This article will provide you with everything you need to know about giving form to accurate, interesting and believable undead characters of all kinds. You will learn what separates an undead character from a living one, as well as a number of important things to consider before making your remarkable addition to the deathless community. This guide is meant to inform and inspire, not to restrict. Being undead in Nyxheim is an unconventional experience - if you're looking for something new and exotic for your roleplay, you've come to the right place.
Getting Started[]
First of all, read the article on Undead and make yourself familiar with their different archetypes and how they come into being.
Undead isn't synonymous to evil. The Ecclesiarchy and its values are perceived as evil by the living nations because they look at it through the goggles of their own morality. In truth, the Church and its followers have only noble intentions. A ghoul or vampire can do the same things an evil person would, but for completely different reasons. Undead are just as willing and capable of kindness and compassion as the living, though their kindness and compassion might express itself differently. Don't be afraid of making a nice undead character.
Undead are not a race. Therefore, you must first pick what actual race your character will be, and after that, the archetype of undead. This means that you can be a human ghoul or a moon elf vampire, but never just "ghoul" or "vampire". When writing your application, make sure to mention both your race and your archetype in the race section.
Anything living can die. Anything that can die can also un-die. This means that you can create an undead character of any living race that is available to you. Of course, different races have different reasons and circumstances for joining the undead, so you should be well aquaintaned with your character's original race in order for him or her to make sense.
Subsequently, any living race can become any archetype of undead - the number of possible combinations is vast. Only the ghoul is available to you at first, as it is the most fundamental type of undead. However, once you've proved that you understand the workings of the Ecclesiarchal society, new and unique possibilities will open up.
There's a distinct undead society in Nyxheim -.the Holy Ecclesiarchy. Your character will need to have come in contact with it at some point, because necromancy exists on Ecclesiarchal behalf in the first place. You're not forced to be a part of it, but since undead aren't accepted amongst the living, you will find that you're not welcome anywhere.
Ghouls[]
Your very first undead character will probably be a ghoul. You can forget everything you ever heard about ghouls elsewhere - in Nyxheim, they are a distinct, complete and enjoyable character type, and a counterpart to humans of living cities. They are not shambling masses of rotten meat as stereotyped by so many movies and games. Ghouls are first and foremost, the people they once were - with their own feelings, their own intellect, their own relationships, problems and solutions: just like the living. However, they play very differently from their breathing peers; not only because they have a different biology, but also because they live in a different society. Here follows a list of useful points to keep in mind when building and playing your ghoul.
Origins[]
Ghouls usually look much like their former selves.
The background of any undead character is always more complex than that of any living one. This is because undead have an additional "layer" to their history for when they were alive. Ghouls must oiginally come from somewhere - no one is born undead. Plan your character from the very beginning and divide your history into several stages. When they first saw light as living infants, to the day when they died, to the day they were raised, and finally to present day. The most important part of this is probably how your character came in contact with the Ecclesiarchy in the first place. Here are some suggestions.
Hidden necromantic societies operate in every metropolis, working to subtly influence people with ideas of a higher existence. Sometimes it works.
Humanity regularly comes in hostile contact with the Ecclesiarchy in Ariaheim. More often than not, when the humans come to collect and bury their casualties, the latter are already nowhere to be found...
Physiology[]
Ghouls do not experience hunger or fatigue, so they do not eat or sleep. They also don't breathe and are sterile. Despite that, they can still enjoy food and sex to some degree.
Ghouls have dulled senses compared to when they were alive. They have worse sight, smell, hearing, and most importantly, sensation. Physical pain and pleasure don't impact a ghoul nearly much as they would a living person.
Ghouls are considerably tougher than the living in terms of sheer survival ability. In order to completely "kill" a ghoul, you would need to severely damage their body, as their "health" is not much affected by diseases, toxins, extreme temperatures, blood loss and so on. Since they also lack the concept of vital organs, they don't die from a sword to the heart, a bullet to the head, a punctured lung or anysuch trivial nonsense.
