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Author Topic: Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?  (Read 2786 times)

Razor 007

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #30 on: November 29, 2019, 02:48:02 PM »
It would need to be made of metal, stone, crystal, or a rebellious teenager's head.  You know, something really hard; to stand up to the elements over time.
I need you to roll a perception check.....

rawma

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #31 on: November 29, 2019, 03:18:56 PM »
Maybe it could be a disease that everyone is infected with; it only reveals the lore in the right circumstances, but spreads benignly otherwise. Doesn't fit the OP's need for something that could be stolen, though. (Or substitute vermin that are persistent; supposedly cockroaches as a species can survive almost anything. Or a recessive gene in all descendants of the druids who created it.)

Actually multiple disparate preservations of the lore each created by a different high druid might be neat, with less durable versions being lost to time and more difficult to unlock ones being, um, too difficult to unlock.

VisionStorm

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #32 on: November 29, 2019, 03:57:41 PM »
Quote from: HappyDaze;1115315
They are called Wolds, and you can read about them here.


This actually looks pretty awesome visually, but this a very specific setting with steampunk robots and a unique flavor that lends itself for this kind of stuff. I guess it depends on what type of setting you have.


HappyDaze

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #33 on: November 29, 2019, 07:35:54 PM »
Right now, I'm thinking of going with with writings on papyrus-like sheets of woven reeds pressed between magically applied sheets of a rigid, transparent yellow-orange amber-like material. This will give me several poster-sized plaques that contain the sacred writings of Druidy secrets (which, of course, have been stolen and everyone is trying to get back). This may not be the most practical solution (stone tablets would be so much easier), but it combines magic and a flavor that feels right to me.

Thank you all for your suggestions.

Omega

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #34 on: November 30, 2019, 02:14:01 AM »
Quote from: rawma;1115324
Maybe it could be a disease that everyone is infected with; it only reveals the lore in the right circumstances, but spreads benignly otherwise. Doesn't fit the OP's need for something that could be stolen, though. (Or substitute vermin that are persistent; supposedly cockroaches as a species can survive almost anything. Or a recessive gene in all descendants of the druids who created it.)

d20 Gamma World has this everywhere everywhere in the form of nanites and the occasional biotech. And weaponized. Part of the fall of civilization was rampant ideology and agenda wars taken to their logical conclusion. Afterwards there are remnants of various fringe groups that literally infect and overwrite others to force their ideals. More benign versions just upload relevant data to whomever can access it or persuade it to do so if it is not automatic. Same with equipment. Everything from toasters to grenades were fittted with artificial souls as effectively the OS and instruction book for the item. Or as security. Some had layers of souls set up that needed to be persuaded in order to learn the full potential of an object.

In Albedo an assassination attempt at a lab autopsying a Creator(human) found in a derilect destroys the quarantine chamber and nanites in the corpse, now blasted all over the lab, promptly helpfully upload their control routines and commands to Erma and the Net(a single AI running every computer) and go to work healing her injuries.

In Star Wars one of the ancient races opted to devolve themselves to escape an invasion. Eventually an event triggers a genetic code all the natives promptly re-evolve into the original race. Complete with their old knowledge.

Tommyknockers plays with this as well. The material if the alien ship ablates off as a sort of mist/virus that gradually increases and instills in the locals the aliens knowledge, while also gradually transforming them into the aliens.

Lots of others. But those come to mine right off.

rawma

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #35 on: November 30, 2019, 01:06:31 PM »
All of the disease examples are SF; unless these are techno-druids, it probably wouldn't work or would have to be described rather differently (a hereditary curse or even possession by some kind of fey spirit).

Zalman

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #36 on: November 30, 2019, 01:13:46 PM »
Quote from: rawma;1115324
Maybe it could be a disease that everyone is infected with; it only reveals the lore in the right circumstances, but spreads benignly otherwise. Doesn't fit the OP's need for something that could be stolen, though.
Well, it could be intentionally contracted by one of the PCs!
Old School? Back in my day we just called it "School."

Zalman

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #37 on: November 30, 2019, 01:29:37 PM »
Quote from: HappyDaze;1115238
I like this. Any examples of this in D&D already? Other mediums?


The Perciplex is such a crystal, from Jack Vance in Rhialto the Marvellous:

A window at one end displayed the Perciplex, a blue prism four inches tall, inwardly engraved with the text of the Monstrament. Through the window the Perciplex projected an image of the Monstrament in legible characters upon a vertical dolomite slab, and so charged with magic was the Perciplex that should an earthquake or other shock cause it to topple, it must right itself immeiately, so that it should never present a faulty image, or one which might be misconstrued, to the viewer.
Old School? Back in my day we just called it "School."

Omega

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #38 on: November 30, 2019, 02:34:17 PM »
Quote from: rawma;1115369
All of the disease examples are SF; unless these are techno-druids, it probably wouldn't work or would have to be described rather differently (a hereditary curse or even possession by some kind of fey spirit).


Just replace tech with magic. Magically or alchemically created data germs.

Omega

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Neither a book, nor a scroll, but maybe...?
« Reply #39 on: November 30, 2019, 02:37:21 PM »
The current 5e Artificer has a class path that is essentially data storage and mind networking oriented. And it does not necessarily need to be metal for the personal device.