MayRndz 1128 Share Posted February 8, 2023 Spoiler Overall disclaimer that this rewrite has less of an intention to change any major mechanics revolving around treelords and more of a janitorial cleaning and organizing to make it a bit easier to read . The lore overall was outdated and had a few things that I personally viewed as flaws. Keep an open mind and feel free to offer any additional ideas as I work throughout this. This is entirely regarded as a mixture of the old lore, and my current thoughts as I had no inert intention to change it entirely.I did however do a few things that were asked of me by LT - Longer respawn time and better fleshed consequence - reduction in strength buff of the husk itself when not in tree form - remove requirement for st to play event characters for the tree Also enjoy some aesthetic music Soultree, Archfae of the Aspects Genesis of Creation A great and powerful druid wandered the woods with a gnarled staff and ancient wisdom. Natural energies seeped from his being at every step; with the nearby flora flourishing at such a sight. His greyed beard and long hair swayed gracefully within the breeze of the otherwise silent forest. Though despite his service of longevity to the Aspects, his days were numbered. The druid yearned to serve an eternity. This druid knew that the body was merely a vessel for his soul and mind; his true service laid beyond the flesh. With this, he set out on a pilgrimage under the guidance of the Aspects. He traversed lush forests, soaring mountains, and rolling hills of verdure, until his journey concluded within a vibrant, sacred grove. The elder picked a single sapling from the most ancient of trees. With this sapling in hand, the old weathered druid began to commune. His iris’ filled with the familiar warm glow of natural energies; green mists soon seeping from the pores of his skin as life was flooded into the smaller plant. Branches slowly rose, beginning to wrap around each limb of the druid. They bound his arms and legs to its center as he felt tugs against his spine. He maintained his communion with the plant, the earth, and his Aspects. His eyes ablaze with his aura. This elder let out one final cry before he was pierced by the plant’s growth. Crimson soaking the roots that dug deep within the earth. In the place of where the man once stood, a large oaken tree blossomed far beyond the ones that surrounded it. The canopy wide and lush, with both flora and fauna gathered at its base. A truly spectacular sight, even for the eldest of druids. For weeks upon weeks, this tree laid dormant. The only sound from its hardwood base being the echo of rustling leaves on the eve’s breezes. However, one spring morning saw the awakening of a miraculous scene. Light dawned over the horizon; cascading against the trunk of many trees. Though only one was worth noting. The steadfast oaken tree that soared above the rest. Almost like a droplet, a clouded yet opaque shape formed at the furthest-most point of a large branch. The tree heaved slightly at such weight, before releasing the boiling sap-like blob. It fell into the nearby waters; steam rising from the surface. A being rose from where the shape had fallen. The ancient druid awoke from his slumber; his complexion wearing a bark-like appearance with mimicked flesh, though alive nevertheless. He set out to complete the duties he had promised. This is the ancient secret of the Soul Tree. - The Druii’ithirn, Arcanum of Ancient Secrets Original story by Werbles. Rewritten by Murlocs The Second Age As time went on so too did the world, darker creations tainting the mortal realm and threatening all that lived upon the plane. The first creator proved what had been possible, the creation of a vessel that could offer him more time, more time to serve the purpose of the aspects and mani. The true roots of this power exactly what had been sought - more time for a purpose. “Let me be your eyes and ears,” spoke a voice to the skies with his head dipped low, offering a quiet murmur of solace, “to protect this realm where others will not.” His voice was carried through the realm to be directed at the aspects even if they would not offer a response to him. Granted with both an eternal life, and a deeper understanding of his connection to nature he went forward that silence, that blessing that the tree had brought to him was his response. As if the aspects wanted him to share his understanding, to share the blessing with those he trusted deeply. Ritual The druii lays upon the ground, dimly lit by the light of a full moon. Sitting a sapling upon their abdomen, holding a stake made of the same wood, they'd wait. Surrounded by three other t5 druids, another treelord would cut his hand, forming a small ring of sap around the druii. They'd lean down, letting their sap bleed onto the stake and sapling, and forming a small glyph, long forgotten to the descendants, on their chest. Praying, the three surrounding druii begin to powershare. The sap alights with a bright green glow, and with resolve, the druii impales the stake into their heart. The glyph alights, as the moon peaks in the sky, full and reigning lunar light down onto them, the sapling coming to action and embedding itself into their chest, growing firstly into the stake and heart. As the roots work down into their body, it pulls the body upright, using it as a framework for the tree bark emerging from the skin as the roots spread out to the edge of the sap circle, feeding off of the energy of those sharing it. Alas, the growth ends, and the sap dries away. A soul tree is born. Flesh turns to roots as the soul moves itself into the core of the tree, encased in a core of amber surrounded by the tree itself. Redlines: The creation takes place as a ritual, requiring 1 Tree Lord, and an additional 3 tier 5 Druids to prevent the target druid from dying. Soultree requires an accepted CA. The creation ritual is learned by all soultrees once they have an accepted CA. The character being turned into a Tree Lord must also be tier 5, aka a minimum of 4 OOC months being attuned. All parties must consent OOCly and ICly to the process. If the ritual is interrupted, it fails and the druid undergoing the transformation will die mid-ritual (PK). An interruption in this case would constitute as a druids concentration thus connection to this ritual being entirely broken. Ex. being attacked by someone during the ritual. Spoiler Given that the ritual is so Impervious, insignificant roleplay can lead to a story member voiding the interruption and allowing the ritual to have successfully continued. Ex. a