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What is UNIVERSE?
Welcome, traveler, to the Grand Wheel of Worlds.
Inspired by a diverse number of franchises like Magic: The Gathering, Shadowrun, Final Fantasy, Phantasy Star and Thundercats, UNIVERSE is near-mythic setting where science and magic are nigh-inseparable. It is a cosmos where humanity once rose to glorious heights and was struck down for its insolence. Now only the Children of Men, our far-flung post-human grandchildren, remain in the once glittering halls of chrome and plastic. They strive to rebuild their worlds from the shards that remain even as the heavens fall silent and the stars wink out one by one.
The theme of UNIVERSE is simple and emphasized in three points;
Gods, Machines, Monsters.
Gods: Or beings that can be considered analogous to the concept. UNIVERSE is filled with divine or semi-divine entities that regularly cross paths with what they consider to be “lower” lifeforms, hindering or aiding on a whim like the gods of ancient Man’s many tales. From the much storied demi human godrics to the mysterious Norns of Fate to the cryptic Trainmasters, gods walk amongst men and their presence is an integral part to the tale of UNIVERSE.
Machines: At the height of the Golden Age, technology had progressed to the point of turning miracles into everyday events. But after the disgraceful Fall of the Golden Age, many of Mankind’s wonderful automata and baubles were either scattered to the winds, preserved as religious relics or destroyed outright. Some of the machines that remained however, slowly came to life over the millennia and have even gained souls.
Monsters: Here there be monsters. In early days of the Golden Age, humanity sought to improve itself with its fledgling knowledge. Many millennia of genetic manipulation and mechanical tinkering have spawned creatures of myriad shapes and sizes…many of which are perfectly engineered for killing. With much of the wisdom of their creation lost during the Fall of the Golden Age, Man’s descendants have to find new ways to either control or destroy these mistakes of an earlier time.
The Worlds
Empyrea: Empyrea, home to the largest number of aerial flora and fauna in all the worlds. With most of its landmass buried underneath the cloudy shroud of an eternal energy storm, life on this planet has quickly learnt to either grow wings or seek shelter on the bits and pieces of the land that hovers above the clouds. These sky islands that act as harbors for those without the gift of flight are known as the Primum Mobile, and serve as the home to nearly a quarter of the native population. The rest live on Skyburns, airships of varying sizes and shapes that require a steady, yet constant stream of Chrysane mined from the mysterious crystalline growths of Chrysanium that now cover the lands below. Skyburns have evolved over many centuries to become autonomous city-states under the jurisdiction of their respective Skippers. However, some skyburner crews have taken it upon themselves to unite the world under one rule, and have formed the Highwind Armada, a vast fleet of ships commanded by the mysterious Admiral Pygmalion. Scattered about the planet are the arcane floating structures known as the Zodiarks; it is from these ancient storehouses of weapons and lore that skyburners make their living by scavenging and selling their contents in the marketplaces of Primum Mobile, as well as to offworlders. The godric of Empyrea is Galatea the White Winged.
Mystra: A garden paradise world that is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna. In the distant past, the greatest minds of all the cosmos arrived here and terraformed the planet until it became a biotech engineer’s dream. Not one bit of machinery is allowed to exist on this native world, save for the space elevator that ascends into the heavens. Mystra is populated by many non-sentient beasts as well as three fully sentient species named the Hirudo, Dolomi and Kodora. It is ruled by the godric Lamia the She-Viper.
Orionoro: Orionoro is a hotrock: a barren, arid and rocky wasteland of a planet, with rich veins of precious mineral ores running just beneath its tough iron-like soil. Orionoro is said to have gained its name from the jagged, abrasive landscape of its surface; in an ancient tongue, the name means “Land of the Stone Thorns”. It is a lifeless land, and inhospitable to all but the hardiest of folks…thus it is home to a substantial population of Elfriedes. The planet is frequently wracked with energy storms and its skies are constantly shrouded in thick dark clouds said to have been caused by the humans of the Golden Age. This world is well known for its only architecture; an ominous black structure that rises nearly two hundred and fifty feet into the air and twice the same height below the earth. It is called the Black Stone Tower, and it used to serve only as the penal zone of the scum and scoundrel of the cosmos, until the uprising of the Sparkborn changed this purpose to include the holding of all those with the Spark. This world is ruled by the godric Versago the Executioner, and his chosen champion is the warden of the Black Tower, Kuan Ti.
