Klyth Manyclaw
2011-09-30, 05:02 PM
THE SHATTERED ISLES
http://prophetoftheallcooki.deviantart.com/#/d4befyo
The Isles were once whole. This was a long time ago, and none now live who remember that day, not even among the elves or dragons. Perhaps some fell creatures do, but these beings are not living in a mortal definition of the term; they are dark beasts, creatures one would not converse with if they were of sound mind, and their testimony as to the nature of the world cannot truly be trusted. Once the world was called ‘Terra’, and in those days the elves, the dwarves, and the men lived in harmony, alongside every other race of the world. Of course, there was conflict; war and famine and death are part of a sentient existence, part of the flaws in the higher processes of thinking. But once the world was whole, and now it is not, and that is the difference between these days and those.
The records of the kingdoms of those days were burned in the flames of the War, but we know even today how the world split. A mighty wizard arose in the lands of the men, as they often do, and this wizard grew truly strong. So strong, in fact, that prior to his birth is the Age of Insecurity, and after it is the Age of Safety. He raised for himself an army of powerful angels who glowed with the light of the sun, each new angel raising another, and with this all-powerful army settled for himself a patch of land on the isle of Benocus, what we know today as Malocus. This wizard protected our world from every threat, and in time many worshipped him as some now do the gods. Dragons hid in their caves for fear of invoking his wrath and the dead stayed in their graves because their rising would bring doom from him. He hid himself away in his cave, and in time grew old as men are wont to do. Then, one day, for no reason anyone could tell, he disappeared. He was gone for at time, and in that time, slowly, the dragons rose from their caves and the dead from their graves, and other heroes rose up to stop them, and this day was the Age of Heroes, and the bards found no shortage of songs to write.
Then, the Age ended, and the great wizard returned to find the new heroes making names for themselves, and all thought he would be pleased; but in his time as the protector of our world, the wizard had grown arrogant, and prideful, and greedy, and he wanted all for himself. The warrior-angels, glowing like the sun, fell upon the heroes and slew them all, and the War had begun. Nobody knows what the wizard did, or where he went, but every plane of existence fought in this war. The angels, after a time, grew dark and malevolent, and became demons and devils like those that now pollute our world, and other angels came to fight them. Men signed on for both causes, and the arts of the wizard became known to men of both sides, and colleges arose to train people to fight, and the Age of War had blossomed. This age continued for years, and some of the heroes who survived the genocide the wizard had staged rose up and fought, and their names were sung, and the world rejoiced. The wizard was slain, his demons were cast into the Abyss, and in time each of these heroes died a natural death and went on to the gods. The colonies on Spirabilis have not had contact with their motherlands for nearly 300 years. This is where the story begins; the Age of Uncertainty, the days where the heroes of past ages are dead and buried, the great protector of the world now known as its greatest villain, and the threats that so long have been held at bay are no longer restrained. This is an age where the dragons crawl from their cave, and the dead rise from their graves. This could be the Second Age of Heroes… or, it could be the last age of man.
Timeline: The timeline of the world denotes year by the Age; INS for the Age of Insecurity, which predates recorded history, S for the Age of Security, H for the Age of Heroes, and W for the age of War. This new age is widely called the Age of Uncertainty, and the denotion for it on the calender is U.
Age of Insecurity: The beginning of the world (assumed to be 10,000 INS.) to 0 S.
Age of Security: 0 S till 65 S.
Age of Heroes: 65 S (0 H) till 158 H
Age of War: 158 H (0 W) till 57 W.
Age of Uncertainty: 57 W (0 U) till 293 U, the current date.
The Isles:
Spirabilis: The colonies on Spirabilis are three; Arcus, Mori, and Reliquia.
Arcus is the elven colony, closest to the shore and made in typical elven fashion. Druids rule their colonies, and initiates to that order swear oath to the elves whether or not they are elves themselves. The elves of Arcus are different from the elves of Spes Aeterna, and they use a variant race. All statistics are identical to the standard elf except where noted otherwise.
Arcusian Elf;
-2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Wis, -2 Int. These replace the standard PHB traits. The elves of Arcus, in the aftermath of the war, did not hold on well to the texts or scientific methods of their forbearers, but they have become quite practical and tolerant from their long separation with their arrogant ancestors. As the Arcusians have grown more used to using magic than steel to defend their homes, they have lost much of their race’s former strength, but the hallmark agility of the elves remains.
Lose: Martial Weapon Proficiencies, except for the shortbow and longbow. The elves of Arcus are at peace with nature and disdain steel; however the bow has not lost its interest for them.
Favored Class: Druid
The elves of the easternmost parts of the colony have also mysteriously been changing, perhaps as a result of some unknown evil, or the latent magic of the wizard, and a new race has emerged from the mountain colonies there, a race with skin that looks burnt and blackened, hairless and vicious, with eyes as red as blood.
Bloodied Elf;
+2 Dex, -2 Con, -2 Int, +2 Cha. These replace the standard PHB traits. The Bloodied Elves are forceful and vicious, and their tongues can convince people of many things, but they are also bestially dimwitted.
Gain: A +2 racial bonus to Stealth and Acrobatics; the Bloodied Elves’ senses are as keen as the normal elves, and they are naturally suited to jumping and climbing through the caves, stalking their prey.
Favored Class: Dread Necromancer. The Bloodied Elves bring plague and death in their wake with the help of their undead armies.
Mori is the second colony of Spirabilis, the dwarven colony. The dwarves of Mori have been hardened by the War and learned to devote themselves to their family and their causes with a zeal that is fanatical in the eyes of many. Their homes in the mountains are filled with the images of heroes, and every soldier who dies in battle is depicted as a statue in the royal palace, created out of solid rock five times the size of the dwarf himself/herself. The dwarves of Mori are strong, industrious people who have thrown off much of the nonsensical rigors of their kind in a last ditch effort to survive, and now their only connection to the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus is a love for the same god, and a desire to return home in the aftermath of the war. Where other dwarves fight against the giants of the mountains and tribal beasts, the dwarves of Mori struggle each day against the amassing undead hordes of Lake Mirum in a constant war.
Morian Dwarf;
+2 Str, -2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Cha. The dwarves of Mori are stronger of fist than the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus, but the added natural amounts of bulk limits their movement somewhat. This strength comes from a constant state of war against the dead. The dwarves of Mori need every bit of their might to defeat these fell beasts.
Lose: All dwarf racial bonuses to fighting other types of creature (giants, goblins, etc.) The dwarves of Mori encounter little resistance from the beings birthed of our realm; most of those tribes will not settle in lands as haunted as theirs.
Gain: Morian Dwarves gain a +2 racial bonus on attack and damage rolls against undead, a +2 dodge bonus to armor class against the attacks of corporeal undead, and Morian Dwarves who take a level in the Cleric class gain two extra turning attempts per day over what they would otherwise possess. The undead have long stalked their shores, and they have developed tactics for fighting them that border on the supernatural; in the case of their warrior-clerics, they have become supernatural.
Favored Class: Cleric or Crusader, chosen upon character creation.
The land of Mori is plagued by undead of many kinds, and the bloodied waters of Lake Mirum feed through all the caverns the dwarves call home. Ghouls, vampire spawn, bloodied elf necromancers, and other creatures tied to the negative energy plane make the halls of Mori dangerous for the untrained wanderer, but the inner citadels are consequentially some of the strongest places in the world.
Reliquia is the third and final colony of Spirabilis; it is in this land that mankind lives, and it is known to be the most bountiful of all the lands so far conquered. Spirabilis’ ecosystems are well-represented; sprawling forests compose the majority of the nation, with windswept plains to the north and the south. Through the northern plains, one will eventually arrive at Lake Hirade, the source of all clean water for the people of Spirabilis and the only reason anything still grows on an isle that is centered with a mass of bloodied ground. To the south, one would come upon the Sea, which in this region of the world is dirtied by the death and bloodshed of the war; to drink it is death or worse, and this dirtied water is the reason Spirabilis cannot contact any other continents. None now live on the Isle who can cast the requisite spells to teleport to these places, and no boat can make it through such infested waters safely, for strange things happen upon the living, evil tide. The men of Reliquia are the last of their kind; in the War their country was destroyed, and the only remnant of it are the cursed ruins, half-buried in the ice, of Crystallos. It is rumored that much magic was known to the humans, and that is why the great Wizard destroyed them first, but as none have left Spirabilis in that time, it is unknown whether any of that magic remains.
Unconquered Lands:
The unconquered lands of Spirabilis are wilderness, in the truest sense of the term; no law, no order, no civilization of any kind. The closest that these vast forests have to an order is the food chain, and woe to any sentient beings who venture in to it, for they are perilessly low on it. The unconquered lands, sheltered from Lake Mirum by the mountains, are not home to many undead, but the beasts that dwell within could make even a vampire flee. Abberations, mutated creatures from the magical residue of the war, hunt alongside animals as ancient as the Fleshraker dinosaur or Dire Bear. Dragons of various types live in the caves and hills that fill the expanses, and rumor among some of the frontier villages suggest that the trees and vines themselves sometimes come alive, with less than friendly intentions. Once benevolent beings have long been warped by the magic of the War, and old legends of gentle ents have given way to new tales of great branches slicing men in twain.
