Hammering Out Details for a Fic

[Heaven's Deamon]

The concepts are the Hazard and the Catalyst, which are best represented by Megidramon, a red/white dragon with a serpentine lower body and wings that look like they are literally made of flame, and Calu/culumon, a baby digimon that has no evolutions and almost radiates innocence.

The overall idea is that as gods, they would be a childlike one that actually has "The Innocent one" as a title and it's dragonic guardian, as for "domain" it would be "growth" The Innocent as someone/thing that encourages people to grow and learn and such as a group, the Guardian as a figure representing personal strength, be it of form or caracter, and using ones strength for the defence of what is valued.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

...I'm not entirely sure I'm following you right, but I think it might have its merits- we'll see what Gideon thinks this afternoon.

[Gideon020]

Hmm, very interesting. Do you have any more details to flesh them out further?

Anyway, Chaos and I worked out some details for Tieflings, Elves and Drow and finally the Eladrin. If anyone else has suggestions that could be used to help expand this information, it would be appreciated.

Tieflings:
In the beginning, tieflings were incredibly rare and, really, little more than parasites on human society. They were almost invariably the spawn of humans who had dabbled in the blackest arts and conversed with demons, making them shunned and loathed by all other races. However, before the Cataclysm, perhaps before even the Moon Kingdom, there was a human empire founded in what is now the Serpent Jungles.

This empire fell into darkness, eventually becoming a twisted aristocracy whose powers stemmed from their dark pacts with the demons of the Pit.
From their foul oaths and black magics, the humans of that empire were tainted, tieflings going from little more than unique monsters to a viable race of their own.

But unless born to the noble families, these tieflings were treated as badly as the humans and other slave-races, and they were the key instruments in the rebellion that broke the Empire's power, the few survivors of the tiefling aristocracy loading up their hastily-gathered artifacts and fleeing north, eventually coming to the Tundra where they inter-bred with the native tribes and eventually tried to wage a war to remake their empire in the north, but were defeated by the other tribes and their champions.

Now they live either as tribesmen under a pall of eternal suspicion from their fellows, or as citizens in other lands and generally free from the taint of their dark history.

Elves:
Elves were originally the same race as eladrin, but they were more fascinated with Aeron than with "Feyron". When the faction of the Elder Elves that became the Drow broke away, they somehow caused the elves to be 'cut off' from the Feywild. Coupled with their fondness, they've diverged into essentially a seperate species from their eladrin kinsfolk.

Originally, the elven cities (eladrin outposts) were connected by means of great arcane gates to the "truesilver" cities in the Feywild, and as part of their flight into the world, the Drow destroyed these gates. While the furious elves eventually drove them into the underdark, the damage was done.

The gates were destroyed, and none remained in Aeron who could recreate them. The Feywild elves could possibly have done so, but in the wake of the civil war caused by the drow, hostile fey and evil beings of the Feywild besieged them. While they survived, the Eladrin Empire is but a shadow of its former glory.

With their cities destroyed, and no 'reinforcements' from the Feywild, and as this was very early into Aeron's youth (before even dwarf civilisation, I'm picturing), they had no choice but to learn to survive in the wild.

Eventually they became the "savages" (as some eladrin think of them) that they are today, and their lifestyle reflects their transition from faerie beings to nature beings. They're still otherworldly, but they are tied more to this world- in fact, that might be *why* they're still fey. They're no longer otherworldly spiritkin, but possess a deep racial bond to the forces of nature.

Though they have dispersed, all elven communities retain the knowledge of their original "cities" (oral tradition works much better in a society where an individual can live 300 years), and their nomadic nature/migrations actually take them from ruin to ruin, partially as a kind of pilgrimage, partially to ensure that they aren't disturbed by other races. In fact, some communes might be a bit too zealous about this, attacking communities that they feel have settled too close to one of these sites (which are at least partially cloaked with ancient eladrin magics).

