And so the gods slipped into their slumber, but their creations continued on and years stretched on. The gods had left a quite tranquil Void at the time of their slumber, there were no imminent crisis looming on the horizon, concerns to be sure, but no calamities waiting to unfold. Each of the worlds were peaceful places, even tranquil as far as Celestia and Niman were concerned. Thus the years passed gently.

The Rise of Civilizations

On Oceaus the natural progression of societies continued as social customs hardened into traditions, trade became more complex and populations grew requiring more laws which in turn requires more robust governments to handle these new laws. All of these factors resulted in the rise of societies that were greater than simple tribes. Independent city states became the norm for coastal Quajril, what used to be single tribes became instead singular cities that formed their own laws and customs. Most of these customs were shared by their neighbors so social divides did not occur except along one fault line, magic. The Independent City States varied widely in how they regarded the use of magic all stemming from their earliest encounters with the fickle substance. The majority of them greatly limited the practice or even outlawed it, those states that allowed its use freely or even supported it were far from the norm. Not surprisingly, these pro-magic City States also had the best relationship with the Enlightened. Though one City State stood above the others, those that inhabited the divine city of Ethaestra.

Granted some insight into artifice before the end of the Aeon, Ethaestra was one of the staunch anti-magic cities, over the years those who loathed magic the most had been drawn to this city below the waves where drawing magic down was impossible. Here the practice of creating mechanical objects was a rapidly growing field. Fueled by trade with the Osu'ixie in order to be supplied with their metal plants, Ethaestra was created wondrous machines. Toys that could be wound by tightening springs, simple rail systems to ease transport of cargo, the earliest printing press, all were built within Ethaestra. Becoming a highly metropolitan center, natural sciences were regarding as the learned persons field while magic was seen as a vestige of a more savage society. That's not to say mana was not found in the city, but it was traded in back alleys and its practice was thoroughly outlined.

Meanwhile, despite the burning of the Yoneden, the Enlightened remained a major faction in the world of Oceaus. While their font of endless knowledge was now unavailable, they still had all the knowledge from before that event, much of it saved in the form of books (The Enlightened, unsurprisingly, created the first libraries, only those who achieved a certain standing within their academic societies were allowed access) This great advantage meant they were the authority on a great many subjects from architecture to music and above all, history. One thing they lacked though was a source of mana and thus they maintained close ties with the Quajril and, over the years, they managed to coax a number of monmagi into living like royalty within their cities. With all these advantages they had become the Enlightened Empire and their wants and desires carried great weight across the other societies. One such desire was that religion and the worship of the gods be banned. In the pro-magic City States these laws were passed, since the trade of mana was too important to their economies to say no. Those City States that forbid magic had less at stake, some adopted these anti-divine stances, others did not. Religion had never been a flashpoint in the history of Oceaus, some worshiped and some did not. At least till the appearance of the Holy Nation.

The Holy Nation

The Mirror Island had been settled for centuries, its port cities were well established, its surface level tunnels had been explored extensively, it was thought to be a settled and established land. This made it all the more surprising when a band of strange albino Quajril emerged from the caves below the mirror island. Wearing polished and gleaming metal armor far finer than anything the Mirror Island residents made (Much to their chagrin as they were considered experts in the field) these explorers announced they represented the Holy Nation and the prophet Spes.

Over the centuries the Quajril of the Inner Sea had continued to stoke the flames of faith. Once near extinction, within the safety of the Mirror Island caves and blessed several times over by two different gods, they had flourished. Their shrines had become increasingly ambitious over the years evolving from simple stone recesses to great cathedrals of worked metal and lovingly planted anemones which wash these holy places in soft glowing lights. Sermons and rituals had become a part of their society over the years and many liked to claim they had seen holy visions or dreams in the tradition of Spes.

It came just as much a surprised to the Holy Nation when they burst out into the world as it did to the rest of Oceaus. Discovering their long lost kin, learning their ways, it soon became apparent that the surface world had gone deeply amiss in their relationship to the divine. The Holy Nation was soon sending out missionaries espousing that true gods of Rhullarrk and Kargous and when they learned of the Enlightened Empire's staunch anti-god position they immediately declared the Empire a blight. No direct conflict came from these shared hostilities, but the atmosphere when these two factions met was certainly tense.

The Crash of the Dying Norla'val

But then came one of the events that would shift the course of Oceaus societies.

Long had the norla'val swam through the Void. Each year some would die or become infected at Gael, those infected would swim off into the Void and typically die in a lonely corner of space where their body was picked over by the monstrous Gaelites that infected them before they too died. But one of these norla'val instead swam towards Oceaus. In its dying state it fell through the planets atmosphere and crashed into the ocean just off the shore of Uguay. Those Quajril that swam over to investigate did not return. Then contact was lost with the City State nearest to the sight of this fallen sky leviathan. Curious souls from other Cities came, those that returned had a terrible story to tell.

The City of the Fall, so it came to be called, was empty. Not a single of its inhabitants could be found. Everywhere were hints of what had happened though. Slithering stains on cobblestone streets, wells that had been burst at their edges as something emerged from below. Those explorers who had gone into the very heart of the city had found the cause. A native horror of Gael, a shapeless being that defied description save for its tentacle appendages, had made itself home at home in the City of the Fall along with a half dozen other horrors.

In the coming years a few more of the creatures would be spotted in the areas around the City of the Fall. Thankfully not enough of the beasts could be contained inside a single norla'val to threaten the planet as a whole, but their appearance had rocked the City States. These beasts were recognized as akin to the horrors that magicians who used yellow-mana created, but only worse. A fresh wave of anti-magic sentiment spread through the societies, even as the Enlightened rushed to send researchers to examine these horrific, but fascinating, new creatures.

And so society continues to develop. There was still more areas for the gods to examine in their slumber, how had magic developed, what had come of the secluded Amarok at their twin poles, what of the Krys and their mission to study magic? How had the Aspiring carved out a place for themselves in the scholarly world? Religion as a whole had also deepened and grown in complexity and each gods had their faithful spread across the different races.

All of this would would be explored. But for now the gods still slept and the worlds they had built still developed.

And so the gods continued to slumber and the worlds continued to turn.

The State of Magic

The Magic of the Krys

With so many ways of drawing magic made available to mortals, it was inevitable they would dabble with these physics defying powers. Monmagi, polar trees, ley lines, mana meteor belts, the sources were plentiful.

Foremost of the magical practioners, though most of the races did not realize it, were the Krys. Natives to Celestia and born into a life where mana literally flowed around them, the Krys had an abundance of magic to draw upon and little else to do with themselves since they fed off of sunlight. Given this bounty of time and resources, it was unsurprisingly they came up with a vast array of magical works. Their magic was one of flash and designed to impress, they did not have any real needs that required fulfilling so magic in Krys society was a mark of prestige. Those who could conduct the largest and most awe inspiring spells were viewed as the greatest. Their yearly magical competitions had become the focal point of their whole society, there were hundreds of entrants each years and the who event lasted two solid months and culminated in a grand face of between the two most skilled practitioners.

Of course, this society centered on a single tournament also came to be rich with politicking. A magical test resolved by 'awe' was hardly a subjective measure, thus it was common knowledge that tailoring spells to the tastes of the judges was sure way to find more favorable results, as was lavishing them with praise and compliments (There wasn't much else in their society to use for bribery.) Thus sometimes the competition winners were rather underwhelming, but they knew that the only audience that mattered were the judges. But despite all this, teleportation magic remained king of the field, for they had remembered their dictate from Ferenghir and they still strived to reach the blue planet in the sky.

Shaman of the Wilds

Aside from the Krys, Oceaus was the other hotbed for magic. The Aspiring had been gifted with the knowledge of shamanism and over the years it had spread to other societies through the centuries as the Aspiring were open with their teachings. Those who studied shamanism tended to be nature lovers, worshipers of Savios and Vaunht, they loved the wild places of the world and they often lived reclusive and simple lives. They used magic sparingly for while shaman loved nature, they did relish the idea of losing their minds and becoming a violent part of nature. Those that did use their powers typically did so to help cultivate forests or raise rocky edifices, these were the works of the young, as they got older and their skin hardened to stone and fires lit in their bellies they learned to better respect the cost their powers entailed.