Spes Aeterna: Spes Aeterna was once the home of the elves, a vast jungle that rose as a beacon of light to all of the other races. From within it, the elven nations commanded their squadrons on missions no other race could undertake; missions to colonize, missions to eliminate, missions to kill. They were the special forces in the armies against the great Wizard, and when he fell upon the isle, the world wept. None have heard from the mainland of Spes Aeterna since the war started nearly 350 years ago, but rumor has it that the elves survived, and hold on even to this day amidst ground so bloodied that wounds will not close while one stands upon it. Certainly Imanis and Parvos, the two islands off of the mainland, maintain active governments, and the race to find the lost elves of Spes Aeterna drives many elves even to this day.
Imanis: The first of the mainland elven nations still left standing, Imanis is considered the last bastion of the magical arts. The elves of Imanis are tall and pale, their skin almost gray in hue. They have hair that varies between white and ashy blonde, and are alone among the elves in the ability to grow facial hair. The elves of Imanis live in a magocracy, with a council of mages (young, untrained mages since the War) struggling to hold the fragments of their society together. Life still goes on, but the isle of Imanis has problems not even their magical might can hope to fix; demonic threats, elemental assaults, dragons, and incorporeal undead plague Imanis, the willful spirits of elves long dead too drunk with their own power to ever leave. Rumors of liches and vampires along the western shore further unsettle the already precariously balanced nation, and the failure of any mage to penetrate the border of Spes Aeterna and survive has made many question whether the wizards can really do their job… or if they are as drunk with their power as the great Wizard was. A rebellion is rising in Imanis, and it is a rebellion that the new generation of mages is ill-prepared to deal with.
Imanian Elf;
-2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con, +2 Int The elves of Imanis are studious and raised from an early age to believe in brains over brawn; consequentially, they tend to be weaker and frailer than other beings.
Lose: All Martial Weapon proficiencies and bonuses for learning to fight certain creatures. These elves train with the spoken word and flourish of the hand, not the blade and bow.
Gain: SLA’s 1+Int mod/day: prestidigation, mage hand, detect magic
Favored Class: Wizard
Parvos: The second of the original elven nations, Parvos is a warrior state that believes in the art of martial skill. Colleges for warriors dot the isle, ranging in style from religious or ideological institutions dedicated to the teaching of faith in the gods during battle, to monasteries where sages learn the secret magic of steel. More traditional teachers often produce students who can move in the space of the blink of an eye and strike with force that will break through any hide. These warriors, while fearsome, do not last long in the outside world, and few have managed to survive the rigors of adventure. Undead on the western shore, aberrations and demons to the north, and magical beasts throughout the island make short work of any unprepared adventurer. Those that have survived normally retire after the first horde of treasure they find, and found colleges similar to those they came from. Parvos’ governing body is a council of wise men who have some military expertise, similar to the council of magi in their neighboring state, and state funding generally goes to the advancement of the warrior’s colleges. The elves of Parvos are hardier than others of their kind, but often suffer from a feeling of superiority that makes them unbearable to others.
Parvosian Elf;
+2 Dex, -2 Cha
Lose: All bonuses for training to fight a specific kind of creature; those elves who attend one of the warrior colleges generally train equally in fighting everything.
Gain: Adaptive Style as a bonus feat at first level, so long as the character meets the prerequisites. If he does not, upon character creation, then he may take the feat normally when he DOES meet the prerequisites. The elves of Parvos have many enemies within the confines of their island, and to not be ready for all of them is sure death. When a fresh graduate must be ready to face hordes of ghouls, a rampaging minotaur, and a summoned demon from the north all in the same day, being flexible is almost a requirement.
Favored Class: Warblade, swordsage, or crusader, chosen at time of character creation.
Spes Aeterna: Not much is known of the main isle itself to this day, for none have ever returned from their expeditions. Those who have seen the island, and lived (generally hired boatmen who have washed up on the shores of Imanis), describe it as a ruin; the ground is blackened as if burnt, the rivers run in dirty brown scabs across the landscape, and the trees shriek in agony at the presence of life. Undead haunt the shores, and strange, dark shadows with red eyes flit between the trees.
Silinfernos Isle: Silinfernos Isle was once a great, untamed forest to rival that of Spes Aeterna, separated from the continent by the wizard to divide the resources from his foes so they could not supply themselves. Many battles were fought here over the mines, farms, and natural resources every side needed near the end, when even Cudere Sanctus’ great forges found less and less material to meet their growing demand for swords and armor. The ground was soaked with the blood of every race and many demons and heroes, and to this day it still bears the remnants of that war; clouds of swords and knives swirl like tornados across the barren desert, and huge worms and stone beasts that once were under the Wizard’s control now wander freely beneath the sands. Dragons with brilliant cobalt scales fly through the air above, invisible from the ground until, with a single lightning bolt, they down their prey. Beyond the outer rims of the isle, in the places where the mines once were, the ground is so ruined and torn that the sand bears a reddish tint, like clay, and here each scrape bleeds like a death wound and sickness is as common as health. Reports of beasts like great serpents and dogs, composed entirely of the bones of the dead, are common near the center, and even worms, bats, and men of colossal size, composed entirely of darkness, are not unheard of. Such incredible monsters make this area barren of life simply by their presence, and no attempts to resettle this land have been attempted, for no sane man would dare set foot on such unhallowed ground.
Pileus: The homeland of the hobbits is a land few travelers ever see, for it is encased in mountains, with bloodied ground protecting one of only three entrances to the isle and the other two usually too narrow and treacherous for most vessels to pass. The hobbits, unlike the inhabitants of Spirabilis, however, do not consider themselves refugees in need of rescue; they are perfectly content to live their sedentary lives within the forested, hilly terrain of Pileus. Few dangers plague the lands of the Halflings, and when they do it is not often a hobbit that solves it. Tales exist, however, of Halfling heroes of ages past who’s mastery of the arcane arts or more supernatural fighting styles have allowed them to excel. The Halflings of Pileus do not often study combat, but there exist those among them who still study the ways of those old heroes, and occasionally some of the more eccentric hobbits even hire out crews to take expeditions to foreign lands; generally Probitas or Tallusavitas, but places as far as the lush western isles of Crystallos or the mountainous wall of Cudere Sanctus have been reached. The expeditions have become so frequent, in recent years, that most ships on the open sea these days are the ships of Halflings, and their language is quickly spreading as more and more maps and tales are being written in their tongue.
Probitas: The isle of the gnomes is easily as peaceful as that of the hobbits. Where their slimmer brethren prefer to live a peaceful existence of farming and crafting, the gnomes study the arcane arts and alchemy, and Probitas’ legends are filled with tales of grand magi in the War who were gnomes, magi that often sent entire armies running with a single illusion, or who concocted new formulae that eventually led to some of the modern marvels so common to this day. The Everburning Torch, Thunderstone, and Tanglefoot bag are all inventions of the gnomes near the end of the War, and their ingenuity can only have increased in this extended time of isolation from the rest of the world.
Tallusavitus: An independent dwarven nation that arose from the stranded dwarves of a battle fought on Silinfernos Isle at the end of the War; one of the last battles, in fact. With no way to return home, those that escaped the cursed Isle ended up in Pileus, and from there the Halflings helped them to their own land, an island composed of literally nothing but mountains and caverns. The dwarves of Tallusavitus get little contact with the outside world, but those Halflings and gnomes that have been in their halls say that these dwarves have built fortresses nearly to match Cudere Sanctus, and that they have kept true to that ancient blood. The dwarves of Tallusavitus do not let on that many beasts which should have been left dormant live in the deep places beneath their mountains, and that perhaps the gods did not place such huge obstacles in the way of expedition by accident…
Cudere Sanctus: The great Dwarven fortress-land of Cudere Sanctus was the last great nation standing at the end of the war. Each of the isles was separated and isolated following that great devastation, but the last records tell of the mountain halls of the Sacred Land, hundred-foot citadels built inside of mountains so tall their peaks were hidden by the clouds, statues of solid silver protected by holy wards and dwarves so mighty they could shatter the armor of the Wizard’s fallen angels with a single blow. The dwarves have not contacted any race since the end of the War, but whether this is because of their dwarven isolationist nature, or something far darker, is unknown to the rest of the world.
The dwarves of Cudere Sanctus, however, do know. The mountains of the middle of their isle were flattened and laid to waste at the end of the war by a great, falling flame that struck somewhere near the center. In the thousands of years that their race had existed, they had never reached this area, for the veins of adamantium in the mountains are thick, and the dwarves did not move on until these were depleted, so the blast killed few; however, the center of their island is a great crater, so wide the other side cannot be seen, and the stone bleeds when it is cracked. In the very heart, beyond the sloping ruins and hills of the wasteland, is an area where the air is filled with danger and magic ceases to function as it was supposed too. The lands of the crater’s impact warp and change the beasts of the mountains, and strange, abberant creatures are often seen on the inner borders of the Dwarven Ring. The dead dwarves do not stay that way if they die within the bloodied or cursed zones, and dwarves returning from guard duty often report burning figures and evil eyes looking out over the wreckage and ruin. Demonic figures are as common here as on Malocus, and wise dwarves do not often venture into these lands as a result.
