--Giant Blues
--Smokeweed
--Archanaea

Creature: Giant Blues (Lizards of the Badlands):

Giant Blue Lizards (of the Badlands), lizards big enough for most bipeds to ride-- and they can go into far rockier places than other steeds.

Female Giant Blues go on four legs. Male Giant Blues are more comfortable walking on their back two legs. Males are much faster, but can't be ridden for very long before they need a meal (they're uniquely adapted to eat succulents and ignore the thorns), and to rest. Females are slower, but can conserve energy and stay awake longer.

Many caves of any size can be found to house sleeping Giant Blues. Certain floral scents will wake them up for a short time (although they all wake up for quite a while in the rainy season anyway, which is their mating season).

Unless defending eggs, males are never aggressive, preferring to run from danger. Females are never aggressive unless forced to defend themselves-- they can use their tails for a powerful bullwhip-like attack, or can simply pounce, using their weight to crush many predators.



Plant: Smokeweed

Smokeweed is a very rare plant, only found in swamps or at least near mangroves, where land and water meld and larger trees shadows protect form direct sunlight by producing twilight. In fact, the amount of sunlight it receives affects its efficacy. Being inherently magical, it grows better where the telluric lines cross.

The name comes from the fact it is smoked (mostly in pipes)... for most, it produces a soothing effect, giving calm peace of mind.

Nonetheless-- and less known by the general populace-- its effects are harmful for both creatures with particularly chaotic and lawful natures. For supernatural beings, it is outright poisonous, and makes difficult the use of law and chaos magic by any practitioner having recently ingested it or breathed its smoke.

Those which grow in sunnier environments are greener, and more potent to chaos creatures, while less against law ones. Those grown in greater darkness are more white, and more powerful against law and less against chaos.

Needless to say, it’s quite valuable for magicians and alchemists.



Creature: Archanaea

Archanaea are tiny. To the naked eye, they would appear not more than small, glowing, slightly irregular blue flecks. They float about in the ocean more or less at the whims of currents and weather. If you could see them, they'd look like tiny, five armed octopi. However, their arms simply dangle beneath them waving slightly and using their feathery appendages to filter feed from the ocean. However, archanaea have no mouths; because, it is not smaller animals that Archanaea feed on but the raw magical energies flowing in the ocean. This siphoned magic then is used in a process where the tiny creatures create food. They also used a trace amount of it for their protection. Archanaea exist in massive clouds in the ocean; these massive communities are targeted by predators. When one of these approaches, the Archanaea will first flash warning lights: strobing green, pink, and yellow. If the creature continues to approach, a bolt of pure arcane energy is produced that strikes the creature. Archanaea float in the ocean in their great clouds near the equator (A subspecies exists that floats nears the poles as well). They are found in greater concentrations near sources of powerful magical energies. When two communities of these creatures contact, they most often merge and mix before separating again into two new clouds. Occasionally they merge completely and stay as a new group. Very very rarely they will engages in fierce battles of strobing light and arcane attacks until one cloud dissipates. Archanaea are not dimorphic and each individual's gender is unidentifiable but identical. The manner and method of Archanaea reproduction is a mystery.


The Sandstone Desert
The Amerylith Coast
The Village of Nature's Chessboard
Endless Mines
The Cursed Island
Pendrell
The Ring of Light


PLACES:

Pendrell, the lost province (swamp):
--The ruler of this province once tried to attack the province to the west. The province to the west, however, was ruled by a powerful mage, who turned the whole province of Pendrell into a huge swamp. It's now called Pendrell Swamp, or, more often, the Dismal Swamp. It's now the home to a mix of different people and animals who have adapted to life there. It is the main place to find smokeweed.



The Amerylith Coast
     Amerylith Beach is located along the eastern coastline of the eastern continent. It is notable for its length and the vast coral reef that extends along its length. In truth, the beach is a amalgam of various beaches broken up by cliffs, mangrove swamps, and other features. Still, it is considered as one place in minds: The Amerylith Coast. It is generally held belief that one of its beaches was once the eponymous Amerylith Beach, but none recall which it was and the name now applies to all the beaches along the coastline. The coast teems with various forms of life native to the planet in both the water and along the various coastal features. This has attracted settlements but these are sparse and distant from one another. The coastline is quite sparsely populated despite its bounty because a great deal of its native fauna is extremely dangerous. And this is due to the leyline that runs along the coast between the beaches and the reef. One of the most potent on the planet, the Amerylith Leyline thrums with magical energies. Many of the local flora and fauna have developed synergies with and have latent magical abilities. And at the base of this ecosystem are the vast clouds of Archanaea that float along the leyline itself. It is also no surprise that there are several locations along the coast where smokeweed thrives. This does attract the occasional trader and spurs local communities to harvesting and cultivating the plant.

