Spirits are the second main lifeform that makeup the world. By default, most people can’t see or feel them. They can only be perceived in certain circumstances, such as attaining enough power, a large amount of active spirits gathering together, or moments of strong emotion.
Sometimes, a person may suddenly find that they can perceive spirits without any outside help. Usually a great, life-altering event is the catalyst for this sharp rise in power, such as slaying a powerful foe in combat. In many communities, this is a cause for celebration, and is taken as a sign the person will become a great leader. For most however, this transition is an uncomfortable one, and usually an experienced mentor will help accommodate them to their new sense until they get a hold of things.
The distinction between all humanoids and spirits is that humanoids are naturally born with high amounts of Ki, and can progress their skills at a much faster rate than spirits. Spirits, in turn, easily live longer lifetimes compared to humans, and have an easier time accessing the energy that permeates throughout the universe. Many spirits try to attain “humanity,” and cultivate their spiritual prowess to the point that they acquire a human form, thus having both the long life of a spirit and the prowess of a humanoid.
Basic spirits, with some exceptions, are usually confined to an area or item. They can not traverse from their area of origin, instead tending to hang about in the same area. Among spirits, information tends to travel purely by word of mouth for this reason.
Types of Spirits
Just as there are several types of creatures native to the material plane (Humans, elves, dwarves, halflings, lizardfolk, etc.), there are several types of Spirits.
- Yao: Spirits that were originally animals, plants, or inanimate objects (such as rocks) that cultivated for thousands of years until they were able to attain an intelligent consciousness and corporeal body. Essentially, they were “born” out of nature. The most “normal” of spirits. Sometimes possess objects out of boredom, entertainment.
- Ghosts: The souls of the previously deceased, now in Spirit form. Many are evil, but not all. Easily able to traverse the veil between the Spirit World and Material Plane because of their malice.
- Ghouls: Analogous to demons or devils, but without explicit attachments to Christianity. Born from the manifestation of negative emotions or when a normal Spirit gets corrupted by dark magic.
There are also “lesser” Spirits.
- Lesser Spirits: Most similar to Yao, they are by default neutral, but usually are incorporeal and often aren’t able to completely speak or communicate intelligently.
BASIC INFORMATION
Anatomy
Many Spirits vary from being corporeal or incorporeal. The incorporeal ones are able to easily levitate through the air and propel themselves using their Ki, analogous to how a mortal would expend their energy to walk or run. They can also pass through living organisms, though the more complex the organism is, the more difficult or taxing the task may be. Plants and fungi require little effort, but intelligent races such as humans will require some focus, though like many tasks it becomes easier the more practice one has. Incorporeal spirits tend to have more amorphous and fluid forms, comparable to the sheet ghosts commonly seen in cartoons.
Spirits that are corporeal have the anatomy of the species (race) they fashion themselves after. At first glance, they may even look indistinguishable from mortals. There are some traits that are harder for Spirits to change, and thus disguise, however: The most notable are sharp, pointed fangs, and silvery eyes. If a Spirit takes enough damage in this form, they may revert back to an incorporeal form in order to save energy.
Spirits do not have blood, instead being composed mostly of Ki and ectoplasm. There are cases of greedy and especially callous mortals going into the Ethereal Plane and killing Spirits for their Ki, though this is tantamount to murder and generally considered unwise and incredibly exploitative by many.
Biological Traits
More complex and intelligent Spirits can live for hundreds of years on average, even if they take on corporeal forms, and up into the thousands if they train their Ki, which many often do. Spirits attached to locations or memories, which are often “lesser” Spirits, technically have no set lifespan. They often retain their attachments until they are either forgotten or exorcised. Most intelligent Spirits leave these ones alone.
Genetics and Reproduction
It is rare for a Spirit to “reproduce.” Spirits in general don’t tend to concern themselves with reproducing, as new ones manifest into being all the time. Occasionally, fragments of Ki, ectoplasm and/or an individual’s soul may break off of a Spirit and manifest into their own beings, whether by choice or by accident, but take a while before they become their own independent identities instead of what essentially are lesser clones.
Spirits that are corporeal and take on a form similar to mortal races can reproduce in more “normal” terms, but need the Ki of a natural-born mortal in order to have a child in the conventional sense. Otherwise, they are infertile, or can only reproduce by Fragmenting. It is a common story among communities of Spirits luring unsuspecting mortals and kidnapping them for their energy so they can use their Ki to have a child. Usually what happens, however, is a Spirit may fall in love with a mortal, and in their union, produce a half-Spirit child.
