Dream 944 of Attraction

Lore: Beneath the moon-silver waves of the Pae-Moana Trench, pearl-divers whisper of the old love-songs sung by sea-spirit aeons before mortal hearts began to ache. One diver, Hinara the Yearning, dreamt nightly of a coral bloom that blossomed only for those whose longing rang true. Guided by recurring visions, she descended to the trench’s twilight shelf and found a single petal-shell spiraling with faint glyphs that hummed whenever she imagined another’s smile. Hinara braided the shell into a braid-ring of tide-silk, creating a relic that resonates with the subtle pull between souls, beasts, and even inanimate wonders. Over generations the ring passed from wanderer to wanderer, always drifting toward those whose dreams seek connection. Elders teach: wear it with a sincere heart, lest hollow desire twist the song to discord.

Description: A slender ring woven from iridescent tide-silk threads wraps snugly around one finger. Its focal stone is a curved petal of pale coral-shell, translucent and veined with pearly lines that pulse in rhythm with nearby heartbeats. When the wearer’s thoughts dwell on someone or something desired, the shell emits faint rosy motes that swirl like plankton in moonlight. Touching the petal produces a soft chime akin to distant conch echoing through water. In darkness the ring glows blush-pink whenever another creature steals a glance at the wearer.

• Detail Stats
  • Tier 1 • Rarity Common • Type: Dream-Lure Ring
  • Slot: Finger (counts as one)
  • Weight: negligible (≈ 0.3 oz / 8 g)
  • Durability: water-proof, resists minor impacts; shattered only by deliberate hammer strike
  • Attunement: 10-minute quiet reverie recalling a cherished face or treasured object; re-attunes automatically after 1 minute continuous wear if removed
  • Market value: 22–28 silver slips in coastal romance bazaars; often exchanged as a courting gift rather than sold
  • Materials: coral-shell petal, tide-silk braid, whisper-ink dream glyphs
• Passive Magics
  • Rose-Current Aura — Subtle charisma field heightens whenever the wearer sincerely wishes to attract conversation or attention, granting faint warmth and rosy glow that draws eyes without dazzling.
  • Heart-Beat Echo — The petal pulses softly in sync with any creature within fifteen feet whose thoughts linger on the wearer; frequency of pulse hints at intensity of interest.
  • Dream-Scent Trace — During sleep, dreams weave scented images guiding the wearer toward people, places, or items that satisfy heartfelt longing; upon waking, remembered scents grant instinctive directional tugs.
• Activable Magics
  • Lure-Chord Pulse (1 × per dawn) — A brief fingertip tap releases an inaudible harmonic that nudges emotions. One target within thirty feet who already bears some measure of attraction feels compelled to approach or speak; they remain free-willed, merely inclined. Effect fades after one minute or if threatened.
  • Desire Compass (2 × per long rest) — A half-minute meditation turns the ring into a subtle guide needle: for the next hour the petal warms when moving toward an object or individual the wearer consciously yearns to find, cooling when straying off course.
  • Mirror-Heart Veil (1 × per long rest) — By pressing the petal against the pulse point, the wearer cloaks unreciprocated longing for ten minutes. During this span creatures cannot magically detect or exploit the wearer’s desires, though genuine mutual attraction still shines through.

Tags: Dreamcraft, Attraction-Focus, Finger-Slot, Charisma-Aura, Desire-Compass, Coral-Shell, Tide-Silk, Common-Tier, Lure-Magic, South-Sea-Lore, Heartbeat-Pulse, Rose-Motes, Courtship-Chime, Desire-Guide, Coral-Petal, Emotional-Radar, Scented-Vision, Tide-Knot

Shops where and how this item might be bought and sold:

• Coral-Bloom Courtship Kiosks, Pae-Moana Seafront:  Wide-eaved bamboo stalls draped in pink kelp streamers cluster beside the tidepools where pearl-divers unload their catch. Rings hang from spiral nautilus racks that chime in sea breeze. Courtship etiquette forbids loud haggling; patrons slide token-shells across a jade saucer while reciting a single line of traditional love-verse. The vendor responds with a nod or replaces the token with a larger shell until both feel the cadence suits the sentiment. Typical exchange equals twenty-four to twenty-six silver trade-slips, though a flawless thumb-nail pearl offsets up to ten slips of value.
• Lantern-Mist Promenade, Old Veridora Night Bazaar:  At sundown, floating paper lanterns drift above polished basalt walkways, bathing jewelry barrows in rose and gold. Dream 944 of Attraction rests on velvet trays beside phials of blush-tonic perfume. Prices are posted in quill on rice-paper fans—twenty-seven to twenty-nine silver slips. Couriers often barter with two sealed scented billets of introduction from reputable matchmakers; each billet reduces the coin price by five slips, as merchants resell them to nobles hunting discreet liaisons.
• Whisper-Reed Riverboat Market, Wāhekea Delta:  Flat-bottom skiffs lash into a drifting plaza where musicians play reed flutes that imitate heartbeat rhythms. Vendors lay tide-silk rings atop mirrored water-basins so shoppers view reflections together. Barter dominates: a single vial of cloud-orchid nectar wine or a fist-sized moon-rice cake baked with lotus pollen secures one ring; otherwise the cost tallies to roughly twenty-three silver slips. Deals conclude with shared sips of rice tea to seal amicable feeling.
• Ember-Heart Trinket Alcoves, Hollow Ember City Sublevel Six:  In soot-lit tunnels, love charms command rarity premiums. Rings glow faint rose in glass reliquaries lined with black obsidian sand. Proprietors mark prices on slate shards—thirty-five to thirty-eight silver gear-coins—reflecting the difficulty of importing tide-silk inland. They gladly accept barter: an ingot of crimson forge-steel or two drams of quicksilver-lumens substitute for ten coins each. Purchase is logged into a brass-rim ledger inspected nightly by tunnel stewards.
• Sky-Drift Aerodrome Gift Lockers, Nacre Cradle High Dock:  Aisles of pressurized glass lockers stand beneath humming aether turbines. Each locker displays a ring atop a cushion of floating magnetite dust; pressing a coin-slot releases the door on a soft pneumatic hiss. Standard fee reads thirty-two silver slips payable in stamped steam-scrip. Captains lacking immediate funds may present a promissory freight chit for luxury spices worth equivalent value plus a three-slip convenience surcharge.
• Moon-Bloom Perfume Parlour, Azure Spire Upper Galleries:  Marble counters scented with starlight-oil host private showings by appointment only. Clients sip crystalline cordial while a scent-sommelier matches each ring to bespoke fragrance vials. Purchase bundles pair one ring and one dram of companion perfume for forty silver aureate crowns. Patrons occasionally swap a freshly written sonnet on blue vellum, signed by a noted poet, to halve the coin outlay—literary currency prized for its romantic cachet.
• Star-Shell Festival Stalls, Floating Isle of Kerehua:  During the annual Lovers’ Convergence, temporary booths crafted of driftwood and silk lanterns line the spiral boardwalk. Merchants run raffle drawings: entrants pay five silver slips for a coral token; twenty tokens fill a shell-bowl, then one is drawn to win a ring. Direct purchase bypasses chance at twenty-eight slips. Couples sometimes trade a duet performance on the festival stage in lieu of fifteen slips, the crowd’s applause serving as spiritual tender.

Across coastal, subterranean, aerial, and festival venues the ring’s price hovers near a coastal baseline of twenty-four to twenty-nine silver slips, rising with distance from the sea or with value-added luxuries. Barter rooted in romance—pearls, poetry, scented delicacies, or melodic offerings—often replaces strict coin, honoring the artifact’s essence of heartfelt attraction.

Roleplay in different environments:

• Shimmer-Deck Tavern, Tideport Harbor
  Rose-Current Aura warms the air as rivals circle games of chance. When a cutpurse’s interest flickers toward the wearer, Heart-Beat Echo quickens to a pronounced thrum—defense through early warning that keeps hands on coin-pouch. Offensively, a quiet Lure-Chord Pulse draws the tavern’s bouncer—already half-fond of the wearer—away from his post, leaving a side door unguarded for accomplices seeking the smuggler’s cache below.
• Royal Masquerade within the Lantern-Glass Ballroom
  Mirror-Heart Veil cloaks genuine longing while courtiers trade veiled barbs, nullifying empathic scryers who would weaponize hidden infatuations—defense against enchantment blackmail. Offense follows as Desire Compass guides the wearer unerringly toward a veiled diplomat whose heart flutters at intrigue; a whispered proposal timed to the diplomat’s blush secures a trade concession unattainable by blunt negotiation.
• Mist-Choked Jungle Ruins on the Island of Ngaru-Tahi
  At dusk, predatory vine-runners stalk any warm-blood that strays near their spore nests. The ring senses the beasts’ fixation; petal pulses accelerate, prompting the wearer to throw a scent-soaked cloak into underbrush. Rose-Current Aura clings to fabric, luring predators away—defensive redirection. Offensively, the ring’s glow tempts swarms of curious glow-moths toward an enemy scout’s torch, masking stealth sounds beneath frantic wingbeats and revealing the scout’s position.
• Sky-Sail Barge skimming the Cloud Labyrinth
  High above sea level, airship crews rely on line-of-sight signals. Mirror-Heart Veil suppresses tell-tale eagerness for plunder, thwarting rival captains who gauge prey via aura readers—defense from pre-emptive boarding attempts. A well-timed Lure-Chord Pulse sent across a narrow gangplank turns a hesitant lookout’s mild attraction into bold fascination; the lookout strides closer, allowing allies to grapple the plank and seize control—offense through emotional pivot.
• Subterranean Ember-Vault Negotiation Hall
  Arbitrators wear mind-steel masks that amplify detected desire. The wearer activates Mirror-Heart Veil, confounding masks with a reflection-blank field while speaking in level tones—defense against psychological leverage. Offensively, whispering a single secret yearning, the ring heightens Rose-Current Aura; onlookers lean forward, charmed, and the hall’s momentum shifts long enough to insert a favorable clause into the mining treaty.
• Drifting Coral Grotto beneath Pae-Moana Trench
  Bioluminescent reef guardians challenge intruders. Heart-Beat Echo locks onto the subtle harmonic throb of a guardian intrigued by surface curiosities; the wearer hovers peacefully, projecting attraction rather than threat—defense that averts combat. Offense emerges when Desire Compass pinpoints a rare pearl cluster deep within the grotto; following the warmth leads divers past decoy tunnels and rival treasure-seekers, claiming the prize first.
• Sun-Scorched Caravan Bazaar of the Sirocco Dunes
  In a maze of silk tents, bargaining is war. Rose-Current Aura brightens under the vendor’s appreciative gaze, softening initial prices—defensive economy. When a jealous mercenary brandishes steel, the wearer taps Lure-Chord Pulse; the mercenary’s attention shifts to a charismatic dancer nearby, granting bodyguards an opening to disarm him—offense through redirected fascination.
• Frozen Mirror-Lake Pilgrim Shrine
  Night winds scatter ice crystals that glint like stars. Pilgrims tested by visions must not become lost to obsessive yearning. Activating Mirror-Heart Veil shields the wearer’s own attractions from the lake’s illusion-spirits—defense against spiritual entrapment. Desire Compass, however, remains active beneath the veil, steering footsteps across treacherous ice directly toward a submerged relic, outpacing rival seekers who wander in reflection-woven mazes—offense by focused pursuit.

