Sir Jerric

So, you want to write a fantasy, and you want to have a magic system. Perhaps you've never tried this before, perhaps you don't like how that last one turned out. What ever your reasons might be, you might have come here looking for ideas on how to proceed. Or you might have come here looking to help someone else build a magic system, in which case, you are also welcome here. I've noticed that this section of the forum has a regularly reoccurring request: I need help with my magic system. Recently, Cstryon asked a slightly more interesting question. He asked for help with the process and the documentation of a magic system. I thought that was a really good question. Mostly because I've designed quite a few magic systems, and most of the inside the last two years. And yet when I put my fingers to the keyboard, I found that I didn't know how to respond. I have magic systems, but they just . . . happen, I guess. Several times over. Whenever I want them too. That answer did not satisfy me one bit. I listen to Writing Excuses. I hear professional writers dissect their writing process on a regular basis. And here I sit, on the edge of a yawning chasm full of swirling mist in the middle of my world building process. I hesitated for a day. Then I dove in. My rules: 1) Start from scratch. I cannot analyze what I did if I'd already done it. I had to find a combination of ideas that I had never even considered for a magic system before. Luckily, I managed to scrounge up a couple of interesting seeds in somewhat short order. 2) Write down EVERYTHING. I do a lot of world building and character design while I putter around doing menial jobs at work. But this time, I needed notes on everything. So I had to force myself NOT to think about the project unless I had it up on my display. 3) Analyze after. Corollary to rule two. I needed something close to stream of consciousness notes. I had to focus on the building and the writing. Finding the order behind the process could wait. The rest of this post is what I learned about my process, along with the notes from my sample. I hope that those who want advice can find something useful. I am open to absolutely any type of feedback people want to leave. Including the people who want to have fun building a world from the magic system presented here (if this is you, the orderly presentation is under the Spoiler in Step 6). Step 1: Concept Like most everything in writing, I wasn't going to start without something cool. And more than that, I like to work on the intersection of multiple cool ideas. I took a plot conflict that I'd been sitting on, and the magic power of an old magic item I'd crafted for a role-playing game, and set to work. Grab an idea, or several, that makes you say "OOOooooo." Saying "The claw!" is optional. Step 2: Broaden Next, I went over the ideas and asked myself what they meant together, and what all the pieces meant by themselves. I prowled around with a shovel, turning everything over and looking at what was underneath. Two cool ideas can set a direction, but I was out to build a road. Why are those ideas cool? What parts do you like? What does that imply? John Brown talks about a technique he calls list and twist. This is the list part. Step 3: Define Now that I had a pile of ideas and concepts, I tried to carry them farther. I went through the concepts and tried to fine dependencies and mixtures that maintained that cool factor. More than that, I wanted ideas and combinations that sounded cooler than what I'd began with. And beyond that, I wanted the things that mixed with the original and took cooler up to awesome. Compare the ideas to the original direction. Set your path toward the most fun. Bring in other ideas you want to use, like character elements and plot conflicts. Remember that your magic system is there to add to the story. I put a {research note} into this section. If I were doing this to write a story, that is when I would have started cross-referencing my ideas. Since I didn't, I wound up running with four different system ideas trying to find a solid direction. In the John Brown list-and-twist, this is the twist. Step 4: Focus As I said before, The magic system needs to add to and support the story (or the gameplay, or whatever your objective is). I knew this was coming back at the {research note}, and now, it was time to buckle down. Ever heard of world builder's disease? It's bad enough with only one world. I wasn't going to do four. Ideas are cheap, so piece together what is working now, and toss the rest in the bin for later. The first steps worked on the breadth, next comes the depth. Time to pick one. Step 5: Refine This is where I got into the gritty details of the magic. This is the part where cool ideas become powers with costs, and limitations. This is when the magic becomes a system. How did I do it? I've mentioned this part in answer to other threads. Ask questions, look for consequences. Pick answers arbitrarily, try them on, throw them out. Find themes, use them for guideposts. And this time, my advice comes with examples. Be warned. This section gets deep. Over 5,100 words deep. There are a bunch of cool ideas in here, but be prepared for a lot of reading. Step 6: Summarize Did you try to read that example above? I don't recommend it. That's how I thought the system through, but there is no way I'm going to be able to use that as a reference while I'm writing the story. This is where the ideas need to make sense, not just in your mind, but on the page. This part was not written as a stream of consciousness. This part is methodically arranged for clarity. It is a bit dry, but I prefer my system rules that way. I aim for them to give shape to the ideas in my head. Then I add in sections for examples, or write the examples in my other design documents. Feedback? Did I miss something? Want additional explanation? Found a hole in the process or the system? Wondering how Sanderson's Laws are applied? Want to springboard off of something I said and build your own system? Want to make use of the systems I dumped in step four? Want to ask for applied advice for your own system? Found some horrible grammar in my "clearly written" system manual? Want to tell me to stop asking so many questions? =) Sorry, it's compulsive.

