Strong, stubborn and ancient, the Dwarves of Autica have carved out their civilization in Dunbeath, a region of Rauquan, to the north of the plains of Hiplea and the desert of Rocfell.
Creations of Oldenkeeper Ysengrim, the dwarves were originally intended to be stewards of nature and the earth. Their lust for the gems and gold of the earth proved too much though, and they forgot their original charge, causing Ysengrim to forsake them.
The Dwarves made their way fine without the guidance of their creator, establishing immense cities in the mountain ranges of their homeland, and dedicating their lives to mastery of whatever craft they so chose. They crafted beautiful jewellery, masterful weapons, and carved statues so lifelike they could fool the subjects mother. Many dwarves took up the calling as scholars, collecting magnificent libraries deep in their strongholds, filled with ancient knowledge and powerful secrets. Some of Autica's most impressive places of learning are in dwarven cities.
Most dwarves are as unconcerned with divinity as their creator is with them, and those that do worship typically become followers of Ito, admiring his power of creation. Few dwarves still offer prayer to Ysengrim, and those that do are typically incredibly devoted to the Old Ways.
With few dwarven settlements outside of Dunbeath, the Dwarven sub-races did not undergoe the dramatic seperation that the other races underwent. While somewhat genetically distinct, both Mountain and Hill dwarves intermingle freely, and their government draws little distinction between the two.
The lands of Dunbeath are ruled over by a High King, elected from the royal bloodlines once every one hundred years at a great gathering at the dwarve's capital of Ballagulich. Local provinces are presided over by a King, and the regions of his province are relegated further to nobles of the king's choosing. The High King makes executive decisions, and has a final say in all matters, but is generally advised by the Stone Cabinet, a arrangement of fifty noblemen and women elected by the regions of Dunbeath. This cabinet is responsible for the crafting of laws, and major policy decisions. The size of the cabinet, the many formalities and small customs, and the stubborn nature of dwarves makes these meetings a notoriously tedious affair, with some meetings lasting weeks, or even months. To add to the tedium, once a final decision is reached, the High King has final veto on any measure passed by the Stone Cabinet, and if he uses that, the entire process must be restarted. The end result though, is that dwarven society is considered a pinnacle of lawfulness, and fair treatment. The beautiful cities, surrounded by the natural wonder of the mountain ranges, makes dwarven cities a popular destination for travelers.
This society harbors one major issue, however. A sinister plague sweeps through the dwarven race, one which neither the scholars nor the lawmakers nor even the kings can seem to find a solution for.
These problems, are the Urthbjorn, a caste of dwarves cursed from birth with a mysterious affliction. Babies born Urthbjorn are easily recognizable by their stony skin, and immense size, commonly up to half again as large as a normal dwarven child. This frequently leads to the death of the mothers, and that is just the beginning of their problems. These dwarves are supernaturally strong, and resilient, but possess intelligence only marginally greater than that of pack beasts. They also live incredibly short lifespans, reaching adulthood by the age of five, and typically passing by the age of twenty. As such, Urthbjorn are typically used as menial laborers, and their limited intelligence makes them easily exploitable.
Dwarven society is torn on how to handle this growing issue, as the rate of "infection" seems to climb slowly, but steadily over the years. Some advocate their use as laborers and pack animals, declaring them dwarves in nothing but shape, to be used as they use a beast of burden. Others advocate research into a cure, and the protection of these dim colossi.
Seeing an Urthbjorn outside of dwarven lands is rare, but some do create bonds with "handlers" that allow them to travel the world, using their immense strength and stamina to serve as bodyguards or hired muscle.
Mountain Dwarves:
The mountain dwarves of Autica are more concentrated in the northern part of Dunbeath, amongst the sweeping ranges that characterize the region. Mountain dwarves tend to the more deliberate, slow pace of the cities, and fit well as scholars and lawmakers.
Hill Dwarves:
The hill dwarves occupy the lowlands between the end of the mountain ranges and the wide plains of Hiplea. Avid miners, they build deep into the earth, with some cities seeming nothing more than a small hill from aboveground. They also supply most of the agriculture for Dunbeath, and these farming settlements tend to harbor the last remaining worshipers of Ysengrim and the Old ways, but even there, they are viewed as outsiders, or a little odd, for praying to a god that will not listen.
Hill dwarves are more impulsive than Mountain dwarves, and frequently clash with the Stout Halfling Khalisates to the south of them. Many still bristle over their defeat by the Great Khalisate of Great Perrin Khan, and will take any excuse to pick a fight with the small-folk.
(Statistics for the subraces remain the same as written in the Player's Handbook 5.0, with this exception: Mountain dwarves may choose to lose "Dwarven Armor Training" in exchange for proficiency in Knowledge (Arcana) and the ability to cast one (1) cantrip of their choice from the Wizard Spell list. If you do not have a spellcasting ability score (IE, if you are not already able to cast spells) your spellcasting ability for this cantrip is INT.)
Monday, January 26, 2015
Thursday, January 22, 2015
Races of Autica: The Elves
The children of the living island
are a race split deeply into three separate cultures, each deeply in
tune with the land (Or lack there of) on which they live.
Originally created as one single race, the Elves were the elite soldiers of the Origin war. Their prowess in the martial arts, and long lives with which to study them, made them formidable opponents, and many battles were swayed by relatively small war parties.
After the war, as the races settled into the world they were thrust upon, the elves split into three sub-races.
High Elves:
The High Elves are a race of wanderers, and their inability to stay settled is common knowledge among the people of Autica. The tallest, and fairest of the elves, most High Elves spend a good portion of their life at sea, and some of the oldest may have never touched dry land.
To accommodate their love for the sea, they create great floating cities. These cities drift through the seas of the world, and on their back and entire civilization thrives. These floating cities are generally run by the elaborate monasteries that dominate the center of the vessel. In their walls, elves train in the old ways of martial prowess, and seek to keep their bodies and minds sharp for the day when Behemoth calls on them to fight again. The eldest of the monks acts both as supreme teacher, but also as governor of his city, making decisions on course and creating the laws that any locals must adhere to. The Eldest (as these ancient monks are known) will never leave his city-ship and will sink with it if it goes down. The high elf sub-race has no central government, or lands to call their own, with each ship creating it's own micro-state.
The inhabitants of the cities tend to be very much in tune with the flow of the monastery, and as such most High Elves are incredibly devout worshippers of the Gods, primarily Behemoth, who created them. They seek to imitate his slow grace and incredible power, and believe great strength is nothing without control.
Those High Elves who do not fit in with this monasterial lifestyle still cannot shake their attraction the the sea, and commonly become sailors for tradesmen, or pirates. In fact, it is considered bad luck for a ship to not have at least one elven crew member.
High Elven pirate captains are some of the most feared raiders in the world, each controlling large swaths of ocean, and battling fiercely for territory with other pirate captains. Most traders have accepted the need to pay the tolls required to cross these territories as cost of doing business, setting aside chests of "Elf coins" for immediate surrender should they be stopped or boarded.
Wood Elves:
The closest humanoid settlement to the Deep Wilds is that of the Wood Elves, and they welcome the abundance of nature that proximity provides. Settled on the large island of Lavrari, just outside of the great reef that rings the continent of the Wilds, the Wood Elves are not a populous people, numbering far fewer than their High Elven cousins.
