Quote-based worldbuilding. Original? Perhaps!

[D20ragon]

"Why are you praying for divine intervention, worm, when I am already here?"
Saporbia, Archangel of Pride.



The Edge of the world is real, and a place of terror and madness. The sun and moon move backwards in the sky, and the stars themselves laugh and scream.
And there, through a crack in the very firmament, I saw the Void. And there are cities there! Cold and alien cities, full of the shining shapes of the Void beasts. I tell you now, hero. Make peace with the Light, Dark or Shadow, for I was once a man like you, and I tell you now we cannot win.

[Thunderfist12]

"The Edge of the world is real, and a place of terror and madness. The sun and moon move backwards in the sky, and the stars themselves laugh and scream.

And there, through a crack in the very firmament, I saw the Void. And there are cities there! Cold and alien cities, full of the shining shapes of the Void beasts. I tell you now, hero. Make peace with the Light, Dark or Shadow, for I was once a man like you, and I tell you now we cannot win."

-Lord Zathrius Bane's account of his last adventure. He returned... changed, to say the least.

"You argue that Light needs a Shadow and Shadow must come from Light, and thus both must always be. But I tell you otherwise. There is one force, one essence, that is the nonexistence of both - and the sole existence of but one. This twilight is the Void, and I plead that you never see it. It tends to leave men... changed. And I would not wish that fate on any man."

[The Witch-King]

"You argue that Light needs a Shadow and Shadow must come from Light, and thus both must always be. But I tell you otherwise. There is one force, one essence, that is the nonexistence of both - and the sole existence of but one. This twilight is the Void, and I plead that you never see it. It tends to leave men... changed. And I would not wish that fate on any man."– Isymar of the Kragdai, also known as Isymar the Receiver, last surviving Devotee of the Eternal Road

"The Sea was and the Sea is and the Sea will be. The Sea embraces the Light; the Sea accepts the Shadows. The Elven Kingdoms of Wind and Wave have no concerns with your petty squabbles of Light and Dark. None at all."

[D20ragon]

"The Sea was and the Sea is and the Sea will be. The Sea embraces the Light; the Sea accepts the Shadows. The Elven Kingdoms of Wind and Wave have no concerns with your petty squabbles of Light and Dark. None at all."
King Salt, to diplomats who traveled to Faeryland, begging for help against the war of Giants.


The land of Faery.... Is wondrous and strange. Outside of Light, Darkness and Shadow, it floats in a bubble of solitude, far out to sea. But there is one thing they cannot ignore. And it is The Void. We will make them listen, or be devoured by the beasts who aid us.

[Pokonic]

The land of Faery.... Is wondrous and strange. Outside of Light, Darkness and Shadow, it floats in a bubble of solitude, far out to sea. But there is one thing they cannot ignore. And it is The Void. We will make them listen, or be devoured by the beasts who aid us.

-A druid outside the town of Haginfast, giving his reasons for attacking a priest of the Light's bodyguards.



"That Rosen girl killed that Mad Mage for revenge or something, yeah, I knew that, but yah never told me she had a talking horse!"


........

I think it's time all the names and stuff should be recompiled on the first page so we all have a decent idea of the things that should be focused on.

[Aolbain]

That Rosen girl killed that Mad Mage for revenge or something, yeah, I knew that, but yah never told me she had a talking horse!
-Vilend folk saying, meaning lost to history. Context and origin heavily debated among scholars.

2nd Belderian routed, you say? Excellent. Have the Korstnicks round them up and order Liljencreutz to engage the enemy.

[Xyphan]

2nd Belderian routed, you say? Excellent. Have the Korstnicks round them up and order Liljencreutz to engage the enemy.
Captain Jornbon the Mad, to his first mate after hearing of a ship carrying his favorite snack

"Never underestimate a farm hand, once lost my hand in a fight thanks to that problem."

[The Tygre]

"Never underestimate a farm hand, once lost my hand in a fight thanks to that problem."

~ Thergas the Maimed, mercenary scout, recounting his travels in Loh-Quama.

"Stop. Stop telling me. Stop -talking- to me. I don't want to know. I never want to know. I have gone to bed peacefully for the last fifty six years not knowing, and I want it to stay that way. You find someone who wants to know? Good for you. But me? I. Do. Not. Want. To. Know."

[Aolbain]

"Stop. Stop telling me. Stop -talking- to me. I don't want to know. I never want to know. I have gone to bed peacefully for the last fifty six years not knowing, and I want it to stay that way. You find someone who wants to know? Good for you. But me? I. Do. Not. Want. To. Know."
-Book 17 of The Tales of Bildor the Fool, where Bildor finds himself drafted into the most secret section of the Inquisition and a lifetime of bad decisions finally catches up with him.

