Kerios

Terra

Terran’Dolm

One of three of the original human kingdoms, the surface of Terran’dolm is lush and vibrant, flourishing even more now after the Raising. Since the cities of Inctis, Enril, and Lumna are stuck in the sky, humans can’t alter the land further. Nature has reclaimed most towns and cities, but the strange energy that washed over Terra during the Raising also has changed the wildlife— and the people— who were stuck below. While the cities grow and evolve into technological marvels overflowing with people, the survivors in the new pseudo-wasteland below mutate and adapt to their new lives.

Northwaste

True to its name, Northwaste is a vast collection of snow-covered peaks, ancient taiga, and frigid tundra. Known as the continent of exiles, the people here have always been hardy folk. Still, the harsh winds and blizzards didn’t stop old powers vying for control— exiled warlords, shunned scholars, and renegades of all sorts fought for rich ore deposits. Still, evils from before the Raising still linger, and the descendants of the exiled have not forgotten their hatred. Here lie the remains of ancient armies of dead that refuse to decay fully, and roaming abominations of iron and flesh that collect the dead and hunt the living. Even if some of them are not human any longer, they’ll reclaim what their forefathers lost.

Surbrim

From lush jungle to rolling mounds of snow to jagged peaks, Surbrim is a land barely tamed. One of three original human kingdoms, Surbrim became split over time to tribes and clans constantly warring with each other while rejecting the unity offered by Terran’dolm to the north. Each group offered its own culture, it’s own way of worship, and its own form of innovation. However, during the Raising, the different tribes each fell, as they were too concerned with war to realize the catastrophe around them as the lands mutated. Now, few remain, and Surbrim is even more wild than before, rich in resources… and secrets.

Varbrim

The Varbrim Desert has always been a land of shifting sands and little life. There is evidence life once lived in great prosperity there, despite the scorching sun. Beneath the dunes lies ancient temples and structures from long before the Raising, even before the other civilizations, depicting gigantic spiders and mushroom forests on exquisite murals engraved into pitch black stone. The Raising has left Varbrim isolated, more so than before even. Whatever was there before, surely it’s long gone now?

Mirilth

Remote, unexplored, and shrouded in mystery, little is known of the land of Mirilth. Devastating storms and strong currents make it nigh impossible to reach, even before the Raising shook society to its core. In addition, half of the island is rigid, rocky peaks. The marshes are rumored to hold secrets, however none who ever ventured to them have returned. Despite this, researchers and explorers have caught strange spores on the winds, and they could have come from nowhere else.

The Dreamscape

Lithul

Lithul is rumored to be where the Fae Goddess Lith touched down when she first found Kerios. Lithul is vibrant and full of life in every corner of the land. Originally, the land belonged to the Elves, but after their war with the dragons and subsequent near-extinction much of the land has been claimed by humans, many of whom had been escaping a growing desert in the kingdom of Austrum to the south. Few major cities dot the landscape, despite the fertile soil, most preferring to remain near rivers and other sources of water. Still, ancient beings lurk in the trees, waiting for the right time to act.

Shil’vikas

The mountains of Shil’vikas hold many secrets, fiercely guarded by the reclusive Dragonkin. Given that the Dragonkin’s existence is tied to wars of the past, they tend to be wary of outsiders at the least, not wanting to lose their entire species to violence. Their culture flourishes with color, stories, and nigh legendary celebrations. The young among them seek adventure, and eagerly await stories from outsiders, who come wanting the same. Ores and hardy game, are rich within the hills and pockets of forest, and the Flame Isles are a hotspot for both volcanic and magical activity.

Austrum

One of three original human kingdoms, Austrum was the first to fall to the Lord of Skulls— not through conquest, but plague. The survivors fled south, to the plains surrounding Ardenlake— a man-made reservoir— west, across mountains to the West Isles, and north to the forests and fields of Lithul. In their haste, they burned and salted everything that could possibly carry the plague— crops, livestock, and cities alike. Only the ruins of Elestor remain, and only because it was too infected to purge. In the wake of their exodus, desert has spread, leaving much of the land barren and scorched. Only those most resilient to the beating sun remain where the great kingdom once stood.

West Isles

A seafarer’s paradise, the West Isles are a hub of trade and culture, much like Umbrim. However, unlike Umbrim, the West Isles have remained relatively free of corruption, and its denizens want to keep it that way. Unregulated vessels patrol the waters for any unauthorized ships trying to dock at their ports, and Merga— merpeople more akin to eels than fish— happily scavenge the ruins of ships which have sunk from piracy or trespass. The Merga are amicable to humans, as well as most other races— they don’t need the land, they control the waves just fine. However, a cleavage between those originating from the depths and those who live among the shallow reefs is growing, and war seems to loom. Should violence overtake them, there’s no telling if the seas— a small but important barrier to the Rift and its corruption— will give way to the destruction of the lands above.

Umbrim

Umbrim once was Kerios’s center of magical power and knowledge. Now, its islands are full of scattered peoples and is the forefront of the battle against corruption spreading from the Rift. Home to the Inksage Valt, as well as three of the eight Sage Order temple-cities, trade and knowledge flows easily around the region. Despite this, scars from an old war mark the land; the corrupted ruins of the first Valt, now called the Deadvalt, loom amidst strangely greyed, ashy sand. Only time will tell if the Inksages can keep order amidst the rapidly changing world.

Norbrim

Ice and snow coat Norbrim, as well as potent magic. Few places have such pure elemental energy, and fewer still have such clear and wondrous views of the heavens and the glittering stars that decorate them. However, after the Rift opened, the stars briefly went out, and even Kerios’s two moons disappeared, before emerging again, hazy and odd. Now, the land lies dormant, full of glittering illusions among the ice and shadows. The stubborn few who remain report strange beings dancing in the skies and beasts lurking at night. Norbrim has changed, and nobody’s sure how.

Rildor

Closest and most exposed to the Rift within the Dreamscape, Rildor is the ancient home of the dwarven families, many of whom find their home beneath the ground in Cídade Baixo. Their belief in their own ability and the return of their ancestors fuels their drive for strength through resilience and wisdom. They believe themselves to be unshakable. In other corners of Rildor, however, a new race has emerged since the Rift; the Twisted. Curious, naive, and hauntingly abnormal, the Twisted are often treated as brazen anomalies, monsters walking in daylight. But they have strange, intimate knowledge associated with the Dreamscape itself, seemingly from nowhere, and are simply trying to find their way in their new lives. Where did they come from? And why are they here?

The Rift

The Rift is a wound, an open, gaping infection in both reality and Kerios as a planet. After a single lich, known as the Lord of Skulls, nearly took over Kerios with armies of undead, the Inksages were frantic to prevent a war like that from ever happening again. Thus, they searched and scoured the multiverse for something to protect them. They found something, but they were too hasty. The spell ripped through Kerios, tearing it into the Dreamscape and Terra, and cutting the planet off from the rest of the multiverse. Now, the Inksages of the Dreamscape are fervidly trying to fight off the corruption leaking in, and to rejoin the world, while in Terra survivors are trying to reconcile the strange energy that washed over the land and seemed to trigger an apocalypse.

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