The Sandstone Desert
     Occupying nearly the total of the eastern half of the eastern continent and the main reason that the Amerylith Coast is so isolated is the vast, inhospitable Sandstone Desert. Not a place of sand and wind as some deserts are, the Sandstone Desert is a hard, rugged terrain filled with odd rock formations, canyons, and jagged dry riverbeds. Travelers here have often found strange rocks that seem to contain the skeletons of dead ocean creatures. These rocks fetch a pretty price among certain communities. Still, few people brave the land to collect them or for any other reasons. The only land beyond it is the Amerylith Coast, which was rich but dangerous. This meant that while this area is a rich location of resources, you needed to take those things back somewhere to profit. The Sandstone Desert is inhospitable, but life always finds a way and many species of hardy succulents make this there home alongside a few types of creature that make use of them. These communities almost always thrive the most along the dried river beds that crisscross the desert. This is because of the rainy season. For just a few weeks every summer, the skies open and it rains nearly every day all day. Just as fast as it arrive, it leaves. But the life in the desert has attuned itself to this time and the desert turns green for a few weeks. This is the prime time to be in the desert as several unique herbs and spices can only be harvested at this time. This also coincides with the mating time of the area's major lifeform, the Great Blue Lizards. During this time, they glut themselves on the abundant plant food, mate vigorously, then typically slip back into their typical torpor.



Endless Mines:

Those mines were dug by some ancient race, apparently many centuries ago.

They form a true maze, and no one has been able to map its tunnels, some of them still showing remains of veins of various minerals (though few with true commercial value, as most were already mines).

What makes them really special (and impossible to map) is that In fact the various bifurcations present moral dilemmas to any explorer, and the way taken is dictated more for the answers than for the real chose (you can take either right or left way, but where does it go will depend on your answers).

Most such chooses lead to nowhere, ending up in returning to the entry or in finding oneself on surface again (sometimes many miles from the entry), but some combinations, showing alignment with the forces of the various astral planes,  end up with the explorer finding himself to a  specific plane (so, a character aligned with Chaos might end in a chaos astral plane, while one aligned with law would end up in a lawful one).



The Cursed Island:

This large island to the west of the Ring of Light is seen as quite dangerous a place. Along history, many countries, from many alignments, have established colonies on it, but none has lasted.

Mysterious creatures have wiped out any colony in less than a decade, though armies sent to explore it have rarely encountered those mysterious creatures that have wiped one colony after another, and when an occasional colony have been built with reinforces fortifications and troops, either earthquakes, heavy storms or even wildfires have also destroyed them.

Nonetheless, its fertile lands, mineral richness and strange plants and species (some with magical powers)  seem to make sure another one will ever be ready to try (and fail)…





The Ring of Light:

Near the Equator lies a great congregation of Archanaea in a ring-like shape. The Archanaea consumes the massive permeating energy. However, few lights last for long inside the circle. Many myths abound about these lands, for few ever survive entering the ring for any time. Those that do tend to go missing for many months before reappearing with no memory of ever entering the circle.

No Predators eat the Aeranean here, and they only flash those few boats that seek to enter near the waters. The Greatest myth or tale is of a sunken island, which the Aeranean ward travelers away from, a cursed land that held great magic, at one point, long since forgotten.

The reasons for the island sinking are myriad, a wrathful god, hubris of the mortals that worked upon it, and so many more— none with any proof of the matter. But then, some believe the island still rests on the surface, just hidden from the world, with only those wishing to leave ever returning, forgetting what happened on the island.



The Village of Nature's Chessboard:

A Rather large expanse lies a cluster of Smokeweed. The Black and White Varieties grow here in a checkboard-type style. In Truth, a Great battle happened here, a war between great law versus great Chaos. Unfortunately, both sides died in the battle. Where the Evil And Dark creatures died, they tainted the ground, making it gnarled and sickly, whereas the lawful army died, they let in light and order. As animals grew more robust, it wasn't until later that smoke weed feeding on the remnants of this once great battle grew abundantly and caused the enormous black and white pattern to develop. These squares are compressed by the other entities centering on the greatest of the beings slain.

Within These lands Lies a Village that has long since sworn off magic, made from a conglomerate of people whose forebears ran to this land to escape magical persecution.

These men and women are the ones who tend the fields and who turned this path of knotty woods and verdant jungle into plains once more—farming the smokeweed to sell to nearby villages.





