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| {{Info afflictions
| | The stuff of nightmares for some, figments of folklore for others, and the steadfast guardians of ancient faith to even fewer, Undead are a barely understood Affliction that has started wreaking havoc in Aloria in the past century or so, leaving scholars unable to figure out why. Undead take a variety of different forms, often dictated by the faith and belief they held in life as they are barred from the gates of the afterlife, but they share a common trait in being damned by the living for their very existence is a revolt against nature and the cycle of life and death. Playing Undead is not recommended for new players, or for long-term goals. Undead Characters are hated by nearly all cultures and Religions and have very limited roleplay opportunities. When playing an Undead, choose one of the Undead Types, and follow the rules defined. It is possible to both make a new Character that was made Undead in their backstory, as well as convert an existing Character into an Undead. However, in such an instance, the body must not be held by the state. |
| |image = Undead.png
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| |races = All
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| |contraction = Resurrection
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| |origins = [[The Beyond]]
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| |}}
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| The stuff of nightmares for some, figments of folklore for others and the steadfast guardians of ancient faith to even fewer, the most prominent of [[the Beyond]]'s influences in Aloria are the Undead, the results of the Shades of the deceased who return to the world of the living through one means or another. Undead take a variety of different forms, whether it be as a walking corpse or an incorporeal phantom, but they share a common trait in being Shades and not proper souls anymore: this means that they are mere conglomerations of memories of who they once were and not truly the person anymore, resulting in altered personalities, behaviors and wants. Undead have existed as long as anyone alive can remember and even longer than that, having had incarnations as varied as the living peoples they used to be: the adage goes that so long as there have been corpses in [[Aloria]], Undead have persisted. | |
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| ==Becoming Undead== | | ==Undead Types== |
| ===Playing an Undead in Regalia===
| | There are three Types of Undead, Deathveil Undead who are the more general type of Undead, Relicsworn Undead who are distinctly Unionist aligned, and Godsrot Undead who are Fornoss Religion aligned, each with differing legality. |
| Existing as an Undead in [[Regalia]] is almost entirely illegal and fraught with danger, and even the other illegal groups of Afflicted and Occult people in more remote parts of the city like Crookback often look upon Undead with revulsion. Nonetheless, the Sewers are generally safe, but an Undead should take care not to make too many enemies there and wear out what good will they have. Because they are completely incurable and permanent in their state of being, Undead are considered at all times to be destroyed on sight by the [[State Metropolitan]], and so often have to hide as they are frequently hunted. Undead are always obvious in their nature and are easy to spot, making it rather difficult to safely exist in the city without making friends and finding sanctuary among other Undead and people who are sympathetic to their plight. There are some Undead, though, that still cling onto what few threads exist of their past lives and try their very best to live in normalcy. These Variant Undead are called Husks, working to find some degree of social acceptance in the capital outside of the darkest recesses of the Sewers.
| | ===Deathveil Undead=== |
| ===Creation===
| | {| |
| Undead come to be via one of three methods. Firstly, they can return from the Beyond through sheer willpower and emotional force: those who die with unfinished business, unresolved trauma, far too young or far too disturbed are quite commonly returned in this way. After their Shade emerges in the Beyond, they can wander the realm for a variable amount of time before either finding one of the many scattered doorways into Aloria or stumbling across the mirrored location of their demise. All Shades have an intrinsic sort of connection to the place they died, and those that wander in the Beyond often find themselves drawn to it. If they ever do find it, and they have some reason to return as an Undead, then they will find a sort of metaphysical door there that they can enter and figuratively claw their way back to Aloria through. If there is anything left of their corpse they will inhabit it, but in cases where the corpse has been completely destroyed they might inhabit armor that belonged to them or even re-create an image of themselves as a Wraith. Secondly, Undead can rise from the grave as a result of some ambient [[Ordial]] presence near their resting place (like a particularly powerful artifact, magic embedded within a holy site or the influence of an Ordial God). The presence of [[Ordial Essence]] can dredge up dead Shades from the Beyond and force them back into their bodies nearby, or even cause things like suits of armor or other suitable vessels within proximity to become inhabited by Shades. In the case of places like temples or places of worship for Ordial Gods, this is something of an intrinsic defense mechanism for the latent essence and power in the location: it manufactures defenses for itself, seemingly magnetizing Shades there. Thirdly, Undead can be resurrected by the hand of an experienced necromancer or in extremely rare cases an Ordial God themselves. Necromancers resurrecting Undead are much more purposeful, able to pick and choose what sort of vessel the Shade will inhabit. Undead can be prevented from being resurrected via the rituals and abilities of people like the Bene Vixit [[Isldar]] or others with similar powers, and such practices are utilized by the Regalian Empire and its State Metropolitan to keep executed criminals from returning from beyond the grave. All Undead who ‘naturally’ or ‘accidentally’ are resurrected as Undead do so as Ghüls, the catch-all term for ‘basic’ Undead, while only necromancers can create a particularly empowered variant of Undead called Wights. | |
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| Characters who die on server may be made into Undead, but only if it was within 24 hours of their death, if there is a body left, and under the following umbrella: Players can choose to become Undead in their own personal roleplay, but they cannot decide to if other people (outside of their own RP friends/circles) are involved, such as the state. What this means is, you can coordinate with someone to have your character killed, and then revived, but if a character is executed by the State, they cannot be revived. Characters who have been dead for longer, state executed, or without body may be revived as Undead, but only through specific Event or unique mechanics.
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| ===Mental Changes===
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| Undead mentality is as varied as their forms and origins. At their basest, there are Undead who have completely lost all sense of their living selves and even any sapience: ghouls who act like nothing more than ravenous animals. These mindless Undead are a common result of ambient Ordial Essence creating them or they are created by Theurgists and amateur necromancers for the purposes of simple laborious tasks or to bolster the infantry of a wicked army. Even some that are resurrected as intelligent but are allowed to wander Aloria for so long that their memories and identities completely ebb away eventually turn to becoming mindless and feral. The ones not under the control of a specific necromancer tend to aimlessly wander Aloria until they collapse from the rot of their bodies or they are killed. Some have observed these feral Undead collecting themselves in ever-growing groups through some odd instinct of theirs. These hordes tend to be cut down to size before they can ever get too out of control and rampage over an entire village, but in remote and lifeless places like vast swaths of Ellador and the Sundered Lands there are some swarms of shambling dead that could easily overrun a town. Other Undead resemble completely intelligent and sapient beings, almost entirely indistinguishable from the living. Generally, though, Undead will cling to what memories remain of their lives, even if they are hazy, and typically do not change much from how they were. It is impossible to ignore the fact that the Shade itself is just an echo of the person they were in their life, however, and this affects the potential personality of the Undead: sometimes lacking empathy or the true intent of their feelings and memories. Undead resurrected for a particular purpose by necromancers or maybe by the influence of an Artifact at times feel innate attachments and drives to remain dedicated to and fulfill these purposes, leading to degrees of unnatural zealotry for some causes. The Undead guardians of the Sefakhem’s Vault of the Dead voluntarily allow themselves to be sealed within impenetrable layers of the great tombs for what is most likely an eternity, for example, and the ones making up the Bone King’s army will fight and die with completely mindless dedication to their cause.
