One of the most rewarding things about roleplaying is, in my experience, creating fictional universes. I just love making up and writing down stuff about different cultures, religions, races and phenomenons. So I thought I'd duplicate an experiment I saw on another forum and invite you all to build a fantasy universe with me.

I will lay down some basics before we begin. Then we'll add your ideas in an attempt to construct the world even further. Maybe we'll have ourselves a map which we fill up with realms, cities, forests and other locations and stuff. Finally we'll all go and work on a separate realm of our own or something like that.

The basics:

1. Our setting will be medieval fantasy. By medieval I mean a nice mixture of anything from the Viking Age (or perhaps before even that) to mid/late european 1500s. By fantasy I mean we'll add more humanoid species other than humans (such as elves, dwarves, orcs, etc). Magic and fantastic creatures would also be nice.

2. Don't turn this into something derpy and don't troll the game. Arthgon can participate until he pisses me off by being silly or stupid. If you (Arthgon) begins to argue this you'll get banned from my thread instantly.

3. The world basically works like ours physics-wise (apart from magic and shit).

Sign up today!

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I think this is a grand idea however I will be indisposed for the day doing house cleaning so that Mother's Day will be relaxing on the weekend. So during this cleaning period I will daydream and brainstorm my contribution to this soon to be fantastic world. Off the top of my head I am thinking of some sort of duck-humanoid species that harnesses the awesome power of crude black powder. Imagine ducks dressed in the classic English Redcoats carrying crude muskets!

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As much as I love ducks in classic fantasy roleplaying (thanks to the early swedish versions of D&D), I'm not sure if you meant to troll by suggesting this... But, awesome as they are, these ducks, I will simply assume you're a duck-lover like me and think of it no more!

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No trolling in Arcanum or Roleplaying sections! I think it would be amazing to see a battalion of ducks waddle-marching.

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What about an entire world of ornithologically based humanoids? What set me off on that was waddle-marching - so I thought of penguins.

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That might be taking things a bit too far Just ducks will be enough for me, I think.

Zanza, how about making them less 1600s and more medieval? Perhaps they're some sort of people with early, crude firearms like the Turks, or some sort of naval civilisation (more likely)? I get this picture in my head where they're singapore-ish pirates with boats and gear inspired by the asian dudes in Pirates of the Caribbean. IMO redcoats aren't really medieval, is all.

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Personally I have this idea of a magicracy, where wizards and warlocks reign supreme over the masses in a sort of shared dictatorship or council of magicians. This will include only a single nation and not the entire world, of course. Maybe they could be invilved in a thousand year war against some kind of theocracy... That'd be sweet.

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I like this idea. Perhaps there are even political intrigues that could undermine the decisions of the council of the magicians. As political murders, backstabbing, betrayal and cronyism in Byzantium.



Yes. I like this idea as well. Cool. But. Surely there must be a background story behind this war. How did this war occur and by whom? There is always a cause. Perhaps one of the Gods has a grunge against magic.

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

All those points are given, Arthgon. I only presented an idea.

Also, you can hold a grudge against someone, not a grunge. Grunge is a kind of music (according to some).

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What if the gods are actually writing grunge with a message that opposes magic?

As to how they developed a sound iconic of the early 90's, it's because gods.

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Down with the magic maaaaaaan

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Where shall we start with creating this world? The naming of the nations? Maybe we should start small and then with larger issues such as kings, power group, gods, monsters, races, etc.

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

Let the currency of magic be belief, either self-belief (cf willpower) in the magocracy, versus devotion to a deity in the theocracy.

So the two different nations could be fighting over free will itself or men's very souls, depending on their points of view.

Alternatively or concurrently, the magocracy could 'tax' mana into a central bank for public works, using talismans or amulets, while the theocracy could be a cult of an ancient magical creature feeding off the peoples' mana.

In this case the whole political and economic landscape would be shaped by the competition for mana.

Also, let there be tree-houses, and wood elves who have a sustainable symbiosis with nature magic, obviously.

Hmm, and also let there be skimpy woodelf bikinis.

There is the possibility that non-magic users will be treated as second-rate people in the magocracy. Perhaps you also need to register and give a lot of money if you want to perform magic as well. These draconian measures are to ensure that the unworthy and renegades not gaining too much rights and powers. (Mage Wars?) The Council even outlaws divine magic.

