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So, recently it struck me that Skeletons aren't actualy playable, only Darkstalkers, Liches and occasionaly some Skeleton bodies for a necromancer. It saddens me that one cannot be a simple, plain skeleton without being a super powerfull warrior or a 'wise' Wizard. Why can we not have weak skeletons playable by people? Some may deem it unnecessary (Probably butchered that word) with the amount of spooks we have roaming around but i don't. I think it would be a great addition to hand these feeble, fun creatures into the hand of players. Although they do need lore this is something i''m willing to write but i thought i'd make a post on it first to see the results. It's that spooky time of year!

Hello friends and foes of LoTC! I hope that my post finds you all well, that the new year has been kind to you thus far and that you find yourselves in the best of health. It is my sincere hope that you are all safe and sound with your loved ones (or your pets). With the coming of the new year I found myself back on this wonderful server nearly three years after I took a hiatus. Much has changed and I felt like the type and quality of roleplay that we have had has changed as well, to my pleasant surprise! I grew nostalgic of my early days of playing on the server back in 2014-2015. Alongside the updated mechanics and progress in the world lore, I felt that it was the perfect opportunity to breathe life into House Visconti; which I had the pleasure of representing off and on at earlier times. I plan to compile a Master-guide to Illatian and Visconti roleplay by the end of next week and give the RP announcement about our current position and plans. In order to help me make this a reality, I decided to reach out to you, the LoTC community. I was dissatisfied with the information I was able to collect thus far because: Some key players lost access to their drives and their precious documents. Some key players became inactive and unreachable. Primary-source forum posts are very aged and difficult to follow. Secondary-source information is often skewed and distorted. We have a list of tertiary characters holding the family name who I cannot place in our family tree. I wanted to write this post and ask those of you who have played a House Visconti (or Illatian persona) to kindly reply to this forum post and aid me in my project by sending me links to the documents (or forum posts) that they do have or by contacting me on my Discord: Zoprak#3499. Character sheets and family trees are required. Secondary sources mentioning or referencing the family members and their activities are needed. Documents outlining family activities are appreciated. Miscellaneous documents, photographs, screenshots and skins are not necessary but would help fill in the gaps in the lore. Thank you for your time and assistance, I look forward to roleplaying with you all in the coming weeks. To those of you who are facing an upcoming semester I wish the best of luck and amazing grades. Please do not hesitate to contact me. Best regards, Zoprak (Antonius Mihailo Visconti) (P.S Dear Moderators, I apologise if this is in the wrong section, please transfer it to the appropriate place if need be, I am a returning player and I am still unsure where to place my forum posts that are OOC).

“Have you heard of the tale of the monsters within the sands? Shapeshifters, they say they are, of mortal men who have defied our curse by striking an unholy deal with some foul power… They seek the souls of the damned, for it is said the value of a sinner’s spirit is irresistible to the Lord of the Dead Realm. Better repent often, son.” The Men of the Sands and the City of Gold Long ago when the four brothers walked among us there existed children of the Father of Man that were blessed with a terrible hunger for knowledge of the world. These men even in the early morning of existence envied Horen’s brothers… they were to be the inheritors of the world, and scorned Malin’s beauty, Urguan’s wealth and spat upon the strength of Krug. While they dare not bare their fangs yet at their kin, a seedling of hate set into their hearts. Fueled by their pride and unyielding loyalty to the Father of Man, they sought to travel the world and steal the wealth of the world for their own. To the forested halls of Malin the Patriarch of these unnamed peoples traveled, feigning a kind curiosity for all of the splendors of that tranquil place. The men delighted in the beauty of those who commune with the natural world, the forgemasters and musicmasters of the first sons of the Elf Father. They studied their way of carrying themselves with nearly ethereal delicacy… and savored in the mannerisms in which the elves delighted in their life. And so they departed… To the stone-pillared halls of Urguan the Patriarch of these unnamed peoples traveled, concealing his mad love for all of the Dwarf Father’s gold, jewels, and silver fountains with a desire to learn his ways of creating such beauty from the earth. There, too, they sealed away the lust for precious metals and jewels of the world in their tarnished hearts. And so they departed… Finally they traveled to the savannah hold of the mighty Krug. The strength of his children was a feat that no spoken or written world could accurately describe. In spirit and in body Krug’s folk were truly powerful, and their code of honor was something that perplexed these ambitious men. Why extend the same respect to the other descendants when there was an entire untouched world ready to be conquered, no, inherited by the strongest peoples. Was this world not created for those with the power to impose their own will upon it? Indeed, even these children of Krug had conquered the barren savannah and desert, yet do not desire to rule absolutely? They could not comprehend the way of Krug, and departed his hold with a sour taste upon their tongues… Many years had past and the children of the Four were plenty. Man had made fantastical castles and farms, Elves had unquestioned rule over the forests and nature, Dwarves had made the most grand halls from the mountains themselves… but Krug was humble. His people lived not in splendor, but in harmony with the other descendants, even despite their supreme tenacity in the harsh heat and their superior strength. Ptolemeht claimed himself as the first Lord of these wandering Men. He was tall in stature and had long, dark hair and ferocious eyes that hungered for domination over all. While his brothers settled in their castles and reached the clouds, his heart demanded he display why the children of Horen would conquer this world and rule as intended… for they were the superior beings blessed with just ambition. He would show his kin the light, by sheer splendor in doing what few could. Ptolemeht would challenge the people that he simply could not match, the children of Krug, and prove that even Men could make the barren sands submit to their will too. The human lord’s resolve was like iron. His children would dare not refuse him this birthright, and began to construct a city-stronghold like the world had yet seen. Where the sands would blow harshly and scald the skin of the weak, he commanded his kin to heave the earth into submission in great towers and pyramids. Every aspect of the city Ptolemeht commanded to be created took great inspiration from the halls of the Elf Father and the Dwarf Father. But he knew he could not best nor match what Krug and his children had… and despite the magnificence of his creation, his soul seethed in anger at the lack of total perfection his body was given. Gilded peaks of sand arose like mighty crystals, and a desert throne was built atop the chieftest pyramid. Ansach-Ra had arisen as the largest and most complex city ever recorded in ancient times. The Curse and the first King of Sands Prosperity flowed like mighty rivers from the gilded city of Ansach-Ra, and many of Horen’s children flocked in to delight in the example of their superiority over the land and other kin. Horen himself was shocked at the determined ambition of his kin. Somehow Horen could sense a dark omen at the creation of Ansach-Ra, for his children had a demented sense of what the Father of Man wished for his children. Horen did not share in their beliefs of total supremacy, but he also could not and would not deny his children revelry in their magnum opus. The years chiseled away like the architects of Ansach-Ra onto sandstone, and in an instant their progress towards a perfect society came to an abrupt and unfortunate end. When Malin, Krug, Urguan and their father Horen struck their final blow against Iblees… the curse ripped through the people of Ansach-Ra like a great wave against a quiet shore. Those who had lived far beyond what their new ailment would allow withered to dust and nothing in the hot desert wind. The city erupted in a screaming pandemonium. Mothers… Fathers… All were subject to the unyielding power of the curse. Like the pathetic remnants of a dying fire, their people disintegrated with agonizing screams into ash. The people of Ansach-Ra were decimated. The cries of the people who ruled the sand were abhorrent, for they wept not only for their loved folk but for the loss of their supremacy. The city of Gold and Sand grew nearly empty. In the wake of Lord Ptolemeht’s death, he left a single son that he cherished almost as much as the splendor of his home. Osmundah at the young age of thirteen inherited a city that dwarfed his stature like a single ant upon its mighty hill. Witnessing his father crumble into dust upon the height of his throne bore into his mind. The pain of the first deaths spurned a loathing for this existence. Why must it be Horen’s folk who are denied the luxury to see their work come to fruition? To see the work of their and their children’s hands before being ripped from this now mortal plane into an eternal prison. For that’s what the afterlife was, to the folk of Ansach-Ra… a place where scheming gods place their playthings to entertain them for all eternity. None can escape this fate, and by living a good life one might only lessen the burden of the afterlife upon them… for sinners might indeed suffer in endless, agonizing torment, but was not the stagnation of an eternal existence at the behest of some self-righteous beings torment too? Osmundah knew as the last brittle pieces of his father carried away with the breeze he would devote the limited time he had in this world to finding a cure. A cure that would ensure their ever-lasting life in this plane as supreme monarchs of the realm. Over other men, dwarves, elves, and the now deformed and ugly orcs. Yes, those disgustingly proud children of Krug certainly received their just reward in Osmundah’s eyes. The remaining folk of Ansach-Ra fastened chariots, spears, and legions of infantry to march upon the confused and distraught orchish peoples. In a single, bloody night, Ansach-Ra drove the orcs in a frenzied bloodbath from their homes and into wandering caravans. The desert belonged to Ansach-Ra, and now there was none to question their authority. Osmundah gathered the remaining orcs in chains and brought them broken and dispirited to the city where he presented his captives to his priests. There, the boy issued his first decree as ruler of Ansach-Ra… “Take these beasts and barter for a cure with whatever power resides over this accursed realm. I refuse to suffer the same fate as my father, and with this I will ensure I rule Ansach-Ra, no, the world undisputed. Do not give these mutated beasts any quarter, do what you must to appease the gods and find me a patron who will do this for me!” The boy ascended the golden throne and declared himself not lord, but King of Ansach-Ra. With their numbers few, now, there were no dissenting voices. Osmundah’s desire for immortality was too tempting, too… for risking a lack of obedience to the Desert King would surely destroy any hope at restoring their robbed years from them. Akerohtep, Shepherd of Souls and the Charnel Sect Two decades since the desert was secured for Ansach-Ra the priests of the city worked diligently to perform dark rituals on the misfortuned, the forgotten, and the damned. Osmundah collected many wives and children, spurned by his fear of the shadow of death upon his legacy. He was ferociously protective of his harem, and would seize any wife suspected of infidelity and etomb her alive, and send any competing men to his sect devoted to twisting the souls of men into prizes as bait for any willing entity, god, or patron. The Charnel Sect was the body of all of the King’s priests tasked with finding a cure for mortality. Within the sandstone and dark temple of the Sect evil rituals were performed involving the maiming, torture and wicked epxeriments upon the living in hopes of drawing out the essence of life itself to offer as a gift to the gods. The temple had deep crypts of entombed victims, but also served as the mortuary home of the venerated dead as well. Those loyal to Ansach-Ra were given a resting place of splendor and clothed in fine silks and cloth for when the solution to death might be discovered. The first experiments offered souls to the Dwarven Brathmordakin, for the thought of everlasting life and wealth was very tempting indeed… But these offerings proved most destructive and fatal to the Charnel Sect, with the worst outcome involving the unintentional deaths of three senior priests. The dwarven gods spat on the revolting desires and culture of the Ansach-Ra peoples, they were far too tainted with evil lust to even be auctioned off in their afterlife. The second experiments offered souls to the Orcish spirits, who roamed the desert freely and frequently. They too would scorn the Charnel Sect with even more ire than the Dwarven Pantheon, for the murder of their orcish kin would only earn them bad voodoo and unfortunate hexes indeed. More priests met untimely ends, most unable to be explained with any reason at all The final experiments offered souls to the animal spirits of the elven Wild Gods. There is one very prominent Wild God that roams the harsh desert, and its interest had piqued since the first Ansach-Ra people landed in the oases. The cunning Coyote, vision keeper and silent guardian. The Coyote God does not give answers, but instead gifts visions of the past, present and future. A perhaps critical mistake by the Coyote God, but nonetheless visions of life and prosperity were granted to the priests in hopes that dedication to the natural world would grant them peace… The visions caused an uproar in the Charnel Sect, for no rituals had produced any promising results. Would further devotion to this unnamed god grant them the everlasting life they sought? King Osmundah himself stood watch over the next ritual to the Desert God. By some stroke of very poor luck, a lesser daemon of Iblees that hungered for worship and power watched over the ritual that dark day. Where the Sect was trying to call upon the visions of the Coyote, a demonic voice from deep within a shadowed realm responded and usurped the Coyote’s claim over these people. He appeared to these men as a corrupted mockery of the Wild God. He knew these humans’ fear of death would commit them to anything, even worship of a Daemon. “You who seek everlasting life… I am Akerohtep, Lord of the Dead Realm. I will strike a deal with you, persistent ones… In exchange for more souls for my domain, I will extend your life indefinitely. Serve me, and savor riches and life beyond measure. Refuse, and savor a rotting tomb for all eternity!” The Daemon’s intuition was right, the threat of death brought the priests and King to their knees in prayer. The being smiled a wicked smile, and presented a scale of onyx and gold. “Bring me souls of the wicked, the murderer, the thief and the evil. If their soul weighs more than a feather, they have much delicious regret and blood on their hands… they will serve me well as tormentors of unfortunate travelers to the realm of the Dead. Come… bring me my first gift.” The First Amonnti King Osmundah was ruthless in his response. He did not for a moment question the Daemon’s request, and offered his most loyal and senior priest to be slaughtered before Akerohtep. This priest had committed countless atrocities, and his soul was heavy indeed… The Deamon swallowed up the soul in its sharp-fanged maw and descended onto the King like a murky, black shadow. There, the King began to twist and convulse in transformation… he was taking the likeness of this Daemon’s coyote mockery. His head erupted a long doggish maw, and his bones cracked and crumbled into a body that towered over his human kin. His skin turned leathery and black, and his eyes burned a deep hateful crimson. His screams silenced all of Ansach-Ra, and the Beast-King finally stood after much anguish in his new bestial form. A wicked laugh rumbled within the temple’s painted stone walls. The Daemon was pleased, very pleased with his new followers’ promise. These humans have long hungered for power, and they would get it this day. He named these daemonic children the Amonnti, beasts with the power to rip the souls out of any mortal husk and offer it to their Daemon Lord for extended years of their life. And so Ansach-Ra depleted their own population, for they were the children of tainted hearts and ambitious killers. The souls of their own people proved quite potent for satiating the hunger of Akerohtep, and more men were transformed into the servants of the Lord of the Dead. In this, the fabled city of Ansach-Ra buried beneath the sands, her ever-attentive servants disappearing in the night, and all of its riches lost to the desert forever to be guarded by their dead. The Amonnti: Form, Abilities, Traits and Features, and their Patron The Ammonti is a human that has been cursed with the form of the Deamon Akerohtep in exchange for adding years to their life. The Charnel Sect is rumoured to harbor and propagate these monsters, having hidden lairs in forgotten ends of deserts where they commune most closely with their God. An Amonnti is able to shift from his or her human form into the beast, though the process is incredibly painful and terrifying to behold. Provided that the Amonnti has been diligent in providing souls of particularly undesirable characters, their Daemon God will prolong their life indefinitely. That is not to say that they cannot be killed, for it is quite possible to slay these creatures. Akerohtep is the patron of the Charnel Sect and the Amonnti. Though it is a Daemon, it was initially unnamed and merely placed its demand for worship and patronage to the people of Ansach-Ra in hopes to strengthen its place within the pantheon. In times prior to be known as Akerohtep, this Daemon was simply a ferry for evil souls from the mortal plane to the realm of Iblees where the souls would suffer for eternity. With new power and status gained from gifting what small dark energy it had into King Osmundah and his sect, he named himself Akerohtep and became the Daemon that decides the fate of all souls who depart their mortal husks and do not have a god to accept them into their rightful afterlife. The form of the Ammonti is like that of a bipedal, digitigrade, monstrous coyote with long, perked ears and red eyes. Often described in old wives’ or children’s stories as the boogie man that comes for the souls of sinners, the beasts are very real indeed. They can be both female and male and have either leathery skin or a short coat of pitch-black fur. The more twisted and demented the personality of the Ammonti is, the less fur it tends to have. The smell of ancient tombs and dry rot clings to the aura of this beast, and they bear golden glowing markings on their skin or fur to denote status within the Amonnti pack. They can wield weapons and light armor, but often choose not to as their body lends them potent claws, fangs and muscles. Their claws and teeth are very potent for causing infection should someone survive an encounter. Sustaining this form of the beast can be very taxing for long times, and will of course draw very undesirable attention, and often the maximum duration of the Amonnti form is a few hours at most as it is assumed their prey has already reached the soul-scale by that time. If they procure too few or no souls, their body will begin to wither away like dust in the sand until there is nothing left of the beast. Amonnti possess no inherent magical casting abilities, but they do bear gilded teeth that have the capability to rip the soul from its victim and send it to the soul-scale of Akerohtep. The process is incredibly hard to master, and often requires its victim to be near death or unconscious for strong spirits can resist the call of Akerohtep, especially those devout in worship of Holy or Druidic Gods. They are incredibly fast and strong, equalling or slightly exceeding the strength of the average orc and able to keep up with the canter of a horse when on all fours. While the Amonnti are indeed twisted themselves to have descended to such a state, their God demands evil souls… therefore, the Amonnti must be cunning in their victim selection. No soul will do, only those heavy with regret or with troubled conscience. The Ammonti will often infiltrate courts, churches and militaries seeking those that abuse their power or needlessly torment descendants. Therefore in an odd twist of fate, they make excellent witch hunters. For such bestial monsters of death, they do heed to an ancient hierarchy of the Charnel Sect. One Amonnti oversees the cult, and there have and never will be more than seven living Amonnti at one time. The reason is that there must be a balance maintained to control the beast within, one Amonnti to oversee the soul-scale’s balance, and three Amonnti each for matters of Life and Death respectively. Some very exceptionally ambitious humans might here the children’s tale of the monsters that seek out the evil men of the world and covet their power, in which the High Priest Amonnti will determine if he is worthy to receive into their cult by tasking him with procuring especially nasty individuals for sacrifice. If successful, he may be granted the power of the Amonnti and join the Cult of Akerohtep. When an Amonnti dies, his or her soul bypasses the spiritual scale and is sent directly to the Realm of the Dead to serve Akerohtep for eternity. While their Daemon God promises eternal riches and luxury, the comfort of their dead realm is quite questionable… In the mortal realm, a sarcophagus is made and the dead Amonnti’s belongings in life are buried with it. SUMMARY AND RED LINES The Amonnti are NOT immortal. They can die if they do not give their Daemon God souls, and they can be killed just like any other creature. They can be healed if someone wishes, but the features of their physique would prove very difficult to heal. The Amonnti are curiously immune to gold, having teeth made of it themselves. They are however particularly sensitive to ALL holy magics, resulting in serious injuries with even the slightest contact with them. If an Amonnti has their teeth removed, they cannot send souls to the afterlife and will wither away and die. The Amonnti are neutrally affected by druidism. It is neither potent nor ineffective. The Amonnti have exceptional strength and speed, but must not exceed that of the AVERAGE orc and speed of an AVERAGE horse. These creatures are not the incredible Hulk, and are more cunning in their ways and typically do not pick random fights unless they are infuriated or are fighting for their life. An Ammonti transformation requires 3 emotes to complete and is very painful, often causing short-torm fatigue and discoordination for the first few moments before the creature settles into its own body. An Ammonti cannot spontaneously appear in the world, they must receive the curse of the Daemon Akerotehp under the supervision of an ST. The Ammonti are absolutely loyal to their Sect and do not and will not break off into their own sect, for it would sever their connection to Akerotehp’s deal. These creatures are meant to explore the dark side of LOTC humanity including the envy of other longed lived races, a sense of supremacy, and a physical manifestation of these ideas. The Amonnti are meant to be very twisted and troubled people that are also doomed to live forever in delivering the souls of people like them directly to the mouth of hell. Sound fun? Send me some support and feedback!

We Want YOUR Screenshots! A lot of Orcish RP revolves around the Spirits & Ancestors, and particularly our ways of worshipping them. You’ll often hear a victorious Orc praising his chosen Spirit, or a Orc returning from a hunt dedicating his trophy to Votar. Unfortunately, few track our progress, and thus our Shamans cannot keep RP the Spirits or Ancestors being happy with an Orc’s dedication during the Spirit walks. So, if you ever construct a Shrine, sacrifice an Elf, dedicate a victory or in any other way please your chosen Spirit or Ancestor, send the screenshot in the comments. That way the rest of the Orcish community can share in your victory, and our Shamans can keep an eye on who is most active. Who knows, maybe one-day your fanaticism to Laklul could please the swampy boi and make you devote to his name, and give you Roleplay buffs. Here’s an example of why you may want to keep track of your dedications to a Spirit or Ancestor:

THE SER “Man is the cruelest animal.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche Lore/Origins Long before the Ser were born, the dragons ruled the lands. These giant beasts flew across the night sky in search of prey, with no mercy. Yet, these beasts were one with nature, and when Horen, the first King Of Man, gained power, the dragons fell into ruin. Before their demise, however, two new creatures were created. Nephilim were the first, the Dragon People. These were the creatures men saw in dragons, yet not what they were. And then the Serpens, also known as The Ser. These creatures looked more like snakes then dragons, where what the dragons really were. The Nephilim were created to punish men, and The Ser was made to let Dragons live on. They lived in peace, away from all men, orcs, and dwarves. A handful of Mali’ame found their way to the Ser, and were, in general, not eaten. Many people have claimed to have seen these beings, as they reach 6’ in height. All sightings have been seen as myths, however. After thousands of years of living in peace and away from modern society, the Dwarves tunneled their way into the Ser’Tarra tunnels. A massacre ensued, leaving many Ser and Dwarves dead. The remaining Ser’Tarra fled, and rallied their siblings, and thus, the Ser were introduced into the modern world. The Ser despised the Dwarves, Humans, and Orcs for disrupting nature, and that the dwarves were the worst. A similar race in the Fae realm, called the Elekhei (https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/194526-ca-race-lore-elekhei/?tab=comments All credit to her for the Elekhei) was also being evolved at the time. Many believe that the Elekhei are related to the Ser, but it is not certain. Appearance The Ser range in many different looks, some looking like Cobras, and others like Common Garter Snakes. Depending on the subrace, they would have different tints to their scales. The Ser’Tarra would be brown, the Ser’Aquis blue, and Ser’Ven black. They often have jewels attached to their tales, with one joule per year alive. This is a sign of glory, as many Ser died in the first years of their introduction into the modern world. If you were to insult a Ser’s looks, the Ser will attack, with the intention of making you as ugly as you said they were. Unhealthy Ser are smaller, weaker and overall worse. The tail of a Ser can be from 4’ to 6’, depending on the Ser. Many despide the Ser due to their looks, as a common fear of people revolve around snakes. Diet The Ser mainly only eat meat. Their favorite food being fish, rats, mice, pork, and steaks. All raw, of course. According to them, fire ruins the world. A healthy Ser will be 6’ tall and giant. An unhealthy one being slim and small, around 4’. Children are around 3’ healthy, and 2’ unhealthy. The unhealthy will die young, at 300 years old instead of 500 years old. If they were to eat anything but meat, they will have a reaction. Their scales would turn deep gray and start to fall off, leaving bare skin behind. This, to the Ser, is very painful and would kill them if not treated. They will not eat meat from Humans, Elves, Dwarves or etc. This, to them, is a sign of disgust, and rarely, can cause Dragon Rot. Disease The Ser don’t suffer from normal disease, yet they do suffer the same diseases, and some new ones, as the dragons. -Scale Wilting. Their scales will fall off, living pink or red skin in their wake. These patches will start to break up in hives, and sting to the slightest touch. -Claw Rot. Their claws will slowly shrink, leaving nubs behind. In time, if not treated, the claws will disappear and never grow back. Having no claws is a common sign of weakness to the Ser, and many will be disgraced for the rest of their lives. -Dragon Rot. The entire body will start to shrivel, making the Ser weak. Its caused by malnutrition mainly, though rarely Ser get it by feasting on Humans, Dwarves, Elves, and Etc. This disease makes the Ser VERY weak, and can die from the slightest cut. If the Ser where to do nothing about their sickness, they could die within a year. -Fire Glaze. When a Ser is burned, they can rarely get Fire Glaze. This disease will make the Ser very weak and unable to sit upright. Over a course of one week, the Ser will get temporary bad vision, bad hearing, and bad overall senses. In addition, they will have a constant headache and hives/welts. The Ser can also suffer from The Cold, yet it hardly affects them. Language The Ser speak in a weird tongue, consisting of mostly hissing sounds. They cannot write well, and often the writing looks like a child’s first attempt. Religion The Devourer - Primal god of the Ser The Religion of the Ser, peoples of the snake...from other races’s view on the practice their ways seem alien & strange-yet detailed & of interest. The Ser worship a giant snake, its humongous & strikes fear for all who dwell-its scales are said to be made from Descendant Skin-under the scales, the flames of Hell, if you stand near it you could smell its burning insides as its charcoal clusters around you, wherever it goes comes destruction, however-due to this it doesn't move that often, its constantly in sleep unless the end times comence-which is believed by the Ser. The Ser were touched by this giant snake, seeing it as their god, constantly doing its bidding through worship, they call him SEL’ANK, or the DEVOURER in common...reasoning being they believe at the end of time-the snake shall come out from its resting-awakened from times of troubles, and through this itll slither through the worlds, eating everything in its sight until there is no more signs of life, this is the end story for the Ser-However, the Ser believe they could resist this end event through practicing worship of this demon...this form of worship is done through the removal 0f skin on the snake’s tail, this being with a knife or any form of blade-once done they take the skin & burn it...of course as the Ser are similar to snakes they could regenerate said skin. In the Ser’s mindset their god is the creator of the ser, along with the first snake to ever exist. Rites of Ancient The Ser follow a very strict code, and when they come of age, (100) they will receive the Rites of Ancient. These writes, which can only be found in a single thousand year old book, must be read in the birthplace of the Ser, no matter how far it is. The rites consist of an oath, a pledge to nature, and deep magic. A council member is present at each, and if not, the rites will not happen. If the rites are not done by age 110 years old, the Ser will start to suffer from a curse, The Dragons Curse. This curse makes the Ser lose vision, smell, and senses. The Ser will suffer constant pain and then, in time, turn into a fern. Once the curse starts, there is no stopping it. The Rites go as followed. A 100 year old Ser walks into his/her birthplace, accompanied by their parents. (If alive) Ser being given the rites will say, “I, (Name) give myself to the Aaumin, pledge myself to naturz, and join the Ser in the togetherness of life.” At this point, a Ser elder will accept or deny the rites. If the Ser is denied, they must wait one more year before retrying. If/When rites are accepted a Ser Council member will enter the birthplace, and say the following in Ancient Serpenian “Quis sponzet az natursam izvenzes zias eozam sna auza mazorez, nusquaz ezze tusbaza.” Thus, the rites are complete. Culture The Ser have a strict code of honor, and if broken, the punishment is often death. The Ser, over 5,000 years ago devoted themselves to nature, and if a Ser were to dishonor nature, the Ser will no longer be worth anything to other Ser. The different Ser races have different opinions, however they all come down to the same principals. (I’ve decided that if the Ser are accepted, the different species should be able to make their own culture norms, as I think races should be as up to the player as possible. -Asteodia) Mating The Ser choose one mate, and stick with them for life. If a Ser were to break a bond by cheating, breaking up, etc. The two Ser will be unable to mate again, or have a love interest. They will feel no love for any other Ser ever again. If a Ser breaks a bond with another, the Ser in question will be put on trial, as this ruins the life of the other Ser. The punishment is often life in prison. Over the span of their 500 years, the Ser finds a mate at around 200, any younger will most likely not work out. Government The Ser have a unique government system. In the idea of a hierarchy, there is the Leader of a Ser City, a council consisting of 5, Royalty (The Ser Leader’s or Council’s Family) Guardians, whose job it is to keep the peace with nature and other beings, the common police, business owners/artisans, and then the common people. The roles go as followed: Ruker– Makes the final decision, advised by the council. Keeps the city in check, hires new council members and fires old ones. Oversees the Army, Business, Economy and just overall runs the city. Council of 5 – The council holds meetings with the people. The council listens to the concerns of the common Ser, and then take part in a private meeting in which the Council comes to a conclusion. Most decisions are made by the Council, yet the very big ones by the Serpans Ruler. Royalty – These Ser are family of the Ruler or council, they are normal people except they get honorable treatment. Guardians – These are hand picked Ser who pledge themselves to nature, the Ruler, and dragons. They protect nature, oversee the most dangerous tasks, etc. Common Police – These officials will take care of the majority of problems. The giant problems will go to the Guardians. Business Owners/Artisans – These are normal Ser who simply own a business or possess are useful skill, the Ser officials host more meeting for them than the common folk. Common Ser – These Ser make up the Majority of the population, just being normal, everyday folk. Titles are given by the council, and the Ser apply for them. Arts The Ser build in a very Elvish style, often with dragons and snakes engraved in all the buildings or items. Some examples of Ser what buildings look like are seen below: Ser’Ven Ser’Aquis Ser’Tarra ITEMS

Background/Origin While most over the years have forgotten the name Astral-Harnessing by the Descendants one name has lasted, Velurana, one who was thought to be a living goddess created the art of using the power of stars and even connecting one’s self to the stars. A tribe of Descendants had blindly followed her long ago, in her false religion. But one was different from the others not. He was no moth running to a flame, to the powers presented, as he wanted more than what she could offer through blindly following, by kissing her boot and submitting. He wished to learn her arts, but he wanted something more, something he could not conceive. Deep in the night while the other tribal descendants were busy following Velurana to see her mystical art he was visited by a demon, its name unknown - as well as its purpose, at least for now. The demon could sense his jealousy, his envy for what Velurana had, and her effect over the rest of the tribe. He made his motives clear not long after to him, a whisper in his ear. He would offer to bestow a book that was bound with a seal in the shape of a fractures star. At last, power, did the man think.. Though it was not what he wanted. It would tell the envious descendant to use the text upon a full moon after watching the living goddess conjure forth her energies. The descendant still fueled by his jealousy hungrily accepted the bound tome. In the night he watched from a distance as the living goddess brought forth a strange cosmic cloud around her body. After the envious descendant took close watch he scurried back into the forest and tore open the seal on the tome. The demon would watch the descendant eagerly as the seal was ripped from the surface of the tome. As the tome would open a similar solar mist seemed to lift from the pages before swirling into a small star-like object, that then collapsed in on itself turning into a black hole. The tome corrupted what Velurana had done, starting to suck out all light within the area, draining the light from the descendant himself as well as that of.. The energies surrounding Velurana. The color drained from his hair turning it to a midnight black, his eyes appearing to be nebulas with the iris having the appearance of a black hole. Cracks started to rise up his skin, his mental state itself began to change. From what may have been idle jealousy and envy grew into anger and hatred. In the process of the corrupted light drain, the demon itself was sucked into the tome, trapped inside of its own twisted creation. Though there he would bestow something upon the descendant, a cackling laughter, as the demon’s dying form was preserved - albeit restricted. The corrupted descendant would close the dark tome, now becoming the first Astral-Harnesser, the first of the corrupted. He would now go out separating from the tribe that had followed the living goddess to learn more of his new power, as she was nothing more to him now. Over time he would hide the dark tome before his passing, making lesser tomes, ones that could be used by others to travel down the dark path that he had with the help of the demon, and the effects it bestows. Magic Explanation “What was yours is now mine” Overview Astral Harnessing is a strange variant of deific funnelling, more so stealing, far more twisted in nature than its ancient predecessor. Its primary focus revolves around the usage of deific energies that caress the fleeting-force of a celestial body, a fallen deity. The wielders of this odd variant more oft-than not take on severe mental deterioration as a result of the influx of deific energies channelled through their mortal form, these deific energies being derived from fallen deities that have taken their final rest amongst the cosmic-expanse. These individuals, those who channel this cosmic energy, are ushered forth into the ephemeral planes - twisting the very rays of light around them, warping them into something that resembles a construct of their own cunning design. It is with this manipulation of light that these so-called astral harnessers gain the fuel for their craft, leaving the space around them sapped of light itself. These individuals do not simply banish light - it is with their innate abilities that they capture brilliance, siphoning it back to their cosmic-lordships in exchange for furtherance and sustenance of their respective abilities. The process to achieve the unsung feat of astral-harnessing is extremely unpleasant, requiring years of study and dedication. It is a long, strained process, though the individuals that manage to survive are, more often than not, rewarded for their sufferings during their respective trials and tribulations. An individual descendant, be it of any of the Races, is brought to a place of great reverence in the eyes of the Astral Harnessers, a sacred land of which cosmic energy runs rampant. When an individual has successfully attached themselves to the site, it is made evident by the influx of chaotic energies flurrying throughout their mortal frame. It is with this newly established connection, this influx of energy, that the true path of the Astral-Harnesser begins. It is, of course, absolutely required for the individual Astral-Harnesser to take on some slight alteration after the attunement, whether this is through cerebral-warping or degradation of the physical state - the Astral-Harnesser takes on something that reflects the individual cosmic-mass they are connected to. Like in folktales of yore, the Astral-Harnesser's hunger grows, even moments after the connection is it made evident that the Astral-Harnesser must feed - like the wolf with hunger gnawing at it from within, the Astral-Harnesser seeks to devour the brilliance of light, in order to provide themselves and their cosmic-lordship sustenance. It is an addiction to them, one that must be indulged in, lest they wish to suffer the consequences. Astral-Harnessing takes up [3] Magic Slots, it is not a feat. Astral-Harnessing requires the user to have undergone a Soular-Collapse and have ample energy to cast Astral-Harnessing can be learned from those who possess an [TA] in the magic. Astral-Harnessing users must have a valid [MA] to use it in-game. Properties of Astral-Harnessing The energies brought forth by an individual astral-harnesser may vary, as it seems not each one is connected to a singular celestial-body, rather there are multiple that one may connect to, though they should choose wisely as they have but only one chance. Taking the aforementioned statement into account, it should be noted that the manifested energies of each Astral-Harnesser appear to differ from one to the next; almost all spells are reflected with some level of an odd light that is best described as ultra-violet, or perhaps a black light. It is not uncommon for Astral-Harnessers to have their energies appear as strange masses that reflect a cosmic miasma- the same of which is painted above in the night-sky of Aos and Eos. Properties of Physical and Mental Changes Physical Changes The changes that the body goes through when practising Astral-Harnessing is one to match the progression of the mage. A mage practising Astral-Harnessing, to begin with, will gain black hues to their features, specifically targeting their hair from the ends, and as they progress, to their roots. Another inevitable change is in their eye colour. Immediately upon ritual connection, their eyes will begin to lose all colour, the sclera of their eyes shifts to gain a dark tint to them, over time colour drains and drains and what was formerly the iris and the pupil take on a black hole look, their sclera now dark in colour, as if what was once their pupil had become a black hole itself and eaten the light, the white, from their eyes. The only colour to grace one practising Astral-Harnessing is when they undergo the second ritual, which is when their eyes will erupt with a misty cosmic miasma, their pupils resembling black holes and what was formerly their iris distorts the colourful mass that now emits from their eyes, swirling what is in the eyes itself around the pupil. It is at this time that their complexion will begin to shift to become paler, they will gain a rather sore looking affliction around their eyes stretching onto their cheeks, the actual immediate areas around their eyes up to their brow will look like they have thick eyeshadow on. The next changes are ones that purely come over time, due to the magic itself not causing incredible amounts of exhaustion, primarily bodily harm, the cracks that form on the body never fully heal the next elven day. Instead, they remain as nasty scars, almost like the user about ready to fall apart with a hard thwack from a hammer. And that is precisely a good description of what would happen, whilst one who practices the magic is not physically weak, they experience harm inflicted by overs thrice over, leading to some serious issues for the user. These changes will not stop until the mage has mastered their craft, so to speak, and cannot suffer further changes as they have undergone all changes possible. Mental Changes Not all changes are physical, able to be seen. The most powerful drawback of Astral-Harnessing is that of the mental changes one will suffer whilst practising the magic. Most should expect the changes that harnessing the power of a fallen daemon would inflict, but many are unprepared for the true effects. At the early stages, one will find their morals have changed, no longer is the thought of pushing a pregnant woman over so foul, no longer is standing on that cat so cruel. For the early stages that are. As one progresses down the line of Astral-Harnessing and masters their craft they will slowly and slowly turn more chaotic and dark in nature. Practitioners of Astral-Harnessing and find themselves undergoing very common mental changes Such as a fear of socialising and such fears often lead to practitioners of Astral-Harnessing seeking shelter within fortresses and fortified homes or residences mayhaps even drive themselves to live a life Underground. Another common reason for them seeking such is to safeguard themselves against the changes which constantly bombard their personality. Such changes to their personality may include mood swings and personality swings as a whole influenced by the energy they are Harnessing from aenguls and daemons. This often leads to encounters where one moment they might be praising someone the next, they wish to attack them through words... Mayhaps even physically. Guidelines Casting Astral-Harnessing The process for casting Star Magic is essentially the process in which the mage will slowly draw forth the light and energy they have stolen from the dead aenguldaemon’s stars. To begin with, the process of casting this energy that they have harnessed is their tell, typically the user will begin to emit a noticeable colour that can only be described as black light and related descriptions, again, still bright though around their person will primarily be a kind of warping/distortion like that of a black hole. Their eyes will turn black, at early stages, and at later stages, their black eyes will light up with specs of stars and emit a black mist, from them which carry the same starry property to them. Secondly, the user will begin to cast their respective spell, the most frequent spells will begin to condense the blacklight and energy they are harnessing or form tears above their heads, hands and other locations, to cast the said respective spell. It is hard to not notice that the mage is casting at this point unless one suffers from sensory impairment. Thirdly, depending on the length of the spell, the user will be preparing to launch their offence or ready their defence during combat. Their light has now either condensed into an almost space-like mist or energy, or it has remained a black light, preparing to cast a beam or primarily offensive spell, mayhaps a more complex spell if they possess the ability to do so. It is to be noted that once cast the user's glow will flicker or disperse momentarily but it does not need to be emoted coming back, as it will naturally come back within the same second. If one were to start exhausting themselves they will begin to find glowing cracks on their form as they have harnessed too much energy and will find themselves unable to cast as their blackhole above has been spent of it’s stolen energy, thus leaving the user practically exhausted. Alternatively, the second appearance the user will show when casting is some form of dark particles that seemed to condense around them and go into something such as a weapon of their choice (see spells below.) This is a form of a darker tell and could be mistaken for other things, other magics, so if one would cast this alternative to leave they should not be doing it in public unless it is an unavoidable scenario Magic Abilities Astral Harnessing is the way that the mage gains their power, as they are stealing the light of surrounding stars and turning it into energy that they can wield. It enables the user to use their arsenal of abilities and spells, both passive ones and ones designed for an offence on another individual. Soular Collapse This is the system in which the user takes over a star and corrupts it and from this, they will find a black hole has replaced it shortly after. It is to be noted also that this black hole is purely a background mechanic, and it cannot really be seen, moved closer to consume the world and so on. It is simply untouchable. From this black hole, warped energy is created, twisted within the depths of the black hole. From this, the dark energy, the dark particles and or dark matter produced, Is what allows the Astral-Harnesser to have a variety of abilities and spells. Rite of Harnessing In ancient times, when the heavenly spheres beyond ephemeral planes were widely regarded as untouchable, left to the awe-struck thoughts of the mortal mind when setting sight on the cosmic advance above. These thoughts, these dreams and ideas painted out across the midnight sky, became the very foundation upon which practitioners of Astral Harnessing came to create the ritual of harnessing. Light has come to be revered throughout countless centuries as a benevolent, powerful concept. The extent of its influence and power is still, after many varying generations have passed, unknown to any corporeal being, though this fact only encourages arcane delvers and those enlightened few to theorize, manipulate, and create. In ancient Aegis, there were few individuals like this, those who gazed up into the wonder of the cosmic expanse ahead, only to be given a purpose. Notably, the first from which all those blessed with the craft of Astral Harnessing came to know this well, and in turn taught his ilk various methods of ascending among the stars: through projection and a physical rite. Cosmic Poisoning [Passive] Being bound to a Black Hole means that you are also going to hold part of that Black Hole within yourself. For an Astral-Harnesser, this comes in the form of your body outright rejecting pure iron. With the rejection of pure iron, the AstralHarnesser will find it hard to even get near the stuff nor manipulate it in any way they need. As well as holding this terrible weakness, when casting from any form of Astral Harnessing, the mage's eyes will get covered in a see-through veil of a starry night sky or another image of Space. Tome Creation Tome creation is the practice in which the user will create a replica of the book that the demon bestowed upon the original discoverer of Astral-Harnessing, it will contain the same texts that he read after being gifted the book by the demon when it was based around a tribe of Descendants. A practitioner of Astral-Harnessing will typically use their energy to coat a book or tome as well as a more focused form of Astral marking to specifically avoid the user. Disconnection The method in which a practitioner can be disconnected comes in two forms. The first being a self-caused disconnection and the second being an external disconnection such as being forced or disconnected by another. However, an astral harnesser may not disconnect another astral harnesser without them having shared or leaked secrets, only justified disconnection is allowed. Self Caused Disconnection is simple, the user has broken the tenets that they are bound to, or have gone against other harnessers and released information and secrets, essentially starting infighting or inciting betrayal. There are not a lot of tenets to follow, but as the tome states - they are; ‘Revealing the information bestowed upon you, by their will, is a betrayal to me, and a betrayal to all who follow. I strip you of your rights, should you do this.’ ‘Your guide is wise, and they have maintained my lineage. Listen to them’ ‘Unjustly attacking those who follow the tomes is a severe punishment. You will be punished. Mental Projecting An ability in which the user will be able to commune with allies and those comfortable with their presence mentally. What this does is remove the hindrance that is their mental changes during a tactical/combat scenario, though unfortunately for those new to it the ability is only present for those in tier 4 or above. Warped Reality The changes made evident both physically and mentally are hard to miss, though there is a benefit to the physical changes, specifically the vast changes one’s eyes undergo. They are able to see those who are not present physically, such as phantoms, however in no way is this actually.. Normal. What they see are monstrous silhouettes, blurs, moving around. Not only this, but they will be able to see flickers of those concealing themselves with magic. As combat ensues, or stressful situations, this will.. Begin to grow worse, those concealing themselves with magic become something like a strobe light to them, and things such as phantoms will grow worse in their blurry silhouettes. Spells Star-Light [Non-Combative] An ability in which the mage can make a ball of light in their hand, it’s quite bright and will light up an effective area of 5x5, however, the most comparable light is that of a UV light. This will cost the user 25 energy and will remain for different times depending on the tier. Alternatively, the user may spend an extra 25 energy (50 total) to make a permanent light at t5 which will no longer be in the user’s hand, but more a floating light. This takes 1 connection emote and 2 emotes to cast. For a t5 light, it will take an extra emote. Spatial transporting [Non-Combative] A small circular tear opens up, this can be used if the mage is successful in getting through doors. (Aka if they succeed their /lockpicking.) However, if they fail they will be spat back out of the tear. This ability is simply out of Combat and it cannot be used during combat to teleport behind someone due to the stress required to focus the top and not be lost within the vastness of empty space. This ability may have many uses though it depends on the creativity of the user. If a practitioner of Astral Harnessing is captured and stored in a Cell they may try to use this to escape. it is to be noted that if you are successful and manage to get to the other side of the door at the base of the tear or you originally stood there will be a charred like effect on the ground until removed. Astral Marking [Non-Combative] The ability in which a mage can write using cosmic miasma looking energy to mark their students or allies. To everyone outside of Astral-Harnessing practitioners the markings appear warped and distorted - but still able to be discerned, however, they will be unable to understand the marking. The markings take on a darker tone, and will typically be a sure sign to those outside of the magic that the marking carries magical properties if they hadn't guessed such from the warped appearance. This can be used for a variety of reasons, to mark property, to mark individuals as allies, friends or foes and to enable a student in their rite of harnessing. Only those practising Astral-Harnessing may read this and understand the markings fluently. Astral marking can also be used for a demonstration type scenario, in which a mage is able to cast, on a solid surface, a tear that takes on the appearance of space. This map will show a localized cluster of stars as one would see if they looked to the night sky above and can be used for a variety of reasons, however, it is to be noted that this will cost the user more energy, as well as more time to create. Astral-Projecting [Non-Combative] Astral projecting is something that comes in three forms. The first variation of Astral projecting is the ability in which the user will propel their warped, corrupted, soul from that of their physical form. The physical form will remain static, the way it was left pre projection. What this will enable is that a near-invisible form (until revealed to someone) will be able to travel forth in a local area of 100x100. Alternatively, the second is a type of projection which is more so projecting yourself over to the area of a target that you both know the appearance and name of. In such, you will not be able to venture from the area they are currently in and will appear as a figure of cosmic mist, with the eyes of such akin to blackholes. Only the person they are projecting to is able to see such. The third and final is a far more.. Different form of travel. The user will be ripped out of their form, and sent far above to the stars, to gaze upon them, though they may not stay for long at first, as the light of such is far too.. Powerful for them. When they return, they will find themselves at the nearest soulstone pillar - as when they return they will find themselves having travelled, with their physical forms. If another has consented, they too will be able to travel with that of the practitioner, though most likely they will fail, if they are not prepared. Meteor Shower [Combative] An ability in which the user will create a tear which has stayed in to resemble space. with a process in which this happens is if one would look into said tear and into the vastness of space there, they would be able to see several small flaming lights approaching. Upon getting close enough the tear will then release a singular projectile based on the tier or multiple projectiles at a later level. This spell will essentially release flaming hot rocks from space at the user, roughly the size of a tennis ball. Fragmented Weapon [Combat] The ability in which the user is able to over the course of three emotes conjure and form a temporary weapon of choice this weapon will weigh nothing and require a constant connection to the wielder. It is not possible to keep it forever, however, as it costs the user 5 particles per emote during the encounter or scenario in which it is used. Those who practice astral harnessing will also find that they cannot cast the weapon on another person as it is purely a self weapon only. If one were to be struck by this weapon they would experience a brief flash of sickness followed by that of a typical blade doing slashing damage and all piercing. The weapon’s form will typically not be able to take on a form that would deal blunt damage as it is much more difficult for the dark particles to cluster together like such and form a blunt faced weapon Gravity Field [Combat] The gravity field is essentially a spell in which the user is able to create a 7 by 7 area that will manipulate gravity. Gravity can either struggle to exist within this area or simply become too much for an individual and they will feel like they're wading through thick swamps or bodies of water in full plate-armour. If the user chooses to lighten gravity then the target will undergo anything from being able to walk correctly as they won’t be able to gain proper traction on the ground. Alternatively, if the user chooses to strengthen gravity within the area then they will find that it's similar to being shoulder-deep in a swimming pool or body of water and trying to run against a mild current. At T5 Gravity field can be increased to a 10x10 area for increased energy spending. Vision Warping [Combat] If a practitioner is to make physical contact with another person whilst casting this spell they are able to distort someone's vision to make it appear extremely stretched out to the point of more than 4 blocks in front of them or 4 metres being condensed to the size of a pencil dot. depending on the tier at which this is cast will depend on the duration it lasts. Soular Poisoning [Combat] Is the ability in which a user can unleash cosmic miasma toward opponents be it a Voidal Mage, a Holy Mage or Dark Mage. However, this ability primarily serves those of the better and gives them a rush, a boost or more like taking an adrenaline shot, where this affects the previous listed as well as anyone else that is specifically mentioned in a like manner akin to that of a weakened state. they will often feel something similar to radiation poisoning, however, in no way is it actually such - and will fade shortly after the encounter. Warped Vitality An ability in which the user, over the duration of three emotes, is able to cast some of their harnessed/stolen energy unto a target, be it an ally - or foe. If this connects with an ally, i.e typically darker mages capable of handling the warped energy, then they will either feel invigorated, akin to adrenaline. alternatively, the CASTER is able to declare that it is used for the opposite of the adrenaline rush-type feeling it induced for others - being a sick feeling, that makes the recipient want to vomit and feel feverish. Time Warping An ability in which the user can cast on an ally or foe and they will feel the energy surge within them, allowing them to spend the energy on a one-time usage deduction from their casting time for the present scenario. Alternatively, this can be used on those incapable of tolerating the warped energy to increase their casting time is to be noted that this is not strong enough to allow mages to start throwing instant spells around Tier Progression The progression in which Astral-Harnessing uses is a custom time frame, as when a user delves further and further the slow, drawn out, process in which they will undergo changes and abilities rapidly begins to change and speed up - though their mastery stays at a relatively fair pace. Tier 1 - Novice The practitioner of the magic has undergone the rite of harnessing, and with such will be in a state of limbo whilst their form adjusts and their mental scape shifts. This lasts 2 OOC weeks. Tier 2 - Apprentice At this stage, things have successfully begun to change, some physical features visible. They will find themselves able to cast that of their first spell, though it is quite a taxing process. This stage lasts for 2 OOC weeks. Tier 3 - Adept At this stage the practitioner is able to now cast things with more ease, albeit they have a restricted arsenal. At this point they are able to bring forth their weapon for the first time, and manipulate its matter when casting. This stage lasts 3 OOC weeks. Tier 4 - Expert This stage is at the point where the practitioner has a solid understanding of what they are becoming, what they are shaping to be. They have a considerable pool of energy to cast from and their abilities and spells have increased, they are able to cast with a bit more ease, though newer spells may be more taxing. This stage lasts 5 OOC weeks. Tier 5 - Master A guide to those before them, a master practitioner is a deadly foe, and moreso a powerful ally to boast. They have before them all astral-harnessing has to offer. This is the final tier for the magic. OOC Purpose Astral-Harnessing is something that I have written up in order to provide something akin to say, a support role magic. I also wished to try my hand at writing a new concept on the more taboo magic scene, something for both other people and myself to experience. Though, the actual mechanics of astral-harnessing is to fill that support role that every team needs, just... Maybe not so much for the good guys this time. Though of course this isn't enforced, and the future of this magic could, in fact, go in any direction, regardless of the abilities and the lore underneath them. In my opinion, this magic also boasts a lot of routes it can take based on the initial encounters during its early stages, especially with the support role esc type class that this magic is. Overall, this magic serves to add strength to certain communities also, as alone those who would practice it will struggle. Citations Thanks to: ElvenMommaHacker/Pup for giving me the idea to write a wacky side to a star-based magic and giving me some ideas and feedback. Also, spell checking. Ztrog provided me with the origins story. The material used for ideas when writing this piece: Mephistophelian’s “Effect of Funnelling Deity Powers” https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/151046-%E2%9C%93-the-effect-of-funnelling-deity-powers/ ShameJax’s “Space; From Within the Void” https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/165638-%E2%9C%93-space-from-within-the-void