Crystallos: The lost homeland of the humans was moved farther than any by the great Wizard, and his spell wreaked havoc upon the isle. Humanity on this continent is all but extinct, and the other races have fared little better. Most of the mainland is frosty waste, turning to tundra-forests that are constantly covered in snow and ice, and stalked by undead monsters and savage, primeval beasts that no man yet alive could hope to best. Indeed, there are creatures that none have ever seen in the warped forests of Crystallos. To the southernmost edge, past even the frozen waste, the area where humanity once lived, every town, city, and village, still stands to this day, preserved by the flash-frost. The inhabitants often lay where they died, barely decomposing, and what few scavengers can survive the latent, evil magic of this place feed on the corpses. Those dead bodies that escape the jaws of winter wolves and remorhazs often end up walking once more by the unholy power that pervades these lands. Some say the kingdoms of Crystallos are as cursed as the isle of Malocus, and that venturing to this place is similarly as unwise.
The peninsula is more lush, with the most western tip actually getting above freezing in the summer months, and tribes of thick, powerfully built human-like creatures have been seen by Halfling ships leaving Cudere Sanctus on the shore, often bringing beasts so large they dwarf the ships that view them to shore with spears poking out of their hides. These are not believed to be men, for tales were told of them even when men still lived on Crystallos; of powerful beings who hunted in the winter months and migrated by raft to isles in the south in the spring.
Svak: Svak is the closest isle of Crystallos to any civilized lands, and so perhaps the one most known. At its southernmost point, it is largely similar to the western tip of the mainland’s peninsula, sans the human-like hunters. Near its center, the climate is largely temperate, with unsettled forests that any explorer of Spirabilis would feel at home in. The isle gets hotter as it goes more northward, until eventually it becomes a jungle in its own right, leopards and serpents replacing the bears and wolves. Tribes of kobolds are rumored to grow in number to the tens of thousands in the deepest places of this jungle, and strange, scaled serpent-people build huge, stone citadels visible from the shore. The land remains untamed, but the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus are running out of room, and they may not remain that way forever.
Kkis’alor: The final isle of Crystallos, this tiny, tear-drop shaped speck of land is a thick jungle, completely unexplored. The island itself was only discovered by Halfling ships within the past thirty years, and some still hold its existence to be a myth. It is rumored that no beasts with fur live on the island; it is a land of the scaled creatures, and only they hold dominion there.
Malocus: The island of Malocus is widely regarded as the most terrible, cursed, evil place in all of creation. It was the home of the great Wizard who shattered the world, and his demon horde, and to this day none have ventured too it. The heroes who returned from slaying him at the end of the War say that the island is blackened and barren, the ground changing and moving to thwart and harm any who set foot upon it, and that things do not work properly here; lost items disappear, wounds do not mend, magic harms the wielder more than the wielder should even be capable of harming anyone, and demons plague the land. Scholars can only assume the curse of this place has not abated, and none, not even the mightiest of heroes prior to their deaths, would ever venture to that island for fear of the dangers. To this day no crew, no financer, no one at all will even so much as consider a venture to the island. Reports of dragons being corrupted by the demon flame, their bodies lighting ablaze but not allowing them to die, have stopped even great wyrms from venturing to this place; in fact, there is at least one case of a dragon surrendering itself so that it would not be teleported to Malocus in the days shortly following the War.
Unconquered Lands: This continent, as the name suggests, remains untamed. The wizard split off all of the lands unowned to see if perhaps something lay within them he would need, but alas, there was nothing. The continent is really only truly notable for one thing; the first battle between the heroes who eventually slew the great Wizard, and his demonic horde, took place on these fields, and when the adventurers returned to Cudere Sanctus following the battle, they reported that so much carnage had occurred, so much evil had been done, on the fields of battle they had so valiantly protected, that none would ever live to see those lands inhabited, for the woods themselves had fled the grounds. From Cudere Sanctus, the most that can be seen of the continent through a spyglass is a line of vibrant, green trees; whatever adventures lie in the Unconquered lands have not yet taken place, and it is here that true discovery awaits.
The gods: The gods of the Shattered Isles are as varied as the people themselves, and in this age, as battered. A god’s strength relies on its number of followers, and in these days, following the War, all of them have been weakened, even those whose portfolios include the dead, for the world is smaller in the wake of the War.
Everlight (NG): The Everlight, as he is known, is an overdeity of mercy, compassion, healing, and peace that is worshipped far and wide throughout all lands. Even in the heart of Cudere Sanctus and the most sacred groves of Arcus, his temples are as common as those of the racial deities who preside over the majority of any given population. Most common folk offer praise to him regularly, and even those who actively follow another deity will often pray to him when it strikes their fancy. His followers believe in spreading compassion and peace wherever they go, and view murder, violence, and war as reprehensible. Especially in these days, following the devastation of the War, the Everlight’s following is incredible. The Everlight is usually depicted as a vaguely humanoid figure of pure, white light, standing behind two mountains with his arms held to either side, a glow like that of the sun coming from his body. His favored weapon is the quarterstaff, because it is better for long journeys than short bouts of violence and represents, to his followers, the virtues of their faith; that to kill will break the murderer as well as the victim, while to travel far and wide spreading a solid foundation of beliefs will lead to a long, prosperous life. The Everlight’s holy symbol is a white circle of light, and his domains are Good, Healing, Protection, and Travel.
Aequitas(LG): Known as ‘The Justiciar’, ‘Lawbringer’, and ‘The Merciful Judge’, Aequitas is the god of the crusaders and holy knights, and of anyone who seeks to right wrongs, free the innocent, and uphold law and justice. Aequitas’ followers believe that honor and virtue are the highest pinnacle of human existence, and that to lack the discipline of an honorable life is to be shameful to one’s race. Family is very important within the faith of Aequitas, for a proper upbringing is incredibly important to gaining discipline, and orphans are pitied more by the followers of Aequitas even than by other faiths. They judge none but those who have done wrong in their lives, however, and Aequitas’ followers are often in charge of orphanages and shelters for the homeless and needy in larger cities. Aequitas is usually depicted as a knightly figure composed of solid gold, a crown forged out of his head and studded with rubies and diamonds, and a greatsword clutched in his hands. His holy symbol is a golden square with a greatsword thrust downward through a crown. Aequitas’ favored weapon is therefore the greatsword, for its sheer might and as a symbol of strength and infallibility in the hands of his knight-clerics. Aequitas’ domains are Law, Good, Protection, Destruction, and War.
Eleutheria(CG): Her titles include ‘The Free’, ‘Lady Liberty’, and ‘The Dancer on the Wind.’ Eleutheria is the goddess of freedom and rebellion against an unjust tyrant; she values creativity and a strong will over honor, and her clerics often speak out about the power of decisive action against an unjust government. Eleutheria is the goddess of love and compassion that transcends all boundaries, and her clerics are welcomed in all lands for their willingness to aid the sick and needy of both sides of a war. Eleutheria is also the goddess of the winds, and her followers believe that when a strong wind blows, you should not walk against it; you should turn so that it is to your back, and listen to hear what the goddess wants you to do. Eleutheria is often depicted as a youthful, smiling woman in leather armor, dancing upon a breeze over a prairie while two lovers kiss below. Her holy symbol is a breeze swirling around a heart, and her favored weapon is the Longbow. Her domains include Chaos, Good, Travel, Luck, Air, and Healing.
Parensator(LN): The god of the Dwarves, Parensator is known as “Dwarf Father”, “Honor Bringer”, and “The One Who Sits Upon The Tallest Mountain.” He is the god of justice, enforcement, judgement, creation, and revisal. Not only is he worshiped by the dwarves, but it is common practice among all races to start the session of their court with a quick prayer to him, and not doing so is seen by many as a surefire way to let a guilty man walk free or convict an innocent man unjustly. Parensator’s temples are common throughout the world, wherever dwarves have carved out their mountain homes. His holy symbol is a circle with three pillars running through the middle, and his favored weapon is the greataxe. Parensator’s domains include Law, Protection, Destruction, Knowledge, and Earth.
Lapis Lignum(TN): Lapis Lignum is the god of the woodlands, nature, and the wilds. Any adventurer or explorer seeking to go in to unconquered lands would be wise to offer him a prayer, and the druids of Arcus revere him even above the elven god. Lapis Lignum holds dominion over all animals and natural spirits, elementals, plants, and every other manner of natural thing, down to the rivers and rocks themselves. Lapis has more druids than clerics devoted to him, and those few clerics who do choose to follow him are usually mistaken for druids wherever they go. He is usually depicted as a man composed of intertwining branches and vines, leaves covering the areas where hair should be and two bird’s nests where his eyes should be. He generally has no mouth or nose in these depictions. His holy symbol is a leaf with veins filled with red blood, and his favored weapon is the scimitar because it resembles the claws of beasts. This is the reason the druid is allowed to carry a scimitar, when all other worked metal objects are forbidden to him. His domains include Fire, Air, Water, Earth, Plants, Animals, Sun, and Healing.
