The Corpse Plague is not a disease of flesh. It is a metaphysical reaction that occurs when a soul re-enters a corpse.
In Thalosar, a dead body is not built for a second life. When a soul forces its way back into mortal remains—whether by Veil failure, necromancy, or attempted resurrection—the body responds violently. That response is the Corpse Plague: blackening tissue, metaphysical corrosion, and unstable animation.
Most outbreaks begin when the Veil weakens due to a mass of souls that have not passed on to the Divine Realm. In that weakened state, souls rebound into nearby corpses. Each re-entry produces a plague-born undead, and those undead spread the condition further.
The Veil is the boundary between the Mortal and Divine Realm. When large numbers of souls remain unpassed—through war, disaster, improper rites, or mass death—the Veil thins locally.
When it thins enough, souls can re-enter corpses.
This is the ignition point of an outbreak.
This is absolute in Thalosar:
A soul re-entering a corpse causes the Corpse Plague to manifest in that corpse every time.
It does not matter whether the soul is:
the original soul of the deceased
a different lingering soul
a soul recalled by magic
The corpse cannot sustain a second life. The body’s reaction produces plague corruption—warping flesh and animating it as plague-undead.
A “successful resurrection” is not possible under normal Thalosar physics, because the moment the soul returns, the corpse-plague reaction begins.
Resurrection spells do not fail because they cannot call the soul.
They fail because the body cannot accept it.
Any magic that returns a soul to a dead body triggers the Corpse Plague in that body—resulting in a corrupted undead form rather than true restoration.
Thus, in Thalosar:
“Raise Dead” results in plague manifestation
“Resurrection” results in plague manifestation
Any soul-to-corpse restoration produces plague-undead
The best a caster can achieve is creating a controlled outcome—never a clean return.
This is why resurrection is not a normal part of society, faith, or arcane practice in Thalosar.
It is structurally unsafe.
Early signs of Veil strain:
cold air pockets
ghostly lights
distant tormented whispers
animals avoiding the area
Fresh corpses violently reanimate as plague-undead.
The living contract metaphysical contamination.
fever and weakness
black bile
spiritual erosion
eventual death and reanimation
The plague spreads beyond bodies:
plants die or twist
animals become corrupted
demons begin inhabiting the undead
The Veil ruptures fully.
demons cross into the mortal world
plague zones become long-term blight regions
In the Elderwood, the Dreaming One’s presence exerts enough constant magical pressure against the Veil that it cannot weaken, preventing mass-soul thinning events. Without Veil weakening, widespread soul re-entry does not occur, and plague outbreaks cannot establish.
In Twilight lands, the Twilight Dragon Lord exerts similar pressure, reinforcing the Veil so it cannot thin. As a result, the mass conditions required for outbreaks do not form.
Proper funerary rites matter because they prevent soul congestion and Veil weakening.
Cremation and consecration are preventative infrastructure, not tradition.
Any attempted resurrection is treated as a catastrophe-in-waiting, because it guarantees plague manifestation in the body returned.