Champions of the White (Campaign Seed)

Champions of the White

In the Beginning

Millennia upon millennia ago, the Six Presences, gods of gods, those who can create from nothing, came upon the space that is now know as the Four Realms of Existence. To be completely accurate, they are not the only four realms of existence, but for those who live there, they might as well be. The Presences, as they are referred to by those who know of them, are part of an elder race that was present at the beginning of time. It is the duty of their race to go forth and bring existence to the vast nothingness of the Vhale, the empty swirling vortexes of space.

The Presences move out in groups, normally between four and eight. They begin their work by sectioning off their own small area of the Vhale. Within these preset boundaries they are omnipotent and omnipresent. From there they section off large areas, known as realms. These realms all share one or two common attributes. For the Four Realms the factors that separate the realms are: infinite life, infinite death, finite life, and finite death. Within the Realms smaller Planes are sectioned out. These planes have very specific attributes given to them. The possibilities range in an infinite spectrum.

The Four Realms were obviously named for the fact that it is made of four separate realms. As stated before they are broken into one Realm being a place for finite life (The Mortal Realm), one Realm being a place for infinite life (The Immortal Realm), one Realm for finite death (The Dead Realm), and the last Realm being a place for infinite death (The Undead Realm). The Immortal realms houses the various gods, and lesser celestial and infernal beings. The Mortal Realm houses all the races and species that have a life span. When they die they are sent to The Graveyard, where they are held within a plane devoted to the various gods or lack there of. The Necropolis is where the immortal dead, the undead, come from.

The Six Presences created everything within Four Realms. They created, and are required to, everything with a neutral eye. It is the curse of their existence; they are unable to take a side in any qualm, to grant any one side an advantage over another. However that does not mean that if they create something and it evolves and becomes something it was never meant to that they would do away with it’s unfair advantages. The Presences are reluctant to do anything seen as interfering. They will only act if their own existence is threatened, which it just so happens is.

Cosmology

The campaign makes use of extraplanar travel a lot. Of the four realms previously stated the players should be spending most of the time in the Mortal Realm, and because of this it is the only realm I will go into great detail over. The other Realms have the basic idea behind them explained, but they are not as fleshed out as the Mortal Realm.

The Mortal Realm

The Mortal Realm is where life is finite. Any creature that enters the Realm is subject to the damages due to the attrition of time. Even Gods will slowly age and die over time, albeit that it could take thousands of millennia to do so.

The Mortal Realm is made up of sixteen original planes and countless lesser planes. These original planes are the blueprints upon which all the others are based. While the lesser planes may be incorporated, they are not intentionally suppose to be a major part of the campaign. Their existence is enough. The original sixteen are the key to the plot. They will generally be the playing field for just about the entire campaign.

To make the original sixteen planes the Presences worked in teams of two. No pairs were ever duplicated. However when the math is done this only allows for fifteen planes. In truth there are only fifteen planes, and this is the cause all of their concern.

In the original creation of the Mortal Realm, eventually the center plane was needed. The began creating four planes, three acting as gateways to the other Realms, and the last to act as a gateway back to their homeland. Then they created a circle of planes named the Outer-Planes. These Outer-Planes each reflected one of the elemental gods. Within them the Inner-Planes were created. There are only two of these Inner-Planes, one for Law and one for Chaos. With the Gateways, Outer-Planes, and Inner-Planes created, they had exhausted fourteen of the planes they could create. A center to the Realm was a logical conclusion. For this plane the last two presences that have not yet paired happen to be twins. No one had any idea how this would effect the plane; usually twins were separated at birth. None the less the two set about the ancient spell of creation. Near the end, it started to go awry, but it could not be stopped for fear of creating a black hole. What happened instead was almost as bad. The Plane, meant to be Arcadia, was torn into two planes; The Material Plane and Ethereal Plane was created.

The Center Planes

The Material and Ethereal Planes have many things in common because of this. When the maps are compared it can been see that they fit together to make a giant Pangaea. Really the only difference between the two planes are that the reigning gods are polar opposites.

