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[✗] [Lore Submission] Ghost Drain


Demotheus
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The Enhancement of Ghost Powers through Increased Generation of Ectoplasm

 

OOC Note: 

 

 

 

 


This lore is meant to bring ghosts further into the terrifying range. Forces to be reckoned with and not taken lightly. This is meant to bring ghosts more in line with what people think of when they think ghosts. Horror movies. My personal vision of ghosts in LotC is that they are entities that either wish to move on to the afterlife, or plague the earth in some way and remain, treating their new powers as their new afterlife. The world is their Disneyland, and the citizens of it are the rides. With that said, I'm attempting to ensure that it's in a ghosts best interest to NOT kill people, unless it's in the interest of keeping their favourite sources of food alive and producing. 

 

At some point I intend to make a ghost lore "rewrite" which basically combines all available lore into an easy to cite thread (as far as Haunts, Revenants, Specters/Poltergeists are concerned). Currently there's not a whole lot of information about ghosts, their abilities, and other stuff to justify a decent lore post. There's really only fluff and filler out there that's years old at this point. 
 

 

 

 

Ghosts have long been known, to those that study them, to have a certain influence on the emotions of others. They've always been created by dying tragic, or violent deaths as well, usually filled with fear, or some other strong emotion. The draining aura of a ghost is no coincidence in this matter. It's how they replenish their ectoplasm, draining life force and mana from everything between people and even thin air. This affect is especially present on people, and it seems to be getting more and more impactful. A person's emotions affect their aura, and make themselves vulnerable to many kinds of attack. In this perspective, a ghost's draining aura primarily leaches small amounts of life force from the victims, but mostly tears away at their aura like a shade would. 

 

However, ghosts are not nearly as capable of corrupting the aura at will as a shade is, and they do not simply steal away emotions like Izkuthii do. A ghost must manipulate the emotions of their victim(s) such that some of the core layers of their aura begin to change color. This usually occurs through moments of stress, and negative emotion. This is why many ghosts take prefer to strike fear into the hearts of their prey. Fear is a very potent emotion that is relatively easy to illicit out of people. However, many ghosts prefer more subtle means as well, such as stress, anxiety, and misery. All of these negative emotions rattle the defenses of the emotional core of the aura, and leave it open to be drained and transferred into ectoplasm by the ghost. 

 

Many, with some prerequisite knowledge, could easily figure this out through logical assumptions. However, for the past many dozens of centuries of history of ghosts, they've all been feeding passively, not actively. Even those who seek to scare people and terrorize them because of how delicious their fear is aren't feeding actively. That is why poltergeists are generally seen to be stronger, more aggressive ghosts, than Spectres. However, this is not always a hard and fast rule, and in future it will become one less and less. What has changed in recent years is the emergence of Mystics, powerful mages that deal with the energies of ectoplasm - the stuff of Phantoms.

 

Through Mysticism, many things are made possible, but to a ghost all that is important is the realization of the extent at which they can possibly manipulate ectoplasm. The only way they can manipulate ectoplasm, however, is by manipulating themselves - which means for this to be sustainable they must have MORE of themselves. And so, for the past few years many ghosts have been trying to figure out how they can gain more ectoplasm apart from their slow, trickling passive drain. Only recently have some spectres and poltergeists cracked the code for ectoplasmic feeding. They've begun to understand now that on some level, negative emotions of mortals come into play, and they are able to generate more ectoplasm than otherwise. At this time, ghosts aren't aware of the specific mechanics by which they act when they do this, and rather assume they're feeding on fear, horror, misery, panic, anger, etc. directly, when in fact they are feeding off of the compromised aura's and converting that into ectoplasm for themselves. 

 

Through these studies, high level ghosts are now able to ramp up their previously slow and passive draining. While this has little more effect on mortals around them, as they simply feed on the aura's which is essentially waste from the soul, something that will become more evident with this discovery is an surge in hauntings of various kinds in the effort of getting acquiring more ectoplasm and enhancing their power. The more ectoplasm a ghost can amass, the more powerful their existing abilities become. 

