We already have The Ascended for those who have received a single species upgrade, those who constantly seek death and rebirth strikes something different.

Mechanics would be interesting too; usually the give life spell creates a hybrid/new personality between the two people, but perhaps if the stone was damaged in some way the personality would be similar with only small changes, perhaps in exchange for physical form being very different with only a few things staying the same. If this were the case the rank could be "The Faceless"

Alternatively they could be little more than experiments, perhaps those whose first selves volunteer but whose later selves are now stuck in a contract they didn't agree to, growing more and more amalgamated with each cycle and perhaps growing more unstable mentally as the original gem design was not meant to be that constantly exposed to life energy. This scenario the rank would be "The Subjects"

Oooohhh, I love the idea 'the Faceless'. that sounds awesome!

I do like the idea of the subjects, but the faceless- that name just sends a real chill down the spine. I'll add it to the front page!

@Yuma

"Upon entering the covenant, new members will be joined by each existing member of the covenant along with the Enlightened in an especially picked alcove. Here, The enlightened will promise to expand the new member's knowledge, respect them and their views, fulfil their needs and aid the purpose they seek. In return, they pledge a part of themselves to Gabriel and promise to defend the Covenant with their lives. This will involve either granting a piece of their stone to Gabriel (through give stone) or allowing Gabriel to create a sensorial link between them. Then, they will dip their paw or hoof into a concoction of lesser gembound blood and mud, and make their mark on the alcove wall alongside the rest of the Covenant. "

@Imperia @Poughkeepsie @Yuma @tacitus @astaroth @toevij @andromeda @future @lituus

Suggestions? Opinions?

@Gabriel
Give me a bit of your stone so I can make babies in your likeness or forge a telempathetic bond with you so we can hear and feel each other no matter what? HMMMM. Give stone would probably be easier. And cheaper. That's cool though. Like, in order to join you must first OFFER ME A PLOT DEVICE.

I think you should do Sensorial Link. Give Stone is neat and all, but its more intended for breeding, especially because there's a limited time frame during which you can make a baby after using the Give Stone spell so most offerings would be rendered moot, and I wouldn't wanna pay an extra amount of magicka just to join a group.

HOWEVER.... if you want to do something that doesn't require the game mechanics, you can just have characters chip off a piece of the stone without using Give Stone. It won't be usable for baby making, and it'll hurt a lot, but it could work. Otherwise, I'd say Senso Link.

We were talking in the chat box earlier and one of the major ideas that arose was that perhaps members would pledge their gems when they joined with the assumption that the debt would be claimed after they died. If a gem tried to leave or did something against group interest they may suddenly find themselves hunted as their debt was called in early. With player input and permission character may be forced to become a faceless, have gem cast aside in rejects pile never to live again, or forever be seen as a traitor.

Senatorial link might be reserved for high ranking members and be required for some of the more important meeting of something. Also should definitely be used on faceless so they can never leave.

This would make joining low cost and leaving flavorful for characters.

Aaaahhh, I didn't realize there was a time limit on give stone! I take that's so breeding will be limited to a single thread? That makes sense!
In that case, having the sensorial link be the only part of the contract makes far more sense. In honesty I was planning on having the link be part of it all along, so that then information can be quickly shared between Gabriel and the covenant; my thoughts were that this seems quite intrusive but would be valuable to their cause.
Added that to the top post!

In addition, I feel that chipping almost all of the covenant's stones would be slightly counrer-intuitive as it risks damaging the gem that could be used for other purposes.

And yeah, we were discussing that in the chat!
It'd definitely open the door to some interesting plots, like characters becoming fugitives or even rebellions against the cult, or even more peaceful exits, in which the character is allowed by Gabriel to 'leave' peacefully, however with a debt on their shoulders. In this case they may be sought out to do dirty work again despite not being a member of the covenant anymore and being looked down upon.

@Yuma @Poughkeepsie

@tacitus @toevij @andromeda @gadanai @yuma @poughkeepsie @imperia @lituus @astaroth @future

Group formation will begin after the quest: to-do list has ended! By that point, Gabriel will have developed its powers somewhat and kindled an interest in death and rebirth. I'll be making an AW that all potential members are free to drop into, however if you want a private thread with Gabriel, post below! We're still totally open if anyone else has any chars you wanna throw at us.

Thank you all for your interest in this idea! I can't wait to get the ball rolling!

@Gabriel I would love a private thread with them and Ast! Also, in which rank would those showing prowess in magic be placed?

@astaroth
There's no specific rank for magical prowess, the ranks are based more on purpose and experimentation. Although there will be magic trials for stones.
In addition, a protector rank may be added at some point!