World-Building Thread

My next post is going to be a somewhat big info-dump. It will be the beginning of a World Almanac which will be updated as we explore the world and populate it with NPC's.

As I mentioned before, this world was built collaboratively with my old players in a short-lived Dungeon World game. For this game I've stripped it down to the framework, as it were, and we can build from here.

The PHULES
(Philanthropic Heroes Union Local Eighty-Six)
• Baracus, half-orc barbarian monk (lenpelletier)
• Ybus Embershard, halfling warlock (CancerMan)
• Erden Crashboom, gnome wizard (Naatkinson)
• Rydler Cogma, human rogue/cleric (HypCo)
• Urban Septime, human paladin (DMJ)

People
• Beraster Penzelun: King of Cysegr
• Albus Septime: Urban's father (deceased)
• Bachusan: a Heliosan priest, Urban's mentor (deceased)
• Avilius: crooked High Priest of the Church of Helios
• Ellethwen Valadhiel: Rydler's long lost love
• Samir the Hermit: lives on a ridge past Aetolos Rise south of Cadarnle. Enjoys weaving silks, smoking sticky stinky weed, and long walks by the beach.
• Aditya: Pradeshi spice merchant.
• Aishwarya: Aditya's cousin.
• Sardo Numspa: a vile demon who attempted to abscond with the Golden Child.
• The Golden Child: a child deified by the Skandrana Varhu sect; the earthly avatar of Varhu.
• Deshna, Rasya, Bazilah, Sunitha: Collectively referred to as The Aunties. Formidable Pradeshi merchant women. Sunitha is matriarch of Aditya's household.
• Valrakas Copperhorn: Minotaur captain of the Kestrel.
• Harrison, Rufio, Hob: crew of the Kestrel.
• Chalmun: proprietor of Ye Scum and Villainy Tavern
• Archelaus: a satyr, owner of The Tumescent Faun, a high-class brothel in Pradesh.
• Satsuki & Jorgus: respectively mama-san and doorman at The Tumescent Faun.
• Sashvar: Chief priest at Skandrana Varhu Temple in Pradesh.
• Gaurav: former member of the Thousand Swords, retired after taking an arrow in the knee. Now a monk at Skandrana Varhu temple.
• Lio, Rafiel, Myche, Don-yi: turtle-men monks of the order Turturibus Mactabilis Noctare Therianthropus.
• Wormtail & Wormtongue: wererat cultists.
• Shudraka: rat cult high priest.
• Makisig: tikbalang warrior.
• Apo Mai'ngor: tikbalang chieftain in Bimar.
• Makabo: tikbalang warband leader, son of the chieftain.
• Apo Tagipusuon: Tikbalang babaylan (medicine-woman).
• Buluyagon: also called "Buloy," a tikbalang warrior who befriended the PHULES. Died in the battle against the cult of Kaliya-te.
• Grizel: Commander of the king's bodyguard in Cysegr.

Places• The Kingdom of Cysegr: The land of Cysegr has been described as "the Titans' nursery." It is hilly rather than mountainous. While most parts of the Euraid river valley are thickly and wildly forested, the major settlements and fortifications along the river necessarily thinned those portions. But, all over Cysegr are scattered huge rock formations, the Titan's toys, oddly angled and variably colored.

Cysegr was called the Titan's Nursery because it was believed to be the birthplace and playground of Hyperion's children (Helios, Selene, and Eos). Cysegrians believed the blood of the Titans ran in their veins, and would have challenged the old gods of Olympia if they could. But having not seen nor felt any divine presence for hundreds of years, they had to content themselves with conquering neighbouring lands, and ever expanding their borders. They lived for war, but were not interested in rule, so as long as Cysgerian banners flew over the conquered towns and taxes came in on time to fund the next war.

The Cysgerians conquered lands and ruled badly until about 150 years before Beraster's reign, when his ancestor wrested power from the mad King Drewgi and ushered in a golden age for the arts. Even as conditions improved for most of the conquered in Cysegr, there remained families who held to the Titanic way and plotted to overthrow Beraster's kin. Some uprisings had been bloody, but Beraster's blood held the throne still, and a somewhat fragile peace prevails.