Kor is the evil god reigning over the Ethereal Plane. While he is evil, he is not part of the Black Pantheon, or any other pantheon for that matter. Kor is one of five gods who stands alone. He influences the Ethereal Plane quiet extensively. It is because of him and his followers that most of the Realm considers it a place where evil is born. To tell the truth, will most entities found within the Ethereal Plane are indeed evil, there are outposts of good. In a way it is the opposite of the normal order of things, being good is the primary find with pockets of evil rising up here and there.

Dain is the good god reigning over the Material Plane. While he is good, he is not part of the White Pantheon, or any other pantheon for that matter. Dain is one of five gods who stands alone. He use to influence the Material Plane, creating a naturally good place, although pockets of evil could be found. Law basically ruled and people tried to with one another to obtain their goals. Five centuries ago, however, Dain mysteriously went missing from the Material Plane. This causes mass hysteria among the denizens. Some claimed that their god had died, while others stated that he returned to the Immortal Realm and would be back one day when he was needed the most. In truth he has been banished to a small pocket dimension by the Black Pantheon. He is being kept there to keep him from interfering with their plans.

The Planes are technically different planes, but they lay on top of each other. At the very beginning the actually co-existed as planned but then the ever so slow process of pulling apart began. With the smallest shift the planes ceased to exist together, although travel between the two is very east. The further apart they grow the harder travel is. The pulling apart is extremely slow though. They have only pulled apart one foot since its creation. While this is absolutely no concern for the Mortal Realm, and barely a concern for the Immortal Realm (although both are oblivious to the situation), for the Presences, who live forever, this is a very real concern. Their view and perception of time is very, very different than any other living, or unliving, creature.

The Inner-Planes

The Inner-Planes consist of The Clockwork, a plane dedicated to law and order, and The War of Strife, a plane dedicated to chaos and disarray. They were created as places of origin for chaos and law, they literally emanate from their respective planes. The orbit around the Material /Ethereal Planes at the center. With them being the Inner-Planes, there orbits effect the Center Planes more than the Outer-Planes do. When their orbit brings them close those found within the Center Planes find they are more in tune with that particular side of themselves. As the Chaos Plane moves closer, crime picks up. As the Order Plane moves closer, laws and rules are followed to the letter.

The Clockwork is home to many law bound races. The ant-like race of the Formians call this plane home. This is also a place where benevolent kings and tyrants are viewed as equally good rulers. The people do not care if someone is good or evil, just that follow the rules and stay in there place in society. The Clockwork has a very strict caste system in all societies. The idea that one may rise up and make something of themselves is unheard of. The denizens of The Clockwork are born into their roles and stay there for life. Jails are unnecessary on this plane. Those who break the rules are killed on the spot by any witness, even parents will kill their own children and husbands will kill their wives.

The War of Strife is the plane of Chaos. Laws or rules are unheard of, and the entire plane is constantly in a state of Anarchy. The cold hard rule found here is: if you can’t take care of yourself, you deserve to be taken advantage of. Those who call this plane home will sit back and wake others get robbed and laugh because that person was unable to defend him- or herself. The lack of laws however does not keep civilizations from springing up. Communities are usually kept small, and everyone is viewed as an equal. No one in the community will necessary come to your aid if you are being attacked. However the communities will work on projects together. They will invent new weapons for the entire group, new defensive machines, or even inventions that do not have to do with killing. The way the plane functions however, it harbors the manufacturing of weapons more than anything. Good and Evil both exist on this plane, as in The Clockwork.

The two Inner-Planes have representations of themselves within the Material and Ethereal Planes. They are seen as moons which orbit around the planes and around themselves. They orbit the plane with they same speed and positioning as the actual plane does. The orbit around themselves, giving the moons four “phases” of orbit. There are two positions where they are equal in power and then there are two positions where each moon holds power. They are synced up with their plane. They were originally created as an easy way for those within the plane to know the astrological positioning of these two major influences for magical reasons, allowing great sorcerers and wizards to know when certain spells will gain or lose strength.

