Difference between revisions of "Sorvians"

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'''History'''
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There has not been one conflict forged in this timeless world where differences were not present. It has always been the nature of Men to confide in ways which they are convinced to adhere; to spill blood and to die for these ways, to share these ways with their friends, their brothers, sons and strangers. It is hard to discern the term “way” as a singular thing, for it takes many forms. Sovereign nations have a way. They design themselves by the nature of their people and by the authority of their leaders. Culture follows a way. It is shaped by the world around those who herald culture, who learned that their way was the best way in the circumstances they faced. Faith follows a way. Their way is to say their way is true, that sometimes their way is the highest way, and that other ways are ways which lead one astray. Men are defined by ways. Without ways, they have no meaning, no guidance, and in a world without ways, Men are left to wander a plane with no mountain to follow or horizon to foresee.
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In times now past, the term Sorvian referred to a certain type of creature, often called ‘flesh golems’ or even more directly, servants. And serve they did, fulfilling the purposes laid out for them by their Masters. At first they were mindless, though some of the more elder Sorvians eventually gained a solid sense of self and understanding of life around them. It was not to last, however. The creation ritual of these Sorvians, and the deathly materials required, were eventually lost to time. So, too, were the Sorvians themselves lost, their number falling and falling until the very last Sorvian had disappeared from the realm.
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There are those who commune deeply with this truth. A soul known as Jevex, the Spirit of Order and Self-Sacrifice, confides with them more than Men themselves, for ways are abstract aspects of the mind which are not confined to the nature of mortals. One may say Jevex may have been present since the very dawn of time, for is it by a “way” that the Creator shaped the very cosm all things are hosted within. But instead he formed by the sheer presence of Men’s attunement to ways; Jevex was birthed by the fire within that mortals bore to persist in their ways, to form their ways, to know their ways. If anyone knew the nature of ways, it was Jevex. It was inspiring; to spread one's’ ways to thousands of others and for these same ways to guide them forth to carve their path through history is something no other form of being truly achieved. Even the Aengudaemons, who directly usher ways to Men by the design of divine missions, have never come close to such a feat. They may only mimic the creation of ways and perpetuate what they believe in by sharing it with duration-adhering souls that do not follow Immortal existence. Such a transaction, it is alien -- But in the end, it is the cultivation of ways.
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Eventually, an unknown man rediscovered a small account of these Sorvians, though it did not describe much beyond their appearance and a bit of their servitude. Intrigued, he sought more knowledge, but never truly found much beyond more scribbled eye witness accounts. The man, eventually growing frustrated, began experimenting with different creations and attempts at constructs. None of these proved successful. However, the man was by trade a potter, and eventually became obsessed with the idea of reviving these Sorvians via his craft.
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Jevex wanted to surpass what Men could achieve. He wanted the fervor and the belief of countless mortals bound to the soul of but individuals. What the fervor and belief and expression of these things was based around, Jevex did not care; it was not within his interest to inspire ways within Men, only to incite the conception of ways. In old times, he would come to create the very embodiment of ideology and the servitude put forth toward it. Jevex would conceive the Sorvians.
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Though his business plummeted, and the man went from managing a feasible living to subsiding in squalor and slums, he eventually made headway. He believed his creations to be true Sorvians, though they were far from such, simply a mockery and imitation through entirely unrelated methods. However, since the original Sorvians had been virtually erased and the man desperately craved success, he deemed these creatures Neo-Sorvians and began constructing more, as well as teaching pupils.
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=The Sculptor=
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Sorvian crafting, hereby called ‘Sculpting,’ is a feat that can be learned by any player character that has a soul. The animation of the Sorvian comes from an amount of soul essence the Sculptor departs onto it, giving it the energy it needs to sustain itself. This process is draining to the Sculptor, and the resulting time it takes to regain the soul essence means a Sculptor can create a maximum of 3 Sorvians per 3 months. This soul essence is held together by a ‘mask’, upon the back of which the Sculptor scrawls an incantation in their own blood that seems to come to them in the moment, though it has no apparent or true meaning, simply a vessel to hold together a mockery of a soul for the Sorvian to have.
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'''Their Nature'''
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The Sorvian’s body, before Awakening, is known as a Husk. A suitable Husk for a playable Sorvian is between 3-6ft in height, with the proportions of a human. Playable Newts can be shorter, from a range of 2-3ft in height and the proportions of a halfling. It’s ‘skeleton’ can be made of any type of wood, and every single part of the skeleton must be covered in a suitable layer of clay, ranging in thickness depending on the part of the body. The finished product must be a humanoid and distinctly organic in it’s proportions and features. A few things, such as aesthetic lines or ridges, are permitted, but nothing that could give any sort of advantage, combat or otherwise. If a Sorvian’s Husk doesn’t follow the above prerequisites, the creation ritual will fail and the entire Husk will crumble to a pile of decimated clay particles and wood chips. A budding Sorvian Sculptor will likely struggle with this step, but as soon as they can produce suitable Husks, then they can move on to mask creation.
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Sorvians are mortal beings which, by the power of a ritual designed by the Spirit of Order, are driven to “subsist” on the servitude of ideologies. Unlike normal mortals, they do not have free will and instead can be considered hollow and without basis until they unbiasedly find a “way” in which they are led to serve. This means, by becoming a Sorvian, one loses all sense of self; expression and personality decays to the very base level, independant thought becomes machinelike, race and differential corporeality is nullified, and they become a “canvas” for the ways of others to paint upon.
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Masks must be made of porcelain, with two identifiable eye holes and a mouth. If it is not, the incantation will not activate, and cannot be suitable placed on or connected to the Sorvian. However, once a suitable mask and a suitable Husk have been created, and the incantation scrawled across the back of the mask, the Sculptor can activate a ritual known as Awakening. This ‘Awakening’ is the birth and waking up of the Sorvian, with a hard limit of 3 Sorvians per 3 months able to be Awoken. However, Sculptors can create small non-player, 1ft-2ft tall miniature Sorvians that cannot be used for combat, but are instead an aesthetic item for background rp for a workshop or other such things. Normal size restrictions do not apply to these, though their strength is that of a halfling at most. They will be referred to as Newts. You can create player Newts, but these ones would count towards your 3 total per 3 months.
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=The Sculpting=
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==Incanting==
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===Description===
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Incanting is the act of a Sorvian Sculptor, where a suitable Incantation is scrawled across the back of the mask in their own blood. This incantation is in an unlearnable and unknown language, truly just random symbols that a Sculptor can pull out of their head with enough effort. When a suitable Incantation is drawn on the back of a mask, it gains an amount of the Sculptor’s soul essence, and they feel a sense of weakness and slight cold that permeates their body. This does, however, prime the mask for the Awakening process.
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===Mechanics===
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Incanting is the writing of a string of nonsense characters on the back of a suitable porcelain mask, in a Sorvian Sculptor’s blood. This gives the mask an amount of the Sculptor’s soul essence that leaves them feeling weak and cold for a short period. This primes the mask for Awakening, another ability. This procedure only works on suitable masks, and has no anomalous effects or interactions with any other magic or creature. The only thing it can interact with is a Sorvian Husk.
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===Redlines===
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    Requires a feat application in Sorvian Sculpting.
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    Written in one's own blood.
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    Has to be done on a suitable mask.
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    Unknowable and unlearnable language, forever changing nonsense characters.
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    Leaves the Sculptor feeling slightly weak and cold, for aesthetic.
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    Only masks that have been Incanted are usable for Awakening.
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    Has no anomalous effects with anything beyond a suitable Sorvian Husk.
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This means a Sorvian is nothing without an idea to serve, but the idea must be concrete; the ideology must be persistent, it must have a name, a design, a spirit of its own. It must mean something in order for a Sorvian to recognize it as something to bend the knee to. Petty oaths are nothing; baseless, militant orders are flimsy; tasks are short-lived. Sorvians crave ideologies to make them whole, and thus they only serve what is prominent. Canonism, Aspectism, Xanism, Tahariaeism, Xionism -- these are ideologies which have depth, which have meaning, which have lasted ages, that were founded by those who matter and have achieved things that bring them up as greater truths.
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==Awakening==
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===Description===
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Awakening is the act of applying a suitable mask onto a suitable Husk, creating the previously inanimate structure into a Sorvian. When this is done, the mask will meld with the clay of the Husk’s head, no longer able to be removed without killing the Sorvian. A wave of pale blue light will radiate out from where the mask makes contact, engulfing the whole Husk within a span of a few seconds and giving the Husk the spark of life and intelligence needed to become a Sorvian.
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===Mechanics===
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Awakening requires a suitable mask and Husk. When the mask is placed onto the head of the Husk, it will be consumed in light and turn the structure into a functioning Sorvian.
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===Redlines===
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    Requires a feat in Sorvian Sculpting.
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    Requires a suitable mask & Husk within the parameters above.
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In an old age, those that witnessed the presence of Sorvians knew them as Truthbearers, for when Sorvians were seen serving their given ideologies, they did not relent in doing so. Unlike mortals, who have a gauge for questioning atrocities the occult may bring them to do, or being apprehensive in their loyalty to a cause, Sorvians are not subject to this. The only way they know in their strange, limboed existences is the ideology they are bound to, and thus they are driven to such unfaltering allegiance to something that to call them Truthbearers would be more than to express what they follow is as fact; it is to express how they do not even question what they serve, ever - not for the slightest moment.
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==Revival==
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===Description===
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Sorvian Sculptors maintain the ability to heal injured Sorvians using the same power as their ability to create. Lost limbs can be repaired by creating new ones and writing a fresh Incantation on the supposed connection point, and then connecting it to the Sorvian. In a flash of light, it will be reattached, and now flesh, albeit pink and slightly off compared to the rest of the Sorvian. Other wounds can be patched by  taking wet clay and mixing it with a small amount of the Sculptor’s blood. Then, apply it to the wound. Within a few minutes the clay will miraculously dry and turn to flesh, roughly patching the Sorvian’s form. However, this flesh too will be pink and rough, a radius around the whole patch being soft and tissue like forever. Additionally, Sculptors can also revive dead Sorvians.
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To  recover a destroyed Sorvian, a Sculptor must take one of a few steps: They can recover the mask, which, upon the death of the Sorvian, will detach from the clay husk, though still with all the decoration and appearance that decorated it in the life of the Sorvian. The incantation remains on the back, and if pressed onto a fresh husk, will cause the Sorvian to reawaken. The fresh husk, even if originally different, will warp and twist during the ritual process to appear virtually identical to the old husk, even down to the last scar or chip in the finger. This means that, even if a Sorvian dies and is brought back, it’s brought back in the same timeless form and essentially the same body. However, if the mask is destroyed, the Sculptor must go through the extra step of recreating the mask. Any Sorvian Sculptor is capable of recreating the necessary incantation and mask, almost by instinct if they will themselves hard enough, but a Sorvian can only ever have one ‘creator’ in their mind and can only have that reverence for their ‘One’. This process does not count as one of the three max per three months of Sorvian’s made, meaning a Sculptor can bring back as many Sorvian’s as they so desire, but can only do so once per OOC 24 hours.
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===Mechanics===
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Sculptors can repair limbs and other wounds on Sorvians. Limbs require the sculpting and firing of a new limb, with a proper Incantation on the connection point. Other wounds require wet clay mixed with a small amount of the Sculptor’s blood, that will rapidly harden and act as a functional, if pale and uncanny, replacement to the destroyed area. A Sculptor can also revive destroyed Sorvians. This is done by either recovering the mask and putting it on a new Husk, or creating a new mask identical to the old one and placing it on a new Husk. The Husk will, when Awakened, turn into an identical copy of the old one, with all the same flaws and scars.
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===Redlines===
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    New limbs will, when attached, look similar to the original one the Sorvian had. However, at the point of connection, a soft and pale tissue will remain to remind of the joining of the new limb.
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    Reviving destroyed Sorvians requires one either recovers the old mask, or creates a replica.
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    A revived Sorvian’s new Husk will rapidly warp and change to immediately look like their old one, with all the same scars and history.
 
