SYLVEIN
The Blessing of Sylvein
However there are a few people in the world, usually those who were once, or still are, cursed themselves, who come to recognise a strange phenomenon: that through the suffering they create curses can actually be a tool for great good. The hardships they create can force those afflicted by them to grow as people, to learn important lessons and appreciate the things they have lost. The classic example of this is how those cursed to take hideous or monstrous forms often come to recognise how outer appearances can be deceiving, and that inner beauty is what really counts. In this sense curses can be considered a tool for teaching harsh lessons just as much as an instrument of revenge. It is people like them, those who recognise that it is only through hardship that character is grown, who Tio seeks out to bear his blessing.
Those who wield Sylvein become the arbiters of curses, able to place them upon people, objects and places, as well as take some level of control over the curses that afflict them. In doing so they are trusted to use its power responsibly: as a tool of fair punishment, and not for personal satisfaction or gain. Those who abuse this power will quickly find it taken away from them, and will likely be cursed themselves for their hubris. They may grow their powers by assisting and advising those who are cursed; helping them to either break their curses by their own merit or accept the burden as a part of who they are. They may also be rewarded for bestowing fair and fittingly ironic curses upon sinners. However they are forbidden from ever breaking somebody's curse for them. It is worth noting that Tio does not have a champion in the usual sense of the word. Instead of awarding the position of champion to his most trusted blessed, Tio's "champion" is a person afflicted by the fourth, most powerful tier of curse he can give at the absolute zenith of his power: the ultimate curse that turns every moment into a living hell for the victim.
The blessing of Sylvein takes the form of a silver circle upon the marked's back with a ring around it filed with an intricate pattern unique to each blessed, forming the start of an intricate mandala. Each time the marked advances to a new level they gain a new ring filled with another new pattern, growing the mandala until it reaches right across their shoulder blades.
(Note: Neither the abilities granted by magical sparks nor their mutations are considered curses. As they come from inside one's soul rather than an external force the mark of Sylvein can do nothing to control them. Any other supernatural negative effect placed by an external force; for example Immortals, spirits, cursed items and more, can be considered curses. This does not apply any effect in which the positive benefits outweigh the negative.)
Favoured
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
| The Evil Eye | With this power the marked gains the ability to see curses. The moment they lay eyes upon a person or item that is cursed they will instinctively know that a curse is upon it, and by further examining it information about what the details of the curse is and what can be done to lift it will simply pop into the marked's head. The marked may also experience brief visions of the past showing the moment the curse was first given, though this is uncommon and uncontrollable. When looking at someone cursed by an Immortal, the marked can see that the individual is cursed but cannot understand it unless their level in Sylvein is equal or higher to the level of the curse (favoured for hated, adored for despised, and exalted for condemned.) They can understand a curse from any other source, but the time it takes to understand it should be suitable to the strength and complexity of the curse being examined. Some marked may experience a slight, temporary physical change when using this power, most commonly a change in eye colour. |
| Sole Respite | There are many curses that affect their target by influencing the people around them, subtly influencing their minds to inspire things such as apathy, jealousy or forgetfulness. With this power however the marked becomes immune to the influence of the curse of another person, often making them the only person the cursed can interact with normally. This puts them in the perfect position to either help the cursed or manipulate them. When resisting the effect of the curse of another Immortal placed upon another person, the marked's level in Sylvein must be equal or higher to the level of the curse (favoured for hated, adored for despised, and exalted for condemned.) This ability does not work against cursed objects or places, only against curses inflicted upon other living things besides the marked. Nor does it offer any protection against curses that only affect the cursed. |
| Spirit of Hexs | This power grants the marked a spirit of hexs to serve as their familiar. This spirit takes the form of a hybrid blend of two regular animals of the markeds choosing, and optionally may possess two heads and/or the natural abilities of the animals blended (such as flight, venom, etc.) Through meditation the marked may join their senses with the familiar, allowing them to see, hear, touch, smell and taste everything that it does and vice versa, for a many trills (seconds) as the marked has skill points in the meditation skill. The familiar can also mentally connect with any other Sylvein familiar, allowing the marked to communicate with Tio and any others blessed with Sylvein who possess this power. Finally whenever this spirit bites another living creature it can transform itself into a curse upon them, phasing into them and allowing it, and through it the marked, to sense everything that the victim senses until it chooses to transform back again. The spirit can only turn into a hated rank curse. |
| Accursed Flesh | The iconic ability of Sylvein: Accursed Flesh allows the marked to bestow a curse of Sylvein upon themselves or another person. At favoured they can grant a hated level mark, at adored a despised mark, and at exalted a condemned mark. |
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Adored
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
| Accursed Fetter | This power can only be used if Accursed Flesh has already been unlocked. With this power the marked is able to place a curse of Sylvein that they are capable of granting onto a person upon a place or item(s) instead. A cursed location will affect everyone inside it with the curse it possesses, and may be able to move parts of itself slightly in order to try and keep victims trapped within it. A cursed object will affect anyone who interacts with it, and may stick itself to the user when touched and refuse to let go until the curse is broken. |
