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  1. Oct 25 22:32:18 <Evenstar> I have a thing to share with you all
  2. Oct 25 22:32:23 <Andygal> Yeah?
  3. Oct 25 22:32:29 <Evenstar> I was trying to come up with an interesting and unique magic system\
  4. Oct 25 22:32:44 <Evenstar> That still used elements, but not conventional ones
  5. Oct 25 22:32:54 <Evenstar> And then expressed those elements in unconventional ways
  6. Oct 25 22:33:05 <Evenstar> I call it Seasons, would you like to know more?
  7. Oct 25 22:33:13 <Andygal> sure.
  8. Oct 25 22:33:26 <Evenstar> Alright then
  9. Oct 25 22:33:40 <Evenstar> So, as the name indicates, in this world mages are aligned with the four seasons.
  10. Oct 25 22:33:51 <Evenstar> There are Winter, Summer, Spring, and Fall mages.
  11. Oct 25 22:35:41 <Evenstar> Each season has three Potentialities to it - these are the things that make it that season, and not another season.
  12. Oct 25 22:36:08 <Evenstar> For example, Winter has the Potentialities of Cold, Absence, and Death. So far so conventional.
  13. Oct 25 22:36:26 <Evenstar> The thing is, though
  14. Oct 25 22:36:29 * FacelessFrog is listening
  15. Oct 25 22:36:51 <Evenstar> Mages in this setting draw their power from the things in their seasons that /oppose their own potentialities/.
  16. Oct 25 22:37:53 <Evenstar> In other words, Winter mages actually harness 'Life-in-winter', 'Heat-in-winter', and 'Vibrance-in-winter', as the oppositions to Death, Cold, and Absence.
  17. Oct 25 22:38:31 <Evenstar> These are expressed as the 'elements' of 'Revolution', 'The Hearth', and 'Auroras'.
  18. Oct 25 22:38:49 <Sonata> This is really cool
  19. Oct 25 22:39:10 <Sonata> (did you see my blog post about seasons and opposite qualities?)
  20. Oct 25 22:39:14 <Evenstar> And each of these is shared with one other season, because these oppositions belong as a Potentiality to another season
  21. Oct 25 22:39:20 <Evenstar> Sonata: No, I will have to read this thing!
  22. Oct 25 22:39:25 <Sonata> http://sonatagreen.com/the-eight-point-year/
  23. Oct 25 22:39:43 <Evenstar> Fall has Vibrance: Summer has Heat: Spring has Life.
  24. Oct 25 22:39:48 <Sonata> oooh
  25. Oct 25 22:40:28 <Evenstar> Thus, in any contest between two mages of different seasons, one third of their powers are better known by their opponent than by themselves.
  26. Oct 25 22:40:49 <Teceler> iiiinteresting
  27. Oct 25 22:41:04 <Teceler> do people chose what season they are a mage of?
  28. Oct 25 22:41:07 <Sonata> but a summer mage can't actually harness Heat, only know it?
  29. Oct 25 22:41:48 <Evenstar> Sonata: Yes, exactly. They have an instinctive understanding of how their opponent uses that aspect of Heat, but they cannot use it themselves.
  30. Oct 25 22:42:08 <Evenstar> To quickly go through the rest: Fall has the Potentialities of Vibrance, Endings, and The Harvest.
  31. Oct 25 22:42:50 <Andygal> neat.
  32. Oct 25 22:42:52 <Evenstar> Summer has the Potentialities of Heat, Storm, and Virulence (I thought about the last one belonging to fall, but the nastiness of tropical countries, mosquitos etc made me think it belonged more to Summer)
  33. Oct 25 22:43:20 <Evenstar> And finally, Spring has the Potentialities of Life, Ambition, and Beginnings.
  34. Oct 25 22:43:38 <Evenstar> The elements that arise are:
  35. Oct 25 22:44:33 <Evenstar> Fall: 'Emptiness-in-Autumn', Departures. 'Beginnings-in-Autumn', Sunset. 'Virulence-in-Autumn', Fungus.
