Farryn

Me when I realised it was clickbait: Right. Er... How are you doing? ?

CHANGELOG 2# [21st February 2019] Regarding Other Magics - Semi return of Demi-Ascended system Each time an Ascended learns a new magic outside of Ascended magic, they lose the ability to advance to the next tier. Ascended magic and one other magic - Tier 4 max Ascended magic and two other magic - Tier 3 max Ascended magic and three other magic - Tier 2 max Ascended magic and four other magic - Tier 1 / 2 max (if they have mastered every other magic in their arsenal - reached tier 5/max tier) An Ascended now will suffer from magical drawbacks, should the magic they know expresses such drawbacks (e.g: voidal weakness) Highlighting - Beam me up scottie! Highlight now takes the form of a 1 block in diameter beam of light that comes from the Tearstone Shard and can be directed at the target, following the Agent's gaze. It can now be avoided. Highlight takes two emotes to become effective - The Ascended summons the beam and directs it to their target, the target then has the chance to emote moving away from the beam or accepting the highlight. If the target accepts, they are highlighted. The beam has a 20 block range and cannot exceed this length. Targets must be within this range to be struck with Highlight Should it strike the target they will become highlighted. Two people at once can be highlighted, though they can dodge the beam. Afterwards, if the targets have been struck, the Ascended in question may buff or debuff them for 10 astra. Trial of the Damned - Dream Projection Edition The Desert of the Damned is no longer the real DotD - it is now a dream projection made by Aeriel that functions similarly as the DoTD but is endless and the city of Sacellum cannot be seen. Enemies and lost souls are now projections of themselves, similar to the Ascended who partake in Trial of the Damned. A projected ruined city of Haven is placed within the DotD’s projection, allowing for a change in environment and new RP scenarios. There are no items, books, or any forms of information to be gained from here. This is to provide hiding places, temporary shelters, and encounters. Astral Sanctuaries must be the only place where the Trial of the Damned can be roleplayed out on the server, through the use of /q and /w chat. This is so no roleplay isn’t disturbed on both ends, and fits with Astral Dream - which can only be initiated within Astral Sanctuaries. CHANGELOG 1# [7th February 2019] Backstory Changed story a bit so that Ascended return their soulfire to Aeriel to defeat the voidal being, this being the sacrifice made. Aeriel proceeds to cry for their sacrifice and Tearstone Shards and Astra is formed. Ascended gain Tearstone Shards. Added additional areas to make the story flow more. Covenants Covenants have been edited - Soul Covenant on Major Threats have been removed and re-edited into Soul Covenant 1. Soul Covenant 4 (now 5) remains - stands as an official reminder to an Ascended and that they must not abandon their duty. Heart Covenants have been removed - Heart Covenant 5 moved to Soul Covenants. Tearstone Shards Mysticism now does not affect Tearstone Shards due to how it affects the Soulstream and Aeriel seeking to protect her followers. Tearstone Shard’s Fracturing rates have decreased. Tier 1 - 2 Tier 2 - 3 Tier 3 - 4 Tier 4 - 5 Tier 5 - 6 The Crystal Soul Ascended can now learn the following magics: Arcane Alteration Transfiguration Telekinesis Voidal Translocation Voidal Shifting Atronach Forging Household Evocation (earth, wind, fire, and lightning) Arcanism Celestialism Conjuration Illusion Sensory Illusion Mental Magic Cognatism Rune Smithing Golemancy (with the exception of soulbound cores) Kani Any other magic that may appear in the future that does not tie with a deity or does a significant alteration of the body and soul. Ascended can no longer learn Water Evocation - those with knowledge and power of the magic prior will no longer be able to use it, but can still teach said magic. Added section on Ascended learning other magics. Ascended now lose 5 gallons of Astra storage per magic slot taken (with exception of Ascended magic slot) Highlight Highlight now can only focus on two people max. Highlight now requires a direct line of sight and focus, which can break if the person highlighting moves out of sight via walls cover etc. Focus can be broken by being struck or losing the focus similar to a voidal mage. Moonlight Radiance Moonlight Radiance cannot be placed upon any enchanted weapons, including voidal, deity, and dark magic. Crystallize The cloud of Astra that makes up Crystallize must be visible now. Up to two targets may be affected by Crystallize. Crystallize wears off after five emotes (excluding the 3 builds up emotes) It will take three full emotes/turns in an RP instance for someone to be under the full effects of Crystallize and can move out of the way of the cloud. Astral Mirror When an enchanted weapon hits the mirror - the mirror breaks entirely and the enchantment on the weapon is neutralised for one emote, rendering the weapon’s hit as purely mundane. The enchantment returns to the weapon. Astral Armor Astral Armor can go over armour, but not any armour that has been enchanted by any other magic, minus Ascended. Like Astral Mirror, if an enchanted weapon hits the armour - the armour will shatter fully and the weapon’s enchantment is nullified for one emote. Astra armour can no longer be replenished, meaning if it breaks in a RP instance Astral Quickening Astral Quickening has been removed. Stasis Using stasis on a person now requires OOC consent from the person being casted on. Stasis will only last one elven hour (an hour IRL), the spell breaking without any exceptions should this time pass. Chemical Continuity CC has been removed. Astral Communion An Ascended now becomes exhausted upon feeding their Astra into others. The longer they contribute to the spell being cast, the more fatigued they will become. Astral Sanctuary Druids can now hear the animals and trees within these sanctuaries as they normally do, but can also faintly hear the Sounds of Silence in the background. They can also sense the calmness but it would feel eerie and chilling to them, as if something isn’t right. If an animal’s lore specifically states they cannot be tamed, they cannot be tamed regardless of the effect of the sanctuary - though they will be less aggressive. Astral Dream Added paragraph explaining what happens to an Ascended and a non-Ascended during this time. Ascended have the increased regenerative factor of the Astra and can also have their limbs reattached, as long as one OOC week has not passed. Non-Ascended will face a small appearance change and will have a normal regenerative rate. Non-Ascended cannot enter another Astral Dream until three IRL months after waking up from their last one. (prevents people from using it as a means of avoiding ageing and age deaths). A person, regardless if Ascended or not, can be in an Astral dream for up to one IRL month. OOC consent is required to put a character within this state, along with the amount of time they wish to have their character within such a state. Soul Shattering Now a Teacher only spell - an Ascended must have an accepted TA in order to be able to know and learn this spell. The Trial of the Damned The Trial of the Damned now must happen strictly in-game and within the Astral Sanctuary. An Ascended cannot learn any major information that can dramatically affect the Mortal Realm - such as character deaths, learning unknown or shelved magic, etc. They can hold simple conversations about the past and general knowledge, but not major areas. All necessary edits have been made, and forum thread has been updated also. @Delmodan @FlamboyantNewEra

Changelog [03/01/2019] Tearstone Shards specifically need to be exposed, whenever they are floating, in armour, or weapons – all spells will not work if the Tearstone Shard is covered up completely. Tearstone Shards now need to physically touch a water source in order to absorb the liquid. Additionally, Tearstone Shards can only absorb in the amount of water equal to the amount on how much Astra a Tearstone can hold (depending on the tier). This prevents Ascended from draining lakes and rivers. Astra will now turn back into normal water three hours after being absorbed into the Tearstone Shard. Tearstone Shard recovery from Fracturing now takes one hour and thirty minutes IRL in order for the Tearstone Shard to recover. Aerielian children no longer have a section devoted to them – there’s now a simple description of them under Crystal Soul. Highlight now requires the Ascended’s line of sight on the people highlighted at all times. If said people hide behind a wall or enter a building, they lose such. When an Ascended dies, any items, armour/clothing, and weapons are to be left behind due to not bearing souls. However, items that are soulbounded will remain with the Ascended when they’ve returned. Voidal water is no longer a one shot fracturing, and now deal four points of damage. Crystalize no longer is immediate and will take three emotes/turns in the RP instance for someone to suffer the full effects. Moonlight Radiance no longer is permenant, as well as any other frost based wounds and effects. These wounds now last for eight emotes/turns in a single RP instance. Astral Mirror can now only repel magic based spells, and can be destroyed if an attack greater than the force of a large boulder hitting the mirror is done to it. Astral Armour can now only repel physical attacks and can be destroyed by attacks that are greater than the peak strength of an olog.

