Pledge

Pledges can only be made between PCs and ST run NPCs.

The word-bond carries tremendous weight among the fairies, and even the renegade changelings understand the importance of one’s pledge. An oath is never given lightly, a promise never casually made, for who knows when the Wyrd may entangle those words, tying them to the speaker’s destiny?

Unlike the highly formalized Contracts of the fae, pledges are simple agreements made between two or more parties. The precise terms, tasks and boons for adhering to the agreement and penalties for failing to do so are outlined when the pact is made, and the changeling invests a tiny bit of his Wyrd into the agreement. The terms of the pledge can be veiled in casual language, thus binding an unsuspecting participant if the changeling is sufficiently crafty. The wording of pledges can represent both open and formal vows as well as binding promises veiled in more casual language. Whether these pledges are between the members of a motley, the oath of vassal to liege, the pledge that ensorcells a mortal or grants a changeling access to the dreams of another, pledges define the relationship not simply among the Lost, but between an individual changeling and the rest of the world. Skilled and artistic pledge-craft is well respected among the fae, and other changelings looking for a bit of advice in the creation of oaths may approach those who demonstrate acumen in the art.

Freehold Oath

The Sacramento Freehold Oath:

“As the four Seasons come and go, and one ruler changes for another, as is the natural way of things, we shall watch over the Freehold and shape it from the predations of the Others. In return, we ask that you shall follow the rules laid down and never bring danger our society, and in doing so, you shall find your mind stays whole and focused. Break this oath however, and you shall be banished from the land forever.”

• Type: Vow
• Tasks: Fealty, Greater (-3)
• Boons: Vassalage, Greater (+3; Fortitude Blessing, +1 vs. Clarity checks)
• Sanction: Banishment, Greater (-3)
• Duration: Year and a Day, Greater (+3)
• Invocation: 1 Willpower

The Willpower point is the base invocation cost, not an additional cost assigned to this Pledge. Once the Pledge has been made (or renewed), simply add Freehold Oath to your character's signature line after they have taken it IC. All changelings are expected to take this Pledge if they wish to remain within the freehold. As a matter of tradition, most changelings will annually renew it at the Seasonal Festival of their Court ruler's coronation, however they may choose to do so at any other time. Those who choose not to officially Pledge themselves to the freehold will usually be viewed with a certain amount of suspicion.

Pledge Crafting

Pledge Types

• Vow: The basic pledge, with the power of the pledge invested in the Wyrd
  • A changeling can maintain Wyrd + 3 vows at a time.
  • There are no additional penalties for breaking a vow beyond the given sanction.
• Oaths: a pledge on a True Name - the changeling's, their Keeper's, or a higher power.
  • True Name, Obscured: when a changeling still has a fetch that answers to his name, the true name is obscured. The changeling still has to right to swear by his true name, even if it's shared by the fetch, but breaking the oath proves him unworthy of his name in the eyes of the Wyrd. During the next encounter with his fetch, he loses all resistance to the fetch's Echoes, his Defense drops to 0 and he receives a dice pool penalty equal to his Wyrd for the length of the encounter. The fetch senses this weakness and is aware that it is an ideal time to strike.
  • True Name, Unsullied: A changeling with no fetch has an unsullied true name. Failure to adhere to an unsullied true name oath causes all Wyrd-invested pledges (vows) to shatter as if the changeling had willingly broken all of them, and he suffers all sanctions for those pledges as such. Those who share in those pledges are also immediately aware that he has violated a true name oath, which is likely to make them wary of dealing with the changeling in the future.
  • Name of the Keeper: A changeling may swear an oath on the name of his Keeper. If he violates the oath, the Keeper becomes immediately aware of the changeling's whereabouts and gains a die bonus equal to the oathbreaker's Wyrd for 1 scene relating to all rolls having to do with finding and recovering the changeling, usable at any time the Keeper chooses for the next year and a day.
  • Name of a Higher Power: Swearing an oath on the name of a higher power constitutes swearing on oath on the changeling's strength of belief. Violating the oath causes the changeling to be filled with despair, losing all current willpower points and, the next time the changeling makes a clarity roll, does so at a -1 penalty.
• Corporal Pledge: a pledge sworn on an item acting as a physical symbol of an association. Breaking these pledges results in that association turning sour.
  • Mortal Emblem: The item must be a tangible representation of the changeling's mortal ties - a membership card for an association he belongs to out of a purely moral interest, for example. Breaking the corporal pledge results in the Wyrd working to separate the changeling from the establishment or community represented by the emblem. Losing this tie to humanity necessitates a Clarity roll of 4 dice (regardless of the changeling's current clarity), and the roll receives an additional -2 penalty if the violation occurred as a result of the changelings life among the fae. If the changeling broke the pledge fulfilling a virtue, gain a +2 bonus to the roll. If it was broken in pursuit of a vice, -2.
    • A changeling may generally only have 1 mortal emblem pledge active at once. Additional pledges may be made on each Allies, Contacts or Resources merit the changeling possesses. However, breaking a mortal emblem pledge placed on one of these merits results in both the clarity roll AND the loss of the merit.
  • Seeming Emblem: The item serves as a representation of the changeling's fae nature. Breaking this pledge results in the immediate loss of 1 dot of Wyrd. Changelings with only 1 Wyrd may not make the pledge.
  • Courtly Emblem: The item serves as a representation of the changeling's relationship with a court. It need not be their own court - the pledge may be invested into either their Mantle or their Court Goodwill with another court. A changeling with no Mantle or no Court Goodwill with a given court may not pledge on that court. Violating the pledge results in the immediate loss of either all Court Goodwill dots or half Mantle dots. For the next moon, changelings of that Court know upon encountering the changeling that the oathbreaker has betrayed their court.
  • Title Emblem: The item serves as a representation of the changeling's entitlement. Violating this pledge results in the immediate loss of all entitlement benefits until the changeling purchases their next dot of Wyrd. Other changelings from the same entitlement immediately know that the changeling has betrayed their entitlement. Others of the entitlement have the right to give the oathbreaker a task to atone for his betrayal, but this is done only rarely, and any changeling who gives out such an opportunity for atonement tends to lose the goodwill of other changelings in their entitlement as well.
  • Nemesis Emblem: The item represents another changeling, who then becomes the pledge's nemesis. Upon pledge creation, the nemesis uses a contract. Any oathbreaker then suffers the effects of that power without resistance and the nemesis becomes immediately aware of who the oathbreaker is.

