Prince of the Supernatural
500 years ago, the Deva came to these lands and built their first cities on top of the mesas and mountains of the land known as Baho. Possessing great knowledge of the supernatural and a natural affinity to the arts of summoning, the Deva used supernatural beings to build their cities and perform the menial tasks needed to maintain their civilization. It wasn't long before the Deva created a nation that became a power to be feared. Thus, the Republic of Pahiartha was born.
Using supernatural creatures and the tribes of humans living in their lands as slaves and servitors respectively, the Deva flourished. Living in enormous and majestic cities, no Deva had to do any physical work. Citizens of the Republic had all their needs covered by the State. In turn, they only had to be useful to the Republic by learning, controlling the supernatural beings used to maintain the Republic and developing and researching new magic and technology useful to the Republic.
After all this time, the Deva are one of the most powerful nations in the world. Using their natural connection to magic and psychic powers, the Deva have built many wonders. Some say it is time for the Deva to expand and bring their Enlightment to the lesser races, as they have done with the humans living in their territory. It is time, they say, to start shaping a new world for their young. And this is where you become important.
Your name is Dhayanta Covel, and you are the third son of Dhayanta Vasantha, patriarch of the Dhayanta family, the most powerful family of the Kuramas, the caste of the Senators that rules the Republic. Today, you are turning 21, meaning you have finally come of age, becoming an adult with all the benefits and obligations that come with your position.
How were you brought up?
Choose one (People mentioned in the origins are the friends and contacts gained through that origin)
Summoner of the Dhayanta: As my father, my grandfather and my ancestors before, I was taught the ways of Summoning and the four basic principles of Calling, Dominating, Binding and Banishing. I studied under my mother Dhayanta Abha and her brother, the great researcher Chandak Ashoka. In these studies I came to increase my knowledge over the entities known as Aeons, and I have become somewhat of an expert.
Pupil of the Sanandana: I was sent to be taught by my brother Kalpak Condor as a token of my father forgiveness towards his decision of becoming one of the Sanandana. I was brought up as a Sanandana, embracing feelings and emotions more than other members of the Republic would, and seeing physical labor not as an humiliation, but as way to train the spirit. I was taught Summoning, but my studies were interspersed with training in physical combat and the Dominion of Ki, the mystical energy that flows through all living beings. I was also taught the custom of Binding supernatural entities not to objects, but to my own body.
Token of Friendship: I was sent to be taught at the human Empire of Yehudah as a token of friendship between our people. The Empire taught me that those with the Gift of Magic are superior to those that do not possess it. I was taught many secrets of magic, as well as some of the rituals the Empire of Yehudah used to keep control over their many slaves, both supernatural beings and humans without the Gift. My master there was none other than Etheldrea, a woman regarded as the most powerful Gifted in the world. As a result of my uprising outside of the Republic, I embrace my emotions a bit more than I should for a Dhayanta, but not as much as the Sanandana do.
Sent to the colonies: I was sent to the colony of Vithro, in the distant continent of Eurakia, to be brought up by the Priyanka, a family with a long relationship to the Dhayanta. I took part on their experiments and research, and I was taught Invocation, an art deriving from Summoning. Through the use of Invocation, I have learnt to focus my Calling to use my energies with more efficiency when trying to Call powerful entities with which I have made a Pact. All of this thanks to Priyanka Jenya, head researcher at Vithro, and his daughter Makara.
Prisoner of War: When I was a boy, I was captured in an attack by the Eternal Emperor of Kuon Teikoku, a neighboring Empire coming from the northern island of Varja. When the Eternal Emperor, a demigod known by the name of Amateratsu no Mitoko, knew of my lineage, he took me and raised me as his own son. I was taught how to fight by his men. When the power running through my blood became evident, I was taught how to Banish by the Daimah priests and how to use my Ki, even for Summoning creatures, by the Kami, the demigods that served as nobles and generals for Amateratsu. I am a Deva, and as such I was always more solitary than the sons of the nobles with who I grew up. One of them, a good friend called Kageko Asakura, used to say I was made of ice, but I am far more open to my emotions than any other Deva. I have taken some of the customs of the land of Varja, although I still follow most of the customs of the Deva, as my mother was allowed to see me once every year, and she taught me about our customs.
