Doom and Woebefall anyone who would seek audience, or the court, of the Orcnin. The existence of propriety amongst Ogran’s children is … tacit at best. Dominance is the only rule of behavior. Commands are the only respected form of communication, and empty threats are a kindness when lethal force is used wantonly. Amongst the Orcnin there is a strict racial hegemony. Unlike the Elendi or the Taurn the many breeds of Orcnin are drastically different. Goblin and Kobold, O’Sa, O’Ha, Gnoll, Troll, (or Gn'ole and Tro'ole) and many more – each breed made for a purpose. Each species a component in the ever prophesied army of Ogran. The 'Army of Ogran' is perhaps the most direct translation of the word 'Orcnin' itself. At least as it is spoken amongst the Orcnin themselves. It is a Mans conceit that has stolen the word (actually) 'Ogran’s' and transliterated it directly into Orcnin.
The initial meeting with an Orcnin (of any sort) is best when full of bluster. One Orcnin has no real compunction in killing and eating another Orcnin. In fact, most `Sa keep the teeth of Goblins (Gob'lin'ha) as jewelry, and they would consider you downright shameful wearing the teeth of any creature you don’t kill and consume yourself. It is also downright shameful to back away from a fight – even one you know you will lose. Amongst the Orcnin there are thousands of subtle rules of engagement. Paramount to any attempting to integrate or gain influence in an Hoard of Orcnin is the recognition of the racial Hegemony. At this time the Orcnin’Ha, are the dominate species. How this is determined is a mystery to anyone not Archon of the Triune Dark Lord Ogran. What this means is that the `Ha will always win. If a Goblin could kill a `Ha – he will instead surrender. Everytime. This divine mandate is the only thing keeping the Orcnin hoards intact. Without it, the internal strife would tear the Orcnin asunder, literally consume itself, and leave the world a safer place.
No Orcnin needs to be explained how to deal with Orcnin, but the first thing that any non-Orcnin needs to be aware of is that they are Goblins (save free of Ogran) in the eyes of all Orcnin. Goblins are the least of the Orcnin, the servants and messengers of the army. Goblins may not wear any teeth save those of other Goblins, like non-Orcnin. Entering into an Orcnin hoard for the purpose of business is easy. Keep your weapons sharp. Sneer at everyone, and threaten (or use) physical violence against Goblins wantonly. Assuming you properly impress the watchers – you will be lead to the Sa or their proxies. There you make your bargain, and are ideally allowed to leave unmolested. Those foolhardy enough to seek a deeper connection with the Orcnin have a more difficult task ahead of them. They must transcend their Goblin status in some manner or another. There are numerous ways and all involve death and destruction. The simplest method is to 'become a Troll' though that 'path' is not pleasant. To 'become a Troll' you simply need think of nothing but food and death. Loose all sense of reason. Attack first, last, and always. You may be able to earn a 'Troll Mark' amongst the Orcnin. That is … the `Ha will give you (or more accurately allow you to keep) a Troll tooth to serve as a sign of your place in Orcnin society … If you live in the Tro'pits with the Gnolls.
The elders of Orcnin society are eaten as a delicacy. All food is served raw or seared for flavor. Orcnin young are eaten on a regular basis, but it is a taboo to eat of your own breed save for sacred religious ceremonies. It is, though, not uncommon for a Ha to force a Goblin to eat his own foot. A routine punishment for failure is having one of your eyes removed and eaten in front of you. The worst place to be in Orcnin society is missing an arm or an eye. To have lost both means that you are simply carrying stuff and waiting for your turn to be turned into stew. Cabnetry is not a science practiced amongst the majority of Horde. There are Gno'pits found in any Orcnin hoard where the doomed are kept until the time comes for them to be eaten. A pathetic collection of that Horde's refuse. It is considered an honor to be allowed to make the dinner selection from such a pin, and traditionally it is the chooser that is allowed to keep the teeth of their chosen meal. There is only one way out of the Gno'pits. Through the Tro'pits.
At this time among the Horde there are three major 'political' organizations. The Baragan, the Gagarin, and those described as the Traditionalists. Were it not for the traditions of Ancient Triunism, the Traditionalists would be the greatest ally of The Empire. However, the traditional relationship between Orcnin and Mans, Orcnin and Elendi, Orcnin and Dwar … is antagonism, murder, and genocide. As it stands the Baragan are the nearest to 'allies' of The Empire. Gagarin adhere to an absolute fabrication of Ogran's that the War Hero and New God Girin was actually a Troll. This is absolutely not true. Girin's lesser archon was a Mans, and a powerful one at that. His war cult commands a small breed of barbarian bottom lander Mans and now nearly half of the Orcnin Horde. The Baragan are the most diplomatic social society of Orcnin'Sa. A sky born philosophy of the Horde that deal with pirates. High sky pirates ally with Ronian and Taurn armies for mutual defence against both the Dragoons and the Horde, and thusly the Baragan build alliances with Mid Sky Mans pirates, a Race once deemed 'Gno' and only good for food. Consolidation of the Baragan with The Empire is nonetheless a pie dream as The Empire would have to first embrace the pirates, and their codes, into the imperial councils. Pirates are in a sense the hight of outlawed arconistics, and without a true pirate archon to stand in the Grand Council neither will Orcnin'Ha (and their powers of Dominion), the pirates (and their arconistics), nor the Baragan (and their diplomacy) will be accepted by The Empire.
I had a sheet of paper with all the Orcnin Horde and Breed names written down. I have revivified them as this piece of paper has varnished ..something, anyhow..!
Gian - The first born of Ogran's Army. Half Stone. Living Construct/Elemental/Beast Troll - The supposed first born of Ogran's Army. Gno - anything that the Orcnin'Ha won't breed with. Lit. 'Only good for food' or ubreadable. Gnoll - a beastial / doglike breed of Orcnin. Baragan - Sky Born War Hero and New God of the Third Empire. Gagarin - Mistransliteration of the word Girin. Orcnin'Sa - The rulers of the Orcnin, taller and burlier than Sa. Orcnin'Ha - Once rulers of the Orcnin. Resemble walking bullfrogs. Hob'gob'Sa (Gob'lin'Sa) or simply Ho'Sa a breed spawned from Goblin that resemble the Orcnin'Sa. Ko'gno'lad - (Kobold) or Orcnin'Ka tiny furry monsters with latching jaws. Highly intelligent. Grim'loc - Blind proto versions of Orcnin'Sa Ko'Cher - (Choker) Plant like tentacle Orcnin, resembling Trolls only smaller with tentacles. Og'ren - 'People of Ogran' massive brutes said to resemble the visions of Ogran. Shakar - oft mistook for Taurn, an aqutic breed of Orcnin, similar to Hobgoblins. Ath'ack - Ogre with extra limbs and heads, and tails and such. Sometimes, Mongrelmen. Skum - a rarer proto version of Orcnin'Sa (amphibious). Fiend - A Mans, Elendi, or Dwar that has joined the Horde.
