Sigil Cant

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A

Adam An accomplice, a partner-in-crime.

Addle-cove A rather unfriendly way to call someone an idiot. "That addle-coved barkeep threw me out of the Styx Oarsman just for lighting a torch!" Also a noun, as in "He's an addle-cove!"

Air dancer Another term for air elementals. Air genasi usually take offence at this term.

Anarchist The more common name for members of the Revolutionary League.

Anthill A city or town. The Anthill is another name for the Hive Ward in Sigil.

Apple-chaser Someone willing to do anything, no matter how degrading, for any amount of money; named for the "road apples" left behind by Arcadian ponies in Sigil's streets.

Astral conduit A naturally-occurring wormhole through the Astral Plane which connects the Outer Planes to the Prime.

Athar One of Sigil's factions, also called the Lost. Its members believe that there are no true powers. Local priests would like them to get lost.

Athar at the Spire Someone who seems to be invulnerable.

B

Backring This Outer planar term has pretty much the same as "backwater" or "backwood" on the Prime.

Bad blood This term refers to an important, but truly despicable person. A pit fiend general might be called a "bad blood".

Bad neighbourhood A term often used for the gate towns to the evil and chaotic planes, mostly a lawful and good term. Plague-Mort is a bad neighbourhood, naturally.

Bally Crazy, silly, bizarre, obscure. "Bally sod!" The term is used more by upper class Cagers and high-ups than by your average tout or quipper. The latter tend to use sodding; bally is less crude.

Bang around To hang around, or waste idle time. Between adventures, bashers sometimes "Bang around the Cage".

Bar that An almost-polite way to say "shut up" or "don't talk about that." It's quick, to the point, and can be used as a warning: "Bar that, there's a Dustman over there!"

Bark To give word, to betray. "They knew we were coming. Some berk barked."

Barkle Originally, nonsense, or something that would be laughably passed off as such. Recently, though, it has become a term used by skilters and Indeps for the psychological babble of those who do belong to a faction.

Barmy Insane. As in, "The winds of Pandemonium'll drive a body barmy if he stays too long." Barmies are insane folks, especially those in Sigil, who've been "touched" by the impossible size of the planes.

Barmy as a Spire god Powers lose all their might at the spire, so such a berk would be really really barmy...

Barrikin Chatter, shouts or shouting: "Where's that barrikin coming from?"

Basher A neutral reference to a person, usually but not always, implying a thug or fighter.

Bauble Electrum coin (see Economy of the Planes for more details).

Be open to Be wary, keep track of, stay on guard, keep your eyes open or peeled "Be open to that one, he's a scriber".

Beat by the monkeys To be badly beaten by hoards of individually pathetic creatures. The expression is believed to be derived from an event that occurred to a cutter who was severely injured by a hoard of angry spider monkeys. However, it's also used commonly by fiends referring to fellow fiends who're defeated by humanoids...

Beau-nasty A slovenly fop; one finely dressed, but dirty. This term's also used to refer to fiends, who appear nice on the surface, but are nasty bashers underneath.

Beef To cry beef, to give the alarm; "They've cried beef on us!"

Before there were tieflings A very long time ago.

Believe well Goodbye, farewell.

Believers of the Source One of Sigil's factions, also called the Godsmen. They believe that all people have got the potential to become a power, if they try.

Belly of the (brick) beast Dungeon. "Throw all the knights of the post, cross-traders, and barmies into the belly of the beast, and Sigil will be emptier than a Cipher's head."

Berk A fool, especially someone who gets himself into a mess when he should have known better.

Birdcage A cell, prison, or anything that compares to one.

Biter Anybody very short and very, very mean. Insult. "Don't mess with Urdlen's proxies. They're vicious biters."

Bite the iron To be murdered or slain in a vicious manner. "That sodding berk's gonna bite the iron if he tries bobbing a baatezu!"

Black diamond, bought the To be ripped off or cheeped, commonly by an appraiser, but also by merchants or traders.

Bleak Cabal A factions with despondent members and a view that reckons life is meaningless. Also known as the Bleakers, the Cabal, or the Madmen.

Bleed An expression of distaste or disgust. "They've put me on Hive patrol? That bleeds!" Additionally, a bleeder is a reference to anyone the speaker dislikes. It's also the name given to members of the Society of Pain, a Gehennan sect.

Bleeding cully One who parts easily with his money, especially a cony who's been bobbed.

Blek (sometimes blex) In polite company, faeces. Also dirt, slime, sewage, or any other disgusting smelly material. Derived from the name of the tanar'ri lord of slime, Jubilex. "You might want to scrape your boots, it looks like you've stepped in a pile o' blek."

Blinds The dead-ends of the Mazes, but also meaning anything impossible or hopeless, as in "You'll hit the blinds if you try lying to the factol."

Blitz To go through a portal, usually rashly or hastily. It's not the best thing to say to any experienced planewalking blood, if you value your ears.

Blizzard in Baator Used to describe something rare or unusual, as in "a friendly fiend is as rare as a blizzard in Baator." (Note: This saying is not entirely rooted in fact, since two layers of Baator - Stygia and Cania - have blizzards quite often. Likely, the phrase was coined by a clueless who had never been to Baator - which proves he was smarter than most clueless).

Blood An expert, sage, or professional in any field. Calling someone a blood is a sign of deep respect.

Blood War, the The name given to the eternal conflict between the fiends, specifically the baatezu and tanar'ri.

Blood of the War, the A title of the mysterious General of Gehenna. Used mostly by yugoloths.

Bloodbath A gathering of powerful high-ups and bloods, usually indicating that something dangerous or important is happening. Wise cutters avoid 'em. Ambitious cutters seek 'em out.

Bloodcrow A person who scavenges the battlefields of the Blood War, looking for treasure, saleable chant, or food, as in "The place was already full of bloodcrows when we arrived on the scene."

Bloodlust A romantic attraction to one of the less pleasant fiendish races (i.e. chasme, piscoloth, gelugon, etc.: "He's got the bloodlust for Tazmould the thorned."

Blood-town A village, town or city which is the property of a race of fiends and is populated mainly by them (Jangling Hiter is a good example).

Bloody halo, to have a Often used to express that a celestial is a very dangerous warrior. The expression connotes that the celestial is more likely to resort to violence and that the celestial is an extremely dangerous foe.

Bob The business of cheating someone, whether it's of their cash, their honour, or their trust. Good guides in Sigil warn a cutter when someone's bobbing him. A thief might boast he'd "bobbed a leatherhead on the street".

Bob up To raise the price of something anticipating or during especially high demand of an item. Such as the following: "Zounds, ever since that last brawl with the Harmonium broke out here, seems Akin's been bobbing up the jink for his wares, ain't he?"

Body "A body" is the planar way of saying "someone".

Bolt, or do the bolt Run, flee the scene. "He saw the Hardheads coming and did the bolt."

Bone-box The mouth, named because of its teeth, fangs or whatever. "Stop rattling your bone-box", is telling a berk to lay off the threats or bragging.

Book-burners Derogatory name for the Athar, derived from their treatment of holy books and religious libraries.

Born with a sneer Overly cynical, said by many a prime about all planars!

Box A rogue modron.

Boxed, getting Dead, getting.

Boxer An armour or craftsman who is capable of crafting armour or packs for rogue modrons.

Boxes and pieces, in Dead. This comes from either being in a coffin, or the obvious alternative.

Brain-box This refers to a cutter's head, usually in a crude or uncomplimentary way. "Go soak your brain-box", is a common phrase in Sigil, and "He banged his addled brain-box on it" means a berk finally figured something obvious out.

Branch out To use Yggdrasil as a means of travel. "I took a portal to Ysgard, then I branched out to Elysium."

Break-teeth words Hard words, difficult to pronounce. Lower planar languages are often referred to as "break-teeth tongues".

Bribe the bellman Generally used by those who don't wish to pay the music, and avoid doing so by garnishing the proper authorities. Also so used by those few who have managed to escape the demon of the bells of the Temple of the Abyss.

Brick beast Any very massive and ugly building. "Timson just got scragged by the Hardheads; they're taking him down to the brick beast!"

Brick in the wall A faceless member of an organisation. The term has been used to apply to faction namers, servants at the Hall of Information, baatezu soldiers, modrons, and the like. "All in all, he's just another brick in the wall."

Bridle-cull Highwayman, Outlands bandit.

Bring to the circle To serve as an equaliser. "Oh, yes, Maerfor; two years ago you did defeat me. But now my staff shall bring you to the circle!" The term comes from the story of a planar warrior who was challenged by a superior-but-clueless magician to combat. The prime boasted he could beat his rival "anywhere, anytime" and the crafty planar choose to move the battle close to the Spire. After a long journey the warrior simply pounded his powerless opponent's brain-box.

Bub Booze, wine or ale -- usually cheap and barely drinkable.

Bub-bawling Phrase used to describe the screed that passes a bubbers lips when their tongues are loosened by the drink. As in "Stop your bub-bawling berk, the rotgut's got a hold on your tongue."

Bubbed till the pitchers' empty Very, very drunk. So drunk that the bubber's actually sweating out the bub through their skin. A particularly common state of consciousness for patrons of Lower Ward alehouses.

Bubber A drunk, especially one who's fallen on hard times. Bubbers get little sympathy from most Cagers.

Bubber-box Any jail cell set aside for allowing belligerent bubbers to "sleep it off"

Buckley's chance No chance at all. "Between no chance and Buckley's" is worse than no chance...

Burg Any town smaller than Sigil, in size or in spirit -- at least that's how folks from Sigil see it. Other bodies don't agree.

C

Cage, the A common nickname for Sigil, used by the locals. It's derived from "birdcage", so it's a pretty harsh judgement on the place.

Cager A native or resident of Sigil.

Cagestruck The expression of cluelessness which newcomers to Sigil always exhibit.

Cake An annoying irony. From the phrase "You can't have your cake and eat it too." Mostly used to refer to something sought after only to be found it's useless.

