Zhymos (Ambitious multi genre RP, Always Accepting!)

[Draconilian]

An overlook of the Mainland
__________________________________________________ ________________________________

Welcome to Zhymos. My biggest RP yet.

Keep in mind that this thread will be a work in progress for some time, perhaps a few days.
How work in progress is this thread? I'm throwing it up so that we have a foothold outside of Interest Checks, and for general discussion (As well as character planning)

Everything you need to know

Our Official Chat Room (Thanks to Closet Nerd for the Chatroom!)
In Character Thread
The Recruitment Thread (I'd appreciate it if you guys went to this thread on occasion to check on it and bump it when I'm not around)

Administration. The people in charge of the RP. Me, and the people I have given power to.

Draconilian - Me, God, The GM. Also, your friend, and the final authority figure.
Shoryu - Nobody knows his role, but I know him from other RPs, He's a CoGM because I trust him,
Yoshua171 AKA Nova - The Loremaster, god of the gods of Zhymos.
Rtron - Lord of evil and villainy

I.

I just got over a terrible case of writers block, I could get all of nothing done on this forum. Now I'm finally out of school for some time, and my will to be creative has returned. So let's throw every single little idea I had over the period of writers block into one game because, why not?

This game is inspired by countless individual series, in no particular order, influences I can think of are...
Sword Art Online
The Elder Scrolls
Dark Souls
Kingdoms of Amalur
Exalted
Guild Wars 2
Monster Hunter
Castlevania
Final Fantasy (all of them)
Xenoblade
and who knows what else

II.

Zhymos is split into three main continents, with one significant island and an archipelago surrounding it (any mapmakers would be awesome!)

The Mainland
Yeah, that's all it's called, it is by far the largest, about the size of Ascentus and Cthonia combined. It is the natural home of Humans, Dragons, and other races. It is also where magic is the most common. Races that can use magic without limits are rare outside of the mainland. The mainland is divided into territories controlled by City-States and wild areas. Races for the most part are welcome anywhere, though there are a few racist territories.

To the far north is the Tundra, the middle of the continent is temperate, and the far south is also Tundra. The edges can lean towards tropical at times.

In the traditional DnD structure. the Mainland, as a completely unexceptional region with all sorts of qualities, represents Balance. And also Traditional Fantasy

Ascentus
Technically not even a continent anymore. Rather a fortress for it's inhabitants that just happens to have been a continent a long time ago. Nothing natural remains, Magitek has taken over and crystalline technology dominates the environment, even the weather is controlled. Some races can adapt to living here, while for others it is a living hell. Dragons have a natural distrust of the place.

In the ancient history of Zhymos, Ascentus was the largest holding of Humanity. Where the magical crystals that grew only in Ascentus were used to create powerful Crystal Magitek. Over time, the extreme usefulness of the Magitek completely absorbed the culture, and the leading humans in fact became a part of the Crystals, they are known as the "Angels" today.

Ascentus has, over the years, depleted it's supply of Crystal and cannot grow more as they have completely changed the nature of the area. Nothing has come of this yet, but it is feasible to believe that Ascentus may try to claim new territory for the express purpose of growing new Crystals

It is important to note that the air in Ascentus is full of nanomachines created from shards of the crystals. These machines affect everything in the environment, even living things. The longer you stay in Ascentus, the more the nanomachines will alter your body to the point where you are more comfortable in Ascentus. This is a little known fact outside of certain scholars and the regions inhabitants.

In the traditional DnD structure. Ascentus, with it's rigid technology and culture, represents Order. but also Science Fiction


Cthonia
Cthonia is mostly known as the "Ruined Continent" because it's nature as the haven for the undead and other horrors. This is only the common idea of it though. Cthonia is a continent of a good amount of variety in both inhabitants and geography. While it's true the races that originate from here are often hostile, and the undead and the Demon overlords should not be messed with. Plenty of other races find their homes here too.

In ancient history, before even Ascentus, Cthonia was where the most powerful wizards went to practice their magics and establish schools. One such school, that studying the magical practice today known as low necromancy, accidentally caused an event. The specifics of the event are long beyond lost, and the current day Demons aren't telling. What is known, is that several necromancers, as well as a few members of other species, bound their souls to the continent. These are the Demons, and they crafted the High Necromancy, the undead curse.

