D&D General Geedis and the Land of Ta: a Community Setting

[Indagare Nogitsune]

For those of you unfamiliar, here is a useful link to explain Geedis and the Land of Ta.

Now, as far as I can tell, there's never been official lore on the Land of Ta or any of the characters. I thought this might make for an interesting setting because it incorporates a lot of the older Sword and Sorcery stuff. You can see some of the characters below:

If folks wanted, we could start with each of these characters, deciding their species, and then moving on from there. This can, if folks want, include a bit of a change-up (making Erik into an Aarakocra, for instance), but not too far removed from what's presented. Question to consider with Stefan and Rimelda: who are the dragons, or are they the dragons, with Stefan constantly wrestling with his inner dragon while Rimelda embraces it?

There are a lot of snake-dragons similar to Eris (appearing with Zoltan, Iggy, Cecily, and Sybil). There's also the eagle-snake Harry is holding.

You can start with any character(s) (though there are 18 total, so please try not to do them all). Lore can be added to but not contradicted.

Also, thoughts?

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

Nobody has yet replied, so I think I'll add to this thread on my own until someone does, I get bored, or the moderators get involved.

First up Hermann the Wose.

Hermann was pretty typical for a wose. He worked guard duty, helped with gathering food, and (in his spare time) composed songs. He wasn't very good at making the leather and metal harnesses and belts--his cousin Mel was much better at those--but he'd been studying books on metallurgy and trying a few experiments.

Unfortunately, a lot of the better alloys required much higher temperatures than anything he could do even with the more permanent kilns were capable of. Still, he was going to bring it up before the moot and see if he could get some Dworolls to help. There'd be some price--there always was--but that could be negotiated.

Today, though, he had his steel axe and was looking for trouble. Something was going on in the Human lands. Some new king. Humans had been in a bit of a decline lately, especially with the rise of the Aquillan Empire, and the new king was rumored to be lashing out at any non-human population he could find.

Well, if he decided to lash out at the woses, he was going to learn a painful lesson.

Spoiler: Wose General Info

Woses walk in the forests, mountains, and other lonely places far from what most humanoids consider "civilized" lands. Though they look brutish, they are as intelligent as any other humanoid and can speak.

Covered in dense fur, Woses rarely bother with clothing beyond simple belts or harnesses which help them store pouches, weapons, or similar items. They aren't opposed to wearing clothes, mind, they simply fail to see a point (also most clothes wouldn't fit them anyway). They do carry weapons and will often trade for ones made of iron or steel so they can better defend themselves.

Generally, Woses stand between 7 to 8 feet [2.1 to 2.4 m] tall and are at least half as wide and weigh between 240 and 300 pounds [108.86 to 136 kg], with their heads being low enough that it's hard to discern a neck. Most have small horns growing from close to where their hairline is (there is a noticeable difference in thickness and texture for the fur on their heads that makes it act like human hair). A few don't have these horns, and a few have horns that really grow out. Whether or not they are treated differently varies by tribe.

Woses generally live in nomadic tribes of up to 240 individuals. They rarely stay in any place longer than a few months, but will reuse old campsites (these usually are used by multiple groups of woses as they pass through and often added to or improved upon). While they have their own names, which they use among one another, they prefer to use names given to them by members of other humanoid species, feeling that such names are good protection against hostile magic.

Spoiler: Wose Stats

Creature Type. You are a Humanoid.
Size. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.
Powerful Build. You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.

Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Sylvan and one other language that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. The Player’s Handbook offers a list of languages to choose from. The DM is free to modify that list for a campaign.

 

[Charlaquin]

Oh my god, this is so whimsical and charming! I had never heard of this before, but I adore the general vibe. I kinda get the feeling that too much more detail would spoil it. To paraphrase Fernald as quoted in the Arlas article, in an ideal world a VHS tape with a single episode of some old cartoon would turn up and that would be all that was ever found of it. And it would be from midway through the run, so there’s not enough context to really understand what’s going on. That would be the perfect amount of information to satisfy the curiosity it sparks, but preserve the obscurity that makes it compelling.