Iaquith Amu History Love. There is nothing stronger. And, as is common with strong things, there are those that are drawn to it. Iaquith Amu, they are called. Eaters of love. These creatures are drawn to love. They eat it, revel in it, provide it. For when one is filled with love, completely and truly, they will be visited by an Iaquith. If they display enough love for the Iaquith to survive, then the Iaquith will take a form, and begin to live around that person. Often, the person won't even know that they’re there. But they should be careful. For if they anger the Iaquith… Long ago, there was a woman. She lived in a nice, warm, cozy halfling hole. Every day, she woke up, and prepared a meal for all the halfling children, and then went around, helping her neighbors. In the evenings, she watered the village's flowers, tended to her neighbors' crops, and set up little games for the children to play. Nobody asked her to do this, nobody forced her too. She loved helping, she loved her village, she loved her life. And then, after one long day of kindness, she came home, to find an adorable Teddy Bear sitting by her door. “‘ow noice,” She said, picking it up carefully, “Teh chil’ren mus’ ‘ave brough’ me eh gif’.” So she brought the Teddy Bear inside, set it on her counter, and went to sleep. The next morning, she woke up, blinking as the sunlight fell across the window into her eyes. In a flash, she was out of bed, panicking, “O’ nae! Oi mus’ ‘ave slep’ in!” The woman rushed to her kitchen, meaning to prepare the meal, only to find that it was already cooked, and that the Teddy Bear was sitting next to a plate. She blinked, “Oi mus’ ‘ave… forgo’en…” The woman shook her head, “Nae reason to s’an’ aroun’.” And with that, the woman began to do her daily work. Unnoticed, the Teddy Bear nodded, a small grin appearing on its face. Physical Description The Iaquith Amu have one purpose; to provide love. For they feed off love, and without it, they will die. Over millennia of evolution, The Iaquith have discovered a form that is generally liked by all. The Stuffed Animal. Almost universally loved, they have taken this form to provide love, and to be loved. Now, this is a broad term, let me define it in a more clear manner. The Iaquith take the shape of a creature standing at half a foot to a full foot. Their ‘skin’ is made of a cloth-like material, and their insides are filled with stuffing. Usually with a stitched mouth and button eyes, these are the forums that the creatures take when they find someone to attach to. They usually feel soft and fluffy to the touch, and can have a variety of features. (I.E. A lion plush will have a mane and little claws, while a human plush might have hair and a skirt.) By no means are they optimized for combat, their bodies being too soft and fluffy to do any real damage, and they are too small to wield any real sort of weaponry. Even if they could, they would not want to, since harming others does not produce any sort of love, and being around that much hate could very well kill the Iaquith Amu. An interesting topic is that the Iaquith do not often stay around voidal mages, which has led many to believe that the creature is Fae in nature. This is untrue, and can’t be proven, for Druids cannot comune with them. The reason that Iaquith avoid voidal magic is unknown, though a few have theorized that it is due to the effects that the void has on the body and mind produce an effect averse to love. Now, the Iaquith are not always plushies. In fact, before they find someone to bond to, they appear as little floating lights, which I shall call Form A. These lights cannot speak, hear, taste or touch. All they can do is feel love, which they move towards. Once they are near enough love, then they take the form of a Stuffed Animal, Form B. Their new form is not permanent, however. If their body is destroyed, or they do not get enough love, they return to Form A, and seek love anew. While they are in Form A they cannot be harmed. Any attempt to touch them will be useless, and will phase right through them. Redlines - Cannot be used in combat. -While in Form A, cannot be harmed and cannot harm others. -Cannot reproduce in any way, shape, or form. -While in Form A, they cannot see or hear, so no meta -Experiences in Form A cannot be remembered while in Form B. This means that all they will remember is feeling drawn to a person, then waking up in their new form. Memories between owners carry over between forms. Mentality The Iaquith need love. This is an important part in their mentality, for it is what their lives revolve around. Once they find someone who produces enough love for the Iaquith to want to stick around, they will take their new form, and begin to help them. In the beginning, they are generally not noticed, the person they have bonded to finding it strange that the plush seems to always be found near good happenings. Over time, the person begins to put the pieces together, and the Iaquith may reveal itself. It is important to note that the Iaquith Amu are not unthinking servants, like golems. They simply need love to survive, which leads them to want to make the person more able to produce love, among other positive emotions. While yes, they may bond with the person to the point where they will sacrifice themselves, but they will not execute commands as if they were a slave. The Iaquith are very expressive with their bodies, as they have no funcional mouth. Think of the emotes in Animal Crossing. Very expressive. Redlines -Cannot Speak -Will not obey commands that result in it’s death/death of others -Will not obey a command that will not produce love, or a positive emotion of some kind, without creating negative emotions. Abilities Aura Of Emotion The Iaquith have no functioning mouths, which means that they cannot talk, but they have developed alternate means of expressing themselves. Iaquith are generally more expressive than most, and can create an aura that radiates their feelings. This aura cannot be used to influence others emotions, merely let others know how the Iaquith is feeling. The Iaquith can decide if it wants to share its emotions or not. This only takes one emote. Redlines -Aura Of Emotion cannot influence the emotions of others. -It takes the place of talking, but Iaquith Amu cannot form words with their emotions. Ageless Iaquith Amu are ageless, they never age, and they will never die. While they can be ‘killed’ by having their vessel destroyed, this will only cause them to revert to Form A, and to seek a new bond to someone. While they do retain memories between bonds, their only goal is to bring love to others, so they will never use their information to cause harm. This information is instead used for the betterment of others. Redlines -The memories retained after ‘death’ cannot be used to cause harm, of any sort. All Redlines -Cannot be used in combat. -While in Form A, cannot be harmed. -Cannot harm others. -Cannot reproduce in any way, shape, or form. -While in Form A, they cannot see or hear, so no meta -Experiences in Form A cannot be remembered while in Form B. This means that all they will remember is feeling drawn to a person, then waking up in their new form. Memories between owners carry over between forms. -Cannot Speak -Will not obey commands that result in it’s death/death of others -Will not obey a command that will not produce love, or a positive emotion of some kind, without creating negative emotions. -Aura Of Emotion cannot influence the emotions of others. -It takes the place of talking, but Iaquith Amu cannot form words with their emotions. -The memories retained after ‘death’ cannot be used to cause harm, of any sort. Purpose (OOC) The dwarves have their Golems, the Alchemists their Automatons, I wanted to create something that anybody can have. A friend in the darkest of times. A creature that you can trust, that will be there for you. This is essentially giving everyone a companion, rather than just a select few. ((First time submitting something, constructive criticism, or just criticism would be appreciated. Thanks! -TG))

