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I hope the role of scholars and philosophers is an important one in PE. If the soul is a resource that can physically manifest and be controlled, philosophy, as practiced by many thinkers, would hold a lot more practical power (not to understate the profound impact philosophy has had on the world, and while one could argue philosophy can drive people to power, philosophy (a love of knowledge) itself does not kill or manifest upon the world in the way matter does; one cannot rule the world with philosophy alone). If you look at philosophers from our universe, take Socrates, for example, he seems to be the embodiment of a Cipher; using the elenchus and dialectic to "control" or "invade" the souls of others, or as some would say, to corrupt the souls of others. Obviously the world of PE will have its own philosophers and cultures, but this is fun to imagine: Early Western/Ancient Greek Philosophers sought rational and logical explanations for an ordered universe. The soul as an eternal, wise ruler, which holds all knowledge for humans to recollect (almost makes me think of D&D sorcerer). Complete order and control over the body's appetitive nature, or the lesser emotions and feelings: hunger, thirst, pain, pleasure, etc. to unlock the true potential of the soul. Emphasis on a fundamental, indivisible, unit of matter that makes up the world (interesting connotations for Wizards, Priests, and well, everyone (imagine if Lemaitre could manipulate or manifest a primeval atom?)). Their detailed analysis of paradoxes could lead to inventive manipulations of the soul. Pythagoras is said to have claimed that he recalled prior his prior lives with the same soul (perhaps he was awakened!). Early Eastern Philosophers, very vaguely and generally (which I would argue is bad philosophy on my part!), believed all things are soul; all things should be respected for their potential. Acceptance of other paths. Extreme levels of neutrality; emotions and the corporeal are inconsequential overall. Moments of enlightenment or satori (in PE, bursts of incredible power, if the soul is what grants power; where the body stops and the soul starts becomes an illusory blur; almost akin to divine possession, but from within, or something similar). Many paths through life and many paths to achieving positive upward reincarnation. Behavior of soul in prior lives imparts certain circumstances onto soul in later lives. Enlightened, or awakened, souls remember the events of past incarnations. What would the ideas of Descartes bring to bear on the clear existence of a soul? What of Nietzsche? Are desires and emotions felt in the soul or elsewhere? Is the soul in a state conflict like a human? e.g. I shouldn't eat that cupcake because it's bad for me, but I'm going to do it anyway! (Two different and seemingly conflicting desires within one stuff). Is the soul the center of emotions and rationality or neither? What of Camus (on a side note, I can imagine Camus very much as a noble paladin crusading against the absurd)? Or Russell? It's incredibly interesting to imagine... I think the moral dilemmas that can be raised with "soul-ism" are profound and far reaching; perhaps even more poignant than trying to make moral quandaries with sexism or racism in a modern sense. A man is not less than a woman because of his capabilities as a man, but because his soul is lesser. Dwarves are not lesser than humans because they are dwarves (necessarily), but because all or most dwarves receive inferior souls. As in a reincarnation hierarchy; which leads to the question, what is the greatest incarnation for a soul to exhibit? If there is a quantifiable aspect of souls it puts a whole new spin on the value of life and existence. The possibility of fracturing a soul and so forth could be interestingly applied to many topics, e.g. suicide (to address the idea, "I want another chance/a better situation, so I'm going to off myself and hope for better luck next time.") We started off BG with a quote from Nietzsche. Almost inherent in IE games are these strongly academic and scholarly, but entirely understandable, lines of inquiry and motivators of choice. What better realm than Eternity to explore and experiment with philosophy? I'm excited.