The Philosophy of Pvârism
October 21, 2009
One of the things I miss now that Robin has left us are the long conversations we had about the world of Hârn and all its wonderful and intricate details. One of the most vivid of those conversations ocurred when I asked him why there was a restriction on the importation of technology in Mèlderýn. While this led to a long and involved discussion that crossed many boundaries, the part I’m going to discuss here is what I recall he told me about Pvârism, the philosophy at the heart of things.
Before I continue, I have to warn you that I am operating from my memory of the conversation, and my own personal interpretation of what Robin told me…or that I remember that Robin told me (which you’ll appreciate may not be the same thing). So, my memory might be faulty, or my interpretation, or both. Or neither! Your mileage may vary, as they say.
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What is the Pvâric Philosophy? From Hârndex, it is “essentially a way of perceiving Kelestia (the cosmic all) in terms of key elemental principles”. In HârnMaster Gold, The Shèk-Pvâr, Robin states in part “…it is more a style of enlightenment that must be embraced by the whole being.”
But what does that all mean??
Adhering to the Pvâric Philosophy and learning to manipulate the elemental principles (that is, casting spells) is a method of improving one’s self. It has exactly the same goal as alchemy and religion; a means of achieving enlightenment, or moving one’s soul (for want of a better term) to the next higher plane of existence. In other words, obtaining eternal life. On Earth, Buddhism has a similar goal; enlightenment, achievement of nirvana. Heck, Christianity, Judaism and Islam all have Heaven or Paradise (eternal life) as a basic tenet.
As an aside; the primary difference between Earthly religions and philosophies and Pvârism is that the former all allow one to learn from the lessons of others (indeed many use parables as a teaching tool), while the latter requires you to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.
Learning to cast spells is not the goal of a shèk-pvâr. In fact, thinking that way is dangerously close to being heretical; power for the sake of power. That goes against the Shèk-Pvâr Code. No, learning to cast spells is merely a step on the path. The goal of a true shèk-pvâr is to understand and manipulate the fundamental elements of nature so as to achieve enlightenment. And with enlightenment comes eternal life, or so goes the thinking.
So there you have it. Priests, alchemists and shèk-pvâr all have the same purpose, struggle to achieve the same goal. They just do it in different ways.
- Priests try to achieve piety so they gain the favour of a higher power, and thus be granted eternal life.
- Alchemists attempt to understand and manipulate physical properties of matter so they can construct the elixir of life (ie, the Philosopher’s Stone) and thus gain eternal life.
- Shèk-pvâr attempt to understand and manipulate the fundamental elemental forces of the cosmic all so they can create and cast the ultimate incantation and thus gain eternal life.
For me, this made the whole idea of the shèk-pvâr real. It meant that they are struggling in isolation, each man or women bending all their effort into understanding something that is inherently beyond normal understanding as we know it. It screams of utter devotion, of a mindset and outlook that is totally different to the ordinary Hârnic dweller. It also implies failure, greed, avarice, subtle bending of the rules, desperation,and all the base human emotions as these highly individualistic people try to force their minds into different paths to gain just a little bit more understanding. Which makes for more fodder for gaming, of course.
And once in perhaps a millennium, a shèk-pvâr disappears from his study leaving no trace. Did he just walk out, disillusioned and empty? Was he abducted? Was he obliterated by a rival? Did a casting go horribly wrong? Or did he achieve enlightenment? The rest of his chantry will probably never know.
And so the shèk-pvâr’s struggle to understand continues…
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Feel free to leave a comment about the article or about how you play mages.
Tahnaryn: The Black Magic of Kethira
February 12, 2008
Learned colleagues and fellow practitioners,
I do present to you at long last a summary of my findings on that obscure force I have narcissistically named Tahnaryn. It is my hope that you will finally accept that this basic and fundamental force of Kelestia does indeed exist, can be harnessed and deserves a comprehensive study by our organization. I cannot be reached through the normal means as certain members of the Morgathian church are interested in my whereabouts, but I will be present at the chantry for the winter’s solstice gathering. I will be demonstrating what mastery I have of these exciting forces for all.
Yours in service, Urbanal Tahnaryn
Morgat 14, TR 538
A while back I began developing another form of magic for use in the Hârn setting. The notion came about from me wondering just what “witchcraft”, as mentioned in the Law article, means. My definition of witchcraft usually involves evil magic and association with demons and the like. On Hârn that just means the divine servants of a banned god. I wanted magic, not religion or divinity and the convocations of the Shek-P’var didn’t really cover it.
Well, maybe witchcraft on Hârn doesn’t mean demon magic. Necromancy is another stereotypically evil magic form and it’s one that appeals to me. Yeah, I wanted necromancy, but Kethira already has it in the form of the Morgathian church and the morvra. I actually like the Hârnic take on undead, but I felt it could be expanded and here was the way to do it. The Morgathians might claim propriety over the undead, but that doesn’t mean it has to be so.
Now the trick was to fit my necromancy into the overall Hârn system, mechanically and philosophically. I really didn’t like the way CGI represented elven magic as simply a reorganizing of the Shek-P’var convocations. I wanted a new system. Likewise, I really do like the uniqueness of the Hârn setting and I wanted to fold this new magic into that setting as gently as possible.
What follows then is a set of design notes outlining the general concepts of the Hârnic necromantic discipline. While I have many more details written out, my intention is to complete the work, balance it out, and have it published in an upcoming Kelestia Productions rule book. Here’s hoping.
-Ken
Anti-Principle
As the Principles of the Shek-P’var are described as the forces binding Kethira together, Anti-Principle is a force of entropy that tears it apart, that perverts the natural cycles of Kethira. It pulls at the very fabric of existence. Where it came from and where it exists natively is unknown. In the Kethiran planes of existence however, this force cannot exist unshielded. Direct contact between Principle and Anti-Principle is violently destructive.
Anti-Principle can exist on Kethira so long as it is shielded by an aura. It does however degrade the aura containing it over time.
Anti-Principle is the force behind Tahnaryn and is also the force behind the Shadow of Bukrai.
Bukrai
Bukrai is an entity that has an immensely powerful ego/aura. This aura is filled with Anti-Principle.
Bukrai has the ability to extend it’s aura into Kethira (generally through the use of artifacts and other beings) and infest other auras with it. This phenomena is known as the Shadow Of Bukrai.
Tahnaryn
Utilizing the power of Anti-Principle is the goal of the Tahnarist. To do so, he must either wrest a portion of the shadow away from Bukrai, or find a Jorum of the power. Either prospect is extremely difficult.
Once the power source has been acquired, the mage must absorb an amount of Anti-Principle into his aura and erect an internal barrier between it and the regular Principle already present. This barrier is difficult to maintain.
As Anti-Principle is not something freely available throughout Kethira, the process must be repeated on a regular basis. Otherwise, the actual manipulation of the force is very similar to the techniques employed by the Shek-P’var.
Tahnarism can accomplish many things: The animation of once living vessels (and projection one’s will upon them), disrupting active magics, utterly destroying objects and entities, and shielding oneself from other forms of magic are just a few.