Life in Hell [Community Worldbuilding Project]

[Pyre_Born]

I'll have to check out the drugs for emotions, sounds like what we need, at least a good starting point.

The thought about undead is something I was thinking about to.

With the Lich, think of the terror to a party of PC's when the phylactery is the entire plane!!!

Something else, Vampires...some campaign settings make it a specific sun that kills, some allow clouds to protect them. So what if Vampires no longer burst in to flames outside, they may still feel uncomfortable, but between the cloudy skies and the evil energies, what if it balances out the damage allowing them to wander freely...albeit at a painful pace.

Therianthropes (Lycanthropes), if we go with the eternal dullness of a constant cloudy day, how are Were creatures affected. Those that have control of their abilities may not be affected, but what about inflicted people?

I'll get some more thoughts up later, I'm catching a cold so I'm not sure when i'll get stuff posted.

Peace,
Pyre

[Pyre_Born]

It's been two days, but I'm feeling a little better...so time for more stuff, that is if anyone's home

The Catastrophe:

Spoiler

Show

As the sun set over the mountain range, all was calm, it seemed like an average day. The quiet was shattered as the earth began to shake and the sound of shattering glass echoed through the valley. As more and more people left their houses in hopes of seeing whatever was causing the disturbance, they were shocked. The sky itself was being ripped apart before their eyes, no one knew what was happening.

A ripple filled the air as a tugging sensation swept over the populace, as quickly as it had begun however it had ended. When eyes raised to the sky something was wrong. What had once been a cool night was now a warm cloudy day. The forest that had once grown on the outskirt of town was replaced with a barren field, no vegetation to be seen. If this had not been enough, structures began to crumble throughout the town as the panic erupted. Once thought echoed in every mind that day, "What happened?"

This was but one of countless areas ripped from their surroundings and abandoned in Hell. While some appeared much like this little hamlet, others were not so lucky. It seems the gods did not favor mortals on that fateful day. Alone and scarred, it's up to each individual to decide how these unfortunate circumstances will effect their lives.

Organizations:

The Church of the Walker

Spoiler

Show

The Church of the Walker, once known as the Church of the Whisperer, was a major religious faction on a material plane world. It's clergy received their divine orders through mysterious whispering, which gave orders and laws to them to hand down. Prophecy within the church said that in a time of great need their god would walk amongst them in physical form to save them from danger.

Prophecy was fulfilled when the material plane was sundered, and many were sent to Hell. With no idea of where they were, or what to expect, a figure approached the church. Claiming to be their god incarnate who was here to save his faithful. After a show of power he was accepted by his worshipers and took his rightful place as head of the church.

What began as recovery and aid from the clergy soon turned towards less savory business. It began with a public trial of an unfaithful man accused of conspiring with demons. The bloodshed did not end there however as a new order of the church appeared. The Inquisitors sole function was to root out diabolists and blashpemers. So happy to have someone to guide and protect them, the members of the church supported the witch hunts with a fervor.

Now it is common practice to turn in someone for witchcraft and demonic acts for the simplest of personal offenses. Why take revenge yourself when the church can do it for you?

What people don't know: The Whisperer was a Demon Lord that used his faithful to prepare mortals for his rule in hell. Through indoctrination, the masses of faithful gladly accepted the demon in angelic guise as their savior from damnation.

Prophets of the Celestial Crusade:

Spoiler

Show

As the planar connections began to sever, many of the celestial planes sent their servants to the material plane to assist the innocent after the catastrophe. Knowing they may never return to their heavenly home, these beings swore to aid the mortals at any cost, little did they know that their crusade would begin in Hell itself.

The Prophets seek to aid any and all mortal kingdoms that seek it. However after many battles and betrayals, the number of celestials is dwindling. Now their main goal is to reconnect the planes and return home.

With their numbers shrinking the need for mortal aid increases. Once solely an organization of higher beings, the Prophets are now composed of many species, most recently a small group of demons taken from the forge before being implanted with a personality. They seek to make these "unborn" into a source of soldiers that can be replenished.

Note: Don't have too much on this right now

The Torch Bearers:

Spoiler

Show

Everyone feared the dark at one time or another. Now however, there is very good reason to be afraid.

While Hell may be nothing but dangers, there are fewer dangers in well lit areas. The Torch Bearers are spellcasters with a specific focus. They are hired out to keep the settlement surrounded in revealing light. Special torches are crafted that reveal anything in it's glow as it truly is.

This is obviously a very sought after item. The torch bearers however are not in it for the good of mortal life. Only they can use the torches, and they charge as much as they need to for the use. After all, what good is an invention if you don't benefit from it?

Hell's new Urban Legend

Spoiler

Show

The Smoking Men
What the average person knows:
Tales are told in taverns all the time, and this is no different. A friend of a friend swears he say a person dressed in black wandering the streets. What's so strange about that, well I'll tell you! Smoke bellows from the guy, it's like a furnace walking down the street, almost like an invisible flame is devouring the poor fellow. But it's just a tale, my friends friend is the town drunk after all, I mean the other day he swore he saw a red guy with a pitchfork talking to a priest...

What's really going on:
Hell is a strange place for some creatures. The sky is clouded over and the energy isn't quite normal. A small clan of vampires knows this all too well. Harnessing the vile energies coursing the plane, and the limited sunlight filtering through the clouds, they have learned to temporarily walk in sunlight. Through focused manipulation of the energy, they can heal the damage done by light as it happens. While this is painful, it allows for quick escapes when their isn't a shady alley, or sewer system to use. Any way it's a little bit of a bonus, who's gonna get too close to a guy that looks like he's catching on fire?

Alright, got a little more up. I'm working on some stats for Black Bloods (Thinking a dual template, one while under the effects and one that replaces it when in withdrawal) and some Phasma stats.

Still trying to get some good fluff for towns and some more organizations.

Peace,
Pyre

[IcarusWings]

It's been two days, but I'm feeling a little better...so time for more stuff, that is if anyone's home

The Catastrophe:

Spoiler

Show

As the sun set over the mountain range, all was calm, it seemed like an average day. The quiet was shattered as the earth began to shake and the sound of shattering glass echoed through the valley. As more and more people left their houses in hopes of seeing whatever was causing the disturbance, they were shocked. The sky itself was being ripped apart before their eyes, no one knew what was happening.

A ripple filled the air as a tugging sensation swept over the populace, as quickly as it had begun however it had ended. When eyes raised to the sky something was wrong. What had once been a cool night was now a warm cloudy day. The forest that had once grown on the outskirt of town was replaced with a barren field, no vegetation to be seen. If this had not been enough, structures began to crumble throughout the town as the panic erupted. Once thought echoed in every mind that day, "What happened?"

This was but one of countless areas ripped from their surroundings and abandoned in Hell. While some appeared much like this little hamlet, others were not so lucky. It seems the gods did not favor mortals on that fateful day. Alone and scarred, it's up to each individual to decide how these unfortunate circumstances will effect their lives.

Cool

Organizations:

The Church of the Walker

Spoiler

Show

The Church of the Walker, once known as the Church of the Whisperer, was a major religious faction on a material plane world. It's clergy received their divine orders through mysterious whispering, which gave orders and laws to them to hand down. Prophecy within the church said that in a time of great need their god would walk amongst them in physical form to save them from danger.

Prophecy was fulfilled when the material plane was sundered, and many were sent to Hell. With no idea of where they were, or what to expect, a figure approached the church. Claiming to be their god incarnate who was here to save his faithful. After a show of power he was accepted by his worshipers and took his rightful place as head of the church.

What began as recovery and aid from the clergy soon turned towards less savory business. It began with a public trial of an unfaithful man accused of conspiring with demons. The bloodshed did not end there however as a new order of the church appeared. The Inquisitors sole function was to root out diabolists and blashpemers. So happy to have someone to guide and protect them, the members of the church supported the witch hunts with a fervor.

Now it is common practice to turn in someone for witchcraft and demonic acts for the simplest of personal offenses. Why take revenge yourself when the church can do it for you?

What people don't know: The Whisperer was a Demon Lord that used his faithful to prepare mortals for his rule in hell. Through indoctrination, the masses of faithful gladly accepted the demon in angelic guise as their savior from damnation.

Also very cool

Prophets of the Celestial Crusade:

Spoiler

Show

As the planar connections began to sever, many of the celestial planes sent their servants to the material plane to assist the innocent after the catastrophe. Knowing they may never return to their heavenly home, these beings swore to aid the mortals at any cost, little did they know that their crusade would begin in Hell itself.

The Prophets seek to aid any and all mortal kingdoms that seek it. However after many battles and betrayals, the number of celestials is dwindling. Now their main goal is to reconnect the planes and return home.

With their numbers shrinking the need for mortal aid increases. Once solely an organization of higher beings, the Prophets are now composed of many species, most recently a small group of demons taken from the forge before being implanted with a personality. They seek to make these "unborn" into a source of soldiers that can be replenished.

Note: Don't have too much on this right now

Aw, shucks. I had pretty much exactly the same idea that I was developing (except I also had some of the celestials not being able to take being severed from their home plane and wnet absolutely mental).

The Torch Bearers:

Spoiler

Show

Everyone feared the dark at one time or another. Now however, there is very good reason to be afraid.

While Hell may be nothing but dangers, there are fewer dangers in well lit areas. The Torch Bearers are spellcasters with a specific focus. They are hired out to keep the settlement surrounded in revealing light. Special torches are crafted that reveal anything in it's glow as it truly is.

This is obviously a very sought after item. The torch bearers however are not in it for the good of mortal life. Only they can use the torches, and they charge as much as they need to for the use. After all, what good is an invention if you don't benefit from it?

So a torch that radiates true seeing? Would definitely be highly sought after. I think the Inquisition will have to ban it as witchcraft though (people still use it, just it's on the black market) as otherwise it removes the whole thing about them accusing innocent people of being demons, if they can see who is a demon or not (it might also lead to them seeing that the Whisperer is a demon himself).

Hell's new Urban Legend

Spoiler

Show

The Smoking Men
What the average person knows:
Tales are told in taverns all the time, and this is no different. A friend of a friend swears he say a person dressed in black wandering the streets. What's so strange about that, well I'll tell you! Smoke bellows from the guy, it's like a furnace walking down the street, almost like an invisible flame is devouring the poor fellow. But it's just a tale, my friends friend is the town drunk after all, I mean the other day he swore he saw a red guy with a pitchfork talking to a priest...

What's really going on:
Hell is a strange place for some creatures. The sky is clouded over and the energy isn't quite normal. A small clan of vampires knows this all too well. Harnessing the vile energies coursing the plane, and the limited sunlight filtering through the clouds, they have learned to temporarily walk in sunlight. Through focused manipulation of the energy, they can heal the damage done by light as it happens. While this is painful, it allows for quick escapes when their isn't a shady alley, or sewer system to use. Any way it's a little bit of a bonus, who's gonna get too close to a guy that looks like he's catching on fire?

Pretty cool

Alright, got a little more up. I'm working on some stats for Black Bloods (Thinking a dual template, one while under the effects and one that replaces it when in withdrawal) and some Phasma stats.

Still trying to get some good fluff for towns and some more organizations.

Peace,
Pyre

Ok, now that I don't have to work on Salvation's Bastion (my version of the celestial thing) I should be able to finish my ideas soon.

[Pyre_Born]

Cool
Aw, shucks. I had pretty much exactly the same idea that I was developing (except I also had some of the celestials not being able to take being severed from their home plane and wnet absolutely mental).

Feel free to cannibalize the prophets for your organization. What I wrote is all I could think of for the group, so use what will help you out. Maybe between what we've both got we can flesh out the group some more.

So a torch that radiates true seeing? Would definitely be highly sought after. I think the Inquisition will have to ban it as witchcraft though (people still use it, just it's on the black market) as otherwise it removes the whole thing about them accusing innocent people of being demons, if they can see who is a demon or not (it might also lead to them seeing that the Whisperer is a demon himself).

Good call, I hadn't thought about that, the Inquisition would definitely not be friendly towards the Torch Bearers. Maybe the Torch Bearers attempted to sell their goods in every town but soon became shunned when settlements that they were active in became the focus of the Inquisition. So now the only places that actively support the group (as in not buying black market) are those areas that can actively oppose the Church?