Goblin - Gob'lin'Ha, Miniature versions of Orcnin'Ha. Similar to Mans, but smaller.
I also had a sketch of a basic 'Goblin Toung' using the sylables as protowords, and you can see bits of that are being worked in. Such as 'Gno' as a Ogran word used by Dwar as a pejorative for their wizards, and also embraced (oddly) by the Gnome Nation of the Moon. The Dwar race is divided by Mid Sky, The Empire, and their clashing warrior/wizard ideals. Nearly all of the Gnomes are trained in Arconistics (originally a development of the Orcnin'Ha) and none are the match for even the average Dwar Knight, sans their Arconistic Powers. I want to continue with the development of the 'Goblin Toung' in favor of making *yet another* Elendi/Elven language, even though Elendi is not Elf.
The orange worm, the furious beast. Fire elemental dragons are perhaps the least intelligent of all dragon kind. Perhaps their elemental affiliations have an effect on their thought process, or perhaps they think so fast their behavior seems alien to us mortals. The eternal beast are all highly intelligent creatures once they reach their maturation. Even if they remain in their seedling forms they are will continue to develop cognitively. Their affiliation with the flame element grants them numerous different abilities unlike the gift of flight granted to all the wind beasts, the gift of melting given to the water beasts, or the gift of metal granted to the stone beasts. Flame dragons can spit terryifying rage into the minds of those around them by altering the temperature. Many can fly via some nature form of heat adjustment. Of all the types of natural beasts the developed Flame Beasts have been known to practice arconistics. Technometrics is a science learned from the ways of the Tolonese dragon lords, and works equally well for dragon kind as it does for the Tolonese Mans. The nature of Orcnin Arconistics is the act of recrafting the elements of existence with the power of your understanding of the divine beings, and acting toward the goal of becoming one. As such, the Natural Beasts of the world have such a subtle nature to them. This nature places much greater burdens upon the beast kind than those of us with souls gifted by the Arcons.
A common initial nature of a flame dragon is that of a fruit. Small, red, with a little piece of tuft of green at the top. Little starlights glow just upon the skin. They grow in patches. Should a more advanced beast fall in combat the delicious little fruit undergoes the process of maturation into a juvinile stage of development. The number of the flames that develop is based on the elemental variances of the region when the elder dies. Should an ancient be destroyed. The entire relm will undergo the process of Dragon's Rising. Anyone who cares to pay keen attention to the elemental balances, be they arconist or adherent, will immediatly feel the change in the balances. The entire region's worth of immature, juvinile, seedling, or aged dragons will begin the transformation. They will develope further in the blood power to redress the balances of the elements. The flame berry, for example usually develops into a long lanky racer without wings. Some become little bubble shaped eaters that fly with heat vortex assisted wings. The bubble type is ruffly and the size of a sparrow. The runner type has full use of its heat breath, and will be able to easily develop a heat sphere that creates an invisibility phenomena, as well as sweltering their opponent.
For several years after this shift, or perhaps another death amongst the elders the juvinile flames will be able to grow through a regenerative and developmental process similar to sleep. This is the point in time that they are the most voulnerable. For many days they will be completely insensible to the outside world. In most cases they coil or huddle into an completely unmoving state and in the case of the Flames they will usually surrounded by a heat flield of a strength higher powered than they are able to make awake. Do not think that you will be entierly safe from their claws and bite when they are asleep, usually insensible and froven does not mean always. I have a scar from a sleeping Flame earned when taking a measure of the beasts temperature. 464 gold 7 silver Tolonese, at least and that from the tail tip. The Tolonese beasts charge their coin with power in vast machines that somehow charge off of the heat. The lamp that sits above Tolone One shines with the power of four sleeping dragons. These beast obey the dragon overlord's command and have stayed their natural wanderings. In most of the world they wander wildely, and are driven to travel by the quicksilver shifting of the elemental flames balancing.
Water flows, and winds ****. Stones sit. Plants grow. Light beams, and flame whips. Dragons of darkness are not real. Those less learned regarding the dragon species know that the so called 'black dragons' are usually lights, waters, or flames. The lights can directly shine darkness as well as light, and many flames have a little understood ability to effect the eyes of their victums. Your vision grows dark, and your sense of equilibrium if comprimised to a degree. Some fall immediatly to the ground blind. Some are scarcely effected by the experience at all, and any soul with a fire gift is not only immune but energized by the experience. Imperial Dragoons greatly prize those elder Flames that have this particular ability as they are able to increase the fighting power of entire units with their natural emmanations. More than simply a fire spout that can amplify a Dragoon's gift the defensive ability of these Flames is highly effective. No ancient ever stays with the Dragoon's armies, and only rarely will an elder remain after the Knight who tamed it has died. For this and other obvious reasons it is usually an Elen that leads an Imperial Dragoon Regiment. Once dragons of all colors were common amongst the Dragoon's, but in these times Stones are the most common with some winds and flames. Rare are the Light beasts in the Imperial cities, and none of water and plant.
Amongst the Dragoons it is required of them to go out and get tame their own dragon. This rite of passage is what makes a legionare into a knight. There is a ethos amongst them that has grown weak in these modern times. A True Dragoon, was once what a Knight was called when they mastered many Dragons. Legends speak of the Hoards of the True Dragoons, but within Imperial City there are perhaps seventy Knights with more than one dragon, and they scarcely more than three. Teams of Flame Dragons are perhaps the most common, winds are mostly single, and some say that the lack of True Dragoons is the reason for absence of Water and Plant beasts. "Taming a Water beast is said to only be possible by one who has tamed a Flame." Being an old Dragoon saying. The waters are perhaps the most elluisve of all the Beasts one could imagine that having a dragon help would be a wise idea. Waters and Lights demand great freedom from their Knights, while Flame Beasts demand a great power within their masters.
:bash: Today I will be revealing the weakest element of my world building skills. The book that this material is being written for is an in character in world item. Its a travel and diplomancy guide. Created by a Mans maid for her family. There are brief racial descriptions (mostly what I have posted) and then .....these.
The Crosslands are the largest Imperial Colony on the Bottomlands. Founded durring the first Mans-Tree wars. Reval and (xx) were the beacheads of the Imperial Armies, and their houses are held in regard akin to the Dragoon Knighthoods that rule the Dargonian Isle. If the Dargonian lands and peoples could be called metropolitan the Crosslands Imperial Nations are certainly provencial. Of the Dargonian Nations Asper is perhaps the most similar to the Crosslands. Peaceful and generally free of strife. While the Crosslands are bordered by Orcnin territories such as the Goblin Forest coval, and the Taurn dominated deserts goval, there is little warfare amongst them. The reason for this is, of course, the grand arconistic roads and protective wards of the Imperial Arcons. Due to these enchantments Orcnin are rarely found in the Crosslands. It is more likely to meet an Orcnin in Imperial City than it is to be accosted by one in the Crosslands. These protective enchantments are ancient and have kept The Imperial Crosslands in safety for centuries.
