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Gaumahavi is a unique type of dragon. Though her
long, snaky form is similar in appearance to that of an
oriental dragon, she has little in common with them.
Thousands of years ago, Gaumahavi was the pet leopard
of Surtava, the famous Ulgarian prince who gave up
his power and wealth to seek enlightenment as a beggar,
and who founded the Padhran religion now followed by
the citizens of Ra-Khati. As a result of her close contact to
the Padhra, Gaumahavi developed a soul. This newfound
soul set Gaumahavi on a series of incarnations; her
present incarnation is that of a great purple dragon.

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Originally posted by Markustay

Spelljamming:
I never really cared for SJ (I felt the whole setting was rather silly), but it is D&D/FR canon so here's what I did with it: There was a war in space. I have no idea who or what was involved, other than the Shou and the Elves (IEN), and no-one not involved knows if they were even on the same side, or enemies (not even me LOL). It was like one of Earth's 'World Wars', but in space, so sort of like the Inhuman War, but BIGGER, involving EVERYONE. As a result, most Spacefaring races have been greatly diminished, and the Shou presence is practically non-existent (hence, Shou-Lung's focus on their planetside navy). The Spellplague also took a major toll on Spelljamming, with many Spheres 'going dark' (magically) for a time, leaving millions stranded (this was called something else in The Planes - help me out here. Was that the 'war' the Empyrean Odyssey was about?) The Mercane (Arcane) were particularly hurt by all of this, since many of their 'products' simply ceased working. Angry customers - and also groups angry over them selling stuff to their enemies during the war - attacked many of their outposts, and the Mercane haven't recovered. Thus, they are more picky about who they do business with, and their prices have skyrocketed. A single Helm strong enough to lift a Shou Dragonship is now a billion gold! The Shou have a few of their old ones left, and they guard these jealously, just using them mostly for stuff on the water so as to blend-in with their other ships (they will only use the Helms for quick travel in emergencies, and when no witnesses are around). Wa has NONE left. they only had a few and they were all destroyed during the Space War. they have no interest at this time of returning to space, instead focusing on countering Shou's Imperial designs on everyone else (and in this, they have a tentative - albeit untrusting - alliance with Koryo).

Modernization:
I've added-in a lot of anime elements in my version as well, but I tried to keep them low-key and a little more mature. In Shou Lung (during the 3e period), 'magic Eggs' became very popular among the poor. Local hedge-Wujen (that's a thing LOL) would paint special eggs with a Yin-Yang on them, and the eggs could be used to 'capture' magical beasts and animals. Young folks would acquire some of these eggs and become 'Beastmasters', and do battle with one-another (arenas were even built in some places!) Not to be out-done, certain sects of Shugenja down in Tu'Lung used Placards (a canon magical tool used in OA) to summon and control beasts and animals, and even more powerful monster types (some say they've even figured out ways to combine them). Battles between the Anipriests and the Beastmasters have thus far been very rare, but with the two nations at constant war, its only a matter of time before this 'pastime' becomes weaponized.

There is also a group of 'State Wujen' (like FMA), who are very much like witch/demonhunters - they go around the countryside operating solo or in small specialized groups to destroy any sort of supernatural evils. This hasn't sat too well with the commoners, who have always felt 'placating the spirits' was the better option to fighting them. They mostly ignore normal criminals though (their goal is to eliminate threats to humanity, not fight humanity itself). So, there are other groups of 'bounty-hunter' type vigilantes who hunt down people on Tanchin's 'Most wanted' lists (all his political enemies and anyone else who have pised him off - its a LONG list). Some groups of Ninjas have gone into this line of work (which is considered dishonorable in the islands, where Ninja Clans are still old-school and highly respected). However, the occupation of Kozakura has forced many of these clans to abandon their ancestral lands and callings and thus they have found new residence on the mainland.

Along with all of that there is a growing trend among regular (non-monster placard) Shugenja that their normal rivalries have become outright animosity and have lead to violence. This is most prevalent among the elemental-specialist temples (which most are), and thus far the most aggressive have been the fire-users. They common folk call this type of magic 'Elemental twisting', and the users, 'Twisters'.

And thats all for now - a MUCH more interesting place than it ever was in 1e, 2e, or 3e.

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quote:

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Originally posted by shades of eternity

-- sleyvas

the more I think about your kappa interpretation, the more awesome they get.

plus kind of curious about the bender product you found.

--- Markustay
Krakentua is a new monster by me (and that's no small feat) so well done. I once wrote for another project the idea that kaiju were an offshoot of tartarus. is there a kara-tur plane equivalent?

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come to think of it.

http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Celestial_Empire

how accessible is the celestial bureaucracy?

could you hop to another plane and wait in line while you took a number to talk to a magistrate in a manner that would make Dragon Ball proud? :D


and is there the kara-tur equivelent of the planes of chinese hell?

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–1887 DR
Chan Cheng unifies the warring states along the Ch`ing Tung River from
the Imperial City of Ten Mor Shou, beginning the Second Age of Shou
Lung. Blessed by the Celestial One, Chan Cheng becomes the first of the Nine Immortals.