Folk of the Cage:

A group of mixed races that are residents of the eastern Pendrell Swamps. They lived in a remnant of the great province that use to rule this land, a giant fortress that was said to house an entire town of mostly prisoners. It was said to be a thought experiment and a new technique to bring a person back to society. However, after everything was submerged by the swamp, this fortress remained up in the surface due to its architectural integrity and impenetrable walls. The prisoners managed to escape, but seeing as the entire province that they lived in was gone, they decided to stay in their simulated town. And so they adapted and survive in this dismal swamp.

The fortress which they called the Cage, is half-submerged in the swamp, it was mostly due to the stability decreasing over the years. So their appears to be several huts on top of what's left of the roof of the building in order to create more space.

The Cage-folk as they were called, made a living hunting and trading goods to other residents of the swamp. Strangely enough, this prison was considered a safe haven for most travellers. A lot of the people in the cage aren't even descendants as most decided to stay in this swamp town, it's sort of the only bastion of civilization in this swamp, and the leaders of the Cage-folk tend to be more accepting of outsiders, as long as your willing to lend a hand, they'll help you.

It helps that they have a monopoly on the Smokeweed market, they believe it is their right that such products and plant species belong to them. They have been planting and trading these Smokeweed for years, it's practically their culture. However, their might be some detrimental health here, if not for the folk then for the environment as the skies are always filled with grey clouds in these areas and theirs no scent but the soothing smoke of their products, you can't even smell the swamp.

Strangely enough, they have a hatred for all things chessboard related.



The Endless Mine's Nomads:

Long ago their was an army of human and orcish knights of a far away land. They ventured across seas and lands to find the famed land. Why do such a dangerous tasks? Their reason where all but forgotten to time, they're goal was clear though. They seek to prove that the mines had an end and they would take the prize that was lost through time.

But their was none but an endless and all consuming maze, the once impressive army was nothing but a crumbling speck of men. They have been bested by many twists and turns and strange phenomenon. Yet they never quit, they continued to venture deeper and deeper, which took years and years. And once years past to decades, decades past to generations. And they kept going further and further, ever going deeper or just simply going back to the beginning.

They've gain some notoriety to travellers that seek to mine the mineral in this maze. If they found a nomad, as long as they provide food, the nomad would lead them to a mineral deposit and are great guides to avoid the monster's hidden in the dark.

The nomads are mostly half-orcs, though they don't talk much about themselves or their people mostly cause they can't remember much. They've live the endless minds for their entire life, some try to leave but they usually come back to the mines as the world above was too alien and dangerous to them. Interestingly enough, these nomads have made a hub for themselves in a part of the mines. It was actually just a meeting point for other nomads, but it became bigger as time marches on. Some argue on which maps are right or which directions goes were, but some tend to have some strange ritual celebrations whenever theirs good news or if they see a friend again. But they sometimes tell stories of their travels and the battles they face. Of course, they don't mind wandering travelers that found their many hubs, in fact they felt it's grounds for celebrations, long as they have a story to tell of their most recent of travels in the surface.


The Grand Frog Monarchy:

In the northern swamps of Pendrell lies a small City-State of Frog-Folk. These Frog-Folk mark their children on their backs with one of six markings, notated with pips. 1-pip frogs are the lowest, the pawns of their community. 6 pips are reserved for their princes and princesses. They are represented by a King and a Queen. The King takes care of State Affairs and deals with internal politicking while The Queen takes care of External Affairs and is the Leader of the Knights, their Royal Army.

The Castes are The Pawns, The Knights, The Rooks, The Merchants, The Bishops, and The Royalty. Pawns are the servants, Knights are their military, Rooks are their entertainers, The Merchants uphold their economy, The Bishops are their religious figures and mages, and the Royalty rule over the others.

1: Pawn, servants
2: Knights: Miltary
3: Rook, entertainers
4: Merchants
5: Bishops: Clerics, Paladins (usually of Noric), and Order Mages
6: Royalty

These Frog-Folk's major religion, preached by their Bishops, believes in Castes, and the importance of each individual in sticking to their Role. This can cause Frog-folk to leave, to seek independence from the Kingdom.

Those seeking to leave their castes and become immigrants to other refuges may find trouble, as Law Mages will use their markings to track them down and return them to the City-State to be judged and prosecuted, usually looking down upon the Frogs that believe the City-State to be imperfect in its current State. Many ended up in the Chessboard Village as a sanctuary to stop the tracking by those Mages... though these beliefs have gently eroded over time under the current King and Queen.

Those that seek to take up residence in the Kingdom must gain a pip to establish which caste they will be in the Kingdom. Once this is done, they are seen as a part of the community as any other Frog. They do not discriminate based on species nor gender, but rather judge on the actions (and caste) of the Individual.


