Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 erol Mar 05, 2009 18:45:00	The following is a summarized and very bare-bones history of the campaign setting I will be running my next game in. I am always up for comments and criticism, but suggestions, questions about aspects of the world, and ideas to expand the world would be more than appreciated! 1000 Years Ago There once existed a great Empire, called Nokan, whose lands extended from horizon to horizon. The people of this Empire were ambitious and possessed power unmatched. They conquered all who stood in their way and soon covered much of the land with white-stone cities. However, this power was not enough to quench Nokan's insatiable thirst. The greatest minds of Nokan sought out sources of power beyond mortal understanding, delving into dangerous lore of a place called the Far Realm. The Mute Otherworldly beings called the Mute were the first beings contacted by the arcanists of Nokan and the deal they made with the Nokan gained them entry into the world. In exchange for access to the alien power of the Far Realm, the Mute were given bodies to inhabit and from which they could carry out their incomprehensible agendas. Nokan expanded its cities and borders and the Mute expanded their following, spreading the taint of the Far Realm throughout the Empire. The End of Nokan When the power-hungry Nokan realized the extent of the Far Realm taint that plagued the Empire, it was too late. The armies of Nokan were too widespread to effectively combat the Mute. After brutal civil wars between the followers of the Mute and Nokan still loyal to their country, the population was diminished and the great fire that Nokan once was, extinguished. Though, the Mute were imprisoned and most of the leaks into the Far Realm sealed shut, the scars left on Nokan and the world would take long to heal. The Present Sixty percent of the world's landmasses are covered in the ruined cities of the former Nokan Empire. The ragtag populations leftover after the Empire's fall have now strengthened and small kingdoms and factions have become strong after centuries of surviving a world ravaged by war and taint. Forests are healthy again, agriculture is stable, and most live comfortably. The strongest in the world now belong to several guilds or "factions" that live throughout the old cities of the Empire and the wilderness surrounding. [This is where players will find character motivation as each faction has a certain agenda. However, an underlying theme of "dungeon delving", treasure hunting, and exploring the events of the past (involving the Mute and their ilk) will be strong.] -Erol
#2 erol Mar 06, 2009 11:54:32	The Empire's Lasting Mark Many species of plants and animals were decimated or their numbers dwindled during the rise of Nokan's sprawling cities. Often times, when an animal disappeared, an automaton construct resembling the animal was created. Great "zoos" full of these golems dotted the empire, though a sad longing to see real animals, flourishing in their natural habitats, began to pervade the Empire. As Nokan's engine of "progress" churned, whole mountain ranges were leveled as stone was quarried and metals were mined. Only in the farthest reaches of the world did natural forests still exist, the only trees in or near Nokan being in parks or tree farms. Though 1000 years have passed since the planting of such farms, the neat rows can still be deciphered amongst the very oldest trees. Urban Wilderness After a thousand years, it would be hard for even the mighty urban sprawl of Nokan to survive unscathed. Many parts of the Empire have become overgrown or have sunken below sea level and flooded. Still others have remained very desolate, absolutely refusing to let life cling on, like vast deserts of white stone. Where a leak into the Far Realm might have once existed or is still dripping into the world, huge forests of fungus inhabited by strange and terrible beasts have sprung up. Most settlements exist on the edges of Nokan's former cities, but some have braved the interior to found villages and towns amongst the crumbling, overgrown ruins. Where the cities have sunken and become swamps and marshes, people traverse the land along wooden catwalks suspended on stilts. Where the ruins have become part of a strong, natural forest, people dig deep, removing the layers of city from the earth to grow their food in the loam below. Even in the most desolate places, people find reason to ply the depths below the cities, in search of ancient magic or long lost technologies. In many ways, where there was once Nokan urban sprawl, there is now a type of wilderness, though altered by the fact that most of the land is covered by white stone, that acts much like a natural wilderness, each with its own set of "natural" dangers, particularly for travelers.