The Minds of Almantha (WIP-ish)

[Landis963]

Hi all. Some of you may remember a thread where I asked for help mapping spells to the classical elements, and another where I asked for help naming a continent. As you can probably guess from the title, this is that world. This should probably be considered a work in progress (and thus any input would be appreciated), however, most of it is already nailed down in my head/other places, so I may or may not adopt the changes you suggest.

So without further ado:
Almantha is one of the last remaining places in Therinos with a large concentration of magic and magic-users. The people (humans, aventi, elves, nomon, and kiria) are in the process of gravitating into four distinct populations, each centered around one of the classical elements. (Water, Earth, Fire, and Air). There are five cities, one for each element, then another in the center of the continent, as a balancing force. They are:

Aquacor:
City of water. The entire city is made of it, held in place by high-power Control Water spells. The city is also made of ice and glass, as the high saturation of magic allows the city to change water to ice to glass and back. It is renowned for its heavy emphasis on the tourist trade, as well as for its university of magical theory and the many powerful wizards that count among its alumni. It boasts a sizable population of humans and aventi, sleek, humanoid creatures with killer whale esque markings.

Dekonio
City of earth. A city in a giant tree studded with naturally faceted gems ranging from clear blue to yellow in hue. This tree can move its existing branches on its own whims (usually during the night or in districts without anyone around to fall down), with enough control to weave its smaller branches into rope bridges. The gems collect sunlight during the day and transfer it to literal sunflowers, providing light to the city’s inhabitants. 90% of Dekonio's population is elven, but these elves are different from the pointy-eared humans one would find elsewhere on Therinos. Their close affinity for and physical distance to a nexus of earth magic turned them into a plant race, of physically green skin, barklike clothing, and the ability to grow a hard shell for protection while sleeping. The remaining 10% are humans and any being without the desire or aptitude for the hard theory taught at the University of Aquacor, studying sigils and more practical uses of magic.

Obsidia
City of fire. One of the most normal of the cities in the nation, despite its location (inside a dormant volcano) and the mechanical constructs of various shapes that abound. Central tower is topped with a perfectly spherical ruby that seems to glitter as though being whirled at great speeds. Constructs are built for their functions, and have trouble “thinking” out of them. Most of them have a human face on what passes for a head, so that their organic overlords can have something to address. Human face is immobile, eyes are whited over. Entire face looks carved out of marble. Most are created by the nomon, a population of dwarf/goblin/gnome hybrids given to the city as part of an alliance with Dekonio, intended as Igors and servants for the city, but many of whom grew into brilliant scientists, engineers, and spellcasters in their own right.

Saalarann
City of air. When one goes to Saalarann for the first time, they might be confused by the sight of a small domed pagoda in the middle of a rolling plain. This pagoda is but the door to Saalarann, in much the same way that the plain is merely an antechamber. The actual city is above the cloud layer, Three concentric rings of buildings floating several hundred miles above the surface of Therinos. It is the nest of the kiria, a race of hawk-people (the raptorans from Races Of The Wild are the closest fit, although there is a bit of the Giant's Fenixborn in there too), and second only to Aquacor in the human tourist trade.

Revien
City of balance. Home to Mindworship (Note: definitely need a better name for this), a religion deifying the powers behind each city, and its capital place of worship, the Noreun. also home to the Revien Freelancer Guard, a mercenary army that is contractually obligated never to march on the city where it was founded. Every full moon, there is also a black market hidden somewhere in the city, and it is considered a rite of passage for Freelancer grunts to sneak off and find it the first full moon after their recruitment. As for the commanding officers, they turn a blind eye, some even going so far as to say "I do not recommend looking for the Moon Market, nor do I recommend looking in THIS area for it." Revien is unique among cities in that it is located in a canyon, with buildings crawling up the sides like bracket fungus.

The four elemental cities are controlled by powerful A.I.esque beings, housed within the very being of the city. When they are referred to separately, they are Aqua, Dekon, Obsid, and Saala, but they are most often referred to as the Minds (or just "Gods"). However, they are not gods, merely memories of the founders of each city given form and impetus by the sources of their power, a sphere, spinning in all directions at once, housed in the central tower of each city.

Thoughts? Also, does anyone know how to title spoiler tags? (i.e. making it so that it's something other than "spoiler" in the title text box)

[motoko's ghost]

Nice concept, reminded me of appleseed for some reason.
No there's no way to do that as far as I know.

Is there any sort of racial tensions/nearby monsters/unusal customs&eccentricities?
Do you have any sort of idea for plot hooks, etc?

Perhaps the black marketeers of the moon market have stole(and modified) one of Obsidia's constructs into a dangerous war machine,Its being sold to a madman who plans on using its fiery might to lay waste to Dekonio for a perceived wrong. The PCs are needed because if the Revien Freelancer Guard try to move in the people doing this will realise and unfortunately they were able to kidnap a nomon(indeed thats partly how they were able to modify it in the first place) and they cant afford them slipping away or starting a hostage situation, due to unstable political climates in the city.

Perhaps they must help a young aventi overcome its fear of the water/fire(depending on if you actually want to do it and how serious it should be)

Perhaps they are needed to gather several rare reagents in order to help create the levitation effect for a new part of Saalarann(or stop a pre-existing part collapsing)

Yeah I think it's a interesting concept and I'd like to see more of it.

[Landis963]

Ooh, that's a good one for a starter mission. As for the larger plot, I was thinking that there would be something going wrong with each of the elemental cities, for example, the dormant Obsidia volcano would be waking up again, catastrophic failure/erratic behavior of the enchantments holding up Aquacor, Dekonio's tree burning up from the inside (literally - the outside evidence of this would be lines of charcoal-esque substance on the bark). However, I'm not sure how to communicate that with Saalarann without resorting to "and then all of a sudden, a city block collapses!" (although if they brought both the nomon and the construct to Saalarann, with the intent to drop it off the edge and set it to go berserk when it lands, that would be a good reason to go there).

As for Racial tensions, I'm thinking that kobolds, orcs, goblins, etc. would be failed (but still viable) versions of the nomon. These "rough drafts" would have a pseudo-nomadic lifestyle, which leads to a public image of parasites (there's also some "anti-ugly" prejudice going on there, as well as some knee-jerk pity from the nomon). However, the luckier kobolds can pass for nomon, and the unluckier nomon can be mistaken for kobolds. The gnomish race that gave part of their phenotype to the nomon has since died out (however, their stats live on in the nomon)

I think the higher-ups of the Revien Freelancer Guard (RFG for short, or simply Freelancers) are genre-savvy enough (though they wouldn't know it as genre savvy) to realize the high success rate of D&D party-esque teams. And so they would never openly order a march en masse to some location, instead sending a team (convenient for the PCs, and also for other equivalent groups for the team to slip into if they die). The need for stealth would factor into the mission briefings, however.

