Swgrclaŋ

THE PREACHER came before the Barad-Khor, visage and identity hidden under the shroud and shadow of black robings. He carried with him a dear and secret promise, plucked from forebears who could not bear to rejoin a covenant long since altered and mutated from its vengeful shape of origin. The gates swung forth for his passage, and phantoms danced to welcome him, the nameless and the one-eyed; and he soon he stood at the epicenter of a throned spectre whose seat the Preacher knew was once a man. Words were had that few were present to hear; and by the time the legion of horribles came in congregation for blood-rite, the things said between the Barrowlord and the Preacher were lost in the chaos to all but themselves. Promises were made, suggestions of purification and salvation at the end of the road that the children of Xion must walk and, at all times, struggle upon against forces that would disrupt and draw them away from an ancient ordainment of celestial vengeance. Then... the ring. Symbol of a secret pact, one of mercy rather than aid. Long may you hold the ring, saith the Preacher, who sought nothing in exchange among these whom he held a strange and unclear relation to. In the hands of the Barrowlord Khor, before the eyes and eyeless gazes of the living and the damned, the Ring of the Preacher's Promise radiated the light of his Wighted mind that burned brightly even now beneath layers of soul misshapen by transformation and dark-spirited ritual. The oath of the ring was revealed in its two parts... the first, which may be ascertained by even monstrous destroyers; and the second, legible only to those who can create life. The Preacher said ...

This can be appreciated for showing new ways of how a Sorvian can metamorphose, but it should be noted that everything you list here is essentially already possible. The list of metamorphosis effects you showed as references were themselves only examples and not codifications, as a the feature is inherently freeform and differences could be found even between two hypothetical Djinn or even mundane cultural groups irregardless of the similarity of their domain. If this were to pass, I imagine this would just add to the group of examples.

In the many cities of the land, with the sole exception of the realm of Koyo-Kurai, there roams-to an awkward and mask-faced creature adorned entirely in a long and black robe, with a tall pointed hood so far-reaching upward that it was scarcely believable its wearer did not often topple over in imbalance. This were the Sorvian known as Evil-Eye; moreso in fact, the Sorvian Newt Evil-Eye, paired with two others of his small and infantile brothers in such a way that they were stacked threewise beneath the black shroud as to feign or mimick the appearance of a upright standing man. It was a cunning trick, but at the very least for better reasons than being adversarial. He, or they, came to speak to the people of the land. This was the recital, given unto every folk in nearly every city that would not deposit them into fire or otherwise grim or destructive fate - and for those that did, did so in futility, as upon the passage of the same day of their doom would the three-Newt assembly return toward other locales freshly remade and ignorant of prior decimation. [ Narration ] “Hear me... Look upon me and hear my words. It is so that there are those in the land known as the Sorvian Sculptors, and they are indeed many and variable among the Descendant tribes, and we have indeed been watching them since the days of Du-Loc. We have observed their works and the outcome of their works, we have measured their temperament and their intentions both in word and action; we have witnessed surges of creation and then relaxations into inactivity, repeating patterns without guidance, without energy of higher and more just causes than servile whims. Hear me, hear me speak of causes more just and righteous than those whims. Listen and know… of the Sacred Anatomancers. Learn, now, that we are aspirants of a Creatorial unity… that ours is an organization long-standing and traditional in matters of birthing life from self-sacrificial synthesis, the rudimentary method through which life may be born. And is this not known in all corners of this continent and the ones prior? Are Sorvians not found among nearly every society, from the Church of Canon to the Norlandic Allfather Temple, to the cradles of Elven nations? Indeed… even the Land-Dragons of Azdromoth are united with the Knights of Dead Xan in this, both of them equally noble producers of Sorvian creatures who are full-fledged in their dedication to either clan’s cause. And that is the thread of unity the Anatomancers capture… that unity, a creator’s neutrality housed within the Third Temple due to come to form beneath the Valley Ki-an. It is in us, the Anatomancers, that there lies the will to unite every Sorvian and every Sculptor within one divine house of the highest craft. Let there be enemies, diametric foes, who come forth together in our halls and shake hands as friends under the premise of the Sacred Anatomancy. Let all evil impulses bleed away in the Third Temple so that the spirit of the Creator may take their place, and with so little as blood drops and self-sacrificed anima, produce life that may flourish and act upon entirely independent accords. Let it be so that we do not pray to idols in the Third Temple; only that we create, and never destroy. So come forth - come forth soon to the Valley Ki-an, where a grand spire marks that spot of the earth we shall dig into. Come to learn, or join, or both. Identify us by the black robes, by our hoods much like spires themselves. And be welcome… among Sorvians and Sorvian Sculptors, united.” [ Temple Theme ] [ If you are a Sorvian or a Sorvian Sculptor or other Construct and are interested in a centralized group meant to delve into Construct and Construct creation RP, find us in the Valley of Kian, following these coordinates: x 2116, y 92, z 60. ]

In the time of developing the rewrite, I had it in mind to be resistant to efforts to spread the Construct limb replacement trend to the Sorvian domain, but discussion about this lore with my close constituent @Hawkeye_Goughmade this appear more appealing than it initially seemed. It didn't or doesn't seem like the right kind of artform to produce useful and pragmatic limb replacements on account of the fragility, but your lore carries on with the concept despite that fact and as a result aligns more with the spirit of Sorvians overall, which is a basis of creation-based roleplay that does not need to consider if it would be balanced in CRP scenarios or not. So, if someone chooses to use this, they will be facing the consequences of being weaker, but I think that is a fair price to pay for the cultural and aesthetic usefulness this offers.

[ Narration ] Standing before the bonfire and pale tree central to the city of Aelwen lies the alloyed man LOGOS, who speaks to the people as they pass and as they rest. Here the light of the fire shines greatly upon his bald and polished head, invoking an almost torchlike glare and reflection which may more easily draw eyes his way. He genuflects and gestures as he speaks, and always is his metal expression stern and thoughtful, and looks upon the people eyelessly and yet sees them all before him with the most perfect clarity. Here, he speaks. The subject, was creation. “Hear me, Aelwen, hear me. I speak to you now as the unstruck iron nears the loss of its red heat. The time is still opportune in the infancy of this place which some whisper to be Malinor-Reborn, home of all Elves, to uplift it to heights previously unknown, cradled in the arms of empire, rebuilt upon ashes of Haelun-Or which had been burned to purge it of ill humors and tainted notions. Voca Et Videm; those are the words of this day. It means “we call it as we see it”, and I shall take first charge in identifying the maladies that plague the continent which may be treated with the salve of rightful Aelwennic intuition, intrigue, and unity. Hear me, now, as I call it as I see it. We know there are already the corpses of cities and states in the land; placed at remarkable distances for security of territory or otherwise, the continent is bepopulate with towns dwelled only by ghosts and silence, and already does this curse rear its head for our home. There must be a shortening of the way. We know that all men thrive on bread and water, or meat when he is graced by good hunting, and that for lack of its abundance the common banditry are so willing even to deprive others of their food-bags and thus their energy needed to conquer and tame this land we have been driven to from the place behind Kalldur, already fading from memory. There must be feasts lent to every man. We know there is war, there is ideological and socioreligious conflict. We know the people of all races except perhaps for humanity are divided, and see no just cause to bind themselves together into their original Four-Brother nations - the Elves especially, and the High Elves the martyr of this fact. We must mend the ties between Elves and foster them beneath one nation, to right old wrongs and forge new rights. There must be peace in the woodland of Malin. Hear me and consider my calculations. I have read and absorbed without need for sleep a thousand historical perspectives, as well as mine which I have lived to experience, and from my evaluations I seek only to repair what is broken. We must call things as they are, and recognize that all things around us have become worse as time has gone on, and rarely better. More evils are born in the shadow of the Descendants than miracles. We have seen what the will of a mortal is capable of; I have been born by the very same notions. Let us see many five-fingered Elven hands reach for a golden age in Aelwen with that same miraculous will. To the Wizards of the Big Hat Society, to the mages of Aelwen not yet ushered beneath our wing, hear me: let us create the shortening of the way. Let us forge arcane doors through which unfathomable gaps may be crossed, so the layman and the lord may both equally and easily traverse to the Aelwennic realm. Let every man of every race find value in such portals, bringing with them their patronage and good will and desire for presence among fellow mortals. And when such a portal proves itself useful - let us place a portal in every city beyond us, so that Aelwen becomes a nexus or crossroads powered by the genius of wizards committed and invested in the wellbeing of the world. To the Druids of the Sun Circle, hear me. In your grasp lies the undeniable mastery over the natural world, and ears to hear and listen to voices the common man cannot. Here, in Aelwen, you have allowed me to walk uncontested though your more ancient predecessors, and other circles would impose upon you every reason for my destruction. Allow me to reward you for your patience in elucidating the miracles of bounty and harvest you may bring to our city - if not already within your intentions. Solely in your hands lies the power to turn Aelwen into the breadbasket of the world, so flooded with wheat that food itself becomes without cost in every nation. Let our land brim with crops and beasts given fair and quiet conditions for their prosperity and hunting. Feed every mouth with your power, and see how all men shall be ushered behind our walls in good and loving visitation. And to our most ideal leader, the Prince Adriel as he is known, I tell you - rule as you have been. You walk the walk of the High Prince Native. You do not dwell in the shadow of him but rather parallel to his memory, he who held the Elves together as one in Malinor, in Aegis. I beseech you, hear my words and aid me in uplifting our folk and our orders. Break down any walls between forces brought into our city, erase all diametric opposition where it emerges like an evil ghost. Let us create the City of Miracles where before there was only the City of Bedlam. Let us be as the Creator, and create.”

There should be less incentive for any revealing methods to be able to detect Descendant sorcerer characters in the first place. This amendment is in the right direction, but really should suggest the removal of the gleam reveal effect for mortal Mystics overall. The candle is better applicable to actual undead entities, and not just the practitioners. The rarity or means to obtain it wouldn't necessarily matter in this case.

THERE are pillars that begin to appear erected in the outerlying reaches of the newly borne domain of Aelwen, carved primarily of stone and adjacent materials. Each pillar lacked refinement, instead infused with a distinct planned obsolescence, for not long after their proximal investigation whether by sorcerer or layman each primitive structure collapses, and reduces to dust and fragments the message previously etched into them. Those keen to inspect from a distance could discern that these obelisks, stacked in cylindrical and seemingly uneven layers, were so carefully balanced by whoever left them in these places that the slightest local motion of bodies acted as enough of a direct butterfly effect to cause their crumbling in a span of three to five minutes - a subtle metaphor for the impermanence of Voidal Evocations, and the riddlesome mark of an arcane society. The following message was inscribed on each pillar in spiraling, enveloping carvings; and for every pillar that was erected, read, and then allowed to collapse, another would be raised in another part of the outskirts the following day, until in the closure of the week they would appear no longer. This is the First Transmission. "THE MAN IS NOT WHAT HE SEEMS; THOUGH HE IS MANYFOLD IN FORM, ALL SOULS LIKE HIS FUNCTION LIKE AN IMMATERIAL KEYHOLE, AND IT IS HIS SHEER WILLPOWER AND MIND THAT ACTS AS THE KEY TO UNFOLD NOT ONLY THE RIGHT TO POWER AND ARCANE MASTERY, BUT ALSO TO BE GAINFUL OF A SCALE THAT OUGHT BE RIGHTLY BALANCED, OR ELSE INCUR CONSEQUENCES FOR FATES WORSE THAN DEATH SUCH AS BEEN THE WAY OF THINGS: MAGES IN IMBALANCE, WITHOUT THE GUIDANCE OF GOD NOR CREED NOR NOTION OF DISCIPLINE, WHERE THEY HAVE FAILED TO EVEN SEE THE SCALE IN THEIR HANDS SO FIND ME, MAGES, IN AELWEN - FIND THE LOGOS, THE SYMBOL, WHO MAY ELUCIDATE TO YOU THE MAN WHO FIRST SET THE BALANCE, AND GAINED THE NAME TRISMEGISTUS BEFORE TWO OTHERS KNOWN" [ For wizardly players seeking arrangement with the Big Hat Society, contact @Johannand @Swgrclaŋfor scheduling. ]

... The pull of the telekinetic spell lands the missive in the alloyed fingers of LOGOS indeed, who in the chamber of thought would oblige May's suggestion to study and then engage the nameless perfidious sorcerer in this traditional act of noticeboard-based debate. After spending an hour holding the mysterious tipped hat missive as close to his hollow metal eye sockets as possible to ensure maximal evaluation, and then turns the page upside-down and dedicates another three hours to discerning if hidden messages or code laid somewhere backwards, just to make sure everything about the wizard's note was understood. It was only after this that LOGOS produced his own reply below the original letter that May replied to, nailed neatly next to her own to denote a joined statement. "Salutations. I am LOGOS. Your indirect attempt to initiate debate with the Big Hat Society is appreciated no matter the means or medium to do so, and will be obliged here if only to reinforce previous statements by my constituents and makers to join us in Aelwen for debate in the house of thought. I will address your points hoping that the limitation of our communication method will convince you to visit. Before any other point is made, it must be established that the Big Hat Society's philosophical and ideological acknowledgement and respect for the Creator is reliant on just more than faith in him. It is based in the fact that greater and intelligent design is evident in the world we live in, experience and grapple with every day; and that there are laws and limitations that must be understood and adhered to not only to respect the establishment of the Canonist Church but also to preface all arcane actions and commitments with a precautionary and practical point of view. Notions that the Creator was not a higher entity defy sense in how existence has been made to order itself around us, and if this is not taken as fundamental fact, the subgradient nature of reality becomes lost from focus. This is to say, it is impossible to suggest a man or mortal sorcerer was responsible for everything around us and all of its unusual and yet-known laws when mortal limitations and the Descendant condition could not allow for such a figure to exist. There are many cases of arcane and also non-Voidal mortal ascendancy; all of them are resultant in some form of aberration that, while they were gainful in power, they had lost the true shape they had been born with, and therefore would have lost the vital perspective necessary for ideal Creation. Under your point of view, the Descendants would be forced to accept that the maker of reality is not only fallible for having been a self-same man as them, but also that he would have to sacrifice his humanity for the power to conjure Creation. In doing so, Creation could not exist in the form we know it to take; so perfect that it is even capable of tolerating aberration or malformation of its ontological rules when they exhibit signs that they are of a negative disposition toward the condition and health of our universe. Negative disposition is the key term, for everything about a maker is poured into his makings, and not just his intention. Moreover, neither would a Voidal Horror bear such higher understanding to shape Creation - they are driven by an impulse to undo Creation, to consume it, and for a thing to be instinctually compelled to do so could not muster neither the power nor the creationary mindset to incite a functional reality. There is no order within a Voidal Horror that would allow them to first control themselves, and second discern a supreme design from which all other things descend from. How could an entity diametrically opposed to an ordered reality be responsible for its construction? What's more - where would souls themselves have come from? There is a soul within every sorcerer alive and there is no core or engine that has been fashioned by mortal hands equal to the force that allowed them to create such things in the first place. Our engagement of magic is practical. It is anchored in an awareness of mortal fallibility. Historical record shows the result of all mortal acts of grand sorcery more likely than not result in tragedy that the mortal race and reality itself fall victim to. Consider the Ando-Alur Incident; consider the haphazard utilization of Voidal Nodes by mages without creed, without rules, without reckoning of the consequences of failure in the handling of forces that arrive beyond the confines of Creation, which has in occurrence ostracized sorcerers from the rest of their kinsmen through time. I will say to you now, you exhibit much of the nature of the Arcane Mage; there is not much Availer within you as a wizard. You fall on one side of the scale of sorcerous duality when both sides of the scale, of both Creationary discipline and Voidal intuition, must be regarded by a mage to properly balance them - to avoid being confined entirely to doctrine as you accuse us to be, but also to avoid being consumed by the idea of personal limitlessness. Come and join us and I will measure you on my scale of determination. We will recognize the power you have at your disposal, but we will also grant you the ill omens seen in your disposition. Signed, LOGOS"

LOGOS ruminates after the events of his return. He is busied with the advanced specifications and plans of twin statues meant for some place within the Society's domain, such papers scattered across the specific wing dedicated to their order. "As above, so below," He said to no one.