Cake, piece of A piece of chant that's very misleading. "Hey, I heard there's a jinkscore down that alley." The alley leads to an angry tanar'ri. "You've been given a piece of cake, sod."

Cake, score some Most often used to refer to large hordes of jink that turn out to be useless, or hazardous in some way, shape, or form. i.e. Scoring some jink of a traveller only to find it's fool's gold, or tanar'ri weapons that vanish as soon as the owner leaves the Abyss. "He just scored some cake."

Cakewalk, take a Used to define something that is very easy to accomplish, but has disastrous effects -- to cross a bridge that leads to a trapped door or an ambush is a cakewalk.

Can A fiendish term for a mortal in heavy armour or a modron. This word is particularly awful to those sick of puns about canned food.

Canny Smart or talented.

Case The house or place where a cutter lives. Has a positive connotation as a nice or decent place.

Castling A derogatory term used tanar'ri for the defensive movements of a Baatezu army, where the commander is often highly defended and in a rear-line position. Naturally, the term derives from the game of chess. "We won't have a chance to make Dri'in a bloody smear if he keeps castlin'!"

Catch a ratatosk To trip and fall in a particularly nasty way. As in: Ailian tried to sneak stealthily through the shadowed alley, but slipped on a wet stones and caught a ratatosk with her face.

Catch a skeg Get a look: "If you catch a skeg at the portal key, be sure to let me know."

Celestial An intelligent being native to the Upper Planes. Includes aasimon, archons, eladrin, guardinals, and more.

Centre of the Multiverse A place that doesn't exist; there is no true "centre of the Multiverse." No matter where a body stands, he's at the centre of things (at least from his perspective).

Chant, the An expression that means news, local gossip, the facts, the moods, or anything else about what's happening. "What's the chant?" is a way of asking for the latest information a basher's heard.

Chaosmen A nickname for the Xaositects.

Checking The act of assailing the position held by an important yugoloth or baatezu commander. The term is derived from chess.

Chessboard, the Another name for the Lady's Ward. So called because of the chequered marble floors in the high up's houses of that same ward. Also, a slang term for those Lower Planes within which the Blood War armies clash. The chessboard can also refer to a specific battlefiend. "Go and find where on this pikin' chessboard the baatezu regiment is hiding!"

Chessman An important fiend warrior, especially one the chessman's opponents are specifically seeking to destroy. See chessboard. "Captain, I've seen the molydeus! The chessman's 'cross Bloodbriar ridge!"

Chit A cutter of the female sort.

Chiv A weapon, usually something with a blade.

Ciphers A nickname of the Transcendent Order faction, used because most folks don't know what they're talking about.

Clean as the Foundry Used in reference to illegal or illicit goods and services. Often used sarcastically when a cross-trader sells to a clueless prime.

Climbing for Sigil A saying evolved from "spire climbing". Someone who tried to reach Sigil by climbing the spire would either be totally barmy, or be a blood with great profession and constitution, or both (in any case, he'd be wasting time).

Clueless The folks who just don't get it, usually primes. Use this on a planar and there's likely to be a fight. It's also an adjective, like calling someone a "clueless berk."

Codger Old man or woman. Not always complimentary, but sometimes a term of endearment. "Ah Elminster's just a good ol' codger!"

Colour pool Portals on the Astral Plane that grant access to the Outer Planes and Prime Material.

Conduit riding, conduit rider Planewalkers from the Outer Planes who travel to the Prime Material Plane, especially if they do so often. "Brax doesn't know the Gray Waste from gray paste, but he's one hende conduit rider."

Cony A prime, or a generally naive berk. Someone easily peeled and bobbed. Victims of cony-catchers.

Cony-catcher Con-men, tricksters or thieves looking for someone to peel.

Cordance, panes of The Mechanus - Outlands - Limbo triad of planes. Between the Upper and the Lower Planes; the Law/Chaos equivalent of the Planes of Conflict. Also called the Cordants or the Purgatories. Formally, Mechanus is the Plane of Concord, Limbo the Plane of Discord, and the Outlands the Plane of Concordant Opposition (which suggests maybe those primes weren't quite so clueless after all...)

Cordians A collective name for the modrons, rilmani and slaad; planeborne creatures who are neither good nor evil in morals. It's not a term that's used often, because it's rare that anyone needs to refer to these three races in the same sentence.

Coster Stall holder in the Great Bazaar (particularly a food stall). Also costermonger.

Counting [portals, layers in the Abyss etc.] Wasting time. i.e. "How was your last mission?" "Great, they made me count layers in the Abyss." Or when you're wrongfully brought in by the Harmonium "Where were you last week?" "The Hardheads made me count portals."

Counting worms Dead.

Creature of belief The Guvners' technical term for the major immortal races of the planes, collectively (that is, archons, guardinals, eladrin, modrons, rilmani, slaadi, baatezu, yugoloths, and tanar'ri, all creatures powered by, and "made of" mortal beliefs)

Cross piking Planewalking via natural ability, such as the githzerai planeshift, or teleport without error. "You know, I haven't seen the fiends cross piking much lately."

Cross-trade The business of thieving, or anything else illegal or shady in nature. A "cross-trading scum" is a thief who's got on the wrong side of the Mercykillers.

Crow feeder An executioner or assassin. Someone who kills for another.

Crow's mile The walk of the condemned to the place of his execution. Often, in Sigil, this is converted to the "Wyrm's Mile" or the "Wyrm's Walk." "Garn cross-trader! Today's the day you walk the crow's mile!"

Crude Inner planar slang for a Prime.

Cut his/her knees out The act of humiliating someone who thinks they are high and mighty. Taken from the following occurrence: A prime elf doing an intricate sword dance and smirking; an ice mephit leaning down and shredding his legs below the knees with his breath.

Cutter A complimentary term that refers to anybody, male or female. It suggests a certain amount of resourcefulness or daring, so it's a lot better than calling someone a berk.

D

Dancing with slaadi Indicating that someone is completely, utterly and irreversibly barmy. "Sath? Don't bother asking him, he's dancing with slaadi, he is." or "I'll dance with the Slaad before I hear the end of this!"

Dark Anything secret is said to be dark. "Here's the dark of it" is a way of saying "I've got a secret and I'll share it with you."

Dazzle Magic, particularly that with a flashy effect. A dazzler is a wizard or spell-casting priest.

Dead, the Another name for the Dustmen.

Dead-book A body in the dead-book is dead. Some people have others "put in the dead-book".

Deader Anyone in the dead-book.

Deadman's tree A term referring to any gallows.

Defiers Another name for the Athar.

Delivering the mail An assassination attempt.

Diabolate A baatezu of pit fiend status or higher, especially one of the real high-ups in the Dark Eight, or a Lord of the Nine.

Diced When a body takes a chance, she is said to have diced. You can also take a dice. "Lierna sure took a dice when she blitzed through that Limbo portal."

Dip, to take a To take a trip to the Elemental plane of Water.

Dip, Deep Being thrown out of the City of Glass (or any other safe place) out into the plane of Water without equipment to survive. More generally, to be flung into a plane involuntarily, against which a basher isn't adequately protected. "I fell through a portal and took a deep dip in Gehenna!"

Dirty halo, to have a A polite way to express that a celestial or paladin has fallen from favour (or completely fallen). Alternatively, if said about a fiend, it implies that the fiend is risen.

Dizzy Air genasi term for a sod who can't seem to get the hang of subjective gravity. Commonly used by airship captains on their crewmen.

Dizzy-tickled Filled with or confused by randomly thrown magic, often by primes. Very common on Air. Inner Planar Cant.

Doomguard A faction in Sigil that believes in entropy and decay. Also called the Sinkers.

Doughty up To dress up, disguise, or impersonate someone. "Doughty up as a tout and we can go bob some poor berk blind."

Drape To betray a body to the Hardheads. "Kig had better not drape me now that I've told him all about our plan."

Dreamer Inner Planar slang for an Outer Planar.

Dustmen One of the factions of Sigil. They basically believe everybody's dead. They're also called the Dead.

E

Earn a page or earn a book To learn a valuable lesson. Most commonly used when a cutter picks up some dark without suffering too much for it.

Empty bubbles, the Descriptive slang term for Agathion, last layer of Pandemonium. Also any place that's hard to get to and (in the speaker's opinion) invariably not worth the effort.

Emptying, empty The process of losing one's belief and finding nothing, thus accepting the Bleaker's viewpoint. Often Bleakers claim emptying is the path to enlightenment. Alternatively, emptying can include losing a dearly held belief, like losing faith in a power, a lover, a friend, or a family member. "Poor sod; when he caught Tyria with Jackorn it completely emptied him."

F

Fabled Someone more respected than even a Graybeard, who's been around the Wheel a long time and seen and done just about everything while somehow staying alive. Fabled bods are well known around the 'verse.

Faction One of the fifteen philosophical groups that rule Sigil.

Factioneer A general term for any faction member.

Factol The leader of a faction.

Factor One of the factol's high-up advisors, or a body who's devoted his life to the faction. Usually in the highest position of power in a faction, and often considered for the job of the factol if the old one steps down or is otherwise removed.

Factotum A dedicated member of a faction.

Faith mine, the The Prime Material Plane.

Faith-fool Athar term for priests and clerics.

Faithful as a Sensate Evolved from the cliché that a Sensate wouldn't keep his word if he would miss a new sensation. Originally, this saying was "Faithful as a Tanar'ri", but people found out Sensates don't kill and torture as soon as the fiends (still, most Sensates don't really like this saying).

Faithless An outer-planar term for an inner-planar native, stressing the "superiority" of the Outer Planes due to the presence of belief.

Fated, the A faction that holds that if they've got something, it's because it belongs to them. This doesn't always sit well with others. Fated are also called the Takers or the Heartless.

Feeding the crows Killing for hire. "I've just got a job feeding the crows for Trav'll the Loan Shark. Seems he needs an example made of some berks."