Cthonia is where Demonic magic originates. The Demonic magics are terrible spells that often harm the user, the only ones exempt to the harm are the demons themselves and undead.

The curse of undeath typically effects everything living in Cthonia, it is weak in certain areas, weak enough that the curse would not effect most creatures before they died of natural causes anyway. In the areas where it is strongest, within months of exposure to the curse, an undead is born. Undead lose some of their sanity, and can be directly controlled by Demons to act as tools. In addition, someone with undeath will not die with their body, they will continue to animate it and all it's parts magically. The only way to kill an undead is to incinerate the body. Or remove the curse, but methods to remove the curse are unknown.

In the traditional DnD structure. Cthonia, with it's unusual rules of magic, insane undead inhabitants, and a lack of a defined culture, represents Chaos. It also represents Horror and Dark Fantasy.

III.

Under ordinary circumstances, Magic is limited by race. Some can use it, some cannot. And some are better at it than others. As a rule, humans born on the mainland are the most versatile with magic. Able to learn all different kinds and apply it easily. Magic can be used in nearly any manner imaginable, it is up to the user. Magics limits are based on innate magical stamina. This operates just like a mana bar in a video game, every spell has a cost and when the bar is gone, magic will start draining your bodily stamina. Keep that in mind. Magical energy increases naturally as one uses magic.

Crystal and Demonic magics are special. Demonic magic almost all has a cost to the user, and Crystal magic draws power from crystal batteries. The crystals recharge naturally over time. Crystal magic is the source of all Magitek.

Demonic magic limits access to normal magics in it's users (most of the time) but is absurdly powerful, Necromancy, Blood Magic, and other things reside here. Undead have a natural affinity for it, Humans do not

Magitek has no actual cost to the user. but is unfortunately strict and uncreative. Primarily things like direct energy attacks, it is a decent backup in a fight, and is the only kind that can be used by races cut off of their "Natural" magic or races that lack natural magic at all.

IV.

Humanity
Humans can be found just about everywhere, they are hardy and versatile, but excel at nothing.
Well, that's not entirely true, Humans extreme versatility in all things actually makes them one of the best races to use magic, as they can utilize it in any way imaginable. Humans are responsible for the development of most magics and are the dominant species on Zhymos

Dragons
Originating in the Mainland. The Dragons are a race with a small population but large influence, being essentially the apex predator of all they observe. Dragons are fully sentient, as intelligent as any human (some more so, some less) but have an extremely limited grasp of magic. All the magic that Dragons can use are their natural fire breath and part of their flight. Dragons live for an exceptionally long time, owing to the small population. At approximately fifty years of age they are "fully grown" standing around 10 feet tall on their hind legs (they can stand on only their hind legs or on all fours, most Dragons have a preference for one or the other) but at this point they may go into a hibernation. A hibernating Dragon continues to grow with no known upper limit, but it takes centuries for them to wake up from Hibernation.

Automatons
The "Robots" of Ascentus. They are souls put into a mechanically created body with a crystal core. All robots have a set "programming" that represents their order in the world. But this can be bent or broken, Automotons have the advantage of being able to modify their bodies provided they have access to the parts from Ascentus, but are limited to using only Magitek, no normal magic at all.

Undead
Undead are the dominant race in Cthonia, created from the ancient curse of the Demons, they are able to use Demonic magic with little to no cost, compared to other races at least. Undead cannot reproduce, but their numbers are high anyway, due to the curse of Cthonia. Undead can only be killed by completely destroying the body. Fire and magic are useful for this purpose.

Angels and Demons are detailed above in the histories of the continents, and are not playable (sorry)

Everything else race related I will leave up to you guys. Go wild.

Approved Races
Vrogreons
Sanzora
Kolyok
Elfennol
Harbingers
Imps
Golems
Karceit
Skazki
Werewolf

V.

General Rules
1. What I, or the other CoGMs, say, goes. Period. We possess the rights to approve characters, races, and other plot ideas.
2. Power is good, you can have a character capable of doing crazy stuff. but what is better than strictly power is the appearance of power. Something that is, on paper, supremely powerful, but in practice, fair and limited. It's still fun, and prevents plot absorbing black holes.
3. Try to avoid Plot Tumors in general. Long voyages through dangerous terrain that never end, anything that you feel slows down the game more than it should. If these things happen, either rush through, or ask me for a timeskip.

