Thanotist

Thanotic Sorcery is a rare and perilous art, rooted deep in Skarna and distrusted near everywhere else. Where most necromancers raise the dead with crude commands or sift through bones for lingering power, the Thanotist deals in something far more elusive: the soul. Though its practice maintains a veneer of higher respectability than traditional necromancy, its practitioners walk ever on thin ice.

History & Culture

Thanotic Sorcery stands apart from the more common necromantic arts, which often focus purely on the manipulation of physical remains or the crude command of freshly-departed spirits. Instead, Thanotic Sorcery is a more esoteric discipline, dedicated to the profound mysteries of the soul and the veil separating existence from oblivion. Its practitioners, known as Thanotists, are not mere summoners; they weave the very essence of the soul, seeking to understand and influence the fundamental principles of mortality itself. Their art is one of shaping, binding, and communing with the echoes of life that persist beyond the flesh. Central to their craft is the concept of the "Thanotic Veil," a metaphysical boundary that shimmers between the realms of the living and the departed. The earliest inklings of this unique magical path emerged not from silent study, but from direct, perilous interaction with locales where this Veil was preternaturally thin, and sorcerers of especial talent could reach into the elusive Middle Realm.

The genesis of what would become Thanotic Sorcery is traceable to the land of Skarna, within the very dead zone that protects it from prying eyes. It was here that early pioneers, including the formidable ruler later known as the Mortiferous and her council the Vicromente, first encountered for themselves such a phenomenon - one that transcended their existing knowledge of necromancy. They found not mere restless spirits, but a weakness in the walls of Pannotia itself. These initial explorations revealed that the Veil itself could be perceived, touched, and - with immense focus and risk - even momentarily pierced.

These early practitioners, driven as much by scholarly curiosity as the pursuit of power, began to diverge from traditional necromantic paths. They were less concerned with animating the body, and more fascinated by the whispers of individual souls, the lingering emotional imprints on the Veil, and the possibility of drawing back that which departed in death. They learned to not just command, but commune with the echoes, to bind them into spectral forms, and even to step partially across the Veil themselves, experiencing the world through the chilling perspective of the departed. This was the birth of Thanotic thought - a realization that the soul, not the body, was the ultimate key to understanding death.

Recognizing the unique and potent nature of their discoveries, and the inevitable danger posed by the fears of the wider world, the Mortiferous decreed the establishment of a center for dedicated study. Thus, in 318 AE, the Thanotic Sanctum was founded within Skarna's Grand Necropolis. This was not merely a school for necromancers, but a crucible where the nascent art of Thanotic Sorcery could be meticulously researched, codified, and refined. Its scholars dedicated themselves to intense meditation, complex rituals, and perilous experimentation, seeking to master the intricate pathways of the Thanotic Veil and the art of soul-weaving.

Training within the Thanotic Sanctum was and remains an arduous and transformative ordeal, sculpted to attune aspirants to the subtle currents of the Veil and the myriad forms of spiritual existence. Initiates endure prolonged, controlled exposures to areas where the Veil is held hair-thin, learning to filter the cacophony of whispers from the beyond and discern individual spiritual signatures. Meditation techniques focus on extending their consciousness, allowing them to perceive and eventually interact with these echoes.

Practical instruction involves the careful binding of minor, often willing or benign spirits, before progressing to more potent or resistant entities, always under the watchful eyes of masters who have themselves navigated the myriad perils of the Veil. Ethical debates, framed by Skarnan philosophy and the Sanctum's ancient charters, are common, intensely discussing the responsibilities, limitations, and justifications of soul manipulation, even as students learn to craft spectral chains, command phantoms, or walk unseen through the borderlands of death. Only those who demonstrate unwavering mental fortitude, profound esoteric understanding, and acute resilience against the constant spiritual and psychological pressures of exposure to the Veil are deemed true Thanotists.

Within Skarna, the Thanotic Sanctum profoundly shaped societal views and practices concerning mortality. Funerary rites, always officiated by Sanctum-trained Thanotists, are not merely for mourning but ensuring a spirit's proper ‘transformation’. Complex and arcane rituals, warded crypts, and pyres of cold flame help guide the soul's passage across the Veil, pacifying volatile or tormented echoes to prevent them from becoming malevolent specters, and preserving potent spiritual essences for later, sanctioned use, while bodies are preserved and interred to serve evermore under the ancient pact taken by each Mortali.

