D
Doughguy
Guest
The beginnings of civilised man in Vuehrau are recorded in the annals of Ue, a series of books detailing the history of the civilised world. Emperor Cuer, a Kre'Ue of Power, united the barbarians of the central plains into a single great tribe. Using his great intellect to pioneer technological innovations he turned them from nomadic barbarians into the world's first civilised people. However he was unhappy to see much of the world still living as barbarians. Drawing upon the old culture of his people he raised great armies and expanded outwards, their metal armour and blades making them unstoppable against the stone weapons of their foes. Within four decades he had conquered the last of the barbarians and created a global empire united under his one flag. Hailed as the saviour of the world, Cuer renamed his Empire Ue, Heart of the World. When Cuer died the council of lords convened to elect the next emperor based on the tenants Cuer left behind.
For thousands of years the Empire remained stable, putting down minor dissenting groups before they could flare up into major rebellions. The provinces were allowed to elect their own governors and use their old traditions as long as they stayed loyal to the empire. Of course a strong military presence helped these efforts, and no province was allowed to hold any independent armed force beyond town guards. These methods, designed by Cuer himself, were thought to be foolproof and the emperors that followed believed Ue would last forever.
Then the first Dragonlord was elected into power in Greva. A Kre'Ue of the Flaming Heart, the creatures of Greva were bound to his will. Even the great phoenixes were forced to answer his summons when he called. With their power at his back he stirred the populace of the west into a treacherous frenzy. Ue's garrisons were destroyed one by one, no cadre of mages able to stand against the furious attacks. Five Kre'Ue were called from Ue's territories and travelled west with a great army in an attempt to stop him. The Dragonlord and the phoenixes met them with their own army and obliterated them. The Dragonlord slew all five Kre'Ue personally in three separate battles. Their ashes were sent back to Eul as a show of power. The Dragonlord was only stopped at the edge of Greva, when the phoenixes refused to leave their homeland to continue the attack. Unwilling to risk defeat by overextending his reach the Dragonlord fortified the mountain passes into Greva. He declared his new kingdom independent of Ue and established his own rule.
However the Dragonlord had been a catalyst for other regions of Ue unhappy with current affairs. With so many resources put towards stoping him, Ue was weakened in its other provinces. The eastern islands erupted into chaos and a dozen warlords declared themselves independent as well. They seized every ship they could find and turned them into great fleets that the mainland empire had no counter for. Meanwhile in the north a line of nobles thought to be long extinct suddenly re-emerged. Assassins found their way into the offices of dozens of Uen officials and commanders killing them. An army outfitted with Uyar army meets with Ue's northern forces and crushed them, Ue's powerful mages rendered useless by the Uyar metal while the noble's mages were unhindered. The survivors are taken prisoner and turned into slaves alongside any true Uens within the north. The slave empire of Karthar is born.
And so the first collapse of Ue came to pass. The north, southeast and west were all lost within a decade. The effect upon Ue was dramatic. The once strong empire was left floundering as it tried to plug a dozen leaking holes and prevent further uprisings. It would be nearly a century before Ue regained its strength and stabilised. More than enough time for the free nations to prepare against any attempts by the superpower to retake its lands. Despite many attempts by Ue to retake the lost lands they were unsuccessful for the next millennia.
The Uen lords at this point disposed of the current emperor and took over the position. Seven brains would be better than a single one no matter how well they fit Cuer's criteria.
For thousands of years the Empire remained stable, putting down minor dissenting groups before they could flare up into major rebellions. The provinces were allowed to elect their own governors and use their old traditions as long as they stayed loyal to the empire. Of course a strong military presence helped these efforts, and no province was allowed to hold any independent armed force beyond town guards. These methods, designed by Cuer himself, were thought to be foolproof and the emperors that followed believed Ue would last forever.