The Outer-Planes

The Outer-Planes consist of eight planar bodies that represent each of the eight elemental gods. It is the eight elements that the Four Realms were built upon, and the Elemental Planes, found within the Immortal Realm, produce the raw elemental magic that bind existence together. The other realms all have their access points into and out of these Immortal planes. The Outer-Planes are the Mortal Realm’s access points. The Elemental Planes are all coordinated towards the neutral alignment.

The Blazing Phoenix is the representation of Plane of Fire. It is from this plane that all heat is created. The plane is a fiery inferno because of this. Volcanoes are a common site and things will frequently spontaneously combust. Fire spells gain great power here and water spells are dampened. Creatures that revel in fire are at home on this plane. Without some protection for the fire, heat exhaustion is impossible to escape.

The Blindlight is access point for the Plane of Water. Water is created and cleaned here. The amphibious creatures of this plane are willing to do whatever to protect the lakes, seas, and oceans within the Mortal Realm. They are often found working on other planes, fighting off those that pollute their waters. They can also typically be found setting up devices that clean the water for reuse. They are friends of any sea creatures, and fishing is typically a touchy subject with them.

The Forever Mountain is the manifestation of the Plane of Earth. The entire plane is one huge mountain, with mine shafts and tunnels leading everywhere. It is here that soils are enriched and sent else where. It is also here that earths are maintained. Earth people go out and clean up pollution and contaminations in the earth. They also do what they can to release pressure that builds up within the earth before it creates an earthquake. They are the force the binds the earth together, keeping it from being torn asunder.

The Broken Planet is dedicated to the Plane of Air. The plane is made from floating continents. The plane was created without a solid earth underneath it, and instead of oceans separating the continents it is just empty air and clouds. This plane was the home of the Airship, a ship supported by a giant zeppelin sized balloon, augmented with magic. Here is where air is distributed from, and breezes created.

The Forge is the representation of the Plane of Metal. Every kind of metal ore in existence can be found in vast amounts on this plane, although the ores that are typically rare are still jealously guarded. The Plane of Metal is home to a race of sentient robots, and is a place of great manufacturing. Anything made from metal is made from here in droves. This is also where every piece of metal starts, before it is distributed to the various other planes.

The Timeless Forest is the access point for the Plane of Plant. This plane is a giant jungle and is typically just as wild. Every kind of flora is home here, there are even breeds of sentient plants here. Seeds from this plane find themselves on every other plane in the Mortal Realm. It is also from here that most plants get supplementary nutrients that allow them to grow in places they otherwise could not.

The Thundering Tempus is the manifestation of the Plane of Lightning. This plane is nothing more than one giant storm cloud in the sky. Thunder is a constant ambient background noise. Lightning is the only light and it is frequent, and it is near impossible to keep from being hit for any length of time. Energy that fuels technology everywhere is born and sent out from this plane.

The Frozen Wastes is dedicated to the Plane of Ice. This plane is where coldness originates. Some scientists within other planes in the Mortal Realm have theorized that coldness is the absence of heat, however it is really the presence of coldness. Glaciers and earth frozen as hard as rocks are common place. Snow up to twenty feet deep is not uncommon either. It is hard for civilized life to sustain itself here but there are pockets of civilization here and there. People tend to either live in towns of only thirty people or in cities of thousands. Typically the larger cities are built within mountains to aid in the constant search for warmth.

Like the moons found within the Center Planes, the Outer-Planes also have physical manifestation as a source of astrological tracking of the positioning of the planes, to aid magic users in the casting of very important and powerful spells. They take on the form of eight constellations that represent the Guardians of the respective planes. The Phoenix, for the Blazing Phoenix, The Leviathan, for the Blindlight, The Minotaur, for the Forever Mountain, The Legendary Roc, for the Broken World, The Sentient Robot for The Forge, The Jungle Man, for The Timeless Forest, The Living Storm, for The Thundering Tempus, and The Giant Yeti, for the Frozen Wastes. The various shifting of the constellations tell those who are trained to read them, the positions of the planes, telling them what planes are active and which are dormant. An active plane grants bonuses to spells that deal with the respective attributes of the planes.

