backup thread

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: alliosa - done

[body] [Allios/Alliosa]
- born with a generally soft canine shape

- this is their True Form; other demons in the endless might be true shapeshifters (no 'base' form besides a vague lump of existence) or malleable formed (like deer, where any of their set forms are as valid as any other), but a doggo's "real" form is its canid form

- despite this, they have an endless variety of traits that can adjust their base form; things we'd usually call edits to the body of a base - limbs, tails, wings, eyes, bla bla - can all change depending on the condition of their birth

- more variations are considered to indicate a greater magical prowess, though this isn't necessarily true. the myth continues to perpetuate due to expectations placed on the doggos; they're told they can do great things, so many of them do - though just as many of them suffer from burnout when they can't live up to impossible standards

- doggos are considered 'partial shapeshifters'; they can shift into any form, but the further from their base form it is the harder it is to maintain. a fully human appearance (no sign of their base features) might only be maintainable for a few hours at a time, whereas something in between - like a kemonomimi or say a body where the torso retained markings, fur, scales, etc - could be holdable for months at a time

- on physical planes are capable of actions like eating food etc, however their actual diet consists of emotional energy from outside sources. they do have their own emotions! however, for reasons unknown, they can't seem to feed off their own or other doggos' emotions. without a source of food like anything else they will eventually wither up and die oh nooo dead beans


[mind] [dogs (need names)]
- fully sapient, human level intelligence

- all generalizations are generalizations and all individuals are different!

- social creatures, prefer typically non-violence (that is, they have an instinct towards peace vs war, though it doesn't mean they're incapable of violence when pushed and that is only a generalization)

- moderately tribal society in the endless, no tech of their own since they've been wandering through groups and waypoints trying to find a place with an acceptable food source that won't immediately drive them off for a long time; traditionally seen as leeches by many societies

- have a general reverence for the Providence of Emotion, as many awakened into it have been responsible for siphoning and packing emotion for later use, essentially creating travel rations

[creation] [doggos]
- doggos are born from a creation pool; no one knows where it came from or why it exists, and it's a heavily guarded secret. they rarely if ever talk about it with outsiders because of the risk that they might understand how to travel there and taint the pool

- when doggos die, usually their bodies get yeeted into the pool since there is worry that the pool might dry up and it seems to revitalize it. no one knows if it's true, it's just always been done, so they keep doing it because who wants to risk that shit

- in order to catalyze new doggos, other things must be thrown in / 'sacrificed' to the pool. over time they've realized these don't have to have any meaning whatsoever, and there are a handful of scholarbeans who have noted that what gets yeeted in seems to sometimes affect the new body, but to what degree and why they don't know yet

- new beans are born as a blob of energy and take a variable amount of time to 'harden up' before cracking out into a fully grown form. kinda like a chao cocoon if chao were mobile cocoons instead of baby chao first (so like dragon quest slimes ??? lmfao)

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: endless - done

[the endless pt 1]
- goes by many names, depends on who you're talking to

- essentially the multiverse? something beyond universes? a higher plane of reality - or maybe just different is a better way to phrase it? eternal and empty and simultaneously filled with anything you could ever imagine

- is a non-euclidian space; seems to have a sense of gravity except when it doesn't. imagine an infinite blackness, except you can see other things in it as though there was ambient light, but you can't see a floor. you can walk forever in any direction, and you're going a distance, like if you look back at someone else you could see you went there, but where you're going is just more blackness. and maybe you're upside down now, or maybe your friend is. that's the 'default' state of the endless.

- travel in the endless is potentially ... endless if done 'physically'. one can walk forever in a direction and get nowhere.

- true travel in the endless is done through concentration and intention on the path; using the default state as an example, if you walked for days away from your friend, you wouldn't be able to see them or probably even find them again by walking back, but focusing energy on the location desired, you could get there in a single step. knowing the destination is akin to knowing the path of how to get there.

