Author Topic: Setting information and whatnot.  (Read 1475 times)

Offline Kuroimaken

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Setting information and whatnot.
« on: March 05, 2013, 11:35:16 AM »
Well, let's begin with a short history lesson.

Of the Twilight of the Gods

Or, why is the world so fucked up?


In a time long before now, the precise amount of which eludes sentientkind, there were hundreds, thousands of gods. Whimsical and humane in many ways, deities of various parts of the world often actively interfered with the lives of mortals, oftentimes creating trouble for them.

But the Gods had their enemies. Any of a number of reasons had made them come to pass, but the fact remains that all Gods had, on some level, a reason to fight. And not all gods were good - some of them were treacherous and dangerous, which led to their seclusion by their peers. And this seclusion led to a shift in the eternal balance of power between gods and demons, titans, giants and other myriad, powerful creatures.

One day, every imprisoned, sealed, malevolent enemy of the gods was released at once. In the greatest battle the multiverse ever witnessed, entire pantheons were drawn to a single, horrific battlefield in another plane.

The result of the battle is unclear to the murky vision of mortals. Theories abound: some say that god and nemesis alike perished, some say that their souls alone lived on and battle to this day while their rotting aether plagues the world. Some say the battle never ended at all.

What IS known is that from that day forward nothing was ever the same. The collective result of the battle is known as Twilight Fallout, or simply Fallout.

What the Fallout entails is this: every spark of magical power, every spell and every holy sword, every creature was forever tainted by these events. Bodies decay, the soul corrupts, and magic is the lifeblood through which this rot spreads. Because the world is entirely suffused with the essence of magic to begin with, and because everything, living or not, absorbs this to some degree, the entire world is cursed.

Magic and Corruption

Or, why some forms of magic are more fucked up than others


The curse of the Fallout itself is alive, sentient and malevolent. While it arguably cannot be communicated with directly, it clearly has a purpose. However, that purpose is murky at best. Fear seems to be one of its goals, in essence.

Here's how it works. Anything and everything that channels magic to any degree simultaneously channels Fallout. Because magic is widespread and because the Fallout itself is malevolent,  this causes changes on people in several levels, for the worse. The Fallout can, single-handedly, be counted responsible for bringing out the worst in every sentient species known to walk, fly, float, or swim - and very much any non-sentient species too. The process, however, does not work the same for everyone. The corruption is slow for some and quicker for others, as the Fallout connects in mysterious ways to different pieces of itself. The Fallout has, however, forever changed the way each spell is channeled through. No matter how different the method, each form of magic is nothing more than the taming of the madness within. The body fights this, and seeks to reject it, however unwillingly. For this reason, "regular" people (as in anyone who does not consciously or unconsciously use magic) are made instinctively aware of the curse within those who wield it - and are thus instinctively afraid of it. But spellcasters, magical creatures and such do not make that distinction, as they already tap into the curse within, severing this instinctual rejection.

Thus, disguised as he may be, a demon, vampire or any other supernatural creature may not be physically and rationally recognized for what it is, but on an instinctual level, "regular" people know.

The Murder Jewels, the Maidens and the Berserkers

Or, how to fight the fucked up when you're already fucked up


This instinctive property of the 'regulars' to detect and repel magic has led to an unusual tactic by hunters of the supernatural - the pairing of their holy warriors with regular people whose job is to sit on the sidelines and observe the situation. Because those chosen for this purpose are typically female in many cultures, they're known by the commonfolk as Maidens, whereas those who fight alongside them are typically known as Berserkers.

There was a flaw in this system, however - the Maidens typically made easier targets than their counterparts. Worse, some became so terrified by their experiences that they lost their honed instinct - this, when they did not become corrupted themselves in myriad ways.

Enter the Murder Jewels.

Known by many different names (Sakkiseki, Mord Juwel, Homicidium Iocale, to name a few), Murder Jewels are the byproduct of powerful alchemical research into the properties of the Fallout curse. By distilling the essence of that corruption and solidifying it, it became possible to isolate the powers and properties that made one lose their ability to sense the curse without stripping them of said abilities. Further, the Jewels enabled their users to gain more power for their abilities, store their memories within, and they even enabled the creation of magic items - an art that was lost to Fallout because the usual methods simply no longer worked as intended, creating horrible abominations instead of the tools they were meant to be.

And all it cost them was their sanity!

Today, Murder Jewels are commonplace in the world, with varying degrees of purity and potency. The ability to extract and create them from the remains of dead and undead alike (with varying degrees of success) has made possible a number of abilities and research beyond the scope that "pure" magic previously held.

Of course, the Jewels have their downside. While nothing permanent comes from using them as a component in magic item creation (usually anyway...), overusing the empowering ability of a Jewel hastens the effects of Fallout and causes creatures to slowly lose their minds, until they are controlled by the will of the curse itself, often going berserk with power- and bloodlust. Similarly, the process of sealing one's powers and/or memories within a Murder Jewel has a heavy toll, especially if the owner and the Jewel are separated, as it drives them mad, often reducing them to mere husks of their former selves.

Many, particularly those resistant to the effects of Fallout to begin with, find that the benefits outweight the risks...
Kami darou ga akuma darou ga, ore no michi ni tateru mono NASHI!!

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