The Sanctum draws a sharp distinction, however, between mindless animated husks - often employed for rudimentary labor or as disposable guardians - and the more sophisticated 'echoes’, such as familiars or phantoms, which retain a sliver of their former (or a constructed) consciousness and are treated with a careful balance of utilitarian respect and watchful control. The handling of all mortal remains and especially the decommissioning of bound spirits follows strict, ancient protocols aimed at preventing uncontrolled spiritual phenomena and, where possible, harvesting residual potentia for the Sanctum's mysterious purposes.

Within the Sanctum's walls, Thanotic Sorcery flourished. Generations of Thanotists refined techniques for binding echoes into familiars, walking the liminal spaces between worlds, drawing forth chilling chains of spiritual energy, and even warding locations with the potent energies of the Veil. Their unique skills made them invaluable within Skarna, serving not just as powerful mages, but as peerless interrogators of the departed, guardians against ethereal threats, and counselors who understood the delicate balance between life and death on a level few could comprehend.

But while the Thanotic Sanctum remains even now the undisputed center of this arcane tradition, whispers of its power inevitably trickled beyond Skarna's borders, for such profound knowledge refuses to be contained. Some lore has been carried by rare, sanctioned emissaries on carefully guarded missions, waylaid and their secrets stolen away. Other fragments have been gleaned by daring outsiders, or pieced together by rogue practitioners who stumbled upon similar truths in other Veil-thin locations across Pannotia.

Beyond Skarna's borders, where the Thanotic Sanctum's controlled doctrines and societal influence held no sway, Thanotic Sorcery acquired a far more sinister reputation. Its core practice - the direct manipulation, binding, and reshaping of souls - was anathema to most cultures and established faiths, which so often viewed the soul as sacred and inviolable, not the domain of mortal sorcerers. Terrifying tales spread over the centuries: stories of Thanotists stealing souls to fuel their dark powers, of wraith-like assassins who could slip through solid walls to strike unseen (a corrupted and feared understanding of abilities like Veil Walking), or of individuals whose wills were erased and their bodies puppeteered by insidious spiritual bindings.

In many lands, any hint of Thanotic practice was met with immediate, often brutal hostility, for between the sore memories of husk hordes laying towns to waste and the rogue practitioners, it found poor footing indeed. Its practitioners were hunted as malevolent witches, soul-corrupting fiends, or abominations against the natural order. Its texts, if discovered, were ritually burned, and sites suspected of Thanotic rituals were purged with fire and faith. This widespread condemnation rarely differentiated between the nuanced, if severe, philosophy of the Skarnan Sanctum and the potentially desperate or depraved acts of isolated, self-taught sorcerers operating without guidance or restraint. Consequently, true and knowledgeable practitioners of Thanotic Sorcery outside Skarna became exceptionally rare, forced into lifestyles of extreme secrecy and paranoia, which in turn sometimes led them to embrace more ruthless methods for survival and the pursuit of their art.

Despite this pervasive fear and persecution - or perhaps, partly fueled by its forbidden allure - Thanotic Sorcery’s influence on the broader understanding of death magic and spiritual phenomena across Aesox was undeniable, albeit often unacknowledged or vehemently denied. Scholars of esoteric lore secretly sought out fragments of its theories to comprehend the deeper mechanics of souls and the afterlife, even while publicly denouncing its practice. The very existence of such a refined and potent art of soul manipulation forced other magical traditions and religious bodies to confront more complex questions about life, death, and the nature of the soul, sometimes leading to the development of new protective wards, exorcism rites, or counter-rituals specifically designed to guard against Thanotic intrusion or similar soul-based threats. Thus, even in its widespread rejection and the dread it inspired, Thanotic Sorcery left an indelible, if shadowed, imprint on arcane theory and practice.