In each setting the ring’s gentle manipulation of attraction shields its bearer from hidden danger or social predation and, when turned outward, converts spark-soft bias into advantage, guiding steps, words, or foes exactly where the dreamer wills.

Perception of Activation:

• User’s Perspective
  Sight – The coral-shell petal flushes from pearl-pale to rose-gold, spilling pinprick motes that drift in eddies about the hand like plankton touched by mooncurrents. A faint halo outlines any creature whose attention lingers upon the wearer, the glow deepening when interest warms toward affection or fascination.
  Hearing – A single crystalline chime unfurls, reminiscent of a distant conch beneath water. In its wake a subtle heartbeat-like cadence synchronizes with the user’s pulse, faster or slower as surrounding emotional currents intensify or wane.
  Smell – Bare hints of sea-salt and blooming hibiscus waft through the air, sharpening into a heady sweetness whenever the wearer’s thoughts dwell upon a desired person or prized object.
  Touch – A gentle warmth spreads from the ring into the palm, then pulses up the arm as if echoing another heartbeat just beyond skin. Any brush of another’s fingers leaves a lingering tingle, as though coral sand were caught between fingertips.
  Taste – A delicate brine kisses the tongue—like the first drop of ocean spray—followed by a trace of wild honey that fades if the wearer’s focus drifts.
  Extra-sensory – Soft strands of rose-light thread outward in the mind’s eye, tethering to nearby creatures whose thoughts contain attraction toward the wearer; each strand vibrates with color nuances—amber for curiosity, carmine for longing, silver-blue for admiration. A muted compass sensation indicates the direction of a strongly desired goal or person, swiveling gently whenever the wearer turns.
• Observer’s Perspective
  Sight – The ring blooms with blush-pink radiance that flutters up the wearer’s wrist like luminous petals. Tiny sparkles hover in the air, drifting toward onlookers before fading.
  Hearing – Most hear only a faint resonant note, swiftly swallowed by ambient sounds, yet it leaves an uncanny hush as if one has momentarily ducked beneath calm waves.
  Smell – A short-lived scent of hibiscus and fresh tide reaches observers, vanishing too quickly to name yet stirring nostalgic warmth.
  Touch – Anyone within arm’s reach feels a subtle, pleasant prickle across exposed skin, akin to the caress of a warm breeze threaded with mist.
  Taste – No distinct flavor presents, though some report an inexplicable freshness in the breath, like air near crashing surf.
  Extra-sensory – Empathically sensitive souls glimpse a soft coral-pink shimmer around the wearer’s silhouette and sense a gentle tug of connection, as though a silent invitation were extended.
• Positives
  • Heightened awareness of mutual interest enables swift rapport, useful for negotiation, alliance-building, or de-escalating conflict.
  • Directional pulses guide the wearer toward desired individuals or items, aiding searches and quests of the heart.
  • Subtle emotional feedback provides early warning against deceitful flattery or predatory fixation.
  • Radiant motes boost ambient morale, often soothing tense gatherings.
• Negatives
  • The ring’s blush glow can betray the wearer’s emotional focus, exposing private desires to keen observers.
  • Prolonged exposure to overlapping heartbeats and empathic tethers may cause sensory fatigue, leading to restlessness or distraction.
  • In crowds, simultaneous pulses from multiple admirers can blur signals, potentially misleading the wearer into false interpretation of intent.
  • Creatures attuned to emotional energies might exploit the visible filaments to track or manipulate the wearer’s attractions.

