Mephistophelian

Excellent lore, Swgr. I would love to be around to see it in action, but... RIP.

As I stated in the cognatism chat, I fully support this and will gladly remove my 'artificial mind' lore for this to take its place!

Hey there! As is the norm with me, I have a few question to ask about your lore that will help me determine my position on it (and, ideally, help the other players and LMs). Hope you don't mind answering them! What exactly is the 'spirit'? Is it the same spirit that all descendants have, that allows them to use shamanism? If so, does this mean the spirit is essentially the soul of the user of this magic? If the previous statement is true, does this magic essentially allow for the self-manipulation of one's soul? If this magic is indeed the manipulation of the shamanism-related spirit, how does it affect ghosts? How would a Ish'Urkal/Dark Shaman see the users of this magic/how would the users of this magic appear to them? How does the user of this magic manipulate their spirit? Does this process take mana? If not, why not? How does the spirit provide power to the user's body? Are the limbs of the user strengthened in any way by this magic? If so, how much? If not, why aren't their bones broken when they do a triple-strong punch? How does Metztli provide power to the individual's spirit? Is this a deity magic? Is the worship and representation of Metztli required to use this magic (as Xan Holy Mages do to Xan or as Muun priests do to Metztli)? If not, why must one adhere to strict rules if it is an innate ability? If not, why can't someone practice other magics along with this magic? If it is a deity magic, does it adhere to the rule that abusers of the magic must be sought out by the other users of the magic and not simply torn from their connection? If not, why not? What are the exact abilities of this magic (you seem rather vague in your explanations, so it'd be nice to have a small list)? e.g. Increased strength, increased durability, faster healing, etc. What if a necromancer were to taint the body of a user of this magic? Since taint can't be healed normally, would they be able to heal it? What happens if a user of this magic does not take care of their physical body? What happens if one of these users is spirit-smithed by a dark shaman? If a user of this magic incapacitates but does not kill someone, then allows this person to die, will they be untethered? If so, are they forced to defend all people who are about to be killed? If a user of this magic hurts someone and they bleed out moments/hours later, will this cause them to be untethered? If not, why not? If so, why is it not like that? If there is a time limit to it, what decides this limit? I will probably have more questions later, I'm afraid. Either way, I look forward to your reply!

Thank you for the criticism, and I completely understand your point. I'd like to say, however, that this ability is not intended to be a player-only thing. Already, several ET (and normal players) have approached me asking if they could use this lore to make events with realms and this ability, inhabitants of realms or even make lore for those realms. Multiple ideas have been brought up, such as old scholars who have researched realms extensively and have come up with odd symbols as the only result (Realm Rune), and I believe that the spreading of this type of RP could create some neat little events. Off the top of my head, here is one: a group of ancient blood mages all travelled to some far off realm and couldn't find their way back/lost the Blood Mage who knows how to get back. Forced to live there, they formed a society and persevered over the millenia, eventually becoming degraded creatures that practice some twisted form of blood magic. Hey ho, now we have some beings that can be used for an event when they finally find out how to come back to one of the two mortal realms! I disagree with the 'not becoming an antagonist' thing. Imagine a group of players (needing only one knowledgable blood Mage) 'claim' a realm as their own and set out to cause havoc from the safety of that realm. They'd become a real threat, and other players would have to group together to predict their actions and hopefully jump into the rifts they open, defeating the antagonist players on their own turf. Then what if the rift closes behind them? They have to deal with that, too! In my opinion, this tiny scenario (which I just thought up) can lead to great RP. Heck, if my character was a holy warrior who defeats this antagonistic menace and is trapped on the other side of the portal, I'd see that as a fitting way to PK! Or what if there is a way to save him, and the fighters of these antagonists are forced to use one of the rift-ways, and thus sacrifice someone for their blood, to get my holy warrior back? Is one life more valuable than the next? Another dilemma and more RP! To end my points on your first point, I do slightly agree with you. Yes, perhaps this could be added to the skill group of arcane displacement, but I wrote the lore for it to fit with blood magic. Besides, the Planar Dictate is a notoriously monopolised thing, whilst I intend to spread this ability. As of now, blood magic is largely used as an enhancement to other magics (which is one of its uses), but I feel that this could enrich what it offers. Yes, you can summon beings... but why summon them from an unknown realm when you can summon a known creature from a realm you visited? Thanks for the great feedback, and I hope these answers satisfy some of your issues or questions :) If you'd like to continue debating, we could continue the discussion on Skype and post our 'final verdict/opinions' on here, after (so as to avoid clogging up the forums), no? I don't mind, either way.