This does raise the question, however, of how a city protects against an army of disgruntled, say, orcs. The answer varies from city to city. Revien, of course, has the Freelancer Guard. Obsidia has an army of robots (maybe one of those could be stolen?). Saalarann, with the bottleneck of the teleport pad, as well as the obfuscation therein (an Epic Teleport, of such a relatively small space, would be able to reach anywhere within Therinos' atmosphere, meaning that distance is no object and thus no indicator of where, exactly, the city is), has one of the best aerial fleets known to Therinos (it helps that the native population has wings). As the city is in the sky, this helps. A lot. Dekonio's elf population, being plant creatures, is well versed in the dual arts of poison and alluring fragrance, meaning that every way but the right way is trapped out the wazoo. Aquacor's navy is comparable to Saalarann's air force, and it helps that specially trained mages can literally create boats/submarines of water, then transmute to ice, compressed snow, or whatever would be most useful for the purpose. If anyone tried attacking by boat (a necessity for those global powers without the resources for an aerial assault), they would find their vessels split in two by ships designed to attack from below, whose crews then start flinging spells at any other ships in the area. Each city except Revien has a secret weapon however: The interference of the Mind of each city. Dekon, for example, would literally shake off any invaders who happened to penetrate the city, while Aqua would command the blood of invaders like a puppetmaster does his marionettes. Obsid's favorite construct, a dragon facsimile of elaborately ancient make and terrible power, would erupt from the mouth of the volcano and breathe fire upon his enemies, while Saala would teleport any army a mile due west of the city's location.

I'm probably not going to do the one with the aventi needing to learn to swim because it wouldn't make sense with their biology, but it can easily be adapted to a kiria needing to learn to fly. And the rare reagents sidequest has flashing danger lights all over it.

[motoko's ghost]

Whats causing they cities to fail?(angry gods, secret cabal of the kobold,orc and goblinoids or the undead nemeses of the founders sabotaging the cities with spells and whatnot, perhaps the minds contained in the city themselves are failing from age and weariness, maybe its all just a test by the minds to see if the city could survive without them as they are tired and wish to pass on their duties, or perhaps most sinisterly of all they decided they dont need the people after all)
or possibly all of the above:smallcool:

You dont have to worry too much about an army teleporting in though, teleport spells are for adventuring party sized groups, barring a custom made epic teleportation spell(like the one darth vaarsuvius used) they just cant transport enough for a viable invasion.

Yeah the whole teaching it to swim thing was a bit of a joke, I'm glad that one of them fits into the main campaign arc though.

[Landis963]

Whats causing they cities to fail?(angry gods, secret cabal of the kobold,orc and goblinoids or the undead nemeses of the founders sabotaging the cities with spells and whatnot, perhaps the minds contained in the city themselves are failing from age and weariness, maybe its all just a test by the minds to see if the city could survive without them as they are tired and wish to pass on their duties, or perhaps most sinisterly of all they decided they dont need the people after all)
or possibly all of the above:smallcool:

I was thinking mostly age, as well as (for at least two of the four) a growing disinterest in the organic population. As for nemeses, I hadn't thought of that. I mean, even if they became liches or something, it's not like the founders followed them into undeath to continue their feud, now is it? And the Minds have enough power and control to crush any recognized enemy easily. And even if they didn't, there's still a nexus of magical energy located smack dab in the middle of each city.


You dont have to worry too much about an army teleporting in though, teleport spells are for adventuring party sized groups, barring a custom made epic teleportation spell(like the one darth vaarsuvius used) they just cant transport enough for a viable invasion.

That doesn't mean they don't exist in the world though. Just because I the GM am not worried about it doesn't mean that, say, Saala wasn't worried about it at some point. Besides, the spell on the teleport pad is of the "undisclosed level of power" type.


Yeah the whole teaching it to swim thing was a bit of a joke, I'm glad that one of them fits into the main campaign arc though.


Yeah, that stolen construct thing could be quite useful, especially if I change one or two things to adapt it to my chosen story structure.

BTW, What's "appleseed"?

[motoko's ghost]

I was thinking mostly age, as well as (for at least two of the four) a growing disinterest in the organic population. As for nemeses, I hadn't thought of that. I mean, even if they became liches or something, it's not like the founders followed them into undeath to continue their feud, now is it? And the Minds have enough power and control to crush any recognized enemy easily. And even if they didn't, there's still a nexus of magical energy located smack dab in the middle of each city.

...

Yeah, that stolen construct thing could be quite useful, especially if I change one or two things to adapt it to my chosen story structure.

BTW, What's "appleseed"?

If they're going liches maybe one of them went vecna-blooded too(completely immune to all divinations ever), perhaps a slow,stealthy weakening of the cities, hampering inter-city trade, stirring up nearby goblinoids,etc.

Appleseed is a manga by Masamune Shirow where the largest remaining human city(after WW3) is run by a giant AI and has a lot of robots,cyborgs and androids(sorta like constructs), theres also a movie based on it which is really good:smallbiggrin:

[Landis963]

If they're going liches maybe one of them went vecna-blooded too(completely immune to all divinations ever), perhaps a slow,stealthy weakening of the cities, hampering inter-city trade, stirring up nearby goblinoids,etc.

Appleseed is a manga by Masamune Shirow where the largest remaining human city(after WW3) is run by a giant AI and has a lot of robots,cyborgs and androids(sorta like constructs)


Hmmmmm..... You're getting surprisingly close to my original plan for the Big Bad, although I will say he is still very much alive in it. Maybe some sort of Big Bad/Bigger Bad thing would work.

Appleseed sounds very much like my concept for Obsidia, except the more obviously cyberpunk elements (cyborgs, for example, are much closer to cyberpunk than most of the tech-through-magic stuff I have in this world).

[motoko's ghost]

Hmmmmm..... You're getting surprisingly close to my original plan for the Big Bad, although I will say he is still very much alive in it. Maybe some sort of Big Bad/Bigger Bad thing would work.

Appleseed sounds very much like my concept for Obsidia, except the more obviously cyberpunk elements (cyborgs, for example, are much closer to cyberpunk than most of the tech-through-magic stuff I have in this world).

In the end of appleseed;
It turns out that the evil conspiracy to kill all humans is in fact masterminded by the ruling council of really old human who believe that the human race must make way for the bio-droids, this plan almost succeeds due to a crappy keyboard but is spoiled at the last second by;
autocomplete...on the override password...of the city's defence system...that is capable of destroying the city if anyone reaches the edge of the city and climbs a moderately sized ladder:smallconfused:

[Landis963]

That sounds a ton like it goes over better in context.