In the theocracy is the other way around. The non-diviners are treated like second-rate citizen and magic is outlawed.

Also, let there be Nymphs and Dryads.



Would not that be dangerous? What if the creature is getting greedy and take too much mana or something?

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

My original idea for the magocracy was something in the neighbourhood of the House Telvanni in TES3: Morrowind. The wizards, their kin and their closest followers are all part of the governing elite which stands above common law and is incredibly rich, whilst everyone else are serfs with no rights at all. Only mercheants with connections to a wizards House grow prosperous, and the people in general are kept undereducated and opressed. Religion is either free or banned (gods with a lot of rules and moral standpoints are most certainly outlawed).

The theocracy would of course be governed by some sort of priesthood with a God (mundane or transcendant) at its head. A God King or Queen is always a cool concept. This priesthood governs its subjects with the aid of religious dogma and punishes the wicked with fire and steel. Magic might not be outlawed, but only trusted officials are allowed to research it.

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About elves; I had intended for them to be quite different from usual fantasy universes. My idea was more in the line of them being the children of the forest, more like the Kokiri from Zelda: Ocarina of Time than, say, LotR. If you've ever seen the movie Legend by Ridley Scott, the elven dude there is what I'm talking about. Tree houses are definetly an alternative, as is natural magic (manipulating plants and animals, stuff like that). I don't think, however, that the entire world should be based around the magic-divine conflict. It was just an idea for two states. Feel free to come up with your own ideas; are there barbarians living in the faraway plains? Duckmen roaming the seas? What are the dwarves like? What other gods are there, and how do they influence the world?

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Background details of the Magocracy: The Heads of the Wizard Houses forms the Council of Mages who rules with an iron hand. This is to prevent infighting and civil war. Because in the past the nation was almost destroyed by the Mage Wars. Houses against Houses. Until Selwyn (who became the Mage-Lord) brought everyone to submission by defeating the Heads in a harsh and devastating battle.

Forming the Council of Mages with him as the leader. After his death, one of his sons took his place as the Mage-Lord. Even though the Mage-Lord has the true power, there are some rumors of treason, murders and darker plots in the nation. The name of the nation is perhaps Landoria?

Spells can only be cast with a spellbook and the specific ingredients.

Theocracy: The God-King rules the nation with the same sort of dedication like the Spanish inquision (sp?)

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

I welcome your ideas and inputs, but I will write the magocracy and theocracy myself and post what I've come up with here for feedback. You can invent something yourself and start writing. That goes for everybody.

The Magocracy of Astyria was founded five hundred years ago by the surviving Archmages of the legendary Mage Wars. It occupies a stretch of land which no other kingdom previously inhabited, commonly known as the Wizards Vale. Astyria is a state where not men, but magic rules the lives of its inhabitants. It is not your intelligence, looks or origin which dictates how far you will climb in the hierarchy of the land. It is your ability to understand and use the forces of magic.

There are two kinds of people in Astyria; the Mages and the Serfs. The mages form the ruling class and live rich lives filled with magic and intruiges. The serfs are those born without the ability to use magic, and are thus on the lowest possible peg in the food chain, sometimes considered even lower than cattle. Serfs have no rights and can never ascend from their position. They form the working force of the Magocracy, toiling in the mines and fields all their life until their bodies succumb to the heavy labour.

The people are categorized as mages or serfs after having undergone a test at the age of three. The children then undergo a certain ritual devised to separate the gifted from those that are not. The gifted are stolen from their families and raised in one of the five Great Towers, where they learn the ways of magic.

The leadership of Astyria comes in the form of the Five Pointed Star, which is a council made up of the Archmages of the five Great Towers. These five individuals decide on all matters that concrn the realm, both domestical and foreign. They are not united as one, though; there is a bitter rivalry between all the Towers and many a conflict has blossomed and withered during the states five hundred years old history. In fact, the only time when the Archmages appear to stand united is when a threat arises from outside the land. The rest of the time, the Towers governs themselves and the land around them without interference from the other Archmages.

The laws of Astyria differ greatly from many of its neighbours. In the Magocracy, weakness is considered a flaw of almost criminal dimensions. Therefore, the laws regarding the security of individuals are very vague. For example, thievery is not punishable at all. The wizards reason that, if you get away with taking something from someone without them being able to take it back, the thing which you stole is now rightfully yours. The same goes for vengeance and murder; if you think you got what it takes to kill a rival, or exact justice for a friend, by all means go ahead and try. If you succeed then clearly you were the stronger one and thus obviously in the right. If you fail... then that is oftentimes punishment enough. The only time other mages will interfere is when something is conducted in an unmagelike way. For example, murdering a rival with brute physical force instead of using magic. Such behaviour can get mages banished from their towers, or even worse, killed outright for their offence.