  36. Oct 25 22:45:42 <Evenstar> Summer: 'Cold-in-Summer', Hail. 'Ambition-in-Summer', Conquest. 'Harvest-in-Summer', Wildfire.
  37. Oct 25 22:46:21 <Evenstar> Spring: 'Storm-in-Spring', Flood. 'Death-in-Spring', Stillbirth. 'Endings-in-Spring', The Thaw.
  38. Oct 25 22:48:55 <Evenstar> It's still a bit rough around the edges - some of the pairings are weird, like 'Ambiton' and 'Storm' opposing - but I'm liking how it expresses the seasons in unexpected ways.
  39. Oct 25 22:49:31 <Teceler> it seems odd that they have an endings magic but not a beginnings one. although I suppose Thaw might work for that
  40. Oct 25 22:50:03 <Sonata> Beginnings-in-Autumn, Sunset
  41. Oct 25 22:50:30 <Teceler> hm
  42. Oct 25 22:50:32 <Teceler> possibly yeah
  43. Oct 25 22:50:46 <Evenstar> In this system, winter mages are highly social, drawing on sources of power from beauty (Aurora), companionship (the Hearth), and outrage (Revolution.)
  44. Oct 25 22:51:28 <Evenstar> Yet they're still mages of the season-of-endings, intertwined closely with death and absence. They feel almost Fae in a way.
  45. Oct 25 22:51:59 <FacelessFrog> huh, Storm needs to be literal?
  46. Oct 25 22:52:15 <FacelessFrog> maybe could mean something like "adversity" to opose "ambition"?
  47. Oct 25 22:52:28 <Evenstar> Faceless: No, not necessarily. But the aspect of 'storms in spring' is definitely 'the flood'.
  48. Oct 25 22:53:15 <Evenstar> I believe my intent at the time was that Ambition implies planning and Storm implies chaos.
  49. Oct 25 22:54:50 <Andygal> Ah.
  50. Oct 25 22:55:11 <Evenstar> I'm proud of myself for thinking of 'The Harvest' opposing 'Virulence', along with 'The Harvest' in summer being 'Wildfire.'
  51. Oct 25 22:55:21 <Evenstar> (That which destroys but also renews)
  52. Oct 25 22:55:58 <FacelessFrog> Evenstar, I understand that, I was suggesting less being about "chaos" and more about being a force of resistance
  53. Oct 25 22:56:08 <FacelessFrog> (this is a very interesting system)
  54. Oct 25 22:56:27 <Evenstar> Faceless: Interesting point, but I'm not sure 'Adversity' is a strongly 'Summer' thing.
  55. Oct 25 22:56:44 <FacelessFrog> fair point
  56. Oct 25 22:57:53 <FacelessFrog> yay, CFW is a god! And I love how this fact can hurt him psychologically :D
  57. Oct 25 22:58:13 <Evenstar> To continue on how things work regarding Seasons-Mages:
  58. Oct 25 22:58:28 <Evenstar> Summer mages in Seasons I envision as looking like rock stars
  59. Oct 25 22:58:52 <Evenstar> They're intense, driven people. They use dangerous magic and are very showy. They tend not to be very good at knowing their limits.
  60. Oct 25 22:58:54 <FacelessFrog> (oh, yeah sorry for the interruption)
  61. Oct 25 22:59:36 <Evenstar> The average Summer mage ends up looking like Ozzy Ozbourne after a while: Summer magic and lifestyle takes its toll on the body.
  62. Oct 25 23:00:13 <Evenstar> The dangerous and effective Summer mages are the ones that learn to be subtle.
  63. Oct 25 23:01:11 <Evenstar> They still harness the same three elements - Hail, Conquest, Wildfire - but rather than using them in the obvious way, like hammers, they use them more delicately
  64. Oct 25 23:02:06 <Evenstar> The fundamental problem with Summer magic is that it's easy to do too much of it. It's the season of heat, virulence, and storms. It's innately chaotic and difficult to control.
