Myr

What is Myr?

Myr is a magical force existing in the world of Usurper's Bane. Myr mainly affects plantlife, but also animals and humans. A very skilled druid can cause Myr to merge with steel and stone weapons in rare cases. Once a tree gets infected with Myr, the Myr becomes a visible presense within the tree, giving of a glowing purple light. Once the tree is cut down, the Myr retreats to the tree stump that is left behind and remains active there, while the dead tree becomes Myr-free. A tree infected with Myr is too sturdy to fall due to heavy storms, it can also no longer be touched with stone tools. Only newly sharpened steel and cut down a Myr-tree, and even then it takes a while. Myr-infected plantlife also grows at an incredible fast rate, a tree growing from seed to fully grown in the span of two years.

How does Myr spread?

Contrary to popular belief, being in close proximity to Myr infected plantlife does not cause infection in animals or humans. Consuming the plantlife does not have any effect either, as the Myr leaves any part of the plant that is chewed of or harvested and therefor no longer alive. Becoming infected with Myr involves willingly embracing the magical force, and in order to do so, the person in question only needs to have contact with the earth. Digging down into the earth might speed up the process, although this is not certain as some druids are still discussing this theory. However, everyone agrees on the fact that the only way to be infected with Myr is for the person or animal to want to be infected. Wishing for the Myr to enter your body while standing outside barefoot on the ground will cause you to slowly become infected. There has however been rumours of a certain branch within the Druid community that claims to have found ways to use unconventional methods to force the Myr to affect others who are not willing to accept it, however this has yet to be confirmed.

What effects does Myr have on a human?

The effects will always vary depending on the level of infection.

Mild Infection: A mildly infected individual will become physically stronger, able to lift heavier things and hit harder. The person will gain more stamina than a regular human and require less sleep and rest. The person will however be slowed down when it comes to movement, losing out on speed and agility. A mild infection is spotted by the person having minor signs of the presense of Myr on it's body, sometimes it can be very difficult to detect.

Major Infection: A majorly affected individual will gain different inhuman abilities depending on the person's goals and wishes. These abilities include but are not limited to: Healing, both themselves and others. Creating heat and starting fires through touch. No longer needing to breathe underwater. Visions of events happening in other places of the world. Creating dreams for others by touching their bodies as they sleep. Causing people physical pain by eye contact. Reading other people's thoughts through eye contact or touch. Sense nearby other individuals with major Myr infections. A major infection is very easy to spot, with purple branches and horns taking over and replacing the person's flesh and sometimes even limbs.

Final Stage Infection: There are not many recorded individuals who has managed to reach this stage. The last known individual that managed it was a Druid known as The Tree Man, who vanished from the world 90 years ago. In the final stage of infection, the individual is able to perform miracles, such as regrowing limbs soldiers have lost in battle, reviving the dead, enter the minds of animanls and bend them to their will, predict the future, live without food or water, and more. The Druids have many legends about The Tree Man, and today it is hard to tell which are true and which are made up. One legend says he turned a woman who broke her promise to him into a deer, then he entered the mind of a bear and hunted her down and killed her and ate her body. Another legend says he predicted the avalanch in Nortung and it was thanks to The Tree Man that the Vargblod family got out in time and survived. In other legends he is reviving people's lost family members, growing trees and plants in seconds and stopping forest fires by whispering to the fire to die.