Oxford’s Dictionary of Blasphemy

Thanks to a hell of a primer from Saga Anderson's grandfather Tor (who may or may not be a literal god of some script, but is definitely a magical musician/seer) Arthur has developed some magical talents befitting a Skald!

In practical terms, this means Arthur is a Level 1 Bard has the ability to magically perceive (Listen) some things about a character and affect them with the music he makes. What does that mean? Dealer's choice! It's a very vibes-based ability.

Most of the process is Arthur actively creating music of some sort, that he can essentially use to harmonise with the people or general universe around him: he can use this to get an extremely rough gauge on a person's psychological state and any obvious influences that might be affecting them. From there he can use his music to magically influence the person or people he's in tune with.

Since this inspiration is being drawn from the Remedyverse, canon demonstrations of direct influence on people include:

》Rallying during battle [CotEG - Alan Wake]
》Provide guidance through an otherwise unpassable area [TC - Control]
》Provide guidance through active eldritch fuckery [YY - AW2]
》Reinforce identity and return senses [HoD - AW2]
》Summon someone out of the Dark Place [DOS - AW2 (but still needs external assistance, eg Object of Power)]

As Arthur is still completely new to these powers, he won't be able to use it for to their full potential, or even perform most of these immediately: most of his current focus is just on learning to control and understand it.

When he starts leaning into the more proactively musical parts of these powers, hell eventually be able to do the following:

》Identify distinct timelines (as opposed to broadly discerning the same universe) pinpoint who is from the "original" canon line and who is divergent from it [canon basis in the known acknowledgement of the multiverse]
》Play any instrument with no prior knowledge whilst in the zone [Source: Pact of the Sword homebrew because it's funny]
》Summon instruments [source: mostly John Doe]
》Limited awareness of non-diagetic leitmotifs [source: Remedyverse's weird fucking meta layering]

But right now he's just fucking around and trying his best. Results will be extremely mixed and vary from thread to thread, as is the nature of a learning curve.

If this is something you'd be interested in playing with in the future, fill out the questions and leave a comment!

<b>Are you okay with Arthur being able to Listen to your character?:</b> (Specifically OOCly) <b>Would <i>your character</i> be okay with Arthur doing this?:</b> (ICly!) <b>Does your character/canon have a recurring leitmotif?</b>: (Not necessary, but very funny) <b>Otherwise, what instruments or musical style do you associate with them?:</b> <b>Would your character be able to react to or use this against Arthur?:</b> (Arthur is both new to this and only human, relatively speaking; if your character has their own musical or psychic powers, they could definitely retaliate.)

Tracking notes

Arthur: Pianoforte (duh)

John: Cello

Charlie: Guitar (spanish)

Sheehan: Guitar (bass)

Sokie: Flute

Jedao: Theremin

Hakkai: Hammered dulcimer

Zerxus: Cymbals

Sweeney: Bodhran

Florian: Harpsichord

Natalie: Guitar (electric)

Misty: Hurdy gurdy

Walter: Tuba?

Justine: Glass harmonica

Nathaniel: Lute

Vincent S.: Clarinet

Saga: Vocals (supersedes him, lmao)

Max: Banjo

B: Piano (upright)

Chase: Bagpipes

Vincent V.: Pipe organ

Malcolm: Piccolo