|
In the time before time, in the space before space, there was only the Void. The twisting swirling embodiment of chaos, that which tears asunder all things. So violent was the thrashing chaos of the Void that no thought or dream could survive in its midst, until the Void tore itself. I tiny hole in the chaos, a single point, a reference, and more, a portal to whatever lay beyond the Void. So was formed the Eye.
Through the Eye immaterial passed. Order was imposed. The founding concepts were created, and more, the Maginar, the stuff of magic was created when the stuff of the Void passed through the eye. Balance was preserved as the stuff of the Maginar was born off into the Void, and consumed by chaos.
From the Maginar sprung the elementals. Primal things they were, concepts of Fire and Water, Earth and Air. They clung to the Maginar like young to the mother’s breast. Overlapping, intertwining, they spawned dozens of childer; Earth and Water begat mud; Earth and Fire begat lava, and so forth.
As each of the Childer was spawned they flowed away from the Eye and the Maginar, cresting on the surface of the primal elements. Together, they formed a hard shell that protected the Inner Realm from the devastating chaos of the Void. Creation took full root, formed by the bound up material of the elements, fueled by the energy of the Maginar, and balanced by the chaos of the Void.
Rooted now about the Eye, the ever-sweeping chaos of the Void slowed about Creation, allowing ever more beautiful and complicated forms to rise. In an instantaneous eternity Time was born through the Eye. A new order was imposed, a beginning, a middle, an end.
With Time, the final seeds were sowed, and into Creation sprang for the first time Life. Fueled by the Maginar, built of equal measures Fire, Water, Earth, and Air, bound by the grips of Time, held in the realm of Creation, and ever fearful of the Void.
In a frenzy, Creation shaped and reshaped itself. Pure forms rising up, and twisted forms be cast off into the Void, in the time of an eye blink, all manner of plants and animals rose up. Above them all, rose the Magi, the first sentients, who were bound wholly to the energy of the Maginar, and who would come to be called gods.
Hayfar was the first, and he claimed dominion over the plants and the base animals. Placing each in a balanced order. Protecting them from the Void, and from the depredations of the other Magi.
Skiyinae was the second; she cast out the image of the void, rendering the heavens blue as the purest water.
Ocea was the third, claiming dominion over the seas, the rivers, and lakes, wherever water gathered.
Brendil was the fourth; he claimed mastery of the realm between the lands and the heavens. He pressed back the sky, and gave rise to the birds.
Arfar was the fifth, claiming the earth and the under realm and their bounty of gold and jewels.
Magos was the sixth, closest in tune with the Maginar, became the lord of magic, and master of change.
Banya was the seventh, and she named herself the Explorer. She sought to know all the realms of all the Magi, and the names of each creature.
Durago was the eighth, taking his place as the gatekeeper. He alone recorded the passing of every item though the Eye and the Maginar. Every creation of the elements, and each consumption of the Void.
Humar was the ninth of the Magi, the maker and the gift giver. Unto each of the other Magi he gave a gift.
Humar gave Hayfar the gifts of husbandry and horticulture, so that plants and animals could be grown by choice as well as by chance.
To Skiyinae he gave two mirrors, one of gold and the other of silver, with which to count out the days and nights. Each reflected the pure light of the Eye down on creation.
Ocea received the gifts of fish and whale, and all the bounty of the sea.
Brendil received the gift of weather, with which he could mark out the seasons, and redress the land beneath or above with storm of rain or snow.
Arfar was given the gift of the forge and file, with which he could shape all the bounty of the under realm into shapes of purist beauty.
To Magos, Humar gave the gifts of wand and staff and scroll, so that he could bind up the energy of the Maginar, and use it at his will.
To Banya, Humar gave the gift of language, so that she may speak the name of each beast, and the gift of script so that she may record all her findings.
Humar gave to Durago the gifts of blade and armor, so that he could
resist the implacable flow towards the Void. He was charged as protector and defender of all that was.
Finally, Humar gave to himself, reaching into the Eye, he drew forth the purest stuff of creation, and shaped it like himself. From each of the other Magi, he received a blessing, and breathed life into the first human. He spread his new creation to all the corners of Creation.
Each of the Magi gave to the humans a gift of their own, in gratitude to Humar, and many of the mortals were changed by the touch of the Magi.
Hayfar shared the gifts of husbandry and horticulture with the humans, but some drew away his love of the wild things, and so became elves.
Skiyinae shown the pure light of the Eye on the mortals, reflected by her twin mirrors, but those men who felt the light of both mirrors at once were filled with the purity of the Eye, and rose up in to the heavens.
Ocea showed the mortals the bounty of the sea, of how to fish and how to sail, but those who shared his love too deeply became the Mer.