Making edits to the lore. @ScreamingDingo Thank you for the feedback, there are areas that I do agree need changing and said areas will be the edits I am making. A majority of the points, such as Aeriel VS Voidal, will be worked on but I cannot promise it’ll be removed or redone completely – as some of these points were on the base lore Jallen made for us, and/or will require an extended amount of time to think of a different path to take that wouldn’t affect the rest of the lore. Ascended are not immortal – this is something that has annoyed me a few times. An Ascended cannot age, that is the only aspect of immortality in an Ascended. They can still be killed by multiple other ways outside of time – such as stabbing, burning, decapitation, so on, so on. An Ascended can definitely be pk’ed upon receiving wounds or in very special ET events. This is up to the Ascended player, just like how the elves have a 1000 year lifespan but many elves still PK when their players want them to. In fact, many Ascended in the past have been pk’ed via suicide or accepting death in an ET or player event, or just dying in general combat. So at this point in time, the Ascended are not immortal and people really need to stop that mentality. The Ascended can’t die from time, but they can and will die from multiple other ways to die, as long as the player deems its time for said Ascended to die, just like any other player. Does that sound like full on immortality? No – it’s just the same as the elves. Furthermore, we now lack regeneration and immunity to potions, meaning we can be killed and harmed – as long as the attacker plays their cards right and both sides are fine with the roleplay going on. I will confirm that the LT will not hold a say when it comes to deciding disconnection on something, it was agreed that the Ascended are to become self-moderated and that it will be the role of the higher ups in the community that the right course of action happens. Of course, the LT will only be required to intervene if a scenario involving lore-breaking or powergaming the magic is made known, and said member of the community who breaks the lore or powergames will receive the necessary punishment for such. Furthermore, OOC consent to disconnect someone isiffy. The system we set up was to allow someone the chance to make up for breaking a covenant and was made in order to prevent any OOC arguments. Consent for disconnection is already given by the player the moment their character becomes an Ascended – it’s a big clause in becoming one and OOC consent will only cause further issues than fixing them. While I do think OOC consent is nice, it will not fit well here. Instead, an Ascended with a Blackened Tearstone can be around, and will be expected to face Soul Shattering if it occurs strictly in RP or go through the Trial of the Damned to regain their full abilities and be put off the risk of Shattering. OOC is expected to remain out of RP, unless its either putting the Ascended through the Trial of the Damned, or arranging a time for said Ascended to be soul shattered if they want to do such. It will be the player’s choice to decide where they go but they already made the consent for disconnection by becoming a member of the community, where breaking rules will matter and you will be expected to face said consequences, even if you don’t consent to it. But if a player does care about their character, then they must accept that breaking the covenants will put that character at risk of soul shattering, but they have a chance to fix it. It can't be giving special treatments or letting it slide because someone oocly doesn't like it. You signed up to be an Ascended, you are expected to face the price if you failed to keep to the Covenants and did not go out of your way to fix it in roleplay. That’s some points I wanted to explain as they came out the most to me and needed some explaining.

I finally decided to take note of all the talks in here, and I’m not impressed with the ‘Remove the Ascended’ feedback. Very ashamed of the community in fact. However, I will do my best to answer all of the major topics that were brought up. Shelve the Ascended That’s a question that I had hoped many people arguing for the shelving this particular magic would explain in detail. I am well aware the Ascended lore has been argued against, but most people who argued against this lore did not give any clear explanation. What I’ve seen is simply: “They’ve been around too long” and “Their purpose is over and done with.” If we’re going to follow these two reasons as excuses for removing a magic, then the same can be asked towards the Paladins, the Druids, the Shades, Frost Witches – what is the purpose of the Frost Witches? The Shades? The Paladins? The Druids? The druids and paladins have been around since the server’s early days and are still going strong. Many of these magics have been around for a while, the druids especially, and have changed away from their own original purposes to change and develop with the growth of both the server and its lore. In time, many of these magics gain a community around them that wishes to keep the magic going and thus they rewrite and update the lore. What I am trying to say is: The whole point of this rewrite is to ensure the Ascended held a new purpose, one different from the previous purpose of eradicating dark beings. Our new purpose to ensure descendants live long enough for their natural deaths, and assist people in major event lines as the supports. Not the heroes or whiteknights (or so help me if I see an Ascended being a white knight) – the supports in the background. I don’t see either major arguments for removing the Ascended as valid, given many other magics on the server do not hold as much purpose, other than being there to give forth a new experience to players, as well as different takes in using magic – which is what the Ascended Lore is going for. Ascended and Demons. I’ve noticed a user arguing about this and stating it as a reason to remove the Ascended. As the only Ascended who has been actively working with the Naz playerbase in RP – I must disagree when it was voiced that all of the Ascended are working alongside the demons. I will explain why. Only myself and my character, Elvira, has been working with the Naz but I am willing to explain why. No other Ascended have been involved. Elvira has been working on ensuring the Naz users she knows do not use their magic on any descendants and that no new demons are created. One major Naz character has voiced his concerns for his family by his actions and has requested my character to aid him in turning over a new lead, away from being destructive and cruel (and this is true as the user OOCly confirmed he was aiming for a redemption/new leaf with his character). She is VERY aware that she is stepping on thin ice, I am very aware also but I am willing to accept any RP consenquences. The Ascended Sages (the guys leading each sect) were alerted by myself/Elvira and they told me to be extremely careful in what I do, but have shown support that I am trying out a new alternative than the ‘Kill them all’ route. When it came to the September Fight – Elvira was there with the Naz, making sure they did not consume any souls that were lost that day, and to make sure none of them stepped out of line. Why didn’t Elvira or an Ascended who was with me fight them? We had a giant tree demi-god trying to destroy the city – better to focus on one enemy than have two. This was more logical as it meant we were more focused on trying to weaken September, rather than my character and the Naz fighting the other while September tried to destroy the town. Personally, my RP with the Naz playerbase has been brilliant and has pushed my character to the edge at times with trying to play neutral. It’s better than having to kill them, and also gives my character access to a vast range of information. I am honestly happy with how the roleplay is going. What I am not happy about is my IC decisions being used OOCly to argue against the community I am in. Judging a group by the actions of one or few, no? Most of all: Roleplay is Roleplay, and my character’s actions should not be used to argue against the lore, when said actions do not even affect or hold any weight in determining the lore’s success or failure. If you do not agree with how my character acted – then handle it in ROLEPLAY. Do not try pulling it into OOC in any form, unless you want to talk more on the subject in a private conversation. (seriously, just let me know in PMs or discord that you want to talk and I’m happy to talk about this topic) Most of all, and I am repeating this – Do not consider my actions that of the Ascended. I am only one member of the community and my actions are my own, not my community’s. I do not appreciate any users trying to use my actions as an excuse to blame the Ascended, and it makes me ashamed members of the LotC community are willing to go down that route to invoke unnecessary blame on a group. The Ascended Hate I’ve seen all of the hate in here and I want to know why exactly this hate has come across. However, those who elaborated their hatred of the Ascended did not explain why they hated the community. So I am giving a chance for those people to explain their reasons to me. I am aware it is something to do with the community, and I hope to try and take that feedback into ensuring that the Ascended become better than before. Neither myself or the Ascended community cannot make any big chances unless people let us know about a particular matter. Such as if an Ascended has been acting wrongly OOCly, or have been powergaming, etc, etc. These matters need to be brought up so that we can do our best to fix them, and disguising them amongst countless of hateful words only makes me feel more ashamed of myself that I’m an Ascended and someone hates me for being an Ascended RPer. I cannot take someone seriously if they are just being downright rude about a particular subject, and it makes me more inclined to not listen to them. So please be more formal and polite about how you word your issues with the Ascended, and don’t hesitate to just let us know so we are aware of what we could do better so we can do better. I am aware of some of the faults within the Ascended and I am aiming on fixing them, but these matters cannot and will never be fixed within a single hour or day. These matters take time to work and improve on.

Guys. I would prefer if you don’t spam that video, because I want feedback to be noticeable and easy to read without scrolling down many posts with that video. It makes it easier for myself and other members of the Ascended to reply back to said feedback. I know you’re bantering, but please stop.

