Oasis
Dammit, I think that might be the old one...
Each hex is about 250 feet across. The whole map is about two miles to a side.
Red circles designate the zone affected by each totem.
Black lines are major bridges or properly paved roads. Tan lines are dirt or otherwise non-paved roads.
Most of the rest should be fairly self-explanatory.
Oasism the last bastion of civilization. Surrounded by tainted badlands created by the Terminus War, protected only by the nine ancient druidic totems scattered throughout the city. It was originally a human city, settled in the pleasant area around the Beach Totem. After the Terminus War, refugees from surrounding lands flooded to Oasis--humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, even goblinoids and stranger beings. Now, five years hence, Oasis boasts a population estimated around 50,000, with only about 19,000 humans (half of which are refugees).
19,000 humans (38%)
8,900 halflings (18%)
5,100 half-elves (10%)
4,500 dwarves (9%)
2,900 elves (6%)
2,600 gnomes (5%)
2,100 assorted goblinoids (4%)
1,700 half-orcs (3.5%)
750 kobolds (1.5%)
510 orcs (1%)
290 various (0.6%)
250 gnolls (0.5%)
150 assorted fey (0.3%)
140 lizardfolk (0.3%)
120 merfolk (0.25%)
110 trolls (0.2%)
76 minotaurs (0.15%)
89 assorted giants (0.2%)
72 troglodytes (0.15%)
53 ogres (0.1%)
32 aasimar (0.06%)
29 grimlocks (0.06%)
26 sahuagin (0.05%)
21 ghouls (0.05%)
15 tiefling (0.03%)
13 hags (0.025%)
12 araena (0.025%)
10 dragons (0.02%)
3 ogre mages (0.006%)
(If you have suggestions to put species to those 290 assorted, speak up!)
Councilmen
The Councils of Oasis are the main governing body, although religion, industry, wealth, monsters, and mobs are also often influential. There are two councils, the Low and the High, as well as a number of lesser offices such as judges and ministers. These people are often referred to as the Great Assembly.
The Low Council is elected every year. It is required to include members of all races, in rough proportion to their commonness in Oasis (34 humans, 16 halflings, 9 half-elves, seven dwaves, six elves, five gnomes, a half-orc, a kobold, a goblinoid, and an orc). Needless to say, the "monstrous" races like ogres, trolls, and most reptilian humanoids are unhappy at their lack of representation...
The High Council is elected every decade, and consists of one member from each totem's region of influence. The High Council is the most powerful governing body in Oasis.
the High Councilor, High Representative of the Beach Region.
the Damp Councilor, High Representative of the Lake Region.
Andromalius the Undercouncilor, High Representative of the Night Region.
the Wood Councilor, High Representative of the Forest Region.
the Dry Councilor, High Representative of the Desert Region.
the White Councilor, High Representative of the Winter Region.
the Green Councilor, High Representative of the Field Region.
the Stone Councilor, High Representative of the Mountain Region.
the Murky Councilor, High Representative of the Swamp Region.
Dragons
There are ten dragons residing in Oasis, one of each common breed. They typically go by the Common translation of their name. The dragons are a surprisingly powerful faction.
Cogwing the Green. Young adult, tinkerer. Dextrous and inventive. Cogwind lived a solitary life in the swap before Terminus, and is absolutely delighted to have a number of apprentices and others who help him make his devices. She has one missing wing and one crippled wing.
Lord Deepchanger the Black. Old, transmuter. Secretive loner, hoards magic and silver. Deepchanger lived and still lives in the caverns. Nowadays, he mostly keeps to himself, sticking to the caverns where people are positively delighted if he takes the inhabitants and carves them up.
Grandmother Bladecutter the Red Cutter. Great wyrm, barbarian. Greedy and unkind, Bladecutter was a lord of his kind before Terminus caused her to lose her flock.
Mindclaw the Brass. Juvenile. Friendly. While younger than many humans at merely 31 winters, Mindclaw is active in the community. He grew up in the area.
Snowglacier the White. Old. Proud and knowledge-hoarding. Snowglacier was driven out of the south a century and a half ago, and settled here as the coolest place. She remains apart from most of the community, save the Iceland hermits and Mindclaw, who she treats almost as a son.
