X-Topic-No: 9 Date: Thu, 21 Apr 1994 14:31:22 -0700 (PDT) From: "David C. Foyt" To: mage-l@wizards.com Subject: Some ideas for symbolic Chronicle / Story creation ... Message-ID: Well, I've had what, to me, feels like a breakthrough with creating interesting, dynamic stories using symbols. Below are the conventions and traditions of the technocracy and their corresponding symbology in my games and in my head. :) This is, by no means meant to be a "truth" about what each of these things symbolize, but I thought I would share my ideas to see what other people think. Technocracy = Oppression New World Order = The Government The Syndicate = The Market Iteration X = The Military Progenitors = Fecundity, the perversion of nature Void Engineers = Exploration for puropses of conquering (The Conquistedors) Traditions = Enlightenment Enlightenment through : Akashic Brotherhood = Self - control Celestial Chorus = Religion Cult of Ecstasy = Ecstasy Dreamspeakers = Spirituality Euthanotos = Death / Rebirth Hollow Ones = Emptiness (?) Order of Hermes = Intellect Sons of Ether = Science Verbenna = Nature Virtual Adepts = Alternative choices And what are those things that keep people from Enlightenment? Hatred, Anger, Fear, Disease, Gluttony, Jealousy, Envy, Greed, Narrow Mindedness, Closed Mindedness, Boredom, Corruption ... etc. So, maybe, to craete a really open-ended chronicle ... use one of the symbols from "things that keep people from enlightenment" and personify it as the major antagonist in a chronicle ... or as several smaller antagonists. i.e. Corruption (what do you think when you think "corruption"?) = Demons, The Government (a.k.a the New World Order), money ... those themes could all figure very heavily in several stories until the characters finally meet with the major personification of Corruption in the game and overcome him/her/it or are consumed by him/her/it. And, is using sorruption, don't forget to use the symbol against the character in a personal kind of way ... using a corrupting force to push the Akashic Brither to lose control of himself, or undermine the Oder of Hermes magi's cherished theories (and destroy all his notes and books). Disease = Dissention , Progenitors, physical, social and mental diseases of all types. Anyway ... I hope you understand all this rambling ... - -christopher