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THE NEKHABET & THE TRIBES OF MALI’ASUL & VALAH’HT Mali’Asul History & Society Asul and their human soldiers once were glorious in both might and beauty, their scrolls long since burned. A history once believed to be grand now lay in rubble far below the sands. The Pharmalin believed themselves to be the chosen people of a forgotten Daemon, for they believed their necromancy would allow them to rule and begin a war in the realms beyond, far away from their Mali’aheral brothers they toiled forging armies of dead in the sands. Their kingdom, if you could call a shambling mass of mindless undead fell into ruin as the necromancers fought one another in an vain attempt to grab power over the realm, A realm of little consequence to anyone else. However the sand swallows all in the end as would become a common phrase; the war proved to have no victor, and the art of their necromancy perhaps lost forever in the dunes. The only whispers of this story come from those who claim to hail from the hidden kingdom of the undead it’s name now gone. All that remains is the Nekhabet, Arak, & The Sun Elves of the deserts. Mali’Asul are known mostly for their desire for their aggression, instead of hiding in their homes they are known to instead nearly to a fault be ready to fight both at war and in single combat. For most of all might makes right in the lives of any tribe. Thus one cannot lead a tribe without both the wisdom & knowledge of a warrior and the mind of a leader keeping weak leadership out. Tattoos mark their skin, showing their accomplishments and titles etched in gold for their lavish nature still resides below a warrior’s strong ideals desiring to amass wealth and rule once more remains lingering in all Asul hearts believing themselves not only all deserving of great power but superior to their high elven breathen whom they often call Lowborn for their weak moral code and seemingly reclusive nature. Famous riders and horses are known to frequently come from the stock of the Asul being very numerous it is within their culture to not only honor horses but live beside them. For a Mali cannot rely only on their legs or strength of arms if they are to rule over those whom sit in their castles. The Nekhabet Tribe however have a renown desire for rare objects, scrolls, and gold being interested most of all in their ability to fight against the undead for while they Asul once wielded them, they too fought them. They most frequently share the traits of white hair and amber almost golden eyes Their Sister tribe the Arak however idolize combat to an extreme degree fighting for the simple joy of it, known also perhaps for their lustful nature. They most frequently share hues of gray in their hair, their eyes similar to that of the Nekhabet perhaps denoting a shared lineage. Nekhabet & Arak Behavior Mali’Asul Culture & Society Asul Architecture & Defenses Mali’Asul Tribal Faith The Tribes of the Sun Elves *In full detail Mali’Asul Tribal Virtues firstly are the virtues all tribes shared the Mali’Asul or Sun Elves followed, a strong set of virtues that govern their life since they lack a core religion they instead follow a strict code of honor written as their ‘Virtues’. It brings shame to those whom break these Virtues. Arak Nekhabet Interested in RolePlaying the culture? https://discord.gg/kzGwpZF is the discord. Please if you wish to actively help improve this post join!

PACT OF STONE AND HAWTHORNE <=-<=-=>-=> “By Anbella’s grace, we shall keep good relations with our brethren whether they be close kin or the brethren of our father, Urguan.” -Unknown Prophet of Anbella, approx. Malin’s Welcome, 140 The pact as follows below shall serve as a lasting accord between the agreed signees and shall be adhered to by officials and populace of their respective nations. Should any point be broken by either participant of the pact a period of truce lasting at least three stone days shall ensue in order to fully investigate and re-evaluate the continued condition of the treaty. <=-<=-=>-=> Both nations shall adhere to a strict policy of conflict avoidance with one another. Should a potential conflict arise the aforementioned period of truce shall be invoked and the three stone day period shall be utilized to seek out a diplomatic solution. Both nations shall permit free, safe passage of the other nation’s citizenry throughout the borders of their land. The Under-Realm of Urguan and Crown of Elvenesse shall agree to establish the following borders: The mountain range to the west of the main circle of the King’s Road around Cloud Temple shall be recognized as dwarven lands. The Under-Realm of Urguan shall be recognized as to controlling the lands of the Autumn Tree and the surrounding caverns east of Kal’Varoth. The Crown of Elvenesse agrees to respect all parts of the Western Mountain Caverns and will not tamper with it nor create any entrances into it. The forests bordered by the southern coast, the dwarven mountains, and the southwestern portion of the King’s Road shall be recognized as the rightful lands of Crown of Elvenesse. This pact shall remain in effect so long as a legally elected Under-King sits on the Obsidian Throne. This pact shall remain in effect so long Feanor Sylvaeri remains holder of the Crown of Storms Dungrimm Bless This Just Union “The Just”, Under-King of the Under-Realm of Urguan, Grand King of the Grand Kingdom of Urguan, King of Agnarum, Az’adar, and Ord, Lord of Kal’Varoth, Kal’Azgaryum, Kal’Omith, Kal’Nikaer, Kal’Akash, Kal’Karaad, Kal’Agnar, Kal’Klad, Kal’Arkon, Kal’Ithrun, Kal’Azgoth, Kal’Karik, and Kal’Urguan, Defender of the Dwedmar, Beloved of the Brathmordakin, Elder of Clan Grandaxe, etcetc... Faenor Sylvaeri High Prince of the Crown of Elvenesse, Lord Heir of the House Sylvaeri, Forge Master of Sylvaen’s Hammer, Lord Protector of the Isles of Almenor

Treaty of Guise, 1715 A Conditional Military Alliance Between the Holy Orenian Empire and the Princedom of Fenn May the Creator Bless Our Efforts TREATY OF ALLIANCE The Most Serene Grand Prince of Fenn, Aelthir II Tundrak, and the Godsent Holy Orenian Emperor, to wit, His Imperial Majesty Joseph I Marna, having this day concluded a Treaty of amity and goodwill, for the reciprocal advantage of their Subjects and Citizens have thought it necessary to take into consideration the means of strengthening those engagements and of rendering them useful to the safety and tranquility of the two parties, particularly in the case of dealing with the rogue State of Haelun’or and the Pertinaxi pretenders and their resentment towards such connections and good correspondence between strong, sovereign realms; his Majesty Aelthir II Tundrak and His Imperial Majesty Joseph I Marna have resolved to join their Councils and efforts against the enterprises of their common Enemies, after the most mature Deliberation through their respective Plenipotentiaries, concluded and determined on the following articles. ARTICLE I During the continuance of the present War between the State of Haelunor and their Pertinaxi allies against the Princedom of Fenn and the federated sovereignties under the Holy Orenian Emperor, his Majesty Aelthir II Tundrak and his Imperial Majesty Joseph I Marna shall make it a common cause, and aid eachother mutually with their good Offices, their Counsels, and their forces, according to the exigence of Conjunctures as becomes good and faithful Allies. ARTICLE II The two contracting Parties shall each on its own Part, and in the manner it may judge most proper, make all the efforts in its Power, against their common Enemy, in order to attain the end proposed— to annihilate the State of Haelun’or and the Pertinaxi pretenders, and their bandit army. ARTICLE III Neither of the two Parties shall conclude either Truce or Peace with the State of Haelun’or or the Pertinaxi rebels without the formal consent of the other; and they mutually engage not to lay down their arms until the security of either state be assured safe from the grasps of the State of Haelun’or and the Pertainxi rebels. ARTICLE IV The contracting Parties declare, that being resolved to fulfil each on its own Part the clauses and conditions of the present Treaty of alliance, according to its own power and circumstances, there shall be no after claim of compensation on one side of the other whatever may be the event of the War. ARTICLE V The most serene Grand Prince of Fenn and the Holy Orenian Emperor agree to invite or admit other Powers who may have received injuries from the State of Haelun’or and the Pertinaxi pretenders to make common cause with them, and to accede to the present alliance, under such conditions as shall be freely agreed to and settled between all the Parties. ARTICLE VI The present Treaty shall be ratified on both sides and the Ratifications shall be exchanged in the space of six months, or sooner if possible. In faith whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries, to wit: on the part of the Grand Prince of Fenn, Crown Prince Aelthos Tundrak, and on the part of the Holy Orenian Emperor, Baron Henri de Guise, Imperial High Marshal, have signed the above Articles in the Common language, declaring Nevertheless that the present treaty was originally composed and concluded in the common language, and they have hereunto affixed their Seals. Done at Guise, this second day of Malin’s Welcome, one thousand seven hundred and fifteen. Joseph I Marna, Holy Orenian Emperor, Fidei Defensor Henri, Baron of Guise, Imperial High Marshal Aelthir II Tundrak, Grand Prince of Fenn Aelthos Tundrak, Crown Prince of Fenn

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚Wren Vanvir Ashwood ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ♡ Given: Name Wren Amyuli Vanvir ♡Marriage name: Wren Vanvir Ashwood ♡Nicknames and titles: The wanderer, Bookworm, little bird, Love, Laurir’evar,Clan leader, Clan mother, ♡ Race: Full Dark elf ♡Gender: Female ♡Year of Birth: 1521 ♡Birth place: Enclave of Ker'nor ♡Voice Reference: Dodie clark: ♡Theme song: ♡ Build : 5’7 Short for an elf, and skinny. ♡Hair: Snow White hair flows down to her shoulders, a trademark to ful ‘ker. ♡Eyes: Tanzanite eyes. A blue purple that are filled with a glimmer of knowledge. ♡ Scars: Running down her spine are little knife marks. Burns running up her arms. Her throat laced in a clean motion of head chopped off. ༶•┈┈⛧┈♛Personality♛┈⛧┈┈•༶ ♡ Alignment:Neutral good. ♡ Political Alignment:Vira’ker ♡ Main Character Strength: The sympathy vote. ♡ Main Character Weakness : to trusting ♡ Religion : Vellulli and the ancestors ♡ Clumsy: Wren often get lost by not paying any mind to where she going. She has found weird villages by trying to go a simple Five minute trip. ♡ Free Spirited: Wren believes that everyone deserves a chance, even a runt like her. ♡ Trusting: Wren hold very few hard feelings towards anyone, she feels she should be able trust everyone at least once. Once that trust is used thats your problem. ♡ Oblivious: Wren is oblivious towards any and all type of flirting. Its wonder how she is married. (often having to roll to see if she understands) ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* Goals 　 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ♡ Find a house she can stay in. CLEARED ♡ Get married and have kids CLEAERED ♡ Find a Ker’wolf to train ♡ Finish the Council CLEARED ♡ Watch her kids get married ♡ Have a book written about her ♥Fears ♥ ♥Watching the death of a lover again♥ ♥Burning books♥ ✧༺♥༻∞Realtionships✧༺♥༻∞ ♡Marital Status: Married to Xavis Ashwood ♡Past lovers:Issarnoss of Norengrad ♡Parents: Fyre Vanvir & Brython Vanvir ♡Friends: Xavis Ashwood, Zatanaes, Mayan, Emelia Horizon, Ashlynn,Avon horizon. Hearth underson, Mhel Underson, Varan atmorice,Nilth, Barbarossa the bard, Dak’ineDex’nox, Morgana, emmalyn, Alfius elpyne, Annabelle, Paisley, Mustfasa, Fyme’saphf (Family, Good friends,Friends acquaintances,) ｡o°✥✤✣ Current Home(s)✣✤✥°o｡ Fenn (1 tathri ave.) Principality of Val’kir Ashwood house. Norengrad (15 Ruthyin way) if its still standing Warhawkes Nyfe’andria teh entirety of the land. *＊✿❀More info ❀✿＊* ♡Pets:Wren bird named Solstice, a little brown bird that will sing the lullaby of the moon when delivering a message, ♡ Languages :Common Elvish ♡Favourite Food: Mushroom stew like her mother used to make ♡Favourite Drink: carion black (FOR THOSE WHO GET THAT JOKE) ♡Favourite animal:The Quetzal ♡Favourite location: Sutica its so lively ♡Favourite activity: reading and listening to stories ♡Favourite flower: Foxglove ♡Favourite gem: Tanzanite ( the gem of her clan)  ♡Favourite color: Tanzanite This character Has been declared DEAD. If you have a “Wren” quote please do add it, She says some great things, and i have quoted on many occasions I love playing as her!