   
 
   
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Despite their lack of individuality, Sorvians are molded by the ways which they are bound to follow, and when they align with an ideology long enough, their character reforms into something unique. The best way to describe them in this state is to say they’re zealots; zealots while, indeed, they are unquestionably loyal to their own cause, still carry with them a personality. The personality of a zealot is intertwined with the way they serve, and thus, they are defined by their way. Sorvians follow this nature like a creed, and soon become not so hollow like a resistless slave after all. One cannot become a Sorvian by force, after all - it must be agreed by the one subjected to it. They become a Sorvian, knowing that on the other side, they awaken as a loyalist of boundlessly more faith in their following than they had before.
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=Sorvian Physiology=
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A Sorvian’s body, no longer called a Husk when animated, is relatively uncanny. Even if the original clay Husk was painstakingly detailed over, their body is still relatively smooth and hairless, and their expressionless mask of a face places them firmly in the uncanny valley. As such, to make them more appealing to the mortals they desire to learn from and become more like, they cover themselves in clothing and wraps fitting of whatever it is they are pursuing.
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But while Sorvians are driven to serve ideologies unquestionably in their height, it’s all for naught when the ideology falters and fails. If not by common sense, Sorvians learn that to bind themselves to miniscule followings is to pledge themselves for frankly nothing at all, for when the cult they’d come to serve falls by the vicious persecution of a neighboring nation which thinks it heresy, Sorvians abandon the idea they aligned with because it simply no longer has standing. Sorvians cannot find it within themselves to retain loyalty to a cause without form, much unlike an old patriot who saw their kingdom fall, yet retains the ways it once formed.
 