Feeding the Wyrm The act of executing a prisoner. Specifically, it's a unique type of execution carried out by the Mercykillers.

Fiend Primarily refers to baatezu, yugoloths, gehreleths, hordlings and tanar'ri, but sometimes includes any intelligent beings native to the Lower Planes (night hags, imps, quasits, and the like).

Fiend of blades, the A sage of the Fraternity of Order, one Miles Maccaber, often gave the Lady of Pain this title (apparently, he put a lot of stock in the popular theory the the Lady is an ascended fiend). Seeing as Maccaber didn't die a bloody death by flaying (in fact, he died of old age) we can only assume that the Lady didn't object to this title.

Fiend-food Used as part of a warning to someone planning to make a trip to a Lower Plane (especially a dangerous part), as in, "Sure, go to Darkspire; you'll be lucky if you don't end up as fiend-food."

Fhorgers Derogatory name for the Believers of the Source. The pun should be obvious, linking forge masters to the planar warthog, but there's a second meaning which implies that Godsmen also cheat on their many life-tests.

Finger (verb) This technically means to sift through or sort out, like "He's fingering through his brain-box for information." But most people use it around less wholesome pursuits or senility: "That old codger has to finger his notes just to sit down!" or "Those bashers are heading out to finger through the boneyard, we should scrag 'em"

Fingerpaints Low-level magics, often used in reference to illusions. Comes from magic being referred to as "The Art". "Don't fret about that light show; it's just some apprentice fingerpainting."

Flam Idle stories, useless information: "Watch out for that tout Skorrig, He'll fill your brain-box with flam."

Foam, foaming, to foam Angry like a rabid yeth hound foaming at the mouth, e.g.. "That berk's foaming, better not go near him".

Foamed up Upset or annoyed (an expression from the Plane of Water).

Fold Originally used to describe deliberate altering of anything. e.g. "That folded map you bought ain't worth the jink you paid for it." Also, colloquially describes harm done to another being. e.g. "The Mercykillers sure folded that berk."

For the Mazes Absolutely and completely fed up. Meaning a blood would rather be in the Mazes than the position they're in now. "I'm for the mazes if the Sinker-Sensate alliance sticks!"

Fourish Stubborn, refusing to listen to new ideas: "Don't be so sodding fourish!" From the close-mindedness of Inner Planars, many of whom refuse to believe in the Rule of Threes, pointing instead to the "fourishness" of the Inner Planes.

Fourth rule An exception. Refers to the so-called unwritten rule of the Multiverse: There's an exception to every rule. "A githzerai who likes githyanki? He's fourth rule."

Fraternity of Order A faction in Sigil, also called the Guvners. They believe that knowing physical laws gives a cutter power over everything. They're not the kind of folk to argue logic with.

Ful Very, extremely, completely and utterly. "Those baatezu Hardheads were ful angry when we gave them the laugh!"

G

Gad Many, a lot of. "That prime's got a gad of jink on him!"

Galbas Spirit, moxie, occasionally a reference to male anatomy. "Man, the way you stared down that pit fiend took real galbas."

Game of chess Usually, this term is used by lawful berks, means a plan, or rarely even life itself (was used long ago and not usually used now) As in: "Lets hope our game of chess succeeds, or it'll mean Hardheads after us..."

Game, the A polite reference to interplanar politics; it is considered bad form for all but the most top-shelf bloods to use this term. The term comes from a time when a fiend supplicant reverently asked an ancient pit fiend what it was like leading a regiment in the First Command.

Gannet An indiscriminate eater, particularly referring to someone not of tiefling descent. Implies that the eater is a glutton and would eat or consume anything placed in front of them. Wooly Cupgrass has been described as a gannet by some. Anyone not of pure fiendish ancestry who eats the food from Comstock's Kitchen is a gannet (or just tired of living).

Garnish A bribe, as in "Give the petty official a garnish and he'll go away".

Gate Another term for a portal. All gates in Sigil are generally called portals. The term is also used in a general sense to describe any sort of passage between one plane and another.

Gate-town A burg on the Outlands that has a gate to another Outer Plane. Each plane has one gate-town, and the town often has the same basic appearance, outlook, and attributes as the inhabitants, architecture and terrain of the corresponding plane.

Gearhead Slang term for a modron. Suprisingly, modrons don't seem to mind the term...but I wouldn't use it near Regulus. You never know where in that place it's illegal to give modrons nicknames.

Geartown A nickname for The Fortress of Disciplined Enlightenment, a city on Mechanus which is home to the Guvners. Used mostly by non-Guvners, but sometimes used by low-ranking members of the faction. (They don't seem to mind the nickname).

Gearward A term used on the Outlands in a manner similar to cardinal directions on the Prime. Towards Mechanus, but not necessarily pointing directly towards that plane. Example: 'Tradegate's gearward of Faunel.'

Gelt Money, jink, usually referring to small change (greens, stingers and the like). It ain't usually used for larger amounts.

"Guilt is good. Gelt is better."

- Factol Rowan Darkwood

Ghost A prime who visits the planes via astral spell. Since it involves little physical risk on the prime's part, it's often considered cowardly and even distasteful by planars (the prime hasn't even deigned to come to the planes with his actual body). The term "cord babies" is also used, though less often.

Ghostwalking Travelling the Border Ethereal (sometimes inaccurately used to indicate other methods of insubstantiality)

Giant's pace Strong, cheap ale that can "kill a man at a giant's pace."

Give 'em the laugh To escape or slip through the clutches of someone. Robbing a tanar'ri and not getting caught is giving it the laugh.

Give the rope What happens to condemned criminals who don't manage to give the law the laugh. Usually thieves are the only folks who use this term.

Gleaming pip A worthless small-time thief or a pickpocket. It's considered an insult to both honest cutters and thieves who see themselves as a cut above the rest.

Glooming Depressing: "There's some real glooming news in S.I.G.I.S. this week."

Go flip a fork This has the obvious meaning of "pike it" but also implies that the person who is being spoken to is immature and perhaps a bit bratty (the kind of person who would, in a crowded tavern, flip a fork just to cause trouble).

Go hug razorvine Get lost!

Go kiss a succubus Get lost! But cutter, if you're going to die, it might as well be this way

Go roll your cap This term is used mainly to tell someone to pike it and get lost. It's an insult, although a soft one.

Go to the Mazes An idiomatic curse meaning "go away", and wishing a terrible fate upon the berk as well.

Godsmen Another name for the Believers of the Source.

Godswalk Toril, coined after the Avatar Crisis.

Godvoid Athas, Krynn, or the Athar faction, depending on who you ask.

Golem's bed A corpse, or more specifically someone crushed under a dying enemy. "That archer thinks he's gonna slay that pit fiend, but if he does it'll lay on him like a golem's bed..."

Golem's truth A secret that must be kept on pain of death. Chant goes it comes from the use of the Prime word "emet", or Truth, to animate a golem, and the fact that erasing the first letter of it yields "met", or Death. Many golems have the word emet written on their foreheads, when it can be erased by their makers, in case the animation process goes wrong... Another explanation is that this comes from the children's' saying that if a secret isn't kept, "The golems'll get you."

Got a good gate key Someone who owns a good gate key would surely be a busy guy, travelling from adventure to adventure all through the Planes... and he'd either be dead soon, or a real blood (even then always in danger, though). Someone who's "got a good gate key" as per the saying would be someone always stumbling upon interesting new things, getting into trouble, etc., even without being responsible for it.

Gour Head chef, abbreviated from 'gourmet chef'. "That gour at the Styx Oarsman's an ugly cuss - chant goes he's a vaporighu spawn. A real thing of no bowels."

Grail False information: "That addle-cove speaks nothing but grail."

Graybeard A sage or scholar of high renown. This term refers to the stereotypical wizened old man but can apply to any learned intellectual, even female ones! Graybeards have been around a while and know what they're talking about.

Greased pigs, or greasers Derogatory term for the Mercykillers, implying that they can be easily greased or bought off.

Great Ring, Great Wheel The Outer Planes, often depicted in maps and diagrams (which are often misleading) as a ring. This also refers to their infinite size, another allusion to the endlessness of a ring.

Great Road A series of permanent, always-active gates scattered throughout the Outer Planes. The Great Road connects all the Outer Planes, although the gates themselves are so spread out it's said it would take many lifetimes to walk the entire Great Road. A few of the gates are linked by paths, but most are not connected in any way.

Great Void The Quasi elemental Plane of Vacuum.

Green A copper coin (see Economy of the Planes for more details).

Grinner Colloquial term for a Mimir, as in "Hold it there grinner - I want the chant on who to be peery of and who to garnish. Not some damn slaad-story of yours."

Groke, the Elusive, not quite definable. Those who're dead or appear to have lost their memories (to the Styx) and are otherwise unable to be identified are sometimes referred to as 'Groke' much in the manner of 'John Doe'. See the Cage Rattlers page for details on the real Groke.

Gully A potential victim of a peel, a gullible sod.

Guvners A nickname for the Fraternity of Order.

H

Half-a-turn back A while ago, long enough ago to be difficult to be precise, but still in recent memory. Typically used to describe anything that occurred much less than a turn or two ago. See also a turn or two.

Half-head Not all there, a few bricks short of a wall, a half wit.

Halfspire A plan or endeavour that would by its very nature would attract extremely strong opposition. Also, to embark upon such an endeavour. Supposedly inspired by a famous quote, though nobody remembers what the quote was, or who said it.

Happy as a gehreleth's bride In a very foul mood indeed. If you can't work that one out, you've clearly not seen a gehreleth!

Hardheads A less-than friendly term for the Harmonium faction.

Hark To listen. "Hark to that! Sounds like a fhorge."

Harmonium A faction of the planes, also called the Hardheads by their detractors. The faction slogan could be "do it our way or no way".

Having the right spell key on the wrong plane Having really bad luck.

Heartless, the Another name for the Fated.

Hende An adjective meaning a real blood. "She's the hendest tiefling this side of Baator, and no mistake." Unhende is conversely worse than addled, clueless and leatherheaded put together!

