Turn 16_Lies of the Millennium (Worm/Cultist Simulator)

Turn 16

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Creation of the Cult: Required: 0/30/70. Roll: 79

There are things that one person can do. There are also things that two people are necessary. Some require much more, but in the end, it all comes down to cooperation. Even the process of creation is rarely without an assistant, let alone birth, or a sacrifice. There are times when the second pair of hands is indispensable.

Especially since a cult with only one member is nothing more than an exotic fad. However, organizing a secret society is thorough work, and it is bound to attract the attention of the authorities in time. It takes some time to prepare, but just as all stories stem from one immutable truth, so all the efforts made have led to this day.

Firmly adhering to a decision once made to follow the Way of the Forge of Days, you decide to found the Workshop of the Creators of Flame, an occult society dedicated to the fire that changes and reshapes. Torn between two fully trustworthy people, you end up choosing Linda.

Because if you can't trust your own family, then who can you trust?

Despite the repeatedly negotiated order of the ritual, when the time comes to apply the branding - your hands tremble. But the Hour you will serve requires pain. It is necessary to honor him with a sacrifice.

A red-hot branding emerges from a small roaster, enveloped in the smoke of aromatic herbs, and, to the monotonous recitation of the Shaping Chant, presses itself against pale skin. The smell of the smoke stupefies the mind, downplaying the pain of the burn but the lips of your mother, the follower, are still pressed to the blue.

All the oaths are taken and the words spoken, and a scarlet mark remains on the follower's body, in the form of a tongue of flame clamped with pincers, over which the great and small forge hammers are drawn. The mark is small but it will remain on the skin until death.

The sacrament was a success, though the nervous strain of the process was exhausting and dulled my mental acuity. Perhaps the latter was due to the clouds of bitter smoke that enveloped the whole attic. They were barely visible below but it was more likely that they would have to ventilate more often than usual, especially if the rituals were to continue and no other suitable place could be found.

Received: The Cult of the Workshop of the Creators of Flame (Patron - Forge of Days) dedicated to transformation and destruction is founded. You will be able to advance followers of the Forge aspect to the tenth rank (Apprentice) when you have them, with sufficient Forge power.

The first follower is Linda Vader, a neophyte (Lantern 2). Linda, who works as a nurse at a hospital in Brockton Bay, has recently developed a fondness for reading in bright light. Her eyes are not always open.

* * *

It's getting warmer, as the weather forecasters assure us, but the Atlantic Ocean is showing its bad temper again: gusts of wet, salty wind are driving heavy clouds to the coast and scattering debris. King Vader is still here, trying to get some rest before another business trip (or maybe find his way to the Wood). He'll leave next week, with the start of vacation. (-1 mind action per move for study, +1 funds every 2nd school week.)

You have three body actions (B), four mind actions (M), and four passion actions (P). Cultists may perform one action from a special section. You have 38 funds at your disposal (all available accumulation).

Influences:

- Visible Vitality - Heartbeats like thunder! (+15 to body rolls) 3 Lv.

- Evident Enlightenment - There's more and more glare on reflective surfaces! I can see not just normal light, and it's noticeable. (+20 to the Study rolls. May lose 1 or 2 steps or, in critical failure, degenerate into a Fascination) 4 Lv.

- The buzzing in the Brain - In gi rum imus noc te et con sumi click-click-click-click [Influence of the second level: obvious to the susceptible, instantly recognized by the knowledgeable. Can be used in some rituals to summon underlings; some underlings will retain influence when destroyed] (Power 2)

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Turn 16 Results

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After all the events of the week, you're completely exhausted, and you'd much rather sleep for a couple of days than write down the results of your actions in your diary. Powerful objects and strange traders, new revelations and knowledge, piling cases and assets - all so mixed up that it will soon give you a chronic migraine if nothing is done.

The tantalizing heat of the forge and the layering of dust, the buzzing of insects, and the pounding of your heart... You slammed the notebook shut, placing your pen on the table. It's worth going back to the notes later when the emotions have subsided. But this week is definitely one of the most stressful you've experienced in your entire life.

It gets a little easier when you think again about what happened, and you begin to see what is happening as a test. And trials, as you know, harden you. Hardening is part of the transformation of the Forge.

Hence, everything is going as it should.

* * *

Influences:

- Visible Vitality - Heartbeats like thunder! (+15 to body rolls) 3 Lv.

