Marus (/MAR:uhss/)

Realm of the Seas

Introduction

Marus is a realm of endless blue sea and sky. Its floating island chains, anchored in the clouds and atop the waves, support a biosphere rampant with life. While diverse cultures command the archipelagos with their mastery of the sail and flourishing magical talents. With ingenuity and tenacity, they make up for what wealth and resources they cannot extract from the barren earth. At its very heart, Marus is a Realm built upon exploration, discovery, and advancement. The realm's mastery of the sail is unsurpassed in all the Cosmos and they have begun a steady march toward magical supremacy. The realm has few gods and none as great as Caydon Rel for The Lord of Magic is the undisputed highest power on Marus. His ascension marked the beginning of a new age and dawn for everyone living in the Realm of Seas.

Energy Sources

The three magical forces that command the cosmos were claimed by the Lord of Magic when he ascended. With his newfound power he transformed the very Realm at its most fundemental levels.

Glow

This natural manifestations of this magical force has become a rarity since Caydon Rel ascended. The Rainbow Sailfish remains the only well-known natural source. These giant fish swim in the deepest ocean currents, feeding at unknown depths before emerging engorged with Glow and ready for harvest.

Primal

The Relic Seas are a group of nine elementally infused island chains and surrounding bodies of water created by Caydon Rel. Each of these Primal seas are consumed by a primary element that has effected each one's geography, ecosystem, and biosphere to create distinctly unique regions.

Faith

On Marus the Soul of a Sophont does not empower a Domain or Divine when it dies. No true Divine has even ascended since the rise of Caydon Rel. Only those who existed before his tyrannical rule subsist into the modern age and some of his rivals have become just as widely accepted.

The Relic Arts

A collective term used to refer to the magical teachings, rules, and requirements surrounding the system of magic imposed by Caydon Rel on Marus. The God of Magic watches over all, and he has but one demand of his people: Improve Yourself. The Relic Arts center around the use and growth of one's Veil alongside the absorption of the potent Primal Elements found within Natural Treasures hidden across the Realm of Seas. The most powerful practitioners fuel ancient Relics and search for forgotten treasures as they attain ever-advancing heights on their Path to Power.

The Gifted...

Practitioners of the Relic Arts are known as the Gifted. They possess a Veil and have begun to absorb the pure energy held within a Natural Treasure, understanding and exploring the fathomless potential of even just that single Primal Element to better fuel their magic. A Gifted’s blood and their Veil will develop a series of metallic qualities as they advance that denotes their relative rank in power.

...And Their Veils

Put simply, these are metaphysical auras that grow around every Sophontic Soul on Marus. From birth to adulthood, Veils develop and mature until their Sophonts become capable of consciously absorbing the pure magic of Natural Treasures into themselves. These magical forces shape and influence the innate properties of each Veil to create a unique and recognizable fingerprint.

Natural Treasures...

These naturally produced objects are infused with potent magical energies and prized by all who live in the Realm of Seas. They are vital aspects of the natural ecosystem, sought after for Gifted advancement, and essential to the function of many magical constructs. They are commonly found in the form of Beast Cores, infused plants, or objects of historical significance.

...And Their Relics

These ancient artifacts of a bygone age now serve as the greatest tools of Marus' most powerful Gifted. These metallic objects are shrouded in mystery as each responds uniquely to each Veil and the specific blend of power found within. They are vital to attaining higher-tiered advancement and will inflict permanent changes in exchange for vast magical benefits.

Marus

Realm of the Seas

Water
Air

Realm Index

IJ-SHA

General Information

Primary Element
Water
Type
Magical Realm
Location under
Related Professions

Echo of Humanity

Humanity became a powerful force on Marus when they came to colonize in eons past. When Caydon Rel ascended 500 years ago, all mankind mysteriously vanished from the Realm. Now all that remains of these once-mighty people are their sundered ruins, callous Divines, and the ancient magical artifacts hidden by most.

Geography

The Realm of Seas is dominated by massive bodies of water that split up and isolate regional island chains from one another. Each of the Relic Seas is, in many ways, like its own isolated continent. Travel has become more and more commonplace among the nations of Marus despite its danger and many settled islands would not survive without the connections of trade that they have fostered to their homes over generations. Though most travel aboard boats on the sea, a growing number of Aeronauts have taken to the skies aboard lighter-than-air Wingships and flying Dirigibles.
 