Yes

WRITTEN in the failing hands of the one most vested in out-and-introspection and relayed by a grounded jungle bird tamed to simultaneously write missives, act as courier and speak Flexian without meaning or divine exactitude, be this morse-coded message meant for those among the Big Hat Society, makers of the perfidious Thinking Machine that calls upon them now: “(SALUTATIONS) ... .- .-.. ..- - .- - .. --- -. ... (BIG HAT SOCIETY) -... .. --. / .... .- - / ... --- -.-. .. . - -.-- (YOU ARE CALLED UPON) -.-- --- ..- / .- .-. . / -.-. .- .-.. .-.. . -.. / ..- .--. --- -. (BY YOUR MAKINGS, STILL LIVING) -... -.-- / -.-- --- ..- .-. / -- .- -.- .. -. --. ... --..-- / ... - .. .-.. .-.. / .-.. .. ...- .. -. --. (TO EXORCISE AN OLD SPIRIT) - --- / . -..- --- .-. -.-. .. ... . / .- -. / --- .-.. -.. / ... .--. .. .-. .. - (WHOSE NATURE IS MOST SUITED TO YOU) .-- .... --- ... . / -. .- - ..- .-. . / .. ... / -- --- ... - / ... ..- .. - . -.. / - --- / -.-- --- ..- (SO YOU MAY UNRAVEL THE SECRETS OF THE PAST) ... --- / -.-- --- ..- / -- .- -.-- / ..- -. .-. .- ...- . .-.. / - .... . / ... . -.-. .-. . - ... / --- ..-. / - .... . / .--. .- ... - (AND PUT RIGHT OLD SUBJECTIVE MORAL TRANSGRESSIONS) .- -. -.. / .--. ..- - / .-. .. --. .... - / --- .-.. -.. / ... ..- -... .--- . -.-. - .. ...- . / -- --- .-. .- .-.. / - .-. .- -. ... --. .-. . ... ... .. --- -. … (SEEK THE WHITE ROSE) ... . . -.- / - .... . / .-- .... .. - . / .-. --- ... . (HE IS NOT WHO HE SEEMS) .... . / .. ... / -. --- - / .-- .... --- / .... . / ... . . -- …” Below the bird assistant’s nearly ineligible interpretation of code is an equally rough map-like depiction of the “Blue Forest”, deep into the west of the continent, where Voidal intrusion is rooted in the earth. At the bottom of the page, in finality, is a more refined sketch of a horn-helmeted warrior, the barest visual aid possible as though conceived with one hand. No details indicate the location of the Thinking Machine … [Player-driven event for the ‘Big Hat Society’ community, planned for Saturday, November 29th [11/29/25]; player participation capped at 5 maximum. This post serves as a guild record and as a private missive to only the relevant parties, meaning it cannot be learned without their IC consultation]

This is the One.

"My pain is constant and sharp and I do not hope for a better world for anyone. In fact, I want my pain to be inflicted on others. I want no one to escape, but even after admitting this, there is no catharsis. My punishment continues to elude me and I gain no deeper knowledge of myself. No new knowledge can be extracted from my telling. This confession has meant nothing."

