Post by Kaleina Moonrise on Jun 26, 2011 10:28:55 GMT 1
****This has been edited to be in line with discussions - yell at me if It doesnt make sense in places because I used note-pads "Find and Replace" as I'm half asleep!****
The Path of Divine Shadow - a guide to RPing A Kaldorei Divine Shadow priest
There has been much discussion in the last few days between myself, Elders, and fellow priestesses,regarding Priestess of Elune, their role within RP, how to portray them and their purpose within Society.
After hours of discussion, agreements have been found and and Finer details have been thrashed out- below I will attempt to Summise and explain a Kaldorei Priestesses View of the Divine Shadow.
The Concept.
"Come the night, when Elune graces the sky, Leave the city walls and the bright lanterns and head out into the forests. At first you will seem blind, but the white lady shines down upon you, guiding your footsteps should you look long enough to see.
Look upon the boughs of the anchient trees, Do not look with your thoughts, knowing what you will see, look with your eyes and your heart, seeing the truth of it.
Elune casts her light upon the tree, and casts the Divine Shadow that falls below its branches and within its noble roots. In all things there is balance, Without the light of elune there could not be her Divine Shadow."
The first concept to grasp is that a Kaldorei priestess would draw on the Divine Shadow cast by Elunes light, this is different to the darkness wielded by corrupt magic-users.
Secondly, Elune would not grant the power to physically damage another with Divine Shadow, She is a peaceful deity, and although will forgive her priestesses violence when they must take up arms to preserve the balance of life, they would not be permitted to wield the darkness to cause physical harm.
"Many whisper of the light being "Good" and the shadow "Evil", rarely in life are things so clearly defined. It is said that the shadow is destruction and corruption, that it only leads to madness.
The Divine Shadow is indeed a powerful tool, and if used by a corrupt heart for power and destruction, then corruption will be seen.
Know that in truth either light or Divine Shadow used for power and destruction it will corrupt and bring madness. "
A Kaldorei Priestess should view the Divine Shadow as the other side of the light. Like the light is a gift granted by the goddess to be used in her service. If used for your own gain and purpose the goddess will not bless you, nor will she grant your mind solace and peace.
The Divine Shadow is a tool. It is the mental discipline and pureness of purpose that defines what it is used for.
The Church of the Holy-Light (Humanity) Views Divine Shadow as an evil and corrupting source. A Kaldorei priest may take the view that Humanity is afraid of the dark, The night leaves them blind and helpless. There is much history of corruption in humanity, their kind does not often show the pureness of purpose and calmness of mind required, and can be easily led by greed or temptation of power.
The Combat Abilities of A Priestess of the Divine Shadow.
A Priestess of the Divine Shadow may be able to call Elunes Divine Shadow to her, to surround her and hide her (and possibly others) from sight - an In-Game Mechanic of this would be perhaps Fade or Shadowmeld (Kaldorei Racial).
A Priestess may be able to use Elunes Divine Shadow as 'Elunes Protective Cloak' temporarily defending the priestess from attack - Picture the In-game mechanic of Dispersion, although not dispersing the priestess, more scattering attacks made on her, and cloaking her so that her attacker may have difficulty in finding the priestesses physical form within the dark Divine Shadow around her.
Mind-Soothe. A calming song or Prayer. Kaldorei Believe that this is one of the abilities Elune herself uses "The ability of calming races engaged in battle by singing a song of peace at night, until sunrise - wowwiki.com/Elune". Its purpose would be diverse, from soothing the mind of a patient - allowing them to seek blissful sleep, to calming tempers of a foe, Settling the grief of a brethern lest their rage and fury consumes them.
The Following two Abilities are up for debate at the moment - Kaleina herself does not use them, However - if used for DEFENSIVE purposes would be entirely acceptable, use of them offensively - no matter the reasoning - would not be in the service of Elune.
Psychic Scream/Psychic Horror - The priestess calls upon the Divine Shadow to bring visions of terror to her enemies, either forcing them to flee, or rooting them in abject terror so that the priestess may escape from danger, or retrieve a wounded allie from the grasps of a foe. Use of this ability as any form of torture would be unforgiveable.
Mind-Control - The last resort, never taken lightly and certainly never for manipulation. A priestess would force her will upon the target, taking control of their actions. This may be to restrain a foe that cannot otherwise be stopped, to aid one who may be suffering from madness, insanity or other-lack-of-control of their senses so that they do not cause harm to others or damage to themselves, or on very rare occasions to allow the memory to speak freely without the targets will intervening (An example would perhaps be that a person has information vital to the survival of another - i.e. the whereabouts of a captive. The Priestess using mind control may be able to persuade the memories to speak the concealed information.)
The Priestess of Divine Shadow's role in society.
The abilities described above portray the priestess to be primarily defensive, whether by camouflage, defensive shadow barriers, her soothing presence or in extreme circumstance more forceful domination of will to prevent harm.
Priestess of Elune are also blessed with one other ability, that whilst often essential can be viewed negatively.
When a life is nearing its end, A priestess of divine shadow can see the shadow surrounding them. In a practical sense this means that in a Hospital, Warzone or battlefront, a Shadowpriestess will aid not by healing, but by selecting those who cannot be saved.
A priestess will not attempt to heal someone who the shadows are claiming, this is often seen by outsiders as "Giving up", However the priestesses have a vital role.
"All life ends, even the great dragons must some day see the end of their days. When Elune calls one to her side, aid them in their passing. Reassure them, comfort them, take their confession, tell them that Elune's grace may shine upon the repentant, soothe their pain, so that they may pass on without fear- knowing the Goddesses love with hope and acceptance in their hearts.
Do not fight the call of their spirit, If you try to heal them and it fails, what then? They have gone on afraid, believing they are abandoned by Elune, that in her grace she would not heal them. Their spirit lost and hope extinguised."
Priestess' of Elune essentially could be seen as the mythical "Angels of Death", they usher the souls onwards at the end of their lives, offering comfort and solace to those at the end of their days. It would be their duty to be with those as they passed, so that they know they are not alone, and so they may face their end without fear. They would offer prayers and blessing and the 'Last Rites' as it were, calling for Elune to recieve the spirit of the departed.
A Word on Corruption
Using shadow abilities such as 'Shadowform', 'Mind Flay', 'Mind Blast' etc would never be condoned by the priesthood, and could never be argued as 'In Service of Elune'.
A Priestess of Elune is primarily defensive, and a guardian at the moment of passing. Wielding the shadow for your own ends, for harm and destruction is headed on a similar path to that or Warlocks and would be unforgiveable and seen as unredeemable.
Thank you for reading this far.
Comments, Discussion and Opinions are Always welcome.
- Kaleina
The Path of Divine Shadow - a guide to RPing A Kaldorei Divine Shadow priest
There has been much discussion in the last few days between myself, Elders, and fellow priestesses,regarding Priestess of Elune, their role within RP, how to portray them and their purpose within Society.
After hours of discussion, agreements have been found and and Finer details have been thrashed out- below I will attempt to Summise and explain a Kaldorei Priestesses View of the Divine Shadow.
The Concept.
"Come the night, when Elune graces the sky, Leave the city walls and the bright lanterns and head out into the forests. At first you will seem blind, but the white lady shines down upon you, guiding your footsteps should you look long enough to see.
Look upon the boughs of the anchient trees, Do not look with your thoughts, knowing what you will see, look with your eyes and your heart, seeing the truth of it.
Elune casts her light upon the tree, and casts the Divine Shadow that falls below its branches and within its noble roots. In all things there is balance, Without the light of elune there could not be her Divine Shadow."
The first concept to grasp is that a Kaldorei priestess would draw on the Divine Shadow cast by Elunes light, this is different to the darkness wielded by corrupt magic-users.
Secondly, Elune would not grant the power to physically damage another with Divine Shadow, She is a peaceful deity, and although will forgive her priestesses violence when they must take up arms to preserve the balance of life, they would not be permitted to wield the darkness to cause physical harm.
"Many whisper of the light being "Good" and the shadow "Evil", rarely in life are things so clearly defined. It is said that the shadow is destruction and corruption, that it only leads to madness.
The Divine Shadow is indeed a powerful tool, and if used by a corrupt heart for power and destruction, then corruption will be seen.
Know that in truth either light or Divine Shadow used for power and destruction it will corrupt and bring madness. "
A Kaldorei Priestess should view the Divine Shadow as the other side of the light. Like the light is a gift granted by the goddess to be used in her service. If used for your own gain and purpose the goddess will not bless you, nor will she grant your mind solace and peace.
An Example I have given for the concept:
Imagine a Sword. If this sword is taken up in times of need to defend others against horrors is it a good sword? If this same sword is used to murder the Innocent is it a bad sword? If after murdering innocents your mind cannot find peace is it the sword that is the cause of your madness and corruption?
Imagine a Sword. If this sword is taken up in times of need to defend others against horrors is it a good sword? If this same sword is used to murder the Innocent is it a bad sword? If after murdering innocents your mind cannot find peace is it the sword that is the cause of your madness and corruption?
The Divine Shadow is a tool. It is the mental discipline and pureness of purpose that defines what it is used for.
The Church of the Holy-Light (Humanity) Views Divine Shadow as an evil and corrupting source. A Kaldorei priest may take the view that Humanity is afraid of the dark, The night leaves them blind and helpless. There is much history of corruption in humanity, their kind does not often show the pureness of purpose and calmness of mind required, and can be easily led by greed or temptation of power.
The Combat Abilities of A Priestess of the Divine Shadow.
A Priestess of the Divine Shadow may be able to call Elunes Divine Shadow to her, to surround her and hide her (and possibly others) from sight - an In-Game Mechanic of this would be perhaps Fade or Shadowmeld (Kaldorei Racial).
A Priestess may be able to use Elunes Divine Shadow as 'Elunes Protective Cloak' temporarily defending the priestess from attack - Picture the In-game mechanic of Dispersion, although not dispersing the priestess, more scattering attacks made on her, and cloaking her so that her attacker may have difficulty in finding the priestesses physical form within the dark Divine Shadow around her.
Mind-Soothe. A calming song or Prayer. Kaldorei Believe that this is one of the abilities Elune herself uses "The ability of calming races engaged in battle by singing a song of peace at night, until sunrise - wowwiki.com/Elune". Its purpose would be diverse, from soothing the mind of a patient - allowing them to seek blissful sleep, to calming tempers of a foe, Settling the grief of a brethern lest their rage and fury consumes them.
The Following two Abilities are up for debate at the moment - Kaleina herself does not use them, However - if used for DEFENSIVE purposes would be entirely acceptable, use of them offensively - no matter the reasoning - would not be in the service of Elune.
Psychic Scream/Psychic Horror - The priestess calls upon the Divine Shadow to bring visions of terror to her enemies, either forcing them to flee, or rooting them in abject terror so that the priestess may escape from danger, or retrieve a wounded allie from the grasps of a foe. Use of this ability as any form of torture would be unforgiveable.
Mind-Control - The last resort, never taken lightly and certainly never for manipulation. A priestess would force her will upon the target, taking control of their actions. This may be to restrain a foe that cannot otherwise be stopped, to aid one who may be suffering from madness, insanity or other-lack-of-control of their senses so that they do not cause harm to others or damage to themselves, or on very rare occasions to allow the memory to speak freely without the targets will intervening (An example would perhaps be that a person has information vital to the survival of another - i.e. the whereabouts of a captive. The Priestess using mind control may be able to persuade the memories to speak the concealed information.)
The Priestess of Divine Shadow's role in society.
The abilities described above portray the priestess to be primarily defensive, whether by camouflage, defensive shadow barriers, her soothing presence or in extreme circumstance more forceful domination of will to prevent harm.
Priestess of Elune are also blessed with one other ability, that whilst often essential can be viewed negatively.
When a life is nearing its end, A priestess of divine shadow can see the shadow surrounding them. In a practical sense this means that in a Hospital, Warzone or battlefront, a Shadowpriestess will aid not by healing, but by selecting those who cannot be saved.
A priestess will not attempt to heal someone who the shadows are claiming, this is often seen by outsiders as "Giving up", However the priestesses have a vital role.
"All life ends, even the great dragons must some day see the end of their days. When Elune calls one to her side, aid them in their passing. Reassure them, comfort them, take their confession, tell them that Elune's grace may shine upon the repentant, soothe their pain, so that they may pass on without fear- knowing the Goddesses love with hope and acceptance in their hearts.
Do not fight the call of their spirit, If you try to heal them and it fails, what then? They have gone on afraid, believing they are abandoned by Elune, that in her grace she would not heal them. Their spirit lost and hope extinguised."
Priestess' of Elune essentially could be seen as the mythical "Angels of Death", they usher the souls onwards at the end of their lives, offering comfort and solace to those at the end of their days. It would be their duty to be with those as they passed, so that they know they are not alone, and so they may face their end without fear. They would offer prayers and blessing and the 'Last Rites' as it were, calling for Elune to recieve the spirit of the departed.
A Word on Corruption
Using shadow abilities such as 'Shadowform', 'Mind Flay', 'Mind Blast' etc would never be condoned by the priesthood, and could never be argued as 'In Service of Elune'.
A Priestess of Elune is primarily defensive, and a guardian at the moment of passing. Wielding the shadow for your own ends, for harm and destruction is headed on a similar path to that or Warlocks and would be unforgiveable and seen as unredeemable.
Thank you for reading this far.
Comments, Discussion and Opinions are Always welcome.
- Kaleina