Toxinspell the Blue. Young adult, warlock/assassin. Mistrustful and arcanophilic. Toxinspell fled from the armies of Pelor during Terminus, and constantly
Wildspeaker the Copper. Adult, musician. Nature-loving and artistic. Wildspeaker visited the druids here once, many decades ago. He returned when Terminus began, and settled near the druids' shrine.
Windsoarer the Silver. Mature adult, artificer. Knowledgeable, aloof, and art-loving, Windsoarer came along with Wildspeaker, due to their long friendship.
These 50,000 are less than a third of the people who have lived in Oasis since Terminus, the rest having succumbed to starvation, disease, or violence. Nowadays, only the cooperation of Guild of Priests, Druids, and Healers with the Council keep the population from falling further, with hundreds of acolytes and outer-circle druids summoning massive quantities of food to supplement fish, farms, and what little meat can be gained from monsters and what poor animals wander close enough to Oasis.
A number of districts have sprung up, to accommodate these people.
The most divided of all districts, Hightown is essentially the old Oasis and then some. It has a variety of industries, from fishing and a couple mills to metal- and glassworking to banking and leading. All over Hightown, except in the poorer areas, you see roadmen constantly replacing cobblestones and the like and extracting the sand that the Totem tries to replace it with, the sand going to the glassworks and the stone coming from Mineton.
The Palatial Neighborhood consists of Council Isle, which houses the most elite of Oasis and the servants and services they require, plus a bit on the mainland separated from the rest of Hightown by a solid wall of oak beams, reinforces by metal bands. The Palatial Neighborhood houses the bigwigs of religion, industry, mercantilism, and of course the government; the only notable demographics without their leadership in the Palatial Neighborhood are the druids, the undead and other monsters, and of course the poor.
The rest of Hightown's neighborhoods vary greatly. Some areas have the old, battered buildings of old Oasis, along with a number of ramshackle huts, and house the poor. Others have sawmills, forges, glassblowers, and other industrial buildings. Still others have newer buildings for the upper-middle class and others who are too poor or frugal to live in the Palatial Neighborhood, but rich enough not to live in slums or other districts. Military presence is strong, but monsters (unless you count soldiers, servants, or Mindclaw, who lives in Hightown).
West Uptown is located right across some bridges from Hightown. It is riddled with bridges connecting sparsely-populated neighborhoods (similar to modern suburbs with scattered farms and such), and includes fishing, pastoral, and educational facilities. West Uptown is a nice neighborhood--not as nice as the Palatial Neighborhood or the nicer areas of Hightown, but without the rifraff of the slums. One downside is frequent floods.
East Uptown is adjacent to both West Uptown and Hightown, as well as the "lower" districts of Southwood and Northwood. It was once heavily forested, and continues to have trees grow at unnatural rates even in the middle of town. Many of the more urban areas have cobblestones over nearly the whole ground, much like Hightown, to counteract this. East Uptown is a location known for its entertainment industry, from playwrights and theaters to bars and taverns. It also boasts soap and paper industries.
Northwood is firmly inside the Forest Totem's region of influence. It is a mass of buildings, with some gardens and paths in between. Its primary industry is logging, but hunting and pottery are also notably present.
Southwood is notable for being the seat of druidic power. Southwood's main inhabited area is a small cluster of buildings in the middle, with the totem and the Archdruid's Shrine to the north. Logging is strictly illegal except when okayed by the druids, or when the tree in question is a sapling cropping up near a building. A new cathedral is being constructed to the south, much to the chagrin of the druids. To get around the logging laws, they burnt a section of forest, then set up tents so they could cut down the saplings on the cathedral's building site.
Farmsvil is a mass of fields, with some houses interpersed in clusters, old half-made walls scattered about at what was at some point seen as Oasis's outer border, and a few towers to protect the fields from outside dangers. Its primary industry is, surprise surprise, agriculture, but it also makes a good number of handicrafts. Bladecutter makes her residence on the eastern edge, and refuses to allow farmers to plow the area near her lair.