A relatively recent development in magic is the creation of sigil spells. With the correct handwriting, any spell can be implanted onto any weapon, wall, patch of ground, or other object. Tattooing these sigils onto living creatures has had mixed success, as the spell can be inadvertently set off or changed by an errant wound or scratch, when they work correctly in the first place. Also, there is the question of power. Creatures that had magic involved with their creation (aventi, nomon, etc.) can power any sigils tattoed on them, at the expense of leeching power from the magical systems that keep them alive. However, as long as there is a source of magical power that the sigil can use, it will work as transcribed.

[motoko's ghost]

That sounds a ton like it goes over better in context.

A relatively recent development in magic is the creation of sigil spells. With the correct handwriting, any spell can be implanted onto any weapon, wall, patch of ground, or other object. Tattooing these sigils onto living creatures has had mixed success, as the spell can be inadvertently set off or changed by an errant wound or scratch, when they work correctly in the first place. Also, there is the question of power. Creatures that had magic involved with their creation (aventi, nomon, etc.) can power any sigils tattoed on them, at the expense of leeching power from the magical systems that keep them alive. However, as long as there is a source of magical power that the sigil can use, it will work as transcribed.

So its sorta like the runesmith(think thats what they're called) from Races of stone? Good, quite liked them, even if I've never actually played one.
Like the whole "yes you can have a magical tattoo,but there can be drawbacks/side effects" thing. Mind you what if you inscribed them on a construct? would the magic in the construct allow it to power the runes, might allow for some interesting customisation of the Obsidia constructs.

Another idea might be something similar to the golem armor(from some 3.0 sourcebook who's name I can never remember), which is basically a medium sized mech:smalltongue:(you are completely enclosed in a suit of armour that functions a construct, and can be piloted by either a person or a soul gem)

[Landis963]

So its sorta like the runesmith(think thats what they're called) from Races of stone? Good, quite liked them, even if I've never actually played one.
Like the whole "yes you can have a magical tattoo,but there can be drawbacks/side effects" thing. Mind you what if you inscribed them on a construct? would the magic in the construct allow it to power the runes, might allow for some interesting customisation of the Obsidia constructs.

I'm not familiar with the runesmith, so maybe? And any sigils on a construct would indeed leech the necessary power from it.

EDIT: Although I'm not sure if anyone's thought of etching sigils onto constructs yet.


Another idea might be something similar to the golem armor(from some 3.0 sourcebook who's name I can never remember), which is basically a medium sized mech:smalltongue:(you are completely enclosed in a suit of armour that functions a construct, and can be piloted by either a person or a soul gem)

... I have an idea for a miniboss. Also, that's very close to my concept of Obsid's favorite construct, especially since its piloted by (essentially) the soul gem containing Obsid, but I thought it would be normal dragon size. A quick check of the SRD tells me that it is unclear on the exact size of an average mature adult dragon, so I'm going to go with large. Also, it's technically a golem so could it be made out of, for example, bones?

[motoko's ghost]

I'm not familiar with the runesmith, so maybe? And any sigils on a construct would indeed leech the necessary power from it.



... I have an idea for a miniboss.

What if they were integrated into it during construction ala runic guardian?

:smallbiggrin:the best part was that you couldn't actually harm the person inside until the construct had been reduced to 0hp(except through cold dmg, and it gave resistance 20 to cold:smallwink:), it was quite literally a mithral suit with wings made of blades(it could use them as a natural attack) and a spike launcher that fired large bolts(like from Neon genesis):smallbiggrin:

EDIT: the golem armor is in the "Arms and Armor" book.

EDIT EDIT:what if the big bad you hinted at was being helped by some of the nomons who believe that the secret,intelligent constructs they are creating in their secret lab are the future and all other life is inferior, they're working with him to try and start a coup to make these new intelligent constructs the rulers, the nomon kidnapped by those black marketeers was in their way/close to finding out the truth so they sold him out to them.
The big bad would go along with this as while they're using him to achieve their goals, the supplies/chaos they are/are going to provide to them are much greater than most other available alternatives(for the moment:smallcool:)

[Landis963]

Again, I'm not sure anyone in universe has thought of it yet. I mean, Aquacor University is still stymied as to how they work in the first place, beyond "they need power." What kind? Who knows? And any constructs that have sigils as part of their design will need to be a little more efficient than their non-sigiled counterparts, so that the sigils get the power they need. So short answer: that might work.

The big bad wouldn't like the idea of a race of metal overlords. He's fairly attached to his body. However, he might try and orchestrate their actions so that they self-destruct, or do something destructive that furthers his goals, or something like that.

[motoko's ghost]

Again, I'm not sure anyone in universe has thought of it yet. I mean, Aquacor University is still stymied as to how they work in the first place, beyond "they need power." What kind? Who knows? And any constructs that have sigils as part of their design will need to be a little more efficient than their non-sigiled counterparts, so that the sigils get the power they need. So short answer: that might work.

The big bad wouldn't like the idea of a race of metal overlords. He's fairly attached to his body. However, he might try and orchestrate their actions so that they self-destruct, or do something destructive that furthers his goals, or something like that.

Woot!:smallsmile:

Yeah, it would probably only be a temporary alliance of benefits for him, he'd stab them in the back they got too powerful/weren't of any use to him anymore, maybe if he was really clever he might have found a way to secretly transfer their loyalty to him then stab them in the back with his new secret shock troops. (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0830.html):smallcool:

[Landis963]

Ooh! Ooh! the big bad has placed his lich second-in-command in the extremist organization, with the mission of pushing them to be taken out by the PCs (or themselves - he's ultimately not fussy how it gets done). However, somewhere along the line, the lich's presence and influence is noticed by the PCs, which leads them to investigate him, which leads them to discover the big bad.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and "nomon" doesn't have a plural form, the same word works for both.

[motoko's ghost]

Ooh! Ooh! the big bad has placed his lich second-in-command in the extremist organization, with the mission of pushing them to be taken out by the PCs (or themselves - he's ultimately not fussy how it gets done). However, somewhere along the line, the lich's presence and influence is noticed by the PCs, which leads them to investigate him, which leads them to discover the big bad.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and "nomon" doesn't have a plural form, the same word works for both.

The lich second in command is secretly plotting on overthrowing his master as soon as he gets the chance, which is why the big bad sent him on this seemingly safe task.
If this guy is planning on basically taking down the largest empire in the world he will machinate like Machiavelli, never trust anyone and will always stoop to anything to win.

Ok so its like "moose"

[Landis963]

The lich second in command is secretly plotting on overthrowing his master as soon as he gets the chance, which is why the big bad sent him on this seemingly safe task.
If this guy is planning on basically taking down the largest empire in the world he will machinate like Machiavelli, never trust anyone and will always stoop to anything to win.

