Congrats on 1k messages!
3 Likes
Hello ! Honestly the pact thing is such a good idea , it’s way more fun to be like a protagonist of a fantasy magical school with such a twist 
.
Love the world the magic system and of course my groups of friends. I’m on track to date Finley but I can’t really see a happy ending with this relationship or at least a “normal” on . Can I “corrupt” his power or “eat” him to gain more power like the crown say with the spirit professor ? (He is very cute and I genuinely don’t want to hurt my friends… for now )
I’m wondering if we can become immortal with the life circling thing but I choose to specialise in spirit because it’s cooler and a little of mind magic because it’s seem useful to cover track and influence people 
.
Anyway it was very great here my stats !
STAT REPORT
Might: 11 Finesse: 26 Charisma: 32 Intellect: 22 Reputation: 4
Personality
Sec/Dar: 39 Rat/Pas: 67 Cru/Emp: 33 Out/In: 41 Dbt/Cnv: 47 Inf/Fam: 49
AntiochRels
Alice: 62 Eleanor: 69 Finlay: 68 Layla: 63 Marcus: 67
DancePartner: Finlay ChristmasDate: Finlay
Friendship: 4
OtherRels
Julian: 59 Hawthorne: 55 Fausett: 44 Silas: 26 Lizbet: 43
Plot Notes
Murderer?: false
mistsOutcome: 2 C4 Clock: 4
ChosenMastery: Spirit secondMastery: Mind
Society: None
worldScore: 0 dormScore: 1 aScore: 3 tScore: 0
gTotal: 25 gramTotal: 10 logTotal: 9 rheTotal: 6
Other
-Heard rumours of dark magic.
-Looked into longevity.
-Acquired a magic ring.
5 Likes
*set tension +1
Thanks so much for the kind words and for sharing your stats - I really do enjoy writing the cast and PB.
Not entirely immune but it doesn’t really work right on them, their minds are alien and not very compatible with the magic. Very simple stuff like inflicting pain works best.
Thanks so much for sharing your stats and the bug report!
Thank you - and thanks to everyone else in the thread. I can’t overstate how much seeing people enthusiastic about PB and discussing it helps me keep my motivation and excitement up whilst writing.
Thanks so much for sharing your stats! We might get to talk to Anzu more about its take on eating Spirits and people…
11 Likes
Hold on, if Anzu’s down with eating people…you’re saying I could kill Silas, feed my familiar, and eliminate any evidence of my crimes in one fell swoop? I don’t need to hear the rest, I’m in!
8 Likes
After a few highly demanding theory crafting sessions that depleted my grey matter, I decided that I need a small break. As a result, I shall engage in some good old light observation about various pieces of information that piqued my interest.
Kings and Lords
As we first learn from Professor Fausett during the opening lecture of Chapter 3, The Gift of Kings is supposedly the precursor of the Gift of Lords, the latter of which is being possessed by your usual Gifted. In the same lecture, the professor tells us the King can appoint Peers. One of my very first theories was that such peerage entails the granting of the Gift by a King. So, the Gift of Lords is the result of a peerage undertaken by a King. Such a hierarchy can reflect the historical relations of vassalage between the ruler and the nobility.
Of course, historically speaking, such relations were not so clear-cut, nor were they asymmetric. A noble could very well overthrow the monarch and assume the crown without many legal problems or questions of legitimacy. To be legitimate was not solely a question of blood, but also of support. For much of the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period, the ruler was more or less a “first among equals”.
However, in our magical context, legitimacy arises first and foremost from the Kingsgift. Since it is not a power granted by the nobles (hello Patron), the asymmetry between the latter and the monarch remains great. But, if the Kingsgift’s power is so great, how come the royal houses change? How can a Kingsgift be overthrown?
An easy answer would be that other individuals, not directly related to the incumbent royal house, are granted a Kingsgift, and so receive a new divine mandate to overthrow the previous dynasty. As Marcus tells us, the Sorcerer-Kings used to claim a divine right to rule from God, or whatever divine force they believed to worship. Why would other people be granted a Kingsgift when there is already such a Crown present? Perhaps it’s about how the incumbent Crown didn’t fulfill their “old covenants”, and so the higher power that granted them the Kingsgift sought another house in order for the covenants to be accomplished.
Another possible answer for the changing of dynasties is that they are all more or less related, so the potential for the Kingsgift is present in many persons related to the reigning dynasty. After all, in England there is a blood relation between the House of Normandy established in 1066 and the present-day House of Windsor. If we use France as an example we have an even longer continuity of blood and an even wider pool of potential candidates.