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| ==Forms==
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| Undead are primarily divided into three broad categories based on the physical form they take: Corpsefolk, Hollows and Wraiths. Each of these physical forms confers different abilities, specials and aesthetics. Furthermore, Undead can be one of a number of Variants on top of the form they take. All Undead choose 1 Form and 1 Variant, and by default gain the Racial Specials but not Abilities of the Race they were when they were alive. Undead who purchase [[Spell Point Buy]] and [[Theurgy]] packs can only have Ordial-aligned Magic and Theurgy.
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| ===Corpsefolk=== | |
| The catch-all term used to refer to ‘general’ Undead, Corpsefolk make up the bulk of known, existing Undead in Aloria. They come in many shapes and sizes, varying just as wildly as Aloria’s many peoples themselves and also being both visually and mentally impacted by the nature of their death and resurrection. Many Corpsefolk still retain their faculties in their undead state, leading simple lives in regions of the world that are tolerant or outright amicable to their existence, such as the people beneath the Bone King’s throng. A great deal of them have withered and degenerated over the course of their years, though, wandering the world aimlessly as walking corpses reduced to their base selves.
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| Physically speaking, Corpsefolk are Shades inhabiting a dead cadaver in any state of decay ranging from entirely skeletal to freshly-dead. The cadaver can be of any Race and can have a varying amount of traits inherent to its state of decay that conflict with the original Race’s restrictions like their eyes being darkened, milky or even missing and their skin appearing mottled or pale in comparison. Additionally, they can bear impossible amounts of permanent decay and injury and other oddities thanks to their undead state like missing body parts, lethal burns, objects remaining embedded in them, plants growing throughout their body or even stitching to indicate their corpse shell was cobbled together by hand. If they are fully decayed like walking skeletons they can even have cloth, twine or other material binding their bones together for stability, visible Ordial Essence running through any exposed sections of their body, and Deathspeech runes etched into their very bones. All types of Corpsefolk can sometimes bear some Ordial Magic aesthetics like green tattoos and gaping wounds.
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| ====Corpsefolk Abilities====
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| {| class="wikitable"; | |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
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| ! Ability Name
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| ! Ability Type
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| ! Ability Range
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| ! Ability Description
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| ! Modifiers
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| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Weakening Poison | | | rowspan="5" | [[File:Undeathqueen.png|300px|caption|left]] |
| | Mundane Technique | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Description |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Self | Self Range means that it applies to the user themselves, or something they can directly touch after casting it.}}
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Weakening Poison | The user sneakily coats their weapon, bullet or arrow with a sinister poison. The next attack they make that damages an opponent, they suffer from -1 Constitution and -1 Highest Combat Stat. If this Ability is countered or the target is immune to poison, then the technique is placed on cooldown. This effect lasts for 15 minutes. Weakening Poison has a 1 hour cooldown. The same person can only be affected by Weakening Poison once per 2 Hours. The weapon, bullet or arrow can be poisoned and held for a maximum of 5 minutes.
| | Deathveil Undead are created in circumstances that are not understood but are likely due to the interference of Ordial Entities like the Death Gods Malefica, the Consigner, or the Machinist. An Undeath occurs when a person's soul is unable to pass on into the afterlife, and is somehow condemned to remain with their body. Deathveil Undead are usually created by the Death Gods to do their bidding in their war on the living and to consume their souls. Within many societies and religions, Undead are also an abomination, especially so in Regalia, where Undead have been a continuing menace. Deathveil Undead are the most common form of Undead, who are generally universally hunted by all law-abiding citizens, religious forces, and military organizations. Only the most outcast of criminals and low-lives might tolerate Deathveil Undead, who are generally only somewhat safe existing in the Sewers. Many Deathveil Undead are either willing or unwilling soldiers of the Malefica, thus considered evil. While is possible for a Deathveil Undead to wish freedom from the clutches of the Ordial entites that control them, this is usually not up to them, and thus they are still complicit in the actions of their masters. It is not possible for a Deathveil Undead to become mortal, or to have their body/soul reinstated. They can however be made Spirits by other entities such as Gods, Arken, Ordial Entities, or Dragons (via [[Archon]]). |
| }}
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| | | {{#simple-tooltip:Undead Modifier | The poison comes from the Corpsefolk’s own fetid fluids, and can be applied via an unarmed attack.}}
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| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Instant Leap | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Rules |
| | Movement Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | * Deathveil Undead inherit their Heritage Traits from their pre-death Heritage. They can still cast Magic but not God Magic, and are unable to gain other Afflictions or Affinities. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Instant Leap | The user can instantly leap towards a Target person in Emote Range. The Target's speed does not matter, and the user can choose to land in front of, to the side of, or behind the target. This leap can only be used horizontally, and does not allow for any vertical movement outside of slight incline increases. Instant Leap has a 30 minute Cooldown.}}
| | * Deathveil Undead, if they were Arkenborn or Godborn in life, lose all their Traits from these conditions. Some visuals may also change due to Undeath (see art for inspiration). |
| |}
| | * Deathveil Undead are generally hunted by the Regalian Empire and its citizens. Deathveil Undead players should expect to have a very hard time to find casual Rp in the City. |
| | | * Deathveil Undead can be in varying states of decomposition down to being entirely skeletal, but players should observe that due to decomposition, they are a hive of disease and rot. |
| ====Corpsefolk Specials====
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| *'''Corpsefolk Shell:''' Corpsefolk do not have to breathe, do not need to eat or drink, do not require sleep and are immune to Gas, Toxins, ingested Alchemical Substances and Diseases. They have a dulled sense of physical pain, though cannot ignore the actual debilitation that being tangibly wounded results in. They can only be killed through complete destruction of the head (or other mechanics that specifically target Undead or Ordial Afflicted), and do not require Maim Permissions to be maimed.
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| *'''Corpsefolk Mend:''' While out of combat, Corpsefolk can physically consume the flesh of either living or dead people or animals in order to heal their body up to the original point of their decay as an Undead. They must eat for an hour to restore wounds and surface level damage to the flesh, and must eat for 4 hours to repair any maims inflicted upon them. Severed pieces do not have to be recovered, and any regenerated flesh will appear as if it was the original piece of their body. | |
| *'''Dead Familiar:''' Corpsefolk are often lonely in their undeath, and impart some small amount of their lingering essence into a resurrected animal to serve as a companion, choosing an animal from the Animals Page (barring Magus or Dragon species). This choice is permanent, and must be mentioned on the Character Application. The familiar takes on an Undead form itself, being composed of any degree of decaying flesh and bone. The familiar cannot inflict harm. If killed, the familiar will collapse into a pile of dead matter, after which the user can resurrect a new one from a graveyard of the same type of Animal as mentioned on the Application, though can have a different aesthetic appearance. The familiar can carry a single object around and perform mundane tasks and hunt with the user to help retrieve flesh for the purposes of healing. | |
| *'''Split Attention:''' Corpsefolk’s unique state of cadaverous being allows them to seamlessly detach and reattach their body parts at will, operating them with ease even while they are detached. They cannot ever leave emote range of their owner, but can act freely and even have an imparted personality (like a severed hand acting on its ‘own’). None of these functions may be used competitively, or mid-combat. | |
| *'''Dead Sight:''' Corpsefolk are immune to Darkness, whether mundane or created by an Ability. They also have Night Vision, giving them perfect sight at night and in dark places.