The Hapids:

The Hapids are a Racially Dimorphic Species, with their Females appearing as Black Cat-Folk, while their Males appear as White Rabbit-Folk.

Coming From The Sandstone Desert, Hapids are agents of chaos, as they pursue fun in all their activities. If and where they build cities, they tend to focus on things they see as Fun, Mysterious Bazaars of strange doodads, Casinos, Theatres, Arenas, and more. With Many Hapids Seeking to Become Actors and Gladiators in such Communities. The Rare Few Hapids unable to take the fun jobs making fun with their jobs by slacking off or messing around in their position.

Having fun with a Hapid is a time of extraordinary chaos, but probably the most fun someone would ever have in their life, as Hapids celebrate life and make sure those they are having fun with are having fun too.

Due to their beliefs, many communities tend to see them as troublemakers, allowing only a few exceptions into their communities.

However,  They'd be among the First to Rally Against Evil Tyrants for their protestations against them being unfun.

The Hapids have learned what floral scents will wake up the Giant Blues for a short time (although they all wake up in the rainy season anyway), and they ride them when needed, although of course outside of the rainy season, the Giant Blues sleep too much to keep with Hapids all the time.




The Uglolla:

In the southern and southwestern areas of the Pendrell swamps live the Uglolla people...

Having no gift (nor proper tools) for carpentry, any place that makes for a half-way decent natural shelter, such as a rare natural overhang of rock, becomes fiercely fought for by them. Some of the most worthy are considered to be those can defend a natural shelter the best. Courage is the quality held most highly by the Uglolla.

The Uglolla believe in ghosts, believing that the spirits of the dead are sometimes tied to certain locations that were important to them in life... and that the ghosts sometimes continue to guard those locations, cursing the living with bad luck.

One may attempt to propitiate favor (it is believed) to help ameliorate the effects of curses and hauntings... Favored offerings are wood carvings, especially of people and animals-- sometimes these are burned, sometimes left at places in the swamp (so over time, there are a lot of these lying around).

The Uglolla also seek to fool ghosts by pretending to be something else-- they paint their skin in brightly-colored pigments. The most common Uglolla color is bright blue, often with black spots or bands.

The Uglolla also practice their own form magic. They call it "spirit magic," where they can attempt rituals of varying duration to speak to the dead, and to receive, or remove, good or bad luck for a person, or at a given place.

The other quality valued by the Uglolla is vision, with everything that that word can mean... creativity, foresightedness, literal clear sight when hunting, superior night-vision, and spiritual vision.

The Uglolla hunt with the aid of darts, spears, and arrows made toxic with mixtures made from various forms of swamp flora and fauna. It does not kill, but only weakens, so that the Uglolla don't have to worry about getting a big enough dose from a beast they've killed to poison themselves as well (they are, though, by now, somewhat resistant to such toxins).


Waveriders:

 The Waveriders are a semi-nomadic culture that moves along the Amerylith coast following the clouds of Archanaea. They do this because they herd sea turtles; the turtles grow large and develop magical characteristics on a steady diet of the magical archanaea. The Waveriders carefully cultivate and have learned to breed and control for certain traits in their stock. IN most tribes of Waveriders, three types of turtles are kept. The first are Barge Turtles. Gorging on tons of archanaea has caused these turtles to grow to absolutely massive sizes. The heart of every Waverider tribe is a Bargelarge enough for several huts to be built upon. This can effectively sustain about 100 souls. These behemoths require a lot of resources and attention, so most tribes have only one active while two or three are growing. The behemoth take about a century to reach this size and lives for two centuries after. Should a tribe be large enough, once a Barge grows to the proper size, the tribe will split. IF it is not large enough when a barge is the correct size, the thing is slaughtered in a big ritual and the tribe has a week long festival to celebrate and thank the creature for its sacrifice. The second type are Dottlers. These turtles are bred to be used as mounts for Waverider warriors and herders. Special harness fitted to their shells allow the water to flow mostly up and over the rider when submerged with small slits to peer through. Dottlers are smarter and fiercer than the average turtles and seem smarter due to their diet. The final type are Hordles. These are larger that Dottlers but not nearly the size of the Barges, these are the most common and are herded for their meat, bones, and shells. Hordles' shells are almost steel hard due to the Arcane energies consumed while their bones glow subtly for a bout a year after harvest. Though most Waveriders sustain themselves mostly on turtle meat, they also gather plants from the shores and seas to supplement them. They actively dislike and hunt that large sharks that prey upon their turtles and wear sharkskin leather and use turtle shell shields, armor, and weapons. Each tribe is led by a pair of elders, one male and one female, who are advised by any member who has over 40 summers. These tribes move up and down the coasts but almost always stay on the Barges rather than camp ashore. Most Waveriders prize white smokeweed and will trade favorably to get it. Most Waveriders detest Black Smokeweed and will actively avoid or destroy it if possible.



