[center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1QxjbZ0E5U[/youtube][/center] [hr] [b]The Beginning:[/b] At the start of history was a goddess of great power, isolated within an ivory cube of nothingness. With all of her power, she was still alone, and she still had nothing. Thus she created the world, and with it, five disciples to spread word of her glory to all who would soon walk the same soil as them. The goddess feared that her creations would look upon her and see one unworthy of their praise, and so forbade all from entering her realm, closed off from those that would later come to be called 'mortals', and even her own personal disciples. Soon, she was forgotten. Despite this, her disciples would carry out her work, joining the world that came to be known as 'Ivor'. [b]The Middle:[/b] Her disciples, which later came to be known as the 'Starborn' for their descent from the goddess' divine realm from above, and each of them representing the point of a star, would spread word of their creator's selflessness and beauty. They would demonstrate mysterious powers far beyond the reach of mere humans, and as a sign of peace in times of mistrust, would grant humans the ability to cast what was later called magic. However, this peace was not to last. [b]The Beginning of the End:[/b] As centuries passed the Starborn would grow bored and lax, allowing their powers to freely leak out into the mortal world and create new life that would not have existed without magical interference. They eventually distanced themselves across the world, becoming more withdrawn from the new world that was moving on without need of them. Dragons, orcs, goblins, undead, and all other manner of beings that defied reason would spawn from the dying optimism of the Starborn. Even so, the world at large didn't miss them. However, a religious order dedicated to the Starborn would eventually form to allow their voices to be heard, which came to be known as the 'Order of Five Spears'. The Order would start with peaceful sermons, but when met with mockery and denouncement, seen as people that clung to the past foolishly, they did not waver. As years passed, their name became synonymous with villainy itself, and the Order became known as a group of violent and psychotic extremists that wished for an age that no longer had a place in the world. [b]The End:[/b] Year 1799 of the Ivorian calendar, March 1st. On this day, Ivor as a whole was changed. The capital city of the kingdom of Lowick was attacked by strange, mud-like beasts that resembled nothing that any historian or scholar had ever written of in any tome. Many were killed by the abominations, and those that survived were escorted by official knight transports to escape the massacre. With Lowick's fall, the Order of Five Spears, now known as a cult of outlaws, claimed to be responsible for the attacks. They said that the Starborn had taken up the path of dark magic and had become witches to destroy the world. Soon, town after town throughout the remaining territory controlled within Lowick's borders would be ravaged and destroyed by creatures never before seen and nigh impossible to kill for an average person. Soon, reports flooded in that this same situation was occurring across other territories and even across different continents. The former king of the fallen kingdom of Lowick, and many other royals in his footsteps, put out the order for a 'Witch Hunt'. In essence, to find and eliminate all of the Starborn corrupted by witchery. Immense wealth would be given to any adventurers who could defeat even a single witch, as many whispered that the fate of the world was now hanging in the balance. Thus, a group of adventurers hired by the old ruler of Lowick would band together, each with their own goals, to save the world. [hr] [u][b]The Continents[/b][/u] Within Ivor, there are five continents, each one taken over by a different ruler. There are many territories within each continent, but each swears fealty to one of the five rulers. [hider=Lowick] [img]https://i.imgur.com/IBYeMbl.jpg[/img] Lowick is a land of trade, welcoming and humble beginnings. With a very vertical landscape, and with rugged mountains and grassy hills alike, it's a part of the world with a lot of environmental variety. Lowick has a proud and widely documented military force, the Magic Knights, that combine sword and sorcery to defend their people. Most people in Lowick at least know basic magic to make their day-to-day lives easier, and many citizens as a result will choose either the path of the sword, of the arcane, or of the Magic Knights at some point in their life. Their current ruler, King Reginald Lowick XI, is considered a fair ruler by all definitions of the word, and who served in the Magic Knights in his youth. Ever since the witch hunt began, with Lowick and its capital city of Saint Reginald being hit the hardest so far, morale in the kingdom has dropped considerably. Faith in