Light

The Light is an endless, shimmering sea of energy located outside the boundaries of reality, and it is one of the two most fundamental cosmic forces in the universe, along with the Void, which was born from the former's absence. The two cannot exist apart from one another. The Light is not always "good"; it is a primal force whose morality is defined by how it is wielded.

Its positive energies are everywhere, residing in every living being, in every heart and soul, and uniting all sentient beings as one. Ancient races had learned to worship and use the power of light, but others had discovered and practiced light-based magic on their own.

The Light, like the Void, cannot fully see destiny because neither is solely responsible for creation. The Light seeks one path and rejects all others as deceptions.

## **History**

### **Background**

It is said that before life, before even the universe, there was Light... and then there was Void. However, unconstrained by time and space, the Light swelled across all existence in the form of a boundless prismatic sea. Great torrents of living energy flitted through its mirrored depths, creating a symphony of joy and hope. The ocean of the Light was ever-changing and dynamic. However, as it grew, some of its energies faded and dimmed, leaving pockets of seemingly cold nothingness behind. This eventually gave rise to a second, opposing force: the Void. The increasing tension between the two opposing energies eventually triggered a series of cosmic explosions that gave birth to the universe we know today.

The cosmos' cataclysmic birth sent shards of fractured light flying through it, infusing the newly formed planets with the spark of life and giving birth to countless life forms, the most common of which were the primordial elementals.

The forces of the Light are said to have been locked in a cosmic power struggle with the Void since eons ago, when they last clashed.

Both light and void must be kept in check if the universe's balance is to be maintained.

## **Creatures of the Light**

Though they are rarely seen, the creatures of the Light are thought to be naturally orderly and to exist beyond the material plane. They, like their counterparts, are a necessary part of the universe.

Beings of the Light, like other cosmic forces, can normally only be permanently killed in their own realm, the realm of Light. If they are killed in the mortal realm, their essence returns to the Light to be reconstituted, though some exceptionally powerful forces can intervene in the process.

## **Effects on Beings**

### **On Living Beings**

The Light is said to elicit positive emotions such as hope, courage, and comfort from the "heart." During the paladin empowerment ritual, the Light shines down on and through them with blinding radiance. It first warms, then sears. The individual has been scoured; emptied, scrubbed clean, and then refilled. The light inside swells and then fades to a tolerable level.

The Light can heal illness and relieve aches, pains, and stiffness. It can also be used to treat broken bones. Many scholars believe that restoring an old man's youth is not beyond the power of the light, but it is not in the hands of the healer. During the Great Plague, the Church of the Light discovered how to manipulate light in order to cure their people of the deadly undead plague.

Recent events have shown that those who delve too deeply into the Light can be just as dangerous as those who delve too deeply into the Void. Because the Light tends to favor only one path, it can lead the overly devout to become closed-minded, adamantly refusing to acknowledge any other power or way of life besides the Light.

### **On Undead**

The Light is excruciatingly painful and lethal to the undead. The light, for example, was used by the Church's inquisitors to fight and interrogate sentient undead or rogue necromancers, causing them excruciating pain. The undead, on the other hand, can use the light to heal themselves if they still have a connection to it. It is a quick process, but it is excruciatingly painful.

The undead's souls are imperfectly attached to their bodies; the dark magic that keeps them alive acts as a buffer, preventing their souls from properly joining with their bodies. This is why the undead experience only faint sensations of pain or discomfort from most physical stimuli, and why light is so painful to them.

When the undead channel the light, they do not disintegrate or explode, despite their wishes. Instead, they have the sensation that their entire bodies are being consumed by righteous fire. The effect effectively cauterizes undead healed by the Light: the wound is healed, but the healing effect is cripplingly painful. Undead priests are thus strong-willed beings. When priests or paladins are nearby, the undead suffer valiantly.

According to reports, some sentient undead have gradually experienced a sharpening of their dulled senses of touch, smell, and so on, as well as an increase in the flashes of positive emotions that have become so rare since their undeath. Unfortunately, regaining these senses would force them to smell their own rotting flesh, taste the decay in their mouths and throats, and even feel the maggots burrowing within their bodies, which may be the cause of the individual's increased attempts at self-destruction.