Exactly! And there are a tonne of other realms made that nothing inhabits, plus a large collection of realms that some less-known Aengudaemons/Primordials/other beings may have made eons ago. It's really up to the LT, the Blood Mage(s) and creativity.

A creature can come through them, but rifts do not replace summoning rituals. And yeah, if the creatures are hostile or unfriendly, I'm sure they'd want to rip an intruder to shreds! It all depends on the realm the Blood Mage finds and decides to open a rift into!

That would work, yeah!

I have quite a few things planned for this, and I really hope it can be used for some cool events in the future! And I believe I did this on my own. The idea was conceptualised a while ago but I don't recall getting any feedback about it from anyone other than Tsuyose... If I did, I have forgotten. Either way, I wrote it, so merci :) This allows for travel to undiscovered realms, and for the study of said realms, too. That said, I would love to see the planar dictate being used to travel between locations in these new realms! On that note, I need to add a section that says that newly discovered realms must be approved by the LT.... Else we could get some wonky stuff going on. Thank you, though :)

-= The Rifts of Blood Magic =- Blood Magic Lore Addition History ~ Blood Mages have long since been able to summon creatures and beings from all manner of planes. They tear portals into these planes - be it the void, the spirit realm or the other, countless planes of existence - and link these tears to the realm of the descendants, allowing the beings of those planes a manner of entry. Whether these creatures serve their intended purpose or not is entirely beyond the control of the dark mage that summons them. In fact, it is completely up to luck if a Blood Mage is capable, even, of summoning a creature; not all summons are a success. The tears in reality cannot be entered, either, which severely limited their use during failed summons. It was this very fact that frustrated a certain Blood Mage into deep research. This man, mind already racked by the subtle madness of his red-weaving kind, noted a single constant in all the summoning portals he had both made and seen. It was the immense size of them. Whilst this did serve well when attempting to summon gargantuan beasts, it seemed to be the reason why nothing was able to pass the other way. It appeared as though the very energy and matter of the plane would burst through the portal in what can be described as an ethereal wind, making it impossible to enter. It would be akin to a man swimming up a waterfall; both the invisible force of gravity and the physical power of the water keeps him down. It was logical, then, that this Blood Mage would have to find a way to reduce the size of his portals, or make them more controllable. He achieved both, thus pioneering the creation of Rifts. Explanation of Rifts ~ Blood Mages are capable of making Rifts by a similar method to summoning creatures. It is far less taxing, however, and no manner of ritual is needed for such. The first requirement is, of course, blood. As only powerful blood mages are able to even perform this ritual, the amount of blood needed is generally quite constant, but always below a full human body’s worth of blood. The second requirement is knowledge of where the Rift will be opening to. Whilst the void and spirit realms are some of the easiest ones (with the former being impossible to properly traverse and live to tell the tale), other planes of existence must be researched or at least hinted at existing before the Blood Mage can make a full Rift into said realm. The knowledge of this realm can be gained by Scouring for it (explained below) or coming across enough information regarding it (such as researching tomes on it or finding a follower of the Aengudaemonic plane they wish to travel to and making them aid in the process). Either way, a special, unique Realm Rune must be learned to access the realm, and the way to learn this rune boils down to seeing it or discovering it via scouring. The third and final requirement would be the knowledge of how to make the Rift itself. Making a Rift ~ ~ First, one of three blood runes must be etched into the ground, corresponding to the realm the Blood Mage is attempting to access. The more of these