Loresinging

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Loresinging is a bardic ability allowing a singer to divine the properties of an item with the sound of his voice. Some items will simply tell you its properties while others have a specific story attached to them that can only be observed through a bard, often called a loresong itself due to the nature in which the story is revealed.

Different items have different amounts of difficulty to obtain the information from. In order to increase a loresong's strength and ability to divine a loresong from an item, various verses and rhyme schemes can be used to obtain the loresong. Specifically, two-line loresongs with no rhymes are less powerful than two-line verses with a rhyme scheme. And, a four-line verse with a rhyme scheme is even more powerful. Rhymes must be words that rhyme by spelling, such as the infamous hand/land rhyme. However, more and floor, though they rhyme when spoken aloud, they do not count as rhymes for the purpose of loresongs.

Additionally, if certain keywords are used (value, weight, purpose, skill [only for weapons/armor], spell, and ability) in a loresong, you can obtain specific bits of information from the item.

When loresinging to a magical or enhancive item, a Bard may determine whether or not the item will be destroyed when its last magical or enhancive charge has been expended.

When singing to a piece of armor with resistance to a damage type, a proper loresong will tell the level of resistance.

Mechanics

Order

The response message from successful attempts will reveal information in a specific order if you do not use a keyword.

First verse
The weight and value of the item
Second verse
The purpose of the item
Third verse
If the item is a weapon/armor type then it will reveal the skill required to use and enchant bonus of the item.
If the item is a magic type then it will tell spell and charges left.
If the item is enhancive, it will tell you what it enhances and the level requirements but not the specific bonuses.
The keyword enhance will work for both types.
Fourth verse
Consists of the special ability section. Enhancive details, spells, weapon flares, reimbeddable status, crumbly status, and other odd information will be found here.

Keywords

  • Using keywords such as value, weight, purpose, skill [only for weapons/armor] or enhance, spell, and ability will allow you to skip to that verse directly.
  • Once you skip to that verse, you may continue loresinging without using a keyword to continue to the next verse in order.
For example: if you are loresinging to a weapon, you skipping to the third verse by using the keyword SKILL. Then if the next song you use contains no keywords, it will respond with the fourth verse (the ability line).
  • You may jump to any verse including a lower level one
For example: if you are second verse and you use the keyword VALUE in your next song then it will jump back to the first verse.
  • Skipping to a higher level verse is more difficult than a lower level one, so if you are inexperienced then skipping to the ability verse often fails but skipping to the purpose verse works often.
This means that getting the fourth verse by using the ability keyword often fails for inexperienced bards. A lower level bard would likely be more successful to skip to the third phrase using a keyword then continue with a normal song without keywords to get the last verse.
  • It is important to note that magic is NOT a keyword. It does not allow you to skip to the third verse. It would be the same as using a song without a keyword

Failure

A failed verse may occur for several reasons and there are failsafe practices for working around failed verses:

  • Insufficient mana will result in a failed loresong progression (with no risk of injury).
  • Repetition of a particular keyword twice in a row will end a loresong progression.
  • All information available to the bard has already been determined will result in a failed verse.
  • To avoid failures, one can alternate between two different songs (without keywords) until a response is received from the item.
  • In order to restart a loresong progression, you must reset the status by either singing to a new item or try to use a simple keyword like value.
  • Note that no roundtime will be incurred for a failed loresong verse.

There are two messages which can arise as a result of a failed loresong. Examples are as follows:

  • Insufficient mana: Your song is weak, and without sufficient power to affect the pearl.
  • No additional properties: You learn nothing new about the pendant.

Example Messaging

Loresongs provide a wide variety of messaging for items. Beyond the basic properties of an item (such as weight, bonus, or value), items may be identified as possessing a special ability, as imbeds (either blank, or already containing a spell), or enhancive properties. Some of that messaging is provided below:

Imbed items

Such items can be found blank (and able to be imbedded with a new spell), already containing a spell, or even rechargeable.

You sense a faint aura of magic around the pink dreamstone brooch. You also feel a faint drawing sensation from it, as though it may be able to hold more power. From the pitch of the vibration you determine that the purpose of the brooch is to cast a spell or perform some magical purpose.
You sense a faint aura of magic around the grey granite bracer. You also feel a faint drawing sensation from it, as though when its charge is depleted, it may be refilled. From the pitch of the vibration you determine that the purpose of the bracer is to cast a spell or perform some magical purpose.
From the rapid vibrations of the pink dreamstone brooch, you determine it has no spell within it now, but could be imbedded with one, in the proper hands. You estimate that it can contain an ample amount of mana.
  • Reimbeddable item (fourth verse):
The magical strength of this item is strong. It could probably handle the imbedding of an entirely new spell, if handled with care.
  • Crumbly imbed (fourth verse):
You sense that the black fel wand will disintegrate after its last magical charge has been expended.
  • Non-Crumbly imbed (fourth verse):
You sense that the thick ironwood rod will persist after its last magical charge has been expended.

Weapon/Armor Abilities

Typically, special abilities possessed by weapons and armor are permanent though some forms of padding and resistance may be temporary. These abilities are unique to armor, are not part of the enhancive system, and can not be recharged at the Adventurer's Guild. However, weapons and armor may have traditional enhancive properties as well.

