worldstonerovers

[worldstonerovers]

Planar Cosmology and Spiritual Energy

The Sleeping Gods are all-powerful entities that reside in the Pure planes. They were the ones who constructed the planar architecture, creating the Twenty-one Peaks and Eleven Depths of the Pure planes, the Elemental planes of Fire, Air, Water, and Earth, the Nebulous planes of the Feywild and the Shadowfell, and the space between these planes, consisting of the Ethereal Space. They did not create the Astral shell, which encloses all of these planes, and from which the Sleeping Gods drew their power to build the planar architecture. They also did not create the Prime Material plane directly, but rather left room for it in the Ethereal Space, and created the Spires, through which energy would flow from the other planes, combining to create material reality.

Energy can be thought of as originating from one of the three planar strata: Nebulous for arcane energy, Elemental for spiritual energy, and Pure for divine energy. This distinction also reflects the differences in the nature of these energies. Arcane energy flows in freely from the Nebulous planes, suffusing the world and filling in the space between materials. It can be thought of as the ocean within which all material things swim; it governs the motion and behavior of material things even though it does not constitute them. It can change the form of physical reality by rearranging the spiritual energy that constitutes every material. Arcane casters tap into this omnipresent arcane energy to make manifest various changes in the material world. Spiritual energy is the energy of form, and its Elemental source is further removed from the material world than the Nebulous planes. Every material is made up of various combinations of spiritual energy, and the interactions between materials is mediated by the interaction of arcane energy with the spiritual energy of those materials. At the construction of the Prime Material plane, spiritual energy was abundant, but when the Spires ruptured, the influx slowed tremendously, making it incredibly difficult to create new material without sacrificing old.

Divine energy is an intercessory energy, originating primarily from the Pure planes (although it is theoretically possible to draw directly from the Astral Shell, as the Sleeping Gods did). Divine energy can be used to alter the natural patterns with which arcane energy interacts with spiritual energy, because it is the energy that first bore those energies. Due to the infinite nature of divine energy, it cannot be wielded by mortal hands--the gods themselves are defined by their ability to truly use divine energy, which they can do with infinite ease. Mortals who wish to tap into this source of energy must instead entreat with one or more gods.

The inhabitants of the different planes of existence are comprised of various combinations of energies. Gods and devils are the inhabitants of the Pure planes, and are essentially beings of pure divine energy. The main difference between the Sleeping Gods and the devils is that the latter did not take part in the creation of the planar architecture directly--the gods were the ones who established the Ethereal plane, the Nebulous plane, the Elemental plane, and the Pure plane, as well as the space for the Living Gods to craft the Prime Material. The devils then divided these basal planes: they split the Nebulous plane into the Feywild and the Shadowfell, they split the Elemental plane into Earth, Air, Water, and Fire, and they split the Pure plane into the Twenty-one Peaks and Eleven Depths. Thus, it can be said that gods are divine creatures of Creation, and devils are divine creatures of Distinction. Without both of these aspects, there could not be the vast diversity of life seen across the cosmos. The inhabitants of the Nebulous planes, the fey and the demons, are creatures of nearly pure arcane energy. These life forms are the result of a small amount of spiritual energy seeping into the Feywild and the Shadowfell from the Elemental planes. This spiritual essence is quickly subsumed by arcane energy, giving the arcane physical form and creating the creatures known as either fey or demons, depending on which of the major arcane pools they emerged from.

Similarly, the exist creatures comprised almost entirely of spiritual force, given animus by the presence of small amounts of arcane energy. The most basal of these creatures are elementals, which are very closely tied to the type of spiritual energy from which they arose. Creatures with a more robust arcane quality to them, known as genies, have far more agency and magical force at their disposal.

Life as we know it on the Prime Material plane is composed of a more equitable admixture of spiritual and arcane energies. Every form of life--whether plant, animal, or human--contains a spiritual essence and an animating arcane force. This arcane energy is what differentiates life from non-life; stones, rivers, metals, etc. are all composed solely from combinations of the various spiritual energies.

Humans are unique among all life forms in that they have something beyond the spiritual and the arcane. The addition of a tiny spark of divine energy gives rise to something known as a soul. Souls grant humans the ability to speak, the potential to harness all three types of energy, and the ability to enter into the afterlife. When any living thing dies, its arcane energy is released, leaving behind the pure spiritual energy. This energy remains as inert matter, no different from a stone.

In humans, the divine energy remains with the arcane, helping it to retain cohesion and allowing it to be shepherded--in the form of a pure soul--to the afterlife. In rare cases where the divine energy remains bound to both the spiritual and the arcane energy, the result is a ghost, in which the divine spark forces the soul to remain tied to its spiritual component. As the body degrades, what is left is a soul that is trapped, tethered to its fading spiritual matter enough to keep it from the afterlife. If allowed to persist, ghosts eventually become wraiths, creatures of powerful arcane force and ill intent, warped over many years of isolation in a volatile arcane form. Necromancy can be also be employed to artificially imbue the once-living spiritual remains with new arcane energy. This new “life” does not contain a divine spark, and is therefore more like an animal than a true human. When a cleric entreats a divine power to return a soul to life, they are asking directly for the original arcane energy, packaged by the divine spark, to be returned to a spiritual tether. A sufficiently-skilled cleric could request an entirely new spirit to house this soul, but for the vast majority of resurrections, the original spiritual home is required, and the task is made more difficult the longer the spirit has remained inert and degraded.