The Gateway Planes

The Gateway Planes exist for no other reason than to hold and protect gateways to the other realms. The plane is actually physically connected with a similar plane on the other side in the other realm through a worm hole. Portals on either side of the worm hole grant access and passage through to the other realm. It is the responsibility of the Realm to protect its side of the gate, but the opposite side has been known to help protect the other side, more because they want to have a barrier between them and an enemy.

The Gateway is the plane that houses the portal to the Immortal Realm. Celestial, Infernal, and Demonic forces work in harmony here to protect the gate to their gods. There are fights occasionally but they are quelled fast. The Gatekeepers will kill any mortal trying to pass into the Immortal Realm without the consent and presence of a god.

The Graveyard is the plane that houses the portal to The Dead Realm. The Dead Realm holds all those who have died within the Mortal Realm and is awaiting a new life. They are held within individual planes dedicated to their gods. If they had no god, they are put in a holding pen for those without gods. Special Death Keepers are assigned to chart and file the dead and to manage over them. It also falls to them to watch their side of the portal. Gravekeepers are those who watch the Mortal Realm side of the gate. The biggest threat they must worry about is necromancers coming form the Undead Realm, hoping to recruit.

The Necropolis is the plane that houses the portal to The Undead Realm. The Undead Realm is the dead equivalent to the Immortal Realm, where the gods live forever. Whereas in the Dead Realm they are only dead until they are granted another life in the Mortal Realm, making a circular path between the two Realms, The Undead Realm is for those who die forever. Ancient Lichs, Vampire Lords, Powerful Necromancers, and worse abhorrent sins against nature. The Undead Realm claims guardianship over both sides. This situation makes the Mortal Realm very uneasy, and for a good reason.

The last Gateway Plane is the Portal of the Infinite. This plane is uninhabited by anyone. It is nothing but a vast white emptiness. Only the Six Presences ever go here and that is because it is the portal way back to there original home. No one has ever set foot on this plane, not gods, undead, dead, or living. No one will ever set foot on this plane, because if anyone does, they are completely wiped from existence forever.

The Other Planes

The original sixteen planes are the major planes within the campaign, but they are far from the only ones within the Mortal Realm. There are countless other planes of existence created by the gods from the Immortal Realm and just as many pocket dimensions. These extra planes allow for the players to create characters from any campaign setting they wish. The astrology found within the campaign allows for people from the Forgotten Realms Campaign, those who may have seen Elminister or Drizzit, to mingle with those from the Ebberon Campaign, those who may bear a dragon mark and may follow the silver flame. Any character can be found across the planes, giving the players the option to be whatever they want. This is gives a lot of freedom and flexibility to the DM and Players. DM’s may also use any villain they may want because of this. Whether these other planes simply exist or are actually visited our up to the discretion of the DM completely. For all intensive purposes the original intent was for the other planes to simply exist and to not be dealt with, however the story can be drawn out by using more planes, and it can be shortened by not using others.

The Immortal Realm

The Immortal Realm is home to all creatures that do not fear the effects of age. All celestic, infernal, and abyssal creatures live within this realm on there various different planes. The Immortal Realm is full of history, heroes, villains, and artifacts just as the Mortal Realm is. The only difference is that people do not die here from age; they must be killed or kill themselves. The effects of the Immortal Realm however only go as far as the Immortal Realm. Should for any reason anyone born in the Immortal Realm leave and enter the Mortal Realm, time degrades them as if they were mortal until they leave the realm. This also works in the reverse, meaning that if a mortal ever visited the Immortal Realm, he or she would no longer be subject to the effects of time, until they returned to the Mortal Realm.