 

Ghostly Abilities affected by having more ectoplasm

 

Resisting demanifestation: A ghost who is fed and fat on ectoplasm would require more effort to be demanifested and purged than a ghost who is otherwise not. 

 

Ghost Telekinesis: A ghost's telekinesis is enhanced greatly from T3 all the way up to possibly T5. However, a ghost can only be at max telekinetic strength when essentially physically touching their subject. In effect, their strength becomes that of an orc when in physical contact with an object, and thus cannot fire off small objects like speeding arrows such as a mortal telekinetic can. They can flip tables, grasp and throw people, and even attempt to break down doors with this strength. However it must be used somewhat sparingly, as every exertion costs ectoplasm. They fatigue at a similar rate as a normal telekinetic would, unless they are causing sufficient horror to sustain themselves better.

 

Active Drain: A ghost can sustain their abilities use by causing sufficient fear, agony, and misery such that they can drain enough aura and convert it to ectoplasm fast enough, and in large enough volumes, that their ectoplasmic usage is replenished. By no means would this mean they can just throw heavy objects around non stop, it just means that they can do it regularly, for longer. This is a ghost's bread and butter. Preferably, they would cause misery to more than one person at a time, and thus have more active links to fuel themselves with. It's in a ghosts best interest to hoard their ectoplasm, and only use enough to defend themselves, or illicit the ability to feed in the first place. 

 

Ectoplasmic Backfire: At the core of every ghostly power lies Ectoplasm. In order to drain mana from a person or group of people, the ghost must link their ectoplasm with their aura. They're not aware this is what's happening, but that doesn't change the fact that it is. This means that there will always be residual ectoplasm left over from whatever ability they used on whatever subject. It doesn't last very long, perhaps a half hour at most before it dissipates, but it's enough to have an odd effect in certain circumstances. If someone dies near the ghost while it's draining them of their compromised aura, the link between them will shatter and backfire on the ghost. While this has little physical effect or even visible, the ghost feels it. It's not pain, but it is far from pleasant. 

 

Upon death, ectoplasm is generated in a short burst as the soul leaves the body, tearing away remnants of life force and mana with it. However, due to the ghostly link, the escaping soul has an easy source of ectoplasm to take from. This is a means of protection as the soul travels between planes to get to wherever it needs to go. This means that, for the ghost, they lose substantial ectoplasm. It isn't life threatening, and wouldn't cripple them (unless they were already depleted of ectoplasm), but it is counter productive. They would likely lose most of, if not all of the ectoplasm they had acquired from the terror they had caused in that person. The first time this happens for a ghost will make it abundantly clear to them that murder is rarely ever a good option for them.

 

The only time this ectoplasmic backfire can be negated is if the ghost kills someone in the company of another person who is horrified by the display, and generates sufficient ectoplasm to counteract this. That is why there are many tales of ghosts leading people to their gruesome demise just in time for their loved ones to round the corner to witness the screaming stop for ever. This is also why there aren't many stories of ghosts killing people on a whim. They always toy with their food, and rarely snuff it out, unless it would generate a decent profit of ectoplasm from witnesses. 

 

Corporealness: A ghost can become semi-corporeal when using more powerful abilities, such as higher end telekinesis. This means they become visible for a time, and are able to be pushed against and affected by people around them. While properly injuring the ghost would require gold or some other weakness, such as bright light of sunlight intensity, they can be pushed around. For example, if a ghost is lifting someone, another person could try to push the ghost over. With sufficient effort, a ghost can lose focus for a moment, and would lose control of the subject of their influence. Not quite as easy as it is to mess with a mages concentration, but doable with a good head start run and shove. 

 

Others: Generally a rule of thumb is if it can be logically enhanced with more ectoplasm, it will be. These are the three primary examples, however. 