IC Rules
1. Stay in character, at all times. Have a short aside you need to make OOC? well put it in the damned OOC thread. I want this to read cleanly
2. Stay Consistent. There is no post order, because I find those far more trouble then they are worth. but try to post when things happen to your character, or when you need to make things happen. Does this make sense?

OOC Rules
1. I have very very few OOC rules. I absolutely encourage random conversation, having fun, and generally getting to know each other OOC. The ONE rule for OOC that you should follow above all others is this.

If somebody wants to move the discussion towards anything RP related, drop your casual conversation and move towards the game. PERIOD

VI.

Race Sheet
Name: What are they called?
Appearance: What do they look like? pictures are great, written otherwise
Capabilities: What can they do? are they good with magic? are they abnormally strong? can they shapeshift?
History: What continent do they come from, what have they done in the world. Are they a young or old race?

Optional Parts.

Additional names: a name they only call other members of their race? nicknames other races have for them?
Race Theme Song (Lyrical): A song with words that describes the race
Race Theme Song (Instrumental): A song that doesn't need words to describe them
Tropes

Character Sheet
Name: First, Last, Nickname, Clan Name, whatever you feel like putting
Race:
Gender:
Age:
Appearance: Written or Picture
Personality:
History:
Equipment: Clothes, Armor, Weapons, Etc.

Optional Parts
Family History: If any
Theme Song (Lyrical):
Theme Song (Instrumental):
Other:
Tropes:


IN PROGRESS

VII.

In no particular order. Here are characters and who they are being played by


Cassondre - blazinvire
Zeltron - El Noche
Jade of Daear - Wolverbells
Vrangr - Rtron
Yael Stellargrand - Yael Stellargrand
Arhkraxx Kidera - Draconilian
Akraina - yoshua171
Acriane - yoshua171
Saloc Hanko - Rtron
Vroten - Rtron
Ksærnataikh'i L'shter'n - yoshua171
Goren Farn - Rtron
Tűz Szánt Halál - Closet Nerd
Adair Zrecktein - Draconilian
Sir Amalar Amuul - Torack
Arkaeis Zraimat: The Chimeric Avail of Bias - yoshua171
Taboo (Ahnia) - ClockworkDaisy
Nahash Urobolas - Nahash
Anemone: The Princess of Rot - daughterofnone
Felia Shaheen - Shoryu
Kel'ran Vasni - Shoryu
Kelbi Van Rali - Shoryu
Hawyat Kebir - Shoryu
'Nameless' - Shoryu
Shoryu/Kllsha Hrrchxxos Kssrech - Shoryu
Arsædor Zerumat - yoshua171





and finally, not a character, but something I found no better place for
The Zhymosian Gods- all thanks to yoshua171

VIII.

Placeholder

[Rtron]

I'll move my race sheet over here for ease of access.

- - - Updated - - -

Name: Vorgreons

Appearance:

]

,

,

Capabilities: The Sorcerers are strong in magic specifically the darker sides of it. Possession, the infernal magics, shadows, poisons, Life draining, etc. . Equal to, if not a little bit stronger, than the demons when it comes to that. The down side is that they have almost zero melee capabilities. By trading in their bodies for more power, they have become verifiable Shades. But they can't do any physical damage.

The Warriors are strong in melee combat. The strongest in the Dark lands, maybe in the world, but they've no ranged magical combat at all. They've 5 times the strength, speed, and reflexes of a human. The magic they do posses is the magic of combat. They can use their combat magic in a variety of ways, from lighting their swords on fire, to creating shields to protect them, to using the life bloods of the fallen to send them into a beserker rage and give them strength.

The Leaders are a mixture of both. Will having none of the advantages, they've none of the disadvantages either. They are stronger in magics than a warrior, but stronger in melee than a mage. They are also the smartest and most cunning of the Vrogreon, which is how they hold their power. They also have the power to create life to serve them, but they can only create mass amounts of it if there is a group of them. If there is only one, it can create up to a dozen, depending on its power. The leaders can also shapeshift.

