Völva

Völva (pron. vorl-VUH) are witches who wield ausa, the fey energy of the perspective and character, to see what might be from their own perspective or the perspective of others, to alter the stories that occur to those characters, and to influence the world.

Perspective and Character

The flow of narrative through the perspective of an individual is called ausa, a poioumenonic energy that derives from how stories are understood rather than the mere existence of them. It is how someone perceives their own story that generates ausa, and the völva's ability to understand that perspective informs her ability to wield it.

Seiðr

The magic of the völva is called seiðr (pron. SIGH-thur). This magic involves galdrar (chanting, sing. galdr; pron. gall-DUR), spinning flax or wool charms, the use of henbane as a hallucinogen, the use of staves, and other specific practices that weave stories in specific forms.

Blood Sacrifice

Blood sacrifice is one of the most powerful practices in völva magic, but in order for it to work, the völva must not be the one to spill blood unless it is her own. If the sacrifice of another is required, she must have her assistants spill the blood. She then gathers and interprets it, using the blood to see into the character of the target. Blood gathered from the völva herself is acquired by using a small knife or her needle, cutting her palm or fingers usually. If another is sacrificed, they should be an enemy to the tribe who has been defeated by a member of the tribe. If a non-enemy is used, there will be penalties to the roll to interpret the blood.

Blood sacrifice can be used to understand a character and thus improve the völva's understanding of them in order to cast other spells on or about them. It can be used to improve a binding of an individual. Or it can be used to gain insights into an individual. The use of the blood sacrifice can only be used for one of these effects per bloodletting.

Mechanically, this works out as the following:

• +1 to +6 to spellcasting on blood donor
• +1 to +6 to binding the blood donor
• +1 to +3 read people on blood donor, which can be applied retroactively to interactions with the donor within one week of the use of the spell

Galdr

Galdrar are chants used by the völva to incant specific charms. These chants are seven lines in a special meter, chanted in a falsetto voice, sometimes with assistants joining in, other times chanted only by assistants as the völva weaves something that will have the properties imbued by the chant. Völva acquires these chants from the völva who train them or from rituals of wisdom done in special ancestral groves that require blood sacrifice. The two main types of song are loka (fastening) and lokka (lure). Lokr seal things; lokkr summon them.

Groves

Special groves where the tribes of the völva were first founded are bound to the völva when they are first initiated by the women who trained them. The ritual of binding involves spilling the völva’s blood or the blood of an enemy of the tribe in the grove, then sleeping within the grove overnight after drinking henbane tea. The visions seen during this ceremony will give the völva her powers and her first charms, including one unique to her, and upon awakening, she will find a branch that she turns into her staff.

Spinning

Völva are strongly associated with the practice of spinning flax or wool. While many women of their tribes engaged in this work, the völva would do so as a means of controlling ausa. They would do this by using their staff as the distaff, tipped with a special needle. The needle is always blessed by the völva’s blood or by the blood of one of the tribe’s enemies.

Spinning is often accompanied by galdrar, but not always. Regardless, the effects are spun into the material, creating a specific pattern that matches the meter and lines (length matching meter, number of threads always in nines or sevens) of the galdrar (if there are any) or fits a specific pattern found in the visions of the völva.

Fabric spun around the staff imbues the staff with the energies of ausa and allows the völva to wield the staff as a magical conduit for their power.

Visions

Völva use henbane to have visions. They either brew it into tea or turn it into a salve that they put on their chests and armpits. The former allows them to fall into a deep sleep or trance; the latter gives them sensations of flying. Either way, their visions are through the eyes of their target.

Trance

In a trance, the völva see visions of what may be, either at present or in the future, based on the perspective of the person they are trying to have a vision for. These visions are often symbolic and therefore must be interpreted, though sometimes they come crystal clear. During a trance, a völva may speak, and if so, anything she says is prophecy. If she does not speak, she must interpret what she experienced afterward. Sometimes, she sees through the eyes of other beings during her trance - usually animals or spirits with whom she has a bond - and other times, she simply sees the narrative tapestry of reality directly.

