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AI - Milind Tambe
Milind Tambe (1965–) is a pioneer in artificial intelligence research for social good.
Public health, education, safety and security, housing, and environmental protection are some of the frequent areas where AI is being used to solve societal issues.
Tambe has developed software that preserves endangered species in game reserves, social network algorithms that promote healthy eating habits, and applications that track social ills and community difficulties and provide suggestions to help people feel better.
Tambe was up in India, where the robot novels of Isaac Asimov and the first Star Trek series (1966–1969) inspired him to study about artificial intelligence.
Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science awarded him his PhD.
His first study focused on the creation of AI software for security.
After the 2006 Mumbai commuter train attacks, he got interested in the possibilities of artificial intelligence in this subject.
His doctoral research revealed important game theory insights into the nature of random encounters and collaboration.
Tambe's ARMOR program generates risk assessment scores by randomly scheduling human security patrols and police checkpoints.
Following random screening processes, Los Angeles Airport police uncovered a vehicle carrying five rifles, ten pistols, and a thousand rounds of ammunition in 2009.
Federal air marshals and port security patrols utilize more latest versions of the program to arrange their flights.
Today, Tambe's group uses deep learning algorithms to aid wildlife conservation agents in distinguishing between poachers and animals captured by infrared cameras on unmanned drone aircraft in real time.
Within three-tenths of a second of their arrival near animals, the Systematic Poacher Detector (SPOT) can identify poachers.
SPOT was tested in Zimbabwe and Malawi park reserves before being deployed in Botswana.
PAWS, a successor technology that predicts poacher activities, has been implemented in Cambodia and might be used in more than 50 nations across the globe in the future years.
Tambe's algorithms can simulate population migrations and epidemic illness propagation in order to improve the efficacy of public health campaigns.
Several nonobvious patterns have been discovered by the algorithm, which will help to enhance illness management.
Tambe's team created a third algorithm to assist drug misuse counselors in dividing addiction rehabilitation groups into smaller subgroups where healthy social ties may flourish.
Climate change, gang violence, HIV awareness, and counterterrorism are among the other AI-based answers.
Tambe is the Helen N. and Emmett H. Jones Professor of Engineering at the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering (USC).
He is the cofounder and codirector of USC's Center for Artificial Intelligence in Society, and he has received several awards, including the John McCarthy Award and the Daniel H. Wagner Prize for Excellence in Operations Research Practice.
Both the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) and the Association for Computing Machinery have named him a Fellow (ACM).
Tambe is the cofounder and director of research of Avata Intelligence, a company that sells artificial intelligence management software to help companies with data analysis and decision-making.
LAX, the US Coast Guard, the Transportation Security Administration, and the Federal Air Marshals Service all employ his methods.
Predictive Policing.
Paruchuri, Praveen, Jonathan P. Pearce, Milind Tambe, Fernando Ordonez, and Sarit Kraus. 2008. Keep the Adversary Guessing: Agent Security by Policy Randomization. Riga, Latvia: VDM Verlag Dr. Müller.
Tambe, Milind. 2012. Security and Game Theory: Algorithms, Deployed Systems, Lessons Learned. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Tambe, Milind, and Eric Rice. 2018. Artificial Intelligence and Social Work. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Labels: Milind Tambe, Predictive Policing


The CT Ambassadors from UnlockingConnecticut.com are at it again! Here's their take on Connecticut's most amazing french fry spots.
"Yummy (and unique) fries in Connecticut" could well be the best idea we've ever had for an article. As we now consider ourselves "french fry sommeliers," let us present to you, 7 french fry dishes in Connecticut worth the journey!
Whoever came up with the idea to combine chicken tikka masala, french fries, and freshly shredded mozzarella deserves a huge award. It's the Indian version of poutine, and it works. Oh, does it work! House of Naan serves up modern Indian cuisine and marvelous sounding crafted cocktails using house-made Indian syrups — which may just have sparked the idea for our next blog post. Photo: House of Naan.
