The Weird, Wild and Wooly of Your World

[Orc Knight]

Just a post it thread for some of the stranger things in your world. Given this is fantasy, it can be as weird as hell or just something that sticks out in particular for you. And I'll start it off with one of Eld's stranger things. Something from D&D originally (or a story at least) as Eld started based on D&D and Pathfinder in particular.

The Dread Gazebo's of Eld

The gazebo. Not exactly bringing notes of fear or terror. But on Eld there stalks a type of predatory construct that's particular form is that of a gazebo. Part predatory plant and part sylvanwood construct with sentience. They tend to resemble gazebo's with with white painted wood and trellis screens of ivy and flowers with a table in the middle of it. That can usually be found in mysterious clearings, city parks and even part noble lawns or area's where archers practice.

It has a more mobile form to move from place to place, turning it into a walking spider like thing made of wood and plants. It is also the same form it takes when it feels it is truly in trouble. Which happens rarely, if ever. It is an ambush predator, despite being a construct and it's plants feed on the meat, bone and marrow. The warriors of Eld are ever ready to avoid it or fight it, especially those that have collected many trophies. When at rest it waits for the unwary and binds them in vines as it grows teeth and it's many plants rip and tear through the poor soul or souls caught in it. Once fed it waits a few days before moving on.

It's favorite food is archers. Especially that one unwary one who thinks a gazebo might be dangerous and therefore fill it with arrows. Most think they came about either by drow, goblins or a particularly fiendish wood elf. Few are seen, but when they are they are best avoided.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

Dread gazebos. That's brilliant.

I need to make some weird creatures for Phantasma now. Persona 3 and 4 will be my inspirations. Look out.

 

[kyrrimar]

A gazebo? I waste it with my crossbow!! <smirk>

Just a post it thread for some of the stranger things in your world. Given this is fantasy, it can be as weird as hell or just something that sticks out in particular for you. And I'll start it off with one of Eld's stranger things. Something from D&D originally (or a story at least) as Eld started based on D&D and Pathfinder in particular.

The Dread Gazebo's of Eld

The gazebo. Not exactly bringing notes of fear or terror. But on Eld there stalks a type of predatory construct that's particular form is that of a gazebo. Part predatory plant and part sylvanwood construct with sentience. They tend to resemble gazebo's with with white painted wood and trellis screens of ivy and flowers with a table in the middle of it. That can usually be found in mysterious clearings, city parks and even part noble lawns or area's where archers practice.

It has a more mobile form to move from place to place, turning it into a walking spider like thing made of wood and plants. It is also the same form it takes when it feels it is truly in trouble. Which happens rarely, if ever. It is an ambush predator, despite being a construct and it's plants feed on the meat, bone and marrow. The warriors of Eld are ever ready to avoid it or fight it, especially those that have collected many trophies. When at rest it waits for the unwary and binds them in vines as it grows teeth and it's many plants rip and tear through the poor soul or souls caught in it. Once fed it waits a few days before moving on.

It's favorite food is archers. Especially that one unwary one who thinks a gazebo might be dangerous and therefore fill it with arrows. Most think they came about either by drow, goblins or a particularly fiendish wood elf. Few are seen, but when they are they are best avoided.

 

[Miles Lacey]

In my fantasy story the first sign it's spring is not the cherry blossom trees but the appearance of anti-aircraft gun carriages on the trains. Dragon eggs start hatching in the early spring. In order to protect their off-spring dragons will attack anything that enters their territory, including trains. The level of technology in my world is akin to that of the 1930s so humanoids (i.e humans, elves and neanderthals) have weapons that allow them to slaughter dragons so the dragons have retreated to the mountains.

Mammoths are common and they can be both wild and domesticated. Different species of mammoths live in different areas. They can be as small as a large horse or as huge as a four story building. Most are about the size of a double decker bus. The most fearsome ones are the wild plains mammoths. Not only do they travel in large herds (one hundred in a herd are not unheard of) but they are the height of a four story building. They're usually placid creatures but if they perceive anything as a threat to the herd, especially their young, they will attack. If they come charging for you get out of the way. If you shoot them with anything less than an 88mm calibre artillery gun you'll only piss them off even more. They're also migratory animals. Fortunately they're slow and their migratory paths are well mapped. Towns and villages that are in the way have what's called Mammoth Runs. These are roads that are about the width of a six lane highway which allow the mammoths to go through towns without hurting people or destroying property. The day in which the mammoths arrive are public holidays so that traffic and disruption are kept to a minimum.

