Sims 4 Lore - Tumblr Posts
L. Faba, Sage of Mischief Magic
"I have the impression that many people don't understand what I'm all about. I've been characterized as 'bad' or 'mean' because of my branch of magic: mischief. The problem with that interpretation is that it expresses a limited 'either/or' mentality that pigeonholes me as cruel and immoral. I prefer to analyze these matters through the lenses of archetypes; mine would be the 'trickster' archetype. If you know anything about mythology and folklore, it's that tricksters are neither moral or immoral; they are amoral."
"A trickster's role is to keep life from stagnating. Stagnation is very dangerous; it is the antithesis of life. To be alive is to be in constant flux. Even when you are at rest, you are still in motion: your heart beats, your lungs expand; even your atoms resonate at different frequencies. My kind of magic counters that deadly stillness, that nothingness. We, mages of mischief, have the task of being unpredictable. We destroy routines and break patterns. Through us, the unexpected materializes and, suddenly, new paths appear, new outcomes become possible. It's an act of creation, defiance, and imagination. It may be terrifying or it may be hopeful; it can be sacred or profane. But what it is for sure, always, is transformative."
"I am a being of the crossroads: of simultaneous beginnings, endings, and myriad choices. It's mysterious and fiercely beautiful. Simeon and Morgyn understand me better than anyone else. Morgyn and I share the ability to usher creativity and subversiveness through the use of primal and cataclysmic forces. Morgyn's are elemental, mine are emotional--but these forces, physical and psychological, often overlap. Simeon and I understand the delicate dance of equilibrium that must be maintained in all of creation. And he knows that even when I am 'causing mischief', it is because something must give way and be renewed, just like a storm strips trees of dead branches. Change isn't always welcome or comfortable, but it is necessary. When you are challenged, when you are led down paths you would otherwise never consider, when you are faced with the frightening or the unforeseen, that's when growth can happen. In all my spells there is opportunity: opportunity to gain an insight, to come face-to-face with your true nature, and discover an unexpected strength. It may also expose a weakness, a fragility, a deep hurt. Regardless, all these instances are teeming with opportunity that can be made into something meaningful. And that's what this dance of life is all about: becoming your truest self." -L. Faba, Sage of Mischief Magic
Simon Silversweater, Sage of Practical Magic
"People tend to think that because practical magic is used so often to facilitate everyday domestic chores, it is the simplest and most manageable branch of magic. Yes and no. People forget that practical magic is firmly rooted in nature, and nature rules everything. It is creator and destroyer, life and death. It charts the trajectory of the stars, migrating birds, and the ebbing and flowing of the tides, the sap in the trees, and the blood in our veins."
"L. and Morgyn will be the first ones to tell you that learning practical magic is foundational, intrinsic to the other schools of magic. The majority of mages acquires a liminal understanding of its inner workings--and in most cases, that is sufficient. But mastering practical magic is a life-long endeavor. A difficult one, but also a rewarding one. It is truly harmonious, even in the confines of its mysteries. Physicist Niels Bohr understood its main principle, even though he wasn't a mage. He stated, 'contraria sunt complementa': 'opposites are complementary.'
"Also, actions have consequences. Everything is interconnected and our actions impact not only our lives, but the lives of others. The smallest actions can lead to great outcomes. Let's look at my little friend here: maybe mathematician Edward Lorenz oversimplified the matter when he explained chaos theory, but I very much appreciate the metaphor: it has been said that the beat of this butterfly's tiny wings inspires the mighty hurricane." -Simeon Silversweater, Sage of Practical Magic
Morgyn Ember, Sage of Untamed Magic
"'Too much.' That's how I am often described. Since I was small, there have always been those who complain that I am 'too much, too intense, too dramatic.' But that's just it, isn't it? I believe in making every moment count. I am all in. All the time. That's the only way I know how to be. I like to feel intensely, live intensely. I love beautiful things, interesting people. My senses need to be stimulated--otherwise, what's the point of having them?
"Untamed magic is very much elemental magic. My branch of magic engages with powerful demiurgical forces--those primeval forces that forged the cosmos. Simeon jokes that I like to play with fire. I do! Quite literally! But he gets me. He and I work magic that is connected to nature. Mine is cataclysmic: clashing tectonic plates that create soaring mountain ranges, bubbling lava that simultaneously scorches the earth while nourishing it with life-giving minerals. I can even manipulate the miraculous spark that ignites life. L. and I were talking once about which Greek deities we thought each other resembled--she's very much into myth, folklore, archetypes and all that stuff. She told me I reminded her of Hermes. At first I didn't agree with her. She's the trickster, as is he. But she reminded me that Hermes is also the messenger between realms...and I am definitely that. I move between realities and planes. I reconcile extremes while not belonging to any. In fact, I abhor labels. Like Hermes, I do not conform and do not limit myself, including in regards to constructs of gender and sexuality. Here's my little riff on Descartes: I am; therefore, I love.
"My directive is freedom. Freedom from anything that threatens to diminish you. I impart to my students that they must learn who they are so they can claim themselves. That's the best kind of control. To control your own narrative, to have agency and choice. It's liberating to reject antiquated norms, prejudices, judgment: all things that diminish our light and our power. I think too many folks are afraid of that. It is easier to model what is familiar. So that is why I need to be "too much". That's why I need to be confounding and inscrutable in some ways. I am a reminder that you can be larger than the "space" society allots you. I like to read and a poet I enjoy is Walt Whitman. He wrote a poem called "Song of Myself" and it contains the following lines that just floored me when I read them, because I identified with them so much: 'Do I contradict myself?/Very well then I contradict myself;/(I am large, I contain multitudes.)' Beautiful, right? We all contain multitudes. And we have the right, the freedom to explore that, to add to ourselves, to renew, restore, and rescue ourselves-- and each other. Because within us are infinite possibilities. Know who else is cool? Carl Sagan. He said that we are all made of star stuff. And he's right. We're all superstars; so, shine on and shine brightly!" -Morgyn Ember, Sage of Untamed Magic
Sims 4 Loredump #1
My world is divided up into a diverse array of sapient species, most of which possess the ability to interbreed, leading to a societal majority of hybrids that can trace their heritage across several species. But there are a few main categories to consider.
Terrestrials: A culmination of planetary natives, including all primarily land-dwelling sapients. Terrestrials arose naturally through evolution.
Aquatics: The water-born counterpart to terrestrials. Consists of sapients native to the planet that primarily live underwater. Aquatics, too, came to be from evolution.
Extraterrestrials: A giant category containing any sapient non-native to the planet. This includes species that evolved on planetary satellites, such as species that are native to the moon.
Occults: Entities of an unexplained origin, assumed to violate the known laws of reality. This is most commonly reserved for cryptids.
Androids: Artificially produced mechanical sapients are collectively considered Androids. Their sapience was proven not long ago, resulting in their liberation from previously designated service. Unlike AI that has been trained to mimic the functions of sapients, android technology was created by recreating the brain itself in a digital medium. Hormones are replaced by variables, for instance.
Existentials: Creatures who strongly affect existence or are strongly related to the nature of the universe itself (such as creatures who have been around since the beginning of the universe.) Technically, any other creature could become an ‘Existential’ on these caveats, if they acquire the right power. A few sapient species have reached this point. But most Existentials, such as Demons, were born into the role they have.