• Cadarnle: The capital of Cysegr. The name means "stronghold" in old Cysegrian.

• The River Euraid: The River Euraid rises from tributaries in the Q'sulth range, flowing southwest through the elongated "lake" of Syrthio Eos, continues southwest, and empties into the sea at the bay of Gyflym Llif. The river snakes around a high granite cliff face named Fynyyd Pigiad directly east of the bay so that it forms a wide bend around this feature. The top of this hill is dominated by Fun Bedair ("4 maidens") a complex of 3 lighthouses and fortification with command over the entire bay, delta, and river bend. The town of Porth Llif grew around this fort. On the southern bank of Euraid is the lesser town of Q'lac'tsh. Huge waterways for fresh water were constructed by King Beraster’s late father near the end of his reign serving both Port Llif and Q’lac’tsh. These have been expanded and improved upon by the current King Beraster, the construction of which is still ongoing.

• Fynyyd Pigiad: A high granite cliff face east of the bay of Gyflym Llif. The top of this hill is dominated by Fun Bedair ("4 maidens") a complex of 3 lighthouses and fortification with command over the entire bay, delta, and river bend. The town of Porth Llif grew around this fort. Historians believe that Fun Bedair had a fourth "lighthouse", and that these four three structures are the most ancient of all manmade features in the area. The fortifications have mostly fallen into disrepair, and only two of the lighthouses are manned, since Cysegr has mostly settled into a more peaceful footing, as compared to its past. A significant amount of trade still passes through the area, with both banks of the river engaged in a rivalry of sorts, each trying to out-pace the other in terms of commercial goods and luxuries.

• Port Llif: Major port town controlling the bay of Gyflym Llif. Historians have agreed that the port of Llif was constructed much later than the lighthouses and fort at Fun Bedair. This improvement was likely built at the time Cysegrians had a need for merchant ships, and further improved when a war fleet was required.

The bay is particularly well suited for the purpose of providing anchorage, and is naturally deep, while Fun Bedair has undoubtedly been used as a lookout point.

The town of Llif had offered lodging for travellers and a huge market. When Cysegrians grew an appetite for overseas conquest, the town developed into a shipbuilding centre and garrison. Nearby forests were sacrificed for its territorial ambitions, and created the wide expanse of tundra surrounding what was now called Porth Llif or Llif Port.

A fleet of Cysegr warships is stationed in the southeastern ports, and a significant amount of military equipment is stored in its arsenal. Recruitment to the naval militia has waned in recent decades, with young sailors opting to engage in more lucrative pursuits.

• Q'lac'tsh: Once a slave settlement was founded on the south bank of the Euraid during Cysegr's aggresive period, it grew into the current town after the slaves had been "resocialized". The etymology of the name "Q’lac’tsh" is a matter of some debate by experts, as it bears little resemblance to currently known languages. A number of wags have theorised this name comes from the noise most of the Cysegrian knights and nobility from Porth Llif would utter when forced to visit the settlement.

• Q'sulth Mountain Range: A mountain range that extends north-south across the width of the Cysegr peninsula.

• The Old Pass: A mountain pass between Cysegr and Pradesh through the Q'sulth; no longer used because of danger posed by mountain tribes, and the Bandar Marshlands.

• Pradesh: The Jewel of the West. A nation northwest of Cysegr. Once its greatest rival, now a vassal state.• Bandar Marshlands: A vast salt marsh that stretches from the Bay of Jammun to the plains just west of the Q'sulth.

• Avruna: an ancient city which once stood where the city of Pradesh now stands

• Bimar: a small nation west of Pradesh. Little is known about the small nation of Bimar (if it can even be called a nation) huddled on the western slopes of the northeastern arm of the Q'sulth mountain range, dismissed by most as an untamed land inhabited by savages. Cysegr's claim to that land came with its subjugation of Pradesh, but it's doubtful whether the Bimari understand or recognize either of those two nations as having dominion over them. (loosely modeled after Southeast Asia)

• Qing'lai: A nation to the East. (loosely modeled after Ancient China)

• Yatpun: A nation to the East. (loosely modeled after Feudal Japan)