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| *'''Death Speech:''' Undead are capable of speaking and understanding Death Speech or Shadetongue either when it is spoken by Ordial Entities, or by others. Death Speech is a unique language because it cannot be learned the traditional way, only specific Races and Afflictions have access to it. Additionally, it is also a language that has no defined alphabet and cannot be properly read, the runes and markings varying between the cultures and Ordial cults that use it, though it is always identifiable as Deathspeech. It also defies being recorded, as the sound just becomes gibberish when any type of recording medium is used to try and replay it, even memory Abilities.
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| *'''Corpsefolk Aesthetics:''' Corpsefolk are shambling cadavers held together with Ordial energies. Any summon or ability aesthetics should focus on rot and decay. Weapons should be made of bone or other necromancy-related imagery, and magical themes should be based on undeath.
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| ===Hollows===
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| The restless sentinels and soldiers of the Dead, Hollows are specifically manufactured by their makers with purpose in mind for them. Whether that purpose is inevitably fulfilled, however, is up to fate. Hollows are most often seen forming the vanguard of the Bone King or other necromancer’s armies, or standing on eternal guard as wardens and watchers of sacred places in the case of those built to serve Unionism and its Everwatcher or similarly faithful purposes.
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| Hollows are a Shade inhabiting a vessel composed of inorganic or manufactured materials like a suit of armor or a person-sized doll, with a specially crafted binding runes inside that bind the Shade to the body. They are always placed within the torso of the vessel where their heart would be, and sometimes even artificially beat with energy like a heart would. A necromancer can transplant them from one vessel to another. These vessels can be as uniform and complete as a matching, clean set of armor or as patchwork and cobbled together as pieces of carved wood, animal bone and twine in the shape of a person. A Hollow Undead can be made of fundamentally anything except the cadaver(s) of people, but the inherent defensive effectiveness of its body will never be any stronger than the metal of armor. They can sometimes bear some Ordial Magic aesthetics like glowing green eyes, light or essence coming out from gaps in their bodies and ritual Deathspeech or symbolic markings.
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| ====Hollow Abilities====
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| {| class="wikitable"
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| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
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| ! Ability Name
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| ! Ability Type
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| ! Ability Range
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| ! Ability Description
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| ! Modifiers
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| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Deathmarch | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 1 |
| | Movement Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | Deathveil Undead no longer need biological processes such as breathing, eating, or sleeping. They are theoretically immortal so long as their body is not physically destroyed, as destroying their head will still force their soul to detach from their body and pass on. Deathveil Undead can live for hundreds of years, though we recommend a maximum of 500, due to the stringency of lore from this far back. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Deathmarch | The user can select a target in range that they can see, causing a visible symbol to appear over the target’s head, and move toward them. They cannot stop themselves until the ability ends and must move in a direct line for the target, and can do anything that doesn’t make them stop. They cannot be slowed below their movement speed or halted, by any means. Any Ability-created barriers are shattered when they make contact, but normal barriers will stop them if they can’t be climbed over. The Ability ends once they are within 1 block of the target. This Ability has a 4 hour cooldown.
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| }}
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| | N/A
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| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Endless Watch | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 2 |
| | Movement Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | Deathveil Undead, due to their connection with the Ordial Gods Malefica, the Consigner, and the Machinist, are able to use Divinium to summon these entities, even if normally Pagan or Cult Gods such as these could not be summoned. In doing so, not only do they have access to the normal Divinium Summoning, these entities also double as having all functions of the [[Spirit#Spirit_Dukes|Spirit Dukes]]. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Endless Watch| The user's soul leaves their body, scanning Emote Range around themselves, and identifying each person within Emote Range, and who they are (unless they are presently Disguised or Shapeshifted.) The user may then choose one person in Emote Range, and instantly teleport behind them. This process is instant and can be performed in the same Emote, however any actions performed afterwards are new actions and new Emotes. This Ability has a 1 Hour Cooldown, regardless of whether the teleport was used or not.
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| }}
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| | N/A
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| |- | | |- |
| | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 3 |
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | Deathveil Undead do not need to remain bodily cohesive, meaning parts of them can live independently from the main body. This could for example allow them to send a hand crawling under a doorway which can later be re-attached, or an eye held around a corner to see. This allows Deathveil Undead to creatively interact with some Staff Events by creatively using their bodily flexibility. |
| |} | | |} |
| | | ===Relicsworn Undead=== |
| ====Hollow Specials==== | | {| |
| *'''Hollow Shell:''' Hollows do not have to breathe, do not need to eat or drink, do not require sleep and are immune to Gas, Toxins, ingested Alchemical Substances and Diseases. They have a dulled sense of physical pain, though cannot ignore the actual debilitation that being tangibly wounded results in. They can only be killed through complete destruction of their body (or other mechanics that specifically target Undead or Ordial Afflicted), and do not require Maim Permissions to be maimed.
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| *'''Hollow Mend:''' While out of combat, Hollows can enter a state of self-repair by replacing any lost parts and restoring damage done to their vessel with scraps of whatever material they are composed of. They must spend an hour grafting material on to repair simple injuries, and must spend 4 hours replacing maimed parts. Severed pieces do not have to be recovered, and any replaced parts will appear as if they were original portions of their vessel.
| | | rowspan="5" | [[File:Yyyyhhhh.png|300px|caption|left]] |
| *'''Body of Infinite Holding:''' The nature of a Hollow’s Shadecore results in the interior of their hollow body being a distorted space of indiscernible emptiness, allowing them to store an impossibly large amount of objects within themselves. Hollows contain roughly a 3x3 cube of space inside of their bodies, from which they can place and remove objects while outside of combat. Artifacts cannot be placed inside this storage space, and neither can people.
| | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Description |
| *'''Artificial Hands:''' As beings made of artificial, manufactured shells, Hollows gain an innate understanding of working with a mundane material. They gain access to one of the Crafting Point Buy packs for free.
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| *'''Dead Sight:''' Hollows are immune to Darkness, whether mundane or created by an Ability. They also have Night Vision, giving them perfect sight at night and in dark places.
| | Relicsworn Undead are the only type of Undead legal in the Regalian Empire, yet still regarded with mistrust and concern. Relicsworn Undead have no connection with the Death Gods, rather Relicsworn are made by the intervention of the Unionist Gods. Relicsworn Undead are made either from soldiers or aging Knights who are dying, or criminals whose life is given new purpose in service to the faith. This is either done by interring their head, skull, or heart into a Unionist reliquary container or box, after which it is interred into a suit of Armor (the image depicts a skull reliquary inserted into the chest-piece). Relicsworn Undead are then conscripted into the Burning Choir Chapter of the Aelrrigan Order, from where fellow Aelrrigans ensure the magical cohesion of their binding that keeps their body intact, and the influence of the Death Gods away. Relicsworn are then used to guard places that other Knights deem themselves above, such as graveyards, crypts, and abandoned religious sites that have long since been reclaimed by nature or just lack visitors. Due to their relation with the Aelrrigan Order in being part of it, they also follow Aelrrigan Code, and work with the Aelrrigans, though many Aelrrigans do not consider them full-fledged members, more like a commitment for the Order as a whole that sometimes becomes a burden. Unionist fanatics can consider Relicsworn a type of holy warrior, however. |
| *'''Death Speech:''' Undead are capable of speaking and understanding Death Speech or Shadetongue either when it is spoken by Ordial Entities, or by others. Death Speech is a unique language because it cannot be learned the traditional way, only specific Races and Afflictions have access to it. Additionally, it is also a language that has no defined alphabet and cannot be properly read, the runes and markings varying between the cultures and Ordial cults that use it, though it is always identifiable as Deathspeech. It also defies being recorded, as the sound just becomes gibberish when any type of recording medium is used to try and replay it, even memory Abilities.