Hercules' pillar The absolute limit of what's plausible (on the planes, this can be a long way): "I've got nothing against what the Dustmen do, but their screed about being dead already really is past Hercules' pillar."

High-up Powerful. This refers to a spell, position, or anything else with plenty of power that can theoretically be measured. A person of money and influence. Factols, for example, are high-ups. It's bad form to call one's self this; it's a phrase that others bestow.

Hipped Stranded. "Hipping the rube" means stranding someone by sending them through a one-way portal.

Holding the halos To have the power to use celestial allies. Often, this term is used exclusively by or about lower planar commanders. "Powers of Night, the Archons better come soon! I thought the commander said we were holdin' the halos!"

Honey-peeler The honey-peel is the act of fooling or manipulating an individual through seduction, though honey-peel generally connotes that the honey-peeler is of fiendish origin. "Man, I tell ya', the worst part's that you've gotta worry that any pretty face is a honey-peeler."

Horde, the A common lower-planar term for the Tanar'ri... well... horde!

Hotter than a balor's breath Being so angry that you want to put everybody in a ten-foot radius into the dead book.

Howl Particularly loud or obnoxious rumours, especially from barmies or mephitmen: "Ah...don't mind Drango. He gets a pot of bub in him and he always spouts the howl." Also, to profess particularly loud or obnoxious rumours. Derived from the noises of the winds in Pandemonium: "Hells' bells! That imp's been howling about the Lady for hours. It's a wonder he's still standing."

Hunt heads To murder or assassinate. "The scratcher's head hunting again. They've found another victim."

Hunted in the Cage Sigil, the Cage, often becomes a hide-out for those who have angered a power, the fiends, or someone else really powerful. If such a person gets hunted even in the Cage - the cutter is in real trouble.

I

Idea-pot Head, brain, or skull. Often used in vulgar comparison to chamber pots. "If you'd used your idea-pot instead of your cess-pot for once, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

Indeps The common name for members of the Free League.

Inker An inker is one who records or reports events through writing, i.e. a Guvner scribe, a Merkhant debt-recorder, or a writer for S.I.G.I.S.

Inner Planes The Elemental Planes (Air, Earth, Fire, Water), the Paraelemental Planes (Ice, Magma, Ooze, Smoke), Quasielemental Planes (Ash, Dust, Lightning, Mineral, Radiance, Salt, Steam and Vacuum) and the Energy Planes (Positive and Negative). They are planes of elements and energy, as opposed to those of concepts and alignments.

It's a demiplane Meaning "I don't know" or "I don't care" e.g. "Hey, umm... 'cutter'... where's Thoth's Laboratory?" "It's a demiplane."

"Where's Ravenloft?" - Puzzled planewalker

"It's a demiplane." - Herian Fypgar, a cynical bariaur, who's right for once

Ivories Powers. Cager Rhyming Slang: Ivory Tower = Power.

J

Jangled up Generally refers to the state of being both upset and confused, but can be used for either one of them alone for example, "I'm going to jangle him up a bit," or "You look awfully jangled up." It's normally only used for relatively minor cases, and as such is sometimes be used to say that you're in pretty good shape, given the circumstances, as in "I'm pretty jangled up, but I'll live."

Jark A copy or forgery. A jarkman creates jarks, but so do leaf-binders.

Jark jink Counterfeit coinage. "Watch that cross-trading costermonger close, cutter, he'll slip you jark jink for change if you're not peery."

Jarkman Forger.

Jaw dice Teeth.

Jester A slick thief, spy, or other rogue that constantly gives authorities the laugh. Beringe, the Anarchist, for one.

Jinglings Coin purse "You best keep your jinglings close, berk, if you plan on going to the bazaar."

Jink The goal of the poor: money or coins. "That's going to take a lot of jink!" means an expensive bit of garnishing. For specific cant coin names, see greens, stingers, baubles, jinx, and merts.

Jinkbasher A mercenary. Can be classified by amount demanded for services, from "greenbasher" to "mertbasher."

Jinkflip A moneychanger.

Jink-monger A disreputable money lender. This term is considered a serious insult to honest bankers (if there is such a thing).

Jinkscore Often used to refer to large hordes of jink, or places to find jink. "That blaster's a real jinkscore."

Jinkskirt or jinkshirt A prostitute. The term refers both to the price such bashers can be had for, and to their habit of jinking their skirts up or unbuttoning their shirts to attract customers. There are further variations: a greenshirt is the lowest kind of male streetwalker and a mertskirt is a high-priced, Lady's Ward doxy. A bloodskirt caters specifically to fiends (cf. Bloodlust). A fireshirt caters for Tieflings (cf. Firewalker).

Jinkster A person who welches on a debt, a cheater.

Jinx Gold coin (see Economy of the Planes for more details). Also used as the plural form of "jink".

Joyward A term used on the Outlands in a manner similar to cardinal directions on the Prime. Towards Elysium, but not necessarily pointing directly towards the plane. Example: 'Tir na Og's joyward of Tir fo Thuinn.'

Jumping out the window Trying an untested portal, or even trying a procedure you're not sure will result in a portal. Invented by Yakomo Harada, Wild Mage and Planeswalker, due to the fact that to get to a certain Prime you have to jump out the window of the Hero's Rest Inn in Sigil with a beer in hand.

Jungle fever Formally, the name given to the effects the Beastlands have on travellers: the gaining of animal-like characteristics. Also used to describe someone who is acting in an animalistic, aggressive, or horny way: "Xaq's got jungle fever, lookit her hangin' all over that berk!"

Junk-jinker, jinker A peddler who deals in cheap merchandise or trinkets. This term is considered offensive to merchants and traders of finer goods.


K

Keeper A notable piece of information. "Hey Blood, What's the keeper on that tavern?" "A pit fiend frequents it, and he don't like tieflings"

Keynapped Similar to tunnel-jacked, but this term only refers to instances when a cutter's been hipped by a random portal switch.

Kill a coney To peel or bob a prime (or simply a naive, generally foolish berk). Also a game played by particularly malicious bashers, where a prime is thrown through a portal to one of the lower planes. The portal is kept active, and the bashers make bets on how many pieces the berk comes back in.

Kip Any place a cutter can put his feet up and sleep for a night, especially cheap flophouses in the Hive or elsewhere. Also, to call kip is to make a place a body's home, at least for a while.

Kiss the dust Falling down.

Knifespider A retriever - a monstrosity of the Abyss. (see PSMCII).

Knight of the post, knight of the cross-trade A thief, cheat, and a liar -- clearly not a compliment unless, of course, that's what the basher wants to be.

Knowing all the Abyssal Lords Having a really good memory, or knowing many things.

Kobold king One who thinks he's an important blood, but is actually not. Ex: "Factor Trevant might be a high-up, but he's just a kobold king next to Skall."

L

Ladies in waiting The dabus, so called because they seem to be the Lady of Pain's handmaidens. There's also a dark rumour going round that they're all aspiring Ladies themselves, and when the Serene One gets written into the dead book, one of them seamlessly takes over her role.

Lady's grace Hello, good day. Derives from: "There by the Lady's Grace go I", a poem praising the Lady for her portals and the Cage. The writer was found flayed, but still the saying caught on! There's no accounting for taste.

Lady's word Like 'mum's the word', with a darker connotation. It implies secrecy, conspiracy -- with a twist: To break the Lady's word is to write your own name into the Dead Book.

Ladywatcher A berk doing something especially foolish, likely to get them put in the Dead Book. Like worshipping the Lady of Pain, for example.

Lann To tell or inform. See well lanned.

Lathly Terribly, terribly, ugly. So ugly that even a fiend would be scared.

Laugh, the This is another example of rhyming slang: Laugh and Giggle = Sigil. It's an old term used to refer to Sigil, older than 'Cage,' and is the basis for the phrase, "giving the laugh." Originally, an escape to Sigil from some dangerous archfiend or power whom the Lady prevented from entering the city was known as giving the laugh, and the phrase has since expanded to include bobbing or evading anyone, anywhere.

Laughing hand An insulting hand sign. It's made by placing the ring finger under the thumb while extending the other fingers.

Law's gnashers A derogatory term for the cogs of Mechanus the implication is that law is oppressive, crushing the freedom of the individual. This term is not popular among the lawful factions, especially the Guvners.

Laying out the red carpet Setting up an ambush.

Leaf-binders Bookbinders or scribes. Quite a common term in the Clerk's Ward.

Leafer A tome or book. More specifically, an old or particularly boring book. "Hey, cutter, flip through this leafer and you might find that spell you're looking for." Originally used to describe spellbooks, now just a generalised term.

Leafless tree The gallows, which is where some berks wind up after they've been scragged.

Leatherhead A dolt; a dull or thick-witted fellow. Use it to call someone an idiot. Also an adjective; "a leatherheaded sod".

Legion, the A common lower-planar term for the Baatezu army.

Lemon Prime. Cager Rhyming Slang: Lemon and Lime = Prime. Confusingly, a lemon is also a person who deals with time and time travel, such as a chronomancer. It's another example of rhyming slang: Lemon and Lime = Messing with Time.

Lifted Promoted through faction ranks, or, more formally, made a proxy. Example: "Sarin just lifted me. Guess who's your new boss?"

Lily True, truthful. Also used to refer to celestials.

Little Ring Sigil. Stems from "Great Ring" for the Outer Planes...Sigil herself is a ring within the Ring itself, hence the cant term.

Living book A blood, or someone with a lot of darks stashed away in his bone-box.

Lost Dead. "He got lost" means he ain't coming back without a resurrection.

Lost en passant A Blood War term for lost through attrition. "Most of the alu-fiends were lost en passant when the barbazu charged." This term also derives from chess.

Lovelorn Someone who is romantically inclined toward erinyes, incubi, and similar creatures: "I hear Poison Lips has another lovelorn. Wonder if she'll behead this one or just hang him?". Also the state of being romantically inclined to these creatures: "Sure as Sigil. Jenny's gone lovelorn over that incubus, Blaycker Tendon."