THE ELVEN UNION ________________________________________________________________________________ As of the 8th of The Grand Harvest, 1711, the Princedom of Fenn, the Principality of Aegrothond, the Sable Principality of Vira'ker and the Principality of Alderyn shall stand together in defense of the Elven peoples. We agree to terms of mutual non-aggression, cultural sovereignty and to stand together in defensive alliance against all those who would threaten our peace. The treaty shall persist for the duration of a single Elven month, upon which renewal will occur unless elsewise contested by a signatory withdrawing from the pact by the date of renewal. The signatories shall enforce agree to avoid conflict with one another, entering into a state of non-aggression; be it militaristic, economic or cultural in nature. The signatories shall henceforth enter into a state of defensive alliance. In any circumstance in which one of the signatory partners comes under attack by foreign or internal entities, or elsewise being placed under duress by force of arms, all signatories shall endeavor to support them to the fullest extent of their military capability, and to enforce the rightful sovereignty of all signatories in any circumstance that they would come under threat, to bring a decisive end to any conflict that should arise. The signatories hereby establish a common notion of Elven cultural sovereignty; to recognize the primacy of each signatory partner over their relevant and distinct peoples, and to respect the cultures and values of each signatory partner within their relevant sphere of influence and to recognize no others as usurping that sovereign right. _________________________________________________________________________________ His Highness, Prince Myathilen Ithelanen; Prince of the Alders, Sovereign of the Alder Clans, Protector of the Irrinites, Lord of Lathadlen and Heir to Fang-and-Fury. Harbinger of the Ichorian Way, Favored by Morea. His Highness, Avurak I of Clan Syllar, High Prince of the Sable Principality of Vira’ker, Protector of Mali’ker and the Onyx Path, High Laurir of Harlond, Verna’ker and Nyfe’andria, Son of the Ancestors. His Eminence, High Prince Fëanor Sylvaeri, Lord Heir of the House Sylvaeri, Forge Master of Sylvaen’s Hammer, Lord Protector of the Isles of Almenor His Majesty, Aelthir of the Tundrak Bloodline, the second of his name, Grand Prince of the Princedom of Fenn and of the Mali’fenn, Patriarch of the Tundrak Bloodline, Protector of the Idhren’tirn, Protector of Hesin’fin, Commandant of the Citadel of Acael, Protector of Tahu’lareh, and chosen by Wyrvun

Lye Lent An ancient creed, rekindled. To Overgrow. As the children of Malin toil to rebuild from the desolation of Atlas, perhaps more than ever they stand divided. Gladewynn, Aegrothond, Haelun’or, Fenn, and Vira’ker. In the shadow cast by bickering and division, the Mali are made weak, and when stagnation sets in, it rots all to the very core. Monsters, beasts, and dark forces. In recent times, it was the September Prince and the Veyl Order, but the divine and ancient are not the only threats, for beasts can take many forms. Arcas is untamed, wild, and unexplored, and as the scattered Elves work to recover and spread resources thin, those who wish our kind ill-will fester. It is times such as these that our Elder-kind requires unity and strength. With these words, the Vigil of old is reformed. Come fellow Mali, and all who would be our allies. We seek the cunning, the wise, and the strong, for the evils that lurk in the deepest corners of Arcas must be brought to light. The Vigil is presently gathering its numbers in the lands Alderyn. All those would work for the betterment of all Mali should seek us out there. ~.-Our Noble Purpose-.~ The Vigil shall work to pacify the untamed wilds and forgotten threats of the world. The Vigil shall hunt those who wield the dark arts and oppose such corruption wherever it surfaces. The Vigil shall lend its strength to the defense of all Mali, for the blood of Malin is precious and our prosperity paramount. The Vigil shall study the workings of the world so that it may effectively fulfill its duties. ~.-An artist rendering of Revin a notable member of The Vigil, Circa 1559-.~ ~.-Ranks-.~ Elvalmuel - The Purple The purple is the leader of the order of The Vigil and deals mostly at an administrative level, dictating the movements and message of the order as a whole. However it is rare, the purple is a fierce opponent and can be seen fighting alongside The Vigil when duty calls them to do so. During times of peace and war it is Elvalmuel who guides, preserves and remains Vigilant in the face of any and all threats. Elvallel - The Blue The blue are the officers of the Vigil, organizing its operations when the Elvalmuel is unavailable, and they are often the ones to lead small groups warriors into battles. They are also tasked with seeking out new Mali to join the ranks of the Vigil. Elmiruel - The Red Elmiruel are considered the elite and most competent elven warriors of the Vigil. The grizzled soldier has proven themselves repeatedly in battle and hold the battle line— inspiring their fellow Vigils. When Elvalmuel and Elvallel are not in attendance the Elmiruel are expected to lead the Elibar and Eltaynei not only with fine example but also with experienced judgment to enact the goals of the order of The Vigil. Elibar - The White Elibar, The White, are the first true-members of the Order. No longer mere initiates, but not a ranking member of the Vigil, it is Elibar who heed the order of those of the upper ranks— and guide and train the initiates. Through demonstration of quick wit, able-body and dedication— it is the White who will continue to advance through the ranks of the Vigil. Eltaynei - The Green The Taynei are the elves who have first joined the Vigil. It is these elves who are considered little but initiates in the eyes of the Vigil and its members. It is through dedication, and discipline which the Taynei will make their way to the rank of Elibar. ~.-Vigil History-.~ The order of The Vigil’s history is a rather new one, being founded originally on the landmass known as Vailor. The prominent group started as a reactionary movement to the division within the Elven Realms at the time. Prominent founders were Uhier and Arche Raell, who wished to unify the elven identity with one goal in mind-- to protect the divided and weak elven states and by doing so aiding in the healing of such states though that protection. Through a massive recruitment campaign and the efforts and progress shown with the actions of the founders the numbers of the order blossomed and at its peak, The Vigil could rally 20,000 to 30,000 men alone. These numbers would be put to work in the Silver State of Haelun’or where a schism left them without a military to protect them from the rouge High Elven state of Celien. They offered to serve in place until the state could afford its own military restored. The Vigil were at the head of such projects as restoring a unified Elven state with the Wood Elves of Laureh’lin and the Dark Elves of Ker’nor known as The Dominion of Malin. They even succeeded in ending the schism that plagued the High Elves, eventually toppling Celien. However over time the order lost numbers, a clear goal and a leadership that could generate interest in the group. Eventually throughout many decades of decay, The Vigil finally departed the Silver State as the self-proclaimed Silver Exodus until ultimately disbanding on the landmass known as Axios. ~.-Vigil Code-.~ 1. A Vigil must remain loyal, without question, to the Order and its ways. 2. A Vigil must not take the life of another member. Murder is for lesser beasts such as wolves and bears. 3. A Vigil may not steal from their fellow brethren, for to do so is unbecoming of both an elf, and of any descendant. 4. A Vigil must remain stalwart in their preservation of the ways of elfkind, not perverting their ways with the influence of the other races. Interbreeding is to be avoided, for it dulls our long-lived blood. Application: *Credits for creation: DustyDune, Aviers* *art of Revin by keem, art of warrior by VCepesh, and art of Vigil flag by MagicPastry*

Name: Rivádh Daeynore Race: Wood Elf Gender: Male Age: 83 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Description: Rivádh stands roughly five foot seven, with deep bronze colored skin. While his normal hair is a dark auburn, Rivádh chooses to dye it an ivy shade of green in devotion to his wooded homeland. Eyes of gold, some elven merchants have claimed due their resemblance to two shining coins. His usual attire consist of an long indigo tunic, matching hood decorated with black feathers just above the ears, two gold bracelets, and pair of well traveled tan leather boots. On his shoulders, Rivádh carries large back pack that contain his tools of the trade, and basic traveling supplies. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* History: Rivádh grew up in Dominion of Malin with his father and mother. His childhood for the most part was a pleasant one, except for time he fell ill from handling a poisonous tree frog by mistake. Now he refuses to handle any form of amphibian, and tries avoid them in general just to be safe. During his youth, he would watch his parents come and go from their sacred duties at shrine of Kwakwani. Rivádh’s father worked tirelessly as one of the watchman for the shrine, while his mother was an acolyte there. When not serving at the shrine his mother spent much of her time making pottery to sale in the local market place. As he got older, Rivádh helped his mother with glazing and painting the unfired pottery. Though he enjoy this greatly, yet he soon found his true calling. Raising his brush to canvas, he began his journey of painting people and world around him. Even with some nature talent, it took Rivádh several years to earn some level of mastery in his craft. After the Dissolution of the Dominion of Malin, he left his hometown to further study of the lands and people beyond. Returning only recently to his homeland, visit his friends and family there. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Other Notes: Tends ramble on when intoxicated. While not a heavy drinker, he will not turn down a drink offered by a friend. While he doesn’t hate dwarves, he finds many of them to be uncouth beings. Though he won't openly admit it, Rivádh does greatly admire dwarven architecture. Suffers from Ranidaphobia (fear of frogs).

~The Sovereign State of Albion~ Gallahand Harkness, Vitalius Maarsan, Edward Delaney, and Reynald Richmond finally stopped at what seemed to be a gulf on the north-eastern portion of the continent. Gallahand Climbs upon one of the nearby boulders and looks around “This is it, I think, This spot is perfect.” he announces, as the small scouting party looks around in agreement. Reynald speaks up “I agree, the nearby canyons could be a strategic spot for perhaps a vassal. “Aye” simply said Edward, going to sit down next to a tree. “Let’s get started then, friends” said the doctor, Vitalius, smiling under his mask. ~Roles within Albion:~ Visaers- Those who only live temporarily in the city, such as students, or traveling merchants.can only rent property, this also go for merchants, as they can only own stalls, rather than a permanent business. They are not allowed to vote on any matters pertaining Albion. Citizens- Those who live permanently within in the city. Can purchase property, vote, and own business within the city. They are allowed to buy a home, and not be taxed for it after the initial purchase. Soldiers- Within Albion the soldiers are expected to carry out several tasks ranging from regular patrols, to simply manning the gate. Knights- The top of the Albion military, hand picked by the other knights or the Sovereign himself. Constable- The one who represents the knights in court meeting, elected by the knights. Court members- Picked by the Sovereign, councils the Sovereign with their expertise in their specifics field. The Sovereign- The ruler of Albion. ~Laws of Albion:~

Treaty of Peace between The Princedom of Fenn & The Underrealm of Urguan -= 1707 =- ________________________________________ The contents of this document are the recognized diplomatic conditions between The Princedom of Fenn and The Underrealm of Urguan. The following statutes shall be upheld by the agreeing nations for the next 24 years, or six Mali/Stone months. The signing of this document by the officials of their respective nations signify a mutual agreement to adhere to the conditions as given in the following statutes. _______________________________________ Statute 1 _________ The Underrealm of Urguan shall henceforth hold no acts of aggression against The Princedom of Fenn. In no manner will any actions of militaristic, social, or economic aggression be taken against The Princedom of Fenn. The Princedom of Fenn shall henceforth hold no acts of aggression against The Underrealm of Urguan. In no manner will any actions of militaristic, social, or economic aggression be taken against The Underrealm of Urguan. Statute 2 _________ The Underrealm of Urguan recognizes The Princedom of Fenn as the one true Snow Elven nation. The Princedom of Fenn recognizes The Underrealm of Urguan as the one true Dwarven nation. Statute 3 _________ The Nations of Fenn and Urguan shall recognize the following as their official borders. Urguan - Orange Fenn - Blue _____________

THIS POST IS CANCELED The Jade Riders The Jade Riders are a broad group of rangers and adventurers alike who oppose threats to the natural world and help others survive in dangerous environments. A Rider might help a small village prepare for a brutal winter, or aid a Kingdom in a deadly war. Riders may protect a town from an onslaught of malicious foes or simply aid in the construction of a new settlement. Members of the Jade Riders know how to survive, and more importantly, they want to help others do the same. They are not opposed to civilization or progress, but they strive to prevent civilization and the wilderness from destroying one another. Members of the Riders are spread far and wide, generally in isolation or small cadres. Survival in a harsh world also demands great fortitude and mastery of certain fighting and survival skills. Beliefs: The natural order must be respected and preserved. Forces that seek to upset the natural balance must be destroyed. The wilderness can be harsh. Not everyone can survive in it without assistance. Goals: The Jade Riders goals are to restore and preserve the natural order, keep the elemental forces of the world in check, keep civilization and the wilderness from destroying one another, and help others survive the perils of the wilderness. Creed: Allies: Aragrad (Yves Aragon) Ranks: Ranger Division General Rider: Myriil Thuridan Rider Captain: (N/A) Rider Of The Mark: (N/A) Senior Rider: (N/A) Rider Of The Wild: (N/A) Junior Rider: (N/A) Scout: (N/A) --------- Every Rank From Here Up Is A Rider --------- Trainee: (N/A) Diplomatic Division Party President: (N/A) Elder: (N/A) Scholar: (N/A) Diplomat: (N/A) Envoy: (N/A) Emmisary: (N/A) ----- All Ranks From Here Up Are Diplomats ---- Junior Trainee: (N/A) Dress Code: Ranger Division The Jade Riders - Ranger Uniform Each colored cloak varies depending on the rangers environment (White for snow, Green for forest or plains, Yellow/Beige for desert, Orange for red desert or mesa, Blue for water etc.) The color of your belt/undershirt varies depending on rank (The solid white spaces on the skin are for your skin [skin, eyes, hair etc.]) Belt Ranks: General Rider: Green Rider Captain: Black Rider Of The Mark: Gold Senior Rider: Purple Rider Of The Wild: Red Junior Rider: Blue Scout: Brown Initiate : White Diplomat Division: Diplomat’s have no set dress code at this time Out Of Character Rules Don’t be a jerk to ANYONE, be they a Rider or not. Don’t purposely or through inactivity provoke someone. Being active is not mandatory but it would be appreciated. Dress code in not mandatory but appreciated These rules are subject to change in the future Rider Code Of Conduct All people of any race, gender or sexuality are welcome in the Jade Riders. Discrimination will not be tolerated. You must renounce fealty to any organization or national order if the laws of said order conflict with those of the Riders Comitting acts of violence against nations to aid another nation is strictly prohibtied unless the Riders have voted to help Riders who reveal sensitive information or align themselves with a specific nation against another nation will be banished from the ranks without prior warning All Riders must train in the basic skills of a Ranger: bowmanship, swordplay, animal behavior studies, flora and fauna studies, and basic diplomacy. Illiterate recruits will be taught to read and write before they are inducted. One must not intentionally harm any animal, plant, or person not actively threatening one’s self, the Riders, or the balance of nature. Rangers seen breaking this rule are subject to verbal warnings, imprisonment, and banishment, in order of number of offenses. These rules are not to be bent in any way shape or form These rules are subject to change in the future **(To apply, copy and paste this form into a reply below. Being accepted on this forum DOES NOT mean you are a Rider, you must first pass the Initiate Training Process)** Application For The Jade Riders Ooc Information Minecraft Gamertag (Required*): Real-Life Age (Required*): Nickname (Optional*): Prefered Pronoun(s) (Required*): (He/Him, She/Her, They/Them etc.) Roleplay Sample (Required*): Ic Information Characters Full Name (Required*): Current And/Or Former Titles Held (Required*): Race (Required*): Sub-Race (Optional*): Sex And Gender (Required*): Training Known (Optional*): Training Wanted/Needed (Required*): *“By signing this document, you agree to the above laws and any the General, Captain and Senior Rider see fit of adding. You agree to renounce any title that conflicts with the goals/code and will uphold peace and balance between the natural world and society”*