When Ysengrim first formed the Deep Wilds, the initial surge of primal energy nearly overwhelmed what was then a small settlement of elves. Those who adapted to the rapidly growing woodlands, and influx of beasts to their island, became the Wood Elves. Those who didn't either fled, or became fuel for the forest.
The smallest of the elves, the Wood Elves are also the longest lived. This near immortality has combined with the Wood Elves natural curiosity and dislike for authority to create a society with very few laws or regulations, and a people who cannot seem to understand why the other, shorted lived races, seem to take life so seriously.
Wood Elf society is focused around large groups, called conclaves. These conclaves can contain as few as 2, or as many as several hundred elves. When many of these conclaves occupy the same area, the grouping could be what would loosely be considered a city. These cities never last particularly long as their component groups exchange information, goods and members, and then are on their merry way.
Wood Elves are the only mortal race that is still capable of the lost art of the First, Spell-singing, though their ability is largely limited to singing forth the trees. This allows them to shape the forest to their needs, without destroying any of it.
Wood Elf children are incredibly rare, and any that are born are considered miracles and raised by the entire conclave. Monogamy is a foreign concept to most wood elves, with both men and women taking multiple partners within their conclaves. Little thought is given to paternity, and even maternity is ceded fairly soon after birth to the rest of the conclave. These children instead take the last name of their conclave, and pick their own first name as they reach their hundredth birthday, before that simply answering to their last name (The low birth rate means there is very rarely two children under 100 in the same conclave).
Most Wood elven adventurers are those who either felt some calling to a specific task, or those who had personality's too rigid to fit well into the incredibly loose society of their parents. Such children are happily waved away, and warmly welcomed back, should they be able to actually find their old conclave again.
Drow:
A dark fascination with death rules over this reclusive civilization. The Drow occupy the frozen southern continent of Weawica, where they nurture the Godling of physical death, Ishtu.
Before the coming of Ishtu, and the end of the Origin War, the Drow were normal elves, who had fled to the conflict to establish a settlement free from the endless conflict. This society was peaceful, and though life on Weawica was hard, they were able to eke out a foothold where no one else would follow.
This all changed when, after the Battle of the Split, Ysengrim spirited the barely alive Godling Ishtu down to Weawica, and entrusted this society of pacifist elves to her care. Quickly, as the Godling grew, and regained her power, the Drow became enamoured with her, and their old society began to warp around it's new central pillar. Now, Ishtu counts the dark-skinned Drow among her most loyal followers. They build create temples dedicated to decay, and the fungal creatures the Rotting Temples attracts are treated with reverence, and allowed to traverse through the cities unharmed. Drow scholars study the processes of death and the decomposition of organic material. Funerals are cause for great celebration, and the funeral rites that the bodies undergo is incredibly complex, and few outsiders have ever seen them.
Any meddling with the spirits of the dead is seen as bad luck, and as it is not the domain of Ishtu, most Drow do not. Those who do are quickly shut down, for fear of attracting the attention of Bellini, Ishtu's other half. Drow rarely worship any other than Ishtu, though some with include small prayers or offerings to Ysengrim (Who largely ignores them)
In the centre of Weawica sits the drow's greatest city, Silvmarsh, and in the great Rotting Temple that dominates that city sits Ishtu, and her favored clerics. These 13 clerics make up the ruling class of the Drow, and wherever you go in Weawica those priests are treated with great reverence.
Outsiders may find the Drow's ways appalling, but they are not evil creatures. They, as a whole, seek no particular malice through their study of death, and simply want to venerate their god. Drow do not get along well with either of the other elven sub-races, seeing Wood Elves as flightly and irresponsible, and High Elves as haughty warmongers. The other elves tend to view Drow as betrayers, sore from their abandonment of them during the Origin War, and just unsettling.
It is incredibly rare for Drow to leave Weawica, though some do. Be they clerics sent on a divine mission from Ishtu, or simply wanderlust stricken youth, if they do not come back to Weawica with something of worth to either Ishtu, or their society, they are typically shunned, and compared to Wood Elves as flighty, useless creatures who do nothing to advance our society. The drive to be productive, or be worthwhile, is very strong in Drow culture.
(All statistics for theses sub-races remains the same as listed in the player's handbook, with these exceptions:)
(High Elves: You are considered proficient in any ability check that includes an attempt to operate or move about a sailing ship, and have advantage on Swim checks in stormy water)
(Wood Elves: No matter how old you get, you will never feel the effects of old age. Also, if you are able to cast spells, you automatically know the "Wood-Shape" spell, and can cast it a day, recharging on a long rest (Spell detailed at the bottom of this article))
(Drow: You lose "Sunlight Sensitivity". Drow Clerics may choose the Death Domain without being of an evil alignment, and Drow Paladins may use the disgraced paladin rules in the Dungeon master's guide, without suffering any disgrace)
Wood Shape
Casting time: 10 minutes
Range: 10 meters
Components: V
Duration: 1d10 days, or until spell is cancelled.
You target a tree, or small group of trees near you and begin singing. The targeted tree begins to shift and bend, and at the end of the casting time, you are able to instruct it mentally as to what shape it will take. The tree cannot emulate machinery, or have any moving parts. It cannot grow any larger than it already is, and cannot shrink. You have 1 minute after the spell is cast to give instruction, after that the tree locks into whatever position it is currently in, and cannot be changed unless targeted with another wood shape spell. Magical trees are unaffected by this spell. If you are interrupted at any point during the song, the becomes unresponsive, and you must begin again.
Originally created as one single race, the Elves were the elite soldiers of the Origin war. Their prowess in the martial arts, and long lives with which to study them, made them formidable opponents, and many battles were swayed by relatively small war parties.
After the war, as the races settled into the world they were thrust upon, the elves split into three sub-races.
High Elves:
The High Elves are a race of wanderers, and their inability to stay settled is common knowledge among the people of Autica. The tallest, and fairest of the elves, most High Elves spend a good portion of their life at sea, and some of the oldest may have never touched dry land.
To accommodate their love for the sea, they create great floating cities. These cities drift through the seas of the world, and on their back and entire civilization thrives. These floating cities are generally run by the elaborate monasteries that dominate the center of the vessel. In their walls, elves train in the old ways of martial prowess, and seek to keep their bodies and minds sharp for the day when Behemoth calls on them to fight again. The eldest of the monks acts both as supreme teacher, but also as governor of his city, making decisions on course and creating the laws that any locals must adhere to. The Eldest (as these ancient monks are known) will never leave his city-ship and will sink with it if it goes down. The high elf sub-race has no central government, or lands to call their own, with each ship creating it's own micro-state.
The inhabitants of the cities tend to be very much in tune with the flow of the monastery, and as such most High Elves are incredibly devout worshippers of the Gods, primarily Behemoth, who created them. They seek to imitate his slow grace and incredible power, and believe great strength is nothing without control.
Those High Elves who do not fit in with this monasterial lifestyle still cannot shake their attraction the the sea, and commonly become sailors for tradesmen, or pirates. In fact, it is considered bad luck for a ship to not have at least one elven crew member.
