From: Tome of Gentle Unburdening
A subtle divination that reveals the outcome the caster subconsciously expects. It does not tell the future; rather, it shows the direction the caster has already chosen deep within. A flicker of light or soft symbol appears on a surface only the caster can see.
Often used when a character fears their own decision.
Lore
Trust the Path 508 is whispered to originate from the very first souls who awoke confused and barefoot on the world of Saṃsāra, unsure why they lived again. They feared every decision — where to step, whom to trust, which memory from another life was safe to believe. Early mystics discovered that destiny often hides inside the fears we avoid: the choice already made somewhere under the ribs. They crafted this spell not to demand answers from the cosmos, but to quiet the noise long enough to hear the truth already beating in one’s own breath.
The spell is not prophecy. It reveals no fate determined by gods or gears of the universe. It simply illuminates the path the caster themselves has chosen inwardly — the step they believe is right, whether or not they can admit it.
Because of this, its use is considered an act of courage.
Cowards ask for certainty.
The brave ask to trust themselves.
Use
• The caster enters a momentary trance, breathing slow
• Their Mind’s Eye focuses, filtering away fear and wishful lies
• A faint mark, glyph, or flicker appears on a nearby surface (wall, floor, weapon, water) visible only to the caster
• The mark points, highlights, or otherwise suggests the direction their inner will has committed to
• The result does not argue — it simply is
Outcome examples:
• Glow on the left-hand tunnel wall → the caster truly wants to go left
• Brief symbol on a friend’s shoulder → the caster’s heart favors trust
• Candle flicker toward a sealed door → the caster expects something important there
If the caster ignores what they see, they may suffer doubt penalties later — resisting oneself is costly.
Tier-Related Assignment
Tier: 1 spell (can be learned early, grows in meaning as the character grows)
Stats
Perception +1 (internal clarity)
Willpower +1 (resisting self-deception)
Skills
Insight +2 when evaluating choices during the spell
Divination +2 for interpreting the path-mark
Self-Reflection +1 afterward, while staying aligned with the choice
Cost
Mana Cost: 2 mana or equivalent daily magical resource
Once per day due to cognitive strain
Exhausting to cast while panicked
Requirements
• Requires a moment of pause and a steady breath
• Caster must genuinely face a decision they fear
• Requires minor ritual focus (hand over sternum)
Tags: Divination, Self-Insight, Emotional-Magic, Decision-Guidance, Vision-Magic, Inner-Truth, Single-Use-Daily, Mind’s-Eye-Focus, Fate-Sympathy, Psychological-Divination, Doubt-Breaker, Guidance-Glyph, Intuitive-Pathing, Destiny-Alignment
Roleplay & Tactics
This spell is not about power over the world — it is power against one’s own paralysis.
Narrative uses:
• A character must decide whether to spare an enemy
• Pressure mounts in negotiations and instinct matters
• The path ahead splits and both choices look disastrous
• An ally doubts their loyalty — this reveals who they already are
Combat uses:
• Choosing a target when hesitation could kill
• Deciding whether to flee or stand firm
• Trusting a risky maneuver the caster internally believes in
Social uses:
• Aligns speech with true intent — lying to oneself becomes harder
• Reveals which ally the caster instinctively relies on
Stealth / exploration uses:
• When clues conflict, it reveals which clue the caster has already judged correct
• Helps avoid analysis paralysis in labyrinths and ruins
Consequences of misuse:
• Ignoring the revealed path may impose disadvantage or penalties to morale or confidence the next time a decision arises
• Over-reliance can weaken self-trust instead of strengthening it
Insightful tactic:
Use the spell not to find an answer — but to confirm one.
If the mark shows something shocking (trusting an enemy, leaping into danger), this means part of the caster already accepted that reality. Embracing the mark becomes a heroic choice. Rejecting it can deepen the character’s story through doubt or fear.
Perception of Activation: Trust the Path 508
Sight
• Perceived: A faint glyph or symbol flickers briefly on a surface or within the caster’s vision, visible only to them.
• Description: The symbol bends and reforms like a glimmering intuition made visible, shifting between calm white and soft silver light. It vanishes once acknowledged.
• Positives:
— Encourages immediate clarity and commitment
— Can be subtle enough not to draw attention
• Negatives:
— If ignored, the sudden disappearance can amplify doubt
— If witnessed in high-stress moments, may cause hesitation
Sound
• Perceived: A subtle, internal chime — like distant bells or intuition “speaking” once.
• Description: Not heard by the ears but inside the mind, a reminder of choices already emotionally accepted.
• Positives:
— Quiet confidence
— Reinforces trust in instinct
• Negatives:
— Can be unsettling if caster mistrusts themselves
— Hard to explain in team-based decisions
Touch
• Perceived: A light pressure — a gentle nudge between the shoulder blades or a hand guiding forward.
