Post by Ladon on Aug 11, 2015 20:52:44 GMT -5
I apologize for the delay in getting the next one of these 2015 threads up. Totally my fault, feel free to beat me to death. Also the differences in German such as Letzt Stil becoming Letzter Stil are the result of Weylin and are not errors.
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Quincy
Monks of Destruction
Basic Information
Introduction to Quincy
Whereas Shinigami exist as guardians of the balance, Quincy are the single greatest threat to it. Devoid of any ability to purify souls, Quincy are the most disruptive spiritual force that currently exists. Their very nature has drawn the ire of the Shinigami on more than one occasion as destroying souls too quickly, or even over time, can easily throw off the balance of souls.
Therefore, many Quincy exist as an antithesis to their frequently-hostile Shinigami. Given that Shinigami typically dislike Quincy, and Hollows commonly live to devour human souls, Quincy as a whole tend to have a strong hatred for other spiritual beings. Many of them believe their primary responsibility and ultimate goal is to render Shinigami irrelevant and without purpose.
Despite these fundamental differences, nothing about the Quincy would separate them from the rest of the population in appearance. Although many Quincy choose to dress in a military-esque, white uniform when in combat or acting in other "professional" capacities, most have their own seemingly mundane human lives that they tend to day by day.
The World of the Living
Like any other human, Quincy live on modern-day Earth. Most of their population is centered in Germany and Japan, though smaller pockets do exist scattered about the world. They integrate seamlessly into the rest of the human population and many have lives appropriately mundane for the culture they live in. Just as normal humans are ignorant of Shinigami or Hollows, they are also ignorant of the secret powers possessed by the Quincy in their midst.
For most, leading their double life is second nature. This typically includes strong family ties, as their own family are usually the only other Quincy that an individual might be close to or even be aware of. Given that most modern-day Quincy families are small, this gives them a tight-knit network of people to fall back on. Some few Quincy have been known to eschew their heritage more completely in order to integrate to the wider world of human civilization. These Quincy rarely remain relevant as they do not pass on their Quincy skills or knowledge to anyone else.
The Future of the Quincy
While spiritual beings have weapons or their own supernatural bodies to rely on, Quincy do not. Instead, they operate by collecting Spiritual Particles, Reishi, from the air around them. They concentrate these Spiritual Particles on their Quincy Cross, a bracelet typically in the shape of the five-pointed star. This allows them to create their own, wholly unique projectile weapon generally referred to as a Spirit Weapon. While many Quincy materialize their Spirit Weapon as a Longbow its form can be any weapon, from a slingshot to a rapier. These weapons fire projectiles called Heilig Pfeil.
Should a Quincy practice enough they will also be able to create other things using Spiritual Particles, which has resulted in an impressive arsenal of Quincy tools and artifacts. This has allowed the Quincy to develop methods of combat outside of simply using their Spirit Weapon.
Most Quincy take their first steps into the realm of power by learning to manifest their Spirit Weapon and maintain it for combat. At this stage, their Spirit Weapon is a mass of raw Spiritual particles. Typically, these weapons glow a light blue, but can take on other colors depending on the Quincy.
From here, Quincy have two major choices for progression. Many will seek to refine their abilities naturally until they can produce a tangible physical version of their Spirit Weapon, as opposed to the undefined mass of Spiritual Particles it once was. This is called a Refined Spirit Weapon. However, Quincy are limited by their body's ability to channel Spiritual Particles. Expanding their ability to do this and thus reach the skill required to achieve a Refined Spirit Weapon requires that the Quincy challenge and expand their souls. This is similar to the trials a Shinigami experiences before achieving Bankai, or that an Arrancar faces before they can use Resurrección.
At some point, whether before or after they finish their Refined Spirit Weapon, Quincy will begin to use a Sanrei Device. This counter-intuitive Quincy invention, typically in the form of a glove, interferes with the Quincy's powers. It actively forces away the very Spiritual Particles Quincy use to make their Spirit Weapon, forcing them to push beyond what they are capable of to simply manifest their weapon. Once a Quincy can maintain their Spirit Weapon and fire it for seven days straight despite this handicap, the Sanrei Device will bond to their soul. This is one of the first steps a Quincy must take for their soul to have any hope of reaching the level of a Sternritter, a Prestige Quincy. The final steps into the mastery of a Quincy's powers are not so easily quantified, however. To become a true Sternritter requires that the Quincy gain a complete comprehension of their powers and themselves, and is a journey of personal growth unique to each Quincy.
