Research (sage study)

Research is a sage study in the field of Salon, pursuing the creative and systematic approaches to understand the art of others, with a focus upon scholarly pursuits, reclaiming culture, documenting artistic works and finding lost treasures. Those with this knowledge are invaluable assets when dealing with ancient civilisations, forgotten lore and historical mysteries.

Adventurers often find themselves uncovering lost cultures and seeking treasures long forgotten. A meticulous researcher, committed to the reclamation of culture, has abilities that empower others to understand that pasts that are being unravelled, some of which predate human history. These apply to instances such as the exploration of ruined cities; the location of lost tribes in remote wildernesses; the resurrection of lost arts, both magical and otherwise; and the potential retrieval of artifacts, revelations of alternate dimensions and even time travel.

Sage Abilities

The sage abilities below are those acquired by a character through the study, according to status.

Amateur Status

• Antiquities Scholar: character has dedicated much time to bygone eras, gaining a wealth of knowledge about the significance, origins and cultural contexts of lost civilisations and myths about objects, unnatural places and the like.

• Keen Observer: allows the character to spy small details related to symbols or sigils, that might reveal the presence of some organisation or society related to the present surroundings.

• Linguistic Savant: character is able to grasp the sense of any written language, whether or not he or she is actually familiar with it's syntax or vocabulary.

Authority Status

• Master Antiquarian: have sufficient knowledge to launch an expedition in search of a given place or peoples, with a high expectation of succeeding in reaching the goal intended (once the knowledge of where has been established). Character has an uncanny sense of where to travel and what ancient routes to follow.

• Preservationist: gives extensive knowledge on the restoration of objects and artworks, bringing ancient pieces back to their original condition; with time spent, a fair income can be obtained through serving clients in this fashion.

• Master Appraiser: similar to the burglary ability, Appraisal II, except that in addition to describing the object's liquid value, the price it's likely to obtain through different methods of sale, it's method of construction and the materials used, the character is definitely able to identify it's origin and maker, and potentially symbology and a secret intent underlying the artwork's creation.

Expert Status

• Artistic Diplomat: character has achieved a sufficient notariety that he or she may request visitation to secret vaults and archives controlled by powerful religious or secular entities, to read of the books or examine the objects placed there.

• Cartographer: character is able to produce accurate maps of any part of the known world from memory, should such maps be needed for navigation or other uses.

• Mystic Scribe: through direct contact with artifacts or ancient places, establish an empathic link with the people who once inhabited those places. This connection grants insight into the daily life of that culture during its twilight days, or allows access to the thoughts and emotions of the last individual possessing the object. Such is only possible with places and objects that have accumulated a profound reservoir of mystical energy.

• Unconventional Scholar: search knowledge from sources other than a library or traditional experts, pursuing the memories of unnatural beings such as dryads or sphinxes, or through the deliberate activation of dreams or visions.

Sage Status

• Forgotten Arcana: allows the resurrection of ancient and obscure knowledge that has long faded into obscurity, enabling the interpretation and activation of such knowledge to it's inevitable conclusions.

• Time Bending: allows actual travel into an ancient time, following the possession of a specific item, permitting communication with its occupants and observation of the consequential events taking place.

See Bard Sage Abilities