Post by Rehjul on Feb 4, 2014 20:58:17 GMT -5
In the olden times, shortly after our creation, Den elected seven men to serve beneath him, and bring about his will unto mankind - this council was to be known as the Prior.
The members of the Prior were bestowed with the gift of a power far surpassing that of the average man. This was the power to create, and to change, and to destroy - they were gifted with the blood of Den.
The power was only brought about under extreme circumstances - the process of harnessing the gift was a foul, dark one.
The Prior were the doer of miracles - they saved the people from famines, droughts, plagues - but to bring about these great accomplishments, the Prior were forced to tap into the power of the blood gifted unto them.
The rituals forced the members of the Prior to mutilate themselves; to offer their blood unto the world - and when this wasn't enough, they would tap into the blood of those around them: even the blood of those not gifted with Den's essence still held some amount of power.
These rituals were kept quiet from the common man for some time - once the source of their magic became revealed, as all dark things come into the light eventually, the Prior, and their magic, became feared, hated, but they were still far too central to society to be disposed of.
The members of the Prior aged, albeit at a slower rate than the average man due to their supernatural heritage, and eventually died off.
Their bloodline was passed down through their children, and these men and women grew to have powers beyond that of the average man, too, and several of these were elected to serve as successors to their parents.
____________________________________________________________________
But this was some time ago.
The Prior still exists, and still serves as a central governing force, and magic has continued to spread throughout the land.
The force is only accessible by those descending from the initial seven Prior, and the blood is diluted throughout many of the inheritors. There are few where the blood still flows pure, and these men and women are gifted with extraordinary amounts of power, but even this is still not comparable to the original seven.
The power, as exerted by an individual, is still reliant on the blood gifted by Den.
To enact any sort of spell or ritual, not only must a person be aware of the correct incantations to funnel the flow of energy, but must be prepared to offer their essence to exert the power.
This can be done by something as easily done as making a small incision on one's thumb, and offering a small trickle of blood - though this would only be enough to perhaps light a candle.
The more severe the wound, and the more intense the pain, the more powerful the resulting energy becomes.
Severe mental trauma can also result in supplying enough energy to bring about certain spells, though this is rare, and becoming rarer.
Many fear this power, and rightfully so. Those that receive the gift oftentimes reject it - many people live their lives never witnessing the use of magic - whereas it was a common force within the olden days, with many heroes of old being direct descendents of the Prior, the dilution of the bloodline is making it consistently more difficult to tap into this gift, causing the users to inflict more and more severe wounds unto themselves.
Magicians are working always at finding ways to counter this; there are those that carry around salves and bandages to restructure themselves after casting more powerful spells, while some prefer to bring with them small animals, such as mice and birds, to supply the essence necessary to perform the rituals. Others still, of a darker nature, choose to travel with slaves...
You have only to look at a person's lineage to estimate whether they're potentially 'gifted' or not, provided you can trace it back far enough. If the person has a single magical person in the entirety of their family's history, there is a chance of them awakening to the gift - it comes to its users at many different ages, in many different situations, though some endure training to hasten this process, and the power sometimes skips entire generations, leaving a child's parents shocked at it revealing itself.
At times, it's appeared to have to disappeared from a family's bloodline entirely - and occasionally, it stays that way.
With the human race spanning as far and as swiftly as it has, many bloodlines have become mixed. It's not uncommon for the average citizen to bolster some sort of magic within them, but commonly, the power within is so weak that it's never awakened.
Magic is a wild, and chaotic force. The farther the blood descends from its point of origin, the wilder it seems to grow, though the weaker the bloodline, the less effective the magic user. This enables a sort of paradox, for most.
Those born with the bloodline have been known to harness it in a variety of different methods, such as
Healing
All the life that ever is and ever will be exists in this very moment. Though it may change forms, it remains always in equal measure. Men can not create life, and even men gifted with Den's powers are still ultimately men. What they may find themselves capable of doing however, is transferring it - from one source to another. This comes at a price, one that many reject, for who are we to make that decision? Does it not belong to a higher power? And yet, the choice does lay in our hands.
While all life is equal, not all living things contain the same amount of life force. Regardless, the final spark of life is always worth much more than the stuff surrounding it. An entire field of crops may be sacrificed to restore a person's broken leg; the population of an entire neighborhood may be brought to their knees to restore the face of a mutilated man, and yet the life of a mother could easily be exchanged for that of her child. The final snuff is the stuff of miracles.
While the magic user may act to drain the vitality of others for whatever purposes, the process still drains their stamina, fatiguing them. The more energy moved, the heavier the fatigue. If the process is began and not enough energy is found to be present, the results could be disastrous.
Creation
Much like the threads of fate themselves, Den's magic is a neutral force. Using the same dynamics as the healing process, a person born with the gift of Den may extract energy from one thing only to exert it for some other purpose. Unlike the former usage, a person must be willing to drain their own vitality to accomplish these deeds. The craftier the person is, the less of their own vitality need be siphoned. Letting blood into the air allows for stronger and more immediate magic than simply focusing.
As a reference, the average, untrained magician may be able to just levitate some other person before falling to exhaustion. A trained magician may, instead of attempting to will the person into the air, give said person a forceful push from beneath or enact an incredibly strong gust of wind, both of which would require less effort than the former.
This sort of magic drains both vitality and stamina, and overusage can result in serious injury to the user. Many magicians have died from overestimating the extent of their power, and many more have found themselves permanently crippled.
Because of their strengthened connection with the realm of the spirits, magic users may be prone to any number of side-effects. Severe headaches, memory delusion, and cases of dual personalities are but a few things witnessed in the occasional magic user.