case of bandits wandering off the road because they see gamertags in the distance constituting as metagame, or one line attack emotes. A non-magical/not-special in terms of traits sapling must be chosen for the target druid to bind their soul to. Spoiler Non-magical - No trees containing any additional magical properties can be used for this ritual. Not containing special traits - A Soultree cannot be anything that offers additional properties that can give the soultree an unfair advantage ex. hardwood/ironwood to be harder to be damaged/contain special properties, or ex. Everwinter to contain the fire resistive properties. Trees must be formed out in the open. They require exposure to the moon as it reaches its apex during the Full Moon in order to functionally stay alive. Credits Physical Traits & Weaknesses Soultrees maintain properties fairly similar to their former descendent self, though now imbued with druidic energies they face minor changes during the initial transofmration. Their soul is restructured to instead be imbued within the tree which now becomes their primary tether to this world; their body “the husk” a vessel acting as a puppet for the tree. The soultree would radiate a great deal of energy for other druids, though to any not attuned to the sounds of nature they would find that they often fit in with the natural scenery, appearing as if it is a normal tree before them. The Soul Tree must not be encased or buried deep within a cave. It must have regular exposure to the sky and its surroundings just like any tree, so it may gain the natural energy it requires to stay alive. Should an outside influence affect this it still falls in line with regular interaction rules, as the tree would not sit idly by while someone builds a roof over it. The Soul Tree cannot be moved somewhere where it does not have access to the sky. The husk is built to entirely minic what they were before, though they are able to alter their appearance minorly such as an older human druid may now appear as if he is in his younger ages. They are cured of deformities such as missing limbs will now be returned to them, and any alchemical or magical altercations would revert back to their natural form. SoulTrees are recreated to be ‘fixed’ physically, able to function and better perform their duties without any previous restrictions. As the Tree Lord is a form bound by natural energies and organic life, it’s to be noted that on top of their pre-existing druidic self, they have arguably one of the largest lifeforce pools; serving as both an advantage and disadvantage in the face of danger. While this body is entirely conscious and sentient, it’s also completely soulless and maintains an unbreakable connection with its Soul Tree. The Husk of a soul tree reconstitutes itself with a recreation of the internal organs of a regular descendant unless specified when forming. However the only two organs that are required are lungs and a brain. A treelord does not require a beating heart, as the sap inside of them will continue to flow albeit much slower than a regular descendant. Given their complexing Blunt instruments will fracture the wood-skin like it would a bone, and Sharp bladed weapons would slash through the layer of psudo skin similar to that of leather, albeit a little thicker than physical skin it doesnt offer much additinal durability. The tree Simply a Tether for the Husk into this world Acts as the “rebirth mechanic” Any tree that is non magical or has additional durability trait is unable to be used. Non-magical - No trees containing any additional magical properties can be used for this ritual. Not containing special traits - A Soultree cannot be anything that offers additional properties that can give the soultree an unfair advantage ex. hardwood/ironwood to be harder to be damaged/contain special properties, or ex. Everwinter to contain the fire resistive properties. To a non-druid, the tree would look like any other part of the scenery. To one wearing Arcana-Flow goggles they would see that the tree brims with energy, similar to singing trees and ones infused with blight healing. However Arcana-Flow would not allow someone to "know" that its a soul tree and would be considered metagame to do so. To a druid, they would sense a great deal of natural energies around the tree. Due to the density and energies around it, it’s impervious to normal tools, weaponry, and fire. The exceptions to this are enchantments (specifically to harm souls), intense voidal fire (tier 5 evocation), dragon fire or Malflame. Additionally, Thanic Sel and Necromantic magics. If the tree is destroyed without a sapling they PK If the tree is destroyed with a sapling the treelord has a 7 day respawn time while the sapling “re-grows” If someone is caught avoiding roleplay for the tree, they will receive a lore infraction and can be forced to PK by ST even if they have a sapling. The tree requires a ST signature. Suicide is a PK The Husk Mimics what the descendent was before the ritual. Can Minic the features of the tree they have Ex. a barklike skin, leaves for hair, ect Immune to Alchemy in terms of altercation and healing If the husk dies they are on a 24 hour cooldown to respawn in the tree. (can be negotiated for situations with poor roleplay, or rule breaking leading up to the treelords death.) A treelord may also shut down portions of organs they chose to form with, but this must be emoted with at least two emotes. (cant undo already existing effects) Blunt instruments will fracture the wood-skin like it would a bone. Sharp bladed weapons would slash through similar to that of leather Treelords feel the same amount of pain as they would have in their descendants' lives. Blight Spoiler The Tree Lord is a completely organic and sentient being. This means without the proper protection or precaution, they can be blighted and wither from ground taint. However due to the natural energies, the process isn’t as quick - and can be healed or avoided before it becomes fatal. The effects of blight on a Tree Lord have certain side effects and such must be adhered to. This being insanity, irrationality, and general anger. For those who have shifting, increased bestial nature while unshifted can occur. As well as a severe shift in appearance. A sickly, unkempt appearance as if the husk isn't forming correctly. In the case of the husk being tainted before the tree, the husk has two ooc days to be blight healed before the blight will begin festering directly on their tree. If the tree is directly blighted, OOC informing must be received for the process to go forward. What