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  #61  
Old Nov 8th, 2020, 09:45 AM
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Hello Mugyuu, welcome to RPGX! Nice entry! great to have some folklore!

Hrm, I think having separate tables for the geographical groupings is a good idea, it would also allow for spoiler tabs to make the first post look a bit less intimidating if that's where the tables end up.

Incorporating some sort of application process (a la solo bazaar,) is a good shout too, it would allow for easier grouping of entries.

I understand the concerns about the references becoming too unwieldy, but at the same time I think they are a good addition because they make navigating information much easier. As you mentioned, new people might be intimidated by the increasing quantity of posts, but at least with reference links you can read articles that are related to one another, and then contribute in that area without having to worry about having missed a post about something, or reading every entry.

Mindsiege, with the Brightenai post I think leaving unlinked references was a good shout, I imagine we might have a table for races eventually, so all that dwarf info would end up there and not necessarily need to be linked from that post.

Inconsistencies, while frustrating, are unavoidable in a scenario like this and that such things should just be taken with a pinch of salt, like Satsuma says keeping it open and fun and accessible to most people should be the priority
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Old Nov 8th, 2020, 10:51 AM
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If things get way too convoluted, we still have the option of creating threads for regions to make each one easily digestible. Being proactive now would aid cohesion in the long run though. I still think an OOC thread would be a good idea seeing how the OOC/IC ratio seems to be about 3/1 if we're free to post.
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Old Nov 8th, 2020, 06:37 PM
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Alright, sounds like there's a favoured general approach. I'll take some time soon to bring it all into the main post, make some updates and see how it all turns out.

@Gabe, keep in mind the OOC ratio is much higher at the moment because of these discussions about information management. Once we have something in place the OOC will almost certainly drop back again like with the earlier posting ratio. I'm not too concerned about having an OOC thread for this right now.

Having threads or separate 'shelving' for regions - maybe. I certainly wouldn't want any new continents or what not added here right now. Although I'm not sure if there's an etiquette on having multiple threads for one 'game' in this folder, or whether multi-thread activities would be moved to a game folder of sorts. But something to consider.
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Old Nov 9th, 2020, 02:46 PM
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yeah I think we should focus on the one continent for now, and maybe padding out the base world statistics (races, religions, etc.. oh who's got a cool creation story?!) and stuff.


As Gabe says, sorting things out now is probably key going forward, I also think a seperate game folder is probably the best way to organise things. Maybe we could keep this thread here just for people adding content but keep the game threads updated.

some key threads would be

The different regions
Flora & fauna
Races
Key events
Landmarks
Pantheon
Folklaw
Heros- I think it's cool to think that one day adventures might be played here, and we can add any epic adventures to the worlds law.

Of course it brings us back to the topic of trying to streamline the application process so the people who probably shouldn't mention it without saying that I'm happy to help out when I can!volunteer for data entry have an easier job ;P
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Old Nov 10th, 2020, 09:33 PM
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The SunswallowerFor folks that are unfamiliar with the Desert of Seven Eyes, the term Sunswallower could be easily mistaken as one of the Ethereal Lands' magical beast-species (opposed to the Brightwood's mana-blighted creatures, which don't belong to any sort of unifying species at all). But in fact, the Sunswallower stands in no relation to his name cousins at all, which are otherwise known as Solar Dragons. Long before this particular species of dragons was named by some elven scholar, the original Sunswallower had been known under that name by the races living in the Desert of Seven Eyes for centuries.

Known as the second of the seven hazards of the Desert of Seven Eyes, the Sunswallower is a singular entity which describes the unexplained phenomena of the desert's largest, perpetual sandstorm. Inside the vastness of the desert, most of the nomadic tribes count themselves glad to have never witnessed the weather for themselves, but any of them know tales about the horror that follows when the Sunswallower would come upon unassuming travelers. Even surpassing the lethality of a normal sandstorm, this force of nature is believed to be driven by some sort of malicious intent. It is said, that after the sand has swallowed the sun from the sky, that there won't be long till your blood and bones have been replaced by sand as well. Figuratively.