High Elven pirate captains are some of the most feared raiders in the world, each controlling large swaths of ocean, and battling fiercely for territory with other pirate captains. Most traders have accepted the need to pay the tolls required to cross these territories as cost of doing business, setting aside chests of "Elf coins" for immediate surrender should they be stopped or boarded.
Wood Elves:
The closest humanoid settlement to the Deep Wilds is that of the Wood Elves, and they welcome the abundance of nature that proximity provides. Settled on the large island of Lavrari, just outside of the great reef that rings the continent of the Wilds, the Wood Elves are not a populous people, numbering far fewer than their High Elven cousins.
When Ysengrim first formed the Deep Wilds, the initial surge of primal energy nearly overwhelmed what was then a small settlement of elves. Those who adapted to the rapidly growing woodlands, and influx of beasts to their island, became the Wood Elves. Those who didn't either fled, or became fuel for the forest.
The smallest of the elves, the Wood Elves are also the longest lived. This near immortality has combined with the Wood Elves natural curiosity and dislike for authority to create a society with very few laws or regulations, and a people who cannot seem to understand why the other, shorted lived races, seem to take life so seriously.
Wood Elf society is focused around large groups, called conclaves. These conclaves can contain as few as 2, or as many as several hundred elves. When many of these conclaves occupy the same area, the grouping could be what would loosely be considered a city. These cities never last particularly long as their component groups exchange information, goods and members, and then are on their merry way.
Wood Elves are the only mortal race that is still capable of the lost art of the First, Spell-singing, though their ability is largely limited to singing forth the trees. This allows them to shape the forest to their needs, without destroying any of it.
Wood Elf children are incredibly rare, and any that are born are considered miracles and raised by the entire conclave. Monogamy is a foreign concept to most wood elves, with both men and women taking multiple partners within their conclaves. Little thought is given to paternity, and even maternity is ceded fairly soon after birth to the rest of the conclave. These children instead take the last name of their conclave, and pick their own first name as they reach their hundredth birthday, before that simply answering to their last name (The low birth rate means there is very rarely two children under 100 in the same conclave).
Most Wood elven adventurers are those who either felt some calling to a specific task, or those who had personality's too rigid to fit well into the incredibly loose society of their parents. Such children are happily waved away, and warmly welcomed back, should they be able to actually find their old conclave again.
Drow:
A dark fascination with death rules over this reclusive civilization. The Drow occupy the frozen southern continent of Weawica, where they nurture the Godling of physical death, Ishtu.
Before the coming of Ishtu, and the end of the Origin War, the Drow were normal elves, who had fled to the conflict to establish a settlement free from the endless conflict. This society was peaceful, and though life on Weawica was hard, they were able to eke out a foothold where no one else would follow.
This all changed when, after the Battle of the Split, Ysengrim spirited the barely alive Godling Ishtu down to Weawica, and entrusted this society of pacifist elves to her care. Quickly, as the Godling grew, and regained her power, the Drow became enamoured with her, and their old society began to warp around it's new central pillar. Now, Ishtu counts the dark-skinned Drow among her most loyal followers. They build create temples dedicated to decay, and the fungal creatures the Rotting Temples attracts are treated with reverence, and allowed to traverse through the cities unharmed. Drow scholars study the processes of death and the decomposition of organic material. Funerals are cause for great celebration, and the funeral rites that the bodies undergo is incredibly complex, and few outsiders have ever seen them.
Any meddling with the spirits of the dead is seen as bad luck, and as it is not the domain of Ishtu, most Drow do not. Those who do are quickly shut down, for fear of attracting the attention of Bellini, Ishtu's other half. Drow rarely worship any other than Ishtu, though some with include small prayers or offerings to Ysengrim (Who largely ignores them)
In the centre of Weawica sits the drow's greatest city, Silvmarsh, and in the great Rotting Temple that dominates that city sits Ishtu, and her favored clerics. These 13 clerics make up the ruling class of the Drow, and wherever you go in Weawica those priests are treated with great reverence.
Outsiders may find the Drow's ways appalling, but they are not evil creatures. They, as a whole, seek no particular malice through their study of death, and simply want to venerate their god. Drow do not get along well with either of the other elven sub-races, seeing Wood Elves as flightly and irresponsible, and High Elves as haughty warmongers. The other elves tend to view Drow as betrayers, sore from their abandonment of them during the Origin War, and just unsettling.
It is incredibly rare for Drow to leave Weawica, though some do. Be they clerics sent on a divine mission from Ishtu, or simply wanderlust stricken youth, if they do not come back to Weawica with something of worth to either Ishtu, or their society, they are typically shunned, and compared to Wood Elves as flighty, useless creatures who do nothing to advance our society. The drive to be productive, or be worthwhile, is very strong in Drow culture.
(All statistics for theses sub-races remains the same as listed in the player's handbook, with these exceptions:)
(High Elves: You are considered proficient in any ability check that includes an attempt to operate or move about a sailing ship, and have advantage on Swim checks in stormy water)
(Wood Elves: No matter how old you get, you will never feel the effects of old age. Also, if you are able to cast spells, you automatically know the "Wood-Shape" spell, and can cast it a day, recharging on a long rest (Spell detailed at the bottom of this article))
(Drow: You lose "Sunlight Sensitivity". Drow Clerics may choose the Death Domain without being of an evil alignment, and Drow Paladins may use the disgraced paladin rules in the Dungeon master's guide, without suffering any disgrace)
Wood Shape
Casting time: 10 minutes
Range: 10 meters
Components: V
Duration: 1d10 days, or until spell is cancelled.
You target a tree, or small group of trees near you and begin singing. The targeted tree begins to shift and bend, and at the end of the casting time, you are able to instruct it mentally as to what shape it will take. The tree cannot emulate machinery, or have any moving parts. It cannot grow any larger than it already is, and cannot shrink. You have 1 minute after the spell is cast to give instruction, after that the tree locks into whatever position it is currently in, and cannot be changed unless targeted with another wood shape spell. Magical trees are unaffected by this spell. If you are interrupted at any point during the song, the becomes unresponsive, and you must begin again.
Races of Autica: The Halflings
The Halflings of Autica are a hardy
race whose history they forged alone after the death of their creator
god, Roc, in the Origin War. Both sub-races are very distinct in their
culture, and while not openly hostile towards each other, most halflings
trust halflings of another sub-race only as much as they would a
dwarft, or human. There is little love lost between the societies. Most
Halflings are found on the Western continent of Rauquan, either in the
plains of Hiplea, or the vast desert of Rocfell.
Lightfoot: (Alternatively: Sandlings, Bhu-Jebbura)
The Lightfoot inhabit the deserts of Rocfell, the sea of sand and scorching heat created in the blast that killed Roc. They are a clever and personable people, and are world renowned in their mastery of coin and commerce. They are typically shorter than Stout Halflings, and value fine silks, linens and gold. Wealth is power in Lightfoot society, and they lack a central government, instead forming great desert cities ruled by Trade Princes. These Princes are not born into the role, and are typically the men or women that hold the most wealth in the city. Female rulers are still called Princes. If some threat appears that may be a risk to the entire country, these Trade Princes will convene, but this is a rare occurrence.
