Been brainstorming the flavour for a new magic system using ropes, and I'm amazed no one's come up with this before. It's just so cool and flexible (pun intended):>with a snap, the ship's boy pulls his clothesline tight around the treasure chest - now Davy Jones himself couldn't pry it open.>the fakir loops the rope-end into the shape of a snake's head, and it levitate to the top of the city wall as though falling upwards.>a cleric waves her hand over the couples' entwined arms, literally tying the knot that will bind their souls together.>dark magicians (known as Hangman) are hunted for their illegal use of the neck-breaking Noose spell. >defiant at her enemy captors, the sultry princess is bound in a complex shibari that will force her to speak only truth>an airborne Scourge accidentally summons lightning with an errant flick of coil, forcing his partner to catch him mid-air with a hasty Bowline.>speed-boost laces>whips that defy physics to act like appendages>counter-knots that undo opponent's bindingsThere's so much flavour you can mine. I get that it's mega fetish bait, but shouldn't that be an even bigger reason for it to exist?
>>97951883And a slipknot will magically end all your problems, too!
>>97951897Sadly, you're too far away.
>>97951934Oh, you give me too much credit.
>>97951897>>97951934>>97951952>>>/soc/
>>97951883thats cool, but check out knot theory. you can run an entire universe on this shit, it can be knots all the way down. and yes i know, and i know you know, but please show restraint
>>97951883There's loads of uses for knots in D&D that don't involve magic. I'd get into specifics, but I'm a bad deckhand when it comes to knotcraft. Seen some crazy shit.
>>97952108Grab the knot?
>>97952155>There's loads of uses for knots in D&D that don't involve magicAnd you need permission for all of them.
>>97952187Aaahhhhhh. Skill check, innit. DM can't let you Shibari someone in combat.
>>97952108>please show restraintI'm using this from now on instead of "post bobs"
>>97951883Seems like it checks a lot of good boxes. Tying knots does require skill and precision, and there's a lot of varieties that reward teaching and knowledge. It also puts a time pressure on more complex spells, where if you need to perform some elaborate series of ties in order to get the proper result, you can't really pull that off in the midst of a fight.It also explains why wizards would have beards, because they could braid and knot it for specific magical effects on them at all times. >counter-knots that undo opponent's bindingsThis is the one mis-step. Knots aren't usually that useful for untying other knots. But you know what is? Pic related. Even the mightiest and most complex knot can still fall to a sharp edge, which means you have a reason why most people are still relying on swords and weapons instead of elaborate ropework. Though perhaps that does cause complications sometimes. Carefully untying someone's spell might be the only way to safely break some of them, where cutting through might cause some errant backlash.
>>97953323>It also explains why wizards would have beards, because they could braid and knot it for specific magical effectsAbsolutely this. I'm gonna have enough braid-tugging to put Robert Jordan to shame.
>>97951897FPBP
>>97951883Sounds sick, OP.Throwing some threadwizards into my setting right now.Speaking of, could be the reason why your typical sorcerous-type of character is wandering around in robes: its a convenient way to store a bunch of knots, braids, and other thread architectures without burdening yourself more than you need too. Could also explain apparent higher technology level/random high-technology bits, knots made of metal wire providing particularly durable and long-lasting magic. Could also be a part of contract-magic, as the signatures as well as the terms are threaded together in a marriage of both legalese and magic, becoming literally and figuratively binding terms.
>>97951883"Take the Knot!" -Hanged Men motto
>Average 3.5 splatbook class
I'm knot impressed.
>>97951883picrel as a magic tome
>>97951883TAKE THE KNOT
>>97953323Somebody should tell Alexander before uhe does something du
>>97951883>rope enchanted so it can't be untied>rope enchanted to levitate>describing a somatic gesture of a spell>generic dark magician using black magic using sympathetic material component>wonder womanetc.Not really ground breaking.>I'm amazed no one's come up with this beforeYeah, no one, you're the first.It's not as if there's a reason marriage is called tying the knot because of an ancient ritual of tying a knot for marrying couples, either as an act of sympathetic magic or one that transformed into a magical act. pic not relatedIt's not as if>Sometimes winds could be bought before a voyage. ... In Finland wise women sold a length of rope with three knots. Untying one knot brought a breeze; two knots a strong wind and three knots a full gale.mentions knots used in magic at all.It's not as if the ancient, Greeks, Romans or Egyptians were writing about their use of knots in magic and religion. Neither can you go to goodreads and find dozens of books about "cord magic" and "knot magic". Yours is the first mention of knot magic ever.
>>97956498For those wondering: I shat in his cornflakes, and can you blame me?
>>97956498Fell for it award, thanks for the pointers sucker
>>97951883Traditional games?
Your Grimiore, sir.
>>97951897/thread
Book of Travels on steam has a magic system around Knots.
I use this (just for flavor, didn't fully built a system of what knots translate to what) and have ever since I read through Gödel Escher Bach: an Eternal Golden BraidAmazing book, especially if you like computer science or consciousness. Written a couple decades ago but still on the cutting edge of ideas
>>97951883Seems coolYou should check out the Aztec knot writing system Quipuhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu
Anybody considering this and not taking influence from the Inca and other Andean civilizations and their Quipu/Khipu is doing a diservice to themselves:https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg23931972-600-we-thought-the-incas-couldnt-write-these-knots-change-everything/The Mesoamericans like the Aztec actually also had a similar rope/knot based system in addition to their more traditional writing systems, but it's very poorly documented and we know basically nothing about Mesoamerican "quipu">>97956438Only smart anon in this thread
