Read the Ripples

	Read the Ripples
Abbreviation:	RTR
Prerequisites:	50th Circle, Seer's Sense, and a quest
Signature:	Yes
Spell Slots:	2
Mana Type:	Unknown
Spell Type:	ritual / utility
Difficulty:	esoteric
Prep (min/max):	150 / 700
Skill Range (min/max):	250 / 1000
Valid Spell Target:	Self
Duration (min/max):	2 minutes / 10 minutes
Justice:	Unknown
Corruption:	Unknown
Description:	Read the Ripples is a lunar ritual built on a pattern unlike any other known to modern Moon Mages. Regardless of the oddity of its origins, the ritual has been proven to be safe, yet finicky. Those practiced with the ritual claim that it opens one's mind to the whims of Fate.
Effect:	Bypass astrological observation timers for random constellations, bypasses telescope checks.
Example Messaging:	On cast: You gaze towards the heavens seeking their silent guidance. The mental strain of this pattern is considerably eased by your ritual focus. Your prophetic connection blooms a thousand-fold as your ritual concludes. You are alone. An infinitesimal speck in space and time adrift in an infinite sea of possibility. The course of your life, past, present and future, dictated by ceaseless currents beyond any mortal control. But infinitesimal is not insignificant and control is not understanding. These are indisputable facts etched into the essence of every prophet. Random constellation selection: As your consciousness drifts amongst the currents of Fate you find yourself drawn towards the planet Ismenia. Observing the selected constellation: You scan the skies for a few moments. While invisible to the naked eye, your prophetic senses have little trouble resolving the planet Ismenia. The planet Ismenia is unobscured by clouds. Ismenia shines a bright, cheery yellow, almost seeming to smile as it beams its warm but distant light from above. The insight gained from your prior observations floats gently through your subconsciousness. You intuitively draw the relevant details to the forefront of your mind, using them to nurture your current efforts. You learned something useful from your observation. Effect ending: As your ritual ebbs away you find yourself returned to a world of immutable facts. Things that are, are, and things that are not, are not. This is indisputable and you are left with a lingering dissatisfaction for you are still alone, infinitesimal. Cooldown ending: The world dulls almost imperceptibly as the last remnants of the Read the Ripples ritual fade from your mind's eye
Devices/Tattoos:	No devices or tattoos documented.

Notes

• The spell selects random targets in the sky for you to OBSERVE. After you observe the object, the spell will select a new target on the next pulse for you to observe. This repeats until the ritual ends.
  • For each object the spell selects, the timer for observing celestial objects is not enforced (It is enforced for other observations).
  • Observing the constellations that the spell indicates reinforces each successive observation, adding an additional amount of prophetic insight. This includes the potential of adding it to a pool that the object may not otherwise fill on its own.

E.g. The Magpie normally only fills the defense pool, but the following observation filled both the defense and survival pools:

The Magpie is unobscured by clouds.

The Magpie, symbol of Alamhif, is found year-round in the center of the Starry Path.

The insight gained from your prior observations floats gently through your subconsciousness. You intuitively draw the relevant details to the forefront of your mind, using them to nurture your current efforts.

You learned something useful from your observation.

You believe you've learned all that you can about survival.

• Casting this spell requires a Perception spellbook focus.
  • The tiny cream-colored sack will work with RtR, but has limited uses.
  • The Improvised Rituals magical feat may be required if you are using an unlimited use focus, such as the crystal-inset oaken staff surmounted with a witch ball.
• RtR pulses slower during the day than at night.
• It bypasses the telescope requirement to observe even for constellations it does not select. If you elect to not use a telescope, you will lose a slight bonus to filling your prediction pools.
• Does not work to bypass cloud cover, so it remains beneficial to use in conjunction with Piercing Gaze and to a lesser degree with a telescope.
• Uses Perception spellbook mana levels to determine attunement costs.
• There are several restrictions designed to balance letting you fill your prediction pools much faster than you otherwise might be able to:
  • There is a one hour cooldown after the ritual ends before you can cast RtR again.
  • You must remain outdoors, in view of the sky and kneeling/sitting.
    • If you stand while the spell is in effect; it will immediately end the spell and trigger the hour cooldown.
  • If you attempt to cast RtR indoors it will consume your concentration for the cast but will not trigger the one hour cooldown.
  • Teleologic corruption increases the difficulty of casting the spell. The potency and duration of the effect is also further reduced beyond the normal effect at the reduced personal mana cap.

E.g. if you're normally able to put ~700 mana into the spell without corruption then you will only be able to put ~450 mana into it with capped corruption and the effect will only be that of an ~100 mana cast.

• A StormFront script to make observations with the RTR pulse can be found here.

Trivia

• "Read the Ripples is about the most stellary spell possible." - GM-Raesh