Fate Matrix: Finding Truths

Foreward

I understand it is customary to thank contributors when a work is improved. This work is supported by the Earthkin Arcanum. Contributions from High Maguses Datura Willowgrave and Gimdar Chiselfinger, Senior Magus Acaria Nettlehorn, and Magus Minto Fuzzypaw of the Earthkin Arcanum. Individual contribution from Benwick Wolperten.

Without your feedback and questions I would not have realized how much I needed to expand on these ideas. Thank you, Final Magus Relds Matulral of the Earthkin Arcanum.

2nd Edition, Revised, First Impression, DR 1375-11-7

Introduction

The Fate Matrix is a logical construction to find Truths. Truths, defined here, are indisputable objective facts. Using the Fate Matrix, Truths can be found. Applying the Fate Matrix to difficult situations or to suspected untruths will reveal Truths.

Often, Truth is obscured by opinions and judgments in an attempt to explain a Truth. Cultures, opinions, judgments, and perspectives fall under an umbrella that this text defines as propositions. These are topics that societies and individuals value, but are not findable or useful Truths.

In the Fate Matrix, real Truths are Truths that remove those layers of propositions and reveal what is measurable and useful underneath.

Finding Truth

Truth is first available in a simple form and then grows more complex. The complexity of the Truth grows with what is measurable about that Truth. Statistical analysis and measurement of the Truth is the main path to affirming that a Truth is found. The measurements are simple mathematical operations like averages, distances, and limits. Statistics and measurements themselves are not a focus of the Fate Matrix itself, but are the basic tool to find Truths.

In the Fate matrix, Truths are organized into four categories: Categorical Truth, Ordered Truth, Spatial Truth, and Limited Truth. The Truths grow in complexity in this pattern and understanding the more complex Truths requires understanding the basic Truths first.

Finding the Truth requires a different way of thinking. Patterns of everyday communication are formed for ease of communication, but not for finding Truth. Applying the Fate Matrix requires engaging with and observing familiar communication outside of familiar patterns. Recognizing the common paths of thinking and applying the methodology of the Fate Matrix instead will be a frequent topic and challenge of the Fate Matrix.

Actors

Propositions and well-intentioned arguments will push back on the tenets of the Fate Matrix. In the Fate Matrix, Actors are those individuals who will attempt to use propositions as Truths. An Actor's intentions may be benevolent or innocent, but a Bad Actor will use propositions to enforce their will, knowingly or not, on others.

In the common discourse of life, Actors will share their opinions about Truth as if those opinions are facts. Even in friendly conversation, without bad faith, an Actor will state their opinion as fact. This is part of the common path of communication that has come about simply for the ease of sharing information, from the Actor's culture, and from the Actor's level of intelligence. Learn to recognize that these are not statements of Truth, but propositions that carry influence from the Actor.

The Actor is often influenced by another previous Actor with intents that may not be visible. The friendly proposition being shared today may have been manipulated with bad faith previously by a Bad Actor. Take note that what others say could be further influenced by what others have said to them. Be skeptical of what is said in order to find Truth.

Categorical Truth

The first basic Truth is not measurable and is not comparable: Categorical Truth. These are Truths that are basic and self-evident. A blade of grass is green. An iron axe is made of iron. A particular dwarf's eyes are brown. A particular human's eyes are red. These are categorically different Truths. The topic is familiar and simple, but this is the first break from comfortable common paths of thinking.

The first Truth of Categorical Truths is often the most difficult Truth to understand because it requires a new path of thinking. To find Truth in the Fate Matrix, propositions must be avoided. Consider eye color as an example. Red eyes have different meanings to different cultures and people. In the common communication and understanding of red eyes, there is no Truth to be found because the topic is clouded with propositions. Different cultures and individuals will take the category to signify different things so there is no ideal Truth that can be found.

To use the Fate Matrix to find Truths, consider categories with a mind outside of the common path. Start by applying mathematical operations. There is no order to the Truth of red eyes or brown eyes. There is no value between the categories that can be measured or averaged. An Actor might still make an argument that there is a personal preference for this type of Truth of eye color that could be collected and averaged. This line of thinking is falling into the common path of propositions again. The average opinion about eye color is not the Truth of eye color.

Instead of applying propositional thought to the topic, use the Fate Matrix and attempt to find mathematical operations. The lesson of the first basic Truth is that Categorical Truths cannot be compared and do not fit any of the mathematical operations. It does not make sense to say that red eyes have a distance of green eyes between red and brown eyes. There is no average of all eye colors. Brown eyes do not come before red eyes. Red eyes are not the maximum eyes that are possible. The fact that this basic Categorical Truth of eye colors lacks any measurements -- orders, distances, averages, sums, limit measurements -- is how this basic Truth of a Categorical Truth is identified in the Fate Matrix.