Ancestors

Völva may also connect with the stories of their ancestors during their trance. These are not ancestors from within ancestral memory or aemoa, but from the stories and legends told about them - they are characters. As such, what they tell might not be accurate to history, but they will have information and power for the völva.

Flying

Völva who use the salve feel an intense, almost euphoric sensation that makes them feel as if they are flying. This sensation gives them increased awareness, reaction, and magical powers for a brief period, and very powerful völva can actually fly if they have their staff with them.

Group Visions

Sometimes during a large ritual, a völva will throw the henbane seeds into a fire, producing smoke that causes everyone who inhales it to hallucinate. These group visions are interpreted by the völva and used to make collective predictions before extremely important events. They require blood sacrifices beforehand.

Sex Magic

There are two kinds of sex magic used by völva: copulation and self-love. The former involves their assistants (of any gender) and galdr; the latter involves using their staff as an implement for masturbation. In both cases, they will have smeared henbane salve over their genitalia in order to heighten the experience, resulting in visions of power and a release of ausa (and potentially other energies). This release may be then wielded in spells of great potency.

Effects

What a völva may effect with their magic varies by the stories of their people, but some common themes include the following:

Amplification

A völva may amplify the qualities of themselves or another via their magic. This is most often done with galdrar. This can be general - improving an army’s chances of victory - or specific - improving a person’s ability to build a house. In every case, the galdrar used must invoke stories of the völva’s people in a style that befits the target. The völva bases this on the story of the person they are targeting.

The difficulty of casting amplification charms is based on the target(s), the intended effect, and the amount of amplification:

• Number of targets: the more people receiving the amplification, the higher the difficulty. A single individual has a base difficulty of 10. It is +3 per individual above this. However, if a group can be defined as a single unit - a family, an organization, an army, a country - then the difficulty is reduced to a more generalized number. However, this unit must have its own story and character to draw from and be understood by the völva. There is still scaling up based on number - a whole country is much harder to amplify than a nuclear family, for example. Some general guidelines (not hard and fast rules): family difficulty is 14, army difficulty is 20, country difficulty is 26. These can be reduced by using blood, galdrar, etc.
• Complexity of effect: a simple amplification is one skill or stat improved; a complex one requires multiple skills or more complex skills. So an increase to strength is easier; improving the ability to build a house (which requires multiple skills) is more difficult. More complex abilities include anything esoteric, higher level skills (anything about a 14), or anything requiring advanced training.
• Level of amplification: it is +2 difficulty per +1 of skill you wish to add above a +1 (i.e., a +1 is at the 10 base for an individual, a +2 is at 12, a +3 is at 14, etc.). The völva may also amplify to the level of narrated skill - in other words, the target can use the skill without rolling, instead narrating the use of the skill, for a limited number of times. This is +7 difficulty per use of narrated skill (i.e., granting one narrated skill is a 17 diff for an individual, 24 for two uses).

Binding

To bind a magical being, ancestral legend, object, or animal to a völva, she must use her spinning to create a fabric of flax or wool with a pattern of the being or object they wish to bind. This must be chanted over with a galdr that reflects or is appropriate for the target, and it must then be literally bound to the völva as a girdle or belt. The magical being, ancestral legend, object, or animal will then be bound to her (assuming her will is greater than theirs, or that they are willing), allowing her to “ride” them (place her mind within theirs), communicate with them, or summon them.

In this instance, magical being can be pretty much any living thing on Shem except athaks, but mostly völva bind servitors, insubstantiates, and various folk. "Ancestor" does not refer to the insubstantial memory being, but the stories and legends völva know of their ancestors.

