Oct 3, 2015 9:26 am
ISHO
This article aims to give an overview of isho in the setting, as opposed to the "System: Isho" thread, which will discuss game mechanics around isho and dyshas.
Jorune Cosmology
Jorune the planet contains very little metal. It has a very high content of materials that form unique crystals, unlike Earth's iron core. The crystals contain a unique energy, called isho. Native life forms can interact with and sometimes even manipulate this isho to accomplish various effects, called dyshas. Jorune is orbited by seven crystalline moons, which makes for very complicated astronomy (it is incredibly rare to have a night without any moon visible in the sky), and has a gravity-like effect on the isho of the planet. Each moon corresponds to a "color" of isho, which governs a particular style of effect. The presence or absence of moons in the sky affect isho of the corresponding color, as isho waxes and wanes over the surface of the planet, following the moons of that color.
The moons are:
Desti - The red moon of Jorune, associated with violence
Du - The amber moon of Jorune, associated with light and heat
Ebba - The yellow moon of Jorune, associated with force
Gobey - The black moon of Jorune, associated with barriers
Launtra - The green moon of Jorune, associated with health and the body
Shal - The blue moon of Jorune, associated with the mind and nerves
Tra - The white moon of Jorune, associated with space and place
Particular combinations of moons in the sky may change isho weather.
Isho Weather
Isho is constantly flowing through Jorune, weaker in some areas, stronger in others, but always moving. The orbits of the moons effect the flow of isho, as does the rolling of the mantle below the crystalline crust of the planet. Isho has patterns of movement and intensity, somewhat analogous to weather patterns. So a given place on Jorune that normally has plenty of isho may, in certain circumstances, have periods of isho drought, where the isho drains out of the region, as well as out of the living flora and fauna there. Similarly, isho can rapidly build up in an area, in what is called an "isho storm;" objects, flora and fauna all can overflow with isho in such circumstances, which may result in random blasts of the crystal energy like lightning erupting.
Characters have Moon Skills, which determine whether they can learn or cast a particular dysha, as each dysha has required minimums in particular moon skills (see the Jorune skills thread for the dysha skills list). A character’s maximum isho will rise and fall with the isho weather (the GM will tell you when it changes).
Skyrealms
Isho flows through the planet: its crust and its mantle. The resulting tectonic activity creates fault lines, but there are also fault lines along some flows of isho. Particularly vigorous isho activity can result in the crystals in a part of the planet’s crust rising up, torn free from the ground by upswellings of isho. These landmasses often break apart and rise up to the limits of atmosphere, where they eventually drain of isho and fall back to the surface. But sometimes, the landmass will be stable, rising uniformly to a certain height and then maintaining a steady orbit at that elevation. These floating landmasses are called skyrealms. By their nature, they tend to be very rich in charged crystals, and are sought after by treasure hunters as well as adventure-seekers.
Tra-sense
Much of Jorune’s native life has developed a sensitivity to isho, called "tra-sense", which uses their bodies’ affinity for isho to detect the flows of life and the planet all around them. This has made the development and use of other senses unnecessary, particularly sight. As a result, many native Jorune creatures do not have eyes, instead relying entirely on this tra-sense to detect the world around them.
Crystals
Jorune has hardly any metallic elements in ore form. Instead, the planet’s magma, altered by isho, cools and forms crystalline structures which capture and contain isho.
Such "charged" crystals can be activated for a particular effect, or they can be drained to provide isho or color to a character (increase in current isho or color points). Drained crystals are used for many things, including the currency in Burdoth (each crystal is etched by dharsage treasury officials, so as to ensure that a supply of new blank crystals never floods the market).
Activating crystals
To activate a crystal, hold it in your hand and spend 1 isho point while concentrating. The isho contents of the crystal will erupt forth with a dysha-like effect.
Draining crystals
A character may choose to drain a crystal for isho points OR for color points. To drain a crystal for isho, spend 1 isho point and roll a check against the corresponding Moon Skill. Success increases your current isho by the amount shown for the crystal. To drain a crystal for color, spend isho points equal to the isho contained in the crystal, and gain the number of color points shown.
The typical crystal types are:
Red/Desti: Activate: Lightning blast. Isho: 2, Color: 1
Orange/Du: Activate: short burst of intense heat. Isho: 6, Color: 1
Yellow/Ebba: Activate: levitates the user. Isho: 6, Color: 1
Green/Stamina: Activate: gain 5 temporary stamina. Isho: 8, Color: 1
Blue/Shal: Activate: Knock a creature unconscious. Isho: 12, Color: 2
Black/Gobey: Activate: creates a temporary shield. Isho: 6, Color: 1
White/Tra: Activate: deflector dysha. Isho: 20, Color:2
Drained crystals naturally attract and absorb isho, as the crystals appear to try to "refill" themselves from available isho supplies.
