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[Proposal] The Transitive Isles
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<blockquote data-quote="Binder Fred" data-source="post: 4437033" data-attributes="member: 63746"><p>Nice maps (all of them)! I like.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I'll see what I can do over the weekend -- phrase things more wiki-like, as you say. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p> Which got me thinking about the issue of *control*, i.e. can the smaller isles (or even the main ones) be <u>made</u> to move? At all? In a reliable way? I guess that wholly depends on first setting the nature of the main isles themselves and on that score I can see three possibilities (feel *encouraged* to add more) :</p><p></p><p><strong>I) CRAWLING SEAS :</strong> From above, all seems as it should with broad islands surrounded by shallow shelves that eventually slope away into darkness. When one goes deep enough though, heat progressively rises... and then one encounters the legs in their thousands -- bigger than rivers, taller than most mountains, more numerous than trees. Deeper still, below leagues of water, and ones comes face to face with the island itself, the beast on which we all live. Lava is its blood, sealing cracks/wounds on the surface. Rocks is what it eats, gobbling up the sea bottom, recycling diamonds and metals which eventually make their way into its hide. Buyoed by salt water, the beasts wander, living their lives on the sea floor.</p><p></p><p>Possible consequences :</p><p></p><p>- RISE AND FALL : The sea floor isn't exactly a flat place. The great beasts sometimes have to rise up, sink or tilt as the case may be. Pitons and other small produce sudden changes up top, the sea seeming to suddenly draw back, uncovering 3 or 10 meters of new land, or conversely suddenly advance, flooding formerly dry spots. These are mostly temporary changes, as the beasts all have a prefered cruising attitude which they try to resume as soon as they can. Should an island venture into deeper and deeper waters though, it could eventually have no emerged bits at all (the reverse is of course entirely possible as well).</p><p></p><p>N.B. Navigationg is indeed going to be a chancy affair. Imagine sailing "N" out of the horns of the crescent isle... only the beast has swiveled during the night so you're actually sailing SW!</p><p></p><p>- DAUNTONIUM : If you dig deep enough, a mine or equivalent will eventually hit flesh. Incredibly resistant flesh. In addition to possible spurts of the lava-blood mentioned above (a spurt being a small volcano in this context <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" />, said flesh might be of value in itself. Wether simply as a very resistant material (it could possibly take the place of one of the traditional fantasy "super metals") and/or it could have magical properties of its own...</p><p></p><p><strong>II) FLOATING SEAS :</strong> Another possibility, purer in a way. Say the main islands are land plugs surrounded by a short space of shallow waters (from a hundred meters to a few klicks depending on island size). Beyond that the bottom plunges straight down into the inky depths for - well - basically forever. The islands are gigantic colums plunging straight down and "pining" the Transitive sea "on top of" the boundless depths of the elemental plane of Water. Are the colums elementals frozen in place? Are they awesome constucts of some alien gods? If so, what is the purpose of it all? Scholars (those few that even suspect the truth) are working on it. In the meanwhile, the mystery of the infinite abbyss stretching below us remains whole, our only clue it is even there giant, titanic "things" periodicaly rising out of the depths, out of all proportion to anything existing in our world. </p><p></p><p>One disadvantage I can see here : volcanoes and lava, that staple of evil hideouts, are a bit difficult to explain in this context... Some consequence of the rock elementals inner system maybe? Blood again? Parasitic/White-blood-cell lava elementals? Um, rather like that last, actually...</p><p></p><p>RISE AND FALL : movement would be essentially up and down here, no tilt and probably little twist, though it could be severe : Daunton surrounded by 30 meters cliff anyone? <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p><p></p><p><strong>III) STRETCHING SEAS :</strong> Haven't thought this one through, but it rests on a simple question : do the islands shift relative to one another or is it really the *bottom* that stretches and contracts? Accelerated version of our own plate tectonics? Rocky pimples set on a living membrane? Needs some thought.</p><p></p><p></p><p>All this applies (mostly) to the main isles. The boat isles would probably have to have (several?) different mechanisms to explain them. Anyway... Comments/insults/scattered brain showers?