The Flux

The Nexus Event
Centuries ago, the site of Barrensburg was a place of immense magical significance, where ley lines converged, creating a magical nexus. This nexus was revered by scholars, mages, and priests, who saw it as a source of endless energy and inspiration. However, the balance was shattered when a meteor, later revealed to be an ancient spacecraft, crashed into the area.
The Catastrophic Impact: The crash unleashed an explosion of arcane energy, fracturing the magical nexus and creating a permanent rift between planes. The destruction killed all aboard the ship, scattering their artifacts and technology across the area. The blast corrupted the ley lines, causing the boundaries between the Material Plane and others to weaken cyclically.
The First High Tide: Shortly after the crash, the first high tide occurred, bringing forth planar creatures and anomalies that devastated the area.
The Modern Understanding: Scholars now believe the Flux is a fusion of the broken ley line nexus and the alien technology from the ship, creating a unique and unpredictable phenomenon. The Astral Exchange Consortium and other guilds continue to search for remnants of the spacecraft, hoping to unlock its secrets.
Creatures and Anomalies of the Flux
Common Entities
Ethereal Wisps: Floating, glowing orbs that emit faint melodies or whispers. While harmless alone, they can draw larger planar predators or confuse travelers. Planar Origin: Feywild or Ethereal Plane. Value: Their light can be distilled into luminescent oils used in alchemical potions.
Rift Beasts: Predatory creatures resembling warped versions of animals, with features such as additional limbs or glowing eyes. Planar Origin: Beastlands or Shadowfell. Danger Level: Medium to high, depending on size and intelligence.
Shardkin: Humanoid entities made entirely of crystalline energy, believed to be fragments of the original nexus given form. Planar Origin: Elemental Plane of Earth or Astral Plane. Behavior: Often hostile but highly prized for their crystal cores.
Notable Phenomena
Temporal Vortices: Small pockets where time loops or slows, creating disorienting experiences for anyone caught inside. Effect: A single minute could last hours, or events might repeat endlessly. Value: Temporal vortices often stabilize into Timeglass Shards, rare components for chronomantic spells.
Planar Echoes: Entire sections of the Rift District can temporarily take on the appearance and properties of another plane. Examples: A street transformed into a molten river (Elemental Plane of Fire). A market filled with ghostly vendors selling illusory wares (Ethereal Plane).
Gravity Wells: Localized zones where gravity behaves unpredictably. Objects may float, fall sideways, or remain suspended mid-air.
Historical Events Tied to the Flux
The First Surge (Year 0 AR – After Rift): The initial catastrophic surge after the meteor’s crash devastated the area and reshaped Barrensburg’s geography. Survivors fortified the Rift District and began studying the phenomenon, marking the event as Year 0 AR.
The Siege of Shadows (Year 217 AR): A prolonged high tide brought a flood of Shadowfell creatures, including wraiths and specters, into the city. The Riftguard and Astral Knights barely managed to contain the incursion, with legends describing their final stand atop the Tidal Clock.
The Glimmering Harvest (Year 472 AR): A rare low tide stabilized planar anomalies, allowing an unprecedented harvest of Astral Ice. The bounty sparked a brief economic boom, though it also heightened tensions between guilds vying for control over the Rift’s resources.
Guilds and Factions Involved with the Flux
Astral Exchange Consortium: Exploits the Flux for economic gain, focusing on extracting and refining resources like Astral Ice and planar artifacts.
Riftguard: Trains specifically to combat planar incursions, seal breaches, and protect Barrensburg’s citizens.
Artificer’s League: Develops technology and enchantments to stabilize areas affected by the Flux and create Rift-resistant tools.
Planar Compact: Advocates for peaceful coexistence with non-hostile entities that emerge during high tides, often attempting to establish communication or trade.
How People and Guilds Exploit the Flux
Astral Ice Harvesting: During low tides, scavengers venture into the Rift District to gather Astral Ice, a volatile substance used in alchemy, enchantments, and planar research.
Artifact Recovery: Guilds and adventurers hunt for remnants of the alien spacecraft, hoping to uncover advanced technology or rare materials.
Planar Trade: Some factions have established trade agreements with intelligent planar entities, exchanging goods or knowledge.
Magical Advancements: Mages and scholars use the Flux as a source of inspiration for new spells, enchantments, and technologies.