Loire: This world exists as a solitary moon that orbits a much larger planet named Morghane. Visually and geographically speaking, it is remarkably similar to the fabled Gaia before the Fall, albeit with only one supercontinent and a vast body of water surrounding it. The land is dotted with ruins in almost every direction, and its inhabitants live in a Feudal system of society. It has the largest population of Sparkborn than anywhere in the nine worlds; a fact that gave rise to the existence of the legendary Sparkhunters. Loire is also home to the largest concentration of Antikytherans, whom reside in the area known as the Cradlelands; a land that is off-limits to all but Antikytheran pilgrims. The giant swordlike structure known as the Arkblade is a notable landmark of the world, and the stories have it that it was born out of a terrible war, the details of which are long since forgotten. This planet used to be ruled by the godric Edea of the Light and Dark, whom was slain in the Goddess War, and her Champion Parissa.
Orcina: An aquatic world located not far from the planet Bastion. It is ruled by the Merrows who live beneath its waves, leaving the large archipelago near its equator open to be occupied by people that the Merrow have deemed fit to inhabit their world. Trapped in the eternal ice that make up this world’s polar regions are colossal sea-faring ships that quietly rust away; relics, some say, of a time when Men inhabited this watery world. The Merrows fear these ships and refuse to come within 200 yards of places like this, calling them the domain of Charybdis the Sea King and his ghostly company. Foolhardy folk who have scoffed at this folklore and ventured into the Sea King’s Realm have never been seen or heard from again. The godric of Orcina is Scylla the Red Serpent and her Champion is Valeria Mondragon.
Gaia: The much storied homeworld of the Dark Sailors is the stuff of legends. The Sailors themselves are not inclined to confirm or deny any of the rumors surrounding it, Sraosha refuses to be persuaded in going there and any attempt to seek it out is explicitly forbidden under pain of death if discovered. The bards speak of untold treasures and powerful tech buried in the muck of this ruined world, but as no one has ever been there or knows if it exists, the mystery remains in folklore.
The Races
Dark Sailors: After the Fall of the Golden Age, many of the survivors proceeded to escape the ruined homeworld of Gaia by crafting for themselves giant starships. Using an untested new propulsion system that utilized dark matter and could attain velocities of up to 80% the speed of light, these remnants of humanity fled their ruined world’s quagmire slag and spread out towards the stars. The side effects from the dark matter engines, combined with the passage of time spent adrift in the cold and the dark between stars began to change them…spawning a race unlike any of the other Children of Men. These survivors mutated, fusing with their onboard machinery and with each other to become biomechanical hiveminds; colossal living brains wrapped in the metallic cocoon of their starships. Having given up on their humanity, the Dark Sailors are now content to simply roam the dark matter filaments of the cosmos, scavenging for tech and materials from a multitude of worlds. They return to habitable worlds to trade these scavenged items through their Emissaries; living biomech drones that serve as a temporary host for a downloaded subset of the hivemind. Dark Sailors do not tolerate stowaways aboard their vessels, and with their lack of humane empathy, will not hesitate to kill first and ask questions later. They also strive for hard bargains in their trades, and the often high price to pay for their services has led to the saying; “Never deal with the Dark Sailors.”
Hyuman: The first of the direct descendants of the people of the Golden Age; they are the last dregs of the once proud humanity. In that forgotten time long ago, a section of mankind sought to improve their frail mortality through the use of nanotech. The Hyuman are the result of this experiment, refined through untold millennia of natural evolution since those days. For the most part, they resemble the general configuration of their ancestors, with the difference being in their enhanced agility, strength, endurance, vision and vitality. Every hyuman is born as is normal, but depending on certain factors, they eventually develop their full hyuman aspects through a rite of passage known as the Transmogrification. For some, this can mean anything from developing synthetic limbs overnight to a complete and total transformation into a living machine. Some hyumans have even developed the strange ability to access an otherworldly dimension known as the Anima. Hyumans can be found on virtually every world save for Mystra, and are the second largest in terms of population after their ‘cousin’, the Elfriede.