The special dreadfullness of the Sunswallower was the reason, that most of all the nomadic tribes have learned to evade this phenomenon entirely. Through the hard work of oracles and philosophers centuries ago, it was discovered that the Sunswallower traverses the desert in a predictable pattern which can be calculated by careful observation of the starry sky. Though it is unthinkable to outrun the Sunswallower when it has come upon you, staying out of its way through foresight has been mastered by the tribes for a long time and passed along with either written, but mostly oral tradition. Then again, the storm is fearful enough to be counted as one of the eyes that make up the seven hazards and travelers or merchants that hail from different cultures still happen to find their end, when they are parted from the sun forever.
Table entry summaryThe Sunswallower|event (weather)|anywhere in the Desert of Seven Eyes|the Desert of Seven Eyes, the nomadic tribes, the seven hazards of the Desert of Seven Eyes, mana-blighted creatures, Solar Dragons, the desert oracles


I went ahead and delivered in the same format I have used when I revised the overview table myself. We don't need to stick with this and of course I realize that many players wouldn't be inclined to delivering posts in the same way.

Honestly, there are soo~ many frills in this shared world where I would love to know more about the Ethereal Lands. But with all the hooks that are currently already in existence and seeing how many players like to introduce open ended details (say hello to these Solar Dragons ), I feel like there will always be that one gap where I will want the holes to be filled. Well, at least now we are at 2 strikes out of seven on our most popular deserts hazards that gave it its name. If anything, working on the overview table has given me new apreciation for the deep lore we already have, but aside from a reference table, I don't see any way how I could remember all those details over the next few months and rereading on a whim will become less likely with any further entry to grow the thread. That was my reasoning for putting in the work anyways, but I won't hold it against anybody if we decide to move away from that format.

P.S: Maybe we make a rule, that any OOC post needs to be lead with a world building entry? Just kidding!

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Old Nov 11th, 2020, 07:29 AM
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MAP AND POST DIRECTORY UPDATED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



I've adapted the WIP table layout a little, adding in summaries and both streamlining the base descriptor tags as well as removing the location column (which was redundant or murky for some lines). More importantly, I'm trialling separation by region as a way to help keep some basic organisation and break up the huge array a little. The post directory will be regularly updated, whereas the map will be more occasional depending on the pace of contributions that affect the geography.

A game folder has been mentioned a couple times. I'm resisting this for a couple of reasons, the main one being that putting this in a folder will take it away from Open Roleplaying, probably to end up in 'Other Roleplaying Games'. That hurts the ability for new blood to come in and contribute if it's no longer in one of the common forums. Sure, the Solo Bazaar is in the same spot, but it at least has a listing in Continuous Recruitment, something I doubt a casual worldbuilding thread will be eligible for.

And I suppose I'd better add something too!

Penrith Reas IIIPenrith would consider himself one of the powerful oligarchs of Boros Major. Technically, that's true. His status in the city is legitimate and he has a heavy hand in the city's finances. The Reas dynasty is a major banking institution, and Penrith's pedigree is established by generations of prestigious leaders and venerated persons of coin.

However, the real power in the family is Penrith's wife, Eudora Reas nee Uldenfeis. She comes from Casmore, and her marriage was viewed with skepticism which has fuelled her desire to be seen as a legitimate member of the Borosian ruling class in her own right. Where Penrith's business acumen is dulled by a life of excess and general apathy, Eudora is begrudgingly recognised by those in the know as the true intellect behind the family's continued prosperity. It's no secret that Eudora views her husband with contempt, but they maintain an effective working relationship.
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Old Nov 11th, 2020, 12:15 PM
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Krugg's Rise, Kruggend Keep and Mhulgend Pass
Krugg’s Rise is a wide rocky shelf that slopes up from the entire shore's length of the Northeast-running leg of the Lei River in the South up to several thousand feet at its northern edge, running from the southeastern Eddazeth foothills to the Southwest shore of Lake Bredden. The cliffs of the Rise are extremely steep, and gaping caverns pock their sides and base. The caverns make easy refuges for bandits and the like, but some also provide easy access to the surface for the predatory denizens of the underworld.

