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<strong>Aetherplane is a dark high fantasy world, created to be used as a springboard for roleplaying, story crafting, digital games settings, and all other artistic endeavors.</strong>
'''Aetherplane is a dark high fantasy world, created to be used as a springboard for roleplaying, story crafting, digital games settings, and all other artistic endeavors.'''
 
Initially, it began as the brainchild of [[User:Amythyst|Amythyst]] -- a campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons that she developed while in high school, in the early 1990s. Over time, it has very slowly developed and refined. This wiki now serves as the repository for all information involving the Aetherplane setting, as Amythyst continues to work on it and brings others on board to lend their own stories and creativity to the project.


==Themes==
==Themes==
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* The official website for [https://www.worldofdarkness.com/ The World of Darkness]
* The official website for [https://www.worldofdarkness.com/ The World of Darkness]
* [https://whitewolf.fandom.com/ The Unofficial White Wolf Wiki]
* [https://whitewolf.fandom.com/ The Unofficial White Wolf Wiki]
* [https://worldofdarkness.fandom.com/ The World of Darkness WikiForge]


==== Forgotten Realms (a fictional setting in the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop RPG) ====
==== Forgotten Realms (a fictional setting in the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop RPG) ====

Latest revision as of 02:57, 7 October 2022

Aetherplane is a dark high fantasy world, created to be used as a springboard for roleplaying, story crafting, digital games settings, and all other artistic endeavors.

Themes

The primary setting for Aetherplane is the world of Elodea. We are building it to become a lore-rich fantasy world, full of dark mystery. Themes include, but are not limited to:

  • Magic and the arcane
  • Eldritch horrors
  • Gothic and medieval fantasy
  • Mythical legends
  • Shady politics

Readers and players should experience a world that is exciting and full of potential, but also dangerous and often containing an unsettling undertone. Not everything is as it seems, on the surface, and the worst villains are often the ones that go unseen.

Story summary

We are currently getting the wiki organized and working on inputting information. In the meantime, to assist those who are interested in helping to write for and develop the Aetherplane setting, here is a summary of the story so far:

Creation of the universe

In the beginning, there was the Void. Coalescing from the aether therein, a being took shape -- the Mother, the First, Elodea.

For a time, she slept within the blanket of stars, but it was not long before she ached for companionship. So, Elodea pulled aether from her own body, to create the others with whom she would shape the universe.

As each new divine was "born" into the Void, they took on an aspect of Elodea's power. And as Elodea "birthed" each of them, she herself was weakened.

At the last, she created the world itself, and thus it shared her name.

The Fracture

In an age immemorial, a cataclysm occurred which resulted in the splitting of the world. This event is known as the Fracture, though the cause of it has long-since been lost to history.

Ruins of ancient empires that fell before, during, and in the aftermath of the Fracture are scattered across the world of Elodea. They can be found deep amongst the tangled roots of forests, sunk at the bottoms of oceans, and eroding away in the sandstorms of scorching dunes. What secrets do they hold? Only the bravest of adventurers, willing to plumb the depths of these dangerous places, will ever know.

Religious pantheons

The divines are not absent from the world. They created the initial creatures and races of the world, setting forth their children upon the world that Elodea formed as their playground.

When the Fracture split the world in twain, it created the Twin Pantheons. Each deity became two separate entities, each respectively representing the light and dark sides of their spheres of influence.

For example, Elodea became the twin goddesses: Elorea (goddess of fertility, growth, nature, and life) and Erodea (goddess of death, decay, pestilence, and despair).

Race relations

There is tension between the races of the world. Some mistrust others, some are oppressed, and others have retreated from the rest of the world. Even kingdoms among the same races are not necessarily at peace with one another.

Magical & elemental influence

An ethereal plane exists in twin to the physical plane of Elodea, brought about by the Fracture, and known as the Aetherplane. It is home to the magical web of leylines, primal elemental forces, and the Twin Pantheons that try to exert their will upon the physical world.

