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[piecewise]

CABAL: THE DEATH OF MAGIC

At the University in Alkahest they used to say that Magic is the perfect force, below and above all others, simultaneously greater and lesser than heat and light and kinetic energy and all other manifestations of power. All things spring from it yet are under its sway, and mastery of it grants mastery of all things. It bound our society together just as it held the world in place; it powered our machines and healed our sick, replaced the chisels and brushes of our artists, and even the lowest beggar could summon a flame to keep himself warm. And so our cities rose, endless forests of marble columns and domed roofs, Prismatic furnaces and Thaumic forges burning with prismatic flame from dawn to dusk, slivered streets gleaming like liquid mercury beneath the purple flame of constantly burning etherlamps. We flurished in that utopia, thinking ourselves invincible as we weaved stone and steel with careless abandon, as our leaders grew to become demigods, as we siphoned limitless power from the ether.

But it was not to last.

What is this?
Cabal is a game in a world of wonders gone wrong, the era of the death of magic. Its Mad Max if you replace Gasoline with Mana and Gangs of homicidal punks riding souped-up hot rods with gangs of homicidal wizards riding clockwork horses, mini zeppelins or summoned elementals. You can build what you want if you have the crap, cast what you want if you have the mana, and kill who you want as long as they don't kill you first.

Yeah, but What do we do in it?
Basically, this world is your oyster, and it’s up to you to decide what you want to do with it. You could gather some friends into a gang or ‘cabal’ to try and rule this little burnt out slice of the world. Or you could be a trader trying to earn ALL the money. Join the mage breakers and go hunt bandits and rogue wizards, or become an inventor devising constructs of madness and woe.

Maybe you wanna just wander around, explore the world, become the best wizard possible. Torch some idiots on the way. Maybe you wanna loot some towns or hunt some looters. It’s all good. Whatever kind of adventure you’re looking for, it’s out there, somewhere. And if you need some help to get started, why not follow the publicly available Rumors (see the post after this one) that act as missions to get you magical items and money?

Note that you usually start as a wizard, but you aren’t explicitly restricted to this. Want to go for a challenge run as a magicless warrior and bash some nerds? Go for it! If you are uncertain of what your options or limitations are in this regard, just ask me in the thread and we’ll work something out.

Where can I find the full rules?
Right HERE
The rules are split into a 1 and a half page summary at the top, with detailed info afterwards. There's a character sheet at the very bottom. Just fill that crap out. Note that the game originally was oriented more for secret play between cabals, but you don’t have to pay that any mind if you don’t want to. These days it's more of a freeroam wizard adventure world. You'll probably still die hilariously and painfully though, some things never quite change.

Where is the map?
HERE
Beware, it is fucking huge. And poorly drawn.
There is also a version of the map with an added grid, together with an annotated list for finding specific towns more easily. You can find it HERE.

[piecewise]

RUMORS

Scrappers from Fearce have been going missing lately.

Strange things have be sighted in The Black Flux

A man is said to have reached apotheosis in Kaolin

Strange lights sighted above Lake Candentis

DISCOVERIES

Vast caverns and lost cities below Glucinum

Downed Zeppelin near Matrass

Cult in Lake Limus, now Vanquished. Phaganeda erased from the map.

Very Angry Tortoise, last sighted near Crocus.

[Egan_BW]

This, the third post, shall henceforth act as the primary Zerthel Zentol public space!
Anything that we wish to make public can be put here, where it can be easily found starting from the first page.

If you wish to communicate with us, simply send a PM to me, syvarris, or any other member. Be sure to CC Piecewise, in accordance with the game rules!

Information Repository

Spoiler: Thaumic junk is junk, who knew (click to show/hide)

To any alchemists out there, know that Thaumic junk, despite what the name might imply, is absolutely worthless for converting into thaum. Doesn't give enough for even 1 mana! So don't try to, you'll just end up wasting one of your starting items. Thaumic junk is instead apparently meant for building thaumic machines, whatever those may be.