History: The Vrogreon hail from the Dark lands. When the Demons first came upon the land, they created the Vrogreon before anything else. Making them their right hand in all matters. Magical, political, economical, etc. They made the Vrogreon equal to them in power, thinking them safe in the fact that they built in a natural loyalty to them when they created the Vrogreon. Eventually though, some of the more cunning and smarter of the Vrogreon began to think thoughts of rebellion. That they should rule the dark lands. They should be the demons master not the other way around. Eventually through words and acts, the brought their entire race to their way of thinking, and launched a war for power against the demons. They created foul creatures to help them in their war. Things like, but not limited to A foul copy of Dragons, A mixture of minor demons and zombies
. The war was long and brutal, and ravaged the land. But eventually, the demons overcame the Vrogreon and wiped out most of their race, and forced the remaining few into hiding. Cursing and naming them the Fallen.
Optional Parts.

Additional names: The Fallen (As known since their failed rebellion attempt.)

[LJCOMICS]

Name: Sanzora

Appearance: The Sanzora come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, depending on their tribe, their caste, and the will of their gods. Though generally, the Sanzora are reptilian, vaguely humanoid creatures that are as comfortable on four limbs as they are on two. All have thick scales, tails as long as their bodies, bestial faces, carnivorous teeth and sharp claws on both their thumbed forelimbs and digitigrade hind limbs. That is where their similarities end, however, as some are small and sleek, others are bulky and burly, some have fins for swimming, others have venomous fangs. One could be forgiven for thinking that the Sanzora were a coalition of different races bound by a common culture.

Capabilities: While the Sanzora are as diverse a race as men (though by different means), there are a few talents that can be attributed to all of them, regardless of their individual abilities. Above all else, Sanzora are exceedingly difficult to kill. Their scales are thick enough to act like natural armor, they all have very hardy constitutions, and are very resistant to both disease and poison. They are natural hunters and survivors with claws and teeth like razors and the ability to digest almost anything, and can fend for themselves in the wilderness naked and barehanded better than most other races could fully armed and armored. Lastly, they are very in-tune with the world around them as a people, and are perceptive to primal magic and the disturbances in the natural order.

History: The Sanzora are among the oldest races of Zhymos, and as such don't even remember where their kind originated. Some of their elders claim, "For as long as the sun has risen, we have been." As an extremely diverse and adaptable race, they conquered most of Zhymos in the early days of prehistory, and erected great cities and monuments throughout their globe-spanning empire, as a tribute to the glory of their gods and a testament to the power of the Sanzora people. Though as their power grew, so did their hubris, and the Sanzora began to forget the gods that gave them both life and power. Their scorned gods cursed them and struck down their empire, the remnants of which still found as ruins to this day.

The Sanzora were left with only the smaller continent that would come to be known as Cthonia to rule. They recognized that they had strayed too far from their gods' graces, and worked toward pleasing their gods to earn their forgiveness through ritual and sacrifice. In this time, they pledge to not make war until they had regained the love of their gods, but other races had no such issues. Months became years became decades became centuries became milleniums, and the Sanzora stayed the course of trying to appease their gods. In that time, many races such as men and elves and dwarves rose from the land and created great nations of their own. Little by little, the Sanzora were beaten back into the depths of Cthonia, the remnants of their empire continuing to shrink until it was no more, and their people were limited to a single, though vast, marshland in the heart of Cthonia. It is believed that the necromancy that came to plague the continent was a corrupted form of their primordial magics, which invoke the flesh of the fallen and the souls of the departed.

In recent decades it is rumored that the Sanzora were given a sign from their gods that they had earned their forgiveness, and were preparing to take back their empire of millenia ago. In their swamp villages they chant and sing, brewing all manner of potent toxins and elixirs, forging weapons from the holy black glass, and breeding dozens of clutches of their mythical Sanzora-Sau Warriors, the first of them to hatch since the fall of their empire thousands of years ago.

Additional Names: Lizardmen, Scaled Folk, Swamp Monsters, Mud-Born, the Old Ones

Race Theme Song:!

[Draconilian]

Nvm. This was a drunken post.

