The Unseen Ones Revealed: A Cultural Survey of the Mursaat

[Quintus Antonius]

The odds of the effigy being that of the Lich are slim. The Lich only came about with the destruction of Orr - he is the undead version of Orr's royal advisor. Seeing as he wreaks the most havoc in Kryta after the Charr have been repelled, it's even rarer that the Charr know about him.

That is the general consensus, yes, and the one that I accept. But, if I get the proper picture of the Lich, I will still do a comparison, just to settle the argument once and for all (or enflame it again, if the comparisons are close). I like to have observable facts behind my claims so that questions towards their validity are rare and discussion can move on. If we can come up with proof that a certain hypothesis is correct or incorrect, then it is hard to dispute that theory unless new information is suddenly discovered or released that once again brings it into conflict.

[Rob Van Der Sloot]

Looking forward to being proven wrong.

By the way, keep up the good work, and congrats on the new forum section.

[nidy]

Well, if we assume these effigies are of the Mursatt, then yes, it is true that they are there pot searing but not pre, and that the titan ones are there pre. This, in my opinion, would discredit the argument that the Charr saw the Mursatt and Titans in battle sometime before. I think that it's obvious that the charr knew of the titans before the searing. I am not sure how. However, I think that the Mursatt may have given the Charr the magic to make the searing happen (to stop the Flameseeker Prophecies), causing the Charr to worship them.

[Quintus Antonius]

Well, if we assume these effigies are of the Mursatt, then yes, it is true that they are there pot searing but not pre, and that the titan ones are there pre. This, in my opinion, would discredit the argument that the Charr saw the Mursatt and Titans in battle sometime before. I think that it's obvious that the charr knew of the titans before the searing. I am not sure how. However, I think that the Mursatt may have given the Charr the magic to make the searing happen (to stop the Flameseeker Prophecies), causing the Charr to worship them.

I disagree, as we have seen nothing of the sort from the Mursaat anywhere else and the types of magics cast during the Searing bore a strong resemblence to those of Glint. Glint made the Prophecy, and I believe she also pushed the events the led to its completion into place. This is similar to people who cause accidents just to be the heroes. Because the Mursaat are the sworn enemies of the Titans, and have vowed to keep them behind the Door of Komalie, it does not make sense that they would engage in activities that would lead to events that could directly lead to the destablization of their task. Remember, they are aware of the Flameseeker Prophecies, and the only reason they revealed themselves to the White Mantle was to stop them by gathering Chosen to charge the soul batteries.

However, one cannot deny the things you have pointed out. If you have read my other posts during the course of this thread, you will notice that I came up with an alternate theory. The Charr engaged in an extensive campaign against the Mursaat and the White Mantle, it is likely that, at this time, they came in contact with the Mursaat. Remember, as others as well as myself have pointed out before, not all cultures worship something because it helped them. Militaristic barbarian warrior cultures such as the Charr often adapt gods of their enemies to their religions as a sign of respect, and as a way of gaining the favor of those gods as well. Think about it, if your enemy wins, then obviously their gods are strong. Because cultures like I have mentioned respect this strength, they often include worship of other gods into their culture as well.

One final point, we don't really know the Charr didn't have Mursaat effigies pre-Searing. Because they were engaged in such a fierce campaign with Ascalon, they may simply not have set up their lesser effigies. Notice that in post-Searing, we only find Mursaat effigies in Charr held territory. Charr numbers are very low pre-Searing because they have not yet pushed that far into Ascalon-held territory.

[Sol Rael]

