The Oscuraphim are Angelic beings of both light and darkness. Some are born of twilight, created in the boundary of light and darkness, while others were once pure Angels of light who accepted the darkness without letting it consume them.

Oscuraphim tend to have a physical form strongly resembling an Angel's original form, which is often primarily humanoid and/or abstract. They can shapeshift, however, and may have alternate forms. They have at least one halo, typically cracked or fragmented. They have black feathered wings; for those who were formerly Angels, these were once wings of light. If they have hair, it is also black. They have armored bodies and horns that are typical of Demons as well.

Typically, they have a black/dark gray (there may be a slight hue tint, but very desaturated) plus a bright highlight color, which is the color of their magic, as their palette.

Their alternate forms can be non-humanoid, abstract, resembling another creature, etc. They must still have the black wings, the halo(s), and the same palette—unless it is a "disguise" form, in which case they can resemble any mundane creature without supernatural characteristics, unless desired. For a "creature" form, the Demonic horns and plating characteristics should be evident. Alternate forms do not need to be approved by Auspice, and will not be tracked.

Their names, more often than not, end in "-el," even those who were naturally born as Oscuraphim.

The Lumions are Demonic beings of both light and darkness. Some are born of twilight, created in the boundary of light and darkness, while others were once pure Demons of darkness who accepted the light without letting it consume them.

Lumions tend to have a physical form strongly resembling a Demon's original form—typically with armored/plated/scaled bodies, horns, and tails. Some have wings or other appendages; some are humanoid, some not. Unlike Demons, Lumions have feathers of light and at least one halo, and typically have a much stronger element of "light" in their appearance.

Typically, they have a very dark base color (if not black), and a brighter highlight color of the same hue (if applicable) that their wings of light have the color of. The highlight color is the color of their magic. 

Their alternate forms can be non-humanoid, abstract, resembling another creature, etc. They must still have the light wings, the halo(s), and the same palette—unless it is a "disguise" form, in which case they can resemble any mundane creature without supernatural characteristics, unless desired. For a "creature" form, the Demonic horns and plating characteristics should be evident. Alternate forms do not need to be approved by Auspice, and will not be tracked.

Angels are beings born of the essence of Light itself: a force of healing, guidance, truth, and justice, but also a force that is blinding, burning, and merciless. A very external force that burns away obscurity to reveal the incontestable truth for all to see.

Angels typically have a primary humanoid and/or abstract form. They can shapeshift, however, and may have alternate forms. They have at least one halo of any shape, and have feather-like wings made of light.

Typically, they have white or a very pale color (there may be a slight hue tint, but very desaturated) plus a highlight color (of the same hue, if applicable) as their palette. The highlight color is the color of their magic. 

Their alternate forms can be non-humanoid, abstract, resembling another creature, etc. They must still have the wings of light, the halo(s), and the same palette—unless it is a "disguise" form, in which case they can resemble any mundane creature without Angelic characteristics, unless desired. Alternate forms do not need to be approved by Auspice, and will not be tracked.

Their names end in "-el," such as Sekriel, Numiel, etc.

Demons are being born from the essence of Darkness itself: a force of obscurity, safety, an embrace of that which is hidden and unseen. A more internal force that nurtures and conceals.

Demons have armored/plated/scaled bodies, horns, and tails. Some have wings (not feathered, typically "sharp" in appearance) or other appendages. Some are humanoid, some not, but they usually (not always) have the appearance of a "creature" as opposed to an abstract being.

Typically, they have a very dark base color (if not black), and a brighter highlight color of the same hue (if applicable). The dark base color often dominates the appearance. The highlight color is the color of their magic. 

They can shapeshift, and their alternate forms can be non-humanoid, resembling another creature, abstract, etc. They must still have the armor/plating and horns and the same palette—unless it is a "disguise" form, in which case they can resemble any mundane creature without Demonic characteristics, unless desired. Alternate forms do not need to be approved by Auspice, and will not be tracked.

Entity Abilities

These abilities are shared among all Entities, including Oscuraphim, Lumions, Angels, and Demons. 

Composed of Energy

They are beings composed of energy and do not need to eat, sleep, consume any sustenance, etc. They can also not be harmed through physical, mundane objects.

Shapeshifting

As energy beings, they can easily change their form. However, there is typically one form that they find most comfortable.

