Aether

[Ariel Hapzid]

 

[size=30]Aether[/size]

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Q.) What is Aether?

A.) Aether is the fifth element of the universe. If the universe is made up of earth, air, fire, and water; then Aether is the element that holds it all together and rips it all apart. Aether is to the people of this world what oil is to us. The world is very high fantasy and epic, the heroes will

[note]This is an idea a few friends of mine have been spitballing. Mostly I come up with ideas and they comment. Tell me what you think? What do you think it could need? What do you like to see? What don't you like? [/note] personally have a hand shaping this world. They will stop an extraplanar invasion from an unknown enemy as well as try and get the many people of the Islands to work together.

Aether has the consistency of crude oil with a more midnight blue tint to it, some even claim they can see stars in the deep pools of Aether bubbling in the earth. It is the lifeblood of this world, it can be removed from the land with huge alabaster pillars. You see these pillars from time to time, sometimes they are softly glowing (when they or turned on) or they sit silently like a guardian statue (when they are turned off).

The world of Aether is a land of opportunity for the enterprising adventurer. It's history is a long and bloody one and it is now reaching a state of magical industrialization. The discovery of the usefulness of the bubbling Aether

Aether is a Neutral Campaign setting. What this means is that it was not created for any one specific roleplaying game in particular. As a Gamemaster you might have your own preferences on game systems, so with a little work you can easily create monster stats based on the descriptions of my beasts, or create your own spells, or more. The possibilities are limitless.

Themes:
The world of Aether is reaching a state of arcane industrialization. Powerful guilds make power plays in the Empire and mass produce all manner of technological wonders. Merchantilism runs rampant through the Empire.

Rich vs. Poor: The world of Aether is often made of the haves and the have-nots (especially in the Empire). The world of Aether is often about Capitalism unchecked, there are few regulations. So it's not about how hard you work it's about how smart you are with your money.

Civilization vs. Savagery: The Empire (and to a lesser extent Merfolk) represent Civilization and industry at its finest. The Elves, Halflings, (and to a lesser extent Dwarves) represent Anarchy and savagery. This fundamental conflict of Law vs. Chaos is core to the setting.

Light vs. Shadow: The Light is the fundamental positive force in the Universe, and the Shadow is the fundamental opposing negative force. The Light is worshiped by mankind, and finds itself warped through their perceptions, thus weakening the power of the light (The principle is the more layers of glass lenses you shine a light through, the dimmer it will become). Meanwhile the Shadow takes the form of Magog, the demon prince. Although he is now imprisoned on a pocket dimension, his near presence on this plane of reality has caused corruption and mutation. As his prison weakens, the number of these mutations increases.

Q.) What kinds of people live in the world of Aether?

A.) The Islands are filled with monsters as well as unique and strange fantasy races. The story will focus on a few of these exotic races, but the scope of the setting is in no way limited to these.

The Empire of Man:Naturally every setting needs a good human civilization. The Empire of Man is far reaching, spread out among 50 islands. The empire is more of collection of city-states rather than one whole nation, all very much onboard with the idea of manifest destiny. (It is very reminiscent of Greece well mixed with a Imperial Europe).  

The Twelve Tribes: The opposing force to Human expansion, the elves of the Islands are very sylvan, like the wood elves of Lord of the Rings. They live in forests, they are druids, they believe that all the drilling the Humans are doing for the Aether is raping the land. They instead have found a secret ritual that summons forth the Aether without harming the planet. Their buildings are trees that have been shaped through spellcraft. They commune with the trees and work with them.

Merfolk: Not the Mermaids from Disney's Little Mermaid. These creatures have much more in common with Abe Sapien from Hellboy. They have two legs, but they are webbed and their whole bodies are covered in sea-green scales. They are the traders and merchants of the world, bringing goods from across all 800 of the Islands. They are tricksy...

The Halfings: Swamp dwellers and voodoo worshipers. They live by the mantra of "Bite 'dat head and pinch 'dat tail!" Very Cajun in flavor, they have all sorts of weird ceremonies with snakes, candles, liquor, and zombies. Think if you had Frodo and he worked at Popeye's Chicken.  Frequently ruled by shamen, they are unruly and borderline childish.