The Outlawed Magic of the Quajril

Along the costs of Uguay fed by the monmagi, the Quajril continued to have a rocky relationship with arcane power. In response to this, secret societies sprang up throughout the Independent City States, each was self-contained and unique, some had less than a dozen adherents, others numbered nearly a hundred. Despite their wildly different traditions and practices they all shared one passion, for studying magic. These Secret Societies became both romanticized and villained in Quajril society, plays and novels came to permeate the City States. Certain cities cracked down on these societies harsher than others, in some cities raids were common place with doors being kicked in during the middle of the night and suspected mages being led out shackled and with bags over their heads, in other cities arcane practices were open secrets with members wearing their symbols as cuff links and button fasteners.

These Secret Societies tended to take an esoteric view on magic, while they occasionally employed their spellcraft to studying to solve mundane problems like washing the laundry and enchanting water to constantly be hot, much more often Secret Society practices were geared towards just that, secrets. They devised ways to hide codes in plain sight, deliver ghostly messages to one another and shroud their headquarters from both authorities and rival societies. The secrecy and espionage of their societies was almost as great a draw as the magic itself.

The Enlightened Schools of Arcane Inquiry

By far the most serious practitioners of magic were the Enlightened. Designing proper courses and schedules, they made magic into a science. Filling entire books on practices and observations and dissecting all the ways in which magic could be practiced and refined. Despite the dangers that Yazul and Gael magic posed, nothing was off limits, in fact each branch of mana was given its own branch of arcane study.

The Silver College was the largest and most open for applicants, it studied the safer and most reliable Celestia Mana. Some were trained to be practical mages, others studied theoretical magic, or arcane law. The topics were diverse and only half the students there actually engaged with mana.

The Institute of Yazul was dedicated to studying its mana namesake and was seen as a sort of applied magic course, they had found Yazul magic was particularly good for ensnaring minds, changing memories, making other compliant, so its practioners often were employed for criminal reform. (And less well know, they had also used their magics to twist a few minds in Independent Cities to get support for anti-god laws.) The Institute Mages were known for being severe and had a well earned reputation for being manipulative.

Lastly, there was the University. It was not given any more descriptors and only well regarded mages from either the College or Institute were allowed to join its ranks making University mages significantly older and well indoctrinated into the Enlightened philosophy. This was for good reason. They delved into Gael mana and only the most dedicated of souls could stomach the stuff that occurred within those walls. The University had found that Gael magic was most reactive to physical form, it contained highly metaphoric traits and was wildly dangerous, it was common talk around the lunchroom to ask who had died that week. Those that survived were often changed, they wore thick robes to cover these mutations, but were not deterred. Thus they continued to create monsters in the depths of the University, or became monsters themselves.

The Longroes of Niman

Lastly, the Longroes had also been dabbling with magic. With the crystals they found they liked to create colors. Over the centuries huge colorful work had been etched across the plains of Niman. Like the Krys, the Longroes had few other wants and this lack of needs meant they did not push the boundaries of their powers.

The Schism of the Amarok

Related to magic, the Amarok continued to exist apart from the other races. Part of this was their heat intolerance, designed for frigid temperatures, they died quickly in the hotter climates, so their race remained contained at the poles. There they wandered the frigid plains with their domesticated salu serpents. They too might not have changed were it not for the mana infused Nor'dryssal and Sol'dwyd. Those that routinely used the trees to teleport were gradually changed by that mana and over the centuries those changes had compounded. These frequent trips have led to dramatic changes.

Now called the Travelers, this group of Amarok look wildly different from their white furred and lithe kin. Their is now patchy, replaced by leathery like patches, their eyes glitter with colors like the mana-infused moons and their bodies are no longer uniform reflecting the warping influence of Gael mana. The Travelers a have natural ability to wield magic even without needing mana from the trees as its become infused into them over countless generations. With this power they've rebelled against stagnation, this rebellion takes the form of 'tests' they bring to their natural kin. Sometimes a Traveler child will pretend to be lost on frigid tundra wastes to see who comes to help, other times Travelers will steal away all of a tribes food, or they'll enter another Amarok tribe and demand hospitality. Passing or failing these tests seemed to matter little, the Travelers would grant blessings or curses seemingly at random regardless of how the other Amarok responded. The term Traveler soon becomes synonymous with being capricious and unpredictable and the native Amarok drive off their kin with frigid stones or salu serpents, but the Travelers remain a constant thorn due to their guile and tricks with magic.

The Arrival of the Krys

Finally, the moment comes that Ferenghir had implored the Krys to fulfill countless centuries ago. A Krys mage named Kaedrik manages to formulate a teleportation spell strong enough to reach Oceaus. The spell is monumental on scale. The mage in question stands on a lake of mana to fuel his spell and after following the proper rituals and practices for several hours, there is a great flash of lake. The entire mana lake is left dry and barren, all of its precious power used to fuel this great spell. With a similar flash and boom, the Kaedrik arrives on Oceaus.

In awe he explores this alien world, so full of life and diversity that is unheard of on Celestia. He meets the peaceable natives, Quajril first as they're the most prolific, who share his sentiment. He's surprised to find these strangers also practice, but far more crudely, save for one area. These mages of Oceaus are far more efficient with their use of power, on Celestia the Krys had such ample magic available to them they never learned to be economic with their spell design while on Oceaus mana is a precious substance called down with some difficulty from the heavens, every drop is precious and scarce so they've learned to use it carefully. That's when Kaedrik realizes his vast repitorre of spells don't work on Oceaus, all of them require amounts of mana that are nearly unattainable on Oceaus.

This knowledge, and loss of power he'd worked so hard to refine over his lifetime, pushes Kaedrik to seek a replacement source of power. His search drives him towards a source of power long overlooked, the leylines. Less potent than mana, they offer a constant trickle of power which offsets their weaker charge. Kaedrik soon makes himself a home along one Leylines and his work their opens up the eyes of the natives to Oceaus of yet another source of power.

The Boom Rush of the Tectonic Plates

With this new era of artifice, civilization and construction there has been an ever increasing demand for metal has also pushed mortals to find new sources of this precious substance. That's when a long forgotten land returns to prominence. The Tectonic Plates, an ancient land of churning earth and spewing lava, have long been empty as their shifting nature made them inhospitable for settlement, but now they offer something precious, an easy and plentiful source of metals and gems. These precious substances rest right on the very surface as they're constantly churned up. Several City States have mineral procurers all of whom enter a race to claim the bounty of this land. Agraciada are ridden back and forth to and from the continent, boom towns spring up, send out shipments of iron, copper, diamonds and rubies, then are swallowed up by tragedy only to repeat again. Heading to Tectonic Lands becomes a way of saying you're seeking your fortune. Many never return home, those that do come back fantastically wealthy.

The State of Religion

Lastly, as the new Aeon begins to dawn, religion has spread and formalized. All the gods have found faithful who gather to their names, drawn to them by their actions. Some gods resonate more strongly than others and have larger followings, but all find faithful amongst mortals.

Masmorda, Osalus Arcturus
Cults of the Makers

The Cults of the Makers are a loosely affiliated group of individuals who revere Masorda, Osalus and Arcturus seeing these are primal gods of creation. Masmorda the Worldsmtih is the largest figure of these cults, they see her as being a goddess of greater vision than a single world. Arcturus is the dark figure of this religion, one they worship out of equal measures fear and respect, they see Arcturus as bringing balance to the seas through the violent predators it spawned. Lastly, Osalus is loosely affiliated with the Makers, his works at fashioning Air and the Archipelago of Osu aligned him closely enough with Masmorda that it fit. Most Osu'ixie follow these cults, as do a number of residents of the Mirror Island.

Rhullarrk, Kargous
The Holy Nation

The most formalized religion on Oceaus, led by Spes this ancient religion and empire, for they are one and the same, worship these two gods who saved them from extinction. Rhullarrk is often depicated as a guiding light or dream in their art while Kargous is depicated as a smith at work in the forge. The Holy Nation pays lip service to every other god, but these two are venerated above all others.