 

Red Lines:

-Killing someone, or allowing someone to die while you are haunting them comes with a substantial consequence. Ghosts should do this sparingly, if at all ever. The point of ghosts is not to antagonize through murder and pillaging like other dark creatures do, but to antagonize through mind games or shock horror and fear. 

-Ghosts, at "T5 telekinetic ability" have a max telekinetic strength of an orc, and can only utilize their max strength at touching range. They may only physically grasp objects or kick them, etc. with this ability. They cannot do this from range. At a range of ten meters they can only lift a few minor objects. Past 15 meters, they can't manipulate anything at all.

-Using any ghostly ability that would logically require actual effort (physical manipulation/ghost telekinesis, possession, etc.) requires use of ectoplasm - not simply the ghost's life essence, but literally pieces of their body - in a sense. Unless being sufficiently refueled, a ghost will lose steam eventually. This also means that the more a ghost depletes it's own ectoplasm (and the less returns it gets on that depletion) the easier it is to kill. 

-Draining does not exhaust people physically, but similarly to how shades operate, it is the sole reason for the icy ghost aura, and the depressed feeling people get when they have prolonged exposure to a ghost. 

-When exerting a stronger amount of ectoplasm, such as lifting heavy objects, you must become visible for the duration, and for at least one emote after the duration. Picking up a person, for example, would take at least one emote, and throwing them would be another. You become visible in the first emote, and remain visible for at least one emote following the release of the person. While still unharmed by mundane weaponry, they can be shoved, or otherwise have their conversation broken with sufficient effort, and as a result, drop the subject in question, or have the power they're using interrupted.

-These powers are reserved for Specters/Poltergeists and "above". (Gravens, apparations, etc.)

 

 

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There's one thing I'm a little hmmmm about; In all previous ghostly matters, the only ghosts able to physically touch or use their telekinesis on mortals were poltergeists, being the feature that sets them apart from goodghosts ( other than color and higher propensity for an antagonistic attitude ).

 

Also give poltergeists the ability to violently steal ectoplasm from other ghosts if their special ability is getting robin hood'd to the ghostly masses.

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2 minutes ago, TheCritsyBear said:

There's one thing I'm a little hmmmm about; In all previous ghostly matters, the only ghosts able to physically touch or use their telekinesis on mortals were poltergeists, being the feature that sets them apart from goodghosts ( other than color and higher propensity for an antagonistic attitude ).

 

Also give poltergeists the ability to violently steal ectoplasm from other ghosts if their special ability is getting robin hood'd to the ghostly masses.

I see where you're coming from. That said, spectres aren't good ghosts. The key difference between a spectre and a poltergeist is whether or not they have accepted their death gracefully. My spectre has accepted their death gracefully and isn't angry that they are dead. It enables them to do the things they enjoyed in life a lot more discreetly. My spectre is pretty malevolent underneath the surface. 

 

Poltergeists still retain the ability to claw at people and such. Ghosts have never been said to be able to throw people about however. 

 

Basically a poltergeists ability to harm people is still far better. They retain the ability to, whole possessing someone, give them minor bleeding and such. While beefed up on ectoplasm they can deliver nastier wounds as well. Perhaps shredding and stuff, and if necessary, full on slicing and biting and such. 

 

With that in mind, let me know what you think. That's just my perspective.

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Might be pushing it a bit with these ghost additions. They're probably deserved of all these abilities as ghouls are, whom of which have none.

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Ghouls get to ascend to higher levels of spook which rapidly become far more powerful than a ghost. 

 

That said, I did forget to add the red line that says that only spectres and poltergeists can do these sorts of things. A haunt or revenant cannot.

Apart from that, ghouls and ghosts are two separate types of spook entirely. They don't have the same motives and purposes in rp.