Cloudtop Sea

Here lies a sea that has taken to the skies on the wings of Primal Air. Above the Realm of Seas blankets of cloud condense into interconnected islands of Primal Air and Water. The region is home to the second greatest population on Marus and the largest physical territory by far. It is the ancestral home of the Balao and the coveted prize of the Aviator's Society aboard their hovering Wingships and flying Dirigibles.

Death’s Basin

Here lies a putrid basin infused with Primal Decay and laced with dangerous boglands and marshes. It is the ancestral home of the KazaK and the region within which the Magebreaker Cult rests the dreaded Titancity of Blightwaith. Few people who venture into this debilitating region leave it unscathed and it has caused many across the Realm of Seas to harbor an understandably common fear for the deadly area.

Lily Forest

Here lies a vibrant sea lush with Primal Life and dotted with enormous water lilies that grow across its surface. This relatively shallow region northwest of the Sea of Brass has become the ancestral home of Cascarns, while their moving cities protect much of the infused waters. Several of the turtlefolk's Shell-back Cities patrol the region while hunting for rogue KazaK and harvesting the treasured World Lilies.

Sea of Brass

Here lies a temperate sea flush with Primal Earth, boasting the greatest number of islands across all the archipelagos. It is a place of great mineral wealth and a center of industry on Marus. Its booming population of Marati makes for a rowdy but capable foundation for society devoid of the cohesive leadership found elsewhere. There are countless islands in the region with many unchecked issues festering at their hearts.

Sea of Souls

Here lies an ethereal sea infused with Primal Light and emanating an eerie grayish-white glow. This region was once the heart of a grand city, but now reduced to the Flooded Acropolis, it is home to a mad dying god and his Sodden progeny. The cursed waters ruled by Acropolis threaten to steal the life of those who dare search the ruined megalopolis for hidden secrets from an archaic age before the Relic Arts.

Strait of Embers

Here lies a boiling sea polluted with the ash and Primal Fire emitted from the the Obsidian Arbiter's home. Volcanar's tears protect the his sacred island and prevent most vessels from reaching High Judgement. Those who brave the region's quick trade lanes between the Relic Seas must always remember that they have reserved themselves to the justice of the Divine and his faithful among the native Pa'Nui.

Tempus Sea

Here lies a sea consumed by a year-round cyclone of Primal Storm that protects the mobile academy of Caydon Rel from outsiders. Those who travel within the storm's eye as members of The Banded Circle are taught the Relic Arts by the greatest practitioners of the age. They are bonded by blood, oath, and iron as they advance their craft and learn Rel's magical secrets.

The Stillness

Here lies what once was a sea, now frozen solid as Primal Ice has taken over. This region was once known for its fishing, but centuries of steady temperature drops have turned this southernmost region into an arctic sheet. Stubborn local Passarins, continuing after generations of hardship, attempt the difficult traversal of the region in search of ways to melt the ice and return to their sacred way of life.

Veiled Sea

Here lies a sea shrouded in a fog of Primal Shadow and enveloped by the fearsome Veil of Quain, the Ever-Soul. Somewhere within lies the Horned Isle, a paradise rich in Natural Treasures that sits under the Veil Goddess' personal protection. Treasure hunters, Gifted, and craftsmen alike have all sought out the Isle's mythic power only to fall victim to its labrythnian fog.

Flora & Fungi

This Realm offers a nourishing environment for a vibrant array of plant life; often with species found that are unique to their specific islands. While there is a lack of undersea plants on Marus due to the absence of an accessible seabed, many cling to the LeLe Reef Cluster that exist on the undersides of floating islands . There are also several buoyant varieties of plant that have adapted to thrive upon the seas themselves with the most notable of these being the World Lily. The rampant magical energies found across Marus has led to many plants becoming magically infused and thus themselves were transformed into Natural Treasures. These magical Flora & Fungi make up the backbone of Gifted society in the form of reliable personal advancement, dependable fuel sources, and uncounterfeitable currency.

Fauna

The creatures of Marus are varied and diverse, with a diversified selection of colorful fish and a particularly large number of unique native beasts well-adapted to the elementally charged seas. Few creatures are devoid of any elemental influence, and all will develop a Natural Treasure known as a Beast Core. These vital magical components are essential to many individuals magical advancement and the creation of numerous enhanced objects.