❤️❤️❤️❤️ I SMELL THE LOVE

Jason Falasrindon -----------General Information---------- Given: Name Jason Falasrindon Nicknames: Mud Blood, The Reclaimer, Jackass #1 Race: Jason is a mixture of elves. Primarily, he is High Elven and Wood Elven. He is also Dark Elven, but retains the skin tone of his parents rather than that of his great grandparents. Jason is also mixed with human along the way, however it is only about 10% or so. Still, that distant Human ancestor managed to pass down a few dominant genes such as shorter ears and a more muscular build. Gender: Male Age: 18 Birth place: Ceru, in a cave a day away North by North East of Magara’lin Build : Jason is about 6’3” or so. His shoulders are broad and his body is rippled with muscle. He looks much like a Dark Elf despite his skin and hair. He’s easily 190 lbs or so. Hair: Medium brown hair, curly, and with slight highlights (See Photo). Eyes: A shocking green. His eyes look like illuminated emeralds. Scars: He has very little scarring on his face, though his hands, feet, shins, forearms, and chest tell a very different tale. That of a sword wielding warrior. Voice Reference: Chase Eagleton https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ecx66NV93RA Theme Song: Faucet Failure – Ski Mask the Slump God https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZZ9YsvvHXs ---------------♛Personality♛------------------ Alignment: Chaotic Neutral Political Alignment: Libertarian Main Character Strength: Hand to Hand combat Main Character Weakness : Lack of Magical Experience Religion : None Explorer: Jason is a natural born explorer. He believes that if one stays in the same spot for too long, they will eventually find themselves falling behind so to speak. Liberty: Jason believes everyone has the right to be free. “The debts of our ancestors are not ours as well. Their debtors were bad investors” Untrusting: Jason does not trust everything and finds that all things need investigation before trust is earned. Stubborn: Once Jason makes a decision, he is not easy to convince it is the wrong one. He will allow debate before hand, but once the decision is made... end of discussion. ----------Goals---------- Find people who Jason may become allies with Survive and perhaps even thrive Find a place to call home, permanently Romance, duh ----------Fears---------- Nothing as of yet. Jason has no fear. Fear is only a limiter, and hence only in the way. It is what keeps him alive, but it does not govern his life. This has yet to change. ----------Relationships---------- (None) ----------Current Home(s)---------- (None) ----------More info---------- Languages :Common; Elvish Favorite Food: COOKIES! Favorite Drink: The Blood of his enemies... also Lemonade Favorite animal: Cats, typically the longer haired species Favorite location: Trees, trees are nice. Good for travelling, good for anything. You can even eat them! Favorite activity: Adventuring Favorite flower: Blue Orchids Favorite color: Turquoise

Pact of Man and Mali’ker, 1703 Preface: The Sable Principality of Vira’ker has seen fit to establish contact with His Imperial Majesty and the Empire of Man. As such it is by His Imperial Majesty’s will that the Empire of Man and the Sable Principality of Vira’ker enter into a defensive pact to ensure the mutual success of both nations. Terms, agreed upon by both nations: Both nations agree to entering in a defensive pact, as such both nations agree to provide military support it the other nation is threatened. Both nations agree to permit free and safe passage of the other faction’s citizens within their lands IN NOMINE DEI HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY, Augustus I of the House of Horen, Emperor of Man, King of Renatus, Marna, Mardon, Salvus, Seventis, Savoy, Courland, Santegia, and Norland, Duke of the Crownlands, Cascadia, Avar, and Frederica, Count of Carolustadt, Alamar, Frederica, Thesmer, Thelen, Lorath, and Cantal, Baron of Darkwood, Gravelhold, Fidei Defensor, Protector of the Heartlanders, Highlanders, Farfolk, etcetera. His Highness, John d’Anpalais, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prince of Beaufort His Highness, Vulnir Syllar of Clan Syllar, Prince of the Sable Principality of Vira’ker, Protector of Mali’ker and the Onyx

Previous Stories: Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: We have reached Part 4 in this series, ending the first arc in the “Key to Oblivion” stories. Thank you for reading the storyline so far and I hope you enjoy “The Darkness Within,” the final story of the first arc. ~(+)=~=(+)~ Some stories don’t get to end with a joyous note. Others have far more twisted ends to them while the people are left with a sobering fact of life. We all can die and never come back. This was especially true to Karren Myrsta when his throat was slit back in the Druid Grove by Nivndil some years ago. He had left the world while the September Prince still roamed the land, terrorizing the population and leaving him with the sense of powerlessness that drove him to begging for death. Now, he resided in a world that offered no quarter with demons wishing to end his pathetic life so that he may never exist again. When his grandfather “dreamed” of seeing him as he was now, in the middle of transitioning into a beast of corruption and wielding dangerous magical power, he did not wish for him to see how far he had fallen and how close he was to turning into a being of pure hatred-tortured relentlessly by those that resided within the hellworld of The Pit. It was the one thing that he had wished to never lose-the good memories of him, tainted forever by how far that he had become-and the one thing that forced him to cling to dear life within this hellscape. To Jarsek, however, the sight of his grandson being a figure of pure heart and how he became something frightening was enough to break his very heart-shatter his core into millions of pieces. Ascended could not help him with this kind of problem as it affected him deeply to the point of wanting to die, but there was another force deeper within that fought to keep him alive. There was no other way for him to stay alive, broken as he was, besides taking up the darkness within his very being and letting it run free within him. Surging like wildfire and feeling cold to the touch, Jarsek would begin to learn about this driving force of Creation and even attempt to understand it through how it would react to certain situations, but however, something felt like it was being prevented from unleashing itself fully into his body, acting like a powerful restraint that would appear to be indestructible. Not a single clue on how to release that preventive restraint, Jarsek had only one option left to him at the time: begin to learn about the darkness within. This would motivate him into something that would either drive him into insanity or elevate him into power, depending on how fate had willed it. He wanted to know what this darkness was inside of him to the point of asking critical questions that would prove to be even more complex to answer as they simple to ask. “What is this feeling? Where did it come from? Is this part of our curse?” would three of the many questions that would plague his mind for years to come until he either gained a satisfactory answer or not. Critical questions that would endlessly plague him to the point that they would be burned forever to his core, questioning everything. Unbeknownst to even most High Elves, curiosity can be a powerful motivator for either the good or the bad choices made every second of every day, but Jarsek was the most afflicted in this case. Intelligent and witty, he would try his best to understand how this feeling within him worked and what it was truly... ~(+)=~=(+)~ While Jarsek had this feeling within him, something else was brewing in a currently unknown continent known as Arcas. Something that was not always so simple as the lands were brimming with life and suppressing that which was attuned to the darkness, keeping it in perpetual slumber. At least, for now...

Previous Stories: https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/179359-the-dream-part-1/ https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/179386-cursed-bloodline-part-2/ ~(+)=~=(+)~ It doesn’t end. Ozais and Jarsek went into the town of Belvitz to find all the residents asleep, but strangely enough, Jarsek wasn’t feeling the darkness within him surge through his veins as it did the last time he was in the presence of his master. Even as his true name was called out, something lingered deep within his soul-eating away piece by piece of his ethereal light. He didn’t feel like something invaded his soul or was growing inside of it, but it felt hollow-empty from within. He didn’t wish to seek out the help of the Ascended, who might help him understand why his soul felt hollow inside, or seek any kind of magical attention due to the fact that Jarsek didn’t understand what was happening to him. Then he felt his mind slip, replaced with a dark hollowness that seemed to entrance him. Jarsek kept muttering how cold it felt, even though it wasn’t horribly cold in the town of Belvitz. This coldness radiated deep within his soul and if he was touched, his skin would’ve felt cold to the touch. It wasn’t any magic that affected him, unless you counted what has happened to him thus far. From the dream to the bloodline curse awakening deep within him, Jarsek has had an adventure that most people would try to back out of once they realized where the story was going. Unfortunately, Jarsek was not the type to back out and as a consequence, he would suffer great torment and pain from within. Merely half an hour passed before he regained his senses by Ozais slapping some sense back into him, but it was not without its cost. The bloodline curse took hold within his soul and then would spread to his body, slowly beginning to break it down and further exhaust the young high elf. Little did Jarsek know that some parts of his dream weren’t just symptoms of depression, but of something else. Something else that if awakened, would change Jarsek’s life forever. If people cared to notice his eyes, they could tell that the ambition had been reignited, but not in the way they would’ve expected. His eyes were carrying the Blighted Fire, a darkened flame that burned two types of colors: Black and Purple. The blighted fire wouldn’t mean much in the present time, but no one could predict what it would mean in the future.... A hollowed soul... A blighted fire, reignited... The pain of rememberance... Death of one they loved... A will, shattered by false hopes and dreams, turning to ill... Something was brewing deep within the high elf that would continue to fester until it either broke him or forced him to commit acts of impurity and murder. A hunger was beginning to take form within his soul that not even he could fight alone-a hunger that would become lethal. This was something else.... Something that can blight even the sharpest of sight and quench the fire within. There was an evil within that wanted free.....

Previous story: ~(+)=~=(+)~ I felt the darkness take hold when I stared into the eyes of my master Ozais, along with the insanity that strangely flowed into my inner darkness-fueling it. It felt replenishing for me to feel my blood grow cold with my darkness flowing through after decades of burying it deep within. The pain and suffering I went through.... I finally understood why I was a good soldier.... The Myrsta bloodline always had some kind of darkness within them, awaiting to be awakened. From their inception, each of those within the clan-either man or woman-felt their darkness be dormant within and the urge to try to coax it awake. Some of the Myrsta bloodline-like Karren prior to his death-had a greater urge to awake and sate their inner darkness while others-like Jarsek-did not have such powerful urges. It doesn’t take much for their darkness to be coaxed to the surface, however, because darkness can come in varying forms. From wishing to know or experience dark magic to even the simplest task of killing those either innocent or otherwise, those within the Myrsta clan can coax their darkness out to the surface, but with a severe cost of losing part of themselves to their dark depths. No magic can undo this, sadly, because it is a firm belief of those within the Myrsta bloodline that those who carry Myrsta blood-even changing their name would not work-within their veins are cursed to feel their inner darkness take hold and make them suffer in varying ways, though no one is sure just how many ways this darkness can make the person suffer. Shades cannot shade those within the Myrsta bloodline due to this belief, but it doesn’t mean that they aren’t susceptible to the dark thought. When Karren was still alive and wishing to be shaded by an old friend of his, the shade felt the darkness of their family curse and threatened to not shade the boy and his “split personality” if he continued to seek being shaded. What the shade did not realize at the time was that a single act of denying Karren that which he wished to have fueled his darkness even more, even to the point of fracturing the boy’s mind. When Ozais, Jarsek’s master, looked into his eyes, he found the darkness take root within his mind-fueled by the Graven’s Eye and coaxed into being. It turned him into a soldier of darkness, making him a Dark Phoenix. To those who are not aware, a Dark Phoenix is the physical form of a Myrsta fallen into darkness-never to be returned to the light. Madness and in the presence of a dark creature made Jarsek’s darkness truly come alive and nearly wipe away the man’s personality that he worked hard to create, but even the family curse could not completely change the person they once were. They couldn’t be returned to the light by any magical means, of course, but there are always pathways back to the light if needed. Though Jarsek now felt his curse take root, that did not alleviate his nightmares about his grandson. When Jarsek was shot and knocked out in Sutica, he was sent back into that hellworld of a nightmare. This time, there was endless screaming along with the ever-burning fire and brimstone accompanying the sight of the black armored figure. It was also different in the fact that the armored figure was turning to face him directly. The figure seemed to have black eyes within his helmet and at his side, the figure had a sheathed greatsword with some kind of magical symbols on the scabbard. Symbols that Jarsek did not understand. He looked to be the same height as Jarsek, but the black eyes within the helmet seemed to be soulless, unlike his master’s eyes. The figure would begin to speak in a gravelly voice to Jarsek... “Grandfather?” The figure would ask with a sad tone. “How can you be here?” “Karren? Is that you underneath all that armor?” Jarsek would ask his grandson, almost pleased to see him once again. “Yes, but you need to leave grandfather.” Karren would say with a small undertone of urgency. “If you stay here, you won’t be able to get back.” “Back?” Jarsek would ask Karren, confused as to what he means. “To Atlas. You aren’t done, not yet.” Karren replied, sounding a little joyous to see his grandfather. “Though I wish I could hug you, you need to wake up.” “Where are you, my grandson?” Jarsek would ask, shedding tears of both joy and sorrow. “Somewhere that only the dead can survive. Barely.” Karren would reply as he would withdraw his sword in preparation of a fight. “Now go!” Jarsek would want to reply with saying how much he loved him and how badly he wished he was there to save his poor grandson from the darkness, but it was when he heard his true name that he felt the chains of life begin to force him awake and suffer through the pain of being shot in the arm. His anger took root as he remembered where his grandson had been this time and that made his inner darkness grow even more within. He was not going to allow himself to fall into that darkness again.... He woke up in his room-hours later-as he didn’t sleep easily last night. He would have a long day ahead of him, but there was a lingering question in his head. Where would the dead survive barely and how can I get back there?

