Jim Clougherty

Anima – A part of the soul which acts as a scale of the good and evil deeds committed by a living being. Achieving a high level of good or bad Anima allows one to unlock magic abilities and will extend their life dramatically. However, if a mage who is beyond their normal lifespan returns to middling levels of Anima, they will wither away and die.

 

Artifact – An object of some significance in a mage’s life which helps them to better channel magic. Although using an artifact is not a requirement to cast a spell, it does improve efficiency and thus taxes the caster less. Common artifacts include staffs, crystal balls, and pendants.

 

Avian – A species of intelligent bird-folk who reside almost exclusively to the southeast of Federland in the Bird Lands. After many years as slaves and eventually second-class citizens, they fought for land of their own during the War of the Bird and were successful. Although times have been peaceful in recent years, they are often wary of other intelligent species like humans or marinian.

 

Black Gold – A dark, yet sparkling metal native to Mt. Couture. It has addictive qualities, and those that it ensnares become feverishly subservient to the Dark Savior. Often, those taken in by the black gold will become irrational and violent, but it is possible to dispel its stranglehold over them by triggering their deepest emotions and thoughts. It is an imprint of Greed, one of the Dark Savior’s spawns.

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A different variant of the black gold was created and unleashed in Bosfueras in order to control its population. Its effects, however, were different than what came from Mt. Couture. Rather than become violent, Bosfueras townsfolk became close to a hive mind. The new variant also grants heavy resistance to pain and strong emotions.

 

Bot Worm – A large worm which acts as a parasite when attaching itself to a living organism. It does so by sinking thousands of small teeth into the skin of its target. If left unchecked, a bot worm has the ability to take control of its host. How quickly it happens and to what extent they control the target depends on how close they attach themselves to a host’s brain. It is more common for them to attach at a target’s ankle or leg, however, and so it is rare that they can successfully take full control of their host. They are normally native to the desert countries, but curiously, they also call Mt. Couture home.

 

Charmed – The act of charming was performed by Wizards in ancient times. The process involved taking the pain or anguish of a luxian and using that to bestow magical properties on an object. The power of a charmed object is dependent of how strong the linked emotions are. No charmed object is like the other and some have specific requirements for use. Only luxians are unable to channel their emotions into objects via magic, and so it is a lost art to Wizards of today.

 

Cursed – When a charmed object is destroyed, it takes on a second life as a cursed object with upwards of tenfold its original power. However, should one wield a cursed object, it will drain away their life force. Generally, only proficient Augmenting Wizards who can heal themselves are able to use such objects for a long period of time.

 

Dark Essence – A mysterious liquid which is used by a Dark Wizard to enhance others. It is made by combining dark magic with the properties of black gold. There are two blends of the dark essence. The weaker one heals minor ailments, relaxes the target, and eventually makes them subservient to the Dark Wizard and his hive mind. It is often transferred into people through the black gold found in Bosfueras.

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The more concentrated dose of dark essence gifts the user with unnatural abilities that are normally based on whatever is ailing them at the time of taking it in. The concentrated blend is often violently ingested by the target or forced in through an open wound. Those who take in the concentrated dark essence also possess the ability to regenerate, but only a limited number of times. The greatest weaknesses of the dark essence are fire and corrosive substances such as poison or acid.

 

Dratagon – A rare interbreeding of a dragon and large bat species. The Federland army originally used them as an effective way to launch devastating attacks at night, but they fell out of favor due to their vicious temperament. Often, they did not distinguish from friend and foe. Even their handlers and breeders were in danger when in their presence. Although they lack the higher intelligence and sheer destructive capabilities of a dragon, their stealth and detection capabilities in the night make them a different kind of threat. After being set free from their captivity, some took refuge in Mt. Couture’s caves.

 

Explosive Mushroom – A toadstool native to the jungles of Maug in Luneria. Those unfortunate enough to unwittingly step on its head will bear the brunt of a small explosion that is likely to kill or maim them. However, an explosive mushroom can be safely picked up by its stem and then thrown at a target. It is often used as a trap or weapon by the rebels of Luneria, but oddly enough, they can be found in the mines of Mt. Couture, too.

