High magic dnd setting

arcanaman · 29th November 2008, 09:07 PM

Let me throw this out here if you have anything to add please do criticism is helpful still a work in progress this for 3.5 dnd
Men were once slaves to a large empire of magic weidling elves man

eventually rebeled and stold some of there masters spellbooks in order to

fight back. Eventually man was exiled or set free depending upon which

story you want to believe but man still feared the power of their old

masters and the arcane knowledge spread and florished eventually an

Evoker named Adeiron united man under himself and built a great city in

the middle of a lake and mans great arcane experiment began as man

grasped more and more arcane formula soon warriors who couldn't cast

abjurations or throw a fireball into the enemy line were not warriors rather

despensable resources, a song was just pleasent to the ear not a great

work of art that would require magic. eventually wizards formed political

parties around schools of magic and the ruling mage would give his power

to his strongest apprentices and so on until the masters of abjuration

eyed the thrown and challenged the apprentice to a mages duel to the

death to seat their candidate on the throne the apprentice of the cheif

Evoker was killed this is the Age of Abjuration grand cities of magic

dominate the sky line walls reinforced with all kinds of protective wards

the magics created are on par with a modern society but are only

avaible to the rich and magically powerful

BendBars/LiftGates · 29th November 2008, 09:50 PM

This looks cool. It looks like the main drama is going to be tension between the schools of magic. You should play up the different schools and work out some allegiances based on that. Try to work out ways for non-humans to participate, if you are okay with non-human PCs.

What are the elves doing now?

Don't name a character Alderon. Really. It just invites your players to make jokes about what level "Death Star" spell the Abjurers used to kill him.

arcanaman · 30th November 2008, 06:35 PM

You are probably right about the alderon thing
have given much thought to that I work on it
and I am in the proccess of mapping out the schools
thank you very much now I know what I need to work on

arcanaman · 9th July 2009, 02:34 AM

Schools of Magic

Abjuration: The current ruling school practioners often wear dark blue robes based in the Archmage's Palace. They have friction with the former ruling school of Evocation.

Conjuration: The conjuration school is atributed with the least sane masters and has the highest death rate of apprentinces other than Necromany they wear green robes when on official buissness and are based in Arhus a district in Adeiron.

Divination: The least political and the most neutral politicaly of the schools. it holds strong ties with Evocation which it served as an advisor before the end of that era. They wear robes of light purple when on official buissness and are based in Drython a district of the capital Adeiron.

Enchantment: Next to Divination as the most neutral. The master enchanters own corprations which magically produce mundane and arcane goods in mass quantites. Unlike Divination enchantment does have a political agenda. They wear golden robes and are based in Ehyslus.

Evocation: The former ruling school sticking to formering a powerbase in the military. There is friction between this school and the current ruling school. They wear robes of red and their current base is the military district of Iryhus.

Illusion: This school controls the intellgence offices of the land and works many political schemes and is based in the archmages palace and wear robes of orange.

Necromany: The most eccentric of the schools in this era is allowed and is an issue of fierce debate but according to prophecy every school will have it's day. Necromancy resort to kidnapping as few childern entering apprenticeship pick to enter that school. They wear black robes and are based in Jyrus Hills.

Transmutation: Is known for it's creativity much of the arcitechts and builders come from this school. They often partner with conjuration on these big building projects and they wear brown robes and are based in Cadeammon.

Universalist: Those who choose to study all schools instead of one are often shunned by those who specialize, they're often used as clerks or other low positioned jobs in government. They wear white robes and do not have a main base of operations.

arcanaman · 11th July 2009, 03:58 AM

The Mageborn: The closest thig to a nobility the mageborn are a priviliged class capable of using magic all childern of this class will eventually become wizards.

Middle Class: Primarly family memebers who's childern have been apprenticed to wizard there childern are members of the Mageborn but since their parent's aren't mages it would be an affront.