Lightfoot trade caravans are responsible almost entirely for the supply chains that run through most of Rauquan, with no proper deep water ports in the Dwarven territory to the north, most commerce runs through their cities. They are also entirely responsible for the supply of the southern keeps that sit on the border with the Salt plains of Brulos. Attempting to cross the desert without the aid of a Lightfoot envoy is a treacherous task that few undertake, and fewer survive.
The Lightfoot owe this mastery over the desert to their mount of choice, the "Geb-Bhu" or Great Beetles. These enormous insects stand as tall as a horse when their legs are submerged within the sand, or almost half again as tall when on hard pack. These beetles are perfectly adapted to travel in the desert, able to "glide" across the dunes by submerging their legs and burrowing through the loose sand. Evenly tempered and easy to train, they make perfect mounts and pack beasts for the caravans. Only the Lightfoot know the secret to breeding them, and it is one they guard fastidiously. They are the source of the name the Lightfoot prefer to call themselves, Bhu-Jebbura, which means "Beetle Kings".
Stout:
The Stout halflings are denizens of the rolling plains of Hiplea, to the north of the great desert of Rocfell. They were the warrior caste of the Halflings, before the end of the war, and without a god left to call their own, they have turned to the ritual worship of battle itself.
The Stout are the tallest of the halfling subraces, and are typically more muscular as well. Even at rest, most Stout will wear leather or hide armor, and they are rarely out of arms reach of a weapon. They are not excessively violent by nature, and undisturbed will drink and whore a night away in peace. They are prickly of their honour though, with even slight insults being typically met with challenges for combat.
The Stout are largely nomadic, forming large Khalisates, headed by a Khan. This Khan acts as supreme ruler of his Khalisate, as well as battle commander and champion. To sit behind in a battle if considered an act of cowardice, and as such, turnover for the position of Khan is high.
This is not to say the Stout are not formidable warriors. They are among the best horse riders and trainers in Autica, and their acrobatic fighting style strikes terror in their enemies. The Khalisates subsist largely on raiding and tribute. Most of the larger Khalisates have tentative peace agreements with the Lightfoot Trade princes, and the Dwarven territories, agreeing to only prey upon the more savage races and beasts in exchange for plentiful tribute when they pass.
This was not always the case, and during the Golden Tyranny, a war was waged long between the Khalisates of Great Perrin Khan and the Dwarven King Ectumus III. This bloody war ended with the death of the dwarven king when Great Perrin Khan defeated him in single combat and the seizing of their capital. If the Great Khalisate had not fell to infighting among it's Khans after the death of Great Perrin Khan, the dwarves would still be paying tribute to him.
While there are more divine worshipers among the Stout than the Lightfoot, they are typically of a very specific sect. The Warcasters revere the art of battle and the dance of combat. They are master tacticians, and most large Khalisates will typically employ several. Not simple fighters, these Warcasters beliefs grant them divine power, and facing them in combat is no easy task. The terrifying war chants they lead as the Khalisate descends on a foe has given some the habit of calling Stout Halflings "Screamers", though it would be unwise to call them that to their face.
(All the physical characteristics of the Halfling race and subraces remain the same as listed in the Players Handbook 5.0, with one exception, both Stout and Lightfoot haflings are considered proficient in the riding of mounts, and Stout halflings have advantage when performing any acrobatics check while on horseback.)
Lightfoot: (Alternatively: Sandlings, Bhu-Jebbura)
The Lightfoot inhabit the deserts of Rocfell, the sea of sand and scorching heat created in the blast that killed Roc. They are a clever and personable people, and are world renowned in their mastery of coin and commerce. They are typically shorter than Stout Halflings, and value fine silks, linens and gold. Wealth is power in Lightfoot society, and they lack a central government, instead forming great desert cities ruled by Trade Princes. These Princes are not born into the role, and are typically the men or women that hold the most wealth in the city. Female rulers are still called Princes. If some threat appears that may be a risk to the entire country, these Trade Princes will convene, but this is a rare occurrence.
Lightfoot trade caravans are responsible almost entirely for the supply chains that run through most of Rauquan, with no proper deep water ports in the Dwarven territory to the north, most commerce runs through their cities. They are also entirely responsible for the supply of the southern keeps that sit on the border with the Salt plains of Brulos. Attempting to cross the desert without the aid of a Lightfoot envoy is a treacherous task that few undertake, and fewer survive.
The Lightfoot owe this mastery over the desert to their mount of choice, the "Geb-Bhu" or Great Beetles. These enormous insects stand as tall as a horse when their legs are submerged within the sand, or almost half again as tall when on hard pack. These beetles are perfectly adapted to travel in the desert, able to "glide" across the dunes by submerging their legs and burrowing through the loose sand. Evenly tempered and easy to train, they make perfect mounts and pack beasts for the caravans. Only the Lightfoot know the secret to breeding them, and it is one they guard fastidiously. They are the source of the name the Lightfoot prefer to call themselves, Bhu-Jebbura, which means "Beetle Kings".
Stout:
The Stout halflings are denizens of the rolling plains of Hiplea, to the north of the great desert of Rocfell. They were the warrior caste of the Halflings, before the end of the war, and without a god left to call their own, they have turned to the ritual worship of battle itself.
The Stout are the tallest of the halfling subraces, and are typically more muscular as well. Even at rest, most Stout will wear leather or hide armor, and they are rarely out of arms reach of a weapon. They are not excessively violent by nature, and undisturbed will drink and whore a night away in peace. They are prickly of their honour though, with even slight insults being typically met with challenges for combat.
The Stout are largely nomadic, forming large Khalisates, headed by a Khan. This Khan acts as supreme ruler of his Khalisate, as well as battle commander and champion. To sit behind in a battle if considered an act of cowardice, and as such, turnover for the position of Khan is high.
This is not to say the Stout are not formidable warriors. They are among the best horse riders and trainers in Autica, and their acrobatic fighting style strikes terror in their enemies. The Khalisates subsist largely on raiding and tribute. Most of the larger Khalisates have tentative peace agreements with the Lightfoot Trade princes, and the Dwarven territories, agreeing to only prey upon the more savage races and beasts in exchange for plentiful tribute when they pass.
This was not always the case, and during the Golden Tyranny, a war was waged long between the Khalisates of Great Perrin Khan and the Dwarven King Ectumus III. This bloody war ended with the death of the dwarven king when Great Perrin Khan defeated him in single combat and the seizing of their capital. If the Great Khalisate had not fell to infighting among it's Khans after the death of Great Perrin Khan, the dwarves would still be paying tribute to him.
While there are more divine worshipers among the Stout than the Lightfoot, they are typically of a very specific sect. The Warcasters revere the art of battle and the dance of combat. They are master tacticians, and most large Khalisates will typically employ several. Not simple fighters, these Warcasters beliefs grant them divine power, and facing them in combat is no easy task. The terrifying war chants they lead as the Khalisate descends on a foe has given some the habit of calling Stout Halflings "Screamers", though it would be unwise to call them that to their face.
(All the physical characteristics of the Halfling race and subraces remain the same as listed in the Players Handbook 5.0, with one exception, both Stout and Lightfoot haflings are considered proficient in the riding of mounts, and Stout halflings have advantage when performing any acrobatics check while on horseback.)
