Jonathan Sims (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
epistemological) wrote2019-01-27 07:46 am
epistemological) wrote2019-01-27 07:46 am
Leitner FAQ
So as per mod approval, Jon's arrival has of course brought something terrible with him to the Barge.
'Leitners', as they are called, are texts (some of which may or may not have ever been written,thanks Jonny and others of which are versions of known texts with additional/alternate material) which are pure expressions of the Entities which influence Jon's world, pure little nodes of power sent out to interact with people and ruin lives, usually. Because the Entities are all 'fears made manifest', some of these powers are pretty freaky. They are so named due to a character named Jurgen Leitner who attempted to collect and 'contain' as many of them as possible.
That went poorly for him.
The books in the library here will not have Leitner's bookplate on them, but they will, of course, match up with the texts shown so far in canon. As per the mods, all directly-dealing-with-the-Entity books will be defanged (no getting eaten by Mr. Spider) but available... but the books that show people how to do things like, oh, collect dead souls or move around walls or be invisible... those are just fine.
Jon, as has been mentioned in his threads so far, has taken a position in the library and his goal will be to find any and all Leitners that may be there and keep track of them. So he'll have his eye out for strange behavior that matches known Leitners. All the same, since it's a lot more fun to have these things wreaking havoc, I probably won't have him finding an 'active' Leitner so it can be available for plot fun.
The list following is all of the canonical Leitners, with the available details on them, what they do, the probable associated Entity (if known), and I'll be keeping track of whether it's been found, found out, and whether Jon's found the owner and contained it. First come first serve, obviously, and I'll be adding Leitners as canon provides.
FAQ
QUESTION: Is there anything that would draw my character to these books?
Answer: As per the mods: The books will draw attention to themselves, but not have the power to manage pure compulsion. They will slightly stack the odds in their own favor, in terms of drawing the hand or the eye, or being the one to land on top of the pile when the shelf topples over.
QUESTION: Is there any way to tell, from sight, that a book is a Leitner?
Answer: For some of them, yes. Again, as per the mods: The books will have cosmetic abilities, but scaled back to where they draw attention but don't necessarily disrupt the workings of the library. Walk past where Boneturner on the shelf with an open book in your hands and it may bleed; stack Boneturner in with a pile of other ones on a desk and they may bleed. Inert and on a closed shelf, though, the library staff aren't going to have to begin mopping blood up biweekly.
QUESTION: Do the books confer abilities/powers permanently?
Answer: No, they do not. One must be in possession of the text in order to use the specialized power of the text. However, spells (in the rare case where a Leitner has such things) or knowledge contained within the text works like anything else. (So learn all about architecture while you're moving those walls!)
QUESTION: ...so about that book that works on binding the dead...
Answer: As per the mods: Because no one is dead for long, the death-function books won't have much of a chance to work, and can't override the resurrection process that is in place. If someone used the book before a person could be resurrected, it could function, but the barge would yank the deceased right out again when they were brought back to life. So in short: if you want to have a plot about an inmate and not getting resurrected immediately and the book, go right ahead but it'll be temporary.
'Leitners', as they are called, are texts (some of which may or may not have ever been written,
That went poorly for him.
The books in the library here will not have Leitner's bookplate on them, but they will, of course, match up with the texts shown so far in canon. As per the mods, all directly-dealing-with-the-Entity books will be defanged (no getting eaten by Mr. Spider) but available... but the books that show people how to do things like, oh, collect dead souls or move around walls or be invisible... those are just fine.
Jon, as has been mentioned in his threads so far, has taken a position in the library and his goal will be to find any and all Leitners that may be there and keep track of them. So he'll have his eye out for strange behavior that matches known Leitners. All the same, since it's a lot more fun to have these things wreaking havoc, I probably won't have him finding an 'active' Leitner so it can be available for plot fun.
The list following is all of the canonical Leitners, with the available details on them, what they do, the probable associated Entity (if known), and I'll be keeping track of whether it's been found, found out, and whether Jon's found the owner and contained it. First come first serve, obviously, and I'll be adding Leitners as canon provides.
