D&D General Worldbuilding Zealandia

[Zardnaar]

So thinking about a campaign concept. A lost world pre colonization New Zealand themed setting. Primary sentient species avians and Lizard folk. Beyond Aaracokra and Lizard folk a bit vague. Volcanic and elemental power would also be themes.

Some normal D&D races may be present perhaps new arrivals or stranded when ancients disappeared in the Apocalypse.

The Apocalypse was a super volcano. NZ has one of them went up around 2000 years ago. Said super volcano wiped out the ancients who created the various races and infused dinosaurs with elemental power creating dragons.
Genasi could be the humans left behind when the ancients sodded off. Dragonborn as well.

Fantasy novels inspiration Magician and parts of GoT specifically Valyria.

Modules. B5 Horror on the Hill, X1 Isle of Dread, Princes of the Apocalypse.

IRL North Island central plateau, volcanic, super volcano now a lake.

South Island rainforest, alpine areas. Fjords.

What does that look like?


23:31 My hometown and where I live now. Extinct shield volcanos pillow lava. 26:12 where I live now extinct volcano


Rainforest cold alpine area. Lost world.


Fire and Ice

So thats the visuals. Can turn it up to 11 eg extinct volcanos are dormant.

Leaning towards a handful of curated races, old ruins from the precursors, white dragons in the alps, red ones in the volcanic areas.

Dungeons can also be lava tubes and there's a kilometer thick crust of ejected material.

 

[Zardnaar]

Stuff so far

Precursor race wiped out by super volcano

Themes. Elemental power, lost world, dragonsB.u


Curated races

Aaracokra (Haast Eagle folk)
Genasi (imported)
Dragonborn (created)
Lizardfolk (Tuatara living dinosaurs)

 

[humble minion]

Do you have humans (Maori-inspired or otherwise) in addition to your curated races?

The way it reads, your genasi and dragonborn seem more likely to live around the more elementally inclined, glacier/volcanic regions, and the others could plausibly be arboreal. Consider perhaps making the forests massively upscaled to near-kaiju size for a real Lost World vibe - moas the size of small trees, wetas the size of cars, trees hundreds of yards tall and with trunks broader than a bus is long. You could literally have dungeons in the cavities of rotting fallen logs, or in tree hollows. Maybe your aarakocra could be kea or kakapo-people, which leaves us with roc-sized Haasts eagles soaring overhead.

 

[Zardnaar]

Do you have humans (Maori-inspired or otherwise) in addition to your curated races?

The way it reads, your genasi and dragonborn seem more likely to live around the more elementally inclined, glacier/volcanic regions, and the others could plausibly be arboreal. Consider perhaps making the forests massively upscaled to near-kaiju size for a real Lost World vibe - moas the size of small trees, wetas the size of cars, trees hundreds of yards tall and with trunks broader than a bus is long. You could literally have dungeons in the cavities of rotting fallen logs, or in tree hollows. Maybe your aarakocra could be kea or kakapo-people, which leaves us with roc-sized Haasts eagles soaring overhead.

That's some pretty good ideas. I'm not using humans atm if I do it won't be Polynesian or British colonist inspired.

 

[GuyBoy]

Being islands, your Zealandia has a lot of sea surrounding it. A chance to put in at least one undersea race; maybe cetacean-based with dolphins and orcas?

 

[Zardnaar]

Being islands, your Zealandia has a lot of sea surrounding it. A chance to put in at least one undersea race; maybe cetacean-based with dolphins and orcas?

Good point. Lots of sealion, seals etc. Zealandia is a small continent but might do a ice age NZ which I'd larger island vs continent.

Any orca folk in 5E?