Thrashia
20-01-2007, 04:32
Index:
Nation Description
Government
Military
Religion
Magic Explained
Money
========
Nation Description
Soul Society, as it is named, is a peninsula nation. It has existed for well over 1,000 years. It was never an empire and yet never a vassal state, it has remained a constant force in the lands.
The Soul Peninsula, which is Soul Society, is a place of deep earth magic. Beings such as the wood elves and other creatures with an affinity for nature like to come and visit here to enjoy the natural state of existence in some of the holy places of Soul Society.
Those born into Soul Society are all part of a greater power given forth from a God, known as Houkan, which all of Soul Society reveres.
Government
Soul Society is ruled by a royal family, which is protected by a royal guard. Further down is the Central Elders Council, which serves as a supreme judiciary and legislative that is second only to the royal family. The shinigami, the soldiers of Soul Society, enforce order in Soul Society as a sort of executive and military branch. All of the above, except the royal family and guard, reside in the Seireitei (say-rei-tay), the great fortress city of Soul Society.
The king and the royal family reside in a separate castle in the very core of Soul Society, which is hidden and can only be entered with a key, fittingly named the Royal Key. The king's practical role is unknown. The king has no real interest in politics and leaves the Central Elders to such affairs.
Below the shinigami are the normal denizens of Soul Society. The workers, craftsmen, farmers, and peasants that help Soul Society function as a working city-state. It is considered to be a high honor to be a citizen of Soul Society.
Military
An organization that is made of unique individuals. Known in the ancient tongue of Soul Society as "Death Gods" this organization uses a special form of jitsu, or ki combat, that allows them to fight with extraordinary power. The Shinigami, numbering at 3,000 exactly, are charged with the protection of Soul Society and act as the military.
The shinigami are armed with a special katana sword. Each is made from a special alloy metal, made from hidden magic earth ores, that allows them to cut through most metals with ease. The strength of a shinigami's sword however is comparative to that shinigami's own ki strength.
Besides exceptional swordsmanship the shinigami also have spiritual powers (ki), gained through a long trial of meditation and study; some are granted from birth the power of a shinigami, but that is rare. This soul derived power gives them more powerful stamina, strength, speed, and senses than a normal human.
Certain Characteristics
Zanpaku-to, Shikai, and Bankai; each is a release word that allows a Shinigami to access his or her power. A zanpaku-to is the direct reflection of the power of a Shinigami's soul, a shinigami's spiritual pressure given form.
The power level of each Shinigami has up to three distinct forms which its wielder can acces according to their strength and skill. The first, and one that doesn't take any effort to attain, is the normal form. With a few exceptions, a zanpaku-to's is indistinguishable from that of any other Shinigami. Those of zanpaku-to level are the weakest of Shinigami; most consider them to be novices.
The second level is called "Shikai", or "first release". The key to Shikai is learning a zanpaku-to's true nature; in other words: learning your true self. Discovering it is not the easiest thing in the world; some Shinigami never do manage it. But for those that do, they gain a whole new level of power, easily triggered by an incantation unique to each shinigami. Also, shikai zanpaku-to usually have special powers a shinigami can use, such as poisons, illusions or power blasts.
"Bankai", the third level, means "all release". Only shinigami at the Captain's rank, or highly powerful Vice-Captains can acquire bankai. Increasing the shikai level power by as much as a factor of ten, it takes many decades of intense training to learn bankai. Triggering bankai needs only a one-word incantation: Bankai. There have thus far been only 15 living Shinigami that have achieved bankai level. Each is in command of 200 other Shinigami that form divisions, or companies. Within a company there is usually between 10 to 30 Shikai level shinigami, the remainder being on the normal zanpaku-to level.
Something unique to Shinigami as well is their ability to sense a living soul, or life source. A person cannot hide from them because of this, though it is sometimes hard to follow a single soul presence through thousands of others. (A needle in a stack of needles, you might say).
There are 15 captains. The captain of the 1st Company is the Captain-Commander and has full authority over all 3,000 shinigami. He is the third most powerful after the king and the Elder Council. The rest of the 14 captains command 200 shinigami. Some companies specialize in certain things such as healing or heavy combat. A friendly rivalry exists between the companies.
Magic aka Soul Power
The "soul power" of a Soul Society shinigami is derived from the inner soul. This gift of accessing the inner soul was made possible more than a thousand years prior when the god of Soul Society, Houkan, made a covenant with the king of Soul Society. His subjects were granted the power to defend themselves and their loved ones in return for devotion to Houkan. At any one time there are more than a thousand priests spread across the land of Soul Society praying to Houkan and building shrines and temples to his remembrance.
With this soul power a shinigami can counter-act most nature-based magics, such as the five elements. They also interact with it by combining it with a special martial art that was created in Soul Society more than 800 years before.
An example being shunpo, or flash-step. A man can travel miles in distance by merely concentrating his soul power and moving forward with the intent of traveling that distance. A novice at this technique can only go about five to six steps before exhaustion causes them to black out. However a shinigami on the bankai level can go as many as 400 shunpo steps, allowing them to cover vast tracks of land within a few moments.
Soul power attacks can also depend upon the soul that uses them. A shinigami's soul is unique to itself and when he or she attacks it can take a certain form; one could be in the form of flame attacks, another being ice blizzards; or one could be the creation of "self copies" that attack with the same power as the original shinigami. Most shinigami cannot however access a different power until they achieve Shikai level power.
Money
The main currency in Soul Society are gold ingots. A 0.5 gram tablet of gold.
Trade
Soul Society is famous for its wines, food stuffs, and sword making. Though few have the money to buy the latter.
