InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "IJ: full of sprites & fairies"

Midsummer Nights Mod Journal (midsummer_mods) wrote,
@ 2008-08-12 17:32:00

Playable Races

PLAYABLE RACES
. . . the species guidelines
jump to...
Humans. Cursed. Sentient Spells. Familiars.

HUMANS
There are three classifications of playable humans. All are subjuct to ordinary human weaknesses.

CRAFT KING / QUEEN CANDIDATES
Realm: Native to Earth. Can move freely between Earth and the Craftlands
Magic: The control of Spells and the ability to bind Familiars. Approximately a year after their visit to Imperial, Craft Candidates will manifest one of five abilities (see here for abilities).

The Craft King/Queen Candidates are those humans of Earth who have been chosen by Matilda to compete to become the next ruler of The Craftlands and keeper of the balance of magic between The Craftlands and Earth. The Candidates are also the only ones who can capture / redirect / harness the Spells that have gotten loose in Eventide. This is one of their major tasks.

EARTH HUMANS
Realm: Native to Earth. Can only go to Craftlands if brought by Matilda or one of the Craft Candidates.
Magic: None

Ordinary occupants of Earth, they make up the larger population of the world and Eventide. Most Earth humans hold jobs such as teachers, bartenders, firefighters, business men, etc. Since the disappearance of Matilda they have been most affected by the ambivalent magic and Spells that have been set loose.

CRAFTLAND HUMANS
Realm: The Craftlands. Cannot go to Earth.
Magic: None

The occupants of The Craftlands and the residents of all the lands there in. Most Craftland humans live in small villages or towns and hold jobs like blacksmiths, farmers, merchants, shop keepers, artisans, etc. There are also humans who live in the untamed wilds of the land—sometimes alone, sometimes in bands—and they fill any range of positions such as thieves, rangers, woodsmen, guides, gypsies, etc. Many Craftland humans have been affected by the mounting threat of the eastern regions.

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CURSED
Realm: Originally native to Craftlands, but now are also on Earth. Cursed cannot move from their original realm.
Magic: Only any ability given to them by their Curse. (i.e. King Midas’ Touch, etc)

Also known as The Cursed Ones or Dark Spellbound, the Cursed are humans who have had an Insensate Spell cast on them. The Cursed originate in Craftlands. The first record of The Cursed began long ago when one Craft King decided to punish any human that angered him. Since that time The Cursed have multiplied, passing their Curse onto their children, or increased when a Craft King or Queen curses an offending human or when an unfortunate human accidentally comes in contact with an Insensate spell.

The Craftland Cursed have come to inhabit the eastern region of The Craftlands and hate Craft Users. Many organized kingdoms, towns, and bands of Cursed in the east have decided to start attacking the western lands while there is no Craft King / Queen. Some others are hunting the current Candidates in hopes to prevent the rise of a new Craftland ruler.

Since the escaping of errant Spells into Earth, a few Earth Humans who have came in contact with Insensate Spells have become Cursed as well.

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SENTIENT SPELLS
Realm: Originally native to Craftlands, but now are also on Earth. Can move between realms.
Magic: Their magic is based on the type of spell they are. (ie. A Sentient Fire Spell can control fire. A dream Spell can control and manipulate dreams, etc.)
Weaknesses: Craft Candidates, Opposing Spells, Protection Wards
Life Span: Immortal unless destroyed by a Craft User, Killed by a Spell Ward, or Killed by a powerful opposing Spell

Sentient Spells are a form of conscious Spells created by past and present Craft Kings and Queens. Sentient Spells usually take a human or human-like form and are distinguishable only by the fact that their eyes are always silver or pale gray. Depending on the type of Spell they are, Sentient Spells have the ability to affect people and/or the natural world. When unbound, they are able to do and act as they please with a free will. When captured by a Craft User or Craft Candidate they must obey them and are allowed to use their abilities only as far as the Crafter they have been captured by allows them to.

A Sentient Spell will die or “burn out” if all of their power is used up in one go without time for them to regain their energy. This often happens when two Sentient Spells are pitted against each other; the stronger Spell will cause the weaker Spell to use itself up. They can also be destroyed through Spell Warders, special Craft User created talismans that protect against Spells.

There are three types of Sentient Spells:

Light Sentients – Any Sentient Spells in which the effects are positive (i.e. Healing Spells, Growth Spell, Good Luck Spell, etc)
Neutral Sentients – Any Sentient Spell in which the effects can be either positive or negative depending on how it is used (i.e. Fire Spell, Rain Spell, etc)
Dark Sentients – Any Sentient Spell in which the effects are negative (i.e. Pain Spell, Bad Luck Spell, Death Spell, etc)

BINDING A SPELL
Binding an Sentient Spell is the same as binding an Insensate Spell. The Craft User must identify the Spell’s name (i.e. Far Seeing Spell, Bad Luck Spell, etc) and the speak the incantation “I invoke the laws of the Word and Will and bind this Spell to my whim.” The Sentient Spell will then be bound to the command of the Crafter.

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FAMILIARS
Realm: The Craftlands. Can travel between The Craftlands and Earth.
Magic: Immune to Spells and the effects of Spells. Can shape shift between human and any animal the size of a cat or smaller.
Weaknesses: Craft Candidates. Not immune to being physically killed or injured.
Life Span: After they pass their hundredth year as cats, familiars live half as long as humans, unless they are bound to a Craft User, in which case they will live as long as the craft user does, which can be centuries if the craft user is a Craft King / Queen.

Familiars are shape-shifting beings, born as black cats. A black cat that lives for a hundred years reaches a stage called Awareness and become a Familiar. During their Awareness the Familiar gains the ability to change his or her shape. The knowledge of how to shift usually comes to the cat in question inherently; after their hundredth year they simply know how to do it. In addition to the inherent knowledge of how to shift, the Awareness also brings knowledge of human speech. The Familiar also has all his or her memories of what he or she saw, heard, and knew as a regular cat.

Familiars are usually very intelligent and wise, however they are also very mischievous and curious. Their cunning and abilities make them good spies and helpful right hands to have, which is why many Craft Uses have chosen to bond with them. There are two ways for a Craft User / Candidate to gain a Familiar;

CONCENSUAL BOND
The decision to bond is consensual - both Familiar and Craft User must agree - and is permanent, so it is not a decision to be taken lightly. Once bonded the Familiar cannot be bound to another Craft User and vice versa.

In bonding with a Craft User, the Familiar gains a longer life and will have the same life span as the Craft User they are bonded to. In return a Familiar must serve that Craft User. Both will be able to sense the presence of the other up to ten miles away and they will be able to communicate telepathically between both distance and dimensions without difficulty.

A consensual bond is made by both Familiar and Craft User speaking the vow “I invoke the laws of the Word and Will and make –name-- my ally.”

FORCED BOND (BINDING)
A forced bond is usually used by Craft Users on Familiars who have become to reckless or mischievous to be free. A forced bond involves fighting and weakening the Familiar in question. Once the Familiar is weak the Craft User is able to forcibly bind the Familiar to them with the incantation “I invoke the laws of the Word and Will and make this Familiar my servant.”

A binding is different from a bond in that a Craft User has absolute control over the Familiar. Familiars captured through Binding do not gain a longer life and there is no telepathy or empathy shared between Craft User and Familiar. This bond can be undone by the Craft User.