Kruggend Keep, named for the Casmore Temple Knight who led the expedition to claim the Rise is situated at its northern peak. Kruggend Keep is a small outpost, used expressly for the watching of Mhulgend Pass. Krugg and his men built an enormous staircase down the Northeastern side of the Rise for access to the Keep, used to change out the watch every few months. Consisting of just a few rangers and mages, the watches use Raven familiars and companions and scrying spells to scout the pass, since the Keep is far too high for any human eye to distinguish movements on the ground.

Mhulgend Pass, the narrow area between Lake Bredden and the Eddazeth Mountains, and Krugg’s Rise, has always been a place of heavy monster activity. Creatures regularly emerge from the caves underneath the Rise to raid the mountain settlements or attempt to establish footholds there. Thus, Kruggend Keep was built to keep watch over the pass and warn the mountain settlements of an impending invasion.
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Old Nov 11th, 2020, 03:58 PM
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Apa Ezlu MinorA well-established island on the northern fringes of the Strait of Keppana. The island is named for its main settlement, which is also the most recent annexation undertaken by Boros Major, through a long-term combination of economic pressure and 'soft power' concessions. The island is moderately fertile and supports rudimentary farmland, although fishing and whaling are primary industries. It's a more prosperous port of call than Carapace Minor, which risks accelerating the latter's economic decline.

Historically aligned with the Zeth but long since accustomed to independence after a severance of ties with the Paragon of the Broken Throne, Apa Ezlu Minor bristles at its new 'foreign' masters. Although the Zeth have no interest in attracting the ire of Boros Major by colluding with Apa Ezlu Minor, there's rumours that the Apa have been slowly gathering support from lawless seamen across the Broken Throne, as well as the mysterious merfolk that visit the islands, to assist in an upcoming push against the mainlanders.

The island mostly avoids the wild weather caused by the geography and the magical storms fuelled by the Howling Gorge, but local magical anomalies have led to the development of a unique and intricate set of superstitions, good luck rituals and quasi-religious observations. A saying on the mainland is that it takes an Apa 'two days and ten offerings to put on sandals'. The Apa have a local pantheon of minor gods and nature spirits that embody their intricate perspective on the way nature and magic intersect.
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Old Nov 16th, 2020, 01:17 AM
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On The Subject of GlasspinnersScholars of many realms still debate to this day on the philosophical question, what makes a race intelligent. One particular interesting case would be to make a subject out of debating that point, when analysing a glasspinner colony. From the ability which lends them their name, to their amazing coordination inside one of their kingdoms (the specialist term), the sheer complexety of their nature makes it difficult to deny them intelligence altogether. How their crystalline, spindly bodies work and where the energy, to fuel whatever process lets them tirelessly weave their colony from glass on the ceiling of their typical underground dome, comes from, when they only ever seem to eat rock and gravel, is still very much unexplained. Their ability to soundlessly communicate amongst each other is also fascinating, but there are no visible cues yet determined, how the glasspinners manage their feat of swarming intruders inside their cave system's domain with minimal visible coordination. Earliest theories had suspected their origin as a highly magical species, but these have been by now entirely disproven, since any art of detecting magic on a singular drone (the specialist term) has never been met with success. Still, there has to be some hidden connection between glasspinners and some fairly deep rooted magics, however else can it be explained, that any number of spells turn highly unreliable the closer a mage delves to the core of a kingdom's colony? This, and paired with the crystalline drones being highly resistant to magical attacks, has wizards and other forms of magicians that would dwell on the topic highly confounded.