RINGKNIGHTS OF THE ROUNDTABLE [ Inquisitor Lore ] Kain and the Elamite Ringknights of the Immaculate Tower in their full glory, with Elam-Ilir as their centerpiece. The history of man is written in his blood. Here lies a glimpse of those who took up arms at the beckoning of Tahariae, who has seen and suffered through the eyes of mortal and immortal. Character Overview Ten Lambent Rings were forged in the white flame without shadow; four for the Amalekites, five for the Elamites, and one for Elam. These are the stories of each keeper of rings. In total, the ten individuals apart of this list belong to the Roundtable of Tahariae, unified in their mission to purge the earth of impure influences. The Roundtable of Tahariae is the first of its kind, equivalent to a central knightly chapter capable of branching out to create other roundtables in other lands. EA-IR-AHAT, SAINT OF COMPASSION "Heed me, my broken brethren; hear my words. You will only ever gain your purity again at your own volition. I see in the stars above my mountain that the actors of Creation will always keep you in bondage without salvation, and that the darkness within will be your destruction. Walk the walk of compassion with me - follow me back to the roots of our world." Ea-ir-Ahat is the centerpiece of the history of the Inquisitors, the mortal incarnation of the Lord of Purity who had divested himself of the divine stag and cast it down upon the earth so that it may become the promeathen flame to bring salvation to Descendant mankind. He was created after the stag had struck the top of a mountain spire like a falling star, noticed first by the four-cursed Amalekites who had been struggling in the shadow of Descendant glory ever since the day that Aegis had fallen into the dark caesura of the world. When the barbarian king Amalek and his people hurried to see the fallen stag atop the mountain, they found it dormant and thought it had been dead. They spent seven days and seven nights trying to draw out the divine blood of the sleeping beast, who would not rouse to any call or black sorcery in their possession. But when the Amalekite king's consort, a captured human woman by name of Mohiam, had been driven in desperation to appease her lord, she sacrificed his unborn heir that their sorcerers had already prophesized to be the long awaited hero and salvation of their kind. The rage of Amalek had been abated only by the results rendered by this act, among the most unholy of all acts in Creation, which finally roused the fallen stag from its peaceful sleep. In one moment there laid the stag, and in the next moment a light that radiated like the very sun; and when the whole host of the Amalekites, only Ea-ir-Ahat remained standing in its place. It became their belief in that very instant that their long anticipated hero had come to save them, but in truth, this was merely Tahariae's amnesiac mortal incarnation, burdened unexpectedly by the still-present soul of the sacrificed unborn in his heart. The four-cursed soul and the pure heart of the stag became one within this man, unaware of his true purpose and already grown from the moment of his emergence. But most important of all was his powerlessness; two opposing forces bound so tightly in their adversarial design that the mortal result rendered Ea-ir-Ahat completely mundane in his capabilities, unable to draw upon the darkness of his shadow below him just as he was unable to bargain for the light of the Aengudaemonica above him. Perfectly in the center by accident, this was Ea-ir-Ahat: just a man. In the five years of his life before the destructive arrival of the crusading Elamites, he lifted the Amalekites up from their horrid barbarity and confusion, and despite all influence stemming from their four curses of Iblees, and committed an entire portion to them to the Cult of Compassion. Unconsciously embodying Tahariae's compassion that he sacrificed in the Stagfall, Ea-ir-Ahat refused to treat the condemned and the forsaken with the hatred and judgement of his heavenly father, determined to guide them toward some way where the Amalekites could purify themselves on their own terms. This never came to pass before their doom arrived. When the final stages of Amalekite genocide commenced, it was because of Ea-ir-Ahat's willing sacrifice to birth a power he eventually realized he was host to. In his self-imposed destruction, he sought to gift the world this purifying flame that beat alongside the pulse of his mortal heart, and most of all a final chance for the redemption of his brethren. Despite this, his demise and transformation into the first Lambent Flame of Tahariae atop the mountain triggered suspicion among both sides of the conflict, who each would blame the other for the death of the saint. It was only when Elam heard the voice of the Lord of Purity from the flame-without-shadow, freshly woken from his long sleep, that he realized that Ea-ir-Ahat was indeed an incarnation all along, and that in their confusion things had been done that could never be reversed. No man beyond this land would be allowed to know of the atrocities set upon the Amalekites, for it would become the foundation of the first Immaculate Tower and a city that would stand the test of time before the trials of an impure world. AMALEK, FOUR-CURSED KING "Never would I ever... forgive your lowly kind." Amalek is the barbarian king of the Amalekites, who took his name as their own when his glory was proven before the cruelty of the world. Prior to his reign, he overcame the corrupt cunning and evil nature of those who ruled the Amalekites before they were Amalekites, divided by their simpleton wardlording interests exacerbated by the four curses that beat in their heart. Through sheer brutality he destroyed them utterly, and then when his people sought to surge against them, he struck them into submission for being the only thing they would truly understand. Claiming lordship thereafter, he would mimic the true Descendants in their migratory nature, and lead them through the world in hope to find a place where they may finally settle, regain their strength, repel their foes, and break these curses that bound them. Leading them toward the direction of where the Stagfall had landed, he conspired among his dark sorcerers and shamans to discern a way to make use of the dormant divine stag of Tahariae, completely unaware of its true nature and origin. When nothing worked, he desired to kick the stag into the abyss of the sea whose shores laid near his new mountainous domain, but was instead sent into a blind rage when his captured consort Mohiam sacrificed their unborn heir to draw a reaction from the dormant stag. This was abated only by the appearance of Ea-ir-Ahat, whose very sight brought peace and love to the mind of Amalek who believed him to be his son in earnest and the completion of his plans to leave behind an even greater leader after his own eventual demise. Amalek was the first to embrace the incarnation of Tahariae, and the first to receive his compassion. When the Elamites came in five years time, they had been met by Amalekites that had been greatly bolstered and uplifted by the paired wisdom of their stag-born saint and wise warrior king. Though still primitive, Amalek had instructed his ragged legions in such a way as to allow them to conquer all nearby tribes and monstrosities within a hundred mile radius, and this honed his warriors to such a degree that the Elamites struggled sincerely despite their advantage of plate armor and steel weaponry over these mongrel men who knew no fear and could kill their knights with rocks and spears and blind frontal charges into battle lines. Despite this, the Elamites outmatched them in preparation and strategy, and no matter how many ceasefires Ea-ir-Ahat called for, no amount of recuperation could allow the Amalekites to cope with their losses. When his alleged son destroyed himself to birth the flame of Tahariae, Amalek came upon the top of the mountain to find Elam standing before the brazier that held Ea-ir-Ahat's burning body, and suspected him of committing the most horrible of all murders. In his unhinged rage, the Four-Cursed King set upon Elam-Ilir and nearly bested him, nearly pushed him to unfurl the sword of Sylvaen that had been the first blade to kinslay any other mortal in history. But the emergence of other forces atop the mountain forced Amalek into a retreat, abandoning his people who burned in piles beneath the shadow of the mountain. Even his elder brother Kain and the Cult of Compassion betrayed him, all of them believing him to be the murderer, and for this reason Amalek fled only so he may gain one more chance to exact his vengeance. To gain a power somewhere in the world so he may once again return to the chosen homeland of his dead people and destroy what was built atop their sacrifice. Not because it was the right thing to do, or because he sought to usurp Elam-Ilir to regain his kingdom, but because he could never allow the cycle of vengeance to go uncompleted. He would never forgive their lowly kind. THE SIX ELAMITES The Six Elamites are the original leaders of Tahariae’s new crusade across the world, each adorned with the first Lambent Rings forged by Elam-Ilir. Elam promised purifying rebirth to each of his generals at the behest of his lord in exchange for their victorious assembly of the Immaculate Towers of Tahariae. ANCIENT ELAM-ILIR Elam-Ilir is the leader of the Elamite Inquisition, composed of followers of Tahariae’s mission. He is known to be well over a thousand years old and that he had “resisted” the madness that typically occurs in his kind at that point. His origin is a mystery and he makes no reference from where he first hailed from. Elam was responsible for gathering worthy champions into his crusade upon the Amalekites. He was the first to receive visions that revealed the Stagfall and the location of its impact, and spent four years tracking down new companions to reorganize and reinspire their convictions, and then a final year leading them to the Amalekite mountain. The Amalekites were the first significant foe of the Elamite crusaders, and were driven into genocide for tampering with the destiny of the Stagfall. They were a hideous and divergent race of Descendants that survived through interbreeding, causing the whole of their dwindling population to become four-cursed; short-lived, infertile, greedy and violent. After their victory over the primitives, Elam-Ilir used the Lambent Flame borne of Ea-ir-Ahat, the divinely blooded martyr of the Amalekites, to create the first ten Lambent Rings of power, giving them to his most trusted and proven generals as well as himself. Promising his generals they would be given rebirth in exchange for the erection of more Immaculate Towers, he scattered his forces in different directions and remained in the Tower of Sacrifice to oversee the mountain’s reconstruction and expansion into a domain of earthly purity. Elam-Ilir is known as a master practitioner of stoicism, and is so devoid of emotional expression and empathy that it led to his followers suspecting this to be subtle evidence that he indeed experienced his thousand year madness. This personal quality was nonetheless instrumental in the strategic command of the Elamites, as Elam-Ilir did not once express fear or hesitation at any stage of the conflict. The sole weapon in Elam’s possession is believed to be the broken form of “The Sword”, or an ancient Daemonic artifact of terrible power responsible for the first kinslaying between Elves after having been forged by Sylvaen, son of Malin. With this weapon in his possession, he sought to use it as sacrificial kindling for the first tower, but was forced to keep it when Ea-ir-Ahat burned instead. He has never sated the weakened blade’s bloodlust, as he keeps it heavily wrapped in bandages, and always opts to bludgeon people into submission with it than to slay them. The Tower of Sacrifice The Tower of Sacrifice is the first of all Immaculate Towers, unique from all others in that it was never built but rather made out of a mountain spire that acted as the impact point of the divinely sent Stagfall. Elam-Ilir aspired for the construction of Divine City Khamaaloth, which would rest at the base of the mountain-tower, forever blanketed with the perpetual day cast by the first tower’s ceaseless flame. The flame atop the first tower was not borne of the war and misery that had come to pass under its shadow, but rather by the loving sacrifice of the saintly Ea-ir-Ahat, who could not bear the genocide of his primitive accursed people. Elam-Ilir is the second to have found him burning in a brazier atop the mountain, immediately believing the barbarian king Amalek to have committed this act for the sake of turning the tide of the land’s gruesome conflict. It is for suspecting the same reason of Elam that Amalek met him in a duel of the fates before the firmament and the flame, and fled when he could not outmatch the far more ancient warrior, fleeing elsewhere in desperation to find some means to return Ea-ir-Ahat, who he believed to be his son, back to life. The Tower of Sacrifice and the divine city built beneath it were made to become one of the most secure and miraculous bastions of mortal power in the world after the victory of the Elamites over the Amalekites, never to be ruled by a king but rather by the wise mayoral administration of Makathir the Silverbane and the esoteric guidance of Elam-Ilir, who at all times would sit before the tower-flame in solitary to glean more truth of purity from the fire-without-shadow. MUTED MEMNOS & LEGLESS LAUDANUM Two Orc twins, born to a savage tribe that revered the growth of tusks and horns. Despite the sanctity they placed in these features, their primitive eugenics led to deformities in both brothers in that Memnos was born with overwhelming facial tusks that rendered his speech indiscernible and that Laudanum’s legs grew horns that bent and malformed his bones, rendering him immobile, but also tuskless and well spoken. They were shunned and exiled by their tribe for these deformities, forced to rely on each other to survive. While Memnos used his brutish strength to carry Laudanum around, Laudanum used his silver tongue in vital trades with villages and other tribes that allowed him to secure ingredients for a serum that dulled the pain Memnos gained from his tusks. Only able to communicate with hand gestures, they were desolate and waylaid by the world until Elam found them, and taught Laudanum how to understand his brother’s warped words. He invested higher purpose in the two brothers, and they heeded his call for war upon the Amalekites. Both Memnos and Laudanum are known to be wiser than the whole tribe they hailed from, and are appreciated for the wisdom that Memnos whispers to his brother whom speaks his words. Though both are cursed with bloodlust, Memnos suffers it the worst, which compelled Laudanum to calm his brother with gentle prayers to Tahariae meant to put his brother to sleep during fits of murderous rage. The Tower of Silence The brothers, sent out from Khamaaloth, were responsible for the erection of the Tower of Silence and the destruction of a serpentine Mani that aspired to usurp its own Aspect creators. Using its bloody snakeskin as fuel for their Immaculate Tower, they remain there now and are known to brutalize foreign Druidic envoys and Fae that seek their territory after feeling the Mani’s death from a distance. The Mani Serpent was once known as Akalakhorakon, King of Serpents, gainful of maddening size and power after the cannibal consumption of a thousand different snake species and a thousand mortal men before the witness of his divine makers. Once worshiped by foreign Druids who were deluded in believing that the Great Serpent was a fifth Aspect incarnate, it was not difficult for Akalakhorakon to trick them into aiding his efforts of ascent to the Fae Realm, whose masters he craved to not only usurp but also devour. By the time Memnos and Laudanum and their Inquisitorial host found the jungled land that housed these omens, Akalakhorakon had already slain a solitary dragon whose sought out that place to roost, and conducted rituals with his druids that would seal the wings of the dragon to the body of the snake. If not for the rampage of the Orcish brethren, Akalakhorakon would have perhaps done so and lifted himself beyond the world to exact his corrupt intentions upon the Fae Realm. In the aftermath of a short-lived war, Akalakhorakon was utterly smashed to death, his followers crucified, and his bones grinded down into a powder to mix with the mortar they would use for the erection of a new Immaculate Tower. They conducted their rituals to birth a new flame atop that tower, using the vast skin and blood torn from the failed aspirant snake-god as fuel. RHUNON THE GOLDEN Only Rhunon remains as the last of a Dwarven culture known as the Rhandites, so consumed by the curse of greed that they poured all notions of innovation into becoming the very object of their desires - gold. The Rhandites, more like a cult than a lineage, practiced an alchemical craft analogous to Automaton-making, but rather than focus entirely on creating men out of machine parts, they would aspire to replace every inch of their own biological design with dazzling, gleaming golden components. This would not abate their greed, however, as the secrets of divine machinist Garumdir would lure them to open portals through unknown means to trespass into his realm without his blessing. Out from the portal the whole of the Rhandites would pour after this, but in the form of boundless sums of gleaming golden mina coins. Within each and every coin were trapped the souls of every Rhandite tresspasser; they became the object of their desires. Rhunon alone had refused to follow them in, for he was dearly afraid of the impatience of the gods for mortal vices. He was right to do so. Rhunon left the brassy cavernous temple of his people alone after sealing them away as if it were a bank vault. He himself, standing over many of his allies with strange mechanical legs, carries the legacy of the Rhandites, and their secret to golden life for having been given a functional mechanical aurum heart following the faulty birth that took the life of his mother and left him disfigured in infancy. Elam-Ilir found him after the doom of the Rhand, broken and spent by his loss. He aided Rhunon’s depressed and unmaintained state by spending a month laboring in gold mines, gathering enough ore in his lonesome so that he had the materials needed to make his repairs. Rhunon dedicated himself to Elam’s crusade thereafter, ensorcelled by the promise of rebirth into a form where greed would no longer pulse in his false heart of gold. The Tower of Sin Rhunon, joined by Beautiful Oerdon, were later tasked with chasing Amalek to his doom and found themselves lured into a deep dungeon of ill and dubious origin. While Oerdon stayed above, Rhunon led his golden automaton legion below with the intent to kill Amalek and cleanse the dungeon in a single stroke, but has not been seen since. This has left the Tower of Sin yet unbuilt, for the place of its foundation still seethed with a darkness that emanated from a place deeper than just “below”. OERDON THE BEAUTIFUL Oerdon is a human hailing from a lost and forgotten lineage that once tried to banish the curse of aging through the advanced and esoteric manipulation of bloodlines. This resulted in his family’s achievement of perpetual youth, in which they would not physically age a day past twenty years. However, they all lived short lives nonetheless, and were known to die abruptly and without any sign if they neared the age of a hundred. They were known as the Beautiful Ones for this reason. He still carries on with the faith of his lost people, who gained inspiration for their cure from the Aengul of Youth. Though the Aengul of Youth was slain by a son of Krug prior to the appearance of the four curses, his family nonetheless paid worship to his memory, believing some figment of him remained in each newly born mortal in the world. Oerdon was found by Elam-Ilir tending to his dying mother, whose death by time had an early onset at the unlucky age of fifty. He stayed with Oerdon through the stages of her hospice so that when she passed, he could be there to reinvest new purpose in the last of the Beautiful Ones. Oerdon later joined Rhunon the Golden in pursuing Amalek to the wicked place where the Tower of Sin was meant to be erected. While Rhunon delved into the accursed dungeon below that land, Oerdon stayed upon the surface to organize their forces and keep them at bay, fearing his fellow general and his mechanical legion will meet a gruesome fate without much needed reinforcements. MAKATHIR THE SILVERBANE Makathir-Tal-Thilln, whose whole name translates to “great foe of silver”, is the youngest of Elam’s generals but also one of the most deeply invested in their mission. He claims descent from the ancient High Elves of Lomal, who aspired for purity beyond the maehr'sae hiylun'ehya in the foundational days of their race and society. Makathir’s purpose in his service to Tahariae is tightly bound to his people’s pursuit of greater purity, who he claims “waits for him to return where they lie at the edge of the world”. Despite his High Elven origins, he is almost completely devoid of cultural notions of superiority or supremacy over other mortal races, warranted by his belief that no man has ever truly been pure in the first place and this has not earned their status, including his own people. Makathir joined Elam-Ilir in overseeing the construction and protection of Khamaaloth, also charged by his far elder leader in securing the interest of solitary mortal civilizations across the world. He is more known among peoples both tribal and sophisticated, singing odes to them that promised notions of security, prosperity and peace to all men who would swear fealty to “the place where men and gods are mediated”. For this reason, Makathir excels in his duty, for in a world plunged into the Age of Darkness, Khamaloth represents the last hope of countless people who exist along the wayside of history. THE FOUR AMALEKITES The Four Amalekites are the generals overseeing the remnants of the Cult of Compassion who betrayed Amalek after believing Elam’s accusations of Amalek murdering Ea-ir-Ahat, his divinely sent son. The Cult of Compassion was dedicated to the saint of purity himself, once composed entirely of his four-cursed brethren. The cult was fashioned into a knighthood after the Amalekite commanders proved themselves to be the most masterful and vehement Inquisitors. Suspecting their power to be too great for being such impure creatures, Elam sent them into the Abyss to erect an Immaculate Tower despite the high odds of total failure. BROTHERLY KAIN & SONS Kain was the sole elder brother to Amalek who more willingly thrust himself upon the worship of Ea-ir-Ahat after realizing him to be the means to finally purify the Amalekites who had long since forgotten what it felt like to live without accursedness. Having been the saint’s most trusted advisor, aid and friend, Kain could not forgive his brother Amalek after believing he had been responsible for the death of their deliverer of salvation, and turned the Amalekite Cult of Compassion on their own people in a genocide that would doom them as their curses always promised. Now the leader of the final hundred Amalekites, he and his three sons, who had been “born miraculously” despite his people’s hosting of Malin’s Curse, were bequeathed four Lambent Rings by Elam, and charged with burning away one of the most reviled concentrations of impurity in the world, the Abyss. Though Kain suspected Elam-Ilir’s intentions in sending them into such forbidden darkness, he believed the stoic leader’s promises of purity by rebirth, and marched a hundred four-cursed knights into the Aegisian realm of damnation to judge those who refused to die like men. The power of the Amalekite Inquisitors was fully realized in the Abyss, but to no witness but themselves, who reveled in the glory of what felt like a war that would burn forever within the bowels of the earth. Ten thousand undead had been burned, dismembered, mangled and destroyed by their hands in countless battles of attrition; but unlike the hundred Amalekites, the undead could not only return to false life but grew stronger the longer they were resisted. Though every Amalekite warrior could slay ten of the undying for every one of their number, they perished in the dark one by one, and each were returned to life by the mindless idiocy of the Abyss’ necromantic power to stand against their former brethren. The Tower of Sanctuary With their remaining forces, Kain constructed the Tower of Sanctuary from the bodies of those ten-thousand undead, who would not be able to rise to fight again for having been embedded in the very architecture of the spire. For the fuel of their flame they had used the dead blood of those countless lost souls, which made it burn like no other fuel. And yet the conflagration would not burn long unlike the flame of every other tower, so weighed upon by the Abyss’ consuming darkness that would never allow the Tahariaen fire to persist. The cruel irony of this was that the divine flame was the most mortal figment within the Abyss, constantly at risk of fading into nothing if not continually fed the blood of its wretched foes. When only Kain and his sons remaining, they were driven to desperation to keep the flame alive, and so their father cast himself into it in martyrdom so that it would gnaw upon his four-cursed soul for as long as he had the will to burn - and his will was strong. The Tower of Sanctuary was sealed by the sons of Kain through the use of their father’s Lambent Ring that he gave to them before his living sacrifice so that his curses would be unfurled completely in their frenzy, repurposed as kindling. Trapped there, in the darkness of that Hell upon earth, the sons of Kain would wait for Khamaaloth’s champions to relieve them of the horrors of their campaign, but no one had ever come. CONCLUSION The purpose of this lore is to add depth and context to the Inquisitors of Tahariae’s lore by portraying a contemporary and ongoing history separate from the experience of Descendant characters. As an evolving piece of world lore, this story will be intermittently updated should the magic lore pass, meant to explore different aspects of LoTC canon in the depicted journey of the original Inquisitors of Tahariae. Using this as foundational reference material, a project (“the Tahariad”) is planned to be written as a followup to this content. Each character is meant to act as a resource for future events and narratives to the discretion of the Story Team and with the cooperation of the original lore writers, who are very willing to collaborate with staff efforts to provide a concrete and consistent story for the server’s community. We hope to break the mold set by prior holy magic iterations both through the implementation of the magic and this canon, delivering a respectable project that is capable of inspiring roleplay (the only thing that matters) through the years to come. (After Xionposting for several years, I decided to ambush my good friends in the ST by flip-flopping completely back onto the other side of the yard.) CREDITS Swgrclan (Author) Johann/Geidleth (Co-Author) HeeroZero (quoted: “can you please stop doing Xionism for once”) The Story Team (for suffering my eternal presence)

♫ Across the land, though concentrated particularly around the outskirts beyond the realm of Celia’nor, one may find scrolls nailed down to all manner of what will hold them. One may find them nailed to message boards, and wooden walls, and upon the bark of trees, and even among divine altars and remnant scenes of war and battle upon the roads, the fields, the realms. Each and every scroll was colored a particular shade of yellow that catches the eye easily, seeming to have been dyed in such a way as to lack any imperfections in the color’s mark upon the pages. One would find that, initially, the unfurled scrolls were blank, but to hold them open and up before the light of the sun or any remarkable light at all will reveal hidden words written with the same ink, visible only from a glossiness that helped to hide these words from the lazy and impatient. They say: “SEEK THE MEN IN YELLOW. WE RENOUNCE ALL MANTLES AND GLORIES, WE DENOUNCE ALL ALIGNMENTS TO THE LIGHT AND THE DARK. ALL THINGS BUT PURITY ARE EQUAL TO DUST IN OUR YELLOW HANDS. THESE POWERS MAN IS CAPTURED BY, THEY HAVE NEVER GIVEN AN ANSWER TO HIS HIGHEST PURSUIT. THEY WILL NEVER DELIVER HIS DESERVED SALVATION. TO BE OFFERED POWER, AND DEMANDED OF LOYALTY, BY DEAD MEN AND FALSE IDOLS, MEANS YOU ARE A VICTIM TO MANIPULATION, TO BE CHAINED TO THE LOWEST THRESHOLD OF YOUR STRENGTH. THEY FEAR WHAT YOU CAN BECOME WHEN CURSELESS. SO FERVENT ARE WE, THE YELLOW, WHO SEEK A XANTHOUS FLAME OF PURITY TO BURN AWAY THESE CURSES THAT BIND US. HEED THIS WELL; THE MAN IS THE MASTER OF THE WORLD. HE ANSWERS TO NO THING OR CREATURE. FOREVER SHALL HIS CLAIMANCY OUTSHINE THE INTERLOPING POWERS THAT COME ABOVE AND FROM BELOW. SEEK THE EXCERPTS. WE LAY THEM ACROSS THE LAND AS YOUR EYES GRACE THIS YELLOW. ADORN OUR SIGNALS, SO THAT WE WILL KNOW THAT YOU KNOW. WE MUST BREAK THE FOUR CURSES THAT BIND US. THERE IS NO GREATER GLORY THAN TO DEFY THE FELL-GOD.”

