Seers (Eyes of Vaasek)

This page relates to lore, you can find the original lore here.

Art by: Carrick Kabalees, or a "Witness"

Introduction

When a blind individual becomes overcome with anguish and desperation to gain sight, be they born blind, injured, diseased, or elderly and plead or beg they may have their prayer answered by the ever vigilant Vaasek. He sees opportunity in vulnerability and grants the blind individual a kabalees (or “witness”) to bond with them in their sleep. The witness feeds the individual their vision which is interpreted by their mortal soul and mind to create an imperfect translation so long as they embrace their own blindness and cover their eyes, a symbolic act of surrender. This newfound vision is called secondsight and is the defining trait of seers.

Overview

History

The first account of a seer harnessing the Magic of a witness beyond secondsight is unclear among the very, very few scholars there are on the subject. Lady Eldecia is thought to be the first, starting in Anthos, however some records do note of Mori’Quessir who possessed strange sight and clairvoyance as well as the once-famous Nawari gypsies of Aegis, some of whom were blind in a similar fashion. Likely a machination of Vaasek’s influence on muddying the annals of history, a subtle throughline exists; the daemon’s agents have existed alongside and outside the descendent races and do to this day. Regardless of wherever or whomever the use of seer magic originated it persists still. Any blind individual desperate enough can make the plea but not so easily are seers granted the arsenal of their witness thus teachers of the art have quietly passed through history, creating small rings of local seers to test and potentially induct into their circles.

To harness the deeper powers of a witness a seer must be graced by a teacher, an individual already entrenched who has proven themselves a valuable asset. By giving their blessing through the ritual of sanctioning they in turn give Vaasek’s blessing to let the seer further bond with their witness. In both teaching the magic and allowing existing users to increase their devotion, seers do so at the expense of their bodies, minds, and soul. Upon acceptance of their first sanction, a seer who takes on the magic begins to degrade. Greater musculature becomes impossible to maintain and they take on the physical attributes of a sedentary lifestyle regardless of their exercising habits; they dwell in a slightly less-than-average build and may become scrawny or plump while possessing little in the ways of strength and endurance. Beyond the body, the mind begins to take a toll as the witness’s increasing presence and in turn Vaasek’s bleeds with an aura of anxiety and fallacy. Upon dedication the seer becomes afflicted by a form of fear or false belief which deepens and spawns more upon further dedications.

Seers who delve into Vaasek’s art become subject to his desires, namely that of great misdirection. He is enraptured with the fear of his death at the hands of mortals from his vision ages ago and thusly uses his seers to infiltrate the likes of guilds and nations and steer them towards one another. He seeks to incite dramatic tension of the greatest magnitude to avoid lasting peace and cooperation which could lead to his foretold fate. Seers wield powers conducive to such a goal.

Lastly, Vaasek has one tenet and one tenet alone. His eyes and ears are everywhere and he gives little stock to what individuals he has leashed beneath him and so cares only upon one act; betrayal. Seers blessed with his magic cannot kill one another, oust eachother’s secretive operations, or directly work against one another without Vaasek abandoning them immediately and therein losing their magic forever. Only seers who have killed their kin in self defense are exempted. It is much more favorable to cooperate.

Overview

Seers may be taught by other seers who have received Vaasek’s most sacred blessing and have used the Bestowment ritual, granting them a pupil. Bonded with the daemon for eternity and with greater influence over his gifts, these seers can allow other seers to commit themselves to their witness and begin bonding with Vaasek, thus teaching them the magic. Lessons in this magic are not conventional as a seer does not need to be taught exactly how to use the powers of the witness, merely be graced by their teacher to dedicate themselves. The seer learns more of the spells at their disposal through their dreams, presumably tutored by the witness, and to cast and call upon them is not a scholarly or intellectual deed but one of emotion and intent; the witness interprets what the seer wishes to do. Each time they do so they are willingly giving a part of their soul to Vaasek in order for the witness to anchor itself deeper, meaning any slots given in seer are permanent and cannot be dropped. Should Vaasek abandon the seer if they break his only tenet then they lose the magic and feat as well as those slots forever.

Just as with the feat, seers translate the vision and coordinate the powers of their witness but to a greater extent. This ranges from 1 slot, to 2 slot, to 3 slot dedication and with each deeper bond the seer sacrifices themself to Vaasek to the point of being an eternal servant to Vaasek once they die. By allowing Vaasek and his witness in the seer becomes vulnerable to his influence and desires, making them more and more aligned with him and his cause.

Anxiety and Delusions

Physically this manifests as an inability to be fit or in good health, instead forcing seers to at most live with the body of a sedentary lifestyle with little more strength and endurance such a body could afford them. Mentally this manifests through a fear or anxiety or a delusion which is repeated per slot, up to 3 times. These can take the form of: Social anxiety (The fear of everyday activities in social settings, accompanied by being extremely self-conscious and feeling judged regardless of their self awareness. This can be any general social act or specific ones such as eating in public, meeting strangers, or attending social events. A form of social anxiety is performance anxiety where the individual is extremely anxious of giving speeches or performances.) Generalized anxiety (The excessive worrying about everyday matters such as money, safety, family, or problems amongst social circles like home or work. This anxiety can interrupt daily life such as making sleep difficult or impossible as it makes the individual feel hopeless and powerless to control their plight. Generalized anxiety can quickly become overwhelming and create a host of issues.) Specific phobias (The acute fear, panic, or terror of a certain situation, activity, animal, or object which imagines or irrationally exaggerates danger. These individuals are keenly aware of their phobia but feel completely powerless to control it. There are too many possible phobias to list so please research your own. Phobias commonly induce panic attacks.) Panic disorder (The recurring and disabling experience of panic attacks. Their repetition often induces exhaustion and burnout from dealing with the overwhelming feelings associated with them.) Anxiety can manifest as restlessness, irritability, the inability to focus, poor memory, or racing thoughts and can lead to avoidance, sometimes to the point of not leaving a place such as home. Physical symptoms include muscle tension, headaches, insomnia, a fast heartbeat, shortness of breath, trembling, sweating, and nausea. Panic attacks can occur in people with anxiety where they have overwhelming physical sensations that may include a pounding heart, choking, nausea, faintness, dizziness, chest pain, hot or cold flashes, and perspiration. Delusions on the other hand are strongly held beliefs that contradict reality and those with delusions have trouble discerning what is real and what is imaginary. These can include: Erotomanic (The belief that someone is in love with the individual and may try to contact them. Often this is someone important or famous. This can lead to stalking.) Grandiose (The belief of over-inflated worth, power, knowledge, or identity. They could believe they have a great talent or made an important discovery.) Persecutory (The belief that they or someone close to them are being mistreated or that someone is spying on them or plans to harm them. They may frequently seek help or try to resolve the threat.) Somatic (The belief that they have some kind of physical defect or medical problem.) These delusions are very difficult to resolve and proof against their validity may be dismissed or provoke a reaction, however those with more mild forms may have their delusions interrupted. Vaasek’s influence over illusion is also present as these delusions are often accompanied by appropriate hallucinations which reinforce their reasoning, such as hearing assassins walking on the roof or seeing their nose crooked in their reflection. Seer players are encouraged to curate their character’s anxieties and delusions to best accent the character and tie in to their story and not make these impacts irrelevant, such as having a seer’s one and only anxiety be a galeophobia, the fear of sharks, when that character never has and never will be in a situation where that is relevant. An example of a good incorporation of these effects could be a seer who has delusions of grandeur and believes they are an important figure in society but also have iophobia, the fear of being poisoned, and this directly affects what they eat and drink, when, how, and what environments they will put themselves in (such as avoiding taverns and banquets).

