Celestial Seekers

Rangers, scouts, hunters, investigators, spies, messengers, and anyone who uses celestial or popular magic in travel, investigation, exploration, ranging, or communication.

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Ceannua

One who attunes to the Good Hunt and transforms themselves.

The Hunt is a powerful force on Shem that is split into different alignments. The unaligned force is simply the power of Survival. The elemental force is attuned to the predatory animals and other living things in nature. The infernal force is the power of dominance and poaching, of over-hunting and extermination. The fey hunt is the Wild Hunt, which exacts a price from those who have made deals with the fey. And the celestial hunt is the power of the hunt as a force of rebirth and transformation.

The Hunt is a cycle of survival, of death and rebirth, of resistance and defiance. Ceannuas are those who ritually engage the Good Hunt and let it transform them, finding their true being within it as an act of resistance against the powers that seek to define them.

To become a ceannua, one must be a hunter. And one must chafe at the definitions the world has subjected them to - whether it is gender or sexuality, occupation or class, status or role, something must feel wrong to the ceannua. Then they must seek the magic and power to define themselves, and in doing so, come to the Good Hunt.

The Good Hunt is a worldwide spirit who takes many forms. In the colonies or the freelands nearby, she takes the form of the White Doe. She appears to those seeking transformation, and she guides them by fleeing into the wilderness and urging them to follow, to hunt her. As they do, they must show the qualities of a good hunter - discernment, patience, self-determination, resourcefulness, perceptiveness, and above all, mercy. Ultimately, the hunt will take them to a place where the White Doe stands with her children, utterly vulnerable, and if the hunter chooses to take the life of her or her children, they fail. They are cursed, their skin stained with blood, and they must spend the rest of their life trying to make up for it. If they show mercy, the Black Stag will appear, and he will touch them with his antlers, giving them the power to change themselves as they please, a wish for their true self.

If they are attuned from the hunt, they will see their true self, and they will be able to take that form. In doing so, they will also gain these powers:

• White Doe’s Mercy: when choosing mercy, the ceannua may invoke this to grant protections to those they have shown mercy.

• Black Stag’s Strength: +3 STR for the duration of combat or hunt if and only if the foe is an enemy of the hunt.

• Red Hart’s Fleetness: +3 ATH for the duration of the combat or hunt if and only if the foe is an enemy of the hunt.

• Brown Hind’s Defiance: after being attacked or threatened, the ceannua may have an extra action to respond.

• Golden Calfe’s Light: if someone tries to force them to give up their true self in any way, they gain +3 PRS and glow a slight golden hue if they choose for up to a day.

• Silver Brocket’s Patience: while waiting during a hunt, they gain +1 WIL per hour of waiting, max of 6.

• Dappled Pricket’s Dance: they may engage in this dance, bringing out young deer to dance with them, and feel as if they experienced a full rest.

• Sweet Fawn’s Flame: they can unleash a soft white flame that only burns enemies of the hunt, power 10/16/22/28.

• Old Buck’s Wisdom: they may ask the Old Buck, most ancient spirit of the Good Hunt, one question per month under a full moon and get some of his wisdom if they are in the wilderness. His answers may be cryptic.

Ceannuas may have different animal guides or themes if they are from other parts of the world. Consult the GM.

PRO +2 ATH +2 STR +1 AWA +2 WIL +1 PRS +1 STH +2

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Swanwalker

To uphold the law is to uphold the will of the ruling class; to uphold true justice requires something greater. Swanwalkers wield the power of lhair, which allows them to sense injustice and mete out true justice. They carry small blades, guns, and lariats.

True justice is not defined by the laws of mortals nor Divines. True justice is about an objective right and wrong based on what represents the survival of a mortal species and the individuals that make up that species. It is the rights of the many over the luxury of the few. The crimes a swanwalker is concerned with are determined by an ancient code called the Code of the Swan. The code of the swanwalker is symbolized by the swan, which their legends say brought them the laws that are above mortal or Divine. The Code specifies the most grievous crimes, the conduct expected of a swanwalker, and guidance on the grey areas. This code is called Hans Kaanoon. There are crimes that are considered unforgivable. These include murder (including genocide or war), rape and sexual assault, enslavement and imprisonment, abuse and torture, exploitation and oppression, polluting the world, and so on. These are crimes often done on mass scale or done by the powerful to the disenfranchised.

The Code has room for mercy and redemption. Even the most egregious crimes can be redeemed, but they require the perpetrator be willing to spend their life fighting against the injustices they used to inflict, profit from, or champion. When a swanwalker shows mercy, they expect a devotion to redemption. When a swanwalker metes out justice in the form of death, they must have ascertained there is no hope for redemption, no value to mercy for the perpetrator, then side with mercy for the aggrieved. In many cases, swanwalkers will capture even the worst perpetrators and bring them back to face judgment by the magistrates. In the field, there are times when someone's life is in danger when a swanwalker must pass judgment themselves, and there are times when a crime is so egregious judgment is too clear to ignore. But most, even some of the worst, are captured and brought in. If a swanwalker metes out judgment of death, they must return to the magistrates to prove it was justified. If they mete out other judgment but show mercy, they must return and ensure the perpetrator is truly seeking redemption. If the perpetrator fails, the swanwalker will often bring them in for judgment before the magistrates.