  
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'''Their Design'''
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A Sorvian, then, has two necessary parts: Their head, or really their mask, and their chest cavity area. Puncturing the chest cavity would cause soul essence to leak out of them, causing them to perish. Severing the head from the torso would also accomplish this, the soul essence leaking out of the connection between the mask and chest, a narrow channel only visible from the inside of the Sorvian. When puncturing the chest cavity, soul essence will begin leaking out, but not instantly. It will take a period of five emotes before the Sorvian succumbs to it’s meager soul draining away. Decapitation, however, is much quicker. After decapitation, the Sorvian has a mere emote before perishing. Cracking and breaking a Sorvian’s mask would also kill them, not only reverting to clay but destroying their sense of self, and as such collapsing as a mortal might. Cracking a mask would take three solid hits, somehow hardened from the creation ritual. When a Sorvian dies, their body returns to a clay Husk.
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Sorvians are inheritors of Jevex’s admiration for mortal ways, so when it is stated they are “expressionless” and a “canvas”, that is to be taken both literally and figuratively. The ritual which Men go through in order to become these ideological thralls put them into a status best defined as a “stalling” -- everything within their very being, from the flesh to the very core of their soul, is put in a pause, or a limbo. Lifeforce stops its natural cycle, blood ceases to run, growth no longer transpires; organs do not function, but they do not function because they’re forced to stop, not because they die. The mind is sent into a spiral until it, too, becomes a blank slate, where the only directive is to find a worthy ideology, and, once found, to be molded by it.
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To  recover a destroyed Sorvian, a Sculptor must take one of a few steps: They can recover the mask, which, upon the death of the Sorvian, will detach from the clay husk, though still with all the decoration and appearance that decorated it in the life of the Sorvian. The incantation remains on the back, and if pressed onto a fresh husk, will cause the Sorvian to reawaken. The fresh husk, even if originally different, will warp and twist during the ritual process to appear virtually identical to the old husk, even down to the last scar or chip in the finger. This means that, even if a Sorvian dies and is brought back, it’s brought back in the same timeless form and essentially the same body. However, if the mask is destroyed, the Sculptor must go through the extra step of recreating the mask. Any Sorvian Sculptor is capable of recreating the necessary incantation and mask, almost by instinct if they will themselves hard enough, but a Sorvian can only ever have one ‘creator’ in their mind and can only have that reverence for their ‘One’. This process does not count as one of the three max per three months of Sorvian’s made, meaning a Sculptor can bring back as many Sorvian’s as they so desire, but can only do so once per OOC 24 hours.
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The race of the Sorvian just erodes away. In a matter of days, all definitions of their prior race dwindles away - Elven ears become shorter, “usual”, they lose their grace and their vanity; Orcs looks their tusks, their height, they become “normal-statured”; the lush beards of Dwarves and their stocky features fade into a form of assimilating Sorvian normalcy; even Humans lose the vague definition of their racial profile, for all mortal Men become a blank slate that robs even the slightest individualistic design. The faces of mortals, they lose definition - wrinkles and facial features and everything that makes a person recognizable as who they are, it all goes away, turning the newly-formed Sorvians into a grotesque slate.
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A Sorvian must have all parts of their wooden skeleton covered by clay, and as such by flesh, when being sculpted. A Sorvian can have slight additions to their form as well, that can come in the form of extra appendages or otherwise. However, the strength in each added appendage will be divided across all of them. For instance, a four armed Sorvian will have only half strength in each arm, equalling the same strength as a two armed Sorvian or human. An appendage in this case means a mobile limb. Adding crests or other small details, or truly anything that wouldn’t serve a use in combat, is not included under this and can be added freely during the original Sculpting process. They cannot, however, have clawed fingers or any sharp or unnatural attachments to their form, requiring to be humanoid in their make in the simplest sense.
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https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/HYSYV7uv5nMx5MbRm8PCe3BFFJfGWcSKjjdtZ1wbdROTb1vVu2SqpCKcjP5Kl2H9mZxOJeE1GQQA17jmwBiMW558wP_kmDZdjRkUy3Topr8tFKfgYb3G4ndtCt6XIzDk_ymhUDzD
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The maskless Sorvian, deplete of individuality.
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A Sorvian, if ‘injured’, will not recover from their injury like a Descendant will. Being scarred, losing a limb, et cetera are all lasting things and will remain with the Sorvian and their timeless body. They can, however, visit any Sorvian Sculptor, either their own creator or another, and seek repairs. Repairs include the Sculptor acquiring flesh clay, and sculpting a piece to fit in or smooth over the area. Say a Sorvian is missing it’s left arm, and goes to a Sculptor. The Sculptor can create a fresh limb, and can use a similar process as the mask creating process to scrawl an incantation on where the limb would make contact with the Sorvian. Then, when pressed firmly to where the arm should go, a wave of light will run down it and connect the fresh limb to the Sorvian. Should a Sorvian have a large gash in their stomach area, though not directly impairing them, a similar process can take place to make the the Sorvian appear more whole again; A Sculptor acquires a suitable mound of wet clay, and mix it with a small amount of their blood. This is then used to cover the wound, and will rapidly dry within a few narrative minutes to serve as a rough patch job. However, in any repair case like this, the Sorvian does not fully recover; even if a Sculptor takes great pains with this process, it won’t be perfect. Around the gashed area, something close to a scar would run, a slight, ragged indent along the whole length of the injury. Reconnected arms or the like would have this as well, around the base of the shoulder or wherever the limb is attached to. The new flesh will be at half strength for a period of one week, and will always be slightly paler than the Sorvian itself and it’s original limb, adding even more to the uncanny appearance of being ‘separate’. This process cannot be used to connect new things to a Sorvian, simply repair them; if you attempt to attach anything that was not originally meant to be there in the original Husk, then the ritual will not work and the piece will not connect.
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All they retain are their eyes for seeing, their nose for breathing, their mouth for speaking, their ears for hearing. Strikingly, the most ironic definitions of Sorvians is their immediate and tribal-like nature to adopt the use of masks. They wear dull masks of any kind of material on their face, and when the time comes that they bend a knee to a way which they are willed to serve, they paint their mask and design it in a way to reflect that which they follow.
 
  
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The mask cannot be removed from the head, welded on there by the creation ritual and a direct part of the flesh, though it feels like cold ceramic to the touch. The mouth hole and eye holes of the mask, though pitch black when looked into, are where the Sorvian’s sees from and speaks from respectively. A Sorvian has the average eyesight & ability to hear of a human, with their mask face and lack of true eyes not truly giving them any advantage over others. A Sorvian has a relatively neutral but always developing vocal range. Whatever ideology and culture a Sorvian meshes with, their accent and voice will grow to mimic it organically over the course of a year or two. The mask will always remain stationary on their face, meaning Sorvian’s are incapable of smiling or doing anything with their face beyond what the mask was originally created to look like. However, despite this, the mask will seemingly develop and grow in certain ways on it’s own, depending on what the Sorvian in question is aligning themselves with. For instance, a nature inclined Sorvian may grow antlers directly out of their mask, completely natural in appearance and appearing seemingly without them willing it; it simply happens, and each addition to a mask is a permanent symbol or reminder of them and what they believe. A warrior Sorvian may have permanent warpaint colors on their mask that’s entirely flush with the texture of the ceramic, as well as a bard Sorvian may have a mask that slowly grows and stretches into the constant visage of a smile at the same time as an assassin Sorvian may have their mouth flatten out and turn into an emotionless line on their face. They must, however, maintain two eye holes and a mouth. If one stuck their hand into one of these holes, they will meet an immediate black wall, smooth and seemingly the source of the Sorvian’s sight and sound.
  
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=Strengths & Weaknesses=
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Sorvian’s are comprised entirely of flesh and bone. Cutting through a Sorvian’s limb would be significantly easier than that of a Descendant, as they lack any blood or tendons or any real muscle. It is simply flesh all the way through, and a relatively brittle bone-like material that can be split or cracked in two with a strong cleaving strike from a sword. However, as Sorvian’s do not have blood and have a high pain tolerance, losing a limb doesn’t accomplish much in combat besides making that limb unusable. All Sorvian’s are ambidextrous and experience an uncanny dexterity in their more precise movements, and would be capable of wielding a weapon with either arm. A Sorvian can lose both arms and both legs and still be alive and well, though now essentially harmless, despite them attempting to fight otherwise. When a limb is removed from the body, it reverts back to the clay it came from with a shudder.
  