Vaasek’s unintentional influences aside, that of the physical and mental degradation of seers, are accompanied by his intentional influences. As the daemon of anxiety and fallacy with his own fears and delusions he is most concerned with his own self preservation after having a vision of his death. This motivates him to carefully and quietly worm his way into the affairs of mortals, not just observing them but shifting their trajectory. Because of this, seers very commonly establish and work within cabals, secret societies, and underground organizations and commonly aim to disrupt the balance and peace established amongst guilds, nations, and other such forces. Seers do not outright wish for the destruction of all empires and the ruin of all churches but they very much so wish to see them busy and preoccupied amongst themselves as a form of distraction to sate their god. They are not commonly bloodthirsty or violent but seek to create tension on wide scales.

Most activated abilities (spells) of seers create the signature effect and visual tell of their casting, a warp. Warps are usually subtle and fleeting distortions to the air which twist and bend what is seen through and around them although some spells create more intense or longer lasting warps. For some this can manifest with more noticeable effects such as warps having a reflective property and acting as fluid, fracturing mirrors or instead of radiating in lines or ‘arms’ they take geometric shapes and create linear patterns of distortions.

Vaasek’s tenet against betrayal is straightforward. Seers who kill other seers (and not in self defense, such as if the attacking seer fails), seers who intentionally oust the underground operations of seers or their organizations, and seers who intentionally impede or oppose the conspiracies of seers or their organizations are immediately abandoned by Vaasek for their unreliable and untrustworthy deeds. Should this happen, the seer has their feat, magic application, and teacher application denied and permanently lose what slots they dedicated. Vaasek does not and will not give a second chance.

Lastly, multiple activated abilities reference incurring a headache. If 3 moderate headaches are experienced at the same time (meaning the seer has used the maximum number of castings for 3 different abilities) then they experience a botched translation and undergo the related psychedelic distortions until they rest for at least 3 narrative hours.

Abilities

Secondsight - Combative

Secondsight is enabled by a covering over the seer’s eyes or eye sockets with some form of opaque (mask, visor, helm, spherical stones in the sockets) or mostly opaque (ratty blindfold, thick veil) non-living material. Should this covering be removed the seer is rendered blind until they can once more cover their eyes; all they see is unintelligible fuzz and static. Secondsight usually manifests as normal 20/20 visual within a 20 block radius however it is commonly disrupted by the nature of a mortal trying to perceive through divine eyes. As such seers are prone to experience lack of focus, eye floaters, black spots, nearsightedness, farsightedness, double vision, and other such visual anomalies in fluctuating frequency. These effects typically are nuisances and require seers to look at things for longer or move around to better perceive them but may voluntarily be more severe. Past the 20 block radius the seer only sees unintelligible fuzz and static. In times of great stress and/or extensive physical exhaustion the seer’s translation of the witness’s vision becomes botched and they begin to perceive more raw and/or warped inputs which commonly lead to distressing and horrific visual hallucinations, typically illusions over existing surfaces. In these periods of tension the seer will see extreme alterations in the world around them such as people being comprised of writhing, dripping worms and a landscape of flaming limbs or their shadow contorts into a fractured, unhinged, monstrous doppelganger and their skin appears to flake and rot with maggots squirming within. However, these disruptions need not be necessarily haunting or terrifying but rather disorientating and confusing such as all shapes and objects becoming prismatic and geometrical, radiating with fractals of brilliant and overstimulating colors. These episodes heavily distort the seer’s vision and impedes related activity until it subsides alongside the stress or exhaustion. Red Lines: - Seers cannot see beyond the 20 block radius. - Seers cannot see any better than average 20/20 vision. - If a seer’s covering is removed they are blinded and remain blinded until a covering is put on. Living material such as a seer’s hands do not qualify as a covering. - Seers who go through trauma, experience intense stress, or become physically exhausted such as through combat or extensive casting trigger psychedelic visual hallucinations that make any activity relying on sight very difficult to the point of removing the eye covering being an appealing option; they cannot aim with any relative accuracy and the casting of other magic will prove dangerous for any nearby. This passes when the stress or exhaustion triggering it passes.

