The statement that everything is alive and contains a spirit is not a metaphor or a proverb; it is a path to power and wisdom.
The practitioners of this Legacy understand everything in the Fallen World has a voice, if only one knows how to listen well enough. Moreover, they can do more than listen to the voices of the objects around them, they can also command the objects to do their bidding. Their ability to command the inanimate world comes with a far deeper understanding of and sympathy for the objects and devices around them. Once they have the ability to do so, most Lords of the Inanimate permanently awaken the spirits of the objects and devices they used most often. As a result, many have spiritually awakened houses, cars, computers, and occasionally cell phones or handguns.
For Animists, as they are often called, these awakened objects are more than simply loyal servants, they are valued companions. Lords of the Inanimate care for these objects as they would valued retainers and beloved pets. In return, the spirits within these objects typically do their best to aid and protect their owners. A few Animists have no interest beyond power and control and care little for the feelings or lives of the spirits they order around, but their fellows usually regard such mages as coarse and ill-manned brutes.
Animists rarely regard even the most powerful and intelligent spirits in objects as equals or colleagues. Instead, most feel a sort of noblesse oblige toward these spirits. They often care quite deeply about the spirits with whom they work, but also regard them as lesser beings whose proper place is to serve the mages who work with them. Even spirits that have been permanently awakened to full consciousness are seen as servants, in large part because these spirits owe their consciousness and intelligence to the actions of their owner or some other Animist.
Animists are surrounded by the voices of the objects around them. By simply pausing to listen, they can hear a chair complain about the weight of the person sitting in it, a kitchen knife’s murmurs of contentment when it is sharpened, or the pleased sounds of a file as it is expertly used to shape a piece of wood. Without being roused, using the Spirit 3 spell “Rouse Spirit,” the spirits of objects have an exceptionally limited and singular awareness of the world. They can sense themselves, they understand the purpose of the object they inhabit, and they enjoy being used properly and being kept in good repair. However, they are completely incapable of abstract thought, and talking to one is much like talking to a somewhat dim-witted dog that also happens to be able to speak. Neglected objects have no purpose and even without being roused with Spirit magic, their spirits can faintly call to be used to anyone who can listen.
In vivid contrast, spirits awakened with the “Rouse Spirit” spell are intelligent, self-aware beings, much like any of the many inhabitants of the Shadow Realm. Their initial desires and motivations are the same as before they were woken up, but almost always grow more complex the longer the spirit remains awake. In time, the spirit of a permanently awakened object can be as much a friend or a companion to an Animist as the other members of her Cabal. As a result, a few Animists spend more time talking to the objects around them than they do to other people. Also, despite possessing magic that can reshape the world to their whims, the majority of Animists very much enjoy working with their hands. As a result, almost all see the Attainments they learn as a method to enhance their ability to manipulate and work with objects and not a replacement for close-up, hands-on work. The few members who do not enjoy working with their hands are widely regarded as objects of scorn and pity.
Attainments
- Commanding the Inanimate
- Shepherd of the Craft
- Honor of Transmutation
