Fluff compilation

[Anastasia]

What makes them tick topic: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,101018.0.html

Just linking since I'll want to refer to the back and forth with it.

[Anastasia]

Sylica: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100840.0.html

I'll probably refine and polish the planar writeup for it.

[Anastasia]

The Cauldron: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100881.0.html

Ditto as above.

[Anastasia]

Seira church stuff: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100970.0.html

Needs the back and forth, so link.

[Anastasia]

This is mostly a rerun of the B2 version, so just a quick reference link: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100972.0.html

[Anastasia]

OOC: This is why having time at work to write is scary.

Strength of Light presents Alicia with a slender tome. In it besides illustrations is the following.

Eons ago, there was an angel named Triel. His beauty, grace and goodness were said to be perfection made into immortal flesh.  Such words burned into his psyche over eternity, as he chased greater and greater perfection. In this he began to see himself above all others, the perfect being living in a cosmos with flawed fools. In time this path lead him to the Pit of Baator, to where he is now know as Baazlebub, Lord of the Seventh. But before that, before his Fall from grace?

In his times he left behind many keepsakes, as Powers and Gods are inclined to do.  Many of them relate to his pursuit of perfection, as such was the power of his growing obsession.  One trip to vanquish the disgustingly flawed forces of evil lead Triel to Ysgard. In Ysgard he found constant pursuit of endless battle and improvement heartening, a chase to reach perfection that resonated within him. Wishing to encourage the imperfect to reach perfection, he took a stone from Ysgard and called on his power, creating Triel's Furnace. Within it he placed a great prize, a reward to one who is perfect enough to claim victory within.

Triel's Furnace is a sealed demiplane. Entrance is impossible, save for a single portal within Ysgard. The portal is a perfect circle embedded within a mountainside cave. A line of runes forms a second perfect circle around the portal, with various Celestial words relating to angelic perfection. The entrance to the cave is sealed with a permanent wall of force; a special key is required to allow passage. The stone around the portal is reinforced by the hands of the strongest war eladrin, having seven times the normal hardness and endurance of stone.

Many throughout the eons have tried their strength at Triel's Furnace. To date, none have succeeded. Solars have gone within and come out, spirits broken in defeat. The mightiest mortal heroes have failed, as have white and black slaad, eladrin and fey. Within the past few eons it has become a hidden legend, the forces of Ysgard hiding the portal away and stamping out knowledge of it. It has become a holy challenge to attempt, offered to the greatest heroes of all Ysgard and beyond.

While none have succeeded, they can pass on valuable information to give the next challenger a slightly better chance to triumph. That is if it's possible to reach perfection in Triel's judgment.

---

The first thing one notices on stepping into Triel's Furnace is that they are naked. All possessions,  items of wonder and even artifacts are gone. They are known to reappear when  the the person undergoing the trial is removed from the Furnace. This makes classical wizards and clerics who rely on material components and focuses worthless within. The proper training to cast without material components negates this need, and even expensive magics can be done if one possesses the greatest gifts of ignoring the need for material components. However, even then, a wizard will lack a spell book to re-memorize spells from.

Once that is accepted, the accounts of those that have attempted and failed Triel's Furnace enlightens us to the conditions within.  No matter the time outside, you appear at high noon. Around you is a desert vast and all consuming. Great sand dunes stretch as far as the eye can see.  The exact location you appear in seems to vary, or perhaps the desert sands shift fast. Above you a merciless sun beats down, broiling hot. It is here you begin to suffer the unique rules of Triel's Furnace.

Every creature within is mortal, insofar as the need for food, water and sleep is concerned. An angel needs as much water as a human within, as does even a golem or other construct. Food is also required, as is eight hours of sleep. This includes races that normally trance, such as elves, that must sleep instead within Triel's Furnace.  Further, elemental resistances to heat and cold are entirely negated within. A fire elemental can and will burn under the sun, an angel can freeze to death during the chill nights. This makes travel within the Furnace agonizing. Within an hour you are sunburned all over, the only respite the sub-zero temperatures of night. Again, such extends to even immune creatures. This may be the only place where a golem died of sunburn in all of Creation.