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| *'''Hollow Aesthetics:''' Hollow Undead are suits of armor animated with Ordial energies. Any summon or ability aesthetics should focus on sickly green ordial light, or black metal. Weapons should be made of bone or other necromancy-related imagery, and magical themes should be based on undeath.
| | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Rules |
| ===Wraiths===
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| In comparison to their other Undead kin, Wraiths tend to prefer more solitary and reclusive existences. Their frail bodies are not suitable for combat or much in the way of physical exertion, and so most end up leading scholarly or dutiful un-lives. It is not unheard of for Wraiths to haunt the libraries they once studied in, the graveyards where they were buried, or the temples and holy places they once knelt in. Others who seek a more ‘driven’ purpose often find some use as informants and sometimes even employees of more quiet, out-of-sight businesses.
| | * Relicsworn Undead inherit their Heritage Traits from their pre-death Heritage. They can still cast Magic but only Unionist God Magic, and are unable to gain other Afflictions or Affinities. |
| A Wraith is specifically a Shade bearing a conjured physical husk, containing a phantasmal apparition within them. The husk appears like the person did in life, albeit much paler and with dark circles of cracked, decaying flesh beneath their eyes. Their eyes are always a shade of Ordial green. They can sometimes have parts of their body that are ebbing away to expose gaping holes, bone, green Ordial essence or whatever gaseous material their Wraith form is composed of. The Wraith form appears like some kind of ghostly specter, made up of a gaseous material (like ash, smoke, frost, vapor, etc.), sometimes wearing clothes or other garments, with distinct Ordial green eyes and is only ever shown in out-of-combat situations when the Wraith chooses. If they are ever attacked while showing off their Wraith form, they immediately revert to their physical husk.
| | * Relicsworn Undead, if they were Arkenborn or Godborn in life, lose all their Traits from these conditions. Some visuals may also change due to Undeath (see art for inspiration). |
| ====Wraith Abilities====
| | * Relicsworn Undead are legal in the city of Regalia, but may still face bigotry. They are also only legal so long as they are Aelrrigan Knights, and get hunted if they leave the Order. |
| {| class="wikitable"
| | * Relicsworn Undead are always in armor, because they lack a body without it. The armor is in essence their body, which is extended from the Reliquary that is fixed into it. |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;" | |
| ! Ability Name
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| ! Ability Type
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| ! Ability Range
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| ! Ability Description
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| ! Modifiers
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| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Thoughtseize | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 1 |
| | Instant Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Self | Self Range means that it applies to the user themselves, or something they can directly touch after casting it.}}
| | Relicsworn Undead no longer need biological processes such as breathing, eating, or sleeping. They are theoretically immortal so long as their body is not physically destroyed, as destroying their head will still force their soul to detach from their body and pass on. Relicsworn Undead can live for hundreds of years, though we recommend a maximum of 250, as Unionism did not exist before that. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Thoughtseize | The user’s hand becomes incorporeal and reaches into the mind of the target. They choose one ability of theirs (including Custom Kit abilities) with a cooldown under 2 hours and then place that ability on cooldown. The information gained from this ability cannot be used to infer anything about the character. The same person can only be affected by one instance of Thoughtseize once per 2 hours. Thoughtseize can only be used once per day.
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| }}
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| | N/A
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| |- | | |- |
| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Rift Step | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 2 |
| | Movement Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: 10 Blocks | X Blocks range means that it must occur within that number of Minecraft blocks from where the User currently stands.}}
| | Relicsworn Undead, due to a complex binding of Unionist God Magic, are invisible to Event Entities such as: Evolist Gods, Arken, Spirit Dukes, and some Extraplanar Event Entities (inquire with DM for opportunities). This even extends to things they are holding, including a person if they are inside their armor (permitting space, given the presence of the reliquary which takes up some space). |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Rift Step | The user can cast this spell at a target area they can see within 10 blocks of them. Their body is swallowed by magical essence, and they immediately teleport to the chosen location. The user cannot carry anyone else with them when using this Ability, and only objects that fit on their person travel with them. This Ability can be used to teleport horizontally, diagonally, or vertically as long as it is still within the 10 blocks range, and as long as the target area is a flat surface the user can stand on. Rift Step can only be used once every 3 hours.
| |
| }}
| |
| |
| |
| |- | | |- |
| | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 3 |
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | The Unionist Gods have not just blessed the Relicsworn with eternal martial duty, but also given them the means to soothe loss of simple life. That is to say, they can resurrect domestic pets like dogs, cats, and lizards from the dead, and give them extended life. This also extends to mounts like horses, or just wild animals in general, just never complex life forms like people or Spirits. |
| |} | | |} |
| | | ===Godsrot Undead=== |
| ====Wraith Specials==== | | {| |
| *'''Wraith Shell:''' Wraiths do not have to breathe, do not need to eat or drink, do not require sleep and are immune to Gas, Toxins, ingested Alchemical Substances and Diseases. They have a dulled sense of physical pain, though cannot ignore the actual debilitation that being tangibly wounded results in. Upon being physically wounded, they do not bleed and instead spew whatever gaseous material their Wraith form is made of. They can only be killed through complete destruction of the head (or other mechanics that specifically target Undead or Ordial Afflicted), and do not require Maim Permissions to be maimed.
| | |- |
| *'''Wraith Mend:''' While out of combat, Wraiths can make direct contact with another and slowly sap away their energy in order to slowly heal their wounds and any Maims they have endured. They must spend 30 minutes sapping from another to restore simple wounds to their husk, and an hour sapping to replace a lost body part. While being drained from, the target experiences a distinct sensation of exhaustion and lethargy and physically grows paler and weaker-looking up to the point of unconsciousness if a Wraith spends more than an hour draining them, though a full night of sleep will restore them.
| | | rowspan="5" | [[File:Gdsagsdgfdh.png|300px|caption|left]] |
| *'''Poltergeist:''' Because of their potential to haunt, Wraiths can remotely perform a variety of mundane tasks by sheer will alone such as letting a broom brush the floor by itself, letting dishes wash themselves, opening curtains with the wave of a hand, lighting candles with the flick of a finger, opening (unlocked) doors with the flick of a wrist and more. None of these functions may be involved in Combat Roleplay, but there is no limit to the amount that may be running at any given time, and there is no cooldown.
| | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Description |
| *'''Confront Mortality:''' As representations of Death, when Wraiths make physical contact with a person they can project a lucid vision of the person’s potential death in the near or distant future. The vision is one that the Wraith creates and imparts onto them, letting them control the details of the ghastly premonition.
| | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| *'''Dead Sight:''' Wraiths are immune to Darkness, whether mundane or created by an Ability. They also have Night Vision, giving them perfect sight at night and in dark places.
| | Godsrot Undead or Hvitdraugr as they are called among Fornoss believers, are Undead who are created in a very specific process unique to Fornoss as a Religion. In Fornoss, the faithful gain Soldi and Svaldi, two different currencies of honor split in two pantheons in the same religion. When a Fornoss person died and they have one more than the other, their respective Gods claim them for their afterlife. If however a Fornoss believer has roughly equal Svaldi and Soldi, and has a lot of both, both pantheons will end up claiming them and they can pass on to neither afterlife. In such a situation, they continue to exist in a state of Undeath after they have died on Aloria, until such a hypothetical time that the Gods agree who gets to have their soul. Many Godsrot Undead exist in this state for centuries, as the Gods rarely interact and neither side ever wants to relent to the other. Godsrot Undead are illegal in Regalia, as it does not respect this Fornoss tradition, but among the Fornoss believers, Hvitdraugr (which differ from Deathveil Undead which they call just Svartdraugr) are considered holy to some degree, requiring them to protect them and keep them safe from Regalia's attempt to exterminate all Undead regardless of the circumstances of their existence. Godsrot Undead can be told apart from other Undead due to their signature gray skin, and blue glowing Fornoss Tattoos on various parts of their body. |
| *'''Death Speech:''' Undead are capable of speaking and understanding Death Speech or Shadetongue either when it is spoken by Ordial Entities, or by others. Death Speech is a unique language because it cannot be learned the traditional way, only specific Races and Afflictions have access to it. Additionally, it is also a language that has no defined alphabet and cannot be properly read, the runes and markings varying between the cultures and Ordial cults that use it, though it is always identifiable as Deathspeech. It also defies being recorded, as the sound just becomes gibberish when any type of recording medium is used to try and replay it, even memory Abilities.
| |
| *'''Wraith Aesthetics:''' Wraith Undead are ghostly creatures infused with Ordial energies. Any summon or ability aesthetics should focus on sickly green Ordial light, or shadows. Weapons should be made of bone or other necromancy-related imagery, and magical themes should be based on undeath.
| |
| *'''Phantom Form:''' A Wraith can, at any time, choose to unveil their ‘true’ phantasmal form to somebody, discarding the barely-present facade of life they put on and assuming a full ghostly image. The Phantom Form is fully aesthetic (with some caveats, as explained below), though can function as a disguise if the Wraith chooses for theirs to be unrecognizable.
| |
| **Phantom Forms may never imitate other Transformations of other Abilities or other Races. Additionally, some element of green must be prominent, but exactly where is up to the player.
| |
| **Phantom Forms must remain within the general aesthetic of being a ‘ghost’, though whether this means being a full spectral image or a cloaked wraith or anything else ghostlike is up to the player. Appearing like a ghost does not affect their combat capabilities at all, and they are still treated as corporeal.
| |
| **Players may design their own Phantom Form, but the description must be placed on a Character Application under “Phantom Form” somewhere in Abilities.
| |
| **The Player may decide that their Phantom Form is unrecognizable from their normal appearance, or has the same face. It functioning as a disguise is optional.
| |
| | |
| ==Variants==
| |
| While Undead Forms determine the physical body the Undead inhabits and some of their powers, Variants further specify them. Undead are created as different Variants depending on the kind of person they were in life or the purpose the necromancer had for them upon raising them. All Undead choose 1 Form and 1 Variant, recorded on their character app sequentially (i.e. Corpsefolk Titan) and by default gain the Racial Specials but not Abilities of the Race they were when they were alive. Undead who purchase [[Spell Point Buy]] and [[Theurgy]] packs can only have Ordial-aligned Magic and Theurgy.
| |
| ===Titans===
| |
| Undead Titans are the strongest, resurrected and built for physical labor and combat. They often form the front ranks of Undead armies and are a terrifying force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. Many are stitched together from piles of corpse-parts in order to achieve their impressive stature and body mass, as most living beings do not get so large, though the demand for Undead Titans does lead necromancers in need of cadavers to prefer those of larger races. Plenty of Titans are forged as Hollows too, becoming behemoths of metal and bone. The Bone King employs a force of them as siege weapons, able to cluster together and smash through enemy ranks and fortified defenses with ease. | |
| ====Titan Abilities====
| |
| {| class="wikitable";
| |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
| |
| ! Ability Name
| |
| ! Ability Type
| |
| ! Ability Range
| |
| ! Ability Description
| |
| ! Modifiers
| |
| |- | | |- |
| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Brawl Stampede | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Rules |
| | Mundane Technique | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: 10 Blocks | X Blocks range means that it must occur within that number of Minecraft blocks from where the User currently stands.}}
| | * Godsrot Undead inherit their Heritage Traits from their pre-death Heritage. They can still cast Magic of any Planar Alignment, and are unable to gain other Afflictions or Affinities. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Brawl Stampede | The user commences a charge in one straight line in a particular direction, stampeding forward by 10 Blocks. If they ran through a Barrier, someone behind Mundane Cover, or a Magical Shield or Barrier, said barrier, or cover is destroyed, though no damage or Displacement is applied to anyone along its path. This can also break a small hole through wooden and stone walls, but only if they are 1 block thick. This Ability has a 3 Hour Cooldown.
| | * Godsrot Undead, if they were Arkenborn or Godborn in life, lose all their Traits from these conditions. Some visuals may also change due to Undeath (see art for inspiration). |
| }}
| | * Godsrot Undead are illegal in the city of Regalia, but are considered holy among Fornoss Religion followers. As such, Fornoss believers will protect and keep them hidden. |
| | N/A
| | * Godsrot are never in a state of decomposition. Their skin turns gray and cold and their eyes glow, but all other bodily functions and organs still work like normal. |
| |}
| |
| | |
| ====Titan Specials====
| |
| *'''The Bigger They Are:''' Titans break the Strength proficiency cap by 1, meaning they can invest up to 8 points, instead of 7. | |
| *'''The Harder They Fall:''' Titans, however, cannot wield a Shield or use any abilities that require one.
| |
| *'''Colossus Strength:''' Titans can wield oversized weaponry, dual wield large weapons and use large objects as fully functional weapons, like swinging rubble on a chain around as a flail. This confers no benefits in CRP.
| |
| | |
| ===Warden===
| |
| Undead Wardens are born with the purpose to defend what is most precious to them, be it family members or loved ones from their previous lives or places of faith to them or even the necromancers that created them. They are sometimes born more stoic and devoted in their personalities, fitting the purpose they were resurrected for, and develop both physical and emotional attachments to the places and people they defend. A host of impenetrable Sadeir Wardens defend the many locked doors leading to the inside of their goddess’ precious archive.
