#leto'velia

[nightspeakswrites]

Who lives in your world?

Leto, Sho, Ash, Kharwin, and Nyct are all characters who exist in my home D&D5e campaigns. As a result, this prompt (and several others) will cover much of what someone familiar with D&D already knows. (Sorry!)

Leto’Velia is a grey (moon) elf from the forest of Lalven (known in the common tongue as The Elmwood). They’ve been surrounded by grey elves for the vast majority of their lifetime. Orcs have been a consistent threat on their western borders in the form of skirmishes and raiding parties. On rarer occasions humans, dwarves, halflings, and even gnomes have made their way past the eastern and southern border. Once Leto makes their way to a large coastal city, elves of varying kinds become a minority, and humans are more common. Tieflings (humanoids with demonic ancestry), Dragonborn (those with draconic ancestry), Asimar (humanoids with angelic ancestry), and various other humanoids exist, though they tend to be few in number.

Ash and Kharwin grew up in a mountain town, populated mostly by humans with a fair number of halflings. As a half-elf, Ash tends to stick out, although his parentage isn’t super uncommon, given that a clan of wood elves make their home in the nearby woods, and travelling caravans bearing trade goods are frequent. A smaller, more nomadic orc tribe also lives in the area, and a few have relationships with humans and have half-orc children. (Kharwin, being human sticks out in a crowd only because of his charming nature and attractive appearance). Farther out from Hylith, Bullywugs (frog-like humanoid creatures) also exist.

Nyct sticks out in a crowd, plain and simple. As a tiefling, she’s visually distinctive, from her mauve skin and burgundy hair to her curled horns and her tail (recently adorned with a piercing that for all intents and purposes, is a damned jingle bell). In her little town of Laraby, she’s probably one of the only tieflings the other townsfolk have seen. As an infant, Nyct was abandoned outside the temple of Mystra on the outskirts of town. She was found, adopted, and raised by Torlin Swiftstar, the gnome cleric who serves as master of the temple. Nyct grew up in the temple, which houses acolytes of varying backgrounds - halfling, gnome, dwarf, half-elf, and human. Laraby and Westheim (the neighboring city) are run mostly by halflings, and have mostly halfling, human, and gnomish populations. Nyct’s grown up knowing she’s different from most others, but the townsfolk are also used to her, and as a result she’s grown up largely sheltered from the negative experiences most tieflings face in the world.

Oh! Nyct’s best friend is a were-raptor. I suppose that’s also worth noting!

#wbj #wbj 2018 #world building june #DnD writing #leto'velia #ash ofer #nyctophilia swiftstar #nightspeakswrites #nightspeakswriting

[nightspeakswrites]

Update and Worldbuilding

This will be part update, because I haven’t posted in ages, and part world building day 1.

Crystal Wars, and all of its world building from last year still exist. I promise, at some point, eventually, I am going to go back and work on it more and finish. I just… I have no idea where the plot is going, and I really need to grow as a writer before I can really tackle that project in the way it deserves. I’ll likely write snippets about the characters now and again, and I will always answer asks/prompts about Crystal Wars to the best of my ability. But for now, it’s a project that will be shelved while I learn more about who I am as a writer, and what kind of story I want to put forth.

So for now, I’m going to work on some smaller scale, less in-depth projects. D&D (and rpgs in general) have been really important to me in terms of learning to build characters and worlds that are engaging and have their own spark of life to them. At present, I have a handful of characters based in a homebrewed setting, which I plan to work from for @worldbuildingjune, as well as to write smaller pieces, much like Here When You Wake. Although most of these characters (Leto, Sho, Ash, Kharwin, and Nyct) are in various locations, they all exist within the same overall setting.

Leto & Sho

Leto’Velia’Lalwen’Menel and Sho Satoru meet just outside the Elmwood, or Lalven in the elven tongue, which is the forest where Leto has lived their whole life. As the name implies, the forest is almost entirely comprised of ancient elm trees. On the east the Elmwood is bordered by grassy plains, stretching for a few days ride before reaching human settlements and towns. It is along this border that Leto meets Sho, as the bard was travelling with a caravan of entertainers headed back east, eventually coming to the city of Bentsler. Bentsler is where Leto and Sho part ways for the time being. Bentsler is a large, bustling city. Mainly human, but there are elven and dwarven quarters of the city, and other folk -- halflings, gnomes, even dragonborn, tieflings, and half-orcs -- are also fairly common.

