Glossary of Genius: the Transgression terminology

Geniuses / The Inspired: mad scientists

Mania: generated and channeled by Geniuses to do mad science

Wonder: something created by a Genius that breaks the laws of reality

Bardo: a not-quite-real pocket dimension where some theory that's been proved false in the real world is true - like hollow earth theory, or intelligent life on mars, or geocentricism.

Mane: a being that follows different laws of reality and subsists on Mania. The creations of Geniuses and residents of bardos are all manes. Manes can be Inspired.

Catalyst: the emotional trigger that causes someone to become Inspired

Beholden: people who aren't quite Inspired but are drawn to Geniuses and able to work with wonders and mania. Henchpeople, essentially.

Havoc: the name of the phenomenon where, when someone who's not a Genius/mane/beholden attempts to interact with or inspect a wonder, the wonder either breaks or goes haywire

Obligation: how ethical a Genius is; low-Obligation geniuses see people as test subjects and have no scruples about endangering others with their hubristic perversions of science.

Transgression: an act that risks lowering a Genius's Obligation.

Willpower: characters can spend willpower to get a bonus to any roll, and regain willpower by exhibiting a virtue or vice chosen at character creation.

Chance die: when a roll would otherwise be zero dice, a player can still roll one die, with a 10% chance of success and a 10% chance of "dramatic failure", in which things just go horribly horribly wrong.