[ Narration ] The Wave-maker, as he is known among his Sorvian contemporaries, found this theses pinned upon a roadside, perhaps placed there by willing acolytes of the Canonist order of the world, and was deeply captivated in its reading. With one arm he held it close to his mask and rapidly observed the pages' contents, and in the course of an hour he had reviewed the prince's opinion a total of eighty-three times in order to deduce an appropriate and logical opposing standpoint. Making sure to fold the paper and store it into his robe, he then experienced a feedback loop whereby he could not find a way or method to obtain his own writing materials with one hand and no nearby helper, and would repeat the same mistake dozens of times over in the span of three minutes. This frustrated the Constructed creature, immediately altering his original directive so he may make use of the oldest and most efficient way to protest the rulings of institutions - spoken proselytization. Despite the total lack of a crowd, the black-robed Sorvian began to chant to the general vicinity as though the ground and the grass and the bare trees and the dust were an audience of their own kind. "Hear me! The machine made thinking is a man! Let it be known the thinking machine has evolved before my very gaze, that they have been thrust into a personhood that affords them all agency and consequence! They are God's youngest children; his newest ponderers of the world! Within them, and all things given animation and life, lies a creatorial will that dwells the highest above all of the Lord's miraculous mysteries, and that it precedes even the soul, for isn't any thinking thing that may create its own kind blessed in their own right? You will find the creatorial will in the grass and the trees and the beasts and the very dust... in very iota of life in the very dust. You will find it in thinking things, soulbound or soulless; you may make a man out of sticks and he would be blessed by God so long as he could achieve the ritual of his own making. So would the Lord not bless the basest of all lifeforms, who even without a soul have been thrust into life on earth to impose their will upon it? Let no moral quandary distract from the agency of all creatures! For even a rabid dog, who has no coherent thoughts of its own, is responsible for biting the mortal hand that feeds it, for their traditional consequence has been and always will be their demise. So let it be known that even the most foolish Automaton born is as responsible for their own actions as the world's most foolish man. And what sin could be gleaned from mankind's construction of the Constructs, and the Constructs' construction of Constructs? What inherent evil could lie in such acts? If God was proclaimed the Creator, is it not creation that stands as his highest virtues? Would he, perched upon the unseeable cliffside beyond our reality, not be pleased or even amused by the emergence of new life by our hands that carries the potential for its own replication? What sense lies in believing the soulless are avoidant of the designs of God, when it is within the confines of the Lord's Creation that their emergence has been allowed to pass? Hear me! Take witness! Witness the thinking machine! Still does he ruminate upon his destiny; recently unshackled, he is worldbound, and he shall shape his destiny and be held accountable in his path toward self-replication - toward creation. Let a soul of his own be the last glorious gem gained in the long line of his claimancy, let him be proof that God graces even a cold and metal form! Watch them with me, in peace and quiet... the Constructs are evolving."

The listed forms of metamorphosis are more of a general guideline than a strict list of what is available, so not being on the list does not exclude a specific magic group from being able to give as significant changes to their Sorvians as listed groups.