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Whether or not a Ghoul can become x or y, they're still a Ghoul until they become whatever they intend to become. During their time as a Ghoul, they remain on equal measure with everyone else and do not gain any extra powers. Ghosts and Ghouls do have a relation in function, though, as they carry the same soul type and to ramp up a Ghost's powers more than they should be would suggest that giving Ghouls similar compensation is justified, which it shouldn't be, because both Ghosts and Ghouls only exist to become a character's second-rate, low-quality second chance at existing.

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14 minutes ago, Swgrclan said:

Whether or not a Ghoul can become x or y, they're still a Ghoul until they become whatever they intend to become. During their time as a Ghoul, they remain on equal measure with everyone else and do not gain any extra powers. Ghosts and Ghouls do have a relation in function, though, as they carry the same soul type and to ramp up a Ghost's powers more than they should be would suggest that giving Ghouls similar compensation is justified, which it shouldn't be, because both Ghosts and Ghouls only exist to become a character's second-rate, low-quality second chance at existing.

I'm afraid I'm not following you on this. What I'm getting is that you're making the claim that a Ghoul remains on equal measure with everyone else, and when they level up they of course get more powers and stuff, since they're no longer a ghoul. They're still an undead type creature, lich, wraith, etc. 

 

So if we are to make a direct comparison, which is a fact I think you're missing here, is that ghosts are similar to undead in the sense that undead is a classification of a type of creature. Ghosts are a classification. Haunts are equivalent to a ghoul in this sense. I dont' really know what a Revenant would be compared to the upgrade of a Ghoul, but I'm pretty sure a spectre or poltergeist ranks up there with a Ghoul becoming a liche or wraith or something. Correct me if I've gotten the path wrong. 

 

Ghosts and Ghouls are not low quality second rate second chances at existing. My ghost was never even RP'd as alive. I created it from scratch, and the quality of RP I've got from it has been immense. I'm sure ghouls could say the same thing as they increase in power and clamber for a higher plane of consciousness and gradually conquer mortality. These are not second chances at existing, to me. These stand on their own as characters, even if it's inspired or reincarnated from a previous character. 

 

So, to explain better, Ghouls upgrade through their stages to their big boss monster form - wraith, liche, etc. Ghosts go from a bumbling haunt that doesn't even KNOW it's a ghost, to spectres and poltergeists. It seems to me you're equating all ghosts with the lowly ghoul, when that's not the case at all. You can only really equate a haunt with a ghoul, and you'd be correct since they share a lot of the same aspects. Barely conscious of their own existence being chief, imo. 

 

Also, last I heard/read, ghosts have full souls (according to mysticism's lore). But this is contended with a few other perspectives I've heard of as well. 

 

Either way, the lore on souls is being buttfugged regularly anyway. Souls are so vague that homunculi are allowed to have them - defeating the purpose of them being homunculi, so who really cares anymore anyway? Just thought I'd add that in, not that it's relevant. 

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3 minutes ago, Demotheus said:

I'm afraid I'm not following you on this. What I'm getting is that you're making the claim that a Ghoul remains on equal measure with everyone else, and when they level up they of course get more powers and stuff, since they're no longer a ghoul. They're still an undead type creature, lich, wraith, etc. 

 

So if we are to make a direct comparison, which is a fact I think you're missing here, is that ghosts are similar to undead in the sense that undead is a classification of a type of creature. Ghosts are a classification. Haunts are equivalent to a ghoul in this sense. I dont' really know what a Revenant would be compared to the upgrade of a Ghoul, but I'm pretty sure a spectre or poltergeist ranks up there with a Ghoul becoming a liche or wraith or something. Correct me if I've gotten the path wrong. 

 

Ghosts and Ghouls are not low quality second rate second chances at existing. My ghost was never even RP'd as alive. I created it from scratch, and the quality of RP I've got from it has been immense. I'm sure ghouls could say the same thing as they increase in power and clamber for a higher plane of consciousness and gradually conquer mortality. These are not second chances at existing, to me. These stand on their own as characters, even if it's inspired or reincarnated from a previous character. 

