Note: This page is IN WORK. It is incomplete towards the end, but otherwise correct for what is here.
Many of the terms used in this page have different meanings in each game system/mythos. Don't assume that your previous use of a specific term will apply in Mind Adventures.
Many fantasy mythos contain the concept of "planes of existence". Many mythos refer to 'the astral plane' and/or 'the ethereal' plane as if they were distinct places to which one can travel. Others treat them similarly to the way they are defined in Mind Adventures: as different aspects of a single larger reality than we can perceive.
I have to add this note: The mathematician in me winces in pain when he hears the word 'plane' used to refer to a full 3 dimensional space :-). Mind Adventures does not use the term 'plane' that way. Instead the term 'realm' is used for the related concept.
Today's humans are usually born with the familiar 5 senses. Those senses define the limit of what we can perceive directly, and "seeing is believing". Our concept of what is real is severely limited compared to the totality of what is 'real'. but because we do not perceive the additional aspects or total reality, they are not 'real' to our species.
We do not see electrical currents, although we can see the effect they have on the filament of a light bulb. We do not see things which are too far away for our eyes to focus on, but we can use a telescope to overcome that limit. We do not see a person's mood, but we can draw inferences from what we see on their face. However, in each case what we can perceive is a side-effect of what we are trying to perceive, or the output of a tool, not the thing itself. As well as limits on our ability to perceive the world which we inhabit, we also have limits on what we can do to affect the entities in that world. I can dial and use my cell phone, but if i want to recharge it, i must find a source of power.
A shark can directly perceive electrical energy. Some snakes can directly perceive an object's heat. An eagle can see into that distance without use of that telescope. An electric eel would probably just destroy that cell phone, but i think you see where this is going. These creatures inhabit the same universe that we do, but they perceive a different subset of its totality than we do and they sometimes have different ways to affect that universe than we do.
In Mind Adventures, the universe has far more properties than we as humans can currently perceive or affect directly. We call the subset of reality that we are able to perceive and affect directly 'The Natural Realm'.
As our descendants and descendant species began to develop Powers which allowed them to perceive and/or affect additional aspects of reality, it became apparent that there also exists a 'Supernatural Realm'. Over time as species developed more fully functional and specific abilities to perceive and/or affect the Supernatural Realm, clear 'groupings' of related Powers became apparent. As scholars attempted to create a working model of the relationships between the subdivisions of the Supernatural Realm, the following subdivisions of the Supernatural Realm were adopted as a better model.
These names are a Homm-centric view of reality... but we are Homms so that is for the best. :-).
This image brings together the core information associated with each of the realms. It places the Natural Realm at the center because we have a Homm-centric view.
The 7 realms other than the Natural Realm are referred to as 'the outer realms'.
An entity's consciousness is usually restricted to a single realm, it's 'home realm'. The entity is usually unaware of any other realm or of entities that are not manifest in their home realm.
Prima affects all 8 realms, but in some realms it is used far more freely than others. Technology can work very differently, or not at all, in other than the Natural Realm.
Many realms are associated with one or more type of energy which can serve to power magic, Powers, spiritual entities, and/or technological devices. Each of these energies has its own name and properties. The GENERAL name for any of these energies is metergy.
The relationships between the natural realm and each of the outer realms is not analogous. The Natural Realm is more closely coupled to some of the outer realms than others.
All physical entities which exist in the Natural Realm exist simultaneously in the Elemental Realm. All entities which 'contain' any form of energy (heat, momentum, chemical processes, etc.) will have a manifestation in the Ethereal Realm. Simplified, this means that all physical objects in the natural Realm also manifest in both the Elemental Realm and the Ethereal Realm. If the entity has any degree of intelligence or sensory awareness, it will also have a manifestation in the Astral Realm. Most creatures are not explicitly aware of their elemental, ethereal, or astral manifestations. Their 'consciousness' is limited to what they are able to perceive in the Natural Realm.
All Homms have these manifestations in those three outer realms. Actions targeting the unit's natural, elemental, ethereal, and/or astral manifestations will reflect in each of the unit's other manifestations.
The Realm of Fairy and the Realm of Death have a different 'relationship' with the Natural Realm. Each of these two outer realms can be thought of as 'reflections' of the Natural Realm, one emphasizing life and growth, the other emphasizing death and decay. Places and structures in the Natural Realm may have duplicates in one or both of those outer realms, but more often the landscape will change drastically when one moves between these realms.
A conscious entity is in only one of the Natural Realm, the Realm of Fairy, or the Realm of Death at one time. The outer realms can be thought of as being 180 degrees out of phase with each other, and 90 degrees out of phase with the Natural Realm. A unit is in only one of the three possible phases at a given time. Entities with Powers, magic or technology can shift themselves, others, and/or areas to one or more of the possible phases.
Most regions in each pf these realms remain strongly tuned to the realm's natural phase, which maintains the separation between the 'reflections' in each of the three realms at that location. The separation between the Natural Realm and the Realm of Fairy weakens in areas that are untouched by technology. The separation between the Natural Realm and the Realm of Death weakens in areas that have seen much death, i.e. graveyards, battle fields, massacre sites, slaughterhouses.
The separation between the Realm of Fairy and the Realm of Death is always in effect. There is no mechanism to shift an entity's phase from either of those two outer realms to the other outer realm in a single phase shift. The entity must spend time in the Natural Realm before performing the additional shift.
TBD
We live here. Physics chemistry, and biology work the way we are accustomed to in the Physical Realm.
All living entities generate vita (pronounced VEE-tuh). Vita is a very effective source of energy for any form of Powers and/or magic.
A unit will naturally accrue a specific amount of vita over time, after which it will accrue no more until it has used some of what it has accrued. Losing vita through active use or from hostile action can cause generic damage to a unit, as if it had taken a physical/mental wound. A unit whose vita falls to zero will die.
Vita regenerates in living units. The average human who had but 1 point of vita remaining would be fully restored within a day or two.Some species regenerate vita far more quickly than others.
We live in the natural realm. Its denizens are every creature that exists 'naturally'.
Powers associated with the Elemental Realm include the ability to directly perceive and/or directly change the chemical properties of an entity.
All physical entities generate mana (pronounced MAN-uh). The amount generated is a direct function of the entity's mass. Mana is a an effective source of energy for Powers and/or magic which target physical entities (people, creatures, items).
All physical entities, living or not, naturally accrue a specific amount of mana over time, after which it will accrue no more until it has used some of what it has accrued. Losing mana through active use or from hostile action can rarely cause damage to the unit and/or its immediate possessions. A unit whose mana falls to zero will not usually notice an effect beyond the inability to use their own mana for Powers or magic.
Mana regenerates slowly in all physical entities. More massive entities can accrue more mana, and also restore their full mana level more quickly than less massive entities. The average human who had but 1 point of mana remaining would be fully restored within a two days. Some species regenerate mana far more quickly than others.
Elementals: TBD.
Powers associated with the Ethereal Realm include the ability to directly perceive and/or directly change the energy properties of an entity or location.
All physical entities generate ether (pronounced EE-thur). The amount generated is a direct function of the entity's energy levels (temperature, momentum, etc.). Ether is a an effective source of energy for Powers and/or magic which create, protect from, and/or manipulate any form of energy (heat, electricity, inertia, magnetism, gravity, radioactivity).
All 'energetic'' entities, living or not, naturally accrue a specific amount of ether over time, after which it will accrue no more until it has used some of what it has accrued. Losing ether through active use or from hostile action can rarely cause damage to the unit. A unit whose ether falls to zero will not usually notice an effect beyond the inability to use their own ether for Powers or magic.
Ether regenerates quickly in all entities which generate it. More energetic entities can accrue more ether, and also restore their full ether level more quickly than less energetic entities. The average human who had but 1 point of ether remaining would be fully restored within a day. Some species regenerate ether far more quickly than others.
Etherientals: TBD.
Powers associated with the Astral Realm include the ability to directly perceive and/or directly change the thoughts, perceptions, moods, memories, knowledge, and/or beliefs of an entity. Powers in this realm are limited by the type of entity(ies) one can 'tune to'.
All physical entities generate astra (pronounced ASS-truh). Astra is a an effective source of energy for Powers and/or magic which interact directly with sentient beings.
All sentient beings and beings with sensory organs are manifest in the astral realm. Units with astral Powers can almost always target members of their own species. Targeting other entities depends on the unit's ability to 'broadcast and receive' on the astral frequencies used by the target entity. The further removed from the user, the less likely a connection can be formed unless the user has the specific ability to tune to the target's frequency.
Most units with Astral Powers can tune to all members of their own species. Many can tune to members of other related species. Beyond that the user would have to explicitly have the astral Power to tune to the associate 'Denizen Frequency'.
Denizens of the Astral realm are subdivided to identify the specific Powers required to interact with them astrally. A unit with Astral Powers will always be able to connect to their own species and usually to closely related species. Optionally, the unit may also be able to connect to the types of creatures described by ONE entry in this list, either a top level or one of its subdivisions. The deeper into the list the greater the degree of connection that can be attained. The higher on the list, the greater range of connectable entities.
Homm ...human ...dwarf ...elf ...gargan ...ooma Animal ...predator ......canine ......feline ......ursid ......eagle ......owl ...herd ...fish ...bugs ......beetles ......ants ......bees ...rodents ...cetacean ...cephalopod Plant ...herbs ...trees Fungus Astrological ...sun ...moon ...earth ...planets ......mercury ......venus ......mars ......jupiter ......saturn ......uranus ......neptune ......pluto
This realm exists as a dark shadow of the Natural Realm.
Powers associated with Necromancy originate in the Realm of Death.
Nekru metergy is generated at the moment that a life ends.
This energy is not associated with choice-making intelligent entities. It is a natural force which radiates at the moment when a living thing stops generating vita. Nekru has no karmic component. The killing of an evil person will generate the same nekru as the killing of an innocent, though these two acts woul dgenerate opposite karmic metergy. However, most users of this metergy lean towards evil because they are often impatient to restock their nekru metergy reserves.
The amount of nekru generated by a death is a function of the biological mass, health, and vigor of the dying entity. The bigger and healthier something is at the time of its death, the greater the nekru generated. This majority of this metergy is allocated to the specific agent which caused the death, if any. The metergy gained from this action may be used by the agent to power Necromancy. Again, nekru has no moral/ethical aspect, so an accidental manslaughter will give the killer the same nekru as if the death was intentional. If the death was not caused by the action of an agent (consciously or otherwise, purposely or otherwise) the majority of the metergy disperses unless explicitly gathered by active means.
A smaller percentage of that metergy will attach to anyone present (for any reason) at the time of death. An even smaller percent will accrue to anyone who consumes or uses any part of the entity.
Animals must consume (previously) living things to survive, so ALL animals - including Homms - will have a residual level of self-replenishing personal nekru energy from which they can draw to perform Necromancy. This residual energy comes from the deaths of the plants and animals that provided the entity with food up to that point in her/his life. Entities who eat only synthetically produced food will NOT have this residual nekru metergy.
Undead of varying degrees of intellect and autonomy can exist only in the Realm of Death. When the barrier between our home realm and the Realm of deat is weak, the two realms co-exist/overlap. In these places/at these times, the undead ccan also manifest in our realm.
Places associated with death will exhibit a weakened barrier. This effect will be heightened at night, during the new moon, and immediately after a death in the immediate vicinity.
This realm exists as a bright reflection of the Natural Realm. The Realm of Fairy is home to mythical, inherently magical beings. It overlaps the natural realm best in places that have remained natural and with the fewest predatory animals. The Realm of Fairy has a physical aversion to the Realm of Death. The presence of entities which have a residual nekru level strengthens the barrier between the Realm of Fairy and the natural Realm. Significant metergy must be expended to allow entities with agent generated or residual nekru to fully phase to the Realm of Fairy, and while there the entire realm would be trying to eject them back to the Natural Realm. Most interactions between Homms and the denizens of the Realm of Fairy occur in the Natural Realm.
Denizens of the Realm of Fairy use their inherent Powers without limit while in their home realm. When they are in the Natural Realm, they inherently draw on the vita of their immediate surroundings to accrue a reserve of 'Dust' (i.e. Fairy Dust) up to their personal maximum storage level. They use that reserve of Dust to fuel their Powers while outside the Realm of fairy. If they find themselves in the Realm of Death, they may still use any Dust they have in reserve, but they will not generate any more Dust until they leave that realm because there is no Vita from which to draw.
Prima practitioners, Wizards, & Necromancers can use Dust as an efficient and effective alternative to vita and/or nekru. Some types of Fairies can explicitly 'shake out' reserve Dust to give to another entity willingly. Necromancers have rituals to drain it by force from a captive Fairy.
Dust is not associated with choice-making intelligent entities. It is a just concentrated vita in powder form. Dust has no karmic component, though extracting it by force certainly does..
Just what you expect lives in the Realm of Fairy. More to come.
Good & Evil. Straight up. More to come.
This realm is only theorized. More on that later...