Pterra

[Firebird]

Seeing the great ideas others have posted in several cooperative setting threads, I decided to start up a new thread, and see what people could do with a new blank canvas.

As far as rules go, the only one I currently have is that you have to wait for two new contributions to make your next one.

Here goes. 'Pterra is a lush and warm land situated in the southern climes of it's world...'

Let your creative juices flow.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

In Pterra, the dinosaurs still roam the forests and savannahs, keeping many of the mammalian species from the north from gaining a foothold.

And the dinosaurs have continued to evolve ...

 

[Firebird]

The Sea Dwarves of Pterra, the Mar-Zud, set sail in collossal arcs containing entire clans, carrying their wares to the scattered settlements of the isles off Pterra's eastern coast. The bottoms of these vessels are often painted with designs rumored to ward the ships against the attacks of the great serpents sometimes seen in the dangerous waters among the isles. Others claim the sigils call and enslave spirits of the sea to speed the ship to its destination or to defend it from attack.

The clerics of the sea clans say nothing as to the truth of these tales.

 

[Land Outcast]

Draakhin, The lizard-people of Pterra, initiates in great arcane misteries and of extremely long lifespans; dwellers of the dryest areas of Pterra, where they are said to receive illumination from their ancestors.

Ancestors which, as someone would suggest -but never before Draakhin-, might be the same as those of dinosaurs. As dinosaurs evolved, Draakhin would have been a weaker -but far more cunning- branch of the "family".

Surprisingly they don't have a nomadic culture, having built great citadels in veneration of their ancestors in spots which provide the much needed water... but an offshoot of the race has been said to leave the deserts to dwell elsewhere...

 

[Firebird]

The ancient ancestors of the Draakhin are the source of many of the ruins that dot the lands of Pterra.
One group of humans, displaced by the predations of predators, sought refuge in the shattered stones on one such site, unaware of the dangers. Slowly altered by the fell magics of the place, they have become more and more reptilian in nature, their mightiest leaders acquiring serpentine traits and bodily mutations. Now called the Ophidi, these creatures are a menace to any who would travel the jungles of the southeast reaches.

 

[Firebird]

The Shael, the elves of Pterra, build their settlements high in the trees of the northern swamp deltas, safe from the predations of most dinosaurs. Their spellcasters are somehow able to "sing" the living wood of their homes into wondrous forms of great strength, an art that also creates the fabled wooden armor and weapons of the Shael guardians.
When the elves are forced to travel on the surface, they do so on the backs of domesticated whiptails, a type of sauropod.

 

[CsonTep]

The Sea Dwarves of Pterra, the Mar-Zud, set sail in collossal arcs containing entire clans, carrying their wares to the scattered settlements of the isles off Pterra's eastern coast. The bottoms of these vessels are often painted with designs rumored to ward the ships against the attacks of the great serpents sometimes seen in the dangerous waters among the isles. Others claim the sigils call and enslave spirits of the sea to speed the ship to its destination or to defend it from attack.

The clerics of the sea clans say nothing as to the truth of these tales.

DM SECRET
The sigils painted upon the hulls of the Mar-Zud clan-arks are the symbol of an ancient pact between the Mar-Zud and the sahuagin living in the seas of Pterra's eastern coast. These sigils give the Mar-Zud clan-arks free passage through the seas controlled by the ravenous shark-men. The sahuagin are also supposed to assist Mar-Zud ships when attacked by sea beasts or enemies, but this part of the agreement is generally ignored.
The dwarves cannot reveal the meaning of their ships markings, for they do not remember the details of the accord with the sahuagin, only that they are able to sail through areas where any other vessel would dissappear and that occasionally a shark spirit assists in a battle against an attacking sea creature.

--BRAD

 

[Dragonbait]

The kuo-toa, distant cousins to the modern sahuagin of the eastern sea, and slaves of the ancient Draakin, survive in small clans amongst the ruins and natural caves that dot the coasts of Pterra. While the kuo-toa people are not inherently evil, their dominant religion is. They worship an ancient evil race of creatures that were said to have risen from the depths of the ocean, or from another realm (even the kuo-toa are unclear about this). These beings were said to have brought about the destruction of the old Draakin empire. Even the sahuagin themselves whisper about these powerful creatures, but see it as a crime against their god to speak the name of this powerful race.
The kuo-toa fight regularly with the other inhabitants of Pterra, raiding settlements for slaves to sacrifice to their evil "gods."

DM Secret: The powerful race is, of course, the aboleths. Some of the sacrifices are not killed, but rather transformed into the Skum, the traditional slaves of the aboleths. The ancient aboleth empire existed long before the Draakin, both above ground and below, but when the world's climate changed the aboleths migrated deep into the ocean. When they returned, they were enraged at the Draakin people, and manipulated various forces to bring about the destruction of their empire. The kuo-toa were easily manipulated to rise up against the Draakin due to their enslavement, and the aboleths decided to keep the race alive after the fall of the Draakin. If one delves into the oldest of the Draakin ruins, and deep underground, they might find some of the rare signs of some very alien and decidedly non-Draakin culture, such as statues, artifacts, and the like.

 

[Dragonbait]

In the secluded realms of Pterra, portals to the various elemental planes occasionally "leak" and elementals come forth. It is possible to find elemental-based creatures on Pterra that were not summoned by spells. The Shael elves and the lizardfolk know of a number of these elemental portals. Their druids will use them as holy sites and ally with the elementals, when and if, possible.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Given the obvious power and even dominance of the reptiles and dinosaurs on Pterra, it's no surprise that various gods have appeared in their image, including a debased serpent god -- whom non-believers sometimes accuse of being a demon lord -- whose people have become more and more serpent-like over time, even as their least-blessed brethren infiltrate other communities on Pterra. Every year, more and more communities vanish overnight, slaughtered beneath the wavy-bladed daggers of the snake cultists. Grisly totems -- including, infamously, stacks of severed heads -- are left behind to attest to the growing power of the serpent people of Pterra's jungle deltas.