Spiritborn & Ectochoirs

Those who have already lived once, but neither ascended nor moved on.

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## **Spiritborn**

Spiritborn are reincarnated people. They may have had a single past life, or they may have had many. Most spiritborn are reincarnations of tier 1 spirits, but some are reincarnations of tier 2, or even tier 3 spirits. However, the longer a spirit has been without a body, the stranger the spiritborn tends to be.

## Reincarnation

What a person dies, one of four things may happen to their soul. It may vanish; it may float around as a disembodied spirit; it may possess someone, forming an ectochoir; it may reincarnate, forming a spiritborn. Spiritborn reincarnations don’t happen instantly, the soul has to spend some time disembodied first. This time, however, is frequently very short, sometimes only a fraction of a second.

When someone reincarnates, they generally do not realise this has happened, at least initially. A handful of spiritborn have their old memories from birth, or conversely, never realise they are spiritborn. But most spiritborn begin getting flashes of their old lives around puberty. This often progresses to full recollection later on. Spiritborn may have only hazy memories of their time as a spirit, however, and usually do not have any recollection of this time at all.

There is no known method of controlling reincarnation, as it is not a voluntary process. There are also no gender or racial restrictions on what someone reincarnates as: a male orc from Mosshaven may reincarnate as a female halfling from Lenore. Cultural attitudes towards spiritborn can range from reverence and excitement to extreme hostility. Spiritborn are rare.

## Reincarnated tier 2 and tier 3 spirits

A reincarnated tier 1 spirit will function just fine, as tier 1 spirits are essentially the same as the person they were in life. Tier 2 spirits, however, have started to go weird. Tier 2 spirits are obsessive, disconnected and usually somewhat insane, and it can take a lot of work for the subsequent spiritborn readjust to being a person again.

Tier 3 spirits cannot reincarnate entirely. Instead, a small piece of the whole may reincarnate. Tier 3 spiritborn do not keep any memories of their previous lives, or their time is a spirit. They embody the ideal of the spirit they came from. A Ko-Lin Spiritborn, for example, is likely to be the most forgiving, tolerant person you will ever meet.

Worldspirit spiritborn can sometimes manifest small displays of spiritual power, such as making their eyes glow, but only on their first reincarnation. Worldspirit spiritborn do not rejoin the greater whole after they die; if they reincarnate again, they do so as their own entity.

## **Ectochoirs**

Ectochoirs are created when a Tier 1 spirit possesses *someone else’s* body. People find them terrifying.

## Permanent possession

Ectochoir possession generally happens in areas with high ambient spirit magic, such as in the aftermath of large rituals. Though rare, it can also just happen spontaneously. The spirit that does the possessing is known as the ectospirit, and the creature as a whole is known as the ectochoir. The possession is generally not an intentional action taken by the ectospirit; a newly created ectochoir will usually just wake up and have no idea what is going on.

Ectochoirs are defined by their permanency. If a person is possessed by a spirit for a day, they are just possessed. If it takes up permanent residence, they are an ectochoir. Once settled, the ectospirit also cannot simply leave the body, as doing so requires powerful rituals and magics. Furthermore, unlike spiritborn, ectochoirs usually have perfectly clear memories of the past life, and quickly figure out what they are.

Most ectochoirs cannot control their repossession. However, a handful of individuals, notably the Talons of Camara, can do so via an unknown, secret technique.

## Marionette and Hydra ectochoirs

Ectochoirs come in multiple variants.

‘Marionette ectochoirs’ are ectochoirs where the original soul that occupied the body is gone. Most marionette ectochoirs are created right after the original person dies. The ectospirit enters the body to fill the void, and this creates a small burst of energy that barely restores the body to life. Many such newly formed ectochoirs spend the first weeks of their new life recovering from the original injury. More disturbingly, some marionette ectochoirs are created while the host soul is still in there, with the arrival of the ectospirit erasing the original occupant.

‘Hydra ectochoirs’ are ectochoirs where more than one soul is still in the body. One of the souls is usually that of the original person, though in unusual circumstances it may not be. Hydra ectochoirs can exist in various states. The original soul may be dominant, with the ectospirit unable to exert any control, or the ectospirit may be dominant. The two souls may oscillate and regularly switch control. The two souls may communicate with each other. In some scary cases, the original soul may not know the ectospirit is in there; there are numerous folktales about murderous ectospirits taking control at night and using their hosts’ bodies to do terrible things.

Very rarely, a body may contain 3 or more spirits. These ectochoirs do not last long. A body cannot handle more than two spirits, and eventually, one of the spirits will be ejected or extinguished, or the body will collapse.

## Spiritborn and ectochoirs

People often get spiritborn and ectochoirs confused. Where the distinction is made, spiritborn are more likely to be treated with caution, and ectochoirs are more likely to be treated as monsters. Misinformation abounds about ectochoirs, and they are most often portrayed as malevolent ghosts who will kill your loved ones and then wear their skin.

There are certain complicated magics which may be used to identify spiritborn and ectochoirs, but these magics cannot distinguish between the two. Many ectochoirs have tried to pass themselves off as spiritborn, explaining personality shifts as recovered spiritborn memories.