History

The world was once normal. Great cities were built. People were more or less peaceful. There were only 6 sentient races that existed: humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, and orcs. Magic was available but limited by those who studied it or was granted it by their god.

Then the cataclysm known as the Cleansing occurred. Zagan was tricked by Malphas into creating a giant wave. It was big enough to engulf the majority of the world. Malphas turned this wave into a wave of disease and death. After the wave subsided, 90% of the population had been killed and all the cities destroyed. Resources were wiped away and the world was left shattered.

In the aftermath, new species arose, hybrids and mutants of the world that once existed. Now, the world was divided into groups searching for resources and hoping to survive. You have the Originals - members of the original 6 races, the Hybrids - humanoids with animalistic ancestry (dragonborn, aarakocra, bugbear, centaur, harengon, kenku, minotaur, lizardfolk, satyr, tabaxi, locathah, grung, tortle, yuan-ti, giff, thri-kreen, owlin, leonin, and Loxodon), the Mutants - sentient monsters and elementals (genasi, changeling, goblin, hobgoblin, firbolg, goliath, kobold, shifter, triton, kalashtar, and vedalken), and the Outsiders - sentient creatures that come from somewhere else (tiefling, aasimar, fairy, gith, shadar-kai, kender, and warforged).

Little known history of life before the Cleansing is readily available. Artifacts are of the time are being discovered, but most of the books and records have been destroyed.

One of the positives of life after the Cleansing is the fact that magic is more prevalent. Magic is now innate in some individuals, a result of latent magic used in the Cleansing.

It is now 1000 years after the Cleansing and the divisions are still seen. While there are some individual outliers, for the most part the 4 groups do not interact outside of tedious treaties and agreements.

While "cities" don’t truly exist in the same way they used to, there are certain locations of note in the world as we know it.

Merrimont - the de facto capital of the Original’s territory. It serves as the largest market and currently houses the largest number of military members, particularly the navy. It is rare to find members of other factions here, but you can find the occasional hybrid or mutant.

Ports - The de facto capital of the Hybrid’s territory. It serves as one of the largest port cities and biggest suppliers of goods to the Hybrids. It’s not uncommon to find one of the Originals here, but few others outside of the hybrids.

Sealand - The de facto capital of the Mutant’s territory. It’s a port city and contains the largest organized criminal syndicate, specializing in slavery and contraband. The crime syndicate doesn’t discriminate based on your faction, so you’ll find a fairly large mix of races in this city.

Veridan - the de facto capital of the Outsider’s territory. Probably the least city-like of all of the "capitals". The city consists of a number of underground tunnels and caves. If you didn’t know it was there, you’d probably never find it.

Freeland - the de facto capital of the Free Lands, This is by far the most diverse city in the world. It is full of people with limited racial judgements, though there is still the occasional stereotype being assumed.

Portway - a small port city in the Free Lands. It is the primary supplier of goods to the region and while small, is busy and seems to never slow down. Here you can find all sorts of exotic items, some ancient, some new, and some completely useless.

The End - The last city located in the Mutant Territory. It’s used to smuggle people to the Free Lands. The government is constantly trying to shut down the operation, but new ones always seem to keep popping up.

The Path - the only way to get through the mountains separating the Hybrid’s Territory and the Original’s Territory. It’s a rough city built into the mountains. It has a mix of hybrids and originals, though the hybrids remain in control.

Fishfood - a small port in the Hybrid’s Territory. Is used for fishing, but there is an underground fighting arena that really provides most of the economic benefits to the city. From above, it seems like a quiet town, but down below it is raucous and dangerous.

Harwick - a major port for the mainland of the Original’s Territory. It is tightly controlled and one of the hardest cities for non-Originals to live in.

The Drop - A city-like area built into the bottom of an enormous crate where an ancient city once was located. The Drop is known for its archeology and advanced tech that no one has figured out how to successfully use. They are trying to fuse this ancient technology with modern magic but are only having limited success.

Lonely Island - this island is difficult to enter or exit. It has high bluffs that first timers have to climb to enter the island. Once you arrive, very few leave. The contents and populace of the island are a mystery and only conjecture is known.

Haven - the harshest city to live in, weather wise. It is either the first city before the great desert or the last, depending on where you’re traveling. It’s welcoming enough, people-wise, but doesn’t have much to offer except a bed and a little water.

Sea Way Port - this port city is the most removed from the judgment of most of the Originals and as such is the most diverse city in the Original’s Territory. It’s used as a sanctuary city for refugees, but is still subject to government raids every now and then.