Inside Triel's Furnace gravity is heavy. While this does not provide over much burden while on the ground, it makes flight impossible. Both magical and mundane flight is forced to the ground. This does seem to apply universally, as even creatures encountered within with wings do not fly, such as dragons.  Overall it may be a bit of a misnomer to those that are familiar with the heavier gravity of realms such as the Plane of Earth, this gravity still has a serious impact on progressing into Triel's Furnace.

Further, certain types of magic are suppressed.  Healing magic or effects of any type fail to work. The super-sped healing that some superior creatures possess is negated, as well as the hardier version known as regeneration, such as what trolls are born with. All damage within Triel's fortress is able to kill a regenerating creature.  Healing through natural means such as rest still works, but doing so requires finding shelter from the heat and cold. Teleportation, dimensional doors and plane-traveling magic all fail within the Furnace. Spells that grant flight do work, but are constrained by the heavy gravity noted above.  Spells that grant hastened movement, such as haste or expeditious retreat, fail. Creation magic, including the creation of food or water, is likewise impeded, as is magic to resist elemental ravages.

As you struggle across the desert, you must endure the days and nights. Each is 11 hours and 45 minutes each, with 15 minute sunrises and sunsets. During the days, baking heat sears all over your body. Sunburn, sunstroke and dehydration are constant concerns. During the night, the temperature drops well below freezing and the wind picks up. It is scant relief for your sunburns to go numb, only for your fingers and toes to succumb to frostbite overnight. The highest priority to survival is to find ways to resist these conditions.

As you wander, there are many dangers. There are creatures who 'live' within Triel's Furnace. It is suspected they are nothing more than an advanced part of the plane's magic and not sentient, thought this is not confirmed. More on these creatures can be found later in this text in the Bestiary chapter.

A person can last roughly 24 to 36 hours without water before severe dehydration begins to cause the body to shut down. Finding potable water is essential to survival and success. One skilled in nature lore can find tiny pockets of water here and there. One greatly skilled in nature lore can detect if it's poisonous or not, as can magic to that effect. Much of the water in Triel's Furnace is poisonous, destroying the vitality and health of any that drink it. Beings that are immune to poison are not affected, able to benefit from the water. Most regrettably, this is a trait primarily found in fiends from the Realms Below. Rarely, there are reports of oasis, surrounded by lush trees bearing exotic fruit. Such water has never been found to be impure if one is lucky enough to find one.

Within three days, a lack of food is unpleasant but not overly deleterious. After, severe hunger pains set in. Eating at least two good meals a day is preferable, requiring finding food in the Furnace. Various creatures encountered can be eaten raw at your risk, or cooked if you possess fire.  Should food not be obtained, weakness and eventually death will come.

Sandstorms are known to occur on occasion. Creatures with unprotected flesh without magical or supernatural toughness may succumb to them. Even then, the sandstorms are known to delay and pin down those who are not subdued by them. Dying of thirst while stuck in a sandstorm has been known to happen.

---

At this point, the writing changes. Written in the pages now is this:

Alicia, I'm writing this part myself. Cowards say that discretion is the better part of valor, but they have a point in this instance. You will be in pain for most of this trip. You will suffer. You will be put through Hell with almost no chance of reward. But hey, you passed what I put you through so you're used to that. So here's the useful part of things: How the hells you survive.

First of all, find water. If you don't find water regularly, you're dead. You can't wiggle your nose and have it appear, but Syala can help find some. If you k now the trick of detecting poison, it'll help find the poison water from the fresh water. Food's also a concern, but with luck, you'll have enough battles against things you can eat. The book didn't mention this, but be careful of what you eat raw. If you can spare the time, cook it. While it's rarely what does someone in or is lost in dehydration/hunger/sunburn/frostbite and a dozen other things, but you can get ill in there. If you start gushing out of either end, you'll be dead in a day from dehydration.

Clothing and weapons are next. It's extremely grotesque, but skinning certain fallen foes is the best way to make clothes. The less skin that can be burned, the better. As for weapons...well, you can figure out why you need them yourself. Anything you can find can work in a pinch. If you're lucky enough to find an oasis, you can make leaf-clothing and use branches as weapons. With clothing and weapons, you have a chance to find some shade and warmth, enough to rest. The only way you'll get better is with time when you aren't baking or freezing.  If you don't do that, it's just a matter of time until you fail.  The most successful attempts have managed to have the resources to spend days healing up. This isn't a race but an endurance slog.

