Mnemonic: A Weaver’s Almanac

Credits

Core team

• Dee Pennyway
• Sinta Posadas
• Lexi Antoku
• Christian Guanzon
• Liam Ginty
• Pamela Punzalan
• Marquis Dugger
• Noora Rose
• Brandon O'Brien
• Vincent Smith

Additional contributions

• Max Fefer
• Rick Chia
• Valis Teoh
• Samuel Mui Shen Ern
• Noordin Ali Kadir
• Fidelis Tan
• Kyle Tam

• Accessibility by Yubi
• Editing by Lexi Antoku
• Illustrations by Sinta Posadas
Acknowledgments

This book was made possible by the successful raising of funds through Kickstarter.
Those funds paid for writing, illustrations, editing, and lay ‐ out, not to mention
consultation for accessibility and web development.

The people that worked on this project are credited on the first page, and some
additional information is provided below, for those who wished to provide it. I strongly
urge you to support the team’s creative work wherever you can.

The Team

Dee Pennyway (They/Them)

• Project Manager, Layout Designer, Writer
• Dee is the original author of the Mnemonic setting.

Sinta Posadas (They/Them)

• Art Director, Writer
• Sin is a game designer and illustrator from the Philippines who lives in Manila
with their loving partner and their rambunctious cat. They make games about
love, loss, and revolution and much of the professional art they do gets used in
various tabletop projects. They wish to keep at this so that they may continue
to feed their voidling of a cat.

Pamela Punzalan (She/They)

• Writer
• Pam is a queer designer, editor, cultural consultant and sensitivity reader based
in Manila. She's done work for projects big and small, such as Spire, World of
Darkness, The Islands of Sina Una, the D&D Ancestry and Culture Zine, and
Thirsty Sword Lesbians. Her personal works include Sundo: We Once Mortal
and Navathem's End.

Noora Rose
• Writer
• Noora is a biracial Black writer, editor, layout artist, producer, distributor, and
publisher of tabletop role-playing games based out of Eastern Canada. Noora's
 games seek to inject anti-colonial, anti racist, and anti-fascist narratives into
the lens of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. In addition to Mnemonic, Noora
has written for such projects as Trophy, Spire, Candlelight, Codex, Token,
There's Something In The Ice, Disc Horse, Scrap's Burgers, the San Jenaro
Short Games Digest, and Noora's own projects: UNCONQUERED, Chalice,
Into the Black, and others.

Vincent Smith (He/Him)

• Writer
• Vince Smith is a mixed Trini-Canadian games designer, games analyst, writer,
and narrative designer. He designs with a "but what's the feeling" philosophy,
creating games that are evocative, elegant machines that cut to the emotional
core of the genres they encourage players and GM's to create stories within.

Additional Contributors

In addition to the core team, several additional writers joined the project later to
contribute writing and other skills. Not everyone provided a written bio, but for those
that did, they are presented below, in no particular order.

Yubi (They/Them)
• Accessibility Consultant
• Yubi lives in Scotland and is passionate about digital accessibility in the
TTRPG sphere, historical sewing, and cats. They design their own games, run
an actual play podcast, and help make a wide range of TTRPG projects more
accessible to more people.

Rick Chia
• Writer
• Chronic reader in the streets, lazy writer in the sheets. Keep cool, mate.

Bee Zelda (They/Them)

• Writer
• Bee Zelda is a non binary podcaster, ttrpg streamer and content creator.
Sen.H.H.S. (She/Her)
• Writer
• Yvonne, pen name Sen H.H.S., is a Taiwanese freelance TTRPG writer who
has both self-published and written for acclaimed publishers such as Paizo and
the Unbreakable Anthology.

Max Fefer (No Pronouns)

• Writer
• Max is a TTRPG designer who is a water resources engineer by day and an
out‐ door enthusiast all the time. Max designs GM-agnostic and lyric games
with a wide range of themes, from interacting with surrounding ecosystems to
Judaism.

Samuel Mui Shen Ern (He/Any)

• Writer
• Samuel Mui Shen Ern is a game designer, writer, editor, musician, and visual
artist from Malaysia. Their works explore real-world topics like death,
relationships, and emotional brokenness with an unwaveringly brutal honesty
and a sense of fun(?)! When she’s not working on hir next big thing, he’s
probably zoning out to k-pop, experimenting in the kitchen, or telling people to
watch Tokyo Gore Police.

Alyssa Manalili (They/Them)

• Writer
• Wasa's first foray into the world of TTRPG began with the 5E Module Sina Una.
A catalyst for their journey, they have since begun to delve into freelance
content creation - with a key focus on worldbuild writing and designing.

Noordin Ali Kadir (He/Him)

• Writer
• Noordin Ali is a freelance TTRPG designer, writer and consultant based
currently in Canada. His credits include everything from Jiangshi: Blood in the
Banquet Hall to Southlands 5e, and as such his approach can shift from time to
time. Some things are consistent, however: bend, never break. Tell fascinating
and enveloping stories. Be cognizant of potential harm There's nothing better
than telling a hard to tell story as safely as you can. Except a chocolate malt.
Or werewolves.
About This Book
Mnemonic: A Weaver’s Almanac is a creative work completed in January 2022 by the
members of the core team with contributions from additional writers. Writers are
credited alongside their own contributions; any uncredited work was written by myself,
Dee Pennyway. Sin is also credited alongside their illustrations.

This version of the book is intended to be viewed electronically as a PDF or printed

onto physical paper. The dimensions of the pages are designed for A5 paper, but
should print fine on half-letter sheets as well.

If you do print this book, I recommend printing the version that has no textured
background, in order to mask any seams between pages if you’re printing on nonA5
paper.

The fonts used in this book are all Google Fonts. They are as follows:
• Title: Yanone Kaffeesatz
• Heading: Cinzel
• Body: EB Garamond
• Sidebar: Cormorant Garamond
• Dropcap: Cinzel

The PDF and print-ready versions of this book were made with Affinity Publisher.

About accessibility

With Yubi’s assistance I’ve done my best to create a version of the book that is both
aesthetically pleasing and easy to read. However, this version is primarily intended for
printing, which means that there may be some accessibility features missing from it
due to the specific software I have available to me. If you require those features, I
highly recommend grabbing the Accessible PDF. (This version is the Accessible PDF).

On many pages throughout this book, you will find significant empty space. I have
done my best to flow the text to maximize legibility, which occasionally means leaving
some blank areas to avoid having sentences or concepts broken apart mid-thought.
You can make some imaginary reason for why these blank spots are interesting, but
their only real purpose is to preserve the usability of the book.

Thank you for your understanding.

Table of Contents
Introduction - 11
• Required Materials - 11
• A Note About Safety - 11
• Avoiding Bleed - 12

Preparing Your Journal - 15

• Choosing the Right Journal For You - 15
• Setting Things Just So - 15
• That’s it! - 17

Character Creation - 18
• Fleshing Out the Details - 19
• Naming Your Character - 19
• Concept Template - 19
• The Loner - 20
• The Social Construct - 21
• The Immortal - 22
• The Mercenary - 23
• The Fighter - 23
• The Soldier - 24
• The Engineer - 25

Basics of Play - 26
• Card Prompts - 26
• Individual Scenes - 26
• Group Scenes - 28

Play Modes - 30
• The First Gathering - 31
• Introducing Your Character - 32
• Developing the Group Dynamic - 35
• Now It’s A Party - 37
• Into the Grey - 38
 • Deck Burner - 39
• Laid to Rest - 40
• Drawing Memories - 41
• When No One Comes Back - 42
• A Moment Alone - 42
• Recovery - 43
• Player vs Player: Game Face - 44
• What You’ll Need - 44
• How the Ritual Works - 44

The Weaver’s Dice - 47

• Using a Weaving Die - 47
• Weaving Die Template - 48
• The Bone Die - 50
• The Discourse Die - 52
• The Fire Die - 54
• The Gold Die - 56
• The Granite Die - 58
• The Green Die - 60
• The Grey Die - 62
• The Metal Die - 64
• The Rain Die - 66
• The Sand Die - 68
• The Wind Die - 70

Setting & Stories - 72

• Setting Template - 73
• Capital City - 75
• Cawdor - 78
• The Children of An and Enki - 81
• Dragon’s Husk - 83
• The Tale of Five Strings - 85
• The Glittering Graveyard - 87
• The Goldenbloom - 89
• Harbor of Sound and Colors - 91
 • Ironhold - 93
• Requiem Nimbus - 96
• Rynwood, the Forest of Silk - 98
• Spider Web Poetry - 100
• The Unforgotten City - 102
• Ironhold, The Weeping City - 104
• Where The Rivers Embrace - 106
• The Wide Sea & the Keeper - 109

Advanced Rules - 111

• Free Play - 111
• Facilitating Play - 112

Appendix - 115
Introduction
Mnemonic is an imagined setting where the memories of the world, and of the people
living in it, directly affect physical reality. The setting is primarily intended as a frame
through which to tell collaborative stories, particularly in the context of roleplaying
games.

The Mnemonic roleplaying game described in this book is a multiplayer diceand-card

game about people living in the world of memory, who find each other or are thrown
together by circumstances and then must find or make a path forward. In this game,
you play as one of those people.

In this weaver’s almanac, you’ll find rules, procedures, and story suggestions for
playing out stories in the world of memory. The expectation is that you will play the
game more than once with your group, continuing the story each time you play. The
rules also provide some framing to set the game to rest when you’re ready to finish
the story.

At the end of the book, you’ll also find an appendix of stories, poems, and recipes that
can inform or expand your understanding of the world and its possibilities.

Required Materials

In order to play, you must have:

• Some six-sided dice with numbers on them from 1 to 6
• A standard four-suit poker deck, Jokers included
• A journal, or some other way to keep track of changes to your character

A Note About Safety

Mnemonic is a game and setting designed with the intent of being careful in the
stories we tell. My hope is that it is safe to play, with the assumption that your group is
safe to play with.
That said, no game is perfect. What follows are some notes about how I think about
safety.

Safety means that everyone at the table is empowered to collaborate. If the story
ignores a player’s boundaries, the story becomes unsafe for that player.

Safety means that when you take risks, everyone at the table knows what those risks
are and has consented to them. If things cross a boundary for you, safety at the table
means you’re comfortable saying so.

Safety means taking breaks to give people a chance to breathe and stretch and grab
a snack if they need to, and checking in with each other frequently to make sure
everyone is on board with where the story is going.

The rules provide some time during the process of making your character for thinking
about and defining some boundaries. Beyond that, I won’t tell you how to create
safety at your table; every player’s needs are different, and what works for some
groups won’t work for others. What I will say is that you should consider how to make
your play group a safe environment for everyone, so that no one is left feeling like
their needs won’t be respected.

Take care of yourself. Take care of each other.

Avoiding Bleed

In Mnemonic, you don’t play a hero; instead, you play the part of a storyteller, sitting
around a table, telling the story of your chosen hero. The things that happen in the
story are not happening to you; they are happening to someone you’ve imagined into
being. You might have strong feelings about your character, but they are not you, and
you are not them.

For some people (myself included) that layer of separation is important for mitigating
bleed, which is when a player begins to experience the emotions of their character.
Sometimes bleed is an enjoyable experience, especially if you have the training and
tools to safely decompress afterward.
Not everyone has that training, and the tools that work for some won’t work for
everybody. As a matter of safety, I think it’s important to give players explicit
permission to step out of the story when they need to—and if a player needs to
enforce a boundary, it’s important that the other players be able to respect that
boundary without being forced suddenly out of their character’s harder emotions.

An example of how I might handle something like this is provided on the next page.

Example
While playing, my character, Loch, enters into a challenging conversation with her
mother about changing her name. This is a scene I know plays close to my own heart,
so I make a decision in the moment: Am I going to play this scene out verbally, or just
say that it happens for the sake of the story and move on?

The emotions might be important to the story I want to tell with this character, but
today might not be a good day for that. I pick one of the following methods to handle
this scene:

• Play it Out: Loch stands her ground; enough is enough. “Mom, I’ve told you a
hundred times – my name is Loch, not Mouse. I don’t know how else to get you
to understand!”
• Describe it: Loch stands her ground, and it turns into a big argument over
whether she’s allowed to change her name, what it means to leave her old
name behind, what that means for her family…it’s messy, and it goes on way
too long.
• Skip it: Loch stands her ground and demands that her mother use her new
name. We don’t need to go into detail.

If I decide to play it out, I’m also going to ask somebody else to join me in the scene
as Loch’s mother, which means I need to also check with the group if they’re up for
the emotions involved here. And I need to be ready for people to say no.
Does this mean you can’t roleplay scenes in-character? Maybe. I think I would more
encourage you to remain aware of yourself as a separate entity from your character,
even if you do briefly speak on their behalf.

Just… just be careful, okay?

Preparing Your Journal
Before you begin developing your character, you’ll need a workspace for keeping
track of everything. You are not required to maintain the record of your character in
any specific way, but for the purposes of this chapter I’ll assume you’re keeping your
character’s details in a journal, any bound collection of paper that you feel
comfortable writing in and flipping through.

(Much of this can also work well for a digital notebook if paper isn’t a viable option.)

Choosing The Right Journal For You

I have a hard time coming back to a journal if I don’t like the way it feels to hold and
write in it. I have a wide collection of empty journals or journals with a few pages of
writing in the front and then nothing else. I have expensive journals I never use
because they make me feel like I have to Write Quality Writing, and that’s not helpful
when I just want to write.

So, if you’re like me, don’t use a journal you won’t want to return to. Find something
comfortable for you.

Do I really need all this space?

The short answer is no. You could fit just about everything you need on a single letter-
size sheet of blank or lined paper, and if you’re only going to play the game once or
only a few sessions with the same character, that might be a better fit.

The reason I like a journal or notebook is that it leaves room for more details to be
added as I need them, it keeps my character together so it’s easy to find what I need
when I need it, and it’s less likely to get lost or accidentally recycled between
sessions.

Setting Things Just So

Now that you have a journal you like, it’s time to set up your workspace.
The First Page

The first page of your character’s journal should contain all the basic details of your
character, so that when you open it up you know at a glance whose story you’re
returning to.

You’ll fill in the details as you go, but for now it might be a good idea to set up some
blank spaces with the following labels:

• Name
• Pronouns
• Strong Suit
• Weak Suit

You can also, optionally, leave space to describe your character’s home community,
their species (if that’s important to you or them), or any other details you want to be at
the very front of your journal.

Write in pencil. Some of the things on this page might change as the story
progresses.

The Group

You won’t know anything about the other characters in your group until you sit down
and play with them, but I recommend making space in your journal to fill in some
basic details about them. At the very least, you’ll want to include the name and
pronouns of everyone you travel with, so that when you engage with them in the story,
you know how to refer to them.

Again, write in pencil. You’ll need to be able to change and erase things as you play!

The Suit Pages

Your character’s skills and abilities are organized into four groups, each tied to one of
the four suits of a poker deck. You can put them all on one page, but in order to give
you room to grow, I recommend giving each suit its own full piece of paper, so:
 • At the top of the next right-hand page, write the name of one of the four suits
• Leave the back of that page blank

This way, you can easily flip through your journal to find your lists of skills.

You don’t need to do anything else with these pages yet, but for your reference,
here’s what the suits generally represent:

• Hearts: Skills representing the character’s ability to move their own body.
• Diamonds: Skills representing the character’s ability to use their mind.
• Spades: Skills representing the effectiveness of the character’s tools or
objects.
• Clubs: Things that are outside of the character’s control or that require the
intervention of other people.

Empty Pages

The rest of the journal is reserved for describing your character’s journey. Keep track
of people they meet, the places they go, the objects they acquire, the favors they
owe, and anything else you think is significant to remember when it happens. I
recommend not filling anything else out until you need it.

That’s It!

That’s all you need to do to get your journal ready for play. But you can add details if
you’re feeling inspired: decorations on each of the suit pages, a space for adding
maps, anything you like. Make this your favorite place to think about your character
and the story they’re in.
Character Creation
Before you get together with your group to play Mnemonic, I recommend taking a look
at the character concepts in this chapter to start thinking about what kind of character
you want to play. If none of them are a per ‐fect fit, you can also build a character
concept from scratch using the rules provided below.

In order to play Mnemonic, you’ll need a character whose story you’re interested in
telling. Remember: in Mnemonic, we don’t play heroes; we play storytellers, telling the
stories of heroes. Because of this, the character you imagine will likely begin larger-
than-life, borrowing traits and aesthetics from your own culture and from stories
you’re already familiar with. The character will develop, as you tell their story, into
something more life-like, but it always begins with a concept.

Your character concept gives you something to hold onto while you’re figuring out who
your character is. It tells you a bit about their outlook and it provides some ideas for
how to play them constructively within a group (even if the character themself would
rather be alone).

From a mechanical perspective, your concept tells you your character’s strong suit
and their two standard suits, along with your character’s four starting skills. Those
are the pieces you absolutely need in order to play the game, so if you just want to
jump into the game, pick a concept and you’re good to go.

That said, if you read through the sample character concepts in this chapter and none
of them feel quite right, you can use the Concept Template to create your very own
concept from scratch. Just follow the steps as they’re presented to build the character
you want.

Once you start playing, you may find that the concept you’ve built or chosen no longer
fits. That’s okay! You can rename skills or even your entire concept as you like to
match the character you end up playing. Characters evolve over time too; your
chosen concept is just a starting point.
Fleshing Out The Details

Once you have a concept built, to make sure your character journal is ready for play:

• Every suit should have space for adding more skills.

• Every skill should have space for a rating and for marking injuries.
• Your character should have a name and, if appropriate, some designated pro ‐
nouns to help you and everyone else refer to them correctly during play. You
can come up with an alias, too, if you like.

You may want to create some sections in your journal for different kinds of notes,
such as Injury lists or details about the world, but the basics should fit on one or two
pages.

Naming Your Character

Names come from all sorts of things. You can use names you’re familiar with, or you
can make something up. If you need some specific inspiration, I’ve found that the
following name categories are a good starting point.

• Names Based On Plants: Willow, Ash, Lily, Rose

• Names Based On Objects: Spindle, Blade, Wheels, Cog
• Names Based On Weather: Zephyr, Rain, Thunder, Tide
• Names Based On Animals: Mouse, Tiger, Cricket, Weasel

Concept Template

If none of the sample concepts provided fit the character you want to play, you can
create something new.

The narrative context for your concept is entirely up to you. As for the mechanics of
what your concept can do in the game, the process is simple:

1. Choose one suit from one of the following; record it in your character journal as
your character’s strong suit.
 • Hearts (Use of one’s own body)
• Diamonds (Use of one’s own mind)
• Spades (Use of external personal things, like tools or other objects)
• Clubs (Reliability of things dependent on other people or fate, like
persuasiveness or luck)
2. Choose two other suits for your character from the remaining three; record them in
your character journal as your character’s standard suits.
3. Record the remaining suit in your character journal as your character’s weak suit.
4. In your character journal, under your character’s strong suit, record two skills with
a rating of 2.
• You can name your skills whatever you want; think about the kinds of things
you want your character to be able to do, and give them names that feel
personal to your character.
5. In your character journal, under each of your character’s standard suits, record
one skill with a rating of 1.
6. (Optional) Give your concept a name.

