Animus
Stories abound across the many cultures of Ransera of people who have been able to borrow traits of wild beasts. Simple phrases such as “the strength of a bear” or “watching like a hawk” are attributed to the utilization of the power known as Animus. As one of the oldest known forms of magic in the world, Animus gives mortals a glimpse of the primal power that is found in embracing the wilds.
Origins
There are differing accounts of how and when, but it is universally accepted that the power of Animus was bestowed upon mortals through the intervention of Aedrin, the Dragon God of Nature. Among the Moratallen people, there are stories as old as time of their ancestors being able to change their shapes and adopt the properties of varying animal species encountered in the wilds. The prevalence of this magic across the cultures of Ransera eventually culminated in the creation of an entirely new race of people, seeing it used to astounding degree in bringing about the birth of the Rathari though the knowledge of how has been lost to the ages.
Initiation and Threshold Sickness
Like with all disciplines of rune magic, the aspiring animist must find a wizard who is both willing and capable of inscribing the Cardinal Rune of Animus upon their flesh. On top of that, they must also have with them a piece of an animal whose shape and attributes they wish to adopt for the first time. They must have this piece of the animal in their grasp. The Rune of Animus is fairly straightforward in its initiation process though it can be a mix of unsettling and disturbing for any who bear witness to it. As soon as the rune takes hold upon the individual it will send a surge of aether into the person’s body, that aether will latch onto the animal piece that the person has with them. As soon as the those to things touch, the person will begin to transform whether they want to or not.
It is described as an excruciating process. Bone begins to shift and break as the body is forced to adopt the shape and form of the animal that they have chosen. All the while, the instincts and mindset of the animal will be attempting to take hold of the person’s mind. The initiate must fight the urge to let themselves be consumed by the call of the wild animal they are shaping into. They must hold on to their mind and their identity even as their body is morphed and changed. When the transformation is complete, the person must then work to regain their original shape. Willing their body to shift away from the form of the animal and back into its natural state. Success will see the person returned to their natural body, with one one exception. Every Animist will exhibit a single animalistic trait forevermore. It can be a change in one of their natural senses such as sight, hearing, smell, taste or it can be a physical change. Some people exhibit a sharper point to their ears, they gain permanent claws, their eyes change to be cat-like or reptilian. It is all dependent upon the animal whose shape they first adopt.
Following a successful initiation, the person will likely be utterly exhausted and falling into unconsciousness for a day or two afterwards is not uncommon.
A failed initiation will result in the person losing themselves to the animal they sought to adopt the shape of. The animal takes over completely during the initiation and the person they were is lost. This makes Animus unique among runes of magic in that there are examples across recorded history where through extensive work and careful approach, more masterful Animists have been able to guide a lost person back to their original selves. It is rare, but there are examples to be found of such a miracle happening.
Overstepping
Overstepping with Animus can range from simply disorienting to traumatic. Mild overstepping sees hypersensitivity of the senses. Ringing of the ears, sensitivity to smells that results in nausea, loss of appetite and vomiting, the feeling as though one is about to crawl out of their skin. More severe overstepping begins to see beastial manifestations across the body with the mage having no control over their appearance. Often these transformations are painful. At the very worst, the mage’s body breaks in weird places, joints spontaneously dislocate, and the body is forced to become an amalgamation of grotesque mutations until the mage is driven utterly insane.
How It Works
The powers of Animus are expressed through the utilization of objects called Totems. These are typically pieces of the animals that the animist wishes to borrow the shape of. The creation of a totem is a fairly simple process. Once the wizard has acquired the totem they desire, they simply meditate with the object while dousing it in the aether channeled through their rune. The length of time this requires varies from person to person depending on their depth of understanding of the animal in question. Upon successfully joining the totem with their aether, it will be absorbed into their rune and a representation of the animal (i.e. a feather, a claw, the silhouette of the animal) will be incorporated into the appearance of their rune. Depending on how extensive the rune of Animus is on the person’s body, this often sees animists having particularly elaborate runes that cover portions of their body.
Synchrony
Synchrony is not an ability so much as it is a technique required to understand how to call upon the powers of Animus. It can be summarized best as a wizard’s understanding of the anatomy, physiology, psychology and habits of the shape they wish to adopt. The more familiar they are with those areas for a particular species the easier it is for the wizard to call upon the attributes associated with that species. The less familiar a wizard is with such things, the more difficult it is for them to adopt the associated attributes of the chosen species. As a result of this requirement for the utilization of Animus, every practitioner tends to be fairly knowledgeable in the wildlife of their chosen totems. Breaking synchrony is an instance where the wizard’s thought processes are no longer in balance enough to maintain harmony with their adopted shape. When a break in synchrony occurs, the mage could see a reversion back to their original shape or simply a loss of coordination with the shape they have adopted.