The Man
Noric
Ossiga, the Ghost Queen
Bor’Ma
The Grand Lizard
That-Which-Thrashes-in-the-Deep



Bor’Ma (the allied enemy):

The world is moved by opposite forces, and only equilibrium allows it to keep moving. Bor’Ma is one of the wardens of this equilibrium.

As such, he allies with Light when Darkness rises, only to change sides if the rising side is light. He does the same with Law and Chaos, with Life and Death, and with any opposing forces.

He is seen by other divinities as untrustworthy, but they sometimes ask him for help if weakened, knowing he will answer their calls.

In his own view, his moves are perfectly consistent and ethical, even if his ethics are difficult to understand. He keeps the equilibrium, opposing no matter who in pursuit of his goals.



The Grand Lizard:

     Not particularly large or impressive as a specimen of Great Blue Lizard, this being appears as an ancient Great Blue Lizard. It even goes so far as to have a long, pure white tuft of hair sprouting from its chin and above each eye. These lengthy eyebrows seem to float and twist around its head like a crown. Not a god, per se, but it remembers when the gods were young and people were just barely walking. It spends, as it is a Great Blue, most of its time sleeping in the deepest desert. The only time it seems to rouse is during the rainy season. Then it wanders the desert looking for females. It is only during this time that it can be sought, and many Hapids try each year. For, as the legend goes, if you can find it and pass its tests, then it grants you power. Each hero that found it and made the deal was unique, but all showed ability to control Great Blues. Whatever the case, dozens of Hapids go into the deep desert every year, and very, very few return. Maybe one in a generation finds the Grand Lizard. All who found it and return have passed the tests, and never speak of them. If they did, they would lose their boons. They almost all claim that it found them more than the other way around.

When it is sleeping, to disturb the Grand Lizard is to invite death due to the pack of female Great Blues that protect it. The only other thing known of the Grand Lizard is that some lineages of Great Blues descend from it, and these are among the largest and most active of the lizards. Many of the Grand Heroes have returned riding one of the Grand Lizard's own offspring.



The Man:

In the Monarchy of the Frogs, there is a story of an old tale. When the Monarchy was founded, there were not two rulers, but three, called the Triumvirate. One was The Elephant, an administrator of a thing called sciences. Another was the Empress; she led the military and wielded great might. Lastly, there was The Man, simply well-liked among the citizens. However, the Triumvirate have broken to pieces: The Elephant decided to leave with his sciences, The Empress fell in battle after fending off the forces of chaos, and The Man simply disappeared. The Frogs just forget about all of those unneeded game pieces; why would they ever rely on them ever again, when they've founded the Caste, a rigid order of their role? Any other piece of the past was unnecessary.

However, it is said that when the Monarchy is in its most dire state, when it is about to end, The Man will re-appear, and with a wave of his hands, the entire city-state will disappear from the face of the map. Either as his wrath or his way of rescuing it; no one knows what this prophecy foretells.




Noric:

Noric is a god. No one would dispute that he is god of the sky. But the emphasis on what he is the god of MOST changes from culture to culture.

To the Waveriders, who claim to understand Noric best, he is god of the winds and the stars. The winds are sent just to make sure the stars are available to navigate by as often as possible, so that one can find one's way at sea. The Waveriders tell that Noric bathed in the sea and then flung his long hair over his shoulder and each droplet of water that sprayed out became the stars. To them, Noric's symbol is an eight-pointed star.

To the Hapids, Noric is the god of weather, the seasons, the merciful rain, and freedom (and therefore travel). Noric approves of the Hapids doing their own thing as long as it don't destroy anyone else's fun. (No one disputes that Noric is essentially a Chaotic Good god, but the Hapid bring this fact up the most often.)

To the Uglolla, Noric sends the rain so that trees and vines and plants may rise up into the sky to meet him... and so Noric is responsible for their poison darts and arrows that they use to hunt. To them, his symbol is a tall tree.

To the Mine Nomads, Noric is the overwhelmingly huge wide sky, a heaven of potential movement in any direction. He is freedom and beauty and the insanely numerous stars, like a billion torches awaiting the virtuous dead.

Most Humans and Frogs agree that Noric is a god of weather, the sky, and everything in it, that his symbol is either a star or a tall tree (or both), that his colors are blue and black and green, and that his holy days are those of storms and/or high winds.