  65. Oct 25 23:02:53 <FacelessFrog> That is really awesome :)
  66. Oct 25 23:03:10 <Andygal> you burn yourself out.
  67. Oct 25 23:04:00 <Evenstar> But again, look at those aspects. "Wildfire": the destruction of the old in order to renew. "Conquest", the subjugation of things beneath your will. "Hail", unexpected cold amid heat.
  68. Oct 25 23:05:07 <FacelessFrog> going out with a bang?
  69. Oct 25 23:05:19 <Evenstar> Careful summer mages are one in a million, but they operate more like master vampires than people. In the rock star analogy: most Summer mages are Kurt Cobain, but every so often you get the Beatles.
  70. Oct 25 23:06:04 <Evenstar> Summer mages who don't burn out change the world forever.
  71. Oct 25 23:06:07 <FacelessFrog> I am going to associate summer magic with these people and not be able to stop FYI xD
  72. Oct 25 23:06:14 <Andygal> XD
  73. Oct 25 23:06:22 <Evenstar> (But they are naturally extremely rare.)
  74. Oct 25 23:06:51 <Evenstar> (Most people who want CONQUEST and WILDFIRE and HAIL are not deep, introspective thinkers.)
  75. Oct 25 23:07:01 <Teceler> pft
  76. Oct 25 23:07:06 <Andygal> pfffft
  77. Oct 25 23:07:18 <Teceler> so you can chose your Season? or at least it's a personality-based thing?
  78. Oct 25 23:07:50 <Evenstar> Because of the way the Potentialities work, you can justify yourself as basically any season you want.
  79. Oct 25 23:08:04 * Teceler nods.
  80. Oct 25 23:08:14 <Evenstar> If you're a very Vibrant person, it could be because you align with Fall, or because you align with The Aurora.
  81. Oct 25 23:08:33 <Evenstar> Etc. Every personality trait gives you at least two choices.
  82. Oct 25 23:08:57 <Evenstar> Ultimately, people generally learn the one that they feel fits them best.
  83. Oct 25 23:09:04 * Teceler nods.
  84. Oct 25 23:09:26 <Evenstar> (In close ties, it usually goes to the season they were born in. There's a slight natural affinity.)
  85. Oct 25 23:09:38 <Teceler> that makes sense
  86. Oct 25 23:10:03 <Evenstar> Then there are the Spring mages.
  87. Oct 25 23:10:31 <Evenstar> Spring mages are perhaps the most dangerous of all mages, at least in my opinion.
  88. Oct 25 23:11:08 <Evenstar> A nasty summer mage will conquer your country for a decade and then everything will go back more or less to normal.
  89. Oct 25 23:11:32 <Evenstar> A nasty /spring/ mage will work their way into power, and then keep it.
  90. Oct 25 23:11:59 <Evenstar> Their elements are generally fairly subtle, but dangerous nonetheless.
  91. Oct 25 23:12:30 <Evenstar> The Flood: Overwhelming change. Inevitability.
  92. Oct 25 23:12:55 <Evenstar> The Thaw: The lifting of burdens and the granting of health.
  93. Oct 25 23:13:11 <Evenstar> And last but not least, Stillbirth. The destruction of that which has yet to be.
  94. Oct 25 23:14:11 <Evenstar> Spring mages as a whole tend to be nice, upbeat people. They represent the season of life, beginnings, and ambition.
  95. Oct 25 23:14:25 <Evenstar> It's the ambition part that tends to cause problems.
  96. Oct 25 23:15:31 <FacelessFrog> oh, boy. I am loving this :D
  97. Oct 25 23:15:45 <Evenstar> As those who can control what flourishes, good spring mages are great boons to those around them. They heal, advise, and help others be rid of things that would otherwise weigh them down.
  98. Oct 25 23:16:30 <Evenstar> The Serenity Prayer is their unofficial ethos - 'the power to change the things I can, the willingness to accept the things I cannot, and the wisdom to tell the difference.'