Ash & Kharwin

Ash Ofer and Kharwin McKennon come from Hylith, an old town, at the eastern base of Mount Pelloway. Hylith looks like many cities that have been rebuilt several times throughout their history, trading hands a few times due to wars or raiding parties, but for the past few generations peace has reigned thanks to treaties and alliances between the neighboring kingdoms that surround Mt. Pelloway and the rest of the Orodruin mountain range. Within the town, Ash has his own workshop up on Journeyman’s Hill, as does the McKennon’s cooperage (run by Kharwin’s father, Kharl), and an upholsterer & textiles shop run by Mr. & Mrs. Tucker and their daughter, Scarlytt. Ash’s mother, Holly, runs the best of the local taverns -- a homey place called The Golden Lager.

Nyct

Nyctophilia Swiftstar grew up in The Halls of Mysteries, a religious temple dedicated to the Goddess Mystra, who oversees magical knowledge. An abandoned tiefling infant, she was taken in and adopted by Torlin Swiftstar, the master cleric of The Halls. The temple sits on a hill at the edge of the small town of Laraby. A small community, Laraby is home mostly to farmers and smaller craftsmen, providing a quieter life than in Westheim (a major trading hub located a few hours’ travel further along the river). Westheim is a bustling city, and home to the Unseen University, a well respected institution for arcane studies. While many of the university students choose to pray to Deneir (patron god of knowledge) at the House of Learning in Westheim proper, some students seeking more specific guidance make their way to Laraby to offer their prayers to Mystra. In recent weeks however, tensions have been rising in Westheim, to the point that even those in Laraby are worried. There are whispers of political corruption, unsolved murders in Westheim, and parishioners of all faiths seeking guidance as an unease and sense of foreboding fills their hearts. Is it all linked? Is someone pulling the strings?

#nightspeakswrites #world building june #nyctophilia swiftstar #leto'velia #sho satoru #ash ofer #kharwin mckennon #dnd character

[nightspeakswrites]

Writing To Do List

Crystal Wars:

Plot character arcs for Saoirse, Pallex, Remiel, Zadkiel, Garrett

Work out timeline with training, festival, tournament, ball, death of Lord Kai.

Continue scene with P/R

Name the social club R goes to, how’d he find it? Flesh this out further.

The Emerald Hall Social Club, 60 Emerald Way, Morganite.

Leto’Velia:

Finish letter to Raz.

Write letter to Ianthe.

Started, but Leto has loads they really should have told their sister sooner, way sooner.

Write up session 6 notes.

Finish scene with Sho singing “Fix You”.

Write scene when Raz catches Leto spying on him.

Ash:

Explore Ash’s friendship with Lieve.

Find a name for the tribe’s emissary to the town. 

Tatali.

What’s a normal night at the tavern like?

Busy when merchants make their way to town, or a group of emissaries from the elves in the forest comes through. Otherwise, just the regulars who can afford the nicer of the two taverns in town.

What’s the one piece of woodworking Ash is most proud of?

Word Goal: At least 2,000 for this week, plus a 1,300 word deficit from last week, so my hope is to write between 3,000 and 5,000 words this week.

#nightspeakswriting #my writing #ash ofer #leto'velia #crystal wars: halite #writing goals

[nightspeakswrites]

Notes for the likely long and emotional letter Leto needs to write to Ianthe (their younger sister), lots of apologies and self-reflection, especially when Leto isn’t sure they’ll survive their mission. This may be a long one, with lots of rewrites to get the wording right.

#nightspeakswriting #my writing #d&d writing #d&d character #leto'velia

[nightspeakswrites]

Search for a Word Tag Game

Rules: Search for X word in your WIP and post the first sentence that comes up. If you can’t find the word then… search for whichever one pleases you! Tag as many people as you want, and choose a word for them to search in their WIP :)

Thanks for the tag @anipendragon ! You asked for fear

Here it is from Leto’s (yet unnamed) tale: 

“Aylward’Eithron, do you pledge to spend your days caring for Leto’Velia, tending to them in sickness or fear, celebrating their joys and accomplishments?”

Here it is from a Zadkiel outtake from CW:

Zadkiel held his hand out, “I’ve heard just as much about you, but I fear the stories are far less outlandish.” he said impishly.

