The Egregoric Force

The Egregoric Force is the power of The Dream realm to influence the spiritual and physical realms. It is a force of transformation, and can both create and destroy. It is named for the esoteric concept of egregore, and it is the primary driver of the Metaphysics of the Million Islands.
The Egregoric Force, also known as the Force of Legend, derives its power from the collective beliefs of all thinking creatures. These beliefs exert a pressure upon everything in The Dream, spiritual, and physical realms. In The Dream realm, the different ideas interact, rapidly exchanging details, and shifting with the winds of imagination. In the spiritual realm, the pressure alters the resonance of the energies associated with the focus of the belief. This can change the core nature of an idea, altering it far more durably than the quicksilver changes of The Dream realm. When the Egregoric Force impacts the physical realm, it causes its focus to shift to reflect the beliefs of The Dream realm, cast through the resonance of the spiritual.
This transformation is usually quite slow, but can be altered by several factors. The most significant of these are the resistance of the subject to be changed. Things that have a physical anchor, such as a body, or a material object or location, are far more resistant to being transformed than something that exists only in spirit or dream. This is especially true for beings with a physical brain, and for anything that has a sense of its own identity.
The second most significant factor is based on how widespread the belief is. If something is believed by millions of entities, it can exert enormous pressure on the focus. This can lead to all manner of transformations, including the creation of whole new entities.

The Birth of Spirits

The Egregoric Force is the main way in which spirits and gods are born. When thinking creatures assign an idea to a place, object, person, or concept, that idea begins to exert pressure on the focus in The Dream realm, via the Egregoric Force. This extends into the spiritual realm, causing the resonance of the spiritual energies to shift and change. This change alters the way the object is perceived in the physical realm, which can then cause more people to associate yet more ideas to the focus, creating a cycle of belief and change. Over time, the focus begins to be aware of itself as an entity and acquire a sense of identity. At first, the sense of self is rudimentary, but over time it can grow into a free-willed spiritual entity that is embodied by the focus. At first, this slows the transformation, as the newborn entity's own idea of itself resists the pressure from the Egregoric Force, but as it begins to act upon the world, it can rapidly increase the number of people who hold the same ideas about it, and the pressure intensifies. These new beings are broadly called spirits. They bear many names across the Islands, and have nearly limitless variations. When a spirit is worshipped, we call it a god.
As an example, take the Aurelian Bridge. Initially constructed by the Clarati out of magic, it was only a span of earth and rock held together by the energies used to construct it. Over time, the bridge became known as an important link in the trade networks of the world, and ideas of commerce and wealth accrued to it in The Dream realm. The ideas altered the spiritual energies embedded in the bridge, causing them to resonate with the ideas, and the bridge itself slowly became self-aware. It was transformed into a god of commerce and trade by the Egregoric force, and began to grant favors to those who pleased it. This led to people seeking those favors, and even more pressure from the thoughts and dreams of those people who sought the god's blessing. Eventually, the Bridge accrued so much belief in its power that it could alter reality and history itself, should it so desire.

A Force of Destruction

Some may believe that the Egregoric Force is primarily creative. However, it can also destroy the focus of the beliefs by transforming it into something unrecognizable. Let us consider the case of Lampuato.
On this island, the monarchy was linked to the land itself in the minds of the people. They believed that the health of the land was tied to the royal family in a real and tangible way. When the leaders of Lampuato became obsessed with their own greatness, this belief was the seed of a catastrophic cycle.
In order to feed their own narcissism, the royals of Lampuato began to consume the assets of the island at a prodigious rate. They taxed and conscripted the people, and ordered the construction of monuments to themselves that required cutting down most of the trees on the island, including those upon sacred sites. The people saw this and believed that the land would grow angry at this insult - and so it did. The fears and anger of the citizens translated directly into the spirits of the island, causing them to lash out and attack. This inspired further fear and perpetuated a cycle of terror and violence. Over a surprisingly short time, the entire ecology of the island collapsed. The monarchy was overthrown and executed, but this did not end the cycle. The populace still believed that the royal bloodline was tied to health of the island, and with them exterminated, the island became nearly sterile, only grudgingly providing sustenance. In the end, the populace fled, invading and conquering the nearby island of Lahat. Even there, they continued to believe that Lampuato was cursed, and so it is.

Manipulating the Egregoric Force

Some people have learned how to manipulate the Force of Legend, but it is a dangerous thing to attempt. The most successful use of it was by the first High King of Oileán Fiáin, Airgetlám. He was known for his exceptional diplomatic skills, but his true genius was for getting people to see something in a new light and a new way. In the aftermath of the overthrow of the Clarati sorceress Celestina, he was able to convince the Fir Fáinne to view the situation with the enraged Fae of the island differently, as something that could be resolved with the appropriate negotiations. This ability to convince others to believe new things served to redirect the Egregoric Force, pushing the Fae into a more receptive frame of mind, and ultimately allowed the delicate balance between the mortals and the Fae on Oileán Fiáin to be established. While it is unlikely that he was aware of the details of how the force aided him, Airgetlám recorded in his memoirs that winning the hearts and minds of the Fir Fáinne was the key to achieving the peace with the Fae.

Type

Metaphysical, Supernatural