Sacrifice In the day to day, you see men and women of merit and prestige rise and assume a higher role upon the mantle of life, and the Ascended were no different. Our duty was absolute. Our methods sometimes measured, sometimes cruel, but always necessary. Another soul twisted by corrupting magics, another fallen deity to be sealed in slumber once more. But much like how a cat patrols the home of its master the feline is ill-prepared for what may be looming beyond its borders. We never saw it coming, and even had we all the years of our forefathers combined there was nothing we could have done to stop it. It came from the Void. A writhing, fleshy creature of endless eyes and fangs like a serpent’s littered its gaping maw. Chaos had been given form, and a voracious appetite that could not be satiated by all the aengulic realms it doubtlessly passed on its way to ours. It was the scholars of men that laid eyes upon it first and likened it to a cosmic comet. But then it grew larger and larger as the days and hours passed by until its size rivaled the holy moon. Its deathly form casts the moon red, warning all of what was to come. Time was not a luxury we had, even though we were timeless. From first sight to assured panic, less than a week had gone by. The Writhing Chaos would surely destroy this realm and all its denizens. All our histories, and our futures, doomed to the silence between its marbled teeth. And then we saw her. Like the sun rising from the horizon, the Archaengul arose from the lightened side of the moon in her full and unblemished glory; a shimmering silhouette of pallid moonlight that burned away the darkness of the deep sky. Her hands arose to greet the Writhing Chaos as it loomed near, her pale visage unwavering as a divine white light spurred to life betwixt our goddess’ fingers. Yet she knew she could not face such a threat alone. She turned her gaze down to our realm and released her call - a call to arms and aid. Thus we heard her call and raised our hands to her, soulfire ablaze between our fingers. One by one, the flames shot away from our fingers and to the moon above. The flames left us, returning to where they once came. Growing in size, and in strength, we each felt the cold sting of absence as our fires left us to aid her and were called to a greater purpose. The Living Flame was the last. In one final, blinding flash of moon fire, the Writhing Chaos that threatened our realm was stricken down by a convergence of our flames and our matron’s divinity. What little remained of the terrible beast smoldered as white flame singed its surface away. Yet once the fiend had vanished, our soulfire did not return - mortal we became once more but the Archaengul ensured we all live. We sacrificed our very power for the realm we swore to aid. And thus, an era ended. Lamentation The Archaengul’s tears rained like waterfalls from her vantage upon the moon and our goddess wept at the sacrifice we had made. Like dewdrops in the early morn, her tears blanketed the Soulstream and flooded the pallid valleys and craters that dotted the moonscape. But even more fell beyond the lunar surface and rained upon the mortal realm, each droplet seeking out one who had sacrificed flame. To the gazing mortal eye, they were naught but shooting skies as they soared through the skies. Wherever they may be our goddess’ tears found them. Their descent from the heavens left them frozen in shards of crystallized ice as they impacted the ground near the feet of the Ascended that made the sacrifice. We each picked them from their resting place. They were warm to the touch and yet their surfaces frosted like ice as we held them in our hands. They emitted light in the darkness yet it was soft and pale. As we beheld them closer we saw reflections of a gentle and cold world where waters flowed freely across a land blanketed by dust. The crystals could sense the absence in our souls, I think. For each bound with a former host of flame and took residence where once an ember had been. This fulfilled us. It destroyed us. It made us something new. Aeriel spoke to us as the connection formed anew - she saw no longer the need for us to focus solely on the conflict with the darkness, as the fight was eternal and futile. She saw now that threats laid not just within the shadows, but also within the depth of the void and in the hearts of those few of her own kind. The Archaengul knew what to do and bestowed a new purpose to us. Cease the threats of immense power that seek to affect the mortal realm and ensure the Descendants live a normal life until Sokar comes to bring them to the Archaengul’s realm. Be not the heroes who strive for glory or power, but be the keepers of the balance of life and death. Mission With newfound powers, the Ascended changed. We focused less on the darkness that kept on returning, for the Archaengul knew our efforts before held no merit. We sought to support and aid, to give the souls we protect a sworn chance to protect themselves. To ensure they lived on the longest they can, to feel joy, sadness, excitement and suffering, to grow and nurture, and witness their lives flourish. Yet death is a nature that we knew we should not disturb, for all must perish and move on to the Soulstream when their time comes forth, including our own. Yet, there were those of grand power that sought to harm the mortals, saw them as nothing more than fleeting specks of dirt and would have their way with them. The ones who abuse their power for ideals that hold no truth, the ones who sought the elimination or slavery of mortals, the ones who cherish chaos and destruction. No matter if they be of Aengudaemonic, of void, of darkness, or of something more – They shall realise that the mortals are not the specks they thought they were, but living beings that should not be underestimated. No more would we be the ones to strike first and remain away from the mortals, but now the ones who stand side by side with the mortals and protect the very mortal realm that is rightfully theirs. We seek to do what we can to assist, even if we must take on their burdens and fall so they can live on. The Covenants of Aeriel The Ten Covenants of Aeriel are a set of five covenants that outline the rules, promises, and the duties of an Ascended. The Covenants are the direct promises and tenets of Aeriel that must be held and kept at all cost by every single Ascended. These Covenants keep order within the Ascended, preventing them from going against the will of their patron. Breaking one of these Covenants is to result in an Ascended’s Tearstone Blackening and eventually Soul Shattering, the removal of an Ascended’s power and abilities, and thus are extremely vital to uphold and know. There are to be no exceptions. Tearstone Shards A Tearstone Shard is a divine fragment created by the Archaengul Aeriel to denote her chosen followers and bestow upon them powers and abilities which might be utilized to spread her influence and enact her will upon the Mortal Realm. The Shards were spurred into existence when the Archaengul was moved to emotion by the great and selfless sacrifice made by the Ascended. In her mourning, the tears she cried rained upon her recently powerless followers. The tears that fell upon the Mortal Realm became crystallized in their descent, resulting in these divine fragments. Not all of the Moon Goddess’ tears fell upon the Mortal Realm, however. Most rained upon the lunar moonscape in great tides which flooded its’ many chasms and craters. These lakes, rivers, and valleys of Aeriel’s empowered tears became known as Astra. An agent of the Archaengul utilizes their Tearstone Shard as a conduit to the Soulstream, through which they can conjure and utilize the Astra stored there. It is worth noting that Mysticism or any magic that can influence the soul would find themselves unable to affect both the Tearstone and the Crystal soul of the Ascended. The utilization of all abilities begins with a brief ritual where an agent of Aeriel draws forth their personal shard from their soul. Once this is finished the crystal will either hover in the air around the agent up to a distance of three feet, be held within their hand, or it may be affixed to an object of the agent’s choosing such as a staff. With the shard successfully summoned the various powers attributed to Astra can begin to be utilized. When it comes to refilling a Tearstone Shard, the Ascended must have the shard physically touch the water source in order to absorb the liquid. Astra is a finite resource in the mortal realm, and as such can be depleted; leaving an agent unable to perform. A preparatory ritual is therefore required to replenish the Astra available for use. Locating a water source in the mortal realm, be it a river, lake, ocean, pond, or cauldron and presenting an agent’s respective Tearstone Shard will result in that water being absorbed into the shard and displaced into the Soulstream. An equivalent amount of Astra will then become available for use. The Tearstone Shard can only hold a certain amount of Astra, depending on the tier of the Ascended. This limit cannot be exceeded. Any Astra expended will evaporate after an ability is ended, unless utilized in the construction of Astral Crystal. Tearstones Shards, upon being bound to an Ascended’s, will change in both colour, appearance, and size depending on the characteristics of such soul. What this means is that no two Tearstone Shards are the same, resulting in a unique formation of appearances that represent the true side of an Ascended. Sometimes, a Tearstone Shard can even bear other aesthetical traits, depending on what the Ascended in question has been through, and can change if their owner goes through a shift in personality. In terms of colour - a Tearstone Shard can take on one or two colours, which represents the Ascended true in terms of personality. The colour is decided based on the personality and nature of the person, being the colour(s) that represents their strongest traits. There are no direct meanings in regards to a colour a Tearstone Shard takes, as each colour holds its own unique set of meanings and representations. Red, for example, is often a representation of an aggressive nature or a violent tendency, someone who is known for their rage and fury. Yet, such colour can also be that of a warm and passionate nature. Secondary colours tend to form swirls, cracks, and sometimes faint shapes of swirls and waves amongst the primary colour. The only exception is black and dark greys, as these colours tend to occur only when a Tearstone Shard is blackening. No Tearstone Shard can take on these colours, whenever it be primary or secondary. A Tearstone Shard’s size and shape can vary, with some being the size of a hand, to some being the size of a head. Some can be very bulky, some can be very long and elegant. Some can be rough, others smooth. Yet, the size and shape do not change how much or how little Astra a Tearstone Shard can take on. They are still restricted to the amount of Astra, depending on their tier. Lastly, the size cannot be smaller than the size of an apple or larger than a head. The size of the Tearstone Shard must be between these two sizes. Redlines Each divine ability that requires the use of Astra will deplete this resource by a differing amount, and should an agent not make wise use of their stored Astra they may run out and find themselves incapable of casting. While outside of the soul the Tearstone Shard becomes vulnerable to attack and destruction. Mundane attacks with blunt weapons perform best. The Shard itself is highly resistant to magical attacks with one exception; Voidal Water. Physical contact with this substance will cause a drastic malfunction resulting in the Shard’s destruction. The removal of the crystal from the agent’s five-foot radius will result in it malfunctioning and being destroyed. The Tearstone shard MUST be exposed and capable of being hit - meaning they must be visible in the armour and weapon it potentially rests in. Any Tearstone shard completely or covered up to the point where it cannot be struck at all will be unable to cast all spells. It's important to note, that an Ascended's Astra does not refill until the shard is refilled at a water source. The Ascended must physically touch the water with their Tearstone Shard to refill and they cannot go over the limit of Astra their Tearstone Shard can hold - depending on their tier. An Ascended’s Tearstone Shard cannot be the colour black or dark grey – as these two colours are strongly connected to Blackening, and thus cannot be a primary or secondary colour for a Tearstone Shard. The size of a Tearstone Shard does not, and will not, change the amount of Astra the shard can take in – the shard will take on the exact same amount of Astra that is defined by the Ascended’s Tier. A Tearstone Shard cannot be smaller than an average apple (palm sized) or bigger than an average human head. This is to prevent small hitboxes and giant Tearstone Shards that could crush someone. Astra cannot be manipulated by Shamans as it is not 'real' water, but water absorbed by the Shard that is converted into Astra at the Soulstream. A Tearstone Shard is resistant to Mysticism and cannot be influenced. Fracturing Fracturing occurs when an agent of Aeriel has their personal Tearstone shard destroyed by any means, whenever it be by physical or magical means. When this occurs, an agent will be wholly incapable of utilizing Astra whilst their soul reconstructs a new shard within their crystal soul. This means that an agent of Aeriel cannot perform any spells, and are thus left magically handicapped. Any Astra that was ready to use prior to the fracturing will be lost, and a ritual of exchange will be required to store Astra once more in the reformed shard. Depending on the tier of the agent, the durability of a Tearstone Shard will be lower or higher and the damage used on a Tearstone can vary. A tier one Tearstone shard will be the weakest, and therefore should be carefully used on the battlefield, while a tier five Tearstone Shard can take on a series of blows before being fractured. Ascended Tiers Tier One - Requires two hits in order to destroy a Tearstone Shard. Tier Two - Requires three hits in order to destroy a Tearstone Shard Tier Three - Requires four hits in order to destroy a Tearstone Shard Tier Four - Requires five hits in order to destroy a Tearstone Shard. Tier Five - Requires six hits in order to destroy a Tearstone Shard. However, different attacks will often result in different forms of damage done on the Tearstone Shard, with there being the use of different forms of magic and weapons in terms of combat. How much damage a magic attack will do depends on the tier of the mage that the Ascended is facing, whereas physical attacks depend on the type of weapon being used on the Tearstone Shard. Physical Attacks Pointed Weapons (a majority of polearms that do not have blades, ranged weapons, etc) - Will cause one hit on a Tearstone Shard. Edged Weapons (blades, daggers, axes, etc) - Will cause one hit on a Tearstone Shard Blunt Weapons (maces, war hammers, staves, staffs, etc - includes using the blunt side of a weapon) - Will cause two hits on a Tearstone Shard. Magic Attacks Magic Tier 1 - Zero damage points Magic Tier 2 - Zero damage points Magic Tier 3 - One damage point Magic Tier 4 - Two damage points Magic Tier 5 - Three damage points The only exception to magic attacks is Voidal Water, which will be four points of damage. The reconstruction of a Tearstone Shard takes exactly one IRL hour and 30 minutes to complete and does not need to be emoted out due to the construction occurring within the soul. Fracturing Redlines An Ascended cannot, in any shape or form, emote having their Tearstone Shard after they have had the shard destroyed a few moments ago. They must wait exactly one IRL hour and 30 minutes in order to have their tearstone back with them. An Ascended cannot perform any of the spells upon this lore when their Tearstone Shard is destroyed, they must have their Tearstone in order to do such. An Ascended must emote their Tearstone Shard shattering after the necessary number of hits have been done on their respective shards. Going over the limit for their tier will be seen as power gaming. When being struck by magic from a magic user, be sure to ask them for their tier! Being struck by Voidal Water Evocation will result in four damage points, regardless of both tiers. Crystal Souls Harbouring a Tearstone Shard results in the bearer’s soul crystallizing in much the same way the Shard itself is crystallized. This crystallization turns the agent into a perfect instrument of the Archaengul and confers to them a variety of boons, as well as drawbacks, to assist in their divine mission. New agents may have their souls crystallized by current bearers of a Tearstone Shard. A Crystal Soul is defined by its permanence. Crystallization effectively locks the soul in its current state, whatever that state may be, and it may not be altered from this state