Awoken

NOTE: THIS PAGE IS UNDER EXTENSIVE REVISION. 8/31/2020.

Fast Facts

Height: Variable to classification.

Weight: Variable to classification.

Lifespan: Variable to classification.

Notable Features: Variable to classification.

Player Restrictions: Variable to classification.

Racial Ability: Awoken Beings, most Awoken while they do need some kind of sustenance have no need for food, water, or sleep. Instead of sleeping, they enter a meditative trance of sorts. They can go days, weeks, or even months without entering this trance at the cost of their sanity. In addition, due to the nature of their souls, many have an easier time recognizing patterns in Atherium and can to a slight degree see and classify it. For better knowledge, this is a skill that has to be actively honed, and without practice, most will be uncertain as to what these recognized patterns actually mean.

Population: 1,000,000

History

Birth From Chaos

All Awoken consider the day they 'Woke Up' to be that of their birth. For a good majority of Awoken, this was the Sundering. Awoken are living constructs that somehow obtained a soul through not entirely clear means. All anyone truly knows is that it was sparked by the Sundering and some have been able to replicate the event with varying success within results. While a good number of the older Awoken were built long before the Sundering actually took place, a good many aren't willing to claim these years as part of their 'lives' since they hadn't Woken Up yet, and as such were unthinking servants.

When the Sundering occurred many constructs like Golems, Clockwork Creations, Hollows, and even Necromantic Thralls suddenly attracted souls that bound themselves to these soulless bodies among the chaos that was the Sundering. The process was...

All beings are born into this world screaming, and the Awoken are no such exception. Where other mortal races at least have the benefit of not being able to remember their birth, most Awoken remember it with a terrifying amount of clarity. A lot of the Awoken couldn't deal with the sudden acquisition of souls, and those souls were in such states that made the merging process even more difficult.

Some of these souls were new, clean souls ready for bodies. These had the easiest time merging. Some were souls that had already moved on to their chosen afterlives and weren't nessisarily happy to find themselves back. These souls, while the merging process was difficult, were able to eventually fully merge with their new Awoken body. The final type of soul had no living representatives after the Sundering finally ended. These Awoken were the ones who gained the souls of the dead that had yet to be collected. The ones who died in the initial madness of the Sundering and almost immediately merged and became an Awoken. These beings couldn't cope with their new existence, many remember being brutally slaughtered moments before Waking Up.

These Awoken were the first to deal with a process now called the Maddening. A disease like condition that's seen as a plague to the modern Awoken, it's the slow methodical break down of mental processes into insanity, or at least that's what it is now. When the Awoken first came to be, this process was nearly instant. Almost every Awoken suffered from some level of Maddening. Even those who survived to become the representatives for the race have memories of their own chaotic madness, even if it wasn't potent enough for them to go on a rampage resulting in their own death. They arent' fun memories to look back upon.

After the Sundering eventually ended, those who had the easiest time merging regained the rest of their sanity and the Awoken eventually organized themselves into a proper species.

Independence and Recognition

Since a majority of the early representatives for the Awoken were Golems and Autonomatons, a lot of the mortal races didn't take the Awoken very seriously at first. A lot of them had gone insane during the Sundering to the point of attack even each other, and their original purpose was that of servants, so few actually believed their 'intelligence' as they so claimed it. Such started a very long period in Awoken history.

A lot of the existing mortal races, due to their distrust of these seemingly unstable beings, saw fit to in a way subjugate them. The Awoken were often persecuted and put back into the roles of servants while they argued for fair treatment. Unfortunately, nothing they did seemed to work. It was at this point that the few Hollows who'd survived the transformation into Filled and didn't become Hollow Old Knights joined the Golems, Automatons, and Animated in the quest for recognition as their own sentient race. Few members of the mortal race took the Awoken seriously and the Awoken themselves were kept on tight and dangerous leashes. This was the point in history where most of the older Awoken started to develop a strong sense of misanthropy.

It was understandable they'd be treated like servants while they had no souls, at least to a good majority of the Awoken. But to treat them like this after they had souls? The Awoken quickly realized they'd gone from servants to slaves, and now they had the actual sentience to despise it. For the Golems, many of which had existed for thousands of years even if they hadn't Woken Up, they very quickly became bitter. The Automatons took to their existence better since as Clockwork Beings they'd existed for a much shorter time and were more used to the tasks they were asked to complete. Animated and Filled, due to their more humanoid apperance, had an easier time but were no less slaves than the rest of their group.

Then Alchemy started to become popular. The furthur development of Alchemy was truly the turning point for the Awoken. Prior to the Sundering, Alchemy had been a limited and often ignored craft. The Sundering changed the world in such a fashion that Alchemy took on entirely new roles, and the craft became more versatile. The reawakening of Alchemy led to some people asking if it was possible to create living beings through the use of it, much like the Necromancers were able to bind souls to thralls.

The answer was yes.

Mercurious Vex is the man known for the revitalization of Alchemy as a craft, as well as the one mortal being respected by just about all Awoken. Within the couple hundred of years post Sundering, the young human got to work truly perfecting the craft of Alchemy. His biggest question regarded the ability to recreate what happened to the Awoken. The first task was creating the body. He used the corpses of heroes and dragons who'd died, taking donations of blood where he could get them. He was careful to make sure that things were 'ethical' by his own standards. He bound a body, tall and strong and half draconian. The ofter half was a nameless mix of other races. Flesh and minerals he'd scavenged. All the bones were taken from dragons, carefully recrafted to make a humanoid body.

He did his best to make sure the body could function. It wouldn't need to eat or breath, but it still needed to be able to move. When all was said and done he created a compound of sorts using various things like moon blood hairs from babes. When the compound was done he injected it into his creature and waited. This compound seemed to trick those who brought new souls to new lives, and his creature was born. He didn't give this creature a gender and he called them Zephyr. The first Awoken Homunculi.