Ok so its like "moose"

The lich knows that his master has enough overwhelming yet finely-tuned force to reduce him to a fine paste but leave the crowd around him unharmed. As it is, the big bad is constantly consolidating what control he has outside his normal sphere of influence. As a hint, have you played Deus Ex: Human Revolution? If so, the lich is the Zhao Yun Ru to the big bad's Illuminati.

EDIT: the plural of Moose is "Meece", or so I've heard. But if you are correct, then yes, that would be a good analogy.

[motoko's ghost]

OK, never played it before though but I get what your getting at.

No its not, its really really not:smalltongue: whoever told you that was just trying to mess with you.

What's the religion like in the various cities? what about in the outlying tribes?
How does the ruling body work?

[Landis963]

Religion: Most people actually worship the Minds, as they are the closest thing to gods that most will ever encounter. The rituals vary from town to town, and of course the Mind that is most emphasized varies as you get close to one of the elemental cities.

However, there are several competing religions outside of Almantha, and I haven't decided how far (or whether) they've filtered into the Almantha mainland. One such religion is the cult of Rinos, god of magic. As magic is drastically nerfed everywhere but Almantha, celebrants set up massive rituals, with the purpose of returning some of the old power to the world or summoning the god back to Therinos. These either blow up or fizzle. Since the public only knows about the ones that blow up, this has earned the cult the reputation of destructive mania. This has also been adopted by Almanthans, but they miss the point of the rituals somewhat because they have so much magic available. The Almanthian version of Rinos-worship involves channeling as much power as possible into a single "vessel of Rinos", leaving the vessel headstrong and reckless with power, and the celebrants dizzy, slightly euphoric, and nursing a hangover. The vessel, naturally, is left to his own devices (the other celebrants faint), and hilarity ensues.

Naturally this does nothing to improve the view of Rinos-worship in the eyes of more logical people.

The goblinoid tribes have their own shamanistic beliefs, centering around prayers written in a runic language, but it hasn't gotten very far in the Almanthian populace.

[Landis963]

Ruling Body: Again, it varies with the city. Revien has a single leader, that is elected out of 13 delegates, one for each (roughly equivalent in population) district. The delegates themselves are elected to 4 year terms, with delegate election and leader election alternating every two years. (basically the US system with longer terms for both senators and President, Congress is smushed into one council because the districts are smaller than, say, the 13 original colonies). Aquacor has a Triumvirate of the Magical population, the Civilian (non-magical) population, and the Aventi population. Each of those rule for life or until retirement, and names a desired successor in their will or in a speech before their retirement or death. Dekonio's population leaves most of the ruling to Dekon, while Saalarann has a true democracy (that is, of all those who can make it to the meeting - a loophole gleefully exploited on several occasions), housed in a bell-shaped building topped with a pearl that seems to be rapidly spinning in all different directions. Obsidia, with its obsession with engineering and advancement in magitechnology, leaves most of the day-to-day stuff with Obsid, allowing him leeway to conceal his deepest secrets.

[motoko's ghost]

Religion: Most people actually worship the Minds, as they are the closest thing to gods that most will ever encounter. The rituals vary from town to town, and of course the Mind that is most emphasized varies as you get close to one of the elemental cities.

However, there are several competing religions outside of Almantha, and I haven't decided how far (or whether) they've filtered into the Almantha mainland. One such religion is the cult of Rinos, god of magic. As magic is drastically nerfed everywhere but Almantha, celebrants set up massive rituals, with the purpose of returning some of the old power to the world or summoning the god back to Therinos. These either blow up or fizzle. Since the public only knows about the ones that blow up, this has earned the cult the reputation of destructive mania. This has also been adopted by Almanthans, but they miss the point of the rituals somewhat because they have so much magic available. The Almanthian version of Rinos-worship involves channeling as much power as possible into a single "vessel of Rinos", leaving the vessel headstrong and reckless with power, and the celebrants dizzy, slightly euphoric, and nursing a hangover. The vessel, naturally, is left to his own devices (the other celebrants faint), and hilarity ensues.

Naturally this does nothing to improve the view of Rinos-worship in the eyes of more logical people.

The goblinoid tribes have their own shamanistic beliefs, centering around prayers written in a runic language, but it hasn't gotten very far in the Almanthian populace.


Is it wrong that I can see the Rinos cultists doing this by dancing to techno music?:smalltongue: how long does the magic last, why haven't the minds stopped these people from getting hopped up on a 100x the normal magical power the human body should take and going on a bender? unless they are amused by the "ensuing hilarity":smalltongue: Actually do you think it might be possible for someone to immolate from the sheer amount of magic running through their veins, the effects that could have would be interesting(living spells,crazy ghosts,levelled buildings, them finally managing to actually contact this god and asking him to please turn the magic back on:smallbiggrin:)


Ruling Body: Again, it varies with the city. Revien has a single leader, that is elected out of 13 delegates, one for each (roughly equivalent in population) district. The delegates themselves are elected to 4 year terms, with delegate election and leader election alternating every two years. (basically the US system with longer terms for both senators and President, Congress is smushed into one council because the districts are smaller than, say, the 13 original colonies). Aquacor has a Triumvirate of the Magical population, the Civilian (non-magical) population, and the Aventi population. Each of those rule for life or until retirement, and names a desired successor in their will or in a speech before their retirement or death. Dekonio's population leaves most of the ruling to Dekon, while Saalarann has a true democracy (that is, of all those who can make it to the meeting - a loophole gleefully exploited on several occasions), housed in a bell-shaped building topped with a pearl that seems to be rapidly spinning in all different directions. Obsidia, with its obsession with engineering and advancement in magitechnology, leaves most of the day-to-day stuff with Obsid, allowing him leeway to conceal his deepest secrets.

Wow:smalleek:, I'm not used to getting that comprehensive a reply about how the politics in a fantasy setting work, good work. how do these different systems interact with one another in intercity affairs? It seems Dekonio and Obsidia would probably get along better than the others due to their similiar political system(or lack of one that doesn't heap it all on the minds:smalltongue:)
Democracy that gives whoever can show up to the hall on time the vote? those with political machinations would probably do anything to get a house near the hall, just so they could get there first. there probably also some pushing involved.

[Landis963]

Is it wrong that I can see the Rinos cultists doing this by dancing to techno music?:smalltongue: how long does the magic last, why haven't the minds stopped these people from getting hopped up on a 100x the normal magical power the human body should take and going on a bender? unless they are amused by the "ensuing hilarity":smalltongue: Actually do you think it might be possible for someone to immolate from the sheer amount of magic running through their veins, the effects that could have would be interesting(living spells,crazy ghosts,levelled buildings, them finally managing to actually contact this god and asking him to please turn the magic back on:smallbiggrin:)

It lasts about a night, after which the vessel remembers nothing but an exhilarating blur. The minds with a sense of humor (i.e. everyone but Saala) find it funny, but cleanup is easier in, say, Aquacor, than it is in, say, Obsidia. It might be possible to immolate through magical overload, but that would require a first-level mage suddenly being inundated with the sum total of a few epic level mages completely and totally (i.e. to the point where the epic level mages would be at death's door afterward, if not already dead), over the course of a few seconds. Oh and Rinos doesn't actually exist in the way that Dekon or Aqua do. He's closer to the Christian God than the Minds, in that there is ambiguity as to whether he exists in the first place. The true followers carry a shard of glass with them at all times (in the same manner as one would a crucifix), itself a powerless copy of the shard of glass the leader of each cell (for lack of a better term) hides for safekeeping. That shard is only brought out for the ceremonies of the cult, in which they try again and again to call power to the shard, only for the power to overflow, explosively.


