Josiah does, in fact, have a deeply personal relationship with Mortanne. Honestly, he probably had to fight not to join the clergy because he's so deeply devoted to Mortanne as a death goddess.
Does he consider himself a man of the cloth? No. Does he behave as one? He really does--Josiah fought to work as an undertaker because he sees death care as a sacred duty, a ministry of its own. By caring for the dead, not just burying the bodies, he's doing the work of the goddess.
To that end, Josiah is a death mage. It really is more or less the powers he was born with in his canon: mediumship (being able to see and communicate with the dead), foreseeing death (he has visions of deathly spectors that give him the name of those meant to die, within a seven day period), and he can do simple spells by harnessing the power of death. Examples:
- talismans use bone and blood - spells invoke the spirits of the dead, with offerings of gratitude made at their graves when the spell is completed - casting is often done at sunrise or sunset (the death/end of a night or a day) and the final phase of the waning moon - potions and tonics use poisons that are rendered inert when his magic consumes that deadly potential--but he's cautious and often includes counteragents for the protection of those partaking, like coal dust or natural antidotes
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Josiah does, in fact, have a deeply personal relationship with Mortanne. Honestly, he probably had to fight not to join the clergy because he's so deeply devoted to Mortanne as a death goddess.
Does he consider himself a man of the cloth? No. Does he behave as one? He really does--Josiah fought to work as an undertaker because he sees death care as a sacred duty, a ministry of its own. By caring for the dead, not just burying the bodies, he's doing the work of the goddess.
To that end, Josiah is a death mage. It really is more or less the powers he was born with in his canon: mediumship (being able to see and communicate with the dead), foreseeing death (he has visions of deathly spectors that give him the name of those meant to die, within a seven day period), and he can do simple spells by harnessing the power of death. Examples:
- talismans use bone and blood
- spells invoke the spirits of the dead, with offerings of gratitude made at their graves when the spell is completed
- casting is often done at sunrise or sunset (the death/end of a night or a day) and the final phase of the waning moon
- potions and tonics use poisons that are rendered inert when his magic consumes that deadly potential--but he's cautious and often includes counteragents for the protection of those partaking, like coal dust or natural antidotes