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From Fax Encyclopedicus

This page details the campaign world Lukomorie. Information will appear as PCs encounter it. ==Game== For more information, see [[Flickerdart's Game]]. ==World== ===Overview=== The plane of Lukomorie contains a vast expanse of land, surrounded by an endless semi-physical body of water, the Astral Sea, that allows travel to various island demiplanes (though the large islands on the map are still land masses). The mainland is covered by enormous and ancient forests that are periodically broken up by mountain ranges and great steppes. Bodies of water are few and far between, but they have power; the more water, the stronger connection it has to the Astral Sea. The biggest lakes may even house demiplanes of their own. Lukomorie is a land of magic and superstition, where every peasant respects and placates the supernatural. Governments are abstract and only exist through force of arms; there are no nations as such. Gold is the currency of choice, but barter is in full swing as well, since most lower classes rarely see gold coin unless they resort to banditry or adventuring. Arcane magic has not existed in the world ever since Kitezh city was shunted to the layer of Nav, and no gods entice worshippers with power. All magic comes from within the individual, either through a deep and personal connection with the spirits of the world, solemn contemplation or a more personal deal brokered with one of the many lesser supernatural beings that inhabit the vast forests and mountain ranges of Lukomorie. The nature of good and evil is less pronounced, as the spirits that compose the land are mostly neutral and understand the need for balance. The conflict between law and chaos is more significant: Law is the side of the natural world order, the spirits and gods, the planar layer of Prav, supernatural beings, Incarnum, Binding, Shadowcasting and Truenaming, and Chaos is the side of civilization, humanoids, the planar layer of Nav, and powers that come from within: Psionics and Martial Adepts. Chaotic Good characters may work to fight the necessities of evil in the function of the world, and Chaotic Evil characters may want to disrupt the natural order for short-term personal gain, but they all disregard or actively subvert the work of spirits. Lawful characters tend to defend the natural order, and Good and Evil characters grudgingly admit that the other's side is a necessary part of existence, even if they don't like it. Lawful beings may be loathe to act against the decree of nature, for example by using ice powers in the summer or raising the dead. ===Geography=== http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a335/PresidentPSkillz/map-3.png ====Cosmology==== The cosmology of Lukomorie is divided into three layers - Nav, Yav and Prav. Travel within a layer is accomplished normally, but travel between them requires passage through specific demiplanes. =====Nav===== Nav is the source of all that is unreal, whether imagined or simply otherworldly. Nav encompasses the city-plane of Kitezh, the Plane of Shadow and demiplanes created with Genesis. Nav may only be reached from Yav through the demiplane Lysa Hora. =====Yav===== Yav is the foundation of all things real and tangible. Yav encompasses the plane of Lukomorie, the demiplanes of Buyan, Kalinov and Lysa Hora, and the Ethereal Plane. The Astral Sea is also part of Yav. =====Prav===== Prav is the residence of spirits and gods. Prav contains the planes of Viriy and Peklo, and the Elemental Planes (Fire, Water, Earth, Air). Prav may only be reached from Yav through the demiplane Kalinov. ====Nominal Locations==== =====The Seven Cities===== The Seven Cities are seven large human settlements in the continental north-east of Lukomorie: Saltan, Dairog, Bereg to the north, Oblin, Kresh, Adzgi and Arnaut to the south. With the exception of Arnaut, each city is ruled by a prince, and is paid fealty to by the various villages which surround it. The cities are as often at war with one another as they are at peace, though Saltan, Oblin and Dairog fight just as often with the rogue island nation of Ruslan as they do with one another. =====Arnaut===== Arnaut is a human town set on Lake Svetloyar, and serves as a trading centre between the island city of Oblin to the north, Kresh to the south and Adzgi to the west. It is sometimes called the Seventh City, as it was built after the three Southern and three Northern cities (Saltan, Dairog and Bereg). This, of course, does not account for the settlement of Ruslan, nor the far-removed Roegen or the pirate settlement of Stotona; the Seven consider themselves the only real human civilization. Anything that can be found in human lands is likely to be found at Arnaut, and many "imports" are actually procured right on the spot. The goods of steppe nomads make their way here through Kresh or directly, and tribesmen often make use of the city's taverns when they pass by. Arnaut arose where merchants from Oblon would need to land and offload their goods, and caravans from Adzgi would need to load them. It was first a port city before the traders realized they could sell their goods there instead of lugging them all the way, and the resultant bazaar attracted the caravans from Kresh that would otherwise simply travel north to Oblon. Since the land was never claimed by anyone originally, Arnaut has no laws as such, aside from an unspoken agreement of nonaggression within it. Since many merchants arrive there with a retinue of mercenaries, very few dare to try anything. =====Mount Alatyr===== Mount Alatyr in the southern mountain range is said to be the stone that was cast from Prav by the gods and gave rise to the earth. It is believed to be the centre of the plane (though, as all planes are infinite, this holds little actual significance). The mountain is perpetually covered in snow, and the rivers that run from it are considered to have healing properties. Rumour has it that within the mountain, fantastical beasts lie encased in stone, some kind and others malevolent. Other myths say that at the top of the mountain lives a gigantic