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

Oh my god, this is so whimsical and charming! I had never heard of this before, but I adore the general vibe. I kinda get the feeling that too much more detail would spoil it. To paraphrase Fernald as quoted in the Arlas article, in an ideal world a VHS tape with a single episode of some old cartoon would turn up and that would be all that was ever found of it. And it would be from midway through the run, so there’s not enough context to really understand what’s going on. That would be the perfect amount of information to satisfy the curiosity it sparks, but preserve the obscurity that makes it compelling.

It could be possible that a setting created could be just as whimsical and charming. At least, I would hope so. I can't lay any claims to being all that whimsical or charming myself. I do hope that, as I work through it (and, maybe, others joining in), I can keep that sort of vibe up

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

Next up: Eris the Triwyrm

"Alydys'an'astisss! What do you think you're doing?!"

Alydys sighed. This was the third time today. "Practicing my breath weapon, mother."

"You know what I told you about that! There are the Spitting Grounds for it, not our cave!"

It wasn't as if she could even harm the stone of the cave, not like her brother Os anyway. "Yes mother."

She sighed and slithered out of the cave. It was best to give her mother wide berth when she was caught practicing. Unlike her mother, who had more typical fire breath, and Os who had earth breath, Alydys had poison. It took the form of a greenish mist which matched her green scales. She liked being green and hoped her scale color wouldn't change over time like her sister Indys's did. Indys looked like a rainbow had thrown up on her. She'd even taken the name Iris.

Distracted by her own thoughts, she found herself suddenly on top of a cliff looking out at the wide world. In the north there was a large plume of black smoke. "I wonder what that is."

"Humans." She turned and saw a strange, green figure. She wondered how she'd not noticed it before. There was a golden triwyrm like herself wrapping around his right arm. "Who are you?"

"Zoltan the Conqueror."

Alydys liked the sound of that. "I am Eris, the Discord-Maker," she said, remembering the numerous times she'd gotten on her mothers nerve.

"Would you care to join my cause Eris? I already have Zeus, the Lightning-Master."

"Pleasure," Zeus said.

"Indeed. To both. Conquering, I have heard, relies on discord. What better could I hope for?"

Spoiler: Triwyrm General Info

Triwyrms are extremely common throughout Ta and generally love to accompany people on adventures. They have a breath weapon (generally fire, but other types are possible). Young Triwyrms are born without limbs, though their heads make it impossible to mistake them for snakes. They grow forearms (gaining the title lindwyrm) once they reach 300 years of age. They are considered adults at that point and can seek out adventures without reprisal. Sometimes younger Triwyrms (like Eris) don't want to wait and go off on adventures anyway. If their parents manage to find them again, they are going to be grounded until their 300th hatchday, with magic used to enforce it. Triwyrm parents thus tend to have a very hard time finding wayward progeny.

Triwyrms are named for their three stages of life: wyrm (under 300), linwyrm (300-900), and dracwyrm (900+). How long triwyrms live is debatable, since none have ever been known to die of old age. However, there are no known dracwyrms over 81,000 years of age and most adult Triwyrms will refuse to say what happens to them (this has never stopped magely debate on the matter).

Dracwyrms have not only forelimbs but hindlimbs and wings (making them look like dragons). Hindlimbs grow in at around 600 years of age and wings at 900 (earning them their new title). Other attributes, like horns and neck-frills can grow in at almost any time, though they tend to be rare among wyrms.

Strangely enough, time spent adventuring can "speed up" the process of going from wyrm to dracwyrm. It is thought that this is due to the accumulation of experience and orgone. That said, bodily maturity is not mental maturity and many triwyrms who go on adventures often find that their minds have not matured nearly as much as their bodies, and that the elder dracwyrms refuse to upgrade their title until the reach the appropriate age (or maturity).

