The endless expanses of the astral sea are populated by countless different worlds. Most people do not realize how many different material worlds there are. They are content to remain on their own little world and think themselves the center of the multiverse. But the fact remains that the currents of the astral sea are home to thousands if not millions of worlds, each with its own history, people, and cultures. Some are no bigger than a single island; others are massive, consisting of dozens of continents and islands. Some worlds are places of civilization and learning, while others are savage and untamed with very few settled regions.
Regardless of size, location, or inhabitants, every material world in the astral sea share one thing in common. They are all linked to a mysterious central plane of existence known as Tomahna. A nexus between the material worlds, Tomahna is a plane once inhabited by a powerful race of magic-users who constructed countless portals through the astral void, connecting the material worlds in a vast network of gateways. Once the heart of an ancient and magnificent empire, Tomahna now holds only a few scattered ruins, ghosts of the grand cities and temples that once were. Only a few of the bravest explorers and adventurers make their home in Tomahna now, using the portals to travel the material worlds.
History
The history of Tomahna begins several million years ago, long before even the eldest of gods can remember. Records from its creation have long been lost to the ravages of time, and the truth about Tomahna’s creation is a mystery. It has existed for as long as the astral sea and many scholars believe it was around before the astral sea was created. Some scholars believe Tomahna is the birth place of all gods, and others believe it is the world where magic was first discovered. Whatever gods created Tomahna have long since abandoned it along with the rest of the multiverse, leaving behind no evidence of who they were. The only fact that is known for sure is that Tomahna is ancient even by the standards of the gods.
Tomahna is unique in that over ninety percent of it is covered by a vast, dark ocean known as the Sea of Lost Souls. This massive ocean seems to have no end to it, and nothing marks the horizon except for a few jagged black rocks. Tomahna has no sun, its sky shrouded in an endless star filled twilight, and storms rage across the endless ocean, tossing up a nearly constant mist that covers Tomahna is a damp blanket of mystery. The only sizable land mass is a roughly circular island at what is presumed to be the center of the ocean. Though small compared to the continents of many other worlds, the island is large enough to hold a range of mountains, a fresh water lake; a handful of forests composed of Ebonwood trees, and a small collection of villages. A single large port city stands as the only true beacon of civilization remaining in Tomahna, its docks playing host to travelers from across the multiverse who journey through portals to the ocean plane.
The recorded history of Tomahna covers only the last five thousand years, and much of it has been collected from the ruins that lay scattered about Tomahna like gravestones. From what scholars have discovered, five thousand years ago a race called the Veluna lived in Tomahna. Whether the Veluna were native to Tomahna or not remains unclear, but they were the only intelligent race in Tomahna at the start of their recorded histories. The Veluna were masters of magic, and used it to forge a vast empire first across Tomahna, then across multiple worlds by building huge portals they could march their armies through.
The Veluna Empire persisted for three thousand years as a shining example of civilization. It is unknown if the Veluna were benevolent or malicious, but their greatness can be found in the works left behind in the ruins of their cities. Creations such as ancient crystal statues that sing forgotten songs and reflecting pools that display visions of the past are scattered among what remains of the Veluna civilization. Veluna craftsmanship is highly regarded by artisans and sculptors from across the multiverse, many of their statues and smaller buildings remain intact even after centuries of neglect.
It is unclear what caused the Veluna Empire to fall. Some believe it simply grew too large to support itself and collapsed; others believe the Veluna were destroyed by the gods in retaliation for conquering so many worlds; still others believe the Veluna Empire still exists in the Far Realm, beyond the known multiverse, and maintains a secret organization somewhere in Tomahna. These and dozens of other theories are popular conversation among scholars, but there is no proof to substantiate any of them. Regardless of the reason for its fall, the end of the Veluna Empire left Tomahna uninhabited for the next one thousand years, until the Romani arrived.
The Romani are a race of astral nomads, traveling the astral sea in ships as explorers and traders. If the Romani have a home world, they have told no one of its location, and none have been able to find it. They arrived in Tomahna one thousand years after the fall of the Veluna Empire, and built the port city of Rebirth among the ruins of an ancient Veluna city. A combination of old Veluna buildings and new construction, Rebirth became the home port for the Romani people, and they were the first to rediscover the lost portals that led to the scattered worlds of the multiverse. Born explorers, the Romani reopened several of the gates, reforming the old pathways and opening Tomahna to a new age of trade and exploration.
For five hundred years the Romani kept the existence of Tomahna a secret, along with the location of the gates that allowed access to the ancient plane of existence while they explored the Veluna ruins, rediscovering much of the lost magic and artifacts that had been buried when the Veluna Empire fell. Only after they had established a solid social structure in Tomahna, did the Romani begin to allow travelers from other worlds to enter and explore, and the port of Rebirth became a hub of planar trade for members of countless races. For the past five hundred years to the present day, Tomahna has become the closely guarded secret of the most daring adventurers and the most learned scholars. The waters of the Sea of Lost Souls contain countless gates to other worlds, and the ruins of the Veluna Empire still hold secrets to be uncovered. But only the hardiest men and women dare venture into the mists.