[Corporal Lance]

Yo LJ, you put your video for the Race Theme Song in picture format. Thought I'd let you know.

I'll wait until everything is finished to have my CS up. That and I want to find the trend in characters so I can post the opposite.

[Draconilian]

Reading more (I'm a little distracted at the moment) I have some suggestions for the race

I just dunno what they are yet. We just need to differentiate them somehow.

[Corporal Lance]

Sounds like the Dragonborn race for DnD. I've got the link below if you want to glance at it.

http://dungeons.wikia.com/wiki/Drago...iant_(4e_Race)

[LJCOMICS]

I would describe the Sanzora as somewhere between the lizardmen from Warhammer and Trolls from Warcraft. They have nothing to do with dragons in any way.

[Draconilian]

Like I said. I'm tired right

[happyhobo2000]

Duchy of Icefire

"In the sun of darkness.
In the ocean of fire.
In the volcano of ice.
In the life of death."



Far northern end of the Continent of Darkness, ontop of a plateau
480,000 Dwarves, 10,000 Humans, 10,000 Automatons
Exports: precious and mundane metals, metalwork, machinery, enchanted gear, expedition help
Imports: food, wood, help
Tolerant to most races, but not undead or goblins or the like

Noble Houses

Titles: Duke

The fortress of Icefire is the most powerful of all the fortresses in the duchy. It is situated on the third largest mountain in the world, but also the biggest volcano. It is divided into four main parts- Constructs, High Fortress, Low Fortress, Depths

Constructs
The Constructs is the area outside of the fortress of Icefire. This is where most visitors enter and leave. There is no residential area here, although there are two major features.

The Port and The Ramp and The Circle
As Icefire both became more reliant on both importing and exporting, the port has gradually expanded as a feature- it has been carved gradually from the base of the ramp around the volcano. It has to be carved into both stone and ice as there is no wood to build the support necessary for such a construction. It is over ten kilometers long. Duke Dorthakran the Ice built the first part, ordering the construction at the cost of the treasury to ensure increased shipping with the outside world. Gradually, the port began to expand around the entire base of the volcano because of merchant demand as more and more riches were found, and as the duchy expanded and all the trade began to flow through Icefire, the vassals sent their riches and requests to the port.

Eventually the ten kilometer walk to the ramp from the furthest edge of the volcano was deemed ridiculous, so the Circle was dug out. The Circle has a waterway tunnel dug straight into the mountain. Then the tunnel circles around itself, creating a circle surrounding the lava core of the volcano. Although multiple floodgates are in the tunnel to prevent illegal access in, they are left open most of the time. The Circle then is an underground port, with both the outside rim of the waterway and the inside rim of the waterway lined with docks. Hydraulic Elevators are used as an extra security measure, as they are turned on at the Upper Fortress, unreachable from the Circle. The Circle has enough room to store all the goods that the fortress both imports and exports for a day, although the elevators are generally used three times a day for the three shifts, as they also send the merchants up and down. The circle is wide enough for three large merchant ships to pass at once. The circle is by law now used for trade and transport within the fortress of Icefire.

The ramp is simply a wide path that has been carved and expanded that heads onto the plateau. It takes tariffs from the bottom side at various security checkpoints, giving the tariff depending on the weight and the good. The Ramp is now used for trade and transport between the vassals of Icefire and the outside world.

Trade is rather simple. Dwarvern companies rent docks and rent rooms in merchant houses near the docks. Since a company has rented the dock and also has a room in a merchant house, they have a place to negotiate there. The merchant will go into the house, and he bargains with the dwarvern company that rented it. If the company and the merchant will come to an agreement, the dwarves will unload the goods onto the dock and put them on an elevator or send them up the ramp. If they don't, they'll barter with someone else in the merchant house.

Fortress of Strongcrypt The southeastern most fortress of the entire duchy, located in an old tomb that used to be a link between the plateau and the land below. One of the three ways down. Currently managed by Torik
Glory Company A mercenary company led by Balran, an expert axeman who leads expeditions into the land beyond Strongcrypt. 500 dwarves strong, known for their prowess in combat.