Transformations
Animists have at their availability the power to transform into any animal, beast, or insect across the entirety of the animal kingdoms and at greater mastery, even other races. While they are limited in the amount of shapes that they can retain, animists are capable of adopting the forms of a horse just as much as they are capable of adopting the shape of a spider. Generally speaking, most animists tend to stick to a particular realm of beasts that they are most comfortable with. These different realms are broken down into the following:
Anima Terratus - Land based animals (i.e. canines, felines, bears, etc.)
Anima Aeronata - Sky based animals (i.e. crow, owl, eagle, etc.)
Anima Insectus - Insectoid creatures (i.e. spiders, scorpion, dragonflies etc.)
Anima Reptilius - Reptiles (i.e. snakes, iguana, chameleon etc.)
Anima Aquatica - Aquatic creatures (i.e. dolphin, whale, octopus etc.)
Anima Mortalis - The mortal races (i.e. Humans, Elves, Dwarves etc.)
Anima Mythica - Mythological and otherwise exotic creatures (i.e. phoenix, unicorn, wyvern, drake, dragon)
Transformations are as varied as the wizards who adopt the many shapes possible. Transformations take time. Depending on how dramatic the transformation is, this can extend from just a few seconds to several minutes.
Transmutation of Mass
The mass of an Animist is in a state of constant flux. As one can imagine, the size of a human and the size of a bear are drastically different depending on the species of bear. The greater the difference in size between the person and the shape they wish to adopt, the more energy it takes to maintain that form. As a result, it is common for animists who tend to adopt shapes much larger than themselves to require large amounts of nutrition due to the requirements of that form. Smaller and more isolated transformations require less energy. Full body transformations require the most energy. The same can be said for adopting shapes that are significantly smaller than the wizard’s original mass. Compressing and both rebuilding their bodies from and to their original shapes takes time and energy. This is a reason why it is uncommon for wielders of Animus to perform full body transformations in rapid succession, both because of how taxing it is and how difficult it becomes to return to their original shape the more exhausted they are. Additionally, injuries received in one form, still manifest across all of their forms.
Powers and Abilities
Animists accomplish their powers by channeling their aether through one of their totems and using the animal they joined with as a template for differing manifestations. This requires that the mage concentrate on the animal whose attributes they wish to borrow and then projecting them onto their own bodies. The more dramatic the transformation, the more effort it takes to achieve.
Totem - Acquired at Novice. The most fundamental ability of an animist, is the power to create a totem that then gets incorporated into the makeup of their rune. This is a simple ritual of meditation upon the piece of the animal whose attributes the wizard wishes to adopt. Upon successfully acquiring it as a totem, it will be absorbed harmlessly by the rune and incorporated into its appearance in one way or another.
Dissociate - Acquired at Novice. Utilized by an animist to remove one of their totems from the makeup of their rune. It is a simple process of meditating on the totem in question and focusing on the idea of expunging the presence of that totem from their body. When successful, the representation of that animal will be removed from the shape of their rune.
Mimicry - Acquired at Novice. The power to borrow a single minor attribute from one of the shapes that an individual is capable of adopting. Whether it is claws, adjusting eyesight, sense of smell, or another attribute, the wizard concentrates on shifting the appropriate part of their body to adopt that attribute. When the mage dismisses concentration, that part of their body returns to its original shape.
Echolalia - Acquired at Novice. Animals communicate in ways different than the mortal races. However, through the power of Echolalia, the animist is able to alter their perceptions to enable them to understand the voice of the varying animal kingdoms and with concentration, be understood by them. This ability is only applicable to the animals whom the wizard has totems of.
Morphery - Acquired at Apprentice. This is the cornerstone skill by which an animist is capable of performing full body transformations. By drawing upon the template of their totem, the mage can adopt the shape of that creature within their repertoire. This ability is limited in its application as it is only capable of transformations from the following realms: Terratus, Aeronata, Insectus, Reptilius, Aquatica. Transformations via Morphery are gradual, taking more time the more drastic the transformation.
Chimerism - Acquired at Journeyman. This ability is what sets these wizards apart from mere animals. Through Chimerism, the wizard gains the ability to blend different attributes from different creatures. This is how they can adopt the shape of a lion and yet give themselves the tail of a scorpion and other such blends.
Therianthropy - Acquired at Journeyman. Therianthropy is the ability to incorporate physiological aspects of a given creature’s form into their own humanoid form. This is what can give the animist the ability to grow a tail, give themselves gills and the ability to breathe underwater, and other such partial transformations while maintaining the dexterity and balance of their natural humanoid form without having to perform a full body transformation. Through this power, an individual could give themselves the ability to produce the venom of a snake if they possess such a totem in their repertoire.