Ok, now that I don't have to work on Salvation's Bastion (my version of the celestial thing) I should be able to finish my ideas soon.

Sounds good, can't wait to see what you've got.

If you or anyone has some thoughts that you can't flesh out or don't have time to work out, let me know and I'll get some rough ideas up to help out. Those are the benefits of working at home, I've got the free time

Peace,
Pyre


Edit!!!


(link for easy copy paste: http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...LifeInHell.png)
Here is a banner I threw together in a few seconds if anyone wants to use it!

[akma]

There is something you forgot to talk about: food and water.
Food will be hard to get in hell, so how will people survive? Maybe they are forced to eat demon flash, and in times of desparation, each other?
What about plants? Will humans be forced to give up agriculture? I`m sure there is some visual feature that can be used to identify people who only eat meat in real life. How will hell plants look like?
Water will also be problamatic. It could be magically stolen from some outside source, which might lead to retaliation.
And some might put magical proccess on themselves that will end the need of eating and drinking - and they will be witch hunted, as they will not depend on the church.

Also, what if the catastrophe that ended the metariel plane was on purpose? What if it was caused by demon lords so they will gain power, or by powers that hate demons that want to drag mortals into the war?

[IcarusWings]

*raise thread from the depths of HEEEEEELL*

(hasn't been dead for nearly long enough to be classified as necro, but what the hell (see what I did there), it's fun).

Feel free to cannibalize the prophets for your organization. What I wrote is all I could think of for the group, so use what will help you out. Maybe between what we've both got we can flesh out the group some more.

Yeah, between us, we'll get something sorted. I'll have my stuff up soon, and then we can pool our ideas together.

Good call, I hadn't thought about that, the Inquisition would definitely not be friendly towards the Torch Bearers. Maybe the Torch Bearers attempted to sell their goods in every town but soon became shunned when settlements that they were active in became the focus of the Inquisition. So now the only places that actively support the group (as in not buying black market) are those areas that can actively oppose the Church?

Yeah, the idea of shunning people who are just trying to help out. Maybe persecuting some of the Torch Bearers as witches themselves?

Sounds good, can't wait to see what you've got.

If you or anyone has some thoughts that you can't flesh out or don't have time to work out, let me know and I'll get some rough ideas up to help out. Those are the benefits of working at home, I've got the free time

Edit!!!


(link for easy copy paste: http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...LifeInHell.png)
Here is a banner I threw together in a few seconds if anyone wants to use it!

LAAAAAAAAAARVE the banner, sig'd.

And now to an idea...

The Shatterlands

Spoiler

Show

The Exodus to Hell saved countless souls from death, but it was not flawless. Many people were still left on the broken remnants of the Prime Material.
About 100 years after the Exodus, a group of mages finally managed to reopen the portal to the Prime Material Plane. Overcome with joy, they rushed out, eager to return to their homes. But what they found was no better than Hell itself.
The Prime Material had been torn apart, and now consisted of hundreds of broken shards, each no bigger than a single town, floating about in the astral plane.
The residents of these Shards as they were known, had seemingly fared even worse than their brethren in hell. And now float about on the Shards, eking out an existence.

And an idea related to that

The Burghs

Spoiler

Show

Desperate for more land to sustain themselves, many shard-dwellers have been boading other shards and attaching them to their own, slowly growing their city. These patchwork cities are known as Burghs.
If the citizens of a Burgh find an uninhabited Shard, they find a way to attatch it to their own, some magically, other Burghs just use rope. If they find an inhabited shard, some will offer alliance and they will merge their cities; but for other, darkly inclined, Burghs, an encounter would mean only conquest.

[akma]

The Shatterlands

Spoiler

Show

The Exodus to Hell saved countless souls from death, but it was not flawless. Many people were still left on the broken remnants of the Prime Material.
About 100 years after the Exodus, a group of mages finally managed to reopen the portal to the Prime Material Plane. Overcome with joy, they rushed out, eager to return to their homes. But what they found was no better than Hell itself.
The Prime Material had been torn apart, and now consisted of hundreds of broken shards, each no bigger than a single town, floating about in the astral plane.
The residents of these Shards as they were known, had seemingly fared even worse than their brethren in hell. And now float about on the Shards, eking out an existence.

They could also hold grudge against the other humans who abondoned them, and seek revenge, and going to hell. Maybe even allieing themselves with demons just to have revenge.

[IcarusWings]

They could also hold grudge against the other humans who abondoned them, and seek revenge, and going to hell. Maybe even allieing themselves with demons just to have revenge.

Yeah definitely, maybe not allying with demons, but a huge grudge and some of the more violent Burghs would probably mount raiding parties through the portal

[Pyre_Born]

Yeah, between us, we'll get something sorted. I'll have my stuff up soon, and then we can pool our ideas together.

Sounds good, I'll get some more stuff around to post, let's keep this thread alive!!!

Yeah, the idea of shunning people who are just trying to help out. Maybe persecuting some of the Torch Bearers as witches themselves?

Yeah, have the clergy turn the whole idea around on 'em. Who is the populace gonna believe, the Mages that they assume caused all this, saying they're helping, or the clergy, who will more than likely say that the Torch Bearers are trying to make people look like demons to gain power?

LAAAAAAAAAARVE the banner, sig'd.

Glad you like it

The Shatterlands

Spoiler

Show

The Exodus to Hell saved countless souls from death, but it was not flawless. Many people were still left on the broken remnants of the Prime Material.
About 100 years after the Exodus, a group of mages finally managed to reopen the portal to the Prime Material Plane. Overcome with joy, they rushed out, eager to return to their homes. But what they found was no better than Hell itself.
The Prime Material had been torn apart, and now consisted of hundreds of broken shards, each no bigger than a single town, floating about in the astral plane.
The residents of these Shards as they were known, had seemingly fared even worse than their brethren in hell. And now float about on the Shards, eking out an existence.

I like it, a chance for hope that doesn't truly pan out that way.

The Burghs

Spoiler

Show

Desperate for more land to sustain themselves, many shard-dwellers have been boading other shards and attaching them to their own, slowly growing their city. These patchwork cities are known as Burghs.
If the citizens of a Burgh find an uninhabited Shard, they find a way to attatch it to their own, some magically, other Burghs just use rope. If they find an inhabited shard, some will offer alliance and they will merge their cities; but for other, darkly inclined, Burghs, an encounter would mean only conquest.

I like it, definitely gets ideas popping into my head.

Great ideas IcarusWings, brings a lot of options to the table, and def gets the thought process rolling.

@Akma about food

I've been thinking about it, but i'm trying to come up with something other than Mages fix it!

Cannibalism and Demon Flesh cuisine are good ideas. Not to mention that to keep slaves, the Demons would have some way to feed them. Which would allow for supply runs, attacking slave houses to resupply.

Mages fix it will be a solution for the wealthy, using magic (probably secretly) to supply what they need.

The Church or some independent towns could do the same thing, make just enough items to feed the populace to the minimum making the people dependent on them. Possibly even stopping any group from taking that dependence away from them, thus keeping the population under their heel.

I'll write up some stuff tonight an hopefully get it posted tonight too.

Peace,
Pyre

[akma]

I also feel that eating demons flash should have some unique effect on mortals, I`ll let you decide which effect. Maybe even a diffrent effect for each kind of demon.
Also, how will demon blood effect vampires?

[Pyre_Born]

I also feel that eating demons flash should have some unique effect on mortals, I`ll let you decide which effect. Maybe even a different effect for each kind of demon.
Also, how will demon blood effect vampires?

I'll work on some ideas for these, I think first we need to get a rough list of:
A) The most common demons, and some fluff for them
B) What demons would be considered rare and expensive with some fluff.

But I'll still get some ideas together to work for Demon Flesh and we can always make some Demons from that too.

So, a community question, are we gonna use the demons, devils, yugoloths etc from the rule/splat books and just add on from there?

As for Vampires, I'm really not sure yet, I'd say that some demons could empower the vampires, or even the vile energy within the blood could act like alcohol to them. Which could also act as a new defense against vamps, add some demon blood to someone and use them as bait, once they feed the Vamps get drunk...bloody hilarity ensues? (Although i guess it's not funny to the bait )

@Akma: I'm taking a look at your Ghost Tech thread later and I'll try to get some ideas posted over there to help out some.

Peace,
Pyre

[akma]

I'll work on some ideas for these, I think first we need to get a rough list of:
A) The most common demons, and some fluff for them
B) What demons would be considered rare and expensive with some fluff.

Since they are artifically created, the most usefull should be the most common. The rare ones should be the ones that least usefull, most powerfull or the original primal demons, that weren`t created artifically (maybe not all of them became powerfull enough to be demon lords?).
Some soldier demons for diffrent rules would be a good start (air, ground, underground, aquatic, buffers, healers, archers...).

So, a community question, are we gonna use the demons, devils, yugoloths etc from the rule/splat books and just add on from there?

Yes, but instead of the listed alignment it would be some evil, so there could be chaotic devils, and decide that law-chaos alignment by individuals or demon lords. Maybe give up some fiends that are too similiar. Also, it would be nice if each demon lord will have some type/types of fiends that only he has.
I also think that all the fiends in the world would be just referred as demons by mortals.

@Akma: I'm taking a look at your Ghost Tech thread later and I'll try to get some ideas posted over there to help out some.

Great

[Randel]

Some IDeas:

Brown Mold - The mold that feeds off of heat is a stable food in Hell or at least a vital part of its ecosystem. There are different types of Brown Mold, haivng grown in Hell for eons.

Moist Mold is the most common, it sucks up heat from the admosphere enough to cause condensation and soaking itself with moisture. It is commonly found in normally hot areas like in deserts. It doesn't get early cold enough to freeze water or cause damage and can't survive in areas around volcanoes. It needs soil to survive although demons ave cultivated it using feces or dead bodies.

Frost Mold - The type of Mold most commonly refered to as Borwn Mold by mortals. This absorbs more heat from the air and is commonly found near volcanoes, sometimes even next to the lava flows. It sucks enoguh heat from the air to cause damage to living things but has the tendancy to freeze itself with ice occasionllay which kills it. Frost Mold patches tend to have spots and blotches where some of the mold froze itself and died while the others are okay. When a patch dies of frost the frost tends to melt into water until the patch grows back.

Frost Cacti - A symbiotic fungal plant that grows with Frost Mold, it soaks up the water that results from frost mold freezing it, dying, and then having the ice thaw. Frost Cacti soak up water and keep it insulated in their barrels so that it doesn't freeze. They grow fruit which often fall off by themselves or are picked by people who spread the seeds. The fruit has a thick peel around it to protect its inside from frost.

Frost Cacti anf Frost Mold often grow around volcanoes and extract water from the air via condensation. The patches haven't overrrun Hell due to the variety of life that eats them and their tendancy to kill themselves with their own ice. Frost Mold that is taken to areas without a suffiicently hot and dry atmosphere quickly die as a result of freezing.


Hellworms - Like gigantic earthworms, Hellworms dig through the ground eating dirt, extracting nutrients and then excreting fertilizer for plants. They grow to be about the size of large snakes and have powerful regenerative abilities, cutting one in half results in two Hellworms that can eventually regrow to their origional size. Hellworms may mate with eachother but they most often reproduce by splitting in half. Strangley enough, they have no true head but both ends function as both heads and tails... they might eat with one end and excrete with the other one day before swtching the direction of their digestive track and going the other way the next.

Hellworms are a staple food in Hell and mortals suffer no ill effects from eating their meat. However, the Hellworms are tricky to capture since they dig underground and only come up when their tunnels get flooded. They are generally not violent but they can twist around people and try to strangle them, if it looksl like they are going to be killed then the Hellworm will split itself into two halves and each half tries to escape. Hellworm Hunters who can kill a Hellworm whole or capture both halves of it are considered experts.



The Grey Legion - When the Prime Material Plane was shattered and cut off from the rest of the planes, the souls of those who died had no place to dgo. Thus, in those first moments after the cataclysm, countelss mortals died with no afterlife to go to. They became ghosts and zombies, doomed to wander the shattered plane.