Coral-Petal Dream-Lure Ring Recipe

• Materials Needed
  • One curved petal of pale coral-shell harvested at twilight from Pae-Moana shallows, free of cracks and no longer than a thumbnail
  • Three arm-length strands of iridescent tide-silk drawn from moon-washed kelp, cleansed in freshwater, sun-dried to a soft sheen
  • Pinch of powdered pearl-vein to seed heartbeat-responsive glimmer lines within the shell
  • Vial of whisper-ink distilled from deep-reef cuttle secretions mixed with rosewater for dream-glyph inscription
  • Two drops of dawn-caught conch-echo brine for tonal attunement
  • Fragment of rose-quartz dust the size of a lentil to anchor emotional resonance
  • Handful of hibiscus petals, dried, for final scent infusion
• Tools Required
  • Coral-edge carving scalpel for shaping shell without shattering crystalline layers
  • Tide-silk finger-spindle capable of twisting fine braid under even tension
  • Low-flame shell-kiln fueled by blue-salt charcoal to warm, not scorch, delicate materials
  • Pearl-polish cloth woven with silver sand to buff shell surface until translucent
  • Whisper-quill stylus fashioned from sea-gull feather for precise glyph etching
  • Rose-mist brazier: clay bowl filled with simmering hibiscus water beneath a lattice rack
  • Meditation ring of smooth river stones to steady breath during final dreaming rite
• Skill Requirements
  • Shell-craft proficiency to thin and curve coral without fissure
  • Fine weaving mastery of three-strand braid joining seamless circle
  • Glyph-scribe knowledge of attraction sigils and harmonic line placement
  • Lucid-dream focus able to anchor personal yearning without distraction
  • Low-heat alchemy for scent and sound resonance binding
• Crafting Steps
  • Shell Preparation: Rinse coral-petal in clean tidepool, then place upon pearl-polish cloth. Using gentle circular strokes, buff both faces until interior veins catch dim light. Sprinkle powdered pearl-vein across still-warm surface; roll shell so dust wicks into natural striations, forming pulsing lines.
  • Silk Braid: Twist the three tide-silk strands around the finger-spindle, forming a smooth spiral braid long enough to encircle a chosen finger with slight overlap. Work slowly; even tension preserves iridescence. Knot ends loosely for later tightening.
  • Shell Shaping: Heat shell-kiln to mild warmth—too hot dulls luster. Hold coral-petal with bone tongs inside kiln mouth until pliant (about six slow breaths). Bend gently around a wooden dowel to curve half-moon form, then allow to cool.
  • Embed Resonance Dust: While shell remains faintly warm, press rose-quartz dust into a small recess near the petal base. The dust sinks, anchoring emotional frequency within crystalline lattice. Seal recess by brushing a droplet of dawn-caught conch-echo brine atop; the brine crystallizes, locking dust in place while adding tonal memory for future chime.
  • Silk-Shell Marriage: Reheat shell edge only until just soft. Slip the tide-silk braid through natural notch at petal base, seat firmly, and press shell edge against braid until fibers fuse into coral under low heat. Remove, cool in still air. Tighten braid ends, trimming excess, to form perfect ring circumference.
  • Glyph Inscription: Dip whisper-quill in rose-tinted whisper-ink. Etch three concentric attraction sigils along the inner curve of the petal, beginning at dust anchor and spiraling outward. Each stroke must complete in a single exhale to keep ink micro-channels smooth. Allow ink to absorb; color fades to pearly white invisible to casual glance.
  • Scent and Sound Binding: Place the ring upon lattice rack over rose-mist brazier. Scatter dried hibiscus petals onto simmering water. Let aromatic steam flow through ring for twelve heartbeats, infusing subtle fragrance that will surface when desire blooms.
  • Dreaming Rite: Sit within meditation stone circle at nightfall, ring on finger, eyes half-closed. Recall vivid image of person or object you yearn to draw near. Breathe until heartbeat synchronizes with faint throb in petal. When the ring emits a delicate conch-like chime, resonance is sealed.
  • Verification: In dim light, glance aside and think of the desired presence; ring should flush blush-pink and release tiny rose-motes. If no glow appears, revisit Step 6 and retrace sigils with clearer intent.

The completed ring now hums with gentle pull, guiding sincere attraction while echoing the sea-spirits’ ancient love-song.

