Overall theme of Az-Atla
The Realm of Az-Atla feels light, hopeful, and generally mundane. Its people enjoy daily life and there is no sense of foreboding, doom or miasma. As people move away from the seven main cities modern amenities such as steam power, geo thermal power or solar power become harder to maintain and scarce, so a more medieval culture develops.
Az-Atla is a totalitarian civilization. Paragons maintain law and normalcy, and have the power via both magic and technological access to do so with impunity. Many Paragons consider anything that disrupts the peace and lawful lives of citizens a crime.
In general people are ‘happy’ and don’t ask questions when Paragons do their job. Citizens have been oppressed for over 50000 years. Now... under this is a dark hidden layer of brutality, injustice, and inequality.
Many citizens understand this and have developed subtle survival skills to avoid disruption of the civic peace. Some citizens have even found ways to survive in blind spots and grey areas of the law, unimpeded by at the caring hand of the Paragons.
As the creative director of Az-Atla, I am trying to walk a fine line between creating content that is authoritative/canon, and that can also be open enough to be questioned.
The vision of Az-Atla is one where there are secrets so deep that:
No one wants to look at them.
No one wants to confront them.
And ... no one alive may even know them.
Consider the four uplifted races and those races that were not uplifted. Questions can be asked about that situation and each question can be a hook for a petite or grand story. I myself ponder these questions about the races of Az-Atla:
Do the Paragons and the Brotherhood actively suppress/cull other evolved races to maintain the social order of the Realm?
Did the Devouring Mother place genetic inhibitors in the evolved races to prevent them from evolving too quickly?
Why the four races at all? What made them special?
It is my hope that Az-Atla provides enough structure to nurture all manner of stories of a modern theme should that mature content be desired while allowing for fun content, high adventure, and heroics.
If the players/readers follow the lead of the Citizen's of Az-Atla, they will quickly stop asking questions and just enjoy the bounty and glory of the Realm. Or, not. And if not, then want dark unspeakable darkness will they find?
V.
What are the motivations for creating this world?
A desire to create a work of beauty in collaboration with others. A desire to explore a culture that has remained prosperous and safe for an overwhelming amount of time.
What is your genre?
Science-Fantasy
What is the tech level?
This varies based on geogrpraphy. There are six great capital cities that act like technological nodes and one world capital acting as an epicentre for all permitted technological wisdom. Paragons have access to magic and particle weapons. Farmers have access to horse and plow, if they are far from one of the capitals.
What it is the scale of the project?
The world and its moons is the scale. Currently, focused on one continent as the rest of the world geography has been removed from Az-Atla's cultural context through the efforts of the Paragons and the Medicament Brotherhood.
What is mood of the project?
Light high adventure or dark heroic struggle. There are world shaping forces in Az-Atla that can be ignored, if you choose.
What are the themes of the project?
The nature of immortality.
Good and stability are the same.
Evil and chaos are the same.
The ends do justify the means.
Culture is the oppressive weight felt by all whose pressure forges reality.
Futility and sacrifice.
Facts do not equal Truth.
Corruption of a person's morality and redemption.
Multigenerational consequences.
Racism and privilege.
Paradox.
What are the major conflicts?
The Paragons and the Medicament Brotherhood are the two organizations which control the Realm of Az-Atla. The play between them can be explored. The interaction between the morality of the player character's and the practice and policy of either organization can be explored.
If that is not something of interest, then there is the conflict of wild vs civilized as players explore the regions of Az-Atla that are more frontier then civilized.
There are the various guild organizations which can be explored as well, or any conflict related to civilized places. Murder, crime, political maneuvering or some such.
And finally, there is the mystery of the Devouring Mother and Az-Atla itself.
Az-Atla is a totalitarian civilization. Paragons maintain law and normalcy, and have the power via both magic and technological access to do so with impunity. Many Paragons consider anything that disrupts the peace and lawful lives of citizens a crime.
In general people are ‘happy’ and don’t ask questions when Paragons do their job. Citizens have been oppressed for over 50000 years. Now... under this is a dark hidden layer of brutality, injustice, and inequality.
Many citizens understand this and have developed subtle survival skills to avoid disruption of the civic peace. Some citizens have even found ways to survive in blind spots and grey areas of the law, unimpeded by at the caring hand of the Paragons.
As the creative director of Az-Atla, I am trying to walk a fine line between creating content that is authoritative/canon, and that can also be open enough to be questioned.
The vision of Az-Atla is one where there are secrets so deep that:
No one wants to look at them.
No one wants to confront them.
And ... no one alive may even know them.
Consider the four uplifted races and those races that were not uplifted. Questions can be asked about that situation and each question can be a hook for a petite or grand story. I myself ponder these questions about the races of Az-Atla:
Do the Paragons and the Brotherhood actively suppress/cull other evolved races to maintain the social order of the Realm?
Did the Devouring Mother place genetic inhibitors in the evolved races to prevent them from evolving too quickly?
Why the four races at all? What made them special?
It is my hope that Az-Atla provides enough structure to nurture all manner of stories of a modern theme should that mature content be desired while allowing for fun content, high adventure, and heroics.
If the players/readers follow the lead of the Citizen's of Az-Atla, they will quickly stop asking questions and just enjoy the bounty and glory of the Realm. Or, not. And if not, then want dark unspeakable darkness will they find?
V.
What are the motivations for creating this world?
A desire to create a work of beauty in collaboration with others. A desire to explore a culture that has remained prosperous and safe for an overwhelming amount of time.
What is your genre?
Science-Fantasy
What is the tech level?
This varies based on geogrpraphy. There are six great capital cities that act like technological nodes and one world capital acting as an epicentre for all permitted technological wisdom. Paragons have access to magic and particle weapons. Farmers have access to horse and plow, if they are far from one of the capitals.
What it is the scale of the project?
The world and its moons is the scale. Currently, focused on one continent as the rest of the world geography has been removed from Az-Atla's cultural context through the efforts of the Paragons and the Medicament Brotherhood.
What is mood of the project?
Light high adventure or dark heroic struggle. There are world shaping forces in Az-Atla that can be ignored, if you choose.
What are the themes of the project?
The nature of immortality.
Good and stability are the same.
Evil and chaos are the same.
The ends do justify the means.
Culture is the oppressive weight felt by all whose pressure forges reality.
Futility and sacrifice.
Facts do not equal Truth.
Corruption of a person's morality and redemption.
Multigenerational consequences.
Racism and privilege.
Paradox.
What are the major conflicts?
The Paragons and the Medicament Brotherhood are the two organizations which control the Realm of Az-Atla. The play between them can be explored. The interaction between the morality of the player character's and the practice and policy of either organization can be explored.
If that is not something of interest, then there is the conflict of wild vs civilized as players explore the regions of Az-Atla that are more frontier then civilized.
There are the various guild organizations which can be explored as well, or any conflict related to civilized places. Murder, crime, political maneuvering or some such.
And finally, there is the mystery of the Devouring Mother and Az-Atla itself.
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