And here from a Breklyn/Lievin outtake from CW:

Breklyn drew him close again, tucking their head against the place where his neck met his broad shoulder. They loosed a breath before answering his question, hoping their assessment of his unease was right, hoping they could allay his fear.

Surprisingly enough, “fear” has not shown up in Crystal Wars proper yet, and while Ash almost certainly feels a very desperate fear now that his home is in flames, that part has not made its way out of my notes yet.

@boxwineconfession @bookishcosplay & @themetahumaninitiative (yeah, I’m tagging you again) has the word touch come up in any of your WIPs?

#tag game #word game #reblog #crystal wars: halite #zadkiel lucas #leto'velia

[nightspeakswrites]

D&D interlude

Leto stretches and stands from the stiff mattress they spent the night lying on, mind flowing between meditation and dozing through the long hours of the night.

Gracefully crossing the floor, Leto settles in before the washbasin and pours some of the cool water from the jug. They wet a small towel and begin swiping away the makeup from last night’s conversation with Ves, revealing their true moon pale skin and high elven cheekbones. Leto wipes away the lip stain and the powder that had brought warmth and color to their eyelids, leaving only the slimmest lines of deep blue at the upper and lower lash line, leaving Leto’s indigo irises more pronounced.

Pulling out a case of brushes and powders from their bag, Leto begins the process of applying fresh makeup, drawing emphasis to their jawline and dusting powder to soften the extreme pallor of the grey elf’s luminescent skin.

Satisfied that their face once again looks sufficiently masculine, Leto packs the makeup kit away and pulls out a hairbrush, setting to work on unweaving their braided hair and putting the navy ribbon back in the pack. Leto brushes through the long silvery strands and then begins braiding back the front pieces on each side, starting at the temple and tying off the ends of the slim braids with a pair of black cords, leaving the rest of their starlight hair to hang down toward the small of their back.

Leto adjusts the cinching of their leathers, and steps back to get a better view in the mirror. Once again seeing the pretty male elf that entered the tavern the night before, Leto nods in approval at their appearance, and collects their weapons and travelling pack, making sure to leave nothing behind.

#leto'velia #d&d character #d&d 5e #agender character #my writing #fantasy #nightspeakswriting

[nightspeakswrites]

What’s its history?

Well… this world is still based in Dungeons and Dragons, so in some form this world has a lengthy history told by what I’m sure are literal millions of storytellers. The World came to be through these numerous combined efforts.

In terms of my own homebrewed locations, here’s a brief history:

Lalven, the Elmwood, is my own contribution to this world. The wood has existed for centuries, as have many of the elves who live there. Much of that region is unchanged - the trees are older, caravans come closer to the borders. Beyond that, only the size of the city at the heart of Lalven has changed. Dwellings spread farther from the heart of the wood, and styles have changed slightly, though few outsiders would notice. There’s an ongoing history of clashing with nomadic orc tribes on the western border, but otherwise, the grey elves are a fairly insular people.

Bentsler, the coastal city Leto makes their home in after leaving the Elmwood, is much newer by comparison, and is likely around the same age as Leto themself, between 150 and 200 years. Bentsler grew as a trading port, a sort of way point or hub connecting smaller towns (like the decaying mining town of Rustred) with much larger cities.

Hylith, as previously mentioned, is a town that has changed hands many times. Because it sits on the border between two kingdoms, Hylith has been practically destroyed and rebuilt several times. Most buildings aren’t more than three generations old, and many, like Ash’s workshop and his mother’s tavern, are newer than that.

Laraby, Nyct’s home town, is a smaller settlement and newer town, almost a suburb of sorts to Westheim. Laraby has existed somewhere around 75 years or so, founded by a branch of one of the ruling halfling families in Westheim. Laraby initially grew as a farming settlement, but small craftsmen have settled there too, as they can easily transport their goods to Westheim easily by riverboat or by road if they aren’t selling them in Laraby proper.

Westheim is much older than Laraby or any of the other surrounding towns and villages. A large, walled city, Westheim sits on the bank of a river and has served as a major trading city for a very long time. In some shape or form a settlement has been there on the river for close to 700 years, making it even older than the regional capital.

#wbj #wbj2018 #world building june #leto'velia #ash ofer #nyctophilia swiftstar #DnD writing #nightspeakswrites #nightspeakswriting