Triwyrms come in all sorts of colors and patterns and these are not indicative of the type of energy breath they have. They also have a fondness of naming themselves after deities (they have given names in Draconic, and they tend to change or add to them as they reach different stages of their lives--the dietic names they use around anyone else for fun).

Spoiler: Triwyrm Stats

Stage/Title: Wyrm
Creature Type. You are a Dragon.
Size. Your size is Small or Medium.
Speed. Your walking speed is 15 feet. You have a Climb speed of 30 feet.
Breath Weapon. You can use your action to exhale destructive energy much like a snake spitting venom. You can choose the type of damage with DM's approval (acid, air, cold, earth, fire, lightning, poison, thunder, and water are the most common forms; necrotic, radiant, and force are rarer and psychic is rarest). This choice is permanent except for very powerful magics like wish.

The energy comes out in either the form of a 5 by 30 ft. line or a 15 ft. cone at your choice. The DC to save is Dexterity except for Necrotic, Poison, and Thunder (which use CON) and Psychic (which uses WIS).

It deals damage in an area according to your choice. When you use your breath weapon, all creatures in the area must make a saving throw, the type of which is determined by your energy breath. The DC of this saving throw is 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus. A creature takes 1d6 damage on a failed save, and half as much damage on a successful one. The damage increase to 2d6 at 5th level, 3d6 at 10th, 4d6 at 15th, and 5d6 at 20th level. After using your breath weapon, you cannot use it again until you complete a short or long rest.

Damage Resistance. You have resistance to the damage type associated with your breath weapon.
Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Draconic and one other language that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. The Player’s Handbook offers a list of languages to choose from. The DM is free to modify that list for a campaign.

Stage/Title: Lindwyrm [level 5 in any class or class combo]
Creature Type. You are a Dragon.
Size. Your size is Small or Medium.
Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet. You have a Climb speed of 30 feet.
Breath Weapon. You can use your action to exhale destructive energy much like a snake spitting venom.
Starting at 5th level, you can choose to make your breath weapon into an explosive orb instead of either a line or a cone. It has a range of 30 ft. When it hits a target any beings standing within 5 ft. must also make an appropriate save or take half the damage the target took. Those who make a successful save take no damage.
Damage Resistance. You have resistance to the damage type associated with your breath weapon.
Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Draconic and two other languages that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. The Player’s Handbook offers a list of languages to choose from. The DM is free to modify that list for a campaign.

Stage/Title: Dracwyrm [level 10 in any class or class combo]
Creature Type. You are a Dragon.
Size. Medium.
Powerful Build. You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.
Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet. You have a Climb speed of 30 feet.
Flight. Because of your wings, you have a flying speed equal to your walking speed. You are capable of taking another on your back so long as they are Medium or Smaller. You can also fly while armored (even carrying a passenger) so long as the total weight does not equal or exceed your carrying capacity (many a dracwyrm have tried to look impressive flying in armor and carrying an armored rider only to find they could not even get off the ground).
Breath Weapon. You can use your action to exhale destructive energy.
Starting at 10th level, you can choose to make your breath weapon into a 10 by 20 ft. cloud instead of either a line, cone, or orb. Constitution is the only saving throw that applies to all saves within this cloud except Psychic, which remains WIS.
Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Draconic and two other languages that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. The Player’s Handbook offers a list of languages to choose from. The DM is free to modify that list for a campaign.

 

[Stormonu]

Iggy, the Goblin Warlock.

Iggy was always destined to be great, and that's what always got him into trouble - or that's what he liked to think. He was scrawny growing up, and often bullied by his mates for his unnaturally yellow eyes. But these "hawk eyes" of his could see farther than any other goblin in his enclave, and sometimes even into the future.