Gadgeteers: A race of humanoid rodents living mostly within the drifting pile of junk and scrap that is aptly named the Scrapland. They are a furtive species, and take great pains to avoid contact with others. Their passion and drive to seek out forgotten tech and repurpose/reverse engineer them to their pursuits is unparalleled in all the worlds. Gadgeteers wear elaborate beautiful masks with data chips embedded inside that contain a complete record of an individual’s identity and societal rank. This data is only permissible to be shared with other Gadgeteers, and as such, they assume different names and identities when forced to deal with strangers of non-Gadgeteer heritage.
Elfriede: The second of the direct descendants of humanity. They are the end result of an entirely different method of approach to the upgrading of the human body: the use of bio-engineering. In appearance, they resemble the elves that are spoken of in ancient texts; with long pointed ears and shark-like canine teeth set within beautiful angelic bodies. While they can live very long lives, most Elfriedes have generally weak immune systems. Elfriedes are a territorial species, and do not take kindly to trespassers. They have sharper senses as well as eyes that can penetrate the gloom of the night. Generally, they are rash, impulsive creatures with a tendency towards violence and isolation. Elfriede society is known for its fairly anarchic, matriarchal overtones, as well as adopting the philosophy of “the weak must serve the strong, and the strong must protect the weak as payment.”
Simurgh: Heralds of the godric Zendar the Gryphon, legends from all the habitable worlds speak often of these mysterious yet wonderful creatures. While evidence of their existence is present, there is some academic debate as to whether they are an actual race and not merely some form of godric Champions. Visually they resemble their godric master (who in turn bears a resemblance to the griffin spoken of in ancient texts) but on a much smaller scale. Simurghs can be found in sizes ranging from just under twenty feet to over forty-five feet tall. Like in the stories, they rarely speak save for a strange form of telepathy that projects images of their intentions directly into one’s brain. No one knows how many of them are there or how they manage to cross from world to world with apparent ease or even why they are protective of Sparkborn folk. The only known fact about them is that their home seems to be somewhere inside the arcane region known as The Blank Zone on the planet Syboria.
Merrow: The denizens of the deep murky trenches of the planet Orcina are the merrow. They are a minor species with an uneven mixture of human and shark DNA in their blood. Merrows possess the unique trait of possessing two very distinct forms: an aquatic and a land form, with the ability to interchange between these two as and when the occasion demands it. On land, they share a slight resemblance to Elfriedes, though their long green hair and more rounded ears are a dead give-away that they are not of the elves. Once they dive into water, their form changes; they grow webbing between their fingers while their legs fuse and lengthen out to become fish tails. They can be forced to assume only their land form by the injection of a curious red poison they call the ‘Cohuleen Druith’. To prevent this, all merrow are given a small vial of this poison upon achieving maidenhood, and ritually consume ever increasing doses of it in order to build immunity. All merrow are born female, with the exception of a male born once every thirty years who will fertilize the females’ eggs before dying.
Godric: Immortal, regal, awe-inspiring and all-powerful…these are some of the words many poets and bards have used to describe these beings of unknown origins. Some tales suggest that they are the reincarnations of the greatest minds and warriors of the Golden Age, divinely appointed to be the rulers of the worlds. For every world that exists under the Silver Star’s light, there is at least one godric who watches over its inhabitants. Most godrics are large, colossal beings that tower over mortals the way a man towers above an ant, and are practically invincible, thus spawning the many myths and legends that has inspired many to worship them as deities. They appoint certain individuals by marking them with their seals to be their servants/warriors/guardians, calling them Champions.
Giantwalkers: Far within the southern reaches of the planet Alchera, lies a valley that is eternally wrapped in cold, murky fog. Kiridani, is the name that is given to this half-forgotten place, and it is here that the Giantwalkers spoken of in folktales reside. Built in similar proportions to humans, Giantwalkers stand larger and stronger than the Men of old, with the smallest of them being just under nine feet tall. Numbering only a few hundreds and despite their impressive size, they are a non-aggressive race that tends to stay out of other people’s way. One is more often than not to find a Giantwalker wandering off on his own, poring over dusty old books or crawling through ancient ruins in search of abandoned and forgotten lore. Giantwalkers value friendship, honor and storytelling above all else.
