Clan of the Cats Glossary

[A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [H] [I] [J] [K] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [Q] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] [X] [Y] [Z]

-A-
Alpha-Morph
The most common general type of morph typified by acquisition of characteristics of the totem animal. See Morphs.
Alpha-Wizard
The usual spell-casting wizard capable of many different magickal effects. See Practitioners.
Ancient
Someone who, through magick, is able to sustain a very long life span. One cannot become an Ancient; they are only born into families with great magick within them. Ancients are usually Alpha-Wizards, Elemental-Wizards, or Pureblood-Morphs. An Ancient is basically a magickal mutation. The person will age normally until reaching about 35 years old. At that point, there is no further change and none of the signs of physical age appear. The age limit may have something to do with the fact that people didn’t get much older than 35 for a significant fraction of our history.
-B-
Born-Witch
Certain members of humanity (qv) are born with a direct and accessible connection to the power of magick above what the rest of humanity has. Such a person is called a born-witch, and is said to have a direct connection to magick. Their connection to magick is much less tenuous than that of a normal human. These people are capable of attempting more powerful spells than mere human-witches (qv). The most powerful wizards are born-witches who have put in extra effort of study to gain greater power. See Practitioners.
See also Magick, Magick Spells.
-C-
Cats, The
A very special group of felines. See The Cats.
Cerberus
A magickal (possibly demonic) dog with multiple heads.
Chinese Dragons
A specific variety of dragon. See Dragons.
Clan Chattan
The Scottish Clan from which Chelsea is descended and through which the Curse propagates. See Clan Chattan.
Common Witch
A practitioner of the witch tradition with normal power and ability. This is the majority of witches.
See Practitioners.
Council of Three
The governing body of the Netherworld (qv). Its basic mandate to prevent wars among members of the magickal community before they start. It has existed since 8096 BCE. See Council of Three.
Councillors
The three representatives of the three branches of the Netherworld. See the List of Councillors.
Craftsman
A human who is not a born-witch (qv) but has nevertheless dedicated his or her life to the study of the Craft. Craftsman can come from either a witch or wizard tradition. See Practitioners.
Critters
A term used by some practitioners to refer to various Netherworld beings and creatures, including vampires, were-wolves, and demons.
Curse of Mór Sine
The strong curse that affects the Chattan line. See The Curse of Mór Sine for full details and SPOILERS.
For those wishing to avoid major spoilers: It is also called the Mór Sine Curse, the Curse of Antigone, the Clan Chattan Curse, and the Curse of the Clan of the Cats. See strips 2000-01-21 and following for Ruth’s explanation to Diane.
-D-
Dark Magick
Selfish magick as practiced by Tepes-vampires, first discovered by Morana Muna.
Dark Practitioners
An order of practitioners. See Dark Practitioners.
See also Practitioners, Eleanor Uasal.
Dating System
COTC uses the CE-BCE dating system. See Dating System.
Demon-Vampires
Humanoid demons who are also vampires. They are rare. See Vampires, Lillith, Kern.
Demons
Extremely powerful, not necessarily “evil”, magickal beings. See Demons.
Detecting Stone
A “device” for detecting the presence of magick. The stone is normally black, indicating no magick present. It turns gold in the presence of strong magick. (other colours may be possible, depending on how strong the magick emanations are). Jacob Livingston can produce detecting stones at need: 2002-02-26, 2002-03-03.
Dimensions
Planes of existence separate from earth. See Dimensions.
Direct connection to magick
See Born-Witch.
Dragons
Reptilian magickal creatures often capable of flight and able to breath fire. See Dragons.
-E-
Elder Demons
See Old Ones.
Elemental Wizard
A wizard whose power is skewed through one of the magickal “elements”. See Practitioners.
-F-
Familiars
Small animals who aid a practitioner in performing magick by channelling the power, thereby yielding a greater level of effectiveness. Where would a witch be without her familiar? Not all practitioners use familiars to perform magick. Any small animal can be a familiar, although the cat seems to be the favorite. Other popular familiars include dogs (including wolves, foxes, coyotes), birds (including both domestic and wild), small reptiles such as lizards and snakes, and, rising in popularity, ferrets. So far, only Ruth has a familiar we know about: Sebo.
Fledgling
A newly created vampire. The creating vampire is called the sire (qv) regardless of whether it was male or female. See Vampires.
Foundation, The
An organisation that tried to replace the Council of Three after Dissolution. See The Foundation.
-G-
Ghosts
Usually, apparitions of deceased persons. See Ghosts.
Grand Wizard
A practitioner of the wizard tradition, always a born-witch (qv) and usually an Ancient (qv).
See Practitioners.
Great War
The name used by the Netherworld (qv) for the war started by Deus Lupus to unite the Netherworld and humanity. It started shortly after World War One ended when Deus Lupus had his “vision” of a unified world. It ended in 2000 CE when Deus Lupus was killed by Pureblood-Morph Chelsea Chattan.
See also Chelsea Chattan, Marcus Lupus Ferox/Deus Lupus.
Grimoire
A book of spells, often in the form of a diary. Many practitioners keep such a log of their successful spells. Ruth Chattan’s grimoire is called the Book of Shadows. Another example is the Grimoire of Eleanor Uasal. Grimoires are often passed down through a family of practitioners so that each generation can benefit from the experiences of their elders.
-H-
Humanity, Humans
Ordinary human beings who are not part of the magickal community called the Netherworld (qv). All humans have a normal connection to magick (see Non-Born-Witch). Humans can become practitioners (qv) through their own efforts or turned into vampires (qv). It is more rare for a human to become a morph (qv). A born-witch (qv) who never exercises his or her abilities would be effectively indistinguishable from a human, though the genetic potential for high magick can influence magickal phenomena such as curses.
Human-Witch
Term sometimes used for a practitioner following the witch tradition, who is a non-born-witch. See Non-Born-Witch (qv).
-I-
Inquisition of the Damned
A special Inquisition specifically against the Netherworld lasting from 1231 to 1838 CE. In 1231 Pope Gregory IX placed inquisitors under special papal jurisdiction. Later that same year another secret Inquisition began. This was specifically against the Netherworld. Many Morphs, Vampires, Wizards, and Witches were killed in the name of religious purification. While the Spanish Inquisition was halted in 1835, the Inquisition of the Damned lasted another three years before being quashed. However, there are still “Hunters of the Damned” roaming around, looking for Netherworld prey. It is suspected that the magickal Family of the Nyx were exterminated by the Inquisition (see Gustov).
-J-
-K-
Kitchen Witch
A specialist witch in potions and herbal medicine. The skill required often results in a Craftsman (qv).
-L-
Lilith-Vampire
The original lineage of vampires created by Lillith and all her fledglings. They are incredibly hard to kill. Note that Lillith is a Demon-Vampire, not a Lilith-Vampire. See Vampires.
See also Lillith, Lilith Myth.
-M-
Magick
The supernatural power that transcends normal physical laws. See Magick, Magick Spells.
Morph
The generic term for all types of were-creatures, that is, human beings able to assume animal or part-animal forms. See Morphs.
Mythical Creatures
The generic term for unusual, often magickal, creatures such as unicorns (qv), dragons (qv), and so forth. Such creatures usually have some feature which appears to violate accepted physical laws, and most have a strong connection to magick. For the most part, these creatures have fled the earth dimension to other realms and coexisting dimensions.
-N-
Naive Wizard
A practitioner of the wizard tradition who is just starting out. Many non-born-witch wizards stay at this level for lack of ability or dedication.
See Practitioners.
Netherworld, Netherworlders
The entire magickal community of beings and creatures who recognise that magick is available and works. See Netherworld.
Noble Witch
A practitioner of the witch tradition who is also a born-witch. Their magick is more reliable than that of a common witch, mostly due to their direct connection to magick.
See Practitioners.
Noble Wizard
A practitioner of the wizard tradition and a born-witch whose spell-casting is generally successful and reliable. This is the majority of wizards.
See Practitioners.
Non-Born-Witch
All members of humanity (qv) have, at least, a tenuous, near mythical, ability to use magick known as a normal connection to magick. This is true regardless of how determinedly mundane a person wishes to be. Any human who decides to devote his or her life to practice and study will achieve the ability to use magick as a non-born-witch, or human-witch. Because their connection to magick is weaker than that of a born-witch (qv), they rarely advance beyond the level of common witch or naive wizard, depending on which tradition they have chosen. Especially dedicated individuals may attain the level of Craftsman. See Practitioners.
See also Magick, Magick Spells.
Normal connection to magick
See Non-Born-Witch.
Nosferatu
The lineage of vampires created by Kern, Lillith’s son, and including all his fledglings. They are more vulnerable, especially to sunlight, than other vampires. Notes that Kern is a Demon-Vampire, not a Nosferatu. See Vampires.
See also Kern.
-O-
Old Ones
Term used for the extremely powerful, non-humanoid demons who set their curse on Lillith and others, creating vampires and other ghoulies for the earth. They are also called Elder Demons.
See also Demons.
-P-
Portal Wars
Name used by the Netherworld (qv) for the two-thousand-year-long series of battles beginning circa 10 000 BCE that eventually resulted in the formation of the Council of Three (qv). The history of the Portal Wars is largely lost in the mists of time. It is known that they were quite horrible, were highly destructive, and caused a lot of dissent between the various factions of the Netherworld.
See also Council, Origin; Netherworld; Dimensions; Portals.
Portals
Instantaneous magickal pathways between disjoint locations. See Portals.
Practitioner
The generic term for people able to use magick for their own ends. It encompasses both witches (qv) and wizards (qv). See Practitioners.
Prime Wizard
The most powerful practitioner of the wizard tradition. He or she is always a born-witch (qv) and always an Ancient (qv).
See Practitioners.
-Q-
-R-
-S-
Samhain
A Celtic festival celebrating the beginning of winter, on the night of 31 October to 1 November. (Modern usage places the beginning of winter at the winter solstice, around 22 December). Being an Irish word, it is pronouced “Saun” or “Sau-in” (emphasis on first syllable), where “au” has the same sound as the “ow” in “how” in both cases.
Scrolls of Hekate
A set of documents known under a variety of other names as well, including the Prayers of Isis, the Invocation of the Crone, and the Tome of the Old Ones. They were magickally written on parchment scrolls, and contain spells purported to have been written by the gods themselves. (In this case, there is a suspicion that these “gods” were various powerful practitioners or possibly demons.) The originals are safely under guard in the Vault of the Council of Three since Wolf Champion Marcus Lupus Ferox and Vampire-Councillor Lillith were kind enough to acquire them from Eleanor Uasal in 1461 CE. However, Eleanor is known to have transcribed at least some of the spells into her personal Grimoire, making the Grimoire of Eleanor Uasal one dangerous book.
Shapeshifter
A special type of morph requiring a ritual to change form. See Morphs.
Sire
The creator of a vampire, regardless of whether it was male or female. The newly created vampire is called a fledgling (qv). See Vampires.
Spells
The term used to cover a host of magickal effects. See Magick Spells.
-T-
Tepes-Vampire
The lineage of vampires beginning with Vlad Dracula Tepes and including both him and all his fledglings. They are vulnerable to Holy objects in a way other vampires are not. Note that Dracula is a Tepes-Vampire. See Vampires.
See also Dracula Tepes, Vlad.
-U-
Underlings
These seem to be relatively weak magickal creatures commonly found in association with demons. They appear to have a rather deathly fear of cats. See also Demons.
Unicorns
A one-horned magickal creature. See Unicorns.
-V-
Vampires
The generic term for beings who have become creatures of the night requiring blood to live. See Vampires.
Voodoo Soul Jar
A container capable of holding a soul after the death of the physical body. The soul is prevented from going on to it final resting place. While some uses of this type of artefact would be considered cruel and unusual punishment, Melpomene used one to hold Jubal’s soul after was shot and killed until the Resurrection Spell could be cast. There is no information on how long a soul can remain imprisioned in a voodoo soul jar. Opening the jar, or breaking it, will release the captured soul, which apparently has some awareness of its state.
-W-
Were-creature
A term refering to morphs excluding the Shapeshifter sub-group. See Morphs.
Were-wolf
Were-wolves are a specific, and very common, type of morph. See Morphs.
Western Dragons
A specific variety of dragon. See Dragons.
Witch
The term for a practitioner who follows the witch tradition of magick. They can use magick, but they have not made it a life-long study and passion. Compare with “Wizard” (qv). See Practitioners.
Wizard
The term for an unusually dedicated practitioner who follows the wizard tradition of magick. They use magick, but their focus is on study. Most have devoted devoted lives life to special study of magick and its nature. Compare with “Witch” (qv). See Practitioners.
Wyverns
A specific variety of dragon. See Dragons.
-X-
-Y-
-Z-
Zombies
Corpses of real, dead humans animated by magickal means. Jubal recognised a walking dead “Elvis”. Zombies do not have a will of their own, but do retain some fraction of their past memories. Also, zombies do not need nourishment to sustain themselves, but they can be instructed to consume human flesh (or other things) if need be. They are commonly found in association with demons. See also Demons.

References



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All content copyright © 1999-2002 by Jamie Robertson unless otherwise noted.

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