The Loner

You’d rather work alone, but for some reason you keep getting sucked into protecting
these other people who don’t know what they’re doing. You don’t make friends, you
don’t hug, you definitely don’t trust people. You’ve developed a set of rules for
survival that you can name and number at a moment’s notice, and if they sound
overly specific to your current situation it’s because you’ve been in this exact situation
before.

You don’t like these people. You don’t know why you still stick with them. You swear,
tomorrow you’ll be gone. Really. This time you mean it.

Maybe the day after tomorrow. You certainly don’t need them. It’s them who’d be
useless without you. Right?
Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Clubs; your weak suit is Hearts.
You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents its
starting rating.

• Clubs
◦ Tracking (2)
◦ Surviving the Wilderness (2)
• Diamonds
◦ Distrust (1)
• Spades
◦ My Favorite Weapon (1)

The Social Construct

Some people have no trouble existing in the world, living their lives, being
themselves. It’s not so easy for you. Whether because your insides are literally made
of machinery or because your mind just works differently from what people expect,
you have always felt that on some level you can’t Be Yourself in the world; instead,
you’ve learned to model what others expect of you, to be who they want you to be, to
hide who or what you really are.

Makes it hard to figure out who you really are on the inside, or who you want to be.
But at least this way you can survive.

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Diamonds; your weak suit is
Hearts. You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents
its starting rating.

• Diamonds
◦ I’m a Fast Learner (2)
◦ Find a Shortcut (2)
• Clubs
◦ Follow Social Conventions (1)
 • Spades
◦ The Best Disguise - Clothes (1)

The Immortal

Whether it’s a known fact of your existence that you cannot die or just that you have
unaccountably good luck when it comes to avoiding deadly scrapes, you cannot die;
this has given you a unique perspective on the ways of the world.

Pit full of acid? An inconvenience. Local baron sending soldiers into your town? A
temporary frustration at most. You’ve seen how the world turns, and it always
eventually turns again. It might have left you jaded, or cynical. But maybe it’s just that
you know how things are, and that there’s no point fighting them. Just wait fifteen
years; the weather will change on its own.

Even if it sometimes changes for the worse.

Maybe you really can’t die. Who did that to you? Did you do it to yourself? How long
have you been walking this ball of dust? How many empires have you watched fall?
When did you stop participating in history? When did you start avoiding its wake?
How many lives have you lived, before you stopped caring about the world you’re
stuck in?

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Hearts; your weak suit is
Diamonds. You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill
represents its starting rating.

• Hearts
◦ Resilience (2)
◦ My Secret Move (2)
• Spades
◦ Something Impossibly Old (1)
• Clubs
 ◦ Uncanny Luck (1)

The Mercenary

All you know is violence. Your only friends are the tools of violence. They’re the only
friends you need.

People ask you how you sleep at night. You don’t. Why would you need to? Sleep is
for those who have dreams. All your dreams are violence.

Your violence might not be physical. Your tools might not have blades or cannons. But
your path is one of destruction, and if you stay on it too long, you’ll inevitably destroy
yourself as well.

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Spades; your weak suit is Clubs.
You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents its
starting rating.

• Spades
◦ Weapon (2)
◦ Weapon - Secondary Function (2)
• Hearts
◦ Sabotage (1)
• Diamonds
◦ Tactics (1)

The Fighter

You’re a fighter. You fight. It’s what you do best; why shouldn’t you do it? It’s not that
you want to hurt people or break things; this is just how you express yourself. Or
something. Look, we don’t have to overcomplicate things, right? You’re a fighter. You
fight.
Some people fight with words, or with ideas. For you, it’s all about the weapon in your
hand. And you’re good with that weapon. And people just…ugh, they just want you to
stop and think and wait for things and come oooon that’s boring.

Fighters fight, it’s just how you are. If only everyone would just stop yelling at you.

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Spades; your weak suit is Clubs.
You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents its
starting rating.

• Spades
◦ Weapon I’ve Named (2)
◦ Weapon I Haven’t Named…Yet (2)
• Hearts
◦ Fight, Of Course (1)
• Diamonds
• Rules of Engagement (1)

The Soldier

You have your orders, and more importantly you know why you’re following them.
Maybe your instructions come from an employer or a commander. Maybe they come
from somewhere inside yourself. But you don’t take the job if you don’t know what
you’re doing and why you’re doing it. You’ve made that mistake before.

The other members of your group don’t get it. Maybe some of them do, but you’re the
only one who knows what can go wrong if everybody isn’t on the same page.

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Spades; your weak suit is Clubs.
You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents its
starting rating.
 • Spades
◦ Trusty Weapon (2)
◦ Medical Supplies (2)
• Hearts
◦ Fight On (1)
• Diamonds
◦ Lessons I Learned The Hard Way (1)

The Engineer

Every tool has its purpose, every gear and axle a place in the mechanisms that make
the world work. When you build a system, you know exactly how it works, and when
something breaks, you know how to fix it.

This might leave you somewhat less prepared for dealing with other people, but with
the right tool in your hand, you can accomplish anything.

Starting Skills
When you create your character, your strong suit is Spades; your weak suit is Clubs.
You begin with the following skills. The number beside each skill represents its
starting rating.

• Spades
◦ An Elegantly Designed Mechanism (2)
◦ Strong Adhesive (2)
• Hearts
◦ The Right Leverage (1)
• Diamonds
• Make A Plan (1)
Basics of Play
For both Into the Grey and Deck Burner, the cycle of play in Mnemonic follows a set
pattern. Each player takes the lead in describing their character’s actions through a
scene where their character has focus; then, once everyone has had a turn to lead,
the group comes together to address the complications that may have arisen during
each player’s individual scenes.

You can also use this framework to come up with new modes of play.

Card Prompts

When you play a card to establish a scene, either from your hand or from the top of
the deck, begin by consulting the following table. You don’t have to do this step, but it
may help for framing your scene.

• 2: A meeting, interrupted.
• 3: A gift, with conditions.
• 4: A sanctuary, threatened.
• 5: A path, with many branches.
• 6: A reminder of where you’ve been.
• 7: A secret, dearly kept.
• 8: A glimpse of infinity.
• 9: A river you cannot cross.
• 10: An opening to somewhere new.
• Jack: A rival, or someone who is about to become a rival.
• Queen: An ally, or someone who is about to become an ally.
• King: A powerful stranger.
• Ace: A looming danger.
• Joker: A mistake you can’t take back.

Individual Scenes

Individual Scenes are ones in which a player’s character is doing something related to
their particular needs and skill set. Your character might not be the only person
present in the scene (and in fact I encourage you to invite other players into your
scene to help you tell your character’s story), but in terms of action and mechanics,
the Individual Scene is about one character: yours.

To play out the scene, follow this process, adding narrative details wherever and
however you find them appropriate.

1. Choose a card from your hand or draw one from the deck. The face or number
on the card tells you a bit of interpretive information about who’s in the scene
with you or what the scene is about. Maybe the card just gives you a prop to
play with; think of it as a story prompt, which you can follow as closely or
loosely as you like.
2. Choose a skill for your character that matches the suit of the card you played.

Optional: Asking for Help

If you don’t have any skills that match the suit and you don’t want to learn a new skill,
you can ask another player to join you in the scene to assist you. If they do, choose
whatever skill you like and have them choose a skill for their character to use. They
won’t roll, but you’ll need to know what skill they used in the event of an injury; a
player that assists you also assumes the same risks as
you during the scene.

3. Gather and roll a number of dice equal to the rating for the skill you chose.
Keep the highest result.
4. If the highest result is anything other than a 6, the skill you used in this scene
becomes complicated and cannot be used until it is repaired.
5. (Optional) Perform a weaving to avoid the complication to your skill or to give
one other player an extra die in their next roll.
6. Pass the focus of play to the next player and lend them your attention as best
you can.
7. Once everyone has played out a scene, choose:
◦ Play a Group Scene.
◦ Play another round of Individual Scenes.
◦ End the game here.
Group Scenes

In a Group Scene, everyone works together to deal with the consequences of their
actions. You cannot have a Group Scene without first laying the groundwork for
everyone’s characters in Individual Scenes first. (Well, you could, but the stakes
would be floppy and impersonal, and more practically the Adversary’s pool would be
utterly empty of Complications).

Each Group Scene follows this sequence:

1. Set the Stakes

2. Make the Plan
3. Execute the Plan
4. Things Go Wrong
5. Sort it Out

Set The Stakes

Each player adds up and declares their character’s total number of complications. For
each complication, add one die to the Adversary’s Pool.

Make The Plan

Each player chooses a skill. For Deck Burner, everyone must first draw a card from
the top of the deck; the skill they choose must match the suit of the card they drew. If
a player has no skills available, their character is left to hope for the best, contributing
nothing of substance to the group’s efforts.

Execute The Plan

Every player rolls their dice separately, keeping their highest roll.

Things Go Wrong

Roll each of the Adversary’s dice individually.

Sort It Out

Starting with the lowest roll, each player describes their actions in the scene. If a
Complication die interrupts the order, describe how things go wrong.

When you get to the highest roll, assess one of the outcomes described below.

• Victory: If the highest roll belongs to a player, the characters overcome the
scene’s obstacles and resolve the scene on their own terms. The player with
the highest roll describes how their action brings the scene to a close. End the
game here or play a new round of Individual Scenes. Clear all complications
from everyone’s skills.
• Defeat: If the highest roll belongs to the Adversary, the characters are over ‐
whelmed by the consequences of their actions and are forced to live with them,
at least for now. For each player, the suit they used in this scene also becomes
injured.
• Draw: If both the Adversary and a player share the highest roll, the characters
are unable to fully resolve the consequences of their actions, but no one gets
hurt in the process.

If the players win, go back to playing Individual Scenes or end the game there. If the
players suffer defeat, choose one of the following:

• Try Again: Play out another Group Scene, starting with Set the Stakes.
• Regroup: Play a new round of Individual Scenes.
• Retreat: End the game here.
Play Modes
Once you’ve all made characters and are ready to begin telling their story, it’s time to
choose a mode of play. In Mnemonic there are four such modes:

• First Gathering: A short introduction to everyone’s characters, letting the

players bring their characters into the story.
• Into the Grey: An extended exploration of the story’s key elements, from
people and places to important objects and events. This mode is intended to
last multiplay play sessions.
• Deck Burner: A fast-paced resolution to the story’s main conflict or to one of its
many smaller conflicts.
• Laid to Rest: A somber ritual for saying good-bye to a character or to the story
as a whole.

In addition, there are two short games designed to be usable during any other play
mode, which should take no more than a few minutes to resolve:

• A Moment Alone: A brief ritual for clearing injuries from skills and reflecting on
a character’s choices.
• Game Face: A short game for settling scores between players’ characters.

In order to play, everyone will need to have a character journal prepared, as well as
some numbered six-sided dice ready to roll (two per person should be plenty, at least
for the first time you play). Your group will also need a standard 54-card poker deck,
which need to be shuffled and/or divided as needed by the mode you choose.

If you’re not sure what story you want to tell, the First Gathering can help you
discover that through play; alternatively, you can choose one of the many Story Arcs
provided within the Mnemonic Setting.

Before You Begin: The Boundary

When we tell stories, we inevitably leave some details out, some rooms unexplored,
some doors closed. We do this for our own safety and for the safety of those around
us. If you haven’t already done so with your group, take a moment now to discuss:
What is a boundary you will not cross in this story? How close to it are you willing to
wander before you turn away?

Your boundary can be something your character would want respected or it can be
something you care about personally. For example, Dee has a fear of heights, but
their character does not. They might say, “I’d like to set a boundary on detailed
descriptions of vertigo or other feelings of being up high. We can go to high places,
but I as a player don’t want to experience that feeling in
my imagination.”

You can set more than one boundary, and you can add more as the story progresses
or as you think of them. If privacy is a concern, you may want to consider some form
of anonymization, such as a shared digital document or a trusted facilitator.

Respecting boundaries is about more than just not crossing the line; it’s about
knowing when a boundary needs to remain entirely outside the scope of the story,
even in reference. If your character has a pet and you want to set a boundary around
that pet’s safety, you may want to establish that as a convention of play: that this pet
will never come to harm, and will never even be perceived to be in any danger, no
matter the stakes of the scene.

Once the boundaries are set, we can begin. We can adjust them at any time as
needed, but for now we have enough to get started.

The First Gathering

The First Gathering is about introducing everyone’s characters; it’s meant to be short
enough that you can play it at the end of the character creation process or just before
jumping into another mode like Into the Grey. If you’ve played Cracks in the Mirror,
this ritual will feel very familiar.

This process brings the characters you’ve made into the story in three stages:
 • Introducing Your Character: Each player goes through the entire process to
introduce their character.
• Developing the Group Dynamic: Once everyone’s character is present, they
meet each other.
• Now It’s A Party: Once everyone has met, they find a reason to work or travel
or live together.

If the players created their characters before meeting to play as a group, give
yourselves permission to take a bit longer with this ritual; otherwise, it’s okay to gloss
over details that everyone is already familiar with from the character creation process.

If this is not the first time your group is playing The First Gathering with these
characters, you can use this ritual as a way to initiate a new story arc, allowing the
players to bring their characters to whatever narrative you’re about to explore
together.

Introducing Your Character

Answer each of the following questions to describe your character’s outlook, physical
appearance, circumstances, or present mood. For each question, either choose a
response from the available options or invent your own.

The Silhouette

When you enter the scene, we don’t see your face just yet; just the outline of your
body.

What are you wearing that changes the shape of your silhouette?

• A dress or skirt
• A suit of armor
• A cloak or cape
• A hat
• A scarf
• Nothing. My garb is fitted to my form.
Optional: What does your silhouette remind us of when we first see you?

The Form

As we see more of you, we notice details about your body that will help us form a
mental image of you throughout the story.

Which of the following, if any, best describes your physical form?

• Drake: A winged, reptilian form that calls to mind the memory of dragons, for
those who are old enough to remember them.
• Fey: A form that is ever-changing.
• Gemfolk: A form made of living crystal.
• Human: A mammalian primate form that is mostly hairless and usually walks on
two legs.
• Spiderkin: An insectoid form that weaves tapestries of silk.
• Sun Child: A constructed form made of wood, metal, and other seemingly inert
materials.

The Mask

As you step out of the Grey, the wandering mists that are scattered across the world
of Mnemonic, your form resolves and we see you clearly, wearing the mask that
protects you from the Grey’s more dangerous effects.

What is your mask made of?

• Wood
• Stone
• Crystal
• Metal
• Glass
• Cloth

Optional: Describe your mask. What is its shape? What colors make up its design? Is
it plain or decorated? Does it cover your mouth? Your eyes? Your head?
The Lie

Now that we have a picture of you in our mind, let’s find out a little more about who
you are.

What lie has your community tried to make you believe about yourself?

• I speak too much.

• I don’t try hard enough.
• I’m not smart.
• I’m dangerous.
• I’m better off alone.
• I’m only as valuable as the things I create.

Remember: This lie isn’t true about you.

The Source

Where do you derive your strength?

• From the company of others.

• From the work I do.
• From spite for those who did me wrong.
• From knowledge of the goal ahead.
• From the world around me.
• From nothing; I haven’t found it yet.

The Power

Nobody just stands there in the mists looking mysterious. Everyone’s doing
something. What is it that you are doing, when you first appear?

Choose one of the following:

 • You Do Something Impressive: You spot someone in need of help and use
one of the skills associated with your strong suit to help them.
◦ Remove a Complication from the Adversary’s pool.
• You Do Something Necessary: You’re in trouble when we first see you, but
you quickly get out of it.
• You Do Something Foolish: You’re in way over your head, probably because
of something you did.
◦ Add a Complication to the Adversary’s pool.

Everyone’s good at something. What are you good at? Tell us your Strong Suit, and
the two skills you’ve chosen that are associated with that suit.

The Name

We see you, we know you. We just need to know what to call you, in the context of
this story. What name should we use?

Wrap It Up

Give us one more detail to get excited about this character, then give the focus to the
next player so that they can introduce their character too.

Developing The Group Dynamic

Now that each of you has a character, it’s time to place them into context with each
other. Take a moment to breathe, drink some water, do some physical exercising to
re-orient yourself, and then come back and proceed.

As a group, discuss each of the questions below to imagine the circumstances of your
group coming together. You might not all have met on the same day, and that’s okay;
imagine the meetings in bits and pieces, scrape them together and see how they fit. If
you need to adjust the timing of events, you can do so.
The Place

Where are we right now? Choose one of the following locations, or come up with your
own:

• A busy city marketplace

• A quiet gathering
• A festival
• A road to somewhere
• The middle of nowhere
• A boat

Optional: Does this place have a name?

The Reason

Why are each of us here?

• To find something or someone

• To escape from something or someone
• To experience the place itself
• To get to somewhere else
• I was lost
• I don’t remember

Optional: If you went there for a reason, did you complete your task? If not, what
stopped you?

The Tether

Using your characters’ roleplaying hooks, figure out the rest. How do you engage with
each other? Who speaks first? Do you all like each other right away, or does it take
some time to get comfortable?
The Inciting Event

Something happens, unrelated to anything any of you did, that draws all of your
attention. Add a Complication to the Adversary’s pool, and discuss:

• What just happened?

• What are we going to do about it?

Now It’s A Party

When you introduced your characters, you were all doing something. Now it’s time to
see how those somethings come together. Add them to the Inciting Event, and we’ve
got ourselves a party.

Quickly build a Group Scene using the pool of Complications you accumulated when
you introduced your characters:

1. Set the Stakes: Gather one die for each of the Complications in the
Adversary’s pool.
2. Make the Plan: Have each player choose a skill. Since we’re not using the
deck yet, anyone can choose whichever they like.
3. Execute the Plan: Have each player roll a number of dice equal to the rating of
the skill they chose, keeping only the highest roll.
4. Things Go Wrong: Roll the Adversary’s dice, and keep them separate.
5. Sort It Out: Starting with the lowest roll, have each player describe their
actions in the scene. If a Complication die interrupts the order, describe how
things go wrong. When you get to the highest roll, determine Victory or Defeat
based on whether the highest roll belonged to the Adversary or one of the
players:

◦ Victory: The characters overcome the scene’s obstacles and resolve the
scene on their own terms. The player with the highest roll describes how
their action brings the scene to a close. If multiple players have the highest
roll, those players work together to describe their collective action.
◦ Defeat: The characters are overwhelmed by the consequences of their
actions and are forced to live with them, at least for now.
 ◦ Draw: In the case of the players sharing the highest roll with the Adversary,
the players take the victory.

Whether the scene ended in Victory or Defeat, The First Gathering ends here. Take a
moment to wrap things up. Discuss what your characters intend to do next and what
you plan to do next.

Into the Grey

Into the Grey is a mode of play designed to establish the characters and touchstones
of the story your group is telling; the more cards you play, the more the world is filled
in around your characters. By the end of the game, my expectation is that your group
will have developed a comprehensive knowledge of the group’s narrative. I’m not
expecting you to fill in the whole world this way, just the parts of the world that are
immediately relevant to the story you’re telling.