Pledge Crafting Table

Tasks

• Alliance: Multiple changelings agree to aid each other. Note that all changelings involved in an alliance agree to aid each other equally - an unequal pledge of one changeling helping another would be a ban or endeavor.
  • Lesser: A peace pact - the changelings involved agree not to harm/hinder each other. They are not required to assist each other nor to prevent harm caused by a third party.
  • Medial: The oathbound are expected to help each other as necessary, with sanctuary, food, money, or whatever else might be necessary. It is expected that the oathbound be willing to harm a 3rd party when coming to the aid of their ally, but they are not expected to kill or be killed in the service of this level of alliance.
  • Greater: The oathbound are expected to aid one another even unto torture and death. No force should prevent the oathbound from coming to the aid of their ally. They are expected to kill in the service of the alliance, and be killed should it be necessary.
• Dreaming: Permits the changeling who holds the task to enter the dreams of another, usually with the purpose of safeguarding their dreams.
• Endeavors: Some specific action required by the pledge.
  • Lesser: An easy to accomplish task that requires little time or effort, or makes only slight demands of the oathbound.
  • Medial: Either a constant activity that requires a small but regular sacrifice of time on the part of the oathbound, or the performance of a single difficult task which may result in harm.
  • Greater: Either a regular activity of significant attention and effort, or the performance of a tremendously difficult task which may result in death.
• Ensorcellment: Infusing a mortal with Glamour so that the moral may see the world of the fae. This is both a task for the changeling and a boon for the mortal involved in the pledge. Swearing the pledge requires the additional expenditure of 1 point of Glamour on the party of the changeling in addition to any other costs associated with the pledge.
• Fealty: A pledge involving the an acknowledge lord or lady of a freehold, binding the oath-taker to the laws of the Freehold and to work according to his talents to defend the Freehold. Any pledge with this task always includes the vassalage boon and the banishment sanction. The first time the lord or lady enters into a fealty pledge, they must expend 1 dot of willpower. Taking additional oaths of fealty after that are considered invested into the same pledge, thus the lord/lady does not need to expend an additional willpower dot. The oath-taker expends only a willpower point, not a dot.
• Forbiddance: Sometimes also referred to as a ban task, this task outlines something the oathbound are forbidden to do.
  • Lesser: Forbids an action that is simply avoided.
  • Medial: Forbids an action that is either more common or something the oathbound are likely to desire. Avoiding the action serves as a regular inconvenience.
  • Greater: Forbids a very common action that is likely to change the way in which the oathbound lives his or her life.

Boons

• Adroitness: Gain +1 to all rolls with a single skill, as defined by the pledge, while the pledge is active.
• Blessing: Gain dots in a merit defined by the pledge.
  • Lesser: Changelings gain a 1 dot merit to those who do not already posses the merit, or 1 additional dot in the merit to those who do. Humans who do not already possess the merit may gain up to 2 dots.
  • Medial: Changelings gain a 2 dot new merit or increase the existing merit by 2 dots. Humans who do not already posses the merit may gain that merit worth 3 or 4 dots.
  • Greater: Changelings gain a 3 dot new merit or increase the existing merit by 3 dots. Humans who do not already possess the merit may gain that merit up to 5 dots.
• Ensorcellment: see tasks.
• Favor: Instead of gaining some immediate bonus, the oathbound is owed a task of equal value to the favor boon at a later time.
• Glamour: The exchange of Glamour between oathbound changelings. No more Glamour than the lowest of the involve changelings' Wyrd rating can be transferred at any one time. The transfers may happen at intervals, one point of Glamour at a time. The transfer may not happen more than once per week, and may not involve more Glamour than the highest of the involved changeling's Wyrd rating over the course of the entire pledge.
• Vassalage: Changelings with the Vassalage boon are considered members of a Freehold, with all associated benefits, and gain a certain Freehold specific blessing while they are within it's borders. Note that the Sacramento Freehold's blessing is a bonus to Clarity degeneration rolls.

