[UA] Lavomancy

[Royal Minister of Stuff]

--- Matthew Rowan Norwood <matt at intermute.com> wrote:
> > any further advice?
> 
> We should probably start by redefining the random
> magic domain an
> working from there for the formula spells. The
> charge-gathering sounds
> pretty good as-is, with just a little bit of jacking
> up of the tasks
> required.
> 
> So... random magic domain. It's hard, because our
> suggestions so far are
> pretty close to thoer schools: spreading gossip (too
> "Cliomancy" or
> "Cryptomancy"), bringing out the worst in others
> (too "Irascimancy")...
> maybe, more specifically, "making others display
> their own filthiness"?
> You could curse other people to soil themselves,
> swear uncontrollably,
> or get splashed with mud. This could even be
> expanded into a blast:
> vomit uncontrollably, have pustulent sores break out
> on your face, etc.
Ha!  I'm way ahead of you there!  That was our
original Blast idea.  Stacy Stroud insists that isn't
a blast, so there.  (That doesn't mean I'm not keeping
it, but it does mean I get to arbitrarily declare
either Norwood or Stroud wrong.  Decisions...
decisions...)
[Did I mention that my favorite character in the
Ghormengast movie was Steerpike?  I liked him better
than the book's Steerpike, even though the actor
wasn't so hot at annunciating.)

> Maybe the adept can also summon demons or Entropics
> into other people?
> That would be pretty powerful.
I don't think the adept could summon demons or
entropics in others so much as transfer demons or
entropics to others.  A demon is quite definitely an
unclear thing and calling one up would probably be
soiling one's self.
 
> Let's try for some non-curse spells, though. How
> about some way to
> "reveal" someone's "filthiness": you can sense a
> person's most shameful
> thoughts or past deeds, for example. Maybe the spell
> can clean things as
> well as dirty them. Cure infections. Exorcise
> demons. Lift a "stain"
> (including a bad reputation) from a person or
> object.... perhaps it
> could be used to launder money or stolen items,
> rendering them "clean"
> and untraceable?
Yeah, that's the sort of thing I had in mind. 
Abstract as well as simple tactile cleansing.
 
> We can also explore the symbolic connection with
> cleaning products, as
> Plutomancy does with money. I'm drawing a blank for
> spells involving
> soap or toothpaste, though, other than the generic
> "use a cleaned mirror
> to scrye" or "write a message to someone using
> toothpaste" ideas.
Really? The original name for Lavomancy came from Lava
soap. (YOu know, Lavere "to wash" and Lavo "soap.") 
However, I like Baptomancy better: baptising people in
filth, or, rather, cleansing yourself by baptising
others in filth.  Which means that you could use
cleansing powder to make circles of protection
(certain ideas/unclean images/types of filth couldn't
get through.)  Some sort of "rose-tinted glasses"
effect would be within the domain.

I think what Baptomancy COULDN'T do is anything dirty,
spiritual dangerous (besides being magic itself, of
coruse) or dishonest.  It could make victims into
dirty slobs, but it couldn't steal their money or give
you something you didn't deserve.  It can enhance and
sharpen abilities, but it can't add new ones.  It can
edit the dirty stuff out, but has to remain true to
the spirit of the truth.

> 
> I think there's a lot of potential here. I'm seeing
> the cleaning lady
> adept, working her way invisibly thrugh the office
> building after hours,
> gossiping with her co-workers and digging dirty
> secrets out of the
> wastebaskets...
> 
Thank you.  That's hartening.  Looks like it'll be
poor Stacy Stroud who gets called "wrong" and we'll
uphold "Flush" as a Blast spell.


=====
-- Rp Bowman, Royal Minister of Stuff
The Electronic Nation of Yokeltania:
http://www.geocities.com/yokeltania/

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