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–1377 DR
Using powerful Imaskari artifacts unearthed in the ruins of Thakos, the
artificer Tan Chin assassinates the Sapphire Empress Kwan Ying and assumes
the throne of Shou Lung. The new emperor renames Ten Mor Shou to Kuo
Meilan, after his consort.

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The Celestial Dragon
-30,600 DR

Second born of Yaldabaoth was Serpens, the
Beguiler. Unlike her war-bred sister Lotan,
Serpens was more subtle and cunning in her
ambitions.
Where Lotan wished only to crush and
conquer the batrachi, Serpens wished to
learn from them. For a time, Serpens
transformed herself into the octopoid form, a
tako. In this form, she was able to better
learn the history and customs of the batrachi.
Eventually leaving the Black Sea behind,
Serpens traveled on land. Disguised as a
human woman, she traveled far and learned much.
After traveling the width and breadth of Merrouroboros for over two
thousand years, Serpens was most intrigued by mankind.
During the coming dragon flight against the aearee and the further distant Draco Holy Wars, Serpens gathered many tribes of man
and led them to safety, far to the east .These human tribes* came to know Serpens as T'ien Lung, the Celestial Dragon, and revered her as a goddess in her own right.

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*Ancestors of the modern day peoples of Kara-Tur.

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–2487 DR
Following the fall of Inupras and the collapse of the western Imaskar Empire,
the eastern provinces of Khati and Katakoro endure. Bearing Dhonas’s Shroud,
one of the seven False Imaskarcana, the artificer Kujawa claims the Dragon
Throne at Thakos and declares himself Emperor of Anok-Imaskar. Scholars
mark this as the start of the First Age of Shou Lung.

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Eke Bayalun, or Mother Bayalun as she Is more commonly called, Is the wife and stepmother of Yamun Khahan. This curious arrangement is the result of tribal cus-tom. When Yamun's father, the Yeke-Hoyan (great chieftain) died, Yamun was re-quired to marry the surviving wives. As wife or stepmother, there is no love between the two. Mother Bayalun Is a strong-willed woman. who looks about 50 years in age. She is different in appearance from the -Wigan, with definite elvish features. She is half-Maraloi. an ancient Eastern offshoot of the elvish nation. Her blood conceals her real age. which Is well over 100 years.Only now Is her hair beginning to turn gray and her Joints starting to stiffen. She is still quite attractive. Bayalun has only one loyalty—herself and the memory of her family. She is the only one left and she. rightly or wrongly, blames Yamun for her loneliness. Her true son died while hunting with Yamun, for which she blames him. Yamunstrangled her husband, a fact he makes no attempt to deny, although each gives different rea-sons. She harbors no love for her stepson. However, she knows he is powerful and well-loved. while she Is not. Therefore, she moves against him slowly and carefully. She is clever and patient knowing that she could outlive him if she wanted to. Bayalun'sgreatest resource is her command over the shamans and wizards of the Tuigan and other tribes. Ever since joining the Tuigan, she has demonstrated an af-finity for the magical arts. Over the yearsshe has used her position to organize, sup port. and protect the interests of the spellcasters, earning their loyalty and respect in turn. She also has a bodyguard of 1,000 men, Identified by their white kalats. As noted, Bayalun hates Yamun. Chanar. she finds a useful ally and strong man. She considers the lama, Kola, a dangerous enemy since he wields magical power and has sided with the khahan.

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Originally posted by sfdragon

when you said state wu-jen I had the state alchemists from full metal alchemist going through my head

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Originally posted by shades of eternity

I do kinda like the idea of realms reskinning of chinese gods but going to give it some thought. Looking forward to the results and looking forward to yours.

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In addition to these two, the tribes believe in a
number of lesser gods and spirits. The beast cult
of horses is particularly important. An aspect of
Eldath is venerated, since water is so important.

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Toward the end of the previous age,
tribes of humans were pushed out of
the Great Kingdoms of the southeast,
which were covered in desert. Legends
speak of a great war in which powerful
humans fought against the gods to
wrest away their power. The humans
won and became god-kings, but the war
destroyed their kingdoms. These godkings,
Re and Enlil, led the shattered
remnants of their peoples into Mulhorand
and Unther. The two god-kings
and their spouses became the leaders of
the royal houses of these two nations.
The people of Unther, who prided
themselves on the purity of their race,
warred against "barbarian" peoples and
drove them from their lands, but the
god-kings of Mulhorand, who were
openly worshiped by these people, took
them in as full citizens. Since then, the
peoples of Mulhorand have primarily
been racially mixed Turami and Mulan
(the race of Unther and Mulhorand).

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Timeline
-2488 DR The great kingdom of
Raurin destroyed. Exiles
flee into the west, eventually
settling on the shores of
the Alamber Sea.

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quote:

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The earliest of all known records describes the
great empire of Imaskar. Ruled by powerful wizards,
this empire was centered in what is now the
Raurin Desert. Its borders were vast, reaching
from Khazari to present-day Thay and across the
Shalhoond into the steppe. What caused its fall is
unclear, but from its ashes rose Mulhorand, Solon,
and Ra-Khati.

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