The Campaign Builder's Guild

I'm just copying and pasting this list and deleting the ones I have not read.  Some of these I have not read in a long time, and I'm going from memory, is that O.K.?

Xanth series - 7
John Anthony Bellairs - The Face in the Frost - 9 (I'm glad other people have read this)
Black, Holly - The Spiderwick Chronicles - 5
James Herbert Brennan - Faerie Wars - 6
Brooks, Terry - Shannara series - 4
Stephen Brust - Vlad Taltos - 8
L. G. Burbank - Lords of Darkness - 4
C. J. Cherryh - Forge of Heaven - 7
Stephen R. Donaldson - Chronicles of Thomas Covenant - 6
Sara Douglass - Wayfarer Redemption Sextet - 8
David Eddings - Belgariad - 5
Erikson, Steven - Malzan Book of the Fallen - 5
Farland, David - The Runelords - 6
Gaiman, Neil - American Gods/Anansi Boys - 6
Goodkind, Terry - The Sword of Truth - 4
Simon Hawke - Dark Sun: Tribe of One - 7
Howard, Robert - Conan - 7
Robert Jordan - The Wheel of Time - 8
Ursula LeGuin - Earthsea  - 7
C.S. Lewis - Chronicles of Narnia - 5
George R.R. Martin - Song of Ice and Fire - 7 (so far)
Terry Prachett - Discworld - 7
Rice, Anne - The Vampire Chronicles - 5
Rowling, J.K. - Harry Potter - 5
Salvatore, R.A. - Drizzt Saga - 4
Sanderson, Brandon - Elantris - 6
Tolkien, J.R.R. - The Lord of the Rings and other Middle Earth - 8
Tad Williams - Memory, Sorrow, Thorn - 9
Gene Wolfe - Long Sun - 7
Zelazny, Roger - Chronicles of Amber - 7 (love the series, hated the ending)
Zelazny, Roger - Lords of Light - 6

Unmentioned thus far:
Robert Jordan - Conan Chronicles - 8 (The definitive Conan stories, imo)
David Eddings - The Mallorean - 4

I'm no cartographer, but it seems like your desert to the southeast is oddly placed - usually deserts are blocked off from the oceans by mountains, which block moist waters coming in off the oceans.  You also have a funny little place on the NE section of desert that goes up between a couple forests.  Seems to be saying that on that tiny strip of land, no flora will grow, but all around it, rich forests dwell.

How did you do the mountain textures, I would like to use something like that.

Quote from: LordVreeg[blockquote=Advachiel]One group of beings (history forgets which one) discovered a way into Emperius, the Heaven-Realm, where the Gods resided. They forced their way in, and discovered the Forge of Heaven within the swirling Aether. Upon their attempt to manipulate the Aether, there was a great backlash. Whether it was the universe rejecting this manipulation, or whether it was the Gods' attempt to defend themselves, no one will ever know. What is known is that a shockwave, mystical and powerful, washed over the entire universe, centering on Ahld, and the world was never the same. The Gods were killed instantly, and those who had invaded Emperius were trapped within what remained of the Heaven-Realm, now much more of a Hell outside of time and space. As the echo of the Shattering washed over the universe again and again, like waves crashing on the beach, the oceans boiled over and mountains crumbled to the ground; the physicality of the planet was altered almost entirely. Millions were killed. Only a remnant of a remnant survived the terrible Resonance, and those who did were immediately confronted with a new danger: the Darken.[/blockquote]

This paragraph is especially good.  The current shaping of the world is part of a process, not just a world set into place for the players to make mayhem in.  That the Elder Darken still openly inhabit the world is a welcome, unusual palpability of evil.

Love the steam element of technology.  Both in terms of how it can be utilized by itself, and in terms of how steam-tech can be multiplied by magic, it makes the world seem more real.  


Nice, firm background, with no glaring logical flaws.
[/quote]

An advanced technology without going "steampunk."  Thanks for your words, I hope to hear more from others here as well.

[note]The races have always been core races - for a short while, I considered creating all homebrew races for resonance, but instead, opted to update the core races so that they fit well with the world.[/note]

There are hundreds - if not thousands - of sentient species on Ahld, all trying desperately to find a way to work together and survive the Resonance.  Many monstrous races from core D&D have been omitted, while a few others have been redesigned to better fit with resonance, and others still have been turned into playable races.  Here is a brief bit of information about each of the playable races.