It was this foresight that led him to leave his enclave a mere day before humans befell his home and sacked it. Some made it out, but most didn't. Iggy though, thanks to his foresight was already far enough ahead that he did not need to fear pursuit. Instead, he felt drawn to a cave system at the edge of a rocky cliff side. Inside, he sensed something powerful - something waiting for him.

So it was that Iggy found himself before the Silver Sorcerer, who had made his home in the cave years before. At first, the Silver Sorcerer attempted to drive Iggy away most harshly, but the goblin proved resourceful and glib of tongue. The Silver Sorcerer relented, and took Iggy in to care for those tasks the Silver Sorcerer had no time for himself.

For a year, Iggy cleaned, cooked and performed whatever chores the Silver Sorcerer assigned to him - often having the foresight to preempt the Sorcerer's requests. Iggy made no secret in trying to read the great tomes the Silver Sorcerer pored over, and even taught himself to read the human tongue to catch snippets wherever he could. However, the Silver Sorcerer would always clap his tome shut before Iggy could read far over the Sorcerer's shoulder, or was shooed out of the room before he open a tome to spy the contents within.

After a year though, the Silver Sorcerer brought Iggy to his lab, where he point-blank asked Iggy why he was so interested in the Sorcerer's tomes, even wagging one such book before the bright-eyed goblin.

"I wish to learn magic," Iggy told him, "to be like you." When the Sorcerer demanded Iggy explain what it meant to be like him, Iggy replied, "Wise. Careful. And well-learned." The Sorcerer must have been impressed, for he placed a lab apron on the goblin and led him to a wooden desk. Tapping the book, it opened and the Sorcerer bade him to start his studies with that book.

Iggy devoured the knowledge and basics of magic within it in a single night. But actually casting magic took much longer. Neither he nor the Silver Sorcerer gave up though, and within another year Iggy was well enough learned and practiced that he had mastered his first few cantrips and a handful of true spells.

The Silver Sorcerer then brought him to the secret summoning lab he had kept hidden even from the goblin. There, he taught Iggy the basics of summoning creatures from beyond the world. Iggy's eventual first success landed him a pseudodragon, Bill. Then as the Silver Sorcerer looked on and encouraged him, Iggy used a secret summons the Sorcerer had taught him, and brought a shadowy figure into the summoning hall. Keros, the Silver Sorcerer called it - a powerful dark fey that the Silver Sorcerer knew well. As he was expected, Iggy created a pact with Keros, service in return for more powerful magic and knowledge.

When Keros faded, the Silver Sorcerer turned to the goblin. "I have taught you all I can from here. Now, you must journey out into the world to learn any more and discover what you will do with the magic you have obtained." The Silver Sorcerer knelt, placing his hand on Iggy's shoulder and passed him a golden walking staff. "I know you will make me proud," the Silver Sorcerer proclaimed before the two parted and Iggy stepped out in the wider world beyond the caves where his life had changed forever.

 

[Stormonu]

Shimra are unusual predators in the Land of Ta. Primarily found in the land's lush jungles, these amphibious creatures mix traits of leopards and tree frogs. They hunt near rivers and streams, lying in wait in trees above to leap down on creatures within the water, and use pools as spawning grounds for their piranha-like spawn. Unlike frogs, a Shimra's mouth is filled with serrated tooth-like structures they use to bite prey with. Their claws are poisoned with a mild hallucinogenic that local natives "milk" the Shimra for. Among the natives, the poison is brewed into a broth that is used for religious trances. Because of this usage locals tend to attribute the Shimra as messengers of the gods and are careful about harming or killing Shimra, even going so far as to offer sacrifices to Shimra spawning pools to gain the creature's favor.

Shimra do show a glimmer of intelligence, and have been known to spare those who make regular offering to them, as if they recognize the value of such individuals. In exceptionally rare cases, they can be tamed in a manner to be a village's pet and even defender. Such Shimra have been even known to crave petting, and vocalize unusual purr-ribbets in response to affectionate stroking.