Difficulty in binding is based on the power of the magical being, ancestor, object, or animal, and the völva's understanding of the target's story. Factors for difficulty determination include the following:

• Power of target: the highest stat of the target is used to determine their power. For every point in their highest stat above 13, it is another +1 to difficulty to bind them, unless the völva has their blood, a deep understanding of their story, or other mitigating factors.
• Age of ancestor: the further back the ancestor, the higher the difficulty. The ancestor must be dead to count as an ancestor; otherwise, they fall into the "magical being" category. Any ancestor from before the Fall is even more difficulty. The general guideline is +1 per every three generations beyond the last living ancestor, with ancestors before the Fall being +3 per generation. If a völva is adelfoi, the pre-Fall increase in difficulty does not apply. If the völva is a lilithian or user of aemoa, pre-Fall ancestors actually get easier (-1 per generation).
• Willingness of target: if the target is willing, it is -3 to difficulty, and no WIL vs. WIL roll will be required. Animals and objects cannot consent. Ancestors and magical beings can. Expressed consent is best, as always. If the target is unwilling, the völva rolls WIL vs. their WIL. Objects have a WIL equal to their magical properties -6. If they have no magical properties, objects have a WIL of 1. Animals' WIL rolls may be affected by how much they trust the völva, so befriending the animal first will make it easier.

A völva may communicate with magical beings or ancestral legends that she has bound if she takes her binding and places it in brass, bronze, or pewter bowl and covers it in fresh water mixed either with her own blood or that of an enemy to her people. She then wears this as a girdle or a belt and drinks the henbane tea to speak directly in her visions with the spirit or ancestor. From this, she may gain guidance or wisdom from their stories. Summoning requires drawing a blood circle (with völva's blood or the target's blood) and singing a specific galdr.

• A bound object will always be considered "held" by the völva even if it is away from her.
• A bound object can be summoned at a difficulty of 1 if within visual range (even if obscured by barriers). It is +3 difficulty per ten miles after it is outside of visual range. The average human can see three miles on a clear day, so that is a difficulty of 1, and after that, it is +2 (even if by millimeters outside that range). Then it is another +3 if it is another ten miles out - so 13 miles out. And so on. This can be mitigated if the object's story is fully understood by the völva.
• A bound object cannot be ridden as it has no mind - however, there are a few exceptions: any object designed to work with the senses of a person can be ridden as if it is being used. I.E. eyeglasses may be ridden to imitate wearing them. In other words, riding eyeglasses, even if they are not on your face, will give you the effect of wearing them and seeing from their perspective depending on their location. Hearing aids, gloves, mirrors, windows, and other objects affecting a base sense can be used this way, but objects that interact with a base sense do not count - i.e., simply having an aroma or tangibility is not enough to qualify for this. The difficulty on riding an object that qualifies under these circumstances is still very high, as they have no mind - usually a base of 14, +3 per every ten miles outside of visual range.
• Communicating with a bound object is possible, but usually not helpful, as they are still inanimate objects. The exception to this is communication devices - i.e., a bound telephone. Essentially, this allows the völva to speak through a bound speaker, grammophone, etc. Difficulty is also very high - 14 base, +3 per ten miles outside of visual range.
• A bound animal can be summoned or ridden at a difficulty of 4 if within visual range, +1 if even slightly outside visual range, then +3 per 10 miles outside of that range. This difficulty goes up if the animal is larger (i.e. cows, horses, bears, adult wolves, big cats, adult boars, etc., all are +3 above base - elephants, hippos, rhinos are +4, whales are +6, to give an idea of the range). Magical animals are also more difficult, with their magical abilities score being the indicator - any magical ability above an eight adds +1 difficulty per every three points above eight (i.e., 9 is +1, 12 is +2, etc.).
• Communicating with a bound animal is only affected by the distance - same rules as above - but the intelligence of the animal affects their ability to understand or act on any communication.
• A bound ancestral legend can be summoned at a difficulty of 7. Because these are legendary figures drawn from the völva's own mind and understanding of their stories, they are always near to the völva. The difficulty exists only in binding them. After that, they are always close enough to be summoned at a 7, no matter their power, age, or other factors.
• Riding an ancestral legend is the opposite of riding other beings - since they exist in the völva's mind, they cannot be ridden to perceive other things. Instead, riding them allows them to take over the völva's body, giving the völva their skills and abilities for a very brief amount of time. Difficulty to do this is high - 14 - and must be re-rolled after every use of their knowledge, power, senses, abilities, skills, or voice. After two uses, the difficulty goes up by +3 for each additional use.
• Communicating with an ancestral legend is basically just the völva speaking to them in her own mind. Difficulty is 7, but must be rerolled after every five interactions (question/answer or back-and-forth dialogue).
• Summoning a magical being requires willingness of the magical being, even if bound, unless the völva is beats them in a WIL vs. WIL contest. Summoning difficulty is 10 if the target is within visual range (three miles). 11 if outside of three miles, then +3 more per ten miles out of range (so at 13 miles, difficulty is 14), with variations based on success rate of the intiial rolls.
• Communicating follows the same distance rules. It must be rerolled every fifteen interactions, with variations based on success rate of the intiial rolls.
• Riding follows the same distance rules and a WIL vs. WIL roll if the target is unwilling to be ridden. WIL vs. WIL and riding roll must be rerolled every fifteen actions or every fifteen minutes, with variations based on success rate of the intiial rolls.