| Banish the Wicked | Those who bear the mark of Sylvein are far more likely to encounter curses than the average person, and not all of those who bear these curses will be friendly. With this power the marked can, at will, surround themselves in an invisible aura than physically burns those who are afflicted by a curse or in possession of a cursed item except for the marked themselves and others who have this ability. This aura extends for a centimeter around the marked’s flesh, but not their clothes or items. The marked can activate this power for as long as they want, though only as long as they are conscious. This power can also be channeled through silver. When it is activated if the marked touches silver (or a compound metal that is more than 50% pure silver) the power runs through it like an electrical current, and will burn anyone afflicted by a curse who touches it besides those who have this ability. |
| Changing Destiny | Sometimes mistakes are made, and curses can be placed upon people who do not truly deserve them. While a Sylvein may never break someone else's curse for them, they are allowed to transfer a curse from one host to another. To do this they must have a firm grasp over both the current owner of the curse and the intended target and concentrate for a full, unbroken minute. They may also transfer curses to and from themselves through this method. The marked should be warned however that using this power to transfer a curse onto one who is not willing to take it or is not the one that truly deserves it will earn Tio's ire, and are likely to lose their mark. |
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Exalted
| Ability Name | Ability Description |
| Deal with a Dark Power | Sometimes the greatest curses are the ones people make for themselves; the consequences of giving away things they did not know the true value of. With this power the marked becomes capable of making faustian bargains with other people: able to inflict a curse upon them that can take almost any price as payment so long as the recipient willingly agrees to it. As a price for assistance, power, items or any other thing the target may want from the marked, the marked may name almost anything the target can give and the curse of this power shall ensure that it is given to them. They can force the target to serve them, see through and control parts of their body, or even steal away parts of their mind or soul. In order to this power to activate some very specific criteria must be met. First of all both the marked and the one they are targeting must willingly agree to this deal and cannot be under the influence of any magical effects, substances or other external influence that would affect their decision making skills (however this does not include emotions or pain, meaning that threatening, pressuring or otherwise forcibly coercing others into agreement is still valid.) Secondly the marked must clearly state, in a manner which can be clearly understood by the target, exactly what they are giving in this deal and what the curse will take from them in return, omitting no details (although they can be worded vaguely, or in a way that leads the target to interpret the meaning as something else.) They do not need to reveal that fact that this bargain is being made using a divine power, and it does not matter if the target believes the agreement should be taken seriously or actually intends to honour it or not. Thirdly the marked must be able to give whatever they promise to give, and must give it to the target it its entirety before they can collect on whatever their named price was. Fourthly the target also must actually be able to give whatever price they agree to in return, and cannot offer anything that they could not actually do or do not have entire ownership of. And lastly at the time this power is activated both marked and target must either be making eye contact or shaking hands (or other grasping appendages.) The manner in which this curse collects its price and gives it to the marked varies depending on the exact nature of the price, but will never take anything more or less than what was agreed upon and will not cause any other effects or kill the target in the process (however the marked can still die immediately afterwards if their price was something immediately necessary to live, such as a heart.) The curse of this power can be broken if both marked and target agree to it at the same time, if an Immortal or being of similar power intervenes to break the curse, or if at any point either the marked or the target is unable to give what they promised to the other. Otherwise the curse will only be lifted once the deal is complete. |
| Accursed Forge | This power can only be used if Accursed Fetter has already been unlocked. With this ability the marked is able to create divine artefacts, each one possessing some form of magical power just like those created by other Immortals. The powers held by these artefacts can encompass a wide range of domains, but since they are made though Tio's power will always be cursed. All cursed artefacts made through this power have two negative effects in addition to whatever power they grant. The first is that all cursed artefacts, while not truly alive, possess a kind of evil will. All of them seek to bring ruin upon their user by subtly influencing their minds: compelling them to continue to use their power again and again at any opportunity and stirring up feelings of greed and jealousy. The longer they have a cursed artefact in their possession the more obsessed they become with keeping it, often becoming violent towards anyone who suggests they give it up. This influence can be resisted by the discipline and meditation skills, but becomes increasingly hard to do so the more the artefact is used. Eventually this influence will grow so strong that the user looses control of themselves, using the item over an over again in a mindless rampage until their body breaks under the stress. Some of the more powerful cursed artefacts have even been known to fuse with their user if used too often, or even appear out of thin air before them at moments when they're most likely to be tempted into using them. The second effect is always unique to each item and represents a dark reflection of the artefact's useful power. For example a ring that grants its wearer enhanced strength may make them how to forget how to regulate that strength, causing them to accidentally cause harm to the people they care about by touching them. All items made by this power should be created in a dedicated thread and approved in the PSF forum before being used. Only one cursed artefact can be made per cycle. The marked should ensure that the relevant crafting skills of themselves and the people in the dedicated thread are sufficiently high to create an artefact with the power requested. |