Dilated Secondsight - Combative

Dilated secondsight expands off of the original seer feat’s only ability with the following additions: Tier 1: The seer’s normal field of vision of 135° is expanded to 155°. Their visual anomalies subside to temporary, moderate distractions. Tier 2: The seer’s field of vision is 175°. Their visual anomalies fade into easily dismissed and mild distractions. Tier 3: The seer’s field of vision is 195°. The seer can read the lips of those speaking a language they know in line of sight within 20 blocks. Their visual anomalies are no longer noticeable. Tier 4: The seer’s field of vision is 215°. The seer can see closer than they are, having the same precision at 3 blocks away as they would up to their face. Tier 5: The seer’s field of vision is 235°. The seer can see closer than they are, having the same precision at 6 blocks away as they would up to their face. There is no longer a distance limitation on a seer’s sight and they can see as far as a normal person. Seers still suffer the same psychedelic hallucinations when under intense physical or mental stress but can willingly distance themselves from the witness to see in a lesser tier until the effect can subside as usual in order to negate the botched translation. In doing so they see with a -2 tier penalty and cannot use any activated seer ability. Dilated Secondsight is a passive ability. Red Lines: - Seers cannot see beyond the 20 block radius until tier 5. - Seers cannot see any better than average 20/20 vision. - If a seer’s covering is removed they are blinded and remain blinded until a covering is put on. The seer’s own body such as their hands do not qualify as a covering. - Seers who go through trauma, experience intense stress, or become physically exhausted such as through combat or extensive casting trigger psychedelic visual hallucinations that make any activity relying on sight very difficult to the point of removing the eye covering being an appealing option. This passes when the stress or exhaustion triggering it passes.

Caecic - Combative

Caecic is best represented through in-game signs, however a personal ‘code’ hinting at their location can also be used to help designate where these invisible messages are. Give some way to identify the area or message such as a sign with a number or a specific block arrangement that other seer players are aware of. These locations should have privately recorded messages easily given to other seers upon finding the Caecic writing. It can be written on anything with a surface flat enough that could be otherwise written on normally and acts as magical ink. Caecic writing requires 1 emote to focus on coordinating with the witness and then 1 emote per 10 words or 1-3 emotes per block covered when drawing (depending on intricacy). This focus takes the form of stillness and repeated strikes with a finger to test for success like trying a dry ink pen. Seeing and reading Caecic is a passive ability. Writing or drawing Caecic is an activated ability. Red Lines: - Caecic can only be read, written, and erased by seers unless temporarily revealed by a black asper (described later). - Caecic messages/drawings need to have some kind of in-game representative or clue to their existence in public areas or areas you know other seers may be. These messages cannot be hidden from particular seers and shown to others. - Caecic is not its own language but rather a magical writing technique so all messages must be written in a language the writer knows.

Polyglot - Combative
Seers can read any written language. Polyglot is a passive ability. Red Lines: -Polyglot does not allow seers to learn or teach languages they read, merely interpret what is written. -Polyglot does not break through riddles or ciphers and translates them as normal text. -Polyglot cannot be used to read lips, only written language.

Heat Lense - Combative

When channeling heat lense a seer observes the world nearest them through infrared, capable of distinguishing levels of heat through sight. What they see appears in a rainbow scale, lack of heat appearing dark / purple / blue and heat appearing yellow / orange / red / bright. Beyond obviously seeing what is hot and cold, heat lense also allows seers to perceive invisible entities as spots theys couldn’t otherwise see such as invisible phantoms as cold spots and invisible mystics as hot spots. Tier 1: Heat lense extends out 2 blocks. Tier 2: Heat lense extends out 3 blocks. Tier 3: Heat lense extends out 3 blocks. Tier 4: Heat lense extends out 4 blocks. Tier 5: Heat lense extends out 4 blocks. Heat lense requires 1 emote to focus on a deeper level of the witness’s vision which causes warps to briefly radiate from their face and can then be maintained until dismissed by waving their hand past their face. While channeling heat lense a seer cannot cast any other spells. Heat lense is an activated ability. Red Lines: - Heat Lense must be activated in order to perceive invisible entities and is not a passive ability. - Heat Lense only affects entities that have ‘bodies’ such as phantoms or humans, entirely intangible entities such as witnesses or dormant spirits cannot be perceived. - Requires OOC permission to reveal a CA Creature (Ghost, Frost Witches, Etc). Non-ghost creatures appear as descendants unless permission is given. Invisible Ghosts do not appear at all. - Heat Lense cannot penetrate a mystic’s Deadbreath.

Identify - Non-combative

Identify can be used on objects to allow the witness to see into the object and extrapolate its details. However, it is not always easy for seers to receive their full analysis. To identify an object a seer must touch the object and examine it closely, focusing keenly on looking the item over and scrutinizing its every edge and facet. Tier 1: The seer learns the object’s origin and purpose. Tier 2: The seer learns the object’s enchantment / effect if there is one and what archetype of magic made it (dark, deity, Voidal, misc). Tier 3: As well, the seer can translate any kind of cipher on or hidden message incorporated into the object. This does not automatically answer riddles, only see through codes. Tier 4: The seer can identify from a distance of 1 block. Tier 5: The seer may experience a brief vision of the object in previous use. Can only be used in events and when approved (and given) by ST. An object’s origin is what world it was made on (an old sailor’s map could register as ‘Athera’ and if relevant a plane as smithed rokodra would register ‘Moz Strimoza’). An object’s purpose is why it was made, although this is usually obvious such as a cup for drinking or a dagger for inflicting harm. An object’s enchantment or effect refers to what it does, essentially allowing the seer to read the item’s description and interpreting that into more appropriate roleplay language. Seers of appropriate worldly knowledge can likely name or guess the specific magic that has enchanted the object given the archetype. An object’s name is its title as it would be officially referred to. Some objects don’t have proper names and therefore a regular shovel would register as ‘shovel’. An object with a cipher, code, or hidden message can be revealed through Identify and read as intended but it cannot solve logic problems such as riddles or puzzles outside the object; a mathematical cipher can be seen through whereas a puzzle box or ciphered riddle cannot. In events, if the ST consent, a seer may receive a brief, 5-10 second vision of the past centered on the object and about its history. This could be its creation, where it has been, who or what has used it and what for, etc. This is a storytelling device and is to be used at the inclination of the ST who are by no means forced to do so. Identify requires 4 emotes to perform. The seer warps the air around their face while they inspect the object until they get a final reading. Identify can only be used 3 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the third casting. Identify is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Identify cannot derive exactly where, who by, or when the object was created or enchanted. -Identify cannot derive the exact purpose of an object such as an assassin’s blade; the seer does not know who was to wield it or who it was to be used against. -Identify must be used via touch until tier 4. -Identify cannot pierce through puzzles beyond a cipher, code, or hidden message. A riddle can be discovered and translated but the riddle won’t be answered. -Identify cannot be used to get a vision from a player, only an ST in event circumstances. It cannot be used to force or demand a vision and it is up to the ST involved to grant or deny the vision. -Identify cannot discern the name of the item. -Identify cannot discern special purposes of items. Just the basic vague ideas behind them: i.e. a dagger for stabbing.