Dwarven Republics: If Merfolk are kings of the ocean below the surface, then the Dwarves are the kings above the surface. One of the key trading partners with the Merfolk, they are skilled artisans who have built such wonders as the Barge City and the Pillars which are used for Aether drilling. The elves hate them because they see them as murderers and worse of the planet. They are very similar to the steel and oil tycoons at the beginning of the 20th century.
Occasionally allying themselves with the humans, they have bad blood with the Elves and legend has it that they originally set sail because they were driven out.

Q.) What is the Font of Aeros?

A.) It is one of the most powerful artifacts, some say it is even the source of the Aether that makes this world so unique. It was once used to baptize the emperors of mankind, to make the bloodlines pure and powerful. Eons ago it was lost, possibly stolen or destroyed. Knowledge of its existence is a legend, a dark secret of the Church of the Light who wish to keep it a secret. Conspiracy theories fly whenever the Font of Aeros is mentioned. Only the sister knights keep a silent search for the Font going.

The Legend of Aeros: Aeros was once the court mage of one of the first Emperors. Having heard a prophecy foreseeing his death the Emperor knew he had to protect himself. Turning to Aeros' arcane aid, he demanded that the sorcerer help defend him from assassination.

Aeros was one of the first of these early spell casters to make use of Aether in his creations. With it he crafted a magnificent marble washbasin that flowed with arcane power. The Emperor was pleased and splashed the water on his face. It made him stronger than any man, it allowed him to heal from wounds that would kill a lesser man quickly, and more. When the Emperor had a son, he was baptized completely in the water.

Years later, the Emperor, now an old man, would be murdered by his son, unable to stop him since the waters of the Font flowed through his entire body, and not just his face. For centuries this practice continued, long after Aeros' disappearance. Then one day the Font vanished and a small group of handmaidens were chosen by the Queen to find it again.

Today, centuries later, even though the Church of the Light (which grew in power since the loss of the Font and the loss of Aeros) stands against them the Sisters of the Font of Aeros still soldiers on in the hopes that they can again bless the Emperor with it's power.  


Sisters of the Font of Aeros: Sister Knights, or female knights as they can be called are not subjected to one race. They roam the world looking for the Font of Aeros and glory. The font is a baptism chamber that can grant near godlike powers. They must keep their knighthood a secret for the Church of the Light does not accept their way of life. They take many oaths, like celibacy or poverty. The Sisters carry markers with them, hidden from prying eyes. The lady knights are  similar to female Indiana Joneses. Following clues to find the Font of Aeros, they will stop at nothing to attain it.

Q.) Can you tell me more about Dwarves in the world of Aether?

These traders travel from island to island. They wander endlessly since they were driven from their native land by Magog's corruption. Their ships bring trade with all the people of the islands, and work closely with the merfolk. The merfolk and the dwarves may seem allies, neither can truly trust the other since both are working for their own agendas. Some powerful dwarf oracles say they can foresee truth and prosperity. They love to entertain for money and share legends and epics from their long history. They travel to the dangerous places most dare not go.

The Dwarves have a pantheon of folk heroes who they worship with mythic tales and songs. They usually live on huge ships that act like floating villages. The Captain of the ship is usually the most experienced dwarf with a council of officers who are elected by the crew. Dwarves learn the trade of the sea at an early age and work hard.

Dwarven society is inspired by communist China. While dwarf captains have complete control on the ship, the ships are run by a group of officers who serve as a ruling party for the people of the ship.

The Miser's Collar: Dwarves believe in honor and trustworthiness, to them lying is a horrible betrayal of the fundamental trust developed between the Merchant and the Customer. When a dwarf is found to be overly greedy, a liar, and a cheat he can be fitted with a Miser's Collar a golden collar that forces the wearer to speak nothing but truths.

Q.) Can you tell me more about elves in the world of Aether?

A.) The elves are savage and for the most part wary of mankind. They see their expansions into the West as an act of war. The elves have been waging war with the Empire now for centuries. Their battles are mostly hit and run, guerrilla tactics against the stout warriors of the Imperial Army.

Elves are broken up into 9 tribes, each one with it's own agenda concerning the Empire. Some can even be considered Allies (as long as at the end of the war they can claim the islands belonging to their rivals). Each tribe has it's own patron spirit that serves as it's totem. Some explorers consider these spirits to be nothing more than stories. Others claim to have seen the elves summon giant behemoths that could squash a castle beneath their feet.

