In the beginning, The Divine Mother sang out in the darkness, shaping the universe to her liking. The stars and planets formed, along with life itself. On the plane of Astoria, the first to come were the races of Men and Vel. Immediately after their creation, they began to take awareness to their surroundings. The voice of Mother was so soothing, that they could not help but craft instruments from wood. The music was bright and joyous, which appeased The Mother. So happy She was, that She began to create more life in hopes of them playing just as good music. Each species had their own music to contribute, with sounds of different tones and pitches. She was glad and so were Her children. To help Her children prosper, She chose the greatest of their species to help them in their life when She was gone. To Man, two brothers were chosen to lead the Kingdom of Man. For the Vel, a Matriarch was chosen, for they loved The Mother. As for the Dwarves, they lived under a system of states, one independent of the other. Finally, for the Dragons from the Northern Waste, Artorias, the mightiest of their kind, was chosen as Lord of the Dragons. With each race given a leader, they established their own homes and civilizations, without the help of their Mother. Her job was completed, and she watched her children grow in silence.
As the years passed by, Artorias had grown in strength, knowledge, and size. With his age, came pride. With pride, came jealousy. With jealousy, came hate. His greed for power had grown over the years. "The Mother has grown weak in her age, but I am strong!", he cried. "Why must I, the mightiest of all on this realm, must associate with these mortal beings! I am Artorias, the Dragon Lord, and I am a God in my own right!" With these words, the seeds of evil began to grow within the world. Artorias would shape the future into a land of chaos and despair. With his wits, Artorias corrupted many races, including the Kingdom of Man, along with the eldest of the King Brothers, turning them into pawns for his grand uprising. The Great Rebellion would last for at least a hundred years, with Artorias seizing power away from The Mother. It was not until the line of Great Men and the Vel came together to form a plan that Artorias was sealed away and his kin scattered to the Northern Waste. With The Divine Mothers blessing, her power would enter a chosen maiden, and she would sing the Dragon Lord to sleep, deep into the Northern Waste. In a large scale battle, the maiden was successful in her endeavor, ending the fighting immediately after he dropped. His forces scattered and the Great Alliance had claimed victory over the Rebellion. Every two hundred years now, another maiden, blessed with The Divine Mothers power, must go to the desolate Northern Waste, and strengthen the spell back to normal so that the Dragon Lord may never return.
Some things to know(This will expand.)
Playable Races(This will expand.)
The race of Man is the dominant species on Astoria, ranging from many different colors and cultures. Man is one of many species unable to use natural magic due to their heritage. Because of their large population and majority, they considered other races to be inferior, specifically the Vel. However, there are two main differentiation's of Man. One being the Lesser Man and the other being the Greater Man.
Lesser Men are the majority of the Human race. Being the direct descendants of the Corrupted Men, they are not necessarily evil, but have inherited traits of racism towards anyone non-Human, greed, hate, etc. They are superior to Greater Men in terms of social class and politics. However, because of their wicked ancestry, they tend to be more cowardly if not trained properly, and can even adopt their heritage of the wicked ways, going as far as the pledge allegiance to Artorias. Currently, the Royal Family at the moment is of Lesser Men, ruled over by King Leo II.
Greater Men are the minority of the Human race. Being the direct descendants of the First Men, they are brave, make excellent leaders, are seen by other races as the only tolerable Human, most of the time. Despite not being corrupted, they are still unable to use natural magic, and must rely on artificially made magic. Though still corruptible, they are much stronger willed, and are the only Humans in the fighting branch of The Church, The Order. The most noteworthy Greater Man is Captain Duncan, the present leader of The Order.
The Vel are the purest of all races in Astoria and the closest in terms of purity to The Mother. Because of this, they can manipulate their surroundings with natural magic, so long as they study and practice it daily. Their ruler, the Matriarch, is a homage to The Divine Mother, and is seen as the "go-to" for advice and wisdom, as she is currently the third longest living in the universe, behind Artorias, and The Mother herself. The Vel's homeland is a chain of islands east to the mainland, where the Kingdom of Man resides. Because of who they are, they are third-class citizens and slaves in the Kingdom of Man.
