Daemons

Daemons

Daemons are creatures made of dream force, that can take a number of forms, shapes, sizes, whatevers! Daemons absorb dream force from their surroundings,  and grow mightier over time. Eventually, they may evolve, into entirely different beings from what they started as. Daemons, normally do not die of age.

Daemons bear a few notable qualities. Mainly, something called Aura, which is dream force that comes from their being, and spreads around them. The more of an  aura a daemon has, generally, the less dense is their dream force. More aura means greater coverage, and magical effects, whether more density means a daemon is much sturdier, stronger of faster.

External Release, is the capacity of a daemon to store amounts of dream force that they absorb, for a time, and then release it into their bodies. Since this dream force is rapidly taken in, it is also prone to expiring nonetheless. External Release serves as a high powered temporary Super Mode for daemons!

Echoes. A Daemon, can have in them, the dream force of another daemon. Say the past daemon dies. Their dream force spreads out, and goes all around. Many years later, on say, out of a rock, where some of this dream force fell over and was molded with, a new daemon forms. The new daemon, is considered to be the Echo of the old one. A daemon can be an echo of multiple other daemons. One's "ancestor" daemons, can determine certain powers or unique traits, appearing in their Echoes.

Daemons are difficult to define, but below, are some majorly accepted separations either way.


By abilities: (daemons will fall into one of these categories, almost all the time)

1. Emission. Emission daemons expel dream force in offensive, defensive or healing forms but without much refining to it. They just release it. They have better levels of dream force but less control and occasionally less intelligence. Patron member of the Twelve is Venris. They wanted to give her a title, but her power was way too unlimited for it.

2. Physical. Daemons who convert their dream force into physical strength or power for their weaponry. They usually have the less intelligence. Some summon races like Battlelord however are fairly intellectual. Patron member of the Twelve is Ukur, the Titan.

3. Object focus. (Object Oriented Daemons are very much a Class of their own, and their Inheritance often includes the Object in question~) Daemons who focus their abilities into an object, like a sword or armor. It essentially works to channel their abilities. These have good intellect. Patron member of the Twelve is Zarnak, the Great Hero.

Subtypes:

Armored. Armored daemons do not use their object to channel their abilities. Rather, they summon the object to enhance themselves passively. Instead of a fiery sword, or spiky flail, they summon a cloak that gives them better speed, or defense against a certain type of magic.

4. Magician. Daemons who focus their dream force around a specific ability. This could be draining, enchanting, alchemical transformation, anything. These usually have the best intellect, and better dream force control refining. Patron member of the Twelve is, Disse, the Celestial Ruler.

Subtypes:
Heart Mages. Heart Magicians are another word for fire mages. These daemons can manipulate fire, yes, but the ability itself is not as easily present. Any heart magician has, as the name suggests something different with their heart. The most common one involves a very large amount of dream force being focused there.

Warlocks. Dark magicians. The basic rule to them is that as their forbidden magic builds up, it slowly corrupts them, but the more they are hurt, the more difficult they become to hurt. An unharmed warlock is easy to kill but an almost dead warlock is a nightmare. The other problem is that their magic seeps onto the enemies they afflict. Thus, the more they hurt someone, the more susceptible does this someone become to their magic.

Seekers. Seekers have an unique disposition. They bind to a source of knowledge, that is, most of the time, a book. This however, does not make them an item focus daemon, for should one such book be compromised (plus, it is not made of their own dream force) they can simply elect to use another. A Seeker has the ability of adapting their own being to fit the qualities of another daemon, or even steal parts of them. They could suddenly become a Heir type Shifter for example, and steal a guardian, for their own defenses.

5. Shifter. Shifter daemons have another daemon actually conjoined to their bodies, and can shift into another form. Rare cases manage to work more than one daemon into their being. They have good dream force control but their intellect varies. Patron members of the Twelve, are Ord and Va, the Embodiment of Death.

Subtypes:
Heir. Some daemon families assign a powerful guardian to their followers and newborn, in order to protect either them, or the future of the family. The Guardian can swap with the Heir, and thus, be far better protected.

Rider. Rider type daemons are typically known for having both sides of the shifter duality manifested at once. In this case, the mind of the rider is dominant, while that of the mount less so. They are also less united in that sense, but they still share great synergy. Even with the mount oft being less intelligent, two minds are better than one.

