Applications of Mindcraft
See also the general article on Mindcraft
Because mindcraft is such a subtle art, its effects are limited. That is to say, its powers can, in contrast to the other types of magick, be summed up under a small number of categories. Mindcraft is as powerful as any type of magick, as long as one realises that part of that power lies in the fact that, of all magicks, it is the most subtle and possesses the most potential to be augmented by supporting skills. Each type of application of mindcraft will be looked at separately, with a few words on limitations, possibilities and hidden flaws and merits. The true extent of the powers is intentionally left vague, though.
Reading Minds
One of the most basic applications of mindcraft is reading minds. This option is already open to the beginning apprentice, who at Basic level gains the ability to read surface thoughts. As the mastery of mindcraft grows, so does the complexity of thoughts open to reading by the crafter. Indeed, the highest level of mindcraft almost makes the psychology skill irrelevant, since the complete depths of someone's mind may be read.
Do not think, though, that the ability to read deeper into a mind doesn't mean you can do it in the same time you could do a reading of surface thoughts. Digging deeply into someone's mind requires a great deal of time; digging all the way to the bottom might, especially for complex characters, take whole days or even weeks to achieve.
One aspect of mind reading that is easily overlooked is its use as an overture to the application of other uses of mindcraft. Especially powers such as suggestion and telepathy function much more effectively if the mind being affected isn't completely alien to the caster; especially in the case of lower levels of suggestion, it helps to make sure that the target isn't in the kind of mindset that would make the suggestion completely illogical - say, suggesting to a hedonist to leave the building just as he's starting to believe that the incredibly hot girl across the dance floor might be interested in him.
Also not to be underestimated is the crafter's own ability to augment this application without actually having to develop skills for it. If in conversation with the subject of the reading, a user might steer the conversation towards the subject he intends to read about. Often more effective than using mindcraft to outright force the target to speak the truth, a crafter can have the target think about the truth, and then read it while it's still conveniently on the surface. Because thought-reading is relatively simple and low-key in terms of energy usage, it doesn't require the use of voice at Basic or Apprentice levels of use. This means that almost always, the casting can be done by simply looking (or staring, in case of more powerful weavings) at the target. Only when employing mind reading at the very top of Master level does the caster find the need to employ his voice, in which case he must often whisper soothingly to his target, coaxing him to open his mind.
Suggestion and Command
Without a doubt the most useful tool in the repertoire of a mindcraftsman, suggestion and command give him the ability to directly influence another's actions. While both techniques work in about the same way, there are subtle differences between the two, which mainly come down to obviousness and outright potency.
Suggestion is the milder of the two. While targets are just as likely to perform a suggestion as they are a command, a suggestion doesn't impart a sense of urgency; instead, it weaves itself into the target's thought patterns, emerging as the most logical course of action. While this will seem natural to the target, it also means that he might ponder his options at his own leisure, which takes time. Also, unless this is incorporated into the suggestion itself or into the nature of the suggested activity, the target will never feel the need to hurry. If, for example, someone receives the suggestion to take a boat to the Western Kingdom, he will calmly consider his options, decide that the boat to the west is indeed the best idea, and book passage at the next convenient time. Unless that boat is going to leave in half an hour for the last time this century; in this case, the target would feel a sense of urgency, but that urgency is really just natural - the same he would feel if he realised that, five minutes before the shops close, he still needs to shop for Christmas.
The higher the level of mindcraft that the crafter possesses, the longer and more complex the suggestion might be. One confusing thing might be that the Basic level of mindcraft allows the caster to give one-word suggestions. How can you make one-word suggestions? Aren't they just commands? The answer here lies in the tone. If the word is pronounced much like a question, it becomes a suggestion, while if it was just said in a straightforward way, it becomes a command. Consider this example: if you were standing at a bar and your friend wanted to suggest having a drink, he would say: "would you like a drink?" This can be shortened to "drink?", which basically conveys the same suggestion in only one word. Now, if that friend had instead said "drink!", the message would not have been "would you like a drink?" but rather "you must finish your drink now." Thus, the tone in which the one word is said makes a difference between command and suggestion.
