Little question about Vaishyen and changing bodies...

[Deckard]

Hello. Me and my players are going to start new campaign in BE, but before that i want to ask about one thing.

One of my FoNs, which i`ve created is a little mad scientist, who want to create some human clones for local merchant league, military junta, and (of course) for his own plans. He is on a vaylen side, what is more - he is from Vaishyen cast. And here`s my little question - can i pick up for him lifepath from Vaylen Setting without changing body? I`m confused, because i always think, that Vaylen Setting is only for vaylen in human bodies. On the other hand - if VS is a way for spying empires, what is wrong with sending humanoid Vaishyen on ignorant, or indifferent (toward Vaylen) worlds? In book i have found few minds about changing bodies, but it`s only about changing among Ksatriyen, Vaishyen and Shudren caste, and about walking from Human caste to Vaylen setting. Nothing about Vayishen caste--->Vaylen setting.

Thanks for quick help (we are starting on Thursday at 5 pm GMT), and big sorry for my siberian english (i`m a speaker of secret language too ;) ).

[Sydney Freedberg]

Vaylen Setting is Vaylen in human bodies, living "under cover" as infiltrators within human society. Human Caste, confusingly, is Vaylen in human bodies living amongst other Vaylen in a Vaylen society.

Vaishyen are described in the book as utterly inhuman; there's no way that you could mistake one of them -- or a Ksatriyen, or a Shudren -- for a human being. And there are no non-human intelligent races besides Kerrn and Mukhadish for a non-human Vaylen to pretend to be.

Now, if your world is sufficiently Ignorant, you could conceivably have the population not know what Vaishyen look like and imagine they're some new kind of weirdo alien species. So you could have a Vaishyen wandering about amongst the humans shaking hands and waving antenna and chittering his mandibles happily. But that still wouldn't count as Human Setting, because your Vaishyen is still not an infiltrator -- he's not pretending to be human and getting everyone to believe he really is human, which is what all the skillsets and lifepaths in the Human Setting are about.

[luke]

Hi Deckard! How's Siberia? ;)

Sydney's got the answers.

[Deckard]

because your Vaishyen is still not an infiltrator -- he's not pretending to be human and getting everyone to believe he really is human, which is what all the skillsets and lifepaths in the Human Setting are about.
Good point, damn` - You have got a gift to convince other people :D Thanks!

Hi Deckard! How's Siberia?
Hello! According to my callendar we`ve got here late winter, but (probably for the first time since i`ve remember) thermometer on outside show 22 celsius degrees (crap - i don`t know Fahrenheit scale). Spring came to Poland almost two weeks ago :)


OK - I`ve got last question about Character Burning. Can i create Kerrn/Vaylen character, who was hulled "before the game"? I read about Shudren caste and using by them Mukhadish and Kerrn (long time ago ;) ) species/bodies. But after i read the rules i have got opinnion, that on beginning campaign all Kerrn-character should be clean. How is this thing working?

[Sydney Freedberg]

Mukhadish bodies are available to Vaylen of the Shudren caste, or who have taken Shudren lifepaths in the past (see p. 191-192). But Mukhadish lifepaths, as I understand it, are available only to unhulled Mukhadish: Those paths represent what Muks do naturally, left to themselves, whereas a Muk being ridden by a Vaylen is following Shudren lifepaths.

I don't believe it's possible to create a Kerrn who was hulled at start of play: Kerrn bodies aren't an option in the Vaylen bodies list (p. 190-192) and the Kerrn chapter is all about free Kerrn. You can still try to hull a Kerrn in play, but given their natural resistance, it's iffy.