Cities of Autica: Ironwynne
The capital city of the Boar Province of Northedge, this massive city
sits on the west coast, nestled within 100 miles of the Boar/Stag
provincial border. The natural deep water harbor is one of the main
ports of call for the southern provinces, and many traders bound for
Greyhearth first step foot in Ironwynne.
Immense smooth stone walls surround the city, dating back to the Origin War, when they were sung from the stone by the First. The walls were never breached by siege once in the entire conflict, falling to the Second only when the rulers were betrayed from within. Three main forts are built into the wall, two smaller buildings, with small portcullis to foot traffic only. One on the northeastern point, one on the southern point, these passages are sealed tight in the event of a siege, leaving the only point of ingress the colossal gates. Each gate rises as tall as the walls themselves, huge stone doors driven by ancient machinery within the walls, and they sit in two layers, with a small courtyard in between, for a total of four gates. Due to their sheer size, they are commonly left open year-round, closed only in times of peril. The keep that surrounds these gates houses most of the fighting force of Ironwynne, as well as the Grand General's tower.
From their manse in the city, the Duke and Duchess Umberland rule over the Boar province. While their power over their domain does carry final weight, they are assisted by three traditional advisors. Chancellor Maggitha, Chancellor Newn, and the Grand General Springworth, who is also responsible for the provinces armies and it's protection.
Ironwynne is one of the few cities in Northedge where the population is not almost entirely human. Its nature as a major port of call lead to a mingling of races unmatched anywhere else on the continent. Dragonborn Sorceror Lords ride through the streets to meetings with Halfling Trade Princes, Dwarves peddle their crafts to the townsfolk, while High Elves anchor their City-Ships off the coast of the city, bringing their goods to market. The humans of Ironwynne are as mixed as bag as the rest of the races, the dominant religion remains worship of the New God Ito, but temples and shrines for many deities pop up in the sprawling streets.
The population of Ironwynne long exhausted any real estate within the walls, and so, wanting to remain inside the safety of the walls, the city has extended into the sea. Floating districts stretch out in the harbor, growing out at least a half mile from the half-moon coast. Ships arriving in the summer seasons may find themselves docked nowhere near the city itself, with larger, or more opportunistic ships grabbing the prime spots in the inner harbour.
Immense smooth stone walls surround the city, dating back to the Origin War, when they were sung from the stone by the First. The walls were never breached by siege once in the entire conflict, falling to the Second only when the rulers were betrayed from within. Three main forts are built into the wall, two smaller buildings, with small portcullis to foot traffic only. One on the northeastern point, one on the southern point, these passages are sealed tight in the event of a siege, leaving the only point of ingress the colossal gates. Each gate rises as tall as the walls themselves, huge stone doors driven by ancient machinery within the walls, and they sit in two layers, with a small courtyard in between, for a total of four gates. Due to their sheer size, they are commonly left open year-round, closed only in times of peril. The keep that surrounds these gates houses most of the fighting force of Ironwynne, as well as the Grand General's tower.
From their manse in the city, the Duke and Duchess Umberland rule over the Boar province. While their power over their domain does carry final weight, they are assisted by three traditional advisors. Chancellor Maggitha, Chancellor Newn, and the Grand General Springworth, who is also responsible for the provinces armies and it's protection.
Ironwynne is one of the few cities in Northedge where the population is not almost entirely human. Its nature as a major port of call lead to a mingling of races unmatched anywhere else on the continent. Dragonborn Sorceror Lords ride through the streets to meetings with Halfling Trade Princes, Dwarves peddle their crafts to the townsfolk, while High Elves anchor their City-Ships off the coast of the city, bringing their goods to market. The humans of Ironwynne are as mixed as bag as the rest of the races, the dominant religion remains worship of the New God Ito, but temples and shrines for many deities pop up in the sprawling streets.
The population of Ironwynne long exhausted any real estate within the walls, and so, wanting to remain inside the safety of the walls, the city has extended into the sea. Floating districts stretch out in the harbor, growing out at least a half mile from the half-moon coast. Ships arriving in the summer seasons may find themselves docked nowhere near the city itself, with larger, or more opportunistic ships grabbing the prime spots in the inner harbour.
Divinity of Autica: Oldenkeeper Ysengrim
The Oldenkeeper is one of the gods
native to Autica. Raised up by Mot at the onset of the origin war, he
has since secluded himself within the Deep Wilds, and is by far the
least sociable of all the Old Gods.
Ysengrim is an unique combination of beast and bark, originally an elk, Mot fused him with the ancient trees of his home, creating a being belonging neither to the flora nor the fauna, but somewhere in between. It is difficult to tell where his enormous body ends, and the surrounding forest begins, but in the center of his massive bulk sits, distinctively, the head of the elk he was made from. His antlers have grown throughout the centuries, and they twist and turn through his warped branches, giving him a wild crown.
In the Origin War, Ysengrim was responsible for the creation of the dwarves, a race he intended to be stewards of the earth and the wilds. During the Golden Tyranny, while the Old Gods were locked down, and unable to influence the races they created, the Dwarves became too interested in the ores of the earth, and creations of stone, and strayed from his original vision. Once Benedictum fell, Ysengrim saw what they had become, and judged his original creations to be a failure. He then retreated the the Deep Wilds, which he claimed as a realm for the beasts, and has never left since.
While not as active in the overthrowing of Benedictum as the other Gods, Ysengrim was not entirely idle. When Ish was smote during the Battle of the Split, the Oldenkeeper spirited away one of the remaining halves of the creator God. Ishtu, the Godling of Natural death was far too weak to survive unassisted, and so before his lockdown, he was able to hide the nascent god with a clan of elves living in the frozen southern continent of Weawica. These elves nurtured the Godling, and developed a culture fascinated with the natural processes of death and decay. They would become the Drow.
As the only God to claim dominion over a continent, Ysengrim needed some manner of preventing intrusion to his precious forest, and so he gifted many of the beasts of the Deep Wilds with a supernatural intelligence, and set them to protecting the borders of his domain. From the oldest tree in the woods, he also birthed another God, his daughter, Greatwarden Faoulan Guol, to be the leader of his defense force.
Those few who have met the Oldenkeeper describe him as blunt and gruff. He is largely unconcerned in the dealings of the mortal races, and cares little for them. Few worship him, most of his original creation, the dwarves, either worship the New God Ito, or don't worship anything at all. Some dwarves still worship him and though they hold fervently to the old ways, he hasn't seen fit to grant any of their prayers since he left for the Deep Wilds. Outside of the dwarves, he is sometimes worshiped by druids, and clerics with a natural bent, though far more commonly they will worship his daughter, who is much more vocal and free in giving power to her devout. He will rarely see it fit to give his blessing to the mortal that catches his eye in their dedication to the preservation or reclamation of wild spaces. These outstanding few must remain steadfast in there beliefs, or risk losing the favour of this fickle and sullen God.
Oldenkeeper Ysengrim's domains are Life, Nature and Tempest. His sigil is a brown elk, over a green tree, on a field of deep green.
