Hemomancy

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Source Age Discovered by

Hemomancy derives from hemo-, meaning blood, and -mancy, meaning the divination by specified means. Quite simply, it is blood magic.

There may be some controversy surrounding this form of magic, mostly due to the high risk a caster puts themselves through in order to achieve their desired goals.

While hemomancy is the manipulation of blood, it is important to note it is only the manipulation of the caster's own blood. It is a common misconception that hemomancers can manipulate anyone's blood.

The magic is activated within the caster themselves. Their blood is magically "charged" from their soul and released by way of cutting of the flesh in a strategic fashion. Due to this, this form of magic is only viable for the mentally sound and healthy of body, and there are locations along the body forbidden to be cut due to the risk of being unable to control one's blood flow.

Hemomancers cast their spells first with various hand movements with the final channel of the spell being either the cutting of flesh, or the application of their blood.

Bloodblade - while it is not in any shape of a common blade, the caster can enchant their blood to slice just as deftly with proper application.

Track - there are two applications possible for tracking: one by blood and one by soul. To track by blood, the caster must first charge their blood with the spell before applying it to what it intends to track. To track by soul requires a link to be established. This is far riskier, as the other can be aware of the link and shatter it.

Call of the Dead - a lengthy ritual involving a circle of blood and bones of the dead. The caster must call upon the soul of the deceased, and through the soul link, call forth the soul which can then be questioned for a limited amount of time. If the soul of the dead is hostile, volatile, or malevolent, the caster risks their soul being torn from their body into the afterlife, forever linked to the dead in which they called.

The risks are quite obvious for hemomancy. The loss of blood is quite severe, and thus the caster is quite limited before they will need to clot and heal.

The risk less known is that of the tether to their soul. Certain spells may call for a link between souls, and if this link is not properly handled, the caster may suffer a lesser life span and a weakened body, which can prevent them from ever practicing blood magic again.