Malfunctioned
2013-08-19, 10:13 AM
So ages ago (not that I expect anyone to remember) I posted about a setting I was creating based around a world with five dominant cultures, each with their own style of summoning magic and that there was no other magic in the world (in the castable sense anyway). However, due to a few mishaps I have lost every single not I made on this setting so I'm wondering if anyone here could help me build it up again.
The main backstory of the world is that in the distant past, each of the cultures were given a Gift, this Gift contained the knowledge and ability to use their own form of the magic given, the gifts and cultures are as follows.
The Gift of the Sigil - This form of summoning allows the user to seek out and claim a supernatural creature as his bound companion. However it cannot be just any creature, the most common way of claiming them is to embark on a pilgrimage to seek one of many temples or sanctums erected in honour of these creatures. When the pilgrim has reached the temple they are subjected to either a task or test, if they pass then their creature appears before them and a sigil appears on their flesh, the creature can be summoned at any time either by touching the sigil or (if the sigil is split across two bodyparts, with the forearms being the most common) making the sigil whole. The creature itself that is summoned is based upon the preconceptions of the summoner, so if they're from a family line who is known for having wyverns as their summons, then it's almost certain then they will form a bond with a wyvern. These creatures are obviously not mundane, being mostly covered in a flexible metallic skin, almost completely white aside from details that are coloured according to the house of the summoner. As the bond between the two grows, the creature becomes more powerful and ornate, though not always larger.
The culture this belongs to is the largest in the world, their territories containing a wide variety of terrain and climates. Their own cities are normally large and ornate, featuring towers of gold and marble dotted across the skyline. Their government consists of the head of the 10 largest houses with the chief patriarch being voted in every 5 years by each of the 10. Females are not considered to be worthy heirs to the family lines, however it is in every citizens right (including the females) to challenge the current heir to a duel, often to first blood though rarely to death, to claim the title of rightful heir. If they succeed they are given the title of First Son and if they become the head of the house, Patriarch.
The Gift of the Pact - The Gift of the Pact allows the user to perceive and commune with spirits of nature. Once the spirit has been communed with, it is possible for the user to form a pact with them, though each spirit to do so will require a sacrifice or task to be performed in order access their abilities. The abilities of the spirits vary from enhancing attributes, to allowing flight, supernatural senses and control over the elements. Many users specialise in one form of spirit, so spirits of fire, insects, plant-life may all be used exclusively. Opposed spirits may require increasingly difficult sacrifices to be made but as long as they are fulfilled the powers of them are at the users command. Whilst the pacts may change the user on a spiritual level, increased strength or so on, it takes a very strong pact, built up over years, to change the users physical body such as a growing claws or even minor shapeshifting.
The culture that this form belongs to claim the vast jungles and rainforests as their own. They live in several small to large villages, with a few towns being their largest settlements, and are largely known for their hospitality as long as their guests bring show them the same respect. A large amount of the population are vegetarians, mostly as a way to show respect to the animal spirits they worship and use, however they do maintain a healthy diet thanks to the protein rich sap that can be extracted from the Kenoskeen tree, which, whilst not common, can easily be found along the most travelled paths of the jungles. Each village is ruled by an elder who is most often the most powerful summoner in the area and he is often sought after for answers to questions of morality and ethics.
(I'll update on the other 3 as I write up the notes, however the Gift's left are the Dead, which involves the honourable raising of corpses for services promised in life, the Soul, which allows the formation of a signature weapon created from the spirit of the summoner, and the Craft, which takes the form of customisable golems designed by the user)
The main backstory of the world is that in the distant past, each of the cultures were given a Gift, this Gift contained the knowledge and ability to use their own form of the magic given, the gifts and cultures are as follows.
The Gift of the Sigil - This form of summoning allows the user to seek out and claim a supernatural creature as his bound companion. However it cannot be just any creature, the most common way of claiming them is to embark on a pilgrimage to seek one of many temples or sanctums erected in honour of these creatures. When the pilgrim has reached the temple they are subjected to either a task or test, if they pass then their creature appears before them and a sigil appears on their flesh, the creature can be summoned at any time either by touching the sigil or (if the sigil is split across two bodyparts, with the forearms being the most common) making the sigil whole. The creature itself that is summoned is based upon the preconceptions of the summoner, so if they're from a family line who is known for having wyverns as their summons, then it's almost certain then they will form a bond with a wyvern. These creatures are obviously not mundane, being mostly covered in a flexible metallic skin, almost completely white aside from details that are coloured according to the house of the summoner. As the bond between the two grows, the creature becomes more powerful and ornate, though not always larger.
The culture this belongs to is the largest in the world, their territories containing a wide variety of terrain and climates. Their own cities are normally large and ornate, featuring towers of gold and marble dotted across the skyline. Their government consists of the head of the 10 largest houses with the chief patriarch being voted in every 5 years by each of the 10. Females are not considered to be worthy heirs to the family lines, however it is in every citizens right (including the females) to challenge the current heir to a duel, often to first blood though rarely to death, to claim the title of rightful heir. If they succeed they are given the title of First Son and if they become the head of the house, Patriarch.
The Gift of the Pact - The Gift of the Pact allows the user to perceive and commune with spirits of nature. Once the spirit has been communed with, it is possible for the user to form a pact with them, though each spirit to do so will require a sacrifice or task to be performed in order access their abilities. The abilities of the spirits vary from enhancing attributes, to allowing flight, supernatural senses and control over the elements. Many users specialise in one form of spirit, so spirits of fire, insects, plant-life may all be used exclusively. Opposed spirits may require increasingly difficult sacrifices to be made but as long as they are fulfilled the powers of them are at the users command. Whilst the pacts may change the user on a spiritual level, increased strength or so on, it takes a very strong pact, built up over years, to change the users physical body such as a growing claws or even minor shapeshifting.
The culture that this form belongs to claim the vast jungles and rainforests as their own. They live in several small to large villages, with a few towns being their largest settlements, and are largely known for their hospitality as long as their guests bring show them the same respect. A large amount of the population are vegetarians, mostly as a way to show respect to the animal spirits they worship and use, however they do maintain a healthy diet thanks to the protein rich sap that can be extracted from the Kenoskeen tree, which, whilst not common, can easily be found along the most travelled paths of the jungles. Each village is ruled by an elder who is most often the most powerful summoner in the area and he is often sought after for answers to questions of morality and ethics.
(I'll update on the other 3 as I write up the notes, however the Gift's left are the Dead, which involves the honourable raising of corpses for services promised in life, the Soul, which allows the formation of a signature weapon created from the spirit of the summoner, and the Craft, which takes the form of customisable golems designed by the user)