Campaign setting - request for comment

[JBowtie]

So, I've been working on a campaign setting ever since Wizards announced the contest that culminated in Eberron. I've gone back and made major changes, wikified everything, and am in yet another round of design. Sometime before Christmas I intend to have all the content double-checked for open content correctness, have filled in the major blank spaces, and open up the wiki for public consumption. Then I'll start in on processing playtest results from outside groups.

This post is sort of a request for comment. I'm going to talk about what I consider the major points of the setting, and try and figure out what needs fleshing out, what people find interesting, and what features are cliched. I'm going to use any feedback I get as a guide to prioritizing my work over the next couple of months. I'll also be happy to answer any questions people may have.

Aestia is a complicated and ambiguous world. Many people are familiar with the "four elements" of fire,earth, air, and water, and fantasy writers have done many clever and complicated things with this particular take on the world. Aestia does not hew to this convention.

There are seven heavenly spheres surrounding Aestia, which define the world and its inhabitants. The Sphere of Knowledge, for example, is the sphere whose turning causes the rising and setting of the sun, and which determines the fate of the Giants, and which gives all mortals the ability to perfect their minds. It is the main component of bronze, and the crystals born of the sun have the ability to store secrets.

Each of the seven mortal races are bound by birth to one of the spheres, and thirteen of the classes allow a mortal to tie themselves to yet another sphere. The 14th class, the witch, stands between the spheres.

This arrangement breaks one of the oldest conventions in fantasy, so I will be interested in seeing people's reactions to it. For the record, the Spheres are Knowledge, Nature, Self, Music, Conflict, Intrigue, and Heaven. These spheres are the organizing priciple of the setting; anything involving elements or energy types has been thrown out (or is slated to be cut in the near future). Everything - races, classes, feats, spells - all of it - is tied to the spheres.

There are no alignments in Aestia, and no humanoids aside from the seven mortal races. No outsiders, elementals or abberations, either; however fey and spirits figure quite heavily.

There are no outer planes, rather there is the Mortal World and the Spirit World, seperated by the Veil. One planet (the so-called Hidden Planet, which controls the destiny of Humans) is hidden behind the Veil.

Rather than come up with new mechanics of my own, almost all the crunch is cherry-picked from existing products and pulled together into a cohesive whole. Also note things are still in flux so the list given here is subject to change.

* Ability scores: Using Blue Rose convention of using just the modifiers; six-point buy.
* Hit points/AC per the core rules. Will be playtesting armour as DR in the near future.
* Wealth system instead of gold pieces.
* Using a variant of the Blue Rose magic system, which in turn is adapted from the Psychic's Handbook. Pulling in some of the telepathic powers from Babylon 5 for the psion.
* Marrying the personality feats from Dynasties and Demagogues with the Blue Rose Conviction system and calling it hero points.
* Incorporating the debate rules from Dynasties and Demagogues and the favour system from Way of the Daimyo(Rokugan).
* Using the Arcana Evolved feats as the starting point for the 300-odd feats. Characters get a feat every level. There are roughly 40-50 feats per sphere.
* Using the craft(trapmaking) rules from Quintessential Rogue.
* Enhanced (more complex) rules for armour and weapon crafting from many, many sources.
* Modified crafting rules from "Enchiridion of Treasures and Objects d'Art", including a subset of the materials, for other types of crafting.
* Using Void Points from Rokugan, and a new skill called Hospitality loosely based on the Tea Ceremony from the same source.
* Using naval and underwater rules from the Seafarer's Handbook.
* Using poison rules from the Assassin's Handbook.
* Called shots and combat schools per the Quintessential Fighter.
* Language and literacy rules of my own devising, incorporating material from Ink and Quill.

Because there are no alignments or beastial humanoids (orcs or other automatic bad guys), there's a greater emphasis in the setting on intrigue and politics. There is a setting-based explanation for the traditional dungeons scattered throughout the landscape.

I'll be happy to provide details where they've been nailed down, just ask. Feel free to suggest "better" rules for the subsystems above, and let me know if I'm missing anything important.

 

[GreatLemur]

Aestia is a complicated and ambiguous world. Many people are familiar with the "four elements" of fire,earth, air, and water, and fantasy writers have done many clever and complicated things with this particular take on the world. Aestia does not hew to this convention.

There are seven heavenly spheres surrounding Aestia, which define the world and its inhabitants. The Sphere of Knowledge, for example, is the sphere whose turning causes the rising and setting of the sun, and which determines the fate of the Giants, and which gives all mortals the ability to perfect their minds. It is the main component of bronze, and the crystals born of the sun have the ability to store secrets.

Each of the seven mortal races are bound by birth to one of the spheres, and thirteen of the classes allow a mortal to tie themselves to yet another sphere. The 14th class, the witch, stands between the spheres.

This arrangement breaks one of the oldest conventions in fantasy, so I will be interested in seeing people's reactions to it.

