Table of Contents
How To Use this Player’s Guide
I have placed the key mechanical differences in Attovia at the front of this guide. If you are simply curious about what changes have been made in comparison to 5th edition you may find that immediately underneath this introduction.
Beneath that are larger sections that seek to give a broad look at Attovian history and ethnic backgrounds, with thorough linking throughout the wiki for anyone hungry for more information.
If there is something you wish to know more about, suggestions, or questions in general please reach out to me via the discord.
5th Edition DnD Conversions
There are several things done a bit differently in Attovia, namely many races that exist in typical 5e settings don’t here, but for most there is a stat analog that can be played or used. I have created a table of stat analogs. If you don’t see a race in the list please let me know. I am quite amenable to allowing people to play what they want and can usually make it work!
In addition Attovian currency works differently, and while there is a whole doc on Chips I will provide a conversion table below for those building characters and taking starting wealth.
Racial Analogs
What this table means mechanically is this: If a homebrew does not exist for a race, you may use the 5th edition stat blocks. In most cases I’m fine if you use my homebrew statblock or the 5th Edition stat block. All current homebrews both races and classes can be found here in my homebrewery document.
| 5th Edition | Attovia |
|---|---|
| Dwarf | Rugadh Sliabh (Rugadh) |
| Halfling | Nammalians |
| Aasimar | Nephesh |
| Goliath | Yewdi |
| Orc/Half-Orc | Girav gel |
| Aarakocra | Krest |
| Genasi | Nephesh |
| Bugbear | Yewdi |
| Deep Gnome | Goweh Gnome |
Currency Conversion
See the Chips doc to see how the denominations within chips convert with one another, but below is how each denomination converts to 5th Editions typical metal currencies.
| Attovia | 5e |
|---|---|
| 1 Shard | 1 Copper |
| 1 Chip | 2 Silver |
| 1 Bit | 20 Gold |
| 1 Sliver | 200 Gold |
Denizens of Attovia
A rich and often traumatic history adorns each of Attovia’s racial and ethnic groups. Many such histories overlap, the oppressed and their oppressors telling and recording differing historical accounts. Each people paints their hue of truth on the canvas of time, and where their colors differ, the lines turn a muddy brown.
If you would like proper appearance descriptions of each race those can be found in their linked pages. If something doesn’t have a doc yet I’m sorry ;-;
When choosing a name for your character you may simply pick whatever you find most interesting. However, I have a real world analog language for all races which will be underneath the “Playing as <race>” heading at the bottom of each section. Using a name from the language listed there will ground your character more in the context of the world, but this is not required! I use this tool to generate names based on real world languages https://www.behindthename.com/random/
Human
According to the Zoherians and the Elves the Humans were Hormus’ first created sentient people. In general there is some deep cultural pride due to this mythology. For better they strive to become great individuals, and for worse they lord it over others.
Among the Human species as it were there are four distinct genetic groups. Because the mortal mind is most pleased when it can categorize by the most obvious differences, each of these groups has its own cultural background and societal norms. There is little to no strife between the four but like keeps to like and thus they drew tribal lines thousands of turns ago that remain to this day.
Amodians
Rusty red skin and broad stature set the Amodians apart from not only other Humans, but from most other races except those touched by Tiefling corruption. In the ancient past Amodians drew the unwanted eye of Corruption Cleansers due to their skin easily mistaken for demonic mutation. Now such mistakes are extremely rare, and in fact have reversed; consistently pigment altered Tieflings with no other obvious signs being taken incorrectly for Amodians.
Nammalians
Nammalians are notably smaller than the other three groups. Despite their remarkable departure in stature their proportions have remained surprisingly intact. As though a full sized Zoherian were shrunk down exactingly. Nammalians less notably differ from their brethren in the general variety in their skin tone, from a Zoherian pale to an almost Tzelian tan they cover a broader spectrum than any other Human.
Zoherians
Of any Human sub-group the Zoherians are the most proud. It is only their name which decorates the oldest nation, and within said nation the greatest religion. Their pale skin evokes a transparency their ego is all to eager to mimic. Most of the Church of Hormus consists of Zoherian priests, but no individual is ever refused from service for any reason other than lacking the life of sacrificed to be expected from one of The Bereaved.
Tzelians
The Tzelians are often considered the wisest of the Humans. Just as any Zoherian may show humility a Tzelian may show themself a fool, but as generalizations go history has played favorites to the idea of the Tzelian wiseman. Many of the greatest Human breakthroughs in Meyda-work, Philosophy, and religion are attributed to great Tzelian men and women. No other species has a complexion that can compare to the deep ebony of the Tzelian and they can be found everywhere. They have spread through the continent more so than any other Human and are appreciated wherever they find homes.
Playing a Human
Don’t let anyone tell you the Human choice is boring. There is a special sauce in the variety of Human flaw. Their character can be steered in almost any direction and it won’t feel out of place in the world. If other races feel like a cultural or world building box, this could be your outlet.
Stats
Use the 5e stat block for Humans. In the future I plan to have homebrew subraces for each genetic group.
Naming Convention
Each subrace of human derives from a Uralic language.
- Amodians: Mari, the most obscure of the humans, feel free to name an amodian via any of the other more common Uralic languages.
- Nammalians: Estonian
- Zoherians: Finnish
- Tzelians: Hungarian
Elves
The Elves scoff at the pride of Humans. After all, they are the perfected form spawned by the imperfect, short lived Human creature. They are the closest mortal beings to godhood and believe all others ought to understand this simple fact of nature. This idea of nature defining the order of authority and thus society can be seen permeating every corner of Elven society. Though a shining beacon of beauty from the outside, behind the doors of the upper class a grave campaign of pride and hate presses forward.
