Synaptics

Template:Religion infobox Synaptics is the group of studies, philosophies, and religions around the plane of Synapse and the Neural Amalgam within it. Followers of Synaptics are also known as Synaptics. Synaptics revolves around the idea that the immaterial Noosphere is inherently more desirable than Cosmoria's material world. However, one important concession is that any mind with both a nous and anti-nous, including most originally material beings, must have some material anchor such as a brain to avoid death. Because of this, when the Prime Pneumatics were trying to achieve immateriality, they crafted a material that would allow them to manipulate the position of their minds in the noosphere. They channeled the power of Synapse to create a material they called corporus noum, commonly known as liquid void. This material is considered the perfected form of a brain by Synaptics, and plays a core role in the noic hierarchy.

Concepts

Noic Hierarchy

A core concept in Synaptics is the idea of a noic hierarchy, or a ranking of minds. Minds higher on the list are closer to being able to make a smooth adjustment to immateriality, while minds lower down are more stuck in the material realm. It is a hierarchy of education and learning; the minds have a duty to share knowledge with one another. The three levels of nous are hylic, psychic, and pneumatic.

Hylics are stuck to the material world, since their brains are inferior in the eyes of Synaptics. Their minds are perfectly fine, but their brains restrict them to a bulky material body. Synaptics believe that slowly shifting their anti-nous to a brain of corporus noum will make them into psychics, and wish to empower the Neural Amalgam enough to do this process remotely.

Psychics are those native to Lowiras. Their brain is made of corporus noum, and their mind is within the Neural Amalgam. They mainly draw power for Thaumaturgy from the Neural Amalgam, rarely drawing directly from Synapse. They do not have mastery over their own mind, so their power is largely limited to energy transfer, which still has a wide range of power and many applications. They do not have power over the connection between reality and the noosphere. With training and time, they can become pneumatics.

Pneumatics are the highest within the noic hierarchy. Their corporus noum is now stored within the Dark Core of Lowiras and can sustain their mind without any other bodily function. Some pneumatics end up as rotting or, more preferably, embalmed corpses, not bothering to keep their body alive while their transcendent mind lives on. They can draw large amounts of power directly from Synapse. Beyond the power of psychics, pneumatics can manipulate the connections between brain, minds, and other noospheric objects. They can pull matter through the anti-nous, boiling it down to raw concepts. They can transport this boiled matter through a para-nous to other minds, or transport it back into reality. Many pneumatics exploit this power to remove their body (if they use one) from reality, letting them observe unseen. In a one case a pneumatic managed to block the pylon of a classical Magus, though the thaumic flow of the Aeterna soon removed the blockage.

Other Religions

Synaptics view other religions with tolerance, unless that religion has an afterlife. Synaptics believe that without something to anchor an anti-nous, the mind will die. Due to this, religions that believe in transcendence without the proper preservation of a perfected brain are looked down upon.

Generally, Synaptics try to find a way to co-exist with other religions.

Morality

Synaptics views most morality as solely relevant to the material world. However, altruism is encouraged as it is better for the end goals of Synaptics. In an immaterial world, there is nothing to need or want except knowledge, and the only way to gain it is through communication.

Reality

In Synaptics, only pneumatics can see reality for what it is: a set of concepts projecting into reality or clumping together. Pneumatics can perceive the Noosphere itself, freeing themselves of the basic biases of the senses. The haven of the Neural Amalgam is not a boundary for their mind's eye.