The mortal choice

[sinker]

All this talk about changelings elsewhere has me thinking about the mortal choice (to be clear I'm talking about the changeling choosing to renounce his fey parentage and be completely mortal). How does it work? What does it require? Is it merely an assertion on the part of the changeling ("I choose to be mortal.") or does it require more formality? Perhaps even some form of ritual (not actually thaumaturgy, but the more general meaning)? Is it instantaneous or does it take time for them to slough off their supernatural nature? And how much do they loose? Is a daughter of a troll still going to be big and strong (just not supernaturally so) or does that fade too? What would you do with the remaining fey connection? The fey parent remains, so would they still be a significant part of the story, or would they fade into the background?

There are some mechanical questions too. Do they become "Pure Mortals" with all that entails, or do they remain changelings (they do still fit the "Musts")? What happens to the powers? Do they simply leave a big pile of refresh behind? Would you allow a player to spend all of that immediately, or would you require a gradual process of "finding themselves as mortals?"

Anyone have any thoughts on all of this?

[Tedronai]

From the evidence available in the Canon, some of those questions can be answered reasonably surely.  I believe Fix is our only confirmed case (having Chosen Mortality by default when he took up his mantle), though, and it was not given much 'screen time'.
It requires no notable formality, though likely more than a mere assertion (a significant act of will being required to fundamentally affect one's nature in such a way seems in keeping with the setting).
It is reasonably instantaneous, taking no more than a few moments.
They lose only those incarnations of their heritage that would be represented by Powers derived from their fae heritage (ie. the troll's daughter is probably still one of the strongest members of her social circle, but maybe no longer as strong as the guy that lifts weights for 2 hours a day, every day) or by aspects representing personal supernatural capabilities derived from their fae heritage (supernatural capabilities of others that they may have connections to are obviously unaffected, as are any powers or aspects derived from other supernatural sources).
What happens with the fae parent depends on the former changeling, and on the parent (and at the gaming table, on the story the group is telling).

I see no compelling reason for a changeling, having chosen, to assume the template most suited to their new situation (in all probability, the Pure Mortal template).

[Richard_Chilton]

"It means that she has to choose whether to remain a mortal or become wholly fae."

YS, page 74:
Short of that final decision, the character has the option—using his remaining free will—to make the other Choice to become purely mortal. Doing so means setting aside all of his faerie abilities—in essence, swapping the changeling template for the pure mortal one.
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It seems clear to me.  A Changeling is a Changeling until it chooses.  Once it chooses it is either a Fairy or it swaps the changeling template for the pure mortal one.

Either way, it is no longer a Changeling - thus doesn't have the changeling template.

Richard

[sinker]

Hmm, I wasn't necessarily looking for answers, but more discussion and opinion. I guess these questions don't inspire everyone else like they do me.

I guess personally I see the concept of debt (both the game mechanic, and the concept itself) playing into a changeling's choice. That perhaps the changeling must pay back what he owes before he can be mortal (of course I don't think that Fix did, but he chose one form of repayment/servitude over another)? Or it seems like sometimes the changelings are kept cowed with a perception of debt ("I'm your mother, you owe me your life"), rather than actual Fey bargains (or along with Fey bargains). Perhaps they must overcome  that perception somehow?

Additionally I like the idea of them spending time to spend all of that refresh. I think it fits the concept of the changeling being something that doesn't really know what it is.

[RevengeofTim]

“This I choose to do. If there is a price, this I choose to pay. If it is my death, then I choose to die. Where this takes me, there I choose to go. I choose. This I choose to do.”

About as long as it takes to say that. It can be done on the fly, as seen in Summer Knight, when Meryl Chooses. She's only off screen for a few minutes, which seems to be long enough.

[Becq]

I don't think of the "Choice" a Changeling has to become a full Fae is usually all that much of a true choice most of the time.  I imagine the Changeling feels the constant pull of the supernatural, knowing that there's power for the taking there, if only he accepts it.  And accepting a little bit at a time is easy and feels safe ... and besides, he can give it up at any time, right?  But while there are those, like Meryl, who make a conscious decision to "go all the way" (and gain the full potential of that power that's been beckoning them, all at once), I suspect that in most cases, the Changeling just continues to take a little bit more power, then a little more, until there comes a day when he realizes that he's gone too far and that there's no longer the option of Choosing mortality.

Mechanically, either of the above options is easy to manage.  If the character is an Ogre Changeling, for example, then he can slowly accumulate powers from the Ogre template.  If the character makes the "go all the way" Choice, then he gets the full list added to his sheet automatically.  This takes no time, as RevengeofTim points out.  Alternatively, he can add powers one at a time ... and once he gets to that -10 limit, he's "gone too far".

On the other end of the spectrum, until the Changeling has reached that point of no return, then they can make the Choice to give it all up.  There isn't a mechanic for this, but I think the implication is that it's just as quick.  I would say that using accumulated Debt compels to ... 'encourage' the Changeling to delay such a Choice would be very reasonable, so basically the Changeling would need to accumulate at least as much Fate as he had Debt before making this Choice is even possible.

Once the Choice was made, the effect is as Richard noted: access to Changeling powers disappears permanently, and the character is now purely human -- or more precisely, Pure Human.  The character's powers are removed, his High Concept should be altered accordingly, and as a Pure Human, he would gain the Pure Human bonus.

[Tedronai]

Once the Choice was made, the effect is as Richard noted: access to Changeling powers disappears permanently, and the character is now purely human -- or more precisely, Pure Human.  The character's powers are removed, his High Concept should be altered accordingly, and as a Pure Human, he would gain the Pure Human bonus.

Unless the character has Supernatural Powers from some other source, in which case the end result is adjusted accordingly (say, he happened to have picked up a Denarius the day before, and was coaxed into the Choice by a Fallen who'd rather a mortal Host than to have to find another when this guy slips up and assumes his birthright; such a character would lose the Changeling template but keep their Emissary of Power template).

[Becq]

True.  Likewise, making the Choice to be mortal also doesn't prevent the character from switching to a different template in the future.  For example, if the newly-minted Pure Mortal (which is the correct term, rather than the Pure Human I used before) was attacked by an RCV and turned, then nothing of his previous Choice would prevent him from becoming a Red Court Infected.