Members: 10 Dwarves

Torik Manager of Strongcrypt
Balran Leader of Glory Company, heir to Icefire
Massidia Sister of Argon, closest adviser as well

History
Duke Stronghammer the Founder 3E Year 299-327
Stronghammer discovered Icefire, settled it, discovered gold, and returned home. By the time he had died, he was declared duke in place of the weakest current one. (More described in "founding"). He had two younger brothers (Strongpick and Direswing) and two sons when he died.

Duke Strongpick the Fire 3E Year 327-342
Strongpick was Stronghammer's oldest brother, and although he was old when he ascended he did get quite a bit accomplished in the short 15 years on the throne. (Keep in mind, that is about 5 years for a human) He founded the Glory company, who's job it was to find the strongest of the Icefire military and turn them into a holy order/mercenary group, that often was sent out by Duke Strongpick. The glory company was managed Stronghammer's oldest son and heir Dorthakran, who discovered and mapped out the rest of the plateau in the Duke's name, taking it from the hands of demons and imps and the undead alike, conquering all the current territory of the Duchy of Icefire. Lastly, Strongpick found the Fire Stone within the depths of the volcano, granting him the ability to control the volcano's action and avoid being burned by it. Because of this, Strongpick started work on the palace of fire, dying after the completion of the frame. Also, the "power of fire" started to grow in the family. By the time he died, Strongpick had no sons (he was also the last living brother, the Direswing had died in an undead raid), and all the vassals set up that are there to this day (besides Icebane).

Duke Dorthakran the Ice 3E Year 342-530
As the son of Stronghammer, he truly resembled his father's cool personality. While Strongpick could be considered heated, hurrying through his reign and burning himself up, Dorthakran completed the same amount of things in a much longer timeframe. This is not to say he was bad, only that he was conservative. Whereas Strongpick had largely focused on expansion and exploration during his reign, Dorthakran instead focused on internal growth and prosperity. While this would have been bad with the previous ruler, as that was a time when the status of duchy was being questioned by the previous holding family and prestige was needed in order to keep the duke's throne, it was now a great time to focus on it. The inside of the city of Icefire was organized, roads were paved, and the fortress was mapped out in various levels. Dorthakran encouraged the growth of the blooming netherwood industry, a type of wood that always maintained a freezing temperature no matter what, unique to the Duchy and very rare. While this was impractical because of it's small quantity and ridiculous cost for most, this was perfect for the palace of fire in order to keep the rooms at a reasonable temperature, allowing for the completion of it's construction. The cities Icebane and Strongcrypt were founded for the Icefire family. His cousin and heir Firesword found the Firesword in one of the undead tombs on the southern edge of the plateau, creating lots of family jokes and giving the family it's second artifact in only a few years. Shortly after, Dorthakran discovered the Ice Stone on top of Icefire, with the Icemaul on top of it. This allowed for the dynasty to control the icy weather of the entire duchy along with an extreme resistance to cold. Now the family had four artifacts, a greatly centralized monarchy, and everything it needed to become a powerful family. The throne room was finished (Described in "Icefire" above), outfitted with both the Ice Stone and the Fire Stone.

Icehammer Versus Firesword
Then, both Dorthakran and his younger brother died because of an assassin sent by Firesword, causing an uproar in the family. Icehammer, declaring this a false move, fought against Firesword. A bloody civil war ensued, although it was only three months long. It was even until the Glory company sided with Icehammer, tipping the scales. It ended quickly afterwards with a treaty that stated that Firesword and all the offspring of the Diresword branch of the family would become a count vassal with Icebane as their holding, dividing the family into 2 surviving branches and removing them from the possible inheritance cycle. Firesword would also get to keep the Firesword, as he was the one who had found it. Lastly, an agreement was completed where that if all the Icebanes died out, the house's possessions and holdings would go to Icefire once again.

Duke Icehammer the Divider 3E Year 510-650
House Icefire was left only with the Icemaul, the Ice stone and the Firestone. Icehammer was far too occupied keeping down the rebellious Icebanes, and most of the reign was spent fending off them and the undead hordes who had been agitated. While the economy was expanded during this reign, and things seemed to be starting to go better, Icehammer died in the field of battle. Having no son, the Icemaul, Ice Stone, and Fire Stone were handed to Icehammer's wife, who was not known to be pregnant. Six months later she gave birth the Argon's grandfather, and she lived as a widow the rest of her life and Argon's grandfather never knew of his heritage, only that his father was a great man.

