Falkean Lore

Falkeans
Lore and Traditions

For generations Falkeans have been seen as a questionable race by human figures for numerous reasons, from their religion to their traditions and rumored magic. Typically, Falkeans follow (or rather they used to follow) the Old Gods which is a religion that bases itself upon the idea that the world was brought together in a destructive manner by other worldly chains. However, like many traditions Falkeans have their own twist on this concept and while it is no means the same it’s similar and mostly frowned upon by those who follow the religion of Rom.

The reason their religion is so strangely different is they have their own gods and goddesses which their day to day lives often revolve around. It is said in stories of old found in scrolls of ancient temples that originally there was just two divine beings who founded the world, these being the Goddess Atarah of the sun and God Caelum of the moon. The legend goes that using the heat and flames of the sun Atarah forged glowing golden chains which Caelum used to bring the pieces of the world together, as each piece was pulled together, caused destruction and at last a peaceful silence over a barren desolate land. From this depressing land arose but two gods and two goddesses, the sons and daughters of Atarah and Caelum. The first born was considered the first gift to the world and that was Vanadey the goddess of Love, fertility, beauty and, she is commonly known, for her gift of life; she holds power many would dream of but she also is rumored to be the most beautiful of all the gods even surpassing her mother. Commonly she is prayed to for prosperous soil and fertility which since the war became a large genetic issue for the Falkeans due to low resources, a range of diseases and injuries that swept across the race. This then was bred into the next generation and the next, now the race struggles largely with the issue of low fertility and sometimes a Falkean woman will only have one child or no child in her lifetime. The second of the god was the god of protection, strength and warriors called Esmond; he is commonly prayed to by warriors before a long battle and is also known for his superior strength and kingly appearance. It’s also commonly said that this particular god is one of the most accepting and open gods in many of the ancient legends that involve him. Many young Falkeans often say they met Esmond on their ventures as he is commonly linked with adventures through his heroic stories and roles in creating the world. His role for the most part was to give creatures the ability to protect themselves and hunt, but the hunting aspect was only founded following the birth of the youngest sister Orlaith. The third, however, was another boy; this was Oryn the god of creativity, wisdom and good will. His main role was to give personality to the creations of Vanadey which his older brother protected and hence the creation of many arts including the sacred crafting of amulets and other jewelries that the falkeans made. Many do not pray to him rather they offer their finests crafts to him to show commitment in hope he will enhance their skill as they work and many scholars pray to him in a hopes he will guide them to the answers they need. During difficult times when knowledge is considered of little importance Oryn gets most his recognition from Blacksmiths and other such creators who provide for warriors and parents commonly pray to him when expecting so that their child might be born with a skill to help them in later life. The last of the gods is the goddess Orlaith of balance, fairness and, surprisingly, chaos. But despite her unusual role which can be heavily linked with destruction Orlaith is still a very much loved Goddess which only becomes stranger when you read further into legends and find she is also the creator of death. The reason she is loved so much is she balances out the creations of all her older siblings (and her parents creating day and night); she makes life fair for all or at least she does what is within her power which is another concept she founded. This concept being that while the gods have power they should in no way shape or form interfere with the lives of their creations and so that is when the gods morphed from beings to different forms in the world (this form is often said to be the four bright stars seen surrounding the moon) and it’s rumored there is a tomb somewhere in the world where the gods physical forms rest while the bodies of Caelum and Atarah are now the sun and moon themelf.



Magic, Amulet and Rituals
To know of this in character you should either have learned it off someone else or have a specific in character reason along with permission from staff (this will be explained below).

Falkeans, while rich in history, are seemingly the less fortunate race out of the two humanoid races that roam the world and unfortunately this is no fault of their own. So with low fertility, great deals of racism aimed towards them and an endless uphill struggle following the down fall to their kingdom and religion it is almost a crippled race with very little future. However, while it’s not widely known, Falkeans do have very small and mild traces of magic within their bloodstream. They can not use the buzzing energy that flows through their veins but if used indirectly by combining symbols, chants (spells), herb and their blood they can turn their magic into useful pieces of Jewelry or for a more powerful effect they can use rituals though the effects of this are short lived. The reason this magic is not well known about is because it can not be wielded or even felt, many Falkeans go their entire lives without knowing of it for multiple reasons and those who know of it are usually told of it by close friends or family. This often sends the small amount of energy jolting to life but this is not in fact true as the magic is there constantly and it regenerates with blood when blood is lost, therefore while it can be lost you will gain it back. Another reason this magic is hardly used and incredibly rare to come across is because of the religion of ‘Rom’ who not only destroyed most of the jewelry and other Falkean related objects but also suppressed their religion and traditions to the point that many families chose to completely forget of them or convert to the religion the empire began forcing upon them. Usually it is only descendants of great nobles or shamans that still know of the traditions and many of these self proclaimed shamans travel the world trying to educate their people of their ancestors, but these are commonly targeted by churches and their followers to be tried for their ‘crimes’ and often these people are killed for heresy.

