Truenaming is the art of utilizing the power of Truespeak, the primal language of the world itself. When Truespeak is uttered, the universe listens.
Truespeak is a language unlike any other. It is not spoken in the traditional sense - none can fluently speak it, even with lifetimes of study. Its words are long and its grammar is seemingly arbitrary, with all but the most dedicated scholars getting tongue-tied on basic syllables. Instead, words of power are often memorized and cobbled together to create broad, magic-like effects.
Every object, place, creature, and idea in the universe has a truename. By combining truenames, speakers can re-define the world. Combining the truename for a person with the truename for health can heal wounds, or combining the truename for an area with the truename for a rapid upwards movement can create an earthquake.
Of course, very few truenames are known or ever will be known. The vast majority of people do not even know their own truenames, much less the truenames for every pebble and tree in the world. Those who wish to practice truenaming will either limit themselves to affecting the short list of things whose truenames they know, such as themselves and closely trusted companions, or they will use non-specific amalgamations of other words to attempt a similar effect. A truenamer may not know the truename of the enraged orc charging at him, for example, but he can attempt to cobble together enough descriptive words to freeze his opponent in place regardless.
From a gameplay perspective, the difficulty of using Truespeak is reflected in the Truespeak skill. This skill determines ones ability to not only recall and arrange the necessary grammar, but also to manage the unforgivingly difficult pronunciation of Truespeak.
Because of how skill ranks work compared to magic and psionics, this makes it possible for anyone to dip their toes into truenaming without devoting valuable class levels to it. Fighters may choose to learn a few recitations to boost their combat skills, wizards may study truenames to gain an edge against difficult opponents, and bards and rogues may pick up a few utterances on their travels to compliment their repertoire of other skills. For truenamers, this makes it far easier to delve into their other strengths by multiclassing, as they do not have to worry about losing caster levels in the way that a traditional spellcaster would.
Truespeak is a spoken language, not a written one. Written pronunciation guides certainly exist for it, but they hold no power on their own. There are no runes or enchantments created through truenaming.
Truespeak must be clear and well-enunciated, but it does not need to be audible. You take no penalty for being in an extremely noisy environment, and magical silence effects do not prevent you from using Truespeak - though the DC of any Truespeak check you make is increased by 5 if you cannot hear yourself. Nearby creatures will be able to hear you speaking under normal circumstances, however, and being gagged or paralyzed completely prevents you from truenaming.
Sound is not all that matters for Truespeak. It must be intentionally spoken. Spouting out random gibberish will never result in Truespeak, and no inanimate instrument can ever replicate it.
Using truenaming is a spell-like ability with an effective caster level equal to (your truenamer level + 1/2 your other class levels).
Learning the truename of a target is the best way to affect it with truenaming. However, those few individuals who know their own truenames are smart enough to know how dangerous it is to let one's truename fall into the wrong hands. This is to say nothing of the truenames of objects and places. If a truename cannot be found in a dusty old tome, it must be discovered through research.
Discovering the truename of something requires a long period of research and experimentation, though this research can be broken up into shorter segments if needed. The amount of time needed to discover a truename is a number of hours equal to the Truespeak check DC of affecting it with an utterance (see Using Utterances below). If it is unwilling, not present, or both, the amount of time is changed to days instead of hours.
At the end of the research period, the researcher must then make a Truespeak check as if affecting the target with an utterance. On a successful check, the researcher learns the target's truename.
Searching for a truename in a library is NOT truename research. Depending on the circumstances, finding a known truename would require either a Search check or a Gather Information check, if it is possible at all. Only exceptionally important truenames are written anywhere, and even those are kept under lock and key.
If you hear a truename as part of an utterance or recitation, you may attempt to mentally deconstruct the Truespeak to learn it. This first requires a check to identify the utterance (see Counterspeaking below), or a DC 25 Truespeak check to identify a recitation. Then, you make a Listen check with a DC equal to the speaker's original Truespeak result on the utterance or recitation. On a success, you learn the truename used in the utterance, or the speaker's truename for a recitation.
You can learn a truename you read or a truename that is told to you without a check.
As creatures continue through life, their truenames occasionally change and become more complex. Indeed, the universe acknowledges the unique weight that each creature holds on destiny, and the complexity of a truename can estimate how influential someone or something is on a cosmic scale.
As a truename naturally evolves (represented by the increase in Truespeak DC every time a creature gains another hit dice), those who know the truename still retain the ability to speak it.