The Dead Realm

The Dead Realm is the opposite of the Mortal Realm. In the Mortal Realm people live for a finite amount of time, so in the Dead Realm people are only dead for a finite amount of time. When a mortal dies, his or her soul departs from the body and enters the Dead Realm. From there Death Keepers, special beings granted immmunity from the realm's natural ill effects on the body, greet the spirit and file them away. They have a file on every living organism that has ever lived and died. From initatal entry into the realm they are first recorded as entering. Then they are placed in a holding cell plane devouted to their god. If the mortal did not have a god, or was not capable of having a god as in the case of animals, they are put in a non-descript plane to stay. While in their plane, the spirit is taken care of and may reminisce with anyone else on the same plane. There they wait until the Death Keepers can get to them. Before the spirit is allowed to go back and start a new life, the old life must be documented. The Death Keepers record every small detail from the creature, literally taking the memories out the creature. They then send the spirit back to live a new life. The spirit is born with no memories of anything because they were all removed before re-entry to the Mortal Realm. However, occasionally some things will leave behind an imprint and if a similar event takes place the creature is hit with deja vu.

The Undead Realm

The Undead Realm is the opposite of the Immortal Realm. Where the Immortal Realm is living forever, the Undead Realm is dying forever. Rulers of the Undead Realm consist of Powerful Necromancers, Ancient Lichs, Vampire Lords, and other abhorrent sins against nature. The Undead are spawned and usher forth from this place. They are a giant one minded horde. While there are many different factions inside the Undead Kingdom, they all fight on for the same reason: to recruit everyone into the Undead hordes. Necromancers across the Mortal Realms have begun to preach about the coming of the Undead. They claim the Undead are getting ready to assault the other three realms. First going to the Dead Realm to recruit unheard of numbers then they plan to sweep the Mortal Realms. With the Mortal Realms dead the Immortal Realms would fall very soon after. Most just count there speeches as nothing more than mad ranting, but there may be truth to it, and a small group of people has begun to gather and prepare themselves in case they are right.

Deities

The Presences

The Presences act as the creators of gods, meaning they have the power to basically snap their fingers and create and destroy at will. They are capable of creating whatever they want, whenever they want however the destruction is a little harder for them. The ancient race of Presences have strict rules about the destruction of things. If the thing in question of destruction effects any living thing in anyway, beneficial or detrimental, by its adsence, it can not be destroyed. However, they are allowed to create something for the sole purpose of destroying the item in question. They also are not allowed to interfere with any living thing directly after creation; they must do everything after that indirectly.

There are six Presences that rule over the Four Realms area.

The Presence of Magic, Twix, who is the source of all magic, divine and arcane, for everything. Essentially Twix is the Weave. The Weave is the invisible magical energy that flows everywhere. While a Wizard is made aware of its existence when he or she is taught how to cast spells, he or she never actually sees it. They can feel its presence however, much like a normal being feels the wind. The more of the Weave that they pull into themselves the stronger the spells. Essentially all casting a spell is, is collecting strands of the Weave in one's body, forming the strands into the proper shape, and then releasing the energy. The stronger the spell, the more the of the Weave required by the caster. Twix is the Weave.

The Presence of Time, Daegoth, who is the source of all time. Daegoth is present everywhere at all times just as Twix. He is the entity that allows time to pass. Without Daegoth everything would be frozen in place. In a way of explaining it, think of movement as a product. Each movement or thought costs time to purchase. It is Daegoth that costantly replenishes our reserves of time, and allows us to consistently buy more movements and thoughts. Daegoth is Time.

The Presence of Space, Myreford, who is the source of all space. Myreford is essentially the Vhale. The Vhale is the empty space in between each of the planes and realms. Myreford is that which everything sits in. Without Myreford, nothing would be able to exist, because everything takes up space. Myreford is the Vhale.

The Presence of Corporeal, Svonlen, who is the source of all tanigbility. If Twix can be seen as that which is invisible to the naked eye, Svonlen can be seen as that which is visible to the naked eye. Svonlen is that which allows something to be seen. Svonlen is any and every tangible object. Svonlen is the Tangible.

