I dunno why, either. Might be interesting to just hand this one to a bunch of players and see what they do with it. You can get some interesting campaigns that way, at least.
the-baptismal-surveyor-google-docs
The Baptismal Surveyor
That’s what it says, right on the box. Yes, it comes in a box. The contraption itself is firmly in the “wood-bronze steampunk aesthetic:” all polished gold-browns and dark woods, rivets, a basic shape that evokes a bulky tazer without being so crass as to really resemble one, vacuum tubes and needle-dials… and a blunt-tipped probe that extends, gently, when you pull the trigger. If the probe touches a person’s bare skin, a mechanical readout on the top of the Surveyor will gently spin to one of the following entries:
- Baptist
- Christian
- Eastern
- Heathen
- High Church
- Low Church
- Lutheran
- Mormon
- Other
- Papist
- Sikh
As near as anybody can determine, the Baptismal Surveyor is never wrong. It uses a few terms that are rather rude in the modern era, but the Surveyor apparently can determine whether or not a particular individual has been baptized in a particular faith tradition. And without an immediately obvious power source, either.
So what’s the assignment? Go see if there’s another one of these things, of course. Once it’s no longer unique, researchers can in good conscience take apart a Baptismal Surveyor and figure out what makes the thing tick. Also: find out why somebody invented a device that could tell whether you’ve been baptised, maybe? The reason might still be relevant today.
Useful for troll hunters.