| |
| ====Warden Abilities====
| |
| {| class="wikitable";
| |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
| |
| ! Ability Name
| |
| ! Ability Type
| |
| ! Ability Range
| |
| ! Ability Description
| |
| ! Modifiers
| |
| |- | | |- |
| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Leader’s Rally | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 1 |
| | Mundane Technique | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | Godsrot Undead are functionally Undead, but their body still functions as if it was alive. That is to say, they need sleep, they need to drink and eat, and they need to breathe. That being said, they no longer age in this state of Undeath, and so they can be hundreds of years old, though we recommend a maximum of 500, due to the stringency of lore from this far back, and Gods don't take that long. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Leader's Rally | The user is able to rally their allies, targeting up to two other people, bolstering their resolve and giving each person 2 HP Counters. This technique requires an ally to be used. Once these counters are removed, Leader’s rally goes on a 2 hour cooldown. The same person can only be affected by Leader's Rally once per hour.
| |
| }}
| |
| | N/A
| |
| |}
| |
| | |
| ====Warden Specials====
| |
| *'''Warden’s Will:''' Wardens break the Constitution Proficiency cap by 1, meaning they can invest up to 8 points, instead of 7.
| |
| *'''Made to Serve:''' Wardens, however, constantly suffer a -2 to their Main Combat Stat.
| |
| *'''Eternal Watch:''' Wardens can seamlessly enter a hibernatory state while in a Clandestine Base or religious temple, appearing indistinguishable from statues or other decor.
| |
| | |
| ===Lich===
| |
| Undead Liches are magically potent and often begin as necromancers seeking to artificially extend their own lives by entering a magically-enhanced state of Undeath. Driven by the pursuits of absolute power and knowledge, those who become Liches are so ambitious that they would discard their very lives and mortal souls in order to become something they perceive as greater. It is no coincidence that of most Undead Variants, Liches tend to be the least sane and also the most ruthless and cruel. A nameless Lich who calls themselves ‘the Archmage’ and claims to be the last existing Archmage from the Allorn Empire is rumored to dwell within ancient ruins in the Sundered Lands.
| |
| ====Lich Abilities====
| |
| {| class="wikitable";
| |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
| |
| ! Ability Name
| |
| ! Ability Type
| |
| ! Ability Range
| |
| ! Ability Description
| |
| ! Modifiers
| |
| |- | | |- |
| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Power Hex | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 2 |
| | Control Power | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | Godsrot Undead are blessed by Bard: They can declare one person their "Ward" (does not need consent), which grants +1 Defense Stat (break cap up to 9) while in Emote Range. This must be declared on a Character Application to apply. The Ward is also immune to Prideborn Mindvex, Bodyborn Mutations, and Arkenborn emotion reading/memory alterations, so long as they are Ward. |
| | Grants the user {{#simple-tooltip: Power Hex | The user can choose a Target in Emote Range to hex. This person becomes controlled by the user. The user must then choose a direction (north, east, south, or west) and move the Target in that direction (this all happens instantly). The Target is moved by their total Strength Points and total Constitution Points combined, times two. If the Target would be moved over 20 Blocks (regardless if there is space), they are also Dazed for 2 minutes. Dazed allows them to still move and fight, they just cannot use Abilities or Mundane Techniques for this duration. This Ability has a 30 Minute Cooldown. The same person can only be affected by Power Hex (from any source) once every 30 minutes.
| |
| | N/A
| |
| |}
| |
| | |
| ====Lich Specials====
| |
| *'''Accursed Bargain:''' Liches break the Magic proficiency cap by 1, meaning they can invest up to 8 points, instead of 7. They can also choose an additional Greater Mage Spell Pack if they are a Greater Mage.
| |
| *'''Fragile Soul:''' Liches, however, cannot invest any points in Constitution.
| |
| *'''Polymath:''' Liches have access to every Special from Magic Point Buy.
| |
| | |
| ===Reaper===
| |
| Undead Reapers are the persistent, unstoppable pursuers of Death: almost always seen mounted and hunting down their quarry, there are many a folktale in remote corners of Aloria about their terrifying presence and the fear that their thundering hooves in the distance creates. A regiment of Khannar’s Claws, The Basalt Raptors, ride wicked steeds made of Elven bones and Living Metal twisted together and hunt down their prey with vicious swiftness atop them. The Reaper Variant is only for Server Donators with the Supremium Rank, as the Mount Technique requires access to the Pets Plugin. The Pets Plugin has the Mounting feature limited to the Supremium Rank to help support funding for the server which runs on Donations.
| |
| ====Reaper Abilities====
| |
| {| class="wikitable";
| |
| |- style="font-weight:bold; text-align:center; background-color:#c0c0c0;"
| |
| ! Ability Name
| |
| ! Ability Type
| |
| ! Ability Range
| |
| ! Ability Description
| |
| ! Modifiers
| |
| |- | | |- |
| | style="background-color:#beffe5;" | Wild Hunt | | | style="font-weight:bold; width:75px; vertical-align:top;" | Mechanic 3 |
| | Mount Technique | | | style="vertical-align:top;" | |
| | {{#simple-tooltip: Emote Range | Emote Range means that it can target anyone who is within Emote Range (thus who can see your emotes when you use them).}}
| | Godsrot Undead are also blessed by Thirun: While fighting alongside at least one Odalv or Bardvir, they gain +1 Defense Stat (breaking cap up to 11). They can also hijack any Mechanic or non-Ability-based Magic, such as aesthetic or environment Magic usage by other Players, and make it do something they want, or shut it down entirely. They can act like Anti-Mages to other aesthetic Magic. |
| | The user enhances their mount, allowing them to ethereally ride through people uninterrupted and also become immune to being dismounted for 15 minutes. This ability has a 1 hour cooldown.
| |
| | N/A
| |
| |} | | |} |
|
| |
|
| ====Reaper Specials==== | | ==Expanded Lore== |
| *'''Born to Ride:''' Reapers can choose 2 of the Cavalry Point Buy Packs for free, gaining the Cavalry Summon ability with them.
| | Expanded Lore offers more reading material regarding the Undead or Undeadism in general, but is not required reading in order to get a decent experience. |
| *'''Soulbound Steed:''' Reapers may ride an Undead mount with unique magical aesthetics, so long as the mount’s appearance obeys the aesthetic guidelines of Undead and it is still recognizable as a mount.
| | ===Perception of Death=== |
| | | To most Religions of Aloria, Undeath is a perversion of faith, because most faiths have the principle of divine judgement, where a person's soul shall be judged by a God of the afterlife, and deemed worthy to paradise. The logic that many faithful uphold, is that any type of Undead they meet, must have been rejected by their God and is therefor an immoral and sinful being, or one who actively wanted to avoid the judgement of their God and thus commit blasphemy. The reality is more complicated however, as the vast majority of the Undead did not ask to become Undead, or worse, were forced into by other more nefarious individuals. Undeath has only really become a major problem in the last 40 years with the rate of Undeath exploding exponentially each year. Undeath has existed for as long as death and life were a thing on Aloria, with references found even in Seraph murals, but it was always a fringe issue, until the gruesome murders at the Imperial Palace that saw all the sons of Emperor Justinian II slain by an outbreak of Undeath in the Palace itself. Since then, most faiths and societies have adopted anti-Undeath burial practices, like cremation and beheading before burial (the latter of which prevents Undeath from ever taking place). |
| ===Husk=== | | ===Undead around the world=== |
| Undead Husks are those Undead that still cling to who they once were in life, holding onto fragmented memories in hopes they might exist in normalcy again. As a result, they are able to disguise their affliction with relevant Disguise-granting abilities while other Undead cannot. They do not gain any Abilities or Specials besides the one from their Form, but have access to their Racial Abilities. Wights cannot be Husks.