Where the french fries tour-idea was hatched. Fife 'n Drum's hand-cut sweet potato fries with curry ketchup is sweet, salty, tangy, and ridiculously delicious. Or, you might choose their regular hand-cut fries with truffle salt and lemon aioli. Either way, enjoy one of the coziest restaurants in Connecticut while you feast.
Fryborg is a destination restaurant for the serious french fry lover. This restaurant (with seating for just a few) specializes in hand-cut, double-fried french fries served with interesting dipping sauces and toppings. We went with the Assimilation Fries, which are topped with a fried egg, scratch cheese sauce, house-made Thousand Island, raw onion, and a side of date bacon & apple mayo for good measure! There's even a Fryborg food truck for events. Swoon!
Ladies and gentlemen, the "3 AM at the Diner Fries." Little Pub feels that the building blocks of life consist of french fries, bacon, cheese, and gravy, and we couldn't agree more. They created them to evoke the same feeling you get when eating french fries topped with melted cheese and chopped bacon covered in gravy at 3 AM, which if you've ever had the chance to do so is 100% awesome. We went to the Ridgefield outpost, but there are Little Pubs in Wilton, Fairfield, Greenwich and Old Saybrook too!
For those who like straight lines and order in their life, John's Café's chickpea fries. Besides being neat and tidy, these fries are crispy, dense, and delicious! We love the amount of surface area there is to dip (or smother) them in John's Café's special hot cherry pepper "Ketchup," or garlic mayo. We thought about ordering a second round so we could play a game of Jenga, but decided to leave room for a house-made dessert. Gluten-free friends, eat up!
We can't resist the Manchego-bacon hand-cut fries at The Cue. These are substantial fries; crisp on the outside, creamy on the inside, and perfect for soaking up the cheese pool at the bottom of the cast iron serving dish. The Cue offers upscale BBQ and brings a wood-fired, smoky element to most of their dishes, including the bacon on these fries. If only there was scratch + sniff internet.
There's nothing yucca about Zaragoza yucca fries, especially when dipped in paprika aioli and paired with a handcrafted cocktail. These South American root vegetable fries are crunchy, chewy, and almost cheesy. Yum to the yucca! This modern tapas restaurant has a fantastic menu of small bites to choose from and we're frequent visitors whenever we're in the hood!


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Facts About Monster Energy Drinks
Side Effects of Combining Ephedra & Alcohol
The Calories in Skyy Vodka
Harmful Effects of the Cocaine Energy Drink
Information on the NOS Energy Drink
What does fact checked mean?
At Healthfully, we strive to deliver objective content that is accurate and up-to-date. Our team periodically reviews articles in order to ensure content quality. The sources cited below consist of evidence from peer-reviewed journals, prominent medical organizations, academic associations, and government data.
MedlinePlus.com: Caffeine in the Diet
Austrailian Family Physician: Combining Energy Drinks and Alcohol -- A Recipe For Trouble
The information contained on this site is for informational purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for the advice of a professional health care provider. Please check with the appropriate physician regarding health questions and concerns. Although we strive to deliver accurate and up-to-date information, no guarantee to that effect is made.
The Disadvantages of Drinking Energy Drinks
Written by Sara Ipatenco
Energy drinks are marketed with the claim that they will boost your energy. Different energy drinks contain different ingredients and these are the primary disadvantage of these beverages. While certain brands of energy drinks may in fact provide you with a boost of energy, knowing the drawbacks and dangers of these beverages may have you seeking out an alternative way to energize yourself 2.
The majority of energy drinks contain sugar, which is one of the most popular ingredients used to boost your energy. These energy drinks may provide a short burst of energy, but it does not last very long. Regularly consuming energy drinks may cause you to drink an unhealthy amount of sugar as well. "The New York Times" adds that children can purchase certain brands of energy drinks, which may cause them to consume unhealthy amounts of sugar also 2. Consuming too much sugar can lead to unhealthy weight gain.
The majority of energy drinks contain sugar, which is one of the most popular ingredients used to boost your energy.