Turning and destroying undead simply involves the exertion of divine energy to press against the arcane energy that either animates a skeleton or comprises the entire being of a ghost. A sufficiently powerful divine user can sever the divine bond tethering a ghost to its physical remains, allowing the soul to move on to the afterlife.

#worldstone #arcana #Religion

[worldstonerovers]

The Farran Wars

Not much is known about the First Farran war. It happened hundreds of years ago, back when Velor was a small, regional power and Farra was a great naval empire.

Farra used to control territory in southern Lodrun, western and southern Fargraf, the islands of the Western Ocean and the northern coast of Vedala. They had dozens of colonial cities along these coasts, forming a cohesive trade network.

The causes of the First Farran War are largely disputed, but it seems to have started because of a territory dispute between Farra and the burgeoning Kingdom of Velor, which may have sought to control some of those valuable Lodrian trade ports.

However it started, it seemed inevitable that Farra would win: they had a far bigger naval fleet, and were able to blockade the city of Velor, cutting it off from its own sea routes. Velor fought furiously to prevent Farran forces from marching inland, but it was only a matter of time before the city knelt to the pressure of the blockade.

And then, suddenly, Farra retreated. Some sort of disaster had struck at its largest city, Ferise, forcing domestic action to be prioritized over some foreign war. Thanks to recent discoveries, we now believe this disaster to be the destruction of Ferise’s riverstone, causing a massive ecological disaster, making the northern half of the island to become largely infertile within a few years. As Farra struggled to rehome displaced Ferisians, Velor took the opportunity to capture is Lodrian holdings, beginning the establishment of what would soon be known as the Veloran Empire.

The Second Farran War is much better understood, having taken place only 70 years ago. In effort to regain control of the continent, Vedala launched a campaign along the northern beaches. No one is quite sure what motivated this aggression, although it was clearly part of Vedala’s efforts to reenter the realm of international trade.

Farra did not take too kindly to Vedala’s new colonies so close to its own, knowing that soon, its fishing and logging interests in the region would be under unsustainable competition. War, they feared, was inevitable. So it took action first, with an invasion of the two Vedalan cities of Hiro and Kinaka. This triggered several naval skirmishes in which Vedala suffered heavy casualties.

Velor took this opportunity to attempt to liberate the islands of the Western Ocean. Farra now found itself engaged in two naval conflicts, which became a serious drain on its treasury. It raised taxes and imposed a military draft on its colonies in southern Fargraf to fuel the war effort. Despite this, it found itself losing the war and its control over the Western Ocean.

After a decade of maritime war, Farra withdrew its forces from Vedala and the Western Islands, but the economic damage had already been done. The Engraf colonies revolted in protest of the heavy tax burden, and Farra simply could not fund a coordinated military campaign to quash the rebellion. Within a few years, southern Fargraf became a collection of free cities and villages, more culturally similar to Pelgraf than to the empire that had conquered them for hundreds of years. Farra shrank to its modern extent, limited to the cities of Farra and Rim and their immediate surroundings.

#history #Farra

[worldstonerovers]

Rumors

There have been rumors circulating about a secret mission undertaken by Basha, his close disciple Sari, and several other Rovers: Alec, Rophiandis, Guy, Kellian, and Zahavah. 

Some say that Basha got his ass handed to him by some evil cleric. But you didn’t hear that from me...

#rumors #alec #baruch #rophiandis #matt #guillame #ben #kellian #evan #zahavah #kelly

[worldstonerovers]

Recap 3: Scourge of the Fey

16 Yset, 11,643.

A clever young woman named Serra Redcliffe has been very helpful in helping the Wayfarers sift through the intelligence they have gathered. It was she who figured out that Arjun Hieron possessed a personal farstone, and now she has another lead. She explained to a group of Rovers that she believes that, since the vast majority of fey cannot planeshift under their own power, there must be some other means for them to reach our world. She hypothesized that there may be a farstone somewhere in the Elinyr forest, which has the largest concentration of fey in the world.

After preparing themselves for an expedition, the team struck out to find the fey of Elinyr. They departed from the nearest farstone to the forest, setting out along a poorly-maintained road that connected a few far-flung settlements to the rest of the Veloran empire. They veered off from the road after a few days of travel, heading toward the northernmost tip of Elinyr.

Once they reached the forest, Serra and Kellian began the task of mapping out every feature they could, using a grid search to slowly make their way through. Even if they never found the fey, Serra reasoned, there was still bound to be some value to having a detailed map of this magical forest. For some of the Rovers on this mission, the moment they reached the wall at the edge of the forest was, in fact, their first time seeing it in person. They also found a couple of small riverstones, feeding the greenery with their constant streams, and they were “refreshed” by a sudden downpour as they passed through a large clearing containing a rainstone.

A couple of weeks into their journey, the Rovers heard cries of distress in the distance. They ran toward the sound of roaring fire, and arrived just in time to see a pregnant woman being perilously wounded by two fire elementals. With some quick healing from Alec, the woman was rescued from the brink of death, as the rest of the party launched a full-out assault on the elemental interlopers. 

Although they had the first elemental beaten, and the second on its last legs, it was still a welcome surprise when the remaining fire elemental disappeared with a pop, banished back to its elemental plane by a warlock emerging from the forest. He introduced himself as Heldros, and thanked them for saving his wife, Shina. The two of them, he explained, were members of a confole: a group of druids, warlocks, and rangers that were adherents to the ways of the forest and the fey that inhabit it.

