Magic
A Guide to Necromantic Revivals
While uncommon, Necromancers within the Realm do exist, often in secret, and many sell their services to both dragons and humans. The process is far from perfect and even if successful can have lasting effects on those brought back.
The Other Side
Unfortunately, those brought back remember nothing of what lies beyond death. Any afterlife that does exist cannot be recalled. While some view this as proof that there is nothing, others take the fact that a soul can be returned from the dead to prove that it must go somewhere.
Revivals
Necromancy is a fickle art, and resurrecting someone from death is the most difficult of all its practices. To get a ‘perfect revival’ with as little possible side effects requires a perfect sacrifice; the closer to the resurrected’s age, gender, and life experiences the better. For example, a twin sibling they spent most of their life with would be an ideal sacrifice. No matter what, resurrection is a life for a life, although imperfect resurrections can be accomplished using animals… for interesting results.
Using multiple sacrifices may allow you to bring someone back with very unsuitable people, but will also probably scramble their brain and leave them uncertain of who or what they are.
Using multiple sacrifices may allow you to bring someone back with very unsuitable people, but will also probably scramble their brain and leave them uncertain of who or what they are.
No Coming Back
There are a few situations where it is impossible to bring back the dead, at least fully. Anything or anyone used as a sacrifice in a necromantic ritual cannot be brought back, no matter how perfect the sacrifice. Many cultures believe this is because their soul was destroyed by the ritual, and others that the gods are simply protecting their bodies and minds from further abuse.
The longer someone has been dead, the harder it is to bring them back. The body can heal from injuries and minor decay, but if all that remains is bone it is very difficult indeed, and the flesh still harder to restore. Most Necromancers will refuse to bring someone back if they’ve been dead for more than a month, but some will take your money and try anyway.
Bodies preserved by cold or other phenomena may be revived long past the expiration date of other corpses.
Reviving a Necromancer is thought to also be impossible, although some say that they simply have not tried the right sacrifice to achieve it. Theories range from the extinct Elder Drakes and Unicorns to just using another Necromancer.
The longer someone has been dead, the harder it is to bring them back. The body can heal from injuries and minor decay, but if all that remains is bone it is very difficult indeed, and the flesh still harder to restore. Most Necromancers will refuse to bring someone back if they’ve been dead for more than a month, but some will take your money and try anyway.
Bodies preserved by cold or other phenomena may be revived long past the expiration date of other corpses.
Reviving a Necromancer is thought to also be impossible, although some say that they simply have not tried the right sacrifice to achieve it. Theories range from the extinct Elder Drakes and Unicorns to just using another Necromancer.
How to Train Your Dead
Not all resurrections are perfect, and not all resurrections are meant to be perfect. ‘Partial resurrections’ as they’re often called simply reanimate a body, but not the mind; the resulting being is instead controlled by the Necromancer who brought them back. They will often have small behavioural quirks influenced by what was used to revive them.
Necromancers can create an army of skeletal and half-living creatures this way, provided they kill enough to form it. While many fear an onslaught of the dead, it is hard to imagine anyone having the time to kill enough to create an army that would be a real threat to any part of the Realm.
Old legends say that the feared Elder Drakes once maintained vast armies of the dead, and any who stepped out of line were liable to being recruited into it.
Necromancers can create an army of skeletal and half-living creatures this way, provided they kill enough to form it. While many fear an onslaught of the dead, it is hard to imagine anyone having the time to kill enough to create an army that would be a real threat to any part of the Realm.
Old legends say that the feared Elder Drakes once maintained vast armies of the dead, and any who stepped out of line were liable to being recruited into it.
Life After Death
Alright, but what about those who are brought back fully, mind and body? What happens to them? There are a variety of odd side-effects that occur more intensely depending on how ‘perfect’ the sacrifice was:
- Those resurrected ALWAYS have the same glowing eyes as the Necromancer who brought them back. If they’ve been resurrected multiple times by multiple Necromancers (wow, they’ve had quite the life), then it’s the eyes of the last one who brought them back, and if two worked together to revive them, they'll have heterochromia.
- Some memories might vanish or become scrambled. They may also recall things that happened to the sacrifice used to bring them back This is usually more intense if the individual was dead for a long time or had an especially unsuitable sacrifice.
- If a very poor sacrifice was used - like an animal to bring back a human - their mind may be… completely scrambled. They may behave instead like the animal used to revive them, rather than like the human they were before. Killing an individual like this and then trying to ‘redo’ the resurrection only results in screwing up their mind even more.
- Some individuals may experience a reduction of their physical age, although this has only been recorded in those past their prime. Those resurrected using Necromancy tend to have a few extra years, living up to 5-10 additional years past a natural lifespan.
- The dead awaken cold and scared; they’re often quite stiff and should be welcomed gently back into life, with lots of blankets and warm food.
- For those with bad injuries or partial decay, multiple sacrifices may be required to heal them properly, or Necromantic healing sessions after their revival. Scars are usually left as-is unless the individual greatly desires to have them removed.
How to Kill the Dead
The resurrected die like any other. Skeletal minions of a Necromancer are a little harder to kill and may need to be smashed to pieces to fully put them out of business, but those with working organs can be dealt with like any other living thing.