Veilwarden

Keepers of the Veil

Overview

Veilwardens are practitioners of magic tied to the energies of the Veil. Their main purpose is to keep the Veil strong and balanced. They can guide the souls of the dead safely through the Veil into the spirit realm.  The Veil separates the world of the living from the world of the dead. Souls can get trapped in the Veil and creatures can manifest themselves in the Veil while they do not belong there. The Veil can be imbalanced or damaged at places and this can cause disturbances such as nightmares, ghost sightings, or worse. A Veilwarden has the knowledge to navigate the Veil, channel its magical energies and repair or strengthen the Veil to restore and maintain balance. Because of the Veil’s close ties to the realm of dreams they can also visit and manipulate dreams.

Though some might think Veilwardens are priests they are not. Nor are they caretakers of the dead, or do they involve themselves with bodies, burials, or funerary customs. Their domain is the integrity of the Veil itself. All physical death rites remain the responsibility of families, communities and priests. Veilwardens are more akin to mages and scholars. They research the Veil trying to understand it and uncover it’s mysteries as well as learn how to manipulate the energies of the Veil to use for their own advantage.

Common abilities

Because the Veil is sometimes seen as the dream realm Veilwardens have abilities tied to dreaming and the spirit world.

• They can induce sleep, enter a lucid dream state, and dreamwalk. They can do this to themselves, or someone else.
• A Veilwarden can temporarily become ethereal, effectively turning themselves into a ghost, body and all.
• The Veil is also seen as the barrier between the living world and the spirit world and Veilwardens can learn to temporarily separate their own spirit from their body and enter the Veil.
• Because they are able to attune themselves to the Veil they can also speak to the wandering spirits manifesting through the Veil and call upon spirits from the Spirit world to talk with them in the Veil, be it in a dreamstate, or their ‘ethereal’ bodies.
• A Veilwarden can put the dead to rest by guiding their souls safely through the Veil and to the Spirit World.
• They can strengthen the Veil where it is weak, repair it where it is damaged and attempt to restore balance. Though this is mostly done by solving whatever caused the Veil to be weakened, damaged or unbalanced in the first place. More often than not it is caused by the dead that haven’t been laid to rest properly or at all, or Veil creatures that aren’t supposed to be in the Veil at all having forced entry and wreaking havoc from within the Veil.

Becoming a Veilwarden

Veilwarden is not really the type of discipline that is very popular. Many Veilwardens become one because they have affinity with the Veil and are found by other Veilwardens and then trained. Sometimes this is just so the person themselves doesn’t attract Veil creatures or accidentally wander around in dreams of others. Sometimes it is because they actually want to learn more about this ‘Link’ they seem to have.

Veilwardens also sometimes teach those who deal with the dead bodies very simple rituals and rites so they can perform them to send souls safely through on their own.

There is not really a central organisation or place where someone can go to become a Veilwarden. Yet it is common knowledge that the Ahn’Ghor have several Veilwardens in their service and rumor has it that there is always a Veilwarden at Icaron.

Alignment

Veilwardens are not really tied to a specific alignment, as such there can also be evil Veilwardens who seek to abuse their abilities to do harm rather then help to restore the Veil and keep it strong and balanced.

They are the exception to the rule though as most of the Veilwardens out there are good or neutral beings.

Social Standing

Veilwardens carry an eerie reputation that does not always reflect the nature of the individual, yet clings stubbornly to the calling as a whole. To most common folk, they are figures tied not to ordinary death, but to disturbed passage, strange dreams, trapped souls, and things within the Veil best left untouched. For that reason, many find them difficult to approach, even when they need them most. Yet at the same time it is Veilwardens who most commonly can attempt to communicate with the dead, so for grieving folks who have lost a loved one they are the only ones who they can ask to try and establish contact to make sure their loved ones found their way to Jin’til and are not stuck in Vek’til or in the Veil itself.

Since it’s most common for priests of the Church of the New Faiths to take care of the ones that are left behind you can sometimes see a Veilwarden and a Priest working together to lay the dead to rest where the Veilwarden only concerns itself with lingering souls not the bodies they left behind. Yet for some reason there is always a noticeable tension between the two groups. It often feels like they are working together out of necessity, but it is clear their views don’t exactly align which can cause friction.