A
Asuras
Guest
Original poster
Participants: @Asuras & @ERode
Step by step, the King rose upon Ivory
Until the Heavens stood within
Slice by slice, He cleaved apart the Stars
Until the Heavens stood without
One by one, the Stars fell down
Dashed upon the Wretched
One by one, the Stars rose up
Remade upon the Sacred
Now divine only in name, but a few dregs of the gods have survived their descent upon the world, and in overwhelming fear have hidden away their spirits. Within the hearts of mortal women, goddesses of all walks rest and tend to their wounds, hopeful that their new surrogates will save them from the annihilation they escaped once before. A kingdom marches upon these lingering heavenly souls, sending knights clad in death across the greatest mountains and lowest valleys. By the will of their ancestral king, they would have the last remnants of heaven executed.
These innocent young women must save themselves and their patrons from the machinations of the kingdom, in a world where their allies' power dwindles and that of the enemy grows stronger each passing day. All hope without seems lost, and so they cherish that which remains within.
Cold, unyielding, austere, there was once beauty in its savagery
Debased, corrupt, perverse, there is now only hunger beneath its fangs
The world of Invocatem takes place upon a large continent spanning several nations big and small. Though your characters may hail from vastly different sections, you have all come to meet under dire circumstances.
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The hub of the world, Mecrundyr is a home to peoples from all over the continent, presided over by the Oristanian Federation. The republics of Mecrundyr enjoy peaceful coexistence, even as Baelwill threatens to dismantle it. Marked by sparse deciduous forests, wide rivers, and rolling hills, it is a scenic locale enjoying plenty. Few here struggle to survive, with continuous trade and endless lands with which to farm.
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"Hub of the hub of the world", Lug Na Gorn is a sprawling metropolis welcoming traders returning from all corners of the world. The Oristanian Federation hosts its governing bodies here, conversing in diplomatic halls to continue their long-held peace amongst one another, and to promote the free-loving ideals of the region.
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Located to the south of the region and stretching across much of the southern coast, the Oristanian Forest is a thick environment that the Witches of Oristania call home. These woods yet retain a considerable amount of magic, rumored to be the result of the witches' patron deity surviving the fall and hiding within. Few, other than the witches themselves, traverse these woods, for fear of the ancient entities which yet live on.
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To the east of the Oristanian Forests lies an insurmountable place of death and horror. A direct result of the accursed experimentation of brazen witches, the Gorewood is a region dominated by intermingling curses so pervasive and numerous that they have coagulated into an eldritch mass of lethality that none may pass. Merely standing nearby the strict edges of the Gorewood may drive one insane, as the sounds of chittering evils and moaning beasts drowns all other sounds out.
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The coldest region of the world is home to the Verdigrisian Kingdom, an offshoot of the once whole Baelwill Kingdom. Verdigrisians call their Baelwill counterparts 'brothers', for their close cultural and historical ties, though the similarity stops there. Far more amicable in their endeavors, Verdigris, like Mecrundyr, enjoys peace in their chilly abodes. Knights of glimmering color protect these realms and struggle to adopt the power of Reverence as their brothers had already achieved.
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Highest peak of the world, Mount Loreletonne is visible from the northern coasts of Baelwill to the Feeding River of Mecrundyr. Only legends have reached its summit, as others struggle to even make their way to its base, hidden deep in the frigid mountains of northern Verdigris.
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Dominating the eastern half of the continent is a set of empires of such massive size that debates are frequently held over how the borders should be maintained. Every biome is featured within Ju Ren Kyo, from cold northern tundra to the deserts upon the south.
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Dividing Mecrundyr from Ju Ren Kyo is the largest mountain range of the world. Though agreeable in weather, its highest peaks nevertheless see snow year round, and while traversed easily compared to the ranges of Verdigris, it is home to the most awesome beasts the world has ever known. It is dangerous not for its difficult of travel, but for its terrifying fauna.
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The Dull Stretch is a grassland steppe, serving as the bridge between Mecrundyr and Ju Ren Kyo. Inhospitable, it serves sedentary lifestyles poorly, but enjoys a near-perfect ease of travel. The tribes here offer their services as transporters, delivering goods across the regions with efficiency seen nowhere else.
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"The Foot of God", as it is known, is the imperial city of the Daten Dynasty. Grandiose in its beauty and design, the palace sits upon a massive stone structure overlooking the lake, which locals believe to be the resting place of a great deity. Surrounded by light forestry, it receives much of its goods from outside the area, and from across the lake.