This article aims to give an overview of isho in the setting, as opposed to the "System: Isho" thread, which will discuss game mechanics around isho and dyshas.
Jorune Cosmology
Jorune the planet contains very little metal. It has a very high content of materials that form unique crystals, unlike Earth's iron core. The crystals contain a unique energy, called isho. Native life forms can interact with and sometimes even manipulate this isho to accomplish various effects, called dyshas. Jorune is orbited by seven crystalline moons, which makes for very complicated astronomy (it is incredibly rare to have a night without any moon visible in the sky), and has a gravity-like effect on the isho of the planet. Each moon corresponds to a "color" of isho, which governs a particular style of effect. The presence or absence of moons in the sky affect isho of the corresponding color, as isho waxes and wanes over the surface of the planet, following the moons of that color.
The moons are:
Desti - The red moon of Jorune, associated with violence
Du - The amber moon of Jorune, associated with light and heat
Ebba - The yellow moon of Jorune, associated with force
Gobey - The black moon of Jorune, associated with barriers
Launtra - The green moon of Jorune, associated with health and the body
Shal - The blue moon of Jorune, associated with the mind and nerves
Tra - The white moon of Jorune, associated with space and place
Particular combinations of moons in the sky may change isho weather.
Isho Weather
Isho is constantly flowing through Jorune, weaker in some areas, stronger in others, but always moving. The orbits of the moons effect the flow of isho, as does the rolling of the mantle below the crystalline crust of the planet. Isho has patterns of movement and intensity, somewhat analogous to weather patterns. So a given place on Jorune that normally has plenty of isho may, in certain circumstances, have periods of isho drought, where the isho drains out of the region, as well as out of the living flora and fauna there. Similarly, isho can rapidly build up in an area, in what is called an "isho storm;" objects, flora and fauna all can overflow with isho in such circumstances, which may result in random blasts of the crystal energy like lightning erupting.
Characters have Moon Skills, which determine whether they can learn or cast a particular dysha, as each dysha has required minimums in particular moon skills (see the Jorune skills thread for the dysha skills list). A character’s maximum isho will rise and fall with the isho weather (the GM will tell you when it changes).
Skyrealms
Isho flows through the planet: its crust and its mantle. The resulting tectonic activity creates fault lines, but there are also fault lines along some flows of isho. Particularly vigorous isho activity can result in the crystals in a part of the planet’s crust rising up, torn free from the ground by upswellings of isho. These landmasses often break apart and rise up to the limits of atmosphere, where they eventually drain of isho and fall back to the surface. But sometimes, the landmass will be stable, rising uniformly to a certain height and then maintaining a steady orbit at that elevation. These floating landmasses are called skyrealms. By their nature, they tend to be very rich in charged crystals, and are sought after by treasure hunters as well as adventure-seekers.
Tra-sense
Much of Jorune’s native life has developed a sensitivity to isho, called "tra-sense", which uses their bodies’ affinity for isho to detect the flows of life and the planet all around them. This has made the development and use of other senses unnecessary, particularly sight. As a result, many native Jorune creatures do not have eyes, instead relying entirely on this tra-sense to detect the world around them.
Crystals
Jorune has hardly any metallic elements in ore form. Instead, the planet’s magma, altered by isho, cools and forms crystalline structures which capture and contain isho.
Such "charged" crystals can be activated for a particular effect, or they can be drained to provide isho or color to a character (increase in current isho or color points). Drained crystals are used for many things, including the currency in Burdoth (each crystal is etched by dharsage treasury officials, so as to ensure that a supply of new blank crystals never floods the market).
Activating crystals
To activate a crystal, hold it in your hand and spend 1 isho point while concentrating. The isho contents of the crystal will erupt forth with a dysha-like effect.
Draining crystals
A character may choose to drain a crystal for isho points OR for color points. To drain a crystal for isho, spend 1 isho point and roll a check against the corresponding Moon Skill. Success increases your current isho by the amount shown for the crystal. To drain a crystal for color, spend isho points equal to the isho contained in the crystal, and gain the number of color points shown.
The typical crystal types are:
Red/Desti: Activate: Lightning blast. Isho: 2, Color: 1
Orange/Du: Activate: short burst of intense heat. Isho: 6, Color: 1
Yellow/Ebba: Activate: levitates the user. Isho: 6, Color: 1
Green/Stamina: Activate: gain 5 temporary stamina. Isho: 8, Color: 1
Blue/Shal: Activate: Knock a creature unconscious. Isho: 12, Color: 2
Black/Gobey: Activate: creates a temporary shield. Isho: 6, Color: 1
White/Tra: Activate: deflector dysha. Isho: 20, Color:2
Drained crystals naturally attract and absorb isho, as the crystals appear to try to "refill" themselves from available isho supplies.