Welcome to Acies The Land of Eternal Dusk
"This is the place where few men can live, and fewer can thrive!" - King Broden Keraph III
Acies is a world that is tidally locked to its star, meaning that one side always faces its star and the other always faces away. As to be expected, this makes for some pretty interesting locations, among other things. Only a thin band of the world is habitable and even less land is plentiful. The weather is unpredictable and violent, and there are many strange creatures that walk the world. In addition, as seen in the timeline, there was some sort of cataclysmic event, what exactly happened 500+ years ago is unknown, but this even greatly changed how the world worked.
Many different races came about in different places because they had to adapt to survive. This world ending event also means that different nations have varying levels of technology, both magic and mundane innovations vary from place to place. One must always consider the consequences of showing them self to the wrong people, because some races are not viewed in the kindest right, some rightfully so, and some not so much. However there are places where all races weather they be man, gnoll, celestial, or even kobold can walk free. But in some places, every creature walks freely, and after the 2nd demonic war and the Ink invasion, all manner of dark things now walk the streets as if they were there own.
Religion is a strange thing in Acies, the whole word is not united under one banner, but of all the religions of the world fallowed by the every day people, by far the largest is The Paradigm of Yhwysn, a monotheistic religion where the deity has been split to better connect the worshipers with there god, 12 to be exact. But there are others. Mephala goddess of darkness death and pain. Mephesto god of fire, greed, and demonic forces. Tundamorden the god of snow and wolves. There are plenty more, not all good, and not all evil.
The last and passably most important thing to remember about Acies is that the realms once believed to be separated from the world, such as the fey wild and the plane of water, are not separate. Forests of fey magic and great forests of all manner of elemental beings can be found across Acies. But many are not easily found by most adventurers, as many lie to far or are to dangerous to even begin exploring.
A Broken World
The most important thing to remember about Acies is that it is not a normal world. There is not a concept of day or night, there is no person who denies that things such as demons, ghosts, or beholders exist. Monsters and magic are not dreams, they are not fears of common people, it is every ware. Depending on the nation or city, it would not be surprising to see a Succubus walk the streets, or a mind flayer selling fresh meats at a market. This world is full of complicated history, and few intelligent races live in caves and filth like typically D&D worlds. However there are exceptions. You can not travel long distances in what would have been east and west without a DRAMATIC change in climate, and the weather is so severe that it cannot be ignored. In addition, there are no typical animals on Acies. No horses, no wolves, no fish. Obviously they still exist, but not the same way. For example, horses in the real world concept do not exist, but the ones on Acies have longer ears, are far stronger, and have feet that are like hoofed raptor claws. House cats are strange because they have forked tongue, and a single antenna, and some have webbed toes. This world is strange, and much of it, unexplored.
For clear reasons, the everyday creatures still use the rules of D&D 5e as normal, they are just different for flavor purposes. However, some creatures witch would normally not be able to be found as often in a medieval setting, depending on the world, are now available. Can you imagine the battle of Agincourt with raptors instead of horses? That is the idea we are working with. Just remember, nothing is as it seems.