Qui

A Qui is a minuscule fragment of life essence which can be gathered from the souls of mortals, the souls of some magical creatures, or from the Abyss. Qui are used to imbue objects with artificial life, the majority of which are found within Animastic Companions. A qui can be created from any living thing, any soul and from the Abyss.

A qui contains no memories or experiences of its source. Much like Grimyte Ghosts, it's only a mimic of life. It's a simple essence, a driving force of life. It can easily be compared to a battery. It has limited sentience, if none at all, and is primarily motivated by preservation. Qui is such a small factor of what makes an entity what they are that a single living thing may be filled with an endless amount of qui.

Appearance
A qui resembles an egg-shaped rock with strange textures and glowing areas, much as if it were alive. Qui may be any color.

Creating Qui
Animastic Users normally cannot create qui themselves. It must be obtained, or in rare cases created with the help of an Archanimast. When a user learns an ability that requires life, the qui they require will be given by their coven unless the ability states that the qui can be self-derived or harvested. Users can also request qui to be specially made from a source of their choice.

Using Qui
When an animastic ability requires qui, their coven will supply qui that are capable of performing that ability. The qui required will be supplied to the animastic user and replenished whenever they need new companions. By default, this will always be Abyssal qui, although they may obtain any qui type they like.

Types of Qui
Qui is made by combining life essence with Arcana. The amount of arcana used to create the qui will dictate how complex its host's physical form can be. Aside from this, each qui has different characteristics which may affect the demeanor or intelligence of your companion.

Grades of Qui
In addition to type, qui are also categorized by how powerful they are. This will determine how large or complex of a body they can imbue with life. Grade C qui can raise basic bodies, Grade B qui can raise complex bodies, and Grade A qui can raise extremely complex bodies.

Qui Currency
Grimytes don't have a traditional economy, but it is common to trade valuable materials. One of the most desirable items to trade with is life essence; Qui. Qui is used in every facet of Grimyte culture, so it is always valuable to accept qui as payment. It has become so popular to trade qui that it is essentially a currency. As such, its value is ranked slightly differently. When qui is traded as currency it is valued by how old it is. The more qui is used, the more its core color changes. Its core will always come in one of three color types: Silver, for weak or unused qui, Gold, for moderately aged qui, ad Emerald, for ancient or renowned Qui. This ore color will sometimes correspond to its grade.

Choosing Qui
Ultimately, your qui type choice is just a preference. This will allow you to further customize the look and feel of your character's companions. Abyssal qui is more intelligent, Mortal qui is more characteristic, and demonic qui is more predatory.

Qui Possession & Death
Once you have a qui in your inventory, it will stay there forever unless it is destroyed. When a companion is killed, this does not always mean the qui is destroyed. Most of the time, unless an opponent is directly attempting to destroy the companion's qui, the qui will simply be unable to use its host body. When the companion's body is destroyed, the qui can be placed into another viable body or can remain intact while the body is repaired.

When a companion is created on-site, the ability which creates it will involve the user placing the qui into their companion. When a companion is summoned, it may be summoned with a qui, or the user may supply the qui when summoning.

Roleplaying With Qui
It's important to remember that, while a qui may have intelligence, it is not capable of higher thinking or nuance ideas. Its needs are simply to be commanded and utilized. Qui are not capable of forming relationships outside of its service to its master. They do not make friends or form bonds. Depending on their power, they may not even understand complex commands or how to perform when no command is given.

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