The cornerstone of the economy of Astyria is the mining and trade of Faestone ore. Faestone is a special kind of mineral which is crucial in the use of magic. A mage is a person who can tap into the flow of mana which courses unseen through existense and thus change the world to his/her will, but that power in itself is useless and impossible to perform without the use of a conductor of some sort. Faestone is one of the few known materials which fuctions as such a conductor. It is used in wands, staffs, orbs and even scrolls to help the magician focus and unleash his/her power. There are domestical industries devoted to the search for and excavation of Faestone, but the Magocracy also trade for it with both the dwarves and other neighbouring nations. It is an expensive commodity to buy at such scales as the Astyrians do, but it just so happens that the Mages are very, very rich.

The military of Astyria is a joke and therefore relies heavily on mercenaries from abroad. The land has no military tradition at all, with the wizards having fought out all their conflicts with magic in the past. The standing army is made up of pikemen, more pikemen and a few archers to back them up. Young, upcoming mages act as officers and the members of the Star are the great dictators of the armed forces. To add some oompf to their host, the mages hire all sorts of warriors and thugs from arounf the world to serve them in battle. Most famous mercenary companies has fought for the mages at least a time or two. And because of the abundance of gold in the treasuries of the Towers, the number of willing soldiers never dissipates.

There is no religious worship in Astyria. It isn't officially outlawed, but the mages don't seem to care for worshipping anything else but themselves. The serfs have never had the concept of gods explained to them, at least not thoroughly, so there are no widespread religious beliefs among them either. No foreign church has ever been allowed to build temples in Astyria. The mages chase the priests/priestesses off, calling them spies for their government.

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The Serpent Isle is the remaining part and equally powerful, wicked and evil of the dreaded Empire of Valusia. Sethasshar a powerful undead Serpent man has founded it ten thousand years ago. The highly powerful leader of the Serpent People. Throughout the ages, they conquered a big part of the west coast and enslaved the upcoming humans and elves. This became The Empire of Valusia.

Slaves used for wicked experiments and toiling work. Often the slaves were mutilated or cursed to be an example for those who tried to rebel or escape.

The downfall of the Empire was through it own wickedness and the rebellion of Human and Elven slaves. Using dreadful magic, the Serpent People tried to destroy the slaves before they overtook them all. Alas, it destroyed the half of the Empire (even though the most of the slaves as well). This formed the cursed Dead Lands. Eventually, the slaves did escape and began to form their own kingdoms and empires.

Now the Serpent Isle (still ruled by Sethasshar) wants to revive the Empire again and hates non-Serpent People. As before, they have human and Elven slaves, but they are crueler to them.

Edit: I fixed the grammar and time (million years ago is a bit long indeed)

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

The Magocracy of Astyria has never been an agressive state, mainly because of its natural wealth and prosperity. It occupies fertile lowlands perfect for farming, borders on the Rimefrost Mountainrange in the east and several great forests in the north and west. Rivers flow from the west to the south, allowing for naval trade and transportation of goods. In short, Astyria needs very little other than what it can provide for itself and is thus inclined to defend rather than attack. This being said, the Mages still have many interests in the outside world and of course seek to influence other nations and places by means of agents and spies, rather than by brute force.

Even though the excellent conditions of Astyrias location factor greatly in the prosperity of the land, the real reason for Astyrias wealth is its serfs. The towers opresses its people fiercely and forces many into hard labour in the mines or forests of the land. The people are slaves rather than free workers, and it isn't uncommon for the mages to sell them to eachother as one would sell cattle. The ruling regime keeps its subjects in check with the threat of dark forces and terrible curses, and the masses are unable to revolt because of the powerful magic of their masters. In short, the Archmages and their Towers have complete control of the commonfolk of Astyria and enforces that power to make themselves wealthier and even more powerful.

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Just like ten thousand years ago, the military and the defense of the nation are still done by the three classes who learn to take up arms at a young age.

The Pure Blooded (the lower class) fills up the role of assassins, rangers and fighters. They existed through foul experiments with human slaves. Because of their near human likeness, they are used for infiltration as well.

