2015/07/27 [DMFA #1592] Happier days

[Tuyu]

Its one of the reasons soul stealing is a thing.  Generally the first time a creature does it, it doubles their lifespan.  So a 1k creature who does it will often get an extra 1k added to their lifespan (obviously keeping in mind the laws of averages and give or take a hundred or so years)  Next time however, that bonus is halved, so 500 years.  Then half of that to 250, and so on and so forth.

Sure there's rituals and methods and specifici targets that can enhance and extend and maximize effectiveness but overall the cost doesn't really outweigh the fact that at a point its taking more magical energy to keep someone together than really do-able.  Generally the most zealous and noteworthy offenders who aren't clan leaders seem to cap out around the 4k-5k mark either because its just too much to handle and they burn out...or because their antics got them in enough trouble to get someone after their crazy selves.

[mathgeek]If you take that description literally...1st gives you +100%, 2nd gives you +50%, etc...if it's a completely linear mathematical progression, soul stealing caps out at 3X normal lifespan, no matter how many souls you steal.

To cap out between 4K and 5K, each soul would have to be worth 2/3-3/4 the previous soul.

Of course, that assumes a linear progression...

At a 50% progression, you're getting less than an average being's life in added years by the 5th soul; 67% by the 8th; 75% by the 11th.[/mathgeek]

[Cassi-kun]

Haha, I have SOOO many fancharacters' ages to go in and correct now...

OR

I could be a lazy butt

Though yeesh, cutting Cubi down to 1k really amplifies how much "longer than normal" Dee's been livin' 

[Amber Williams]

It's why I mentioned the most "zealous" and "noteworthy" offenders.  They're likely the ones who are going to actually spend the time and effort into trying to maximize potential...and also the most likely to get attention drawn to them since well....killing 3 folks over the course of 2.5k years is likely not going to get nearly as much notice as someone who takes down a very powerful individual or wipes out a town.

And pfff...trust me my temptation to be a lazy butt is pretty strong as well.  At this point it'd be a lot easier to just be like "You know what? Lets just set it to what I had originally. Its all good." cause awwww yeah lazybutt.      Especially since in the end it doesn't affect anything in regards to Aniz' timeline of things.

[Cassi-kun]

Currently using the maaagic of disclaimers to point out that my characters' lifespans just don't reflect canon anymore. If I'm gonna actually revise, I've got a lot of reorganizing to do, since I have a timeline written out.

Fortunately, I have very little set down that actually relies on the longer lifespan to stay accurate, but I micro-manage my characters to death sometimes