Soul Magic

Entities can manipulate souls in various ways. They can remove them from a body, forge and sever soulbonds (though souls can resist this or reforge/sever soulbonds through their own will), destroy or consume souls, use them for power, etc.

Additionally, they can "read" souls, understanding their overall desires, motives, and a rough understanding of who they are. 

Elemental Magic

Each individual is typically proficient in a particular type of "elemental" magic. There are no formal designations for elements, but it is typically some form of matter (water, stone, plants), energy (fire, electricity, light), process (growth, decay), or force (magnetism, gravity). See the section on elemental magic for more info. 

Intangibility/Invisibility

Entities are capable of hiding themselves from the sight of mortals and making themselves intangible; mortals with magic may be able to perceive them to differing extents. Some may be able to sense a presence, some may be able to see a faded form but not touch, some may be able to touch but not see the form, some may be able to feel a resistance but still phase through, some may be able to see clearly and touch.

Traversal

Entities teleport across any physical distance. They can cross planes, though entering a plane not aligned with their essence (e.g. a Demon trying to enter the Plane of Light) is very difficult. They can also cross dimensions, though it takes a fair amount of effort. 

Ability Variations of Different Entity Types

The Ecliptic (Oscuraphim and Lumions) share the same kind of primal magic and source of power, while Angels and Demons have different types and sources. They also have different specialized soul senses. 

See the section on Primal Magic for more info. 

Perception

Entities in their true form do not need eyes to see. Their most natural sense is the ability to sense the primal essences of Light and Darkness, which allows them a high-resolution perception of a wide range of their surroundings. They can understand the shape, color, texture, composition, and conceptual meaning of objects perceived through primal essence. If they have eyes, their gaze can help them focus their attention on what they look at. 

Entities can sense other Entities within the same plane. Though the "energy signature" can be perceived across the entire plane, it tends to blend with the signatures of other Entities and ambient primal essence. Generally, two Entities need to be fairly nearby to be able to identify each other—unless they exchange signatures by providing each other with a portion of their essence, which allows them to locate each other across any distance in the same plane, or identify which plane or dimension they are in. The exchange must be mutual and can be revoked by either Entity.

In the physical plane, all Entities can perceive all objects and living things without issue, regardless of how dark, bright, or hazy a location may appear to be for humans. However, without exposure and practice, Angels have difficulty perceiving "contrast" in primal Darkness, and Demons have difficulty perceiving "contrast" in primal Light. When Angels see Demons for the first time, Demons in some sense appear as blurry, featureless blobs of primal Darkness. When Demons see Angels for the first time, Angels can appear to them as featureless blobs of primal Light. This is also why Demons often have trouble seeing and navigating in the Plane of Light, and Angels often have trouble seeing and navigating in the Plane of Darkness. 

That said, with more exposure and practice, Angels and Demons can come to perceive each other just fine. The Ecliptic have no issues, however, and can perceive the whole range of Light and Darkness. 

When Entities shapeshift and suppress their characteristics, such as by taking on a mundane human form, they can suppress their primal perception and gain normal vision. That said, even in a mundane form, Angelic beings (Angels, Oscuraphim, and Lumions) can look at exceedingly bright objects (such as the Sun) without any discomfort. Angels may have a bit more trouble seeing in the dark. Demonic beings (Demons, Oscuraphim, and Lumions) have perfect night vision. However, Demons tend to find bright lights more uncomfortable. 

Early Existence

When Entities first form, they do not have emotions or much of a personality, though they are "mature" in cognition and can process information they learn just as well as any existing Entity. Angels form with a natural instinct to help souls ascend, Demons form with a natural instinct to consume corrupt souls, and the Ecliptic have both. All Entities form with an intuitive understanding of the nature of their existence and how to use their abilities. The exception is the ability to move to the physical plane—Entities can figure out how to do so with time, but they generally linger in the Planes until another Entity finds them. 

As Entities gain more knowledge, they can develop preferences, and that can lead to the development of desires and more complex motivations. Some Entities remain emotionless while still forming goals and making decisions in ways that may be unfathomable to humans; some Entities can become deeply emotional, to the point of being much like humans in behavior. Some may behave like emotional beings while being void of empathy with others; some may have deeper and more complex emotions than any human. The development of their personality and emotions is most strongly determined by their own desires. If they wish to become emotional and lean into that desire, slowly, they will. If they wish to become able to understand others, they will slowly develop more empathy—whether affective or cognitive depends on their wishes. These changes can occur over years, decades, or even centuries, but inherently, Entities shape the self they want to be. 

