[✗] [Invention Lore] – Spanpens & Spanrods

[Hodgeling 403]

 

Spanpens

Description

 

Commonly known as Pairing Pens, Spanpens are used for communication over long distances and a more expensive but time-efficient alternative to messenger birds.

The Spanpen is about the same size as an ordinary quill or pen, able to fit in the hand comfortably. Typically a Spanpen pair is made to be matching, ordinarily constructed from either carefully carved wood or light metals. A Spanpen can be decorated and customized to the owner's taste, but is normally fitted with a traditional nib that allows flow of ink from the Spanpens internal calamus. A basic gemstone is preferred for Spanpens and is normally affixed to the top of the shaft, attached to an intricate mechanism that when twisted activates the gemstones enchantment.

 

Spanpens allow for a user to create a copy of their writing with one other paired Spanpen somewhere else in the world with only a slight delay between the Spanpens. Both Spanpens require regular ink to function and, like any writing quill, must be refilled between each recording. A more elaborately designed Spanpen might utilize an enchantment that requires no ink.

 

A Spanpen is created by first enchanting two parts of a piece of gemstone. By attuning these two halves to one another, the other part of the gemstone is attached to its pair. When manually writing with one of the Spanpens, its pair will mimic the exact movements of the person writing but at a separate location.

 

Capabilities

 

Spanpens can be differentiated between two main forms of penning: 

 

Solo Penning

For this to function properly, a Spanpen remains idle until properly activated. To do this, the user must have a supply of ink and paper available in a stationary location.

 

Next comes the connection phase. The user must twist the enchanted gemstone affixed to the Spanpen. The gemstone will glow faintly while it awaits the activation of its partner. Wherever the other paired Spanpen is, the user will notice its gemstone glowing in the same manner. This gemstone must be twisted until both Spanpens are brightly glowing. At this point, the Spanpens should snap upright, hovering about an inch above the writing surface, and are now paired.

 

You may notice at this point that Spanpens should require two people to function properly, unless some other mechanism is in place as a substitute. A simple bypass for this is as below:
 

Spoiler

The connection phase can be bypassed if the user is wanting to establish a simple, constant connection primarily used for solo-penning. In order to do this, one of the paired Spanpens must have its gemstone twisted so that it is glowing at all times. This way, when a user activates their manual pen, the connection will be established and they may begin writing immediately. 

 

This will limit a user to only the size of their paired writing surfaces and is circumstantial to any other enchantments being used to supplement the Spanpens.

 

Finally, the active phase. The user can now take either of the Spanpens and begin to write on their surface of choice. Whichever Spanpen is taken, its pair will mimic the exact movements of the first. It’s important to note that only one pen can be used manually at a time, and trying to use both will instantly sever the connection (this could function as a quick way to end a communication).

 

At the end of a page of writing the Spanpens must be reset by taking the manual Spanpen and moving it back to the top of the next page. The paired Spanpen will naturally follow. During this time, both Spanpens should be refilled with ink and may need to be re-connected if the users attempt to do this at the same time. Best practice is to simply re-twist the gemstones and begin writing once more.

 

This brings us to the secondary form of penning...

 

Conversational Penning

As Spanpens should follow one another's movements, the primary issue with Spanpenning is the requirement to reset writing surfaces in two separate locations. Without a supplementary enchantment or other mechanism in place, this will need to be done manually. This makes Spanpens perfect for conversational writing.

 

Once two Spanpens have been paired and are active, users must take turns writing and can have short conversations between one another. This is limited only by the page-space, and number of pages available to both users. At the end of the conversation, each writer is provided with their own copy, which could be used to validate conversations or important shared documents (More potential uses are listed at the bottom of the page).

 

Just as before, both writers must be available and must be aware of the pending connection to their own Spanpen. Lastly, both users must have a stationary writing space available to them or a connection cannot be established and any writing made by either of the Spanpens will not be replicated by its pair.

 

Spoiler

It would be useful for owners of a set of paired Spanpen to create a phrase or code that could be written at the connection phase to allow for both recipients to verify that both parties are ready to begin writing, and that the line is secure.

 

A captor might take advantage of this passphrase if they can obtain it from the Spanpen owner, and initiate conversations to try and discover more from or about the paired writer.

 

 

Mechanics

Conversational Spanpens follow the same standard as the aviary, only operating as fast as a bird can deliver a message. As such, it provides a thematic alternative to sending birds as messages.