Elven Tribes

    * Barracuda Tribe
    * Spider Tribe
    * Frog Tribe
    * Hawk Tribe
    * Bat Tribe
    * Jaguar Tribe
    * Panther Tribe
    * Serpent Tribe
    * Shark Tribe


Q.) Can you tell me more about humans in the world of Aether?

A.) Humans are imperialistic and greedy as a race. The Empire was forged hundreds of years ago when, according to some scholars, Mankind first came to this world from another plane of reality. If this is true, no one has ever found how to return to that plane. The Current Emperor is Leopald Orablar II, the Third Emperor. The Humans are mostly democratic, comprised of City-States with their own local senates, each ruled by a Praetor. Finally the city-states participate in the Imperial Senate which serves Emperor Leopald.

A Brief History of the Emperors:

   1. Leopald I, deceased-Murdered by his son after bathing in the Font of Aeros partially
   2. Ivanar, missing-Ruled as Emperor for 60 years, eventually vanished along with the Font of Aeros
   3. Leopald II, living-Current ruling Emperor for the past 794 years. Leopald has had over forty wives over the years and now has


Q.) Can you tell me more about merfolk in the world of Aether?

A.) Merfolk are both allies and rivals of the dwarves. They wage a quiet cold war, a trade war between the two forces. Each one faced with a stalemate against each other. Merfolk are less like amphibians fish and more like humanoid amphibians. They can survive for several days without returning to the sea although suffer from dehydration within hours of leaving the sea. Very few Merfolk choose to live away from the sea (in fact it is incredibly rare).

Merfolk have legs, not tails, their body is slimy and coated in small scales. They are usually blue in color although occaisionally they can be green. Merfolk see well underwater and in the dark. They are quick and athletic, excellent swimmers as well as runners. They rarely wear much clothing, and when they do they prefer something skin tight (like seal skin tunics).

Q.) What kinds of unique monsters call the world of Aether home?

Vampirates: Sailors corrupted by Magog's darkness. There are 4-5 ships sailing (such as The Blood Lust) that feast on sailors and occasionally come to shore to hunt. According to legend, their sails are sewn from the skin of their prey.

Aether Elementals: There are Earth, Fire, Air, and Water elementals. Then there are Aether Elementals, being of pure wild magic.

Zombie Barons: Powerful undead rising forth from the swamps of the halflings, they are embodied by evil spirits who hunt for flesh and dark arcane secrets. Sometimes they serve halfling shamans as guardians, and sometimes they are birthed from the strange mix of dark voodoo magic and Aether in the swamp islands.

Homunculi: Tireless automatons created by guild-mages. They come in all manner of shape and design for various purposes and work ceaselessly. Homunculi fall into several broad categories with various makes and models within those categories.

    * Homunculus Steed: A mechanical horse that never tires, the creature is blessed with rudimentary intelligence (like an incredibly bright poodle). The Homunculus Steed can operate on 1 gallon of Aether for 600 miles.
    * Homunculus Laborer: A hulking lump of steel, clay, and wood. The Homunculus Laborer builds roads, buildings, etc. and can lift 15 tons over its head. The Laborer usually runs on a gallon of Aether for a month depending on the work it is doing.
    * Homunculus Warrior:


Q.) Who is Magog the Shadow?

A.) He is the embodiment of all that is dark and corrupt in the universe. Magog is a demon imprisoned on the world eons ago. Today, his arcane prison is weakening as the forces that once held it together are slowly drained away. With each passing day Magog's dark might grows stronger and stronger.

There is no hell in the world of Aether, only the prison of Magog. Magog's corruption has creates mutated demons that wander the islands, perverting natural creatures into becoming servants to the shadow.

Magog is literally the most powerful being on this plane of reality. His power is limitless and his understanding of the dark arts knows no bounds. The only being that can even come close to matching Magog's is the entity worshiped by humans known as The Light.

It was The Light that imprisoned Magog all those centuries ago, long before man or even elves came to the islands. Today however, the power of The Light is waning while Magog's influence grows from behind the celestial bars of his prison.