In more recent times, as much for seeing the threat of uncontrolled soul magic as making a strategic decision to mitigate their reputation, the Thanotic Sanctum began a cautious and deliberate outreach to certain external powers. A cornerstone of this initiative was the public and vehement denunciation of less orderly necromancers, most particularly the practitioners of Dreadbinding. Skarnan Thanotists, often operating under strict mandates in small, specialized cells, began to actively hunt down notorious Dreadbinders and dismantle their grim creations. On occasion, they have even reached out and offered their unique expertise to communities overwhelmed by such threats. While profound distrust of Thanotic Sorcery itself invariably persisted, these actions slowly cultivated a grudging, wary respect from some quarters. Those who witnessed Thanotists meticulously unravel a Dreadbinder's charnel operation, or release tormented souls from the unspeakable bondage of a rogue necromancer, might still fear the stern Skarnan sorcerers - but they also spread word of a crucial, if unsettling, distinction between the disciplined arts of Thanotic Sorcery and the cruelty of their wayward cousins.

Notable People & Places

The Mortiferous - The eternal Lich Queen of Skarna, her name whispered in mortal tongues as Livia Draconis before her transformation millennia ago. She is the architect of both Skarna's unyielding power and the Thanotic Sanctum itself, her ancient intellect and mastery over death shaping every facet of her shadowy nation. Her continued existence is the ultimate testament to Thanotic principles.

Archmagister Lucius Tenebris - Current head of the Thanotic Sanctum and chief enforcer of the Mortali Magistrate. Austere and deeply learned, Tenebris is the stern guardian of the Sanctum's darkest secrets and the Mortiferous's unwavering right hand. His pronouncements carry the weight of generations of Thanotic lore, and the chilling authority of the Lich Queen herself.

The Thanotic Sanctum - Nestled within the heart of Skarna's capital, the Grand Necropolis, this is no mere academy but a formidable crucible where Thanotic Sorcery is forged. Within its heavily warded walls and shadowed halls, aspirants come to know the mysteries of the Veil, their successes empowering Skarna and their failures serving as silent, spectral warnings for those that follow.

The Velum Nebulorum - A perpetually fog-shrouded and unmappable district within the Grand Necropolis, where the Thanotic Veil is preternaturally thin. Raw potentia crackles in the air, and the whispers of unbound spirits are a constant murmur. Only the most accomplished Thanotists dare venture deep within its shifting paths, seeking profound communion or risking their sanity for forbidden truths.

Seren Veyra - Once a prodigious disciple of the Thanotic Sanctum, Seren fled Skarna after defying the Mortali Magistrate’s prohibition on binding unwilling spirits. Accused of weaving “living phantoms” from fractured souls and cursed memories, she vanished into the borderlands. In the decades since, tales have spread of a white-robed figure who communes with those who meet a cruel fate, delivering vengeance through whisper-bound blades. To the Sanctum, she is a dangerous apostate; to the desperate and the damned, a harbinger.

Margrave Arthon Krael - Banished in the 4th Century AE for siphoning bound spirits to prolong his mortal life, Krael did not perish in exile. Instead, he forged a fortress of dread in the ruins of the sundered city of Vire, binding the souls of his enemies into monuments, weapons, and even the walls of his citadel. To this day, Krael is a cold tyrant - calculating and pitiless. Thanotic scholars still whisper of his rebellion, and while Skarna refuses to discuss him with outsiders, those within know his threat remains, if contained by numberless wards.

Spells

Wraiths & Eidolons

• The transformations in Veil Walker and Beyond the Black Gate should always preserve core elements of the character’s appearance, warped through the lens of dark magics and necromancy. They remain consistent for each caster unless disguised.
• Characters remain identifiable in these forms; they do not inherently conceal identity. However, disguised characters remain disguised after transformation.
• Wraith transformation does not increase size. Eidolons, however, can be up to 9’0” in height, and become much further changed from the baseline appearance.

Tier One Spells

Name	Spell	Cooldown	Action Type
Grave Bound	Drawing forth chains of cold iron from the ground below, the Thanotist binds an enemy in place, restricting their movement. This gives disadvantage on their next roll, and prevents movement for a turn. This disadvantage does not stack with itself.	2 charges, 24 hours to refresh	Action
Veil Walker	Thinning their connection to Pannotia and stepping partially through the veil of death, the Thanotist assumes the form of a wraith wreathed in shadow, with its exact appearance varying between casters. While in this state, they can pass through small openings such as keyholes or the gaps under doors, and (with OOC consent) possess others, distinguished by glowing green eyes and a unique, identifiable sigil on their forehead. This function can be used freely and maintained indefinitely. In combat, they can use this (even if not a wraith at the time) to dodge a single incoming attack or ability as it passes through their ethereal form.	Once per combat	Reaction
Echo of the Lost	Summoning forth the echo of a long-faded soul from beyond the veil and binding it around a sliver of potentia, the Thanotist can create a spectral familiar in a form of their choosing, up to the size of a dog. This can also be bound to a skeleton to animate it. The echo has a simple personality and can communicate, but always follows commands from its creator. This summon has 5 HP, 8 Dexterity, and uses the Thanotist’s Mystic stat for all other stats. On a successful attack, it deals 1d5 damage. If destroyed, this ability goes on cooldown.	24 hours	Action

