Fundamentals

These Are the Basic Themes and Mechanics in Out-Worlders

And are subject to change, I will do my best to keep these updated.

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State of the World

As a somewhat stereotypical high-fantasy world, Out-Worlders has a few unique situations. The main being Astral Gates and Hells Gates being prominent within the world. These gates function as doors to other realms that hold the main antagonists in the form of monsters and sentient beings of great power.
These gates also come in the form of temporary "incursions", spilling out magical beasts and flooding the world with ambient magic. As it is, the world can be seen as a balloon filled with air. These gates are adding more and more air to this balloon. Once the air (ambient magic) crosses a certain threshold, the balloon will pop. We don't like worlds popping. Or maybe you do...

Magic, Abilities and Rank

The magic system of Out-Worlders is the same that can be found in Shirtaloon's He Who Fights With Monsters. Magical abilities are bestowed by absorbing objects known as Essences. These objects are loosely defined concepts instead of specific areas of expertise (i.e. "Weaponry" instead of sword or war-hammer, "Swift" instead of agility or acrobatics). Further examples of this can be found here. Once an individual has gathered and absorbed three Essences, a fourth is automatically created and absorbed. This fourth essence is the combination of all three previously absorbed, like a math equation. Think of it as "x + y + z = a". Each essence grants 3 unique abilities to be utilized. Typically, I like to include 2 of the total 12 as one passive Aura skill and one perception skill, but you can mix and match whatever you like.

Example of an essence "equation": Air + Flight + Swift = Bird

Once all essences have been absorbed, a person will be bestowed a rank, starting at Iron. This ranking system clarifies the current power of an individual or creature. While mortal individuals are capable of ascending these ranks, creatures or immortal beings are not. Rank disparity is the easiest way to understand an encounter. For instance, an Iron rank individual would never engage a Diamond rank creature, as this is certain death. The five ranks are:

• Iron
• Bronze
• Silver
• Gold
• Diamond

A cautious individual could survive a conflict with someone or something one rank above them, but likely will not win. When creeping closer to the higher ranks, the chance of survival becomes less and less likely. Iron could potentially defeat Bronze, Bronze will likely lose to Silver, Silver will near certainly lose to Gold, Gold will be killed by a Diamond.

Powerful Factions and Organizations

The top of the global food chain is the Adventurer Society, an organization comprised of the world's essence users. Going against this organization would be like an ant trying to take down an elephant, an ant that has cut off its own legs. The benefits of being a member of this organization far out-weigh any potential gain by opposing them.
In a similar vein, and at a close second, is the Magic Society. While not the muscle-bound adventurers, members of the Magic Society are invaluable for the resources they provide and work they do. While one could sabotage their efforts, the backing of the wider-world leaves them protected from overt threats.
Composed of essence users and the wider population, the Conservationist Society is focuses on the protection of Beastren ancestral lands, and wildlife exploitation. While not nearly as powerful as the main organizations, the members of this society are loved by the Beastren populations. Unless you would like to see what the inside of a humanoid lion's mouth looks like, it would be wise to not interfere with the Conservationist Society's efforts.


There will certainly be a day when I add more established factions with their own articles, but today is not that day. What can be expected outside of the listed factions/ organizations are various noble families in each region, a loosely organized criminal underworld with figureheads, secret societies, and cults.

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Work In Progress

More to Come

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