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Introduction: The magical arts of evocation is often viewed as simple and basic, given its straightforward nature. An aspiring mage is advised to learn a simple elemental evocation before they choose to delve further into the world of the arcane. With that being true, no spell is without its uses; the different elemental evocations offer the mage a diversity of tools that might be expanded upon further, depending mostly upon their expertise, experience, and creativity. Electricity is conjured into the world in a way no different than all other evocations; the mage must connect to the void, create electricity inside of it, and then tug it into the material plane so that it might temporarily be materialized there until whatever will the mage has is performed through it. Magic Explanation: As previously described, the art of electromancy is performed as any other evocation might be. The mage connects themselves to the void, creates whatever construct of sparks they wish to form within the void, and then drag it to the real world through the use of their mana. A mage’s capacity to manipulate their element depends greatly upon their familiarity with it and their awareness of it. A novice mage would understand the physical concept of electricity - how it behaves whatever environment it’s in, but a mage who has mastered the magic will understand the very idea of electricity, the way it may be conducted by water or metal. The roar of a powerful thunder, of the destruction of a calldown. This understanding allows the mage to craft complex and unique spells. Learning Electricity Evocation: when learning evocation it is much like the other evocations you must know the properties of electricity and how it works/flows. Much like the other evocations you learn this magic through tiers such as Tier one- Tier five getting more spells and more knowledge as you get taught and progress through the tiers. Properties of Electricity: some of the main properties are listed here. Once a spell of electricity is launched, it is launched and cannot be undone. Electricity normally does not have an appearance, instead it is the arcing of the energy off the particles which the mage commands that produces the visible light. Electricity that arcs as described above produces visible light, this visible light can be either yellow, white, purple, or blue. These colours are unique to the mage and typically model the closest colour to the mage’s aura (not the colour of the aura, but a close cousin of that colour instead). This means that there should normally be no black or red lightning. Electricity moves extremely fast, faster than sound even in normal conditions. This is exactly why you hear thunder after seeing a flash of lightning, for light moves faster than sound. This makes reversing damage from an electricity spell impossible, unlike a fireball, a mage cannot fizzle out a spell mid-cast, since it is a near instantaneous effect. These instant projectiles can be countered with metal deterrents, or shielding insulators like wood. Electricity takes longer to charge up and cast than other evocations, due to the larger than normal amount of mana needed to charge the particles. Metal attracts electricity very effectively, since metal is a conductor of electricity. This means that those wearing armour will be affected with more severe burns, but will not suffer similar immobilization as unarmored foes, and the electricity will arc off normal course towards metals and magnetic apparatus in the close radius of a mage casting electricity; somewhat attracted towards armoured targets naturally. It is a common misconception that water is a natural conductor of water, while this is normally true, water with minerals is what actually provides the ionic particles required to conduct electricity. Pure water itself (water drawn from water evocation for instance), is incapable of conducting electricity and will not attract bolts towards them. The larger an arc, or rather the longer a projectile travels, the more energy required to cast it. This is because arcs normally do not occur in electricity, rather they occur from the attraction between point a to b. As a result, spells that have larger distances to cover will naturally be more taxing than ones that are closer. -Zythus Spells and Abilities: [T1-T5]Orb of Electricity [Non-Combat/Combat]: Description: With this spell the practitioner can channel sparks of electricity into an orb, and hurl it towards their target or enlarging the orb until it reaches a desired size to then dissipate. Mechanics: This spell takes two emotes to use correctly meaning the Voidal Connection and then summoning the Orb. This spell can only cause someone to feel slight pain such as a small shock to the skin. As it is used for combat it is also used to light up your path making it another form of MageLight. This spell can be thrown up to a maximum of 10 blocks after 10 it will begin to lose form and die out fading away into nothing. The spell grows up to the size of a soccer ball, and is not able to phase through things. Effects: Small shock to the skin causing very small burns. [T2-T5]Bolt [Combat]: Description: With this spell the practitioner is able to conjure a bolt of electricity and hurl it against their target, making it a fast and efficient attack. Mechanics: This spell takes up to three or four emotes including having the connection, summoning an electricity orb and making the spark bigger and longer into an almost javelin type form along the forearm. This spell can be thrown/hurled up to 15 blocks. The spell is more sensitive to different types of metal. Effect (S): Small and Lethal Shocks and also being able to give an enemy up to 2nd degree burns also being able to stop the heart when lethal. [T3-T5]Stream of Sparks [Non-Combat]: Description: With this spell, the caster is able to form a stream of electricity, that is able to mesmerize those about with a show of light sparks of light flowing from the caster’s hands. Mechanics: This spell will be taking up to 4 emotes to do such correctly meaning, the connection of the void, the summoning of an electricity orb, then tossing it up making more and more spark appear over and over almost in a circle. No harm is done to anyone who reaches in your of doing this spell but they will feel almost a tickle sensation to the body or hand of some sort. It can not be tossed/hurled or thrown in any way shape of form. No Effects since you can not use it to harm anyone. [T4-T5] Calldown [Combat]: Description: With this spell the skilled caster is able to conjure a thunderbolt and hurled it at their target, making it for a lethal and noisy instance. Mechanics: This spell is one of the most powerful spells taking up to five to seven emotes to complete in this cycle, Connection of the void, focusing on a target (somewhere above it), making an electricity orb in mid-air, making it into a javelin shape/form in the air stretching wider and getting bigger then also making it cast down on something or even someone. You must be in direct sight of the object you wish to cast on and up to 25-30 block radius. This spell can only be used outside. Effect (s): Some effects of this will have to a human or any living being could be Death, Brain Damage, Losing limbs and much more, but a very high rate of death. [T2-T5]Electro Whip/Chain [Combat]: Description: With this spell the caster may be able to conjure a whip or a chain that can reach up to three meters in diameter, being able to harm or hold the mage’s target in place. Mechanics: This spell will take the caster up to four to five emotes to complete in the cycle of, Voidal Connection, conjuring electricity orb, making the orb grow bigger and bigger turning into more of a snake like structure.build to it then slinging it or whipping someone with it. It can reach up to six meters in length Effect (s): This spell could leave someone with small degree of burns leading up to maybe a cut/infection of some sort. [T4-T5]Electricity Wall-Field [Defensive/Combat]: Description: With this spell the caster may be able to materialize a field or a wall of electricity, making it so others can’t reach them through their barrier Mechanics: This spell takes up to 4 emotes as well in the cycle of Voidal Connection, focusing in front of yourself, making electricity flow in front as then it becomes almost like a shield. The spell can be up to 1 block and only to the person's personas height will the wall reach. There can be up to one walls summoned at once, meaning that it requires continuous focus. Effect (s): This effect is just a push back leaving a small shock. [T3-T5]Electricity Orb Blast [Combat]: Description: With this spell the caster can make that the orb that was previously mentioned above implodes into a blast of electricity, making them able to electrify their opponents with sparks of electricity that were contained in the orb. Mechanics: This is a rather short spell. Consisting of three emotes. Once burst it can reach up to 3 blocks in front of the caster as it stays in front of the caster at all times in the casters hands. Effect (s): This spells effect is simple leaving any open area to be hit with a small blast of electricity making a very stinging sensation and maybe if a strong enough mage uses it a small burn of some sort. [T5]Electricity Coat [Combat]: Description: With this spell the caster is able to constrict their opponents into a coat of sparks that the mage conjured, holding them in place to their possible dismay. Mechanics: This spell takes up to four or five emotes to use properly. The person you wish to cast has to be up to a 5 or 10 block radius, Creating up to 3rd degree burns. Effect (s): This will go to be like a taser in a form wrapping almost a blanket around the targets body and shocking them. This could leaving to the heart failing. And some high degree burns. [T4-T5]Electricity Shock [Defensive]: Description: With this spell the caster is able to let electricity surround them almost in a defensive state making it if someone wants to harm the caster it will shock them back but only to the physical takes upon the caster. Mechanics: This spell is a spell used only in close range when an enemy tries to harm a person still having to connect to the void. This spell also takes up to three emotes to use properly and is maybe half a block away from the caster. Effect (s): Leaving small degree burns to the one attacking. [T5] Minor Electricity Manipulation [Non-Combat]: Description: With this spell the caster will be able to manipulate small quantities of electricity such as sparks, so it can grant them convenient flexibility to the resources. Mechanics: This spell is a lesser form of electricity and acarnism baby in a way making the caster to connect to the void and basically manipulate Electricity in small shapes and small objects. This takes up to four emotes to do one minor spell and is mainly used as a helpful tool. Effect (s): The effects on this spell depends on how the mage uses it. General Redlines: A mage cannot manipulate real world objects or the real world version of the element. All electricity pulled from the void has to be casted within a line of sight. Electricity follows a path of all conductive metals. Can not pass through walls and other solid objects unless conductive metal. A mage is not immune to his or her magic hen casting. Purpose: The purpose of me and Iconic writing this over is to make sure we keep an important and a long lasting element to Lotc for the player base. We also did this because we would rather not let people just lose their magic of this element because no one re-wrote it. Citation: Some credits that we used to work on this piece are, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qehcY6h4CYRNl1Rcd8VJAOAAiUMtl1LY9z1IKtF5lDM/edit the original electrical lore and also this first rewrite from _ZythusRequiem. Credits: TheJollyHefty, Iconic_fluff ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kings of the Old Realm Recorded herein are the transcribed oral traditions and histories of the dwarves that lived under the first sky, uncovered first by my grandfather, Valen Grandaxe, and now completed and issued for public scholarship. While its record likely remains incomplete, it preserves extensive knowledge of the old Aegian kings, the details of which were previously thought lost. May it act as a chronicle to future generations on the tales of our forebears and of the struggles they overcame to carry on the legacy of Urguan’s folk. Through the knowledge of Ogradhad, may we be ever knowing. The Age of Stone Advancing from early runic and stone working practises of the proto-dwarves, this era marked the beginning of the great masonry projects which ultimately culminated in the construction and development of the subterranean metropolis of Khaz’Urguan, known in the common tongue as the Halls of Urguan. King Urguan Silverbeard - Arising from mysterious origins at the dawn of the mortal races’ great ascendancy, Urguan and his three brothers battled the Archdaemon, Iblees who had first attempted to deceive them in the form of a kind and benevolent old man. For their role in his banishment, Urguan and his followers were cursed with short stature and were issued a warning that their greed would one day be their undoing. After the defeat of Iblees, Urguan and his kin retreated to the deep underground caves of the world where they eventually began carving great stone structures and edifices into the rockface. Through years of rigorous perseverance and zeal towards the task set before them, the Halls of Urguan, known as Khaz’Urguan in the dwarven tongue, were constructed. As the most seasoned and wisest among his kin, Urguan assumed the mantle as their natural ruler and was crowned king of all dwarves, his followers collectively becoming known as ‘Urguan’s Folk.’ For three hundred years, Urguan ruled fairly and justly over a people who largely looked to each other as equals. Together, they delved deep into the depths of the world unknown beneath their feet, uncovering vast knowledge and wealth which in turn facilitated great leaps in their technological and magical prowess. Endeavouring to shield their people from the dangers of the outside world, they harnessed this new understanding to erect great runic behemoths which stood watch at the city’s gates, keeping guard on the valley below. Taking great pride in their accomplishments, they celebrated their act in defiance of the Archdaemon’s words, looking hopefully on towards a bountiful and more prosperous future. Soon, however, Urguan desired to share this world with another and married a she-dwarf by the name of Yudora. Between them, they sired eight sons, each as unique and exceptional as the last. While all of Urguan’s offspring were tutored in the ways of their father’s learned kin, some grew curious of the world that stretched above them, untamed and ripe for exploration. As time passed, Urguan granted these dwarves his blessing to leave the city and many ventured north with their followers, some choosing to settle among the clouds on high mountain peaks, over time becoming known as the mountain dwarves. A small few, meanwhile, found peace in the dense woodland groves of the great forests, and became the forest dwarves. Finally, for those of his kin who had refused to leave Urguan’s side and remained living in the deep underground dwellings of their father, they called themselves cave dwarves. Over time, each of these communities formed families of their own and as they became acclimatised to their new environments, their differences grew starker. For Urguan himself, however, more pressing matters lingered on his mind. Strictly ordering that he not be disturbed and locking himself in his chamber for what seemed like days and nights without end, he toiled in secret on matters that have been left unknown to history. For a time, the dwarves of Khaz’Urguan grew fearful of what had become of their king, yet none wished to defy his will. After a full year had passed, Urguan finally emerged, clad head to toe in cloth and furs, asking only that he be left without question to depart the city’s gates. With his kin adhering to his final command, he left his suit of armour behind, venturing alone into an oncoming snowstorm, never to be seen or heard from again. King Barradin - Upon Urguan’s sudden disappearance, a succession crisis ensued. It was determined from then that all future Kings of Urguan would be appointed from among the clans of Urguan’s immediate offspring and would adopt the name ‘Silverbeard’ upon their coronation, after which they would forgo all ties to their blood kin. Barradin was the first to be chosen, a proud and long-reigning dwarf who presided over the nation's new social order in the immediate aftermath of Urguan's reign, sharing power across the clans of Urguan's sons. This had the unintended effect of leaving their low-born kin with little say in how they were governed and most were forced to toil day and night in laborious conditions in order to sustain the nation's economic growth. This fact was mostly forgotten, however, as the new threat of Ondnarch's terror from the north became clear. Battling against the fallen aengul's minions at all corners of the realm, Barradin’s host and his runic behemoths were soon routed and for years, the King struggled to preserve the unity of his people locked tightly behind Khaz’Urguan’s great gates. What became known as the 'eternal cold' was left to ravage those who remained outside, while the dwarves within struggled for warmth, their survival becoming dependent on the heat of the city’s great magma core. Barradin's perseverance paid off, however, and he was later able to push back the hordes at his gates and with the help of the Triumvirate of Runelords, used his hammer to banish Ondnarch atop the summit of the highest of the northern peaks, Mount Arvas. The Age of Gold Emerging from the brink of extinction during the eternal cold, dwarven society was reformed around trade and the mercantile classes, with the guilds emerging to rival the powers of the nobility. This helped to inspire a new era of exploration and discovery, alongside the development of numerous technological and magical innovations. King Thulgrim - Bearing the responsibility of rebuilding the kingdom after the end of the eternal cold, he set about lifting the dwarven spirit by reforming the social hierarchy of his predecessors. Forest dwarves who now controlled most of the kingdom's outer farmland and crop supply, sought to enshrine better protections for their woodland groves and demanded that higher prices be paid in exchange for their produce. These terms were met by Thulgrim, but not without significant unease from the predominantly cave dwarven nobility of the time. Meanwhile, the common clans who had mostly acted as labourers during the crisis, saw this and issued calls for greater power in government. Thulgrim responded by reforming the city’s industries around the guilds, better reflecting the old social order present under Urguan's reign. King Hrolfgar - Over time, the minerals of Khaz’Urguan’s deep mines ran dry and in order to maintain trade with the outside world, it became necessary for the dwarves of Urguan to seek new veins of ore elsewhere. King Hrolfgar, an ardent adventurer himself, set about leading an expedition west in search of new ore deposits. Travelling by land and water over many perilous months, he soon discovered a low lying region of dense woodland. Within this forest, he found that many of the ilk of Urguan’s brothers had already settled there, choosing to form their own homes amidst its wild flora. After five further days of searching, the dwarves finally discovered that nestled beneath a tear in the landscape, a great subterranean network of caves stretched deep into the ground, its sprawling tunnels inlaid with vast deposits of glistering ore. Heralded first as a gift from the gods, the dwarves soon found their hopes in peril as lingering deep within this subterranean underworld rested a great beast of unspeakable horrors. Hrolfgar and his company descended into its depths, and legend has it told, he personally bested the beast before it let out a final flail of its razored tail, slicing him in two. The colony and its surrounding landscape would later become known as ‘Aurok’Wiker,’ the ‘Golden West’ for the great wealth its minerals would bring to the dwarven realm. King Magnis - Carrying on the economic reforms established during the reigns of his predecessors, his rule at first proved immensely successful and a brief golden age dawned as dwarves from all walks of the city embraced trade and began living better off. By this time, the mines of Aurok’Wiker had grown into a sprawling metropolis, with an ever rising population of newcomers from the capital. Artisans set about producing new and more extravagant wares, attracting traders from all across the mortal realms, while the kingdom’s vaults overflowed with gold and expensive jewelry. However, this prosperity was mostly felt by the kingdom’s inner territories, leaving the mountain holds with a deep sense of neglect. Mountain dwarves became increasingly distant from the kingdom and calls for the independence of their northern holds persisted. While long suspected of corruption by his opponents, Magnis was able to weather these criticisms and served a long and stable reign. King Rumli - Known as the 'scholar-king,' he extended the prosperity of his predecessors and channeled it into the pursuit of knowledge, discovering new metal-working technologies and more effective methods of ore extraction. Tales of legendary dwarves such as Urguan and Barradin were not just vocalised but henceforth became memorialised through great feats of stone inscription, carved into the inner walls of their holds and cities. Aurok’Wiker became the new centre for this cultural revolution and it was endowed with a new name by Rumli, one more befitting of its size and status. The glorious new city of ‘Kal’Urguan’ flourished and within its subterranean tunnels, the ancient runic behemoths were used to carve out and erect the body of its main hall. Not wishing to see their powers harnessed by any of his successors, however, it is said that upon Rumli’s death, he ordered that the behemoths would stand dormant, calcifying into the great stone pillars many dwarves would later come to live under. The arts of magic and runecrafting also increased significantly beneath Rumli’s reign and it became less unorthodox for dwarves to practise them in public. In dealing with the mountain clans, he was largely amenable in negotiations and chose to appease their demands for greater influence in the government, while offering the division of some resources into their holds and villages. However, this created mounting opposition from the kingdom’s powerful new class of mercantile elite who believed the mountain dwarves had overplayed their hand. The Age of Iron After a period of economic boom, successive dwarven governments looked to further embolden the realm, by strengthening the bonds among dwarven kin. Often, the price of unity was seen to be dealt through force and so this era became marked by the vast production of largely iron weaponry, born from the deep mines of Kal’Urguan. Disorganised clan militias became a thing of the past and the first uniformed armies were created. King Agrund - A veteran commander of the war against Ondnarch and political opponent of Rumli, he was nominated to power on the promise of creating a united dwarven realm, by ordering the return of all mountain dwarves to the halls of their forefather. This, however, had the effect of angering the mountain clans who soon grew embittered by his rule. They opted to make a joint declaration of independence, giving Agrund the excuse he needed to wage a bloody campaign to reclaim the kingdom's lost territory. Taking a strategic decision to operate out of Kal’Urguan for the duration of the war for its abundance in iron, what Agrund foresaw as an easy victory slowly evolved into a protracted and bitter contest. Inspiring fervent nationalist movements on both sides of the conflict, he expanded the dwarves' military might to levels never before seen but by the end of his reign, had exhausted the kingdom's coffers and was later forced out of power by his own council before the war had met its end. During the course of the conflict, Khaz’Urguan had seen its supply lines cut-off as the mountain clans raided its various trade routes through the narrow mountain passes. With a lack of support from the rest of the kingdom, famine quickly took hold and as the war neared its end, much of its populace chose to abandon the city in search of greater fortunes elsewhere. King Barrus - Son of Barradin, he was seen as a unifier, ending the war with the mountain clans through a treaty that enshrined autonomous rights, but set about formally reintegrating mountain dwarves back into Urguanite society, though tensions continued to persist. Barrus looked to further secure the kingdom’s economic prosperity by officially declaring Kal’Urguan its new capital, leaving the Halls of Urguan to be left as a site of pilgrimage to their holy father. In reality, with little reason for dwarves left to venture there, the walls of their ancient capital soon began to crumble and its streets became lifeless and derelict. Meanwhile, amid Kal’Urguan’s new boom in population, Barrus found himself having to find means of accommodating the need for greater food production. Pasturelands and other fertile plains for crop harvesting were settled along the kingdom’s outer borders, where its farmhands increasingly came into conflict with the orcish clans that dwelled in the arid deserts to the south-east. Seeing this incursion as an opportunity to unite his kingdom further and put its new military infrastructure to good use, he grew determined to rally his people around war with this new orcish menace. Though Barrus commanded immense popularity at the time of his reign from commoners and nobles alike, depicted as a semi-legendary figure to those at home, the war grew long and bitter, with any territorial gains being largely offset by losses elsewhere in the orcs' favour. Barrus himself was later slain amidst the heat of battle by a stray arrow from a common goblin archer. With their former king's inglorious demise, and the nation's pride left in tatters, Barrus’s remaining councilors retreated into isolation, barring shut the stone passageway into Kal’Urguan from all outsiders and prohibiting its common citizenry from leaving. King Aldrek - Presiding over a kingdom engaged in a strict policy of enforced self-isolation, he set to work on ensuring the city could suffice its own needs. Following demands from the wealthy mercantile classes, the kingdom’s mines, which had formerly required only a small city tax to enter were placed beneath the direct supervision of the guilds, who reserved exclusive mining rights for their own members. These guilds which consisted of both aristocrats and aspiring commoners, would frequently come under the dominance of wealthy trade magnates. Farms previously owned and harvested by forest dwarves were seized by the King’s hearthguard and handed off to their cave-dwelling brethren who in turn, established farming guilds to manage and benefit from their output. Most forest dwarves were made to continue working the land for only a fraction of their previous income, though a minority chose to reject this affront to their ancient way of life and fled south, hoping to find better lives among the deep forests of Malin’s children. With less experienced farmhands brought in to replace them, harvest yields began to slump. Although Aldrek still attracted great support from many of the well-to-do in his kingdom, others vehemently criticised the disaffection he’d presided over, the city’s political climate becoming more embittered and divided with each moon that passed. In the city’s poorer districts, low-born clans resorted to organising smuggling rings to deliver food, trade wares and other illicit goods from the outside world. The King quickly attempted to stamp these out by demanding that the Brathmordic clergy condemn any such action to undermine Urguan’s regime, which after some under the table inducement, they soon obliged, distributing pamphlets throughout the city bearing foreboding warnings of the sins of gluttony and excess avarice. Meanwhile, paying off informants to reveal the identities of their ring-leaders, Aldrek ordered his hearthguard to conduct numerous raids into the poor district’s cavernous dwellings. When they arrived, however, they found themselves pelted with rocks and mining tools from homes and shop windows, and in a direct affront to the King’s authority, they were soon forced to withdraw. Seeking means to lay down his rule and reassure his supporters that he remained firmly in control, Aldrek organised a grand procession to be held through the streets of the city’s great hall. It was here that a lone assailant is said to have drawn a crossbow from underneath his cloak, letting loose a bolt which flew directly towards Aldrek’s throat, leaving the usually stoic and unperturbed dwarf gasping in a pool of his own blood. The perpetrator swiftly had a spear driven through his gut, but with no disclosed motive, Aldrek’s death was used largely for propaganda purposes by political actors seeking to point fingers at their rivals. King Glorvin - Glorvin spent the majority of his reign battling political elements within his own government as he struggled to arbitrate the disputes brought before him. Overpopulation in the city proved a persistent issue and guilds took to hoarding precious minerals and crop yields, leaving little for the rest of dwarven society to benefit from. Perceiving that this inequity had led their affluent paymasters to prosper while they struggled to put food on the table, the common clans laid down their tools, making a final demand that their king act to curb the guilds’ rising influence. Although seeking an honest solution to the crisis, Glorvin was impeded by his council, from whom he commanded neither the respect, nor political support he needed. Meanwhile, corruption had grown wildly during the reigns of previous kings and many of these council dwarves now found themselves on the guild masters’ payrolls. Strikes quickly turned into riots, and then to violent brawls, cementing tensions from noble to commoner, soldier to civilian, and cave to mountain and forest dwarf. In a last desperate bid to resolve the crisis, Glorvin ordered his hearthguard to reopen the city’s main passageway against the will of his council, allowing trade to flow in from the outside world. It was too late, however - Many dwarves, already having lost faith in the nation, decided to take their chances and leave the city, while those who remained soon found themselves engulfed in a whirlwind of political disorder. Having defied his council’s will and hearing whispers of a plot to oust him from the throne, Glorvin embarked on a secret pilgrimage to the ancient capital of Khaz’Urguan where he sought to beg spiritual guidance from the kings of ancient times. There, it was revealed that his location had been betrayed by one of his own and rival dissidents soon surrounded him in the city’s inner chamber. His last remaining allies were cut down in the ensuing fray, desecrating the halls of their ancient city with their kinsmen’s blood. Led back to the capital in chains, Glorvin was greeted by his treacherous councilors, who forced him to relinquish the throne at sword point. The Age of Blood A period marked by violent and sudden upheavals in dwarven society, resulting in the ascendancy of the Ironborn dynasty and the formation of the Khorvadic Empire. Now viewed by modern dwarves as an era of depravity and sin, society faced sweeping and radical changes which ultimately buried the old system of government and wiped out all but a few of the generation of dwarven lawmakers who had come before. King (later Emperor) Velkan Ironborn - With Glorvin's ousting, Velkan took advantage of the disarray that followed and before a new king could be officially appointed, he led his followers in attempting to seize the throne through force, in what effectively amounted to a popular uprising. He bore the promise that he would re-unite the dwarven realm and vanquish those who sought to do the kingdom ill by ridding it of its corrupt council and decadent priesthood. This he certainly achieved and in the early years of his reign, many affluent aristocrats, clerics and guild masters were put behind bars or otherwise dispensed of. He readily set about reducing the rights of non-cave dwarves, with many of the mountain clans fleeing to their northern holds for refuge, while the forest dwarves were largely persecuted and shunned, most being forced into hard labour. Seeing the situation seemingly deteriorating and seeking to break away from this newfound state of affairs, the mountain clans once again declared their independence. For dwarves living in the capital, however, not all lost out from Velkan’s rise; many would make their own fortunes amidst this changing order and in place of the old, a new social elite began to form. Velkan would later make radical changes to the dwarven faith, outlawing worship of the Brathmordakin in favour of a monotheistic devotion to Khorvad, formerly the Brathmordic god of ambition. With popular support, he went on to greatly expand the kingdom's borders, subjecting many minor realms to his bloody conquests and declaring the formation of the first Khorvadic Empire. In his old age, he was eventually driven to madness, raving of his god’s might and the coming of the great apocalypse of the mortal races, words which soon led many nobles and clerics of the new Khorvadic temple-establishment to begin viewing him as a hindrance. He was likely put to silence by these groups before he met his natural end. Emperor Khrallax Ironborn - Regarded as a lazy and an ineffective ruler, whose power was mostly competed over by his brothers, clergy and councilmen, he continued the persecutions committed under Velkan's reign though largely held back on territorial pursuits. He was known for being overly gregarious, hosting lavish banquets for his favoured courtiers and while generally seen as indolent, many preferred this state of affairs to the secretive nature of his father’s reign. This was not to last, however, as he and his sons were later assassinated by his younger brother and High Imperator, Thorgarn. Emperor Thorgarn Ironborn - Seizing the throne by force and cementing power even further into Ironborn hands, he sought to reimagine dwarven society around his own image, erasing all knowledge of the time before his father's reign by burning ancient texts and conducting blood sacrifices of old clergy dwarves and scholars in an event that became known as the ‘Great Collapse.’ Runelords who had previously guarded the dwarven realm from threats of an arcane nature were forced to smuggle themselves into the city’s outer wilderness. Even Urguan's name was put to the periphery as a venerated forefather but not one who had much implication on the present state of the nation. Those dwarves who had fled his father's reign looked on in horror, while forest dwarves, by this time in a state of enslavement, suffered a massive reduction in population due to exhaustion and disease, driving them to the brink of extinction. A personal witness to many of the atrocities committed at the hands of the Ironborn rulers, a dwarf of low-birth by the name of Simppa fled the capital following the brutal execution of Dwain Irongut, seeking refuge among the halls of his kin. He found them in a deep state of mourning at the loss of their clan father, vowing to do all he could to avenge his death and restore justice to the halls of Urguan’s sons. From there, he reached out to the clans of the old mountainous north, the Grandaxes and Frostbeards. At the summit of Mount Arvas, they reached an agreement with the clans of Irongut and Treebeard - Thorgarn must fall. Clans of all creeds descended from the north, all bound in opposition to Ironborn rule and united beneath the banner of the Remnant of Urguan. Seeing their chances of success growing as they closed in on the capital, other clans flocked to their cause and following a series of bloody clashes along the King’s Road, they succeeded in overthrowing the Ironborn dynasty and putting an end to their years of infernal rule. The shrines to Khorvad were quickly torn down, his name branded synonymous to the Archdaemon, Iblees, and his worship outlawed on pain of death. Any and all of Thorgarn’s surviving kin who could be found cowering in the city were brutally put to the axe. The Age of Fire In the shadow of the Ironborn, the burgeoning Kingdom of Urguan was forced to begin afresh, accommodating the vast spread of new freedoms and ideas. Various projects were created to accommodate the city’s rising population and the heralding of a new and more prosperous era. Just as they reached the pinnacle of their achievements, however, the dwarves faced their greatest challenge yet in the face of oblivion from the nether realm. King Simppa - Worshipper of the Archaengul, Aerial, and Urguanite exile, Simppa led his people in overthrowing the Ironborn dynasty and was placed at the forefront of forging a new future for his people. Emulating the scraps of knowledge he had of Urguan’s original kingdom, he greatly improved the living conditions within inner Kal’Urguan, and set about accommodating numerous professions to take to selling their wares in the city’s newly rebuilt districts for commerce. He reopened the city’s mines to the common clans and enacted justice on lawbreakers through the authority placed in his council and advisors. In seeking to better organise the dwarven military for future conflicts, Simppa issued decrees for the formation of the first dwarven Legion, which he placed under the marshalship of Hiebe Irongut. Its first task came swiftly as along the King’s Road, word soon reached the King that caravans of dwarven traders had been ambushed by orcish clans, sparking a conflict which became known as the ‘Caravan War.’ Simppa’s legacy was never fully realised, however, as he soon grew ill beneath the grip of a mysterious sickness and was forced to relinquish the throne in favour of his chief advisor and overseer, Charles Grimlie. King Charles Grimlie - A divisive ruler, his reign was marked by the rapid expansion of dwarven territory and the settlement of new holds including Kal’Alras, Kal’Bryst, and Kal’Himmilen. Just as the dwarves looked close to reforming a de facto empire over their lands, portals from the nether realm opened in the northern reaches, spewing vast hordes of hideous demonic creatures from their gates. Pulling at their strings and shrouded under black robes of darkness loomed the undead, corrupt and twisted beings from the nether who at their coming, would envelope the land in night, summoning great bolts of electricity down from the sky. Viewing this as Khorvad’s retribution for their toppling of the former Ironborn empire, free dwarves from across the realm pledged their axes and marched north to defend the kingdom from invasion. The dwarven hold of Kal’Bryst was the first to succumb to these attacks after a valiant last stand by its inhabitants. Later in his reign, views of Charles’s autocratic style of rule became increasingly polarised from within his own kingdom, seen as a tyrant in the same vein as Emperor Velkan by some and a conquering hero by others. Tensions came to the fore when a lone human thief broke into the King’s private vault, casting the dwarven king into a furious fit of rage, leading him to lay siege to the Orenian capital of Al’Khazar. The Goldhands, who now resided in the hold of Kal’Alras chose to declare their independence from the kingdom while the Grandaxe clan splintered into two halves, the Braveaxes choosing to remain serving in the dwarven Legion while their Blackaxe kin ventured north as mercenaries, constructing the great citadel of Kal’Domhain in the northern peaks of their forebears. King Belin Irongut - Seeking a change in their ruler’s style of leadership, the high council opted for a more compromising dwarf by the name of Belin Irongut. In contrast to his predecessor, he ruled largely through his council, negotiating trade agreements with other realms and granting the guilds some of the powers they had once possessed. He led a largely peaceful and stable reign, with focus scaled back towards ensuring the continued prosperity of the kingdom’s home territories. Nearing the end of his rule, he would order the construction of outer Kal’Urguan, erecting great walls around its farmland in preparation for the rising threat of invasion by the undead. King Algrim Irongut - His reign was marked largely by the descent of the undead hordes into the lowlands of the south, where Kal’Urguan quickly became a prime target for attack. After completing construction on the city’s outer defences, he ordered the Legion to begin working alongside the other descendent races to hold back the tide from his kingdom’s borders. Meanwhile, having become increasingly isolated in the north and looking to restore their honour in the kingdom’s eyes, it was during this time that many Blackaxes returned to Kal’Urguan to aid in the defence of the city. With the help of allies from the descendent races, Kal’Urguan was able to withstand numerous attacks on its walls and the dwarves were successful in driving the undead from their lands for a time. However, following an assault on the Khorvadic fortress known as Wrath’s Clutch, bitter tensions were fermented between the Legion and the elven Wardens of Malinor, both taking credit for their successful defence of the south. The Lord Marshal, Thorik, subsequently ordered his elite legionary units known as the longbeards to begin hunting down Wrath and his remaining followers. Paranoia quickly spread throughout Kal’Urguan amid fears that worshippers of Khorvad or even the undead themselves could have embedded themselves among the ordinary dwarven populace. Numerous raids were conducted in the city’s inner housing districts, with the Legion uncovering a number of hidden shrines in dedication to their dark god. In a great shock to the nation, however, King Algrim himself was revealed to be among these agents of Khorvad following interception of his communications. At the Lord Mashal’s behest, he was quickly arrested by the dwarven Legion and removed from power. King Gotrek Firemane - For a time, the undead threat had seemingly subsided and in Algrim’s place, a dwarf by the name of Gotrek Firemane was appointed to succeed him. He was notable in dwarven history for having spent more of his reign outside dwarven lands than within them. An ardent pursuer of knowledge and a popular dwarf in all walks of the city, he immediately took a band of his brethren soon after his coronation, and led them on an expedition westwards into uncharted lands, leaving rule of the city in the hands of his high council. In his absence, many of these council dwarves grew indolent and greedy, much of society being effectively governed by the Lord Marshal, Thorik, and other high ranking legionary dwarves, the longbeards. They decried their king’s absence in the face of a potential threat of invasion by the orcs and their elven allies. A war council was quickly established by the Lord Marshal, initially to prepare the realm for conflict, but its authority soon expanded to encompass other areas of the city. The two councils wrested for control until Thorik and his longbeards took the ultimate decision to lead a military coup against the throne, crowning himself and establishing the first Grand Kingdom of Urguan. Gotrek would later offer Thorik his blessing upon his eventual return to the city. Grand King Thorik Grandaxe - The first of the Grand Kings of Urguan, he radically reformed the kingdom, with the Legion and his closest supporters placed firmly in control of government. When the Great War of the four mortal realms finally came, Thorik used his military cunning and his advisor's political astuteness to not only prevent the dwarven homeland from falling to the conquering armies but he was able to press the warfront into the lands of his enemies in Krugmar and Malinor, whilst gaining a valuable ally in the human Kingdom of Oren. His victories during the war meant he was able to dramatically expand the kingdom's influence in foreign lands and for the first time, the nation of Urguan would play a much greater role in the affairs of the other races, mediating peace in some instances while continuing to combat the re-emerging threat of the undead in the north. Worship of the dwarves' ancient religion of the Brathmordakin was reestablished and became the driving force for change in dwarven society. As the fallen Ironborn emperor had spoken in his madness, however, these good-times were not to last and the lands of Aegis were soon engulfed by the fires of Khorvad, the world-devourer and his demonic horde. In this final advance by the undead, cities across Aegis fell before his wrath, first in the north and then to the south until Kal’Urguan itself was lost to the encroaching inferno. Three champions of the dwarves ventured into the nether in an attempt to halt the invasion and secure the descendents’ retreat, but it was Urir Ireheart who cast the Axe of Krug into the nexus, sacrificing his life to close shut its gates and seal Khorvad’s undead minions within. It was too late for the realm of Aegis, however, and its lands became quickly consumed by what remained of Khorvad’s horde. Thorik led his people in the great exodus from their homeland and on to the new realm of Asulon where the stories of his people would go on.

Althea leaves the tavern after a day of work, walking through New Reza’s square and unto her street. Upon reaching her door she can hear her cat’s soft meowing from inside. “Hello Bob, how are you doing? Do you miss Demetre as much as I do?” She asked the small cat that rubbed against her legs, another meow came out. Althea nodded her head, pretending that her cat was talking back to her, “I’ll go see if he wants to come back home. At this point he should have gone through most of the bones in the tomb.” Walking upstairs to her small bedroom she reached into her dresser and grabbed a less formal dress. “This should do it for where I am going.” Quickly she changed her clothes and took off her jewelry. Looking over at Bob who had plopped himself onto her bed, “I’ll be out for a while, but when I come back I promise Demetre will be with us.” And so she departed from her home, out into the plains where a small creek laid. “Demetre! Oh come out please!” She called, though she believed he voice didn’t reach the dog a hearty bark came back to her. Following the sound into a tomb hidden in the side of the hill, there he laid smiling with happy eyes. “Demetre there you are honey,” She would call out to the dog, “Come on now let’s go home I have a nice steak that you can eat.” And with the promise of food the dog got up bounding happily besides his master. Althea returned back to her house, letting the dog run inside and sniff the few new smells that laid in the air. Demetre ran up the stairs while Althea made dinner for herself and her pets, soft purring an the sound of a tail hitting the floor echoed through out the home.