Heldros brought the party further into the forest, where the trees grew larger and larger, until they reached the home of the Confole. The Confole was populated by druids, rangers, and even some warlocks, adherents of the fey. They lived up in the trees, in homes of tangled, living branches or hollows built into the trunks. Various types of fey flitted about, ranging in size from the tiny, 2-foot sprites to the larger, nearly human-sized sylphs and dryads. Among all of these fey, only one was truly human-sized: an elderly-looking man known as Keshvi (which translates loosely to “Old”). 

As a way of thanking the Rovers for assisting in the rescue of Shina, Keshvi brought them to the Foliary, a library in the hollow of the Confole’s largest tree, housing stories collected by the fey. Bookshelves built into the walls of the trunk were stuffed with scrolls, and it seemed like the Foliary’s visitors were fairly lax about returning these scrolls to their homes. There, among the torrent of parchment, he showed them how to use the scrolls’ enchantments to summon illusory recreations of the stories they held. He gave them free reign to peruse the Foliary at their leisure.

Keshvi invited the Rovers to a welcoming party that night, in the vast, hollow trunk of the grand hall. Almost all the members of the Confole were in attendance, copious amounts of alcohol were consumed (tree wine for the fairies and regular, non-poisonous alcohol for the humans), and a magical bonfire was enjoyed by all.

In the morning, as the Rovers slowly roused themselves from their sleep, they came to realize that everyone--the warlocks, the druids, the rangers, and the fey--had disappeared. Only they, the outsiders, remained.

The trees of the Confole, they realized, were smaller, as if younger. Curious, the party began their investigation by heading to the Foliary, which looked far less-cluttered than it had the previous evening; there were far fewer scrolls, and those that were there were neatly put away.

Among the scrolls, they found an illusory story in which they witnessed a much younger-looking, wingless Keshvi confronting a mysterious cultist of some kind. The cultist, in the midst of some dark ritual, defied Keshvi by proclaiming that the Six Gods he served were false, and that he was a servant of the Five Names. Keshvi drew from within his robes what appeared to be a white rod with a hilt and a crossguard. After Keshvi defeated the cultist, a woman entered the chamber, and he demanded to know: “Whom do you serve?”

“No one,” she answered. Clearly, this was the answer he had been looking for; the two embraced briefly, before looking down grimly at the body of the cultist. At that point, the scene faded.

After looking over a few more scrolls, the party headed out to investigate further.

Among the branches of the upper tier, they found their way to the Waer of the Archfey. There, they discovered an incomplete summoning circle. They added the necessary blood and candles to complete it.... and nothing happened. The material components were there, but the ritual had yet to be complete.

Down on the forest floor, they saw a single cowled man, chanting in the druid circle, clearly in the midst of a ritual. “Save us.... save us...” he chanted. But, as Guy pointed out, no salvation would come unless more druids could be added to the ritual.

They heard the sounds of combat coming from the enormous tree trunk of the grand hall, and quickly rushed onto a grisly scene. Several fey flitted about the hall, attempting to fight off a helmeted man in solid plate. He easily cut them down with his greatsword and shot them out of the air with bolts of magical energy. The party attempted to intervene and save the remaining fairies, attracting the ire of the stranger. He slashed at them, assaulting the Rovers with a strength and ferocity they had never met before, scattering them--some fled while others stood their ground and were eventually slain.

And then they awoke once more. Whatever force had brought them to what they decided was clearly the past, was keeping them alive to see it through. They continued their search, now certain that they must be here to save whatever force was ravaging the Confole.

At Hallow’s End, they found the distillery ransacked. This was where the alcohol for the Confole’s many parties is brewed, and someone had maliciously destroyed it. Roph bit back his anger, and pressed the party on.

They searched the Aviary, finding a druid in the form of a hawk. They convinced with to swallow his fear and join the circle and help complete the ritual that would save them. On the outskirts of the Confole, they found another druid, in the form of a bear, protecting some orphaned cubs. As they brought him back to the druid circle, they heard the sound of an explosion as flames began to lap at the branches above--someone had set off the distillery in Hallow’s End.

With the 4 druids, the ritual circle could be completed. They channeled their magic to finish the summoning, and they heard a loud crack coming from above. They rushed up to the upper tier of branches to find a young Keshvi emerging from the Waer of the Archfey. He turned to them, and asked, “Whom do you serve??”

“No one,” answered Alec, recalling their earlier vision.

Keshvi nodded, and leaped down the forest floor. They Rovers followed him to the Grand Hall, where once again, they saw the mysterious paladin, surrounded by dead fey. He was crouching in the far corner, burying something in the dirt floor of the hall. As he turned to look at the newcomers, a mass of branches and vines erupted from the ground behind him, forming a doorway.

Keshvi launched his attack on the paladin, striking at him with powerful magic and meeting the stranger’s blows. As the battle waged on between the two powerful foes, the Rovers sneaked through the doorway of vines, and found themselves in a strange room.

The majority of the room was occupied by a large, worldstone horn on its side, with the opening facing the entrance of the room. Surrounding it, as if spilling out from the horn’s opening, there was a pile of silver items--coins and trinkets--as well as some other items made of worldstone, including a coin-shaped object and something that resembled the hollow outline of a waystone tablet.