Ysengrim is an unique combination of beast and bark, originally an elk, Mot fused him with the ancient trees of his home, creating a being belonging neither to the flora nor the fauna, but somewhere in between. It is difficult to tell where his enormous body ends, and the surrounding forest begins, but in the center of his massive bulk sits, distinctively, the head of the elk he was made from. His antlers have grown throughout the centuries, and they twist and turn through his warped branches, giving him a wild crown.
In the Origin War, Ysengrim was responsible for the creation of the dwarves, a race he intended to be stewards of the earth and the wilds. During the Golden Tyranny, while the Old Gods were locked down, and unable to influence the races they created, the Dwarves became too interested in the ores of the earth, and creations of stone, and strayed from his original vision. Once Benedictum fell, Ysengrim saw what they had become, and judged his original creations to be a failure. He then retreated the the Deep Wilds, which he claimed as a realm for the beasts, and has never left since.
While not as active in the overthrowing of Benedictum as the other Gods, Ysengrim was not entirely idle. When Ish was smote during the Battle of the Split, the Oldenkeeper spirited away one of the remaining halves of the creator God. Ishtu, the Godling of Natural death was far too weak to survive unassisted, and so before his lockdown, he was able to hide the nascent god with a clan of elves living in the frozen southern continent of Weawica. These elves nurtured the Godling, and developed a culture fascinated with the natural processes of death and decay. They would become the Drow.
As the only God to claim dominion over a continent, Ysengrim needed some manner of preventing intrusion to his precious forest, and so he gifted many of the beasts of the Deep Wilds with a supernatural intelligence, and set them to protecting the borders of his domain. From the oldest tree in the woods, he also birthed another God, his daughter, Greatwarden Faoulan Guol, to be the leader of his defense force.
Those few who have met the Oldenkeeper describe him as blunt and gruff. He is largely unconcerned in the dealings of the mortal races, and cares little for them. Few worship him, most of his original creation, the dwarves, either worship the New God Ito, or don't worship anything at all. Some dwarves still worship him and though they hold fervently to the old ways, he hasn't seen fit to grant any of their prayers since he left for the Deep Wilds. Outside of the dwarves, he is sometimes worshiped by druids, and clerics with a natural bent, though far more commonly they will worship his daughter, who is much more vocal and free in giving power to her devout. He will rarely see it fit to give his blessing to the mortal that catches his eye in their dedication to the preservation or reclamation of wild spaces. These outstanding few must remain steadfast in there beliefs, or risk losing the favour of this fickle and sullen God.
Oldenkeeper Ysengrim's domains are Life, Nature and Tempest. His sigil is a brown elk, over a green tree, on a field of deep green.
A Brief History of Autica
In the beginning, before the world came to be, a mote of dust drifted
through the infinite void of the multiverse. A young demigod, named
Mot, bored of being a minor page upon the faith of his world, found this
mote as he gazed out into the nothing. He became enamored with it,
amazed at the cosmic journey such a simple thing had undergone. He
claimed it, and brought it to his sister, Ish. Together, they left
their old world and over centuries adrift, created the world that would
become known as Autica.
Mot claimed domain over the sun, and the life it brought, while Ish drew her domain over the two moons, and took the task of caring for the bodies and spirits of the life that ended. She would pass that energy along to Mot to create more life, and thus the cycle continued. Though the world they created was pristine and beautiful, it lacked any denizens capable of appreciating the God's creations, so Mot made the race with a name lost to time, now only spoken of as "The First". These creatures were entrusted with watching over the planet, and they sung beautiful cities from the stone, looking out above the planet they would give the name Autica. Centuries passed, and the civilization the First had made grew to cover most of the continents. Over the years, a small group of the First began to experiment with creating things themselves, instead of simply guarding what Mot and Ish had made. In secret, they hewed metals from the earth, and imbued their creations with a life of their own. More and more of the First became curious about these machines, and joined the others in their experiments. Though the Elders of the Church spoke out against this, these renegade First eventually split off and built their own city deep within the Earth. They called it the Deepheart, and called themselves the Second. Shunned for society by the first, and cast out of the faith by the God's, they toiled in their new fortress, creating increasingly elaborate inventions, until they stumbled upon a creation that would change the shape of the world itself.
Meanwhile on the surface, Mot again grew bored with nobody for company but his sullen sister. He had made a world, he had worshipers, but nobody to show his accomplishment to. So he rose several beasts of the earth to Godhood, and granted them power over their domain, in exchange for fealty to him and his sister, recognizing him as king of the God's. Over the expansive sea's of Autica, he gave the power to Behemoth, a whale nearly as old as the seas themselves. To rule the sky, he ascended a giant eagle, who took the name Roc. In the wilds, an Elk rose and fused himself with the ancient trees to become Oldenkeeper Ysengrim. From the latent magical energy that accompanied this mass ascension, Coyote came to be, a god of no specific domain or territory, but one of exceeding cleverness. These deities became known as the Old, or Native, Gods, though at the time they were merely Gods. They kept court on an isle in the center of the the world called the Eye of Gods. There, Mot ruled and discussed with them the wonder of himself, and what he had made. The First saw these beasts walking the earth, and added them to their pantheon. And all was well, until the Old God's noticed another pair of consciousnesses encroaching on their godhood.
These entities were Ito and Bismuth, two machines of unparallelled complexity created by the Second. Their processing power and their given minds were so great that they began to improve themselves, exponentially increasing the scope of their minds, until they had long eclipsed the knowledge of their creators. They built themselves into godhood, and they wielded the powers of gods as easily as those created by Mot and Ish.
Distracted by the creation of his parliament, Mot had largely turned a blind eye to the workings of his mortal races, and as Ito and Bismuth began to converse with the other gods, he became furious. He ordered the destruction of these New Gods, and the extermination of the Second. Thus began the Origin War, a bloody conflict between the First and Second that would last thousands of years, and end with the death of both races.
Led by the Old God's, an army of the First assembled and prepared the wage war, and likewise, under the command of Ito and Bismuth, whose bodies lay in the Deepheart, the Second made machines of war to hold off the invasion.
Long did this conflict wage, with both sides taking heavy losses over the years, and losing little ground on either side. The numbers of the First and Second dwindled, their long lives and equally long cycle of reproduction never intended to deal with warfare of this magnitude, until precious few members of each race were left alive. With both sides retreating the lick their wounds, the Old God's met to find a way to end this war. Together, they pooled their energy, and with Mot's blessing, gave life to their own races. These would be the Dwarves, made by Ysengrim, the Halflings, made by Roc, and the Elfs, made by Behemoth. These new races gave the Old God's the infusion of troops and versatility needed to push the Second back into Deepheart. With the opposing forces sealed deep beneath the earth, the Old God's seemed victorious. They reported that victory to Mot, who was pleased. He permitted the new races to remain on Autica, and went to sleep for the next 500 years, confident the world had returned to the equilibrium he had intended.