Song of the Coral-Petal Gleam
Fragments from the “Tide-Dream Tablets”¹

In the dawn before dawn, when the sea still murmured its own cradle-name,² there lived Hinara-the-Yearning, daughter of a fisherman who mended nets with sighs instead of twine. She carried inside her mind a mirror that showed every smile she had never received, and this mirror grew heavy as an anchor.³

One night the moon plucked silver chords across the Pae-Moana waves, and Hinara’s sleep cracked open like a shell. In the dream she beheld a lone coral flower blooming in the trench’s deep hush—its petal curved as a beckoning finger. She woke tasting salt and promise. Four dawns later she dove beyond the weeping edge of sunlight, past lantern fish that hummed forgotten hymns, until her lungs trembled against her ribs. There, upon a ledge where starlight drowned, the dream-petal waited, veined with faint pearl lines that pulsed to her heartbeat. She gathered it, and the sea did not protest, for longing always finds a way to borrow from silence.⁴

Returning ashore, Hinara wove the petal into tide-silk threads. When the braid closed, the shell chimed—a note like distant conch sliding through water corridors. Islanders claimed the sound traveled farther than footsteps yet nearer than thought. They called the ring Dream-Ruby, though its hue was more blush than gem, and though no ruby ever awakened sleeping desires so gently.⁵

First Keeper
Hinara offered the ring to Kahu, a pearl-poet whose words left dents in listeners’ chests. Wearing the ring, Kahu’s verses grew luminous; audiences leaned forward, hearts fluttering like kite-birds in storm draft. Yet each recital pulled attention tighter around him, until his own breath tangled in those threads. He dreamed of unknown faces pressed close, whispering borrowed adoration. One morning Kahu walked into low tide and never turned back, murmuring that true affection must not be netted. The ring washed ashore three days later beside gull-prints pointing inland.⁶

Second Keeper
A market thief named Selai found it half-buried in kelp. She slipped it on and felt every guard’s gaze soften. With a smile she walked empty-handed past locked chests, for owners gladly placed jewelry in her palm “just awhile” to admire her fingers. But soon Selai felt hollow, for bounty won without chase tasted of flat seawater. She tied the ring to a kite and loosed it into monsoon skies, laughing as clouds blushed. Thunder swallowed the laughter and carried the ring to its next shore.⁷

Third Keeper
High above, aboard the Zephyr-Knuckle sky-raft, Captain Ruskan discovered the coral ring caught in rigging net. The crew, weary of endless drift, yearned for harbor laughter. Whenever Ruskan fingered the petal, rosy motes spiraled across deck. Air-pirates, ready to pounce, hesitated—enchanted by inexplicable longing for dawn dances they had never danced. The crew reached port unscathed, but Ruskan felt the crew’s craving weighing heavier each night. He nailed the ring to the mast, hoping its glow would guide others instead. Soon after, the mast cracked under gentle wind; the ring had drawn the storm’s affection and would not let go.⁸

Fourth Keeper
A child, Puhi, salvaged it from driftwood shards. She dreamt of a friend who would never mock her stutter. The ring blossomed blush-pink whenever she approached shy classmates, easing their tongues and hers alike. The village elders realized its pull was tender, not ensnaring, when carried by one who sought simple kinship. They taught Puhi to share the ring only with those whose attraction held no hunger beneath; the lesson etched itself into oral verse, and from that day the artifact passed carefully: burned not by flame but by dishonest yearning.⁹

So the chronicles wander: a caravan bard traded the ring for a single kiss that lasted two lifetimes in memory; a desert mage tried to trap its motes in crystal vials and instead trapped his own name, forgotten by every mouth; a widowed fisherwoman set it upon her husband’s stone cairn, and the sea rose to lay rose-motes over the shore as if scattering petals at a wedding no one could attend.¹⁰

In each retelling the translation frays—petal becomes feather, tide-silk becomes starlight-wire, Hinara sings or weeps or never existed. Yet always the coral curve waits to echo hearts beating toward something—or someone—just beyond reach.

Moral: Desire is a tide: steer it with truth, or drown beneath its borrowed glow.

Superscript numbers in the story:

¹ Reference to the “Tide-Dream Tablets” found in fractured coral-lime slabs near Pae-Moana Trench. Scribes of the Second Gleaning era recopied only every third glyph due to weather-rotted edges, so later commentators warn that “Song of the Coral-Petal Gleam” is already a twice-broken echo of some forgotten chant.

² Scholastic gloss identifies “sea still murmured its own cradle-name” as an idiom meaning the ocean was young enough to remember the sound uttered by primordial spirits when they first drew breath. An oblique way of dating Hinara’s tale to myth-time rather than measured centuries.

³ Fragmented reed-scroll marginalia argues that Hinara’s mirror of unreceived smiles symbolizes early island beliefs: heavy dreams manifest as tangible burdens unless transformed through ritual or quest.