The party walked into the horn and found themselves exiting out into another room--nearly exactly the same as the one they had just left. This room, however, had an even larger pile of treasure. They could see through the doorway that the grand hall was full of fairies, who seemed to be eagerly watching the doorway.

As they stepped out of the room, they were greeted with applause by the assembled fey. Keshvi--now old once again--came up to the Rovers and explained that they had been sent into the feywild to experience firsthand the story of theConfole’s darkest day. He expressed his gratitude for their help in ousting the scourge that had threatened them centuries ago--even though they were not actually there when it happened. Serra noted that this worldstone horn--which Keshvi referred to as the cornucopia--must have been how the fey got to this plane from the feywild in the first place.

The fey gave gifts to the Rovers for participating in their little game; each of them received an artifact made of silver--a highly magical metal. In addition, he gave them a mirror made of silver, asking them to bring it back to Basha Sim, as thanks for his help many years ago.

With that, the Rovers left the Confole, having learned more about the history of the fey in this plane. When they delivered Keshvi’s gift to Basha, he expressed wonder.

“This is the Divining Glass,” he told them, “and with it... we can truly change the world.”

PCs:

Alec (Baruch) Guillame “Guy” (Ben) Rophiandis (Matt) Kellian (Evan) Zahavah (Kelly)

NPCs:

Serra

#worldstone #the rovers #recap #chapter 3 #scourge of the fey #alec #guillame #rophiandis #kellian #zahavah #baruch #ben #matt #evan #kelly #serra #fey #keshvi

[worldstonerovers]

The First Soul

Before the stones of the first cities were hewn, before the first man was born, before life itself first drew breath, the gods created this world. They came into a place of nothingness, and from it, they made everything. They sculpted this world, as artisans, with tools in their hands.

They made the grass and the trees. They made the birds and the beasts. They made the stones.

And the gods delighted in their creation, for it was beautiful, and it was theirs. They challenged each other to make it ever more beautiful. They made mountains and rivers. They made flowers of every hue. They made beasts more and more powerful. And in this too, they found joy, for the beasts moved on their own. With every eon, the beasts they loved to watch grew more magnificent, more grand.

And then, one day, the gods made the Creature. The creature was more powerful than any other beast, and it had a hunger that could not be sated. It ate the other beasts and the birds. It ate the trees and the grass. It ate the mountains and the stones. It began unmaking everything the gods had made.

The gods saw this, and they grew angry with the Creature. But they could not destroy it, for the gods could only create. And so, the gods created the first soul.

They took the clay from the ground, and the breath from the trees, and the heat from the mountains’ fiery hearts. And they gave her form, and they gave her life, and they gave her a soul.

She had no name, yet from her, all names come. And she was not man, yet from her, all men come. The gods made for her a tree, with berries of life on its branches. She took three berries, and swallowed them. From her soul, they grew inside her into three new souls, and hers was not diminished, for it is the nature of souls to make more souls.

The first soul gave birth to these new souls, and neither were they men. To these souls, she gave the first names. She called one Vim, and he was strong. She called one Seem, and he was wise. She called one Karn, and he was clever. And together, they began the work of the gods.

Seem tracked the Creature. Its path was wrought with destruction. When the Creature noticed Seem, it saw his soul, and knew the gods’ plan. It tried to hide itself, but Seem carried on. It ran, and Seem chased. For one hundred days, Seem tracked the beast, and learned its ways. And when he finally found its lair, he showed his brothers where it hid.

Karn took the stones from the ground, and made for himself a furnace. He lit the flames, and kept them burning for forty days, and they grew hotter with every day. And when they were hot enough, he took a new stone, which he called ore, and placed it in the furnace. With his flame, he made metal, and with that metal, he made a blade. And he gave this blade to Vim.

With blade in hand and fire in soul, Vim strode into the Creature’s lair. It set upon him, but his strength was worthy of the beast. He matched its blows and struck it with his blade. For sixty days, they fought, locked together in combat. The world beneath them tremored with their blows, and the birds and the beasts all fled their path. Finally, on the sixtieth day, the Creature succumbed. Vim struck it through the heart, and the beast drew its final breath.

With the Creature defeated, the world knew peace. The first soul and her sons could spread across the land, and change it in ways beyond the imagination of the gods.

The first soul took more berries from the tree of life and swallowed them, and from these berries, she created the first daughters. Vim and Seem and Karn each joined with these daughters. Vim with Sett and Ghen, Seem with Ker and Tarla, Karn with Hatsha and Fella. And from each of these six daughters came the six lineages of man: the Settan, the Ghenan, the Kerran, the Tarlan, the Hatshan, and the Fellan. These six lineages spread across the world, and founded the societies of man.

#the first soul #worldstone #the rovers #mythology #arcana #religion #history

[worldstonerovers]

The Calendar of Worldstone

The Day

Each 24-hours period is divided into a 14-hour day and a ten-hour night. The day begins with a reddish glow, as the sun rises over the northernmost point of the Wall, high above where it disappears into the ever-present clouds. The sun moves through the gradually whitening sky, and about 3 hours into the day, the red hue of the sunlight has completely faded to white. There are then 8 hours of brighter white light, followed by another 3 hours of dim red before the complete black of night arrives once again.