Ossiga, the Ghost Queen:

Ossiga, the Ghost Queen, is a Lawful Neutral goddess.

The Uglolla claim to understand her best. Ossiga, it is believed, has power over ghosts, the dead, and curses, and one may attempt to propitiate her favor to help with curses and hauntings. She is subject to bribery and flattery, but without either of these (and often with them), she is generally uninterested in the fates of the Uglolla (or anyone living), and is sometimes heartless. "Ossiga follows her own rules, not ours."

Her symbol is the crescent moon, and those are her holy nights as well.

The Hapids would agree that she's the goddess of bad luck-- when one loses a bet, one doesn't complain too loudly, because one doesn't want to offend her.

The Mine Nomads believe that she is the goddess not just of death, but that she is the guardian of the boundary between life and death-- she is mostly focused on keeping things from sneaking out of death to bother the living, just as many Mine Nomads believe it's their job to keep terrible things from sneaking out of the darkness of the tunnels to prey upon the weak and innocent people who live under Noric's starry sky. (The Mine Nomads suspect she is sister to Noric, in fact.)

To the Waveriders, Ossiga is the goddess of sharks, blood, grief, and mourning.

To the frogs she is the goddess of doom and failure and ruin.



That-Which-Thrashes-in-the-Deep:
     As ancient as it is powerful, this being inhabits the deep, dark areas of the ocean. Not evil, or chaotic exactly, it is a thing of pure predatory instinct. It is the boogey-man that Waveriders scare their children with. Legends speak of it swallowing entire Barges in one bite. Others speak of it hunting a tribe for years until they were driven ashore. Still others speak of it capsizing ships and feasting on the drowning sailors. In shape, it takes the form of a giant shark (60') with scythe-shaped tail fins. Its large, dark eyes glow with a deep hunger. This beast is always moving, always hunting, and always hungry. But an intelligence lays at the bottom of the pit of hunger. Something more predatory and cunning that it is smart. If one knew the right methods, one might be able to contact it, speak with it, and even strike a deal. What price you might have to pay to gain its favor is unfathomable, but everything has its price. Generally, these heroes gain enhanced senses and some type of natural attack and a strong predatory instinct.



--Trait Stones
--Star Steel
--Belt and Scabbard of Thunderbolt



Belt and Scabbard of Thunderbolt:

The name Orcs comes from a corruption of Orca, specifically the almost 8-foot-tall amphibious warriors who lived so long ago.

One of the more legendary magical items is Thunderbolt, the magic sword that was powerfully blessed by Noric ages ago when orcs still walked the land and swam in the seas.

In the hands of the orcs, Thunderbolt was barely a long dagger, hardly enough to qualify as a short sword, but the tales of its prowess were amazing-- it could find the weak point in any armor, block any attack, give its wielder the power to withstand any blow, even cowardly attacks from behind.

In the hands of smaller mortals, which is practically everyone now alive, Thunderbolt is a straight longsword with a lightning/electrical pattern etched down the length of its blade.

The previous sentence is true.

The two sentences before that are crap.

Thunderbolt is indeed a real sword that really has existed for centuries. It is not, however, magical.

What's magical are the belt and scabbard that come with Thunderbolt.

Originally the Belt and Scabbard of Orcish Might, whosoever wears the belt has the strength and constitution of three orcs of old.

Additionally, the Scabbard does temporarily bestow certain benefits on the weapon sheathed in it-- for 24 hours after leaving the scabbard, said weapon is unbreakable, extra sharp, and will always return to the hand of its owner at will.

This is true, though, for any sword. But since Thunderbolt happens to fit the scabbard, and since Thunderbolt is very hard to break or lose, it's the not-technically-magical-at-all (but still very nice) sword Thunderbolt that has remained with the Belt and Scabbard of Orcish Might for the last several centuries.

The Belt and Scabbard of Orcish Might are (permanently) indestructible, and enchanted to always be reunited (somehow) if separated. The belt will shrink or grow to fit any wearer.



Star Steel:

Star Steel is a rare metal brought by meteorites and other falling rocks. So it is only found in some locations where one such rocks have fallen, and yet not always bring them, and it’s seen as god’s gift. At rare places, where a large meteorite fell in ancient times,  there can even be lodes of it, but in most cases only a few pounds (or even ounces) are found where small meteorites fall.

It may be used to make armor and weapons.

Armor made of this steel is quite lighter and stronger than if made of normal steel.