Sent for learning: I was sent to the lands of the human Empire of Solomon to learn from them. The Empire of Solomon has developed what they call technomagic, a combination of mystical arts and science. Although the Deva also have something similar, theirs is much more advanced. There I was raised by Senator Romulo, one of the most important members of their Senate. Romulo was a scholar, and although he wasn't able to teach me much about magic or summoning, he taught me about their science and the marvels of the world. He even requested permission from Andromalius, their Emperor, to inoculate me with the mystical nanomachines the Senators and their families use to have control over the technology of their Empire. He somehow got the permission, making me the only non human to have these nanomachines. Andromalius himself got curious about me, and allowed me to access his private collection of books. There wasn't much I could learn about their science that I didn't already know from Romulo, but I found some interesting books about magic that allowed me to take some benefit from my race's natural Gift.
Raised for politics: My eldest brother, Dhayanta Krsihan, took me to his side. It was him who raised me. He taught me everything he knew about politics and organization, and he decided to hire an instructor from a distant country, a Duk'zarist going by the name of Rafiel, to teach me how to defend myself. Although this was uncommon for the Deva, he wanted me to become an asset to our family, and he couldn't risk me being targeted by our enemies. All of this left little time for me to train my Summoning, but he taught me everything he could about Dominating supernatural beings, saying it would be enough in my future career.
Indeed you were. And as Dhayanta, there's no doubt that in all this time you've managed to get some resources and contacts.
Choose three:
Marriage: When I was young, I was engaged to a young maiden. My fiancée is still too young to marry, but it will be no more than one or two years before I have to marry her. For years, I've had to spend some of my time with her to "get to know each other". Although I don't love her (or at least not yet), there's some kind of friendship between the two of us. The exact nature of your fiancée depends on your origins.
Symbol of Friendship: My guardian has given me an artifact symbolizing our relationship. The nature of this artifact will vary depending on the origin you have chosen. An artifact from the Empire of Yehudah would be a staff or similar that enhances your magical powers, for example.
Sheele: When I was born, my father used a bit of my soul to create a Sheele, a being bound to me that would serve as my friend and protector. She's been a friend for years, and I trust her as much as I trust myself. A Sheele is a female supernatural being created from the soul of a person. They share their soul with their master, and should a sheele die, its master would suffer terrible consequences from the strain on his soul. Sheeles look like fairies from children tales, but have useful supernatural powers, and a certain degree of magic knowledge. There are 8 types of Sheeles, each linked to a Path of Magic (it is unknown why the Paths of Creation, Destruction and Necromancy have no Sheeles associated to them), Haleys (Air), Corales (Water), Farens (Fire), Emeralds (Earth), Shinas (Light), Xiannes (Darkness), Quinns (Essence) and Mesmerias (Illusion). You have to choose one type of Sheele.
Assistant: I have an assistant. This assistant was provided by my guardian, and can assist me on several tasks. My assistant is very loyal, and has been with me for a long time. The exact nature of your assistant depends on your origin. It is possible (with some origins) for the assistant and bodyguard to be the same person if both are chosen.
Bodyguard: Concerned with my safety, my guardian has issued me with a bodyguard. An expert in the ways of battle, this bodyguard is a professional. He is loyal, and if I treat him well, he won't ever betray me. The exact nature of this bodyguard depends on your origins. It is possible (with some origins) for the assistant and bodyguard to be the same person if both are chosen.
A place to call home: I have my own house in the city of Daitya, the capital of the Republic. This is a small villa with some minor supernatural beings bound to it. Although it is within the area of the city that is home to the Dhayanta, it gives me some privacy from my family, as well as place where I can train or perform rituals and experiments.