The Little Man(CN): The god of the Halflings and gnomes, The Little Man is a three-part prankster, reveler, and wild spirit who is the patron of all good tricks and jokes. The Little Man is the god of every joke, every laugh, every wild, drunken night and of every day spent with friends. His male clerics are often accused of being womanizers and drunkards; his female clerics, of being whores. The followers of the Little Man know the truth however; that in the face of all the terrors of this world, the only true path to life is to laugh in the face of death, and to live every night as if it will be your last. This doctrine of free-spiritedness has kept the church of the Little Man alive even outside of Pileus and Probitas, and his shrines are often the sites of grand festivals and huge wineries. The common men of most towns look forward to the arrival of a cleric of the Little Man, for with him will come relief from these dark days. The Little Man is usually depicted as a gnome or Halfling with a broad smile, a clay pitcher of some form of alcohol in one hand and a long, ornately carved pipe in the other, a pipe that legends tell he stole from Parensator. While the dwarves of Tallusavitas get along well with his followers, dwarves elsewhere nearly universally despise the Little Man for this, because according to their legends this is why good tobacco and other herbs will not grow in the mountains, and it is rare a shrine of the Little Man goes long unmolested in a dwarven settlement. The Little Man’s holy symbol is a small, yellow circle with a black smile in the center, and two black ovals for eyes. His favored weapon is the dagger for its versatility and utilitarian uses, as well as the tricks that a talented performer can do with it. His domains are Chaos, Luck, Trickery, and Travel.
Saeterna(NG): The goddess of the elves, Saeterna was once one of the most widely revered and powerful deities in all the Isles. She is known as “The Peaceful Queen”, “The Brilliant Arrow”, and “The Light Against The Storm.” Since the fall of Spes Aeterna, her following has dwindled, but prayers to her are still frequent in Arcus, Imanis, and Parvos, and her image is still carved in to many places of this world. Saeterna is the goddess of elven culture and all her followers believe that when they die, they will be taken to her upon the hands of their ancestors. An order of elven warriors called the Eternal Blades have risen up from this belief, and they communicate with the ancient guardians and heroes of their ancestry, hoping that those entrusted to carry them to the afterlife will help them to avoid it for as long as possible. Saeterna is usually depicted as an elven queen, her hair long and brilliantly blonde, her body garbed in a silvery gown that changes between all the colors of the rainbows over its folds. In her hand is usually a longbow of fine, faintly glowing wood, strung with a strand of pure light, and upon her head, in place of a crown she has a trio of doves that circle her head like vultures above a kill. Her domains are Good, Magic, Plants, Animals, War, and Protection. Her holy symbol is a dove with a halo above its head, and her favored weapon is the longbow.
Nullaquis(NE): Known by such titles as “The Waster”, “Dessicator”, and “The Sandman”, Nullaquis is the god of the deserts and the wasted regions of this world. Few send prayer to him, for he is a cruel god, and those that do generally do not admit it before an audience. His temples are few and far between, hidden in the ruins that dot many ancient deserts across the world, from Silinfernos Isle to the outer edges of Spirabilis. His worshippers believe in the expansion of the wastes and that life, water, and all of the green things of this world are blasphemy, blasphemy that must be consumed by the vast expanse of the sands. His followers truly believe that life harms the entirety of creation, and that they are some of the few individuals who have acknowledged they are inherently wrong, and are solving the problem. Many choose to become undead and remove themselves from the ‘hordes of consumers, of beings who take in so much more than they produce and rape the sands.’ Nullaquis is generally depicted as a man with parched, cracked skin, his eyes glowing with flames and his mouth a circle ringed with worm-like teeth. In his claws, he is usually depicted holding a burning chain that is covered in the spiked teeth of some monstrous wasteland beast. Nullaquis’ favored weapon is the spiked chain, and his holy symbol is a one-sided spiked chain curled in a ring so that the spikes all face inward, wreathed in flame. His domains include Evil, Destruction, Fire, and Death.
Tenumbrox(LE): He is called by many names; ‘The Creeping Darkness’, ‘The Black Face’, ‘The Slender Man.’ His depictions vary from a faceless man, impossibly tall with arms that extend off the edge of the canvas, wall, or to the opposite walls in the case of three dimensional images. Others paint him as a cloud of utter darkness, the edges of which swirl like tentacles as he envelops whatever surroundings he is placed within. He is sometimes depicted as a black-hooded man, every bit of skin covered, dressed in traveler’s clothes, but with a smooth, black mask where his face should be, two glowing pinpricks of light for eyes. Whatever his appearance, Tenumbrox is the god of darkness and oppression, of laws followed to the letter instead of the intent, of the corrupt politicians who let homeless die in the streets to line their pockets. Many in high offices of small communities offer him prayer, and poverty and death follow him wherever he may go. He is a creeping plague upon the world, a black-faced traveler who stabs those unfortunate enough to sleep outside in the heart, a dark shape who envelops the world with his long, nearly invisible arms, and sweeps away everyone in the way of evil’s climb to power. Planners, schemers, bribers, and blackmailers offer prayer to Tenumbrox, and too often for many’s liking, their prayers are answered. His favored weapon is the dagger for its concealability and versatility, and his holy symbol is a black circle with a glowing eye in the center. Tenumbrox’s domains include Law, Evil, Trickery, Destruction, Knowledge, and Luck.
Medeinex(NE): “The Reaper”, “Soul-Stealer”, and “Gravemaker” are a few of the synonyms for this dark god. Medeinex is the patron and purveyor of wrongful death, of the murdered and those killed in events beyond their control. Innocent men executed and widowers widowed by a chance sword-blow have Medeinex to thank for their pain. He is the god of the undead, and necromancers everywhere give him praise, for it is believed his clerics were the first to raise the dead from their graves, and the great Wizard was reported to have ordered all of his demons to offer a prayer to Medeinex before battle, so that the ground beneath their feet would be desecrated with the sheer power of their advance. The followers of Medeinex believe that all of the races of the world have misinterpreted what the gods asked for in the creation of their personal philosophies, and that peace, joy, and long life are the ways of cowards and fools. They believe that Medeinex punishes the world with murders, natural disasters, and carnage because of mankind’s unwillingness to do what is ‘natural’… to war, and murder, and hurt, so that the strongest can survive. Medeinex is usually depicted as a humanoid figure, mutilated and warped, with jagged teeth stabbing from between his jaws and razor-sharp talons extending from his finger tips. He has no skin, and blood pools beneath him wherever he stands. His holy symbol is a droplet of blood, dangling from the tip of a blade of some kind. His favored weapon is the scythe for the chance devastation that it can cause with a single, lucky blow, and many of his more powerful clerics have been known to carry keen scythes as a rite of passage into the higher orders of his clergy. His domains are Evil, Death, Destruction, Luck, and War.
The Beast(CE): Few deities are as universally reviled as The Beast. He is scorned from the northern heights of Spirabilis to the wastes of Crystallos, wherever any creature has learned of him. He is known by no other titles; the Beast needs none. His clerics are few and far between, but those that do exist are adept at slaughter, maiming, and torture. The Beast is the patron of all destruction, and is considered the creator of insanity, hatred, rage, and war. He is believed to be the father of Medeinex, Nullaquis, and Tenumbrox, and all of their clerics pay him thanks. The tenets of his religion are basic and utterly vile; that each man, woman, and child, should learn to kill, that they should practice regularly, and that to kill, and the thrill that one gets from it, is the height of existence. It is rumored that his followers, in the Unconquered Lands, hold huge orgies where they massacre captured sentients or, in lew of that, those too old and weak of their own species to kill any longer, and then fornicate in the blood. The Beast is usually depicted as a huge worm, with a mouth far too large for its body filled with irregular, jagged, needle-like teeth. Over the entirety of its rotting, diseased body, razor-sharp spikes poke out, and men, women, and children of all races are impaled on all of them. His holy symbol is a severed head, and his domains include Evil, Chaos, Death, Destruction, War, and Strength.