The Week

Each week lasts 6 days--one for each of the six Living Gods:

Kannaday

Vaday

Telday

Enzday

Neirday

Revday

The churches of each of the individual gods typically hold services on their god’s weekday. This can be advantageous in heavily-multicultural regions, where entire portions of the workforce take one day off out of every six, leaving the rest of the workers to their own shifts.

There are exactly 60 weeks in the year, for a total of 360 days.

The Month

Each month of the year has exactly 5 weeks and 30 days. There are 12 months in the year:

Irdun

Karla

Verna

Yset

Papara

Kroka

Enfender

Lidel

Jamila

Rutin

Fyradin

Evarin

Following the month of Evarin, there is one more week of the year. Known as All’s Week, it is celebrated worldwide as a week-long holiday, leading up to the beginning of the new year. Traditionally, it is considered a time of momentary truces between warring nations, and workers are often given time off to spend with their families.

The Year

At the beginning of the Rovers arc, the year is 11,643 AP. AP stands for “ancient passage”: it is believed that 11,643 years ago, the six Living Gods passed into this world through the great stone wall that surrounds it. Seeing an endless expanse of stone within the space enclosed by the wall, they decided to create a new world. They created all the wondrous things in this world by crafting the stone into worldstone, imbuing it with the power to shape the world to their will. The number 11,643 comes from the determination via arcane means, by a man known as Tollby, that the wall was approximately 11,500 years old. This discovery, of course, is now 143 years old.

#worldstone #the rovers #history #the calendar

[worldstonerovers]

Recap 2: Dragon’s Blood and Whore’s Eyes

16th Verna, 11,643 A man by the name of Arjun Hieron is known as one of the wealthiest nobles of Velor. According to a Rover named Serra Redcliffe, he likely owns his own private farstone, which he uses instead of the public one in the center of Velor. A group of Wayfarers was dispatched to convince him to allow the Rovers passage through this farstone to avoid reliance on the heavily tolled (and monitored) public farstone.

The party travelled to a farstone a few days outside of town, to avoid the surveillance of the Veloran Transportation Guard. They departed early in the morning, and began their trek toward the city.

Along the way, they encountered a strange sight. A ramshackle house had appeared some time in the night, as they slept. Outside, a man dug intently into the ground, as if searching for something buried. He ignored the party’s inquiries, focusing mindlessly on the task before him. Inside the house, an unkempt and violently aggressive man demanded that he be left alone--that the party had better not steal his blood. However, he had no power to stop them, as they searched through the detritus to find two small vials filled with a churning red liquid: dragon’s blood, a valuable substance, prized for its hallucinogenic properties. Alec smashed the vials beneath his feet, releasing the two spirits trapped in this realm by their attachment to their vice in life. The house and the ghosts vanished, and the party continued on their way.

Upon arriving in Velor, the Rovers made their way to the Hieron Estate, where they were greeted by an overly-excited young woman. She introduced herself as Astor, Arjun’s daughter, and explained that, although she had been expecting them, her father would be away on business for the next couple of days. She invited them to stay in the manor, as there was always room, thanks to her father’s love of hospitality.

In the middle of the night, hearing the sounds of poorly-softened footfall, a few of the Rovers saw Astor sneaking out of the manor. Unseen, they followed her.

She led them across the Grand Bridge, over the east branch of the river, and into one of the lower districts of the city. There, she entered a brothel, pursued by Guillame in the form of a mouse. He watched as Astor warmly greeted a rather unassuming prostitute she called Liana. He followed as they retired together to a back room, where they began to speak in hushed tones. Astor informed Liana of the arrival of the Rovers, which had been revealed to Liana previously--this woman was a prophet. Liana had previously told Astor to expect this group’s arrival, and now that they had arrived, she told her to bring them to meet her the following day.

Over breakfast, Astor explained the situation to the Rovers, and they agreed to meet with this whore prophet (whom they lovingly termed “whoracle”). When they arrived that night however, they discovered that the brothel had been ransacked and abandoned. They searched the rooms for any sign of Liana, but couldn’t find her. However, they did discover a secret entrance in the back of the wine cellar, leading down...

In the sub-basement, they discovered an elegant hall, which Alec identified as an ancient shrine of the six Living Gods. Above a wide, shallow trough of clear, flowing water spanned a stone bridge. In the center of the bridge, a circular platform held 6 pedestals, upon which stone carvings of each of the gods would once have stood. The group determined that the water was actually illusory, as was the grate into which it flowed; inside, they found the key to unlock the large door at the rear of the hall.

Beyond the shrine, they found a hallway, lined with a few nondescript doors. A cave-in at the far end of the hallway prevented further access, but they searched the rooms they had. In one room, they discovered an invisible v-stone, containing an encoded message from Liana

Astor, by the time you hear this, I am already gone. I’m safe, physically, but I’ve been taken captive. My captors have been able to evade my notice thus far--I do not know how. But I do not fear them. I know I will make it out of this unharmed. I need to let myself be captured, so I can understand who they are, and what they want. However, I do need to warn you that they will be back. They are aware of this shrine, and they intend to search it, and hold it for their own purposes. You may prevail against one of them, but you need to leave as soon as possible. This man does not take loss well, and when you beat him, his followers will return in force.

Take care, love.