Healing

Völva are often learned in herbalism, basic medicine, and other healing arts that they use before wielding their seiðr to heal, but they can draw upon seiðr to heal if need be. They do this by using either their galdrar-enchanted needle to stitch wounds or by concocting ausa-infused potions with henbane and blood, chanting powers into it with songs about legends of healing and resurrection.

Stitching a wound requires the wound be deep or mortal, otherwise, the wound will not be large enough to require stitching. Difficulty to stitch a deep wound is 14, which reduces penalties to normal wound level. Stitching a mortal wound is difficulty 20, reducing it to deep wound penalty levels and preventing death. These difficulties can be modified by the skill in singing the galdr and the nature of the needle used.

Potion-making requires rolling against a difficulty of 11 for a potion to heal normal wounds; a difficulty of 14 to reduce deep wounds to normal wounds or mortal to deep; a 17 to heal deep wounds or reduce mortal wounds to normal wounds; a 20 to heal mortal wounds. These can be modified by skill in singing galdr, potency of the blood used, and the power of the legends referred to.

Hexes

Hexes are either applied to targets via direct contact - striking them with the staff - combined with speaking the intended hex (“may your manhood wither”) or through drawing ausa from visions and incanting prophetic hexes (“you will die before you reach your homeland”) in the wake of a potent vision. Some known effects of hexes include sinking ships, blunting swords, and bringing storms.

To hex someone, a völva needs to know their story well enough to know what will have a meaningful impact on them - this can be knowing them personally or knowing enough about them via context (i.e., they are the leader of an army or member of a tribe).

To hex someone without first using henbane for visions, the völva must strike the victim with their staff, and the difficulty is much higher - base difficulty is 14, with increasing difficulty depending on the severity of the hex (hexing someone to death and/or damnation being much harder) and number of targets.

If the völva uses henbane and has visions beforehand about the target, they can use those visions to simply speak the hex without having to strike the target. The target must be able to hear the hex, however, and the vision must be relevant to the target. In order to ensure the visions are relevant, the völva must roll to control the vision - AWA vs. difficulty of 17, with modifiers based on how well she knows the target's story. She has a day to use her hex after having the vision.

Prophecies and Divination

All visions are prophecies based on the reading of the narrative of reality. Unlike with fate, wherein the future is woven and sealed, völva spin ausa into fabrics that are less distinct, bearing patterns or images that are suggestive of what is to come based on the target's perspective. They nudge rather than seal. The mechanics of a prophecy are always "if, then". They impose a perspective that is then later brought to be if certain omens occur. These omens are based on the völva’s cultural background. They can be as simple as “when the cocks cries thrice in a morning” or as massive as “when the temples are destroyed in thunderstorms”. These are always part of the vision spun into the fabrics made.

Divination is when the völva uses her henbane-induced visions to ask specific questions of magical beings, the ancestral legends, or simply of the universe in order to divine information about the future. Before divining via henbane, they would often perform blood sacrifices to draw more powerful visions - the most well known of these is the use of captured enemy warriors in a ceremony wherein their throats were slit and their blood caught in pewter or brass vessels beneath them as the völva watches from her platform, as this infamous scene played out many times in history as their tribes warred with invading empires.

Divination results mostly in guidance rather than anything certain. The difficulty in divining depends on how much blood is spilled and whose, as well as what questions are being asked.