The Presence of Creation, Vindle, who is the source of all new things. After the iniatial creation of the known universe, the other presence took up other necessary jobs. Vindle was the one who stayed behind and did not take a specialization and continues to create things. He essentially created all living, and unliving, things. Every new thing created is because of Vindle. If new magics or technologies are invented by mortals, really Vindle created it and gave him the knowledge of how to use Svonlen or Twix to make it accessible to everyone. Vindle is the Creation.

The Presence of Knowledge, Glorefeld, who is the rememberer of all old things. Glorefeld is the one being who knows everything that ever was. Glorefeld is the one charged with the entire memory of the universe. The Presences that are granted space are required by their leaders to report how the universe is coming along. Usually one Presence is then charged with the duty of knowing everything there is to know about the universe and reporting back to their leaders. Glorefeld is the Knowledge.

The White Pantheon

The White Pantheon is the old collection of gods that sought to reuite the Omnipotent Pantheon. They fight for good, and made the word White synonymous with good. So when someone says, "We fight for the White," what they are saying is that they fight for the "good side." Although the White Pantheon has long sense fallen apart, the gods that made it up still exist.

Axe’jahl (Neutral Good): The God of Guardianship. The leader of the White Pantheon. Jahl was the lord of Pantheon of the White before he returned to the Hold of the Gods. He resides there now, sworn to protect it from evil until the end of time. The reason he feels obligated to protect the Hold is unknown to all but him and the one he made the Oath to. It was this obligation, however, that the Pantheon of the White fell apart. His leadership was, and still is, unrivaled. All looked to him as a beacon of power and justice. His word was final, and none ever questioned him. He was kind and benevolent and had all of his follower’s love and respect.

Barlye(Lawful Good): The God of Justice. Barlye was Axe’jahl’s second hand man. Barlye kept only a small number of warriors and trained them to be the elite of the elite. They were warriors unrivaled in war. One of Barlye’s troops easily took a hundred demons and devils with him or her when he or she died. Barlye acted as a personal guard and advisor to Jahl throughout the reign of the White Pantheon. Warriors under any god jumped at the chance to be one of his chosen elites.

Yyra(Neutral Good): The God of Life. Yyra was Axe’jahl’s healer and leader of the medics and physicians in Jahl’s army. Yyra’s clerics were known for their skill across realms and ages. Mortals from all walks of life respected the Clerics of Yyra and even the lesser immortals would come to them with wounds in need of healing. If Barlye was Jahl’s right hand man, Yyra was Jahl’s left hand woman. She acted as another advisor and her word carried much weight. To this day, stories of the awesome power of her cleric’s ability to heal are told.

Ferindor(Lawful Good): The God of Duty. Ferindor carried out all the special missions for Jahl. When he needed a message delivered across realms or battlefields, a follower of Ferindor was there ready to go. A follower of Ferindor’s sense of duty is unrivaled. No matter what they make sure their job is either done by them, or if they have absolutely no other choice in the capable hands of someone that can do it. Ferindor followers were legendary in their ability to get any job done no matter what.

Gainthaw(Neutral Good): The God of Agriculture. Gainthaw’s troops were responsible for feeding the massive armies of Jahl. They turned entire planes into farms for the troops and refugees. They were able to produce three times as much food on the same plot of land any other farmer could use. Their animals had more meat on them and their food was more nutritious than any other. The followers of Gainthaw even managed to crossbreed a special plant, long since lost, that upon eating one piece, the eater was able to go without any more food for a week.

Swvial(Lawful Good): The God of Peace. Swvial came in after the armies of Jahl conquered a realm. They were responsible for cleaning up the mess and setting the realm down the right path. They reorganized the plane and got it in a working state again. Soon after that is was also their responsibility to see that the realm, in some way or another, was aiding the White Pantheon’s cause. Her followers buried the dead bodies, cleared broken debris, feed the hungry, clothed the naked, preached the good name of Jahl, and reorganized the former governments that existed before the Black Pantheon’s intervention. They were renowned for their generosity and helpful natures often go far above and beyond what their god asked of them.