Drow:
The Drow broke off from (and ended up destroying) the Eldar during the "golden age", originating from various cults & groups that became heavily involved with demons, finally transmuting into a kind of "Cult of Pleasure and Pain" that paid homage to the demons of Houses Riethii and Astyanath as truly divine beings, as they are embodiments of the "one truth": that there is no difference between pain and pleasure, and that the point of life is to sate one's desires. A dark religion of hedonism and excess, basically.

Since they were forced underground, the Drow have basically become a sort of theocratic-based aristocracy, though in this case royalty isn't determined by bloodlines, but by nature. As they worship Astyanath and Riethii demons, they often couple with demons of said families. Half-demons thus form the aristocracy; they are seen as "higher beings", kind of like living saints.

The Astynath and Riethii really couldn't care less, just more meat for the torture palaces once their toys die, though the amount of souls that the drow offer them from all their sacrifices is of great benefit.

Their attitude be towards tieflings is similar to their attitude towards elves/eladrin. Try and convert them if at all possible, but sacrifice them without hesitation if they refuse to cease their 'blasphemy' and swear devotion to Pleasure and Pain.

Eladrin:
Since the destruction of their empire, eladrin have withdrawn into themselves. Few of their former cities are intact, and even those that are intact are but pale shadows of themselves, inhabited by a pitiful fraction of their former occupants. Most eladrin dwell in more isolated domiciles; towers and spires and fortresses of their traditional style, as alien and beautiful as they are safe.

Some say eladrin would never leave these enclaves in the Feywild were it not for the fact that many of them do transposition themselves between the two worlds, either as a result of planar rifts or as a result of ancient eldar magic. When they do venture out amongst the other races of Aeron, eladrin often obscure their forms with veils, hoods, cowls, scarves and other such clothing.

Part of this does seem to be motivated by a wariness that, in some individuals, can border on xenophobic paranoia, but many do so because the alien nature of the eladrin can be disturbing for mortals. Even their elven kinsfolk can find eladrin disconcerting. At first glance, the two races appear almost identical, but a closer examination reveals the differences. Firstly, while elves have a slim-yet-muscular appearance, eladrin are almost universally waiflike and ethereal in build; tall and lean and sinewy without any apparent musculature.

This belies their true strength and durability; more than one bar story involves an eladrin warrior being challenged to an armwrestling contest and, despite the fact his opponent's upper arm was thicker than his waist, winning easily. They tend towards fair, and some reach into the extremities of such complexions, from ghostly pallor to true albinism. Their hair is likewise quite pale in color, but it is the eyes that truly mark the eladrin as fey. An eladrin's eyes are a solid mass of color, with no iris or pupil, pearly opalascent orbs of either metallic blue, emerald green or pure violet shade.

As a race, the eladrin are prone to morose nature; they know that what they are now is but a pale shadow of what they once were. Unlike in most such worlds, however, the eladrin are *not* a dying race; their fallen state is simply due to the fact they have lost so much lore and treasure from the golden era, lost to the abandoned cities or even to the mortal world, carried away by drow or the ancestors of the elves.

Some eladrin give in to depression, turning their backs on both worlds and content to slowly decay in their (literal, sometimes) ivory towers. Others are more determined, more vibrant; their determination is to help their race rise to its former glory, which is what sends them out from their homes into exploration of Aeron and Feyron both.

It is far from unheard of for an eladrin to 'cycle' between these points; an eladrin warrior may seek to explore an Aeron ruin, then return to her citadel and lock herself away in despair that what she sought was lost or destroyed (if it was ever there), until she finds some new fragment of lore that arouses her desire and sends her forth again.

Some further basic info for Eladrin:
*Eladrin are an ancient fey race, cousins of the elves who remained in the Feywild
*They are a race much decayed from their former grandeur, though it is lost artifacts and not dwindling numbers that leaves them so
*They are an enigmatic, mysterious and somewhat eerie people, very private and secretive
*Emotional-based mental instability (melancholia, manic-depression, etc) is something of a curse on the race as a whole
*They seek to reclaim lost treasures and magical lore to rebuild their empire
*They are distrustful and wary of mortals and despise Drow and those who consort with demons

[Heaven's Deamon]

Some other possible details would be for the dragon to have once been as innocent as the child, but to have lost that innocence, and thus strives to protect that of his friend. The emphasis of those who follow them is on encouraging growth. Whether it is researching new things to better all or trying to improve themselves in someway. They despise stagnation as the absence of growth, and view undead as un embodiement of stagnation, but may make an exception for an intelligent undead that would break away from the norm (such as a scolarly vampire that educates others rather than simply rampaging, even if it is so the others will make better minions) They also view ruins as something to build upon, a foundation on which new growth may occur, and a memory of where growth once was.