Spoiler: Just a bunch of stuff about flesh scrolls, really (click to show/hide)

[00:41] <ER> Piecewise, can a flesh scroll lose their materials if the corresponding flesh gets sliced off?
[00:42] <Piecewise> Possible, but they could just retattoo it on
[00:42] <Piecewise> assuming they lived
[00:43] <syv> Would that not cut into their material limit?
[00:43] <Piecewise> losing a huge chunk of skin would be rather difficult to survive
[00:43] <Piecewise> Depends on if their skin regrows
[00:43] <ER> would they need to retrieve the flesh to copy it back down, or can flesh scrolls apply any material they've seen before? Piecewise
[00:43] <syv> *magic*
[00:44] <Piecewise> For simplicity sake we'll say they can remember it
[00:44] <Piecewise> since they're locked in on the materials they get and all
[00:44] <Piecewise> Otherwise they might try to game the system via self skinning
[00:45] <Piecewise> which is an odd idea
[00:45] <Piecewise> but not beyond imagining
[00:45] <ER> Piecewise, so if I cut my skin off and then regrew it, those slots would be cleared up?
[00:45] <Piecewise> Nope
[00:45] <Piecewise> You'd still have that material perm slotted, just not useable till the marking is remade
[00:46] <Piecewise> to stop exactly what you just said
[00:46] <ER> aw
[00:46] <Piecewise> I mean, we can do that, but just remember anything applies to everyone
[00:46] <Piecewise> if you do it, so can everyone
[00:46] <ER> so really the mats are permanently stored in you mind, but only work if they exist on your body
[00:47] <ER> I don't mind it much, as regenning flesh will cost mana
[00:47] <Piecewise> yeah, I suppose
[00:47] <ER> and I'm one of two flesh scrolls, and the one with the better magical healer.
[00:47] <Piecewise> Well we can handle it like that. So that a flesh scroll literally has to filet themselves to change materials
[00:48] <Piecewise> Thats fine with me

[02:31] <ER> Piecewise, could you say for the record as a nice quotable thing that Flesh Scrolls can lose a material by cutting their skin off, and then get the slot back by regrowing their skin, putting a different material in the same slot?
[02:31] <ER> I want to put it in the thirdpost
[02:32] <Piecewise> Flesh scrolls can lose materials via losing the skin the design is on. It effectively frees up a slot though is quite dangerous. They can regrow that skin and remake the design to get the material back or just get a new material. Assuming the skin is usable to tattoo

[00:48] <ER> If I were to observe Derm through binoculars or something, and sketched out his tats, could I then apply them without his permission?
[00:49] <Piecewise> Not through binos, no
[00:50] <Piecewise> If you captured him,  and got him to tell you what they meant and then copied them, that would work
[00:50] <ER> okay, if I had derm tied up in my basement and naked, could I copy his materials? :V
[00:50] <ER> HYPOTHETICALLY, OF COURSE
[00:50] <Piecewise> yeah, probably

[00:52] <ER> Piecewise, if I got a mundane but sweet-looking tatoo, would that eat into my material limit?
[00:54] <Piecewise> ER yes, any skin thing would eat up space. But it would need to be pretty big to count

Spoiler: Mana transfers and thaum chugging (click to show/hide)

[00:37] <syv> How long does it take to transfer mana between two people?
[00:38] <Piecewise> really depends on amount transferred
[00:38] <Piecewise> if you're doing a lot it might take multiple turns but usually just 1
[00:38] <syv> But no casting on that turn?
[00:38] <Piecewise> Nah, its your action for that turn
[00:39] <syv> Thanks.
[00:39] <Piecewise> unless your turn is outside of combat
[00:39] <Piecewise> since turns can last a while outside of combat

[00:38] <syv> (Piecewise) Thaum becomes mana as soon as you drink it
[00:38] <syv> (Piecewise) so you could drink and use in the same turn

Spoiler: Controlling towns confers real benefits (click to show/hide)

Small question, what concrete advantages does it have to officially create a cabal as opposed to just gathering some lemmings together and calling yourselves the dumbest thing you can come up with? Except for getting a clubhouse free of charge if you're one of the early ones, I guess.