Magus. Also known as Familiar. This Shifter type goes around summoning a familiar, with whom he shares one mind. The familiar serves as a beacon for the shifters powers, as well as a second fighter. It can however, also be key to the Shifter's own powers.

6. Glyph. Glyph daemons summon a symbol or some sort of runes, any mystical object or symbol which contains a portion of their powers. Like magician, except they need to conjure the glyph and attach it somewhere. Glyph daemons also have much more interaction with other daemons power. They are known as the only type to be able to copy and steal abilities to some extent, from their enemies. Patron member of the Twelve is Ethal, The King of Daemons.

Subtypes:
Entombed. Entimbed daemons consist of daemons who have a powerful glyph spell cast within their body. It restrains their essence in a very dense spot, almost like a black hole like existence. Should an Entombed suffer death, indeed, a singularity would be unleashed briefly. The result of the original process, causes them to develop a very hard outer body, making them very durable. Entombed cannot use a variety of glyphs, but they have a set few, very powerful ones, cast and present on them all the time.

Witch Doctor. The Witch Doctor is possessed of a powerful dichotomy. In one hand, he loses some versatility , but on the other, gains a powerful ability, in both conducting long term negative effects, or being able to rid others of them. However, this comes with the need for a certain ritual. For every glyph he casts, he has a set of actions that need to be fulfilled first.

Alchemist.  A Glyph type user who opts for creating a specific concoction by the mixture of varying substances, or creating a more solid object, in the same manner, and enchanting but with a glyph, to transmute it upon a desired result. Alchemists most often border on the Magician type with that they are restricted to a "theme".

7. Artificial. Daemons crafted by other daemons which most times lack free will or conscience. They mostly appear to be automaton like. Patron member of the Twelve, is Ecrimath, the Lady of Dust.

8. Nature. Daemons bound to a specific spot of Dream World and adapting into its natural qualities. These creations are quite potent, and as long as that same environmental pattern is around them, e.g a lush forest, they can use their abilities, e.g having you wrecked by a thousand of giant roots. Patron member of the Twelve is Madness, the Wise.

Subtypes:
Starwalkers.  Instead of bonding with the nature around them, these good souls chose to bond themselves with celestial objects. There are four suns, seven moons, three chariots, which spread and expand the light and effect of these bodies, bringing dawn, dusk, twilight etc, and six major constellations which preside over smaller ones and lone stars. There is a lot to pick from, but Starwalkers generally opt for one of the major 20 celestial bodies. There is usually space, due to how few Starwalkers there are. Celestial Bodies by proxy, have no Communicators.

9. Primitive. Daemons which lack any refinement. They have very dense dream force, usually very low intellect, lack weapons or clothing or anything and are often quite gigantesque. They however, have greatly honed instincts and senses. Fighting one, or being hunted by one is considered foolish, and usually more than a single daemon is required to handle them. Patron member of the Twelve is Seria, the Deep Huntress.

10. Cursed. Daemons which have an ability called a "Curse". The Curse provides an all reaching skill, which can fall into any of the above, not limited by element, area or item, but the curse part does bear negative connotations. A magic-curse type is a cursed daemon which displays skills similar to a magician type, and an item-curse type channels their powers through an item,  which is cursed. Loosing the item renders the power and curse null. Patron member of the Twelve, is Glech, the Worm.

11. Psychic. Psychic daemons posses abilities pertaining to the mind. Illusions, mind control, fear manipulation and all sorts of it. Their intellect is not always top tier however, but their mentality is almost always the most alien, from a human point of view. They are widely feared. Patron member of the Twelve, is Uren, the Singer.

12. Communicators. Communicators are a rare breed. Daemons whose power involves sight, and knowledge of other, more powerful forces. They act partially as seers, partially as archives, and a bit akin to summoners. They depend on the power of the daemon they are bound to in a way, and for a daemon it is a great feat to claim a communicator for their own. More than one means more power. However to note, the Twelve, and Inthar have never had such communicators. Patron member of the Twelve, is Mazarc, the Dragonlord of the North.

Subtype:

Paladins. Also known as the Urash in the east. (It is their most common name, with Paladin being the official one). Paladins attach themselves not to a single daemon, but to a concept of some sort. For example death, fear, joy, faith, doubt etc. Urash can sense whenever this concept is or will be present, can defend themselves and harden their bodies. Their weapons can be enchanted to inflict or drain the said concept from whatever they hit. They become more durable with more of the resource around, and they can even make an armor exhibiting its qualities.

