Secondary TitleRegularly evolving work of a mythographer
[ic] The third post is a good place to start. Most of what is presented in the first two posts has been re-written extensively, and I'd like to keep it posted to see how this thing evolves.[/ic]
[note]I apologize for the wall of text[/note]
[ooc=Wall of text] This brief history sketch culminated out of a brainstorming session. I built a short adventure for my group to play and I wanted to give them some serious choices right from the start. The adventure involves the capture of a wanted Dragonborn Warlord known as Arkos Ironclaw (which at the very start of the first session, the PCs already have in their custody) and the choice of whether or not to turn him in for the reward or turn 'evil' and raise hell in the setting. Either way, I had to answer a lot of questions as I wrote up the adventure. For one, the setting is split into three kingdoms: Rende (human, the starting point of the adventure) Loame, an elvish paradise, and Dervish, a desert like landscape. I wanted to explain why the world is the way it is (as I usually do) and I came up with the following.
I realize the idea of a great calamity is not all that original, but I like the idea of arcane magic not existing before the calamity. The antediluvian era was a period of Divine Favor in the setting, the Flood resulted in physical alterations of what Arcane Scholars call the Aetheric Atmosphere, resulting in the ability to manipulate arcane power. I think the idea of arcane power not existing at one point in the setting is pretty well conceived. Anyways here is a history sketch.
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[ic=The Three Kingdoms]
THE three kingdoms of Loame, Rende, and Dervish are the most influential and historically diverse nations in the world. The world is slowly repopulating after an prehistoric calamity only hinted at in ancient texts from all three kingdoms and major races.
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[ic=The Great Calamity]
Humans lost their homeland when it sank into the great sea, and became a sea-faring race that eventually settled in modern-day Rende. The Dwarves and Dragonborn were once the same people, but a religious text notes a great divergence in beliefs, the Dwarves as they are known today remaining followers of their god Moradin, and the Dragonborn, (in a great schizm) preferring the Dragon Gods. Evolutionary differences subsequently occurred. The land of Dervish is in a nearly constant state of civil war, a nation divided by religious and racial beliefs.
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[ic=The Three Kingdoms Part II]
Rende[/u] is a mostly human kingdom struggling to become a supreme power. It's industriousness and natural ability at political maneuvering (not to mention warfare) has gained it much influence in the past two-hundred years. Large tracts of farmland and settlements are scattered over it's River-Valley like landscape. The land was once covered in ancient trees, and wood became a staple resource, trading for exotic goods in the mostly bleak land of Dervish.
Loame[/u] is the historical lands of the Elves and has maintained relative stability after the war with Rende. The Fallen Wood is a stretch of thick vegetation that acts as a political and physical barrier between Loame and the kingdom of Rende.
Originally, the forest covered most of Rende, but was burned/destroyed/cleared by human settlers coming from across the ocean, from the lost continent of Aldea. Over a thousand years the humans slowly cleared the land, at first living peaceably with the elves, but slowly gained a national identity of sorts, and began claiming hereditary elven lands as their own. This eventually led to the Human-Elve wars that lasted for fifty years, culminating in the Treaty of Fallenwood.
Dervish[/u] is populated by mostly dwarves and dragonborn. Dwarves and Dragonborn were at one point the same race, only splitting in ancient times over religious beliefs. The dragonborn sided with Dragon gods, and the dwarves remained loyal to Moradin, The Great-Founder. There history is abstract and convoluted, and much remains a mystery to both outside races and the Dervish people.
The land itself is arid, with few water sources and food. The people have turned to alternate sources of sustenance, including arcane magic.
Recently the Dwarves have begun expelling the Dragonborn from their lands having gained the upper hand in politics and fighting. Dragonborn, a once proud race has slipped into obscurity. Many roam the land in search of regaining past glory, and establishing a homeland. In Rende, the Dragonborn are feared as many have become self-proclaimed warlords, sacking towns and claiming human-built fortifications as their own. The Elves have received Dragonborn emissaries with mixed feelings. Some younger Elvish nobles seek to use the Dragonborn (fierce warriors) to reconquer the kingdom of Rende and drive the Humans back into the Ocean. Other members of the Elvish nobility recall the terrible Human-Elve war, and wish to remain at peace with Rende.
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[ic=The Races]
Humans came from across the great ocean, after their homeland of ALDEA slipped into the Ocean as a result of great calamity that effected all races. They fled in ships and ancient texts suggest they lost nearly 2/3 of their population. For centuries the seafarers pillaged coastal villages and settlements, which were inhabited by another humanoid race, the Halflings. (Which resided in modern day Rende)
[note]When humans settled permanently in Rende, they absorbed the Halfling race into their own culture, (which had a distinct culture) which readily adapted to the Humans. The two races now live peaceably and there is barely any mention of this rocky period of history for the two races.
[/note]
Humans did historically settle in Elvish lands, where the Halflings had lived for centuries (some halfling folklore suggests they were actually once part of the human race, but for reasons unknown fled the Human continent of ALDEA centuries before it came to an end). The Elvish at first were receptive of the Human colonists, but soon grew weary of their demands for new lands to settle. The human race reproduced rapidly, and soon it's mainland numbers were too great to remain along the coast. They began spreading inland, with new ships of seafarers arriving in the established city of Teverache. (modern day Ragnarok)
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Arcane Magic does not appear to have existed before the calamity, instead, divine favor resulted in magical powers. There is no mention of Wizards in ancient texts before the sinking of ALDEA,(the texts mentioned are few and far between, but human clergy did bring as much knowledge with them as they could when Aldea sank) and it would seem the great calamity had an effect on the Aetheric Atmosphere, and released certain (unknown elementary forces) into this plane, which (can be manipulated to) achieve certain effects. Arcane power has been studied vigorously by all races in the last thousand years.