Lower Planes Also called the dark planes or the nether regions (or the whistles by some, see below) -- the Abyss, Acheron, Baator, Carceri, Gehenna, and Pandemonium, the planes of evil alignment. Fiends inhabit these dismal places.

Lying like a 'loth Used by those bloods who think all the talk about the 'loths being the most powerful fiends is just screed spread by the 'loths themselves (you know, belief is power). The 'loths themselves really, really dislike this saying.

M

Madmen, the Another name for the Bleak Cabal.

Maggot-grown An upper-planar insult to the fiends, given that many of them arise from larvae.

Making the Inner Planes slide Accomplishing something very hard and complex.

Maniarch Xaositect high-up. From 'hierarch' and 'maniac'.

Mapping the planes Wasting time.

Marionette Any berk who deals with a yugoloth - because of their fame as manipulators.

Mark To make a note of something, as in: "Mark this kip. We'll meet here at antipeak." To be marked is to be identified, as in "That berk was marked as a Guvner."

Mazes, the The nasty little traps that the Lady of Pain creates for would-be dictators. It's also come to mean any particularly well-deserved punishment, as in, "It's the Mazes for him and I can't say I'm sorry."

Meeting Kurtulmak Experiencing something that seemed to be an easy thing at first (like meeting a lone kobold), but suddenly finding out it leads one to big trouble (like finding out that lone kobold is Kurtulmak).

Melt Spend: "Let's go and melt some serious jink!"

Mephit Pathetic, stupid, or worthless person (when not used to refer to a real mephit, of course). Insult: "The dabus and their Lady are a lot of mephits!" (NB. this person was later found draped over the sign post of a cobbler's shop, flayed). Just don't use it in this way anywhere near a real mephit...they get cross...

Mercur It is a insult to Mercykillers. It means frequently changing sides or turning stag.

Mercykillers A faction of Sigil that believes in absolute justice. Also called the Red Death.

Mert Platinum coin (see Economy of the Planes for more details).

Metal cup only Any bar or eatery that has enough regular violence that glass drinking cups are too difficult and expensive to keep in stock. Metal cups don't break, they just change shape.

Metal militia A common term for any modron force, though often it is used in the Lower Planes to signify the Army of the Blood War.

Mibix Chant goes this was once a slaad word (is there such a thing?) translated loosely as 'unpalatable rubbish', e.g.: "You expect me to eat this mibix?" Also an expression meaning 'screed', e.g. "A liberal Hardhead? There is some mibix that I just won't swallow..."

Milk Jink, money, cash, wealth. This comes from the rhyming slang: milk and honey = money.

Mimir Someone who mindlessly repeats whatever he is told. Typically used by Indeps and Anarchists to refer to anyone who is putting forward the "official" stand on any event.

Minder A bodyguard, as in "He's not so tough, but there's a couple of minders watching over him."

Mindhacker A derogatory term for a telepath or psionicist. It has been broadened to include anyone who has telepathic skills or spells, particularly Probe or ESP.

Mindless Derogatory term for the Transcendent Order, belittling their goals. ('Zombie' was once tried as an insult for the Ciphers, but the Dustmen squelched the phrase and its creator before it ever caught on.)

Mindnick Slightly derogatory slang for a psionicist. Many Cagers have a hard time discerning between psionics and magic, so enchanters and others who use mind-altering magic may be referred to as mindnicks.

Modron headache The feeling of helplessness and frustration incurred by waiting for your turn in an official process -- in queues for appointments, to fill out forms (in triplicate), or in the Guvner's Courts for a trial. It's especially used by the more chaotic planar races.

Mushrooming A Blood War term for the sudden growth in size of a force when rampant gating begins to occur. The idea is that foes begin appearing like mushrooms popping up in a field.

Music A price a cutter doesn't usually want to pay, but has to anyway. As in, "Pay the music or you'll never find your way out of here." Not a literal amount.

Musties Undead, primarily those that decay or appear decayed: this includes primarily zombies, revenants, and liches

N

Namer Someone who belongs to a faction in name only, paying lip service to its philosophy but not really dedicated to its principles.

Nark, narky To become angry or annoyed, to direct anger at a person. "He's gonna get narky if you tell him that' or 'he got real narky at me when I told him."

Newt Anything reptilian or amphibian in appearance, such as a lizard man, yuan-ti, or minion of Set.

Nick To attack, cut, or strike someone, often used in threats. It's also used to indicate inflicting other injury upon a sod, such as stealing from him, as in "I nicked him good, and got his chiv."

Ninny-chanter An insulting reference to a mage.

Not for all the jink in Shurrock No way, never. Commonly used phrase when discussing whether to slum it and eat out at the Styx Oarsman tavern.

Not in good shape... Dead. A Sigilian understatement.

Not the shadow of a shade Morally and politically immaculate. Used to describe particularly worthy paladins, archons or guardinals by their allies.

O

Oasis A common term for the rare tavern or inn in Sigil that can acquire pure water; usually such taverns are clustered around gates to Water or Oceanus.

Oi Attention grabbing greeting. E.g. "Oi! You there! Stop!" Hardhead to fleeing tiefling thief.

Old bonehead A derogatory nickname for Factol Skall of the Dustmen, coined by a (now deceased) enemy of his. Note: If you value your life, never use this term if you even suspect Skall or a friend of his is listening. Skall may have purged himself of emotions, but he's only human - err, undead human - and doesn't like to be insulted any more than you do (and getting on the bad side of a guy who can pack Meteor Swarms isn't a good idea!)

Old metal-head A very unflattering way of referring to the Lady of Pain.

Opium, the An insult to the Order of the Planes-Militant, derived from the rapid pronunciation of the sect's initials, OPM. Its brethren are called Opium Dreamers or Dreamers.

Out-of-touch Outside of the Outer Planes. A body who's on the Elemental Plane of Water is "out-of-touch." This vernacular comes from Sigil, which is considered to be the centre of the Multiverse by those who adopted this phrase.

Out-of-town Like the phrase above, this one's used by Cagers to describe a body who's on the Outlands.

Outer Planes The Abyss, Acheron, Arborea, Arcadia, Baator, the Beastlands, Bytopia, Carceri, Elysium, Gehenna, the Gray Waste, Limbo, Mechanus, Mount Celestia, the Outlands, Pandemonium and Ysgard. They're planes of concept rather than element.

Outsiders Clueless primes who don't yet know how things work on the planes (and especially in Sigil).

P

Paramortal Like "planeborne," this term refers to the aligned creatures, including archons, guardinals, eladrin, slaadi, tanar'ri, yugoloths, baatezu, modrons, and rilmani. However, unlike "planeborne," paramortal also includes such creatures as gehreleths, aasimon, and Ancient Baatorians, as well as the theorised priminals and baernoloth-ancestors. Paramortal isn't often heard except in philosophical discussions; adventurers favour planeborne.

Park your ears To eavesdrop, spy upon, or just simply listen intently. "He parked his ears in the Hall of Speakers to keep up with the very latest chant."

Parochial god A power with worshippers on only one world.

Parrot A derogatory term for an individual who mindlessly and thoughtlessly "parrots" their faction's or homeplane's viewpoint. Parrot implies that the speaker cannot understand the ideas he is constantly conveying. Parrot may also be used as a verb in the same manner it is used in Prime common. "You know...for a bunch of berks claiming they're all free, them Indeps all parrot each other so much I can't see how they ain't blek-shouters."

Path A means of planar travel that requires actual physical movement. Commonly known paths include the rivers Styx and Oceanus, Mount Olympus, the World Ash Yggdrasil, and the Infinite Staircase of Ysgard. See the Planar Pathways section for more chant.

Peal Yet another term for the chant. Most commonly used when in regards to snitching. Verbal use: "He'll peal all right." Noun: "OK, Geld. We know you got the peal on him!"

Peel A swindle, con or trick. It's often used as a verb. Peeling a tanar'ri is usually a bad idea.

Peery Suspicious and on one's guard. What a basher should be if she thinks she's going to get peeled.

Penny-gush Exaggerated stories or tales, especially if written: "That piece in S.I.G.I.S. about the Anarchists was just cheap penny-gush."

Petitioner A mortal who has died and reformed on the plane of his alignment and/or deity without memory of his former life. A petitioner's ultimate goal is to become one with the plane he's occupying, although no one (not even the petitioner) knows the whole dark of this.

Philosophisle A Cager term for a dead power. Note: It's a good idea not to use this one around priests.

Pick(ing) the purse When some high-up shares the dark, he's picking the purse. This comes from the idea that if someone steals an important bit of knowledge, and he shares it, he's robbing the owner of it's secrecy, and in essence, picking his purse.

Pike it A useful, all-purpose rude phrase, as in, "Take a short stick and pike it, bubber."

Pike off To anger someone, as in, "Once he discovers he's been peeled, he's going to be really piked off."

Pincher Hardhead or some other overzealous scragger of sods.

Pit fiend promise A promise, begrudgingly made, and likely to be twisted.

Planar Any being native to a plane other than the Prime Material Plane. These are living beings, not petitioners.

Planar conduit A wormhole-like connection that links two layers of the same plane, or (rarely) two layers of two different planes.

Plane-touched A planar crossbreed. Any offspring of a planar native and a human. Tieflings are plane-touched, as are aasimar and genasi. Alu-fiends and cambions are also considered plane-touched.

Planewalker A cutter who travels the planes looking for adventure, jink, or glory -- a plane-travelling adventurer. Usually, to refer to someone as a planewalker carries a tone of respect, for such individuals are considered capable, knowledgeable, and experienced.

Playing chess with Graz'zt Graz'zt is known to be very cunning, and if he fails he goes really wild. Thus, someone who plays chess with Graz'zt will either fail with his plans, or if he succeeds, have even worse problems thereafter.

Playing mimir An informant or plant within an organisation. "I was followed here, but I managed to lose 'em. I think someone's playing mimir in our cell." Usually used by Anarchists.