Ectoforms. Also known as Ghosts, or Nightmares more commonly. To spare you the long lecturing and theorizing, nobody has the slightest idea what these beings are. There are a total of two sightings, of these, and both are transcribed by incredible horror, to be believable in any way.

And by races! These are just some major distinctions by the way!

Celestials. Celestial daemons live in the west, and are assumed to be the direct result of Disse's dream force spreading all over that part of the land. They usually are humanoid, with some traits that set them apart from looking like actual humans. Mostly, it is an aura of sorts, that is always present around them. Celestials, like many other prominent races, come in several types.

Sun Celestials, come with, most of the time, blonde or orange hair. Sometimes, they can get glowing golden hair too, and their eye colors vary from golden, to bronze, red or orange. Their bodies usually appear to be very fit, their aura is colored yellow, white or orange, and is either bright, or hot. They have an affinity for riding or taming primitive daemons, and come, at times, with either feathery wings, or metallic horns sprouting from their heads.

Moon Celestials. Usually, they look rather frail. They come with, most of the time,  long hair, and a wispy aura. Their hair and eyes can be combinations of white, silvery, a more dull gray, blue, or rarely black. Their skin is either very pale, or a faint gray color as well. Their voices seem very deep, or occasionally breathy, and they have an odd ability of being able to float or fly easily.

Sky Celestials. Usually, they look fairly human. Most of the time, they have wings. Their hair, or eyes are often either blue or white as combinations. Sky Celestials are athletic, and strong, and have an inclination to be Object Focus or Physical daemons, and their bodies regenerate from injuries surprisingly quickly. They are said to be very fast, and have affinities for weather related powers. A rare trait appearing among them is an ability to see future events, in the shapes clouds make, as vague visions or the like.

Night Celestials. They almost always have horns made of some weird dark material, and their eyes and hair are always black. Their skins are pale, and their bodies are usually slim. They are said to be very good at sneaking around, and while not the best regenerators, have very high pain tolerance. Their powers involve some sort of strange immunity to most magics, and passive effects, and auras. They are seen with some contempt, in the inner areas of the Celestial kingdom, and face prejudice there.

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Frogkin/Fishkin. Frogs, or Fishkin are generally either large, monstrous fish/frog-like creatures (either fish or frog. But there are rare cases when a hybrid appears), or more humanoid versions of said monsters. Frogkin and Fishkin, however, are mostly amphibian, preferring swamp like areas to live and propagate. Mostly, their species lives on the shores of the Southern Jungle, the western coast of the East, and the eastern cost of the West. Occasionally, in the north too.

Frogkin are a very well spread race. In the North, they are infamous gangsters, and have a vast network of organized crime. In the West, they are often enrolled by the military, as medics, or engineers. Same with the East, except they are rarely trusted the medic work, and end up making/fixing equipment for the armies of the United Legion there. Their race is, highly intelligent, despite their bestial appearance.

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Imps. Cute little furballs who speak in adorable gibberish. A lot of their culture is based around long, soothing hugs, which both serves to determine one's strength of character, but also as a way to transmit feelings and beliefs. Their race knows four major distinctions. They have a peculiar ability, called Metamorphosis. All imps, can shift into a stronger, generally larger (but not always) form, without being classified as. Shifter type Daemon. (Although 90% of the Imps ARE identified as Shifters).

Feral Imps, or Forest Imps, are a species that spread from the South. It is believed, Imps originated somewhere in the East, but a major schism split their race in two. One half, went south, into the Jungle. There, it formed into tribes and built a small civilization. One of the Druids, is an Imp, and one of the forests is named Imp Forest, due to this population. They have canine, or feline traits, in general, have brown, gray or black fur, and are very skilled warriors. Eventually, thye migrated back into the East, and to this day, play key roles in both the maintaining and leadership of the United Legions of the East.

Snow Imps, are the other major group if imps, who split off in the beginning. Their fur is always white, even if they are, other than from this, basically the same as the Feral Imps. Nevertheless, Snow Imps managed to form a stable civilization, the famous Gugin Empire, that was created after many years of expansion into harsh, cold territory in the northeast. The Empire's culture, means Snow Imps are intelligent, spiritual and often mysterious folk, as the Empire guards it's secrets closely. Some have reported sighting of a mysterious "Vanishing Peak" in their territory. The Empire has never spoken on the matter.