Then the first Dragonlord was elected into power in Greva. A Kre'Ue of the Flaming Heart, the creatures of Greva were bound to his will. Even the great phoenixes were forced to answer his summons when he called. With their power at his back he stirred the populace of the west into a treacherous frenzy. Ue's garrisons were destroyed one by one, no cadre of mages able to stand against the furious attacks. Five Kre'Ue were called from Ue's territories and travelled west with a great army in an attempt to stop him. The Dragonlord and the phoenixes met them with their own army and obliterated them. The Dragonlord slew all five Kre'Ue personally in three separate battles. Their ashes were sent back to Eul as a show of power. The Dragonlord was only stopped at the edge of Greva, when the phoenixes refused to leave their homeland to continue the attack. Unwilling to risk defeat by overextending his reach the Dragonlord fortified the mountain passes into Greva. He declared his new kingdom independent of Ue and established his own rule.
However the Dragonlord had been a catalyst for other regions of Ue unhappy with current affairs. With so many resources put towards stoping him, Ue was weakened in its other provinces. The eastern islands erupted into chaos and a dozen warlords declared themselves independent as well. They seized every ship they could find and turned them into great fleets that the mainland empire had no counter for. Meanwhile in the north a line of nobles thought to be long extinct suddenly re-emerged. Assassins found their way into the offices of dozens of Uen officials and commanders killing them. An army outfitted with Uyar army meets with Ue's northern forces and crushed them, Ue's powerful mages rendered useless by the Uyar metal while the noble's mages were unhindered. The survivors are taken prisoner and turned into slaves alongside any true Uens within the north. The slave empire of Karthar is born.
And so the first collapse of Ue came to pass. The north, southeast and west were all lost within a decade. The effect upon Ue was dramatic. The once strong empire was left floundering as it tried to plug a dozen leaking holes and prevent further uprisings. It would be nearly a century before Ue regained its strength and stabilised. More than enough time for the free nations to prepare against any attempts by the superpower to retake its lands. Despite many attempts by Ue to retake the lost lands they were unsuccessful for the next millennia.
The Uen lords at this point disposed of the current emperor and took over the position. Seven brains would be better than a single one no matter how well they fit Cuer's criteria.
Now in the present the empire is once again in a state of chaos. For Ue has collapsed a second time, its northern territories in open rebellion and seceding from the central leadership. But without support these newly free lands are vulnerable to those provinces who were freed during the first collapse. War sweeps the continent as petty warlords attempt to expand their territory in a desperate fight for power.
In the north Karthar see Ue's weakness and prepares to strike at the vulnerable northern territories. Independent or not the nobles know that they cannot match their own armies armoured in Uyar armour. However as the armies pass through Karthar's south they walk into multiple ambushes staged by unexpectedly well-equipped slaves. Badly mauled they are forced to retreat back north. Spurred by their success the slave armies overthrow the nobles ruling in the south, even managing to seize a large swathe of the Uyar plains, and declare the region New Karthar. Every slave in the region is freed and every noble put to death.
In Karthar's southeast an ambitious noble, Ossair Hoet, follows a similar plan. Knowing the commanders leading the Karthan army through his city his agents take their families hostage. He forces them to resign their permissions and replaces them with his own officers. Using this army he frees the slaves in the surrounding lands and then conscripts them to bolster his strength. Declaring himself a king he renames the area Aehraut. In more bad news for the slave empire a great plague erupts in the very north and spreads quickly, killing thousands before efforts to contain it can begin. Soldiers march north and set up a seri4es of patrols, killing anyone who attempts to flee south.
Desperate to reclaim their lost lands the Lords of Eul rush their ace in the hole to completion. Having lost a great portion of their military might to the collapse they hope to substitute this with magical power. To achieve this they hastily open the Magelium, a great complex for the teaching and training of mages. Attached to the Magelium is a special area where Kre'Ue can be taught to use their own powers as well. However the threat posed by the Magelium is clear to all and they set their sights on bringing it down.
Within northern Ue a female Kre'Ue of light sees the effects of war upon the Uen population. She sees children orphaned and both men and women widowed when their partners are lost to war. Abandoned by the Lords as they focus on the war she aims to create a safe haven where those affected by the war can be taken care of. With the help of some volunteers she builds a small shelter and begins to take in refugees. However it quickly begins to outgrow the supplies it can grow and she is forced to begin looking for a greater home.