Sophonts


Playable

Beastfolk
Deadfolk
Faefolk

Technology

The technology of Marus has suffered for centuries following the magical boom after Caydon Rel's ascension. Scientific progress and innovation fell to the wayside as magic proved more than capable of solving the day-to-day problems of the common people. The additional scarcity of earthen wealth on the Realm has hampered progress in many fields, but recent years have seen a rise in Dirigibles and Wingships taking to the skies. These marvelous achievements were only made possible through the discovery of a lighter-than-air gas known as Halaydrium. Using these beautiful contraptions, the Aviator's Society begins to scout out and claim the floating island chains of the Cloudtop Sea from the skyborn Balao civilization.


Cover image: by Logo by Garret Grace Lewis, edited by Oneriwien.

The Human Conquest

A Broken Crown

Humanity's mighty reach has come to the Realm of Seas. Their conquest of Marus would irrepairably alter the world for years to come, eventually giving birth to the Realm's greatest upheaval: Caydon Rel.

  • -2 BR


    The Battle of Half-Spire
    Military: Battle

    Caydon Rel, the soon to be God of Magic, falls upon the seat of Humanity on Marus with all the might of his mortal power. Their great tower is toppled and its caretaker is even slain. Yet from its corpse a terrible and unforseen horror would be born. The divine echo Acropolis would claw out from the heart of his namesake the Flooded Acropolis. Driven to madness by his wounds and the threat of death's void this once-exarch twists the world around him as he slowly fades into the great empty void.

  • Coronation Day
    Divine Ascension: Caydon Rel
    Religious event

    Caydon Rel ascends to become the Lord of Magic worshipped by the people of Marus for his might and his utter erasure of Humanity from the Realm. He reforged the world in his new vision and in this chaotic transition much of the Realm's history is lost. Massive upheavals in the newly formed Relic Seas see the collapse of Humanity's civilized world and the reclaimationm of its native life.

    Location
    Marus

The Relic Age

An Endless Crown

The Lord of Magic, Caydon Rel, has ascended to become the high Divine on Marus. Bringing with him an age of magic to the Realm of Seas.

  • 10 RA


    The Ice Sheet Forms
    Metaphysical / Paranormal event

    The Stillness, having steadily dropped in temperature since the world's remaking, finally begins to form one solid sheet across the entire expanse. A field of ice spanning the entire realm's southernmost waters. The Passarins living there struggle to adapt and survive as settlements and fishing grounds are swallowed by ice.

    Location
    The Stillness
    Species
    Passarins
  • 300 RA


    Aviator's Society Founding
    Founding

    Doctor Vincent Haladrius has discovered the wonders of Halaydrium and perfected his prototype designs for lighter-than-air vessels. This rising collective of souls had their sights set on the long inaccessible Cloudtop Sea and the thrill of its exploration and exploitation.

  • 501 RA


    Destiny's Eye
    Life, Supernatural

    A group awakens at the end of the Serpent's Trail having caught Destiny's Eye.

Comments

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Jun 19, 2023 19:52 by Dr Emily Vair-Turnbull

Leechfolk?! D: All the different seas sound so fascinating, though I wouldn't like to visit most of them. The Lily Forest sounds nice though, I'll visit there.

Emy x
Explore Etrea
Jun 20, 2023 18:29

Greetings Realmhopper, The KazaK are a true terror, we can only count ourselves lucky that they areunable to survive outside the twisted ecosystem of Marus. They emerge from their breeding pits in Death’s Basin and terrorize the Realm, targeting the closest population centers within the Lily Forest. The region is a true beauty and the Lily Groves are a marvel that rivals any Druidcraft I have seen.
— Signed...Elias Dods

Jun 28, 2023 13:19 by Han

...so you're saying we can go ice skating on the Stillness, right?


welcome to my signature! check out istralar!
Aug 7, 2024 19:02

Is primal water found in all the seas or is there no way to acquire it marus

Aug 7, 2024 19:04

Meant to say in marus

Aug 9, 2024 16:48

Greetings Realmhopper, Primal Water does indeed exists on all of Marus and some would say it is its most vital Primal Element. It is the force that tempers the other elemental powers of the Realm and it is this humble scholars opinion that its defusing nature is what allows so many regions rife with Confliction to coexist so harmoniously. Primal Water in its pure form has thus a rarified treasure in the Relic Seas of Marus. It is coveted by Water Gifted and stockpiled by those who have learned to purify the contaminating elements of the seas. Rarer still are the sequestered Natural Treasures that have preserved the Realm's primoridal waters from an age before Caydon Rel's ascension.
— Signed...Elias Dods

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