Scrying
From The Heretic Knowledge Vault
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Scrying | |
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Where used | |
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In general, a magical means for seeing at a distance. We don't know yet whether it's accomplished via spell or gadget, although a crystal ball is a classic scrying device, and definitely a gadget.
Description
Actually, we don't know that yet either. If it's a gadget, it probably resembles (in function if not form) a miniature, magic-powered webcam that beams images off to its operator. If it's a spell, presumably it's cast on some material object to give it a magical-gadget-like aura. As in some other cases (see e.g. Glyph), it may not make much difference whether the capability for scrying is innate to the gadget or something that's cast by a magic user.
Sarine, who has told us all we know about scrying so far, notes that the effect is wielded by "scryers" -- whether gadget or human is not clear, but probably the former -- and is used in conjunction with "bugs" (think microphones, not giant, paralyzing death hornets). In and of itself, scrying does not seem to confer audio to go along with the video. She also says that at least the sound, and probably the sight, can be recorded for future browsing.
Where Used
The only time it's been cited as a separate spell/gadget/effect so far is here, while Sarine, Jon and Sara are reluctant guests of the elves in the consulate in Praenubilus Astu. The elves obviously hope that the merry crew will spill something juicy regarding the "kidnapping" of Anilis by Ian Samael that the scryers and bugs pick up. That way they get their intell without resorting to either the distasteful business of speaking civilly to Sarine and the Amraphels ("speaking civilly" to humans not being a behavior that comes easily to most elves, from the look of things), or the messy (if not necessarily distasteful, at least from the elven perspective) expedient of extracting information from them via torture. Sarine, as usual, wants to play the interrogation her own way, and is looking for ways to defeat the scryers and bugs. Whether she's successful or not remains to be seen, but just to keep the gadgets busy, she certainly comes up with some entertaining and distracting banter. We should all give thanks for that; without it, we'd have been deprived of a sample of that masterpiece of Farrelian theater, "An Elf Princess in Farrel".