 

False Wizard – A creatures of the woods who possesses no soul and acts on impulse alone. Its one goal is to eat the souls of those that it lures deep enough into the woods. It does so by disguising itself as a Wizard and leading its prey away from any group so that they can paralyze the target without being interrupted. It most often targets humans, but is known to take the souls of small animals when it is desperate enough.

 

Gold Fever – Originally coined by Dalton Rayleigh in his journal, the term is used to describe men taken in by the black gold and driven to the point of insanity.

 

Green Gas – An imprint left by Degenerate, a spawn of the Dark Savior. It seeps through the seal which lies at the heart of Endoshire’s sewer system, and has begun infecting poorer residents of the city. The gas drives them to a state of madness, where chaos and senseless infliction of pain are their highest priority.

 

Glowing Bulbs – A flower bulb native to northeast Federland. When rubbed against the dirt, it will glow green. It is used as a marker by the first team of miners in Mt. Couture, so that the second team can come find them.

 

Imprint – Each spawn of the Dark Savior naturally creates an imprint. These imprints have slowly been seeping out the seals that keep the Dark Savior spawns locked in the Cold World. For Greed, it is the black gold which spreads in Mt. Couture. For Famine, it is the violet fruits that have propped up on the island at Lake Teras’ center. And for Degenerate, it’s the green gas which has spread in Endoshire’s sewers.

 

Knocker – Mischievous gnome-like creatures of the mines, long thought to be myth. They were often used to explain tunnel collapses in the past. However, they are discovered to be real by Faiwell’s miners when they visit Mt. Couture. Although one knocker on their own can’t stand up to a full-grown man, they tend to attack in packs and use the element of surprise to maim or kill unsuspecting miners. They have a series of tiny, connected tunnels in Mt. Couture’s mines which allow for easy travel and mischief-making.

 

Lake Watcher – An otherworldly monster that lives in Lake Teras and kills its victims by injecting them with a stinger or its tongue to suck up all of their bodily fluids and organs until they are nothing but loose skin and bone. The ancient Mithikans feared the beast so much that they built a grand wall around Lake Teras to keep it away from one of their most thriving cities, Thironas. However, what they didn’t know was that the lake watcher never had any intentions of leaving Lake Teras; it is a Guardian Beast of the Famine seal which lies deep in an island at the lake’s center.

 

Luxian – Referred to by most humans today as “The Ancient Ones”, they are mistakenly believed to be ancestors of men when they are in fact a different, albeit similar, species. They were among the earliest of intelligent species in ancient times, and as such used the less developed folk like humans and avian as slaves for a time. Though they were eventually freed from their bondage, a resentment was born, and that resentment was used as justification when the Dark Savior arrived and attempted to exterminate them. He nearly succeeded in his efforts, but was eventually defeated after a 15-year long war. However, the damage had been done and their numbers dwindled until mankind took over as the dominant species of the world. Luxians eventually faded away, save for a very select few…

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Although luxians look and sound similar to humans, there are some key differences. They tend to be smaller and less hairy. Curiously, they don’t have belly buttons either, and aren’t attached to an umbilical cord when they are born. The greatest difference is in their blood. A luxian’s blood, for some reason, reacts in peculiar ways outside of the body. On some objects, it emits light. When combined with some metals, an all-new, harder metal is born.

 

Luxmortite – A dark blue metal invented by the luxians. It is harder than steel and excellent at cutting. However, with the supposed extinction of luxians, it has been lost to time.

 

Marinian - Folk of the sea who generally keep to themselves unless a ruckus is being made in their territory. Their influence is not as felt as the humans, but they are arguably just as intelligent. They remain a generally peaceful, yet powerful force under the sea.