 

Solo-penning functions by a player using an emote to describe firstly twisting the gemstone of the Spanpen and then beginning to write their note. A writing-desk should be set up at a location of their choosing, such as in a home or available area. It should be encouraged that a character set up these locations, or prepares their pens prior to an interaction where they might use a Spanpen to make recordings.

 

As previously mentioned, a Spanpen could be utilized more discreetly than writing an ordinary note by the player emoting their character writing something without the presence of ink. A message would be recorded somewhere else nearby which would require investigation to uncover if other players were so inclined.

 

Spanpen Redlines

• Spanpens are limited to within-region communication, making them a perfect general tool for local writers or scribes. They must utilize the Aviary System.
   
• Both Spanpens and writers must be completely stationary during the attunement phase and writing phase. This means that a person cannot use the spanpens while standing, walking, while in transit or while moving whatsoever.
   
• Spanpens are designed utilizing two halves of one enchanted gemstone, and therefore there can only ever be two pens attuned to one another. Spanpens cannot be re-attuned to other Spanpens without fundamentally altering the enchantment.
   
  Spoiler

  This does mean that a character could, under certain circumstances, send a note to a character that they have not met - provided both characters are using the same pair of Spanpens.
  
  For example, a Spanpen desk might be set up to establish communication between two communal areas, between two specific places, but not necessarily with the purpose of two specific characters. In this instance, either character may or may not know who they are writing to/with unless it is established in writing first.

   

• During conversational penning, only one Spanpen may be used at a given time or the connection will immediately be severed. Writers using the Spanpens to hold a written conversation must wait for their pen to completely stop writing before they pick up their own and reply.
   
• While a Spanpen is within the presence of Magnetus, it is unable to establish a connection to its pair even if both Spanpens are within close proximity of each other. This serves as a preventative method for those who would prefer that conversations remain anonymous and unrecorded.
   
• Users are not able to use Spanpens while in captivity.
   
• Once a user begins writing, a Spanpen functions only as fast as a bird can deliver a message using the Aviary System standard.
   

Possible Applications for Spanpens

• Political emissaries or politicians could use Spanpens to simultaneously write documents or letters, while also ensuring a copy has been made and delivered elsewhere. This would be an ideal use for a scribe who could establish a connection with a paired pen to provide a feed of events to another location.
   
• Similarly, a lord might wish to provide their signature or contribute to a discussion they might otherwise be unable to attend for safety and security reasons. An emissary might have a pen paired with a lord in a separate location, and can establish a line of communication that is safer from interception than a bird or a messenger.
   
• Spies might take advantage of the Spanpen by writing without ink while its pair in a hidden, safe location transcribes a copy in full ink, thus ensuring that even upon capture, the valuable information has been delivered elsewhere.
   
• One military use might be that a commander in the field has been provided with a pen paired with a Spanpen located within the safety of their home-territory. Information could be quickly relayed between the pens, which could prove vital should the deployed company become compromised. In this circumstance, sensitive information recorded by the span-pens could be destroyed by the original writer, knowing that a copy will have been written at a different location.
   
• An independent scholar or academic might find use in having a paired pen established with a pen-pal, or perhaps an assistant who can complete a more intricate record of the initial notes.
   
• A general use for the Spanpen might be simply as a safe and fast method of communication between specific persons, serving as a thematic alternative to sending a letter via a bird.

Purpose (OOC)

 

The purpose of the Spanpens is primarily to provide an optional, unqiue, magical alternative to notes and birds while still utilizing and relying on the Aviary system. It creates a new way for players to communicate with one another, and hopefully encourages characters to invest more time into this mechanic of the game in character. I feel that this invention does not detract from existing lore, instead adapt and build upon the current canon. Secondly, the hope is that with the peripheral features present in the Spanpens (such as its ability to create a duplicate message elsewhere) will open more avenues or opportunities for unique roleplay where players can simultaneously make better use of the note system. I hope that it opens up more avenues for subterfuge, spying, or the use of secret messages.

 

There may also be certain regions, organizations, or characters who may feel more inclined to adopt using a Spanpen as an optional commodity rather than writing a letter and sending a bird - without fundamentally altering the existing systems.