What's this? Nobody has any guesses about Vhalin's appearance? Alright then, I'll make it easy on you people.

Erik stepped free of the dream, into the mist covered hills that surrounded Drell's Crossing. All around him rode powerful figures, legends mounted, bearing arms that shone with precious metals, armored in gleaming mail and shimmering robes. He looked down at his own garb. A simple tunic, a thick belt, dark leggings. But the material shone in the spiraling mists, looking like velvets rather than homespun. In his hand, a reaper's scythe, its curved blade glistened almost like a polished diamond. A horse pulled up before him, and Erik looked up at Hend the Striker, his hammer ready in one dark-skinned hand, his spike held with the reins in the other. Hend smiled. "A fine weapon you've chosen, Erik." "I'm not . . . I don't understand. How am I a hero?" Hend laughed. "The Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. You're here with the rest of us, so you might as well join the fight. There'll be time to talk it over later." A draghkar screamed overhead, slamming to the earth a short distance away. It rose, spreading its arms to begin its crooning song. Hend pulled his horse around to close with the shadowspawn, but even as he did, the scythe drew a glittering arc through the creature's neck and wing. Hend laughed again, deeper this time. "See there? Told you that was a fine weapon." Erik shook his head. "I'm just a farmer far from his home fields. Let my wife talk me into taking over her uncle's river freighter. I'm not a fighter." "Well, if it makes you feel any better about it, there's a whole field of shadowspawn over there that needs reaping. Have at it." Erik shouldered the scythe and started down the hill. "I'm not stacking the sheaves afterwards, just so you know."

