In the ancient ages of the continent of Maln those with the power to warp human emotions were treated as terrestrial angels, and were commonly thought to be the descendants of celestial beings from another plane. The surge in positive emotions called forth by these miraculous beings gave way to an age of enlightenment, one where mankind was technologically advancing at a rapid rate, even outpacing the magic it depended so heavily on. The technology to travel across the sky no matter the distance was a beacon of hope to the once pathetic species of thin skinned apes. With a combination of knowledge over the astral and further advances, travel to even beyond their plane was emerging across the horizon.

Through the passage of time, however, Maln saw an increase in tensions within its kingdoms out of the competitive nature of being the first to take to the stars. The situation worsened as the continent was struck by a sudden and devastating vegetation ruining plague. With no one to blame for the worsening times, fingers were pointed at these jesters of gods. The folk who once entrusted the jesters with their problems now saw them as the origin and inflicted punishment mercilessly. 

To be a jester is to be able to create happiness. A jester specializes in specific branches of emotional magic, all of which are useful to humans and their various rampages for power. They are frequently tortured and worked to death with the intention of wringing as much magic from them as possible. A jester is like a sieve of negative emotions, one that needs validation and love from its surroundings to purify itself and continue the cycle. A jester burdened with the ailments of hundreds and seen as a subhuman will absorb the filth of human hearts like a rag of scum and wither away painfully.

These endlessly repeating acts of cruelty have done little to hold back the onslaught of misery that has scarred the land beyond recognition. The plague that has wilted most of Maln’s crops has caused a chain reaction resulting in the massive deaths of animals and mankind. Remaining kingdoms that have been reduced to shadows of their former selves engage in paranoid skirmishes with one another. Disgusting creatures that once took shelter from mankind now roam the lands laying waste to anything within their reach. And on top of it all, the jesters have begun to receive strange signals from entities not of this world. A voice pulsating from their heart, one telling them to “return”. 

The continent of Maln as it currently stands is a wasteland of death and decay, one where nothing can thrive. Most of the technology that had been perfected over the course of centuries has now been forgotten and abandoned in its entirety, never to be recovered again. Magic has also declined, with most of its techniques and sects that have been refined over generations having been lost along with a large amount of civilization. Modern magicians are restricted to a sparse amount of offensive spells.

The story will center on a group of jesters who have received a sudden and inexplicable urge to break free from the shackles that bind them, with perhaps even the occasional human that strongly wishes to assist them in their journey.