The New York Times" adds that children can purchase certain brands of energy drinks, which may cause them to consume unhealthy amounts of sugar also 2.
Another popular ingredient in energy drinks is caffeine because it can give you a burst of energy. John Hopkins Medicine reports that energy drinks can contain a staggering amount of caffeine, some with as much as 14 cans of soda 3. The caffeine content is not always listed on the ingredient label so you may end up consuming far more than you thought. Too much caffeine on a regular basis can cause:
increased blood pressure
MedlinePlus.com notes 1
Another popular ingredient in energy drinks is caffeine because it can give you a burst of energy.
The caffeine content is not always listed on the ingredient label so you may end up consuming far more than you thought.
Certain energy drinks contain alcohol, and all energy drinks can be combined with alcohol 4. If you consume an energy drink during the workday, drinking one with alcohol can decrease your productivity and may pose more serious dangers if you drive or work with tools and machinery. A review in the March 2011 issue of "Australian Family Physician" notes that drinking energy drinks with alcohol may slow down the feeling of intoxication, which can lead to heavier drinking and may increase your risk of alcohol-related injuries 4. Energy drinks with alcohol are a particular concern for children who may be able to purchase them even if they are under age, "The New York Times" reports 2.
Many brands of energy drinks include vitamins and herbs that are believed to help increase your energy level. Most of these are regulated and are considered safe for human consumption. The problem, notes Dr. Manny Alvarez, a medical correspondent with Fox News, is that the effects of mixing herbs and vitamins with caffeine is unknown. The Food and Drug Administration does not require caffeine content to be listed on the labels, so you may be consuming more than is considered safe with the other ingredients.
Many brands of energy drinks include vitamins and herbs that are believed to help increase your energy level.
The Food and Drug Administration does not require caffeine content to be listed on the labels, so you may be consuming more than is considered safe with the other ingredients.
Consequences of Drinking Too Much Beer
Emotional Effects on Children When Seeing Their Parents Drink Alcohol
Congestive Heart Failure & Caffeine
Can You Drink Alcohol While Taking the Alli Diet Pill?
Are Herbal Cigarettes Dangerous?
The New York Times: Scientists See Dangers in Energy Drinks
Johns Hopkins Medicine: Caffeine Experts at Johns Hopkins Call for Warning Labels for Energy Drinks
Higgins JP, Tuttle TD, Higgins CL. Energy Beverages: Content and Safety. Mayo Clin Proc. 2010;85(11):1033-1041. doi:10.4065/mcp.2010.0381
Seifert SM, Schaechter JL, Hershorin ER, Lipshultz SE. Health Effects of Energy Drinks on Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults. Pediatrics. 2011;127(3):511-528. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-3592
Terry-McElrath YM, O'Malley PM, Johnston LD. Energy Drinks, Soft Drinks, and Substance Use Among United States Secondary School Students. J Addict Med. 2014;8(1):6-13. doi:10.1097/01.ADM.0000435322.07020.53
Alsunni AA. Energy Drink Consumption: Beneficial and Adverse Health Effects. Int J Health Sci. 2015;9(4):468-474.
Vo K, Neafsey PJ, Lin CA. Concurrent use of amphetamine stimulants and antidepressants by undergraduate students. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2015;9:161-172. doi:10.2147/PPA.S7460210.2147/PPA.S74602
Bruckauf Z, Walsh SD. Adolescents' multiple and individual risk behaviors: examining the link with excessive sugar consumption across 26 industrialized countries. Soc Sci Med. 2018;216:133-141. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2018.08.029
Benton D. The plausibility of sugar addiction and its role in obesity and eating disorders. Clin Nutr. 2010;29(3):288-303. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2009.12.001
Sara Ipatenco has taught writing, health and nutrition. She started writing in 2007 and has been published in Teaching Tolerance magazine. Ipatenco holds a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in education, both from the University of Denver.

