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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ethandrul" data-source="post: 4285801" data-attributes="member: 54604">When I start a campaign I usually write about the defining moment in the world's history. Usually I expect a world to exist for about 6 months before we wind up starting a new adventure- THIS TIME I intend to create a delicious world that everyone will want to adventure in for many many years.here is the history I have written so far.I will explain some of the fluff at the bottom.     The thing that most defines the world are it's massive magic turbine engines.In the old days, every city had one. A towering structure capped with a ball of magical plasma the size of a city block. They've existed for centuries and yet, nobody seems to know who built them, when or for what purpose.  For as long as humanity can remember, the engines has powered their cities, aided scientific inquiries, guided philosophers and protected those people who lived near it. All they asked for in return- was maintenance.  Caring for the machines was a task led by the holy clerics who were gifted individuals that could hear the voice of that particular machine. They would tell the machines needs to work crews made up of mainly orcs and dwarves. These races seemed to have a knack for repairing the great turbines and for centuries went about their jobs with content.    Dwarves and orcs working together you ask? Yes, in what could only be called harmony and in some cases true friendship. They both toiled day and night to keep the vast machines running under the watchful eyes of their "foremen", the clerics who dictated the desires of the mechanized "gods". In the year 1834 a road weary traveler arrived at the gates of the city of Kord with a pair of robed strangers. His name was Dover Honeycutt, and he had led the doom of the world to the gates of Kord.   While traveling through the woods he happened upon a pair of strangers wearing beautiful robes. they had the ears and eyes like elves but seemed much more dignified. 'Gentleman elves!" he thought, and spoke with them. they informed him that they were scientists who were here to study the great cities of man, and learn howto build with such cunning masonry. They also claimed to be interested in the fantastic steam powered engines they had seen during their travels.    Dover told him everything he know, which was quite a bit- since he had in fact worked for some time as a brakeman on a train. They passed the time in this way for most of the trip. Whenever the strangers were asked questions about where they were from, or why they were not dressed like regular elves, they simply changed the subject or gave half answers.  The city of Kord were massive iron things that bore protective runes of power. nobody who meant ill to the city or those in it could not pass beyond them. When the travels discovered that they weren't able to enter the city they quickly made up a lie about purifying themselves before entering the new city.  The Eladrin (for that is what they were) set up shop in an abandoned building on the road to Kord.They started an inn that catered to the working class orcs and dwarves. You would think that they would have been happy with the fortunes they made selling strong ale and prostituting their serving girls.But the feyborn elves had more insidious purpose.  Slowly they drove a wedge between the dwarves and orcs so that the dwarves found other places to spend their money, though many new orcs came to take their place. and one day in 1868 an orc named Thrakazogg McKenzie said a word that would change the world forever "unionize". His ideas of workers rights and rights for orcs in general were obviously well received by this crowd. He explained the idea of "work stoppage" and the meaning of "Tyranny".  He said that in his home town, and in cities all over the world labor was being revolutionized- only in the "Engine cities" did wage slavery survive.  By the year 1855 there were probably 50 or 60 eladrin throughout the world. A few worked to quietly undermine the clergy, some organized unions, and some started reputable trading companies- selling wares from their exotic homeland.By 1870 there were 1000 of them working secretly toward our doom.  The local elves were just as mystified by the eladrin as anyone else, but they refused to trade or do any business with the new-comers. Perhaps they had some hatred for them on an instinctual level, maybe they just felt a tingeof jealousy toward them.  three things happened in the year 1871. The first caused the second, and the second caused the third. The third thing is why so many of our grandfathers have nightmares every time they sleep.In april 1871 Thrakazogg Mckenzie was shot in the head by a tiefling. They said h had been hired by a priest to silence him,maybe he was. Who knows? When he died his body grew soft and shapeless. his eyes became large black orbs without a soul.News passed quickly, though most of it failed to mention the state of Mr. McKenzie's body.  On Thursday October 29th 1871 at 6:24 PM, the orcs working on third level of the great machine called "Kord the Strong" began jamming the massive gears and cutting cables.they threw their foreman into the swirling vortex of deadly magical energy- he was instantly consumed (oddly, the orcs are said to have stopped their destruction to see how the machine would react to them having killed one of his spokesman. When Kord didn't immediatelyact they continued their rioting.) The mayhem spread quickly to the other levels. Most of the dwarves who tried to stop the strongerlarger orcs were killed or forced to flee. After a while the orcs took their rage to the streets. killing looting and giving in to their lower instincts.At 7:03 PM a loud roar like a thousand lions shook the temple that housed the great machine god. it turned to a shriekthen the magical plasma that formed a ball above the building exploded. The force knocked most of the buildings in the city down nearly everyone within a mile of the city was killed instantly.the train rails were lifted out of the ground like a tsunami they became metal waves of destruction. people always complained about how much safer it was to travel by rail...boy were they wrong.It was discovered later that the Magical engines that we had revered as gods had served a greater purpose. they had been created by our for fathers to keep at bay the wicked creatures of the Fey Wilds, and other dark places.We've learned that the elves came here a millennium ago to escape the growing evil, and helped to build the turbines to keep us safe. But as the years passed we had all forgotten.The rioting happened across the world. most of the cities with Great engines were destroyed- or at least jammed.as far as I know only two cities continue today with power. Pelor, where I sit today and the city of Moradin- which is today made up almost exclusively of dwarves.The Engine here has been configured for defense since the invasion started. No fey beasts can get within 40 miles of the citybut beyond that border the lurk, attacking travelers without mercy.Did all of the monsters that populate our world come through the now numerous "fairy rings' and stone circles?No, we have always had undead to deal with. and the deep dwelling abberations in the hollowed out places under the earth.of course now we consider orcs to be monsters too. They've always been here. But giants, trolls, griffons, dragons? Those fairy tale creatures are now our living nightmares. They came here with swarms of goblinsand other fiends to force us into extinction so they can have our world to themselves. Well, they can't have it.It has been 34 years since the war began. We have a few allies now. Prince Orcus and Lord Asmodeus have set up embassies here in Pelor.They claim to want to help us fight back the Fae the way they did not so long ago. A few Eladrin have even joined humanity in our hour of need. in these dark times we take any sword we can get, even those of our enemies.The year is 1906. We no longer have much electricity in Pelor, we have shot most of our iron bullets. our steam engines are mostly rusted.We have devolved into a race of barbarians living in a technological dark age. The only hope our collective races haveis locating other cities like ours and restarting their Gods.basically, the campaign is in a post apocalyptic steampunk setting.magic of nearly all kinds is derived from the great magic engines- wizards, clerics and paladins all draw from them. Warlocks get their powers form their pacts of courseThe magic shield around Pelor prevents any creatures not native to the world from coming within 40 miles of the city gates, this allows for arming to be done without dragons and griffons eating all the sheep.I am going to create rules for guns, not sure on the details yet though. I plan on allowing Warlocks use them as an implement.Though I am going to keep them very rare and ammo will be even rarer.The idea of a machine being worshiped as a god came from the Deathgate Cycle written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.anyway, please give me input, and more importantly, help me create this world wihout a name!!!</blockquote>

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