Ghosts

Ghosts are apparitions of people who have died and are unable to pass on from this world, for any number of reasons.
A ghost usually starts out lost in The Dreaming, or Limbo, a void where the ghost's memories seem real and the physical world does not. It relives its memories over and over with no capability of self-reflection. The real world is invisible to the ghost, though once in a while, especially if a sentient creature pays attention to it, the ghost can gain lucidity and break out of its limbo to see the world around it for a time. It may use this time to right a wrong or seek revenge, or simply attempt to return to a life it doesn't have anymore.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Manifestation

The ghost can take solid form for a brief time. She can take any shape she wants, though is most likely to appear as she sees herself, which is how she looked shortly before she died. Usually, this appearance is aided by telepathy to 'flesh out' her appearance, while photos taken of a ghost will show only vague shadows or distortions in the air. A ghost's form is actually rather nebulous, a cloud of ethereal energy that can fill up a small room, so she can actually manifest in many nearby places nearly simultaneously, or throw every object in a room at once. It is almost impossible to see this cloud-like state, though it tends to register as cold spots or visible distortion on sensory recording equipment. As such, she is able to pass through most barriers and is untouchable by most material (see Weaknesses) unless she wants to be touched.

Psychokinesis

A ghost is able to move things with force of will. She may appear to grab an object with her hands or kick with her feet, but she does not actually need to be in contact with an object to make it fly across the room in a sudden burst of energy. Holding and carrying something is more difficult: if she wanted to present an object for someone to see, she would be more likely to make an illusion of the object appear in her hands.

Energy Interference

As a being of energy, a ghost is able to disrupt the flow of energy around her. This can be as simple as causing brown-outs and power surges in electrical wiring nearby, or interfering with and manipulating nearby radio signals.

Weaknesses

It is difficult for a ghost to be mistaken for a human for long. There is something unnatural about them, the way they move (or don't move), or they appear to float instead of walking around. Their form is often inconsistent, changing in detail from moment to moment. Normally, a ghost's whole existence is dictated by her memories. When she is not lucid, she is reliving a memory of her past in a dream, with no ability to self-reflect, only to re-experience. Food and drink taste exactly as she remembers them, so too with touch and smell; new sensations are not possible for her to experience. The real world is unreal to her, so there is very little compelling her to remain lucid. If her remains are found and laid to rest, then she is likely to vanish forever. However, it has been decades since she died, and there is little left to be found. A religious rite of cleansing won't likely destroy the ghost, but it might expel her from a place and leave her weak and undetectable. An unbroken line of salt can be used to prevent a ghost from passing. Hitting a ghost's corporeal form with cold iron can disrupt it, temporarily forcing it back into ethereal state where it cannot use its powers. As a being of energy, a ghost is susceptible to things that interfere with atmospheric energy, and can be blocked out or trapped by such things as a Faraday cage or an intense electrical field.

Ecology and Habitats

A ghost will start out haunting where it died, but it can latch onto someone nearby and accompany them for a time, perhaps for the rest of that person's life. If the ghost is near its original haunt it will return there; if it is blocked from returning, it is trapped in one place to begin a new haunt until it can attach to another nearby person. If a ghost runs out of energy while it is 'abroad' without a person to feed from, it will fade away.

Dietary Needs and Habits

If sentient beings pay attention to the ghost, the ghost will gain energy, allowing it to grow in strength and come closer to being alive. If everyone ignores the ghost, it loses its food source and will either fight for attention or leave before it completely runs out of energy. If the ghost runs out of energy, it returns to The Dreaming until it gathers enough energy to wake.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Telepathy

The ghost is able to make her thoughts and feelings known by projecting them into a receptive person's head. She may also seem to materialize as an hallucination that is only visible to those she wants to appear to. The ghost is also able to cause the victim to hallucinate environment changes, such as breaking furniture, day/night changes, or even completely replacing the real environment with one from the ghost's memory. If a victim is excessively hard-headed (strong-willed and grounded in reality), he is not likely to see her projections at all. On the other hand, there are people are likely to see her or detect her presence even without her trying to contact them. These people are sensitive and receptive, perhaps empathic or in the same emotional state as the ghost, be it feeling lonely, lost, in despair, or something more related to the way the ghost died (such as a near-death drowning experience or contemplating suicide). They are likely to perceive the ghost as the ghost perceives itself.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

A ghost can latch on to a being who is able to perceive it, feeding on its life energy to allow it to grow stronger.
Possession Possession is the act of taking over a person's body for a time. Possession submerges the victim's consciousness, placing them in a sleep state quite similar to The Dreaming, while the ghost takes over their body and can think and feel, etc, as if it was their own body. The more susceptible a person is to the ghost's telepathy, the more susceptible they are to being possessed. Possession is expensive unless they have been welcomed in. The ghost could stay for a long time if the person gave up on life or specifically wanted to be possessed. The act of possession is a struggle for spiritual control of a body, and not likely to be successful unless the person is mentally weakened, mentally realigned to think like the ghost (with telepathy), or unconscious. For this reason, the victim might be haunted, harassed and worn down until they can't resist, before the ghost attempts a possession. Once possessed, a victim is not likely to regain control until the ghost is exhausted, or some external action serves to wake the victim, such as bodily pain.
Psychokinesis A ghost is able to move things with force of will. She may appear to grab an object with her hands or kick with her feet, but she does not actually need to be in contact with an object flying across the room in a sudden burst of energy. Holding and carrying something is more difficult: if she wanted to present an object for someone to see, she would be more likely to make an illusion of the object appear in her hands.
Her form is actually rather nebulous, a cloud of ethereal energy that can fill up a small room, so she can actually manifest in many nearby places nearly simultaneously, or throw every object in a room at once. It is almost impossible to see this cloud-like state, though it tends to register as cold spots or visible distortion on sensory recording equipment.
Energy Interference As a being of energy, a ghost is able to disrupt the flow of energy around her. This can be as simple as causing brown-outs and power surges in electrical wiring, or interfering with and manipulating radio signals.
Incorporeal A ghost's form is actually rather nebulous, a cloud of ethereal energy that can fill up a small room. As such, she is able to pass through most barriers and is untouchable and by most material (see Weaknesses) unless she wants to be touched.

Civilization and Culture

Common Myths and Legends

Ghosts are in the myths and legends of every culture and share similar traits.