Humans
What can be said about humans that hasn't been said in hundreds of other campaign settings?  They are many, they are proud, and they are resilient.  They have weathered countless wars, and even an apocalypse, all by steadfastly trudging onward, ever onward.

Little history is known of any race from before the Shattering, but for the humans, whose lives are much shorter than other races, and who stored their collective knowledge and history on paper and in books, even less is known.  The most powerful human akashic masters on Naryth claim that humans came from a continent far to the southwest, thousands of years ago, but even they are limited, as the very fabric of the akashic nodes seems to have been sundered by the Shattering.

Currently, humans live all across Naryth.  The largest of the enclaves and city-states are filled with humans, most of the people of New Nizwen are human, and many of the people who have finally decided to try to settle the barren lands again are human.  Culturally, the nomadic hunter human and the Nizwen merchant human have little difference between them culturally '" though the nomadic human lives a different lifestyle, very few of the differences have had time to seep into the soul of the people, and one will still find herders, travelers, and shepherds who remember a time when most humans lived in cities.

Karolysts
Named after the first, and shallowest, of the Underworlds, Karole (pronounced keh-roh-LEH), Karolysts physically have much in common with their surface cousins, the humans. Oftentimes, when they come to the surface, they are mistaken for humans, albeit "sickly-looking" ones.

Karolysts are descendants of humans, and look much like them. They tend to have chalky white skin and dark hair (both from a lack of sun exposure). Due to the different diets they have deep below the earth, they are generally shorter and thinner than humans as well. Since they are so accustomed to the dark, they often wear scarves, called shrii, over their eyes while above ground.

Karolysts originally migrated beneath the earth at the request of their patron deity, Purvol. The clerics of Purvol claimed that the god knew of an upcoming cataclysm which they could only survive if they moved below the surface. Thousands of humans moved below the surface, led by priests and clerics of Purvol, who preached of his benevolence, and of the upcoming apocalypse. Ironically, the cataclysm did happen, but it was many millenia later, and it slew the gods in the process, thus ending the religion of Purvol, and the supremacy of the priests.

In the modern world, the Karolysts are extremely xenophobic, very rarely allowing outsiders into their massive underground cities. The city Karole, itself, was ruined by the Resonance, and completely shut off by cave-ins, but many of its people still search for ways back in to their glorious home.

[ooc]
Sorry it took so long to get this posted.  There is a good bit more to come, but it's been a busy couple weeks for me with a new job.[/ooc]

[ooc]In that case, I will keep just this one thread.  I would love to see some more details on these new hosting options, since most of the sites that are offering "hosting" right now really only offer various ways to upload text files.[/ooc]

There are several things new that are worth talking about, but one of those new things - my new class system - will be obsolete with D&D 4E most likely.

The Whisper is my way of introducing an insanity and taint system.  Right now, the big mystery is whether or not this is just yet another ::ahem:: resonance of the Shattering, or an actual premeditated mental attack of some sort.  The (almost) most powerful mages (currently) on the planet, the High Council in Darva, have been working on the problem for literally ten years now, and the word is that they have no solution.  The Archiver is either being tight-lipped, or simply doesn't know, but he doesn't often offer audiences anyway, so there haven't been many opportunities to ask him.

The races have undergone a major overhaul.  I am still using core races, but they have some major cultural, societal, and even physical (in some cases) changes.

My favorite organization, the Order of the Changing Wind, is going to play a much more important role now, and the Archiver is going to be much less "prophet," and much more "teacher."

The imperials of Rhodwyd, recently settled in southeast Naryth, will play a much more sinister role than they previously did - they now have a direct relationship with the Darken, and you may notice that the time they showed up corresponded very closely with the emergence of the Whisper.  More to come on that.

Thanks Luminous Crayon.  It's great to be back into this again.  I wasn't planning on setting up a separate discussion thread... is that what people are doing now?

Though Ahld itself is a relatively old world, the most important aspects of its history lies within the last four hundred years.

Some people blame magic for both the Shattering, and the ensuing Darkwars. Had it not been for magic, Emperius would never have been breached, and the gods would never have been slain. After the Darkwars, those with arcane gifts - even priests, who no longer had their gods to protect them - were persecuted. Many of these mages and sorcerers joined the Darken, who did not prejudge those with the gift. Others set up fortresses where all who studied their craft could find refuge. Scholars began at this time to study the inner workings of the world, and found that magic wasn't the only source of power. The most prominent of these discoveries were made through the workings with steam.

