Revision as of 23:46, 20 February 2011

Overview

There is a reason why we often hide our real selves behind masks. The true feelings we have, even for a moment, might be jealous, petty, selfish, or worse. We recognize this, and hide those feelings away, pushing them into the darkness where they cannot be seen, where they can be bottled away and forgotten.

This is the Shadow. The Shadow is the essence of those feelings given form. Everyone has traits that they do not want others to see, either because of our beliefs, personal preferences, our position, or due to the pressures of society. The Shadow is not exactly evil, but as it is the essence of our repressed and denied urges, if unleashed it is often harmful... Or even lethally dangerous.

Nature

The Shadow is both a great weapon and a terrible foe. In the world of Persona, Shadows might find the ability to work independantly of their host. When a Shadow manifests independant of a living host, it often appears to be a twin of that person, though their expression instantly reflects the unusual nature of the person it came from. Their emotions and actions show none of the restraint that the original may have possessed, and their eyes invariably shine with unnatural golden irises. The Shadow often taunts and pushes the host to acknowledge them, having no problems with exposing their darkest desires and secrets before anyone who cares to listen. This almost invariably causes the host to deny them.

This, unfortunately, only gives the Shadow greater power, as they thrive off of that repression and denial of self. Eventually, when a Shadow's power grows past a critical point, it draws other Shadows to it and becomes a monstrous form that reflects the host's hidden feelings and desires. The host usually does not survive the experience, as they have no way of combating that supernatural power on their own... And the stress of facing themself in such a manner usually leaves them already weak and disoriented, leaving them easy prey. As long as the host denies that the Shadow is a part of them, they will never defeat it on their own.

However, if the Shadow is defeated, and acknowledged by the host, the Shadow becomes a source of power controlled by the host. This kind of frank, wholehearted acceptance of the true nature of the Shadow and themselves requires a great deal of courage and self-honesty... And this courage and power becomes a mask to protect the host from the challenges they might face in the future: A Persona. A Persona created in this way often has physical traits that are reminiscent of the Shadow, showing their nature.

Other times, Shadows roam free, their hosts long gone. They moves as blobs of mobile blackness, bearing a mask. This mask often is shaped and decorated in a way that signifies their Arcana. When prey draws near, the Shadow acts, taking an inhuman form based on their power and nature and attacking without mercy.

Shadow-Possession

There are sometimes situations where the Shadow does not destroy their host, instead using their power to dominate their former master. The hosts' personality often changes, becoming less restrained and more instinctive, much like their Shadow. When they time comes for the Shadow-Possessed to use their power, it can often manifest similar to a Persona's... But the Shadow can also take over the body, changing it according to its desires into a powerful form that is their power unleashed. The amount of control the host asserts in these cases are variable... but the Shadow is always dominant from then on, unless an external force is somehow brought to bear to weaken the Shadow enough for the host to regain control once more. Those who plumb the depths of their mind to gain the power of Persona must be wary of this.

Shadow Powers

Shadows possess a strange and terrible array of powers. Many of them are similar to those exhibited by Personae, but as the dark flipside of the coin, the Shadow is often far crueler about their use. Some have found that Shadows, when extracted, can be used to fuel certain kinds of occult mechanisms and machinery, though the process of extraction can cause horrible things to happen to those who survive...