The Uninvited Guest

YOU CAN SKIP

Note: This isn't essential to understanding the story—it's more for readers who want a quick glimpse into the power system before diving in. That said, there are spoilers!! not that much really just name drops. Anyway, enjoy!

Story Skills 

Definition: Story Skills are abilities granted to characters that reflect their role and significance within the realm's narrative. These skills are tied to a character's personal journey, evolution, and their interactions with the world. They encompass combat abilities, supportive skills, and more nuanced powers aligned with a character's profession, destiny, or story arc.

Categories: Story Skills are divided into six progressive stages, representing a character's growing narrative importance:

Common (Stage 1): Everyday roles (e.g., [Baker], [Guard], [Merchant]) with basic skills reflecting their function.

Uncommon (Stage 2): Slightly more significant roles (e.g., [Blacksmith], [Apothecary], [Scribe]) with specialized skills.

Rare (Stage 3): Impactful roles (e.g., [Warrior], [Healer], [Seer]) with abilities that can influence story outcomes.

Epic (Stage 4): Pivotal roles (e.g., [Chief Knight], [High Mage], [Chieftain]) with powerful skills that alter major events.

Legendary (Stage 5): Heroic figures (e.g., [Tour Guide Practical Officer]).

Mythic (Stage 6): Rare and almost divine roles.

Starter Pack: Every Story Skill comes with a starter pack. For example, someone with an illusion-based Story Skill might initially receive enhanced perception. Starter packs are consistent across characters, with only a few hundred existing overall. As a person ranks up, their starter pack becomes more specific. 

Ranking Up: As a character progresses, their Story Skill becomes more refined. For instance, an Illusionist at Stage 3 might evolve into a Mind Illusionist, specializing in mental manipulation.

Reset: If a character's Story Skill changes, all progress in the original skill is lost. However, the experience gained remains.

Dynamic Progression: Skills evolve based on narrative choices, alliances, and significant actions. Characters can gain or lose skills accordingly.

Progression is not guaranteed; characters can stagnate if they don't actively pursue their narrative arc.

Conflicting story arcs between characters can weaken or negate each other's skills. Julius and Zephyros.

Limitations:

Skills can regress or disappear if a character contradicts their narrative role.

Higher-stage skills require more Rasvian energy, leading to quicker exhaustion.

Skills become narrower in scope at higher stages, reducing versatility.

Progression is not guaranteed; stagnation is possible without active development.

Attachment Skills

Definition: Skills necessary for effectively using Story Skills. They serve as the practical application of Story Skills and are tailored to the character's role or function within their story. They rank up with Story skill.

Examples:

A [Baker] might have [Yeast Amplification], which enhances baking speed or quality.

A [Priest] could possess [Healing], providing restorative powers.

An [Emperor] might wield [Absolute Authority], compelling obedience.

Limitations: These skills are tied to specific manifestations of Rasvian energy or combinations thereof. While this limits versatility, it enhances specialized strength.

Dual-category Attachment: Allows skills to draw from two forms of Rasvian energy, enhancing versatility and complexity. For example, a [Mage] might combine Veil Rasvian for stealth and Amplifier Rasvian for usage of her Burst skill.

Personalization: Each character's Attachment Skills reflect their story skills which in turn reflect unique journey, experiences, and personal growth, adding subtle distinctions even among similar roles.

Unwritten Skills

Definition: Not naturally acquired but conferred through external means. given by other people/beings or even Artifacts, in short they are basically the same thing as Attachment skill, just not held back by limitations of story skills and can vary. limitations are where to get skills, if they fit current skillset and they can't rank up.

Stages of Individuals:

Normal: 1 Unwritten Skill

Knight: 2 Unwritten Skills

Priest: 3 Unwritten Skills

King: 4 Unwritten Skills

Champion: 5 Unwritten Skills

Improvement: These skills do not rank up but can improve in effectiveness, maintaining focus and clarity of function.

Title Skills

Definition: Skills linked to titles earned through notable achievements. Titles grant specific abilities and influence how others perceive and interact with the character.

Examples:

[Uninvited Guest] offers traits of suspicion and resistance to authority.

[Snake Eater], known for slaying snakes, may evolve into [Beast Slayer] as the character gains renown for slaying larger creatures.

Ranking System: Similar to Unwritten Skills, with higher-tier titles like Emperor Titles. Progression is based on public recognition and acknowledgment rather than internal development.

Priest Title [Snake Eater is in this Rank]

King Title

Champion Title

Emperor Title- Requires Transcendent+ Rasvian control; failure risks soul erosion.

Living Titles: Titles evolve based on the character's actions, enhancing both skills and influence.