 

 

Spanrods

 

Description

 

The Spanrod is a far more expensive and elaborate version of a Spanpen that might be more commonly owned and operated by the extremely wealthy. Politicians, Nation-leaders, or powerful Mages may favor these over the common Spanpen. Constructed primarily from a mixture of Arcanium & Acaurum and imbued with intricate enchantments, the Spanrod operates in a similar way to the Spanpen in that it utilizes an attuned gemstone imbued within the cylindrical structure of the rod. A Spanrod can be connected to a pair, but is able to channel a transmission to a far greater range than its predecessor.

A Spanrod is a metallic cylindrical artifact composed of multiple components. It is typically constructed out of precious metals and displays an enchanted sigil at the accessible end of the outer casing. This sigil can take any form, but is always made of gemstone from the same originally enchanted piece. This sigil functions exactly the same as the gemstone on a Spanpen. When twisted, the gemstone sigil activates, and the inner casing is unlocked. Twisting and pulling the sigil will slide the internal cylinder out. This section is decorated with an alphabet of small characters that are typically matching with its pair. These characters can be pressed down easily by the user to create small strings of words that will be replicated by the other Spanrod once the sending device has been properly closed once more and the recipient has opened their own.

 

Capabilities

To activate the Spanrod, the user must twist the sigil located on the left side of the cylinder. This will both unlock the Spanrod and activate the gemstone, allowing it to connect to its paired Spanrod.

 

The user must then pull the unlocked sigil and reveal an inner-cylinder which has been engraved with an alphabet of characters belonging to a language pre-determined upon its construction.  (If both Spanrods are designed with different languages/alphabets, they will not function. Both paired Spanrods must have the same alphabet to be able to communicate with each other properly).

 

Spoiler

Alternatively, users could create a private alphabet to double security on such confidential items, ensuring that any sneaky onlookers will have twice as much work cut out for them in order to decipher messages!

 

Once both Spanrod are active, the user can press the alphabetic characters into the cylinder in the sequence of their choosing  up to X characters maximum.

 

When finished, the user must re-insert the internal cylinder and twist the sigil, causing it to glow red. The paired Spanrod sigil will then subsequently glow red and can be reviewed by another user. Upon opening the paired Spanrod, the characters will begin to rise and fall in the same order that they were originally pressed by the first user. 

 

Once the original message has been viewed by its recipient, the sender's Spanrod will cease glowing and unlock itself, hissing and releasing a magical gas from within - rendered unusable for 12 OOC hours.

 

The use of the Spanrod allows for limited conversational communication between two operators over a greater distance than the Spanpen. Functionally, this could be used by two people who would otherwise have very limited ability to hold discourse and may not be able to rely on other means of communication. 

 

Mechanics

1. Emote setting up the Spanrod by equipping it, and twisting the sigil to unlock the internal cylinder. The player must then send a message to the recipient player, indicating that their Spanrod has begun to glow, indicating a message is inbound.
    
2. The recipient player must indicate whether their character is within an appropriate range of their own Spanrod before any message is delivered.
    
3. If a connection is established, the player sender may emote writing the message by pressing in the alphabetic symbols on the internal cylinder. If the player recipient is unable to receive the message, the Spanrod fails to maintain a connection and no message is sent.
   
   If successful, the player sender may then deliver a message of no more than 2-5 words to the player recipient who has access to the other Spanrod. Messages must be written as if delivered by a note (I.e. “Meet Urgent”).
    
4. Emote closing the cylinder and twisting the sigil until it glows red, indicating that the Spanrod has sent a message.
    
5. The player recipient must emote receiving the message by equipping the Spanrod and opening it, and then a secondary emote of them reviewing the contents.
   
   The player recipient can then send a reply message by following steps 2-3 (step 1 can be ignored as they have already equipped the Spanrod).

 

Spanrod Redlines

• A Spanrod is able to transmit between regions, but must be within the same realm.
   
• A Spanrod can transmit much faster than a Spanpen or Aviary message, but takes longer to be used again. The message is delivered instantaneously but cannot be used again for 12 OOC hours (i.e. one use per day).
  
  Additional balancing: A core component of the Spanrod must be replaced between each use, or recharged, after each message - culminating to 12 OOC hours + a material cost.
   
• Unlike a Spanpen, a Spanrod does not produce a written copy of any message imprinted on it. An ink rubbing can be made by the recipient if they wish to retain the message in physical form, provided the message is short enough. Alternatively, the recipient could make a written recording themselves. This makes the Spanrod an ideal tool for “your eyes only” situations.
   
