Remnants

Overview

Threefold being. A living creature is three parts: body (肉身), soul (性魄), and animus (活意) — the raw motive force. At death the soul departs, the body ceases, and the animus should gutter out.

Remnants are the exceptions: surviving animus that re‑manifests a form after death (of a person or awakened animal). They are not souls and not ghosts. They are motive echoes with habits.

What a Remnant Is (and Isn’t)

• No soul, no memory. Remnants may mimic tics, gaits, or favored stances of the deceased, and some can even speak in short phrases — but this is behavioral imprinting, not true memory.
• Unpredictable. A famed warrior’s remnant might squat and do nothing; a lazy farm cat’s remnant might stalk like vengeance. Past life ≠ future behavior. Do not assume.
• Material variance. Most manifest as quasi‑physical silhouettes (condensed breath, sand‑glass, ember‑motes). Some are fully tangible and can lift, block, or bruise.
• Not undead. Turn‑undead rites and soul‑appeasement liturgies have limited effect. Animus‑binding tools work; exorcisms only if they break the motive pattern that sustains the echo.

Emergence & Traits

• Triggering conditions. Violent deaths, strong vows, and sites of recurrent labor (mills, forges, drill‑yards) show higher incidence.
• Resonance. Each remnant expresses 1–3 resonance tags (e.g., Stone • Current • Predator • Caretaker • Ledger • Blade). Tags guide how it moves, what it affects, and how it binds.
• Stability. Rated informally by wardens on a Three‑Lantern scale:

Binding Remnants (Player‑Facing)

Level Gating: You cannot advance to 5th level without binding a remnant. Thereafter, at every 5th level (10th/15th/20th…), you may bind exactly one additional “step” of remnant power.

• Concordance (compatibility). When candidate and remnant share resonance tags, Concordance rises; higher concordance unlocks synergy features (e.g., attribute bumps, skill proficiencies, movement modes, or bespoke class augments).
• Discord (incompatibility). You can bind an incompatible remnant, but expect mutations: damage types swap, spell schools warp, class features re‑key (e.g., fire → pressure, blade‑dance → anchor stance). Severe discord imposes quirks, compulsions, or fatigue until retrained.
• Rite of Taking. A legal/ritual act using spirit knots, capsule‑jars, or glass sigils to decant a portion of animus. Most jurisdictions require a warden’s license.
• Capacity & Safety. A body holds only so much motive current. One step per 5 levels is the safe standard; exceeding this risks Animus Overdraw (stuns, organ strain, or permanent quirks).

Example Synergies
Stone/Anchor: +1 STR (cap 20), advantage vs. shove/prone, spell shaping gains Fortify rider.
Current/Travel: +10 ft swim/surge, Dash through shallow water as bonus, spells may Flow around allies.
Predator/Blade: +1 to hit after moving 10 ft, Hemorrhage rider on crit once/turn.
Caretaker/Ledger: +1 INT or WIS, instant measure/weight sense, rituals gain Audit (spot forged seals/false ledgers).

Sealing, Harvest & Trade

• Sealing. Like spirits, remnants can be sealed in warded vessels or circles. Breaking the motive loop (sound, habit, route) is often required to hold them.
• Harvest. Skilled binders take shards (condensed animus nodes) for later rites. High‑grade shards come from rare resonances or powerful figures and fetch high prices.
• Custody. Families often keep ancestral remnants for household blessings or defense; wealthy houses maintain cabinets of echoes for trade or leverage.

Law & Ethics by Region (52 AT)

• Rihsama (Council of Scholars). Licensed binding only; Concordance logs filed at the Hall of Proof. Trafficking in person‑specific residues without consent is fined.
• Lelien Empire. Provincial patchwork; Tang issues warden badges, Lin tolerates private shrines, Chen taxes shard markets near Highcano.
• Dravis. Elders permit ancestral bindings within clan law; Aldrenus’ codes limit trade in weaponized remnants.
• Thalasseia. Port rules require capsule‑seals aboard. Unlicensed animus aboard a warship voids neutrality.