Nadifa's Nominative Navigation

This spell allows the wizard to transport themselves, and perhaps even companions, over an unlimited distance. However it only allows travel between places with the same name. For example, someone on our world would be able to travel from Perth, Scotland to Perth, Australia. The names must be exactly the same (it would not allow travel from Main Street to Main Road, or from Mount Albert to Mont Albert). However the similarity may be in the names of countries, cities, streets, or even individual buildings (for example, two taverns with the same name).

Volitional Fluid, or Gods' Tears

It is rumoured, but not substantiated, that this substance may be found in Teleleli.

It is said to be a milky, thick fluid, like a liqueur, and beautiful to behold. It is not, however, desired for its appearance, nor even for its delicious taste, but for its ability, when treated correctly, to give the power to move with the speed of thought.

Some say that it is literally the tears of a god. Others contend that very enlightened mystics may enter a state of deep meditation, wherein they secrete the substance from their eyes or skin.

It is notable that the Tibetans ascribe various miraculous properties to the tears of Buddha and other holy men.

Vampires and the sun

While all vampires have a fear and loathing of the sun, referring to it as 'The Enemy', not all vampires will die from its light.

Very recently-created vampires can go out in the sun with no abnormal effects: indeed they do not suffer sunburn like mortals, retaining the pallor of death. Somewhat older vampires will not die, but will blaze with a light that is said to be very beautiful. Finally, very old and powerful vampires may be able to go out in the sun, but while they do so lose all their undead powers.

The light emitted by young vampires is said to include colours that are not otherwise found in the world (by which is meant the world wherein lies Teleleli, although there is no overall difference between the light there and in our own world). These extra colours are named by some ulfar and jale. Science tells us that all the colours visible to humans are found in nature. Thus it may be that this light alters its observer, allowing them to perceive infra-red or ultra-violet. Alternatively, it may act directly on the human brain, bypassing actual sight altogether. Perhaps this phenomenon has come connection to the auras said to be perceivable by mystics, or the Third Eye of the Tibetan lamas. The Barsoomians, too, speak of a Ninth and Tenth Ray, which possess various powers, and which their ancestors extracted from normal light by a process now lost.

Vampire bites

If a mortal is bitten by a vampire, and their blood falls upon the ground, and they survive, the wound will always give a sharp pain in the presence of vampires, no matter how well-hidden they may be. For this reason, it is the law of the vampires only to bite once the victim is dead. However, the taste of fresh-bitten live blood is intoxicating to vampires beyond all else, and so the law is frequently broken.

The Flying City of the Night

As the name would imply, this structure is a flying city. Its appearance is feared by many, since it appears only with the intention of destroying and looting. However it seems to choose its targets carefully, on political grounds. The inhabitants of the city appear to have similar views to the Conspiracy of Equals. When asked who led them, they are said to have replied "Prince Nobody" or "Captain No-one."

As well as flight, the city seems to be capable of submerging itself under the sea, which it does to avoid pursuit. At other times it has flown away over mountain ranges or forests, slowing down land-based pursuit. It does not appear to be able to fly as high as cloud level, or to remain in the air indefinitely.

It is often said that the City will free political prisoners, debtors or slaves, and that some have gone with the city when it escaped. This has led to speculation that the inhabitants of the city may no longer be its original builders. Thus it is not known whether the inhabitants understand how the city flies.

Bad Water

Bad Water is water that has been used by undertakers or priests to wash corpses. This is the first stage of most funerary rituals in Teleleli, and is especially necessary in embalming and mummification. Bad Water is widely held to be an ingredient in Paste of the Spirits.

Eclipses

It is generally believed that if a pregnant woman goes outside during a total eclipse, and with no clouds to protect her from the 'black rays' of the sun, she runs the risk of her baby being born very frail and sickly, half-witted, mad, or more than one of these, and with an inborn magical talent.

Such children will excel in areas of magic which match their spirit. One who rains fire and death on their enemies will be quick to anger and blame. One who excels in illusions will be a font of false oaths and promises, and a leader-astray of the innocent. One who begets madness will themselves be mad. It may be that this could work the other way, with virtuous spells matching virtuous magicians: but such would be a rarity of rarities.

They are also said to excel in the learning of languages. They are sometimes said to be able to learn languages without even hearing or reading them. Though, alas, they have little of sense to say in any tongue.

Transforming Into An Animal

It is well-known that transforming into an animal whose primary sense is smell can cause the sorcerer to become insane, and be unable to return to human form.

This is because animals who rely on smell 'see' in four dimensions. Such animals can sense what happened in the past - for example that a human passed here a day ago.

Soul Dolls

It is known that some evil sorcerers can take living souls and trap them within the bodies of dolls.

Abbe Nays writes that dolls which contain the souls of children will always look in the direction of the child's body.

Brazen Head

A Brazen Head is, as the name implies, a life-size model of a human head cast in brass or bronze, and often set with precious stones and with the head-dress of a priest, which is reputed to be able to answer any question.

It is said to speak in a voice like the piping of flutes, although some authorities say that it does not literally speak, but gives its answers on a scroll which issues from its mouth. Some say that it can only answer 'yes' or 'no', and that it takes questions in a frustratingly literal way. Others say that anything which a Brazen Head sees or hears, it is as if all Brazen Heads in the world have seen or heard it.

