Mesmulot

”The nocturnal Mesmulot are a cunning, decadent race of natural predators. Formerly Descendants, they underwent an extraordinary transformation that saw them give up their wings and blue-green skin tone for fangs and a deathly pallor. The aptly named “Darkspawn” are an enigmatic blend of dangerous energy and relentless beauty. More so than any of the mortal races, the Mesmulot people are seen as a strange dichotomy, inspiring fear and dread in countless minds across Laruna, while remaining some of the most desired consorts anywhere in the land.”

HISTORY Sometime during the third age a conflict known as “The Whisper War” arose among the Descendants. Born of opposing sentiments regarding the allowance of Descendants and humans mating, it created a large divide among the Descendant hierarchy. The ruling caste of the Descendants had decreed such unions against their law and what started as simple arrests quickly escalated into open warfare. Over a few years, the entire population of Epilesis was locked in a sort of civil war, and those who had opposed the rulers in support of human unions were steadily losing. In an attempt to evade annihilation, the outlawed Descendants and their children retreated to large subterranean caverns beneath the Tyris tol Gry. There they met a mythical entity known as “Arliman’s Whisper” who offered them the dark god’s power in exchange for their fealty. This exchange marked the end of the war and gave birth to the entirely new race now called Mesmulot. The deal struck with Arliman’s whisper may have birthed the Mesmulot race, but it also gave life to a huge schism among the new people. Hidden in the caverns beneath the desert sands, the newly made Mesmulot were overpowered by their need for lifeforce. Without being able to perform the exchange in their new form, they were quickly driven mad by the dark transformation. While most Mesmulot gave into their dark fate, a smaller minority of the new Mesmulot felt betrayed in a way they could not recover from. Though they understood Arliman and his ways, they could not accept their damnation at his hands, nor the loss of innocent lives his deceit had caused. These Mesmulot, calling themselves Redeemers, defected into the lands of Epilesis, driven to find redemption. Those who were declared “free” by the Descendants Seraph have toiled endlessly under the dreadful perception their kin have created have taken on the name Redeemers.
CULTURE Acceptance of the Redeemers is far from universal, but the Mesmulot thirst for life and notoriously decadent behaviors has gone a long way to helping make Redeemers a common sight in any major city or dwelling. With extraordinary quickness and their undeniable magnetism, Redeemers find plenty of ways to assimilate themselves into city life. Thieves, mercenaries and courtesans are all calling cards for these creatures of passion, giving them access to the two things all Mesmulot desire; blood and excitement. Despite their ceaseless thrill seeking and fascination with debauchery, Redeemers live to oppose the empire and the dark god who betrayed them. They implore members of the mortal races to embrace their wild sides and help the Redeemers prove Arliman wrong by having his own children stand in the light of Sadreen and the company of her children. While the existence of Arliman’s Whisper is often seen as religious propaganda by anyone not a part of theMesadrinempire,theMesmulotareverydifferent from their Descendant progenitors in a significant way. Much as the exchange and their former service to the Elder God are the central components of Descendant culture and behavior, the Mesmulot need to drink the blood of the living, along with the fallout of the Whisper War, has defined both their own worldview as well has how Laruna’s inhabitants see them. Due in part to the fact that they sustain themselves by drinking energy, Mesmulot have a nearly literal taste for life. Young adults will seek to experience all that they can, gaining a perspective of the world that is substantiated with both formal and informal educations. Few members of the other races can match a Mesmulot’s zeal for new passions, a fact that often leads them to frivolous or decadent behavior. While many Redeemers have their own private struggle of differentiating themselves from agents of Mesadrin, they share many of the same lusts as their kin of Mesadrin. They hope only to show that these hallmarks of their people are in no way exclusively the domain of Arliman. Many a night with a Mesmulot has ended with their partners having a newfound “appreciation” for their ways, as their free spiritedness and charm can be infectious to all but the most staunch of mortals.

Legacy Views Generally Mesmulot of the Redeemers see Legacy as a plague in the hands of most people. They are all too familiar with how dangerous the power of the gods can be when it’s submitting to the will of mortals. Dealing with the dark god Arliman and being without the Arga’sheel has created a great deal of skepticism as to the good of mortals inheriting Alshara’s Legacy. For themselves however, inheriting Legacy is seen as a rare and momentous opportunity to earn the Redeemers recognition and remove some of the stain the Mesadrin Empire has placed upon their race. Different Legacies are viewed with little difference besides the Light and Dark. For Redeemers, the Light is a circumstantial blessing, while in Mesadrin it is a crime punishable by death. The opposite tends to be true for the Dark. Redeemers lament their own being born with powers commonly attributed to Arliman, while those of Mesadrin with such gifts are heralded as blessed, often leading lives of opulence and reverence.