Planeborne A member of one the nine native philosophical races of the Outer Planes; the Archons, Guardinals, Eladrin, Slaad, Tanar'ri, Yugoloths, Baatezu, Modrons or Rilmani. It's like saying "Celestials and Fiends and Cordians" all at once. There's some debate in greybeard circles as to whether the Aasimon are really planeborne (if they are it breaks the rather compelling rule of three cubed), and it's generally accepted that the Gehreleths ain't planeborne (though nobody really knows what they are instead).

Portal A doorway allowing passage to (and possibly from) another plane. These are always found in bounded spaces like archways, and always require a key. Also called gates.

Post-monger A cutter who's well-lanned when it comes to the cross-trade, specifically fences, knights of the post, fraudsters and other shady cony-catchers. Also post-mongering, to possess these 'qualities'.

Powder Any narcotic or drug sold on the streets of Sigil.

Power A being of incredible might, drawing energy from those who worship it and able to grant spells to priests. Also called a deity or god. Somebody a body shouldn't ever mess with.

Prime The Prime Material Plane or someone from that plane. Also a single prime-material world.

Prod Troublemaker; a real pain in the neck.

Proxy A mighty servant of a power -- usually a former mortal servant of that power.

Puppet A derogatory term for a proxy, high priest, or any blood who works for a Power, probably coined by the Athar.

Puppeteer An enchanter, a mentalist, or a telepathic psionicist. Often times, puppeteer is also used for faction high-ups. The tools of puppeteers are, naturally, puppets.

Purgatories The Cordant Planes (between Upper and Lower, i.e.. Mechanus, the Outlands and Limbo). Neither wondrous nor terrible; a sort of bland somewhere-in-between.

Q

Quipper Slang for a beggar. There's a whole bloody guild of quippers in Sigil, and they're one of the best sources of information in the Cage. Why? No one thinks to shut their bone box around a beggar, and no one's poor enough not to be able to afford to garnish 'em well.

R

Raising the flag To draw attention, desired or not, to oneself or one's party.

Ravens Derogatory term for the Harmonium, derived from the fact that the harmony of ravens is a very poor sort of harmony indeed.

Razorwine Any extremely potent alcoholic beverage, no less than 100 proof. "Hey cutter, you've got to go try the taps at Mudder MacRee's! She only serves razorwine!"

Red Death Another name for the Mercykillers.

Realm Property that belongs strictly to one person or group. Ex: "That jink's the realm of the Fated now!"

Revolutionary League A faction in Sigil that wants to see all the factions (including themselves) destroyed. Also called the Anarchists.

Ride An adventure, task or undertaking. As in, "What's the ride today, boss?"

Rig A plan - i.e. "Here's the rig", meaning: "This is the plan."

Ringwalker Beyond Clueless. The word's said to have been coined when a prime in Arborea asked how long it would take to walk from there to "Gladsheim". Call a planar a "ringwalker" and you could start a blood feud, but a clueless prime'll likely take it as a compliment.

Roosters vrocks - Cager rhyming slang: Roosters and Cocks; i.e. "Poor Jenkins, the berk got devoured by roosters"

Rorty Strong, vigorous, though the meaning changes according to the context: thus a rorty bloke is a real blood, a rorty toff is a basher pretending to be a blood, and a rorty cube is a rogue modron.

Rotters Derogatory name for the Doomguard. Some wear the name proudly, though. Like the Xaosmen, it's hard to insult these berks.

Rough All legal merchandise. This term is not very often used by honest costermongers on the Grand Bazaar - every sod out there sells only rough merchandise! While on Gatehouse Night Market it's common to hear "True, me stuff is more expensive than his, but ya ain't need to be so peery, cutter. Me goods are all rough. I ain't no cross-trader, see" There's also an insult among knights of the post: Your jink is rough which suggests that one can't even lift a jingling.

Rounder Someone who knows his way around the planes. It ain't as good as being a blood, but it's a cutter to be respected nonetheless.

Rube A naive or clueless person, but not necessarily a prime. Sometimes this term's used to describe any non-Cager.

Rule of Threes One of the fundamental rules of the Multiverse: Things tend to happen in threes.

Rule of Fives At first glance, the idea of a rule of fives might seem barmy to most Cagers. Still, the the rule of fives applies on several prime worlds. Many primes see things in fives instead of threes, so it can also be an insult, as in "You're thinking in rules of fives, addle-cove" meaning, "You sound like a prime". Only planars get the insult, though.

Rule of Sevens Nonsense idea. Used by the Xaositects and Doomguard of Guvner theories. It also gets up archons' noses when you use it. What more could one ask from a cant word?

Rum Excellent, great: "Rum news about the tax on bub being cut!"

Running a black one Utter hatred towards a berk, which always means wanting to put someone in the dead-book. An example of this might be: "He's really running a black one since you turned stag on the sod and the Hardheads scragged him. I'd go on an extended vacation to Arcadia when he gets out of prison if I were you..."

Running a green one To be envious of someone.

Running a red one Holding a serious grudge. As in "Ever since I beat him at dice he's been running a red one against me".

Rust, rustle Cant slang for the classic 4-letter Anglo-Saxonism. "You gehreleth-rustler! Rust you and the slaad you rode in on!" The Doomguard seem particularly prone to using this word, and its meaning amongst Sinker factioneers has been perverted to being an enviable quality rather than an obscenity.

Rustler A blood on the make; a stud. Usually used by single cutters in the company of same. "You rorty rustler, you! I hear you've been spending a lot of time down at Fast Mary's House of Negotiable Affection!"

S

Sandman A mage who hires out to thieves' guilds and other questionable organisations to cast sleep spells upon enemies prior to attacks. Sandman carries the connotation that the magician is petty (as he is only casting low-powered magics) as well as amoral (since the attackers usually decimate the greatly hampered defences). Sandmen rarely work overtly in Sigil, but play an important part in the underground crime rings.

Scan Look, listen or learn. "Scan this, berk," can mean "listen up", "look at this", or "check this out". "Scanning the chant" is learning the latest news, from S.I.G.I.S. for example.

Scar Slang expression used widely, with no particular meaning. This only makes it more useful as a catchall obscenity. For example: "Get your sodding scar over here, berk!"; "Judge Gabberslug? What an addled fat old scar!"; or simply "Shut yer scar!"

Scragged Arrested or caught.

Scrape Damning information that can be used to bribe or blackmail, especially a high up.

Scragged, dragged and bellied or scragged, dragged and swallowed To be arrested, tried and convicted of something. It is often used as a threat as in "If you don't shut your sodding bone-box, I'll have you scragged, dragged and swallowed before you can tumble to it."

Screamer Alarmist, especially in the factions. One who is prone to exaggerating news, hence scream: "Have you heard the scream that the Blood War's on Sigil's doorstep?"

Screed A monotonous tirade, or someone who gives one. If used to refer to a person, it means someone who speaks at length without any real knowledge, or simply an argumentative person. As in "Don't listen to him, he's just a screed."

Scribblers Clerks and Civil Servants. Also a mildly derogatory term for Guvners or Mathematicians.

Scribe of the dead book An assassin or hired killer -- somebody who makes a living killing others for profit.

Scriber See Scribe of the dead book

Scrip it A handy phrase meaning you're not interested in the subject. It could also mean that you don't understand the conversation and don't actually want to.

Scrote A alternative slang for referring to ones brain or grey matter. More often used in formal or even academic settings than general slang.

Scrub To beat or torture mercilessly. "That berk's gonna get a serious scrubbin' if the Hardheads catch 'em." Furthermore, a torturer can be called a scrubber, and conversely, the one who is the victim is called a scrub.

Second turns Former Chameleons who decided they liked a faction or sect so much they stuck with it and quit the Chameleons. Derives from "turncoats."

Sensates Nickname for the Society of Sensation.

Senseless Sensate insult for a Dustman. Related to numbness, it is more commonly used for those Dustmen closer to True Death. As such, a small number of Dustmen who still have lingering emotion consider the term an ironic compliment.

Sent to Windglum To ostracise a person or ignore them.

Serenade Noun: a confession obtained through torture or intimidation which directs blame to an innocent individual. Verb: to testify under torture or intimidation of the guilt that an innocent man is guilty.

Shamblers A term used to describe the Undead.

Shed A verb meaning to tell or inform. "Be careful, berk, that 'loth's not shedding the total dark."

Shell, The The Prime World of Mystara, so called because it's said to be hollow.

Shifty Illusionary, hard to mark, dark, not on the up-and-up. "Soddin' Powers, feedin' the crows and eatin' each other just to swallow dark whispers, shifty they are." A Cager's lament.

Shout The casting of high-combat spells, particularly area affect spells like fireball or meteor swarm: "Watch out for the spellslinger, if he shouts we'll all be put in the dead book!"

Shuttered World, the Krynn. So-called because of the facts that everyone from Krynn seems deeply Clueless and the Crystal Sphere is now closed. Server note: As per the Setting Information forum anouncement[1], Krynn has not disappeared.

Sickness, also To have the sickness, to be sick Someone who is sick is rich, to have the sickness is to be rich. This comes from rhyming slang: Sickness and health = wealth.

Sigilians vs. Sigilites Sigilians are residents of Sigil. They can be born on the prime, the Outlands, the Abyss - anywhere. As long as they live in Sigil, they're Sigilians.

Sigilites are Sigilians who are the third generation of their family in Sigil - at the least. Sigilites are thus somewhat pompous, and they speak the cant fluently.

Sigil's enigma Many old Sigilian history books have referred to The Lady of Pain by this title. But it's not used much nowadays. (NB: Be careful when using this term. Though it is an accurate title, nobody is certain whether The Lady would take it as an insult or a compliment).

S.I.G.I.S. The most famous newsrag in Sigil. Standing for "Sigil's Independently Gathered Information Service", the news sheet is not without its critics, but remains very popular with the adventuring community in particular. Check here for the chant on S.I.G.I.S.

