Darkness

Darkness is a force in the world of Coryphiel, which can empower the most dedicated followers of the Dark Gods, or those who are corrupted by it. It is often seen as an evil force, but this is untrue. It is a force related to the fears and flaws of humankind. Darkness is one branch of the Divine, and is starkly opposed to the Light.

### Dark Magic

Of all the guiding divine forces in the world, Darkness has always most appealed to those on the lower rungs of society. As a force that appeals to no virtues, and instead permits anything necessary to survive, it has a connection to those who get by through deception and stealth. Wherever there is a following of Darkness, there are a chosen few who can wield dark magic. The powers granted by dark magic are dependent on the wielder, though tend to revolve around causing fear and uncertainty in their enemies, through deceit, stealth, and illusion.

The ability to wield dark magic is fairly rare, and is not bestowed to every cultist of the Dark Gods. What is even rarer, however, is being granted the ability to wield dark Magic without being irreversibly changed. Many cultists are driven insane by the power and terrible knowledge bestowed upon them, while others are transformed into Cambions, or worse, Demons. In contrast to the light, those who are given dark magic are rarely tasked with spreading their religion, and almost never have their powers taken away.

Attaining dark powers is unpredictable, and can often happen against your will. Sometimes it can be achieved through prayer and worship, but sometimes simply being near a place or object of great dark power can be enough. Powerful demons can bestow dark magic upon a person, and sometimes mortals unwittingly enter into contracts which grant them dark power, but bind them to the will of the Dark Gods.

### Philosophy of Darkness

At the heart of it, Darkness is the philosophy that the world is inherently bad, and people are flawed, and the only way to achieve real power over your life is to be aware of that, and accept your flaws. Darkness encourages its followers to embrace the less virtuous aspects of themselves, such as anger, greed, and dishonesty, because this is the only way to control them. It also encourages people to face their fears, to stop themselves being controlled by them, and then utilise fear against their enemies. Darkness also encourages people to reject authorities, and the rules of society, and to make their own rules. This is why society as a whole tends to view darkness as a bad thing. If a dark magic user is not careful they can follow the chaotic and indulgent nature of darkness to its extremes, and become hedonistic murderers. This is usually one step away from being fully corrupted, and becoming a Cambion, or a Demon.

Even those who follow darkness would not necessarily say it is a force for good, but they would definitely say it is necessary. Darkness provides acute awareness of the troubles of the world, while the Light is often blindly ignorant. Darkness spurs people to action, it makes people question themselves, and it provides a motivation to make things better.

In the four-pointed cosmology of the divine, Darkness is adjacent to Life and Death, and opposite to the Light.

### Limitations

Darkness is less powerful in bright places, and during the day, but is much more powerful in dark places. Dark magic is heavily associated with the night. One way to completely remove a dark caster's power is to force them into a very bright, open, space, with no shadows.