Build Question: Alethiometer

[Pariah]

An Alethiometer (or 'symbol-reader') is one of the important mystical objects in Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials series, and the title object of the upcoming film The Golden Compass. For the unfamiliar, it is a small device, looking something like a large gold large pocket watch, with three dials, four hands, and thirty-six symbols painted around the outside edge of the face.

 

The alethiometer is used answer questions the user has. Wikipedia describes the process thus:

 

To use the alethiometer, the user directs three needles to lie over certain symbols on the face of device, and forms a question in his or her mind. The fourth needle then responds to the question, swinging over different symbols to form answers. Any given symbol may have numerous meanings. The user needs a special form of focus to make the alethiometer work. When the user has the three needles set and the question in mind, the fourth hand will begin to move, going through a sequence of movements over each symbol related to the answer, sometimes quivering to indicate the meaning (Lyra says that each symbols has various "rungs" of meaning), each quiver being one rung. The fourth arrow will continue to spin around and repeat the sequence until the user breaks their focus, and has to use the symbols to determine the answer.

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alethiometer )

 

In the books, Lyra, the main character, uses the alethiometer to find the answers to a number of questions. It is, for all practical purposes, able to answer any question the user can program into it. The use just has to know how to read and interpret the answer.

 

One of my characters, Wild Card, is an archaeologist who specializes in the discovery and retrieval of mystical artifacts. If he were ever to hear of the existence of something like an alethiometer, he'd be bound and determined to find it and learn to use it.

 

The only problem—assuming I could ever get my GM to agree to letting Wild Card have one, of course—is that I have no idea how to stat it out.

 

Suggestions, anyone?

[Certified]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

How does this work for you?

 

8 Alethiometer: Contact (Contact has access to major institutions, Contact has extremely useful Skills or resources, Contact has significant Contacts of his own, Contact is slavishly loyal to character, Very Good relationship with Contact), Spirit Contact (x2) (38 Active Points); Extra Time (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), -1 1/4), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (0 DCV; -1), IAF Fragile Expendable (Difficult to obtain new Focus; -1), Requires A Skill Roll (Something apt for setting the device; -1/2) 18-

 

Note: Spirit Contact

At the GM's option, some characters can use Contact as a sort of faux conjuration. Instead of using Summon, the character represents his relationship with a spirit, faerie, demon, god, or the like by buying him as a Contact.

 

From the description I added the time and concentration requirements setting them fairly high to act as a drawback to the power of the device. What you may consider is raising the contact roll and then applying penalties based on the information sought. The skill roll requirement also comes from the description. Depending on how limiting they would like to have the device they might use the skill KN: Alethiometer since it doesn't seem fairly unique. Although KN: Kabbalah or Feng Shui might also work or if the GM is feeling nice Magic: Power and just write it off as any mage can use it.

 

I hope this will work.

[Steve]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Witchcraft of the Champions has something similar to this on her write-up in Champions: News of the World. Basically, it's the Deduction skill through a Bulky OIF with Extra Time required. You could do something similar with a KS: (Everything?), I would imagine.

[Psylint]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Sounds sort of like the old John Doe routine, that is to say, "I can know anything and everything that has ever been written down and use it analytically."

 

If it weren't portable, I'd build it as a mystical supercomputer for a base with a huge collection of sciences, database connections, AI etc.

 

How individual can these answers be? E.g. "what did john forsythe of 312 baker street eat for breakfast on January 17, 1734?" when that's never been recorded anywhere, and john forsythe is a singularly unimportant, unremembered individual.

[McCoy]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Precognition, OAF, concentrate and extra time, RSR (INT or EGO roll to interpet answer correctly).

[Pariah]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Great suggestions, all. This gives me something to work from.

 

As far as how individualized can the answers be: Lyra, early in the second book, asks the alethiometer about the identity of a boy she's just met, who happens to be from a parallel Earth. The alethiometer correctly identifies a fairly significant event in the boy's past that convinces Lyra that he'd be a worthy traveling companion. So yes, the answers can be very individualized and specific. I'm trying to remember other such questions, but nothing's coming at the moment.

