Cosmology (Doctor Who)
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For every world of science fiction, you need a good cosmology.
The Planets[edit]
Beyond the boundaries of the Earth await peril, power, and adventure unimagined. Romans brood in the misty of caverns illuminated by dancing auras of a gladiators sword. The titanic sphinx half buried in white sand guards the gates of a forgotten ruler's ruined domain. Hooded assassins glide silently through the streets of a city perpetually veiled in shadows. Deadly aliens brood on thrones of skulls in the terrible depths of the Nether Realms, plotting the destruction of the Earth and the ruin of all. Welcome to the planets. Great heroes face quests that require them to venture into the far corners of the cosmos in search of lore and treasure forgotten in Earth. The boldest heroes are called to fight their battles across many different planets, and venture into dimensions where few mortals have ever dared to go. Other heroes venture into the planets for nothing more than the desire to see wonders unimagined. To those who have studied their secrets, the planets offer infinite experiences and possibilities.
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Although many planets are impossibly distant from Earth, Earth is riddled with rifts in the fabric of reality and hidden doorways. Volcanoes on Earth spew magma and burning ash from fiery seas within Skaro. Ancient-Gallifreyan engraved doors of iron protect gates leading to a Time Lord graveyard. Ancient archways forgotten in ruined temples lead to the dominions of powerful. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of doors to these infinite realms lie scattered across the world. Although the means may vary, the methods of planetary travel fall into one of several broad types: portals, procedures, vessels, and phenomena. A portal is a door or conduit created by powerful technology that links two distant points. In a way, portals are like backdoors in the universe, allowing a traveler to bypass the obstacles of distance and time by stepping through. Permanent portals are often called gates, but they are few and far between. Many portals lead to destinations within the same planet providing an expeditious means of covering vast distances. Others lead travelers to wondrous realms such as the Past, the Future, and even alien dominions. Rare and hidden portals may lead to places beyond the cosmology, depositing travelers in the Nether Realms or on alternate universe. Portals can also access other dimensions such as the TARDIS, the sanctums of powerful time travelers, domains of princes, or inter-dimensional vaults created to hold unspeakable entities. Portals are curiosities. They stand in defiance to the natural order of things. It’s within the power of mortals to construct new portals, but short of the most powerful procedures, created portals are fleeting things, consuming vast amounts of technology and requiring technological mastery to sustain. Thus, permanent portals are subjects of much heated debate between travelers and agents, and theories abound about their origins and purpose. Portals offer an excellent means for adventurers to reach fabulous destinations, but in most cases, these destinations are fixed, making them of limited use to those who need to reach a particular location. A number of procedures help adventurers move within a planet or to other planets rather than spending an interminable time hunting down the right portal for the mission at hand. In addition, procedures can be used to divine a portal’s secrets, lock a portal to prevent its use, or alter a portal’s technology to make it malfunction. When procedures are not possible and portals prove elusive, planetary travelers turn to other solutions to reach the planets. Technological items, such as a cubic portal, enable travelers to bridge the planets with minimal effort, and other technologic items, such as a databank, can alter an existing portal to carry travelers to other destinations. Items like these are expensive, far beyond the reach of low-level explorers, but by using planetary vessels travelers can traverse the planets at a more reasonable price.
The TARDIS[edit]
Some call The TARDIS the Portal to Secrets, because everything that can be known is known somewhere in its twisting corridors. Some call it the Cage, because it’s hard to find and hard to leave. Mostly it’s called the Portal to Adventure, thanks to the portals that connect it to the rest of the universe, like the hub of an enormous web of relationships and connections. A few wise souls like to think of The TARDIS as the macrocosm—an infinite reflection of everything that is, everything that has been, and everything that yet could be, represented in the form of an enormous machine. The TARDIS is a planet unto itself, existing outside the ordered structure of the rest of the universe and yet intricately connected to it through its unnumbered planetary portals. It’s a clean, almost silent metropolis with long, twisting corridors and empty pathways. The machine is built on the inside of a infinite dimension that has no outside. To The Doctor, though, it’s the center of the universe—vibrantly alive, full of every imaginable treasure.