The Poor: over 2/3rds of the population are poor fed by the grain dole and barely making a copper a day doing mundane jobs at an enchanter's factory. The only way to better their lives is through their childern

arcanaman · 21st July 2009, 03:13 AM

Sorccrers: Are shunned as addled brain charlatans and hold the lowest place not just among the heirarchy of wizards but also of soceity. Several loose orginiziations based on dragon ancestry and social venegance aganist the masters of Empire.
Binders: They're thought of as primtive conjurers who's hosting of a spirit inside their body is often a worst case scenairio for those who traverse the depths of extraplanar summoning. Binders much like druids have there own communities in the isolated pockets of the westren empire.
Druids: The Gaurdains of nature distain the high and the mighty whose magic bends nature to their will. In accordance with this they've have their own communities unofficially seperate from the wizard cities and their vassals.
Warlocks: Are often the childern of conjurers who's summoning went awry in one from or another there families often hide them from the world rather than live with the shame.

Clerics: The clergy of the good gods does there best to fight the injustices of the wizard kings. They are one of few outside wizards whom have polticial power but are not themselves in line for the archmages throne. The clergy of the evil gods takes advantage of the missing moral standards in the law
Warmage: The basic soldeir of an arcane empire not true soldier is prepared without magic

arcanaman · 21st July 2009, 03:32 AM

In the large urban centers there is no true law enforcement at least not for the poor. In theory each wizard ruling over a district has a personal gaurd large enough to police his/her own personal district but in pratice they're are only present in the affluent neighborhoods and outside of that the wizards properties and holdings. Protection agencies have formed in cities protecting and enforcing a fee from the denziens which often drains any disposable income in that neighborhood. Many adventures get their start under hire of a protection agency.

HolyMan · 5th August 2009, 09:03 PM

a couple was to go about this please pick one:

1. church has no power/worshippers are of the lower classes as wizards view thier powers as greater than any givin by the gods

2. A famous wizard reached godhood and now all others search and try to follow this path the church of this immortal keeps its secerts guarded closely all other gods as 1 above

3. church has power but is a puppet of the wizards or they are pulling strings who knows?? puppet church could be reading to revolt cast off it's chains

4. clerics are abberation, in hiding, or respected as only other party to stand up to wizards have voice in poliics (a little voice)

5. clerics are few do to people getting everything they need from the wizards or many because the wizards keep them repressed

actually I could go on this is D&D the list is endless
would you like a short Patheon list?

arcanaman · 6th August 2009, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HolyMan

a couple was to go about this please pick one:

1. church has no power/worshippers are of the lower classes as wizards view thier powers as greater than any givin by the gods

2. A famous wizard reached godhood and now all others search and try to follow this path the church of this immortal keeps its secerts guarded closely all other gods as 1 above

3. church has power but is a puppet of the wizards or they are pulling strings who knows?? puppet church could be reading to revolt cast off it's chains

4. clerics are abberation, in hiding, or respected as only other party to stand up to wizards have voice in poliics (a little voice)

5. clerics are few do to people getting everything they need from the wizards or many because the wizards keep them repressed

actually I could go on this is D&D the list is endless
would you like a short Patheon list?

yes please and then I will add some

HolyMan · 7th August 2009, 04:37 AM

Well this is a few deities based off alignment to start
did you know there are 9 alignments and 9 schools???

Code:

DIETY                ALIGNMENT      DESCRPITION  
Davendithas               LG          protector,life,guardians
Gracenys                  NG          healing,creation,community
Alidiana                  CG          retribution,self-defense,discipline
Fruian                    LN          reason,intellect,study
Jamven                     N          fate,destiny,vigilance
Quimorel                  CN          elements,planes travel
Zinnastine                LE          trickster,guile,secerts
Ravaonna                  NE          murder,greed,undeath
Hortumal                  CE          tryanny,destruction,conflict

From here ypu could create a story I think Ravaonna and Gracenys are female
and sisters but, complete opposites. Davendithas opposes Hortumal at every turn
and so forth. Hope this is a good start for you.

Theroc · 8th August 2009, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HolyMan

Well this is a few deities based off alignment to start
did you know there are 9 alignments and 9 schools???