Many Elves of lower standing find themselves disgusted with the conduct of their nations aristocracy. It is this diaspora that has lead to the Elven and Half-elven individuals and groups found in all nations, even the most remote or obscure.
Playing an Elf
Do not feel pressured to play an Elf as close-minded, arrogant, and self serving. Keep in mind that there are many Elves who attempt to cast off these common traits. Instead I encourage one to think how the current age of your PC in relation to a life that will live naturally for at least a millennia. If its your first century perhaps you still retain the rose tinted glasses of the young. Or instead are you a multi-century lived individual who struggles every day to find novelty or light in the world around them? What Tears of Memory do you wear and how?
Stats
Use the 5e stat block for Elves.
Naming Convention
I simply use Tolkien Sindarin for modern elvish in Attovia with some Quenyan thrown in here and there, use any of his Elvish names or build one by searching this very thorough Tolkien language glossary: https://www.elfdict.com
Half-Elves
Due to a surprising genetic closeness, Humans can have children with Elves. A strange blessing and curse it brings to the child at hand. It is a tragic and terrible thing when one side of your heritage falls into the obscurity of a mind that has experienced many lifetimes. Half-Elves receive the same life expectancy as their elvish parent, and pull most of their appearance from their Human half. In addition Half-Elves are only capable of procreating with other Half-Elves for reasons still yet unknown.
Playing a Half-Elf
All the guidance I placed for Elves works similarly here, but you have an additional axis of character development. One of your parents will be extremely short lived in comparison to yourself and the other could quite possibly outlive you.
Stats
Use the 5e stat block for Half-Elves.
Naming Convention
A Half-Elf may have been named after its human or elven parent, this is completely up to you, in which case look to their “Naming Convention” section.
Rugadh Sliabh
Ashy grey skin, short yet muscular, great black beards that stretch to the center of the torso, and fingers which itch to pull form from rock and stone. The Rugadh are simple and easily read, anyone on the continent who has met a Rugadh would have intuited these aspects rather quickly. But within their honest simplicity a complex and ancient culture exists. For a Rugadhian heart to sing they must be part of a creation process. For the Master Cruthman it is most obvious, but for the Master Leabharchoimeád it is perhaps less so. No naming of Mastery has existed since the time of The Waking Floods that was not recognized by The Council of Elders to be, at its core, subservient to the art of creation granted the Rugadh by Aoire Sléibhe.
Playing a Rugadhian
The Rugadhian culture is encompassed neatly in the word “creation”. Every aspect of their lives is in pursuit of cultivating creative arts. The more tangible the better. Let this infuse your character as much as possible. There is some room for a very odd Rugadh who has little interest in such pursuits, but it would be an almost world shattering anomaly to most.
Stats
I do not have a homebrew for this race yet, feel free to use the 5e dwarf race for now, preferably Mountain subrace but it doesn’t really matter.
Naming Convention
The Rugadhian language is based in Irish but a Scottish name is also quite valid.
Theoir Sliabh
A subset of Rugadhian’s who split from Darkmount several thousand turns ago. Though scattered across Attovia, their primary home and source of culture is in Strana Gigantov alongside the Yewdi people. The drastic change in environment enforced a steady change in the Theoirians. Their complexion has become a cobalt blue, their body fat ratio has increased to counteract the harsh winters of the north, and every one to the last of them has a beard as white as the snow they call home.
Playing a Theoirian
Theoirian’s and Rugadhian’s do not feud, but they live fundamentally different lives. Theoirian’s primarily believe in the maintenance of culture and familial units, the practice of a creative craft is often viewed as frivolous. Whether or not you agree with your heritage, or the Rugadhian way of thought, or something else entirely will say a lot about your identity in relation to your race.
Stats
I do not have a homebrew for this race yet, feel free to use the 5e dwarf race for now, preferably Hill subrace but it doesn’t really matter.
Naming Convention
Anything Slavic will do, the Theoirians lean mostly towards Polish.
Yewdi
A very large people who stand well above most other Attovian residents. They are perhaps the most unique genetic grouping on the continent. They carry their newborns in pouches, have extended hair at the ends of their ears, and resonate an unnatural level of body heat compared to any other species. The Yewdi as a group are known primarily by these obvious differences, and their tribal lifestyle is not well known. Even outside of Strana Gigantov they tend to latch on quickly to family groups drawing their own tribal lines with whatever delineator they can. They are a fiercely loyal people and often end up as body guards or “help” for the nefarious and innocent alike.
Playing a Yewdi
You come from a land where some gods of old still walk among your people. This profoundly impacts the way you view the world. Be it superstition, doubt in modern ways, reverence for the divine or the opposite.
If instead you are a generation removed from Strana Gigantov then your homeland is a mystery known only to you through the oral stories of your parentage. Perhaps this guides your motivation?
Stats
I do not have a homebrew for this race yet, you can use either the Goliath or Bugbear races from 5e.
Naming Convention
Anything Slavic will do, the Yewdi lean mostly towards Russian.
Gnomes
Smaller even than the shorter spectrum of Nammalians, Gnomish society always has an interesting collision with the rest of the world around it. Most bakeries being run by these little people have internals constructed on a different scale than other typical structures in a city outside the Shen Dynasty. Especially for the larger Yewdi and Girav gel, it may feel like walking into an upscaled doll house. Gnomes are quite proud of their culture however, having risen from their oppressed past, they boast a new history of culture and development. After all, no other group can make the claim to pastries that the Gnomes can.