Scientists began using steam as a source of power for many things, including objects of transportation. The first recorded use of such was during the Battle of Peirnyth, between the city-states Kalde and Grinmord. Disputes over mining issues grew heated, and the two city-states came to battle on the fields of Peirnyth. With the help of scientists, Kalde used steam to float huge balloons over the enemies, dropping flaming pitch and boulders from above. Soon afterwards, scientists in Rengard found a way to use steam to power the large propellers on ships, thus creating the first steam-powered ships.

Over the next few hundred years, mankind forgot about magic, save for the occasional burning at the stake of a "witch" or "heretic." However, sixty years ago, a cult began to show up around the shadier parts of some of the cities. They called themselves the Reborn Fire, and claimed to be priests of "new gods." To prove their point that they were meant to be the rulers of mankind, the cultists used powerful magics, saying it was a gift from the gods, such as the magic of clerics of old. Though there were several groups of these cultists spread across the city-states of the continent, they were unified by one man, named Kastor Tathfire, who led this new magical rebellion. Mages of this cult came to the cities as healers, and at the same time, a new form of magic, inherent and called psionics, emerged in some powerful people. Though mankind didn't want it, magic was coming back, and coming back strong.

Seven years ago, from across the Ocean of Souls, warships came, bearing the crests of Halfard Sigus, Emperor of Rhodwyd. These soldiers seized control of several port city-states, and were able to make their way many miles inland before the steam-powered weapons of the people of Naryth were able to beat back the imperial army.

Currently, the imperial outposts cover most of the southeastern coasts and riverbeds of Naryth. They have found a way to reproduce the steam-powered cannons that were used against them, and have created smaller versions, which they are calling hand-cannons.

(There will be more added to this thread eventually)

Here's a time line of the last four hundred years to help keep steady your foot upon the path.  Keep in mind that after the dissolution of Dovlia, many of the city-states began forming their own cultures and histories, and this time line focuses more on the continent as a whole instead of individual city-states.