"Faith? No, this has nothing to do with faith, boy. The reason I do this is that, in the end, a man can only be who he is.

...

So, where should we put that last nail?"

[HisHolyAngel]

((AHA! BILDOR THE FOOL IS CATCHING ON!))

"Faith? No, this has nothing to do with faith, boy. The reason I do this is that, in the end, a man can only be who he is.

...

So, where should we put that last nail?"
~Argon, famed Architect of Wonders, to his apprentice, and eventual killer, as he completes the Holy Fortress of Dorm.


In the end, all men are fools. Those who think they are not, are the greatest fools of all.

[Vedhin]

In the end, all men are fools. Those who think they are not, are the greatest fools of all.
--Gronse the Meek



"Your threats mean nothing to me. I have suffered more than you can imagine. Yet I am still unbroken. The trials I have endured have reforged me, into the instrument of your demise."

[3SecondCultist]

"Your threats mean nothing to me. I have suffered more than you can imagine. Yet I am still unbroken. The trials I have endured have reforged me, into the instrument of your demise."
- Oberon, Last Liege of the Western Planes


"It's quite like painting, really. You choose your canvas, pick the right brush, and then you get to move on to the fun stuff. The color palette, the mood, the tone of the piece. It's all in the details, you see. Most people just paint with red, but I strive for a bit of variety in my installations. Strive for a higher form of art. Now, what kind of portrait should I paint with you?"

[Somensjev]

"It's quite like painting, really. You choose your canvas, pick the right brush, and then you get to move on to the fun stuff. The color palette, the mood, the tone of the piece. It's all in the details, you see. Most people just paint with red, but I strive for a bit of variety in my installations. Strive for a higher form of art. Now, what kind of portrait should I paint with you?"
Phenix the bloody, former apprentice, and eventual killer of Argon, famed architect of wonders. spoken to his most recent victim

"spoken like a true monarch. full of loopholes and misguided prejudices, but persuasive enough that no-one cares"

[HisHolyAngel]

"spoken like a true monarch. full of loopholes and misguided prejudices, but persuasive enough that no-one cares"
~Lord Tordin, after losing a game of Chess to his long-time friend, the Emperor of Krull

There is no heart more easily swayed than that of a man with money.

[D20ragon]

There is no heart more easily swayed than that of a man with money.
Avaritis, Archangel of Greed.



And then, I saw it. Wings more radiant then a legion of spears in the sun, it spoke in a voice that rang out like a thousand bugles. Men's guns hung useless at their sides, as the being cried out:"Hail! Hail the brilliance of war!

[Thunderfist12]

And then, I saw it. Wings more radiant then a legion of spears in the sun, it spoke in a voice that rang out like a thousand bugles. Men's guns hung useless at their sides, as the being cried out:"Hail! Hail the brilliance of war!"

-An exaggerated report from the Iron Wars. They had no idea that these iron angels were the first of many airships...

"The red of dawn rose like flames,

Its fingers stretching from the east

As the red of blood flowed like a river

Across the fields that once had peace.

And Shadow falls before the Light.

Now the grey of clouds stretches over the sky,

A grey that clouds the sun's grim light

As the grey of iron angels moves like a river

And day descends at last to night.

As Shadow falls before the Light.

And now their spirits take their flight,

And grim, so grim, they see the night

Upon their home which now is blight

Since Shadow fell before the Light"

[Sgt. Cookie]

"The red of dawn rose like flames,

Its fingers stretching from the east

As the red of blood flowed like a river

Across the fields that once had peace.

And Shadow falls before the Light.

Now the grey of clouds stretches over the sky,

A grey that clouds the sun's grim light

As the grey of iron angels moves like a river

And day descends at last to night.

As Shadow falls before the Light.

And now their spirits take their flight,

And grim, so grim, they see the night

Upon their home which now is blight

Since Shadow fell before the Light"

-Seer-Hunter Telamaahus, one of the few prophecies written in The Secret Works of The Hunters.

"There's nothing we can do for this place. The Void-Rift has consumed it, but those Inquisitor fools think it's a thing of the Dark. Wasting their energies on those "pillars of light". I bet you five Arthean Silvers that they're all dead by the end of the week."

[LarwisTheElf]

"There's nothing we can do for this place. The Void-Rift has consumed it, but those Inquisitor fools think it's a thing of the Dark. Wasting their energies on those "pillars of light". I bet you five Arthean Silvers that they're all dead by the end of the week."
-Raif, street child and survivor of the city of Glec, which was consumed by the Void-Rift.