However, a group of undead had survived the cataclysm and found that the sun no longer tormented them. The Prime Material Plane wasn't negativley charged but neither was it positivly charged. It had in effect become neutral and both undead and living could live there comfortably... well, sort of.

With the world shattered into Burghs and food and water scarce, the undead had an advantage over the surviving mortals in that they no longer needed to eat. The Grey Legion was born when groups of undead gathered together to protect the remaining mortals. Using necromantic magic, the intelligent members of the Grey Legion went out to find all the unintelligent undead and bind them to their will. Further, they would expand their power and protect the various mortal villages.

The Grey Legion is dedicated to controlling the Prime Material Plane and to get a semblance of order going on. Their opinion is that since Heaven and Hell have been severed from the Prime that the souls no longer go to afterlives and Undeath is the new natural order. They seek to put all souls in the Material Plane under their control, namely the Undead to ensure that they don't cause trouble.

All members of the Grey Legion wear grey robes that cover their bodies. They have been organizing themselvves in ways to better control the shattered material plane. Vampires act as diplomats working with the mortals (Vampires often seek payment in the form of blood extracted harmlessly from willing participants), the various flying undead patrol the skies looking for survivors or attackers or anything of interest. And the various mindless undead are all captured and put under the command of the Legion where they serve as low ranking troops or workers.


The Swarm - Various creatures cpable of flight have found the new world to be quite advantageous for them. Harpies, dragons, and the various winged creatures all grouped up into varous tribes and gangs. The most powerful of these is the Swarm who have spread themselves to numerous Burgs and declared themselves the rulers of the inhabitants therein. They see creatures of flight as superior to creatures on the ground and that land creatures should serve their masters (some of the more generous Swarm members might help move the various Burghs together to expand their land).


The Grey Legion and the Swarm are among the most powerful groups in the present material plane due to their access to flying members. Both groups have been scouring the plane and mapping the various shards of the world... some even have reported seeing rifts in space where there might be connections to other planes. The Grey Legion has discovered a few links ot the afterlife planes, and further that mortals who die within a certain distance of these rifts will not rise as undead.

The Grey Legion is suspicious of anyone from Hell and believes that Hell might try to take over the remains of the material plane. Both the Swarm and the Grey Legion seek to become the masters of the material plane (just as the demons are the masters of Hell and the Angels are the masters of Heaven). Both Heaven and Hell seem to be populated by creatures formed of mortal souls and have been 'leeching' off of the Prime Material for eons.

The Grey Legion feels that the undead should rule the Prime Material so that souls born there would stay and remain there.

The Swarm feels similar except that they don't really care about the afterlife stuff. The winged creatures have seen themselves overpowered by the lesser races due to humanities growing numbers and fortifications, now the Prime Material belongs to the dragons and harpies and flocks of birds!

(note: I'm figuring the Grey Legion and the Swarm would be like two neutral sides who are trying to take control of the Prime Material so that it is united similar to Heaven and Hell. The Legion wants a united (lawful) Prime Material where the souls of the dead stay around as undead and all are controled and given a place in the Legion. The Swarm is a bit more chaotic with all the various flying creatures wanting their own spot in the world with landwalking slaves stuck on islands where they can be pushed around to serve their winged masters.

[Pyre_Born]

Spoiler

Show

Some IDeas:

Brown Mold - The mold that feeds off of heat is a stable food in Hell or at least a vital part of its ecosystem. There are different types of Brown Mold, haivng grown in Hell for eons.

Moist Mold is the most common, it sucks up heat from the admosphere enough to cause condensation and soaking itself with moisture. It is commonly found in normally hot areas like in deserts. It doesn't get early cold enough to freeze water or cause damage and can't survive in areas around volcanoes. It needs soil to survive although demons ave cultivated it using feces or dead bodies.

Frost Mold - The type of Mold most commonly refered to as Borwn Mold by mortals. This absorbs more heat from the air and is commonly found near volcanoes, sometimes even next to the lava flows. It sucks enoguh heat from the air to cause damage to living things but has the tendancy to freeze itself with ice occasionllay which kills it. Frost Mold patches tend to have spots and blotches where some of the mold froze itself and died while the others are okay. When a patch dies of frost the frost tends to melt into water until the patch grows back.

Frost Cacti - A symbiotic fungal plant that grows with Frost Mold, it soaks up the water that results from frost mold freezing it, dying, and then having the ice thaw. Frost Cacti soak up water and keep it insulated in their barrels so that it doesn't freeze. They grow fruit which often fall off by themselves or are picked by people who spread the seeds. The fruit has a thick peel around it to protect its inside from frost.

Frost Cacti anf Frost Mold often grow around volcanoes and extract water from the air via condensation. The patches haven't overrrun Hell due to the variety of life that eats them and their tendancy to kill themselves with their own ice. Frost Mold that is taken to areas without a suffiicently hot and dry atmosphere quickly die as a result of freezing.


Hellworms - Like gigantic earthworms, Hellworms dig through the ground eating dirt, extracting nutrients and then excreting fertilizer for plants. They grow to be about the size of large snakes and have powerful regenerative abilities, cutting one in half results in two Hellworms that can eventually regrow to their origional size. Hellworms may mate with eachother but they most often reproduce by splitting in half. Strangley enough, they have no true head but both ends function as both heads and tails... they might eat with one end and excrete with the other one day before swtching the direction of their digestive track and going the other way the next.

Hellworms are a staple food in Hell and mortals suffer no ill effects from eating their meat. However, the Hellworms are tricky to capture since they dig underground and only come up when their tunnels get flooded. They are generally not violent but they can twist around people and try to strangle them, if it looksl like they are going to be killed then the Hellworm will split itself into two halves and each half tries to escape. Hellworm Hunters who can kill a Hellworm whole or capture both halves of it are considered experts.



The Grey Legion - When the Prime Material Plane was shattered and cut off from the rest of the planes, the souls of those who died had no place to dgo. Thus, in those first moments after the cataclysm, countelss mortals died with no afterlife to go to. They became ghosts and zombies, doomed to wander the shattered plane.

However, a group of undead had survived the cataclysm and found that the sun no longer tormented them. The Prime Material Plane wasn't negativley charged but neither was it positivly charged. It had in effect become neutral and both undead and living could live there comfortably... well, sort of.

With the world shattered into Burghs and food and water scarce, the undead had an advantage over the surviving mortals in that they no longer needed to eat. The Grey Legion was born when groups of undead gathered together to protect the remaining mortals. Using necromantic magic, the intelligent members of the Grey Legion went out to find all the unintelligent undead and bind them to their will. Further, they would expand their power and protect the various mortal villages.

The Grey Legion is dedicated to controlling the Prime Material Plane and to get a semblance of order going on. Their opinion is that since Heaven and Hell have been severed from the Prime that the souls no longer go to afterlives and Undeath is the new natural order. They seek to put all souls in the Material Plane under their control, namely the Undead to ensure that they don't cause trouble.

All members of the Grey Legion wear grey robes that cover their bodies. They have been organizing themselvves in ways to better control the shattered material plane. Vampires act as diplomats working with the mortals (Vampires often seek payment in the form of blood extracted harmlessly from willing participants), the various flying undead patrol the skies looking for survivors or attackers or anything of interest. And the various mindless undead are all captured and put under the command of the Legion where they serve as low ranking troops or workers.


The Swarm - Various creatures cpable of flight have found the new world to be quite advantageous for them. Harpies, dragons, and the various winged creatures all grouped up into varous tribes and gangs. The most powerful of these is the Swarm who have spread themselves to numerous Burgs and declared themselves the rulers of the inhabitants therein. They see creatures of flight as superior to creatures on the ground and that land creatures should serve their masters (some of the more generous Swarm members might help move the various Burghs together to expand their land).


The Grey Legion and the Swarm are among the most powerful groups in the present material plane due to their access to flying members. Both groups have been scouring the plane and mapping the various shards of the world... some even have reported seeing rifts in space where there might be connections to other planes. The Grey Legion has discovered a few links ot the afterlife planes, and further that mortals who die within a certain distance of these rifts will not rise as undead.

The Grey Legion is suspicious of anyone from Hell and believes that Hell might try to take over the remains of the material plane. Both the Swarm and the Grey Legion seek to become the masters of the material plane (just as the demons are the masters of Hell and the Angels are the masters of Heaven). Both Heaven and Hell seem to be populated by creatures formed of mortal souls and have been 'leeching' off of the Prime Material for eons.

The Grey Legion feels that the undead should rule the Prime Material so that souls born there would stay and remain there.

The Swarm feels similar except that they don't really care about the afterlife stuff. The winged creatures have seen themselves overpowered by the lesser races due to humanities growing numbers and fortifications, now the Prime Material belongs to the dragons and harpies and flocks of birds!

(note: I'm figuring the Grey Legion and the Swarm would be like two neutral sides who are trying to take control of the Prime Material so that it is united similar to Heaven and Hell. The Legion wants a united (lawful) Prime Material where the souls of the dead stay around as undead and all are controled and given a place in the Legion. The Swarm is a bit more chaotic with all the various flying creatures wanting their own spot in the world with landwalking slaves stuck on islands where they can be pushed around to serve their winged masters.

I like those ideas, the sources of food and water are a nice touch, and the groups sound pretty good. Glad we've got some more people posting here

Some ideas I've got going:
What would everyone think if I took a little time and got a Demon "class" together, something with a table of progression from CR 1 to whatever and made a list of abilities from all the OGL demons and devils I can find. Basically a toolkit to make Demon creation easier. I figure since most non Demon lords are created, it would be like a DM's forge for creatures. I can get the Type/Subtype stuff, and abilities, we'd just have to figure out how to organize it into a plug-n-play creation template.

Some groups/towns/ideas:
I'm thinking, what about Demons that went to the Material Plane to flee hell, the ones that wandered the world gaining power outside of the Demon Lords major influence. What are they going to think about being back in hell, and better yet, how ticked off are the Demon Lords gonna be when they find out the banished demons have returned. This could lead to some interesting pairings, with Demons protecting mortal settlements, Mortals selling demons for protection, things like that.

How is the Church going to react to the Shards, and the Material Plane connections? How are people going to react when their clergy states that a return to the place that was once their home is forbidden. From the church's view it puts their servants further from their grasp once again. But some of the faithful may start to waver in their belief over this new rule.

The Utopians:
When word reached the masses that connections were made to their home plane many were happy, some were worried...others began to scheme. Hell may not be paradise, but they've grown accustomed to it over the years. Then someone got the bright idea of uniting the two planes. Why move when you can merge your home with another. What could go wrong after all, it will obviously bring the best of both worlds together into one Utopia after all, right?

My ideas on this are that they have grown to realize that living in hell has given them power over those in fear, however they still struggle for survival. They believe that if they merge Hell and the Material Plane, Hell will remain and the Shards will merge into it. They think that this will allow them to remain in power but also negate some of the planar effects that make life difficult. Who knows if it'll work, but I'm guessing it's a safe bet that no one else wants to test the theory.

I'll try and get more up later.

Peace,
Pyre

[IcarusWings]

Spoiler'd for Length

Spoiler

Show

Some IDeas:

Brown Mold - The mold that feeds off of heat is a stable food in Hell or at least a vital part of its ecosystem. There are different types of Brown Mold, haivng grown in Hell for eons.

Moist Mold is the most common, it sucks up heat from the admosphere enough to cause condensation and soaking itself with moisture. It is commonly found in normally hot areas like in deserts. It doesn't get early cold enough to freeze water or cause damage and can't survive in areas around volcanoes. It needs soil to survive although demons ave cultivated it using feces or dead bodies.

Frost Mold - The type of Mold most commonly refered to as Borwn Mold by mortals. This absorbs more heat from the air and is commonly found near volcanoes, sometimes even next to the lava flows. It sucks enoguh heat from the air to cause damage to living things but has the tendancy to freeze itself with ice occasionllay which kills it. Frost Mold patches tend to have spots and blotches where some of the mold froze itself and died while the others are okay. When a patch dies of frost the frost tends to melt into water until the patch grows back.