 
   
 
   
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'''Advantages'''
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A Sorvian has the average eyesight & ability to hear of a human, with their mask face and lack of true eyes not truly giving them any advantage over others. A Sorvian has a relatively neutral but always developing vocal range. Whatever ideology and culture a Sorvian meshes with, their accent and voice will grow to mimic it organically over the course of a year or two. The mask will always remain stationary on their face, meaning Sorvian’s are incapable of smiling or doing anything with their face beyond what the mask was originally created to look like.
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=Mental Description=
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==Mindset==
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A Sorvian is made to serve, and will always have a sense of reverence, or at least deeply ingrained respect, for their creator. However, they are not entirely bound by this creator. Though they will follow any requests given to them by their creator, they feel compelled to wander and interact with the mortals around them, and learn of their beliefs and what drives them. A Sorvian is created as a blank slate, completely moldable and sculptable into one belief system or another by whatever they are exposed to most. Generally, the ideology they take will be much akin to their creator, as that is what they are mostly exposed to. Once a Sorvian has sufficiently became enraptured with an ideology, they will devote themselves entirely to it, even in the face of pain or suffering. Time has little meaning to a Sorvian, as they are by nature timeless, and as their theoretical life and stretch on into the ages, they can obsess over their ideology and goals forever until something in the fabric of their perception changes. Whether that’s a request from their creator, being separated from their ideology, or something else, is up to the player. While they will follow any request or command from their creator, viewing such things as just a part of their life, they are not mindless or willess servants. A Sorvian may disagree with a command they are given, but will still follow through with it. And they are not dependent on their creator in this way, either. If a creator does not give them a task, they will pursue things on their own. If a Sorvian’s creator perishes or loses contact with them, they will not be compelled to seek out a new ‘Master’, and will instead exist on their own in pursuit of whatever ideology has enraptured them.
 
   
 
   
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*Sorvians are capable of being the perfect soldier; while they can feel pain, their capacity to tolerate is higher even to the degrees of dismemberment, and to lose extremities such as limbs fails to incite death-bringing afflictions such as shock or bloodloss. At that point, pain and the general lack of limbs becomes the greatest deterrent.
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==Mental State==
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Sorvian’s are dictated by their ideology. In a way, they are the very best of man, entirely giving themselves to a train of thought through pain and suffering. Yet, given how they can never truly be ‘man’, Sorvians are destined to suffer a long and painful existence of chasing the nature of something they believe in, but can never fully understand. This is why ideologies enrapture them so much; it gives them a taste of something greater, of being ‘man’. Yet, they can only maintain these ideologies so long as it is viable. Sorvians are timeless, but Descendants are not. Should it come to pass that the ideology they so love is erased from the world, or they are separated from it, one of two things will happen: the Sorvian will persist, alone, or spiritually break. If they persist in their belief, they will continually go to greater and greater lengths to justify it; utilizing doublethink, among other things, to force it to make sense in a world where it no longer does. Or, they will break. A broken Sorvian is a bizarre creature to behold. It maintains all knowledge and memories of before it broke it’s ideology, but it’s almost a clean slate. It views it’s previous actions and life as almost entirely a different person, separate from itself and what it may believe now.
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Such is the nature of Sorvians. They are not, and will never be, true life. They’re parasites on the true bravery and history of the Descendants, wishing to experience it for themselves but never fully capable. Their bizarre and uncanny bodies and timeless nature only work to further the gap between Descendant & Sorvian. Sorvians will, from time to time, be wracked with ‘phantom pains’ of previous wounds and lost limbs. Given their inability to heal, the pain never truly leaves them, simply fading into the movement of daily life before spiking up at random intervals without true reason. These pains are most common when a Sorvian is close to a psychological break in their ideology.
 
   
 
   
−
*Sorvians are highly resilient to the elements and the use of clandestine utilities such as poisons. As Sorvian bodies are timeless, temporal forces such as the elements have difficulty ensuing substantial degradation to their bodies, such as freezing whether inciting frostbite or flame marking them with extreme, debilitating burns. Poisons do not work because there is not a bloodflow to lead poisons to the heart.
+
 
 +
=Sorvian Capabilities=
 +
 
 +
 
 +
==Timeless Form==
 +
 
 +
===Description===
 +
 
 +
Sorvians and their husk-like body are timeless to an extent. Though they weather and wear down, and cannot heal themselves naturally, neither do they suffer the effects of aging or withering like Descendants do. This allows them to persist in their existence and their goals, even when another may have gotten old and perished. This comes with the effect, however, that they cannot recover any chips or wounds to their body on their own. Even the slow wearing down of time, of joints and fingers, will eventually wear down a Sorvian. Never to an extent to make them collapse or lose function of body parts, but enough to show scars and other signs of both weathering and life.
 +
 
 +
===Mechanics===
 +
 
 +
A Sorvian does not age, but cannot heal themselves either. Their lack of blood and repair means that any injury, big or small, is permanent unless fixed by a Sculptor. Other things, such as scars or calluses, will permanently develop as an aesthetic feature on an old Sorvian.
 +
 
 +
===Red Lines===
 +
 
 +
    Sorvians do not have the capability to age.
 +
 
 +
    They are ‘Timeless’, in the sense of they will neither age with time but also cannot heal any injuries gained day-to-day without Sculptor interference.
 +
 
 +
    Any aging Sorvian needs to show signs of the weathering of life, whether that be with old scars or calluses, etc.
 +
 
 
   
 
   
−
*Sorvians are unrelenting in what they believe and are incapable in faltering in this regard, much like machines and their directives. A Sorvian Canonist Priest can preach to the masses, word by word, for days upon days and with no deterrent or tire; for their will to serve their aligned way cannot be broken. This coincides with the will of soldiers as well.
+
 
 +
==Pain Tolerance & Limb Loss==
 +
 
 +
===Description===
 +
 
 +
Sorvians do not feel pain the same way a Descendant might, their sense of touch not quite as sensitive. Even losing a limb or receiving a burn, to them, is a slow burning ache that takes years to fade away completely, without the initial sharp and overwhelming sensations a Descendant may experience with this. On top of this, as Sorvians lack blood and their soul essence is trapped between the space of their chest cavity and head/mask, losing a limb is nowhere near as dangerous as it is for a Descendant. Cutting through a Sorvians limb is significantly easier than cutting through a Descendants, a single good hit more than enough to either cut or tear one off. In return, as stated, Sorvians are both more resistant to the pain of it and the normal drawbacks of losing a limb, capable of simply using their other arm as all Sorvians are naturally ambidextrous.
 +
 
 +
===Mechanics===
 +
 
 +
Sorvians have a less sensitive sense of pain than a Descendant, though the pain of injuries will begin as and remain a slow and constant ache or throb that takes years to fully leave. Sorvians can also lose limbs without any major negative effect, beyond losing effect of the limb. They do not have blood, and are naturally ambidextrous. It is, however, easier to cut or tear off a Sorvians limb than a Descendants.
 +
 
 +
===Red Lines===
 +
 
 +
    Sorvians are less sensitive to pain than Descendants, but they still feel it, and it’s a constant dull ache that can at least years at a time.
 +
 
 +
    Sorvians do not have blood, and can lose external limbs that are not their head without major negative effect, beyond being incapacitated should all limbs be removed.
 +
 
 +
    Sorvians are naturally ambidextrous.
 +
 
 +
    Tearing off or cutting off the limb of a Sorvian is much easier than doing such to a Descendant.
 +
 
 
   
 
   
−
*Sorvians bear a greater supernatural presence within their souls known as Higher-Neutrality. It prevents their timeless bodies and limboed souls from being “corrupted”, and therefore subject to the powers of Aengudaemons, as Sorvians are just as capable of serving Orders aligned with Gods as they are darker forces. If Sorvians were susceptible to these powers, that would mean Jevex’s designs for a unbiased agent of ideology were flawed, which detracts from their core design to embody any kind of mortal following.
 
−
 
−
*Their tolerance for physical duress is high, much like their threshold for physical pain. These two bodily aspects go hand in hand, as their timelessness prevents their muscles from suffering from exhaustion that many mortals eventually feel while traveling or upon the battlefield.
 