While an appealing explanation, I find it difficult to reconcile the apparently exclusive nature of the Kingsgift with such a large pool of Kingsgift candidates. By this logic, there should be, at any given moment, many potential Kingsgift bearers along with those of the ruling Kingsgift-bearing house. The number of dormant Kingsgifts would be staggering. Therefore, I think the potential of passing down a Kingsgift is tied to a select few members of the ruling house. From king to king, so-to-speak. How is it that the Kingsgift clings so tightly to main ruling house? To make a long story short: your average Lord didn’t sign a contract with an Eldritch being, so they don’t get to enjoy the burdens and privileges associated with it.
Speaking of Lords, Chapter 4 gave us some interesting examples. Gilles de Rais is one of them. In history as in folkore, Monsieur de Rais is credited with many morally reprehensible things. Among them, there is the practice of dark arts, which lands well with the dark magic Eleanor that attributes to him.
Beyond accusations of using children as material for demonic ends, I can’t speculate too much as to what form did his dark arts take. Instead, there is another group of Lords told to us by Eleanor that is more famous: the Wallachian Lords. The most famous of which is the stake enjoyer Vlad the Impaler. We can have a few educated guesses noted down. Necromancy could be a possibility (the Bram Stoker way, or the local, folkloric kind incarnated by the concept of Strigoi). Still, it fits all too well with a certified Death Magic enjoyer. Perhaps he could also levitate. Or use some sort of manipulation of blood the Castlevania way.
Wallachia was a principality lead by a Prince. Even though it was independent (until the second half of the 15th century), it never attained the rank of Kingdom, and its ruler remained a Prince (the equivalent of Duke). If we use this historical context and apply it to the world of Pactbinder, then I assume that those royal houses that attained the rank of King or Emperor were all inevitably Kingsgift-bearers, while those below them (such as the Wallachian Lords and rulers of equally lesser polities) were mere Gifted individuals.
As we all know, history has given us many kingdoms and empires. And yet, in the present there are precious few Crowns left. The decline of the Gift is mirrored by the decline of the Kingsgift. Why? Mayhaps those “old covenants” were not fulfilled, or the one who bequeathed the Crowns was unsatisfied with the performance of his “divinely-appointed” rulers, so the “divine grace” abandoned them
10 Likes
Fun c4 stat sneak preview (assuming I continue to get a good response rate for stats - thanks everybody so far!! - , I imagine I’ll share the proper ‘Wrapped’ in a couple of weeks): I got excited for a day or two after C4’s launch because I thought a certain someone had been dethroned.
Took less than a day for that to change. Credit where credit’s due, though, Finn’s putting up a fight.
14 Likes
The Witch’s hegemony can’t be challenged so easily. However, it has a rather uneasy advantage over the competition; especially when compared to the absolute majority from last time. I might have to cease my cheating habits for one playthrough so I may contribute to its continued dominance.
6 Likes
In all fairness the surveys that came in after I posted the Wrapped did even things out a bit, even for the original dance…
C3 Numbers
Actually, putting this next to the new numbers side by side, it’s interesting to see how similar they are! Perhaps we’re approaching some form of equilibrium (I say, now fully expecting to be proved utterly wrong over the next couple of weeks)…?
Edit: all that said, whilst as always I won’t comment on plot analysis / observations,
I still enjoyed reading this as always!
7 Likes
Hello! What a great chapter! I enjoyed it very much like all the ones before. My MC is really loving IT when she can take control and make herself look the heroine. So bring on those expeditions…
Anyway: Here are my stats…
STAT REPORT
Might: 13 Finesse: 15 Charisma: 29 Intellect: 32 Reputation: 19
Personality
Sec/Dar: 52 Rat/Pas: 63 Cru/Emp: 65 Out/In: 49 Dbt/Cnv: 32 Inf/Fam: 52
AntiochRels
Alice: 67 Eleanor: 70 Finlay: 67 Layla: 68 Marcus: 64
DancePartner: Alice ChristmasDate: Alice
Friendship: 2
OtherRels
Julian: 60 Hawthorne: 52 Fausett: 45 Silas: 19 Lizbet: 33
Plot Notes
Murderer?: true
mistsOutcome: 2 C4 Clock: 7
ChosenMastery: Mind secondMastery: Spirit
Society: Explore soc1Outcome: 31
worldScore: 2 dormScore: 2 aScore: 4 tScore: -1
gTotal: 39 gramTotal: 15 logTotal: 13 rheTotal: 11
Other
-Wondering how deep your patron’s influence extends.
-Heard rumours of dark magic.
-Inquired after a curious name.
2 Likes
Adelais Remains supreme as The Queen of Polls.
4 Likes
Thanks so much for sharing your stats, and really glad you liked the chapter.
PS: Anzu approves of your pfp / username…
So it would seem…
6 Likes
Does anzu have opinions on other birds?