Nation Description
Government
Military
Religion
Magic Explained
Money
========
Nation Description
Soul Society, as it is named, is a peninsula nation. It has existed for well over 1,000 years. It was never an empire and yet never a vassal state, it has remained a constant force in the lands.
The Soul Peninsula, which is Soul Society, is a place of deep earth magic. Beings such as the wood elves and other creatures with an affinity for nature like to come and visit here to enjoy the natural state of existence in some of the holy places of Soul Society.
Those born into Soul Society are all part of a greater power given forth from a God, known as Houkan, which all of Soul Society reveres.
Government
Soul Society is ruled by a royal family, which is protected by a royal guard. Further down is the Central Elders Council, which serves as a supreme judiciary and legislative that is second only to the royal family. The shinigami, the soldiers of Soul Society, enforce order in Soul Society as a sort of executive and military branch. All of the above, except the royal family and guard, reside in the Seireitei (say-rei-tay), the great fortress city of Soul Society.
The king and the royal family reside in a separate castle in the very core of Soul Society, which is hidden and can only be entered with a key, fittingly named the Royal Key. The king's practical role is unknown. The king has no real interest in politics and leaves the Central Elders to such affairs.
Below the shinigami are the normal denizens of Soul Society. The workers, craftsmen, farmers, and peasants that help Soul Society function as a working city-state. It is considered to be a high honor to be a citizen of Soul Society.
Military
An organization that is made of unique individuals. Known in the ancient tongue of Soul Society as "Death Gods" this organization uses a special form of jitsu, or ki combat, that allows them to fight with extraordinary power. The Shinigami, numbering at 3,000 exactly, are charged with the protection of Soul Society and act as the military.
The shinigami are armed with a special katana sword. Each is made from a special alloy metal, made from hidden magic earth ores, that allows them to cut through most metals with ease. The strength of a shinigami's sword however is comparative to that shinigami's own ki strength.
Besides exceptional swordsmanship the shinigami also have spiritual powers (ki), gained through a long trial of meditation and study; some are granted from birth the power of a shinigami, but that is rare. This soul derived power gives them more powerful stamina, strength, speed, and senses than a normal human.
Certain Characteristics
Zanpaku-to, Shikai, and Bankai; each is a release word that allows a Shinigami to access his or her power. A zanpaku-to is the direct reflection of the power of a Shinigami's soul, a shinigami's spiritual pressure given form.
The power level of each Shinigami has up to three distinct forms which its wielder can acces according to their strength and skill. The first, and one that doesn't take any effort to attain, is the normal form. With a few exceptions, a zanpaku-to's is indistinguishable from that of any other Shinigami. Those of zanpaku-to level are the weakest of Shinigami; most consider them to be novices.
The second level is called "Shikai", or "first release". The key to Shikai is learning a zanpaku-to's true nature; in other words: learning your true self. Discovering it is not the easiest thing in the world; some Shinigami never do manage it. But for those that do, they gain a whole new level of power, easily triggered by an incantation unique to each shinigami. Also, shikai zanpaku-to usually have special powers a shinigami can use, such as poisons, illusions or power blasts.
"Bankai", the third level, means "all release". Only shinigami at the Captain's rank, or highly powerful Vice-Captains can acquire bankai. Increasing the shikai level power by as much as a factor of ten, it takes many decades of intense training to learn bankai. Triggering bankai needs only a one-word incantation: Bankai. There have thus far been only 15 living Shinigami that have achieved bankai level. Each is in command of 200 other Shinigami that form divisions, or companies. Within a company there is usually between 10 to 30 Shikai level shinigami, the remainder being on the normal zanpaku-to level.
Something unique to Shinigami as well is their ability to sense a living soul, or life source. A person cannot hide from them because of this, though it is sometimes hard to follow a single soul presence through thousands of others. (A needle in a stack of needles, you might say).
There are 15 captains. The captain of the 1st Company is the Captain-Commander and has full authority over all 3,000 shinigami. He is the third most powerful after the king and the Elder Council. The rest of the 14 captains command 200 shinigami. Some companies specialize in certain things such as healing or heavy combat. A friendly rivalry exists between the companies.
Magic aka Soul Power
The "soul power" of a Soul Society shinigami is derived from the inner soul. This gift of accessing the inner soul was made possible more than a thousand years prior when the god of Soul Society, Houkan, made a covenant with the king of Soul Society. His subjects were granted the power to defend themselves and their loved ones in return for devotion to Houkan. At any one time there are more than a thousand priests spread across the land of Soul Society praying to Houkan and building shrines and temples to his remembrance.
With this soul power a shinigami can counter-act most nature-based magics, such as the five elements. They also interact with it by combining it with a special martial art that was created in Soul Society more than 800 years before.
An example being shunpo, or flash-step. A man can travel miles in distance by merely concentrating his soul power and moving forward with the intent of traveling that distance. A novice at this technique can only go about five to six steps before exhaustion causes them to black out. However a shinigami on the bankai level can go as many as 400 shunpo steps, allowing them to cover vast tracks of land within a few moments.
Soul power attacks can also depend upon the soul that uses them. A shinigami's soul is unique to itself and when he or she attacks it can take a certain form; one could be in the form of flame attacks, another being ice blizzards; or one could be the creation of "self copies" that attack with the same power as the original shinigami. Most shinigami cannot however access a different power until they achieve Shikai level power.
Money
The main currency in Soul Society are gold ingots. A 0.5 gram tablet of gold.
Trade
Soul Society is famous for its wines, food stuffs, and sword making. Though few have the money to buy the latter.