However, dragons and wild plains mammoths are not the most feared creatures. It's the home-menjador (maneater), a feline creature that is about the size of a bull terrier. Their claws are designed so they can pounce onto rapidly moving prey and hold on. Their teeth are sharp enough to penetrate the toughest hides and their jaws can crush the toughest bones. One swipe from a home-menjador will rip your leg or throat to shreds. They are also fast. During a chase they have been clocked at 80 km/h. It's even claimed that in the Occidental Republic a police car in hot pursuit doing 120 km/h was overtaken by one of these things. They are the also the only animals that can hunt and kill a wild plains mammoth. The home-menjador is valued for its fur, which is highly sought after in high society, and domesticated ones are often used by the police and prison guards because their intelligence, sense of smell and ability to take down even the toughest criminals make them very useful. Unlike most feline creatures they hunt in packs and, fortunately for most people, they prefer wide open areas like steppes and grasslands in hotter climates where populations of humanoids are low.

 

[Sheilawisz]

Great thread!

As Fantasy authors, it's just natural that we often have very weird things in our worlds. I believe that such things are actually a hallmark of Fantasy worlds, because if you have simply another Earth then it's not quite Fantasy even if said world is located in a different universe.

Here is one from my Graceland world:

Whakflower

The famous Whakflower Plant was invented by Mages somewhere in the mountains of North Salessya, probably three or four thousand years ago. It grows wild in forests found at the bottom of deep mountain valleys, but it can also be cultivated in gardens and in that case it's a very helpful plant since it repels rats and other types of pest.

Whakflower looks like a bush-type plant, with large and weird flowers in a very vivid shade of purple. Sometimes, the flowers are blue or even violet instead. The flowers bloom all year, even in snowy and freezing weather, and their sweet scent is very attractive to people.

The Whakflowers can be collected and dried, and prepared in the form of a dust in order to be smoked by means of stylish glass pipes. In contrast with their normally sweet smell, smoking Whakflower produces a type of very dense and purple smoke which is always described as rancid, powerful and horrible!

This is a very potent drug, since it was invented by Mages.

Whakflower causes a state of deep relaxation. Soon after the first pipe you do not care about anything in the world, and that state is followed by very realistic and pleasant hallucinations of many types. Most of the times, Whakflower is a pleasure for Mages only... Wizards and ordinary people can enjoy it too, but constant use eventually proves fatal for them.

The final stage of Whakflower intoxication is a state of deep sedation, which can last for many days.

Mages that abuse Whakflower in a chronic fashion can enjoy it without the sedative effects, but the hallucinations are not so realistic and pleasant for them. Cases of terrifying hallucinations have been reported, as well. The other disadvantage is that Whakflower smoking causes a Mage to be vulnerable to other types of magical poisoning.

A combination of Whakflower and a magical drink called Green Fairy is particularly infamous.

The Mage Aycell The Grasswolf Silverthorn is known for smoking alarming amounts of Whakflower almost everyday, to the point that he keeps a huge Whakflower garden just for his personal use and he never leaves home without his pipe and a good supply for smoking. This behavior often gets Aycell in trouble, and still he would never abandon Whakflower no matter what happens!

Whakflower is a Salessyan curiosity, almost unknown in other parts of the world.

 

[Yora]

There is an ancient city of sorcerers called Sarhat. Or Sahal. It is said to have been the seat of the most powerful sorcerer kings who ever lived, but nobody has any real idea what happened to it, what would be found there, or even where it might be. But it is seen by many sorcerers and treasure hunters as the greatest find anyone could ever make. Of course, nobody ever found it so far, but many have tried and all of them either returned completely empty handed or not at all.
Searching for Sarhat or leading people to Sarhat have become the ultimate expression for folly. Not the least because even if someone were ever to find it, nobody has any actual clues what use this discovery could have.

But the possibilities are endless.

 

[Ban]

The Nocturnal Compact: In Silver elf society all organized crime as well as all other professions, is hereditary and divided in guilds for each criminal profession (Burglar guild, highwayman guild, counterfeiters guild). All its members are female, due to an ancient silver elf perception that women don't have the capacity to do crime. This belief has long been proven false, but because night elves can’t break their society’s ancient tradition lest they turn into wild, raving orcs, they ritualistically tolerate the Nocturnal Compact. The entire system as such, is a mock show that can’t be eradicated or successfully combatted. Because it has to remain intact, the Nocturnal Compact is in all but name a publicly accessible criminal network for all citizens of the mountains to peruse.

 

[Sheilawisz]

Hello everyone!

Very nice posts, I have enjoyed all of them. You know, talking about this kind of things is a great way to have some insight into our various Fantasy worlds. Sometimes, even little details can tell a lot about the setting of a story...

Another one from Graceland:

The Grasswolves

There are many dangerous species in the grassy fields and plains that separate lower Salessya from the Shadow Mountains, but surely the most famous and most feared of all is the mighty Grasswolf. There are many of these creatures that live there, but they are rarely seen... and if you do get to see one, then most likely you are not going to live to tell anyone about it!