Riding

A völva may use her bound targets as vessels for her own mind. She does this by using the binding fabric as a blanket during a henbane-induced coma or trance, allowing her mind to enter the being or object and travel. She often uses this to gather information covertly. See above for more details.

Summoning

A völva may summon magical beings, animals, or ancestral legends via galdrar and ritual sacrifice. The sacrifice is either another animal (usually one associated with her tribe), an enemy of the tribe, or a voluntary member of the tribe. Animals make for weaker sacrifices, while conscious mortals (enemies or volunteers) make for very potent ones. The summoned beings may or may not be under the völva’s control when summoned, but they will be physically present.

Wards

Wards are spells of protection created by galdrar. They can be infused into objects to be carried by the target of the spell, or they can simply be sung upon the target (including the völva herself). They can be as simple as “ease childbirth” or as powerful as “repel spirits” or “prevent death”. The more powerful wards required summoning guardian spirits.

Inventory

Völva use many different tools in their magic.

Platform and Chair

All völva use raised platforms and chairs, either a special scaffold or a tower or some other platform, from which to pronounce their visions. They sit in special chairs

Distaff

The distaff doubles as a normal staff. It is ornamented with gems and brass, and features the same design as a distaff, but topped with a special needle (usually brass, though other metals are possible). It is made from wood from the special grove of the völva’s tribe.

Henbane

Henbane is a potent hallucinogenic and euphoric drug that can be made into tea or a salve by the völva. If mixed with blood, it is more potent, but it can be used directly as well. The tea is made by boiling seeds. The salve is made by turning the seeds into a paste and mixed with blood, water, and sometimes other materials. It also works as an aphrodisiac.

Galdr

Galdrar are the chants, sometimes referred to as songs or charms, that the völva use. Galdrar are passed down from one völva to another, save for the special galdr they learn in their initial visions, which is always the story of the völva herself. She only uses this chant when she is alone, and only to direct the spell onto herself.

Fabric

Völva use flax or wool to spin designs that are infused with ausa drawn from their visions.

Scissors

A völva will have a special pair of shears or scissors for cutting fabric made from fine metals and handed down from völva to völva in her tribe. These will often be warded to keep them sharp.

Cloak

All völva wear special cloaks given to them by their tribes. The cloaks are a symbol of their office and will be made of finest animal skin (cat, lamb, calf). Often they will be given other fine clothing as well, but the cloak is the most important. Once they are given their cloaks, they perform a ceremony to weave wards into it. Every völva chooses nine wards for her cloak.

Animal

Every völva has animals around her that she is either bonded to or that she keeps. The most common are cats. Cats are kept for practical reasons (catching vermin, emotional support), but they are also kept because of their agility and stealth, making them perfect for information gathering when the völva is riding them. Other common animals include falcons (useful for hunting and riding), boars (food or riding), and wolves (protection and riding).

Ointment

A very rare mixture of white lead, owl pellets, bird bones, herbs, water, and sometimes various forms of mud or clay is used to create an ointment for the skin that is said to prolong the life of a völva. The ointment requires blood sacrifice to create, but blood is not put in it. This is only done if she does not have a younger person to teach her arts to or if she hasn’t completed training her replacement.

Variations

Some variations include the following:

• Ergi: male völva, usually gay, or trans feminine völva who do not ride animals’ minds but instead transform into them.

• Hallirunas: failed völva whose visions were wrong; they are outcasts who often turn to other arts to survive.

Societal Role

Völva are powerful leaders and advisers in their tribes. They are figures of authority, often employed as envoys to other tribes or groups, always consulted before battle, and turned to by leaders in times of crisis. They often taken on a role of religious leadership within the tribe as well - most völva worship some combination of goddesses that includes Kǫttrkona, the Diviner Goddess whose chariot is pulled by cats, and Mother Shem herself.

Outside their tribes, they are hated as witches, accused of fucking devils and spawning evil, and persecuted as monsters.

Skills

Some common skills include the following:

• Spinning

• Sewing

• Weaving

• Cooking

• Herbalism

• Medicine

• Politics

• Languages

• Religion

• Lore

Stats

Common modifiers to base of nation/species:

PRO /
ATH /
STR /
AWA +4
WIL +5
PRS +3
STH +2