Savios, Vaunht
Way of Green

Devoted to Savios and Vaunht, the Way of Green is another religion dedicated to nature, but rather than the primal aspects of nature like the Cults of the Makers, the Way of Green follows life and trees and growth. Most of this religion is found on the fringes of the Yondi Forest despite that also being a headquarters of the Enlightened. Many Aspiring and shaman are within their ranks, they tend to espouse views of balance with nature and take time planting forest, bushes and grasses.

Eregor, Savios, Ferenghir
Path of the Higher Mind

A largely Quajril religion, though a fair number of Aspiring also join this fold, its center of practice is the divine city of Ethaestra. Mortals found these three gods to be ones who promoted learning rather than granting knowledge. This religion is less cohesive than many of the others because its tries to encompass both learning and magic into the same religion. As such its practioners try to focus less on how they devote their learning and more on the shared act of learning itself. Establishing a number of religious schools, they are often in competition with the Enlightened.

Narcissa
Keeper of the Ice

Then there was the Amarok. They hold only one god in reverence, their creator Narcissa. At one point Fereghir was held in esteem, but as the Travelers became more twisted by magic the Amarok's love for the arcane fell away and worship of the gods of the moons fell out of practice. Now all Amarok worship Narcissa, they carve ornate shrines of ice to her where they stop in their travels and as a nomadic people they leave these sites of worship all across the northern and southern poles as they travel.

And so the gods begin to stir. It has been a tranquil time for the Void. Changes have occurred, mortals have become wiser and more refined, but the balances of power that the gods left have not been greatly disturbed. While there is conflict, there are no great plagues or famines and war is an alien concept. So the gods start to rouse.

OOC: The Aeon will open on 5/19 and gods will begin with one Act.

Osalus slips into the void the first god to awaken. And it travels among the floating islands, as it does so a huge storm gathers in the sky. Suddenly visible lightning strikes from the giant storm in the form of Salu Ice serpents. Each lightning bolt strikes a single Osu’ixie, and each passes through causing them no harm. As they are touched, they find themselves changed they have a deeper connection to the elemental powers of the storm for it was from the storm they were crafted. These powers are related to air, lightning, and water in all the forms they exist within the storm.

To most it gives simply the gift of one of the powers of the storm so they can focus upon that and master it wholly. Yet to the rare Osu’ixie he gives the gift to master all the powers of the storm.

With his gift delivered the storm dissipates peacefully.

Act 1: Osalus gifts the Osu’ixie the powers of the Storm


The return of the gods is marked by the Oxu'ixie being granted the power to control storms. Clearly a gift of the God of Winds, jealousy spreads through the Cults of the Makers at the clear favoritism. With the new gift the Archipelago of Osu gains consistent and predicitable weather as now the Osu'ixie can control the winds and thunder and rains, now they have precisely the sort of weather they desire at all times. This ability to control storms also prompts a few City States to try to recruit Osu'ixie to come join their cities and ensure their own weather is tamed and predictable.

With this new gift the skies over the Archipelago are now always filled with interesting weather, unnatural cloud formations that mark various Osu'ixie practicing their new craft. This new ability to control precipitation also gives them heightened control over the metallic plants of the isles, allowing them to help nurture plants that need more moisture or create shade for those that prefer cloudier climates.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:10, Tue 19 May 2020.

Seeing the shamans working hard in his and Savios' name, Vaunht decided to reward their efforts, but he feared the wrath of So doing so considering his experience with the Yoneden. And so, Vaunht worked on tinkered a new blessing on his own, but didn't enact it upon the world, and instead held it in his mind for it to be gifted the following day.

And so Vaunht created the Greenwood Blessing, a gift of energy that allowed the chosen champions to become one with nature in a physical way. Greenwood blessed would have their skin turn to bark, and their hair turn to leaves. They would be able to take nutrients from sunlight, and their need to kill other lifeforms for survival would be eliminated.

ACT 1: Vaunht created the idea of Greenwood Blessings

Forming a blessing which Vaunht calls the Greenwood Blessings, this power when bestowed upon a mortal will physically change them giving them tree-like qualities so they can draw nourishment directly from the sun, they would no longer need to forage for vegetables or eat the rare meat (Not that many creatures on Oceaus eat meat since it's exceedingly rare with the only real animals around being predators just as likely to eat them as be eaten.) This new blessing waits to be bestowed.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:11, Tue 19 May 2020.

Just as Kargous brought day and night to Oceaus,  he wishes to bring it to Niman as well. Thus extending his volition he influences creation, and causes the planet to slowly rotate on its axis, causing a day of 18 hours, and a night of equal length. At least this is his plan.

Act 1:Kargous attempts to give Niman  a day/ night cycle.

Niman spins into motion much like the Oceaus had long ago, also by Kargous' touch. Now there are days and nights on the barren world. The Longroes find this change novel, but it doesn't impact them greatly, being creatures of earth the hold and cold hadn't bothered them overly much and oarbits are similarly ambivalent. Now though the temperatures are normalized and the hots and colds of the planet are not nearly as extreme as they once were.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:14, Tue 19 May 2020.

Eregor is intrigued by the developments of the last aeon.  What progress!  Yet there were so many divisions among the people of the void.  So, Eregor wanders hidden among the Quajrils to search for a worthy messenger.  The Quajril is the charismatic Ykra who dwells in one of the more metropolitan city states.  To Ykra, Eregor appears and imparts this message, "Ykra, I have chosen you, among the people I have made, to unite the Quajrils into one people.  Magic and machine are not at odds with one another, but are both worthy and complimentary pursuits.  Your world will only grow stranger and your people will need all their knowledge to protect themselves.  Unite them in my name."

Eregor speaks to the Quajril, Ykra.

Another mortal was contacted by the divine, this one was named Ykra and Eregor came bearing a message of unity. This message, directly in line with the tenets of the Path of the Higher Mind, proves to be a powerful catalyst when Ykra starts to share what they were told. Previously the dual fields of artifice and magic existed in parallel within this religion, only interacting and speaking at hypothetical levels, but with Eregor's urging to come together these previously separate branches start to hold more meaningful conversation. Artificer and magician start to hold late night discussions around their arts and start to find ways they might compliment one another.

This new coziness does not go over well in Ethaestra, here some of the most ardent opponents to magic had made their home specifically because the city was inconvenient to monmagi, but now more of the stuff is being imported from abroad and arcane arts and study are becoming increasingly common. This agitates the anti-magic faction within the city and angry political debates start to become common and a period of upheaval starts in response to the changing views. This is only heightened as strange arcane-artifice devices start to turn up, the first early collaborations of magic and science.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:52, Thu 21 May 2020.

Out of the Great Slumber and back into the Void stepped not a child nor a young man, but Savios the Green as a grown masculine adult with the distinctive features of his Yandee children on Oceaus. The Great Sleep had given him many dreams and visions and he intended on either carrying them out to fruition or stopping the nightmares that had lurked in the darkest parts of his mind. He walked on a road of auroras between the planets and the stars, watching observantly at the events that had transpired since his last emergence. He was pleased because there were two distinct paths for his children, Enlightened and Aspiring, despite one of them spiting him and being born out of a curse. Still, he had to appreciate the progress they had made but they were starting to tread on dangerous waters with their experimentation and mutations. These were going to be issues that needed addressing, as their anti-god rhetoric would eventually lead to the destruction of everything that the gods had worked so hard to achieve. He feared that it would create an impact not just on Oceaus, but across the entire universe; the other rich and diverse worlds included.

Thus, the once-pacifist and tranquil lord of nature emerged not as a calm and whispering wind, but with his green coloring shining as bright as a blazing sun, the pattern on his cloak like armored scales. He pondered on what would be the best method to signal his awakening and saw that his brother Vaunht had started working on something with his Greenwood Blessings. He nodded in approval but did not touch that reservoir of magical energy just yet, instead focusing on something else that would benefit those that held the beauty and potency nature as sacred. He appeared within that vast and wonderful Forest again, specifically in Aspiring territory as this was intended for their use primarily. He knew that the Enlightened were greedy with knowledge and would seek out anything he touched, but enough was enough; they had spited him, and now, would no longer feel his benevolence.

