about.

[avile]

morfydd of the few

pronounced mor-vith

age 25

gender female (she/her)

canon original

Player.

name bobby

time zone GMT+1

contact crowders @ plurk

pronouns they/them

World.

the few.

The Few is a quasi-religious order of witches (gender neutral) with natural magic, who are reviled by society because their magic is believed to be unholy, but without whom the Kingdom of Elgath would not be as strong as it is. Witches of the Few (so named because of the rarity of those with magic – there are at any one time exactly 37 of them, and when one dies, another is instantly born to replace them) are sought out and taken from their parents at a very young age. They are raised in a monastic environment, where they hone their magic and learn how to use it militarily to support the kingdom in its campaigns. Witches of the Few are present on battlefields - they can see through animals' eyes to scout, enchant the weapons and armour of knights, and even work together to rain magical fire down upon enemies.

Magic is a precious resource and it physically and mentally drains the witches who use it, meaning that all witches of the Few are frail. Aggressive magic use can even be physically painful. Some of the Few are bedbound or otherwise barely able to move their bodies or feed themselves. All witches have, in theory, the same level of magic, but their power depends on their mental acuity and ability to withstand pain.

Because of their potential power, witches of the Few have almost no rights. Their lives and actions are not their own, and if they ever act independently, they will be subject to swift punishment. They are guarded and observed at all times, especially when they are moved to battlefield locations.

Witches of the Few are isolated from society at large and when they travel through populated areas they must be covered by heavy fabrics. The colour of the witch is deep red, and as such the colour red is avoided by all others because of its associations. The average person is afraid of and disgusted by witches in equal measure. The general vibe is that witches are utterly repugnant but a necessary evil, and that if they had been left alone they would have destroyed the kingdom and taken it for themselves, so they must be harnessed by the good and virtuous rulers.

All witches must follow the laws.

the laws.

i. A witch must reveal themselves or be revealed as soon as magical ability is noted, at which point they will join the Few. A witch cannot exist outside of the Few, nor can anyone try to protect the witch from discovery. This is sacrilege and is punished by execution.

ii. A witch of the Few cannot use their magic in self-defence or against a knight or ruler of the kingdom. This is sacrilege and is punished by execution.

iii. A witch of the Few cannot use magic to resurrect the dead. This is sacrilege and is punished by execution.

About.

Morfydd was taken from her parents as an infant as soon as her magic was discovered – her family was rich, landed, and of some influence, and she was at the time their only surviving child, so her magical ability was a huge source of humiliation for them.

She was part of a large 'intake' after a calamity where seven of the Few were killed instantaneously in the midst of a battle; the seven who replaced them were children born at the exact same time.

Despite her young age she is a potent magic user, and as such she is extremely frail; she finds it difficult to walk long distances and suffers from debilitating migraines and sickness. In short, she is chronically ill.

While some of the witches of the Few resent their "reviled yet relied upon" position in society and talk of banding together to petition for more rights, Morfydd is disgusted by her own magic, believing that it took her away from the life of luxury she would have had. She is fuelled by bitter rage at her circumstance; she has little regard for her own body, which she feels betrayed her, and paradoxically seeks to prove herself capable despite the restrictions placed upon it, and the struggles she has with her health due to her magic use.

impressions.

visual. Willowy, slim, very long black hair, large pale eyes, and the waxy, pallid skin of someone who doesn't get much sunlight.

attire. Her clothes are essentially the uniform of the Few: she always wears fabrics of deep red which identify her as a witch. She usually wears a dress and a long cloak, both heavy and slightly ill fitting, in a generally medieval style. Her hair is usually down.

demeanor. Morfydd has little capacity for kindness in her; she is too weak to be ruthless, but she is haughty, judgmental, irritable, and thin-tempered, and always an underlying bitterness.

aural. Basically just Eva Green – low, raspy, slightly accented.

olfactory. Incense, smoke, and a slight scent of mould.

height

5'7"

build

Willowy

eyes

Pale blue

hair

Black

PB

Eva Green

©

Comments

some really quick and dirty worldbuilding.

[avile]

kingdom of elgath

• situated on a large island continent called alcara that is predominantly elgathian territory. elgath has very strong land and naval forces and is a large player in international politics. its capital city is caerwyn.
• basically a theocracy - the monarch is a hereditary position but they are intertwined very closely with the religion and the highest religious figures (technically elected but it's all a bit corrupt and incestuous) have seats on the advising council.
• alcara sits on a magical fissure which is speculated to be the source of the witches' magic and the reason why witches are never born beyond alcara's shores.

velkharan

• elgath shares alcara with a previously independent but now partially annexed nation named velkharan (although the elgathians refer to it as "the ashlands" rather than its true velkhari name).
• velkharan once spanned the entirety of alcara and even some neighbouring land across the seas, but this was hundreds of years ago and its empire is long gone. velkharan is now a land of once-grand ruins with decentralised small clans and no clear ruler which makes an organised resistance to elgath's annexation difficult. much of the area annexed by elgath is still plagued with conflict.
• it is currently not structured enough for any kind of capital city, but the old seat of the velkhari empire was called vel-arem, which is largely empty and crumbling ruins now. the settlements on its border with elgath are currently the most contested: thir-kazeth, a ruined fortress city; and zhalmira, where the breathtaking temple of velkharan's old religion is now little more than a garrison for a small force of velkhari fighters. far north, in territory that is firmly velkhari, lies khal-taruv at the foot of araz-khalan mountain range. khal-taruv is a settlement of huge interest to the elgathians because it sits on a large silver mine.
• as there are only ever 37 witches in existence at one time and the source of the magic is the magical fissure beneath the rock of alcara itself, there have been times in the past when witches have been born in velkharan. in these cases, when the new witches are not found within elgath, exploratory parties are sent into velkharan and the witch in the party is forced to use dangerously potent magic to track down any new witch in velkharan so they can be taken back to elgath. this tracking magic severely weakens the witch who performs it and may kill them. this is part of the reason why it's such a huge crime in elgath to knowingly shelter a witch from the crown – if the witch is not found in elgath then it triggers a search which can lead to the death of another witch or potentially deadly skirmishes with the velkhari.

warfare, knights and witches

• warfare in elgath relies on a somewhat symbiotic relationship between knights and witches. knights are elgath's predominant aggressive force but rely on witches to imbue them with strength, protect and heal them, and supply large firepower where necessary.
• there are hundreds of knights and significantly fewer witches, so not every knight will have a witch they are bound to protect. the knights that are bound to protect a witch are a special caste of their own and their relationships are complicated. they are often fond of each other, but banned from expressing that fondness; by contrast, some knights bound to protect witches resent their assignments. many knights look down on those among their number who are bound to a witch. the death of a witch releases a knight from his obligation to protect any others.
• knights are revered in elgath and typically signified with the colour blue; their armor is steel infused with silver to make it conductive to witches' magic.