Zephyr by nature ended up becoming a lowborn and took up the flag of their people, rallying for the Awoken. This was the turning point that finally allowed the Awoken to be recognized by society at large.

Dissimination Into Society

While it wasn't immediate, slowly through the guidance of Zephyr the Awoken were able to force a place in society and be aknowledge as a proper race. While they're still the victim of a lot more racism than some of the other races (especially from the tori races), they managed to find a spot in which they weren't constantly being threatened. Those who wished could find homes and places within the world and live out normal lives just like any other race.

A good number of Awoken didn't want this though. They didn't fight for the ability to participate in civil society, they fought for their freedom and equality between themselves and the other greater races. Many Awoken withdrew from society as soon as they were finally released from their binds. They became solitary creatures and favored living on their own. A good number took to philosophy and became hermits, avoiding just about everyone. Even their own kind.

Those Awoken who decided to remain in society proper found their spot in spite of still finding some prejudice. Some found it hard to work certain jobs. Others, like the Animated, found being accepted generally to be a struggle. The Animated, in particular, had the worst time considering their nature as living corpses and what they required to continue keeping themselves alive. Many Animated were accused of not being true Awoken, just mortals who'd managed to squeeze out some extra time by luck and chance.

The Question Of Reproduction

The one thing that set the Awoken the most apart from the other races was the fact the Awoken couldn't traditionally breed. Most Awoken didn't even have a gender. Possessing no reproductive bits, it was impossible for them to consistently make children. This led to a lot of Awoken panicking. Once again, they turned to Zephyr. Zephyr was the first Awoken not to be born during to Sundering, but instead to be created afterward. Of course, Alchemy was the obvious answer but a lot of Awoken subtypes couldn't actually learn magic. At least, not Alchemy. That still didn't solve the problem for the other classifications of Awoken.

Over time, most have found answers to this question and slowly Awoken created after the Sundering have Woken Up. The one subtype that still struggles massively with this question are the Filled who wonder if it's even possible for new Hollows to become Filled due to the very specific circumstances that surround just their creation alone.

The current state of the Awoken is a quiet one. With half living as recluses and half trying to make a spot for themselves in society, they show all the same signs as a very early race. A lot of Awoken are currently focused on finding ways to bolster their numbers as well as the philosophical pursuits the entire race shares an interest in. Awoken in general have a particular peaceful disposition due to the treatment they've so recently faced and the desire not to face it again. Lots are still trying to find their place in the world.

Physiology/Biology

There are two ways to describe the biology of the Awoken. Classification and Caste. Classification is just the Class fo the Awoken. Think of it like a breed. Golem, Animated, Filled, etc. Caste is a number 1-5 dictating just how sane the Awoken in question is.

Classification

Golems

Golems are more often than not made from very simple, natural materials. They are the oldest type of 'living servants' which is why many still are made using very raw, unrefined materials. While there are those created from refined materials, it never possesses the same intricacy as the Automatons. The most common Golem type that comes to mind is the stereotypical stone golem. Most Golems are crafted in a very simplistic humanoid shape and have just enough joint movement for simple tasks but don't possess the variety of movement necessary for more complex tasks. Golems can vary dramatically in size and tend to clock in on the heavier side due to the materials making up their bodies.

Given their nature, the Golems need not eat or drink. Instead, they exist on a constant supply of Aetherium. While this Aetherium can be gathered during meditative sessions, this is a slow process. This often leaves Golems meditating for a very, very long time. The best way to describe it is long periods of hibernation. However, unlike human beings, Golems are more aware of what happens while they 'sleep'. Many are very accomplished lucid dreamers due to them meditating instead of truly sleeping. This had led to the Golems being the farthest along when it comes to philosophical and scientific pursuits thanks to the surplus of time they have on their hands. When they meditate, they often do so in a way they look identical to the materials they're made up of, sitting in ways that don't make them look like a living creature. This can be of benefit to things like stone Golems since it keeps them from being bothered. The very rare gem Golems are... a different matter entirely.

For Golems who don't wish to undertake this meditative state for so long, Dragonshards are of great value. While meditation can't be completely cut from the daily life of a Golem as it's their alternative to sleep, Dragonshards can negate the need to do so constantly in order to keep up their Aetherium supplies. Most Golem class will either live someone entirely out of the way where they can meditate and ponder life in peace or they'll live somewhere close to a Dragonshard mine, either working the mine or setting up some other kind of deal to get Dragonsharps at a cheap price.

In the event that the pieces of a Golem's body break, the consumption of the materials it was made from can help to restore the body. This helps to speed up the normal healing process. Over many, many, many years the body of a Golem will naturally regrow when destroyed, but this can take centuries depending on the damage. Active consumption of the material speeds this process along to the point that it can take a couple of weeks or even days to heal serious injuries depending on how much the Golem 'eats'. The Golem can rebuild itself from any state as long as the soul doesn't become unbound, which is typically something that happens after the Golem has sustained enough damage to slip into a dangerous level of Maddening.

Golems do not age and can live almost indefinitely. However, they are the most prone to Maddening because of this. Those who meditate often won't see the effects as quickly due to their lifestyle, but those Golems living in society will often need to find outlets and temporary cures for this Maddening once they reach a certain age. As long as the Maddening can be avoided, there's no maximum cap on the lifespan of a Golem.