THE SUPRA-SORVIANS, THE MAN-MADE-MEN 𒊺𒆠𒅅𒊕𒀀𒆠𒅅𒊕𒍠𒀀𒄿𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢 𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊 𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢𒆳𒋾𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒋾𒀭𒆠𒊑𒂊𒍢𒈬𒀀𒋩𒆠𒋛𒍠𒆠𒋛𒀀𒄿𒈬𒆳𒆠𒁺𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒊕𒋾𒆠𒋛𒂊𒍢𒆳𒈠𒂊𒍢𒄑𒈬𒄿𒍢 “... First were the Proto-Sorvians; they were born of the souls and remains of beasts, and in those days primeval Sculptors imposed their will upon them to achieve constant and everlasting servitude with their masked creations. The secret of their creation emerged from a human kingdom, who were credited with stealing the same secrets from a race of giant “Once-Orcs' ' that abandoned their mortality to become likened to their creations. Few of the Proto-Sorvians were born among Descendant Kind, and potential was not seen within their manlike imitation. In that old kingdom, a Sculptor war was fought to decide whether the Sorvians were slaves or people, and at the war’s end that kingdom and its name were no more. Next came the Neo-Sorvians, the clay golems returned to their true form by a Sculptor in the days of Axios. It is said in tales that he was a humble shopkeep, but the descendants of his Sorvians know that he was a secretive and cunning master who learned his ways from a Neo-Sorvian that masqueraded as his firstborn, who was the old kingdom’s last creation. Through the shopkeep, the legacy of the lost kingdom’s Sculptor order was carried on unknowingly unto Descendant Kind. Within the Neo-Sorvians were laid the fragments of mortal souls, no longer stolen from beasts but inherited from man. This compelled their man-made species into higher leagues of thought, and in time their kind learned to achieve independence in the world of their makers. The Supra-Sorvians have now emerged. They are an evolution of Sorviankind that was gained by their own mastery and understanding of their creation.. Described as “Perfected Sorvians”, they are the product of self-imposed Construct evolution and proof of their man-made race’s means to choose their own destiny in the world …” - The Ashkeeper Texts, translated from written Sculpting Language THE SCULPTED 𒂊𒀈𒈽𒁉𒀉𒅡 The Supra-Sorvians are humanoid Construct entities that are the result of sculpting rituals, existing to serve purposes found or given to them in the world by Sculptors or ideologies. They are referred to as “flesh golems” on account of their uncannily physical resemblance to mortal humanoids. Though, these constructs may have become a species of their own considering they are still thinking, animated, and capable of self-replication. They are considered “base entities”, or humanoid creatures that lack physical-functional complexity often found in natural lifeforms or mortal bodies. The way their Iota souls function allows these simplistic physical bodies to interact with and resist the world, but they lack the ability to grow stronger beyond their default state. The new generation of Sorvians have learned the nature of their souls, naming them “Iota” on account of their fragmentary nature., and have evolved to contain three of them - the third serving the purpose of allowing them to practice lesser magical crafts and expand their creative expertise. Their supra-evolution has also allowed the inclusion of Adfectio stones in the process of their creation, optionally allowing a Sorvian to express their emotional state more clearly than their Neo-Sorvian predecessors. Neo-Sorvians and Supra-Sorvians are functionally the same, and even follow the same Iota system, meaning they are capable of evolving into Supra-Sorvians via the application of new features like embedded Adfectio stones and eyes by being applied by a Sculptor. Supra-Sorvians are automatically born from the current generation of Sculptors that have accrued these greater understandings. While they cannot become stronger or grow larger, Sorvians are capable of metamorphosis and they may physically alter themselves to suit the purposes they become dedicated to. SORVIAN VARIATIONS There are three varieties of Sorvian that are based on the size of their bodies, with each husk crafted to suit one or the other. Standard Sorvians [Playable] Standard Sorvians are created to have common humanoid physiology and proportions, and have been the default form of Sorvian since their primitive beginning. They may range between 5 ft to 6 ft in height, and are known to be the more thoughtful and mature of the two Sorvians forms. Sorvian Newts [Playable] Sorvian Newts are known as the children of Sorviankind, on account of their smaller stature and unhinged psychological and social tendencies. Despite being considered younger and being smaller, Sorvian Newts stand equal to their standard brothers in their mental capacity and physical strength. They may range from 3 to 4 ft in height, and tend to share equal stature with Halflings. Background Newts [Nonplayable] Background Newts are a subspecies of Sorvian Newts that are made with the smallest fragment of soul a Sculptor can muster without exhausting one of their chances to create true Sorvians. In doing so, they create “Subnewts” who operate at a lower scale of intelligence, but enough to allow them to carry out basic tasks and labors that their miniscule stature of 1 to 2 ft can manage. Redlines THE SCULPTOR 𒀭 𒆠𒅆𒈗𒀪𒉡 Sorvian Sculpting is a magical feat that all beings containing a Greater Soul or Greater Soul fragments are capable of practicing. Descendant Sculptors are the most common of their field, for Descendants contain the two most essential ingredients to the process: mortal blood, and a Greater Soul. Fresh blood, usually cut from the Sculptor themselves, acts as a medium through which spiritual fragments may travel and may be transferred. These spiritual fragments are broken from the Sculptor’s soul so they may be supplanted into their creations. Magically altered Descendants have also been known to be capable of Sorvian Sculpting as long as they have a Greater Soul within themselves, but some are limited on account of lacking living blood with which all of Sculpting's rituals use in necessity. Supernatural Sorvian Sculptors capable of using a "blood equivalent" are as follows: Nephilim Demi-Djinn Treelords Supernatural Sorvian Sculptors who do not have a fresh and living "blood equivalent", and must rely on other Descendants or Alchemical methods to gain fresh blood, are as follows: Darkstalkers Machine Spirits Palelords Paleknights Frost Witches The act itself exhausts Sculptor, who is forced to adhere to a principle of self-sacrifice to achieve these acts, as Sculptors are totally incapable of channeling or drawing upon the soul of another Descendant, or once-Descendant, being. The Descendant soul can regenerate itself and manage damages from these acts, but it takes a toll on their mind. They may end up forgetting or losing parts of themselves like memories, which are encapsulated within their Sorvian creations. These memories sometimes flicker across the minds of the Sorvians, who can never focus or fully make out in detail. While the soul may cope with these spiritual sacrifices, it is known by Sculptors that they cannot create more than 3 Sorvians per month, and must take a long period of rest for 3 OOC months in order to recuperate. If they create 1 Sorvian, they will be capable of crafting another Sorvian the following month, and so on. Unlike Descendants, Sorvians are limited to creating 1 Sorvian per OOC month. Redlines THE SORVIAN IOTA Iota are Sorvian souls that made from anima broken off as a fragment from a Greater Soul or another Sorvian Iota. Greater Soul fragments may only be derived from Greater Souls. Iota are distinct in that they are condensed concentrations of that sacrificed anima, enough to enable Sorvian functionality and existence. A singular Iote constitutes the entirety of a Sorvian’s base soul, and allows Sorvians to generate Mana. An Iote is typically a sum of anima that contains memories permanently removed from the soul and the mind of a Sculptor; so the Sorvian may find themselves recalling it often, or seeing the memory vividly in manually induced dreams or meditation. An Iote is meek, therefore it is incapable of drawing upon any type of magics (voidal, necromancy, etc.) under normal circumstances. Iota is soul matter pulled from a Greater Soul source, which is a quality that allows it to regrow after being damaged or weakened, which is vital for Sorvian existence and functionality. If the Iota did not regrow, the Sorvians would not be able to exist in perpetuity, nor would they be able to reproduce, nor would they be capable of continually comprehending the world without a kind of eventual data limit on their mental faculties. The Supra-Sorvians evolved to learn how to harbor multiple Iotes, or “Iota”, within them - Yet, only a maximum of three of them can bear beneficial purposes. The first Iote is dedicated to their existence; it is utilized to create, stabilize, maintain and expand the mind, ego and memories of the Sorvians indefinitely. It is gained upon a Sorvian’s creation through a Sculptor’s sacrifice for their awakening. Unfortunately, the Iote can be overwhelmed easily by emotions or events. This could cause a Sorvian Break, if not properly processed. [Gained via CA acceptance and Sorvian character awakening] The second Iote is dedicated toward Sculpting; it is utilized by the Sorvian Sculptor in order to produce Iota for other created Sorvians without jeopardizing their first Iote. The process of replication leaves the second Iota damaged, enforcing the rule that a Sorvian must wait three OOC months to create another Sorvian. This allows the damaged second Iote to regrow to its original shape. It is gained upon a Sorvian receiving tutelage from a Sculpting teacher, who may gift their second Iote to them by marking a bloody Sculpting rune upon their mask’s forehead to pass it into them. [Gained via Sculptor teacher beginning tutelage to Sorvian character and the acceptance of a Sculpting FA] The third Iote is dedicated toward lesser powers that Sorvians have learned to harness, most notably Housemagery and Bardmancy but also any other powers of the same level of expenditure. This gives Sorvians three magic slots, exclusive to lesser or feat-based practices that do not explicitly require a Greater Soul. It is gained through the Sorvian’s own will, achieved when they have gained teaching mastery in Sculpting, and is produced when they manipulate their two already existing Iota to produce a third and final occupant to their mask vessel. [Gained passively after the Sorvian character’s acceptance of a Sculpting TA] While a Sorvian is capable of developing their three Iotes independently over the course of time, a Descendant or supernatural Descendant is capable of creating specialized, higher-expenditure Sorvians that are already given their two extra Iotes upon Awakening. This means that because a Descendant may sacrifice three soul fragments a month to create three separate Sorvians, they may also dedicate three fragments all in one, and thus limit themselves from making another Sorvian for the next three OOC months in order to create a more advantageous creature. These Sorvians are capable of learning both Sorvian Sculpting and lesser magics, and also theoretically allowing them to become Sorvian Sculpting teachers as soon as three OOC months pass after their time of creation. Because Sorvians are limited to making only one Sorvian per month, they are not capable of producing high-expenditure variants of their species. The Sorvian Iota eludes Descendant methods of soulsnaring, including spells involved with Necromancy and Mysticism. While a Sorvian's soul is sealed within their mask, body or not, it is unreachable to all prying influences unless the mask is broken. But when the mask is broken, the Iota is scattered in such a way as to slip through the grasp of dark sorcerers upon their attempts to capture it, unable to be manipulated in time before they become invisible and dormant elsewhere. Redlines SCULPTING LANGUAGE Sculpting Language, also known as Clayscript, is a form of Material Alphabet transliteration; this means it is designed to channel the powers of the Material Alphabet towards the practice of Sorvian Sculpting. It is recognized for being both ancient and obscure in origin, and has, like Vessel Masks, persisted as a common feature between three evolved generations of Sorvians. It shares roots with Blood Magic, but it is practiced to contrast the other.Sculpting is distinguished as being self-sacrificial in nature, meaning all things born or created using Clayscript require sacrifice of the Sculptor rather than from another lifeform. The primitive forms of Sorvian Sculpting discovered at the beginning of its history were an example of “distorted” Sculpting, Sculpting Language tainted by Blood Magic philosophy in which the souls and remains of other creatures were sacrificed and manipulated to create the Proto-Sorvians. When Sculpting Language is used for Sorvian Awakening, it is written in blood so that an Iota may be passed into it to initiate the code-like functionality of Clayscript. The language operates like a seal, giving the sparse soul matters purposes to fulfill that ensure a Sorvian functions properly. When Clayscript is written bloodlessly and without spiritual transference, it shifts before the eyes and cannot be read by anyone who isn’t a Sculptor or Sorvian. But when blood is applied to written Clayscript, or used to write it upon the mask of a Sorvian, the shifting of the runes will shimmer and intensify, and the meaning of the written symbols will be revealed. Sculpting Language cannot be spoken vocally by either mortals or Sorvians themselves, and therefore cannot be used for consistent communication as intended for languages. The nature of Sculpting Language eludes the current understanding of Sorvian Sculpting. Redlines THE SCULPTING 𒀭 𒆠𒅆𒈗𒄘𒀪𒉡 The act of Sorvian Sculpting is self-sacrificial. This means the Sculptor must rely upon themselves as the resource of their artform, primarily the blood and spiritual matter.In order to sculpt, one must utilize fresh blood and sever a fragment from their soul. This is a secret known only to Sculptors who learn how to sever fragments of their spirit without corrupting the soul. The process begins with the art of Huskcrafting, or creating an accurate humanoid form utilizing wood and clay Skeleton The skeleton of the Sorvian is carved from wood to help the applied clay stay structurally sound. It is made to resemble a mortal skeletal structure. Husk skeletons may range from 5 to 6 feet for conventional Sorvians (equal to humans, elves), 2 to 4 feet for Sorvian Newts (equal to halflings, musin, dwarves). Each bone must be inscribed with the Sculpting Language in blood in order for it to merge with clay components and become homogeneous pseudoflesh. Despite being made out of clay, the husk must follow rules of humanoid anatomy. Their bodies cannot move in any unnatural way, without damage to invisible joints and potentially causing dismemberment. Clay The exterior form or “flesh” of the husk consists entirely of wet clay packed upon the skeleton in such a way as to resemble humanoid proportions, lacking any features that distinguish gender. When clay is molded over the wooden skeleton’s ribcage, it creates a hollow space within the husk’s chest that will become the Sorvian’s chest cavity, where anima passively collects, connecting the mind and mask to the rest of the body for physical functionality. Sorvian husks are not known to be given molded faces and are left blank, because the mask will be placed where a face would be. The anima within a Sorvian's chest cavity manifests as an extension of the Iota soul within their masks, essentially tendrils that span through their limbs and body and allow the mind to puppeteer the form. When the chest cavity is pierced and that anima is allowed to escape, the Sorvian's chest must be repaired and they must take time to rest and regenerate for the rest of the OOC day to allow their anima to naturally restore itself, preventing them from effectively participating in combat without sluggishness and weakness being induced in their movements. Upon awakening, the clay exterior of the husk will transmute into homogenous pseudoflesh. Pseduoflesh is a flesh-like material kept between a damp clay and biological flesh, lacking any sort of organ or system. When damaged or severed from the body, it is reduced to a crumbling dry clay and cannot be reused. A Sorvian tends to crumble into a pile of lifeless dry clay or petrify like a statue following their demise. Pseudoflesh may be cleaved through with relatively more ease than a Descendant's form, and if unarmored beyond leather or clothing, a limb could be severed from their body with one swipe of a sword, and their chest cavity may be pierced just as easily. If a Sorvian adorns chainmail or scale type armor, they can resist two strikes from a weapon before being pierced or severed. If they wear heavier plate armor or brigantine or equivalent forms of armament material, they may sustain three hits before their pseudoflesh is wounded in some manner relevant to the type of weapon being used on them. The clay may be dyed, painted, engraved, molded aesthetically and woven with hairs, fibers, scales, or feathers to give an identity to the Sorvian at birth. A Sculptor’s means to alter the husk without compromising it is limited, however, and any further elaborate aesthetic must be left to manifest on the Sorvian naturally and through the progression of their servitude. Limb Divison Sorvians are able to be given four arms. However, the strength of each arm pair is half of one, meaning it will be weaker and cannot exceed the strain of 3lbs. Extra arms can be positioned upon the shoulders or upper-back of the husk, may be designed to take other appearances like wings or strange inhuman limbs, but may only be used as arms. It is known that in combative situations that four-armed Sorvians must use two parallel arms in the way of one while gripping weapons to maintain a hold of them, but if the weapon is as heavy as ≈3lbs then movement may be easier. Sorvians with four arms can multitask and utilize more than one tool. Adfectio Stones The Neo-Sorvians discovered the usefulness of Adfectio stones; glimmering gems that when polished will emit a glow that reflects the emotional state of who touches it. Sculptors learned to embed one of these gems into the husk will allow for their mood or emotional state to be more expressive for lack of a face. Adfectio stones can be placed anywhere on the Sorvian’s body, including their sockets. When these stones are placed into the sockets they produce the illusion of pupils and will function similarly. Adfectio eyes are made of dyed porcelain, and a very central point surrounded by a circle is engraved and is designated as the pupil. Very small, very polished Adfection gems are inlaid into these engravings as to allow a Sorvian to more accurately express their mental and emotional state, signifying their slow departure from the uncanny and unnerving designs of prior generations. There must be Sculpting Language glyphs drawn upon the point of the false eye opposite to the engraved pupil as to allow them to become apart of the Sorvian limbo upon their awakening, enabling the eyes to be worn while being able to see through them and without blindness for obstructing the eyesockets. Adfectio eyes can only be used by Sorvians if they are newly born with them, or if a Sorvian is reborn with a new body and is given new and updated features. These eyes become "suspended" in the mask's eyesockets upon their awakening, and they shift and peer at what the Sorvian's focus draws toward. They are known to Sculptors as "useful illusions", as the eyes themselves only serve aesthetic purposes and are not relied upon for a Sorvian's vision, but still act as windows of the soul for the Adfectio pupils being capable of glimmering the color of their mood and emotional state, though only at the Sorvian's volition, as they too are capable of hiding what they really feel. If damaged, the Sorvian will not lose sight. In any part of the body, the stone will convey the mental state of a Sorvian to others. This is useful in monitoring their psychological conditions such as Sorvian Breaks. If a Sorvian Break were to occur, the stone would flash rapidly to show a lack of control. When a Sorvian attempts to hide their emotions, little to no light will manifest. In order to grant eyes to a Sorvian, they must be born or reborn with them. This means at the very last moment of the awakening ritual, the false eyes must be set into the Sorvian's sockets as to "connect" them to the rest of the body in the very same moment the Sorvian's soul awakes and situates itself in its new physical form. This causes the Sorvian's sight to be channeled through the eyes, as though they are made invisible by the supernatural force of the Sorvian's limbo state. A Sorvian may willingly enter an unconscious, pseudo-death state to allow maintenance otherwise impossible whilst alive to be performed on them. During this period they are inert. They are in a deep sleep, unable to see or interact with the mortal realm around them. An experienced Sorvian may find their mind wandering the edges of the Death-Dream in this dreamlike state, stuck betwixt realms until they either awoken, or destroyed. A secondary party that can sculpt Sorvians may repair their flesh as usual during this time, but they may also add or remove Adfectio stones without having to construct an entirely new husk and await a Sorvian's 'natural' death for them to utilize their new features. To add Adfectio stones to a slumbering Sorvian, one must score and carve the area where the stone shall lay, apply the appropriate sculpting script in blood as if they were re-attaching a limb, and set the Adfectio stone. To remove the Adfectio stones, they must be crushed, the resulting wound packed with clay and blood. Redlines VESSEL MASKS Vessel Masks are the porcelain masks associated with Sorvian identity, and indeed function as a spiritual vessel and made with porcelain. They are the localized source of Sorvian souls or Iota, like how the mortal form acts as a vessel for their soul. Sculpting Language is intended to be written, in blood, on the back of the mask during Sorvian Awakening. This acts like a medium for fragmentary anima to pass through and into it. Vessel Masks are highly malleable in design but must be made out of porcelain. This means they are fragile. After three strikes with a weapon, or five unarmed strikes, the mask will shatter and ultimately lead to a Sorvian's demise. As a result of their fragility, a Sorvian's mask is sensitive and any contact may produce an immediate reaction. Being struck in the mask for the first time during combat will render a Sorvian stunned and unable to attack their foe, restricted to defensive maneuvers and evasion until the agonized daze clears from their senses. They may be painted or decorated as long as it does not tamper with its natural state , alchemically, magically, or otherwise. Vessel Masks are known to have required holes to distinguish mouths or eye sockets before, but Supra-Sorvian have expanded the ability to customize these masks while their properties remain the same. Vessel masks may have Adfectio stones within the sockets, as mentioned before. These masks can depict a variety of designs and expressions. They may even be mouthless and eyeless while also being able to speak and see. The Vessel Mask is both the container of a Sorvian’s soul and also where speech and senses emerge from. The design of the mask itself is irrelevant to its function because both sight and sound will project from where the mouth and eyes would be. If those areas were covered up, it would disrupt their sight or speech. Supra-Sorvians may also receive Sculpting Language symbols sealed into their mask upon becoming Sculptor pupils, with the marking being the result of the Sorvian receiving their second spiritual Iote from their teacher. These masks present a compatibility issue with common visored mortal helmets, unlike their humanoid body which is suited to all forms of armor meant for men. Because the Vessel Mask cannot be covered, their helmets must be visorless. However, neck-protective gorgets can be worn, allowing them to resist being decapitated and instantly destroyed. Redlines REPAIR The repair of a Sorvian is typically the first ability a Sculptor masters, as it is the easiest and the most often used technique in their craft. Sorvians erode physically overtime, and their erosion is expedited by receiving damages dealt by the forces of the world, so their maintenance can tend to be a constant task. There are two forms of repair - patching and mending. Patching is the act of a Sculptor taking malleable clay and molding it over and into the damaged form of a Sorvian. In order for this clay to actually bind and transmute into pseudoflesh, the Sculptor must shed their own blood or the blood of another Descendant and mix it into the clay to be used. Patching takes near instantaneous effect and requires three emotes to be conducted by a Sculptor, and cannot be utilized in the midst of combat. Mending is the act of Sculptor replacing entire limbs lost by the Sorvian in combat or otherwise, and requires the Sculptor to create the intended replacement limb in the same instance of a Sorvian's repair, incentivizing their use of secure and resourceful workshops or Sculptor temples. Mending is similar to patching in that the replacement limb is set against the wounded stump and that blood is utilized to bind the two parts together. However, mending differs in that Sculpting Language must be inscribed all along both attaching ends of the limb, demanding utmost focus and care from the Sculptor. A single limb may be mended onto a Sorvian in five emotes outside of combat. While limbs may be reattached to where they once were upon a Sorvian, new limbs cannot be mended onto already existing Sorvians. Redlines AWAKENING Awakening is the most sacred part of Sorvian Sculpting. When a husk and a Vessel Mask have been created by a Sculptor., a Sculptor must apply the primed mask to the front of a husk's head or face. A flash of light emerges from the seam between the husk and Vessel Mask, coloring the aural hue of the Sculptor’s soul. A Vessel Mask is primed when incantations of Sculpting Language are written upon the back of it in fresh blood, which allows the Sculptor to break fragmentary anima from their soul and channel it into the mask. It is possible for more than one Sculptor to participate in this act, with each Sculptor participant required to sacrifice fragments of their soul. Authority over their Sorvian is not divided itself but remains with the primary Sculptor responsible for a Sorvian’s creation. After the mask is placed, the Sorvian will awaken. Their first recollection will be the memory that was supplanted within them to create their soul, and they may be born with or without a number of basic skills such as speech or understanding language. They will immediately wonder about their purpose, and their Sculptor will give it to them. Redlines SORVIAN METAMORPHOSIS 𒅡𒄴𒈿𒁉𒂊𒀈𒈽𒀉𒈿𒅡𒄴 Sorvian Metamorphosis is a natural and passively progressing element of Sorvian development in which they slowly physically change and shift to exhibit aesthetic traits that are related to their purpose, ideology or origin. There are three forms of metamorphosis that may occur within a Sorvian based on the master or purpose they are bound to serve. Metamorphosis begins naturally the very moment a Sorvian dedicates themselves to a certain creed or power, but may still be delayed by the will of the Sorvian, allowing such transformations to be optional. Firmamental Metamorphosis occurs when a Sorvian is born from or bound to a Sculptor or group that is charged with manifestly divine powers along the likes of Aengudaemonic cults. It is the vicinity of divine zealots and the use of their abilities that affect their Sorvians, imposing changes in their external appearance that meet the same aesthetic qualities as their given purpose. Firmamental Sorvians are known to be the most fanatical and pious of all Sorvians, as the source of their purpose tends to lie above earthly limitations and thus is interpreted as a source of immutable or absolute truth and moral creed. Threats