• Description: The sensation lasts only a blink, grounding the caster physically in the moment.
• Positives:
— Anchors presence
— Reduces paralysis by analysis
• Negatives:
— Some feel manipulated or “pushed”
— Overuse may dull sensitivity over time
Smell
• Perceived: A sudden neutral scent — like clean air after rain.
• Description: A reminder of new beginnings, clarity, and honesty.
• Positives:
— Centers breathing
— Can dispel stress-induced odor hallucinations
• Negatives:
— Scent association may trigger memories or emotions unexpectedly
Taste
• Perceived: A metallic tingle along the tongue — momentary and shapeless.
• Description: A signal that the decision has already been made internally.
• Positives:
— Confirmation feeling
• Negatives:
— Slight discomfort may distract briefly
Extra-Sensory Perceptions
Intuitive Future Echo
• Perceived: A flash of what the caster believes will result from their choice.
• Description: A half-formed mental snapshot — not prophecy, but expectation.
• Positives:
— Rapid alignment of internal priorities
— Reduces cognitive overload
• Negatives:
— If fear-driven expectations exist, the image may be unsettling
— Some assume it is objective truth rather than perception
Path-Pressure Awareness
• Perceived: A sensation that one direction feels lighter — a subtle psychic alignment.
• Description: Possibilities weigh differently; only one feels “meant.”
• Positives:
— Accelerates decision-making
— Breaks analysis paralysis in emergencies
• Negatives:
— Could override rational plans
— Competing guidance from allies may cause conflict
Internal Echo Recognition
• Perceived: Inner voice briefly feels external, as if intuition speaks aloud.
• Description: The caster’s subconscious stands face-to-face with the conscious mind.
• Positives:
— Builds emotional self-trust
• Negatives:
— Unmasking suppressed truths may cause discomfort or vulnerability
Mark That Shows Heart’s Walk
(as found in a poorly translated, centuries-damaged manuscript)
In the elder days, when people still spoke by feeling and not by mouth, there was a child who feared every step they made. They stood always at the road’s beginning, never in its middle, never at the ending, for they could not know which way led to blossom and which way led to thorn.
Some say this child wandered fields for ten thousand mornings. They asked the trees what to do, but trees know only “grow.” They asked the river where to go, but river knows only “down.” They asked the sky where to look, but sky knows only “far.”
So the child wept, not for sadness but for decision.
A traveler appeared, cloaked not in cloth, but in calm. Their eyes saw inside the child’s chest, where storms argued loudly. The traveler spoke in a voice like quiet stone:
“You already walk. Only your feet have not noticed.”
They taught the child a soft calling, no louder than breath, no brighter than thought. When the child whispered the call, a tiny spark—like moonlight bitten into shape—appeared on the ground. It flickered, showing a direction the heart had chosen long ago, but the head had forgotten.
The child gasped and said, “The future told me!”
But the traveler shook their head.
“No. You told you.”
The road was still long. It still had blossom and thorn in equal measure. Yet the child stepped. Then again. And again. The spark came each dawn—not to command, only to reveal what the child already hoped.
Many years later, the child—now grown taller than fear—returned to where doubt once chained them. They left marks of their own, gentle lights for others who trembled between stones. Those who followed believed the grown child was a prophet. But really, they were only someone who learned to listen inward.
And so the spell was remembered.
And so fewer hearts froze at the fork.
Though scholars who copied the tale changed many words, the old lesson survived.
Moral of the Story: The path is not shown to you. It is shown by you.
Suggested conversions to other systems:
Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition)
Trust the Path 508 – Divination Ritual
Thecaster invokes inward truth, revealing their subconscious expectation of a decision’s outcome.
Mechanics: The investigator spends 1 Magic Point and makes a POW roll. On a success, they briefly glimpse a symbolic outcome known already to their deeper mind—never prophetic, only clarifying subconscious direction. Provides a bonus die to a single subsequent decision-based roll (e.g., Persuade, Navigate, Psychology).
Limit: Once per day; minor SAN cost of 0/1 as self-knowledge can be unsettling.
Risk: Failure may reveal a fear-biased symbol instead, imposing a penalty die rather than a bonus (Keeper’s choice).
Blades in the Dark
Inner Compass (Trust the Path 508)
A quiet moment of breath reveals the direction the character already leans toward.
Type: Downtime activity or flashback ability.
Effect: Gain +1d or improved effect on a single decision-driven action that is justified by the character confronting their inner truth.
Cost: 1 Stress.
Limit: Once per score.
Narrative Detail: The symbol appears only to the character, guiding intentions rather than outcomes.
Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition)
Trust the Path 508
1st-level divination (ritual)
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Self
Duration: 1 hour
Effect: The caster privately receives a brief, symbolic indication of what their heart already intends. They gain advantage on one ability check related to making or acting upon a difficult decision (chosen after seeing the roll).
Limit: Once per long rest.