Automatons

Often referred to as the 'Clockwork Beasts', these were the servants made to replace Golems at the height of the Clockwork Empire. Completely made from machinery, these beings are often intricately designed and more often than not made from various types of metal. Any kind of metal is viable as long as it's craftable. The Automatons were often used for tasks the required more finesse than Golems could provide. Having finely crafted joints, many possess an amazing range of movement and can be hauntingly beautiful. Those that survived the immediate destruction caused by the Sundering became these creatures. Size, height, and weight all vary wildly but never get quite as larger as the largest Golems can.

Much like the Golems, the Automatons don't need to eat or drink. What they do need is fuel. The Automatons, much like every other piece of machinery from the Clockwork Empire, still need to be properly fueled in order to function. The type of fuel varies from creation to creation, but a good number of them are steam-powered, as such need to maintain a constant fuel level in order to continue existing. The tradeoff for this is that Automatons need nowhere near the same amount of Aetherium as the Golems do, and as such only need to meditate a reasonable amount to maintain their sanity. There are some automatons who have found ways around this constant need by changing their energy source. Small water wheels and windmills can act as a replacement as long as they're kept consistently running.

Dragonshard can be used as a replacement fuel source in a pinch, but they've been known to cause bodily and mental damage to the Automaton. Many seek out Alchemists who can create long-burning compounds and more effective fuel sources. In addition, Automatons can store excess energy to use for later so they won't instantly collapse to moment they run out of fuel to burn.

If an Automaton is to break, it's a bit harder to replace the broken part than with a Golem. They need to have a new part fitted and made for them, which is easier said than done. Automatons are known as the guardians of knowledge for the fact they safeguard a lot of technology that was lost during the Sundering. In particular, the ability to build new parts for themselves. Most Automatons have at least a basic understanding of the engineering that makes up their own body, so they can either replace their own lost parts or instruct someone else in the knowledge of how to do it. Fearing what would happen if a second Clockwork Empire were to rise, most Automatons are very picky when it comes to who they tell about the ways to replace the pieces of their bodies. Any piece of the Automaton can be replaced as long as it isn't all replaced as once since the soul will bind the new pieces but can't bind to an entirely new body. A lot of Automatons who were made out of weaker metals went through the effort of slowly transitioning their bodies to stronger metals. Automatons will often help build one another new pieces if they see each other with broken parts.

Automatons much like Golems don't age, though, again, much like Golem the Maddening tends to come to them quicker. Though, not quite as quickly. An Automaton can theoretically live indefinitely. Should an Automaton lose its fuel source, it won't actually die. The body stops being able to work, but the soul remains bound to the body. Instead, it goes into what the Automatons have elected to call the Dreamless Sleep since the soul is still bound to the body but not technically sleeping or living. While the Maddening does still progress, it progresses at a much slower rate. This allows soul that get trapped in lost bodies to eventually be free, but also allows bodies that can still be found to eventually wake up if a kind traveler stumbles across it. The Automaton is still aware of everything going on around it during this time, but can elect to 'sleep' as a way to pass time faster.

There exist wandering groups of Automatons whose soul purpose is rescuing other Automatons from hard to get to places that mortals might not venture.

Animated

The Animated are best described as zombies. They are necromantic creations who managed to somehow get a soul. This could be intentional or accidental. Post-Sundering, necromancers realized they could start doing it on purpose. Animated are just living corpses, and because of this they often look like they did when they were still alive. For height, size, weight, and other apperance factors refer to whatever race they were originally apart of. Animated fact the most amount of prosecution and discrimination due to what they are. Many people believe them to be a threat.

Animated don't need to eat or drink, though they do still need sleep. They sleep in a manner very similar to a normal person. When it comes to eating they still can eat though. And in some cases, it's encouraged. To prevent themselves from rotting, the Awoken need a constant supply of magic. This, however, doesn't completely halt the process. It only stalls it. For an Animated looking to completely stall the process, they need to eat. Fresh flesh should do the trick. They need to eat something that's still alive, but animals should suffice. For an Animated that's looking to reverse the rotting process, then it's mortal flesh they're going to need. It can be any sentient race, but their own race is doubly effective. Eating the living helps to add to their aetherium supply, and it's one of only three ways for the Animated to get aetherium.

For most Animated, Dragonshard are the way to go. They're almost necessary, especially for Animated who don't wish to indulge the consumption of living creatures too often. Through the consumption of Dragonshards (physically eating the shards) they can get a decent supply of aetherium and while it doesn't stall the rotting process it slows it enough that they should have a long enough life. Another option is servitude to a necromancy. Be it the necromancer that made them or one they picked, the Animated can forge a special bond with a necromancer. In exchange for being entirely unable to disobey orders, the Animated can feed off the Necromancer's aetherium. This puts the necromancy at a slightly higher risk for threshold sickness whenever they cast spells, but in exchange, they get a powerful and intelligent thrall.

A bond with a necromancer cannot be broken or formed unless both parties agree, so Animated should take the offer with a good deal of caution less they get trapped in the relationship.

Animated can't traditionally die a second time. Once they rot enough the soul will eventually unbind itself. It's possible for them to become a very special subset of Animated called a Skeleton Animated, but this requires a large amount of aetherium as well as a larger constant supply. In exchange, the soul will remain bound until the bones of the creature are destroyed or the Maddening fully sets in. Rotting causes Maddening, but so does the consumption of still living creatures, so the Animated are constantly looking for magical ways to reduce Maddening. An Animated who managed to do this while eating mortal flesh can theoretically live forever and look almost identical to a regular mortal, however, if they're ever discovered they'll be regarded with the same friendly attitude as one would treat a Dranoch Huntsman.