The following abilities require a second ritual of sanctioning, meaning they all require 2 slot dedication.

Piercing Gaze - Combative

The seer’s vision is now augmented to allow them to pierce thin and fickle barriers. As such, the seer can see through lightweight and fine materials such as paper, paper-thin fabric such as veils, and similar things like playing cards. If a seer regularly interacts with more dense and thick objects weekly over the course of a year (daily IRL over an IRL week) they may become familiar enough to see through such things so long as they are not more dense than wood and no thicker than an inch or no more dense than metal and no thicker than a tenth of an inch. This piercing gaze is almost entirely used for staging readings under the guise of a fortune-teller or mystical gypsy. By being able to see through their own tarot cards, carved woodblock tokens, or engraved coins the seer, with some dexterity and practice, can quite impressively stack a deck or intentionally order pieces. This is often used to manipulate the subject by the seer giving a very intentional message they pretend was derived solely through their reading. Lastly, piercing gaze allows seers to halfway see through smoke and fog (mundane or magical), appearing half as thick/dense. They still perceive these elements but it is only half as obscuring. Piercing Gaze is a passive ability. Red Lines: -Piercing gaze is not stock x-ray vision. It can only see through paper-thin materials such as paper or veils. Anything thicker or more dense is opaque as normal. -Piercing gaze cannot penetrate familiarized materials thicker than 1 inch or more dense than wood or no more dense than metal and no thicker than a tenth of an inch. Anything thicker or more dense is opaque as normal. To familiarize something to a seer they must interact with it daily for an IRL week to eventually be able to see through it. -Piercing gaze cannot penetrate undergarments (you perv).

Third Eye - Combative

To use the third eye perspective a seer must become very still and concentrate in order to make the switch. In doing so they create warps writhing out of themselves, either from their front or back depending on which position their witness is going to. Once they eject their view and see from the witness’s perspective they may move as they like while channeling the spell. The seer sees themself from above and behind or in front about a meter away, able to see either behind or ahead of themselves with the same field of vision as their secondsight and any other passive visual abilities. They can switch their perspective and flip the witness’s position from behind or ahead but at not point can they see 360° around themself and the transitions take time. This third person perspective allows them to peer around obstacles that might otherwise prevent them such as over a ledge or around a wall (effectively allowing you to RP seeing through F5). Third eye requires 2 emotes to be still and draw out the witness in an excretion of warps from the body which then fade. The seer can move and act as they like in this state but while channeling they cannot cast any other spells. The third person perspective can be flipped with 1 emote while motionless through a moving cloud of warps above them. A seer can dismiss third eye with 1 emote of being motionless while a swathe of warps surge back into their body. Third eye is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Third eye cannot be used to have the witness roam or move away to spy on things; mechanically it is locked in place as either third person from the front or back. -Third eye can only be cast, dismissed, or have its position switched when the seer is not moving.

Eyebite - Non-combative/Combative

A component among Vaasek’s arsenal includes illusion and hallucination as aspects of fallacy and as such a seer can afflict an individual so their eyes deceive them. In a non-combative situation a seer can seed individuals with a dormant illusion to sprout immediately or later on. As such, once a seer has primed their eyebite by keeping still and focused on coordinating alignment with their witness for either a physical touch skin-to-skin or into their gaze for eye contact they may deliver the eyebite and inflict a degree of visual anomalies immediately or lace in a seed for later use. Non-combative eyebite effects last for 12 hours or until the seer dismisses the effect. The seer may choose any of these effects for an eyebite affliction: -Double vision (Seeing two images of a given shape, creating a disorientating blur) -Nearsightedness (Only shapes nearby are clear and ones far away are out of focus) -Farsightedness (Only shapes far away are clear and ones nearby are out of focus) -Astigmatism (Seeing blurred or fuzzy shapes at any distance) -Scotoma (Spots in vision become dark, very light, blurred, or flicker) -Eye floaters (Spots in vision look like dark or grey specks or strings that drift around) -Visual hallucinations (Seeing imaginary images of varying significance and nature. Not controlled by the seer or afflicted character) Should the target OOCly consent their vision may adopt the effect permanently or until healed or may degrade into blindness over the course of 1 IRL week (or if agreed upon by the player and seer, longer). As well, usually dismissed as an old wives’ tale amongst the hills, one afflicted with an active or dormant eyebite may rid themselves of the effect knowingly or otherwise by maintaining a diet of carrot stew with ground Crouching Feather or Elf’s Hair Vine for 3 days. This remedy is usually found amongst alchemical notes and medicine men sourcing from remote villages. This mundane remedy can stop the development of OOCly consented blindness but will not cure the effect, merely delay it. Tier 1: Eyebite can be seeded in up to 1 individual for 3 IRL days. Tier 2: Eyebite can be seeded in up to 2 individuals for 5 IRL days. Tier 3: Eyebite can be seeded in up to 3 individuals for 1 IRL week. Tier 4: Eyebite can be seeded in up to 4 individuals for 2 IRL weeks. Tier 5: Eyebite can be seeded in up to 5 individuals indefinitely. Eyebite requires 2 emotes to perform via touch and 4 emotes to perform at a distance. The seer warps the air around their hand to prime the ability for touch while a seer warps the air around their face when primed for eye contact. Once primed the warps disappear and the next person the seer touches or makes eye contact with will receive the effect. Non-combative eyebite can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after a second casting. Detonating a seeded eyebite requires 1 emote of warps forming around their hand as they make a fist. In a combative situation a seer can warp the vision of others in a similar way albeit instantly and to more dramatic effect but for far less time. By priming in the same fashion for touch or eye contact delivery a seer may temporarily muddy and distort an individual’s vision to near blindness wherein all they see are fuzzy, blurry shapes which warp and quiver and there is no such seeding effect. Once the effect takes hold it blinds the individual and makes aim impossible and then fades away as their vision is slowly restored, acting as half-blindness and making aim and discerning of distance and location difficult. Combative eyebite effects last for emotes appropriate to tier or until dismissed by the seer. Tier 1: Eyebite blinds for 1 emotes and impairs for 1 emotes. Tier 2: Eyebite blinds for 2 emotes and impairs for 1 emotes. Tier 3: Eyebite blinds for 2 emotes and impairs for 2 emotes. Tier 4: Eyebite blinds for 3 emotes and impairs for 2 emotes. Tier 5: Eyebite blinds for 3 emotes and impairs for 3 emotes. Eyebite requires 3 emotes to perform via touch or at a distance. The seer warps the air around their hand to prime the ability for touch while a seer warps the air around their face when primed for eye contact. Once primed the warps disappear from the seers body and fire towards the next person the seer touches or makes eye contact with will receive the effect. Combative eyebite can only be used 3 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after a third casting. Eyebite is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Eyebite does not affect the blind including seers. -Eyebite can only be touch-delivered through skin-to-skin contact. -Eyebite can only be distance-delivered through eye contact. Eye contact is defined as a seer looking into the eyes of an individual until at any point the individual looks back at the seer and/or into their covering or at their head. Eyebite cannot be applied if the individual specifically does not look at the seer’s face such as avoiding their gaze by looking at their feet or looking at something on their person instead. -Eyebite at sight isn’t instantaneous, the warps from the sight aspect begin to fire towards the victim, allowing them to react to a sight based eyebite. -Eyebite can only be used on a single person per casting and must be repeated to affect another person; eyebite can be primed twice for both hands to affect two people but the seer must properly emote for each casting on each hand.