The monsters? Desert-men who say nothing but fight with scythe-arms are common. Burrowing sandworms, sand and blue dragons, insect plagues and a lot of other nasties are known of. There are even reports that the night stars have come down to fight in the form of constellation-monsters, but the four times it's happened it's resulted in a massacre of the attempt. There's no point in trying to talk to any of them. They don't listen and just fight to the death. Very straightforward.

You're going with Syala. This is good if you can say yes to one thing:  After days or weeks of pain and trial, can you put Syala's body down to the sands and keep going without her? Now don't worry, when you die in there, you just appear back out here.  Nothing permanent. But even men of wisdom and spirits of mercy can crack after the agonies of Triel's Furnace. I think it's designed that way. I don't know if Triel was ever truly good based on this. It's a sadist's puzzle in the spirit of perfection. Sure, it's fun to try, but it's agony every step of the way. An archangel could have done this far differently if he wanted to.

Good luck. If you succeed, I'm going to throw you and Syala the biggest Warrior's festival in the history of Ysgard.

---

Bestiary:

Scythe-men: These man sized creatures have scythes for arm and tanned brown skin. They rise from the sand about 100 to 10 feet away from you in pacts of 3 to 12. While each one isn't much, they can land lucky shots that can do grievous damage with their arms.

Blue dragons: They swim under the sand, erupting out in fearsome surprise attacks. They never cast magic like their kin in normal Creation, but they have all other draconic traits. 

Sand dragons: Dragons made of sand. They breathe superheated sand. Very straightforward, forming out of sand drifts within a few moments. You have a little bit of a warning if you're perceptive.

Insect swarms: Locusts, beetles, fire ants.  While they do not fly, they crawl out from the sand and attempt to overwhelm you. Weapons are not effective, but wide effect magic and fire is.

Sun-men, also known as sun elementals: Beans of fierce sunlight that form into man-like shapes. This happens around high noon. Anywhere from 1 to 7 is common, with sizes ranging from dwarf sized to giant sized. Getting close to one causes burns as do their fists, as well as the chance of bright light temporarily blinding you.  They are not too dissimilar from fire elementals overall.

Sandworms: Giant worms that erupt from the sand and swallow you whole. Not hard to detect coming due to tremors, but very hard to avoid or kill.

---

No one's every reached anything that looks like an end. Knowing this, there's something even worse if you get that far. Good luck, Alicia.

I've known a few people who have tried to brute force the limitations here. A few succeeded in circumventing some of them, but there seems to be a fail safe in place. On doing so, hordes of all the various monsters convene on you like a warriors to battlefields. 

I'm not sure Triel meant for anyone to be able to win it. I've never heard a story about him having any love for Chaos as Triel or as Beezlebub. The legend is just that, a legend. Be careful in there.

[Anastasia]

I don't normally copy/paste things that aren't mine (helps keep shit straight), but this one I will, since I need to reference something here.

It's high time I got started on Alicia's fortress of solitude via copious spamming of Limited Wish to copy all the fun spells involved in the process. A lot of this is going to cost more than I can afford at the moment, but it's good for planning/budgeting, and it opens the process up to feedback.

The location of said fortress is the hidden mountain valley where the Sword of the Sealed Gate was originally found in its sundered state. Said valley currently boasts the ruins of several houses, mostly reduced to their foundations, a river that passes underground at either end, and an underground alchemist's lab and summoning chamber placed over a natural ley point that boosts summoning magic. Said area also includes a forbiddance effect that deters outsiders from approaching.

The very first thing to do before any work is done on the area is to cast Commune with Nature.

Quote

    You instantly gain knowledge of as many as three facts from among the following subjects: the ground or terrain, plants, minerals, bodies of water, people, general animal population, presence of woodland creatures, presence of powerful unnatural creatures, or even the general state of the natural setting.


In order of priority the subjects I'd focus on would be unnatural creatures (potential threats/allies), people (we don't quite know where the valley is so this could narrow it down), and minerals (this could make finding construction materials easier down the line).