Fact is however, that the glasspinners seem to be driven by some higher purpose. Isolated and on its own, glasspinner drones have been observed to act devoid of any sort of selfpreservation or initiative for any form of selfconcious actions. Truly, there have been cases of drones being entirely apathetic to outside stimuli, only until they had been released back into the swarm, from whence they began reacting again, seemingly revived by rejoining as a part of their higher collective. The necessity of communication between the drones though, is very much evident, since any approach on a colony's heart was never met with retaliation of the swarm, so long as not a singular drone was able to detect the expedition subject. All of this together has made for long debate, if glasspinner can be assumed as an intelligent species and their inability to discourse with any other intelligent race has many leaning towards declaring that they aren't intelligent, but in the end, that there has to be a higher mind at work in their behaviour is hardly, if at all disproven. The sheer artistry of the colony's woven glass already hints at stemming from some sort of intelligent design and as long as the spinners stay in a group, they are documentedly capable of any amount of other complicated tasks and never to be underestimated. Maybe the answer to the question of their intelligence lies in the answers to the obvious mysteries, that so far could not have been answered about this species. How do they reproduce? Who is on top of the hierarchy if there is any? What lies inside the heart of a colony? And what is the secret behind the fundamentally ocurring colony exodus?

To ellaborate, no expedition force has yet to successfully intrude the heart of a glasspinner colony and lived to tell the tale. Equally, there has not been any survivor that tried to document more about a colony's exodus. It is known, that no colony survives longer than an empirically estimatable amount of time. At the end of a colony's lifecycle, at least half the swarm will become highly aggressive and begin scouring any reachable space inside the kingdom's territory with the outmost care, which is believed to be the reason, why there are no documented observations of what is known as the final event (the specialist term) of the exodus. What the final event entails, is regrettably entirely unknown, however the effects of what occurs are verily evident. In the end, the underground space will be only left with a hollowed out dome. None of the glass structures remain and in all actuality, upon inspection after the scouring drones will have set out for founding a new colony, there will be no traces left of any glass or crystals that made up the previous colony, together with any traces of the other half of its missing swarm. Considering dark figures, it can be assumed that there are other unknown concepts inside the colony's heart, which so far could not be studied, but of those, also nary a trace will remain after the final event. Knowing as much and as little as we do, the mystery of the glasspinners intelligence seems to be unsolvable as of yet. For any who wants to reopen field study, let it be known, that glasspinner activity has been found in the depths under the Eddazeth Mountains and is assumed to occur under any amount of similar geological structures. Simply be warned, that any foolhardy expeditions will not be met with university funding and any amount of documentation on the subject will be highly scrutinized by a large assortment of independent scholars. Exselsior!

- Wunim Thunderstout
Grade I. Philosopher and that's a title, not a descriptorRare Gnomish Professor of Species and Taxonomy
Exclusive University of Brightenai


That's gotten longer than I set out to go with it. I guess next time I won't dress it up as part of scientific study..

@edit:
Yesterday it had gotten too late so I didn't brush up the post upon completion. Originally I had wanted to do a quick entry that doesn't have a lot of interconnectedness in the setting, but after all I ended up with the very own concept of glasspinners turning out rather complex. I appreciate anybody who read all of that and apologize sincerly!
Table entry summaryOn The Subject of Glasspinners|Lore|An opinionated missive about the study on the subject of the mysterious glasspinner species and the dangers thereof|glasspinner colonies, the final colony exodus event, professor Wunim Thunderstout, Brightenai

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Old Nov 17th, 2020, 03:43 PM
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I was more thinking like there would be a game forum, but this post would remain here and be liek the funnel through which the game folder is updated.