For relationships with other deities, the two are Unaligned and somewhere between Nihilius and Endehia. Nihilius represents a circle that lacks any true progress, but Endehia strives do be a line, and her path may at times lack the foundation to support itself.

For foundations of a religion, the one that "cummunicates" with them most is the guardian, as he sets down the beliefs. The Innocent appears from time to time, but is more likely to ask a question that leads to a revelation and wander off before recieving an answer or simply be seen playing with children who are innocent still who would one day become great. But they are more likely to pay attention to the mortal world and actions than their fellows might.

[Gideon020]

Hmm, that sounds interesting for a god. Chaos and I worked out some stuff for possible classes for Ranma, Ukyo and Shampoo and we'd like to hear your opinion of our stuff and see what suggestions you have.

For Ranma, we worked out that he would fit in as a Warlord; a player class that uses either inspiration or tactics to coordinate and motivate the other party members in battle. Since Ukyo and Shampoo are fiancees as well as party members who are more than willing to dive into danger with him, we decided that Ranma would go down the path as an Inspirational Warlord, initially by offering dates and a kiss to the pair then going on to more sound means of motivation.

Ukyo we decided would be a Wizard, a class that uses arcane magic to fight along with a staff weapon for her since Ukyo is proficient with a long two-handed weapon. A problem we had with Ukyo was that there are three advanced Paragon Path classes that seem to suit her; a Battle Mage who uses magic to both fight and enhance her own natural fighting abilities, a Spellstorm mage who uses arcane magics to literally cause massive magical storms on a near apocalyptic scale, and finally a class called the Wizard of the Spiral Tower who uses a longsword instead of orb, staff or wand as a focus for their spells. Which do you think would work best for Ukyo?

For Shampoo, we decided that she would become a Warlock with a pact for the Fey version of Aeron, using the amoral, enthralling and unpredictable Feywild to her advantage to ensnare the minds of enemies and then tear apart their psyche.

So what do you think? If you need more information, just ask.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Just to bring up something that came to me: should we try and do up some 'random encounters'? Various scenarios that we may or may not throw the party into as we decide? For example, here's one that just came to me...

The Mad Flautist (or is it Flutist? Pah, I don't know)
Encountered: at night in the wilderness (sometime after the first stars have become visible in the sky)

Description: this nightmarish character is a musically inclined Star-pact Warlock, whom the party finds sitting on a crudely-fashioned stone seat in the middle of a stone circle. He is playing eerie, sinister music on a flute that close examination will reveal to be carved from a human thighbone. A crudely fashioned "mini-cauldron" sits at his feet, currently filled with burning tinder and incense. If this is picked up and examined, it will prove to have been cold-forged from meteoric iron. By the time the party finds him, he has his 'audience'- eerie flickers of light, strange "ripples" in the air, unearthly shadows and the like have flocked into the circle. Basically, while the party can't see them, they have the distinct feeling that something is there listening. It's impossible to see what the Warlock himself is like, as he is shrouded in wrappings of cloth and a hooded cloak.

Finding: the party might stumble across this character at night or, more likely, they are disturbed by his music and go to investigate it.

Outcome: this encounter can go one of three ways, depending on how the party handles it.
Non-intervention- should the party decide not to bother him, the Warlock goes on playing all night, apparently completely oblivious to their presence should they stay and watch, until the dawn light begins to illuminate the sky. Then alone does his piping cease as his 'audience' pay him for his efforts; the cauldron empties itself and the unknown forms solemnly drop in various otherworldly tokens and bizarre items. A few materialise more completely into this world (a frightful sight) and apparently whisper something to the Warlock. Once they pay, they vanish. Only when the last one does so does the Warlock stir, rising from his seat and stalking silently into the woods. Should they try and follow him, he vanishes the moment he eludes their vision.