"Must insist. Others here to arrangement with duke. His arrangement with self is made. Would speak to his captain of guard, if pleased." The liveried man gave in. He directed Vhalin to the mansion, warning the ranger to announce himself at the door and to not touch anything. Vhalin shrugged his pack into alignment on his shoulders and marched up the paved drive, casting a glance at the pavilion the servant had been so insistent about him going to. Several of the people from the inn had yet to arrive. But then again, Vhalin had not wasted time crossing the city to retrieve his supplies. Vhalin stepped up to the smaller doors and knocked. A servant arrived promptly, looking around with a slightly bemused expression. Vhalin cleared his throat, startling the man. "May speak to captain of guard?" The servant recovered quickly. "Do you have an message for him?" "The duke hired for a bodyguard. Would prefer to clear with captain. Would you direct, please?" The servant bowed, and led Vhalin along a side passage and into a much plainer area of the mansion. The man leaned into a doorway. "Captain, I have a, um, halfling here? Says M'lord hired him as a bodyguard?" Vhalin stepped past the servant, taking in the tall, black-haired man. The captain showed a definite limp as he turned, leaning on his cane and looking exasperated. Vhalin spoke first. "Am called Vhalin, captain. Traveling ranger. Duke Korb hired before started collecting others." "Did he." The captain's voice was completely flat. "I'll be out to the pavilion in a few minutes to lay things straight with you heroes." Vhalin broke in. "If captain spares a minute, would like to be clear with you." The captain's knuckles turned white around the top of his cane, and his voice held an irony that was less than amused. "Wearing that mask and hood, halfling?" Vhalin pulled the veil back over his head, sweeping the hood along with it. The air felt notably cooler, and his nose and whiskers tingled with the sudden removal of the cloth he'd been wearing all day. He also had to blink a few times as his eyes adjusted to the increased light. The captain stood silent, only the wideness of his eyes betraying his shock. The servant stepped back, and Vhalin turned an ear to his gasp. Vhalin smiled, knowing the effect his fangs left against the backdrop of dark fur. "Not halfling, captain. May have heard of Lebaiym?" "Ah, no. Or, not much. Rumors from dwarven traders." The captain was attempting to reassess him, and clearly was coming up blind. "You ask dealers in glass and ceramics, might learn something. As for self, am ranger: guide of caravans, hunter of dark beasts. Agreed to protect duke, but he is . . . unbalanced?" Vhalin wasn't certain that was the right word. "Perhaps 'not clear'? Am apologizing. Not familiar with your Common." "The duke is not one for straight answers." The captain said, still wary. Vhalin nodded. "Yes. Asked why he needed bodyguard, not answering three times. Then walked into rough tavern and collecting more strangers." "I assumed he had done something like that." "Took long time to convince duke to not wave money around thugs. And then raiders came, had to fight away." The captain looked almost ready to pull his hair out, but he held himself at attention. He eyed Vhalin carefully, his mouth set in a grim line. "Ranger, you said?" "Yes, captain. Twenty years as military scout and caravan guide." Vhalin bowed, and rose to look the captain straight in the eye. "At your service." "Saluard. Captain of von Shwartmeyer's personal guard." His grip on the cane had relaxed. "Go wait with the others. I'll expect a report from you later." "Yes, captain." Vhalin bowed again and stepped out, almost before the servant moved. Saluard did not appear to trust him, but he had offered a trial. Nice to know that someone around here had good judgment. ----- There you have it. Vhalin has at last removed his hood and veil. The question is, what did you pick up about his physical description? =) By the way, if anyone wants some more concise information about Vhalin, I've placed a summary in my first post and linked it in my signature. Characters on site: Vhalin, about to approach the pavilion. Korb and Saluard are in the mansion, preparing for the journey. Zakk and Matt are at the pavilion. Bent and Marie are also at the pavilion. There is room for Korb to arrive at the pavilion before Vhalin, depending on how much time he is spending giving orders and other preparations. Or they could meet at the front door on the way over. Saluard wasn't quite through yet, and Vhalin distracted him. Characters missing: Zeith / Aesalyn XiaoLi Karya Tool I recommend that everyone at least post enough of a check-in to bring your characters to the estate. You'll have a much harder time explaining how you followed if you don't come to the planning scene. Plus, I'd like the extra input about where the story goes from here.

I didn't read them back in my teenage years and earlier, but as I've become more serious about writing I've grown to appreciate the little insights into the behind-the-scenes of bringing a work to market.

Nearest book to me when I first read this was a self-published micro-story collection. A little bit plain. Unless I can use the title of the piece instead: Death's Honeymoon is Apparently Over Let's try some other nearest books. Don't think that one is very fitting for me either. Try again? Now that is ironic.

