Setting Since time immemorial, magic ruled the island-continent of Altea. Kings were nothing more than figureheads, as their countries were run by powerful mages, waging war against one another, wreaking devastation and havoc among the land, all for their personal gain. But amidst this chaos, a man with a luminous power emerged - Grinnoc. Wielding light itself, he and his quickly growing followers overthrown mages, hunting them down one by one. After a bloody war, The Paladin Order emerged, to keep the order they have fought so hard for. Kingdoms relinquished control to their saviors, and in the end, The Paladins were in total control. And at the very top was Grand Master Grinnoc - their immortal ruler.
~300 hundred years have passed since Grinnocs rise to power. No longer left with any organization, mages are still scattered all around Altea, running, surviving, or trying to fight back, no matter how futile it is. Mages are still born, even to non-mage parents. Though mostly contained, their threat still lingers. 300 years of relative calm, calm before the storm...
Meldiniar - a new empire formed from all the war-torn kingdoms of the old, under the rule of Grand Master and his Inquisitors, with paladins acting both as guards and mage hunters. Lidia - it's capital, a new shining beacon of hope for all of it's citizens.
Lore
Grinnoc, a then unknown name appeared out of nowhere with an unique power - a white light which violently reacted to other mage, literally setting it on fire and burning it down, no matter the shape. Any magic could be burned away, and in contact with mage's flesh, it would ignite and burn mage's mana, burning the mage alive from the inside out with their own magic. And Grinnoc had the ability to pass off a fraction of this power to others - this gave rise to his order of paladins, who are in charge of everything today. The source of his power, and his immortality is unknown. Some say it is something divine, but any connections to some deity are quickly extinguished by the inquisition - Grinnoc does not want to be worshipped.
A white light which violently reacted to other mage, literally setting it on fire and burning it down, no matter the shape. Any magic could be burned away, and in contact with mage's flesh, it would ignite and burn mage's mana, burning the mage alive from the inside out with their own magic. Only usable by paladins undertaken special training, and undergoing a rather dangerous ritual. Though extremely effective against magic, a paladin still needs to exert light equal or greater than the magic he/she is trying to stop. Back in the great war, the most powerful mages didn't even notice the power of light the paladins were using, and it took Grinnoc and his closest friends to take the Grand Archons down.
The Ritual to give Paladins their powers is kept a strict secret, however, no one who undergone it can even remember it - the process wipes the memory of the ritual. Some, more scholary types, refer to Light as Nega Magic. The power of Light does not naturally increase within the Paladins - they can only increase their skill over their limited power.
Light can be bent into any shape or form, but it will always have the same characteristics. It can used to imbue equipment, create swords or barriers, but in the end, it still is concentrated light that burns that magic.
The power to manipulate the world around you and break/chance the fundamental forces that govern this world. Magic was and is the cause of many terrible atrocities, and as such, is widely despised. Even more so with the Paladins actively demonizing it. Nobody knows what causes one to be born with this power, but it can happen to anyone. Though mages are guaranteed a mage child, for anyone else it's a chance. Each individual uses magic in his/her own way, though a more uniform magic existed back when Grand Archons reigned. Mages can learn any spell, especially from one another, but will always find it easier to use their own, instinctual powers.
Some scholars refer to this magic power as Arcane Magic. Unlike The Light/Null Magic, this one grows nearly without limit within the individual, the speed of that growth varies, however, and the ancient practices to boost that growth are long gone.
An old folklore tale, of a deity with the power of flame everlasting. A green flame, hotter than anything any pyromancer can conjure, never ever burning out. Scholars sometimes refer to this mythical flame as Demonfire.
An old folklore tale, of a deity who consumed everything. Void - the opposite of existence, of reality. Usually, void was associated with devouring souls or any other type of energy. Some scholars refer to this mythical power as Entropy Magic.
Very little folklore remains about this, but everything points to the elves. And nobody really wants to intrude upon their lands and ask. Also known as Nature Magic.
A myth coming since the begging of time, of a man known as Veriah - The Father of Magic. Supposedly, it is he that granted humanity their magic, and the one who finds his heart - The Heart of Magic, would control everything. But anyone sane knows - it just an ancient legend, one that has lost it's true message and meaning among the ages. It still does not stop fools from searching for this "Heart of Magic"
A place beyond our own, a chaotic maelstrom of primal energies, infested with strange creatures. A taboo even among mages, the greatest disasters caused by mages ALWAYS involved The Beyond. Though that doesn't stop the determined to mess with it.
