Thus Spake Zaranephilpal/DestroyingMonstrances

Subject: Abyssal Monstrance Destruction Nephilpal - 08/04/2004 12:32:41

Ok, my understanding is thus:

1) If you kill an Abyssal, her Essence flees, working its way back to the home Monstrance it is attuned to. The Deathlord may use this power to create a replacement. If there is no Monstrance to which it is attuned, the Essence wanders in a confused state and may be poached by other Deathlords. The higher soul of a slain Abyssal always falls into Oblivion unless she has magic preventing such. The lower soul almost always lingers as a hungry ghost.

2) If you throw an Abyssal's Monstrance into the Void, the Abyssal is killed by sympathetic resonance. Her higher soul falls into Oblivion normally. The Essence no longer has a cage to return to, which means it can be poached.

The main reason that Deathlords don't use this trick as a way to execute wayward deathknights is not that it will decrease the overall numbers of Abyssals, but because they then lose certain control of the wandering shard.