Frost Cacti - A symbiotic fungal plant that grows with Frost Mold, it soaks up the water that results from frost mold freezing it, dying, and then having the ice thaw. Frost Cacti soak up water and keep it insulated in their barrels so that it doesn't freeze. They grow fruit which often fall off by themselves or are picked by people who spread the seeds. The fruit has a thick peel around it to protect its inside from frost.

Frost Cacti anf Frost Mold often grow around volcanoes and extract water from the air via condensation. The patches haven't overrrun Hell due to the variety of life that eats them and their tendancy to kill themselves with their own ice. Frost Mold that is taken to areas without a suffiicently hot and dry atmosphere quickly die as a result of freezing.


Hellworms - Like gigantic earthworms, Hellworms dig through the ground eating dirt, extracting nutrients and then excreting fertilizer for plants. They grow to be about the size of large snakes and have powerful regenerative abilities, cutting one in half results in two Hellworms that can eventually regrow to their origional size. Hellworms may mate with eachother but they most often reproduce by splitting in half. Strangley enough, they have no true head but both ends function as both heads and tails... they might eat with one end and excrete with the other one day before swtching the direction of their digestive track and going the other way the next.

Hellworms are a staple food in Hell and mortals suffer no ill effects from eating their meat. However, the Hellworms are tricky to capture since they dig underground and only come up when their tunnels get flooded. They are generally not violent but they can twist around people and try to strangle them, if it looksl like they are going to be killed then the Hellworm will split itself into two halves and each half tries to escape. Hellworm Hunters who can kill a Hellworm whole or capture both halves of it are considered experts.

Can't see many problems with this, it works. But remember that the molds and stuff can't feed all of hell, as this hell isn't the same as the stereotypical one and isn't hot all over.

The Grey Legion - When the Prime Material Plane was shattered and cut off from the rest of the planes, the souls of those who died had no place to dgo. Thus, in those first moments after the cataclysm, countelss mortals died with no afterlife to go to. They became ghosts and zombies, doomed to wander the shattered plane.

However, a group of undead had survived the cataclysm and found that the sun no longer tormented them. The Prime Material Plane wasn't negativley charged but neither was it positivly charged. It had in effect become neutral and both undead and living could live there comfortably... well, sort of.

With the world shattered into Burghs and food and water scarce, the undead had an advantage over the surviving mortals in that they no longer needed to eat. The Grey Legion was born when groups of undead gathered together to protect the remaining mortals. Using necromantic magic, the intelligent members of the Grey Legion went out to find all the unintelligent undead and bind them to their will. Further, they would expand their power and protect the various mortal villages.

The Grey Legion is dedicated to controlling the Prime Material Plane and to get a semblance of order going on. Their opinion is that since Heaven and Hell have been severed from the Prime that the souls no longer go to afterlives and Undeath is the new natural order. They seek to put all souls in the Material Plane under their control, namely the Undead to ensure that they don't cause trouble.

All members of the Grey Legion wear grey robes that cover their bodies. They have been organizing themselvves in ways to better control the shattered material plane. Vampires act as diplomats working with the mortals (Vampires often seek payment in the form of blood extracted harmlessly from willing participants), the various flying undead patrol the skies looking for survivors or attackers or anything of interest. And the various mindless undead are all captured and put under the command of the Legion where they serve as low ranking troops or workers.

I do like this, gives an air of even more pressure and struggle for the dwellers of the Burghs.

The Swarm - Various creatures cpable of flight have found the new world to be quite advantageous for them. Harpies, dragons, and the various winged creatures all grouped up into varous tribes and gangs. The most powerful of these is the Swarm who have spread themselves to numerous Burgs and declared themselves the rulers of the inhabitants therein. They see creatures of flight as superior to creatures on the ground and that land creatures should serve their masters (some of the more generous Swarm members might help move the various Burghs together to expand their land).

I'm really not feeling to hot on the Swarm though. They don't have any reason to be together other than they fly and they think landcrawlers are puny. I just can't see that much unity stemming from a common interest that can't be all of the races (e.g. not all dragon's would agree with this and they would decide to help out landcrawlers, which negates the Swarm's whole advantage of flight).

The Grey Legion and the Swarm are among the most powerful groups in the present material plane due to their access to flying members. Both groups have been scouring the plane and mapping the various shards of the world... some even have reported seeing rifts in space where there might be connections to other planes. The Grey Legion has discovered a few links ot the afterlife planes, and further that mortals who die within a certain distance of these rifts will not rise as undead.

The Grey Legion is suspicious of anyone from Hell and believes that Hell might try to take over the remains of the material plane. Both the Swarm and the Grey Legion seek to become the masters of the material plane (just as the demons are the masters of Hell and the Angels are the masters of Heaven). Both Heaven and Hell seem to be populated by creatures formed of mortal souls and have been 'leeching' off of the Prime Material for eons.

The Grey Legion feels that the undead should rule the Prime Material so that souls born there would stay and remain there.

The Swarm feels similar except that they don't really care about the afterlife stuff. The winged creatures have seen themselves overpowered by the lesser races due to humanities growing numbers and fortifications, now the Prime Material belongs to the dragons and harpies and flocks of birds!

(note: I'm figuring the Grey Legion and the Swarm would be like two neutral sides who are trying to take control of the Prime Material so that it is united similar to Heaven and Hell. The Legion wants a united (lawful) Prime Material where the souls of the dead stay around as undead and all are controled and given a place in the Legion. The Swarm is a bit more chaotic with all the various flying creatures wanting their own spot in the world with landwalking slaves stuck on islands where they can be pushed around to serve their winged masters.

Right, like I said before I don't really like the swarm. But taking them out would remove the war between two sides and mortals trapped in the middle aspect (well most of the Swarm are mortals, but that's not the point). Do you think we can try to come up with another faction?

Now Pyre Born's stuff...

Spoiler

Show

Some ideas I've got going:
What would everyone think if I took a little time and got a Demon "class" together, something with a table of progression from CR 1 to whatever and made a list of abilities from all the OGL demons and devils I can find. Basically a toolkit to make Demon creation easier. I figure since most non Demon lords are created, it would be like a DM's forge for creatures. I can get the Type/Subtype stuff, and abilities, we'd just have to figure out how to organize it into a plug-n-play creation template.

Sure sounds great, knock yourself out.

Some groups/towns/ideas:
I'm thinking, what about Demons that went to the Material Plane to flee hell, the ones that wandered the world gaining power outside of the Demon Lords major influence. What are they going to think about being back in hell, and better yet, how ticked off are the Demon Lords gonna be when they find out the banished demons have returned. This could lead to some interesting pairings, with Demons protecting mortal settlements, Mortals selling demons for protection, things like that.

Ooooooooh, nice. I like it.

How is the Church going to react to the Shards, and the Material Plane connections? How are people going to react when their clergy states that a return to the place that was once their home is forbidden. From the church's view it puts their servants further from their grasp once again. But some of the faithful may start to waver in their belief over this new rule.

Hadn't thought of that, I just assumed that most people wouldn't want to go back because, if anything, life was even harder on the Shards than in Hell. I assume yeah, it wouldn't people going, and it wouldn't want people who've gone to the Shards coming back.

The Utopians:
When word reached the masses that connections were made to their home plane many were happy, some were worried...others began to scheme. Hell may not be paradise, but they've grown accustomed to it over the years. Then someone got the bright idea of uniting the two planes. Why move when you can merge your home with another. What could go wrong after all, it will obviously bring the best of both worlds together into one Utopia after all, right?

My ideas on this are that they have grown to realize that living in hell has given them power over those in fear, however they still struggle for survival. They believe that if they merge Hell and the Material Plane, Hell will remain and the Shards will merge into it. They think that this will allow them to remain in power but also negate some of the planar effects that make life difficult. Who knows if it'll work, but I'm guessing it's a safe bet that no one else wants to test the theory.

Yeah, seems fine.

[akma]

What would everyone think if I took a little time and got a Demon "class" together, something with a table of progression from CR 1 to whatever and made a list of abilities from all the OGL demons and devils I can find. Basically a toolkit to make Demon creation easier. I figure since most non Demon lords are created, it would be like a DM's forge for creatures. I can get the Type/Subtype stuff, and abilities, we'd just have to figure out how to organize it into a plug-n-play creation template.

Sounds great, better if it will be in a computer program format. Also, what will be the CR range for regular demons and demon lords?

some even have reported seeing rifts in space where there might be connections to other planes. The Grey Legion has discovered a few links ot the afterlife planes, and further that mortals who die within a certain distance of these rifts will not rise as undead.

But then fleeing to a better world won`t be so problamatic.

[DragonOfUndeath]

How is the Church going to react to the Shards, and the Material Plane connections? How are people going to react when their clergy states that a return to the place that was once their home is forbidden. From the church's view it puts their servants further from their grasp once again. But some of the faithful may start to waver in their belief over this new rule.

the church says "the portal set up by the demon-servants (mages) doesn't lead to the remains of our former home but to their slavehouses, anyone who goes through the portal ends up a slave for a demon lord. they occasionally send demons in the guise of our former friends to lure us through the portal to the land beyond but it is a trick" if they say that then anyone who admits to have been to the land byond would get killed as a demon and no-one would want to willingly risk eternal enslavement in a demon's slavehouse to see a Plane their ancestors might have come from that exploded and their religious leaders say doesnt exist anymore

[Pyre_Born]

Can't see many problems with this, it works. But remember that the molds and stuff can't feed all of hell, as this hell isn't the same as the stereotypical one and isn't hot all over.

Yeah, most types of food sources should be scarce and situational. While they can help, it shouldn't be something you can become dependent on.

Right, like I said before I don't really like the swarm. But taking them out would remove the war between two sides and mortals trapped in the middle aspect (well most of the Swarm are mortals, but that's not the point). Do you think we can try to come up with another faction?[/spoiler]

Hmmm, I see what you mean. I'd say keep the swarm but not in a major aspect, make them powerful but fractured. Leave it as a smaller organization of creatures with flight, but not all of them. While they have dreams of glory and control the differences in species keeps them from a unified front. Keep the group as a nuisance to the world but also to themselves?

As for a new group: Since the Grey Legion is Undead focused, and the usual way to undeath is magic, how about an extremist group of magic haters. I'm not talking the little inquisition against magic that could hurt your ruler ship. I'm talking full out let's wipe out anything with spells or spell like abilities, since they believe that magic was the cause of the Catastrophe.

Sounds great, better if it will be in a computer program format. Also, what will be the CR range for regular demons and demon lords?

I'll start a list, unfortunately I'm not too good at programming, so I'll stick with the crunchy rule part.
CR: This is a very good question, we should definitely have a wide range, but for Demon Lords...we can go just into epic (21+) or DiceFreaks range (40+) it all depends on if we want them to be powerful but able to be defeated, or powerful and nearly indestructible to mortals

the church says "the portal set up by the demon-servants (mages) doesn't lead to the remains of our former home but to their slavehouses, anyone who goes through the portal ends up a slave for a demon lord. they occasionally send demons in the guise of our former friends to lure us through the portal to the land beyond but it is a trick" if they say that then anyone who admits to have been to the land byond would get killed as a demon and no-one would want to willingly risk eternal enslavement in a demon's slavehouse to see a Plane their ancestors might have come from that exploded and their religious leaders say doesnt exist anymore

I can see that, that'd definitely work for the masses of faithful. Fits in with the Inquisition and Deceit feel of the Church.

Busy day, so I'll post more later!

Peace,
Pyre

*Edit*
Half so I don't forget the links, half for anyone that wants some ideas
Devils (SRD)
Demons (SRD)
These are from the Pathfinder SRD, but I've found that aside from some formatting, Pathfinder critters fit perfectly fine into regular 3.x for the CR

[Randel]

About the Swarm:

Maybe to add to the lawful/chaotic aspect of it then the Swarm isn't a unified group. Its more like once the plane broke apart then those with flight got a huge advantage over others. There might be groups of dragons doing things, or one dragon terrorizing numerous burgs while save in his lair on another shard, or there could be roving gangs of harpies or whatever.

