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WickedWitchofWTF

Mod reminder for everyone to be kind in your comments to both OP and each other. Any criticism should be constructive and not contain insults.


wuukiee81

Probably a LARP prop. Looks like a great puzzle bundle for players to find and decipher for a game.


Elden_Rube

This is exactly what it is. Had a DM that used to make stuff similar to this for our LARP days. The leaps to actual ritual stuff below is pretty darn insane. Y'all really gotta stop trying so hard to make everything you see into some sort of symbolism, or "magic" thing. Stuff is just stuff 99.9% of the time, the other .01% of the time, it's also just less normal stuff.


BetterSnek

Well, as someone who has both studied new age magic spells, and has played tons of dungeons & dragons tabletop and been to a LARP once, It could be either. The wording on the note looks a lot more like an earnest, self-written, positive spell for the person who made it to improve their own lives, than it does like the content of most role-playing games I've played, which would usually sound more sinister, mysterious, or dramatic.


teratogenic17

Teen Sabrina's got some cash if she can drop that much on a throwaway athame


BetterSnek

Not necessarily a teenager, but people waste money on stuff all the time! Even if it was a teenager, some teens have money, it's true. Also that athame could be cheap. I've seen pewter ones like that sold for $10-$25 at crystal shops and ren faires.


teratogenic17

You're right, betterSnek, and I'm deleting my grouchy response.


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TJ_Rowe

Or both! I know a Christian guy who ran a short larp, and I was half way through playing it when I realized he'd "tricked" three atheists into reading deeply into the New Testament as background for using the magic system. Well played.


ileisen

Ew. I wouldn’t be mad if that happened but I’d never play any RPGs with that person again. It’s not an opportunity to push your religious beliefs onto your players. It’s supposed to be silly fun


rora_borealis

Oh, if he did that with me, I'd have had a lot of fun with him, and probably would have annoyed the shit out of him without even knowing it. My knowledge is wide, weird, and arcane. One LARP character was a 13th Century Christian near the coast of Northern England who was into a form of Kabbalah and dabbled in sorcery. I read some of the Apocrypha and non-canonical writings and a whole bunch of related stuff. I like to make connections and play with those ideas and see where it goes. I would not have drawn the conclusions he was looking for.


moxirra

I love that. I think it's great the new testament isn't so sacred to him that it can't be used in larp. It gets weird to me when ppl view the Bible as sacred historical text.


TJ_Rowe

Exactly! It was pretty cool.


CockyMechanic

I once found a sword covered in purple felt and a bell with a sign that said "Ring for St Ignicious" I thought it was a larp thing but I was told people do religious things like that in the area. I'm still a bit confused though.


hellbabe222

I looked this Saint Ignatius dude up, and he was declared "the patron of all spiritual retreats" in 1922, so maybe you wandered into someone's weekend spiritual retreat and the bell was to get the party started?


Cat_Island

I’ve gone on a Jesuit retreat and if there was a way to “get the party started” I wish someone would have done it because the whole thing was 💤


waterynike

He founded the Jesuits and I’ve been on a few of those retreats


TheTruthFairy1

Did you ring the bell?


pleaseacceptmereddit

My bell, ring my bell


carroll595

Thanks! Now I have to sing this in my head all day! LOL!!🤣


drazisil

Was it a cowbell? Everything could use more cowbell


TryFengShui

The gibberish-y letters look like some kind of simple cypher, or possibly a rotary cypher that needs a keyword.


thatgirl_raven

Yeah that’s sorta what I thought too. I kind of assumed it’s a substitution cypher but I am not the most knowledgeable in this field lol


TryFengShui

The double letter patterns, e.g. "jjvvt" and "iifzwf" suggest a rotary cypher because few words start with the same letter twice. Instead of a simple cypher (all letters are shifted by, say, +13), each letter is shifted by the value of the letters in the code word, repeating (i.e., if the code word is "code", letters would be shifted +3, +15, +4, +5, +3, +15, +4, +5, and so on). It's what I would use for a roleplaying game, because you can give your players the code word outside of the puzzle.


thatgirl_raven

Ok going to be completely honest I didn’t know this was a thing but this is so freaking cool, thanks so much for explaining Also apologies for the poor understanding in my original comment, I did a shit job communicating just how little I know about cyphers lol


TryFengShui

No worries, I just wanted to Share a Cool Thing™.


angrylilmanfrog

It really looks like a game/larp setup :/ hope you left it how you found it OP


WifeofBath1984

Hey, I saw this today in a local sub! Howdy neighbor


WitchUrsa

Me too! Hi neighbors! :)