this essentially means is that for the tree to be blighted, you must be informed OOCly or it doesn’t work. In the case of the tree being blighted, the effects will begin showing on the husk immediately, with pseudo-mutation effects and such starting. If the soul tree is not healed from the blight within one to two weeks, depending on the severity, the tree will die. In this case, just as others, the soul will move to the sapling and must be replanted, or PK will happen. Flammability Spoiler The Soul Tree in the creation stage must revoke some of its traits onto the husk to allow it comfortable movement. This means they are far more exposed to fire than their parent tree. They will suffer the pain and wounds from being exposed to fire of any type. With voidal fire generally inflicting more damage, and dragon fire being the greatest contender to a Tree Lord. Malflame does not affect the Husk, but it will damage the Soul Tree, to the point of being able to kill it. The amount of time this takes varies depending on the Malice that the Malflame carried. (I.E. Havoc or Revolt would make quick work, while Desolation or Woe may take much longer) This is the only way for the individual effects of the Malflame to take effect on the Soul Tree should they be seeking to not kill them, but it would still alert the husk instinctively. Clarification: Layered voidal casting can make up for lackings with Voidal Fire weakness. Example: Three tier 3 fire mages casting can make up the difference. Two T4 mages. Necromancy Spoiler Rite of Draining: With the efforts of two Necromancers, this spell can drain the Soul Tree itself within five to six emotes. This will produce a whopping six vials of life force if accomplished, and kills the tree. Afterwards the 3 OOC days for replanting apply. For the Husk, normal Rite of Draining applies, it producing two vials of life force instead of one. It kills the Husk. Rite of Darkening: Performed on a Soul Tree, it will not do much but reduce the vitality of the Tree. Two performing it at once can effectively Blight the tree if they wish, or one can Darken it while others Drain it to reduce its capacity for self defense greatly. Additionally, if successfully performed on a Husk will render it inert for 24 OOC hours. This would leave the husk looking withered and nasty in general. If they are not killed in this state and reawaken, they’ll find parts of their body unwilling to return to normal, blighted. The Husk will need external assistance fixing this, needing other people than themselves to Blight Heal it. If they enter the tree while with this Blight, so shall the Soul Tree be blighted and require it as well. Azhl & Thanium Spoiler Azhl Steel wounds are extremely painful to the Husk, and require twice as many emotes to seal up. Additionally, after so many, roughly five give or take, the Anemia induced will twist the husk into a pseudo-blighted state. This can be resolved with blight healing or killing the husk, or seven ooc days of being in the deranged state. The husk will be emancipated, unable to root, and generally uncooperative to downright hostile depending on how you wish to rp it. Thanic Steel wounds are also extremely painful, and will slowly rob the Husk of it’s ability to stay connected to the tree. After three wounds, the husk will shut down essentially, and be rendered inert for the next 4 ooc hours. If killed in this state, standard regrowth time limit applies. Additionally, Thanic Steel can harm the Soul Tree itself, albeit only as much as what the tool being used would be able to hurt a regular tree. However this does mean someone with a Thanic Axe could lumberjack a Soul Tree down if they tried hard enough. A major wound would constitute as any lost limbs, major arteries, large bleeding spots ex. a large slash acrossed the chest given that it would be hard for a treelords sap to coagulate over large surface area, ect. Basically a papercut size wound isn't going to shut them down. Mental Traits The mind of a soul tree is one of schisms and harsh realities. With the mind split between tree and husk, the struggles of identity are an everyday, nonstop issue. They cannot face themselves with the ability to sleep besides returning to their tree for a rest faced with being eternally awake alongside their lifeline. Oftentimes slowly losing themselves to the qualities of nature, and taking on more animalistic qualities and tendencies staying away from larger civilizations and cities. They become paranoid with the ideals of protecting their tree, and tend to spend alot of time lingering around it, a disdain for straying too far for long periods of time. Soultrees are faced with feeling the pain of their own deaths, and though they cannot remember it they can grasp the concept of where the pain comes from. In the end the mental distress becomes a bonding mechanic. Soul trees will enjoy being near other soul trees, just like a dwarf enjoys another dwarf, an elf another elf. Common Issues that they develop alongside the transformation: PTSD Anxiety Paranoia Schizophrenia Redlines: There is otherwise nothing protecting them from the pains of these mental issues. Each death commonly makes soultrees go more ‘insane’ to a point and they slowly lose themselves, often becoming so consumed they allow themselves to finally rest in the eternal forest. Soultrees will enjoy the company of other soultress and often drive themselves to isolation. Abilities [Ability][Passive] Traits of the Fae - Treelords given their connection to nature, and the fae realm oftentime will take on minor fae like traits, such as horns, a halo of leaves or flowers, some may have cat-like slits in their gaze, sharpened teeth to appear like wolves canines, or a tail. Redlines: Aesthetic Changes must be non-combat. They can look as threatening as you’d like, any use of them to give yourself an edge will be considered Powergaming [Ability][Passive] Polymorphy - With their husk being a puppet linked to their tree they are able to alter their appearance minorly and make changes and alterations as they see fit. Perhaps appearing more plantlike, or taking on various features. They are able to alter their height within 1 foot of their previous one before being treed, or their skin taking a more bark like appearance. Though in their case they are restricted to the properties of their original race. Redlines: The ability to minorly change their appearance within the range of their race. When it comes to changes outside of their race there are always deformities ex. If they wanted to appear more human their ears may instead appear as if they