Once this has been achieved, Quincy who have donned a Sanrei Device have a new ability at their fingertips. Should they sever the item from their soul, the sudden absence of the repelling effect of the Sanrei Device will cause the Quincy's soul to pull in overwhelming amounts of Spiritual Particles from the atmosphere. This will trigger a transformation known as Letzter Stil. This form has power on par with the highest evolution of Shinigami or hollows but, once its short timer runs out, the Quincy is robbed of their powers. This trauma can be overcome, but only by undergoing a Quincy Power Restoration. Details for this can be found in its request.
History of Quincy
The Origins
Although their origins are rather nebulous, Quincy historians are fairly confident on two details; that their people first came to be in Germany and that this event took place around 900 AD.
At first, the Quincy people seemed unremarkable. They were just another small group of human spiritualists in Europe. However, they possessed a unique trait that elevated them above their peers: Their powers could be taught. While all the other spiritualist families had a wide range of powers unique to the individual wielding them, the Quincy were a unified force with a similar set of powers that, although personal to each Quincy, remained largely uniform. While these other families could have children that would manifest no powers, the Quincy could teach every member of their families how to unleash them. These two advantages made the Quincy infinitely superior at slaying the ravenous hollows that constantly sought to devour the spiritually aware. Soon, their ways spread, and the other human spiritualists in the region adopted the Quincy way.
Yet the growth of their numbers led to a divide among the Quincy. Some Quincy settled down, forming large families that stayed in the same geographical location. These families focused on protecting their own from the hollows that endlessly sought them out, developing a rigid militarized culture in the process. Other Quincy rejected this stationary life, choosing instead to live as gypsies and nomads. These Quincy would travel the world, killing hollows and spreading their gift. Some of these nomadic Quincy found themselves associated with the church, which provided them with a comfortable lifestyle in exchange for their services. Their relationship was tenuous, as while the church provided these Quincy patronage, their clearly supernatural ways lead to palpable tension and prevented the Quincy from completely assimilating with the religious order. This schism was only deepened by these Quincy developing their own hierarchy, and crowning a secret monarch.
The Culling
The nomadic Quincy had spread their ways far and wide. From Europe to Japan to the New World, Quincy had taken root everywhere. While the Quincy way spread, they had also been busy refining new ways of combating the hollow threat, developing powerful Artifacts and fearsome spells. The Sanrei was invented, and with it the Quincy begin to reach entirely new peaks of power. The development of Letzter Stil and Vollständig had given the Quincy the edge they needed to stand toe to toe with a Shinigami wielding Bankai. They had found power never before imagined, but it was to be their downfall.
The Soul Society grew concerned with the Quincy threat. The boom in the Quincy population was threatening the balance of souls, and their handful of elite 'Sternritter' were proving capable to fight on par with the Shinigami Captains. It was clear that if the Quincy were left unchecked, they would grow to become a force so powerful that the Shinigami would no longer be able to stop their wanton destruction of souls. After long deliberation, the order was given: Eliminate the Quincy threat.
Large scale attacks were orchestrated on all the major Quincy houses, captains took to the field and for each Quincy that rose to fight five Shinigami stood ready to oppose them. Though the Quincy fought admirably, they simply could not stand up to the might of the Seireitei. Thousands were butchered over the course of a global offensive, and in a mere two weeks the Quincy population had fallen to less than a thousand souls.
Most major Quincy houses were decimated and those that stood were left a tiny shell of their former selves. The remaining number reached out, bringing the handful of families they could find into the fold. Together they formed a council of elders to adjudicate matters before spreading themselves thin to avoid the risk of another Shinigami onslaught.
The Modern Quincy
In the 21st century, The Quincy population remains less than a thousand strong. The Quincy families that didn't associate with the king or the council after the culling remain, having integrated themselves seamlessly into the new world. Most still harbor a powerful xenophobia towards those outside their immediate blood ties, remaining intensely paranoid regarding the intentions of the Shinigami and the spiritually aware.
The council of elders had become ineffectual, lost in a mess of bureaucracy and politics; they proved incapable of addressing modern threats in a timely and efficient manner. In the modern age spiritual events were occurring at an unprecedented pace, and the Quincy couldn't afford to be lead so ineffectually. The decision was made to return to the old ways and crown a new Quincy king, someone who could unite the Quincy and lead them in this troubled time.
A Kingsmoot was called, gathering every Quincy clan associated with the council and the old monarchy in one city to elect their new king. While the leader of each Quincy clan was eligible for election by their peers, everyone knew the decision fell to one of three people: Maria Stahl, Markus Hohenfels, and Weylin von Wolfenstein. While Maria was a powerful woman, her lack of genetic purity made her an unpopular choice with the elders, who were supporters of Markus' purist philosophy. During the kingsmoot, it was revealed that Weylin worked alongside an Arrancar, a revelation so offensive to the Quincy present that it shattered his support. In the end, Markus Hohenfels was crowned The king of the Quincy.
