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2> a diety name (with portfolio or domains

The GateKeeper Of Souls
Lomyrian Name: Gatekeeper
Alignment: TN
Typical Worshipers: None. Very few people feel a bond to the Gate Keeper. There is no typical cast to it.
Clergy: The few who serve the Gate Keeper are an eerie lot. They live their lives with the sole focus of seeing the cycle maintained. As agents of the Gate Keeper in the physical world they work to destroy the undead and to stop those who would seek immortality, resurrection, or non natural reincarnation.
Symbol: A scythe.
Visage / Appearance: Androgynous skeletal reaper
Daily Ritual: None
Holy Days: None, but death and birth all venerate the gatekeeper.
Holy Places: None
Description: In Fahla's cosmology we are all endlessly reincarnated souls - when we die we visit the well of souls to be reborn. The Gatekeeper keeps watch over this process and ensures the cycles remains unbroken.

The two ritual associated with this are Birth and Death:

Birthing Ritual: Because we are reborn from the well of souls, women always give birth in water to ensure the child will catch a strong soul. At the temple if they can. It's considered a bad omen if you can't get to water. Believed that the child will be unhealthy. In the Pantheon or local temple in every community in Lomyr will be 'birthing baths' where children are brought into the world. Upon birth the child will be let to nurse for a while. The child is then brought to the altar and presented to friends and family. It is considered best if the father is present and assisting during the birth. Children are always named by their mother's upon birth. Being born away from a temple is considered bad, but not so much as a birth out of water is.

Funeral: When a person dies the body is shaved and the family keeps a constant vigil for three days. It's believed that if you turn your back in this time the person will rise again as undead. It's also believed that to raise the dead you must do it within this time. But few requests by even the most powerful of clerics can actually raise the dead. At the end of three days the body is brought to the temple where the priests submerge the it in water and pray for the soul to pass on to a better reincarnation. After this they body is burned and the ashes given over to the family. People will plant these ashes on their property or toss them into the river or ocean.

In Fahla, if a person -is- successfully raised from the dead, somewhere in the world a child will either be stillborn or born with no soul, as such this kind of magic is considered the darkest form of necromancy.


If you have Manual of the Planes, here is the Gatekeeper's realm:

The Well of Souls
The Gatekeeper's reality. Other beings only enter here when transitioning from one life to the next or as agents of the divine wish to address the Gatekeeper. The Gatekeeper does not disturbances.
Heavy Objective Directional Gravity: Everything is pulled to enter the well. Anyone in the reality that is not an agent of the divine risks being pushed through into the next life.
Timeless
Finite: The reality is nothing more than a small limbo with a pull to a shimmering well.
Static: Even the divine cannot alter anything within this reality.
Not Elemental or Energy Dominant
Strongly Neutral Aligned
Limited Magic: Only the magic of the Gatekeeper has any power here.



3> an npc name (with race/class)

A contact I once used:

Whitehaired Tell. --- Half-Orc male.
Tell was once a gladiator. His mother was a northlander slave who was publicly given to the last Orc standing in fights in the arena. Chained to a post in the middle of the battle; the victor would take her as the audience cheered. Not exactly noble origins. His father could have been any one of numerous now deceased Orcs. Tell's mother lasted another 3 years before she herself was savaged by one such victor. The arena is a bloody cruel place. Tell was raised by the pit master along with a number of other similar children to perform various menial tasks and labor. Many of the children he grew up with were sold off to mines, brothels, sailing ships, and so on. Tell however was one of those trained to be a gladiator. A profession he excelled at for the two years between ages 14 to 16 that he fought. In the end; he was one of those rare few; winning his freedom and retiring into obscurity. Tell has spent the last 10 years working as muscle and eventually management for a dockside import company. He has come to use this company to smuggle illegal goods into and out of Lomyr. Mostly animals and slaves that are outside of the laws of the nation.

9> something else. surprise us.

Fahla is not currently being used by me. It's still located here:
http://home.pacbell.net/arcady0/fahla/
And I'm considering retooling it for BESM fantasy, or maybe DnD someday if I can solve the primary problem that magic in Fahla is dangerous and unpredictable to practice but in DnD is solidly safe and predictable.
 

This is a TERRIFIC idea.

1> A Kingdom Name

Nioroth
A large, feudal kingdom founded a millenia ago by the Great Dragon Vyros, one of the most powerful of his breed in the world. The Dragon King unified the balkanized warlords of the area, formerly part of the Beltorgos tribal area. Vyros rules with uncontested authority, and his perpetual reign has had a great influence on his kingdom and many surrounding lands, including the way Niorothans view and value other nations.