The two grand archonistic roads created durring the second Mans-Tree war, before arconistics was banned from Imperial Domain, are safe to walk only by those who have been granted lee to walk them. Once it was the Imperial Arconists that would have held these gates, but since the expunging of Imperial Arconistics the power of access has been held by the Arcons and their reprasentatives. The rule is simple. One must be an Imperial Citizen to walk upon the road. Any other being that attempts to walk upon the roads, or even come close to them, is repelled by phenomenal force and no small assortment of archonistic trappery. Teleportation and direct explosive force are common expressions of the power of the roads. Weak willed creatures are simply avered, and even the most fearsom of beasts are sapped of their strength when attempting to approach the roads. The 'long road' begins in the heart of the Crosslands and ends near the coblin shore of the bottomlands. The 'short road' crosses the long road near its coblin end point and head goval. Hence the term Crosslands despite the fact that the cross point of the two roads is far from the border of the Crosslands themselves. The majority of the two roads is actually in the Taurnin or Tyrnin wastes coblin of the Crosslands proper.
(xx) lays tacit claim to all the Taurnin lands, but lacks the drive or strength to take those lands. The Crosslands are peacful and productive. The wastes are harsh and violent. There is little profit to be made in conquoring those lands, and most believe that someday soon the Taurn will come to ally more strongly with The Empire. Should the disparate Taurn tribes join forces with The Empire there shall be no need to conquor the Tyrnin wastes. Though how the Taurn tribes will acclimitize with the Imperial Councils and the Imperial Arcons is another matter entierly. Life in the Crosslands proper is highly regulated. Daily worship empowers the younger dieties and the Imperial Councils to create the necessities of life as it does in the skies. The city arcons maintain the massive enchantments that prevent Trees from encroaching into Mans territories, and bolster the armies of the Empire. Regular patrols of non dragoon soldiery patrol the borders of the Crosslands to prevent Orcnin bands from threatening the safety of the central Crosslands cities. Reval performs annual hunts to cleanse the forests and shores of Orcnin and hostile Taurn.
Reval itself is one of the most powerful houses of The Empire. Though many may consider them barbaric their strength has protected the Crosslands since the beginning. Viscious and cruel are the words that come to my mind, but vigorous and exacting could be synonyms for those terms. Revalian crystal is powered by the souls of the dead. If one positive thing can be said of the Revalians it is that they do not seek to press their ways upon the rest of The Empire. Proud and isolated. Powerful and steadfast. (xx) could be called agrarian, pastoral, and peaceful. While the Revalians are intent on producing warriors of equal calibur to the dragoons (xx) are busy producing Imperial citizens. It is due to the (xx) that the Crosslands has a quarter of the territory as the Dargonian Empiral Lands, and half the population. Non Revalian life in the Crosslands revolves around ceremony, marriage, and faith. Much fine craftwork is produced without any intention of using it as export. Rather clothing and jewelry is created as gifts for friends and family.
Traveling to a from the Crosslands is usually annual. The last of the great Rover islands carves a yearly path through the skies from Dargonia to the Crosslands. As the Crosslands is self sufficient and, at this time, not in war there is little need for regular trade. Dragoons make regular quests to the Crosslands from the skies, but these quests are individual and usually done on dragon back. Some ships can be hired to travel to the bottom lands, but the cost is steep. Rover islands were created for a reason. It is as perilous to sail the skies of the Bottomlands, and to hire a ship to take you there is expensive. Doubly so as there is scarce profit to be made from the Crosslands in trade. The value of the Crosslands to The Empire is not in barter but in control. The Imperial Crosslands are a foot of The Empire upon the Bottomlands. A foot set down durring the Mans-Tree wars that The Empire will value eternally. When necessary this foot is used to kick Silestria and the Tyrnin. It is used to exert the will of The Empire against the strongest hoards of the Orcnin when necessary, and has remained strong and growing ever stronger since the end of the Mans-Tree wars.
Ok, reading that you should notice two things right out. A, I don't even have the name for the second emperial house of the Crosslands. Reval has been around since day one, and the Crosslands have existed semi-substantially as a backdrop. Technically Revalians are antagonists, while (xx) are the 'good guys' but ..... B, I should have names and dates. Some sense of timeline better than 'substantiated around the time of the Mans-Tree wars.....and yeah' at some point.....maybe on this thread I wrote down some hero story about some Dragoons.....but I'll have to find it. This piece? Is most def a rough. I feel like I should get some more of these regionals out - despite them being absolute rubbish. I shouldn't be scared to do real rough drafts
Ack, I did two Crosslands.. blast. I'll have to synthisise.
The nature of the Fey, brainstormin'
The different types of fey are the 'mind/plant elementals' of the wonderful world (which I have decided is what 'Sty-Rn' means in Taurn ~ it was always 'earth/here' but I wasn't certain what language or what connotations it had, 'wonderful world' will work perfectly, so fey.. ) and they are spawned from the ideas of place and object, and their substance is secondary. wood or soot or even a bush. A dryad is a collection of leaves and sticks, while the sprites (Pixies, Nixies, Gremlins, and Grigs) are actually living plants almost akin to the vegetable races. Nymphs are practically humans, and the Tuathan *seem* real (in your mind), though they are little more than the dust stirred to reflect the light just right. However much the Sprites and Nymphs are solid and resemble a normal living creature they are not. They subsist off the sustenance of dreams. A sprite must keep their vegetable vehicle alive, but the Nymphs need not worry even about that much.
checklist!
Tuathan (palaces, castles, rooms, a fairy) They appear to be of your Race and have long memories. Usually proud to declare their identities, but sometimes extremely secrative. There will always be a prominant distinguishing mark of somekind other than physical features (such as a hat or a coat pen) as they always appear to the beholder as strikingly beautiful.
Chimera (dangerous places, ancient ruins, a fairy) The difference between a Tuathan and a Chimera is allot of bad memories.
Gorgon (holes in the ground and snakes, a nymph) Amongst the prancing Napaeae and the babbeling Niads the Gorgon nymphs hide. Elusive and compeling they stare with whipcrack eyes.
Grig (little lover, a sprite) Hard to find unless they want to be. The Grig is a peculiar little cactus whose spines create a number of enjoyable reactions in the beast peoples.
Pixie (little sleeper, a sprite) A naturally invisible creature. Made of the rarest almost crystalin plant. With the powers of the fey the pixie can coast on slightest wind, and ebb consiousness or memory from a beast like sap from a tree.