Playing a Gnome
Not every gnome is trained in the art of baking, but all of them encounter it tangentially. Did your parents run a bakery in another nation? Or were you a baking school dropout? Perhaps you take some pride in this comical piece of culture you have, or maybe you scoff at it.
Stats
Use the 5e stat block for Gnomes.
Naming Convention
Gnomish culture and language Liàntiáo is pulled primarily from the Chinese, feel free to use the randomizer tool, or build an interesting name using simple Chinese translations.
Tieflings
Not truly its own race or ethnic group, this moniker is used for those who’s original genetics are not discernable beneath the demonic corruption that instead adorns their flesh. Every horn, tail and discoloration tells a haunting story of a distant relative long dead who suffered the presence of one of The Hebdomad. Few cultures still shun those with Tiefling mutations, but for any individual who suffers it, a crisis of identity must always be summited.
Playing a Tiefling
If you choose to play as a Tiefling keep in mind that this means your mutations are extreme enough to overpower other notable racial features. What are you underneath the corruption? An elf, human, gnome? Or are you an orphan who has no way of knowing?
You may also choose to have minor Tiefling mutations if you play as another race. These of course have no mechanical impact but are fun for flavor.
Stats
Though their origins are quite different just use the 5e stat block for Tieflings.
Naming Convention
Depending on the severity of your mutation you may choose to use a word in your original race’s (or adopted race if original is unrecognizable) language that means something like “cursed”. Otherwise simply choose a name from a ethnic group that is relevant to your character.
Girav gel
Even more rarely seen than the Yewdi people Giravians come from out past the Western Wastes in the Giravian Archipelago. No other society is capable of existing near the corrupted ocean, but there is something special about the waters around the islands the Girav gel call home. The water teems with life and many large reefs are found off the sandbars that connect the many islets.
The Girav gel have a strange culture surrounding death, and ritualistic warfare which most have difficulty leaving behind in favor of more modern traditions. They believe they were built for the purpose of battle in the surf, and find it strange that anyone would ask them to do something different with their short time in the material world.
Playing a Girav gel
The Giravian’s, unless second generation are quite unfamiliar with most of the goings on of the continent. You could be easily impressed by technology or dismissive of it. There is lots of room here to be one who marvels, or one who suspects. Girav gel take premature death very hard, and believe everyone has a purpose, a destiny, in life they must fulfill before their eventual demise.
Stats
I do not have a homebrew for this race yet, you can use either the Orc or Half-Orc races from 5e.
Naming Convention
The language Girav is based on Kurdish
Dragonborn
The Dragonborn are unequivocally more alien than any other species. Born quite late in regards to other races, there was a time when all others had begun to develop simplistic civilizations and the Dragonborn were not yet a thought to be considered. Now, though still a focused population within Claskaria, they can be found scattered through their fellow nations.
Most Dragonborn are Kochavists. It is difficult for someone with such obviously foreign origins to deny the myths of Hikari and the Dragonfall. So in varietous fervor the Dragonborn race praises their Platinum Queen and laud her tenets of freedom to those who will listen.
Playing a Dragonborn
Keep in mind that there are two very differing methods by which you came to the planet. Either you have two Dragonborn parents or crashed to this continents soil in a super heated egg sent from an extraterrestrial source. Depending on your decision, your outlook on Kochavism and other Dragonborn and their foreignness will warp. You have a unique claim if you were subject to Dragonfall, perhaps you keep it secret? Or you let everyone know how blessed you were to have been granted this special freedom.
Stats
For now still modeled largely off 5e Dragonborn just use their stat block.
Naming Convention
The Dragonborn language is based on Japanese.
The Rare and Cryptic
Krest
No societies tale is as tragic as the Krest. Even the Gnomes have a powerful respect for the heinous nature of Krest history. Their wings being considered beautiful and rare drove them to near extinction, as they were hunted, killed, and carefully de-winged for sale. Their wings still trade for astronomical amounts in dark circles, but in general no longer suffer for their unique beauty. Though they have more of a place now sociologically, their population dwindles in places of civilization. More of them are found in communes and villages where their hunters’ necessitated their current remoteness.
Playing a Krest
The Krest believe themselves direct descendants of the goddess of the wind and neutrality Lielun. Whether you are the kind of Krest who desires to remain out of conflict, or believes your goddess mother’s stance a bit silly is up to you. Think also of how your peoples past effects your outlook on civilization.
Stats
The Krest homebrew race can be found here. Preferably do not use any other avian oriented race from 5e without discussing it with me or your DM.
Naming Convention
The Krest speak Bhabha which is based off of Xhosa. Simply looking up Xhosa names will give you quite a few, but lots of Nguni language names should work just fine.
Ankan
Few things awaken an unreasonable fear in as many people as spiders. Thankfully for the surface dwellers the Ankan population primarily live in the Goweh. By this point their threads span to every tunnel and crevice, having built the world beneath into a secluded empire. On rare occasion Ankan individuals break from the hive mind like society and emerge on the surface. Thankfully the general populace is more familiar with large arachnid creatures thanks to Spider Ranches, and the humanoid top half of the Ankan is as unsettling as it is reassuring. Even Ankan workers are formidable warriors, and despite their strange biology are found to be invaluable allies by many.