But its main power is when used to made weapons (usually swords, daggers when there’s not enough for swords), as they are not only stronger than the ones made of normal steel, but have the capacity to damage any being using powers from other planes (e.g. undead) , and any  hit by  them has the possibility to banish any being from other planes on hitting them, returning them to the plane they came from.

Of course, it is quite sought  out by alchemists, and it is sometimes used as alloy with normal Steel, allowing it to make larger ítems than the quantity found would allow, albeit at diminished power, though most alchemists avoid it, as it cannot be purified again when this is done.


Trait Stones:

In the depths of the endless mines lie these precious stones. These stones have only one property. When properly used, they can take a trait of a creature and be imbued into the stone. These can then be used for a myriad of purposes afterward.

Take, for example, a trait stone used to take the venom of a snake. While someone could give that venom to a dog to give the dog a poisonous bite, someone else could also use the stone to have venom seep continually applied to a blade. While the snake's venom is an easy-to-understand trait, that same snake could give its vision, memory, or quick strike speed.



The Hapid Gladiator:

The Hapid Gladiator is not what many would consider a conventional gladiator style. While they fight for joy for themselves and the crowd, their approach is far more dexterous.

Two main facets go into the Conventional Gladiator Style, though Hapids being Hapids, not all gladiators follow this style, and someplace additional focus or change one aspect for another.

The first aspect is the Dance. The Dance is their dexterity, positioning, and weapons' conventional strikes. This revolves around parkour, hopping over their opponent, striking from behind their foes, and dodging their opponent's strikes through their dexterity. This, much like Dance implies, is a graceful set of movements that blend seamlessly with one another, even if predicting the trends themselves would be hard to tell.

The second aspect is the Tricks. Hapids are often seen as the ideal race for Chaos magic, and their Gladiators use it, along with the environment and various items, to keep their opponent off-guard. While their magic is lacking, barely helpful in tripping their opponent, this magic serves well for the distractions, and color shows the Hapids love to pull off while fighting.

These aren't the best fighters... however, Hapids and the other races who wish to see the battles will agree that their spectacle allows for great entertainment to be had by all.



Spirit Shaman:

The Uglolla people have shamans that specialize in their "spirit magic," but they will teach it to anyone raised in another culture who convinces a shaman that the aspirant sincerely wants to learn.

Rituals of varying duration and complexity can be done, from saying a few words and making a mystical gesture or two to long and elaborate rituals involving chants and dances and things.

Spells with short casting time: Bless, Curse, Sanctify, Turn Undead, Banish, Spirit Shield, Bless Weapon, Summon Elemental, Detect Undead, Remove Invisibility, Spirit Weapon, Wall of Rushing Water, Summon Swarm (A number of their spells are thusly specialized to their home in the swamps.)

Spells with longer casting time: Detect Evil, Speak With Dead, Remove Curse, Cure Disease, Heal, Heal Spirit (includes helping with mental disorders), Create Blessed Sigil, Create Hexing Sigil, Disrupt Magic, Know Ossiga's Will

Spirit Shamans believe that the proper weapons for their kind are clubs (including spiked clubs), staves, spears, darts, slings. Still, these are usually just used for supporting other, stronger warriors-- with one exception: Spirit-Shaman-Blessed weapons (and Spirit Weapons) can hit even immaterial (or not-fully-solid) ghosts, spirits, and elementals.

Spirit Shamans are not supposed to wear any armor (although magic items and talismans that give magical armor effects or protections are fine).

A Spirit Shaman is theoretically supposed to have a Lawful Neutral outlook on things (like Ossiga herself), but Lawful Good and Neutral Good are also allowed. (Sometimes aspirants from other cultures turn out to be Chaotic Good, Neutral Good, or Chaotic Neutral, but oh well, what can you expect from foreigners? All evil alignments, though, are flatly forbidden.)




Stormriders:


 Waverider culture occupies a strange place. At the same time, they revere and worship the ocean as well as fear and despise it. That is, the warm shallow waters where they make their homes lie between the coral reef and the shore. For most, it extends beyond the coral only to where the seafloor drops. As long as the bottom can be seen. Where the water goes black, deep, and cold is said to be the realm of Ossiga and That-Which-Thrashes. This realm is to be avoided as unholy. To travel the correct paths is the resposibility of the Stormriders. These men and women spend most of their lives apprenticed to an elderly Sotrmrider (A Stormrider may not take apprentices until their 50th nameday). Then, on their thirtieth nameday, they must leave their tribe and journey the deep oceans. For five years, they must live alone in the worst of places seeking to find Noric's truth. Only when they return are they elevated after testing by three Stormriders. They can then be assigned to and protect a tribe. They do so by reading the weather and tides to find safe paths for the waverider tribes to travel. They also help tend the turtle herds and can find safe harbor during storms. In this way, Stormriders practice a subtle form of order magic divination. By reading the patterns of the world or living things, they are able to guide, protect, and heal. But to learn this sense, they must suffer through chaos and darkness. Their tenets prohibit changing the patterns, they must only guide and protect. What must be, must be. Some say that this tradition is a holdover from ancient time when the Orca still roamed the world and, by the same myths, taught the Waveriders the ways of the oceans.




