Farseer Shamanism!

[Ilikefooddude 430]

Greetings, Curse-Flingers and wannabe sand-shifters! Today marks a momentous day for all those delving into the art of Shamanism. After a long while of fiddling and writing, i’ve finally cleaned up (With the help of many of our current shamans, and a few LT’s (Especially Ptah!))  the Lore on Farseer Shamanism to again make it an applicable subtype. Hopefully these changes will promote more ‘Orcish’ roleplay for the Orcs, and help bring back our race to a decent playerbase size. So, without further dallying, I present to you; The Lore!

 

Music

So, I understand that the lore is pretty long (5 pages, before I did some editing), so i've decided to put in some music to make it that little bit more bearable. I think it's quite moody, too, so enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06H_6oI4EK4&list=TLoShnBuZC84-YaAbLdogExZ-yT9goKWWF&index=4

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INaM813ohL8

 

Farseer Shamanism

A Farseer shaman is the spiritual leader and guide of the Orcs. Unlike other shamans, Farseers concentrate almost completely on the happenings in the Spirit Realm rather than trying to use the power from the Spirit Realm to influence things in this world, as Elementalists or Witchdocters do. They listen and learn to what the spirits have to say, and enact their wills as they see fit. In practicality, a Farseer has two different roles to perform in the Orcish society: upholding culture and history by means of visions gifted by the spirits, and blessing Orcs for battle or everyday lifestyle. The roles are mastered separately; usually with the Farseer easing into their magic through short trips into the Immortal Plane.
 

The Spirit Realm

 

The Spirit Realm is an alternate plane from the land of the Mortals, and is home to all of the creations of Apohet- though also the spirits of those honourable Orcs who died and were chosen to ascend to a revered position in the Spirit Realm, who are dubbed ‘Ancestral Spirits’. Long ago, the Orcs discovered their ability to contact the inhabitants of this realm, and shamanism was born through the use of befriending or bargaining with the otherworldly beings. Four sects were created, each a different branch of Shamanism controlling or handling different aspects of the Spirit Realm- These being Witchdocters, Elemantalists, Lataumans, and Farseers.

The latter of the four, Farseers, are the most diverse of all of the Shamans. They sacrifice direct power over their own realm by the use of Spirits for a greater connection to the Spirit Realm, and as such can perform arts usually restricted to a certain form of Shamanism. They spend most of their time traversing through the planes of this other world; speaking to its inhabitants, and learning the knowledge they have to share. Sometimes, communicating to these Spirits is easy for a Farseer, and their motives are easy to discern; though more commonly, as should be expected of an entirely different race of beings living in another plane of existence, their wills and wants are strange and near uninterpretable to the mortals that wish to learn more of them. For a Farseer to connect to the spirit realm, they must do as all Shamans do, and perform a certain well guarded ritual that moves their consciousness from one plane to another. Though the details are jealously hidden by the Shamans that know of it, this ritual generally involves the use of the Shaman’s Tools; which include a Drum of animal hide, a Rattle, a Mortar and Pestle, a Smoking Pipe, and most importantly their Shaman Weapon. A shaman weapon, usually coated in Magegold, can range from something such as an Ivory dagger to a sturdy, wooden staff, and is the only possession aside from their clothes that traverses to the Spirit Realm with them.

A Farseer uses these tools to perform a ritual accompanied by a chant in the Old Blah, which usually involves calling to Krug or various other reputable spirits and partaking of copious amounts of narcotics. The Shaman’s vision would slowly recede as the ritual commence, and after a time, he would appear motionless and unconscious, usually sitting cross-legged on the ground. At this, the Farseer’s consciousness would suddenly flow out of his body and into the Spirit Realm, where he may do as he wishes- be it trying to contact a spirit to gain a blessing, to remove a curse, or to simply wander around the ethereal planes in search for an answer to a question which they might not even know.