Glimmerspark(Neutral Good): The God of Fabrication. Glimmerspark was also known as the god of the forge, the god of manufacturing, and the god of creation. His followers created any and everything needed by the troops. Their armor and weapons were, and still are, unparallel by mortal work. They could create anything better and faster than others. They were also known as unrivaled engineers, creating some of the more helpful inventions still used today. Their machines and equipment still survive the test of time. Any piece of there work, which clearly has the insignia of Glimmerspark, sells high anywhere.

Viqwidis(Neutral Good): The God of Courage. Viqwidis’s troops made up the brunt of Jahl’s army. A single one of her troops would make a courageous act worthy of ten men. Her troops knew no fear. They fought and died valiantly. They were undaunted by superior numbers or might. They happily fought and died for the White Pantheon’s cause. Any soldier that found himself near one of her clerics found that they had the same courage that the rest of her troops had. While outsiders needed the clerics aura, her troops needed nothing. Most of the legendary stories of warriors taking on numbers and demons much greater than themselves involve her troops.

Luefroth(Chaotic Good): The God of Luck. Luefroth was the head of the spy network for Jahl. While he was the God of Luck, that was but a title. He was renowned for his luck, but he was really the god of all that is roguish in nature. His followers were the best thieves, spies, and assassins around. Luefroth’s luck extended to them as well and helped them complete any and all missions of secrecy for Jahl. His troops occupied just about every known, as well as many unknown, organizations in the mortal realms. It was thanks to Luefroth that many times, Jahl’s troops were able to position themselves in soon to be attacked realms and prevent the deaths of many bystanders.

The Black Pantheon

The Black Pantheon embodies all that is evil. These six gods are feared by all, including other gods. They are the most ruthless and pitiless gods. They made Black and evil interchangeable. To, "Fight for the Black," means that you fight for the old six dark gods.

The Obscure (Neutral Evil): The God of Fear.

The Warden (Lawful Evil): The God of Torture.

The Consumer (Chaotic Evil): The God of Disease.

The Drifter (Neutral Evil): The God of Travels.

The Savagery (Chaotic Evil): The God of War.

The Distortion (Neutral Evil): The God of Mutations.

The Elemental Pantheon

The Elemental Pantheon consists of the eight Presence-chosen embodiments of the neutral elements that hold together the universe. They remain neutral to everything and do their best to keep everything in balance.

Kossuth (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Fire. The Fire manifestation is a Phoenix.

Istishia (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Water. The Water manifestation is a Leviathan.

Gaia (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Earth. The Earth manifestation is a Minotaur.

Werind (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Wind. The Wind manifestation is a Legendary Roc.

Loviatar (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Metal. The Metal manifestation is a Sentient Robot.

Ubtao (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Plant. The Plant manifestation is a Jungleman (like Tarzan).

Talos (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Lightning. The Lightning manifestation is a Living Storm.

Lurue (True Neutral): The Elemental God of Ice. The Ice manifestation is a Giant Yeti.

History

Long ago, all of the gods within the Immortal Realm ruled together under a single entity know as the Omnipotent Pantheon. They did not always all agree, but they respected each other and did what they could to work things out within the council. The gods found within the Immortal Realm count on the worship of the mortals found with the Mortal Realm for sustenance. Without the worship of mortals they would slowly whither away, not dying because they can not die (without miraculous events taking place), but they would continually lose more and more power until they are a useless husk. In this dormant state, they are not even aware of their own existence, however, worship from mortals will bring them out of this state. The dormant state is referred to as “Sleeping” and the act of bringing them back is referred to as “Awakening.” The Omnipotent Pantheon was organized in an attempt to keep the gods from fighting over the worship of the mortals. When a pantheon is formed, any who are worship within the pantheon equally share the power gained with all others in the Pantheon. This meant that all the gods were equal. A easy way to sum things up is that the gods had created a utopian government for their special needs.