With that being said, ghouls do not regenerate. If someone pokes out your eye or lops off your arm, it won't grow back by itself. One body is all you get - sewing on someone else's limbs doesn't work. So, tough as they may be, ghouls must still be careful and not expose themselves to needless danger.
Ghouls get to keep most of their biological racial abilities, such as wood elven dexterity, Efferus shapeshifting, dark elven intellect and so on. However, their ability to weave magic is severely dulled. A ghoul can hardly become a good wizard, no matter how talented he or she was in life. But, of course, nodoby is prohibited from trying.
Ghouls decay. When exposed to clean air for longer than a few days, their bodies will begin to rot, eventually leaving only a skeleton. Although you can un-live on as normal like this, it's usually rather stressful to observe how your own body deforms and vanishes like that. However: this doesn't happen in ecclesiarchal cities, because the air is highly irradiated and has a different chemical composition, which doesn't oxidize things nearly as fast as normal air does. You can remain "fresh" for several hundreds of years in these conditions. If a ghoul needs to travel outside of these safe zones, they can put on an airproof suit to "conserve" their bodies.
Ghouls, like all corporeal undead, suffer from a vulnerability to silver. When an object made from pure silver draws their blood, such as a knife or bullet, the area of impact will randomly combust, exlode, or fall to dust. There is currently no explanation why this happens, but silver has become the living's primary tool for fighting the undead. As a side note, because skeletal and machine-bound ghouls have no blood, they are immune to this effect.
Psychology[]
Ghouls retain their personality and memories after their transition to undeath, and are as capable of thought and emotion as when alive. Happiness, sadness, anger, joy, love, hate - it's all still there.
Due to that, many ghouls suffer from varying degrees of mental instability during their first years of undeath. They have to cope with their new nature, their new surroundings and their new way of life as a part of the Ecclesiarchy. Depending on the origins of your character, this may have a large impact. For example, a human who always lived in a normal city, had his job and family and whatnot. Then something happens, and he finds himself as a ghoulish citizen of an undead empire. Unless his nerves are made of diamond, he can't be expected to just say "huh, ok" and get to living his new life as if it was the most natural thing to do!
Well aware of the psychological issues that rise to undeath carries for most people, necromancers of the Church evolved their art by mixing mental suggestion into their ghoul-binding spells. When a ghoul is created, their consciousness becomes prohibited from thinking along two specific lines. Firstly, ghouls can never wish ill against their masters - the Ecclesiarchy. Their minds will always find excuses to not do so. Secondly, they cannot commit "suicide". Again, their thoughts will always trail off in a different direction when they think of the subject. These measures were found mandatory by the upper echelons of the Church in order to "help" the newly initiated ghouls through their most difficult times.
Playing a Ghoul[]
Xerxes Incorporated employee
Ghouls are the main population of Obsidian, the largest ecclesiarchal metropolis. At a glance, it functions similarly to a human city: work at day, have fun at night. Since undead don't sleep, they have a lot more time to spend out in the city and enjoying their unlife to the fullest.
Think logically about what job you pick for your character. Proffessions such as chefs and doctors still exist, though they are rare and not in high demand. The Ecclesiarchy is focused on building and expansion - engineers, scientists, technicians, businesspersons, drivers, pilots, and of course soldiers are some of the most common and valued jobs a ghoul can have. For reasons already mentioned, ghoul mages aren't really taken seriously. Being unemployed is prohibited by law, so there are no drifters or vagabonds in Obsidian. At least not out in the open.
Xerxes Inc. is a large company tasked with gathering resources for the ever-growing Ecclesiarchal economy. From a roleplaying perspective, it's the most varied workplace in all Obsidian. You can plunge into the wilderness, travel, explore and fight, all the while having plenty of opportunities to return to the city for casual character development. Recommended.