had been clipped, or elongated though can become more rounded. Aesthetic Changes must be non-combat. They can look as threatening as you’d like, any use of them to give yourself an edge will be considered Powergaming An emerging change outside of the tree should take two-three emote per change. This should be emoted as painful, as it is your body bending itself to change to fit your psyches state. They do not go away magically, you must return to your tree and properly Regrow and restore yourself to normal if you wish to return to normal. [Ability][Passive] Amber Crystallization - Due to their bodies being connected to their tree, they instead begin to bleed a sap-like substance. Their blood is able to clot and temporarily seal wounds, though not acting as a permanent solution. A soultree may cut their hand and allow their sap to bleed over another person's wound creating a temporary seal to prevent bleeding out. As treelords themselves bleed their sap will begin to coagulate and act almost as sabs while their own wounds heal. Redlines: This is by no means a permanent solution, however can be used to slow the bleeding and acts almost as if a scab over minor wounds. [Ability][Passive] Rebirth - Once the Tree Lord’s form has returned to nature, the Soul Tree begins the process of rebirth creating a new husk for the soultree to use. A soultree is able to create a new vessel and continue living, though now living with the pain of what caused their death. Relines: The Soul Tree requires two (2) OOC days to replenish before it can start making another husk. So if the husk dies the same day it is birthed, it will take two (2) OOC days of gathering energy, The husk otherwise takes 24 hours to regrow. [Ability][Passive] Regeneration - When facing harsh damages and injuries the soultree is able to willingly return themselves to their tree, roots wrapping around them and turning to mulch as their form is returned to the tree itself. Harsh damages including examples such as someone bringing them back to their tree after damaged from multiple Thanic wounds, lost limbs in battle if they got out before the husk itself was killed, ect. Redlines: The husk is able to willingly return to the tree to heal major injuries This is regarded to as a painful process for the treelord Healing injuries by the means of regeneration requires at least (6) OOC hours [Ability][Non-Combat] Rooting - In harsh situations soul trees are able to subject themselves to a pseudo sleep as they grow themselves into the ground and help themselves recover. This leaves them in a vulnerable state of unconsciousness as their husk retains new natural energies. Redlines: Requires at least three emotes for rooting, They can only awaken themselves from this state. When in this state the husk is entirely vulnerable to attack and unable to fight back. Druids are able to powershare and help in the process of rooting to make it easier on the husk. [Non-Combat] The sapling - Soul Trees are capable of producing a sapling which serves as an empty container for the soul, should anything happen to the original tree. Unlike ungrowing, this can be done without the Tree Lord’s consent. Regardless of consent, the Soul Tree feels a great deal of pain when a sapling is drawn from it, summoning the Tree Lord to protect the Soul Tree and attack the one removing the sapling with uncontrollable urges. A second tether can be made for the treelord in the form of a sapling which another can care for keeping a constant flow of druidic energies. The sapling then requires a constant flow of druidic energies and to be taken care of by the holder of the sapling. Redlines: Only one sapling can be active at a time, if another sapling is removed the first would wither into ashes and dust. The same would happen if the original Soul Tree is unattuned, due to it being the main conduit of the soul. The purpose of this is so that in the case of the Soul Tree being destroyed while a sapling is active and nurtured, the soul is transferred over with a limited time to be planted, similar to ‘Ungrowing’. A Sapling can be taken from a Soul Tree with both IC and OOC consent of the treelord, though the tree Lord cannot remove it on their own The Sapling can only be kept alive through druidic energies and magic. No more than one (1) sapling can be active from the Soul Tree. Once the soul has transferred to an active sapling the sapling must be replanted in 2 to 3 OOC days of the ungrowing (with exceptions), otherwise it is a permakill. The Sapling must be a ST signed item. There is a 7 day cooldown between each sapling being taken. (this is to prevent someone from constantly getting into danger, and needing another sapling- if the tree is killed twice in the same week itll be a PK.) [Non-Combat] Ungrowth - If the area becomes unsafe, a grove moves location or even the full exodus of descendants from a land. There are many reasons why one might need to move their Soul Tree. This requires the consent of the Tree Lord, as they must be nearby to calm the reactions of the Soul Tree as it is ungrown. To the Tree Lord, this feeling of growing would be similar to something deep within them being uncomfortably and painfully rip at, greatly fatiguing them. Redlines: This requires OOC and IC Consent. Ungrowing a Soul Tree requires at least one t5 druid present, and the Tree Lord of the soul tree that is being ungrown. With only one druid it is exhausting, but with powersharing the burden is spread across and made easier to bare. The Sapling Soul Tree must be replanted within 2-3 OOC days, with exceptions for players who cannot log on, or for map changes that can take longer. Ungrowing a Soul Tree cannot be ICly forced (Due to the nature of the magics involved), and the player must give OOC consent. The Sapling can only be kept alive through druidic energies and magic. No more than one (1) sapling can be active from the Soul Tree. Once the soul has transferred to a active sapling the sapling must be replanted in 2 to 3 OOC days of the ungrowing (with exceptions), otherwise it is a permakill. [Combat] Soul Tree Defense - The Soul Tree is capable of defending itself at a cost; as it is sentient. The tree is capable of utilizing its abilities as a druid to form attacks to ward off those seeking to harm it. Branches swinging down to strike assailants, roots protruding from the earth or vines moving to entangle and grasp it’s victims. When the tree is under threat, the Tree Lord Husk would feel intense stress from the tree, and be compelled to go defend it. While the Soul Tree using it’s natural defences, the Tree Lord would feel