There are cryptic references in the Lesser Key of King Ranjit to 'false Heads'. But whether they give false or random answers, or cannot answer at all, is unclear.

(thanks to Telecanter for the original inspiration for this)

Dungeons: An Alternative View

Neferu of the Seven Burdens proposes that dungeons represent a system of reproduction and adoption for magic swords. She asserts that adventurers go into dungeons, find treasure, and then spend it, causing normal swords to be forged. These adventurers eventually die in a dungeon, where their normal swords can soak up magic until they become sentient. This will attract more adventurers hoping to gain possession of the magic sword, allowing the sword to make its way into the world.

The Terrible Manuals of Balthazar the Unstructor

These magical books appear to be instruction manuals on a variety of activities. However they are so incompetently written that anyone who reads one will end up with less knowledge of its subject that when they started.

Gods' Tongues

In certain seas, though not the Wine-Faced Sea which breaks on Teleleli, there wash ashore objects that are popularly known as Gods' Tongues. Skeptical scholars insist that they are the corpses of some unknown sea creature. However it must be admitted that they bear a great resemblance to gigantic human tongues (they are about three feet long) and thus it is widely believed that there is an undiscovered country in the depths of the sea, peopled by at least giants if not gods.

The Tongues themselves are said to be useful in magic, especially when freshly pulled from the sea and still wet. They dry and curl up very quickly. Popular belief holds that the hypothesized sea-dwelling giants do not die naturally, but only by murder, and that their tongues therefore contain poisons of a strength beyond any known on land.

Beketmut's Bauble of Bewhiskered Beastliness

This sphere emits a beam which causes its target to temporarily grow a goatee (if male), or to find themselves wearing a false goatee (if female). Males that already possess a beard or mustache will find themselves with a false goatee over their real hair.

More importantly, the victims of the beam become irredeemably evil.

Some scholars, however, theorise that the victims of the Bauble do not grow a goatee, but are instead replaced by beings of near-identical appearance from a realm they call 'The Goateeverse'.

from The Festival

Wisely did Ibn Schacabao say, that happy is the tomb where no wizard hath lain, and happy the town at night whose wizards are all ashes.

HP Lovecraft.

Unspoken Water

Unspoken Water is an enchanted form of water which protects against harmful magic, and may heal the sick.

It is created by collecting running water from under a bridge that "the living have crossed and the dead have been carried over". Whatever is used to collect it must not touch the ground.

It is then carried in silence at dawn or twilight to the house of the sick person, or the area to be protected.

To give protection against harmful magic it must be sprinkled around the area in a continuous ring, then the remainder carried back to where it came and poured back in as thanks are pronounced.

To heal, a precious stone must be placed into the water. Then the sick person must drink three spoons from a wooden ladle. The remainder of the water must be carried back to its origin in the same manner as above. If the sick person's lips touch the stone, they will instantly die. The precious stone may be kept, although the sick person may never handle it, since the sickness will come back with twice its power.

George Psalmanazar

In 1703 a man appeared in London who was believed to be a native of Formosa (now Taiwan), who had been kidnapped by Jesuit priests and brought to France, where he escaped.

The man, given the name George Psalmanazar, reported that Formosa was a prosperous country with a capital city called Xternetsa. Men walked naked except for a gold or silver plate to cover their genitals. Their main food was a serpent that they hunted with branches. Formosans were polygamous and husbands had a right to eat their wives for infidelity. They executed murderers by hanging them upside down and shooting them full of arrows. Annually they sacrificed the hearts of 18,000 young boys to gods and priests ate the bodies. They used horses and camels for mass transportation and dwelled underground in circular houses.

He had white skin like a European, which he explained by saying that the Formosan upper class lived entirely underground.

Many educated people believed him to be a fraud. Indeed he eventually 'admitted' that he was a European. Despite this, he was known in later life for his saintly aspect, "whereof he was so well known and esteemed, that scarce any person, even children, passed him without showing him signs of respect."

It seems likely to me that this person may have been a native of the world in which Teleleli lies. In particular his description of  mass sacrifice reminds one of the latter days of the city of the vile Anhotep. It is possible that he was unable to communicate the nature of his travel to his audience (or decided not to do so for fear that they would fail to understand). Perhaps he did not understand it himself. However I believe he had at least some inkling. He is recorded as worshipping the sun and moon with complicated rites. It may be that these were in fact magical or scientific attempts to discern his location, misunderstood by his ignorant hosts.

It is notable that Taiwan is roughly in the area occupied by the hypothesised continent of Lemuria which, as I have detailed in a previous passage, is likely to be connected to Teleleli and its environs.

Meeples

Meeples are a race of self-replicating wooden robots. Their original builders are long-dead. They live on a fuel which is a mixture of wood, wheat and stone. They are a peaceful race, occupying their time with farming and road-building.

High Spores

If anyone inhales these dandelion-like plants their skin will turn a jaundiced yellow, their head will swell, and they well feel an insatiable hunger. However they will gain the ability to harm creatures that are otherwise insubstantial.

The Pants O' Mime

These cursed trousers render the wearer unable to talk. They may also cause them to become trapped in an invisible box, or to feel a magic wind pushing against them every time they try to walk.