Filled

Apply named, the Ex-Hollows are known as the Filled. Hollows are a very special kind of construct made in Lorien. The Hollows themselves were cheap and mass-produced, but during the Sundering a good number got souls and entered the Maddening. Due to the nature of Lorien, the Hollows were the most prone to Maddening after gaining sentience, so most were ultimately destroyed by the denizens of Lorien before the Sundering ending. This made the Filled the rarest of all Awoken. As well as the weakest. The Hollow Old Knights are a type of Filled, but more commonly, the Filled are a quiet group that tries to avoid all contact with Lorien given their small numbers and how it's almost impossible to reproduce a Filled thanks to the specific circumstances.

While lots of other Awoken require some type of magic or fuel to keep themselves going, the Filled don't need any kind of replacement for food and water. All they need is the thing that allowed them to be made in the first place. Lorianum. The core of a Filled (or Hollow's) existence is their Lorianum. As long as they have it, there's no need for anything else like food or water. Unlike Hollows, the Filled do need sleep thanks to the fact they have a soul. They engage in a very unique state that's somewhere between the regular sleep of an Animated or Homunculi and the meditation of a Golem. The Filled need nothing else to survive and as long as they go unbothered they can just exist for any given amount of time.

The trade-off for this is their fragile bodies. The Filled were once Hollows, beings that are cheaply made and mass-produced for service. They're only made sturdy enough to work until they break from working, and the Filled are no exception to this rule. The Filled have to go to extreme length to keep their body from suddenly breaking. While they can continue living on as long as their lorianum survives, the lorianum itself is very fragile and hard to protect while whats surrounding it is fragile too. Isolation is extremely common in the filled because of this. Most won't leave the isolation without grand sets of armor and ways to protect themselves from the seeming inevitability of their demise. Lorien also doesn't show any signs of being willing to help repair the Filled. In fact, a good number of Filled fear going back to Lorien as they might be destroyed, regardless of what the reality of the situation might be.

It's currently unknown as if there's any way to repair the broken body parts of a Filled since there are none brave enough to venture into Lorien and ask.

Filled are simultaneously the shortest and the longest-lived of all the Awoken. Shortest because a strong punch could potentially decimate one. The longest because strangely enough, the Filled show know signs of Maddening regardless of how long they live. All things considered, it's strange, but there are no recorded Filled belonging to any Caste less than 1, allowing them to potentially live indefinitely as long as they protect their power source.

Homunculi

The Homunculi, also often referred to as the youngest classification of Awoken, are beings made through the use of alchemy and given a soul. While all three different methods of giving a Homunculi a soul constitute them as being an Awoken, typically it's only the third method that people widly accept as an Awoken Homunculi. The first method is considered not truly an Awoken since the use of animal and plant souls set it on a different level than the typical Awoken. The second method, which uses a dead persons's soul, is more often than not classified as an Animated Awoken. True Homunculi Awoken are set apart by the fact they recieve a brand new soul, entirely fresh and without memories.

Due to the the nature of crafting a Homunculus, they're probably the most wildly varied of all the groups. They can be crafted from just about anything and depending on the skill of the Alchemist they can range anywhere between functioning soley off magic to having a working circulatory system. Because of this a lot of the general things like what they need to maintain themselves or what happens when they break can vary wildly as well. When trying to classify and understand the Homunculi, your best bet is to compare them to a different classification of Awoken they most resemble and start there.

Homunculi made from natural materials might be able to live for a long time, while ones made from flesh and bone might be more similar to an Animated or even in some cases be chimeric in nature and should be treated like a proper 'living' organism (requiring basic necessities like food, water, shelter, etc.) A lot of this will also depend on the alchemist in question. While someone needs to be a master level Alchemist before they can even start trying to make a Monunculi, some are bound to be better at it than others. Those with skills in sciences or arts that could be applicable to the creative process will have an easier time and a better end product than someone who only focused on Alchemy.

One important trait between all Homunculi is the bond they share with their creator. They will all have a general sense in the back of their minds regarding what state their creator is in. Their health, their emotions, and if the Homunculus is needed. While the relationship between each Alchemist and Homunculi can be different, the most common is a parent-child relationships. That being said, Homunculi out of all the classifications are still the easiest to abuse given the fact they can be physically designed to obey orders. Commissioning the creation of a Homunculi is, unfortunately, a little too common, and it's hard for a Homunculi to escape such a situation without outside intervention.

• If a player is interested in playing a Homunculus character, please get in touch with a moderator to work out the specifics such as bodily requirements and if there are any alchemical abilities available to you.

Caste

Caste is dictated by the sanity of any given Awoken. Caste can change over time, but a big indicator of Caste is how well the body and the soul 'get along' so to speak. Dysphoria and other maladies often Caste a sharp drop in Caste. Fixing or adjusting to these problems can often cause the Caste of an Awoken to go up. As the Caste drops, the closer the Awoken sinks in the Maddening. The Maddening is the slow process through which an Awoken goes insane. This is something that happened to every Awoken post Sundering to different degrees.

A Maddening Awoken becomes a danger to themselves and others. This is a process that can happen to an Awoken because of extreme bodily damage or other factors. It's also something that can just happen naturally as an Awoken ages, with the strange exception of the Filled who after surviving the initial Sundering are all Caste 1 and don't show any signs of changing. There are ways to stunt, delay, or even reverse this process though they're often hard to hunt down or require a master Alchemist to achieve. If an Awoken dips too far down into the Maddening to the point they drop below Caste 5, they're at risk of becoming so unstable that their soul will literally tear itself from the body resulting in immediate death.

While there is the chance to temporarily chance Caste and keep it there with enough effort (less effort if one is going down the Caste ladder), the 'birth Caste' of an Awoken tends to follow them for life. Quirks in personality and apperance will reveal what they were when they first started life. Those who started as Caste 5 will always be haunted by the scars and those who started as a Caste 1 will always have that air of intelligence and poise possed by the Caste.

