Welcome to Achareon!

Introduction

The Pitch

For decades, nigh on centuries, the people of the Old World fought, killed and slaughtered one another in the name of their chosen deity. What started as a competition between the gods amongst themselves had spilled onto the Mortal Realm and before they knew it, the careful balance of life and death, the circulation of souls, seemed to have suffered irreparable damage. Despite their best efforts to quell the bloodlust of their followers, mankind had been driven to a zealous frenzy against those they deemed heretics. Disappointed, eventually the Old Gods gave up on the world and focused on dueling it out amongst themselves.
However, this abandonment came at a heavy price for the people who had devoted their lives to the service and worship of their chosen deities. The treacherous Old Gods turned their backs on the world, thinking it would simply wither away in little to no time. But even the Old Gods didn't foresee, and didn't care, the sorry state the world would plunge into over the course of The Great Culling, and the torment their forsaken followers were forced to face.
For centuries, all that people expected their fate to be was to fade into oblivion, yet never completely surrendering. And lo', after hundreds of years, the darkness finally subsided in a magnificent show of celestial power, when the one deity who would not see her people perish broke through the darkness that had been cast over the realm; The Goddess of Knowledge, Minerva. Following The Salvation of the world, its people now all hail the benevolence of their savior, Goddess Minerva, and her Libraries have spread across the realm to spread the word of the Lightbringer. However much of that old evils persist and Minerva's power is only able to pull back the dark tides in cycles. The church insists this is because there are unbelievers among the people still, those who would doubt Minerva's intentions, and until all the world praises Her name they can never experience true peace.

You are a member of a ragtag group of adventurers,
making their way to the border town of Vuevecuria where a carnival is taking place. This event, which draws in people from all over the realm, is sure to provide adventurers both opportunities and new connections, odd jobs and long-term employments. Whether your goal for coming here is single-minded or it's simply another stepping stone on your journey, Vuevecuria is sure to provide you with something to remember.
But a word of advice; don't ask too many questions, and if anyone asks,
Praise Our Lady Minerva.

The Setting

Achareon is a dark fantasy world, influenced by Lovecraftian and gothic themes with a Witcher-esque flair. Technology is starting to pick back up but machinery is still mostly in early development. What the world lacks in industrialism however, it makes up in magic.

The world itself has a high contrast feel between the fairly peaceful life within the settlements and the dangerous and dark world that surrounds those settlements, known colloquially as "The Dark Wilds". Considering the limitations the dangers of the world put on the people living in it, most conflicts within cities are typically political in nature and armed conflicts have been rare. Because any hidden resistance groups would have to meet within city limits, under the watchful eyes of the city guard and Minerva's clergy, their ability to mount and organize any large scale coups is severely hindered. The fears of the public concerning the outside world are also a further hindrance, for if the prevailing safety mechanisms were to fall out of place there would surely be an uproar.

Because Achareon is a dark place and the feeling of safety is paramount to its people, it's governed by strict established laws, rules and regulations. Still, its people are not without hope and they have learned to live with and adapt to the prevailing state of the world.

Important Operators

The House Of Minerva

This organization upholds the Tenets of Faith as dictated by Minerva herself. Their influence is felt throughout Achareon, for soon after the age known as The Culling came to an end each settlement quickly found themselves embraced by her acolytes. They've established their churches, the Libraries, in almost every town, city and capital alike, and are ever eager to make sure the people live up to the standards of Her Ladyship. Having recognized the clergy as the acolytes of their savior, the settlements and regions were quick to embrace their wisdom and guidance in hopes of an even brighter tomorrow.

The League Of Masters

A mysterious faction that made its presence known very soon after the establishment of the first Libraries. This organization consists primarily of it's ruling body, known only as The Conclave, and its acting members, known as the Masters. Each Master holds a unique title depicting their area of expertise, and they represent the very best of their respective fields. Considering the wealth of knowledge possessed by those who raise to the level of Masters, it's no wonder people in general highly regard these individuals and raise them above the rest in both respect and treatment. The freedom of movement between the settlements without obstacles, and a steady salary from the seemingly endless coffers of the League are definitely boons sought after by many a layperson, but rumor has it they have a more unified task as well. Whatever that task may be, it's clear to everyone witnessing an acolyte of Minerva and a Master conversing, that there's definite tension between the two factions.

The Wolverines

The Coachmen of the Night as they are also called, The Wolverines act as couriers when something needs to be delivered between settlements and it needs to be delivered posthaste and safely. Whether goods or people, if the price is right one will undoubtedly find themselves a willing courier at the local House of Ahma, the Wolverine headquarters. These men have all received a formal approval from a regional Overseer to practice their chosen profession, after they've displayed sufficient combat and riding skills, as well as general knowledge needed on the road. They also utilize a ranking system, which is defined by personal points. These points are reduced for damaged goods or missed deliveries, slow delivery times or otherwise lacking service, whereas points are accumulated by executing the deliveries in perfect condition and without delays. The higher the rank of the Wolverine, the more one should expect their services to pay, even though they are generally free to price their services as they will.

