Obsydia's Races Overview + Dweller, Fey, Fianna Updated (7/13/2006)

[drexes]

Universal History: Before there was a world there was a vast nothingness and in this great nothingness was the greatest of all dragons, Obsydia. Obsydia travelled the vast nothingness destroying anything that petty gods had created for entertainment. Then a force came upon the great dragon and though it could not slay him, it imprisoned him. Forcing him into a torpor the dragon curled up into deep sleep. In the aeons that followed soil began to form on the dragons body from its scale and hair and the tears from its eyes became the water of the land.

It's at this point that the various religions of Obsydia differ. Each has its own take on how the dragon was put to sleep, and who did it. Each has a different myth on how the dragon that would be a world was populated.

Drexes

 

[drexes]

Fey History: Jurakah came to slay the powerful dragon Obsydia but took pity on him. In the aeons that followed Jurakah in his wisdom saw that the being who had destroyed so much should be the home of the greatest creations. He created the beasts of the land and the plants, and all the world was green and lush. Finally he created the Fey, the one race of sentience and granted them dominion over the world. The fey were righteous and grateful and worshipped the goodness that was Jurakah. But deep in his slumber the dragon twisted the souls of the weaker fey, and as they became twisted inside so to did they become different outside as well. The world about them became twisted and everything became touched by evil. The pure among the fey retreated to the lands of Meshaccah and secluded themselves. Generations passed and the fey remained pure but the world around them fell to the evil hearts of lesser beings. The tainted fey became men and orcs and giants and far more devilish beings, but in some a spark of goodness remained. The fey saw this and the miracles of thier twisted faiths and knew Jurakah took pity even on the lowliest of his creations and so they too must take pity.

How's that?

Drexes

 

[Corvidae]

Looks really good drexes,
It seems like the races are really coming to life at least for me. It seems like they really have a history and a life to them. I think everything is really coming togeth.

Good job.

John

 

[Land Outcast]

Most exelent

May I yoink that land?
I'm already thinking about a pair of adventures set there...

No, seriously, most excelent

Houses, with their private affairs...
A council of elders...
A freakin' Jade city!
And a religion which moves towards tolerating others.

That's a plot brewing pot!

 

[drexes]

I always post with the intent of sharing...so yoink away.. I am glad to have sparked an interest. I was going to post the dwellers history today but I fell down some stairs and hurt my wrist and typing this way is slow, so we'll see...after the dweller comes the fianna, but then who does everybody want next? Oh and please let me know any adventure ideas you have about these races so i may yoink back hehe

Drexes

 

[drexes]

Dweller Lands

Travague: The mountain nation of the Dwellers lies on the southern peninsula of Caradon. These mountains are low peaked and rocky. Sharp cliffs and deep ravines mar the land the Dwellers call home. The Dwellers are traders and craftsmen without peer. They mine the rich ore deposits of Travague for their raw materials. In the past few decades the Dwellers have begun to fortify their mountain home with great walls. This move toward isolation has crippled the trade of ironworks and steel.
Government and Law: The government of Travague is controlled by its Guildmasters in a senatorial fashion. Every major industry and trade has its own guild within Dweller society, and each guild controls those things associated with that trade. When matters of state must be decided the Guildmasters meet in private to decide how the nation should proceed. Enforcement of civil and criminal law falls to the warden’s guild. They handle all disputes and crimes that happen outside of a guild, between guilds, and all violent crimes. They are considered stern yet fair by most Dwellers.
Geography: Travague consists of a small range of mountains, plateaus and mesas. Within the broken landscape lies the land of the Dwellers. The Dwellers have built their cities into the hills and cliff faces of the region. The hills of Travague are incredibly rich in iron and adamantine which the Dwellers mine for trade. The southern area of Travague is also home to Dragon’s Eryie, an active volcano that is the source for blood obsidian. The ocean floor off the coast of Travague is wrought with shallows and reefs, making sail very dangerous.
Climate: Travague is arid and summer temperatures are quite warm while winters are cold. The baked stone and mud homes of the Dwellers help insulate them from the elements. The eastern coast of Obsydia is marked by turbulent storms and destructive winds.
Parhost: Also known as the trade city, Parhost is the central trading market for the Dwellers. Since outsiders are typically not permitted within Frowe many of Frowe’s merchants make frequent trips to the less strict city. Great cobblestone roads lead in and out of the city along all the major trade routes. The roads are well patrolled by the Dwellers and crimes against merchant and their stock are considered very grave. (Population: 56,000)
Frowe: Frowe is the capital city of the Travague and is built into the sides and underneath a single great stone mesa. The cities structures are composed entirely of stone and steel, often with baked mud for mortar. The city is protected by great stone and iron walls the block all the passes to Frowe. (Population: 45,000)
Commerce: The Dwellers are notorious traders, offering some of the greatest ores and metal wares in all Obsydia. They export iron, steel, silver, bronze, adamantine and finished metal goods. They import textiles, foodstuffs, and lumber.