Years Ago...	Event
400	The Shattering.  The gods are completely and utterly destroyed, and the resonance of their destruction reverberates across the cosmos, causing chaos.  Much of Ahld is destroyed by earthquakes, mountains tumbling down, surging floods, and volcanic activity.
390-350	The Darkwars.  The Darken, born of the rage of the dying gods, awaken and gather forces to take over the lands of Ahld.  Much of civilization is destroyed and overrun.  The remaining small kingdoms unite into the kingdom of Dovlia to defend against the terrible creatures of the Darken.
362	The Dragons attempt to take advantage of the state of the world, but their fighting only leads to their destruction and deaths.
350	The Darkwars end as the Darken realize they cannot keep their power indefinitely in this world, and flee the fields of battle.  The kingdom of Dovlia, now occupying much of Naryth, but still very weak, sets about rebuilding the lands.
320	A continent-wide persecution of all magic-users begins.  Mages and sorcerers are blamed for the Shattering, and are forced into exile.  Many flee north, to the barrens.  Meanwhile, King Adron of Dovlia dies, and his son, Adrus, takes the throne.
306	Beneath the Kannary Islands, a powerful sahaguin sorcerer named Akovas takes control of that portion of the ocean.  Assembling massive armies in the underwater ruins of fabled Ashiba, he plans his war on humankind.
299	Civil war breaks out in Dovlia after King Adrus is assassinated, and leaves no heir.  The floundering kingdom dissolves into many city-states over the course of a decade.
271	A huge orc army, lead by giants, swarms through the Giden River Valley, terrorizing the hobbsiths, who have lived there for centuries.
266	The huge army takes control of several ruined sites along the Giden River Valley, forcing the hobbsiths to flee, and thus separating the city-states of eastern Naryth from those in the west.
266-251	Over the next fifteen years orcs and giants, along with other allies (such as ogres, ettin, and kobolds) send numerous raids into the dwarven and elven homes around them.
248	The stone dwarves of Krugden Hall are forced out of their home by the orcs.  They flee in all directions.
241	A massive fleet of ships from across the Farthest Sea lands on Icebreak Point, in the northeast of Naryth, and their people begin settling that area, often violently skirmishing with other inhabitants.
231	The new settlers build a capital city and proclaim their small kingdom as "New Nizwen."
220	Many twilight elves leave their ancestral home of Nuwazyth to find new homes away from the violence of Naryth.  Most settle in other places on the continent, but some travel across the Great Western Sea.
217	This time period marks some of the first uses of steam-powered equipment.  During a battle between two opposing city-states, steam-powered balloons are used to drop flaming pitch on enemies.  Soon afterwards, steam is employed to create faster-moving ships.
216	News comes to New Nizwen that a magocracy far to the north would like to trade with them.  They set up caravans and trade gates with Darva.
203	The orcs of Giden begin stirring again, raiding many close-by settlements.  Rumors abound that a dark force has taken control of their army/empire and plans on attacking the surrounding lands.
192	A man named Tyrael Sudorwind, championing freedom, forms the Order of the Changing Wind, a coalition of warriors who travel from area to area to help fight some of the darkness that plagues the land.  They are often criticized as "do-gooders" who don't know how to stay out of the way.
184	The massive sahaguin empire of Taklidarg, under leadership of the emperor-sorcerer Akovas, wages war on several city-states on the coast of southern Naryth.
184-179	On and off for five years, the sahaguin under Akovas war with and destroy coastal cities in what becomes known as the War from the Seas.
169	The last good dragons on Naryth meet high in the Demonwind Mountains and agree to leave the continent of Naryth to its doom instead of fight each other into extinction.  In a magnificent two-day flight, they fly overhead of all the peoples of the lands and leave the continent in what has become known as the Last Flight of the Dragons.
148	In the ruined university-city of Hadria, a bluish light is seen high in the Pinnacle, but none will investigate.  After several months, it disappears.
135	Rumors abound across the continent of a traveling man known simply as the Archiver, who is searching all the lands for ancient relics of the past, in hopes to pieces together the history of Ahld before the Shattering.
107	The gnomes of Dorwyth Heights mysteriously close their doors to all visitors; even their friends, the halflings of Arfoll, are denied entry to their mountainous complex.
97	The lands groan in pain as wretched, fetid swamps begin appearing in some forests where they have never existed before.  Simultaneously, orcs from the Giden begin migrating to these lands, leaving the river valley mostly open once again.
75	The Karolysts, having long remained hidden underground, begin trading with several of the city-states around Naryth again.
64	The sahaguins begin acting up again.  This time, through both the use of powerful magics, as well as deep, underground rivers, they attack inland cities, and lake cities.
60	Groups of magic-users, calling themselves the Reborn Fire, appear to aid the cities under attack by sahaguin.  At first, these mages are shunned, but soon it becomes obvious that they are the only thing that can counter the sahaguin magics.
52	The Sorcerer-City Darva offers to trade with several other city-states in the northern parts of Naryth.
38	In the university-city ruins of Hadria, the Archiver, a powerful sage, settles with acolytes and opens up a library where he works to preserve what little history he has been able to salvage.
25	After many years of using steam technology only in warfare and battles, the first railcart is completed between the city-states of Hadron and Kolwin.  Steam-powered trains ferry people and supplies almost a hundred miles in two days, and other railcarts begin being built between other city-states.
19	Using the technology of the steam-powered trains, dwarves from the kingdom of Garalus create powerful cannons that can hurl rocks, metal balls, or pitch up to several miles away.
13	A small warship from across the Ocean of Souls lands on the southeastern tip of Naryth.  Before anyone can investigate, it sails back across the seas from whence it came.
10-7	In the dark of night, people begin to hear voices, babbling about terrible, heinous deeds.  At first only magic-users seem afflicted, but as time passes, more and more people begin to hear these sinister whisperings.  Not only that, but after the first three years, it seems that daylight no longer provides safety from the Whisper; even during the sunny hours, those within shadows or dark places can fall prey to the madness.  At first, people blamed the mages of Darva, but it has become apparent that even the powerful Darvan mages have no protection against this horrible anomaly.
7	A huge fleet of warships comes from across the Ocean of Souls and lands on southeastern Naryth.  These ships bear the flags of Halfard Sigus, Emperor of Rhodwyd. The soldiers from the ships seize control of several port city-states, and are able to make their way many miles inland before the steam-powered weapons of the people of Naryth are able to beat back the imperial army.
Currently...	The imperials hold much of southeastern Naryth, the orcs hold much of southwestern and western Naryth, New Nizwin holds much of northeast Naryth, and all the lands in between are constantly being fought over by various city-states.  Deep within the Guarding Wood, in the ruined city of Hadria, the Pinnacle is alight again and scholars travel from all over the continent to study and learn.  The mages of Darva send out more and more wizards every day to combat the Darken, but it seems as though none can beat them back.  All over Ahld, more and more people are succumbing to the terrible Whisper, and few who hear the voices are able to hold off the madness.  At the Shining Temple, the Order of the Changing Wind is working on plans to bring the entire continent out of the grips of the Darken... no matter what the cost.  And all across the land, people are leaving; they've just had enough.  There are new continents to explore, and now lands to settle.  For good or ill, it's a time of change.