Arfar showed the mortals the mountains, the art of mining and the joys of the forge. Those who shackled themselves to closely to the forge became the first of the dwarves.
Magos gifted the most talented of the humans with the powers of magic, creating the first wizards. He took the most powerful deep into the Maginar to show them the eye, but was shocked as they became something else entirely, the first of the dragons.
Banya shared her thirst for knowledge, and the words and symbols to share and record it.
Durago taught them of sword and shield, armor and arrow, so they might defend themselves from the beasts. Then he took the strongest from amongst them, and made them stronger. In an effort to create the perfect warrior he created a dozen creatures, among them the giants, ogres, orcs, and gnolls, by combining the strength and cunning of men with the beasts.
Appalled by the twisted mockeries that Durago had created, Humar called an end to the sharing with mortals. But by then, only Brendil had not shared with them, though he was too capricious to.
For an age, the Magi watched the new creatures learn of the world on their own. The mortals learned to live and love, and learn as much as they could about their realm. The mortals took to worshipping the Magi, and the Magi found the adoration of the mortals filled them with even greater power.
In time, the Magi like the mortals they observed took mates, some from among their own number, others took the finest mortals and breathed a touch of eternity into them.
Hayfar married Skiyinae, and begat many children, the most important of which were Linar, goddess of love, and Torino, the huntmaster. Their marriage was not without issue though, as Brendil coveted Skiyinae’s hand. In anger Brendil shattered Skiyinae’s silvor mirror, littering the night sky with tiny twinkling stars, and the much-diminished moon. The blood from his cut hand gave birth to Jealousy, Wrath, and Lust, the first harpies.
Magos took Banya’s hand, and they raised their children, Luc, the lady of luck, and Mohindo, the contemplator.
Ocea took one of the Mer as his wife, and gave her the power to fill the sea with life. She created a myriad of forms, creatures of fancy, but never gave Ocea a blood child.
Arfar scoured the realms for the perfect wife, one who was master of all artifice. He could not find a single mistress, so he took many, and had many children and grand children, each a master of a single art.
Still enraged that his efforts of creation had been stopped, Durago attempted to take the greatest of Humar’s human queens as his bride, though she was already held by a mortal love. Humar forbade the act, claiming the humans as his own, and in a rage Durago cut him down.
The blood of Humar scattered through all the realms. Where it touched the Maginar, creatures of vengeance and planning were formed. Corruption burned in their hearts, and the devils were born. Where the blood of Humar touched the Void, the Blood of Humar produced creatures of pure destructive rage, the demons. Where it rained upon creation, the Blood of Humar wreaked Havoc, birthing evil beasts and twisting good hearts to darkness.
More terrible was the loss of Humar’s soul to the Void, an incalculable loss to the Cosmos.
The other Magi banded together, and stripped Durago of his position. Together, they forced him into a new role. They created a new realm, where the souls of the dead could be preserved, and anointed him the guardian. He became the master of Death, and the final rest of souls. If he judged them unworthy, they were cast into the Void, and lost forever.
The Magi elected to replace Durago as patron of protection with Torino, son of Hayfar and Skiyinae. Arfas crafted new armor for Torino, so the blood soaked armor and blade of Durago would never be used again.
The Magi did not see that the Void had been unable to swallow Humar’s soul; such was its power. Instead, the Void changed it, rended it apart, and vomited up three new beings; the Shadow who became the lord of the dark places, the master of secrets, darkness, and corruption; the Maddness, a shapeless creature of pure chaotic destruction that would eat a creature’s sanity and bend its body on a whim; and the Deceiver, a creature of lies and seduction, deception and intrigue.
The Shadow proclaimed himself King of the Devils, while the Deceiver claimed the throne of the Demon Queen. The madness simply flowed, through all creation, breaking all it could find.
Director of Narrative
|
I was just about to go to bed when I saw this post low on the list. Seeing as you are one of the six people that had read my Spittings thread, I thought I owed it to you to stay up a bit longer and give this a read.
Is this for a homebrew you are building or something more ambitious? I like the direction you are going with most of it. Some of it could be shaped up, but I'm sure you probably feel that way too. Shoot me an email if you want to discuss any details further.
|
|
Yeah, quite long. About 4 pages typed out in word.
The intent is it is the first chapter in the history of a homebrew realm. I started working on it a long time ago, tried to share it here and kind of lost the heart for it for a while.
The basic intent of the world is going to be a evil dominant world, with good players. At some point in the history, probably the next chapter because the inbetween stuff doesn't matter too much, the forces of evil are going to ally, and conquer the world. As a consequence, the good guys are going to be pushed to the sides, living in caves and sewers, etc.
Think Star Wars (the rebels), the Terminator future, WWII resistance for the final feel.
|
|
The stuff about the Madness, the Deciever etc at the end seems quite relevant then, given the theme of the campaign.