Skin REQ I need a skin for my character (elf). For more details, contact me on discord (Bany#4241) . Remember what I will pay.

The dream happened again. Jarsek wasn’t sure as to why he had the dreams of his dead grandson Karren, but something felt strange down to his core. Each dream was the same every time he closed his eyes and let his exhaustion take over from the day’s events. These dreams fueled him every day, but the fuel was mortal and it ate away at his soul little by little as if they affected him on a much deeper scale than what any magic could do to him. To those he considered friends, he looked tired more and more with each passing day. His once-glowing ambition that burned within his steel gaze had grown dimmer and colder as his essence was being affected by this strange coldness he felt within. Within the privacy of his home, he had grown sad and his intense feeling of depression had begun to ravage through his veins-sometimes even attracting attention from the outside. Though no one could understand just how sad he truly was. How badly his grandson’s death-that happened years ago-affected him and how he bottled it up. This dream that kept cropping up in Jarsek’s nighttime slumber was not helping to please him, but it made him even sadder. The dream, from what Jarsek could remember, was what he wrote in a journal before he departed to Haelun’or: A dream of fire and brimstone. Jarsek would appear in a giant place full of fire and lava, full of creatures that he did not easily recognize and was scared of. To this warrior high elf, he wasn’t sure why that he dreamed of the place that Iblees would call home, but nonetheless he would try to force himself to wake up to no avail. He felt like the world was too hellish for his steel-like determination, but something kept urging him to try to survive the hellish world around him. With no other chance, Jarsek would try to follow the urge as if it was his only guide in this hell he found himself in. It would continue to go through the fire and brimstone landscape until he would wake up, drenched in sweat. The high elf would, each time before he would wake up, see a black armoured figure with the strength of a hundred men with some kind of spectral black aura. A pure black aura, blacker than any dark magic he knew. The dream, Jarsek would come to realize, was an omen. A powerful dark omen that would change his world forever...