Wow:smalleek:, I'm not used to getting that comprehensive a reply about how the politics in a fantasy setting work, good work. how do these different systems interact with one another in intercity affairs? It seems Dekonio and Obsidia would probably get along better than the others due to their similiar political system(or lack of one that doesn't heap it all on the minds:smalltongue:)
Democracy that gives whoever can show up to the hall on time the vote? those with political machinations would probably do anything to get a house near the hall, just so they could get there first. there probably also some pushing involved.

Remember, Saalarann is a city that is floating. Through magic. And the kiria all have wings. I said it was "bell-shaped" for a reason. :smallbiggrin: Up-and-coming humans definitely need a house nearby, but they also need some way to get under it in order to attend.

Dekon and Obsid are actually on better terms with each other than they are with the rest of the minds (they all think Saala is a jerk (pst, they're right) and Obsid thinks Aqua doesn't take her responsibilities seriously enough), and their friendship was cemented with the original gift of the nomon to Obsidia (from Dekon himself - who other than earth magic would be able to create an entire race?), ages ago when the world still had magic. There's no elf-dwarf rivalry here, although the elves wilt in the hotter areas of Obsidia and the nomon still get vertigo if any happen to visit Dekonio and look in the wrong direction. In return, the nomon (under orders from Obsid himself) augmented Dekonio's tree with an elevator that is driven by the capillary systems (don't remember what they're called IRL) xylem of the tree: as water is driven up through the tree, it drives the elevator. Dekon reportedly didn't like this at first, but changed his tune when he noticed the humans coming to Almantha in droves as magic nexus after magic nexus was destroyed in other nations.

EDIT: Thanks motoko for the term.

[motoko's ghost]

In return, the nomon (under orders from Obsid himself) augmented Dekonio's tree with an elevator that is driven by the capillary systems (don't remember what they're called IRL) of the tree: as water is driven up through the tree, it drives the elevator.

xylem and phloem, however xylem are the water carrying ones(and who said you'd never use anything from yr9 biology in real life:smalltongue:)

[Landis963]

Let's see, what else to talk about...

I've been making mention of magic nexi, that have over the course of history been destroyed. However, they were not physical places, although many of them had been installed in physical places so that they could be reliably harnessed. Instead, they are magical artifacts that, paradoxically, do not generate magic on their own. What they do instead is attract all the ley lines in the area as if by gravity, and then when a large number of ley lines inevitably intersect in the nexus' area of effect, the magic pulses outward. These waves of magic, to those that can feel them, are referred to in Almantha as "the pulse of the Minds" (most cannot, as they are only distinct enough to notice in the elemental cities, after which they grow to diffuse to feel). Speaking of which, the Minds could not exist without the power generated by these artifacts, and what is left of the wave once the Mind takes what it needs for power is more than enough to promote a heavy-magic civilization.

[motoko's ghost]

How magic heavy? Like Eberron magic heavy or everyone in the campaign world gets free SLAs magic heavy?:smalltongue:

[Landis963]

Eberron-level, I think. From what I've heard of it (magic trains, several civilizations of magical species such as illithids and drow) it's a pretty good fit. Also I don't know off the top of my head what SLAs are.

EDIT: quoth the SRD: "Spell-Like Abilities". hrm. that actually sounds very close to what I'm doing with magic anyway, as I've never really gotten why physical components exist other than mechanical balancing. Of course, rebalancing magic to do away with that has proven to be quite the task.

[motoko's ghost]

Eberron-level, I think. From what I've heard of it (magic trains, several civilizations of magical species such as illithids and drow) it's a pretty good fit. Also I don't know off the top of my head what SLAs are.

EDIT: quoth the SRD: "Spell-Like Abilities". hrm. that actually sounds very close to what I'm doing with magic anyway, as I've never really gotten why physical components exist other than mechanical balancing. Of course, rebalancing magic to do away with that has proven to be quite the task.

Ok, magic trains ahoy!

For some of the spells its for fluff reasons, i.e the mystic incantations and whatnot we see in folklore and are iconic (Avada Kedavra:smalltongue:) and that it helps the wizard focus his mind on the spell. Other bits were for mechanical reasons, i.e wizards cant just boost their AC through heavy armour to minimise the dangers of melee without a lot more resources(wizards aren't meant for melee)

[Landis963]

For some of the spells its for fluff reasons, i.e the mystic incantations and whatnot we see in folklore and are iconic (Avada Kedavra:smalltongue:) and that it helps the wizard focus his mind on the spell.

Somatic components, yes. Gesture components, yes. Foci, maybe, it depends on the spell and the effects thereof. Physical components, no. I'm talking purely about bat guano-diamond dust BS here as the stuff I'd like to cut, but am having trouble rebuilding magic without them.


Other bits were for mechanical reasons, i.e wizards cant just boost their AC through heavy armour to minimise the dangers of melee without a lot more resources(wizards aren't meant for melee)

And this is why.

[motoko's ghost]

Somatic components, yes. Gesture components, yes. Foci, maybe, it depends on the spell and the effects thereof. Physical components, no. I'm talking purely about bat guano-diamond dust BS here as the stuff I'd like to cut, but am having trouble rebuilding magic without them.



And this is why.

To be honest, most of those are joke, literally(seriously have a look at some of them; fireball's MC are the ingredients for gunpowder and lightning bolt involves fur and a glass rod for static:smallsigh:)
Gem dust for the really powerful spells is also fluff from iconic imagery as well as a means of balancing out some spells(free resurrections=reduced impact of character mortality)

You could also try saying that its because of the metal parts of the armour interfere with the delicate balance of magic going into the spell(sorta like cold iron's fluff), or that the rules of magic are just strange like that and that its one of the greatest mysteries of the world(yes that's pretty lazy but at least it's a reason)

EDIT: what would happen if the cult of Rinos absorbed one of these magical pulses during one of their rituals? from the sound of things they'd contain at least a few epic mages worth of magic. the amount of destruction this would cause and whether or not it is accidental(:cough: BBEG :cough:) as well as the potential aftermath(continued/accelerated failing of one of the cities) could go in almost any way...

