Dim World

Contains some major spoilers for the little dragon of dim world

Dim World is located just below Earth, and is the first world in the infinite chain that is nearly completely magicless following the great corruption. While the old world held a thriving magic based society, the removal led to a catastrophic downfall of society. What was left was a semi-feudalistic, post-apocalyptic world running its tech on mysterious Draconium crystals.

Geography

Dim World has many common features of worlds. However, unlike several of the nearby worlds it does not have particularly cold polar regions. This is due to excessive heat from the world’s core, which gives the entire planet a relatively mild climate. There are two larger oceans on Dim World, but evaporation is fueled more by the planet's core than its distant sun. The clouds over the dim world are almost entirely smog from industry, war, and volcanic activity.
There are several large mountain ranges on Dim World. These often serve as boundaries between regions, and therefore frequently become the sites of battles.
The drinking water of the dim world is largely contaminated, especially in regions with high mining or industry, or in areas with ongoing combat. As such, mechanical water purifiers are highly sought after. Many smaller villages cannot afford them, and have to get their water from other sources or attempt to remove the impurities themselves.

Old Ones Ruins

The remains of the pre-corruption Dim World cultures can be found all over the world. They are most frequently found preserved in deserts and carved into the sides of mountains. The construction and architecture is confusing to modern Dim World explorers, as much of it relied on magic.
The best preserved ruins can be found at the bottom of secluded valleys, which are rarely accessible to modern inhabitants. These ruins are of ancient fortified cities that were built in the valleys for protection during the war with interdimensional dragon riders from the water world above Siv’ia.
The fortified ruins are the most magical, and contain the most innovative technologies of the pre corruption world.

Dull Growth Patches

Dull Growths are a common, bland variety of mushroom that grows along cliff sides and in battlefields. Many people depend on dull growths as a food source, as they are relatively nutritious despite their taste.
Most dull growth patches are found high in the mountains. They are characterized by unusually damp soil or rock, or cracks in the exposed mountainside. Harvesting dull growths is very risky, and requires one to repel down a cliff face to the mushrooms and pick them, before climbing back up with the mushrooms. Still, thousands of people risk the climb every winter in a desperate attempt to keep themselves and their families fed.

Draconium Caves

Throughout Dim World caves full of glowing, powerful, blue crystals. These caves are found everywhere in the world and in every biome, since they are not natural. They are instead the remnant of an invasion by mysterious forces who hid unhatched dragon crystals all across the planet in preparation. Some of these are in natural caves, others were made by the invaders but now look natural due to weathering and high seismic activity.
When Dim World was cut off from the magic flow, most of the dragon crystals died. Hence, the majority of draconium mined on dim worlds appears to be hollow or shattered crystals. On occasion, a crystal will be found that was mature enough at the cut off that some remnants of the dragon’s platinum wing bones can be found.
So far, the only known surviving dragon is Cobalt, who is in the care of the rebel fighter Ariza.

Industrial Wastes

This environment forms in one of two scenarios: where an industrial area collapses or is abandoned, or at the site of a devastating battle.
In the case of industry, half crumbled factories and junk yards line the landscape. The water and air are heavily polluted and not much is able to thrive there. Smaller fragments of machines may be found scattered about, depending on how the abandonment happened. These wastelands can be anywhere from a half kilometer square to the size of several cities.
Battle wastelands are different. While the land is similarly polluted, the pollution is not as extreme or uniform. As such, certain hardier plants can thrive there. The landscape is dotted with weapons, bones, supplies, and mechs- often those too damaged to salvage, or left by a retreating army. Some brave souls venture into these wastes to scavenge parts, supplies, and draconium cores. This is more valuable soon after the battle, but also more dangerous.

Localized Phenomena

As a combination of the large number of draconium caves and the sudden ripping of magic out of the world, the dim world experiences unusually frequent seismic activity. Sinkholes and mudslides are most common, often caused by collapsing draconium caves. Earthquakes are also frequent. Volcanoes are less common, but their eruptions are much more violent than those on earth.
The large scale of combat and the heavy caliber of weaponry in recent decades has made these seismic issues worse, as heavy weaponry triggers more rockslides. Additionally, large mechs put additional stress on the caves, leading to an increase in cave-ins and sinkholes.

Natural Resources

The most famous resource in Dim World is probably Draconium. While these crystals can be found in many other worlds and don't originate in Dim World, they are often recognised for what they are or simply left alone. Dim World is the only world known to have explored the energy and technological use of dead dragon crystals.
More specific to the world itself, unusually large deposits of iron, tin, copper, and other metals in the crust of dim world has allowed for quicker and larger scale technology development, including the development of mechs.

History

In the pre-corruption era, dim world was a thriving planet similar in development level to roman era earth. There were many thriving species and cultures who built impressive magical cities. These cities sometimes fought, sometimes traded, sometimes allied. At some point, one or more of these cities discovered interdimensional travel and somehow predicted a war, leading to the dragon invasion.   The invasion was quickly becoming an international crisis at the time of the corruption. Many cultures suddenly started building their cities in deep valleys that were likely to be overlooked from the air, or into the sides of cliffs where they were more easily defensible. At the same time, weapons technology was taking a huge leap forward and it is suspected magic also advanced greatly.
Then, magic stopped. The dragons died. Cities fell into ruin and were abandoned in a matter of weeks. Dim World was spared from the corruption, but it would be centuries before recognisable society would rise again.
The dark ages of the dim world were plagued with starvation, violence, and horror. The entire concept of technology, defense, healing, and anything else based around magic had to be painstakingly rethought and reinvented in a world without it. When small kingdoms began to form again, they were unstable and prone to civil war.
For the few centuries, dim world started to form feudal states. The usage of draconium as an energy source spread, and a few stable countries were even established. For the most part, instability remains the norm in dim world.
Of course, no tale of dim world would be complete without mentioning the Obsidian Order. This group of techno knights formed with the goal of reducing suffering brought on by the unstable politics and nature of dim world, without regard for borders, rivalries, politics, or stigma. This made them unpopular with some, and suspicious to many others.
The order was nearly completely wiped out when the Count rose to power in the Rustkeep region. Before and after the wipe-out, propaganda campaigns and misinformation have been used to justify the actions. The order may be on its way back, as retired mech pilots, mechanics, and even a few remaining knights have taken up the fight against the Count and other tyrants. As of this article's writings, the order has recognized its first new knight in nearly three decades: a former mercenary now known as Fluke.

for related articles, see: Dull Growths, Little Dragon of Dim World, Dragons, and the Infinite Chain.

Type

Universe

Related Materials

• Draconium