In the quiet hours of the night, a small, robed figure slowly comes to a halt in front of the statues of Cerridwen and Cernnunos within the Sparrow Grove. She slowly kneels, laying a book on the steps, wrapped in leaves and tied together with handmade rope. Quietly she whispers a prayer, departing. The book has been left behind, for the priesthood. The Emerald Way The Way of Will, The Emerald Path Perfection is unattainable, But it is no excuse not to strive for it, This henceforth is my quest, My ideal, my call. I will try when my arms grow too weary, And face the unbeatable foe. I will bear with unbearable sorrow, And I will right the unrightable wrong, What is sickness to the body of Emerald? What matters pain? For each time I fall, I shall rise again, And woe be unto the wicked! For I am Emerald I will endure all things, and be vigilant in my stand, From this day until the end of my days. The Oath of Emerald, scribed by the Oracle Hurricane The Emerald Way holds no place amongst the annals of history. I, it’s creator, am no ancient mali of yore. Yet the way has taken root within our culture, and it grows now. It began with the pilgrimage of the Oracle Awaiti Aureon, who took to the wilds in search of a solution to bring together the Naelurir of Caras Eldar once again. Over her time in the wilds, she scribed the beginnings of the philosophy, and laid down the framework for the creeds of the wild faith. The Emerald Way was born then as the first creed of the wild faith. From the birth of the first creed, others were motivated to kindle the beginnings of their own creeds. What followed was a renaissance of philosophy within the wild faith, and the birth of the Ichorian Creed, and the Sage Way. Their own separate and unique philosophies. In the darkest reaches of the forests, the Ichorians dwelled, seeking to cultivate raw strength to match the power of the primal wilds. The sages took to their own, focusing on the balance within, ignoring the material need. But those that followed the Emerald Way took a different path. After the exodus of the Ithelanen and the Torena seeds to the Gladewynn Company, the Oracle left her people, leaving the philosophy in the hands of her students.Within the budding nation, her students kept to the ways. To endure, to fight for what is right and just, and to revere the aspects in all things. Core Values Indomitable Will To be understanding, yet absolute. To not bow, or bend, or break. For the Emeraldians know that true strength does not come from the body, but from the will. Great Courage Not to be without fear. But to recognize that there is something more important than fear, something that outshines fear. From this, will is born. Emotional Resilience To stand strong despite unspeakable horror. Despite loss and anger. To be able to think with a clear mind, while the world crashes down around you. Foresight “The Storm Rises” To look ahead, and prepare for the worst. The key is to look forward without becoming fearful or paranoid of what has not yet come. I pray caution. “And Emerald shall rise to meet it.” Philosophy of the Emerald Way The Emerald Way can be summed up in its axiom “To will change upon the self is to change the world. Only through will can all balance be attained” This axiom rests upon several truths. The self is malleable. Changeable. Nothing is untouchable by great change. The world can be changed by the effort of the self. Our actions cause change. Balance is gained through change. Change is obtained through will. Will is forged by choice. As followers of the Emerald Way, we use these truths as a guide for our lives. Cerridwen The Mother. Lady of Life. Bearer of all fruits. Cerridwen. She holds many names, and titles in our faith. She is the mother of life, the shaper of all that is living. She is often depicted as a beautiful woman, carrying a staff. She created all that is living, each and every tree and frog and tiger. It is to her that we owe our fruitful harvests, and it is to her that we thank for the shade of the great elder trees. We shape her trees into homes, that we may be sheltered from the storm. Think of life itself as water. And think of every creature and plant as clay vases. Cerridwen created all of the vases, and filled them with this water of life. In the Emerald Way, we view her as the great unifier. We are all united by these waters of life, and each and every descendant carries this water of life inside of them. Cernunnos The Father. The Horned Lord. Strength. Cernunnos. He holds many names, and many titles in our faith. He is the lord of the hunt, and the father of strength. He is often depicted as a horned man, carrying a bow, or a spear. It is to him that we owe our bountiful hunts, and it is to him that we are granted our strength. We enjoy full bellies, and great feasts because of him. But despite this, many view him as lord over death as well. After all, he chooses what lives and dies by granting strength and taking it. But the Emerald Way views him in a different light. He is instead, the lord of change. Instead of drying the oceans, he is the tide, ever changing the world around him. And he is the current, ever shifting life around. In the Emerald Way, there is no death. There is only life. A corpse feeds the grasses, and enriches that life. Suddenly, more grass arises. We are fed, and we give birth to our sons and daughters. Life never leaves this world. It only shifts from form to form. Think back to the vases and waters in Cerridwen’s passage. Instead of breaking the vases, Cernunnos merely pours water from vase to vase, and shapes new ones. There is great peace in this. I take heart knowing that I will live on this world even when the last elf has fallen. I. Morality as Inner Balance On yesterday's eve, I witnessed a sight most common, though for some unknown reason, it struck me strange. An elk was torn into by a beast, and ripped into, to eat. A common occurrence, yes, this is known. Tis’ the way of nature, the beasts eat the common gazelle, and so on. The predator eats the prey, and the prey feeds on what it can. There is no evil in it, the predator must eat as much as the prey, and the prey must eat what it can, and there is only survival in it. The predator feels naught for devouring its prey, nor does the prey when it grazes upon the grasses, despite life being taken from the world. Such is the unseen way of all natural life. Life passes on and on and through each moving piece of it. There is no evil or good in the natural balance, only what is and what survives. Such also is the way of druidism, our gifts are given without thought of good and evil, but with only this delicate balance of the cycle of life in mind. Druids are expected to be as neutral as nature in this sense, are we not? It is the duty of druids to correct the balance, wheresoever it may be corrupted, without heed for borders. It is our duty to correct it, we must. We have been charged by the aspects above to do our sacred duties, and the order has decided we must do it this way, completely neutrally. But this charge ignores a most fundamental principle of our life as descendants, of how we have grown and developed to live with morality, to have the sense of good and evil, and all in between. It is what makes us what we are, it is what gives us our humanity, and this makes us truly and beautifully unique. We are not a part of this balance the aspects have created for us, but we surely live with it. Though to attempt to live without morality, to attempt to live neutrally and strive to think as the aspects do, without heed of what is good and evil, this is unnatural of our own being. It makes us only as simple as the beasts and prey that are in the balance we seek so desperately to protect. We cannot, and we should not deny what we are, how we think, but we must find a balance of our own, and look over the balance of nature with a sense of right and wrong. To live along with both the balance and the descendants, separately, yet together. In this, we are allowed to exercise our sense of right and wrong and do our duty to protect the balance with great strength. It is not the nature of men to keep out of everything, we, as Malin's kin, must be involved in the survival of our people, and our culture, for surely the theatre of the world seeks to stamp us out yet. One would say it distracts us from our duty, to be a part of a nation. This is not the case, nay. I might even say it better allows us to perform our duties. While we cannot live as neutral, we are able to do our best to spread what is good, and what is just. It is of the utmost importance that druids maintain strong ties to the world they live in and protect, they cannot fly above it all. Neutrality is a disease that leaves men weak, and staggeringly alone, as many beasts are. Fellow priests of the balance, I say to you. Do not catch the disease of neutrality. Hone your sense of right and wrong, fight always for the path of good for you and your people. Do not become unnatural men, stripped of all sense of what is good or evil in the world. In morality, we find our strength together. Apathy is a fate worse than death, for even a rotting corpse feeds new life. II. Will Within Balance We are inherently separate from the thing we protect so dearly, as druii. The balance consists of life around us, the seen and hidden movements of nature ever moving in a circle around us. The birds and trees die out, but there is ever a forest standing, no? Songbirds fill the air, do they not? We are ever surrounded by life, yet death lurks and strikes here and there. No matter how oft or how heavy death’s strikes may be, life ever moves on. Many druii take our duty to protect the balance as a sign that the world is weak. It is the opposite indeed, for the balance of the world knows a will far greater than our own. Life will find a way, no matter how damaged it may be. We druii exist only as a means of preserving the balance’s state, and correcting it where we find imbalance. Yet as I say, we are inherently separate from the balance of the world. Instead, we hold a force of our own within, potentially even equal to this primordial balance of the world. The balance of the self. The Emerald way is, at its core, the way of two balances. One cannot neglect this balance of the self when protecting the balance of the world, for it is far more fragile, and far weaker. This balance, in a way, is even more important than that which the druii are sworn to protect. With this separation from the balance of the world, the circle of life is entirely indifferent to us, to our very being. We have little sway over it, though many druids seem to rely on it for their source of strength. They use their gifts frivolously, and have grown dangerously dependant on them. They fail to realize that to rely on their gifts to do protect is dangerous, and leaves men weak. No man or woman can hope to fully control this primordial force, and they are left with atrophied bodies, defenseless without their gifts. They fail to realize that true strength comes from within, and that in order to change the balance, and protect it, we must cultivate our own will to match the strength of the world’s will. While faith is important, true strength is drawn from our own volition; The power to use your will, which is equally important as obtaining power itself. Never live for the sake of another, or an ideology. Live for yourself, and no other. With that, we empower ourselves to carry out the will of the aspects, to protect the balance. III. The Nature of Will A man can change everything if he is willing to sacrifice for it. The greatest changes require the strongest wills, And we must give much for the salvation of this world. In the beginning, we have nothing. Our privilege is the dirt. In such darkness, our will guides us to light Perspective pierces the veil of dark. Our birthright is our failings, and the pain we suffer. When darkness comes, we can rely on no other to face it for us. Only through our willpower can balance be attained. IV. Beings of the Present Self The balance does not, nor can it be made to be still for long. All things move until they pass on, and even then their energies move ever forward into other forms, other vessels that will move on and on. And from movement, movement is born, ever arching outward. You, druii, are no exception to this commotion. We constantly expend our energies in creating islands of quiet within our lives, trying to still the waves that march ever onward, yet it cannot last. Time encroaches, it consumes all things. Fling yourself to the waves of life, druii, engage in the here and now, and you will find that the key to living is your own will. The will to see life for its flaws, and the will to better it, to create your own waves. One cannot focus on the waves that have long since passed, the echoes of feelings you once felt. The past does hold merit in giving us its teachings, but from there, move on. It holds nothing for you. Let the past die, and use what you have learned to shape your present. With the lessons of the past, we can focus on dealing with what is here and now, with the waves that crash over us. Use what you have learned to enact your will, and shape the waves around you. And perhaps prevent a tidal wave from overwhelming you in the future by dispersing it before it happens. By changing your destiny. There is no lasting stillness. It is impossible. Accept this. Know it in your bones. Watch the world happening around you, and through your will, forge your own echoes, your own cadence in this world. Live in the moment, and your will can shape the future. V. The Balance of the Self My words earlier in these pages were far too simple, I’m afraid, for they leave out a great deal in seeking to express the point, but they failed to truly explain my deeper meaning. Earlier, I stated that the balance within consists of the will to act on the sense of good and evil. Though I do not refute that, I’m afraid that the truer meaning of the inner balance is lost on such words. Good and evil are a point of view, different to each person. I have found better words to explain such a dichotomy. Instead of viewing the inner balance as the senses of good and evil, replace such words with selfishness and selflessness. To act for the self, and to act for others. This opens the situations to all by providing a common meaning. You cannot have one without the other in life. Pure selfishness only harms others, and amassing your own power can lead you to enact your desires as opposed to working toward the balance. Instead, one must use the powers gained from selfishness to act selflessly in life. To sacrifice for the good of others, and of the balance. But beware, lliran. Pure selflessness is just as destructive as pure selfishness. Benevolence for the sake of benevolence leaves you in a worse position than when you started, it weakens you and sacrifices your own strength to help. In addition, it robs others of their struggles, their own opportunities to learn and gain their own strength. Never sacrifice your own strength to rob another of their struggles. As I said before. Recognize the value in letting people fight their own battles, and they will be all the stronger for it. Selfishness for the sake of selflessness… this is how we can protect the balance. By enacting our own will through this, we have the strength to alter the balance and preserve it. This inner balance is not inherent to druids, or even the balance that they protect. It is inherent to the descendants, this ability to act in selfishness and selflessness. It is where inner strength is drawn, the will to enact change upon the world. Such a principle applies to all aspects of life, and so it is important that druids hone their will to act on this sense. A druid who has mastered their ability to act on this sense will go far. A soldier who has mastered it will find his enemies falling before him. A farmer who has mastered it will know only bountiful harvests. It applies to all paths through life. If we cannot find the strength to act on this and hold balance in our sense of selfishness and selflessness, how then can we hope to protect the primordial balance of the world? We cannot. VI. The Absence of Understanding The Lord and Lady have blessed you with eyes to see and ears to hear, and a whole world to experience. Yet we remain blind and deaf to most of it. I remain blind, despite teachings that were meant to open my eyes and help me see the world for what it was. We consider it a great tragedy when one falls to darkness, when they stray away from the teachings of the order, and when they fall into hands that turn them to violence and disparity. Many of our students are failing, falling to darkness in their belief continuously. Those that remain follow blindly to their teachers, like sheep, unable to think past the surface of druidism. Most haven't thought yet to dive in. We are missing something within our teachings. Missing a piece that keeps the ambitious prodigies away from darkness, and a piece that allows others to break their chains and to be free from the slavery of secular thought. The teachings of our order, I find, ignore the dark of the world. They preach only the light, and are blind for it. I have sought the contrast myself, the dark to compliment the light, not to oppose it. I will not tell what I have learned here, only that the current teachings do not hold all of the answers you need. By learning what they have not taught me, I have seen what makes us weak. If you are to truly understand, then you too must seek this contrast, not adherence to this single ideal. To believe in an ideal is to be willing to betray it, to look where it may forbid you to go. It is a lesson of strength. If you do believe in an ideology, then find its opposite, so that you may reinforce it by correcting its flaws. Become what strengthens an ideology, not a slave to it by following it dogmatically. Without this contrast, we are but marionettes, tangled in the strings of weaknesses in our ideologies. VII. The Value of Struggle and Self Reliance Pure benevolence weakens the self, and those to whom it is cast upon. Do not roam the world, dispensing pity and self sacrifice unto others. By giving others the chance to fight their own struggles, internally and externally, we give them the chance to cultivate their own will. Do not be a thief in the night, stealing strength from others where you would mask it with benevolence. If you truly wish to help another, recognize the value in letting them cultivate their strength and will through their struggles. When they triumph, their victory will be far greater than it would be if you would help them. Through your own struggles, cultivate this inner will, and you will find the path to balance. Create a strict reliance on yourself, rather than your connection to the balance, to the thing you protect. Too many druids of our age focus on honing their gifts to better serve the lord and lady above on this earth. I ask you, strip them of their gifts, and what do they become? Only empty shells, incapable of enacting their duty to the balance without the gifts of the aspects. And that is no true disciple of the balance. Without will, we are nothing. This brings us to a fundamental question: If a druid loses her powers, is she still a druid? The way you would answer would depend on your view. If you say no, you believe inherently that only those with the gifts can make a difference in this world, and you are wrong. The devout, druii without gifts, are simply those with greater will. With the proper will, everything can be changed, such is the nature of will itself. Druidism is something greater than simply gifts. Those that would choose death over a life without their gifts are those whose wills are weak, and were unworthy of them in the first place. VIII. The Nature of Life and Death The Mother above creates and cares for life throughout the world, and spreads it over the land. Helps it grow, nurtures it. Heals it. Guides it. The energy of life exists through all living things. Tt surrounds us, penetrates us. It binds the world together, and unifies it all. It is fluid, like the water that carries it. This is known. Death does not exist. This life created by the mother never leaves this world, it merely passes from vessel to vessel. The fallen elk feeds the grasses, and the prey feeds the predator. On and on the cycle moves, life being poured from vase to vase. It holds many different shapes and forms, but at its core, all forms are simply life. We are no exception to this. It is because of this that the role of the father is oft misunderstood, however. He is not death, nor is he the hunt. His name is strength, not for his ability to take life, or hold mastery over it. But for his power to move the energies of life from one vessel to the next. It is from his will that the balance exists. It is from his own will that life moves from vessel to vessel, never stagnating, never finding stillness. It is due to this change that life is truly precious, and each form just as valuable as the last. So where do we lay among all of these vessels? Where does our power come from? We cannot define ourselves by our ability to take life, to control it even or possess it. To do so is to have nothing, truly. Death does not exist, and to define yourself by your ability to usher it, your strength is as fleeting as grains of sand in the wind. But if we define ourselves by our ability to will great change in the world, to move and change the vessels of life as Cernunnos does? That is true strength, lliran. This is what the focus of druii should be. Cultivating the will to usher change. IX. Facing Conflict I speak much against a neutral stance, and this much holds true. One should always act when they have the opportunity to, and when there is greater suffering in the world. But I have not always been clear on what it is to act on, or how one should carry themselves. In my life, I have been through many struggles of my own, and this is the view I have learned thus far, and it is the view I shall give unto the Emerald Way, that others may find a better way to approach their problems. Live your life, and act with great respect and wisdom, for you must be a beacon of change for the world, a fount of knowledge and veneration. Without strong principles to guide us through our own morality, what then can we enact our will from? A principled life, one with a strong basis for which we act is the only life worth living. But what is principle without the perspective to see the world around you as it is? Through rigorous meditation we gain clearer perspective, and can find the solution to any problem. When on your journey through life, take one step at a time, look up from your feet and observe the living world around you. Speak to all you may meet and soak in all the details you can, learn what comes to you. Life is to be savoured, taken slowly. Rashness is the path toward greater suffering. Will. Principle. Perspective. These are three values that the Emerald Way promotes. Through these values, act with a tempered and clear mind, and seek always to see more than what you are shown. From these values, we find the strength to change anything in this world. Even destiny. X. The Place of Gifts and Tools I have said before, the druids rely on the gifts far too much. It overtakes their being, and in some cases, druids cannot function in day to day life without the use of their gifts. It becomes a crutch, one that would leave a druid crippled without it. Such deep rooted dependency is something to be avoided, something to be shut down and moved away from. And even in our divine mission, many rely entirely on this aspect-given gift to do our work. Without them, I don’t doubt that many would fail in their mission, that they would cease to protect the balance without their precious gifts. And I sense an even more sinister plot. That many druids are here only for the power that they may receive from the gifts. Devotion is a scarce thing to see these days, true devotion to the lord and lady above. Many druids fall, and when they lose their gifts, they simply move onto something else that may give them the power they seek to enact their wills. Give many of the druids of the order only silence, and you will truly see who follows the aspects. But you may see this as me having a negative view of the gifts, which cannot be further from the truth. I have only a negative view of druids that rely on such gifts, that depend on them, sometimes to the extent of needing them to live. Such reliance is weakness, and weakens the order as a whole. However, the gifts themselves are not to blame. We have many tools at our disposal to aid us in our mission of preserving the balance of life. Our mind, our physical strength, our charisma, our words, and yes, our gifts. The gifts are but one singular tool with many uses, just like the other tools. You do not need the gifts in order to protect the balance, just like you do not need the gifts in order to be a druid. To believe that one must have the gifts in order to carry out our divine mission is vanity, don’t you see it? I would rather a devout person without gifts that protects the balance to the best of their ability rather than a druid who uses their gifts for personal gain, or one that seeks personal power. The Order should enforce teachings of these inherent tools that we already possess, and their uses in protecting the balance, rather than preparing them to rely on their gifts. Teaching students that only their new power can preserve the balance is a dangerous and self destructive way of thinking, and is the reason behind many of the greatest failings of our order. There is a silent lust for power within our teachings, I think, and we are utterly blind to it. Always, the next step in learning is to master a new gift. At least, this is what I have seen in the world. There is a great flaw in this method. XI. Amongst the Shadows, the Hunter Preys “When the darkness comes, we can rely on no other to face it.” A hard truth that rings out in the Nature of Will. We are alone in this world, and we can rely on no other, be it a nation, or a friend, to protect us from the evils that seek to cause imbalance in ourselves and in the world around us. Sure, others can assist you in your journey to find balance, but ultimately, we are on our own on this path. This includes when the walls of our world come crashing down around us, and when others draw blades in offense. Remember this lesson though, amongst the shadows the hunter preys. Stick to the shadows and become the hunter, not the hunted any longer. The wild hunter works alone, or perhaps in a smaller group, staying away until the moment is right to strike. Be the wild hunter, and stick to the shadows like paste, be they physical shadows or metaphorical. A hunter can navigate through the webs that society weaves just as well as the darkest depths of the forests. Watch always. Strike without warning. Wait for the opportune moment to strike. And train with but a close teacher watching, no others. Do not show others your strength until the last possible moment. Hold your strengths, your tools close to your chest, and they become all the more powerful. When traipsing through society’s webs, blend in. Do not draw attention to yourself. To walk the path of a druid is to live in service to the two balances. Fight for both of them, and little else. Use violence for necessity and defense, never for indulgence or boasting. Survival is key. Balance is key. XII. The Power of Identity In all things, know who you are. Your identity as a person is imperative to the two balances. Control your identity. Form it. Shape it. Let no other have reign over it. For when your identity is controlled, you are controlled, and your ability to serve the balance diminishes. Your name is your own, and no other’s. In terms of your tools, it is among your strongest. Forge a new identity if you must, in order to break the chains placed upon you by others. Take no titles but those you forge for yourself. Self control is the path to true will. XIII. The Importance of Endurance as Mali As mali, our people are fragile. We are few in number, but long lived. Much can happen within our lives, and we must be prepared to face everything. Be it death, war, famine, or genocide. Be it the murders that haunt us, or the misdeeds and sins of the many. Be it our own failures. We must endure through all things. We must stand at the highest peaks, until the wind tears the mountain into the sea. We must live amongst the forests until they no longer stand. We must endure a thousand wars and watch the blood of our brothers and sisters stain the grasses. This is why we must value endurance to the point of zealotry. We must tune the mind and body to last through all these things. We must constantly stand tall, or we are doomed to fail in our mission as druii. As the world changes around you, remain unmoved by it. You have a duty to your brothers and sisters to endure. But more importantly, you have a duty to yourself, and to the aspects to endure. XIV. On Mani I have noticed something that quite disturbs me. It has brought questions that have shaken my being. In the decline of the Dominion, before we were split to the core, I was beginning to see the rise of the worship of mani. At first, I was quite pleased to see it, watching the faithful delve deeper into the mysteries that the aspects laid before us. But before long, I saw trouble brewing. The faithful began directing their prayers only unto the mani. They rose their names higher and higher, and I watched as many began to favor the statues of the mani over those of the aspects themselves. Before long, our faith began dividing itself yet again, its members grouping themselves by their patron mani. When I saw this, I suspected a schism to pass, yet I did little to change the fate I saw before me. And before I knew it, the followers of Morea and Moccus led an exodus from our lands. This disheartens me. Watching my brothers and sisters place others over the aspects themselves. Perhaps it was the natural progression of this faith, I do not know. But even after I watched as many followed down this path, I knew that the aspects are above all. The Emerald Way will hold no mani of its own, that we may show our reverence to the aspects above all else. Revere the mani, yes. Worship the mani, yes. But in all things, the aspects reign over all. The Emerald Path The dedicancy of an aspiring druid is a path that varies greatly between circles, and even between kindred druii. All of our brothers and sisters have been birthed from these various dedicancies, and many great druids have been birthed from it. Yet despite these successes, we’ve been failing our students. I’ve seen two extremes of our failure within the Naelurir. Our students become mindless sheep, unable and unwilling to explore the deeper mysteries of our world. They cannot act until they’re ordered to, and are often the victims of sloth. They do not carry out the tasks required by our priesthood. And the other side are the independent minds. The ambitious ones with their own agenda in mind. Ones that seek power before faith. These are the dark ones that come from our order. We are responsible for them, for their actions as an order. We’ve always blamed them, their own passions and shortcomings, but we’ve never pointed a finger to ourselves. There is great fault in our teachings, a lack of tempering for these minds that leads them to search elsewhere for better answers. Thus, the basic teachings of the Emerald Way; Faith Studies After taking their oath to the aspects in blood, a strong foundation and understanding of the wild faith is important in fostering a deeper understanding from which we can truly become independent thinkers. To pass through the trials, one must have these foundations prebuilt, that they may fully utilize the tasks they’ve been given. Therefore, before tasks can begin, a student should have in depth instruction on at least the following topics, if not further. The Core Teachings Cerridwen, Cernunnos, The Balance, The Mani The History of Mali Taynei’hiylu, Irrin Sirame, Seed Era, Modern History Survival Medicine and Combat Studies of the Mysteries The Eternal Forest, Rituals, Prayers, and Offerings The Insight of Creeds To search for deeper insight. This is the purpose of examining the three creeds of the aspectist faith. It is one thing to know your duties, to perform them to the best of your ability. It is another to fully understand why you do them, and to find a deeper meaning in them that may echo in all of your actions. A creed is not something to tell you how to live your life, nor to tell you how exactly to do your duties. They are simply ways for finding a deeper understanding of druidism and aspectism in your life, and connecting the self to the balance in ways unheard of before. Thus, it should be required of all dedicants that they examine each of them, learn from their heralds about each of them. To understand the contrast betwixt the three creeds is of the utmost importance, even when dedicated to the Emerald Path alone. Path of an Acolyte To further prove dedication to the aspects themselves, and to prove the prowess of the self, dedicants must serve the priesthood as unattuned persons, assisting their guides in protecting the balance through whatever means are required. Whether that be defending a druid during their travels and in their duty, or witnessing a conversion. Through their time as an acolyte, a dedicant should learn how to act as a priest, and how a priest must carry themselves. The Trials After an acolyte has taken the path, and shadowed a priest, the priest overseeing them will announce them to be ready for the trials. The priest must present them either before two high priests, or two oracles to be judged if they are worthy to become priests. If found wanting, they will be returned to the path of an Acolyte. If they have been judged worthy, they will begin their trials to ascend to priesthood. Which trials to be taken are up to the priest overseeing their acolyte. If one has joined a creed, then they may follow the trials of the creed. If not, a teacher may start them on their own trials. If a teacher has not developed their own tasks, they may follow the ones below. Trial of Knowledge: The acolyte must write a thesis on the lessons of the wild faith, and of the Emerald Way to show their understanding and provide a new perspective on either of the three to show critical thinking. If they can find another way to show what they have learned, they may show it that way. It will be left to the judgement of the priest overseeing. Trial of Steel: An acolyte must show great courage and bravery, be it through fighting a great enemy, or facing down against a great evil. Defeating a dark creature, or fighting in a war. Any great feat of bravery must be shown. Trial of Endurance: An acolyte must endure great hardship, struggle, pain, or loss. Be it through battle, or the rending of flesh. Battle scars may suffice. If an acolyte cannot endure loss, or pain, how can they be expected to uphold their own character, and that of the order? Trial of Reflection: Give dedicant peyote or other herb that makes them disoriented. Then, take him to a mountain nearby with a dagger and nothing else to learn about Cernunnos. To feel that longing for food and to experience the grit of the hunt. They must come back with a kill. (OOC NOTE: For this one, make them write a short story about their character’s experience, like a forum post, as making them emote at nothing while they’re on their own in a forest is boring.) Trial of Faith: Perform a public ritual (Wedding/Last Rites/Warpainting/Leading a group offering), with an elder priest to oversee. OR an acolyte may bring two other mali into the fold of aspectism. Or in some way, the dedicant must demonstrate a considerable knowledge of the wild faith. Either will do. GRAND TRIAL: Dedicant comes up with what they want their grand task to be. Guide has to approve it. Must be Grand Attunement “The gifts do not maketh the priest. The priest maketh the gifts.” - The Oracle, Hurricane After their path has been taken, and their trials complete, it has come time for a priest to be attuned, and to undertake the burden of the two balances.

