Questionable Questing

Bob is bob

There are enchanted Wyld weapons and armor that someone with a strong enough spirit can use. That is to say, you want the flaming death sword? Be either great or infamous enough of a warrior to prove worthy of the sword.

There are also Sorcerers. Mages of the Wyld. The Arisen for the highest of their lot.

Bob is bob

People who harness the energies and Powers of the Wyld. They do get auras because it is magic. The casting of spells, the summoning of Beasts(spirits/demons/gods) the use of possession to jack them up. Mages must travel to the Wyld to learn the songs of power and make offerings of blood upon hidden altars.

Bob is bob

Feast on the hearts of Beasts to learn their lore. And try not to go mad and become a Beast of the Wyld in the process. Most create or find a talisman or some other foci made from the Wyld and do minor magics from that. Greater grasp of sorcery means longer trips into the Wyld and become more invested with the Powers there. Elemental and conceptual forces over the World.

Bob is bob

Often reflecting both creation and destruction. Fire as war and ice as Conquest but also as regeneration and pardoxically winter as a time of warmth. These are but a few examples. Sorcery is for fools. There's no guarantee to the road of the heroic. Some people platue and others never start to Ascend, but in the end it is all about martial prowess.

Andy333

Sounds pretty cool. Really liking the idea's of inner will power and legends formed from that. Reminds me a lot of the legend of Gilgamesh. But on that topic what's more important to become powerful? Your inner perception or outer one?

Andy333

Do you become a legend by believing in yourself hard enough, harnessing enough powerful emotions to focre something unreal to become real? Or is the legend formed by other people's belive in you? Where thousands of people all fear or worshiping your name gives you power?

Bob is bob

Sorcery is playing with fire and lightning and sea and stone. To touch the primal is to risk being destroyed by it. It's an assured path to domination over the realm of Gods and demons, but perilous to venture deeper into the arts there.

Bob is bob

And read the Hurik interlude

Bob is bob

It helps to defeat Beasts and its a mix. Belief. plus you have to perform feats. Survive a dozen battles with multiple slashes and stab wounds? You must be tough, tougher than most. Bleeding starts to effect you less. A pattern for a story.

Bob is bob

Royals and nobles have training from great masters to help them but that can sometimes backfire where they never push themselves. And in universe its a religious and cultural ideal between the city states.

Bob is bob

Do you have to be bloodthirsty crazy? Inspiring with your valor? Gifted with a mind of silent steel unable to be shaken? Yes and no to all. It varies by person and place. Like, why does Zoro have super strength? Cause he trained hard and fought a lot in One Piece.

Andy333

That would basically inspire a culture to worship the ideals of conan, if fighting hard and long enough made you super human. You would basically get sparta on steriods as everyone pushes their children harder and harder so they can accend and if they fail then their just a weakling to be cast out.

Andy333

They would make a great villain if your still looking for one and the real tragedy is that they aren't any demons or evil blood magic pushing this. just pure human ambition forcing people to not care how many bodies they trample over.

Bob is bob

Not quite. There's no guarantee and people vary on how far they push themselves. There is a warrior worship culture but it was inspired by figures like Hercalus, Gilgamesh, Thor in God of War Ragnrarock with his magic hammer but otherwise only brute strength and speed. Superhuman yet not all of society was trying to be them.

Bob is bob

There are also potions and fetishes from sorcerers that can help but they form a bond between mage and those gifted to them and Ascendence and sorcery don't mix except for certain kinds of enchanted items that work with Ascendence.

Bob is bob

Add to this bursts of emotion in the midst of battle have been known to let ordinary dudes and gals fighting together pushes themselves for a ascendant moment but not replicate it on demand. You can't train to be a hero. You spend a lifetime.

Or go be a Sorcerer. But that is a transformative journey into a wild man or woman

Bob is bob

The Sparta idea does make for a good evil city state though. Deconstructing the warrior culture fantasy you see in fiction as terrible

Andy333

But what happens if you're cruel enough? What happens if you have a group of people that are going to willingly put their children in life or death situations to achieve ascendation. If since the moment their born their constantly pushing and fighting them to be stronger.

Andy333

You would get an army of superhumans. Of course they would be traumatized and require a cult level controlled soicety to keep them in line, but again you have the perfect enemy for your main characters to fight. Main characers that embrace free will and emotions versus a system entirely dedicated to strength without a care for why they need it.

Andy333

Man versus machine if you will.