Sanction

• Banishment: This sanction is not levied by the Wyrd. When the Lord of the Freehold declares before at least 1/4 of his vassals that a changeling is banished, the oathbreaker feels the banishment immediately. From that moment on, any vassal gains a point of Glamour for acting to harm the traitor within the Freehold's borders, and a changeling who kills the oathbreaker gains an amount of Glamour equal to the oathbreaker's Wyrd.
• Curse: Instills incompetence and bad luck on the oathbreaker.
  • Lesser: Negates the 10-again rule for the oathbreaker for the duration of the sanction.
  • Medial: Reduces the possibility of success to 9s and 10s only.
  • Greater: Only a result of 10 on a die is considered a success. Should a given die result in no successes, the failure is considered to be a dramatic failure, though the oathbreaker may spend a point of willpower to negate this, making it a regular failure.
• 'Death: As soon as the oath is broken, the betrayed party immediately loses a dot of Willpower, and the traitor becomes immediately aware of what's happening. Then, within a number of days equal to the betrayed's Wyrd, the betrayer will encounter a fatal and often ironically appropriate accident. If the betrayer manages to convince the betrayed to forgive him before his doom claims him, the betrayed immediately recovers his lost willpower point and the doom is lifted, but the forgiveness must be genuine and uncoerced.
• Flaw: The betrayer gains a flaw, either chosen at the sealing of the pledge or a thematically appropriate flaw chosen by the ST at the time of the betrayal.
• Pishogue: At the time of sealing, a changeling weaves one of their contracts into the pledge. Then, at the instant of betrayal, the oathbreaker suffers the effect of the contract with no resistance, and the one who wove the contract knows immediately of the betrayal.
  • Lesser: A one or two dot contract - a minor inconvenience or punishment.
  • Medial: A three or four dot contract, or a combination of two lesser pishogues.
  • Greater: A single five dot contract, or a combination of two medial pishogues or three lesser pishogues.
• Poisoning of Boon: Reverses the effect of the boon.
  • Adroitness: Suffer a -1 to the boon skill.
  • Blessing: The original bonus merit points are lost, as well as losing an additional number of dots from that merit equal to the original boon. If this drops the merit down below a usable level, the ST levies an appropriate misfortune on the changeling.
  • Ensorcellment: The mortal continues to perceive the world of the fae, but everything takes of a terrifying aspect. For each weak the mortal suffers the poisoned ensorcellment, he makes a Resolve + Composure roll at a penalty of -1 per week. Failure inflicts an appropriate derangement on the mortal. In addition, he must make a Resolve + Composure roll at the same penalty whenever he encounters an entity of Glamour or react with great terror.
  • Favor: Reverses the rolls of debtor and owed.
  • Glamour: Reverses the roll of giver and receiver.
• Vulnerability: Strips the defense of the oathbreaker against the betrayed.
  • Glamour: Vulnerability to Glamour causes the oathbreaker to lose his normal resistance to the Contracts and powers of the one he betrayed.
  • Violence: Vulnerability to Violence causes the oathbreaker to have a defense of 0 against the betrayed. Additionally, any powers that grant any kind of bonus to defense or armor are negated against the betrayed.

Duration

• Day: The pledge lasts 24 hours.
• Week: The pledge lasts exactly 7 days, to the hour.
• Moon: The pledge lasts 28 days.
• Season: The pledge lasts precisely 89 days (1/4 of a year).
• Year and a Day: The pledge lasts for 366 days.
• Decade: The pledge lasts for exactly 10 years and 10 days.
• Lifelong: The pledge lasts until the death of one of the oathbound. Swearing a lifelong pledge requires the expenditure of 1 dot of willpower.
• Generational: The pledge lasts for the life of the oathbound, but when the oathbound dies, the pledge is not ended. Instead, responsibility for the pledge is passed on to the next generation. It isn't required that the next generation be blood-related to the original oathbound - these pledges are often passed to heirs acknowledged before the ruler of a freehold. These pledges also require the expenditure of a dot of Willpower. The oath lasts for a number of generations equal to the Wyrd of the oathtaker that spent the willpower dot originally.

See Also

• Changeling House Rules > Pledges
• Pledgesmith