Nosgoth (cancelled game)/terms

Events

The Vampire Civil War

A conflict between the six vampire clans in the wake of Raziel's execution and Kain's disappearance. Believing they were following Kain's intentions, the clans turned on and virtually wiped out the adult Razielim, unaware the fledglings and pupating members of the clan had been moved to the Fane and the underground city. Ultimately infighting caused by dividing the spoils of this victory and deciding the succession of the empire erupted into a war between the clans which allowed the Humans time to escape and rebuild their shattered civilization. A bloody human uprising in Coorhagen and the re-emergence of the fledgling Razielim caused the vampires to re-evaluate their infighting and put aside their differences to put down the human threat.

The War For Nosgoth

A conflict between the reunited vampire clans and the resurgent human armies that followed in the wake of the vampire civil war. In the aftermath of the routing of Coorhagen and the re-emergence of the Razielim, the vampires realised the threat a reformed human order could pose to the empire itself and put aside their differences to combat the human threat in a battle for control of the ultimate fate of Nosgoth. The gameplay of Nosgoth too place during the War for Nosgoth.

Materials

Naptha

Naphtha was used to fuel the pyrotechnics of the Alchemists in the mid-Soul Reaver era and War for Nosgoth seen in Nosgoth. Inert when stored, it could be a tremendously powerful and devastating weapon when excited, producing deadly "liquid fire" which caused major damage to Humans and Vampires alike.

Role

Originally, the developments that led to the discovery of Naphtha were pioneered by a group of Melchahim Vampire alchemists after their self-imposed exile across the Great Southern Sea for inadvertently poisoning human breeding stock.

In their exile the vampires continued their experiments in a secret laboratory, oblivious to the vampire civil war in Nosgoth's heartlands, until eventually the vampire Laderic was able to make a breakthrough and create Naphtha. Intending to use it to strike against his enemies, Laderic kept the discovery secret.

Before Laderic could make use of the weapon however, he was attacked and killed by close human slave Elustra, who had feigned madness for decades and got close enough to allow her to understand and recover the substance and use it against him. Killing the Vampires and humans alike, Elustra burnt the facility to the ground with Naphtha she discovered.

When she was found by her fellow human nomads, Elustra was glorified by the humans as a saviour and attracted many followers. Elustra dedicated her life to the last human known to have knowledge of the power of alchemy, Anarcrothe and thus created the red sisters of Anacrothe and the first human Alchemists in centuries, who now used Naphtha as fuel for their weapons.

Notes

• Naphtha was only introduced in Nosgoth, though given its associations it is possible that the weapons of the flamethrower wielding Vampire hunters in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver were also powered by Naphtha.

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• In many languages in the real world, Naphtha is a word for any of a number of flammable liquids containing hydo-carbons, as such oil, petrol and coal tar which all contain the substance. Ultimately naphtha was also used for a number of weapon technologies including several varieties of grenade and is the root of the word "napalm".

Creatures

Ghouls

Ghouls were creatures from the underworld created and summoned by the necromantic Summoner vampires of the Melchahim clan that fought in the War for Nosgoth in the mid-Soul Reaver era seen in Nosgoth.

Role

Gallery

See also

• Template:Icon-NosgothOur upcoming new Vampire class – the Summoner at the Nosgoth official blog (by Cat Karskens)
• Summoners
• Melchahim
• Melchiah
• Adult Melchahim
• Fledgling Melchahim
• Necropolis

Eaters of the Dead

The Eaters of the Dead were presumably some kind of marine creature that fed on the disposed corpses of city of Meridian that were left among the Witches' Fingers by the original Drowning Men. Several superstitions had grown up around them and they were considered sacred, although little was conclusively known about them. The creatures were mentioned in the backstory of the Drowning Men in Nosgoth.

Roles and Titles

Patriarch of the Waters

The Patriarch of the Waters was a term given to the head of the overseers of the original Drowning Men at the Isle of the Dead in Nosgoth. Ultimately the Patriarch was responsible for the death rituals of the people of Meridian and the captivity of the convicts sent by the Chancellor of Meridian. One Patriarch, Ancellas, was named.