Growth Rate & Stages
Yao, Ghouls, and sometimes Ghosts start off as “lesser” Spirits, incorporeal and functioning more on emotion than instinct rather than the higher intelligence of more complex Spirits and mortals. As time passes, they may cultivate their powers enough to turn into a standard Spirit. Most Spirits tend to leave other Spirits still in this stage alone, as there is usually not much one can do to affect the process and it just a matter of waiting. If desired, one can donate their Ki to a Spirit still in this stage, giving it more energy and better chances to develop higher intelligence, but this is not a societal convention. If a Ghost comes into being through especially brutal means or has sufficient malice when it dies, it can skip this phase.
Once they develop higher intelligence, most Spirits stay at that level of development for the rest of their life. Spirits who cultivate enough may ascend their states and become Immortals, just as a mortal would. This is very rare though, and not considered a normal part of a Spirit’s lifecycle.
Ecology and Habitats
The default plane of existence for Spirits is the Ethereal Plane. It is not uncommon for Yao Spirits to spend the entirety of their lives here. Bolder, more adventurous, or more confident Yao Spirits tend to venture into other planes, most commonly the Material Plane. For Ghosts or Ghouls, traversal into the Material Plane is more normalized and common amongst them, due to their desire to affect the inhabitants there. In fact, some Ghosts and Ghouls may spend more time in the Material Plane than their native Ethereal Plane.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Spirits don’t eat in the way that mortals do. Instead, they may feed off of energy (Ki), emotions, or even memories. Ghouls and Ghosts especially love negative energy or emotions, congregating on places associated with negativity such as graves, battlefields, or desecrated temples. If a Spirit attains a corporeal form, it may eat food in the conventional way mortals do, and even gain energy from doing so, but it is not explicitly necessary. A corporeal Spirit can live off of their Ki if needed, though it may be weakened doing so, so many avoid this if possible.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Social Structure
Lesser Spirits and minor Ghouls often congregate together. Ghosts tend to only congregate if the site they haunt demands it, such as graveyards or battlefields. Intelligent and developed Yao are more independent compared to these Spirits, but are not deeply opposed to banding together with other Spirits. Larger permanent communities of Yao Spirits are rare, however. They tend to only band together if their societal structure in their previous forms already called for it (flocks of birds, packs of wolves, etc). Otherwise, it is common to see close pairs of Yao, or occasionally groups of three.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
As Spirits are considered their own sentient race to be respected, Spirits are mainly left alone. To use a Spirit’s body for one’s own benefit is tantamount to the organ harvesting of mortals and is highly frowned upon by all but fringe communities.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Spirits are native to the Ethereal Plane, but can be commonly encountered in the Material Plane as well. Like mortals, traversal to the other planes of existence is possible, but rare.
Average Intelligence
Lesser Spirits are more akin to insects or plankton. They usually are motivated by only a few, simple needs, and often drift from place to place or wherever nature guides them.
As they develop, their intelligence grows more advanced and complex. They become able to communicate, move of their own accord, and make purposeful decisions with distinct personalities. After a certain point, their intelligence becomes indistinguishable from intelligent races on the Material Plane. They can strategize and cooperate with peers, create and appreciate art, and discuss complex topics such as philosophy.
CIVILIZATION AND CULTURE
Naming Traditions
Ghosts tend to use the names they had when they were alive, but some may choose to forgo an explicit name and go by a title. Other Spirit names tend to be descriptive and related to nature, such as “Dark Cloud” or “Soaring Eagle,” and like Ghosts, some Spirits opt to go with a title on top of this, like “Guardian of the Cliff” or “The Merry Merchant.”
Beauty Ideals
Beauty ideals are more abstract among Spirits than mortals. Ghosts tend to retain the ideals they had before they died, but Yao and Ghouls find beauty more in the complexity of a being—how long-lived and how many experiences a being has had. They would likely find beauty in abstract patterns and shapes, admiring all of the decisions that would have taken place to result in the final product, rather than just how it appears visually by itself.
