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Souls and the Psyche

The Souls

Spiritus Triformis (The Threefold Soul)

Sapient beings of the material planes are known to have three souls. The Anima Essentia, Nous Essentius, and  Umbrum Silentium. Naturally, scholars have taken to referring to these by the shorthand names, “anima”, “nous”, and “umbra” in casual conversation.

Anima Essentia

 (The Left Soul)

The Anima Essentia is the soul most closely associated with the left hand and the ancient Faewilds. Characters with a strong anima have a talent for reading people and situations.

  • Associated with the left-hand
  • Intuition
  • Artistic Creativity and Non-linear thinking
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Chaotic, Fae, and natural Magic

Nous Essentius

 (The Right Soul)

The Nouse Essentius is the soul most closely associated with the right hand and celestial spheres. Characters with a strong nous have a talent for scholarly pursuits.

  • Associated with the right-hand
  • Rational thought
  • Mathematical reasoning
  • Linear thinking
  • Ordered magic and scientific principles

Umbrum Silentium

 (The Low Soul)

The Umbrum Silentium is the soul most closely related to the gut. It carries the weight of one’s shame, regrets, emotional burdens, and repressed desires.

  • Associated with the gut
  • Taboo
  • Repressed thoughts and emotions
  • Guilt & Shame
  • Regret

The Psyche

Also known as the mind, the psyche is largely considered to be the most identifiable form of the self. While scholars generally disagree on many nuances to the psyche, the concepts of the internalized or core self (Mentum Ipsum) and externalized or expressed self (Persona Manifesta) have been validated through magical study.

In the study of corpses, magi have been able to draw upon the remains of the persona, but the mentum is believed to move on with the souls of the departed.

Mentum

Mentum Ipsum (The Core Self)

At the core of the mind is the truest form of the self. While it has a survival-based tendency toward selfish desires, each creature’s mentum is unique. Just as a naturally selfish animal recognizes its pack or cubs, so too can the mentum understand tribe and like-kind as an extension of the self.

All thinking creatures have a mentum.

  • Associated with the brain
  • Seat of consciousness
  • Knowledge
  • Instinctive-driven decision-making
  • True Intent

Persona

Persona Manifesta (The Expressed Self)

Particularly intelligent beings have a protective layer to their psyche that allows them to consciously or subconsciously project a persona that imperfectly aligns with their true self. The persona might express a more altruistic drive for self-serving purposes, provide a veneer of happiness in times of trouble, or simply allow one to experience empathy with someone from a very different walk of life.

All thinking creatures with an intelligence of -2 or higher have a persona.

  • Associated with the eyes
  • Perceived self
  • Conscious decision-making
  • Empathy

Mentum/Persona synergy

High-minded creatures with a well-developed balance between their mentum and persona allow each to be developed by the other. When someone is in-tune with their mentum, they can more honestly express the intentions behind their desires, understanding their personal needs and the role satisfying those needs plays into their place in a community. In doing this, both persona and mentum influence eachother.

Similarly, creatures with a good balance between the two have less difficulty accepting and understanding new cultures and peoples with unfamiliar traditions and appearances.

Other types of souls

Bestial Soul. Animals have a simple singular soul that defines the entirety of their being.

Draconic Souls. Dragons have more complex souls than the creatures who have dubbed themselves “sapient”. They have at four elemental souls from which they draw their magical power. Ancient and powerful dragons can use this magical power to slip from one mundane world to the next with ease.

Embodied Soul. Beings such as celestials, elementals, fae, and fiends have bodies indistinguishable from their souls. When the body is destroyed the creature is temporarily discorporated or completely annihilated.

Soulless. Not every creature has a soul. Most constructs do not.