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Those that die near or within the physical space a Sanctuary occupies, or those whose bodies are brought to a Sanctuary not long after their death, may be given a chance to return as a spirit creature referred to as a Sanctial. 

Genesis

Sanctials can only form from individuals who die in or near a Sanctuary, or have their remains and lingering soul brought to one. For the latter case, the conditions for whether or not a soul lingers vary—typically, the more unexpected the death, and the more unfinished business they feel they have, the longer the soul lingers. If the soul has departed, Sanctification (the process of becoming a Sanctial) cannot occur.

The Sanctification may occur immediately after death or after a delay. When it does, a pale energy will emerge from the remains and take the form of a spirit. The remains will be left behind, and are often buried in the Sanctuary. 

Characteristics

Sanctials will typically take the appearance of animals, though not necessarily a specific species. Different characteristics may be combined—for example, a wolf with antlers. 

They have the colors of Sanctuary. They generally are a pale bluish to yellowish color with eyes like a night sky, sometimes with markings and/or shifting patterns of night blue. They may have tree branch-like horns or antlers that have the appearance of pale gold, and a small floating orb of white light, usually near their head. 

Abilities

• Conditional Immortality: Sanctials can live forever within a Sanctuary, but have limited time outside of one. Some live out their days in peace, and some go on a last journey through the world for one purpose or another.

• Minor Shapeshifting: enough to disguise as a mundane version of their spirit form.

• Telepathy and Linguistic Acquisition: Sanctials can communicate telepathically, including conveyance of language, images, and meaning. Through communication of "meaning," they can interact with any sentient being even if they do not speak the same language. Some are able to learn languages from those they connect to even if they were animals before death. 

• Spirit Presence: As spirits, they can alter their visibility, tangibility, and whether or not they levitate or interact with gravity. 

Malums are those who achieve strong synchronization with and mastery over a Malicious Manifestation granted by Malice. 

An individual given a Malicious Manifestation can be referred to as a host. Those who achieve the Malum transformation are referred to as Malums, whether they are transformed or not. When they are not fused, Malums are in their base form; when fused, Malums are in their Malum form. 

Genesis

Any conscious individual is capable of becoming a Malum. They must first receive a Malicious Manifestation from Malice. Then, they must increase their synchronization to it, generally by becoming more in tune with and expressive of their emotions. Generally, they need to use the Manifestation's abilities and push it further, leading to the Manifestation manifesting abilities and forms that are more integrated with the body rather than separate tools or weapons. 

At some point, generally via a strong emotional trigger (usually malice or other intense negative emotions that are associated with some desire to act, such as to harm another, protect someone, protect oneself, etc.), the individual will draw out all the power in the Manifestation and fuse with it, shifting into their Malum form. After the first time, fusing again becomes easy and instinctive. 

Characteristics

Malicious Manifestation

A Malicious Manifestation, or just Manifestation, is a manifestation of an individual's emotions and intentions, given form by Malice. Manifestations typically: 

• Have a shadowy appearance with no shading or color. 

• Have horns, claws, and sometimes wings. 

• Have dynamic size and shape. 

Manifestations can be considered something like demonic familiars that are composed of and act upon the individual's inner feelings, especially malicious feelings. It may growl at an individual the host feels ill will towards or attack an individual the host truly desires to harm. It can shapeshift into forms to reflect the host's desires: a sword, a knife, or perhaps some other sort of weapon; these forms do not need to be shadowy in appearance. 

Manifestations do not normally have any physical sensation associated with them, but others who touch them can feel, to an extent, the raw emotions of the individual the Manifestation is of. Without practice, the emotions can be hard to parse; if the emotions are very intense, it can even be disorienting. When Malicious Manifestations are used to attack (e.g. shapeshifted into a blade) or Malums make contact with others (such as clawing etc.) the emotional transfer also occurs, which can feel like getting punched in the gut with pure malice, if that is what the host is feeling.