He manifested himself underneath the crashing of a powerful and incredible waterfall deep in Aspiring territory, where the shamans practiced their magic carefully and the children played carelessly swinging from tree to tree. Drawing the awe of the occasional child, he made a gesture of silence as he did not want his presence to be known just yet. Savios waded through the water and sat at the edge of the collecting pool, closing his eyes to concentrate and channel his divinity into this one location. All great armies, whether they were born out of conquest or necessity, needed a place to gather, a place to train and to protect. This would be the base of the armies of nature, of those that sought the path of peace, and avoided destruction and did not tolerate intolerance. He named this location the Falls of Aspiration; a symbol to those that embraced his ways that he was still with them, and he approved of the lifestyles they had chosen. It could be found only by those who uttered genuine prayers in the gods’ names and followed the Sermon he had given all those eons ago.

ACT 1 & 2: Savios sanctifies the location of his reemergence, the Falls of Aspiration, so that the most faithful and purest of heart can find it.

Savios was a peaceful deity, but he knew that peace would not easily be achieved if he did not become more active this Aeon. He also was not sure that blessing one place would be enough to combat the forces of chaos and darkness that threatened to consume this world and the others, if left unchecked. So, he continued to channel his power into this one location, onto those blessed Falls of Aspiration. It was not going to be easy to find, thanks to the first two Acts, but his third Act hoped to preserve it further from those that wished to do it harm. He inhaled deeply and sought out the limits of his strength, checking to make sure he was not overstepping his boundaries. But Savios had been planning for this moment and hoped that his foresight had been enough to supplement everything that he wanted to do upon his return. It was this foresight that he hoped to implant into those who came to the Falls of Aspiration, such as his shaman who skirted around the edges of the savage magic that he had accidentally imparted into them too soon. Anyone who meditates at the Falls of Aspiration will find themselves with the gift of mental clarity: they learn how to focus their abilities and use them wisely, a method of combating the insatiable need for power but not able to negate it, as this would be against Ao and sure to evoke his wrath.

ACT 3: Savios gifts those that meditate at the Falls of Aspiration with the boon of mental clarity.

In the depths of the Yondi Forest Savios crafts a hidden, but powerful, holy site at the foot of a grand waterfall. Bathed in divine power, this place has an otherworldly air about it and only those who lived lives in line with Savios' teachings could find this place. Much like the Temple of Vaunht, this place comes to be known as one of the holiest of places, though unlike the Temple of Vaunht this holy site, now known as the Falls of Aspiration, are far more elusive and some could quest for them entire lifetimes and never find where those falls end if they are not accepted.

Those that are blessed to find the Falls of Aspiration can meditate there and in doing so gain mental clarity. Petty problems fall away, distracting desires or grievances are put into perspective and mortals can more readily see and understand what is important. The Aspiring who are able to reach this holiest of locations quickly understand the importance of this gift and they establish a school within the Falls, the School of Aspiration, here they start to teach their lessons which are received and understood in ways other centers of learning could only dream of.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:41, Thu 21 May 2020.

Turning back to his temple, Vaunht observes and listens to the prayers of the mortals, and selecting a few of the ones that showed the most devotion to the green gods he declares them Priests of Vaunht, their mission to spread Vaunht's religion formalized by the god himself.

ACT 2: Vaunht names his priests.

Following that, Vaunht decides that only having a title won't really help the priests convince others that the gods are not what the enlightened want them to believe, so he grants them the ability to bless others in the name of Vaunht. This activity on it's own has no practical uses, but allows the potential for blessings to be enacted in the future.

ACT 3: Vaunht allows his priests to be able to bless objects in his name (Ex: Holy water)

Working on formalizing his faith, Vaunht declares those that speak his name and share his lessons would be called Priests of Vaunht. This introduces new structure to what was a very unstructured religion in the Way of Green. With the priests bearing Vaunht's name worship of Vaunht starts to overshadow Savios in their shared religion. These new Priests also take a lesson from their namesake by observing the Temple the god had created, they start to establish a number of temples across Oceaus, all dedicated in the name of their god, the Forest Father, the True Green Lord (Or so they say, it marks another point of consternation amongst those who hold regard to Savios.) These priests make a habit of sharing blessings to those who attend their sermons and a great many blessed objects are passed about (Though at this time blessings are purely symbolic.)

While teachings and disciples for Vaunht grow, the Way of Green starts to show divisions. Perhaps this shared faith was not so unified after all.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:47, Thu 21 May 2020.

Osalus travels to the Mana ring of Niman there the god circles the mana ring, and as it does so it weaves among the crystals, sparks ignite off its divine form touching this pure form of mana. These sparks seem to dance from mana crystal to mana crystal, and they increase in intensity and power as they go. While the sparks increase the glow of the mana it does not harm the crystals.

With each spark the mana flows and grows. Its like a storm has been created among the mana, giving the more pure form of Mana of Niman the ability to cleanse and purify other forms of mana. Things or beings corrupted by the other forms of mana in the universe, if exposed to this enhanced Mana, or its mana storm would find themselves purified. How that purification would display itself is unknown.

Act 2: Osalus purifies and enhances the power of the mana ring around Niman

Osalus next creates the magical art of Metal Runecrafting.  The god links this new craft with runes shaped with mana, to metal. Where metal if magically enchanted with runes of mana would allow the user of the item to do different things. The type of mana, would shape the type of power that is resulted, as would the metal of the item so enchanted.

Act 3:  Osalus creates the magical art of Metal Runecrafting


The Mana Ring around Niman is altered by Osalus, those mana crystals there are altered so that they now contain purifying traits. As pure is a relative concept, this comes to be defined as Ao as a reversion back to an original state. These mana crystals now undo changes made upon a being, a wound is a corruption of flesh so the wound might be undone and restore flesh to whole or a bacterial infection of Oceaus would be purged as it was not the original state of the entity. The greatest change of the Purifying Crystals (As they're not longer really man) is that they now undo magic. Magic and mana by its definition is an altering of natural laws of the Void, making things possible that would be otherwise impossible. Mana crystals now negate magic and undo its effects.

These Purifying Crystals that fall to Niman now erase chunks of the colorful designs that the Longroes had painted across Niman's surface. The Longroes find these new Purifying Crystals far less entertaining than the old variety so they stick to using the original fallen mana crystals. If these Purifying Crystals were ever to make their way to Oceaus it would no doubt have a major impact as those societies have become increasingly intertwined with magic.

In this way Osalus declares himself the foe of magic.

At the same time and in contradiction, Osalus creates the art of using mana to to infuse design onto metal surfaces to act impossible traits. At this time the art is unknown to mortals.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:15, Thu 21 May 2020.

After a long slumber, Ferenghir woke to find the Krys had succeeded at their directive. Or more accurately, one had, a mage named Kaedrik, who was now marooned on Oceaus because he and his people never sought out efficiency. Ferenghir found it cute. The Krys had done what they could with the resources they had, and what they had was bountiful pools of Mana. That would have to change if the Krys were to continue their mission of teaching and guiding the other races in the use of magic.

Ferenghir saw how the direct interaction of the other gods with their creations created religions and worship, and they saw no benefit in that. Prayer was merely words and the act of worship seemed... ugly. Not for the races, but for the gods who sought it out. It was enough for Ferenghir that this beautiful balance of life continued on, and to that end, they saw the creatures of Gael as something of a threat—beautiful in their own way, as all of Ferenghir's creations, but dangerous and a threat to the balance they and the other gods had created.

A lack of urgency had stagnated the Krys, caused them to seek out travel for their own, insular reasons. But Kaedrik represented an opportunity to reignite a spark in the crystalline race.

And so, Ferenghir again acted to craft their Temple of Harmony in the great splendor that they originally envisioned it. The dying ember in the sky would ignite and sparkle as the beacon it was originally meant to be, spurring the Krys on to explore and teach.

ACT1: Ferenghir rebuilds the Temple of Harmony as they had originally envisioned it.

It was through Kaedrik that Ferenghir would gift the Krys with knowledge, but not in so overt a way as they had spoke to the Krys before. As Kaedrik slept, on the night that the Temple of Harmony would be reborn, he would be struck with divine inspiration, though he would only know of it as a vivid dream that he would remember in its entirety. After all, Ferenghir sought neither glory nor worship.

