Castes, UPDATED: 6/4/09

[Epa]

Females

• Black Widow Healer Queen*
• Black Widow Priestess Queen*
• Black Widow Queen
• Healer Queen
• Priestess Queen
• Black Widow Healer
• Black Widow Priestess
• Black Widow
• Healer Priestess
• Healer
• Priestess
• Hearth Witch
• Witch
• Blood Female

Males

• Black Widow Warlord Prince**
• Warlord Prince
• Black Widow Prince**
• Prince
• Black Widow Warlord**
• Warlord
• Blood Male

Important Notes

• * Triple Caste witches are the rarest of all the Blood. At this time the staff is discussing this option.
• ** Like Triple Caste witches, males who are part of the Hourglass are rare. Even rarer still is a male who is a natural Black Widow (meaning they have the snake tooth) since this has been historically and genetically a female Caste. At this time the staff is discussing this option. For those who have wish to have a male character trained in the Hourglass Craft, this is allowed, they will just be titled as "Warlord Prince ( Black Widow)".
• Anything that has "Caste (Caste)" in their profile means that the first part is the character's birth Caste. What's in parentheses is the Caste they trained in.

[Epa]

Females

Blood Female: A general term for all females of the Blood; mostly refers to any Blood Female who doesn’t wear Jewels.

Witch: A Blood female who wears Jewels but isn’t one of the other Hierarchical levels; also refers to any Jeweled female; equal in status to Warlords. A talented witch may sometimes undertake training to become a Healer, Priestess or Black Widow (but Witches will still be have their castes titled as Witches; to indicate their additional training their title will be, EX. Witch; Trained Black Widow)

Hearth Witch: A Blood female who wears Jewels but does not belong to one of the other hierarchical Castes. Technically she is a witch and thus the same level as Warlords, but because of the nature of these witches they are often thought to be a Caste in themselves. These witches are home-makers and directs her Craft towards that sort of thing (ex. cleaning, cooking, gardening, etc.)

Healer: A witch who heals physical wounds and illnesses; equal in status to Priestesses and a Princes. They are the medical professionals of Blood society. Healers are usually highly respected, for they will sacrifice themselves in order to save others, which is also a reason why must always have a Jeweled male to serve them and ensure their health and safety. There are two kinds of Healers, witches are trained in the Healing Craft or those who are born to it and thus are better at it then those who are trained because they have a natural instinct for the Craft.

Priestess: A witch who cares for alters, Sanctuaries, and Dark Altars; witnesses hand fasts and marriages; performs offerings; equal in status to Healers and Princes. They are considered to be the most spiritual of the Castes. There are two kinds of Priestesses, witches are trained in the Altar Craft or those who are born to it and thus most always have a deeper level of spirituality.

Black Widow: A witch who heals the mind; weaves webs of dreams and visions; can see potential futures and outcomes; trained in illusions and poisons. Usually considered to be the most dangerous of the female Castes, Black Widows are equal in status to no one and answer only to Queens, Warlord Princes and other Black Widows of a darker Jewel rank. They have the strongest ties to the mind and thus they can walk between that fine line between sanity and insanity, otherwise known as the Twisted Kingdom.

There are two types of Black Widows, those who are trained in the Hourglass Craft and those who are born to it. Each dangerous, but oftentimes natural Black Widows are thought to be the more dangerous of the two. Natural Black Widows, or those born into the Craft are different from their trained counterparts because they have physical traits of their Craft that do not emerge until the onset of puberty. Some of these traits are lucid or prophetic dreaming, an immunity to the many poisons and venom in the Realms, and the natural production of her own venom which is thought to be the main source and reason to the Black Widow's immunity to poisons.