Playing an Ankan
The rigidity of the structure you come from should have some bearing on your attitude and character. Even after escape to the surface the concepts of a stable position in a society based on power are difficult to shake, how does this mold you? Do you enjoy the flash of fear most other species display when first meeting you, or does it sting?
Stats
For now I am using a homebrew found here, but I plan on creating one more tailored to Attovia.
Nephesh
The Souls of the mountains, rivers and forests of Attovia are coming under duress during the Time of Rest’s rapid progress at a rate never before seen. What were once purely the stuff of oral histories now walk in remarkable numbers on the continent. Remarkable in that they can even be observed and counted, but they are still almost one to a nation in their rarity. These strange entities of natural purpose attempt to influence society and culture towards the betterment of their representative biomes. If they must, cataclysmic measures may be taken.
Playing a Nephesh
A Nephesh’s existence requires the entity they represent to consider itself endangered and to expend a tremendous amount of energy to create them. What do you represent, why does it feel threatened, and what are you going to do about it?
Stats
The Nephesh homebrew race can be found here.
Naming Convention
You will want to work together with your DM to figure out what entity your Nephesh represents and what it is colloquially called. Almost always they will name themselves based off the general societal name for their origin.
Awakened
Whether its a goblin or a small housecat, the Awakened have one thing in common. Within their chest where a heart of muscle once pumped, a God Stone rests. They are an esoteric creation of which very little is known. Only the most intelligent, and ethically questionable of Meyda-workers create these beings. In some ways an Awakened is more a child of its creator than one beget through biological processes. To give an Awakened their own Soul requires giving up a small piece of your own.
Playing an Awakened
Any playable monster stat block that your DM okays likely fits into this category, any sentient animals like nekomata will also fit. When you play an Awakened it is up to you whether or not you know your creator. If you do work with your DM to figure out who they are. Whether you know your origins or not should have some bearing on what drives you.
Stats
The Awakened is sometimes a catch all race, allowing for interesting homebrew races to be played and not be out of place within Attovia’s world building. This one will probably require some discussion with your DM. You might not originally plan on playing an “awakened” but it might end up being what makes sense with the statblock you choose.
Naming Convention
Awakened are usually named by their creator, you or your DM can decide what this might be depending on how much knowledge your PC has about their maker.
The Attovian Paths
Each Attovian lives a life and walks a path unique to themselves, but like the woodland trails carved by Vachthir, each step overlaps with another’s print. No journey occurs alone historically, for billions of feet have trod the ground you travel into its walkable nature centuries before you. So go forward and tread the continent’s ground, beat its road with resolute footsteps as you discover you place in an ever changing world.
Whether you are playing 5th Edition, or my maybe someday PbtA system, your character should fit somewhere into one of the broad groups below. Under each section are several sub-groups and beneath those specific examples. If an example has a homebrew I will link to it.
The Worker Paths
A wizard’s grand display of destructive force differs from the simple herbalists water purification in little but its complexity. Both are Meyda-workers instructing the strange substance to work changes in the world around them.
Whether it is via the precision of a Meyda-circle or through Meyda Intercession Attovian magic cannot function without a source of power. For commonplace Meyda-circles this is facilitated through the consumption of Chips, Attovia’s primary currency. In other instances it is the Tethers formed via Contracts with entities much more powerful than one’s self that provide a flow of Meyda.
For more than eight thousand years Meyda-work was a tool of the gods, those they inspired, and the intellectual savant. However, the past several millennia have seen many jumps in understanding, leading to the generalization of what was once mere legend. Now during the tense Time of Rest Meyda-work can be seen in diverse forms in even the most remote hamlets.
Divinely Inspired
Divine inspiration as a source of power is almost always involuntary. Though sought after by thousands, the chosen are often simply the humble devout. This kind of Tether to a deity is more flexible than those made through ritualistic Contracts, but since the terms are unknown by one side are untenable and impermanent. This does provide the Worker with Meyda Intercession, the act of a Higher Being interacting with the raw Meyda in their stead, requiring less accuracy during physical casting. On rare occasion an individual is chosen maliciously, and when attempting to cast may be intentionally interpreted incorrectly causing spells to backfire, alter, or have completely unrelated effects.
Moon-touched Dragonborn
For unknown reasons individual Dragonborn are chosen by Hikari to be more than just emissaries but warriors, and Workers of wonders. Somewhere on their bodies appears a solid white circle that emits a light who’s brightness increases in proportion to its surrounding darkness. This is generally the only sign one receives of their having been chosen, and once discovered the search for a mentor begins.
Nephesh
The existence of a Nephesh begets a Tethered connection intrinsically between the Nephesh and the entities well of Meyda. Nephesh don’t require Meyda Intercession with their entity, instead being “born” with the requisite knowledge and precision to Meyda-work with only the power source. Their very nature appears to solve the precision problem in a way still unexplained.
Religious Fanatic and the Occult Obsessed
These Workers have all garnered power through very structured Contracts with deities. Either through the use of a common religious work like The Book of Nefiqaddis, or other more esoteric writings. Though their reasons differ, or even exist wholly polarized the shape of their source is functionally identical.
The Meyda Intercession in such binding relations is at its best. Most rituals have relatively strong terms in regards to obstruction of Meyda-work and interpretation in the lesser being’s favor.
Sundered Priests
A pact made by zealots and the devout of the Church of Hormus called the Tear in which part of their body is sacrificed in return for power in the form of the sacrificed portion’s aspect as ascribed by the tenets of the Church of Hormus.
Eccentric Researcher
Progress is moved forward by such individuals as these. The obsession with power replaced by one for knowledge. Though not always altercation inclined the well of knowledge such a Worker has at their disposal is invaluable. Strange trinkets and inventions made by the like of Fractalmages turn the tides of battle through unexpected Workings, or set a parties foot back on the path forward via ingenious solutions. Driven by specific or broad goals, these researchers consume vast amounts of literature new and old, constantly taking fervent notes, and writing journals.
Few organized examples exist of Eccentric Researches. It requires a special kind of Soul to truly become such an individual. Instead below you will find several individuals who are believed to most exhibit these qualities. Careful, some of these may come with some minor or major spoilers.
Mordechai
Master Conn Oibhachta
Terridor Throumehdown
Gorb
The Studious Apprentice
Most commonly if one seeks power there are organizations and groups both widely known and esoteric where they might stumble. Such individuals vary widely from one another depending entirely on who they fall in step with. Where one goes once mastery is found is an entirely different discussion.
Quill Masters
Quill’s are coveted by all in power, their knowledge and practice of law and Contracts an invaluable aid to any household or country. With this wealth of knowledge comes the power to enact one’s will through the edicts and agreements made by the leaders of the continent. For this reason the Quill’s carry with them the Soul of some other entity who their fellow Quill Master’s have deemed an appropriate devil’s advocate and mentor.
The Carven
Generally agreed to be more myth than truth, the Carven’s strange markings evoke a resolve unmatched. They serve no governing body, and most seek to carry on the ideology behind their scars by taking on a curious ward.
The Martial Paths
The millennia’s plague of war seemingly cured, have embedded into Attovian culture, the sense of Martial prowess as an enviable and even holy pursuit. Monstrous shores, and tides of danger continue to encourage the development of these arts. Mercenary groups, bored militaries, and the individually passed on skillsets contribute to the scattered fighting forces that draw a line between civilization and the chaos of old.
The Guides
Occasionally, the path one walks is beside others so as to aid them in their goals. This does not mean they lack a motivation or profound calling. Often such guides seek to aid the world in some way by picking individuals they believe can help or harm it. It is their job to lead and support such figures to ends which they believe are a good. This good is of course subjective to the beholder of its values, guides are not strictly benevolent wise men that heroes inevitably find on their journey. They may be, by proxy, the downfall of evil nations, eradicator’s of species and defeater of gods.
History of Attovia
A continent that until recently knew nothing but strife and darkness for many millennia. The Great Conflict left a populace forever at war with the sea. Floods of horrific Monsters clambered out of the sea foam, through the halls of the Goweh, and spread calamity to every people. The rise and dominance of The Hebdomad still leaves its vestigial corruption in many who walk the continent.
After a major collapse in civilization it was in large thanks to the rapid progression of Meyda-work and magical research by which society rebounded, binding The Hebdomad, and rebuffing Graskoroth’s grotesque hordes to the Grask Forest and Attovia’s coasts. Finally, society itself began to play catchup, city states and organized religion rose steadily out of a culture of destructive progress.
With the eventual development of proper politics came the advent of proper war. With the lessons of the Times of Sorrow but mere mythology, the sentient takes up arms against his own kind for pride, land, religion and wealth, and the Age of Nations begins its turbulent cycle. In its almost three thousand years of history countless nations and city states rise and fall at the whims of mortal thought. Religious structures gain substantial momentum as the Contracts made with deities provide a boon to the military minded. Many such power dynamics remain to this very day, the Zoher theocracy the most old and notable.
The Magic War
As the seesaw of progress tilts back towards Meyda-work, the Age of Nations culminates in the aptly named Magic War. The casualties accrued by almost every country exceeded the total recorded casualties of all other wars during the Age of Nations combined. Lasting a full decade the Magic War left the Attovian Continent forever changed. Entire peoples were all but wiped out, and the previously diverse borders consolidated heavily as winner and loser alike held allies close to lick their wounds.
Time of Rest
The modern Era of Attovia where a four century long implicit peace rests gently over the land. A new, tense feeling of the inevitable has crept under the blanket however, it whispers in the ears of the Houses of Helva. Its forked tongue tickles the Ornsiire Emperor’s cheek, and The Table of the Zyclester Empire requires little encouragement. The spoils of war have never looked so tempting.
Sovereign Lands and Distant Homes
Across the Attovian Continent an eclectic people make their habitats in many varying cultures and environments. Here you will find a quick synopsis of each of the many nations that call Attovia home.
Zoher
The oldest nation on Attovia by far if one counts out the tribal societies of Strana Gigantov and the Giravian Archipelago. Run by The Head Priest of the Church of Hormus and dedicated to their deity the strange and compelling practices of sacrifice can be seen everywhere. Sundered Priests can be found in every city, their irreparably damaged bodies a miracle of divine rituals.
The very nature of its leader makes Zoher one of the least corruptible systems of government on the continent. Instead Zoher’s corruption hides in the smiles of the dejected Natush and wealthy aristocrats.
Shen Dynasty
The once long oppressed Gnomes make their home in a portion of the frigid north granted them by Zoher a thousand years ago. Four families actively clash in an internal war of politics and backstabbing. The wise and peaceful Chao, the near extinct Wei, an angry and dangerous Fu, and that family who’s moniker adorns the nation itself: Shen.