In this dream, the dull red ember in the sky would ignite into brilliant fluorescence, and Kaedrik would see the Temple of Harmony in all its wondrous glory. Ferenghir would show Kaedrik how to access the leylines for efficient, near instantaneous travel. And though the leylines possessed more than just the power of travel, those mysteries would be for later discovery. If Kaedrik would just conceptualized Mana as both a liquid and a crystal, both the alignment and overall three dimensional shape of such could augment various aspects of power output and efficiency... and a certain foundational configuration could fit a spell into the leyline network like a key in a lock...

ACT2: Ferenghir sends a divine inspiration to Kaedrik the Krys mage in the form of a vivid, fully memorable dream, in which he discovers how to access the leylines for efficient, near instantaneous travel.

This knowledge would be the key to Kaedrik's return voyage to Celestia. Indeed, it would also be the key to interactions between the Krys civilization at large and the races of Oceaus so that the Krys could continue to complete their directive of teaching and guiding the races of Oceaus in the use of magic. Through his experiences on Oceaus, Kaedrik no doubt would have also realized the importance of Mana efficiency if the Krys were to explore outside of their Mana-rich moon.

With his return to waking Ferenghir rebuilds the Temple of Harmony, but as the first temple was brought low by Wrath it could never truly be restored, thus the new Temple of Harmony is built up around it and the Wrath-touched original is buried at its heart and walled off, still whole and intact, but hidden away by this proper outer shell.

That same night Kaedrick is visited by a dream and awakens that day with a bolt of inspiration (so he believes) and sees a new use for the leylines he had uncovered. With only a bit of their magical he's able to whisk himself along their arcane paths and travel at great distance and speed. After a few joyful days of wild experimentation that sent him zipping across the cosmos he's able to map his way back to Celestia and share his wild tales. His kin, surprised by his return as they had assumed he'd blown himself up with his initial spell years ago, are excited to learn of his travels and hear of the blue world. While some part put off by the scarcity of magic there and the harsher existence its residents face, others are quick to take the new paths down the leylines to visit for themselves.

In the coming years small towns will start to spring up along these leyline paths, much like they would along mundane rivers in the world. It should be noted that these leylines are only disrupted near Niman where the Purity Ring effectively severs them, reverting the Void there to its pure state of non-magic.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:03, Fri 22 May 2020.

Noticing the new Niman  crystals Targous extends his will through the void and collects ten (ten) and redirecting his will, with crystals in tow he makes his way to the poles of Oceaus  and to the trees there. Using his god given powers he crafts wholes deep in the ice and rock that surround each of the trees that allow for transportation between the poles, and embeds five crystals  near each tree. Targous hopes that this will restore them to what they once were, means for the races native to the frozen regions to move safely from pole to pole, without any ill affects from magic. This is his hope at least, but he will wait, and watch, and see, if this is indeed so.

<b> Act 2:Kargous plants new Niman  crystals  around Narcissa's two great trees to undo the harmful affects of magic upon the travelers, making them safe to use once more.

Purifying trees are plants around Nor'dryssal and Sol'dwyd. These trees scrub away mana as it leaves the two trees, rendering sap, leaves and other objects once harvested for mana entirely mundane. This removes the supply of mana to the Amarok tribes leaving them with a dwindling supply. More importantly, it proves lethal to the Travelers. After long generations exposed to mana they have been so imbued with the stuff its a part of themselves, removing it is like removing the heart of blood from other beings. These Purifying Trees cut the Travelers off from journeying from pole to pole, but more importantly it proves a means of protection to the other Amarok from their mana-addled kin. Each tribe begins carrying branches and charms carved from these Purifying Trees to ward off Travelers. Travel between the poles also becomes more common for the normal Amarok as now the corrupting effects of the mana trees are cleansed with each passing. The Travelers, displeased by these new developments, are forced to retreat from their normal 'tests' and leave the Amarok in relative peace.

Some of the few hardy traders who travel to the far north and far south hear rumor of these strange trees to dispel magic. When the rumors prove true they bring back their first shipments of these rare materials and immediately are made lavishly wealthy. In the Independent City States these magic-purifying branches prove wildly popular in the societies that are opposed to magic and they terrify those who practice the arcane arts. Suddenly that divide forming between the two factions becomes a chasm as the Purists, as they come to be called, suddenly have a tangible way to actually oppose their magic loving kin.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:20, Fri 22 May 2020.

Arcturus awakens to find a world greatly changed from the way it was before. He l takes particular note of his followers, those who fear his dark creations. Arcturus found himself especially intrigued by the City of the Fall where the dying creature of the void once crashed.
He once again felt the compulsion to create something dark.


Arcturus begins on Gael. He gathers some of the mana vapers in each hand and molded them with his mind, pulling the gas together and forming a darker outer shell to hold it. The result is 2 small (marble-sized) gems hardened on the outside, but translucent and churning from the inside with slightly darkened Gael Mana.  He quickly fashions the stones into talismans that can be worn about the neck and drops them on Oceaus.


Act 1: Arcturus creates the stones of darkness: 2 talismans with gems containing swirling Gael Mana.

I want these stones to be items of great power.

Act 2: Arcturus empowers The Stones of Darkness so they could channel dark and terrible powers to those who possess them.


While many other gods prefer grand divine messages, Arcturus preferred a more subtle approach. He drafted letters and delivered them to the desks of the leaders of all magic schools. In these letters, he spoke of the Stones of Darkness and encouraged each school to find one of the powerful stones.

Act 3: Arcturus sends letters to the leaders of the magic schools telling them of The Stones of Darkness, and encouraging them to be the first to find one of the great talismans.

Returning from the brink of Paradox, Arcturus uses two Acts to fashion two Artifacts (Fortunately two Acts were used as these are two separate talismans) The STONES OF DARKNESS are the first ARTIFACTS to be forged and they have the ability to ALTER, they can safely wield the power of Gael Mana with its corrosive and transformative qualities. For now these two artifacts are hidden away in the abandoned City of the Fall.

Meanwhile letters appear at the various Enlightened schools of magic, no one is entirely certain who inked them, but their information is tantalizing. Speaking of powerful artifacts in the abandoned city, the schools quickly start forming expeditions to go and search for these supposed relics. The first attempts are... less than successful. A dozen young students from the Silver College all disappear. Four members of the Institute come back thoroughly mad and commit a series of crimes before they're imprisoned, it's a small cabal of the University Mages who manage to set up a small base camp in the City, there they continue to explore its abandoned houses and halls, methodically hunting for these two artifacts.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:27, Fri 22 May 2020.

Being one of the last gods to awaken from her deep slumber, she takes in what her brethren had already done after their slumber. She didn't care what they were doing with the mainlands, but took note of the creations they had made, thankful for the crystals that Kargous bestowed upon her trees. She was glad that others could see the potential of her precious Amorok, even with the now corrupted Travelers. Narcissa took the ground that was frozen under the ice, pulling it and making large luxurious mountains on both poles with caves that the Amorok could explore if needed. She decided to hold onto her second and third acts, waiting to see what her brethren do.

Act: Narcissa creates two mountains on either poles with various caves for the Amoroks to explore.

Creating solid earth at the poles, mountaisn rise up from the ice! Crisscrossed with caves, these new mountains provide ready sources of shelter for the Amarok during their nomadic travels. As these mountains were created at the poles, the same place the teleporting trees were, Nor'dryssal and Sol'dwyd now sit at the top of these these mountains. The colleges of arcane study, now defunct since mana is unavailable from the trees, also lie on the slopes of these mountains.

More importantly, the rise these mountains serves as a symbol of Narcissa's return, great celebrations are held for days amongst both Amarok and Travelers. The Amarok holding feasts, singing songs and playing games, the Travelers doing similarly, though often with an Amarok dying or ending up transformed at the end of their songs and games. The day is marked on their calendars as a holy day and the mountains are similarly seen as holy sites where only Amarok are allowed to tread.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:33, Fri 22 May 2020.