No sooner had the message completed than the Rovers heard the crash of the door opening. Out in the hallway, they saw a man. He had a sort of fearsome presence about him--almost like a scarier rendition of Basha’s elegant charm. His black hair was untamed and his blue eyes were manic-looking, as they bored into each of the party members’ in turn. He was clothed in black and white robes, in the style of priestly vestments. Atop his head, he wore a golden coronet. On his lips were words of divine power. A wave of fire roared to life, engulfing the hallway. The now-singed party fought back at him as hard as they could, trying to beat him down before he could get off another shot. Sensing that he was outmatched, the man brushed himself off and uttered a Word of Recall, returning to whatever sanctum he had previously designated. Fearing a more organized assault from whatever group this man was with, the party retreated.

Upon return to the manor, they found that Arjun Hieron had returned. He agreed to come with them back to Basha’s Peak to discuss use of his personal farstone. The following morning, they all made their way back to the Rovers’ home, where Arjun met alone with Basha. When the pair emerged from their meeting, Basha announced that he had secured unrestricted access the the Hieron farstone, in exchange for Astor’s membership in the Rovers.

And so, the Rovers gained not only a new member and an influential ally, but also access to the most populous city in the world. PCs:

Alec (Baruch) Guillame (Ben) Rophiandis (Matt) Kellian (Evan)

NPCs:

Astor

#worldstone #the rovers #recap #chapter 2 #Dragon's Blood and Whore’s Eyes #alec #guillame #rophiandis #kellian #baruch #ben #matt #evan #astor

[worldstonerovers]

Recap 1: The Shrine at the Center of the World

On the 1st of the month of Verna, in the year 11,643, Basha Sim gathered all of the Rovers to Basha’s Peak. There, he explained that the original goal of the Rovers–to bring enlightenment and harmony to the world–has failed. The loose band of explorers have not been successful in modelling their philosophy of value plasticity; the average person cares only for the values of their god, and ignores the virtues of the others. Selfishness, injustice, and megalomania have continued their endless hold over humanity. To remedy this failing, Basha has proposed a new system for the Rovers, dividing them into 3 groups, each with their own specialized role.

The Ambassadors would become the face of the Rovers, performing good deeds to increase the group’s reputation in the public eye. They’d act as recruiters, explaining to curious passerby the merits of value plasticity and the dangers of a life devoted to only one of the gods.

The Wayfarers would serve as the intelligence hub of the Rovers, plumbing the world’s many mysteries and cataloging them for future reference. Their primary goal in the immediate future is to locate and secure as many farstones as they can, to create a travel network that the Rovers can use as they pursue their goals.

Finally, the Knights would act as the Rovers’ defensive force. Their job is to rid the world of evil–aberrations, monsters, extradimensional interlopers, and those people who prey on the weak.

Given these duties, the members of each group split up to begin their missions.

In Chapter 1, a group of Wayfarers pursued a lead by a Rover who was a native of the Pearl Isthmus–an unincorporated region connecting the continents of Lodrun and Fargraf. A young man from a village in the region claims to have seen a farstone while hunting deep in the woods.

The party set out from a farstone at the Velor outpost of Alagar (after convincing the garrisoned soldiers to let them pass). From there, it was only a two-day journey to the village. Along the way, they passed a merchant named Fredricks and his family, heading to Temran to sell a mysterious new plant called tobacco. Alec, ever thoughtful of the potential for new avenues of pleasure, tried burning the tobacco in his incense pan, creating an intriguing aroma. With his pipe and extensive knowledge of swampgrass (i.e. fantasy weed), Guillame taught the merchant that tobacco could be used for much more than just chewing.

When they arrived in the village, after a quick night at the inn, the party found their way to the temple of Revier, where they met the young man who had claimed to have found a farstone. Shaken, he explained that he had been ambushed by a frightening monster, and had barely escaped with his life.

The party set out into the woods to locate the farstone, following the reluctant young man, as he attempted to find it again. After becoming hopelessly lost, they consulted a bird, who helpfully pointed the way. As they approached their destination, they started to feel an increasing sense of dread, an ineffible emotion without a source. Soon, they were set upon by the source of that dread–a huge being that seemed to be made of light. Emanating from this being, a complex swirl of emotions seemed to force their way into the adventurers’ minds. Fear was there, of course, but mixed in was a feeling of longing–a strange yearning for this creature.

This yearning was not reciprocated as the creature set upon them, attacking with unnatural movements, teleporting around the battlefield, slashing at them with unseen claws, burning them with radiant flames, and deafening them with mind-wrenching cries. They fought back hard despite the assault on their emotions, and eventually managed to drive the aberration away, although they knew it must still lurk somewhere in that forest.

Their way now clear, the party continued until they reached a clearing. There, they found the farstone they had sought, but it was far from their only discovery. In the center of the clearing, they saw a circular platform made of worldstone, covered in runes. To the side, there was another worldstone structure, which came to be known as visagestone, or v-stone, after their investigations revealed its purpose–it could be used in conjunction with waystone to record and later replay the message of its user.

The final discovery of note was a very old skeleton, laying on the farstone. In its enchanted green bag, they found a waystone, which they discovered contained a v-stone encoded message:

My dearest Clara,

I was right. If you can see me right now, oldstone can survive the passage back. Of course, this is good news for our mission. Even if none of us makes it home, we can record what we learn here, and send it back in these substrates. Perhaps more importantly, this allows you and me to communicate. I feel as if I will need to rely on you to get me through this ordeal.