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2019 Golden Mic Awards: Vote Now for Best New Live Act
Bobby Moore Published: April 23, 2019
Alyssa Gafkjen / Cameron Powell / Jessica Steddom
In 2018, The Boot introduced the Golden Mic Awards, and in 2019, the reader-voted digital awards series is returning for another year! Recognizing the best in live country and Americana music, The Boot's Golden Mic Awards feature nine categories of staff-selected nominees who rule the stage.
This week (April 22-26), The Boot will reveal 2019's Golden Mic Awards categories ... and then, it will be up to you, our readers, to crown the winners. After each Golden Mic Awards category is revealed, readers will be able to vote for their preferred winner in each category as often as once per hour through 11:59PM ET on May 22. We'll announce the winners on the site the next day, May 23.
Country music's live presence in towns across the nation often gets dominated by veterans, from seasoned entertainers' arena shows to legends' last runs through the state fair circuit. But don't sleep on new acts, whether they're those seasoned performers' opening acts or the headliners at quaint venues. For examples of young stars making an impact with some of their earliest trips around horn, consider these 10 nominees for Best New Live Act in the 2019 Golden Mic Awards.
National Anthem-singing, Elvis Presley-loving performer Abby Anderson sounds primed for bigger things, both onstage with the likes of summertime tourmate Rob Thomas and in the studio, where she's prepped more new music to go along with her recent single "Good Lord." Pop lyricist-turned-country performer Ingrid Andress, meanwhile, is one of the long line of artists -- from Willie Nelson and Mel Tillis to Jamey Johnson and Brandy Clark -- who started out as songwriters.
UK-born singer, songwriter and musician Jade Bird suddenly finds herself as a sought-after opening act for Americana tastemakers on both sides of the Atlantic. In the more traditional country realm, Dillon Carmichael is blazing his own trail as a honky-tonk and Southern rock-inspired live performer, despite hailing from the famous family of uncles John Michael and Eddie Montgomery.
It's downright outrageous that Song Suffragettes member, top-flight live performer and "Fight Like a Girl" singer Kalie Shorr remains unsigned. Nonetheless, she's caught our eyes and landed a spot in this 2019 Golden Mic Awards category.
Riser House / Columbia Nashville signee Mitchell Tenpenny proves himself to be one of the new faces and voices of hip-hop- and R&B-inspired country music with every new single and opportunity as a live performer. Fellow Columbia Nashville signee Tenille Townes entered the American country music fray in 2018, as the opening act on Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town's Bandwagon Tour, after sharpening her talents as one of her home country of Canada's brightest young stars.
From the opposite side of North America, a fresh face among Texas troubadours, Joshua Ray Walker, wins over live audiences with his story-driven songs, inhabited by vivid characters and livened up by biting one-liners. Dee White, meanwhile, the newest name in a consistently solid parade of young singer-songwriters, raised on country radio and enamored with the timeless voice of Roy Orbison and other '60s superstars.
UK-born, Dan Auerbach-approved singer Yola is hardly new: She first made a mark in Americana as the lead singer of the rootsy ensemble Phantom Limbs, and her first solo EP arrived in 2016. Still, this is clearly the singer's breakout year as a recording artist and live performer.
Who should win Best New Live Act in the 2019 Golden Mic Awards? Cast your vote below!
NEXT: Vote for Best Club Act in the 2019 Golden Mic Awards
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Filed Under: abby anderson, dee white, Dillon Carmichael, Editor's Picks, Ingrid Andress, jade bird, joshua ray walker, Kalie Shorr, mitchell tenpenny, tenille Townes, Yola
Categories: Country News, Exclusives, Golden Mic Awards, Poll
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35 Years Ago: Randy Travis' 'Always & Forever' Goes Double Platinum


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Changeling: The Lost
Main ● Lost ● Changeling: The Lost ● Changeling: The Lost
A Storytelling Game of Beautiful Madness
Changeling: The Lost is the fifth supplementary role-playing game line set in the new World of Darkness. It is published by White Wolf and it uses the Storytelling System for rules. Changeling is the second limited game published by White Wolf after Promethean: The Created, but in April 2008 it was announced that because of the success of the line it would be an extended limited series not limited to 5 books. Since then, three hardcover books were released. A PDF-only sourcebook, Goblin Markets, rounded out the line in the Fall of 2009. There are no plans for future official releases, but all Changeling titles remain in print and material may be included in other World of Darkness supplements.