- 'locations' in the endless are breaks in its reality; sometimes they are actual shaped spaces - imagine that dark room, then you just start encountering sprouts, then grass, etc... kind of like - lol, in sonic generations when you run across the white empty bg then a world is filled in? they just exist there. sometimes whole worlds worth of Stuff ™️ exists there, and no one really knows how or why. other times they are windows to other realities parallel to that 'space' in the endless

[the endless pt 2]
- these windows may be massive or as small as a single pinpoint, and sometimes there may be windows to the same space in seemingly infinitely distant locations (because it only makes sense in its own existence, it is a nonstandard reality)

- these locations - and others - are found by navigators whose whole job is basically to focus on different concepts and ideas etc to try and find just the right combination of thoughts and feelings to pierce a path through the endless to somewhere

- Earth in our shop/story is one of these windowed planes of existence; the doggos have a wide window to the planet, and their ability to travel through the Endless allows them to just pop back into it (because the endless exists in the same space even while it doesn't). where they end up on the planet varies unless they know where they're going to begin with and from time to time accidentally dumps them out in dangerous non-planet locales (aka the atmosphere, out in orbit, etc) but it's typically considered worth the risk. once a location is Known it can always be returned to

- deer also have a window, but theirs is a heavily guarded pinpoint that seems to have a much more limited dumping ground. they can travel physically to find new locations to travel to, but they basically have a 'starting point' on earth lol

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: earth - done

[earth]
- earth is earth

- circa modernish day

- probably some weird alt history maybe jfk was never assassinated l o l

- fuck reaganomics 8D

- anyway the general political stance of the earth probably wont' be as much a focus as individual lives and relationships with demons anyway

- we can pick a handful of cities that doggos prefer / one that deer start in? (all new orleans all the time for maximum ease l o l)

- govt prob has some idea about demons but tries to keep it smushed down

- demons might be the source of some /x/files' wet dreams / skinwalker / tulpa fantasies

- scratch that deer are DEFINITELY skinwalkers, it fits them perfectly if they're hyper predatory towards humans, maybe feed off fear too? would make sense to act so weird then simply to create that tension and flight response

- doggos have probably tried to approach leaders and get the HIDE IT SHUT IT DOWN response

- doggos likely masquerade in plain sight, maybe open up to trustworthy humans ? certain individuals / positions could easily keep their masquerade up longer if surrounded by emotions to tap into quietly - like a therapist or social worker would be both extremely soothing as they're draining emotions while simultaneously powering their ability to hold onto their shapeshifted form

- some doggos are shitposters telling literally everything online just because they get laughed into oblivion and it amuses the fuck outta them I'm sure

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: espers - done

[body] [esper]
- espers don't have bodies

- espers are essentially psychic "ghosts," though they're not actually ghosts of anything. it's speculated that they're simply a different form of life, and some think they may have come into existence when the windows to Earth opened from the void, as a mixing of physical reality and the more mutable energy based reality of Endless, but that's only speculation

- espers are definitely not endless however, as they exist on the same sort of space/wavelength/harmonic as human emotions and mental energy while being different enough to be distinct

- to a physical being, an esper might seem like an unseen presence; someone watching you in an empty room, the sensation of a person standing behind your back, the feel of being followed - all of these could likely be attributed to an esper

- to an endless being, an esper is a very tangible storm of energy, sensate even if not being entirely 'there'. in the same way alliosa can directly eat energy or sanjaru might devour life energy, their energy is perceivable and distinct to endless and is most often described as being a cloudlike entity

- espers may, however, project imagery of their choice as a temporary manifestation; this form is not actually real, but those the esper is choosing to project it to will see it as such. they can project to several individuals all at one time, but not in an "all encompassing aura" kind of way - those not specifically targeted simply won't see the projection and likewise won't be able to hear, smell, taste, etc it

- this can probably lead to some very odd scenarios as both endless and non-endless can be affected, meaning what one person sees as a terrifying killer or a beautiful unicorn might be a cloud or nothing at all to an onlooker. the illusion includes all senses, allowing an esper to interact with others, but those not targeted again would not be able to experience any of it apart from how those targeted are reacting

[body] [espers] p2

- espers also have the ability to concentrate their essence into non-living objects on Earth, letting them possess it; the degree of this seems to vary between espers, with some being only able to move a few pebbles or act as a soft breeze, while others have been known to be capable of possessing things as large as a human corpse. (humans, typically, do not enjoy their corpses being possessed and do not find it very entertaining.)