runes present, the better. Second, a single, unique Realm Rune corresponding to the realm must be etched down, directly below where the rift shall form.Third, the Blood Mage must manipulate the blood to be used in the forming of said Rift. The blood must be brought into a thin, straight line spanning about two persons in length, and this line must be held stable in the air or on the ground. Then, the genus is torn from the blood – as is typically done in Blood Magic – and the destination plane is sought, be it via the knowledge of the Blood Mage or the aid of someone else. If successful, a tear in the very fabric of space itself shall occur within the line of blood, splitting it open to reveal the intended plane. Whilst some resistance would be felt when crossing this Rift (due to the ethereal wind still existing but being limited due to the size of the Rift), the size is limited by the line of blood and any attempt for the rift to enlarge (as it would naturally) is halted due to it exiting the flow of genus supplying it. Persons would then be able to enter the plane through the Rift, though special attention must be hand when doing so, as leaping through too excitedly could cause one to touch the barrier of the Rift; a cut between realities that can only be described as the most efficient of knives. Leaving limbs behind in the mortal realm is shockingly easy, this way. Maintaining this aperture is a difficult affair, however, as the Blood fuelling it with genus will eventually run out of genus (usually taking between a minute to three minutes long depending on the amount of blood used), causing the Rift to shut. Travelling in planes is an odd affair. Space and time can exist very differently in places so different from the descendant plane, and so a few steps in one plane could be a hundred in another (much like how the Nether worked in Iblees’ plane). If not careful, a Blood Mage may become lost, unable to return to where they arrived and thus unable to ever find civilization again. That, or they may perish in the destination realm, or not have enough blood to return. The dangers a cosmic explorer faces are beyond and sane comprehension. Red Lines Rifts take long to prepare, but not long to actually open. A Rift may only be held open for a maximum of three minutes (IC, not IRL). By the end of this, the blood will have run out and the Rift closes. A Blood Mage may not control when their Rift closes; it closes only when the blood cannot supply any more genus. Whilst creatures can pass through Rifts, one may not summon entire beings with it. This is NOT a viable replacement for Summoning Rituals. One must be taught how to make a Rift to be able to make one. Watching Rifts being made does NOT count. A Blood Mage capable of making Rifts must ACTIVELY TEACH another Blood Mage how to make Rifts. Individuals can be forced to aid in the creation of a Rift, but this makes the process far more difficult. Persons travelling through the Rift must enter entirely within the borders of the tear, else they may lose articles of clothing, items or even limbs. Thusly, entering Rifts during combat or rapid situations requires a /roll, where a roll of 5 or below indicates varying degrees of ‘loss’, with 5 being the loss of an item, 4 being the small loss of a body part (fingers, noses, ears, toes, etc), 3 being the medium loss of a body part (hand, foot, etc) 2 being major loss of a body part (arm(s), leg(s)) and 1 being the entire loss of half of one’s torso. It is impossible to tell where you will exit if you have never traversed a plane before, and even if you have, it is still a difficult thing to do. Rift exits do not require any runes, but to set a definite, non-moving exit location, similar runes to the entrance rift must be used. If the Aengudaemon in charge of the plane executes or has one of their followers execute the person(s) that currently traverses said plane, they are liable to be PKed. Only T4-5 Blood Mages may create Rifts. Rifts may only travel between two different realms, NOT between two locations in a single realm; that is an ability reserved for Arcane Displacement. LT approval is required when a new realm is discovered and entered, and for the realm to be used on later dates. Realm Scouring ~ Realm Scouring is the method by which Blood Mages can find planes to open Rifts to. It