Though it’s not widely known, a Farseer is accompanied by a Spirit Guide once he enters this realm. This may simply be a representation of something important to them, or their ancestors- such as an incorporeal Lur Wolf- who will accompany them where they walk, lead them to where they wish, or guide them away from the dangers that plague the Spirit Realm. At later Tiers, a Spirit Guide may be more easily controlled, and can even act as a messenger to a Spirit, or even other Shamans who will come into contact with the beast when they next enter the realm.
(When a Farseer wishes to enter the Spirit Realm in roleplay, he or she must go into great detail of performing this ritual. Once complete, a roll should be made- With one to eight being connections, and nine to ten being a failed attempt. Though this may seem a bit too easy, it’s got such a large chance of success to make it fair on the Shaman, as he must roll again to actually perform any game changing acts using this magic.)

Blessings

Blessings, aside from the general keeping of the entire culture of the Orcish race, are the most important part of a Farseer’s duty as a shaman. Though more often used before battles or klomps between rival Orcs, these divine gifts are much sought after by people of all races for their unique enhancements useful in all ranges of situations. As a rule, blessings are physical or spiritual alterations from minor spirits who represent a desired aspect on a person or a living thing’s abilities or properties, brought forth by either convincing the spirit that it benefits them to perform the blessing, tricking them into thinking so, or bargaining with them until it does. Another form of gaining a blessing from a spirit, which quite drastically differs from the other approaches, is for a Shaman to fight the spirit in question. The reason why it’s so dangerous is, as should be expected, the fact that if an Orc dies in the spirit realm, he dies. Now, usually, if a spirit beats a Farseer in battle, he or she will begrudgingly spare the Orc’s life and simply banish him for a period of time from the spirit realm, but if in a certain circumstance a spirit is overly angered by the shaman’s pitiful attempts at trying to force a spirit to his will, then no amount of pleading will influence him to stop. The Farseer usually fights with his chosen 'Shaman' weapon, which as stated earlier is the only possessions they’re allowed in this realm, though as it’s usually something such as a staff or dagger, they’d be grossly outgunned by a spirit’s weapon- which could be something as brutal as a flaming warhammer, or a snake-headed cattle whip. Most minor spirits fight in a humanoid form, though they are all much stronger than any Orc, and it usually doesn't end well for them- Hence why only more advanced Farseers choose to best a spirit in combat. After they've won (assuming they haven’t been banished or killed), the spirit will do as the Farseer wishes- But only once, and the shaman doesn't hold any further control over the spirit. Additionally, spirits who have been bested in a fight may hold grudges against Farseers and make their journeys through the realm much harder.

Usually, a Farseer Shaman will invoke the will of a spirit on a person or thing by first connecting to the spirit realm, which was explained in detail earlier. There, they must search for the spirit in question and either convince him or her into believing that it benefits them to do the blessing, trick them into thinking so, bargaining with them until it does, or klomping it out of them. After the spirit has agreed, it will begin to interfere with the natural world through the shaman’s body. Eyes may start to glow the colour that best represents the spirit’s aspect(s), and a Farseer’s limbs will move without his or her consent- as he is still far within the spirit realm. Soon after, an intangible mist will begin to pour forth from the shaman’s orifices- generally the mouth, nose, and ears- and will start to swirl around the person or object to be altered- though it must be a living thing, as when the mist has been established it will search for holes or pores into which it can be absorbed.