The Grey Legion is an organized unified force who tries to keep everyone together, going so far as to use Command Undead on any undead who try to work alone. If you are undead then the Legion deems that they own you and have to join their ranks.

The various groups of winged creatures however are just a bunch of groups or gangs or whatnot but their advantage of flight puts them above the landlocked races. Dragons and other flying creatures might try to establish their own kingdoms or lands or gangs but it isn't easy to establish territory or organize everything due to the various landmasses always moving around and nomadic groups of fliers able to basically move as they please.

So its kind of a fight between the lawful Legion and the chaotic groups of winged creatures. The winged creatures have an advantage that they can move at will (something not all undead can do) and can reproduce without having to animate dead mortals. So the winged creatures could fly around killing humans while learning to get food for themselves and destroy undead as they want and eventually kill everyone on the prime material plane so that they majority of survivors are winged creatures.

But the legion is united and immortal (they don't die of old age) so they could conceivably hold their territory and expand until they take over the plane.

So the Swarm isn't a single united group, its just... the evolutionary advantage that flight gives. Both sides will fight eachother and the outcome of the war determines if the prime material plane is controlled by intelligent undead or countless groups of flying creatures.

Some philosophers suspect that each plane in the cosmology once had numerous lifeforms and civilizations until they fought and one group dominates each plane (hell has demons, heaven has angels, etc) its just that the prime material plane had numerous races battling eachother for supremacy. The cataclysm was just an event that upset the balance of the prime material so that one race could finally defeat the others. Once the war between the Legion and the Swarm is finished then the prime material will either become the plane of Undeath or the plane of Flight. Then perhaps a new prime material plane will form where new races can grow and ultimatly fight until the plane becomes something else.

I'm not sure what other group or type of monster might prosper in a plane that is broken up into various chunks. I suppose if the planet had been flooded with water then it might have been a battle between fish and oozes.

Or if the cataclysm had resulted in all magic stopping and mass extinctions of magical creatures then the plane would become a mundane one where only humans exist and they develop advanced technology to make up for the lack of magic.

[Pyre_Born]

Spoiler to save space

Spoiler

Show

About the Swarm:

Maybe to add to the lawful/chaotic aspect of it then the Swarm isn't a unified group. Its more like once the plane broke apart then those with flight got a huge advantage over others. There might be groups of dragons doing things, or one dragon terrorizing numerous burgs while save in his lair on another shard, or there could be roving gangs of harpies or whatever.

The Grey Legion is an organized unified force who tries to keep everyone together, going so far as to use Command Undead on any undead who try to work alone. If you are undead then the Legion deems that they own you and have to join their ranks.

The various groups of winged creatures however are just a bunch of groups or gangs or whatnot but their advantage of flight puts them above the landlocked races. Dragons and other flying creatures might try to establish their own kingdoms or lands or gangs but it isn't easy to establish territory or organize everything due to the various landmasses always moving around and nomadic groups of fliers able to basically move as they please.

So its kind of a fight between the lawful Legion and the chaotic groups of winged creatures. The winged creatures have an advantage that they can move at will (something not all undead can do) and can reproduce without having to animate dead mortals. So the winged creatures could fly around killing humans while learning to get food for themselves and destroy undead as they want and eventually kill everyone on the prime material plane so that they majority of survivors are winged creatures.

But the legion is united and immortal (they don't die of old age) so they could conceivably hold their territory and expand until they take over the plane.

So the Swarm isn't a single united group, its just... the evolutionary advantage that flight gives. Both sides will fight eachother and the outcome of the war determines if the prime material plane is controlled by intelligent undead or countless groups of flying creatures.

Some philosophers suspect that each plane in the cosmology once had numerous lifeforms and civilizations until they fought and one group dominates each plane (hell has demons, heaven has angels, etc) its just that the prime material plane had numerous races battling eachother for supremacy. The cataclysm was just an event that upset the balance of the prime material so that one race could finally defeat the others. Once the war between the Legion and the Swarm is finished then the prime material will either become the plane of Undeath or the plane of Flight. Then perhaps a new prime material plane will form where new races can grow and ultimatly fight until the plane becomes something else.

I'm not sure what other group or type of monster might prosper in a plane that is broken up into various chunks. I suppose if the planet had been flooded with water then it might have been a battle between fish and oozes.

Or if the cataclysm had resulted in all magic stopping and mass extinctions of magical creatures then the plane would become a mundane one where only humans exist and they develop advanced technology to make up for the lack of magic.

So basically, the swarm isn't a group so much as a bunch of various groups that are lumped together by the Grey Legion for simplicity. I can see that, that would allow for various groups, without them all working together but also give an easy "code" name for conversations. The fact that flyers would be more in their comfort zone would also give a reason for the Grey Legion to not conquer the fractured plane itself overnight.

On to other stuff, I've got a few projects I'm wrapping up so I'll get things posted as soon as I can, I'm not abandoning the project My posting may be erratic at best for the next few days, but I'll try to stop by as often as I can.

Anyone know if their are posts with group/organization templates on these boards, something like the create a class/prestige class templates floating around somewhere, it'd help to unify everything we put together. If not I could probably throw something together quick.

Peace,
Pyre

[akma]

As for a new group: Since the Grey Legion is Undead focused, and the usual way to undeath is magic, how about an extremist group of magic haters. I'm not talking the little inquisition against magic that could hurt your ruler ship. I'm talking full out let's wipe out anything with spells or spell like abilities, since they believe that magic was the cause of the Catastrophe.

Then how will they make burghs? (they could be psionic focused, but I know almost nothing on psionic rules. Or maybe they think only divine magic is ok. They could also recieve supernaturel abilities from a demon lord)

CR: This is a very good question, we should definitely have a wide range, but for Demon Lords...we can go just into epic (21+) or DiceFreaks range (40+) it all depends on if we want them to be powerful but able to be defeated, or powerful and nearly indestructible to mortals

I prefer the demon lords to be CR 21+. Even a CR 21 monster is nearly indestrucable to mortals, and they should not only depend on brute force, but mainly on their armies (after all, they are demon lords, not just demons).

[IcarusWings]

Then how will they make burghs? (they could be psionic focused, but I know almost nothing on psionic rules. Or maybe they think only divine magic is ok. They could also recieve supernaturel abilities from a demon lord)

Magic isn't the only way for Burgh creation, some people just use rope and put bridges between the Shards.

[/quote]
I prefer the demon lords to be CR 21+. Even a CR 21 monster is nearly indestrucable to mortals, and they should not only depend on brute force, but mainly on their armies (after all, they are demon lords, not just demons).[/QUOTE]

Well, considering they're the main source of divine magic now, I'd say 40+ with Divine Ranks. 30+ at least.

Randel's stuff

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Maybe to add to the lawful/chaotic aspect of it then the Swarm isn't a unified group. Its more like once the plane broke apart then those with flight got a huge advantage over others. There might be groups of dragons doing things, or one dragon terrorizing numerous burgs while save in his lair on another shard, or there could be roving gangs of harpies or whatever.

The Grey Legion is an organized unified force who tries to keep everyone together, going so far as to use Command Undead on any undead who try to work alone. If you are undead then the Legion deems that they own you and have to join their ranks.

The various groups of winged creatures however are just a bunch of groups or gangs or whatnot but their advantage of flight puts them above the landlocked races. Dragons and other flying creatures might try to establish their own kingdoms or lands or gangs but it isn't easy to establish territory or organize everything due to the various landmasses always moving around and nomadic groups of fliers able to basically move as they please.

So its kind of a fight between the lawful Legion and the chaotic groups of winged creatures. The winged creatures have an advantage that they can move at will (something not all undead can do) and can reproduce without having to animate dead mortals. So the winged creatures could fly around killing humans while learning to get food for themselves and destroy undead as they want and eventually kill everyone on the prime material plane so that they majority of survivors are winged creatures.

But the legion is united and immortal (they don't die of old age) so they could conceivably hold their territory and expand until they take over the plane.

So the Swarm isn't a single united group, its just... the evolutionary advantage that flight gives. Both sides will fight eachother and the outcome of the war determines if the prime material plane is controlled by intelligent undead or countless groups of flying creatures.

So, the Swarm is just a name that mortals give to all flying creatures out of fear? It's better, yeah.

I was also thinking that maybe some Burghs try to fight back, by developing new technologies (basically airships) for flight and battle.

Speaking of airships and the like, what will the technological level of the world be? Magitek would be cool if it's powered by trapped demons or something (gives demon's another reason to hate mortals, and mortals another reason to fight back), steampunk is great but a bit overused. I always felt that clockwork was really cool, but somewhat neglected.

[DragonOfUndeath]

Then how will they make burghs? (they could be psionic focused, but I know almost nothing on psionic rules. Or maybe they think only divine magic is ok. They could also recieve supernaturel abilities from a demon lord)

since all connections to hell were severed for about 100 years and the entirety of the post-cataclysm i doubt the undead would use Divine power or Demons as a power source. it would be like removing the battery from your phone and expecting it to mystically draw power from it anyway

I was also thinking that maybe some Burghs try to fight back, by developing new technologies (basically airships) for flight and battle.

Speaking of airships and the like, what will the technological level of the world be? Magitek would be cool if it's powered by trapped demons or something (gives demon's another reason to hate mortals, and mortals another reason to fight back), steampunk is great but a bit overused. I always felt that clockwork was really cool, but somewhat neglected.

what about using the threads that used to connect the plane to the other ones, it would explain the cataclysm and enough of the threads would exist to power anything for a REALLY long time into the future. maybe at the start of the cataclysm (a few years after the power was discovered) it became harder to Planeshift and gradually the connections to the planes started breaking leaving behind vast pools of power but not in the structured form needed to connect to a plane and hold together this one in a cohesive hole (basically supergluecrossed with bridges). the cause of the destruction wasnt discovered until just before the mass evacuation to Hell. some people wanted to forget the tech and restart in Hell while the rest changed the engines to use the pools of Power. the technique has been refined over the past hundred years and can be channeled in engines about 10feet by 10feet by 10feet in size. smaller engines can also channel Power but too a much lesser extent (so magic items compared to airship engines)

[Pyre_Born]

Well, considering they're the main source of divine magic now, I'd say 40+ with Divine Ranks. 30+ at least.

30+ would be a good middle ground, we could have the most powerful of the normal demons just hitting epic, but leave the Demon Lords 30+ to make them godlike in power

I was also thinking that maybe some Burghs try to fight back, by developing new technologies (basically airships) for flight and battle.

Speaking of airships and the like, what will the technological level of the world be? Magitek would be cool if it's powered by trapped demons or something (gives demon's another reason to hate mortals, and mortals another reason to fight back), steampunk is great but a bit overused. I always felt that clockwork was really cool, but somewhat neglected.

Anyone read Chaositech from Malhavoc press, it has a good hell like magical tech level. It has the hellish look and feel but a somewhat magical steampunk aura about it. If no one has it, I can get the OGL material around for a basic idea.

I figure Hell will pull in souls from all worlds including some that are higher tech level than base dnd, so once they've lost their tech from arriving in hell, they can attempt to compensate by recreating items with magic as best they can.

(Just looked at Chaositech, everything in chapter 2 which is the chaositech items, and the chaositech creation rules are OGL, so I can get some ideas around to put forward.)

what about using the threads that used to connect the plane to the other ones, it would explain the cataclysm and enough of the threads would exist to power anything for a REALLY long time into the future. maybe at the start of the cataclysm (a few years after the power was discovered) it became harder to Planeshift and gradually the connections to the planes started breaking leaving behind vast pools of power but not in the structured form needed to connect to a plane and hold together this one in a cohesive hole (basically supergluecrossed with bridges). the cause of the destruction wasnt discovered until just before the mass evacuation to Hell. some people wanted to forget the tech and restart in Hell while the rest changed the engines to use the pools of Power. the technique has been refined over the past hundred years and can be channeled in engines about 10feet by 10feet by 10feet in size. smaller engines can also channel Power but too a much lesser extent (so magic items compared to airship engines)

This would be a cool power source, using the fabric of reality itself to power items? Assuming I got the right idea from your post.