Solar DragonsThese giant creatures actually share no biological link with the more widespread dragon varieties (which are As a dragon lover, had to try sneak that one in common, and widely varied).
They sleep during the in the intense daylight hours, collecting heat of the sun to inflate huge gaseous chambers under their malleable ribs. During the night time, when they become active, these strange, ribbon-like creatures use their comparatively small wings to guide them as they float around, using a unique biological function to activate the gasses in their chests like super-novas. In the darkness of the desert night, these creatures can often appear as a glowing sun when their vast, translucent bodies float overhead.

While they are generally scavengers, these bizarre creatures earned the ‘dragon’ part of their name for their ferocity and tenacity when protecting their territory from threats. It is fabled that there is one tribe of Harpy who have tamed the creatures, and ride them as mounts, but most people who have lived to encounter a Solar dragon will tell you that the tale is unlikely!


Table entry summarySolar Dragons|Creature |The Desert of Seven Eyes|the Desert of Seven Eyes
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Old Nov 25th, 2020, 05:33 AM
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I'm working on the Lei Valley, between Oveil and the Coast. I'm imagining it a sparsely populated region, once hit by some kind of plague, believed to be haunted, etc (which relates to why folk in Oveil don't drink the water!) I've had the idea for months, but I can never quite get myself happy with a single version. Probably overthinking it.
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Old Nov 25th, 2020, 07:23 AM
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Keep in mind that there already is an implied plague that the Oveil-on-the-Lei folk are paranoid of - The Rot. Although that doesn't mean there can't be other contagions or sicknesses!

If you feel like it's getting to be too much, maybe break it down. Don't write about the whole valley at once, just some key landmark or structure that is central to the history and lore of the area.

The Bright DawnBrightwood is an increasingly magic-saturated area. Those who dare to venture into its nothern reaches encounter an odd array of creatures, and the valuable mana-enriched Brightwood oak trees. Only mages, explorers and foolhardy adventurers go deeper.

One mage, a woman gnome named Elisara, wandered out of Brightwood after an expedition, deeply disturbed but with a story. She followed the Lei River from Bonaville deep into Brightwood (drinking from her own canteen instead of the river water, just in case) and struck for the heart of the wood. She left the known abandoned trails, hoping to start charting the lost reaches of the deep wood. Soon she blacked out and later woke in a strange distorted version of the wood, like she'd stepped through warped glass. For days she wandered, never hungry nor tired, encountering shades and whispers - apparently reflections of mana-infused beasts - that slowly informed her of her predicament before she found a way to push back out into conventional reality.

According to Elisara, some of the cleverer mana-corrupted creatures of Brightwood had had their minds sparked by this magic, and they'd formed notions of things greater of themselves. They looked through the canopy at night and wondered what made the stars. They breathed in air and wondered where it came from. Curiosity and questions bled together, charged by magic. Something had been shaped from this collective dreaming: a bubble of quasi-reality within Brightwood, which Elisara could only call 'The Bright Dawn'. Only once when questioned, she said a god was being born in there. But she would never say any more on what kind of god this might be.


