Snaring Smoke (Fall 2024 Practicum)
Among the many powers of the Witch King is that of creation: to take an old Memory and make it New. Such a Memory approached me and presented this game: a very clever spirit to propose a game to a magician like me. Seven novice practitioners who want to become magicians but lack the experience to push beyond their boundaries come together, make a "body" for the spirit, and they fight for control over it. The Memory will become a new and proper spirit either way, but if it "keeps" its body parts, the participants get nothing but the experience to take with them. If, however, you all are able to not only invite the spirit into your space, challenge it, and then successfully bind it to your service, I will grant you one of its powers to be yours until death, inherited by one of your chosen successors should you so desire to extend that privilege upon your End.
To give you a chance in this matter, the first week of this practicum will be spent as a crash-course into magical combat, in both defending and attacking spirits and less corporeal entities as a whole. Over the weekend, we will spend Saturday and Sunday hammering out strategies and potential ways of handling the spirit. It is a Memory of Smoke, of some Olde Form of the concept that no longer has a place in this world or is in a much weaker state than it used to be. Either way, I am thrilled at the premise: binding smoke is an incredibly difficult premise, made all the more complex by the general inexperience of the practitioners. On the flipside, you will also be given a temporary boost in magical power from the Witch King himself, a bit of Grace to give you a chance in this fight.
Most importantly, all participants are collaborators in this. While each of you must face the spirit on your own, each of you is facing the same spirit. It has to overcome seven practitioners while all seven of you are working just to overcome it. After the ritual has started properly, we will meet as a group to discuss your experiences (or potential lack thereof!) and participants are encouraged to share their experiences. Even a failed attempt to tame the spirit will have useful lessons, perhaps juts ones your own eyes can't see. This game is as much about learning to use other people's experiences and share in the mystical as it is about facing off against a spirit.
For added protection, the spirit will be given a number of specific conditions. Some I will keep from you all because it would make the game too easy if you knew of them, but the important ones you should know:
The spirit cannot physically harm you in a way that would not recover within 2-3 weeks of normal activity (little cuts, a cough, illnesses are fair game)
The spirit cannot harm anyone who is not a direct participant in the game and cannot cause harm to them as an indirect consequences of its actions (ie. it cannot start a fire that would harm other people even just via smoke inhalation)
The spirit cannot bring other spirits or magicians into the game to harm you all on its behalf or attempt to circumvent the rules. The only magician outside the game that it may interact with is yours truly.
You will be given additional instructions but be cautioned: even if you yourself do not perform the rite as instructed and think yourself "beating the game", know that I will be casting the ritual regardless. Purchasing this spot in the practicum is a binding contract between the Witch King and all participants: whether you play or not, you will be part of this game. If you fail to make a body for the spirit, it will simply use yours. If you refuse to participate, it will feed and you will fester. If you refuse to follow-through, you will lose and the others will suffer for it.
Class times on the dates will be determined once the participants are chosen but the key dates are:
CLASS ONE - maleficia & spiritual combat (10/19)
CLASS TWO - exerting authority (10/20)
CLASS THREE - 1 on 1 (10/23 - 10/26)
CLASS FOUR - group session (10/26)
CLASS FIVE - post-ritual session (11/2)
Participants will start the ritual on October 23rd and it ends at midnight on Halloween, October 31st. We will discuss the remainder in class and over email leading up to the 19th.
Good luck!
Among the many powers of the Witch King is that of creation: to take an old Memory and make it New. Such a Memory approached me and presented this game: a very clever spirit to propose a game to a magician like me. Seven novice practitioners who want to become magicians but lack the experience to push beyond their boundaries come together, make a "body" for the spirit, and they fight for control over it. The Memory will become a new and proper spirit either way, but if it "keeps" its body parts, the participants get nothing but the experience to take with them. If, however, you all are able to not only invite the spirit into your space, challenge it, and then successfully bind it to your service, I will grant you one of its powers to be yours until death, inherited by one of your chosen successors should you so desire to extend that privilege upon your End.
To give you a chance in this matter, the first week of this practicum will be spent as a crash-course into magical combat, in both defending and attacking spirits and less corporeal entities as a whole. Over the weekend, we will spend Saturday and Sunday hammering out strategies and potential ways of handling the spirit. It is a Memory of Smoke, of some Olde Form of the concept that no longer has a place in this world or is in a much weaker state than it used to be. Either way, I am thrilled at the premise: binding smoke is an incredibly difficult premise, made all the more complex by the general inexperience of the practitioners. On the flipside, you will also be given a temporary boost in magical power from the Witch King himself, a bit of Grace to give you a chance in this fight.
Most importantly, all participants are collaborators in this. While each of you must face the spirit on your own, each of you is facing the same spirit. It has to overcome seven practitioners while all seven of you are working just to overcome it. After the ritual has started properly, we will meet as a group to discuss your experiences (or potential lack thereof!) and participants are encouraged to share their experiences. Even a failed attempt to tame the spirit will have useful lessons, perhaps juts ones your own eyes can't see. This game is as much about learning to use other people's experiences and share in the mystical as it is about facing off against a spirit.
