All blog posts relating to the RP known as The Road to Dragon's Peak shall be indexed and linked from this post. Using blog posts will allow me to edit and revise any post at any time, even past the first week. Character Profiles Setting/Geography Magic
Magical Types Spoiler There are four types of magic available on Peoem - natural, academic, holy and ley. Natural magic deals with the elements (of which there are 8), in born abilities (like the sight, the ability to speak to animals, and the like). Witches/wizards/warlocks (hedge as well) and mages generally practice some form of natural magic. Magic is rarely genetic and can pass to anyone. Academic magic deals with symbols, incantations, charms, wards and the like. Magicians, some mages, and sorcerers prefer this kind of magic. Any form of divination outside of the Sight is academic magic. Holy Magic comes from a god or goddess, who has the ability to grant their priests/priestesses special powers and abilities. Only a god can turn a normal person into a magic user; all other magic users must be born with their power/abilities. A god can also grant extra powers to someone who already has access to magic. Powers from gods are gained through careful rituals, which are a combination of ley-magic and academic magic. Even a dead god can grant powers; however, such powers are weaker as time goes by. Ley magic is the magic of high sorcerers, gods, and priests. It can also be used by mages and accomplished witches (although not very well). This magic uses the raw energy of the ley lines which criss-cross the planet. Nodes are those areas where two (or more) ley-lines cross. A nexus is any place where several ley-lines cross and leave behind a sort of ball of energy. Those born above the nexus can draw on its power; the larger the nexus, the stronger the mage. Magical Ranks Spoiler Mages on Peoem are divided based on abilities and power level. Other than warlocks (and sorcerers/gods), any negatively-aligned magic user is simply called a "Dark Mage". Hedge witch/wizard – can access some small magic, often little more than lighting a candle flame or reading the future in tarot cards. Often healers (herb based), midwives or village wise men/women. (Can live to be 100) Witch/Wizard – Has nature based magic, elemental (fire magic, light magic, water magic, ect) or plant/animal related. After much practice, they can levitate, predict the future (with crystal balls, tarot cards, and such), lend and borrow magic, light fires, and sometimes cast basic energy spells. (Can live to be 150 or so) Warlock – a dark witch or wizard, who has stolen magic, or uses magic to serve the dark energies/forces of the world. (Can use dark magic to extend their life, up to 500 or so years) Magician – gifted with general magic, can do all a witch/wizard can do, but is not connected to a specific energy/element. Spends their time crafting magical artifacts of various potencies. (Often lives to be less than 300 years) Mage – Strong magic, often gifted with two to four elements/energies/forces, or strange powers, such as spatial/dimensional magic, healing by the laying on of hands, or weather magic (rather than just water, fire/heat, lightning, or wind). Also known for making magical artifacts, such as wind knots, containers that are bigger on the inside, magic mirrors and more. (Can easily live 300-500 years) Sorcerer/Sorceress – Two magic users fall into this category, although most people are aware of only one of them. The most common sorcerers are those who study magic, rather than practice it. They are also known for summoning circles, highly esoterica magical abilities (curses, mental healing, ect), rather than the more practical magics of mages and witches. While most sorcerers have been gifted with general magic, some have elemental/energy magic, or even hedge witch level magic. Basically, a magic user who studies magic, but rarely casts it, or casts highly academical magics (summoning circles), is a sorcerer, regardless of skill and power. (Lives 300-500 years as well) High Sorcerer/Sorceress – The less well known group of sorcerers, on the other hand, relies entirely on power and skill. These sorcerers are classified as those who were born over a small magical nexus, who can wield pure magic in various levels of strength. However, as few people know about nexuses (ley nodes), few realize that mages/sorcerers of this ilk are in fact High Sorcerers. (Often lives upward of 1000 years) Gods/Goddesses – those born over a large nexus, on the other hand, become gods. The knowledge of how to gain power from followers/worshippers, and how to create and gift priests with magic, is inborn in them, and comes to them, like with all magical ability, during puberty. Like all magic users, gods are mortal, although, like other magic users, they live much longer than the average mortal. Gods live an average of 1500 years, although most live to be over 2000 years (many live only to be 800 or so).