The Republic of Icefire 3E Year 650-802
With no living heir, the vassals to house Icefire decided to hold a moot to see who should be the new duke- after ten rounds and ten moots and ten elections, no one had received a majority. All the unoccupied holdings were put into the care of mayors, and all major political decisions were made by the council. Initially, this worked out well. The first 150 years of rule were filled with glory and treasure. Everything seemed to be booming. In fact, many dwarves began to question the old system of monarchy. But the rise was the fall. The position of paragon could not be handed to a group of people, so this forced the title upon the mayor of Icefire. Not only did this make him paragon, but this also made the old mayor extremely wealthy. Greed was the downfall. The economy dropped. The boarders were being overthrown... The new generation was questioning him, and wished back the Icefire's on the throne. The paragon declared that house Icefire was dead, and crushed any idea it wasn't.

Paragon Gromlar the Restorer 3E Year 802-937
Fifty years into the rule of the only Paragon in history being a republic, Argon's father, Gromlar, walked into the palace of fire. The guards tried to strike him but he sent bolts of fire into them, sending them back. The nobles were stunned. How could someone do that? While legend had spoken of flaming lightning from the Icefire family, it had never been this powerful. The crossbowmen tried to shoot but the crossbowmen suddenly could not bull the triggers- they had frozen over. Promptly the Paragon-Mayor was struck down, killed where he stood. The guards stood down as he placed the Firestone and the Icestone in their respective holders. The whole city cheered, celebrating the return of an Icefire on the throne. Gromlar's kin were given the family holdings, the old mayor's kicked out. Adamentine was found during this reign, instantly giving the will of the gods and the title of Paragon back to the duchy of Icefire, as done according to dwarvern law.

"Power of Fire"

"Power of Ice"

"Icemaul"

Immediate Vassals

Titles: Count

Members:

History

Titles: Baron

Members:

History

Titles: Stathalter

Members:

History

Titles: Count

Members:

History

Titles: Autotron

Members:

History

Titles: Count

Members:

History

Culture

About 700 years ago, the dwarvern kingdom had reached the height of it's expansion on the balanced world- very little exploration and expedition had been done on the other two continents. Now, the only way to go after reaching the peak is downwards. The dwarvern borders had touched the humans and the elves, even resulting in some border skirmishes. The dwarvern king knew that the race would fail if they ate themselves out, devouring the land within.

The king claimed that he was willing to hand a charter to any person who would try to settle either of those lands, and modest Stronghammer took up the bet. He amassed his wealth, his family, and everything else and set off with a steamboat he purchased to the northern end of the continent. To describe him as lucky would be a massive understatement. Right on the northern edge, at the very tip of the continent and the plateau, lied a ramp up to the elevated landscape. Although at that time it was thin, it was wide enough to walk up and set up. As they headed up the ramp, they realized that there was something towering above even the heightened Plateau, and it should have been obvious. While the sailors had been focused on finding a way up to the elevated position, they hadn't noticed the third tallest mountain in the world (The dwarvern mountain of Goldenhold is the second tallest), and certainly the tallest volcano. Smoke spewed from the top in metric tons. Through the ice that surrounded the rock sarcophagus lied gold. A quick settlement was put up within the walls of the volcano, a very warm place compared to the arctic surrounding the spot.

Stronghammer returned to the mainland, reporting success in finding shelter from the beating winds and the glacial air. Several hundred more came along, this time with plenty of supplies and more sponsors from the rich. As being chartered by the king and therefore working for him, Stronghammer was granted the title of baron, and the holding of Icefire. They set up many more mines, along with several places to manufacture more steamboats. The boats left with gold, and returned with food, wood, and more dwarves. This led to more boats being constructed, more mines being exploited, which caused exponential expansion. By the time Stronghammer died, the Duchy of Icefire had been made and the volcano had some serious economy. Expansion occurred, by the death of the next duke the entire plateau had been discovered and within the past 150 years, the duchy has been made mostly safe from the lands beneath it.

