Enchanted Realms Rulebook
Origin
The classification of monsters, creatures and entities is clearly defined within the lifesong of any individual creature. This is partially due to the will of the gods and partially due to the chimerics of the milieu. There are six major divisions, often referred to as origins. These are dorlean [DƆR • li • ON], fidelithan [FAɪ • del • ɛ • THƏN], knomien [NO • mi • ƏN], omnamic [ɑm • NÆM • ɪk], paradokien [PƐR • ə • DO • ki • ƏN] and zoola [ZO • ɑl • Ə]. Sages argue over a term called deificus [di • ɪF • ə • KɅS], which refers to the gods having a separate grouping; however, most educated men do not classify the gods as a lifeform. That said, as discussed later, some sages would argue the gods are merely part of the senial phylum of the fidelithan origin.
The differences among the origins is due to the quintessential dynamics of the lifesong. The energies stored in the lifesong, as well as the organized structure itself, varies between these origins. Because of this, it is important to identify some of the core building blocks of life found in a lifesong. There can be äpah, egni, fois, georphè, miasma, odacht, pneumata, soul, and vigor energies. One might think of these like the nitrogenous bases of DNA, only these are not corporeal forms of one’s body; rather they are more like a swirling and interacting aura of intangibles.
Zoola
This origin is listed out of order because it is the easiest to understand; it is also a precursor to the other origins. In layman terms, zoola is all life native to the material world. This definition is a bit unrefined; however, there are zoola on other planes of existence. Sages define this origin by types of energies stored within the lifesong, specifically vigor and possibly soul. Zoola is the only origin which contains vigor in its natural state and the only origin which can procreate within its own origin and species. Zoola require food nutrients of a tangible nature. The zoola origin has six phyla: Animal, Giantkin, Hominoid, Magogen, Ooze and Plant.
Animals - these are natural creatures, a part of the fantasy ecology. Some of them have magical capacity, but most are unintelligent and lack any society or language. They seek only to survive and will most often run if hurt unless special circumstances occur. Few animals will attack hominoids unless they are specially trained, a very hungry predator or they are protecting their young. If a non-predator is wounded, it will run. Predators will run if they fall below half their Body score. Animals include all varieties of ordinary animals with several classes: Amphibian, Aquatic, Arthropod, Avian, Lithic, Mammal, Primeval, and Reptile. Many animals have zero scores for Mind or Spirit. Unless otherwise noted, animals of zero quality will automatically fail any save against sub-attributes of those. The notable group exception is primeval animals. Perhaps one of the most powerful defenses of the dire beasts is their resistance to Mind and Spirit attacks. Any preservation save of involving sleep, charm or fear will automatically save for all members of the primeval class.
Giantkin - all the various giants tower over hominoids and most beings of society. They are basically hominoid in shape; however, some have multiple heads or other deformities. Further, giants have ancient elemental roots, but over millennia this species crossbred to become the varieties they have become today. There is a class called True Giant, but other cousins, such as ogres and trolls, belong to the Horgus class.
Hominoid - members of this phylum are social creatures of small or medium size. Hominoids are the main peoples of the social world, both civilized and savage, including humans and a tremendous variety of other species. They have language, culture and a bipedal form. Very few have any innate magical abilities. The most common humanoid species are the ones most suitable as player characters: humans, batfolk, dwarves, elves, and nhoblits. Almost as numerous but far more savage and brutal, and almost uniformly evil, are the species of goblinoids, orcs and such. Often, different species will mingle, or individuals from one species will integrate with a tribe of another type. In some situations, tribes of different humanoids will establish trade, and their societies may even merge into a multi-species civilization. Though a few of their numbers may be artisans, the harsh lands they inhabit often work against the stabilization of their way of life. For this reason, some species depend heavily on warfare and trade to gain not only weapons, but also every day niceties, such as cloth, cooking utensils, and simple spices. Great trade networks may extend for thousands of miles.
Magogen - these are the monsters native to the material world. What separates them from the animal phylum is some sort of mutation occurred in their heritage, often due to magical cross-breeding or experimentation. Some theories about magical fallout having corrupting energies to infect the lifesong, similar to miasma causing disease, have circulated to explain the group’s emergence. That said, there are some known to have been created from curses and evolved into a new species. Unless stated otherwise, magogen beasts do eat, sleep, and breathe.