| Those Who Reject This World | A power than manifests within each individual who unlocks it differently. When used the marked is inflicted with a curse that unlocks the darkness within their soul, and transforms their body into a grotesque, demonic representation of the wickedness within them: an Infernal. These forms reflect the character's skills and loves, their past, their hopes and desires, but most importantly the flaws and vices that are most prominent within them; pride, rage, addiction, fear, jealousy... whatever drives them to be selfish and cruel. Infernals are roughly twice as strong, fast and tough as their original body, though this can vary depending on any changes in size that the transformation incurs. However while in this form the marked's inner darkness rules them, and they find it incredibly difficult to resist the temptation to indulge in their dark desires. Each Infernal has a power completely unique to them and their appearance, something that also represents the darkness that shapes their form. As an exchange however they also suffer an equally powerful and thematic drawback. This ability ends when either the marked wills it, is knocked unconscious, or is killed. The appearance, power and drawback of each Infernal must be approved by Tio and/or the PSF before being used. |
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The Curse of Sylvein
As you might expect from the Immortal of curses, the curse of Sylvein is particularly special. Unlike other Immortals each curse Tio and his followers bestow is entirely unique in effect, capable of doing almost anything so long as it causes hardship to the user. However while its near infinite variety makes it incredibly versatile there are three drawbacks that drastically limit it.
The first is that this curse can only be given to someone shortly after they have committed a dramatic action that demonstrates something rotten about their nature; something the one bestowing the curse considers to be immoral or criminal (this depends on the individual morality of the curse-giver, rather than any set laws.) As long as they are not "caught in the act" so to speak the Sylvein curse cannot be given. For example while a murderer could be cursed right after they kill someone, they could not be cursed for the same incident several trials later. Curses must be given in the heat of the moment. The only exception to this is when an existing curse is transferred from one person to another by use of mark powers or other means.
The second is that the effects of the curse must be thematically linked to the details of the action the curse is being made over, usually bestowing an ironic sense of justice proportional to the crime. For example a host who breaks the rules of hospitality might be made unable to leave their house ever again, or a hunter who kills an animal for sport may be forced to assume the form of that same animal. Effects that are not at least loosely related to the crime, or are not designed to be a punishment to the victim, cannot be granted. When granting this curse, the marked must clearly speak aloud what the action they are bestowing the curse over is and what its effects are. These words will be written across the back of the cursed in the ancient language, serving as the curse mark itself and a warning of its effects to anyone who can translate it.
And the third is that every single Sylvein curse, without exception, always has a way to be "lifted": a way to break the curse without the aid of Immortals or other powerful beings. The one who is cursed must perform an action that is both equal and opposite to the action that caused them to be cursed in the first place and thematically linked to it, proving that they have corrected whatever part of their rotten nature the one who cursed them considered evil. To use the earlier examples the host might have to be the perfect host for a traveller in need of aid, or the hunter might have to protect and care for the child of the animal they killed.
Due to its flexible nature curses are ranked as hated, despised, condemned or champion based upon the severity of the negative effect they create.
Hated
A hated curse is irritating enough to make the victim's life miserable, generally causing them lasting discomfort or ridicule but not powerful enough to cause lasting harm. Those afflicted might be partially transformed to bear certain ugly or bestial features; suffer constant but minor strokes of bad luck; become slightly weakened or ill; or find themselves unable to perform certain non-essential activities.
Despised
A despised curse is dangerous, able to inflict a small degree of harm onto the victim and cause them to be shunned or disliked by others. Those afflicted might be fully transformed into animals or different racial appearances; suffer regular and rapid strokes of misfortune; become bedridden or unable to properly use certain parts of their body; or unable to partake in a variety of important but non-essential activities.
Condemned
A condemned curse is capable of killing its victim at the right opportunity, but is usually so insidious as to keep them alive so as to suffer for longer. It can inflict serious and lasting harm, and the afflicted may often be treated with such hate and fear by other people that living in human society becomes all but impossible. They may be transformed into monsters and forced to succumb to horrifying primal urges; be forever tormented by terrible bouts if misfortune; become unable to walk, fight or even breathe without assistance; or unable to perform even the most basic, essential of tasks by themselves.
Champion
Pity the champion of Tio, for the nightmarish fate they are trapped is a true living hell. Capable of combining the effects of multiple other condemned level curses, each one is crafted to force the cursed to face the things they cannot stand over and over again, imprisoning them amidst their worst fears for all time. So potent are these curses that no single Immortal, not even Tio himself, can break these curses once bestowed. The only hope the champion has of salvation is meeting the requirement to lift it, but the actions required to do so are usually so difficult that it can take lifetimes to do so.