One of Savios’ intentions this Aeon was to be more actively involved in the protection and progression of his people, and so the Green Lord reappeared within the atmosphere of Oceanus. This time, he took the form of a small flying creature, perhaps a colorful emerald bird, to further conceal his presence as he fluttered through the skies. He found that wonderful magnificent location he had blessed, and he was pleased to see the School of Aspiration that had formed there. But knowledge was valuable, and as with anything with value, it would draw envy and anger from those who did not understand or possess it. It was then that he found a group of like-minded Shaman who were avid learners yet still restless. They were faithful to him, yes, and cherished his gifts, but they knew that the time would come that they would have to defend themselves and they did not want to be caught unprepared. Feeling these wishes and desires, Savios landed on the shoulders of those strong-hearted and wise Aspiring, granting them a unique blessing for their fiery hearts and loyalty. He dubbed these Shaman the Shaman Warriors; whomsoever is compelled with the need to protect that which means the most to them, will be filled with the strength of this blessing to do so.

Savios creates the Warriors’ Blessing among the Aspiring shaman, inspiring those who want to protect that wish they cherish the most.

Visiting the shaman, Savios starts a new tradition, that of the Shamanic Warriors, creating a new sect among the Aspiring who seek to protect them them and theirs. These Shamanic Warriors recruit others to their cause, for now they're a small group within the Falls of Aspiration, they start to practice with combat, it's slow going since they are the first martial body in the history of the Void, thankfully they have time to practice since at this time actual physical violence is a rarity, what conflicts exist in Oceaus are largely philosophical and cultural.

With that said, at this time a monumental event occurs! An curious Amarok who had uncovered the labyrinth had been painstaking exploring it for months. His tribe had moved on and left him behind, but he'd become fixated with these strange ice tunnels, so clearly not natural, so he'd remained. His food had started to run low and starvation was becoming a real concern, but then it happened. He reached the heart of this maze, the Cave of Harmonies, fashioned by Arcturus when the god was feeling benevolent, the cave transformed this Amarok into someone new. Not changed outwardly, his mind was almost unrecognizable, it held a new appreciation for sound and shape. When he managed to emerge from the labyrinth and stumble half starved across the tundra his behavior in the tribe had changed. He started carving ice with an artistry he'd never possessed before, he started to create music. These works of art were at first regarded with surprise, then delight and soon others are trying to mimic these works of beauty.

Soon a cultural renaissance is talking place across the southern pole as music and sculpture are created by each of the tribes.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:24, Fri 22 May 2020.

Within the ruins of the City of Fall something else stirs, a violet-skinned beast-headed God who wakes to ash and dust and the swirling infection of Gaelite Mana-beasts. They stir and spit out the foul dust that coats them, turning their scarred hide grey and rough. Other scars mark them, a tale of the journey of a dying norla'val through the void and the detritus it contains. They stir and stand, instinctively reaching out to order and purify the ruined chamber they emerge within, to shape it to their will and consecrate it with a shadow of their own nature.

Action: Vor consecrates the site of their Awakening, to become known as the Starforge, with the power to magnify the skills of mortal smiths and enchanters

For a time they sit within the newly vaulting chamber, contemplating and dreaming, tasting the world to the reaches of the void beyond. As they reach, so they leave an echo of their birth - a memory, to those so attuned: from these ashes a Godsmith has emerged, a creator and tinkerer and maker. Coming to those with a sense of order, those who themselves create, it feels like a truth or a dream or a calling

Action: Vor blesses the Makers with a vision of their emergence within the Starforge

For a time they sit within that chamber, until time itself is enough and what remains is grey-skinned but a statue. It is a resemblance and pulsing with celestial power, a repository of runes and their rosetta, a key to unlock them in the tongues of many races

Action: Vor creates Vorian Rosetta, an ARTIFACT that contains the secret of Metal Runecrafting

Awakening in the City of the Fall, Vor's emergence is marked by the creation of the Starforge, a great building that will guide the hand of any mortals who engage their craft of smithing within its walls. For now it lies empty as the City of the Fall is abandoned by anything native to Oceaus. (Save for the small band of University explorers seeking the Stones of Darkness.)

Those across Oceaus with a gift for craftsmanship see a vision calling to them, it gives them identity, calling them Makers. A great many are given the vision, especially within Ethaestra and it causes a wave of theologic debate. Those given the vision recognize that it came from someone... new. Without the knowledge of the Tree of Knowledge to lay these secrets bare mortals are left to ponder and reason out what it must mean. Those that answer the call to be Makers start to band together with others who were granted the vision, finding camaraderie through their shared vision. The Path of the Higher Mind includes a number of Makers in his ranks, for now they see no reason why one can't be both.

Lastly Vor crafts the second artifact of the Void, the VORIAN ROSETTA. This artifact has the ability to ALTER, granting knowledge where none had existed before and sharing with those who use it the knowledge of metal runecrafting. Determining where this artifact would end up would require another Act though so it appears at random and finds itself on the shores of Mirror Island where a kelp farmer stumbles across it. Through several hands it ends up with the Holy Nation, a very natural fit given their fondness for metallurgy. One particular smith comes to hold the Vorian Rosetta, a smith named Zantel. Unlocking the secrets of runemsithing by this artifact, he begins to produce miraculous things in his workshop. Cutting knives that never dull, buckets of water that never empty, cart wheels that turn themselves. Things that rival the miraculous inventions that the artificers of Ethaestra created (Which naturally starts to foment jealousies at the artificing capital)

And so VOR has arrived in the Void. Change truly follows in the wake of a newborn god.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:13, Fri 22 May 2020.

There was a slight disappointment, seeing the magic that could have brought so much development and possibly even peace to their world. Narcissa knew her brother meant well, but fairly disappointed that she would have to spend acts to fix the problem that was created. She wanted to have the mana that was within the trees  to be cleansed of the manipulated, evil powers within them, not to have the magic completely stripped. It seemed as if they were making a profit off of the newly developed trees, so she couldn't just completely get rid of the now anti-mana trees that were created. She plucked a couple of the purifying crystals, and morphed them so they were able to tap into the mana that came from Celestia, and only Celestia by creating a connection to the leylines. She then combines them with the ice walls of the temples that she had created, making them glow and thrive with the pure magic from Celestia.

Act: Narcissa takes the purified crystals that Kargous created and morphs them into Celestia Mana crystals.

Act: Narcissa then takes the crystals and combines them with the ice walls of the two temples she created, making them a source of pure magic where the Amarok could practice magic.

Taking a deep breath, she uses her last remaining Act to deliver a message to the Amarok, one that were to guide them to use these temples to hone in on their magical abilities, to make them more powerful, for peace and to protect their land and evolve into better versions of themselves.

Act: Narcissa speaks to the Amarok, telling them about the temples and how to use them to  tap into the magical abilities they had been previously blessed with.

The Purifying Crystals had originally been celestia mana, reverting them back would be to UNDO a previous Act which is impossible. Thus the Purifying Crystals remain unchanged and the Act is unspent.

Setting the walls of the arcane schools with mana crystals was possible however and by Narcissa's will it is done. As the Purifying Trees are only found at the poles these academies are far enough away that their mana crystals are not neutralized.

Lastly, the Amarok are given a divine message instructing them to inhabit these temples and devote themselves to the study of magic. Honored by a message from their divine, they do just that. A number of students fill the academy, but food is still scarce at the poles as it has always been, the nomadic tribes who travel through the area make stocking these magical academies a shared burden. Each new tribe that arrives in the region first stops and deposits a share of their food at the nearby magical academy, when they eventually leave the area and a new tribe arrives they follow suit and in this way make sure the students there have food.

At least with most of these academies. The Travelers, still Amarok and given the message, are happy to oblige with embracing their magical abilities. Setting upon the nearest magical academy they gleeful bewitch, charm and mutate the resident students, then they carve out the mana crystals from the walls and retreat back to the tundra to experiment with them as their goddess had instructed them. The next Amarok tribe to visit the area are horrified to find the magical academy desecrated and the students there are victims of magic. For the first time they send out a message to the other tribes. The Travelers have gone too far, they share, it was time to deal with their lost kin once and for all.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:23, Fri 22 May 2020.

Eregor is surprised by the changes wrought upon the void.  So many surprising acts.  So many attempts to undo or redo or fix.  Nothing is broken, but change is always welcome.