⁴ Tide-chart annotation on obsidian shard notes a current called the Yearning Pull directly beneath Pae-Moana shelf. Divers claim any lone swimmer descending there experiences amplified heartbeat and vivid recall of lost desires—considered proof that the trench “lends its silence to longing,” matching the narrative of sea permitting Hinara’s harvest.

⁵ Nautilus-carved amulet inscription, catalogued by Cloud-Library curators, records local usage of “Dream-Ruby” for any small object that glows only when touched by emotion. The annotation clarifies that villagers equated hue with feeling rather than mineral composition, justifying the mismatch between name and physical appearance.

⁶ Salt-washed clay slip from coastal shrine lists offerings made in Kahu’s memory: sea-glass jars filled with breath, each labeled “unspoken verse.” Scholars cite this shard as corroboration of Kahu walking into the tide and the community’s belief that poems become literal wind once released.

⁷ A brittle accountant’s parchment from Veridora customs office tracks lost merchandise during the “Monsoon Kite Festival.” Line twelve reads, “One coral-shell ring affixed to crimson kite; vanished northward.” Historians connect this ledger line to Selai’s skyward release of the artifact.

⁸ Captain Ruskan’s private log (scratched on driftwood planks recovered from Zephyr-Knuckle wreckage) describes a cracked mast stamped with a spiral nail pattern that matches tide-silk twine impressions—supporting the claim that the ring was nailed to the spar and that weather favored it unnaturally.

⁹ Oral-tradition compendium “Whispers of the Lagoon School” credits Puhi’s story for modern teaching rituals where children pass a shell ring in silence, learning to sense honest friendship through pulse rhythm. Linguists note the phrase “burned not by flame but by dishonest yearning” first appears in this compendium.

¹⁰ Weathered sandstone stela on the Dune-Bone Coast depicts a fisherwoman laying a ring atop a cairn while stylized waves rise to scatter petals. Erosion has erased the fisherwoman’s name, but petal-shaped cavities remain pink-stained—believed to be mineral residue from motes the artifact released, lending physical evidence to the final vignette of the legend.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

• Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition) — Coral-Petal Dream-Ring
  Item Category Mythos Charm (Common Rarity) | Encumbrance negligible
  Attunement Wearer spends 10 minutes remembering a heartfelt desire.
  Passive Effects
  • Rose-Current Aura +10 % to Charm and Persuade when appealing to someone already predisposed to like or trust the wearer.
  • Heart-Echo Investigator may attempt an INT × 5 roll to sense if any visible creature within POW yards (minimum 10 yds) is attracted to them; SAN cost 0/1.
  Active Effects
  • Lure-Chord Pulse (1×/hour) Spend 1 Magic Point; one target within POW yards who has positive feelings toward the wearer must attempt a POW vs POW contest. Failure inclines the target to step closer and speak openly for 1 minute; SAN cost 1.
  • Desire Compass (1×/day) Spend 2 Magic Points; for 30 minutes the keeper provides subtle directional hints toward a named person or object the wearer truly yearns for; SAN cost 1d3.
  Hazard If wearer manipulates sincere affection for selfish harm, keeper may call for an Extreme POW roll; failure inflicts 1d6 SAN loss from guilt-laden nightmares.

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• Blades in the Dark — Tide-Silk Lure-Ring
  Item Type Fine Arcane Implement (occupies 1 load when worn)
  Attune Spend one downtime activity daydreaming about a desired person or treasure.
  Abilities
  • Rose-Current Gain potency on Sway or Consort rolls whenever you play upon existing attraction.
  • Lure-Pulse Spend 2 stress; reveal the soft spot of a target already friendly or intrigued. Create an Advantage clock with 4 segments; fill 2 segments immediately.
  • Desire Needle When you Crit on Study aimed at locating a wanted object or individual, mark a free tick on any related progress clock.
  Drawback If you Trauma out while wearing the ring, every NPC you have influenced with it gains a level of distrust or vengeance toward your crew.

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• Dungeons & Dragons (5e) — Ring of Dream-Borne Attraction
  Wondrous Item, uncommon, requires attunement (finger slot)
  Passive Properties
  • Rose-Current Aura Advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks made against creatures that already regard you as friendly, and such creatures cannot surprise you while within 30 ft.
  • Heart-Beat Echo As a bonus action you may learn whether any creature within 15 ft is experiencing attraction or affectionate curiosity toward you; no save.
  Active Properties
  • Lure-Chord Pulse (1/short rest, bonus action) One creature you can see within 30 ft that has at least friendly attitude must succeed on a Wisdom save (DC 13) or feel a strong urge to approach and converse peacefully with you for 1 minute. The effect ends early if you or your allies threaten it.
  • Desire Compass (2/long rest, action) For 1 hour you sense the direction (but not distance) to the nearest creature or object you consciously and earnestly desire to find. While moving toward that goal you gain a +1 bonus on ability checks made to track or navigate.
  • Mirror-Heart Veil (1/long rest, action) For 10 minutes you are immune to spells and abilities that detect emotions or read thoughts unless the caster succeeds on a DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check.
  Curse Should you exploit the ring’s magic to betray genuine affection, you must make a DC 14 Wisdom save or suffer one level of Exhaustion; the ring’s features become inert for 24 hours.