The Map. Peoem is divided into several continents. One of the largest is known as Rhoselut, and is home to six kingdoms, the Free Cities of the Plains, the Undying Desert and the Marshlands. Regions Spoiler The Undying Desert – The people of the desert seek spiritual enlightenment. They have very sophisticated art and elaborate rituals. When they are not fighting with Logoth, however, they are fighting with Pohoni. Marshlands – Home to a few hermit mages and two tribes who eck out their living in the hostile environment. The Dragon’s Peak Mountains – Mountain range that covers a large portion of the northern part of Rhoselut. Contains at least two known valleys of significant size, and several smaller valleys and vales. Sindori Valley (and Mountain) (SVM) – The small valley at the base of the Sindori Mountain. Dom Eminith – The Vale of the Dead. A second valley in the Dragon’s Peak Range. Considered cursed or haunted. While it was once home to a glorious city, it is now nothing but ruins. Mountain Passes – There are two passes through the mountains to the Sindori Valley. Nations Spoiler Free Cities of the Plains – There are seven city-states bordering the plains. There are also several nomadic tribes which wonder through the center of the plains. Pohoni - An isolationist kingdom, which places emphasis on military experience and combat skills. Is run by a council of women. Does not trade with other nations, nor allow foreigners to cross its borders. Few Pohoni choose to travel abroad. The nation of Pohini is in a constant state of war with someone, be it the nation of Logoth, the people of the Undying Desert, or Ra’Shala. Logoth – Once a small nation, Logoth has spend the last two generations expandings its borders. It has an on-again/off-again state of aggression (but never outright war) with Pohoni. The last state of aggression ended one year ago. Currently, Logoth is focusing its attentions on the nation of Nerilwyn, which it hopes to add to its empire. Nerilwyn – Trade and industrial kingdom which is currently trying to withstand Logoth’s attempt to annex it into the Empire. Qinqu – A wealthy nation of farmers, miners and lumberjacks. Sends many of its younger sons to the schools of Ra’Shala, or and its younger daughters to the academy at Veratis. Ra’Shala – A theistic nation which believes in intellectual pursuit above all else. Does not encourage the practice of magic. Veratis – Home to the largest academy of magic on the continent. Cities Spoiler City 1 - Unknown City 1 - Unknown City 3 - Unknown City 4 - Unknown City 5 - Unknown City 6 - Unknown City 7 - [Sanatis] - Group Two starts here. City A - Unknown City B - Unknown City C - [?] Capital of Logoth. Group One starts here. City D - March Shai'ia
Group One Spoiler Saif-Al-Rahmen Hui Shariah ~The Ambitious Noble~ "Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings." Spoiler Basic Info ╔═══════════════════════════════════╗ Age: 18 Gender: Male Height: 5'5" Position: Leader Group: One ╚═══════════════════════════════════╝ [Younger Hui and A Guy || Name || Older Hui || One || Two || Three] In Depth╔════════════════════════════════ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ Physical Description: Hui is lean and short for his age. He has medium brown hair and hazel eyes that often appear to be light green. He wears expensive, but modest, clothing, preferring to avoid ostentation. Interests: Enjoys reading and study, especially of dragons and dragon kin. Knows more about the Dragon's Peak mountains, he believes, than any other scholar of Rhoselut. Also likes puzzles or mind games. Dislikes political intrigue, but is surprisingly good at playing the game. Fascinated by poetry, especially the more modern forms. Skills: As a noble, Hui has a duelists skill with the sword (a blade somewhere between a katana, a jian and a scimitar). He can read and speak several languages, including two that are considered dead. Has a prestigious memory, and an unparalleled intellect. Home/Family: Last living son, and therefore heir, to the Marquis of the March Shai'ia. His four elder brothers all perished in the war with Pohoni. His mother and father still live, although his mother entered a monastery after the death of her first three children. His father has redrawn from life and lives as a ghost on the family estate. Relationships: Technically, Hui is engaged. However, since the engagement was made when he born, and is to a young woman of almost no means or connections, Hui has been trying to break it for years. He means to marry for power, wealth or influence, and nothing else. He has several friend among the other nobles of Logoth, as well as among the scholars at the Institute in Veratis. Motivations/Aspirations: Hui seeks to restore his family to its former place of power, as one of the premier families of the Empire. He has already restored some of the lost wealth; now he means to restore power and influence. ╚════════════════════════════════ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ Details═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ════════════════════════════════╗ Personality: Prideful, and fully aware of his position, Hui often comes off as arrogant and conceited. In fact, he is actually just unsure how to deal with people from other social classes; his entire life was spent around other nobles and wealthy merchants, or family servants. Quite by nature, Hui uses what few words he chooses to say to good effect. Ruthlessly ambitious, Hui's only goal is to restore power to