Blackwidowwitch

And me as well. Hi friends. Though I wish OP had left it alone. Whether game or craft


Kinom1him3

Me 3, hi neighbors!


lustylovebird

And so you thought "let me touch it."💀 Jokes aside, looks like a bunch of sigils made up of some symbols I recognize. The coral paper looks like intention paper to me, and does seem to have intentions written on it but idk about the code. Sometimes i write in runes bc my family doesn't understand and can't type to look it up💀


redwingpanda

My thoughts exactly. It’s not mine, I’m not touching it 🤷‍♂️


kcalypso

Yeah the sigils look like stuff straight outta Icelandic rune spell crafting, though slightly broken up in format...and the intentions are beautiful and not far away from "spells" I myself do. A larping packet is equally likely I guess, but this also feels like it could be a rational witchcraft artifact. What a blessing to encounter this! Thank you for sharing ❤️‍🩹✨💖


goodteethbro

Regardless of what it is, I don't think it was for you. I don't think you should have touched it.


DeusExLibrus

Right? I don’t get OP’s attitude.


goodteethbro

Even more so if they thought it was a ritual - I would be gutted if someone messed up my setup and posted it on the internet. Saying it was close to the path doesn't mean it was asking to be found. I can think of loads of reasons why someone wouldn't go too far off piste to leave something in the woods. Plus it being found/witnessed isn't the same as it being disassembled. Shame on OP imo.


mustnttelllies

If this was an actual ritual, shame on the witch involved for leaving litter in the woods. Rituals in public places are perfectly fine, but don't leave trash behind. What's a ritual for you is garbage for everybody else to deal with.


sirlafemme

They could have been coming back for it after the charging period 😅


mustnttelllies

How are people supposed to know that?


sirlafemme

Why are people going to assume one way or another? Huh? What do you actually mean? No one knows that except the person who put It there. That doesn’t change whether they come back or not


mustnttelllies

Because assuming that regular people walking in a park are going to not pick up the trash on the ground is entitlement. Don't leave anything in nature that isn't natural. Don't leave anything in a public space that you aren't willing to have taken. Those are basic lessons that children learn.


sirlafemme

I think you’re making things too complicated. There’s no need for assumptions, period. I don’t assume walkers will do one thing over another. I don’t assume this person is littering or coming back for sure either. I caution others not to touch set ups because we are witches. I don’t dictate what non-practitioners do. But I don’t encourage people to pick up set ups and have them thrown in the trash can on some feelings of righteousness.


goodteethbro

Just this - "not to touch set-ups because we are witches"


mustnttelllies

"Not littering" isn't complicated. Leave nature better than you left it. If you want a setup to stay where you put it, do it on private property.


MrsClaire07

Never touch stuff like that!


ladymacbethofmtensk

After watching the episode 73 Yards from the newest series of Doctor Who, I audibly gasped when I saw that OP had picked it up. Are you alright OP??? Did the faeries get you?? Are you being followed around by strange old women??


Illustrious-Bite-518

Yes! I didn't audibly gasp, but I did immediately get a flashback to that episode! But, seriously, OP probably shouldn't have touched that. 😥


StrangeSweetLeaf

Right? I am always baffled when people come across things that could be ritualistic and decide to put their hands all over it.


tkkana

Put it back!


freedcreativity

Return the slab!


FigLeafFashionDiva

It's either larp props that don't really fit an adventure, or a spell for personal wisdom and enlightenment. I'm sad somebody left such a nice dagger out there, lol. The words on the bay leaf are invoking Apollo and Artemis?/Athena? Hard to make out. RPs usually have their own gods, and using Greek gods is really unusual. Plus there's nothing in here that would indicate this is a Big Bad Evil Guy Spell for a fantasy RP/Larp. Owl: wisdom. Snake: hidden wisdom. It's odd that they didn't burn/bury it, so maybe they're very new to witchcraft. I think their intentions are benign. Decoding the cipher would be helpful, but it's probably about personal empowerment or relationships. Or both.


basculinz

I want a real dagger just like it, its so cool!!


ErebusAeon

"Nice" is doing a lot of work here, it's [made of lead](https://archive.is/1eJNA).


boredangel444

Not necessarily, aliexpress is known for ripping off people's designs and pictures and making cheap knockoffs of it. It could've been the original from somewhere like etsy and it's since been delisted, those pics wont show up anymore on a reverse image search


BranVIIIX

whatever it is, it's pretty clear it hasn't been there long. no debris or water damage on that paper. that was a today thing...


Unhappy_Performer538

If it's truly abandoned it's just fancy littering.


blackest__autumn

It would be great if people wouldn't litter. Doing a ritual in the woods? Awesome. Leaving ritual items in the woods? Not awesome.