The Nafius Wastes are… brutal, to say the least. There are creatures here unlike any you’ve ever seen. Horrifying, yet entrancing all at once. More than once, even I have been obliged to take up arms and defend our band from harm. But you must trust me when I say that it is all worth it. The ability to harness the sheer power of nafius would… well, it would change everything.

Clara, it will bring me such relief to hear from you. When you have received this message, please reply post-hence. Tommen will know how to get it to me. I will eagerly await your missive. The thought of you, more than everything else I’m fighting for, is what drives me on each day.

I promise you, Clara: I will make it home and I will meet our son. I’m going to be fine. We’re all going to be fine.

Their journey a success, the team placed a blank waystone in the new farstone, and when they returned to Basha’s Peak, the Pearl Isthmus Shrine was cataloged in the annals of the Wayfarers’ library.

PCs:

Zahavah (Kelly) Alec (Baruch) Kellian (Evan) Guillame (Ben) Rophiandis (Matt) Evelyn (Liav)

#worldstone #the rovers #recap #chapter 1 #The Shrine at the Center of the World #zahavah #alec #kellian #guillame #rophiandis #Evelyn #kelly #baruch #evan #ben #matt #liav

[worldstonerovers]

A map of the languages of this world.

Because all of the languages are descended from a common root, many people speak or understand Common, including all of the Rovers. However, there are plenty of people who only speak the language they were raised with.

Veloran is the most commonly spoken native tongue. It traces its roots to the first settlers of the Veloran delta, and as the city grew in power and influence, the language came to dominate the habitable western half of Lodrun. Today, various dialects of Veloran are spoken by residents of Velor, Ekta, the many small villages and townships in the region, and the cultures of the Ekwood swamps and bayous.

Gosan is the language spoken by the nomadic tribes that wander the Gosum Desert. They all speak slightly different dialects, but the tribes interact with each other frequently enough that the cultures are still relatively homogeneous. When they meet, they happily exchange the specialized crafts, stories, and music that they have created since last they met, drawing inspiration from previous encounters with other tribes.

Two languages that are closely related, High Fargraf and Low Fargraf, are both descended from the Peleran language of the first settlers of the continent. Over time, as people spread across the arable portions of the land, the culture of the northerners grew distinct from that of the south, as they built Peleras into a powerful city-state and Temran into a major trading port. Today, the townships of southern Fargraf are still largely unincorporated, although this means that they are often vulnerable to subjugation by the warlords that plague the region.

The continent of Calhorn is fully settled by speakers of Calharan, and the culture is highly homogeneous. The villages and the large cities share a culture and have a unifying administrative network. The guilds and syndicates span across the villages and cities of the continent, with open trade and travel between them.

Vedalan is spoken by the inhabitants of Kirm and its surrounding villages and farms. Vedala is the least populous continent, due to the mountain range and the rainforest that cover the majority of its landmass. It is a very cloistered society, with just one port which has only recently started allowing foreigners in. This history of isolation has culminated in a very distinct language, with few of its speakers understanding Common.

The twin cities of Farra and Rim are the extent of the Farran language and its culture. It is uncertain who the first settlers of the Farran island were, but what is known is that Rim was founded later as a colony of Farra.

#language #worldstone #history #the rovers

[worldstonerovers]

The Hexatheon is comprised of the six gods who hold sway over this world. The people who populate this world are aligned with the values espoused by each god in different measures, giving rise to an alignment system more nuanced than a simple good/evil dichotomy. Upon their death, each person is brought into the afterlife of the god with whom they most closely align. A rare subset of people are equally aligned with each god, and when these people die, they cannot be claimed by any god, causing them to immediately return to life. These people, called Heroes, are often derided for their amoral lifestyles and feared for their unlimited capacity to terrorize the more ordinary, god-fearing citizens.

Diakanna is the god of change. Often depicted as a young adult of either sex, with waist-length hair that gradates from pitch to chestnut to auburn to honey to flaxen as it flows down her sides. He is nearly always depicted as naked, often holding a bowl overflowing with water. Symbols of Diakanna include the moon, birds, water, and leaves. Diakanna’s emblem is a tree, half bare, half verdant.

Neiri is the god of pleasure. She is depicted as a buxom woman in elegant, black robes and long, red hair. She is often adorned with lush grape vines or surrounded by vast quantities of food. Symbols of Neiri include apples, clouds, beer, and genitals. Neiri’s emblem is a gold ball nestled in a tongue.

Telmara is the god of creativity. Generally depicted as a wizened old man with a flowing, white beard and beams of light emanating from his head, he is often carrying a paintbrush and pallet. Symbols of Telmara include fire, a pallet, wine, and paper. Telmara’s emblem is a goblet, tipped over and pouring out liquid flames.

Enza is the god of strength. Depicted as a fully-armored soldier with a distinctive helmet and red cape. In his four hands, he holds a hammer, a sword, and a bow and arrow. Symbols of Enza include swords, oxen, chains, and rivers. Enza’s emblem is a hand clenched in a fist and held by the wrist by another hand.

Aavad is the god of compassion, usually portrayed as a child, nearly always accompanied by an animal, such as a dog, cat, or songbird. Commonly, Aavad is seen with silver and milk spilling from open palms. Symbols of Aavad include silver coins, blood, birds, and milk. Aavad’s emblem is a heart with a piece missing and blood dripping from its place.