Stout, persistent, and stone-willed, the Dwarves have made excellent living in the mountains of Astoria. Their homes range from many different places, including the Kingdom of Men, Vel, and many other lands. Being the excellent smiths that they are, the Kingdom of Men have allowed them the ability to become second-class and first-class citizens in their homeland, so long as they can work for it. Being some of the toughest fighters around, Dwarves are sought out as bodyguards as well, for a good price of course. The different mountain colonies, despite not being united by a strong central government, have a sworn allegiance of city-states. A Dwarf in trouble will always be the main priority to another Dwarf. Never toss a Dwarf.
The Drow, also known as dark elves, share many similarities with the the Vel. They can draw forth elemental magic from their surroundings and use the powers of earth, fire, water, wind, or electricity. One must start studying the arts of elemental magics at a very young age to be able to wield the form they wish. Along side being able to manipulate elemental magic, they are also very agile and make great rogues as well as assassins, though many pick other paths. There is a council of elders which work with the people to help establish laws and improve upon the general way of life, while staying true to the teachings of The Mother. The Drow are a proud and strong people, that did not let themselves fall to slavery like the Vel. Their music has a darker but sweet tone to it, and tends to have a harp in it. They currently reside inside of a massive underground city that is built into the side of the Erathell Mountains and forest.
A rather agile and quick race of humanoids that have a cat-like appearance. Typically, they are nomads and travel around in convoys and caravans. tending to be merchants. Many are also guards for the traveling tribes and train with weaponry.
Other races may be introduced by players if they so desire, PM me info on your race that you would like contributed, and I will accept it or not if I deem it alright.
Key Words
As civilization grows, so does faith. After the Great Rebellion, countless churches were built across the planet in order to give praise to The Mother. However, due to beast and cruel people appearing across the world, more action was needed to take place. In addition to the Church, The Order was created in order to deal with world-wide situations. All races are welcome, due to it having been started by several different cultures and races. Members of the Order are commonly called Paladins, or by other members as Shield-brothers/sisters. The majority of members are Great Humans, as it's headquarters is established in the capital city and port of Carthis.
It should be noted that the maiden who sings the Dragon Lord to sleep is chosen from the Church, which mostly is made up of females.
The Church is headed by a council of priests and priestess. The Archbishop is Pope Edward, a Lesser Man at the age of fifty-five, who appears to not be touched by his ancestry at all. One could mistake him for a Greater Man.
The Great Rebellion was the war that took place years ago, spanning across every continent in the realm. The casualties were never accounted for, as the toll was too high to estimate. This event led up to the corruption of man, disconnecting The Divine Mother from directly intervening on the planet, beast to roam the countryside to cause chaos, and many more terrible consequences. The main goal of the uprising was for Artorias to ascend to godhood. It would have been possible for him too!
A Paladin is the title given by the people to warriors of The Order. Those who have earned this title have completed training in The Order and have become full members, able to take quests on their own. Paladins are seen as peacekeepers, problem solvers, and legends. Although not praised like gods, there is a huge amount of respect for them and what they do. Paladins mainly gain their power through calm and peace, with a lot of meditation and understanding. It is said that a Paladin can transform into angels, shining brightly in the battlefield as they chop down the servants of darkness. It's very far fetched.
A Shade is the term that people use for Paladin's turned corrupt. Seeing as it is corruption, only a Human can undergo this terrible transformation. A Shade is identified by the black mark of Artorias on their body. Once someone turns into a Shade, it will permanently be marked somewhere on them, one just has to look for it. For a Paladin to become a Shade, however, is very difficult. One must undergo a trauma that breaks their very minds. It is why Shade's are insane and lose all reason, even disobeying the command of Artorias if it becomes to burdening for them. Their power is fed off of raw emotion.
Character Sheet
Appearance(Description or picture):
Name:
Status(Everyone starts as alive, of course.)):
Age:
Race:
History:
About Them(Personality, interesting facts, etc.):
Weaponry:
Etc(Something you want to mention about them that you didn't mention before):