Institutions

Blood Farms

Blood Farms a set of locations in Kain's empire where Humans were born, grown and herded to provide supplies of Blood for their Vampire masters - with many human drained until near death and allowed to recover. During the Vampire Civil War, with vampire attentions focused elsewhere, the blood farms became prime targets for liberation and many of the human resurrgents were freed from the farms and made their way to growing human cities.

Deities and Worship

A variety of legends surrounded worship and religion in the Soul Reaver era Nosgoth. Few were understood as dominant and many smaller cults offered differing visions, with the truth or dominance of any belief always open for question.^[NOS]

Kain

The one and only being worshipped by the Vampires was the emperor Kain who was considered divine.

The Pillar Guardians

As the last humans to reign and hold significant knowledge in Nosgoth before the ascent of Kain's empire, the guardians were afforded particular reverence, although with the loss of human knowledge the actual deeds of the guardians were lost and corrupted over the centuries. Bane, DeJoule and Anarcrothe were particularly revered, with the Alchemists venerating Anacrothe and the Beastmasters following the ideals of Bane and Dejoule. The role of Azimuth was associated with the history of the Prophets but her actions meant that she was looked upon less kindly - although the Prophets still adhered to what they believed were her pre-fallen tenants.

Heralds, Apostles and Other People

Some of the deified figures of Nosgoth were ordinary figures who had been raised to divinity through their exploits. Such was the case for Elustra whose exploits saw her venerated as a " Scarred Harbinger of Anarcrothe" by the Red sisters. The Prophets held Roxen and Malus in similar regard for their deeds.

Other worship could be based upon respected roles, with the Patriarch of the Waters considered holy by the Drowning Men after the death of the last overseer. The Matriarch of the Islands was considered similarly with her curses and blessings.

The Sun

With the sun covered by the smoke belched from the smokestacks raised by the vampires, the absent sun whose light caused the vampires harm became something of a revered icon. Images of its worship could be seen in several of the maps and skins.

Notes

Arguably the worship of the Sun was based upon the images seen in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, where the Drowned Abbey in particular bore several icons of the sun which appeared to indicate some form of sun-worshipping.

Water Deities

Several gods and divinities were associated with water. Once again this seemed based upon not only its life-giving properties for humans and the harm it inflicted upon vampires. Several closely related deities were associated with the water, with many bearing descriptions usually including many eyes and tentacles - perhaps indicating the influence of the Elder God at work. Venerated beings which bore these hallmarks included the Eaters of the Dead, the Seagrave, the Salt Lord, the Saint of Dark Waters and the Drowning God worshipped by the Drowning Men.

Shrines and Cult-Figures

A number of other localized cults existed that venerated pantheons of gods with allegiances shifting on the victories and losses of the human armies. Many were supposedly represented by ramshackle shrines in Freeport. Deities worshipped in this fashion included the Ashen Lady, the Broken-Horned God, the Weeping Child and Tarshna the Winged Huntress.

Notes

Several of the Shrine deities seem to be inspired by the glyph shrines found throughout Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, with the 'Broken-Horned God' apparently associated by with the statue in the Fire Glyph Altar, and 'Tarshna the Winged Huntress' associated with the figure in the Water Glyph Altar - Tarshna in particular is said to be worshipped by the Ironguard, who appeared to develop into the Vampire hunters of Soul Reaver and were based in the Human Citadel where the altar was found.

The Vampires and Vampire worshippers

For some humans, the vampires superiority bred a different kind of faith - buying into the vampire belief of Kain's divinity and the ascension of his brood. These humans offered service and worship to the vampires in exchange for their lives becoming Vampire worshippers. Even when freed from their 'oppressors' some humans were so indoctrinated they chose not to leave, while others played along with their rescuers and acted as spies and double agents.

Notes

The Vampire Worshippers reference the Vampire worshippers of Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver. Along with their association with the Zephonim, they are also said to work as spies and double agents, somewhat hinting at their roles in the deleted Undercity area.