Narrative Influence: Titles affect the environment and interactions with others, providing tangible benefits or challenges aligned with the character's journey.

Limitations:

Skills weaken if public perception shifts.

Activation may require specific, sometimes inconvenient, conditions.

Overreliance on Title Skills risks a fragile sense of self-worth.

Opponents can undermine Title Skills by challenging the title's legitimacy.

Rasvian Energy

Definition: Rasvian energy is the essence that powers all existence and abilities. It underpins Story Skills, Attachment Skills, and Unwritten Skills. It is both omnipresent and elusive, forming the foundation of all reality.

"Rasvian energy isn't formed, nor is it destroyed.It isn't erased or invented.It isn't figurative, yet it's not a concept.It isn't tangible, yet not intangible. It isn't bound by time, nor does it transcend it.It isn't created by will, nor moved by desire. It isn't alive, yet not lifeless.Not matter, nor void.Not a force, nor the absence of force. Not confined, nor omnipresent.Not something you see, hear, or touch—and yet, impossible to ignore."

Manifestations of Rasvian Energy

Navigator Rasvian Nature: Guides and directs energy with precision.

Function: Enhances control over skill execution, targeting, and manipulation.

Amplifier Rasvian Nature: Increases intensity and output.

Function: Boosts skill power; ideal for combat or high-energy use.

Veil Rasvian Nature: Conceals and distorts.

Function: Masks presence and intentions; used for stealth and illusions.

Transmuter Rasvian Nature: Converts energy types.

Function: Adapts energy for different uses; increases versatility.

Ascendant Rasvian Nature: Evolves and refines energy.Function: Enhances or transforms basic elements into advanced states.

Function and Usage

Weapons: Weapons act as conduits for Rasvian energy. They make manipulation easier, like how a paintbrush assists an artist.

Energy Mastery: Control over Rasvian energy sets individuals apart. Mastery enables advanced skills and manifestations.

Limitations: Rasvian boosts Story, Attachment, and Unwritten Skills—but not Title Skills, which depend on narrative influence.

Color: Typically blue, though variants exist. Colors often reflect the nature of one's abilities (e.g., red for fire skills).

Aura/Presence: Rasvian presence can manifest as "killing intent," or many other based on emotional output perceived by other characters.

Synergies: Different manifestations can combine for unique effects.

Costs: Manifestations have clear limits. Mastery demands careful balance.

Emotional Influence: Emotions fuel Rasvian dangerously—wrath may amplify strength but erode empathy; grief can heal but trap users in despair.

Ranks of Rasvian Control

Adept – A child smashing wet clay.

Ascendant – An apprentice shaping clay on a wheel.

Refined – A master potter shaping porcelain.

Resplendent – Clay moving without touch.

Illuminated – Breathing dust into sculpture.

Transcendent

Sovereign

Paragon

Aeon

Ouroboros

Ascension Trials: completing a significant personal story arc, overcoming a defining flaw, achieving widespread recognition fitting their rank goal or finding rare Rasvian-rich materials.

Demonic Ranks

Wicked → Malevolent → Corrupted → Abyssal → Infernal → Eldritch → Primordial Evil

Currency System

Draws and Silks:

Draws: Primary currency.

Silks: Sub-unit (20 silks = 1 draw).

Tiers:

Common Characters: Use silks for daily needs.

Noble Characters: Trade in draws.

Market Fluctuations: Value shifts with artifacts or materials.

Compensations

Definition: Sacrifices made to gain power, bound by local laws and sage decrees. For instance: Even most mortal can use compensation, "I sacrifice my arm to strengthen my Attachment Skill." it only works in the location, though the size varies. 

1. Cores: The Engine of Rasvian Energy

A core is the physical and spiritual reservoir of Rasvian energy, governing a being's vitality, skill potency, and connection to the world's narrative fabric

Function: Rasvian Control: A core's strength determines one's rank (Adept → Divine). Higher ranks allow mastery over complex manifestations (e.g., Navigator/Amplifier Rasvian).

Skill Activation: Story Skills and Attachment Skills draw directly from the core. For example, Leonardo's [Adaptive Evolution] evolves his body by channeling Rasvian through his core.

Fragility: Corruption or damage to the core can lead to death or loss of abilities.

2. Souls: The Narrative Essence Souls represent the metaphysical identity of a being, bound to their role in the world's stories and their capacity for transcendence.

Function: Story Anchors: Souls are tied to Story Skills, which evolve based on narrative choices.

Races, Species & Artifacts

Inherent Traits:

"Races and species offer distinct advantages," Zahra explained. "A Squidi's intellect versus a human's grit – these are innate narrative advantages, not Skills. They shape how Story Skills manifest but don't override the system's rules."