We could have various power sources, while mortals would be more likely to use magic and planar fabric, Demons could use souls and slave labor for power, giving a nice contrast between the two.

Peace,
Pyre

Tossed together the basic OGL chaositech stuff, if anyone wants to use it I can get the rest around and host it!
http://www.mediafire.com/file/45srrm...oas%20Tech.doc

[Randel]

Hmm, about the shards and stuff... if the prime material world broke apart then wouldn't there also be a bunch of chunks of lava or bits from the planets core floating around as well? Also, assuming that the whole etherial plane is full of breathable air then what exactly happens to people who fall off the edge of the shards?

If the shards aren't that big then they can't have gravity keeping people on them, they'd need some kind of magic to hold them in place. Plus, if there is air then there is wind and all sorts of stuff.

Soo...

Magma Shards - After the world was shattered, the molten center of the planet spilled out as well and created millions of new shards from the cooled remains. These magma shards are very rich in iron and metals but have next to no life on them. Some of the larger ones are still warm from the explosion and touching them can burn peoples feet (but it also provides heat for steam power).

The water of the oceans also flung through the etherial plane and many times coalessed into water shards. Oceans of water and ice with only a few rocks in the middle.

[DragonOfUndeath]

if we go with the Power pools i suggested earlier why not say that each Shard is held together by some remnants of the threads, since the tech (what can we call it except for tech?) has been refined to only use the Power in the pools the Shards are safe from further disintegration as the tech doesnt drain the power holding them together. each Shard holds a sliver of Thread in its center that generates (usually) normal gravity.

Energy Points (EP): the term used to measure how much Power is used or generated. normal Engines typically generate 100 EP per day and can only hold 100 EP.

Energy Vault: a 5feet by 5feet by 5feet box that can hold up to 100 EP at a time.

Energy Points in Spells: an Arcane caster can drain EP to cast spells instead of using spell slots (EP needed=spell level*50). the caster must be within 5 feet of an Engine or Vault to drain EP and it must be used immediately (no refilling spell slots). this provokes an AoO. (E.G. Ethan drains 100 EP from an adjacent Vault to cast a level 2 spell provoking an attack of opportunity from Jake who is next to Ethan)

Shard Fusion: when 2 shards are bound together the can be fused into a single Shard with this ritual.
Needed: 300 Energy Points (EP), 10 Level 3 spell slots and an Altar on both Shards.
Time: 3 days
End Product: 1 shard made up of the materials the 2 shards were made of. this can be shaped in any way during the fusion process creating any shape (pyramid, cube etc.) regardless of the shape of the previous Shards' shapes

Airships: must have atleast 1 Engine and 1 Vault to take off. uses 90 EP per day.

Energy Rings: generate 20 points per day, can channel EP from Vaults and Engines but can only channel 50 EP per day and hold 100 EP at a time. activating the ability costs 10 EP. they can be enchanted with 1 spell at a time. to enchant a ring costs 10 EP and you must use a spell slot = to the level of the spell stored, you dont have to know the spell but you need Instructions to store them. you can disenchant a Ring by spending 10 EP and you can't enchant it for 24 hours. Rings still generate EP when not enchanted with a spell.
Instructions: you must have the relevant Instructions to enchant a Ring. you may make Instuctions of a spell you know by spending 10gp*spell level and succeeding at a Spellcraft check with a DC of 10+(5*spell level). the time to create Instructions is 1 hour (it doesnt have to be all at once). you can't make more than 4 Instructions per day and can't make Instructions for a spell you have already made in the last 24 hours. you may enchant any number of Rings with one set of Instructions but you may not add the spell to your spell list by copying the Instructions into your spellbook. the market cost for Instuctions is 11gp*spell level.
Ring Levels: you may not enchant a spell into a Ring if the level of the spell is greater than the level of the Ring. you may increase the level of the Ring by spending 5gp*level being increased too and using a spell slot = too the rings level being increased too.

[Pyre_Born]

As the sun set over the mountain range, all was calm, it seemed like an average day. The quiet was shattered as the earth began to shake and the sound of shattering glass echoed through the valley. As more and more people left their houses in hopes of seeing whatever was causing the disturbance, they were shocked. The sky itself was being ripped apart before their eyes, no one knew what was happening.

A ripple filled the air as a tugging sensation swept over the populace, as quickly as it had begun however it had ended. When eyes raised to the sky something was wrong. What had once been a cool night was now a warm cloudy day. The forest that had once grown on the outskirt of town was replaced with a barren field, no vegetation to be seen. If this had not been enough, structures began to crumble throughout the town as the panic erupted. Once thought echoed in every mind that day, "What happened?"

This was but one of countless areas ripped from their surroundings and abandoned in Hell. While some appeared much like this little hamlet, others were not so lucky. It seems the gods did not favor mortals on that fateful day. Alone and scarred, it's up to each individual to decide how these unfortunate circumstances will effect their lives.

What Happened
The planes are held together by strands of pure planar energy, known as Planar Fabric. Unknown to most mortals, the magic they used to travel the planes as well as their immense use of the planar energies was wearing the fabric thin. Soon the fabric began to tear, slowly at first, some planes loosing connection earlier than others, but eventually every plane severed from those near it. The planes, as powerful as they are, will take many long years to truly repair themsleves.

When it was learned that the planes were coming undone it was soon revealed that the Material Plane, connected to all others would take the most damage in the cataclysm. Throughout the Material worlds, mages and scientists searched for a solution. The only answer they found to save those they protected was to shift to another plane. Unfortunately for most it was too late to choose their destination, only one plane remained connected, we now call it Hell

Life in Hell
No one truly enjoys being confined to hell, but most believe it's better than destruction on the material plane. The plane is eternally locked in mid day, with the only solace being the ever cloudy sky.

Food and water are scarce, at least in the sense that mortals view it. While some rely on magic users to supply their nourishment, many don't have that luxury. Many have found edible solutions within the natural flora and fauna of Hell, but still some have resorted to less favorable solutions such as cannibalism and eating the flesh of Demons.

Every day is a struggle for mortals on the plane, whether it's malnutrition, disease, war, or even drugs. Life in Hell is never easy.

What lurks in the shadows
The Demon Lords

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Long before mortals were even created on the Material Plane, ancient and primal creatures roamed the planes. Even then souls found their way to Hell, unable to escape. These original beings sought to rule this place if they could not leave. Powerful and intelligent they soon began to create servitors, using the energies of the plane itself to craft vile and disgusting beings to do their bidding.

The Demons

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In the early ages of Hell many sought the same power as the progenitors, but never achieved the same effect, soon the difference in power became apparent as the originators took on the title of Demon lords, while the imposters became the average demonic forces roaming hell.

It didn't take long for younger demons to seek to repopulate their ranks in hopes of overthrowing their "lords", but soon they realized their transformation had taken from them the ability to reproduce. Through vile and ancient magics they sought to bypass this. At first mortal souls were corrupted in ways that changed them, and armies amassed under various nobles.

The project was a failure however, the mortal souls retained their need for independence, and fought their makers on the field of battle, ignoring their orders. It became apparent that the souls were useless as pawns, and hope began to fade.

Unknown to the demons, the Demon Lords were watching their childrens failed efforts and sought to pacify their anger through knowledge. They gifted them with the knowledge of using souls to power their magic. With the teachings the demons began to perfect the art of destroying souls to create demons, void of emotion and personality. A new breed that could be made into anything they wanted.

With this, the Demon Lords will remain a mystery as to their origins, and with no connection to the other planes, it would allow the Demon Lords to be fleshed out, but leave their previous lives up to each DM to choose if they truly wanted to release that information.

Souls are harvested as fuel for the demonic forges, pumping out foot soldiers to do their masters bidding, allowing forces to be replenished even without reproduction. This would also explain why the Children of Limbo hate the humans, the Demon lords needed to limit the souls they took before the catastrophe, only taking what they needed. Now that their are mortals in the realm, they seek to enslave them for Phasma, and the fact that they are a replenishing fuel source. Just make more mortals when you need to.

Settlements
The City of Flux

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When the cataclysm struck, not every settlement arrived in Hell unscathed. The City of Flux as it has come to be known is a city in limbo. The population is in a constant state of uncertainty. For some unknown reason the damage from the cataclysm caused the mortals to randomly change from mortal to spirit.

The City of Flux is constantly under siege from Demonic legions, as the citizens are a source of Phasma and soul energy. To the Demons the Flux is a replenishing source of material for their military and economic needs.

Hope's Bastion

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Each mortal settlement adjusted to Hell differently, Hope's Bastion almost immediately fell into terror and paranoia.

The population is constantly under surveillance, scheduled patrols, and a thourough detection system to even get into the city, let alone public buildings. Any foreign contact is so rare anymore that the few visitors are required to be under military supervision at ALL times. Magical ID's that are required for everything. Nothing is private, the ruler sits in what is basically a panic room while the demon lords, who already have spies in the city leave it to it's own ends. They gain enjoyment out of seeing the city rip itself apart through fear, from the inside out. It would basically be a large scale demonic sociological test to see how mortals react to the unknown.

Organizations in Hell
The Black Blood Citadel

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The Black Bloods were originally a group of exorcists working for a major religion. They wandered the world banishing evil beings, seeking to bring peace to the lands of man. After the catastrophe they found that every creature they banished now stayed close to home.

Most exorcists died within months as demons they had fought quickly returned to destroy the weakened exorcists. As their numbers shrank they sought a solution to their problems. Eventually they realized that power in this land came from the souls of mortals.

Then the unthinkable happened, a leading Exorcist began feeding on the souls of the damned, gaining the power to utterly destroy his enemies, no longer worrying about banishing. He feared retribution for his actions, but was pleasantly surprised when many came to him hoping to learn his ways. They were willing to pay the price needed to avenge their fallen comrades.

The Black Bloods take their name from the corruption in their veins. Feeding on souls leaves the mortals blood black as night and poisonous to the being. With the power in their hands they lead a crusade against Demons, seeking to reshape hell into a true home for the mortals stranded their.

The major side effect of the souls in their system is the corruption of their blood, causing their veins to become pitch black. Their blood itself is nothing more than sludge, giving off a frigid chill that can be felt from feet away.

The Spikers

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While not a group in and of itself, the Spikers are a major problem within settlements around hell. With the introduction of Phasma into the population many took to it's addictive properties.

Spikers are often identified by the Demonic Blood Leech on their arm, a sign of pride within their circle. However, to others it is a sign of disgust, knowing that they are living off the torment of their own kind.

Spikers are truly addicts, many of them constantly under the effects of Phasma. Many fear the effects of a Spiker released from it's grip however as the initial detox effect includes violent raging outbursts. Once the rage is gone however they are completely emotionless, as their bodies have given up producing their own emotions, leaving it to the leech to provide.

The Church of the Walker

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Once known as the Church of the Whisperer, a major religious faction on a material plane world. It's clergy received their divine orders through mysterious whispering, which gave orders and laws to them to hand down. Prophecy within the church said that in a time of great need their god would walk amongst them in physical form to save them from danger.

Prophecy was fulfilled when the material plane was sundered, and many were sent to Hell. With no idea of where they were, or what to expect, a figure approached the church. Claiming to be their god incarnate who was here to save his faithful. After a show of power he was accepted by his worshipers and took his rightful place as head of the church.

What began as recovery and aid from the clergy soon turned towards less savory business. It began with a public trial of an unfaithful man accused of conspiring with demons. The bloodshed did not end there however as a new order of the church appeared. The Inquisitors sole function was to root out diabolists and blashpemers. So happy to have someone to guide and protect them, the members of the church supported the witch hunts with a fervor.

Now it is common practice to turn in someone for witchcraft and demonic acts for the simplest of personal offenses. Why take revenge yourself when the church can do it for you?

Under the rule of the Church are the Whispering Inquisitors, a militant organization that seeks out those they believe are a threat, actively opposing many of the newly formed governments.

Unknown to the faithful, their savior is nothing more than a Demon Lord, and the Inquisition is nothing but a scare tactic to keep away any that would usurp his power.