For this variation, you’ll need enough dice for everyone, as well as a deck of cards
split into three piles:

• Face Cards (Ace, Jack, Queen, and King), shuffled

• Number Cards (2 through 10), shuffled
• Jokers (there should only be two of them)

Deal the face cards out to the players one at a time until none are left; then, deal out
the numbered cards in the same way. Deal out the Jokers last.

Once the cards are dealt out, follow the Basics of Play to play out rounds of Individual
Scenes and Group Scenes. To use a skill, players must discard a card from their hand
that matches the skill’s suit.

You can continue in this way until all of the cards have been discarded, or (more
likely) until you run out of time for your play session. I recommend taking a short
break after each round of Individual Scenes to give players time to grab a snack,
drink some water, or attend to any other pressing needs.
When the cards are gone, your group has (presumably) established everything you
need in order to form a cohesive understanding of the current story arc. You can
reshuffle the deck and play again to build on that understanding, or you can play Deck
Burner to resolve a more specific conflict.

You will probably not be able to play through the whole deck in a single play session.
To make things easier, I recommend having everyone write down what cards they
have in their journal, and crossing each card out as it’s played; that way, if you need
to pick up the same game later, you won’t have to physically keep track of the cards.
You don’t even need to use the same deck.

Deck Burner

Deck Burner is a mode of play designed to swiftly resolve a conflict. I’m personifying
that conflict with the term Adversary here, but the conflict in each story will be
different, and it might not involve a specific person. My hope with this framework is
that by the end of the game, your group will have either overcome the Adversary, or
deepened their resolve against it.

For this variation, all you need is a shuffled deck of cards and enough dice for
everyone to roll their skills.

Once the cards are dealt out, follow the Basics of Play to play out rounds of Individual
Scenes and Group Scenes. When a player chooses a skill, they must draw a card
from the top of the deck and then choose a skill that matches the suit of that card.
After each scene is over, discard all cards that were played during that scene.

When framing scenes in Deck Burner, Complications that come out of Individual
Scenes are direct intervention by the Adversary, and resolving them in Group Scenes
is the characters engaging with the Adversary directly.

At the end of each Group scene, if the players have the high roll, decide:

• The Adversary has been defeated! End the game here.

 • The Adversary has retreated to a more strategic position! Keep playing until the
Adversary is defeated.

After each round of scenes, take a short break to let everyone breathe, stretch, grab a
snack, drink some water, and take care of any other needs. When the group comes
back together, take a moment to get everyone settled and decide whether to repeat
the pattern or end the game here.

Need to pick it up later? That’s okay! You don’t need to keep track of which cards
were played for this; just shuffle the deck anew next time and pick up the story where
you left off.

For pacing, I recommend ending your first session with a Deck Burner concluding with
a Group Scene that escalates the conflict. That way, you don’t have to keep track of
accumulated Complications between sessions.

Laid to Rest

Sometimes the tools we bring with us aren’t enough.

Sometimes we don’t all make it back.

Sometimes none of us do.

If one of our characters leaves the story we’re telling (for any reason), this is the ritual
for bidding that character a last farewell.

For the purposes of this ritual, the player of the character who left the story will be
referred to as the Weaver. When the ritual refers to the players, that does not include
the Weaver. (If more than one player’s character left the story at the same time, they
can share the Weaver responsibility, or you can play this ritual once for each of them.)

(We can also use this ritual to bid farewell to a Story Arc we’ve completed, or a place
we’re leaving behind. If no one left, choose one player to serve as Weaver for this
ritual.)
You will need a freshly shuffled deck of cards. You will not need dice. Expect this
ritual to last at least a couple of hours.

1. The Weaver deals one card at a time, face down, to each player until the deck
is depleted. The players pile the cards in front of themselves, but do not look at
them.
2. One at a time, each player draws a card from their pile and speaks of a
memory of the lost character inspired by the card (see Drawing Memories for
details); then they lay the card carefully in the center of the table.
3. When all of the cards have been laid to rest at the center of the table, the
Weaver asks the players to close their eyes. The Weaver can play music here,
or read a poem, or let the moment linger in silence.
4. While the players have their eyes closed, the Weaver gathers the cards
together, places them back in their box, and carefully sets the box on the table.
5. When the Weaver is ready, they ask the players to open their eyes.

When the ritual is done, if the Weaver wishes to introduce a new character to the
story, they may. If they do, follow the procedure of The First Gathering to add this new
character to the group.

Drawing Memories

The suit of the card tells you something about the tone of the memory you will share.

• Hearts: a joyful memory

• Spades: a painful memory
• Clubs: a confusing memory
• Diamonds: a quiet memory

The face of the card represents the memento you will present to the group, or leave
behind in memory of the one who is no longer there.

• 2: a handshake
• 3: a toy
 • 4: a garment
• 5: a thing of value
• 6: a seed
• 7: a song
• 8: a book
• 9: a drawing
• 10: a name
• Jack: a letter
• Queen: a promise
• King: a weapon
• Ace: a lesson
• Joker: a mistake

If a memory is too painful to share, you do not have to speak it aloud. Take a breath,
place the card in the center of the table, and let the next player speak.

When No One Comes Back

If all of our characters leave the story at once, we can use this ritual for each of them,
or we can do it once for our whole group. When it’s done, we can start a new story or
leave the game behind us.

A Moment Alone

When your character is injured, you’ll need to spend time recovering. Injuries might
be physical ailments like a broken nose; they might instead be periods of confusion,
damaged tools, or broken relationships with people you care about.

What an injury looks like is up to you and the others in your group; what is significant
is how you recover, and learn, from the mistakes that led to that injury.

In A Moment Alone, your character separates themselves from the group to reflect,
regroup, and repair the damage they have done to themselves. This short play mode
is designed to take the place of an Individual Scene for your character.
If you need it, here’s some framing: You find yourself separated from the group.
Maybe this is what you wanted. Maybe you just got lost in the Grey. Whatever the
circumstances, here you are, alone, with ample time to consider your place in the
world. Your wounds lay bare before you, waiting for you to address their needs.

With that context, here’s how it works.

Recovery

To play out this mode, you must play a card that matches one of your injured suits. If
you’re playing Deck Burner and the card you draw from the deck doesn’t match an
injured suit, you don’t find a moment to recover just yet; play out an individual scene
as normal.

Take a moment to tell us how you recover the use of that skill. Do you take medicine?
Are there amends you have to make with someone you wronged?

Does someone emerge from the mists to help you, or to challenge you to do better?

You can go into as much or as little detail as makes sense for your character and for
the injury from which they’re recovering.

When you’re done, roll a single die, using the below results to determine what
happens:

• 1 (Bend): You recover, but your extended absence leaves your friends on their
own until you return. This suit is no longer injured; during the next Group
Scene, you may not participate.
• 2–5 (Weave): You are whole once more. This suit is no longer injured.
• 6 (Tear): You are whole, but changed. This suit is no longer injured; in ‐ crease
the rating of one skill from that suit by 1 and change its name.
Player vs Player: Game Face

Written by Vincent Smith

This is a ritual for use when Travelers engage in a discrete contest of skill. This can
be anything from physical competitions or sport combat, to something like a game of
cards. Specifically, this ritual is meant with the possibility of Player Character vs.
Player Character play in mind. With it, any fight is a conversation, a duel of wits, a
contest, and, most importantly, engaging for everyone involved.

What You’ll Need

Game Face is a dice-based ritual, for which you’ll need:

• A six-sided die (d6)

• Two eight-sided dice (d8s)
• One twelve-sided die (d12)
• Something opaque that you can use to hide your die, like a cup or mug.

Each participating character’s different Suits are assigned a Suit Die value:

• Strong Suit: d12

• Weak Suit: d6
• Remaining Two Suits: d8

How The Ritual Works

Game Face consists of three rounds of contested die rolls. The character who wins
two out of the three rounds first is declared the victor.

At the start of each round, participating players select one of their Suit Dice to roll,
representing the kinds of approach or skills they will use to gain the upper hand in this
round of the contest. Any one die can be used for any roll, but each Suit Die may only
be used once per three-round ritual.
Before rolling, both players describe the approach their characters are using to claim
victory. This description should roughly correspond to your group’s shared
understanding of the suit each die is assigned to. A player whose first round die is
assigned to Clubs wouldn’t describe leaping over an obstacle, for instance.

However.

Within the confines of that, players are encouraged to be as straightforward as they

wish, or to describe their action in a way that attempts to bluff or misdirect their
adversary. In this scenario, it may be prudent to assign one player who is not
participating in the current ritual as a deciding voice in the case of a dispute.

After both players describe their approach, each rolls simultaneously in secret, hiding
their roll using their object of choice. Once both rolls are made, the die result is
revealed and the player with the higher die roll is deemed the victor for that round of
the ritual. The dice used for that round remain out on the table for the duration, in
clear view of all players.

In addition, if a player that wins a round for having the higher die roll and also has a
higher total than their opponent across all rounds, they gain the added benefit of a +1
bonus to their next roll.

The example below will help clarify this:

Jeff rolls a 5 on a d6.

Emily rolls a 4 on a d6.

Jeff wins the first round, securing a +1 bonus to their Round 2 roll. However, this does
not always apply. See this example of the next roll in Round 2, taking into account the
results above:

Jeff rolls a 3 on a d12. Then, they add the +1 bonus for a total of 4.

Emily rolls a 5 on a d8.

Even with the +1 from the first round, Jeff can’t overcome their crummy luck.

Emily wins the second round, but because their total across two rounds (4+5=9) isn’t
higher than Jeff’s (5+4=9), no +1 bonus is issued for the tiebreaking final round. Jeff’s
+1 bonus from the first round does not carry over either.
The Weaver’s Dice
The Weaver’s Dice are a special set of dice that a weaver keeps safe, separate from
their other play materials. Some weavers keep these dice in individually housed
containers, ready to produce at a moment’s notice. Others keep them together in a
bag. There’s no one right way to store your dice.

The entries in this chapter describe thirteen of the most common dice in the world of
Mnemonic. If none of them fit your specific needs, you can develop your own using
the template provided.

Each die entry comes with a description of the physical die, but don’t feel obligated to
seek out and purchase a die that matches the specific description. You should try to
roll dice that feel comfortable to you, or that fit the feeling of what you’re rolling them
for. If a die doesn’t feel right, find one that does.

Using A Weaving Die

In any Individual Scene, after resolving your action, you can ask another player (or a
Facilitator, if one is present) to choose a Weaving Die for you. They can choose any
of the Weaving Dice described in this chapter, or they can invent a new one on the
spot based on the needs of your character and the world around them.

The rules for weaving are included in the Basics of Play, but the short version is this:

• 1 (Bend): very little happens.

• 2–3 (Weave): nothing bad happens.
• 4–5: something bad happens.
• 6 (Tear): something very bad happens.
Weaving Die Template

Describe the die itself. What does it look like physically? How are its surfaces
decorated? What does it make you feel when you look at it? Does it make a sound
when you roll it?

The opening text for your new die should contain three body-length paragraphs, each
paragraph addressing one of the following:

• What does it mean for the player to hold this die in their hand? (2-3 sentences)
• Place this die in context with the rest of the world. What does its power
represent within the world of Mnemonic? (2-3 sentences)
• What happens when the player rolls this die? What power does it hold?

When someone weaves with this die:

• Ask the player to frame the die in context of their own character’s memories.
• Ask the player why their character rolls this die in particular. The character
might not know themselves.

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: Subtle, barely perceptible to the untrained eye. What does this die do
that only the weaver will notice? Bend effects are minor, and rarely yield
negative consequences.
• Weave: Tangible and visible, but might appear to be coincidence to the casual
observer, as the world blends its memories with the present moment. Weave
effects are powerful, like a stroke of uncanny luck, but luck can be harmful if
not paid heed.
• Fray: Obvious and powerful; it calls to mind images of sorcerers casting spells.
What does this die do when it answers the weaver's call? Fray effects often
come with dangerous collateral damage.
• Tear: Dangerous and uncontrolled, with a will of its own that most weavers
cannot contain. What does this die do, and what perils inevitably arise from its
use? Tear effects always carry disastrous consequences, spiraling far beyond
the original weaving's intent.
The Bone Die

Written by Pamela Punzalan

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Bone Die is a primordial thing: the dark brown of deep depths beneath the earth
encased in the sharp, glistening white of creatures long dead. When you hold it up
against the light, you may see flashes of color, like the fragments of a soul.

Image description: A watercolor portrait of a person with their back to the viewer,
looking over their left shoulder. The top half of their head, lower half of their jaw, and
a section across their spine and shoulder is white skeletal bone, the edges between
the bone and skin marked with long streams of blooming pink, yellow, and purple
flowers and greenery.

Holding the Bone Die brings a deep sense of purpose. Hold it too long, however, and
whispers of all that you are will come rising up to the surface, unearthing what you left
buried for too long.

All creatures in Mnemonic are sums of their parts, held together by the trappings of
their forms—all of which is wrapped around their bones, that which determines their
shapes. We are but repositories for memories and experiences. They leave their mark
upon us, whether we are aware of it or not. While the mind, heart, and blood may
forget, the bones always remembers.

Rattling the Bone Die means shaking sleeping or forgotten memories awake. It draws
upon the scars that life leaves upon mortals, allowing the strength hidden within them
to fill them once again. It can also reach beyond death, revealing secrets that could
be equal parts terrible and beautiful and telling stories that perhaps no one else can.

When you weave with bones, consider the following:

• What was the last thing that the world forced you to bury deep within your
heart? How does this memory give you the power to weave with bones?
 • What lost things are you seeking? Are you even aware of what you have lost to
begin with?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: You shake an old memory loose from your bones, from the bones of the
mortal you are touching, or the bones that you may be holding in your hands. It
is more feelings, impressions, and odd flashes than anything else, enough to
raise more questions than answers.
• Weave: A memory of yours that you remember only partially or forgot
completely rises to the surface. It is always relevant to the moment you at ‐
tempted to draw upon the Bone Die for guidance. You may instead do this for a
mortal you are touching. If you hold the bones of another in your hands, the
flashes of their story that you are given will serve you well.
• Fray: You stir up countless fragments of memory from your bones and the
bones of others around you. If you are holding bones in your hand, the
remnants of experiences join the rising tide of discordant whispers, odd mix of
smells, and glistening shards of experiences.
• Tear: The call of the Bone Die or the force of your will stains the ground at your
feet, freeing all that sleep beneath the surface from the clutches of death. They
rise, struggling to be free of the earth, or stone, or mud, or water. They demand
to be heard.
The Discourse Die

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Discourse Die is an empty box made of crystal, so thin that it feels like it might
break at any moment. The faces are etched with flowers and daggers, so beautiful
and ornate that it is sometimes difficult to discern what you rolled until it's too late.

Image description: A series of human mouths open as if talking on a black

background.

The Discourse Die wants to be rolled. Its power is palpable and satisfying. When
people listen to your words, it feels good. You want to say more words that people will
also listen to. But speak too much, or without sufficient care, and your words may
cause more harm than good. Be careful of going too often to the Well of Discourse,
and of the potions you draw from its depths. Not all water is safe to drink.

The Discourse Die was designed as a protest against those who use honeyed words
to build empires for themselves, who paint themselves as paragons of virtue while
planting burning seeds of rumor and discord in the ground. When people speak
uncarefully in rooms where their words carry weight, countless others are forced to
bear the burden of the consequences wrought by those careless words.

Some people enjoy discourse, the casual riff-like debate over ethics and morality.
Others just want to be left alone.

When you roll the Discourse Die, consider:

• Who will be hurt by your words?

• What is it you truly want to say?
• Do you really need to say it?
Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: You speak, but no one listens. Maybe they cannot hear you. Maybe you
have nothing to say.
• Weave: You speak, and your words start conversations in other rooms about
what you said, carrying your influence to the world beyond. Perhaps these
discussions happened years ago. Perhaps they're happening now. Perhaps
both. The world moves in response to your words, opening paths you never
dreamed of.
• Fray: You speak, and the world listens, grasping your every word as though it
were gospel. Perhaps they listen too well; you yourself have doubts about what
you said, but it's too late; the world has moved on without you, on your behalf.
• Tear: You speak, and the world recoils, tearing itself asunder in pursuit of the
truths buried in your words. Things you didn't mean to say, or things you meant
to keep hidden. The discourse churns and warps and roils beyond your control,
leaving you and countless others in its wake, battered and bruised and cynical.
The Fire Die

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Fire Die is bright and red, with crisp golden numbers etched into each side. Its
heart is flecked with amber and coal.

Image description: A weaver wearing a rabbit face mask with ears in a pink, frilly
blouse. They have a hand slightly raised, a plume of fire rising from it.

Most people have memories of fire. The lights of a dozen candles on a cake; the
fleeting warmth of a bed of hot coals at a campsite. Fire carries the smell of
woodsmoke, of rendered cooking fat. Fire can form memories of home, of brightness
and wonder, of celebration.

Not every fire is a comfort. When it comes too quickly, or spreads beyond control, fire
can also bring fear, devastation, loss, sorrow. Its memories are of pain, of burns that
left scars.

Some memories, stored in pictures or mementos, refuse to burn, despite our rituals
and speeches. This is what it means to hold the fire in your hands, to carry its
potential and its danger. Burn too brightly, and you can set the world ablaze. Let the
flames flicker and die, and all you have left is the cold and the night.

Roll the fire die when you need comfort in the dark, or when you need to burn away
the overgrowth. Respect its power, or be consumed by it.

When you weave fire, consider the following:

• What images flash before your eyes when the fire manifests? Is the picture
clear, or distorted? Is it your memory, or someone else’s?
• Why do the flames answer your call?
Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: The flames flicker in your mind, reminding you that there is always light
if you need it. Sometimes, that light is you.
• Weave: The fire comes to you easily, answering your need. You can direct it as
you wish; the burning memory is your own, and it responds to your own heart.
• Fray: The fire is a roiling blaze, conjured from painful memories that won't
subside. It answers your needs, but it takes all of your will to keep it in check.
Even so, the flames burn hot and bright, leaving your obstacles in cinders, with
little regard to what may have been lost in the inferno.
• Tear: A terrible fire from this place's history wants to be remembered, and it
bursts forth from you. Its path is wild, and destructive, and hungry, and it
cannot be contained. Terrible things happen to those caught in its wake.
The Gold Die

Written by Lexi Antoku

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

See how my gold gleams! Stare as I shine in the light, watch how it plays on every
lovingly crafted pip upon my surface, the gently rounded corners and firm edges. An
unfairly balanced die? Me? Never, Weaver! Would I lie to you?

You know me, Weaver. I am wealth, and with wealth comes power. I am here to give
you what you need, what you deserve. Let us spend, let us buy! Put behind you those
memories of going to sleep hungry, of looking longingly at what you cannot have.

Image description: A pair of blue scales for measuring weights. In one cup is gold in
small pieces, some floating or flying away.

With the cool feeling of Gold in your hand and at your side, the world is yours to
purchase. Grab me, roll me, and never let me go to waste, Weaver, for we all know
the ways of the world. Gold is a fickle friend, there for those who have me already but
ever-scarce to those who need me most.