The Institute of the Magi

The Institute is an organization that deals with rules for the use of magic, teaching the use of magic and keeping tabs on the magic users (a.k.a. magi). Its two operational arms, The Hand and The Inquisition, are its most visible parts of The Institute. The Hand handles the bureaucratic side of things, taking care of license applications and other administrative duties, whereas The Inquisition is tasked with hunting down rogue or unlawful mages as the regional overseers task them.

History of the world

The Old World

Not much is known about The Old World, outside of myths and legends, and some of the teachings of the Libraries. Some old ruins can still be found scattered across the realm but most of those have collapsed and eroded away as well. What is the generally accepted understanding of the events is that people used to worship a whole sleuth of gods and waged terrible wars among themselves in an effort to spread their faith and force others to convert. This, some say, even spread all the way to the heavens where gods joined in on the fighting causing a great celestial war, whilst others claim it was the other way around. Before too long, however, the gods grew tired of the constant warring, and despite their best efforts of demanding their followers to settle down, the bloodlust of their zealots could not be quenched. Eventually this lead to the gods giving up on the world and leaving it to rot and wither away in the dark.

The Great Culling

The sun would no longer grace the world below with its light and warmth, the twin moons no longer offered light in the dead of night and stars were little more than a figment of imagination in the minds of those who were told stories featuring them. Under this perpetual darkness the world suffered a sudden surge of nightmarish monsters and the majority of its population was killed in a short span of time. This was then followed by several hundreds of years of fear and despair during which the number of people slowly diminished ever more. As they realized it was the bigger settlements that saw the most devastating attacks the situation forced them to retreat to smaller and smaller communities and shelters.

The Salvation

As the last morsels of hope were about to leave the remaining survivors, the salvation of all mankind finally arrived. So teach the Libraries that it was the Goddess of Knowledge herself, Minerva, that pierced the dark veil that had been placed upon the world, bringing back with her a day-night cycle and pushing back the monsters with her champions in order for her people to start rebuilding. And from that point onward did the Age of Minerva start, a new hope-filled future for all. Most were happy to simply carry on living and starting anew, even if they could not forget the horrors of the Great Culling. After all, though pushed back, the many abominations that still plague the realm to this day are a constant reminder of those dark times. Some, however, reckon there's more to it than they were told. That the way the monsters systematically decimated their ancestors was too methodical and calculative to be a mere nature driven coincidence.

The Map Of The Province Of Wearyn

Some recurring themes of the world include;

1. The ever-present dangers lurking outside of the settlements, ever recognized and ever feared, and anything that may threaten the peaceful existence of these settlements is typically met with hostility.
2. The always watchful nature of the House of Minerva, acting often either as the legislative body of the settlements or as a significant member of that body, and the power struggle between those ruling and those ruled.
3. Needing to uncover more information than is initially given, because things often aren't what they seem to be at first glance. Knowledge is power and there can never be too much of it.

The Adventurers' Guild

As the roads opened once more in the wake of the establishing of the Wolverines, and more people grew tired of spending their days within the same old walls, many people found in themselves an adventurer. Someone who isn't afraid to head out and journey the dangerous world, help where help is needed and hone their skills on the battlefields as well as the negotiation tables. But this surge of strangers in the typically closed off settlements quickly led to unrest and worries by the locals; after all who might these people be, what did they come here to do and who will pay for the damages they might cause? In order to keep strangers in check and to ensure they behave properly, honoring the peaceful life of the settlements, the Adventurers' Guild was founded. All arriving adventurers are directed to register with the Guild upon entering at the city. This is also the place such individuals might acquire jobs posted by the locals in order to increase their personal guild score, and once the score reaches certain thresholds and the rank-up fee is paid, their rank moves up a step.

Ranking in the Guild grants various benefits:

• Discounts at inns and certain stores as well as additional available stock
• Access to higher paying jobs as the reputation increases
• Access to the forbidden sections of the libraries, as indicated by the rank, as well as overall increased fame in the eyes of the public
  
  

Rank	Title	Gemstone
5	Legendary	Golden
4	Heroic	Violet
3	Revered	Blue
2	Reputable	Teal
1	Acknowledged	Green
0	Neutral	White
-1	Troublemaker	Orange
-2	Wanted	Red

Portlyons

So how, then, are the ranks updated and tracked? This is where the Portlyon medallions come in. Serving a several purposes, such as;

• indicating a person's reputation
• indicating a person's affiliation(s)
• and indicating the presence of magical residue around a person.
• serving as the travel license

The medallion itself is usually worn as a necklace, hanging from a simple chain, and it's main components are;

• the reputation crystal, which is a clear crystal when dormant but reveals the owner's rank when prompted
• the license indicator, which indicates the license type and affiliation under which one travels
• the anigrum engraving, which indicates the presence of magical residue
• the identification number, engraved at the back of each medallion