RUSSUM

One of the six Life Wardens,

Russum is the Warden of Fungi. He is attuned to fungal life.

Guiding & Guarding the cycle of life energy from its source, through the Fungi, and back again.

This life energy, called Nemore, is tangible to Russum, and he wields it to create hidden [supportive] mycorrhizal networks connecting life throughout the biosphere .

connection - messages - service - strategy - community

Far and away from the Pine Verdare forest, on the other side of the continent, is the Idyllwode Commonwealth.

As a Consiliare, he is a communicator and leader - he enlists his people to help.  Responsible for a diverse community in Idyllwode.  He does his best to create a unified Idyllwode Commonwealth.  He is about 350 years old, but has the appearance of a 35 year old, the age at which he became infused with the Nemorance.  In his position on the Concilium, he uses his spores and Nemore connection to manipulate the other four Consiliares, bending them to his will.  They do not know that he is several hundred years old, either, which he keeps the population of Idyllwode Hearth unaware of by enchanting them with his spores.

Before he was part of Idyllwode’s Concilium, Russum was a peasant of the Commonwealth of Idyllwode, far outside the city (Idyllwode Hearth).  He was born and raised in the countryside of Idyllwode, a patch of land called Firbank, Outside the village of Snaggly Thicket. There he was an herbalist, a witchy man, a healer.   He grew plants and fungi, worked with them to create medicines, tinctures, and salves.

A terrible disease swept through the Commonwealth of Idyllwode.  Russum had more people in need of his services than ever.   However, he had no cure.  He could ease their pain. People were dying from this virulent sickness. All over Idyllwode, citizens could not eat their food without intense vomiting, stomach pain, and were losing the ability to digest food.  Russum discovered through his close studies the healing power of mycelium, mushrooms, and he utilized a fungi to eat the sickness.

The Nemorence had chosen him as Warden of Fungi.   He could infuse objects with their health-giving properties, poisons, and mind manipulation.  With the power of mushrooms, Russum learned that he could convince people, make them pliable, ready to receive his persuasion and his suggestion. He became renowned in Idyllwode. With his communication skills and humble background, he was politically useful to the Councilors, it was determined that he could gain support of the villages, countryside, and lower class of Idyllwode.  And he, along with the help of the fungal influence, convinced the counselors to bestow him with the Crestcall of Emissar.  He would henceforth be known as Russum Emissar.  He became one of the few Emissars of Idyllwode.  He influences and manipulates with magical aid of the mycelium of the Nemorence.  He is cunning and conniving, but ultimately wants the best for Idyllwode and for Idyllwode's people.   As an emissary, he is responsible for outreach outside of the city, to the Commonwealth, their villages and to outside of the Commonwealth.

Recently, he has begun to feel the great web of mycelium weakening, drying up,becoming shaky and disjointed and its connections. We will find this is due to climate disaster and collapse. He can tell though, that the fungal life and the ecological balance and health of the world realm of his corner of the world, which he has so deftly and successfully maneuvered, is in trouble. He is looking for answers and ways to help Idyllwode and to help the great fungal web.  Russum has spent the last 150 years or so using his fungal spores to influence the minds of the Magisters, Emissars, and Conciliares, as well as some of the citizenry, subtlety manipulating and persuading them to ally with him, forget his immortality, vote in his favor, in concert with his beliefs,  He has essentially glamoured them.  While he has tried to only use it when needed, he has slipped in recent years because it is easier to glamour someone than to persuade them.  It has affected his personal relationships, to the point where he doesn’t even remember who truly likes him and agrees with him, vs who has been manipulated into doing so.