The spell will give me info on everything within 20 miles above ground, and 2,000 feet below ground.

We can RP this stage out, Dune, or you can summarise it in post format. It needs to be resolved before I commit to the construction phase, however, and if it turns out there are exciting creatures nearby I probably will want to investigate.

As for construction, there are two spells that will be used for most of the heavy lifting here; Move Earth, which lets me flatten/raise/lower up to 750x750 feet per casting (it's just like Populus!) and Greater Stone Shape which lets me alter the shape of up to 21 10ft cubes per casting. Between these I'll effectively demolish the existing ruins so that there's no trace left, cut off cave entrances to the mountain (except for the river), and excavate the fortress itself.

I won't belabour the actual layout of the place too much, but maybe I'll draw a floorplan some day if I'm bored.

Anyway, it'll all be carved out of the rock itself, giving it a very rough dungeon/cave-like ambience. Not what I want for a Doomsday Vault designed to safeguard knowledge for the future! It'd also be terribly boring for the guardians who live there. We can fix that, but before we do there's something else that can be done - if Commune with Nature found me some lead deposits earlier, I'll go get them now. If not I'll go somewhere lead is plentiful to get it straight from the ground. Borrowing Anty, I'll have her use her metal working skills coupled with the Metal Melt spell (or just lots of fire, it's not like it'd bother her) to make thin lead sheets which would be affixed to the walls and floors of the fortress.

So now I've got my underground vault which has been protected from scrying, it's time to pretty the place up a bit. To to fix that I'd use Commune with Nature again to find any cool decorative stone deposits, like marble or something like that, in the vicinity. Greater Stone Shape should allow them to be easily extracted from the earth for me to teleport to the fortress, then Stone Shaped some more to form a polished decorative finish over the lead plating and stone ceilings.

It's not even close to done, but the bare bones have been established all without actually costing a penny. It's late so I'm going to bed but tomorrow I'll get into the details of furnishing and guarding this hidden repository of knowledge. Comment as you please.

[Anastasia]

Character information archive: http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100800.0.html

Linking this one like the B3 one. Lots of content to sift through.

[Anastasia]

NOTE: This was rehashed in B3's Coda. Note to self, skim that over for more details.

I'm going to post this in segments. You can ask questions about things not gone into or referenced if you like, though be aware that the answer may be 'You don't know'. It's more for things I mentioned but I didn't go into, like psychic storms on the Astral.

---

The Astral Plane

The silver sea, the emptiness between everything, the home of the Gith. The Astral Plane is a silvery expanse that is like the tendons of the multiverse. Transportation magic uses it to work, like teleport and plane shift. It has some unique rules to how reality works within in it. I know at least Alicia's been here before, so I'll summarize all the basic information you know and can uncover:

- No gravity. You can move about freely, which is treats as flying with perfect maneuverability. Your movement speed is 10 feet per point of intelligence; an int 10 human can move 100 feet per round. Antenora's mindsight+research will provide the relative move speeds as IC knowledge if you care to know them. Oh, and you suffer no penalties for heavy armor in the Astral. Deme will love that one.

- Timeless. Age, hunger, thirst, poison and natural healing are all suspended on the Astral Plane. They resume functioning once you leave the plane. That means that simply resting won't heal any wounds, though healing magic works fine.

- It's infinite. Travel doesn't obey mortal rules and limitations. The time you spend traveling is much like how teleport accuracy is determined. The more familiar you're with a place, the less time it takes. It can range from 2d6 hours for somewhere you're very familiar with, to 1d10 times -50- for somewhere you've never seen. All rolls for travel time are rolled secretly.

- Quickened magic. Every spell or spell like ability on the astral is treated as being automatically quickened. This is awesome, but it makes for some incredibly lethal combats if potent spells or SLAs are flung around like candy. Be careful. Note that this doesn't apply to supernatural abilities.

- Color pools. All about the astral are pools of radiant color. These are portals to all about the multiverse. They range from forgotten and isolated to defended to sealed. With the proper planar knowledge, you can identify where a portal will take you.

- Dangers. There's not much overt danger in the Astral Plane. You can run into the gith, a psychic storm or other hazards. But the main danger is running into fellow travelers. These travelers can be anyone or anything that's happened to stumble into the planes. Caution is advised.

