Campaign Brief

Heaviest Inspirations

• The SCP Foundation
• The Kaktusverse
• Pagan belief structure
• Call of Cthulhu era Europe
• Fantasy High (D20)

Introduction

Raghido is fueled by exploration, discovery, and the main characters. There's an overarching 'story' that is happening, but large leagues of it will happen regardless of your participation. Granted, it will still affect the world around you whatever ways it influences; but you can completely ignore it. You will start as employees for the Quicksilver Foundation, and be given tasks by them to complete. Consider them your quest board per the start of a 'traditional' campaign. Because of the events of Godfall, there are touches of modern and even arcano-tech influences within Raghido, mostly limited in the High City, but that is where you guy's live so naturally you are welcome to them during character creation, and will have those options available to you throughout the campaign if you find yourself within the High City. If you are not comfortable with Elves with guns, or magic tablets for communication. or hover-carriages, this setting is not going to grow on you. Most of the premise for this campaign arose from my burnout with traditional fantasy, but still loving it deep down. Why change something when you can just cram it all together and try and figure out some rules that make everything work. Additionally, if you are the type of player who wants clear concise direction, or to be pushed into the plot, I am not the DM for you. I am far more in the boat of 'lets see what these chucklefucks get themselves in to'. That is why I give rewards for players who write session briefs, it gives me an idea of where yours and your characters heads at and what they might want to do in the future, so I can help facilitate that. Part of this endeavor is why I have ran so many one-shots in the setting before starting a campaign. Knowing what the players are interested in outside of their characters helps me expand on the things that pique interest, so when their main characters run in to it they can grasp onto it even harder. 

General Information

On the surface (literally), Raghido is a traditional fantasy world with unexplored dungeons, mystical magics, and traditional villages and towns you would expect in the common era of Dungeons and Dragons. Above the surface, however, flies a city built from the latent magic of dead Gods, hunted down by the remaining dragons to get vengeance on the Gods who sundered them from their immortality  . This floating city, the aptly named High City, is where the campaign starts, and where your PCs will have been working for at least a year. You can learn more about the High City in it's respective article, but important for now is that it is divided into 7 districts, one for each species of metallic dragon. The party will be employed by the Quicksilver Foundation, under the Paragon Initiative.

Timeline & History

Raghido is a fairly young world in comparison to most fantasy settings. The earliest recorded mortal on the Material Plane only goes back to around 452BS, created by Ya'zwen within her magical forest haven which will eventually be known as the Feywild. Those who stayed in the warm embrace of her forest came to be known as the Fey and eventually the Elves. Those who left became Human, no longer bathed in the raw magic of the Feywild they lost their innate magic abilities. As you would expect, a war was inevitable between these two. The second era begins when Envactex slays The Profane Form and in turn all dragons lose their immortality, and fall from their station as Gods. It's not fully understood why Godfall happened, as Dragonkin refuse to speak of the time before it. What little is known is that the Dragons were far more unified before the death of their Elder god, The Profane Form. Their revenge starts in the year 309PS, with the death of the first god; Guihla. Arguably one of the weakest gods due to his followers being wiped out during Dragonfall. The original owners of the flying High City were all Aarakocra and other flighted races, but the dragons instantly sought the city for themselves and wiped out every living creature there to claim it as it's own. Guihla, who had sworn an Oath to protect the city, went into a disgraced hiding and was seldom spoke about until his death in the year 309PS. The Dragons in the High City (in majority, thanks to research done by the Quicksilver Foundation) found a way to located and harvest the corpses of the gods as they float through the Astral Sea, not quite dead, not quite alive. This harvesting allowed them a expeditious advancement in technology, allowing them to tap into the omnipotent omniscience of the deities they have slain and see beyond what exists purely within their own reality. The campaign will start less than 40 years after the first and most recent God death. You can view the Gods page to see who still lives.

Geography

You can view the Material Plane here for a general idea of geography. The plane is shaped like a wide bean: with raised edges and a flat bottom. In the center of the plane is an ever-changing island, Salveritea. The months are based off of it's current elemental form, with each form being tied to a chromatic dragon colour. During it's respective month, dragons will migrate to the island to lay their eggs. Often leaving their offspring in the care of the Kobolds living in the surrounding Basalt Shelf. Around the edges of the Material the ocean freezes over, leaving towering massive frozen tidal waves the prevent travel around to the far side of the Plane. An unmeasurable amount of scholars and wizards have tried to venture to the far side of the plane, with none of them ever returning.

Important Locations

The main cities of each continent are shown on the Material Plane map. The map isn't entirely to scale, nor entirely accurate. As you explore the surface you will find more holds, villages, and landmarks to mark your way. I will leave tracking the information you find in these locations up to you.

Life in Raghido

You can find an interactable calendar here.
The large majority of commoners in Raghido are going through a transitionary period. The Gods played a large part in the majority of people's lives. But now, with over half dead and the other half being fervently hunted, it feels either dangerous or pointless. In the larger cities the temples have all been boarded up or converted to new structures, in the small hamlets they lie either covered in dust or soot.
Due to the difficulty of travel and the young age of the world, there is no "Common". Instead of being proficient in Common, all characters will be proficient in Undercommon, which is instead a Traders version of Thieves' Cant. Due to the simplistic nature of the language, it will effect your social ability with Commoners.
There are, however some widely spoken tongues.

• Adanten, named after the first humans and their royal family; Adante Royal Family of the Old. It is spoken widely across Calvaria, Frysta, and Insidia as well as Polipropateratou on Dueforex, the origin of the language itself.
• Highlar, the common tongue spoken within High City. In the High City, if you are not of pure Dragonkin descent, the punishment for speaking Draconic is to have your tongue burnt out with dragonfire.
• Dreamspeak, originating from The Towers of Glass. It is said to be entirely impossible to learn without mind altering assistance. The spoken tongue is entirely sung, and to communicate the people speaking must harmonize to reach an understanding. Dreamspeak is spoken primarily within Inara & Desco, but has recently found roots in Fumeiryo and Korovuri as well.

Magic, Gods, and the Planes

The response to magic will vary by city and culture. Some cities, like Greenforthe revel in magic and most denizens will have a basic understanding of the arcane, and even a decent portion of the population will know some cantrip level magic. Other cities, like Polipropateratou have a bad history with Arcana and require licenses or outright ban people from using it. Some forms of magic are frowned upon more than others, such as the hemocraft of the Draeva and certain forms of Necromancy.
The denizens of the Material Plane have an understandably rocky relationship with the Gods now, due to the Dragonkin hunting down worshipers in order to lure out the Gods from hiding in order to kill them. Ironically, once a god was dead it became a lot safer to worship them openly, but most still feared a second round of abuse from the High City and it's far more technologically advanced warriors. Clerics of certain deities would often hide their religious affiliations and say they are paladins to avoid scrutiny.
Extra-planar travel is barely understood within Raghido, with the most common Extra-planar travel being to and from the Astral Sea, done exclusively within the High City. Scholars at the forefront of the research are fairly certain that all planes exist on top or below on another, like a stack of books. This theory is supported by Argyroneta, who urged her follows to travel to Salveritea so she could bring them "down safely" to the Nine Hells and protect them. The general consensus is that, while extra-planar travel is possible from anywhere; it is much easier on Salveritea.