Ooze - these gelatinous monsters rarely have a fixed shape. They are mostly subterranean, dwelling in caves and dungeons, feeding on refuse, carrion, or creatures unlucky enough to get in their way. Oozes do not sleep; however, most breathe.
Plant - while orginary flora are part of this phylum, the ones listed in this manual will be vegetable creatures. Many plant monsters are ambulatory, and some are carnivorous. Plants have immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, polymorph, and stunning. Further, they cannot be charmed or affected by phantasms; however, glamours may still fool them. Plants breathe and eat, but do not sleep.
Dorlean
Often referred as the parasitic origin, dorlean are defined as creatures whose lifesongs contain tainted or transmuted vigor. Most commonly, the vigor is combined with elemental energies, like äpah or egni; however, emotional-disease energies are also popular. Furthermore, all dorlean have an energy in their biofields known as pneumata. This energy type has a natural attraction to vigor. Sages state that this is the reason why dorlean are so drawn to humanoids and society. Dorlean can procreate; however, it always requires raw vigor energy, only found in the zoola origin. This does not mean that every dorlean is able to combine with a zoola to create an offspring; however, some, specifically dominatis and the undead, must bond with the vigor energy, overtaking the host. There are three phyla of dorlean: Dominatis, Genie and Undead.
Dominatis - these are weak non-corporeal parasites. To survive they must bond with a zoola. Generally, this relationship is harmful to the host, but in the case of asithchant, one may consider it a small price to pay for the benefit. Only a desperate fool would ever willingly bond with a marischant, and the taschant are nothing more than harmful annoyances. The only universal effect is the host’s has a baseline of 3 for Spite instead of zero while bonded with a dominatus. Lastly, should the host be killed through combat, disease or other event unrelated to the dominatus, then the attached parasite will also be killed.
Genie - these off-plane beings feed off the social interaction of intelligent zoola. The interaction need not be complex: a bustling crowd, a meeting hall or private conversation does quite well. Unlike undead, genies do not despise this dependence. In fact, they enjoy the company. Genies have a life cycle very different from the creatures with whom they associate. The birth process appears the same as it is for hominoids; however, the genie matures quickly, often within a few hours. Upon maturation, the genie has a number of skills available for training, making each unique individuals. However, training is not their first concern. The genie prefers to travel and interact where possible. One moves along trade routes as best the being can until he finds a likable being with which to bond.
Undead - The reasoning undead often think of themselves as an oppressed class. They are mercilessly hunted as monsters as they only seek to feed and propagate. The paradox is that some will gather among themselves to boast of how many beings they have murdered for no reason. When a dead zoola is born into an undead, the remnants of vigor and lifesong become a part, usually a small part, of the undead. Enough memory remains to give these creatures an intense hatred of what this part of them previously was. The weakest of the undead have no effective Mind score and act solely on the emotion of hatred created by the tainted vigor. Those with a low Mind scores feel this rage out of jealousy. On some sub-conscious level, they decide what they have lost no one should have. Those with average or better mentality grow to despise their dependence on what they view as an inferior life-form. Sages often refer to the undead as “feratu” to remove the stigma of what they are. All undead have spirit sight out to 60 feet. However, others may have special vision as well. They have immunity to all mind-altering effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms). They are not subject to morale. Undead are also immune to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, disease, and death effects. Undead do not breathe, eat food, or sleep.
Fidelithan
Beings that are in this origin endure and sustain their existence by harnessing primarily worship and belief. However, often emotion can be consumed as a form of provender. If merely a dozen people consider a species of this origin could exist, the emotional energy produced from that faith may be enough to sustain its existence. Starvation because of a lack of belief varies in time based on the power and strength of the entity in question. However, due to the method of consumption, this origin contains some of the most powerful entities in the ubiquiverse. Fideliathan has four phyla: Avatar, Fey, Fiend and Senial.