Those who are chosen to be swanwalkers must be those who have experienced deep injustice. They must feel its evil in their bones, it is said. Swanwalkers are always called within their hearts and driven to seek out justice, true justice, in the face of grievous injustice. As such, they gain compassion for others who suffered injustice. When a swanwalker is called within their heart, they often find themselves visited by agents of justice, usually swans, which challenge them. If they are found worthy by these agents, they are sent via a vision to find a swanwalker to be their mentor. Many, many swanwalkers come from other law enforcement groups that work for ruling classes. Often times they are true believers in justice who conflate it with law and order or the authority of the king or president. Eventually, they see the truth and become disillusioned with the lies of the powerful. Many such simply quit or suffer through, but some few who experience or witness grievous injustice find it in themselves to become true fighters for justice. However, if they have spent much time serving injustice, they must redeem themselves first with a quest. A potential swanwalker seeking redemption for former crimes (be they disillusioned former law enforcement or others who have done harm before) must go on a quest either to confront the powers that once commanded them or to pay resitution to their victims. If neither is applicable or possible (or simply too big to be reasonable), they are sent to confront unrelated evil.

The swans, or other agents of justice, who test swanwalkers test them three times: once when they are first called, once when they finish training, and once when they seek to become an independent swanwalker:

• Calling: an internal trial wherein they face their own fears, regrets, and shame.
• Deputization: once they finish training, they are deputized and face their mentor in several tests of knowledge, combat, tracking, and ethics.
• Matriculation: after a year or so, they are tested again to see if they are ready to work on their own, this time facing a independent mission as a trial.

At each trial, they gain new powers as yellow light suffuses their bodies.

Once someone is an independent swanwalker, they are able to conduct their own investigations into any injustice they sense or are told about. They are aided in their investigations by having both PRS bonuses (+1 as deputy, +3 as swanwalker) only during investigation. If the target of their investigation flees or seeks to escape somehow, they gain temporary tracking abilities of 13 or +3 if they have a 13 or more already.

Individual swanwalkers have powers that are usually circumstantial:

• Sensing injustice: their bones resonate when active injustice is played out near them and as a faint buzz when they are near major, ongoing injustices. Because within class societies, injustice is everywhere, many swanwalkers learn to ignore the buzz.
• Deputizing: swanwalkers can temporaily deputize others for up to 25 hours, granting them faint injustice sense and bonuses to tracking, reaction, and prowess.
• Rallying: when in desperate danger, when in most need, swanwalkers can call other swanwalkers who are within range of rescuing them.
• Steed: many swanwalkers form an emotional bond with their mounts and can speak to them rudimentarily, call them if they are in range, and move gracefully with them.
• Stunning rope: if a target is caught in their rope and is truly believed to be a source of injustice, their rope will stun them into insensibility at command.
• Speed draw: swanwalkers can give themselves higher reaction, but it will slow them down later, depending on the bonuses they apply. The higher the bonus, the quicker the come down, capping at +6 for one round of combat, -6 the next.
• Swansong: if a swanwalker is about to die, they can sing to the swans and call upon a flock from anywhere in the world to continue their present fight.

Collective powers are less circumstantial, but require a number of swanwalkers working together:

• Yellowflare: a brief flare of yellow energy stuns all alleged perpetrators within 30 yards of a group of three swanwalkers working together to invoke this power.
• Blackrope: a single rope becomes as long as the ropes of all swanwalkers within 30 yards and has the stun and entangling power of all ropes together.
• True invocation: 12 or more swanwalkers together may place hands upon a target and invoke the truth, forcing them to speak honestly.
• Speaking the Code: 12 or more swanwalkers together may speak the Code, word for word, in unison, to make it the binding law of a place delineated by their riding around it.
• Red badge: a single swanwalker's badge glows red, giving its wearer major protections from infernal powers, if seven or more swanwalkers place their power in the chosen swanwalker.
• Blue star: a single swanwalker's badge glows blue, giving its wearer major bonuses to combat against infernal powers, if seven or more swanwalkers place their power in the chosen swanwalker.
• Light of justice: 12 or more swanwalkers together may call upon the light of justice to burn the unjust within 30 yards.

In the colonies, the local grouping of the swanwalkers is called the Swans of the Coast.

PRO +2 ATH +2 STR +2 AWA +2 WIL +1 PRS +2 STH +1

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Truespeaker

A messenger who speaks only the truth, thus generating celestial truth magic, which allows them to sense truths and garner trust.