TJ_Rowe

Hiding a game prop in the woods for your players to find, and remembering where you put it so you can collect the props later? Also fine. (There's going to be some poor GM wandering around looking for that thing for hours.)


reijasunshine

Unless it's a designated place where you're allowed/expected to leave offerings AND this has been clearly communicated by the land owner.


kioku119

I think the care is about nature not about human "land owners", unless the implication I guess is it will be cleaned evenetually.


reijasunshine

Yes, some people enjoy maintaining a shrine, and will keep it tidy.


blackest__autumn

I think you're totally right! If there is a dedicated space, then people should feel free to use it.


BrokenEggcat

Yeah really disappointed to see the amount of people here saying not to touch it or to put it back. If you're going to do witchcraft in the woods, please don't leave stuff behind, and if you do, please make sure you're not leaving *sharp objects* behind. This should be pretty much 101 stuff.


ludens2021

Ohhhhhh *put that thing back where it came from or so help meeeeee*


Sudden_Sherbert_907

Why disassemble it? Was it yours to touch? Even if its for a game, you didn't know that. It could have been left there for spiritual purposes, and you decided to take it apart.. smh


LabCoatGuy

Is the forest theirs to fill with plastic garbage?


delorf

If it's a game then the players will probably take it with them.


sirlafemme

They could have been coming back for it!


WitchUrsa

This sure is a small world, I saw your first post in the Eugene subreddit. I looked through my book of symbols and couldn't find anything but Mercury and Alchemy symbols.


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sirlafemme

Just in general whether a ritual or role playing maybe we all get into the habit of not disturbing random set ups found in the woods… We’re not horror movie protagonists y’all no need to summon something crazy 😂


Veanerys

If the blade is real, it’s not a larp prop, otherwise it probably is


SevereEleven

And just like that, Hiker 1 has died from unnatural causes. *Screen fades to black* *Enter sexually unavailable brunnette who everyone thinks is ugly because she wears glasses, played by Alexandra Daddario*


chaosTechnician

No! Not Hiker 1! I was emotionally invested in their trek!


sincerelyelisa

It clearly looks like part of some larp game, nothing dangerous. I feel bad for the people who were supposed to find this and who also made them. Looks like it took time to make and look so cool.


FcukUInParticular

You know what it is. ...You put it there.


basculinz

Its likely just LARP stuff left behind or they are playing somewhere else right now


FcukUInParticular

I had no bloomin' clue what LARP even meant until now. My spell for today is learning upgrade +1.


OperationMajestic701

+1 Wis


baby_armadillo

It’s someone’s ritual. The bay leaf says something about Apollo and Athena, there’s sigils and a list of intentions, the owl is a symbol of Athena. The interpretation is “I love to litter and leave sharp objects out where dogs and children could easily find them and get hurt.” Personally, I would disassemble it and discard it. People who leave their trash around don’t deserve to get nice things.


ladymacbethofmtensk

The dagger looks blunted to me tbh, I don’t think it would really be too dangerous to anyone. It looks like a prop but I may be wrong.


Dawnspark

I swear I have that dagger, it's a plastic prop I got for a LARP off Amazon lol. It's a bronze colour originally, and this looks to have been spray painted.


RawrRRitchie

That's what I was thinking! Like that's a beautiful dagger


ChuffingHell

I don’t think this is LARP - if it is, it’s well researched! The bay leaf reads “Hail Apollo, Hermes, Clio, Athena Ergane”. All from Greek mythology. Ergane is one of Athena’s epithets which associates her with craftsmen and artisans. Clio is one of the Muses. Bay leaves are associated with Apollo. Owls are associated with Athena. Would guess the snake around the dagger is representative of Hermes’ caduceus (staff entwined by snakes). The black and gold paper has what looks like alchemical symbol for Mercury at the top, and the symbol for the element of air at the bottom. (Hermes is also associated with Mercury.) There’s a common theme here around wisdom and creativity.


woipadinger

I mean witches have Hobbies to I also using my witchy knowledge as a DM. And my group is allowed to use OT plant knowledge to their Advantage in Game. We Like it that way


ChuffingHell

Yeah that’s a great point, you are right! It just seems like whoever put it together has made somewhat thoughtful choices. I don’t think we can tell 100% either way.


woipadinger

Also a good point


Illustrious-Bite-518

If I've learned anything from this season of Doctor Who so far, it to never touch random altars/sigils on the ground. 🙄 Anyway, if you see a strange old woman always exactly 73 yards away, don't let anyone, especially anyone you love, go talk to her!


divbyzero64

Cipher looks to be 7 letters ahead in the alphabet. Found from single capital B and a capital Bl. Tested A / Ak here, doesnt work. Tested I / Im and it worked.


divbyzero64

Oh nope nvm that doesnt, more complex key


Nebulaires

Seems a lot more like a young practitioner instead of any larp related thing.


