Haemora

Introduction

The Haemora are Cambions born of Pelezotz. Though their numbers never reached much higher than a few hundred at any given time, without their beloved Mother of Monsters, their population has dwindled down to only a few dozen remaining.

Until such time that they regain the ability to reproduce, Haemora are unplayable.

Fast Facts

• Population: ~30
• Lifespan: Indefinite
• Height: As Current Subrace
• Weight: As Current Subrace
• Racial Merit: Haemora have a Free Racial Merit in Fleshwalking.

Racial Abilities

Soulblight

Within the bodies of the Haemora, corruption blooms. They are naturally immune to all forms of disease, poison, and viral contagion. And though their bodies are always rotting, this is to their advantage– they thrive surrounded by rot and mold, thereby allowing them to use such things to both bolster their own health and hamper that of their foes.

Fleshwalkers

Bearing what remains of Pelezotz's original Pact married into Nihilos' rendition of it, the Haemora are all innately Fleshwalkers.

Caliginous Denizens

Being Cambion, Haemora are natural Apparators, with most finding that they are able to wield such abilities immediately after being reborn. Further, they are capable of learning Syphon and Possession, though Remnant is beyond their base repertoire of skills.

As A People

Biology

Humanoids though they may be, their appearances are often considered monstrous by the denizens of Antarok. Born from mortal races and corrupted by Caligony's Metaphor, Malachor, their appearances use whatever they were in their previous lives as a base. From there, the Malachor may alter them in minor or major ways, twisting and corrupting their anatomy. Older Haemora with greater control of the Malachor which flows through them gain limited control over these changes. The one thing that unites them visually, however, is that they all appear to be rotting, despite being a living hybrid of flesh and spirit.

Aging & Reproduction

As a Cambion race, the Haemora are ageless. They are all sterile beings, propagating ritually instead of naturally.

With Pelezotz dead, the ritual to accomplish this has ceased to function; it required the Godhead’s power to work. What Haemora yet live toil away at trying to find a new path to accomplish such a vile transformation, but have thus far failed to do so.

Sex & Gender

Retaining warped forms of their previous bodies, many Haemora maintain whatever sex and gender identity they held in life. However, both due to their nature and long lives, there are also some Haemora that grow bored of the standard constraints of sex and gender, some choosing to identify as other, or something all their own, modifying their bodies as they see fit in turn.

Psychology

Though each Haemora has their own unique quirks and proclivities, there are two main connecting tendencies all of them that yet remain have.

Devout Corruptors

Haemora are exceptionally zealous creatures. When the Mother of Monsters yet lived, they were all too happy to assist in their Godhead's insatiable desire to spread the seeds of Malachor's corrupting influence by stealing away unwitting mortals and converting them into an endless supply of lemures. Some, rarely, were granted the privilege to become Haemora themselves. It was through this that they appeased their Godhead, assisting their dark divine in expanding the boundaries of their demesne in turn.

At present, all are still servants to Pelezotz, completely devoted, perhaps with a fervor bordering on delusion, to bringing back their dead Godhead.

Sadomasochistic Tormentors

All Haemora are painted in cruel and callous colors, finding as much joy in the suffering of others as they do in sensation seeking for themselves. They revel in the art of torture and inflicting pain– emotional as much as physical– both upon themselves and others. To them, it is the height of ecstasy.

History

Overview

Agents of Pelezotz’s corrupting influence, Haemora were once regarded as pernicious entities that all ought to fear. However, their divinity has been dead for thousands of years at this point, and as such, most of Antarok’s denizens have forgotten that such monstrosities ever truly existed. Stories about them are generally viewed as apocryphal flights of fancy.

Citizens of Slahane, the Blighted of Alítheia, and truly ancient entities are the only ones with any record or recollection of the Haemora and Caligony in its prime.

Origin

Haemora, like any spirit, are made possible by the nature of the Plane they represent, Caligony. They have existed since the realm’s inception, though their ability to further propagate was severed alongside the death of their Godhead.

Society

Cabal of Corruption

Those that are left of the Haemora are currently led by Malachai Atrum, once a Boggart, now transformed into a Haemora after having solved the Argenteract; a strange, silver puzzle box that opens a portal to Caligony. Malachai is a sagacious and ruthless leader who remains endlessly devoted to Pelezotz, even now, long after the demise of the Mother of Monsters.

In the past, the Haemora were once summoned to Antarok by ambitious mortals seeking avarice, power, lust, greed and so on. Rumors were spread, strings were pulled, and mortals were thus led to believe that solving the Argenteract would lead to having such wishes granted by extraordinary beings.

However, Haemora had little to no interest in helping their summoners– rather, the means to summon them was a calculated trap. Instead, they plucked such unfortunate souls back to Caligony as their quarry, where they would then be tortured, mutilated, and finally, either scrapped for parts or reborn as maladious thralls– Lemures of Caligony.

With Pelezotz's demise, however, the Haemora have lost their means to accomplish the above. Due to their diminishing powers and numbers, they are thus relegated to the shell of their sole remaining city. Presently, they are striving to both regain their power and bring back their beloved Mother of Monsters.

Technology

Presently, Haemora rely mostly on magic. All Practices are still utilized to some degree by the few Haemora that remain, with Malediction being the most prolific. Additionally, they do have vestigial magitechnology left over from their prime, placing them well above most mortal societies.

Language

Each Haemora will retain the ability to speak whatever language(s) they knew in life. In addition, they will also learn Malaraec, a language crafted by the first Gloam Priest and unique to Haemora. This menacing and mellifluous tongue was drafted in order to ensure that Haemoran communications remained obscure to all others.

Naming Convention & Titles

Among Haemora, names are generally considered to be a choice. Some keep what they were called in life, some choose new names, and what convention is used varies per individual.

Titles, however, are given by peers, and are usually in reference to one's role or deeds.

Castes

Clergy of Putrescence

Led by the current Gloam Priest, Malachai Atrum, the Clergy of Putrescence are the council of five Haemora that lead what remains of their flock.

Rotten Ones

Any Haemora that is not part of the Clergy of Putrescence.

Notable Settlements

The Labyrinth

The last remaining Haemoran bastion. The Labyrinth is a twisting, labyrinthine megastructure composed of decaying organic matter, a strange, slate gray stone, and dark, metal plates. It has a heavy, brutalist architectural style, interspersed with winding, vile plantlife and veins of magitech.

Due to there only being a handful of Haemora remaining, most of The Labyrinth is abandoned, rusted, crumbling, and almost lifeless. Those that are left reside within the city’s heart, maintaining what magitech they can and toiling endlessly to regain that which was lost. Of late, their endeavors are finally bearing fruit, and more life is starting to creep into the decrepit stone city.

Related Articles

• Malachor
• Spirit
• Ghost
• Apparation
• Syphon
• Possession

Antarok Handbook

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