 

[drexes]

X-ray appointemnt delayed until 3, so I have plenty of time to type..

Dweller History: When the souls of the beings that the dragon Obsydia slew were released they gathered together in a sense, coalescing in by means of spiritual gravity. They came together forming a single embodiment with many minds known as the Gurhakmas. The entity bore all the knowledge and skills of every creature killed by the dragon and so devised a prison for the great destroyer. As the scales fell of the dragon the spirits would gather them and enchent them for a great binding spell. Then when the creature rested the spirits replaced the scales on its back. Each enchanted scale weakend the mighty beast until it fell asleep unable to stir. When the boday had become much like a planet the spirits created beings after their own images populating the the world. Tus each race is descended from a different type of entity in the Gurhakmas. The Dwellers were the last race created, and were the combined effort of all the spirits, sent to teach the world the arts of craft and technology so that knowledge would not be lost to the destruction of the dragon. The Dwellers harvest blood Obsydia form deep in thier own mountains but are very controlling of the amounts because they know it is truly the dried blood of the world wyrm and harvesting too much, could rouse or slay the dragon. The dwellers are also very protective of the great enchanted scales that exist throughout Obsydia, known as Karukes, as they know that they are the key to keeping the dragon asleep.

*As the Karukes are damaged and/or destroyed the normally powerful dragons of Obsydia become more so. Only the dwellers, and a hidden race of giants know the secrets for "healing" the karukes. Most of the rest of the world see them as simply beautiful sacred crystals to be looked upon and awed. There does exist a draconic cult that is bent on destroying some of these crystals. It is known as the Geistot, and its goals remain unknown...

Not my best writing, but I'm on pain meds and still hurting...

Drexes

 

[Land Outcast]

Ouch! sorry 'bout the stairs thing

Well... a citadel made of magically imbued jade...
Incorporeal creatures (specially ghosts) wouldn't be delighted by that, and would try to possess creatures (Fey themselves, or savage beasts, or adventurers!) to find a way to destroy the place.
(This gives space for inner treason, for possessed wizards researching spells which would aliminate the dreaded stone, and even "when animals attack"... or "when possessed ogrillon tribes attack")

The typical, unimaginative idea of the religious radicals who see things other way around:
Taking pity involves sacrificing the other creatures to allow them rest from their corrupted selves.

The council of elders... a doppleganger... what else is there to say?

Fey start weakening, no sickness, just a general progressive weakness... is the magic of the city draining sustenance from them because the [powerstone/flowstone/mystic pool] has been depleted?

Two houses have been preparing for war (not amongst themselves, against an external enemy), when the elders discover this, they are astonished. The war those houses were preparing for was not anounced and was kept secret... why?

 

[drexes]

very nice...Also I hope to be posting the Fianna stuff tomorrow if time allows.

Drexes

 

[drexes]

Fianna history: The Fianna believe that as the Dragon, Obsydia, ventured through the vast nothingness destroying what he found he became bored with simple destruction. The Tuatha De Danaan had been watching the great beast from afar and took note of his general melancholy. So Arianrhod gathered with the rest of her race of gods and devised a plan to trick the dragon into submission. Mathonwy looked into the future and saw that only evil would come from killing the beast so Arianrhod asked Morrigan and Brighid to brew a delicious poison that would put the beast to sleep. Arianrhod then challenged the dragon to a game of chance, and when the Dragon lost he cried foul. To appease the creature, Arianrhod offered the beast his magical wine. The wine was sweet and the dragon drank his fill until at last the poison took hold of the beast. When the beast was fast asleep, the rest of the Tuatha De Danaan came upon its form and saw the opportunity to create. The great houses of the Tuatha De Danaan began to argue amongst themselves over who would be allowed to create. The Tuatha De Danaan had won the rights but the Unseelie courts and the Sidhe were displeased to be left out. Each of the courts was allowed to create one race upon the world and the Tuatha De Danaan created the Fianna. Then Danu came upon them and poulated the world with animals and trees in order that all races might live pleasantly, but the other courts saw this as the exploitation of thier agreement and so they created creatures themselves until all the beings of the world were created.

Drexes