 

Note: Spirit Contact

At the GM's option, some characters can use Contact as a sort of faux conjuration. Instead of using Summon, the character represents his relationship with a spirit, faerie, demon, god, or the like by buying him as a Contact.

This actually is a very good way to handle it, I think. I wonder if you've read the books...?

[pinecone]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

An Alethiometer (or 'symbol-reader') is one of the important mystical objects in Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials series' date=' and the title object of the upcoming film [i']The Golden Compass[/i]. For the unfamiliar, it is a small device, looking something like a large gold large pocket watch, with three dials, four hands, and thirty-six symbols painted around the outside edge of the face.

 

The alethiometer is used answer questions the user has. Wikipedia describes the process thus:

 

To use the alethiometer, the user directs three needles to lie over certain symbols on the face of device, and forms a question in his or her mind. The fourth needle then responds to the question, swinging over different symbols to form answers. Any given symbol may have numerous meanings. The user needs a special form of focus to make the alethiometer work. When the user has the three needles set and the question in mind, the fourth hand will begin to move, going through a sequence of movements over each symbol related to the answer, sometimes quivering to indicate the meaning (Lyra says that each symbols has various "rungs" of meaning), each quiver being one rung. The fourth arrow will continue to spin around and repeat the sequence until the user breaks their focus, and has to use the symbols to determine the answer.

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alethiometer )

 

In the books, Lyra, the main character, uses the alethiometer to find the answers to a number of questions. It is, for all practical purposes, able to answer any question the user can program into it. The use just has to know how to read and interpret the answer.

 

One of my characters, Wild Card, is an archaeologist who specializes in the discovery and retrieval of mystical artifacts. If he were ever to hear of the existence of something like an alethiometer, he'd be bound and determined to find it and learn to use it.

 

The only problem—assuming I could ever get my GM to agree to letting Wild Card have one, of course—is that I have no idea how to stat it out.

 

Suggestions, anyone?

 

Universal scholar: OIF, extra time?

[transmetahuman]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Great suggestions, all. This gives me something to work from.

 

As far as how individualized can the answers be: Lyra, early in the second book, asks the alethiometer about the identity of a boy she's just met, who happens to be from a parallel Earth. The alethiometer correctly identifies a fairly significant event in the boy's past that convinces Lyra that he'd be a worthy traveling companion. So yes, the answers can be very individualized and specific. I'm trying to remember other such questions, but nothing's coming at the moment.

 

 

This actually is a very good way to handle it, I think. I wonder if you've read the books...?

I have; at least the latter two. What stuck in my head were the times it told Lyra what she "should" be doing - we learn later that there is sapience involved behind the answers.

 

For this reason, I'd probably model it as the mother of all Organization Contacts - though I might add a 10-point Computer Link and some Transdimensional Precognitive Clairsentience in on top of that.

 

Actually, I'd never stat it because I'd never, ever let a PC both have one and be trained in its use. IIRC, it could tell you anything at all, with absolute accuracy, including what would inevitably happen - the only reason Lyra wasn't omniscient was that she rarely asked the questions that I would have asked in her situation.

[Pariah]

Re: Build Question: Alethiometer

 

Actually' date=' I'd never stat it because I'd never, ever let a PC both have one and be trained in its use. IIRC, it could tell you anything at all, with absolute accuracy, including what would inevitably happen - the only reason Lyra wasn't omniscient was that she rarely asked the questions that I would have asked in her situation.[/quote']

 

That's a good point. If I were ever to see something like this in a game, I'd make the user take No Conscious Control or a wicked Activation Roll or something similar on it.

 

Either that, or I'd give it to the player with the understanding that it's just a convenient way for the GM to slop players information in critical situations. And it'd be free. As a GM, I don't charge players for Plot Devices (Obvious Inaccessible Plot Device, -Infinity).