• Only one message can be stored in a Spanrod at any given time. This means that a Spanrods could be used to create a single message and receive a single reply once daily.
   
• A Spanrod message cannot be replayed.
   
• A Spanrod cannot be operated within the proximity of certain materials such as Magnetus.
   
• A Spanrod cannot be operated while in motion.
   
• A Spanrod cannot be operated while in captivity.
   
• A Spanrod is limited to 2-5 words, making messages limited to short declarations and therefore reserved for vital messages.
   
• Only one Spanrod pair per region. Meaning that a person could have a Spanrod pair between Haense and Celia’nor and, therefore, another pair of the same connection could not be created by another character until the pre-existing Spanrod pair is disabled. This does not limit how many pairs a region can have, allowing for multiple connections to different Spanrods in different regions.
   
• Each Spanrod can only be attuned by one pair of characters at any given moment, requiring two players to operate one pair properly. Satisfactory RP must be conducted when orchestrating a handover of these artifacts if one or both of those characters were to relinquish control over them, and it must be plainly known who has current access to one.
   
• A player cannot send a Spanrod message to a recipient character who is not online, not active, or send messages via a third party application such as Discord.
   
• A Spanrod should be an expensive item to construct and use to avoid overuse.

 

Possible Applications for Spanrods

A quick declaration between nation-leaders to initiate a form of discourse. For example, an immediate request for a cease-fire between warring nations, or an invitation for a peace-conference could be transmitted in a few words or a single short sentence maximum.
 

A message could be sent from a secure position in hostile territory back to one's homeland, with vital information that might otherwise not make it back safely. Perhaps an expedition set out to explore some newly discovered ruins runs into trouble and a single message makes its way back to the citadel: “D A R K S P A W N”.

Purpose (OOC)

The purpose of Spanrods is to bridge gaps between characters, nations, factions, or other major entities who might otherwise have limited interaction and thus improve the discourse and RP interactions held on a IC global scale. This may be due to the geographical location of the character, or because of other in character explanations. Wary of instantaneous communication, as we should be, I wanted to try and come up with an idea that serves a highly limited but potentially very pivotal function. Something that is costly, and that could not be over-used or abused. Functionally, this provides a limited but near instantaneous communication between two characters who have ownership over a pair of Spanrods, bypassing the Aviary system altogether provided that RP standards are met and Spanrod rules are strictly followed.

The way that I see Spanrods fitting in the Aethos is as something treasured by nations or mages. They are few and far between, and not easy to construct. They should be kept locked away and vaulted, only retrieved for the most urgent and paramount of circumstances. During a time of great calamity, a nation might call to the aid of one of its far-off neighbors, setting in place a sequence of events that could create a roleplay scenario that may otherwise have never happened.

 

 

 

 

Origin

Spoiler

Irulan Acaln’sae sat at a grubby desk in the bowls of Celia’nors forge. Rain pattered on the stone streets outside, falling from the gutters above and splashing loudly at feet of the city's grand architecture. A faint warmth and orange glow of idle embers flickered just enough light across the elfess’ workspace. Several intricate models resembling different pens, quills, and reeds, scattered the surface, mostly as paper-weights. Each of them were made from a different material and housed a small, dull gemstone. Among this cluttered workspace were other materials she had... borrowed from her workplace. Minerals, metals, gemstones.

 

She the bridge of her nose close to her eyes with her index finger and thumb, leaving behind a sooty residue from a day of forging, broken only by sessions of brainstorming and sketching.

 

Irulan then picked up a small, enchanted ruby between her fingers. Imperfect, inactive. It faintly glowed as she rolled it around in her hand. Then, in a moment of brazen inspiration, she set the stone down and took up a small hammer from her toolbelt and set it upon the stone. A sharp crack echoed through the forge, and she held her breath as the glowing stone seemed to fade… but not diminish. Her own golden eyes lit up as a new rush of motivation coursed through her. After many more hours of tinkering, trial and error, and frustration, she lay atop her schematics a pair of unique quills. Each adorned one half of an enchanted gemstone that glowed faintly.

 

With a short breath, she took one up in her aching fingers and twisted the gemstone affixed to the top. It glowed brighter, pulsing. She set it down, and took up the other. With a twist, both gemstones shone with a renewed light. The pair she had first activated sprung up on its own accord, hovering above a blank schematic page upon her desk. As Irulan wiggled the pen in her hand, the other imitated the movement as if by an unseen force.