This details only Den, the Creator's form of magic, as this is the only sort a person can be born with. Other gods allow for other boons and gifts that operate much differently and may see fit to bestow such upon a person in future roleplays.
The members of the Prior were bestowed with the gift of a power far surpassing that of the average man. This was the power to create, and to change, and to destroy - they were gifted with the blood of Den.
The power was only brought about under extreme circumstances - the process of harnessing the gift was a foul, dark one.
The Prior were the doer of miracles - they saved the people from famines, droughts, plagues - but to bring about these great accomplishments, the Prior were forced to tap into the power of the blood gifted unto them.
The rituals forced the members of the Prior to mutilate themselves; to offer their blood unto the world - and when this wasn't enough, they would tap into the blood of those around them: even the blood of those not gifted with Den's essence still held some amount of power.
These rituals were kept quiet from the common man for some time - once the source of their magic became revealed, as all dark things come into the light eventually, the Prior, and their magic, became feared, hated, but they were still far too central to society to be disposed of.
The members of the Prior aged, albeit at a slower rate than the average man due to their supernatural heritage, and eventually died off.
Their bloodline was passed down through their children, and these men and women grew to have powers beyond that of the average man, too, and several of these were elected to serve as successors to their parents.
____________________________________________________________________
But this was some time ago.
The Prior still exists, and still serves as a central governing force, and magic has continued to spread throughout the land.
The force is only accessible by those descending from the initial seven Prior, and the blood is diluted throughout many of the inheritors. There are few where the blood still flows pure, and these men and women are gifted with extraordinary amounts of power, but even this is still not comparable to the original seven.
The power, as exerted by an individual, is still reliant on the blood gifted by Den.
To enact any sort of spell or ritual, not only must a person be aware of the correct incantations to funnel the flow of energy, but must be prepared to offer their essence to exert the power.
This can be done by something as easily done as making a small incision on one's thumb, and offering a small trickle of blood - though this would only be enough to perhaps light a candle.
The more severe the wound, and the more intense the pain, the more powerful the resulting energy becomes.
Severe mental trauma can also result in supplying enough energy to bring about certain spells, though this is rare, and becoming rarer.
Many fear this power, and rightfully so. Those that receive the gift oftentimes reject it - many people live their lives never witnessing the use of magic - whereas it was a common force within the olden days, with many heroes of old being direct descendents of the Prior, the dilution of the bloodline is making it consistently more difficult to tap into this gift, causing the users to inflict more and more severe wounds unto themselves.
Magicians are working always at finding ways to counter this; there are those that carry around salves and bandages to restructure themselves after casting more powerful spells, while some prefer to bring with them small animals, such as mice and birds, to supply the essence necessary to perform the rituals. Others still, of a darker nature, choose to travel with slaves...
You have only to look at a person's lineage to estimate whether they're potentially 'gifted' or not, provided you can trace it back far enough. If the person has a single magical person in the entirety of their family's history, there is a chance of them awakening to the gift - it comes to its users at many different ages, in many different situations, though some endure training to hasten this process, and the power sometimes skips entire generations, leaving a child's parents shocked at it revealing itself.
At times, it's appeared to have to disappeared from a family's bloodline entirely - and occasionally, it stays that way.
With the human race spanning as far and as swiftly as it has, many bloodlines have become mixed. It's not uncommon for the average citizen to bolster some sort of magic within them, but commonly, the power within is so weak that it's never awakened.
Magic is a wild, and chaotic force. The farther the blood descends from its point of origin, the wilder it seems to grow, though the weaker the bloodline, the less effective the magic user. This enables a sort of paradox, for most.
Those born with the bloodline have been known to harness it in a variety of different methods, such as
Healing
All the life that ever is and ever will be exists in this very moment. Though it may change forms, it remains always in equal measure. Men can not create life, and even men gifted with Den's powers are still ultimately men. What they may find themselves capable of doing however, is transferring it - from one source to another. This comes at a price, one that many reject, for who are we to make that decision? Does it not belong to a higher power? And yet, the choice does lay in our hands.
While all life is equal, not all living things contain the same amount of life force. Regardless, the final spark of life is always worth much more than the stuff surrounding it. An entire field of crops may be sacrificed to restore a person's broken leg; the population of an entire neighborhood may be brought to their knees to restore the face of a mutilated man, and yet the life of a mother could easily be exchanged for that of her child. The final snuff is the stuff of miracles.
While the magic user may act to drain the vitality of others for whatever purposes, the process still drains their stamina, fatiguing them. The more energy moved, the heavier the fatigue. If the process is began and not enough energy is found to be present, the results could be disastrous.
Creation
Much like the threads of fate themselves, Den's magic is a neutral force. Using the same dynamics as the healing process, a person born with the gift of Den may extract energy from one thing only to exert it for some other purpose. Unlike the former usage, a person must be willing to drain their own vitality to accomplish these deeds. The craftier the person is, the less of their own vitality need be siphoned. Letting blood into the air allows for stronger and more immediate magic than simply focusing.
As a reference, the average, untrained magician may be able to just levitate some other person before falling to exhaustion. A trained magician may, instead of attempting to will the person into the air, give said person a forceful push from beneath or enact an incredibly strong gust of wind, both of which would require less effort than the former.
This sort of magic drains both vitality and stamina, and overusage can result in serious injury to the user. Many magicians have died from overestimating the extent of their power, and many more have found themselves permanently crippled.
Because of their strengthened connection with the realm of the spirits, magic users may be prone to any number of side-effects. Severe headaches, memory delusion, and cases of dual personalities are but a few things witnessed in the occasional magic user.
This details only Den, the Creator's form of magic, as this is the only sort a person can be born with. Other gods allow for other boons and gifts that operate much differently and may see fit to bestow such upon a person in future roleplays.