The Claim

An all-consuming corruption with the patience of a terrible snake…

The Claim is an especially terrible Condition that rewrites the victim to match the Grand Fae’s vision. Folk under the Claim have no memory of their past life, appearance, or motivations; their new persona believes itself to be both correct and complete.

The uncultivated can be Claimed with a simple thought or glance by the Grand Fae. These folk may not degrade the Condition; it is effectively permanent without outside intervention.

Cultivators are highly resistant to the Claim but not entirely immune. Unfortunately, the Claim lacks the overt signs of harm that make other Conditions easy to spot. It also spreads through unexpected means such as cursed scrolls and corrupted techniques that do not require the Fae’s direct attention.

Rules:

  • Track the Claim against each element, not specific Chakra
  • The Difficulty to detect the Claim uses the Grand Fae’s matching elemental defense. Good luck!
  • The Clai does not naturally degrade and thus can threaten your mind over many years.

Exposure

Direct exposure

Direct exposure to the presence of the Grand Fae is disastrous for any folk.

  • Normal folk are lost as soon as the Grand Fae pleases
  • Against cultivators, the Grand Fae may automatically Challenge to Claim an element of their choice once per scene

Fae-charmed items

The Fae and their agents may Fae-charm items. The first time a Fae-charmed item is equipped to a Chakra, the Grand Fae automatically Challenges to lay a Claim in the matching element.

In the instant before you equip a Fae-charmed item, automatically Challenge against the Grand Fae. On a success, you identify the item as cursed. On a flourish, you recognize the Grand Fae’s taint.

Once equipped to a single Chakra, the Fae-charmed item expends its Claim and thereafter functions as the normal version of the item. Only one character may be afflicted by a given Fae-charmed item.

Seductive words

The Claim even pollutes the stories of the Grand Fae. Through this power, the Fae have slowly degraded the memory of the Kingdom, rendering themselves bedtime stories and ghosts instead of a very real threat.

When a character researches the Grand Fae, listens to a story of their exploits, or otherwise engages with Fae lore, the storyteller secretly rolls roll 1d10. On a result of 1, the storyteller should then Challenge to establish a Claim.

The element varies based on the research:

  • Air – Scholarly readings
  • Water – Speaking with the folk or witnesses
  • Fire – Investigating artifacts of the Fae
  • Earth – Examining the domains or regions of the Fae

If the Claim is successful, you receive a version of the truth that presents the Fae is presented as a fair party or aggrieved victim, sowing the first seeds of doubt. You are not required to believe that this version of events is true (yet).

Progression

Each time a new Claim is added, reset all other Claim Conditions to the highest Severity among the set.

One Claim – No effect

Two Claims – You feel a subtle sympathy for the Grand Fae. Perhaps it is scholarly curiosity, disbelief of the old stories, or bravado that you could easily conquer such a foe.

Three Claims – You begin to have dreams and portents. Each offers a Bonus die to a particular upcoming Challenge. There’s no downside!

Four Claims – A tiny mark of the Fae appears on your body. This mark is never an overt mark of ownership but instead a carefully coded signal to others marked by the Claim. Others marked by the Claim that see the sigil gain a Bonus die in any Challenge against you.

The sigil actively seeks to avoid detection. If spotted by an ally, it moves somewhere else on your body once the ally breaks visual contact. Allies that wish to detect the Claim (below) take a Penalty die.

Five Claims – You feel an overwhelming need to meet the Grand Fae in person. Fate conspires to arrange this meeting. Any Challenge that would result in you coming closer to the Grand Fae gains a Bonus Die, and any Challenge that would dissuade your Path takes a Penalty die.

Six Claims – You are ready to enter the service of the Grand Fae.

The Final Claim

The Grand Fae must seal the Claim in person. Since the Grand Fae cannot enter the Kingdom directly, this will require you to journey beyond the wards. In the end, you will come to them.

The Fae chooses the new form, mentality, memories, and outlook of the victim. The Grand Fae may choose this form and life according to their own whim, though there is a curious exemption.

No Fae can create a dragon in either seeming or truth. Fae may create wyverns, serpents, drakes, and any number of near dragons, but each must lack some obvious quality of the dragons from Aloran legend.

Once claimed, your character is lost to the Grand Fae. Choose a new character.

Detecting

To detect a latent Claim, a healer must target Challenge against the Grand Fae’s elemental defense!

  • Disaster – The Claim silently spreads. You take a Claim Condition to one random element. You are not aware of this.
    • Additionally, the Grand Fae that began the Claim instantly becomes aware of your name, your appearance, and your location. Enjoy!
  • Failure – You cannot make any deductions about potential Claims
  • Success – You detect the presence of a latent Claim and which elements have been affected
    • Additionally, the Grand Fae that began the Claim instantly becomes aware of your name, your appearance, and your location. Enjoy!
  • Flourish – As Success, but the Grand Fae does not become aware

Rescue

On rare occasions and at great risk, a character might be pried away from their Fae master. However, merely separating the character from their master does not degrade the Claim, and the victim is likely to struggle to return to their master!

There is no well-known mechanism for defeating the Claim.

The most powerful cultivators may attempt this feat, but the way will be difficult. You must obtain unique reagents that stand in opposition to the Grand Fae (opposing elements, opposing visions, etc) and then Challenge the Fae through prolonged medical care.

Challenge one element per unique reagent. Each time you Challenge, the Fae automatically becomes aware of your name, appearance, and exact location.

  • Disaster – Your work is entirely undone. The character fully reverts to the Fae’s control and removes all your applied Conditions
  • Failure – You make no progress
  • Success – You break the Claim on that element
  • Flourish – You break the Claim to two elements

As you break the Claim, the target slowly recovers their past life according to the elements recovered. For example, recovering Air might restore their memories; recovering Water might recover friends and bonds.