the Magic Knights has dwindled with their numbers dropping in skirmishes against the foul beasts conjured by black magic. Legends say that Lowick's soil was where the Starborn first descended upon the world, and where the Witch of Contracts, Loretta, makes her home. [hider=Lowickan Territories and Cities] [b]Saint Reginald:[/b] The capital city of Lowick, named after King Reginald Lowick I, and a proud bastion of hope for the people. It's here where Magic Knights are trained and where some of the best knights and wizards of the current day gather for yearly combat tournaments to test their skills. By some foreigners it's called the "City of Greed" with how lavish its king allows his capital city to appear, perhaps at the cost of funding for some of his other, more struggling cities further on the outskirts. [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Mynol] [img]https://i.imgur.com/z5ThmXY.jpg[/img] Mynol's capital city of Levia is highly regarded as the seafood capital of the world, and inspires culinarians from all over the world to visit at least once. Mynol as a whole is a very wet and swampy part of the world, with both proud and vast oceans, and ominous and insidious bogs. They have a massive problem dealing with sea monsters, and thus have a "monthly culling" where the best and bravest warriors of the kingdom would defend their cities and hunt down troublesome monsters on the high seas. King Ludrix Nacht rules his territories with an iron fist, having first taken power over the previous king a decade ago in a bloody rebellion. It's also in this kingdom where the organization known as the "Slayers" would have first formed - a group dedicated to pursuing and eliminating high-profile and infamous beasts that roam both the land and sea. These hunters would use guerilla warfare tactics, assassination and debilitating magic to exterminate their prey. They formed originally to fight against demons, who are widely known in various stories and records to have first materialized from the darkest depths of the ocean, but are now general-purpose monster hunters and mercenaries for hire. It's also said that the Witch of Conception, Galor, hides somewhere in Mynol. [hider=Mynolian Territories and Cities] [b]Levia:[/b] The dream of all aspiring chefs and artists is to make it big in Levia, and as a whole, the city finds itself home to many eccentrics and aristocrats alike. Something unspoken within its walls is that treachery and assassination awaits beneath the pretty and elegant exterior of this booming port city - though who would dare speak of that and risk being next on the chopping block? The Slayers' main headquarters also resides here, but with their primary directive being monster slaying, they rarely if ever get themselves involved with Levia's backstabbing problem. [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Gatharia] [img]https://i.imgur.com/HhURHsV.jpg[/img] The Sultanate of Gatharia is widely regarded to be the safest place in the entire world when inside one of its cities. Well, from monsters, anyway. With its vast sands that stretch beyond the horizon, cutting winds, scorching days and freezing nights, one will likely find great relief upon reaching civilization in Gatharia. Each Gatharian city, upheld under oath of loyalty between the city's mayor and Sultan Daal Indra, would receive a bubble of magical wind energy that cloaks the entire city in its protection. Only citizens with specially enchanted wind amulets may progress through these bubbles to enter and exit Gatharian cities without issue, and those without will be repelled by powerful wind magic - unable to either enter or leave without one. Crime is light in Gatharian cities, as most crimes are punishable by death by the Sultan's decree. Amulet checks are often made as well, with patrolling guards arresting any found without an amulet. The protective winds of Gatharia have never broken or succumbed to any threat no matter how great, and even during the witch hunt, the cursed beasts that remain thralls to the witches have yet to breach a Gatharian wind barrier. Rumor has it that the Witch of Reversal, Dorothy, makes her home here, surviving among the harsh desert sands. [hider=Gatharian Territories and Cities] [b]Zebul:[/b] Zebul is the capital of Gatharia, and its wind barrier is widely regarded to be the strongest defensive magic in all existence, impenetrable even by gods. Gatharia is a nation that has never been on the attacking side of any wars, as they have nothing to worry by simply relying on the wind barrier, stronger than all others even among Gatharian territories, known as the Million Year Shield. It's said that the first Sultan of Gatharia had discovered the secrets of the universe and had found the strongest wind magic in the process, claiming that "Gatharia is the nation that shall see the sun rise and fall a million times, remain stalwart, and witness the sun's arrival a million times more" after