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[Addition] Replicants


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This is an addition to my revised homunculus lore. This stage is meant to be extremely hard to achieve, and should be viewed essentially as "end game" content for a homunculus character. There is no going beyond this, though one could revert back to the previous tier accidentally. This information is almost entirely unknown in character, so please do not metagame the existence of these creatures or their abilities and properties. Hope you enjoy.

 

Tier Five: Replicant

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“The final stage; perfection.”

 

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       Legends tell of a final and nigh unattainable form of homunculus- the Replicant- which is born of a rare and paradoxical conjunction of alchemy and holy magic. Building upon the soul shadow within higher tier homunculi, a divine magic user is able to form the facsimile of a soul template from soul essence- effectively granting the homunculus the ability to experience true sentience. As most Holy Orders denigrate and hunt homunculi as a general rule, to find a willing participant for such a creation is almost impossible. While other methods may be possible, one must obtain raw, pure soul matter and have the means to bestow it upon the Doppelganger to achieve the evolution to Replicant.

 

       A homunculus gifted in such a fashion will bear the same wealth of feeling and purpose as a mortal man- for, in practice, he has been given that which all other homunculi lack- a mortal soul. The Replicant would be capable of feeling higher emotions- love, empathy, friendship- and would appear almost entirely indiscernible from the mortals around them both in physical and emotional presence. They will retain the personality which they developed in their time as a Doppelganger, as well as any memories, skills, and emotions. Due to the nature of the soul material used, their soul is fresh, and unhindered by the curses that normal Descendants bear. This allows them to live significantly longer than any of their predecessors, with the true extent of their lifespans yet unknown.

The possession of a soul also allows the owner a connection to the void. Due to the unnatural state of their being, Replicants do not possess the full range of magics that a normal mortal would. They are unable to learn any diety magic whatsoever. (3 Slots) Any attempt to modify or change the fragile soul of a Replicant will cause the soul to fracture and fade. Replicants are unable to possess a new fully formed soul, and thus if one were to try and make use of the patchwork version they did have, the soul would simply be lost, and the Replicant would return to their previous Doppelganger form, retaining any scars or maims acquired along the way.

 

       Despite the addition of a soul into their body, the ability for it to function normally has long since past. Their internal organs remain in stasis, and they have no blood. They continue to lack the necessity for air, food, and sleep, however they gain the ability to go into a trance like meditative state to rest and dream. This meditation is required for the Replicant to regain lost energy and mana, and to prevent fatigue. A Replicant should go into this trance for at least four hours a day to fully rest their body. Their previous replacement of blood remains, and depends on their symbol. Death is again similar to that of a Doppelganger. Once a Replicant has received a mortal amount of wounds, their body will begin to break down. Particle by particle, their form disperses, leaving only their internal symbol. Unlike Doppelgangers, though, a soul is present. This will cause their body to be reformed as other mortals do, within the Cloud Temple, and not the Abyss. This also means they retain scars upon death, as their bodies did not rebuild themselves in the same fashion as before. In the same sense, any lost limbs or body parts will remain lost to them permanently. While a mortal would be able to seek out a potion of regeneration, Replicants do not possess the blood necessary to create the concoction, and thus are unable to make use of this feat of alchemy. Similarly, healing potions and poisons do not affect Replicants. It is said that the only potion that can affect a Replicant is the potion of unmaking, the brew that kills homunculi. It is important to remember that things like acidic substances still hurt Replicants however.

 

       The regeneration that the Doppelganger possesses is completely lost to a Replicant. They will now begin to heal at the same rate as a mortal being, with broken bones needed to be set and deep cuts needing to be stitched. This is due to the presence of a soul, and their closer link with mortality. As well, they will experience normal, physical pain much more vibrantly. A blow or cut that was easily shrugged off before is now felt in full. A Replicant is far from the berserker fighting style of their previous form. With the use of magics, they will also find themselves fatigued due to exerting their mana pool, something all beings with a soul must endure. However, due to the nature of their body, voidal poisoning does not affect their muscle mass or strength as it would a mortal. They will also now experience fatigue in normal, melee combat instances. They will have a hard time adjusting to this change at first, but as with any soldier or athlete, they can eventually learn to utilize their stamina throughout a fight.

 

       Their bodies are still of unnatural construction, thus they remain vulnerable to aurum weaponry and most holy magics. The single exception to this rule is the magic of the Ascended, Aeriel’s followers. Due to the nature of their new found soul, being pure and untainted, Ascended magic will not harm a Replicant in any way. They remain weak to their opposing symbol.

 

       The most important thing to remember about a Replicant's soul is that it is extremely fragile. One might imagine a this patchwork soul as a glass object which has been carefully and meticulously pieced back together. The slightest bump will send it crumbling again, and the object itself is far from useful. Replicants will never have a full grasp on magic, their connection to the Void is barely stable and difficult to maintain. They can in no way whatsoever alter their soul, not for magic or any kind of transformation. They risk themselves to gain the soul and sacrifice much to maintain it. Acquiring a soul is far from becoming perfect. If a Doppelganger does manage to receive a soul, they are trading off certain aspects. The soul is difficult to acquire and easy to lose, and should never be viewed as some small thing.