the weakness and fatigue due to the focus and energies required. Redlines: If another player attacks the Soul Tree, the player must be OOCly notified and the attacking players must receive a response. The Tree Lord is able to roleplay their tree accordingly, they may also be there OOCly to RP it as well. Player must be online for the tree to be interacted with. Should a Treelord not be able to be online / stay online for interaction, the attacking party may "freeze" the treelord from creating saplings or moving for up to [7] Days (unless consented otherwise by both parties), while pending an interaction. A Soultree interaction pending a schedule is considered "Frozen Roleplay", and thus is described as not having happened *yet* - this means one cannot reference it happening or having happened, and any surrounding (E.x. you could not recruit more people, or threaten the interaction, as it has not occurred.) The same goes for the defending party, if the tree lord made it known they were under attack while returning to their tree they may have brought others along, the defending party locked to the same principle that they would be locked to only those people. Only members of an original attacking party & origional defending party may participate in a scheduled interaction, further members may not be recruited or joined without consent of both sides. A tile affected by Raid Cooldown may only have [4] attackers come to a tree, regardless of if more were scheduled or not, or even if the original party was substantially larger. The amount of interactions one can consider "Pending" between each soultree is 1. Thus meaning, you can only have 1 scheduled interaction at a time to assault a Soultree, with up to [7] days to find scheduling per tree, again, unless otherwise consented. Misuse and abuse of cooldowns to throw offending parties between groups would be considered avoiding conflict and on grounds of punishment. All Weaknesses for the Soul Tree must be adhered to. The Player can chose to either rush over in-Character to defend the tree as the Husk, or the Husk goes to ‘sleep’ and they take full control of the tree. They cannot control both at the same time. Region Destruction Rules do not protect your tree. If your tree is discovered through confirmed role play and you consistently log off or stay offline to avoid a interaction, a ST will be called, a lore infraction will be given, and the tree will likely be PK’d. Unattunement Unattunement upon a Soul Tree is a rigorous process, and the only way to revert from being a Soul Tree. It requires the location of the Soul Tree itself, rather than just a sapling or the husk. As the blessing is revoked from the Soul Tree, the binding and energies that hold it together are released; with the soul escaping. This process is painful for all those involved; the Tree Lord, and all participants of the unattunement. Learning the Feat When a treelord learns unattunement it is regarded as extremely painful and a strain upon their soul. Throughout the process they take on a sickly appearance bark sometimes peeling, and overall nature around them may seem to sway away out of distain, feeling unwell the effects overall depending on the treelord themselves but oftentimes they are regarded as going ‘feral’ temporatily. Redlines: If Unattunement is attempted on the Husk, the Husk will die for 24 OOC hours, and the participants will still be drained as if they unattuned someone. After 24 hours the Druids will reawaken from their tree feeling unimaginable pain. All Unattunement readlines apply Unattunement is a PK.Rules regarding Unattunement Here:https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/186715-magic-lore-druidic-communion/ Shelving For a treelord who can no longer abide by remaining active, but does not wish to join the forest yet, they may approach three trusted druids to reduce them into a stasis. By way of a small ritual slightly akin to that of the creation ritual, the treelord, husk and tree, are reduced to a fist sized seed. While in this state, the druid is completely sealed off, and unable to interact with its environment til a Calling prompts them to reawaken, where in which they can be replanted by three druids. The seed is still weak to everything the tree is, and must be kept safe. If destroyed, a PK is still applied. Saplings are not applicable while in seed form. When a Calling beckons the return, a small song will appropriate itself from the Seed, alerting others to plant them. (When the player wants to return, they may poke one of the trees who reduced them to seed form for planting to commence.) Redlines: Once turned into a seed, must stay that way for at least a month before being restored. Once being restored, must stay that way for at least a month before being turned into a seed. The two above redlines are meant to abate abuse. If any is seen, said player will effectively be denied their rights to this clause. If the Seed is destroyed, is it a PK. All weaknesses to a soul tree applies to the Seed. Saplings do not work if a Seed Form is destroyed. Requires ST signature, Lore Pixel record must have all three participant druids names put in creation. Shapeshifting When it comes to the druidic gift of shapeshifting, the Soul Tree itself will pull upon the spirit of the animal when assuming its form. The sap within the Tree Lord will liquefy and dilute more, and the mimicked flesh becomes dominant within the body. Meaning, the Tree Lord assumes the animal's body in complete form - with all flesh and blood included as they would no longer be made of wood. They do not have any differences to a normal shapeshifter, nor any strengths or weaknesses - they are the same. When the shapeshifted Tree Lord perishes, the animal corpse will remain due to the laws of the natural cycle. Their consciousness will then return to the Soul Tree once more. General Redlines Spoiler Creation OOC consent must be given by the player to turn them into a Soul Tree. The player must accept the PK clause when they take on the gift of the Soul Tree. A Teacher Application(TA) in at least Communion and Control is required to be able to give a Soul Tree to another person. Rebirthing the husk requires twelve (24) OOC hours, including the first time the Tree Lord is being produced. The Soul Tree The Soul Tree chosen cannot be: Non-Flammable Comparable in strength to Iron, Steel, Ect Contain any magical traits Bonsai Sized. Full size trees people. If you are unsure, contact a druid ST, or the holders of this lore. The Soul Tree is impervious to normal tools, weaponry, and fire. With exceptions of voidal