Power is the loose term associated with being able to achieve things through supernatural abilities. Risen are capable of harnessing Power through a nearly endless amount of ways, but the most common and blatant manifestations of Power comes from invoking magic.
When asked where one can acquire more Power, most Risen agree that it is through dedication towards something that makes one more capable of harnessing the supernatural. Whether that dedication be strict and disciplined training, a relentless pursuit of forbidden knowledge, or harnessing the very life around you, it is the daring and adventurous that finds their body becomes a ready conduit for this mysterious force.
The Arcane Arts
The discipline of the so called “arcane” is defined by shaping Power that flows from Scars into magic. The first practitioners who harnessed this power likened it to visualizing and directing a “flow” of the Scar’s influence into a tangible spell in reality. Since then, analogues to wind and water have become commonplace when practitioners speak of their magic.
After almost a decade of study, arcanists have managed to identify a large number of spells that could conjure an echo of energy from a nearby or distant scar. A fireball, for example, draws destructive force from nearby Scars featuring burning debris or explosive conflicts. The difficulty and dangers in uncovering new spells has not been lost on the Risen, as it is generally agreed that it would likely require the creation or disruption of a Scar.
Wizards have typically dedicated no small part of their Risen lives studying the known flows of Power and methodically weaving it to harness a wide variety of spells. Sorcerers however use an intuitive sense on how to weave the flows - preferring to directly pluck the Power from the stream itself to shape the spell into what it wants to be.
Bards are a curious outlier. Their Power is intuitive, looking and feeling quite similar to sorcery, yet they are able to occasionally tap into flows emanating off the Risen around them. Some have theorized that they are unconsciously harnessing Power that lies “between” the flows and life itself - a middle ground between arcane, primal and divine forces.
Primal Forces
Upon and within every living creature is the potential for Power, drawn forth by those attuned to the energy of life itself. Druids and Rangers can conjure forth the most obvious manifestations of this force, but primal energy is latent within all Risen who seek to push their bodies beyond what is considered their limit. A rush of adrenaline to assist a warrior in kicking down a door is one thing - the Power to bend a portcullis open with their hands is quite another matter.
Religion
There are many who believe Power is not something simply to be handled, but something that is granted or earned through their service to a cause or entity. References and remnants of monuments to various Gods and distant creeds have, from what the Risen can gather, existed in the world for countless years. The old words and tenets struck true to many of the Risen, and some have found they can harness Power through their devotion.
Paladins were among the first in the Risen to grasp this aspect of Power, finding themselves infused with it as they spoke - and adhered to, Oaths. Typically these Oaths are extremely strict, requiring a dedication beyond maintaining a simple code of conduct or morality.
Clerics are those who have devoted their lives to a particular entity, beseeching Power from it to see its ideals realized and to ensure it is never truly forgotten. Remnants of lore and the dogmas of various deities have been recovered from the Suthwood and surrounding ruins, listed below.
See Religions for more