except through rare and powerful means. Through this process one will, indeed, cease to age; but will also be forever left with any diseases, disabilities, or debilitation that plague them. Permanent and immaculate sterility with other Descendants also results as a byproduct of this process. They will not be contagious. An amount of Astra will constantly permeate from the Crystal Soul and seep into the agent’s body, altering their visage to reflect the Soulstream that the Astra originates from. Their skin may become as pale and pallid as the moon, and in darkness their eyes will become reflective to nearby sources of light; much like the eyes of a nocturnal creature. A faint glow comes from their eyes, the colour being that of their eye colour. This provides heightened vision in places of darkness and at night. While the Crystal Soul is not compatible with the souls of descendants and thus is unable to procreate, two Ascended may be able to do so due to the fact that their souls are almost identical. The resulting offspring of a relationship between Ascended would retain part of their deific physical characteristics (the most common being silver eyes, pale skin, and white hair). However, these children will not hold the crystal soul that their parents have, thus barring them from the Crystal Soul traits – they will only bear the physical characteristics. of their parents and will not hold the magic, unless bestowed on them later in life by a teacher. As a consequence of maintaining permanence any wounds inflicted upon an agent will slowly return to their previous state, but two times slower than an equivalent wound upon one bearing an unaltered soul. Due to the same processes at work, however, infection is incapable of taking hold, along with any form of a naturally-occurring diseases. These wounds will still bleed while they heal. Before, an Ascended could only use voidal magic if they were a Demi-Ascended. Yet now all Ascended bare the capability to learn other forms of magic, as long as they did not interfere with the soul in any form. Ascended magic only takes up one slot and an Ascended can decide whenever or not they learn other magics. However, this comes at the price of being unable to advance to the next tier, reflected by the amount of magics taking up an Ascended’s other slots. As a consequence of learning other magics, to take on 1 other magic renders an Agent only capable of advancing only to Tier 4. To take on 2 other magics renders an Agent capable of advancing only to Tier 3. To take on 3 other magics renders an Agent only capable of advancing only to Tier 2. Finally, to take on 4 other magics renders an Agent capped at Tier 1 initially, but they can progress to Tier 2 should they have mastered every other magic in their arsenal. Lastly, should an Ascended take on a magic with a major drawback (e.g: voidal magic causing voidal weakness), the Ascended will suffer the drawbacks of such. Death is not a luxury held by those in service to the Goddess of the ‘stream. Should their heart be stilled the dormant Astra in their blood and body will rapidly undergo crystallization until their entire form is converted. In the moments that follow the crystalline corpse will shatter into a thousand minuscule fragments, and the soul will escape to reform elsewhere in a cloud of unobtainable crystal dust. Their Memories of death will not endure. Any items and armour on the Ascended will be left behind, unless the items are soul bonded to the Ascended. Redlines: Ascended can only be connected by an Ascended with a TA and the process of connecting a new Ascended must be properly taught, reading or witness it is not enough. Ascended cease to age at the moment of their connection and their bodies will always regenerate to their previous state due to their soul blueprint being protected by the tears of the Archaengul and locked in time, however it will take place twice slower than what it would take for a normal descendant. Ascended can no longer have offsprings with descendants, only with other Ascended (refer to Aerelian Children) If an Ascended dies their entire bodies will crystallize and shatter into frozen dust and Astral steam, flying away to reform elsewhere. Any items and clothing on the Ascended are left behind, unless soulbounded. It is also impossible to collect the frozen dust and Astral steam that the Ascended turn into, at all. A master of Aeriel’s Tears who doubles as a master wizard, knowing four magic types, will thus be capped at Tier 1, unless they have mastered the other magics within their arsenal, in which they can then cap at Tier 2. Ascended can learn other magics so long as they have free magic slots (Ascended only takes 1 slot). They cannot hold a connection to another deity (e.g. Paladinism, Azdrazi, Druidism, etc) or bear a significant alteration of the soul and body (e.g. Frost Witch, Shade, Strigae, etc). An Ascended can learn the following other magics: Arcane, Alteration, Transfiguration, Telekinesis, Voidal Translocation, Voidal Shifting, Atronach Forging, Household, Evocation(earth, wind, fire, and lightning), Arcanism, Celestialism, Conjuration, Illusion, Sensory Illusion, Mental Magic, Cognatism, Rune Smithing, Golemancy (with the exception of soulbound cores), Kani, and any other magics that follow a similar structure that does not bear a direct connection to another deity or significant alteration of the soul and body. An Ascended cannot learn water evocation, and those who become an Ascended and know the magic prior will find they can no longer use water evocation. They can still teach water evocation due to bearing knowledge of the magic prior, but they cannot use the magic itself Practitioners of other forms of magic will find their crystal souls less receptive to the divine influences of the Soulstream, as they bear very different and near incompatible sources coalesce within them. With every new magic they learn, they reduce a Tier and thus reduce the amount of Astra they can store. An Ascended will suffer from specific drawbacks of a magic, if such magic outlines the drawbacks (e.g: voidal weakness from knowing voidal magic, etc) Aerielian Children are the offspring of 2 Ascended Aerielian Children resemble their parents physically, sharing their pale skin, the colour of their eyes faintly glowing and that of their parents and, in some cases, even their white/platinum hair. Those that were direct descendants of either 1 or 2 Ascended before the rewrite will also be considered Aerielian Children. These children will not be automatically Ascended – not bearing the crystal souls or the magic. Tier Progression Tier 1: (Begins after creation, ends at 2-week mark) An agent’s Tearstone Shard is newly formed and can store 5 gallons of Astra at a time. Charges 5 Astra per Emote. Tier 2: (Begins at the 2-week mark, ends at 1 month) An agent’s Tearstone Shard can store 10 gallons of Astra at a time. Charges 5 Astra per Emote. Tier 3: (Begins at 1-month mark, ends at 3 months) An agent’s Tearstone Shard can store 15 gallons of Astra at a time. Charges 5 Astra per Emote. Tier 4: (Begins at 3-month mark, ends at 5 months) An agent’s Tearstone Shard can store 30 gallons of Astra at a time. Charges 10 Astra per Emote. Tier 5: (Mastered the magic at 5 months) An agent’s Tearstone Shard can store 60 gallons of Astra at a time. Charges 15 Astra per Emote. Cast Time Clarification Rather than focus directly on a specific spell, an Agent focuses on preparing a certain amount of Astra within their Tearstone, and then choosing a spell to cast afterwards. For example, for a T1 Agent to cast Astral Mirror without their shard out to start, the order would go like this: Summon Tearstone Shard > Shard prepares 5 Astra> Shard prepares 5 Astra > Shard prepares 5 Astra > Cast Astral Mirror. Consequently, the order for a T5 Agent to do the same would be this: Summon Tearstone Shard > Shard prepares 15 Astra > Cast Astral Mirror. (It is important to note, that emote examples for spells will vary based on the Tier of the Ascended. Emotes given are for lower tiers, and to clarify how the spell acts. A T5for example can cast an Astral Mirror faster than the emote example for the spell.) Spell List Soul Shattering (Art doesn’t belong to me) Soul Shattering is a more aggressive ritual that is held by the agents of Aeriel to enforce her will, and punish those that violate her creed. This ritual involves the permanent shattering of an agent’s Tearstone Shard and Crystal Soul, reducing them back down to the soul and state of a mortal. However, this ritual is to be used wisely, as it can result in the loss of one’s own powers if used wrongly. Thus it is only a power bestowed upon the teachers - those who carry on the torch of the Ascended. Blackening When an Agent of Aeriel breaks one of the Soul Covenants, their Tearstone Shard begins to lose its colouring and slowly becomes black in colour - This process is referred to as Blackening, and serves as a method to determine who has broken a Covenant. However, Blackening occurs in a gradual manner and it is only when the Tearstone Shard is completely black that Soul Shattering will be able to take place on said agent. Elven Week one The Tearstone Shard’s colours are much darker, and faint patches of black are forming on the shard. The agent is highly advised to seek out redemption, else they will risk their Tearstone shard becoming blackened. By Elven Week two The Tearstone Shard has become completely black and radiates no form of aura or light. The agent’s Tearstone weakens, allowing them to only use 10 gallons of Astra. An Agent who has broken a covenant and is going through Blackening can be offered the chance of redemption, through the Trial of the Damned (see Trial of Damned section.) and can request to go through such. This will mean contacting any teachers and explaining the situation. By the time the second week comes around, the Tearstone Shard will become completely black, if they had not taken up the Trial of the Damned in order to redeem themselves. Once this blackening is complete, the Agent will be put to Soul Shattering for failing to keep to the Covenants and not seeking out redemption by trial. The Tearstone Shard will permanently remain in such state, until the Agent goes through the Trial of the Damned or goes through Soul Shattering. Performing Soul Shattering The first thing one should note about performing Soul Shattering is that it requires one or more of the following in order to be truly performed. - The agent must request and accept a Soul Shattering if it is clear they do not wish to be an agent of Aeriel anymore. (This is the only instance where an Agent can be permanently disconnected without having a Blackened Tearstone Shard.) - The Agent must have clearly broken a Covenant and bear a complete Blackened Tearstone Shard. - The ritual itself requires two agents to perform unless it is the teacher themselves who are soul-shattering their student. The process requires for the agent performing the shattering to fracture the Tearstone Shard of the agent they seek to remove the crystal soul from. Once this is done, the disconnector places their hand upon the agent’s chest and channel Astra into the agent, pushing the energy into the person’s very being and soul. The agent’s Crystal Soul will then permanently shatter, returning the soul to its normal state and removing all abilities and boons granted to them. Once this has happened, the victim will be forever unable to bear Aeriel’s connection again, and will suffer the following side effects from the disconnection - they will struggle to feel full warmth, only the chilling sensation of cold, even when they are within the hottest of rooms and by a fire. There will only be the punishment of coldness for those who dared to turn against Aeriel, as well as the everlasting presence of greatly missing something and longing for it. Additionally, those who received the shattering will feel as though something very dear to them was taken from them, which would be true, for Aeriel would take a very small fracture of the soul that would not affect the soul, but only create the effects. If the shattering occurred on an agent who willingly wanted to be disconnected from Aeriel and their Tearstone Shard was not blackened, then these effects will be temporary for one elven week, as Aeriel would not be too cruel on a soul who simply wanted to return to living as a mortal and had committed no treacherous acts. In time, Aeriel will return the fracture, thus recovering the mortal of the disconnection effects. Yet if the shattering occurred on an agent with a completely blackened Tearstone Shard, they will permanently bear these effects until they are connected to another deity, as only the connection of another can fill up the fracture that was taken. However, the two shattering effects that do not change on whenever or not the agent took the shattering with or without a blackened Tearstone are ageing and regeneration speed. The how many years they spent immune to time, those years will immediately return to them and they will age to the age they would be now if they were not an Agent. This means that any agents over their racial age limit will live on for twenty years before gently passing on and simply move onto the soul stream. A mercy from the Archaengul, for she is merciful as she is merciless. Additionally, those who receive shattering will still bear the heavily reduced regeneration speed, due to the soul fracture and the body heavily use and adapted to said change. Soul Shattering Redlines By becoming an agent of Aeriel, all members must be told of the effects of Soul Shattering both icly and oocly, and accept that by breaking the Covenants, they will risk severe effects upon their character. Attempting to avoid Soul Shattering by any OOC means can result in being reported - you must accept the consequences and take action to avoid Soul Shattering through proper RP. Only Ascended with confirmed and approved TAs can know how to perform Soul Shattering. Performing Soul Shattering will require two Ascended teachers. However, Soul Shattering can also be done alone by only the teacher of the agent being disconnected. Soul Shattering an agent with a non-blackened Tearstone Shard cannot be performed if the agent in question does not give consent both in RP and OOC. A forceful Soul Shattering can only come about when the agent as a pitch black Tearstone Shard. If Soul Shattering is performed on an agent with a non-blackened Tearstone Shard and they do not give consent both in RP and OOC for such to carry out, the Shattering process will nullify the moment the disconnector attempts to shatter the Crystal Soul. In turn, the disconnector’s Tearstone Shard will begin at Elven Week one of Blackening. The Tearstone Shard of the agent must be fractured first before destroying the Crystal Soul. Any agent who breaks a Covenant must RP out their Tearstone Shard blackening through the moment they break a Covenant and must emote the shard slowly blackening for the week. Failing to do so, or making attempts to hide such via not emoting the black colour, colour dampening, and lack of glow, etc, will be seen as powergaming and can result in a blacklist. The agent must let the other agents know icly and/or oocly that they have broken a covenant - that way, they can be offered to partake in the Trial of the Damned to remove the Blackening. Failing to do so will mean the character’s Tearstone shard becoming fully blackened by the end of the first week and risking going through Soul Shattering. The effects of post-Soul Shattering, must be emoted out by all who were disconnected via this spell. The effects are the following: Loss of warmth, resulting in feeling cold but not suffering from any issues that can be caused by low temperature due to this sensation. Minor of soul fracture, resulting in the strong sensation of missing something and constantly longing for it. The rapid ageing of the many years the agent has been an agent for once the process is complete. However, those over their race’s age limit are permitted 20 years (20 ooc weeks) to RP as their character and finish anything off as said characters. Permanent retainment of the heavy body regeneration, resulting in all wounds healing slower than that of the average mortal. Major thanks to: Jallentime -Original creator of this lore and providing the base lore, and being a good friend. Suxals -Co-lore editor and writer for this lore. GildedDuke, Minst, Assassinofawsome, Thetri, basically all members of the Ascended Community -All of them assisted through sharing their own ideas and thoughts for this edited version, as well as also assisting in writing out small aspects of the lore and providing feedback. As well as for all of the support. We finally got here, guys! We made it! The Lore Team -Provided all necessary feedback and helping us out when we needed help, as well as being patient in giving us some time to finalise this edit. It’ s finally done. Editing and formatting this was hell. My suffering has finally ended.

You really can't seem to let go of the past, can you, @Jondead ? It's not good for you if you keep focusing on it and allowing it to keep getting to you. Trust me, mate, it’s about time you move away from this for your sake, not ours. Yours. However, I will address your queries the best I can. *cracks knuckles* Soulfire One – many members of the current Ascended community agreed that holy fire is becoming a cliche, too well used on the server (given that clerics uses holy fire, and I think (big think), the Paladins had a spell that did once use holy fire in one of their previous lores). Not to mention holy fire... well... it gives the strong impression that our powers are meant to burn those of unholy nature – which was the intent on the current (soulfire) lore, but not what we intended for the new rewrit as we have a new goal and purpose. We wanted something more unique, an aspect that wasn’t that explored on LotC and could provide brand new concepts and ideas that were never considered before, and that was the use of a crystal-esque magic. Two – Soulfire was OP, and can be abused if you know how. Because let’s face it – you get a bit of soulfire on you and you’re a dark being? Instant death once the fire completely consumes you. No water can stop it, and the only known way to stop it is by cutting off a limb, and they can be hard to regain if they’re burnt completely to nothing. Plus, now that it harms descendants too, soulfire just feels too OP and also restricting. It’s like fire evocation, you get fire on you and you burn, only that this fire does not go out when the Ascended has finished channelling it. Three – The Soulstream has been confirmed to be on the moon many, many times, therefore us using moonlight or something deeply tied to the moon actually makes perfect sense given the connection. What would be contradicting is if the Ascended become focused on sunlight (which is a paladin-cleric area, given Xan is seen as the Lord of Sunlight and the Clerics currently have Divine Wardenism that is tied to the sun) or us going into an area more suited to voidal. Additionally, most Aenguls have been tied to the sun, light, orde, justice, etc and that in itself is being a bit cliche. It’s setting the whole ‘Light is good, sun is good, etc, etc” chain of thought. Moonlight is often tied to night, which in turn is tied to darkness but when the roles are switched so moonlight is seen in a more helpful way, it’s a very unique and interesting concept. Additional point: Moonlight is seen as guiding and watchful figure during the night, which can represent a person being there to guide someone through the darkest times of their lives, or keeping the darkness at bay while a person walks on with their life. Four – The Ascended are no longer a holy order focused on ridding corrupted souls, given that there’s no point as dark beings can come back and we can barely remove any curses (frost witches, etc). This is a fact that has been explained in depth in both mine and Suxal’s post, in terms of why we’re not focusing on ‘light VS dark’, and given that you’ve mentioned me a couple of times and referred to my post. I was expecting you to already know full well why we’ve turned away from such, but it appears you did not. Lastly, the definition of ‘holy’ is not something correlating to removing undead or something corrupted 24/7. What holy really means is ‘dedicated or consecrated to God or a religious purpose; sacred’, and the Ascended still fit with this definition in terms of being an order dedicated to Aeriel’s mission on keeping the descendants alive and combat any threats that seek their eradication or doom. Five – The closest would be considered the Kha, but their magic has been denied constantly but we did not want to completely take away that right from them. Our magic is not 100% focused on the moon, nor do we actually gain energy from the moon. Instead, we use Tearstone Shards that came directly from Aeriel and serves as the main usage of our magic. If you did take the time to read the lore, this is made very clear and is straightforward to interpret from the lore. This magic does not rely on the moon Six – With the editing, we may add on a spell that allows for an Ascended to aid a soul in terms of curses, but given that just about all curses on LotC cannot be lifted (due to lore holders basically telling us no, even though it would be reasonable for an Ascended alone to be able to remove a curse). It’s virtually impossible for us to actually remove or destroy any curses, else we will be going against other current existing lore. So even if we do add such to our lore, it will be a very useless spell in terms of actually returning souls to normal. However – there are more ways to save a soul, rather than just fighting it, and the Ascended here are going to be more support-based, rather than the fighting aspect. We can still fight against corrupted beings and prevent souls from being corrupted the moment the attempt is made, but we’re aiming at a more larger scale that allows us to save more souls than before. Firstly – The lore is good but it can be better. Such is what myself and Suxals are currently working on, expanding the base that Jallentime has provided for us. Yes, the first lore you’re seeing right now, it needs heavy love and tlc, which is where myself and Suxals are coming in. That’s something myself and the Ascended playerbase all agreed with. Two – The same could be said for the Paladins, if we are to take in your logic that if there’s no members around, the magic should be a separate magic or be denied. There are fewer paladins around than there are of ascended, but their lore has been accepted and I expect for their activity to rocket now, and for them to get their playerbase up and running The reason why there are fewer Ascended around is because we are focusing more on our real life, which must always come first and above everything LotC. A majority of the Ascended are in university (myself included), while others are at school or working. Furthermore, it depends on your timezone, Jon, and given you’re a European like me, you and I will more likely see Ascended that are in the European timezones or just entering the eastern American timezones - so the people you listed. By the time the server is at peak time, it’s usually time for us Europeans to get ourselves to bed and chances are, you’ll miss out on the active USA Ascended players that come on. Here, I can even list a few that are on much later and when you are offline: Assassinofawesome, Cordial, Aerielvanguard, Zachslayer (when his Ascended was alive), TheTri (when his character was alive), and Suxals. That's six additional Ascended, meaning that in total - ten to eleven Ascended, which is usually the standard amount of people from the same order online for a day. Do not think that the players you see most are the only active ones, because there are more of us that are active than the ones you listed down. Three – “I have been around as one of the only active Ascended for a time, it was sad to be the only one really around to do things” Please don’t think that you were the only actively working Ascended when you was one, it’s disappointing and insulting to the other active Ascended who were doing just as much work as you, the ones you listed and the ones I listed. It's uncalled for and is just showing you don't acknowledge that the other active users were doing work. That is something I downright disagree with, and actually feel hurt by. Four – It is to be expected that when the Ascended rewrite is done, the community will become more active, given that some of us have been focusing on other areas outside of LotC because we’re not enjoying rping our characters with the current lore. None of us are enjoying rping out "Light VS Dark" as much, given that it's becoming too tiring at this stage. We all want something new and a better concept to explore, thus many are waiting for the rewrite to be accepted. One – Your disconnection was accounted for based on RP conditions. Your connection held no ooc involvement and was not fuelled by ooc intent. Instead, your character went out of his way to disobey the order of the Master Sage and all three sages (which included me at the time), when we told your character to not get involved with Glineth and instead focus on assisting us with the situation in Haense. You disobeyed, which left a bad ic impression on all of our characters. You then went as far as to give information to Glineth, through giving an infused weapon that my character made strictly for you, and that in turn goes against the “Do not put the order in danger”, as you were giving out information regarding what it is our order can do. And you don’t sound disappointed, your wording expresses that you’re still mad, especially given you are bringing it up. But I’m going to basically say – it was me who found out rply you was giving infusions to dark beings, and it was Elvira who told Heial of the situation and agreed to have you disconnected because she firmly had enough of your character disobeying the order and essentially not assisting us on a large matter, then going as far as to give away an item she personally made to you to Glineth of all people. So if you want to oocly blame someone for what happened, feel free to blame it on me for doing exactly what Elvira would do in a situation, but I can state there was no full OOC intent or ooc hatred that led you to being dc’ed. There was a direct RP reason. Two – You did not bend a tenet, you broke it fully. You gave an infused weapon, and likely more information, to a dark being that we told you countless times to not focus on as we’ve got other dark beings that are the bigger focus. You went against ‘do not endanger the order’, and you flat out disobeyed orders when we needed you most, Jon. We allow bending of rules, only when you explained your case – which you did when you explained why you was going for Glineth, but it was turned down before you carried on and gave Glineth your weapon. Bending the tenets a bit only comes about when you may need to break a tenet in order to actually prevent the soul corruption of another being, or to protect a member of the Ascended, etc, but your scenario is not such scenario. Three – OOC disconnections will not occur, the disconnector will need solid evidence that suggests a tenet was broken ICly in order to disconnect an Ascended. The Covenants I have wrote out for the edit are reinforced and go more in depth, specifically explaining what the tenet means and what is considered breaking said tenet. There’s also a separate set of Covenants that must be kept but are not punishable by disconnection, but by any other means that do not break the major disconnection covenants. One: We don't have moon beams. Read the lore fully and check the current spell roster to know what it is we can and cannot do, not just on your own speculations, Jon. Please, for my sake. Read the lore fully and understand what it is the magic actually is. Crystal support magic. Not moon magic. Say it with me: Crystal support magic. Crystal support magic. Two: We are not changing our magic completely because we can. We are changing our magic completely because we need to. The current lore has many flaws and is too heavily tied to the other holy magics. Not to mention a majority of both Ascended and other members of the LotC community are beginning to dislike the current magic and want to see something fresh. We were also asked directly by the LT to change our magic, so even if we did want to keep the magic the same, we did need to change it and we all wanted a fresh start. That in itself is something to not be upset about. Given that the LT has asked that all holy magic should affect everyone now, we’ve decided to avoid singling out on a particular group in terms of how our magic affects them. It allows us to focus on more areas and doesn’t have us going back to “Light VS Dark” rp because we’re still focusing on soul corruption and soul alteration, which is a majority of the dark magics. Also. Soul Trees are not altered souls. They are soul allocation, which is basically placing a soul somewhere else, and soul trees are exempt as they were bestowed upon by the Aspects so that their own mission and goals can be done. Aeriel has no reason to be against the Aspects, when it is clear the druid and that soul is tethered to them and the fact it is assisting the Aspects in their own goals. It’s only when the soul is directly changed and corrupted is when she tends to step in and gets angry And to go further – shunning immortality will mean shunning ourselves. Ascended don’t age, they can’t die from old age. Sure, it’s semi-immortality but it is still immortality to an extent. You basically contradicted yourself there. The only ‘immortality’ that is shunned is the ones gained from dark magic, given many require corrupting and damaging your own soul to do so. One: It depends on the situation and really – if an Ascended is seen assisting a traitor of another holy order, an Ascended order, or anything else. Questions will be raised but no immediate action will be taken, unless the situation is severe and goes against the covenants. If its involved with mortal affairs, such as politics, it depends on the situation as the Ascended will be more open in being a part of politics to assist the souls within that nation. For all we know, an Ascended may turn traitor on a nation because they disagree with how they treat others or their views. However, the Ascended must keep to the covenants and therefore cannot inflict death or harm upon another in col blood, or as the attacker when talking about nations. Self defence and being on the defensive are when an Ascended can defend and aid a descendant. Two: What does define what is holy or not? Do you need to be a champion of your patron in order for your magic to be deemed as holy? Because let me outline what the definition of holy is: “dedicated or consecrated to God or a religious purpose; sacred”. Basically, if you are dedicated or consecrated to a god or a religious purpose, you can be deemed as holy. So that’s pretty much ALL of the Aengudaemonic magic and groups out there. Druids? Holy because they are devoted to the Aspects, the GODS of Nature. Clerics? Holy because they are devoted to Tahariae, the GOD of Purity. Though in LotC terms, only the Ascended, Paladins, and Clerics have been referred to as the ‘Holy Deity Magics’, primarily because of the fact the clerics need to practically worship Tahariae and pray to him to use their magic, the Paladins seek about bringing order and peace to the lands, and the Ascended seek to protect the souls of many. And let me bring up a past point – these three magics all had a strong connection to light, whenever it be the clerics using literal light, the paladins having creeds and oaths that are light/good-based, and the Ascended using holy fire that radiates light. So you could say the Ascended rewrite is not a holy magic in LotC standards as it no longer follows the use of holy fire or light representations, but it still stands and fits with the real life definition of holy as it is still a group following and aiming to fufil the goals of a higher being. That’s already the plan – The Ascended are free to choose on if they want to strike or leave an altered soul alone. Just about all Ascended do try and seek out alternative methods to help out altered souls, whenever it be by talking to them or leaving them be. However, being a group that is “Light VS Dark” and a majority of altered souls are dark beings, people expect you to kill the altered soul on sight and you pretty much just get peer pressured into it unless you want people to screenshot it and run to the LT or another Ascended member, asking for your disconnection. Plus, there’s no way to release a soul from its altered state. We cannot remove curses or reverse the altering because lore holders tend to just refuse it. So we’re stuck in this scenario of “You need to kill!” but we don’t want to. Killing never brings out development. Clerics serve a cruel Aengul and they hella can’t be neutral. Aeriel can be harsh but she is also a very kind Aengul, given that she was the only Aengul who blessed the four brothers right after Iblees cursed them, and took it on herself to guide the countless souls to their respective afterlives because no other Aengul wanted to. The Aengudaemons should not be exactly like each other in how they act, thus Aeriel is more benevolvent and less strict in comparison to Tahariae, who is strict and rather on a high horse.