Sign of None A nickname for the Doomguard.

Sign of One A faction whose members figure that everybody is the centre of his own universe. Also called the Signers.

Signers A faction nickname for the Sign of One.

Significance of 23, the "It's the meaning of everything having to do with chaos. We Xaositects understand it perfectly. It occurs naturally everywhere there is chaos" ...or so the Xaosman explained it to me.

Singing in Bedlam Being completely barmy, but being happy with it.

Sinkers Another name for the Doomguard.

Siren Anything that is overly loud, annoying, or, most often, both. Example: "Give that siren beggar a few greens to make him bar that yelling."

Sixes The Upper Planes. Cager Rhyming Slang: Sixes and Sevens = Heavens. The term often causes Upper Planars offence, since it implies only six of the seven Upper Planes are worth talking about. But then it ain't hard to offend an Upper Planar most times!

Skag A normal berk that gives or sells information, usually under pressure. "We squeezed some skag for the dark on the Fated."

Skeg, catch a Get a look: "If you catch a skeg at the portal key, be sure to let me know."

Skiff A really ratty kip. A crappy living place or establishment -- in other words, most of the Hive's buildings are skiffs.

Skilter A derogatory term used by members of factions to denote bodies who don't belong to one.

Skin A debt owed, usually to the Fated or a fiend (Cager Rhyming Slang: Skin and Bone = Loan). "You've got a skin here that's built up a lot of interest, cutter."

Skin a razor Drive a hard bargain: "That sodding merchant really skinned my razor!"

Skinned Someone who makes a contract with a fiend, a Baatezu in particular. It refers to the contract, which is usually made from the flayed skin of a human or Baatorian petitioner. "Keep away from them fiends, you'll only get yourself skinned."

Skinner Tax collector. "It's impossible to peel the Fated skinners."

Slaad-story An unlikely tale: "Don't try and bob me with one of your slaad-stories, berk!"

Slippery Downright illegal stuff, like stolen property, jarra spice, phlogistol, slaves etc. When Hardheads scrag you with some slippery goods, you better look for an hende baatezu lawyer, berk. "I could take these gems to Curst, sure, but I know they're slippery. I want 10 merts."

Slipping the knot To avoided a planned ambush. "Did ya hear? The berks at the bar slipped the knot from the Hardheads"

Smiley Used by typical cynical planars to refer to planars who aren't so jaded, and act more like primes. "Sod off, Lemon. Go find a smiley to help you out."

Smooth Semilegal merchandise or one of unknown origin, such as unlabeled alcohol or 'used goods'. "I wouldn't trust this spiv. His goods look smooth at best. I'd bet he bobbed some poor sod." Also used as a verb. Then it means: to enter illegal, stolen or faked item into a market and get legal payment from it. Commonly used by fences. "You forged some coins? Good. I'll smooth them for ya for half of the profits."

Society of Sensation A faction that believes life's got to be experienced to be understood. Also called the Sensates.

Sod An unfortunate or poor soul. Use it to show sympathy for an unlucky cutter or use it sarcastically for those who get into their own messes.

Sodding A derogatory term used to stress magnitude. A "sodding idiot" is an amazingly stupid berk.

Softhead This is an insult rarely used against any 'cept the Hardheads. Generally, it means that a person is unfit for their rank, or they are just plain stupid.

Soloth, or making like a soloth A gift shared by few planewalkers, it is the ability to will oneself from here to there, regardless of distance (a la teleport, or the like). This is usually used by Harmonium patrols to explain what happened to their query, should they for some unexplained reason, escape. "Oy, had the bubber we did sir, but he solothed on us." It also could be referring to a thief who known for getting into places that most persons can't or shouldn't be.'

Soot-fountains, often Ash-fountains, Smoke-fountains Any one of the many factories and smitheries in the Lower Ward, Sigil, called this by their tendency to spout soot, ash, and smoke into the Sigilian sky. The term is sometimes used to mean other factories and smitheries in other places, although the word originated in Sigil.

Soul-bag A lower planar term for the physical body.

Soul-breath The last exhalation after death. The term comes from the Hellenic tradition that maintains that the soul flees the body in that breath.

Soul-broker Any fiendish merchant who engages in hiring mortals to perform tasks. The term is rarely used by the mortals bought or else the fiends themselves; usually a celestial uses the term to refer to the invariably spirit-corrupting and dangerous nature of such transactions.

Soul-case An upper planar term for the physical body.

Sparkle Specifically a diamond, but any gem.

Sparkle stick A magical wand. Many sparkle-sticks sold in the Cage aren't reliable (finding one enchanted with the cantrip spell is not uncommon).

Spellslinger A wizard.

Spike A well-made or magical sword. Often used sarcastically by fiends "Whataya gonna do, stick me wit dat 'spike' o' yours? Ha ha ha!"

Spire-climb, spireclimber An impossible task; a task one can make begin and progress at but cannot finish. Spire-climbs include the seeking of perfection, enlightenment, absolute mystical power, or martial skills. "Sure, I know that my training's a spire-climb, but look how much better I got." A spireclimber is someone trying an insane or impossible task. "That spireclimber wants to kill all the fiends!"

Spiv An individual who lives by his wits (rather than by having regular employment).

Split the bean To be miserly. Also a rather offensive way to indicate that a former blood has upped and joined a money-grabbing establishment such as the Fated, the Merkhants or the Scientologists (an obscure Prime sect). One who has split the bean is known as a bean-splitter. It can also be used to indicate that a cutter has absconded without paying their due. "Slugwort? He split the bean, the slaad-toothed stag-turner."

Spoonbender A psionicist. So named for the popular parlour trick of pretending to bend spoons through telekinesis. Often used in a derogatory manner: "I thought he was a top-shelf mage, but he turned out to be a bloody spoonbender."

Sprout roots To get oneself a permanent case and stay there. Used often to describe a planewalker who wants to retire. "Have you heard the chant on Scriber Jones? They say he's sprouted roots in Sigil."

Square Honest, good, or good enough. Frequently used to describe Celestials or the Harmonium, sometimes disparagingly. "I'll slip you that chant if the jink's square."

Squeezer A tax collector (or anyone who takes money from generally unwilling people) given that nearly all tax collectors are members of the Fated, this term is also often used to refer to any member of that faction.

Soupward A term used on the Outlands in a manner similar to cardinal directions on the Prime. Towards Limbo but not necessarily pointing directly towards that plane. Example: 'Plague-Mort's soupward of Hopeless.'

Sour Sour lemons are primes who've seen the Multiverse in all its glory, and soured by the experience. They don't like the place, especially not Sigil.

Spire's ward Goodbye and take care! Often said to bring good luck on a cutter about to set out on a planehopping jaunt.

Stamped and clamped Official. "Looks like this warrant for your arrest is stamped and clamped, berk. Sorry."

Sticks Rhyming slang - Sticks and Stones = Bones. Uses often by the Mercykillers about their punishment. "I snapped his sticks one by one."

Stinger Silver coin (see Economy of the Planes for more details)

Stitch To shut someone up - e.g. stitching their mouth closed so they can't spill the dark. Use it like this: "Whisper the dark and you'll find yourself stitched, berk!"

Stitch your lips A rude way to tell someone to pike it. To say "stitch your lips", means that not only is what their saying now either inappropriate or stupid, but chances are anything coming out of their mouths in the future will be equally so.

Strange egg This expression is believed to be derived from the bizarre planar travel effects of eating a Simpathetic's egg. Planewalking spells, devices, and sometimes portals are often referred to as Strange Eggs. Occasionally even gate keys are referred to in this way, though not as frequently. "Be careful going through that doorway, it's a strange egg that one is..."

Stretched to the rakers Exhausted beyond recovery, usually from prolonged exertion. "That last run from the 'loths has me stretch to the 'rakers." See below.

Stretch 'em to the 'rakers Put your maximum effort into it. The full phrase, "Stretch your sails to the Keelrakers," comes from a S'Thranni airship captain's command to go to full sail.

Stype Chant that's particularly interesting, or that is very popular talk around the planes. "Got some rorty stype" is a common use of this.

Styx (verb) Kill, eliminate, remove, forget. "Poor D'yart. He got himself styxed by the 'loths."

Styx it Forget about it. As in "I owe you one!" "Nah, just Styx it." Or used as a warning to forget a dark. "That dark about the tanar'ri? I'd Styx it if I were you..."

Styx swimmer A basher with a short memory.

Sure as Sigil Certainly, I promise.

Swag, swagger Someone with an inflated ego. "Boy, that berk sure is a swagger, I hope someone cuts his knees out."

Swob me bob! An expression of surprise.

Sword Rhyming Slang: Lady-Lord=Sword. Another term for the Lady of Pain, an acknowledgement of her rule over Sigil... and she 'got all them pokey things comin' out 'o her too. "What the Hells kinda' unhende bitch are you?! You keep waving around that 'holy symbol', and you'll bring the Sword down on all'a'us!"

T

Tag Name or nickname. "How you are called" as opposed to one's true name, which may be something one doesn't wish known.

Takers Another name for the Fated.

Talking book A document or book that is illegal in the Cage, e.g. the Factol's Manifesto.

Talking with cranium rats Making deals/interacting with people one should better steer clear off.

Tanar'ri's chance in Nessus, Got a A completely hopeless situation were the person taking the risk will definitely fail and probably end up in the dead book. As in, "you've got a tanar'ri's chance in Nessus of putting that loth in the dead book before he opens yer brain box cutter"

Tanar'ri martyr A hapless stooge, a cony who's just been caught.

Thorn To annoy or anger. "If that mephit doesn't stop thorning me..."

Thor's tantrum A thunderstorm, usually a big one.

Thought guild An unflattering reference to a faction, used by those who don't believe in factions at all.

Thought-slave An inner-planar term for an Outer Planar native, stressing the "superiority" of the inner planes due to the presence of corrupting or time-wasting beliefs on the outer planes.