So... thoughts? Critiques, comments, etc? I'd like to know if the setting's engaging and whether or not people LIKE it, since I intend to make it a recurring setting for a number of games in the future. It's designed to be usable for everything from survival-horror to exploration and discovery adventure, and so people can fight everything from ancient, unknowable evils to lowly kobold tribes; it was also designed with the Tome of Battle in mind, and I'd like to know if people have any suggestions about how to better incorporate the fluff of those classes into the world. I copy/pasted this from a word document, so, please don't comment on the statistics of the races above unless you've got a comment about the fluff-implications of some statistical portion of them, as per the forum rules. Thanks for any assistance you guys can give me.
http://prophetoftheallcooki.deviantart.com/#/d4befyo
The Isles were once whole. This was a long time ago, and none now live who remember that day, not even among the elves or dragons. Perhaps some fell creatures do, but these beings are not living in a mortal definition of the term; they are dark beasts, creatures one would not converse with if they were of sound mind, and their testimony as to the nature of the world cannot truly be trusted. Once the world was called ‘Terra’, and in those days the elves, the dwarves, and the men lived in harmony, alongside every other race of the world. Of course, there was conflict; war and famine and death are part of a sentient existence, part of the flaws in the higher processes of thinking. But once the world was whole, and now it is not, and that is the difference between these days and those.
The records of the kingdoms of those days were burned in the flames of the War, but we know even today how the world split. A mighty wizard arose in the lands of the men, as they often do, and this wizard grew truly strong. So strong, in fact, that prior to his birth is the Age of Insecurity, and after it is the Age of Safety. He raised for himself an army of powerful angels who glowed with the light of the sun, each new angel raising another, and with this all-powerful army settled for himself a patch of land on the isle of Benocus, what we know today as Malocus. This wizard protected our world from every threat, and in time many worshipped him as some now do the gods. Dragons hid in their caves for fear of invoking his wrath and the dead stayed in their graves because their rising would bring doom from him. He hid himself away in his cave, and in time grew old as men are wont to do. Then, one day, for no reason anyone could tell, he disappeared. He was gone for at time, and in that time, slowly, the dragons rose from their caves and the dead from their graves, and other heroes rose up to stop them, and this day was the Age of Heroes, and the bards found no shortage of songs to write.
Then, the Age ended, and the great wizard returned to find the new heroes making names for themselves, and all thought he would be pleased; but in his time as the protector of our world, the wizard had grown arrogant, and prideful, and greedy, and he wanted all for himself. The warrior-angels, glowing like the sun, fell upon the heroes and slew them all, and the War had begun. Nobody knows what the wizard did, or where he went, but every plane of existence fought in this war. The angels, after a time, grew dark and malevolent, and became demons and devils like those that now pollute our world, and other angels came to fight them. Men signed on for both causes, and the arts of the wizard became known to men of both sides, and colleges arose to train people to fight, and the Age of War had blossomed. This age continued for years, and some of the heroes who survived the genocide the wizard had staged rose up and fought, and their names were sung, and the world rejoiced. The wizard was slain, his demons were cast into the Abyss, and in time each of these heroes died a natural death and went on to the gods. The colonies on Spirabilis have not had contact with their motherlands for nearly 300 years. This is where the story begins; the Age of Uncertainty, the days where the heroes of past ages are dead and buried, the great protector of the world now known as its greatest villain, and the threats that so long have been held at bay are no longer restrained. This is an age where the dragons crawl from their cave, and the dead rise from their graves. This could be the Second Age of Heroes… or, it could be the last age of man.
Timeline: The timeline of the world denotes year by the Age; INS for the Age of Insecurity, which predates recorded history, S for the Age of Security, H for the Age of Heroes, and W for the age of War. This new age is widely called the Age of Uncertainty, and the denotion for it on the calender is U.
Age of Insecurity: The beginning of the world (assumed to be 10,000 INS.) to 0 S.
Age of Security: 0 S till 65 S.
Age of Heroes: 65 S (0 H) till 158 H
Age of War: 158 H (0 W) till 57 W.
Age of Uncertainty: 57 W (0 U) till 293 U, the current date.
The Isles:
Spirabilis: The colonies on Spirabilis are three; Arcus, Mori, and Reliquia.
Arcus is the elven colony, closest to the shore and made in typical elven fashion. Druids rule their colonies, and initiates to that order swear oath to the elves whether or not they are elves themselves. The elves of Arcus are different from the elves of Spes Aeterna, and they use a variant race. All statistics are identical to the standard elf except where noted otherwise.
Arcusian Elf;
-2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Wis, -2 Int. These replace the standard PHB traits. The elves of Arcus, in the aftermath of the war, did not hold on well to the texts or scientific methods of their forbearers, but they have become quite practical and tolerant from their long separation with their arrogant ancestors. As the Arcusians have grown more used to using magic than steel to defend their homes, they have lost much of their race’s former strength, but the hallmark agility of the elves remains.
Lose: Martial Weapon Proficiencies, except for the shortbow and longbow. The elves of Arcus are at peace with nature and disdain steel; however the bow has not lost its interest for them.
Favored Class: Druid
The elves of the easternmost parts of the colony have also mysteriously been changing, perhaps as a result of some unknown evil, or the latent magic of the wizard, and a new race has emerged from the mountain colonies there, a race with skin that looks burnt and blackened, hairless and vicious, with eyes as red as blood.
Bloodied Elf;
+2 Dex, -2 Con, -2 Int, +2 Cha. These replace the standard PHB traits. The Bloodied Elves are forceful and vicious, and their tongues can convince people of many things, but they are also bestially dimwitted.
Gain: A +2 racial bonus to Stealth and Acrobatics; the Bloodied Elves’ senses are as keen as the normal elves, and they are naturally suited to jumping and climbing through the caves, stalking their prey.
Favored Class: Dread Necromancer. The Bloodied Elves bring plague and death in their wake with the help of their undead armies.
Mori is the second colony of Spirabilis, the dwarven colony. The dwarves of Mori have been hardened by the War and learned to devote themselves to their family and their causes with a zeal that is fanatical in the eyes of many. Their homes in the mountains are filled with the images of heroes, and every soldier who dies in battle is depicted as a statue in the royal palace, created out of solid rock five times the size of the dwarf himself/herself. The dwarves of Mori are strong, industrious people who have thrown off much of the nonsensical rigors of their kind in a last ditch effort to survive, and now their only connection to the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus is a love for the same god, and a desire to return home in the aftermath of the war. Where other dwarves fight against the giants of the mountains and tribal beasts, the dwarves of Mori struggle each day against the amassing undead hordes of Lake Mirum in a constant war.
Morian Dwarf;
+2 Str, -2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Cha. The dwarves of Mori are stronger of fist than the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus, but the added natural amounts of bulk limits their movement somewhat. This strength comes from a constant state of war against the dead. The dwarves of Mori need every bit of their might to defeat these fell beasts.
Lose: All dwarf racial bonuses to fighting other types of creature (giants, goblins, etc.) The dwarves of Mori encounter little resistance from the beings birthed of our realm; most of those tribes will not settle in lands as haunted as theirs.
Gain: Morian Dwarves gain a +2 racial bonus on attack and damage rolls against undead, a +2 dodge bonus to armor class against the attacks of corporeal undead, and Morian Dwarves who take a level in the Cleric class gain two extra turning attempts per day over what they would otherwise possess. The undead have long stalked their shores, and they have developed tactics for fighting them that border on the supernatural; in the case of their warrior-clerics, they have become supernatural.
Favored Class: Cleric or Crusader, chosen upon character creation.
The land of Mori is plagued by undead of many kinds, and the bloodied waters of Lake Mirum feed through all the caverns the dwarves call home. Ghouls, vampire spawn, bloodied elf necromancers, and other creatures tied to the negative energy plane make the halls of Mori dangerous for the untrained wanderer, but the inner citadels are consequentially some of the strongest places in the world.
Reliquia is the third and final colony of Spirabilis; it is in this land that mankind lives, and it is known to be the most bountiful of all the lands so far conquered. Spirabilis’ ecosystems are well-represented; sprawling forests compose the majority of the nation, with windswept plains to the north and the south. Through the northern plains, one will eventually arrive at Lake Hirade, the source of all clean water for the people of Spirabilis and the only reason anything still grows on an isle that is centered with a mass of bloodied ground. To the south, one would come upon the Sea, which in this region of the world is dirtied by the death and bloodshed of the war; to drink it is death or worse, and this dirtied water is the reason Spirabilis cannot contact any other continents. None now live on the Isle who can cast the requisite spells to teleport to these places, and no boat can make it through such infested waters safely, for strange things happen upon the living, evil tide. The men of Reliquia are the last of their kind; in the War their country was destroyed, and the only remnant of it are the cursed ruins, half-buried in the ice, of Crystallos. It is rumored that much magic was known to the humans, and that is why the great Wizard destroyed them first, but as none have left Spirabilis in that time, it is unknown whether any of that magic remains.
Unconquered Lands:
The unconquered lands of Spirabilis are wilderness, in the truest sense of the term; no law, no order, no civilization of any kind. The closest that these vast forests have to an order is the food chain, and woe to any sentient beings who venture in to it, for they are perilessly low on it. The unconquered lands, sheltered from Lake Mirum by the mountains, are not home to many undead, but the beasts that dwell within could make even a vampire flee. Abberations, mutated creatures from the magical residue of the war, hunt alongside animals as ancient as the Fleshraker dinosaur or Dire Bear. Dragons of various types live in the caves and hills that fill the expanses, and rumor among some of the frontier villages suggest that the trees and vines themselves sometimes come alive, with less than friendly intentions. Once benevolent beings have long been warped by the magic of the War, and old legends of gentle ents have given way to new tales of great branches slicing men in twain.