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• Knave (2nd Edition) — Coral-Petal Lure-Ring
  Item Charm (1 inventory slot) | Value 80 gp | Durability 3
  Attunement Wearer contemplates a heartfelt longing for one turn.
  Passives
  • Rose-Glow Advantage on CHA tests made toward individuals already favorably inclined.
  • Pulse-Sense Detects nearby attraction within Near range; faint warmth signals direction.
  Charges 2 per dawn
  1 Charge Lure-Pulse Target within Near range who feels friendly must make a WIL save; failure compels approach and amiable dialogue for one exploration turn.
  2 Charges Desire Compass For one watch, wearer automatically knows the direction to a named person or object they strongly desire, gaining Advantage on navigate tests toward that aim.
  Break If wearer manipulates emotional longing to lethal or ruinous outcome, roll WIL save; on failure the ring’s Durability drops by 1 and it loses one daily charge permanently.

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• Fate (Fate Core / Condensed) — Coral-Petal Dream-Ring
  High Concept Aspect “Blush-Shell Charm That Stirs Gentle Longing”
  Stunts (granted by the ring; possessing it costs 1 Refresh if this would exceed the wearer’s free stunt allotment)
  • Rose-Current Aura — Once per scene, when you Create an Advantage by appealing to an existing fondness or friendly feeling, gain +2 and one extra free invoke on the new Aspect.
  • Heart-Echo Sense — You may always make a passive Notice roll (no action) to detect if any character in your zone feels attraction toward you; on a success with style, learn the strongest positive emotion present.
  • Mirror-Heart Veil — Spend a Fate Point to impose a –2 penalty on attempts to read your emotions or detect your desires for the remainder of the scene.
  Typical Compel The ring draws the wearer toward seductive distractions or tempts them to over-trust admirers, inviting trouble at inconvenient moments.

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• Numenera / Cypher System (2nd Edition) — Coral-Petal Lure Ring
  Artifact Level 3 (d6 + 2) Form slender tide-silk ring with rosy shell inset
  Effect (passive) Provides an asset on all pleasant social interaction tasks with creatures already friendly or intrigued by the wearer.
  Effect (active)
  • Lure-Pulse (1 Intellect Point, action) A willing creature within short range who already feels positive toward you is drawn to approach and converse peacefully for one minute; they are not charmed or controlled and may end the approach if threatened.
  • Desire Compass (2 Intellect Points, action) For one hour you know the direction toward a creature or object you genuinely yearn to encounter. While moving that way you gain an asset on navigation and perception tasks related to the search.
  • Mirror-Heart Veil (3 Intellect Points, 10-minute ritual) For one hour scans or abilities that read emotions or desires suffer two steps of difficulty to affect you.
  Depletion 1 in 1d20 each time any active function is used.
  Crafting Level 4; requires coral petal, tide-silk braid, rose-quartz dust, and lucid-dream infusion.

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• Pathfinder (Second Edition) — Ring of Rose-Current Longing Item 4
  Worn Item Finger Price 85 gp Bulk —
  Activation Envision (1 action) Frequency once per hour
  • Rose-Current Aura (constant) You gain a +1 item bonus to Diplomacy checks and Performance checks against creatures that currently have at least a friendly attitude toward you, and such creatures can’t use the Surprise Attack ability against you while within 30 feet.
  • Heart-Beat Echo On activation, you know whether any creature within 15 feet feels attraction or affectionate curiosity toward you; this is a revelation effect.
  Interact Lure-Chord Pulse (1/day, free action) Trigger You attempt a Diplomacy check against a creature that is friendly or better. Effect You roll twice and take the better result.
  Envision Desire Compass (2/day, 1 minute) Effect For 1 hour you gain a +1 status bonus to Survival checks to track a specific creature or find a specific object you strongly desire.
  Mirror-Heart Veil Envision (1/day, 1 action) Effect For 10 minutes you gain a +1 status bonus to Will saves against emotion and divination effects and are concealed from effects that sense emotions unless they succeed at a DC 17 Perception check.
  Curse If you knowingly use the ring to betray sincere affection, you become Clumsy 1 and Fatigued until you atone or the next dawn; the ring deactivates during that time.

