FrivYeti/UnderworldConstellations

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The House Of The Eternal Dream

The five constellations of the Underworld are collectively referred to as the Eternal Dream of Slumber. They help to govern the fates of the dead, such as they are. However, because the dead have fallen off the Loom, and because the Underworld exists as a shadow upon Creation, only one such House is needed. This House governs fate in much the same way as the five Houses of Creation's constellations do, albeit with slightly wider goals.

Sidereals who learn these Colleges often find themselves frustrated, feeling as though there are areas where they simply cannot lay fates. This is true. The Underworld is a somewhat more restrictive place than Creation, and options are more limited. As a subset of that, the House of the Eternal Dream does not have any currently known sutras; whatever force placed them on the Loom did not do the same for Setesh's invention. Furthermore, there is no true Maiden for this House; Setesh himself does the job of fulfilling that role, and as such there is no one who might use the Colleges to create Charms for the Sidereals. As such, these colleges are divorced from Charm trees entirely.

Some people suggest that the five Constellations of the Underworld were once guiding facets of Creation, and that they fell before or during the Primordial War. If this is true, each would be associated, however loosely, with those constellations of Creation that took up their destinies as they fell. The fact that each of the Constellations seems to favour a given House of the Loom might support this, or it could simply reflect the Loom in much the same way that the Underworld reflects Creation.

The Colleges of the Underworld are weak, and their Resplendancies are equally weak. While Sidereals can create Resplendant Destinies, they do not provide additional powers in the manner of those of the Loom. Instead, they simply create disguises that can fool the denizens of the Underworld, but not those of Creation.

The Ancestor

The Ancestor is the constellation of wisdom and understanding, of the ultimate acceptance of and return to the cycle of reincarnation. In its ascending aspects, it is the college of patience, learning, and spiritual growth. In its descending aspects, it is the college of decay, indifference, and the gradual loss of self. It is the college of old ghosts, Lethe, and the forces of Creation.

The Ancestor is considered a Favoured College for the Chosen of Secrets.

Correlations: Essence use, Temperance, Prayer, journeys of discovery, grave goods, and the act of creation.

The Effigy

The Effigy is the constellation of conflict and war, of the need to do battle of some sort. In its ascending aspects, it is the drive to defend others, to sacrifice or martyr oneself, or to fight to protect an ideal. In its descending aspects, it represents rage and hatred, the burning need to destroy those who might oppose one. It is the college of necrotic beasts, effigies, warriors and hunters.

The Effigy is considered a Favoured College for the Chosen of Battles.

Correlations: Hungry Ghosts, Valor, Pyreflame, wars, and acts of violence.

The Fetter

The Fetter is the constellation of memory and interaction, of the desires and needs that cause ghosts to return to the world time and time again. In its ascending aspects, it reflects hope, love, and the drive to improve others' lives. In its descending aspects, it represents greed, envy, and the need to control. It is the college of young ghosts, leaders, and majordomos.

The Fetter is considered a Favoured College for the Chosen of Serenity.

Correlations: Passions and fetters, Compassion, Blood, ancestor cults, and the act of organization and direction.

The Maw

The Maw is the constellation of the Void. It represents and accounts for the unending pull that Oblivion exerts upon the Underworld, allowing the Calender to predict and affect the actions of spectres and their ilk. In its ascending aspect, it is the endless struggle against Oblivion, the fear of destruction that drives ghosts to greatness. It its descending aspect, it represents the pull of Oblivion itself, and the endless spiral of destruction that faces Creation.

The Maw is considered a Favoured College for the Chosen of Endings.

Correlations: Oblivion, Deathlords and the Abyssal Exalted, Ash, Spectres, fear, and the act of surrender.

The Tomb

The Tomb is the constellation of simple continuance. It is the constellation of those who refuse to surrender, who forge onwards regardless of their outside affairs, and who endure simply because they were not done living. In its ascending aspect, it represents grand ideals, the search for meaning, and belief in higher powers. In its descending aspects it represents blind stubborness and foolish martyrdoms, clinging to ideas that drag one downwards.

The Tomb is considered a Favoured College for the Chosen of Journeys.

Correlations: Death, Conviction, traditions and beliefs, gods, and the act of survival.

Comments

For those who are curious, I did have these five Constellations tied to Abilities, in much the same way as those of Creation. They are as follows: The Ancestor is tied to Savvy (whose functions were absorbed by Investigation and Larceny, the Key and the Guardians), the Effigy is tied to Command (whose functions were absorbed by Presence and War, the Gauntlet and the Shield), the Fetter is tied to Expression (whose functions were absorbed by Linguistics and Performance, the Musician and the Pillar), the Maw is tied to Brawl (whose functions were absorbed by Martial Arts and Awareness, the Crow and the Sword), and the Tomb is tied to Endurance (whose functions were absorbed by Resistance and Athletics, the Mast and the Ship's Wheel). This is non-canon even for this non-canon system, however; it's just a random idea for the way that Creation might adapt to lost abilities.