[Landis963]

To be honest, most of those are joke, literally(seriously have a look at some of them; fireball's MC are the ingredients for gunpowder and lightning bolt involves fur and a glass rod for static:smallsigh:)
Gem dust for the really powerful spells is also fluff from iconic imagery as well as a means of balancing out some spells(free resurrections=reduced impact of character mortality)

For the most part, they are useless and get in the way of the world I'd like to play in, so away they go. (and the joke ones are the first to go).


You could also try saying that its because of the metal parts of the armour interfere with the delicate balance of magic going into the spell(sorta like cold iron's fluff), or that the rules of magic are just strange like that and that its one of the greatest mysteries of the world(yes that's pretty lazy but at least it's a reason)

I'll just make it so that most armor has been treated to be resistant to magic in the way a balloon is resistant to popping (a bit more efficacious than a balloon, but you get the idea). This way, PCs have to choose between magic, light, untreated armor which penalizes magic, and heavier armor that blocks magic fully (that second would be for the paladins and rogues of the setting)


EDIT: what would happen if the cult of Rinos absorbed one of these magical pulses during one of their rituals? from the sound of things they'd contain at least a few epic mages worth of magic. the amount of destruction this would cause and whether or not it is accidental(:cough: BBEG :cough:) as well as the potential aftermath(continued/accelerated failing of one of the cities) could go in almost any way...

The BB thinks they're too useful (in their own dimwitted way) to entirely kill, like a clump of dandelions that is deliberately planted in order to choke out another, less desirable plant. Also, with the right lattice of control, he can get them to pull yet another party at the right moment to distract from another of his plans.

[motoko's ghost]

For the most part, they are useless and get in the way of the world I'd like to play in, so away they go. (and the joke ones are the first to go).

"Fine! we'll go! We'll start our own magic system! with beer and hookers, in fact forget the magic system":smalltongue:

I'll just make it so that most armor has been treated to be resistant to magic in the way a balloon is resistant to popping (a bit more efficacious than a balloon, but you get the idea). This way, PCs have to choose between magic, light, untreated armor which penalizes magic, and heavier armor that blocks magic fully (that second would be for the paladins and rogues of the setting)

That makes a lot of sense actually, in a world where magic can do a lot of damage it would make sense to make even the mundane armour resistant to it, which would screw up the spells

The BB thinks they're too useful (in their own dimwitted way) to entirely kill, like a clump of dandelions that is deliberately planted in order to choke out another, less desirable plant. Also, with the right lattice of control, he can get them to pull yet another party at the right moment to distract from another of his plans.

Mental image of the BBEG whispering to some semi-conscious cultist "dude, party over here (points at map) its gonna be sweet yo" before hurrying away.:smallbiggrin: He'd be careful in doing so though as after something like that happens the mind would start monitering the cult a lot more closely, they'd also probably notices someone mucking with their main power source and start to seriously hunt whoevers messing with it...unless he used some sort of memory altered patsy(either through repeated castings of modify memory or mindrape/programmed amnesia, if hes powerful enough) to take the fall, perhaps a low-level flunky of one of his political opponents in order to tarnish his enemy's image:smallcool:


the bold purple writing is my additions, it takes to long to chop up quotes(or at least I cant be bothered with an extra 10 seconds of messing with the quote box)

[Landis963]

:smallwink: Clever. To be fair, I have seen physical components worked into the story competently in such a way in that it doesn't seem like a mechanical balancing safeguard: the Young Wizards series, where the manipulation of said physical (and verbal, for that matter) components matters more then the intent behind the spell.

That's kind of what I was going for, although I was sort of surprised at how much synergy it had with the setting at large. It should be noted, though, that the heavy armor is equivalent to a small mecha with regards to the level of magic in, say, the continent of Alabas to the southeast.

The big bad... doesn't have access to mind-altering spells, that's purely a water ability. (i.e. for Aqua, and mage families that grew up steeped in the magic emanating from Aquacor) Although he has used a Rinos cult party for untraceable assassination before.

[motoko's ghost]

:smallwink: Clever. To be fair, I have seen physical components worked into the story competently in such a way in that it doesn't seem like a mechanical balancing safeguard: the Young Wizards series, where the manipulation of said physical (and verbal, for that matter) components matters more then the intent behind the spell.

I haven't red that either but are we talking sorta like the UA metamagic components, where the knucklebone of a titan, specially prepared with rare elixers and engraved with runes allow you to cast a more powerful time stop? or something different?

That's kind of what I was going for, although I was sort of surprised at how much synergy it had with the setting at large. It should be noted, though, that the heavy armor is equivalent to a small mecha with regards to the level of magic in, say, the continent of Alabas to the southeast.

You mean people see it and automatically target whoever is wearing it with all their fire-power:smalltongue:

The big bad... doesn't have access to mind-altering spells, that's purely a water ability. (i.e. for Aqua, and mage families that grew up steeped in the magic emanating from Aquacor) Although he has used a Rinos cult party for untraceable assassination before.

Wait, are certain schools of magic only learnable by certain races(or sub-races)? If they can be learned but are only found in certain parts(they have a tradition for the best/wont let those spells out of the town) why hasn't the BBEG nicked some/doublecrossed and killed the patsy he bribed to steal some for him? Learning branches of magic others don't know would be a good backup.


Same deal as above as I actually quite easy responding this way.:smalltongue:

[Landis963]

More like "position these titan knucklebones in the shape of a circle, then as you say the incantation, scratch each one in sequence with a vulture talon" or something. In canon, a spell is known to have taken by the spontaneous evaporation of several sugar cubes that were used during said spell. I highly recommend the series.

No, I mean Almanthian heavy armor is to Therinosian heavy armor like the Iron Man suit is to mundane combat gear. Also, what firepower? The only magic that is still around comes from the bloodlines that were around during the existence of the magic nexi, and that is greatly diluted and nerfed by the removal of the nexi and through normal, non-evolutionarily suicidal mating behaviors.

I mean it is physically impossible for the big bad to cast water spells, and very difficult for anyone else to cast spells out of their element. I mean, you do have some multicasters in, say, Revien (It's how they've stayed relevant in a continent with a floating city and another that is made of water), but they're much less powerful overall than someone training in a single element all their life. Also, there are schools of magic, but barring a school is not the hard-and-fast rule it is in vanilla D&D. (Again, I'm not much on the rules, but I'm picturing a restoration, conjuration, and destruction class for each element, and all available spells would be divvied up between them. Harm/Heal/Cure X wounds, for example, would be available to all elements, because they're too useful to keep to one element)

[motoko's ghost]

More like "position these titan knucklebones in the shape of a circle, then as you say the incantation, scratch each one in sequence with a vulture talon" or something. In canon, a spell is known to have taken by the spontaneous evaporation of several sugar cubes that were used during said spell. I highly recommend the series.