Hypnotic Gaze - Non-combative/Combative

In a non-combative situation a seer can seed a vulnerability in an individual by having a prolonged period of eye contact before or after the seer makes prolonged skin-to-skin contact, allowing the witness to lace a weakness to its stare into the individual by proximity and visual connection. This is typically performed during a reading or act of fortune-telling wherein the seer conducts a palm reading in order to maintain touch and various methods to maintain eye contact. During this process the individual will experience mild dryness in the eyes and lightly crawling skin or goosebumps. Individuals vulnerable to a seer’s hypnotic stare have a more intense experience when affected wherein the seer does not need to maintain eye contact for the duration of the spell, only initiate it, and become dazed and catatonic for 30 narrative minutes. They remain in place but can be easily guided to slowly move elsewhere and/or sit, however if they take damage the hypnosis will break. While in this state the individual’s eyes are wide open and stare forward blindly and without focus. Upon awakening from the stupor the individual will have a fuzzy memory of the last 5 narrative minutes they were conscious and forget anything relating to the seer who hypnotized them not long ago, effectively making the seer invisible and leading the individual to likely believe they fell asleep or succumbed to a daydream and lost track of time. Tier 1: Hypnotic gaze can be seeded in up to 1 individual for 3 IRL days. Tier 2: Hypnotic gaze can be seeded in up to 2 individuals for 5 IRL days. Tier 3: Hypnotic gaze can be seeded in up to 3 individuals for 1 IRL week. Tier 4: Hypnotic gaze can be seeded in up to 4 individuals for 2 IRL weeks. Tier 5: Hypnotic gaze can be seeded in up to 5 individuals indefinitely. Hypnotic gaze seeding requires 2 emotes to perform where the seer’s hands and face produce radiating warps and then fade. After this occurs, whenever the seer maintains 5 emotes of eye contact and 5 emotes of skin-to-skin touch with a person the spell ends and the person is seeded with a vulnerability. Hypnotic gaze requires 3 emotes to perform where the seer’s face ripples with iridescent wraps and thin rays of prismatic color worms about; the next person they make eye contact with has warps ripple towards them that they can see, giving them the opportunity to react. If unsuccessful in their dodge they become affected by the spell. Non-combative hypnotic gaze can only be used 4 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after a fourth casting. In a combative situation a seer can bring their witness to the forefront and use their combined, aligned stare to entrap an individual through eye contact in a barrage of images and colors. Once the seer has primed the ability the next person they make eye contact with will be assaulted by the visual display only they can see however their eyes mimic the psychedelic and kaleidoscopic images and warps flicker around their head. To maintain the effect the seer must not move more than 3 blocks from their starting position and will break concentration if they are dealt damage. As well, because the seer must devote their full attention and gaze to the subject they are considered blind to the world around them and cannot physically exert themselves such as utilizing a weapon or moving any faster than a slow creep (2 blocks per emote is a viable metric if necessary). Tier 1: Hypnotic gaze can be maintained for a maximum of 2 emotes. Tier 2: Hypnotic gaze can be maintained for a maximum of 3 emotes. Tier 3: Hypnotic gaze can be maintained for a maximum of 3 emotes. Tier 4: Hypnotic gaze can be maintained for a maximum of 4 emotes. Tier 5: Hypnotic gaze can be maintained for a maximum of 4 emotes. Hypnotic gaze requires 3 emotes to perform where the seer’s face ripples with iridescent wraps and thin rays of prismatic color worms about; the next person they make eye contact with becomes affected by the spell. Combative hypnotic gaze can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after a second casting. Hypnotic gaze is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Eye contact is defined as a seer looking into the eyes of an individual until at any point the individual looks back at the seer and/or into their covering or at their head. Eyebite cannot be applied if the individual specifically does not look at the seer’s face such as avoiding their gaze by looking at their feet or looking at something on their person instead. -The hypnotic stupor characters can be put under through either form breaks immediately upon sustaining physical damage e.g. a slap to the face or stab in the belly. -Combative hypnotic gaze will break if either the seer or subject take damage, if line of sight is blocked completely (e.g. a person or wall, objects being thrown between the two do not count), or if the seer moves more than 3 blocks from their starting position and/or physically exerts themself such as using a weapon or moving faster than a slow creep (2 blocks per emote). -Hypnotic Gaze at sight isn’t instantaneous, the warps from the sight aspect begin to fire towards the victim, allowing them to react to a sight based Hypnotic Gaze.

The following abilities require a third ritual of sanctioning, meaning they all require 3 slot dedication.