Gremlin (workshops factories, a sprite)
Bogan (homes, public greens, stores, a fairy) Happy friendly fairy that keep mostly to themselves. Known for making rare appearances to mortals in order to give them carefully considered advice.
Knockin (tunnels, mines, ore veins, a fairy) Perhaps the best known and most active of all the fairy. Knockin guide mortals through their underground homes, and dice for crystal at the entrance of their homes.
Alseid (glens, groves, meadows, a nymph)
Auloniad (pasture, vales, fields, a nymph)
Crinaeae (fountains, city parks, statues, a nymph)
Dryad (forests, a fairy) The lords of all Fey. The great dryads are only rivaled in power by the oreads, and are by far more common and sensible than the rash moutain fairy. Both Oreads and Dryads overlord countless Nerieds, Naiads, Pagaeae, Hesperides (of course), and even Meliae and Chimera. The Dryad will mostly likely have alliance with druid and Oread. Goval Forest is a powerful Dryad that rules perhaps the largest swath of the Bottom Lands, rivaled only by Goblin Forest a fiercer Dryad with strong alliances to the Chimera and Oreads of the Goblin Mountains.
Hamadryad (an individual tree, a nymph) To each tree there is a nymph. Where it be? No one can ever say for certain. Made of bent light and quick water the Hamadryad goes and does what it wills. The only way to truely destroy it being to destroy the tree from which it spawned, and even then the hamadryad may remain as a meliae or spook after a fashion. Much of the nature of the hamadryad is determined by the Dryad or Oread whome the hamadryad is born under.
Hesperides (flowers/gardens, a fairy) The smallest fey. Even smaller than a Nixie the Hesperides are not bigger than a flower. Made of polen and delight they play perpetually underfoot and under fingers. In happy homes full of sweet smells Hesperides are busy loosing spoons and finding buttons.
Nixie (little killer, a sprite) Just ever so much bigger than your thumb, and ever so much stouter than a beast, the Nixie is a tireless and resilient little shrub that looks ever so exactly like Mans. Nixies prefer darkness and can often summon a shroud of night to conceal their presence.
Meliae (graves, battlegrounds, a nymph) The dreams of death and battle give rise to the Meliae. Not memories of the actual dead but the imagination of the tales of war and strife. They are caprisious at the least, and viscious at their worst. Only Chimera are a more fearsom fey.
Naiads (rivers, a nymph) The babbeling Naiad is adorable to behold and a gracious freind. However they are reclusive and much prefer to remain upon the shores of their beloved rivers.
Napaeae (grotto, a nymph) Sometimes called the hidden nymph the Napaeae rarely leave their secluded grottos. Those that make friends with a Napaeae will have a place of safety and seclusion for the rest of their days. The Napaeae are the most common practitioners or Arcanistics amongst the fey.
Nereids (shores, a nymph) The baudy Nereids are the fast friends of those that sail the waters.
Oceanids (deep waters, a nymph) The unseen Oceanids live in the deepest waters. The aquatic races are very familiar with Oceanids and their ways, while those that live on the land scarcely know they exist.
Oreads (mountains, a fairy) Stern and unforgiving the Oread is aware of every aspect of their mountain. Not a single soul breaths within the Oread's domain that is not seen and accounted for by the Oread.
Pagaeae (springs, a fairy) Fun loving and spritely the Pagaeae have a fondness for shapechanging. Appearing as an animal or a sprite and then reappearing as a face upon the waters. Their nature makes them ever fresh and full of hope.
Pooka (a fairy - usually rides upon a mortal) A strange fey. The pooka is a companion. Those that have a pooka for a friend will appear to have some strange feature. A tail, cat ears, or a fancy feather ever behind their ear or in their hat. The pooka will keep the company of a mortal for all its years, leaving only rarely to take care of emergencies and important matters.
Pasha (a fairy - spirit of a story) Passionate entertainers the Pasha appear as exotic and seductive members of another race. They delight in holding the allure of a mortal for long hours as they tell their tales. Some fear the Pasha more than a Chimera. Run long enough and you may escape the reach of a Chimera, but a Pasha knows no bounds. A good story could end in all manner of ways, and not all of them are pleasant.
Spook (a nymph - the memory of the dead) The dream of a lost loved one creates the most poignant of the Fey. Not frightening in the least the Spook is rather sad. Knowing what it is, and knowing worse how little it can do for the bereaved most spooks simpley wander off. Oft mistooken for ghosts spooks make their homes with Tuathan and Knockin. Spooks and Meliae rarely get along. Meliae are a fey that all but seek death, while spooks are the heart wrenching loss of a loved one made real.
Selkie (a fairy - a sea)
Like Dryads and Oreads the Selkie is a being of great power. Silest is the selkie of the innner sea of the Bottom Lands, and her ire is legendary. It is the selkie that brings tempest and to the selkie must reprations be made.
..nice little brainstorm.. will have to come up with better uniqueifiers for the Alseid, Auloniad, and Crinaeae nymphs. right now I am kinda thinking of them as 'slightly different hamadryads' and I am also considering how to handle 'nations' ..Arconid? God Fey? Perhaps.....
Dark Orcnin hail from the transelemental realms. Earth, Air, Fire, Water. Each element exists within a shifted where the element has primacy and the functions with only the light, mind, and beast. Dark orcnin are the only beings capable of existing within the realms of the elements. The Jinn and Fey…..find their true homes here ..in time.
Light flows into the matric of the four terrestrial elements. Called true arcanos, primessense, or vivos by the Vivomancers of old. The element of light is the domain of Miria Ancient. With her beneficence was the empire able to be founded. Those within the realms of the empire are illuminated. In the magical light of of her lamps the the citezens of the empire are able to live and work without fear of the darkness. In the ornin lands most of the races can see in the dark, and those that can't either operate entierly blindly or are the fire bearers. The Kobolds are both nearly blind and one of the original fire bearers. The tiny Orcnin are also among the most ancient. Their caves hold some of the eldest records of the Orcnin peoples. Without the power of vivos all would be unseable and unformed. There would be no space between and all existence could not be.
Earth Air Fire Water. Sky filling up space between bodies of water and earth, fire following where sky leaves off. The two val float on the interplay of the two lin. Water and earth buyed within the sea of sky and the roar of fire. Light fills the space between each element and fills them with vivos. Motivation. Pusuence. Force. As the islands humble round their ordinals and the font pours from the Dragon's Home above us all to the grand bottom lands below the waters fall. Down down down to the couldron of fire that sits above nothing, and upholds all. The world matric is a gargantuan ball of flame that is simultaniously impossibly huge and infentessimally small. Oneness and that which is and is not the space yet between the vivos and the val and lin is the realm of the Diplomancer.
