The Shadow Symposium - April 19th

A flyer on parchment, slightly smaller than a proper poster, is being distributed among the darker circles of Stormwind--and other locales.  It will also be ICly distributed at the next [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].  It looks much like the image below, with very carefully-copied neat text and oddly grim, detailed and dark artwork. The purple text at the bottom is a shadowy blur until touched with shadow magic, at which point the writing becomes legible.





OOC Information:

What? This is an open gathering with a Shadow theme and simple structure.  Anyone with a warlock, shadow priest, or any of those of "darker nature" are welcome to attend and discuss or display their shadow magic (within the rules; see below).

Who? On an IC level it may be noted that no host, nor reason for the gathering, is listed.  Oooh, mystery!  As said anyone who isn't "th'law" or Lighties are welcome to attend (or rather, if your law enforcement officer wishes to come, it's recommended that they do so in disguise and at their own risk).  Horde are even welcome to attend, as this is not an Alliance-sanctioned gathering, though they'll OOCly need someone to translate for them should they understand Common ICly.

Where/When? It is OOCly being held in the Greymane Manor, Gilneas.  If interest and attendance are high, more may be done in the future, possibly including other types of magic as well.  The gathering will begin at 8 pm server time, Saturday, April 19th, and continue until interest wanes. On an IC level, the event is being held in the abandoned "Stonefield Manor" (that's a made-up name!) near the Headlands. NOTE: the where/when is only visible when "touched" with shadow magic, being a shadowy blur until then.

Why? ICly, the reasons are unstated.  Your character may use this chance to listen to others discuss shadow, or provide some theories or opinions of their own; to learn a new spell or two or get some ideas for them; to show off their skill with a custom shadow spell; to ask for advice with a spell they're creating; etc etc.  ICly and OOCly both, this is a chance for any and all shadow guilds to recruit, advertise, or watch for new members.

Other Information: Outside of the rules listed below, anything goes.  If you have a willing participant who's ICly okay with (not mindcontrolled into being okay with!) being murdered in front of fifty people to display your spell, or if you're going to summon a voidlord to wander around with you, feel free.  This is an underground shadow gathering, not a law-abiding discussion.  Should time permit or activity be low, open questions will be asked of the attendees, who are welcome to answer as they wish.

IC Rules will be displayed at the door as well as being present on the back of the flyer.  If they're broken they'll be dealt with ICly--you won't be ignored OOCly or anything like that.  And bearing in mind that this is both shadow, and in contested territory, we may be chased out by Horde (PvP attack will be taken IC, and the gathering will scatter and possibly regroup elsewhere, organized via mindwhispers and the like), or the party crashed by Lighties or law.  None of this is planned to happen but it does happen.


For any questions etc. please post here, or contact Blackfall or Colewick in-game (ooc only).

Hope to see people there!

Yaaaay go team darkie!

My Forsaken will turn up and preach divine Shadow!

I'm all for this, Rae!

I'll form up a raid group in any case for those present, so I could easily translate via RealID into raid

I'm tempted to show up on my forsaken too!

Smells like trap. *Sniffs*   

People are more than welcome to suspect a trap IC--after all there's no host listed, nor reason for the gathering. You might have fears of being locked inside while the building is set on fire and...

The truth, should you wish it spoiled,:

Don't tempt me with spoilers! xD

My Warlock could be interested. Any of you other hordies wanna go there together? I don't wanna give alliances a chance to try to kill me without a fair fight! (Alliances can be scary :O)

Sounds more like this


Rather than real Shadow stuff like good old Duesten
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Not to forget that Gilneas is still a warzone so.....yeah that bit makes no sense either unless you welcome the Horde and the Alliance to go mental on you i mean Horde and Alliance when they meet Shadow cultists or necromancers or warlocks do have the attitude of "Cut them down" and that's even the non-lighties

and a blue post from blizz.