The New God's were not so easily beaten though. They had created a race of their own, using the last generation of Second children to be born as their canvas. Their creations were the Humans, a short lived but versatile race that was able to pick up and adapt to the technology the New God's created. The last Second stayed in Deepheart, knowing that their race was in it's final days. The humans pushed back out to the surface, and began fortifying there. The Old God's, seeing now that the conflict was not at it's end, attempted to wake Mot, and use his power once again to force the New God's back, but were unable to rouse him. With the powerful creations gifted to the humans, they nearly eradicated the Old God's, and their forces. Roc was slain, and the detonation that killed her scorched her once verdant plains, and leveled her mountain aeries, leaving a barren desert that stretched over most of Autica's western continent. In retribution, Behemoth began to raise the sea level. With the immense water pressure threatening to break the doors of Deepheart, the humans had no choice but to attempt to move Ito, while the Second were to begin excavating Bismuth and preparing him to move. Ito's body was brought to the surface, and installed on the island city of Greyhearth, but before Bismuth could be moved, the levees broke and Deepheart was flooded, wiping out the remaining second, and crippling Bismuth. Figuring his brother dead, Ito doubled down on the intensity of his invasion, bombarding the Old forces with heavier and heavier weaponry. The Old God's saw this destruction, and were afraid. They convened, and without the power, or blessing, of Mot, rose another to Godhood. This was the Boar God, Goliath. His quickened ascension left him with much of his animalistic nature, and he was a violent god, quick to anger and imbued with a savage bloodlust. He was exactly what the Old God's needed, but even they feared his wrath. He created the Orcs, and the war continued with renewed fervor.
During this period, Mot awoke, and saw what his creation had become. He could not stomach any more violence, and his pride was shattered. He pleaded with the both the Old God's and the New for peace, but both sides were too involved in the conflict to let it go. So he spoke to a human named Jebenius. He broke ranks with the New God's, and began to travel the land, gathering followers and preaching peace.
The Origin War finally ended with the Battle of the Split, on the salt plains of Brulos. The largest ever gathering of armies, it would be the bloodiest battle of the war. As the forces clashed, Jebenius appeared and attempted to stop the bloodshed. Carried high by Mot's angels, he flew to each of the God's present at the battle in turn, and was ignored by all. Finally, he flew to Goliath and pleaded with him to call off his forces and retreat. The boar God, blinded by the fury of battle, saw Jebenius as nothing but another human, and ran him through with his immense tusks. As the life faded from his chosen vassal, Mot was overcome with fury. He smote Goliath with a strike of white lightning, eradicating him, and most of the armies that surrounded him. What he did not see, until it was too late, was his sister, Ish, fat on the souls of all the dead and their energy that had not been reused during Mot's slumber, collecting the spirits of the fallen. She had climbed up on to the tusk of the Boar god to gather the essence of Jebenius, right before the lightning strike. The power of Mot's blow seared through her body and soul, splitting her into two entities, Belleni the Soul-Walker, and Ishtu, Godling of Natural Death. This was the last straw for Mot, and he finally snapped. For the first time, he strode onto the mortal plane of existence, and with his angelic legions, but an end to the Origin War. Both sides were forced to stand down immediately, and an uneasy peace was thrust upon Autica.
For the next several millennia, Autica was ruled by Mot, who had taken the name Benedictum, in a period known now as the Golden Tyranny.
Blaming himself for not taking more action to prevent the bloody Origin War, Benedictum declared the entire planet under the martial law of him and his angels. All the races created during the war were allowed to go about their business, under the watchful eye of Benedictum's commanders. The God's, both Old and New, were placed under lock down, their power weakened and their bodies imprisoned, the Old Gods bound by their vow of fealty to Mot as well. Benedictum ruled with an iron fist, quick to dispatch his legions to quell any conflict. As such, the races grew, and their cultures solidified into what they are today. Other races evolved and came to power as well, including the Dragonborn.
In Deepheart, the crippled Bismuth's madness rang out like a beacon into the multiverse. His vitriolic hate for the other God's, including his brother Ito, who he felt abandoned him, solidified into a deep seeded insanity that corrupted his mind. The ancient sleepers of the void heard this madness and were drawn to Autica. Ygg-Nu-Dratl, an ageless and terrifying entity attempted to invade Autica, and the world was once again drawn into conflict.
This conflict came to a head over the city of Lumin, a stronghold of the angels. A glittering city of gold and pearl, wondrous to behold, crowned with a spire that rose hundreds of meters into the sky. Here, Ygg-Nu-Dratl attempted to breach himself into the world. As his colossal bulk forced itself out of the void and into the sky above the city, Benedictum himself took to the field with his angels to repel the beast.
At the end, they were successful in beating him back, but the effort exhausted his legions, and drained Benedictum of most of his strength. Seizing the opportunity, the God's broke there vow of fealty, and struck down Benedictum, impaling his body on the shining spire of his beloved city, and ending the Golden Tyranny.
The period between this and the current time is not long, in the cosmic scale. Only several hundred years have passed, some of the longer lived races may have ancients that remember this period of time. The Old Gods and the New have an tentative peace, and most of the races do as well. Mot's body regenerates on the spire over Lumin, guarded loyally by his remaining angels, and still serving as a font of divine power. Over the years, as Autica aged, planar travellers from other worlds have passed through Autica, drawing there God's along with them. The divine power that flows from the corpse of Benedictum gives these gods life in Autica, creating avatars of the belief that spawned them, and the Native God's of Autica, both Old and New, have little choice but to accept these divine immigrants, knowing they will never hold power to rival theirs.
Mot claimed domain over the sun, and the life it brought, while Ish drew her domain over the two moons, and took the task of caring for the bodies and spirits of the life that ended. She would pass that energy along to Mot to create more life, and thus the cycle continued. Though the world they created was pristine and beautiful, it lacked any denizens capable of appreciating the God's creations, so Mot made the race with a name lost to time, now only spoken of as "The First". These creatures were entrusted with watching over the planet, and they sung beautiful cities from the stone, looking out above the planet they would give the name Autica. Centuries passed, and the civilization the First had made grew to cover most of the continents. Over the years, a small group of the First began to experiment with creating things themselves, instead of simply guarding what Mot and Ish had made. In secret, they hewed metals from the earth, and imbued their creations with a life of their own. More and more of the First became curious about these machines, and joined the others in their experiments. Though the Elders of the Church spoke out against this, these renegade First eventually split off and built their own city deep within the Earth. They called it the Deepheart, and called themselves the Second. Shunned for society by the first, and cast out of the faith by the God's, they toiled in their new fortress, creating increasingly elaborate inventions, until they stumbled upon a creation that would change the shape of the world itself.
Meanwhile on the surface, Mot again grew bored with nobody for company but his sullen sister. He had made a world, he had worshipers, but nobody to show his accomplishment to. So he rose several beasts of the earth to Godhood, and granted them power over their domain, in exchange for fealty to him and his sister, recognizing him as king of the God's. Over the expansive sea's of Autica, he gave the power to Behemoth, a whale nearly as old as the seas themselves. To rule the sky, he ascended a giant eagle, who took the name Roc. In the wilds, an Elk rose and fused himself with the ancient trees to become Oldenkeeper Ysengrim. From the latent magical energy that accompanied this mass ascension, Coyote came to be, a god of no specific domain or territory, but one of exceeding cleverness. These deities became known as the Old, or Native, Gods, though at the time they were merely Gods. They kept court on an isle in the center of the the world called the Eye of Gods. There, Mot ruled and discussed with them the wonder of himself, and what he had made. The First saw these beasts walking the earth, and added them to their pantheon. And all was well, until the Old God's noticed another pair of consciousnesses encroaching on their godhood.