No one is quite sure how Fishmine got its name, whether it refers to "mining" fish from the sea, the amount of mining products that come through, or something else entirely. Regardless, it is an important district, composed mainly of fishers with a fair number of merchants. It also has most of Oasis's mechanics and tinkerers due to the presence of Cogwing.
Mineton is one of the more densely-populated districts, devoted entirely to--as its name implies--mining. It was a rich district once, due to the totem infinitely replenishing veins of metal and clusters of gemstones...then the market crashed, forcing the High Council to seize control of the economy before it crashed completely. Mineton is a combination of gulag and slum, where the poor and criminal dig ores and such out of the ground, praying at night that they will not fall pray to the criminals or monsters who lurk at the outskirts of the district. It also houses the cave where Deepchanger lives, and is the home of Windsoarer.
Hermits--those who do not live in the larger districts, and instead live in small "neighborhoods" of less than a score, occupy a good amount of Oasis, including the desert and winter regions. They typically keep to themselves, but often trade with Oasis at large.
This category informally includes tribesmen and the like who live in larger groups but avoid interacting with the population at large.
Between Hightown, East Uptown, and the desert is a patch of tainted wasteland unprotected by the totems. Oasis has used this place as a dump for the worst kinds of criminals, when they cannot be executed for whatever reason. Walls of enchanted oak and those of Hightown itself prevent any exit from the land, save by flight. The little land, a rough triangle around 400-500 feet to a side, does not house many criminals...but it keeps them in. Usually. Jailbreaks from the Scar are things of nightmare. Usually, though, the walls, guards, free supplies, and relative freedom keep the prisoners apathetic or content.
Once, the northernmost totem in Oasis protected a forest of stone, shielding a rough facsimile of the Underdark. It was not frequented by many, but some druids tended it for centuries until Oasis was conquered and after Terminus, while dwarven and other Underdark refugees settled here. Unfortunately, Oasis was not stable in those early days. Ghouls, vampires, and other undead were the first of the "monstrous" races to demand equality; when this was denied them, Andromalius the Red, a lich of great power, lead a rebellion and corrupted the Undertotem into what it is now known as, the Night Totem. The druidic keepers of the Totem were killed, the other residents enslaved or turned. Andromalius and his allies set up a new district in the ruins of this totem: Nightland, where undead march and the living are used for labor and, with surgery and healing magic aiding sustainability, food. The High Council declared war on Nightland for a while, before the dragons forced negotiations. Nowadays, Nightland and Oasis are mostly separate by choice, although some trade occurs. Andromalius holds a seat on the High Council, and Nightland citizens vote, but Oasis typically ignores these contributions as much as possible.
Pantheon of Oasis
In the Beginning, there were only the Six Inner Planes, ruled by the Forgotten Gods. Though they were separate entities at times, they were also six sides of one Cube, Six Faces. The Faces decided that a Plane Majoris should be crafted, the Material Plane. And so, in a rare occurrence, the Faces worked together to force the Material Plane, the World, and, by extension, the Transitive Planes. Each Face crafted and gave birth to a God. These Gods, the First Ones, who crafted their own planes, the Outer Planes, created the Races that populate the World, and sometimes worked together to forge a Small God, who, in turn, created their own Race. The Faces grew to loathe their creations, and the First Ones grew jealous, resentful, or angry with their 'parents'. So, in a Great Upheaval, the First Ones, aided by the Small Gods, banished the once all-powerful but now weakened Faces to The Box, a pocket plane forever sealed by eternal divine magics.
Shortly afterwards, these Small Gods became just as powerful as the First Ones, and they all shared a pantheon.
Since this time, Mai, another greater deity rose entirely from mans desires-a Goddess embodying the shaping of steel. She bore three personalities that are today worshiped as the Triune, a popular alternative to the 'six' and technical rival for worshipers attentions. Though sharing similar beliefs, they tend to get along. Or did, at least before the cataclysm.
It was always thought that the actions of the Gods, their feuding and scheming, had a direct impact on the Material Realm and its inhabitants. But the War was something entirely different. Made and fueled by mortals, the Long War was the first instance that the mortals of the Material actual caused strife in the Outer Planes. And so, a war was fought on the Material Plane, as well as the Outer Planes. Though the wars had different causes, and were fought for different reasons, the end result for both mortals and Gods were equally devastating.
