Dominion of Death

The Divine Dominion of Death allows those who wield it command over the dead. The Dominion enables death to be induced and shaped, and for the souls of mortals, who are unaccustomed to immaterial existence, to be manipulated and bound.

Soulsense (Novice+)
The Soulsense is a Death wielders ability to sense the souls of other beings, as well as to detect the strength of the Veil, and if there happen to be any tears or weak points in it. The Soulsense enables a Death wielder to detect if a soul is undergoing the act of Severance, where it disconnects from the body at the moment of death.


 * Novice: Soulsense usually extends only to one's direct presence, such as the area within the same room as them. Typically, no more than a handful of souls can be examined at once, and doing so requires intense and active concentration.
 * Adept: Soulsense ranges from up to a few hundred feet, to close to half a mile, especially for larger, more noticeable souls or Veil based disturbances. Dozens of souls can be examined at once, which still requires active concentration to do. It is also generally impossible to pinpoint the exact location of a soul, unless it is extremely potent, or the Death wielder is extremely close to the soul in question. Furthermore, however, it is possible, with greater concentration and difficulty, to sense the signature of an individual soul, allowing a Death wielder to recognize beings by their soul alone.
 * Expert: Soulsense can extend for several miles, being able to cover areas between a small town and a large portion of a city. Sensing souls becomes passive for practiced users of the Soulsense, and vastly more precise, meaning that they can detect the presence of any being with a soul, unless they are magically hiding it from detection. Recognizing individual souls still requires some focus, but not as much as previously. They are also able to inspect the souls of hundreds of people at once. Experts are also able to share their Soulsense with other souls that they are aware of.
 * Master: Masters of the Soulsense can detect souls and shifts within the Veil over tens to hundreds of miles, easily enabling them to notice soul related disturbances within large regions, and are limited to directly observing the souls of thousands of people. Individual souls can be easily picked out.
 * Archmaster: An Archmaster of Death using the Soulsense can take notice of Veil and soul based phenomena across continents or even entire realms, while directly scanning tens of thousands at once.
 * Absolute Master: The Absolute Master of Death can sense souls of hundreds of thousands at once without trouble, with the range of the Soulsense being able to extend across multiple realms.

Soulshroud (Novice+)
A Soulshroud is a Death wielder's personal barrier around their soul, which prevents it from being detected and manipulated by other beings who utilize the Dominion of Death.


 * Novice:
 * Adept:
 * Expert:
 * Master:
 * Archmaster:
 * Absolute Master: An Absolute Master of Death is able to permanently shroud any soul from the Soulsense of other beings, and make it completely immune to Death based manipulations.

Veil Shaping (Adept+)
Veil Shaping allows a Death wielder to manipulate the Veil, the barrier that prevents ghosts from being perceived by mundane means, or being able to interact with the physical world. By altering the strength of the Veil (or at more advanced levels, pulling it down completely), they can make it easier or harder for ghosts to manifest, or to themselves become incorporeal and invisible.


 * Adept: Adepts in the Dominion of Death can reshape the Veil within their Soulsense range. They can also create a small tear within the Veil (which is sustained only by their will and power), allowing themselves and other corporeal beings to step through it to become intangible. They may also weaken the Veil to temporarily allow ghosts to become visible to anyone who looks at them, or to even momentarily interact with the physical world. Furthermore, they are also able to seal small tears in the Veil.
 * Expert: Death Experts are temporarily able to completely drop the Veil within range of their Soulsense, allowing all ghosts to interact with the physical world. This is more tiring the larger the area covered, and the lowering of the Veil requires constant energy to keep it maintained. They are also capable of attempting to raise the Veil once more to thwart the efforts of other Death wielders. It is also possible to open large, two way Veil tears, which both ghosts and corporeal beings may pass through, though keeping the tear open requires a constant expenditure of strength. The ghosts, however, must remain near the tear in order to maintain their physical form. Conversely, it is also possible to restore the Veil or seal a large breach in it.
 * Master: Masters of Death can open permanent tears in the Veil, ripping forth openings so huge and potent that they remain open until sealed. They are able to cause the Veil in a region dictated by their Soulsense to remain lowered until such time as it is pulled up again by another Death wielder or wielders of sufficient power.
 * Archmaster: A Death Archmaster is capable of permanently removing the Veil completely from a region, by absorbing its essence into themselves. Not merely lowering it, but removing it utterly, so that it cannot be brought up again, and ghosts are free to interact with the corporeal world. A realm which has had its Veil completely removed so that ghosts and spirits might roam freely is known as an Underworld. The Archmaster who created an Underworld is able to release the essence of the Veil they took in if they wish to restore the realm to its previous state.
 * Absolute Master: The Absolute Master of Death is able to generate the essence of the Veil if they so wish.

Soul Manipulation (Adept+)
The ability to manipulate souls gives Death wielders command over the spirit of a being. Using Soul Manipulation, a sufficiently potent Death wielder may instantly induce Severance, making the soul leave a body, or forcing it to stay, holding death off. Skilled Death wielders can command the wills of any soul that has experienced Severance, commanding a ghost or forcing it into an unoccupied corpse to rise as a zombie thrall. Great masters might even tear a soul apart, or even reconstitute one.


 * Adept: An Adept in Death has the capability the forestall Severance for any creature which they make and maintain physical contact with. This can enable them to keep an ally from death long enough for them to be healed, or prolong an enemy's suffering. They are able to physically interact with ghosts through the Veil, bludgeoning or grabbing them with their hands or another object they are touching, damaging them sufficiently so they are temporarily dispelled. Death wielders at this stage are also able to force a spirit out of body it is not native to, or force it into an unoccupied one, as well as pull them out of an object (though not yet force them into one), usually through some form of physical contact. Higher level Adepts are able to compel souls who have undergone the act of Severance to obey their commands.
 * Expert: Death Experts have the ability to induce False Severance of a soul with a touch, or will it to happen to themselves. This allows them and allies to traverse the area beyond the Veil while their bodies remain safe somewhere else. False Severance is not true death, and any soul that has undergone the process can return to their body by making contact with it. An Expert in Death can also summon any Severed soul they have previously encountered to them, so long as it is not sheltered within the confines of a body and they can overcome the soul's will with their own. Death experts are also able to bind a ghost into an object, either keeping them trapped near it and unable to stray far from its location, or trap them completely within the object. Lastly, Experts in Death are also able to permanently obliterate weaker souls that are within their presence.
 * Master: Masters of Death can induce a True Severance on any unprotected mortal being within their Soulsense range, and on more potent beings (such as halfborn) within their immediate presence, killing them. Against a being of similar power, they can attempt to forcibly pull out their soul via physical contact, and make attempts to bind or imprison it. Furthermore, Death Masters are able to heal damage to a soul, restoring one that has been shredded by another Death wielder.
 * Archmaster: A Death Archmaster is able to cause damage even to a godly soul, striking at it to cause horrific disorientation in combat, or if given more time, able to tear pieces away to cause long term crippling to a god's power and sanity.
 * Absolute Master: The Absolute Master of Death is able to completely devastate the souls of even a fully fledged god.