In spite of that name, a Grasswolf is not quite a wolf. The animal in question is much more similar to a hyena, and in fact they are something like wolfish hyenas instead of hyenish wolves. They are comparable to the spotted hyena, not the striped species. The main difference is that a Grasswolf is huge, with a normal weight of around five hundred kilograms.

Some specimens have been measured to weigh twice that amount.

The Grasswolves are armed with huge retractile claws much more dangerous than those of a tiger, not to mention their extremely powerful jaws and teeth. Their fangs are over twenty centimeters long, if not even longer. The brutal and disgusting looks of these animals are terrifying, so almost nobody would like them even if they were a friendly species.

It is important to mention that the Grasswolves have huge physical strength, which allows them to perform unbelievable jumps, run crazy fast and easily climb their way up snowy and dangerous mountains...

Grasswolves are silent and sneaky when they hunt, but anyway they love to play with their prey. If you are caught by one or more of these creatures, you can expect them to happily tear your limbs off one by one before they eat you alive while you are still bleeding to death. They do not grant you a quick death, since the Grasswolf is extremely cruel and also very intelligent.

The main problem with Grasswolves is that they are very resilient, so even if they are hit with many arrows and poisons they can keep attacking or escaping anyway. Sometimes, it has been observed that a Grasswolf can survive the explosion of a very powerful blackpowder bomb right in its face. They seek vengeance, and they can wait for many years in order to achieve it.

Certainly, these creatures are not a natural species of Graceland.

Salessyan Wizards have always refused to comment about it, but it's believed that the first Grasswolves were developed at their labs in order to work as shock troops in the Wizarding Wars of centuries past. For whatever reasons, these wizard-made creatures were allowed to go free and after that they started to reproduce in the wild.

There are rumors about magical powers of the Grasswolf, which include teleportation and invisibility, but that has never been confirmed.

 

[Yora]

In Kaendor there are the spirits of the forests, the mountains, and the sea. They are governing and directing the seasons and the forces of nature and regulate the growth of plants and the spread of animals. They receive prayers and offerings from the people to provide stability within the chaos of the wilderness and allow villages and towns to survive.
And then there are the spirits of somewhere else. They are not of places that anyone has ever seen. They are spirits of flame, of lightning, of ice, and of darkness, and of storm. They have no shapes and no voice. They are thought. They do not aid or protect, but they can give power. The power to change, and the power to do the impossible. But they are not of the land, the sea, or the sky and their powers never bring life, only death. Wherever their touch is felt, everything becomes sick, crumbles, and dies. Often slowly and invisible, but everything created with their power will not last.

 

[Orc Knight]

And I shall throw in another of Eld's. Another vicious and carnivorous plant and likely somewhat familiar. I'm sure you can guess this particular homage. Or possible outright taking. And leaving the thinking that I may just have some streak of evil botanist hiding in me.

The Tempters and Seducers (with the Nose Biters)

As far as origins go, no one is quite sure where they come from. It's either from deep in the jungles, deep space or from deep space jungles or all three at the same time. They start by looking generally like small, if hard leafed flowers with a peculiar enchanting scent (no one can quite identify said smell because it is tailored to them) that start to grow quite big with the more meat they eat. And if they get a hold of any of the assortment of mortal flesh upon Eld, they grow even faster and get very big. So much so if it wasn't the world that they are on they'd probably have done a good amount of damage to it. Even they can't take it all.

Once big enough they are called Tempters, usually starting at two feet tall. With it comes an expansion of their basic powers, allowing them to slowly take the minds of one they are around by possibly manipulating fate. This usually revolves around simply trying to get more food in their massive flowery and very teethy maws. They can also start growing vines to move around and become far more mobile. They can also sing and the big keyword for them is 'Feed me!' to whomever they've managed to ensnare and whom they will usually eventually eat.

If they've been fed enough to reach upwards of ten feet and beyond the plants powers go straight into the ability to use their pollen and spores to directly mess with peoples heads and as the second name suggests, seduce them. Using visions and a black lotus like dreaming they can take on just about vision as it uses the growth around it to read the person or persons it plans on manipulating so it can eat them. They are also nicknamed Big Green Mothers, though usually out of their hearing. Or with several fireball spells being thrown in it's direction.

And as for both species, they have a symbiotic relationship with a species of rose known as the Nose Biters, a carnivorous rose bush which is often used as a guard bush around nobles houses and windows. Though tending to stick to smaller prey they will feed on the leavings of the Tempter or Seducer of which they brood with.

Yet for how powerful they can be, they often find use (often against their will, unless someone is feeding them well) as a summon monster to the particular powerful of the world or as direct followers to the druids of the world. Given how often Eld is at war, most don't mind being a summon monster because they get food for it and some are actually grown in the vicious gardens or green houses of terror for their particular abilities.

So, while on Eld, be wary of any flower that asks you to feed it.