#drsw

The world of DRSW is one that has lost technology as we know it. It’s not tech-less - people are working to rebuild what was lost, which is a minor source of conflict in the book. That’s the major way it differs to our own. 

The minor way it differs to our own is the existence of an ability which grants those who have this ability some extra influences in their speech. Namely, questions and commands. People who have this ability are called a variety of things, but the word I use most in the story is a Silvertongue.

‘Oh hey that’s cool and also makes no sense could you expand on that’ I can try, I’ll level with you, I’m figuring it out as I go.

When a Silvertongue asks you a question, you will want to answer it. As in, you feel like it would kill you if you didn’t answer it. It’s almost an addiction, you’re like ‘shit I... want to answer that.’ Also like an addiction, some are better at resisting the need to answer, but they’ll still feel the desire to respond. The response does not have to be truthful. 

When a Silvertongue gives you a command, the same deal applies except with obeying it. Say the command was ‘answer me truthfully’ and then a question - well, you’re going to really want to answer that question truthfully. 

Now, the question side of it is simple enough to understand, yeah? It’s just ‘bam you want to answer the question.’ The command bit is a bit trickier - what are the limitations of this? What can Silvertongues make you do? 

As far as the story goes, they can make you do anything possible. Things that contradict what you actually want to do? Easy. Things that seem unnatural, say, putting someone to sleep in seconds with three words? Sure. Stopping someone from dying? It’s do-able for them, depending on the situation.

I’ll be honest, it’s a pretty frightening thing. 

Now, how often do Silvertongues actually use this ability? Obviously, it varies from person to person, but they can control how much of their speech is influenced - with practice. It's a bit like grammar, in a way, through the fact that you learn more about it the more you use it. Except, in this case, there are no rules you can study to try and understand. It’s 100% practise. 

‘Woah wait can’t a Silvertongue just find another Silvertongue and ask for advice’ well in theory, yes. But. Two issues with. 

One - if you had this ability to manipulate people with your words - would you openly advertise it? Or would you try and keep it secret, out of morality or out of fear of someone shutting you up? 

Two - there are very, very, very few Silvertongues in the world. At one point there were three at once, and that was rare. There are not many people to ask. The best way to find out is through trial and error. 

‘Okay that’s fair and all but how do they KNOW they’re doing Silvertongue-y stuff and not just having obedient people around’ 

Good question, very nice, very nice. When this ability does affect your speech, you can taste it, quite overwhelmingly, so it’s pretty hard to miss. When you’re younger/use it less, it’s very sweet in taste. The more you use it, the bitterer it becomes. 

‘Oh cool so if you swore at someone in another language it would have the same influence?’ Now that’s where things get tricky. Again. 

Fluency in a language is not something that has a set goal. You can’t give someone a sheet and say ‘once you can say all these words in context, then you’re fluent’. So when I say ‘when a Silvertongue is fluent in another language they can use their ability in it’, it’s a very vague guideline. 

Native languages can be Silvertongue-d up pretty quickly. Maybe a few years of babbling nonsense, but they’ll be demanding chocolate or whatever pretty quickly. Some people grew up with two languages anyway, so both of them can be used. Some people learnt later in life, and they can be used as well. But if your language education only comes from school? You’re not going to be able to influence anyone with that. 

It’s really a mind thing - if you feel confident in the language, you’ll be able to manipulate to your hearts content. 

‘Dude this is cool I wanna be a Silvertongue’ well too bad it’s a thing you’re born with you can’t learn it. And it’s not genetic, either, it’s just.. oh hey guess what you’ve got this thing that no-one else in your family has or will have. Good luck! 

I’ll level with you, I’m now running out of things to talk about in regards to Silvertongue abilities, so if you have any questions, feel free to let me know and I’ll come up with some answers for you. Until then, I’ll leave you with a cool drawing of my favourite Silvertongue;