I'd be satisfied with Zeith staying in control of the body, and he was so busy hiding that he didn't get very involved in the fighting. Perhaps he ran upstairs to jump out the broken window, but got pinned down by the crossbowmen until Zakk and Vhalin cleared them? And once the coast is clear, Zeith is free to exit and follow Korb, perhaps at a safe distance? Claim to be on Zakk's side? I don't know how you want to run the character's relationships, so I can't offer too many suggestions for that part. Also, BreathTaker makes a good point. Vhalin might need to nip off to pickup his own travel supplies from the inn he had been staying at. Place doesn't seem like it will be secure enough now that the city's under attack. Hopefully, the army will keep the foes busy away from the estate for at least a little while. But if they made a tactical stab at the nobility . . . And the whole moving fast bit is a little relativistic. This thread has been running for two and a half weeks, and we're just leaving the tavern. =)

(Note: my phrasing might not carry this tone, but know that I am in a good mood, and chuckling about the ironies I am attempting to address.) I know I said that Vhalin would not growl at a noble, and that he is uncertain about cultural norms, but ever since, your descriptions seem to cast him as being shy or timid in every conversation. Which really isn't what I'd been trying to go for. The discrepancy between the cowering little cloaked man and the elite warrior who duels with orcs, wipes out a squad of crossbowmen with a sling, and inspires visions of venomous creatures is quite amusing. To help with the future descriptions, I'll set out a few more character attributes for your reference. Vhalin is 43 years old. He joined the army at age 17, and served for 9 years, primarily as a long-range scout. Following that, he began guarding merchant caravans, and quickly moved up to guiding them. He is an elite among those who travel the underworld. But for all of that, he is also dedicated to his religious principles. He is confident, and considerate of others. He has a great deal of common sense and practical experience. He knows that offending people and picking fights is an impractical method of getting his way, beyond the chance of injury that comes with such behavior. He prefers not to waste energy on arguments and confrontations. He will step aside, or bow out, to avoid wasting time on people who aren't going to listen. In a foreign society, he is not certain what behaviors are going to be taken the wrong way, so he tries to be careful about his words and gestures. People who observe this see him as excessively stiff and formal. He is not intimidated by threats, or boldness, or much of anything. He is respectful of authority, and he is respectful of knowledge. He is willing to assume that unless he is the expert on the subject at hand, other people may know more and are therefore worthy of respect. People who act the fool, on the other hand . . . well, at least Korb has power to balance that scale. =) Copy that lot into your references for writing Vhalin, and you shouldn't have too much trouble. And instead of venomous creatures, perhaps the great cats might fit the character portrayal I'm using a little better? He isn't quite that disdainful, but it's close enough. =) In other news, Yay for progress! Vhalin recovered his broken equipment after using the first sling stone as cover fire, but he had to go back to slinging because the fire was put out. I don't know what he and Zakk are supposedly talking about. Any ideas, BreathTaker? I vote for skipping more or less directly to Korb's estates, because the tavern area is dull, and the street fighting will just be more of the same. If you want to add some color to the journey, that can always be done in past tense. Any takers? =)

I had seen him at Tarachin Superstar back at 2037 rep. I also hazard the guess that Mistborn started at 2048, also known as 211.

I was going to suggest looking at the free previews of the Mistborn Adventure Game, which includes an entire chapter from the magic system rules. This has the added benefit of being a condensation of a system that you might already know from the books, so you can draw your own parallels. Other resources include classes or other material on the subject of Technical Writing (Though from personal experience, most such classes use the assumption that dry, objective writing is optimal, which does not apply to selling yourself on the awesomeness of your magic system.) You can also find most board game manuals online in the publisher's downloads pages. Gather structure ideas from those will be somewhat challenging, but if you want to try, some of the best manuals that come to mind are Carcassonne, Dominion, and Small World. Google those with "Board game manual" and you should find them rapidly enough. As for "manuals" for my own magic systems, I'm going to hold back on that a little longer. I mentioned above that your question about the design process was an interesting one. I'm attempting to build a more complete answer to that question, and I will share the end product alongside the commentary on what I did. So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get back to work on that while I have a day off of real work. =)

Gotten a little quiet 'round these parts. =) On review, you're right about the minimal discrepancy. Main points that I changed from your post are the warning and placement of the light source, and the interaction between Marie and Vhalin. Might I ask what you are getting at with the serpent symbolism? I'd like to know whether it fits into my character design or not. I don't feel a particular need to keep posting,since I'd rather allow the interior of the tavern catch up to Swim and myself. I'd guesstimate that we've moved Korb and Vhalin at least a couple of minutes ahead of events inside the tavern. Two minutes is a lot of time in combat. And two minutes is a good bit of time for a fire to spread in dry wood.