On the Material, the effects were obvious. A land uninhabitable. But on the Outer Planes, a more subtle corruption infected the inhabitants. Some Gods were outright killed (or as far as Gods can be 'killed') in the fighting, and the trust between the closest of allies was torn down.
Today, the gods are angry. With each other, but also with the mortals. They are bound to assist those who worship them, and those who show proper piety, but they refuse to uplift the mortals from the chaos they created. Even if they wanted to, they couldn't. The relationships between the gods are in such disarray that any work done by one God would be reversed by three of his enemies.
These are dark days indeed... When Gods can't trust their followers, how can one hold hope for the future of the planes?
The Forgotten Gods (The Faces)
The mortals know very little of these gods, for their patron dieties reveal very little of their hated parents.
Ha, TN- Positive Energy God.
Lo, TN- Negative Energy God.
Rea, TN- Fire God.
Ste, TN- Earth God.
Wus, TN- Water God.
Aav, TN- Air God.
The First OnesHighly respected, but just as powerful as their 'lessers'. Ajax, God of Man, Child of Rea, NG- Good, Strength, Fire. The Handaxe is his favoured weapon. Ajax takes the form of a heroic warrior with unerring determination and drive, forever seeking to improve himself and the human race as a whole. He is the Icon of Motivation and the Strong Father.
Mishtoss, God of the Halfling, Child of Aav, CG- Good, Trickery, Air. The Dagger is his favoured weapon. Mishtoss takes the form of an aged, but agile cloaked rogue/ranger. He is ever cunning, and his name is often whispered by survivalists and rogues in times of need. He is the Practical One and the Wielder of the Razor (Occam's Razor).
Morem/Male, Gods of the Dwarf, Child of Ste, LG- Law, Protection, Earth. The Warhammer is his favoured weapon. Morem and Male are two sides of the same coin. Twins, but at the same time one entity. Most practitioners simply refer to him as Morem. Morem takes the form of a king, and a worker. Morem is the Aspect of Law, the King, while Male is the Aspect of Good, the Smith. He embodies two things especially important to dwarves, stern law and productivity.
Lorhen, Goddess of the Elf, Child of Wus, TN- Plant, Animal, Water. The Longbow is her favoured weapon. Lorhen was once a young and beautiful god of fertility, but the ravages of the war reduced her to an old woman. Elves and druids call to her often. She is (or was) the Mother of the World, the Guardian of the Wilds, but more recently she's known as the Crone to dissidents, or the Ailing Mother by her followers.
Riddle Lit, Goddess of the Gnome, Child of Ha, NG- Luck, Protection, Trickery. The Sling is her favoured weapon. Riddle is, as her name implies, a riddler and, to a lesser extent, a jokester. She takes the form of a well dressed young merchant. Gnomes and other practitioners try to mirror her eccentricity and mysterious nature. She is the Holder of the Key and the Smart Glib.
Sangur, God of the Orcs, Child of Lo, CE- War, Chaos, Evil. The Battleaxe is his favoured weapon. Sangur takes the form of an orc warlord, without eyes. Negative energy is not evil, nor was Lo, but a series of unfortunate events twisted Sangur at birth, forever dementing his mind. At the last moment, Lo took away the God's eyes, in order to limit his power. Unfortunately, it was little hinderance to the Warlord. To his followers, Sangur is known as the Blind Warlord and the Ingenious Killer. To everyone else, he is known as the God of Cripples and the Demented First.
The Triune-The Sword, the Scales, and the Veil Composed of a set of three triplet deities, the Triune is often called upon as a whole by worshippers, rather than by its individual components, and regular priests (those not blessed by divine power) often follow suit. However, more fervent followers such as clerics and paladins always devote themselves to a single member of the Triune.Mai, TN- Metal Goddess-Occupies a similar place to the forgotten Gods, though she was not one of the original six faces-she rose spontaneously from strong mortal beliefs. Few worship her singularly any longer, but instead offer favor to the components of her divine offspring.