Thrown to the clocks Overly harsh or unreasonable punishment: "Get caught plying the cross-trade in Mechanus and they'll throw you to the clocks for sure."

Tick [of the Gears] A short span of time; anywhere from a couple seconds to a few days. "It only took that lemon a tick or three to get used to the Cage!"

Tickled Charged with magic, particularly conjuring or summoning magic. "The air was ful tickled by the mages." Inner Planar Cant.

Tickler Mage, particularly an Elementalist. Refers to the tingling sensation of being summoned. Inner Planar Cant. Also: flame tickler (fire elementalist), stone tickler (earth elementalist), wave tickler (water elementalist), and wind tickler (air elementalist).

Ticklish Someone who is frequently summoned or is unusually susceptible to such magicks. Inner Planar Cant.

Tief Dubious information: "That's a load of tief". Warning: Never use this term within twenty feet of a tiefling!

Time mephit Something that's possible in theory, though in all likelihood highly improbable. "The Ordial Plane? That's gotta be the grandest Time mephit of 'em all!"

Tinman A warrior in heavy armour (usually plate) or a mechanical, humanoid construct. Usually tinman implies that the figure's armour or metallic body is a hindrance that makes the being clumsy or unable to move in a difficult environment. "Ford the river, berk; the tinman can't swim!"

Tools Derogatory term for the Revolutionary League, implying that they're just pawns in the hands of the other factions. Also used in a more general sense for any berk being manipulated, especially by yugoloths.

Top-shelf Great or best, as in "The really top-shelf pubs are all in the Lady's Ward."

Torqued (off) Annoyed, angry, cross. i.e.. "Better watch out for that cornugon, cutter; when you doused the sod with holy water he looked really torqued off..."

Transcendent Order A faction in Sigil. The formal name for the Ciphers, who believe that the truest responses occur when a body acts without thinking.

Trolley-womped Crushed with great force; maybe in a stampede of manes, or perhaps run over by a Sigilian sedan chair: "Sorry I look such a wreck. I just got trolley-womped back there."

Troll steak A troll steak is a meal that never seems to end, as it seems to keep growing... To eat a troll steak means to become sickened by excess, "stuffed", as it were. It can also mean a waste of time on self-indulgence, as it takes so long to finish...

Tumble to To understand, figure out, or find out something. A body better tumble to the dark of Sigil before he bangs around the Cage on his own.

Trumpeting the Archons Used mostly in the Hive and Lower Ward. Speaking ill of Celestials.

Trumps To be put to your trumps, to be in difficulties. To turn up trumps; to get lucky.

Trying the taps Going drinking, usually in more than one location during the night, carousing.

Tunneljacked Thrown, willing or not, through a random portal. Also, when a non-fixed portal jumps before a return trip is made, hipping travellers on a foreign plane.

Turn or two, a A long, long time. This phrase refers to the very long turning-cycle of the Modron gears. "The githyanki have hated the githzerai for a turn or two."

Turn stag To betray somebody or use treachery. Saying "he turned stag" is about the worst thing that can be said about a cutter.

Twig To take a liking to, as in, "One particular deva twigged to the idea of interfering with the Blood War."

Twixt the Lady and the 'loths In a predicament. A really bad position to be in.

Two greens and up goes the fhorge! Sarcastic phrase amounting to 'It'll never happen!' - taken from a once-popular sideshow where a man would have a fhorge and a ladder, and would insist that for two more greens (q.v.) the fhorge would climb the ladder. Hence the cry "Two greens and up goes the Fhorge!". The Fhorge never climbed the ladder, because, according to the sideshow owner, he wasn't given enough money. The sod was eventually scragged by the Hardheads, but the memory of the peel is survived by the phrase. (Apologies to Terry Pratchett!)

U

Under the Lady's shadow Bad, ill, evil-omened. "Ribcage has been under the Lady's shadow since Lord Paracs became the high-up man."

Unhende An adjective meaning worse than addled, clueless and leatherheaded all put together. "He's the unhendest screed-screaming bubber in the Hive." Hende is conversely a real compliment to pay to any basher!

Unity of Rings The theory that everything forms a logical ring or circular pattern of some kind, as illustrated by the Outer Planes in particular.

Unseen, the A tittle used among Blood War mercenaries to describe the Guardinals. They are to one group out there even more dangerous to cross than the yugoloths, but at least a 'loth looks the part, hence the term.

Upper Planes Arborea, Arcadia, the Beastlands, Bytopia, Elysium, Mount Celestia and Ysgard. The good-aligned planes.

V

Veil-face An undead which is immaterial and transparent or translucent. This phrase is often used as a blanket term for any immaterial undead, commonly wraiths, spectres, or ghosts.

Void Something completely without worth or redeeming features. Example: "That so-called 'magic wand' is just a void."

Void mephit A non-existent being. In the context of the Mephit Code, the expression "Got a void mephit" means 'no response'.

Vortex A passage between an environmental extreme on the Prime Material and the corresponding Elemental Plane.

W

Wagger Gossip or information broker. "We check with all the waggers we could find, but the leather-heads didn't have anything on the cult of dead powers."

Waltzing with a whistler To flirt with death.

Walking into the Lady's shadow To willingly or knowingly go to your death. Suicide.

Wasted Bored. Comes from either the Gray Waste, or the Sensate belief that time not spent experiencing the Multiverse is wasted time. Ex. "That speech by Hashkar got me wasted".

Waster A person, thing, or event that is boring, or wastes time. As in, "Usually I enjoy Ambar's concerts, but that one was a real waster."

Wasteward A term used on the Outlands in a manner similar to cardinal directions on the Prime. Towards the Gray Waste but not necessarily pointing directly towards the plane. Example: "Bedlam's wasteward of aXos."

Watch the Spire Goodbye: "Watch the Spire, blood."

Well-lanned Connected, in-touch, or otherwise blessed with numerous friends, allies, and informants.

Wet Cage The City of Glass on the elemental plane of Water.

When the Lady speaks Simply put, this means "never". If a person is very dedicated to his job, you might say, "He'll retire when the Lady speaks."

Where's the War? What's the hurry? What's happening?

Whipstitch Murdering someone to keep them quiet. Based on of the slang, "stitch", it's given the connotation that whoever killed the victim was desperate but not too crafty, else the body wouldn't have been found. "It must've gotten out that he was playing mimir to the Hardheads, cuz he was found whipstitched last night."

Whispers Dark chant, normally uttered in hushed tones. "To stare at the whispers" means to eavesdrop.

Whistler A general term used to refer to one of the fiendish races of the Lower Planes.

Whistles The Lower Planes. Cager Rhyming Slang: Whistles and Bells = Hells.

Wigwag To chat or talk.

Windy Derogatory term referring to the state of mind of one remaining too long in Pandemonium. Can loosely be used to mean crazy.

Wonky To be perverse to the point of insanity as in "She's got a bloodlust for gehreleths, for real? That's not just barmy, that's wonky!".

Word-monger A basher especially prone to uttering screed, a tedious preacher or espouser or old-fashioned views.

Worms Brains, smarts, intelligence. To say someone's got worms is to imply they're quite clever. "That blood's got more worms in his brain-box than the Mount has haloes!"

X

Xaeax (pronounced ZEE-ax) To get drawn into useless circular logic from paradoxes, Unity of Rings, etc. Also, a general state of confusion resulting from mind games; "He got all xaeaxed when he tried figure out if a 'loth was being straight with him."

Xaositects A faction in Sigil. Another name for them is the Chaosmen, which does a pretty good job of describing their point of view.

Yark, yarking Yark can mean someone who howls a lot of screed and usually believes it, "That bloody yark is full of slaad stories", or the things a yark says, "The chant that the Lady is a prime is nothing but yark". Also used is the term yarking, "Somebody shut that yarking addle-cove's bone box!"

Yawn, the The state of being bored: "This place gives me the yawn."

Z

Za A dish, like a pizza, made from bread, spiced sauces, cheese, and with varied toppings. In Sigil, a za usually comes 'sooty,' with roasted mushrooms.

Zills Audacity. Also, a slang word for testicles. "You had real zills punching that Hardhead in the zills, berk."

Zip Leave that for later. As in, "Zip the locked chest and help me stop this bleeding," or "Zip the sodding orcs. We need to nick that mage." Also can be used like "bar that" when Hardheads come knocking. "Zip it berk. You want to get us all scragged."

Zu'ling, tanar'ling, loth'ling A Zu'ling is a tiefling with baatezu origins, a tanar'ling is a tiefling with tanar'ri origins, and a loth'ling is a tiefling with yugoloth origins.

How to be Rude the Planar Way

There's nothing quite so important as to be able to trade insults with a cross-trader. Say the wrong thing, as you'll show yourself up as a gully prime. So, for the benefit of those who're not so quick of wit as the bloods of the game, here are a few choice insults to be kept on the tip of the tongue:

"You stool for a witch!"

"Your mother has horns!" (The rudest thing you can say to a Bariaur)

"You scurvy lord!"

"You thing of no bowels!"

"You mere Device!" - An insult to a proxy

"You child of a vaporighu!"

"Wishful Thinking" - Good way to insult a Signer.

"You spawn of a random toad!" - Gets under the skin of rogue modrons to no end. Normal modrons pretty much ignore any insults...

"You Yellow Skinned egg-layer!" - One of my three favourite things to say to a githzerai!

"You thinker!" - An insult known to make Ciphers see blood

Little Soldier-boy - A common insult used against Baatezu troops by those bally, daft, and suicidal enough to pick a fight with them. "Whoreson, beetle-headed, flap-ear'd knave!" - A good insult for a fiend.

Stitch your lips - A rude way to tell someone to pike it. To say "stitch your lips" means that not only is what they're saying now either inappropriate or stupid, but chances are anything coming out of their mouths in the future will be equally so.


"Your mother was a shepherdess who stayed in the fields too long!" - Insult for a bariaur credit goes to Kandeda Ebony of Krynn. She claims it's a great way to start good-natured to-the-death brawls in Glorium.