How to document the various available actions, limiting rules, and syntax jargon of a magic system? What document format handles that kind of material effectively? An instruction manual. =) Seriously. I play lots of board games. I read the instructions, learn the system, and then enumerate the system for other players. The purpose of the instruction manual is to explain to the players what powers they have within the system, what the restrictions on those powers are, what costs are paid for each action, how certain actions interact with one another, sometime even consequences for breaking the rules. They also provide the important function of teaching a consistent jargon within the framework of the system to provide clarity of interpretation. When I bring up the Metallic arts, most everyone who has read the Mistborn trilogy or the Alloy of Law gets the same meaning from sentences referring to snapping, burning, storing, and tapping, as well as knowing the meaning of a metalmind (or any use of the "-mind" suffix), Feruchemist, Allomancer, Misting, or Mistborn. If my magic system documents are relatable to anything, it's an instruction manual for a game.

I agree. Khamsi (Shiv) is probably the best choice for the next lynch, both for being a verified Darkfriend and for being an experienced, cunning player. We wouldn't want him to turn the game around on us at the last minute.

Short answer: As with most writing advice, use what works for you. Which is a totally unsatisfactory response. What you probably want is examples of various tools that people have used in successfully designing magic systems, so you can sample them or conglomerate them into a method that allows you to develop magic systems of your own. I've built a whole series of magic systems, as I mentioned in the opening to my thread about powers. So I ought to be able to share something, right? But when I put that question to myself, I found an odd answer. I don't have a system for building magic systems. Not really. The one novel milieu I've built thus far had the basics of its magic system outlined before I recorded any notes. I have notes on how I detailed the system, but not on the design process that gave rise to the system. This is a really interesting hole in my outlining process. I'm tempted to just throw one of my unformed ideas into a blank document and write up a magic system from scratch. All for researching my own process thoroughly enough to be able to sensibly compose a useful reply to a Seventeenth Shard forum thread. There would be several side benefits, but it all boils down to "That's a really good question." In the meantime, I can start with this much: 1) Pick a goal, or several goals. I usually have a particular power that I want to use. But sometimes, I am trying to implement a theme. Often, I'll be wrapping a theme around a power. Setting some targets will give you a reference to judge if you are staying on track. 2) Ask questions about the limits. Use lots of basic "yes or no" questions. Use questions about the underlying Laws of Physics and define which ones you are breaking. Extrapolate additional techniques and adjust the "rules" to close off options you don't like. Ask questions about the availability. 3) Look at the consequences. For every answer to every question, ask who, what, where, when, how? Build a society around the magic. If the consequences don't appeal to you, go back and redefine the limits. 4) Generalize. Some of the "rules" will be aimed at limiting the scope of a particular power. But some "rules" can be broadly applied. Those generalized "rules" become the consistent elements that make the system feel like a system.

