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| | See Also: [[Strata|STRATA]], [[Peristrata|PERISTRATA]], [[Spell:Dowsing|DOWSING]], [[Strata Crystals|STRATA CRYSTALS]], [[Spell:Attunement|ATTUNEMENT]] | | See Also: [[Strata|STRATA]], [[Peristrata|PERISTRATA]], [[Spell:Dowsing|DOWSING]], [[Strata Crystals|STRATA CRYSTALS]], [[Spell:Attunement|ATTUNEMENT]] |
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| − | The {{WikEQ|name=stratiscopic pendulum|keywords=pendulum}} is an instrument that measures the alignment of | + | The {{WikEQ|name=stratiscopic pendulum|keywords=pendulum chain}} is an instrument that measures the alignment of |
| | the local equipotenials of the reality-orthogonal-distance to a specific | | the local equipotenials of the reality-orthogonal-distance to a specific |
| | stratum, through a process called "dowsing". These useful devices can only be | | stratum, through a process called "dowsing". These useful devices can only be |
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| | in nature. Each stratiscopic pendulum is tuned to one specific stratum. The | | in nature. Each stratiscopic pendulum is tuned to one specific stratum. The |
| | stratum is determined by the type of shard used to make the pendulum. See | | stratum is determined by the type of shard used to make the pendulum. See |
| − | "help sidhe charms" for the correspondence between shard appearance and | + | "help strata crystals" for the correspondence between shard appearance and |
| | stratum. | | stratum. |
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| | The other vital component of the pendulum is a properly thaumatically | | The other vital component of the pendulum is a properly thaumatically |
| | insulated chain with a clasp. Any competent mage knows how to construct | | insulated chain with a clasp. Any competent mage knows how to construct |
| − | one of these, there's no need to go into the details here. | + | one of these; there's no need to go into the details here. |
| − | | |
| − | Dowsing can only be performed by a skilled mage. Assuming that the reader is
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| − | such a person, instructions follow. To dowse, simply let a (properly
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| − | constructed) stratiscopic pendulum swing freely while practicing
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| − | either the first or third meditation forms to damp out your own thaumatic
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| − | fields. Note that you must take care to dispel from yourself any spells
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| − | of the stratum being dowsed, or their interference will mask the actual
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| − | results. The magical fields around powerful extraplanar entities can also
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| − | foul up the readings. (If you are yourself a powerful extraplanar entity,
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| − | I recommend contacting Orkhis at the Mages' Guild in Bal Harbor to hire one
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| − | of our many fine practitioners of the arts to perform the dowsing for you -
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| − | you won't be able to do it yourself on this plane.)
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| − | | |
| − | Below is a catalogue of the possible results of dowsing:
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| − | | |
| − | 1. pendulum refuses to swing
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| − | This occurs only when you have found the peristratum that you seek.
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| − | Congratulations!
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| − | | |
| − | 2. pendulum swings in a circle
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| − | This is the default state of the pendulum, that is, a null reading. This
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| − | behavior might indicate several things: you could be extremely distant from
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| − | the peristratum, for example on a different continent; in that case the
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| − | field gradients are so minute that the pendulum won't produce a
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| − | detectable reading. Or, your pendulum might be defective, or burned out.
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| − | If the shard you're using is crumbly and black, then it's time to make a
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| − | new pendulum. The process of dowsing puts quite a bit of stress on the
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| − | shard, so this can be expected to occur from time to time.
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| − | | |
| − | 3. pendulum swings in an ellipse with its major axis aligned north-south
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| − | The equipotenial plane is east-west/up-down, meaning that the peristratum
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| − | lies either north or south of your current position.
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| − | | |
| − | 4. pendulum swings in an ellipse with its major axis aligned east-west
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| − | The equipotenial plane is north-south/up-down, meaning that the peristratum
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| − | lies either east or west of your current position.
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| − | | |
| − | 5. pendulum bobs up and down
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| − | The equipotenial plane is north-south/east-west, meaning that the
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| − | peristratum lies either above or below your current position.
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| − |
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| − | 6. pendulum jumps around chaotically
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| − | Either the equipotentials are chaotic, or there's some sort of interference.
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| − | The latter case is the easier to deal with: find and remove the source of
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| − | the interference. It's either a spell on somebody in the room or a
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| − | disruptively powerful creature in the room. If the creature cannot easily
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| − | be removed, try bypassing the room and getting an idea of the local
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| − | equipotentials by taking readings in the surrounding rooms.
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| − | | |
| − | If you have eliminated all sources of interference and the pendulum is
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| − | still acting like this, that means the peristratum of the stratum being
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| − | measured is spatially sequestered, and you aren't in the same disjoint
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| − | space that it is. There's no easy way to remedy this; you will just have
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| − | to explore all of the disjoint spaces on the present continent until you
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| − | get a good reading.
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| − | | |
| − | Addendum: there are various guides to dowsing about in the land which
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| − | record the practices of hedge wizards. One of the more reliable ones is
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| − | in the form of a manual bound in witch hazel bark.
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| | </helpfile> | | </helpfile> |
| | [[Category:Help Files|Pendulum]] | | [[Category:Help Files|Pendulum]] |