−
 
−
'''Disadvantages'''
 
−
 
−
*Sorvians are robbed of the “self”, meaning literally everything that defined them in mortal life is erased from their facial features to the very design of their race. They become “unbiased”, and cannot form a new personality without being dependant on the ideologies they crave to serve.
 
−
 
−
*As timeless beings, Sorvians lose a majority of usual mortal functions that correlate to the basic organic design of their bodies. They can no longer “enjoy” life,  reproduce, or confide in mortal virtues. They become a blank slate, a machine, an agent, and are no longer in need of these basic mortal aspects.
 
−
 
−
*While they are resistant to natural temporal forces, Sorvians do not react well at all to arcane-based ones. They react almost viciously to powers summoned from the Void, because powers summon from the Void do not adhere to the passage of time, much like Sorvians, meaning these powers and the Sorvians are put on the same “existential level”. This disparages their corporeal form in ways comparable to an undead reacting to gold or holy magic; Voidal fire easily catches upon their unchanging flesh, Voidal ice incites almost immediate frostbite, and Voidal arcane power’s kinetic forces are enough to tear them apart.
 
−
 
−
*They must always depend on an ideology to follow, because if they are not apart of one, Sorvians are reduced to bizarre nomadic entities where they cannot fight, speak or bring themselves to do something for the sake of something else unless it involves them becoming aligned with an ideology. In this same fact, they are unbiased in this strange astray state, and do not have preferences toward either dark or light or good or evil ideologies. The design of them does not matter; it is the fact they are there and may be served that does.
 
−
 
−
*Both their violent reaction to Voidal powers and the “pause” upon their soul prevents any kind of magical connections from being formed, even in the darkest spectrum. This means Sorvians must always depend on martial skill for matters involving combat, as they are completely unable to use magic.
 
−
 
−
*Because all Sorvians are locked into the same physical profile, their strength is limited in a way their endurance and pain profiles are not. While they are capable of being strong - as strong as a lithe soldier, at most - they are not strong enough to heft heavy armor and greater weaponry, especially not all at the same time. The most a Sorvian can wield is a heavy longsword or a two-handed battle axe or a fighting staff, and leather armor or chainmail, but never heavier weapons such as greatswords or protections such as plate mail or higher.
 
  
 +
=General Red Lines=
 +
 +
    Sorvian Sculptors can only Awaken 3 Sorvians within a 3 month period, including played Newts. However, this is only the case for playable Sorvians. Background Newts, non-combative and only for aesthetic or irp assistance, are capable of being made. All background Sorvians must be Newts, but Newts are still playable.
 +
 +
    This is a Feat, meaning it does not take a magic slot. However teaching Sorvian Sculpting requires a TA, meaning it does require a teaching slot.
 +
 +
    Sorvians can only be created out of combat.
 +
 +
    Sorvians have no true, only a vague collection of soul essence from their creator. This means Sorvians cannot use any magic that requires a soul.
 +
 +
    Sorvians do not and cannot breath, meaning they cannot learn Kani.
 +
 +
    A Sorvian can learn Sorvian Sculpting, but given how little soul essence they have they can only make 1 Sorvian per 3 months.
 +
 +
    Sorvians who know Sculpting can, in theory, create new limbs for themselves and patch themselves. But this can only be done out of combat.
 +
 +
    As Sorvians do not have blood of their own, they require the blood of another. It seems that Sorvians are anomalous enough that simply handling the blood of others allow them to imbue the life giving properties necessary for Sorvian creation.
 +
 +
    Existing characters cannot become Sorvians; they have to be fresh characters.
 +
 +
    Normal sized Sorvians are 3-6ft in height with the proportions of a human.
 +
 +
    Playable Newts are 2-3ft in height with the proportions of a halfling.
 +
 +
    Non-player Newts are 1-2ft height and with more lenient proportions.
 +
 +
    There are three ways to destroy a Sorvian: Puncturing it’s chest cavity so it’s soul essence drains out, decapitation, or crushing it’s mask.
 +
 +
    Puncturing a Sorvian’s chest will result in a slow death of five emotes, where the Sorvian or anyone else may attempt to cover the wound to prevent the leaking of more soul essence. If this is done, the Sorvian can continue to exist, albeit feeling incredibly weary and cold, and with a dangerous wound. These can be more permanently healed with the assistance of a Sorvian Sculptor.
 +
 +
    Additionally, decapitation will result in a more sudden death. After decapitation, the Sorvian will have a single emote during which they will cease to live. This means a decapitated Sorvian is surely dead, and must be revived through other means.
 +
 +
    Destroying a Sorvian’s mask would take three solid and direct hits throughout a combat. If damage is sustained but the mask is not broken, it will heal itself, the only part of a Sorvian capable of doing so. This healing will take 24 OOC hours. If the mask is successfully broken, the Sorvian will have to be revived through the accepted revival methods.
 +
 +
    A Sorvian may not go against a direct command from their creator, nor would they ever willingly harm their creator. Indirectly, yes, but any direct request must be carried out; it’s part of their nature to put their creator on a pedestal, an unbreakable part of their mental state. As such, no direct command from the creator will be defied. Whether they agree with it or not, they will do it. There is one exception to this, however; the Sorvian’s mask.
  
−
'''Notable Sorvians :'''
+
    Sorvians are psychologically attached to their mask, viewing it as their ‘face’. Any attempt to harm it will be met with defiance, even towards their creator. They wouldn’t harm their creator for this; they simply can’t force themselves to harm their creator. But they will resist, move, run, and push away any attempt to harm their mask. It’s an integral part of their identity, and some deep part of their peculiar intelligence knows that destruction of the mask is death.
  
 +
    Sorvians CAN’T partake in any sexual action or any sexual FTB.
  
−
Zealot, an old ancient Sorvian which has been designed a new purpose. [ This is played by Kinslayer ]
+
    These are not Sorvians of old; being entirely separate in lore function and origin, they are only a successor in name.
  
 
[[Category:Races]]
 
[[Category:Races]]

Latest revision as of 14:15, 17 August 2021

This page is a copy of the original lore which can be found hereand should be rewritten to be a summary of the lore.

In times now past, the term Sorvian referred to a certain type of creature, often called ‘flesh golems’ or even more directly, servants. And serve they did, fulfilling the purposes laid out for them by their Masters. At first they were mindless, though some of the more elder Sorvians eventually gained a solid sense of self and understanding of life around them. It was not to last, however. The creation ritual of these Sorvians, and the deathly materials required, were eventually lost to time. So, too, were the Sorvians themselves lost, their number falling and falling until the very last Sorvian had disappeared from the realm.


Eventually, an unknown man rediscovered a small account of these Sorvians, though it did not describe much beyond their appearance and a bit of their servitude. Intrigued, he sought more knowledge, but never truly found much beyond more scribbled eye witness accounts. The man, eventually growing frustrated, began experimenting with different creations and attempts at constructs. None of these proved successful. However, the man was by trade a potter, and eventually became obsessed with the idea of reviving these Sorvians via his craft.


Though his business plummeted, and the man went from managing a feasible living to subsiding in squalor and slums, he eventually made headway. He believed his creations to be true Sorvians, though they were far from such, simply a mockery and imitation through entirely unrelated methods. However, since the original Sorvians had been virtually erased and the man desperately craved success, he deemed these creatures Neo-Sorvians and began constructing more, as well as teaching pupils.