Amulets Amulets while not specifically necklaces are different types of falkean jewelry that is infused with their magic which over the years have been generalised under such a name. They are the most commonly used form of falkean magic and the most recently created form of magic though this was only a few thousands year after the original creation of Falkeans in the early days of the world when rituals were created, so it’s still a very old tradition. Many do not even know how this tradition works but in reality it can be quite simple, there is always a base to these amulets which can be anything from jewels to a single piece of wood. The materials that conduct magic the best are usually naturally found in the world like wood, stone, grass, some forms of string and many more but then more expensive materials like gold, gems and crystals have been found to be more effective. The best conductor said to be gold which plays a big role when using crystals and this is true but the Falkeans believe it more so due to Atarah and her original golden chains which pulled the world together. However, before the more expensive materials take over this portion of the lore I’ll outline how to use the less and most commonly used and found items: Typically these items are weaved together and the natural materials should be touching each other directly and have no form of man made item like a bead or iron ring (like one that might hold a pendant to a necklace or bracelet) etc to interfere. This is because magic buzzes and flows and when it leaves the bloodstream it must still be able to flow otherwise it becomes stationary and slowly fades, it also helps if you can wear the magic and while it can’t enhance or in anyway help a Falkean use the magic in their bloodstream it does strangely keep it flowing according to many Falkean scholars and shamans. Once the basics of this bracelet, necklace, ring or other item is made you must have somewhere on it where you can carve a symbol so the magic knows it’s purpose, not every symbol is known about but some will be listed below and some can even be taught or made up out of character (ooc) and discovered in character (ic) just know that falkean magic is not that powerful; with the symbols will be listed possibilities that falkean magic has. Now after you have crafted the basics and added the symbol a Falkean must add their blood to this item which doesn’t have to be much but if a falkean uses to much blood not only can they suffer from symptoms of blood loss but there is also an illness that accompanies this and last longer called ‘magic sickness’ which is when a falkean hasn’t got enough magic in their bloodstream and it often makes them seem drowsy, drunk (in a sense), dazed, tired and weak. A falkean on average can make three amulets a day with ten minutes ooc cool down times but if you do decide to make three in one day (24 hours) then for four ooc days you can not make anymore and you will develop minor signs of Magic Sickness. If you do more then three, say five or six you will develop the sickness that day and those amulets will be pretty much useless, if you try doing more then the six the amulet won’t have any form of magic therefore won’t be an amulet at all and you will develop magic sickness immediately. This can be life threatening and even falkean soldiers have been killed faster by magic sickness then blood loss and many believe this is because the magic in a Falkean’s blood is their life itself and that small buzz is what keeps a falkean alive. However, in circumstances like that there are ways to stop ‘magic loss’ by focusing on sending the buzz to an area like a heart or just away from the wound but this can be used in reverse if a falkean wanted the levels of magic in an amulet more concentrated (this would add only minor bonuses to the item). As for expensive materials they work in the same way except usually the basics is simply a small golden chain with a small pendant that should also be gold this usually has the symbol of choice on it, then to take it a step further crystals and gems can be added and this concentrates the magic into one place so when used it’s less spread out and more focused, this is most useful for protection so it can really focus on the hit and absorb as much pain as possible and strength etc. Really it’s useful for all things because no magic is wasted between the dormant stage in the circulation of the jewelry and the useful stage when the magic is being used but like mentioned quite a lot, it's much more expensive and works the same in creation as any other amulet; it doesn’t make it stronger just makes it more focused and less wasteful, in a way, making it accurate. If you are wondering how the magic gets into the amulet well it will need another natural environment to live in once leaving the body and if the magic touches the amulet it will sink straight into it, usually with the blood leaving no blood stain behind. Note that when the blood hits the amulet the magic will recognise this and the symbol then before sinking into the blood it may turn golden and streaky and it will often glow a soft and golden light.