The Tech
Chinvat Bridge: The great Chinvat Bridge spans the entirety of the solar system, and is one of the few monuments that stand as a mute testament to the height and splendor of the Golden Age. It is comprised of a series of interconnected jumpgates that are themselves connected via maglev tube tracks to the artificial low orbital rings of each planet. No one understands the workings of the Chinvat, and the history of it is known only by the Dark Sailors, who for some strange reason avoid it. The bridge is watched over by the mysterious entity that goes by the name Mithra.
Startram: The only vehicle that is allowed to operate on the Bridge. The Startram is a marvelous yet ancient piece of engineering left by humanity in the Golden Age. The hypertrain known as the Startram works on a constant schedule that is enforced by two powerful beings called Sraosha and Rashnu. These two answer only to Mithra.
Anima: There was a turbulent time before the Golden Age, when there existed a vast, all-pervading network where data and information flowed. Many millennia later, this colossal network evolved to become the logosphere known as the Anima. It is a realm saturated in data that can only be accessed by the minds of a fraction of the hyuman population…and even then this privilege can be revoked at any time by the enigmatic Sophia. Much like its earliest incarnation, the Anima is made up of two distinct and separate levels; the Surface/LightNet and the Deep/DarkNet. Surface is open to all comers of the Anima, and forms the “landing page”. It is a landscape that is visually similar to the shopping malls of the chaotic time before the Golden Age, only this “mall” stretches as far as the eye can see in any direction, and looks deceptively deserted. However the Surface is far from deserted; it is occupied by beings known as Bots, Proxies and lethal Malwares. There is also the presence of the Lost Boys, a group of hyumans whom have willingly chosen to keep their minds trapped within the Anima and claim the Surface as their ‘rightful’ domain. The Deep is the dwelling place of Sophia, and it is a land that is constantly being reshaped to the (flighty) whim of its mistress. It is here that the vast bulk of knowledge of Man has been accumulated and doled out in bits by Sophia. Access to the Deep is hard to come by, as some visitors of the Anima put it; “The Lady will let you into her chambers when she feels like it, and even then you’re only welcome for five minutes.”
The Divines
Mithra: The god-like guardian of the Chinvat Bridge is a being veiled in mystery. Mithra has an aura about him that commands immediate respect and authority, despite his seemingly frail appearance of a bespectacled old man of about 72 winters of age. No one knows much about him, save for the fact that he is the only being that Dark Sailors fear and take great pains not to cross paths with him. He has the ability to transport and destroy people and objects in an instant using the same tech that powers the Bridge, and is gifted with a keen intellect and an extensive knowledge of all things under the light of the Silver Star. Though most often found on the low orbital rings of all worlds, he is not averse to random bouts of wandering on the surface of these worlds.
Sraosha: The mysterious immortal trainmaster who resides within the Startram appears in the form of a boy of about twelve winters, with wavy dark brown hair and sad, faintly glowing blue eyes. He often refers to Mithra as “Brother”, though whether this indicates a biological relation or just a term of respect is anyone’s guess. He is adamant about keeping to his predefined schedule and can be found wandering near the front car, constantly checking a golden pocketwatch.
Rashnu: Sraosha’s companion, and often sighted not far off from him, the being known as Rashnu cuts an imposing figure above most people. He is just over eight feet tall, adorned in ornate heavy armor and wielding a greatsword larger than his own body. He rarely speaks, save for grunts and nods as well as the occasional short phrases like “come” or “this way”. Most people believe him to be a slow and dim-witted simpleton due to his weighty armor and odd mannerism, but it is merely a masquerade. In addition to his brutish strength, he is a rather swift and dexterous swordsman, with no tolerance for wicked souls or stowaways.