Ah okay, I'll keep an eye out for it.

No, I mean Almanthian heavy armor is to Therinosian heavy armor like the Iron Man suit is to mundane combat gear. Also, what firepower? The only magic that is still around comes from the bloodlines that were around during the existence of the magic nexi, and that is greatly diluted and nerfed by the removal of the nexi and through normal, non-evolutionarily suicidal mating behaviors.

It was a joke about how in real-life mechs wouldn't be very good as everyone would just shoot them for being big targets :smalltongue:

I mean it is physically impossible for the big bad to cast water spells, and very difficult for anyone else to cast spells out of their element. I mean, you do have some multicasters in, say, Revien (It's how they've stayed relevant in a continent with a floating city and another that is made of water), but they're much less powerful overall than someone training in a single element all their life. Also, there are schools of magic, but barring a school is not the hard-and-fast rule it is in vanilla D&D. (Again, I'm not much on the rules, but I'm picturing a restoration, conjuration, and destruction class for each element, and all available spells would be divvied up between them. Harm/Heal/Cure X wounds, for example, would be available to all elements, because they're too useful to keep to one element)

Ah okay, if its like a wizards specialisation does that mean he cant even get a staff or wand of the spell? That would mean that those items that dont actually cast the spell but replicate its effects would be worth a lot more.

posting some words so my response has over 10 characters not in a quote box.

[Landis963]

posting some words so my response has over 10 characters not in a quote box.

This is why you chop up the quote box.

As to the meat of your message:
The first book is So You Want To Be A Wizard, the next three books are Deep Wizardry, High Wizardry, then Wizards Abroad. There are a few others too, but I only remember the title of the last one: Wizards At War, which I haven't read.

In defense of your joke, the Iron Man suit would be a very high-priority target too.

He can get scrolls and wands of any spell he wishes to cast, and has dumped massive amounts of resources into the creation of new sigils (especially ones of fire, water, or air spells), but he likes using his proxies as they are more versatile in his opinion (and don't burn up after a finite amount of uses). Also, he would be unable to use them (scrolls, wands) as is.

[motoko's ghost]

He can get scrolls and wands of any spell he wishes to cast, and has dumped massive amounts of resources into the creation of new sigils (especially ones of fire, water, or air spells), but he likes using his proxies as they are more versatile in his opinion (and don't burn up after a finite amount of uses). Also, he would be unable to use them (scrolls, wands) as is.

I'm surprised he doesn't get some sort of custom on command item(like helm of teleportation) or something

[Landis963]

I'm surprised he doesn't get some sort of custom on command item(like helm of teleportation) or something

He gave it to his lich second-in-command as a gift, to buy his loyalty (he likes doing that, and in his defense, it has worked before). However, just like with the wands and scrolls, he would be unable to use it as is.

I think by this point you might be able to guess who the BBEG is by now. But I might be underestimating my ability to keep a massive spoiler like that under wraps.

[motoko's ghost]

He gave it to his lich second-in-command as a gift, to buy his loyalty (he likes doing that, and in his defense, it has worked before). However, just like with the wands and scrolls, he would be unable to use it as is.

I think by this point you might be able to guess who the BBEG is by now. But I might be underestimating my ability to keep a massive spoiler like that under wraps.

Yeah, I'm gonna go with...general Tarquin:smalltongue:
no I don't actually know

[Landis963]

Yeah, I'm gonna go with...general Tarquin:smalltongue:
no I don't actually know

No fair doing joke answers. :smalltongue:

However, for your benefit, I will repost everything I've said about him in another post.

[Landis963]

Hmmmmm..... You're getting surprisingly close to my original plan for the Big Bad, although I will say he is still very much alive in it.


If they're going liches maybe one of them went vecna-blooded too(completely immune to all divinations ever), perhaps a slow,stealthy weakening of the cities, hampering inter-city trade, stirring up nearby goblinoids,etc.

This is basically his MO, but with the idea that he stays on top rather than coast the collapsing system down.



The big bad wouldn't like the idea of a race of metal overlords. He's fairly attached to his body. However, he might try and orchestrate their actions so that they self-destruct, or do something destructive that furthers his goals, or something like that.


The lich knows that his master has enough overwhelming yet finely-tuned force to reduce him to a fine paste but leave the crowd around him unharmed. As it is, the big bad is constantly consolidating what control he has outside his normal sphere of influence. As a hint, have you played Deus Ex: Human Revolution? If so, the lich is the Zhao Yun Ru to the big bad's Illuminati.

This is probably the biggest hint I've given.



The BB thinks they're too useful (in their own dimwitted way) to entirely kill, like a clump of dandelions that is deliberately planted in order to choke out another, less desirable plant. Also, with the right lattice of control, he can get them to pull yet another party at the right moment to distract from another of his plans.

Odd metaphor, wouldn't you say?



The big bad... doesn't have access to mind-altering spells, that's purely a water ability. (i.e. for Aqua, and mage families that grew up steeped in the magic emanating from Aquacor) Although he has used a Rinos cult party for untraceable assassination before.



It is physically impossible for the big bad to cast water spells



He has dumped massive amounts of resources into the creation of new sigils (especially ones of fire, water, or air spells)... Also, he would be unable to use them (scrolls, wands) as is.


He gave it to his lich second-in-command as a gift, to buy his loyalty (he likes doing that, and in his defense, it has worked before). However, just like with the wands and scrolls, he would be unable to use it as is.

There you are. I know I'm doing something right if you don't get the big leap.

[motoko's ghost]

...Argh, I know I know who this is I just cant remember them!:smallfurious:

[Landis963]

...Argh, I know I know who this is I just cant remember them!:smallfurious:

Feel free to look back through the thread. :smallwink: There's another hint in there, which I can't say here because that gives the game away.

[motoko's ghost]

Zhao Yun Ru?:smalltongue:

[Landis963]

Zhao Yun Ru?:smalltongue:

:smallannoyed: Someone who actually exists in this continuum. Besides, she resembles the lich, remember.

[motoko's ghost]

:smallannoyed: Someone who actually exists in this continuum. Besides, she resembles the lich, remember.

:smalltongue:=joke, however I'm still drawing a blank, I guess you're doing something right then.

[Landis963]

:smalltongue:=joke, however I'm still drawing a blank, I guess you're doing something right then.

Ah, OK. I was wondering if you'd get it. Ah well, it doesn't really matter to the world, just the story.

EDIT: It strikes me that I've overlooked an even bigger hint than the "overwhelming yet finely tuned force" hint. No, I will not be marking it.

