Cosmology & Secrets

The Shape of the World

• Cosmic revelation: world served as "egg" for gods who have now hatched and departed

• The Apostasy: Otheidas was a Promethean figure, trying to use the Splendor domain to grow civilization in the Halcyon Domain. But this was never a possibility; he did not know, or refused to acknowledge, that the Halcyon Domain was a mere embryo that the veiled gods were parasitic upon, and would inevitably abandon.

• Ygva’s Plan
• Is collecting blessed branches, and other Splendor-touched artifacts to attempt to lure back and trap the gods.

Splendor Domain:

• The gods' own magical domain, their essence

• Largely absent from the world now because the gods departed

• What little remains are "vestigial effects" - echoes, remnants, old practices

• Sylvie accidentally learned to tap into these remnants when rebuilding her magic

Dread Domain:

• Associated with the Umbra

• The magic that witches use (hence their stigmatization)

• The "dark" counterpart to Splendor's divine light

• THIS is what filled the void in Sylvie when Ygva took her Splendor

The Umbra crisis is happening because the gods took their Splendor with them when they left, creating a vacuum that Dread/Umbra rushed to fill,

The Moon Connection: Linked to Kreth (dark god of predation, long night, deception). The Moon rune "Jara" is Ygva's rune.

Key Cosmological Points

1. Concentric Sphere Structure (Jules Verne style)

• The world is the interior of nested spheres

• The "sky" and "stars" are the underside of the next concentric layer

• Multiple eggs exist as different worlds

• Higher dimensional spheres represent new developmental stages

2. Ontogeny Recapitulates Phylogeny

• What inhabitants perceive as "history" is actually embryonic development

• Titans = skeletal framework (early development)

• Gods = organs/systems forming from that substrate

• Mortals/civilizations = late-stage cellular differentiation

• The "hatching" = cosmic entities reaching maturity and breaking out

• Current inhabitants are afterbirth—used-up developmental tissue

3. Splendor Magic's Origin (The Apostasy)

• Otheidas (god-king) was not part of the original clutch

• He wrestled with a developing god (Jacob and the angel) and drew blood

• That divine blood became the blessed branches

• ALL Splendor magic derives from this cosmic theft

• Otheidas tried to prevent birth/keep gods perpetually gestating

• It was always doomed—birth happens whether you want it or not

4. The Moon

• A hole into the next earth/dimensional sphere

• Not an object in the sky but a rupture between realities

• Sylvie's Splendor magic is gone because that chunk of earth literally exists in another dimension now

• She can't access it because it's in a different ontological plane

5. Societies as Proteins

• All civilizations, settlements, factions serve functional purposes like proteins in cellular development

• Temporary structures performing tasks during gestation

• Not conscious of their true purpose

6. The Umbra is Entropy

• Not evil or corruption

• The Second Law of Thermodynamics

• Inevitable disorder in a closed system after the organizational energy (gods) departed

• The pyres burn stolen divine energy to locally decrease entropy

• It's an unwinnable fight against physics itself

7. No Access to the Beyond

• No one can access or understand what "adult" stages, meaning, or procreation are for these cosmic entities

• The nature of existence beyond the outermost shell remains unknowable

Distribution of Ancestries

Setting Secrets — GM Canon

Setting Lore (GM Secrets)

The Umbra - Deeper Truths

The Umbra is not merely a realm of darkness—it is a source of power that connects to the old gods. Witches who draw from it gain abilities that mirror divine power but at significant cost. The corruption spreading from breaches like the one beside Drosven's Gate's plaza suggests the boundaries between worlds are weakening.

Ygva's True Plan

Ygva seeks to gather remnants and totems of the gods to bind them in the World Below. She has recruited Sylvie as a "sister" in this endeavor, recognizing her Umbra abilities. Key elements:

• Collecting god-essences from various sources
• The Askavir heart contains potent Splendor magic
• Sylvie's heart may be among offerings for the gods
• The binding would fundamentally change the world's divine order

The Old Gods - Hidden Knowledge

Tlellic (God of Predation)

• The Askavir is his mount/avatar
• The Moon Rune symbolizes false hope and paralysis of thought
• Connected to the predatory cycle of the world

Mollthain (The Rampart)

• Left great creatures in Grithmaar Deep
• One such creature destroyed Jamal's village
• These creatures serve as guardians or weapons

Otheidas (The God-King)

• Relics protect against divine powers
• Draz's amulet is one such relic (ineffective against Umbra magic)
• Sylvie possesses a circlet associated with him
• Connected to the Celsians and their knowledge

The World Below

A barren expanse devoid of life beneath the surface world. Key features:

• Abandoned settlements
• Titans transporting massive rocks
• Stronger lunar augmentation for Umbra magic
• Potential prison for bound gods

Kelun and the Stone Beings

Kelun is a figure of divine authority connected to stone constructs:

• Sensed a connection to Heyou
• Expressed disappointment over the destruction of the Sacred Tree
• May represent an aspect of the old divine order
• The Living Fortress and Stonewraiths are related entities

The Heretic Marks

Both Draz and Jamal bear heretic marks:

• Draz: Inner bicep, concealed carefully
• Jamal: Right buttock

The marks identify them as heretics to something—likely religious or social order. The nature of their heresy and who hunts them remains to be explored.