  99. Oct 25 23:16:37 <Teceler> huh
  100. Oct 25 23:17:13 <Evenstar> You see, the issue with Spring magic is that it wants to BE very strongly.
  101. Oct 25 23:17:22 <Evenstar> It wants to grow and change and make things BETTER
  102. Oct 25 23:17:32 <FacelessFrog> but it lacks direction...?
  103. Oct 25 23:17:41 <FacelessFrog> it can grow and change into anything?
  104. Oct 25 23:17:50 <Evenstar> It's about LIFE and HOPE and damn what you think YOU ARE GETTING LIFE AND HOPE.
  105. Oct 25 23:17:53 <FacelessFrog> (well not anything, but very variable)
  106. Oct 25 23:18:06 <FacelessFrog> huuuum
  107. Oct 25 23:18:08 <Evenstar> Unfortunately, Spring is not a person.
  108. Oct 25 23:18:09 <FacelessFrog> awesome xD
  109. Oct 25 23:18:23 <FacelessFrog> (I wish Kappa was here to read this)
  110. Oct 25 23:18:36 <Evenstar> And so its definitions of 'good' are things like 'lots of food' and 'no unhappiness ever'
  111. Oct 25 23:18:48 <Teceler> ...
  112. Oct 25 23:18:50 <Sonata> oh dear
  113. Oct 25 23:18:55 <Teceler> somehow I see this going in a bad direction
  114. Oct 25 23:19:15 <Evenstar> And so Spring mages have to be careful not to allow the ambition of their element to overwhelm them.
  115. Oct 25 23:19:42 <Sonata> wireheading, eloi, lotus-eaters
  116. Oct 25 23:20:12 <Evenstar> Spring mages tend to start out as community-minded individuals. The good ones prefer to stay on the pheriphery. The bad ones start trying to arrange things to be 'better', whatever their definition of 'better' is.
  117. Oct 25 23:20:29 <Evenstar> Spring doesn't know what 'better' is and will defer to its wielder.
  118. Oct 25 23:21:10 <FacelessFrog> :D
  119. Oct 25 23:21:28 <Teceler> a good strategy here seems like it might be asking the affected people what they would prefer :P
  120. Oct 25 23:21:29 * FacelessFrog slow claps at the system
  121. Oct 25 23:21:58 <Evenstar> Bad spring mages make very nice very regulated very happy little villages where nothing ever changes because anything novel is hit with a 'Stillbirth' curse before it can interfere.
  122. Oct 25 23:22:19 <Teceler> (aaaa)
  123. Oct 25 23:22:27 <Andygal> aaaaaaaaa
  124. Oct 25 23:22:28 <Evenstar> Everyone is very happy because the things that were making them sad have been Thawed.
  125. Oct 25 23:22:55 <Evenstar> Those who do try to resist inevitably fail due to destiny effects set up with Flood.
  126. Oct 25 23:23:03 <Teceler> aaaaaaaa
  127. Oct 25 23:23:31 <Teceler> so, um Facet, writ small, except /worse/ because of magic /directly/ backing it up?
  128. Oct 25 23:23:32 <Evenstar> The good news: All three of these are necessary. Any mage of any season can break these mages' hold when they're found.
  129. Oct 25 23:23:38 <Adelene> ...man, I want a kobold to happen to a town like that. Presumably you can't Flood what you don't know exists? ^^
  130. Oct 25 23:23:52 <Evenstar> Winter has Revolution. Summer has Wildfire. Fall has Sunset.
  131. Oct 25 23:24:09 <Evenstar> All will suffice to make such a thing crumble.
  132. Oct 25 23:24:35 <Evenstar> (And of course, a duel between two Spring mages is on even footing.)
  133. Oct 25 23:24:55 <Andygal> potentially messily for the people who get caught in the middle, though.
  134. Oct 25 23:25:06 <FacelessFrog> at the risk of repeting myself: :D
  135. Oct 25 23:25:36 <Evenstar> Yes. Fortunately, the native 'nothing bad happens here!' enchantments usually reduce the collateral damage.