The history of Tomahna begins several million years ago, long before even the eldest of gods can remember. Records from its creation have long been lost to the ravages of time, and the truth about Tomahna’s creation is a mystery. It has existed for as long as the astral sea and many scholars believe it was around before the astral sea was created. Some scholars believe Tomahna is the birth place of all gods, and others believe it is the world where magic was first discovered. Whatever gods created Tomahna have long since abandoned it along with the rest of the multiverse, leaving behind no evidence of who they were. The only fact that is known for sure is that Tomahna is ancient even by the standards of the gods.
Tomahna is unique in that over ninety percent of it is covered by a vast, dark ocean known as the Sea of Lost Souls. This massive ocean seems to have no end to it, and nothing marks the horizon except for a few jagged black rocks. Tomahna has no sun, its sky shrouded in an endless star filled twilight, and storms rage across the endless ocean, tossing up a nearly constant mist that covers Tomahna is a damp blanket of mystery. The only sizable land mass is a roughly circular island at what is presumed to be the center of the ocean. Though small compared to the continents of many other worlds, the island is large enough to hold a range of mountains, a fresh water lake; a handful of forests composed of Ebonwood trees, and a small collection of villages. A single large port city stands as the only true beacon of civilization remaining in Tomahna, its docks playing host to travelers from across the multiverse who journey through portals to the ocean plane.
The recorded history of Tomahna covers only the last five thousand years, and much of it has been collected from the ruins that lay scattered about Tomahna like gravestones. From what scholars have discovered, five thousand years ago a race called the Veluna lived in Tomahna. Whether the Veluna were native to Tomahna or not remains unclear, but they were the only intelligent race in Tomahna at the start of their recorded histories. The Veluna were masters of magic, and used it to forge a vast empire first across Tomahna, then across multiple worlds by building huge portals they could march their armies through.
The Veluna Empire persisted for three thousand years as a shining example of civilization. It is unknown if the Veluna were benevolent or malicious, but their greatness can be found in the works left behind in the ruins of their cities. Creations such as ancient crystal statues that sing forgotten songs and reflecting pools that display visions of the past are scattered among what remains of the Veluna civilization. Veluna craftsmanship is highly regarded by artisans and sculptors from across the multiverse, many of their statues and smaller buildings remain intact even after centuries of neglect.
It is unclear what caused the Veluna Empire to fall. Some believe it simply grew too large to support itself and collapsed; others believe the Veluna were destroyed by the gods in retaliation for conquering so many worlds; still others believe the Veluna Empire still exists in the Far Realm, beyond the known multiverse, and maintains a secret organization somewhere in Tomahna. These and dozens of other theories are popular conversation among scholars, but there is no proof to substantiate any of them. Regardless of the reason for its fall, the end of the Veluna Empire left Tomahna uninhabited for the next one thousand years, until the Romani arrived.
The Romani are a race of astral nomads, traveling the astral sea in ships as explorers and traders. If the Romani have a home world, they have told no one of its location, and none have been able to find it. They arrived in Tomahna one thousand years after the fall of the Veluna Empire, and built the port city of Rebirth among the ruins of an ancient Veluna city. A combination of old Veluna buildings and new construction, Rebirth became the home port for the Romani people, and they were the first to rediscover the lost portals that led to the scattered worlds of the multiverse. Born explorers, the Romani reopened several of the gates, reforming the old pathways and opening Tomahna to a new age of trade and exploration.
For five hundred years the Romani kept the existence of Tomahna a secret, along with the location of the gates that allowed access to the ancient plane of existence while they explored the Veluna ruins, rediscovering much of the lost magic and artifacts that had been buried when the Veluna Empire fell. Only after they had established a solid social structure in Tomahna, did the Romani begin to allow travelers from other worlds to enter and explore, and the port of Rebirth became a hub of planar trade for members of countless races. For the past five hundred years to the present day, Tomahna has become the closely guarded secret of the most daring adventurers and the most learned scholars. The waters of the Sea of Lost Souls contain countless gates to other worlds, and the ruins of the Veluna Empire still hold secrets to be uncovered. But only the hardiest men and women dare venture into the mists.
1. Special ships called Stormriders are used to navigate the Sea of Lost Souls. Normal ships can not survive the rough waters without magical argumentation. (still a rough concept, not sure how to put it into effect yet)
2. Romani as a playable race (still working out statistics)
3. Rituals for opening the planar gates that dot the Sea of Lost Souls and for operating a Stormrider ship.
4. Detailed overview of the port city of Rebirth (possibly with map)
5. New magic items (magic weapons and armro specific to Tomahna and its people)
6. New Artifacts (I'm thinking some kind of magic orbs, not real sure yet)
7. Details on major sites of intrest in Tomahna listing forests, mountains, ect. along with brief descriptions of each place (possibly with map)
Thats all I have planned for the moment. Questions, comments, suggestions, opinions, and thoughts are all welcome and encouraged. Other peoples input is what will help this setting grow.
It looks like a good idea with a lot of room to grow in. On the plus side it sounds like it may be more self consistant than Spelljammer was (I hated the Spellthrone idea... Bad TSR! BAD!).I will certainly follow this thread with interest.