Across the void, Eregor scatters special...rocks...  These stones appear quite ordinary within the landscape within which they are found.  Some are boulders and some are pebbles, but most are somewhere in-between.  A mortal might pass by these stones and never notice, unless the stone has something to say.  The true property of these rocks is that they repeat what they overhear and tell a record of every word spoken in their vicinity.  Those with the ability to manipulate mana can sort through, but not alter, the conversations to find a particular bit of conversation, but otherwise the stones merely repeat what they have heard in no particular order.

Eregor creates the Singing Stones.

Also, following the trend of the other gods, Eregor decides to revisit old works.  Eregor turns to the Norla'val that have been traveling the void.  Eregor links the Norla'val with the Quajril, so that each generation, a precious few members of each species will be connected to each other.  Bonded and able to primitively communicate across the vast distances of the void, Eregor leaves these pairs to determine the path their lives will follow, but seeds an urge to come together within the connection.

Eregor creates the Starbound among the Norla'val and Quajril.

The Singing Stone are created, rocks with a memory so to speak, they can at times repeat back anything ever spoken in their vicinity. When this special trait is uncovered a few inspired individuals realizes their worth for settling disputes and many of the Independent City States start to keep a Singing Stone in their court rooms. The cities that allow or support magic each hire a court appointed magician whose sole task is to call up relevant conversations and ensure a faithful record is kept. For cities that ban magic these Singing Stones in the court are largely a symbol, ensuring that all parties know their words are forever recorded (Even if that record is largely inaccessible)

Secondly, Eregor creates Starbound individuals, Quajril who are born with a connection to a Norla'val. With this new bond the first Norla'val descend from the highest layers of the atmosphere and descend to the ground. There the bonded Quajril can enter the many hollows of the Norla'val and ride with them. Setting off, these mark that first non-Osu'ixie to leave the surface of Oceaus, they take off into the sky and suddenly all of the cosmos are within the reach of mortals.

These early expeditions see the fearless explorers visiting the moons for the first time. On Celestia the Krys are delighted to have visitors, they show off their many spells and show the visitors around... though there isn't much to see on Celestia. Those that visit Yazul have a more harrying encounter. For the first time the malicious creatures that call Yazul home have new playmates. Those explorers quickly leave again with half their number, and unbenknownest to them some stowaways. Those that visit Gael never reemerge and word soon spreads that Starbound should steer well away from the yellow moon.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:20, Sat 23 May 2020.

On Niman, Ferenghir notices the effects of the purifying stones that had fallen from the planet's once-glorious Mana ring. While still a beautiful sight, the rings had had their potential wiped from them: their ability to revert, to regress, represented a sort of false change. But still, dwelling on the past would be like being one of these purifying crystals.

Instead, Ferenghir looked to the Oarbits of Niman, whose simple, rudimentary lives had been shaped by Mana and now these purifying crystals. It was a simple change to these creatures, but it would hopefully lay the groundwork for a path forward, beyond the regressive nature of the purifying crystals.

The act of the purifying crystals could not be undone. But the crystals themselves could be modified. So Ferenghir gifted the Oarbits with the ability to safely consume the purifying crystals and process them through their bodies. A purifying crystal could return objects it encountered back to their original state, and in this way, an Oarbit could consume a purifying crystal and return the crystal itself into ITS original state: Mana.

Act3: Ferenghir gives the Oarbits the ability safely to process purifying crystals into their original state: Mana.

The oarbits on Niman, once little more than curiosities, now gain a function. When they consume the purifying crystals that fall from the sky they then excrete them as mana once more. In this way Niman comes to hold plentiful amounts of both purifying crystals and mana. The Longroes happily return to painting with their new bounty of mana.

Meanwhile on Oceaus the age of colonization and expansion continues as more and more settlements appear along Leylines, fueled by the rapid travel those now offer. Whole new enterprises have been spawned with mages now refining methods to transport others which has spawned businesses dedicated to transferring others. The Starbound, another new form of transport, have also spawned a new wave of curiosity, they've also provided a more reliable means of cargo transportation from the Tectonic Plates, further fueling the boom towns and rush for materials from those primal lands.

All this increased travel further fuels communication. Where messages might once have taken months to reach the other side of the continent it might now be a few short weeks by norla'val or days by Leyline. This helps strengthen far flung powers like the Holy Nation and the Enlightened Empire, and also allows political factions to better coordinate like the Purists who have become increasingly outspoken against magic and armed with Purifying wands (Thanks for the polar trees) they now have some power to supplement their fearful anger. With the Purists ever a greater presence, the Secret Societies start a counter movement, creating pamphlets, sharing stories and funding events which all support open and free magic.

The current balance of powers remains at this time, but these philosophical differences are mounting. Great change is coming, of that there is no doubt.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:51, Sun 24 May 2020.

With the priests now formally acting in his name, Vaunht decides to give them the gift he had carefully prepared. As such, he gives the Greenwood Blessing to the priests, along with the knowledge on how to properly use it. With this, Vaunht hopes that his followers could evolve to be closer with nature, in a way he originally envisioned the Enlightened would be.

ACTS 4 and 5: Vaunht gives the Greenwood Blessing to the priests, and allows them to know every detail about it's creation.

Continuing the careful construction of his faith, Vaunht shares with his priests the Greenwood Blessing and shares knowledge of the power in its entierty. Over night these priests have their skin transformed to bark, their hair turned to leaves and their their limbs into tangled branches. It is a dramatic shift and it draws mortals by the masses who wish to come see these transformed priests. Hearing their sermons and seeing the very visible change they've undergone, a clear sign of the divine if ever there was one, spurs a huge expansion of the Green Way, a shrine can now be found in every city that allows religion and it's the second largest following in every continental city (Second only to the local god in favor, for the Quajril that being Eregor, for the Osu'ixie that being Osalus) Where the god once equally revered both Vaunht and Savios, Savios is becoming a secondary figure.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:56, Sun 24 May 2020.

Osalus enters the void again and it seems upset. Descending upon the poles it reaches out and changes the Amarok. It is a small change but one that they notice. Small nubs appear on all their heads. These nubs are hard and composed of the metal of Gale.

Yet this metal which is part of them allows the Amarok to travel where they please and remain comfortable and feel as if they are still within the frozen environment they were born for.

Act 4: Osalus blesses the Amarok with small horns that allow them to leave their frozen home.


That done the deity turns his attention to an issue which angers him. So it let its displeasure feel known. All the Salu serpents in creation spoke with the voice of the god at the same time, his words were spoken in a language that any creature hearing would understand. For the god knew that every grouping of the Amarok had one of his serpents with them.

"Here me Amarok children of Narcissa. For I am Osalus creator of the Salu Ice Serpents and have given you the bond with them. Your internal fighting angers me. Your destruction of the temples angers me. To the Travelers I offer you one chance, for the Amarok come for you, to end you for what you have done. As they should! I offer you a quest to seek out the Tree of Knowledge. If you do this and accept my Quest to become Seekers, I will reward you. And I ask the Amarok to leave you be. For if you accept this Quest I will know, as will all that see you."

The deity then leaves his serpents returning them to as they had been before.

Act 5: Osalus speaks to the Amarok through the Salu Ice Serpents


Osalus reaches out then and crafts the Oath of the Seekers. If any of the Travelers accepts it's quest they find themselves transformed.  Instead of nubs they grow antlers of Gale metal, that has carvings upon it. Those carvings have runes that tell the deeds of the being that they grow from. The first is always that they are upon the Quest of Seeking. Yet other deeds as they perform them are added to the horns to tell of the tales.

The horns have the same effect as the nubs that the Amarok received allowing these Seekers to leave the frozen poles. It also stabilizes the moods of the traveler, and helping to channel their mana so that they can control it. An odd side effect is that it gives all the Seekers a grey soft metallic like coat of fur.

Act 6: Osalus creates the Oath of the Seeker for the Travelers

With the touch of Osalus the Amarok gain small horns which grant them the ability to tolerate the warmer climates of Oceaus. If removed they would again succumb to the warmer temperatures.

Next, Osalus delivers a message through the salu serpents imploring the Travelers to journey to find the Tree of Knowledge. Those that accept undertake the Oath of the Seeker, their horns becoming ones of metal which develop an evolving pattern that signifies their personal story. It has no effect upon their mana, the Travelers have long had control of their magic, it's part of them (This being why they purifying wands kill them) their capricious natures are simply a part of themselves after so many generations were exposed to the three forms of magic.

