Happy New Year, New Game, New Players (Finished: Dojango/Mictlan Wins!)

[Excist]

Game is hosted on llamaserver under NewYearsNewGame and Pretenders can be submitted (just in time with 30 min to go before actual New Years EST).

Shadowshore map has been finalized as the best RP map (and awesome suggestion btw!)

[Immaculate]

link to map?

[Iron Duke]

If it is ok, I'd like to focus more on the nation and less on the pretender(just slightly less) for the backstory, and I intend to enrich it with more stories, or maybe AARs.. Not decided about that yet, though if I do write extra stories and you get bored, be sure to tell me.

[Immaculate]

Helheim

Born from magic and fed upon the dead as they past through Gnipahålan, the creature was a simple bird, meant to feed upon the dead, return to its master, one of the Hanged ones of Helhanna, and there be sacrificed for the essence of the dead it carried in its gut. But for this grey headed raven, something went wrong. The spell was wrought, the ravens were woven of the mana of winds and they were sent, by the greedy Hangadrott to the place, surely, where there would be the most essence of death to feed upon, the the great stone cave of Gnipahålan where the dead passed through on their way to Hel, but then the spell began to unravel. Many of the ravens lost their way; some their mana unraveled and they became nothing at all. For a select few, they reached their destination only to be swallowed by the great cave itself or torn apart by the confused and desperate dead as they wandered through. But the grey one winged between the currents of seductive death and eluded the grasping hands of the dead as they tried to clutch, desperate, to his feathered form.

And it fed, and from the dead of this pass, it fed well, quickly gaining more essence than the spell it had been wrought from had ever been designed to accommodate. The old greedy Hangadrott who had sought to use the raven’s feast upon this sacred place was right; there was much to be gained from the essence here, much more than could ever be tamed by even those who had hung themselves to walk though the cave and return. And so the raven grew mighty and wise, powerful and cunning. Satiated finally, he returned to Helhanna and slew the caster that had wrought its form. It commanded the Vanir of Helhanna and they obeyed.

Now the grey raven has returned to the lands of men and giants, tuatha and formarians, and with it, has brought the Helheim, that they might struggle for dominance over souls of mortals. Those who spoke to the grey raven say it is a shape-changer, wise and ancient, both cruel and compassionate, its reasoning private yet cooperative and loyal.

Only time will tell what will happen of the cult of the grey raven and the Vanir of helheim.



i don't feel its as good as my sauro submission but the idea i thought was more compelling. also... my pretender is submitted. looking forward to a fun and story-filled game.

[Dogged57]

He was born among the Carnutes to a cattle herder and his wife. There was nothing remarkable about his lineage, his family, his people, except what the druids had seen in the stars. The story of the future of the Marverni is written in the sky, clear to those who can read it. This boy was destined for more than life in the wagons, and he would lead his people to greatness.

Or so they thought. The boy was kidnapped from the place the druids had taken him by fierce slave traders from the steppes nearby. He was bought and sold a dozen times, serving great men, evil men, insignificant men, and finally, a learned man. This wise scholar bought the boy to serve him in his new library hauling scrolls, manuscripts, books, and the things of wonder the scholar had collected over a lifetime.

The boy soon showed that his mind was sharp and wise beyond his years. The scholar took note of his abilities and began to tutor the boy in all of the magical knowledge he knew. The boy soon outstripped his master, and the scholar decided to free the boy and send him out to those around the world like himself, other scholars, wise men, and mages of great power.

The boy grew up travelling from land to land, learning as much as he could about the magic that he felt coursing through his veins, his legacy gifted from the stars. He eventually made himself known throughout the land as a great scholar, and then he ensconced himself in a great tower he had built to study the stars, the world, and the answers to all of the great philosophical questions that men and gods have asked. He was rumored to have stumbled onto something that would allow him to understand the inner workings of the gods and of the lost Pantokrator.

Others came to him in his tower to learn from him and about him. He maintained contact with the outside world through letters, refusing to leave the tower and his great work. His students supported his work, allowing him to work in peace with little to no distractions.

He now barely speaks to his students, sitting and staring off into the distance or at the stars for hours on end. He sits, filthy, ignoring the physical world in order to more deeply comprehend the spiritual and magical world of the gods. He is trapped in a prison of his own making, a dungeon of contemplation.

The druids never forgot the signs, never forgot the boy who was destined to rule the world. They still search endlessly for their hope, their light, their would-be god. The fate of the people of Marverni rests on their shoulders.