My first reaction was that you had Vhalin fighting the orc for a unrealistically long time, but then I realized that I had a few handy excuses for why Vhalin would have a hard time finishing it quickly. So the section through the orc's death works nicely. Unfortunately, the section you edited in threw off all the stuff I had been preparing, so I'm contradicting some of that. I like the idea of Korb exploring the sword-cane's effects and such, but this alley is not the time and place for so much standing about, as the following should explain. The big man lunged out from the shadows of the alley and smashed his fist into the side of the orc's head. The orc staggered and swung it's blade around to fend the man off, giving Vhalin the break he'd been waiting for. The black blade punched through the leather breastplate with only the barest hint of resistance, and dark blood flowed as the orc collapsed. Vhalin looked again at the band that Korb had led out of a hidden cellar door. "Put light away," he hissed. "Bows on other roofs, will watch for who won duel. Stay near wall." He lifted his hand to point down the alley, the motion throwing his cloak wide. That reminded him of why he'd been so hard pressed in the first place. He bent and wiped his sword clean on the orc's leggings and put it away, drawing a dagger instead. The hood was handy, but this ankle length cape was horrendously impractical in a fight. He reached around under his arm and punched the dagger blade through the thick wool at about elbow height. The heavy fabric parted with the barest whisper as he brought the dagger around to the front, swapped hands, and repeated the motion on the other side. Over half the cloak crumpled to the alley floor, freeing Vhalin's arms. He scooped up the remnant, and after a moment's consideration, divided it into two strips before sheathing his weapon. As he wound the thick cloth around his forearms, he scanned the alley carefully. The other sword's hilt lay about halfway out across the alley. The glass blade had shattered from a poorly redirected strike--the first of the times the cloak had almost gotten him killed. There were three fragments he could see, spread over the alley floor, the farthest against the other wall. Vhalin looked up at the far roofs, lit by the burning front of the tavern. The flames had spread across most of the front of the building by now, providing ample light. Enough that the contrast of the shadowed alley would be nigh impenetrable, now that that torch was sheltered--or put out, it didn't matter which. One of Korb's band moved toward him, and he turned. The woman looked to be a server from the tavern, her stained, near-white apron almost shining in the dimness. He hissed wordlessly, gesturing for her to stand against the wall. She stepped back, but frowned. "Did you take any injuries?" she said, looking pointedly at the bulky wraps he was just finishing. "No," Vhalin said. "Take off apron before bows see. Too bright." He looked back across the street, moving away from the wall with delicate steps. She wasn't so easily put off. "Then why the--" "Armor. Thick cloth turn a sword or soft a club. Shh." Vhalin had sighted one of the archers. The figure had a hand raised, trying to block the bright flames to see into the alley better. Vhalin moved back to the wall and uncoiled his sling. "Back," he told the woman as he loaded the weapon. This time she cooperated. I don't know if you've ever tried cutting cloth like I described. It isn't that easy, unless you are using the equivalent of surgical knives. I hinted at this property back when Vhalin assessed Tool's armor, in case anyone is interested. But despite the keen edge, Vhalin's shortened cloak is going to need a hem job. A properly wielded sling can deliver a similar stopping power to a small modern handgun. And Vhalin has had many years of practice. His plan is to plug the archer while the crossbow is not aimed and before the archer's eyes adjust. Then he will quickly reclaim the fragments of his broken weapon and confirm that the four pieces make a complete set (they do), then rejoin Korb, recommending that they move out the other end of the alley. And I plan to get some sleep before work tomorrow. Nighty-night!

Since the mayor vote and the dragon's fang are the village's only methods of preventing lynch deadlocks if things go downhill, giving the Villager Aiel-blooded is the best means of making use of the title. I will also add a vote to Witless to keep the number high. And since I'm here, there isn't much point in not voting for Dellan's lynching too. The real question is who we are fanging in preparation for tomorrow's lynch. Assuming Dellan is another Darkfriend, but not the Forsaken, and assuming that four was the correct total of Darkfriends, that would leave Khamsi as Darkfriend channeller and (presumably) Trimat as the Forsaken. What is interesting about that scenario is that the death of Khamsi would remove the group kill from play, ending the double night kill even though the Forsaken is still able to make his own. But if there were five Darkfriends, then a Khamsi lynch is the wrong choice. The channeller role is meaningless, with no ability to interfere with the lynch vote, just the dragon fang. And I doubt that Khamsi has the weaves to do anything significant there. So I assume that Trimat will be the fang target, or have I missed something here?

A big orc guarding the burning exit of a building crowded with drunken riffraff. I am suddenly glad that Vhalin is stuck outside. =) And this is the same tavern from the earlier fight, so that orc only thinks the door is the only exit. Three people have gotten in without using the door so far.