Ease your mind! Ease your heart! You’re a good one, are you not? You help people.
Let me help you! That’s what you’ll do with money, isn’t it? Use me for good. Ease the
burdens of your friends, your communities. That’s what everyone always does…
right?

Roll me when you need something. Anything. Let me ease that hollowness within you.
Fill your aching heart and empty stomach with my bounty.

When you weave with the beauteous shine of Gold, consider the following:

• Do you summon me by memories of plenty or memories of want? Which side of

the coin defines your relationship with me?
 • I was the easiest way, was I not? So much less dangerous to you than other
options. And the cost, well, you never have to pay it. Take a moment to thank
me, Weaver. You’re ever so welcome.
• I always take my cut. My boon comes with a modest price. Gold does not give;
Gold loans. The nature of wealth is that all aid comes with a price tag. But do
not blame me, and do not question it. Ask, instead—what do you offer me
back?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: Insignificant? Me? Ignore that voice within you, dear Weaver! Put those
ascetic virtues from your mind. You committed when you rolled me. Come! A
coin of shining metal in your palm to ease your mind. Take me up, and roll
again! Think of what riches await.
• Weave: What you need, Weaver? Why, it’s yours, whatever it might be. Finding
it is no obstacle to me, to us. Know that when you need it, where you need it, it
is ready for the taking by you and you alone. Who ever said, Weaver, that
there’s no such thing as something for nothing? And at one-in-three odds,
Weaver! Such easy profit. Perhaps you’re on a lucky streak? We could go
again and find out.
• Fray: Grasp, Weaver. Seize it. It is yours, for now. A little more than you asked,
hmm? A little better, is it not? Have I not outdone myself? Of course, I’ll need to
take a little more back for myself, naturally, before we’re through here. It’s just
how the system works. If my price seems steep, well, a modest loan is easily in
reach. You already rolled me just now, what’s one or two more times? Is your
lot, Weaver, not to weave?
• Tear: Look at it, Weaver. Is it not beautiful? All you asked for and more, a
bounty fit for royalty. It’s yours. Take it! I ask nothing in return... from you. It is
paid for, as all great things in life are, by the poor. The weak, the marginalized,
the helpless, the hungry. It’s not your fault, dear Weaver, nor mine either. It is
just the way of things. If we hadn’t taken it, someone else would have. You’ll
just have to make good use of it, won’t you? Otherwise they suffer for naught.
The Granite Die

Written by Noordin Ali Kadir, The Wolf-Weaver

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Granite Die is a pinkish-brown block. Its surface is scattered with white patterns
resembling the mortar between bricks. Some kind of dark plant matter has been
rubbed into the uneven scratches in its sides.

Image description: The inside corner of a stone brick wall. The ground is green as if
it’s grass, some grey stones scattered over it.

There is no weight so unsettling as responsibility. Those who wield this die must be
able to speak for others, aid others, build for others, until they eventually give out. But
there is no warmth greater than community, and as your mind wanders to the cost of
such power, there is comforting heat spreading from the die. “You are not alone.”

It is said that the first weavers of this die came from the great packs of the West,
using its power to give them fire when the world was coated with ice. Others say it
was the fishers of the Sodden Isle, building their great stone forts using its power. But
the stories, however disparate, unite around one common theme: use the Granite Die,
and your people survive.

How much would you sacrifice to ensure the survival of a home? A community? Or
even your family?

When you weave with Granite, consider the following:

• What gives way in you to make this possible? Do knees buckle, does blood
flow freer? The die is granite. The Weaver is not.
• Why and how do these people need your protection? As you glance at their
faces, how does their pain reveal itself?
• When the die eventually slips from your fingers, to meet the need of another,
are you relieved? Or distraught?
Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: An extra drop in every canteen, a fire that lasts that moment longer, new
vigor into old bones. No one will see it, but even a little given many times over
can do big things.
• Weave: There is fortune at your back or luck at your lips. One needed re ‐
source, whatever it may be, finds its way to your people. Sometimes that may
be new births, others an oasis. But should you have felt weakened, be
desperate no longer.
• Fray: Build towering edifices of stone, create trade routes and streets through
tiny villages, give and give and they will want for nothing. But please be
mindful, Weaver, to give only what you can. Do not let this weight fracture you
even further. Please.
• Tear: The true strength of a community is its ability to withstand time, and we
together could do that. Forever.
The Green Die

Written by Guanzon

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Green Die is a warm cube of compressed glass. At a glance, it may appear a
plunging black, but time and observation exhumes a spectrum of verdant green.
Nested in its faces are indecipherable counts of pips, changing the more certain you
think you are of their numbers.

Image description: Two humanoid hands and arms up to the elbow, green vines and
leaves growing from the fingers up over warm brown skin to the elbows.

The Green Die is a die of renewal, harboring both the cold of deep dirts and the
warmth of new life. It is an emissary of life on all scales, and demands the cycle of the
world continue—offering the desperate a secure place in that cycle, so long as they
carry that burden…

When you hold the Green Die in your hands, you feel the pulse of life around you and
the pulls of their struggles (including your own). As it bounces in your hands, you
observe the breaths of a thousand lifeforms as if they were resting on your shoulders.
When the die is thrown, the breathing grows more and more intense, suddenly
stopping when the die comes to a rest.

When you weave with the Green Die, consider the following:

• Have you woven with the Green Die recently? Are all your duties fulfilled?
• When will you give up the Green Die? Will you ever?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: You recall a time when the world filled you with wonder and excitement.
An uncanny emissary provides you with a vital piece of information.
• Weave: You remember a time when a beast instilled deep fear in you. A similar
beast is summoned, and will accept one command from you. When this
command is completed, they mark you before departing.
• Fray: You remember a moment when the line between you and the world
around you was indiscernible. A stampede of plants, animals, and insects
arrives. They can be herded, but will continue to trample until the weaving
ends. Whatever remains of the swarm will scatter back into the world, leaving
in its wake whatever you had brought.
• Tear: You tap into a long memory of molten earth and churning seas. It may or
may not be your own. The environment distorts itself suddenly and violently,
with little regard for its own dominion. The lands will remember what you have
done to them.
The Grey Die

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Grey Die is a broken piece of cracked stone, charred and pitted and cold. It calls
to mind memories of a place that was destroyed, and of those who were lost in the
rubble.

Image description: Shards of broken glass or a mirror, reflected a grey sky and a
parched, cracked earth with a single black silhouette of a tree.

We think of the Grey as this amorphous, wandering, indistinct cloud of fog that rolls
across the world. Thicker than the mists, it carries with it feelings of uncertainty and
omen. We try not to think of the Mage who took its name, the one who used its power
to end the dominion of the dragons.

We try not to think about the cost of that power.

When you hold the Grey Die in your hand, a creeping doubt immediately enters your
mind: What are you doing? Who are you becoming? Why are you holding this? Is it
too late to stop?

The Grey Die spells doom. Sometimes it is a quiet doom, a cloud that hangs over
one’s day. Sometimes it is… less subtle.

When you weave with the Grey, consider:

• Did you do this?

• Why did you do this?
• What other choice did you have?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:
• Bend: You can feel it—the weight of something beyond yourself pressing in,
affecting the world around you, tilting things ever so slightly in your favor, falling
out of balance. Maybe nothing happened. Maybe it just hasn't happened yet.
• Weave: Doom comes with the memory of those you've lost, and an aching
need to protect those who are still here. Those around you can feel it, the
gloom in your eyes that drives you to action.
• Fray: The pain comes before you're ready, with the memory of a day of
profound sorrow. In the wake of your remembered grief, the task before you…
arranges itself to completion. You are left to deal with the consequences,
without any memory of how they occurred. Did you do this? Or was it done on
your behalf?
• Tear: The world ends. Suddenly. Tragically. A new world might eventually rise in
its place, but everything you cared about is gone—forever.
The Metal Die

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Metal Die looks from the outside like a featureless block of bronze, and nothing
moves inside it. When rolled, after a moment or two, the topmost face opens up and a
mechanism raises a tiny platform displaying the rolled result. Is it balanced? Only the
engineer who designed it could say with any certainty.

Metal means different things to different people, but for the Gemfolk who founded the
shining city of Heliopolis, it represented a relationship with the earth and the
mountains that gave them life. Fire gives it the ability to bend and reshape itself, and
a skilled craftsman knows the potential of good materials.

Go to the shining city and you will see it: gleaming on the walls of the Spire of the
Sun; carrying people across miles in a matter of minutes on the Electric Rail system
that weaves its way through the city; moving water to homes and restaurants and
public gardens all over. The careful work of engineers, the best of whom still
remember where the bronze came from and what it represents.

Metal is used for destruction, too. Weapons of war, armored instruments of

devastation, devices built to level cities or topple mountains. The world remembers all
of these things, with pain and sorrow.

When you roll the Metal Die, consider:

• When was the last time you looked to the mountains?

• What do you carry that has metal in it? Where did it come from? Who made it?
Why?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:
 • Bend: An electric hum, barely audible to those who aren't listening for it, fills
the air. You can taste it on your tongue, you can feel it in the back of your
throat, filling you with anticipation. But nothing happens.
• Weave: The perfect tool appears in your hand, emerging out of the air from
woven strands of bronze. It's like nothing you've ever seen. When you're done
with it, the tool unravels and disappears again.
• Fray: The earth rumbles beneath you as the world remembers a mountain that
once stood here, that longs to rise again. Jagged pieces of iron might burst up
from the ground as well, desperate for the sky.
• Tear: The world remembers the tearing of the earth in pursuit of raw materials,
the painful gashes that bled silver and iron until there was nothing left. The
ground opens up like an empty scream, threatening to swallow everything to fill
a void that cannot hope to be satisfied.

Image description: A metal robot in the shape of a dog. It has cogs for eyes and
ears that stick straight up with small headphone like circles at their bases. Its chest is
like an open vent and it has a warm reddish yellow color to it. A metallic hummingbird
machine with bright blue feathers and a yellow face hovers in front of the dog.
The Rain Die

Written by Synxiec, the Weaver in Sunflower

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Rain Die is a deep aquamarine with moss-covered numbers that ripple when they
are touched. Clouds of various shapes dance around its heart.

Image description: A grey, stormy cloud producing a heavy rain, blue waves below.
The mechanical bronze arms of a mechanical humanoid figure reach out from the
water dropped by the cloud, either enthralled or baffled by the deluge.

A herald of the spring, rain visits us all, letting nearby nature know renewal is just
around the bend. Quiet taps on the roof of a home. The sound of droplets on leaves.
The smell of wet earth and nearby flowers. The promise of new life to follow. Too
much, though, and what once nourished life overflows to destroy it. Rivers break their
bounds and people can find themselves in grave danger at a moment’s notice.

Roll the Rain Die when you need refreshment and nourishment. When you do, know
that the first drop is the herald of thousands more.

When you weave with the Rain Die, consider:

• What does the rain draw out or obscure in the world around you?
• What does the rain leave behind? What seeds take root?
• In what way is this rain cleansing?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: A fine mist beings to fall. It is cool and refreshing as it touches your skin.
• Weave: Rain arrives to do your bidding. Perhaps it comes with clouds. Perhaps
a sunshower. The rain nourishes what you wish to nourish or extinguishes what
you need to extinguish.
• Fray: The rain arrives as you wish, but there is far more than expected. More
than any plant or person could take in or absorb. The land around you becomes
difficult to navigate.
• Tear: There is a brief silence before the heavens above and the ground below
erupt. Geysers burst forth, rivers overflow, and heavy rains wash away
everything in sight. Those caught in its flow are swept away along with the
debris. Only a few pebbles, twigs, and hints of what used to be are left behind.
The Sand Die

Written by Noora Rose

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Sand: cool, and soft, with an inner warmth that tingles, tempts. Hard-packed, it raises
topless towers of the imagined, vast castles upon a crashing shoreline. Carried aloft,
bitter and stinging, biting, the hot breath of desert dunes is like piercing needles,
blinding and scouring. Loose, and scattered, it trickles through fingertips to twinkle
and glimmer in fading light like the promise of stars. The grains in an hourglass slip
away into the infinite.

The union of Earth and Sky, of Stone and Sea. Not one or the other; both, neither.
Eternal and ephemeral. Don’t grip it too tight! She will crumble to powder, like bones
in the sun.

Image description: An hour glass sunk into golden sand, some sand flying around
the top of it.

The Sand Die is a die of inevitability, of time, of fate: the vast and endless infinities of
the sandscoured desert, motes of cosmic dust swirling in the timeless mists of a
nebula, jewelled grains filtering through the polished lens of the tiniest hourglass. It is
the power of the insignificant and uncountable, the weight of nothing, the foundation
of everything.

To hold the Sand Die in your hand is to grasp your fate in your hand: a single grain in
the hourglass, light as a feather, heavy as a mountain. To roll it, to feel it bounce in
your hand is to seize the sand ‐ storm, to grasp the infinite desert, to bend time and
space to your will, to pluck the very stars from the night sky. To release it is to allow
fate to take its course, to let time and space and infinity slip through your fingers, to
scatter to the four winds as they may. Light as a feather. Heavy as a mountain.

When you weave with the Sand Die, consider:

 • What singular grain of fate do you try to seize? What do you push aside to
grasp your goal?
• When you seize the universe within your hand, what slips through your fingers?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: Sands in the hourglass flows upwards. The gentlest of nudges; a single
grain to tip the scales. The slightest, most subtle change, rippling outwards like
a pebble in a pond. A single mote of dust, suspended in a sunbeam, contains
the entire universe in the palm of your hand.
• Weave: A glittering sirocco, a cyclone of fate, spinning jewelled sands like
constellations casting patterns only you can see, shapes only you can decipher.
The sands cast a skein, a net, a web of fate. Look closer. What do you see?
• Fray: A sandstorm of fate; stinging, whipping, scouring, burning. Destiny,
chance, fate, fortune; the sands of time swirl and coalesce around you.
Everything is within your grasp, just within reach. You can have it, all of it, if you
but reach out and take it. What does it matter if a few grains scatter and fall?
• Tear: The sands of time have run out—for you, or for another. The glass
shatters, the wind wails, and all is dust scattered on uncaring winds, slipping
through your fingers to drift away, forever out of reach.
The Wind Die

Written by Brandon O'Brien

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The Wind Die is a translucent blue, its edges sharp as blades, its faces smooth and
cool. Its heart is a constant spinning tempest, whistling its strong winds to your ears,
as if it were a storm that was just out of your range of sight. Sometimes, if you look
really closely, you can see something spinning within that storm.

Image description: A humanoid person in a blue shirt and yellow shorts with
suspenders, white stockings, and pink shoes. Their arms are outstretched and their
feet positioned as if dancing or walking on a tightrope. Instead of a head they have a
window frame, a gust of wind blowing a stream of leaves through it.

The Wind Die, like the element that grants it that title, is volatile on its own, but
always defined by what it can bring with it to any situation. It can take a ship to shore,
but only if there are sails to catch it; it can stir up a blazing inferno, but only if the
spark was there for it to spread. In much the same way, the Wind Die accentuates the
memories of dice that are rolled alongside them, giving way to deeper magic and
wider prophetic revelation when read accurately.

When you weave with The Wind, consider:

• What sounds or scents come to mind when the wind blows past you? What
memories are those sensations bonded to?
• What was the last thing that the wind brought to you or took from you?

Effects Of The Weaving

When you roll the die, the effects are derived from the result:

• Bend: You tap into a personal memory of wind, but it is fleeting and volatile.
You witness the briefest vision of something taking place currently elsewhere.
• Weave: You tap into a personal memory of wind, and it shares something
important or offers you a potent effect in concert with the elements around it.
Any vision or guidance you seek through this resembles the ways in which
those elements mingle within each other, clash against each other, or are
brought to bear in unison against other forces.
• Fray: The wind that you tap into is a gale, roaring through your body and
everything around you, threatening to lift you off the ground. Any vision or
guidance you seek through this is clouded by clashing metaphor, overwhelming
your senses.
• Tear: The wind that you tap into is a cyclone, threatening to destroy everything
around it with impunity. While within the eye of that storm, the weaver is
overcome with visions of things they did not expect, some giving wisdom,
others offering only woe or terror.
Setting & Stories
Mnemonic is an anti-canon setting, which means that everything we present is meant
to be revised and personalized to fit the needs of the story you’re telling. If you have
strong associations with the color green, for instance, you might make it a feature of
your story that when someone weaves a memory, the world around them takes on a
green tinge.

You can embrace the anti-canon nature of the setting as a facet of your world ‐
building, or use it as license to change things as you need to. That being said, there
are some things that are important enough to us as writers that, if you do change
them, you should at least know their importance.

The entries in this chapter describe places, people, events, or objects of interest that
you might want to include in your worldbuilding. You don’t need to use all of them, and
you don’t need to use them as presented. Some entries come with questions to guide
your storytelling. Some include sample story arcs to provide you with a ready-made
structure for playing games with the session frameworks in this book. (Some entries
might even contradict other entries. The setting is anti-canon even within itself.)

For storytellers who want to flesh out the world in similar ways, we’ve also provided a
template that you can use to write your own anti-canon setting entries.

Take what you need. Change what doesn’t fit. Discard the rest. Enjoy your journey
through the world of memory.

Using the Setting & Stories

When starting a new game, you can pick one of the settings in this chapter as a
starting point for deciding what kind of story you want to tell together. The Story Arc
section of each entry provides some loose scaffolding for a full story using that place
as a focal point. That said, each of these entries is intended to only serve as a
starting point. Think of them as pieces of inspiration to use if you need them.
Setting Template

The world entry describes something of significance in the world of memory. This is
the starting point for anyone wanting to use the subject in their story, so make sure it
contains the information you want them to get right.

Write the entry with the care of someone who wants to make sure that if a story is to
be told about this subject, they understand its importance. You might find it helpful to
write the entry from the perspective of someone who lives there, or who knows the
person intimately.

If you tell a story that includes this setting, consider the following:

• Ask a question that invites the reader to bring some part of themselves to the
subject to flesh out its details.
• Ask a question that provokes the reader to consider the subject within the
context of the world where the story takes place.
• Ask a question that paints an implicit boundary you don’t want the reader to
cross when telling a story about this subject.
• Ask a question that challenges an assumption the reader may be bringing to
the table with them, and that invites them to change it.

Story Arc Template

Begin with a paragraph that introduces the basic premise of the arc. What is this story
about, and how does it relate to the subject described above?

First Gathering

Introduce the players to their characters, to the group, and to the subject of the arc.
This paragraph should provide the players with enough context to play through that
session format.
Free Play

Follow the players’ navigation of a situation through a series of controlled vignettes.

This paragraph should provide the players with context for where the scenes are
taking place and what’s at stake.

Deck Burner

The Deck Burner session is an action-focused sprint through the conflicts and
challenges that escalate to a Victory-or-Defeat confrontation. This paragraph should
lay the foundation for that conflict.

Laid To Rest

Laid to Rest is how we say good-bye to this story, and to any characters who may
have fallen or been lost. This session helps us mourn our losses, and also gives us
closure on the story we’ve been telling. This paragraph should give us context for
beginning that conversation.
Capital City

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

One day someone showed up in expensive-looking clothes. They called them ‐ selves
a Capitalist. They told us that there was a place nearby called Capital City, where
anyone could go to find their fortune. They told us that a fortune was a thing to be
coveted.