Well, cabals can control territory. If they can get on the good side (or bad side via some sort of reign of terror, or just control it via other means like replacing the mayor or something. ) of a town then they are considered to control that town and area and might get some nice perks from it.  Individuals could do stuff like this, but cabals have the bonus of conferring it on many people instead of just one. So the positive acts of your friends could give you bonuses.

Spoiler: Hunters and the relation between mana and difficulty (click to show/hide)

I don't have the logs, but when questioned about hunters and mana gain, he said they get more based upon the difficulty and danger of the situation, at least to a degree.  A hunter fighting a big beast as part of a group will get a little less mana than he would fighting alone.  Fighting alone and giving himself penalties (such as being unarmed, or wounded he *might* get more than if he were at full capacity--this isn't reliable however, and it's likely subject to diminishing returns to avoid munchkinning.

Hunters also don't need to land the killing blow.  They just need to be part of the fight, right in the thick of it.  If they're in danger from the kill during the fight, they get mana--otherwise, they don't.

(syv) I'd like to know whether a ranged hunter, fighting with a melee group, would get equivalent mana to a melee hunter in the same group, after killing some big melee-focused beast.
(syv) I know the danger that a hunter is in affects the mana they get somewhat, so would the fact that a ranged guy is safer behind his meat-shield allies penalize him?
(Piecewise) sort of
(Piecewise) Depends on the danger he's in, honestly
(Piecewise) if he's still with the group and has equal chance of being attacked, yes
(Piecewise) if he's sniping from some hilltop, no.
(syv) If a hunter were being stealthy, and shooting from atop hills *alone*, but mostly without risk, would he not get mana?
(Piecewise) He would get some, just not as much

Spoiler: Sculptors' Sculptures (click to show/hide)

[22:59] <syv> (syv) Can an alchemist/sculptor eat their sculptures after learning the material, with no loss?  Or is the knowledge tied to the sculpture?
[22:59] <syv> (Piecewise) They can melt it, but doing so means they can't then share the knowledge that sculpture contains
[22:59] <syv> (Piecewise) So if they don't wanna share, its fine
[23:00] <syv> (syv) Is a sculpture worth more thaum than its constituent parts?
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Yes
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Mostly because a lot of parts for it will not be that valuable
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Just hard to get and very specific
[23:00] <syv> (syv) Do sculptures have a decent chance of being practical and useful in and of themselves?  Like a weapon, or a special tool?
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Eh...depends on definition of "Decent"
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Don't bet on it
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) but its not impossible
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) Think of it like dwarf fortress artifacts
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) might get a weapon
[23:00] <syv> (Piecewise) probably gonna get a really nice sock
[23:00] <syv> (syv) Okay.  Thanks.

[syvarris]

IN

[MidnightJaguar]

in as well.

[Gentlefish]

This looks fun! Who wants to cabal up?

[OceanSoul]

Looking at a Servant Gut-reader. Also, I could've sworn you proposed some rudimentary form of this idea at the end of some Perplexicon thread or somewhere.

[piecewise]

Looking at a Servant Gut-reader. Also, I could've sworn you proposed some rudimentary form of this idea at the end of some Perplexicon thread or somewhere.

Indeed! Ah, memories.

There are a few references to Perplexicon in here, if you can find them. The world is really big though, so you might have to explore a lot.

[Toaster]

Totally in.  LFG

[Dermonster]

Goals of the
Fellowship In Flying Towers

1: Build a flying mobile fortress

2: Travel the world, look for fun things to fight, nab interesting people, discover interesting magic.

3: Expand the tower, become a flying city. Rule like the anime kings we are.

[Toaster]

I assume that Cabals can have all sorts of different mages in them?

[Beirus]

Imma make a sheet for this.

[Dermonster]

I'll look all this over in a few hours, as WoW is currently consuming my attention.

[piecewise]

I assume that Cabals can have all sorts of different mages in them?

There's no rules against it, least not game rules. Cabal makers might not want you but there's no game reason for it.


Also, I've already got people considering their torture empires in IRC.

Its a good day.

[Dermonster]

What irc?