• Camaxacal: A nation across the strait to the West. (loosely modeled after Meso-America)

• Kaspeatho: A rich nation to the far West inhabited by fair-skinned, hirsute brutes. (loosely modeled after the Iberian peninsula)

• Kortella: A nation to the far West famous for its wine and cheeses, delicious flatbreads, emphatic gestures, and nimble plumbers. (loosely modeled after Roman Italy)

• Mykenai: A nation to the far West. (loosely modeled after Ancient Greece)

• Hiptos: A nation to the Far West East. (loosely modeled after Ancient Egypt)

• Aksum: A nation to the Far East, beyond Hiptos. (loosely modeled after Nubia)

Gods
• Heren: the Cysegrian god of fire.
• Helios: the Sun Titan, Lord of the Sky.
• Gajenndra: four-armed, elephant-headed chief god of the Pradeshi.
• Skandrana (Pradeshi god of war) and Varhu (Pradeshi goddess of protection) who are both one and the same deity
• Aplu: Avrunan rat god of pestilence
• Sebek-Ra, crocodilian god of fear in Hiptos.
• Kuntur, condor god of pain in Camaxacal.
• Kaliya-te, goat-headed death god worshipped in Bimar.


Factions/Organizations
• Tullus House: a merchant company quite notorious for its vast reach managing ground and waterway transportation throughout Cysegr and beyond. In truth, Tullus House has long been a racketeering operation.
• Stone Roses: an order of Cysegrian knights, basically the military police.
• The Thousand Swords: Originally composed of members of a Pradeshi army that fought campaigns in Mykenai in the Far West, the Thousand Swords have guarded Pradesh for hundreds of years. Their loyalty and ferocity are legendary, and their weapons are of the finest make.
• Church of Helios
• Skandrana Varhu sect
• Turturibus Mactabilis Noctare Therianthropus: an order of turtle-men monks closely allied with the Skandrana Varhu temple, who live in the sewers of Pradesh, sworn to safeguard the city.

I wish my old players had made up their own Titans rather than using the ones from Greek mythology but this was what we ended up with. I'll let you decide if you want to rename them or not. In truth, it's not that important at this point.

I didn't draw those beautiful maps. I found them on the internet, tweaked them in Photoshop, and put in my own place names. I wish I knew the name of the original artist!

Cysegr:
I think I failed to specify which nations were subjugated by Cysegr and are now vassal-states. Those are Pradesh and Bimar, Camaxacal, and parts of Qing'lai.

Cysegrian place names are Welsh (picked arbitrarily) and the intended flavor is your generic Tolkienesque fantasy land, but as far as personality think historical Greece-Rome but in reverse: Old Cysegr went and conquered lands, while New Cysegr is experiencing a renaissance of philosophy and the arts. There are factions in Cysegr that lament this fact and would like to see a return to the old ways, and some have gone so far as lead bloody coups to remove King Beraster from power. You might want to think about where each of your characters stand on this.

Religions:
I mentioned that I would like to build original pantheons rather than adopt real-world ones (or versions thereof) but I think I'm having a change of heart. Which pantheons will we adopt, you ask? All of them. In Cysegr, Titans and Olympians as the Old Gods, and Faerunian gods as the new "enlightened" religion. Heren in place of Hephaestus/Vulcan because I don't want to have to edit the map again to rename Heren's Maw. Norse gods for the Northlands. I'm keeping Gajenndra (basically an analog of Ganesha from Hindu mythology) and we can build that nation's pantheon together.

Port Llif:
This is your base of operations. Or nearby and near-lawless Q'lac'tsh if you prefer. Opportunities are better in Llif, but so are the chances of being spotted by local law enforcement as well as by Stone Roses (an order of Cysegrian knights, basically the military police).

I just remembered that I totally ripped off the name Kortella from J's Dark Thrones world hahaha!

Kortella is honored to be ripped, Jabes.
They also just expanded their flatbed recipes, and their aqueduct systems just improved with the background boost of expert plumbers.

Yup, that map of Pradesh is totally a map of Pitax that I edited. Still needs some work, but it's enough to start with.