Revelyá

Revelýa – An Introductory

The world was created amidst a chaos of relentless forces. It flowed through the concepts of time and space as we know them today and created what you may call a separate energy which was divided into two elements: A form and a sentient consciousness. To exist as one, two planes of existence came into being: The ethereal and the astral plane. The ethereal plane served as a space for the material form to exist in while the consciousness remained a part of the astral plane – both being a part of the other at the same time, bound together by what we today know as magic: An energy holding together the material and spiritual forces of an element. At the same time, the newly formed energy sprouted alterations from itself, creating four distinct planes of existence that each sprout forth their own force of being, defined by what we today call fire, water, earth and air. Where these planes meet is what one we call our Primal Material Plane: The world as we live in it today, a contained chaos of energy and haven of refinement. The farther one ventures out from the material plane, the more alien and hostile the world and existence of things becomes as one will slowly blend into the purest form of the elemental planes. Further out the elements become too strong for mortal minds to comprehend – clashing into each other in vicious violence forming an outer ring of existence known as the Elemental Chaos. As the creations played out amidst the chaos the forces were in an everlasting conflict with one another, building up chaos and energy alike until they splintered into two distinct forces: The forces of good and evil. Since both cannot exist within one another, their unending battle continues in all existing things as a mirror of their former selves, throughout our Primal Material Plane. To exist apart from one another, their existence is echoed in two separate planes of existence: The Feywild and The Fade – a reflection of our own material world and the place where demons and lucent beings dwell, one and the same, but apart at any given time, only defined by good and evil.

The First Age:

Magic was common during the first few aeons, when the world was still young. Not much is known of this time, but the ebb and flow of magic allowed for an abundant variety of sentient creatures to be created. Both defined by good and evil forces, tending one way or the other or balancing their virtues and values as neutral beings. Primordial beasts and faery creatures sprouted forth from The Feywild – a place where nature and magic take on the purest of forms in wilderness and fauna. On the other end, darkness formed sinister creatures such as daemons and fiends within The Fade, a dark and mysterious place of fog and confusing dreamscapes. It was within this First Age in which the first sentient being came to life and lived in their planes, slowly blending into the material plane of our world and making up the world as we know it today. The elements sprouted into existence from their planes and formed our landscape: Oceans crashed into one another, the mountains rose from the ground, air filled the lungs of all creatures while fire burst from the inner cores of the world and formed the land. Our world as we know it today was born amidst a chaotic blend of elements while sentient beings struggled for survival.

The Second Age: A Song of War and Betrayal

As time continued its unyielding journey, nature from our echo realms of The Feywild and The Fade blended into more common creatures and beings, forming new races such as dwarves, humans, halflings, orcs, lizardfolk, tieflings, dragonborn, elves and more. Societies formed and urban life was born, magic was bound to a more tangible essence and knowledge was amassed. The people living in our world found ways to stop the planes from blending into each other, leading to primeval beings staying trapped in The Fade while The Feywild and its secrets were mystified and forgotten. Great conflicts were fought among the races and other interest groups and kingdoms rose and fell, one civilization crumbling before the next. Millenia of great battles were fought and life and death became a fluctuating and uncertain virtue in an age of war. The common sensed among the living creatures knew, that magic was too powerful in its current form and the only way to stop the everlasting conflicts was to shun it away from the everyday lives of all. The mightiest wizards and sorcerers came together with one aim: Bind primordial magic to The Fade and its inhabitants – away from the material world where its conflicted harm is too great of a price to pay. With the greatest ritual this world has ever experienced so far, the essence of magic which once flowed so freely and created this world as we know it was bound to the astral plane and exiled to The Fade, where it has been slumbering since. The ritual being a success, all of the once mighty magic-wielders were powerless – all but one. One of the Acolytes had sworn into a powerful pact with a daemon from The Fade. Being the last remnant with magical powers, the betrayer obliterated those who did not stand aside, utilizing his powers into an unstoppable extent and gaining powers unimaginable. His subsequent reign ushered in the Third Age.

The Third Age: Exile

Magic-wielders are a very rare nowadays and quite unique. Magic of the world as we know it today only comes from two places: The Feywild and The Fade (Feyfolk call it ‘Dahae’, a very old term for the place where dreaming souls wander). Fey creatures such as faeries, elves, dryads or pixies found a way to harness their fey magic from their direct connection to the Feywild plane and this comprises some of the purest magic known to mortals. The only other way to gain magical abilities is to usually become a lucid dreamer: A creature with the ability to become lucid and enter an “awake” state while dreaming. Dreamers with this absolute power over their sleeping consciousness can then leave their dreamscape and enter The Fade to seek out one of the scheming daemons there. After ages of contact with the pure form of magic within The Fade, each daemon can harness and possess unique magical abilities – the more they harness, the more powerful they become. Being of a very treacherous and cunning nature, daemons want to play with mortal lives in the other planes of existence and try to expand their rule and power by binding themselves to a pact with weak minded dreamers who want to utilize magical abilities during their waking state this way – it’s a profitable situation for both beings, of course. Once bound, both beings exist from one another, each in their own plane of existence – our world and The Fade – and the magician can use his abilities once he masters the art of staying awake in the real world while being lucid at the same time; a skill that takes years or even decades full of dedication to master. The demon can utilize its partnership with the mortal being, gaining influence in the material plane. Therefore, humans, dwarves or other non-fey beings with magical abilities are utterly rare. The king being one of them…

Reign of Chaos

The “Hooded King”, as folk call him, has reigned supreme ever since the great Calamity took place and reshaped the world as we know it today. In his earlier lifetime he was known as Atrox The Wise – but after he took on the pact with Ëli, the greatest daemon of his age, his old age was never again an issue. Atrox’ lifeline took a turn and instead of dying, his pact with Ëli allowed him to stretch out his existence even further – always seeking ways of the old within The Fade to gain more power. Centuries of wandering The Fade and being shunned away in his fortress within the Barren Mountains, "The Bleak Keep" near the World’s Spine have resulted in him becoming less aware of the subjects within our material world and the responsibility that comes with ruling an empire. Instead the races and societies have ever since been condemned to a rule under several political figures in separate earldoms and states throughout the empire – each with its own reigning force and ways of keeping the order in a torn land. While there is much dispute between the earldoms and their jarls, there is another force, reminding them to stay in their place: The Pale Hand. An extension of the Hooded King’s rule, these servants are known and feared as envoys of the absent-minded monarch. Roaming the land with the help of the Blackwings – sinister crow-like birds which report everything they see back to the hand and the king – and instilling fear and authority among the more defiant folk.
This is the age in which you were born – the land is torn in a reign of chaos while the Hooded King sits absently in his Bleak Keep, ever seeking The Fade for darker ways to expand his power beyond his grasp. Creatures and Humanoids alike are struggling to make the most of their time in this world and the veil between the planes seems thinner than ever. Feyfolk are coming out of their hiding, dreamers and demons seem getting more ruthless by the day and reports from the Blackmarsh are stating that something is stirring in the dark swamps to the north. Rumor or Truth? It is your turn to set out for adventure and explore this land – your time is now.