Manifestation

Visual Indicators: During a high tide, the Flux creates shimmering distortions in the air, as though reality itself ripples like water. Colors not found in nature bloom and fade in the sky above the Rift District, and faint outlines of other planes momentarily overlap with the city.
Sound and Sensation: A low, resonant hum accompanies the Flux, growing louder during high tides. People near the Rift District often describe a sense of unease or exhilaration, as if being watched by unseen eyes.
Planar Tears: The Flux manifests as localized tears in reality, appearing as rifts or portals of swirling energy. These tears vary in size and stability, with smaller ones flickering briefly and larger ones persisting for hours.
Behavior and Rhythms
Ebb and Flow: The Flux follows a tidal rhythm, with high tides marked by intense activity and low tides offering periods of calm. The Tidal Clock tracks these cycles, helping citizens prepare for surges in planar activity.
Unpredictability: While the Tidal Clock provides a general forecast, minor fluxes and unexpected surges occur without warning, keeping the Rift District dangerous and volatile.
Dimensional Influence: Each high tide can have unique characteristics depending on the planes influencing it: Fire Plane Influence: Intense heat, flickering flames, and ash-filled winds. Feywild Influence: Rapid plant growth, glowing flora, and whimsical yet dangerous creatures. Shadowfell Influence: Chilling air, eerie whispers, and shadowy entities.
Creatures and Phenomena
Planar Entities: Creatures from other dimensions often emerge through the Flux, ranging from harmless curiosities to deadly invaders. Examples include: Ethereal Wisps: Floating, glowing lights that feed on emotion. Rift Beasts: Large, predatory creatures adapted to unstable environments. Planar Negotiators: Intelligent beings who see the Rift as an opportunity for trade or conquest.
Planar Anomalies: The Flux can create temporary phenomena that defy natural laws: Gravity Shifts: Objects float or fall in unpredictable patterns. Temporal Stutters: Time loops or skips in small areas. Energy Flares: Sudden bursts of elemental or arcane energy.
The Walls of the Rift District.
They encircle the district and originally were simple walls around a city, but after the crash of the spacecraft, they grew to enormous sizes, combining the original walls and the wreckage of the fallen spacecraft, arching up like gnarled fingers, curling around the rift like massive hands reaching up to tear the whole sky down. Physical Appearance Height and Structure: Towering hundreds of feet high, the walls dominate the city’s skyline, visible from nearly every district of Barrensburg. Their surfaces are a patchwork of the original stone masonry and the alien alloys and technology from the spacecraft wreckage, fused together in a seamless yet chaotic amalgamation. Shape and Design: The walls arch and twist upward like gnarled fingers, curling protectively around the Rift District. From a distance, they appear like massive hands clawing at the sky, giving the district an ominous and otherworldly silhouette. Textures and Patterns: The stone sections are heavily weathered, bearing the marks of centuries of erosion and battle. The alien metal glimmers faintly with an iridescent sheen, etched with incomprehensible patterns that seem to shift when observed. Planar Energy Residue: The walls occasionally pulse faintly with the colors of the Rift during high tides, as if reacting to the planar energy. Strange flora, such as glowing mosses and crystalline vines, grow in patches, feeding off the residual magic.
Key Features
The Tidal Gates: Massive iron gates reinforced with alien alloy, serving as the primary access points to the Rift District. Operated only during low tides or in emergencies, these gates are heavily guarded and require the approval of the Riftguard to open. The Climbing Towers: Spiral towers built into the walls, allowing Riftguard sentries to observe the district and monitor high tides. Each tower is equipped with signal beacons to alert the city of flux surges or breaches. The Rift Spire: A central section of the wall where the Tidal Clock is embedded, combining mechanical gears, arcane runes, and alien technology. Serves as the symbolic and functional heart of the Rift District’s defenses.
Legend and Mystery
The Living Walls Myth: Some believe the walls are semi-sentient, reacting to the Flux as though alive. Occasional creaks and groans during high tides feed this superstition.
Hidden Chambers: Rumors persist of secret chambers within the walls, where ancient relics, alien technology, or forbidden knowledge is hidden. Some scavengers claim to have found entry points, but none have returned with proof. The Alien Influence: Scholars debate whether the alien materials in the walls contribute to their apparent growth and resilience, or if some dormant technology still operates within them.

Localization

Impact on the Rift District Danger Zones: The Rift District is divided into safe zones and Flux-active areas, with the latter requiring constant monitoring by the Riftguard and guilds. Safe zones can quickly become dangerous during a high tide. Life in the Rift District: Residents adapt to the Flux by building shelters with reinforced materials and maintaining emergency escape plans. Some thrive by scavenging artifacts or hunting planar creatures for valuable materials.
Impact on the Riftguard Protective Measures: Riftguard soldiers wear insulated gauntlets and armor to avoid direct contact with the walls during patrols or repairs. Despite precautions, occasional accidents lead to guards being haunted by lingering voices, forcing them to retire or undergo magical treatment. Selection and Training: Potential recruits for the Riftguard undergo mental resilience training, ensuring they can resist the psychological effects of hearing or imagining the voices. Veteran guards develop superstitions, such as offering small tokens or prayers to the spirits before starting a shift near the walls. Riftguard Legends: Some guards claim to recognize the voices, reporting names or details about the passengers they could not possibly know. Tales of Riftguard members driven to madness by the walls are common, used to caution new recruits.
Effect on Scavengers and Adventurers
Risk and Reward: Scavengers brave the walls to access hidden caches or artifacts embedded within, knowing the voices might drive them insane. Charms and Wards: Many carry talismans or enchanted items believed to block the spirits’ influence, though their effectiveness varies.
The Maddened Wanderers: Those who have spent too long near the walls, particularly during high tides, often lose their grip on reality. These individuals, known as Wailers, wander the Rift District, mumbling incoherent warnings or succumbing to violent outbursts.
Effect on the City’s Superstitions
Spiritual Beliefs: Many citizens believe the spirits are the souls of passengers trapped between life and death, bound to the walls by the Flux. Temples in Barrensburg hold annual rituals to “soothe the spirits,” offering flowers, food, and prayers near the gates. Urban Legends: Stories of the walls are passed down as cautionary tales: A child who touched the walls and began to hear their own parents’ voices, despite them being alive. A scavenger who vanished after claiming the spirits offered them a great treasure hidden in the Rift. Taboo Status: Most citizens refuse to go near the walls unless absolutely necessary, and touching them is considered a dire omen.
Attempts to Counteract the Phenomenon
Magical Research: The Artificer’s League has experimented with dampening wards to block the walls’ effects, but these wards are unreliable and require constant maintenance. Scholars from the Planar Compact theorize that the spirits are planar echoes, fragments of consciousness bound by the alien technology and the Flux. Riftwardens’ Exorcisms: Riftguard chaplains and clerics perform cleansing rituals for those afflicted, though the results are inconsistent. Some priests of Chantea see the phenomenon as divine punishment for meddling with the Rift. The Mind’s Echo: Certain researchers argue that prolonged exposure to the walls causes a psychic resonance, permanently imprinting voices in the victim’s mind. This theory has led to the development of memory-binding spells, which attempt to seal the voices away, though these spells are costly and controversial.

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane