Lore Post: Death (Patreon)

With my schedule less busy, I've had some extra time to read more of what people are saying about the game. I've noticed a few discussions of death/resurrection in the TLS world, so I thought I'd write a quick lore post to clarify that for those who are interested.

First, zero HP in combat does not mean death. I named the state "Defeat" because that's what it means: being unable to fight any longer.

I mentioned this once a long time ago, but in TLS everyone actually has a certain amount of magic flowing through them. Mages channel it into spells, and in succubi it causes sexual effects, but even normal humans have it. That's why they recover faster than real world humans instead of spending weeks slowly healing, and why their special attacks drain MP.

Basically, being defeated means that someone's magical cycle has been damaged so much it has gone dormant to dedicate itself fully to survival. Spells or revival items jump-start their cycle, letting them keep fighting. So "revival" in this case does not mean a return from death.

That's not to say hitting zero HP isn't serious. The party characters have above average internal magic, but for more average people, it could well be fatal or produce long term injuries that resist magical healing. The difference in internal life force is also why low level fighters are knocked unconscious after battle, whereas stronger individuals might stay conscious.

Now, what about actual death? Like in the real world, a person who has passed a certain definition of death can potentially be brought back with timely medical intervention. But if too long elapses, the brain will start to die and you can't bring back the person in a meaningful sense.

In TLS things are more complicated because people also have their internal magical cycle, and most importantly souls. As should be clear in the game, souls are tangible forces that can be manipulated. Just as a failing body leads to brain death, a failing magical cycle leads to soul death. The magical cycle keeps the brain active longer, but when it starts to falter, the soul begins to fade as well.

No one really knows exactly what happens to the soul after it fades. Some say it merely dissolves, religions claim it goes to another realm. What's certain is that when the soul is gone, the person is dead. Their body could be restored to functioning, but there is no magic anywhere in the world that can revive the person.

Necromancy is the art of playing with these rules. Some just revive bodies to health, getting mindless zombies controlled by magic. Others trap the soul in a stable form so it can't fade, though this is harder and tends to have major negative effects. Though it's technically necromancy, medical magic that tries to do this to heal gets a free pass from society. 

So there are rare cases of revival. Say someone got decapitated on the battlefield. If mages arrived fast enough (the time limit would depend on the person's life force, as in the case of Stark) they could shelter the person's soul in a special structure, heal their body, then complete a special ritual to restore them to full life. But it's the equivalent of a top notch medical team saving someone after technical death but before brain death - it's not an easy or common thing.

If this all seems obscure, well, I do like this kind of thing. =P But I think it's also important for setting the tone of TLS. Death is real in this world. It should have weight for the characters, be something they have to grapple with instead of just a game mechanic. I think the addition of magic and tangible souls should affect that, but not change it fundamentally.

Hmm, I think that covers it? Feel free to ask questions if there's anything I left out here!