"Oooooooooo! It's so shiny! I want it! Gimmie gimmie gimmie gimmie gimmie!"

[HisHolyAngel]

"Oooooooooo! It's so shiny! I want it! Gimmie gimmie gimmie gimmie gimmie!"

~Book 1 of The Tales of Bildor the Fool in which Bildor foolishly grabs a mysterious coin that sets him on his life of adventure and danger.

When the sun rises in the west, never has it been so important to look east.

[Shyftir]

When the sun rises in the west, never has it been so important to look east.
Gilden the Mad Seer, addressing the son of an upstart merchant. No scholar has yet deciphered its meaning.


" 'Why?' That is the only question that matters. The ways and means are but details. The purpose is the main thing!"

[D20ragon]

" 'Why?' That is the only question that matters. The ways and means are but details. The purpose is the main thing!"
High Praetor of the cult of Offikam, Archangel of Duty.



"The nature of souls.... Strange you should ask me that, one of the most difficult questions to answer without mortally offending someone.
The soul is real, and not real. It exists at once on the physical plane, and the spiritual one.
You see mine? This stylus I'm holding? Looks rather ordinary, doesn't it. Mundane.
But if you were to steal it, I would be a mindless servitor of you, an human automaton, if you will.
Automaton? Yes, one such as those mechanical men you see. Haven't you wondered what makes them tick? It's not gearwork, my student.
No, it's a soul, wrongfully stolen from some poor man or woman.
But, after all, "there is no stopping the wheel of progress!"
When will those damnable mechanical philosophers be satisfied?! First it was our bodies, our bones and blood, to make gunpowder. Now they steal our souls, as well.
Sometimes I think the natural philosophers are in the right, even with all the abominations they create.


Eh? Forgive an old man, I ramble on now and then.
No one can define the substance of a soul. Even the Collages "Philosophers stone" can't divine it. They should stick to greasing the wings of Airships and stop embarrassing themselves.
The priesthood of the Light tells us that the soul is all that makes us human, and without it we are no better then Dwarves, Fae or Void Beasts.
They tell us that without it, we are damned to hell, and heaven is beyond our grasp forever.
Now, I'm not sure on that account, given that the Firebat has made it to heavens gates, at least, and I'm certain that not all of them had kept a hold on their souls, as well as they ought.
But they're fairly close, as close as anyone's gotten to the truth, save for me, and now you.
Your soul is life. It is the spark that animates you. Your consciousness, if you will.
That is the part of the soul we cannot see, or touch.
The part we can, is made of anything. Seems simple, doesn't it?
But if my soul is a metal stylus, my soul is made of metal.
If a mans soul is a book, a match could be the undoing of him.

Makes you think, doesn't it?"

[Vedhin]

"The nature of souls.... Strange you should ask me that, one of the most difficult questions to answer without mortally offending someone.
The soul is real, and not real. It exists at once on the physical plane, and the spiritual one.
You see mine? This stylus I'm holding? Looks rather ordinary, doesn't it. Mundane.
But if you were to steal it, I would be a mindless servitor of you, an human automaton, if you will.
Automaton? Yes, one such as those mechanical men you see. Haven't you wondered what makes them tick? It's not gearwork, my student.
No, it's a soul, wrongfully stolen from some poor man or woman.
But, after all, "there is no stopping the wheel of progress!"
When will those damnable mechanical philosophers be satisfied?! First it was our bodies, our bones and blood, to make gunpowder. Now they steal our souls, as well.
Sometimes I think the natural philosophers are in the right, even with all the abominations they create.


Eh? Forgive an old man, I ramble on now and then.
No one can define the substance of a soul. Even the Collages "Philosophers stone" can't divine it. They should stick to greasing the wings of Airships and stop embarrassing themselves.
The priesthood of the Light tells us that the soul is all that makes us human, and without it we are no better then Dwarves, Fae or Void Beasts.
They tell us that without it, we are damned to hell, and heaven is beyond our grasp forever.
Now, I'm not sure on that account, given that the Firebat has made it to heavens gates, at least, and I'm certain that not all of them had kept a hold on their souls, as well as they ought.
But they're fairly close, as close as anyone's gotten to the truth, save for me, and now you.
Your soul is life. It is the spark that animates you. Your consciousness, if you will.
That is the part of the soul we cannot see, or touch.
The part we can, is made of anything. Seems simple, doesn't it?
But if my soul is a metal stylus, my soul is made of metal.
If a mans soul is a book, a match could be the undoing of him.