Caste 1

Caste 1 Awoken show no signs of Maddening or instability. These Awoken can even be described as being in perfect mental health and often show a wide range of emotions. They're also the most similar in disposition to the mortal races. All Filled who managed to survive the Sundering are a part of this Caste, as least as far as most researchers know. Caste 1 Awoken are actually fairly rare. Caste 1 are often considered to be extremely valuable because they're more stable than your average mortal. They're also the most 'set' Caste, meaning that those who are Caste 1 are very unlikely to leave this Caste for any reason.

Caste 2

While starting to show some signs of Maddening, the Caste 2 are no danger. They reflect the personalities and actions of members of the mortal races who aren't neurotypical. Caste 2 is the most common type of Awoken. They experience some moments of instability, but only as much as a human might. While they can dip into Caste 3, it's rare that an Awoken who starts life as a Caste 2 will ever drop lower than that, and they have good chances of eventually becoming a Caste 1 if they find healthy ways to cope with whatever issues they might have. Caste 2 Awoken are as reliable emotionally and mentally as any human or tori.

Caste 3

Caste 3 Awoken are when things start to get a little iffy. Awoken who start life as Caste 3 often find it difficult to rise in Caste while finding it exceptionally easy to drop. They tend to be emotionally wild, bipolar to a noticeable degree and often have various memory problems. While they aren't quite unacceptable in society, they're wildly disregarded due to the instability of their actions and choices even if those actions and choices make perfect sense to the Awoken. They can still function in society at large with minimal issues though.

Caste 4

Caste 4 Awoken are the Awoken who are starting to become a danger to themselves and those around them. Caste 4 is the point where civilized society starts to shun a Caste 4. Dangerous while being just smart enough to know it, the Caste 4 goes from chaotic to lethal. They're unstable and more often than not immediately violent. While it's still possible to reason with a Caste 4 as well as pull it back up into sanity, the Caste 4 act with the same amount of intelligence and awareness of others as a child might. Treating them like they are a child with too much strength is perhaps the safest way to go about interacting with a Caste 4, since while they can and will kill you they won't understand why it's wrong. The slight childishness of a Caste 4 makes it so it is still possible to save them without resorting to extreme measures.

Caster 5

The Caste 5 is the last class an Awoken can reach before they truly dip so far into the Maddening that they're unretrievable. The Caste 5 borders on animalistic. They gain a level of stability back, with more predictable actions and decisions, at the cost of becoming completely and enthusiastically savage. Approach as though they are a wild animal, knowing that they've lost that child-like quality of Caste 4 that gives them the ability to at least slightly think. A Caste 5 can no longer be reasoned with, not without some serious effort and skill. While there's still a sentient soul trapped somewhere in there, it's hard to reach. The most effective measure of dealing with a Caste 5 is treating it like a wolf. If one wishes to try and save a Caste 5 it must be captured and in essence 'tamed'. If a Caste 5 slips too low they enter a level of the Maddening that requires divine intervention to return from. A Caste 5 risks sudden death due to the instability of the bond between body and soul. Though this is rare, and often times those looking to capitalize on this must actively be attempting to cause such a result.

Psychology

The Question Of Existence

The Awoken are technically a race that shouldn't have existed. They were never supposed to be a race proper. It wasn't the intervention of a Dragon God or a Mist Lord that triggered their existence. It was the Sundering, plain and simple. Something in the event of the Sundering resonated with the Awoken and as such they 'Woke Up'. Because of this, a lot of Awoken struggle with their existence. Especially the older ones who can still remember a time when they were little more than servants. Questioning why they exist and for what reason is a major piece is the psychology of the Awoken.

This question seems to be the second biggest factor in why Awoken start to undergo Maddening, the first being how well the soul meshes with their body. Those who can't find a satisfying answer will begin to lose themselves in the question, bringing up their own worth the more they think about something that they slowly realize might have been entirely pointless. Perhaps there was no reason for their existence, simply chance. Those who can't find some kind of answer that brings them peace will slip lower and lower down the Caste list.

Most Awoken never come up with an answer to this question, but they slowly come to terms with that over time.

Curiosity, The Desire To Understand

Most Awoken are very curious beings. They're a fairly young race by most standards and there's a lot of things about the world they don't understand. Most of the Awoken who actually survived Waking Up were given the unlearned souls of babies and children. The souls that were completely fresh and without memory, either entering the world for the first time or trying to tackle their second go-round. Most Awoken still don't fully understand their own existence. What they understand even less is the existence of others as well as the world they live in.

When an Awoken discovers something new their very prone to poking at it and trying to decipher what exactly it is, be it living or not. Most people in their lives will stumble across a curious Awoken that questions them about something or another. Be it what they're wearing, what race they are, why they walk or talk a certain way, etc. The only classification that doesn't share in this almost childish, gleeful curiosity are the Animated since the majority of them have the same soul they had when their body was still alive. Or worse, a different adult soul. Very few Animated have fresh souls, but those that do might very well share in this pleasure.

Awoken, for this very reason, often make good scientists or fill investigative roles.

The Burden Of Memeory

The older Awoken who existed before properly Waking Up know this burden a bit too well. So do those with souls that weren't clean. The only class of Awoken who has no chance in sharing this trait are the Filled. There's a lot of speculation that the reason they're the most stable class is because they've subconsciously blocked out everything prior to Waking Up, as well as the immediate Maddening that happened after it.

For all the other classes, they run the risk of remembering something they really don't want to.

For those with used souls, it's not entirely uncommon for them to remember their 'past lives'. Be it in vague nightmares or straight up memories that they can pull on at will, there will often be the lingering wisps of something that no longer is. For many, this can be a haunting experience. If left be for too long, it can even slowly pose a threat to the sanity of the Awoken. That being said, there are times when these memories can be useful.