Capital City is protected by spells that keep it hidden from the world. It has to be that
way, the Capitalist said, to make sure it doesn’t get found by those who would ruin it
for everybody. But for those who are ready to find their fortune, all they have to do is
bring their wares into the city. The invisible market will take care of the rest. That was
what the Capitalist said.

Those who return from the city told stories of grandeur and opulence, of enormous
wealth and fortune. They will say that anyone can go there and find success, if they
just try hard enough.

But not everyone returns. And no one can tell us what happens to those who are still
inside that invisible city, wandering the market, looking for an open place to set up
their stall, waiting for customers who never appear.

The ones who return can’t tell us how it was decided who got to find their fortune, and
who was doomed to struggle and fail. They can’t tell us where their customers came
from, or where they went when they left. They seem unable to remember. “It’s the
invisible market!” they say. “That’s the magic of it.”

Capital City is a wondrous place, the Capitalists say. And for the people who are
chosen for success, it probably is. But for everyone else, it seems to be a dungeon
from which there is no escape.
If you tell a story about the Invisible Market, here are some things you should
know:

• The Invisible Market is not your friend. It’s not anyone’s friend.
• The Invisible Market grants success at the expense of those who fail.
• The Invisible Market is always hungry.
• The rest of the world has survived without the Invisible Market.

Story Arc: Into The Invisible Market

In this story, you all decide to check out the Invisible Market. You’ve packed up your
wares and your creations and headed to the field, and you’ve entered its strange
invisible space.

First Gathering

You’ve all come here for a reason: to pay a debt, to find comfort in wealth, to build
something greater than yourselves. You have your own reasons for coming here, but
now that you’re here, the murky spellwoven barrier looms ominous before you, gives
you pause.

Free Play

In the corners of alleys, in the shadows of empty buildings, you see artists struggling
to be noticed, or giving up. No one else seems to notice them, but the world’s memory
reveals them to you. And they need help.

Deck Burner

Someone has noticed your interventions, and they’re not happy with your meddling. If
you don’t dismantle the Market, or find a way to escape, it will swallow you whole and
never let you leave.
Laid To Rest

Fortune or failure, the Market leaves you changed, even those who manage to leave
its barrier. The journey home is long and quiet, and leaves ample time to consider the
cost of wealth.

Image description: An endless grey field, a few rocks jutting from the ground. Grey
clouds hover in the sky and a wooden, lopsided sign reads: Success awaits you.
Cawdor

Written by Lexi Antoku

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Atop the hill rests the crown of the Sky District, where those with wealth and power
congregate and rule. Within that lies its jewel, the Heaven District, where all manner
of arcanists seek untold secrets. They are not weavers; their art is a different beast.
Make no mistake: these are the rulers of the city of Cawdor. Their words and desires
are as laws.

Beneath halls of power, the Ocean District grows further along the shore with every
season, thriving on the bounty of the fickle seas: fishing and trade with neighbors up
and down the coast. Braver captains cross deeper waters to lands unknown beyond
the Grey, cutting through the fog of broken memory.

On the inland side, the Mountain District’s forges and workshops roar through day
and night. The river cutting through it powers watermills, a final gift from the rains
before they rejoin Cawdor’s storm-wracked seas. They make tools, and they make
toys, and all too often they make weapons.

Further still are the unofficial districts. The Forest District, a rainforest that grows
heartier with each year since the end of the time of dragons, flourishes under the
tender care of weavers and woodsfolk. The Plains District, a sprawl of family farms
and orchards, brings the city foods, drinks, and threads.

Last is the Swamp District: the city’s unacknowledged shame, a slum in the shadow of
the Sky and Heaven Districts, drenched in the runoff from their arcane experiments.

If you tell a story that includes Cawdor, consider the following:

• Who rules from the Sky District? How do they maintain their authority alongside
their Heavenly partners?
 • How do the discoveries of Heaven District arcanists make the lives of the
people better and easier? Your lives?
• Why can’t the laborers buy the best of the goods they make?
• What are the worst symptoms of the Swamp District’s contamination? Why are
people forced to live there?

Story Arc: Though The Heavens Fall

We gather for a tale of power and its price. We confront the hidden costs of our bread
and circuses.

Image description: A castle rests on a hill with many windows and towers. Small
houses rest on one side of the hill in the castle's shadow.

First Gathering

A plague, the physicians tell us, takes the city. It started, they admit only grudgingly, in
the Swamp District—where Cawdor’s rulers ignored it until it reached the wealthier
districts. Citizens demand official action. The finest minds of the Heaven District
provide unsatisfactory answers, so the Sky District calls upon an older tradition,
potent but outside of their political control: weavers.

Into The Grey

We seek the root of the disease, its origin, with official mandate. We learn the stories
of those harmed by it. We break bread with those who are officially the worst affected:
wage laborers in mines, Mountain District workshops, and Heaven District
laboratories. We listen to those who in truth suffer most: the pollutant bathed
untouchables in the Swamp District. We question Heavenly arcanists in ways they
might not appreciate.

Deck Burner

The truth is undeniable: this is not a plague. This is contamination. Many substances
essential to the miracles of Heaven District alchemy are toxic with prolonged
exposure—and the arcanists knew it. Whether Sky can be turned against Heaven with
evidence of their malfeasance, or the people of the city moved by the sordid truth, the
Heavenly arcanists will cling to power until it is taken from them.

Laid To Rest

Perhaps justice has been done. Perhaps not. Perhaps it was Regardless, the part we
played is over; it’s time to move on. What costs did the city pay, and what costs shall
yet be paid? How will people’s lives change? What would have been different if others
had been poisoned—across the Grey-topped seas, for instance? What will become of
the elites, who named the suffering of others a fair price for their eminence?
The Children of An and Enki

Written by Noora Rose

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

It was long ago, in a time before time, that Enki the Earth and An the Sky glimpsed
each other. Both infinite in their power and majesty, it was their antipodal differences
that first drew them to each other, though those differences initially shocked and
repulsed—so much so that, shortly after that fateful first glance, Earth and Sky warred
for six days and seven nights in that timeless, primordial chaos. Upon the seventh day
their warlike embrace became a loving one, and the union of Earth and Sky produced
children that were not entirely of one world or the other, but who stood upon both.

Enki and An’s love was not to last, for soon Enki began to look past An and into the
stars while An’s gaze began to drift from Enki to stare upon their own reflection in the
vast, wide sea. Their estrangement tore the Earth and the Sky apart forever and left
both populated with the Children of An and Enki: those in between, the liminal folk,
who freely walk between Earth and Sky yet belong to neither.

As you stand upon the Earth and gaze up into the Sky, ask yourself:

• What do the Children look like? How do they resemble both Earth and Sky?
What sets them apart from their parents?
• As forgotten children, in what way do they seek the favor of their wayward
parents?
• Enki and An refuse to involve their Children in their struggles. Why?
• What good omens do the Children of An and Enki bring upon others?

Image description: A sketch of a rock formation looking vaguely humanoid, reaching

up to touch a wisp of rolling cloud reaching down toward the earth.

Story Arc: The Grand Conjunction

Every year at the appointed time, the Sun and Moon and Stars align in such a way
that casts Earth and Sky in glorious illumination. A Grand Conjunction, a gathering
beneath a great eclipse, where time loses power and distance loses meaning for a
single night. On this night of nights, the Children of An and Enki return from their
travels across time and space to share amongst themselves and others stories of
strange vistas and mysterious wonders they have encountered in their travels.

First Gathering

You join the Grand Conjunction to share and revel and learn at the feet of these
Children of Earth and Sky. How does the ground ripple beneath their feet? How does
the air charge and crackle with their voices? How have you come to catch the eyes of
the Children?

Into The Grey

The revelry begins. Great bonfires are sparked, offerings burned, and the food and
drink and good cheer flow freely. What tales of courage and skill are told among the
People? What feats of witchcraft and skill are displayed by the Children?

Deck Burner

The Conjunction reaches a fevered pitch: laughter turns to bloodshed turns to

lovemaking, deeds exaggerated through story are proved in the moment, gifts are
given and tribute offered. How do you prove your worth to the Children? How do the
Children’s wild revelries give you pause? If you are called to walk the Longest Road,
will you leave your home?

Laid To Rest

Sun and Moon have drifted and the stars are no longer in alignment. The Children
depart in shimmering beams of aurora-like light. Who remains among the smouldering
campfires? What signs of their passing have the Children left? Who has been Chosen
to join the Children, to take their place among them in the stars, where such revels
need never end?
Dragon’s Husk

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Image description: A feline humanoid stands with their back to the viewer, looking at
the huge skeleton of a dragon-like creature. Through time it has become part of the
landscape, overgrown with vegetation, trees growing through its eyes and the bones
of its spine sticking out through the top of the mountain range.

Not every dragon was wiped out of existence in the same moment; there were plenty
of the foul creatures who were slain in combat, their corpses falling to land heavily in
forests, marshes, oceans. Over the many years since their deaths, the largest of the
husks remain features in the landscape, their hollow corpses having developed
thriving natural ecosystems for plants, animals, and other forms of life.

Yet the world has a hard time letting these monsters go, and echoes wander about
the place—many of warriors who were eaten or torn apart by the dragon’s fury. Some
of them are friendly. Others know only anger at an existence that will never end.

If you tell a story that includes Dragon’s Husk, please consider:

• How did the dragon fall? Who helped slay it?

• Why did we demand its destruction?
• Why do we stay away from the place where it fell?
• What has risen out of its remains?

Story Arc: The Dungeon In The Dragon

In this story, we explore the ruined corpse of one of these massive creatures. Our
journey takes us into the heart of its remains, where we face an echo of the dragon’s
memory and try to put it to rest.

Dragons were initially imagined as allegories of empire. If you, like me, are
descended from those who pursued empire, or are currently a beneficiary of empire
yourself, I encourage you to be careful of how your stories rationalize or glorify the
actions of conquering forces.

First Gathering

We meet our circle of weavers in a village nearby. It’s a place where travelers stop to
rest before making the arduous detours necessary to avoid stepping too close to the
Husk. In our sleep, we are all tormented by whispers of temptation: riches, power,
secrets.

Into The Grey

Something draws us near the Husk: a promise of answers to questions, or a re ‐ quest

to retrieve an heirloom that was lost long ago.

Deck Burner

At the heart of the dragon’s corpse, an echo lingers of the dragon themself,
desperately searching, hunting for a way to restore their body to life. Their will
presses into the surrounding landscape, creating dangerous echoes and other
hazards that stand in the way of any who might seek to quiet the dragon’s endless
whispers.

Laid To Rest

With the dragon defeated—or not—we return to the town with news of our success or
failure. At night, we spend time in reflection, mourning our losses, and looking to the
future.
The Tale of Five Strings

Written by Synxiec, the Weaver in Sunflower

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Every culture shares stories that inspire courage, share knowledge, and teach
wisdom. Among those stories is one about a drought, the five weavers that brought
rain to end it, and the wisdom they left for those who would come after them.

Some say these stories are our only memories of the first weavers. While the number
of weavers varies from one story to another, it is most commonly known as the Tale of
Five Strings, told every year during the harvesting season around friends and family
at a warm campfire.

If you tell a story that includes the Five Strings, consider the following:

• Where did you first hear the story of the Five Strings?
• In the story you learned, where did the drought take place?
• How do you prepare to tell this story?
• What does this story teach you about the purpose of power?

Image description: A humanoid feline figure is sitting on the ground with their back
to the viewer. They have a backpack on and are sitting opposite a parched, cracked
lake bed, some rounded buildings in the background, and mountains beyond them.

Story Arc: A Turn Of The Loom

In this story, we imagine ourselves as the weavers at the center of it. We walk the
world in their shoes, finding others who are on the cusp of emerging as weavers like
themselves.
First Gathering

You meet in a town that has been enduring an inexplicable drought for several years.
This year promises a harsh winter and reserves are running low. It is in this situation
that you may find your way to your first world memory.

Into The Grey

Within the town, you hear grumbles from the townspeople growing agitated at the
thought of another lean winter. Neighboring towns have shared their supplies where
they could, but they cannot do this indefinitely. If a solution can’t be found, this year
might be the last for many people here.

Deck Burner

In the middle of the night, the smell of smoke wakes you from your sleep. Outside, a
man in opulent clothing stands in the middle of the road. They compliment your work
in saving the town, but inform you that this doesn’t work for them. Beyond them,
strangers dressed in mercenary garb set fire to shops and homes. The man’s smirk
dares you to stop him.

Laid To Rest

It is three days later and while many things have been rebuilt, your confrontation has
left much of the town changed. As the sun sets on this place, your thoughts wander
back to the drought, the man who burned the town, and the future.
The Glittering Graveyard

Written by Noordin Ali Kadir, The Wolf-Weaver

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Search in the places that no one goes and you will find them. Twisted metal
superstructures peek out of forgotten earth, like bones of something long dead. The
buildings themselves are half swallowed by the ground they stand in, multiple levels
of blinking light and groaning floors burrowing deep, with artifacts of life sprinkled in
between.

The largest of these places is called the Glittering Graveyard, brass and blue towers
drowned by desert sand. There is no memory of this place, or at least none that
people share, but pain can be felt whenever one draws near. There is an ache in this
place, and though it yearns to be heard, it is the ache that keeps those who would
listen away.

If you tell a story that includes this subject, please consider:

• What tradition of the peoples who lived here would be immediately

recognizable to you?
• What, beyond the buildings, have those peoples left behind? What have others
stolen from these homes?
• What about these people demand their return to memory?
• What about the pain here makes it easier to shirk the duty to remember the
innocent?

Image description: A ship on a rolling wave, sails full with wind. A figure points in the
distance to ruined skyscrapers and buildings, the clouds in the sky seeming to point
to them, too.

Story Arc: Shattered Tapestries, Stolen Memories

This story must be told; this place must be remembered. Together, we will collect the
disparate strands of memory and weave them into a tapestry once again. It may not
be perfect, but at least it will exist. At least those who lived here will be returned to us
in history.

First Gathering

The aches of shattered past have reached each of you in turn, drawing you to this
place. It seeps and drips into your bones and blood, the sole solid points in a writhing
mass of memory. It’s the firm points of pain that brought you here, but there was so
much more to them, and that’s what keeps you.

Into The Grey

Their pasts are not gone, just softened after neglect. Using your skills, this place must
be made to remember everything, to define and grow past its pain, to rebuild and
return to us the moments of good.

Deck Burner

The memory of one sole actor is what kept this place a void. A refusal to be re ‐
membered as the one who broke the world. Everything that has been rebuilt must be
erased by this destroyer, the people returned shattered and forgotten once again. And
to this malevolent presence, those who seeked to learn must be made to abandon the
threads that resurrect the truth.

Laid To Rest

Whatever that has been pieced together is more than this place had before, and
those who wove it will be forever changed by the lessons learned. Let what has been
lost go, celebrate that which has been returned. The past does not remember itself,
but you can.
The Goldenbloom

Written by Crimson Stripes

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Dusk, dawn, or high noon, the ship gleams rays of gold to pierce even the thickest
clouds that stood in its way. The Goldenbloom is more than just a vessel, it’s a way of
life. Your life.

The marvel flew the skies for generations—how many, not even the dozens of your
predecessors could tell. Through centuries and lifetimes, it’s seen all the world can
offer. It has flown through sleet, sun, rust, and rot, maybe even shedding its hull for a
new skin every so often. At least, that’s what its walls tell you.

As the tide of generations turn, you take the helm of the vessel, to go wherever you
want to do whatever you want. At the end of the day, and the start of the next, when
the sun hits the hull, it’ll bloom with golden opportunity.

Before you set sail to soar the clouds, consider the following:

• How did the airship come into your hands? Was there a previous captain before
you?
• How was it when it was handed to you? What did it look like? Did you change
anything?
• Is the Goldenbloom a one-of-a-kind warship armed with cannons? Or a cargo
vessel that could fit whole houses?
• Is this ship home to a crew of pirates or sailors? Or do you ride the clouds as a
lone wanderer?

Image description: An airship of some kind with a balloon on top and ballast weights
hanging down. The sky behind is cloudy.
Story Arc: Stars Of The Midnight Range

First we swam, then we walked, and now we fly. When the islands first rose up into
the air and the ground fell into itself, we adapted. Most saw the calamity as a
damnation, the remnants of civilisation punished to be torn apart from one another. To
others, it was a gift: being brought closer to the stars, to the gods, to the heavenly
bodies that were always out of our reach.

First Gathering

Those that hadn’t settled on the islands made their homes in airships, and a delicate
dynamic between the two was born: skyfarers became a necessity, and islanders their
hubs and ports. This was the new order of things, one needing the other, lest
everything fall apart and be lost to time.

Into The Grey

Though the crescendo of the calamity has passed, it never truly ceased. Shifts in the
islands and clouds, seen or unseen, took their forms and came and went. With this
new world came a new frontier that could be explored, expedited, and exploited to
hearts’ content.

Deck Burner

For the creative and adventurous, even witnessing these ephemeral etherealities is a
priceless godsend. Artisans, scholars, even thrill-seekers all seek their share of the
new world and the bygones of the old. The only problem is finding a willing skyfarer to
take them there.

Laid To Rest

With each journey made, a course is set, a flight flown, and a deed well done. So long
as the Goldenbloom and its captain see the light of day and dusk of night, all is well;
the only thing that matters is where else there is to go.
Harbor of Sound and Colors

Written by Valis Teoh

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

When the sun shines upon the rooftops adorned with colorful fabrics and nets
hanging from one home to the other, the residents of this quiet sea village stirs to life,
welcoming dawn with open arms.

The sound of ocean waves shifting underneath wooden floors is a wakeup call to
many, as the residents are accustomed to living in a village built on ocean waters.
They begin to move to and from their destinations with small oar boats, decorated in
trinkets equally vibrant and full of personality, going about their day full of purpose.

When moonlight graces the calm, still waters of night, the harbor glows in beautiful
hues and the people celebrate with hearty songs and energetic melodies, grateful for
today’s peace and the peace of the many todays that came before—for their history is
marred with a violence that they have long since moved on from.

The journey to reach it will not be easy; standing in your way are far too many
shipwrecks and submerged ruins. If you still choose to travel to this sleepy,
secluded village, consider the following:

• What sparse rumors have you heard about this quiet village that compelled you
to set forth on your travels?
• When you arrive, what things do you see around the harbor that have been left
behind by their days long gone?
• Who are the only few that are willing to speak privately about the harbor’s
history?
• What sorts of festivals do they invite you to participate in, and what tales and
meaning do they bring with them?
Story Arc: Spear In The Sand

Remnants of the Old War, though present, have been given new life, new colors, new
purpose—save for the lone, weathered spear that stands steadfast along the
shoreline, near the harbor’s otherwise colorful and lively entrance.

First Gathering

You’ve heard rumors about this spear. The grief and tragedy it has caused travel far
and wide, as if it has left a permanent scar on this world. The residents don’t seem to
acknowledge it, hustling along their busy day, save for a select few. They all have the
look of someone who has seen far too much.