The Half Bloods (the middle class) are wizards. Now the Abominations (the upper class) are the undiluted and THE children (thus blessed) of their dark god. For they are the most powerful of them all. Their roles always and automatically are Arch mages and/or clerics and the commanding officers of warfare. Most of the cruelty and foul experiments are done by them. Using new poisons and foul spells on their submitted and dogged slaves without any compassion.

The hierarchical structure is this way: The Emperor Sethasshar - The Abominations - The Half-Bloods - Pure Blooded.

Slaves do not have any rights. Moreover, treated like dirt. These slaves have to work in the mines or any other hard labor.

The Serpent Isle is surrounded by the Deep Sea and is used by their ships for trade and warfare. Most of the trade (slaves, weapons and poisons) is made with some of the evil creatures. Warfare against the humans and elves or any who allied with them.

When you take a warship from the Serpent Isle and fare to the east, you will come upon the cursed Dead Lands. Even though the Deep Sea (creating The Serpent Isle) engulfed the west side, it is still big. Nothing normal lives here. Bloated eerie plants and various mutated creatures are just the normal things that you come across.

Edit: Fixed the grammar and the time.

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

Millions of years is a long time.

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Mmm. I had in mind that the Serpent People (who cannot die of old age and grow more powerful by the ages) predates the Human/Elven race and established the Empire of Valusia some million years ago. Equally to the Prehistoric Age. The Serpent Isle is the remaining part of Valusia. Other parts are either engulfed by the Deep Sea or the dreaded Deadlands. Perhaps it would be better if we had a timeline.

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Ash: [talking to mirror] I'm fine... I'm fine...
[Mirror Ash jumps out of the mirror and grabs Ash]
Mirror Ash: I don't think so. We just cut up our girlfriend with a chainsaw. Does that sound "fine"?

A million years is a very long time. Heck, even a thousand years is more than any one real empire has endured. I'm not telling you to change the age of your fictional empire, but I'd advice you to perhaps shorten the span to something a little more manageable. How about... ten thousand years? It'll still be one hell of an old civilization.

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To the southeast of Vorakia lies the ancient kingdom of G'hulakhan. G'hulakhan is in essance a theocracy; the ruling class concists exclusively of the highest ranking priests of the clergy, but the reason for it being classified as a kingdom is that the head of the clergy, which is also the head of the state, is its God King Lakhan. The name G'hulakhan comes from the words Gu Hul Lakhan, which translates into Land Of Lakhan (or, since the name Lakhan is equal to the word God for the inhabitants in G'hulakhan, Land of God).

The civilization of G'hulakhan has endured for just over one thousand years and has always been ruled by its undying God King. The cult surrounding Lakhan is fierce in its devotion; there is no such thing as atheism in the land of God.

In G'hulakhan, all are born equal. It is the qualities and deeds of a person which indicates how far it will rise in the social hierarchy. Strife for advancement within the hierarchy is however considered wrong once adulthood has been reached. Resources are distributed to the people according to their standing within the civilization. There is almost no crime in G'hulakhan, much because of the strictness of its laws but mainly because of the piousness of its people. It is hard to question God when God is actually there to be questioned.

The land of God has a long military tradition and a tough, organized army. The kingdom has been almost constantly agressive during its thousand year old reign and has fought scores, if not hundreds of wars in its time. As a result of this, there are numerous divisions devoted to all sorts of different weaponry and tactics, ranging from horse archers to highlandish gerilla forces. The G'hulakhan army has always been able to analyze its opponents in order to adapt to their way of fighting, making it one of the most difficult forces to contend with in the entire world. Its real strength, though, lies not in the diversity of its tactics but in the devotion of its soldiers. These men and women all believe that they fight for God, the one true God which walks among them, and that they will be able to follow Lakhan into the afterlife if they give up their life for their God King in the field. The soldiers never flee and seemingly can't lose morale, and how could they? They believe they're fighting not only for their country and loved ones, but for the very light of the world itself.

Lakhan has never taken part of any armed conflict up to date, but word has spread that the day when the God King will leave its palace for the battlefield might come within the very near future. The war with Vorakia has been disastrous for G'hulakhan. The Archmages and their powerful magic has proven a perhaps too formidable adversary for the soldiers of Lakhans kingdom, so the troops might soon need a little divine intervention in order to come out triumphant.

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