Introduction to Desylinn

By Frank Shaw

Welcome to a world where the gods of chaos have beaten out the gods of law. Where they have not aligned themselves to good or evil, and have created a Seal to protect the world from their meddling. Desylinn is a world where ancient ruins were created by the gods, or are remnants of the first, and only great empire the world has known. Desylinn is a world where magic is a raw force that permeates everything and can be affected by raw emotions: From the rages of the barbaric Kindreds, to the alluring songs of the Krishtog bards, magic affects all things. Politics are still in their infancy, the Mariean Empire spanning the continent during the First Age of Mortals was overthrown by slaves and vassal states six centuries ago. The political vacuum created by the Empire’s fall is just beginning to be realized. It’s a world where one can lose their mind in a strange temple just as easily as being backstabbed in an alley.

The gods made the Seal in order to prevent each other from directly causing the world harm, also as a prison to punish three gods whose crimes even the inexperienced gods can recognize. At the North Pole, sealed on a throne of ice the god Mari’es holds court with his children the elves, giving council and hatching plots with his voice, they only thing he has free. At the center of the world the god Daikado sits like an enlarged toad, belching hot fire, sending it with his servants the Kado to make the mountains and plains tremble. At the south pole the god Tlal is trapped at the center of a permanent hurricane, his tail churning up smaller storms that are carried north by his servants the Lalt. Anchoring the seal are the Elemental Temples, each one carrying the pure essence of its element, each being in a place where its opposing force is most powerful.

There are those that worship the gods, embracing their tenants, and following rituals that have become tradition. There are those that swear allegiance to strange things in the chaotic Soup of Fate, and are given a small living manifestations of that bond to give them power. Then there are those that desire to transcend the Seal, effectively becoming gods themselves. Using the example of the Five Glorious Transcendents, the five heroes who helped to overthrow the Empire, and who later became “gods”, the aspirants try to walk the paths of those heroes, or seek to make their own.

Magic permeates the world itself, the seven elements integral to the physical and the spiritual being of every person. Those that learn to harness magic are rewarded with great power and the euphoric “Bliss” as a side effect that comes from channeling magic. Those that struggle to harness it, or strive to go beyond their capabilities are inflicted with “Despair”, a painful agony that is both a punishment and a warning not to overstep their capabilities. It’s easy to fall prey to the pleasures of magic, becoming enslaved by it, seeking only the powerful effects of “Bliss”. Magic is a raw force often triggered by emotions, and only a small group of spellcasters aspire to understand its complexity. These wizards hope to tap into magic by understanding the emotions that help channel it, recording their results on vellum scrolls, clay tablets, and papyrus sheets.

Over six centuries ago the Mariean Empire fell, overthrown by races the elves of the Empire considered savage. The new world built in the wake of that collapse is now just coming into its own, and those same savage races have laid claim to the world their struggles created. West in the Vol-kyn, the races of orcs, goblins, ogres, trolls and minotaurs seek a meritocratic society, where each individual is valued by his contributions and not by virtue of his caste or race. In the Dragon Mountains the dwarves have reconnected with the powerful dragons that help rule and created their clans. In the swamps of the Geato Marsh the lizard-women interpret visions those with the “sight” see in their temples of Ishari. In the Dragon Sands, the snake people’s council of Old Ones plot for wealth and power, creating deals that will ripple throughout the lands. While those that serve them wait for old age, so they may take their place on the council. And in the city of Hub, at the heart of the continent, the Five Great Guilds vie for power, seeking to control the city. And ultimately anything else they can.