Necromancy
In Borgalor, necromancy technically refers to any kind of deliberate interaction between borgaloreans and Souls from the The Void neighbouring that world, though most people use the term specifically for when a soul is prevented from returning to the Void to harness its power.
Different cultures throughout Borgalor have their own views of these practices, with some forbidding summoning souls of the dead, while in others it is one of their central elements. However, any kind of communicating with souls of the dead has become increasingly taboo as a result of the Fell Wars forty years ago.
Different cultures throughout Borgalor have their own views of these practices, with some forbidding summoning souls of the dead, while in others it is one of their central elements. However, any kind of communicating with souls of the dead has become increasingly taboo as a result of the Fell Wars forty years ago.
Execution
Summoning souls of the dead requires weakening the barrier between Borgalor and the Void, followed by calling the full name of the soul's former host. If successful, the soul will enter Borgalor and remain there for a short while, during which it can be conversed with and may even agree to shield people from magical attacks.
Necromancers use a mix of certain materials, alchemy and magic to confine a summoned soul to an enchanted object to greatly enhance its effects, though it can escape if the object breaks or decays. When this happens, the soul will immediately seek out the nearest place to leave Borgalor, during which it might harm any lifeforms it comes across depending on how long the soul was imprisoned.
Most people disdain this practice as a form of torture and due to the fact that frenzied souls quickly lose all of their host's memories in life means that the person's friends and family can no longer communicate with them.
Over four decades ago, a new method of necromancy was discovered and perfected by a group of maralonean human kings known as The Tetrarchy, which allowed them to prevent a soul from separating from the host's body after death, effectively making the person immortal in the form of a Lich. Using a cruder version of this process, where the separation is incomplete, the liches could create armies of undead beings that retained just enough sapience to follow commands without question, which they attempted to conquer the world with during the Fell Wars. After the liches were defeated, the undead hordes became feral and now roam the wasteland left by the war in southeastern Jælondis, now known as Amþax. The process of becoming lich was lost as well, and no necromancer has been able to replicated it since, or succeeded at gaining control over the undead, despite numerous attempts. Some have even traveled to Amþax in hopes of uncovering research materials within the crumbling ruins, only to perish at the hands of the animated dead or living members of expeditions sent to eradicate the latter.
Necromancers use a mix of certain materials, alchemy and magic to confine a summoned soul to an enchanted object to greatly enhance its effects, though it can escape if the object breaks or decays. When this happens, the soul will immediately seek out the nearest place to leave Borgalor, during which it might harm any lifeforms it comes across depending on how long the soul was imprisoned.
Most people disdain this practice as a form of torture and due to the fact that frenzied souls quickly lose all of their host's memories in life means that the person's friends and family can no longer communicate with them.
History
Necromancy has been practiced in some form by most sapient species of Borgalor long before recorded history, with the only notable exceptions being the ancient Sea Salamanders and modern Cyclopes. Many elven societies discourage necromancy except to placate the souls of those met a violent death, while regular summoning of souls is part of traditional örkrazic orcish ancestor worship to introduce them to new family members.Over four decades ago, a new method of necromancy was discovered and perfected by a group of maralonean human kings known as The Tetrarchy, which allowed them to prevent a soul from separating from the host's body after death, effectively making the person immortal in the form of a Lich. Using a cruder version of this process, where the separation is incomplete, the liches could create armies of undead beings that retained just enough sapience to follow commands without question, which they attempted to conquer the world with during the Fell Wars. After the liches were defeated, the undead hordes became feral and now roam the wasteland left by the war in southeastern Jælondis, now known as Amþax. The process of becoming lich was lost as well, and no necromancer has been able to replicated it since, or succeeded at gaining control over the undead, despite numerous attempts. Some have even traveled to Amþax in hopes of uncovering research materials within the crumbling ruins, only to perish at the hands of the animated dead or living members of expeditions sent to eradicate the latter.
Important Locations
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