Coin
world's okayest lobotomite (they/them)
OBSCURIA
Pray as you might, pray as you will
The hunters will catch you still
Pray as you might, pray as you will
The hunters will catch you still
Setting
Obscuria primarily focuses on the fictional city of Yhark-Disan and its surrounding landmarks. The city itself was once a large population center and trade city before the Sorrows. Now, its streets are prowling with danger, with pockets of surviving denizens barricading themselves in the labyrinth of buildings. A great many resources are trapped in the city, if only they could be reached.
Outside the limits of Yhark-Disan are equally dangerous. The countryside is plagued with great swarms of ravenous insects and rats that grow fat with the mass rot. The woods lurk feral Moonfallen predators. Bandits and raiders stalk the roads in hopes of procuring an easy meal. Only few places of serenity remain where the Sorrows have not been.
---
The Sorrows
The Sorrows began when the moon fell.
The First Sorrow was the Ever Blackness -- where night skies once were adorned with twinkling stars and the silver moon, only an abyss of darkness remained above. Even the dawns that followed never shone as bright as oft remembered.
The Second Sorrow was the Silver Death -- a plague that shriveled crops, boiled rivers, and rotted men and animals alike. Where cities numbered thousands, only hundreds remained. Where hamlets numbered hundreds, only dozens remained.
The final, and Third Sorrow was the arrival of the Moonfallen -- a terrible and indiscriminate curse upon the living. It begins as incessant whispering in the darkest recesses of the mind, voices of nowhere in origin and nothing in meaning. It evolves into frigid nightmares that wrack the body in fear, so vivid that the hazy line between dreams and reality are blurred. Finally, a transformation of the self. Some become monsters, some begin to fade from existence. Not all retain their sanity.
Without the moon, mankind had lost its direction.
---
The Moonfallen
The Moonfallen are humans and animals warped by the Third Sorrow, possessing supernatural features or abilities. Though anyone is susceptible to the curse, those with faltering hope seem to be more at risk. Once stricken, aberrant voices and delusional hallucinations assail the Moonfallen's conscious and unconscious mind, usually leading to madness. Eventually, they will develop the curse's mutation, which again, seem to be random. A Moonfallen's abilities or mutations often come with glaring downsides that are also case specific. As an aside, Moonfallen can be subdued and even sedated with silver.
Examples of some Moonfallen traits:
Betwixt
The character's body is caught in between the dreamworlds and reality. They are slightly translucent and leave an ethereal trail in their wake. It is easier for them to remain hidden, but their strength over the material world is weakened.
Gemini
The character is spiritually and psychically tied to another character, gaining the ability of limited telepathic communication. The two cannot be separated more than a few meters apart, lest their spirits and minds be shattered.
Moros
The character can detect recent death and suffering. It can sometimes be overwhelming, depending on the slaughter.
Ravenseer
The character has a strange affinity towards communicating and influencing ravens. Ravens are unnaturally smart creatures, and their reliability is a chance at best.
Unshackled
Without the tether of the moon, the character is partially transformed into a beast. The shift is not whole, and only certain body parts are exaggerated. Fangs are elongated, claws sprout from fingertips, eyes become more predatorial. When in peril, animalistic instincts take over.
The mutations of the Moonfallen are theoretically endless, and are never concrete.
---
Equipment
Violence is nearly unavoidable, it is only a matter of when it will happen next. While some Moonfallen posses abilities that may aid them in combat, normal denizens must rely on anything and everything to give them the edge in a brawl. Farm tools, bricks, slings, rocks and sticks are often used items for the common folk. Specified war tools such as swords, crossbows, shields, and armor are much rarer. Pistols and muskets are even rarer, but almost entirely not worth the attention they draw. The utility of silver against Moonfallen has seen the creation of silver weapons and ammunition, when available.
Prior to the Sorrows, gold was much more expensive than silver. The opposite is now true, with silver in incredibly high demand for its influence on Moonfallen people or creatures. Silver coins are used for currency, while things like silver jewelry or silverware are melted down to create more useful tools to be used against the Moonfallen.
Obscuria primarily focuses on the fictional city of Yhark-Disan and its surrounding landmarks. The city itself was once a large population center and trade city before the Sorrows. Now, its streets are prowling with danger, with pockets of surviving denizens barricading themselves in the labyrinth of buildings. A great many resources are trapped in the city, if only they could be reached.
Saintess Lynese's Cathedral - the seat of religion within the city. Once a home for refugees, now abandoned.
Central Market - the cornerstone of trade within the city, where one might find trinkets and baubles left behind by merchants.
The Regency Manor - a grand estate situated near the center of the city, which is still heavily fortified by the Regent's guard.
Public Baths - untouched pools ready for bathing could be used for clean drinking water.
The Old Aqueducts - all manner of trash and refuse flow through here. Treasures could be buried in the filth.
Central Market - the cornerstone of trade within the city, where one might find trinkets and baubles left behind by merchants.
The Regency Manor - a grand estate situated near the center of the city, which is still heavily fortified by the Regent's guard.