Amulet Possibilities: ''Some possible ideas for making amulets. Protection ''- Like you might expect this amulet protects you from anything from minor or weak evil magic to a blunt or sharp hit. Strength - Naturally a strength amulet increases your strength but not just in battle, in fact many falkean women wear these amulets during childbirth to lessen pain or at least make it somewhat easier for them. Fertility - Makes it more likely to have a child but is not guaranteed for example it kinda becomes a 1/50 chance to 1/10. This is only an example and not linked to any mechanics (this lore doesn’t have any and is not meant to). Luck - What can I say it makes you lucky. Invisibility - Makes you invisible unless hit, hitting someone with great force or unintentionally coming into contact with another person, then it wears off unless more blood is added (well magic). Swiftness -  Makes you faster in usual situation e.g. if your in a chase you are gonna escape or catch the person you are chasing. Illusion - Makes an attackers vision disoriented but only when you are focusing on them, lose focus and they might spot you straight away from the buzz you create using this magic. Good Health - You are less likely to get diseases. Does not protect from injuries or illnesses like blood poisoning etc. Fire Resistance - You get burnt a little like minor sunburn but you could walk through fire, but do not swim in lava it will break the amulet and kill you. Sharp Tongue - Allows you to speak and understand languages you don’t understand, is only effective with expensive materials. Hearing/Listening - Helps you focus on far away conversations you can see and hear them. Reading - Helps you read other languages and your own faster. Language interpretation - Uses cheaper materials and helps you understand other languages (when spoken) but you can’t speak the language. Comprehension - Helps you to notice things others wouldn’t normally e.g. you’d remember who was a thief if they stole from you and you saw their face. You would recognise people from a distance and possibly would notice if someone was lying etc. Binding - When this amulet it put on someone their entire body goes limp, it will wear off probably after five or ten ooc mins like illusion just hits are ineffective. Blessing - Can be used to help you learn stuff faster. Peace - Keeps you relaxed as long as you wear it, I’d imagine this would be unlimited as it doesn’t really use the magic it’s just a positive flow of magic that’s constantly there. Above are some amulet ideas, you can make your own but please note these amulets should all have reasonable uses like the examples above and most the amulets above would probably have no more than five uses unless it specifies but you do not need to make a new amulet just add more blood but obviously if you have made amulets already magic sickness rules apply.

Restrictions and Possibilities of Falkean Magic: Falkean magic like I have said earlier is not necessarily powerful in fact it can not be wielded and you most certainly should not run around with a stick screaming ‘Expelliarmus’.''' I can not stress enough how important it is that you ask a staff member before having a character that knows of it or you must have been taught it in character with proof or a buddy who can almost act as your Alibi if your ic knowledge is questioned. '''It is also important that you realise falkean magic is not the bees knees and it can not kill people instantly, make you untouchable or give you incredible other worldly powers. It is simply something that gives you a bit of a boost whether that be in day to day life or in a battle sense. '''Do not ruin this for everyone else by being immature or by not listening to these warnings. You must also remember that this form of magic is completely outlawed in most places along with 90% of this religion, ic you can be killed for this depending on the situation and because of this many families never taught their descendants of it in anyway leaving it forgotten by most! '''However, I’d assume it’s fine if you know bits and pieces of this and not other bits, for example knowing that falkeans had a religion and knowing of some traditions and wanting to know more in character is fine just don’t assume you’re character will know everything, plus it’s fun if you gotta work hard for what you want especially when it can uncover more mysteries along the way. One last thing I’d like to mention is this lore has no mechanics and this is because it’s supposed to be realistic, rolls and other such things can not accurately determine this and not only that but many do not like to roleplay that way which is why all of this is entirely rp and trust based. As soon as you find out in a character or a staff says you can know ic then it’s your responsibility to rp it correctly, you are trusted to make your rp reasonable, enjoyable and stay away from the cringy side of roleplay if possible. If you do go too far then you are risking many things including being banned from your characters knowing this, you may be kicked and you may even be banned from the server (for a short or extended amount of time depending on the situation).