The mind is the power of change. An untenable weight the tells water to fall and fire to climb. Time is an element of mind and rare are those that understand how time is not one step in front of the other but a pearl of explosions expanding or contracting through the universe. The chronomancer understands the nature of both mind and beast, and has never been able to explain what some call the nega element of mind.
Beast is life. Mans, Orcnin, and Dariens. All beings dragon or mortal are of the element beast. Like the contemplation of the world flame the element beast is the synthisis of all the elements and is also an element. The beast is the element that is able to walk into the realms of the val, the lin, and the nega and return to its own transelemental plane. The one in which I and you belong.
The Mountain Giant. The Resting Ones. The Greatest of Ogran. In the tongue of the Orcnin'Ha all of the Giant kind are known as Gian. Like most Orcnin terms the name has many uses. Gian is perhaps best translated as 'you can stand on it' or dirt. Useless is a connotation, but not in a valueless sense. Something you cannot control is useless by the ethos given to the Orcnin'Ha and the Gian are beyond the control of even the Orcnin'Sa. Tall as mountians. When they say that the Gian grow as tall as the mountains they mean it. They sit mostly. Never moving, but when they do the bottom lands shake. It is said that they have once climed to the very top of the world to test who could reach for Dragon's Home. Legend claims none could reach so far. Other legends say that it was a Mountain Giant that placed the Dragon's Home so high in the sky as a gift to the Dragons.
They do not eat at all. They breath. They are dirt and moss and growing things. collosal and unfendable. A large gian can stomp upon a Mans. A small Gian is larger than a Troll. Dragon's prey upon them, and many are homes to swarms. Their ethos is one that welcomes death as the gods have seen fit to make them immortal. Barring injury like a Troll the Gian do not die naturally. Many have been torn asunder and done in durring the Mans Tree Wars. Cern the Mountain is Largest Mountain Giant known to the Empire and he was so huge that when he stood his head was above the ridge of Dolor. Cern was torn assunder by legions of Blooms durring the last Mans Tree Wars. The battle of the Lilly Squad brought about the downfall of the Orcnin'Ha. It was said that non could best a Gian save Ha and Mans. Ghoul too stupid and the Goblin too small, but the Walking Flowers destroyed Cern with thier roots and vines. Thousands of worming feet dissolve the Gian flesh. To pay Ogran for the gift of death Cern battled mightily. The Lilly Scuad lost two members and their legions lost hundreds.
The youngest of the Gian are the size of a house. A boulder that rolls down a mountain. They grow in accordance with the Ascendancy of the Earth Elements and are granted the gifts of life and growth by the gift of Ogran. It is said that some Archons other than the Triad create Gian but the Emperial New Gods foreswore the patronage of Orcnin. The Ancient Arconistics foreswore the patronage of Mans, and the Pride Gods name only the Taurn. Even though there are Orcnin Gods amongst the Emperial New Gods and Mans Gods amongst the Archonistic tribunals. The five brothers that rule the grand guild, and the Many Ladies of Stone patron Fey, but the Flame Brothers and The Pillars do not. In this day the Orcnin that forsake the ways of their ethos and swear to the laws of The Empire are allowed to be citizens, but no Gian has ever done so.
The only joy the Gian share with The Empire is the drink of Mans. There is no travelers spirit amongst them. Their ethos breeds greatness amongst them, and they contest each other single combat with the turning of the seasons, or when commanded so by the Orcnin'Sa. In the ancient times the Orcnin'Ha would be required to best a Gian before gaining the Mountain Giant's obediance, but the end of the Mans Tree Wars changed that, and the wisdom of the Orcnin'Sa was crowned with the imperative of Ogran. The Orcnin say that the wisdom of the Sa is like stone. Slow but perfect. They have lead the Orcnin people with Ogran's blessing for some six thousand years.
Most of the Gian are terrifyingly destructive. Born from those items that are destroyed in battle the Gian spirit bonds with the earth and clay in which the once living item lays. Akin to a dragon's birth the power of Ogran vivifies the very ground with the spent item of power as the heart of the beast. Many Gian are made of numerous items gathered and transmuted by Arconistics to create a yet more terrifying creature than an immortal behemoth. Gian with gemstone eyes are always the product of Arconistics while those that seem to bear no distinctive features that of nature itself. Most Gian are born of nothing more than Ogran's will and the grace of the gods. Living for at most only a few hundred years before being ground to dust in ritual combat. There is no speaking to a Gian save you are of the Orcnin'Sa or you have defeated the Mountain Giant in battle, and few can subdue a Gian. Most Gian will battle to the bitter end unless their opponent is Orcnin. It is said that since the end of the Mans Tree Wars even a worthy band of Goblin may win a favor of the Gian through a test of strength and battle prowess.
The Shakar, Shakataur, The Shark. Commonly confused for a Taurn the Shakar are not. Beasts of a more dire creation adherent supposedly to Elendria, but acting ever more inline with the tenants of Ogran. Fearsom aquatic creatures that live in the outer shores that seperate the Bottom Lands from the edge of the world. It is their claim only to be refuted by the Arcons that their people guard the falls that lead to the under side of the world. Supposidly mosters of untolled terror attempt to climb their way from the underside of the world and that they The Shark have earned every stolen prize in the right of their people. This is likely a bold faced tale told by a truely bizzare and alien creation of the gods. Some proclaim that the Shakar were first convieved by Ogran and are in truth Orcnin. Others proclaim the same of all Taurn. Only the Arcon's know the truth, and have never attempted to explain the essence of patronage.
Without the sacred truth Mans and Taurn must use guess work and analysis to say that Shakar are Orcnin, Taurn, or Elen. They are Shakar and perhaps that should be enough. Should Fara have stolen the nightmare of Elendria the Shakar would be Taurn. They are not Fey and they are not Dwarien. This much is certain. They breath the water in the same fashion as the Aquan Elendi. They suffocate on the land as fast as a Mans underwater. They wear little, less than the Aquan Elendi, much in the way of the dragons that walk amongst men. Their homes are the dense vegitation of the outer shores. The tight weaves of sea trees and grasses hundreds of feet long acts as a shelter from the surges of the seas. The Aquan Elendi suffer and sometimes war with the Shakar, and they are rare upon The shores of the Bottom Lands. Thalian and Shakar legends alike speak of the coming of the Dar. The humble Dar quietly grow in number upon the vastness of the Lands, but if the legends of Doom are true the Dar come from the underside of the world. Their invasion surpasing The Shark and The Troll alike to carve out a territory on the bottom lands after crossing the endless sea and who knows what before.