Makes you think, doesn't it?"
-Albernoth, Sage of Sapbae



"Sometimes, I think back and wonder: what would have happened if I had made a different choice here, or turned the other way there?"

[HisHolyAngel]

"Sometimes, I think back and wonder: what would have happened if I had made a different choice here, or turned the other way there?"

~The very last line of the final book of The Tales of Bildor the Fool

Fire makes us strong, the cold makes us strong, but we are all weak before the fire and ice of the end.

[Alexkubel]

Fire makes us strong, the cold makes us strong, but we are all weak before the fire and ice of the end.

High mage Asmis Tas - order of the sacred balance.

though our days end draws near, we still have the night to spend! we still have the dusk! and when dawn rises, we shall rise again! be dawn is in a billion years or just ten! we will rise again! we must not fall to the void!

[Aolbain]

though our days end draws near, we still have the night to spend! we still have the dusk! and when dawn rises, we shall rise again! be dawn is in a billion years or just ten! we will rise again! we must not fall to the void!
-Thoredan Alv, speaking to the last of the Elvhan on the Eve of Desolation.

Fight ye, if ye must. But not for long, for I have many yet to slay and dawn draws near.

[Shyftir]

Fight ye, if ye must. But not for long, for I have many yet to slay and dawn draws near.
- VoidKnight Eckhart the Bloody at the Battle of Farlin's Gap

Someday the Void will take as all and the Long Night shall fall. Someday the Light will fail and Mankind will cease, but as long as we live and serve and fight, we stave off the Dusk of Man. We cannot fail, we cannot rest, in this battle or the next, in this life or the next. There is nothing for us but to struggle and die but more so to live. So I ask you, my brothers, not to die beside me, but instead to live! For if we lay down to rest we are little better than dead, to fight is to live! If we die our rest is earned, but if we do not fight, our souls will not find rest. For truly if we live with honor our soul joins with Light in glorious Day, and the Night of the Void shall never defeat us, even in Death's cold embrace.

So once more, my brethren, I ask you: Will you live in honor or die in shame?

[Ionbound]

Someday the Void will take as all and the Long Night shall fall. Someday the Light will fail and Mankind will cease, but as long as we live and serve and fight, we stave off the Dusk of Man. We cannot fail, we cannot rest, in this battle or the next, in this life or the next. There is nothing for us but to struggle and die but more so to live. So I ask you, my brothers, not to die beside me, but instead to live! For if we lay down to rest we are little better than dead, to fight is to live! If we die our rest is earned, but if we do not fight, our souls will not find rest. For truly if we live with honor our soul joins with Light in glorious Day, and the Night of the Void shall never defeat us, even in Death's cold embrace.

So once more, my brethren, I ask you: Will you live in honor or die in shame?

-General Charles Wallace, final words before he and his men were slain during the Infernal Incursion

And We Shall Rouse, With Raised Rod to Pierce the Very House of God!

[The Tygre]

And We Shall Rouse, With Raised Rod to Pierce the Very House of God!

- Last lines of Great House Rourke's house-anthem. Also house motto.

"And why shouldn't we cheat? Isn't cheating the halfling gift? Isn't cunning what we were given above all races? Why should the race go to the swift, or survival to the fittest? What makes the bold deserve the fair? I say, we have a gift, a gift given to us from the very gods themselves. And wouldn't it be utterly blasphemous if we didn't cheat, Baron? Would that not be even more dishonest than base honesty?"

[Somensjev]

- Last lines of Great House Rourke's house-anthem. Also house motto.

"And why shouldn't we cheat? Isn't cheating the halfling gift? Isn't cunning what we were given above all races? Why should the race go to the swift, or survival to the fittest? What makes the bold deserve the fair? I say, we have a gift, a gift given to us from the very gods themselves. And wouldn't it be utterly blasphemous if we didn't cheat, Baron? Would that not be even more dishonest than base honesty?"

-zahgnal the machiallevian, self-proclaimed lord of the prevaricators; on the topic of the upcoming battles at the plains of glenma'al

"For those who want the world to burn, rejoice my brothers of a likemind, the promised time is nigh, rejoice, for soon we shall leave this mortal realm, and live together for eternity"

[Aolbain]

"For those who want the world to burn, rejoice my brothers of a likemind, the promised time is nigh, rejoice, for soon we shall leave this mortal realm, and live together for eternity"
- Storak Danai, High Commouner of the Church of the Roaring Beast, speaking to a congregation that consisted solely of Inquisition infiltrators.

You have the arrogance judge me? Fool! For thirty-seven years I stood by the Gate, facing beings who's mere presence would burn the sanity from your mind!