Nioroth is home to many great weapon and armour smithies, and these constitute its major export. Other noteable products are gemstones from the northern mountians and high quality foodstuffs. There are both powerful priesthoods, of the God of War, Vaaldur and the region's primary deity, Geana, Goddess of Agriculture, and a significant wizards guild called the Congery.

2> A Deity Name

I use the Book of the Righteous pantheon, but here's one of the gods I've added myself.

Tanith
The Vengeful, The Vigilant, The Punisher of Wrongs, The Blood-Law.
Status : Goddess (chaotic neutral)
Symbols : Clenched Fist, the Sword and Scales of Maal.
Sphere of Influence : Retribution, revenge, mercilessness.
Worshippers : Vigilantes, justicars, bounty hunters, those seeking revenge, members of the justice blade.
Notes : Daugher of Maal (god of justice) and Naryne (goddess of nobility).

3> An NPC Name

Aldric Irondrake (male human martial artist)
Irondrake is the founder of the Abbey of the Iron Fist, a monestary that teaches a wide variety of marital arts, all of a Western flavour rather than Eastern. Here you can learn sword craft or boxing, staff- or shillaghlaie- fighting, armoured cavalry drills or foil dueling.

4> A Geographical Feature

The Towering Glades
A vast, majestic forest, home of Tucathra, the last stronghold of the Selintier (high elves) and a remnant of the old woods, they way they were before the Treehewer War. The trees in the forest's heart are mostly massive halowoods, dark- or pale-baked and as thick as pillars.

5> The Name of a New Location or Landmark

The Glass Mountain
Deep in the desert of Ahrliman, there is a large, eroded volcano whos peak glints like diamond. This mountain is home to a cult of astronomers who use mirrors, lenses and cunning artifice to study the heavens. The entire peak is in fact a series of light wells and reflectors.

6> The Name of a Legend

The Treehewer War (6 kya in my world's history)
AKA the War of the Axes. The dwarves of Morghadum (a sucessor state to the great dwarven kingdom) war with the Selintier of Lynnfana (a major forest). The destruction wrought on both sides is appalling; the elves sink the mountians of Morghadum into the earth, while the dwarves deforest vast swathes of land, forcing the Selintier to retreat to Tucathra.

7> The Name of a Magic Item

Salamandar Wand
A small wooden wand, about 3/4 inch wide and 2 long that produces an inch long jet of flame form the tip on command from a spellcaster. Magical zippo.

8> The Name of a New Posion

Dawnberries
Small, golden berries that when ingested give a boost of strength for severl minutes, but weaken the user's health, and can even cause premature aging (effectivly adding a few months to the character's age).

9> something else. surprise us.

The bones of those born with the gift of magic retain a natural enchantment; it is not uncommon for archmages to have chambers built from the skulls of their rivals.
 
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1> a town/city/kingdom name

Chandrale is a small country, led by a rather corrupt plutocracy. Its region is tied to a serpent spirit, and so snakes are holy, taboo animals there. Its capital, Ralarka, was once a city build by a now-extinct ophidian race whose delicate artwork and mysterious writings fetch very high prices on the black market.

The chandres are currently engaged in a bloody war with an expensionistic elven empire.

Chandrin culture gives heavy emphasis to artistic tastes, lore, knowledge, magic, and wealth. However, their elite give little attention to concepts like "justice" or "equity". The status of women is pretty poor, as the elite tend to treat them like art objects. The common people are forced to live outside the laws, as the official taxes and paperwork for most things (like making contracts, wedding, borrowing money, etc.) are too heavy and complicated; and thus, merely bypassed.

2> a diety name (with portfolio or domains)

Heral, the god of cities, civilization, trade, and order, is the ruler of Aphanyal, the divine city of the lawful gods. This calm and quiet god is known for having always been confident in his autority and power, and so is his church. When he manifests, his avatar always starts and ends all his speechs with this sentence: "I am HERAL, and my WORD is LAW". Failure to obey result, at worst, in being geased. Attacking the avatar is a chaotic act, that instantly change one's alignement to chaotic; and in addition, each of Heral's word is considered as a dictum from now on -- but otherwise, he don't retaliate.
Heral's church has never started any war or agression, and are usually a non-violent bunch. The hammer that is their symbol is a builder's tool, not a killer's weapon. However, not benefitting from the same protection and nigh-invulnerability as their patron, they are known to retaliate.
Heral and his church are interested in things being built, protected, and working orderly. Although always soft and polite, they are not necessarily kind.
Domains are law, protection, trade, and cities.