Revier is the god of truth. Traditionally depicted as simply a floating eye, more recent portrayals have started to show a white-robed figure with no face, holding scales. Symbols of Revier include blank parchment, scales, mountains, and the sun. Revier’s emblem is an eye with scales hanging from it.

#worldstone #mythology #gods #dungeons and dragons #d&d #d&d 5e #arcana #the rovers

[worldstonerovers]

The known world (not to scale).

#worldstone #the rovers #maps #history

[worldstonerovers]

Worldstone Objects

Almost all worldstone objects are covered with an indecipherable series of engraved runes, unique to that type of worldstone. The only exceptions are cubestone, which is always blank, and waystone, which can either be blank or engraved with runes that vary by the specific farstone that engraved it or the message it was used to record.

RIVERSTONE

Riverstones are found all over the world, producing copious amounts of water. They are spherical at the top, with a rounded collar at the base of the sphere, where it meets a square column. From this base, water flows at a constant rate. The larger a riverstone is, the more water it produces, with the largest riverstone in the world found in the center of Peleras, feeding the mighty Peleran River. Smaller riverstones are found throughout the world, creating small streams and ponds.

RAINSTONE

Each rainstone is comprised of a cylinder surrounded by five curving prongs that aim at the sky. At a regular interval, a given rainstone will cause loose water in its immediate surroundings to rise into the sky, eventually condensing into clouds and raining down elsewhere in the region.

FARSTONE

Farstones are pavilion-shaped structures that have in their centers, a column with two slots. When a blank waystone is placed in the bottom slot, it is engraved with ancient, unreadable runes. When an engraved waystone is placed in the top slot of a different farstone, whoever is standing in the pavilion is transported to the farstone where that waystone was initially engraved. The waystone is transported along with them, into the top slot of the destination pavilion.

WAYSTONE

A waystone is a small, flat tablet (4” x 6” x 1”) of stone with slightly chamfered corners. One of the corners has a small hole in it, which is often used to affix tags to the waystone. When placed in the bottom slot of a farstone column, it becomes engraved with a pattern specific to that farstone. When placed in the top slot, it will transport everything in the pavilion to the farstone with which it was engraved. Blank waystones can be purchased in large cities for 100 gp. Engraved waystones can be purchased for different amounts depending on where they are purchased.

WHITESTONE

Whitestone glows with a white light in the dark. This relatively abundant, spherical structure is used commonly as a light source by those who can afford to upgrade from candles (they can be purchased for 25 gp). The sun is believed to be an enormous cluster of whitestone which flies through the air every day.

BELLSTONE

This bell shaped worldstone is about the size of a drinking cup and is completely hollow inside. When struck, the bell creates the sound of a much larger bell, which can be heard up to a mile away.

CUBESTONE

This perfectly generic cube can be found in variable sizes, and has slightly chamfered edges. It has no discernable purpose, aside from the natural quality shared by all worldstone of being completely immutable by physical or magical means. The smallest cubes are about one cubic centimeter, while the largest are about 1000 cubic centimeters. The price range varies dramatically, from 1 gp for the smallest to 5000 for the largest, following an exponential curve.

A mysterious variant of cubestone exists, which contains runes inscribed upon it. It is currently unknown what purpose this form of worldstone serves, although it seems to have some impact on a cleric’s (or warlock’s) ability to communicate with their patron.

MEMORYSTONE

These blank, fingertip-sized objects consist of two hemispheres, barely separated by a thin rod. When pressed together to form a complete sphere, the memorystone records whatever memory is on the forefront of the holder’s mind, until it is released. This engraves the stone with runes, at which point it can no longer be used to record memories. When pressed together again, it allows the orginal recorder to recall with perfect clarity whatever memory they recorded on it.

BLANKSTONE

Blankstone is used to remove the runes engraving any worldstone placed inside its chamber. It is a hollow cube, about a meter in length. One wall can be slid open, allowing objects to be inserted. Once it is slid back into place, any worldstone inside loses its engraving.

TOTEMS

Similar to cubestone, totems seem to have no real purpose other than being indestructible. Found in a vast multitude of shapes (generally animals), they are often purchased as gifts, although they are very expensive, at an average of 50-250 gp apiece for the small ones. Some of the larger, rarer totems have sold for thousands of gold apiece.

CHIRPSTONE

A small, U-shaped stone commonly used by swamp-dwelling cultures. When held between one’s lips with the tines facing inward, it produces a chirping noise, similar to that of a cricket.

VISAGESTONE

Also referred to as v-stone, visagestone allows the recording of one’s voice and appearance. When a blank waystone is placed in the upper slot of this truncated wedge, the hollow circle at the top begins to glow blue, and the user’s message is recorded, engraving the waystone. A waystone engraved in this way can then be placed in the bottom slot of a v-stone, causing the circle to glow white, and an image of the recording to be projected.

BLINKSTONE

A coin-shaped object discovered in the Confole of the Elinyr Fey, this object allows the user to transport themselves into the Border Ethereal. When the coin is flipped for the first time each day, it and the user are both transported into the Border Ethereal, where they are undetectable to most creatures on the prime material plane. This effect lasts for ten minutes, or until the user flips the coin again, at which point they are returned to the Prime Material plane.

UNKOWNSTONE

In a forest in the Pearl Isthmus, in the same place where visagestone was first discovered, a large worldstone structure composed of three concentric circular steps was discovered. Its function is as of yet unknown.

#worldstone #the rovers #arcana