New Roleplay World?

[Ravana]

@Nimue: I now have the beginnings of a map, based solely upon your description of the setting thus far. It may be nothing like what you had in mind, but it's a starting point. It's also a bit bulky to be uploading here for something that's just a draft. If you want me to e-mail it to you, send me an address in a PM.

 

[Nimue]

Sorry about the pause there, New Year's was a bit rough. What I'm waiting on right now is Black Dragon's decision on the subforum, but I also meant to write up some extended lore today and post it here--it can always get sorted into a different thread later.

Absolutely, Ravana, email me! I'll send a PM. I have some vague brainscapes for the realm already, so we can work on that together. I'm thinking of adding a few more peoples and cultures to the mix.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

@BD, I'm happy to help manage the game if any mod-stuff is required… that is, if you do open a sub forum under Mythic Worlds. (I'm sure Ravana would help out as well.)

Nimue, I only want to be a player. What I mean is, if you need a mod to edit/delete/move a post or something like that, I'm happy to oblige if BD opens a forum for your game.

 

[Nimue]

Yeah, that would be really useful! Hopefully we won't have any flubbed posts that need to be fixed or moved, but you never know, and it's good to have that just in case.

 

[Philster401]

@BD what's happening about this new RPG?

 

[Ravana]

Map sent.*

Yes, I'd be willing to assist with any modding required.

*(Along with lengthy explanation. Get used to that from me. Ask anyone… I have a reputation. Heh.)

 

[Nimue]

Hehe, lengthy indeed! I'm going to try to write up more of the land and do a bit of a sketch before I get back to you, but I love some of your ideas and the general shape of thing! Oh dear, that's not a proper response, but I will get to in at length, I promise. P:

I don't think it matters too much that Black Dragon responds at once, because there is a lot of writing that I need to do before we're ready to start, or even before you guys can write up character profiles... Speaking of that, I did start on the general world lore, and thought I'd post it here to help people start to think about their characters. Next up will be the different nationalities/cultures of men, elves, and dwarves.




WORLD

Ysgard lies on the Northern continent of Aerde. To the west are distant, warm lands known as the Helcarae, from which came the ancestors of the Dunmen, and sometimes travelers, and to the east are lands that are even farther from familiar shores. The men of Ysgard call them the Lands Beyond, and among them is the homeland of the Auroë. Off the western shore of Aerde is the Sea of Vassar, after the Ysgardian king who first crossed it, and the eastern sea is the Elfwyne. To the south is the Glass Ocean, beyond which is nothing.

This lore is written from the perspective and the knowledge of the men of Ysgard, and so is narrow in scope, and may be incorrect on the details of the wider world. Names are in the common tongue of Aerde, while names in italics are in Old Ysgardur, which only wizards and scholars speak, and is closely related to the elven tongue of Yvaldri.

PEOPLES

Men - Fyrdar
The most numerous, diverse, and adaptable of the races. Magical talent is rare among men, and must be trained with years of study. They live to be 60-80 years old, although witches and wizards can live as long as 200 years.

Elves - Alfar
Slender and slightly taller than men, with pointed ears and angled features. Almost all elves possess the capability to use magic, though some are far more powerful than the rest. There are fewer differences between male and female elves, as male elves cannot grow beards. Resistant to disease, they need to eat and rest less often, but are more susceptible to poison and toxins, and strongly affected by magic, both harming and healing. They have children rarely. Elves live to be 250-300 years old, and those strongest in magic can live as long as 450 years.

Dwarves - Dvergar
The least numerous of the races. Very short, stocky, and muscular, with long hair and beards. Resistant to magic, poison, and physical injury. There are greater differences between male and female dwarves than with the other races--dwarf women are shorter, curvier, and much less hirsute. Magical talent is extremely rare among the dwarves and may never get trained in those who have it.

Halfbreeds
Elves and dwarves cannot have children together. Half-elves, half-men take most after the human blood, save for a tapered point to their ears, and an increased likelihood for magical talent. Roughly a third of half-elves can cast magic. They do not inherit the full swiftness of their elven parents, and tend to be more susceptible to sickness and spells. Half-dwarves, half-men, often called halflings, take most after their dwarven blood, and are almost as short as dwarfs, but less stocky and without their hairiness. They are hardy and somewhat resistant to magic, but are disparaged by dwarves for their perceived weakness.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

I did start on the general world lore, and thought I'd post it here to help people start to think about their characters. Next up will be the different nationalities/cultures of men, elves, and dwarves.

This is good. Even though I know who I'm going to play, I like to know about the world before I toss her into it. This is good reading material while we wait to start playing the game!

