Nether

The first magic system introduced. Associated with Arawn and summarily banned in Mallon on pain of death.

## Historical & Cultural Associations

The nether is heavily associated with the god Arawn in lands where the Celeset is followed. Per most modern versions of the story of the creation of the world, Arawn's mill once ground ether, the stuff of permanence and the ideal. After the mill broke and was reset, it ground nether instead, the stuff of mortality and change.

In Mallon, practice of the nether is banned together with the worship of Arawn. The severity of the penalty for being caught using the nether or with Arawnite materials has varied over time. Anti-Arawnite sentiment has played a part in several Mallish wars, most recently the Second and Third Scours which, while they were heavy on the anti-nether feeling, were also pushed forward by political factors. Following the Unlocking and the Chainbreakers' War- or the Shadow Rebellion, as the Mallish know it- anti-Arawnite sentiment was on the rise. The popular opinion in Mallon, reinforced by religious dogma of the priests of Taim, holds that the nether is a force of evil and emblematic of mankind's inherent flaws. This doesn't tend to hold true in the Collen Basin which, despite repeated Mallish invasions, has retained its own culture and accepts worship of Arawn and nethermancers. Fledgling nethermancers in Mallon who wish to continue their study often head north, to Setteven or Narashtovik. There are some exceptions to the general ban, but they are few and they are kept quiet, reserved for a select few, including select members of Taim's priesthood.

In Gask, practice of the nether is as normal as magic can be. Those with talent are often sent or recruited to the Endless Pillars in Setteven or the priesthood of Arawn in Narashtovik for training. Gaskan nethermancers have a secret handshake of sorts, mostly to be able to exchange greetings without the other party assuming they're under attack when arms start waving.

In Weslee, the nether is recognized and accepted, as is worship of Arawn, though Weslean theology differs slightly from the Gaskan and Mallish standards with the addition of Jeren.

In the Plagued Islands, use of the nether is a common feature of daily living. Most if not all settlements host at least one Harvester, able to use the nether to grow plants. There is no association with Arawn due to the Islands boasting a distinct and separate set of gods.

In Tanar Atain, use of both nether as well as ether is off-limits and generally regarded as the domain of mad sorcerers who generally only manage to cause problems. Tanar Atain also has its own set of gods and beliefs.

## Applications

The nether takes the form of shadows and fluid darkness, often described as "flocking" to the nethermancer summoning it. It's easiest to find near death and freshly spilled blood. A nethermancer can summon and use the nether at any time, but they are able to access far more at once when they are bleeding. This fact results in many nethermancers with arms covered in scars from where they've cut themselves to feed the nether.

The nether functions in many ways as a complement to the ether- malleable when compared to the ether's 'ideal' forms, shadow to light. In several instances, it's possible to accomplish the same goal with both the ether and the nether, just by different paths. Healing is the clearest example- ethereal healing focuses more on restoration to a previous state while nethereal healing tends towards regrowth and regeneration.

### Netherburn

Using the nether is not without its risks. The amount of nether available to any given nethermancer varies according to natural affinity and training. Once your limit is reached and you stop channeling the nether, you won't be able to start again until you've had a proper sleep. Drawing on shaden and your trace can both extend your supply for a time, but neither method lets you channel without limit. You can continue to channel the nether past your limits, so long as you've already started. In smaller amounts, this is relatively harmless, and will simply result in difficulties summoning and controlling the nether the next day. In larger amounts, the excess nether can exact a physical toll on the body. Nethermancers who have burned themselves can go into a deep sleep or coma for days, die outright, or be marked permanently- Dante's right hand is stained matte black from his own experience with netherburn. Netherburn can't be treated with magic- if anything, using the nether on the condition just makes things worse. Even after waking from the burn, you can't use the nether for days afterward. Attempting to do so results in a sharp, burning pain and the possibility of destroying yourself. The only true treatment is time. The late stages of the ronone can often be mistaken for netherburn.

### Shadowspheres & Illusion

Shadowspheres are often among the first skills learned by new nethermancers, and are often used instinctively. It is, simply, a sphere of darkness centered on a point of the nethermancer's choosing. By reversing the process of a shadowsphere's creation, it is possible to create lights that follow similar parameters. A more refined version of this is the creation of illusions. The more detailed the illusion and the more moving pieces, the more draining it is on the nethermancer, mostly in terms of concentration- the amount of nether required to power an illusion is relatively small.