  136. Oct 25 23:26:23 <Evenstar> Finally, we come to Fall mages. Fall mages are an interesting lot.
  137. Oct 25 23:26:34 <Teceler> they did sound such
  138. Oct 25 23:26:39 <Evenstar> Firstly, they have two names for their season. (Fall and Autumn.)
  139. Oct 25 23:27:17 <Evenstar> That means that they tend to have a better understanding of it, since they can talk about aspects of Fall as separate from Autumn and vice versa and generally debate their own magic more effectively.
  140. Oct 25 23:27:43 <Evenstar> Their elements are Sunset, Departures, and Fungus.
  141. Oct 25 23:28:57 <Evenstar> The first two lend themselves to secrecy. Fall mages have control over drawing-to-a-close and the beginning of night. They can obscure information and tidy away loose ends.
  142. Oct 25 23:29:59 <Evenstar> Departures allows them to expel things from their presence, or slip away themselves. Their magics are not inherently destructive, but good luck ever having a chance to actually /fight/ a Fall mage.
  143. Oct 25 23:30:31 <Evenstar> Their magic lets them say 'and then it ended in due course, not disturbing the world.'
  144. Oct 25 23:30:51 <Evenstar> Their magic does tend to be /bad at timeframes/, though.
  145. Oct 25 23:31:45 <Evenstar> Since Fall is about Endings, the Harvest, and Vibrance, it tends to have an attitude of 'in due time.'
  146. Oct 25 23:32:45 <FacelessFrog> I am not entirely I understand that part?
  147. Oct 25 23:33:45 <Evenstar> Faceless: There's a time to sow and a time to reap. Fall is about 'natural endings': unlike Stillbirth, Sunset merely says 'this will end.'
  148. Oct 25 23:35:10 <Evenstar> Fall doesn't insist: it creeps up on you when you realize that the leaves are falling and it hasn't been hot for weeks.
  149. Oct 25 23:35:35 <Teceler> the trick sounds like it would be to set that up
  150. Oct 25 23:35:42 <Evenstar> Fall mages are extremely non-flashy. You wouldn't know most of them are mages. It's hard to have power trips when it usually takes a month for your magic to do anything significant.
  151. Oct 25 23:35:48 <FacelessFrog> I think I starting to get the picture
  152. Oct 25 23:36:16 <Evenstar> But the thing about them is that they are effectively weak precognitives.
  153. Oct 25 23:36:35 <Evenstar> They know what will fail before it does - not how or why, but that it will.
  154. Oct 25 23:36:41 <Sonata> this is really interesting but it is way past my bedtime
  155. Oct 25 23:36:57 <Sonata> goodnight friends
  156. Oct 25 23:37:04 <Evenstar> Sonata: Sleep, read the logs later <3
  157. Oct 25 23:37:18 <FacelessFrog> goodnight sonata o/
  158. Oct 25 23:38:01 * Sonata has quit (Quit: Leaving)
  159. Oct 25 23:38:13 <Evenstar> Fungus returns dead things to the earth: they similarly are able to turn failures into successes, eventually.
  160. Oct 25 23:38:42 <Evenstar> Most everyday fall mages look like regular people who just have astonishing luck.
  161. Oct 25 23:38:44 <FacelessFrog> Recycling?
  162. Oct 25 23:39:12 <Andygal> Neat.
  163. Oct 25 23:39:13 <Evenstar> Faceless: More generally, reclaiming that which is lost.
  164. Oct 25 23:39:29 <FacelessFrog> ooooh, cool
  165. Oct 25 23:39:34 <Teceler> ...oooo, that would certainly have interesting potential
  166. Oct 25 23:40:45 <Evenstar> Those Fall mages who have the drive to overcome the natural 'let it be, it will turn out in the end' attitude of their season can turn these powers to more immediately useful ends.
  167. Oct 25 23:41:16 <FacelessFrog> like what
  168. Oct 25 23:41:17 <FacelessFrog> ?
  169. Oct 25 23:41:19 <Evenstar> You see, the character of Fall has the exact opposite problem to Spring: it naturally resists being used.
