Wylding Zombie War

[TLDunn213]

Also known as the Shaman Necromancer War. Was started by Yuuxath while he was impersonating Charon. Not too long after Charon took over for Cronos as collector of the dead.

It took Yuuxath some time to build up his cult of Necromancers and start displacing Charon.

But he started being noticed by Gia around the end of the Gith Rebellion. Which was also near the end of the Saurian Thulian War and the Rise of the Yuun-Xi and the beginning of the first XerEk XarAk Swarm Wars.

Not that the Saurian Thulian War ever ended in any formal sence. No one ever surrendered. Both sides just lost the ability to mount any major attacks.

 

More to follow.

 

 

[TLDunn213]

The Necromancers started with simple undead, zombies and skeletons. The spells for them were simplified forms of the spells used by arcane wizards to animate objects and the spells priest used for golems. The notable difference being that by using a formerly living body the Necromancer could skip the step of imprinting their mind onto the object and simply re-energize the imprint left from when the creature was alive. Thus greatly simplifying the process.

The other difference is more subtle and less well known. And that is where these things get their power. Animated objects draw their power from the ambient magic around them and the kinetic energy of nearby movement. Light spells are a bit dimmer, an arrow doesn't fly quite as far ect. Golems are powered by a bit of life force from the priest, their god, or a sacrifice in the case of evil priests.

Undead draw their power from the ambient life force around them. A single zombie might make your lawn wilt a bit. But an army of them...

[TLDunn213]

Now that we've talked a bit about zombies(and yes the Necromancers did weponize the drain effect to make more deadly undead later)

But now on to the Wyldings and the Shamans who made them.

A Wylding is a person(normally human, but other races can play too)

who has had an animal Spirit melded with their own so that they can become that animal and later as the melding becomes more complete a hybrid form combining both.

The improved vitality of Wyldings grants them both fast healing and improved resistance to undead drain and fear effects.

 

As silver and the full moon are part of the Ritual for becoming a Wylding both have effects on Wyldings.

The full moon calls strongly to their inner animal making it more asendent at such times. Silver is both boon and bane to a Wylding. In Wylding hands a silver weapon is a magic weapon just as their claws and fangs are when transformed. The bane part is in the fact that silver weapons used against them overcome their supernatural resistance to damage and slow their healing to "normal" rates for such wounds. Not that magical healing can't be used normally, only their iniate healing is slowed, and only for the wounds caused by the silver weapons. Magical weapons may also have this effect, depending on the nature of the magic involved.

Edited July 18, 2016 by Zatar

[TLDunn213]

It was during this time that Druids arose. Before this there had been Shamans, who worked with assorted nature Spirits and a few arcane spells they might learn along the way. And Priest devoted to a single god or goddess or rarely to a pantheon. Priests got their magic spells from their gods. Now some Shamans did turn Priest in the course of seeking stronger Spirits to form Pacts with. Some were good Shamans looking for the best Spirit Pact to be had. Others were evil and just looking for more power.

 

But with the rise of the Necromancers there came a need on both sides.

The Shamans needed the help of a Great Spirit to help them against these things that were not of Nature. And due to the rapid spread of Necromancy Gia  needed Warrior Priest who already knew how to fight and how to cast spells. Thus the Druids, Rangers, and Gray Guards came to be.

 

The first Gray Guards were so named because they chose to be bonded to wolf spirits. And while many other animal spirits soon joined the cause, the Cats being most notable among them, The term Gray Guard mostly stuck.

Gray Hunter being common with the cats. In part due to their habits of hunting Necromancers alone. While the Guard mostly focused on protecting towns and people from the undead hordes.

Edited March 13, 2018 by TLDunn213

[TLDunn213]

Now as any student of history knows the Yuun-Xi managed to Prevert the spells used to grant the Wyldings their powers. Giving rise to both the Cursed disease Lycanthropy and the Ritual of Yuuxath.

The later, for those fortunate enough to not know of it, is how other races are transformed into Yuun-Xi.

Interestingly enough, it is this Ritual that the Dragons later adapted for the creation of their Dracons. But more about them another time.

 

What is far less well known, are the spells the Druids developed which gave rise to the Redemption Ritual and the Rights of the Deathless Ones.

Sadly this knowledge is fading nowadays.

True, the need for it had largely passed,

But there are other uses to which such spells could be put. Good uses. The dark uses are all to obvious. After all these were evil spells turned to better ends to start with. So turning them to evil...

Well, that is why they are such closely guarded secrets now isn't it.

Edited August 9, 2016 by Zatar

[TLDunn213]

It was pointed out to me by some elves that there were Druids in the form of Elven Tree Priest well before the time of the Wylding Zombie wars. And that Treefolk were also major players on the side of life during the war.

Facts that I'll deal with in more detail later, as this section is more focused on the origins of the Wyldings.

[TLDunn213]

It has been said that I should have made note of the Wylding's Cloak at some point in these writings. And this is quite true, given that the Cloak is part of the Wylding's innate magic and an iconic tool. 

The Cloak is a part of the Wylding and takes effort to separate from themselves. So they are careful about who they loan them to. And only under extreme conditions will they bestow one. Of course during a war extreme conditions happen rather a bit more often than otherwise. Which is where the common misconception that Wyldings need the Cloak in order to transform. They don't. But the loss is still an inconvenience and creating a new Cloak takes quite a bit of time and effort. 

Now one upon whom a Cloak has been bestowed is dependent on the Cloak in order to transform. At least until they can find a Druid or Shaman to preform the Wylding Ritual. Assuming that they want to become a true Wylding of course. 

Once a Cloak has been bestowed it is linked to the new owner and what happens to the Wylding who gave it no longer matters. This is of course not the case with a Cloak that has only been loaned. If the link is broken the Cloak will lose its powers. Although a Shaman or Druid of sufficient skill can restore the Magic; at least in most cases. Assuming that not too much time has passed. And there have been reports of Loaned Cloaks becoming Bestowed upon the death of the Wylding; a dying wish effect as it were.

It likely goes without saying that Cloaks of this sort can't be stolen. At least not stolen for use. They can be stolen and destroyed or magically bound. Assuming such action is taken quickly. As a Wylding can call the Cloak to themselves by a simple act of will as long as the Cloak is within a few miles.