THE FROSTBEARD FIGHTIN’ FISH OR OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “FIGHTY FISH” AND “MAC FACE FISH” The very vicious fish in water Overview The “Frostbeard Fightin’ Fish”, or otherwise known as the “Fighty Fish” or “Mac Face Fish”, is a brackish fish originating from deep within Kal’Tarak’s inner cavern in Atlas, where small populations of the fish lived in aquifers and large pools of water. While not a dominant species in the cave’s grand ecosystem, it has proven to be a very hardy fish when introduced to other cavernous ecosystems, much of which can be attributed to it’s highly aggressive and territorial nature that ensures their populations survive. True to their name, the Fighty Fish will attack anything that enters their wide and ever expanding territory, and larger creatures are no exception to this. Despite their incredibly aggressive nature, Mac Face Fish attacks are rarely fatal to those unfortunate enough to suffer from them. Unfortunately for the fish, they are delicious when roasted, making them a delicacy for those who are willing to risk the pain involved in fishing and handling them. The name, Frostbeard Fightin’ Fish, of course, originates from their discovery within Kal’Tarak, along with their aggressive nature. Fighty Fish is simply a much easier way to say it. It has been named the Mac Face Fish by the villagers of Nottingham (a village on the edge of Garrond’s Vale) due to the face of the fish being similar to a man named Mac. The Trip to Arcas A dwarf guards his caravan, containing breeding pairs of Frostbeard Fightin’ Fish When Kaz’Ulrah fell, the survivors of the siege of Kal’Tarak fled Garrond’s Vale to live elsewhere, such as Sutica and Agnarum. Some missed the taste of the Fighty Fish, among many other delicacies specific to the region (see: Dogoth Crab and Garrond Goat), and either paid the villagers of Nottingham to fish it for them, or fished it themselves in order to start fish farms of the delicious fish. However, when descendants were forced to travel through the cold, southern wastes, few thought to bring the Mac Face Fish, let alone a breeding pair. Fortunately for all, the one dwarf did: Gardalf Frostbeard. 16XX, account of the Atlas migration The journey so far has been long and perilous. I, along with many others, have escaped the growing frost with the aid of the Vael. But the journey had not been without it’s own hardship. My Frostbeard brethren, that I have been fortunate enough to reunite with, are almost at their wit’s end. I myself have lost count of the days and year. In truth, our journey is perilous, and I know not when we shall leave this frozen wasteland. Just yesterday, I had awoken from my cot to find an elven child trying to steal my Fighty Fish. To my knowledge there are no others that had brought breeding pairs with them, and so I flew into a fit of rage and nearly beat the poor boy to death. But as a man of the Brathmordakin, I stopped myself and showed him mercy. He scampered off soon thereafter. I am disgusted with myself. I do not know for how long my sanity will last. Gardalf Frostbeard was an expert fisherman, who himself was taught his skills by Wilson McGrath. He was a connoisseur of fish, and despite many of the Fightin’ Fish stock dying, just enough survived to breed on the other side of the great ice wall. He would travel with the Frostbeards in Arcas, eventually joining the Underkingdom of Urguan when Argnos Frostbeard made the decision to bring the clan into the kingdom. Our story does not end there, however. 16XX, account of a certain incident Was bringing my stuff from the caravan and I tripped. I was holding a barrel of the fish with big teeth and they fell into the river. The fishies swam away, and Vithar yelled at me. My bad. With the Fightin’ Fish released upon the Under-Realm’s ecosystem, their population would gradually grow as an invasive species. While their populations is not as large as it once was in Kal’Tarak, they can occasionally be found and fished within Urguan’s deep cave system. Fish Facts The fish, after being roasted over a fire They are brackish fish (a mix of saltwater and freshwater). They will die in saltwater, but can survive (not thrive) in freshwater. They are carnivorous fish. They will derive no nutrients from plants. Thus, it is common for Fighty Fish to begin eating each other. At most, and very rarely, will a Mac Face Fish be 2 feet (60cm for freedom haters). They are typically around 1 foot, but much of their growth is dependent on how much one can eat. They typically have a lifespan of 10 years. The fish has many bones protruding from its body along the nostril, gill cover, pectoral fin, and lateral line (see picture in beginning), along with having very jagged teeth. Appearance wise (see picture again) it is easier to imagine it as a very bony piranha. They will constantly jump out of the water, as a way to intimidate predators. While they typically live in breeding pairs, Fighty Fish can and will form schools in the right conditions: a large body of water, and a large enough population. Due to their aggressive nature, they can often be found eating one another. Representation in game A barrel of Frostbeard Fighting Fish violently jumping and thrashing in the water A salmon is used to represent the fish as an item. In game, it can be represented through arrows being pushed up by a bubble column. This is done through soul sand below the water, creating a bubble column that pushes towards the surface. Shoot arrows into the water, and they will bounce up and down. It is like shooting fishes into a barrel. Clever, no? Redlines This has nothing to do with it, but I thought it looked really cool and I wanted to share They can be farmed, but they are too aggressive to be made into pets. While dangerous, they are rarely fatal, as two or so will be unable to do more than give cuts and wounds that barely puncture the flesh. They will be painful, however. A school of the fish may be fatal, but the existence of one is extremely rare. (see fish facts for conditions) A player can not roleplay for a fish without the other involved players consent. This is to ensure that no traps are made where someone is dropped into a pool of Fightin’ Fish. But that would be cool, like a mafia movie, yeah. EX: Player 1 tells Player 2 that a Mac Face Fish bites their leg Credits Special thanks to @Twodiks for noticing a lore-related mistake I made Fish - https://www.deviantart.com/piotr490/art/Demon-Piranha-144574519 Dwarf Caravan - https://caravanstudio.com/2015/05/04/the-expedition/#popup-content Cooked fish - https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/fried-fish-on-stick-vector-illustration-isolated-gm1174464694-326657758 Unrelated - https://www.muddycolors.com/ And to you, the reader 🙂 +1 and comment

Origin Since time immemorial the children of Malin have enjoyed longevity and wisdom in their lives. Many scholars have concluded that the blessing of long life spans is just that, a blessing which simply is a powerful and incredible version of the arcane that is yet to be understandable to the common magi. But little did all know that the blessing was much more mundane than first realized. In functionality Elf’s were not blessed with magic... but in fact it was simply a product of evolution albeit, evolution aided by the arcane creating an arcane Gizzard. Explanation A Gizzard as it is coined is in practice one of the most well rounded and useful organs ever to be produced by the chaotic nature of natural or should we say unnatural selection [Arcanely manipulated by the Aengul]. An Arcane Gizzard or Elven Gizzard is practically an organ that not only allows its user to have extremely long lives due to its properties but also allows due to its arcane nature a closer connection to the void and the nature of the world. An example of a Gizzard in practice is Elf’s molding to there homes. For example the dark elves quickly evolving for there dark homes. Red-lines An individual with an Arcane Gizzard does not naturally age, nor can they die of natural causes All Elves are naturally born with a Gizzard If a non-elf eats a Gizzard they are gifted with an extra 10 years of fresh healthy life (Gizzards have a nice pasta like taste). A gizzard is found right next to the heart (It would look like a small soft tissue like a collection of black vein covered purple beads). And if remove successfully without damaging of the heart would revert and elf back to there normal state pre-blessing (they would have the same life span roughly of a dwarf at 300 to 400 years) Recipe Boil a small pot of water over the fire place until bubbling. Add roughly a third of a bottle of wonk blood, along with onion. Add Elven Gizzard (Optional) Add Elven Ears. Wait until the water boils again than than poor the liquid into a strainer. Ounce this is done read the Elven Gizzard back into the pot, waiting until they begin to sizzle turn them over than take them out. Ounce taken out you have finished your delicious Elven Gizzard Meal! Purpose The Gizzard gives the children of Mali not only a consistent atheistic reason for there powers but also allows for them to have a real tangible reason for there long lives. Just like how the Orcs have a Spiritual Gynecomastia which gives them honor. while the dwarfs have their mighty beards.

“The Elves are the longest lived of all races, some living well over a thousand years.” -Lord of the Craft Wiki: Elves The Elves of the world within Lord of the Craft are distinct and different to the other races, possesing near immortal life. Due to this extensive life they possess, they are able to learn a great deal more than the other races. Currently, the lore describes that the ”Elves mature more quickly than the shorter lived races, reaching the fullness of puperty in about two decades.” However, this does not make since. How can a race have a much longer lifespan, but mature/age quicker than the other races? Though some players enjoy the simpleness to this system of aging for the Elves, it may be more immersive for the players if the elves aged differently compaired to the other races. The proposed system is quite simple and involves the smallest amount of math. Here’s how one determines the age of an elf in human years Each elven year is equivlent to 3 human years. Sweet and simple as stated. So, while a human child is now 9, your elf is only as mature, physically and mentally as a 3 year old. To visualize this concept, I have made a column chart. As shown by the graph, at 15 in human years, they are as mature as a 5 year old child, while at 30 human years, they are only equivlent in maturity as a 10 year old. Numbers are infinite, meaning it is impossible for every unit of age to be placed onto this graph. However, that is quickly remedied with the skill of math. Say your elf is 150....all one must do is divide by 3. 150/3=50 So your elf is 50 in elven years. The formula to find your Elves age and maturity in human years is as follows. Elf Age / 3 = True Elf Age This system truely only matters up until 100 human years, as humans cannot mature mentally past their death. Elves would be fully mature, both mentally and physically, at the age of 75 in human years and would not need any further development. However, elves are immortal, meaning their bodies are not able to be corrupted by normal age, though they may mature, they cannot grow old. Some might argue that this system is much to complicated for the game and would be better to be simple, however, this gives some color to lore. Due to the slower aging of elves, it could cause friction between elves and men, explaining the scarcity of cities with both Men and Elves. A human has a very difficult time to befriend an elf due to the different speed of aging. And when there are no friends, enemies begin to form. So, due to this, playing an elf child would be extremly long. Just as rules prevent human children to be played until 5 years old, rules could be sent for elves. For example, players could not play elves until they are 15 in human years (5 in elf years) or possibly even 30 in human years (10 in elf years). As stated, this is but a suggestion. Leave your own suggestions in the comments, as I do believe that there should be a different aging system for the elves.

Ikurn’Celiah, Silvered Steel History For much of their history the children of Larihei sought purity, beauty, and perfection above all else and thus the first ingot of Ikurn’Celiah, otherwise known in common as Silvered Steel was forged. Being unique to the High elves and by extension, only crafted by them historically. A metal alloy gleaming like pure starlight, light as air. This metal has been cherished and used by the Mali’thill for countless generations before the fall of their cherished city. Used for numerous purposes due to it’s beautiful appearance, light weight, and incredible malleability; countless forms of armor, weapons, and jewelry were created, fastened by this unique metal. It carries the unique property of being 1/3 the weight of normal steel, while being mildly weaker. As mentioned before the metal in its purest form gleams and shines unlike most metals. It refracts light very much like a jewel, causing it to shine and sparkle to the extent that it seems to nearly even glow in dark environments (Though this is an illusion similar to a cat’s eyes seeming to glow in pitch darkness). Armor made from pure Ikurn’Celiah Forging process: The process of forging Silvered steel is a rather tedious and sometimes dangerous one requiring many steps that must also then be repeated to produce high quality alloy. On top of this, many of the ingredients used in this process are extremely toxic and corrosive. This can be clearly seen in forgers of this metal by the calloused chemical scars on their hands. For these reasons it is immensely difficult to nearly impossible to mass produce Silvered steel, or even forge copious amounts of it in any reasonable time period without sacrificing quality. Ingredients: The required materials are actually somewhat cheap though there are more secret nuance ingredients to it as well. However, the three major parts of this metal are Iron, pure silicon, and sulfuric acid. The acid is to be introduced to the quenching fluid to decrease the PH. The quenching fluid mixture is a very important part of making the metal correctly, as such it’s recipe is a closely guarded secret. Step one: The (refined iron, not ore) and silicon are to be mixed at an 85% iron, 15% silicon ratio. This mixture must be raised to a minimum of 2900 degrees, though 3000 is preferable since this will allow the alloy to mix more thoroughly. It is recommended to allow convection to mix the alloy due to the low atomic mass of silicon compared to iron. Step one: The (refined iron, not ore) and silicon are to be mixed at an 85% iron, 15% silicon ratio. This mixture must be raised to a minimum of 2900 degrees, though 3000 is preferable since this will allow the alloy to mix more thoroughly. It is recommended to allow convection to mix the alloy due to the low atomic mass of silicon compared to iron. This should be maintained for upwards of an hour, maintaining a consistent temperature throughout the process. Mixing is recommended, but only with a clean rod to prevent impurities entering. Step two: This step is rather tricky and very delicate to perform. The alloy must now be poured into an ice cold cast with as little contact with the air as possible to prevent as much oxide forming as possible. Once the metal is cooled down to the point where it will not fall apart on lifting but still red hot; the thick sheet must then be quickly plunged into the quenching mixture. The time it must be kept in the mixture varies depending on the amount of metal being refined but the core of the sheet must remain molten until the next step. Step three: After the outer portion of the metal has been allowed to react to the quenching fluid a thin shiny layer of Silvered steel should be visible, however this is a very thin reacted layer. Thus next it will need to be folded and hammered back into its previous dimensions. The kinetic energy from the hammering will have the added benefit of keeping the metal hot, which quickens the alloy’s reaction with the quenching fluid. After it is hammered to its previous dimensions and plunged into the quenching fluid once more the entire sheet must be fully melted down once again. Step four: Once the metal has been melted down once more step two and three must now be repeated. However, there is no longer as much worry of an oxide forming since Silvered steel has around the same reactivity as tungsten though it is still recommended to keep the metal away from the air as much as possible. Beyond that step two and three must be repeated as many times as possible, the more times it is repeated, the higher the purity of the alloy. A shard of successfully forged Silvered Steel Properties: Silvered Steel is an almost white silvery metal that reflects light far better than most materials, causing it to sparkle much like a multi-faceted gemstone. It is also far lighter than steel, being merely ⅓ the weight by volume. Unfortunately it is slightly weaker than mild steel with a tensile strength of 360 MPa at it’s purest. For these reasons the Mali’aheral cherish it, for in their eyes it shares many figurative characteristics as them. When heated to around 1000 degrees it takes on another interesting property, it becomes extremely ductile and malleable. Though due to its reflective abilities it takes quite a substantial amount of time for it to heat to that temperature. Once it does however, it remains malleable for quite some time, especially if being worked with a hammer. The metal corrodes in a very interesting way, instead of rusting, the oxide form of Ikurn’Celiah actually vaporizes into a gas. This causes items made of it to lose mass over time when left to the open air, though this process is extremely slow when the item is taken care of sufficiently. A white blade forged from Silvered steel. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Red Lines Diluting Silvered Steel with regular steel to increase its strength while maintaining some of its low weight properties works but at an exponential loss, to such a degree that it’s essentially pointless to do so. Due to the risk of forging Silvered steel and the many steps required to forge it; the most that even an expert could produce in one day is around seven ingots. But such greed most surely lead to injury to the smith in some form or another. This metal is not a sufficient replacement for steel. It is a low-weight alternative for those who value speed and stamina over raw protection. A steel sword of average strength can indeed shatter an identical sword of Silvered steel, though this would still require a great deal of force. Armor made from this alloy are indeed much lighter, but mechanically would have the same protection as chainmail. The advantage being that a person wearing armor made from it would have more ease of movement and would stay cool inside the reflective metal. While this alloy is reflects heat rather well it has just as much protection against direct fire as normal iron/steel armor.

Scribed in remembrance of those fallen in the defensive effort against the Scyfling forces. Geast I Ve Fitsker As the smoke clears and the casualties are counted, a lone fighter hangs high in the sky. His comrades gather their wounded and rest their lost, trekking along a beaten path to their home of New Reza. As they venture through the lush and lively Haeseni countryside the fighter follows along, shortly behind his brothers as they return to the walls of the city. The fighter hangs his head as he knows his time is up and he no longer can walk with his men, with one final look over New Reza he nods and makes his leave. The fighter retreats over the sky scraping Steel Hills and into the dense and quiet Wick Wood. He is at peace with what has come of him and knows it was for the better of his country and people. As the fighter slowly closes his eyes looking over the land he called home, one final thought fled his mind and escaped his lips in a soft mutter “Krusae Zwy Kongzem”. With this he was ready, his soul being claimed and returned to the Seven Skies. But behind he left, a single mortal possession. One he could not take with him and was forced to leave behind. Sojoernaal I Ve Fitsker The shouting begins and the screaming is heard, as the Haeseni holds their ground strong and true. A flood of Scyfling scum rushing out towards the stout walls of the Fort at Metterden, this would be the true test of strength. Javelin quickly flew overhead, shattering shields of the Crows one by one, sending ballista fire back in response. Their motive to take this land remains unclear to most, but this will not stop the men of gold and black as we fight until our last breath, and in response “Krause Zwy Kongzem” we shout until our voice cannot be heard any longer. We fight for the spirit of Haense and the protection of our heritage, this land gifted to us by Godani and protected by the soldiers of those who inherited it. It was not long though until the Scyfling horde began creeping in on the ravine that held our brave cavalrymen. They through everything at us, but we prevailed even lost in a daze of confusion and pain simply because the fight was not over. As javelin continued to fly towards the proud Haeseni men, we gave a constant fight back until the moment we break. Our men falling one by one and there was no telling how this would end, so what could we do but fight. My life before theres, I will not not this kingdom fall under some barbarian claiming this is his land. Bralt I pity you, thinking we will fall so easily. So hear this in fear “Krusae Zwy Kongzem”. Ser Siegmund Wick

The House Gent Lottery is a non profit made to help us fund the Gent Family Orphanage, And the Gent Family Public clinic. The Powerball was created by Hannibal Gent on the 18th of the first seed, 1763 starting in the nation of Courland. The powerball works by randomly picking four numbered balls from a spinning cage that houses them. The lottery always starts with 1000 mina as a reward. The reward gets higher for every number bought; the numbers would cost 10 minas each. The goal of the Powerball is to create awareness for homeless and parentless children around the Courland region.

So i am getting ready to put together an application for this server and i wan’t sure what forum to field this question in. What i would like to do is have a Human that was raised by a dwarf Redstone smith due to a horrible event that befell his family when he was a child. Is this a valid background? I didn’t notice anything about human/Dwarf relations in the lore per say, though i might have missed it. Thanks for any information and responses. V/R, Blaznhurricane/Volkan#0226

Qalashi Steel OOC: Introduction For decades the Qalasheen people have lived peaceful and simple lives, enjoying a time of peace. The world around them appeared to be unraveling its true dark nature, yet The Sultanate flourished as local merchants peddled their wares across the Isles. Miners took to the stone with pick in hand, exploring new depths and returning with rare minerals and ores. Encrusted with a strangely beautiful pattern, Qalasheen metallurgists have discovered what at first appeared to be an ore with properties similar to aurum (it had both a low yield strength and fracture point). When they discovered the true potential, it became known as “Kadarsi ((meaning powerful in Arabic))." Kadarsi Kadarsi ore itself looks more similar to a darkened, less transparent crystal, that by itself is weak, making the harvesting process more difficult. It would require a steady hand and careful precision to chip away at the edges of the ore without having it crack. Once acquired, and forged with other elements such as carbon, however, the steel product will have a higher yield strength and higher fracture point. If cracked, the Kadarsi will allow the steel to spring back into shape and allow it to be easily repaired through forge welding. Pattern welded steel History The ore was first used in glassware and pottery, melted and molded together with various minerals and elements to make attractive decorations and furniture, desired by many. What was quickly noticed by this was that the glass and pottery were slightly more durable and resistant to breaking. Metallurgists quickly began testing the affects of Kadarsi with other minerals including gold and ferrum. Through Kadarscening, it was discovered that the properties of both ferrum and aurum were strengthened, making the two more durable. Striking aurum mixed with Kadarsi repeatedly against solid objects showed that the new welded aurum could take more hits before needing repair. Not only this, but repairing was much easier as the Kadrasi could easily spring back into shape with simple repair methods. The same results were shown with ferrum testing and so Qalashi Steel was born. Kadarsi Ferrum BattleAxe Qalashi Steel consists of Kadarsi ore and Ferrum ore that are both welded and forged together in layers (known as Kardescining), creating a unique pattern, but most importantly it affects the quality of the combined steel to create a new steel which is commonly referred to by Harians as Qalashi Steel. Different kinds of mixed processed steels will produce mere patterns and show little property change, but when ferrum combines with the Qalasheen-discovered Kadarsi ore, not only did it have a unique pattern — a beautiful water-patterned steel produced with resilient edges — it was shown to be tougher than the average ferrum blade which was prone to rusting in damp air and becoming dull, making it a high maintenance weapon. The Welding Technique Through pattern welding of Ferrum and Kadarsi, plus an additional method which consists of layering, Qalashi steel can be forged into weapons and armor. The layering gives the steel unique patterns that one can visually see. Depending on the skill level of a blacksmith, Qalashi steel will become more durable as the blacksmith will be able to use the Kadarscening technique better and add more layered tiers of the melted ferrum and Kadarsi. As they are layered and folded over one another more and more the outcome is a steel that is much tougher and resistant to shattering (though it would not be impossible to break the steel). The tiers are also noticeable by distinctive patterns of banding and mottling reminiscent of flowing water. The more it is layered (which is a lengthy process), the more durable the steel becomes. Kadarsi ore can be welded together with ferrum, aurum, and bluesteel to produce: Kadarsi ferrum, Kadarsi aurum, and Kadarsi bluesteel. Kadarsi Ferrum Sabre Each tier is based solely on the level of the blacksmith starting from Adept which will be referred to as a tier 1 product. The more experience one has in blacksmithing, the higher the tier. Alongside this, Qalashi steel can be enchanted like most weapons, but will have increased durability, making it unique. Kadarsi Ferrum Chestplate with gauntlets Strengths and Weaknesses + While this adhesive might only appear to be an alternative to the Unbreaking enchant, it should be known that only at tier 3 ((Masterful blacksmith)) will a Kadarsi-laced piece be equivalent to a single Unbreaking enchant. On top of this, one will be able to add an Unbreaking enchant to their Kadarsi-laced piece and double the affects. + Farfolk are able to produce Kadarsi ferrum gear earlier and slightly faster than other races, but will be subject to the same times when it comes to Kadarsi aurum and Kadarsi bluesteel. - Aurum and bluesteel gear are best used in their whole states and so mixing any aurum or bluesteel with Kadarsi lessens, but does not completely negate the properties. - The process for making Kadarsi gear is a lengthy one due to how precise one must be. - To be able to harvest this ore, one must have much experience, though it is said that the expert hands of a Farfolk can provide some aid - Kadarsi Aurum and Kadarsi bluesteel will require more experience to craft for other races. Thank you to bestscarface76 who provided some good advice for this.