| TITLE | AUTHOR | LANGUAGE | EFFECT | APPEARANCE | STATUS | NOTES | ENTITY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Disappearance | None | English | Temporary invisibility if a few words are read; read completely and you disappear without a trace | Small book, almost a pamphlet | w/Iris Wildthyme [1/28] | Full reading effect defanged | Unknown |
| A Guest for Mr. Spider | None | English | Deeply disturbing children's book which normally ends with the reader being compelled to knock on a door that opens to devour them. | Simple children's book in black and white with some color | will be found by Jon | DEFANGED. Harmless. | The Web |
| A Journal of the Plague Year | Daniel Defoe | English | Brings sickness and decay to the reader's location. Can be used to slowly destroy somewhere, seemingly by rot. | DESTROYED | w/Harry Goodsir[1/28] | Functional | The Corruption |
| An Introduction to Higher Anatomy | None | English | Effect unknown at current. | Unknown | Unfound | DEFANGED until known. | The Flesh |
| Book of the Dead | Various | Various | Fills in the dates and details of death for the reader. The death moves closer every time it's checked. | Small journal-like book. | w/Bucky Barnes [2/2] | Functional (but only lists canonical character death). | The End |
| Dig | None | English | Makes you want to dig. Like. Through anything. Possibly even people. Continually. Possibly unto death. | Waterlogged book. | w/Rhys [2/5] | Functional | The Buried |
| Ex Altiora | None | Latin | Can be used to experience create a sense of vertigo or to trap lightning or lightning-based entities. | Small leatherbound text | w/Tris Kal-El [1/28] | Functional | The Vast |
| Book of Skin | Owner | Sanskrit/English | Used to bind a dead person's soul/spirit and allows them to be conversed with by the living.Further Details can be discussed below. | Large leatherbound book | w/Marty Hart [3/5] | Functional | The End |
| Small Red Book | None | Unknown | On the demon Asag; can be used to burn people without fire/flame/light, boiling them from the inside out. | Small red book. | w/Lesley May [6/17] | Functional | The Desolation |
| The Boneturner's Tale | None | English | Terrible Chaucer fanfic that grants the user bone control powers, including pulling them from someone's body without breaking skin, collecting them into your own body, or warping their shape. | Small black paperback with white text; other books around it may bleed | w/Steve Rogers[2/16] | Functional | The Flesh |
| The Key of Solomon 1863 | None | English | Effect unknown at current. Contains 'elements of several powers'. | Unknown | Unfound | DEFANGED until known. | Multiple |
| The Seven Lamps of Architecture | John Ruskin | English | The book gives the sense of the walls closing around the reader. Can be used to manipulate walls and control surroundings. | DESTROYED/Burned | w/Fiona Goode [1/28] | Functional | The Buried |
| The Stalwart Hunters' Almanac | None | English | Mutilation of reader corresponding to passages read; will be savaged by animal attack from the inside out. | Unknown | w/Laura [3/12] | Functional | The Hunt |
| The Tale of a Field Hospital | Sir Frederick Treves | English | Causes death by putrification via papercut. Contains sections not found in the original, specifically about the Boer concentration camps. See here for details. | Unknown | w/Kahl [3/16] | Functional | The Corruption |
| Poetry Book | None | Sanskrit | Small animal bones fall from the pages | Small, unremarkable book | w/Benton Fraser [1/28] | Functional | The Hunt/The Flesh |
| Dictionnaire Infernal | Jacques De Plancy | Unknown | Can be used to trap demonic entities. | Unknown | w/Ford Pines[1/28] | Functional | Unknown |
| Small grey book | None | Russian/Cyrillic script | Starts 'reading' you, including your life story, your thoughts, your probable actions... like a book that mirrors you. | Small grey book | w/Elizabeth Jennings [5/23] w/Jon [6/01] | Unknown | Unknown/The Eye |
| Kumo Gatabete Iru | None | Japanese | Summons a giant person-eating spider. | Unknown | w/Hilda Spellman [1/28] | Functional | The Web |
| Untitled paperback | Unknown | Unknown | Tearing pages will send someone into a homicidal rage; tearing the whole book will send everyone in the immediate area into a homicidal rage | A small paperback volume, somewhat worn | w/Armitage Hux [3/5] | DESTROYED | The Frenzy |
FAQ
QUESTION: Is there anything that would draw my character to these books?
Answer: As per the mods: The books will draw attention to themselves, but not have the power to manage pure compulsion. They will slightly stack the odds in their own favor, in terms of drawing the hand or the eye, or being the one to land on top of the pile when the shelf topples over.
QUESTION: Is there any way to tell, from sight, that a book is a Leitner?
Answer: For some of them, yes. Again, as per the mods: The books will have cosmetic abilities, but scaled back to where they draw attention but don't necessarily disrupt the workings of the library. Walk past where Boneturner on the shelf with an open book in your hands and it may bleed; stack Boneturner in with a pile of other ones on a desk and they may bleed. Inert and on a closed shelf, though, the library staff aren't going to have to begin mopping blood up biweekly.
QUESTION: Do the books confer abilities/powers permanently?
Answer: No, they do not. One must be in possession of the text in order to use the specialized power of the text. However, spells (in the rare case where a Leitner has such things) or knowledge contained within the text works like anything else. (So learn all about architecture while you're moving those walls!)
QUESTION: ...so about that book that works on binding the dead...