If anyone is wondering why the combat rules I suggested, they are derivatives of several story-telling techniques. The core is the concept of try-fail cycles. The character is more interesting for having tried, failed, and not given up. Failure raises the stakes, as one failure means more are possible. The victory will be more satisfying for the sensation of earning it. There is also a "rule" that says you should throw away your first few ideas, because they are too obvious. In our combat rules, I am inviting you to use those first ideas, and to fill in why they aren't going to work. You can run this in many ways. You could be taking your character down a notch, exposing their own weaknesses. You can add more skill or ability to the boss, giving them immunities or resilience to your mode of attack. You can make the boss smarter, applying existing attributes in interesting ways. In short, don't think that these failures are about making us weak. This is about making an interesting story by having strong enemies. BreathTaker is using the try-fail concept to good effect in his post. He tries to deal with the crossbows by dodging, making an ice wall, and barricading the door, each of which in turn fail to deal with the threat. Note how the threat seems more dangerous with each step, and yet Zakk is still moving and thinking fast, staying a little ahead of the foe. Well done! And I'm going to remind everyone that mister blade-and-chain orc might have fired one crossbow, but there were two shots on the ice wall breach. And strong crossbows do not reload fast, so we might have all five shots from different weapons / users as a minimum foe count. I recommend that the crossbowmen be classed as expendables, just to avoid bogging everything down. Vhalin walked out on Korb's heels, and when the first bow cable snapped taut he threw himself into a roll. He noted in passing that Korb had stumbled on the threshold or something, and had already dropped to a crouch. Vhalin stopped his tumble in a patch of shadow cast by a pillar supporting the tavern's awning, lying low to allow his grey cloak to blend into the semi-irregular cobbles. Another twang allowed him to estimate the bowman's position, the roofline across the street. He couldn't move yet, though. Something would need to draw eyes away from the front of the tavern before he could risk moving. He lay facing away from the door, so he had to rely on sound for the next moments. A whoosh blended with a crystalline crackle, followed by two more bow cables and the sound of shattering ice, some of the tinkling shards spinning out into his field of vision. A thud as the door was slammed shut and a heavy clatter as something hit the inside of the door. One more crossbow, this one shattering a window shutter. The series of shots did little to reassure Vhalin. The shots had come from at least three positions. And since none of the shots had struck armor of flesh, he had to assume he had no allies outside the tavern. What a great way to start. A heavy stride moved behind him, and he gathered himself to spring clear. A mighty blow crashed through the door, and Vhalin's reflexes took over. In a bound, he cleared most of the width of the tavern and a fraction of a second more had him in the dubious shelter of the alley. At least the alley was heavily shadowed, so he wouldn't stand out to the crossbowmen behind him. But he could see quite clearly that the towering figure in the alley had picked him out against the lamp lit street behind. And that sword did not look friendly.