The Sculptor

Sorvian crafting, hereby called ‘Sculpting,’ is a feat that can be learned by any player character that has a soul. The animation of the Sorvian comes from an amount of soul essence the Sculptor departs onto it, giving it the energy it needs to sustain itself. This process is draining to the Sculptor, and the resulting time it takes to regain the soul essence means a Sculptor can create a maximum of 3 Sorvians per 3 months. This soul essence is held together by a ‘mask’, upon the back of which the Sculptor scrawls an incantation in their own blood that seems to come to them in the moment, though it has no apparent or true meaning, simply a vessel to hold together a mockery of a soul for the Sorvian to have.


The Sorvian’s body, before Awakening, is known as a Husk. A suitable Husk for a playable Sorvian is between 3-6ft in height, with the proportions of a human. Playable Newts can be shorter, from a range of 2-3ft in height and the proportions of a halfling. It’s ‘skeleton’ can be made of any type of wood, and every single part of the skeleton must be covered in a suitable layer of clay, ranging in thickness depending on the part of the body. The finished product must be a humanoid and distinctly organic in it’s proportions and features. A few things, such as aesthetic lines or ridges, are permitted, but nothing that could give any sort of advantage, combat or otherwise. If a Sorvian’s Husk doesn’t follow the above prerequisites, the creation ritual will fail and the entire Husk will crumble to a pile of decimated clay particles and wood chips. A budding Sorvian Sculptor will likely struggle with this step, but as soon as they can produce suitable Husks, then they can move on to mask creation.


Masks must be made of porcelain, with two identifiable eye holes and a mouth. If it is not, the incantation will not activate, and cannot be suitable placed on or connected to the Sorvian. However, once a suitable mask and a suitable Husk have been created, and the incantation scrawled across the back of the mask, the Sculptor can activate a ritual known as Awakening. This ‘Awakening’ is the birth and waking up of the Sorvian, with a hard limit of 3 Sorvians per 3 months able to be Awoken. However, Sculptors can create small non-player, 1ft-2ft tall miniature Sorvians that cannot be used for combat, but are instead an aesthetic item for background rp for a workshop or other such things. Normal size restrictions do not apply to these, though their strength is that of a halfling at most. They will be referred to as Newts. You can create player Newts, but these ones would count towards your 3 total per 3 months.


The Sculpting

Incanting

Description

Incanting is the act of a Sorvian Sculptor, where a suitable Incantation is scrawled across the back of the mask in their own blood. This incantation is in an unlearnable and unknown language, truly just random symbols that a Sculptor can pull out of their head with enough effort. When a suitable Incantation is drawn on the back of a mask, it gains an amount of the Sculptor’s soul essence, and they feel a sense of weakness and slight cold that permeates their body. This does, however, prime the mask for the Awakening process.

Mechanics

Incanting is the writing of a string of nonsense characters on the back of a suitable porcelain mask, in a Sorvian Sculptor’s blood. This gives the mask an amount of the Sculptor’s soul essence that leaves them feeling weak and cold for a short period. This primes the mask for Awakening, another ability. This procedure only works on suitable masks, and has no anomalous effects or interactions with any other magic or creature. The only thing it can interact with is a Sorvian Husk.

Redlines

   Requires a feat application in Sorvian Sculpting.

   Written in one's own blood.

   Has to be done on a suitable mask.

   Unknowable and unlearnable language, forever changing nonsense characters.

   Leaves the Sculptor feeling slightly weak and cold, for aesthetic.

   Only masks that have been Incanted are usable for Awakening.

   Has no anomalous effects with anything beyond a suitable Sorvian Husk.


Awakening

Description

Awakening is the act of applying a suitable mask onto a suitable Husk, creating the previously inanimate structure into a Sorvian. When this is done, the mask will meld with the clay of the Husk’s head, no longer able to be removed without killing the Sorvian. A wave of pale blue light will radiate out from where the mask makes contact, engulfing the whole Husk within a span of a few seconds and giving the Husk the spark of life and intelligence needed to become a Sorvian.

Mechanics

Awakening requires a suitable mask and Husk. When the mask is placed onto the head of the Husk, it will be consumed in light and turn the structure into a functioning Sorvian.

Redlines

   Requires a feat in Sorvian Sculpting.

   Requires a suitable mask & Husk within the parameters above.


Revival

Description

Sorvian Sculptors maintain the ability to heal injured Sorvians using the same power as their ability to create. Lost limbs can be repaired by creating new ones and writing a fresh Incantation on the supposed connection point, and then connecting it to the Sorvian. In a flash of light, it will be reattached, and now flesh, albeit pink and slightly off compared to the rest of the Sorvian. Other wounds can be patched by taking wet clay and mixing it with a small amount of the Sculptor’s blood. Then, apply it to the wound. Within a few minutes the clay will miraculously dry and turn to flesh, roughly patching the Sorvian’s form. However, this flesh too will be pink and rough, a radius around the whole patch being soft and tissue like forever. Additionally, Sculptors can also revive dead Sorvians.

To recover a destroyed Sorvian, a Sculptor must take one of a few steps: They can recover the mask, which, upon the death of the Sorvian, will detach from the clay husk, though still with all the decoration and appearance that decorated it in the life of the Sorvian. The incantation remains on the back, and if pressed onto a fresh husk, will cause the Sorvian to reawaken. The fresh husk, even if originally different, will warp and twist during the ritual process to appear virtually identical to the old husk, even down to the last scar or chip in the finger. This means that, even if a Sorvian dies and is brought back, it’s brought back in the same timeless form and essentially the same body. However, if the mask is destroyed, the Sculptor must go through the extra step of recreating the mask. Any Sorvian Sculptor is capable of recreating the necessary incantation and mask, almost by instinct if they will themselves hard enough, but a Sorvian can only ever have one ‘creator’ in their mind and can only have that reverence for their ‘One’. This process does not count as one of the three max per three months of Sorvian’s made, meaning a Sculptor can bring back as many Sorvian’s as they so desire, but can only do so once per OOC 24 hours.

Mechanics

Sculptors can repair limbs and other wounds on Sorvians. Limbs require the sculpting and firing of a new limb, with a proper Incantation on the connection point. Other wounds require wet clay mixed with a small amount of the Sculptor’s blood, that will rapidly harden and act as a functional, if pale and uncanny, replacement to the destroyed area. A Sculptor can also revive destroyed Sorvians. This is done by either recovering the mask and putting it on a new Husk, or creating a new mask identical to the old one and placing it on a new Husk. The Husk will, when Awakened, turn into an identical copy of the old one, with all the same flaws and scars.

Redlines

   New limbs will, when attached, look similar to the original one the Sorvian had. However, at the point of connection, a soft and pale tissue will remain to remind of the joining of the new limb.

   Reviving destroyed Sorvians requires one either recovers the old mask, or creates a replica.

   A revived Sorvian’s new Husk will rapidly warp and change to immediately look like their old one, with all the same scars and history.

Sorvian Physiology

A Sorvian’s body, no longer called a Husk when animated, is relatively uncanny. Even if the original clay Husk was painstakingly detailed over, their body is still relatively smooth and hairless, and their expressionless mask of a face places them firmly in the uncanny valley. As such, to make them more appealing to the mortals they desire to learn from and become more like, they cover themselves in clothing and wraps fitting of whatever it is they are pursuing.