While both Royal and Plutocrat families are noble, they differ in the idea that Royals hold land. Plutocrat families simply run a massive corporation. Both run in a family. Both use seniority succession, handing the title over to the oldest member of the house. The last major similarity is that both define the family name by the largest entity held. So for instance, Argon's family holds Icefire as their biggest entity. Therefore, both the name of the whole organization (the duchy) and the name of the royal house (the last name) is decided by the 'capitol' entity, Icefire. If Icefire was taken and the next biggest fort was Strongcrypt, the name of the Duchy would be the Duchy of Strongcrypt, and it would be Argon of Strongcrypt. Lastly, 'of' is only put between the first and 'last' names of nobles, commoners simply use a middle name.

Succession
Seniority succession is used, all holdings go to the oldest member of the house. Upon the death of the head of the dwarvern house, all of the dwarves of that house will meet up in the 'capitol' of their family, and discuss who gets to manage which holdings. Even though a member of the family may be managing a holding, it does not give them ownership. The head of the house will always have ownership of all holdings.

Titles
A royal family is given a title depending on the size of their strength- in descending order- "King/Paragon" "Duke" "Count" "Baron". If a vassal of a vassal becomes more powerful than that vassal of vassal's liege, then the vassal of a vassal is promoted peacefully to their lieges rank, unless recent strife has occurred. This system is very mobile besides when it comes to the dukes- there will only ever be 7 duchies, one with the title of "King". Additionally, titles are not related to holdings- having 6 weak castles does not make one have 6 baronies as well as being whatever you are- you are just what you are. A person of equal rank cannot have a vassal of equal or higher rank. At the Paragon's death, the dwarves meet up at the old Paragon's home and conduct a moot to decide which of the 7 duchies will have the title.

Cadet Branches
If a royal house starts to grow too big, the head of the house will traditionally give a holding to the furthest off healthy branch of the royal family, creating a cadet house and a new vassal. The title given will then be decided by council of the lord and his other vassals, deciding the power of that title. After that, the title will be handed off to the cadet branch and the two houses will treat eachother like any other vassal-lord relationship.

Vassal-Lord Relations
Instead of a single person swearing fealty to another single person, a house swears fealty to another house, who in turn swears to anther until the system reaches the king. This does not cause many issues as houses are decided by the capitol of a land, not by solely heritage. In addition, one is only obligated to support their direct liege. This means that if the duke declares war on the Paragon, the duke's vassals only have an obligation to the duke, and should thus betray their old lord's lord. In fact, it is so strict in universal dwarvern law that even the enemy will not allow a betrayal, as honor is often held above success. Vassals are obligated to provide 50% of their armed forces in a time of war, along with 50% of trading with their direct liege. This mercantile system makes being on top very critical, and a promotion even more so.

Dwarves naturally live 4 times as long as humans do, although maturity is reached at 21 generally. This gives dwarves a much longer lifespan than humans, allowing them to do so much more in their lives. Nobles life to around 280 years of age, while commoners live to about 240, simply because of the quality and the safety of life. Dwarves are naturally shorter than humans, but their arms are stronger. Dwarves have a naturally inclination to the underground, to both magitek and non magitek machinery, and are adaptable to extreme temperatures on both sides. They however to not have a natural green thumb like the elves, and very few dwarves have magic. When they do however, it can be just as powerful as any other races.

Lastly, the Dwarves have the sole ability to enchant items with glory- if a single weapon becomes powerful enough in the hands of a dwarvern warrior, it enchants itself. The current Paragon for instance wields Soulhammer, which has been around for 2000 years and has a very powerful 'glory' enchantment. On the same note, if a gem becomes revered enough of a throne respected enough, somehow wealth and power will find that object, but not necessarily the person who holds it. And example of this is the Firestone in the throne of ice in Icefire, which along with lighting itself eternally will somehow allow the person who sits on the throne to control the volcano Icefire is in. This means that being angry on the throne is not the best idea, as quite a catastrophe can be caused.

The dwarvern race is united under the paragon, not making it like most other races in the world. The paragon is elected by a moot of all 7 dukes upon his death, making one of the dukes into a paragon. Although the paragonite is fairly decentralized, the duchies themselves are strong. However, if adamantine is found, the duke who holds that land will instantly become Paragon, because finding the god metal is considered divine favor and for good reason.