As said, command adds a sense of urgency to the request. Someone who has received a mindcraft command will immediately do what is asked of him, but will also realize, at that moment or later, that he is being manipulated. In some cases, the use of command is inevitable; the best example being that "Shouldn't you speak the truth" won't get you the truth (it will only give you a "yes" or "no"), while "Speak the truth!" will be a far harder request to put down beside you. As with suggestion, commands may be more complex and longer as the caster's skill in mindcraft progresses. "Go upstairs" can become "Go upstairs without being seen by the guard", and might ultimately become "Go through the door on the right, then wait fifty breaths, go to the back of the building, climb the wall and open the window three-quart of the way, then leave through the eastern gate." Players should never be allowed to push this, and incredible commands or daft ones should be rewarded accordingly.
Aura Perception is the skill that increases effectiveness for suggestions and commands. A character that has at least the level of Aura Perception that corresponds with the power level of the command or suggestion he is going to use finds that suggestions are followed up on faster and less easily doubted; commands become more effective and, if duration is an issue, last longer. Aura Perception affects this application of mindcraft because it allows the caster to sense the state of his target and fine-tune his command or suggestion to it.
One last word on command and suggestion: plausibility should always be a factor. Suggestions are dismissed outright if they don't seem at least remotely plausible, and commands might be ignored if the target truly feels that he couldn't perform that command. This doesn't mean that you can't command a mother to slay her own child (although you'd be a monster if you did), it means that you can't, for example, order someone to walk through a wall or swim over the great ocean. Also, suicide suggestions or commands are dismissed outright unless the target was already contemplating just that. You can't order someone to kill himself or do something that will very likely get himself killed. This doesn't mean you can't order someone to murder, though. As it stands, suggestion and command can stretch the boundaries of plausibility, but each time you go against likelihood, there are risks.
Telepathy
At Apprentice level of mindcraft, the caster gains the ability to perform telepathy-related weavings. He is now not only able to read another's mind, but to project thoughts or words into them. Starting at Journeyman, he can also use his mindcraft skill to open a telepathic link to anyone whose mind he is familiar with, thus allowing for two-way communication that was not possible on earlier levels.
Telepathy in general is used for communication, but the ability to channel not just words but thoughts, images and emotions is a power that should not be underestimated. Being able to talk to someone who is across the room without anyone else being able to listen in is a nice thing, but many traditionalists have found that projecting images of a foe's grisly death into their minds can often cause them to flee instead of skewer the crafter. It is also the most ranged of powers available to a craftsman.
While most other powers (with the exception of illusion) require physical proximity - at least to such a level that eye contact can be made - telepathy can be unleashed on anyone within line of sight, without actual eye contact. Again, this can be done when Empathy is used to augment the skill. If the caster must still use his voice to deliver the spell, he must still make sure that he is within hearing range of the target before the telepathy takes effect. Afterwards, however, he may move back out of hearing range; proximity is not required to maintain the spell. At Master level, and if the crafter possesses at least Journeyman level in Empathy, the caster may actively channel commands and suggestions directly into his target's mind. This has one advantage: he may do so from a greater distance, and without the use of eye contact.
Telekinetics
Crafters only use mind, eye and voice. It can be considered odd, then, to say the least, that one use of mindcraft requires a form of gesture. And that use is telekinetics. In order to employ a weaving that involves telekinetic activity, the caster must gesture towards the object he wishes to affect - he must 'reach out', so to speak - in addition to the normal prerequisite of voice usage or eye contact. In the case of the latter, eye contact is of course simply looking at the object; it has been scientifically proven that it is neigh impossible to get eye contact with an inanimate object, let along maintain it.
Crafters whose telekinetic ability has been enhanced by mental resolve can do all sorts of interesting things. Persistent rumours speak of a sculptor who mastered mindcraft and no longer required tools, instead carving the rock piece by small piece with only the will of his mind. Even though such applications are unlikely, characters should realize that empowered telekinesis isn't as limited as some of the traditional books and films would have it; anything that can be achieved through shaping, bending, and accelerating, could also be achieved by higher levels of a mindcraft/mental resolve combo. With the aid of the Resolve skill, casters can also lift more weight and apply more force, or they can keep a normal object floating for an extended period of time.