The Cautious Ones (Lawful Neutral Faction):

--The Cautious Ones are a secret society drawn from every walk of life, every corner of the continental area.

--The Cautious Ones tell one another how they began when Noric gave a prophecy to someone. The someone's name is not remembered, save that it was an adult male.* The prophecy warns that great tragedy is coming, and that it must be prepared for.

--The Three Branches of The Cautious Ones are: The Makers, The Hoarders, and The Explorers.

--The Makers are artisans, making things-- buildings, magic items, and other things. The Makers found a great lost orcish facility in the desert for shipbuilding, made back when the sea level was higher. There, The Makers not only make large ships, but they make large ships that can fly, suspended on hot-air balloons that look like whales (the ships are painted the same color). From the ground, it looks like a flying skywhale, or perhaps a skywhale and her calf.

--The Second Branch are the Hoarders. Magic items, treasures, books, seeds, secrets-- and skills. Many of the most talented adventurers of the continental area are amongst The Hoarders, honing their skills and teaching others.

--The Third and final Branch are The Explorers, using the Makers' skyships to explore other parts of the world beyond their continental area. They have found other lands, and they secretly build fortresses... waiting cautiously for the prophecy.

----Keep our secrets
----Prepare for the fulfillment of the Prophecy
----Watch the stars and the signs for the next message from Noric
----Be cautious
----Be ready

--These are the rules of The Cautious Ones.


* Note: Among members of The Cautious Ones in the Monarchy of the Frogs and the refugees of The Chessboard Village, they believe that the person to whom Noric originally gave The Prophecy was The Man.

Second Note: Since The Cautious Ones do not disrupt the balance between Good and Evil, between Law and Order, Bor’Ma does not act against them. If anything, they slightly help preserve the Balance by hoarding powerful magic items they come across out of the hands of others.

KEEP WATCHING THE SKIES




The Dungeon Builders:

The Dungeon Builders are a profit-oriented group. They produce dungeon locations with a client in mind. These clients may want dungeons for any number of reasons, to protect invaluable treasures or to accrue wealth from the Head-strong adventurers that may seek to enter the dungeon.

These dungeons are challenging but fair; within the client's budget, poorer clients will have easier dungeons built than clients who pay a hefty premium.

While, traps and puzzles are self-explanatory, and treasures tend to be supplied by the clients, monsters are one of the tricky ventures and is where The Dungeon Builders' monopoly shines. It takes time to breed creatures that reproduce quickly enough but are particularly vulnerable to changing environments to stop them from escaping the Dungeon despite their fearsome strength. These monsters are all the result of magic and breeding for certain traits, thus making them animalistic in look. They are excellent guard dogs that don't harm the regular residents of the dungeon, though they do attack all intruders.

Dungeons only tend to Fail when the client stop's paying the fees to keep the dungeon running. When this happens, The dungeon builders send a group in to eliminate the rest of the Monsters.

Of course,  On the client's side, the main profit besides the fallen adventurers that come for wealth, and glory, are the shops they'll open to supporting the adventurer style. Inns, armorers, and enchanted item shops are all quite lucrative.



The Turkeys:

A miscellaneous group of thieves, outlaws and cutthroats of varying races and monstrous entities. They go by a code, be generous and grateful to others that grant you such kindness, treat each member as family, and treasure your friendships. This code originally came from The Cult of The Turkey, an outlandish cult located in the Swamps. This cult's founder was a man named Turkey, and it wasn't really a cult but a society for like-minded alchemists; they created and experimented on the denizens of the swamps, creating all kinds of monsters. The cult started diminishing in numbers and resources, so they started creating smuggling routes, which a few years later paved the way to create a den of thieves, which became synonymous with the society that had quietly passed away. The thieves gave themselves the name of "The Turkeys" in honor of the cult that was generous enough to give them sanctuary. And so they spent years extending their acts of crime across the entire swamps, setting up locations in the Frog Monarchy, The Cage, and the Chessboard Village, where they perpetrated secret robberies and thievery. They even set some organizations in the great deserts, the endless mines, and to the unknown seas.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:10, Thu 30 June 2022.