5 Likes
Yes. Anzu likes birds, it sort of feels the same kind of ‘hey they kinda look like us’ fascination with them that a lot of people feel when they look at other primates doing something vaguely humanlike. Particularly corvids and raptors.
The kinship it feels is rather superior in nature, though - it prefers birds to most hairless talking apes with curious notions, but it certainly wouldn’t consider itself of the same stock as them. Smug little not-bird.
10 Likes
Aww…his personality may leave something to be desired but at least he is easy on the eyes (and you can never have enough hot guys). I don’t suppose we could talk the boating, sorry Skimming, club into doing a calendar like the Warwick Rowers could we? 
Also enjoyed the date with Marcus, though my mc has his pride so he inisted on Dutch treat. 
4 Likes
Very much enjoying Ch3, there’s some great descriptions, loving the writing.
Came across this bug in Ch3 whenat the Spirit test and on the path to stay in the mists to look for people, seems like text is missing or was misdirected.
Text on the whole page.
“Everything alright in there?” You call, once you ascertain that there’s no obvious way to get through the barrier without trying to destroy what’s left of it.
For a moment, silence. Then a halting voice calls out. You recognize it vaguely as one Darren Coombes, a student from one of the other Colleges (Ashmoor Hall, you think), though his tone lacks its characteristic hauteur. "…Yeah.
[Weird context jump here. I have no idea what they’re talking about. Feel like the text is missing or was incorrectly directed.]
“Wore himself out.” Darren replies. “Don’t know if it’s royal magic or just plain talent, but he’s a fucking monster with Life magic. Healed Kathy and I right up when he and Julian found us, then called this shelter up out of the earth so that Julian could keep looking for people. Making it pretty much knocked him out, but the barrier’s saved us from more than one Spirit.”
A girl’s voice—Kathy, presumably, though you’ve never heard her speak—pipes up. “I think he’s looking a bit better now, though!”
“Right.” You say, mind whirling. It’s almost immediately obvious to you that you can’t yet move from this spot; not with Finlay unconscious and Julian still out there, presumably planning to return imminently. You’ll just have to do what you can to protect this place until then.
3 Likes
Great chapter, as always
STAT REPORT
Might: 12 Finesse: 33 Charisma: 17 Intellect: 34 Reputation: 22
Personality
Sec/Dar: 44 Rat/Pas: 64 Cru/Emp: 49 Out/In: 54 Dbt/Cnv: 47 Inf/Fam: 53
AntiochRels
Alice: 67 Eleanor: 67 Finlay: 67 Layla: 67 Marcus: 67
DancePartner: Alice ChristmasDate: Layla
Friendship: 3
OtherRels
Julian: 62 Hawthorne: 58 Fausett: 47 Silas: 26 Lizbet: 33
Plot Notes
Murderer?: true
mistsOutcome: 2 C4 Clock: 3
ChosenMastery: Matter secondMastery: Spirit
Society: Explore soc1Outcome: 30
worldScore: 0 dormScore: 0 aScore: 3 tScore: 3
gTotal: 28 gramTotal: 15 logTotal: 11 rheTotal: 2
Other
-Took an interest in politics.
-Went shopping for a new knife.
-Heard rumours of dark magic.
-Met the Revenant. -rScore1: 10 -rScore2: 58
-Acquired a magic ring.
2 Likes
I’m glad you enjoyed the Marcus date! He’s a character I’m very fond of. Looking forward to giving him a bit more to do in some branches…
Thank you! Yep - there’s a missing else clause for when the barrier is damaged, thanks for flagging it. Fixed in my working draft now.
Thanks - really glad you enjoyed the chapter and appreciate you sharing your stats!
6 Likes
Can I start an analysis from a simple number? I’m (somewhat) happy to announce that yes, I can.
Six (Part 1)
For the longest time I’ve been racking my brain trying to understand the significance of the Patron’s connection to the number six. Considering how much it is invoked in relation to It, I believe it to be a relevant enough aspect to warrant my mental exhaustion. The form that the number six takes when it is invoked with regard to the Patron comes in two forms as of Chapter 4: one is the well established six “crimson” stars that adorn its head (which also seem to rotate), and the other is the six red pillars of flame at the end of Chapter 2. There is another mention from a different person’s perspective, as it was recorded by a witness to the Sinai Catastrophe, “red stars adorning the heads of giants like crowns“, but we get no number.
Clearly, that six must mean something. But that significance has eluded me. If I am forced to provide an answer, I would invite fellow inquisitive Pactbinders to look at the various functions that cultures and religions in history attributed to this number. Since I’m not particularly knowledgeable in such matters, I shall limit myself to familiar waters.