Ruibrium Demon Stone Written by Sasha (me) & Roy (Raptorious) Intro Ruibrium, otherwise known as the Demon Stone, is a living, magical crystalline structure, sprouting from/near large clusters of Netherrack. It is a parasitic form of “life”, drawing life and power from the inherent taint found within the corrupted rock. Much like Thanhium absorbs heat and converts it to mana, Ruibrium does the same with Life Force, slowly and gradually leeching the life from everything around it, allowing it to grow and flourish. Raw vs Processed Ruibrium can come in two equally potent forms, commonly referred to as Raw Ruibrium and Processed Ruibrium. As the name suggests, Raw Ruibrium is that which is found in it’s natural, untampered with crystalline form, complete with traces of undead taint. Processed Ruibrium, however, is the result of the Demon Stone subsequent to going through a very specific refining procedure. The result are two similar products, with some very large differences. Raw Ruibrium in it’s natural form is a large red crystal and depending on whether it has enough life force, it will glow a dim red light. The hue of the crystal is far darker than the processed version, as a result of the lingering taint within the stone. When the taint is extracted, the crystal glows a little less but gains a brighter, more vibrant hue. Raw Ruibrium, unprocessed, is far denser and more concentrated than processed Ruibrium. As well as this, it still has taint. So as well as including the effects of taint (although minute levels of it) Ruibrium is far more dangerous and lethal in this form. The Ruibrium crystals in this form actively leech off of the life around them, ranging from non substantial plant life, microscopic, or much larger beings. It’s naturally nauseating aura subdues lifeforms through illnesses that include the symptoms of severe headaches, dizziness, blistering or the blackening of the skin upon extended touch and the reddening of the eyes. It’s magical leeching effects can be felt through walls and caverns, it’s strength dependant on it’s size (or in some cases, the amount of life force artificially fed to it by a Necromancer). If not enough energy is provided, the Ruibrium would become dormant, it’s effects dampened, but if it grew to be too large, the raw Ruibrium would be far too dangerous to approach. As opposed to processed Ruibrium, raw Ruibrium’s effects occur via a natural aura, nauseating, leeching and damaging all those around it. It cannot be controlled or directed, it simply does what it does no matter what. Processed Processed Ruibrium has a much brighter and more colourful red hue than Raw Ruibrium, it’s taint having been extracted (in one way or another) and the stone more or less purified. It still retains most of it’s glow from its natural state, however in a lessened state. Essentially a safer version of it’s predecessor, Processed Ruibrium doesn’t exude any kind of magical parasitic aura. When purified and refined it is entirely safe to be around, no matter the quantity. It’s effects only come into play when it enters the bloodstream, is absorbed through the skin or is consumed. Unlike the toxic raw version, processed Ruibrium acts as stimulant, providing extreme concentration and focus for the user in moderate amounts. Similar to the raw version, processed Ruibrium can cause nauseating effects when used in excess, as well as plethora of symptoms (see Applications). Processed Ruibrium no longer has the taint’s parasitic properties that drew the lifeforce, a finite amount of magical energy is left within, having been converted from the leeched lifeforce. As a result, any use of Processed Ruibrium is not replenishable, the substance acting almost like a battery. When fully charged, the substance will glow, when depleted it will not. When in contact with the skin, processed Ruibrium causes burning and reddening of the skin, while extended uses can cause a multitude of symptoms, among them migraines, insomnia and numerous mental issues. Applications Raw In this state, it’s main usage, if at all, is to grow it for harvest or use it as a method of poison. For example, crushed or powdered, Ruibrium is very deadly. A dusting on bare skin can cause substantial irritation and the blackening of the skin. The crystals take no delay in leeching. If left alone in contact with the skin, the dusted crystals will grow from the affected areas of the body, causing physical mutilation and eventually (very eventually) death. If the taint is removed from the Ruibrium, the crystals become dormant, remaining as a defect on the body, but halt in draining life, and growing. Another plausible use of Ruibrium in powdered form could affect respiratory systems such as the throat and lungs. Inside the body, it’s incredibly difficult to remove. Causing the normal effects, such as blistering and nausea, the crystals would grow, removing the ability to speak and eventually consume food. Over time, breathing would become difficult, and the Ruibrium would deteriorate the host both physically and mentally and grow to an extent where the Ruibrium crystals are large, powerful and would become lethal unless purged. Brushing away powdered Ruibrium is an option, but to clean oneself of all of it would be a difficult task, and physical harm would have already taken place as well. It would be a smart idea, if in this condition, to visit clerical aid or even a Transmutationist, incase of any remaining Ruibrium to grow absently. Because raw Ruibrium takes such heavy physical and mental toll when around, or when on the skin of a person, mental illnesses can develop. Some such as dementia, insomnia and constant migraines are not uncommon symptoms of those who have direct and constant contact with raw Ruibrium. Used as a method of torture, a densely concentrated shard of Ruibrium suspended next to a person would not spread the crystals to them without direct contact, but there is no doubt that it’s aura would be sickening and painful for anyone around it. The more life that a crystal has absorbed, the larger and more concentrated it will be, and thus the effects of the Ruibrium would be enhanced. Although most of these effects are temporary, if sustained for a long enough time, long term mental damage may occur. Processed Processed Ruibirum, on the other hand works as a magical steroid if applied correctly. Upon consumption of particular solutions, or the application to the body in certain ways, processed Ruibirum works to strengthen focus, and [edit] therefore the connection to the void temporarily. Although being a sort of magical enhancer, it remains a stimulant and an extremely addicting one. If processed Ruibirum were to be applied to the skin as a mark, or in the form of a tattoo it would become active for as long as the Ruibrium present was charged, having to be naturally replenished regularly. Visually, the Ruibirum would glow a faint crimson colour on the skin. Usage, over time leads to the permanent reddening of the whites of the eyes, reddening of the skin and almost certain addiction to the substance. Although the magical steroid can benefit a mage in their ability through better focus, addictions can develop and eventually over consumption/usage of processed Ruibirum can begin to arise problems similar to that of Raw Ruibirum. Health issues such as the burning and reddening of the skin is some of the first encountered side effects of usage, and eventually migraines and possible (although rarer) for significant mental illnesses such as dementia or sleep insomnia. Though these symptoms do pass in time, continual usage will worsen them. Despite the risk of addiction, using Ruibirum potions or Ruibirum tattoos will definitely benefit the consumers focus and in turn their magical ability. It does not however change or improve the skill of the mage, and does not allow an amateur mage to perform skills beyond their ability. More immediately, Ruibirum Tattoo’s when activated may burn the skin faintly and after cutting the connection to the void, physical exhaustion will be worse than without it, and depending on how much magic was used, headaches and dizziness are not uncommon. A potion on the other hand causes a warming of the insides, as a more dilute version of the substance. It causes the same physical side effects but most, not all, can be flushed from the body. Once the Ruibirum is in one’s system, and in the bloodstream addictions are more than likely to come about. A tattoo would be an example of a more permanent method of usage, while a potion can enter and mostly leave the body. Once dominantly out of the system, which could take up to a few days, potion consumed Ruibirum would not likely be enough left to increase any further focus. This means that mages have the choice to carry and consume a more dilute Ruibirum potion at will, but may not have the opportunity in tense situations. Warning! Oral consumption of liquid processed Ruibirum can lead to the reddening of the gums and if high concentrations are used, the blackening of the teeth over time. Regardless of how Processed Ruibrium is used, when ingested or activated on the skin, after spells are cast and the Ruibrium used, the substance will begin to take it’s adverse effects. Almost immediately the user will begin to feel nauseous and dizzy, feeling somewhat lightheaded. They will often times develop short term tunnel vision, in practicality leaving the mage vulnerable to attack. Harvesting Naturally, Ruibrium is found, much like any other crystal, growing in clusters around and from netherrack. It is common in large areas tainted by Iblees and the Undead, however it has been rumoured to have been found in many places underground (likely remnants of Iblees’ taint from long ago). As a result of it’s natural life-force draining abilities, most of the area around a cluster of Ruibrium will, in fact, be dead. In order to harvest naturally found Ruibrium, one must chip away at a fairly sizable chunk of it. Like any other rock or crystal, it has no organs, no parts, it is merely stone. However, due to the nature of the Demon Stone in it’s raw form, artificially cultivating it is rather different. Because of its parasitic nature, Ruibrium requires a host (or multiple hosts) in order to grow. Much like a fungus, Ruibrium will latch onto living beings and other life forms such as plants and animals, slowly growing over them and draining them of their life force, making up for it’s lack of tainted netherrack to draw on. These effects can be magnified by various magics, namely necromancy, providing the crystal with the needed life force to grow. Unlike its other effects (as mentioned above) the leeching process is not as quick to take effect, but rather a slower process, requiring quite a bit of “nourishment” in order to create a healthy growth of the crystal. The size of the existing crystal formation has bearing on how long it will take before it’ll begin to grow. For example, a small coin sized crystal may take a few weeks to take full effect and begin latching onto its host, but a crystalline structure the size of a house may take merely hours. Processing Ruibrium is the simple act of removing the taint from the crystal without fueling it further. Whether this is by clerical or paladin cleansing, the use of a black soulstone (similar to how shades have done in the past), leaving it in an area devoid of lifeforce, or any other Lore approved way of extracting the taint. Once the taint has been extracted and discarded, the remaining product will remain magically charged, but lack the damaging and parasitic aura exuded by it’s natural predecessor. How to RP In short, Processed Ruibrium allows for a mage to cast arcane based magic with some more ease, as the substance enhances one's focus for a period of time only directly after consumption or usage. The substance allowing the mage to create a more focused and sensitive link to the void, the mage is able to cast his/her spells somewhat faster, though by no means making them more powerful. Like always, however, the mage will still have their concentration broken by a bodily blow, an extreme distraction etc. This also means that the player must actively emote applying or activating any Ruibrium that is desired to be used in any situation, combat or passive. Wandering into a situation, and then revealing that you have active Ruibrium applied to your body (whether it be potion or any other form) would be considered powergaming, and thus would need to be something considered before getting involved in a heated situation. Much like equipping a weapon or a piece of armour, Ruibrium would need to RPLY activated. Also, the immediate side effects are required to be RP’d to reduce the risk of powergaming from a player. Effects such as tunnel vision and dizziness immediately after casting etc, which are listed in the above paragraphs, are required to be rply mentioned or used to influence how your character behaves when using the active processed Ruibrium. I would also suggest having a GM/Lore Master or the Lore writers to approve Ruibirum farms for players to reduce either how many players can claim that they have the substance to aid them, or to keep track of those using it and growing it in RP. It’s unlikely that anyone should have a significant amount of Ruibirum straight away, and infact should take a long, long time to create a decent amount. RP: It was the crimson that spread throughout the land, stripping it of green and life. A sickness that spread like a disease, yet we knew so little about it. The glowing crystals seemed to be at first, apart of the red rock that burnt out the land, a substance summoned by the undead, by Iblees. Of course it was the smartest thing to leave such a thing alone. It was demonic, pain inducing- a tool of the undead used to scar the world we inherit. The Journal of Ruiri Izalith Red 2nd of Deep Cold, 1491 Today I have reached the end point in my little venture. Although I leave it with something I had not intended to. I set off to Rivel in search of a journal, written by the Spellcrafter, Archon of Rivel. Of course, there would be no other reason for me to come all the way out here. I searched the entire place for hours. It wasn’t curiosity that swayed me from my direction, but the nauseous sensation that pounded at my skull. I did not find said journal, and I have no doubt that upon my return, Caladrius will be most displeased. Of course, as it does, curiosity got the better of me eventually. I sat atop the ruins for a long while, gazing out at the red rock that glowed, as if alive. It sprouted from the stone walls, the ground, the dead trees that littered the area. It grew atop the crimson netherrack that now replaced fertile soil. It made me sick. Sick, but still fascinated. I had to have some. I leave Rivel now with a crystal, no larger than my thumb, scraped off of the surface of the netherrack, and a headache I have no methods of curing, for now. 13th of Deep Cold, 1491 The trip home is coming along smoothly. I’ve had no interruptions but for occasional rests. I cannot linger around too long, for my own safety, especially. Although I’ve played around with the crystal that sits wrapped in cloth on the top of my satchel, I come no closer to understanding it. The headache has much subsided but being around the rock spoils my appetite. There is definitely something about it that troubles me. I laid it down one night in a bed of grass. I sat atop my bedroll, looking down at it’s crimson contrast in the thriving green. The green turned brown within minutes, and on closer inspection, a dust of tiny crystals had begun to creep atop the dead plant life. I have no intentions of spreading this stone throughout an area again, but I certainly have no time to clean this up. For now, I suppose the little crystals will grow here. I do hope it doesn’t cause much inconvenience for others later on. 24th of Deep Cold, 1491 I was correct on my first hypothesis. Caladrius was furious. I found it quite amusing. He hated that as well. Out of worry that he might never send me on such a quest again, I presented him with the stone. There was no curiosity, many have seen it before, but have never pondered to understand it in depth. I explained to him so far what I have noticed from my trip home, but at the time it didn’t seem to spark too much interest from him. I’m going to take it upon myself to study it further before I present it again. 6th of Snow’s Maiden, 1492 Rats. And who would have thought it would be those filthy rodents to help me discover this mystery. Nonetheless, they did. I had no trouble in applying the crystal to the animals, and although it took weeks of observation, the poor things perished. On the first days of the experiment, the animals became aggressive, agitated, but quickly this deteriorated into a slowness to which point I thought they had already died. The Ruibrium, which I have called it, sprouted from the shoulder of the second rat, the original crystal had spread toward it. Trapping the poor thing, it wasn't long before the animal died. It wouldn't eat, and couldn't move. I am unsure if it was the Ruibrium, or malnourishment that killed my test subject. 10th of Snow’s Maiden, 1492 I returned to my room a few days past my previous entry, furious with my lack of progress, but still ever curious. The rat’s skin was stripped, a blackened skeletal frame remained, bones cracked as the crystals speared through them, coated the corpse in crimson ice. This is most curious. Even Caladrius has taken interest now. I have permission to conduct experiments with much larger life forms. This should be interesting. 11th of Snow’s Maiden, 1492 I decided it would be easier if I used the dungeons below the lair. The unfortunate elf still lays chained to the stone walls, his eyes reddened, his tongue bloated. Much more resilient than the rat, he’s lasted longer. Only after the first week of the experiment, did he stop eating. Not only this, but he seems to have lost the ability to speak. He mumbles, to himself now, it worries me. I don’t like seeing something in such trauma, but it is necessary, I hope. A rather large cluster of Ruibrium clings to the skin of his legs, his ribs, and sprouts off him in small clusters on other spots. They’ve reached the size of the ones at Rivel now, and seem to still be growing. I have no doubt in my mind that Ruibrium is parasitic. It consumes living organisms, growing in size. This cannot be it’s only purpose. 2nd of Malin’s Welcome, 1492 I now have a collection of Ruibrium. Placed in capsules, they do not spread on the glass container. I was careful to use gloves. It would have been a terrible mistake to harvest so much with my bare hands. The good thing is, I managed to harvest the Ruibrium before he died. I’m still unsure of what is worse. Becoming mad, or dying from the thing. Either way, he still perished. There was no recovering from such. I gave Caladrius a sample of the crystal, in which now our joint studies will continue. I believe he is working on a way to create, or thin the crystal into a less potent and hopefully less dangerous substance. For whatever purpose he finds in his studies, I will continue my research on Ruibrium, and experiment with it’s methods of usage. My new hypothesis is that perhaps this substance can be applied to things aside from lifeforms, and therefore become more controlled. Perhaps that would mean I could inflict Ruibriums symptoms through method of wounding. It’s a highly unstable crystal, but I am confident that it can be mastered.

Overview For some time these Druidic Gifts have had no clarified limits to their capabilities, which for the most part hasn’t been abused. In light of a few incidents and the generally lacking guidance for lower-tier users of these Gifts, a few of us volunteered to help write a clarification. Our general aims were to firstly establish sensible upper caps to the range of Blight Healing, and to the enhancement of herbs offered by Herblore, then to outline where each tier sat within those boundaries. Several TA holders were involved in this process, and it was then brought to a majority of the Druid community for thoughts and suggestions. The feedback was mostly positive, so here we are. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Blight Healing Ranges The following ranges are given as a maximum. Performing Blight Healing at the max range of your tier is enough to physically exhaust you and will likely result in blacking out and other symptoms of extreme exhaustion, requiring extensive rest. Radius and area are used as an example, but a creative user could guide mists in a number of ways. T1: 4 metres/blocks; 8x8 area T2: 8 metres/blocks; 16x16 area T3: 12 metres/blocks; 24x24 area T4: 16 metres/blocks; 32x32 area T5: 20 metres/blocks; 40x40 area Additionally, corruption cannot be cleansed until T3 and must be taught, as it requires more complex manipulation of Blight Healing energies. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Herblore Ranges This also assumes someone is using this Gift to its maximum potential, rather than making a lesser enhancement. It’s difficult to conceptualise the huge variety of effects into numerical values, thus the following examples are provided to indicate the capabilities of each tier. T1: Effect receives a minor boost, barely noticeable. High chance of failure. Enhancement lasts 1 irl hour. T2: Effect receives a minor improvement, which is noticeable. Slight reduction in chance to fail in familiar herbs. Enhancement lasts 2 irl days. T3: Effect is moderately improved. Failure very unlikely in familiar herbs, unfamiliar herbs less so. Enhancement lasts 1 irl week. T4: Effect is markedly improved. Chance to fail is almost entirely muted. Enhancement lasts 1 irl month. T5: Effect is improved to the greatest one could reasonably expect. Enhancement lasts virtually indefinitely. Remember that if a herb is processed immediately after enhancement, the resulting remedy, poison etc., keeps the alteration until it has expired. When an irl week is a year, solutions, potions etc. will expire unless kept in adequate conditions. Use your common sense, expiration dates shouldn’t be necessary. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Increasing potency The spores of a blistering toad mushroom cause corrosion of the throat and airways by default. In this example, it’s assumed that the intensity of the spores is the target of enhancement. These are what one would expect to occur should someone inhale the enhanced spores: T1: Painful to breathe T2: Infrequent coughing, in addition to pain T3: Severe pain, which provokes coughing fits T4: Coughing fits sufficient enough that the victim is likely to vomit and will struggle to breathe T5: The soft tissues of the throat and airways melt painfully, likely leading to asphyxia Crouching feather may be smoked or brewed into a tea, which calms and clears the mind. Assume in this example, that the herb is infused into hot water as a tea, that by default its effects last for 2 iRP hours, and that the duration of its effects were the area enhanced using Herblore. T1: Effects last for 2 and a half iRP hours T2: Effects last for 3 iRP hours T3: Effects last for 5 iRP hours T4: Effects last for 6 iRP hours T5: Effects last for 8 iRP hours Habgobsnit is a grass which can be dried, ground and smoked for a clarity high, or pressed for its numbing juices. In this example, assume the potency of the clarity high has been enhanced with Herblore and that by default, the high begins about ten minutes after smoking. T1: The minor loss of potency from the drying process is mitigated T2: Moderate anxieties are assuaged, cognitive processes un-hindered by minor stressors T3: Clarity is such that the user feels more aware of themselves T4: The high comes on more quickly T5: Severe anxieties are soothed with a smaller quantity. Marked calmness in stressful situations ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Decreasing potency Remember that lessening the quality/effect of a herb is more difficult, more draining and is less efficient than increasing potency. Night sap is a golden sap, which induces sensations of calm, relaxation, safety and sleepiness. It’s sometimes used as a sleep aid, though it causes splitting headaches or even paralysis upon waking. It’s also highly addictive, so in this example assume it is the addictive quality which is being lowered with Herblore. T1: Minor decrease in the chance for addiction. Users still highly likely to become addicted T2: Further decrease in chance for addiction, the addiction is still akin to that of opiates T3: ‘Moderately’ addictive. Addiction is more like that of nicotine, meaning some will escape it T4: Those who become addicted will experience less severe withdrawal T5: Addiction has reduced to the level of alcohol. This does not mean that it is no longer addictive, but that the majority of people are able to use it without developing an immediate addiction. Repeated use will still pose a risk Flash fruit is an orange-like fruit with yellow streaks upon the skin, which can be consumed to quench thirst. The flesh of the fruit however, will numb the throat. In this example, it’s this numbing quality which is being reduced with Herblore. T1: Eating small amounts of the flesh will not immediately numb the throat. There is still some loss of sensation T2: About a quarter of an orange-sized fruit can be consumed with only some numbing taking place T3: The majority of an orange-sized fruit can be eaten, before the throat becomes entirely numb T4: Eating the whole fruit is now possible, though will leave moderate numbing in the throat T5: Upon eating a whole orange-sized fruit, the numbing effect is much less severe and retention of feeling is possible Yarrow can be used to enhance the medicinal effects of other herbs, but alone it can reduce blood pressure and inflammation. A side-effect is that it can lead to fainting and dizziness from low blood-pressure, so in this example assume it’s this blood-pressure reducing quality which is targeted by Herblore. T1: Fainting is slightly less common in strong doses and overdosing. Dizziness may cause nausea T2: In concentrated doses, fainting is most common in those of a fragile constitution. Most users are likely to experience nauseating dizziness instead T3: Fainting is much less likely, even when overdosing. Dizziness is still uncomfortable. Has a decreased ability to lower blood pressure, thus much less useful in treating high blood pressure if one were to use it T4: Fainting is acutely found in overdoses with those already weakened. Dizziness is much less nauseating, allowing for fairly normal day-to-day functioning T5: Fainting is highly unlikely unless extremely concentrated doses are consumed. Dizziness is reduced enough that someone could continue daily life largely uninhabited, but combat or casting would still suffer some. At this point, the ability to treat high blood pressure is largely muted, requiring a healer to obtain a fresh sample of yarrow ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Credits A_Keefy and Archipelego as our lovely LT points of contact, also making some good criticisms and suggestions. Darksoundwave, ThatGuy_777, ShadowedOblivion and Eranikus for their writing assistance and scrutiny. Wytchlings for providing feedback. The Druid Community for some encouraging feedback.

((SPOILERS ARE WONKY)) ~Pravum~ CHARACTERIZATION There are two subspecies of Pravum: the original beasts, known as the Harried, and their “perfected” successors, the Shikari. Both the Harried and Shikari were created from Descendants that have undergone an extreme alchemical transformation to their body and Soul. This augmentation grants the Pravum a slew of enhancements at the cost of the “Normality” of Descendant life. Credits: @Dymase @Cyprian1034 @NikoNiko @BoyWonderr @JaxonBlues @Archipelego @Ztrog @Temporal @AtrexPieren [Lucy-Lisett -- DeviantArt] A pair of adventurers caught wind of an abandoned town in the middle of the wilds of Atlas. Upon arriving, they were met with a thick mist throughout the surrounding forest. Once they entered the settlement, the group found the entire place in complete disrepair. Caved-in roofs, doors torn from their hinges, windows were broken, and the entire town covered in a thin layer of ivy and vines. The wind was blowing softly, adding an extra layer of discomfort to the damp and chilled air. The pair made their way down the muddied streets, their footsteps squelching loudly as the men looking for any signs of life. As they neared the outskirts of the village, one noticed an abundance of herbs in an overgrown garden in front of a small house. Deciding that it would be wise to search for anything medicinal, he strode over to the patch and surveyed the overgrowth for anything useful. The other moved cautiously into the house, with his blade drawn. “Oi! C’mere. Now,” the man in the house called out. The other man would let out a short grunt as he pushed himself to his feet. Stepping into the threshold of the abandoned cottage, the second man let out a sigh, saying, “What’s wrong?” The first man raised his arm and pointed to a darkened, far corner of the small lodge, where a skeleton lay, an arm extended towards a blood-stained book. The second man would stoop down once more, this time picking up the book as opposed to flowers. The man would flip through the pages before saying, “Seems like a sort of diary.” “Not much use for it, then. Better to leave it. Don’t want to upset his spirit, eh?” the first man responded, giving his companion a playful punch in the arm. “Right,” the second said with a short scoff. Nevertheless, he found himself placing the diary into his satchel with the plants he had picked earlier. The pair then made their way out of the lodge in search of new adventure and treasure... Origin: [!] The journal would be pawned off to a cloaked figure several days after the pair of adventurers returned to their city. ~The Transformation Elixir~ Description: Effects: Ingredients: Preparation: Mechanics: Redlines: ~Serum Ingredients~ Muscle and Bone enhancement Minor Regeneration Metabolic increase Sense enhancement (Vision, Hearing, Smell, Taste, Touch) Cardiac Enhancement Respiratory enhancement Serum Creation Brewing ~THE ALTERATION~ OOC: Please keep in mind this will be a very painful and mentally taxing procedure for the soon-to-be new Shikari. Give the patient time to roleplay out their pain. Also remember, for the performer, this isn’t an easy task either. They must be careful to keep the right order or they run the risk of killing the patient. The person creating a Shikari or Harried must have an accepted teacher application in order to do the procedure. The person being turned into a Shikari must be a preexisting character beforehand, you can’t just be brought into the world as a Shikari as they’re not born and must be created through roleplay. Preparations The Procedures Redlines ~The Harried (Event Creature)~ Appearance: Mentality: Muscle and bone Enhancement (Combat / Non-combat ability) Metabolic Increase (Combat / Non-combat ability) Sense Enhancements (Combat / Non-combat ability) Respiratory Enhancement (Combat/Non-combat ability) Major Regeneration (Combat/ Non-combat ability) Cardiac Enhancement (Combat / Non-combat ability) Mimic (Non-Combat ability) ~The Shikari (Playable CA)~ [Monolith Productions: Shadow of War] Appearance Strengths and Weaknesses PK Clause Mentality ~Abilities~ Muscle and Bone Enhancement (Combat / Non-combat ability) Metabolic Augmentation (Combat / Non-combat ability) Senses Enhancement (Combat / Non-combat ability Tracking (Non-combat ability) (EVENTS ONLY) Cardiac Enhancement (Combat / Non-combat ability) Minor Regeneration (Non-combat ability) Respiratory Enhancement (Non-combat ability) Reverie (Non-Combat Ability)

