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DANGERS OF SALEM'S WILDS

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from natural curiosities to dark monsters

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Due to the perilous nature of the world beyond the walls, witches novice-ranked and below are rarely allowed to exit without the explicit permission of their coven, or by being guided by experienced witches through secured routes. Even novice ranked witches and above are encouraged to travel in groups.
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Salem's Council is only a governing body over the four main cities and any nearby towns which accept the their authority (often in return for stability or protection in some form). Outside of these areas, however, laws and punishments, if there are any, are determined by whatever small communities are living there. Though there are many nomadic peoples and tribes with laws comparable to those of the Council's (at least on a summarized level), there are also communities which are defined by raiding, theft, and murder. Banditry and piracy is not uncommon in the wilds, especially along known trade routs which have been warded from wraiths and other dangerous creatures. Violent cults and cultures are also not unheard of, especially in the harsher environments of the world.
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Salem has a wide variety of unique environments and a broad diversity of plant and animal species. In addition to most species which are found on modern, real life Earth, there are also more fantastical species which have evolved around the existence of mana and magic, allowing them to become larger or more powerful than natural biology or physics should allow. Although not the norm, some of these species are even capable of performing elemental magic. Im most cases, the element is the one most common to their environment (such as subterranean creatures performing earth magic, or aquatic creatures performing water magic).
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Like dogs and horses, some magical species (such as gryphons) have been known to take well to human care and direction, and may be domesticated or made companions. Many societies across Salem rely on such creatures in their day to day lives. This said, untamed animals can be incredibly dangerous.
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Wraiths (sometimes called abominations (archaic), antimas (academic), and other area-specific variants) are dark creations that are brought into being when the infinite energy of the inner strata blasts into the outer strata. They are wispy and shadowy in nature, but generally have red eyes and harder bodies beneath the shadowy exterior. The ruptures through which they're created, sometimes called "nests" or "rifts" by hunters, are voids of dark black energy that cut through the two dimensions, spurring uncontrollable energy and rendering free mana in the surrounding area unusable
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All magic works less effectively against wraiths (especially affinity magic), and spells from inexperienced witches will likely fail completely due to the pressure, gloom, and the overall aura of fear which they radiate. Casting becomes even more difficult when closer to a rupture.
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Wraiths and ruptures seem to have a corrupting energy, and will usually mutate the natural environment around where they appear, giving the flora and fauna painful and dangerous alterations. Certain types of wraiths may also have affinity-like powers, such as altering their own shape or controlling the dead.
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Though incredibly rare, it has been documented that some wraiths may have incredibly advanced level of intelligence, though none have yet managed to speak fluently with witches. Communication with wraiths is a taboo topic, and research into it has been banned by the Council of Salem.
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Ruptures are of three types: active, dormant and healed.
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Active ruptures spawn wraiths quickly at first, though this rate decreases significantly after the first wave is born. Over time, ruptures will spawn fewer and fewer wraiths until they cease to spawn any at all and become dormant. Dormant ruptures, for the most part, no longer spawn new wraiths, but have been known to randomly reactivate, making them a constant risk. Dormant ruptures will go through a healing process naturally, sealing themselves up and repairing the tear between dimensions. Unfortunately it takes several hundred yeas for the healing process to complete.
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Witches have not yet discovered how to heal ruptures, but they can accelerate the process of going from active to dormant, therefore lessening monster activity. This process is known as "stabilizing" and is carried out by using RSM-lamps or "restabilizers" which are expandable lamp-like structures with long, orange-liquid filled glowing cylinders at the top. Witches sent to stabilize a zone must defeat all wraiths and surround the rupture with RSM-lamps and activate them, after which it will take about five minutes for the rupture to become dormant.
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