conjuring the Million Year Shield. It's a rather militant city, under direct supervision by the Sultan himself, who is a perfectionist when it comes to management of his territories. [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Titan] [img]https://i.imgur.com/StPVHFQ.jpg[/img] Titan is known by many as "the place gods fear". The first person who could be considered a true "warrior" in history that rose above the rest, a man by the name of Atlas, carved and sculpted Titan's landscapes himself with his fights against the "First Sins", a long and mysterious battle against undocumented creatures that took place over the course of Atlas' entire life. Together with the help of a group of heroes assembled from across the world, Atlas dedicated his life to eradicating the First Sins, and on his deathbed at the age of 350, declared his lands to be called "Titan", and those who served him to decide for themselves who would rule. His courage drove many children to aspire to become worthy warriors and leaders like Atlas, and to this day a "true ruler" of the Titanian Lands has not been decided. Warring tribes make their homes atop its peaks and valleys, its plateaus, and its vast cave systems. The Witch of Observation, Haine, watches the Titanian conflict with great interest. [hider=Titanian Territories and Cities] [b]Sinful Rest:[/b] Sinful Rest is a city of architecture and chivalry, and acts a neutral zone for all warring tribes to speak to one another and establish diplomatic relations without fear of betrayal or assassination. This is because the city's location was built around Atlas' final resting place, a crypt in the center of the city. His aura of an honorable and valiant warrior acts as a limiter and curse, preventing all acts of backstabbing, betrayal and scheming from occurring. Within the walls of Sinful Rest, lies are not kept, and it's a common saying to "Take your lover to Sinful Rest and see if you leave with them as your lover still". In an otherwise lawless land, Sinful Rest acts as an anchor and a gathering point for even mortal enemies to be civil with one another before the bloodshed starts again. [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Zephyr] [img]https://i.imgur.com/Me4XalY.jpg[/img] Zephyr is a nearly uninhabitable continent where life no longer grows or prospers and where a deadly poison mist settles on the ground from above the clouds on stormy nights. Some citizens could go their entire lives without seeing the color green, and any trees, grass or vegetables that do grow are either done through magical means or through trading from more prosperous lands. Its landscape is mostly rock and water, having little in the way of beauty, and with structures that change and shift depending on the day due to magical curses prevalent within the very rock and soil of the land. Even Zephyr's richest inhabitants find themselves struggling to get by, and crime is rampant and unpunished. It was once a great empire that was annihilated beyond all recovery when the previous ruler, Emperor Lyon Garron, tried to conquer the world. Lowick and Mynol banded together against him, and together, razed his lands to cinders in some areas and drowned his towns in great floods in others. The result is a barren wasteland where monsters thrive more than people, and its citizens are steadily dying off as days go by. One woman by the name of Minnow is trying to unite the people and lead them to recovery, and has gained a steady following as time goes on. The Witch of Stories, Varia, is said to have already died a long time ago - and yet, traces of her power remain strong within Zephyr. [/hider] [hr] [u][b]Magic, Religion and the Order of Five Spears[/b][/u] [b]Magic[/b] is widely used across Ivor, and it's not even uncommon to see somebody casting spells to solve minor inconveniences if they have the proficiency to do so. The ability to cast magic naturally exists within roughly 50% of the population, being the descendants of the first people blessed by the Starborn. Experiments have been conducted by wizards in the past to attempt to force the Starborns' blessing onto a non-magical person, but documented successes are rare and the consequences for failure are severe and life-altering on the subject. For casting magic, the elements of [color=ed1c24]fire[/color], [color=0072bc]water[/color], [color=39b54a]wind[/color], [color=f7976a]earth[/color], [color=fff200]lightning[/color], and [color=6ecff6]ice[/color] are the most commonly used and researched. Other less common but still known elements include [color=fff79a]light[/color] and [color=a187be]darkness[/color], with those who possess them considered to be gifted or destined for greatness. Other elements aside from these do exist, but aren't documented very often with their rarity, and with the average mortal body not well equipped to contain elements aside from the commonly known ones. Typically, if someone adopts an element other