Man, I got worried when I read that "many people are familiar with the 'four elements'" line, thinking you were about to say that you used that dead horse extensively in your world.

People, you cannot imagine how sick I am of campaign worlds and game systems based around the classical elements. I don't care if you throw in some new-agey fifth component, or use the Chinese earth-fire-wate-metal-wood system instead; it's all excruciatingly trite. Please stop now.

But your setting, Johnny, definitely sounds more interesting. I'm not exactly sure if I can buy a set of very specific and human concepts like "Knowledge, Nature, Self, Music, Conflict, Intrigue, and Heaven" as building blocks of the universe, but maybe you can make it work through each sphere's wider associations. Personally, I'd be most comfortable if the spheres had non-English, non-descriptive names, and things like music and intrigue were relegated to associated concepts rather than being their primary properties.

Your spheres remind me a lot of the sephira of Kabbala's "tree of life." If you haven't already looked into the sephiroth for inspiration, you might want to check it out. Its spheres are actually a lot more abstract than I'd want in an RPG, but there might be some useful ideas, there.

 

[JBowtie]

I took the inspiration for the Spheres from "The Planets" symphony by Holst and the sphere-based model of the universe usually attributed to Aristotle (though actually developed by Eudoxus).

Who are you? What do you want? Why are you here? Where are you going? Is there anything worth living for? Where does magic come from? Are our destinies predetermined?

On Aestia, the spheres are essential to our understanding of our world and ourselves.

Those who cling to the old ways might consider the spheres akin to elements such as water or fire, as alchemical ingredients that can be combined into materials and beings. This is far too narrow and parochial a view to take, however.

The Dwarves personified them in their old Imperial Temples, worshipping them as gods. This, while far closer to the truth, fails to give them their due, relegating them to inscrutable, powerful beings. The seven spheres are the foundation on which the world rests. They are physical, observable celestial objects with magical and spiritual connections to all existence, and especially attuned to the mortal races.

Spheres of Creation

The three spheres of creation are the basis of the physical world. All creatures are linked to at least one of the three spheres.

The Sphere of Nature encompasses most of the world around us. All animals and plants belong to this sphere. Fey and elves are bound to Nature; it is part and parcel of their beings. The wind, the sea, the forest and the mountain are all aspects of this sphere. From their link to Nature the mortal races receive their physical bodies. Creatures that lack a link to this sphere are the bodiless undead – ghosts, spirits, and phantasms.

The first principle of sentient life is self-awareness. Those creatures with a link to the Sphere of Self possess a mind. Self-awareness is not everything, of course. Merely possessing a mind is not enough, for one may be insane or unintelligent.

Mindless undead such as skeletons, zombies, and golems lack such a link.

All creatures that possess a soul are linked to the Sphere of Heaven. Animals and plants, for example, do not have souls. Mortals that are deprived of their link to Heaven become the soulless undead: vampires, liches, and other such abominations.

Spheres of Perfection

The spheres of creation define the world, but it is the spheres of perfection that mediate our access to it. By means of the tools granted us by these spheres, the mortal races gain the ability to control our environment.

The Sphere of Knowledge perfects the mind. Creatures with a link to this sphere gain the ability to reason about the world.

Access to this sphere is essential to the use of magic. A mind is merely fertile ground; knowledge enriches the mind by taking root and flourishing.

Perfection of the soul is reached through the Sphere of Music. Creatures linked to this sphere gain emotion and feeling. Mastery of the sphere allows one to communicate from heart to heart, and gladdens and enlightens the soul.

As every guardsman knows from birth, perfection of the physical body is possible only through dedication to the Sphere of Conflict. On the field of war and in the arena, the eternal struggle allows the strong and fit to prosper, and eliminates the weak and pallid. Creatures linked to this sphere gain the spark of ambition and the instinct of survival.

Sphere of Mystery

Of all the spheres, the Sphere of Intrigue is least understood. It sows discord, introduces confusion and uncertainty, and provides no obvious benefit. It confounds the movements of the skies and makes prophecy a poor guide.

Yet of all the spheres it is perhaps most essential. Those creatures fortunate enough to be linked to it gain the most precious commodity of all – free will. Yes, this means the ability to lie and deceive, cheat and betray. But it also means the ability to become something greater, to choose to devote oneself to something beyond instinct and self-preservation: a cause, a loved one, an idea. Nobility and righteousness are only meaningful when one must choose them; when one's choices are made because they are right and not because they were preordained. Without the dubious Sphere of Intrigue, we would be but mere clockwork toys, moving mechanically to the dictates of destiny.

The Mortal Races

As even a shallow understanding should make clear, all mortals are linked to all seven spheres. Indeed, it appears that only the mortal races possess such links. Those closest to mortals, the fey, are linked to but six of the spheres. They lack free will, and are merely puppets dancing to the whim of the Faerie Queen.