| | While Relicsworn Undead are usually limited to Regalia or Etosil and Godsrot Undead are exceedingly rare, Deathveil Undead can be found all over the world in all manner of cultures. In Elven and Estelley society, a type of Deathveil Undead called Deathwatch is common where living bodyguards are forced to become Undead through a ritual act, which binds them into service to their master's family for all eternity. The Deathwatch Undead push away the influence of the Death Gods by killing and offering them the souls of their enemies to consume, thus sating their desire for death and preventing them from controlling the actions of the Deathwatch. The Saydir are Undead sand-wraiths from Ard al Nur (the homeland of the Qadir and Songaskians). The Saydir were originally the Sariyd inhabitants who were swallowed by the Great Storm and choked out. Though, because this event also had the corrosive influence of the Death Gods, many of these Sariyd citizens would become Undead in their rage against the Dragons. Saydir continue to be a massive problem to both the Qadir and Songaskians, as they reside in large numbers in the desert dunes, and make the nights in Ard al Nur extremely dangerous. |
| | | ===Necromancy=== |
| ==Wights==
| | The concept of Necromancy or Death Magic exists in Aloria, but is has nothing to do with Undead. Undeath purely describes the concept of a soul bound to its body after having departed from it partially, but being unable to pass on fully. Necromancy or Death Magic describes the act of animating dead tissue or objects through Magic, or by the use of Spirit (Shades). Necromancers cannot control the bodies of Undead, and Undead also cannot act as fuel for Necromancers. The souls used for Necromancy (Shades) and the souls still attached to Undead bodies (normal souls) are also vastly different, though Undead Necromancers do exist, especially Deathveil Undead. Deathveil Undead, being close to the Malefica, can command a great deal of control over other Ordial-aligned aspects, such as Death Magic and Shades themselves. This is of course dependent on the Undead embracing the Malefica and its hatred against the living. The Malefica does not grant the gifts of the Beyond to the Undead who only reluctantly work for the Death Gods in their quest to cause death and end the concept of life. |
| Wights are Undead that possess notable power above those of the more common Undead around them, and typically are created by way of some particularly powerful Necromancer, Ordial Artifact or even one of the Beyond's entities themselves. While there is no specific numerical benchmark, an Undead that displays commitment and accuracy to the lore and fulfills a needed niche in the scope of Undead and Ordial roleplay in general can initiate a discussion with Lore Staff for a Wight Custom Kit, which will remain in effect for as long as the Undead character continues to exhibit these traits and sufficient activity. This Custom Kit will have a written set of Abilities and Specials, and as such, this section is very short, as their Ability read-out will depend on what is written for them.
| |
| | |
| ==History==
| |
| It is impossible to discern when the Undead first emerged in Aloria proper. If the Seraph left behind corpses and any became Undead, none of them remain to this day, but their first recorded appearance is marked in the myths and legends of the [[Dewamenet Empire]] as servants of the necromantic mystic Imeshret the Night-Gazer. They aided in the creation of the Sefakhem’s great Vault of the Dead, and if anyone could ever enter its impenetrable depths they’d most likely find mummified bodies encased in sarcophagal armor still wandering the labyrinthian halls of embalmed corpses. Imeshret was said to have even bolstered the Dewamenet forces with Undead he resurrected: it is theorized that what few necromancers emerged among the [[Teledden]] both before and during the age of the [[Allorn Empire]] learned first of the existence of Undead while combating them, and then took the practice of Undead creation from the [[Asha]] peoples they oppressed and nearly obliterated. For these few Teledden, they saw Undead as a way to preserve bodies and legacies and even serve their gods, albeit with a more singular or devoted purpose than they had in life. Undead attendants would come to guard certain temples, and their nature was widely lauded by some zealots for centuries, even as the Allorn Empire declined. Fringe cults like the Children of Kruphos even employed them as soldiers and venerated undeath as a sort of hallowed status, being closer to their great God of the Beyond. At the same time, the Undead still held something of a positive significance for the Asha [[Race]], but the destruction of their empire, along with their centuries of enslavement, largely reduced this to mere legend and myth told by the slaves of their past lives. However, it seems that with the [[Cataclysm]], the [[Wildering]] and all the changes since then, the Undead have earned a somewhat darker reputation. The Grand Temple fell into disrepair, and the Undead populace that still lingered there grew aggressive and unwieldy without the control of their masters. As for wider Aloria, the Undead had an abysmal reputation among most of the [[Ailor]], mainly for religious reasons. A majority of faiths saw the resurrection of the dead as unnatural and an abomination against the will of the universe and their gods, Human souls returned to or entered a new plane after leaving Aloria, and it was torture and unjust to drag them back and force them to remain. [[Unionism]] specifically developed practices to prevent Undeadism, such as removing significant organs, burning bodies, and decapitating someone after death. There are some exceptions seen in certain (entirely heretical) cults like Therin’s Tongues. The same proved true in many other faiths that emerged as the decades wore on after the Cataclysm, but the real anti-Undead fervor broke out only several decades ago.
| |
| | |
| The leading cause for these feelings was continued problems with the Undead on [[Etosil]], which were actively concerning the [[Regalian Empire]]'s military officials. But then came an event that changed the course of Alorian history, the [[Undead Scare]]. Emperor [[Justinian II]], the last [[Ivrae]] Emperor of [[Regalia]], had three sons: Therin the youngest, Juvi, the middle, and the elder Augustus. In 279 AC, Therin attacked Juvin and slew him in his bed-chamber, after which he proceeded to confront Augustus to do the same and claim the throne for himself. While Augustus overpowered his brother and had him formally hanged, Therin rose from the family catacombs in the night as an Undead and sought his revenge. He crept back into Augustus' bedroom and murdered him in his sleep. The guards arrived too late and were horrified to see the corpse of Therin gnawing on Augustus’s throat. This single Undead attack distinguished the future of the Ivrae family. Justinian II had no male heirs left, and his brother had only sired daughters. The throne passed to [[House Kade]] 23 years later, where it has remained to this day. Opinions against the Undead increased after that evening, and they have long been slain on sight across the Empire as a result. This situation has continued into today, though ironically, [[Aetosian]]s and the Undead are at somewhat of a more positive position than any point prior in the past thanks to the Undead’s attacks against the [[Bone Horrors]] during the [[Bone Horror Crisis]] several years ago, thus saving most of Etosil. As of the present day, the Emperor has allowed some Undead to peacefully exist so long as they adhere and practice as good Unionists, though the rest are still treated with the same abhorrence.