The art of truespeaking is more than simply telling the truth. It is a dedication to being truthful. It is avoiding not just lying, but as many forms of deception as possible, and being forthright and earnest in all communication. It means not omitting inconvenient information, not manipulating, not rephrasing, not engaging in spin. It also does not mean "brutal honesty," but rather, compassionate honesty; that is to say, truespeakers do not wield the truth to hurt others when at all possible, nor do they engage in lies to protect others. In order to wield the powers of a truespeaker, one must engage in honest, truthful communication for seven years without fail, repenting for past lies along the way. Once they have achieved seven years of truthfulness, they earn their powers, which grow over time as they retain their truthfulness. Any failure on their part means immediate loss of powers.

Repenting for lies in order to make up for past lies or to repair their powers means engaging in the four steps of reparation:

• Repent: admit to the lies to those to whom you lied or in a public space if the former is not available.
• Reveal: reveal the truth to those to whom you lied or in a public space if the former is not available.
• Reconcile: offer service or repayment or other forms of reconciliation with the aggrieved or engage in public service.
• Restore: restore trust between yourself and the wronged parties if possible, or engage in public service to gain trust of others.

Once these are complete, the truespeaker will have earned or regained their powers. Given that no one will remember every lie they ever told, general repentence is possible through acts of general admission to lies, but the more hurtful lies one has told must be atoned for in as direct and open way as possible. Becoming a truespeaker requires an act of witnessing. This means speaking a profound, difficult truth in a manner that has consequences. The most common version of this is speaking truth to power - denouncing the lies of a bad ruler, for example - but it can be something personal, religious, or philosophical. Truespeaking is an art practiced entirely on a personal level, so it is different for everyone.

Truespeakers work as messengers. They exist across cultural boundaries - they have many names in different cultures - but there is a loose network of them operating around the world. They teach each other how to be truespeakers and instill the values of honesty and truthfulness in each other. They also keep watch on one another. They have a strict code of how much they can charge for their services, which is based on the weight of the truth they must bear and the resources of those they choose to serve. They will not serve those who are deceptive and dishonest - i.e., most governments, for example - and see themselves as servants of the people. To send a message by truespeaker is to ensure its veracity to the best of mortal ability.

Truespeakers are not held accountable for speaking lies they do not know to be lies unless they could reasonably have ascertained otherwise and unless they SHOULD reasonably ascertain otherwise. Though it is hard to lie to a truespeaker, ignorance is more difficult to detect. A scientist cannot prove their theories by having a truespeaker speak them; if the truespeaker reasonably believes their theories true, they will be able to speak them. Furthermore, if a truespeaker has no reason to doubt something, they are not required to check on the truth of it. If someone asks them to speak "My brother did not kill his wife," the truespeaker should, if possible, try to verify this before speaking it. But if they are asked to speak "The house key is under the rose bush" and there is no context that makes this controversial, they have no obligation to check. Statements about things that are liable to change quickly are considered true if the truespeaker believes to the best of their ability that it is true - i.e., "the sky is blue" is considered true so long as the truespeaker has not witnessed it change to grey before speaking it, even if they do not check, unless there is context to suggest it unlikely the truespeaker would still believe it, such as nightfall or a loud storm.

Truespeakers do not engage in dishonest honesty. They do not seek loopholes, such as saying something as a question in order to avoid speaking a lie, nor do they omit information or phrase things in a way to twist the truth. They speak the truth as fully and openly as possible. Anything otherwise is a deception unworthy of them.

Truespeakers must be their true selves in order to be fully truthful. For this reason, actual truespeakers are very rare, as it is very difficult in many cultures and societies to remain true to oneself. In fact, it can be outright dangerous. Most, of course, do not know their true selves, and therefore, they must seek it. If a truespeaker is on a journey of discovery, this counts as being their true selves, so long as they are honest about it.

Truespeakers gain several powers once they have attained seven years of true living:

• Truesense: the ability to sense the truth. This does not mean they can sense objective truths about the universe, but rather that they can tell when someone is lying and they can tell when there is something intentionally hidden nearby. Sensing more profound, greater truths or sensing when someone speaks ignorance rather than intentional deception is only possible for the most powerful truespeakers, and even then, it is difficult for them.
• Trustyworthy air: truespeakers gain a trustworthy air about them that exists independent of their reputation. People trust them instinctively. Breaching this trust is a major violation of their honesty.
• Repeating: repeating is the ability to repeat a truth they have been told verbatim from memory. This is the power they have to speak true messages.
• Sending: truespeakers can, once every seven weeks, send a message of truth by projecting their consciousness and an image of themselves up to seven miles away.
• Commanding truth: a truespeaker can command another to speak the truth once every seven months.
• Denouncing: after 14 years of honesty, a truespeaker can reveal a deceiver once every seven years with absolute authority. This means that they can reveal a lie told by someone of note once every seven years and be irrefutably believed.
• Revealing: after 49 years of honesty, a truespeaker may speak a truth to someone that they did not know about themselves. They must look them in the eye (or equivalent primary sense), sense a truth the person does not know of themself, then speak it aloud.

Players would be a truespeaker with at least seven years of experience but not 49 unless they consult the GM.

PRO +1 ATH / STR / AWA +2 WIL +3 PRS +3 STH -3