Vhalin stayed out of the way as his client took advantage of the armored giant's generosity. He settled himself against a nearby wall and watched as the tavern steadily filled. The bartender's hasty hire of extra hands drew in a steady influx of rough-looking men. Vhalin watched them all warily as they jostled to reach the bar, the bar were Korb had planted himself and downed tumbler after tumbler of various heady brews. The sour-sweet scent of rotted fruits and grains reached through his veil and made his stomach twist. Perhaps he was fortunate that he hadn't eaten for several hours. Korb ordered yet another round of something, and Vhalin saw the dark-haired woman's embroidered red slip through the crowd and round the bar. Vhalin seized the opportunity of a just vacated bar stool to see over the bar. The woman presented a drink to Korb while bantering with the drunken brawler. Korb accepted the drink, and Vhalin frowned. Surely the woman did not work for the tavern, or she would have been assisting earlier. Before Vhalin got any farther with that lie of thinking, Korb dashed the large mug's contents across the woman's face. Almost half the tavern fell silent. The brawler stood and grabbed Korb by the collar, hauling the noble off his feet and demanding an apology. Vhalin stood motionless on the stool, hands at his weapons, but the brawler mage released Korb and stood over him, face livid. Korb made a quip, and the brawler lifted him again. Vhalin shook his head slowly as the crazy noble finally took the hint and made a floridly formal apology to the dripping woman. Perhaps he should give the man's coin back and call it a night. Korb was clearly trying to create his own trouble. "Wait, did you say Von Shwartmeyer?" Zakk said, "I've heard that name before. Tell me, lad, what is your job here in this wonderful town?" Korb looked up. "Why, a duke, of course." Vhalin let the rest of his client's words wash past him as he took in this statement. This crazy man--a noble who ran about unguarded in the rough neighborhoods of Silari, who hired total strangers out of the stalagmites--this man was one of the city's elite? Dukes were second in rank only to the king, if he had the titles straight. Surely this Korb was among the lowest of the dukes, if duke he was. And if he was a duke . . . Vhalin looked again at the crowd that now packed the tavern. This place could get unpleasant any moment now. "Lordship. This place being not good for discussion. Far too many crowds. If not your manor, ask a private room?"

There are other ways to explain it. Korb could have a latent gift for True Seeing, and her shapeshifting is powerful enough that your gift is only providing hints. Or, instead of an inborn gift, it could be that your tailor happened to have unwittingly included an enchanted object among the pieces of your latest fashion ensemble. Or we could go sinister and have the charm be a plant, and the tailor may or may not be aware of being involved in the con. Korb might not have been the target either. =) *Note: next post, I'll get a little RP written. I think. =)

Try not to get too carried away. Vhalin won't stop Xiaoli if she keeps things to weaponless, magic-free combat, since Korb clearly provoked her, but he will feel it necessary to step in if she gets too carried away. Am I correct in assuming that Xiaoli's true nature is not going to slip out from partial transformations and "inhuman" movements? I did not get the impression that her guise had such weaknesses.

The only person I gave the code to was Gamma Fiend, the GM, in regards to a usage ruling. I doubt that he gave the code away. And Aonar, you missed an element in your accusation. I used 'z' in my second coded post, in a context that would make it easy to identify with the other letters known. While the code looks messy, and I'm no cryptographer, I wouldn't be surprised to find that he had broken it. There are far to many consistent elements. After seeing this community break the WoR epigraph code, I wasn't expecting this one to last. I'm fine with using Dellan as the lynching target next turn. To simplify things, placing the dragon's fang on him will help prevent the need for all active player's to vote, and if two people die tonight, we could be as close as 5 vs 4, so I'd like to be sure the Dragon Fang is going to benefit the village.

Certainly an impressive title. I looked up the plot summary, and I am afraid that isn't the story I am looking for. The one I read did not run the real world to fairy transition trope, and the boat I mentioned was a river trip through the enchanted wood. The spoon was a hand-me-down from within the girl's village, and wasn't unique either, as I recall.

Some years back I read a neat fantasy book that had an interesting ending. I've mentioned it in conversations about the difference between stand-alone novels and series openers. This book caught my attention by the transition from appearing to be the later (a series opener) up until the epilogue, which in my opinion added the book the former grouping instead. While I've referred to it a few times, I've had to do so without naming the book's title or author, because for some reason, both names have completely escaped me. I'm getting tired of that, and I'd like to reread the book. So I'm asking the local population of fantasy readers for assistance. In the spoiler boxes below, I am providing a number of story elements that I can recall being in the novel. If spoilers for unnamed books don't bother you, would you mind reading through some of this and seeing if you can help me rediscover this story? I'm tempted to say it was a middle-grade, perhaps YA fantasy. First act spoilers Second act spoilers Third act spoilers So, if you happen to be familiar with this story, or if you happen to read this story in the future, could you provide the title for me? Or, if you know some other community that you would recommend for searching for a forgotten book title, I'm open to those suggestions as well. Thanks in advance for your help, however much it may be. =)