than these, it's because they're created from leaking Starborn magic and are born as beasts, demons or other such unnatural beings. [b]Religion[/b] was once a popular and encouraged side of life, with different pantheons of gods. However, after a certain point, the world seemed to forget their names. Their deeds and laws were erased, and their most devout clerics completely clueless as to what they revered so highly so much as a minute before. The only deity that can truly be remembered is the goddess who allowed her Starborn disciples to descend to the mortal realm, but even her name has been forgotten. As it is now, religion is mostly based around the "concept" of gods, with people following laws and ideals of gods that they believed must have existed in the past. This memory wipe occurred at the start of recorded time, with year 1 of Ivor's calendar being the starting point of current civilization. [b]The Order of Five Spears[/b] is one of the more prominent, yet illegal, religions currently in Ivor and was founded in the early 1500's. They praise the Starborn as spawn of the Original Goddess, The Ivory Queen, and wage war in the name of her and her disciples. While at first they were a religious organization dedicated to the betterment of the world and to pray for the return of the Starborn to civilization, being ridiculed and mocked for their beliefs eventually resulted in a more violent direction for their members. There are five War Priests that rule over the Order as a council that dictates the direction their organization takes, and each is revered by the lesser members greatly. With the witch hunt being declared, the Order is moving to defend the newly deemed witches that they worship. Each War Priest is said to be strong enough to turn a city into a crater by themselves or turn an army into a pile of corpses, and thus must not be taken lightly by any who would oppose them. Above the War Priests is the Grand Templar, who has been said to be alive for hundreds of years and who has created miracles to guide the people to salvation. He hasn't been seen in public in many years, but it's said that anybody who is granted a private audience with him leaves as a loyal follower for life. [color=ed1c24]One person in the party will start out as a loyalist to the Order of Five Spears.[/color] [hr] [b][u]The Ivory Grimoire[/u][/b] [hider=An Adventurer's Best Friend] [img]https://i.imgur.com/YQXYGqT.jpg[/img] [/hider] A special book that will be updated as your journey progresses. It will detail world knowledge you acquire, people you meet, and monsters you fight, as well as display any current objectives as a reminder. [hider=Objectives] [b]Party Objective:[/b] Survive? [/hider] [hider=Bestiary] [/hider] [hider=Notable People] [hider=Lowick] [hider=King Reginald Lowick XI] [img]https://i.imgur.com/KXoU9NO.png[/img] The ruler of Lowick in the modern day. Known as a fair and generous king, and to be the type to be unafraid to fight for his people. Despite being in his late 30's, however, his hair has lost all color due to overuse of magic burning the crimson out of his hair. Ever since, his body has been on a physical decline, his body advancing beyond what is reasonable for his age. [/hider] [hider=Second Prince Regis Lowick] [img]https://i.imgur.com/OPgN76u.jpg[/img] The second prince of Lowick. As a royal son not in line for the throne, Regis has instead trained from a young age to become a capable warrior. Eventually he ascended to become a captain of the Magic Knights at the age of 18. Ever since, now a 25 year old young man, he embodies the undying valor that all knights of Lowick should strive for. [/hider] [/hider] [/hider] [hider=World Knowledge] [hider=Lowick] [hider=Azoth Dagger] [img]https://i.imgur.com/4MTu8sm.png[/img] A legendary dagger belonging to the royal family of Lowick. It's a magical item enchanted by all elements simultaneously, considered to be one of the greatest pieces of craftsmanship in the history of mortals. It strikes with all elements at the same time condensed into a single attack, and thrusts true towards evil. [/hider] [/hider] [/hider] [hider=Daily Record] [b]Year 1799, March 1st:[/b] Lowick is under attack by an unknown enemy. The Azoth Dagger is successfully retrieved from Saint Reginald's royal vault, and is given to Prince Regis. [/hider] [hr] [hider=Character Sheet] [b]Name:[/b] [b]Race:[/b] Most fantasy races are acceptable. [b]Gender:[/b] [b]Age:[/b] [b]Appearance:[/b] Anime FCs if you use an image, to stay consistent. [b]Personality:[/b] Two paragraphs minimum. [b]Element:[/b] Erase if you're a non-mage. [b]Equipment:[/b] Weapons, armor, etc. [b]Skills:[/b] Non-magical talents? [b]Abilities:[/b] Supernatural powers, whether that be special uses of your element or otherwise superhuman feats. 3 maximum to start. [b]History:[/b] The party will be starting in Lowick after the attack, so regardless of where you came from, also state how you got there. [/hider]