3> an npc name (with race/class)

Ottomsoh the Venerable (neutral blue goblin psion-seer and loremaster) is the founder and leader of the spy network named the Eye-Tyrant (after these creature's capacity to always look in all directions). Ottomsoh and his agents spies on everything, collect all informations they can, and archive them carefully. They sell their lore to whoever can afford his steep prices.
Ottomsoh is said to have the protection of the goddess Estaril, who rule over those who lives in the shadows.

4> a geographical feature name (forests, rivers, mountains,etc)

Charvade, the dark forest, is a mad place. Litterally. Haunted by a mad wolf spirit, this dense wood located in a flat area or the Roybra is sentient, awakened, and it hates any kind of civilization. There, animals and plants are all possessed by this angry, hateful spirit, and they will hunt any and all humanoids to eradicate them. All sort of animated carnivorous plants, and twisted predators -- especially wolves and other canines -- constantly prowl the place, looking for intruders to slay. Flora and fauna alike frequently mutate, transformed by the mad spirit into something more ferocious and deadly.
There strive little tribes of kobolds, whose culture is entirely focused on survival in this dark green hell. Surrounded by mountains and sea, and unable to pass through the barriers erected by other races to prevent the Charvade monsters from leaving their territory, the little reptilian folk are a living (but not for long, individually speaking) proof of the strength of the survival instinct.

5> the name of a new location or landmark (something cool to pass by or visit)

One should not forget to visit Abystine at least one in his lifetime. This impressive city is built on the Rift that cleft through the Crown mountain range and the western part of the continent to link the Inner Sea with the Algailes Ocean. The city is built halfly on the wide flow of freshwater, an intricate work of bridges and islands genuine or artificial. Delicate manors and huge towered mansions are build on these bridges and islands. Wonders of magically-assisted engineering, all bridges are high enough to let ships sail beneath them in the middle part of the rift channel. As you move toward the shores, the quality of construction decrease, and several buildings are made in shipwrecks and other slums. On the actual land are farms and fields.

But if you've seen this, you've only seen half of Abystine. The other half, known as Shadowtown, is subterranean, muddy, and frequently submerged. Burrowed below the shores, and even below the channel, connected to sunken wrecks, this maze of tunnels and rooms is one of the most dangerous place to be, if only for the collapses and floods. There, powerful individuals who don't want their trade to be noticed organize shady deals of all kind, and many places are shielded from water by wall of forces or similar to allow for smugglery to exist despite the hazards. Shadowtown initially sprang out of existence because of all the galleries burrowed by the murinds -- ratmen of all stripes. Strange creatures haunts it.

6> the name of a legend (hero, battle, cataclysm, fairy tale, other)

The Blades of Fates are unique artefacts that seldom appear. They are able to kill the fate of whole races or cultures when you use them to kill symbolical people. It's what is said, at least, to explain why the halflings have no land of their own and are never able to raise to proeminance anywhere. The goblins are said to have a similar fate, and the trolls, and...

7> the name of a magic item

Rhûltiang is a strange greatsword, whose design is obviously magical -- a sword with the same elegant-yet-disfunctional shape would be unwieldly and frail without magic. This artifacts is intelligent and wants nothing less than the extinction of elfkind. Elves it slays are raised as wights 1d4 rounds later.

Rhûltiang may very well be a blade of fate.

8> the name of a new poison/herb/metal/wood/etc

The somnifugal seed of Vabarjak are like coffee beans that would be alchemically treated to be even worse. Eating one removes the fatigued or exhausted status, prevents from falling asleep for 1 hour. For this whole duration, the character can't be fatigued or exhausted, can't naturally fall asleep, gets a +10 bonus on saves against magical or alchemical sleep effects, and a +1 bonus on Spot and Listen check; while at the same time a -1 penalty on any Intelligence-based check.

If you eat several in a row, the penalty is cumulative, but not the bonuses.

Once the effect ends, a character is fatigued if he ate one, exhausted if he ate two, and collapses in sleep for 2 hours per eaten seed if he ate more than two.

It is also mildly addictive.

9> something else. surprise us.

The gods live on the moon. Clerics spend their nights staring at the blue, green and white orb, identifying the continents and locating the cities where the gods rule over the souls of the dead. Night is the time when gods act, while day is for mortals to work.
 
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Dirigible said:
Aldric Irondrake (male human martial artist)
Irondrake is the founder of the Abbey of the Iron Fist, a monestary that teaches a wide variety of marital arts.

This typo always amuses me. :D
 

#6 Legend

The Tale of the Bad Seed

It is the custom of halflings to give their children "child names," such as "Skipper," "Berry," and "Tiny" for example. Sometimes these names change while still a youngster. Upon coming of age, the parents then give the child his/her adult name. Many halflings keep their child name as well and use it throughout their life. But when meeting other halflings for the first time, they will introduce themselves with their adult name and will mention which they prefer. It is considered rude to ask an adult their child name if they have not already mentioned it.