The game is primarily inspired by tales of changelings from European folklore, but includes elements of similar stories from around the world. While superficially similar to the original World of Darkness game Changeling: The Dreaming, Changeling: The Lost approaches the legends from a more traditional perspective of mortals kidnapped by Fae, and eschews the heavily-reviled past life angle that characterized its predecessor.
1 Game Overview
1.1 Setting
1.1.1 Seasonal Courts
1.1.2 Directional Courts
1.1.3 Transitional Courts
2.1 Seemings
2.2 Entitlements
3 Mechanics
3.1 Mask
3.2 Wyrd
3.3 Pledges
3.4 Oneiromancy
3.5 Glamour
3.6 Contracts
The prevailing mood for a Changeling game is bittersweet. While the game works to enmesh itself within the horror genre, it does so in a way that recognises the deeply moving beauty that often accompanies faerie tales. The game does this through contrast, demonstrating juxtapositioning of dreams and nightmare, of wonder and terror. While much of what the changelings were all about has been ripped away, this is placed in context of a hard won freedom and struggles worth fighting for.
The game is set in the World of Darkness, a fictional analogue to the Reality|real world, but is a darker depiction thereof. Not only is the world cast in a more violent, malevolent and horrific manner, but humanity unknowingly coexist with legendary monsters and the supernatural. The "Changelings" of the title are ordinary human beings who were kidnapped by the fairy|Fae and taken to serve a durance of slavery in Alfheimr|Faerie (alternately known as Arcadia. The player characters represent changelings who have escaped their otherworldly captors and through the netherworld that separates Faerie from Earth, known as the Hedge. The game focuses on the experiences of these changelings, the self-titled Lost, as they re-discover the world of their birth, try to cope with the changes they have undergone, and seek to evade recapture.
Changelings refer to themselves as "the Lost": they were kidnapped by the immortal Fae, taken to an alien realm, and held prisoner. While trapped in Faerie (referred to as their "Durance"), they were forced to serve their otherworldly masters and endure servitude ranging from menial labour to torture. In being dragged through the Hedge to Faerie, some essential piece of their humanity was torn away by the thorns of the Hedge, and over the course of their Durance, they are forced to forge compacts with the realm that triggers a change in their physical and metaphysical nature to survive under the twisted laws underpinning Faerie.
Many escape only to find that in their place has been left a Fetch, faerie simulacrum forged from leaves, twigs, and other debris, and that their experience of the passage of time may be greatly different from the passage of time on Earth since their theft. While some will seek to kill and replace the Fetch in hopes of reclaiming their lives, many more discover that either the world or their selves have altered far too much to resume where they left off.
In turn, many of the escaped turn to others of their kind, establishing political havens and refuges amongst the enclaves of humanity. Partly to provide mutual protection against external and internal threats, partly to provide a support network of fellow survivors of Faerie that they can identify with, and partly to hold society and court in the absence of true integration with humanity. For even under the best possible circumstances, the Lost are no longer fully human, and having been exposed to the wonders and horrors of Faerie, they cannot subsume themselves within the bliss of ignorance.
While it is possible for a story to exist without the backdrop of a changeling society, the customary society model for most cities containing changelings is that of the freehold, a collection of changelings who are declared liberated from Faerie rule. Changeling society represents aspects of both human society and the nature of faerie accords. As changelings are creatures bound to an imperceptible flow of fate known as the Wyrd, they can forge with each other verbal pledges that are mystically binding. This is itself a reflection of Faerie, where the entire fabric of its reality functions by a process of conceptual contracts and interrelation. In this manner, changelings use the art of pledge crafting as the basis for building trust amongst themselves, and social decorum, so verbal pledges and codes of etiquette serve in stead of formal written laws as in human society.
