Necromancy

Necromancy is one of the Schools of Magic. It is magic that involves meddling with a living or dead creatures life-force. Its name, comes from ‘necro’ the human word for death. This name was associated with the school early-on as it wasn’t discovered until later that healing magic, called Amelioration, gave off the same Informational Energy as Necromancy. Necromancy stuck as the name as many scholars argued that even healing has to do with the recomposition of life force; however some who practice the older arts still call healing magic Amelioration.

While powerful, Amelioration is not boundless. It can be used to attempt to restore the dead back to life, but it does not always work. Amelioration also cannot regrow lost limbs, but it can reattach them if the limb is not too damaged. It is also difficult to accurately regrow major internal damage to organs, bone, nerve and blood vessels. Those very skilled with Amelioration can do it, but most will leave the body repaired, but slightly off. This is why non-magical surgeons are able to make a career.

It is considered to be the most controversial school as it possesses the power of healing wounds and disease, but can also extend ones life far beyond that of a normal mortal, or even bring the dead back to life. With Necromancy, one can toy with the bond between soul, and vessel.

The usage of Necromancy spawns massive ethical, and theological debate. The general population is made very uncomfortable by any usage of this magic that is not used for healing. All non healing magic is considered a crime in Laenwalde, The Glassius Reach, The Free Cities of Alderun, and The Ward.

Any long term usage of this magic outside the realm of general healing seems to have a dark effect on one’s mind and body. Physicality tends towards something monstrous in nature, and the individual’s mind begins to lose the concept of empathy. It is not known why this happens. This does not seem to occur to those who revivify the dead with good intent.

Any individual brought fully back to life via Necromancy permanently receives the mortality rune from the Ferric Alphabet somewhere on their body. This is commonly referred to as a Death Scar Successive revivals chain together It is not known as to why this happens, but there is a lot of superstition around these individuals. This contributed to the discovery of Iron Light.

The Mortal Coil is a strange force that drives all life and death in Zol. Necromancy and The Mortal Coil are two parallel forces, however they are not one and the same.

Necromancers utilize the laws known about The Mortal Coil and the tools Necromancy provides to cheat death by artificially conducting the actions The Mortal Coil takes naturally. Necromancy does not give power over The Mortal Coil, it merely circumvents, steals, and tricks souls into doing the Caster’s bidding.