To add on from Suxal’s post, the Ascended’s focus in terms of enemies is now on a more broad scale than focusing on dark vs light rp. The Ascended will also focus more on handling major threats that seek to harm, enslave, corrupt, or destroy the mortals (such as September Prince, Setherein, etc – mostly ET major and minor antagonists, and even player antagonists, that can be mortal, natural, voidal, dark, and even other Aengudaemons), given they are the major threats in harming souls and ceasing them from living normally, as well as cause major soul corruption. So this will include faint aspects of fighting, but being more focused on utility and support to aid the descendants against these threats. Of course. When it comes to threats, they can take the form of major beings of mass destruction, but also in the form of powerful relics that when in the wrong hands, can wreck the lives of many people. So it was decided that the Ascended will also focus on researching these threats and devoting their lives on protecting and containing them, making sure that any threats are not unleashed on the mortals before they are even unleashed, or being there to assist in stopping them. The bigger point is that the Ascended will hopefully focus on being there to re-seal or contain them to buy time to prepare the mortal, as sometimes, fighting a threat head-on with little resources can be difficult, thus more time is needed but is hard to get when more and more lives are being lost. Thus, I can confirm that I am working on a ritualistic spell that will give 5-10 ascended a chance to seal away a major/minor ET antagonist, but the spell in question will be heavily redlined and following roughly the same redlines the ET follows and being temporary. This new focus was decided to give the Ascended a stronger goal that can include descendants and the Ascended actively working with different groups on taking down or sealing away a threat. Furthermore, it ’ll give forth to a range of unique roleplay in terms of utility and support – two areas that aren’t really focused on within the deific magic side – and make the Ascended the support of the group, and having a support-based class that can enhance other party members and debuff opponents. Dark VS light RP will still occur, given that we’re still against soul corruption and whatnot, but it is no longer the major goal and focuses for the Ascended. The overall aim is not to make the Ascended come across as the heroes who save the day, we’re aiming at avoiding that part completely. Instead, the Ascended will serve as the supporting magic that can help change the tides of a battle into the favour of the Descendants, but this tipping of the scales won’t always happen and an Ascended can still be taken down. I am very aware that many did not enjoy how the Ascended’s current lore did not give many purposes and they were basically just like the paladins and cleric, and this is why both myself, Suxals, and Jallen worked heavily with the LT to change the Ascended away from that and give them a clear purpose that doesn’t just benefit us as a playerbase, but also many other groups. Since you mentioned the Azdrazi, I feel as though I should mention this. In regards to souls that have been altered, such as Azdrazi or any magic or being that requires the soul to be altered to obtain such – I’ll check the base lore and see what’s described there. But if there’s nothing explaining how the magic affects different soul alterations, I’m hopefully going to aim towards the magic not inflicting any harm on such when using any support/utility based abilities, unless it’s a debuff, and that all alerted based souls will be impacted by the offensive abilities the same way that they affect descendants and any other beings. That way, there’s a more equal balance and also prevents Ascended from being Light VS Dark based by having a magic that affects just dark beings, given that we’re now also focusing on threats that can take on a more natural, voidal, or Aengudaemonic form. Myself and Suxal are currently the ones editing this lore, given that Jallentime has left for the server a bit, and we’re aiming on ensuring that there are no loopholes within the lore, as well as that the Ascended are no longer just sitting around and doing nothing – but they are out there, helping descendants, standing by their sides against major antagonistic threats, and being the supports in major fights. I hope this answers any concerns you and anyone else has.

