Calling the True Name of a thing is the closest thing to 'real magic' an Arcanist can achieve.
When an Arcanist calls the True Name of a thing (through trying or knowing), it can command that thing fully and inevitably.
Master Namer pointed down the street. "What color is that boy's shirt?
"Blue."
"What do you mean by blue? Describe it."
I struggled for a moment, failed. "So blue is a name?"
"It is a word. Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts. There are seven words that will make a person love you. There are ten words that will break a strong man's will. But a word is nothing but a painting of a fire. A name is the fire itself."
My head was swimming by this point. "I still don't understand."
He laid a hand on my shoulder. "Using words to talk of words is like using a pencil to draw a picture of itself, on itself. Impossible. Confusing. Frustrating."
~The Name of blue - book: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
There are 2 ways an Arcanist can call a True Name:
- Knowing the Name by studying the object for an extended period of time
- Trying to call the Name and succeeding
To learn the True Name of a thing, one must convey x amount of study to that particular thing, and have access to it.
This way they can start to grasp the complexity of the thing that is being studied, and call it's Name at will.
To try to call the True Name of a thing, the Arcanist must have access to the 'Spinning Leaf' ability. (See: spell: 'Spinning Leaf')
"As I watched, gently dazed by the motion of the tree, I felt my mind slip lightly into the clear, empty float of Spinning Leaf. I realized the motion of the tree wasn’t random at all, really. It was actually a pattern made of endless changing patterns. And then, my mind open and empty, I saw the wind spread out before me. It was like frost forming on a blank sheet of window glass. One moment, nothing. The next, I could see the name of the wind as clearly as the back of my own hand."
~Seeing the Name of the Wind - book: The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Attempting to call a True Name is done by rolling a d20 3 times without modifiers and getting at least one 20.
The effect of calling the True Name of the thing chosen is discussed with the DM.
The Name of the thing is immediately forgotten after calling it when it wasn't known to you, unless you are a lv20 Arcanist.
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Posted Oct 1, 2020This is very cool. I love the openness of the description. I also get that it is intentionally light on detail to maximise the flexibility and story/role playing options...
Though I’m not sure what is meant by that last line “when it wasn’t known to you”. Does that mean if you haven’t done the extensive study you forget the true name? (Say if someone simply told you the true name? Or if you miraculously guessed it?)
Assuming that is the case, what would stop a character from writing down the true name before they call it? (So after they forget, they simply refer to their notes?). Would/could you provide some additional text that describes a little more on how you see this working? For instance, I would guess a true name involves more than the sound a mouth makes to call it, more than the ink of the letters it would take to write it? That these basic mechanics (per the great Rothfuss quotes) are insufficient.
Which of course then begs the question how could you learn a thing’s true name other than via the study? Excepting a random guess (good luck with that!) I imagine somehow the knowledge must be transferred via telepathy or a dream? Perhaps some set or subset of fey/celestial/demon/devils can ‘gift’ that knowledge?
Lastly, this is a spell that is cast to call a true name...so along similar lines to the above simply saying a thing’s true name would be different to calling it? And what are the consequences, if any, do you envisage of casting the spell and using the wrong name?
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Posted Feb 22, 2021I skimmed your comment, the basics is that you have to read the books, these “names” aren’t just “red” they are different so you can’t write them down.