Spes Aeterna: Spes Aeterna was once the home of the elves, a vast jungle that rose as a beacon of light to all of the other races. From within it, the elven nations commanded their squadrons on missions no other race could undertake; missions to colonize, missions to eliminate, missions to kill. They were the special forces in the armies against the great Wizard, and when he fell upon the isle, the world wept. None have heard from the mainland of Spes Aeterna since the war started nearly 350 years ago, but rumor has it that the elves survived, and hold on even to this day amidst ground so bloodied that wounds will not close while one stands upon it. Certainly Imanis and Parvos, the two islands off of the mainland, maintain active governments, and the race to find the lost elves of Spes Aeterna drives many elves even to this day.
Imanis: The first of the mainland elven nations still left standing, Imanis is considered the last bastion of the magical arts. The elves of Imanis are tall and pale, their skin almost gray in hue. They have hair that varies between white and ashy blonde, and are alone among the elves in the ability to grow facial hair. The elves of Imanis live in a magocracy, with a council of mages (young, untrained mages since the War) struggling to hold the fragments of their society together. Life still goes on, but the isle of Imanis has problems not even their magical might can hope to fix; demonic threats, elemental assaults, dragons, and incorporeal undead plague Imanis, the willful spirits of elves long dead too drunk with their own power to ever leave. Rumors of liches and vampires along the western shore further unsettle the already precariously balanced nation, and the failure of any mage to penetrate the border of Spes Aeterna and survive has made many question whether the wizards can really do their job… or if they are as drunk with their power as the great Wizard was. A rebellion is rising in Imanis, and it is a rebellion that the new generation of mages is ill-prepared to deal with.
Imanian Elf;
-2 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Con, +2 Int The elves of Imanis are studious and raised from an early age to believe in brains over brawn; consequentially, they tend to be weaker and frailer than other beings.
Lose: All Martial Weapon proficiencies and bonuses for learning to fight certain creatures. These elves train with the spoken word and flourish of the hand, not the blade and bow.
Gain: SLA’s 1+Int mod/day: prestidigation, mage hand, detect magic
Favored Class: Wizard
Parvos: The second of the original elven nations, Parvos is a warrior state that believes in the art of martial skill. Colleges for warriors dot the isle, ranging in style from religious or ideological institutions dedicated to the teaching of faith in the gods during battle, to monasteries where sages learn the secret magic of steel. More traditional teachers often produce students who can move in the space of the blink of an eye and strike with force that will break through any hide. These warriors, while fearsome, do not last long in the outside world, and few have managed to survive the rigors of adventure. Undead on the western shore, aberrations and demons to the north, and magical beasts throughout the island make short work of any unprepared adventurer. Those that have survived normally retire after the first horde of treasure they find, and found colleges similar to those they came from. Parvos’ governing body is a council of wise men who have some military expertise, similar to the council of magi in their neighboring state, and state funding generally goes to the advancement of the warrior’s colleges. The elves of Parvos are hardier than others of their kind, but often suffer from a feeling of superiority that makes them unbearable to others.
Parvosian Elf;
+2 Dex, -2 Cha
Lose: All bonuses for training to fight a specific kind of creature; those elves who attend one of the warrior colleges generally train equally in fighting everything.
Gain: Adaptive Style as a bonus feat at first level, so long as the character meets the prerequisites. If he does not, upon character creation, then he may take the feat normally when he DOES meet the prerequisites. The elves of Parvos have many enemies within the confines of their island, and to not be ready for all of them is sure death. When a fresh graduate must be ready to face hordes of ghouls, a rampaging minotaur, and a summoned demon from the north all in the same day, being flexible is almost a requirement.
Favored Class: Warblade, swordsage, or crusader, chosen at time of character creation.
Spes Aeterna: Not much is known of the main isle itself to this day, for none have ever returned from their expeditions. Those who have seen the island, and lived (generally hired boatmen who have washed up on the shores of Imanis), describe it as a ruin; the ground is blackened as if burnt, the rivers run in dirty brown scabs across the landscape, and the trees shriek in agony at the presence of life. Undead haunt the shores, and strange, dark shadows with red eyes flit between the trees.
Silinfernos Isle: Silinfernos Isle was once a great, untamed forest to rival that of Spes Aeterna, separated from the continent by the wizard to divide the resources from his foes so they could not supply themselves. Many battles were fought here over the mines, farms, and natural resources every side needed near the end, when even Cudere Sanctus’ great forges found less and less material to meet their growing demand for swords and armor. The ground was soaked with the blood of every race and many demons and heroes, and to this day it still bears the remnants of that war; clouds of swords and knives swirl like tornados across the barren desert, and huge worms and stone beasts that once were under the Wizard’s control now wander freely beneath the sands. Dragons with brilliant cobalt scales fly through the air above, invisible from the ground until, with a single lightning bolt, they down their prey. Beyond the outer rims of the isle, in the places where the mines once were, the ground is so ruined and torn that the sand bears a reddish tint, like clay, and here each scrape bleeds like a death wound and sickness is as common as health. Reports of beasts like great serpents and dogs, composed entirely of the bones of the dead, are common near the center, and even worms, bats, and men of colossal size, composed entirely of darkness, are not unheard of. Such incredible monsters make this area barren of life simply by their presence, and no attempts to resettle this land have been attempted, for no sane man would dare set foot on such unhallowed ground.
Pileus: The homeland of the hobbits is a land few travelers ever see, for it is encased in mountains, with bloodied ground protecting one of only three entrances to the isle and the other two usually too narrow and treacherous for most vessels to pass. The hobbits, unlike the inhabitants of Spirabilis, however, do not consider themselves refugees in need of rescue; they are perfectly content to live their sedentary lives within the forested, hilly terrain of Pileus. Few dangers plague the lands of the Halflings, and when they do it is not often a hobbit that solves it. Tales exist, however, of Halfling heroes of ages past who’s mastery of the arcane arts or more supernatural fighting styles have allowed them to excel. The Halflings of Pileus do not often study combat, but there exist those among them who still study the ways of those old heroes, and occasionally some of the more eccentric hobbits even hire out crews to take expeditions to foreign lands; generally Probitas or Tallusavitas, but places as far as the lush western isles of Crystallos or the mountainous wall of Cudere Sanctus have been reached. The expeditions have become so frequent, in recent years, that most ships on the open sea these days are the ships of Halflings, and their language is quickly spreading as more and more maps and tales are being written in their tongue.
Probitas: The isle of the gnomes is easily as peaceful as that of the hobbits. Where their slimmer brethren prefer to live a peaceful existence of farming and crafting, the gnomes study the arcane arts and alchemy, and Probitas’ legends are filled with tales of grand magi in the War who were gnomes, magi that often sent entire armies running with a single illusion, or who concocted new formulae that eventually led to some of the modern marvels so common to this day. The Everburning Torch, Thunderstone, and Tanglefoot bag are all inventions of the gnomes near the end of the War, and their ingenuity can only have increased in this extended time of isolation from the rest of the world.
Tallusavitus: An independent dwarven nation that arose from the stranded dwarves of a battle fought on Silinfernos Isle at the end of the War; one of the last battles, in fact. With no way to return home, those that escaped the cursed Isle ended up in Pileus, and from there the Halflings helped them to their own land, an island composed of literally nothing but mountains and caverns. The dwarves of Tallusavitus get little contact with the outside world, but those Halflings and gnomes that have been in their halls say that these dwarves have built fortresses nearly to match Cudere Sanctus, and that they have kept true to that ancient blood. The dwarves of Tallusavitus do not let on that many beasts which should have been left dormant live in the deep places beneath their mountains, and that perhaps the gods did not place such huge obstacles in the way of expedition by accident…
Cudere Sanctus: The great Dwarven fortress-land of Cudere Sanctus was the last great nation standing at the end of the war. Each of the isles was separated and isolated following that great devastation, but the last records tell of the mountain halls of the Sacred Land, hundred-foot citadels built inside of mountains so tall their peaks were hidden by the clouds, statues of solid silver protected by holy wards and dwarves so mighty they could shatter the armor of the Wizard’s fallen angels with a single blow. The dwarves have not contacted any race since the end of the War, but whether this is because of their dwarven isolationist nature, or something far darker, is unknown to the rest of the world.
The dwarves of Cudere Sanctus, however, do know. The mountains of the middle of their isle were flattened and laid to waste at the end of the war by a great, falling flame that struck somewhere near the center. In the thousands of years that their race had existed, they had never reached this area, for the veins of adamantium in the mountains are thick, and the dwarves did not move on until these were depleted, so the blast killed few; however, the center of their island is a great crater, so wide the other side cannot be seen, and the stone bleeds when it is cracked. In the very heart, beyond the sloping ruins and hills of the wasteland, is an area where the air is filled with danger and magic ceases to function as it was supposed too. The lands of the crater’s impact warp and change the beasts of the mountains, and strange, abberant creatures are often seen on the inner borders of the Dwarven Ring. The dead dwarves do not stay that way if they die within the bloodied or cursed zones, and dwarves returning from guard duty often report burning figures and evil eyes looking out over the wreckage and ruin. Demonic figures are as common here as on Malocus, and wise dwarves do not often venture into these lands as a result.