For added protection, the spirit will be given a number of specific conditions. Some I will keep from you all because it would make the game too easy if you knew of them, but the important ones you should know:
The spirit cannot physically harm you in a way that would not recover within 2-3 weeks of normal activity (little cuts, a cough, illnesses are fair game)
The spirit cannot harm anyone who is not a direct participant in the game and cannot cause harm to them as an indirect consequences of its actions (ie. it cannot start a fire that would harm other people even just via smoke inhalation)
The spirit cannot bring other spirits or magicians into the game to harm you all on its behalf or attempt to circumvent the rules. The only magician outside the game that it may interact with is yours truly.
You will be given additional instructions but be cautioned: even if you yourself do not perform the rite as instructed and think yourself "beating the game", know that I will be casting the ritual regardless. Purchasing this spot in the practicum is a binding contract between the Witch King and all participants: whether you play or not, you will be part of this game. If you fail to make a body for the spirit, it will simply use yours. If you refuse to participate, it will feed and you will fester. If you refuse to follow-through, you will lose and the others will suffer for it.
Class times on the dates will be determined once the participants are chosen but the key dates are:
CLASS ONE - maleficia & spiritual combat (10/19)
CLASS TWO - exerting authority (10/20)
CLASS THREE - 1 on 1 (10/23 - 10/26)
CLASS FOUR - group session (10/26)
CLASS FIVE - post-ritual session (11/2)
Participants will start the ritual on October 23rd and it ends at midnight on Halloween, October 31st. We will discuss the remainder in class and over email leading up to the 19th.
Good luck!
Among the many powers of the Witch King is that of creation: to take an old Memory and make it New. Such a Memory approached me and presented this game: a very clever spirit to propose a game to a magician like me. Seven novice practitioners who want to become magicians but lack the experience to push beyond their boundaries come together, make a "body" for the spirit, and they fight for control over it. The Memory will become a new and proper spirit either way, but if it "keeps" its body parts, the participants get nothing but the experience to take with them. If, however, you all are able to not only invite the spirit into your space, challenge it, and then successfully bind it to your service, I will grant you one of its powers to be yours until death, inherited by one of your chosen successors should you so desire to extend that privilege upon your End.
To give you a chance in this matter, the first week of this practicum will be spent as a crash-course into magical combat, in both defending and attacking spirits and less corporeal entities as a whole. Over the weekend, we will spend Saturday and Sunday hammering out strategies and potential ways of handling the spirit. It is a Memory of Smoke, of some Olde Form of the concept that no longer has a place in this world or is in a much weaker state than it used to be. Either way, I am thrilled at the premise: binding smoke is an incredibly difficult premise, made all the more complex by the general inexperience of the practitioners. On the flipside, you will also be given a temporary boost in magical power from the Witch King himself, a bit of Grace to give you a chance in this fight.
Most importantly, all participants are collaborators in this. While each of you must face the spirit on your own, each of you is facing the same spirit. It has to overcome seven practitioners while all seven of you are working just to overcome it. After the ritual has started properly, we will meet as a group to discuss your experiences (or potential lack thereof!) and participants are encouraged to share their experiences. Even a failed attempt to tame the spirit will have useful lessons, perhaps juts ones your own eyes can't see. This game is as much about learning to use other people's experiences and share in the mystical as it is about facing off against a spirit.
For added protection, the spirit will be given a number of specific conditions. Some I will keep from you all because it would make the game too easy if you knew of them, but the important ones you should know:
The spirit cannot physically harm you in a way that would not recover within 2-3 weeks of normal activity (little cuts, a cough, illnesses are fair game)
The spirit cannot harm anyone who is not a direct participant in the game and cannot cause harm to them as an indirect consequences of its actions (ie. it cannot start a fire that would harm other people even just via smoke inhalation)
The spirit cannot bring other spirits or magicians into the game to harm you all on its behalf or attempt to circumvent the rules. The only magician outside the game that it may interact with is yours truly.
You will be given additional instructions but be cautioned: even if you yourself do not perform the rite as instructed and think yourself "beating the game", know that I will be casting the ritual regardless. Purchasing this spot in the practicum is a binding contract between the Witch King and all participants: whether you play or not, you will be part of this game. If you fail to make a body for the spirit, it will simply use yours. If you refuse to participate, it will feed and you will fester. If you refuse to follow-through, you will lose and the others will suffer for it.
Class times on the dates will be determined once the participants are chosen but the key dates are:
CLASS ONE - maleficia & spiritual combat (10/19)
CLASS TWO - exerting authority (10/20)
CLASS THREE - 1 on 1 (10/23 - 10/26)
CLASS FOUR - group session (10/26)
CLASS FIVE - post-ritual session (11/2)
Participants will start the ritual on October 23rd and it ends at midnight on Halloween, October 31st. We will discuss the remainder in class and over email leading up to the 19th.
Good luck!