Shakar eat meat. Rare amongst the Elen the Shakar eat like dragons. They must devour the life essense of another creature to survive, and for whatever reason the strength of Elendria does not satiate the lust of Fara. Dinner manners are much like that of the Orcnin if not more relaxed. Most Shakar hunt and eat on the hunt, and banquets amongst the Shakar are morbid affairs of silence and corpses. Most beast eating Taurn and Orcnin prefer to chunk their meat into limbs. The Shakar do not. There are Aquan Elendi Demes that have reported to the empire that the Shakar have eaten Elen or Mans but the Shakar peoples are so disperssed and decentralized there is no way for the empire to take action. Some Aquan Elendi Demes house Dragoons, but certainly not most. The endless sea is mostly unknown to the empire. Aquan Elendi tell many tails and there has never been an invasion of Shakar into any Imperial territory. The Shark menaces the sea and has no intent upon land.
Trading with the Shakar is certainly something that would require no small amount of travel in bizzare lands to most of the world. Months of safe travel underwater, and weeks of sailing and sinking to the outer shores. They closest collection of Shakar is amongst the Coval Shores, and have accepted Imperial envoy in the past. They posses a talant diplomancy as the Kinder Elen. Beaded bags that hold far more than they seem. Powerful enchantments that displace the wearer in location but not in plane allowing you to move as though though you were the wind in the water. An adventurous soul can swim through a grand ring and thereby travel to one of numerous location in the world. Many Shakar possess such gates, and were their secret not obviously Arconistics of the highest order the empire would surely have adopted their usage. Similar devices of Orcnin are Mans must be linked to a specific location. The Shakar gates are easily reconnected to one another, and can even fling you to a destination without a recieving gate.
Those that seek the pure lands without a purpose stone often seek amongst the outer shores. Whether it is the Shakar's fault or some other menace beyond the reach of the Empire these sojurners rarely return. There are islands of size large enough to build a city or even larger civilization upon them. These settlements are surely plauged by the raiding of the Shakar, and are perhaps most likely location to happen accross The Shark. Water magics and vivomancy allow the Shakar to come ashore for short periods of time to obtain their due. Never forget that the Shakar people protect to very borders of the world from dire monsters of untold power plauging the realms of Mans and Elendi. The most proper greeting when finding yourself amongst them is 'Thank you and your people for your protection of my homeland' this will most likely ingratiate you to a group of Shakar regardless of the legends veracity.
Direlendi, Winged Elen, Half Elen. These Dragon are known as Elen for honors sake if for no other reason. They seem Elen, and they were bred to be Elen by the Arcon Elendria since long before the foundation of The Empire. Like the Kinder Elen the Direlendi are Dwarien. As the legends say the pure Mans were destroyed by the Arcon's vanity. When creation brought Dwar into being from the bitterness between Ogran and Elendria both the Dwarien and the beast entered the understanding of the Arcon's themselves. We find the idea simple. The dragons and the Dwarien remain the same through the shifting of the planes. Should you enter the realm of fire we shall transubstantiate to assimilate to the proper substance. A Dwarien and any true beast will suffer the burn of the fire and would fall in the sky were it not that Direlendi float.
The pure Elendi that are Patroned by Elendria share what is known as Elendria's sorrow. Elendria keeps mostly Trees and Blades of Grass. Humble dirt and moss. Elendria's sorrow is the power to float. This she crafted from the blood of her dragons and the Direlendi. It is Elendria's promise to turn Dragon into Dwarien and create her Elendi as she should have in the beggining. The shattering of the realms was not a shattering of existence but what is different between the Arcons and the unity of creation. In one act creation itself reacted to the actions of the Arcons and the pure element of the beast was recognized in defference to earth and wind. Presumably in the isles of flame there is another Direlendi. Elendria is one of the Triumverate of creators. She wove moss on the dirt and made bug upon lava. Vermin and trees. Fruits and leaves. There must be denzins of the flame or the wind that have Elendria's gift and blessing.
Like all dragons the Direlendi do not posses a gift from the Arcons. Simply being a dragon is a gift enough. The power of the beast is adaption and Direlendi desire to do so can develope any ability that they want. In a sense like unto a newborn Arcon a dragon can expose themselves to the elemental forces in order to develop an affinity for water or fire. The sandstorm dragons are a ferocious earth beast challenge for anyone who would. The natural skills and talants of the less intelligent beasts are mimicked by the Direlendi using ancient rituals and primal elemental Arconistics. Similar to the moving cities rituals of elemental transubstantian at holy sites allow Elendria to teach and guide her beloved Dwarien. Some say that the Elendria favors the Direlendi more than her other children, but who is to say they know the minds of true Arcons without being one themselves. It is the imperial new gods that say that the unity of creation taught them all a lesson. The elder, the younger, and the triad creators alike.
Many Direlendi are born in the open skies. When two Direlendi mate it is considered tradition to place the egg in a space hidden from the father. Many dragons hide thier eggs upon another material plane such as fire, water, or wind while Elendria has forbad this to the Direlendi. Fate, destiny, and creation decide if the father can find the egg or the fully cognizant and usually conversational hatchling escapes the shell. As all Direlendi the Half Elen can float off and find something. Once they were nearly all born with claws, but the last Fang was born in accordance with prophecy some few hundred years after the Wizard Wars. Dwar legends speak of the ancient Direlendi as being much larger and all winged. To this day most Direlendi are born with or grow wings by the age of maturity amongst Elendi. The Half Elen are said to think much more in the pace of Mans. Seeming old like a Mans of the age and some decline to participate in the coming of age ceremonies of the Deme. Often a lone Direlendi will refuse to meet with his kin or brothers in the love of Elendria.
The Grand Bottomlands Isle of Mother Trees was guarded from Troll and Kobold as they were bade by Elendria, and during the second Mans Tree Wars the Elendi met their brother for the first time. Grown in their image the Direlendi are able to mate with other Elen and have since become a regular part of the Elen. Kinder, Half, and the elemental Elen coexist in most Demes. Fire and Wind tribes of the Tolen wastes are often Hostile to The Empire for some reason or another and it is not uncommon for a Direlendi to learn to breath fire or spit sandstorm when their tribeselen have the gift of the pure elementals. Direlendi amongst the Karn are stout beasts indeed. Their beast magics are create perhaps the most vital of the Mans, Elen, and Orcnin. There are no Demes ruled by a Direlendi family yet there are many respected Direlendi elders within most Demes and it would be very rude to speak poorly of dragons with the halls of the Elen. It is not wise to speak poorly of dragons in general. The beast are true creations of nature as the Pure Mans were. From dragon fly to Direlendi the power of the beast is as varied as it is magnificent. In every way an equal to the flicker of flame and the ripples of water. Stone's grains or the rush of wind.
Welp, the time has finally come, and lo when the rise of the fifth edition began so then did Sty~Rn come to the fourth!
Group of players, want to play - I have the most experience conducting, running mastering or guiding or what have you, so without any complaints I will be converting the 4th ED details to A Wonderful World format, and I will also be updating this thread more regularly with world building elements that result from play. Depending, I may even report the exploits of the party.