Avatar - those in this phylum are often called “messengers of the gods,” and in many cases that is quite accurate. From the viewpoint of their lifesongs, the avatar have a high concentration of soul energy, but it has been modified from the natural zoola form. There are same sages who would use the word corrupted rather than modified, but most are a little leery of referencing it that way due to the close association many have with deities. Their maturing is a function of soul-fostering, guiding and gathering soul which an avatar or avatar family will parent. This may seem similar to what some kamii do, the ones that are psychopomps, because a kamii does not take the soul energy from the departed. Avatars, however, gather the stray energy from mortals’ lifesongs upon death, sometimes from one but usually many. The nurturing by the presence of an avatar will transform the soul energy into a weak form of this phylum. After a further fostering, an avatar is promoted to a higher being. As a noble form, it will despise violence and all forms of hardship, sustaining itself by feeding upon positive emotions. As such, its propensity towards good is literally a component of its lifesong, or perhaps better understood using Earth-terms: they have goodness hardwired into their genetics. Avatars creatures include angels and even pegasi. These beings do not sleep, eat food or breath. They cannot be affected by poison or smite. Further, they cannot be physically stunned. Also all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, illusions, phantasms, intimidation, interrogation, etc) fail to work on them; however, they can be harmed by magical or psionic methods that attack Will such as fear or other negative emotional attacks. There are four classes of this group: justice, love, mirth and muse.
Fey - these mystical creatures are closely tied to the forces of nature, but can be found on many planes of existence other than the material world. They dwell in twilight groves and misty forests. Fey do not have a programmed morality in their lifesongs as do avatars and fiends, but there is a strong tendency to promote chaos into the order of things. Some believe this is the nature of the lifesong composition while others argue they are agents of nature to required to use distraction to prevent cosmic changes through the collective unconscious. It is believed that the elves have a heritage that traces back to a fey beginning. This phylum includes dryads, pixies, and satyrs. All fey eat, sleep, and breathe.
Fiend - Those in the fiend category are creatures of wickedness and native to the Lower Planes. A few are the servants of deities, but many more labor under the leadership of archdevils and demon princes. Evil priests and mages sometimes summon fiends to the material world to do their bidding. However, there have been rare conjurations by pure belief and fear that one might appear, and as such, telling tales and stories about then are taboo in some cultures. Classes of fiends are demons, devils, and dybbuks. Demons are evil agents of chaos. Demons also eat, but their need for sustenance is far different than mortal beings; demons absorb fear and hedonic emotion to feed. Devils are methodical and astute observers; however, their wickedness runs deep. They do not sleep nor breathe, but devils feed by absorbing mental energy that emits from doubt. Dybbuks are beings of pure evil. These monsters do not sleep or breathe, but these beings eat and sustain their lives from the soul energy dispersion that erupts from a lifesong upon death.
Senial - This group is highly debated by sages. Some wish to declare it as a group where all deities belong. Others argue that the gods are not lifeforms at all. However, there are other powerful creatures that do fit in this phylum without being defined as a deity. These are sometimes referred to as powers or cosmic entities, many of which are unique; however, some are servant-like creatures of other senials. There are certain death-gatherers, which are not exactly like psychopomp kamii. These senial agents of death are often searching for something specific. Perhaps the Norse Valkyrie are more understandable. If they existed in Enchanted Realms, they would likely be a part of this phylum. Titans are another example of powerful cosmic forces. Entropy is a cosmic force that exists which is not worshiped. These types of entities and abstract consciousnesses are often targeted by mortals when seeking prophecy, divination and the like.
Knomien
Those belonging to this origin have their existence based upon some other source of reality. The phyla of Elemental and Kami are the two groups; however, there are times the line between those two can become blurred.
Elemental - There are four classes of elemental: air, earth, fire and water. These match the four core building blocks of the material world. They live on the elemental planes and spend their in service of hierarchal groups. Most of these beings mine and process the various raw elements, producing minerals, gases, etc. These in turn are handed over to the designated kami spirits to disperse in the material world as needed. Due to the nature of their worlds, they do become raided from time to time by fiends, powerful hominoids and even the occasional fey. Within elemental class is a hierarchy of beings. This is an extensive chain of command. While most of the elemental population are minions, there are some of the elemental “animals” which inhabit these elemental planes. Often these native creatures are harnessed to help in the hierarchy, but some merely exist to contribute to the unusual ecosystem. Elemental beings have blindsight out to 60 feet. Further, they have immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, and stunning. Elementals do not eat food, sleep, or breathe.
Kami -
Omnamic
For all practical purposes, omnamic beings do not eat at all; they do not grow nor are they sustained from a consumed energy source. The phyla of constructs, while not the only type of this origin, are the clearest example. A golem constructed of stone will exist until the stone erodes or is significantly damaged in some way. The other phyla in this origin is Dracos.
Construct -
Dracos -
Paradokien
This origin is a group for those that cannot be classified in the other origins because the lifeform is contradictory, alien and defies the normal chimerics of life.