On the restriction of magic:

Almantha is so drenched in magic that anyone can use it. However, as one gets closer to an elemental city, one will find more casters of that element. This is purely a function of the nexi: as the excess power from running the Mind washes over the people, they are subtly warped to be more able to cast that kind of magic. However, these subtle changes are passed down from parent to child as well, leading to large families of mages that only become more powerful as they stay in, say, Aquacor. Regardless, teenage wanderlust and simply opportunity causes families to splinter off to Revien or one of the other cities, thus keeping everyone at about an equal level of power. Power flows through the same gender, so a male air mage and a female fire mage with a boy and a girl will have an air mage son and a fire mage daughter. Furthermore, there are three "Aptitudes" or schools of magic for each element: Destruction, Restoration, and Conjuration. Every spell known fits within an aptitude and an element, although the creation of the sigils is testing that.

[Landis963]

On that note, it was a collaboration between an elf and a Saalarani human mage that sparked the creation of the sigils (a rich human in Revien had commissioned a piece of art with true power from the elf, who enlisted the help of a mage he knew for the power aspect. When the artwork was done, the power was encased in the central figure of the piece: an abstract symbol inside a circle. A few years later, after the term "sigil" had become ingrained in the public consciousness (the rich man encorporated it into his family crest and signet ring as part of his will), the elven artist was heard to quip that he was fortunate it was a luck-boosting spell instead of, say, Chain Lightning. The artist and the mage went on to have a very lucrative career in the creation and empowerment of sigils.

[motoko's ghost]

Ah, OK. I was wondering if you'd get it. Ah well, it doesn't really matter to the world, just the story.

EDIT: It strikes me that I've overlooked an even bigger hint than the "overwhelming yet finely tuned force" hint. No, I will not be marking it.


That's the bit that keeps pinging in the back of my mind, I know it from somewhere(or several somewheres) I just cant remember it.

[Landis963]

That's the bit that keeps pinging in the back of my mind, I know it from somewhere(or several somewheres) I just cant remember it.

"Overwhelming yet finely-tuned force" was originally quoted in reference to Petey of Schlock Mercenary, whom the Big Bad and his ilk resemble most closely (in power, not necessarily in motivation). But that's not the biggest hint I've dropped. Also, I've buried a couple other clues in the sigil origin story.

EDIT: nvm, looking back, I realized I cut them for being too obvious.
EDIT2: If anyone else wants to weigh in, please do so. It's kind of disheartening to watch the view count go up while the thread itself floats down the page.

[Landis963]

On the goblinoid races:

Orcs
Orcs were the first to be created by Dekon in his search for the perfect gift. However, they were too large for Obsidia's mid-sized halls and were deemed too aggressive to constructively exist in any of the cities. Also, magic didn't seem to affect them beyond what was necessary to support their bulky forms. The 50 remaining individuals from Dekon's original batch were then released into the wild and left to their own devices, while another line of experimentation was opened.

Kobolds
The kobolds were Dekon's second draft, and the closest to the nomon in looks and stature. However, much like the orcs, magic seemed to flow around them like water around a rock. This, and the more angular skulls of the kobolds, are the only differences between the two races. This ignoring of magic is a double-edged sword, as while they cannot cast the weakest cantrip, they cannot be detected in that way. Their diminutive, agile forms are less detectable than the hulking orcs, and thus they are known for their skills at infiltration and burglary.

Goblins
Dekon, chagrinned at his inability to call magic to the forms he creates, went back to the drawing board a third time, studying how magic arose in the races if Therinos in order to replicate the mechanisms and effects. However, it was an imperfect copyin thatthey could only access magic through study and meditation, and through the simple application of will. Also, their spells were unbound from the elements and shackled to physical fuels and foci.

I was going for a fighter-mage-thief sort of setup here.

[motoko's ghost]

Quite like the flavour of them, particularly on the kobolds(they don't just have no spellcasting abilities, they have negative spellcasting abilities, spells just ignore them:smallbiggrin:) I'm assuming that its just the various divinatory spells, but how exactly would it work?

[Landis963]

Quite like the flavour of them, particularly on the kobolds(they don't just have no spellcasting abilities, they have negative spellcasting abilities, spells just ignore them:smallbiggrin:) I'm assuming that its just the various divinatory spells, but how exactly would it work?

Because most of the offensive magic in Almantha is just a manipulation of each element, fire spells would still burn, ice spells would still freeze, etc. However, scrying (or using any similar divinatory spell) for them will auto-fail even on a natural 20, as do any buffs or enchantments (such as, say, invisibility, or magically-boosted bard songs). This has led to motion-activated detect magic sensors in facilities with sensitive information, in much the same way that infra-red cameras would be used. In this way, if the motion sensor trips but the detect magic returns 0 magic, an alarm is sent out which can only be deactivated manually. However, any weapon or piece of armor they wear with a sigil would not be affected by this.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and the Orcs also have this pseudo-spell resistance. It's less useful, especially since they are still weak to most offensive spells in the way that normal organic beings are weak to fire.

Also, I was planning on including a brief setup of each culture, but I couldn't get it to flow right. I might edit it in later, when it's not 2 in the morning my time.

[Landis963]

Once they were cast out from Dekonio, the goblinoid races began wandering, trying to find some place where they could carve out a place of their own.

The Orcs have an aggressive culture, given inadvertent residual enforcement from Dekon during experimentation (remember, they were rejected as a design for being too warlike and too large to fit in Obsidia's halls). However, this aggression is tempered by a strict clan system, where the clan leader has an obligation to step down if his underlings demand. This can be (and often is) reinforced by a trial-by-champion for the head of the clan. Think Mass Effect's Krogan clans crossed with your average wolf pack. They travel in hordes: wanderhordes for general roaming, travelhordes for trying to get to a specific place in peacetime, and warhordes for trying to get to a specific place... in wartime. They live in whatever caves they can find, or even under the stars in good weather.

The kobolds, on the other hand, know quite well that they are a race of highly squishy rogues without so much as a magic missile to protect them. As such, they are highly paranoid and xenophobic, especially towards non-goblinoids. However, they are unaware of their magic resistance (and in fact, only Dekon knows that the kobolds and the orcs have this). When faced with an outright attack, they will ambush, harass, booby trap, and do anything to the invading army to buy time for the rest of the camp to get away. Said camps are tepee-esque domes that can be taken down at a moment's notice, centered around a firepit, or in the case of more permanent residences, a central kiva or underground structure.

The arrival of the goblins led to both the orcs and the kobolds adopting more permanent forms of residence, by giving them the one thing they never had - access to magic. This allows them access to very fast construction (stone shape, among others), better relative health than the orcs or kobolds (purify food&drink, among others), and a relative stability of existence. As such, they are only wanderers when they need to get someplace (the other races don't like them much), so they use caravans to travel between their cloistered cities.

EDIT: So due to lack of interest I'm going to collate everything in this thread into a new one after finals. If this edit accidentally necros the thread please wait until after the 16th to delete it, but feel free to lock.