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Tahuum Itaqiin
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The Laws of Tahuum Itaqiin
Magic, a.k.a. the Sympathetic Force: The substance of magic is an unseen force, analogous to gravitational and electric forces, that only a few individuals ever learn to manipulate effectively. Sympathy, at its core, is the relatedness of the world's objects and entities to each other; successfully identifying these relationships--the movements of magical forces--is a matter of entering an altered state of mind through various means. Sympathetic spellcasting, then, is the achieving of this altered state of mind, followed by the identification and focusing of sympathetic bonds in order to influence spell subjects (the targets of spells) by means of acting upon spell agents (the material components of spells). The process of manipulating this force toward the end of casting spells is not only cerebral as well as geometric and acoustic, with magic practitioners (mages) in training having to develop their capacities for both semantic and procedural memory extensively in order to master their art. Magic is also partly the realm of the (waning) celestial and abyssal forces, so the pursuit of old ways of religion and mysticism is one path to accessing certain types of magic. Being that magic is one of the fundamental forces of this material realm, it can also be woven into material items and spaces through mystic crafts such as the enchantment of items (weapons, armor, jewelry, and the like) and the inscription of spells onto the pages of scrolls and spellbooks or as glyphs on physical surfaces.
The supernatural, in general: The disparate supernatural phenomena one may encounter serve to reveal this world's long history: While magic handed down by the gods is still practiced in centers of civilization, and the pursuit of eldritch magic appears to be relatively new, the world's older and more secluded places may be touched by types of magic and beings which pre-date either of these.
Eldritch forces: Another mysterious and more amorphous world "beyond the stars," as it is known to some astrologists and lore-keepers, is beginning to make more frequent incursions into the material world, with disruptive and sometimes horrific results. In places where the ordinary and eldritch worlds are not firmly divided, the magical forces underlying all things will prove more volatile, strange elements and substances may be found, and the fabric of space-time itself may itself be warped. The most eldritch-touched settings may feature disorienting and shifting geometry, may see time pass in a starkly different manner than it does in their surroundings, and may even be subject to a direct visit by one of the Timeless Entitities, most likely for the worse.
Cosmology
Regardless of what the world's various religions and authorities may teach, the actual cosmology of this world is a realistic, Earth-like one in respect to the formation of celestial bodies, natural history and evolution, and the like; this natural history has followed a course similar to that of Earth's albeit with a number of deviations, some of these natural and others the products result of magical or supernatural phenomena. Underlying the natural world is a magical weave, largely invisible but capable of being manipulated, not unlike physical forces such as gravity and magnetism.
Existing alongside and in tension with the Earth-like world is the eldritch realm, another world of which little is known by the inhabitants of the Earth-like one. The increasing frequency and danger of incursions from this eldritch realm evidently coincide with the introduction of a new, more mysterious manner of magic which the Earth-like world's mages have yet to properly grasp.
Principal Geography & Features
The primary setting is a large continent in the Earth-like planet's southern hemisphere accompanied by an equatorial archipelago and a large, Greenland-like mountainous island in the far southeast. The continent's geology and geography are naturalistic; for example, mountain ranges exist where tectonic plate collisions would dictate (and do not serve to divide the landscape into convenient subregions or zones as seen in a number of other fantasy worlds). The continent's regions are for the most part defined by naturalistic biomes and climate zones, complete with transitional zones.
Climate change has played an active role in the world's history, with the Third Era (Revival Era) being marked by relatively warm temperatures which have been favorable for the civilizations continent's major power centers, though not so much for those on the continent's peripheries. The First Era (Ancient Era) enjoyed similar conditions, facilitating the rise of civilizations in regions loosely comparable to the Mediterranean, the Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia, whereas the broad crisis of civilization marking the opening of the Second Era (Grim Era) roughly coincided with calamitous ash storms and a global cooling event, generally thought to be the result of cataclysmic volcanic activity.
Eldritch incursions have so far had a minimal impact on this world's geography. Already, though, some of the leading explorers of the world have discovered anomalies distant from known shores. Sailors dare not to follow the ocean currents to the north of the islands inhabited by the Maat'ese peoples, electing to take slower routes west to east across that ocean rather than contend with the harsh navigation conditions have been reported farther north. There are also tales of trade vessels meeting terrible fates due to bizarre, unexpected changes in tides and currents, and some have encountered horrible sea monsters that were once thought to be merely the stuff of legends. In a few scattered places, there have even been accounts of ships disappearing entirely, either vanishing without a trace or sailing "over the horizon" in the literal sense of appearing, from the perspectives of sailors on other vessels, to reach the horizon and then fall down into some unknown place, almost certainly to their demise. Some adventurous navigators have wondered, however, whether these phenomena far from shore necessarily spell doom for sailors or may act as gateways to previously unknown lands; few, of course, would dare involve themselves in such an experiment.
Initial Active Setting
The entire planet on which Tahuum Itaqiin is situated is slightly larger than Earth, but currently little beyond the Continent and its neighboring archipelagos is known to its people.