Truesight - Combative

Now possessing the greatest degree to which they can see through a witness, a seer sees regardless of light or usual blockades or distortions. The seer’s penetrating vision allows them to see normally even in consuming darkness or blinding light, mundane or magical, as well as through opaque smoke and fog, mundane or magical (such as deadbreath). Even water cannot ward away their sight and can be seen through like clear glass. However, this superior sight is only applicable nearby within the seer’s original secondsight range as they cannot truly see as a witness may in all regards. Truesight is a passive ability. Red Lines: -Truesight is only applied with 20 blocks of the seer. -Objects can still block a seer’s sight but any form of darkness, overwhelming light, smoke, fog (including deadbreath), and water are both seen as well as seen through completely. -A spell meant to blind that utilizes shadow or light as its delivery has no effect on a seer and any associated pain is negated.

Reading - Non-combative

By opening themselves entirely to their witness a deeply bonded seer can receive greatly improved translations of the entity’s sight and see with another layer of penetration. A seer must be within close proximity of an individual in an undisturbed, private place so their attention may be completely devoted to see ‘through’ them should the player OOCly consent. In doing so the seer ‘reads’ the individual, assessing personality traits, fears, and one macro and a few micro wants and desires. As well, seers may choose to look past the mind of the individual and to their soul. They may catch a somewhat fleeting glimpse in order to assess its state for things like curses, missing parts, or damage as well as its relation to the body, the witness informing the seer if the individual’s body is not its original and is the product of a swap or transfer, a transformation, or magical disguise. Personality traits can be described in terms of the five most commonly accepted (see: “Big Five”): -Openness (Openness to experiences such as adventure, art, imagination, and new things) -Agreeableness (How much warmth and compassion they have) -Conscientiousness (How organized, dutiful, dependable, and disciplined they are) -Extraversion (Extroverted versus introverted) -Neuroticism (How commonly they experience anxiety, worry, fear, anger, frustration, envy, jealousy, guilt, sadness, and/or loneliness) Fears list as what the character is afraid of, namely something that is an integral part of their life and are frequently subconscious motivators such as a fear of abandonment (strong worry that those close to them will leave them) or atelophobia (the fear of imperfection or not being enough). More common phobias will also register, such as a fear of spiders or heights or social events. As well, a seer can read a single in-the-moment micro fear that individual has such as a worry of a bad investment or if they are in danger. Macro wants and desires are the desires the character has that span long periods of time and usually apply to their life like wanting to be rich and famous or to find true love. These tend to be somewhat vague desires but are prevalent to the character nonetheless. With reading a seer learns one of these. Micro wants and desires are specific, distinct desires in the instant that the reading occurs and usually pertain to the situation on hand such as the reading itself or what occupies the character’s mind about the world outside. This can be incredibly trivial such as wanting a sweet roll or new shoes to a grieving spouse wanting comfort regarding their deceased partner or a rebel farmer yearning for revolution. With a reading a seer learns three of these and are commonly a mixed bag of mundane and significant wants. Seers who prompt the person they read will receive more valuable, in-depth micro readings such as putting on the guise of a fortune-teller so their reading’s micro desires tell the seer what the individual wants to hear of their future. In the same way this can affect the micro fear learned such as what the individual fears about their future. In seeing the soul the seer does not observe an identifiable person but rather a vague, amorphous shape. They can however observe the manifestation of curses such as a pervasive shadow for a shade or accumulating ice for a frost witch as well as missing parts as seen in those who give parts of themselves away as common in interactions with infernal lords or damage as seen in those resurrected like wights. Seers can also tell if the soul is at home in the body and whether or not it is the original for the soul, making them aware of swaps or transfers, transformations, and/or disguises. Reading takes the form of warps spilling up and out from the seer’s face and hands while they are near their subject and must be in a place that is still and peaceful. Seers commonly perform readings under the guise of actual fortune-telling or other mystical insight but it can also be performed on sleeping targets, although they cannot be prompted like usual for better answers. While the seer’s hands and eyes undulate with squirming warps they may have slightly irregular breathing or experience sweating, slight tremors, and/or twitches. Reading requires 5 emotes to perform where the seer’s face and hands exude warps while the seer is in near proximity to an individual. Reading can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the first casting, unlike most other abilities. Reading is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Reading requires OOC consent to use on an individual. -Reading must be performed within 3 blocks of the target. -Reading must be performed in an undisturbed and peaceful place, meaning there cannot be volume exceeding quiet talk like yelling or music as well as privacy meaning there seer cannot perform the spell if they are aware of a third individual in the room or listening in. -Reading only informs the seer what the affected character’s player willingly gives. It is best to prompt the player before the roleplay to have the answers to the categories figured out.

Afflict - Combative

When seers prime afflict they choose a form of anxiety or fallacy below (or may consult with the victim to determine the form) and weave it into a hand which, upon touch to another, seeds the individual with that disorder where the invisible and immaterial witness begins its work. To use afflict the victim must give OOC consent. When applied, the victim will feel their skin lightly crawl and/or get goosebumps. Upon two more applications of the same kind each applied no earlier than 12 IRL hours after the previous does the seeded affliction sprout and the effect takes hold. It starts at a mild severity before maturing over the course of an IRL week and becomes a (not ‘the’) defining feature of the character. For applying the effect to their roleplay refer the victim to the material on the same topic in the explanation portion of this lore (for the magic, not feat). Anxieties include but are not limited to: -Social anxiety -Generalized anxiety -Specific phobias -Panic disorder Delusions include but are not limited to: -Erotomanic -Grandiose -Persecutory -Somatic As well, afflict can apply hallucinations however these are almost entirely visual and tactile and very rarely manifest audibly and when audible never include voices. Afflict does not have mundane cures however magical ones do exist, usually divine ones. Farseers can cleanse it and witch doctors can use conflicting curses to cancel each other out. [As other magics are accepted this will be updated to include such healing counters, e.g. paladin purging or clerical healing.] Afflict requires 4 emotes to perform where the seer’s hands expel warps. Once primed the warps disappear and the next person the seer touches with that hand will receive the effect. Afflict can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the second casting. Afflict is an activated ability. Note: seer players should screenshot when a player consents for their character to be affected by afflict as it will be needed later on for other abilities. Red Lines: -Afflict requires OOC consent from the victim as it is a permanent effect unless healed. -Afflict requires 3 applications to take effect, only requiring OOC consent on the first application. Applications of afflict can only be applied every 12 hours to the same person, otherwise they have no effect.