fire, Dragon fire, Malflame, or enchantments/magic specifically designed to harm the soul. Additionally, Thanic Steel and Azhl Steel can harm the tree, and with enough effort, chop it down. Necromancy can, with Rite of Draining, kill a Soul Tree with 4 to 5 satisfactory emotes. Two necromancers must work in tandem. Produces 6 Vials of Life force. The player must be OOCly contacted when their tree is being interacted with. Signs around the tree must acknowledge who the Soul Tree is OOCly. With the new implementation of the ST Approved Signs, Souls Trees are required to /sreq to be validated and given the proper signage upon creation or relocation Soul Tree must be exposed to regular moonlight. If you have questions or concerns on your Soul Trees location, contact a LT for confirmation. Region Destruction Rules do not protect your tree. A Soultree interaction pending a schedule is considered "Frozen Roleplay", and thus is described as not having happened *yet* - this means one cannot reference it happening or having happened, and any surrounding (E.x. you could not recruit more people, or threaten the interaction, as it has not occurred.) Only members of an original attacking party may participate in a scheduled interaction, further members may not be recruited or joined without consent of both sides. If your tree is discovered through confirmed role play and you consistently log off or stay offline to avoid a interaction, you will recieve a lore infraction and face a non-negotiable PK. Should a Treelord not be online for interaction, the attacking party may "freeze" the treelord from creating saplings or moving for up to [7] Days (unless consented otherwise by both parties), while pending an interaction. A tile affected by Raid Cooldown may only have [4] attackers come to a tree, regardless of if more were scheduled or not, or even if the original party was substantially larger. The amount of interactions one can consider "Pending" between each soultree is 1. Thus meaning, you can only have 1 scheduled interaction at a time to assault a Soultree, with up to [7] days to find scheduling per tree, again, unless otherwise consented. Misuse and abuse of cooldowns to throw offending parties between groups would be considered avoiding conflict and on grounds of punishment. A Soul Tree may not circumvent their own PK, unattunement or otherwise, by obtaining a Klone or Machine Spirit. You are bound to the Aspects. This is the end. The Tree Lord Becoming a Tree Lord does not cause an increase in Druidic Tier. The only increase is a slight increase in sensitivity when it comes to communion, more subconscious. The Tree Lord husk is completely soulless and only bound by a connection to their Soul Tree. Meaning, soul related magic can only affect the Soul Tree, not the Husk. Tree Lords can only store oxygen temporarily; which ranges up to a maximum of one (1) OOC hour. The Husk body is still capable of bleeding out, both internally and externally. The Husk’s strength is only a slightly enhanced variant of their descendant body. The Husk is vulnerable to all sorts of fire, with voidal fire inflicting more damage, and dragon fire doing the most. Due to being an organic being, they can be blighted from ground taint or other sources (If given enough time). The Tree Lord, if their tree is attacked, must make a decision. They may either send their Husk to their Tree, or RP the Tree defending itself, where in which it’s Husk will be rendered inert. Once you have made your decision, it’s final. If you decide to RP the tree, please have a ST or Mod teleport you to your tree where you will be allowed to RP the self defense. Any attempts at both will be considered Powergaming and Metagaming and be dealt with appropriately. Blight healing upon a Tree Lord cannot heal wounds, as that’s done through control and communion - which can’t be used on a Tree Lord. Blight healing can only heal blight. Tree Lords cannot be ‘revived’ through Blight healing, as their body disappears once they perish. Wood or not, swords and weapons will still draw blood, even with hardness set to where it is. They will not bounce off of you. The degree to which they injure is situational, however. A Treelord drained by Rite of Draining provides two Vials of Lifeforce. It also just straight up kills the husk. Azhl Steel wounds are extremely painful to the Husk, and require twice as many emotes to seal up. Additionally, after so many, roughly five give or take, the Anemia induced will twist the husk into a pseudo-blighted state. This can be resolved with blight healing or killing the husk, or seven ooc days of being in the deranged state. The husk will be emancipated, unable to root, and generally uncooperative to downright hostile depending on how you wish to rp it. Thanic Steel wounds are also extremely painful, and will slowly rob the Husk of it’s ability to stay connected to the tree. After three to five wounds, depending on severity, the husk will shut down essentially, and be rendered inert for the next 4 ooc hours. If killed in this state, standard regrowth time limit applies. Rite of Darkening, as per Necromancer Lore, successfully performed on a Husk will render it inert for 24 OOC hours. This would leave the husk looking withered and nasty in general. If they are not killed in this state and reawaken, they’ll find parts of their body unwilling to return to normal, blighted. The Husk will need external assistance fixing this, needing other people than themselves to Blight Heal it. If they enter the tree while with this Blight, so shall the Soul Tree be blighted and require it as well. Death Tree Lords can only recall the pain of their death, all other aspects cannot be remembered. A Tree Lord cannot take their own life, and if they do it is considered a Suicide Permakill. Shapeshifting Tree Lords gain no additional strengths, weaknesses or even any differences compared to a normal shapeshifter when in their animal form. Blood Magic Treelords are capable of learning blood magic They have 5 units of Genus They are unrestricted by the shortened lifespan of blood mages Credits: Writer @MayRndz Editors/Revisions @Spoopy_Duck @Amayonnaise @RMW01 @Valannor Ideas & Support@RMW01@Valannor@Wand@NightcastorKitty@ClassyBells@squakhawk@Drusus (Tyvm for letting me bounce ideas) To the original lore and its creators!!: There are may parts of this lore that I take no credit for because it was created by the owners of the original two posts. 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoopy_Duck 1202 Share Posted February 8, 2023 Tree. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MayRndz 1128 Author Share Posted February 8, 2023 Changelog Based on Recommendations - Effects of sharp bladed weapons on treelord skin. - Sickly appearance after leaning unattunement. - Small section on Blood magic and Genus. - Arcana Flow goggles mentioned in redlines. - More in depth on whats considered interuption during the ritual. - Added Aurum being able to damadge husk and tree. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronin_champloo 5951 Share Posted February 8, 2023 Hey there, wanted to give some of my thoughts with the Rewrite considering that there were some issues with Soul Trees that I had prior. Wherever or not you address these, amend them or even disregard them ultimately falls to you as this is your write-up. ________________________________________________________________________________________ Ritual With this redline: 'All parties must consent OOCly and ICly to the process. If the ritual is interrupted, it fails and the druid undergoing the transformation will die mid-ritual (PK).' I'd ask that it'd be better defined as it's rather vague right now. There's nothing more worse than putting hours into a character, only for them to be PK'd due to rather minimal interruptions such as banditry, theft and whatnot. What constitutes 'interruption'? -- can someone just push one of the Druids aside, and suddenly the Druid undergoing the transformation is PK'd? Give examples, make it more clear, as vagueness will always be abused. ________________________________________________________________________________________ Physical Traits & Weaknesses With this redline: 'To a non-druid, the tree would look like any other part of the scenery.' What would occur if someone views it with alchemical apparatus such as Arcana-Flow goggles? -- obviously, it'd be unfair if a situation occurs when someone OOCly knows where a Soultree Tree is, and just puts it on, but for situations where investigations are being carried out; there should be some benefit to using these, as from what you've said, these trees are filled to the brim with lifeforce and/or mana. With this redline: 'Due to the density and energies around it, it’s impervious to normal tools, weaponry, and fire. The exceptions to this are enchantments (specifically to harm souls), intense voidal fire (tier 5 evocation), dragon fire or Malflame. Additionally, Thanic Sel and Necromantic magics.' Honestly, I'd amend this as for every other magic, FA or CA -- barring Necromancy, I believe -- there is a mundane way to deal with the spawning mechanic. Wights, from what I understand, can be broken with a pickaxe. Same with Drakeshrines, and even Tawkin vessels (which can just be smashed to the ground). There should be a mundane way of dealing with this that doesn't use locked ST materials, which from what I understand, are now near impossible to currently get as the nodes are(?) gone and don't respawn. The limited supply of ST materials, primarily Azhl or Thanhic-Steel, make this option difficult. I'd elaborate and make a list of enchants that are able to harm souls, just for accessibility and ease of enforcement from LT. Barring Intense Voidal Fire (T5), the others are very hard to find with Dragonsflame being scarce, same with Malflame as the communities are rather hidden. To quote some interesting feedback that I've gotten before, on a separate lorepost, spoken by LatzMomo; 'I have never been a fan of the only mundane counter to things being locked behind a rare lore material, or being the softest metal which is completely ineffective against plate clad enemies.' Weaknesses The majority of these are pretty vague, if I'm honest. A bunch of them fall to the 'You can RP it how you wish to RP it' rather than having actual downsides and effects that offer a disadvantage either in the current encounter, or some grounded effects. I'm of the mind that mental weaknesses are not a weaknesses at all, but rather additional effects that you get from being the aforementioned CA. Lastly, most of these weaknesses -- barring Necromancy -- falter against equipped individuals. Once again, to quote LatzMomo. It is 'completely ineffective against plate clad enemies.' Fire has no effect when one wears armor, same with Dragonsfire or Malflame. This is also the case with Azhl (Which is as weak and bendable as gold) and Thanhic-Steel which is extremely rare, and as far I know, there are no more nodes for it. ________________________________________________________________________________________ Mental Traits This stuff's rather interesting! I enjoy the idea of a person slowly being drawn to insanity, from what they thought was their duty, but rather a subjugation instead. However, you could expand on this; give examples, traits, etc. Like how Zarsies wrote Blood Magic, and the myriad of effects that came with it. It felt less like 'I have to choose something from this Forum Post' and instead having a variety of options that they could incorporated to their character. ________________________________________________________________________________________ Abilities With this ability: [Ability][Passive] Polymorphy I don't really see why Treelords should have the ability to polymorph. They aren't hunted down or persecuted by groups, aside from Dark Magic groups (however most of them are unaware of Soultrees as it is closely guarded knowledge, and as you've said, to the mundane eye -- a Soultree Tree looks like any other Tree.) Hell, the Treelords are even seen as O-K by other magic groups; paladins, templars, mundane folk. This doesn't really need to be here at all. Dark CAs tend to have this as they're on the run most of the time. They go to a place, cause up trouble or RP, eventually get killed or booted out -- get a new face, rinse and defeat. With this ability: [Ability][Passive] Regeneration With this, what is considered a 'Major Injury' -- can they survive stabs to the heart if they're taken to their Tree? This should be better clarified, with a list stating what a 'Major Injury' is, lest I feel that it'd be abused to survive harsh combative encounters. With this ability: [Non-Combat] The sapling I don't really understand what's being said here, but from what I could figure out -- this is a back-up IF the Soultree Tree is killed? It's somewhat interesting from a read-over, as it basically puts a limited 'life' on the Treelord, forcing them to replant it. Otherwise, this should be better worded. With this ability: [Combat] Soul Tree Defense I remember back in ST-Chat, a while ago (a year or so), there was a discussion talking about how effective Soul Tree Defense