Wielder: Birch
Purchase Proof: Proof
Description
- Lore:
- This is the data as recorded by Giltena military personnel from observation. Threat Level Evaluation: Ongoing.
Name of Species: Celestial Phoenix
Physical Observation:
Celestial Phoenix Form: They are pretty big birds. Anywhere from eagle to larger than human size in the body, not counting wingspan. Their eye color is constant regardless of form. While it is most common for Celestial Phoenixes to have warm-hued color schemes such as yellows, oranges, and reds, other colors are possible as well. Color can also change due to rebirth trial results.
In Celestial Phoenix form, age has little change after going from egg, to chick, to adult bird. Once a Celestial Phoenix’s body reaches adult form, this is the way it will stay for all of time, no matter how old. Vissarion’s Celestial Phoenix form looks just as young and spry as a newly matured Celestial Phoenix. Upon death and rebirth, a Celestial Phoenix turns to ash and forms back into an egg. Once reborn, there is a brief period between minutes to days that a Celestial Phoenix once more grows up from chick to adult.
Human Form: Any height or weight is possible. It is possible to be aged anywhere between thousands of years to freshly born. Nearly any physical trait is possible. They are capable of blending seamlessly with humankind.
Celestial Phoenixes have a funny relationship with time, so they can actually directly control how old their human form is that they shapeshift into depending on where they need to fit in. For instance, if a Celestial Phoenix needs to go back to school to relearn things dulled by time, they can appear as children and teens once more. If they are in a position of power and need to seem wise to all races, like Vissarion, they can assume a middle-aged or even elderly form. Rebirth affects human form as well. After hatching, if in human form they will rapidly age from infant to whatever their desired age is within minutes to hours.
Culture/Origin of Species:
While the species has its roots in the challenging environment of outer space, the Celestial Phoenixes as a whole clustered to Earthland, the country of Giltena specifically, and roosted in the mountain ranges until able to shapeshift into human form. Once they could blend in, they traveled out from the mountains and blended with human society. While they looked no different, their attitudes often gave them away. No matter what, they were nearly fearless in dangerous situations, making them a fiery and impulsive people. This derives from their disregard for death, since they can be reborn in flames and rise from the ashes once again.
One constant element strictly to Celestial Phoenix culture is their mecca, hidden away in one of the many mountains and simply called Aubade. It's the place where the very first Celestial Phoenix, Vissarion, still resides with a group of the earliest ancestors. They form the Bask Council and hand down the sun religion and rules for all other Celestial Phoenixes. While mostly silent, they primarily provide political guidance and orders when needed, as well as the guidelines and rules for rebirth.
Rebirth and Trials:
A Celestial Phoenix is immortal. That said, that doesn’t mean they can’t ‘die’. Generally, sll deaths and rebirths result in the formation of an egg from the ashes of a dead Celestial Phoenix and they return to life after a short time. Sometimes they return exactly as they were, sometimes they return with a different personality entirely. Sometimes they have all their memories, sometimes they don’t. It all depends on the intricate details of their rebirth trial.
When a Celestial Phoenix dies, the soul goes to its own personal spirit world, which is ultimately a place where they are tested before rebirth. Each spirit world is designed differently and finely attuned to test each individual Celestial Phoenix, acting as a trial to target weaknesses and reward strengths. However, there is always temptation. Two gods war for a Celestial Phoenix’s soul, offering different options during the trials to overcome obstacles and situations. The Celestial Phoenix will not know which influence is which, making the trials very difficult and not to be taken lightly.
Good rebirths result from making most decisions aligned with the sun god they worship. Repeated good rebirths result in a heroic soul, one that is ultimately altruistic and lawfully good.
Bad rebirths are falling victim to the moon god’s choices, which chips away at a Celestial Phoenix’s natural ability to manifest good qualities, and ultimately drags them toward a chaotic alignment.
Repeated bad rebirths will warp a Celestial Phoenix a little more each time. They become twisted, dark, and selfish criminals. After so many and depending on the severity of a bad Celestial Phoenix’s actions, Vissarion will dispatch enforcers to force one last chance at salvaging the soul. Ideally, the offender learns to remedy the mistakes in the trials and returns to the approval of the sun god, but should that not happen, the Bask Enforcers will either imprison the Celestial Phoenix for rehabilitation or strip the Celestial Phoenix of their soul to cause permadeath.
Another issue that will bring the wrath of the Bask Council is suicide. Since Celestial Phoenixes are immortal, the purpose of killing themselves isn’t for traditional means of escape, but rather to enter the rebirth trials on their own terms to selfishly alter themselves for various reasons, good or bad. Those who have taken their own lives are automatically branded and hunted. Their souls are forcefully removed if caught.
About Vissarion:
In appearance, the head of the Bask Council and the authority to all Celestial Phoenix kind is a magnificent white bird with golden flames. In human form, he has adopted the general appearance of an elderly man, so as to capitalize on the humans’ perception that age equals respect and wisdom. His hair is white like his feathers, and his skin is a healthy tan from much time in the sun’s rays. His right eye is the deepest blue, while the left is white and lacks a pupil. The left eye is the one that can see into the spirit world and watches all rebirths, a gift to him from the sun god they worship. The ancient being is completely neutral to the point where it really is everything for the greater good, no matter what, and does not hesitate to make harsh decisions as long as it is for the good of all Celestial Phoenixes as he sees it. He may also be responsible for memory loss within the trials.
