Andrew D. Gable
First Post
See, now I feel bad 'cause all I have is an Atlantis-like sunken continent, a created desert (by mages who blasted the landscape), and a Thangorodrim-like evil hollowed-out mountain fortress.
What unusual geography exists in your world?
- Thread starter blackshirt5
- Start date
Aeris Winterood
First Post
Hey.. so!
And that is what these boards are for! Ideas from all... .if we all combined one aspect of each of our worlds.. .WOW!!! messed up!
Andrew D. Gable said:
And that is what these boards are for! Ideas from all... .if we all combined one aspect of each of our worlds.. .WOW!!! messed up!
Impeesa
Explorer
I have... the plains of glass, a vast desert that was melted and fused during a magical apocalypse. Ground zero of that apocalypse was torn from reality.... the city that was there is now a demiplane which is difficult to reach from the Prime, and where it used to be is a great black void through which outsiders can occasionally arrive. There's also a small island with a towering tree on it, which glows faintly (visible at night)... the glow is caused by the raw magical energy of the artifact entombed beneath it. 
--Impeesa--
--Impeesa--
As I have just really started on a new setting here are some of mine.
The Buckets - Strip mines and caverns, basicly holes 100 feet wide and 100 feet deep with tunnels running out. These were the mines of my elder master race. The plain they are located is about 200 miles by 200 miles.
The Shallow Sea - This is a area that is just sinking into the ocean, the area is flat and the water is only 5 to 10 feet deep, but has strong tides.
The Hell Flats - This is an salt flat area where the sea has retreated from the land but is also very geologicaly active. Lava and steam will escape from the ground creating lava tubes and making the area misty. Because of the heat from the ground and the location (along the equator) the area is very hot.
The Buckets - Strip mines and caverns, basicly holes 100 feet wide and 100 feet deep with tunnels running out. These were the mines of my elder master race. The plain they are located is about 200 miles by 200 miles.
The Shallow Sea - This is a area that is just sinking into the ocean, the area is flat and the water is only 5 to 10 feet deep, but has strong tides.
The Hell Flats - This is an salt flat area where the sea has retreated from the land but is also very geologicaly active. Lava and steam will escape from the ground creating lava tubes and making the area misty. Because of the heat from the ground and the location (along the equator) the area is very hot.
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Tonguez
A suffusion of yellow
IMC the UnderSea is a region beneath the bottom of the ocean that can only be accessed by a long verticle dive into a deep sea chasm.
The Undersea is a parralel to the 'World Above' and the people walk about as if on dry land, breathing oxygen etc. The only clue that this is different is that whales and similar creatures can be seen swimming through the sky, rivers flow past at shoulder height and the people can swim upwards if they so choose.
Another region is the Burning Desert a huge volcanic badlands long ago blasted and twisted where sulphur lakes bubble and magma flows in rivers. Here is also found the Glittering Desert where the sand is made of diamonds and ghost cities occasionally appear.
I also use my share of floating islands, moving islands and also a verticle mountainsized Wall which is inhabitted by various creatures and races
The Undersea is a parralel to the 'World Above' and the people walk about as if on dry land, breathing oxygen etc. The only clue that this is different is that whales and similar creatures can be seen swimming through the sky, rivers flow past at shoulder height and the people can swim upwards if they so choose.
Another region is the Burning Desert a huge volcanic badlands long ago blasted and twisted where sulphur lakes bubble and magma flows in rivers. Here is also found the Glittering Desert where the sand is made of diamonds and ghost cities occasionally appear.
I also use my share of floating islands, moving islands and also a verticle mountainsized Wall which is inhabitted by various creatures and races
Ringmaster
First Post
Eons ago, in spite of all the various supplications of their hard-working mortal constituency, the gods had a big fight and tore the world to bits.
The world is now a shattered sphere. Anyone foolhardy enough to venture to the edge would see quite a sight before they sailed off into oblivion.
Many attempts at crossing the rifts with vessels and magic or spanning them with bridges have been made over the intervening millennia. None have succeded. The PCs, though they don't know it yet, will meet the first beings to succeed. And, boy, they're not gonna like it one bit.
Also...