Doppelganger - Acquired at Journeyman. This is the ability by which the animist is capable of adopting the shape of other mortal races. Provided they incorporate the appropriate totem associated with that race, the individual is afforded the power to assume the shape of another mortal race. This form is not an exact likeness of another living person but rather the ability by which they can assume the appearance of that race while retaining a likeness similar to their original selves.
Catabolism - Acquired at Expert. This power is the means by which the animist boosts the natural abilities of a given transformation. Through this power they can give themselves the speed of a cheetah by infusing their muscles and body with the appropriate reflexes. They can give themselves the raw brute strength of a bear, the stamina of a horse, or even the flexibility of an octopus all without having to adopt that shape.
Imprint - Acquired at Expert. The ability by which an animist is capable of immediately imprinting understanding of the dynamics of a particular species. Through this ability, the wizard is capable of achieving synchrony to a degree that allows them to adopt any shape they come across without the need for extended study.
Chrysalistry - Acquired at Master. The power of an animist rests with their ability to transform and adopting total mastery of their body’s physical form. This reaches a peak with the power of Chrysalistry wherein the animist is able to perform full-body transformations within mere moments. This is achieved by supercharging the flow of their aether and opening themselves fully to the embrace of the creature whose form they wish to adopt. The effect sees the wizard completely shed their exterior form as though bursting forth from a chrysalis.
Polymorph - Acquired at Master. The supreme representation of an animists ability to transform their body, is the power of polymorph. Through this power, the mage is able to adopt shapes from the realm of Mythica, provided they can acquire the appropriate totem. A true polymorph imbues upon the mage the full range of that shape’s natural abilities, such as a dragon’s breath weapon.
Tier Progression
Novice (1-24)
The neophyte Animist is only just beginning to grasp how to morph their body to the shapes they desire. Much of the focus of the novice is in learning and understanding how to apply their powers to understand the various totems that they choose to make. They are not capable of full body transformations at this stage but practice by implementing aspects of their totems through the powers at their availability. Through Echo, they are able to communicate with wildlife in a basic sense. The rune anthropomorphizes the methods of communication common in the animals they have totems of. While not allowing full conversations, the mage is capable of performing rudimentary communication. A Novice Animist is only capable of maintaining (3) Totems at a time.
Apprentice (25-49)
At this stage, the Animist gains the ability to perform their first full-body transformation. Transformations are slow and require concentration. The wizard must have a decent understanding of the creature whose form they are choosing to inhabit. This requires that they understand how it moves and functions as well as a passing understanding of its habits. While this is the largest and most important shift in the transition from Novice to Apprentice, it is not the only one. The abilities at their disposal from before become more sharper and more refined. However, the focus of most apprentices is that of understanding the shapes at their disposal in a more intimate manner. It is typically at this stage where most animists choose to specialize in a particular realm of Anima as drifting between differing types often requires a significant shift in thinking, risking a break in synchrony. An Apprentice Animist is only capable of maintaining (3) Totems at a time.
Journeyman (50-74)
It is here where the power of the Animist truly comes into shape. With a firm grasp on the fundamental powers available to them, the Animist gains the ability of Chimerism, allowing them to blend different attributes into their different forms. At this stage they gain the incredible power of Doppelganger allowing them to shapeshift into the different mortal races of Ransera, even going to far as to alter their gender. Through Therianthropy they can give their humanoid forms the varying strengths of their animalistic totems without the need to adopt those shapes in totality. At this stage the Journeyman Animist is capable of maintaining up to (6) Animal Totems at a given time and (1) Mortal Totem.
Expert (75-99)
The Expert Animist has few equals when it comes to mastery of their physical form. Gaining the power of Catabolism, the mage becomes capable of imbuing their natural form with the varying attributes and abilities of their totems without having to adopt those shapes at all. This can give them the ability to scale a wall using the adherent properties of a spider, without the need to reshape their limbs to be spiderlike. They can synthesize the venom of a snake without having to adopt the shape of said snake and other such examples. Through the power of Imprint, the mage is capable of achieving astounding levels of synchrony with not only their existing forms but with new ones as well. This allows the mage to become far more versatile in the amount of creatures they can utilize without fear of breaking synchrony. At this stage the Expert Animist is capable of maintaining up to (8) Animal Totems and (2) Mortal Totems.
Master (100)
The physical form is as moldable and malleable as the Master Animist’s imagination. Utilizing Chrysalistry, the master is capable of jumping from one physical form to another in mere moments without fear of a break in synchrony and without the limitation of time some forms take. They are able to masterfully adopt traits from all of their forms seamlessly and blend them into each form without issue. So great is the master’s power over their form that they are now capable of adopting the forms of even mythical beasts and display perfectly all of the biological abilities at that creature’s disposal. At this stage the Master Animist can retain as many animal and mortal totems as they wish but are only capable of maintaining (2) Mythical Totems.