Code:

DIETY                ALIGNMENT      DESCRPITION  
Davendithas               LG          protector,life,guardians
Gracenys                  NG          healing,creation,community
Alidiana                  CG          retribution,self-defense,discipline
Fruian                    LN          reason,intellect,study
Jamven                     N          fate,destiny,vigilance
Quimorel                  CN          elements,planes travel
Zinnastine                LE          trickster,guile,secerts
Ravaonna                  NE          murder,greed,undeath
Hortumal                  CE          tryanny,destruction,conflict

From here ypu could create a story I think Ravaonna and Gracenys are female
and sisters but, complete opposites. Davendithas opposes Hortumal at every turn
and so forth. Hope this is a good start for you.

One thing I saw with HM's pantheon confused me, and I dunno where else to mention this. Tyranny means oppression, which implies order, which in D&D means 'Law'... which is opposite Tryanny... Trickery is more chaotic from what I understand...

Deuce Traveler · 16th August 2009, 08:26 PM

I would like to suggest that Necromancers are actually outlaws, and that they masquerade under the guise of being Universalists. They make allies and enemies almost at a whim in order to survive.

If not, I would like to see them more like the Dustmen in Planescape. I just think that Necromancers could be fleshed out some more here.

HolyMan · 17th August 2009, 12:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deuce Traveler

I would like to suggest that Necromancers are actually outlaws, and that they masquerade under the guise of being Universalists. They make allies and enemies almost at a whim in order to survive.

If not, I would like to see them more like the Dustmen in Planescape. I just think that Necromancers could be fleshed out some more here.

You could and should flesh out all the schools what kind of goverment runs this city and the coutry around? Order is not maintained but is there any type of army incase of humaniod attacks? Each school could be strongly affilated with one of the nine alignments. Say Universal is Neutral or over 65% of it's members are anyway the rest could be any alignment but the majority are neutral. Is there any kind of council or congress to represent each school of magic are there guilds inside the schools themselves?

Lovin this

HM

Deuce Traveler · 17th August 2009, 04:40 AM

Also, I think each faction should have the leader of the organization and a noteable mentioned. It would build the School's character.

Why would anyone, even mages, allow a school dedicated to necromancy? Did the abjurers owe them a favor? Or did they work for evokers? Are they madmen and rare, or public and working in masoleums? What is their relationship to powerful mages who became liches and so on. Not to harp on it, but necromancers might be the most interesting school because of how oddly they would work in civilized society.

arcanaman · 18th August 2009, 01:42 AM

Origins of Necromany

I am Nerreamus Master of Divination former apprentice of Leshra the Apatehtic founder of the school of Divination in it's current and Have been tasked to Chronicle the immediate age before Adeiron's Dyeira is witness to the present I am witness to the past.

on this my 40th year since the beginnimg of my task I am aged 63 years

in the next pages which I dip ink I bear witness after much effort to founding of the school of necromany. I traveled to the city of Teiranoc where this is legend and sent my apprentices out like fisherman to cast their nets out for the knowledge I seek.

Teiranoc was embroided for many years with savage men on there northern border and often sent there army forth to repel them in these invaders during one such skrimish between them. On this such an occassion a handfasted soldeir named Urden meant his end. His handfasted wife a conjurers apprentice named Nerrissa was distrought at his death and wearing the mourning clothes she entered the temple of Davednithas crying and dragging his body she demanded the priests to bring him back to life, they replied that they could not his soul had been to long departed from this world. Sulking from the temple she went to her master whom she begged to bring her husband back to life. He explained to her he could not summon the soul of a dead person and have it renter there body. After this still distraught she continued to look for away to bring her love back to until finally she decided to summon the Pit fiend Harrtus. Working the ceremony at a standing ring of stones the Archmages of Teiranoc had created to store excess arcane power she summoned the Devil Harrtus. She demanded that it show her how to bring her husband back to life, Harrtus replied he could show her that and much more for a price. This is how Nerrissa learned what would be called eventually the art of necromany. On the last day of tutleage Harrtus showed her how to "bring her husband back to life". Warning her his full mental and physical compacity would not be fully restored at first but until then she could order him about and he would obey using her new taught power she "gave her husband life". She kept Harrtus bound afraid she might need his knowledge further. Until sometime later when her husband began to grossly detoriate. Realizing she was tricked she supressed Harrtus within the stones rather than freeing him.The savage men of the North penerated Teiranoc sometime after that and the Archmages called upon the excess power to defend the city. Harrtus realizing he could escape imprisionment in the magical pathways invovled in creating a spell used this time to escape causing the power to buckle and rupture killing the archmages and expelling himself from the material plane. A slaughter took place many soldeirs of Teiranoc died. With the archmages gone it looked like no one could turn the tide. During the chaos Nerrissa used her magic to bring many soldiers from both sides to fight the invaders surely without her efforts Teiranoc would not remain. However the surviors did not see her profane powers well and imprisoned her. Nerrissa never stood before the magisters to recieve punishment. Instead a knife ended up in her cell. The details upon how she recieved the knife vary from story teller to story teller and thusly are inaccurate meaning I have not wittnessed how the knife came to her possesion. She had been studying for a while the methods of embalming you see and some of the subtantces used in the art came into her possesion. and she aquired a drinking jar which she filled with the the liquid. Stabbing her heart and placing it in the jar behold the first lich. It is rumored she still exists today