### Healing

Nether-based healing functions largely in terms of regrowth- the nether simply hurries the body's natural healing processes to do things like closing an open wound. The nether can be used to cause someone to fall asleep and to dull pain, but it does have its limitations. Arthritis is mentioned to be beyond the typical application of nether-based healing. It can also be used to cleanse a physical body of weariness, though this does nothing for mental exhaustion and wears away at something deeper the longer you avoid a true rest. You can also "cleanse" a body of the need for new air for a short time.

### Reanimation

The nether can be used to reanimate dead bodies by restarting the circulation of nether in a body. The resulting zombie retains some muscle memory it held while alive (even if there are no muscles any longer) and can eventually be given general instructions along the lines of 'walk that way' without the nethermancer having to actively puppeteer all of its movements, given enough practice. These reanimated corpses, called 'sixers' in some circles, can be accessed by the nethermancer to borrow their senses. The further this is from human perception, the more difficult it is to make sense of and the more adjustment is needed. Dragonflies, for example, have a much different sense of sight than humans. Reanimations are a gradual but constant drain on the nethermancer's supply of power as long as they are active. The functional range on these constructs varies according to the nethermancer's strength and talent. They can be destroyed as easily as the original creature would be destroyed, breaking the link to the nethermancer and causing a brief moment of almost-pain in their head.

### Rooting

The nether can be used to physically lock a person or creature in place, lashing them to the ground and/or immobilizing them altogether. It's simple enough to counter for another sorcerer, but extremely effective against non-sorcerers.

### Energy

The basic energy of the nether can be released in several ways. Very real, intense flames can be produced which, while dramatic, isn't often favored in combat as it's relatively draining and easily interrupted by another sorcerer. This option is often more useful as a magic lighter when starting a campfire. The nether can also be released as pure heat, most often used to clear paths through heavy snow. More than once the nether has been shown effective at projecting sound, typically in situations like sermons in large cathedrals. The most common release of the basic energy comes in the form of blunt force and blades of nether- the favored weapons used when two sorcerers go into battle against each other. These can be beaten back, dodged, or deflected much like mundane weapons.

### Bloodhunting

So named by Blays, bloodhunting involves using a piece of someone- usually their blood- to track someone down. The nether finds and opens a link between the latent nether in the blood at hand and that in the body the blood originally belonged to. Once this link has been opened, it registers as a dull pressure in the nethermancer's head in the direction of the person of interest. The pressure grows as the distance to the target shrinks, until it borders on pain. Though most typically used to link a piece of a person (blood, hair, etc.) back to the person themself, the same principle can be applied to anything that was once part of a larger whole. The piece remembers the whole- it's just a matter of looking for it. This method can be used to, for example, find a large platform of a specific type of stone from a single piece carved from it long ago, or to find the original tree an apple might have come from.

### Earthmoving

Once known in Narashtovik, earthmoving now exists almost exclusively among the nethermancers of Pocket Cove. By carefully manipulating the nether in the ground itself, it's possible to move dirt and stone along with it. This also works on glass- which is stone adjacent and a bit more stubborn than natural rock- and metal.

### Shadowalking

Another talent held close by the People of the Pocket. Allows you to walk around in the nether. You can still see and hear everything happening in the regular physical world, but they can't see or hear you. Some sorcerers can sense shadowalkers if they're paying enough attention, but even then it can be difficult, particularly if you're not familiar with the possibility of their being an entire person walking around in the nether. If a sorcerer is looking for a shadowalker, it manifests as an approaching cold, heavy presence. Physical objects are only mostly there in the shadoworld- you barely feel a stubbed toe against a physical desk, and swimming or wading through water is almost like running through mud. Whatever you're wearing or carrying enters the shadoworld with you, and picking up or dropping something will move it in or out of the shadows. Unfortunately, this doesn't apply to people. Some few people are capable of shadowalking through stone and glass, but the majority of shadowalkers don't seem to be able to.

### Harvesting

A skill particular to the Plagued Islands. Similar to nether-based healing, Harvesting rushes a plant's natural growth patterns. The exact extent of the rushing depends in part on the plant itself. Star trees, for example, grow exceedingly slowly even under a Harvester's care.

## Contemporary Nethermancers

* Dante Galand
* Blays Buckler
* Callimandicus
* Minn
* Nak Randal
* Hart
* Olivander
* Joseff
* Merria
* Somburr
* Pinya
* Wellimer
* Gladdic
* Winden
* Raxa Dosse
* Sorrowen
* Ro
* Lew
* Samarand
* Wint
* Ulev
* Kav
* Gabe
* Vordon
* The Minister
* Tallivand
* Kinnevan
* Riddi

## Historical & Mythological Nethermancers

* Jack Hand
* Stathus the Wise
* Kon the White-Haired
* Yee