Into The Grey

The people of the village invite you to join in the nightly festivities. Tonight is one of
how the Harbor gained its name, and you help with the preparations needed, learning
more about its traditions and beliefs, yet never about the spear.

Deck Burner

Night falls, and the celebrations begin. Spirits are high, but you feel something is
amiss: the spear is missing. No one seems to acknowledge it. Find it, and perhaps
then will you learn about the harbor’s history.

Laid To Rest

Eventually, you find the perpetrator, a solemn look on their face. They tell you they
cannot forget—not like the others. What means did you have to take to make them
divulge? What truths did they reveal to you that you were not ready for? Moving
forward, you now carry a new burden from this knowledge.

Image description: A sketch of a coastline. In the distance is a harbor with figures

dancing or celebrating on it. In the water are boats, one with a build-in awning like
roof. On the right are rocks on the beach, covered in seaweed and shells, and an
ornate, forgotten spear sunk into the sand.
Ironhold

Written by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Rocks jutting forth from the earth are the first signs for any traveler to know that
they’re close to of Ironhold: the huge, sprawling city of the Stoneborn. Those that
have been here before know better than to fight the jagged cliffs and the sharp edges
of earth here. There is no other way but to weave with the land as you go. This valley,
bordered by the Mountains of Cornelion and the Sapphire Cliffs, was a wide expanse
of flats and plains until Fomalhault came.

Ironhold is a city filled to the brim with magic, beating in time to a comet’s heart. It
isn’t hard to spot the massive crater that makes up the very center of Ironhold,
Fomalhaut’s Maw. Eons ago, a behemoth of a comet decided to come down and
make the land its home. The comet’s descent rippled through the lands, hence the
irregular terrain that, today, has become commonplace. The very walls of Ironhold are
built on these irregularities, glowing and pulsing, as if the city is breathing. The rocks
reach for the skies, gazing upon Fomalhault’s old home.

Ironhold’s folk are stalwart when it comes to their hospitality. Many believe that
perpetuating hospitality and prosperity helps keep alive the Heart of Fomalhault, a
living meteorite shard of ice and stone enshrined in a tower at the center of
Fomalhault’s Maw. The Stoneborn believe that this Heart is what keeps them and the
land alive. Fomalhault, in their love for the beauty of this world, chose to come down
from the heavens to lend their vitality to the land—at least, that’s what the Stoneborn
will tell you.

The magicks of Ironhold are felt the moment you enter the gates—gems, glowing
according to their kind, are on nearly every other lamp post, paved walkway, gate,
and door. They glow in time to each other and the Heart of Fomalhault. Gems
extracted from the nearby mountains are mined and blessed once every month by the
Hands of Fomalhault, masked Stoneborn who have chosen to bathe in the pools that
surround Fomalhault’s Tower within the Maw. They serve as conduits to the Heart and
its power. The blessed gems are then distributed to every home and organization. If
you visit during the colder months, the gems emit a lovely warmth that keeps the
people of the city comfortable. They’re used as sources of power for most anything
and everything: electricity, spell and ritual components, and much more.

Ironhold is home to some of the world’s most skilled astrologers and weather
scholars. Within Fomalhault’s Tower are the three main fonts of knowledge in
Ironhold: the Olivine Basilica, the Maelstrom Observatory, and the Studium of the
Clouds.

The Olivine Basilica is a school for those interested in studying the stars. Of
particular interest, their best scholars monitor the heavens for the famed lover of
Fomalhault, Antares. The Stoneborn believe that the reason why Fomalhault landed in
our world is because they were flying towards Antares, their lover, who lives on the
other side of the sky. The Legend goes that Antares had told Fomalhault, “search for
the brightest light in the sky; I’ll keep it burning for you.” During their flight, however,
they had become mesmerized by our world’s light, thinking this was where Antares
was. Alas, during their descent, only the Heart remained. Today, the astrologers of the
Tower watch the skies for Antares, as they believe that one day the brightest star will
come to claim the heart of their lover.

When that time comes, the Stoneborn are well aware that they will lose their city’s
main source of power, vitality and prosperity. While they have no intention to retaliate
against Fomalhault’s lover, they want to be prepared.

The Maelstrom Observatory is an order of knight-sailors that watch the skies for
storms that often blow in from the Sapphire Cliffs. When one does come, they ride off
into the eye of it in their skyships to battle with it and calm it down before it brings
forth any terrible damage to Ironhold.

They bottle lightning in glass jars, specially crafted to contain such power, which the
city can eventually use as an alternative energy source. Then, they pierce the eye of
the storm so that it dissipates peacefully before it can wreak any more havoc. The
knight-sailors of the Observatory train intensively for years before they are even
allowed to sail. It is a responsibility fraught with danger.
The Studium of the Clouds is another school that teaches students how to study the
clouds and weave their magic to call forth rain whenever the droughts come. Their
magic also helps move the clouds over to the reservoirs, where the clouds are either
drained of their water or magically stored in case the city needs to craft a storm to
farm lightning.
Requiem Nimbus

Written by Crimson Stripes

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Image description: Two skeletons in a garden. One of the left is trimming a rose
bush with garden shears, the one on the right is in a car, reading a newspaper called
‘Bones Today’. Behind them is a fence, and a third skeleton in a straw hat is peering
over, seemingly talking to the skeleton in the chair.

As it crawled its way up the horizon it consumed everything and anything, every
shape of color, every ray of light, and every corner of the eye.

It didn’t matter where you were—only that someone else had been there, that they
had enough reason to come back, and that they always would. The storm was their
vessel. It brought them back a little less than alive, a little more than dead, but not
exactly something in between.

Contrary to cliché, the inhabitants of the storm have no inherent malevolence, nor are
they god-fearing by any means. No, these souls do in death as they did in life; this
much is known to those who cross the storm’s path on regular occasion.

As you take the storm’s air in with your breath, consider the following:

• Is this your first encounter with the Requiem? If not, is it coincidental or

purposeful?
• What do the winds blow with them? Just people? Pets, maybe? Plants, even?
• How does your world react to the citizens of the past? With glee? Contempt?
Indifference? Or a combination of the above?
• How do the long-forgotten digest the new world around them? Do they even
try?
Story Arc: Stars Of The Midnight Range

Muck and mud and steel and wood and blood and bones—the definitions of war, the
spillages made in pursuit of ideals. We’re told a death with resolve is the only one that
matters, that such a thing can only be gained on a battlefield. Yet always omitted are
the bodies snapped in twain, the minds infested with itches, the souls stretched and
malformed, incrementally, day after bloody day.

First Gathering

It’s been a long time since those years where soldiers sat in trenches and foxholes,
but the silence of stalemate stays, as do the cracks of gunshots that eventually break
them. With the storm comes those who once were, and with them came the world
they once lived in.

Scene Play

Though the chaos of the old wars stayed in it grave, the victims were dug out of
theirs. With each came their own struggles, their own traumas, somehow entirely
different from, yet perfectly identical to, the last and the next: they are hopelessly
condemned to a suffering that’s already happened and will happen again.

Deck Burner

With whatever bit of time the storm lends them, they cry. Not with words, not with
voice, not even in tears. Their cries echo in the soul, turning into a pain that cripples
mind and body. If only there was someone to reach their hands out or lend an ear to
them.

Laid To Rest

Action or inaction, the storm will pass as it came. That much is set in stone. One can
only hope these saddened souls found their peace during their stay, that they
returned with new eyes and whole hearts, for it’s the fate of all to join it one day.
Rynwood, the Forest of Silk

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Seen from afar, the forest known as Rynwood looks like any other stand of oldgrowth
trees, with vibrant green canopies and thick brown trunks. Coming closer, a traveler
starts to see movement among the branches, imperceptible shifts of the foliage and
the bark. Come close enough, and you’ll see the vast network of silk threads that give
the Forest of Silk its name.

The trees of Rynwood have hollow trunks, growing their heartwood to accommodate a
thriving community of spiders. The trees provide safe shelter for the silk-weavers
when the rains and winds come, and in return the spiders protect the trees from
insects, strangling vines, and predatory logging companies.

Spiderfolk live here too: human-looking people who share some of the spiders’ most
well-known traits. Some spiderfolk look more like human-sized spiders, but spiderfolk
come in all shapes and sizes.

When telling a story that includes the Silk Grove, consider the following:
• How do the spiders know what the trees need, and vice versa?
• How do visitors to the grove know to be careful with the space?
• What is your relationship to the tree that gives you shelter?
• What does Silk Grove teach you about the ways your home provides you
shelter—and how do you maintain the safety of your home in return?

Image description: A grove of trees, with delicate spider webs connecting them.

Story Arc: The Elder Tree

Most of the trees in Rynwood are older than many cities. At the heart of the Forest of
Silk is the Elder Tree, a massive giant that provides nutrients to the whole forest. In
this story, we will visit the Elder Tree, and discover a sickness that threatens all of
Rynwood.
The First Gathering

When we first meet, we are on our way to Rynwood. Some of us might just be passing
through on the way to somewhere else; others have business in the Forest of Silk. All
of us know someone who lives in the forest, who has told us how to be careful if we
haven’t been here before. The spiders are nervous, but not about us; something is
happening to Rynwood, and no one is talking about it.

Into The Grey

Our exploration of the forest city illuminates more of the struggles facing the people
who live here: trees beginning to rot, leaves drying out despite plenty of rain.
Eventually we find the Elder Tree, once a bright tower ripe with fruit and
phosphorescent moss, now a grey shadow of its former self. We must find the source
of the Elder Tree’s distress, and fast; the whole of Rynwood depends on its support.

Deck Burner

We find the source of the Elder Tree’s sickness: a rampant invasive fungus that was
carried here by a visiting lumber tycoon who has it in their head that the infection will
make the trees more valuable for logging. We must deal with the fungus, and then
find the tycoon and put a stop to their pursuits.

Laid To Rest

Whether we stop the infection or not, the fungus has taken its toll on Rynwood and
the people who live there. We find a moment to reflect on what was lost, and grieve
for what cannot be replaced.
Spider Web Poetry

Written by Guanzon

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Some spiders use their web as a form of expression. By laying patterns of silk over a
scene, they create their own “poem”—a collaboration with their environment to
express a complicated relationship with the world around us.

A poem is a combination of how its strands frame an image as well as its lifespan. It
can frame any angle of its environment, and capture any moment from sunrise to
sunset. These poems are innumerable fleeting moments of beauty—a futile exercise
in capturing transience.

For spiders that do not weave traditional webs, their crafts can also be included in the
tradition. A trapdoor can capture two different frames whether opened or closed, the
diving bell can bend wondrous light beneath the water. Beyond spiders, this level of
social and expressive architecture can be found in other facets of the animal kingdom
including termites, birds, apes, even fish.

When telling a story that includes Spider Web Poetry, consider the following:

• The environment is a co-author, not a medium.

• Poems are not made to last forever, and cannot be predicted or contained.
• A creator is not a keeper; a completed poem cannot be touched by a weaving.
• Love the poems you make.

Story Arc: Finding Our Poem

We’ve found a place that we will leave behind, but we want to leave our heart here. A
celebration of poetry, we find ourselves stumbling through the Summer Solstice
Festival, where artists intend to make the most of the extended daylight.
First Gathering

We are on our travels and have found a place of beauty, but we will depart soon
enough to address more concerning dangers. What sort of place has moved your
hearts? Where are you headed once the festival is over?

Free Play

There are similar pieces to every place of wonder: pieces where light finds its way in
and the day creatures rely on, barriers that define this place from that, dark pieces
where vulnerable creatures find refuge. We will find what we each think is beautiful
here.

Deck Burner

You’ve found the subjects of the poem, but now you must find a way to make it work.
Determine your framing device, and the position/perspective it must be placed to
capture everything all of you need. Soon, the light will change with the seasons and
the Festival will be over.

Laid To Rest

Our effort of creation is complete. We move on to higher stakes, regardless of what

we have left in our wake. Did we capture time and space in its glory, or have we
polluted this place with our egos?

Image description: A feline humanoid in a shirt and backpack, one paw raised as if
about to touch the middle of the spiderweb in front of them as they study it.
The Unforgotten City

Written by Synxiec, the Weaver in Sunflower

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

Among the wonders of the world are its cities, each has its own stories and legends,
and people that create new ones all the time. While some cities are remembered for
their events, others cities are sentient and remember things themselves while
enjoying the new memories that their citizens make.

Image description: A building in a rainy city, where the windows and walls of the
building's exterior look like a face, the expression a little sad. Water runs down the
walls.

However, as sentient beings often do, some cities feel discontent or sorrow with what
they remember. Others feel anxious about things like war, or not providing enough for
their residents, or that they might be forgotten. Occasionally, some cities move to
prevent these things and to protect their people and themselves.

When you tell this story of the Unforgotten City, consider the following:

• What do you remember about the Unforgotten City?

• What is the Unforgotten City called where you come from?
• How do you honor the city when you tell this story?
• What does this story teach you about letting go?

Story Arc: Of Fear And Forgetting

In this story, we visit a city known by many names to many people, but known to
everyone as the Unforgotten City, where we imagine ourselves as people who are
new to the city. We walk the streets seeing what marvels and memories the city holds
and learn a concerning truth.
First Gathering

You gather at a well-lit town square where people are dressed in various costumes.
Streamers and lights decorate the streets and buildings as far as the eye can see,
and you can feel joy from every brick and cobblestone. You senses are filled with
laughter and the smell of delicious foods. It is during this spectacle that you meet your
first new friend, Martin of the Whimsical Whizzbang.

Into The Grey

The next day, people are removing decorations from the previous night’s festivities.
You run into Martin who seems a bit out of sorts. He expresses that he is having some
difficulty returning to his home. The city is many things, but large is not one of them.

Deck Burner

As you talk to Martin and try to help him find his way home, you find yourself unable
to leave the city. Paths you take twists and turn unexpectedly, all leading back into the
city. You decide to ask the city for help, but it refuses to assist. What is the city not
telling you?

Laid To Rest

It is a day’s journey outside of the city and Martin has long since gone home. Most of
the residents continued on as normal, but you find yourself thinking about the city and
how it will treat others who wish to leave it. You hope it will remember what you’ve
shared.
Ironhold, The Weeping City

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

Illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

This is a variant version of the living city of Ironhold. You can include both versions of
the city in your game; give them different names, or give them the same name and let
the coincidence be a part of your setting.

For those of us who grew up in the warmth of Ironhold’s belly, they are not just a
collection of buildings and districts, but a living parent to everyone who takes up
residence in the crooked crevices of their stone body.

Ironhold is the largest living Sun Child, walking with careful, deliberate steps on a
series of metal legs that are older than the Defeated Empire. They are not perfect.
Sometimes they stumble and we have to clean our rooms again (even though we just
did yesterday); sometimes they need our help cleaning wisps out of their ears. But for
those of us who live in their care… Ironhold isn’t just home. They’re family.

If you tell a story that includes Ironhold, consider the following:

• Why does the city weep?

• Where is the city going when they move? How will you know when they get
there?
• If you live in the city, how do you help them stay healthy and safe?
• What secrets does the city keep about other places in the world? What do they
trust you to know?

Story Arc: Their Broken Heart

Living in Ironhold means a commitment to maintaining the city’s delicate

infrastructure. In this story, we introduce ourselves to the people who live there and
the challenges they face in keeping their city alive.
First Gathering

You find yourselves here, in the Weeping City, on a day of celebration. At some point,
you find out that the city has a problem that needs attention—everyone’s attention,
including yours.

Into The Grey

Every day in Ironhold’s embrace presents new challenges. Use the skills you bring
with you to meet the needs of the city and of the people who reside there with you.

Deck Burner

Somebody is causing irreparable harm to Ironhold, and has holed themselves up in

the city’s heart. You know them, from encounters you’ve had with them in the past.
Find your Adversary, and get them to leave the city alone. If you don’t, the city
themself might not survive the night.

Laid To Rest

The time has come to leave Ironhold, for better or worse. Use this time to remember
the friends you made, and those you left behind. How do you say good ‐bye to a place
like this?

Image description: A walled city with a tall gate, built in the centre of crater.
Sunbeams stream through the sky, illuminating the bridges over the water around the
settlement and walkways leading into the city. Toward the centre back is a tall
building, bigger than the rest, with a domed roof.
Where The Rivers Embrace

Written by Noora Rose

Twin tributaries of shimmering crystal, blue veins feeding and fed by the pulsing heart
of a salt sea. They run parallel for countless miles before becoming locked in
tumultuous embrace, just before disappearing into the wild blue. The Twin Rivers,
they of too many names to name, define these lands, the fertile delta of this alluvial
plain: flooded grassland and scorched savannah and salt marsh.

The Marsh People live amongst the birds and the fish and the water buffalo and the
tall grasses. They dwell in secluded communities of elaborate reed houses; each
home a vessel, each community a flotilla. They alone speak the language of wild rice,
of reed-warbler and ibis, of water-buffalo and her fierce wife, crocodile.

They alone remember how gazelle fooled death by standing still as a reed; how
elephant trampled lion’s cub and, though she knew, she slew nine antelope instead.

They alone remember when mortals were shaped from clay, when the whispers of
Gods riffled through the reeds. They remember when the accord between those who
dwell in the great cities of sandstone and clay and the spirits who dwell within the
wild, wild forests of cedar was first consummated in blood on the banks of the Twin
Rivers.

The Old Angler grins at you with eyes that are not quite that of a bird; stilt-like
legs barely stir the waters as they stride, the tall reeds nigh undisturbed by their
passing. A flash of spear, or beak; silver scales in the moonlight, three perfect
drops of blood.

• What has drawn you back to the land of these Marsh People? Why now, at the
eve of the annual consummation of the accord between city and the wilds?
• What do you see within the Angler’s eyes? What do you see within the drops of
swirling blood in the water? What do you see in the scales of the fish, reflected
in the moonlight?
 • What threats to the sanctity of the accord give you pause? How has it been
maintained after all these long years?
• How do the wilds respect the boundaries of the city? How does the city respect
the boundaries of the wilds?

Story Arc: A Glimpse, By The Water’s Edge

Once a year, in honor of the ancient accord between the city and the wilds, a
priestess from the city and a wildling from the cedar forest reenact that first,
portentous meeting from that halcyon time of Gods and Monsters. The wise Shamhat
spent six days and seven nights in the embrace of Enkidu, shaped-fromclay to rival
the greatest warlord the People had ever known.

This year, like every year, the ritual must take place to celebrate and secure the
peace between the sunbaked clay streets and the hard-packed steppe flats. This
year, like every year, that hard-won peace balances upon the edge of a knife.

First Gathering

The priestess awaits in the temple, as is tradition, garbed in silk and samite and fine
jewels. And, as is tradition, would-be guardians await without, boasting of their
exploits in hopes that they will be the one chosen. A glimpse gleaned of the priestess:
in what way are they elegant and worldly? In what way are they naive? In what way
do you stand out among the other prospective guardians?

Free Play

The wilds outside of the city are perilous for the unwary. What powers natural and
unnatural stand in the way? In what unexpected manner is the journey made easier?

