Self-sacrificing, devoted, fickle and meddling. The Genie is all about being a mess of contradictions: otherworldly and human, magic and mundane. They influence the world through reality-bending powers, but not for themselves. As the Genie, you are enslaved to your Master. The identity of your Master is never truly under your control. Your Master can be any character. This can mean that you may end up serving a character you deeply dislike. When this occurs, you are still beholden to serve them and their Wishes, although you may do everything you can to reinterpret and make assumptions in order to go in other, more palatable directions.
Genies are part of large, teeming and vibrant communities in another realm, and you are cut off from them until you come into your power by serving beings of of the mortal plane. This “gauntlet” that you have to run as a rite of passage among your people is called the Qarin. Not every genie undergoes a Qarin, but some are chosen for it as they enter adulthood, seemingly at random. The genie is then transported to the mortal world, where they assume a completely biologically human form with some magic powers. Eventually, they go back to the genie realm and become powerful mages and leaders.
Genies of myth are incredibly powerful, but you're one that's just got here (maybe had a few masters before, or maybe you're starting play with your first one), and your story is just beginning. You're powerful when it comes to granting wishes, but you have a lot to learn otherwise.
The Qarin
Three wishes for three days in service of three people, at the third hour of the final night a door with three locks will open, and home you will be.
When the genie gets a master, they will stay with them either for three days (to the minute) or three wishes, whichever comes first. Start play with a person of your choice as your Master (or choose randomly). Your next Master is the person who has the highest “Leverage total” (their amount of Leverage on you, plus your amount of Leverage on them), but only if the total is at least 3. If there is a tie, choose randomly. If nobody has a Leverage total of at least 3, then the GM chooses your new Master.
After you have completed your service to three people (either by granting the third wish or by timing out), the next time the clock strikes 3:00am, a door with three locks will appear to you. The three locks represent three choices that you now have:
- Be done with your Qarin and go home to the genie realm.
- Be done with your Qarin and become human.
- Keep your Qarin and serve another three masters.
Genie wishes have the following rules:
- You can’t wish for more wishes.
- You can’t wish for love.
- You can’t wish someone dead.
- You can’t wish the dead back to life.
- (You can't wish for anything sexual unless all involved players are okay with it and if the genie character would have been willing without the wish.)
- If you wish a genie free, you become a genie in their place (trade templates).
- You can serve a person more than once, but they never get more than three wishes total.
Types of Genies
There are four types of Genies: the Djinn, the Ifrit, the Shaitan, and the Marid. The personality traits below are not requirements, they are just cultural tendencies that may vary between individuals. As such, they are not even included in the template; it's for the players to decide how it manifests, if at all.
Djinns are creatures of wind and air. They tend to be logical, creative, and indecisive. Their opposing element is Earth.
Ifrits are creatures of smoke and fire. They tend to be impulsive, passionate, and loyal. Their opposing element is Water.
Shaitans are creatures of dust and rock. They tend to be intuitive, level-headed, and stubborn. Their opposing element is Air.
Marids are creatures of mist and water. They tend to be emotional, empathetic, and sensitive. Their opposing element is Fire.
Race: Genie. [3]
The following will appear on your character sheet when you select the template.
- You have access to Elemental Manipulation based on the type of genie that you are, and can choose any mental attribute to base your Elemental Manipulation gateway skill off of. You may only spend XP on this one element. You can also have Passive Magic relating to this element. You can use this element at will, whether it is for a wish or not. [1]
- In addition to your element, you can choose any Magical Aptitude except for Glamour, but you can only use it when it would help you grant a wish. If you choose Divine Magic, your inherent divinity is enough, you don't need to draw your magic from a higher power. Take +2 to your Gateway skill. [3]
- When someone spends a point of Leverage to call out to you, you can choose to roll versus Bravery to instantly go to them. After rolling, but before results are determined, you can spend any number of Leverage that you have on them to improve your roll (+1 per Leverage). On a critical fail, you have a mishap determined by the GM. On a fail, you don't manage to go anywhere. On a success, you appear at their side. On a critical success, you arrive and then take up to two seconds to assess the situation, and then you can immediately take them back to where you were. [1]
- When your Master makes a wish, they gain 3xp. When you grant the wish, gain 3xp and Leverage on your master. [1]
- You have a "Lamp" (which could be any appropriately-sized object of your choosing) that you call home. You, and only you, can go inside, where you have a simple bedroom. You can bring in and take out posessions, about what you can fit in a backpack. Your Master can summon you out of it by shaking it, cleaning it, or whatever makes sense for the item. If someone steals your "Lamp," they become your new master immediately. When you grant your third wish and change masters, the Lamp falls into the posession of your new one. You can never move or manipulate your own Lamp. Flavor Requirement: Describe your lamp, inside and out. [3]
- Your first language is Geniespeak. Whenever you get a new master, you also immediately gain their languages, at the same proficiencies they have. [0]
- You have an obligation to grant wishes. See race page in Kanka for more details. [-3]
- Whenever a roll would help you grant a wish, take +1 to your roll. [2]
- You nature is a big secret that should be kept, it could be bad for you if this information fell into the wrong hands. [-3]
- You have an incapacitating supernatural reaction to your opposing element. If you are exposed to it, you must immediately make a Pain Tolerance roll every minute. On a failure, your attributes all have a -5 penalty. Contact with the substance might also sting or burn you, weapons made of it might hurt you more, etc. Flavor Requirement: This definitely applies to elemental magic of the type that opposes yours, but how else does this effect you? [-4]
- Your True Name hits you at +3. The severity of your True Name is determined by your race, this feature can only be purchased as part of a racial template. [-2]
- You get -2 to Technology. [-4]
- You get -1 to Studies. [-2]
- You get +1 to Knowledge (Magic). [2]
- You get +2 to Body Language. [4]
- You get +2 to Elemental Manipulation. [4]