[note]
This is a reimagining of my old campaign setting, resonance.  It's been a very long time since I've been here, and an even longer time since I've worked on resonance, but I think it's time again.  I actually tried out a few different sites around the web, such as rpgspaces.com, eruvian, GitP, and Obsidian Portal, but never really found anything that fit.  Then I got out of working on my campaign, but with the announcement of 4E and gleemax, I figured it was time to get back into the groove.  And I won't be using gleemax.  Because it looks pretty silly.  So, here I am.  The timeline of resonance has been moved forward ten years to incorporate a new threat to the people of Ahld - the Whisper.
[/note]

Core Ethos:
As the Forge of Heaven was shattered, the echoes and reverberations shook the foundations of the universe.  Few on Ahld survived.  Those who did were forced to struggle against the Darken, powerful entities formed from the nightmares of the Gods, as well as the rage and hysteria of those still living on the desolate planet.  Most survivors have banded together in small enclaves and large city-states, and fight constant wars with each other, all the while battling the creatures of nightmare and trying desperately to ward off the mysterious madness-inducing Whispers.



[ooc]
"Looking back on the years leading up to the Great Shattering, most historians say that the Twilight Elves were to blame.  They were always ambitious, the elves, and it was they who discovered Emperius, after all.  The Karolysts claim they were the first to discover the Heaven-Realm, but it's obvious that they were not powerful enough to maniupulate the Aether that caused the destruction which followed.  However, upon years of research in the only library still containing records of the Time Before, it has become obvious to me who caused the Shattering, and the Resonance that followed:  it was us, the humans.  It was our pride and our greed.  It was our glory and it was our destruction.  We learned of Emperius, and we assumed we would be welcomed into the home of the Gods with open arms.  Well... we were wrong, and now we have a lot to answer for."

- Kalus Mournfang, Sagus Aurorus in Librus Aleghandros
[/ooc]

resonance is a post-apocalyptic campaign setting taking place on the world of Ahld, and mostly on the large continent of Naryth. Much of the world was unexplored even before the Great Shattering, and now, with many people confined to their homes either from necessity or fear of the Darken, there are countless opportunities for adventurers.

Ahld is a newer world; many say that it was the Gods' "Second Try," after a first world which was swallowed by the Void. These myths come from clerics of the Lost Gods, who claim to have spoken with their patron(s) on numerous occasions. The Gods supposedly created the various races that are still alive to this day, and of course, like on all worlds in all universes, the races fought and battled with each other. It was this which lead to Ahld as we know it today.

One group of beings (history forgets which one) discovered a way into Emperius, the Heaven-Realm, where the Gods resided. They forced their way in, and discovered the Forge of Heaven within the swirling Aether. Upon their attempt to manipulate the Aether, there was a great backlash. Whether it was the universe rejecting this manipulation, or whether it was the Gods' attempt to defend themselves, no one will ever know. What is known is that a shockwave, mystical and powerful, washed over the entire universe, centering on Ahld, and the world was never the same. The Gods were killed instantly, and those who had invaded Emperius were trapped within what remained of the Heaven-Realm, now much more of a Hell outside of time and space. As the echo of the Shattering washed over the universe again and again, like waves crashing on the beach, the oceans boiled over and mountains crumbled to the ground; the physicality of the planet was altered almost entirely. Millions were killed. Only a remnant of a remnant survived the terrible Resonance, and those who did were immediately confronted with a new danger: the Darken.

