The network [[OBSOLETE]]

[singing_arda]

The Seeing Marbles

Appearance
To all who have ever encountered a Seeing Stone, these will look familiar; for all who don't, they will at first simply look like impeccable, perfect spheres of black glass or crystal. They are impossible to break and equally hard to damage. Their size is generally that of a "shooter" marble.

Learn how to work it
Seeing Marbles are by default connected to all other seeing marbles and will in this state show the owner nothing, while being accessible from every other marble. This means that everyone who wants to can establish a connection with it and watch and listen to what's going on on the other side, or talk to the other person. To not get into this one-sided surveillance situation, the owner has two options:
✦ Wrap it into a thick black cloth. (Or place it in the pouch that it came in)
✦ Use willpower and concentration to keep the marble disconnected. (This is difficult and requires continuous effort - just get a dark cloth, really.)

Post types
✦ The Seeing Marbles only allow for video posts, but one can of course cover them to hide the view and use them as audio devices. Text is not possible.
✦ Open posts are possible from the start; private posts and posts with a limited amount of recipients are possible after the character has ICly been taught how to do them and trained some with it. (Certain characters with mental powers may also "figure out" how to get it to work. Case by case basis.)

The recipient of a private/limited audience post is chosen by willing the stone to connect to them. People who have more willpower, concentration and other mental talents will have an easier time making private or "locked" posts. However, if if one's willpower is weak - such as while emotionally compromised or tired - your ability to hold a private connection will slip, potentially letting the post go public. OOCly, This can be a fun way to cause private conversations to become public half way through! These posts should be posted on arda_hidden, unless you intend for it to go public part way through. please indicate when the post becomes public.

Misc
✦ Lost Seeing Marbles won't be replaced. Every character gets one and one only.
✦ Seeing Marbles have no identifiers, so you can't impersonate someone, but it is also impossible to prove that a Marble belongs to a specific person. If you "dial" someone, the Marble closest to them will come to life, no matter if it is their own or not.
✦ Seeing Marbles can only be turned off by willing them to only connect to themselves; keeping it turned off will require a constant appliance of willpower. Your best bet really is to keep it covered up whenever you don't want to be contacted.

TL;DR version

✦ Your seeing marble is in a small pouch on a leather string around your neck.
✦ Video posts only, unless you block the view physically.
✦ People can watch you if you don't cover the marble with black cloth
✦ Private or locked posts are difficult. They require concentration and willpower. You must learn ICly and hone this skill. (You cannot filter away, only filter to.)
✦ You can't "impersonate" somebody by using their marble. A marble is a just marble.
✦ Can be set into jewelry if you can find the materials and have the skill
✦ You only get one, don't lose it.
✦ Can't be damaged or destroyed.

How you can learn to use private connections:

There are various ways your character can learn about using the marble to contact someone individually and privately, because each character and canon is different. The time it takes varies between how able the character is. Keep in mind their abilities and lack of abilities, and try not to go ridiculously fast. Please note: It is not only difficult to establish a private connection via the marble, but also to maintain it. Long conversations are not recommended, unless you would like your private conversation to go public part of the way through.

As a general guideline, A character who already has some canon mental abilities or relevant information can start to figure it out by themselves, however a character who is more the "Average Joe" or without special mental abilities should learn ICly from others, and will need more help.

You may use the marble to reach out to one or a few individuals, but cannot filter someone out. The more people you are contacting, the harder it is to maintain.

[OOC KNOWLEDGE]

Their history
Fëanor, an early elf and the most gifted inventor of the elves, made the Seeing Stones; but those were only a side project of another type of gems that he made: The Seeing Marbles. They served a very simple purpose: Fëanor had a lot of children. It had been fairly easy to keep track of the first, make sure that he showed up to dinner on time, and so on... but then there was a second, and a third, and later more, and some moved out or went on age-long hunting trips... Long story short, Fëanor (who was a bit of a "crazy inventor dad" type) decided that the obvious solution to this was a type of baby phones: Giving his sons Seeing Marbles that he would always be able to reach them through (and that they would always able to reach him through). The problem was that his sons kept losing (or "losing") them, so he kept making new ones... Until the sons were of a certain age and he stopped remaking the lost ones, and they were forgotten.

And then shit went down, and a long time later the world lay in ruins, but the marbles were still around. And Eru Illúvatar remembered them when he decided to reawaken some people, and gave one stone to each of them.