Raven Crowking
First Post
Hi there.
I thought some of you might enjoy the following, which is a campaign document for my world. copyright (c) Daniel J. Bishop 2004....but if there's a publisher out there who wants to use it, drop me a line!
Cosmology of the Middle World
In the beginning, there was Chaos, void and without form. And in that Chaos dwelt the Elder Gods, who swam in nothingness, spinning and consuming light and matter in their endless insanity and evil. There were not days, nor years, nor eons, and Time before Time passed in an infinite unmarked crawl.
From whence the Great Titans came, or how, cannot be told, for it was unseen by mortal eyes and the Great Titans did not say. Yet it was they who first strove with the Elder Gods and brought Order to the Cosmos. They formed the Heavens for their dwelling, and the Hells, and consigned the Elder Gods to the Far Pit, and sealed them there with the Elder Sign. In that epic battle, the bones of the Great Titans mingled with the blood and ichors of the Elder Gods, becoming the Middle World upon which mortal creatures dwell. The formation of the Middle World is thought to have twisted the cosmos, creating the elemental and transitive planes.
In the early days of the Middle World, the air was thick with Spirits of various powers and abilities, too many for mortals to name. These Spirits brought forth mortal life in their diverse images, including the various races of Men and Elves, the beasts, and the Dark Folk. These were days of High Magic, when the Spirits communed with Men and taught them the secret language of the Cosmos. This is accounted the First Age of the Middle World: between the creation and the attention of the Great Titans. For when the Great Titans became aware of the Middle World, they sought to devour its creatures as sacrifices upon an altar.
The Spirits strove with the Great Titans for mastery, and cast the Great Titans down, binding them forever within the Earth. In this battle, new lands were raised, and old lands cast down. Nations were washed away, and much that was once known was lost. This was the Second Age, the Age of Chaos on Earth, when the Elder Signs were first weakened, and the servants of the Elder Gods again began to manifest from beyond the Far Pit.
Now two thirds of the Spirits sought to control the Heavens under the banner of their leader Mardan, and those who were powerful among them called themselves the Younger Gods. One third of the Spirits loved the world, and became entwined with it, and became the Faeries. Some of these also called themselves Gods, and became Lords of Beasts, or minor Lords of Oak and Wold, or Gods of Places and Events. Yet already the tendrils of the Elder Gods wormed their way into the hearts of some among the Younger Gods and the Faerie Lords, and they turned to evil. There was War in Heaven, and half the Celestial Host perished, and of those who remained half were banished to the deeps of the Hells, there to remain unless released, or until Time Itself should come to pass away. This was accounted the Third Age of the Middle World, and long it endured, while the Celestial Spirits turned from the mortal races, who in turn ceased to look toward the Celestial Spirits and instead worshipped the Faerie Lords.
Then the Middle World entered the Fourth Age, which is the current Age of the World. Now the Celestials have turned their eyes once more to mortal affairs, and seek to bring order and plenty to their mortal worshipers. Yet the Faerie Lords have grown strong, and not all wish order and growth for the mortal races. Though the Fallen Spirits are consigned to the Hells, still mortals may call them forth, and their powers may fuel agents in the Middle World, who seek the undoing of the Celestials. Finally, the Elder Gods still act from the shadows, malevolent, evil, and older than Time. Their threat lies in the spread of madness, and the shortsighted greed of those that came after them – mortals and Spirits alike. For if the Elder Gods prevail, all order shall turn to Chaos, and the Cosmos shall pass away.
I thought some of you might enjoy the following, which is a campaign document for my world. copyright (c) Daniel J. Bishop 2004....but if there's a publisher out there who wants to use it, drop me a line!
Cosmology of the Middle World
In the beginning, there was Chaos, void and without form. And in that Chaos dwelt the Elder Gods, who swam in nothingness, spinning and consuming light and matter in their endless insanity and evil. There were not days, nor years, nor eons, and Time before Time passed in an infinite unmarked crawl.
From whence the Great Titans came, or how, cannot be told, for it was unseen by mortal eyes and the Great Titans did not say. Yet it was they who first strove with the Elder Gods and brought Order to the Cosmos. They formed the Heavens for their dwelling, and the Hells, and consigned the Elder Gods to the Far Pit, and sealed them there with the Elder Sign. In that epic battle, the bones of the Great Titans mingled with the blood and ichors of the Elder Gods, becoming the Middle World upon which mortal creatures dwell. The formation of the Middle World is thought to have twisted the cosmos, creating the elemental and transitive planes.
In the early days of the Middle World, the air was thick with Spirits of various powers and abilities, too many for mortals to name. These Spirits brought forth mortal life in their diverse images, including the various races of Men and Elves, the beasts, and the Dark Folk. These were days of High Magic, when the Spirits communed with Men and taught them the secret language of the Cosmos. This is accounted the First Age of the Middle World: between the creation and the attention of the Great Titans. For when the Great Titans became aware of the Middle World, they sought to devour its creatures as sacrifices upon an altar.
The Spirits strove with the Great Titans for mastery, and cast the Great Titans down, binding them forever within the Earth. In this battle, new lands were raised, and old lands cast down. Nations were washed away, and much that was once known was lost. This was the Second Age, the Age of Chaos on Earth, when the Elder Signs were first weakened, and the servants of the Elder Gods again began to manifest from beyond the Far Pit.
Now two thirds of the Spirits sought to control the Heavens under the banner of their leader Mardan, and those who were powerful among them called themselves the Younger Gods. One third of the Spirits loved the world, and became entwined with it, and became the Faeries. Some of these also called themselves Gods, and became Lords of Beasts, or minor Lords of Oak and Wold, or Gods of Places and Events. Yet already the tendrils of the Elder Gods wormed their way into the hearts of some among the Younger Gods and the Faerie Lords, and they turned to evil. There was War in Heaven, and half the Celestial Host perished, and of those who remained half were banished to the deeps of the Hells, there to remain unless released, or until Time Itself should come to pass away. This was accounted the Third Age of the Middle World, and long it endured, while the Celestial Spirits turned from the mortal races, who in turn ceased to look toward the Celestial Spirits and instead worshipped the Faerie Lords.
Then the Middle World entered the Fourth Age, which is the current Age of the World. Now the Celestials have turned their eyes once more to mortal affairs, and seek to bring order and plenty to their mortal worshipers. Yet the Faerie Lords have grown strong, and not all wish order and growth for the mortal races. Though the Fallen Spirits are consigned to the Hells, still mortals may call them forth, and their powers may fuel agents in the Middle World, who seek the undoing of the Celestials. Finally, the Elder Gods still act from the shadows, malevolent, evil, and older than Time. Their threat lies in the spread of madness, and the shortsighted greed of those that came after them – mortals and Spirits alike. For if the Elder Gods prevail, all order shall turn to Chaos, and the Cosmos shall pass away.