Work:

[X] (B) This body is my 3.

Requires 1 pass, chance of success60%. (On completion of +1 body action, increased vitality)

Required: 40. Roll: 26+ 10 (Decreasing Growth Burst) +15 (Visible Vitality) + 10 (Gym Pass) + 5 (Natural Development) + 4 (2d6 (1, 3) Words that Walk) = 70 Pass.

When you woke up today, you felt that you had crossed a certain line that separated the different levels of strength from each other. Not so long ago, your muscles stood out under your skin like a temple bas-relief, working precisely and steadily like pistons and levers. Your body is like a machine, pulsing with newfound strength.

Also, you need new shoes, because the old ones have become noticeably tight.

At least the clothes were bought with some margin, in anticipation of such changes, and some things do not have a certain size at all. Although T-shirts were not so tight before for the sake of economy you can tolerate it...

Received: Trait Stronger Physique (Arms of Bronze) evolves into a Hardened Physique (Arms of Steel). You can almost tell by your appearance that you are as strong as a blacksmith or a soldier. (+1 body action each turn (4 total), +10 to body rolls except body development action. +1 HP box (3 total) = +10 to health (30/30)).

[X] (B) Mastering the Edge. How to Make a Fist.

Requires 5 passes, 60% chance of success. (On completion will receive a line of combat statistics, + open access to the next stage, +variable)

Required: 40. Roll: 28 + 5 (Stronger Physique) + 15 (Visible Vitality) + 5 (2d6 (1, 4) Words that Walk) = 53 Pass.

The training is going smoothly, though it's taken a while for you to get used to a different proportion of your strength because of your development. Martin, like everyone else, noticed your obvious progress but didn't say anything, though he looked more closely than usual. After a while, he obviously made some conclusions for himself, but he didn't share them.

And you're still being mashed up like a fish in the crust, "so you don't think too much of yourself and get too cocky."

[X] (P) The creation of art.

It takes 1 pass, and the chances of success are 80%/60%/40%/20%/5%

Required: 20/40/60/80/95. Roll: 7 x 1.5 (Emotional Fountain) + 10 (Exuberant Imagination) + 5 (Painter) + 5 (Good Paint Set) + 5 (2d6 (3, 2) "Buzzing in the Brain") = 36 Pass.

Inspiration still hadn't shown itself. At one point you thought the idea would come on its own if you listened to the moth's influence seeping into your head but that didn't help, either.

As a result, you wove your brush frustratedly across the board until you painted a landscape - a view from above of a green field covered in puddles of blood and the unrecognizable remains of weapons and armor gleaming in the sunlight. These sad ruins are the only thing keeping the blood from being mistaken for some poppies.

You didn't even sell the sketch, knowing that you could hardly get anything for it. Unless inspiration came and you finished it later. Maybe.

(Roll for Sale Price: 1d4, where 1=0: 1. It's not even worth trying.)

Study:

[X] (M) School attendance.

You use school attendance mainly to relieve your head a little from more important and complicated questions. Elementary math with the simplest coefficients and integrals helps you dive for a moment into a boring life without the secret world and occult mysteries...

Somewhere in the middle of the week, you notice a large concentration of strange looks on you again. Some students seem interested, for some reason, in watching you do mundane things. How you eat, stretch, straighten an accidentally bent locker door, and other little things. This is especially common with those who are in the same study group as you, like Sparky, or Taylor, or those few students who, for some unknown reason, have decided to join you in some classes.

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When you asked your friend what the hell was going on, he just muttered something about muscle-headed jocks and didn't talk to you for the rest of the day. He must have been offended.

[X] (M) Books are immortal memory.

- "The Knock Mysteries" - An article written by the Predecessor for one Poppy Lossels (probably a pseudonym). Contains encrypted secret knowledge. Requires 1 pass, 50%/5% chance of success.

Required: 50/95. Roll: 61 + 10 ( Notable Scholarship) + 20 (Evident Enlightenment) + 11 (3d6 (3, 3, 5) Unmerciful Mantra) = 102 Artificial Crit!

The article about the Knock, which is not surprising, describes one of the mysteries of the Knock, namely a minor knowledge of the same rank as the secret you already know. Of course, you would like more, but you are sure that with some diligence you will be able to deduce a more powerful Knowledge from the fragments you know, as you already did once with a couple of Parables.