Two decades ago, when thousands of Kre'Ue were all born within a few years, the twelve volcanoes of the Greva range simultaneously erupted. Thus the birth of what would become known as the Clutch was heralded by the land. The twelve great cities of the land, each build onto the side of one of the volcanoes, were all obliterated with no survivors. The entire western third of the land became uninhabitable for years afterwards due to ash and secondary eruptions. However the desert tribes of Greva were a resilient people and soon returned to the volcanoes to build anew. And they were now led by the twelve Kre'ue known as the Clutch who ruled by a divine mandate. Renaming Greva as the Firelands the Clutch rule the populace with an iron fist and have closed off the mountain passes into the land, isolating themselves from the rest of Vuehrau.
In the shattered east a mysterious traveller has united the great kingdoms of Aramis and Jeritah alongside the pirate lords of the islands. With Luf blind to the eastern shore Ue has no knowledge of what is occurring in the islands apart from sporadic reports. The freed provinces along the coast suffer countless raids as the new Seaboard Alliance stockpiles supplies and equipment in preparation for war. But whispers escape from the king's courts, whispers that the alliance is not all it seems. Whispers that question who this mysterious stranger is and how exactly he has united the east.
Aiding the continent as it tears itself apart is the coming of age of thousands of Kre'Ue. Powerful demigods who wield magic with a natural instinct they are able to claim what they want with little opposition. Many of them wish to rule their own fiefdom as a birthright while others are indoctrinated as weapons of their homeland. Their abilities can turn battles into slaughters. In the free cities of the east they especially wreak havoc, waging personal wars of conquest against each other in the streets.
You are a Kre'Ue or mage in this chaotic world. With the world in such chaos it is a time when anything can be achieved, when any ambition can be fulfilled. Armies are poised on the brinks of war and the world prepares to tear itself apart once again when they are unleashed. Ue stands surrounded by enemies who will kill each other as happily as they will the empire. In this time quick promises can form desperate alliances and rash words and make eternal enemies.
And from four corners of the world more whispers emerge. Upon them are the promises of power. The four artefacts of Cuer have re-appeared in the world. To the west a bright light bursts into life, shining like a beacon to those who are lost. A lone phoenix circles overhead, eyes always upon the light. To the north every night a person disappears, and in the morning their body appears in a town centre horribly mutilated. To the south a large town far from thoughts of war is wiped out overnight, thousands of civilians killed. Rumours of a young boy with glowing eyes leaving the town spread quickly and fear grips the countryside. In the east promises of great worth are spoken and all who hear them believe without question. And throughout the entire continent a single world rings through every mind, a world of such power every Kre'Ue drops to the ground upon hearing it. Uelthas.
In the north Karthar see Ue's weakness and prepares to strike at the vulnerable northern territories. Independent or not the nobles know that they cannot match their own armies armoured in Uyar armour. However as the armies pass through Karthar's south they walk into multiple ambushes staged by unexpectedly well-equipped slaves. Badly mauled they are forced to retreat back north. Spurred by their success the slave armies overthrow the nobles ruling in the south, even managing to seize a large swathe of the Uyar plains, and declare the region New Karthar. Every slave in the region is freed and every noble put to death.
In Karthar's southeast an ambitious noble, Ossair Hoet, follows a similar plan. Knowing the commanders leading the Karthan army through his city his agents take their families hostage. He forces them to resign their permissions and replaces them with his own officers. Using this army he frees the slaves in the surrounding lands and then conscripts them to bolster his strength. Declaring himself a king he renames the area Aehraut. In more bad news for the slave empire a great plague erupts in the very north and spreads quickly, killing thousands before efforts to contain it can begin. Soldiers march north and set up a seri4es of patrols, killing anyone who attempts to flee south.
Desperate to reclaim their lost lands the Lords of Eul rush their ace in the hole to completion. Having lost a great portion of their military might to the collapse they hope to substitute this with magical power. To achieve this they hastily open the Magelium, a great complex for the teaching and training of mages. Attached to the Magelium is a special area where Kre'Ue can be taught to use their own powers as well. However the threat posed by the Magelium is clear to all and they set their sights on bringing it down.