Rituals

Falkeans as well as having amulets also have an older way of using their magic which is by using rituals; these rituals are often what give humans more of a cause to dislike or even hate the strange ‘knife-eared’ race. There have been many stories told by racist humans of children or livestock being used in these rituals but in fact that would be a huge insult to the Falkean gods as anything that isn’t created and is natural, in a sense, like a living creature is like giving a gift back to the gods which would be rude even if there was no other worldly being involved. These rituals do sometimes include Falkean blood but really aren’t that bad and in fact are mostly used on the injured or dying to help give them short quick bursts of magic to slightly heal a wound or some such thing that could save a life. Most if not all rituals are different from each other unlike amulets and this is why they are so difficult to learn and use, in fact over the years great shamans and healers have often improvised these rituals and over time they have changed dramatically. Some Rituals are listed below, remember the magic sickness still applies here but depending on the ritual it can be caused moments after using the ritual as different ones require different levels of magic etc. You can also make your own and while rituals are powerful they are on the spot sort of things that wouldn’t kill anyone but would help save someone or help achieve an objective. Pretty much no Falkean shamans would be able to tell you of a successful violent ritual and an amulet would be much more practical for that. Also rituals are a lot more dangerous than making ten amulets in some cases, so if making your own make sure it’s well balanced and fits the description of a ritual and everything else that’s so far been written in this lore. Another thing to keep in mind which was not mentioned earlier is falkean magic in a way has its own personality depending on the falkean so an amulet would hold this personality and possibly would be felt when being used and the buzz of the magic is felt, but really you'd notice it more in rituals (whether it was used on you or you were near it). This personality can be anything from the buzz of magic feeling warm and welcoming to cold or refreshing, it all depends on the falkean and if someone was particularly sensitive to magic they'd be able to sense this personality along with the buzz all the time but no Falkeans or humans have ever been considered sensitive to magic this is often a trait only powerful beings (sometimes gods or deities) or beasts possess. It should also be noted that when the incantation for each ritual below is sang the magic reacts and glows like with the amulets, it acts like the symbols in a sense, please be aware that each one of the symbols below are spoken in the ancient falkean language which next to no one knows unless taught or have close ties with the religion!

Healing - This particular ritual has been used for years and was used by a lot of healers during the war to help stabilize injured soldiers before moving them to some sort of hospital. It heals a wound ever so slightly so that it doesn’t bleed as much, almost like a temporary invisible bandage that is desperately trying to keep blood in. This is done by slitting a palm then pressing this palm over the top of your other hand (which should have some form of herbs between to help guide the magic) then the hands should be pressed on the wound. Remember the slit palm does not go over the wound but on the herbs and on top of the other hand first.  Incantation/Chant:  ''‘Gods of times gone by, Hear my pleading cries, Reverse the what has been done, To thaw the unyielding pain.''

''Oh, great gods of old, Hear my aching cries! Sew the scarlet tear, And save a fading light.’''

Cleansing - Cleansing is one of the more common rituals that actually doesn’t need blood specifically, their needs to be a slit somewhere so the mild magic can escape the bloodstream but then if you chant the spell for this ritual in ancient falkean the magic will understand or at least react to the language and obey it. This then draws infection and illness from the veins, not illnesses like a cold but blood poisoning or something similar instead, this is like making two amulets again but there are no effects of blood loss as blood does not have to be used. Incantation/ Chant: ''‘Ancient gods, Drain the pain, Let the poisoned blood, Cleanse the body, Til neither infection, Nor ill will dwell here.’''

Protection - This ritual  is also done through an incantation but first you must place sage upon the chest of the person you want to protect, drip your blood onto the sage and then a small invisible like force field will form and protect them. It can take four hits before it finally breaks.  Incantation/ Chant:  ''Currently unfinished, if using this in roleplay please emote singing but you do not have to use the words. However, when implemented you should use the actual incantations rather then simply emoting singing.''

Fertility - This ritual is usually done when a falkean woman dances away the sweat and pain of her labours then soaks in a bath of herbs, this helps her to relax then magic will flow through these herbs if there is she has a cut and if wearing a fertility amulet the magic will be amplified and will make conceiving a child almost certain. Incantation/ Chant: ''Currently unfinished, if using this in roleplay please emote singing but you do not have to use the words. However, when implemented you should use the actual incantations rather then simply emoting singing.''

(please be aware using rituals is more dangerous then amulets and often to much blood is spilt when completing them and in most the rituals above some form of magic sickness will probably ensue, but there could be ways around this if you had good tactics for these rituals and by that i don’t mean ways to get round the sickness but the situation the sickness might cause).