[dojango]

link to the map is here: http://z7.invisionfree.com/Dom3mods/...?showtopic=491

[Immaculate]

thanks- i played with that map a bit yesterday and it looks open but its actually not really and there are some nice choke points. Its nice that there is no water nation amongst us (especially for agartha- everyone make sure agartha doesn't dominate on land because they will in the water)

and nice story Dogged... i hate maverni so much after my last SP game :P

[Dogged57]

I'm still not sure I've figured them out. Should be interesting to see whether the plan works out.

[Excist]

Agartha: The Pact with Harrow-gor

The Agarthan people have for ages lived their lives peacefully underground guarding the Umbral Seal and have been always been known as an honorable people that lived their lives with wisdom and humility. The supreme sacrifice their ancestors made to lead the Agarthans underground and Seal the Umbral Chamber has slowly, but surely been claiming its due. They are now cursed and increasingly tainted as the Seal corrupts the very guardians that stand vigil, causing them to turn on one another in bloodlust and hasten the weakening of the Seal. They are diseased and increasingly infertile as their once great numbers are culled by a foe that the Guardian's of the Seal's Obsidian Glaives are powerless to contain. The extinction of the Pale Ones is now all but inevitible to even the greenest of Earthreaders and the Oracles know that if this should ever come to pass the eventual death of the rest of the world is not long to follow.

But, the Oracles have divined an answer! One Oracle of the Dead, named Laman-Ra has communed with the great Ismodeon that once led the Great Agarthan nation on the First Crusade responsible for the Sealing of the Chamber, and is even now trapped forever as a Risen Oracle in Tartarus after his failed bid for godhood many cycles ago. After this perilous journey to the cusp of Tartarus, Laman-Ra has returned with hope for Agartha and the world.

The answer was a name: Harrow-gor. Harrow-gor, the legendary mage long thought dead. Stories of his conquests from hundreds of years ago are still talked about in every nation in the world. A Sequani by birth, he had left the Sacred Forest to study among the Sages of Ashentower, delve dungeons and contract out his services in battle as a mercenary. A Pale One commander named Mandred had been chosen to travel out and seek Harrow-gor with 12 Ancient Ones, and a representative Oracle from each of the 3 schools. Only four survived the quest including Mandred himself, but that is a tale for another time.

The people of Agartha and Harrow-gor have enterred into what is now known as The Pact. Harrow-gor has evaluated their plight and referenced all that he has learned of the spectral realm, consulting the Pax Arcanum and casting complex divining rituals with the Eye of Balthuzak to foresee, not just the near future the way that the Earth Readers can, but to see the lines of power and the forces of change to predict the resulting changes for projected choices.

The resulting Pact itself, however, turned out to be exceedingly simple:

- Agartha must save themselves by embracing their cursed bloodlust and the very power contained in the Seal to expand their lands on the surface away from the taint of the Seal.

- Agartha must then save the world by raising Harrow-gor to godhood where only he has the understanding necessary to completely seperate the Umbral Chamber from the rest of this dimensional realm and create a clear fissure in the Umbral Bridge and permenantly defend against the Taint.

As the sun sets over the horizon the amazons and lizardmen, the lost jaguar tribes and lion tribes, the barbarians and the independant militiamen turn their head at an unfamiliar sound. Wardrums beating one solitary deliberate tempo echoing from beneath the earth out onto the plains and swamps and forests.

The tide approaches slowly at first and then charges forth with unexpected bursts of speed and in seconds the independant tribes are scattered and splintered; the elders are cut down as they stand, fight or run so that their children have a chance against a fate that none of them were aware of or could comprehend.

Standing above the cowed and impressionable survivors the Pale One clerics read off liturgy in their guttoral monotone.

24:17 Nature is more powerful than Death in that Death fuels Nature's growth as deadwood fuels a fire
35:22 Sometimes one must shed blood to heal the sick.
12:5 Does any one amongst you doubt that the world is sick and the forces of Death threaten to claim the very Blood of the World? Would any one amongst you stand against the Prince of Strength that would shelter you?
12:2 Rejoice! For the Umbral Bridge will be Guarded! The Undeceivable God has arrived to defend the Life of the World!

Slowly, they begin to understand why their parents had had to die so that they may live.

[Torgon]

I'm definitely enjoying the back stories. Looking forward to starting this game.