An Actor may make an argument here that the light wavelengths of color do have measurements. The wavelength of light, shadows, and their color properties is a different topic from the simple topic of eye colors. The color wavelength of light is something that could be examined under a more complex Truth.

Ordered Truth

Truth starts to become more complex with the next category of Truth: Ordered Truth. For example, in a military company, there may be three ranks of Private. A, B, and C class Privates. In this example, A class is placed higher than B class, which is higher than C class, but it is not stated how much better an A class Private is than a B or C class.

Making assumptions about orders of truth is the common path of thinking. An Actor might argue that an A class Private is more skilled than a C class because of cultural influences. The Actor would likely make this proposition without being aware of the military or culture that the ranks originated from. This path of thinking is not following the Fate Matrix. The assumption that skill or experience comes with the higher ranks comes from common propositions.

Following the Fate Matrix, the Truth is found by how it can be measured. Attempting to find an average value, it is clear that there is no average to the Ordered Truth. In this example only three Private ranks are given, but that is not a limit of military rankings as the number of ranks are arbitrary. It also does not make sense to say that an A class Private and a C class Private has a distance of B class Private between them. What is the distance between a B class Private and a C class Private, then? Again, this path of thinking is following the common unscrutinized logic of propositions.

Like Categorical Truth, the Ordered Truth is defined in the Fate Matrix by the limited measurements that can be made. The Ordered Truth only has one measurement of complexity more than a Categorical Truth: order. The A class Private comes before the B class, which comes before the C class. Under the Fate Matrix, this is the total understanding to take from an Ordered Truth. The Ordered Truth is the first Truth that is measurable, and it is only measurable in this simple ordered way.

Spatial Truth

Truth becomes more measurable and complex when an Truth has measurable distances: Spatial Truth. In the Nine Hells, water boils into steam. In the fields of the Dale, in the middle of summer, the temperature of water is blood-neutral and water is liquid. At the same time, sixty handspans deep into the Crystal Caverns of Brogendenstein, water is still liquid, but saps warmth from a blood-neutral hand. Outside the mountain and further up the Dark Spires the cold is numbing and water freezes.

The difference between an Ordered Truth and a Spatial Truth is that there is a measurable difference in the Truth that does not require a proposition. Water freezes in the Spires and boils in the Nine Hells no matter who is observing. The differences between the different rankings of temperate have an obvious space, or distance, that can be measured. The different temperatures can also be ordered from hot to cold and temperature can be averaged.

Categorical and Ordered Truths are useful in simplifying complex issues, but the Spatial Truth is the first that has some utility in finding Truths that are unknown or unknowable, like an average. The familiar path to be avoided here is to assume that a Spatial Truth has a real Truth that can be extrapolated from its averages. The average of a Spatial Truth is useful, but assumptions must always be strictly applied in the Fate Matrix to avoid propositions and adhere to Truths.

At the Brogensteinstein Docks, the base of the Dark Spires, water is liquid and saps warmth from a blood-neutral hand. At the peaks of the Dark Spires, water freezes and the temperature is a bitter cold. A simple propositional assumption would be that halfway up the Dark Spires would be halfway between those measurements. However, those who have traveled the Dark Spires know that water boils halfway up the mountain at the Hot Springs. One lesson of the Spatial Truths is that the Spatial Truth of the average between the base and the peak of the Dark Spires is still halfway between the two measurements -- a cold blood-neutral sapping temperature -- which does not match the actual Hot Springs measurement halfway up the mountain at the Hot Springs. This illustrates the dangers of incomplete data and the risk of relying on the propositional faith in things like averages.

Limited Truth

Truth is at its most complex when it has all the aspects of the other Truths and one additional measurement: Limited Truth. The Limited Truth is only subtly different from a Spatial Truth in that a Limited Truth has absolute measurements.

Attempting to understand something very cold -- half of half of half of the temperature of the peaks of the Dark Spires for example -- may be very cold, but there is still a temperature to measure. It cannot be said that there is a minimum zero temperature or a maximum temperature on the prime material. Limited Truths deal with more abstract Truths like the complete absence or maximum of temperature.

Wealth, for example, could be absolutely zero. A slave with all of their labor taken would be worth nothing. Or, it could theoretically be possible for an individual to own all resources and labor for all of time and across all the planes as the limit of wealth.

The familiar path to avoid here is to associate some value of a higher number of a Limited Truth. Wealth is a good example of following a well-worn propositional path because many propositions are tied into the wealth and value of coins. A single gold coin might be the difference between life and death for one, but one coin is just one coin among millions for another.