- particularly high-energy espers may even be able to crystalize their essence into a physical form; this creates a permanent resevoir of themselves, allowing recovery from powerful psychic attacks or endless assault. this takes a great deal of energy, leaving the esper weakened for a period of time.

- espers feed on excess energies of any types, and are often fond of feeding on endless as they are more or less pure energy condensed into a conceivable form. even grimmalkin are leery of being near espers, as while an esper can likewise be absorbed, they very often tend to be quite difficult

- more often than not though they simply siphon off whatever strikes their fancy at the time, with many of them living among humans unknown and sucking up excess emotions and life energies, though some espers have even figured out how to survive on electrical and thermal energy, blurring the line between spiritual and physical 'energy'

- espers are -kind of- op and will likely be the most limited race in endless

[mind] [esper]
- espers are sapient, though despite their energy nature they aren't an 'ascended' race. they are similar in processing to a very intelligent human as far as their extent for comprehension goes

- espers often times will project themselves stealthily in order to join into human societies in order to learn or simply experiment, though it can be a burdensome task to remember to project into everyone necessary. they often present themselves as shy or quarrelsome and make few friends in order to make their lives easier

- espers enjoy the same sorts of entertainment and media that humans do, primarily because that's what they have easily at hand. espers are a much younger race than humanity, and even the oldest espers always remember humans being there. as such, their tastes and view of the world have often evolved alongside their physical neighbors

- espers do struggle with some human / physical concepts, however; while many of them, particularly those who enjoy interacting with humans, will adopt certain identities, the concepts of race, gender, or other physical traits are difficult for them to really get as they simply don't have them themselves. some of them will adopt things that feel most appealing to them, but the idea of such predefined aspects governing so much of one's identity is alien to a species that just lacks them

[mind] [espers] p2
- this extends to other ideas such as disability and physical limitations; while they understand the idea of reaching a limit, the idea of, for instance, not being able to walk or see is alien to a creature that senses its environment on a pure level of existence and likewise moves through it via pure force of will

- most espers willingly focus themselves into a more humanlike level of sensory interaction in order to enjoy the technology and entertainment available to them, but all of them are capable of a more extensive range of senses. their perception is based on physical aspects that can reach their energy core - what they can see is based on any light that passes through their location, what they can hear is based on what vibrations reach that point, etc. their senses can be adjusted 'manually' to focus on what level of sense they wish to have at that moment, but they are still subject to being mentally overwhelmed. for this reason, again, most of them tend to adjust to a human-like perception range and area because it's easier to process


[magic] [espers] <special>
- espers are extremely potent and extremely dangerous providence users

- as beings of pure energy they have even more control over their harmonics than humans do, allowing them to master multiples as well. however, this is a double edged sword, as an esper using a providence must be extremely cautious not to over or under compensate with their adjustments

- espers essentially have accidental wild magic; they are capable of using a providence in a traditional or expected way, but any single thing could cause them to disrupt their harmonics and cause the effect to go haywire.

- espers may not, due to this, be masters of creation / summoners. their energies are too disruptive to the process of creating existence, and their machinations are unstable. they may try, but the resulting spatial distortions, immediately dissolving creatures, and general failure have made this accepted as a general rule

- espers also suffer the same danger as endless beings that they may overwrite their existence, though in a slightly different way. an esper focusing too much energy into use of a providence may accidentally harmonize their entire being into that providence, effectively merging with it and losing their identity. while this happens to an endless after long amounts of practice (and often insanity or power lust, as they are able to feel how 'corrupted' their essence is by a providence), it can and has happened completely accidentally for espers. it is actually far more common an incident for novice espers, as they are less experienced in controlling only a part of their overall energy and often over-focus

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: sanjari - done

[body] [deer need name]
- true multiformers; each deer has a set body shape and 1-2 alternate shapes they can turn into, but they can't make adjustments beyond that. what the alternate forms are change quickly over generations based on favored food sources, but what a deer is born with is what they're stuck with

- currently the deer settled around the earth pinhole have a deerlike form, a monstrous humanoid form, and a human form.

