Erylian Lore : Soul Thistle

Due to the work I am doing right now to get ready for the Erylian Epic launch, catching up on Patreon content, and also being in a more taxing class this quarter, I will be doing some shorter World Building Wednesdays. This one is one I had already done most of the work for in my DM Journal. This week is another piece of botany I have worked on for Erylia, though unlike bloodthorn, this is one isn’t a drug with mechanics attached to it.

Soul Thistle is an herb that is primarily known to be used in a ritual for a potential warlock to reach out to a patron and try to form a pact. Soul Thistle on Syvahl is generally an herb that is exported from The Faevale, however the Fae do not often deal with outsiders on their own, and it is very difficult to get to The Faevale. Due to this, not many people are able to get their hands on Soul Thistle, and those that do are able to charge a premium for it. There are rumors that a few people have managed to grow Soul Thistle on their own, but those who have keep the supply scarce to keep its value up.

Soul Thistle is a small flower that sprouts from a fuzzy looking bulb on its stock. The flower itself grows silver and it is said to react to the magic around it, giving it a slight glow in highly magical areas. For Soul Thistle to grow into a useful form, it must feed off of magic and absorb it, this is why it grows so natively in The Faevale, few other places are as magical. This also means that those who wish to grow it themselves have to nurture it with magic of their own, draining them of the ability to use it in the process.

There is a very small window in which you can harvest Soul Thistle. After months of absorbing magic from its surroundings, the bulb will begin to open up, allowing the magic to flow into the flowers petals. The petals begin to grow brighter and brighter until a single flower could light a small room on its own. It is during this time that the petals must be plucked and prepared. Once plucked, the petals will slowly begin to fade, but the magic that was released into them remains and they will continue to glow softly. They must then be protected and dried, because once a petal is crushed, it begins to lose its potency and will quickly become useless. If a Soul Thistle bulb opens and the petals are not harvested before falling off, the magic within them will quickly fade and the petals will darken, rendering them useless.

I’d also like to remind all of my readers here that while I intend to keep up my weekly posts here, I will be adding all of this content, and more, to World Anvil, so make sure to follow us there!