A strange history of political maneuvers placed the Shen clan in power and simultaneously built the nation into a baking powerhouse. The Shen Dynasty has a viselike grip on the industry of baking, having trained and released their best into the continent who have little formally trained competition.
Any settlement in the landlocked nations of Attovia with a population in the hundreds or more likely has a bakery, and the odds are 10 to 1 that its run and operated by Gnomes.
Zyclester Empire
Forged in the Magic War, the Zyclester Empire is a nation of technological prowess and progress. Run and operated by members of the Table; theoretically merit based positions spanning the spectrum of what a large government might need. The great Zyclest University in their capital Zyclest City continues to push the empire to the forefront of Meyda-work research and development.
Zyclestian streets are kept safe by the notoriously effective Chain Keepers. An extremely organized group of law keepers who use imbued chains to fight and subdue criminals with remarkable efficiency.
Kingdom of Helva
An elected monarchy built by taking advantage of the confusion in the year following the end of the Magic War. Diplomatic espionage and social engineering turned many city states and disgruntled cities into a single united nation. Their capital Waterhelm, built after the countries inception reflects their focus on order and efficiency.
Claskaria
Claskaria takes up the primary area where the Dragonborn make landfall. Those who are not born naturally on the continent are sent by Hikari via an egg cast from Yähti at unimaginable speeds. A strange jungle of a freemarket exists under the pillowy thumb of the Kochavist religion; a strange belief system that prioritizes freedom above all else.
Run by the Divine Star, their Kochrêa and a rag tag group of assistants the government is extremely lax. As much of a dream this can be for the average citizen, it is a pot of unguarded gold to the cults and spurned aristocrats of Attovia. Peoples unwelcome or unhappy with societal law elsewhere can go relatively unpoliced and unpunished.
Daurk Brionnaigh
Across the Twilight Desert near the southwestern most corner of Attovia stands a tall, proud mountain known to all as Darkmount. Here live the great craftsmen of the Rugadh Sliabh, overseen by The Council of Elders the nation of Daurk Brionnaigh runs quite smoothly. Long since shunted from the belly of the rock they dwell on, their focus is the fulfillment of outside orders, exporting their unrivaled works in return for all manner of needs and luxuries. And though the Master Cruthman forges the first blade, it is the Béal Brionnaigh taught by the Scríob that belches forth the hundred replicas laid out per the contract signed. The Craft Mind under miles of rock is the last hand to touch each exported treasure.
Ornsiire Empire
An empire forged from a single city state by the hand of Gnaeus Metellus through militarization and a heavy hand. This trend has continued through their growth and can be seen in their governing hierarchy, based around the number of troops a given lord can muster at any given time for their Visare.
Their border with the Western Wastes has spawned the only two functional mercenary companies of the continent. The Silver Swords and the Mun Blades. Each companies history is unique, but their finalization speaks to the necessity they served protecting the eastern border of Ornsiire thousands of turns ago. Though opposed to each other structurally, the two share a general kinship and friendly rivalry, staying out of one another’s way where possible, and taking no grudges when exchanged blows were met with proper payment.
Beleg gúl
Half the eastern coast belongs to the Elves. They have named their territories Beleg gúl and have built a large buffer of control around the beacon of their nation. The Ambar Tree, an unfathomably colossal living organism, stretches multiple miles into the sky, providing space for several layers of society to live within it, their height within the tree directly correlating to their class and social standing.
The brilliant gold of Ambar Flowers contrasts unfortunately with the muck and grime of the southern border many miles away. A battle line of slaves and half-bloods fight a never ending war with the spawn of Graskoroth who find their way north after making land. The beautiful Ambar Forest does not show its face here, where the blood, mud and gore have emulsified into a singular foul mass, the stench of which clears wildlife off for tens of miles.
Giravian Archipelago
A strange, and unknown anomaly has made the waters surrounding the tiny islands of the Girav gel the only nautical safe haven the continent has ever seen. Even the most well guarded port town would pay a kings ransom for he security in which these large aquatic people make their culture. Little of their ritualistic tribal warfare is understood by outsiders, but the habitants of the Giravian Archipelago couldn’t be happier. They live a strange and simple, but arguably beautiful life here, and seek not the luxuries of other nations.
Strana Gigantov
The ice and wind of this northern territory is so constant and disruptive, that the number of non-natives who find their way behind its borders can be counted on one hand in a given turn. For this reason the culture and habits of the Yewdi and Tréigtheoir Sliabh are unfamiliar to the masses. Even in Attovia’s age of progression information regarding Strana Gigantov remains an untenable mixture of legend and historical truth.
Attovian Culture
The Pantheon
Whether in the public Temple of the Church of Hormus, or the secluded commune of the Cult of the Kraken, many gods are worshiped on Attovia. Though they do not show themselves commonly to the mortal, their presence is undeniable, and the boons granted to those who worship remarkable.
Deities are generally sorted into three broad spheres. Pure, Corrupt, and Neutral.
Pure deities reflect a benevolence of some kind, either towards sentient creatures or the natural world. It is believed such gods and goddesses have the greater good in mind at least when they enact their will upon the world.
Corrupt deities are antagonistic towards the Attovian populace or the biomes it hosts. Though not always, corrupt gods and goddesses often directly oppose one or more pure deities. When they enact Workings in the world, the end sought is that of greed, malice, or wrath.
Neutral deities come in two verities. Those who abstain from impacting the world and lives of Attovians, and those who’s actions do not portray a consistent temperament or goal.