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There are three classes of marinian: Elite, who can breathe both the air and water. They are often royalty in marinian kingdoms. The Airxen need air to breathe, but can hold their breath underwater for long periods and are considered valuable specialists. Finally, there’s the Aqven, who have gills and can only breathe underwater. They are usually the working class of marinian society.

 

Nightcrawler – An otherworldly terror that roams the mines of Mt. Couture. Those unfortunate enough to catch the gaze of one of its many red, glowing eyes are hunted down with impossible speed and precision. Attacking the nightcrawler nearly guarantees one’s death, but it is slow and deliberate when feeding, which often gives more fortunate members of a party the opportunity to escape. Even a steel sword breaks over its strong hide when struck, and skin and bones are quite fragile to its razor-sharp claws. Unbeknownst to its victims, however, the nightcrawler is a Guardian Beast of the Greed seal in Mt. Couture. It exists solely as a deterrent to anyone foolish enough to enter the mines.

 

Olm – Outside of Mt. Couture, the olm is a tiny, rare salamander that usually dwells in a cave. However, in Mt. Couture, they are much larger, more active, and tend to swim up and down the underground river in search of fish to eat. They are one of the few creatures of the mines who are peaceful toward humans.

 

Riggit – Blind creatures which thrive in dark places and need a water source to survive. They are natural inhabitants of the mountains near Faiwell, but the riggits of Mt. Couture are bigger and more violent. They excrete a liquid which can burn through flesh if left unchecked for long enough.

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There are three stages in a riggit’s life cycle: The pod, which is how they are born. In this stage, they stick to the ceiling, usually of a cave, where they let their long tongues dangle down to snatch up unsuspecting prey or food left for them by land-dwelling riggits. After gaining enough nutrients, they molt into land-dwellers with legs and far more powerful jaws and excreting abilities. Most female riggits die before reaching the next stage, queen. Queens are dramatically larger than a typical riggit and often have trouble fitting in small caves or rivers as a result. The liquid which they excrete is far more potent than the previous stages. Even fewer males make it to the king stage of their life cycle before dying. But those who do become enormous and grow multiple tongues; each capable of ensnaring prey. There are few riggit kings due to the sheer amount of food they require to survive.

 

Skin Walker – Monstrous creatures who kill others and wear their skin or hide while attempting to mimic their tendencies to get closer to their next prey. How convincing the disguise is depends on how complex of a role they’ve taken on. A skin walker copying a human would be easy to spot, but it wouldn’t be as easy to notice if they were mimicking a deer.

 

Starlite – A crystalline metal which can only be found in the Coralstar Kingdom under the sea. Although it can easily be mistaken for a precious, brittle metal, it is actually capable of cracking iron as a weapon. The creation of starlite comes from a meteorite which smashed into the seabed of what is now Coralstar. The resulting underwater volcano contains a plentiful source of starlite ore.

 

The Key – A dark blue, hexagonal medallion with luxian lettering inscribed upon it. The key is entrusted to a luxian who is to watch over one of the seven seals of the Dark Savior. If the seal which they have been tasked to watch over is ever broken, the key is the only way that it can be repaired. It is also capable of unlocking a seal as if it were a door. Each key is unique to which seal it can open or repair, and without it, a broken seal cannot be fixed.

 

The Host – A monstrous entity which can divide itself up into tiny spiders that look similar to clumps of hair. Each of the spiders is deadly enough to rip through flesh and has a mind of its own, but ultimately controlled by the host. When combined into one creature, it has a spider-like body as big as a whale, with eight legs for the ground and an additional eight mirrored upward on its back for walking on ceilings. It has spiked feet for impaling prey and hundreds of fangs in its crocodile-like snout, dripping with poison. It is the Guardian Beast of the Degenerate seal in Endoshire’s sewers.

 

Violet Fruit – A curious fruit which grows only on the island at Lake Teras’ center. When one takes a bite out of it, it dissolves in their mouth before it can be swallowed. Taking bites of the fruit will ultimately make its victims subservient to Famine, should they get close enough to him. It is, after all, an imprint that is leaking out from his seal.