Scope
What is your motivation for building this world?
The purpose of the build is to evoke emotion and provoke thought on things that matter. And still have fun playing in it!
What are you hoping to get out of it?
I want to lead readers and players alike on a journey that shows the beauty and pain of a world. A world that is a reflection of conflict between love for the natural world and all people, and at the same time a despair for the damage we do to ourselves.
What is the hook or unique selling point of your world? What makes it unique or different?
The overarching campaign journey is to discover the
truth of creation.
Past conflicts and cataclysmic events have left a topography of beauty, bounty, barrenness and toxicity, along with a hugely diverse range of species with often opposite views on life and social values. The stark differences provide opportunities and challenges; adaptation, intelligent planning and good execution are required to succeed. There are many areas that have not been inhabited or even explored in thousands of years;
revelations await.
Theme
What's the genre of your world?
The genre is political fantasy with
emergent scientific method and reasoning.
How does the world feel (player/reader experience)?
The feel varies wildly depending on the location. There are places of tranquility and light but also places of extreme danger and desolation. Overriding the feel of specific locations is an overall sense of anticipation that the world is approaching some sort of
crescendo. But also a sense that this could either be a wondrous moment or one which signals the end of everything.
What is the tone of your world?
Overall pretty dark with light peeking through to expose untruths and hypocrisies.
What is the character agency level like?
The culmination of the overarching campaign is either the
birth of a new age or a
descent into utter destruction. The stakes couldn't be higher and the adventurers will have a pivotal role. Adventures will form a
series of missions to collect and/or deliver items, information, allies for use in the
Final Confrontation.
What are recurring themes which reinforce the genre, tone and feel of your world?
Themes of unrest among emerging social and political groupings that threaten to destabilise national and societal norms across the Region. Constant political maneuvering using increasingly aggressive methods to either protect or bring down the status quo. Landscapes of poisonous wasteland including ruins of abandoned cities and archaeological sites that depict insights into the
true history of the world. Beautiful landscapes filled with vivid colours showing the true horror of
pollution to those with enough knowledge of nature and magic.
Meta
Military Might:
Conflicts exist between nation states as they vie for control over decreasing natural resources and stocks. Covert influence and control is being exerted by the
divine churches to varying degrees across the region to push their view on life, and afterlife, so as to protect their estate and other business interests. Diplomacy, spies, espionage, assassinations all epitomise the operations of nations and those pulling strings in the background.
Battle of Reason: There is increasing conflict between those of divine belief versus those of a more scientific rationale (the latter based in the
City of Light). Battles are primarily waged through
information wars. The few physical conflicts tend to be conducted through
agents and are, so far, on a small scale. The discovery of the existence of a potential
Ascendant may throw these conflicts into full-scale war.
Wealth Distribution: The wide
topographical variations have partially caused huge
gaps in wealth. The wealthy are concentrated in large cities built along major rivers or at natural harbours: trade is strong and military forces are deployed constantly to patrol and protect their way of life. Inhabitants of the wilderness and wastelands face a far harsher way of life (and death). These lands do contain
minerals of value but the miners are exploited with low pay and high taxes.
Changing Social Groupings: More powerful bonds between people that transcend other national or racial ties. A challenge to existing orders.
Drama
- The City of Light has become emboldened by consistent and now accelerating success to attract further people into its ranks. With such increasing support, they have expanded their Campaign of Truth and it is attracting more active attention from the divine churches.
- A divine church has seized full control of a nation-state through a coup. Its previously unknown forces swarmed the royal palace and immobilised the soldiery with an impeccably timed series of maneuvers akin to taking out the Knights Templar in Earth's history.
- Protests across the Region from the new social groups are rising in number and aggressiveness. National Authorities may feel the need to fight back with the use of force to maintain control.
- The sage Adesh has had a revelation that foretells of the imminent birth of the Ascendant on Acuthan. He must now decide on what actions he takes with this knowledge.
- An artifact has been discovered by an adventuring team in the Yari Hills. It is rumoured to have the ability to control powerful undead. In the 'wrong' hands this could cause a significant shift in the balance of power in this region. Operatives of nations and powerful organisations are planning their moves to capture this device.
- Unprecedented storms are occurring in the Black Mountain range, a so-far relatively unexplored area. The storms are causing floods that are taking out villages and towns for hundreds of miles.
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