~Application~ OOC Username: Farryn Discord: you have it RP Name: Elvira Naromis Age: 140s Race: Half Elf [Ascended] Place of Residence: Alchemist’s Bay (main residence), Holm, and Sutica Department: The Researchers of Incognita – focusing on Aengudaemonology (The study of Aengudaemons) and Alchemy Other Guilds: Is a part of the Ascended Order

To those stating that Dragon is posting his lore for his own gain - pause for a moment and think; are you actually correct there? Do you genuinely believe you are in the right? Because where you see someone apparently wanting a new fancy magic for himself, I see a writer who seeks to try and incorporate an interesting factor onto the server by thinking out of the box and also to share his writing with everyone else. TheDragonRoost has worked hard on this lore since the day I met him a few months ago, and honestly - he has never come across as someone wanting power or an advantage for his character. I'm a writer and TheDragonRoost's passion for writing, whenever it be short story writing or lore writing, is something I truly admire. So who are all of you to judge that he's in it for the power and comment on this post, especially when some of you openly admitted you didn't read the lore and barely provided any criticism or feedback in a more professional manner? Yes, his concept may sound stupid to you, but does that give you the right to simply skip it and go "You're in it for the power and self-gain!" To simply put it - get a grip and provide some actual criticism and read the lore TheDragonRoost actually went out of his way to write this post yet there are those of you who think "Eh, don't give a flick" and just post a comment that holds no relevance or feedback. The posts I'm seeing haven't been providing feedback and have just been flat out disgusting with the insulting and lack of care. So keep any unnecessary comments out of here if they're providing no feedback to the writer, positive or negative alike. Right now, you're just being disgraceful for taking it on yourselves to completely disregard posting any feedback on a lore submission, where players give their personal feedback to the lore writers. Hyena - I'm calling you out. No one cares about your comment about how this lore is none other than that it's TheDragonRoost's apparent attempt to claim power or magic. As well as anyone else who's considering writing what something along those lines. If you believe this lore is not worth reading but still want to be a hypocritical disrespecting individual, then kindly do not even comment on this post at all and allow those who actually want to give feedback to do it. ---- Now. @TheDragonsRoost - I read your lore and I've got both positive and negative feedback to give to you (seeing how folks so far haven't gone out of their way to read the lore and back up their claims). A unique intake in dark magic as it's providing a more morally-okayish magic, compared to the all out or near dark magics. Furthermore, an Aengudaemon that revolves around dark magic? I know we have Iblees and the Ithuzuki (can't remember the spelling correctly) patron, but it does create a form of balance between the more light/good based Aengudaemons and the more darker ones. Plus, the lore itself does expand into more interesting areas that aren't really explored upon in LotC. Lastly, the lore itself is very well written, neat to read, and simple and to the point, but also provides enough necessary details regarding the Aengudaemon, how they think and act, and what they seek to do by influencing the mortal realm. Feedback points Now. I am a bit curious if you've been told by the LT, but you do need to post the full lore. Not just a bit here and leave the rest on a google doc. It's so that the lore is fully on the forums and cannot be edited, preventing any lore writers from making sudden edits to their lore without the LT knowing. Plus, the google doc is rather easy to miss, meaning many who read this may not read the full extension of the lore. It really helps people out if things are more organised. I am also curious about Zarelek's realm - how does it appear? I know you briefly mentioned it but having a paragraph in detail explaining the realm would provide more insight to the Aengudaemon, and does help out builders if this lore is accepted and the Aengudaemon becomes used. Lastly, I recommend looking up and reading more on lore in general. It'll really help you out in writing lore further, as well as help you to keep a sense of continuity with the server's basic lores. This includes the Aengudaemonic lore, magic lore, etc, etc. I can say that there are some areas that do need fixing so that this Aengudaemon is more suitable for the server, though that's pretty much the feedback I have to offer. Hopefully this helps! And good work on the writing!