Magic is a powerful force in the world. It is usually called the Gift, as only a few can actually use it, and those that can are born with that Gift. Some races (Daimah, Deva, Sylvain and Duk'zarist) can use it as something innate. All members of their race are born with this Gift.
In order to correctly use magic, one has to concentrate his magic energies (or Zeon, as they are called by many cultures) into Spells or Rituals. Spells are divided into eleven Paths, depending on the principles that give them birth. These Paths are Light, Darkness, Creation, Destruction, Air, Water, Fire, Earth, Essence, Illusion and Necromancy. There are a few Spells that are not part of any Path, and that can be developed through more of one of these Paths. These are known as the Pure Spells, as they seem to embody Pure Magic.
Another important thing are the Minor Paths, Spells with a connection to each other and that are associated to a certain theme. This theme is another facet of Magic, as are Destruction or Essence, but they are minor facets. These Minor Paths have different relations with the Major Paths, and their Spells can be accessed through some of the Major Paths. As an example, an expert on the Water Path could easily learn Spells from the Blood Path. The Minor Paths (and the Paths from which they can be developed) are:
Chaos (Creation, Destruction, Light, Darkness and Air), War (Essence, Air, Light, Water, Illusion and Creation), Literae (Creation, Light, Darkness, Water and Illusion), Death (Necromancy, Darkness, Fire and Destruction), Music (Creation, Light, Darkness, Illusion, Essence, Air and Water), Nobility (Light, Darkness, Air, Water, Illusion and Earth), Peace (Creation, Light, Earth, Water, Air and Essence), Sin (Darkness, Creation, Destruction, Necromancy, Fire and Air), Knowledge (Creation, Light, Darkness, Water, Air, Essence, Necromancy), Blood (Creation, Destruction, Darkness, Water, Essence and Necromancy), Dreams (Light, Darkness, Air, Essence, Illusion and Necromancy), Time (Light, Darkness, Creation and Destruction), Madness (Darkness, Illusion, Fire, Air, Earth and Necromancy) and Void (Darkness, Destruction, Air, Water and Necromancy).
A final point of interest in magic is the existence of Metamagic Principles, theories and knowledge of how to change magic itself. These principles are divided into four categories: Bellum Domini Archanum (the use of magic for combat and war), Potestas Archanum (the use and recovery of Zeon and how to better use it during the casting of Spells), Esoteros Archanum (Mystical abilities not directly tied to Spells, but that can be used to increase their effects) and Cognos Archanum (the knowledge of Spells and magic and how to use it to increase their effects).
When submitting your suggestion for the character, you have 5 points to divide between Magic Paths (choosing either a Minor Path for it, or rather to develop Pure Magic). You can also put points on the Metamagic Principles. Each Path has 10 levels (As a side note, in order to use the ninth level of a Path, you need a powerful artifact or great knowledge of the Cognos Archanum Metamagic. It is theoretically impossible for a mortal to use spells of the tenth level of a Path.), and each Metamagic Principle has 15 levels.
If the origin of the character is "Summoner of the Dhayanta", you get 5 extra points. If the origin is "Sent for learning" you get 10 extra points. If the origin is "Token of Friendship" you get 15 extra points.
Summoning is an art, derived from magic, that the Deva have mastered. Summoning only works on supernatural creatures with a link to what scholars call "the flow of souls" (elementals, demons, and certain creatures regarded as demigods are inside this category). Because of this, a Master Summoner could Call legions of creatures to do his bidding, but would be unable to Call even a single dragon (as dragons have a different connection to the Flow of Souls) or a simple bunny. Another point that is very important is that, the greater its existential power (this is, the closer a being is to what we would call a god), the less Summoning affects it. However it is theorized that through the use of artifacts or special rituals, someone powerful enough could Summon even a god.
Summoning is based on 4 principles:
Calling is the act of making a supernatural creature appear in front of you. Experts on the matter can even Call several creatures at a single time, with real Master Summoner being able to Call on legions of creatures. Calling is also the Principle used on Invocation.
Dominating is imposing one's will over that of a supernatural creature, making them do one's bidding.