However, there is a child name that will never be used. That of the one who is now called the Bad Seed. Sprout.

Sprout was a young halfling who was quick of mind and deft of hand. He loved his family, but yearned to leave, to travel to the city to explore and engage in the excitement to be had there. He worked hard to help the family farm prosper, yet his heart was never there. It was away in the city where his mind dreamed of fortune and adventure.

The family could take care of itself but hard work was needed to maintain the farm. Though no one went hungry, his family was not wealthy. After hearing another merchant's tale of the city, he could stand it no more. Gathering his few personal belongings, he left.

Though the fall harvest was due, his father struck out to retrieve him. He was gone for only a week. He never spoke of what he encountered while there. He grimly set to work, trying to bring in a harvest with one pair of hands short and a late start. He failed.

The other families helped as much as they could and the family did not starve that winter, but it was a blow that they were never able to recover from. Stories of the runaway floated back to the village and family that he was now a common thief. Some stories told of cold-blooded murder. Each story that came back seemed to strike the family with more ill-fortune.

The family and farm continued to decline. After crop failures, sickness, and accident, the father was the last one left. He wrote a last letter to his son, lay down, and died, assuredly of a broken heart and in misery. The village priest of Yondalla took the letter to safeguard. It contained the adult name of his son.

Many years later, the runaway returned for his family. He was tired of the ridicule his people heaped on him for not having an adult name and came back to claim it. He returned to find his family gone and the farm overtaken by weeds and ruin of time. None in the village would speak to him and the only one who did, told him to seek out the priest.

Upon meeting the priest, he was told the sorry tale of his family and the unfortunate end they came. The priest could see that he was unmoved and refused to give over the letter. He told him that being burdened with his child name could be a reminder of his abandonment of his family.

Smarting from the words of the priest, he left to brood at his family's farm throughout the night. He plotted to steal the letter and, if unable, to kill the priest to get it. That morning, he left for the village, his mind set on gaining the letter, one way or another.

When he arrived at the outskirts of the village, he found it under attack from bandits. A thief himself, he recognized the leader of the bandits whom he had some association in the past few years. Calling upon the leader to talk with him, he revealed that this was his home village. The leader offered to end the attack since he did not want to encroach upon another's territory.

The runaway's answer damned him as the Bad Seed, "Kill the priest for me and you shall do as you wish here, for I am done with this place." Through Yondalla's blessings, the bandits paid a price in dead men before finally laying the priest low. The Bad Seed took the letter from the dying priest and read it. Discarding the letter, he began his adult life as "Callas," leaving the village to the enraged bandit leader to pillage, burn, and put those he could capture to the sword.

Parents will never give their children the name of "Sprout." Children who are bad are sometimes threatened with being given the adult name of "Callas." Thus the legend of the Bad Seed is told. A tale of betrayal of family, of home, of our people, and of our goddess.
 


  • a town/city/kingdom name - Hawk's Cove - A small settlement and only seaport of the Young Baronies. Was started as a refugee camp of escaped slaves from a crashed slaver ship.
  • a diety name (with portfolio or domains) - Selna, goddess of the moons, astrology, and prophey, "Guardian on the Night" - Good, Prophecy, Protection, Moon
  • an npc name (with race/class) - Mithril - NG tiefling abjurer
  • a geographical feature name (forests, rivers, mountains,etc) - Knightsblood river - site of a particularly bloody clash.
  • the name of a new location or landmark (something cool to pass by or visit) - Sunfall mount - purported site of the death of the goddess Amathriah. The summit shines with a visible light, and the mount is on a promentory regularly passed by ships en route to the biggest tradeport in the region. The armies have secured the mount and it is off limits, leaving the true content of the mount a mystery.
  • the name of a legend (hero, battle, cataclysm, fairy tale, other) - The Choas Wars - a titanic conflict in the World Before that brought about climactic upheavals and unleashed demons upon the land. Forced the exodus of the major culture of the current game continent.
  • the name of a magic item Bracers of Absorption. 50 charges, absorbs any ray or energy missile targeted at the wearer, uses up 1 charge/level of the absorbed spell.
  • the name of a new posion/herb/metal/wood/etc - Black iron - iron mined from the deepest caverns, near gates to the netherworld. Weapons forged from it act as both cold iron and evil for the purposes of penetrating damage reduction.
  • something else. surprise us. - A dugneon - the Tesseract of Nala. An as yet undiscovered creation of a deceased archlich. Nala's tesseract is a dungeon arranged as a tesseract - that is, it exists in 8 cubes connected through four dimentions. From our perspective, they all exist in the space of a single cube. Nala stored many experiements and treasures here.
 
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