  170. Oct 25 23:41:36 <Teceler> pft
  171. Oct 25 23:41:37 <FacelessFrog> self-restraint?
  172. Oct 25 23:41:53 <Evenstar> As the Season of Endings, its power wants to stop existing.
  173. Oct 25 23:44:08 <Evenstar> Mages who can overcome this can use Fall's power to re-purpose most anything dead or damaged, create powerful wardings, break enchantments, and generally spread the vibrant aspect of their season everywhere they go.
  174. Oct 25 23:44:43 <Andygal> sounds awesome.
  175. Oct 25 23:46:00 <Evenstar> They are often rootless, wandering from place to place, guided by their sense of when to depart: they embrace the thousand sunsets stretching out before them, treating each night as the new beginning it is.
  176. Oct 25 23:46:17 <Evenstar> And like a fungus, they're practically impossible to keep down.
  177. Oct 25 23:46:32 <FacelessFrog> pfft xD
  178. Oct 25 23:46:51 <FacelessFrog> really liking this.
  179. Oct 25 23:46:58 <FacelessFrog> have you though of inferesting synergies?
  180. Oct 25 23:47:19 <Evenstar> In short: If you encounter a strange, travelling mage who solves your horrible problem, they're probably a Fall master.
  181. Oct 25 23:47:19 <Teceler> by the way, I'm assuming it's impossible to have more than one season?
  182. Oct 25 23:47:43 <Andygal> I like it a lot.
  183. Oct 25 23:47:56 <Evenstar> Teceler: Yes: if you attempt to claim more than one the opposing energies fight each other, and you'll lose your grip on something.
  184. Oct 25 23:48:16 <Evenstar> Summer and winter cannot coexist because Heat and Cold oppose.
  185. Oct 25 23:48:33 <Evenstar> Winter and Spring cannot coexist because Life and Death oppose.
  186. Oct 25 23:48:47 <Evenstar> Fall and Winter cannot coexist because Absence and Vibrance oppose.
  187. Oct 25 23:48:50 <Evenstar> Etcetera.
  188. Oct 25 23:49:16 <Evenstar> Andygal: Thank you :3
  189. Oct 25 23:50:13 <Evenstar> Now, coming back to Winter mages: I realize I mentioned them briefly earlier, but I'd like to elaborate a little
  190. Oct 25 23:50:25 <FacelessFrog> yay
  191. Oct 25 23:50:33 <Evenstar> As I said, Winter mages draw their powers from beauty and companionship.
  192. Oct 25 23:50:53 <Evenstar> The Aurora, The Hearth, and Revolution are their aspects.
  193. Oct 25 23:51:50 <FacelessFrog> are they christmasy?
  194. Oct 25 23:52:07 <Evenstar> As the Hearth, winter mages are comforting to be around: they're natural hubs for conversation and companionship. They bring health, joy, and laughter with their presence. This is the 'christmas' aspect, more or less.
  195. Oct 25 23:53:13 <Evenstar> However, the Hearth contains fire, no matter how well contained - when Winter mages need to, they can draw upon those support networks, allowing those they know well to perform extraordinary things.
  196. Oct 25 23:55:40 <Evenstar> As the Aurora, winter mages can be beautiful and forbidding: They can fascinate and draw the eye, or bear the intimidating beauty of the Arctic. They dazzle, dance, and shimmer.
  197. Oct 25 23:56:16 <Evenstar> The Aurora can even go so far as to allow Winter mages to cast simple illusions.
  198. Oct 25 23:57:10 <Evenstar> Finally, we have Revolution, the most obviously dangerous of Winter aspects. Winter mages have the power to destroy existing orders, to cast down ideals, to make change occur where they wish it to.
  199. Oct 25 23:57:42 <Teceler> to what degree can they shape what they get in its place?
  200. Oct 25 23:57:56 <Evenstar> However, the power of Revolution has the obvious drawback of most real revolutions: the new thing that is brought in is not necessarily what you wished it to be.
  201. Oct 25 23:58:06 <Teceler> pft
  202. Oct 25 23:58:40 <Evenstar> Careful winter mages use it in conjunction with their other aspects to help shape the future to come: if they cannot, then they limit themselves to small changes.