 

So, to explain better, Ghouls upgrade through their stages to their big boss monster form - wraith, liche, etc. Ghosts go from a bumbling haunt that doesn't even KNOW it's a ghost, to spectres and poltergeists. It seems to me you're equating all ghosts with the lowly ghoul, when that's not the case at all. You can only really equate a haunt with a ghoul, and you'd be correct since they share a lot of the same aspects. Barely conscious of their own existence being chief, imo. 

 

Also, last I heard/read, ghosts have full souls (according to mysticism's lore). But this is contended with a few other perspectives I've heard of as well. 

 

Either way, the lore on souls is being buttfugged regularly anyway. Souls are so vague that homunculi are allowed to have them - defeating the purpose of them being homunculi, so who really cares anymore anyway? Just thought I'd add that in, not that it's relevant. 


When I refer to Ghosts and Ghouls as being "second-rate, low-quality", I mostly refer that the quality of their existence low, not the quality of roleplay they're able to provide. The point of being a Ghost or Ghoul isn't to achieve some status of greater power (I say this in mind with having eventually come to disagree with the Ghoul-to-Lich process that plagues Necromancy as a magic right now) but to treat it as the bottom-rung type deal, and if you start stacking too many powers on top of it then it just bloats the creature issue even further and strips the scale of power that dark art derived creatures have set up. Also, Ghosts have Soul Shadows, same as Ghouls. A Soul Shadow isn't even able to manifest a supernatural connection in order to enable magic so what Ghosts have as it stands is far enough as it is.

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20 minutes ago, Swgrclan said:


When I refer to Ghosts and Ghouls as being "second-rate, low-quality", I mostly refer that the quality of their existence low, not the quality of roleplay they're able to provide. The point of being a Ghost or Ghoul isn't to achieve some status of greater power (I say this in mind with having eventually come to disagree with the Ghoul-to-Lich process that plagues Necromancy as a magic right now) but to treat it as the bottom-rung type deal, and if you start stacking too many powers on top of it then it just bloats the creature issue even further and strips the scale of power that dark art derived creatures have set up. Also, Ghosts have Soul Shadows, same as Ghouls. A Soul Shadow isn't even able to manifest a supernatural connection in order to enable magic so what Ghosts have as it stands is far enough as it is.

Like I said, mysticism claims otherwise regarding souls and ghosts...but that's irrelevant. Being specific about souls is one of the dumbest things LOTC has done imo lorewise. Furthermore, ghosts aren't very scary as they are now. We don't even get to walk through walls. That's a staple of ghostdom in all of popular culture. Ghosts are powerful forces that, in many iterations, feed on fear and misery. That's my vision with ghosts. They aren't meant to be some uber powerful force of great sweeping change or something that must be banded together against to eradicate. Ghosts have motives and goals and "purposes", some are more manipulative in LOTC while some are straight up horrifying. Anyone playing a ghost as part of some overarching plot to take over the world or something is, imo, doing it wrong. A ghost that works to save the world or something is also doing it wrong. 

 

My ghost has a couple motives. One of them is that they want others to be ghosts too, since being a ghost is awesome - in their eyes. They're glad they're a ghost, and like to mess with people to no end. They have some character development stuff as well, which adds some depth, but more and more I'm trying to steer my ghost away from casual chit chat RP and more into the direction of being at least a semi-malevolent force of SPOOKERY. Spookery that people can enjoy being spooked by. Ghosts have little use for people's minas, and this lore serves to encourage ghosts to be more spooky or ghost like to gain power, and avoid killing in that interest. 

 

That's what this lore is. I'm trying to make ghosts in lotc more of what they are commonly thought to be. Not just second chances at characters. Not "Oh I died, better become a ghost to basically play them the same as always but with special spook powers!" characters. I want ghost encounters more and more to be like in the movies and ghost stories. There's a reason why ghost stories are so prominent...it's because the people who experience (what they think are) ghosts and hauntings live to tell the tale.

