Fantasy ~Magicborne: Map and Further Lore~

[SkyGinge]

~Magicborne~
Main RP Thread ~ Magic System ~ Map and Further Lore ~ Out of Character ~ Character Application ~ Rules and Chapters
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Map and Key Locations
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Credit goes to Semblance via Inkarnate for the map design!

Above is a map of the world of Magicborne. Centuries of magic corruption has caused for a chaotic span of different ecosystems and landscape all coexisting next to each-other, especially around highly populated areas. The black fog across the border indicates the chaotic no-man's land where the war is being fought - the intensity of magic from this war and previous generations has lead to the landscape being completely haphazard, with floating islands, multiple changes of gravity, insane areas of fortune swings and also sorts of unsavoury magical phenomenon. Around the edges of the map is the end of the world, a mysterious mirror-like magic aura which eats away whatever touches it. It is very slowly but surely creeping inwards at the pace of about a meter per year. The general aesthetic of Nortalis resembles late-medieval/Renaissance Europe, whilst Meridania is like the near-east of the same period. Also, ignore the dragons. Here be not dragons.

Below is a tab containing the RP's key locations!​

• Great Salarch City
• Darumir
• Bordissa
• Calemont
• Nachpiras Barracks
• Aenag Vale

• 
  The capital city of Nortalis, located in the south by the great lake Salarch. The city is famous for a number of reasons, not least for its intricate waterway system, wherein a number of rivers run down the center of every major road, on which small ferries carry cargo, produce and people across the city. Apart from being the major commerce hub of the nation, it is also notable for its incredible indoor market building (as seen above, with the river waterway at its widest) and for the Sanctum of the Assembly, the renowned Salarch University and Castle Salarch, home of the Nortalian royalty.
• 
  The capital city of Meridania, located at the south. The area was once a thriving forest on the edge of a mountain but centuries of magic has reduced it to a desert wasteland. Known as a hive of scum and villainy to Nortalian people, though in actuality the citizens employ much ingenuity simply to survive the harshities of the climate and thrive. Includes a great temple on the top of the mountain.
• 
  Located in the rural north of Nortalis, Bordissa is a surprisingly regular town bordering a deep forest. This little village is remarkably ordinary, and includes all the industry and occupation one might expect of it: farmers, miners, hunters, craftsmen, protectors and the like. It also has a local baron, whose family lives in a small castle atop a hill. A cozy, close-knit community, and the home and birthplace of our characters.
• 
  In the mountainous depths of eastern Nortalis, there is a town on the side of a mountain. As in, quite literally on the side; magic has altered the gravity in the area, and the town sits on what would otherwise be a sheet cliff overhanging a deep chasm. The area has recently been plagued by bandits.
• 
  The main soldier's camp of the Meridanian army, several miles west from the chaos of the border. Located within the natural trenches of a desert chasm, this camp is the hub of the army's strategic planning and medical provision, and the first place a new Meridian soldier might arrive before heading into battle.
• 
  Not much is known about the Aenag Valley, a mountainous tundra in the deep north-east of Nortalis. It is a heavily traditional area full of ancient ritual and myth. And there's supposed to be a peculiar pyramid-like structure deep within the mountains...

State Religion

The current epoch is viewed as an age of enlightenment. Tradition has long upheld the notion of the First Magician and the origin of magic previously described. Religion asks the question of how the soul, the proven seat of magic, might eventually transcend this corrupted world to be reunited with the First Magician in the heavenly realm of Solaija.

The Nortalian State religion, who perpetuates and upholds these notions, is called The Assembly of the First Magician, with their adherents called Assemblants. Whatever its original intentions all those centuries ago, the Assembly now stands more as a political power than anything else, and is rife with influence and corruption. Assembly buildings are present in every town, and it is required for every citizen to attend once a week. Their basic argument is that magic brings impurity when done incorrectly, which is the natural manner of human magic - thus they provide a spellbook called The First Spellbook which contains a set of historical accounts, exhortations prizing moral deeds and provides a set of regulated incantations for use in magic. Additionally, the assembly operates a system of paid-for seers, who assess the state of someone’s soul (through both confession and magic) and, if it is found to be tainted, provide a further set of incantations to purify the self. Unknown to the public, this process of seers is a complete sham established centuries after the original Assembly was formed. Using the language of family, their leaders are called Uncles, and they call each-other cousin. The assembly is currently lead by Archuncle Remus Knave, a politically prevalent figure.

With the influx of universities and other experimental facilities, academics are beginning to rubbish these traditions on the basis that the fragile and turbulent state of the fabric of magic does not imply a benevolent creator but complete and utter chaos. These atheistic views are beginning to seep into the higher classes, coupled with the liberalisation of the state religion, though the lower classes remain largely adherent to the Assembly, nominally or not.

Magic itself is another source of various beliefs; some deep-rural traditions perceive magic itself as a sort of temperamental god, whilst others see magic itself as evil and live a monastic life of abstinence. Other religious minorities still maintain beliefs in pagan gods, sometimes polytheistically though these are incredibly rare. Finally, there’s a few stands of Assemblants, such as the newly formed Istuits, who cling closer to the study of the Spellbook.

Other World Details​

• Each settlement is presided over by a Baron, who lives in a castle - this nobleman oversees their people and ensures they are well protected (in theory). He will then report to the council of the wider county, who will in turn report back to the king in the royal council.
• The relationship between the two nations has never been particularly great, and there has often been war between the two of them. The current war has lasted some twenty five years, beginning in the wake of what has since been known as the Seer Crisis. A newly coronated King Auxis was horrified to find his soul declared tainted at a visit to an Assemblant seer in spite of regularly practicing his incantations. He then lead an almost city-wide inquest which discovered everybody was suffering from the same problem. This lead the king and his senior scholars to conclude that some sort of dark curse must have been placed upon the entire nation, with spies in Meridania reporting the corruption of their current Lekheyr. In order to save his people from this purported curse, the king launched a full bloody military assault on Meridania, which has continued to this day. General propaganda depicts the Meridanians either as uniformally malicious people or as innocent suffers under the regime of a corrupt and evil king. Most people, whilst generally suspicious of them, don't see the world in quite such a black and white way.