is. There was an instance where a Soul Tree Tree was able to basically become a catapult. Obviously, to make sure things aren't abused, I'd outright state what these things are capable of, and their strength, as right now there are few limitations on what they could do. Furthermore, there are a few redlines that I'd like to address; With this redline: 'Only members of an original attacking party may participate in a scheduled interaction, further members may not be recruited or joined without consent of both sides.' As it states, this currently ONLY applies to the original attacking party. What of the defending party, are they able to bring more members in? -- as from what it reads right now, the defending party can only get bigger, even as the interaction is scheduled, while the attacking party remains the current size that it is. I could possibly be reading this wrong, but with how vague it is, it is liable for abuse. With this redline: 'A tile affected by Raid Cooldown may only have [4] attackers come to a tree, regardless of if more were scheduled or not, or even if the original party was substantially larger.' Honestly, I'd remove this redline as it's an OOC mechanic derailing RP. No other respawn/area mechanic has this, not Paladins, Azdrazi, Mystics, Tawkin Vessels. If a group wants to deal with an interactive lore structure, they shouldn't be gatekept by mechanics and rules that were once for PVP. Nothing's more lame than preparing a group to deal with something, after all the investigative RP has been done, only be told that you're only allowed to bring a max of [4] people along, including yourself, because they were raided by bandits the day prior. It sets a precedent that, if followed by other lore-pieces, makes the attackers at a larger disadvantage. With this redline: 'The Player can chose to either rush over in-Character to defend the tree as the Husk, or the Husk goes to ‘sleep’ and they take full control of the tree. They cannot control both at the same time.' This is a dodgy slope that I don't think should be allowed. With how this is written, it basically legalizes metarallying on invaders. They can rally members and people to defend the Tree as a Husk. I'd 100% get rid of this, even if it does make sense. ________________________________________________________________________________________ General Redlines With this redline: 'If you are unsure, contact a druid ST, or the holders of this lore.' I'd amend this to just having a full set-out and clear list to detail what is allowed, and what isn't allowed. What one ST says may be different from the other, and it's better to have a guide to consult rather than staff intervention. As an example, I'm no longer ST -- I should no longer have judgement and ability of enforcement for Azdrazi. With this redline: 'The Soul Tree is impervious to normal tools, weaponry, and fire. With exceptions of voidal fire (Tier 5 Evocation), Dragon fire, Malflame, or enchantments/magic specifically designed to harm the soul. Additionally, Thanic Steel and Azhl Steel can harm the tree, and with enough effort, chop it down.' To quote LatzMomo once more; 'I have never been a fan of the only mundane counter to things being locked behind a rare lore material, or being the softest metal which is completely ineffective against plate clad enemies.' OVERALL: It's a good write-up! I do spot a few spelling errors, vagueness and sentences that I don't understand, but this can be fixed easily by reading it another time to fix things that don't make sense. Aside from that, however, and what I've discussed in feedback, I've a question of my own; - As they've no longer blood but rather sap, from what I'm reading, would they be affected by Tawkins at all? (Mutations, Clay, etc.) 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MayRndz 1128 Author Share Posted February 8, 2023 6 hours ago, ronin_champloo said: With this redline: 'Due to the density and energies around it, it’s impervious to normal tools, weaponry, and fire. The exceptions to this are enchantments (specifically to harm souls), intense voidal fire (tier 5 evocation), dragon fire or Malflame. Additionally, Thanic Sel and Necromantic magics.' Honestly, I'd amend this as for every other magic, FA or CA -- barring Necromancy, I believe -- there is a mundane way to deal with the spawning mechanic. Wights, from what I understand, can be broken with a pickaxe. Same with Drakeshrines, and even Tawkin vessels (which can just be smashed to the ground). There should be a mundane way of dealing with this that doesn't use locked ST materials, which from what I understand, are now near impossible to currently get as the nodes are(?) gone and don't respawn. The limited supply of ST materials, primarily Azhl or Thanhic-Steel, make this option difficult. I'd elaborate and make a list of enchants that are able to harm souls, just for accessibility and ease of enforcement from LT. Barring Intense Voidal Fire (T5), the others are very hard to find with Dragonsflame being scarce, same with Malflame as the communities are rather hidden. To quote some interesting feedback that I've gotten before, on a separate lorepost, spoken by LatzMomo; 'I have never been a fan of the only mundane counter to things being locked behind a rare lore material, or being the softest metal which is completely ineffective against plate clad enemies.' What's important to understand with this one is that the husk itself is able to be damaged by anything and doesn't contain special properties of any sort which is the tree lords body, however getting to the tree becomes much more damadging as this truly could be a PK for some treelords if their tree itself is gotten to which is why its so much "harder" to kill. Given the wideness of voidal magic and the ability to blight from just about any magic countering treelords there are already a plethora of things that can be quite dangerous. Also nodes are currently active and existant still around the map. (though are facing a slow closing down due to the closeness of a potential map change) Although I do appreciate all this feedback and will take it into consideration as I make changes, thank you so much! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
exanimated 1360 Share Posted February 10, 2023 Bro may do tree yes +1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Songwitch 1438 Share Posted June 8, 2023 This lore has been denied. You will be sent a forum PM regarding the reasons for denial within the next 24 hours. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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