When the Gods died, their final screams of terror, anger, and rage merged with the mystical energies of the Shattering, and became something else... something elemental, something dreadful, and something sentient. Hundreds of these powerful entities - called the Darken - swarmed over the lands of Ahld, gathering the thoughtless beasts of the world behind them, and waged war on the crumpled remains of civilization. This period of strife and confusion is known as the Darkwars, and millions more people were killed during these dreadful times.

The humans and other races were lucky though; apparently the Darken had limited lifespans, and some began to fade away. Only the most powerful of them survived, and they were forced to retreat as the goodly folks found ways of fighting back. Those Darken which still ...live... today have fortresses, surrounded by plague-ridden swamps, where they suck in the life-energy of the lands around them.  They brood and scheme, acting as deities to the orcs and other beasts of the lands.

Most humans have banded together in small underground enclaves, or large city-states built upon the ruins of ancient cities. The other races live in their respected territories and keep "locked doors" to all but their own.

In recent years, a new threat has emerged on Ahld.  It started with ominous and sinister voices being heard at night by certain magic-users, but over ten years, has increased in intensity.  Nowadays, at no time during the night, and never within a shadow or a dark space is one safe.  Known as the Whisper, these terrible voices seem to strike mostly at those with the magic spark, but many thousands of people have been stricken insane by the evil, babbling voices.

what came before

Though Ahld itself is a relatively old world, the most important aspects of its history lies within the last four hundred years.

Some people blame magic for both the Shattering, and the ensuing Darkwars.  Had it not been for magic, Emperius would never have been breached, and the gods would never have been slain.  After the Darkwars, those with arcane gifts - and even priests, who no longer had their gods to protect them - were persecuted.  Many of these mages and sorcerers joined the Darken, who did not prejudge those with the gift.  Others set up fortresses where all who studied their craft could find refuge.  Scholars began at this time to study the inner workings of the world, and found that magic wasn't the only source of power.  The most prominent of these discoveries were made through the workings with steam.

Scientists began using steam as a source of power for many things, including objects of transportation.  The first recorded use of such was during the Battle of Peirnyth, between the city-states Kalde and Grinmord.  Disputes over mining issues grew heated, and the two city-states came to battle on the fields of Peirnyth.  With the help of scientists, Kalde used steam to float huge balloons over the enemies, dropping flaming pitch and boulders from above.  Soon afterwards, scientists in Rengard found a way to use steam to power the large propellers on ships, thus creating the first steam-powered ships.

Over the next few hundred years, mankind forgot about magic, save for the occasional burning at the stake of a "witch" or "heretic."  However, sixty years ago, a cult began to show up around the shadier parts of some of the cities.  They called themselves the Reborn Fire, and claimed to be priests of "new gods."  To prove their point that they were meant to be the rulers of mankind, the cultists used powerful magics, saying it was a gift from the gods, such as the magic of clerics of old.  Though there were several groups of these cultists spread across the city-states of the continent, they were unified by one man, named Kastor Tathfire, who led this new magical rebellion.  Mages of this cult came to the cities as healers, and at the same time, a new form of magic, inherent and called psionics, emerged in some powerful people.  Though mankind didn't want it, magic was coming back, and coming back strong.

Ten years ago, from across the Ocean of Souls, warships came, bearing the crests of Halfard Sigus, Emperor of Rhodwyd.  These soldiers seized control of several port city-states, and were able to make their way many miles inland before the steam-powered weapons of the people of  Naryth were able to beat back the imperial army.

Currently, the imperial outposts cover most of the southeastern coasts and riverbeds of Naryth.  Across the rest of the continent, hundreds of city-states, fortresses, cave enclaves, and small, walled settlements protect against both the imperials, and the monstrous creatures of the Darken.

How complete does the setting have to be to be submitted?  I would like resonance to be up for selection if possible.

Hey, is this where I say "hey?"  

resonance

Core Ethos:
As the Forge of Heaven was shattered, the echoes and reverberations shook the foundations of the universe.  Few on Ahld survived.  Those who did were forced to struggle against the Darken, powerful entities formed from the nightmares of the Gods, as well as the rage and hysteria of those still living on the desolate planet.  Most survivors have banded together in small enclaves and large city-states, and fight constant wars with each other, all the while battling the creatures of nightmare.