- deer have set qualities - think typical CS - and must stick within those. they must always have some form of double horns, some sort of tail, some sort of ears, and some sort of hooves. I have guidelines for each of these; they're basically the opposite of doggos in that those are SUPER varied but deer are very very strictly regulated

- mutants/mutations of these base features are typically killed upon birth so would be EXTREMELY rare

- monstrous humanoid form must share the set traits - ie, it must have the same horns, ears, tail as the base form, though there is flexibility regarding how hooves appear

- human form is 100% human apart from the potential for odd hair and eye colors

- deer are predatory and when previously forced to hunt demons would typically utilize their weak looking form to entice other hunters to chase them or would, once acclimated with forms, hunt among them actively. for most demons they would simply drain their life force

- human life force is exceptionally powerful to them for some reason, possibly because it is an entirely different sort of energy being not Endless. when on earth, they are also capable of being energized by consuming the flesh, which they usually do not in the endless. this has made them into far more voracious predators.

- technically they can drain any creature's life force but they prefer sapient creatures. the intelligence makes it taste better, apparently


[mind] [deer]
- deer are 100% sapient obv

- they form loose family clan/clusters which have banded together into a loose coalition around the earth pinhole. they do not care about others of their kind in the endless.

- deer have a tendency to be selfish simply because of the nature of their culture. human empathy and support is quite alien to them as they have historically had no problems turning on their own kind in times of famine. unlike allios, deer are entirely capable of sustaining themselves from the life force of their own kind, it's just not ... sustainable long term.

- some deer do try to integrate into human society and may operate essentially as stalkers and serial killers. others have taken a more direct approach, finding they can get basically a buzz off the human fear emotion - not a food but enjoyable nonetheless - so they act as monsters, spooks, boogeymen, etc

- deer are definitely skinwalkers and would love that hunting method just to ride that high. fear is addictive?

- there likely are SOME deer who are exposed early enough now to human emotion/empathy/whatnot that perhaps they aren't as vicious as their counterparts and history but these would likely be shunned by the whole. humans are not friends, they are livestock.

- deer place little value as a whole on pursuits of the mind, preferring to steal knowledge and technology at their leisure from their prey. what they do take tends towards comfort items and weaponry, making it easier for them to enact their hunts.

- would likely by human standards be considered extremely barbaric and primitive, even though they have amassed a good collection of trinkets, weapons, and hodgepodge knowledge over their spread through the endless. think like ... orks from warhammer, lel.

[culture] [deer]
- might makes right

- whoever can beat their clan into obedience is the leader. whoever's strong enough to fight off competitors is the head of the loose coalition. they are listened to because of fear, not respect.

- usually deer are extremely difficult pests to get out if they settle into an area; they will not overpopulate a food source, instead kicking out the weakest members to go found their own colony once their numbers burgeon too much. that's how the settlement at the pinhole was started, split off from another settled into a larger, other demon species population

- very much like highly intelligent interplanar ticks, at least if envisioning a whole population. they keep their numbers small enough to survive but also be manageable and not overwhelm a source of food

- many older deer do not like the effect that humans are having on some of the younger ones, giving them pause to like, think about others and stuff. gross. these are the ones more likely to go full monster route because fuck humans they're just hungry

- what education is provided is essentially little more than how to function and how to hunt. there is some instruction on how to read or write from the younger population who has begun to pick it up from humans, but the older deer tend to shun such associations with prey activities

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: grimmalkin - done

[body] [grimm/grimmalkin]
- a true shapeshifter, a grimmalkin can look like anything they choose for as long as they'd like. the transformation itself takes energy, but once they're in the form it takes no effort to maintain

