Testimony
Overview
Through this ceremony, a priest can place powerful, enduring marks on a living subject, which are visible to the insight ceremony.
The Way teaches that these marks can affect a person's passage through the Labyrinth, and even potentially influence their next life after they are reborn. Some priests disagree with this assessment, however, pointing out that there are few if any reliable reports of children born already bearing the marks of past-life testimony; surely if the marks were truly indelible, everyone would have them?
Testimony is sometimes used as part of funerary rites - it is believed that even if the soul is not present, it may still have an effect on the subject's passage through the Labyrinth if performed within a day of the dead person's demise.
This ceremony is not the only source of spiritual marks; certain pacts and oaths are also believed to create marks on the soul of those who enter into agreements with dark powers. Both those who deal with the sovereigns of Varushka, and those who participate in the idolatrous worship of eternals are said to spontaneously manifest marks similar to those produced by testimony.
Testimony does not literally write words on the aura, or soul, of the target. Rather it seems to create a symbol, or an aura, that is interpreted by the priest using insight. A testimony placed by a Sumaah priest is comprehensible to an Imperial priest and vice versa.
Performance
- Requires a dose of liao and at least ten seconds appropriate roleplaying
- Requires the presence and assistance of a referee
- The target must be close enough to touch.
- The priest must audibly announce the words of the testimony with appropriate roleplaying
Performing a testimony uses a dose of liao and requires at least ten seconds of appropriate roleplaying. Your roleplaying should include the words of your testimony.
The target need not be willing, but must be present and close enough to be touched when the ceremony is performed.
Effects
- Testimony creates a spiritual mark on a character's aura or soul
- A testimony may consist of up to two words
- Testimony is permanent unless removed. A character may be subject to several testimonies
- May be used to remove existing testimonies
- The insight ceremony will reveal the presence of a testimony
- Orcs can be subject to testimony
Testimony creates a mark on the subject that is visible to the insight ceremony. The mark consists of at most two words, an adjective and a noun. Examples include “Oathbreaker”, “Bold Warrior”, “Fool”, “Wise Leader”.
The strength of the testimony determines how prominent it is. When a character performs a thorough insight on a target with multiple testimonies, the most prominent testimony will appear first (along with the strength of the effect).
The strength of a testimony also determines how difficult it is to remove.
Removal
- A testimony is permanent until it is removed.
- The testimony skill can be used to remove testimonies.
- It is not possible to target a specific testimony to remove.
The ceremony can also be used to remove existing testimonies, rather than to create new ones. In this case, the ceremony automatically removes all testimonies whose strength is equal or less than the amount of liao used to perform the ceremony.
If a testimony ceremony is used to remove a testimony then it removes all testimonies with that strength or less - it is not possible to pick and choose.
It is not possible to replace an existing testimony with this skill.
True Liao
- True liao can be used to create a true testimony
- True liao can be used to erase all the spiritual marks from a target's soul or aura.
It is possible to use true liao to create a true testimony. The testimony is exceptionally vivid - it is more prominent than any other testimony and the fact that it has been performed with true liao is evident to anyone using the insight ceremony. Some priests theorize that a true liao testimony will continue to follow the target through all their subsequent lives (in one form or another), but there is no reliable proof for this conjecture not least because true liao testimony is incredibly rare.
You can also use true liao to remove all spiritual marks from a target's soul or aura. If true liao were used to perform a ceremony on an orc or human, this would also remove any spontaneous spiritual marks or marks that were not created using the testimony skill.
Further Reading
- Ceremonial Skills
- Additional Information