More interestingly, you've heard somewhere about the Penelope (Poppy) Lossels mentioned on the title page before, and quite recently. It's worth refreshing your memory, it might be a clue to something interesting.

Received: Locksmith's Secret (+1), Investigation: A familiar name!

[X] (B) Mastering the Craft, Principles of the Forge. You will need more than one arcane knowledge to make complex items. A high-level craft cannot do without knowledge of metalworking. Of course, you can always send your craft to people who have their hands in the right place... When you have them among your followers. In the meantime, all you have to do is learn the skill yourself. Requires 5 passes, 50% chance of success. (The crafting point will improve on completion.)

Required: 50. Roll: 94 + 5 (Stronger Physique) + 20 (Evident Enlightenment) + 7 (3d6 (2, 1, 4) Shaping Chant) = 126 Artificial Creed!

After reading thematic articles about crafting things out of nonferrous metal, you assembled a roll of copper wire, a hammer, and pliers, and then occupied the gas stove. After about half a dozen failed attempts and scrapping the material, you ended up with a pretty passable medallion with seven spirals. In the old days, it might have been the cult object of a deity called the Seven Spirals but he's long dead, so your piece is just a trinket.

You were so inspired by this little creative impulse that for several days you dreamed of the crucible, the heat from it, and the clang of the hammer on the anvil of sparks. You too are material, and one day you will be transformed into a higher form, whether you forge yourself or entrust the work to someone else. And then again. And again. For as long as it takes.

Deconstruct, reconstruct, modernize.

Received: Influence of Forge - Trembling Heat. The possibility of sparks.[Sixth-order influence: Impossible to mix up. Can be used in some rituals to summon underlings] (Power 6)

Conversation:

[X] (P) Candidate Recruitment. Among some of the people you know, there are worthy candidates for recruitment. It's worth getting to know them better, or better yet, getting them interested in cooperating.

- Taylor Hebert (Winter?). A student at Winslow High School, a taciturn girl who has survived the teenage society as a punching bag for the " Queensbees" of the school for a long time. Used to try to complain about the antics of her bullies, but stopped due to a lack of results. Requires 1 pass, odds of success ???

Required: ???. Roll: 39 x 1.5 (Emotional Fountain) + 10 (Wild Imagination) + 10 (Geek) + 3 (+ 1d6 (3) Sexton's Secret) = 82 Pass.

After another round of bullying, which some uninterested people took as a joke, you find Taylor crying quietly in the back of the school bus. Vaguely recalling some advice on socialization, either read on the World Wide Web or given to you by Linda in another moralizing session, you cautiously sit down next to her.

When the weeping girl raises her swollen red eyes at you, you just nod, and gently squeeze her forearm with your hand, silently offering support. She looks back into your eyes for a moment and then continues to sob quietly against your shoulder. The sweatshirt is instantly soaked.

A few stops later, the bus pulls up in front of Taylor's house, and you awkwardly say goodbye, waving to each other through the window. Although the girl has almost completely calmed down in the meantime, and the social interaction session went quite well, you can't help but feel that something didn't go the way you wanted it to.

It's worth pondering at your leisure.

Received: Action completed, but no result. Received options: Analyze Interactions and Continue Recruitment.

[X] (P) Interesting rumors.

Required: 35/??. Roll: 59 x 0.5 (Emotional Fountain) + 10 (Wild Imagination) + 16 (+ 4d6 (3, 3, 4, 6) Moldywarp Admonitions) = 55 Pass.

With all the squeezing of this week's events, you've barely had time to give proper attention to sifting through school rumors. Amid all the little things, good for nothing more than minor blackmail and dirty rumors about some romances, you managed to pick up a story about a scary house.

As usual, the cursed building gained notoriety after the eerie and tragic deaths of its owners (or their eerie and tragic lives, rumors differ), and is now used for tests of courage.

However, there was also a rumor of some kind of treasure or stash that may have been in the past owners, which has not yet been found.

Most likely, it's just another urban legend, but just in case you wrote down everything you heard, including the location with the signs of the structure, and sooner or later you will check the information you received in person, or through intermediaries.

Received: Opened action to explore the urban legend and/or minor expedition.

Trravel:

[X] (P) Looking for special items. The Lord Street flea market is the biggest flea market in town. Among the drug addicts selling off the latest and the gang members selling stolen goods and drugs under the table, you might find something of interest... It takes 1 pass, the chances of success are variable. There is a chance to find something with an aspect, suitable as an ingredient, or even an artifact, but they will definitely be worth something.

Required: 25/50/75/85/95. Roll: 30 x 1.5 (Emotional Fountain) + 5 (Initiate) = 50 Second Order Passage!

When you arrived at the market on Saturday, near noon, you strolled thoughtfully through the aisles, trying on the trinkets you liked. Alas, none had an unmistakable sense of the power of aspects, and so it was a pity to spend money on them. Tired of the blazing sun, you decided to turn into a little dead-end alley, where there was shade and blessed coolness.

In addition to the trash cans, there was another hoarder in the narthex, sitting on a crate in front of two boxes on which his meager possessions were piled. The trader, an African-American man of indeterminate age, looked up at you silently, as if urging you to look at his goods. As you approached closer, out of politeness, you glanced over the junk, almost consigned it to the useless trash, and suddenly a feeling that unmistakably identified the special items among the others howled in your soul.

Among the jumble of necklaces, feathers, plastic amulets, and shards of small animals, a few really worthwhile items stood out as a bright beacon. For this? Yes, that's what you're willing to pay for!

There are 5 items available for purchase:

1. An unsightly notebook titled "Research Diary". The handwriting is sloppy but readable. You can sense the smell of adventure. (S. Stories. 1) P. - 3 Funds.

2. A sharp fragment of a walrus tusk. More than once spilled blood, and would not mind tasting it again. (Edge 3) P. - 5 Funds.

3. A scented candle with a strange odor. Clearly homemade, the composition is not written anywhere. The wick looks like a root. (Moth 3) price. - 4 funds.

4. A key blackened by time. Unknown what it opens, but it's a fine piece. In capable hands, it will shine again. (Knock 1) P. - 2 Funds.

5. The crumbled little tambourine. It looks like it will crumble with the slightest sneeze, but the foundation is still strong. Who knows what music was played on it? (Heart ?) P. - 4 Funds.

During the bidding that followed, in which the sitting "interlocutor" did nothing but point the price on his fingers, you had to argue vehemently about the value of each item. Finally, having agreed, you made a deal. And you left the alley, rubbing your cold hands. You turned around at once, on a sudden intuition, and saw the merchant looking on, smiling with a sharp set of triangular teeth. Only now did it become clear to you that the alley was unusually cold.

You don't remember how you got home.

[X] (M) Looking for a second-hand bookstore. After a thorough search of the Internet, you discovered with indignation the absence of specific literature, namely, textbooks of ancient languages. There is only a reference to a small edition of a Bible-Aramaic textbook published in the last century, but its excerpts are not very similar to the existing specimen. Apparently, the authorities are withholding anything that might lead to really useful knowledge, so we'll have to trust the more independent (and ancient) sources. Requires 1 pass, 60%/10% chance of success

Required: 40/90. Roll: 78 + 10 (Notable Scholarship) + 5 (3d6 (2, 1, 2) Unmerciful Mantra) = 93 Pass.

It took a lot of time and effort but through persistence, you managed to find something unusual: Not far from the line where the southern Docks and the Business district meet, an inconspicuous alleyway hides the entrance to an old bookstore. It's unmarked on maps, barely mentioned a couple of times in the book-loving forums you had to sift through with a fine sieve, and judging by the reviews, even knowing its location - not everyone will be able to find this mysterious place.

After circling the block where the store is supposedly located several times, you decide to apply your occult knowledge, and, to the last sounds of the Unmerciful Mantra recitation, you almost bump your nose against the wooden door. This monument to a bygone era is covered in peeling green paint, and no spotlight, let alone the dim glow of the setting spring sun, would penetrate the dusty glass.

Above the door was a time-darkened sign that read "Rorri" and a drawing of an open book. As you gently push the door open, you cringe at the sound of a massive bronze bell suspended just above your head. From the look of the thing, it looks like it was fished out of a shipwreck, and the owner had nothing better to do than to frighten careless visitors with it falling on their heads.

"Is there anything I can do for you, young man?" Asked the old man behind the counter a question. He was so in tune with his surroundings that you didn't even notice until he spoke up. Judging by the deep wrinkles and sagging skin, he was at least two hundred years old.