Previous story “The World Timeline [ET Story]”: =========={(++)}========== “Energy. Mana. Amber. It’s all the same, but under a different name. No magic that is known to those in Atlas is destructive but yet offers creation. At least, not yet...” Some stories don’t end the way you expect it to. From those that offer salvation of the aeguls to those the crave eternal torment of the archdaemons, there is no greater battle than good versus evil. Yet, even though the battle is fought for millennia from the beginning of known Time, we always forget that there is no true evil or true good. Ascended are not truly pure of soul as they wish us to perceive them as and those who wield dark magic are not truly psychotic as many are led to believe. Most of those that wield the powers of the ether do not understand the true consequences of magic and nor would they. At least not at the beginning. Each one of those who wield magic are never able to scratch the true depths of light or dark and are forced to understand little. Until it begins to manifest in its own magics. Shades are merely a drop in the ocean compared to those forces that truly allow casters to do magic beyond the normal capabilities of a descendant. Necromancers are people who see no boundary between the forces of life and death, but are weak in power, even at their greatest of heights. True dark magic is never achieved by simply tapping into the soul and casting spells that remind all of their mortality, but it is when you have suffered through the very depths of pain and torment that even a daemon’s torture would seem like child’s play. That is the power that is behind the magic of darkness. The true forces of Oblivion itself. Born of suffering, of torment, and of pure rage, those that have been through Hell and back can feel their rage grow into a pure destructive force to where even those that walk in the Mindspace would be unable to quell such craving of destruction. The light within their souls becomes no more and transforms into a Black Soul, forcing no more joy or happiness to arise and only the pure dark emotions to exist. No sane person would ever wield this kind of power and survive intact, but even those driven into a pure frenzy of bloodlust, of carnage on a unheard of scale would appear to be normal folk until they let their true banners fly. Masters of concealment and trickery-while being true psychopathic monsters-those that wield this power are forever barred from the Seven Skies and those within the very depths of Hell would writhe in fear of those tormented by such dark feelings. Pure shadows of their former selves-daemonic in nature-they can never truly return to their old lives and for those that suffer in their presence, they are faced with the true face of those possessed by the very dark emotions our souls filter through. Darkened beyond the blackest of nights and eyes that become purest black, those that are faced against such a creature are never intact again.... If they are lucky to escape with their lives. All of existence should tremble in fear of these that succumbed to their pain and rage, but even they are not gods. Merely creatures that live forever-that are bound to their darkest of natures and are quick to respond violently to those who dare to cross their paths. Death lives among those who notice not its presence, but its cold grasp. ==============={(++)}=============== OOC: This isn’t an ET Story and holds no relevance to the previous story, but it is worth mentioning why I created this story. I’ve always been fascinated with dark magic (yes, it’s true) in any fictional story and roleplay server. Even on LotC, it is true that OOC’ly I am fascinated by the concept of Shade Magic, Striga, Necromancy, and even Liches (hence why they are mentioned here in the story), but this fascination is what drives me to create stories with not-yet-existing magics that have truly dark origins and have some kind of tie into those that wield it. Even the concept of Oblivion itself isn’t like my previous illiterations of it, but I strive to make it something that is powerful in its own right and yet offers itself checks and balances. Of course it can be said that I’m a “mega-nerd” for magic, but all I can say is that they aren’t wrong. I do love magic and the endless possibilities it offers to help further a story along (though only in the fantasy genre). Anyways, I do still plan to write up this magic for LotC (while my own rp version of Oblivion is not going to be on LotC since the lore wouldn’t be usable on this server) and make it possible for all to enjoy than just me. I hope you enjoyed this story “Wrath of the Darkness” and I wish you a good day! -TheDragonsRoost

“And verily I say unto you, go forth and fear no darkness; for ours is the way of the Light, and no foul evil may turn us away from our Oath.” -Aegnor I Starfinder, first bearer of the Seastone Crown. The Venerable House of Sylvaen Mar’lin Sylvaeri The House of Sylvaen, often known colloquially as the House Sylvaeri, is an ancient Elven bloodline which traces its furthest roots to the ancient homeland of Malinor. Alongside the elder Elves of the House Silma, they serve as representatives of the Elder Bloodlines upon the Continent. While the extent of their early history is best told in the Lay of Aegrothond and other tales, they have made their mark upon modern Elven history as well; many have served as High Princes, Princes, and Lords in Old Malinor, the Dominion, and Aegrothond. The Sylvaeri Despite the great span of years which has passed since their formation as a distinct bloodline, the House has remained generally uniform in appearance and in phenotypic traits. They are almost always possessed of peculiarly grey eyes, akin to their forebear, and this is the surest method of discerning pure blood. They are more varied in the colour of their hair- while the dominant colour has always been dark, the Sylvaeris of the Atlasian era are largely fair-haired. Their skin is also fair, though tends towards tan in those who spend a great deal of time in the sun and sea-spray. The House dresses primarily in shades of crimson and gold- simple garb, and fitted for the active trades. Common also are earthy tones, and sometimes autumnal wreaths, though these are considerably rarer. They are not, despite their other vices, particularly prone to vanity- as such they rarely adorn themselves for the benefit of others, and only do so to their own humble satisfaction. To this end they have a greater appreciation for jewelry, especially in the realm of gold and precious gems- but they love silver best, and pale diamond and opal-stones which are found deep beneath the earth. They are not miners themselves, however, and as a result the House has often made alliance with representatives of Dwarven Mountain Clans; they are welcome in their woodland halls, and the Dwarvish language is commonly learned by their children. The sons of Almenor are with few exceptions proud and haughty, and value personal honour highly; the spirit of fire associated with their ancestor burns true within their hearts, and ire comes more easily to them than to other Elves. Grudges and feuds are seldom left unpunished when slight (perceived or true) has been done upon them- though these resolutions may come many generations later. Some who bear the blood are by this virtue grim, and even dark-hearted- but most tend towards a nobility of spirit, and do no evil. The Forges of the Almenodrim Of all the families of Elvendom the forge-craft of House Sylvaeri may be considered chiefest and greatest; by virtue of their friendships with the Dwarves they long ago grew wiser in the lores of metals and gems, and developed their own styles to better suit their Elven natures. Therefore the steel wrought of their forges is considered to be among the best in the world, and is prominently reinforced with woven natural magics and other, more secret arts which are taught only to few. The Oath of the Seven and Bloodsilver Rings There are few customs which define the House of Sylvaen more clearly than the Oath of the Seven, which is sworn by all of-age members and is considered the rite of passage for young Elves. The Oath, and the accompanying tradition of forging rings made with the blood of the oathkeeper, find their roots in the establishment of the House by the Seven Sons of Sylvaen. This tale, and its meaning, is fully told in the Tale of Dagnir, which is a constituent part of the Lay of Aegrothond. Symbols and Banners Most prominently featured upon the crimson banner of the House are the hammer and anvil of Sylvaen, which are set below a crown; the latter represents the Crown of Malinor, which was worn by their ancestor Eleron, last royarch of that fallen Princedom. The seven stars which flank the arms are of the constellation Narnir’vallei, which is known in Common Speech as ‘The Mariner’. It is beloved of the House, and the grouping can often be found in their works, and even sewn upon their garments. The use of the arms follows the practice of a quintessentially Elven form of feudalism; they can be worn by any sworn to the House and honour of Aegrothond, and as such are not reserved solely for the bearers of Sylvaen’s Elder Blood. Heirlooms of the House Due to the rich tradition of forgework kept by the family, the Sylvaeri clan are possessed of a commensurate amount of relics, artifacts, and jewels of rare and unmatched craft and beauty. Most of these were wrought in the old lands of Almenor, but some are more recent- and with few exceptions are associated with great deeds and Elves of yore. The Necklace of Stars Known also as the “Light of the Almenodrim”, the Necklace of Stars is one of the greatest treasures of all Elvendom, and the work of Sylvaen’s own hand. It is set with a great multitude of diamonds and other gems, cut to perfection by the ancient hosts of Aegrothond. It bore for a time one of the Crown Stones, taken from the circlet of Malin. Belethil- The Star of Morning A gem crafted by the hands of ancient Dwarves, Belethil is steeped in the traditions of Malinor, and greatly treasured. It was lost when Sylvaen cast himself into the sea, and none have seen it since. At times, when the moon is high, it is said that the path which it traces upon the surface of the ocean will lead a traveler to Belethil’s resting-place. The Crown of Storms A younger artifact than the first few, the Crown of Storms is representative of the later deeds of the Almenodrim- most specifically of Aegnor Starfinder and his descendants who dwelt upon the shores of the Sea (and for whom it was made). Though the Crown itself has been lost to time, it was fabled to render unto the wearer the wisdom of the ancient mariners- to render them safe from the furies of the storm, and even to prevent drowning. Whether these tales are true or not, is entirely unknown.