Ghouls don't marry and don't have kids, but they can still fall in love and build relationships, friendships and so on. They have as much of a social life as anyone in a living metropolis does.
Your original race is of secondary importance. In the Ecclesiarchy, people are discerned by their archetypes. Ghouls are the lowest social class, but also has the most freedom in their choice of lifestyle.
Ghouls are mostly secular and don't dabble in religion, aside from fundamental awareness and respect for the powers that be. They live in a theocracy, after all.
Biotechnology has been discovered for not so long ago, but has made some progress. Within reason, you can give your character some interesting implants or mechanical limbs.
Lastly, don't forget what you're playing as. A ghoul will NEVER say something like "Whew, I'm starving", or "I need to go get some fresh air", or "My legs are so tired after that long walk". Always keep in mind that your character isn't like the rest of them and doesn't exist by the same rules. It might seem bothersome at first, but by getting the hang of it you will not only be able to have fun with a character that's different, but also elevate your skill and flexibility as a roleplayer.
Vampires[]
An advanced roleplayer has the option of creating a vampire character. Vampires are less conventional than ghouls, and play differently due to the range of unique properties they posess compared to other undead. As you should already know, they are not raised by spells. Vampirism is a virus that spreads when a vampire bites and then kills a living creature. Here follows some information to take into account when creating your vampire: note that many of the things said for ghouls also apply to vampires - in order to not make this article overly redundant, you'll have to read both.
Origins[]
An augmented vampire.
As far as undead go, vampires have the biggest variety in their potential fates. There's at least one vampiric clan in every major city - they are experts of subterfuge and blend seamlessly with the living. Around 90% of the world's vampires are affiliated with the Ecclesiarchy, and either live in Obsidian with their families or act as spies and infiltrators in living cities. Independent vampire clans have also claimed their places there, having presence within organized crime, corporate entities and even governments. The difference is that the Ecclesiarchy-planted vampires work to spead their faith, while independent vampires instead play by the rules of the living on their hunt for money and pleasure. Here are examples of how a vampire can come into being.
Independent vampires are always on a lookout for worthy fledglings. If someone attracts the attention of a vampire through display of talent, experience or just personal charm, their necks are not safe. People turned by independent vampires are called "fledglings" and are will-bound to the one that turned them.
Groups of vampiric agents sent by the Ecclesiarchy operate in the same manner, but do not create offspring for their own fun and benefit. Their newly turned prey becomes a faithful of the Ecclesiarchy, free to either stay with their parent or travel to a new home in Obsidian. People turned by Ecclesiarchal vampires are called "initiates" and are will-bound to Nagash, much like their ghoul counterparts.
Physiology[]
Vampires need to drink blood periodically. They don't die if they don't drink, but start to decay and gradually lose their sanity, eventually turning into crazed, half-rotten walking corpses. Even after a prolonged period of blood deprivation, the decay is reversible by feeding again, but any damage done to your mind by the "withdrawal symptoms" is not as easily healed.
The younger the vampire, the more often he or she needs to feed. Newly turned vampires need to drink around a litre of blood every day in order to stay in top shape. As they grow older, this amount decreases, becoming around one litre per week at ten years of vampirehood and a little over one litre per month at 100 years. These are only the doses needed for survival; older vampires feed much more often for enjoyment.
Vampires benefit from dramatically increased physical characteristics compared to when they were alive, Besides sharpened sight, smell and hearing, they also gain superhuman strength and speed - a vampire in good shape can run at over 80 km/h and bend metal bars with just their hands.
Vampires retain the same magical capability they had when alive. If you are of a magically gifted race and have interest in the subject, your long unlife-span gives you the opportunity to study much and become a powerful mage.
Vampires burn to ash in seconds when exposed to direct sunlight, regardless of their age. Master vampires pass down secret magic down their clans that can negate the effect and teach it to their successors. Most vampires however are not masters and must confide themselves in the night. Unless you're courageous enough to go out in daylight with an umbrella or something...
A fed vampire can make his or her eyes glow intensely red at will, for intimidation. A blood-starved vampire, on the other hand, cannot hide this glow at all. Careful when going out in Caelin or Silim in thirsty condition!
Like all corporeal undead, vampires are vulnerable to silver weapons. When an object made from pure silver draws their blood, that bodypart will randomly combust, exlode, or fall to dust. Unlike ghouls, vampires can't walk around with an exploded stomach or the like due to having normal sensitivity to pain.
Vampires can regenerate physical damage done to their bodies by drinking blood. Vampires from master clans can regenerate even without drinking, and can absorb blood from living victims through mere skin contact.
Vampires are sterile and cannot have children - the term "child" is used for anyone they turn.
Psychology[]
Vampires retain their personality and memories after their transition to undeath, and are as capable of thought and emotion as when alive. The virus makes fledglings turned by independent vampires feel strong sympathy towards, and in some cases even sexual attraction to their "parent". Initiates turned by agents of the Church also experience this phenomenon, but to a much lesser extent.
Due to that, many vampires suffer from various degrees of mental instability during their first years of undeath, depending on how ready they were for their transition to vampirism. The sensation of bloodthirst is unlike anything a living person can experience, and can drive one mad if not sated within reasonable time.
Conversely, drinking too much blood can induce madness as well - referred to by other vampires as "the blooddrunk", such individuals develop an unnaturally strong and frequent bloodlust, suffering from severe withdrawal symptoms if they try to resist.
Many newly raised vampires find themselves reliant on their parent, who teaches them how to hunt. What they are taught obviously depends on how the parent itself prefers to hunt - vampires who settle in human cities must keep low profile and therefore adopt a subtle method of feeding, centered around leaving their prey alive and unaware of what happened.. For example, they can sneak into houses at night and feed on the sleeping denizens. Vampires who have a grasp of magic can hypnotize their victims, preventing them from remembering anything. Lastly, there are vampires who enjoy terrorizing the living by murdering their victims and smearing their entrails all over the walls of an alley, but these exemplars tend not to live long - vampire hunter vigils present in larger cities are good at what they do.
Playing a Vampire[]
You'd never tell... or would you?
Vampires are the second most numerous population group in Obsidian, after ghouls. They generally enjoy greater wealth and connections because of their close-knit families. Most vampires above 50 years of age are members of the Church.
Blood is easy to come by in living cities, but since ghouls don't regenerate blood like living people do, they're not eager to give away what they have. Obsidian's few living residents can find employ in "blood bars", where they sell portions of their blood as a drink component. Because this wouldn't be enough to sate a large quantity of young, hungry vampires, the latter are often positioned in living cities until they initial cravings subside.
Vampires can easily find employ as guards and escorts in the Xerxes Corporation. Many important figures in living cities secretly hire vampiric bodyguards as well. Vampires interested in magic studies can attend Doomforge Cathedral, which is essentially a vast magical university, after they've been accepted into the Church.
The Ecclesiarchal vampire corps are the deadliest infantry in all of Nyxheim. Their intense military training, coupled with magical conditioning and their natural superhuman ability makes them the Church's strongest conventional weapon. Any Church-aligned vampire of at least average physical and mental capability can be accepted into the army.
Independent vampires, besides having to feed and avoid sunlight, can live a very standard life in a human city. Howldon, where vampires have been announced legal, is a particularly attractive settling place, and an influential vampire clan openly owns a part of the city's nightlife industry.
Bringing Back a Dead Character[]
If you had a living character that has died in the course of roleplay, you have the option of bringing him or her back in undead form, either as a part of the Ecclesiarchy or otherwise. It's an excellent way to give your old character a new dimension of depth. Note that an already undead character that has "died" cannot be brought back in this manner - a man can die but twice.