[ooc]Revisions in the works for most of this. The basic idea that arcane magic did not exist before the flooding of Aldea remains, but the world that emerges afterwards will be a lot different then I previously imagined. I am trying to incorporate more of cause/effect elements that really push home the ideas this setting is based on. [/ooc]
[ic=Ragnaros]
Looming several hundred feet above a grassy plain, formed from rock islands and stone carvings, Ragnaros is the culmination of arcane study that began after the fall of Aldea. Conditions in the Aetheric Atmosphere made it possible for man to alter his surroundings, summoning fireballs, lightning, bringing death or life. Mankind abandoned the old gods, as the old gods abandoned them when Aldea was flooded. The Jarls, men of nobility seized control of the tribes, and joined them to forme the Kingdom. Ragnaros was once an earthbound city, but was raised some 400 years ago. The city is powered by monoliths buried in the hollowed halls of the city undercroft.
Below the city is a stonehenge like structure, made up of similiar monoliths to the one that keep the city afloat, called Widsith stones, (meaning:far journey) the stone circle is capable of transporting large quantities of people, and/or goods to the city. Since wizards are the only ones capable of activating the stones, there is no need to guard the circle, except for a small wooden palisade that surrounds the circle. The teleportation circle leads to the inside of a fortress in Ragnaros that is heavily guarded.
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[ic=Peasants]Peasants work the lands below Ragnaros providing food and sustenance. Most of the food is shipped to the city, and the peasants are left to fend for themselves. The Jarls only rally the warriors when a great threat is imposed upon the agricultural base. Monsters, plague, and starvation are all common occurrences amongst the peasant populace, which outnumber the Citizens of Ragnaros 3:1. Most peasants are humans that fled Aldea either before it sank, or after.
HALFLINGS are known without a doubt to have fled Aldea long before it sank into the ocean, as evidenced by Elven records. The Halflings lived for several centuries in RENDE, peaceably before the arrival of the Jarls. The Elves and Jarls warred with each other for 50 years before a shaky peace was established. [/ic]
[ic=Laws]
Laws are strictly enforced in the domain of the Jarls.
[note=Wizards in the city]I'm trying to figure out what the wizards in Ragnaros actually do. I've considered keeping them busy with enchanting weapons for Jarls, working on manipulating weather patterns and keeping the city aloft. Other than that, what else can wizards do in a city? Cause trouble? [/note]
I. Magic use is forbidden outside of Ragnaros.
II. A man may become a Jarl only through unanimous consent of living Jarls, or by killing a Jarl.
The second law is an abstract from the book of Illessia, the sole surviving record of going-ons in Aldea. The Jarls, are a large group of humans, (around 100) that are like nobles. There word is always taken as truth, no matter what. They have rights, and citizenship. The peasants do not. A Jarl can kill a peasant for any reason, at any time. A person becomes a Jarl by killing another Jarl, or by unanimous consent by all living Jarls. The latter is very rare.
III. No one may worship the old gods.
Other major laws: Horses are a valuable commodity, traded with the north for lumber, gold, and foodstores. Anyone caught killing a work animal is executed.
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[ic=Other stuff of interest/random thoughts]
Magic is not completely unheard of in the setting. Peasants are usually scared of it. Other races practice it. Wizards who leave Ragnaros are exiled (obviously) and use magic in various ways across the land for a profit. It is a rare thing for a wizard to practice magic outside of the city though.
I'm working on homebrew monsters for the setting, drawing from norse myth mostly, but also monsters that are (again with the cause/effect motto) a product of the flood, the shifting Aetheric Atmosphere and man's toiling with Arcane power.
Religion is practiced outside of the city, in small farmhouses, settlements and of course by other races. Purges are a regular event throughout the human kingdom, and this causes much dissent among the peasant populace. [/ic]
That's it for now.
I'm trying to reach further into the fantastic with this setting, while holding to the already apparent Nordic influences.
[ic=Intro Redux]
It is harsh in the world
an axe age, a sword age-
-shields are riven-
-a wind age, a wolf age'"
before the world goes headlong.
No man will have
mercy on another.
-from the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá
The Aesthir rule over the skybound city of Ragnaros, while the half men toil in the fields below, wary of the Valkiri, the Niddhogg-riding vicars of the ruling class.
The Valkiri work to thwart the arcane market, where wizards make deals and sell scrolls, relics and potions, risking death or worse for money.
Conquering Hersir pillage and plunder to gain favor with Jarls,
Giant slayers wander from village to village proffering their services, often in league with creatures for a profit.
Sacrifices of the willing keep the angered gods at bay, while Jarls keep clergy in their pockets.
Augurs watch the skies for signs of godly work, while plague and starvation run rampant.
Vast stretches of unexplored wilderness are haunted by mad nomads and dhampyr gypsies.
Druids keep vigilant watch over decaying forests, while Hersir cut roads and bridges through the wilderness during their conquests.
Dwarves trick men into taking their cursed rings and jewelry, and steal maidens in the night, dragging them to their subterranean lairs. They eat the dead interred in the ground, and converse with fire. Their Gnomish slave-warriors pillage elven grods and vandalize rune stones.
Loki-worshipers divert rivers and waylay caravans, build false light-beacons on coasts to wreck ships and pillage priories.
Serpent mounds. (self-note)
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