This is the following, older ruleset that I used in the Yew Militia for this particular racial set and shall be placed here for documentation or questions.
Please enjoy my lunacy.
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Spirit Ruleset
The definition of a spirit: "The vital principle or animating force within living beings, Incorporeal consciousness, The part of a living thing that is associated with the mind, will, and feelings."
Synonyms: Soul, Psyche, Ego, Shadow, Inner self.
Prologue:
Whilst in character, choose what you want to go with.
THINK. IT. THROUGH.
If you have to, run it by me or one of the officers in the guild. We can verify it and invoke confidentiality and keep it from our characters ingame.
What is acceptable: "Billy-Bo-Bob has a spirit of a Raven in him. Its considered, to him, good luck. But sometimes he has trouble fitting in with others knowing its inside him."
Awesome.
What is not acceptable: "I haz spirit of Angelz in my char!" "Why?" "Cuz its badazz, NeWb."
…Hell, no. I’d bitchslap you and then promptly castrate(Or forced hysterectomy) you just for typing that.
A Harbinger, or Holder Spirit, can be defined in character as a "Big Boss", or "Big Daddy" spirit. This kind of spirit can fall into any particular category(Guide, Animal, Hauntings, etc), which we will discuss later. This kind of spirit can be a pure and direct descendant or a summoned spirit. Either way, what few powers it has fall under these:
– Manifesting Spirits in others. A Harbinger will be severely weakened for quite some time if they transfer a piece of their essence to another person, living or dead. In the person the Spirit is transferred to, it can turn out to be an exact duplicate of the "Main Body", or even grow up alongside its "Father". Depending on the amount of essence given, this tiredness or exhaustion can last from one ingame day to maybe a month, OOC.
– As said, it is a "Boss" spirit. Whilst any spirits that pass nearby may not exactly be noticed by this individual, there is a good chance he can recognize–be it through personal physical pain or mental pain–what is around. In RP, this can mean your "Harbinger" may notice that there is a frog spirit inhabiting another person. But use your head and keep it fair. Hell, use a Dice Roll if you think you should.
– When transferring spiritual energy, sometimes the natural flow of magic in your blood may have to suffice. If the Spirit inhabiting the body is in the mind, soul, and body, it would make sense to use it with open channels in the physical plane. This would fall under kissing, as well. Some sort of physical contact, but of course there are exception such as: "How much would he try to force this into the person kissing?" It’d take time for assimilation, and forcing the process would only weaken the Harbinger further.
Animal Spirits are actually the most common type of spirit there is, aside from the occasional Poltergeist or perhaps simply a Ghost. These spirits can be seen as Guides(See below) to human beings, malevolent spirits aiming to gut open the local cattle population, or simply spirits that are looking to find a place among others in the world. Any spirit in the animal kingdom is up for grabs here, but try to associate it with what it symbolizes in culture.
For Example: Horses, symbol meanings of the Horse date back to pre-recorded history, and the first written acknowledgement of the Horse comes in Before The Common Era. Power, Grace, Nobility, Strength, and Freedom govern the symbols.
There are positives AND negatives to each Animal, symbolically. But choose which feels like the thing you are making/using.
These spirits can also, due to bloodlines, possess living humans and live inside their bodies and minds. They can lay dormant inside people for years, or maybe for all of their lives before they really know. But, when they do awaken, the user may have alot of trouble keeping this Spirit from taking over and using its own emotions in front of other people.
Positives: Sometimes these spirits just want to see the world through your eyes and are rather friendly. But sometimes if left unchecked, they can cause alot of trouble in the world. If its simply a wandering spirit, sometimes they can just approach or even watch over certain individuals with their own interests in mind. There are spirits who are born out of pure love, and just may be lost or confused. Keep that in mind too when making your cahracter story/
Negatives: These spirits aren’t always benevolent and can sometimes take control of ones body to do heinous things. The Cons of having a Spirit is that not everyone might agree with the way the thing works. If the person is not possessed by said spirit, it could be considered a thing of bad luck for it to even be nearby. Mischievious natures aren’t uncommon, here. Or murder, for that matter.
How to Kill/Repel an Animal Spirit: Since they are incorporeal, it can be hard to get rid of an animal spirit. However, if they are possessing a human, they can be exorcised and put back into the Spiritual Realm. Unfortunately, depending how long the Spirit has "Piggy-Backed" on the Host, there is a chance of death.
Example – Spirit has been inside Billy-Bo-Bob since birth. Exorcising the thing has a pretty damn good chance of killing a host.
There are ways to repel spirits altogether. For these in particular, talismans can be put in certain areas. They can keep spirits or who they are possessing out of homes or even off lands altogether. But the time it takes to make them may be lengthy. Keep it within reason. An hour to make a talisman OOC or IC of that sort of magnitude is unacceptable. Period.
Standard time for crafting and creation rules apply here. An amulet to protect your home or land should only really take maybe a week depending on how powerful it is. Or how good the spellcaster is.
Spirit Guides: This one in particular is a tad tricky. Whilst it can be animal or human, it can’t truly or physically act through the Host. It can, however, offer its own advice or act as a secondary conscience. Or quite the opposite, it can outright try to destroy the person in which it is in for its own amusement. Keep in mind what this ‘Guide’ may be. Some lore can actually consider Guides to be given a second chance to guide a person along the right path, instead of being damned to Hell.
There may be a marking on one’s body if theres one of these attached to the individual.
Keep this in your character.
Misc. Notes:
– If the spirit has laid in the body for a good amount of time, it may affect the appearance or general workings of the body. Referring to the Horse from earlier, there may be an increased appetite for vegetation. Or maybe even becoming a vegan altogether. Physically, they’d be able to run faster than normal humans do and have the stamina to keep up with the most impossible of runners. Again, think it through.
– If the spirit is awakened inside an individual, it MAY speak mentally to the person. It has its own personality, or could even mirror the personality of its host. Example: "Hey, Keenan, the Lieutennant looks hot today." "Oh yeah. Too bad Kiros’d kill me if I tried to get her drunk." Stay within the spirit’s character, and keep in mind: The Host may click with the Spirit, it may not.
– If certain requirements are met, the Host may actually take the Spirit’s full form. For example, enchanted jewelry, overflowing fields of magic or even energy can induce a transformation. If Billy-Bo-Bob walked into a place where alot of magic was shed and expended in the past, he might actually transform into his Raven.
– If said form IS taken, they may look entirely different than normal animals. They may appear larger, have different markings, different appendages and so forth. If you have to, keep an appearance in mind when creating the spirit in your character’s background.