Hormus
A pure deity considered widely to be responsible for all sentient groups of life. He is often considered to be a parental or grandparental figure to races and the creator of the Roeh. Described most commonly as a colossal stone giant with a sacrificial love for his creations, he now lies in still living pieces across the continent, most notable being his eye.
Aspects
Among the general populace and unorganized Hormus is the god of Sacrifice and Healing.
The Church of Hormus assigns a unique aspect to each of Hormus sundered parts:
- Eye: Healing
- Head: Knowledge
- Arm: Power
- Hand: Protection
- Foot: The Journey
- Leg: Balance
- Torso: Vitality
Graskoroth
The corrupt antagonist to Hormus. Graskoroth is believed to live off the southeastern coast, where his rage continues to spill onto Attovian coasts in the form of True Monsters. Few worship the kraken, for according to legend he is defeated. But cults and individuals still beseech him for power.
Aspects
Graskoroth is said to be the champion of wrath and hate, and the lord of the deep.
The Hebdomad
Graskoroth’s seven corrupt Demon Lords, born of his wrath and corruption to savage the continent with all manner of darkness and disease. Hormus’ sundered state is attributed to the Hebdomad who were then sealed by the Crystal Guard. Despite their sealed state, each is worshiped by niche groups, and some of their abominable creations still walk the material world.
Asthéneia
Corrupt Demon Lord of Disease, Asthéneia is considered the Eye’s opposite by the Church of Hormus. It is believed many illnesses and diseases that exist today were conjured by Asthéneia. They are described as appearing rotten and dilapidated except for their head which hosts a pair of twisting horns.
Aspects
Asthéneia is the spreader Rot and Disease.
Skoteinóti̱ta
Corrupt Demon Lord of Darkness, Skoteinóti̱ta is considered the Head’s opposite by the Church of Hormus. He is rarely depicted at all since it is widely considered a way to let him reenter the world.
Aspects
Skoteinóti̱ta is the hider of Darkness and Secrets.
Fónos
Corrupt Demon Lord of Murder, Fónos is considered the Hand’s opposite by the Church of Hormus. Fónos and Skoteinóti̱ta are believed to be twin brothers who together represent all the evil sentient creatures do in the dark. Said to have been a featureless looking man with a white mask who’s bare hands and feet are always stained with blood.
Aspects
Fónos is the bringer of Murder and Betrayal.
Atonía
Corrupt Demon Lord of Weakness, Atonía is considered the Arm opposite by the Church of Hormus. Atonía’s appearance is the most agreed upon, and is one of the few who’s historical accounts were not solely of oral nature. Atonía is believed to be responsible for large portions of the Tiefling mutations that plague bloodlines, due to an affinity for control over small pockets of civilization. He is described in old writings and even in an ancient stone carving as a massive stag elk that towered over buildings.
Aspects
Atonía is the master of Weakness and Pride.
Akinisía
Corrupt Demon Lord of Stagnation, Akinisía is considered the Foot opposite by the Church of Hormus. Akinisía’s stories to many are the most self-contradicting. Akinisía’s very nature is described as an unmoving mass of flesh rooting those who see it to the spot, but tales of Akinisía are found in almost every culture including the remote Girav gel. Consistently represented in art as a ludicrously overweight genderless being who’s features are lost in fat rolls.
Aspects
Akinisía is the throne keeper of Stagnation and Gluttony.
Kraipáli
Corrupt Demon Lord of Debauchery, Kraipáli is considered the Leg opposite by the Church of Hormus. Kraipáli to much protest of Elves past is often depicted as an alluring Elven woman with kraken like tentacles appearing from under the hem of her gown. Not much is known about her, and oral history seems to dispute amongst itself in regards to her appearance and character.
Aspects
Kraipáli is the queen of Debauchery and Infidelity
Peína
Corrupt Demon Lord of Hunger, Peína is considered the Torso opposite by the Church of Hormus. It appears to historians that Peína’s nature took her all across the continent. Her description is the most twisted of any of her siblings, and remains incredibly consistent. A ceaseless hunger warped her form towards a functionality that left her humanoid origins almost unrecognizable.
Aspects
Peína is the devourer of Hunger and Pestilance.
Hikari
The pure dragon goddess of the Dragonborn and especially Kochavism. It is believed she and her brother live on Yähti and though her light shines on the world, they continue to war for control of the sphere.
Aspects
Hikari is the queen of light and freedom.
Yami
Hikari’s corrupt brother, he vies for control over Yähti and despises his sister and her Dragonborn.
Aspects
Yami is Hikari’s opposite and is the lord of darkness and control.
Krag the Quick
Krag is a popular neutral god for athletes and on more rare occasions warriors. He represents to many a kind of underdog misfit mentality. His story is often held close by those who do not seek to inherit a passion that isn’t theirs. Krag has no organized structure surrounding his worship, but many can be found praying to shoddily constructed shrines all over the continent.
Aspects
Krag is the king of Athletics and the Day Sky.
Lielun
Lielun is a divisive goddess for many reasons. Some sailors swear by her protection, other’s care not to mention her name believing her title a curse on the winds for seamen. In religious circles she is viewed as either the representative of peace, or a traitor to Hormus, having left him in his fight with Graskoroth after being unable to broker any compromise.
Though the Church of Hormus has proclaimed Lielun’s worship to be directly in opposition to them and their god they do not enforce it with a heavy hand. The Krest who are believed to be Lielun’s only creation, are never questioned in their worship, even if it is done in the streets of a Zoher city.
Aspects
Lielun is a neutral goddess of the Night Sky and Weather.
