Hocus Questions

There's a Hocus named Truth that fills the leader role in the game I'm MCing. Truth is a fucking wacknut (weird+3), and has the move frenzy. Here are his Followers:

Description: Truth's cult. They travel with Truth. Taken as a body, they constitute a powerful psychic antenna. Eager, enthusiastic, and successful recruiters. They aren't really Truth's, it's more like he's theirs. They are decadent and perverse.
Fortune: +1
Surplus: 1-barter, Augury, and Growth.
Want: Judgment, and Savagery.

Firstly, how do I handle his follower's wants contra the fact that Truth's followers aren't really his, it's more like he's theirs? I don't really understand how to decipher what a cult of people willing to travel with a hocus, but not because they're his followers, but because they somehow see themselves owning him, and that coupled with the want: judgment it has me confused. Would someone please give me a few pointers, tips or ideas?

Secondly, of course Truth failed his first session fortunes roll. His followers blamed him for being in want, a follower was mutilated by another, then they turned their fury on Truth himself. The hocus used frenzy to have the followers brutally butcher the maimer and calm them down for the time being. I saw Truth pointing out that the followers were to blame as the truth, is this correct in general (in our story it obviously was)? I mean, since fortunes is tied to the followers, if they're in want it should in general be their own fault, right?

Thirdly, any tips on how to handle augury? My first question for the hocus' player when he wants to use augury will probably be, "what is augury?" What is it in your games?

Btw, the other two characters in our game are Damson the battlebabe, a loyal follower of Truth the hocus, and Shithead the chopper who is puzzled by how Truth dared stand up to him, and perhaps on the fence of also becoming a cult member.

I think well when putting words in writing, and just typing this up gave me a couple of new ideas.

Thirdly, any tips on how to handle augury? My first question for the hocus' player when he wants to use augury will probably be, "what is augury?" What is it in your games?

Several of those are deeper questions. Augury is easy. When and if the character decides to use augury, he'll have something specific in mind that he wants to do. He won't be like "uhhh... I guess I want to put some info in the Maelstrom." He'll know what info, who he hopes gets it, etc.

All of this is dependent on so many fictional things, especially: "What is your Maelstrom?". Like a lot of AW stuff, it looks weird until it happens in context of a game. Then it's like "Hells yes, you pull out one of the dead spirits from the Howl. You realize that thing is going to leak out into its surroundings?" "Oh, well, I need to talk to it". etc.

That makes a lot of sense Chris, thanks. It is sort of what I started realizing after typing it up. I also realized this morning, that my major issue with "Augury" was that I literally didn't know the definition of the word, but that has been corrected now.

For the first, maybe he's their guide, not their leader. They travel with him, but he answers to them if they wind up in the wrong place.

For the first, maybe he's their guide, not their leader. They travel with him, but he answers to them if they wind up in the wrong place.

Makes sense. Something like the hocus even being a puppet of sorts started forming in my head during the typing of this post, but I'll let their exact relationship materialize in play. I will definitely ask the player how he sees his character's relationship to his followers.

Quote from: lumpley on September 16, 2010, 09:56:35 AM

For the first, maybe he's their guide, not their leader. They travel with him, but he answers to them if they wind up in the wrong place.

Makes sense. Something like the hocus even being a puppet of sorts started forming in my head during the typing of this post, but I'll let their exact relationship materialize in play. I will definitely ask the player how he sees his character's relationship to his followers.

Yeah. A lot of situations like this in the Dune books. Sure, Paul is the Godhead. Sure. But when you start laying out principles to your peeps, they're gonna start following them, even if you disagree with this in this particular situation.

Standing above the crowd,
He had a voice that was strong and loud and I
Swallowed his facade cuz I'm so
Eager to identify with
Someone above the ground,
Someone who seemed to feel the same,
Someone prepared to lead the way, with
Someone who would die for me.

Will you? Will you now?
Would you die for me?
Don't you fuckin lie.

Don't you step out of line.
Don't you step out of line.
Don't you step out of line.
Don't you fuckin lie.

You've claimed all this time that you would die for me.
Why then are you so surprised when you hear your own
Eulogy?

Hey Chris, is that "Eulogy" quote actually from Dune? (Yes, I'll damage my geek cred by admitting that I've never read Dune.)

Hey Chris, is that "Eulogy" quote actually from Dune? (Yes, I'll damage my geek cred by admitting that I've never read Dune.)

Haha. No, that's a Tool song. :)

Firstly:Watch Jesus Christ Superstar, or at least listen to the first track, "Heaven on Their Minds", the one Judas sings:

Listen Jesus
I don't like what I see
All I ask is that you listen to me
And remember
I've been your right hand man all along
You have set them all on fire
They think they've found the new Messiah
And they'll hurt you when they find they're wrong

I remember when this whole thing began
No talk of God then, we called you a man
And believe me
My admiration for you hasn't died
But every word you say today
Gets twisted 'round some other way
And they'll hurt you if they think you've lied

The cult thinks this guy has a direct line to ultimate truth and they expect him to fix all their problems, right?  Anything goes wrong, people fighting, not enough food, somebody's baby got sick, it all harshes the mellow and ultimately people look to the Hocus for guidance and solutions.  I think your interpretation of judgement works well.

Secondly:

I mean, since fortunes is tied to the followers, if they're in want it should in general be their own fault, right?

I'd call BS on this.  If the followers had wanted to take responsibility for their own actions and hard luck, they wouldn't have joined his cult in the first place -- unless it's some mystical claptrap about how the harvest wouldn't have failed unless they had doubt in their hearts, so everybody needs to sing twice as loud next time. 

I hope that's clear, it's hard to say anything definite without knowing more about the cult -- I hope you've written up some of the cult members and figured out what kind of a cult it is, what their practices are, etc. 

Thirdly:
I read the rules as saying that augury lets you create a miniature version of the maelstrom right there in your cult, for you to look at and interpret.  It's similar to the way Tarot cards and I Ching in real life are supposed to give you a snapshot of the universe. I think once you've got the cult members and practices roughed out, it will be a lot easier to come up with this.

Also, I'd ask the player; I don't think anybody makes a Hocus character without thinking of some cool mystical things he wants his guy to do, so let him describe how Truth did it in the past. 

Haha. No, that's a Tool song. :)

Right, Eulogy is the song, and a great frickin' song for this character. Thanks for the tip.

Great stuff Danny, thanks. I particularly like the following.

The cult thinks this guy has a direct line to ultimate truth and they expect him to fix all their problems, right?  Anything goes wrong, people fighting, not enough food, somebody's baby got sick, it all harshes the mellow and ultimately people look to the Hocus for guidance and solutions.  I think your interpretation of judgement works well.

Yeah, this will be fun! I hope he keeps failing his Fortunes rolls.  :)

I'd call BS on this.  If the followers had wanted to take responsibility for their own actions and hard luck, they wouldn't have joined his cult in the first place -- unless it's some mystical claptrap about how the harvest wouldn't have failed unless they had doubt in their hearts, so everybody needs to sing twice as loud next time.

Love it! Truth did do some totally crazy ass stuff in both his Frenzy roll, and in opening his brain to see what to do about his mutilated follower. For some reason buzzards are tied in to his cult, and they took care of the dying girl... cleaned it all up.

I think once you've got the cult members and practices roughed out, it will be a lot easier to come up with...

This thread has made me come up with a crazy amount of cool questions for the hocus, and I that you're right in that once a few details have been settled things will clear up.