The priestess has prepared for this moment their entire life. How does that training
and preparation, in turn, teach and guide the guardians?
Deck Burner

Upon opposite banks of the Twin Rivers the priestess and the wildling are destined to
glimpse each other, as their forebearers did in that misty time before time. What
preparations need be made before that monumental first glance may happen? What
forces stand in opposition to the peace of this accord?

Laid To Rest

Only the first glance is destined. What follows lies in the heart of the wildling and the
priestess: do they cross the river to meet, or turn away? Do they ignore their
destinies, or embrace them? Do the guardians allow fate to play its part, or ensure the
accord is maintained for another year?

No matter the outcome, the thread that has been woven this night can never be
unthreaded.
The Wide Sea & the Keeper

Written & illustrated by Sin, the Weaver in Blue

The brilliant blue of the Wide Sea can only be rivalled by the sky above it. The
stunning sea-green, the sea foam crashing against the shore, the impeccable deep—
all alluring and ever-unwilling to let you out of its grasp. There is much to be found in
the Wide Sea, if you only learn to swim within its waves.

Stories about the Sea are as abundant as the treasures that lay beneath it. Have you
ever had a wish you desperately desired to be granted? There’s a story about lost
pearls and turtles that might enchant you.

Past the Viper Whorls and the Seaking’s Rest, where the sea foam turns gold by the
light of the sun was Turtle’s Paradise, a mythical island inhabited by a young sea
godling known as the Keeper of Turtles. It is said that they wore a beautiful necklace,
with iridescent pearls that could control the tides. Tragedy ensued when the godling
lost the necklace to the very waves she watched over. Feeling her grief, the turtles
that she so loved set forth into the world to find the pearls.

The turtles, massive as they were, overturned every sea rock and boulder and even
dug into the seabed as they searched, trying hard to find the lost pearls. This caused
the earth to split and shift, giving birth to some of the isles that we know of today.
Alas, despite their persistence, they could not find all the pearls.

This is why I asked you if you wish to have your wish granted—because the godling
grants the wishes of whoever finds those pearls. Would you dare take the plunge?
How deep would you go for your precious wish?

Image description: An image of a large sea turtle swimming toward the viewer,
beams of light like the striations of light filtering through water. There are barnacles on
the sea turtle’s back and a large gleaming pearl in its mouth.
Story Arc: Heist On The Seas

One of the Keeper’s pearls is rumored to have been found by the famous
Featherbane Auction House, which holds exclusive auctions while cruising around
Blue Jay Bay. What’s more, the notorious warmachine monger Halzen Lockheart has
his eyes on the pearls. You, however, have other plans for the pearl.

First Gathering

Everyone has heard the story. The Keeper’s pearls are legendary and wish-granting.
You could either have your wildest dreams within your grasp or sell it to the highest
bidder, but for you, anyone’s hands are better than Halzen Lockheart’s. Talk about
why this is so for your character.

Into The Grey

The story begins with a brief flashback to your crew coming together to talk about how
the heist is supposed to go. As soon as that’s settled, you play through your plans to
get on this exclusive auction and somehow win the prize before Lockheart can get his
hands on it. The night begins with a light show just as the food gets rolled into the
auction hall.

Deck Burner

The first point of conflict begins with securing access to the auction—meaning a ride
on Featherbane SS, the ship where the auction will go down. Next, acquiring the
pearl: do you steal it away before the auction begins, amidst all these affluent people?
Or do you risk attempting to win against the staggering bids?

Laid To Rest

What have we lost today? Who or what have we given up for the Pearl and for our
dreams? Did it seem worth it all in the end?
Advanced Rules
Once you’ve grown comfortable with the basic rules of Mnemonic, you might want to
add some additional complexity to the game. If that sounds interesting to you, this
chapter includes some optional rules tweaks and modifications.

Free Play

Once you have a grasp of how individual and group scenes work in both Into the Grey
and Deck Burner, you might begin to feel curious about what the game might be like
without the constraints of those play modes. If that’s not you, that’s okay! Keep using
the play modes provided; that’s what they’re there for.

But if you find yourself chafing at the structured play of those modes, you might feel
more at home with Free Play.

In this advanced mode, the guardrails are gone, the training wheels are off, and it’s
just you and your group telling stories. What need have we for dice, then? Well, you
could just go off and tell stories and never touch the dice, and that’s fine. But if you
want to resolve specific beats or moments for individual characters, the basic rules
still apply:

1. Choose a skill that’s appropriate to the challenge of the moment.

2. Gather dice according to that skill’s rating.
3. Roll the dice.
4. If you roll a 6, you succeed without consequences. Otherwise, your actions
complicate things for yourself or the group.

If the situation you’re trying to resolve has to do with complications facing multiple or
all characters in the group, that’s straightforward, too:

1. Assess the complications and set aside one die for each one as the
Adversary’s Pool.
2. Everyone chooses a skill that’s appropriate to their character’s actions in this
scene.
 3. Roll the dice.
4. Everyone works together to describe how their actions resolve the
complications once and for all.

If the high roll came from the Adversary’s Pool, work together to describe how the
complications overwhelmed the group, and what they plan to do next.

In this way, you don’t have to keep track of complications during individual scenes;
just assess the situation when you get into a group scene and go from there.

This mode of play works best, I think, with the help of a Facilitator, but if your group is
comfortable talking through scenes and moments this way, you might not need one.

Facilitating Play

For some groups, playing out the story freely without the intervention of a single
authority figure is preferable. The rules are designed to support that style of play out
of the box, so if that’s how your group likes to play, you should be able to do that
without modification.

For groups who prefer to play with the aid of a facilitator, here are some things to
consider. Remember that everything in this chapter is optional; if you don’t want a
facilitator, your group doesn’t have to have one.

The facilitator’s job is to help the players navigate the rules. As facilitator, you can
prepare reference materials for them, keep track of narrative events in your own
journal, hand out dice as needed, and so on. You don’t need to control anything that
happens within the story or come up with an overarching narrative.

You can offer suggestions or ask questions, and if you and the other players all trust
each other you can push players to go deeper in exploring a scene or moment, but be
careful if you do this. Remember that your primary goal is to help the group play the
game, not to play it for them.
The Importance of Agency

The only person who decides what happens to a character is that character’s player.
If you’re facilitating play, you can ask a player what happens to their character. If
players appreciate it, you may suggest things. You may never tell them what happens
to their character.

Be The Weaver.

Whenever a player asks for a weaving die, you are the person they ask, which means
that you will always be the one to decide what types of memory are conjured when
the characters in the story tap into the world’s magic. When the weaving die is cast,
you are also the one to describe what happens as a result. The player is still
responsible for describing how their own character is injured, if it comes to that.

If you’re using the optional Universal Truth rule for skills, the players can then
always offer their own universal truths as weaving dice.

Be A Player.

If the other players want you to take a more active role, I recommend setting up your
own Player’s Journal and treating the world or the story as its own character. Play out
beats and scenes using skills that are appropriate for the narrative, like Dramatic
Irony, or The Villain’s Speech.

The skills in your journal improve the same way that the other players’ skills do.

This might present some challenges if you see your role as adversarial to the players’
goals. I would recommend building skills that focus on ways that a villain’s aims are
thwarted, if you use skills on behalf of a villain. The Villain’s Speech, for instance,
might be framed as “if this roll comes out as a 6, the villain’s speech goes on long
enough to give the players an opening.”

That way, a roll of less than 6 means that the speech doesn’t give the players an
opening, and a Complication is added to the Adversary’s pool as normal.
If the story becomes more complex, you might find it useful to create more than one
“character” for the different aspects of the world that the players must deal with. You
might have a whole journal dedicated to the city of Ironhold, for instance, which you
only pull out when the players spend time there. You might have a journal that is all
about the Mayor of Thornsville too, if they appear regularly in the story.

The balancing act here is that if you’re playing a character, whether it’s a single
person or a city, you take turns the same way the players do. You might have
additional opportunities to jump in and add details as facilitator, but when it comes to
doing things, you still only get one turn.

Other Modifications To Play

Some possible modifications to play, if the group wants them:

• Deck Burner: On each player’s turn, you draw the card from the deck and
describe the scene for the player to respond to, building toward the moment
when you ask the player: What does your character do?
• Group Scenes: When it’s time to bring in all the complications, you decide how
the complications come up and frame the scene where the players must deal
with the consequences of their actions. Once you’ve gathered all of the dice for
the Adversary’s Pool, ask them: What do your characters do?
• Individual Scenes: When a player’s roll results in complications for their
character or the group, you describe those complications where they extend
beyond the characters themselves.
• Discussions: All discussions are led and facilitated by the facilitator,
presenting each player with questions and asking the group when they’re ready
to move on.
• Order of Play: You determine the order of turns, so that the players can be
surprised if they want to be surprised.

You don’t have to use all or any of these modifications; the facilitator can just as
easily be The Person Who Reads the Rules When It’s Necessary.
Appendix
A ritual is an action, or a pattern of actions, that carries meaning and purpose. A
handshake can be a ritual. A recipe can be a ritual. A song can be a ritual.

The act of writing can be a ritual, too. When you set your writing tools to work with
meaning and purpose, you are engaging in a ritual action.

The rituals in this appendix might not all look like steps to follow. Sometimes the ritual
is the reading of it. Take your time with these. Read them with care.

Ritual List

• The First Ritual - 116

• The Last Ritual - 117
• Ritual of Atonement - 118
• Echoes of a Home, Now Lost - 121
• A Forest of Fragments - 123
• Gift Of The Greywood - 125
• Haunted By A Flame - 126
• How The Spider Learned To Weave Magic - 127
• Making Dinner - 129
• Morning Coffee - 130
• A Recipe for Creation, Disaster, and Anachrony - 131
• The Skipping Stones - 133
• The Temptation of the Weavers - 135
• Woe Woodworks Mementos - 138
• Mirrorside & Mirrorside - 140
• Where Sand meets the Ocean - 142
The First Ritual

Here it is, the first ritual that was ever created, the one that started the practice of
weaving. Or maybe it wasn’t the first. But it’s the first one we know of that was written
down.

We don’t know who wrote it.

This is how we say good-bye to those we will never see again.
First, you must wipe the tears from your face.
The tears that tell you the longing is coming.
The tears that know your heart before your mind does.
The tears that well up, that turn your face hot, that trap you in.
These tears.
First, wipe them away.
Thank them for reminding you of the place in your life that is now empty.
Turn your eyes, if you can, to the leaving, or to the departed.
Tell them, so they can hear you:
I will miss you
I will always wish we had more time
I will cherish your memory and keep it safe in the tapestry of my life
I will weave new memories to cover the hole in my heart but I will never fill it in
I will miss you
I — will — miss — you.
This is how we say good-bye.
The Last Ritual

Written by Valis Teoh

This is for the times when the memories are too painful to bear, when sorrow plagues
your waking hours and the burden is too heavy to carry. This is the last ritual before
your new remembering, and hopefully, the last of Last Rituals.

This is how we put to sleep the pain that hampers your spirit.
First, you gather the things of your past.
The ones that remind you too much of what has long gone.
The ones that haunt you of the things you should’ve have done,
Or failed to do.
Gather them, and feel their weight in your hands for one last time.
Feel the sorrow that permeates from them, but do not linger,
For this is the last time you will feel it.
Recount how much you have grown since then,
How much joy you have brought to the people around you.
Then, one by one, let them be consumed by cleansing flames.
Watch them turn into ash and smoke,
Scattered into the wind.
Tell the dust that settles:
You no longer have power over me.
Nor will I continue letting you cause me pain.
I have learned and grown so much.
And I will keep doing so without you.
It is time to move on.
It is time to for a new remembering,
One better than the last.
Ritual of Atonement

Written by Synxiec, the Weaver in Sunflower

There are two violations against the community for which we initiate this ritual: murder
and… a violation of person such that the person is murdered, yet left alive. We do not
speak of it casually. The ritual always involves everyone; we are beholden one to
another. In the event of a murder, the murderer is brought to the circle along with the
relatives of the murdered. All of them.

So do you…?

What?

You know… have a trial or execute them or…

Ah. No. We do not. We have no need for that.

What… do you mean?

The circle is activated and there, all must consent to the ritual. Once done, all within
the circle share their grief with the murderer. The community grieves with them. For
the murderer, one of two things happens: they see a vision and receive a mission or…

… They are exiled?

What is exile?

It is when you send someone away from their people or something and tell them
they will die if they come back.

You come from a place where death or entrapment is constant, I take it.

… When you put it that way, yes.

We do not do that here. The ritual is not to judge who should live or die.

So then… what happens?

As I was saying, the repentant open themselves to the grief of the community. If their
hearts are true, a guardian will appear to them and guide them to atonement. The
community disappears until they have done what the guide requires. If they are not,
then they age according to the grief they cause and they receive the cruelest of
judgments.

… Death?

No. Isolation.

Like jail… erm, entrapment?

No. Rather, the people of this community and all of their kin disappear from them…
forever. They are unable to cause harm to anyone else here, and likely not to anyone
else anywhere. The grief never leaves them.

What about… the other thing that wasn’t named.

In that case, the people involved are brought to the circle and share their grief. Those
who know of the violation have been known to cry out from the grief. For those who
were aware and did nothing, they and the violator are aged relative to their grief. This
community and all of their kin disappear from this person’s vision forever.

Is there… no atonement?

No. A life can accidentally be taken. Violations of this order cannot be accidentally
done. There is no atonement for the latter.

None, ever? What if…

How would you undo such a violation? By what means would you restore that to a
person?

… Ah. Well has anyone ever lied?

Some have tried. It has not gone well for them.

What do you mean?

I’ve only witnessed this once in my lifetime and even that recollection is fuzzy. Where
some people weren’t able to find their way back, these people… those who would
lie… I struggle to remember them clearly. The circle, rather than taking them away
from us, takes us away from each other.

You mean…

Yes. No one quite remembers them.

Echoes of a Home, Now Lost

Written by Samuel Mui Shen Ern

Use this generator when you run into someone who hails from your homeland — the
one that you and your people can never return to. Each of them will give you an item
that possesses the power to manifest your remembrances into reality in exchange for
something they want. However, the item will only work once.

Who Are They?

1. A child, no older than 10 years old. Ask them: how did you survive the
destruction of our homeland? They will ask for a toy or something to play with.
2. An old woman with weary eyes and cracked hands. Ask them: what do you
remember of our home? They will ask you to accomplish a physical task for
them which they can no longer do.
3. A spectre, once living but killed in the war. Ask them: what were the
circumstances of your death? They will ask you to deliver a message to
someone they still care about.
4. A minor god of something small that you used to worship. Tell them why you
stopped worshipping them. They will ask for some sort of sacrifice in return.
5. A long lost relative you thought had died. Ask them: what really happened to
the rest of us? They will ask for nothing in return.
6. A familiar face that’s displeased to see you. Answer: what happened be ‐ tween
the both of you in your homeland? They will ask for retribution, an apology, or a
way to make amends.

What Do They Offer You?

1. A traditional, yet cheaply made and greasy-tasting, delicacy.

2. A handicraft made with a method only known to your people.
3. An old weapon, repurposed and refitted for non-violent uses.
4. A valuable antique, well-preserved but considered worthless.
5. A bottle of drink, steeped in a flavour only your people can appreciate.
6. A booklet of curses and blessings written in your mother tongue.
What Remembrance Does It Evoke?

1. Comfort and Security. Ask yourself: what or who kept you safe during the war?
The item possesses the power to bring you to safety or protect you using that
very form.
2. A Lost Love. Ask yourself: who did you love and how did you lose them? The
item possesses the power to point you in the direction of something you now
seek and provide the best path you can take to get it.
3. Your Parents. Ask yourself: what do you wish to remember about them? The
item possesses the power to communicate with them one last time. You may
ask them any question, which they will answer truthfully.
4. Better Times. Ask yourself: what are your fondest memories of your homeland?
The item possesses the power to let you relive those memories with someone
else of your choosing.
5. War. Ask yourself: what do you wish to forget? The item possesses the power
to call forth destruction and terror akin to that which tore apart your homeland.
6. An Imaginary Friend You Had As a Child. Ask yourself: who were they and what
could they do? The item possesses the power to call forth that very friend into
reality to aid you in your journey for a short time.
A Forest of Fragments

Written by Alyssa Manalili

Rhythm seizes senses first, a thrum that prickles skin

And there ahead, within a camp a figure known as kin.
With birdsong voice, they call and pull, they tempt you to draw near
So come in close and share a fire, for what is there to fear?
What follows is their music soft, a gentle pleasing tune
It guides, it leads, it offers place, beneath the gleaming moon
So sit, so listen, so seek songs sweet and settle by the warmth and heat -

But wait.

A chord is struck, with finger’s flex and story starts to spill

Your racing heart, the snare of breath and suddenly there’s chill
See now the shine of silver thread, and a jagged-tooth type smile
Dread swallowed, not honey sweet—you’re trapped by musician’s guile

They begin to sing.

Take heed for where your feet do tread, for a dreamer’s silk may stray.
It touches skin, and there you are, in a forest among the fey.
And gentle though these strings may be, the tune it plays does strike a fee.
A song of comfort and promised sleep, but when you wake your dreams they
keep.

But worry not, for all’s not lost. It’s there among the morning frost.
Light pierces a green canopy, a forest made of pine.
And there it is, a glimmer, coloured glass with fragments sharp that shine.
They hold within a memory—something to recall.
Though beware. Where there is light there’s also shadow, a nightmare and a
fall.

Weigh risk upon a set of scales for danger lurks in a selfish clutch
And darkness over all prevails, if hands are cut from a single touch.
A fog will settle where once was clear, and in the darkness, shades appear.
They’ll lurk in sleepers’ corner’s sight, shambling figures from the dead of night.
For what is held is theirs to own, a trade for pleasant dreams they’ve shown.
A theft will lead to trickery, bonds broken—you’ll hear the shatter.
Try to escape, to run, and hide—for nought, it will not matter.
Ahead of you, your frantic gaze, the forest grows into a maze,
and there you’ll be among Unfound in spirits’ realm now stuck and bound.
So still your hands and walk instead
Show respect, and just ahead
Trees curl to form an arch and door, pass through—wake safe on the forest’s
floor.

Untouched, unhurt, whole, and sound. Your head rests softly on the ground.

Are you tired? They ask. Then rest.

Let sleep settle in your bones.
Listen, they say. Take comfort.
Follow rhythm, music, tones.
But remember my warning—of the forest and the fey.
There is a path, you must not stray.
Goodnight, sleep tight.
Good luck.
May morning come with gentle light.
Gift Of The Greywood

Written by Noordin Ali Kadir, The Wolf-Weaver

The wolves guard their secrets heavily, chased as they are by selfish glory-hunters,
but with persistence and the slightest bit of luck, the right scrap of paper passes into
the right weaver’s hands. From pack to pack comes the following, simply beginning
with “for those who need it”:

First, the tough love: yeah, it’s always gonna hurt. Bones shifting and cracking,
muscles stretching and snapping tend to be painful. Luckily, the first time is always
the worst time, so it’s at least uphill from here. That said, we got our ways.

