[Old] Druidism Guide

[Song Druid 1486]

Druidism: A Guide

Druidism is an ancient form of magic, tied to the most ancient of all Guilds of Aegis, the Druidic Order.  Centuries of guarding secret knowledge and protecting nature has been this Order’s calling, bringing balance through healing land and spreading verdure with their unique arts.

Druidism is controlled in such a way, and taught, through a clever process of training that is designed to “indoctrinate” the student into a certain way of thinking, opinion, etc.  That is not to say it is always successful, but it is a powerful tool of regulating who has access to these arts.

As with any training, these things occur in stages.  The most commonly known one is Dedicancy.  This stage is most common because it is the one newcomers enter the Order as.  During this time they are given tasks and lectures over a period of time that teach them the Order’s culture, and an appreciation for all things natural.

This process, cleverly designed, to open the mind of the Dedicant to the flow of nature, through meditation, assistance and an understanding of ways.   When the Dedicant has finally completed their tasks, and their Guide has deemed them ready, they are instructed to devise and complete their Grand Task, a milestone task for a Dedicant that shows they are ready to take on the full mantle of responsibility of being a Druid.

Upon completing this task the Guide takes the Dedicant to the Attunement Pool, an area within the grove high in natural Druidic Energies, and begins the Attunement Process.

This process involves the Guide invoking an ancient knowledge to forge a connection to Nature within the mind of the Dedicant.  ((Ideally at this stage the Dedicant should get an MA for basic Druidism))  One could consider their initial training to be similar to opening a small hole to allow light to pass, and then the attunement process as using the small hole to bore a larger one, creating a ray of light-a connection.

Thus is the way one comes into Druidism.

The Arts:

Druidic Magic is broken down into several subtypes:

Control of Nature    Blight Healing

      Healing         Nature’s Communion

Now the Magic Application covers 3 subtypes Druidism (Covering Control of Nature, Blight Healing, and Nature’s Communion), Healing, and Shapeshifting (not taught usually), but the Order itself breaks these subtypes down into their own for greater training purposes.  A Druid may have the equivalent of Tier 3 Druidism, but actually only be Tier 3 in Control of Nature.  This is determined from within the Order by magic teacher, etc.

Nature’s Communion:

This is the most basic of the Druidic abilities.  It is this that all other abilities are based off, therefore this must be trained as well when when raising other skills.  Additionally, it has its own strengths, regarding speaking with nature.  No Druid may advance any skill more than their current Communion tier.

Tier 1:

The Druid has been attuned.  They are very aware of an ebbing lifeflow of the world around them, but are unable to interact with it unless going into deep meditation.  At most they can exchange  simple images or thoughts, nothing sophisticated.

Tier 2:

The Druid has begun their training, and through many meditations they have gained a quicker ability to connect to nature.  Animals are somewhat receptive to the Druid, and their words hold some mystical weight when asking favors from them.

Tier 3:

The Druid has developed a respectable skill of being able to speak with the environment without need for meditation.  Animals comply with most requests, though aren’t hostile unless the Druid is attacked.

Tier 4:

The Druid has trained for decades now, they can feel the ebb of trees, speak to them and hear them back.  The Druid has the ear of most animals, and is at harmony with most things around them.

Tier 5:

The Druid has mastered every aspect of Communion.  This Druid has been said to have trained for a century to attain such prowess.  Dreams of the Aspects have passed through them, and they are at utter harmony with every part of nature they interact with.  No animal raises a claw to this Druid, even the most savage beast gives pause at the word of the Druid.

Control of Nature:

Control of Nature is a valuable skill that affords the Druid dominion over the world around them.  Shall they aid the growth of the grass and trees?  Shall they entangle their foe in vines?  Perhaps they will learn to grow saplings immediately as they touch the ground.

Tier 1:

The Druid has begun to emanate an aura of empowerment, things that would grow in years and months, after continuous meditation can grow in weeks and days.  Crops seem to yield slightly better quality harvest.

Tier 2:

The Druid is able to coax growth of a full sized oak within an hour, and he has the ability to produce good quality crops from harvest.  

Tier 3:

The Druid can sow seeds and watch them spring to life before them in an instant, and they can coax them into shapes, even convincing them to move.  Crops that this Druid blesses produce wonderful harvest.

Tier 4:

The Druid has the ability to raise a forest upon a whim around him!  Plants grow when he commands and crops that spring from his blessings are bountiful and great.

Tier 5:

The Druid has been an ally of nature for so long, flowers seem to spring from his feet as he walks.  He can grow even in the most infertile of land, and springing up trees that should not belong to grow mighty and strong.  The blessed crops of this Druid are legendary and no nation who hath been gifted such shall ever starve.

 

Blight Healing

Blight healing is a most noble ability of the Druids.  Lands afflicted by blight, or plague, disease and death, decay or magical scarring are given new life, and in the place of the infertile soil there is verdure.

Tier 1:

The Druid begins to slowly bring fertility to the soil.  Plagued or diseased plants cannot be revived, but spread of the disease can be halted with concentration and meditation.

Tier 2:

The Druid is able to heal plagued and diseased plants, though magically harmed plants seem to be beyond their ability.