| |
| | |
| ==Culture==
| |
| There is no defining ‘Undead Culture’ to speak of, because Undead are all born of different races and cultures from their past lives: a great many of them still remember aspects of the lifestyles and peoples they came from and still adhere to them, while others adopt the cultures of those who resurrect them. Not every Undead in the Bone King’s army was born Aetosian or grew up Evintarian, but they certainly become so once they’ve been returned for their new King’s designs. Undead quite frequently engage in [[Ordial Cultism]] as the majority of the cults accept and even encourage their existence, giving them a new home and place in the world after their resurrection.
| |
| | |
| ===Noteworthy Undead and Groups===
| |
| ====The Sadeir====
| |
| The Undead servants of the Ordial God [[Ordial Cultism#Seleya|Seleya]], the Sadeir is the collective name for all the Undead beneath her command and are comprised of resurrected Sariyd who perished in the Great Storm alongside a litany of vile Undead constructs made by Seleya and the strongest necromancers in her service. With their corpses so old and almost entirely obliterated by the sands that killed them, the Sadeir are almost entirely Hollows and Wraiths with even some spectral Dune Phantoms among their number. They tend to be cobbled together from fragments of old Sariyd technology and the salvaged parts of desert-dwelling animals, even taking on spider or scorpion-like physical traits in their construction like additional limbs and appendages. They constantly war with the Songaskian forces in Farahdeen and are what the [[Ordial Cultism#The Lantern|Lantern]] worshippers and Mages among the Songaskian spend most of their time and resources combating. Most notorious of them is Allehgazh Nine-Eyes, a powerful Wight in Seleya’s inner circle and the keeper of the only existing key to her sacred, secret archive. Allehgazh fused themselves with a mechanical scorpion, becoming a sort of part-Undead part-clockwork monstrosity that terrorizes the dunes when they emerge to fight the Songaskian forces. Rumors and fear mongers return from the Undead-infested deserts with chilling stories about a titanic war-machine that the Sadeir are building: a massive city-sized spider forged from the remnants of the Sariyd’s most magnanimous creations left beneath the dunes. Whether it exists or not is less concerning to some than the idea of where it could be pointed, and when it might be ready.
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| ====The Bone King==== | |
| Perhaps the single most infamous Undead in Aloria is the Bone King of Etosil himself. Born a nameless Ailor slave who escaped with others and took up residence on the lawless isle of Etosil, the man who would become the Bone King took up the moniker Thyemos after the arrival of the Ailor Evintarians who were expelled from Regalia and migrated there, bringing order to the island. Thyemos would not find peace or satisfaction with his new rulers, though, as he had escaped slavery once before and resolved that no man would ever be his master again. He would lead an ill-fated rebellion against his town’s governance that resulted in nothing but his sparse gaggle of supporters dying upon the spears of the local militia, sending him fleeing to the rocky cliffs and shores of the island. It would be there that his fate changed forever, stumbling across an old doorway mostly covered by rubble and boulders. Forcing his way inside, he came across the deserted ruins of what was once a temple dedicated to the Allorn god Amelaan and home to a long-dead contingent of the Allorn-era Ordial Cult, the Children of Kruphos. At first, he found nothing but dust, cobwebs, desiccated tomes, and filthy skeletons among the wreckage, but the sounds of soldiers outside forced him deeper into the temple and into its sanctum. There he found an alien altar of some kind, and upon it, a crown forged of black iron and spikes of bone. It spoke to him, and what exactly it said is known only to the Bone King himself, but whatever it was, it was compelling enough to prompt him to put the crown on. The guards outside were horrified as they witnessed an army of Allorn skeletons come crawling out of the temple’s ruins, all commanded by the crown-wearing Thyemos himself, and soon enough the guards were made part of his new Undead army. The Bone King’s story from then on is clear enough to most: making a name for himself by waging war with his ever-growing Undead army, forcing victims into his sarcophagi made of bone and slaying them only to resurrect them with the crown’s power as a new soldier. He would eventually be convinced to find peace with Aetosil thanks to the urging of Emperor Cedromar during the Bone Horror Crisis, as the Exist-influenced horrors were an affront even to a servant of the Beyond like the Bone King. What his motives and goals now are entirely uncertain, but the peace has lasted: for now.
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| ====Therin’s Tongues====
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| Within the many individual sects and cults of the [[Unionist]] faith, there is a rather secretive and completely illegally heretical subsect of Evintarian Unionism that typically refers to themselves as Therin’s Tongues. Formed primarily of Undead who still retain devotion to the Everwatcher and Divines after their resurrection, the Tongues take their name and the core of their beliefs from the youngest son of the deceased Emperor [[Justinian II]], Therin, who was tangled up in a bloody conflict with his brothers that resulted in his resurrection as an Undead and subsequent murder of his elder sibling. The Tongues believe his return from the land of the dead was a holy mission and even brought about by the Everwatcher and so his murder was justified. As far as their practices are concerned, not much differs from typical Unionism aside from a reverence for their fellow Undead as all being souls returned by the Everwatcher’s will, and possessing some sort of holy duty being the reason for their resurrection. The most devout even remove their own tongues in an extreme vow of silence, keeping said tongues in phylacteries of their own for safeguarding, as the secrets of Death are not theirs to tell. Some even go a step further and take the tongues of others who they consider to have committed heinous crimes against their faith, collecting them in a similar fashion.
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| ==Trivia== | | ==Trivia== |
| *In places where necromancy is either legal or looked over, some necromancers turn a very healthy profit by resurrecting the dead pets of the wealthy who can’t bear to be parted from their favorite companions. | | * A rumor for nearly two decades after it happened was that the Emperor couldn’t bear to kill his last remaining son, despite his Undead status. Instead, he kept him chained and secured away in the deepest reaches of the Imperial Palace. |
| *With the rise in publicity of knowledge about Ordial powers and Undead, so too has the paranoia of those who hate them risen, leading the most radical of conspiracy theorists to believe that the Regalian Empire may be entirely controlled by phantom-possessed people. | | * In places where necromancy is either legal or looked over, some necromancers turn a very healthy profit by resurrecting the dead pets of the wealthy who can’t bear to be parted from their favorite companions. It should be noted however, that these pets are not Undead, but rather Ordial Shades forced into corpses as Spirits. |
| *A rumor for nearly two decades after it happened was that the Emperor couldn’t bear to kill his last remaining son, despite his Undead status. Instead, he kept him chained and secured away in the deepest reaches of the Imperial Palace.
| | * With the rise in publicity of knowledge about Ordial powers and Deathveil Undead, so too has the paranoia of those who hate them risen, leading the most radical of conspiracy theorists to believe that the Regalian Empire may be entirely controlled by phantom-possessed people or Undead high priests and bureaucrats. |
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| {{Afflictions}} | | {{Afflictions}} |
| {{Accreditation | | {{Accreditation |
| |Writers = Finlaggan, HydraLana | | |Writers = MonMarty |
| |Processors = Birdsfoot_Violet, HydraLana | | |Processors = Birdsfoot_Violet |
| }} | | }} |
| [[category:Afflictions]] [[category:Ordial Afflictions]] | | [[category:Afflictions]] [[category:Ordial Afflictions]] |