Heyou's Origins

Heyou is more than a simple clank:

• A sigil on his chest indicates specific origins
• Kelun sensed a connection to him
• Ygva recognized him and could summon his detached leg
• A circlet matching his sigil exists among artifacts
• May be connected to the creation of new beings

The Sacred Pyres - Mechanics

The pyres are more than magical fires:

• They anchor the barrier against Umbra
• Require Blessed Branch from sacred trees to rekindle
• Connected to the divine order (trees guarded by beasts)
• Their extinguishing may be coordinated (the emergence at Drosven's Gate)

Faction Secrets

The Dimmers

• Criminal network with extensive reach
• Heyou is a member
• Borek operates in Ulmira's Step
• Trade in valuable goods including Askavir eggs

Goblin Engineers

• Highly organized, not savage raiders
• Build fortifications and use explosives
• Corrupted by Umbra influence
• Defend territory in the caverns

The Celsians / Celsian Athenaeum

• Scholarly institution with arcane knowledge
• Tamber is a former initiate
• Knowledge of Otheidas and protective relics
• May have information about the gods' binding

Historical Timeline

The Age of Titans

• Predates known history
• Features throughout the Halcyon Domain demonstrate that titans must once have been present
• The titan skeleton near Ulmira's Step has been dead since at least the Apostasy
• Titans observed transporting massive rocks in the World Below

The Apostasy (~100 Years Ago)

• The gods left the world
• The region was formerly known as the Halcyon Domain; no one now refers to it as such
• Around the same time, settlements began crafting sacred pyres, lit by Blessed Branches
• Umbral shadow has threatened all areas not graced by sacred pyres ever since
• Horrifying monsters lurk in the dark beyond pyre-light
• Death now risks blighting the soul, sometimes causing the recently deceased to threaten their former communities

Recent Events

• Something caused the pyre in Drosven's Gate to spontaneously go out
• The cause is unknown, as is whether there is precedent

Magic Systems

Aetherweave (Wizards)

• Source their magic from the vestiges of the Veiled Gods
• Some communities distrust this tradition

Umbral Magic (Witches)

• Used by witches who draw power from the Umbra
• Some communities distrust this tradition
• Ygva describes the gods as monsters and seeks to bind them

Blessed Branches

• At least one tree source exists
• The cause of their magic is unknown
• Their power in keeping the Umbra at bay is undisputed
• Required for starting sacred pyres

Stone Constructs

• Once served as mouthpieces of the gods
• Kelun is the primary known example

Sylvie's Stoneweaver Origins

• Originally a Stoneweaver sorcerer from the Stoneheart Peaks
• Stoneweaver order was hereditary, focused on earth energies, harmony, attunement, containment
• Five weavers were active, responsible for the Confluence Ritual:
• Kaelen hoped to seize control over the Earth-Heart; Rhys supported him
• Sylvie had begun to recognize a power within herself connected to "Sister Moon"
• A cataclysmic magical confrontation caused the Sundering of the Stoneheart, destroying the mountain settlement and blasting the peak (and presumably the Earth-Heart) into the sky to join the moon
• Kaelen and Rhys are presumed dead or on the moon
• The other two weavers are presumed dead, lost to the cataclysm
• Sylvie's magic ceased to operate, but she could travel safely in moonlight
• She slowly relearned magic traveling between settlements; some lore related to practices of the old Veiled Gods (Splendor domain) oddly seemed to work, even without divine connection
• Community was built around an ancient magical nexus
• "Sister Moon": She does not understand what this connection has to do with her, but has her theories

Geography Overview

• Sacred pyres keep settlements safe from darkness; they're failing
• Blessed Branches required to rekindle/maintain pyres
• Settlements are scattered and operate semi-independently
• There is/was a vast region called Amber Reach on the western side of the mountains

Plot Hooks for Future Development

1. What destroyed Jamal's village? - A creature of Mollthain in Grithmaar Deep

2. Ygva's endgame - Will the gods actually be bound? What happens then?

3. Sylvie's heart - Where is it? What happens if she gets it back?

4. The Heretic hunters - Who seeks those with the marks?

5. Heyou's true nature - What was he created for?

6. The coordinated pyre attacks - Is someone orchestrating them?

7. The Sundering of the Stoneheart - Are Kaelen and Rhys alive on the moon? What is the Earth-Heart?

8. Sister Moon - What is Sylvie's connection to the moon?