Blizzard wrote:Q: Is there a reason that many priest spells, especially shadow priest spells, have names that refer to psychic phenomena like "Mind Spike" or "Psychic Horror?” Are priests implicitly telepaths?
A: The Light is often said to bring about feelings of positive emotion -- hope, courage, comfort -- and the like. Shadow abilities are just the opposite, able to impart feelings like despair, doubt, and panic. In a poetic sense, it can be said that the emotions which the Light brings about come from the “heart,” whereas the emotions manipulated by shadow are often based on survival logic, and therefore affect the “mind.” That said, priests and their abilities are not necessarily always psychic or telepathic in nature.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] a good thing to look into when it comes to those who are into a shadow religion.

Another theme and a very strong theme of WoW and Wacraft has also been the contrasts between the forces of Shamanism,Druidism,Holy Light vs the power of Shadow,Fel+Demonolgy and various other dark magics.

Their really isn't any "good" shadow users as the shadow is corruptive and it does lead you down the path of power, this power you recieve requires much sacrifice for instance your morality,your mortal body perhaps even the people of a kingdom you were once a part of and is why that the shadow users are most likely the most selfish people around.

This is what Kel'thuzzad did to gain power in the use of shadow and necromancy and it is the same for Arthas for he wished power to protect his people ultimate power that he would give ANYTHING for.

Drustai wrote:Necromancy is shadow magic. It is a specific subset of shadow magic that deforms it (as far as I can tell, this is done by making a twisted mockery of both Life and Shadow magic), but its basic idea still applies. and The Light comes to those who hold a great amount of faith in their actions.

Therefore, shadow's corrupting effect is very similar to necromancy, with the exception that it does not turn you undead at the end--it simply kills you. It ages you before your time, weakens and drains you. With enough long-term, improper use, you will become nothing more than a worn out husk, a shell of a living being--if you haven't died yet, that is.

Not only that, but it affects the mind as well. Shadow is about consuming others to feed yourself. Where the Light is altruism, Shadow is selfishness. Light seeks to create, Shadow seeks to destroy. Someone who uses Shadow will become more selfish, more aggressive, less empathetic, more willing to use others for their own gain.

Shadow, by its nature, is the energy of destruction. If we use 'classic' DnD terms, it is negative energy. Rot, death, decay, disease, these things are all either caused by shadow energy, or simply their very being is shadow. Where a living being is ripe with life energies, a dead being is a well of shadow energy, feeding on and destroying life around it. Where shadow energy exists, life dies. No matter if you are plant, animal, or metal, shadow energy will make you wither, rot, and rust.

It is the cycle of life and death. Life creates, Shadow destroys.

_{Re: Shadow magic, Say whaaat?
Post by Drustai on Wed Nov 02, 2011 11:50 pm}
Then we have the Sha and the Old gods beings of shadow that are in their nature very powerful and very selfish creatures though we shall focus on the sha for this moment.

The Sha are shadowy beings remnants of the old god Y'shaarj who in his last breath spread them across the land these remnants not only embodied the old gods own personality but it also brings the negative emotions that would be associatted towards the shadow and gives them a grotesque face.
The beast of seven heads
Fumed seven breaths.
The land wept shadow
And the swarm blackened the sky.
Supreme was the ancient one;
None dared waken its wrath.
Until the coming of the Storm.
First came thunder, then came Stone.
The thunder Storm's voice,
The Stone his weapon.
Lightning seared the sky.
The swarm fled from its light.
Stone struck at the heads of the beast.
The shadow bled into land and sky -
Fear and rage that would not die.
Storm's will was done.
Stone's purpose fulfilled.