While the freehold contains many of the trappings of feudal society, such as fealty, a court system, codes of etiquette, patronage and peerage, the functional model is unique to changelings. Rulership is a shared function, in that rulership is expected to cycle through a number of holders on a reasonably equal basis as accorded to the power of the various courts of a freehold. This division of power is held by the various courts, with each court representing one section of a group of natural phenomena. As well, each Court has a specific plan for resisting and turning away the True Fae.
Seasonal Courts
The Seasonal Courts, which are said to be predominant to Europe and North America, include:
Spring Court: The Emerald Court, affiliated with the emotion of Desire and the aspect of New Growth and Rejuvenation; revel in delight and pure joy to turn away the True Fae.
Summer Court: The Crimson Court, affiliated with the emotion of Wrath and the aspects of Heat and the Sun; seek to destroy the True Fae who come to earth with military might.
Autumn Court: The Ashen Court, affiliated with the emotion of Fear and the aspects of the Harvest and Decay; use stolen Faerie Magic (Contracts, Tokens, Oneiromancy, and Pledges) against their creators.
Winter Court: The Onyx Court, affiliated with the emotion of Sorrow and the aspect of Cold; attempt to go "underground" and avoid the attentions of the True Fae.
Directional Courts
Other courts are introduced in later supplements, that are designed to represent the political dynamics in the Orient (Directional Courts) and Slavic regions (Sun and Moon Courts):
North Court: The Armor Court, affiliated with Suffering/Detachment and the Black Tortoise; practice detachment and ascetic hermetism to appear more undesirable to the Fae.
East Court: The Serpent Court, affiliated with Greed/Envy and the Azure Dragon; dive back into the human world and attempt to gain power among mortals.
South Court: The Vermilion Court, affiliated with Passion/Ecstasy and the Vermilion Bird; find strength by connecting to mortal emotions on an intimate level.
West Court: The White Tiger Court, affiliated with Honor/War and the White Tiger; use military might to turn back the True Fae, as well as attempting to eliminate faerie behavior as much as possible.
Transitional Courts
Sun Court: The Court of the Day, affiliated with Shame and Righteousness; drawing power from virtuous acts the True Fae cannot comprehend.
Moon Court: The Court of the Night, affiliated with Disgust and Wickedness; embracing their fae nature to become less human and thus appear undesirable.
Dusk Court: The Umbral Court, accepting the fact the they are all doomed and must make the fullest of the time left. Accepting of their doomed fate, but not going down without a fight. They thrive on Fatalism.
Dawn Court: The Auroral Court; anticipate change and see the good that comes from it even though everything seems lost. Creators of their own destinies and a better future. They thrive on Hope.
While a large number of faerie creatures are presented in the setting, the protagonists of the story are the changelings. As changelings were once humans transformed into something part faerie, the character's own lives become vehicles for exploration of the nature of the fae. As changelings are all victims of kidnapping, slavery, and various forms of abuse, they inevitably are confronted with themes of mental and emotional torment. The fact that most changelings are dealing with some form of alienation and dehumanisation has allowed the society to develop a high tolerance for eccentricity and understanding for individual distress.
Beyond that, changelings' behaviour and nature are somewhat altered to be more in line with that of their former Keepers. In many situations, changelings begin to manifest the traits of the fae that make them so terrifyingly inhuman: their cruel beauty, their capricious nature, their inscrutable laws, and their inability to empathise with humanity. Over all, both changeling's individual and social behaviour can be thought of as reflecting the tenets of faerie tales and legend.
The changeling's Durance brings about a physical transformation, each one shaped differently by his or her personal experiences in Faerie. As a result Changeling: The Lost features a more nuanced and detailed character-creation system than the other World of Darkness games. Some Changelings exhibit inhuman beauty, while others exhibit atavism, and the general motifs of physical change determined by the function or role in Faerie are called Seemings, which can be further defined by a specific Kith.