Both the Quincy families and those isolated family units share a common hatred: a hatred for the hollows that endlessly hunt them, and a hatred for the Shinigami that unjustifiably slaughtered thousands of their brothers and sisters. They will not forget the injustices they have suffered, nor will they be caught off guard should it ever happen again.
Skills
Universal Skills:
- Weapon Proficiency (Spirit Weapon)
- Hakuda
- Hohō (Hirenkyaku)
- Reiatsu Perception
Race-Specific:
- Reishi Manipulation
- Holy Artifacts, Blut, or Kirchenlied
- Holy Artifacts, Blut, or Kirchenlied
- Custom Skill Slot
Reishi Manipulation
Every Quincy has this skill at the very core of who they are. When it comes down to it, all Quincy have the exact same power that they’ve developed personalized applications of: the ability to manipulate Reishi. For this reason, this skill governs their Spirit Weapon and their Refined Spirit Weapon.
A fresh Quincy that has only now learned to materialize their Spirit Weapon will have some difficulty doing so and, in turn, it will take some time to form. However, one of the first advancements a Quincy makes is being able to form their weapon effortlessly. This continues to the point where the Quincy begins to learn how to make other objects out of spiritual particles, such as other weapons or projectiles—all of them, typically, at a lower quality than their personal Spirit Weapon.
By the time a Quincy hits Intermediate or Advanced, they become capable of achieving their Refined Spirit Weapon. This is a form of their weapon that does not appear as a mass of raw spiritual particles and instead like an actual, physical object. Only Quincy that have expanded their soul to handle a much greater level of spiritual particle influx can make such an achievement.
As a Quincy reaches Advanced and begins to reach for Master and Grandmaster, more intricate things become common. Quincy may typically learn how to perform Ransō Tengai, a technique that allows the Quincy to move their body using threads of spiritual particles thus significantly expanding their durability and resilience. It can also be used to allow the body to perform greater feats of strength or speed than it might otherwise be capable of.
True experts of the skill are known for their ability to develop and create objects. Nearly all of the famous Quincy tools—such as Sanrei Devices—were created by Quincy who could be considered to have Master or Grandmaster in this skill. Quincy at this level them become the forges of Quincy ‘technology’, making them extremely valuable and dangerous Quincy who have progressed far beyond merely forming a bow or shooting a volley of arrows.
Holy Artifacts
Over the centuries, Quincy developed numerous tools to aid in protecting themselves or killing Hollows. This skill governs the Quincy’s ability to use these various tools. This includes proficiency with Seele Schneider, the blade-like arrows that some Quincy use to improve the lethality of a particular shot. These weapons also function in many ways as a spiritual “chainsaw”, weakening the bonds of spiritual particles in a target to make damaging it even easier in the future.
Other items include the non-combat utility of Soul-Synthesized Materials such as Silver and Glass. These allow the Quincy to create rooms that seal in any trace of spiritual activity that can also withstand the rigors of training and combat between the spiritually powerful. It would also include the Bangles, bracelets that mimic the Quincy ability to pull in spiritual particles and are frequently used by Quincy who have lost their powers.
The general measurement of growth in this skill is how many such tools the Quincy is fluent in. Most Quincy will only be able to proficiently use two or three artifacts, such as Seele Schneider, Hollow Bait, or Soul Glass. This also includes any personal equipment they’ve developed. However a Grandmaster in Holy Artifacts will only be limited by what they are able to keep on hand.
Blut
An exceedingly popular skill among Quincy, Blut comes in two primary forms.
The first is Blut Vene, wherein spiritual particles flood the numerous veins in a body and hardens the weak flesh of their Human bodies against the rigors of spiritual assault. This causes their veins to take on rectangular, snaking patterns of blue when in use.
The second is Blut Arterie, wherein spiritual particles are flooded into the muscles and joints, allowing the Quincy to strike with substantially increased power and infuse their attacks with addition devastation. This causes far fewer patterns to appear, though they are thicker and red when seen.
At the earliest stages of the skill, the concentration of spiritual particles is thin and mostly concentrated around the torso. The particles are slow to circulate and it is extremely difficult for the Quincy to switch between Vene and Arterie, if they can at all. As the skill advances to Intermediate, the speed at which particles are pumped out increases substantially, now reaching and strengthening even the furthest reaches of the user's body. Most Quincy would now be capable of switching between Vene and Arterie with only moderate focus and dedication, allowing for increased utility. As the skill progresses to Advanced and beyond, the speed between switching continues to diminish until the response of this skill is only slightly slower than the time necessary to have the thought.
Kirchenlied
Just as the Shinigami have Kidō, the Quincy also have a incantation-based spellcasting skill. However, unlike Kidō, Kirchenlied is not organized by spell tiers nor anything else in particular. Furthermore, the Quincy have very few general spells taught to each other. Most Quincy develop their own, personalized arsenals.