 

I'm being long winded about this, sorry. I'm not trying to encroach in your spook role play or in necromancers and ghouls dynamic of henchmen and overlords with grand plots to manipulate the mortal masses and such. I don't want ghosts to be some weird spook faction, or have anything to do with conventional spooks. I want them to have a primary motive, and be rewarded for doing that thing that ghosts are supposed to do.

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Eh.. Not a huge fan of this but I like where the idea is going.

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2 minutes ago, The Redneck said:

Eh.. Not a huge fan of this but I like where the idea is going.

That response is straight cheeks.

 

-1, but...+1...so +0. Meh.

 

I actually LOL'd when I read this. Anyway, can you elaborate on what you like and don't like? it'd be more helpful, thank you. :D

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Just now, Demotheus said:

That response is straight cheeks.

 

-1, but...+1...so +0. Meh.

 

I actually LOL'd when I read this. Anyway, can you elaborate on what you like and don't like? it'd be more helpful, thank you. :D

0
 

Cheeks like the submission ;)

 

I kid, but sure. I'd pretty much say what swgr did, however the use of emotions is interesting but I think that the emotion thing has already been used and perhaps this could be done with something different like say their link to their limbo between life and death using a tether or the like. but I'm glad you got a chuckle out of my response but I'm just not a fan of this at all. Best of luck though.

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4 minutes ago, The Redneck said:

Cheeks like the submission ;)

 

I kid, but sure. I'd pretty much say what swgr did, however the use of emotions is interesting but I think that the emotion thing has already been used and perhaps this could be done with something different like say their link to their limbo between life and death using a tether or the like. but I'm glad you got a chuckle out of my response but I'm just not a fan of this at all. Best of luck though.

No problem. I think I wrote at one point how this differs from Izkuthii (the emotion eaters). I'm kind of using pseudoscience stuff regarding real life aura's, and how if you're not happy, or if you're miserable or afraid, your aura (think chi stuff and what not) is thrown off, and reflects different colors. In LOTC terms, I take this as compromised aura. They don't actually feed off of emotions, they utilize emotions in people to steal the mana from their aura (which makes up a large portion of ectoplasm) with a wee bit of life force from their normal drain, and change it into usable ectoplasm.

 

Izkuthii eat emotions.

Ghosts use emotions to exploit weaknesses in their aura and steal it and transfer it into ectoplasm.

Shades straight corrupt the aura from the getgo, no matter their emotion, and turn that into amber.

 

If I've understood you properly, this is the main point of contention you specifically mention and hopefully I've cleared it up a bit more. 

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1 hour ago, Swgrclan said:

Also, Ghosts have Soul Shadows, same as Ghouls. A Soul Shadow isn't even able to manifest a supernatural connection in order to enable magic so what Ghosts have as it stands is far enough as it is.

The difference is: A ghost's soul shadow is the remains of their actual, honest-to-goodness, genuine soul. A ghoul's soul shadow is a hollow recreation of that soul, from what I understand.

 

Also ghosts already progress in power, and can already be empowered by being fed additional ectoplasm. They already gain their power from draining the world and people around them. None of this is any new concept, this is a new spin on an already-existing concept.

Edited by TheCritsyBear
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2 minutes ago, TheCritsyBear said:

The difference is: A ghost's soul shadow is the remains of their actual, honest-to-goodness, genuine soul. A ghoul's soul shadow is a recreation of that soul, from what I understand.

 

Also ghosts already progress in power, and can already be empowered by being fed additional ectoplasm. None of this is any new concept, this is a new spin on an already-existing concept.


The only actual difference between a Ghost and a Ghoul is that their Soul Shadow is housed within different vessels, not that their Soul Shadows are formulated differently. However they're made, they are what they are - they're shadows of the spirit and carry the same qualities.

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