I have a feeling Elvira will be having a lot of interesting interactions with those who follow this ideology, given that she follows the Flowing Sun ideology above all else. (the concept of accepting that person holds their own opinion and ideology of the world, that ideologies change and can be either good and bad, and that it should be treated with neutrality unless it involves directly harming innocents for fun or personal gains, and even acknowledge and accept bits of other ideologies into their own views).

You mad kids actually done it. This grandma is proud and can finally rest easily!

Sometimes you must move away from the past and develop into something new to keep up with things. Nothing can ever remain the same while everything else changes. The past of the Ascended will be held in high regard still, in terms of history and traditions, and still will be taught to some degree but the magic itself has changed. It's a **** move to just abandon all of that history and the efforts of those in the past. Both In Character and Out of Character - We won't be forgetting how our magic worked in the past, nor abandon our previous history or traditions. So rest assure, no history or the efforts of previous Ascended will be forgotten, we've only changed the magic and a few aspects but we hold no intentions on changing the history or past. A majority of the Aegis Ascended have moved on now, and there's no real reason for us to revert back to those days when we want to move forward. Plus, a majority of the Ascended voted in favour for this change, and this was what we as the player base that this lore caters around wanted to see. We wanted something new from the past, and one that made the Ascended different from the Paladins and the Clerics, something that provided a better roleplay experience than the "Light VS Dark" or "Holy = fire/light" areas. We wanted to give something new, focusing on an area that no other holy magic focused on and that's the use of crystals and being in a full-on supportive role. Not to mention, having to kill members of the dark community gets boring as hell for me and the dark community, and I actually enjoy interacting with them in a more sociable way than just fighting constantly. So this lore does give forth some freedom that we didn't have in the past. As for this lore not fitting in with what's occurring right now - yes, nothing is occurring that ties with this new lore, but I believe there is something planned that involves a smooth transition to the new lore if it gets accepted. Plus, infusions will be dealt with accordingly, as they will all become nullified when the lore is released (aka - no longer can anyone activate a soulfire infusion)

You need a script writer and someone to help generate ideas? I'm happy to help out! [Hit me up at Farryn#1306]

"Hm... I would teach the Flowing Sun Stances to this individual to keep the art alive, though... I cannot go into the Dominion nor do I feel ready to pass on such teachings." Elvira would comment, sipping her mocha.