  • Special ability, temporary (second verse):
It also appears to have a temporary modification of some kind.
  • Special ability (third verse):
It also has some type of special ability, but you can't tell what yet.
The harmonics generated tell you that the leathers serves to reduce the severity of inflicted wounds.
The harmonics generated tell you that the helm serves to reduce the severity of inflicted wounds.
The helm resonates with your voice, revealing some details of its temporary enhancement:
The helm's enhancement will degrade when the wearer is struck in combat.
It should be able to withstand an incredible amount of uses before its enhancement has completely degraded away.
When its enhancement has degraded away, the item will lose its special ability.
  • Fire: It has been infused with the power of a fire elemental.
  • Cold: It has been infused with the power of an ice elemental.
  • Earth: It has been infused with the power of an earth elemental.
  • Acid: It has been infused with the power of a corrosive substance.
  • Lightning: It has been infused with the power of a lightning bolt.
  • Plasma: It has been infused with the power of a flaming substance.
  • Disruption: It has been infused with a disrupting substance.
  • Void/Vacuum: It has been infused with the power of a dark substance.
  • Disintegration: It has been infused with a disintegrating substance.
  • Mana: It has been infused with mana.
  • Acuity: allows a caster to occasionally focus their magical prowess for a single cast.
The harmonics generated tell you that the armor serves to protect from magical attacks.
  • Ranger Resistance: Armor treated by a ranger will potentially have a misleading loresong. The value may be exceptionally high (first verse) and the resistance will appear as permanent (fourth verse). A ranger should be found to ASSESS the armor to determine its status if the origin of the armor is unknown.

Player-Forged Weapons

Weapons created by the forging artisan skill yield special messaging which reveals the quality of the forging of the item in the third verse. The loresong will also reveal the fact that the item was player-forged (though this information is already available via the crafter's mark in the SHOW description of the item).

  • Player-forged (second verse):
It has been forged by a member of the Artisan's Guild.
  • Elegant-quality (third verse):
The handaxe has a lightly increased effectiveness in combat.
  • Superior-quality (third verse):
The maul has a moderately increased effectiveness in combat.
  • Perfect-quality (third verse):
The dagger has a significantly increased effectiveness in combat.

Enhancive Items

Items with enhancive properties have messaging in several phases of the loresong. The second verse provides a simple indicator of whether or not the item is enhancive. The third verse provides a vague description of the properties. The fourth verse contains complete information about the enhancive properties (and if complete, renders the third verse irrelevant). The tiered messaging may be valuable to lower level bards who are unable to extract the full properties of the item in the fourth verse. The third and fourth verse may also provide information about racial, skill, societal, or character restrictions placed on the item.

  • Enhancive (second verse):
Also, it seems to have some sort of enhancive properties.
  • Properties, vague (third verse):
The bracer resonates with your voice, indicating that it enhances its owner in the following ways:
It provides a bonus to Agility.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 36 times.
It provides a bonus to Aura.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 20 times.
It provides a bonus to Mana Recovery.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 10 times.
You think that you could probably find out something more about the pendant's enhancive properties if you tried.
  • Properties, complete (fourth verse):
The bracer resonates with your voice, indicating that it enhances its owner in the following ways:
It provides a bonus of 8 to Agility.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 36 times.
It provides a bonus of 4 to Aura.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 20 times.
It provides a bonus of 2 to Mana Recovery.
This enhancement may not be used by adventurers who have not trained 10 times.
The bracer looks to have a lot of charges remaining.
  • Persistence (fourth verse):
You sense that the aquamarine bracer will crumble into dust after its last enhancive charge has been expended.
You sense that the composite bow will persist after its last enhancive charge has been expended.
  • Restriction (third/fourth verse):
This enhancive item may not be used by the following professions: Warrior Rogue Wizard Cleric Empath Sorcerer Ranger Monk Paladin Savant.
This enhancement cannot be used by adventurers without at least a moderate amount of skill in Brawling.
This enhancive item may not be used by the following races: Human Giantman Half-Elf Sylvankind Dark Elf Dwarf Halfling Forest Gnome Burghal Gnome Half-Krolvin Erithian Aelotoi.
Some bronze leg greaves inset with hammered copper discs can only be used by a Master of the Guardians of Sunfist.
This item is restricted to use by an adventurer you can't quite determine.
This item is restricted to use by Oweodry.

Purified Gems

Gems which have been purified through Purification Song (1004) may turn into orb gems (for the purpose of charging items or creating chrisms) or become rechargeable imbeds.

  • Orb gem (second verse):
From the pitch of the vibration you determine that the purpose of the glimaerstone is as a gem of some kind. As you sing, the glimaerstone seems to resonate with your voice, and you feel it trying to draw power from you.
  • Mage rechargeable (second verse):
From the pitch of the vibration you determine that the purpose of the emerald is as a gem of some kind. As you sing, the emerald seems to resonate with your voice, and you feel it trying to draw power from you. It pulses strongly with the rhythm of your words.

Resources

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