A Limited Truth can be compared, ordered and averaged like a Spatial Truth, but the unique statistic of a Limited Truth, is that it can truly measure from nothing to everything. This means that the Truth may be divided, multiplied, or otherwise operated on and compared more mathematically than a Spatial truth.

Applying Truth

Follow these basic guidelines of the Fate Matrix to recognize and find Truths:

o Truth is obscured by the convenience of propositions and is misused by Actors

o Use Categorical Truths and Ordered Truths to distill complex issues and topics down to basic components of Truth

o Use Spatial Truths and Limited Truths to find unknown Truths, but do not be tempted by propositional extrapolations

Applying the Fate Matrix: Eriss' Claims

For the purpose of demonstrating the Fate Matrix, an example of a political situation is simplified and detailed. This happened in the year of 1364 DR in the Dominion of Brogendenstein. Follow along and apply the tenets of the Fate Matrix.

A gnome named Eriss Eriss claimed that since the administration of Brogendenstein allowed her to make yearly leadership challenges that it was a good system of leadership for her to make those challenges, and that she would continue to make the challenges yearly no matter who was chosen after the challenge was complete. Eriss then made the leadership challenge.

Eriss' philosophy of yearly Administrative-allowed challenges was in conflict with the established Trials of Thanedom tradition of leadership challenge. The Trails to Thanedom tradition detailed elections called in accordance with oaths and with the blessings of the other powers of Brogendenstein. Eriss claimed that her goal was to remove the Thaneship Trails tradition for the good of Brogendenstein.

First, anyone using propositions like "good" or "tradition" should be recognized as suspect. Then, stated goals are examined for their Truths. To follow along with the tenets of the Fate Matrix, begin by attempting to simplify the topics and issues in order to find Truth.

The common path of thinking here is to compare the administration-allowed yearly leadership challenges to the Trials of Thanedom leadership challenge to attempt to determine which is better. Those that are beginning to understand the Fate Matrix should recognize the Truth of the matter. Eriss' Administration challenge and the traditional Trials challenge are not comparable as a Truth. There is no average, spacing, distance, or order between an Administrative challenge and a Trial challenge. There is only a Categorical Truth of a type of leadership challenge.

The Fate Matrix states and demonstrates that there is no Truth to be found in comparing one Categorical Truth over another. Eriss is identified in the Fate Matrix as a Bad Actor for using propositions to attempt to compare Categorical Truths. The final details of the leadership challenge are not important for the Fate Matrix, but for the clarity of the text; Eriss ultimately fails the leadership challenge and does not follow through with her threat to make yearly challenges. She disappears from the isle not long after. As of 1375 DR, Brogendenstein still uses the Trials based leadership challenge.

The pull of the common path of propositional thinking here is strong, and those in the propositional mode of thinking will be wondering if those that opposed Eriss were right to argue against her. Historically, not all that argued against Eriss argued that the Trials leadership challenge was better because it was based on tradition. Those who argued against Eriss and based their arguments on traditions were also violating the Fate Matrix by attempting to compare a Categorical Truth. There were also Bad Actors on the Trials challenge side of the argument.

Do not fall into the trap of propositional truths by attempting to determine which side of this argument was correct or which side of this argument was righteous in raising the issue or defending it. Those following the Fate Matrix should understand that propositional statements like "right" or "correct" are not how Truths are found. Just because Brogendenstein has kept the Trials leadership challenge tradition, does not mean it was the correct choice. The Fate Matrix does not determine what is "correct." There is no Truth to be found on either side of the argument. The only Truth was that a Bad Actor was attempting to manipulate using propositions of comparison on uncomparable Categorical Truths.

There was one argument against Eriss' Administration based leadership challenge that simply argued that her argument was a Bad Actor argument. Eriss did not respond or engage with the logic of the Fate Matrix before her disappearance. History is not convenient, so the example of Eriss' leadership challenge and the application of the Fate Matrix stops there.

Revisiting the topic, there may be some Truth to be found examining leadership challenges in more complex Truths that are not just Categorical Truth comparisons. For example, if an Actor were to gather the data and make an argument that one leadership challenge increases the overall wealth of a population based on the type of leadership challenge, then that statement could be examined in a Limited Truth to determine which challenge increased wealth. However, the topic is moving beyond a demonstration of the application of the Fate Matrix and into a specific theoretical research topic, which is outside the scope of this text.

The Fate Matrix does not say who or what is correct or moral. Those are propositional terms for societal norms. The Fate Matrix reveals the Truth and reveals propositional manipulation by Bad Actors.