Physical Description Though they claim to have once been Descendants, the Mesmulot have a physical stature more like to humans. Sharing similar heights and weights to humans, they are a fair bit smaller than Descendants, and unlike either, possess skin tones that range from pure alabaster to a dark pale grey. Mesmulot bodies tend to be more lithe than humans and are remarkably nimble and quick. Beyond their natural elegance, Mesmulot are a uncommonly beautiful species by human standards, frequently claimed to be the dark god Arliman’s gift so as to be better seducers. Natural symmetry and striking color schemes are their birthright, which they frequently showcase with provocative attire and elaborate body tattoos. Hair colors of white, grey, and black are most common with the occasional crimson, blue or dark purple making an appearance. Eye colors are abnormally bright giving Mesmulot irises a luminescent appearance. Green, red, violet, and blue are common, while silver, yellow, and pink are not unheard of. Said to reflect the particular type of energy that flows through their body, eye color is a very significant physiological detail for Mesmulot, as it indicates the bloodline they belong to. The Mesmulot are a vampiric species by nature, as they must feed off the lifeforce of others. While Descendants accomplish something similar to this via the exchange, Mesmulot must actually imbibe the blood of living creatures to absorb this lifeforce. To perform this task, all Mesmulot possess the ability to unhinge their jaw, distending their mandible so their mouth opens wide. This process only takes a second and simultaneously distends their large fang-like incisors. The sight of this can be unsettling to humans, changing the normally beautiful countenance of a Mesmulot and distorting it into a nearly monstrous sight.
inherent traits
Attribute Bonuses: +1 AGI, +1 CHM, +10 Evasion Thirst: Unable to exchange energy like the Descendants who were once their kin, Mesmulot are instead burdened with a dark thirst for life-force that they can only absorb through drinking the blood of other creatures. Well known for both their love of darkness and their profane beauty, the Mesmulot slake their thirst on the willing and unwilling alike, and bear a reputation of fear and fascination wherever they go. By biting a target mortal, a Mesmulot can drain 5 Stamina every phase as they drink their blood. For every 5 Stamina stolen in this manner the target also loses 5 Health, but also leaves the victim with a feeling of euphoria. Biting a target is an IFU action if the target is willing, but requires the following AT to be made against an unwilling target.
Bite Requires opponent to be grappled AT: Melee Combat (Brawling)+AGI Threat: 0 Damage: STR + 3 (Piercing) Base Success: You may feed on your target for this phase. (1c) Damage Adjustment: +1 Piercing
Penalty: Every 24 hours that pass without draining at least 5 Stamina from a mortal causes the Mesmulot’s Endurance to be reduced by 2. This Endurance loss remains until they drain at least 15 stamina from a mortal target, upon which all lost Endurance is restored. If the Mesmulot has their Endurance reduced to zero in this manner they die from malnourishment. Creatures other than mortals, such as animals may be drained in the same way but this will not stop the normal loss of Endurance. Instead, it will reduce the loss from 2 to 1. Additionally, draining creatures other than mortals will prevent the Mesmulot from losing their last point of stamina in this manner, suspending them in their weakened state until they are able to feed from a mortal and restore their lost Endurance.

Chosen Trait
House Strodigi (eye coLor: BLue)
rThe House of Strodigi is revered for its accomplishments in the magical arts. These Mesmulot are able to drain mana from their victims while feeding, allowing them to replenish their ability to cast magic. This trait has allowed the House of Strodigi to persistently hone their magic skills and earn a prominent reputation among their kin for doing so.
Effect: Members of House Strodigi receive a permanent +2 INT. Feeding drains 10 mana each phase in addition to the normal effects.
House Vexton (eye coLor: red)
Known as the most vicious and bloodthirsty of the noble houses, the House of Vexton’s purebloods create excruciating pain with their bite. Taught to relish the suffering of their prey in Mesadrin, a Pureblood Vexton survives off the pain of others, making them dangerous to any who would risk their bite.
Effect: Members of House Vexton receive a permanent +2 STR. Feeding inflicts a -5 Wound Penalty for 3 phases in addition to the normal effects.
House Olissa (eye coLor: White)
Those of Pureblood from the House Olissa are able to use their feeding to massively accelerate their body’s healing. Well known as die-hard survivors, members of House Olissa are the most resilient of Mesmulot, able to sustain unparalleled physical trauma and recover in record time.
Effect: Members of House Olissa receive a permanent +1 to END and +50 Health. Each phase spent feeding from a living target restores 5 lost Health. This healing will stop bleeding but will not regenerate lost limbs.
House Lotus (eye coLor: BLacK)
The ancestry of House Lotus can be traced all the way back to the beginning. Those of this brood retained a larger part of their Descendant heritage, endowing them with black, leathery wings. Much like their Descendant counterparts from which they were spawned, they are granted flight at their base movement speed.
Effect: Members of House Lotus receive a permanent +2 AGI. Gain the ability Flight.
House Suspirion (eye coLor: green)
The bite of a Pureblood Suspirion fills its recipient with overpowering ecstasy. This powerful euphoria is spoken of in the highest esteem by those who have had the pleasure of experiencing it.
Effect: Members of House Suspirion receive a permanent +2 CHM. A Suspirion gains +8 to all Social ATs against any target that they have fed upon within the last hour.
House Esh (eye coLor: PurPLe)
Being a pureblood of House Esh is to be burdened with a feared and coveted gift among the masses of Mesadrin. By feeding on a creature, these purebloods are able to sift through their recent memories as if they were their own.
Effect: For every 5 health drained via feeding, these Mesmulot gain access to 24 hours of memory from their victim. These memories fade in time just as much as the memulot’s own memories would.