"Lady Cora," he said, "sometimes one has to do things which are unpalatable. When great issues are involved one can't toy with the situation in silk gloves. No. We are making history." -Mervyn Peake, Titus Groan Introduction to Kloning {Klone - based on Ancient Greek κλών (klṓn, “twig”) Twigs would be cut from trees and grown into identical trees or grafted onto other trees.} It was originally tested on rats and mice, and after much trial and error, was proven successful. It is possible in theory to klone any living thing- even including plants- but one must be warned that not all things will be able to survive the necessary extractions involved with the kloning process. Upon death, one will wake up in their Shell, to put it simply. A Shell is not ‘alive,’ nor does it have a soul. Duplication of the soul does not occur when the body is replicated in this way. A Shell will not perform basic functions of life such as respiration, maintaining internal environment, growth/repair, intake of nutrients, or excretion on its own. When removed from the chamber in which it is grown, it will begin to decay at the same rate as a normal body. By itself, a Shell is in a way, a corpse that was never lived in to begin with. A ‘Hermit Crab’ is a slang term used when referring to someone who swaps bodies relatively often, or in an ongoing cycle, like how a hermit crab swaps Shells. The Procedures The Original When creating a Shell of something, the body it is being made in the image of is called its Original. Because Shells can be produced using other Shells, “the Original” does not always refer to the body in which a person was born of their mother. That would be called the “True Original” to clarify. THE JELLY AND THE SLIVERS The Jelly is the alchemical concoction which keeps a Shell safe and prompts it to grow. A good portion of the Jelly will be recycled to build the body of the Shell itself with no waste product. It varies slightly in color, but is never vibrant, and is transparent but murky. It will be either a red, fatty off-white, pink, bruise-like violet, or something in between. It is smooth to the touch and difficult to wash off skin but not especially sticky in texture. At the proper temperature for use, it is a thick, slimy liquid, but when solidified, it behaves like Jell-O. It smells funky and meat-like, and tastes like raw flesh with an unsavory metallic aftertaste. The slivers are key, basic pieces of differing materials that make up a Shell’s body. In descendents, the most sound Slivers one can use are hair, skin, muscle, blood, and bone. But one can also use various organ tissues (such as liver) as well if removing bits of those organs will not be lethal. The masses of the slivers should be the same or the Shell will have problems in development. These will coalesce into a structure similar to a fetus, and from there will grow by accumulating mass using the jelly surrounding it as mentioned before. Slivers do not need to be enormous, but should be roughly proportionate to or larger than a raisin when dealing with something the size of a human or elf. Required Ingredients Everybody will require a different mixture of ingredients when creating their Shells’ Jelly. However, there are some important guidelines that you must follow. Here, we will use the mass of the Original as a unit of measurement, abbreviated MO. The base of the Jelly is actually made up of two components: +0.1 MO of blood (The amount of blood in your body) from the Original +2 MO of lard +0.005 MO of cerebrospinal fluid from the Original Blood is a very personalized alchemial base, lard is thick and highly caloric, and cerebrospinal fluid is created by the body to protect the brain and spinal cord. In cases where the subject does not have blood and/or spinal fluid, substitute with other vital fluids. (Some experimentation with others of its species may be required to determine how much is safe to remove at one time.) After the base has been created, begin adding reagents. Jelly requires reagents of all four elements, but primarily relies on air and water symbols. The ratio of elements and symbols differs based on the bone structure and other physical or even mental aspects that are unable to be changed naturally. (Bone structure, a mental disorder, race, a genetic disease, etcetera. Not fat, muscle, or opinions.) A relatively large amount of each reagent will be required, considering the volume of the base. Moderate to incredibly rare reagents are all that will suffice. The specifics of which reagents are used varies from subject to subject; one combination of reagents may work for one, but that does not necessarily mean it will work for another. There are two important ‘sets’ reagents in a Jelly recipe can be divided up into. The first set contains the essential symbols for accomplishing the general growth and functionality of the Shell. 2 Symbols of earth (protection, connection) 2 Symbols of fire (warmth, passion) 4 Symbols of water (nourishment, life, rebirth) 4 Symbols of air (movement, perception, precision) The second set contains symbols that vary from subject to subject. This will usually require specific reagents to be used as well. I haven’t listed specific reagents here though so that these examples can still be used as templates but will not be repeated for two characters by accident... I recommend using 4 to 6 extra symbols for these. Here are a few examples: Example 1: A stocky northerner with big bones and an inherited pain and cold tolerance. 2 more symbols of earth (endurance, hardiness) 2 more symbols of fire (pain, courage) 1 more symbol of water (ice or cold) Example 2: A dexterous and lanky elven lad. 3 more symbols of air (grace, fragility, quickness) 1 more symbol of water (clarity) Reagents should be ground to a very fine dust or smooth paste. Kloning the dead? Kloning cannot bring the dead back to life. If their soul has already departed to the soul stream, then it is too late for them. Shells can be generated from corpses if you wish, for some reason, to have more than one corpse of a person. The only thing is that the subject’s soul will not be pulled from the soul stream and deposited into it, and the Shell will not be part of any Shell Pool. (Shell Pools covered more in-depth later on.) Acquiring the Ingredients Many of the ingredients used in Kloning are siphoned from the Original, and if done without care, extractions can be fatal. One must know how much of each substance is safe to remove at a time, and how long they should wait before drawing more. I recommend you read through the links below to learn more about how to accurately roleplay symptoms of losing your precious vital fluids. Be careful when drawing blood from a major blood vessel. Profuse bleeding can easily lead to deadly hypovolemic shock. (About hemorrhages: https://www.quora.com/How-much-blood-can-a-human-lose-before-dying-of-hypovolemic-shock-blood-loss ) (The following cautionary advice applies to descendents only, due to the fact that different creatures are proportioned differently.) it is not recommended that you draw more than 10% of the subject’s blood at a time due to the risk of developing anemia. An average human male has 10-11 pints of blood, while an average human female has 9-10 pints of blood. You can use these mass to blood proportions to determine average amounts of blood in other descendent races. (About anemia: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anemia/symptoms-causes/dxc-20183157 ) The human brain produces only 500ML of cerebrospinal fluid each day. This fluid is constantly being reabsorbed, so that only 100-160ML is present at a time. Be very careful not to draw too much at a time, because a deficiency in the fluid can have a negative effect on the brain and lead to symptoms from headaches to paralysis. (About cerebrospinal fluid: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebrospinal_fluid and https://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Neurosurgery/Centers-and-Programs/Cerebrospinal-Fluid-Leak/CSF-Leak-A-Curable-Cause-of-Headache.aspx ) “GROWING” AND CARING FOR A SHELL “Growth:” Speed and General Appearance Over Time Once you have gathered the proper Slivers and assembled a Jelly mixture, it’s time to combine the two. Completely fill a large jar or other sealable container with the Jelly so that airspace in the top of the capsule is minimized but not necessarily eliminated. Introduce the 5 slivers, making sure to place them close together toward the center. The environment should be dark or dimly lit, and the Jelly should constantly be kept within three degrees Fahrenheit of the Original’s internal body temperature. (98°F or 37°C in humans.) THE FIRST ELVEN WEEK: If conditions are satisfactory, the Slivers will begin to mesh together and form a lumpy blob. All slivers other than skin will group around the sliver of bone before being covered by the remaining sliver of skin. After the Slivers have fused, we finally refer to the single mass they have formed as the Shell. The Slivers’ initial reaction with the Jelly will be a slow one; taking up to an elven day to display any noticeable changes. If this fails to happen, quickly move the Slivers to a different mixture of Jelly. Development is gradual and slow enough that it isn’t apparent to the naked eye from one moment to the next. It would be like watching a plant sprout. During this first week, it is recommended that the recipe used to make the Jelly is recorded exactly, and only a small portion is created to test whether or not it will take to the Slivers. THE SECOND ELVEN WEEK: Over time, the blob of a Shell will increase in size, and take on the grotesque silhouette of an infant version the Original. Rough features begin to form, but no eyes, nostrils, toes, fingers, ears, sexual organs, teeth, or a tongue will have formed. A cord-like structure begins to sprout from the back of the neck. It will take roughly an elven week to reach this point after the Slivers have formed together. THE THIRD ELVEN WEEK: The Shell will begin to grow hair and fingernails, and continue to develop complex body parts like the eyes and fingers. If no mutations are visible by now, it is recommended that a larger quantity of the mixture of Jelly used for the Shell is prepared so that the Shell can be transferred into a more spacious environment. THE FOURTH AND FIFTH ELVEN WEEKS: The Shell begins to refine its digestive, respiratory, circulatory, and nervous systems, in that order. It continues to grow larger and larger, but it is still not prepared to receive a transferring soul (talked about in the Soul Transfer section in further depth) because its underdeveloped organ systems would cause immediate lethal complications if put into use, putting it on par with a Shell that was stabbed to ‘death.’ THE SIXTH TO EIGHTH ELVEN WEEKS: The Shell continues growing larger and refining its vital organ systems, and while still flawed it is technically ready for use. The brain, especially, is still in development, and the areas responsible for higher mental functions such as concentration, planning, judgment, emotional expression, inhibition, creativity, and long-term memory are not ready. (This is also talked about in the Soul Transfer section.) THE NINTH ELVEN WEEK AND ONWARDS: The Shell is now safe for use if its development went as according to plan. It will continue to grow, entering ‘puberty’ at a usual age and adapting to changes. In the long term, a Shell will grow and mature at the same speed its Original grew. It is also bound to a life span, more commonly referred to as its shelf life. It will become unusable and start to dissolve if left in the Jelly as soon as it reaches the age where the Original would have died of old age. Elves, 1000 years, Humans, 100-150 years, etc. Elven Shells + Dying Jelly While an elven Shell will last for the typical 1000 years, the Jelly will not. Jelly lasts for a very long time, but it does not last forever. 100-150 years from its creation, it will go bad and begin to decay. When this happens, it will begin to get lighter in color and more opaque. Eventually, it will begin to liquify any Shell inside of it, and condense into a dry, flaky crust on the inside of its container. To preserve an elven Shell that’ll last longer than its Jelly, the Jelly will need to be completely replaced with new Jelly of the same exact recipe each time it begins to go bad. Are Shells in Any Way Different From the Original? You will notice as time passes that any features of the Original that were not influenced by genes will not appear in the form. This includes scars, belly buttons, callouses, missing body parts, tattoos, other modifications, etc. Shells are built based on the genetic makeup of the Original, and not the soul. This lack of basis on the soul is also why it is possible for a Shell to develop deformities and mutations. The difference between a deformed Shell and a mutated Shell is that the deformed Shell is still genetically identical to the original. A mutated Shell is not. (More on deformities and mutations will be included in the Botched Shells section and the Soul Transfer section.) There is only one non-genetic structure that will form, however. A mysterious, eerie, root-like network will sprout from the back of the neck, and stick to the inner wall of the capsule the Shell is being “grown” in. It seems to serve a similar function to the roots of a plant; idly absorbing surrounding Jelly to be recycled into the mass of the Shell with no waste product. It takes on a ghostly white tint instead of the skin color of the Shell, as it does not have any blood vessels or bones. However, it does has nerve endings throughout it that are linked to the Shell’s lifeless brain. It isn’t clear whether this is even a part of the Shell, or if it is a part of the Jelly, or if it is a third part all of its own. If a major section of it is cut off or strangled, it will cost the Shell valuable time developing until it forms a new cord or is relieved from pressure. Tampering with the roots does NOT expand a Shell’s shelf life. Monitoring a “Growing” Shell There are a few procedures you should follow when monitoring a Shell’s “growth.” It’s important to know as soon as possible if something is going wrong. One should perform routine inspections on a developing Shell. A few things to note when conducting an inspection are as follows: SKIN QUALITY - It is normal for the body to appear paler than usual, as it shouldn’t be exposed to too much sunlight. Watch out for the appearance of dryness, flaking, cracking, appearance of albinism, visibility of muscles, splotches, lumps, sagging, tightness, and anything else unnatural like that. NAILS - Toenails and Fingernails should lengthen at a normal rate. Make sure the Shell isn’t being poked by its nails where the skin might be punctured from repeated scratching. If nails grow too fast, and take on an unnatural color or appear breakable, be warned. HAIR - Hair should also lengthen at a normal rate. Make sure coils of hair do not strangle the root network. Watch out for unusual hair color, unusual hair loss, unusual receding of the hairline, appearance of dryness, and thinning. EYES - Eyes should be open, but appear restful, as if gazing off into space. Watch out for pinpoint pupils, cataracts, redness, unusual eye color, heterochromia, bugging out, and rolling back into the skull. However, it is usual for them to appear sunken. LIPS - Watch out for puffiness and cracking. It is usual for the lips to appear purplish or blue, but a healthy red is optimal. THE ROOTS - Again, make sure they are not being strangled. You may have to move parts of it around to keep it from tangling around itself. Avoid cutting it, but if you must, be careful not to cut off too much. They will usually be squishy like a water balloon; make sure they do not flatten easily or feel empty. When opening the capsule to tend to any unusual things you may see, be careful not to leave the Jelly exposed to the air for too long, and make absolute sure your tools are clean. This can easily be ensured by building tools for manipulation into the interior of its capsule. Leave any things you remove from the Shell in the Jelly at your own discretion. It is recommended to leave behind clipped hair and nails, though, as they will dissolve within an elven day and be recycled. If an eye, ear, or some other structure that doesn’t regenerate normally in members of the Originals race, do not worry. The wound will be sealed over in under an elven day, and blood expelled from the wound will be dissolved and recycled. Some structures will grow back in time, but anything larger than the forearm will not regenerate. Removing these parts in increments is not an option. BOTCHED SHELLS Not every Shell will turn out perfect, and sometimes whether or not one even ends up usable seems to be hit or miss. However, it really isn’t. The conditions a growing Shell must be kept in and the ingredients used to encourage its growth are more specific than researchers had speculated. It is easy to ruin a Shell though, and the topic deserves its own section. If you’re not careful, you’re at risk for botching a Shell at any time in its creation. Make sure to keep equipment and environment sterile any time the slivers, the jelly, or the growing Shell are going to be handled. Dirt, dust, hair, sweat, flakes of skin, and other contaminants, even in small quantities, can throw off your results. Botching Before Growth Once you have assembled your Jelly and gathered your Slivers properly, and you’re sure no contaminants have come in contact with your work, there is still a chance that the Jelly won’t take, and the body will not form. This can be attributed to a number of factors: +Dust/dirt/foreign blood/pollen/lint/etc contamination +Distancing between Slivers (If too far apart, they will not coalesce) +Excessive exposure to sounds exceeding 120 decibels +Intense light +Overexposure to air (Keep in an airtight capsule) +Rough handling and constant movement +Sudden increase or decrease in atmospheric pressure +Unsatisfactory conditions of cold or heat +Strong magical presences nearby, such as a voidal rift or an archon in transcended form If no change is observed within one elven day, you can be sure that the Slivers are being impeded from forming together, or that they have been permanently shocked out of reacting with the Jelly. Be careful not to wait this long though, as some of the Slivers will begin to decay normally if not in the process of growing! If this occurs, they will no longer be usable. If your Slivers are simply being impeded from forming together, quickly remedy poor conditions they may be under, and consider swifter correction by exposing them to the opposite of what had been a problem. (Ex: Exposing Slivers impeded by heat to the cold.) If your Slivers have been permanently shocked out of reacting with the Jelly, you will have to swap out the Slivers. If this happens, you will probably know what went wrong, because it would have had to be very major. (Ex: Dropping down a flight of stairs, rolling down a hill, freezing/boiling, or leaving open to air for a month.) Botching During Growth Do not congratulate yourself too soon after your Slivers form into the Shell. While a Shell will not stop accumulating mass if exposed to the factors mentioned above, they now risk deformity and mutation. Different contaminants and unsatisfactory conditions will cause different effects on the developing Shell. These are mistakes. They will either be neutral or detrimental; never solely helpful. (This will come up again in the Soul Transfer section.) Mutations Mutations encompass all previously known (irl) genetic disorders and can range from slightly differing hair color to horrifically scarring tumors, extra or missing limbs, cancer, and issues with formation of the brain that can cause severe psychological disorders. They can occur randomly in newly forming Shells and must be rolled for. First, roll a D6. If a 6 is rolled, your Shell will have a mutation. Second, roll a D100 to determine the severity of the mutation. Roll results 1-50 will produce a benign mutation. 51-100 will not. To help an appropriate mutation be decided on from each result, here are some example kinds of mutations to give you a feel for what kinds of mutations can come from a certain roll. 1-10 - Extremely minor mutations such as a SLIGHT change in eye color, hair color, hair thickness, and skin color. No differences in bone structure, ear shape, nose shape, etc. 11-20 - More noticeable versions of the mutations from 1-10. Freckles may be gained, eyelashes may be lighter or darker. 21-30 - Extremely noticeable versions of the mutations from 1-10. Albinism not included in the possibilities for change in skin color. 31-40 - Minor differences in bone structure, ear shape, eye shape, nose shape, the way fat is carried, etc. 41-50 - More noticeable versions of the mutations from 31-40. 51-60 - Relatively small non-deadly mutations such as albinism, blindness, color-blindness, deafness, lack of smell, and very minor mental disorders. 61-70 - More serious yet still non-deadly mutations such as moderate mental disorders, marfans syndrome, osteoperosis. 71-80 - “Less aggressive” deadly genetic diseases and mental disorders such as sickle cell anemia.. 81-90 - Serious malformations and terminal genetic diseases such as cancer, progeria, heart disease, conjoined legs, etc. 91-100 - Extremely serious and over-the-top mutations. Extreme coverage in tumors and/or cancerous lumps, grotesque malformation especially in the facial region and torso, progeria, etc. Deformities Missing External Structures - External structures like limbs, digits, ears and noses fail to form early on This deformity is linked to insufficiency in two or more slivers. Sealed Shut - Orifices fail to form early in development. For example, the eyelids are sealed shut over the eyes and eyelashes don’t form, and the mouth and nostrils are also sealed shut. This deformity is linked to excessiveness in the sliver of skin. Pellucid Skin - The skin of Shells with this deformity is reduced to a thin, semi-transparent membrane. This causes the Shell’s blood vessels and other innards to be visible, while being susceptible to skin damage and infection. Melanin is not necessarily absent from pellucid-skinned Shells, but the skin lacks color and is so thin that it will not be able to protect itself from the sun, causing it to burn easily. Because the skin is so insubstantial, hair loss is also common, and callouses cannot form. This deformity is linked to insufficiency of the sliver of skin. “Skin-tight” Skin - This deformity causes a Shell’s skin to grow too slowly to keep up with the rest of the body, resulting in angry stretch-marks and even tears and gashes. This skin is the equivalent of skinny jeans so tight the wearer is fearful of ripping them when sitting down. Any cuts inflicted upon the body will cause the skin to burst apart a little further due to the release of tension, which can prove to be very harmful and dangerous. This deformity is also linked to insufficiency of the sliver of skin. Parched Skin - The skin fails to produce oils, and the pores are tiny due to the lack of oil flow. The lack of natural oils also prevents the skin from holding water effectively. This results in extremely dry skin that is delicate and prone to damage. Dead skin cells can build up and cause congestion, because there is no oil to push them out. This deformity is linked to dust contamination of the Jelly during development. Absolute Baldness - Hair and nails made of a protein called keratin. In Shells with this deformity, keratin will fail to form. This results in weak, flaky nails and a complete lack of hair, including eyelashes, eyebrows, and body hair. (Alopecia universalis.) Note that eyelashes and eyebrows keep dust out of one’s eyes. This deformity is linked to absence or accidental exclusion (placing a sliver too far from the rest, causing it to be excluded during initial formation) of the sliver of hair. Lack of Nails - A varied version of the perfect baldness deformity; the body will only fail to produce keratin around the fingertip and toe area, resulting in a complete lack of fingernails and toenails. Hair remains normal. This deformity is linked to insufficiency of the sliver of hair. Small Pupil - Light intake is restricted, and the eyes will perform best in strong sunlight and optical flares are suppressed. Vision is also very crisp, due to a lack of light refraction. However, the pupil cannot adjust to see very well in the dark. When the light goes out and the sun goes down, you’re essentially blind. This deformity is linked to overexposure to bright light in early stages of development. Enlarged Pupil - Light intake is so great that sunglasses are almost always necessary. Optical flares are very over-pronounced, and sunlight is painful. However, vision at night is very good, even on the darkest of nights. Shells with this deformity are prone to developing nearsightedness, farsightedness, and/or astigmatism. This deformity is linked to extreme absence of light in early stages of development. Clawed Hands - Fingernails grow extremely thick to the point where the distal bones are displaced downwards, compromising fingertip dexterity. The nail still retains the normal growth speed, and will grow blunted, but there is nothing preventing the nails to from being sharpened into points. This deformity is linked excessive use of earth reagents representing tenacity in the Jelly. Nemerta Rooting - The roots of the Shell seem extremely eager to grow, resulting in the umbilical web continuing to grow even outside of the Jelly. Massive complexes grow indefinitely like hair, but are painful to trim due to the nerve wirings running through them. This mutant root will continue to make attempts at sustaining the Shell, meaning that there may be an advantage to allowing this freakish complex to grow. This deformity is linked excessive use of earth reagents representing resilience in the Jelly. Glistening Skin - The skin produces oils and moisture at an extreme rate. This causes to skin to constantly maintain a wet, oily coating akin to the mucus membrane of a fish. Individuals living in a glistening Shell risk severe dehydration if they do not consume enough fluid. “At my most badass I make people want to take a shower.” This deformity is linked to excessive use of water reagents representing nourishment in the Jelly. Hyper-Melanin - The skin and hair is coal black, with a slightly bluish tint. Extreme resistance to sunburn but no notable resistance to skin cancer. Absent Melanin - Classic extreme albinism. Extremely pale skin, snow white hair, and red or light blue irises. Be very careful when going outside in the daytime, even on cloudy days. Luciferase Nodules - Hard nodules form in the flesh around the fingers, toes, and spine containing isolated luciferase enzymes. These enzymes produce bioluminescence, resulting in glowing spots and patterns in the flesh. These enzymes aren't always active, but they are triggered by symptoms of anxiety, fear, lying, and panic. The color of the glow produced ranges from green to indigo, appearing to come from within, underneath the skin. This deformity is linked to overexposure to salty, humid air, thus it is less common than other deformities. Osteogenesis imperfecta: Brittleness - The bones of the Shell lack a critical collagen bond, which results in fragile bone structure due to lacking density. The risk of fracturing bones is high, especially as the Shell ages. This deformity is linked to insufficiency in the sliver of bone. Osteogenesis Imperfecta: Density - The bones form unusually dense and constrict the marrow. This means the Shell will have a more sturdy and heavy skeletal structure, but will have difficulty replenishing blood, as the marrow is responsible for creating new blood cells. The body will bleed at a slower rate, but will suffer difficulty in repairing wounds due to lack of blood flow. This does not mean the body will not recover, but wounds will have a more difficult time clotting and sealing themselves off, and lost blood that would have taken days to replenish in a normal body could instead take months. The lack of rapid blood replenishment also means that the body may take longer to fight infection. Osteogenesis Imperfecta: Stunting - The growth of the bones is stunted, resulting in dwarfism. The adult height of the Shell will range from between ½ and ¾ of the Original’s adult height, depending on the onset of the deformity’s development. Osteogenesis Imperfecta: Gigantism - Growth of the bones is amplified, resulting in the formation of bigger bones. The adult height of the Shell will range from between 1 ⅓ and 1 ½ the original adult’s height, depending on the onset of the deformity’s development. Webbed Digits - The natural skin membrane between fingers and toes may extend to the first knuckle, creating an amphibian-esque web structure. THE SOUL TRANSFER The Shell Pool & The Prioritized Shell No matter how many Shells you have, the soul can and will only inhabit and grant consciousness and ‘life’ (growth, respiration, and other behaviors of life) to one of them at a time. This one shell will be referred to as the Prioritized Shell until the soul changes its home upon death or transfer. Unlike a normal descendent’s soul, the soul of somebody with one or more spare, usable Shells will not be swept into the soul stream upon death. If one of the available bodies were to die, or the currently inhabited body were to die, the soul does not perceive it as death, rather it perceives it as injury. The soul doesn't admit death because from its perspective death did not occur. Then, of its own accord it moves to inhabit one of the already existing bodies because it perceives those as a part of its self. The Soul cannot distinguish between the Original and the Shell unless the Shell is severely mutated. Each of the Shells pull on the Soul all of the time, just a little bit, because the whole is naturally trying to reach an equilibrium and spread the soul out evenly amongst its physically separated parts. However, this can't happen because the Shell Pool isn't actually strong enough to tear the soul apart. Because of these two points, the Shell Pool is created; the theoretical space between all of its available Shells where the soul goes before randomly selecting a new Prioritized Shell. This is not a literal location or space and cannot be visited/pinpointed/etc. (Numbering your character’s Shells however you wish, typically by order of their creation, /roll D<total Shells minus the one the soul just left> to decide upon the new Prioritized Shell.) The soul will constantly resist the pull of the soul stream and instead be pulled to the Shells until all clone bodies are dead and uninhabitable. Each Shell available to a Soul at one time makes up that Soul’s Shell Pool. There are a few reasons why some Shells may not meet requirements to be included. -The Shell has exceeded racial lifespan -The Shell is under 5 years old (more on this later) -The Shell has been left outside of Jelly long enough to be affected by rigor mortis -The Shell suffered a fatal injury and was never adequately repaired -The Shell is not accurate enough to the genetic makeup of the Shell that was just left (This can be affected by serious mutation, or the fact that the Shell in question was based off of somebody else’s Original or Shells.) A representational animated graphic of what happens upon death to the soul of a normal descendent vs. the soul of someone with 3 spare Shells in their Shell Pool: The “Juliet” Potion (Named after the scene in famous playwright Shilliam Wakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, in which Juliet fakes her death to escape with Romeo by drinking a potion that causes her to appear dead.) This potion is an odd and potent brew comprised primarily of earth reagents. It has a dark, inky plum hue-- appearing, like blood, lighter when spread thin on a surface-- and tastes like a sour berry with the burning sensation like alcohol. While not technically lethal, the body will quickly enter a deathlike state for several hours (30 minutes irl time) upon drinking it. It takes effect quickly, starting with a strong burning sensation in your chest, blacked out vision and lightheadedness, gradually worsening for half a minute or so. The heart will stop, consciousness will be lost, and all bodily functions will cease until the potion wears off. It is unclear what happens during the hours it is in effect, but after that time is up, someone with a Shell Pool will awaken in the body of one of the other Shells in their pool just as if they had died. A normal person who ingests the potion will awaken after that time with a great shock as their heart begins pumping again and their senses return one by one. Recipe Base - Aqua Vitae 1 Symbol of air (lightweight) 2 Symbols of fire (disorder, overwhelming) 2 Symbols of water (rebirth, tranquility) 4 Symbols of earth (death, immobility, patience) Night Sap The Priority Hierarchy Not all Shells are created equal-- mutated or underdeveloped Shell aren’t as significant within the soul pool as a ‘normal’ Shell would be. A mutated or underdeveloped Shell will never be prioritized over a ‘normal’ Shell if one is available in a soul’s Shell pool. In the same way, an underdeveloped Shell will never be prioritized over a mutated Shell if one is available in a soul’s Shell pool. Simply, a Shell lower down in the ‘Priority Hierarchy’ (presented below) will never be prioritized by the Soul during death/transfer over one that is higher up. Deformity will not affect a Shell’s priority. 1. ‘Normal’ Shells 2. Slightly mutated Shells 3. Heavily mutated Shells 4. Underdeveloped Shells 5. Mutated Underdeveloped Shells A transfer into an underdeveloped Shell should be avoided because filtering your memories and knowledge through the underdeveloped, lacking brain of such a Shell will cause permanent memory loss. Unlike with an underdeveloped Shell, transferring into a mutated Shell will not cause memory loss unless its mutation would directly affect the brain in a way that would inhibit memory. However, there will be a shift in the priority hierarchy of the Shell Pool. Once the soul has transferred into a mutated Shell, the soul no longer recognizes it as a mutant. Instead, it is seen as the new example of ‘normal,’ and those that were normal previously are seen as the mutants, being genetically different from what would then become the Prioritized Shell. Mortally wounded/critically damaged Shells, Shells belonging to someone else entirely, Shells under 5 years of age, and any other Shell with complications (excluding the surrounding environment) preventing it from being able to support life for more than a few short moments are basically ‘dead’ and cannot be transferred into even if it is the very last Shell left in a Shell Pool. Some damaged Shells may be repaired and used again afterward. Unordinary Souls All unordinary souls, such as corrupted, displaced, ascendeds' souls, archon souls, soul shadows, etc. are all either unable to have a Shell Pool, or in the case of corrupted souls, unable to use their Shell Pools. When a soul is corrupted, a Shell Pool becomes useless because the Shells are unable to take in the unusual soul. Even new Shells created after the corruption of the soul will behave that way. If the soul becomes unordinary for some external reason while involved in a Shell Pool, its Pool will simply become unusable, and the person may feel an ambiguous sense of loss. The body it resided in at the time the soul became unordinary will be the permanent body. The PK Clause When all of the Shells in a soul’s Shell Pool are destroyed or exhaust their shelf life, Juliet potions will work as it would for a regular person. But if death occurs, the soul is finally surrendered to the soul stream upon death, resulting in a permakill. The Cloud Temple monks will not revive a person who avoided death when it was their time and toyed with their soul through kloning. Suicide permakill rules also apply-- but only in the case of a suicide filled with grief and a true longing for peace in death. A soul will rip itself out of its Shell Pool with the power of its will to leave forever and flow into the soul stream. A suicide without that same kind of desire does not propel the soul with enough force to leave its Shell Pool. The only exception would be the scenario at the beginning of this paragraph. OOC GUIDELINES Roleplay Requirements A further alchemy TA will be required to teach someone else how to create Shells, of course. A further alchemy TA will be required to create a Shell of somebody else because the process is so involved with the subject. A further alchemy SA will be required to create Shells or to get someone to make a Shell for you. This cannot be self-taught because the process is too complicated for the experiments to be reproduced exactly without guidance. OOC consent is required to klone someone else's character. A Step-By-Step-ish RP Guide The first step of Kloning is preparation! This includes building airtight vats where the Jelly will be put. 1. Begin drawing blood and storing it in containers, making sure it doesn’t go bad. The first time around, you’ll need to collect more blood than will eventually be used for the Shell’s official creation, to give room for testing. This will cause anemia if rushed. Cerebrospinal fluid drawing should also begin. (Information in the ‘Acquiring the Ingredients’ section.) Gather reagents and pig lard, being sure to collect a little bit extra of these as well. 2. Only after all of your materials for Jelly are gathered should the Slivers be taken. 3. Each person will need their own unique mixture of Jelly, even identical twins, but the possibilities for that mixture can be greatly narrowed down by following the skeletal build of the person’s body. (Muscles, fat, and other things like that that can change shouldn’t be accounted for.) Once a person’s Jelly mixture has been found, it won’t change. -- If it’s the first time someone or something is being Kloned, test the Slivers in different mixtures of Jelly in small jars, writing down the exact recipe for each. 4. Roll a d4 for each jar of Jelly. The first to roll a 4/4 will succeed. (If this is the second+ time the person is being Kloned, a roll is unnecessary, as their Jelly recipe has already been discovered. The first Shell will always be the hardest to make.) The Slivers will coalesce into a lovely little meatball with skin, and you should start reproducing the recipe you recorded for the Jelly used in that jar on a larger scale and moving the newly formed Shell into a larger tank. This can be done gradually, so long as the Shell never gets too big for its tank and risks strangulation by its roots. The first transfer into a Shell can be made through the usage of a Juliet potion or will happen on its own via death. When this happens, your character will forget consuming the potion or how they died as usual but will be able to infer that something happened to result in their awakening in the new Shell. 1. Senses will begin to awaken one by one, starting with a touch, a tingling sensation in the roots making contact with the contained and the jelly and maybe each other. Next will come the taste of the jelly surrounding the body and within its orifices. Shortly after, scent, then hearing, a ringing in the ears as the brain continues its activation. Finally, sight returns, introducing a straining pain in the eyes as they are used for the first time. 2. All muscles in the body, unless somehow exercised (through electric shock therapy, maybe..?) during development, will all be extremely weak. It may be impossible to push oneself out of one’s own container, and it is not recommended to have the container dump itself out as the Jelly should not be wasted. Have someone on standby who will not be phased by your nudity or horrible stench to help. 3. Leaving the container is all around a painful and strange experience. Most notably, the Roots will be torn or cut away, as they are even more painful to separate from the inner surface of the capsule while the body is conscious. They contain lots of powerful nerve endings, so some subjects may even faint from the pain if prolonged for more than a few seconds. 4. A cognat will be temporarily disconnected from their Horror during a transfer. For the connection to the Horror to be reestablished, the cognat must meditate. For the first elven week of its return, the abilities will be practically useless as the minds go through recalibration, though there is no violent mind trial. 5. The first time a Shell emerges from its Jelly, all voids that would have been inhabited by air will be filled with Jelly. Oddly, it is impossible to drown in one’s own Jelly although the weight inside one’s lungs from it will be very uncomfortable and create an illusion of suffocation. Although it isn’t exactly harmful, the body will still try to rid itself of the stuff by vomiting and coughing violently. Occasionally, a seizure can occur at random with first time transfer. ----- If it isn’t the first time the Shell is emerging from the Jelly, there isn’t a risk of seizure, but some Jelly will still have seeped into the body which will be expelled. 6. When there is a chance, the stub from the removed Roots, likely bleeding slightly, should be capped off to prevent them from growing back if the Shell is returned to the Jelly for preservation in disuse. However, this will not have any effect in hindering that if the Shell is afflicted with nemerta rooting. Adjusting to a new Shell takes about two elven weeks. The muscles of never-before used Shells are very weak in the beginning, but will eventually strengthen with use. When not in use for long periods of time though, there is a high risk for a decrease in muscle mass. 1. During the first elven week of a new Shell’s usage, the muscles must be allowed to gain mass, and thus, voidal magic should be used frugally. During the first two elven days, the muscles will be too weak to crawl or to sit up on one’s own. By the third elven day these can be accomplished, and one can move onto standing with a cane or walker. This will be very difficult at first, but by the end of that first elven week, the cane should no longer be necessary. The person will still struggle with physical labor and activities like running, swimming, climbing, etc. for a while afterward. The minimum time (total) for returning to normal is two elven weeks, with enough protein and exercise. 2. It should also be noted that Shells cannot produce gametes, and are permanently infertile by consequence. Only the True Original may be fertile unless it already has complications. RED LINES: -Kloning cannot be used to bring back the dead. -A Shell cannot have any mutation or deformation that is solely helpful. -You cannot have anything but a regular ‘grey’ soul while having a Shell Pool. -A soul transfer will not be successful before your Shell is at least 5 years old. Memory loss and other mentioned mental trauma will still occur until the Shell is 9 years old. -If all of your Shells are destroyed and you die, it’s a perma-kill. -Jelly expires 100-150 years after creation. -You cannot inhabit someone else’s Shell (unless you have some way of husking it with dark magic, but that isn’t the same.) -The alchemest does not directly manipulate the soul, rather they just abuse an anomaly to cause the transfers. -Permakill rules apply as specified in the PK Clause section. A First-Hand Account At first, all that could be produced from the first rudimentary Kloning experiments were tiny, horrific abominations. Barely recognizable to their ratty Originals, which could be accurately viewed as victims, although the removal of rats from ships to use served the same function as a rat-hunting cat would. One cold winter in the early 1600’s, two alchemists created the first perfect Shell of an animal, a grey rat named Polly. After that first triumph, they thought that the worst of the studies was behind them; that the countless days of picking swiftly and delicately through the untouched interiors of the filthy critters over and over again would give way to a groundbreaking success. However, much of that success was in actuality a result of spectacular luck, as mysterious variables that had not been accounted for had miraculously aligned auspiciously for the development of Polly’s Shell. Giant, leathery mitts pluck me squirming and lashing out in protest from my wire box. They hold me at arm’s length as if trying to distance their owner from the sounds of my clear and obvious distress as I did not want to be carried back to the flat, iron tower; the place I was sometimes taken by the mitts.. just sometimes.. but I could sense their intentions somehow. It is the worst place a person can go. Over a vast checkered canyon the giant’s heavy boots carried its body- and myself- to the room that kept the tower; a bleak, metallic platform lipped at the edges to prevent fluids from leaking onto the floors- fluids like red water. The giant’s eyes were set forwards, not looking down at me as I writhed and yelled, but with sinister intention at the door of the tower’s room. I tried to look past him, back where he’d taken me from, as we got closer to it. The gleaming eyes of my fellows winked back at me with little emotion and as we passed through the door they were replaced by hundreds of jars on shelves that lined the towering walls.. Jars containing a thick sludge, and some of them were filled with other people.. But they never moved, and grotesque roots erupted from their necks and blocked them partially from view. Nobody knows if they’re dead, or sleeping, or are part of an elaborate farming scheme.. But I hate them. When people go missing, rumors start to spread that that’s where they ended up… in one of those jars, so the giants-- there are more than one-- can keep them as trophies. For a moment I had been distracted, but then I felt my back and my feet touching the cold iron tower and I lost control, lashing out again and baring my teeth in fright. I hear another giant jump somewhere outside of my field of vision. It says something in the garbled, hostile tongue of the giants, and I know from its voice that it’s the small one that was usually around.. Always somewhere in the room with its awful eye watching… I’m held down and offered a pungent liquid, but as I struggle away from it the scent changes. It smells so wonderful and sweet- but it was a familiar smell that often led to waking up with mysterious scars and portions of my fur shaved off, but a drop had already fallen into my mouth and I could somehow no longer reject the substance. My senses slipped away into a soothing nothingness. But something was wrong.. Something was terribly wrong, I felt, and the darkness that had comforted me only moments before suddenly suffocated me. The taste of flesh rose in my mouth, as if trying to strangle me from within, and I thought it must be my own. Suddenly, a giant’s mitts pluck me out of the thick sludge, but there is no room for air yet in my lungs. A terrible ringing pain shoots down my spine as a tension pulls at the back of my neck like something had been lodged there that was being torn out. I still couldn’t see what was going on through the foul slime coating my eyes although I tried to blink it away. As I cough and retch to rid my system of the stuff, I can begin to see my surroundings just a little.. I’m on the shelf with the jars.. They’re taking me out of one? Then, who am I? I have some memories, yes, but memories are not solid evidence that something was. I see the iron tower across the room. I see someone else there that looks familiar, but I can’t quite make out her face… No… I know who she is. CREDITS Vezzin - Lore writer and artist Dunstan - Co-writer with immense knowledge of alchemy The Pink Lion - Help with ideas, ooc networking, and proofing for inaccuracy The Fire Mind - Help with ideas, ooc networking, and proofing for inaccuracy Tox - Help with ideas and proofing for inaccuracy Beordan - Help with ideas and proofing for inaccuracy SpodoKaiba - Help with ideas + peer editor Whiplash - Peer editor

