Dreamweaving

Dreamweaving is the craft of creating dreams outside of a sleeper's mind and storing them in an appropriate object for later use. An oneiromancer who wishes to use dreamweaving must find an appropriate object to serve as a vessel for the dream: the object's nature must be relevant to the kind of dream he desires to create, and will most likely feature in the dream itself somehow. A soft, cuddly teddy bear might be an excellent vessel for a healing sleep dream, while a clown doll with a sinister grin and missing one eye serves perfectly for a nightmare. Oneiromancers often use objects that can be in contact with the sleepers while they are asleep: stuffed toys, blankets, underclothes and jewelry are all popular objects, as are small things that might be tucked up under pillows.

Once the vessel is chosen, it is invested with a point of Glamour. Then, within an hour of investing the vessel with the Glamour, the oneiromancer must begin creating the dream the vessel holds. This is similar to dreamscaping, except that the oneiromancer is not resisted by an active psyche — the oneiromancer is literally sculpting a dream into an empty void. The process for doing so is far more intense, however, requiring a great deal of time; after all, there is no innate dreamscape to draw upon for the form of the dream in the vessel, so it must be far more carefully created. This is a process then can take days.

This is an extended Intelligence + Empathy + Wyrd roll to create this dream, with each roll taking one day. The successes on this roll accumulate to form the Intensity of the dream contained in the vessel. In order to unleash the dream, the sleeper need only lie down to sleep with the object in contact with her. This causes the dream to unweave in her psyche naturally, as though the dream were naturally hers. Thus, the dreamer does not fight the onset of the dream. If the dreamer is unaware of the vessel as the source of strange dreams, however, the Intensity of the dream is opposed by a Resolve + Composure roll as the dreamer enters sleep.

One of the true benefits of dreamweaving is that any dreamer may experience the dream — not simply one to whom its creator is bound by Wyrd. Thus, a vessel that holds a woven dream may be used by any changeling, fetch or human bound in a dreaming-tasked pledge. This allows oneiromancer-craftsmen of tremendous skill to weave dreams into vessels and sell the fruits of their labor — many Goblin Markets boast several sellers of dreamwoven vessels. It is worth noting that an oneiromancer can dreamweave for himself; being outside of his actual dreamscape allows him to create an idealized dream for himself to experience.

A vessel may contain any of the kinds of dreams that may be created with dreamscaping. In addition, however, the practice of creating the lattice of woven Glamour within the vessel permits the creation of one of the most powerful kinds of dreams: the Wyrd-dream.

Wyrd-Dream

A Wyrd-dream is a dream that serves as a means of transferring the use of a Contract to the dreamer. Only dreamwoven vessels are capable of containing such powerful dreams — the complexity is significantly beyond the ability of most oneiromancers to effectively weave while within a dreamscape. It is said, however, that some True Fae are capable of weaving Wyrd-dreams in the dreams of those they've poisoned.

Creating a Wyrd-dream begins with the investment of the vessel with a point of Glamour, and then the activation of the Contract to be captured and placed within it. The Contract roll is made as normal; if the Contract's activation was too weak for the oneiromancer's liking, he must allow the Glamour within the vessel to fade, as it is already tainted by the first use of the Contract. Of course, activating the Contract a second time receives the normal one-die penalty for trying the same action in consecutive turns, and the vessel must be prepared again with another point of Glamour. Only Contracts that can be used on targets other than the Contract's user may be invested into a Wyrd-dream: Contracts that permit shapechanging and other effects used only by the wielder cannot be granted to others.

The target number for the dreamweaving is at least equal to the number of successes rolled on the activation of the Contract. Most oneiromancers create much higher Intensity dreams, to account for any reductions in Intensity that may occur as a result of an unknowing sleeper's Resolve + Composure roll reducing its power. When the Contract activates in the dreams of the sleeper, it is as though the oneiromancer used the Contract, with a number of successes equal to the original successes rolled for the Contract, or the Intensity of the dream, whichever is lowest. If the sleeper gets a resistance roll of some kind, those successes are subtracted from the Contract's success as normal.

These dreams always reflect the nature of the Contract in question. A Contract that grants some kind of blessing or luck might be represented by an idyllic dream in which fortune smiles on the dreamer, while a curse or Contract with negative effects likely manifests as a nightmare (though without the above mechanical notes to nightmares, the use of a negative Contract on an unwitting dreamer is bad enough).

Personalized Dreams

If the oneiromancer knows a specific dreamer well — having used the "Learn about the Dreamer" dream riding action on multiple occasions, or has known the dreamer for years — the final Intensity of the dream is increased by the oneiromancer's dots in Empathy or Wyrd, whichever is greater. This bonus applies only to the dreamer it is intended for, however; if the bonus is used on a dreamer other than the one it was intended for, reduce the final Intensity of the dream by a similar amount. Many changelings create such "emergency" vessels for those the changelings protect, placing healing or protective Contracts into them, or providing vessels with soothing dreams.

Analyzing Vessels

With an extended Wits + Composure + Wyrd roll, a changeling can ascertain that an object is a dreamwoven vessel. The target number equals the Intensity of the dream within it, and each roll requires 10 minutes of study.