LORE HELP I: BACKGROUND

[Islamadon 9158]

LORE HELP I: BACKGROUND

 

Due to the influx of TikTok immigrants, I have decided to provide a helpful hand as an LT. Admittedly, the current Lore System is rather complicated to navigate; thus, I will attempt to provide players, both old and new, a somewhat succinct summary and explanation of highly important Lore concepts that you are likely to encounter on a day to day basis. This said, please refrain from METAGAMING. I have provided a color key to help people navigate: RED = Avoid mentioning IRP unless you learn about it organically. This I am going to write for now. If people show interest in this mini-project, I would be more than willing to continue making new posts on requested topics. If people want to call me Reddit or a Dweeb that's fine too. I hope this can at least help ONE person who cannot be bothered to navigate the abhorrent wiki. What I write is Canon as far as I am aware and is a paraphrase, so do not  if you are upset that a personal head canon is not mentioned or if I get a particular detail incorrect.

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ORIGINS [COGNITO HAZARD]

 

 

The Creator is LOTC’s God-like entity, who is both simultaneously alive and dead. The Creator can best be described as “The Big Bang”, in that the creator quite literally exploded during the formation of the Material Plane. As a result, life itself is attached to a wacky concept known as “God Shards”. 

 

The Aengudaemons, who effectively act as LOTC’s pantheon of deities, are the largest of these God Shards. To put simply, Aengudaemons are manifestations of the deceased Creator, and embody certain aspects that we can relate to. Examples include Ruin, Courage, Order, Justice, Knowledge, ETC. It is a motivation of the more ambitious Aengudaemons to collect these souls for their God Shards, thus increasing their own power. By collecting all of the Shards, one can effectively become the Creator.

 

The Material Plane is effectively an island in the greater LOTC cosmos and serves as the setting for 99.99% of the time you will be playing. It is the realm that the Aengudaemons strive to control or protect because it houses the unclaimed souls. Further, your character is known as a “Descendant”, which refers to a descendant of the Four Brothers. When a character permanently dies, their soul is ushered into the Soul Stream whereby eldritch entities will claim or devour their souls.

 

Beyond the Material Plane there exists potentially countless other realities or domains, but none are of enough consequence to warrant their mention. What is important, however, is that there exists a seemingly infinite stretch of static-like energy between these realms. This expanse is known as the VOID, and it is an amalgamation of concept, magic and esoteric nonsense that is not worth truly delving into. The Void does not adhere to logic or laws, it is incomprehensible. Still, it is a source of infinite energy. By piercing through the membrane of creation known as the “Veil”, many mages are able to harness the power from the Void, or to create outright tears into it.

 

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THE FOUR BROTHERS

 

 

In ancient times, there was a continent known as Aegis; it was the cradle of civilization. It was a land of peace and prosperity, and the races we see today were absent. All were of one tribe, and four brothers had carved for themselves their own domains. Despite the peace, the ambitious Aengudaemon of Ruin, IBLEES, ironically conspired to take over the material plane and rule it as his personal kingdom. 

 

To meet this goal and to subvert the watching eyes of his own siblings, Iblees took the form of a kind but all-powerful man. Iblees’ strategy was to prey upon the vices of the Brothers to gain their loyalty and to drive them away from Creator worship. To each he made a promise, and for this he was later given the title “The Deceiver”.  Malin, father of Elves, was promised many children to populate and bring life to his empty forests. Urguan, father of Dwarves, was promised all the jewels and riches of the earth. Horen, father of Humanity, was promised immortality so that his people might live to see the fruits of their labor. 

 

Though three of the brothers had fallen to temptation, Krug, father of Orcs, saw through the lie and became wrathful. Honorbound, Krug challenged Iblees to combat so that he might put an end to the charade. It was then that Iblees revealed his true form, monstrous and wicked, and he opted for force rather than subterfuge. Krug was amply wounded in the charge against Iblees, his flesh warping into a vile and hideous green. The other Brothers, swayed by Krug’s heroism, aided in furious combat. Though this initial battle ended indecisively, the subsequent war against Iblees’ lasted three decades.

 

The clans of the Four Brothers, caught in the crossfire of this cataclysmic war, suffered heavy casualties and the land itself was scarred by otherworldly powers. The War also caused the Brothers to drift apart as they fell further into vice; Malin sought the refuge of the woods to protect his people, Urguan focused on protecting his possessions, Horen suffered from internal strife and a question of his leadership and Krug resented those who had fallen to Iblees’ temptations.

 

With each life lost, Iblees grew more indomitable. At the precipice of defeat, the surviving peoples of Aegis prayed, and the skies opened for Iblees’ scheme had finally been uncovered by his peers. In a show of force, the Aenguls aided the Four Brothers in combating Iblees a final time; some Aengudaemons even sacrificed their own freedom by binding themselves to the Four Brother’s Weapons. This is where the distinction of Aengul and Daemon can be made. To put simply, an Aengul is one who seeks to, in their own way, protect Creation and those which inhabit it. A Daemon is one who seeks to use creation for their own selfish endeavors. Selflessness versus Selfishness. 

 

Unfortunately, Iblees had become so powerful that he could no longer be slain. The Aengudaemons combined their power to instead BANISH him from the Material Plane. Iblees, in a final act of defiance, levied a curse upon the mortals who had defied him. The Sons of Malin were cursed with infertility; their forests would remain empty and hollow, and their lives just as so. The Sons of Urguan were cursed with greed and short stature; they were destined to always dig in the depths and to never be satisfied with what they had. The Sons of Horen were cursed with a shortened lifespan; none were able to bear witness to the generations beyond them. Lastly, the Sons of Krug were cursed with bloodlust; carnage and bloodshed was inevitable and they would be the cause.

 

Ariel, Aengudaemon of Souls and Mistress of the Soul Stream, in turn gave “blessings” to the Four Brothers to offset their curse. The truth is, the Aengudaemons were powerless to reverse it and thus they gave to them consolation prizes which they (mostly) already possessed. Malin was given the “Sanctuary” of the Forests, Urguan the “Strength of Will”, and Krug “Honor” to offset his bloodlust. However, The curse levied onto Horen was so severe that Aeriel granted to Humanity access to a pocket realm within her domain dubbed “The Seven Skies”, a realm of happiness and peace for the deceased. No other descendant race is offered this in the greater cosmos.

 

In the end, Aegis returned to a relative state of peace, the descendants of each Brother spreading out to the corners of the world to resettle. Though conflict would stir in the years to come, this marks the beginning of what I like to call the “Ancient Era”, a time that marks the true beginning for most Lord of the Craft cultures and serves as a period of background between the initial defeat of Iblees and the start of the server in Aegis.

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[wowj 9747]

give me rep

[Spoopy_Duck 3217]

This is really cool actually I support you making more of these!

[Morigung-oog 5697]

10/10 would read again

 

But fr, this has been needed for a long time.

I'd love a post explaining to other plays Aos and Eos and the various continents on both of these.

[Ramon 5186]

good stuff 

[Lord of Boars 556]

Wow, this is actually a really good post! I set my expectations low when I saw the poster, but consider me pleasantly surprised.

[Mescaffier 6197]

Seeing the phrase "cognito hazard" activated my fight or flight 

[sam33497 7356]

you're a god for this