Dyrani, City of the Githzerai.

Most Githzerai prefer to stay to fortress like monasteries and have little use for non githzerai. Dyrani looks to be a break in this. Within the last 500 years this city has sprung up around an area of the Astral with an unusually high concentration of color pools and other gateways. The githzerai here are stern, unsmiling but willing to deal with almost anyone who passes through as long as they're well behaved. There have been conflicts with githyankis who object to this stronghold, but they seem to have failed to dislodge the githzerai.

This doesn't play for a few reasons. Githzerai usually stick to Limbo and an open githzerai settlement in the Astral is asking all the githyanki to get pissy and go on a big ol' githzerai crushing crusade. Rumors abound to what's going on there, but if anyone knows they ain't talking. Questions about this matter are severely discouraged.

Anyway, the githzerai of Dyrani make good money by using this city as a safe haven and travel hub in the Astral. Healing, room and board are all available here, as well as various sundry services such as mercenaries, magic casting and guides. All portals within the city can be used for a small price. The general price is 50 GP per head, though there are some reports of higher prices in certain cases. Payment is non negotiable.

[Anastasia]

The Infinite Staircase

The Infinite Staircase spans all worlds and planes. Unlike the Astral, which goes to planes and is used in teleportation magic, the Infinite Staircase is more of a place you journey on to go to a particular part of a plane.  You guys have been here on Mission: Rescue Alicia after her date on the Abyss got a bit too grabby.

Besides possibly running into all and sundry, like on the Astral Plane, the main danger is falling and exhaustion. Climbing all those stairs is quite draining, causing fatigue within several hours. Falling is a serious concern now. You'll plummet Gods only know how long until you land on a stairway or platform. The damage from falling is severe, so avoid it. It's also possible you won't hit a bottom, but instead pass through a rift and end up anywhere in the cosmos. Do you feel lucky? Flying incurs the same risks and is not encouraged. Teleportation magic doesn't work right here either, tossing you to a random location on the planes.

Travel times between landings is roughly 4d12 hours and one may have to cross several landings to reach a door they desire. This time isn't consistent across the Infinite Staircase, so be advised. Travel times are rolled in secret.

The Planeswalkers Guild

The Planeswalkers Guild is a loosely knit group of planeswalkers. They band together to share information, tales and the wonders of everything beyond mundane reality. Of particular interest to you is that they have made one landing on the Infinite Staircase their own for quite a long while now. A tent city thrives endlessly there, full of planar travelers. It's very much a mixing pot. The tent city has been wiped out a few times when things got too hot between powerful planars, but the dogged explorers don't give up. One can find supplies, gossip and materials here, moreso if they're in good standing or members of the guild.

Lillend guides can also be found here. They find the constantly changing chaos and energy of the guild to suit them. They are sometimes tolerated and sometimes chased away, depending on the mood and current population of the tent city. The lillends have been known to participate in pitched battles here from time to time, especially if it involves evil.

The Mercane are known to usually have at least one small caravan here and semi-permanent offices. Various other groups and interests keep an eye here. Of course, these tend to regularly change. Clerics of various Gods can be found preaching here, though permanent places of worship tend not to last. There are two exceptions: A small church of Tymora has managed to survive here some time, as well as a small but very persistent cult to Cyric.

[Anastasia]

The Green Door

Hidden away in the Infinite Stairway is said to be a passage into Greenrot, the 232nd layer of the Abyss. It is said to be guarded fiercely. There are known reports of vrocks in the area as well as a toxic green mold. Information on the door is seldom known, since most who try to find it end up being a meal for a vrock. Interestingly, several of the stories mention that the vrocks flew about to attack. There have been inquiries on this point by interested parties, but nothing solid has come of it as far as any of you can uncover.

Legends say that a key is needed to open this doorway, a rotting green key. What this means is hotly debated. It may be a portal key, a magical item, or something more estoric, like a sacrifice or some other indirect meaning. Holy tomes you have access to mention this, describing the door as 'clad in green death'.

The Abyss

It is the home to an infinite brood of clutching horror. It is the whimsy of chaos married to the darkest powers. It is where life and death are naught but amusement for the demonic inhabitants, where good and nobility come to be stripped down and turned into mockeries of what they once were.