- there is no restriction on their appearance, and they often use this to their advantage when stalking prey

- many of them enjoy a 'default' form which is often described in a similar, feline manner. it is speculated that this began long ago and is simply a matter of comfortable tradition

- for shop purposes, grimmalkin are cats/catlike. they may possibly be only unique art and very rare? they could potentially have alt art forms on any other bases as well. they can look like whatever the fucc they choose to

- grimmalkin are the top of the predator list in our microcosm; whereas the other demons feed on human energy or consume their lives, a grimm will eat other demons to sustain itself

- a grimm does not need to feed often, instead consuming a demon whole and going weeks or even months without needing to recharge

- human flesh and energy is unappetizing to them and might? not sustain them at all. they may fight back against a human if confronted but will not actively hunt them for food.

- are typically actively repulsed by the idea of biological consumption and instead simply absorb their prey's entire energy/being. if in a disguised form, they will not consume food or water unless absolutely necessary to maintain a disguise

- despite being true shifters, they are not necessarily perfect. copying someone's appearance, for instance, is only as accurate as the grimm who's doing it is paying attention to details, and they don't absorb any mannerisms or the like. they can perfectly maintain what they create, but their features may seem off if one is not observant or caring enough to make it correctly

[mind] [grimmalkin]

- grimmalkin are a little bit alien in their thought, though v intelligent. they tend to be confused by body permanence issues - have a hard time understanding things like disabilities, permanent injuries, etc. it often isn't malicious so much as a recurring "why don't you just fix it" because it's totally unnatural to them to not be able to just change

- grimmalkin tend to be extremely long lived and don't seem to have any natural lifespan re: age, so many of them acquire large amounts of knowledge over their lifetimes. they are curious by necessity; without knowledge it is difficult to isolate a prey object, after all, and likewise difficult to understand or create things that other species have made

- a grimm with proper knowledge can be very handy indeed, and it is not uncommon for them to take crafts and learn from many different sources and merge them together into unique fusions of techniques

- grimmalkin tend to be solitary creatures as far as their own kind go, and it's not uncommon for one to know only of its parents for long stretches of its life. when meeting a new grimm, a standoff often ensues, with much posturing and shifting and essentially a polymorphing version of puffed tails and razor back crabwalking. this is an instinctive reaction and may take some time to get over

- if the grimmalkin can calm themselves down and overcome the instinctive territorial urge, individuals can become friends for what humans would view as decades or centuries. this is likewise true for other sapients that a grimm connects with - though they may have some difficulty with it, particularly if very old, they are often exceptionally loyal to the ones they bond with

- grimmalkin have little to nothing of their own culture, and their worldview is shaped by their parental units and the demons or worlds they grow up around and venture to as they grow

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: elphyme - done

[body] [elphyme]
- true formed; elphyme cannot actually shapeshift, and their true form is their only form. they are born small and grow into it, but it is a small (<= 2'), fuzzy, humanoid form. they have large ears, very little in the way of a distinguishable nose (slits or just no nose visible is fine @ art) and wide, alert eyes. they have three fingers and a thumb on each hand and teeny pawed feet. every elphyme has a set of wings, with insectoid being the most common though certain particularly magical families have been known to have other shapes.

- spectral glamour: an elphyme can project its will into the form of a fluffy ball sort of figure, with hands and feet barely visible. most of what is seen here is an almost generic grinning face and, of course, their wings. this form is not solid, though the illusion is usually strong enough to make those witnessing it think it is. this is the form many think elphyme actually look like, as they tend to be very protective of and secretive over their true forms.

- an elphyme's true body is not receptive to magical healing, so injuries are taken quite seriously. their forms are so overloaded with energy that healing magicks simply cannot overpower its direction unless cast by an exceptionally talented individual.

- elphyme are so magical they are born with an associated Providence, though many do not master it. this affects their appearance at times, mutating small aspects of them like their wing shape, ear shape, or colors.