In Christianity, Six can represent Mankind, since God created Adam and Eve on the sixth day of Creation. At the same time, Six represents the six days of Creation. Taken together, we can title Six as a number of Creation, which would fit rather well with how the Patron makes it seem as if the physical world is Its doing.
Inversely, we can categorise Six as a number meaning imperfection. On the one hand, Man (created on the Sixth Day) ultimately sinned and was thus banished from the Garden of Eden, being henceforth burdened with the Original Sin. In the Bible, there is also a reference to six cities of refuge, meant to shield those (Levites) who caused what is described as unintentional harm (up to murder), further underlining the theme of Man’s imperfection.
On the other hand, Six is short of Seven. As we all know, after the creation of Man, God was satisfied with that which He created, and rested on the Seventh Day. To be stuck on the Sixth Day, in this context, would mean an unsatisfactory or unfinished work. Taken together, these two interpretations would imply a Work which was not yet finished, or was imperfect.
Consequently, we have several possible explanations for the number Six: Creation, Man, Imperfect Man, and Imperfect Creation. Let us look at what the Patron has to say about Itself: “Your kind exist within only the narrowest aspect of Creation; a shadow dancing upon a cavern wall. We are an expression of all that lies beyond that aspect. The Form that casts the Shadow. The stone cast upon the surface of the lake. The beholder gazing upon the mirror. The slumbering godhead that dreams a dream of you.”
Sounds kind of divine, doesn’t it? Godhead, depending on what belief system one looks at, can mean either the substance of God (“the what”, while God is “the who”) or God himself. If the Patron refers to Itself as such, the latter description fits better. So, we have our Creator, presumably. And yet, it seems not all is fine and dandy for our Godhead. Having to resort to one of Its creations to accomplish Its objectives… oh, how the mighty have fallen. Or, perhaps, it’s not that there was a “fall” to begin with. Mayhaps the Creation itself was imperfect to begin with. Remember, Six can mean several things: Creation, Man, Imperfect Man, and Imperfect Creation.
We can speculate if this act of creation was intentional or not. In Gnosticism, for example, the Godhead was an unintentional creator. Additionally, in such belief systems, God is larger than Creation. Anyhow, TL;DR Six may signify that the Patron is an imperfect Creator, which consequently created imperfect creations. A Demiurge, if you will.
Six (Part 1.5)
The previous part is a true masterpiece in imagination. Now we can safely return on firmer soil.
We can use the number Six to infer some of the Patron’s influence on the physical world. The earliest one we can spot is when we first arrive at Antioch, which, we are told, has six ivory towers. Combine this little fact with the fresco described to us during matriculation, “The Passing of the Divine Right”, and we can make a safe assumption that our dear Eldritch entity had a very direct influence in the establishment of Antioch, at the very least.
Now, the observation above is quite reasonable. Therefore, I must apologise, for the following observation is not that reasonable. There is another instance of the number six being relevant: the number of first-years at Antioch. Which is to say, our group has six members in total ! Isn’t that just curious? Doesn’t it seem a bit predetermined? And if my theory about the Pactbinder’s very existence being the result of the Patron’s meddling is true, then Its otherworldly tentacles have a wide reach. Still, I don’t believe It to be all powerful. Otherwise, why would It need the Pactbinder, no? But there is no denying that It is more capable than It might let us believe.
Six stars, six towers, six persons; potentially six masteries too, if we include Death Magic and Fate Magic. There are also the Elselings in the Vault that have six legs, but even I think that’s a little too far-fetched. Maybe.
A popular number, all things considered. All that I need to know now is how many hollow spaces does the Revenant’s gold circlet have. Oh yes, I’ve been racking my brains about its circlet as well. Well, I’ve been racking my brain about It all along. It can’t be helped.
9 Likes
Does the patron actually have tentacles?
3 Likes
To be precise, It makes use of tendrils and what is described as “grasping hands”. We have the instances in which the Pactbinder is transported in what I can only crudely describe as the Patron’s realm by grasping hands, as seen at the end of Chapter 4. In Chapter 2 the PB is carried by the “darkness”. In the fresco seen during the matriculation they are described as “vine-like tendrils”.
So, it would be better to categorise them as extensions of It. I don’t want to start talking about where does its existence begin and where does it end, for I have no clue, therefore I will refrain myself from seeing them as Its limbs. Rather, I assume them to be manifestations of Its power.
The Patron Itself is described as “negative space crudely shaped as a human”. So, besides the six red stars, It doesn’t truly have a form. Whatever vague shape as a human It might have, it can be for reasons of communication with the Pactbinder that It employs it. Perhaps we would be better served by using negative theology (saying what God is not) to describe the Patron.
7 Likes