Worlds:Phantapunk

From HOTGT

The land known as Aeryn was once controled by a single empire but is now a collection of nations and city-states loosely allied through the Church of the Six.

History

The Aerynth Empire ruled for almost a millenia. The twin Aeryn races, the Ethereals and Nocturnes, could not be stopped. Lands were conquered. Rebellions put down. No external enemy could stop them. An internal enemy, however, could. The Ethereals and Nocturnes began squabbling - a squabble that turned into a civil war. In the end the Nocturnes were driven back into the Sunless Lands and the Ethereals were in control of an empire in shambles. Within a decade the empire had collapsed and the Aerynth lands were in a dark age. Slowly, city- states and kingdoms crawled out of the darkness and back into the light. Trade was reestablished and old knowledge was rediscovered or reinvented. Then, the Daemon Horde invaded.

The Daemons came from another realm, entering through a series of portals into Aerynth. The force was overwhelming. The Ethereals, still the most powerful individual force in the land, were crushed and scattered. The gods of Aerynth, normally isolated from each other, banned together and ordered their followers to create the Church of the Six, which united the disperate elements of the land. The battles were long and bloody but, in the end, the Horde was driven back and the realm breaches sealed.

The tide was turned thanks to the discovery of new magics. Enchanters were able to overcome the problems of mergin essence with the living tissue. Skeletons could be given the essence of stone to create stronger warriors. Scouts could be given the essence of an owl's eyes to make them capable of night recon.

Now, the war is over and the world has changed. Without a threat, both the gods and their church are growing isolated. The new magics developed during the war are moving onto the commercial market. A landscape already dangerous without regular Aerynth Imperial patrols has been altered and is full of hazards and the unknown.

• 1300 years ago: The Aerynth Empire is established. Eventually it covers the entire land know known by the empire's name.
• 300 years ago: The Aerynth Empire collapses due to a civil war between the Nocturnes and the Ethereals.
• 30 years ago: The Nocturne emerge from the Sunless Lands and begin a campaign of conquest, founding the Midnight Empire.
• 10 years ago: The Daemon Horde War begins.
• 6 years ago: The Six decree a merging of their followers, creating the Church of the Six. All of Aerynth unites under the church's banner to battle the Daemons.
• 5 years ago: The Daemon Horde War ends when several heroic groups pass through the Daemon portals and shut them down from the other side.

Geography

Before it collapsed, the Aerynth empire stretched from the Western Ocean to the Roof of the World and from the Forest Southern to the Silent Sea. Today, the land ruled once ruled by the empire is still known as Aeryn and the many nations and city-states remain joined by commonalities in religion and culture. Regions, nations, and cities in Aeryn include:

• Aerynth: A faded remnant of a once glorius empire.
• Aerynth Wastes: A land destroyed during the Daemon Horde war.
• Blade's Edge: A Dryad farming community.
• Caris: Capital city of Gaum.
• Caverknox: Glorius city of the Church of the Six.
• Daemon Desert: Farm land transformed into desert by the presence of Daemons.
• Elowani: Island agricultural paradise.
• Forest Southern: A grand forest that stretches across the entire north of Aeryn.
• Forest of War: A forest filled with dangerous creatures.
• Fort Felle: A Daemon fort transformed into a free market.
• Gaum: A kingdom famous for both metals and the weapons made from them.
• Lunar University: Educational capital of the Midnight Empire.
• Midnight Empire: Empire of the Nocturne people.
• Pkunfixti: Home to the Bard's Guild.
• Quanur: Home to some of Aeryn's greatest hunters.
• Roof's Edge: A city on the edge of the Roof of the World.
• Roof of the World: A great mountain chain and home to the Trow.
• Shale League: An alliance of farming, herding, and foresting communities.
• Spali: A political power in Aeryn.
• Spalus: Home to the Spali Bank, the greatest financial institution in Aeryn.
• Sunless Lands: Odd valley where the sun only shines a few hours per day.
• Suppox: A Dryad kingdom and one of the greatest exporters of food in Aeryn.
• Velox: The origin city of phantapunking.
• Village: One of any number of Two-Form villages, all named the same thing.
• Wheat:: More a large farm than a city, Wheat is the capital of Suppox.
• Yehat: The only sovereignty in Aeryn that guarantees free speech to all citizens.

Races

• Dryad: Plant people from another realm.
• Ethereal: The blessed children of Ethera.
• Humans: Capable of adapting to many environments and systems.
  • Savages: A pygmy offshoot of humanity living in the wilds between cities.
• Nocturne: The blessed children of Nocturna.
• Scurriers: Small beings seen as pests by many.
• Trow: Mountain dwelling giants who were, until recently, seen as no more than slave stock.
• Two-Forms: Shapeshifters who prefer a simple village life to urban sprawl.
• Whistlers: Reptillian foresters who live in harmony with nature.

Dieties

The Six

• Ethera: God of daylight, agriculture, and scholarship.
• The Green Lady: Goddess of forests, music, and dreams.
• Nocturna: Goddess of moonlight, warfare, and secrets.
• Rock-Fist: God of mountains, crafting, and childbirth.
• Samilen: God of fortune, death, and law.
• Southern: God of magic, architecture, and waterways.

Anima

• Darkness: Devourer of life and bringer of peace.
• Flame: Force of destruction and creation.
• Luminance: The spark of primal life.
• Rock: Both tool and weapon.
• Water: Ever-changing bridge.
• Wind: Carrier of words and scents.

Languages

• Aerynthese: Language of the old Aerynth Empire and still used for trade.
• Aegist: Language of the destroyed Aegis kingdom.
• Daemon: Language of the Daemons.
• Earth Speak: Language of the Dryad.
• Nocturne Aerynthese: Language of the Midnight Empire.
• Quan: Language of the city-state of Quanur.
• South: Language of the Scurriers. They say it is the tongue of the gods.
• Splaish: Language of the Dutchy of Spali.
• Trowk: Language of the Trow.
• Veloxan: Language of the city-state of Velox and the surrounding area.
• Whistling: Language of the Whistlers of the Forest Southern.
• Words: Language of the Two-Forms.
• Yehatish: Language of the Principlality of Yehat, spoken by most Bards.

Locations

• Hightower: Mysterious ruin used to provide shelter from a storm.
• Jerimond's Cottage: An enchanting mage's abandoned home.
• Magehome: Splaus home to a Daemon conspirator.
• Caern Nix: Tomb of a famous Aerynth general.