Court of Judgment

I'll talk more about this later, but in our Changeling the Lost campaign, the
players have quested out to find a new fourth Court to balance those existing in
the campaign city of Wayward. The Court of Rust, Gardens and the Wolf have become
unbalanced and threatened by the return of the Winter seasonal Court. After a
number of stories, the PCs managed to attract the attention of the force of
Judgment who agree to put them to the test. They've completed those tests and have
not come home, bearing new mantles and three new contract sets (which they still
have to spend points on). Below I tlak about the mantle and one of the new
contracts, Weights and Measures (I wish I'd figured out a music reference for that
one...). Not that we use a homebrew system, so you'll find things written loosely
for our rules light version. I want to talk later about how were taking advantage
of this significant moment to make changes to the game system, adding Fate
elements.

MANTLES
Each Court has a Mantle, allowing members of that Court to demonstrate their
alliance and allow them access to the Contracts of that particular Court. A Courtly
Mantle represents a Changeling's dedication to both the temporal form of the Court
in the body of the Prince and the Courtiers as well as the metaphysical ideas and
ethos of that Court. Mantle is a purchased ranked advantage (5/5/10/15/20). Most
associate members of the Court do not possess a Mantle or else only possess a
single dot.

A mantle compliments the appearance of one's mien, adding certain elements

depending on the rank of the mantle. The mantles for both Gardens and Rust tend to
be more subtle than the showy ones of the Seasonal Courts. That means at the lower
ranks Changeling's may not notice the effects unless they're looking for them. At
Rank One, players should probably select what one sensory aspect or effect happens
with them. More aspects with greater potency will arise as the characters buy more
ranks.

Mechanically, mantles provide a couple of benefits. First, each mantle provides a

particular bonus, usually at Rank One. New effects and bonuses can come into play
at Rank Three and Rank Five. They also provide a prerequisite for the Contracts of
a particular Court. A character with a Mantle may purchase a set of Contracts up to
the rank equal to their Mantle+1. A character without a Mantle may only purchase
the first rank (unless they've bought Court Goodwill). Changeling's tend to respect
persons who have a significant mantle, indicating that person's dedication to the
Court's ideals. This can provide a social benefit, even among those of other
Courts. When a Changeling deals with other Courts and tries to bring the Mantle's
social standing to bear, this can force a subject to choose between accepting their
right to those good graces or causing an insult.

Note that if a Mantle or Court Goodwill is lost, then Contracts requiring those as
prerequisites cost an additional glamour to activate (which may not be reduced by
use of a Catch).

MANTLE OF THE COURT OF JUDGMENT

The Court's Mantle appears first as a slight haze, a kind of shadowy distortion
around the character. As the level of mantle increases, that haze beings to focus
and form into a set of Shadowy Judges robes. The color may vary among Changeling,
but they are unmistakable as that. They carry with them the sense of authority- not
necessarily of rulership, but of honest and impartial decisions.

At Rank One, the character may perform a quick Assessment action against a target.
If successful, beyond learning some of the target's aspects, they may invoke one of
those aspects for free on a following round. This aspect is fragile, and must be
used relatively quickly.

At Rank Three, the Court member may choose to freely add an aspect to a social
situation or scene with at least three people present. They may either add
“Merciful Feelings” or “Desire for Condemnation” to the scene. Only one of these
aspects may be in play at one time; Court members do not double up on these, but
can negate one anothers'. This aspect functions in all other respects as a scene
aspect.

At Rank Five, the Court member gains the ability to judge the sincerity of
Redemption. If a character has pledged themselves to something or has been given a
chance to apologize or ask for forgiveness, the Courtier can gain a sense of their
commitment at that moment. This ability cuts through kith abilities and Contracts
except for the highest levels. It requires a social pull. The GM may provide
additional information when the assessment is made, depending on the result of the
pull.