During my latest re-read I noticed something that I’d glossed over several times since the Kushan war was still ongoing. But I’ve just finished the siege of Vrittanis and several things jumped out at me, specifically about the mystery of distinguishing Kushan magic, apostle powers, and the mixing of the two in the case of the artificial beherit. Some starting points to note.
-We know how the daka are created from the artificial beherit. They are human fetuses plunged into the astral layer inside apostles, while Kushan priests surround it in prayer (to direct it? Out of superstition?)
-The Pishacha are wild animals turned monstrous by some unspecified magic.
-The Pishacha are controlled or directed by Kushan priests as well as the Daka (We see the Daka lose coordination when Guts kills one in Vrittanis).
-We’ve seen that the priests and Daiba are inhailing Ganishka’s fog, using it as a method to control the Pishacha and Daka
-The Daka retreat when Ganishka’s fog recedes (which could mean they are under it’s influence, or else are just demoralized)
-Garuda doesn’t seem to be a pishacha, nor something like the Daka.
-The Kunadlini appears to be unique, perhaps an eastern God that appeared before the merging of the worlds.
-Ganishka can project his apostle form from far away, something unique to apostles we see. It’s unclear if this is apostle power or some outside magic (or both)
So on to questions:
What exactly are the Pishacha and how do they work? They appear to be different than the daka, as they revert to a natural form when they die (much like an apostle). And it seems ridiculous that the Kushan are dropping whales and elephants into the artificial beherit.Are they animals possessed by Ganishka’s fog in a way similar to pseudo apostles?
If this is the case, why does this same fog not turn the priests and Daiba monstrous, but rather give them a level of control?
Do we have a solid grasp on exactly how the Kushan army uses magic to create some of these creatures. Is it magic or just Ganishka using his unique Apostle properties to influence and create entire armies.
Is Garuda just a supernatural creature from the east, akin to trolls? The same with the Kundalini? Seems like it.
I know this is kind of a broad post, but I find the type of and the amount of supernatural in the Kushan forces to vary quite a bit and not have explanations as clear or obvious as apostle power or Schierke’s magic. I wanted to see if the community can help nail down the accepted explanation on how some of this works. I know parts of this topic have been covered piecemeal over the years, but a lot of it was speculation before this part of the story was fully finished and it's spread across threads stretching 10 years back. I'm hoping we can tackle this topic in one centralized area now that the Kushan part of the story is mainly over.
-We know how the daka are created from the artificial beherit. They are human fetuses plunged into the astral layer inside apostles, while Kushan priests surround it in prayer (to direct it? Out of superstition?)
-The Pishacha are wild animals turned monstrous by some unspecified magic.
-The Pishacha are controlled or directed by Kushan priests as well as the Daka (We see the Daka lose coordination when Guts kills one in Vrittanis).
-We’ve seen that the priests and Daiba are inhailing Ganishka’s fog, using it as a method to control the Pishacha and Daka
-The Daka retreat when Ganishka’s fog recedes (which could mean they are under it’s influence, or else are just demoralized)
-Garuda doesn’t seem to be a pishacha, nor something like the Daka.
-The Kunadlini appears to be unique, perhaps an eastern God that appeared before the merging of the worlds.
-Ganishka can project his apostle form from far away, something unique to apostles we see. It’s unclear if this is apostle power or some outside magic (or both)
So on to questions:
What exactly are the Pishacha and how do they work? They appear to be different than the daka, as they revert to a natural form when they die (much like an apostle). And it seems ridiculous that the Kushan are dropping whales and elephants into the artificial beherit.Are they animals possessed by Ganishka’s fog in a way similar to pseudo apostles?
If this is the case, why does this same fog not turn the priests and Daiba monstrous, but rather give them a level of control?
Do we have a solid grasp on exactly how the Kushan army uses magic to create some of these creatures. Is it magic or just Ganishka using his unique Apostle properties to influence and create entire armies.
Is Garuda just a supernatural creature from the east, akin to trolls? The same with the Kundalini? Seems like it.
I know this is kind of a broad post, but I find the type of and the amount of supernatural in the Kushan forces to vary quite a bit and not have explanations as clear or obvious as apostle power or Schierke’s magic. I wanted to see if the community can help nail down the accepted explanation on how some of this works. I know parts of this topic have been covered piecemeal over the years, but a lot of it was speculation before this part of the story was fully finished and it's spread across threads stretching 10 years back. I'm hoping we can tackle this topic in one centralized area now that the Kushan part of the story is mainly over.