rdfs:comment
| - Mana, the blood of Mystras and source of all arcane magic, is a part of every natural being's soul. Even a creature with no arcane ability whatsoever has some mana as an inherent, if small, part of them. For arcane spellcasters however, the soul is a well of mana from which they draw to fuel their magic. Typically, there are subconscious safeguards that prevent an individual from draining themselves completely of mana. Even a spellcaster who exhausts their every spell for days on end cannot push themselves so hard; there is simply a mental blockage from taxing one's self so heavily. It is unknown then, how mad the first arcanophage must have been, to have drunk so deeply and greedily from their own soul.
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abstract
| - Mana, the blood of Mystras and source of all arcane magic, is a part of every natural being's soul. Even a creature with no arcane ability whatsoever has some mana as an inherent, if small, part of them. For arcane spellcasters however, the soul is a well of mana from which they draw to fuel their magic. Typically, there are subconscious safeguards that prevent an individual from draining themselves completely of mana. Even a spellcaster who exhausts their every spell for days on end cannot push themselves so hard; there is simply a mental blockage from taxing one's self so heavily. It is unknown then, how mad the first arcanophage must have been, to have drunk so deeply and greedily from their own soul. When an arcane spellcaster is completely drained of mana, the experience is deeply traumatic-both physically and spiritually. The victim's skin turns pale blue, cracking and drying to give it the appearance of scales. What's more, the victim's spirit is permanently severed from mana, forevermore losing the ability to retain the stuff. The sheer shock to the soul of this process kills the victim, but has a chance to twist and bind that soul into their body, leaving them in a permanent state of half-death. Such unfortunate beings rise an hour later as arcanophages. An arcanophage is afflicted by a constant, maddening hunger for magic. They possess no loyalties, no honor, and no interests, other than the ravaging emptiness that they feel an irrepressible need to fill. Still, despite their urges, arcanophages are devastatingly clever, and patient. They hunt the world for magic items and magi, stalking potent casters for weeks and months, watching their every behavior. Watching to find a hole in even the most paranoid of defenses.
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