Date: Tue, 12 Oct 1993 19:11:45 -0400 From: "Mike \"Kurgan\" Phillips" <[m s phil] at [BIRDS.WM.EDU]> Subject: Mythus: some Castings from the Priests of Bacchus Time to set pen to page again, and suggest a couple of additional Castings specific to worshipping a particular deity. Today, we're going to cover Bacchus (known to Greeks as Dionysus). Priests of Bacchus are given to drunkenness and revelry, and their services (which are more festival-like than anything) are hedonistic examples of self- indulgence, intensified examples of the wisdom and madness that drunkenness imbues the drinker with. Note: Priests of Bacchus are required to take Agriculture (Viticulture), as well as any other appropriate wine-making, wine-tasting K/S Areas in the campaign. Grade I: ENHANCE INTOXICATION CHARM Time: Permanent Other Heka Costs: Area: One subject R&D: Nil Distance: Touch Other: Nil E/F/M: This Casting allows the priest of Bacchus to enhance the effects of an intoxicant already in a subject's bloodstream. In other words, if the victim had been tasting wine and was slightly tipsy, he is now roaring drunk. If roaring drunk, he is now even more so, only just this side of stupor. This Casting will never cause someone to fall into a coma, although its effect is generally to increase by 50% the current level of intoxication. Note that the victim must already be slightly intoxicated. This Casting is often used at festivals celebrating wine-making in order to ensure that the celebrants are getting maximum useage out of their drinking. SPIKE BEVERAGE CHARM Time: Permanent Other Heka Costs: Area: One drink R&D: Nil Distance: 1' per 10 STEEP Other: Nil E/F/M: This Casting will cause a beverage the size of an average drink to go from being non-alcoholic to highly-alcoholic, with minimal commensurate change in the taste of the beverage. Note that this will not work on an alcoholic beverage, and the priest does not need to touch the beverage. Consider the effects to be as if someone replaced a quarter of the beverage with a 25 to 50 proof beverage. Note that someone taking special note of their drink will probably notice, but if they aren't specifically taking note, it will not be noticed. This will only work on a single glass or mug full. Grade II: RESIST INTOXICATION CANTRIP Time: 1 BT per STEEP Other Heka Costs: Area: One subject R&D: Nil Distance: Touch Other: 10 : 1 additional BT's E/F/M: This Casting allows the priest to resist intoxicating effects from drinking by dividing the effective amount of alcohol entering his bloodstream by ten. Note that this can be a dangerous Casting, as only a portion of the blocked alcohol is dissipated by the Casting. Upon the expiration of the Casting, the current alcohol level in the bloodstream is doubled. SPIKE DRINK CANTRIP Time: Permanent Other Heka Costs: Area: One bucketfull per 10 STEEP R&D: Nil Distance: 1' per 10 STEEP Other: Nil E/F/M: This Casting is identical to SPIKE BEVERAGE (above), except that it works on larger quantities (such as a punch bowl). Grade III: FEAST OF BACCHUS FORMULA Time: Permanent Other Heka Costs: Area: One subject R&D: Nil Distance: Touch Other: Nil Special Materia Cost: One specially blessed set of eating utensils/plate/ glass worth a total of 1,000 BUCs E/F/M: This Casting causes the creation of a hedonist's dream meal, although the meal is heavily laced with alcohol. It is intended as a sumptuous yet non-fattening and non-nutritionally unhealthy meal. This Casting may not be called down more than once per week, and the consumer will end up heavily drunk (regardless of any resistance to intoxication) at the end. Grade V: FESTIVAL OF BACCHUS RITUAL Time: Permanent Other Heka Costs: Area: 1 person per 10 STEEP R&D: Nil Distance: Touch Other: Nil Special Materia Cost: One specially blessed dining set, with one full layout per diner, at 1,000 BUCs per diner E/F/M: This Casting, which requires a full hour of meditation and prayer, will cause a sumptuous and delicious, if alcohol-laden feast to be laid out for a number of persons to not exceed 1 per 10 STEEP possessed by the caster. Each meal will resemble a Feast of Bacchus (q.v.), and it is intended to incite revelry and great enjoyment of a wonderful meal. If the setting is particularly apropos, then the meal will be accompanied by light and enjoyable dance music and punctuated by the occasional, bodiless drinking song. Hope these help out with your campaigns! Comments are of course welcome. Also, I noticed while working on these that I left the types of Castings off of the previous posting: Berserk is a Charm Fist of Thor is a Cantrip Mike Phillips [m s phil] at [birds.wm.edu] Next up: a couple more from the Greco-Roman pantheon!