For those who have a fresh soul, there's still a chance to have uncomfortable memories. A lot of Awoken existed prior to the Sundering, they just didn't have souls. A good number were engineered to be intelligent though, for the sake of completing various tasks. While the memories might be hazier for some, it's possible to remember the time prior to Waking Up when they were little more than servants. Some Awoken really don't mind these memories. Others weren't treated as kindly and would much rather just forget.

Variance Due To Caste

All Awoken are affected mentally by what Caste they belong to. Each Awoken is 'born' into a Caste which is based on how easily their body and their soul mesh. This is their baseline and it's typically what their mental state naturally wants to return to. Those who start a 1 will have an easier time pulling themselves back to stability. Those who start at 5 will constantly be struggling.

How well the body and soul mesh is reliant mostly on the soul. If it's a fresh soul with no mortal attachments it bonds to the body well and is usually of an upper Caste. Souls of those who passed away and went to the afterlife often don't get along perfectly with their new body, but most of the time they won't actively try to reject it either. The soul of someone who died but didn't pass on can vary. It can be like a soul that moved on to the afterlife, or it could be vengeful and tortured depending on how it died. Some souls might welcome the new body because they weren't ready to die, while others might violently reject it.

While this is a strong factor in Caste, it's only the baseline and can be affected by other variables such as mental and physical pain or coping mechanisums.

Culture

Solitary Hermituide

While it isn't ever Awoken a good number of Awoken instead of joining society instead decided to indulge solitude. These Awoken became very solitary hermits and ended up focusing the most on philosophical ideals. It's considered normal to occasionally stumble across one of these Awoken living somewhere that normal mortal creatures shouldn't be able to survive for extended amounts of time. For the Awoken, this lifestyle fits them perfectly.

While these Awoken are by nature very solitary, most have no troubles hosting another Awoken. Especially of the same classification. Often they'll share resources and do what they can to help one another before inevitably parting ways once more. If the lair of an Awoken becomes common knowledge outside other Awoken, though, they're prone to packing up and leaving. Some change lairs constantly just to avoid the risk of being found, even if there doesn't seem like there's any chance of this happening.

Some Awoken might be so kind as to help a lost traveler, while the less altruistic members of the group might just speed along their deaths.

Often, they're very demanding of equal treatment. These Awoken often think their society loving counterparts to be exceptionally strange.

A Place In Society

On the other end of the spectrum opposing the isolationist Awoken we have the Awoken who wish for nothing more than finding a place in society where they can be treated fairly and as an equal. These Awoken aren't as prone to traveling, but will area hop if they don't think they kind find a space in the community they're currently apart of.

Because Awoken have fewer needs, they often don't need as much money as a lot of the other races. Depending on the climate they don't need a roof over their head as long as there isn't anything that can physically destroy them in the area. Most don't need food or water. In spite of this, most Awoken seem almost desperate for a job and a proper home as it's part of what they consider to be participating in society. They'll take just about anything as long as they can have it and call it theirs. As a result, many Awoken end up with more than what they need or desire, which has led to a strong sense of altruism in the Awoken who don't become hermits or misanthropes. These Awoken often donate to those who need it and offer their home to strangers.

While the Awoken enjoy material possessions, they aren't necessary to them. The kinds they enjoy the most are the ones that carry or a story or taught them something. The things they find to be interesting often don't line up with what can be pawned off.

When it comes to jobs, again, these Awoken will take just about anything offered to them regardless of pay. However, the Awoken stand out the most in scientific and philosophical fields. Not only do they enjoy it, but those with old memories can often offer insights that have been completely lost to the times.

Desire To Serve vs. Resentment Of Servituide

The dichotomy between the two types of Awoken can best be explained in two different world outlooks.

The Awoken who desire a place in society are the ones who still have a sharp need to 'serve' so to speak. They're the ones who didn't mind the mortal races and were probably treated well. They're the ones who had souls that were either fresh or treated well in their past lives. These Awoken have no ill intentions towards the mortal races as a whole which has left their will to serve intact throughout the years between mindless servant and living being. While they might have suffered hardships in the hundred-year gap after the Sundering, those hardships could be withstood and they continued to believe that those who treated them badly weren't the universal representatives for the mortal races.

Those who live in a society still feel this urge, which is the root of why they're so willing to take any job. It's why they're so willing to help the less fortunate. Experiences have not dampened their altruism and that childish spark of joy they get out of simply existing can still be seen.

On the other hand are the Awoken who became resentful. While not all hermit Awoken fall into this category, no Awoken from this category would dare be part of society. After waking up for one reason or another they were treated poorly, terribly, these are the Awoken who got abused and had to fight bitterly for their rights. These are the ones who probably didn't have fresh souls and could still call up memories from past lives where they were treated poorly. The ones who were treated poorly before Waking Up, abused and mistreated by careless masters.

In the hundred years after the Sundering, these are the Awoken who took things personally. They were the ones who fought back and as a result, these were the ones who ended up getting treated worse and worse. While not each and every one of them is a misanthrope, most of them have a deep distrust of other races.

Clothing and Grooming

Clothing and Fashion

The majority of Awoken have no use or need for clothing. First of all, most have no concept of temperature. They don't have to protect themselves from the elements unless the elements are truly vicious enough to tear their bodies apart. Neither do most Awoken have reproductive bits. The only ones that consistently do are the Animated for the simple fact they're animated corpse who commonly continue following the trends of fashion the rest of their races does. While not consistent, the Homunculi also can. Whether they wear clothes depends on how they were made and the ideals of their creators, so again, it varies.

While clothing isn't really necessary or even important in some cases, a lot of Awoken seem to have a sense of fashion. They enjoy making themselves pretty by whatever their standards seem to be. Decorating themselves in cloths, apply paints, putting on jewelry or even embedding jewels into their bodies. All completely unnecessary, but they seem to derive a kind of joy from making their body theirs.