Tier 3:

The Druid can, with their ability to Control Nature, reseed the dead and decayed wood, plagued plants or diseased flora, and grow them back into the ground.  This is an interesting way to treat extra lumber!  It is easier to heal decay in a large area, and fertility can be added to land at a much quicker pace.

Tier 4:

The Druid can now heal a large area of land quickly.  They can bring even the sickest ancient oaks back, grow a tree from a stump even.  

Tier 5:

The Druid has become a master of bringing life from the brink of total death.  If the Druid meditates for a long period of time it is said that they can grow a tree even from stone.

 

Healing:

Druids are renowned for their healing prowess.  If it be a leafy patchup or a life-saving antidote, it is said that save for the monks or magical clerics, their natural remedies are unmatched.  This art is so interesting as it combines with the practice of Druidic herbalism with their natural magic.

Tier 1:

The Druid knows basic herbology. They spend great amounts of time meditating and preparing plants to release their juices and enhance healing properties.

Tier 2:

The Druid finds powerful herbs with properties of healing (such as pennywort, calendula, marshmallow, gotu kola, chamomile, echinacea, etc) and meditate with them before preparing salves or poltices with them.  They will boost the inherent properties of the plants.  Sadly this augmentation fades with time, but it’s still a noticeable increase.  Wounds can heal about a third  the amount of time it would take normally to heal.

Tier 3:

The Druid can combine their bandages with herbs and plants that they have enhanced with magical properties to offer quicker healing to the patient.  A Druid can give tea that will soothe a cold, even cure it with its enhancements to the leaves.  The applications are endless!

Tier 4:

The Druid can enhance poultices without meditating with the plants.  They can heal wounds in less than a day depending on severity.

Tier 5:

The Druid has mastered the art of healing, and can heal most wounds within an hour or two.  Leafy stalks tend to grow from their finished work!

 

Shapeshifting:

For information on shapeshifting, refer to:

http://www.lordofthecraft.net/forum/index.php?/topic/81980-loredruid-magic-shapeshifting/

Tier 1:

The Druid must meditate for an extended period of time, and remains in their beast form for a short period of time.

Tier 2:

The Druid must meditate for a moderate period of time, and remains in their beast form for a moderate period of time.

Tier 3:

The Druid must meditate for a short period of time, and remains in their beast form for an extended period of time.

Tier 4:

The Druid transforms into the beast for a long period of time.

 

Tier 5:

The Druid can maintain beast form for an incredibly long period of time.

Druid Magic is a special branch that is unique in many ways and takes longer to advance than most other magics.  The Druids have spent centuries guarding these secrets, and now their ancient arcanums have opened their pages to you.  *Cackles eerily*  “Use it wisely!”

[kingnothing 571]

Does Druidism as a whole, or any of the subtypes require a teacher? Or can they all be self taught through reading, mediation, etc?
 

[cmack1028 549]

Does Druidism as a whole, or any of the subtypes require a teacher? Or can they all be self taught through reading, mediation, etc?

 

 

In order to use any of the Druidism subtypes, you must be attuned to nature, meaning you must be a Druid. This is done after you've become a Dedicant of the Druidic Order, studied nature and done your Dedicant tasks. Only then will you finally be attuned by another Druid. The most basic form of Druidism is Nature's Communion, which is actually required to use any of the other subtypes.

 

Shapeshifting is a secret in-character, and will only be taught on an extremely rare occasion. There are less than eight Shapeshifting Druids in total, and about half of them are inactive or do not RP very much.

 

So to answer your question, yes, it does require a teacher and cannot be self-taught, at least in the beginning. After attunement and through meditation, you will slowly gain influence over nature.

[Bircalin 332]

What about, using my character, Bircalin, for example, a character decided to step down from their position in the Order as a teacher in Aegis?

Bircalin has since never strayed from his ways, and still has all of the knowledge he used to. He's simply unpractised.

[Katherine1 362]

What about, using my character, Bircalin, for example, a character decided to step down from their position in the Order as a teacher in Aegis?

Bircalin has since never strayed from his ways, and still has all of the knowledge he used to. He's simply unpractised.

My understanding is that all Aegis druids need to be reattuned due to fixing some things like people thinking their totem = their powers and the like. I would suggest talking to someone like Callax (Former MAT and current Archdruid) or Alan (Druid and the Lore Admin) to get the okay. Even if you require IC reattunement, that's just an excuse to come RP with us again! :D

[cmack1028 549]

My understanding is that all Aegis druids need to be reattuned due to fixing some things like people thinking their totem = their powers and the like. I would suggest talking to someone like Callax (Former MAT and current Archdruid) or Alan (Druid and the Lore Admin) to get the okay. Even if you require IC reattunement, that's just an excuse to come RP with us again! :D

 

I agree with Katherine. You should definitely check in with Callax or Ritts about it, Birc.

 

My guess would be that Birc would need to get reattuned, however I believe he could retain his influence over nature that he previously had, as long as he hasn't learned any void magic since then. There was a similar issue with Haelphon who was not involved with the Order, but was still able to use his influence over nature through his past knowledge and experience. I think after reattunement he would be able to use Druidism once more at a similar strength to what he had previously, however I wouldn't imagine his influence would've grown in that time.

 

Again, make sure you check in with Callax and Ritts. I could be wrong.

[TheBareSheet 194]

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