Crystallos: The lost homeland of the humans was moved farther than any by the great Wizard, and his spell wreaked havoc upon the isle. Humanity on this continent is all but extinct, and the other races have fared little better. Most of the mainland is frosty waste, turning to tundra-forests that are constantly covered in snow and ice, and stalked by undead monsters and savage, primeval beasts that no man yet alive could hope to best. Indeed, there are creatures that none have ever seen in the warped forests of Crystallos. To the southernmost edge, past even the frozen waste, the area where humanity once lived, every town, city, and village, still stands to this day, preserved by the flash-frost. The inhabitants often lay where they died, barely decomposing, and what few scavengers can survive the latent, evil magic of this place feed on the corpses. Those dead bodies that escape the jaws of winter wolves and remorhazs often end up walking once more by the unholy power that pervades these lands. Some say the kingdoms of Crystallos are as cursed as the isle of Malocus, and that venturing to this place is similarly as unwise.
The peninsula is more lush, with the most western tip actually getting above freezing in the summer months, and tribes of thick, powerfully built human-like creatures have been seen by Halfling ships leaving Cudere Sanctus on the shore, often bringing beasts so large they dwarf the ships that view them to shore with spears poking out of their hides. These are not believed to be men, for tales were told of them even when men still lived on Crystallos; of powerful beings who hunted in the winter months and migrated by raft to isles in the south in the spring.
Svak: Svak is the closest isle of Crystallos to any civilized lands, and so perhaps the one most known. At its southernmost point, it is largely similar to the western tip of the mainland’s peninsula, sans the human-like hunters. Near its center, the climate is largely temperate, with unsettled forests that any explorer of Spirabilis would feel at home in. The isle gets hotter as it goes more northward, until eventually it becomes a jungle in its own right, leopards and serpents replacing the bears and wolves. Tribes of kobolds are rumored to grow in number to the tens of thousands in the deepest places of this jungle, and strange, scaled serpent-people build huge, stone citadels visible from the shore. The land remains untamed, but the dwarves of Cudere Sanctus are running out of room, and they may not remain that way forever.
Kkis’alor: The final isle of Crystallos, this tiny, tear-drop shaped speck of land is a thick jungle, completely unexplored. The island itself was only discovered by Halfling ships within the past thirty years, and some still hold its existence to be a myth. It is rumored that no beasts with fur live on the island; it is a land of the scaled creatures, and only they hold dominion there.
Malocus: The island of Malocus is widely regarded as the most terrible, cursed, evil place in all of creation. It was the home of the great Wizard who shattered the world, and his demon horde, and to this day none have ventured too it. The heroes who returned from slaying him at the end of the War say that the island is blackened and barren, the ground changing and moving to thwart and harm any who set foot upon it, and that things do not work properly here; lost items disappear, wounds do not mend, magic harms the wielder more than the wielder should even be capable of harming anyone, and demons plague the land. Scholars can only assume the curse of this place has not abated, and none, not even the mightiest of heroes prior to their deaths, would ever venture to that island for fear of the dangers. To this day no crew, no financer, no one at all will even so much as consider a venture to the island. Reports of dragons being corrupted by the demon flame, their bodies lighting ablaze but not allowing them to die, have stopped even great wyrms from venturing to this place; in fact, there is at least one case of a dragon surrendering itself so that it would not be teleported to Malocus in the days shortly following the War.
Unconquered Lands: This continent, as the name suggests, remains untamed. The wizard split off all of the lands unowned to see if perhaps something lay within them he would need, but alas, there was nothing. The continent is really only truly notable for one thing; the first battle between the heroes who eventually slew the great Wizard, and his demonic horde, took place on these fields, and when the adventurers returned to Cudere Sanctus following the battle, they reported that so much carnage had occurred, so much evil had been done, on the fields of battle they had so valiantly protected, that none would ever live to see those lands inhabited, for the woods themselves had fled the grounds. From Cudere Sanctus, the most that can be seen of the continent through a spyglass is a line of vibrant, green trees; whatever adventures lie in the Unconquered lands have not yet taken place, and it is here that true discovery awaits.
The gods: The gods of the Shattered Isles are as varied as the people themselves, and in this age, as battered. A god’s strength relies on its number of followers, and in these days, following the War, all of them have been weakened, even those whose portfolios include the dead, for the world is smaller in the wake of the War.
Everlight (NG): The Everlight, as he is known, is an overdeity of mercy, compassion, healing, and peace that is worshipped far and wide throughout all lands. Even in the heart of Cudere Sanctus and the most sacred groves of Arcus, his temples are as common as those of the racial deities who preside over the majority of any given population. Most common folk offer praise to him regularly, and even those who actively follow another deity will often pray to him when it strikes their fancy. His followers believe in spreading compassion and peace wherever they go, and view murder, violence, and war as reprehensible. Especially in these days, following the devastation of the War, the Everlight’s following is incredible. The Everlight is usually depicted as a vaguely humanoid figure of pure, white light, standing behind two mountains with his arms held to either side, a glow like that of the sun coming from his body. His favored weapon is the quarterstaff, because it is better for long journeys than short bouts of violence and represents, to his followers, the virtues of their faith; that to kill will break the murderer as well as the victim, while to travel far and wide spreading a solid foundation of beliefs will lead to a long, prosperous life. The Everlight’s holy symbol is a white circle of light, and his domains are Good, Healing, Protection, and Travel.
Aequitas(LG): Known as ‘The Justiciar’, ‘Lawbringer’, and ‘The Merciful Judge’, Aequitas is the god of the crusaders and holy knights, and of anyone who seeks to right wrongs, free the innocent, and uphold law and justice. Aequitas’ followers believe that honor and virtue are the highest pinnacle of human existence, and that to lack the discipline of an honorable life is to be shameful to one’s race. Family is very important within the faith of Aequitas, for a proper upbringing is incredibly important to gaining discipline, and orphans are pitied more by the followers of Aequitas even than by other faiths. They judge none but those who have done wrong in their lives, however, and Aequitas’ followers are often in charge of orphanages and shelters for the homeless and needy in larger cities. Aequitas is usually depicted as a knightly figure composed of solid gold, a crown forged out of his head and studded with rubies and diamonds, and a greatsword clutched in his hands. His holy symbol is a golden square with a greatsword thrust downward through a crown. Aequitas’ favored weapon is therefore the greatsword, for its sheer might and as a symbol of strength and infallibility in the hands of his knight-clerics. Aequitas’ domains are Law, Good, Protection, Destruction, and War.
Eleutheria(CG): Her titles include ‘The Free’, ‘Lady Liberty’, and ‘The Dancer on the Wind.’ Eleutheria is the goddess of freedom and rebellion against an unjust tyrant; she values creativity and a strong will over honor, and her clerics often speak out about the power of decisive action against an unjust government. Eleutheria is the goddess of love and compassion that transcends all boundaries, and her clerics are welcomed in all lands for their willingness to aid the sick and needy of both sides of a war. Eleutheria is also the goddess of the winds, and her followers believe that when a strong wind blows, you should not walk against it; you should turn so that it is to your back, and listen to hear what the goddess wants you to do. Eleutheria is often depicted as a youthful, smiling woman in leather armor, dancing upon a breeze over a prairie while two lovers kiss below. Her holy symbol is a breeze swirling around a heart, and her favored weapon is the Longbow. Her domains include Chaos, Good, Travel, Luck, Air, and Healing.
Parensator(LN): The god of the Dwarves, Parensator is known as “Dwarf Father”, “Honor Bringer”, and “The One Who Sits Upon The Tallest Mountain.” He is the god of justice, enforcement, judgement, creation, and revisal. Not only is he worshiped by the dwarves, but it is common practice among all races to start the session of their court with a quick prayer to him, and not doing so is seen by many as a surefire way to let a guilty man walk free or convict an innocent man unjustly. Parensator’s temples are common throughout the world, wherever dwarves have carved out their mountain homes. His holy symbol is a circle with three pillars running through the middle, and his favored weapon is the greataxe. Parensator’s domains include Law, Protection, Destruction, Knowledge, and Earth.
Lapis Lignum(TN): Lapis Lignum is the god of the woodlands, nature, and the wilds. Any adventurer or explorer seeking to go in to unconquered lands would be wise to offer him a prayer, and the druids of Arcus revere him even above the elven god. Lapis Lignum holds dominion over all animals and natural spirits, elementals, plants, and every other manner of natural thing, down to the rivers and rocks themselves. Lapis has more druids than clerics devoted to him, and those few clerics who do choose to follow him are usually mistaken for druids wherever they go. He is usually depicted as a man composed of intertwining branches and vines, leaves covering the areas where hair should be and two bird’s nests where his eyes should be. He generally has no mouth or nose in these depictions. His holy symbol is a leaf with veins filled with red blood, and his favored weapon is the scimitar because it resembles the claws of beasts. This is the reason the druid is allowed to carry a scimitar, when all other worked metal objects are forbidden to him. His domains include Fire, Air, Water, Earth, Plants, Animals, Sun, and Healing.