Children of Limbo

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Before the cataclysm, the demons seldom entered the lands of the damned. They only took what they truly needed because they knew the damned would not replenish easily. However, when mortals entered the plane, the demons realized that they no longer needed to ration off souls.

The Children of Limbo seek to turn over all mortals to the demons in hopes that they will no longer be needed, and thus left alone. These damned actively seek out mortals, either to torture for their own pleasure, or sell off for protection from soul raids.

Salvation’s Bastion

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As the planar connections began to sever, many of the celestial planes sent their servants to the material plane to assist the innocent after the catastrophe. Knowing they may never return to their heavenly home, these beings swore to aid the mortals at any cost, little did they know that their crusade would begin in Hell itself.

The celestials seek to aid any and all mortal kingdoms that seek it. However after many battles and betrayals, the number of celestials is dwindling. Now their main goal is to reconnect the planes and return home.

With their numbers shrinking the need for mortal aid increases. Once solely an organization of higher beings, the Prophets are now composed of many species, most recently a small group of demons taken from the forge before being implanted with a personality. They seek to make these "unborn" into a source of soldiers that can be replenished.

However, all is not well amongst the order, as their numbers dwindle, some have began to lose their sense of duty and morality. Feeling betrayed and backed against the wall, their minds are slowly crumbling under the pressure.

Literals

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Not all worlds are based on pious religions and ancient mages, some worlds have learned to master technology to aid their development.

A pre-cataclysm religion, the Literals revers science, arcane magic, and logic. Followers of Literalism would meet up in houses of learning (basically temples that doubled as libraries or schools) and would read books and learn about logic, rational thought, and occasionally craft and healing skills. They do not depend on the judgement of the Gods but instead on magic and technology created by humans and other intelligent races. They are taught that deep down the universe is unfair ("You can be the nicest person in the world but a sword will hurt if you don't dodge it") but with proper preperation and cooperation then everyone can improve themselves and prosper.

After the cataclysm, the Literals found themselves in Hell along with everyone else but weren't so much concerned with what would happen to their immortal souls as what would happen to their mortal ones if the demons killed them. They generally stick to human controlled areas and gather and spread knowledge on medicine or arcane magic. Now that there is danger of demon attack they also teach their members combat skills and how to survive in Hell.

One disadvantage is that very few of them can use divine magic. Literals as a rule don't worship dieties (they don't forbid it, its just that belief in the works of mankind tend to clash with the faith in gods that is often necessary to channel divine magic) and very few of them can juggle their belief systems to the extent necessary to make contact with a divine being. There are some clerics (or wizards with the Arcane Disciple feat from Complete Divine) among their ranks who are quite welcomed but overall the Literal belief system doesn't lend itself to diving casters.

This has made them a somewhat persecuted religion in the Prime Material plane and even in Hell since other religions can provide instant healing magic to their followers. Literals generally require their followers to learn skills needed to help out their fellow man and help their followers in mundane or use arcane magic when possible.

Communities of Primarily Literal inhabitants rarely get riled up in witch hunts since they are constantly reminded that only a fair trial can provide the evidence needed to prove if someone is actually a demon in disguise. Other religions tend to think of them as pansies or even demon worshipers or the like... complely missing the point that Literals don't worship anyone. These views have often put them at odds with the Church of the Walker which views them as nothing more than demonic cohorts.

Fort Eternity

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A huge human military fortress that was sent into Hell along with its soldiers and supplies. They were amazingly able to hold off the initial waves of demons who attacked before things settled down. It has since grown into a human community where all its inhabitants are put in the army and receive military training.

Women are put in the army and taught how to fight but are usually tasked with 'repopulating the human race' and are basically paid to have and raise children. Marriage in Fort Eternity is basically nonexistant. Women are told to have sex with men primarily to get pregnant (they choose their mate for the night as they wish, usually choosing ones who are particulary strong or good in combat) same sex relations are allowed to help keep everyone sane in this world.

Military men in Fort Eternity are repeatedly hyped up and taught to be even more merciless in battle then the Demons are. Demons might want to kill, torture, or eat your emotions... Fort Eternity soldiers will just kill you. They have improved the fortifications around their city and make regular strikes into the surrounding area to wipe out any monsters or liberate anyone who is in danger.

Military men are the upper class of society and are shown the respect they deserve, if you're not a soldier then you're either doing something to help the soldiers out or you're some jerk who's wasting space. Captives who have been liberated from Demon control are quickly put to work for Fort Eternity, generally in farming or some other menial task unless they show skill in some area. The main difference between soldiers in Fort Eternity and Demons is that the soldiers aren't a bunch of emotion junkies and are totally fine with you feeling comfortable as long as you do your dammed job.

The military is generally always recruiting and people normally stuck with menial jobs can attempt to join the military to climb the social ladder (women can get into the military easily at which point they are put on re-population duty). Since the souls of the dead are reborn in Hell then the military regularly scours the land for the freshly reborn so that they might be able to reclaim their dead and keep their ranks as full as possible.

The Morlocks

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A settlement with a high dwarven population who immediately dug themselves into a mountainside and set up traps to defend against demonic invaders. They have since been expanding their tunnels far and wide and poking up secret entrances into the surface.

Their tunnels are designed to be near impenetrable with twists, turns, traps and terrors built into them to defend against invaders while letting the inhabitants move freely. The Morlocks as they call themselves are made up of dwarves, humans, and any other intelligent beings willing who prove themselves loyal to them (kobolds, goblins, and others are frequntly there united in their hatred for the demons). They have industrial facilities set up underground and have food supplies (based on old dwarven techniques) but make the occasional raid on the surface to get supplies from demon cities or to rescue people.

However, due to Hells unstable nature there are semi-frequent tunnel collapses which cut off the various sections of the Morlock tunnels. As a result, instead of having one huge network of tunnels that they would like then it frequently turns into a bunch of individual 'dungeons' with people trying to reconnect the tunnels while dealing with encroachments from the surface.

Rumor has it that one group of morlocks has stumbled upon a long hidden prison, deep within the plane itself. No one knows if the prison remains sealed, but no communications have returned from the group. Mortals are truly worried about this event because the Demon Lords themselves have been said to visit the site of the occurrence. Whether they are hoping for it's release, or scared, either way it's not a good sign.

The Lambs of Blissful Agony

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Not exactly a cult but its definatly an odd organization... make that 'biggest bunch of deviants in the multiverse'. The Lambs learned about the demons demand for emotion drugs, learned how the process works, and set up their own system to perform the extraction.

Made up primarily of sadomasochists, members of the Lambs willingly let themselves be emotion-extracted under safe, sane, and consensual conditions and the resulting drugs are then put to 'ethical use'. There are numerous branches of the Lambs organization and the people in charge have varying degrees of niceness but they are generally pro-human in nature.

The Lambs took their name from the concept of a sacrificial lamb being sacrificed for the benefit of others. In most cases the Lambs use the extracted Phasma (or emotion stuff) to bribe demons to leave other humans alone, although they might use it to power magic for the benefit of humans or even sell it for cash. If sold for cash then the person being extracted gets their share of the money and the rest goes toward maintaining the Lambs organization or charity (the exact distribution varies).

In some places, the Lambs are seen as a force of good who willingly sacrifice their own well being for the sake of others, in other places they are seen as junkies who are selling their bodies for money, and in others they are seen as a corrupting influence luring innocents into a life of sin where they will be reduced to cattle producing drugs for the demons.

There has been a 'Shorn Lamb' lifestyle/fashion starting up among the youth who dress up in provocative or even painful clothing to show their willingness to be emotion extracted (or maybe they just like the fashion?) and from complex master/slave relationships to maximize the drug production and their own enjoyment of the process. Actual members of the Lambs of Blissful Agony who go for the Shorn Lamb lifestyle can be fairly wealthy compared to other humans due to their production of the emotion and being part of an organization that gives them a good share of the profits.

Rumors have it that some of the members of the Lambs are actually succubi (as opposed to humans who dress surprisingly similar to how a succubi would look) and are using demonic powers to dominate innocent people into joining the Lambs. Even nastier rumors have it that some members of the Lambs willingly have themselves killed so that their souls can be harvested for demonic purposes... including being reformed into a succubi demon.

True Lords of Death

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An organization of human necromancers who have been studying the effects of Hell on necromantic magic. It turns out that being in hell and the destruction of the Prime Material Plane has tweaked things a bit to allow for new and different types of necromantic magic.

Some are researching the various soul magics the demons use, trying to develop their own versions and perhaps discovering weaknesses in the demons construction.

Others are seeking ways to achieve immortality. Even though they are in Hell and their souls get reborn they have to worry about demons harvesting their souls. Thus, they've developed spells and rituals that control where a persons soul is reborn. They often build secure rooms where their soul is bound so that in the event of death they will be reborn there instead of somewhere that a demon could get them.

Others are opting to become Liches or similar intelligent undead. Being reborn is risky even if they do have ways of controlling the process. Better to rebuild ones body into a stronger one and protect ones soul from anything than to risk getting used up by a demon.

And finally, the necromancers work on powerful weapons of necromantic destruction to defeat the demons. Spawning undead who will target demons, diseases that target demons, special undead or constructs designed to be devestatingly effective in combat... etc.

The True Lords of Death plan to remake Hell to their liking. The Demons have had their fun and now that the Prime Material Plane is gone then it is time for humanity to make a new home by destroying the demonic presence here and establishing themselves as the true masters!

The Shatterlands
The Shards

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The Exodus to Hell saved countless souls from death, but it was not flawless. Many people were still left on the broken remnants of the Prime Material.
About 100 years after the Exodus, a group of mages finally managed to reopen the portal to the Prime Material Plane. Overcome with joy, they rushed out, eager to return to their homes. But what they found was no better than Hell itself.
The Prime Material had been torn apart, and now consisted of hundreds of broken shards, each no bigger than a single town, floating about in the astral plane.
The residents of these Shards as they were known, had seemingly fared even worse than their brethren in hell. And now float about on the Shards, eking out an existence.

The Burghs

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Desperate for more land to sustain themselves, many shard-dwellers have been boading other shards and attaching them to their own, slowly growing their city. These patchwork cities are known as Burghs.
If the citizens of a Burgh find an uninhabited Shard, they find a way to attatch it to their own, some magically, other Burghs just use rope. If they find an inhabited shard, some will offer alliance and they will merge their cities; but for other, darkly inclined, Burghs, an encounter would mean only conquest.

Organizations of the Shards

The Grey Legion

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When the Prime Material Plane was shattered and cut off from the rest of the planes, the souls of those who died had no place to dgo. Thus, in those first moments after the cataclysm, countelss mortals died with no afterlife to go to. They became ghosts and zombies, doomed to wander the shattered plane.

However, a group of undead had survived the cataclysm and found that the sun no longer tormented them. The Prime Material Plane wasn't negativley charged but neither was it positivly charged. It had in effect become neutral and both undead and living could live there comfortably... well, sort of.

With the world shattered into Burghs and food and water scarce, the undead had an advantage over the surviving mortals in that they no longer needed to eat. The Grey Legion was born when groups of undead gathered together to protect the remaining mortals. Using necromantic magic, the intelligent members of the Grey Legion went out to find all the unintelligent undead and bind them to their will. Further, they would expand their power and protect the various mortal villages.

The Grey Legion is dedicated to controlling the Prime Material Plane and to get a semblance of order going on. Their opinion is that since Heaven and Hell have been severed from the Prime that the souls no longer go to afterlives and Undeath is the new natural order. They seek to put all souls in the Material Plane under their control, namely the Undead to ensure that they don't cause trouble.

All members of the Grey Legion wear grey robes that cover their bodies. They have been organizing themselves in ways to better control the shattered material plane. Vampires act as diplomats working with the mortals (Vampires often seek payment in the form of blood extracted harmlessly from willing participants), the various flying undead patrol the skies looking for survivors or attackers or anything of interest. And the various mindless undead are all captured and put under the command of the Legion where they serve as low ranking troops or workers.

The Swarm

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While not truly a group in the strictest sense. The swarm is a descriptor given to various groups of winged and flying creatures by the Grey Legion. Although powerful, the differences in species creates conflict amongst it's members.