 

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  • Must be created from a living Doppelganger
  • Retains the strength and speed of a Doppelganger, as well as their memories, personality, and skills.
  • Retains the racial buffs from when they were a Doppelganger (necrolyte).
  • No blood. Instead, they will excrete whatever liquid/solid they are formed from.
  • Gain the full emotional range of mortals. Possess the ability to form a moral compass.
  • Extreme length of life. Lifespan extends tenfold. 
  • Having acquired a soul, they are now able to practice magic and possess a mana pool. However, they are unable to learn any diety magics. (3 slots; 1 T5, 1 T4, 1 T3) No limit on feats or artificery.
  • Weak to holy magic (excluding Ascended), aurum weapons, and their opposing symbol.
  • Healing is done at the speed of a mortal. Scars are retained permanently. Loss of limb or other body parts is permanent. (Regen potions do NOT work on them due to the nature of the potion’s required ingredients.)
  • Connection to the Void for extended periods of time is difficult.
  • Replicants must go into a meditative state for at least 4 hours a day to regain energy and mana.
  • Replicants become fatigued after excessive exertion of the body.
  • Cannot be transformed into anything else (lich, shade, etc) that would change or affect their fragile soul. Attempting to do this will result in the fracturing of the soul, and subsequent loss of it, reverting the Replicant back into Doppelganger form.

 

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Thanks go to Fid for helping me start this lore and PurpleCola for helping me finish it.

 

Revision History:

9/7 - Lore Posted

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Interesting Idea. How does one get a pure raw soul then place it into the Doppelganger? You may have put it in, and I may have missed it.

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1 minute ago, The Redneck said:

Interesting Idea. How does one get a pure raw soul then place it into the Doppelganger? You may have put it in, and I may have missed it.

 

It isn't in because there isn't a set way of doing it. There are currently two homunculi with souls, and each received it in a different way, with the only consistent factor being the Ascended for their whole soul specialty. There are any number of routes one could take to get their soul essence and probably more than one way to get it put it, but using a Holy mage seems to be the logical step two.

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8 minutes ago, SugarBlind said:

 

It isn't in because there isn't a set way of doing it. There are currently two homunculi with souls, and each received it in a different way, with the only consistent factor being the Ascended for their whole soul specialty. There are any number of routes one could take to get their soul essence and probably more than one way to get it put it, but using a Holy mage seems to be the logical step two.

 

*Smells a possible Mysticism Addition*

Awesome! Perhaps you would be open to the possibility of one of the ways of soul imbuement into a Doppelganger being through a route of mysticism as one of the ways? I'm a fan of the overall idea of this lore piece. Could provide some unique rp for the homunculi. Well Done.

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Just now, The Redneck said:

*Smells a possible Mysticism Addition*

Awesome! Perhaps you would be open to the possibility of one of the ways of soul imbuement into a Doppelganger being through a route of mysticism as one of the ways? I'm a fan of the overall idea of this lore piece. Could provide some unique rp for the homunculi. Well Done.

 

 

Of course! Now that we have more information on souls and such, I would love to see more people getting into manipulation of them.

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I'd +1 if I could, but yeah, love the concept!

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50 minutes ago, PurpleCola said:

I'm very excited about this! Good work!

I don't believe this is possible but it's a wonderful idea... @Zarsies help

 

It is possible technically. Since my Wight and the other Wights have access to a thing called Hexing (Mysticism thing) there could be an alternate route taken in an attempt to possibly remove or steal soul essence from the place where hexes are created which could be an interesting twist.

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This is very well written. Yes please!

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I'm glad you kept the Blade Runner reference I slipped in there.

 

On a more serious note I am very pleased with how this lore has progressed since I phased out of the project and obviously I give my full support/+1/etc.

 

When we were starting this project I remember it being particularly important that the creatures be of such rarity as to effectively skirt the line of myth. There isn't meant to be a set progression from Doppelganger to Replicant because no such standard exists; each (of the two) homunculi who exist with souls received them in diverse fashions. It's intended to provide definition to an undefined concept and as such is both necessary and constructive. 

 

 

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What jumps to the eye immediately is the massive amount of physiological changes that occur to the creature merely due to the addition of a soul. Now I'm not underplaying the value of "souls" in the LotC universe, but I am wondering if the properties it confers to the creature are consistent. Why, for example, are replicants still vulnerable to gold weapons?

 

(Note that I am not doubting the consistency. I'm sure you have a good answer I'm just asking for clarification).

 

And while this lore is very detailed on how the T5 Replicant should be roleplayed, their ascension from T4 status is more or less never discussed. Going back to your Homonculi lore I also notice the ascension process is barely discussed and mentioned as an afterthought. I am guessing you are wanting to keep this a secret for metagame reasons?

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4 hours ago, Sporadic said:

What jumps to the eye immediately is the massive amount of physiological changes that occur to the creature merely due to the addition of a soul. Now I'm not underplaying the value of "souls" in the LotC universe, but I am wondering if the properties it confers to the creature are consistent. Why, for example, are replicants still vulnerable to gold weapons?

 

(Note that I am not doubting the consistency. I'm sure you have a good answer I'm just asking for clarification).

 

And while this lore is very detailed on how the T5 Replicant should be roleplayed, their ascension from T4 status is more or less never discussed. Going back to your Homonculi lore I also notice the ascension process is barely discussed and mentioned as an afterthought. I am guessing you are wanting to keep this a secret for metagame reasons?

 

To address the first inquiry, I will be very honest. The Lore team demanded more redlines. The lore explanation would most likely be that gold still affects them because of the physiological build of their bodies still being unnatural. They don't have natural flesh and blood, and while I don't know the 'laws' of how gold works, this seems like a logical step one could take in character. 

 

As for the second part, some other people have mentioned that as well, and you are correct to assume that the process is somewhat of a secret and somewhat undefined. The two homunculi that do possess souls each received them in very different ways. There is no right or wrong path to take to acquiring a soul, and thus I choose not to define it. There was some discussion on mysticism perhaps having some options outside of using holy mages, which I am happy for, but in my lore specifically I don't feel that defining a route to take would be appropriate. 

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Thank you for submitting your piece! This is now under review and you can expect a verdict in roughly a week.

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