Binding is the act of introducing a supernatural being's essence into an object or a living being, making them unable to go back to their original plane of existence. This is the Principle used for creating the Bond between a Summoner and a Familiar, who then share a single soul.
Banishing is the act of dispelling a Supernatural Creature, sending it to its original plane of existence.
Some creatures that are too powerful to be Called, Dominated, Bound or Banished, or that by their very nature cannot be Summoned, can still be Invoked. Invocation is done by Calling the entity, thus drawing its attention, and then making a Pact with it. Once the Pact is sealed, the entity will let the Summoner use its power, although the effects are different for each entity, and in most cases it something very tiring for the Summoner. Beings that usually make Pacts are the Arcana (the manifestations of certain principles in the flow of souls), the Aeons (the physical avatars of some concepts, like the concept of Death, Fire or even Creativity) and the Great Beasts (a generic name given to creatures that are so powerful that they have been worshipped as deities in some cultures).
Ki is the energy that flows through all living beings. Ki allows its bearers to perform acts of inhuman physical prowess. It is possible, although complicated, to perform summoning rituals using Ki.
When Summoning in this fashion, a Summoner channels his Ki through seals representing the mystical affinities of the being that he is trying to summon. However this only allows the Summoner to Call the being, he needs to create some sort of pact with the creature summoned to take advantage of the creature. However as the creature called is confined within the ritual circle used to summon it (if the summoning has gone well), it is most times a matter of time and persuading before a pact of some kind is made.
The seals used to Summon in this fashion represent the five elements of the tradition of Varja, Fire, Water, Air, Metal and Wood. For each seal, there is a minor and a major version, with the major version of seals needed in order to summon more powerful beings.
The Fire Seal is bound to fire and light, and it represents purity, the destructive force of flames and the most extreme emotions. Its direction is the South, and it rules over Summer.
The Water Seal is bound to water and ice, and it represents the change of things and cold. Its direction is the North and it rules over Winter.
The Air Seal is bound to air and lightning, and it represents light things, speed and the sky. Its direction is the East and it rules over Spring.
The Metal Seal is bound only to earth. It represents solid, material things, not linked to mystical things. Its direction is the West and it rules over Autumn.
The Wood Seal is bound to darkness, and represents all connected to nature and the supernatural. Its direction is the absolute center and it rules over the change of seasons.
If you have chosen "Prisoner of War" as your origin, you have to choose 3 Seals. Those are the seals you've learnt to master. You can choose a minor seal and its major version instead of choosing three seals.
The Deva are a mystical race. All of them are born with Gift, the ability to use magic, although a few of them are instead born with Psychic Powers. They are a bit weak physically, and they see physic work as humiliating. They look mostly human, although their hair tends to be of strange colors, like blue or green, and they live for slightly longer, reaching 100 years with relative ease. Their most prominent characteristic, however, is their third eye. This third eye is on their forehead, and it is very important to them and their culture. This eye allows them to see spiritual beings otherwise invisible, as well as seeing the affinities of supernatural beings. If they are able to watch them for long enough (usually no longer than ten seconds) they can also see the true name of any supernatural being. This, however, doesn't work on beings with a high existential power, such as many of the Kami or other entities.
This eye has also another function. If two Deva look at each other with their third eye, they can communicate using a special kind of telepathy. This method can transmit also images, ideas and memories. This is regarded as very intimate way of communicating, and it is considered rude to look at someone's third eye in public.
The Deva use mainly summoning, and it is the base of their Republic. Most of the work is done by various supernatural beings. There are few things that are not done by supernatural beings. One of them is agriculture. Agriculture, as well as cattle raising and fishing, is done by humans who live in the territories controlled by the Deva. In return for these and other resources, the Deva ensure that the harvests are good and that the humans are protected from other races and supernatural beings.
The Deva regard other races as inferior, and they see it as their obligation to guide them to the right path. However they are aware that there are powerful nations and empires that would be able to destroy them, so they are happy with just increasing their power slowly.