Afterwards, the desired effect will take place and will begin to alter the person's or thing’s abilities or properties. The victim, in addition to his blessing may start to feel ecstatic, drowsy, tough or overconfident, depending on what power was invoked, though plants influenced will appear the same. Although Farseers can make contact with all Spirits- Elemental, Immortal and Ancestral, blessings can only be gained from the Immortals. This is due to the methods that Farseers choose to gain their power- as Ancestral or Elemental Spirits are too strong, wise, or uninterested to be affected by their means in blessing objects or people. Because of the fact that the Farseer must act as a conduit of the spirit’s power, the strength of a blessing is relative to the strength of the shaman performing it. The more experienced with power from the Spirit Realm a Farseer becomes, the more energy a spirit can pour forth from him- And as such more powerful a blessing becomes, and the more people or things they allowed to affect. As a rule, Farseers can bless more than one thing in on ritual, but the more that are added the quicker a Farseer’s energy reserves will decline. Additionally, a Farseer cannot bless him or herself- much for the same reason that they cannot perform curses of a particular spirit. A spirit granting a Farseer a blessing would be seen by other spirits as one trying to gain favor or control over this Shaman, and so it would either end with hostilities between the two spirits over the matter, or a constant battle of blessings between all spirits involved trying to win over the favor of the mentioned Farseer- an event agreed by the spirits as unpleasant and best avoided. To repeat- no spirit will bless a Farseer, or allow a Farseer to bless another Farseer, due to the 'political' ramifications that could occur in the spirit realm. Types of blessings vary greatly for Farseers, but there are generally two types: Those used before battles, and those used in everyday life. An example of a ‘Battle Blessing’ would perhaps be that of Bloodlust. A person who’s been gifted by the blessing will be thrown into a berserker-like frenzy, identical to an Orc’s, though possible for all races. It’s preferred over the traditional bloodlust in klomps, as a shaman can choose to end it at any time- preventing the unnecessary death of the one defeated once the fight has ended. Everyday blessings provide much more variety, however, and they’re where a Farseer’s real worth in the Uzg comes from. The most famous blessing, and perhaps most important, is that of fertility. Depending on the power of the Farseer, these blessings can increase the chance of conception within an Elven day, but also, after conception, make the child healthier and the birthing easier- which is valued greatly for those feuruks new to the harrowing ordeal. Elves, unfortunately, aren’t susceptible to this blessing, as even the most powerful of the Farseers could not even lift a finger to Iblee’s Curse, and it is much the same for any other curse of the four races- they cannot be removed. Additionally, even the strongest Farseer’s cannot improve an ability or property by more than double it’s normal strength; so no lone Orc, blessing or not, can break through a castle’s gate, and no Elf can completely remove the curse Iblees set upon them- Temporarily or not.

(Blessings performed by a Farseer require a roll out of ten, with numbers five to ten being a success and one to three a failure. Only one chance at this certain blessing may be attempted each hour after a failure, as a Spirit will refuse to communicate after denying him or her their blessing for a certain amount of time.
Fights in the spirit realm use rolling as well, though at a different ratio; with one to five being a win and six to nine being temporary banishment by the spirit, preventing use of the magic for an hour or so. Rolling a ten out of ten will result in death, which is another reason why other methods are preferred. Blessings handled by fighting the spirit are enacted quicker and with less discomfort to the victim, as conveying the will of a spirit into a person isn’t usually a painless or un-invasive process, and other methods may be drawn out for hours on end.)

 

 

Visions

Sometimes, while a Farseer is on a journey throughout the Spirit Realm for any of his various reasons, he will see an event happening somewhere in the distance. When approached, it would usually seem to be a strange representation of something that happened in the past which involved the Spirit World or the Orcs. The Shaman might see an ancient city far in the distance, and a group of ravens devouring a few Orcish corpses outside the walls. This could be interpreted as an event long ago that caused the death of many Orcs, because they refused shelter and protection for their homes in the desert. Now, as a rule, these visions have no obvious signs of time, and as such can't be identified as a vision from the past or the future. The events would mostly be of long ago, and none would go into great detail. Most of the time these would be used as stories to the Cubs of the clans to warn them of the Orc's past follies so they don't repeat them. Another type of vision, however, is the one directly brought forth by a spirit, with the intent of warning or demanding something of a shaman. Though these are still cryptic, they can be interpreted much more easily by the Farseer, and the message would usually get through that something needs to be done- Though less advanced shamans can misinterpret these visions and cause great disasters.