The Past[edit]
The Past (sometimes known as the Planet of Past) is a verdant, wild twin of the current Earth. Towering forests sprawl for a thousand leagues. Perfect amber prairies roll between pristine mountain peaks soaring into the flawless clouds. Emerald, turquoise, and jade green seas crash along endless beaches. The skies are a perfect blue not seen in current Earth—until storms come, coal- dark thunderheads boiling with fierce winds and torrential rains. In this world, ancient technology thrums through every tree and rock. All existence is ancient. The creatures native to the Past—the enigmatic Celts, the vicious Carrionites, the wild Greeks, and the tyrannical Romans—are all charged with the ancient energy of this planet. Some are blessed by it, and some are warped. Like the land around them, the creatures who inhabit this planet run to extremes. Good ancients are noble and just, protectors of the natural world and those they choose to show favor to. Evil ancients are dark instinct unleashed, all blood and rage. The creatures of The Past can be kind, cruel, noble, monstrous, and savage—often all at the same time. Realms of the Past include: • Gaul, The Realm of The Celts • Ancient Britain • Ancient Ireland • The Dark Ages • Ancient Rome • Ancient Greece • Ancient Scotland • Shakespearian London • Inquisitorial Spain • Babylon • Ancient India
The Future[edit]
The Future is the strange echo of 21st century Earth, a strange realm that exists “on the other side” of the world and its modern denizens. Legend has it that an otherworldly dimness arose around the remnants and tatters of the raw stuff of creation. Over time, these alternate happenings coalesced and assumed a form similar to the natural world, but stranger, more ominous, and thrumming with a strange and unexpected power. This murky land spawned beings of its own and drew others from different parts of the cosmos. It came to be filled with a diverse population of creatures, fair and foul. The Future is more than just a mirror, even as strangely cast and twisted as it is. This plane is the destination of those who live far after the 21st century. It is the domain of the old, the final stage of the journey before moving onto the end. For this reason, The Future draws the attention of any with an interest in technology. The power and allure of this place even drew the leader of the Time Agency from the Important Planets to take residence among the future dwellers, to govern them, and to monitor their movements as they await the inexorable pull of dissolution. Realms of the Future include: • The 51st Century • The Time Agency • Poseidon Eight, the Underwater City • The End of The Earth • Vespiform Hideout • The Deserts of South America • The Robot Revolution
Alien Dominions[edit]
Beyond the circles of the Earth lies an expanse of infinite possibility. The Alien Dominions are a great silvery void in which countless fragments of ancient or mortal purpose drift—dreams, ideas, and wishes, as well as fears and dark desires. All these thoughts and feelings become real and physical in this place. Most are virtually unnoticeable, of course. An ordinary mortal’s attention vanishes in the Alien Dominions like a single spark flying into a mighty fire. But dreams and dreads with power are a different matter. The desires of powerful rulers or beliefs shared by thousands of mortals take shape as vast cities or even whole worlds within the Alien Dominions. These cities and worlds are the alien dominions—planets adrift within the fundamental expanse of the Alien Dominions. Some are heavenly realms of peace and splendor. Some are fantastic landscapes filled with marvels and strange perils. And some are dark and tormented places, hellish necropolis' filled with unspeakable evil. Of all the planets, with the exception of the Nether Realms, the Alien Dominions are the most remote from the Earth. Only the mightiest of heroes venture here. Alien Dominions include: • Gallifrey • Mechanus • Planet of Judoon • The Death Zone of Gallifrey • Arcadia • Alfava Metraxis • Androzani Major • Skaro • Mars • Argolis
Alien Entropy[edit]
The Alien Entropy is the raw material of creation, that from which the universe arose. Untouched by the stabilizing ancient influence that formed the world into a more or less permanent state, the Alien Entropy is a roiling tempest of matter and energy. At times, areas coalesce into coherent shapes and terrain, but much of it resembles a stormy sea of churning destruction. The Entropy is at once the foundation of the world and the greatest threat to its existence. By its nature, the Alien Entropy seeks to pull the created world into its embrace, and return it to its component parts. Most of the inhabitants of the Alien Entropy share a primal drive toward chaos. Many are creative in their own ways, building structures and civilizations, tearing them down, then beginning anew. Uncivilized Aliens, however, driven by an insatiable thirst for destruction, seek to draw the entire universe into the vortex of annihilation that is Eden. Realms of The Alien Entropy include: • Apalapucia • Deva Loka • Duchamp 331 • Eden • House • New Earth
Monsters of the Planets[edit]
Strange robots haunt the dark trails of the Future, sadistic aliens prowl the prisons of the Pit, and cruel Daleks wander the twisted caverns of Skaro. From the forests of the Past to the citadels of the Alien Dominions dwell creatures so terrible and so great that the Earth would quake at their presence. Planetary Monsters include: • Ice Warriors • Zygons • Autons • Daleks • Silurians and Sea Devils • Cybermen • Vashta Nerada
Planetary Characters[edit]
Heroes armed with knowledge of the planets can walk the ancient valleys of the Past or visit the lonely peninsulas of the Future. They can explore alien realms, where the building blocks of planets still wait for hands to shape them. Heroes can storm the alien ramparts of the Dominions and the hellish planets, challenging rulers and Daleks alike. Epic threats to the Earth originate from these otherworldly dimensions, and only the mightiest heroes are equipped to face the extent of planetary dangers. Despite the hostile environment, though, some heroes come to call the planets home, traveling between unseen dimensions as easily as their world-bound counterparts journey from city to city. The planets are filled with secret societies, technological cabals, and individuals who master strange and rare fighting techniques. The paragon paths, procedures, and technology described herein are ideal for characters native to the planets or characters who frequent the planets often. For example, a Judoon interested in the Shadow Proclamation Captain paragon path ought to have visited the Future at some point during his or her adventuring career (perhaps between adventures), or one can assume that he or she found a mentor with extensive knowledge of the planet in question.
Celtic Elite:
Apocalypse Guard:
Starship Thief:
Ancient Spartan:
Persian Immortal:
Planet Walker:
Shadow Proclamation Captain:
Egyptian Warrior:
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