Edrahil and the Dragon Which is the third part of the Lay of Aegrothond, in which the deeds of Edrahil are told. In the elder ages of the world, when the Sun and Moon were bright and untarnished by years uncounted, a fair realm was spread between the mountains and the sea. In those days the paths of the Elves were greatly sundered and broken, and not least of all these rifts was the breaking of faith between the Almenodrim and the Crown of Malinor, of which the Song of Dagnir tells. By this virtue most who departed Tavule had come to follow the Great Houses, which had come together in order for to be known as the wider realm of Aegrothond. For a time they were guided by Sylvaen the Everflame, of whom many a tale is told- but by the time of this telling he had passed into oblivion, and led no longer. Now Prince Aegnor the Starfinder ruled over the holdfasts which had been his father’s, and he took upon his own shoulders the mantle of Lordship of the Almenodrim and the stewardship of the land and the people. Six brothers remained to him, left over from exodus- and each was possessed of a craft and mastery so that their holdfast flourished and grew. Thus they together spread their princely wisdom, and all the lands were glad for it. One among them was foremost in martial skill and ability, and it is he that will feature most prominently in this tale.Lord Edrahil was his name, which is well-remembered, and he was the fourth son of Sylvaen. Great faith he kept in the Oath of his House, and a will indomitable to purge the darkness from the fouler places of the world; to this end he traveled often beyond the far bounds of the realm of the Almenodrim, to seek out all evils and break them beneath the power of his bright will. Thusly were the lands of the Elves kept safe from harm, to grow and be fruitful. Now in the northern mountains in those years the dwarf-manses were in constant strife with all manner of dark creatures which grew and multiplied, having been left behind by the wraths of Iblees and other, older evils which have no name. Chiefest among these at that time was the wyrm Ankar, which had fled to those parts after the first breaking of the Deceiver. From the high peaks this beast commonly ventured to terrorize the peaceful Dwarves- a terrible wrath incarnate, borne upon a sudden wind and a gout of freezing breath. Ere long it came to be that the wyrm’s hunger was not sated with dwarf-flesh and gold, and it began to hunger for the far sweeter meats of the south. The first settlement beneath his wrath was called Myrdaen, a village known for its refining of fine wool and ornamented cloths of all kinds. It came like a cold wind from the north, and tore the land asunder- feasting upon the sheep and cattle, and driving aside the stones of Elvish buildings with brutal force. Of all who dwelt there, few survived- and in great clamour the Lord himself was felled by the snapping jaws of darkness incarnate. Some managed to escape, and hastened to the shores of the Sea where the Court of Prince Aegnor was held. There the beleagured Elves made their plea, and were received in dour mood by the Prince and his lordly brothers. So it came to pass that Edrahil heard of this grey terror of the high mountains, and his mind at once was set with fateful purpose. “By what right doth Ankar claim the mastery of the skies, who was made in mockery of Creation?” he cried aloud, and his eyes shone with a sudden flame. “Too long have we allowed this danger to play upon our borders, and done nothing! Give me leave, brother, and swiftly shall Ankar’s monstrous head adorn your mantel-piece.” And his Company of friends struck their spears against their shields twice with great clamour, calling their assent. But Prince Aegnor sat a while in deep thought, causing even the rowdiest Elves of the Court to fall silent. “Cheaply valued is thy own life, brother, and the lives of thy Company,” he spoke at last, and his eyes grew dark with foretold doom. “Great danger lies upon the paths of the northern mountains, and small comfort will pride be to thy widows if thou art slain in pursuit of this beast. If thy hearts do not know fear, let them at least know wisdom. Death and grim fate shalt thou find in the North, and naught more.” All eyes were upon Edrahil then, who was silent, his eyes aglow behind his golden mask. But it was Erendriel the Bard who spoke, and stood forward from the other nobles with hand upturned- whereupon glimmered the ring of blood-silver, bound and sealed with the Oath of Seven. “Hearken to the rings of our brotherhood, if thou shalt not hearken to the pride of thy brother! For we are not of those who step back from perdition, and stand idly by, while brother-Elves are so cruelly put upon.” And the Prince was given pause, saying- “Rightly dost thou speak, Erendriel, though calamitous doom of one kind or another I presage of you. Wyrms do not tire easily of Elven silver, or turn away from simple cruelty.” Then he stood, and upon his brow the flames of the Seastone Crown glimmered with a ruddy light. “Go forth, then, ye twelve Companions, and as a token of hope take with you the Helm of our Father, who is perished.” And Edrahil received the Helm, and bowed deeply, for it was a high gift. Within the fortnight he set out north, and thusly began the great quest from the citadel of Tamun. Here it will be noted that this citadel was at the very edge of the realm of Old Aegrothond- that is to say, at the juncture shared by the mountains and the lowlands which swept down towards the Great Sea. This was because the Almenodrim (and indeed most Descendant Peoples of that time) kept to the ancient laws set forth by the Four Brothers, who demarcated all the lands of creation for their descendants. Therefore Men were granted dominion over the plains, Orcs over the deserts, Dwarves over the high mountains, and Elves over the broad forested lands wherever they may be found. In keeping with this practice Tamun was raised upon a wooded foothill, not far from the true mountains of the dwarrows, and served as a border-fort for general purposes. In any case, as the northernmost fortress it had been first to receive news of Ankar’s attack on Myrdaen, and thus the mood was high when the crimson banner of Edrahil was seen approaching from the south. Twelve there were in total, alongside their Lord- the aforementioned Company of heroes, and Erendriel the Bard who chose to ride with them. Hardy Elves were they, who had seen many a trial in their time and had sailed west with the Seven when the call was sounded. They had participated in the wars of the old homeland, and knew well the sting of dragon-breath. The keepers of Tamun received them gladly, and informed them of the state of the Northlands. In the time of their marching it seems the wyrm had grown bolder, so that even the fortified cities were no longer safe, and feared him. But Edrahil only smiled, and called for more mead, saying: “It is he who should be trembling, good Elves. Soon, we shall make a fine powder of his ancient bones.” And so it was that the final night in warmth was passed, and there was little trepidation (far less, as you shall soon see, than there should have been.) The dew lay heavily upon the path into the Vale of Tamun as the Company of Edrahil set out, and clung to their scarlet cloaks in silvery droplets which shone in the morning sun like so many stars in a crimson firmament. Well-armed and armoured they were, for each among them bore a sword and a spear, and a shield rendered by the highest arts of the Almenodrim. Upon their faces were fearsome mask-helms of gilded steel, but beneath them the Elves smiled and were merry- for Edrahil led them whom they trusted, and Erendriel seldom ceased to sing and jest. “A score of red-breasted robin-fowl we look!” he laughed in melody, and the songbirds sang along with him in lilting tones. “To pluck the worm from the northern mountains, hear hear!” And a great shout of mirth and joy rose among the Company in march, for they did not know fear. Edrahil ordered then the banner to be lifted, and together the voices of the Elves rang farewell in ancient song as the town sank into the hills behind them. “Again they come, and swift they ride, “For Elvenesse, for Elvenesse!” Their voices rise with ringing pride. And trumpets high above them soar, for elder fathers, dispossessed for many kin, who fought and died, And nations torn and rent by war. For fear is foreign to their hearts, and blades with gladness strike and reave, Through forest air grown thick with darts, And long-spears wrought by Elven arts, Which forest-cloth like needle weave.” And so forth they sang in joy beneath their seven-starred banner of scarlet, as the road turned northwards and the foothills began to grow great and dark to either side. Ere long the heads of the mountains became hidden in the clouds, and the forests of Elvenesse gave way to stone and fallen gravel. As the last great tree faded beyond a ridge the group made camp, and settled in for an unhurried sleep. When the sun rose upon the second day the Company of Edrahil set out once more, though they sang less and spoke sparsely to one another; for the path had become difficult, and in places it wavered and fell into sudden crevasses which had doubtless been the death of many a reckless explorer. All about the road were tall crags of grey stone, interspaced atimes by small springs of clear water too cold for drinking- they had flowed down from the glaciers which crowned these mountains, too high above to be seen. The band stopped for short luncheon at noon, having brought with them a wealth of provision from the grateful Elves of Tamun, and set up a way-camp to rest their weary feet. Some jested that they hoped that the greater part of the journey was finished, but most remained silent- marveling at the broad tallness which was arranged about their fellows. So it was that one of them spotted a small creature crawling upon the rocks far below, which were woven with mists. He called to his companions, and Erendriel nocked a swift arrow in his heartwood bow. “Hark!” the Lord Edrahil cried into the abyss, and the astute Elven eyes of the Company discerned that the creature was in fact a particularly hairy dwarrow of auburn mane and pale complexion. “What business have ye here, in the lands between the forest and the mountain?” But the Dwarf did not reply, instead waving his short arms and swiftly scurrying from sight.“How odd,” remarked Edrahil, “I did not recall the Dwarves to be so fearful of Elves, especially in these parts. I wonder what it was that caused him to flee?” But no sooner had the Lord spoken, than a warbling cry pierced the air alongside many black-hafted arrows. [To be Continued]

The Tale of Dagnir Which is the first part of the Lay of Aegrothond, and the earliest story of the Almenodrim. Among the tales of sorrow and ruin which come to us out of the elsewise forgotten years before the rising of the Moon, there are yet some in which the eldritch dolour is lifted, and a light is shown to endure even beneath its gloaming shadow. Of these histories perhaps the most stark is that of Sylvaen, and of the Almenodrim who were his progeny. It is told fully in the Lay of Aegrothond, the longest of all Elvish ballad-poems, which concerns in its majority the Parting of Kindreds and the many deeds, both fair and ill, of that family in the First Ages of the world. It is retold here in prose to lessen its length, for alike to all Elvish poetry it is prone to elaborate musings which are not conducive to the educational purposes of this text. The Lay begins in the ancient land of Malinor, wherein the great Eternal King kept his court and dwelt undying beneath evergreen boughs of yore; Malin was his name, which is honoured forever, and upon his brow was a crown unquestioned. His sons were as one, their ways unparted, for neither false prophets nor forces of earth and heaven could dislodge the keeping of blood which bound them hence. They loved well the trees and valleys of their realms, and delved in the deepest reaches of the forest to build their villages, being foremost among woodsmen. Among them, firstborn of the Father, walked Sylvaen Everflame, of whom this tale is told. He was tall, and fair of face, and resembled in all ways his father save for his locks, which were of raven-dark hue, and for his gaze, which was of piercing grey akin to the sea-floes of ice in winter. While his kin walked the deep forests he took a different path, and instead traveled to far western reaches of the Kingdom, near-to the mountains which held some erstwhile manses of the young Dwarves. In that land he built his holding, which he named Almenor, and few citadels were fairer in that time, or in any time since. In that place of silver fountains he came to know Serinwe, who would come to be his wife- and together they reared the Seven Sons of oath and legend, who led their people to glory and tribulation in equal measure. Their names were Aegnor, Edrahil, Renarion, Muindir his twin, Ilurien, Vitras, and Erendriel who was youngest of all; and they themselves were fruitful, so that the pillared halls of their kin rang with the laughter of children which the Elves valued more highly than any treasure. This great family was known as the Almenodrim, and they are remembered thusly in many songs, most chiefly by their own descendants. In the days before the Curse they were greatly peopled, so that several distinct Houses sprung up among them- but each bore loyalty to the Everflame and wavered not from their path alongside the Seven, throughout all of their history. Of all the children of Malin Sylvaen was the greatest in forgecraft, and in the tempering of steel and the making of mail he and his descendants were never outmatched, save perhaps by the most great-skilled of the Dwarf-smiths of yore. The hauberks and plate of their forges did not rust, and did not sustain the tarnish of age and weather, shining new-burnished even after an age of wear. All of their works were highly treasured, for they were crafted with arts which were not known to other wrights, and have been forgotten. It must, too, be noted that steel was scarce more than a servant to them- and it was in the working of silver, gold, and precious gems that they truly excelled, ultimately peerless. Made in those elder days were some of the greatest and most beautiful treasures of all noble Elvendom, which were beloved of all the Elder Folk and held in regard even in the furthest reaches of the continent. Among them were the Necklace of Stars, and Mίr n’Ardhon, and of course the great carved gem Belethil which was lost, of which more shall be told in other tales. All which could be wrought by hammer and anvil they excelled in creating- but no weapons, for the sons of Malin had no need for them, save of course for spears of alder and bows of yew, which they used to hunt wild game. In those days there was no strife, and all Elvenkind dwelt in harmony and peace. But even as Sylvaen and the Almenodrim laboured with great zeal and saw no ending to their works, doom of an eldritch sort came to the halls of Almenor. It began, as such things are often wont to, with a falling star, which tore the heavens and fell burning from the firmament. A clash like thunder heralded its coming to the plane of Aos, and a great fire and clamour levelled the forest about its landing- for such was its heat in that time that all which came in contact with it was immolated entirely. With a roar of splitting earth a chasm was opened about it in that wilderness, and there it would have remained if not for the curious whim of fate. It was Aegnor who found it, riding upon the great northern hills with his banners- and ever after for this reason he was oft-called by the name Elpharon, which means ‘star-finder’. Marveling at the desolation, he delved into the blackened cavern at its center- and though it burned his hands, he could not find the will to leave the glede-star behind. All marveled at it, and at its providence, for even the most experienced among them had not seen such ore. Concluding their businesses in those lands the Almenodrim brought it to their home, and though none could foresee it, sealed the fate of their House. For upon that metal lingered an evil which had no name, born of the darkness and vapour of primordial creation and forgotten by Gods and mortals both. At that time Sylvaen, being come to his full mastery and eminence, was filled with new intent and purpose- and growing bored in his lordship over forgecraft the great wright took great interest in the star-iron discovered by his eldest son. Many months after its arrival the metal did not lose its immense heat, and would burn those who laid hand upon it; Aegnor had failed to tame it, and it had scarred the reach of Muindir who was Sylvaen’s most promising student. So it was that at long last the father of the Seven came first to behold this curse of his family, and resolved to make something of it forthwith. But as he took up his hammer to strike upon the ore the smith beheld a great darkness which descended upon the great fires of his forge, alike unto a black grip which sought to take him in vice. And it spoke to him, this being, in a voice alien as the rubbing of coke on steel. “I have seen thee, Everflame, and all thy purposes and works are laid bare before me- but I deem them to be lesser far than those of thy Father, who is Malin. You shall fade, as leaves of autumn in the winter wind, and none shall know thy small name in posterity. As paupers thy sons will be, and grim fate shall find each among them in his time.” And the elf-prince was stricken by sudden doubt, for in his heart stirred a fear which had not been known to any in those blessed years; it was an evil not of this world, but rather of the one which had come before, and was never meant to linger. “By what vile sorceries dost thou speak unto me, creature of darkness, and what false poison dost thou pour upon my mind?” he cried out, and stepped back from the forge-fire which burned not yet so hot as the metal before him. “In skill of hand I have no single peer- all shall remember my works, and those of my sons, who shall be lords when I am gone.” But despite his remonstrance the creature of gloaming had seized upon the core weakness of his being, for though Sylvaen was foremost in cleverness and craft, his brilliant mind of metal and stone had become flawed in its vainglory, and in the obsession with legacy which was to haunt his line forever. “Stay thy despair, my child- for I sense a greatness in thy blood which shall surpass thy brethren,” the fallen star whispered, in tones of dulcet, layered upon with the cloy of paternal sweetness. “I will show thee much of that which thou knowest not, and change the path thou treadst- for great wisdom I see in thee, and a great promise also, which shall change the doom of the world in its stride. In my image thou shalt shape what none hath shaped before, and all shall know thy will, and fear it.” And though Sylvaen was not yet won over, his mind was curious- as all wrights he wished primarily to expand his art, and to craft ever-greater things until he had exhausted all possibilities of matter and shape. It occurred to him that to bind this star to his will would be the greatest achievement of his time, and a fine treasure in the vaults of Almenor; no creation had yet been beyond his ability in all his life, and no metal could give him pause at the height of his expertise. So it was that a fateful artificery began, which would last many days and many nights. Three times the smith began his work, and three times the metal defied his expert hand- for the spirit which perched upon it was possessed of its own design, and did not lend itself to mastery. For many hours they strove in the deeps of the Almenodrin forges, until the anvil of the wright glowed hot, and the smith himself was nearto spent. At last, putting forth all his lores and knowledge, the Everflame made corporeal the doom of his House- but it was not of his design, and the great shadow was upon it. So it came to pass that the first sword was born, and the Gods wept, for in the hand of Sylvaen it was destined to cause great pain and strife. The visage of the blade was as wrought iron, black and cruelly sharp, and it shone with a dull polish which caught and twisted the faces of those who would look into its surface; its guard was alike unto an umbel of upthrust thorns, and its hilt bound in pallid corded wire. Dagnir was its name, which was given to it by its creator, and harshly indeed did he lament its making; deep into Almenor he bade it be taken, and set inside a dark chamber to which no elf went willingly. And there Dagnir lingered, awaiting its fate. Sylvaen and the Seven soon forgot the star-stone in its entirety, and returned to their works of art and craft, growing more fruitful even than they had before. In those days the halls of Almenor were second only to the capital in populace, and greatly rich also, for they continued to trade with the Men and Dwarves who dwelt beyond the borders of the Greenwood. But the peaceful days of the First Ages were swiftly drawing to a close; and darkness festered in the far deeps of the world, marked by none save the delving Dwarrow-kind, who could not comprehend it. For Iblees’ work upon the Nether had been done, and the days trod ever-closer to the great war which would change the course of history forever. [To be Continued]