This venom is produced from a snake tooth, a small, hollow claw that takes its name after the reptile's fang that it closely resembles. The snake tooth is located under the tip of ring finger on a witch's right hand and only comes out when the witch wills it to or if a knowledgeable person knows where to touch to bring it forth. The tooth is connected to small venom sac that is located under the fingernail and must be milked on every few to prevent if from thickening or even crystallizing, which makes it quite painful for the Black Widow if she does nothing about it (or even when she tries to milk the crystallized venom). If a Black Widow's right ring finger is hot, it is a sign that she has not been properly taking care of herself by milking her tooth.

When a Black Widow milks her snake tooth, she uses four drops of her own venom mixed in a warm drink to restore the balance in her body after the tooth has been milked. This is because after venom is created in the sac, a Black Widow craves poison although what is taken in should be done with care. This is because, even though they have a higher immunity the most Blood, the wrong poison can be as deadly to a Black Widow as to the rest of the Blood which is why using their own is best. So typically a Black Widow will milk her tooth just before her moontime so they can use their own venom to stimulate them their bodies during those days of rest to help the venom sac refill without any discomfort.

Queen: A witch who rules the Blood; is considered to be the land’s heart and the Blood’s moral Center; as such, she is the focal point of their society. They are the highest and most rare of all the Caste, which is part of the reason why the are so carefully protected. They have the strongest ties to the land, feeling the ebb and flow of the seasons and are able to sense when something is amiss in the land although that ability works best with the land that they felt a closer connection to. Queens are the only Blood who have the Craft to heal the land after it has been damaged or tainted and thus there is on training to be a Queen because they are born into what they are. There is something about the strength and nature of these witches that gives them a distinctive psychic scent that cannot be hidden from males regardless of how many layers of tangled webs woven around her.

[Epa]

Males

Blood Male: A general term for all males of the Blood; mostly refers to any Blood male who doesn’t wear Jewels.

Warlord: A Jeweled male equal in status to a witch. They are generally the most docile in nature of all the male castes. They rise to the killing edge only when greatly provoked.

Prince: A Jeweled male equal in status to a Priestess or Healer. Princes tend to rise to the killing edge quicker than Warlords, but will back off in the presence of a Warlord Prince who is a more dominant male.

Warlord Prince: The highest ranking Caste of male, Warlord Princes are above all other Caste except for Queens who are several steps that of these males. Out of all the Castes they are the most territoral, aggressive and dangerous, although not so much as a female, particularly a Queen being riled. Like all males they have need to be bonded in service to a strong female, although a bond of love will work just as well for a female to hold a leash of such a volatile male. They rise quickly to the Killing Edge with little or no warning and can leave horror and death in their wake. Regardless of what Jewels they wear, these males are always handled very carefully.

Because of their very nature, Warlord Princes will always see other males as threat and/or competition, although another Warlord Prince will cause a more violent reaction particularly when meeting each other the first time. It is not uncommon for two Warlord Princes meeting for the first time to rise to the killing edge in response. The only things that will cause them to back away from stepping onto that battlefield as the presence of a female they love or serve or a strong sense of the Protocol and honor that keep the Blood leashed. In some ways Warlord Princes can be compared to Healers in the fact that Warlord Princes will often disregard their own health and safety when protecting someone they love or serve. Like other male Castes, Warlord Princes will often rule in the absence of a Queen, but they are the only male Caste who can rule a Territory in a Queen's absence.

Another side note, because Warlord Princes are termed to be passionately violent and violently passionate, not to mention far more territorial, being around them when a certain witch has intrigued them sexually is a bad thing. In fact it's detrimental to the health since they will react in a very blunt and simple way to rivals: they kill them. Because they can't be faulted for their nature that is instinctive to them as breathing, Protocol was created to deal with situations like these to keep the death toll to a minimum. So when a Warlord Prince is interested in a woman, he will stake his claim which makes all other males stand back to give the Warlord Prince time to get to know the witch; and to let the witch get to know him and decide if she really wants all that temper and sexual hunger focused exclusively on her. The decision is completely up to the woman and if she tells him to go, Protocol dictates that he must leave.