The Manifestation will never attack anyone the host does not feel malice towards, even if the host is being attacked; that said, it will generally try to protect its host. It is not quite sentient and is a mere reflection of the malice in the host's heart. (There are certain circumstances that would allow it to gain an independent soul, however, such as by influence from Consciousness or Ego.)

Malum

Malums are able to fuse with their Manifestation to take a demonic appearance—a shadowy body of pure black with highlights of one particular color, usually the color of their soul. Their appearances typically have the following characteristics:  

• Abstract appearance.

• Horns, claws, and a tail.

• Thin markings that give the appearance of segments; can also have diamond markings and/or additional "eyes." 

• Solid colored eyes with no iris or pupil.

• A body type that is similar to their original species, but can have more creature-like characteristics (e.g. bird-like head shape, digitigrade legs, hunched posture, etc.) 

• Some are more smoky and amorphous, some are more solid, some have aspects of both.

When in their Malum form, they tend to be extremely honest with their emotions, with malicious emotions sometimes being amplified. When they are not fused with their Manifestation, they retain their original appearance and are less influenced in terms of their behavior. 

In base form, Malums tend to have more temperature fluctuations than is typical for their original species. They often run just a bit too hot or cold to be normal, and these temperatures can fluctuate based on their mood, but they are perfectly healthy. 

In Malum form, unlike Manifestations, they do have a physical sensation associated with them if touched. What that feels like can depend on the individual and their mood, and there can also be other physical or mental "sensations," typically unpleasant ones, that are evoked when they are touched. Malums can adjust the intensity of their contact sensation; if someone they dislike touches them they can amplify the sensation to cause discomfort, and if it is someone they favor they can make the sensation so mild as to only be noticed if paying attention to it. As some examples: 

• Sindru tends to feel cool to the touch. When their emotions become more intense, they tend to run hot. Regardless of the temperature, their contact sensation in Malum form is near-burning: something that just at the limits of too hot or too cold, enough to burn you either way. 

• Amiron tends to have low body temperatures. With intense emotions, they become even colder and sharper. Their contact sensation in Malum form is the edge of a blade: cool and sharp, with a sense that if you press harder, you'll bleed. 

• Sethe is strangely warm to the touch, almost as if he has a perpetual fever. When his anger surges, his temperature drops, potentially so cold as to give frostbite. His Malum form and Manifestation have a contact sensation of emotional hurt: a deep and old emotional hurt that almost makes you want to cry, strangely tar-like and viscerally uncomfortable.

Abilities

The general magic of Manifestations and Malums is shadow magic, involving the manipulation of shadows. This is more or less an extremely adaptable fabrication ability. Using shadows, they can make any solid forms, extra limbs, tendrils, claws, weapons, and more. Malums can produce infinite shadows from themself and their Manifestation, but if their shadow or manifestation makes contact with someone else's shadow, then they can take control of that shadow as well. It would take practice to take over very large or very small shadows, soft shadows, and shadows with low contrast. 

When in Malum form:

• Magic Form: They can no longer be injured through physical means, only magic (which disrupts their energy). They can manipulate their form to create shadowy constructs, including tools and weapons.

  • Malums can adjust their size somewhat, but it is harder to maintain the more it diverges from their typical size. Their normal Malum height can be different from their original height, but usually not by too much.

  • Malums can become temporarily intangible and amorphous, allowing them to phase through objects and/or take on a smoky, shadowy form without clear anatomy. This can be somewhat uncomfortable, especially if maintained for extended periods of time.

• Levitation/Flight: Malums are capable of levitation, but it does not come naturally to all of them. Some prefer to manifest wings to fly. 

• Sustainment: They do not need sustenance or sleep. 

• Physical Force: They can exert a great deal of strength without any fatigue.

• Minor Telekinesis: Can levitate and manipulate moderately light objects near them. 

• Empathic Projection: Can project their emotions to others, making them understand and/or feel the emotions. 

• Longevity: After achieving the first Malum transformation, their aging is significantly slowed. They do not age at all in Malum form.

When in regular form or in general: 

• Reduced Sustainment: They need less sustenance and sleep then what is typical for their original species. 