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

Cecily was no ordinary Dayspring Fay. She was the daughter of Queen Tanaquill herself. As such, she had the most experience with outsiders of any fay whether Dayspring, Twilight, or Yeartide. This year had been a particularly exhausting one. The Dworolls from the Crystal Mountains had decided to up the prices of their lumen crystals for no other reason than their High King wanted more gold. Never mind that his hall looked extremely tacky. It had taken her quite the time to negotiate prices back down--mostly by using the tumar fruits as a bargaining chip. Tumar fruits only ever grew in the Starwood Forest and the dworolls used them for their favorite wines and desserts. Threats of withholding them made the high king quickly change his tune.

Then came the wyverns who decided the Starwood Forest would be the perfect place for a nesting ground this year. And then there were the goblins who came seeking sanctuary after the latest human raid.

And now there was a human. "Seeking the aid of the fay." He said. But Cecily could see right through him and, more importantly, knew about the army he was planning to use against Starwood Forest. She'd had about as much as she could take, and a human thinking she was about to put up with more of this nonsense was about to find out why the phrase "seek the aid of the fay, but court not their eldritch might" existed.

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

"Another report, your highness."

"Thank you Ursula." Ursula was a reminder of the variation the Goblins could have besides their skin, eyes, and hair. Horns, tails, even winged ankles were possible, but only sometimes bred true rather than being random. It was a gift of the goddess Alabra and the Trickster god Korwote.

The report was a neutral one. More tribes united to her banner, but more Humans were raiding. There was, however, talk of discontent among many Humans. Those who had lived long among the other species were against what was happening, even if they were helpless to prevent most of it.

"Queen Sybil, a...a...a Human says ze would speak with you!" Ursula's distaste was understandable: she'd been among the goblins thrown out of their homes by Humans.

"I will see zem," she said. It could be a ruse of some sort, but if there was any hope to be had for the future it would be through cooperation.

The Human was a woman and she had come with a dracwyrm . That boded well. Her own, Apollo, would certainly alert her if there were any falsehoods. "I am Queen Sybil of the Goblins. Who are you and why are you here?"

"I am Rimelda, of the Brumal Lands. Boreas and I come to offer our aid in your cause."

 

[Indagare Nogitsune]

Uno was a pretty typical cyclops, except for having been raised by Humans. They were the ones to give zim the name 'Uno' as if it were the most clever naming of all time.

Uno learned pretty early on not to reveal zis true intelligence: it made the Humans very nervous, and after a few beatings by kids ze started carrying a spiked club. It was protective in two ways: the actual damage it could do and the fact it made Uno look "dumb". Ze figured that more people weren't afraid mainly be cause ze stood only about waist-high to a typical Human.

There was something wrong with Humans, though. It wasn't something that the other species of Ta worried about: their Age was over. Uno heard it in hushed whispers and, at first, thought it was the typical doomsday rumors Humans always went on about when the rain didn't come or came too much or some other perfectly natural thing happened.

But then came the Aquillan Empire. Aarakocras, Gnolls, Lizardfolk, and others. The tiny community wasn't up to a fight, but the Aquillans weren't here to destroy. In fact, the army mostly stayed outside of town except one. He looked almost like a Human, but had a beak and talon-like feet.

"Good people of Arvalain, I am Erik. You have all heard the rumors, and I am here to tell you it is true: the Age of Humans is over and the Age of Wonder is beginning. There will be changes whether you will or nill it, but they do not have to be random. You do not have to suffer. We can guide you through them. As you can see, I am already changing. We make no demands of you, but if you wish us to help you, send a representative so long as we camp. We shall leave when the Rose Moon is full once more."

He turned and headed out, and the villagers began chattering again. Would they all transform as Erik was? Was he lying? Could anything stop it? But Uno hardly paid attention. A new Age was starting, and ze wanted a place in it. Joining the Aquillans seemed like an excellent way to start.

Ze left the Humans, still debating, and followed Erik to the Aquillan camp. Ze never looked back.