Gender Ideals
As Spirits have a more flexible connection to their bodies, gender is conceptualized more explicitly as a template or framework for behavior and less an attachment to a body. Due to a large population of Spirits being the deceased mortals of the Material Plane, Spirit society is familiar with notions of gender, and many Yao that come from animals retain the gender divides that came from their previous forms out of habit. However, if a Yao that was a male in its previous life decided to take on “feminine” behaviors, they’d start to be considered “feminine” instead. Spirits conceptualize gender more as behavior, akin to a simple personality trait or descriptor, just as a jovial person would be described as happy, and a melancholy person would be described as sad. And just as personality can change over time, so can gender to account for this change.
Other Spirits, however—such as Ghouls and Yao born from isolated lifeforms—prefer to shed the notion of labels, merely asserting their gender identities as simply who they are, not some broad-encompassing category of “feminine,” “masculine,” and what may be in between. They tend to view Material Plane notions of gender and biological sex as frivolous, especially since Spirits rarely reproduce in a way akin to biological lifeforms.
Common Dress Code
Many Spirits like adorning themselves with small accessories from objects they’ve found, as a testament to the journeys they’ve undertaken in their lives. These can range from natural things, such as precious gems, seashells, and flowers, to found objects, like discarded toys or clothes.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
Spirits place great value on experiences, rather than physical objects or wealth. For Spirits, richness is defined in how well-traveled a being is and how many unique experiences they’ve had. Spirits often exchange ideas or experiences in transactions as a result. Forms of material currency exists amongst Spirits in the form of Hell Money, but this is more as a result of the bureaucracy of the Gods and society necessitating it than an explicit need amongst Spirits themselves. Hell Money can be best described as similar to cash in real life. It is not explicitly necessary due to the existence of credit cards, but in certain transactions, it is helpful. The most developed Spirit societies will exchange currency amongst themselves, but individual Spirits are less likely to trade in this currency and instead default to exchanging ideas and experiences.
Items from the Material Plane are considered especially valuable, specifically items with considerable effort and meaning behind them, such as food or handcrafted items. They seem to particularly enjoy items that had especially intense memories, work, and emotions put into their creation. The exception is money (as its value was contingent on mortal conceptions of value). Being in possession of physical items often allows a Spirit to intrinsically sense a “link”, no matter how weak, to the Material Plane, almost as instinctual as the five senses a Human would have. Ghosts and Ghouls often exploit this link to hunt down their targets.
As life amongst Spirits can be extinguished in the blink of an eye, often due to other Spirits, they tend to have a fleeting view of existence and living in general. To them, existence is transient and impermanent. They tend to abstain from expansive long-term plans or goals and focus on what they have in the present, living day by day or week by week. To mortals, Spirits may be horrifyingly quick to get over deaths, but a Spirit views death as a change in form, and that an individual still exists as part of the environment and overall Weave after their passing. This is not to say that Spirits don’t have wants and desires in the same way as the mortal races. Instead, their wants just may be more abstract and less materialistic, such as wanting a particular experience or emotion, rather than an object. Ghouls, however, being born out of negativity in the environment, tend to have material wants and desires just as mortals may.
For Spirits that are powerful enough, their first journey to the Material Plane is sometimes celebrated as a milestone in their development.
There is some resentment harbored amongst Spirits for the races of the Material Plane, as they feel the Gods favor them over Spirits.
Ghosts hold a special spot amongst Spirits. Since they are born out of the death of an individual from the Material Plane, their habits and views are closer aligned with mortals than other Spirits in many cases. The larger communities of Spirits tend to be enclaves of Ghosts that all happened to perish from the same cause—disease, famine, or war.
Common Taboos
It is frowned upon to ask a Spirit about any past lives or forms they had, such as interrogating a Yao on whether they came from an animal or plant. A Spirit would react with great offense and assume the asker views them as lesser due to their identity. Yao, Ghoul, and to a lesser extent Ghosts, also don’t like being compared to their fellow Spirits. They view themselves as distinct types of Spirits, and to assert that Spirits are “all the same” provokes great ire from them.
Amongst Spirits, it is considered rude to try and possess an object or being that a Spirit has already mostly claimed as theirs. If a competing Spirit wants to possess an object that’s already been claimed, they often have to fight the other for it.
Many communities ban interspecies relations, as the risk of persecution from the Material Plane is too great. Is is also seen as antithetical to the goal of ascending material needs and attaining immortality.