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Old 07-29-2016, 08:34 AM   #1
Tallor
 
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Default Genie Bottles... how expensive?

I recall an old line that the Cabal sometimes goes to the "Myth Parallels" to bottle up genies. I imagine there's some amount of magic involved to cram them in (or maybe they're just pressurized, since genies are gaseous..?), but the question remains--what kind of bottle would they use?

I came up with a few speculative answers!

Oil Lamp (TL2); $20, 2 lbs
Where it all began. Not really a true container, but thematically appropriate. Cabalists would use a reverse-burning process to force a genie into an "oil state" where they were effectively powerless until the lamp is relit.

Glass Bottle (TL1); $13.50, 4lbs
This is a one-gallon model, which should be big enough for magically-shrunken genies or a whole city of micro-creatures (see Kandor). It only has DR 1, so genie-wranglers would need a way to inert-ify the elemental to prevent an explosion.

Mason Jar (TL5); $7, 4lbs
Not much different from a glass bottle, but modern advancements make it much cheaper. The screw-on top is also much sturdier than earlier cork designs. Plastic versions could easily be DR 2+ vs crushing damage.

Vacuum Cleaner (TL6); $200, 20lbs
Oh the indignity of falling to a household appliance! A vacuum cleaner made for genies would need some serious modifications to keep it truly airtight. The other problem is finding an outlet!

Small Air Tank (TL6); $200, 15-20lbs
The original capsule could have been for balloon helium, thickened gasoline, or fire retardant, but it's all the same once empty. DR 2, with reinforcements to handle high pressures.

Containment Tube (TL9); $20,00, 400 lbs
This isn't much a "genie bottle" as it is a holding cell for creatures that can escape ordinary cages and unsealed habitats. It prevents escape but doesn't "bottle" the genie. It's extremely expensive, but nigh-indestructible to the powers of wind. DR 30+ Warranty void if wishes get involved.

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Honorable Mention:
Biohazard Suit (TL7); $500, 8lbs
The problem with most containers is that the genie is in one of two states: Inert/collapsed, or completely free. However, with a sigil-bound biohazard suit, a genie's gaseous state is contained without having them imprisoned, meaning they can still walk around, interact with humans, draw up ideas and attend board meetings--and all without immediately flying up through the air vents and escaping.
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Old 07-29-2016, 09:49 AM   #2
ericthered
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Default Re: Genie Bottles... how expensive?

And here I thought that this was about an artifact with all of the magical work already done for you...

where would I stick a genie?

  • a plastic water bottle is probably cheapest
  • A Tupperware may be awkward to get him in but would be a nice way to carry him
  • If I was scientifically minded the genie is ending up in a test tube
  • Medicine bottles would work well

Of course, if I'm looking for convenience, the end goal is to get him into a little key ring container so I can carry him around where-ever I go. These are generally sold as pill bottles, though you can also look for 'cash cans'.
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Old 07-29-2016, 10:22 AM   #3
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Default Re: Genie Bottles... how expensive?

By tradition, most of the bound genies were either tricked into binding themselves by cunning sha'irs or forced into servitude by an artifact grade device like the Ring of Solomon. And they were generally imprisoned for good reasons.
A device to which one has been bound like a fetish and compelled to perform repeated services for the user should be roughly priceless. One in which the user simply releases the genie and hopes that either its gratitude, a condition of its binding or a bargain struck for release, will persuade it to do something useful should be priced according to the number of bullets in the chamber. Where the character of the genie, its sanity and the conditions of the binding are in doubt, expect the bottle to be closer to hazardous paranormal waste than treasure - and even previously moderate spirits may have become resentful or even insane over the centuries - those which were evil to start with will be extremely bad news. It may take at least one, very carefully worded wish to prevent the genie, once free, from taking revenge on humanity, or even you as a proxy for the person that bound it. And if not you, then your friends, colleagues, descendants, livestock, possessions, business and customers... etc. etc.
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Old 07-29-2016, 07:04 PM   #4
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Default Re: Genie Bottles... how expensive?

I agree. Unless the container is a conjuring/binding item calling a specific, or maybe even generic, genie from their alternate reality.
This was a plot point in the webcomic, The Wotch. It's been years, but I believe things revolved around the one lamp being cursed where even if the genie wanted to grant wishes honestly, their magic would warp them badly.
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Old 07-29-2016, 07:08 PM   #5
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Default Re: Genie Bottles... how expensive?

I would say that any magic/enchantment required to create such holding devices would change energy costs based on thematic appropriateness.
R.A.W. Cabal seems mostly stuck around TL4/5 as tech max for magical purposes, so that limits options quite a bit.
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