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• Savage Worlds (Adventure Edition) — Dream-Petal Lure Ring
  Gear Weight Negligible Rarity Rare Cost $950
  Attunement Requires a short meditation on heartfelt desire (10 minutes).
  Power Points 4, refresh at dawn if the wearer has neither lied to nor harmed an admirer in the last day.
  Powers (user counts as Seasoned, arcane skill linked to Spirit)
  • Empathy (Fantasy Companion) — 2 PP. Limited: works only on willing or friendly targets; provides +2 Persuasion to comfort or inspire them.
  • Detect/Conceal Arcana (altered) — 2 PP to Detect hidden attraction or emotional auras in a Medium Burst Template for 5 minutes; 2 PP to Conceal the wearer’s own emotional aura at –2 to opposed rolls for the same duration.
  Edge Effect Lure-Pulse — When Detect is active, the wearer may spend 1 Benny to force a target who already has the Friendly attitude to spend their next action speaking or aiding rather than attacking.
  Drawback If the wearer exploits another’s affection for harsh betrayal, they immediately gain the Major Hindrance Ruthless until completing a meaningful act of contrition, and the ring’s Power Points drop to 0 for 24 hours.

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• Shadowrun Sixth World — Tide-Silk Desire Ring
  Category Qi Focus (Rating 1–3) | Mount Finger | Capacity —
  Availability 6 R × Rating | Cost 4 000 ¥ × Rating | Bonding Karma 2 × Rating
  Passive Rose-Current Aura — While bonded, add Rating dice to Influence and Con tests made against targets who already hold Positive Social modifiers toward you.
  Active Lure-Chord Pulse (Simple Action, 1 × Combat Turn) — Spend 1 Edge; one target within CHA × 2 m who possesses at least a +1 Loyalty or a Friendly attitude must resist with CHA + Willpower [Social]. On failure the target’s next action must be to move adjacent and speak openly for one round.
  Desire Compass (Complex Action, 1 × Scene) — Make an Intuition + Magic [Test]; net hits grant minutes of directional awareness toward a dearly wanted person or object (max Rating hours).
  Backlash If wearer exploits the focus to betray genuine affection, the ring inflicts (4 – Rating) Stun and becomes dormant for 24 hours.

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• Starfinder — Dream-Petal Attraction Band
  Hybrid Item Level 4 Price 2 200 cr Bulk L Capacity 2 Usage 1/activation (recharges at dawn)
  Passive Rose-Current Aura — Gain a +2 insight bonus to Diplomacy checks against creatures that are already Friendly and cannot be flat-footed by them while within 30 ft.
  Activate (move action, 1 charge) Lure-Pulse — One willing or Friendly creature within 30 ft must succeed at a Will save (DC 14) or feel compelled to approach and converse peacefully for 1 minute.
  Activate (standard action, 1 charge) Desire Compass — For 1 hour you instinctively know the direction (not distance) to a named creature or item you earnestly wish to find; while moving that way you gain a +1 circumstance bonus to Survival (navigation) checks.
  Special If the wearer knowingly misuses the band to harm a trusting admirer, all item abilities are disabled until the wearer spends 10 minutes in sincere remorse.

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• Traveller (Mongoose 2e) — Petal-Shell Lure Ring
  Tech Level 10 | Mass neg. | Value 200 000 Cr (Restricted)
  Attunement 10-minute quiet reverie on heartfelt desire.
  Passives
  • Rose-Glow DM +1 to Advocate, Diplomat, or Carouse tests when interacting with a target holding a helpful Attitude.
  • Heart-Echo Wearer automatically detects Friendly attraction within 6 m; Referee may provide subtle cues.
  Actives
  • Lure Pulse (once per hour) Spend 1 Intellect: a Friendly or better target in Short range must succeed on an opposed END test or devote its next Action to civil conversation or aid.
  • Desire Compass (once per day) Spend 2 Intellect: for 1 hour the wearer gains DM +1 on Recon or Survival checks made while tracking a sincerely wanted subject; direction known automatically each round.
  Side Effect Betraying a genuinely affectionate target imposes 1D INT loss and locks the ring for 24 hrs.

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• Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th — Ring of Coral Longing
  Rarity Common Magical Trinket | Enc 0 | Price 80 gc
  Passive Talents
  • Rose-Current Glow — +10 to Charm Tests against characters possessing the Friend Status or better; such characters cannot use the Surprise Trait on you within 30 yds.
  • Heart-Beat Echo — As a free action once per Round, you may learn if any character within 15 yds is attracted to you (GM discretion).
  Activate Lure-Chord Pulse (Free Action, 1/Hour) — Target Friend must pass an Average (+20) Willpower Test or spend its next Turn moving toward you and speaking truthfully.
  Activate Desire Compass (2/Day, 1 Minute) — Gain Advantage +1 and +10 to Perception for one hour while pursuing a named person or item you earnestly desire; you automatically sense its direction each Round.
  Miscast Curse If you use the ring to betray genuine affection, make a Hard (–20) Cool Test. Failure inflicts 1 Corruption and disables all ring effects until next dawn.