Is this intended for you to lock down the creation myth, a piece of prose for your players, or will the background actually play a central role in the campign? Ie, will "winning" the campaign depend on knowing or finding out things to do with the creation myth.
As prose, it seems fine to me; there are probably people better positioned to comment on it, but good from a layman's point of view. As important world background ... well,I know half of my players would give up on it halfway through page 2!
I like your campaign idea, I was discussing a similar idea with some of my gaming group just the other day.
|
|
This is mostly back story, I don't really expect players to read it, though clerics might want to.
I plan at least two more short pieces, the first will include the births of more dark gods, progeny of the first 3, as well as reveal the origins of the second tier races. (HINT: gnome = 1/2 elf/ 1/2 dwarf)
The second story will be the war itself. Basic gist is the shadow and the deceiver have a child together, and he leads the coollected armies of darkness across the lands. However, his heir is corrupted by the madness, and when daddy dies, the world spanning empire of darkness is no longer as coherent, allowing for the hope that a group of rebels may free the world.
Campaign wise, a single group of characters mayt accomplish some pretty heft tasks, but they won't free the world completly, not before some titanic epic activities. Downside is it will be a lot more work, since most of the bad guys will have class levels to deal with. Oh well
|
|
Part II:
For many ages the Magi, and their dark Void-spawned cousins lived in relative peace. Guided by their creators few of the mortals turned their hearts towards the Shadow or the Deceiver, though some were consumed by the Madness.
The children of the Magi grew into their own power, and many more were born. Some rose tin power, becoming almost as powerful as their parents, acknowledged as lesser gods by their peers and worshipers, while others aspired to no such greatness, content in a life of service to their elders.
With each birth the eldest harpy, Jealousy, would bring word to the Deceiver. The news cut deep wounds into the icy heart of the Deceiver, tormenting her matronly desire to bear children, and feeding her jealousy, just as the Harpy had hoped. Eventually, the Deceiver hatched scheme to seduce one of the Magi. She took the form of Skiyinae, but scratched and wounded as though by a beast. She entered a clear river hidden in the outer realms of the Magi’s domain, a place she knew the stormlord Brendil frequented. As she washed the wounds, a driving rain rose up around her as Brendil approached.
Brendil still longed for the caress of Skiyinae, and when the Deceiver told him that it was Hayfar that had wounded her so and sought comfort in his arms he did not see through her guise. They lay together, and after, while Brendil slept the Deceiver left him.
When he awoke alone, Brendil sought out Hayfar in a rage, but when he found Hayfar and Skiyinae together, the Deceiver’s ruse was undone, and he realized he had been tricked.
When the Deceiver’s first child was born, she named him War, and set him upon the mortal realm, and in his name the creations of Humar fought each other for the first time.
Through similar guile, the Deceiver bore a single child to each of the Magi. Hayfar fathered the twin children Verm and Arach, who twisted their father’s creations into all manner of vermin and stinging insect.
Ocea fathered Ver, who forsook his deceptive mother and pines at the court of his father despite being banished by his father’s wife.
The child of Arfar was stillborn, the creation of Arfar being too much opposed to the destruction of the Deceiver to take root. Learning of the child, Arfar fought his way though the horde of the Deceiver’s demons, and took the body. He brought it to the Eye, in an effort to kindle the life within, but instead the child’s form was shattered, taking root in the elemental domains, and giving rise to strange living creations made of nothing but the pure elements.
Magos’ child was much like his father, a master of magic and arcane art. In an effort to gain his father’s respect he quested to the edge of the void, seeking to understand it as his father understood the Maginar. Instead, he was consumed by the Void, becoming the Destroyer, servant of the Void.
Durago had no qualms in pairing with the Deceiver, having long been manipulated by the youngest harpy, Lust. The child grew inside the deceiver like a malignant tumor, and when it was ready it clawed its way out of her belly. The child named itself Skuul, and immediately began an endless war against his father for dominion over the souls of the fallen. Skull became the lord of the undead, and the reaver of souls.
So wounded was the Deceiver, that never again would all the scars heal, and never again could she have a divine child.
While the Deceiver mated with the Magi and brought forth the dark gods, mortals mated amongst themselves, raising all new species. The common ancestry made it possible for human to lay with elf or dwarf.
Elves and dwarves together fathered the gnomes, creatures of the wood and the earth, capricious and clever.
Dwarves and humans bred the Halflings, small and slight, they favored their human ancestors for all but size.
Humans and elves produced the harne, the half elves, which never truly fit into the realm of either parent.
And many were the children of Durago’s tinkering with human flesh who could breed with the truer children of the magi, raising up whole hordes of new half-breeds and mulish childer.