Hello there! It seems like I’ve been posting an awful lot recently, however this debate is strictly ooc ONLY and in my discord a lot of guys were concerned over this issue, so if you wish to participate I am more than willing to answer questions and debate in the comments down below. The “techlock project” is a project where people are trying to find balanced tools to use within LoTC which has the same technology as the times it is based in. For example, firearms is the most recent topic that has been put up for debate. As shown below, the votes have been flooding in and it seems like the mass majority do not care for guns within LoTC. Personally, I feel guns do not have a place in LoTC. My reasons for this are as follows, please feel free to agree or disagree with backed-up points down below! Banditry/Raids: I feel as if LoTC for many years has been a hub for those who wish to participate in bandit roleplay (as far as my experiences have gone). If you are to bandit someone on the road, you can either rob them or fight them, depending on how they respond to your actions. If guns were introduced to LoTC, I feel like banditting people on the road would become far too easy, using hostages and holding people at gun-point is far more effective than crossbows. This will lead to an imbalance in the bandit-victim success rate, heavily favouring those who are committing crimes. Additionally, Cities will have a large advantage too. The current raid rules state that you must ONLY raid with three or less people, which means it is already difficult to pull off with success. With the addition of guns, it will become near-impossible, with the guards being able to default CRP and hold your party at gunpoint for as long as they wish, possibly increasing the rate of meta rallies coming and slowing down the roleplay that could be happening if they were all using less advanced technology. Larger scale fights: How can we moderate the use of guns in larger scale fights? Currently in LoTC there is a 10+ PvP default rule, however if you were to fight with 9 or less people it would become increasingly difficult to moderate the use of guns within the fights. Would we need to load the guns and use multiple emotes like we do with crossbows? Or can people just have loaded guns all the time, preparing for combat if needed. I feel this will increase the amount of modreqs that go up, leading to more power-gaming, toxicity, and just an overall poor roleplay experience for those involved. The “dodge” mechanic: How does one use this mechanic if there are bullets flying towards your head? For a long time, you are able to /roll or crp dodging attacks, with a larger disadvantage if you lose your roll or the mod/people involved deems your dodge unrealistic. Just like an Olog charging into a human, you would be instantly killed and out of the crp if you were to encounter someone with a firearm, which I feel ruins the whole combat experience entirely and can lead to poor quality roleplay. Now I have expressed my final points, I would like to invite everyone who wishes to get involved to comment below and I’ll respond to you all. Troll/Toxic comments will just be ignored. Thanks, Swifty

Hey everyone, hope you and your loved ones are well amidst this quarantine. I'm looking to spit ball ideas for a DnD campaign to run for my friends that takes place in Anthos. A few of them are past players, and a few of them aren't. For those of you who played Anthos, what are some story hooks you think would translate well to DnD. For those who didn't play back then, do you have any ideas for a smaller campaign to start, that would then lead into a larger world ending type arche. Also, any DMs in here that have advice for writing compelling, non railroady campaigns? I want them to interact and build there own story similar to what makes the server so great. But I also need things for them to do. I'm familiar with my source material here, and I want the first campaign to take place predominantly in the human realm. I have a good cast of characters I'm familiar with, and location wise I already have a lot written down. If I ever get this ambitious thing done and it goes over well with my players, I'll be sure to share it here for you to run with your friends, imaginary or otherwise. Cheers, love you.

[!] The scroll was sent out to the libraries of Irrinor and Talus, as well as some specific druii. A collection of writings from Sister Orison on the Emerald Way On the Nature of the Tayna Tayna. The soul of life. It is the living energy that contains all. I speak of the balance, of the living, breathing, growing, changing soul, one alive just as you are. You are part of the tayna- connected and one with every living thing on this world. With every moment, ripples and changes cascade outwards as time goes on. Just as any living being, it can be harmed just as you can. But it also can heal, and grow just as you. One can hear these ripples, these... cadences if one tunes themselves into the world around them. The tayna sings these changes constantly, and with a trained ear, one can sense and notice this song. To do this, a disciple must be sensitive to all of the living beings around them, to each and every one, no matter how insignificant they may seem on the surface. Once you do this, you will hear the song of the tayna, and you will know its will. By being in tune with the balance, you will be guided. It will influence your feelings, your instincts, and it will bring you where you are needed most. Follow your instincts, and your feelings, and the balance will show you its will. It will become your own. And now a question we face, a question answered in different ways by the creeds. Are the Aspects like water, formless spirits of nature? Or beings such as you and I, living, breathing, talking? The answer is not so simple, I think. I believe them to be both. They exist within the balance, and I know that the balance is but one living and growing energy within the world. It holds but one soul, in which is held every life as we know it. It makes its presence solid through its various forms. A blade of grass, a boar, a tree, and even the mani themselves. And within this soul, I believe the Aspects dwell as well. Their spirit formless as ours all are, but omnipresent as the tayna. But still, beings that live and breath just as you and I. Must the two be mutually exclusive when dealing with forces as universal and powerful as the tayna and the Aspects? To Strengthen the Three Your body is your tool for your will, and the tayna’s. Your instrument with which to tune the world. It is both your sword and shield that you must use to defend yourself and the balance that we hold so dearly. It is the arrow that reaches its target, and the home that protects you from the biting winter rains. What use is a broken tool? Would you fight with a blunt blade, or a shattered shield? Would you seek shelter inside of a rundown shack? I would think not. As one would sharpen their blade, so too must we sharpen ourselves. And just as one would survey a fortress’ walls, we can leave no part of ourselves unable to withstand the coming battles. This process does not come without pain. To build yourself up in such a way is to undertake great suffering. A necessary suffering to build a fortress from crude beings such as we. This hardiness sits at the core of the Emerald Way. Endurance through all things. In order to become as emerald, the mind, body, and spirit must be trained and hardened to withstand all that a disciple of the Aspects may come across. To become a guardian of the Emerald Way, one must undergo this rigorous conditioning, that they may uphold the balance in the face of the countless threats this world offers the balance. Mind - To be sharp and alert. Aware of the world around you, and of the world within you. To remain calm when confronted with great tragedy and terrible loss. To stand unflinching against unimaginable horrors. Do not let adversity shake you, even when faced with overwhelming odds. Find the calm which keeps your serenity through the darkest of times. A calm, steady mind brings strength, and through strength you will endure. This is what it means to follow the Emerald Way. Body - Let not the frost bite, nor the flame burn. Let not the blade sting, nor the arrow pierce. Make your skin as an ironwood shield, your breath deep and cavernous! Know thy body, and wield it as you would a quill. From now forward, you pen a letter to those above with your life. Spirit - Live in tune with the tayna- the living energy that runs through the veins of the world, and within the veins of every creature that walks it. The energy that both contains us, and that we contain within. For those that live at one with the tayna will be able to bring the Eternal Forest to the earth. Open your eyes, and look within the balance to show you the path ahead. Trust in the will of the tayna, and allow it to guide your actions within the world. To Be in Tune with the Tayna Bring yourself to the present moment. The song does not exist within the past, nor the future. Do not allow your mind to bring you to these places. Do not dwell on the events of the past, nor on what has yet to come. Be mindful of them, but do not allow them to tear you from the present. Do not allow your worries, or your shame to distract you. Focus. It will determine where you are. If you live within the past, then within the past you shall live. If you seek to reach into the future, the moment you are in will slip by without notice. Be now. Keep your serenity. A calm mind brings strength, and through strength you will endure. When you are in tune with the tayna, you will become one with it. It will make its will known to you, deep in your heart. When you are in tune with the tayna, your feelings will guide you towards its will. You will be able to sense its cadences, its ripples. You will be able to read them as one reads a book. Trust in your feelings and in your instincts when you are at peace. It may be the will of the balance making itself known to you. To Fight for Harmony Cities of stone are great wounds upon the earth. Great wounds within the tayna- within the Balance. Picture this place, the bustling roads full of people. Picture the great towers of cut stone that threaten to pierce the sky. Now picture a ruin. A fallen fortress within your mind’s eye. It is overgrown, reclaimed by the life around it. Between the stones in the walls, life stretches between, breaking even the tallest of walls into piles of rubble. Water floods once busy causeways, washing away even the memories of the past into the rivers and into the oceans. This is the power of the tayna when it is allowed to heal. Life reclaims all in due time. These stone palaces can know no permanence when left at peace. When the bustling roads become barren, and the constant fight against the balance ends, the tayna reclaims. As adherents of the tayna, our fight must be to bring this peace to fruition- to end the constant fight against nature, that these wounds may heal on their own. By this, I do not mean to fight against those within cities. I do not intend to end the city as we know it. No, our path lies in teaching harmony to those within cities and stone. Look to Irrinor. Look to Talus, though it is not a city of its own- many people live within its borders. These places are examples of how we may live in harmony and peace with nature. See how the streets themselves are bountiful with life, and the places in which they live provide bounty of their own. In return, they provide protection for the land upon which they rest. The tayna need not fear wounds within their bounds. They work in tandem for mutual benefit. Bring this harmony to the world, and fight against those that would seek to upset it. Fight against those that would have discord and chaos.