It was at the peak of their rule that everything turned against them. The Presence of Knowledge, Glorefeld, came before the Grand Pantheon at their annual meeting of all the gods, a meeting where the entire year’s dealings are reviewed by the entire court. With Glorefeld entrance into the very center of the council the room fell silent. He only said one very ominous thing, “Whoever the Mortal Realm has as a king, shall have their name across the Immortal Realm the same ring.” Upon this one comment he disappeared. The court remained quiet for a long time after his departure. No one knew how to take this news. Although the news was nothing more than a statement of the obvious, many took to calling it a prophecy. Theories behind the true meaning behind, “Glorefeld’s Prophecy,” flew from every mouth. Some claimed that it meant that the Omnipotent Pantheon’s rule was absolute and was meant to stand forever. Others claimed that is meant that it a smaller entity could control the Immortal Realm. Many gods were scared at the thought of the second claim. What would happen to them if some other god took control over all the worshippers? What if the Omnipotent Pantheon all realized that they did not need a certain god? Could they not ostracize him or her and therefore reduce him or her to nothing?

Over time, the Omnipotent Pantheon slowly had many different factions raising up within its walls. Groups of like minded gods started to form together and make demands to the betterment of their own group. The condition of the Pantheon kept degrading until the group called The Elemental Pantheon broke away. The Elemental Pantheon broke off, fearing an oncoming war. They could not be part of any war; they are the forces that hold together existence. This position requires them to be neutral to all. They are not allowed to show favor to any one thing or place. If any of them were to lose their power, very bad things would happen very fast. However it was their leaving the Omnipotent Pantheon that sparked the leaving of many other Pantheons.

With the sharp influx of groups, a horrible territory war broke out. Gods fought gods for land and for worshippers. The Mortal Realm suffered horribly because of this. Clerics lost their divine powers, fore their gods called back all there power in order to fight one another. Followers and Cultists began to fight amongst the Mortal Realm for their gods as well. Eventually the war spilled over from the Immortal Realm to the Mortal Realm. Gods began to take on physical forms within the Mortal Realm. They did so to help their followers eradicate the followers of other gods, an easy way to incapacitate a god.

Many new off shoot planes were created in order to house the new gods. During these times mortals feared for their lives. Many people refused to worship gods, claiming they were destroying their homes. Others saw this as the end of times and worshipped their gods even more vehemently.

While all kinds of different pantheons fought for followers and land, two pantheons rose above the rest. The White Pantheon was a collection of good gods that fought for the protection of the mortals. They would come into a plane, fight off or assimilate any gods there, and rebuild it to a better state than it was before the war. The White fought for a return of the Omnipotent Pantheon. The other rising group was the Black Pantheon, a collection of evil gods who fought for nothing more than death and destruction. They went out meaning to conquer all and make them submit to their will. They took to calling their mission to fulfill Glorefeld’s Prophecy as the Black Crusades.

The White and The Black fought across planes all over the Mortal Realm. The White would move into territory and rehabilitate it to its former glory, while the Black would watch planes burn. More than one plane was destroyed by their hands. The White eventually began to push the Black back. Over time the White had them pushed back into submission, with them only inhabiting one plane. Before the final epic battle that would finish the wars forever, the leader of the White, Axe’jahl, left the pantheon and retreated to a place unknown to all. His departure was sudden and unexpected. He was a grand leader and the one unifying factor for the White. Before the Black could be eradicated, the White fell apart do to fighting amongst itself. The territory was divided up and many planes were shut off from the rest. After extraordinary amounts of time passed, the gods began to return to the Immortal Realm, assured that their territory in the Mortal Realm was safe. The war was forgotten to the mortals and many immortals forgave others for their war crimes.

The Black was forgotten to most. There were still evil gods, but the Black was not heard of for some time. Recently however, they have returned and with a new vigor. Not that many have forgotten Glorefeld’s Prophecy they are meeting little resistance on their war path across the Mortal Realm. Many planes have fallen to them already and the gods are beginning to notice a degradation in there power. However the gods are refusing to rise up against them in a unified effort. While they forgave each other for the war, many still held things against each other. No one is willing to work with one another and it looks as if the Black will prevail. They are getting nearer and nearer to the original sixteen planes every day. Should they fall, the rest of the Realm would go down even faster. The Black Crusades have started again.

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