What makes Kirchenlied truly unique is the application of Gintō to the spellcasting process. A Gintō is a small, silver tube of liquefied spiritual energy that the Quincy can convert into energy for any particular spell they might use. This allows a Quincy a wide array of benefits, such as being able to expend less of their own energy during combat or using Kirchenlied even after their powers have been exhausted by Letzter Stil.
Those who progress in this skill, then, apply their ever-growing ability to channel spiritual particles into greater, grander spells. Whereas Shinigami might develop more powerful spells as their power grows, Quincy are more inclined to simply build spells that scale in a stable manner with their power, resulting in a very focused and much smaller arsenal than what many Shinigami with Kidō might have.
The greatest spells in Kirchenlied, however, are created by the Masters and Grandmasters of this skill who routinely push what was once thought possible into new and inventive applications.
Prestige Quincy
Sternritter
These few Quincy have achieved power long thought lost. The progression of a Quincy's power relies upon their expanding the volume of spiritual particles that their soul is capable of channeling and using. Should a Quincy go overboard and deactivate their Sanrei device before they are ready, they will experience Letzter Stil and ultimately lose their powers.
Dubbed the Sternritter or 'Star Knights' from before the Quincy Culling, these Quincy have reached such a level that they can deactivate their Sanrei Device and retain their powers, acquiring a new form known as Vollständig.
Skills
In addition to the basic Quincy skillset, Sternritter gain the following:
- Reishi Dominance
- Sklaverei or A Quincy Utility Skill (Holy Artifacts, Blut or Kirchenlied) or A Custom Skill Slot
- Custom Skill Slot
Reishi Dominance
Whereas Reishi Manipulation focuses on taking Spiritual Particles from the atmosphere, Reishi Dominance is far less constrained and can tear the Spiritual Particles out of the environment itself, dragging them from any source as their power grows. For this reason, this skill governs the third Quincy power, Vollständig.
Development of this skill does not bring with it any ability to create things, but rather brings the Quincy back to their original identity as destroyers. The further a Quincy advances in the skill, the more they will be able to break down Spiritual Objects. While at first they may only be able to pull away excess particles in the environment around them, a Quincy that reaches Intermediate or Advanced in this skill will be able to deconstruct entire spiritual objects, breaking them down into a sea of Spiritual Particles for them to exploit.
These advancements work to make the Vollständig form less taxing on the Sternritter. While at first it requires a great deal of time and effort to activate, and even more to maintain, The Quincy will quickly advance to the point where they can activate it rapidly and maintain the form far longer than ever before.
This ability to truly enslave and dominate Spiritual Particles extends until the Quincy is able to, at the levels of Master and Grandmaster, convert sufficiently weaker spiritual beings into fuel for themselves. This ability only works on beings far, far weaker than the Sternritter in question and therefore excludes player characters. Any bystanders, on the other hand, such as faceless Hollows or background Shinigami, are prime targets of this skill.
By the time a Sternritter reaches Master they are able to maintain their form for vast amounts of time and can activate it with little more than a thought. Grandmasters are rumored to take it even farther and be able to freely maintain their Vollständig as if it were a natural extension of themselves.
Sklaverei
Reishi Dominance allows Quincy to break and consume spiritual particles to fuel their power, however Sklaverei seeks to make full use of each and every particle consumed, allowing the Quincy to integrate them into their form for a brief period. This technique merges the Sternritter with the spiritual object in question, allowing them to temporarily acquire the traits and abilities of whatever they might absorb. This allows them to temporarily make anything they break down an actual part of themselves as opposed to merely raw materials to be consumed by other powers.
Quincy that are new to this skill will only be able to use it for simple applications, such as breaking down a sword to endow their skin with the durability of steel. This gives the Quincy a vast array of possibilities limited only by their imagination, their power, and materials on hand.
By the time a Sternritter reaches Intermediate or Advanced they can begin to use this skill in the way it was always intended: To absorb other spiritual beings. This allows them to consume not only their power but their physical traits. The ability to fully control their Spiritual Particles even allows the Sternritter to absorb Hollows without fear. This technique will always kill a consumed hollow, although the Sternritter will have a very difficult time maintaining the fusion.
It is only after the Quincy reaches Master or Grandmaster that they are able to fully integrate the abilities of whatever it is they absorb. For instance, a Quincy that absorbs a Shinigami may gain the ability to use some small manifestation of their Zanpakutō abilities. Grandmasters represent a great unknown in their ability to apply this skill, as their mastery of Sklaverei allows them to make permanent alterations to their physical form, integrating their victims physiology permanently.