This actualy began as an attempt to make a sort of Spelljammer conversion, but it evolved into an original setting.I may expand on the history a little since it kind of rushes through five thousand years of history.
My current game world in quite similar in some ways, but different in others. It has just one solar system with half dozen planets and their few dozen inhabited moons. Current campaign is the fourth in that solar system but even so the details of the planets are hazy at best - only one of the planets and it's moons has any kinds of details. Anyways to the point: During the Golden Era of Magic, Skyships flew from planet to planet and cities flew in air. Those times are now long gone and Skyships are just legends, but perhaps the PCs will one day find one. For that I need rules for Skyships which I haven't made up yet, so I will try to remember to return here to check what kind of thoughts you have about your Stormriders and see if I could steal them for my Elys.
Good luck with your world - don't bite more than you can swallow.
Feel free to steal anything you like, but you may want to check out Spelljammer first as it is all about flying ships in space. I believe they made the converstion to 4th edition in the planar book, and you kind find all kinds of fluff hereat the official fansite.
I also wouldn't mind hearing your thoughts on the subject of special ships. Obviously my Stormriders will not fly, but I'm always interested in hearing what other DMs have for ideas.
and don't worry about me biting off more than I can chew. I've created more than a dozen fully developed and realized worlds over my years of playing D&D and other pen & paper games. You can check out my Rebirth setting in my signature to see what I've developed for d20 Future, and I may post my Proterra setting for d20 Modern(sort of) someday if I can ever finish the alchemy system and classes.
Tentative Stormrider
In order to sail the often stormy waters of the Sea of Lost Souls, special ships known as Stormriders are required. Stormriders are ships that have been constructed to withstand the constantly shifting waves of the sea, and to protect those on board from the life stealing water. Stormriders use powerful magic to envelop the ship in a bubble of protective force that is invisible to the unaided eye. This bubble acts as a shield against the water of the sea, keeping it a few inches away from the hull, allowing the ship to glide just above the surface. The protective shield extends around the entire ship, keeping the sea spray from hitting sailors on deck. The shield lets in the wind to fill the sails, and does nothing to stop missiles fired from other ships. It also does not protect someone who has fallen overboard. People pass right through the shield to be swallowed by the sea.
1) All of these worlds are set in the astral sea. But you mention the only thing they share is their connection to Tomahna. Do other worlds share localised or exclusive connections to worlds through paths other than the Tomahna, or is it Tomahna or bust.
2) You describe certain worlds as being no bigger than "islands". Is this a metaphor or are these worlds flat?
3) What is the physical description that you use when a stormship leaves it's world to travel the astral sea (or the Tomahna).
4) Can explorers sail the true astral sea as well as the Tomahna?
5) You state that storm ships will not 'fly'. If you can sail the true astral sea (question 4), how do they move about, is the astral sea a literal sea then?
I ask, because I had suggestions but wanted to make sure they fit into the actual setting. You see, I was thinking that, should one be able to traverse the true astral sea, one methodology my be that storm ships use World Cores, central slivers of worlds that float within the astral sea, at the core of their ship. Such cores turn the ships into 'tiny planets'. Of course many of these cores would be harvested from miniscule asteroid-like planets, but it could serve as a plot hook when people start going for inhabited cores.
The fact that these stormships have world cores allows them to be treated like a world. They have their own relative gravity (perhaps that being the thing which defines a planet) so you could have a storm ship with a cylindrical deck where you can walk all around it.
But, I was concerned that something like that might not be feasible for your setting, so I asked the questions.
(One might wonder why I went so far as to ask the questions, and make the suggestion anyways. I'm not sure, I believe it's rooted in a deepset pathological need to contribute.)
1. At the moment, the only gateways on other worlds lead to Tomahna. Tomahna is sort of a nexus between the worlds. So to go from one world to another you first must pass through Tomahna.
2. I'm not going to define what the other worlds look like (at least not all of them) but there are countless different types of worlds. Some of them could be flat islands, others could be tiny spheres. Some might be like earth, others might be ring shaped. Other worlds might have dozenes of layers that all rotate around a central core. The point is there are thousands if not millions of different material worlds. These include all the premade worlds from WotC (greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, ect.) and the countless homebrew worlds of other DMs.
3. When a stormrider leaves tomahna it passes through one of the gateways that dot the Sea of Lost Souls. I havn't decided exactly what these will look like yet, but they instantly trasport the ship and its crew to the destination world, usually somewhere in one of that worlds oceans or lakes. The crew of the stormrider experiance almmost nothing when pssing through a gateway, the transportation happens instantly.
4. Sailing the astral sea crosses in Spelljammer territory and I've already been down that road once. This is supposed to be an alternative to astral sailing and spelljammers.
5. As I said stormriders are not spelljammers and will not be able to sail the astral sea. If you read my last post you'll see the beginnings of stormriders and how they will work, though its only a rough concept at the moment and needs improvment.
I like your world core idea, but I donlt think it quite fits into this setting. Etherwind might be interested in it though, as he was looking for an original flying ship idea. Please feel free to continue tossing out any ideas or suggestions you have.