The Beyond can be used as nearly limitless power source for an experienced mage, though drawing upon it's energies for prolonged periods of time has major side effects, the most common known as possession - a denizen of that world taking over the mage. This always involves the mage's flesh being twisted into an abomination, as the creature tries to mold the body into it's own alien shape. The possessed are always hostile to everything.
Others try to summon beings of The Beyond to this world, and bind them under their will. These creatures, called Demons by some, Elementals by others, are of very alien nature, and any research into how a huge animated rock functions was fruitless. Just like the possessed, demons are hostile to everything unless under a mage's control.
Also known as spirit realm - a place where souls go after their body dies, and the place from where soul is drawn into a newborn. It's existence is mostly hypothetical, and not proven.
The gods worshipped by the people of old. Most of that folklore is lost to the ages now, as the practice is long erased by the mages. There were three of them: Goddess of Order, God of Chaos, and The Grand Devourer.
Terminology
The main organizational structure of Meldiniar, usually named after a craft or an activity. Employing people from various walks of life to continue their functions of business, nearly everything in Meldiniar is a covenant. Covenant members look after each other, and usually compete for influence and customers. To receive Meldiniar's citizenship, one MUST belong to a covenant.
Nothing terrifies a paladin more than an Inquisitor investigating him. Inquisitors are responsible to keep everyone, including the paladins, in line. Or to deal with mage threats the paladins themselves cannot. There are more specialized groups within the Inquisition, but these are not known to outsiders.
Important Info
The newfound mage threat, a mockery of a concept of a covenant. Attacking various towns, villages, paladin outposts or even other mages without a discernable pattern, their ranks are growing alarmingly fast. Led by a man only known as Azure Sorcerer - a nickname given to him by the very few survivors who decided to run rather than fight him.
A mystical storm surrounds Altea not far from it's shoreline. Preventing anyone but fishes from leaving or entering, and blocking all magic. It is unknown what causes it, though some simply call it the edge of the world.
Locations
A massive forest spanning at the western edge of Altea, the known location of the mythical elves. No one has ever returned from there. The so called "Black Forest" is very near the Elven Forest.
A forest near the elven lands, getting it's name from the thick vegetations that blocks all light entering it. Supposedly the home of the infamous Witch of the Black Forest.
A huge plateau with a grand, dwarven built fortress where the Inquisition resides. Below it are the dwarven tunnels. Protected by a barrier of light which prevents scrying and teleportation to anything within the bubble of light. It can be safely walked through by anyone, though.
The great capital of Melindiar. The hub of trading, arts and culture, yet still second to the dwarven Grand Bazaar. Though unlike the Grand Bazaar, everyone can visit Lidia.
One of the old hubs of commerce and a key strategic location, this place was abandoned long before Grinnoc's rise. Though there are individuals taking interest in it, due to it's now isolated location.
Races
The most numerous and average race.
A mythical race, one that has not been in contact with humans for nearly a millenium. Supposedly residing within their forest, nobody has been able to verify that. Even less is known about their culture or their abilities.
Residing in their vast tunnels below Inquisitorial Plateau, dwarves are master craftsmen and inventors, driving forward all technological innovations. In exchange for the Paladin protection, dwarves assist them and trade with the rest of the world. Though even dwarves are sometimes born with magic, those children are quickly turned in for purification. Some dwarves even become paladins themselves.
Character Sheet
Character Appearance: (Preferably a picture, but text can suffice too)
Age:(If a mage, can be quite young.)
Sex:(Not needed unless the picture is rather... confusing)
Alignment:(Mage or Paladin, or maybe something else?)
Affiliation:(Known group or friends/siblings, or for Paladins - covenant. Player characters cannot initially join Azure or Inquisitorial covenants.)
Personality:(At least a paragraph of how you characters reacts and interacts with the world and other characters)
Bio:(A few paragraphs about how your character ended up where he/she is now, and their goals, aspirations)
Power Description:(The more general description of how the characters power works. Note that initially, you are limited to your natural power: mages to Arcane, paladins to nega, elves to nature, etc.)
Spells:(Up to four initial spells. But keep lot's of room for improvement - by the end of the story the characters will have to gain lot's of power in order to survive.)
Skills:(Any non-magic skills, also up to four.)
Equipment:(Any noteworthy equipment your character is initially carrying.)
Other:(Anything else does not fit anywhere above)
Currently accepted characters are stored
here.
You are always, free, however, to suggest your own mini-storyline, even a new race or concept, and we could probably make it work within this story.