Stretching, that’s rule number one. Massages too. A body that can move as best as it
can is always gonna be better prepared for the shift. But let’s be honest, bodies suck
at staying perfect for long. So, let’s assume you need something more.

The greywood comes into play here. Our pack’s namesake, your namesake, has its
secrets, and with those come answers. Find the trees with the bark the colour of
steel; they’ll usually be marked. Strip the outside. The soft bits inside the chippings
are ingredient one. Ingredient two? The roots of the purple flowers that grow near the
ferns with the red leaves.

Boil the roots and the soft bark into a stew, and take a grey’s advice here: add some
of the sap of the tree and mint cause otherwise this is gonna come up the way you try
to take it down. Strain and continue to boil until it’s a syrup the colour of gold.

Two drops, every morning. I like it in oatmeal. And remember pup, a lone wolf has no
one to hug away the pain. Actually, make that rule number one.
Haunted By A Flame

Written by Noordin Ali Kadir, The Wolf-Weaver

It began as it always does, with a death. And in the void of the dearly departed,
something came to rest. It doesn’t matter how, it doesn’t matter who, the story does
not remember.

Faces in fireplaces, ghosts in iron grates, memory cracked forth from coal and ash.
Not as simple as malevolence, nor as complex as cruelty. As for how, and who, the
story cannot remember.

Voices howled through winds, reaching out with promise. Magic, mystery, music,
inspiration. It yearned to be heard, acknowledged, loved. These stories will not
remember.

Our stories are written by us, so instead we call them nuisance. We bar doors and
shutter windows, we hide from what we don’t know. We react with fear.

But they are just as us. Reaching out, as we cry terror. Some doors should not be
barred. Some fears should not be cowed to.

That home was theirs too. But our stories refuse to remember.
How The Spider Learned To Weave Magic

Written by Kyle Tam

There was once a lone spider who was only as large as a chestnut. She was small,
but she was crafty, and with skill she wove webs in order to trap her prey. On the first
night of the full moon she saw a figure on two legs, glowing like a sun, stumbling his
way towards her. Quickly she spun a web of threads as thin as a moonbeam, placed
directly in the figure’s path. Not minding where he was going, the figure stepped
directly into it, becoming trapped in the shimmering threads.

“Unhand me!” said the god, for what other manner of being would walk defenselessly
at such a time?

“I will not,” said the spider, “Unless you grant my request.”

The god cursed and pleaded, transforming into a thousand myriad forms, but the
spider’s webs were true and held fast. Finally, he relented, returning to his first form.
“Very well then, little one. What is it you wish?”

“Make me bigger, for I do not want to be squashed underfoot. Make it so that I can
see others eye to eye, and that we are as equals.”

The god thought on this request as he looked at the spider’s expression. She had
been earnest and clever, and it was not every day that he could meet a creature who
could trap a god. So he looked into his mind, at the worlds that once was and the
worlds that would be, and wove into existence a new body that she could inhabit.

Closing her eyes, the spider travelled beyond her little body into the new one created
by the god. When she reopened them, she felt the heft and weight of each new leg,
gingerly stepping onto the ground and hearing the thud. At first, she was delighted,
until she realized her request was only half complete.

“The job is not finished, o shimmering one.”

“And why is that?” asked the god.

“Because I am not equal yet. After all, I am only myself but larger. But you are able to
conjure up such wondrous things. Am I still not inferior to yourself, or the other
creatures around me?”

At this the god laughed with delight, and pointed at the spider’s web. “No, my dear,
you are above them. Look at what you created, when you were but a small creature
with only your wits and your silk to sustain you. All you must do is harness that which
you knew, and imbue that knowledge into that which you create.”

So the spider looked into herself, and remembered. From her body she produced the
silk that was hers, tempered with the strength of those who had preyed upon her and
the speed of those who wished her ill. With precision and gentleness, like a mother
knitting for her newborn, she created for herself a companion. The same eight legs,
the same six eyes, and a smile that melted her heart. And so, the second spider was
born.
Making Dinner

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

A small industry evolved in the city of Luminaria over the making and selling of
recipes.

But no one would pay full price for a scrap of paper containing just a list of
ingredients; so, the recipe artists began padding out their recipes with long stories
about where the recipe came from, what was going through their head or their life
when they developed it, or how they hope the recipe will bring joy to one’s home.

And the stories were interesting to read, if you had the time to read them; but most
people don’t have the time to read about a recipe when they’re trying to get dinner
made and on the table before the kids start fussing.

What to do? If you knew that someone spent time telling you their story you would
feel compelled to listen. A weaver was consulted, and the following ritual created.

Following A Recipe Where It Also Contains A Long Story And Your Kids
Are Hungry And Impatient

• First, find the recipe.

• If it has no story attached, gather the ingredients and follow it.
• But if it has a story attached:
• Let your eyes wander across the words of the story, as quickly as is necessary,
until you find the part where the story ends and the recipe begins.
• Mark that place in pencil so you can find it more quickly the next time you make
this recipe.
• Set yourself a reminder to read the story while you wait for the water to boil, or
for the onions to caramelize, or for the oven to warm up.
• Whisper thanks to the person who wrote the story, for sharing a part of
themselves with you while also helping you feed your family.
• Now, follow the recipe and make dinner.
Morning Coffee

Written by Dee, the Weaver in Green

I don’t always have the energy to get out the big press and wait five minutes. I don’t
have the devices to use paper filters, and my coffee is too coarse for that anyway.

What do I have? A mesh kitchen strainer, a liquid measuring cup, and a mug. So, let’s
make some coffee.

Making A Cup Of Coffee When All You Have Is A Mesh Strainer, A Liquid
Measuring Cup, And A Mug

• First, make sure your coffee is ground coarse, as coarse as it would need to be
for a coffee press. (If you get your coffee from a store, ask them to grind it “As
coarse as you can make it”)
• Boil some water.
• While waiting for the water to boil, put two tablespoons of coffee grounds in the
bottom of the liquid measuring cup.
• Add half of one tablespoon of your favorite sweetener. I use maple syrup.
• When the water is boiling, pour it into the measuring cup. I do this slowly
because I like mixing the grounds into the coffee with the pouring. If you don’t
do that, use the tablespoon to stir it gently until everything is mixed.
• Place the mesh strainer in the top of your mug.
• Slowly pour the coffee from the measuring cup through the mesh strainer. Do
your best to pour it into the same spot, so that you end up with a tidy little
mound of coffee grounds in the strainer.
• Add milk if you like.
• Enjoy.
A Recipe for Creation, Disaster, and Anachrony

Written by Max Fefer

In The Beginning

A long time ago, you found a crumpled-up recipe along your travels. You have kept it
with you ever since. The recipe is handwritten in jet black ink with smudges
everywhere, suggesting this was written by someone in a hurry. The recipe looks
incomplete, yet there’s enough for you to figure out the general intention of it.

Someone obviously took extreme care to write this recipe down in such haste. You’re
not quite sure why the recipe would be important, but seeing the handwriting makes
you think it is. The recipe has three sections which are clear though: Creation,
Disaster, and Anachrony.

Creation

To make the recipe, you must find the following ingredients. Each time you read the
recipe, the words seem to be ever-changing. Yet somehow, it still feels like the same
recipe.

To complete the Creation, choose a word or phrase using the prompts in the
parentheses. Each party member should fill in at least one blank.

• ______ stalks of _____ (Number, verb)

• Eighteen ____ bunches of ______ (adjective, noun)
• A dash of _____ (noun) from the ____ (terrain)
• One vial of _____ (an emotion you recently felt that you would like to forget)
• Two springs of ____ herbs (an emotion you wish to feel again but haven’t felt
recently)
Disaster

To complete the Disaster, complete the following steps and choose a word or phrase
using the prompts in the parentheses. Each party member should fill in at least one
blank.

• Create a fire using _____ instead of firewood (an echo that is still haunting your
world).
• Create a bundle by placing ingredients into a _____ wrapped in ______ (an
object that holds importance to someone in the party, a sad verb that evokes
conflicting emotions).
• Place the bundle onto the fire.
• Sing a song out loud as you watch the fire envelop the bundle.
◦ What mood does your song set? Do you feel a sense of loss, or do you feel
relieved by letting go of these items?
• Stir the fire using a ____ (something from your childhood that you don’t have in
your possession).
◦ What do you see? Is the fire burning the bundle?
• Sacrifice your ____ to the flames.

You begin to feel a sense of loss.

“I am you. You are me. The fire has taken me in the past, yet I remain a part of this
world. Will you set me free?”
… Who is this…?

Anachrony

As the fire dies out, you see the charred bundle amongst the coals. Inside the bundle,
you see a meal. Describe what the meal looks like. As you eat your meal, consider
the following:

• What impacts did you cause by collecting the ingredients?

• Can you repay yourselves and the land for what you took?
• Is the meal alive? Are you alive?
• Have you now forgotten or remembered anything?
The Skipping Stones

Written by Alyssa Manalili

Do you wish to know of the gift that comes from a shooting star?

Up above is a blanket, black with a stream of stars, that wraps around and stretches
endless. Often here there’s comfort sought within their gleam and glow. It is warmth,
soft hope in twinkling light.

But wait—see change, see burst, see bright.

A streak of silver and speck of space, it burns and forges a path. It plummets with a
driving force towards the earth: to seek, to settle, to claim a home.

Follow its dive, and chase the tail it leaves to find it in its hidden place.

A fractured stone, the fallen star stands tall within the centre of a brilliant lake. Tide
reaches forth, and with its push and pull, its gentle tumble, the water draws you near.

Here you stand on the shore; vast and bright. The water stills. Look into its depths
and see the stars submerged, see illumination speckled. A reflection. A mirror of what
was once above. You stand in-between, in this space betwixt sky and earth. This
place of eternal night.

The glow of silver spots beneath the water, a stark contrast with shore’s blackened
stone. These are old wishes, old dreams, old stories of those that came before.

To add your treasure, add your tale, take stone from shore and paint with ink. Draw
swirls, make lines, add colour, and here is where the magic starts. A wish is made
within the pigmentation, a bond embedded into stone made warm. Your soul and
spark. Just a piece. A little part.

Your very own small shooting star.

Take a breath. Release. Cast stone and let it fly. Cause disturbance in once stillness.
Break tension, see water wake and how the ripples grow. See a bead of light grow
bright with every splash from stone.

Kinetics. A transfer and exchange with the movement made.

But, will the wish set sail and head towards its home? Or will it fall, set anchor and be
stone once more? Still, submerged and nestled in the deep and black? Forgotten,
perhaps. See here! What’s often motionless and sturdy skips, it flies and flits ahead. A
wave then comes, follows—gives chase and causes shift as speckled silver scatters.
Spark once more, and laws of motion held. External force meets rest and friction
leads to light.

See change, see burst, see bright.

A streak of silver and speck of space, it burns and forges a path. Follow its rise, and
chase the tail it
leaves to find a wish is granted.

See the stars below, now stars above. And now may you take your leave. A gift —
something known, something to share: the story of the skipping stones.
The Temptation of the Weavers

Written by Sen.H.H.S.

For eons, a rift or echo would appear, humming a haunting tune. Practiced weavers,
in particular, hear a choir singing in harmonious clarity, and are known to be lured
away from the world as a result.

Weft undrawn and warp unstrung

Empty frames with threads unspun
Slivers of memory slip away
Splindly like mist that dissipate
Only a hollow calling for an echo remain

Gaze upon this loom undone

Scorched by flames, a past forgone
Within the ashes a voice raised
Speaking out to those unafraid
A thousand prophecies relayed in unison say:

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(As)k the (won)oneders
(W)wehere the (ma)mayge’s
(be)en and (wan)onedered

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(Of)fer (a)nswers
(Lead) us (to) the
(Grey) one’s (home)

(Cinch) the (cloud) of (minds) un(charmed)

(Speak) the (names) of (twine)entwined and (yarn)yearning
Back and forth shuttles (fly)e and (race)rase
Patterns of history (cir)sercu(late)rate
Like the wheel on the spoke (draw)ing (out) all time and (space)
(Moon)light (yawn)yawning and (stars)tream (run)running
Work (until) the (sun has sunk)sun is sinking
(Strike) a match in the (dark) posthaste
Light the (wick)weak and (ill)willeduminate
The tapestry world (we await) and work to create

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(As)k the (won)oneders
(In) this (dark)ness
(w)wehere he (hid) her

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(Of)fer (a)nswers
(Bright)en (fur)farther
(be)ings (yon)yond

Whispers of Lace
Darn without trace
Reality with a brand new face

Weavers of art
Ambitious Hearts
Each reaching out to the skies above
To go far, to the stars, where we are

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(As)k the (won)oneders
(Call) up(on) us
(name) your (less)ons

(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(Of)fer (a)nswers
(Free) the (dawn)dom that
(shall) be(come)
Carried on

Interpreting The Interwoven

Taking the first chorus as an example:

Presented Lyrics:
(We)avers, (Dream)ers
(As)k the (won)oneders
(W)wehere the (ma)mayge’s
(be)en and (wan)onedered

Interpretation:
Weavers, Dreamers We dream
Ask the wonders as one
Where the mage’s We may
been and wandered be one

Sheet music is provided in the main PDF and MP3 files can be found online:
https://weavers-almanac.web.app/appendix/temptation-of-weavers/

The tempo is set so each dotted minim is 65. Time signature is 6/8. Key is F Major. At
measure / bar 110 the key signature changes to A Major.
Woe Woodworks Mementos

Written by inthegrayworld

The Woe Woodworks Company specializes in wooden goods—household items, toys,

furniture. They may even be commissioned for larger pieces, like vehicle parts,
sculptures, and engraved fixtures.

Every single item is produced from trees grown in the Woods of Woe, where local lore
is that if you wish to rid yourself of a sorrowful memory, you whisper it to a sapling
and plant it in the grove. As the tree grows, your memories disappear, taken in by the
tree. The trees grow far too tall, and far too quickly, but for the industrial minds of
Woe Woodworks, this means that there is never a lack of lumber. But as the wooden
goods spread across the realms, they bring their whispers with them.

Memories In The Wood Grain

People of all sorts visit the Woods of Woe to leave their whispers to the trees, later to
be harvested and transformed into various items. No two whispers are alike, as no
two experiences of pain are alike.

• A lover’s farewell caught in the teeth of a wooden comb. The longer you brush
your hair, the more you wish never to let go.
• A child’s laugh bubbles in a varnished cup. You don’t know why the faint
laughter makes you want to weep.
• A drunkard’s secret lines a carved cup. Anything you drink from it tastes the
way hope does when it sours.
• A soldier’s song is heard when you enter through a chiseled door frame. It
makes you feel that once you leave, you will never return.

The Echo Of Old Whispers

The Woe Woodworks Company has produced countless items over the years. They
may be kept, sold, inherited, stolen, buried, enshrined, or forgotten.
Some whispers are powerful, evoking immediate and visceral reactions from even a
cursory interaction with the item.

Others are more subtle, with their influence felt only in dreams, or felt very slowly,
over continuous exposure over the years.

Each item contains a memory that may:

• Compel you to do something: to sing at the window of a dying man, to create a

masterpiece that will last, to seek revenge for a wrong done, or to solve a
mystery regardless of whether it was solved years ago.
• Inspire strong emotions, like rage, despair, or terror, although you may not
understand why.
• Invite contemplation of a life that is not yours, that you may learn something
from it.

Woe Woodworks Company Exception Clause

By purchasing any item created and sold by the Woe Woodworks Company, the buyer
agrees that the company will not be held liable for any inconvenience, misfortune,
pervasive melancholy, horror, or bouts of violence to arise from contact or usage of
aforementioned item/s, and to waive seeking damages in the form of monetary or
corporal compensation. This is transferred to any and all owners or users of the item
in perpetuity.
Mirrorside & Mirrorside

Written by Lexi Antoku

Whether Mirrorside & Mirrorside is a single city or two is a question more

philosophical and semantic than practical. Linked by gateways in their reflective
surfaces, the Mirrorsides flow into each other. Mirrorside & Mirrorside is one city in
two bodies.

Cities Of Mirrors

Each city calls the other its Mirrorside, but long years of cultural exchange have led to
recognition that this is a mutual relationship. They each have their own worlds and
their own people with their own lives.

The Reflected World

When you look at any reflective surface in Mirrorside & Mirrorside, you see yourself,
but you also see your locale’s Mirrorside (or, more casually, its mirror side). Most
spaces have close correspondences, so close that if you don’t look carefully, you may
not even realize that you’re seeing a different world. Lately, places considered
suitable for travel are decorated differently on each side to help people tell which side
they’re on.

Reflected People

When viewed across a reflection, people are shadowy and indistinct. The sounds they
make are both muffled and echo distantly. Scents are fainter. While this once led to
fear and distrust, crossing through a mirror allows you to sense those people in full
detail. The mirrors make perception of any living being you left behind — person,
animal, gem, or plant alike — just as vague until you cross back over. The mirrors
themselves seem to be the cause of this, but it’s more as an inconvenience than as a
problem or cause for alarm.
Art Without Borders

The days of separation and fear are long past (and most Mirrorsiders find them
embarrassing). The myths of devils or servants of dragons snatching children away
are long-gone. Modern Mirrorside & Mirrorside has a long-intertwined artistic tradition,
particularly in shared architecture born of curiosity, research, and eventual
exploration.

Major artistic installations are designed to be viewed from one world, or the other, or
while standing on the threshold between them. Impressive buildings with standing
mirror-gates built into them create shared-space structures that spill deliberately from
one realm to the other. Architects coordinated for years to create the Grand Walk, a
boundary-breaking park that serves as a center of social life and commerce joining
the two sides through the largest single mirror in the city.

Beyond The Cities

Each Mirrorside exists within its own, fully extant world beyond the sprawl. While they
can mostly come and go as they please, they cannot explore the wider world of the
other side. Leaving the city in your world works perfectly, but on your Mirrorside, thick
clouds of fog grow ever-denser until you find yourself back in the city.

Predictably, native and immigrant Mirrorsiders love outsider physical arts, sciences,
music, history, philosophy — every one of them is captivating, pieces of a world so
close they can almost taste it. Indeed, cuisine from abroad is one of the most
universally valued commodities, second perhaps only to firsthand tales of distant
lands.

Echoes

Echoes in Mirrorside are almost inevitably people who have left the city and don’t
intend to return, playing out old routines in their former home. If they return, curious
coincidences will divert any random or deliberate meeting with their own echo unless
a Weaver intervenes.
Where Sand meets the Ocean

Written by Valis Teoh

An excerpt from Hues of the Harbor of Sound and Color: A Poetry Compilation, written
by Hsien Lunyi.

The ocean waves lap at the feet of the harbor,

A steady pulse of a peace hard earned.

Its surface glows,

A crystalline blue,
A mirror to your soul,
A window to when it was once
red.

Where the only sounds were

Of clashing blades,
Of screams by those who are no longer
with us,
Of regrets that cannot be undone

Where the only colors were

Of soot and ash,
Of crimson soaked rags,
Of a time that does not belong
in the colorful hues of
a new dawn.

The ocean glows,

Pink, purple and gold,
Without a trace of red.

End of Mnemonic: A Weaver’s Almanac.