Common Grooming Practices

While it isn't grooming in the traditional sense of the word, there are certain upkeep practices that all classes need to partake in. Some more complicated than others.

Automatons need to constantly repair joins and broken parts, as well as apply oils and prevent rust. The Animated will apply special potions and creams to further slow the decay of their body as well as mask the deadness. These are just a couple examples though, and the specifics will often vary from class to class.

The Topic Of Disease

Disease in most races is usually caused by poor bodily care. For the Awoken, disease is an interesting topic. Their bodies themselves keep most of them from physically being able to catch diseases. This, however, doesn't make the Awoken entirely immune to disease. There are specific diseases that can travel over to the Awoken, especially mental and psychological ailments. There are also illnesses that affect only the Awoken, specifically having evolved to target them.

Technology and Intellectual Pursuits

Philosophy

Probably the most important science to the mass majority of Awoken. Philosophy helps them to understand their own existence when the world itself isn't very forthcoming with answers. Awoken often pose lots of important questions, especially ones regarding rights and what counts a being as sentient or intelligent. Awoken will often argue for hours with both each other or anyone who has the misfortune of being dragged into the conversation if they aren't stopped, which isn't bad but it also isn't good when an Awoken doesn't need to eat or breath unlike most of the other races.

Memories Of The Old

Certain Awoken have what is considered to be 'dead' knowledge. Scientific processes from back in the Clockwork Empire, things that might not have been seen for the hundreds of years since the Sundering. Or at least seen very rarely. How each Awoken treats this information differs. For some this information itself is fuzzy at best. Just a vague understanding of how things went since they were never a direct part of the process and their memories of prior to waking up have long since grown fuzzy or were never very good to begin with. Others can remember with crystal clarity and might not be forthcoming with the knowledge of fear for another Clockwork Empire as well as another Sundering.

However, the one thing that seems to be constant is that a lot of the Awoken have a natural knack for the sciences. While maybe medicine or biology isn't their strong suit, technologies like engineering or chemistry often come to the Awoken with ease. Awoken have been at the forefront of pushing the sciences, especially recently now that the wounds of the Sundering are finally starting to heal and they're being treated with more respect. For the most part.

The Place Of Magic

Magic is a tricky topic when it comes to the Awoken. Some Awoken can learn magic just fine. Others it can destroy their bodies or cause degeneration. Some just can't learn it for one reason or another. It varies from class to class. The rules are as follows.

Golems: Golems have accessible to them Elementalisum and Artificing, which many end up learning from one another and using in order to create 'children' in a sense. They have higher chances of overstepping and causing themselves threshold sickness which can invoke Maddening, in addition it takes a lot of time to gather the aetherium required unless they have Dragonshards on hand.

Automatons: Automatons for one reason or another just outright can't use magic. Something about their body seems to conflict with the use of magic and attempts (especially repeated attempts) will often result in the death of either party. In a worst-case scenario, both.

Animated: Animated or limited in what kinds of magic they can use, these being Necromancy and for some strange reason Affliction. The use of magic, however, will cause intense degeneration of their physical form, either shortening their lives or forcing them to eat the flesh of other races since animals alone can't turn back the clock. As a benefit though, the use of Necromancy, in particular, seems to have a positive effect on reducing Maddening.

Filled: For some reason, the Filled seem to have no difficulty using magic of any kind. It doesn't seem to adversely affect them in any manner.

Homunculi: Like most things with the Homunculi, this is variable to how the Alchemist created the body. There are ways to make it so that a Homunculi can learn magic, however, it's ill-advised since more often than not it causes instability. The magic can adversely affect the created body of the Homunculus causing it to outright fall apart, this is especially common in Homunculi using animal or plant souls which will almost always result in the breakdown of the Awoken.

Arts and Crafts

The Draw of Art

Awoke are for some reason strangely drawn to art. This is often also related to whatever school of art created them. Becoming skilled crafters or sculptors of any sort.

In addition, the Awoken consider all sciences and crafts to be a form of art. Metalworking or biology can be an art as long as the artist takes the time to be creative. Automatons are especially skilled when it comes to metalworking, often created decorative and functional pieces.

However, nothing created by the Awoken compares to the Golem Statues. Golems are intrinsically drawn to the creation of statues, whether these will become 'child' eventually or not. They guard these statues ferociously and these creations can come in all shapes and sizes. Golems can't be properly commissioned to make them as they seem to hold a special significance and rarely will a Golem part with its statue. Those who possess a Golem Statue are often seen with an equal mix of jealousy and respect, the creations often being seen as the epitome of luxury.

These statues have been known to suddenly come to life even if the Golem never intended for that to happen. This, however, only seems to happen when their new owner is in danger. No one has yet been able to come up with a reason for that...

Religion and Worship

Raella and Wraedan

Raella and Wraedan are the two main focuses are the Awoken faith.

First comes the mother, the fountain of life. She's seen as a guide even if she isn't their mother. By allowing the Awoken to continue existing, she's seen as an adoptive mother by many members of the species. Awoken who've found ways to create new 'children' attribute it to Raella's grace and her acceptance of them as a new sentient race even when the other races didn't.

Wraedan is the father and the bringing of death who sits on the other end of the spectrum. However, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. For a lot of awoken Wraedan represents finally achieving peace. They are a species that was never supposed to technically exist. A good number of them suffered atrocities and terrible memories they don't care to repeat. Wraedan comes to claim them eventually, and when he does the souls that were unfairly bound to creatures that should never have lived are finally freed. A lot of Awoken see their physical forms as 'borrowed' or 'husks'. Wraedan comes to free them from their shells as they've completed whatever task had them existing in the first place.