Desert Imps. Desert Imps, are or were, Feral Imps that kept migrating when most of their brethren stopped doing so, and left for the deep South. In the days of the old Zolkar Empire, they were held in reverence, as totems or messengers of the desert spirits. Desert Imp bodies have adapted to the difficult conditions they must live in. They have larger noses, and their fur has throned quill-like. They cover themselves in robes, and wear turbans, or hoods, as apparently showing off their bodies is a huge taboo. Their elders, leaders and mystics, are collectively labelled Shamans. They are said to commune with powerful and ancient daemons resting underneath the desert. No confirmation on this as of yet.

Reptile Imps. Reptile Imps, were once again, former Ferals, who took a different direction. Instead of going deep South, they went further into the West. They settled in the region that is now known as the Darklands. It is said, that Reptile Imps, were persecuted by a vicious Feral Imp leader, so under the guidance of one of their own, they fled, before things could escalate. This legendary Reptile Imp, founded a small gathering there, and is said to be the first one to set foot into the mysterious Darklands. Reptile Imps have dark colored scales, elongated heads (slightly), big eyes, small tails and are generally chubby little guys.

The Seven Headed Dog. "Fourth, I shall make the seven headed dog, to sit upon my palm. But when I release him unto you, seven times seven fold he shall grow, and seven times more. Seven spans of seven mountains will he cover, as he runs in the surface of my  sea, and his shadow will be over the mankind in all the corners of the world. Not with seven great sons of Anki, shall you subdue him." - Song of Sectis, Fourth Sweep, Part 11. (For roleplay purposes, disregard this entry)

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Dragons. Fucking dragons. Usually capable of attaining human form, but some element of their original appearance remains be it, parches of skin covered in scales, horns, the tail, the wings, the presence of multiple heads, etc etc. Dragons have, despite the usual, European dragon variety, two other distinctions.

High Dragons, which involve the cold, northern, multi headed variety, mostly affiliated with ice and cold, the eastern serpentine dragons, with powers over wind, sand and occasionally the earth, and Aether dragons, large glowing, once again, serpentine dragons, seemingly made of pure golden or cyan light, who are one of the very few cases where a daemon species is naturally mortal, and can die of old age.

Low Dragons. Large, reptilian beings, usually dwelling in caves, forests or shores. They have close ties to the wildlife of the area surrounding them, whether it be the flora or the fauna. Their human forms are the least human looking as well, and they are said to be, rather covetous. But that is not the standard. Mostly the cave and mountain dragons exhibit that sort of behavior.

Ogres. The Warriors of the East, Ogres here are more in line with what fantasy generally depicts as orcs. Seen as warlike and despicable, in some circles, and as honorable and noble warriors in others, Ogres are a well spread race. Most of them live in the East, and a vasy majority fight for it's cause. They are very patriotic, as well as very passionate. They look humanoid, except for being usually much larger bodies, having red, blue, green or occasionally gray skin, as well as larger canines, and slightly flappy ears.

Witchmen. Either human-looking folk, with big, crooked noses and red eyes, always hunched, and with a number of wrinkles on their face, or... Well, the above, but purple, and with white hair, as well as large, sharp teeth. Witchmen are an ancient Eastern race of sorcerers, sages and mystics, who survived through trickery snd deception, aimed at the much more physically imposing enemies of their race at the time. Now, they work together with said enemies, Ogres, Frogkin etc, fighting for the East!

Less known/ubiquitous races:

Battlelords. A race originally hailing from the north, these are big, muscular humanoids, much taller than the average human, and with a lot more hair. Very combative. Very easy to make angry. Usually live in small groups around the Nprth, or around Golthea.

Wildborne. An above mentioned shapeshifting race, hailing from the Southern jungles. They are indistinguishable for humans, except when they turn into large beasts. The most common depiction is akin to that of a werewolf. Although they can have many forms.

Rhalids. Usually, humanoids of tan skin, and red or orange hair. They are rare to come about nowadays, since a lot of them died, a long time ago. They are easy to tell apart nevertheless, due to some sort of aura they exude.

And many other species!