An utterance is an active use of pure Truespeak to cause an immediate effect. They can be directly compared with spells, and many utterances replicate the effects of spells.
Characters can only use utterances they know, and utterances are generally learned through taking levels in the truenamer class or by taking the Expanded Lexicon feat. Learning an utterance is more than just learning a phrase, as a single utterance is unusable without enough understanding to modify and apply it for any given situation. Higher level utterances are appropriately harder to learn - consult the table below for the minimum ranks in the Truespeak skill a character must possess to learn utterances of a particular level.
When leveling up, calculate the maximum utterance level you are allowed to learn after assigning skill points. For example, a 1st level Truenamer who assigns 4 ranks into Truespeak may learn 1st level utterances. The minimum character level required to reach the appropriate number of ranks is also given on the table in two columns: one for characters who have Truespeak as a class skill, and one for characters who do not.
| Utterance Level | Truespeak Ranks | Minimum Level (Class Skill) | Minimum Level (Cross-Class) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 3 | 1st | 3rd |
| 2nd | 6 | 3rd | 9th |
| 3rd | 9 | 6th | 15th |
| 4th | 13 | 10th | - |
| 5th | 17 | 14th | - |
| 6th | 21 | 18th | - |
A character may use any utterance she knows and does not need to prepare specific utterances in advance, somewhat like a sorcerer's spellcasting.
To speak an utterance, you must first select an utterance you know and select a valid target for the utterance. Speaking an utterance is a standard action and requires the ability to concentrate and to speak.
Speaking an utterance requires a Truespeak check, where the Difficulty Class is determined by the target to be affected by the utterance.
Base Truespeak DC = (10 + creature's HD + creature's base Will save + creature's base Fortitude save). For creatures with a known truename, the DC = (10 + creature's HD). Truenamers automatically know their own truenames.
The base Truespeak DC for objects is 15. If the object is magical and its truename is not known, the DC = (15 + caster level).
The base Truespeak DC for areas is equal to the radius of the utterance in feet + 10. If all or part of the area is under the effect of a magical spell or effect, the DC is increased by the caster level of the spell or effect. If there are multiple magical effects in the area, use the one with the highest caster level.
If the truename of a location is known, the DC is instead (radius of the area / 5) + 10 and the effect of magic is ignored. The entire named location must be affected all at once, and the area of that location does not need to be round (and often isn't). The DC is determined from the smallest radius that can fully contain the area.
Speaking an utterance normally provokes attacks of opportunity. However, you may utter defensively by increasing the Truespeak DC by 5 in order to not provoke attacks of opportunity.
If you utter against a target with spell resistance, you have two options. You may either attempt a caster level check as normal for a spell, or you may increase the Truespeak DC by 5 to ignore spell resistance.
If you know a target's truename, you automatically ignore its spell resistance.
Utterances cause the universe to shape around your words, and this kind of reshaping can cause temporary ripples that make further truenaming difficult. If you attempt to use an utterance while another usage of the same utterance is already active, the DC of your Truespeak check is increased by 5 per copy active.
For example, if you use Lesser Word of Nurturing on your wounded ally, then on your next round use a reversed Lesser Word of Nurturing on the enemy who wounded him, the second use would require a Truespeak roll 5 higher to utter. If you tried to utter a third Lesser Word of Nurturing before either of the previous two ended, the Truespeak DC would be increased by 10. This penalty would not apply to a Minor Word of Nurturing, nor would it apply to utterances made by someone other than you.
Keep in mind that utterances cannot be voluntarily ended early. Once uttered, they continue until the duration ends or until dispelled.
By speaking a reversed utterance at the same moment as another utterance is spoken, the effect of the utterance can be canceled. To counterspeak an utterance, you must first ready an action to counterspeak. When an utterance is spoken, you may make a Truespeak check to identify the utterance (DC = 10 + utterance level + speaker's caster level). If you successfully identify the utterance as an utterance you know and can speak, you may attempt a Truespeak check to counterspeak. If your check exceeds the speaker's check to make the utterance, the utterance is cancelled with no effect.
Recitations involve repeating one's own truename with different inflections and tones. This meditative exercise can produce a variety of healing or strengthening effects as the truename is anchored into reality.
Recitations can be learned through recitation feats. Activating a recitation is a move-equivalent action that requires a Truespeak check DC = (10 + speaker's HD). Speaking a recitation prevents any other talking, including truenaming, on that turn, and vice versa. The recitation's benefits last until the beginning of the speaker's next turn, unless the speaker spends another move action to maintain it.
Using a recitation requires that you know your own truename.
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