Bestowment - Non-combative

After having successfully grown anxiety or fallacy within an individual with afflict a seer can undergo a self-inflicted psychedelic journey when entirely alone, undisturbed in silence, and in the absolute dark where they experience a powerful, full body hallucination. They become catatonic and entirely unaware of the world around them while they experience a vividly realistic and mind-bending vision of kaleidoscopic and impossible images, particularly of them being throttled at impossible speeds through sometimes wild, fantastical, rainbow tunnels, over bleak, jagged rocks, down horrifically deep ravines, and up mountainous cliffs in a churning, fractal landscape that may be blurred by confusing shreds of color or forms which may sweep past them or cling to their body. During this flight they feel both awe and terror until finally they come upon a both flat and paradoxically bottomless abyss which they fall into. Twinkling stars begin to bud and through them forms an entity strangely familiar to the seer represented vaguely as an eye-like centerpoint with limbs radiating outward. The closely acquainted yet unknown entity, their witness in truth, draws from the abyss a core hewn from the shadow and gives it to the seer. Once they take it they awake and in their hands they hold a spherical mass the size of a newborn with a surface bleeding three dimensional shadow strewn with a starfield that even the seer cannot see through. This object, the pupil, can be embedded into an object wherein it disappears within and becomes the object through which the seer casts scry, conjure asper, and performs the ritual of sanctioning. The object must be something the seer can hold and cannot be something insignificant or tiny such as a grain of sand or withered flower petal; prime examples include quills, goblets, rings, necklaces, books, spectacles, daggers, etc. Should the object hosting the pupil be broken or lost the seer cannot use those three spells however they can perform bestowment once more albeit only once per IRL month as Vaasek will not entertain a bad investment. Bestowment should usually be expressed through or featured in a forum roleplay post to denote its performance (the first time). As well, by using the ritual the seer is knowingly committing themselves to Vaasek for eternity; should they perish for good they will filter through the fates as normal to spy upon the dead as the witnesses spy upon the (mostly) living and at any point Vaasek may pull them from their resting places and call them into service. This commitment isn’t unnoticed however and by doing so the seer becomes able to perform the ritual of sanctioning and therefore teach. Bestowment is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Bestowment can only be used after a seer has used afflict to push an anxiety or delusion onto a character. -Bestowment can only be initiated absolute darkness when entirely alone outside the earshot of any noise such as deep in a cave or tomb. -The object hosting the pupil, hereinafter called the pupil, cannot be something miniscule or insignificant and must be something the seer can hold e.g. it cannot be a boulder or liquid. -Bestowment can only be cast once per 1 IRL month.

The following abilities require a pupil acquired through bestowment, either having performed the ritual (invisible hands, blindsight) or physically using the pupil (scry, conjure asper, ritual of sanctioning).

Invisible Hands - Non-combative

The seer can have their witness partially manifest itself to move, carry, or operate objects with its many tentacles. In doing so the seer may choose to keep its movements entirely invisible as normal or produce visible warps over what is being manipulated. The seer can use these invisible extensions of themself to scoop loose material akin to handfuls, pick up or manipulate objects, and move objects no more than 10 pounds individually and cannot handle more than 10 given objects at a time. As well, the witness can support the seer and allow them to ‘float’ no more than 1 foot from the ground, fluid and drifting as though underwater or stiff and jerking as though possessed. However, this influence by the witness will cease immediately upon violent acts from or towards others as the witness will never risk its own safety for the seer. Invisible hands is a passive ability. Red Lines: -Invisible hands cannot be used in combat or used to initiate it e.g. swinging swords or firing crossbows. -Invisible hands can only be used on objects within 3 blocks of the seer. -No more than 10 objects no heavier than 10lbs can be manipulated at a time. -Floating does not allow for flight, dangerous fall immunity, an increase in speed, or any other mechanical advantage. It is purely aesthetic.

Blindsight - Combative

Even when the seer has their eye covering removed they are allowed their usual secondsight as well as all abilities within the first slot (Caecic, polyglot, heat lense, identify). Once they replace their eye covering they regain access to their usual abilities. As well, upon the removal of their eye covering a seer can choose the complete look and/or design of their eye, be it completely mundane, thick with cataracts, a specific iris color like gold, a specific pupil shape like a goat, or otherworldly and bizarre like concentric ripples. Blindsight is a passive ability. Red Lines: -The chosen eye design cannot be animated or moving outside of dilation.

Scry - Non-combative

To scry a seer must hold or wear their given pupil object and in an undisturbed, private place where they can devote their full attention to the given subject. Needing only whisper the subject, the scry has three outcomes: they must further specify or refine their subject, they are denied the scry, or they are granted the scry. Vaasek will not grant scrying that relates to himself, such as if a seer scries on what gives them vision or who gives them this power, as he will not intentionally leak information about himself which includes his witnesses. In the same way he is enigmatic even with his followers and often denies them scries that reach into some parts of history as he likes to never show his full hand; knowledge is a weapon. As such, under various circumstances Vaasek mays trip the seer of their ability to scry. Scrying on any subject that relates to a player or contains details to their character requires that player’s OOC consent. If another player is involved, such as if the given person was/is not alone, if there were/are people at the given event or location, or if the object is in someone’s hands, then they must also give OOC consent. If characters are not involved such as with a location or object then it requires the OOC consent of the player who owns that location or the location where the object is held. Scrying on non-player related subjects, such as on ST or lore characters, historical events, locations on other maps or worlds, or ST or lore objects/artifacts all require managerial ST consent who are by no means obligated to grant the scry and can limit the given information as much as they like. Scrying into the past does not give time, only what is available to the 5 senses. Scrying on a name reveals the individual’s present, a vision of that person and the 3 blocks surrounding them, or it reveals their past in which the same occurs and what part of their history they are looking for is described by the player. As mentioned above, any details relating to other characters require their players’ consent. If the given character is imprisoned/jailed then the player(s) guarding them or the location owner must give OOC consent. Scrying on an event reveals a full perspective of the area and what unfolded however no character-related details such as who was there can be gleaned unless every given player gives OOC consent. Events devoid of character details or if the seer specifies that they are not looking for character details then they require managerial ST consent. Scrying on a location reveals the full perspective of the area and what is currently unfolding otherwise the past reveals its usual state with no goingons. No character-related details such as who is currently there can be gleaned unless every given player gives their OOC consent as well as the OOC consent of the location’s owner. Areas not owned by a player require managerial ST consent. Scrying on an object reveals its present, a vision of the object and the 3 blocks surrounding it, or it reveals its past in which the same occurs and what part of its history they are looking for is described by the player who owns it (or relevant ST or managerial ST consent if not player owned). If kept somewhere the location’s owner must give their OOC consent. If a scry cannot be answered immediately by another player or the ST then it becomes dormant while the subject is sought after through the witnesses’ memories. If the seer is mid-roleplay and it is therein answered they must roleplay receiving the vision, even if in combat, and they become blind to the outside world and mostly catatonic (can remain standing, nothing else) while they receive the vision over the course of 3 emotes. Lastly, during a scry Vaasek may divert the seer’s view to another subject in which the ST will intentionally give a seer insight into some present event, usually used to foreshadow or warn the coming of future events. Scry requires 5 emotes to perform where the seer’s head radiates warps until finished. Scry can only be used 1 time in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the first casting. Scry is an activated ability. Red Lines: -Scry must be performed in an undisturbed and peaceful place, meaning there cannot be volume exceeding quiet talk like yelling or music as well as privacy meaning there seer cannot perform the spell if they are aware of more than one other individual in the room or listening in. -Scrying requires a large amount of OOC consent as to avoid any unwanted, lore-approved metagaming. As such, seer players must be VERY DILIGENT on getting approval from ANY players involved in the subject of their scry or from the ST and VERY DILIGENT on documenting what they learn, both the given consent and the content of the scry. Because of the volatility of the ability it must be used in good faith with all parties and as such no one is obligated to accept a scry and is meant to serve drama, tension, and narrative advancement to better and further roleplay; should a player or ST suspect the intentions of the given seer are in opposition to these they may be reported and investigated. If the ST deems that a player abusing scry they may remove their ability to perform it.

Conjure Asper - Non-combative

With their pupil in hand or worn a seer can draw a circle in the air or onto a surface which becomes enveloped in twisting and churning warps. They may then reach within and pull out a black asper set. A black asper refers to a smell set of instruments, a pairing of a seemingly empty vessel or bucket called an aspersorium and an accompanying wand with a spherical tip usually decorated as an eye called an aspergillum. The two objects are comprised of an alien form of lead which has a silver-like lightness however it gives off a strange, pitch black sheen under light as though it refuses to be properly seen. To look upon a black asper causes dryness in the eyes and can cause fuzzy vision after more than 2 emotes of staring or inspection. These two objects can be tampered with and engraved as the seer sees fit, including painted, glazed, or stained, but they must always retain their original shape of a vessel or bucket with a stand akin to a widened and tall chalice for the aspersorium and a wand or rod with a spherical or ball tip for the aspergillum. When the wand is dipped into the vessel and then withdrawn and flicked it produces a sprinkling of fleeting, harmless warps akin to a splash of water. Should this be performed upon the site of hidden Caecic rewriting it reveals the hidden message or art for 10 narrative seconds before fading back into invisibility. Black aspers do not translate any given text however and if it is written in a language the reader does not know then the message is meaningless to them. If a seer so desires, they may repeat the ritual but instead of drawing out a black asper set they may put a set into the circle of warps and dispose of it. This does not count towards their maximum number of black aspers produced but it does count as a casting and the disposed set cannot be regained freely. Black aspers can be produced a maximum of 4 times in 1 IRL week and they require an ST signature to prove their authenticity; their description must include a physical description (preferably post-alteration to save the ST time), their warp-making flicks, and their ability to briefly reveal hidden Caecic. Conjure asper requires 5 emotes to perform where the seer’s body radiates warps and during which they draw the circle and pull from it the black asper set. Scry can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the second casting. Red Lines: -Black aspers must retain their general vessel and wand with a ball tip shape, otherwise they can be carved, painted, decorated, etc as seen fit. -Seers can only produce a maximum of 4 sets per IRL week. -Black aspers must be ST signed.

Ritual of Sanctioning - Non-combative

By channeling their complete focus through their pupil with a flood of warps a seer can consecrate another seer and allow them to begin bonding with their witness or deepen their already existing bond. This requires a TA as it is the act of teaching and requires the seer to possess their pupil; if it is destroyed they must use bestowment to make another. Every use of sanctioning takes a permanent slot from the seer so they must OOCly consent to learning and therein losing that slot to the magic forever. Part of being able to bless seers is also to be sensitive to them. Seers of this level may witness existing or new seers through their dreams similar to a scry although seeing only the given seer alone and with no sense other than sight, potentially hinting to their location or place of residence. This requires OOC consent of the given seer but signals to teachers who other seers are and where they might be as Vaasek encourages their careful cooperation. When new seers have their Feat apps accepted existing TA-having seers may ask to dream of their character to potentially seek them out and, potentially, teach them. Sanctioning can be used on the same seer a maximum of once per IRL week, meaning even if rushed it will take the seer 3 IRL weeks before they go from MA acceptance to 3 slots. As well, if there are no active teachers of the magic (active defined as the persona has been played within the last month) then the oldest accepted seer MA may be allowed to shoot up to 3 slot and tier 5 to become able to get a TA through afflict and bestowment (if the given player chooses. If not then it goes to the next oldest MA and so on and so forth). In the same manner if there is no seer MA-having player available or wanting it moves to oldest accepted seer Feat to be allowed to shoot up to 3 slot and tier 5 (if the given player chooses. If not it proceeds down the line in the same manner). If somehow there still isn’t then the next player to make a Feat app will be boosted as described. Ritual of sanctioning requires 5 emotes to perform where the seer’s body and given pupil radiates warps and during which they make some form of physical skin to skin contact. Sanctioning can only be used 2 times in 12 hours and experience a moderate headache after the first casting unlike most other abilities. Red Lines: -Ritual of sanctioning requires OOC consent to be applied. Once it is performed the given seer applies for a magic application (MA) in seer or has an ST comment on their already accepted MA their new slot amount (2, 3). -A seer can undergo sanctioning once per IRL week at most, meaning to go from accepted MA to 3 slot magic takes at least 3 weeks. This doesn’t affect tier.

For more information, please see the forum page for this lore, found here: https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/186068-%E2%9C%93-feat-magic-lore-seers-eyes-of-vaasek/