The Language of Flowers- An Alternate Alphabet for Sigil Magic

One of the richest wells of Role-playing Game inspiration is the Podcast “Ken and Robin Talk About Stuff”. The witty discussions between these Writers and Game Designers (and Game Designers and Writers) greatly influence this blog. You can find their entire back catalog here: http://www.kenandrobintalkaboutstuff.com/

Last Friday, Ken and Robin gamified the Victorian hobby of Floral Language. I’ve wanted to do something with this weird little topic for a while but I couldn’t think of a good way to pull in something so… genteelly bizarre. During their discussion, Robin compared Floral symbolism to Runes in Gloriantha. His comment popped all the pieces into place for me. Why not make an alphabet of Flower symbols and meanings for Sigil magic?

Floriography
Floral Language (or floriography) is another example of the Victorian need to categorize. Various flowers and plants were assigned meanings and sentiments, so when arranged in bouquets the recipient could decipher a message from the sender. Victorian authors wrote hundreds of contradictory floral dictionaries, detailing a flowers use in history, literature, and society along with their interpretation of its symbolism
While young lovers used flowers to express their secret affections in a repressive society, I think the language of flowers could be used in a more arcane way in the world of Victoriana. Sigil Magic uses alphabets of symbols focusing the casters will to produce magic. A Floriography Dictionary could be used in the exact same way.

The Floriographical Alphabet

Acanthus- The fine arts, Artifice, Success
Anemone (Meadow) – Sickness, Forsaken, Withered hopes
Angelica- Inspiration or Magic, Ideas,
Balm of Gilead – Cure, Relief, Friendship
Belladonna- Silence
Clover, Red- Industry, Promise
Cress- Stability, Power
Cypress- Death, Mourning
Dianthus- Make haste, Intention,
Enchanters' Nightshade- Witchcraft, Sorcery,
Fig- Argument, Obstacle, Exchange
Golden Rod- Precaution
Hawkweed- Quick-sightedness
Holly- Foresight, Longevity
Jasmine, Yellow- Grace and elegance
Juniper- Protection, Walls, Ward off evil
Lavender- Distrust, Snakes, Hidden danger
Lotus- Eloquence
Manchineal Tree – Falsehood, Duplicity, Consequences
Meadow Lychnis- Wit
Night Convolvulus- Night
Oak Leaves- Bravery, Strength, Hospitality
Pennyroyal- Flee away.
Pine, Spruce- Hope in adversity, Daring, Elevation
Salvia, Blue- Wisdom
Southernwood- Jest, Bantering
Sycamore- Curiosity, Reserve, Secrets
Tamarisk- Crime
Thistle, Scotch- Retaliation, Sternness, Independence
Thorn, Branch of- Severity
Venice Sumach- Intellectual excellence, Splendor
Walnut- Intellect, Stratagem
Wheat Stalk – Riches, Abundance, Quality
Wormwood- Absence, Bitterness

All Flowers Symbols can be inverted for opposite effect.

As cool as it is to be a Sigil magician armed with a bouquet of flowers (or better a Tussie-Mussie), only pictures of or symbols representing the flowers are necessary for Sigil Magic to work. However flowers can be enchanted as Sigils provided the magic matches the flower's symbolism. A Walnut sprig can’t be a symbol for Holly no matter how hard you try.

Floral designs dominate the opulently romantic aesthetic of the Victorians. A clever sigil magician will be able to hide his symbols in plain sight. In a world full of floral wallpaper, prints, furnishings, and fashion, who notices an extra flower or two?

Example Sigil Descriptions:
A canvas needlepoint of a Sycamore blossom- +2 Dice to Lock Picking while trespassing
A coat button with a delicately carved Lotus bud- -3 Black Dice while talking in front of a crowd
A small stick figure of a Cypress tree drawn on an anatomist's chalk board- +1 Dice to finding clues on nearby dead bodies
A crude Juniper bush carved into the side of a carriage -2 Black Dice to Driving while being chased

My sample The Floriographical Alphabet contains just a few of the plants from the available Dictionaries. The Internet Archive has some great books, but my favorite one is The Language of Flowers by Robert Tyras from 1869. If you want to find more Floriographical symbols to use you’ll find a lot of fodder here: https://archive.org/details/languageofflower00tyas