Traditions
Marriage With Vanadey being the goddess of love she is also the main god associated with weddings and when a shaman joins a couple in union Vanadey is the goddess who supposedly blesses them; it is a sacred and private thing meaning only those of the pride and grooms picking may see the ceremony itself but if one of them (or both) are warriors usually Esmond is present with his sister in order to guide their lives together and training. One of the main reasons weddings are sacred is that there is a kiss involved which is seen as a very important display of love, it is frowned upon to have your first kiss before marriage and even then it’s often preferred to be done in private. Instead Falkeans nuzzle noses in public or the most common and meaningful display of affection is when one lightly join foreheads. It’s strange and just a simple touch but is shows respect and love all in the same sense, it also how a shaman greets many in the religion. But in a wedding a kiss, for one time, is allowed in front of others and then afterwards a wedding becomes a much more public event (in more falkean dominated areas), due to the closeness of this race it’s not uncommon to see a whole town or district of a city celebrate one wedding. Usually this is actually the done thing to do and only those with a poor reputation are out cast in such an event however due to the growing threat of ‘heresy’ many have noticed these events go unnoticed and it’s not hard to understand why when many don’t wish an execution to end their wedding day…

Birthdays Falkeans live on average thirty years longer than humans but it’s not just because of this that their birthdays are different as this to them is normal. Like Falkean weddings it’s because of their gods and unlike most learning of the religion would assume it’s actually Orlaith and Oryn who overlook this ceremony. This is because along with death Orlaith created aging so you are born but you can die and you are young but will grow old, everything she does though it may seem cruel is to balance out the good and evil in the world and to maintain a good quality of life for all. As for Oryn there is a ceremony specifically targeted towards him, for on a baby's first birthday they are presented with amulets of the parents choosing which display symbols each representing a craft, hobby or career. The baby should ‘choose’ one and supposedly that is what the child will go on to do in their life but family members are forbidden to tell the child what the symbol means till they are of age (often eighteen years old) which is when they are told and must present their first craft of their trade the following year or they must bring forward an amulet of their own with the symbol of the craft they truly want. Then for every birthday after they are supposed to bring forward a creation and what they have learnt that year is celebrated late into the night. Falkean value knowledge and the whole concept of a birthday is to celebrate their achievements and what they have learnt in their life, this is why they are to present a craft every year and celebrate it but as some age their crafts are often expected to be as best they can make it and sometimes it doesn’t even need to be physical it can be what they have taught somebody else or it can even be something that is out of their comfort zone and something they found difficult to do.

Language Falkeans do actually have their own language and actually have two, one which is commonly accepted by humans even if they don’t like not being able to understand and one that is rarely used and hardly known by even falkeans. The first is just normal Falkean which is just a mixture of come and a more modern interpretation of the second falkean tongue which is simply known as Ancient Falkean. This language is the only one that can be used to make rituals with falkean blood and normal Falkean like mentioned before is the most common and the one your character can know fluently without asking permission. If you want to show you are speaking either of these languages just make sure you emote it somewhere, make it clear for example: *Jill speaks in falkean and waves* “Hi!” Please note being able to speak ancient falkean is very rare as it’s nearly completely different with a few words and probably about one or two rules being the same and to teach it to anyone who does not believe in the gods or might even be the slightest bit untrustworthy is a crime worthy of death to falkeans. This is because many have used the language to use the blood of falkeans often killing them and using up any magic they one had.

Shamans In falkean society it’s pretty normal there are the rich, the poor, the criminals, the guards and then there are highers ups like royalty and especially shamans. In the royal family the role of king and queen is passed on by the oldest child assuming power (unless they opt to pass it to a younger sibling if there is one) then they can marry to find their king or queen. Only the original royal has full power but for the most part they become equals and the same process occurs again when their child or children is of age. As for the shamans there are next to no other ranks in the church, a high shaman looks over a church then has shamans below him/her and monks below them (if a church is small sometimes it has one or two shamans or monks and that is it) then the one that coordinates most events like coronations or noble and royal weddings is the royal shaman. It’s all simple but many argue over how it really was as many do not know much of any of the past churches after the empire and followers of ‘Rom’ burnt documents and destroyed valuable information crucial for Falkeans to learn of their past tradition but what many can agree is it was an incredibly respectful position to be part of a church.

Notes: Please be aware that some things might be added and changed over time and don’t be afraid to ask staff or ScarletRose if you are confused about something. Also a big thank you to CyanWolf as she helped with some ideas, grammar checking and she wrote the incantation.

Useful Links
Falkean Civilization

The Falkeans (introduction)