During the fight against Garrosh Hellscream in Siege of Orgrimmar, players can periodically hear the whisperings of Y'Shaarj, coming from his reanimated heart:
You can never leave this place. There is no way home.
You will die when you leave this place. There is nothing left of your world.
You have already lost.
All of your friends are dead.
No one is coming to save you.
Your allies will leave you behind.
You cannot succeed. Your cause is hopeless.
Your allies think you are weak.
You do not have the strength to defeat him, you are too weak to carry on.
You hear whispers come out of  [Xal'atoh, Desecrated Image of Gorehowl]:
With each threat unraveled, a step closer to my realm.
Another blemish on your soul.
You will rest in Ny'alotha.
You should kill them all. You must kill them all.
Eyes are the windows to the soul. Shatter them forever.
Pluck their wings. Leave them broken.
Pay the cost of greatness.
All should bow before you. Make them!
All that you have accomplished, all that you have won, yet still you lick the boots of kings.
Carve more slowly, that I may feed.
Embrace your rage.
Caress your fear.
Gorge your hatred.
Voice your doubts.
When you walk among the black forest, you will see.
I can taste the essence of your soul... it is sweet...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now their is still power in Shamanism,Druidism and the Holy light and their is sacrifice but the sacrifice is different

As a holy light practitioner you are taught to sacrifice your normal life to a devotion of the light as well as to help other people and sacrifice yourself to help people rather than for your own self gain.

In essence you can never really have a good shadow user if we're going for the goody two shoes look at things.

Shadow pro's and con's

Pro:- Power, healing the undead, melting face

Cons:- Corruptive:-possibly leading to fel or demonology or even necromancy, a somewhat lonely existance full of negative emotions,sacrificing much to gain the power you wish, Citizens Druids,Shamans,Mages and holy light users may or will not like you at all.

Tantzui wrote:My Warlock could be interested. Any of you other hordies wanna go there together?  I don't wanna give alliances a chance to try to kill me without a fair fight! (Alliances can be scary :O)

I'll go with you, we can show them the virtues of Shadow. Respect, tenacity and Death.

Rae Wulfgnar wrote:

Tantzui wrote:My Warlock could be interested. Any of you other hordies wanna go there together?  I don't wanna give alliances a chance to try to kill me without a fair fight! (Alliances can be scary :O)

I'll go with you, we can show them the virtues of Shadow. Respect, tenacity and Death.

AND POOOOWAAAAAAAAH!
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"There is no good. No evil. No Light. There is only POWER!" ~ Archbishop Bennedictus the fallen.

"I looked into the eyes of The Dragon, and despaired..." ~ Twilight Father/Twilight Prophet Bennedictus (Shadow Priest)

Naturally emissaries will be sent from the Lamb, but it could be a trap, so gotta be careful!

I sense a clash of cults. :<

Rae Wulfgnar wrote:

Tantzui wrote:My Warlock could be interested. Any of you other hordies wanna go there together?  I don't wanna give alliances a chance to try to kill me without a fair fight! (Alliances can be scary :O)

I'll go with you, we can show them the virtues of Shadow. Respect, tenacity and Death.

I'd join in on my lock, but I'm planning to go on my rogue too D: We'll see!

Burgen I have... absolutely no idea why you made a huge post about shadow lore. You seem to be refuting something that was never stated unless I'm grossly misunderstanding. This is a gathering of shadowy cultists to talk about their IC take on their "craft," and a way for darker RPers to have another way to network.

And yes, Gilneas is contested. That's why it's going to be held in an abandoned random manor with no official notice to any "governments." It's also why it's faction-neutral. Gilneas was chosen pretty much -because- it's not within Stormwind jurisdiction.

We RP regularly there with both factions.

Well some of it may be my assumptions from the wording that is placed on the poster such as "Why does shadow matter to you" that makes me think it is somewhat going to be ill-fitting with the theme of shadow-users and cultists and more along the lines of Wreck It Ralphs bad-anon.

and the "why to user shadow" and the whole pro's and cons thing irks me because what really should be happening from shadow users or even cultists if it is to be assumed they are holding this event is it is a big opportunity for propoganda it doesn't seem to make sense to do a pro and cons approach as a cultist and instead just promote the good aspects that are deemed beneficial by the shadow users and cultists

Then their is the "dazzling", i don't really get that as well shadow cultists or users desire as has been said before power, so why they would pass on or show secrets to potential competition is well....counter-productive unless on the other hand it is to corrupt and gain a new puppet or minion to assist themselves for their own ends this goes the same as well for passing on the knowledge really.