Astral Projection
A far less obvious use of mindcraft is the ability of astral projection. By going into a trance, the crafter may create a sort of spirit representative of his consciousness (often called an "avatar") that has a number of advantages, always including invulnerability to normal weaponry, the sharing of senses with the caster, and being under full control of the caster.
A mindcraftsman may weave spells related to astral projection starting with the Apprentice level of mindcraft. Note that an astral projection can be detected through any magic that detects spirits or invisible beings, and is subject to wards that are targeted against such things. If an avatar is destroyed, the caster is shocked out of his trance and will have a solid headache for the next few hours. At Apprentice level, the control of an avatar is still shaky. It may travel (and fly) at running speed, without tiring the caster in any way; it may pass through walls, floors and ceilings, and is invisible to the naked eye. It can see clearly, but misses the sensations of smell and touch. The projection hears things a little distorted. At Journeyman level, the avatar may travel at twice running speed, and now has full sense of hearing, and muted sense of smell. With extra effort (and expenditure of personal energy) the caster can make his projection physically affect something few about a second; enough to knock over a light vase or tap someone on the shoulder. At Master level, the avatar travels at four times running speed, and has the full range of senses as if he were a normal person. With the expenditure of energy, the caster can make his projection tangible for a minute or two. While the projection is tangible, it is still not effectible by mundane weapons, but might be susceptible to the casting of spells on it.
Note that Astral Projection is not augmented by any skill.
Illusions
No magickal effect is so well suited to the mind as illusion. The affecting of another's senses to make real what isn't there is a very powerful method of deceit; mindcraft, which in its most natural form deals directly with the mind, is without doubt suited for illusion as few other styles of magick are. Illusions are already an option at Basic level, where the crafter can cause someone to hallucinate, hear whispers or smell something that isn't there. The powers only increase over the levels, until finally, at Master level, the craftsman can submerge targets into their own imaginary world, where nothing they experience is real, but everything is real to them. As a rudimentary way of measuring illusion-related power, one can assume that at Basic level of mindcraft, the caster can simulate one sense, with two at Apprentice, three at Journeyman, and all five at Master level.
In all cases, the mindcraftsman can only affect one mind per casting. One specific exception to this is the magical disguise. Starting at Apprentice level, the caster can magically disguise himself; the higher his mindcraft skill, the better the disguise holds up. This illusion is not limited to one target, but to any who see the disguised caster. If any situation allows the caster to choose more targets for his weaving, then he may simply disguise more people with this variation of illusion.
Additionally, if a character with Master level in mindcraft also possesses Journeyman level in public speaking or another crowd-related skill, he may extend the illusion so that it affects more people in the same way; if he possesses at least two crowd-related skills at Master and mindcraft at Master level, he may extend the illusion to the whole of the crowd.
Illusions can be used in unexpected ways. Everyone is familiar with the example of a mage creating monsters which people run away from; less well known applications include paying a shopkeeper with illusionary money (mind that he'll find out later, though), summoning an illusionary cat to convince the magistrate that you really are an animal lover, or making yourself invisible to someone.
Self-Healing/Regeneration
The last of mindcraft's specific applications is that of self-healing. With an attitude of mind-over-matter, the crafter is able to affect changes in his body. While it lies outside mindcraft's subtle abilities to increase strength, speed, and other physical aspects of the body, he may use his will to close wounds and at later levels cleanse himself of toxins and infections. His recovery rate can also be improved; special healing trances are taught to traditionalists and will come intuitively to some bards. As a rule of thumb, mindcraftsmen can heal minor wounds and afflictions with a spell at Basic level, and slowly climb the scale until they can heal all but deathblows and insta-kill poisons at Master level. Their natural healing rate also improves as the skill does; recovery time is reduced by a small amount for every * that a character possesses, where a normal level counts for five *'s.