• Manifestation Mastery: Due to their genesis process, Malum inherently have high mastery and synchronization with their Manifestation and its associated general abilities as well.

• Form Alteration: Malums, even in base form, can partially merge with their Manifestation, whether temporarily or permanently, and to varying degrees. The greater the degree, the more their physical appearance and physiology can change, and the less the Manifestation will appear separate from them. This is the case with Amiron, who has carapace-like limbs and claws but normal skin on their torso and head. This partial fusion can also grant minor shapeshifting abilities, allowing for a dynamic form.

Sylves are beings that have undergone renewal by Sylnae's power. All Sylves are connected to Sylnae; Sylnae can sense when they die and renew. 

Genesis

Sylves begin as a Sylve tree or plant that has grown from where a creature has died. The creature does not need to be biological, but it needs to have a soul and be able to "die." 

A Sylve tree has a similar appearance to Sylnae's body, having glowing teal markings and leaves on the wood. The time it takes for a Sylve tree to bear fruit can range from days to centuries, depending on their will to return to life. If they no longer wish to undergo renewal, then when they become a tree/plant, they will not bear fruit. The fruits may have different forms—soft exterior, hard exterior, smooth, rough, and so on. Regardless, they will eventually fall from the tree, and the fruit will split open to reveal the Sylve in the form of a young child covered in sap, capable of walking, talking, and various basic skills, but without any episodic memories. 

Sylves grow rapidly until adulthood, after which they age very slowly—their lifespan tends to double or triple from their original, and after they die, they will turn into another Sylve tree that bears them once more. 

With each renewal, a Sylve may or may not remember their past life. Generally, as they age, they remember the memories they had at that age. They can meditate to accelerate this process. If, at their core, they wished to cast off their old memories and life while they were a Sylve tree/plant, then they will be born without the capability of remembering their old memories. Instead, the Sylve tree/plant will bear smaller fruit in addition to the primary one that rebirths them; the smaller fruits, if consumed by that individual, will return the ability to regain their old memories. If consumed by anyone else, they will either pass out and dream glimpses of the individual's memories, or experience waking hallucinations that offer glimpses into the past life (or lives). If the original Sylve consumes their fruit, the rest will wither and fade. A Sylve can instinctively recognize their Sylve tree/plant(s).  

Generally, a Sylve's soul is their original soul, taken out of the normal cycle through the ethereal plane. Sylnae's renewal has the capability of pulling back the souls of the dead, though it is most effective for the recently dead. If the original soul has dispersed or reincarnated, the metaphysical echo of memory is used as a "frame" and ethereal essence is gathered over time. These renewals take the longest, potentially centuries. 

Characteristics

The body of a Sylve will resemble their original species, though they tend to gain characteristics such as glowing teal eyes, markings, and growths of branches on their body. They tend to, but not always, have a graceful appearance in a way that might make others refer to them as elves. They have a minor ability to shapeshift, which includes the ability to disguise themselves in a mundane form. They can live off water and photosynthesis, but are still capable of eating. 

A majority of Sylves live in the Arbor of Renewal, the forest that Sylnae made at the site of a disastrous final battle in a war.

Abilities

• Cyclical Immortality: They can die, but will always be able to be reborn if they wish it. 

• Regeneration: They are able to regenerate injuries and loss of limbs in seconds to minutes.

• Sustainment: They do not need any sustenance to live, but need water and either sunlight or sugar to maintain energy. Sleep is not needed, but pleasant. 

• Minor Revitalization: A passive aura that induces improved health, energy, and vitality.

The blighted refer to all of the ideogenic species created through Blight's blights. All blights created by Blight require direct or nearly direct transmission from existing species members. 

See the blighted category page for details.  

These are species created by members of the Ideation community. If you wish to submit one, use this form. The initial submission will be reviewed for lore accuracy and relevance to the Ideation community and worldbuilding. Afterwards, the lore creator can edit the information, though it is asked to consult with Auspice for any major changes. It is up to the creator how to manage their ideogenic species; this is only a listing with links and basic information.