 

(Now, explaining these oocly- The visions randomly come across in the spirit world are events that the Shaman will make up himself. It'll be used for roleplay for the Orcs, and generally won't be based of any previously known story- As the events aren't well described and the shaman usually makes up the details. The spirit-invoked ones, however, are quite different. An ET, if he or her so wishes, can contact a Farseer and give him small, mostly unhelpful hints of events that will proceed in the future. This is entirely optional, it should be noted, and can only be possible if the E.T chooses to do it, and not by any forcing of the player in question (Who should be reported if he continues to request info. about classified events). These could start prophecies or rumors, which I think will aid the Orc's publicity, which is something they need very dearly at the moment.)

 

In addition to all of this, Witchdoctors will lose their ability to perform “Beneficial Rituals” on other people. This is to prevent the two magics from clashing, but to also fix the fact that Witchdoctors had a lot more abilities than the other shamans. Their potions, however, can still aid people, but their effects are a lot harder to control and it will be more difficult for Witchdoctors to tell if they invoked the Spirit’s power in the form of a blessing in their potion, or a curse.

[hellfiazz 879]

YYEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH

Very well done Fooddude. Bub'hozh +1 from me.

[Dyrr 137]

bub'hozh +1

[Tom_Whiteman 949]

  Most Farseers would klomp the spirit and injure it to cure the individual. Also Farseer would klomp them for a talisman of some sort (what I remember from Goldrim), which can be used to enter their individual realm. I haven't reviewed all the lore, but I will when I've got time for it.

[Ilikefooddude 430]

  Most Farseers would klomp the spirit and injure it to cure the individual. Also Farseer would klomp them for a talisman of some sort (what I remember from Goldrim), which can be used to enter their individual realm. I haven't reviewed all the lore, but I will when I've got time for it.

Woops, that was removed when I took Curses out of the lore I'd written. One moment, i'll add it back in. Also, a lot has changed since the Farseers had any proper lore (Involving the spirit realm and all that), so many things that I would have liked to include in the lore can no longer be used. As for bringing back items from the spirit realm, that'll be discussed in greater detail later between our current Shamans and the LT.

Otherwise, thanks for all the support, guys!

[Tom_Whiteman 949]

Woops, that was removed when I took Curses out of the lore I'd written. One moment, i'll add it back in. Also, a lot has changed since the Farseers had any proper lore (Involving the spirit realm and all that), so many things that I would have liked to include in the lore can no longer be used. As for bringing back items from the spirit realm, that'll be discussed in greater detail later between our current Shamans and the LT.

Otherwise, thanks for all the support, guys!

 

  The talisman would be used as a mental image, not an RP item within the mortal world.

[LaCabra (Soda) 1519]

(Excellent work, fooddude! The Farseer drought is over, the Orc culture can really take off with this.)

[Tom_Whiteman 949]

-snip-

[Catarrh 720]

   Very well done, fooddude.

[Ilikefooddude 430]

  The talisman would be used as a mental image, not an RP item within the mortal world.

Ah, well in that case, as I said before, the lore for the Spirit Realm  has changed a lot since Farseers were last properly used. Individual Realms aren't really a part of the current lore, though we will be discussing this at a later date, again with our current Shamans and the LT, to see if it's at all possible (Though I don't quite see the point of it, as each Immortal Spirit can be found in the Immortal Plane and this would simply add complexity where there doesn't need to be any).

 

Have you specified the concentrated drug which is used to more easily transverse to the spirit realm?

The current Shamans know of the drug (or mix thereof), though we would think it would be better if not all of our little intricacies didn't become public knowledge, so it wasn't included in this lore.

[Joe_Blackman 253]

You have my support!

[Ilikefooddude 430]

Also- This lore has actually already been approved by the LT, and can go into action immediately (As far as i'm aware, anyway). This is just a public notice to tell everyone of the change and to reference later when the magic is being used.

[Pandasan 74]

Huzzah!
A job well-done foodood!
Kudos to joo~
+1

[Raptorious 1899]

Moved to the Great Library. It shall be sorted into appropriate category shortly.