Should they ever put aside their differences they may truly be a power to behold

Other stuff not formatted (started getting tired)
Flora and Fauna of Hell

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Brown Mold - The mold that feeds off of heat is a stable food in Hell or at least a vital part of its ecosystem. There are different types of Brown Mold, haivng grown in Hell for eons.

Moist Mold is the most common, it sucks up heat from the admosphere enough to cause condensation and soaking itself with moisture. It is commonly found in normally hot areas like in deserts. It doesn't get early cold enough to freeze water or cause damage and can't survive in areas around volcanoes. It needs soil to survive although demons ave cultivated it using feces or dead bodies.

Frost Mold - The type of Mold most commonly refered to as Borwn Mold by mortals. This absorbs more heat from the air and is commonly found near volcanoes, sometimes even next to the lava flows. It sucks enoguh heat from the air to cause damage to living things but has the tendancy to freeze itself with ice occasionllay which kills it. Frost Mold patches tend to have spots and blotches where some of the mold froze itself and died while the others are okay. When a patch dies of frost the frost tends to melt into water until the patch grows back.

Frost Cacti - A symbiotic fungal plant that grows with Frost Mold, it soaks up the water that results from frost mold freezing it, dying, and then having the ice thaw. Frost Cacti soak up water and keep it insulated in their barrels so that it doesn't freeze. They grow fruit which often fall off by themselves or are picked by people who spread the seeds. The fruit has a thick peel around it to protect its inside from frost.

Frost Cacti anf Frost Mold often grow around volcanoes and extract water from the air via condensation. The patches haven't overrrun Hell due to the variety of life that eats them and their tendancy to kill themselves with their own ice. Frost Mold that is taken to areas without a suffiicently hot and dry atmosphere quickly die as a result of freezing.

Hellworms - Like gigantic earthworms, Hellworms dig through the ground eating dirt, extracting nutrients and then excreting fertilizer for plants. They grow to be about the size of large snakes and have powerful regenerative abilities, cutting one in half results in two Hellworms that can eventually regrow to their origional size. Hellworms may mate with eachother but they most often reproduce by splitting in half. Strangley enough, they have no true head but both ends function as both heads and tails... they might eat with one end and excrete with the other one day before swtching the direction of their digestive track and going the other way the next.

Hellworms are a staple food in Hell and mortals suffer no ill effects from eating their meat. However, the Hellworms are tricky to capture since they dig underground and only come up when their tunnels get flooded. They are generally not violent but they can twist around people and try to strangle them, if it looksl like they are going to be killed then the Hellworm will split itself into two halves and each half tries to escape. Hellworm Hunters who can kill a Hellworm whole or capture both halves of it are considered experts.

Fabric of the Planes

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Before the cataclysm, many societies discovered that the fabric that held the planes together consisted of a vast amount of energy that could be harnessed for their use. However, the use of the energy strained the fabric, weakening it. With the addition of planar magic the fabric could not take it anymore and soon began to sever itself from the planes.

After the cataclysm, many found that the fabric they had drawn power from was now more readily accessible and began to harness it once again.

Alright...their is most of what we have all posted so far. I missed some stuff, but I'll edit some more in tomorrow when I'm a little more awake.

And sorry about not reply to any specific posts, I'm not sure if this whole post will even fit at the moment. I'll reply to things in a little.

Peace,
Pyre

Gonna reply to some stuff

if we go with the Power pools i suggested earlier why not say that each Shard is held together by some remnants of the threads, since the tech (what can we call it except for tech?) has been refined to only use the Power in the pools the Shards are safe from further disintegration as the tech doesnt drain the power holding them together. each Shard holds a sliver of Thread in its center that generates (usually) normal gravity.

Energy Points (EP): the term used to measure how much Power is used or generated. normal Engines typically generate 100 EP per day and can only hold 100 EP.

Energy Vault: a 5feet by 5feet by 5feet box that can hold up to 100 EP at a time.

Energy Points in Spells: an Arcane caster can drain EP to cast spells instead of using spell slots (EP needed=spell level*50). the caster must be within 5 feet of an Engine or Vault to drain EP and it must be used immediately (no refilling spell slots). this provokes an AoO. (E.G. Ethan drains 100 EP from an adjacent Vault to cast a level 2 spell provoking an attack of opportunity from Jake who is next to Ethan)

Shard Fusion: when 2 shards are bound together the can be fused into a single Shard with this ritual.
Needed: 300 Energy Points (EP), 10 Level 3 spell slots and an Altar on both Shards.
Time: 3 days
End Product: 1 shard made up of the materials the 2 shards were made of. this can be shaped in any way during the fusion process creating any shape (pyramid, cube etc.) regardless of the shape of the previous Shards' shapes

Airships: must have atleast 1 Engine and 1 Vault to take off. uses 90 EP per day.

Energy Rings: generate 20 points per day, can channel EP from Vaults and Engines but can only channel 50 EP per day and hold 100 EP at a time. activating the ability costs 10 EP. they can be enchanted with 1 spell at a time. to enchant a ring costs 10 EP and you must use a spell slot = to the level of the spell stored, you dont have to know the spell but you need Instructions to store them. you can disenchant a Ring by spending 10 EP and you can't enchant it for 24 hours. Rings still generate EP when not enchanted with a spell.
Instructions: you must have the relevant Instructions to enchant a Ring. you may make Instuctions of a spell you know by spending 10gp*spell level and succeeding at a Spellcraft check with a DC of 10+(5*spell level). the time to create Instructions is 1 hour (it doesnt have to be all at once). you can't make more than 4 Instructions per day and can't make Instructions for a spell you have already made in the last 24 hours. you may enchant any number of Rings with one set of Instructions but you may not add the spell to your spell list by copying the Instructions into your spellbook. the market cost for Instuctions is 11gp*spell level.
Ring Levels: you may not enchant a spell into a Ring if the level of the spell is greater than the level of the Ring. you may increase the level of the Ring by spending 5gp*level being increased too and using a spell slot = too the rings level being increased too.

I like the power pulls being the reason for the shards not disintegrating. As for the other stuff, I'll give it a better look a little later, but it looks solid and seems like a good start to writing some items and vehicles up.

*Note* If anyone needs some info from books let me know and I'll get whatever is OGL into a doc and get it up to use. If their is something that isn't OGL, I'll get some descriptions and we can work on our own variants. I've got a ton of 3.x and Pathfinder material as well as True20, so if you need it I probably have it. I'll just have to find out whats OGL to post.

[DragonOfUndeath]

Fabric of the Planes
When the cataclysm struck, the fabric that held the planes together literally shredded. The effect was vast pools of energy left behind by the strands. Many organizations within the Burghs have begun to harness this nearly limitless power source to protect themselves and improve their way of life

the Power was discovered before the Cataclysm and is what set it off not discovered after it thanks for changing it. here are some more stuff:

Power Pool Zones: some places on the Plane have a greater than average amount of Power as this is where the gloop that connected the Planes started pooling. Engines generate every 12 hours instead of every 24. everything can hold double what it normally does and costs 1/2 as much.

Dead Zones: all the Power has been drained from this place. Engines and other EP generating items stop generating and everything costs twice as much to use. these can't be centred on a Shard.

Airship Weapons: these act as Rings ecept for the following: doesnt generate it's own EP, uses 5*spell level EP to cast, can only be enchanted when being built, unlimited EP channeling, can only hold offensive weapons, is Medium sized and only has up too 50 EP stored at once. most weapons use Magic Missile but can use any other damage dealing spell.

War in the Burghs: Battles is generally fought in open space near the Shard being fought over. everyone piles into Airships and shoot each other and board their ships (think a 3D naval battle). the first side to run out of EP or ships lose the Shard.

[Pyre_Born]

the Power was discovered before the Cataclysm and is what set it off not discovered after it

Ah, ok, read it wrong, i'll edit it

Edited, and changed the reference to the Fabric in the Cataclysm section to fit


Now for some drugs

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This is just the rough start

{table=head]Addiction Value | Save | Satiation | Damage
Low | DC 10 | 7 Days | 1d2 Wis, 1d2 Int
Medium|DC 15|4 Days|1d3 Wis, 1d3 Int, 1d3 Dex
High|DC 20|1 Day|1d4 Wis, 1d4 Int, 1d4 Dex, 1d4 Con
Very High|DC 25|12 Hours|1d6 Wis, 1d6 Int, 1d6 Dex, 1d6 Con, 1d6 Cha
Extreme|DC 30|2 Hours|1d8 to all abilities
[/table]
Since non of the drug rules are OGL, I made some based off them, I intentionally made them more powerful to focus on the fact that these are demonically created drugs for use on...Demons. They want the masses to become addicted, thus the higher DC's

Addiction: with every dose taken of a drug, role a Will save against the addiction DC of the drug chosen. Failing this save makes the recipient addicted.

Satiation: this time frame is how often an addicted creature is required to take the drug to keep from having withdrawals.

Withdrawal: if an addicted creature fails to take a dose of their addicted drug before the satiation time lapses they take the damage specified on the table above. This damage is taken every day that the addict does not get a fix.

Initial Effects: Any initial effect stated in the drug write up lasts for 1d12 hours. This can be bypassed by a will save.

Side Effect: If a drug has a side effect listed, the user must make a will save against the DC or gain this side effect for 1d6 hours

Secondary Effect: This is the effect upon the user during the period of withdrawal. To bypass this effect a will save must be made. Secondary effects end immediately upon taking a dose.

(Note that all saves can be voluntarily failed)

Recovery: To recover from withdrawals, a character must make two successful will saves in a row.

Two castings of Lesser Restoration or one casting of Restoration automatically recovers the character.

Remove Diseasse nullifies the addiction, but does not prevent a character from becoming addicted once again.

Some thoughts on the Main drugs:
Love: Initial Effect - Feeling of loving EVERYTHING
Side Effect - Lust, you want EVERYTHING
Secondary Effect - Longing, you miss something, it controls your day, it doesn't matter what, probably one of your good old quill pens that you lost

Joy: Initial Effect - Everything makes you happy, nothing makes you feel sad
Side Effect - Enthrallment, you become attached to something, I'm talking stalker like attachment
Secondary Effect - Pride, your ego can't fit in Hell anymore

Surprise: Initial Effect - Everything seems new and exciting
Side Effect - Relief, you feel like everything is a major relief to you, even the most minor things
Secondary Effect - Immense Surprise, you become jumpy, everything surprises you to an extreme, you even jump at your own breathing

Anger: Initial Effect - You are mad at everything, nothing makes you happy
Side Effect - Envy, you become jealous of everyone and it makes you mad
Secondary Effect - Rage, you have one hell of a temper (get it...)

Sadness: Initial Effect - Everything is sad, even the puppies make you cry
Side Effect - Sympathy, you sympathize with everything, Demons may even sympathize with their slaves
Secondary Effect - Depression, you turn into a sobbing mess of regret

Fear: Initial Effect - You are even scared of your own shadow
Side Effect - Anxiety, you become nervous for some reason
Secondary Effect - Shock, any little fright could send you into a drooling mess, almost coma like

These are just some rough ideas, I still gotta flesh them out some more, but shouldn't be too hard.

Thinking of some names to go along with the Latin derived Phasma:
Amor - Love - Latin for....well Love
Evinco - Joy - Latin for Enthrall
Admira - Surprise - From Admiratio, Latin for Surprise
Furor - Anger - Latin for Rage
Tristis - Sadness - Latin for Sad
Terror - Fear - Latin for...Terror/Fear

Peace,
Pyre

[IcarusWings]

Ok, just replying to stuff in the short window of free time I have.

Thanks, for doing the archive Pyre, I'll edit it into the OP tomorrow.

I like what's being done on the fabric power thing except I'd rather we came up with specific effects for the energy rings, rather than just powering spells. Even if it's just force and fire damage or whatever.
I also think we need to come up with a name for this rather than just saying power or energy.

I also like how you did Phasma Pyre. I like how each emotion leads to negative emotions. But I'm thinking that it might be better if Phas just only covered the negative emotions. So rather than having love, joy, and surprise, you would have envy, misery, and anger. But people still get hooked.