- an elphyme's glamour projection cannot actually be harmed, though many of them 'alter' it or act like it in order to maintain the illusion fully

[body pt 2] [elphyme]

- elphyme feed on other things, though what the things are is extremely wide in possibility. many of them enjoy organic / once living foods, much like mortals, while others may consume nothing more than pure magical energy condensed into a physical form. it is often thought that elphyme can actually eat anything that they can break down small enough to fit into their mouths, and it's just a matter of preference what they choose to consume

- on that note, despite their small appearance, elphyme mouths are actually capable of opening REAL WIDE. think looking like a lalafell mouth most of the time then suddenly having Stitch mouth (like, lilo and stitch, you know)

[mind] [elphyme]
- most elphyme are cheerful and good natured; they are playful pranksters as well, and will often tease or play tricks without a second thought if the opportunity arises.

- the average intelligence of elphyme is hard to judge; since they are quite secretive combined with the tendency to giggle or joke about situations, many can't tell if they're very smart or very stupid. in reality they're likely just rather alien in thought; they have different priorities than mortals and many endless, so they come off as strange, but they definitely have the capacity to be both intelligent and wise if they feel like it

- elphyme are bored extremely easily. this is consistent among every known case; their minds require stimulation to remain happy, keeping them active in whatever an individual's chosen pursuits might be

- elphyme aren't all jokes and giggles; they do have interest and will take up professions and crafts, they're just typically light hearted about them. due to their craving for stimulation, though, they'll often work through several things until they find their calling, then have a tendency to devote to it fully - at least until they either master it or it becomes so difficult that it grows weary

[culture] [elphyme]
- whether the elphyme are mortal or endless is hotly debated, even by elphyme standards. the problem is, they seem to be everywhere. they have been seen around every major endless settlement as well as every mortal window opened.

- endless-living elphyme have a central home, a great and bustling miniature city built stretching high up and wide both, filled with spiraling, confused pathways and seemingly impossible architecture accented with bright lights and ample decoration. many elphyme return to this central core on a regular basis, traveling out to other areas in search of food, trade, or simply individuals to pull pranks on

- the central city, affectionately referred to simply as Labrys, is ruled over by a council of Queens - though typically this is just a title and the actual identity of the elphyme filling the position is of little consequence. the council is made up of individuals from the ten most populace Providences in elphyme numbers (earth, air, fire, water, metal, light, dark, joy, and sorrow), chosen by other queens from promising individuals once their predecessor has fallen. these queens will rule for life unless the others vote to remove them from their position. each of these is advised by their own small council, which in turn listens to the complaints and concerns of those who would petition them. overall this means very little changes in the day to day of the city very quickly, but when it does it is something that the will of the people seems to want.

- window-living elphyme in many instances have forgotten about Labrys, though not in all. Those that maintain contact often have only small colonial encampments, if that. however, others have been stationed for so long that they've lost touch entirely, and while they may have some record of their origin, they operate fully of their own accord.

[culture pt 2] [elphyme]
- earth dwelling elphyme are one of the disconnected groups, and live in a city constructed in deeply obscured underground caverns. their style and architecture is much the same as their origins, though they've had to adjust such that the physics of their home do not send their construction crashing to the ground.

- the city is ruled over by only one queen who has seized total power, though for the past several centuries nothing of terrible importance has changed. many believe the queen doesn't actually live any longer and is simply a figurehead to keep the others from being too misbehaved. many elphyme just don't care

- many elphyme do return to the city often, though many do not, instead spreading out over the world and simply sleeping hidden in human establishments, glamoured and unseen by the 'bigfolk' nearby.

- rumours and stories of fairies and their ilk are often simply elphyme, with the wide variety of appearances owed to misperception or actual magical glamours, depending on that particular elphyme's proclivities.