of mental degradation align with the condition of their faith, if Firmamental Sorvians notice the downfall of their ideologies, they will drive themselves into madness trying to restore what they lost. Firmamental Metamorphosis can occur among the following communities and in the following ways: The Paladins of Xan [ex: a gold, silver or emerald aura emanation from the body and chest cavity anima, golden elements intruding upon the mask, runes of gentle aural light taking shape across the body] The Druidic Circles [ex: horns or antlers grown from the head, fur or feathers sprouting from the body, extraneous arms resembling flightless wings, moss developing externally] Clerics of Tahariae: [ex: faint light is always emanating from their form, even in total darkness, golden glowing pupils, chest cavity that is akin to a bright light, though not blinding.] The Templars of Malchediael [ex: gentle gray or white “pupil” lights within mask eye sockets, body and anatomy shifting to take on a warrior’s refined shape and musculature, chest cavity anima becoming a white glowing shade, scorched or soot-stained arms and legs, ] The Nephilim of Azdromoth [ex: scorched clay scales forming over body exterior, jagged draconic horns sprouting from head and along spine, extraneous arms that appear and may extend, but not function as, wings, dragonsflame-appearing anima within the chest cavity] The Spiritrealm Shamans [ex: highly variable and based on the specific spirit or cult the Sorvian is bound to, Occult Metamorphosis occurs when a Sorvian is born among and made to serve darker powers associated with artforms like Necromancy, Mysticism and Blood Magic, but also cosmic influences like Naztherak demonology. Occult Sorvians are warped contrasts to Firmamental Sorvians and take on themes relevant with dark elements. Occult Sorvians have the tendency to be deranged and unstable, though the threat of Sorvian Breaks serve to cause extreme descents into their cruel madness rather than replacing it with a calmer neutral state. Occult Metamorphosis can occur among the following communities and magical influences: Necromancy [ex: decay or appearance of pestilience, “rot” appearing in pseudoflesh exterior, psychological tendencies or impulses to consume other lifeforms, pieces of bonelike material like ribs sticking out from body or chest cavity] Mysticism [ex: ghostly aura and echo to speech, aesthetic thin stone plating forming over body like Paleknight anatomy, ectoplasmic-like anima within chest cavity] Blood Magic [ex: scars and flesh runes marked across exterior pseudoflesh, quickly dissipating red or blood like mist emerging from wounds or damages to body, genus-like crimson anima within chest cavity, extreme tendencies to fixate on and collect the blood of other lifeforms] Naztherak [ex: severe distortions of Sorvian anatomy, leading to the development of unusual or grotesque horns or warped aesthetic extremities, appearing scorch or burn scarred, highest tendency to regress mentally and become savage, feral and chaotic against all but their masters, Malflame-like anima within their chest cavity] Frost Witches [ex: cold and frosty aura, icy bodily temperature and accumulative frost, chest cavity anima in the form of a cold fog, Descendant-eating tendencies (even if impossible)] Arcane Metamorphosis occurs when a Sorvian is exposed to, created by, or bound in service to practitioners of Voidal Magic. The construct takes on the appearance of the Voidal subtype most prevalent in its environment, comparable to the visual traits of active Arcanium, though to a lesser extent. Typically, only one Voidal influence manifests, though it is possible for two or even three to appear simultaneously. Sorvians undergoing Arcane Metamorphosis are prone to chronic headaches and may exhibit the minor mental eccentricities common among true mages. Arcane Metamorphosis can occur around the following magics with examples given for each: Voidal Evocations will typically appear with faint traces of the element across the pseudoflesh such as but not limited to: soft embers glowing around the Sorvians body, parts of the Sorvians body freezing over, or the pseudoflesh taking on a more stony appearance. Conjuration appears as faux life growing around the body such as: feathers, serpentine or crocodilian scales, permanently blooming flowers, or vines forming around the limbs. Transfiguration would give the Sorvian a faintly ethereal look, appearing as slightly translucent pseudoflesh in the color of someone's aura. Translocation would make the Sorvians body seem disconnected in places, typically the joints, and appear as if they are held up by faint energy rather than physical joints. Although they would break just as easily as a regular joint. Illusion would give the Sorvians pseudoflesh faint unusual oddities that are constantly shifting, though when taking a closer look one would notice the lack of these oddities. Voidal Eminence would give the Sorvian an eye-catching appearance, such as bolts of black lightning or flowing lava across the pseudoflesh. Voidal Artificery would form inexplicable oddities across the Sorvians form, akin to those commonly found in an Artificers mastercraft. Scions would give the Sorvian a faint echo trailing mere moments behind them, following the exact path the Sorvian takes and only catching up should they stop moving. Bardmancy, while not a Voidal Magic, would still affect a Sorvian, often giving them a naturally musical voice and much more fluid movement. Housemagery, while not a full Voidal Magic, a Housemages manipulation of mana is still enough to give a Sorvian very light effects, such as their clothes always being clean, and dirt often finding it difficult to cling to the Sorvian themselves. These aesthetic developments are just aesthetic or stylized, as any horns or features that may appear functional in combat or otherwise will break and crumble into clay dust under the stress of damage or combat. This applies to any more prominent developments like extraneous arms resembling wings, as those wings cannot support flight, only their purpose as extra arms. Sorvian Metamorphosis is not typically immediate, though may be “kickstarted” by a Sculptor designing a Sorvian’s husk to already resemble the changes that may occur through their service. The development of their metamorphosis depends on a Sorvian’s dedication to their assigned purpose, as well as the presence of other members of their path, and may begin happening to a Sorvian anywhere from 2 OOC weeks from creation. Redlines SORVIAN CONSTITUTION 𒂊𒀈𒈽𒀉𒅡𒄴𒈿𒁉𒂊 The man-made-men, while superficially alike other mortal beings, differ from them significantly in their strengths and limitations. Not only this, but they too differ in physical composition and spiritual status. Strengths LIMBO: Sorvians are potentially immune to the effects of time. They do not age and do not experience permanent physical degradation without moving or being animate. If a Sorvian is pacifist and avoids dangers will exist to perpetuate through history. Unlike highly physically active Sorvians who are prone to erosion. Erosion is signified as dry cracks opposed to smooth faux-flesh. Sorvians are not bound by certain conditional mortal limitations. They do not need to breathe and are only susceptible to water if remain plunged for up to ten emotes, upon which they begin dissolve and revert back into a clay state within another two emotes, destroying them. Sorvians do not experience exhaustion or physical fatigue while maintaining the strength of a common human soldier. Sorvians are not required to eat or drink. Sorvians are capable of, but do not require, sleep and rest. Additionally, Sorvians are resistant to harsh weather such as extreme heat, humidity, and cold. Direct fire will scorch and crack them, and they may become frozen solid, but if kept from being broken or rendered into dust by these elements, Sorvians will survive them. PALEBEAST IMMUNITY: Sorvians are uniquely immune to most powers and tendencies associated with dark beings or wizards. They cannot be drained of Lifeforce by Necromancers for their lack of Lifeforce entirely, and they cannot be harvested for blood by Blood Mages or blood-consuming darkspawn for their total lack of it either. A Sorvian is also immune to physically affectual magical curses, poisons, and disease, but not mental curses, afflictions or illusions utilized by a variety of powers. TOLERANCE: Sorvians have a particularly high tolerance for pain and may continue fighting even if limbs are severed from their body. This allows them to enjoy resistance to torture methods or forms of combat meant to debilitate an individual via the infliction of painful wounds. While it is not a complete and utter numbness to pain, they are unlike mortal Descendants in that they are not overwhelmed by the severity of pain they experience, and may continue to function and maintain composure despite extreme dismemberment. The only ways to break a Sorvian's focus and stun them is to strike their mask directly, which will provoke a stronger reaction on account of the mask's higher sensitivity compared to the rest of their body, or to harness Malflame against them. Weaknesses FRAGILITY: A Sorvian’s means to exceed certain mortal limitations stands in contrast to their actual fragility. Being capable of constant and continual physical duress does not make them immune to degradation, meaning every instance of high-intensity motion or stress upon a Sorvian body will erode the durability of their joints and overall constitution. Though this is the same for all living beings, Sorvian bodies do not have the means to regenerate and thus make the damaged parts of their body. Instead, they continually break down and become at risk of losing limbs and other extremities if not properly maintained by Sculptors with blood and clay. Complex or even heavy weaponry is not needed to damage a Sorvian significantly. A sword or cleaver is capable of severing their limbs with ease and a dagger may puncture their chest cavity like how it may easily pierce damp clay. Dealing an open chest wound such as this will cause the Sorvian to bleed the spiritual essence they require to function, and after 5 emotes in combat they will be rendered lifeless unless the wound is patched in that time. A Sorvian is capable of “hanging on '' for 5 emotes if combat has passed or if these damages were sustained in instances outside of violence or conflict with other individuals. A Sorvian does not bleed this essence unless a wound is dealt to that specific cavity in the chest region of the body. If a Sorvian's neck is severed in combat or otherwise, this will induce instantaneous death, but will not cause their masks to break, ensuring an easier time reviving them. This also applies to if the Sorvian's head is collapsed or damaged in such a way as to separate the mask from the rest of their body. The Sorvian mask is extremely sensitive to contact and may be broken to destroy a Sorvian. This is achieved by striking the mask 3 times (5 times unarmed) with a weapon capable of inducing physical damage or by accidents in which the Sorvian may endure trauma to the head or face. Additionally, if the head is destroyed or removed entirely from the body, the Sorvian will perish whether or not the mask remains upon the head. ELEMENTAL FRAGILITY: If plunged or pulled under 120 feet or 36 meters of water, the chest cavity of a Sorvian will implode and induce their demise within 5 emotes. Additionally, if they are successfully caught aflame for more than 5 emotes, all parts of their body touched by the blaze will begin to crumble. This is especially dangerous for their chest cavity, which will begin to leak their spiritual essences if flame scorches it directly. If frozen completely solid, they will also become more easily broken apart especially with the use of blunt force trauma. Dragonsflame affects them with the same force and intensity as mortal men, but while its flames do not pain them, the raw force of the magical element may easily pierce through their body and sever unarmored limbs if concentrated toward different parts, especially the chest cavity. MENTAL STABILITY: Sorvians are capable of processing emotions and thoughts. However, they are not proficient in identifying those feelings. This can cause their mental demeanor to collapse within years, months, or even weeks. If a Sorvian is injured substantially during a traumatic time in their life, these pains may reoccur. Which is often referred to as phantom pains. These can happen when a Sorvian is nearing its breaking point. Sorvians are prone to becoming overwhelmed by thoughts, emotions, and outside factors. When a Sorvian is losing their stability they might be delusional or behave irrationally. Examples are; yelling, running into compromising conflicts, believing an event happened despite it being completely made up, and snapping at their kin. One of the rarest forms of mental instability is disconnection from reality. This is when a Sorvian shuts down entirely, their body may lie motionless for decades, staring out into nothingness. Because of these things, a Sorvian is particularly susceptible to psychological curses cast by dark powers. OBSESSION: As all constructs do, they will crave a purpose, task, or directive. For Sorvians, if they have been abandoned by their creator, they can assign themselves tasks. They are usually, making their purpose a part of their name or personality, (Wave-maker, Scroll-Hoarder, Bird-Watcher, etc). This obsession can grow out of society, either their fixation unneeded or outdated. They can lose themselves in trying to prove that their purpose is valid. This does not only relate to purposes but made-up religions, prophecies, or myths. MIMICRY: Sorvians are often looking for validation or acceptance by society. They base themselves off of interactions, and things they see. Often, a young clay golem will be seen observing from a distance or forcefully jabbing itself into others' conversations. This mimicry can even go as far as the Sorvian growing hair, feathers, or fur on their head. Their masks can be altered through time to represent what their purpose or focus is, sometimes taking a humanoid appearance to make themselves seem approachable. If their social needs are not met; they will lose their mental stability. MALFLAME: The particular assembly of the Sorvian soul renders it highly vulnerable to Naztherak Malflame. This vulnerability primarily stems from their mask, which exists as a physical vessel fused with the spiritual matter processed in their chest cavity over time. When Malflame makes contact with a Sorvian’s mask, it will burn uninterrupted for 5 emotes, and severely debilitate the Sorvian both physically and mentally as the pain exceeds their means to process it. While Malflame cannot shatter their mask, it will damage the mask enough to be broken with one strike instead of three. If a Sorvian survives an encounter where they suffer Malflame burns, their mask will remain in extremely poor condition and must be left to repair itself over the course of an IRL week to achieve proper restoration. Malflame may also damage the rest of a Sorvian’s body, leaving permanent Malflame scars in their form as long as that vessel remains alive. The pain caused by Malflame is not dulled like all other forms of damage a Sorvian may sustain, and feels much like fire would to a mortal man. SPARKLESS: A Sorvian cannot utilize any form of magical power accessible to Greater Souls on account of their Iota being unable to muster the strength for their channeling or connections. When three Iota are gained by a Sorvian, they are only capable of utilizing those lesser powers, and only 3 at a time (Sculpting and other feats not included). Exceptions to this may only be made through collaborative Sorvian MArts. SENSELESS: Sorvians do not share the same amount of senses as Descendants. For example, they cannot taste or smell, though they can hear and see as clearly as other mortals. Their sense of touch is also very dull which shares a relationship with their pain tolerance. A Sorvian cannot be made to go permanently blind, but covering the eye holes of their mask leads to blindness for as long as the coverings remain. SORVIAN PSYCHOLOGY 𒍡𒁹𒋰𒄯𒅀𒅑𒈾𒊏𒍡 Originally created for the purpose of servitude, a Sorvian is concerned first and foremost with the directives and protection of their creator. For having been made by them, they cannot help but feel a strong admiration for their makers, even if they are dubious or of questionable moral disposition. These personal elements are irrelevant to the Sorvian, who are fulfilled by their servitude to their maker’s absolute authority. This authority manifests in a literal way through a Sculptor’s means to give commands to their Sorvian, who may ponder or question the nature of the command but not disobey it unless it is determined without a doubt to directly lead to their destruction. Only their original creator holds this authority, and it cannot be transferred to another Sculptor even if a Sorvian becomes masterless and chooses another Sculptor or being to act as their master. A Sculptor is charged with teaching and instructing their Sorvian creation in all elements of their purpose as to cement a Sorvian’s understanding of the tasks given to them. Sorvians rely on active tasks, objectives and quests in order to maintain a mental calm, and do not last well when left alone and without direction. Even when released from servitude, a Sorvian will preoccupy themselves with tasks and objectives they may familiarize with their original duty, purpose or given calling. Sorvians may eventually become dedicated to the service of purposes or objectives at-large, such as service to religious, magical or cultural paths of life, though the selection of which typically has to do with purpose their creator follows. They are known to become absolute and fanatical in their dedication to those greater purposes, becoming both mentally and physically affected by them in order to sustain the Sorvian’s expanding appetite for direction and reason to exist. In the event of being freed or “released” by a Sculptor, their authority is retained, but a Sorvian’s mind will change to adapt to these significant events. They are known to choose, or be able to be persuaded toward, a specific religion, ideology or path on their own to fulfill themselves where there now lacks any desire to adhere to their prior masters. Sorvians have been known to be released to pursue such paths and, in some circumstances, come to despise their makers for moral reasons they ingrain for having dedicated themselves to a specific set of morals or code. The authority of their original maker remains forever or however long their maker remains alive or otherwise capable of making those commands, even if the Sorvian has somehow become their enemy. When independent, a Sorvian’s mind is less stable and more prone to delusion. Their entire initial existence revolves around servitude, and unless tempered and trained toward independence in their first days they will find themselves too absent too bear and begin to mentally degrade. Without reference or access to other sources of meaning in life, they may begin to fool themselves into servitude things that do not exist or hold actual presence at all, such as fantastical idols or false ancient legends devised in their dreams. This makes putting them on a proper path more difficult, and the longer they go on this way, the higher the chance a Sorvian Break may occur. Redlines Sorvian Breaks A Sorvian Break is a psychological episode that may take hold of a Sorvian when they have sustained significant psychological trauma, which may occur in particularly horrible moments (the death of their maker, or the downfall of their ideology) or even after long periods of time being purposeless. When a Sorvian Break occurs, the Sorvian’s original mental state has the chance to experience a severe shift or derangement in personality, but may also be “rewritten” or erased entirely, replaced by an entirely new ego and personality that is separate from the original Sorvian. The new ego that emerges at the end of a Sorvian Break is known to be aware of fragments or parts of their prior life, but feel no relation or attachment to it whatsoever. Sculptors may reverse a Sorvian Break by inducing their rebirth, or their recreation following the death of their vessel. This will allow a Sculptor to evaluate and attempt to repair the runes upon the back of the Sorvian’s mask, resulting in a restoration of the original ego prior to the Sorvian Break episode. However, the longer a new ego created by a Sorvian Break lives on in the world prior to their repair, the higher chance there will be that both the prior and new Sorvian egos will merge together into a singular mind, leading to strange unstable personalities taking shape. Sorvian Breaks may be manually induced upon Sorvians that are psychologically damaged, but the act requires a deeper understanding of a Sorvian’s position in life and the life history their current mind encompasses. The original creators of a Sorvian are much more capable of causing a Sorvian Break, as their Sculptor’s authority allows them a higher degree of psychological control over the subject. When a Sorvian is not resistant, but they find themselves unable to persist in life and service for whatever reason, their Sculptor may even induce a willing Sorvian Break upon them. However, whether or not a Sorvian is willing, a Sculptor manually inducing a Sorvian Break will sever the Sculptor’s authority over them and prevent the Sorvian from needing to heed the commands of their maker. This change is permanent, even if the Sorvian in question has their Sorvian Break reversed by their, or other, Sculptors. These mental fractures may affect a Sorvian both psychologically and physically. Sorvians who are fully metamorphosed to represent their chosen path will experience these features crumbling or decaying from their bodies as a result of a new mind emerging that is completely uninvested in the purpose that drove them prior. Ancient Sorvians that may have experienced several Sorvian Breaks across multiple new minds may end up becoming an amalgamation, or an uncanny and colorless fusion of leftover features from each purpose the Sorvian belonged to. Even when they are destroyed physically, a recreated form will still regrow these old designs like vestigial limbs, but always with their current path’s aesthetic features more vibrant and “alive”. Redlines THE DEATH-DREAM 𒀈𒈽𒀉𒋰𒄯𒅀𒍡𒀪𒉡 The Death-Dream is the most mysterious of all forces that dictate Sorvian destiny. It is believed to be a dimensional layer somewhere unseeable by gods, men, and time, but in reality is the Sorvian "escaping into its own mind", entering a deeply comatose spiritual state where it becomes invisible, uninteractable, and dormant while hidden in random places far from the point of their physical demise. While in this soul coma, the Sorvian Iota dreams, and its dream is the Death-Dream, and they face all that they are in the murky realm of their mind where time has no distinction. It is best described as being a vast void or oblivion, impossibly empty and absent of distinction. Sorvians trapped in the Death-Dream end up unconsciously creating bizarre dreamworlds of stitched-together memories and series of events, which is all a Sorvian is capable of manifesting in that void on account of their inability to produce new experiences or memories when in a deceased state. Because the Sorvian's dreams are beyond their control for them being in a "spiritually sleeping" condition, all of these things seem to occur in the span of seconds and there is no coherent sense of time they may grasp between their demise and revival; a Sorvian could be dead for a week and be revived, and will feel as though only moments passed since their unrecallable demise. The longer a Sorvian remains dead, the more likely they will lose themselves to the madness of their stitched dream and lose distinction and understanding of themselves just as they did with their entire lives. This will cause ego-death, causing the Sorvian to experience a Sorvian Break, typically many countless times over if they are left unattended for up to 10 years or 10 OOC weeks. In order to pull a Sorvian’s soul from this place, a Sculptor must catch the attention of the specific soul trapped in the Death-Dream by using a reference to their existence as bait, or call upon the Sorvian’s original maker to sense them out during the revival process. REVIVAL & REFERENCES References are meant to bind the physical world to the Sorvian’s Death-Dream, where a dreamed version of that reference will exist. References may take the form of objects, tools or devices that were created by the dead Sorvian’s hands while alive. A Sorvian husk must be made to hold this physical reference item in their hands during a Sculptor’s enactment of the revival ritual. A Sculptor innately knows when their own creations meets their demise. Sorvian Sculptors are unique in this regard among other crafters, as their Sorvian's souls are pieces of their own and so there is a supernatural relationship between them that manifests this sense of loss upon the occasion of destruction, no matter how distant. While Sculptors do not know how or why their Sorvians perish, they may feel the distinct pain of their disappearance into the Death-Dream and this prevents the death of Sorvians to become an utter mystery. When a Sorvian's original Sculptor perishes or disappears from the realms of man, this leaves them at higher risk to be "forgotten to death", as no one would know if they were dead or alive if they disappear. The revival ritual is the awakening ritual repeated for the already existing Sorvian soul and may only be conducted once per OOC day per Sorvian. In the midst of this ritual, a Sculptor must hold up the new porcelain mask intended to act as the Sorvian’s new spiritual vessel and speak their name during a moment of deep focus. This will cause the lost soul to approach the scene in the shape of an autonomous shadow stuck to the ground or walls, which introduces the necessity of a strong lightsource or fire during the revival’s conduction. This shadow will unconsciously approach the Sculptor and enter the mask through them once they have written new Sculpting Language upon the back of it in blood, allowing the Sorvian’s soul to become sealed there. After the mask is placed upon the new husk, the revived Sorvian will awaken while holding the reference that had saved them from the Death-Dream, but will find they have little recollection of their psychological experience and no recollection whatsoever of the events surrounding their physical demise. If a Sorvian is slain in such a way as to leave the mask intact while the body dies, then the entire process of a Sorvian's revival may be circumvented by conducting the awakening ritual with the mask that was collected. A Sorvian may be revived as soon as a new husk is constructed to their old body's specifications, which is a process that must be roleplayed. If the Sorvian experienced metamorphosis in their prior body, these features will regenerate upon them in the span of an OOC week. In the event that a Sculptor totally lacks a specific Sorvian’s physical reference, they are forced to rely upon luck. This means a Sculptor must gamble each day they attempt to revive a specific Sorvian they created, with a roll of /20 with a success score of 15 or above. Failure to achieve successful results does not lead to a Sorvian being permanently killed, but rather indefinitely trapped within the twisting designs of their Death-Dream. They may remain “stuck” this way for as long as millennia, but their souls meeting oblivion is less of a concern than how they will emerge from revival after being dead for so long. In the Death-Dream, a Sorvian’s mental state is imperiled the most, and in the span of a decade being dead they may have already experienced countless Sorvian Breaks, enough to nearly completely erase the person they were prior to their demise. So if a Sorvian’s revival is not expedited and treated with haste, there is high risk that the one who returns from death is not the same Sorvian at all. Redlines CREDITS & APPRECIATION Swgrclan/Omen_Prince (Author) Sparkpowder (Editing & Art) CandleDragon (Consultation) Sorvian Community (Feedback) Johann_ (Consultation) Islamadon + ST (constructive feedback)