Special: Provides no prophecy, no information the caster does not already suspect.
Knave (2nd Edition Compatible)
Trust the Path 508 – Divination Spell
A subtle inward-facing omen that clarifies resolve.
Effect: The caster receives a vision pointing toward the outcome they subconsciously expect. They may reroll one failed ability check directly tied to a choice or moment of hesitation.
Usage: Once per day; consumed on success or failure.
Narrative Guidance: The GM describes an internal symbol visible only to the caster, representing their truest inclination.
Fate Core / Fate Condensed
Trust the Path 508
A quiet internal revelation shaped into a single glowing symbol.
Spell Aspect Gained: Inner Path Revealed
Activation: Spend a Fate Point to invoke.
Mechanical Effects:
• Once per scene, gain +2 on an Overcome or Create an Advantage action involving uncertainty, hesitation, or key decision-making.
• Alternatively, after failing a roll related to a difficult choice, spend a Fate Point to reroll as a moment of inward realization strikes.
Compel Example:
Your inner truth might be inconvenient or frightening, pushing you toward a path you emotionally dread.
Numenera & Cypher System
Trust the Path 508 (Inability Divination)
Level: 1
Cost: 1 Intellect Point
Requirement: Meditation and a moment of stillness.
Effect: The caster perceives a symbolic cue only they can interpret, revealing their subconscious decision. One task involving a difficult choice is eased by one step within the next hour.
Limitation: Once per day; effect provides no information the character does not already suspect.
GM Intrusion: The vision reflects fear rather than hope, hindering the next decision-based action.
Pathfinder (2nd Edition)
Trust the Path 508
Divination • Focus 1
Cast: Single action (concentrate)
Range: Personal
Duration: 10 minutes
Effect: The caster receives a subtle private omen reflecting their expected outcome. During the duration, once, they may apply a +1 status bonus to any one skill check tied to a meaningful decision.
Critical Success: The bonus increases to +2, and the caster also ignores a minor fear effect for one round.
Critical Failure: Misinterpreted omen imposes –1 status penalty instead.
Limit: Once per day and requires the caster to be calm enough to acknowledge their own instincts.
Savage Worlds (Adventure Edition)
Trust the Path 508
Novice Rank Power • Divination
Power Points: 2
Range: Self
Duration: 10 minutes
Effect: The caster gains a moment of inward clarity. They may add +2 to a single Trait roll tied to a critical decision or moment of hesitation.
Special: If used in a dramatic task or social conflict, the roll also grants +1 bonus to Teamwork for anyone who acts in accordance with the caster’s declared direction.
Backlash: On a roll of 1 on the arcane skill die, the insight creates doubt instead; the next decision-based roll is made at –2 as inner conflict resurfaces.
Shadowrun (6th Edition)
Trust the Path 508
Type: Detection
Range: Self
Duration: Sustained (max 10 minutes)
Drain: Willpower + Logic (3)
Effect:
The caster projects a symbolic perception overlay only they can interpret, representing their subconscious expectations.
• Once during the duration, the caster gains +2 dice on a single decision-critical test (Negotiation, Leadership, Sneaking, or Combat Tactics).
• If the spell ends due to distraction, roll Composure (2). Failure causes –2 dice on the next similar test (unsettling self-doubt).
Limitations: Cannot reveal future events or external hidden information; reflects the caster’s own mind only.
Starfinder
Trust the Path 508
Level: 1 Spell
School: Divination
Casting Time: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Duration: 10 minutes
Effect:
The caster perceives a private glowing omen visible only to them.
• Once during the duration, gain a +2 insight bonus to any one skill check or saving throw tied to a difficult choice or emotional hesitation.
• If the action contradicts the perceived sign, take a –1 penalty instead (inner conflict).
Descriptors: Mind-affecting, emotion.
Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)
Trust the Path 508
Psionic Power • Clairvoyance Discipline
Cost: 1 PSI point
Time: Minor Action
Duration: 10 minutes
Effect:
The traveller accesses a symbolic projection of their hidden intent.
• Gain DM+1 to a single Recon, Persuade, or Leadership check involving a pivotal choice.
• If the GM rules the caster is acting against their own subconscious desire, impose DM–1 instead.
Restriction: Only usable once per day, and requires a calm moment to activate.
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (4th Edition)
Trust the Path 508
Arcane Spell (Lore of Celestial or Lore of Insight)
CN: 5
Casting Time: Half Action
Range: Self
Duration: 10 minutes
Effect:
A faint sigil glimmers where only the caster can see, reflecting an inward direction already chosen.
• Once during the duration, the caster may add +10 to a single Test involving a major decision (Cool, Leadership, Intuition, or Navigation).
• If the Test involves rejecting the caster’s deeper desire, impose –10 instead.
Miscast: If doubles are rolled during casting, the omen arrives warped, causing the GM to secretly apply a future penalty on an important decision.
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