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To the south of Ju Ren Kyo lies the arid and desert region of Rokon. Presided over by the Midday Queen of Rokon, this region is known for its incredible scholarly works and wealth, attained by the advanced proficiency of citizen merchants. Though desolate in much of the area, natives of Rokon tame and dominate an otherwise hostile environment without batting an eye.
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In the northeastern corner of Ju Ren Kyo lies an enigmatic forest that many have attempted to traverse, only to fail. It is known that the fox-eared Tanna people originate from Dokoshi, but their homes and cities remain undetected to this day. None save the Tanna know of their culture and whereabouts.
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Home to the largest population of light elves in the world, the elven homeland of Alkrisia is one of almost perpetual rainfall, leaving their lands a marshy wetland fit for unfathomable amounts of rice farming. Only the respite of the elevated regions near their northern mountains see more well-established cities. Closely tied with the Oristanian Federation, Alkrisia currently considers joining the Federation itself. A sizeable portion of their population actively travels between the two regions frequently, exchanging cultural ideas and goods.
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Home to the dark elves which immigrated to the isle thousands of years ago, Comlenes is a tropical island nation covered primarily in lush swamps and a rainforest to the north. Once strangers to the island, they have since proliferated even as the region proves one of the most wild. Save Fangshaven, no other region hosts as many terrible beasts as Comlenes. Taking on the challenge in stride, the dark elves of Comlenes prove themselves to be formidable hunters matched by few else.
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The nemesis of the world, Baelwill is a kingdom of knights who seek only glory and feats of strength. At the beginning of civilization, the peoples of Baelwill were prideful and determined. Prior to their fall from grace, Baelwill, too, possessed great magics, until their arrogance became a pitiful shadow of their once great kingdom. The gods abandoned them for their arrogance, and left them to squabble over a broken nation filled with strife and despair... all while the rest of the world enjoyed bounty and strength through their patron deities.
With time, Baelwill gathered itself and returned to power, drawing strength from the power of Reverence and their Tower of Lords. Years ago, with a fateful strike, a nameless knight bound to the otherworldly interior of the tower walked upon its peak and cleaved the gods in their heaven, leaving but a few to escape into the bodies of mortals. Now, they seek to finish the job, and herald an era of a Baelwill-dominated world.
Whether Miracle or Malady, Ancestral or Divine,
An Offering must be made, A Prayer must be said.
In the world Invocatem takes place within, the concept of magic hinges upon the boons that the gods have provided to mortals since the beginnings of civilization. It is a general term referring to feats not normally possible for mortals and was, for a time, a tool utilized to shape the very planet. Great feats of arcane ability were possible, as the first humans lifted mountains from the dirt and nurtured endless forests to life. Today, this sort of magic has been lost. With the death of the vast majority of the gods at the hand of a uniquely powerful entity, the boons that aided men have begun to flicker away into the darkness. Few remain who could truly be called "Great Mages", leaving the common man to dispense mere shadows of their former ability.
In the wake of divine genocide, a different school of supernatural prowess reigns supreme. Created by the kingdom of Baelwill years ago, 'Reverence' is an alternative to magic that relies upon the channeling of ancestral spirits and deeds, manifesting the wills of their ancient heroes into feats that rival Great Mages. Understood and utilized by Baelwill alone, their forces prove an insurmountable force for the wounded nations elsewhere.
The boons of the gods, now merely an ethereal presence faintly sensed by the more magically attuned, granted mortals the ability to will things to pass, emulative of the divine patron which aided them. Elemental spells, for example, could be invoked by devoting oneself to the gods of the elements, or by learning the true names of the boons themselves.
For the young women who have been graced by the direct touch of surviving goddesses, magic retains some of its olden notoriety, though is significantly weaker than the earliest kinds. Though their peers may struggle to draw forth a bolt of flame, the divinely inspired may launch a torrent of fire not seen in years. Further still they may invoke the power of their patron, taking on the qualities of the goddess within temporarily. Shunted upon your mortal body, it is almost too much to bear initially, but the power it grants is far too valuable to forego.
Taking upon the platonic image of the goddess, it becomes clear to those around you that you have the spirit of a divine entity within and now, without. However, the transformation is blatantly antithetical to the normal state of mortals, and as such is no doubt visible to the mystic eyes of those who search for the divine... Careful consideration must be made when using the transformative state.
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