The Soulbound Servants: Didacts of the Forest Holy Ghosts of Druids An elven druid returns as a Soulbound Servant, watching over the forest with a careful eye. It is a well known truth among druii and those that study the aspects or their faith, that devout druids who die ascend to the realm of the fae, to serve out their days as Soulbound Servants. In the realm of fae, these spirits of passed druids are revered by all as wise men and oracles. Creatures of the fae flock from every corner of the realm to hear their words of wisdom. In the realm of fae, they are considered demigods, chosen of the aspects themselves. (The Fae Realm). In death, these sages reflect the souls of what they were in life. For those that sought the taste of battle in defense of the balance, they may find themselves as a spirit of fury, blessing those of the Twilight Bound. A gentler druid, a healer perhaps, may find themselves as a mending spirit of the Dayward Way. All these such spirits are revered amongst the fae creatures of the world. The servants can take the form of an incorporeal spirit, the physical body they had in life, or even as a reflection of their own spirit animal. Respected and revered by all races of the fae as the chosen vessels of the Aspects themselves, the Soulbound enjoy their afterlife by serving as wise men and priests. The most dimwitted of rock-creatures to the most cunning of Imps will travel across the entire Fae for the chance to meet one of the Soulbound and receive words of wisdom. Like all fae creatures, they possess the ability to traverse over one of the many thin threads that hold our realms together, through a fae ring. For one that may find themselves facing one of these spirits, they can expect only unbridled wisdom, for they gaze upon a fragment of the fae realm itself. However, while they were able to become corporeal in the Eternal Forest, their journey to the mortal realm has diminished their strength, and they hold but a fraction of the power they hold in the Fae Realm. A soulbound servant, in the mortal realm, is little more than a spirit of the fae. They cannot touch or interact with the world. They will never again feel the embrace of a loved one, nor the wind on their cheek. They are dead, lost to the world. Incorporeal beings that merely exist as a passer of knowledge, a wielder of the torch of druidic power. Even when their connection to the Eternal Forest is strongest, standing within the fae ring, they are unable to lay a finger on the world of the living. One may ask, why would a soulbound servant return to the mortal fold? What other reason than the one they hold in the realm of the fae. They serve as ancient teachers, passing on the wisdom of their many years. It is the primary mission of all Soulbound Servants to pass down their own knowledge of the balance, and to guide the druids of the world towards a heightened understanding of what their duty is, and how they might attain it. They serve as powerful guides to all that follow the path of the aspects. To dedicants, they serve to inform and teach. To Druii, they seek to offer their different perspective on the world and how it may function. And above all, to Archdruii, they serve as powerful advisers in the face of great adversity. But they are just that. Guides, advisers, wise-men. Vessels of knowledge. Due to the distance from the realm of the fae, and their diminished power, they are unable to use the gifts that they had throughout their lives as druii, but they still retain their ancient knowledge of the arts. To fulfill their mission, these spirits are able to pass on their understanding of the gifts into the druii of the world in several ways, detailed a bit later. In addition to this, the servants have access to a few smaller tricks from their time in the fae realm that they would use in pursuit of guiding dedicants, druids, and archdruii alike, without impacting the world on a physical level. Blessings of the Aspects Gifts From the Eternal Forest A druid completes a task with the oversight of the Soulbound Servant Soulbound Servants tend not to intervene in worldly affairs, beyond their task of guiding others, and serving the balance. Without the ability to hold a sword, or travel far beyond their fae rings, they take up a more guiding role, using their abilities to teach, rather than lead. Their time spent in the realm of the fae shows now though, and Soulbound Servants find that they have a few lesser abilities that they didn’t have before. These can be very straining for the spirit to perform, and only one may be used per day, that they might serve the spirit in guiding others. Greensight Soulbound Servants mimic many of the abilities of regular ghosts, being able to use their own version of Horrorchill called Greensight. With this ability, Soulbound Servants have the ability to reach out to attuned minds, and are able to incur visions of the past, things that the servant themselves have seen, or even things that the subject has seen. Through this, they can evoke calming memories, or through their own memories, lessons of the past. These visions can be as vivid or as vague as the spirit wills it. This ability, unlike horrorchill, only works on a willing subject who knows they are being affected. This only affects attuned druids, and those affected by fae rings. Oversight Similar to the talking host ability that usual ghosts have, soulbound servants are able to bind themselves to a druid for as long as they wish, seeing what they see, hearing what they hear, allowing them into their thoughts. However, this must be entirely willed on the part of the druid and the servant. During this time, the druid is marked with a fae rune upon their forehead, showing that they are a vessel of the spirit. This lasts until the subject no longer wills it, or the spirit decides to leave the body. If the host is killed while the servant is inside of the body, that spirit demanifests as they gather themselves again. In addition to these two abilities, Soulbound Servants can do several abilities like their ghostly cousins. Soulbound Servants may shift between visibility and invisibility at will, disappearing or appearing in a flash of their fae energy. Soulbound Servants can interact with the environment in limited ways, such as opening doors, or nudging objects. (In the same way that ghosts do.) Soulbound Servants may float (In the same way that ghosts do) Soulbound Servants give off a glow that reflects their fae energy. Soulbound Servants can change their appearance in a limited way, such as gaining fae attributes, or taking on the form of their spirit animal Due to their distance from the realm of the Fae, they cannot fully return to their physical form. However, when in the Eternal Forest, they can regain such a form. Instead of decaying life around them, and feeding on it, Soulbound Servants serve as a conduit of fae energy, and many may find the world around them blooming to life as the world is touched by the mystical energies of the Eternal Forest. Soulbound Servants do NOT have telekinesis, unlike their ghostly cousins. Guides and Redlines Soulbound Servants must have been at least a T5 in Control and Communion before their death to be brought back. Soulbound Servants require a CA to be played. Soulbound servants are the spirits of druids that return to the mortal realm to continue their duties as druids. In order to be brought back from the realm of the fae at first, the spirit must be guided back by a druid using transcendence. They cannot be forced back if they do not want to come back. If a druid already knows the Transcendence feat, they can bring themselves back. Soulbound Servants can appear as a manifestation of their former selves, or as a reflection of their spirit animal Soulbound Servants can interact with the environment in limited ways, such as opening doors, or nudging objects. (In the same way that ghosts do.) Soulbound Servants can no longer perform control, blight healing, or herblore, shapeshifting, unattunement, attunement, or powersharing. Soulbound Servants can no longer teach unattunement, attunement, or shapeshifting. Soulbound Servants can still teach druidism, including control, communion, blight healing, and herblore if they have a TA A servant doesn’t need to eat, sleep, or breathe; they may survive indefinitely without damage Golden Weaponry affects the spirits as a normal weapon would to a person, and cannot use any of their abilities on gold. To banish a servant to the Eternal Forest, one can summon a cleric, shaman, Fi’ user, or alterationist to perform an exorcism. This demanifests the ghost, but is not a Perma-kill on the Soulbound Servant. It is not necessarily possible to "kill" a Soulbound Servant, but they can be forced them into the Eternal Forest. This causes the Ghost to demanifest for 30 minutes, akin to death for other Descendants, and leave the area to go to the Eternal Forest for a prolonged amount of time. OOC Note: What I really tried to change with this rendition of the lore was the “how” one becomes such a thing, and the abilities. I really tried to trim down the lore piece from Shade lore levels of length to a nice, easily read piece. Short, sweet, simple. I’ve turned it into a lore addition, as a way to extend the ghost lore into other aspects of the server. I’ve translated a lot of the “horror” of the abilities into more Fae abilities. I wanted to create a way for druids to return as ghosts without relinquishing their connection to the Emerald Forest. So, druidic ghosts!

The sight hurt. Jarsek Myrsta, upon finding his homeland destroyed and full of damaging magic, was not pleased to find his home in such a state. He blamed September for destroying such a beautiful place while he was away and himself for not being here to defend it. Sometimes, it is enough to find hatred in destruction. He was a pure high elf in every sense of the word, but even he had his faults. No one was immune to emotions running rampant and this included Jarsek. His own emotions were not like most high elves, but this would prove to either be his greatest strength or his weakness. Jarsek felt no pain or sorrow once he looked upon Haelun’or, but rather he felt something else. Something that was beginning to add fuel to a bonfire that would last for the rest of his life. Cursed or soulless? No one knew. Not those left to see the day as this was my own challenge to overcome. He hated the fact that his grandson had been an impurity in his own house. The news of his death did greatly satisfy him, but it was not enough. He wanted to rid his grandson from the history books and make it to where he never existed in the first place. This kind of task would require a great cost, but it was one he was willing to pay. Even in death, his impurity rots. In life, I thought he would grow up to be a scholar working in the Eternal Library, his unyielding curiosity granting us more knowledge. No, this was not to be. After seeing his home destroyed, he came across a fellow high elf. One that even he thought seemed a bit suspicious. This high elf had told him that his name was Illiran Drennan, but he had never heard of such a name before. Even on his journeys abroad, he never once heard of such a house. It was at this moment that Jarsek decided to investigate this house through Illiran, but the risk of having this trust broken was too great at the time. No, he would slowly gain this elf’s trust and try to learn more, though this would also take its time. No greater shame exists than having someone in your own house be impure. Yet, this was something that could be inferred as irony. My grandson was impure and my own impurity stem from the blood on my hands. I took no joy or pity when I fought in battle, but felt nothing at all. This was something that no magic in the world could do to me as I was born with the ability to wield my emotions like a two-edged sword. It was what made me a good warrior, but it can also make me a monster. After talking to Illiran, Jarsek left the site of his old home and journeyed back to the Kadarsi, a cold darkness in his gaze as if he had shut himself from his own emotions. He didn’t know fear or loss, but he did know anger, fury, and rage. This could prove to be his downfall as the sight of his homeland did affect him, but not in the normal ways that a blighted land did. No, he was a blighted phoenix...