Sophia: A white-haired, red-eyed voluptuous maiden who seems to exist only within the logosphere known as Anima. She stands at its gateway, and acts as a guide to this mysterious realm. In exchange for her help, she charges individuals who enter the Anima to perform certain tasks for her in the real world. Sometimes they are normal tasks that turn out to be of great value to the person performing them, and sometimes…they are strange and make no sense, with little to no explanation on her part. She is beholden to no one, and takes a great interest in those with the ability to walk the Anima.
Cassandra the Farseer: There is a tale, oft told in the gentlest and softest of voices, that speaks of a godric-like being named Cassandra the Farseer. It is said that if one were to take the Startram and stay on it as it made its near-endless loop of the worlds, that brave soul would eventually be taken to The Final Edge; an eldritch, timeless land that sits on the border land between the known worlds and the Star Sea. Here in this strange cold place where the eternally drifting hulks and scrap metal of unknown titanic spacecraft dance with the stars, sits a blind young woman with purple hair, plain dark robes and wielding a wizened staff adorned with a single crystalline flower. Her name is Cassandra, and she is the guardian of the jumpgate that as the tales have it, leads to far more worlds that were colonized by humanity in the Golden Age. She is gifted with the ability to forsee the future, as the stories go, and will briefly share her ability with anyone who is able to answer three of her riddles correctly.
The Lore
Spark: To some, the Spark is a blessing from above, and to others it is an abomination that deserves to be cleansed from all the worlds. To possess the Spark is to possess the ability that the more devout folk view to be the domain of only the godrics themselves; having the power to warp reality, hurl bolts of lightning at enemies, immolate items with naught but a glance or freeze one’s blood in his/her very veins. Those who acquire the Spark are known as the Sparkborn, and the process of acquisition is known as Ignition. For a vast majority, using the Spark (a process known as Sparking), often has unpredictable and catastrophic consequences, even in the most well-intentioned cases. This is partly due to the inherently wild and rather violent nature of the Spark itself, and also to the gradual degradation of the Sparkborn’s vitality with the extended use of power. However in a small percentage of this population, the capability to control this raw power is present, which comes with the risk of become a Junkie; a soulless, mindless creature that lives only for the drug-like mental and physical highs that is born out of unchecked Sparking. For these reasons, any and all Sparkborn, regardless of rank or prestige, are frequently rounded up and sent to the Black Stone Tower, where they are locked away…and forgotten.
Rocs: Located on the planet Syboria, these mystery artifacts appear to be the guardians of the unfathomable Blank Zone. Visually, they appear to be giant, floating stone impressions of winged maidens, with one of each located in every cardinal point of the compass.
Proxies: Proxies, or as they’re sometimes called “Ghosts in the Machine”, are clusters of data left over from the reign of Mankind that have coalesced over the centuries to create sentient digital life-forms. Some of them even have memories of the time before, during and shortly after the Golden Age –although how authentic these memories are is any scholic’s guess. They are solitary creatures that rarely interact with anyone, but most are devoutly loyal to Sophia and act as her servants/messengers.
Norns of Fate: A hotly contested concept between most scholics, the appellation ‘Norns of Fate’ is given to a triumvirate of powerful sister-deities whom are reputed to control the three aspects of fate/destiny; the Aspects of Memory, Time and Space. They are also said to be the partly/wholly responsible for the creation of the worlds as they are now, the degree depending on which scholic is giving the explanation. It is generally accepted that Cassandra the Farseer governs the Aspect of Time, and a small but vocal group proclaim Sophia as the Aspect of Memory, but no one knows who the Aspect of Space is or that the Norns of Fate are ‘real’.
Sparkhunter: It is inevitable that when a new predator arises in an ecosystem, the prey soon evolves and fights back. The Sparkhunters began as a group of warriors found on the planet Loire whom took it upon themselves long ago to protect the innocent from the highly dangerous Junkies. Over time this noble quest rusted away in the harsh acid of reality, becoming a fanatical need to seek out and eliminate Sparkborn folk “before they become a threat”. Despite this dramatic change, they are the foremost experts on the Spark phenomenon, and are quite proficient in finding and executing Sparkborn. Their leader is a man named Koenig, who is claimed to be a direct descendant of the Champion of the long-dead godric Edea.
Gryphon's Nest 2.0 