I have already ressurected an ancient campaign scenario that never flew - but it seems the perfect thing...
Long ago durring the Mans Tree Wars a powerful Karnian Warlord founded a city on the Goval shores of the Thalian bay where the Inner Sea mets the Endless Ocean. Like all Karn Cities it had no name. The savage Karn simply refer to cities by the name of the current ruler of settlement. Knolos, was his name. The city held many names over the wages of the Mans Tree Wars, and near the end of the third and last Mans Tree War the city was taken by the Orcnin hoards. For a thousand years the Orcnin Hoards made their homes there and used the sea port created by the Karnian founders. Durring the Wizards War The Empire took possession of the city as part of a manuever to control the Inner Sea. Today the Inner Sea is divided amongst the imperial allies of Silestria, Thalian, and Kinder who hold the port and patrol the shores of the majority of the Inner Sea. The Coval shores of the Thalian Bay are tacitly controlled by the Darian people, however the Invading Darian Empire's conflicts with the Orcnin natives of that region prevent them from dominating the seas. Only a small patch of the Inner Sea shores, the cliffs of the Giant Mts, remain in the control of stout sea faring Orcnin. Hilltown is close enough to these cliffs to be almost constantly harried by Orcnin Pirates and Brigands. The imperial name of the city was determend rather simply. The keep and tower that overlook the larger port below was casually refered to as 'the hilltop' and the port 'town' - there is also a gladitorial arena for sport and resolving disputes of honor - as there are in all large Karn settlements. When considering a name for the newly conquored city the Legis of the Empire found himself thinking of the city as two cities - Hilltop and Portown, with the arena between. So, split the difference, and the city state became listed as Hilltown in the imperial records. Some twenty years before today the current ruler of Hilltown ( won by right of honor in the arena ) Adinama Gerul Rathmiel, was convinced durring the flush of his new power to install Gomish plumbing into the city. Adinama Gerul Rathmiel will go down in history as being the first King of the Bottom Lands to rule over a city with modern plumbing. Unfortunately unbeknownst to both King and Gnome was the fact that Rathmiel had no idea that he would need to maintenance and revamp the arconistic plumbing system roughly once a decade. Currently ten years out of warrenty the plumbing is growing more and more dangerous. If Rathmiel is not convinced to do something about the systems soon the bathrooms and sinks will begin to turn into deathtraps. As it stands many of the bathrooms have been designated off limits because the patrons come out dirtier than when they went in. Some deaths have already occured from drowning and pandimensional displacement, and unless something is done the people of the city will return to their old manner of disposing of filth. The streets will once again smell of refuse, meanwhile every home and manor in the city will have a death trap and potential gate to other realms developing chaotically in the corner rooms. It is up to the players to decide whether or not to get imbriglicated ( or run off and become pirates ), and it is up to the players to decide how.. they go about rectifying the plumbing situation.
It's been awhile, I am looking to 'kickstart' some sales of my Wonderful World Gold books. PoD this scrap is destined to end up in the devotional. I have the books broken down to five the 'devotional' is a 'collection' of various in character documents regarding the subjects divine and cosmoginic. I don't have a character for this piece, but.. Since when I am writing in character what I do is structor the information as if you already know it ( e.g. In the depths of winter when the red sun gleams in the high skies over the Darian coasts ) and what I am really trying to accomplish is inform a completely unaware reader of new information.. I am going to writ out the explanation in PHB style straitforward exposition, and later reword/work this piece into an in character document of some kind. Most prolly as a component of a larger themed item ( such as an 'excerpt from chapter seven of Pahwah's Travels' ). Spoiler:Show
I decided to do something 'funky' with the word vampire in Sty-Rn. In a world full of all kinds of cannabilism and undead the standard vampire becomes less sexy and more a bizzarely peculiar form of undead what with the strange aversions, lack of reflection, inability to cross running water, etc. And a weak one without the ability to walk in the light of the sun. So instead of being a regular undead the word vampire ( and the 'Vampire' entry in the Beastiary ) is actually a pejorative used to refer to a race of Mans that in their own toungue refer to themselves as Healers. In their language 'vampire' means 'the opposite of a healer' and is used to refer to a specific type of undead healers ( those that have been killed by the power of the Undead God Kithain - and only Healers and Tolonese can be converted into this type of undead. Kithain was staked and sealed in a cave before the time of the Mans Tree Wars by the Karn Hero God Girin. Kithains converts however 'live' on and make their haven mostly in the darkness and caves of the bottom lands. Common Mans and Taurn however refer to the entire Healer peoples as Vampires. Healers have a shared Gift of the ability to move life force ( read hit, action, and attribute points ) between characters. The worst of the Healer peoples gives the mostly pious and cautious people a terrifying reputation. An evil Healer fighter might rip the strength from a nearby ally to repair damage to themselves. A Healer Assassin might seduce and drain the mind of a subject allowing them to easily convince them to take what they would otherwise recognize to be a suicidal action. An insidious Healer might 'sip' almost undetected on the Dexterity of his party members to give themselves a phenomenal improvement to rogue skills. Things of this nature are the stories told of the 'Vampire' in the skies of Sty-Rn. The insectoid 'Dopplegangers' are often muxxed up with the Healers by those that call them Vampire. While the Dopplegangers Gifts are similar their abilities are purely mental ( read psychic ) and their shapechanging ability is only cosmetic and does not 'draw' on their prey's own life force. Nor do they 'take' the memories of their subject just observe them. Unless of course they are an advanced psion with such powers of their own. Healers are not a psychic race, but their ancient allies the Watchers are powerful psychics with a natural Psychic talent as their people's Gift. The other race ( other than the Karn ) that are connected intimately with the Healers is the Tolonese people. Unknown to most is that the Patron of the Healer peoples incarnated the Patron of the Tolonese. The Tolonese people and the Healers share a similar Gift, however the Tolonese Gift is bound to transfering energy between mineral character/items ( read PP, Hardness, and other HP style values of constructs ) similar to the Gnomish peoples' enchanting Gift. The Tolonese gift is so subtle that common wisdom holds the Tolonese Patrons do not grant The Gift to their people at all. The truth of the nature of the Tolonese Gift is known to very few. Wherea the Healers Gift is the same for all Healers the Tolonese Gift expresses as a form of knack with Technometric, Archonistic, or Natural item such as reducing the chance of misshap with a Technometric device, the ability to recharge Gnomish boomsticks ( fireball wands ), or the ability to use 'savage idols' ( divine power stones etc ) to charge devices that would otherwise require a Tolonese power