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: imps - done

[body] [imps]
- imp is really a misnomer; these creatures are rightly more considered homunculi, as they are artificially created, although many practicing the art may not realize that they are being created at all, as many tongues call it their equivalent to 'summoning'

- most imps come in a few set shapes and sizes, though these can vary immensely. these are actually just well-refined recipes more or less - they look similar because they're created with the same process of magic weaving. in reality, they have no limit to their shape or size (giving us an in to having both premade familiar lines as well as totally unique art or stories/ideas/concepts involving "summoning" giant godlike beings that are actually just big ol imps)

- extremely talented summoners (who are actually just practitioners in the rare Providence of Creation) can make more unique and varied imps and may actually understand they are creating them, not just calling them from somewhere else

- imps feed off of raw magical energy, typically from their creator(s), inhibiting any one summoner from having too many creations. some powerful summoners are able to design imps that feed off of outside sources, however

[mind] [imps]
- imps are as smart or stupid as intended to be. most summoning rituals (aka, recipes) have a set intelligence in mind, so those sorts will turn out as desired. however, a summoner truly wanting or expecting something different may get it.

- imps only have as much free will as they are created with; many summoning rituals have, as they have been passed down, taken on a tone of implied 'binding,' so the imps made from them will do little without instruction. it is totally up to the creator if they understand truly what they are doing

- imps likewise only have as much thought, emotion, etc as they are intended to have. they can range from little more than mindless automatons to fully sapient creatures wholly capable of ignoring their creator and doing as they desire. most are somewhere in between.

[culture] [imps]
- imps do not have a culture

- really, they don't

- if they're fully sapient they may adapt to their creator's culture, but they have no organized groups on their own, as they are so wide and varied and typically created for explicit purposes

- notably, though, it is in many circles frowned upon for individuals, particularly the summoner themselves, to become involved with an imp. they're artificial, man - and nothing exists to stop a summoner from making the perfect waifu. something something what is existence/life/a soul debate

- lots of summoners do, in fact, make their perfect waifu anyway, and don't give a shit what you think about them

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: humans - done

[body] [human]
- humans are goddamned humans what do you want from me

- they're glorified, bipedal apes who lost all their fur and got a big brain. this made them exceptionally successful on their home planet.

- they have extremely adaptable and variable bodies as well; with common heights ranging from 4.5 - 6.5 feet (and outliers beyond), humans have a wide array of sizes. musculature on them varies as well, with forms capable of bearing hundreds of pounds of muscle or existing with barely enough to move their bones.

- humans are also very versatile in diet, bearing omnivorous dentation and being capable of eating not only both plant and animal based diets, but also ingesting several substances otherwise considerable as toxic to many other species, such as cocoa, caffeine, capsaicin, and alcohol

- they're also annoying little buggers capable of existing in the entire temperature range of their planet (with a little bit of technological help)

- despite all this humans have 0 natural shapeshifting ability and are typically looked down upon by Endless creatures because of this, at least at first. while they can adapt to new locales and ventures, they have no true ability to change and are stuck with the form they have in its entirety

[mind] [human]
- I've been sitting here for 15 minutes trying to figure out what to write here

- humans are smart, adaptable, social creatures with a wide array of mental oddities and disabilities present in their species. that doesn't seem to stop them.

- at the time period in our meta story they have a heavy reliance on technology and even if they're physically capable a good amount of humans will be just fucking lost without their phone or car or computer

- they're humans 8D seriously if I start writing more here it's just going to become a psychology essay so I'm just going to not


[culture] [human]
- it's sort of like modern human culture but not

- most of the differences are going to be fleshed out in a separate "what's different than modern earth" bit shark and I need to finalize

- generally though pretty similar apart from the heavier reliance on more prevalent technologies and a longer lifespan existing [due to medical advances] but not yet fully accepted leading to some weird generational tension stuff

- oh and the politics are a lot different because really who wants to make an oc living with the legacy of donald goddamn trump


[magic] [humans] <special>
- the very notable bit about humans is their extreme receptiveness to Providences. while their bodies are not mutable, their minds and their "souls" - or whatever you'd like to refer to as their inner, planar energy - are.