 

The design had worked, and continued to work as Irulan tested its many functions, writing out her observations and drawing out modifications with the very pens she had just made. How perfect would this be for a scribe - how perfect would this be for me? She thought, looking over the near perfect copies of her own works that she had just made in half the time.

 

Irulan carefully recorded her findings - frightened to death that her design had only been a short-lived phenomenon - especially as the pens dropped lifelessly to the floor when she rose in excitement. And on the other hand, ecstatic when she discovered how much more stable the pens were when she cleaned up her deskspace and moved away that node of Magnetus she had lying around.

 

It had become a night that Irulan knew she would find no rest. Upon the success of one idea, a thousand more poured into her mind. As the sun rose the next morning, she had produced a pair of reliable prototypes - and used them to start the designs of a much more elaborate device that would take a much keener mage to produce than herself…

 

Citation

My Spanpens are heavily inspired by Brandon Sanderson's Spanreeds from the Stormlight Archive.

Spanrods were an adaptation of the Spanpens visually inspired by Dune part 2.

Thankyou Venomous_Pup for reading/supporting.

 

Notes from Author

Spoiler

Many of you will probably not have met me or heard of me, but I wanted to jump in head-first and put a lore post out into the world! I put a lot of energy into this fun little project, so I hope at least some of that paid off regardless of the outcome.

 

I am also aware that communication is a tricky subject and I am fully expecting all kinds of criticism and suggestions, which are so welcome!

 

 

 

Oh and if you hadn't noticed yet, big fan of Brandon Sanderson and Frank Herbert.

 

Edited September 17, 2024 by Hodgeling
Thanhium just aint right

[Jihnyny 5233]

i mean i get the idea but this requires a whole new plugin, based of a cultural invention. Birds are universal, wether it be a flying imp or a parrot, a being flying with a message is across all cultures, unlike this. Its just unecessarily complicated. -1

[ECS1999 1121]

The main problem i see with Spanrods is that you mention that they need Thanhium and that they are enchanted. It's impossible to enchant Thanhium!

 

The rest, well not much to add.

[Hodgeling 403]

2 hours ago, Jihnyny said:

i mean i get the idea but this requires a whole new plugin, based of a cultural invention. Birds are universal, wether it be a flying imp or a parrot, a being flying with a message is across all cultures, unlike this. Its just unecessarily complicated. -1

 

In multiple points throughout the post I mention that Spanpens must use the Aviary system. Both Spanpens and Spanrods don't require additional plugins at all.

 

The Spanpen is purely a thematic and optional change but mechanically functions almost the same way as the Aviary.

 

 

8 minutes ago, ECS1999 said:

The main problem i see with Spanrods is that you mention that they need Thanhium and that they are enchanted. It's impossible to enchant Thanhium!

 

The rest, well not much to add.

 

Aha! That's fair. An easy solution to this would be to consider an alternative material of equal value that can be enchanted. Thanks for letting me know.

Edited August 24, 2024 by Hodgeling

[Frisket 4537]

-1

 

Requires a new mail plug in or something similar.

 

The resources to find this would be expensive and contradictory.

 

This invention has a lot of Gaps left to interpret on how it can work/use.

 

 

I believe as much as I can understand you tried something really cool, which I like, don't get me wrong, the idea seems pretty gnarly, if one were to simply use the pen to write something some else is writing but in a long distant location. But the applications seem unlikely due to how the aviary system works and how it responds to mechanics. 

 

But great idea 

[femurlord 3751]

7 hours ago, Hodgeling said:

 

In multiple points throughout the post I mention that Spanpens must use the Aviary system. Both Spanpens and Spanrods don't require additional plugins at all.

 

The Spanpen is purely a thematic and optional change but mechanically functions almost the same way as the Aviary.

 

 

 

Aha! That's fair. An easy solution to this would be to consider an alternative material of equal value that can be enchanted. Thanks for letting me know.

Arcanium

 

[Islamadon 9158]

This lore has been denied. You will be sent a forum PM regarding the reasons for denial within the next 24 hours.

Given that this functionally still requires the Aviary System, it effectively serves as lore-bloat which is comparable to Arcane Relays (which we would rather avoid). We do not believe there would be consistent or widespread use of this given that, well, no one RP's writing their aviary note, let alone receiving it. If you want a hands free means of writing a note, just use Housemagery.