Changelings are those faerie-stolen humans who have managed to escape their unearthly masters, break through the barrier between worlds, and return to the world of their birth. The world of the Others is a strange and uncanny place however, and the simple act of living there changes human beings in ways they could never imagine. These changes are what make up the fae mien, or Seeming, of the Lost. They are reflections of who each changeling is and what they have been through; ultimately, they are what separates the Lost from other human beings, and even from one another. They are still the same person they were when the Fae took them, and yet they are not; they are still human, and yet they are Fae; they are all changelings, and yet they are as different from each other as they are from humans and Others. Their bodies and souls reflect these realities and, as such, Seemings provide benefits to Changelings, but also impose penalties.
The changes which transform a normal human into a Changeling can come as a result of the duties the Lost performed for their Fae masters, or as a result of the environments they were exposed to; most often, they come from the Fae who stole them. Still other changes can come from the escape itself, as the Changelings fight their way through the Thorns back into the world of mortal men and women. Whatever the circumstances, in the end, no-one escapes unscathed.
Seemings
Beast: Beasts would have spent her time in Faerie with the mind (and sometimes the form) of an animal. There is no real consciousness of the past in this state, only the eternal vivid present. Because of that, a Beast's memories of his time with his Keeper are fragmentary and blurred, snatches of vivid colors, a vibrant swirl of hunger, pain, fear, violence and sex.
Darkling: Darkling's memories of their time in Faerie are awash with shadowy fears. Vague, hulking forces loomed from the corner of the room. Small skittering things crawled across faces or became momentarily tangled in hair before dissolving. Wet, slithering things moved around in the background. Trapdoors and boarded windows with something behind them figure heavily in dreams of Faerie. Being sent on errands with no point, being forced to copy ancient codices of lore that made no sense while outside things shrieked and fluttered, being made to enter a cellar and being eaten, over and over again, being lost in mazes: all of these things feature heavily in Darkling dreams of Faerie. The dark places of the human world don't remotely compare.
Elemental: While most other Lost became the way they did through simply living in a Faerie's home and eating Faerie food and doing Faerie work, the Elementals were often deliberately changed, transformed into slaves of some kind or another, or features of the land until one day, they awoke to themselves and realized they had to escape. Their memories of Faerie are often difficult to understand. Some know that once, they understood what it was to be a tree, or a stone or a mound of earth. Some remember being lost to enchantment, becoming a clockwork doll or a lover made of ice. Others recall being lost in an environment now alien to them: perhaps the changeling served as a manservant in a flying city of glass or a blazing city made all of brass.
Fairest: The Fairest find that the memories of their time in Faerie are brief, fragmentary. The Fairest have dreams of self-annihilating ecstasy, of perfect pleasure, intercut with moments of horror and fear. Romantic interludes segue into hellish agonies. A bed covered with radiant blossoms is suddenly drenched in blood, the flowers becoming hooks and chains that rend and tear. The perfect body, only glimpsed in fragments, becomes as cold as crushing stone. Threads of fragrant hair that cover the dreamer's face become strands of razor-sharp wire that slice his face away.
Ogre: Ogres' memories of their time in Faerie are often clearer than those of other changelings. Kidnapped by monsters, the Ogres became monsters. Some were forced to subsist on raw flesh. Some were chained to the hearth and forced to cook for awful masters. Some scrubbed floors until their knees grew scales. Some were made to fight. Some were chained up in dungeons and fattened up for the pot. All were abused in some way, and Ogres sometimes have flashbacks of verbal and physical abuse, brief painful moments where they relive in their heads the impact of a fist or foot, or the sting of a verbal barb.
Wizened: The Wizened bring back disjointed memories of random cruelties, of being the butt of tricks and experiments that seemed hilarious to the Fae, even if they couldn't appeal to any human sense of humor. Many Wizened dimly recall trying to escape over and over again, each time being outwitted by their spiteful captors, perhaps at times being allowed to think they had escaped before the fact that they were in Faerie all along was revealed.
Main article: Entitlements
Beyond that, changelings can elect to join one of the Courts and/or Entitlements, which serve as societies of aristocratic standing or as secret orders, each bestowing privileges.