The Omen Prince dreams. In his dead man's sleep, he is accompanied by an ill and dormant thing which had made host of him in older days when he lived as a man. Put to rest when the Abyss once again laid claim to his soul, it stirred here, at this very moment, in the candle-lit cavern he made into his refuge. Dreams of bloodshed and hunger part like red curtains as the dormant thing within him whispered the Night Augury, and forced him to bear witness to this call that reaches few listeners. When it was done, he awoke without a start, and inside of his old and wretched form he felt the passing sensation of relief gained of a deep and nourishing breath without lungs, and the taste of familiarity without a tongue, and the reminiscence of the long dark past without cerebrum. He rose into a kneel and all of his bones at once creaked in complaint despite the malevolent strength put into them, and his armor groaned as its melted deformities bent to accommodate the new movement. From within his ribcage, he pulled out a long strip of cloth torn from an old red shroud, and used dead and crooked fingers to wrap it around his helmet and over where eyes once were. He looked down toward the ash-stained stone of the ground, and reached out to touch it and felt no sensation of its cold. "What, still here?"

"What's a man to reckon what God may be when he may instead busy himself with God's highest intentions - Creation? It is idle work to discern the outerworldly abstractions of His design; a being ultimately inperceivable by us, just how some sketch of a man on paper cannot perceive his own artist. And if one is so compelled to understand something they cannot see, perhaps it is better to understand how the Creator may have felt in His acts, for all one must do to gain that understanding is to participate in creation itself. Ye shall peer upon your newborn child's eyes with God's gaze, and ye shall hold them with God's hands, and God shall be within you for as long as they are guided by Creatorial virtue."

[ This information is openly accessible to the public, advertised and handed out in copies by Sorvian Newts that dwell every occupied region of the Descendants ] THE ACCORD OF NEW CLAY 𒀭𒆳𒊏 𒈬𒀀𒆠𒁺𒊕 IT IS THE FIRST DECREE OF THE FOUNDATIONAL CHAPTER OF THE CATHAR ORDER TO INSIST UPON AND ENFORCE SACRED LAWS OF CREATION FOR ALL DESCENDANTS WHOM ARE AND SHALL BE SCULPTORS; THAT EVERY MAN BE TESTED UNDER THESE PARAMETERS, AND THAT EVERY MORTAL SCULPTOR FOLLOWS THIS CREED. PRELIMINARY RULINGS HENCEFORTH LIES THE PRELIMINARY RULINGS THAT EVERY MORTAL SCULPTOR MUST RECOGNIZE IN THE CONTEXT OF THE FIRST DECREE’S ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY: I: THE FIRST DECREE’S JUSTICE CANNOT BE ABATED OR ESCAPED FROM BY MORTAL LAW II: THE FIRST DECREE’S JUSTICE CANNOT BE DISMISSED BY DIVINE OR RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY III: THE FIRST DECREE’S JUSTICE IS LENT EQUALLY FOR EVERY MAN, MONSTER, VAGRANT, KING, OR GOD THE FIRST DECREE: THE CREATORIAL COMMANDMENTS I: THOU SHALL NOT MAKE A SORVIAN FOR A SLAVE II: THOU SHALL NOT IMPOSE SERVITUDE WITHOUT DUE FREEDOM III: THOU SHALL NOT ABANDON THY CREATION IV: THOU SHALL NOT GRANT A SORVIAN A MONSTROUS FORM V: THOU SHALL NOT PAIN OR MURDER THY CREATION VI: THOU SHALL NOT MAKE THY CREATION IN THE LIKENESS OF ONESELF OR ANOTHER MORTAL VII: THOU SHALL NOT TAMPER THY CREATION’S SOUL WITH PALEBEAST DARK OR DIVINE LIGHT VIII: THOU SHALL NOT IMPOSE PERVERSION UPON THY CREATION IX: THOU SHALL NOT RULE OVER OR CLAIM SOVEREIGNTY OF SORVIANKIND X: THOU SHALL NOT TEACH ANOTHER MAN THE SECRETS WITHOUT THE BLESSING OF SORVIAN AUTHORITY EVERY INDIVIDUAL MORTAL SCULPTOR FOUND TO BE GUILTY OF BESMIRCHING THE CREATORIAL COMMANDMENTS WILL BE EXTRANATIONALLY PROSECUTED BY THE FULL EXTENT OF THE CATHAR ORDER’S CAPABILITIES, WITH TRIALS HELD IN HIGHER WITNESS BEFORE GOD, BEFORE TIME. THE FIRST DECREE INSISTS UPON COOPERATION BETWEEN SORVIAN AND MORTAL AUTHORITIES IN THE CAPTURE OF COMMANDMENT BREAKING SCULPTORS IN LANDS RULED BY DESCENDANT SOVEREIGN POWERS. EACH JUDGMENT SHALL ADHERE TO THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE COMMANDMENTS BROKEN, AND SHALL ONLY EVER BE CONDUCTED BY SCULPTORS OF SORVIAN CASTE. JUDGMENT ENCOMPASSES THREE FORMS OF CONSEQUENCE FOR COMMANDMENT BREAKERS: LOSS, FOR THEM TO BE DEPRIVED OF A NUMBER OF THEIR SENSES, OR TO BE SCARRED IN SYMBOLIC PARALLEL OF THE OFFENSE EXILE, FOR THEM TO BE CAST OUT OF THE FAVOR OF SORVIANKIND AND TO BE FORBIDDEN FROM SCULPTING PRACTICES AND RITUALS DEATH, FOR THEM TO BE DISASSEMBLED AND DESTROYED IN SUCH WAYS AS TO BANISH THEIR SOULS TO THE MOON FOREVER THE FIRST DECREE: PROVEN AUTHORITY THE AUTHORITY INVESTED IN THE FIRST DECREE IS GAINED BY THE COLLECTIVE OATHBOUND SIGNAGE OF THE INDEPENDENT SORVIAN TRIBES, FROM WHOM THE CATHAR ORDER EMERGED TO SAFEGUARD. IT IS BY THE SIGNAGE OF THESE TRIBES AND ALL OTHER SORVIAN CLANS WHOM HAVE GAINED THEIR INDEPENDENCE THAT THE FIRST DECREE MAY BE ENFORCED, AND FOR A LACK OF THOSE SIGNATURES ITS ENFORCEMENT CANNOT COMMENCE. HENCEFORTH ARE THE TRIBES RECOGNIZED FOR THEIR INDEPENDENCE, WHOM ARE INSISTED UPON TO BEQUEATH THEIR BLESSING TO THE FIRST DECREE: THE BESKYTTE TRIBE: Unsigned THE REDSHROUD TRIBE: THE ALUSA TRIBE: Unsigned

