Bloodstones

Revision as of 02:06, 31 December 2016

See also: Graven Hulks

At first, the Bloodstone War was simply called "the war." However, in 1110 SF, about seven years after the Empire first moved against the east, Imperial artificers developed the first bloodstones. Within a year, some Republic states either reverse-engineered bloodstones or discovered their own process for creating them. The use of bloodstones came to define the war, hence the name.

The fundamental nature and construction of bloodstones is a closely-guarded secret. However, their practical utility to spellcasting is widely known. A caster must first attune to a bloodstone. Henceforth, the caster can shift Strain Points from their mind to the bloodstone, either while casting a spell or at will (as a bonus action).

Each bloodstone has a Maximum SP it can store. This maximum varies each day. A caster can purge one or more bloodstones' SP at the same time they purge their own SP, through the same technique(s).

Constructing a bloodstone comes at a cost. Something is taken from a living being, alternately described by artificers as some of its mental energy and/or some of its incorporeal spirit. The insentient mind of an animal is sufficient for empowering a minor bloodstone, but a major bloodstone requires a sentient mind.

At first, the empowerment cost was downplayed and only insentient sources were used: domesticated lifestock, dogs, and the like. Some artificers asserted that the animals even naturally recovered from the procedure with no long-term effects. However, at least some animals exhibited adverse effects comparable to Strain Effects, including temperament changes or physical changes. Over time it became standard practice to kill an animal during empowerment to minimize the risk--a practice called the "Artificer's Mercy." The artificers also refined their methods, allowing them to empower a single bloodstone from many different living beings.

As the war between the Empire and the Republic escalated, both sides considered more drastic measures. At the outset of the war, slavery was still legal in the Empire. By 1112 SF, bloodstones were being empowered using slaves and--in some now-infamous cases--prisoners of war. Especially patriotic or zealous individuals also allegedly volunteered for martyrdom. Using sentient beings lead to bloodstones that were exponentially both more powerful and unstable. At first, some artificers hesitated to apply the Mercy to sentient beings. But as before, at least some beings exhibited adverse effects so delivering the Mercy to the slave-victims came to be standard practice.

Experts disagree on what exactly is trapped in a bloodstone: the true mind or spirit of a being, or some copy, reflection, or echo of it. Regardless, most experts now believe that whatever is housed within a stone endures continuous, unimaginable torment inevitably leading to insanity. This makes shifting Strain to a bloodstone a delicate art. A caster must metaphysically "uncap" a bloodstone to shift Strain Points into it or to purge its SP. Each time the stone is uncapped, the trapped force will try to escape. If it succeeds, or if the receptacle is critically damaged, the result is a rupture. There is a concussive (and eerily silent) explosion, followed promptly by a storm of one or more insane ghosts attacking anything living in their vicinity.

[Design Notes: Bloodstones are comparable to portable nuclear fission reactors. In our world, fission reactors can power super weapons such as satellites and submarines. In the world of Hulks & Husks, bloodstones power super weapons such as combat spellcasters (who can handle more Strain) and graven hulks. But just like you probably don't want to live next to a borderline crazy person, a fragile fission reactor, or a crazy person with a reactor, most people don't want to associate with casters carrying bloodstones nor have a graven hulk garrisoned just outside their city.]

Early Uses of Bloodstones

At first, armies on both sides used bloodstones to amplify their spellcasters' stamina and impact. However, the stones' inherent instability made them as serious liability. Both sides experimented with alternative uses, such as creating bloodstones from huge, brittle crystals and then using catapults to fling them over fortress walls.

The Empire was first to arrive at the ultimate use of bloodstones to date: powering graven hulks.