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Malnir, God of Retribution, Child of the Sword, LG- Law, Good, Travel. The longsword is his favored weapon. It is said that Malnir fell into the sea upon birth and was snatched from the foam by an albatross. When a mortal commits a terrible crime against the gods, Malnir is often tasked with punishing them. He is usually found wandering the realms in the guise of a large, weathered human or dwarven warrior (often male, though occasionally female), vanquishing evil wherever it is to be found, and his devotees are advised to worship him by emulating him. As such, his followers are almost always warriors, either idealistic crusaders convinced they can change the world or veteran heroes content to live and die by the ivory sword. Though they have little official organization nor united creed, they have earned the collective moniker "Templars of the White Cross" due to the simplified version of Malnir's symbol (a white sword) that they wear somewhere on their person. Always scattered and few, his 'church' has nevertheless escaped relatively intact due to their hardiness and self-reliance.
He is the Seafoam Sword and the Wandering Templar, but to his enemies he is known as the Sparrow Lord due to his association with birds. His holy symbol is a plain sword, the hilt and crossguard simplified into spike-like projections, and usually carved of ivory (5gp), though bone or other white-colored materials are not unknown. However, mythril is Malnir's favored material (70gp), and most of his followers carry his symbol in mythril when they can.
Metia, Goddess of the Hearth, Child of the Scales, NG- Community, Fire, Artifice. The dagger is her favored weapon. One of triplet deities, it is said that Metia fell into a volcano upon birth. In spite of being crippled by the impact, she climbed all the way out of it and dragged herself into a nearby mortal's dwelling, where she shaped the embers in their firepit into a set of magical leg braces that let her walk normally. Metia loves to take on different forms, ranging from dwarves to azer to gold wyrms, though she always has a set of metal braces around her legs (or equivalent location) that glows like red-hot iron. She currently presents herself to mortals in a form similar to a noble salamander. Her devotees are industrious folk who often have vocations aside from their clerical ones, serving as chefs, healers, merchants, and most especially crafters and artisans. Her church was most hard-hit of the Triune by the arcane catastrophe-- partly because it is highly community-oriented, partly because it was the largest in the first place, though her few remaining followers are among the most zealous in gathering survivors together and trying to rebuild society.
She is known as the Hearth Mother and the Magma Artisan. Her symbol is a clear orb containing a red teardrop shape, both usually made of glass. Her followers prefer to use a cut ruby encased in glass whenever they can afford it (90gp).
Morai, Goddess of Fate, Child of the Veil, LN- Oracle, Luck, Darkness. The gauntlet or spiked gauntlet is her favored weapon. It is said that Morai fell into a chasm upon birth and wandered the caves for eons, eventually losing the use of her eyes in exchange for gaining insight into the tapestry of Fate. Morai is often depicted as a frail human woman wearing a blindfold, but in truth no one knows what Morai looks like, for she always appears conveniently shrouded in darkness. She reveals her knowledge in bits and pieces, and even then only to her devotees. Her followers themselves are the secretive and tight-lipped sort, often unwilling to give away their mistress' secrets, and as such form a religion more like a cult than a church (in spite of its unassuming nature). Easily recognized by their simple robes and symbolic blindfolds (the cloth is translucent enough to see through, though the more fervent among them wear true blindfolds and learn to navigate through other senses), the Sparing Ones, as they've come to be known as, are often called upon as impartial parties and intractable judges.
She is known to her followers as the Blind Judge, the Silent Oracle, and the Prophet in the Depths, but most simply call her the Shrouded Lady. Her holy symbol is a hollow disk (usually of a dark-colored wood), with white thread crisscrossing the center. The threads are strong and durable but not unbreakable. Though the symbol does not stop working if the threads break, failing to replace the broken symbol when able can earn Morai's displeasure. Most of her followers carry silver disks with threads of black spidersilk when they can (30gp), which are much more difficult to break accidentally.
The Small GodsNumerous and diverse, the Small Gods came after the First Ones.Liere of the Eye, God of Magic, Child of Dark and Light, TN- Knowledge, Magic, Luck. The Quarterstaff is his favoured weapon. Liere is every race, and none. His visage is ever shifting. He rules over all magic. Many see him as a force of chaos, for his intentions and actions shift as much as his form. But scholars will tell you that their is a definite method to his madness. For every chaotic action he takes, he does something lawful. For every good deed, an evil one. In this way, he is balanced. He is the Many Faced Scholar and the Magister Ultimate
(The Magister Ultimate, new combo meal at McDonalds!).