- most if not all Endless creatures, being a different sort of magical being, have to adjust and attune their entire [god this sounds really dwemeri] energy harmony/harmonics in order to master a single Providence, since usage of one is essentially direct manipulation of the energy that makes up the void and everything in it

- it's literally willing effects into being

- humans, however, ain't Endless, but something about their mental and spiritual harmonics allows them to resonate with Endless energy. it's part of the reason they're such a good food source - they produce essences that are compatible with the void's form of life.

- while it makes them good food, it also lets them use Providences in a way that no known Endless can. rather than naturally tying themselves to it (and adjusting their very being to be able to focus on that ONE providence), humans can learn to simply manipulate the void by briefly adapting themselves to resonate with a Providence

- this means in essence that humans, unlike other races, are capable of learning and controlling multiple Providences with enough effort and some talent

- however it is still a taxing and dangerous process, as unlike Endless humans do not have a natural proclivity towards it; an alliosa will never burn themselves to death by accident attuning to Fire, but they will also never be able to master anything else or change their choice. a human will quite often injure themselves because it isn't a part of their being, but they can go fucking crazy and master 10 Provs ... if they survive

 

[sharkberrypizza]

Spoiler: providences - done

[providence]

- a providence refers to the rewriting / attuning of energy to a specific harmonic of creation; if that sounds like gobbledygook, it kinda is, because we don't have actual magic irl. c'est la vie. basically it lets someone bring the existence of a concept into reality in some way.

- for an endless creature, this basically means attuning a part of their very existence to a particular source / type of power to allow them to create and manipulate that thing in various ways. the non-technical explanation of this is that it lets them use 'magic'

- once attuned, they can slowly become more and more attuned to that sphere of power, gradually leveling up their ability to use it. this does mean they have to be careful not to eventually rewrite their entire existence with that one particular essence, tho

- an endless will have a natural understanding of how their providence works to the extent that they've mastered it, and don't require the practice a human does to know how to do things. however they are still at risk of being consumed by it, just in a more literal "whoops you became your magic" kind of way rather than a "whoops you made yourself explode" way. this also doesn't mean they're all immediate masters; consider that mastering a providence for an endless essentially means becoming one with that providence. the higher % of that providence that has 'infected' their body - through purposeful practice and attunement - the more complicated things ('spells') they can do

- endless may only master one providence since it rewrites their existence. there might ? be ways of leaving a providence, but it would likely warp/scar their existence enough that they'd be unable (or unwilling, because of the trauma) to master another

- for a human, mastering a providence involves learning to attune themselves momentarily to some aspect of creation, again being able to use 'magic.' with how humans work, they can use multiple providences. endless cannot. however, humans can't naturally conceive of / access providence, and they must be directly exposed to it (via meeting an endless or being shown and explained magic by another human) first. humans must also train every aspect of their harmonization and don't have any sort of natural talent with it; experienced magic users will, as they begin to really UNDERSTAND their providences, begin to be able to make their own 'spells,' but this is obviously quite dangerous without a deep understanding of energy harmonics. many magic using humans don't understand harmonics at all despite using magic, and have only memorized actions and rituals that allow them to tap into that particular action in a particular way.

- a providence could be anything, but the powers must relate to that providence in a justifiable way; the providence of emotions wouldn't be able to directly injure someone with their magic, and the providence of death wouldn't be able to create new life. a providence of plastic bowls would be exceptionally esoteric, but goddamn they'd be able to create whatever plastic bowls you could ever want. Typically, these narrow spheres are encapsulated under larger providences, such as creation or craft for the bowls, but it is possible to attune to extremely narrow and specific aspects of reality.

- certain providences will likely be restricted to meta/npc only, or possibly only allow very tightly monitored powers to players; very powerful, broad concepts like death, life, existence, etc

- players can establish a new providence by undergoing a quest basically, writing or drawing a series of things (tbd) that represent their character tapping into the providence. it won't be as simple as just applying for it. in exchange though they get to help set guidelines / ideas for powers in that providence. maybe automatically be considered a high rank in it?

- maybe have a magic rank system at some point letting them move up through ranks in providences, ie, apprentice, novice, journeyman, master, grandmaster, magus, w/e

 

[sharkberrypizza]

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