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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gez" data-source="post: 1627187" data-attributes="member: 1328">I haven't used birthmarks yet.But if I do, it could be nearly of the poll choices, actually.<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Demons and Devils mark their worshippers: Yup. I haven't used a cabal of evil cultists yet, but a mark is always a great thing for the evil cultist. First, it can be used as a recognition tool, to avoid getting infiltrated. Second, it makes leaving the cult harder -- even if you stop going to the black mass, you'll still keep a mark telling you you're owned. Third, if you're restive, the fiend can blackmail you, or rat you out; the sign being a proof of your guilt.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">The Gods mark their chosen: I don't like predestination too much (fate is very vague IMC, and concern more populations as a whole than individuals in particular).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Those of tainted blood show visible signs: Possible.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Those of high birth have the marks to prove it: If I use that, the mark would rather be a family curse or blessing than a show of nobility. Which means familial marks could also exist in common families, and that they would be rare even among nobles.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Fey often leave pesky changelings with icky marks: Could be, but I'd rather go more folkstale, and give things like duck feet or horns or other odd deformities.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Those gifted by Nature with special powers are marked as such: See "marks imply power" below.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Birthmarks may mean special ancestry, not necessarily special power (e.g.: rightful king, not chosen of a god): It's a bit cliché, but then again, archetypes are good. If I use that, I'd likely twist it a bit: the "rightful inheritor" would actually be a reincarnation of his ancestor, and the birthmark a side-effect of the magic used to reincarnate, or a way to retrieve the memories of the past life.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">"He's just born ugly, that's curse enough": Nothing like a good red herring. Either a mundane birthmark that superstitious folks deem supernatural; or a supernatural birthmark that dull people deem mundane.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Power is not inherently moral -- it's the use of power that can be judged Good or Evil -- but marks still imply power: Depending on the mark, it could be. Runes of power, esoteric diagrams, and arcane symbols are a very important part of arcane magic IMC (they serve as lei-trap; the more you keep in mind, the more lei you can accumulate; and thus the more spells you can cast). Thus, having such a mark on someone could be the sign of inborn arcane power -- perhaps a side-effect of a feat like Spellcasting Prodigy.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">We use 'em, but in some way that's not represented here: No, I haven't used them.</li> </ul></blockquote>

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