Within northern Ue a female Kre'Ue of light sees the effects of war upon the Uen population. She sees children orphaned and both men and women widowed when their partners are lost to war. Abandoned by the Lords as they focus on the war she aims to create a safe haven where those affected by the war can be taken care of. With the help of some volunteers she builds a small shelter and begins to take in refugees. However it quickly begins to outgrow the supplies it can grow and she is forced to begin looking for a greater home.
Two decades ago, when thousands of Kre'Ue were all born within a few years, the twelve volcanoes of the Greva range simultaneously erupted. Thus the birth of what would become known as the Clutch was heralded by the land. The twelve great cities of the land, each build onto the side of one of the volcanoes, were all obliterated with no survivors. The entire western third of the land became uninhabitable for years afterwards due to ash and secondary eruptions. However the desert tribes of Greva were a resilient people and soon returned to the volcanoes to build anew. And they were now led by the twelve Kre'ue known as the Clutch who ruled by a divine mandate. Renaming Greva as the Firelands the Clutch rule the populace with an iron fist and have closed off the mountain passes into the land, isolating themselves from the rest of Vuehrau.
In the shattered east a mysterious traveller has united the great kingdoms of Aramis and Jeritah alongside the pirate lords of the islands. With Luf blind to the eastern shore Ue has no knowledge of what is occurring in the islands apart from sporadic reports. The freed provinces along the coast suffer countless raids as the new Seaboard Alliance stockpiles supplies and equipment in preparation for war. But whispers escape from the king's courts, whispers that the alliance is not all it seems. Whispers that question who this mysterious stranger is and how exactly he has united the east.
Aiding the continent as it tears itself apart is the coming of age of thousands of Kre'Ue. Powerful demigods who wield magic with a natural instinct they are able to claim what they want with little opposition. Many of them wish to rule their own fiefdom as a birthright while others are indoctrinated as weapons of their homeland. Their abilities can turn battles into slaughters. In the free cities of the east they especially wreak havoc, waging personal wars of conquest against each other in the streets.
You are a Kre'Ue or mage in this chaotic world. With the world in such chaos it is a time when anything can be achieved, when any ambition can be fulfilled. Armies are poised on the brinks of war and the world prepares to tear itself apart once again when they are unleashed. Ue stands surrounded by enemies who will kill each other as happily as they will the empire. In this time quick promises can form desperate alliances and rash words and make eternal enemies.
And from four corners of the world more whispers emerge. Upon them are the promises of power. The four artefacts of Cuer have re-appeared in the world. To the west a bright light bursts into life, shining like a beacon to those who are lost. A lone phoenix circles overhead, eyes always upon the light. To the north every night a person disappears, and in the morning their body appears in a town centre horribly mutilated. To the south a large town far from thoughts of war is wiped out overnight, thousands of civilians killed. Rumours of a young boy with glowing eyes leaving the town spread quickly and fear grips the countryside. In the east promises of great worth are spoken and all who hear them believe without question. And throughout the entire continent a single world rings through every mind, a world of such power every Kre'Ue drops to the ground upon hearing it. Uelthas.
The above spoilers provide the backstory and the current story for the plot of Lost Heart. It's an open world RP where your character has free reign on a massive continent filled with magic, monsters, politics, adventure, and pretty much whatever else you can think of. The last time I ran it I had a traveling merchant who just wanted to earn enough money to open a shop but was swept up in Ue's war, a bloodthirsty mage killing on Ue's orders, a disposed noble fighting to get his throne back and a manipulative mage trying to carve out his own empire amongst the chaos. The plot of the RP is how the world is changing, which allows me to give each participant a more personal storyline that follows what they want to do.
You'll need to be up for a bit of reading to start with as the OOC is around 10k words (though there are some non-essential sections for detailing the world you can skip). I also expect players, to a certain degree, to advance their own character through the world. You'll need to work towards your goal and make decisions on where to go next in the world, there won't always be a clear, correct choice.
So hopefully the wall of text and my expectations haven't put you off *fingers crossed* If you're interested let me know and I'll happily answer any questions about the RP that you have :)