Angelic Entities come into being with a natural understanding of all existing languages, while Demonic Entities have the inherent ability of empathic communication—being able to communicate with any being without language. All Entities are capable of developing both of these communication abilities with desire and practice, however. 

Societal Integration

Angels of Lux will often find newly-formed Angels and invite them to Resonance Chambers, where they can connect more strongly to the Angelic collective and gain all their shared information and experiences. Though Entities do not form very often, some Angels dedicate their time to finding newborn Angels. 

Demons of Umbra do not have as much of an organized system. It is common for an older, more powerful Demon to take in newborn Demons to mentor and guide them. Several weak Demons may also band together and invite newborn Demons to join their horde so that they can hunt corrupt souls together. Occasionally, newborn Demons make their way on their own, wh ether they decline others' assistance or no one found them, and they did not find Umbra—which has its own systems for educating and guiding young Demons on their first hunts. Though all Demons are welcome in Umbra, they will not be dragged there, either. 

For the Ecliptic, a number of Ecliptic Entities devote their time to finding newly-transitioned and newly-formed Ecliptic. These seekers will often offer information, whether through conversation or a telepathic transfer of information, and offer to guide the new Ecliptic to make their home in the Plane of Twilight and meet the leaders of their faction in Vespertine. After that, the Ecliptic can do as they wish. 

Transitioning

The process to becoming an Ecliptic can be a gradual effect of personality and affinity to the opposite force, or it can be an active personal choice. A Demon might be drawn to aspects of Light: healing, guidance, truth, justice, and merciless power. They might wish to uncover truths and reveal them to all, or seek to pass judgement on morality. An Angel might be drawn to aspects of Darkness: obscurity, safety, an embrace of the unseen. They might want to be more individualistic, keeping their thoughts and emotions to themselves (as Angels in general share a natural connection). They might seek to understand the very depths of who they are, and who someone else is.

It can be slow physical transformation, or they might reach that state of affinity internally and then accelerate the process by traveling to the opposite aether plane. In the latter case, the transformation can be quite dramatic. An Angel's halo shatters, Darkness stains their wings black and their body gray, and their form distorts and shifts as they grow horns and—sometimes—a tail. For a Demon, Light enters their body and bursts out, spilling into the form of wings and a halo. 

The Ecliptic typically have major traits of both Angels and Demons. Oscuraphim typically retain the overall form of their body and their halos, but their wings turn black and they gain an armored body and horns. Lumions also retain the overall form of their body, but they gain a halo, and their wings may gain feathers of light or they may grow wings of light feathers.

The Ecliptic can also gain power/energy from both sources—the ascension of souls, and also consuming souls. Oscuraphim may develop an appetite for souls, and Lumions may lose theirs.

End of Existence

Entities are functionally immortal. They do not age and can recover from even severe magical damage, so long as their soul and its bindings to their existence are intact. If they take enough damage from magic (they cannot be harmed through physical means), their body will dissipate and re-form in the Plane that most aligns with their existence. 

If an Entity wishes to end their existence, they can ask another Entity to sever the bindings of their soul; they may ask for their soul to remain intact, in which case they might reincarnate as a different Entity. They may ask for their soul to be scattered, in which case they will not reincarnate wholly—though aggregations of their essence might blend with other essence in the universe and reincarnate into a mortal. 

Generally, if an Entity does not desire and agree to their own end, their bindings cannot be severed by force. The exception lies in corrupt Entities; due to the nature of corruption, the bindings of their soul are much more loose. The greater the corruption, the weaker the bindings. Even so, multiple Entities or an incredibly powerful Entity must be involved to forcefully sever their bindings. 

Angels and Demons can only sever the bindings, which will lead to the soul slipping away into the reincarnation cycle—where they will be reincarnated as a mortal, perhaps with too much power but with a chance to cleanse their corruption. The Ecliptic alone are able to consume and scatter the souls of Entities they sever from existence. 

Entities in Other Dimensions

Entities can cross over to other dimensions, though they will maintain a metaphysical link to the Ecliptic universe. The Angelic will still be connected to their Angelic source of power, while the Demonic can consume extradimensional souls as well. Some Entities may choose to completely depart the Ecliptic universe and make their home elsewhere. 

It is, however, very difficult for souls from other dimensions to enter the Ecliptic universe. The external souls are, in a sense, repelled by the primal Light and Darkness of the universe.