About Sun Phoenixes, Bask Enforcers, Moon Phoenixes, and Twilighters:
With the mechanic of rebirths, the Earthland has found itself with variants of Celestial Phoenixes.
Sun Celestial Phoenixes are the most common of the species, making up the reckless heroic types we know and love. They reliably rebirth good when it comes to it. These are the culturally acceptable, law-abiding souls unquestionably loyal to the sun, Aubade, the Bask Council, and each other. They are the frontlines in battles and the protectors of the weak. Not all sun Celestial Phoenixes are perfect, but they strive to be so Vissarion and the sun god will be pleased with them.
Bask Enforcers are the cream of the crop of sun Celestial Phoenixes. They have proven themselves with very good rebirths, displaying top loyalty to Aubade and the Bask Council enough to become the most trusted elite force. They are extensively trained in Aubade to be the strongest, and even forced to rebirth repeatedly to weed out imperfections and cleanse pesky memories that could pose problems. Many enforcers stay in Aubade with the other ancients on the council as protection and a quick scramble military force, but others are allowed out into the world as reserves and are expected to be on-call if they're needed. They are in possession of a special lantern housing a black hole, called a Null Lantern. All an enforcer must do is utter the full name of the offending Celestial Phoenix, command the lantern to ‘clip their wings’, and the Null Lantern will suck in all the light in range along with the offender’s soul.
Twilighters are those who have had bad rebirths and are stuck in between. They have retained some of their positive traits, but also have negative ones to complicate things. These have not yet fallen too far into the moon god’s grasp, thus not earning a visit from Bask Enforcers. They are closely watched by Vissarion’s spirit eye, though.
Moon Celestial Phoenixes have traveled too far down the dark road, listening to the swaying hiss of the moon god too easily. A notable shift in personalities and identities as a whole has happened, giving life to darkness within. A poor rebirth manifests the more negative personality traits. It’s how normally heroic Celestial Phoenixes can become thieves, murderers, liars, adulterers, etc. They'll be more apt to manipulate others and slink around in the shadows. Their feathers will take on darker colors. Once a Celestial Phoenix gives in to getting tainted or taken over by the moon god’s temptation, things get more complicated. It is against Celestial Phoenix religion, thus they are branded and hunted, forced to rebirth so the trial can potentially send them back to the sun. If they fail the forced trial again, they are subject to imprisonment within Aubade or permadeath.
Abilities:
⌖ Magical Blood: Due to his species, Birch’s very life force can be drawn on for power as well as his magical reserves. He can use his HP to cast spells only when his MP falls to 0, but using HP to cast spells doubles the spell cost. Once his HP runs out, his magic power and thus his life is spent and he’ll die, dissolving into ash that then reforms itself into an egg to hatch later after the combat encounter has ended
⌖ Muscle Memory: Since using magic drains life at times, users of this species hone their physical capabilities so they can remain viable in fights for as long as possible. The user receives 2x user rank passive buffs to melee strength capping at S rank.
⌖ Ancient Inheritance: The magic practiced by Celestial Phoenixes is very old and very powerful since they are magical creatures themselves. The user receives 2x user rank passive buffs to spell strength capping at S rank.
⌖ Phoenix Down:Legend has it that phoenix tears or feathers have magical healing properties, which is true for a Celestial Phoenix but just in a different capacity. Some might use tears and feathers, but really any healing spell cast from this species has a 2x user rank passive buff to potency, capping at S rank.
⌖ Otherworldly Charm: Birch is just a charming guy, so he gains a 100% increase to the jewel rewarded by jobs, 5 extra spell slots for one magic, and 2 signature spells that rank up to S for one magic.
- plot abilities:
Plot Abilities:
⌖Immortality: Phoenixes can die, yes, but they are reborn from their egg later.
⌖Divination: Celestial Phoenixes can sometimes get just a glimpse into the future. Requires OOC permission.
⌖Fire Eagle Eyes: Birds have some pretty impressive sight when it comes to range and distance. Don't expect to get much past them.
⌖Shape Shifting: Celestial Phoenixes have control over their natural shapeshifting allowing them to shift between bird, human, or somewhere in between. This adds no combat advantage.
⌖Molting: Molting happens about once a month, and renders a Celestial Phoenix exhausted and lazy. It's almost like an illness such as a cold, where they will appear less than healthy and cough ash. This lasts anywhere from 1 to 4 days.
![Supreme Grand Master [5000]](https://i.imgur.com/UXQOHRG.png)
![Grand Master [2000]](https://i.imgur.com/SGD5XSW.png)
![Master [1000]](https://i.imgur.com/AQXM4xC.png)
![Senior [500]](https://i.imgur.com/Nmfn8cD.png)
![Novice [250]](https://i.imgur.com/lrYlde6.png)