"Greetings Dear sir." You remembered the rules of politeness. "Considering how hard it was to find this place, I guess so. I need books that are valuable for their... content. They're rare these days, but they were more common in the past. Perhaps you can suggest something?"

"Ho-o-o?" The shopkeeper looked surprised. I can tell by his expression that he's seen a lot of customers like that in his day. "All I can tell you is to look on the shelves. I can't remember where or what's on the shelves myself but you seem to be able to tell the difference between a useful book and some mysterious scribblings, don't you?"

Nodding silently at this statement, you go further into the rows of racks to comb through the local scatterings properly.

Roll 1dn (where n = value of Mind): 1d4 = 2

After a while, when it's almost completely dark outside the dusty window, you walk up to the counter with a couple of books you're interested in, and the owner calls his price.

"On the White" by Solomon Hasher. p - 2 funds.

"How to Learn to See the Light" by Oliver Duong. p - 2 funds.

As you leave the "Rorri" Bookstore, you wonder if you'll be coming back here more than once.

Perhaps next time it's worth finding out the owner's name.

Received: Address of a bookstore accessible only to persistent customers

[X] (M) A secure place. To organize a cult requires a secure and, most importantly, a secret refuge. It is difficult to take rituals performed in one's bedroom seriously. You need to find a more secluded place.

Requires 1 pass, 50%/25%/5% chance of success.

Required: 50/75/95. Roll: 18 + 10 ( Notable Scholarship) + 12 (3d6 (4, 5, 3) Unmerciful Mantra) + 12 (5d6 (3, 3, 4, 1, 1) Silver Quill) = 52 Pass.

You've researched the map of the city with great care, and you've identified several promising places that, if you wish, and with some care, can be occupied for meetings and rituals. Especially rituals, since animating a corpse with the power of the Wood in your garage is a very shortsighted thing to do.

After looking around at several of the places on the list, you find that most of them are either in ruins or populated by numerous squatters. That wouldn't be a problem if you had a few of the Frontier adepts, and all the extra people would just populate the basements, waiting for the right opportunity for a ritual... But you have to work with what you've got.

In the end, with difficulty avoiding the most disadvantaged areas of the city, you managed to find an abandoned warehouse on the border of the northern and southern docks. Outside the control zone of the Asians and the Merchants, but far enough away from residential buildings to avoid the idle curiosity of the philistines.

The main gate of the old brick structure is rusted and overgrown with grass, but the staff door hidden in the alley is surprisingly well preserved.

After a brief search, accompanied by the usual recitation of a mantra, a spare key was found behind a brick jutting out of the masonry. It unlocked the creaky door and brought you inside, where you saw a small storeroom that served as a prelude to the very dusty and empty space of the warehouse.

After kicking a couple of plywood crates, cracked from old age, and raising a cloud of dust, you left the abandoned building, coughing and sneezing. Of course, the key you found joined the others on your bundle: this place could be used, one way or another, though it would take a lot of work to turn it into a reliable shelter.

Received: Option for a Cult shelter, actions to bring it to a usable condition.

Cult Affairs:

[X] (Candidate) Initiation. One of the people who have expressed an interest in our activities will now have the honor of becoming a neophyte of your cult. The ceremony will require some preparation, including the processing of the candidate.

- King Vader (Knock) is the ever-traveling father of the Vader family who hates confined spaces from rooms to drawers inclusive. He can probably find something useful in his travels...

Once again, the branding and herbs are being smoked in the roaster in the attic, and the neophyte candidate (with some displeasure), prepares to accept the mark and take the oaths. Mansus' power is undeniable, and it didn't take you long to convince your father of the benefits of the upcoming event. Oddly enough, what he disliked most was that the branding did not leave a bleeding wound, which is most likely an echo of his aspect.

At the end of the brief ritual, once again ventilating the attic from the smoke, you discuss in a family circle how you can attract new supporters and resources to the cult. Unfortunately, King can't help much because of his job, but he promises to use his travels to his advantage and look for texts, reagents, or materials carrying the power of Aspects in the places he visits.

Received: New follower (unavailable most of the time); Souvenirs - at the beginning of each turn (starting from the 18th), there will be some chance of receiving a parcel from King. The value of the contents will be checked separately, but don't count on much

A new follower is King Vader, a neophyte (Knock 2). King has no tolerance for locked doors. And closets. And complicated knots. But for some inexplicable reason, he likes ties and, for some reason, snakes.

* * *

Turn 16

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