One curious thing about Deva is that they regard emotions and feelings as something that clouds the mind. As such, they usually try to not show their emotions. Even in private, things such as demonstrations of love are quite unusual.
In Deva society there's a great importance given to family. Families are an institution, and all members of a family share the same surname, that is put before their name. When to members of different families marry (usually to create an alliance between two families) one of them takes the surname of the other and goes to live with his or her new family. Families are regarded usually as a circle of contacts and people in which you can (to an extent) trust as they share at least one objective with you, the well being of the family.
The Republic is the nation the Deva founded in the lands of Baho. It is ruled by a Senate whose members are part of the most powerful families. These families are the Kurama, or the ruling class. In order to access to positions of high power and influence, you have to be a Kurama, and for that you need to be a part of one of the ruling families, either by birth or by being introduced into the family, usually through marriage or by being adopted. Kurama have some benefits, such as being able to request resources from the Republic to perform their own projects, as long as these projects can provide a benefit to the Republic.
Below the Kurama are the Rasa. The Rasa are citizens of the Republic, and as long as they perform certain duties for the Republic (such as controlling the creatures of the Republic's armies, or helping in the construction of new buildings using their magic) they can live in total freedom. All the needs of both Kurama and Rasa are met by the supernatural slaves of the Republic.
The Republic doesn't use money, as there is no need for it in their society. Instead, other resources, such as crafts used for rituals, magic artifacts, knowledge or influence are used as a measure of one's richness. The Republic only uses money when trading with other nations, as it makes it simpler. In fact, trading is used mostly as a way to influence other nations rather than as way to get resources, as there is little the Deva cannot find in their own lands.
The Deva have no centralized religion. The closest thing they have to this is a philosophical current known as Arium. Arium says that everything supernatural is no more than the manifestation of an Aspect of what Deva call The Nexus, the origin of all supernatural energies, and that by harnessing the powers of the most powerful of these Aspects, even mortals can become gods.
There is also a small number of Deva that follow the teachings of Trimurti, a goddess that some scholars have identified as the same being that the Sylvain call Barakiel, a being that embodies order and perfection.
There are several races in the world apart from the Deva.
The humans are the more widespread race, and by far, the ones with more different cultures. They are regarded as chaotic and short lived by the Deva, and there are a few of them living in the lands of the Republic.
The Sylvain are one of the most powerful races. Most of them live under the banner of the Fey Nations, a confederation of different countries that is ruled by the Supreme King of Sylvania. The Sylvain are long lived, usually living ten times longer than humans, and are quite agile, although a bit more fragile physically. All of them have the Gift of Magic, and they have created a multitude of minor magic artifacts to make their lives easier. They have a slight connection to Light.
The Duk'zarist are the other dominant race. They are few, but each of them is stronger, faster, more dexterous and more resistant than any Sylvain or human. All of them are trained for war, and they have mastered the creation of many powerful artifacts, such as their floating cities, which are also fortresses with many . All of the Duk'zarist have either psychic powers or the Gift. They have a slight connection to Darkness and Fire, and they see other races as inferior and only respect power.
The Jayan are a minor race, as there has never been many of them, but each of them is really strong. They share a trait with the Deva, as they also have a third eye that allows them to see spirits. Their size and their great horns give them a monstrous appearance.
The Daimah are a race of catlike people. They have cat ears, cat tails, and their eyes also look like those of a cat. They have a connection to nature, and they all have the Gift. They don't have a culture of their own, instead living within the Sylvain Fey Nations or within the Empire of Kuon Teikoku.
The Vetala are a dark race that lives in the continent of Eurakia, being the dominant power there. They feed off blood from other races, and they usually take slaves to use as cattle. They have an extreme allergy towards sunlight.
The Ebudan are an angel like race that lives in floating cities. They believe in destiny and in the fact that each of them has Fate or Sue'aman as they call it, and if they complete it, they say they will go to a higher level of existence.
Author
Topic: Prince of the Supernatural [Suggestion Game] (Read 1557 times)