The Blackened Ones

The Blackened Ones are revered and feared sorcerers within The Hex, an organization of Exiled mages who inhabit the southernmost, magic-starved regions of the world. In these regions, known as the Winter Yield, magic users face The Wrack, a devastating condition that arises when mages must draw energy directly from their own cells to cast spells. Unlike the magic-rich lands of the northern hemisphere, where ambient magical fields replenish mages’ reserves, the south demands a direct toll on the body, leading to a series of painful and disfiguring stages. Only the most skilled and resilient of Hex mages, who have mastered techniques to mitigate the Wrack’s effects, survive long enough to reach the extreme, near-undead state known as Blackening.

A true Blackened One hovers on the threshold between life and death, their body warped and partially skeletal, yet miraculously alive. They often exhibit features such as exposed bones or blackened, cracked skin, impossible configurations that would normally spell death. Unlike the Thaowon - animated corpses reanimated by necromancers - Blackened Ones retain their consciousness and will, their transformation a testament to their sheer magical prowess. To the Hex, they are considered semi-divine figures, having transcended mortal limits through extreme self-transmutation and necromantic manipulation. Though not venerated as Reshai mages are in the north under The Aegis, Blackened Ones command profound respect, wielding their power with a fierce authority that demands allegiance. Their followers fear them more than love them, and within the ruthless ranks of the Hex, their elevated status remains secure only so long as they exhibit unbreakable strength.
Artifacts associated with the Blackened Ones—such as relics preserved in elaborate reliquaries—depict skeletal hands and the three-pronged, scorpion-like emblem of the Hex. Their remains are used in ongoing rituals, believed to retain magical potency even after death, and old Hex relics bear symbols of these fearsome sorcerers. The exact age a Blackened One can reach through these methods is unknown, but records and artifacts suggest that some have lived well beyond 200 years, surviving through sheer will and mastery over death itself.