Answer: As per the mods: Because no one is dead for long, the death-function books won't have much of a chance to work, and can't override the resurrection process that is in place. If someone used the book before a person could be resurrected, it could function, but the barge would yank the deceased right out again when they were brought back to life. So in short: if you want to have a plot about an inmate and not getting resurrected immediately and the book, go right ahead but it'll be temporary.
Questions!
Re: Questions!
1) How long do the powers last? As long as the book is in the reader's possession?
2) Do they immediately gain full control/knowledge of said powers?
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1) They last as long as you have the book in your possession.
2) They have to read the book. Depending on the book in question, it works a little differently.
The Boneturner's Tale, for instance, is both a story and confers the ability to Boneturn. We know you have to read most of it since a character read some and did not have the ability. A Disappearance, on the other hand, works when you read sentences, making you disappear as you do. Reading the whole thing in Jon's world seemingly makes you completely disappear forever.
I would assume that, for the book Fraser took, he would get the bones of the animal that the poem was about at the end of each poem.
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Re: Questions!
I also kind of like the idea of like, because Rhys is so oblivious to magic, him like, getting hold of one of the books and not getting it back to Jon? And instead it getting like, left in a common room / released back into the barge's population to cause shit.
Anyway, let me know what u think about such things x
Re: Questions!
Re: Questions!
Checking Out
Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: A Disappearance
Use/Recover: Will your character be likely to report this to the librarians or just utilize it for their own means? She'll report it eventually, when she's done playing with it and/or when she finds herself not being able to un-disappear
Plans: What're you planning to do with the book? Would you like Jon involved? Will he be allowed to recover the text by the end? 1; mostly just creep about not being seen 2. yes please. including finding a way to contact him from wherever disappearing takes her 3. yes, absolutely
Notes/Thoughts: having no one notice her is actually one of her real fears, although finding dimensional loopholes and escape routes and shortcuts is kind of Her Thing.
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Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: 'Poetry Book'
Use/Recover: He'll report it eventually, but he'll spend a while experimenting/exploring the effect. Like: are they always the same bones? From the same animal? And what animal is it?
Plans: Mostly I think this is a hilarious entry into this plot (which I super want to be a part of) and he'll be mildly fascinated and probably run it by Harry Goodsir. Jon can definitely have it back when he's done.
Notes/Thoughts: I love this.
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Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: Kumo Gatabete Iru
Use/Recover: Well, she'll read it, and presumably there'll then be a giant spider. So that'll attract attention.
Plans: She'll give it back once the spider is handled. Hilda knows very well how magical texts can fuck you up if not in trained hands.
Notes/Thoughts: but how feasible is it that she could keep the spider
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Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: A Journal of the Plague Year
Use/Recover: He will so report this once he realises something fishy is up.
Plans: Harry will scoop this book up at some point over the next few weeks as part of his regular rotation of books. He won't get to it right away, so it'll sit in either the infirmary or his room, with effects slowly building over time.
Notes/Thoughts: for the sickness/decay/rot effects, let me know if this seems plausible: maybe start with some peeling paint or mold. Then flies seemingly out of nowhere. Then a bad smell. Then Harry gets seriously ill. Am willing to go very gross with this if that suits.
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Leitner Text: Dictionnaire Infernal
Use/Recover:
Will your character be likely to report this to the librarians or just utilize it for their own means?
Ford may bring it up to Jon, depends on when he finds it!
Plans: What're you planning to do with the book?
Would you like Jon involved?
This will be anti-Bill insurance, once Ford figures out how it works. Jon's probably going to be involved, we'll see!
Will he be allowed to recover the text by the end?
If Ford decides to give it up, he'll certainly return it to Jon, yep!
Notes/Thoughts: Just sticking a pin in this book for potential future use!
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Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: Ex Altiora
Use/Recover: Tris picked it up and started reading to practice her Latin, but she'll confer with Jon when she starts to experience effects.
Plans: Can she keep it or give it to someone she trusts, please? Tris believes in lots of precautions, especially in an environment that messes with her control the way the Barge does.
Notes/Thoughts: I'd be interested in more background info on the book if you have specific parts for me to listen to.
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Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: The Boneturner's Tale
Use/Recover: Given that Jon kind of send Steve looking for it, he will report it... after he's read it.
Plans: Steve will likely call Jon intending to give it back? And then whether he does may depend on how their conversation goes. If he does give it back, he might ask for it again in the future if he thinks he can use to help someone.
Notes/Thoughts: Nothing else at the moment? Obviously the two of them are kind of standoffish, so there's always potential for things to go south, I guess. /o\
Re: Checking Out
Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: Book of Skin
Use/Recover: He'll report it to the librarians, though he's likely to read at least a bit of it first.
Plans: I'm just planning on Marty finding it, since he really wants to help/have a thing to do at the moment.
