| Category | Resources |
| Type | energy |
| Source | souled beings |
Every living creature is said to possess energy. When non-sentient beings draw their last breath, they do not pass on to another system; instead, they release a fragment of life energy. Sentient beings, on the other hand, have their spirits depart for non- Mortal Systems. The destination is determined by their Alignment and patron deity. If they lack a deity, they may wander the dozens of worlds in Limbo for a considerable time before being claimed. If they do not fit any alignment, they are waylaid in borderline Systems like Acheron, Arcadia, Pandemonium, and the Twin Paradises until someone convinces or guides them to a particular Soul Gathering System. In these non-soul gathering systems, the spirit risks being captured by night hags and others who traffic in soul energy.
The mortal body housed the soul energy, while the spirit merely served as a vessel. To those who can perceive the spectrum, the spirit is nothing more than a ghostly semblance of the creature's former living state.
Bruh Kreniik, from the book Wisdom of Bruh Kreniik - "Path of Souls"
In the primordial era of Creation, Bruh Kreniik sought a means to ensure his creations would evade Chaos and the cycle of dissolution and reabsorption upon their demise. Bruh Kreniik crafted the inaugural Well of Afterlife, a device that acted as a conduit for specific energy types, intercepting the spirit before it was swept away in the Sea of Entropy.
In the God Era, the astral deva Polyxo experimented with soul energy at Quelmollendë. Her intention was to create a variant of the dwarves more accustomed to the deeper regions of the Underdark. Polyxo's experiments using soul energy to generate new life forms met only partial success. This was because the souls she utilized were destined for the Abyss, normally to become the chattel of the system's demon lords, reborn as pitiful manes. Polyxo repurposed these chaotic evil souls, employing them to create new life forms. For most of those produced in this manner, the result was something degenerate, mutated, twisted, or prone to insanity. The Derro race were among these creations.
Soul energy is also utilized to imbue magical items with sentience. This process can occur voluntarily by a benevolent spirit for a good-aligned item, or forcibly for neutral or malevolent ones. Some weapons siphon soul energy to empower themselves or to annihilate the soul entirely in the case of the most sinister armaments. A soul destroyed in such a manner is exceedingly difficult to reconstitute, even for the divine; those privy to this knowledge understand that Higher Powers are not as omnipotent as the populace has been led to believe.
When immortals perish, their soul energy reverts to their system of origin. A demon returns to the Abyss, a devil to the Hells, a modron to Mechanus, a lawful good celestial to Nawenglorûs, and so on, in accordance with their Soul Gathering System. Their life energy remains at the site of their demise, replaced as their body reforms on their home system. The time required for this reformation varies based on the former strength of the individual, with Higher Powers reforming within days, but lesser entities taking up to a century. Non-mortals can only be permanently eradicated within their home system, necessitating specialized measures to eliminate a formidable immortal in their native realm.
The paramount priority when seeking to retire an immortal is to secure the area and restrict the foe's mobility. This necessitates employing magic to impede teleportation and other interdimensional movement. The subsequent steps depend on the adversary, but preventing others from rendering assistance to their master is the next imperative, followed by an ample supply of Godhead and several mass resurrection scrolls.
Corin Reradrane, a member of the renowned adventuring group Retirees, is known for their epic saga "Immortal Retirement"