  203. Oct 25 23:59:18 <Evenstar> Revolution is an immense and terrible power. A Winter master is a transmuter of anything to anything.
  204. Oct 26 00:00:00 <Evenstar> Of course, those who actually manage to get that far without accidentally turning themselves into a badger or a rock into a deadly poison are exceedingly rare.
  205. Oct 26 00:01:20 <Evenstar> Moreover: While other seasons' powers may be uncontrolled and dangerous, Winter is the only season that could be called actively malicious.
  206. Oct 26 00:01:31 <Teceler> oh dear.
  207. Oct 26 00:01:53 <Evenstar> Winter wants cold, absence and death, much as spring wants life, ambition and beginnings.
  208. Oct 26 00:03:11 <Evenstar> It's not that Winter hates you: it's that winter is the void-time, and is naturally opposed to human existence.
  209. Oct 26 00:04:50 <Evenstar> Winter mages must be careful that they do not slip into ennui, nihilism, or outright cartoonish evil. Where Autumn wants to end, Winter wants to /end things./
  210. Oct 26 00:05:32 <Teceler> huh.
  211. Oct 26 00:05:48 <Evenstar> This is in direct opposition to Spring, which wants to begin, and Summer, which wants to create things (in an uncontrolled, violent, chaotic fashion.)
  212. Oct 26 00:06:59 <FacelessFrog> so much cool
  213. Oct 26 00:07:07 <FacelessFrog> but I reaaaalllyyyyy should go sleep
  214. Oct 26 00:07:15 <FacelessFrog> goodnight everyone o/
  215. Oct 26 00:07:20 <Evenstar> As a whole, though, Winter mages are fairly nice people. Perhaps a bit more morose than usual, since they're so closely tied to a time of death - but mostly they get along and don't do anything nasty.
  216. Oct 26 00:07:26 <Teceler> sleep well Faceless
  217. Oct 26 00:07:39 <Evenstar> night Faceless
  218. Oct 26 00:07:54 <Evenstar> The nasty ones, however... they start deliberately breaking things.
  219. Oct 26 00:08:38 * FacelessFrog has quit (Quit: http://www.mibbit.com ajax IRC Client)
  220. Oct 26 00:08:57 <Evenstar> They turn their elements against the very people they rely on. The Hearth and the Aurora draws people to them: Then they pronounce Revolution, and their unfortunate victim is never the same again.
  221. Oct 26 00:09:12 <Teceler> eek.
  222. Oct 26 00:09:55 <Andygal> eeeeek
  223. Oct 26 00:10:00 <Adelene> (Lurker is /so very obviously/ a Winter mage. :D)
  224. Oct 26 00:10:34 <Evenstar> A spring or a fall mage may heal these wounds, a little - but Winter magic is cruel as a blizzard can be cruel, and rarely do their victims fully recover.
  225. Oct 26 00:11:21 <Evenstar> The best chance is usually at the hands of a Summer mage: rather than attempt to reverse the damage, they pronounce Wildfire, turning destruction into a new beginning.
  226. Oct 26 00:11:56 <Evenstar> The victim will still never be the same- but the Summer mage will ensure that the change is for the better.
  227. Oct 26 00:13:54 <Evenstar> However, those Winter mages that are able to fully resist the natural sombreness and destructive impulses of their element can be strong forces for good in the world. They naturally bring people together, and are the most likely people to be able to coordinate between the Seasons.
  228. Oct 26 00:15:26 <Evenstar> With holiday cheer and effortless charm, they create places worth living.
  229. Oct 26 00:15:52 <Adelene> So how does one become a Seasons mage?
  230. Oct 26 00:16:12 <Evenstar> And if they find something that they cannot fix, even with the help of all those they know - then, and only then, do they pronounce Revolution.
  231. Oct 26 00:18:01 <Evenstar> Adelene: There is a simple ritual, done at the relevant solstice or equinox. It requires three things of personal significance, each one related somehow to an element of the season: a small blood sacrifice: and the willingness to always feel your Season's presence in everything for the rest of your life.