On the main "island" are a few small to moderately sized landforms, at the heart of which is a place called The Vale. Inspired by a film I saw on Kilimanjaro, The Vale is a vast valley at the bottom of which are tracts of rainforest and at the top of which are glaciers, with several distinct climatic regions in between. Enterprising mortals found this very dense range of climates intriguing and terraced the whole area to better support a staggering variety of agriculture. The glaciers at the top are melted to irrigate the areas below which in turn produce a multitude of, well, produce. Amongst other things.
It is a fragile and unsustainable environment to be sure (a fact which is slowly coming to light and scaring the dickens out of those who know), but impressive and lucrative. Though very small compared to other regions, the Vale is exceedingly wealthy and attracts people from all over the world.
The world is now a shattered sphere. Anyone foolhardy enough to venture to the edge would see quite a sight before they sailed off into oblivion.
Many attempts at crossing the rifts with vessels and magic or spanning them with bridges have been made over the intervening millennia. None have succeded. The PCs, though they don't know it yet, will meet the first beings to succeed. And, boy, they're not gonna like it one bit.
Also...
On the main "island" are a few small to moderately sized landforms, at the heart of which is a place called The Vale. Inspired by a film I saw on Kilimanjaro, The Vale is a vast valley at the bottom of which are tracts of rainforest and at the top of which are glaciers, with several distinct climatic regions in between. Enterprising mortals found this very dense range of climates intriguing and terraced the whole area to better support a staggering variety of agriculture. The glaciers at the top are melted to irrigate the areas below which in turn produce a multitude of, well, produce. Amongst other things.
It is a fragile and unsustainable environment to be sure (a fact which is slowly coming to light and scaring the dickens out of those who know), but impressive and lucrative. Though very small compared to other regions, the Vale is exceedingly wealthy and attracts people from all over the world.
Ravellion
serves Gnome Master
I have a forest with trees that live off of Positive energy of others: basically wraith trees. These turned the squirrels into wraiths. These new wratihs made the rats in to wraiths, which turned the cats into wraiths, to the wolves to the dire bears. Once nice hunted forest, all because of some wraith trees. The forest also blocks out all light, because there is a thick mist. Since the trees now feed on soemthing else they no longer need fotosynthesis, but that makes them pretty awkward looking.
(I use Dragon 300's wraith template for all the animals btw)
(I use Dragon 300's wraith template for all the animals btw)
Yeoman
First Post
In the western reaches of my campaign world is a sea of glass created when the Ierlan empire was destroyed by a massive planar explosion, which fused the underlying sand into glass. At the center of the sea is the former Ierlan capital of Je'lath which as a consequence of the explosion is caught in a time loop, reliving it's final 24 hours again and again.
In the southern reaches of the Elven Kingdom there is a section of forest known as the Forest of Drinai, where the Ierlans fought with the Elves, but were defeated when the elves unleashed an overlay of the negative material plane on the area. The forest is still to this day (1,559 years later) filled with the undead remains of the combatants and animals of the area.
And the last item of note for now, is the Statue of Alegos the mad goddess, in eastern Barast. A marble statue 6' high, it depicts a crazed looking woman holding a book in one hand, and a scimitar in the other. The statue also bleeds, real blood, from the eyes and mouth, the blood grants divinations and healing to those faithful to the mad goddess. The statue is also apparently immune to all forms of assault, much to the dismay of the Barastian council. A large cult of the goddess has sprung up around the statue, promising the return of the goddess, when the faithful are numerous enough. (The reality of the situation is that the "statue" is actually the corpse of the goddess Alegos, and her growing cult means her return to power is coming. Heh, heh, that's bad news for my campaign, but a perfect high level and epic adventure for my players.)
In the southern reaches of the Elven Kingdom there is a section of forest known as the Forest of Drinai, where the Ierlans fought with the Elves, but were defeated when the elves unleashed an overlay of the negative material plane on the area. The forest is still to this day (1,559 years later) filled with the undead remains of the combatants and animals of the area.
And the last item of note for now, is the Statue of Alegos the mad goddess, in eastern Barast. A marble statue 6' high, it depicts a crazed looking woman holding a book in one hand, and a scimitar in the other. The statue also bleeds, real blood, from the eyes and mouth, the blood grants divinations and healing to those faithful to the mad goddess. The statue is also apparently immune to all forms of assault, much to the dismay of the Barastian council. A large cult of the goddess has sprung up around the statue, promising the return of the goddess, when the faithful are numerous enough. (The reality of the situation is that the "statue" is actually the corpse of the goddess Alegos, and her growing cult means her return to power is coming. Heh, heh, that's bad news for my campaign, but a perfect high level and epic adventure for my players.)