The principle regions in which the first stories written for this world will take place are the following:
The Haifatneh Basin: A great inland sea and coastlines settled by cultures inspired by ancient Mesopotamia and the medieval Arab caliphates. The north coast of this sea is connected to the vast ocean further northward by the Strait of Andaen, which is straddled by the Free City of Andaen. Andaen, despite its city-state status, is politically and economically powerful; the city-state's High Council maintains a standing army and navy in its defense and are willing to hire mercenaries if needed to involve themselves in larger affairs. The rest of the Haifatneh Coast is lined with other city-states and petty kingdoms or other nations, most of which seek stronger trade ties with Andaen and/or compete among themselves for power and security.
Vast Takhet: Generally differentiated into its relatively vibrant eastern coast (Near Takhet), its great mountains and former river valley (Tahket Alay), and its arid dunes and distant coastal desert (Far Takhet), Takhet is most comparable to the Atlas Mountains and Sahara Desert; its cultures most closely resemble those of the Imazighen (Berbers) of North Africa, along with Massai cultural elements and advanced metallurgy. The geopolitcal role of Near Takhet's city-states has often been comparable to that of the Barbary States of the real world's 16th to 19th centuries.
Saukkan-Ghat (Saukkan Valley): High, arid mountains with a few abundant river valleys host nomadic tribes and a few petty kingdoms with broadly Irano-Afghan cultural aesthetics. Though Saukkan-Ghat was historically a critical route for overland trade, the deprivations of the Grim Era followed by advancements in maritime navigation pushed many of its once-wealthy chiefs and princelings into brigandry and extortion. The wealthy leading families among the Saukkanese tribes had the means to train particularly deadly archers and cavalry, making them especially sought after as mercenaries.
Au-na-Lai: Anywhere from two to half a dozen kingdoms or empires have competed for hegemony here since time immemorial, and numerous smaller polities and tribes have long been subject to the designs of the greater powers around them. The warm, fairly wet climate, extensive flatlands, and abundant bays of Au-na-Lai are conducive to mass-scale agriculture and population growth, yet large expanses of land lack significant natural defenses against the armies that the wealthiest kingdoms can raise. Te-Dai, a prosperous if deeply oppressive kingdom of the central plains and wetlands, gazes upon its southern border warily, as the plains of the Green Steppe and the foothills of the Pan-sek Rim are ruled by pastoral nomads-turned-statespeople who are actively consolidating their power among both the nomads and agrarian groups there. Elsewhere on the fringes of Au-na-Lai are more rugged terrains and people who eke out more difficult existences. In these places, ranging from densely forested Gyoh-seh to the rugged Tibaliu Mountains, achieving political unity is difficult, and interlopers from Te-Dai or Pan-sek are often resisted via guerilla warfare.
War-al-Ashad: The scorching hot inland realm of the Shadrusun, a race (or more accurately, species) of sorcerors whose architecture and regular lifeways seem archaic, yet whose advancement in magical practice knows no rivals among humankind. While a few settlements and formidable strongholds persist in War-al-Ashad, many other sites have fallen to ruin, due either to the ravages of the Crusade or to population decline and relocation.
Vast Takhet: Generally differentiated into its relatively vibrant eastern coast (Near Takhet), its great mountains and former river valley (Tahket Alay), and its arid dunes and distant coastal desert (Far Takhet), Takhet is most comparable to the Atlas Mountains and Sahara Desert; its cultures most closely resemble those of the Imazighen (Berbers) of North Africa, along with Massai cultural elements and advanced metallurgy. The geopolitcal role of Near Takhet's city-states has often been comparable to that of the Barbary States of the real world's 16th to 19th centuries.
Saukkan-Ghat (Saukkan Valley): High, arid mountains with a few abundant river valleys host nomadic tribes and a few petty kingdoms with broadly Irano-Afghan cultural aesthetics. Though Saukkan-Ghat was historically a critical route for overland trade, the deprivations of the Grim Era followed by advancements in maritime navigation pushed many of its once-wealthy chiefs and princelings into brigandry and extortion. The wealthy leading families among the Saukkanese tribes had the means to train particularly deadly archers and cavalry, making them especially sought after as mercenaries.
Au-na-Lai: Anywhere from two to half a dozen kingdoms or empires have competed for hegemony here since time immemorial, and numerous smaller polities and tribes have long been subject to the designs of the greater powers around them. The warm, fairly wet climate, extensive flatlands, and abundant bays of Au-na-Lai are conducive to mass-scale agriculture and population growth, yet large expanses of land lack significant natural defenses against the armies that the wealthiest kingdoms can raise. Te-Dai, a prosperous if deeply oppressive kingdom of the central plains and wetlands, gazes upon its southern border warily, as the plains of the Green Steppe and the foothills of the Pan-sek Rim are ruled by pastoral nomads-turned-statespeople who are actively consolidating their power among both the nomads and agrarian groups there. Elsewhere on the fringes of Au-na-Lai are more rugged terrains and people who eke out more difficult existences. In these places, ranging from densely forested Gyoh-seh to the rugged Tibaliu Mountains, achieving political unity is difficult, and interlopers from Te-Dai or Pan-sek are often resisted via guerilla warfare.
War-al-Ashad: The scorching hot inland realm of the Shadrusun, a race (or more accurately, species) of sorcerors whose architecture and regular lifeways seem archaic, yet whose advancement in magical practice knows no rivals among humankind. While a few settlements and formidable strongholds persist in War-al-Ashad, many other sites have fallen to ruin, due either to the ravages of the Crusade or to population decline and relocation.
© Eric de Roulet and E.M. White, 2021-2025. All rights reserved.
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