I'm sorry I can't keep all this in separate threads, but most of these questions are related as they're part of a plot I'm currently working on. There are some things I'm still not 100% clear on how they work in the world of Creation and I'd love some input from folks:
Do all spirits/gods have 'anima banners' like Exalts or is it something else? If my exalts are interacting with a powerful spirit being directly, let's say mentally through a spiritual connection, would the "spiritual connection" be linked essence? Like the exalt's anima banner interfacing with the spirit's/god's so that they can "go into" its mind? In this particular case I have a method already created by the being because it does this voluntarily in some cases (something you can ingest to be drawn into its mental landscape basically) but I was wondering how an exalt might FORCE that connection.
How might exalts come into information they have NO way of knowing and NO nearby leads on (aka no tombs, ruins, or anything else nearby to give them the history they don't have)? My best bet here is Yu Shan - I'm thinking they may have to contact someone in heaven to see if the historical information they're looking for (which has no evidence in the modern world to find) can be viewed/accessed from Heaven's records or the loom of fate. If this is the case, then I want to ask, CAN they do that at essence 2/3 range and how would it work? I don't know that they have specific charms for it but could a sorcerous working work or could they just do a straight up ritual to get the attention of Yu Shan spirits/gods? If that's the case HOW would that work? My understanding is that local gods rule their local area and confer with Heaven through Dragon messengers, and Dragons are the messenger spirits of heaven. If this is so then would they need to do a ritual to impress and bring the local gods into the fold and then convince them to petition a dragon for an audience, THEN ask the dragon for the information in heaven they want?
How would Sidereals fit into what I described above? Specifically, do sidereals have all the information they need to intervene if Exalts start directly petitioning heavenly gods for favors? And if so how likely are they to be hostile to it? I assume even the Bronze faction is aware of solar activity even if they don't always move against it directly. I assume that GOLD faction sidereals look out for solars, and would be most likely to answer that kind of call, right?
Is there any way around a Sidereal's arcane fate? In other words, can sidereals pick and choose who forgets them when they see them? Or is it always automatically true no matter what they do? I know they can choose a fake identity, like a real person they inhabit as a "costume" and "play" as them indefinitely, but do they ever just show up as themselves and "disable" their "fate cloaking" that makes people forget them? If so, how easy is that for them to do? DO they need to make a personal connection to the exalts they deal with (some kind of ritual or essence exchange) to make that work? Or is it just a switch they flip on their end?
What kinds of things can cause a spirit or god to evolve? I have my ideas about what I want to do for my plot, but I'm curious how close to the baseline they are. My theory is that in the same way humans were an unexpected biproduct of the forces of creation (aka they survived even though they were more fragile than the dragon kings) and over time even became capable of wielding the mighty exaltation, and kind of perfect for it, isn't it conceivable that on a long enough timeline, a spirit-being created by an exalt (a hybrid new thing) could, over centuries or millenia or even just a few decades, begin incorporating new things/ideas into it? Or are all spirits/gods incapable of "growth" in that sense (like a fundamental mutation or change to what they are) and would it require an impetus?
Thank you so much to anyone who read this the whole way through. I know it's a lot to ask, but I'm hoping different people tackling different subjects may give me a well rounded picture. Please be patience with my ignorance on heaven related exalted lore
Do all spirits/gods have 'anima banners' like Exalts or is it something else? If my exalts are interacting with a powerful spirit being directly, let's say mentally through a spiritual connection, would the "spiritual connection" be linked essence? Like the exalt's anima banner interfacing with the spirit's/god's so that they can "go into" its mind? In this particular case I have a method already created by the being because it does this voluntarily in some cases (something you can ingest to be drawn into its mental landscape basically) but I was wondering how an exalt might FORCE that connection.
How might exalts come into information they have NO way of knowing and NO nearby leads on (aka no tombs, ruins, or anything else nearby to give them the history they don't have)? My best bet here is Yu Shan - I'm thinking they may have to contact someone in heaven to see if the historical information they're looking for (which has no evidence in the modern world to find) can be viewed/accessed from Heaven's records or the loom of fate. If this is the case, then I want to ask, CAN they do that at essence 2/3 range and how would it work? I don't know that they have specific charms for it but could a sorcerous working work or could they just do a straight up ritual to get the attention of Yu Shan spirits/gods? If that's the case HOW would that work? My understanding is that local gods rule their local area and confer with Heaven through Dragon messengers, and Dragons are the messenger spirits of heaven. If this is so then would they need to do a ritual to impress and bring the local gods into the fold and then convince them to petition a dragon for an audience, THEN ask the dragon for the information in heaven they want?
How would Sidereals fit into what I described above? Specifically, do sidereals have all the information they need to intervene if Exalts start directly petitioning heavenly gods for favors? And if so how likely are they to be hostile to it? I assume even the Bronze faction is aware of solar activity even if they don't always move against it directly. I assume that GOLD faction sidereals look out for solars, and would be most likely to answer that kind of call, right?
Is there any way around a Sidereal's arcane fate? In other words, can sidereals pick and choose who forgets them when they see them? Or is it always automatically true no matter what they do? I know they can choose a fake identity, like a real person they inhabit as a "costume" and "play" as them indefinitely, but do they ever just show up as themselves and "disable" their "fate cloaking" that makes people forget them? If so, how easy is that for them to do? DO they need to make a personal connection to the exalts they deal with (some kind of ritual or essence exchange) to make that work? Or is it just a switch they flip on their end?
What kinds of things can cause a spirit or god to evolve? I have my ideas about what I want to do for my plot, but I'm curious how close to the baseline they are. My theory is that in the same way humans were an unexpected biproduct of the forces of creation (aka they survived even though they were more fragile than the dragon kings) and over time even became capable of wielding the mighty exaltation, and kind of perfect for it, isn't it conceivable that on a long enough timeline, a spirit-being created by an exalt (a hybrid new thing) could, over centuries or millenia or even just a few decades, begin incorporating new things/ideas into it? Or are all spirits/gods incapable of "growth" in that sense (like a fundamental mutation or change to what they are) and would it require an impetus?
Thank you so much to anyone who read this the whole way through. I know it's a lot to ask, but I'm hoping different people tackling different subjects may give me a well rounded picture. Please be patience with my ignorance on heaven related exalted lore

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