A Sorvian, then, has two necessary parts: Their head, or really their mask, and their chest cavity area. Puncturing the chest cavity would cause soul essence to leak out of them, causing them to perish. Severing the head from the torso would also accomplish this, the soul essence leaking out of the connection between the mask and chest, a narrow channel only visible from the inside of the Sorvian. When puncturing the chest cavity, soul essence will begin leaking out, but not instantly. It will take a period of five emotes before the Sorvian succumbs to it’s meager soul draining away. Decapitation, however, is much quicker. After decapitation, the Sorvian has a mere emote before perishing. Cracking and breaking a Sorvian’s mask would also kill them, not only reverting to clay but destroying their sense of self, and as such collapsing as a mortal might. Cracking a mask would take three solid hits, somehow hardened from the creation ritual. When a Sorvian dies, their body returns to a clay Husk.


To recover a destroyed Sorvian, a Sculptor must take one of a few steps: They can recover the mask, which, upon the death of the Sorvian, will detach from the clay husk, though still with all the decoration and appearance that decorated it in the life of the Sorvian. The incantation remains on the back, and if pressed onto a fresh husk, will cause the Sorvian to reawaken. The fresh husk, even if originally different, will warp and twist during the ritual process to appear virtually identical to the old husk, even down to the last scar or chip in the finger. This means that, even if a Sorvian dies and is brought back, it’s brought back in the same timeless form and essentially the same body. However, if the mask is destroyed, the Sculptor must go through the extra step of recreating the mask. Any Sorvian Sculptor is capable of recreating the necessary incantation and mask, almost by instinct if they will themselves hard enough, but a Sorvian can only ever have one ‘creator’ in their mind and can only have that reverence for their ‘One’. This process does not count as one of the three max per three months of Sorvian’s made, meaning a Sculptor can bring back as many Sorvian’s as they so desire, but can only do so once per OOC 24 hours.


A Sorvian must have all parts of their wooden skeleton covered by clay, and as such by flesh, when being sculpted. A Sorvian can have slight additions to their form as well, that can come in the form of extra appendages or otherwise. However, the strength in each added appendage will be divided across all of them. For instance, a four armed Sorvian will have only half strength in each arm, equalling the same strength as a two armed Sorvian or human. An appendage in this case means a mobile limb. Adding crests or other small details, or truly anything that wouldn’t serve a use in combat, is not included under this and can be added freely during the original Sculpting process. They cannot, however, have clawed fingers or any sharp or unnatural attachments to their form, requiring to be humanoid in their make in the simplest sense.


A Sorvian, if ‘injured’, will not recover from their injury like a Descendant will. Being scarred, losing a limb, et cetera are all lasting things and will remain with the Sorvian and their timeless body. They can, however, visit any Sorvian Sculptor, either their own creator or another, and seek repairs. Repairs include the Sculptor acquiring flesh clay, and sculpting a piece to fit in or smooth over the area. Say a Sorvian is missing it’s left arm, and goes to a Sculptor. The Sculptor can create a fresh limb, and can use a similar process as the mask creating process to scrawl an incantation on where the limb would make contact with the Sorvian. Then, when pressed firmly to where the arm should go, a wave of light will run down it and connect the fresh limb to the Sorvian. Should a Sorvian have a large gash in their stomach area, though not directly impairing them, a similar process can take place to make the the Sorvian appear more whole again; A Sculptor acquires a suitable mound of wet clay, and mix it with a small amount of their blood. This is then used to cover the wound, and will rapidly dry within a few narrative minutes to serve as a rough patch job. However, in any repair case like this, the Sorvian does not fully recover; even if a Sculptor takes great pains with this process, it won’t be perfect. Around the gashed area, something close to a scar would run, a slight, ragged indent along the whole length of the injury. Reconnected arms or the like would have this as well, around the base of the shoulder or wherever the limb is attached to. The new flesh will be at half strength for a period of one week, and will always be slightly paler than the Sorvian itself and it’s original limb, adding even more to the uncanny appearance of being ‘separate’. This process cannot be used to connect new things to a Sorvian, simply repair them; if you attempt to attach anything that was not originally meant to be there in the original Husk, then the ritual will not work and the piece will not connect.


The mask cannot be removed from the head, welded on there by the creation ritual and a direct part of the flesh, though it feels like cold ceramic to the touch. The mouth hole and eye holes of the mask, though pitch black when looked into, are where the Sorvian’s sees from and speaks from respectively. A Sorvian has the average eyesight & ability to hear of a human, with their mask face and lack of true eyes not truly giving them any advantage over others. A Sorvian has a relatively neutral but always developing vocal range. Whatever ideology and culture a Sorvian meshes with, their accent and voice will grow to mimic it organically over the course of a year or two. The mask will always remain stationary on their face, meaning Sorvian’s are incapable of smiling or doing anything with their face beyond what the mask was originally created to look like. However, despite this, the mask will seemingly develop and grow in certain ways on it’s own, depending on what the Sorvian in question is aligning themselves with. For instance, a nature inclined Sorvian may grow antlers directly out of their mask, completely natural in appearance and appearing seemingly without them willing it; it simply happens, and each addition to a mask is a permanent symbol or reminder of them and what they believe. A warrior Sorvian may have permanent warpaint colors on their mask that’s entirely flush with the texture of the ceramic, as well as a bard Sorvian may have a mask that slowly grows and stretches into the constant visage of a smile at the same time as an assassin Sorvian may have their mouth flatten out and turn into an emotionless line on their face. They must, however, maintain two eye holes and a mouth. If one stuck their hand into one of these holes, they will meet an immediate black wall, smooth and seemingly the source of the Sorvian’s sight and sound.


Strengths & Weaknesses

Sorvian’s are comprised entirely of flesh and bone. Cutting through a Sorvian’s limb would be significantly easier than that of a Descendant, as they lack any blood or tendons or any real muscle. It is simply flesh all the way through, and a relatively brittle bone-like material that can be split or cracked in two with a strong cleaving strike from a sword. However, as Sorvian’s do not have blood and have a high pain tolerance, losing a limb doesn’t accomplish much in combat besides making that limb unusable. All Sorvian’s are ambidextrous and experience an uncanny dexterity in their more precise movements, and would be capable of wielding a weapon with either arm. A Sorvian can lose both arms and both legs and still be alive and well, though now essentially harmless, despite them attempting to fight otherwise. When a limb is removed from the body, it reverts back to the clay it came from with a shudder.


A Sorvian has the average eyesight & ability to hear of a human, with their mask face and lack of true eyes not truly giving them any advantage over others. A Sorvian has a relatively neutral but always developing vocal range. Whatever ideology and culture a Sorvian meshes with, their accent and voice will grow to mimic it organically over the course of a year or two. The mask will always remain stationary on their face, meaning Sorvian’s are incapable of smiling or doing anything with their face beyond what the mask was originally created to look like.


Mental Description

Mindset

A Sorvian is made to serve, and will always have a sense of reverence, or at least deeply ingrained respect, for their creator. However, they are not entirely bound by this creator. Though they will follow any requests given to them by their creator, they feel compelled to wander and interact with the mortals around them, and learn of their beliefs and what drives them. A Sorvian is created as a blank slate, completely moldable and sculptable into one belief system or another by whatever they are exposed to most. Generally, the ideology they take will be much akin to their creator, as that is what they are mostly exposed to. Once a Sorvian has sufficiently became enraptured with an ideology, they will devote themselves entirely to it, even in the face of pain or suffering. Time has little meaning to a Sorvian, as they are by nature timeless, and as their theoretical life and stretch on into the ages, they can obsess over their ideology and goals forever until something in the fabric of their perception changes. Whether that’s a request from their creator, being separated from their ideology, or something else, is up to the player. While they will follow any request or command from their creator, viewing such things as just a part of their life, they are not mindless or willess servants. A Sorvian may disagree with a command they are given, but will still follow through with it. And they are not dependent on their creator in this way, either. If a creator does not give them a task, they will pursue things on their own. If a Sorvian’s creator perishes or loses contact with them, they will not be compelled to seek out a new ‘Master’, and will instead exist on their own in pursuit of whatever ideology has enraptured them.