</p><p></p><p>Binder Fred, wondering if there,s a place that expands a bit on</p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>P.S. The Grindstones :</strong> </p><p> It's come to me that they could be an ideal environment for flying creatures : I had, in fact, a flash of that winged dragonborn in the MM. Might it be an origin spot for those who want to play barbarian/more primitive dragonborns than those originating from the Jade Empire?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Binder Fred, post: 4437033, member: 63746"] Nice maps (all of them)! I like. I'll see what I can do over the weekend -- phrase things more wiki-like, as you say. :) Which got me thinking about the issue of *control*, i.e. can the smaller isles (or even the main ones) be [U]made[/U] to move? At all? In a reliable way? I guess that wholly depends on first setting the nature of the main isles themselves and on that score I can see three possibilities (feel *encouraged* to add more) : [B]I) CRAWLING SEAS :[/B] From above, all seems as it should with broad islands surrounded by shallow shelves that eventually slope away into darkness. When one goes deep enough though, heat progressively rises... and then one encounters the legs in their thousands -- bigger than rivers, taller than most mountains, more numerous than trees. Deeper still, below leagues of water, and ones comes face to face with the island itself, the beast on which we all live. Lava is its blood, sealing cracks/wounds on the surface. Rocks is what it eats, gobbling up the sea bottom, recycling diamonds and metals which eventually make their way into its hide. Buyoed by salt water, the beasts wander, living their lives on the sea floor. Possible consequences : - RISE AND FALL : The sea floor isn't exactly a flat place. The great beasts sometimes have to rise up, sink or tilt as the case may be. Pitons and other small produce sudden changes up top, the sea seeming to suddenly draw back, uncovering 3 or 10 meters of new land, or conversely suddenly advance, flooding formerly dry spots. These are mostly temporary changes, as the beasts all have a prefered cruising attitude which they try to resume as soon as they can. Should an island venture into deeper and deeper waters though, it could eventually have no emerged bits at all (the reverse is of course entirely possible as well). N.B. Navigationg is indeed going to be a chancy affair. Imagine sailing "N" out of the horns of the crescent isle... only the beast has swiveled during the night so you're actually sailing SW! - DAUNTONIUM : If you dig deep enough, a mine or equivalent will eventually hit flesh. Incredibly resistant flesh. In addition to possible spurts of the lava-blood mentioned above (a spurt being a small volcano in this context :), said flesh might be of value in itself. Wether simply as a very resistant material (it could possibly take the place of one of the traditional fantasy "super metals") and/or it could have magical properties of its own... [B]II) FLOATING SEAS :[/B] Another possibility, purer in a way. Say the main islands are land plugs surrounded by a short space of shallow waters (from a hundred meters to a few klicks depending on island size). Beyond that the bottom plunges straight down into the inky depths for - well - basically forever. The islands are gigantic colums plunging straight down and "pining" the Transitive sea "on top of" the boundless depths of the elemental plane of Water. Are the colums elementals frozen in place? Are they awesome constucts of some alien gods? If so, what is the purpose of it all? Scholars (those few that even suspect the truth) are working on it. In the meanwhile, the mystery of the infinite abbyss stretching below us remains whole, our only clue it is even there giant, titanic "things" periodicaly rising out of the depths, out of all proportion to anything existing in our world. One disadvantage I can see here : volcanoes and lava, that staple of evil hideouts, are a bit difficult to explain in this context... Some consequence of the rock elementals inner system maybe? Blood again? Parasitic/White-blood-cell lava elementals? Um, rather like that last, actually... RISE AND FALL : movement would be essentially up and down here, no tilt and probably little twist, though it could be severe : Daunton surrounded by 30 meters cliff anyone? ;) [B]III) STRETCHING SEAS :[/B] Haven't thought this one through, but it rests on a simple question : do the islands shift relative to one another or is it really the *bottom* that stretches and contracts? Accelerated version of our own plate tectonics? Rocky pimples set on a living membrane? Needs some thought. All this applies (mostly) to the main isles. The boat isles would probably have to have (several?) different mechanisms to explain them. Anyway... Comments/insults/scattered brain showers? Binder Fred, wondering if there,s a place that expands a bit on [B]P.S. The Grindstones :[/B] It's come to me that they could be an ideal environment for flying creatures : I had, in fact, a flash of that winged dragonborn in the MM. Might it be an origin spot for those who want to play barbarian/more primitive dragonborns than those originating from the Jade Empire? [/QUOTE]
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