Wednesday 11 May 2016

Collector's tools


Spirit collectors can work entirely without tools if needed, but prefer using them. They're usually made by pendulors, and totems and tubes need to be of certain quality - broken totems release their spirits.

The wooden totems are for trapping dead spirits. They are blue at first, turning brown when inhabited, and are painted with spirit-bonding patterns. The figure is sitting with folded arms, and must be of the appropriate species; a rope can be pulled through for hanging them up. In the cleansing rituals to unite the dead with the Great Spirit, the totem is destroyed.
"It was custom for collectors on their way to the cleansing to wear blue as a warning. Crowds parted around them, but more than once, the rebels shot them to release all spirits in the masses, causing great turmoils."
— Benerare Pikale, historian
Spirits are reflected like light and cannot escape rings, going in circles forever. Echo tubes are therefore made from mirroring materials. They can be glass tubes that are screwed shut or crystals closed with clasps, while metal tubes are not commonly used - since there is no light inside, there's also no reflection, and supposedly this makes them less useful.
"And when they had reached the clifftops, they started throwing down items we took for bottles, that shattered on the ground, but we soon realized in horror that they were echo tubes releasing their spirits among us."
— Ratirra Merruh, listener
The collectors' rings also use the ring principle. Young collectors start with them on arms and legs, moving them outwards gradually. A collector's body is a vessel, every inch makes room for more and greater spirits, and the rings are like stoppers. Seasoned collectors wear their rings on toes and fingers.


Artists' notes
Needless to say, there are also legendary collectors' rings or echo tubes that supposedly work better than the average. I always liked all the precautions you are supposed to take when interacting with the supernatural - turning mirrors to the wall, guarding thresholds with brick dust or salt, and so on. With equipment, there's also the storytelling element of precautions gone wrong, to add danger and difficulty to the task. 

4 comments:

  1. Your illustation of the totem and other trinkets are so inspiring to me, they're a lovely break from the typical European-themed fantasy that's so popular. It feels inspired by the less-common Eastern themes, but still has a uniqueness and originality that makes me eager to explore more of your world

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    1. Haha, that's funny. My own comment, but before I updated my Google account to reflect a more current "me". Felt like I'd clarify it's the same person as the comment I just made on Horr :]

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    2. So Rythven=Corvell, right? Good to know :)
      Thanks for the comment. Indeed, I often look elsewhere than Europe for inspiration, or deep into Europe; much that's considered medieval concentrates on a period that was romanticized much later, and is often confused with the Renaissance. The Europe under Roman domination was different than Christian Europe, and changes nearly every century, and is yet different today. I always try and get listen to my thoughts when i encounter something new and intersting that's not in the setting yet. Like rock churches or rock castles, that were really hewn from mountains - how cool is that.

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  2. Yep, that's right!

    Yeah, and it's a shame that that's all that's really seen in fantasy nowadays.

    I'm always down for architecture that fits the landscape like that. Heck. Yes.

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