  232. Oct 26 00:18:23 <Adelene> hmmm
  233. Oct 26 00:18:43 <Adelene> not /100%/ sure Lurker's going to jump on that if it comes to MWF, but it's likely. ^^
  234. Oct 26 00:18:49 <Evenstar> Season mages have an extra sense for 'where is my season': it's sort of like prioproception, only on a much larger scale.
  235. Oct 26 00:19:16 <Evenstar> And much like prioproception, it only really turns off if you're unconscious.
  236. Oct 26 00:19:55 <Evenstar> There /is/ an out if you're very desperate.
  237. Oct 26 00:20:13 <Evenstar> (Such as if you're a Summer mage who's finally found that your life has caught up to you.)
  238. Oct 26 00:20:39 <Evenstar> That out is to try and dedicate yourself to your opposing season.
  239. Oct 26 00:21:11 <Teceler> what is the metric for 'opposing season' here?
  240. Oct 26 00:21:25 <Evenstar> Halfway around the calendar in this case.
  241. Oct 26 00:21:48 <Evenstar> If you're dedicated to summer, you oppose winter: if you're dedicated to Spring, you oppose fall.
  242. Oct 26 00:22:25 <Evenstar> (This does crop up socially between mages: there's a natural uneasiness when you're nearby a mage of your opposing season.)
  243. Oct 26 00:22:44 <Evenstar> In any case. If you try to dedicate to winter while you're Summer...
  244. Oct 26 00:23:10 <Evenstar> At that point, you get about a half-hour of horrible unpleasantness, you lose your Summer sense and powers, and you'll never be able to dedicate to any season ever again.
  245. Oct 26 00:23:30 <Evenstar> If you try it with a quarter-turn season (summer to fall, summer to spring, etc)
  246. Oct 26 00:23:45 <Evenstar> Then you get the half-hour of horrible unpleasantness, but keep your powers.
  247. Oct 26 00:24:36 <Adelene> Anything interesting if you do that twice, like summer -> fall -> winter?
  248. Oct 26 00:24:52 <Andygal> what sort of horrible unpleasantness?
  249. Oct 26 00:25:14 <Evenstar> Adelene: I don't think anyone's tried beyond one circle so far.
  250. Oct 26 00:25:31 <Evenstar> (That is, beyond one conflict. It's nasty.)
  251. Oct 26 00:25:40 <Adelene> *nod*
  252. Oct 26 00:25:47 <Evenstar> Andygal: It depends on the exact pairing you're doing.
  253. Oct 26 00:27:45 <Evenstar> If you're mantled with Summer and you attempt to mantle Winter, you'll experience intense hot and cold flashes, shivering fever, the sensation of being burned-and-frozen-all-over, and then finally both your conflicting mantles will reject you.
  254. Oct 26 00:28:58 <Evenstar> If you're mantled with Winter and attempt to mantle Spring, you'll experience a series of manic-depressive swings, crushing fatigue interspersed with restless energy, and then the spring mantle will dissipate.
  255. Oct 26 00:29:56 <Evenstar> If you're mantled with Winter and attempt to mantle Autumn, you'll experience periods of sensory deprivation interspersed with periods of hypersensitivity.
  256. Oct 26 00:30:02 <Evenstar> Etcetera.
  257. Oct 26 00:30:30 <Evenstar> In all cases, the exact nature of the horribleness is related to the conflict taking place between the two mantles.
  258. Oct 26 00:31:11 <Evenstar> I'd love to stay and chat more but it's getting late here
  259. Oct 26 00:31:16 <Evenstar> I'll move to mobile
  260. Oct 26 00:31:20 <Evenstar> :P
  261. Oct 26 00:31:24 * Evenstar has quit (Quit: http://www.mibbit.com ajax IRC Client)
  262. Oct 26 00:52:26 <Teceler> meta!Niryl finds this all /very/ interesting
  263. Oct 26 00:52:30 <Teceler> but I should sleep
  264. Oct 26 00:52:52 <Andygal> I should also sleep.
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