Friendly- should the party approach him peacefully, and avoid angering him, he will talk to them at random intervals, Most of what he says makes little, if any sense, but he occasionally says things that have a disturbing/frightening insight to them, some may even have a prophetic air. He is very hard to anger, but trying to stop his playing, interfere with his cauldron or outright hostility will immediately make him hostile. If the party broaches that he is disturbing their sleep, he will make an apologetic gesture and, still playing, stand up and dance away, the shapes following him.

Hostile- should the party anger the Warlock or attack him, his music changes to a ghastly, thin, ululating screaming and a number of his 'audience' manifest themselves and attack, with the Warlock using his spells to support them. Should they all be defeated, or should he be struck, he will vanish immediately, leaving behind nothing but his clothes (if struck), his flute and his cauldron.

[Gideon020]

Chaos and I worked out two place in Aeron that would work as Adventure Hubs, towns where side quests and important plot-events would occur. Tell us what you think and if you have any suggestions (such as a name for the starting village that we decided to place Ranma, Shampoo and Ukyo in at the start of the story), that would be quite welcome.

Here's the first place, the village. A name would be good if anyone has any ideas.

The Village:
A simple farming village that has expanded into its third generation of citizens, making the population a healthy one thousand or so people consisting of a majority of humans and half-elves followed by small families or individual dwarves and tieflings much like its parent the city-state of D'Sparil. One third of the population make residence in the village, the rest are farmers who reside outside the wooden palisades unless attacked. The Village is guarded by a local militia and fortified with palisades, watchtowers every few hundred meters and a wide and deep trench that has been filled with sharp stakes to impale horses, men and other beasties.
There are four notable individuals in The Village; Darius Greenwood, a Ranger and leader of the town militia with a knack for booze and dodging paperwork and a lack of investigative sense when solving the various minor crimes in The Village. Nysst, a tiefling girl who takes small amounts of goods from passing merchants to sell for profit and to test various dangerous wares for potential future sales. An aged elf known as The Elder who lives as a hermit and comes to the village for wine and to tell stories to the young and old alike and keeping this place together is a middle-aged and rapidly graying priest of Endehia named Kurtz, who has his work cut out for him in making sure that between Nysst's shady goods and Darius' constant dodging of authority, the village remains somewhat intact.

The City-State of D'Sparil:
D'Sparil is the parent of The Village and the nearest form of civilisation. Nestled at the bank of a large river, D'Sparil is a heavily walled city defended by a well-trained and equipped City Guard, though in recent years of peace, numbers and funding have been scarce and a crime wave is starting to sweep the city. Unlike the tiny population of The Village, D'Sparil contains within 80 square kilometers a permanent population of 20,000 people and is regularly visited by merchants and clans of migrating elves due to its key river and land trade route positions.
D'Sparil has four people who are important in terms of possible plot; the Captain of the City Guard Arain Helais who is a veteran of many past raids and attacks on the city even though she is the youngest Captain at 22 years of age. The leader of a branch of the dwarven trade guild Borog Toberen of Clan Goldtooth who has kept a shocking scandal under wraps for years. Alyssa Silvermane, the half-fey owner of a popular tavern that is also popular for the shady deals going on inside. And Uruk Has'lir, the head of the City Council and the most boring Tiefling you could ever meet, though in recent days he has been acting very oddly.

These are the two places we worked out. Any suggestions towards what sort of quests and plot-events could take place in these two locales would be welcome.

[Heaven's Deamon]

For the village, you have the possibility of the tiefling getting an item she can't handle, or someone stealing something from her and she hires them to get it back. There would also be them listening to tales from the elder which could be used short term for immediate events, or long term with them remebering parts during later adventures that end up either helping them somehow (such as figuring out how to kill this monster or solve that puzzle) or backfire due to the Elder taking too much artistic lisence.

For the city, if I'm reading between the lines right then you already have at least two possibilities already.