I've a theory in relation to the Enchanted, Jade, Mursaat, and Forgotten which I'd like to post here for discussion.
Evidence provided earlier in this thread shows a clear connection, design wise, between the Mursaat, and the Enchanted. Now, visually, one of the most striking differences between the two creatures is coloration. The Mursaat armoring is a gold, while the Enchanted appear as tarnished, ancient metal. There is evidence which suggests the Mursaat have been to the Crystal Desert, the only location I've ever encountered the Enchanted. While we don't have definitive dates, it is accepted that there entrance and subsequent departure from that area is not a recent event. Suppose that the Enchanted are cast off armor pieces. Left to the harsh conditions of a desert, it wouldn't be unheard of for the armor to become as worn as it is has been.
Of interest is that the Enchanted, while similar in design to the Mursaat, are not similar in ability. The Mursaat are spellcasters through and through, while the Enchanted are physical combatants.
If you're willing to indulge me, this next part is something of a flight of fancy based on what evidence I have listed so far.
We have the Mursaat, consumate mana wielders they are, and then we have another component of their race who deal in physical combat. Perhaps part of warriors caste, or merely members of the population who prefer a sword or bow to a staff or wand, nonetheless they are glad in the now tarnished armor of the Enchanted. The Mursaat, weave and weapon bearer alike, enter the desert and confronted by the Forgotten. The Forgotten are in many respects the same as the Mursaat, being thoroughly adept spell casters. What may have happened when the two races met each other, I can't say. But, if we accept the armor as Mursaat in origin, it is at least clear they left things behind upon their departure.
The comments made by one of the Elonian priests indicates the Forgotten could move through the desert with an almost unnatural stealth. Maybe the Forgotten took the initiative, concluding they couldn't well handle a full force in direct combat, assassinating the physical combatants but leaving the Mursaat as we know them. Then they chose to enchant the armor, giving it the sembalance of life we're now familiar. Necromancers are capable of birthing minions from the recently deceased, maybe the Forgotten know more powerful magics which allow them to animate nearly anything. As I stated at the beginning of this, this is all supposition.
Now, as for the Jade, that draws in another observation. The Jade are composed of bloodstone, as evidenced when the 4 bloodstone monoliths near Markis crumble into Jades during the Iron Mines of Molandune. We know for certain that the bloodstone is capable of absorbing the life energies of those in contact with them at the time of death. The Jade fill the exact role missing from the standard Mursaat, a role possibly left open by the death of the Enchanted above. There is little doubt the Jade are Mursaat in some manner though, as they too bear the Spectral Agony ability. Again, a supposition: perhaps the Jade are the spirits of the dead fighter classes of Mursaat, clad in bloodstone. There is little, if any evidence for this, beyond bearing that signature racial attack and filling that missing position. Nonetheless, at least to me, it does make a level of sense. It explains why the Enchanted are Mursaat-esque, while also being tarnished from the environment. It explains why the Jade bear an ability which the Seers imply is solely the province of the Mursaat. And it works within the properties have been ascribed to bloodstone, at least somewhat.
While I am by no means arrogant enough to believe this is necessarily the answer, I still pose it as one possible answer to the question of the connections between these entities.

[Quintus Antonius]

The thing is, in the thousands, or even hundreds of years, heck even decades, since the Mursaat's fighter class were destroyed, why couldn't they just train more?

Something interesting that I'd like to point out is that the Jade's have four eyes, and a brain, which is exposed on the back of their neck/head.

[Sol Rael]

Who knows? I could think of various possible explanations, but little with a concrete base.
I noticed that myself. But the brain itself seems to be composed of the stone too. I wonder if maybe it's not just carved in for some reason. As for the 4 eyes, I have no explanation for that really.
If only we could dissect the Mursaat and the Jade.

[Quintus Antonius]

Who knows? I could think of various possible explanations, but little with a concrete base.
I noticed that myself. But the brain itself seems to be composed of the stone too. I wonder if maybe it's not just carved in for some reason. As for the 4 eyes, I have no explanation for that really.
If only we could dissect the Mursaat and the Jade.

We cannot clearly tell if the brain is made of the same stone or not. It is either, A) made of the stone, or B) covered by a thin transparent layer of the stone.

If scenario B is true, then it is possible the Mursaat designed it this way for a reason. As you are probably aware, the brain operates by transfering various chemical and electrical signals across neurons in the various folds of the brain's tissues. If the Mursaat were able to recreate a similar structure out of the jade stone, in other words, an artificial brain, not unlike a computer's processor, then they may be able to charge it with the necessary signals to make the Jade Armors/Bows fully functional automatons.

[Arriyan]

This is amazing... it's like reading the LOTR Silmarillion.

PLUS I can use this in my next RP event. (in search for the Mursaat temple)

Keep up the good work!

[terakhan]

A further comparison of the current mursaat, the White Mantle, and the re-animated armor of the crystal desert:

Assuming of course that the WM based their garb on the Mursaat, it goes without saying that Confessor Dorian's hat would resemble the Mursaat spellcaster mask. Further, we can see a bit of a dedication to tradition in the mursaat. Transitioning from walking to floating, there are certain features of their clothing still readily visible from the old designs.

Starting from the top, so to speak, we have the twin points of the helmet/mask/hats. Though it doesnt carry to the WM hat, there is also the round etching on the forehead and the design coming down over where the nose would be. All three also flair outwards at the brow-line, the headpiece doubling the width of the head wearing in by appearances. Looking to the shoulders, all three designs have the shoulders adorned with a portion curving upwards from the body, approximately above the armpit. And of course, we have the 'wings' on both the mursaat (very visible, and probably the creepiest feature about them), and not so visible on the enchanted armor.