A surprising number of Travelers undertake the Oath, though not out of some sense of awe or duty, the trickster people do not have a deep well of reverence to share, but because the idea of exploring itself appeals to them.

With these Acts Amarok culture is freed from the shackles of the frigid north and south. For the first Amarok journey out from their tundra fields, either hiking south during the winter along ice bridges, catching rides with Starbound or traveling the leylines (Truly this is an era of travel and expansion!) and make their first forays into other lands. As do the Travelers, sharing their tricks and troubles with the larger world. Their diminished numbers in the poles help to alleviate some of the tensions between the Travelers and the Amarok, though the Amarok still continue their plans to finally remove their mana-tainted kin. So the Seekers take a jaunt towards Uguay, making a number of stops and detours along the way, stories begin to spread of malicious and elusive tricksters bearing great metal antlers.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:03, Mon 25 May 2020.

The separation of Manas had begun to pose something of a problem. Or perhaps it was more a riddle. Ferenghir gathered the three Manas from Celestia, Yazul, and Gael, swirling them together. Each Mana type had been born from a single Act, and Ferenghir believed that it could be returned to such. They encased the swirling Manas in an orb of purifying crystal, etching in Metal Runecrafting marks to mediate the balance between the Manas and the purifying crystal: enough of the three Mana types to exist within the sphere of purification crystal, and enough crystal to encase the three Manas safely. Harmony, balance, unity.

This artifact would be an incredible source of raw power, one that would point the way for future research for whoever discovered. Ferenghir placed this artifact in the Temple of Harmony they had created with the hopes that the Krys would continue their exploration across the leylines and discover it.

Ferenghir also renamed the Temple of Harmony to the Temple of Unity.

Act4: Ferenghir creates the ARTIFACT Tricolor Mana Orb, placing it within the crystalline Temple of Unity.

In the Void Ferenghir renames the Temple of Harmony to the Temple of Unity. It still lies empty at this time.

Secondly, Ferenghir creates the TRICOLOR MANA ORB, this artifact can draw mana from any of the magical sources and converts all of it into pure mana that can be wielded safely. Choosing where this artifact would end up would require a second Act though, thus it falls into the Void and lands at random upon Yazul. There one of the long quiet Yazulites comes across it. This artifact is indeed powerful and the Yazulite is capable of great feats, making whole plains ignite in flame, carving new channels in the earth along which the sludge-like Yazul mana flow, and thus routing more to itself, and also discovering it can spy upon others with the right use of mana. Through these scrying spells it discovers other beings and places, of most interest to it are the Krys. The Krys and their very curious knowledge of traveling the Leylines....

And it's at this time that the University entourage discovers one of the Stones of Darkness. Holding it aloft, the Enlightened magic wielder feels a power greater than any magic surge through them, for this is an Artifact and of divine origins. At this mortals beck the horrors still lingering in the City of the Fall rouse themselves and slither to meet him, there they bow in supplication before the Stone of Darkness. With the Stone of Darkness it's new wielder finds that form is liquid to his whims, able to be reshaped and transformed. Victorious, the new wielder of the Stone of Darkness returns to the Enlightened Empire with their prize followed in tow by their bound horrors. (Leaving the City of the Fall abandoned entirely save for the Starforge) There the leaders of the Empire undertake great debate over what this new power entails. They recognize that this artifact has shifted the balance of power decidedly in their favor, now with religion on the rise everywhere on Oceaus, they see it as the time to curb this wave of religiosity. Those that defied them will do so no longer.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:15, Mon 25 May 2020.

Action 3: Kargous creates the Domicile of Cogitation, and sets it in the void, which is a place where the gods can run simulations of their actions and obtain possible outcomes before enacting them in creation.   There is no means for mortals to travel here, for this is a place for the Gods, in Kargous’ mind at least, and for them alone.



He holds off running any tests for the moment though, and instead travels to Oceaus.

He has had a plan for the planet that he has been working on for some time, and while the later portion will require much testing, the early parts are simple enough.  Seeking out the majestic caves that   Narcissa crafted, Kargous extends his will and crafts a form of eatable fungi, which climbs slowly up the cavern walls, which looks much like the bark of a tree with little squat stimmed conical shaped projections, here and there. The children of Narcissa will find this fungus grows easily in dark cold places, and provides them with an excellent source of energy. The Amoroks will soon discover that the small  conical shaped portions with small stims are not good for eating — eating them will make them slightly  sick on their stomachs —  but that they produce two liquids, one that makes shaping ice easier, and another that hardens it, indeed as hard as steel.   When merchants eventually eat some of the fungi, they say that it has a nutty flavor and call the fungi “Nut Bark.”  The two liquids however when carried away from the poles have a curious feature to them, while ice objects eventually melt, they take a much longer time to do so, and merchants soon discover that when combined these two liquids can keep things cold for a  very long time, depending on amount of the “Nut Bark Sap” used. A few drops will keep a liquid cool four hours, while about half a cup will keep things as cold as if they were left out all night in winter. The sap can’t be added directly, but soon items designed to hold the sap are developed.

Action 4: Kargous introduces Nut Bark to the poles.

The Domicile of Cogitation does not come to exist as Ao is far too busy keeping the cosmos running to be answering an endless series of hypothetical questions.

Nut bark is created in the tundra, an edible fungus that retains the cold in which it was born. Being a new easy source of food, for the first time the Amarok find they no longer need to roam in order to eat. Many continue to be nomadic out of the sake of tradition, but some travel weary Amarok start to settle and subsist largely off a diet of this new plant. It also proves popular as a luxury trade item due to the way it retains cold, along with the branches of the Purifying Trees the nut bark byproduct are another popular item. Port cities are growing at the edges of the poles to serve this increasing demand for trade.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:31, Tue 26 May 2020.

Arcturus is delighted that many of his creations have now been found by mortals.

I wish to create blessings to individuals, but I will share it evenly among all the different species. Those species such as the Amarok that have evolved into several different subsets will not be forgotten.


Arcturus grants strong telepathic abilities to 1 member of each species/distinct group within the void


Arcturus grants divination abilities to 1 member of each species/distinct group within the void.


He spends his final act to determine how these gifts will be passed on. When one wielder of the gift dies, the gift will be reincarnated into a new child of the same group/species/faith.

Across the different races Arcturus creates a member of each species who have a distinct gift, one with the ability to wield powers with only their mind. One who has the ability to glean the future. These gifts will be self-propagating, when one dies another will be born.

With the artifacts coming into mortal hands, and now these great powers, the power of the communal whole is starting to shift towards the power of individuals, now singular beings are obtaining enough influence that they can shift the course of events single handed. Those with powers of the mind start to be called the Elevated, so the Elevated Quajril, the Elevated Yandee, the Elevated Osu'ixie. And the one with foresight comes to be known as the Foreseen, so the Foreseen Krys, the Foreseen Longroes. These Foreseen can see what futures are coming (But the gods, being unknowable, are beyond this vision, these divine Acts are the few surprises the Foreseen get) Within a generation the Elevated become important members to the areas in which they're born, with their ability to peer into mortal mines they can determine fault and thus are superior to court systems, they can strike down foes with their minds and thus offer protection, they can sense harm coming and thus strike first. A new form of governance forms around these single strong rulers, kingdoms. The Elevated Kingdoms have borders as wide as their single Elevated's powers and the laws and customs of these kingdoms are whatever the whim of their Elevated.

As for the Foreseen, they prove to be less popular, it turns out mortals prefer only being told the good news, not the bad, and Foreseen who share ill fates are blamed for what they see, and those who foresee this and don't share the bad news lose credibility. Where the Elevated become rulers, the Foreseen tend to live reclusive lives. They don't mind. All of them can see what's coming. War. It's an alien concept, they have struggle understanding it. But the world has become a powder keg over the last few centuries. The tension between the Purists and magic practioners is reaching ever higher, the Enlightened are emboldened by the artifact they now possess, the Elevated rulers so far have been benign, enough at least, but soon enough someone unworthy will be born with these great powers.

Yes, the Foreseen are happy enough to live outside of society.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:47, Tue 26 May 2020.