Lich's Rot

Lich's Rot is a condition that affects only Liches, the pinnacle of necromancers, and deals with the deterioration of their hearts and souls as they are separated from the body. Very few have ever experienced this, as there have only been a handful to ever achieve Lichdom and few on top of that to have ever met a lich.

Vonlichter by RovaRed

A Lich's Decay

Lich's Rot is a degenerative disease, the symptoms of which only become clearer over hundreds, even thousands, of years. A necromancer may begin their journey to lichdom with pure intentions, but overtime, those whittle away.
When they separate their soul from their body, the final step of becoming a lich, the process begins. They are now a lich, and soon Lich's Rot will take effect.

Effects

Once the soul has fully left the body, only its imprints will remain.
The personality is intact, but the Lich is a shell of who they once were. The pieces of themselves that once made them vibrant and brilliant mages now sheds away.

Licvan by Jarhed

Their greatest fears increase, as they focus on what they perceive to be the greatest threat to their eternal life as a lich. As their skin breaks off of their body, they begin to act more inhuman, detaching themselves from mortal pleasures and experiences.
Many of them abandon any relationships they had, platonic, familial, or romantic. These are the root of many fears, such as that of N'hog'zadh'goz, who hid away so no one could hurt him.
However, this is not the only thing one could do. Licvan, for instance, feared being forgotten, and so instead of hiding away, he sought the spotlight in his city of Camor and sought connection, forming the Lich Club.
It varies from Lich to Lich, but whatever their fear is, it is emphasized as many other parts of them become overshadowed.
The Liches believe that if they can hang onto parts of themselves that are unrelated to those fears, they can be more like they were when they were mortal. However, N'hog'zadh'goz has given up on reconnecting with his mortality, saying it is better to simply accept that he is not mortal, and that life as a Lich is a separate existence where he is a different person.
If N'hog'zadh'goz is to be believed, the truth of Lich's Rot is not to destroy anything, but is instead to transition one from life to afterlife, from mortality to Lichdom, from death to undeath. If that is true, perhaps there should be no fear of it. Perhaps it is in the best interests of a Lich to accept they will never be who they were before they became a Lich.

Liches

A lich is the most powerful kind of necromancer, who has devoted themselves to attaining immortality. They have done so by severing their soul into a secret, powerful item where it is hidden from harm. Their skin sheds off and they are left as only walking, near-immortal skeletons.
There are very few known liches throughout history. Six names have ever been noted down in any record of what Liches exist, but these records are only known by very few individuals in the world. Powerful mages who have stumbled upon them and survived, influential figures who are sought out by the Liches, or even wayward adventurers who spotted them on their journey.
It is said that all Liches are invited and encouraged to reach out to each other, and while they isolate themselves from the world at large, they communicate rather regularly with each other, even hosting semi-regular Lich Club meetings to catch up on their afterlives.
The six known Liches are as follows:

• Licvan the Glorious (Elf)


• Vonlichter the Curious (Lizardfolk)


• N'hog'zadh'goz the Hermit (Emetian)


• Tichet the Wondrous (Goblin)


• Licher the Unwelcome (Korvian)


• Necromancer the Partnered (Korvian)

Lich Titles

These titles are not well known, or particularly popular. They were ascribed in one of the few known records of the Liches, written by a Devil and stored in a library in the depths of Hell.
He claims this to have been names created based on how the Liches acted around each other. Licvan basked in his own presence, N'hog'zadh'goz hid away from everyone, Vonlichter was ever curious and seeking knowledge at any cost, Tichet was a wonder to be around, Necromancer stayed around her husband for the most part, and almost no one welcomed Licher into the group.

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N'hog'zadh'goz by Jarhed