These entities were Ito and Bismuth, two machines of unparallelled complexity created by the Second. Their processing power and their given minds were so great that they began to improve themselves, exponentially increasing the scope of their minds, until they had long eclipsed the knowledge of their creators. They built themselves into godhood, and they wielded the powers of gods as easily as those created by Mot and Ish.
Distracted by the creation of his parliament, Mot had largely turned a blind eye to the workings of his mortal races, and as Ito and Bismuth began to converse with the other gods, he became furious. He ordered the destruction of these New Gods, and the extermination of the Second. Thus began the Origin War, a bloody conflict between the First and Second that would last thousands of years, and end with the death of both races.
Led by the Old God's, an army of the First assembled and prepared the wage war, and likewise, under the command of Ito and Bismuth, whose bodies lay in the Deepheart, the Second made machines of war to hold off the invasion.
Long did this conflict wage, with both sides taking heavy losses over the years, and losing little ground on either side. The numbers of the First and Second dwindled, their long lives and equally long cycle of reproduction never intended to deal with warfare of this magnitude, until precious few members of each race were left alive. With both sides retreating the lick their wounds, the Old God's met to find a way to end this war. Together, they pooled their energy, and with Mot's blessing, gave life to their own races. These would be the Dwarves, made by Ysengrim, the Halflings, made by Roc, and the Elfs, made by Behemoth. These new races gave the Old God's the infusion of troops and versatility needed to push the Second back into Deepheart. With the opposing forces sealed deep beneath the earth, the Old God's seemed victorious. They reported that victory to Mot, who was pleased. He permitted the new races to remain on Autica, and went to sleep for the next 500 years, confident the world had returned to the equilibrium he had intended.
The New God's were not so easily beaten though. They had created a race of their own, using the last generation of Second children to be born as their canvas. Their creations were the Humans, a short lived but versatile race that was able to pick up and adapt to the technology the New God's created. The last Second stayed in Deepheart, knowing that their race was in it's final days. The humans pushed back out to the surface, and began fortifying there. The Old God's, seeing now that the conflict was not at it's end, attempted to wake Mot, and use his power once again to force the New God's back, but were unable to rouse him. With the powerful creations gifted to the humans, they nearly eradicated the Old God's, and their forces. Roc was slain, and the detonation that killed her scorched her once verdant plains, and leveled her mountain aeries, leaving a barren desert that stretched over most of Autica's western continent. In retribution, Behemoth began to raise the sea level. With the immense water pressure threatening to break the doors of Deepheart, the humans had no choice but to attempt to move Ito, while the Second were to begin excavating Bismuth and preparing him to move. Ito's body was brought to the surface, and installed on the island city of Greyhearth, but before Bismuth could be moved, the levees broke and Deepheart was flooded, wiping out the remaining second, and crippling Bismuth. Figuring his brother dead, Ito doubled down on the intensity of his invasion, bombarding the Old forces with heavier and heavier weaponry. The Old God's saw this destruction, and were afraid. They convened, and without the power, or blessing, of Mot, rose another to Godhood. This was the Boar God, Goliath. His quickened ascension left him with much of his animalistic nature, and he was a violent god, quick to anger and imbued with a savage bloodlust. He was exactly what the Old God's needed, but even they feared his wrath. He created the Orcs, and the war continued with renewed fervor.
During this period, Mot awoke, and saw what his creation had become. He could not stomach any more violence, and his pride was shattered. He pleaded with the both the Old God's and the New for peace, but both sides were too involved in the conflict to let it go. So he spoke to a human named Jebenius. He broke ranks with the New God's, and began to travel the land, gathering followers and preaching peace.
The Origin War finally ended with the Battle of the Split, on the salt plains of Brulos. The largest ever gathering of armies, it would be the bloodiest battle of the war. As the forces clashed, Jebenius appeared and attempted to stop the bloodshed. Carried high by Mot's angels, he flew to each of the God's present at the battle in turn, and was ignored by all. Finally, he flew to Goliath and pleaded with him to call off his forces and retreat. The boar God, blinded by the fury of battle, saw Jebenius as nothing but another human, and ran him through with his immense tusks. As the life faded from his chosen vassal, Mot was overcome with fury. He smote Goliath with a strike of white lightning, eradicating him, and most of the armies that surrounded him. What he did not see, until it was too late, was his sister, Ish, fat on the souls of all the dead and their energy that had not been reused during Mot's slumber, collecting the spirits of the fallen. She had climbed up on to the tusk of the Boar god to gather the essence of Jebenius, right before the lightning strike. The power of Mot's blow seared through her body and soul, splitting her into two entities, Belleni the Soul-Walker, and Ishtu, Godling of Natural Death. This was the last straw for Mot, and he finally snapped. For the first time, he strode onto the mortal plane of existence, and with his angelic legions, but an end to the Origin War. Both sides were forced to stand down immediately, and an uneasy peace was thrust upon Autica.
For the next several millennia, Autica was ruled by Mot, who had taken the name Benedictum, in a period known now as the Golden Tyranny.
Blaming himself for not taking more action to prevent the bloody Origin War, Benedictum declared the entire planet under the martial law of him and his angels. All the races created during the war were allowed to go about their business, under the watchful eye of Benedictum's commanders. The God's, both Old and New, were placed under lock down, their power weakened and their bodies imprisoned, the Old Gods bound by their vow of fealty to Mot as well. Benedictum ruled with an iron fist, quick to dispatch his legions to quell any conflict. As such, the races grew, and their cultures solidified into what they are today. Other races evolved and came to power as well, including the Dragonborn.
In Deepheart, the crippled Bismuth's madness rang out like a beacon into the multiverse. His vitriolic hate for the other God's, including his brother Ito, who he felt abandoned him, solidified into a deep seeded insanity that corrupted his mind. The ancient sleepers of the void heard this madness and were drawn to Autica. Ygg-Nu-Dratl, an ageless and terrifying entity attempted to invade Autica, and the world was once again drawn into conflict.
This conflict came to a head over the city of Lumin, a stronghold of the angels. A glittering city of gold and pearl, wondrous to behold, crowned with a spire that rose hundreds of meters into the sky. Here, Ygg-Nu-Dratl attempted to breach himself into the world. As his colossal bulk forced itself out of the void and into the sky above the city, Benedictum himself took to the field with his angels to repel the beast.
At the end, they were successful in beating him back, but the effort exhausted his legions, and drained Benedictum of most of his strength. Seizing the opportunity, the God's broke there vow of fealty, and struck down Benedictum, impaling his body on the shining spire of his beloved city, and ending the Golden Tyranny.
The period between this and the current time is not long, in the cosmic scale. Only several hundred years have passed, some of the longer lived races may have ancients that remember this period of time. The Old Gods and the New have an tentative peace, and most of the races do as well. Mot's body regenerates on the spire over Lumin, guarded loyally by his remaining angels, and still serving as a font of divine power. Over the years, as Autica aged, planar travellers from other worlds have passed through Autica, drawing there God's along with them. The divine power that flows from the corpse of Benedictum gives these gods life in Autica, creating avatars of the belief that spawned them, and the Native God's of Autica, both Old and New, have little choice but to accept these divine immigrants, knowing they will never hold power to rival theirs.
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