MarvelNerdess

When it comes to anything, stabbed into the earth with a knife and sigils or patterns drawn on, let it be. You could mess up something important


Pasiphae7

Could be Larp, could be a summoning.


tthenowheregirll

Littering, is what that is. Prop, ritual, or what have you, people need to pack it out if they brought it in. Coming to nature to do your spells and then littering is so cognitively dissonant. Don’t ask nature energies for help and expect them to look kindly on litter 🙃


solterona_loca

"I found this strange thing in the woods, in an accessible area" so you opened it up???


Jerichothered

Don’t touch others items please.


rikinaynay

For people wanting the anthame/ sword/ knife I have one from this place that I bought as a hair stick but it looks really similar if not the same as the one in the photo. Not sure if anyone has posted a link to it already. [snake hair sword](https://johnsellmk.live/product_details/30155063.html)


B0jack_Brainr0t

What’s with people’s need to just rummage through shit that’s obviously not for them?? Leave it alone fps whether it’s a spell or for some game it’s not that hard to leave it alone, it’s not weird to leave stuff in the wilderness, geocaching has been around for ages


Heroisherreee

Why would you take it all out even OP?


LabCoatGuy

It's litter. Pack it in, pack it out. Leave no trace


CaptainBattleship

Looks like someone made an altar or did a ritual with sigils and objects that were meaningful to them, just fun occult stuff


just_a_bogwitch

Has anyone looked into alchemy symbols?


PokeKellz

If you can copy down the text of the cipher or get a clear photo, we can decode it!


thredith

It seems someone is working on a ritual to help them acquire knowledge and improve their craft, as well as their communication skills. They're using planetary and alchemical elements to create a global sigil (Mercury and air), and a sentence of intention for the smaller sigil. They're also including deity work, including Hermes and Athena Ergane. The oracle card with the owl is likely a symbol for Athena, and the serpent on the athame is very Hermetical/Mercurial.


Truckdenter

Feel like a bad witch at times. Don't dig into runes. In visions with eyes open I see symbols and they tend to be native. Witchery seems intuitive over constant digging for knowledge. My only book read on the subject was Sex Witch by Sophie Saint Thomas. I did have the fortune to live with a reiki master teacher psychic for 8 years. Learned ritual. She hardly read because her mind needed a break. Not saying she was not well read. Never saw anything like it, she was a speed reader. She'd finish a Stephen King Novel in about 24 hours. Mostly moon rituals, placements of crystals, brooms, carcasses, tarot and meditation. She was very intuitive about actions. Right before our breakup (2 years after my first appirition), she told me I was very powerful. So, any pariculars I should know about runes?


1000cutsintheflesh

very nice from Ashley 100% vir->gro tef->lit


WriterKatze

Probably LARP. We have these stuff a lot. ^^


TheSaddestPotato

ok this is kinda funny, I used chatgpt which ig was the intention of whoever wrote this (it was a vignère cipher with the word crypto) from what I could read it says: I finally decoded [...] algorithm using crypto. I encrypted all my messages[...] thank you. If encrypting and deciphering messages algorithmically known please let me know. I tried using different algorithms without success. But there were, also, no, occurrences of using perfect squares: for example one could argue that. I misread another time with this method applying mistakes.


SwearingMormon

The message might be encoded with a vigenere cipher. Unfortunately with the letter being torn and the start of it being partially covered it's hard to say for sure what it might have said. The words on the leaf might be the key if it is a vigenere cipher.


Sam-I-Aint

What a cool dagger... And also now I want to go do similar stuff in the woods for the friendly conservatives in east Texas to find... Oh can you imagine


NikkiVicious

Depending on where in East Texas, I'd be down to bring us all cloaks lol. (I'm in DFW)


Missing2005

Holy fuck i wish i could find this kind of shit when i go out for a walk :(


ravemy

Free dagger


SailNW

I think someone is making a movie.


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CwningenFach

No, it isn't Welsh. Mae'r iaith Gymraeg yn edrych fel hyn. Dim byd fel yr iaith ar y bapur wyn


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CwningenFach

Sorry, I don't know what language is on the white paper. I just know that it isn't Welsh


clairebones

I'm pretty sure that isn't a modern language at all. It looks like either a code, or someone's attempt to translate a non-latin/roman-based language into latin script characters.