djnorris_2000
2006-05-18, 01:50 PM
Many thousands of years ago, in the deepest, darkest places of the world, the old gods created the first of the intelligent races. To live in the dry places they made the Illithids, and to live in the wet places they made the Aboleths. For a long time the two races lived far under the ground, but then the gods left them moved to the surface of the world. The Aboleths could not follow them though, for they could not leave the water. And the Illithids would not follow them, for they had homes in the deepest, darkest places beneath the ground, and they had grown to like the dark. This caused the old gods to become angry, and they reached down from to the surfaces, down to where the Illithids and the Aboleths lived, and the old gods placed their hands beneath each Aboleth and each Illithid that still lived, and then they did something terrible. As they lifted their hands, they took with them the souls of the Illithids and the Aboleths and carried them up to the surface, where they made new bodies for the souls to inhabit, bodies of man and dwarf, elf and halfling, gnome, orc and all the other creatures who live on the surface or just below it.
And then one day the old gods left the world, and the new ones ascended, Devina the Good, Guemond the Just, Dalla the Wrathful and all the others.
But in the deepest, darkest places beneath the world, the Illithids and the Aboleths festered. They hated the old gods for taking their souls, and they hated the new gods for not returning them. They were the only races ever to have walked with the gods and now they were abandoned. But without their souls, their minds grew. They began to see the connections between all natural things. They began to understand the equations and the laws that made the universe function. They began to understand the building blocks of life. And they learned to change these things with their minds.
In these two races was born a new power, which came to be known as psionics. It is not the Arcane magic of the aging mage, locked away in his tower. Nor is it the Divine spells, which the priest calls upon his deity to grant him. It is something different.
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In Varlon psionics is a new and powerful force. When the Illithids and the Aboleths lost their souls, the power of their minds grew immeasurably, and without consciously realising what was happening, they began to understand the science of the universe. And once they understood it they learned to change it.
Essentially, psionics is the ability to envision the natural laws of the universe, imagine a change in them, and will that change into reality within a certain area. To create fire, for example, a psion exerts its will to speed up the vibrations of molecules within an area, resulting in extra heat, enough extra heat produces fire. To affect someone's mind, a psion envisions the target's mind and imagines the change that will have the desired effect, then will that change into being.
Some psions are aware of how their power works, and consciously strive for more understanding and these are known as psions. Others do not understand their powers, but are still able to exert some control over them, and these are known as Wilders. Whether a psionic creature is aware of the source of their power though they all have one thing in common: somehow they have lost most of their soul. Even the Illithids and the Aboleths do not realise this, but it is impossible to completely remove a soul, but if as much as possible is removed, then what remains only serves to accentuate the emptiness where the rest of the soul should be. To look into the soul of a psionic creature is to see a tiny shining beacon of soul, in a vast expanse of rolling jet black storm clouds.
Illithids and Aboleths are naturally psionic, however they are born or colned or created, they come into being with only the tiniest speck of a soul, and develop their powers from as soon as they are able. Of the other races, very few are psionic, as it is impossible to give up ones soul. Illithids have captured people and experimented on them, and some of these have escaped after their souls have been ripped out, bringing psionics to the surface world. It is rare though, and people automatically shun psions, as there is a feeling of emptiness and great wrongness all around them. Even though they do not know what it is, people can sense that something terrible has happened to a psion and that he is no longer a whole person. Other psions on the surface are Illithid slaves, under some kind of compulsion to gather all the information they can and return to relay it to the Illithids. Finally, there are those who have simply lost their souls through some other means, an encounter with a Demon, or some terrible magical accident, or the curse of a god, and some of these also develop psionic powers.
Finally, psionics is the antithesis of divine magic. Those without souls can not cast divine magic, and those who have souls can not understand psionics. The empty void around the soul-fragment of a psion even works to repulse divine magic and energy in all its forms.
And then one day the old gods left the world, and the new ones ascended, Devina the Good, Guemond the Just, Dalla the Wrathful and all the others.
But in the deepest, darkest places beneath the world, the Illithids and the Aboleths festered. They hated the old gods for taking their souls, and they hated the new gods for not returning them. They were the only races ever to have walked with the gods and now they were abandoned. But without their souls, their minds grew. They began to see the connections between all natural things. They began to understand the equations and the laws that made the universe function. They began to understand the building blocks of life. And they learned to change these things with their minds.
In these two races was born a new power, which came to be known as psionics. It is not the Arcane magic of the aging mage, locked away in his tower. Nor is it the Divine spells, which the priest calls upon his deity to grant him. It is something different.
================================================== ==============
In Varlon psionics is a new and powerful force. When the Illithids and the Aboleths lost their souls, the power of their minds grew immeasurably, and without consciously realising what was happening, they began to understand the science of the universe. And once they understood it they learned to change it.
Essentially, psionics is the ability to envision the natural laws of the universe, imagine a change in them, and will that change into reality within a certain area. To create fire, for example, a psion exerts its will to speed up the vibrations of molecules within an area, resulting in extra heat, enough extra heat produces fire. To affect someone's mind, a psion envisions the target's mind and imagines the change that will have the desired effect, then will that change into being.
Some psions are aware of how their power works, and consciously strive for more understanding and these are known as psions. Others do not understand their powers, but are still able to exert some control over them, and these are known as Wilders. Whether a psionic creature is aware of the source of their power though they all have one thing in common: somehow they have lost most of their soul. Even the Illithids and the Aboleths do not realise this, but it is impossible to completely remove a soul, but if as much as possible is removed, then what remains only serves to accentuate the emptiness where the rest of the soul should be. To look into the soul of a psionic creature is to see a tiny shining beacon of soul, in a vast expanse of rolling jet black storm clouds.
Illithids and Aboleths are naturally psionic, however they are born or colned or created, they come into being with only the tiniest speck of a soul, and develop their powers from as soon as they are able. Of the other races, very few are psionic, as it is impossible to give up ones soul. Illithids have captured people and experimented on them, and some of these have escaped after their souls have been ripped out, bringing psionics to the surface world. It is rare though, and people automatically shun psions, as there is a feeling of emptiness and great wrongness all around them. Even though they do not know what it is, people can sense that something terrible has happened to a psion and that he is no longer a whole person. Other psions on the surface are Illithid slaves, under some kind of compulsion to gather all the information they can and return to relay it to the Illithids. Finally, there are those who have simply lost their souls through some other means, an encounter with a Demon, or some terrible magical accident, or the curse of a god, and some of these also develop psionic powers.
Finally, psionics is the antithesis of divine magic. Those without souls can not cast divine magic, and those who have souls can not understand psionics. The empty void around the soul-fragment of a psion even works to repulse divine magic and energy in all its forms.