Geography & cosmos

The geography of the world is bio-diverse, like Earth, but with a dark flair. Forests are dark, deep, and mysterious. Jungles are thick with vegetation, full of ancient ruins, and largely unexplored. Deserts hide secrets beneath their shifting sands. Artic expanses are desolate and punishing. Ocean storms are unpredictable and their waves obscure the dangers that lurk below.

Elodea exists in a binary star system, though it wasn't always so. As with everything else in this world, when the Fracture struck, the sun and moon also split. This has resulted in the twin suns and twin moons. A twin eclipse (where both moons eclipse both suns) or a total eclipse (where both moons and suns align) are extremely rare occurrences that has varied cultural and religious significance across the planet. It also leads to a shadow being cast across the world, which may come with it's own repercussions....

Story hooks

Laws of the world

  • The gods are real. They don't wander the physical plane, but their influence is tangible.
  • An ethereal world, known as the Aetherplane, exists alongside the physical world, mirroring it.
  • Leylines, which wreath the Aetherplane like a web. Some believe that they are the source of all magic in the world, though others would be quick to point out that it is the power of the gods, not the Aetherplane, that fuel magic.

General themes

  • A gothic keep, its spires clawing out of a dark forest like skeletal fingers.
  • Ancient, mysterious ruins in the tangled undergrowth of a verdant jungle.
  • Recurring themes of things seeming fine on the surface, but being corrupt underneath.
  • Mirrored aspects of the same thing/character: a light and a dark side.
  • Themes of magical wonder and dark secrets; a world both ancient and ethereal.

Writing Prompts

  • A peaceful race of shapeshifters, known as therians, have kept to themselves for centuries. Their clans have been hidden away from the rest of the world, deep within their forest kingdom. Among the humans who live in the areas just outside the therian kingdoms, myths and legends have long told of the savage shapeshifters that stalk the night and the deepest parts of the forest. In their ignorance, they believe that these creatures kill for sport and feast on human flesh. A couple of curious therian children ventured where they were told not to go, by their elders -- beyond the protection of the forest tree-line. They were spotted by locals in the human town, and now rumors of ravenous were-beasts are circulating the countryside. It has drawn hunters from far and wide, who are looking to hunt down and put an end to the beasts, in return for fame and glory.
  • Life in the town of Stillrest seems to be perfect. People are happy and never seem to argue or fight. Fields are fertile and bountiful. Streets bustle with the happy sounds of people chatting and children playing. It is a blissful, idyllic picture of a little rural town. So why does something feel... wrong... about it all?
  • Overnight, a mysterious tower has appeared in a field where there had been no tower before. Locals are afraid to approach it, believing that it is cursed. Something apparently lives in the tower, as lights and dark shapes can be seen through its windows in the dark of night.
  • A human kingdom is on the brink of civil war and destruction, following the death of their king. The elder prince, heir to the throne, was given a vision by the kingdom seer. She foretold that he would go on a journey to find the "Bridge Between Two Worlds," as it was the only thing that could save his kingdom. In his absence, the queen spreads rumors that he has abandoned his kingdom and schemes to place his little sister on the throne as the new ruler of the kingdom, instead.

Broad Ideas to Explore

  • Monsters coming from nearby caves/ruins, terrorizing the local people.
  • Cults that follow the dark pantheon are up to no good.
  • Find lost soul fragments to lay a mournful spirit to rest.
  • Ruins, that were swallowed long ago by a sinkhole, are now home to a hidden civilization.

Inspirations

Books & Literature

The Cthulu Mythos (the body of work created by author H. P. Lovecraft)

The Dark Tower Series (written by author Stephen King)

Tolkien's Legendarium (the body of work created by author J. R. R. Tolkien)

The Witcher Series (written by author Andrzej Sapkowski)

The World of Darkness (a tabletop RPG setting published by White Wolf Publishing)

Forgotten Realms (a fictional setting in the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop RPG)

Games & Movies

Legend (a 1985 film by Ridley Scott)

The Witcher (a Netflix series, based on the books of the same name)

The Witcher (a video game series, based on the books of the same name)

Music

It is important to remember, for this section, that it is the music that should serve as inspiration, not necessarily the imagery that was chosen by the creator of the YouTube video.

Tools and Resources

Map Generators

Name & Word Generators

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