Main article: Mask
All things faerie, including changelings, are veiled so that they appear mundane to normal human senses. Only the fae have any natural facility at penetrating the Mask to see the truth beneath, but the act of ensorcelling can grant a human being this power, usually temporarily. In addition, certain humans are "eternally ensorcelled", being able to see faerie beings without the need for a pledge or Contract, this power being granted either due to events such as head trauma or being faced with evidence of Faerie so unavoidable that a normal mortal's mind cannot help but accept it.
Main article: Wyrd
A changeling's Wyrd represents their affinity with the power of Faerie. The greater a changeling's Wyrd the stronger their mystical prowess and their fae nature is. All changelings start with a Wyrd score of 1, though experience points can be spent to increase it. Low-Wyrd changelings may appear almost human, while high-Wyrd changelings are closer in nature to the True Fae. A high Wyrd score also brings Frailties.
Frailties
Frailties are limits imposed on changelings and other fae creatures by the Wyrd to compensate for their powers over reality. Frailties come in the form of Taboos, which either prohibit or compel certain behaviors, and Banes, which are things that automatically injure a changeling who is exposed to them. Frailties can be major or minor: minor frailities are either uncommon or very specific issues (such as a bane of toad spittle, or a taboo that requires one to not wear blue) that are easily avoided in everyday life, whereas major frailities are more common or more general (a bane of salt, or a taboo that forces one to offer hospitality to any person that recites one's name), and therefore more difficult to avoid.
Main article: Pledge
Changelings can swear upon the Wyrd to mystically bind and enforce verbal and written accords and vows with each other. These pledges can grant changelings advantages in the form of boons, and inflict punishments against those who would break them.
Oneiromancy
Main article: Oneiromancy
The realm of Faerie is partly forged of the substance of dreams, and this fact grants the Fae a special mastery over dreams and dreaming. Changelings, too, have a lesser mastery over dreams, being able to walk in them, shape them, reap Glamour from them and a number of other abilities.
Main article: Glamour
This is a mystical energy that all faerie creatures use to fuel the terrible wonders of Faerie. Within the game, changelings use it to fuel a number of abilities and powers. For a changeling to replenish their spent stores, they must harvest it from a number of available sources, which includes human emotions.
Cold Iron
Iron that is relatively pure and unworked by machine is repellent to the creatures of Faerie. It has a natural ability to destroy enchantment, and inflict grievously supernatural wounds to the Fae themselves.
The Hedge
The Hedge represents a vast, seemingly intelligent or partially intelligent ecosystem that forms a boundary between Faerie and Earth. Changelings have the innate ability to enter, access and explore the Hedge. It is home to "hobgoblins": beings, sometimes sapient and sometimes not, who deal with changelings on a fairly regular basis and may represent varying degrees of threat.
Main article: Contracts
An inherent ability of the True Fae is the power to forge covenants with concepts or natural mechanisms (such as summer, the wind or fear), and be lent some power related to the subject of the covenant. Changelings have a lesser ability to learn and exploit these agreements, allowing them to call upon such powers to a more limited extent. A number of contracts are naturally available to all changelings, while some show an affinity only with certain seemings or certain courts.
The Lost have many problems to deal with, the most prominent being the Gentry, or True Fae. Other problems include their fetches, Hobgoblins, Enchanted Mortals, Mad Changelings, and the various other beings within the World of Darkness Cosmology.
Autumn Nightmares
Changeling The Lost Sourcebook
Dancers in the Dusk
Equinox Road
Goblin Markets
Night Horrors Grim Fears
Swords at Dawn
Victorian Lost
Winter Masques
Beast • Darkling • Elemental • Fairest • Ogre • Wizened
Autumn • Courtless • Spring • Summer • Winter
Changeling Portal • Who's Who • Changeling: The Lost • Seemings • Kiths • House Rules • Errata • Scenes
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Category: Changeling: The Lost
This page was last modified on 15 April 2016, at 18:53.