Tier Two Spells

Name	Spell	Cooldown	Action Type
Shadow Surge	Channeling their power, the Thanotist thins the veil between Pannotia and the Middle Realm in a 5x5 zone, placed anywhere within emote range. For four turns this area is shrouded in shadows, while wailing souls claw and slash at any enemies inside. This zone deals 1d6 damage to any enemies entering it or starting their turn inside it, and halves movement distance if passing through or leaving it.	24 hours	Action
Ebon Ward	The Thanotist creates a shroud of shadows around themselves or a chosen ally. For the next two turns, any damage done to them is reduced by 1d8 as the shadows bear the brunt of the harm. This cannot reduce damage below 1.	Two charges, end combat to refresh	Action
Wraith’s Wail	Drawing on spirits long forgotten, the Thanotist summons a phantom, binding them to their control. This may be used in progressions to scout enemy forces. In combat, the phantom distracts enemies, the Thanotist rolling their Mystic stat against the target’s Scrutiny stat. Upon a successful roll, the phantom latches onto the target, sapping their vitality and giving a -3 to strength. At the end of the target’s turn, the rolls are repeated. Once failed, this ability ends and goes on cooldown.	Once per combat	Action

Tier Three Spells

Name	Spell	Cooldown	Action Type
Beyond the Black Gate	For the remainder of combat, the Thanotist transforms into an Eidolon, granting +4 to their Mystic stat. While in this form, the Thanotist gains two charges, which can each be used to cast an empowered variant of another spell with an additional effect: Grave Bound's chains affect an additional target. Veil Walker's reaction blocks all incoming damage until the end of the Thanotist's next turn. Echo of the Lost has its health and size doubled, its Dexterity increased to 12, and its damage increased to 1d10 for the rest of the fight. Shadow Surge is increased to a 10x10 area. Ebon Ward reduces damage by an additional 2. Wraith's Wail deals 1d8 damage each turn it remains active. Soul Binding shields the Thanotist from the first hit that would otherwise reduce them to 0 HP, ending Beyond the Black Gate. Undying Legion summons a third shade. The same spell can only be cast empowered once per combat.	One week	Action
Soul Binding	The caster temporarily summons the soul of a deceased creature or person, enabling communication with the spirit which will allow the caster to ask 5 questions. The bound spirit can offer information, guidance, or insights but cannot interact physically with the world. Once all questions have been answered, this spell cannot contact the spirit again, regardless of caster. Obtain consent beforehand if binding the soul of a player character (PC). For non-player characters (NPCs), submit a request through Discord ticket. This may be used on a Character that has fallen to 0 HP to restore them to 1 HP, though they cannot rejoin combat.	One week	Action
Undying Legion	The Thanotist summons a pair of shades to aid them in combat. Each shade is an entity that can perform one action per turn, with stats equal to the Thanotist’s Mystic stat. Shades deal 1d4 damage on a hit, and have a range of 6 blocks. The shades remain active for up to 3 turns unless dispelled by the Thanotist, and are unable to be destroyed or attacked through traditional methods.	12 hours	Action

Trivia

• To this day, Krael’s work still persists. The Sanctum treats any reference to his rites as blasphemy, and burns such texts on sight, though some are believed to have slipped out into the wider world, items pursued by collectors of Skarnan esoterica - and by necromancers seeking his power.
• Though Galudon has never seen the need to forbid it, transforming into a Wraith - let alone an Eidolon - in public is a dangerous gamble. Few guards stop to ask for an explanation when seeing such horrors, and indeed they are often mistaken for Cursed.

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Accreditation
Writers Bimberi Processors Vegemiite	Last Editor Bimberi on 05/12/2025.

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