Bran Blackbyrd
Explorer
My world has one of those (apparently) ever popular black, obsidian deserts created by ancient volcanic activity. Orcs and half-orcs have dwelled there for centuries contemplating their place in the world and guarding their libraries. They posess knowledge from before The Exile, when the gods were destroyed. They are centered in some black monoliths that predate their migration to the desert.
They are always fending off attacks by the lizardfolk, the only other humanoids within thousands of miles.
Lizardfolk skins have been stitched together and stretched between the monoliths to form a gargantuan canopy that creates shade and collects whatever moisture that might form on it before the day's sun burns it away. The moisture drains into cisterns beneath the monoliths that store the water which they depend on for survival.
There is a waterfall in the arctic whose spray freezes on the way down forming very sharp ice crystals. These are quite dangerous and can land nearly anywhere around the base of the falls which is known as The Daggerdowns.
There is a forest of trees whose sap is highly flammable. It is not uncommon for the entire forest to burst into flames during a heat wave. The seeds need lots of heat to germinate and grow very quickly for the first 10-15 feet.
Unknown to most people the planet is currently in an ice age that is steadily getting worse. It was somehow caused by the almost total elimination of magical creatures from the world.
Numerous haunted areas and strange stone formations dot the landscape. Including this one that I posted in another thread.
Dutney Knife
A large stone sliver juts out of the earth like a dagger thrust into the ground. This stone is called Dutney Knife, after the countryside of Dutney which surrounds it. Like all megalithic formations, this one has its legends. The Dutney Knife is said to be the weapon of a god whose followers began to worship another deity. In his indignation the god threw down his knife and vowed that one day he would return for his revenge. To this day, though, the stone just stands there, several stories high, jutting out of (or stabbing into) the earth near the village of Dutney.
The ground surrounding the knife is always blood red. This "stone knife" is actually a gigantic sliver of iron ore. The "blood" on the earth surrounding it is simply rust. However, unknown to most the ore does have strange qualities. Weapons made from this ore are always covered with a coat of rust, but never disintegrate, waste away or require any sharpening. It is also whispered that weapons fashioned from the ore might have the same dreaded power as a rust monster. Superstitious fear keeps most people from taking any of the ore for use in weapon making or anything else.
It's actually probably one of the most boring landmarks in my world.
They are always fending off attacks by the lizardfolk, the only other humanoids within thousands of miles.
Lizardfolk skins have been stitched together and stretched between the monoliths to form a gargantuan canopy that creates shade and collects whatever moisture that might form on it before the day's sun burns it away. The moisture drains into cisterns beneath the monoliths that store the water which they depend on for survival.
There is a waterfall in the arctic whose spray freezes on the way down forming very sharp ice crystals. These are quite dangerous and can land nearly anywhere around the base of the falls which is known as The Daggerdowns.
There is a forest of trees whose sap is highly flammable. It is not uncommon for the entire forest to burst into flames during a heat wave. The seeds need lots of heat to germinate and grow very quickly for the first 10-15 feet.
Unknown to most people the planet is currently in an ice age that is steadily getting worse. It was somehow caused by the almost total elimination of magical creatures from the world.
Numerous haunted areas and strange stone formations dot the landscape. Including this one that I posted in another thread.
Dutney Knife
A large stone sliver juts out of the earth like a dagger thrust into the ground. This stone is called Dutney Knife, after the countryside of Dutney which surrounds it. Like all megalithic formations, this one has its legends. The Dutney Knife is said to be the weapon of a god whose followers began to worship another deity. In his indignation the god threw down his knife and vowed that one day he would return for his revenge. To this day, though, the stone just stands there, several stories high, jutting out of (or stabbing into) the earth near the village of Dutney.
The ground surrounding the knife is always blood red. This "stone knife" is actually a gigantic sliver of iron ore. The "blood" on the earth surrounding it is simply rust. However, unknown to most the ore does have strange qualities. Weapons made from this ore are always covered with a coat of rust, but never disintegrate, waste away or require any sharpening. It is also whispered that weapons fashioned from the ore might have the same dreaded power as a rust monster. Superstitious fear keeps most people from taking any of the ore for use in weapon making or anything else.
It's actually probably one of the most boring landmarks in my world.
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