Mammon
If one finds themselves in search of favorable business, a good deal, or falling on hard times, Mammon is a common receiver of their worship. His sphere of influence is smaller than most gods, being effectively unknown to the far west and south eastern portions of the continent. But in the bustling self proclaimed “civilized” nations, he is offered and prayed too almost unceasingly.
Aspects
Mammon is the neutral god of Commerce and Progress
Mordechai
Mordechai is the only deity commonly worshiped who is also believed to have once been human. All manner of Meyda-workers offer up scraps of knowledge to him in hopes for a kind of return-with-interest blessing of some powerful epiphany. To those who know the ways of the Workings well he is quite polarizing. Whatever Contract he signed his Soul to is not something to be envied by the legitimate learner.
Aspects
It is argued over whether Mordechai is a pure or neutral god, but he is agreed to represent Science, and to many he is also the god of Meyda-work itself.
Bara Levatel
Bara holds a strange position in broad Attovian culture. Across all sociological groups his name and general description are the same. A form of black, but not darkness, a tired and firm gait, a presence evoking a melancholic sonder. In addition, a concurrence of attitude towards Bara is found among most, and it is a general disdain or disregard. The few who do worship him are shunned by even the most radical of cults. They have an obsession with death and the afterlife that is considered uncanny and against nature.
Aspects
Bara is the god of death, to some decay, and most agree is he who moves one’s Soul on to the next world.
Aoire Sléibhe
The pure Roeh who is believed to have created the Rugadhians. From Rugadhian texts it appears Aoire was small for a Roeh, made entirely of crisscrossing ore veins and covered in eruptions of gemstone growths. Aoire created the Rugadh to help fight back against the streams of True Monsters that poured fourth from the Goweh. If the stories are true this makes the Rugadh the only sentient race on the continent fashioned, effectively from nothing, by a god other than Hormus.
Aspects
Pure god of stone and metalworking, he is also considered the god of craftsmen by the Rugadh.
Pastukh Pecci
This pure Roeh is rumored to still walk the tundra of Strana Gigantov. The Yewdi and Theoir Sliabh tribes who tell stories to those of the central continent claim that on rare clear days they have seen Pecci’s massive form pass between distant hillocks. He aid’s those in the most need, and many Snow Readers believe that the divinations they are granted come directly from Pecci.
Ask any Yewdi, Pecci glows red with an intense heat and his eyes flash a golden dawn. Though inconsistent they all claim he stands at a colossal height.
Aspects
Pastukh is the pure god of heat and snow.
Şivan Rêk
The pure protector Roeh of the Girav gel, and their land far to the west. A massive giant covered in a semipermeable barrier of water that encapsulated his colorful, reef-on-legs figure. The Girav gel believe it is thanks to Şivan that the oceans that surround their civilization are astonishingly safe. His force during the Girav gel’s time fighting monsters on the mainland has struck a permanent fear into the hearts of True Monsters who might seek to harm his people.
Aspects
Şivan Rêk is the pure god of tides and uncorrupt ocean life.
Dia na Péisteanna
Few but True Monster tribes appear to worship or ever mention the name of Dia. It has fallen into a general obscurity for the layman, only the scholarly, and distant Rugadhians have consistent knowledge of it and its role in hewing the Goweh with a mouth that ground all that entered, flesh, bone, stone and iron. The common mythology states Dia was defeated and killed by the ancient Rugadh Sliabh warrior Master Órlaith Laochra, this has largely dissuaded potential leaders and groups from forming substantial liturgy or doctrine around it due to its relatively unknown state.
Aspects
Corrupt worm god of the Goweh.
Trebulance
Trebulance occupies a strange space in the cultural zeitgeist of Attovia. Generally considered to be a god no one should worship, but not caricaturized as malevolent either. He is a prankster, perhaps a ne’er-do-well, and fond of cruel jokes, but Trebulance has also been found to grant small kindnesses and gifts to people in need. Thus it is simply a wisdom to remain distanced from such a chaotic being. One prayer may yield much needed food, and the next day a mysterious, itchy rash.
Aspects
Corrupt god of cons and thieves.
Organized Religions
Common Religious Practices
Zoher Calendar
Zoher Calendar
The planet of Attovia has a very uniform orbit of 350.10 days.
Weekdays
Ambarday
Taken from the elves old calendar Ambar day is the current widely accepted first day of the week. Each year starts exactly on an Ambarday. Except every 10 years in which (last day of the week) occurs twice in a row to account for a noticeable offset.
Slevday
Commonly thought to have originated from the Rugadh Sliabh named after their god Aoire Sléibhe, and slowly mutated over time after being adopted by the Zoher calendar.
Atonday
Also referred to as the day of weakness, this week gets its unfortunate name from The Hebdomad, specifically Atonía Lord of Weakness.
Tovday
Referring to the planets own name, ancient superstition about offsetting the bad luck of Atonday has seeped into the general culture of the continent and thus tovday is a common day for festivals and parties.
Uhrataday
Named after the first ever Head Priest of the Church of Hormus Uhrata Kaikki.
Kragday
Named after Krag the Quick.
Mosday
Long since shortened from the previous Hormusday, Mosday is the seventh and last day of a Zoherian week.
Months
The Zoher Calendar months are taken from the elvish words for their numerical order, keeping things consistent and easy.
Minui
Atya
Nelui
Canthui
Levnui
Enecthui
Othui
Tolothen
Nedrui
Paenui
Seasons
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