The Little Man(CN): The god of the Halflings and gnomes, The Little Man is a three-part prankster, reveler, and wild spirit who is the patron of all good tricks and jokes. The Little Man is the god of every joke, every laugh, every wild, drunken night and of every day spent with friends. His male clerics are often accused of being womanizers and drunkards; his female clerics, of being whores. The followers of the Little Man know the truth however; that in the face of all the terrors of this world, the only true path to life is to laugh in the face of death, and to live every night as if it will be your last. This doctrine of free-spiritedness has kept the church of the Little Man alive even outside of Pileus and Probitas, and his shrines are often the sites of grand festivals and huge wineries. The common men of most towns look forward to the arrival of a cleric of the Little Man, for with him will come relief from these dark days. The Little Man is usually depicted as a gnome or Halfling with a broad smile, a clay pitcher of some form of alcohol in one hand and a long, ornately carved pipe in the other, a pipe that legends tell he stole from Parensator. While the dwarves of Tallusavitas get along well with his followers, dwarves elsewhere nearly universally despise the Little Man for this, because according to their legends this is why good tobacco and other herbs will not grow in the mountains, and it is rare a shrine of the Little Man goes long unmolested in a dwarven settlement. The Little Man’s holy symbol is a small, yellow circle with a black smile in the center, and two black ovals for eyes. His favored weapon is the dagger for its versatility and utilitarian uses, as well as the tricks that a talented performer can do with it. His domains are Chaos, Luck, Trickery, and Travel.
Saeterna(NG): The goddess of the elves, Saeterna was once one of the most widely revered and powerful deities in all the Isles. She is known as “The Peaceful Queen”, “The Brilliant Arrow”, and “The Light Against The Storm.” Since the fall of Spes Aeterna, her following has dwindled, but prayers to her are still frequent in Arcus, Imanis, and Parvos, and her image is still carved in to many places of this world. Saeterna is the goddess of elven culture and all her followers believe that when they die, they will be taken to her upon the hands of their ancestors. An order of elven warriors called the Eternal Blades have risen up from this belief, and they communicate with the ancient guardians and heroes of their ancestry, hoping that those entrusted to carry them to the afterlife will help them to avoid it for as long as possible. Saeterna is usually depicted as an elven queen, her hair long and brilliantly blonde, her body garbed in a silvery gown that changes between all the colors of the rainbows over its folds. In her hand is usually a longbow of fine, faintly glowing wood, strung with a strand of pure light, and upon her head, in place of a crown she has a trio of doves that circle her head like vultures above a kill. Her domains are Good, Magic, Plants, Animals, War, and Protection. Her holy symbol is a dove with a halo above its head, and her favored weapon is the longbow.
Nullaquis(NE): Known by such titles as “The Waster”, “Dessicator”, and “The Sandman”, Nullaquis is the god of the deserts and the wasted regions of this world. Few send prayer to him, for he is a cruel god, and those that do generally do not admit it before an audience. His temples are few and far between, hidden in the ruins that dot many ancient deserts across the world, from Silinfernos Isle to the outer edges of Spirabilis. His worshippers believe in the expansion of the wastes and that life, water, and all of the green things of this world are blasphemy, blasphemy that must be consumed by the vast expanse of the sands. His followers truly believe that life harms the entirety of creation, and that they are some of the few individuals who have acknowledged they are inherently wrong, and are solving the problem. Many choose to become undead and remove themselves from the ‘hordes of consumers, of beings who take in so much more than they produce and rape the sands.’ Nullaquis is generally depicted as a man with parched, cracked skin, his eyes glowing with flames and his mouth a circle ringed with worm-like teeth. In his claws, he is usually depicted holding a burning chain that is covered in the spiked teeth of some monstrous wasteland beast. Nullaquis’ favored weapon is the spiked chain, and his holy symbol is a one-sided spiked chain curled in a ring so that the spikes all face inward, wreathed in flame. His domains include Evil, Destruction, Fire, and Death.
Tenumbrox(LE): He is called by many names; ‘The Creeping Darkness’, ‘The Black Face’, ‘The Slender Man.’ His depictions vary from a faceless man, impossibly tall with arms that extend off the edge of the canvas, wall, or to the opposite walls in the case of three dimensional images. Others paint him as a cloud of utter darkness, the edges of which swirl like tentacles as he envelops whatever surroundings he is placed within. He is sometimes depicted as a black-hooded man, every bit of skin covered, dressed in traveler’s clothes, but with a smooth, black mask where his face should be, two glowing pinpricks of light for eyes. Whatever his appearance, Tenumbrox is the god of darkness and oppression, of laws followed to the letter instead of the intent, of the corrupt politicians who let homeless die in the streets to line their pockets. Many in high offices of small communities offer him prayer, and poverty and death follow him wherever he may go. He is a creeping plague upon the world, a black-faced traveler who stabs those unfortunate enough to sleep outside in the heart, a dark shape who envelops the world with his long, nearly invisible arms, and sweeps away everyone in the way of evil’s climb to power. Planners, schemers, bribers, and blackmailers offer prayer to Tenumbrox, and too often for many’s liking, their prayers are answered. His favored weapon is the dagger for its concealability and versatility, and his holy symbol is a black circle with a glowing eye in the center. Tenumbrox’s domains include Law, Evil, Trickery, Destruction, Knowledge, and Luck.
Medeinex(NE): “The Reaper”, “Soul-Stealer”, and “Gravemaker” are a few of the synonyms for this dark god. Medeinex is the patron and purveyor of wrongful death, of the murdered and those killed in events beyond their control. Innocent men executed and widowers widowed by a chance sword-blow have Medeinex to thank for their pain. He is the god of the undead, and necromancers everywhere give him praise, for it is believed his clerics were the first to raise the dead from their graves, and the great Wizard was reported to have ordered all of his demons to offer a prayer to Medeinex before battle, so that the ground beneath their feet would be desecrated with the sheer power of their advance. The followers of Medeinex believe that all of the races of the world have misinterpreted what the gods asked for in the creation of their personal philosophies, and that peace, joy, and long life are the ways of cowards and fools. They believe that Medeinex punishes the world with murders, natural disasters, and carnage because of mankind’s unwillingness to do what is ‘natural’… to war, and murder, and hurt, so that the strongest can survive. Medeinex is usually depicted as a humanoid figure, mutilated and warped, with jagged teeth stabbing from between his jaws and razor-sharp talons extending from his finger tips. He has no skin, and blood pools beneath him wherever he stands. His holy symbol is a droplet of blood, dangling from the tip of a blade of some kind. His favored weapon is the scythe for the chance devastation that it can cause with a single, lucky blow, and many of his more powerful clerics have been known to carry keen scythes as a rite of passage into the higher orders of his clergy. His domains are Evil, Death, Destruction, Luck, and War.
The Beast(CE): Few deities are as universally reviled as The Beast. He is scorned from the northern heights of Spirabilis to the wastes of Crystallos, wherever any creature has learned of him. He is known by no other titles; the Beast needs none. His clerics are few and far between, but those that do exist are adept at slaughter, maiming, and torture. The Beast is the patron of all destruction, and is considered the creator of insanity, hatred, rage, and war. He is believed to be the father of Medeinex, Nullaquis, and Tenumbrox, and all of their clerics pay him thanks. The tenets of his religion are basic and utterly vile; that each man, woman, and child, should learn to kill, that they should practice regularly, and that to kill, and the thrill that one gets from it, is the height of existence. It is rumored that his followers, in the Unconquered Lands, hold huge orgies where they massacre captured sentients or, in lew of that, those too old and weak of their own species to kill any longer, and then fornicate in the blood. The Beast is usually depicted as a huge worm, with a mouth far too large for its body filled with irregular, jagged, needle-like teeth. Over the entirety of its rotting, diseased body, razor-sharp spikes poke out, and men, women, and children of all races are impaled on all of them. His holy symbol is a severed head, and his domains include Evil, Chaos, Death, Destruction, War, and Strength.
So... thoughts? Critiques, comments, etc? I'd like to know if the setting's engaging and whether or not people LIKE it, since I intend to make it a recurring setting for a number of games in the future. It's designed to be usable for everything from survival-horror to exploration and discovery adventure, and so people can fight everything from ancient, unknowable evils to lowly kobold tribes; it was also designed with the Tome of Battle in mind, and I'd like to know if people have any suggestions about how to better incorporate the fluff of those classes into the world. I copy/pasted this from a word document, so, please don't comment on the statistics of the races above unless you've got a comment about the fluff-implications of some statistical portion of them, as per the forum rules. Thanks for any assistance you guys can give me.