World Magic: Spiritism

Spiritism is an ancient branch of world magic that deals with ghosts and, at high levels, undead. Born as a shamanistic form of magic, it was developed by Alahean wizards into an effective combat and support tool. A spiritist is a "medium" who can understand ghosts better than most, but he can also fight and enslave them if he knows how. He can withstand possession much better than a regular person, and actually turn it into a powerful symbiosis with the ghost. A Spiritist can summon ghosts and try to make them do his bidding, hiring them to defend him or carry out other tasks. They can generate Soulmist, the substance that makes up a ghost's shroud - often from the Spiritist's own body. By dressing a ghost with Soulmist of their creation, the Spiritists can gift the ghost with more powers or replenish their strength. They can also damage ghosts by shredding their Soulmist with suitable tools, forcing them away and giving them great pain.

Overview

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Spiritists are a very old cadre of wizards, probably because unlike most world magic, their tools are simple to craft and use. Ghosts are a normal occurrence in Nu Guardia; people know they exist, and in many cases coexist, with the living. Ghosts are souls that extended their stay past death to take care of unfinished business, choosing not to reincarnate in the afterlife. Some ghosts, however, would do harm upon the living, and human wizards specialized in hunting them. This basic need led to the birth of Spiritism, though the discipline soon evolved past simple spiritual fighting as wizards realized that ghosts could make very convenient allies and servants.

Spiritism is a more social discipline than most, except perhaps Summoning. The two disciplines are similar in that negotiation and charisma are crucial to the successful medium. While they can engage ghosts in spiritual warfare, talking it out is often a more convenient avenue as it means acquiring a potential ally in the future. Of course, the Spiritist must take care not to be fooled by the ghosts he deals with, many of which are deceivers bent on his ruination.

Spiritists are not necessarily religious people, though they may act out of religious desire to liberate ghosts from their torment. Personal ethics range from total benevolence to malice, with every shade of gray in between. Every town and settlement tends to have at least one, and he is often called upon when an unfriendly ghost overstays its welcome. Spiritists are feared and respected, more so than most denominations of wizards, due to the creepy nature of their business. However, they also tend to make enemies in the spiritual world, whose inhabitants are known to hold endless grudges.

A majority of Spiritists can only affect ghosts, but experts and masters are also useful against the undead, primarily those aligned with a deity of some sort for the addition of holy status. Various gods of undeath have been known to send their minions after certain Spiritists who have incurred their wrath.

Soulmist

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Soulmist is the matter ghosts are made of, replacing the astral body of a living soul. It is normally ethereal, though the ghost can make it corporeal through materialization when it needs to interact with the environment. When it becomes material, the ghost can, in turn, take damage and shed its Soulmist, which brings it great pain and cripples it. A ghost without Soulmist cannot do anything, not even be seen. The substance will eventually regrow, but this can take a long time, like wounds for the living.

Soulmist is the key to the Spiritist's power. These wizards know how to produce Soulmist and use it to their advantage. The material is created from the users own metaphysical presence(magic, soul, emotions, ect)and a vial of blood. Spiritists have different recipes and methods, but the most common way is the following. The wizard will, through some manner expel his metaphysical essence and mold it within an object or item that they wish, effectively placing a piece of themselves within said item. Then, they use the blood(their own for bolstered effects)and rub it in. The wizard must concentrate and focus on what he wants to achieve.

In the end, the wizard will emit an off-white glow that can be shaped via mental link. This is Soulmist: the slight glow, as well the unnatural coolness of the material will signal that the operation was a success. Especially good Soulmist is made from the Spiritist's own blood, and it is said that pure creatures yield the very best Soulmist.

A ghost needs the Spiritist's permission to absorb his Soulmist. Ghosts can tell its quality from the smell and will be much more interested in rarer, high-value Soulmist. Absorbing Soulmist replenishes the ghost's strength, undoes damage (whole or in part) and is a soothing, pleasant experience for the ghost - one of the few it can ever experience. This means the Spiritist can trade it with favors and services from a freelancing ghost. It can also improve a sour ghost's morale, though care should be taken not to strengthen a hostile ghost that will find nasty ways to use the newfound power.

High-level Spiritists can make even better use of Soulmist: they can imbue it with a part of the skills and powers of the blood's owner. A ghost eating this Soulmist will then acquire these skills and abilities as long as the effect lasts (which is a few days).

Spiritual Weapons and Armor

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When Soulmist is smeared over an item or body part of the living, it is quickly absorbed, disappearing from view. The object can then interact with ghosts and ethereal undead for a period of twenty four hours. Weapons can then wound a ghost, and armor will prevent them from passing through, even though they are not invulnerable to a ghost's attacks. An experienced Spiritist has created so much Soulmist that his body gains the same ability at all times. The very best Spiritists can render the effect on items permanent.

Safe Zones

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A Spiritist can set boundaries that ghosts will be unable to cross, thus creating safe zones. Again, this is the work of Soulmist. The Spiritist will smear it on a series of small items connected through string (made from the Spiritist's own hair, if possible, or someone close to him otherwise). A popular choice among Spiritist is Ghostbeads, pebble-sized stones of considerable weight. These beads form a ring resembling a giant necklace. When thrown on the floor, the area inside the beads is off-limits to ghosts. The bare minimum is three beads charged with Soulmist, but the more, the better; seven is a favorite. The same principle applies to any closed shape and set of tokens.

Ghosts and their soulmist can't access safe zones (in theory; in practice, a motivated powerful ghost can eventually break through), but they can throw a knife from the outside into the safe zone. A Possessed person would either lose the ghost upon entering one, OR the ghost could hide inside but be unable to manifest or take over control while in the safe zone.

The reason ghostbeads are rather heavy is that an intelligent ghost may try to push or move them around with its powers. When the enemy is especially vicious, some Spiritists resort to driving stake-shaped pegs (Ghostnails) into the ground for better protection. In general, no defense is absolute against a resourceful ghost, though every little bit helps.

Graceful Possession

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Possession is an ability that allows a ghost to take over a living creature for a duration. Spiritists undergo possession routinely as part of their training. Through this constant exposure to being possessed, they gradually acquire finer control over their state. While at the lower levels the Spiritist can only freeze and prevent the ghost from doing anything with his body, more experienced wizards can share control with the ghost or kick it out at will. Possession becomes less and less traumatic, and the Spiritist can even enter a symbiotic relationship with the ghost in which their skill sets and knowledge merge seamlessly. This state also makes it much easier for a ghost to acquire experience and progress in Skills other than ghostly racial skills.

At very high levels, the Spiritist can hold or trap a number of ghosts inside his own body. He can then communicate with them in his mind, and release any and all of them on a whim. This may have long-term adverse effects on his health, however.