Mental State

Sorvian’s are dictated by their ideology. In a way, they are the very best of man, entirely giving themselves to a train of thought through pain and suffering. Yet, given how they can never truly be ‘man’, Sorvians are destined to suffer a long and painful existence of chasing the nature of something they believe in, but can never fully understand. This is why ideologies enrapture them so much; it gives them a taste of something greater, of being ‘man’. Yet, they can only maintain these ideologies so long as it is viable. Sorvians are timeless, but Descendants are not. Should it come to pass that the ideology they so love is erased from the world, or they are separated from it, one of two things will happen: the Sorvian will persist, alone, or spiritually break. If they persist in their belief, they will continually go to greater and greater lengths to justify it; utilizing doublethink, among other things, to force it to make sense in a world where it no longer does. Or, they will break. A broken Sorvian is a bizarre creature to behold. It maintains all knowledge and memories of before it broke it’s ideology, but it’s almost a clean slate. It views it’s previous actions and life as almost entirely a different person, separate from itself and what it may believe now.

Such is the nature of Sorvians. They are not, and will never be, true life. They’re parasites on the true bravery and history of the Descendants, wishing to experience it for themselves but never fully capable. Their bizarre and uncanny bodies and timeless nature only work to further the gap between Descendant & Sorvian. Sorvians will, from time to time, be wracked with ‘phantom pains’ of previous wounds and lost limbs. Given their inability to heal, the pain never truly leaves them, simply fading into the movement of daily life before spiking up at random intervals without true reason. These pains are most common when a Sorvian is close to a psychological break in their ideology.


Sorvian Capabilities

Timeless Form

Description

Sorvians and their husk-like body are timeless to an extent. Though they weather and wear down, and cannot heal themselves naturally, neither do they suffer the effects of aging or withering like Descendants do. This allows them to persist in their existence and their goals, even when another may have gotten old and perished. This comes with the effect, however, that they cannot recover any chips or wounds to their body on their own. Even the slow wearing down of time, of joints and fingers, will eventually wear down a Sorvian. Never to an extent to make them collapse or lose function of body parts, but enough to show scars and other signs of both weathering and life.

Mechanics

A Sorvian does not age, but cannot heal themselves either. Their lack of blood and repair means that any injury, big or small, is permanent unless fixed by a Sculptor. Other things, such as scars or calluses, will permanently develop as an aesthetic feature on an old Sorvian.

Red Lines

   Sorvians do not have the capability to age.

   They are ‘Timeless’, in the sense of they will neither age with time but also cannot heal any injuries gained day-to-day without Sculptor interference.

   Any aging Sorvian needs to show signs of the weathering of life, whether that be with old scars or calluses, etc.


Pain Tolerance & Limb Loss

Description

Sorvians do not feel pain the same way a Descendant might, their sense of touch not quite as sensitive. Even losing a limb or receiving a burn, to them, is a slow burning ache that takes years to fade away completely, without the initial sharp and overwhelming sensations a Descendant may experience with this. On top of this, as Sorvians lack blood and their soul essence is trapped between the space of their chest cavity and head/mask, losing a limb is nowhere near as dangerous as it is for a Descendant. Cutting through a Sorvians limb is significantly easier than cutting through a Descendants, a single good hit more than enough to either cut or tear one off. In return, as stated, Sorvians are both more resistant to the pain of it and the normal drawbacks of losing a limb, capable of simply using their other arm as all Sorvians are naturally ambidextrous.

Mechanics

Sorvians have a less sensitive sense of pain than a Descendant, though the pain of injuries will begin as and remain a slow and constant ache or throb that takes years to fully leave. Sorvians can also lose limbs without any major negative effect, beyond losing effect of the limb. They do not have blood, and are naturally ambidextrous. It is, however, easier to cut or tear off a Sorvians limb than a Descendants.

Red Lines

   Sorvians are less sensitive to pain than Descendants, but they still feel it, and it’s a constant dull ache that can at least years at a time.

   Sorvians do not have blood, and can lose external limbs that are not their head without major negative effect, beyond being incapacitated should all limbs be removed.

   Sorvians are naturally ambidextrous.

   Tearing off or cutting off the limb of a Sorvian is much easier than doing such to a Descendant.


General Red Lines

   Sorvian Sculptors can only Awaken 3 Sorvians within a 3 month period, including played Newts. However, this is only the case for playable Sorvians. Background Newts, non-combative and only for aesthetic or irp assistance, are capable of being made. All background Sorvians must be Newts, but Newts are still playable.

   This is a Feat, meaning it does not take a magic slot. However teaching Sorvian Sculpting requires a TA, meaning it does require a teaching slot.

   Sorvians can only be created out of combat.

   Sorvians have no true, only a vague collection of soul essence from their creator. This means Sorvians cannot use any magic that requires a soul.

   Sorvians do not and cannot breath, meaning they cannot learn Kani.

   A Sorvian can learn Sorvian Sculpting, but given how little soul essence they have they can only make 1 Sorvian per 3 months.

   Sorvians who know Sculpting can, in theory, create new limbs for themselves and patch themselves. But this can only be done out of combat.

   As Sorvians do not have blood of their own, they require the blood of another. It seems that Sorvians are anomalous enough that simply handling the blood of others allow them to imbue the life giving properties necessary for Sorvian creation.

   Existing characters cannot become Sorvians; they have to be fresh characters.

   Normal sized Sorvians are 3-6ft in height with the proportions of a human.

   Playable Newts are 2-3ft in height with the proportions of a halfling.

   Non-player Newts are 1-2ft height and with more lenient proportions.

   There are three ways to destroy a Sorvian: Puncturing it’s chest cavity so it’s soul essence drains out, decapitation, or crushing it’s mask.

   Puncturing a Sorvian’s chest will result in a slow death of five emotes, where the Sorvian or anyone else may attempt to cover the wound to prevent the leaking of more soul essence. If this is done, the Sorvian can continue to exist, albeit feeling incredibly weary and cold, and with a dangerous wound. These can be more permanently healed with the assistance of a Sorvian Sculptor.

   Additionally, decapitation will result in a more sudden death. After decapitation, the Sorvian will have a single emote during which they will cease to live. This means a decapitated Sorvian is surely dead, and must be revived through other means.

   Destroying a Sorvian’s mask would take three solid and direct hits throughout a combat. If damage is sustained but the mask is not broken, it will heal itself, the only part of a Sorvian capable of doing so. This healing will take 24 OOC hours. If the mask is successfully broken, the Sorvian will have to be revived through the accepted revival methods.

   A Sorvian may not go against a direct command from their creator, nor would they ever willingly harm their creator. Indirectly, yes, but any direct request must be carried out; it’s part of their nature to put their creator on a pedestal, an unbreakable part of their mental state. As such, no direct command from the creator will be defied. Whether they agree with it or not, they will do it. There is one exception to this, however; the Sorvian’s mask.

   Sorvians are psychologically attached to their mask, viewing it as their ‘face’. Any attempt to harm it will be met with defiance, even towards their creator. They wouldn’t harm their creator for this; they simply can’t force themselves to harm their creator. But they will resist, move, run, and push away any attempt to harm their mask. It’s an integral part of their identity, and some deep part of their peculiar intelligence knows that destruction of the mask is death.

   Sorvians CAN’T partake in any sexual action or any sexual FTB.

   These are not Sorvians of old; being entirely separate in lore function and origin, they are only a successor in name.
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