Notes/Thoughts: He's a cop who has seen a lot of dead people, so depending on how graphic the text is he may/may not be disturbed by it.
Re: Checking Out
Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: The Slaughter/The Piper, I think?
Use/Recover: Recover it to Jon but SO ANGRILY
Plans: Hux's intentions are to essentially walk the walk when he's talking the talk in Jon's post over here and arriving in the library to help Iris and Jon recover books. As such he's probably going to go a bit homicidal but I'm happy to play it by ear.
Notes/Thoughts: He's not magically inclined and isn't an idiot so he wouldn't try to screw around with/use the Leitner, but he definitely could be goaded into ripping the pages of the book if he's having a nervous breakdown about something.
Which is often.Re: Checking Out
Re: Checking Out
Re: Checking Out
Leitner Text: The Stalwart Hunters' Almanac
Use/Recover: I expect her healing factor will be able to keep up with the effects of the book, at least at first, but that will be all the more reason she's liable to keep it in her possession for a while - to keep it out of someone else's hands and prevent them from being hurt. That said, she'll catch on fairly quick that something is Up.
Plans: Laura is just learning about these books being a thing; she'll certainly allow him to recover it if he can assure her that it can be destroyed permanently.
Notes/Thoughts: Any thoughts on how her healing will or will not interact with the effects? I am totally okay with it if it's like "lol what healing factor" at her, too.
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I wasn't gonna but then I had to
Leitner Text: Small grey book
Use/Recover: She'll keep it for a while until it freaks her out enough, depending on what exactly happens and when it happens.
Plans: The book is likely to incriminate her very badly, so she'll be reluctant to give it back after a certain point. She's going to be very paranoid about it though, and eventually it'll have to go back to him so she can stop spiraling.
Re: I wasn't gonna but then I had to
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Leitner Text: Small Red Book
Use/Recover: She is absolutely gonna sneak it out and learn how to use it to set people on fire.
Plans: TB...C? Once she works out what the deal is, it's just going to be insurance at first.
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Leitner Text: EITHER The Seven Lamps of Architecture OR The Key of Solomon 1863
Use/Recover: Utilize it for her own means, for she is Greedy.
Plans: So... either of these would be fun for Fiona to find because she's basically going through kind of a crisis about her magic being basically totally non-functional since arriving aboard the ship, so anything that gives her even a temporary sense of power/ability to do something witchy would put her mind at ease and will also be fun for plotting. I'm definitely down to have Jon involved, especially if the Leitner she ends up with is The Key of Solomon 1863 since that's the one where the effects are currently unknown but contains many elements of power. Perhaps, ending up in Fiona's hands, its effects could be discovered given that she is who she is?
Notes/Thoughts: I would def love to plot for this with you so please let me know if you're interested!
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I'd recommend the Seven Lamps just because due to not knowing WHAT it does, currently the information in the KoS1863 has no power; I know what the traditional text actually has in it because I'm a giant thaumaturgical dork but usually, with a Leitner, the version that is 'active' is different in some sense to the one that is traditionally well known and the power is in that addition. Given that the cosmology of Jon's world doesn't match up with traditional demons etc. since I can't say what it does, or what the additions are, it's basically just effectively a normal book until canon tells us.
If you'd like details on Seven Lamps, I'm happy to provide, but the effects are used in MAG 41, MAG79 and MAG80. Each is curated as best I can to avoid spoilers and the last one is the most useful.
As you can hear from the first one, Jon's familiar with how that manipulation feels/looks so he'd probably be the one to catch on.
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Leitner Text: Book of the Dead
Use/Recover: Freak out and then more likely to report it.
Plans: Have Bucky either see his date of death as the day on the train or his future death in IW's Great Snappening. Also, can he only see his death or anyone else he knows? Yes, Jon can be involved, and yes he can have the book back. Eventually.
Notes/Thoughts: IDK yet. All the possibilities.
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It will show a variety of deaths from Jon's world. The last page will show a description of his death. If he hands the book over to someone else it will show the other character's (canon) death in the book as the last page. This is the episode about this book for more details. (You can skip the supplemental if you want).
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Leitner Text: Dig
Use/Recover: Because their Leitner chat has been a little limited, Rhys won't know that it's even something that should be reported to anyone. So no :>
Plans: GONNA GO DIG. IN THE ENCLOSURE
Until someone finds him or he dies of exhaustion. I'd love Jon to find out about him at some point, how deep into the digging/before or after he ends up in the infirmary, I leave up to you x
I have no problems with Jon finding the text after, but as I've mentioned, I'm a little shit and would love Rhys to have just like. Dropped it in a hallway while en route to diiiiiiig c:
Notes/Thoughts: I think this is all! I'll throw up plotting stuff maybe later this week.
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Bad book, Rhys. BAAAAD.
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