Artifacts - Distilled Purpose:

"Artifacts aren't exceptions; they're hyper-specialized expressions of the rules. They function like physical manifestations of Attachment Skills, locked into a single, immutable purpose defined at creation by a blacksmith or any similar story skills. (e.g., 'cut through lies,' 'thirst for blood'). They possess no will – only the purpose imprinted upon them."

Artifact "Progression" (Illusory):

Core Immutability: An artifact's core function never changes. A bloodthirsty blade remains bloodthirsty.

Wielder's Narrative Refines Application: As a wielder ascends (e.g., to Epic/Legendary), their powerful Story Skill and Rasvian mastery recontextualize the artifact's purpose within their narrative. The blade that "thirsts for blood" in a common hand might manifest as a "thirst for corrupt blood" or "thirst for justice" in a hero's grasp. The artifact doesn't change; the story interpreting its purpose does.

High-Tier Reinterpretation: In a Mythic story arc, abstract redefinition can occur. A dagger forged to "kill beasts" might sever metaphorical beasts (curses, concepts) because the wielder's narrative expands the definition of "beast."

Artifacts & Rasvian Manifestations:

Artifacts rely heavily on specific Rasvian Manifestations to function within their strict purpose:

Navigator Rasvian: Ensures precise targeting (e.g., a truth-seeing lens).

Amplifier Rasvian: Boosts its singular effect (e.g., a shield that blocks only fire, but does so immensely).

Veil Rasvian: Enables illusion-based artifacts (e.g., a "memory-weeping stone" projecting past traumas – its only function).

Transmuter/Ascendant: Rarely applied directly by the artifact, but may be required from the user to fuel complex artifacts.

The Illusion of Hunger/Sentience:

Artifacts absorb Rasvian energy imprinted with their users' emotions over time. A sword steeped in countless battles radiates amplified rage (Amplifier Rasvian corrupted by wrath), creating the illusion of bloodlust or "hunger." It's not sentience; it's resonance with the emotional energy it's been fed, reinforcing its core purpose. (Daelano's "stone that weeps with memories it refuses to surrender" exemplifies this – its Veil Rasvian holds imprints, making it feel haunted, but it cannot choose to act beyond showing those memories.)

Fixed-Function Artifacts

"One purpose. One perfection."

Core Principle: Embodies absolute specialization. Cannot deviate from its singular function, achieving unmatched efficiency within that niche.

Mechanics:

Unbreakable Focus: Ignores all external variables (emotions, environment, wielder's skill rank).

Overwhelming Output: enhanced effectiveness within its specialization (e.g., a dagger that "severs tendons" always cripples limbs, bypassing armor/Rasvian shields).

Stagnation Penalty: If unused for >24 hours, it enters dormancy (72-hour cooldown).

Example:

Gale-Cutter Arrow

Function: "Pierces airborne targets."

Hyper-Specialization: Automatically hits any flying entity within 1 mile. Useless against grounded foes.

Flaw: Cannot be aimed.

2. Context-Locked Artifacts

"I serve the moment, not the master."

Core Principle: Function changes based on environmental conditions, not the wielder. Its purpose is rewritten by the Narrative itself.

Mechanics:

Adaptive Purpose: Shifts function at dawn/dusk, in rain/sun, or in specific locations (e.g., a sword becomes a key in a vault).

Rasvian Resonance: Draws ambient Rasvian energy (no wielder cost). Function aligns with local Rasvian dominance (e.g., in a Veil-saturated forest, it cloaks; in Amplifier-rich battlefields, it explodes).

Brittle Reliability: If conditions change mid-use, it shatters.

Example:

Sundial Coin

Day Function: "Steals 1 memory per touch."

Night Function: "Restores 1 memory per touch."

Flaw: If exposed to moonlight at dusk/dawn, it incinerates memories randomly.

3. Resonant Artifacts

"I mirror your soul. For better or worse."

Core Principle: Amplifies/alters the wielder's Attachment Skill but locks onto its current iteration. Cannot be used by others.

Mechanics:

Skill Symbiosis: If wielder has [Fire Manipulation], the artifact becomes "Focused Flame Lens" (doubles range/halves cost).

Narrative Entropy: If wielder's Story Skill changes, the artifact permanently disables (e.g., [Warrior] → [Diplomat] breaks a battle-axe artifact).

Feedback Loop: Overuse risks merging artifact with skill (user loses Attachment Skill if artifact is destroyed).

Example:

Bloodprice Lens

Synergy: If wielder has healing Attachment Skill, converts it to "Leech Touch" 

Flaw: If wielder lacks a compatible skill, it induces Rasvian necrosis.