serpent, and any who can best it may ask anything of the creature. =====Kitezh Sea===== Legend has it that a powerful nation of mages, almost exclusively non-human, once inhabited the lowland region that once existed where the Kitezh Sea now lies, empty of forests and full of waters that gave the wizards their power. It is debated whether or not it was war against the spirits of the mountains and forests, or intra-national conflict that brought on the cataclysm, but for whatever reason, the waters that the kingdom had come to rely on rose up to swallow it. In a final gesture of defiance, the wizards used up the last of their power to rip Kitezh, the capital city, out of Lukomorie, and deposit it in its entirety on the planar layer of Nav. Persons in various stages of inebriation have claimed to see the ghostly outlines of Kitezh float on the surfaces of lakes, with shadowy figures moving about in its streets. Some say that powerful artifacts still wash up on the seashore, while others insist that all the items of note were taken along when the city was shifted. =====Lake Rogoda===== Lake Rogoda's waters are fed by runoff from the two major mountain ranges, making it a major focus of magical power. Many humans who thought they could penetrate the forests surrounding the lake have set out to find it, but few were heard from ever again. =====Buyan (demiplane)===== Buyan is an island demiplane hidden in the Astral Sea. By some accounts, it is home to an enormous tree, whose branches touch Prav and whose roots reach Nav. A great deal of treasure is rumoured to be buried here as well, as well as the last remaining archive of Kitezh. The path to the demiplane is fraught with many perils, and few know everything needed to reach it. Some say that Buyan serves as a neutral ground for dealings between Prav and Nav. =====Lysa Hora (demiplane)===== Lysa Hora is the link between the planar layers of Nav and Yav, a bare mound of dirt jutting out of the sea. Since one must pass through here to travel between the two layers, it is a common meeting place for powerful magicians, and there is an unspoken agreement of nonaggression between those who would pass here. =====Kalinov (demiplane)===== Kalinov links the planar layers of Yav and Prav. It takes the form of an enormous bridge of aged wood, the far end always shrouded in mist unless one walks its length. The souls of the dead pass through here on their way to the afterlife, and any wishing to either pass beyond the veil or bring someone back must contend with the legendary beast that guards this passage. As any spirit, the creature may be placated, though knowing how is another matter, and it is well-known that the creature is much stricter on the souls of heroes than it is on peasants and their ilk. ===Cultures=== Humans are not the dominant race, and in fact, far from it. Humans huddle on the stretches of land between forests and plains, and demihumans create settlements near the edges of forests and at the feet of mountains. Large human settlements appear almost exclusively on hills, though any river is going to be host to a series of villages. Nomadic tribes that traverse the steppes are made up of any humanoid races, and even some monstrous humanoids emerge from the forests or mountains to take up that life. As a rule, however, most "exotic" races rarely make contact with humanity, keeping to the mountains and deep forests. There is no problem of communication should one choose to leave their home, however: Common is derived from True Speech; it is merely the most common mis-pronunciations. All scholars have at least a rudimentary knowledge of Truespeak because of this. Very few people travel beyond the safety of a village or town. Those that travel most often, merchants and vagabonds, stick to human-inhabited settlements. Others that are often on the move are soldiers, though their contact with local populations is usually made exclusively with a sword, at the behest of warlike princes. Standing armies are uncommon, and when one prince isn't busy fighting another, many soldiers take to the trade caravans, either to escort or to rob. Only an elite Guard of no more than a dozen or two is kept regularly, and the most well-to-do princes generally patron a renowned hero or three. "Proper" adventurers are either warriors wishing to try their might against mythical creatures (those that plague villages and caravans or are known to have lots of treasure) or scholars wishing to study, map and explore. Either way, most are financed by princes, either hired for the job or rewarded for doing it regardless. ====Worship==== Most Lawful people venerate Dryads, Nymphs, Treants and nonspecific spirits of nature and animals, as well as spirits of household objects, activities and even ancestral spirits (Chaotic creatures rarely worship, but revere Volos if they do). Organized worship is relegated largely to large congregations of worshippers that erect altars to deities. The chief deities are held to be Perkunas, the god of war and the sky; Volos, the god of wanderers and magic; Leliya, the goddess of nature and spring; and Marzhanna, the goddess of agriculture and death. Altars of Perkunas are found on hill-tops, altars of Volos are constructed in the lowlands, altars of Leliya are usually built in forest clearings and altars of Marzhanna are placed in wheat-fields. The god Stribog is held to be the grandfather of the gods, but he is not given mortal worship and has no portfolio in Yav. Deities are directly tied to their portfolios, and are more like forces of nature than physical beings. They do not grant spells to their worshippers, nor do they intervene on mortals' behalf; gods are worshipped to honour them for maintaining the world. The dead are sent on their way depending on how they had lived: powerful warriors are interred in tomb-hills with their weapons, armour and horse so that their spirit may guard their homeland, peasants are burned and their ashes scattered over fields so they may feed their kin in death as well as life, and the bodies of those who live near water are returned to the waves.

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