his family; he has little patience for other interests. The only time he is truly likable is when he is reading or discussing some random part of academia, often an obscure reference to dragons, myths or legends. Biography: Hui was born the youngest of five sons, children of a powerful noble house in growing Empire. He was his mother's joy, although his father spared him little attention, finding it more important to rear his elder sons. When he was ten, he was shipped off to the Institute at Veratis, to study and learn, in hopes that he might one day attain a position at court. There would be no inheritance for him. The war with Pohoni changed all of that. Military losses, such as of many of the liege-men and men at arms who served his family greatly reduced the wealth and power of the Shariah family. His brother's deaths, one after the other, drove both his parents into their own form of grief-rent seclusion. His mother entered a local monastery, and his father withdrew to the family estate, to wonder its halls and bemoan his fate. At fifteen, one year after the end of the war, Hui returned from Veratis to find his family in ruins. Rather than allow his house to continue to dwindle into poverty stricken obscurity, Hui choose to enter the game, the ultimate power struggle at the heart of the Logothian government. He bargained, begged, bribed and threatened his way into a position of minimal power, one that provided a modest income, which, when added to the income from the family estate, more than settled any monetary problems his family might have faced. During those two years, he studied dragons, specifically the legends of Elatrix granting boons. Now, his position at court secured, and stable enough to grant him a leave of absence, his family and interests in the capable hands of loyal family retainer, Hui is prepared to set out on a daunting quest deep into the Dragon's Peak Mountains. Extra: Hui hates being short, and anyone who points out his height is in for a serious tongue lashing.═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ════════════════════════════════╝Quote by Salvador Dali Maron Barosh ~The Marauding Berserker~ "Let the Queens of the Sun gaze down in sorrow as I drown their lands in blood!" Spoiler Basic Info ╔═══════════════════════════════════╗ Age: 35 Gender: Male Height: 6ft 8in Position: Tribal Warrior Group: One ╚═══════════════════════════════════╝ Reference In Depth╔════════════════════════════════ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ Physical Description: Maron is a brooding, bronze skinned giant of a man, wearing straps of steel armour mixed with faded leather. It does not cover him fully, so as not to constrain his movement. One of his shoulders has a steel pauldron forged into a bull’s head. His long pony tailed hair is dirty brown, and sports a thick beaded goatee, which passes his neck and dangles on his bare chest. Interests: Killing. Eating. Women. And worshipping his tribal gods. Skills: Maron is a warrior of strength and power, wielding a massive axe that most would struggle to even lift. His enormous size makes him great for charging into groups, steamrolling anyone foolish enough to stand in the way. He swings his axe well, but its weight means he is not the quickest of fighters. However, one clean hit from ‘Izabella’ would likely end your life. Home/Family: Maron was born into the royalty of the Kurubo nomadic tribe, a travelling clan in the plains (Free Cities of the Plains) . When his father died, Maron took over his role and became ‘Lar’Rak Sha’, Leader of the Kurubo. Though still young, he was already growing into a hulking brute and was able to prove his strength against those that believed him weak. They died swifty. Relationships: When the Kurubo destroyed a rival clan (Serin), they forced the survivors to join them. To celebrate their success, a binding (or marriage) was performed between Maron and Serin’s princess ‘Izabella’. Motivations/Aspirations: Maron wants to clear his name and honour. He wants vengeance on those who have betrayed him. ╚════════════════════════════════ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ Details═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ═ ════════════════════════════════╗ Personality: When necessary Maron can be thoughtful and level headed. And though he is not the smartest, Maron has a keen eye for strategy and tactics. However, he is aggressive. It doesn’t take much to enrage him, especially since being betrayed. He is by no means arrogant or cocky, but his aggression makes him impatient, intolerant and ignorant. He cannot stand those that are scheming and tricksters. Biography: As leader Maron would pillage and burn encampments and settlements that plotted on ‘sacred’ land. In the clan this was not seen as wrong, but their duty; to protect their holy site. However other tribes would also lay claim to the same area, and thus conflicts would break out between the two. The Kurubo cut most down. Yet Maron would not conquer, and try and take that which was not his. He was a stout defender of his people and his home, but he would not be tempted by greed and expansion. This caused friction on many occasion between other senior warriors. At first his new wife Izabella wanted nothing but to kill Maron, but as their relationship continued she found herself falling in love, and vice versa. Years of happiness past, but some of the Serin survivors believed their princess a traitor, and when she announced she was with child, they plotted to...