It just seems a bit ill-fitting at least to me from what i read up on shadow lore to what shadow users and cultists actually are, but that is just me i guess.

Besides that point it doesn't hurt to make sure that people understand and know the nature and theme of what shadow is, as few people seem to understand exactly what it is all about and what it's opposite counter-part the holy light is actually about these days.

As for the Gilneas bit well it is a warzone, so talking to forsaken and many other Horde in a warzone as a shady shadow cultist is going to send alarm bells down a 7th Legion troopers mind and out into his body to compel him to cut you all down for you look nothing more to him than treasonous hounds, as well as i do not think any Gilnean Resistance fighter would look upon shadow cultists fraternising with the enemy too well, and the fact you are using a manor in Gilneas does not protect you.

As if we think about possible situations it could be very possible that 7th legion trooper squad could take shelter in the manor you are using and then realise it is tainted with shadow users, it won't be surprising really that they will want to clear you out for their own safety really and if they see you with Horde well they're going to clear you out with extreme prejudice, in a war-zone their is not much room for faction-neutral as for being out of stormwind jurisdiction their are many other places for that that are safer zones.

And as for Rp'ing regularly there with both factions now that just sounds suspicious to do so in a war-zone possibly viewed as treasonous on top of the fact you are a shadow cultist they're not going to care about shadow-users who will most likely be selfish and ignoring peoples basic human rights.

As well as the fact i don't think any Lighty is going to take no for an answer if you refuse them entry nor do i think they will even -ASK- the light has no jurisdiction of borders and neither does it's followers

Though these are just my criticisms of it, it's a close but no cigar in execution perhaps as the warzone is a mjaor factor and perhaps some of the wording and behaviour of the leaflet

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Dude. You are evaluating a completely IC event and its reasoning and safety on an ooc level.

It's a meeting where people meet up. And talk about shadow. It's shady. It has some words on the poster. People get the jist, and I'm sure it'll be fun.

Stop being such a kill joy.

EDIT : Good luck with this people. Looks likes fun.

Yeah you've misunderstood it entirely I'm afraid

The flyer is IC, I suggest you treat it as such.  Look at it from a shadow caster's viewpoint: what are the pros and cons of shadow?  Ex. you can destroy someone's mind, which is great.  But it corrupts the shit out of you which is bad.  It might lead to some good discussions IC on how to mask signs of shadow use against the law, or how to balance gaining power with becoming corrupted, whatever people want to talk about.

The writer of the poster is ICly quite a theatrical fellow, and there's hints in the OP to those who have met him, as to who the author might be.  DAZZLING and FOOD AND DRINK should be taken ICly, not OOCly, and your lore post has very little to do with that.  It was -meant- to seem overly wannabe-sophisticated--so yes, take it IC. Also consider the fact that the information on the poster may ICly all be lies.

Or perhaps these are gents with a taste for fine wine whilst they torture their victims, good sir.

And yes... of course they're treacherous/traitorous.  They're illegal cultists, hiding out in a warzone, man

ddddddd

Burgen wrote:Biggest rant

Stop trying to bait a discussion, man. If you don't like the premise of the event, don't come near it. Duh.

Have fun guys, dazzle away with your purple sparkles all you want. And say hi to johnny forsaken for me.

Would seem that anything is bad according to Burgen. As erwtenpeller says, if you don't like it, STAY AWAY! Nobody forces you to attend, noone makes you do things against your will. Let them have their fun, but don't piss on their parade for the sake of pissing on things.

I read the spoiler.

This gives me power.

Attend to my ever wims, phlebians, lest I use my prophetic knowledge to ruin your experiences! *cackles*

Spoiler:

You are evil.

Yes, yes I am.

Perhaps I should attend this event?

As myself?

Fffff... I clicked that spoiler about eight times wondering why it was bugging out.

Yeaaaah I'm not the brightest, rofl.

Edit: Oh it WAS bugging out. It wasn't at all a joke about his prophetic abilit-... Did I mention not the brightest