Loretober: A Fantasy Worldbuilding Challenge for October!

[jaybirdthings]

# 9. Occultism
Subject: Place
Canvas: Global

DOMINUS, THE STEEL TREE

One of the lesser-known Great Trees that connect this world to others, Dominus is rumored to be rooted in the heart of the Barrows of Qil’Var. This massive mangrove tree still holds green leaves, but its trunk and exposed root structure are made entirely of adamantine, one of the world’s strongest metals. The complex arching roots of Dominus imply that it used to be submerged in a lake despite its desert environment. Scholars believe the tree could have moved during the Final Hour, rooting itself in the most chaotic region of the world where the Final Hour originated in an effort to add balance to the Barrows.

Dominus is the tether that ties Verra to Civilization, the World of Total Order. As a result, many lost souls have gathered to form The Inexorable Order, a devout group worshipping the Knights of Civilization. They gather within the roots of Dominus, praying for one of the Knights to appear before them, giving them purpose and order. They receive commands from within the tree and set out upon the Barrows, hoping to one day cleanse the land of its chaos.

 

[Edgar Ironpelt]

Loretober 10: Dragons
The dragons of Gold-Home are actually all were-dragons: Humans and lizardmen from the otherworld of Adobe Colony whose magic includes the ability to shift into a draconic form.

This can be a gift or a curse, depending on the level of control the were-dragon has. At its worst, the shifts are uncontrolled, with the draconic form having reduced intelligence and a loss of spellcasting or psionic ability. At its best, the were-dragon can shift at will and retains most or all of his or her intelligence and spellcasting ability in the draconic form. In addition, in the best case, the were-dragon can refrain from shifting, even during the full moon or in response to various other triggers.

 

[jaybirdthings]

# 10. Dragons
Subject: Item
Canvas: Dimensional

THE CONCORDANT MANTLE

In the time before the worlds bled together, when only the Great Trees connected planes, the elder Moondrake Talokaminax led a society of peaceful psions who sought to spread peace throughout the Sea of Stars. Their main enemy in the struggle for peace was a powerful onyx dragon named Uroniziir. Uroniziir shattered the heart of Talokaminax, forcing the Moonstone Union to flee across all worlds, hoping to rebuild their great effort for peace.

One such member of the Fallen Union was a sapphire dragon named Ballisantirax, who made her home on the Mundane World for a time. She communed with many of Verra’s peoples, even the World King, a giant named Khorak. Before her Awakening, a milestone of psionic might that would force her away from the Mundane World, she bestowed upon Khorak a crown made from the heart of Talokaminax. This Concordant Mantle would give the wearer total empathy, enabling them to feel for all they share a world with, but only if the wearer can open their heart to the crown. Khorak proved unable to commit to the Mantle’s cause, and locked the crown away in his vaults.

Today, the Union is barely even a memory. Uroniziir gained the title Cthrion, meaning “Time Ender”. Ballisantirax, the world’s greatest hope in the fight against Uroniziir, sleeps deeply across all worlds. The crown remains unused to this day, sunken miles into Verra as her oceans were born of Khorak’s enemies and Khorakheim is now almost entirely underground.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

10.

Dragons are long gone, nothing more than fossils in the earth. But their descendants live on, in smaller feathered forms… IOW, imagine a world in which birds descended from dragons, not dinosaurs.

Complete with breath weapons.

Acid spitting moas. Puffins breathing gas. Hummingbirds spitting lightning. Dodos that emit hallucinogenic fumes. Ice-shard spitting penguins.

 

[jaybirdthings]

10.

Dragons are long gone, nothing more than fossils in the earth. But their descendants live on, in smaller feathered forms… IOW, imagine a world in which birds descended from dragons, not dinosaurs.

Complete with breath weapons.

• Chicken - Fire
• Pigeon - Poison
• Peacock - Acid
• Owl - Cold
• Albatross - Lightning

 

[Edgar Ironpelt]

Parrots: Sonic

 

[Edgar Ironpelt]

Loretober 11: Nature
According to the writings of the mad wizard Tim of Atland, the otherworld of Trion has much the same plant life as does Gold-Home or Earth. Likewise birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates are very much the same. Mammals are different, however, with the anomalous exceptions of dogs and humans.

Some ordinary mammals, such as bears, foxes, oxen, and unicorns, are mythical on Trion. Other common mammals are completely unknown there. Instead, according to the mad wizard, Trion is home to such furry beasts as chitters, shags, tygers, vosk, woolybacks, and wyverns.

 

[jaybirdthings]

# 11. Nature
Subject: Event
Canvas: Local

THE TRUFFLE FESTIVAL

The city of Servota holds an annual Truffle Festival in autumn, when the amber truffles that are exclusive to the region grow in large numbers. These truffles have a burnt orange hue and provide a soft bittersweet flavor that is beloved in Admasian fine dining.

The festival begins on the last day of Renys and usually lasts for 10 days. Festivities include truffle hunting, costume contests, several outdoor theatres that are constructed for the festivals many plays, and a 3 day cooking competition which ends the festival.

 

[Bohandas]

11.) Nature - Planar Flora and Fauna

*The bears on Mechanus grow in the shape of a cube. This allows them to be more easily stacked and stored during the winter months

*In the city of Dis, in Hell, the municipal department of vermin is in charge of installing rats in all newly constructed alleyways and lower class homes and apartments

*In Hades there is a plant that acts as a strong anti-euphoriant but which can cause debilitating physical dependency after only brief accidental contact

*In the Abyss there are trees that grow daggers as fruit. The daggers rapidly sprout new trees inside of dead bodies. Another similar tree has a fruit which disperses its seeds by exploding like a fragmentation grenade

*Many of the tunnels in Pandemonium are bored by giant worms

*In Ysgard there is a pyriscent forest that whose periodic fires release an intoxicating smoke

*In Arborea there are plants that form natural furniture

 

[Edgar Ironpelt]

Loretober 12: Cuisine
Cold chocolate soup originated in La Vache Brune of the elven House of Claude, and spread from there to other eating houses along the south coast of the Kingdom of Vinland.

It's possible, if unlikely, that Gaelvar Claude was inspired to invent the dish by the writings of Tim of Atland. In those writings, the mad wizard claimed that a cooled chocolate soup was one of the few dishes from the Kingdom of The Koonlands, in the otherworld of Trion, that did not include citrus as an ingredient.