Each layer of the Abyss is it's own unique realm, so it is impossible to give a concise summary of what the Abyss is. Further, layers are prone to change and mutate. You must understand that any information here may be outdated or worthless. It is the nature of the Abyss, attempting to assign meaning or knowledge to it is to risk howling insanity.

While the basic rules of reality are the same in the Abyss as anywhere else, they can change wildly from layer to layer. Sometimes they can even change in an area. More importantly, the Abyss seems sentient. There is not ever a shred of proof to it, but many visitors will swear to the highest heaven that the Abyss possesses it's own cruel will. It will corrupt you. It will torment you. It will kill you...or worse, if you're unlucky. Even the highest virtue may become base and filthy, such as slaying a demon and putting it to rest. Alicia can testify to this all to well(Though if the Abyss was behind that or if it was Malcanthet or another demon is unknown) and to expect anything less is folly. Those who believe they can endure what the Abyss inflicts on them or that they are stronger than it doom their souls to oblivion or degredations unlimited.

Protective magics can help stop the more overt ravages the Abyss will inflict. They will do nothing to stop a balor from impaling you or a marilith from hacking you into ribbons, but it's a start. Wards against evil and chaos are excellent ideas, as well as reinforcing your will as high as it will go. A strong fortitude and tolerance to toxins is useful as well. Of course, any weakness may find itself exposed in the hatred of the Abyss.

[Anastasia]

Greenrot, the 232nd layer of the Abyss.

Greenrot is not a realm spoken often of. It is not as famous as other layers that are home to demon princes and lords, so there is less knowledge to be spoken of for it. Greenrot is ruled by the balor Gurlan, as much as any layer of the Abyss is ruled. What knowledge you have found is revealed below, finding more current knowledge may be of lifesaving importance.

- The Field of Cysts: Under a gas choked sky lies an endless, lumpy field. Small hills roil beneath warm, flesh colored ground, constantly moving. These hills shake and squish beneath your feet as you walk on them. At times the hills will erupt with a foul, sloppy fluid. Reports of what this does varies: Some claim it burns like fire, others claim it is acidic, yet other poor souls claim only disease comes from this pus-like material.

- Zerfalls: A small 'city' of demons is said to exist somewhere within Greenrot. The location and even it's name are some matter of debate. Some sages call it Zerfalls and this is the most common name. Others call it Limbrot, while yet others call it Koorts. Thus is the trend for this chaotic city. A powerful vampire/storm giant wizard/renegade cornugon/chaos dragon rules or lives there, or was perhaps slain there. Or perhaps all or none of them are there. Streams of pure chaos are whispered to inhabit this place, as well as a pathway said to lead to Limbo.

- Jungles. Nameless tracks of rotting green jungle surround chasms of wicked fires. Little is known of these reaches, but one can suspect that bar-lgura would naturally inhabit this place.

- The Green Castle: Gurlan's stronghold. This is the most stable and consistent part of Greenrot with several facts being known of it. A powerful antipathy field surrounds it, preventing the servants of Good from approaching the Green Castle. An exceptionally strong will can defeat it, but this is far from certain. Tales speak that the spell Sympathy can defeat this enchantment long enough to allow a party to approach. Inside Gurlan holds his unholy court, sending out his whims and orders about Greenrot and beyond. Several portals are said to resides within Greenrot, including one to the Gaping Maw. The castle itself is known to be well protected: Normal plane shifting and teleportation won't penetrate inside.

- Dangers: Any and all you could imagine in your worst nightmare and twenty more after that. Expect anything and everything. All the standard demons will likely be around, as well as more exotic ones and mutations. Further, there are other monsters besides demons in the Abyss. It's a melting pot of the worst horrors. Still, one danger is known to come from Greenrot: The disease Limbrot. It is told that those infected will watch their arms rot into green wastes and fall away within a day at best.

- Survival: The air is breathable if foul. Food and water in the Abyss are often a rare thing and Greenrot is no different. Bringing your own supplies is paramount.

[Anastasia]

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100471.0.html

[Anastasia]

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100179.0.html

[Anastasia]

Pallanth stuff. Almost done.

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,100140.0.html