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Old Nov 30th, 2020, 01:55 PM
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Originally Posted by HotsuSama View Post
Keep in mind that there already is an implied plague that the Oveil-on-the-Lei folk are paranoid of - The Rot. Although that doesn't mean there can't be other contagions or sicknesses!
Yeah, my thought is basically that people think it might have been the Rot, it might have been wild animal attacks, it might have been something more sinister entirely... sounds like a perfect place for an adventure!
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Old Dec 1st, 2020, 08:39 AM
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The Lei ValleyDownstream from Oveil-on-The-Lei lies a scenic, but largely uninhabited river valley, once home to a number of silver mines. Along the banks of the river Lei sit several abandoned villages. Multiple different accounts of how the valley came to be abandoned are in circulation in Boros Major, Oveil-on-the-Lei, and other nearby settlements: an outbreak of the rot, wild animal attacks, and undead roaming the land amongst them. All or none of these may be true. Occasionally, particularly daring parties of adventurers will dare to venture into the valley. Consistent among those who return is talk of a single hamlet on a island in the Lei river, which remains inhabited and appears to have been untouched by whatever horror accounted for the rest of the valley.
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Old Dec 4th, 2020, 07:04 PM
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The sixth Arcanist EternalThe Arcanists Eternal are the wizards of legend, who in their studies of the arcane have managed to take a look behind the veil of reality and taken a step into the devine. In a world, where gods themselves still walk the earth at times, the Arcanists Eternal can be considered demi-gods, as they will not die at any age and they bend the physics of the worlds at their will without much visible cost to their own. Yet as they are clearly already beyond the realm of mortals, they fear to catch the attention of an actual god. In the Ethereal Lands, ascension to godhood is unprecedented outside of the creation myths. Whatever domain each god encapsulates, in their very nature of being the gods are bound by nothing besides their imagination. Where a god is only limited by their personality and the aspect of life or aspect of the world that they represent, an Arcanist Eternal is much less than that. While the vastness of their power might have them appear as equal to gods, they are very much bound to the law of cause and effect and only through preparation and centuries of study they have riddled their being and surroundings with spells that are their sword and shield in controlling the world at large.

It's not clear, at what point a wizard, who has discovered the spell of immortality, has amassed enough power to earn the title of Arcanist Eternal, but by popular opinion they have to be at least a few centuries old and have their noteworthiness in leaving their footsteps in history through any manner of deed, which should not have been possible. Knowing that multiple Arcanists Eternal exist or have existed throughout known history, it can be assumed that growing to their level of arcane mastery is a repeatable feat, yet theirs is a reclusionist fate, where no mortals that have been bound to a civilized life had been ever able to achieve it. If the reason for this is, that having a social existance is too much of a distraction or that being known to others brings demise after staying involved with the world before reaching a certain level of arcane potency, can not be proven by any known person as of yet. Fact is, that far more mages who might have seen such a future for themselves have failed before ever coming close.

As stated before, multiple Arcanists Eternal have been noted throughout time. Yet their appearances are sparingly, as only their uninvolvement has made their prolonged existance possible. What drives each of the Eternals to resign them to their fate is entirely dependent on their person, yet for any Eternal that has been designated as that, there exist many rumours and stories. One of these stories is the one about the end of the sixth Arcanist Eternal. Her name was Sora Stargazer, as it is told, but her race and many details differ depending on who tells the story. Sora's sanctum had been hidden during her lifetime, but now common belief has it, that it had lied on the center of the Starcaller's Valley, an unmissable landmark in the western reaches of the Eddazeth Mountains. The name of the valley is directly related to Sora's death, as where it lies there had only stood several mountains, before Sora had met her end on her own machinations. Opinions on why she had called a star from the heavens range from spiting the gods to unrequitted love, but in what they agree is that the spectacle must have been Sora setting her own gravestone. Even when all of that happened centuries ago, the valley still remains a mysterious place and though archeologists could find no remains of the Arcanist Eternal's sanctum, it has been proven that beneath the valley a fallen star slumbers deep.


At the moment I'm working on a pretty tight schedule, so instead of building on existing lore, for now introducing new concepts comes easier to me. I assume that in the new year I will be ready to dive back into the more intricate work of polishing what we have already. Still, I thought the idea above was kinda neat and at least we now know one more important fact about how powerful the pantheon is in this setting. I'd say for things that happen around a god who walks the earth, we now have to think about "Why would they do it that way?" rather than "What can they do?".

Table entry summaryThe sixth Arcanist Eternal|Person/Lore|One Arcanist Eternal that had her sanctum inside the western reaches of the Eddazeth Mountains|The Arcanists Eternal, the Pantheon of the Ethereal Lands, the spell of immortality, Sora Stargazer, the Eddazeth Mountains, the Starcaller's Valley, the fallen star of Starcaller's Valley

Last edited by Mindsiege; Dec 4th, 2020 at 07:11 PM.
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