Glamour tattoo

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Glamour tattoos are tattoos that when activated overwrite a character's features with a magical glamour for a set amount of time. Depending on the level of service being offered, a glamour tattoo may cover either all of a character's features or only a single feature line. The features displayed in the glamour do not have to adhere to standard feature alteration rules, and thus can include magical or unnatural effects. At the higher tiers, glamours may include non-standard wording for features. However, the features do still have to pass QC standards.

The tattoo has the appearance of 'an inky black sigil' and it can be placed in any standard tattoo slot. The appearance of the sigil cannot be altered.

Generally glamours are active for X number of minutes (generally 3-4 hours). Glamours will "pulse" with idle/ambient messaging every X number of minutes (generally 15-20 minutes). In both cases, the exact timing is dependent on the individual tattoo's setup, and it may vary from the 'generally' quoted times here; ANALYZE will give that information.

Due to the QC (and in some cases, additional coding) required for each aspect of a Glamour Tattoo, it is atypical to see glamour tattoo offerings for unlocking or add-ons after the initial inking is completed.

Tiers

Tier 1: This is a temporary tattoo that holds a limited number of uses. After the last charge has been depleted, the tattoo will disappear. The feature(s) in this tier must adhere to feature phrasing and word order.

Tier 2: This is a permanent tattoo with unlimited uses. The feature(s) in this tier must adhere to feature phrasing and word order.

Tier 3: This is a permanent tattoo with unlimited uses. The feature(s) in this tier *can* include non-standard phrasing and word order. You may customize the LOOK output for the character's age. Race and culture customizations may, in addition, be optionally available, dependent on the specific release's offering.

Add-ons

These customizations/options may be offered in addition to the base tier inclusions. The degree of customization offered is up to the merchant's discretion.

Add-on # Add-on Info
#1 Custom activation messaging
#2 Custom deactivation messaging
#3b Custom idle/ambient messaging (multiple messages)
#3a Custom idle/ambient messaging (single message)
#4 Custom TAP messaging
#5 Custom phrase within PULL messaging ("the illusion")
#6 Custom NUDGE, TOUCH, and PINCH messaging
#7 Inventory toggle via KNOCK (hides LOOK output after the feature display)
#8 Custom inventory via KNOCK (includes #7 + a customized (static) inventory output matched to the glamoured features)

Verb Traps

Default

VERB FIRST THIRD
RUB
(Activation)
The air around you briefly shimmers, and you feel as if something about you has changed. The air around XXX briefly shimmers.
RUB
(Deactivation)
The illusion around you abruptly flickers out of sight. The illusion around XXX abruptly flickers out of sight.
RUB
(Deactivation, last charge)
As the illusion around you abruptly flickers out of sight, your sigil simultaneously fades away. As the illusion around XXX abruptly flickers out of sight, XXX's sigil simultaneously fades away.
PUSH You brush your fingers over an inky black sigil. It sinks into your skin, disappearing briefly and sending a burning sensation through you before it reappears in place. As XXX's fingers brush over an inky black sigil, it slowly vanishes, as if sinking into her skin. Moments later, it reappears, completely restored.
PULL As your fingers trail over an inky black sigil, the illusion around you flickers in and out of existence for a moment. As XXX trails her fingers over an inky black sigil, the illusion around her flickers in and out of existence for a moment.
TURN As you swirl your finger around an inky black sigil, the sigil rotates slightly in place. The sensation is akin to bugs scurrying about beneath your flesh. As XXX swirls her finger around an inky black sigil, the sigil rotates slightly in place on XXX's flesh.
TAP As you tap one finger atop an inky black sigil, a slight shimmer ripples through the air around you. "A slight shimmer ripples through the air around XXX.
AMBIENT
(When active)
The air around you shimmers slightly. The air around XXX shimmers slightly.

Design Tips

Keeping these guidelines in mind is generally helpful when designing a Glamour Tattoo:

  • Illusions do not force emotions or actions on others, and the features should be objective. This is the biggest hurdle for most players when designing.
  • The illusion is around your person. It is not an area-wide illusion.
  • The illusion is about sight -- not smells or sounds or the like, except in rare circumstances.
  • The illusion is magical. This means that there is some room for things that you normally wouldn't associate with features -- things might glow, you might have wings when you normally wouldn't, there might be smoke wreathed around your feet. Keep it within reason.
  • Structured Features - for the most part, the regular structure to features -- the order in which you look at them on others -- needs to be followed. There is some flexibility, however, if you have a Tier 3 glamour.
  • Tier 3 - Age - the illusion might be able to show your age a bit differently.
  • Tier 3 - Race/Culture - your illusion might help you look like another race/culture where the race/culture field output is in LOOK, if offered by the merchant. It might alternatively let you look like a sentient or semi-sentient race outside of what we associate with adventurers at large -- this means, for example, that the illusion MIGHT show you, by race, as a troll, goblin, sea nymph, or the like. A more vague "humanoid" wording may alternatively be allowed in place of a specific race, depending on the glamour as a whole.
  • Illusions still have to go through some magical barriers that you might, in some places, call a control of quality [QC]. This is a required hurdle. Please be respectful of the guidelines that QC will ask you to follow; however, if you have read and adhered to the above, you should generally be off to a good start.