core and gold crystal 'coins' ( which are the foundation of the currencies in the mortal realm of Sty-Rn ). I should note that the Healers, Tolonese, Karn, and the Watchers are all 'Mans' but are categorized as different races for Play due to the regular differences from Sky Born, Bottom Lander, and Common Mans. Karn are 'normal human beings' ( and a special breed of red pelted 'albino' Pherthan ). Their Gift is the ability to communicate effortlessly with spirits and see partially into the etherial realms at all times. Their peoples are rare and are found mostly in the Goval region of the Bottom Lands. Watchers are a psychic Mans race that otherwise is indestinguishable from Common ( or pale ) Mans. Watchers and Common Mans come in any skin / hair / teeth color combination. Blue hair, green skin, and black bones would be a common sight amongt the peoples of Mans. Healers and Sky Born Mans are even more spectacular resembling the wildest 'blue green sparkled and patterned' style aliens from all your favorite syfy. Like, imagine Jadzea Dax from DS9 only her underskin is purple and the spekle pattern is rainbow. And her hair is silver and gold. Amongst the Sky Born and Healer Mans the patterns are heriditary and can be used to instantly identify ones parentige in many circumstances. The difference between Bottom Lander and Sky Born Mans is that the Bottom Landers are squater, their patternss are more stark ( read tribal, compared to fractal style patterns in Sky Born ), and the tone of the color of their skin and hair is simply darker no matter the color. Common Mans and their pale colors are found everwhere, and in some ( evil ) noble houses if your child is born pale it is considered cursed or scorned by the Patron of the house and cast out or eaten. The actual reason is that the Common Mans are the half elves of Sty-Rn and their colors and tones are more like the simple pastel colors and tones of the Elendi or elven peoples. Unlike the Elendi the Half Elf / Common Mans never have camouflage patterns on their skins or hair. Another, even rarer, people of Mans is the feral Mans called Wild Runners who inhabit the sky island of Wild's Home. Their skins and teeth, and sometimes feathers, fangs, and fur, are tied to their shared Gift of animal familiarity. All Wild Runners have an affinity and Gift ability to create a familiar style bond with a specific type of natural animal. This bond is stronger than a Mage's familiar in that once bound the two are said to be one mind in two bodies. Wild Runners encountered away from Wild's Home Isle are usually bound to predatory animals or migratory birds, but on Wild's Home Isle it is equally as common to be bound to a worm or frog or dog. The Healers mingle mostly unnoticed amongst the Common and Sky Born Mans with the aid of their long time cousins the Watchers. Both the Watchers and the Healers are unreasonably feared by the majority of the populations of the Empire but are ironically welcomed into Taurn communities. The Taurn, Healers, and Watchers have been long persecuted and demonized by the average imperial citizen and as such the Tuarn see them as allies and are wary to believe the 'nightmare tales' that describe the Healers as Vampires and the Taurn as unholy and uneducated savages. While society as progressed and the rise of the Tolonese civilization has rewritten the economies of the world, the ideologies of the average imperial citizen are scarcely different than that of their ancestors in the time of the Wizards War. Amazingly the Orcnin ( read goblinoid ) peoples have gained vastly more acceptance in the Empire since the 'destruction' of their homeland Arconistic Isle in the Wizards War. In actuality Arconistic Isle still sits in the skies, but has been shattered into several pieces - one of which is the gold core that rose to the high skies after being dislodged from Arconistic Isle proper when the Archmage of the Black Tower of Arconistics used an Epic spell to slam Taurna ( the now *obliterated* homeland Isle of the Taurn ) into Arconistic Isle in an attempt to destroy his rival the Archmage of the Grey Tower of Arconistics. The Black Tower was later phase shifted from it's location in what is now called the Pride Lands Desert on the Bottom Lands to a deadly and perilous pocket realm ruled over by the eternally imprisoned Last Archmage of the Black Tower ( read Epic Bad Ass Lich, who I have never bothered to name ). The White Tower still stands, hidden, on Wild's Home Isle, and the Red Tower that once proudly looked over Empire City was abandoned after the Wizards War due to the change in attitude of the Imperial Councils afte the worldwide devastation caused by the Wizards War. A new 'Red Black Tower' has been erected on Red Star Isle in the dark skies by those Arconistic Masters who find themselves unable to escape from th Dark Sky, but the Red Black Tower has yet to develop the power and might of the elder temples. It would be a campaign in and of itslef to assist the Red Black Tower and it's Arconistic Masters to build a pan dimensional bridge to the Black Tower and gain the strength of the Last Archmage of the Black Tower - even one that could elevate a PC to the status of Archmage of the Red Black Tower..... A position currently held by no one. Perhaps the Patrons of Destiny call out for a Healer to take on this mantle?
From the first single player game in Sty-Rn, Spoiler:Show
Ho! And hear the tale of the greatest hero who has ever lived! First and true Ka'a'Karn! Girin Everlasting! In ancient times ( before the creation of Empire City and the first Mans Tree Wars ) The Ka'a'Karn walked the Bottom Lands ( with rightiousness ) and lo could non stand before him. Girin Undefeated paragon of Mans did roam the reach of the peoples of Karn. In the time of Girin Traveler the rule of the Karnians was vast. Fom Goval point to Pride Lands the Ka'a'Karns ruled. In those days only the Loney mountian and the Iron Wall could not be tamed by the ferocity of the Karn! ( and only The Vampire could best a true Ka'a'Karn ) No tale tells the truth of how the battle penultimate between The Vampire and Girin Triumphant began! ( lo tho the Doomsayers claim to know ) What is truth is that the Great War of the Two was waged over days. Girin Resplindant met each attack with shield and claymore as his father had taught him. ( fly the Father of The Everlasting! ) Strike and parry Girin Supreme won the glory of the name Ka'a'Karn! Blow verse blow and lo did Girin Resolute outlast The Gift of The Vampire! ( and all know ) With a final thrust did Girin Ka'a'Karn ( greatest of warriors ) stake The Vampire ( his name forever forgot ) through his undead heart to the dirt of the cave in which he hid and in which The Great War of the Two was won ( and forever hence was the heart the weakness of vampire ). With a final act Girin Conquerer broke his sword in cleave! Leaving the half of his blade to hold The Vampire to the dirt of the cave. So did Girin Wise ensure the safety of his people ( his rightious charge ) and with a final word ( peace ) did Girin True seal ~forever and ever~ the cave of war with The Vampire ( the first ~ whose name is forgot ) for ever and ever and ever everlasting. ( and then did his travels begin ) Ho! And now you know the tale of Girin Everlasting! First and still True Ka'a'Karn! Lo! And tho none know where his travels have taken him! All true Karn follow the path of Girin! First! Greatest! and The Last! The Ka'a'Karn Everlasting!
:cheers: in character writing! Using a homeric voiiiiiiice~
Note: Girin is currently on another realm on the great wheel cosmoginy attempting to build an etherial bridge for the ancestor spirits of the greatist of the Karn ancestors to expand the reach of the Karnian people into the realms of ..... ( insert your favorite setting )