 

[Philster401]

I agree this lor is quite good but one question/statement you didn't mention how long the dwarves live, how long do they live?

 

[Ireth]

This looks like fun. I might join in once I can decide on a character.

 

[Nimue]

Yay, another person, and an rper too!

Shoot, I forgot to put that in about the dwarves. I'd say roughly 100 to 140 years for them, up to 250 for dwarven wizards (which are, again, so rare as to be extinct). I'll also add some lifespan values for the halfbreeds!

 

[Philster401]

Thanks! and yay we have another player.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Good to see you're joining this, Ireth!

 

[Ravana]

Hehe, lengthy indeed! I'm going to try to write up more of the land and do a bit of a sketch before I get back to you, but I love some of your ideas and the general shape of thing!

Thank you.

I was fairly confident the general shape would be acceptable, or I would've stopped early on. Still plenty of empty space for additional development/detail, even if nothing already on it gets moved. Speaking of which.…

There was one thing I forgot to mention: I may have the Ettarlands running too close to Yvalheim… I realized at some point during the process that your intro makes it sound like there should be at least some portion of Ysgard between the two. (Of course, the Ettarlands don't need to go all the way up even if the terrain I put in for them does.) I already moved their "border" once, anyway, so moving it again would present no difficulties.

To the west are distant, warm lands known as the Helcarae, from which came the ancestors of the Dunmen, and sometimes travelers, and to the east are lands that are even farther from familiar shores. The men of Ysgard call them the Lands Beyond, and among them is the homeland of the Auroë. Off the western shore of Aerde is the Sea of Vassar, after the Ysgardian king who first crossed it, and the eastern sea is the Elfwyne. To the south is the Glass Ocean, beyond which is nothing.

All of which are known amongst the wise as "Lands Off the Edge of the First Map."

Names are in the common tongue of Aerde, while names in italics are in Old Ysgardur, which only wizards and scholars speak, and is closely related to the elven tongue of Yvaldri.

Not to mention Old Norse.

Which is as good a choice as any for a model, and it beats hell out of trying to invent your own. Which I also do for fun. (Well, for myself: unlike the maps, if anyone else wants me to do those, I charge. Albeit not near what anyone else would–after all, they're fun.)

 

[Black Dragon]

Nimue,

It looks like there is sufficient interest to make this work. Write up some introductory documents and rules, and share them with Legendary Sidekick and Ravana to look over. Once these are ready, I'll create the new forum for the game.

 

[Nimue]

Thank you! I'll get to work on more information. Here's what's on my list:

• 
  Introduction, Rules and Guidelines
  Countries and Peoples
  Magic
  Creatures
  Dragonriding

I'll update this thread as soon as I've got one of those done!

 

[Ravana]

Add "Religion." It seems likely to play a fairly important role (or at least have the potential to) from what you've given thus far.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

A question on religion…

Any particular pantheon you have in mind? In one of my Addision Lane stories, I have her complain and say, "Oh, for the love o' the virgin goddess!" It's a reference to the Greek goddess of the hunt, Artemis, though I never use her name.

That said, if you have a Celtic area in the game, that might be a good fit. I get the feeling too many of the Greek gods are too well-known to be interesting in an RPG. And they're too well known for abusing their power to be likable.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Here's a link with Celtic deities. It seems to be a thorough list. Be warned: a few nude illustrations. Nothing offensive, unless the Sistine Chapel offends you.

Based on this list, I'd have Addy follow Artio (whose name is strikingly similar to Artemis). She has a three-word description: "Celtic wildlife goddess."



That said, I don't know anything of your world outside of the Etterlands being the Celtic area—which I agree is Addy's homeland!

If you have a Norse-based area, maybe those from the Norse-based should follow a Norse pantheon; those from Etterlands, Celtic; maybe Greek/Roman for an imperial area, if one happens to be based on Ancient Rome.

And… you could simply link the pantheons as I did with the Celtic, so all you'd need to do in your write-up is tie each in-game pantheon to a given area, and maybe include a short list of who most people worship. (For the record, Artio is likely NOT on the short list. Given her minimal description, my guess is Artio can count her followers on her fingers and still have a finger free to point to the counting fingers.)

 

[Nimue]

Yes, I'll absolutely add some info about religion--it'll probably be wrapped up into the Peoples & Countries section, because different gods are worshiped in different regions. I have some god names left over from an old iteration of this world, but in general I will be making up gods and assigning them attributes/domains. More time with name dictionaries/generators for me! But if you'd like to bring Artio in you are more than welcome to, she would definitely be fitting! The name isn't as obviously "real-world" as the Greek gods, for sure.