is, in essence, a miniature Rift made my very much the same method as creating a Rift. These are often only as wide as one’s hand, and serves the purpose of giving the Blood Mage a ‘window’ of sorts to peer through when seeking realms. First, the process of making a rift must be followed (requiring less blood and a smaller line in the air or on the ground, and not requiring a Realm Rune at all). Then, the Blood Mage may seek to connect this Rift to any plane they can. In much the same way a Void Mage extends their conscious, the Blood Mage must seek a specific sensation that may link them to this plane. More often than not, this leads to failure; it is an unfortunate truth that reality is more empty than full. On rare occasions, however, a Blood Mage may chance upon a realm. When this happens, the Scouring Rift will tear open, giving a tiny view of the realm, like a window. Having already linked to this plane, the Blood Mage will now have sufficient knowledge to form a larger, proper Rift. To test Realm Runes, a blood mage may make Scouring Rifts that are given direction by said runes. Red Lines: It takes large amounts of time to find a plane if no previous knowledge existed on it. One cannot make a proper Rift to a realm without first having scoured for it (unless they have external aid from some other source). One may NOT use a Scouring Rift to fully pass into other planes. Scouring Rifts MUST be taught to an individual in much the same way Rifts must be taught, too. Only T4-5 Blood Mages may create Scouring Rifts. It is highly suggested the Blood Mage in question gets LT approval when discovering a new realm via this method. Finding an already existing realm via this method requires LT approval. Unique Realm Runes ~ ~ Each realm has a unique rune associated with it, and these runes are required to pass between worlds. To learn how to scribe the runes, however, takes much practice and learning, and is one of the main reasons why a Blood Mage must be taught this ability. As with blood runes, Realm Runes are specific, powerful things that relate exactly to the bare essence of what they represent. Every aspect of the realm must be taken into consideration when attempting making the runes, and failing to match the rune to the realm will result in failure when the Rift or Scouring Rift is opened. An example of the Realm Rune for the Mortal Plane Aerios: Purpose of Rift Lore Rifts allow individuals the ability to travel in other planes of existence, giving them the chance to do anything from creating a domain in said location to harvesting the resources (be they living or inanimate) in said realms. Rifts may be used for even more things, and allows players to truly take RP into their own hands. We as the LT keep talking about how players should be able to RP their own antagonists, and this could be one way! Additionally, it gives a strong hint to other players that there are, indeed, more realms than simply the Void and the Spirit Realm, allowing them to appreciate the lore we have yet rarely use. Heck, it could also allow people to enter these rifts if they see a Blood Mage making one (or when a Blood Mage exits from one in, say, the King’s bedchamber!). I realise that some people might see similarities between this and the Arcane Displacement skill (which is learned via the Planar Dictate). I'd like to say that I tried my best to make them different! Blood Magic Rifts aren't accurate, don't stay open for long, can explore unknown realms and require lots of studying of these realms to happen. Arcane Displacement can make portal-like doors between locations in a single realm that are activated by commands and are incredibly efficient at what they do. Overall, it is a great tool for events, RP and letting players decide how they would like to direct RP, as well as a means for us to display the lore for more than just our realm. The character learning this skill will be my own blood mage (Lorien), but he shall be teaching it so that it does not die with him and so others can use it. Additionally, we will have a Skype chat where all the Realm Runes will be collected, so we don't have overlapping runes for different realms. Please, feel free to give feedback and constructively criticise; I am always looking to improve lore! Credits: Mephistophelian: Idea and Writing Tsuyose: Feedback

I really like this! Got a few questions to ask, if you don't mind :) "act as either poisonous deadly weapons to their enemies" does this mean the blades are akin to darkstalker blades? Or are they coated with some sort of poison? You say a wraith 'may' adorn aesthetic armour. Can they choose not to? What will happen to the current wraiths older than eight months old? Do they become elder wraiths? If so, does any wraith older than three months become an elder wraith or must they be chosen by the person who currently RPs Mordring? On the above note, who RPs Mordring, and how is this chosen? Does this mean that bone fragments are removed (the things needed to make wraiths before, idk if I got the name right)? If so, does this mean that Marrowblades are now the new way to make wraiths? Are the souls of the wraiths still belonging to Mordring/under his control? In other words, must the non-elder wraiths abide to his desires? I hope the questions aren't too bothersome!

At the moment, I think the biggest issue that people have with this lore is the immense amount of things it is trying to do and the lacking coherency in the explanations of how it is able to do these things. I personally have little issue with the idea of the lore itself, other than the fact that it could ostensibly usurp anti-magic (Fi) in use and usefulness. The issues that do arise, however, are ones from a LM and MT Lead point of view. Currently, you explain the abilities poorly (with the aforementioned point of view in mind) and spend a large amount of time explaining other things. This causes confusion and misunderstandings (as seen by the four pages of questions and debates), as well as a general dislike for something that tries to do a great deal whilst explaining very little about what it can do. As a potential solution, I'd like to suggest that you read over your lore and consider it as a clueless reader would. Does the lore flow neatly, with each step being properly explained before you move on? Is each step/part of the lore easy to understand? If not, how could you make it easier to understand? Do certain explanations feel vague and up to interpretation? Does it feel like some abilities of the magic could be easily abused due to so little being written about certain aspects of those abilities? Analyse your magic lore and find out why people are confused. This will eliminate a lot of questions being asked. Next, find out why the remaining people dislike it. Try work with them, as people often have reasons for disliking lore. Though you may not agree at first, it is good to rationally consider them. My first iteration of the Shade rewrite had Shades able to entirely convert someone's passive mana into Amber... damn, that would have been a nasty thing to accept if the LMs hadn't thought to bring it up, even though I didn't agree with them at the time. Regardless, it was discussed and the rational action was to remove it. I'm glad I did, too. I hope the anecdote isnt too cringeworthy, and that you find some use in all this!

@Medvekoma Scroll up, you may have missed a few questions.

Wow. Well, I've read through your lore (very briefly) and I have a few things to point out and a few questions to ask. First off, I notice how you say active mana 'returns to the void' and passive mana 'comes from the void' (or something of the sort, I won't scroll all the way back to find the exact wording). I'd just like to point out that active mana simply burns away into aura, and passive mana originates from the soul. If you were referring to how wards affect spells (and thus the mana in them) then you would be right in terms of your description of active mana. Second, I notice you have included 'Empowerment' which is, from my understanding, using active mana created by someone else to somehow power an individual's spell. Not only does this not make sense (because external active mana is somehow fuelling and empowering someone's spelll), but it also borders on the use of blood magic, which has this ability as one of its very few set abilities. Mana-draining doesn't make sense with the lore I wrote, either. How does one remove passive mana from an individual's soul, change this passive mana into active mana and then toss this active mana into their temporary pool? Alright, now for my questions. I hope you can answer them all :) Why do implosions occur when lots of active mana is in one spot? Does this mean powerful mana gems or mana obelisks are now supposed to implode? How does one abjure an abjuration? Why does abjuration exhaust its user so little, if warding is quite exhausting to the person doing the warding? I understand you will reply with "abjurationists have their temporary mana pool" but to that I ask: Why is it so easy to maintain a temporary mana pool, especially if you are trying to keep active mana (that isn't yours) from burning away into aura? Is this a voidal magic? Fi magic can counter any magic without trouble, but that is all it can do. Your magic can counter any magic, but one must simply know the magic beforehand. Your magic can also do a lot more than counter any magic. With all this in mind, what are the drawbacks to having such a power? As far as I can tell, self-implosions are the only one. When redirecting a spell, could the abjurationist empower it to be incredibly powerful, using all the active mana in their temporary mana pool? If not, why? Can the effects of abjurationists be stacked if multiple users of the magic are using it in one spot? What happens if the abjurationist doesn't know the spell/magic they are trying to remove the active mana from? Regarding the previous question, is a distortion field indiscriminate (because it affects all active mana in it)? If so, do you think it is ok to make an ability that is like Fi magic (indiscriminatory blocking of magic) but so much more powerful? I hope that's not too much! I may have more questions when I read it over more thoroughly.

What makes this a voidal ability? I realise you say 'voidal feeling' but it really just seems like it would work for anything non-voidal, too. Can this be learned by any type of Mage?

Now that the changes I suggested were made, I can totally get behind this lore. I just hope it is spread, and doesn't stay for just a few people to use.