Blessed Roe, Goddess of Healing, Child of Water and Fire, NG- Healing, Sun, Good. The Mace is her favoured weapon. Roe is sometimes a human, and sometimes an Elf. Either form she takes, she is a healer. The half-elves see her as their patron deity, as well as healers. Even though she is seen as good, she does not oppose evil. At least, not as much as her good brothers. She is the Saviour and the Death Ward.
Satore, God of Refinement, Child of Lorhen, CG- Chaos, Protection, Knowledge. The Rapier is his favoured weapon. Satore takes the form of a noble elf. When elves started intermingling with human society, and when many elves moved from the forest to the city, Satore was born. Even though many elves call him their patron deity, there are nobles of other races that look to him for guidance. He is the Aristocrat, the Eloquent Sir, and the Gentleman.
Beg No More, God of Cruelty, Child of Regret, CE- Chaos, Evil, Destruction. The Flail is his favoured weapon. Beg is a choatic mess of multiple species, including Gnolls, Lizardfolk, Goblinoids, and other evil creatures. This God would love nothing more than to see everyone dead, including his own followers, if there was no one left to slaughter. He is the Broodfather of Evil and the Abomination. While some evil species call him their God, many turn to his brood, the many Gods that fell from his body and went on to create the sentient monster races we see today.
Misnevex, Goddess of Domination, Sister of the Dark Earth, LE- Evil, Protection, Strength. The whip is her favoured weapon. Misnevex is the Goddess of areana (spider sub-class, correct?). She is the Mistress of Torture and the Spider Queen.
Monorox, God of Tyranny, Brother of the Dark Earth, LE- Law, Destruction, War. The Heavy Mace is his favoured weapon. Monorox takes the form of a human king. He is the Cruel King and the Master Tactician.
Voruh, God of Death, Child of the Black Waters, NE- Evil, Death, Luck. The Scythe is his favoured weapon. Moruh can't be seen, even by the Gods, but is represented by an hourglass, or simply, an x with a line above and below. To his followers he is known as the End and the Final Father, but to those who fear him, he is the Unknown Reaper.
Rowbe the Just, God of Justice, Child of Fire and Earth, LN- Law, Protection, Destruction. The Warhammer is his favoured weapon. With the fire of humanity, and the law of the dwarves, comes a zealous judge. He takes the form of a giant, and is therefore the patron of giantfolk. He is known as the the Judge and the Lens Holder.
Senntoss, God of Chaos and Trickery, Child of Mishtoss, CN- Chaos, Trickery, Luck. The Dagger is his favoured Weapon. This halfling God represents Mishtoss' more chaotic side. He represents all rogues, gamblers, and, to some extent, bards. Practioners are as likely to tell you a good joke as they are to stab you in the back. He is the Unrepentant Rogue and the Joy Thief.
The Debased GodsAs Humanoids have come rule over the world, many species fell into decline-and their patron deities often went with them, becoming far lesser powers-though, their bile is no less unmatched. Many of them are or were natural Gods, who sprung from the world before, or evil forces come from other realms.Laogzed, God of Troglodytes, Gluttony and Misery, Child of None CE- Chaos, Destruction, Death, Evil. The Great Cleaver is his favored weapon, and it usually doubles as a culinary and sacrificial tool. Laogzed is revered as the 'living maw' by the Troglodytes, who consumes endlessly-he is a simple minded, and slowly dying deity who is only concerned with eating. His followers are mostly Trogs, though other peoples sometimes fall into his clutches. After all, he is an evil God who demands nothing but food, and offers unholy power for a mere sacrifice of flesh to him-he prefers humanoids in general, and his clergy is forbidden from giving him poisoned or diseased meat. Unfortunately, his hunger can never be sated-and he's just as likely to consume his followers, when he's hungry enough.
Note: We're still working on the lore. Names and maybe everything isn't final.
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Topic: D&D 3.5 PbP: Oasis/Adventures in Hightown (OOC and Sign up thread 5/6 spots ) (Read 19272 times)