Public Baths - untouched pools ready for bathing could be used for clean drinking water.
The Old Aqueducts - all manner of trash and refuse flow through here. Treasures could be buried in the filth.
Outside the limits of Yhark-Disan are equally dangerous. The countryside is plagued with great swarms of ravenous insects and rats that grow fat with the mass rot. The woods lurk feral Moonfallen predators. Bandits and raiders stalk the roads in hopes of procuring an easy meal. Only few places of serenity remain where the Sorrows have not been.
The Parish Church - the first sanctuary for the player characters. Formerly maintained by Atoire, the Church Leper.
The Sword Wood - a vast stretch of forest located a few miles west of Yhark-Disan. It was dangerous even before the Sorrows.
Moonfall Ridge - a mass of glowing rocks that had not been there before prior to the Sorrows. Some believe it is a chunk of the moon. It is the site of strange happenings.
Farmsteads - the rolling farmlands east of Yhark-Disan fed the city and surrounding regions before the Sorrows. They were the first to be looted for clean food.
Chalice Lake - a small lake outside of Yhark-Disan that was once teeming with fish. The water is now unnaturally warm, and even the flies do not devour the dead fish.
The Sword Wood - a vast stretch of forest located a few miles west of Yhark-Disan. It was dangerous even before the Sorrows.
Moonfall Ridge - a mass of glowing rocks that had not been there before prior to the Sorrows. Some believe it is a chunk of the moon. It is the site of strange happenings.
Farmsteads - the rolling farmlands east of Yhark-Disan fed the city and surrounding regions before the Sorrows. They were the first to be looted for clean food.
Chalice Lake - a small lake outside of Yhark-Disan that was once teeming with fish. The water is now unnaturally warm, and even the flies do not devour the dead fish.
---
The Sorrows
The Sorrows began when the moon fell.
The First Sorrow was the Ever Blackness -- where night skies once were adorned with twinkling stars and the silver moon, only an abyss of darkness remained above. Even the dawns that followed never shone as bright as oft remembered.
The Second Sorrow was the Silver Death -- a plague that shriveled crops, boiled rivers, and rotted men and animals alike. Where cities numbered thousands, only hundreds remained. Where hamlets numbered hundreds, only dozens remained.
The final, and Third Sorrow was the arrival of the Moonfallen -- a terrible and indiscriminate curse upon the living. It begins as incessant whispering in the darkest recesses of the mind, voices of nowhere in origin and nothing in meaning. It evolves into frigid nightmares that wrack the body in fear, so vivid that the hazy line between dreams and reality are blurred. Finally, a transformation of the self. Some become monsters, some begin to fade from existence. Not all retain their sanity.
Without the moon, mankind had lost its direction.
---
The Moonfallen
The Moonfallen are humans and animals warped by the Third Sorrow, possessing supernatural features or abilities. Though anyone is susceptible to the curse, those with faltering hope seem to be more at risk. Once stricken, aberrant voices and delusional hallucinations assail the Moonfallen's conscious and unconscious mind, usually leading to madness. Eventually, they will develop the curse's mutation, which again, seem to be random. A Moonfallen's abilities or mutations often come with glaring downsides that are also case specific. As an aside, Moonfallen can be subdued and even sedated with silver.
Examples of some Moonfallen traits:
Betwixt
The character's body is caught in between the dreamworlds and reality. They are slightly translucent and leave an ethereal trail in their wake. It is easier for them to remain hidden, but their strength over the material world is weakened.
Gemini
The character is spiritually and psychically tied to another character, gaining the ability of limited telepathic communication. The two cannot be separated more than a few meters apart, lest their spirits and minds be shattered.
Moros
The character can detect recent death and suffering. It can sometimes be overwhelming, depending on the slaughter.
Ravenseer
The character has a strange affinity towards communicating and influencing ravens. Ravens are unnaturally smart creatures, and their reliability is a chance at best.
Unshackled
Without the tether of the moon, the character is partially transformed into a beast. The shift is not whole, and only certain body parts are exaggerated. Fangs are elongated, claws sprout from fingertips, eyes become more predatorial. When in peril, animalistic instincts take over.
The mutations of the Moonfallen are theoretically endless, and are never concrete.
---
Equipment
Violence is nearly unavoidable, it is only a matter of when it will happen next. While some Moonfallen posses abilities that may aid them in combat, normal denizens must rely on anything and everything to give them the edge in a brawl. Farm tools, bricks, slings, rocks and sticks are often used items for the common folk. Specified war tools such as swords, crossbows, shields, and armor are much rarer. Pistols and muskets are even rarer, but almost entirely not worth the attention they draw. The utility of silver against Moonfallen has seen the creation of silver weapons and ammunition, when available.
Prior to the Sorrows, gold was much more expensive than silver. The opposite is now true, with silver in incredibly high demand for its influence on Moonfallen people or creatures. Silver coins are used for currency, while things like silver jewelry or silverware are melted down to create more useful tools to be used against the Moonfallen.
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