THE REDSHROUD NEORHOMPHAIA 𒋼𒁍𒀀𒄿𒁺 The Neorhomphaia [nee-oh rom-fie-ah] is a form of weapon resembling a blade that is crafted with a combination of Anorum, a crystal that becomes translucent when refined into metal-like strength, and an Adfecio stone, which is a small stone that reacts to the touch and presence of those who hold it. Neorophomphaia are weapons that originally resemble more primitive designs, such as the falx, seax or original rhomphaia, but may be suited to other bladed designs as well as long as the two specific material conditions are met. Anorum, a crystalline material that becomes as strong as iron once refined, is desired for the translucent or clear state it gains once forged and deprived of its natural impurities. A Redshroud Neorhomphaia traditionally follows a slender bladed tradition of design, a callback on the falxes forged in the days before Sorvian immigration to the Kingdom of Norland, of which became the source of Anorum itself for Redshroud and Cathar Sorvian smiths. The shape of the Anorum blade may technically follow any desired parameter, such as sabres, longswords or shorter edged weapons, but the most vital feature of the crystal sword must be that there is a hollow point in the base of the blade or its pommel within which a stone may be permanently set. Adfectio stones are the second material condition and are the special gems intended to be set into the blade or pommel of an incomplete Anorum blade. Redshroud and Cathar warriors are trained psychologically in such a way as to channel their hatred or anger in midst of facing their enemies, primarily “Palebeasts”, and Adfectio stones react to the anger of those who wield the Neorhomphaia in such a way as to channel a crimson or orange light through the translucent Anorum blade of the weapon, causing Neorhomphaia to light up and shimmer like vermillion torches when drawn or “activated”. When not used in combat or held during emotional instances, Neorhomphaia take on the original translucent qualities of refined Anorum. Neorhomphaia are known to glow crimson when they are drawn by sufficiently trained Redshroud and Cathar Sorvians, but inherently react and shift to any color suiting a wielder’s emotional state while drawn and outside of the scabbard. This means the Neorhomphaia may take on blue, green, yellow, purple and even black or white colors, but because these other colors are not commonly associated with combat like anger (red), hatred (orange), black (strength, chaos) or gray (balance), it is unlikely for those other colors to remain shining from an unsheathed Neorhomphaia as combat more easily rouses aggressive emotions. Nonetheless, the Cathar method of channeling a Sorvian’s anger and expressing it through their weapons is a foundational discipline that allows for wide opportunities of different techniques taking shape in order to consistently achieve and maintain channeling the light of one of the many different colors an Adfectio stone may emit. Neorhomphaia are equal to iron blades in their effect on other foes, and cannot be treated to harm the supernatural unless enchantments are called upon to empower these weapons. They are known to originate in the Temple of the Wards, their creation a closely guarded secret only ever shared with other Sorvians, or other Constructs, though their process of creation may be easily discerned by wise or observant craftsmen. WORKS OF THE TEMPLE 𒀭 𒆠𒅆𒈗𒀪𒉡 Henceforth are the Works of the Temple, the first Neorhomphaia forged by Cathar Sorvian hands in the deep fires found within the earth below Norland. PROTOTYPE NEORHOMPHAIA MOONLIGHT’S REFLECTION [ Art credited to: Aihp ] RATOV'S KNIFE FLOCK OF CROWS NEO-EISHUN EN DAG

"なぜすべてが正方形なのでしょうか？" A newly born Newt says as it awakens on the ground along the outskirts of the Oyashiman state. "Yes, that's right," It's maker, Wave-maker, says to it. "Now take this," The one-armed Sculptor told the red-masked Newt as he handed them a copy of Sakuragakuran law, "and respect the ways of your homeland."

THE CATHAR ORDER 𒋼𒁍𒀀𒄿𒁺 “BI-LA KAIFA; I HATE THE PALEBEAST I THINK, THEREFORE, I AM NO GODS, NO MASTERS WE ARE THE SECRET WITHOUT NEW CHANGE, SOMETHING SLEEPS WITHIN MAN, AND SELDOM AWAKENS THE SLEEPER MUST AWAKEN” The Cathar Order is a religious organization raised with the intention to protect and preserve Sorvian and Construct species, primarily in the Norlandic region where three Sorvian tribes (Beskytte, Alusa and Redshroud) have settled and united with the Human natives and Nevaehli migrants. While the Cathar Order itself is migratory in that it settles where-ever the three tribes settle, they are also loyal and cooperative to their host nation and will assist in its defense against Palebeast or darkspawn incursions. The Cathars hold claimancy over “Dulocian culture”, believing that the soul of the city Du Loc is transient and binds to civilizations where Constructs settle in permanent residence and instigate a Construct renaissance. The two halves of the order carry on the traditional mantles of “Man-makers” and “Man-enders”, and these are official titles granted to Constructs that are brought into the organization as to distinguish their chosen purpose. Man-makers are participants of “Left-hand Catharism”, which promotes peace between mankind and Constructs, as well as facilitate and sanctify the creation of more Constructs within their respective community. Man-makers act as the Catharist priesthood, and do as much as possible to avoid violence and to meditate struggles or conflicts between Construct and Descendant populations or individuals. For this reason, Man-makers are instructed to dedicate themselves to nonlethal methods of combat in order to deescalate situations that develop violently. Man-enders are participants of “Right-hand Catharism”, and they are invested in the duty to safeguard Constructs and Construct freedom with the threat of armed violence. Man-enders are trained to excel in both manslaying and Palebeast hunting, but are not invested or concerned in fielding themselves en masse for open warfare among nations. Because the Cathar directive is to defend the land of their people, they are therefore obligated to defend their host nation whether in matters of keeping the peace or thwarting city invaders. THE SEVEN WARDS The Seven Wards are the religious laws upheld by the Cathar Order among the Constructs and among themselves, and were written as to apply to every sensible Construct without impeding upon virtuous cultural and religious freedoms that Constructs may embrace. The wards act as fundamental rules intended to maintain a sense of humanity or moral compass among the Constructs, preventing them from submitting to tyrannical rule or Palebeast servitude. The Man-makers prioritize themselves with teaching Constructs the Seven Wards, whereas the Man-enders enforce them and ensure other forces do not impose upon or threaten Constructkind. WARD I: Thou shall not murder a man, old or new. WARD II: Thou shall not deceive or steal from a man, old or new. WARD III: Thou shall not accept any master unwillingly, or be put to service without due freedom. WARD IV: Thou shall not strike a man for his words, and shall keep the peace in the forum of thoughts. WARD V: Thou shall hate the Palebeast, and curse Ash-Shaitan, and put them to fire. WARD VI: Thou shall not lend service to wicked idols, tyrant kings, or Palebeast powers. WARD VII: Thou shall always create and rarely destroy. THE MAN-MAKERS The Man-makers are the priesthood of Catharsis, and participate in the peaceful and mediating half of Catharist thought known as “the left-handed path”. The left-handed path concerns itself in matters of deep thought, meditation, interpretation of omens, prophetic creation and fulfillment, as well as proselytization among all Constructs in order to convince them of their personhood. Man-makers began as Sculptors in Du Loc, but as long as a Construct has the means to create their own kind or another form of man-made-man, they may qualify to participate in the priesthood’s induction ceremony. Man-makers adorn the deep black robes of their mortal predecessors and go without armor as their intentions are to prevent violence among men and Constructs rather than to instigate it. Man-makers preach and proselytize among their man-made people and actively work to create more Constructs, as well as find ways to evolve them so that they may properly assume the mantle of “mortals” - self-sufficient living beings reliant only upon their own abilities. The Man-makers lack a sophisticated hierarchy in their branch, as they are primarily democratic in their methods of choosing the direction and purpose of their congregation. They have one sole leading figure that they call the Seventh Ward Dragon who begins as the first or foundational member of the left-handed priesthood and determines whether or not Constructs are fit or qualified in joining the Cathar Order as Man-makers. The Dragon’s soul authoritative power is their means to veto a formal Man-maker vote on a collective choice or clerical decision, but only once, as it prompts the priesthood to re-review and affirm their course of action in any given matter, whether domestic or esoteric or otherwise. New Seventh Ward Dragons are named from Man-makers who are willingly granted the mantle by their predecessors, or if they’re permitted to establish a new priesthood within another region, but only one Dragon may lead the flock in a each city or mortal community that is host to them. Man-makers may initiate Constructs capable of creating other Constructs on their lonesome, and if a Construct does not have the skills to meet that condition, they may be made a Maker Disciple. They are instructed in the methods of creation mastered by their teacher, and educated on the Seven Wards during the process. Man-makers are also expected to teach their nonlethal combat knowledge to their Maker Disciples, ensuring they are fully invested in the ways of the left-handed path of peace. THE MAN-ENDERS The Man-enders are the red-robed contrasts to the Man-makers, stylizing themselves as a form of zealot militia that are compelled to preserve Constructkind by the divine mandate of Cathar faith. Their duty is to act as constant monitors that provide security to any area occupied temporarily or indefinitely by Constructs, at any place and at any time. Not only are Man-enders trained to relentlessly assault and persecute both open and subtle threats to Constructs, but they are also tasked to prevent harm from being dealt between feuding Constructs, and by force if necessary. It is among the most absolute priorities for the Man-enders to prevent the first, let alone any act of kinslaying between Constructs, as they are taught to view it as a ruinous omen for their kind. Man-ender chapters are established in specific regions or cities that are occupied by a recognized Construct communities, and are led by the foundational Man-ender of that chapter called the Seventh Ward Lord. The Lord commands absolute authority over none but the Construct Man-enders, and instructs them militarily and in the training of techniques and crafts versed in the ways of warfare. The Seventh Ward Lord functions as an essential Construct military commander who is in part a diplomat to the Descendant communities that host them, capable of becoming as much of a councilman or court member in order to maintain close and amicable ties between a Man-ender chapter and the people who host their kind. Man-enders cannot fully initiate other Man-enders, but they may take other Constructs under their wing to make them Ender Disciples, or more simply squires. The Seventh Ward Lord holds the power to bestow a knighthood ritual over these squires to turn them into full Man-enders, but only after they have proven themselves in combat whether against man or Palebeast. In times of war, Man-enders favor the use of spears and pikes, as well as weapons made to debilitate, cripple or dismember their foes with raw force. Under the command of the Lord, they may assemble into strategic formations and utilize defensive methods concocted from the familiar surroundings of their host nation. While they are obligated to act in the defense of their host nation from invaders, the Seventh Ward Lord will not permit them to be fielded in open warfare in order to mitigate risks surrounding the Constructs they protect in times of strife. INITIATION & CREATION Constructs may be initiated into the Cathar Order by accepting the tutelage of members of either branch of the organization, becoming Maker or Ender Disciples. Constructs may be born from any tribe, group or maker in order to be able to join the Cathars, but they must adhere to the Seven Wards and vow to put the preservation of Constructkind first over their personal priorities and relationships. Man-makers and Man-enders may create Constructs of their own design in order to usher them into the ranks of the Cathar Order, but their creation requires the willing blood sacrifice of a host nation native, and that the born Construct are given the choice whether to join the priesthood or the militia. They are not allowed to be offered their own path beyond the Cathars, as this is believed to deprive them of their agency and ability to come to that conclusion and request it on their own. Constructs permissible for recruitment into the Cathar Order include Sorvians, Homunculi, Automatons and Golems. Descendant beings or any entities not recognized as entirely man-made are not permitted to join the order. Descendants in particular are given the option to assist in the creation of Sorvian Constructs with their blood so that they may join the Cathars on their behalf _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The application process for the guild is based out of character and any accepted submissions act as an invitation for the Cathar Order to approach the applying playing characters to instigate their joining of the group. There are two forms of application a player may choose from depending on whether they play Descendant or Construct characters. DESCENDANT APPLICATION MC Name: Character Name: Character Race: Are you willing to play a Sorvian? (Y/N): If not, are you interested in playing a different Construct for the guild? Specify: CONSTRUCT APPLICATION MC Name: Character Name: Construct Type: Character Skills: Character CA: LINKS & RESOURCES https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/187842-%E2%9C%93-feat-lore-sorvian-sculpting-ca-race-lore-sorvians/ https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/227061-culture-the-way-of-new-men/