HolyMan · 18th August 2009, 04:54 AM

You used one of my gods!!

Thanks arcanaman

umm... first lich I hope the only lich

jager0727 · 18th August 2009, 07:06 AM

Just wanted to throw out an idea since I'm putting together a Cleric as we speak. In a high magic setting with a ruling mage class, wouldn't at least one church worship a god of the magic domain (probably neutral or some derivative thereof maybe a knowledge/magic type god) alla Boccob or Mystra. Kind of a more tolerated church that the upper and middle class pay some homage to regardless of other beliefs they might hold.
Just a suggestion but I'll hold off on finishing my build till you get a final pantheon out there (even if you take my suggestion I might pick a different god just thought it odd to do high magic and magelords without a god of magic).

arcanaman · 20th August 2009, 04:21 AM

Tyshon's Compact

I am Acladora Mistress of divinaion former apprentice of Dykon the Lepper and I have been tasked with witnessing the events of Tyshons reign and the reign of any of his heirs in my lifetime.

On this the 30th year of Tyshons reign I am aged 67.

The batte of Dyrichus continues the battle was going poorly for Tyshon and his troops a vertiable stale mate had been called outside the
walls and the powerful evocation spells cast by he and his generals had wasted the land to desert. For three nights a hideous carrion bird circled Tyhson war tent and the tents of his generals and advisors. On the third night the Carrion bird and it's companion birds landed outside of Tyhson's personal tent during a war meeting, another heated one at that and soon would become even more so. the Carrion bird appeared in the tent as a female human beautiful in appearnce but the parlor of her skin and the overwelming smell of embaling fluids marked her as among the dead. She was trained by two ghouls and wore a heavy black robe. She asked Tyshon how badly he wanted to win, There is something about Tyhson I must explain he was a cruel and greedy man with a large appetite, so of course he told her more than everything. At this the generals were in outrage all demanding to know what she could do that none of them could. She said I can show you if you would follow me. All of us intrested followed her outside to the corpse littered battlefield. Closing her eyes and murmuring to herself she chanted, strange green and black orbs covered the battlefield they zoomed towards the corpses and the dead again walked with a strange green glow from there eyes, turning around she said Lord High Archmage I offer you soldiers that never die for a price. You see before this Adeirion and his apprentices after him banded the foul art of necromany the only school of magic to be banded in the history of the empire. However Tyshon was not like his predeccesor all he saw was instant victory so he agreed to the price and necromancy became a legitmate school.

This I Acladora have witnessed

jager0727 · 2nd September 2009, 08:43 AM

just an ideas let me know what you think

Alidiana

Spoiler:

arcanaman · 5th September 2009, 02:55 AM

The Beast Lord and his Aspects
It is know that the beastlord is a deity from what is now the northern fronteir however it has been thousands of year since his religion spread to the corners of Adeiron's mageholds. Today the beastlord himself is faceless no can remember his face or what he looked like the common people instead worship one of his animal aspects they are listed blow.

The Owl

Holy Symbol: Barn owls head
HomePlane: the Beastlands
Alignment: LN
Poftfolio: Knowledge mundane, Knowledge arcane, Wisdom, Truth, Learning
Domains: Knowledge, magic air