Worship of Wraedan is especially popular among those who've had a tough life.

Keela

Wisdom and knowledge is one thing that all Awoken seek. All Awoken crave. Why do they exist? What process brought them to exist? For what purpose do they still live now? For the Awoken, Keela represents answers, even if it means hunting those answers down with a fury. For a race with such deeply philosophical roots, she means a lot to them.

Malgar

A very rare vein of worship in other races. There are a good number of Awoken who well and truly worship Malgar. Not because they agree with his beliefs, not because they like him in any sense of the word, but because they believe he had a hand in the actions that allowed them to exist. This is especially prominent in the Awoken who are embittered towards the other races. He brought suffering down on them in some fashion, and by a result, the Awoken were born. The true pinnacle of existence because they were born from suffering. Creatures who have reached their peak in his eyes because they were created from suffering and suffering and suffering. For the Awoken who see themselves as having been wronged, he is a beacon and a savior whose existence proves that they are better by the merit of the fact they overcame and survived even if they were born into the chaos that was the Sundering itself.

For other Awoken, those who favor humanity, he's a monster to be placated. A creature whose wrath can be avoided if they keep their head down and pray. Many know that the reality of the situation is ab it more grim, that there's no perfect way to avoid his grip, but they try. For themselves and others they pray and they try.

Reproduction, Aging, and Death

Golems

Often, Golems will make Golem Statues with the intention of those becoming new Awoken. While Artificing can help speed the process along, it's not necessary.

over time the Golem will make a new Golem out of whatever it decides to deem fit, usually the materials that are closest at hand. Once that process is complete the Golem prays to Raella for days on end. This is part of why Raella is popular with the Awoken. Whether this is true or not, it is believed that if she finds the statue and the Golem to be worthy, she will give that statue a soul and this creates a new Awoken. There's no actual proof that this is what happens, but it's genuinely what the Golems believe happens and since there's literally no other explination most people aren't going to question it until it's proven false.

Since Golems do not technically age, there isn't a true life cycle. Instead, it's more the mental development of the Golem starting off like that of a child.

The only way to well and truly kill a Golem is to unbind the soul, which can be done through Maddening or extreme bodily damage. If the damage isn't absolute than the Golem can slowly rebuild itself, but this can take hundreds if not thousands of years depending on if the Golem has the ability to consume vast amounts of whatever its body had originally been made of.

Automatons

The Automaton birth is almost identical to the Golems, the only difference being they need the parts to build the new body and the fact it must be accurately designed. Just like with the Golems they pray to Raella and if she seems the new creature as being worthy then it'll be blessed with a soul, resulting in a brand new Automaton. It should be noted that Automatons are a fair bit rarer than Golems due to the fact they're less likely to gain a soul. No studies have been able to figure out why as of yet.

Again, they do not age, and the aging process is identical to the Golem.

When it comes to killing an Automaton you once again need to unbind the soul, which can be done through Maddening or the complete bodily destruction of the creature. Automatons can replace broken parts as long as they don't replace their entire body at once, but this can take a while as they need to rebuild the parts. Cutting off the fuel source won't be enough to kill one either, instead, they just fall into a sleep-like state until the fall deep enough into Maddening that the soul can finally unbind itself. There's a chance another Automaton will stumble across and refuel them. Running out of fuel also doesn't mean collapsing instantly since often they keep reserves.

Animated

Animated are born when a Necromancer decides to be mean and bind a mortal soul to a corpse. Sometimes this is the soul that belonged to the corpse. Sometimes it's not. If it's not, then it has a higher chance of failing. It has an even higher chance is that the soul died in a painful or dramatic fashion. If all goes well the soul will be bound to the corpse and create an Animated. Important note. The souls of Rathari and Jastai cannot under any circumstances become Animated due to very special circumstances regarding the nature of these souls.

From the moment of their 'birth', the Animated immediately start to rot. Often times they don't have an actual life cycle since these are usually adult souls and adult bodies. Usually. The life cycle for them is slowly rotting over time.

The rotting of an Animated can be slowed or even reversed by the consumption of living animals or mortals. The creature must be alive when the Animated starts consuming them for the effects to actually work and whatever they can't finish in a single sitting will go to waste. Killing an Animated isn't as hard as some of the other Awoken. Simple destruction of the head or setting it ablaze does the trick nicely. Unless they become a Skeleton Animated they will completely sink into Madness once they've finished rotting to a certain degree. Skeleton Animated are, as the name implies, skeletons. However, they require a much higher constant flow of Aetherium to keep their form and as such will simply fall apart and the soul will unbind if they lose that flow for too long as opposed to the regular Animated who simply rot faster when they have no access to Aetherium.

Filled

Filled cannot, as we know it, be created. Due to their very specific birth circumstances as far as most know it's impossible to replicate. Their life cycle is pretty similar to the Golem.

When it comes to destroying a Filled, it's the easiest of the group. Simply destroying the lorianum will take them down forever, and that isn't difficult since Hollows are cheap and mass-produced as is, leading to very fragile Filled. The one example is the Hollow Old Knights, but this is a selective group that most will never be able to join/become.

Homunculi

Life for a Homunculi starts with an Alchemist making them. They'll be given life through one of three methods and this will decide their intelligence and how well they adjust to the body they're currently in. From this point forward, most of the information regarding the Homunculi is tailored to the specific Homunculus. Please refer to whatever group they most resemble. if it's a Homunculus that distinctly resembles a living mortal race with all the quirks of them (having to eat, drink, breath, etc) then treat them in a manner similar to those races.

Language

There is no universal language for the Awoken. They tend to pick up whatever language their creator used and whatever language is most used by those around them. Some just abandon language all together if they're reclusive enough.