of the target and both must be in agreement that this is the right path. The Blessed must place their hands on the target and will begin reshaping their identity and washing away all tainted memory of their past sins. This rebirth can include a new face, and even a transformed body (You must remain the same race that you were previously). The target will remember their past life, but their memories of their worst sins shall be fuzzy, like they can’t quite ever remember them. This does not mean that those memories cannot one day be recovered. Rebirth is a fresh start, and should never be used without carefully considering all other options first. This ability may be used three times a Cycle, but can only be used once on any pc. |
| Cease Hostilities | There is no justice in either war or famine. The Exalted of the Twins is able to affect an area roughly the size of a mile and alleviate, for three trials, a major event which is negating the ability for judgement. Whether that be a battle, famine or other horror, it will stop in this radius and, for three trials, it will be mitigated. Combat will not, can not take place, food will be plentiful and during that time no one will die of any cause which is not “natural” (ie: people can still die of old age etc). None can enter or leave this area of effect during the time, they will find themselves physically unable to do so and, any who commit acts against the law will be immediately known to the Blessed. Someone with Master level Discipline may focus and force themselves to leave the area, but while in the area even they must conform. |
Champion
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
|---|---|
| Judgement Delayed | It is the divine sanction of Pier and Pre’s Champion that they possess the ability to give a soul a second chance at redemption, even when death bars their path. Should a person die near the Champion they will be able to lay their hands upon the cooling body and call the soul back from judgement should the Champion believe without a doubt that the individual has unfinished business. At that moment, the body is fully healed and the soul returned to it. The soul that is returned to their body by “Judgement Delayed” shall be issued a quest and they will be driven by a singular need to complete that quest before they must return to Pier and Pre for their final judgement. A soul may be returned to their body for the length of a Cycle in order to complete their quest before their borrowed time runs out. It is then that the Champion may stand with the soul during their final judgement and ask that the individual be returned to life permanently. |
| Eternal Twilight | The Champion of Pier and Pre is granted the ultimate accolade from the twins. Never will they be judged. This ability makes the Gwelliph immortal in terms of lifespan. Whilst they can still be killed, they will come, slowly, back to life over the course of ten trials. No matter how they died, they return and, should their body be utterly destroyed, a new one will simply be there, on the tenth trial after death. During the ten trials that their body is reforming, it will have a light sparkling to it, which marks it as obviously magical or divine in nature. It should be noted that the Champion still ages and will reach the end of a lifespan, then die. Ten trials later, their body will be once again returned to the state of youth in their early twenties. This relentless cycle is difficult on the psyche of Pier and Pre’s Champion, many of whom lessen, and finally stop, relations with others. Eventually, many of them request that this ability be ended and they find solace in the arms of their Immortals. |
The Curse of Gwelliph
The curse of Gwelliph is given to those who irritate the Twins to the point that they agree that something must be done. Due to their intrinsic balance, the curse is no more given because of notions of ‘good’ or ‘evil’ than the mark is ~ however, what the twins curse for is those who go against their own moral code, who believe one thing and do another. It appears as extra eyes on the face of the cursed.
Hated
The first level of the curse of Gwelliph is simple. The cursed can not lie, not even a small lie. Whenever they are asked a direct question, they are compelled to answer it and that answer is always honest. This is a verbal impact only and lies may still be written down, etc.
Despised
Should the individual continue to antagonise the Twins, the second level of the curse will be bestowed upon them. This is a continuation on the theme - now the cursed can not lie at all. No matter what they speak, it will be the truth. If they write something down, it will be the truth.
Condemned
Should you be unfortunate enough to earn this level of the curse of the twins,not only will you not lie but you will, in fact, become compulsive about sharing the truth - approaching strangers and telling them of your most deep-kept secrets, laying your life open for all to see.
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