Queenkiller, Kingmaker - Appendix

[part 3] of Daemons

I. OF DAEMONS

Simply put, daemons are energy forms that reside within another plane. Although there is no consensus, one theory commonly supported by philosophers and daemologs is that this plane lies between the world of the living and the world of the dead, hence connecting the two.

There are many names for this daemon-plane, but it is most widely known as the epps, a word thought to have come from Ancient Pertheist ep(-) per(-) strom, which loosely translates to "to move through nothingness".

While in the epps, daemons do not take any physical or palpable shape. They can only most accurately be described as a collection of dormant energy and consciousness.

A common misconception regarding daemons is that they are evil creatures. While true in most cases, it must be remembered that daemons of all kinds and all classifications, like humans, have a character of their own.

Another misconception is that a daemon strictly adheres to one form. This is a false notion, as daemonic energy is everchanging. Along with time, experience, and sheer willpower, a daemon may cross from one hierarchy to another. This movement may be transcendent ("graduating" to the next highest class) or regressive ("downgrading" to the next lowest class), but never transverse (shifting within the same class — eg. from a salamander to a nix). However, this shifting of energy can only occur whilst the daemon resides in the epps.

As daemons are essentially energy forms, upon death it is simply returned to the daemon-plane and "recycled" afresh from the lowest hierarchy; often merging with the recycled energy of other departed daemons, hence removing all traces of memory and any existing personality.

II. SUMMONING A DAEMON

Trained theurgists may summon a daemon from the epps and into the living world, or summon an already existing daemon from another location in the living world to the summoner's position.

When called to the living plane, a daemon will manifest into a physical form depending on the nature of its energy. The stronger its energy, the deeper within the epps it resides, and hence the harder will it be for a theurgist to pull the daemon into the living world.

Meticulous attention must be taken when summoning a daemon, as it is a very detailed process. There are several rites that can be used to summon, each with its own intricacies, risks, and benefits; but all of them require the true name of the daemon they wish to summon. One small oversight can cost the summoner anything from energy to his life — again depending on the nature and strength of the daemon in question.

Some daemons can be trained and "housebroken", or tamed and domesticated for human use, but those of the higher hierarchy can only be controlled. Summoning one of the latter will require the theurgist to maintain control over said daemon for the entire duration of its existence on the living plane, which is no small feat and can be quite exhausting.

III. EXPELLING A DAEMON

coming soon...

IV. HIERARCHY OF DAEMON-KIN

There are five hierarchies to daemon-kin that are known to man. Each class encompasses a range of daemons, and can provide a general overview of their characteristics, guidelines for summoning, and restrictions. Below are the hierarchies and several examples within each class. It is by no means an exhaustive list.

• elements • the lowest/weakest class of daemon-kind. There are four daemons that fall under this category; each of them representing the four elements of nature, hence their name. Elements are generally summoned, trained and then used/sold as domesticated "animals" to assist with household needs.

It is considered wise to "retire" an element after it serves a household for a certain amount of time (usually decades), as prolonged servitude may result in instability and an increasingly feral element.

Any error made while summoning an element would not normally end in the death of its summoner, as this class of daemon-kin generally lacks the strength and ill-intent otherwise pervasive to most of the higher classes.

.arwana, the lesser spirit of water; generally takes a form akin to that of a fighting fish. They are generally used to provide smaller-scaled household plumbing, powering small boats, and other similar needs.
.mol, the lesser spirit of earth; generally takes a form akin to that of a pygmy hedgehog. They are known to increase land fertility and therefore generally used in farmsteads, gardens, etc.  
.salamander, the lesser spirit of fire, takes the form of a salamander. They are generally used to provide smaller-scaled lighting, heating, and other similar household needs.
.sylph, the lesser spirit of air; is hard to discern as although it takes the form of a hummingbird, it is formed entirely of constantly shifting winds. They are generally used to help sail small boats, provide household cooling, and other similar needs.

• lesser daemons • the second class of daemon-kind. Dubbed the troublemakers of their kin, daemons falling under this category tend to be mischievous, annoying, and sometimes downright malicious.

Any error made while summoning a lesser daemon may end in a haunting or/and injury. Fortunately, they are easier to expel. eg. imps, hobs, goblins, alps, poltergeists, wights, banshees, ghouls.

• demidaemon • the third class of daemon-kind. They generally consist of daemons with the ability to create and manipulate the elements of nature. They are smarter and exhibits more personality than the lower classes. Some demidaemons are summoned, controlled and then used/sold as domesticated "animals" for human use, although there have been countless failed attempts of controlling demidaemons.

It is also essential to ensure a demidaemon remains under the full control of its master throughout its entire servitude. Several instances of a demidaemon breaking free of its bondage have been known. These usually result in mass-scaled disasters, such as explosions, ship-wrecks, storms, etc.

Like elements, it is considered wise to retire a demidaemon after a certain amount of time. Any oversights made whilst summoning or subsequently controlling a demidaemon may likely result in great injury, sometimes death.

.ifrit, the greater spirit of fire, may take upon different forms of writhing bodies of flame. They are generally used for heating in large and affluent households, although employment of an ifrit is still extraordinarily rare and considered highly hazardous.
.djinn, the greater spirit of air, may take upon different forms of writhing bodies of air. They are generally used for cooling in large and affluent households, although employment of a djinn is still extraordinarily rare and considered highly hazardous.
.ghul, the greater spirit of earth, may take upon different forms of bodies of earth. They are generally used for large-scaled construction, mining, fortification works, etc. although employment of a ghul is still extraordinarily rare and considered highly hazardous.
.marid, the greater spirit of water, may take upon different forms of writhing bodies of water. They are generally used for plumbing in large and affluent households, marine transportation, etc. The employment of marid has been more and more common, although still a great luxury.
.sprite, the greater spirit of thunder and lightning, may take upon different forms of writhing bodies of light. The employment of sprites for household use is still under experimentation.
.other types of demidaemon, include hellhounds, wraiths, fiends.

• higher daemons • the fourth class of daemon-kind. Higher daemons possess higher cognitive capabilities. They range greater in physical form, personality, alignment, and morality; although they are known to distrust and abhor humans.

It is not possible to train or domesticate higher daemons, but it has been known — if extremely difficult — to control them. Any oversights made whilst summoning or subsequently controlling a higher daemon would most likely end in slow, torturous death. eg. demons, succubus, incubus, etc.

• archdaemon • the fifth and highest class of daemon-kind. Not much is known about archdaemons, as no man known throughout history has successfully attempted to summon one.