Golem Quest

Golem Quest by Bob

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Golem Quest is about a newly sapient Soul Grave that names itself Mordre, then goes about building an empire. By Bob.

Character List

In no particular Order as of yet

Mordre -Soul Grave, main character, wants to make an empire

Arkus -Human, mage, wants to be an even greater mage

Kyorto -(dead)Human, mage, is close to being resurrected by Mordre in return for promised service/assistance

Derkin -Human, former bandit, is now a CO for Mordre

Ellorika -Human, strong peasant, she now commands troops for Mordre

Mordre's abilities

Languages Known: Common, Premen, Yeti, Mornostic, Land Of Dragons Low tongue, Land Of Dragons High tongue.

Can continue to run indefinitely, as long as 12 base souls are contained, with a -1 soul for every month of activity needed.

Soulfire: (-3 souls) Mordre spews out magical green soulflames from its "mouth" to burn things.

Amarathine Annihilator: (requires built up energy) Basically, laser eyes. pewpew.

Still assembling information

World Information and History

Mosmordre Empire: now destroyed. The lands once known as this empire are now known as The Cursed Lands, because a curse used to destroy it corrupted the land itself. The Mosmordren Empire was an oligarchy, with anyone able to elevate themselves into the ruling class by demonstrating sufficient magical skill to become mages, at the cost of having to serve the born nobles despite their gained prestige. Society was caste system, with aforementioned ability to get placed into 'mage' roll available to all caste levels. Yes to slaves and forced labor, as well as serf caste. Since it was a caste system, mindset roughly of: bottom caste: life is shit, but if I don't do as told, I die. mid castes: The empire provides, I must return the favor Mage: The empire is wonderful, but it needs my help to exist, and it is my duty to give it. ruling caste: The empire is shaped to serve my whims, but cannot persist if I do not bend my whims to the betterment of the Empire. There was nationalism as well as racism and speciesism, Mosmordren citizens viewed themselves as superior to others, this extended to the caste system. The Empire started the war, they wanted land and resources, and sought to take it from the 'lesser' nations. Prior to war, Mosmordren Empire was feared for past displays of strength, but had otherwise not pursued unified war, building the hostilities that led to Castiliathen being able to get so many allies. No one allied with the Empire, that's why it's said EVERYONE was against it during the final war before it's fall. The war lasted for three decades, but was not 'everyone against empire' until the last eight years.

Castiliathen Empire:

Magicks and their properties

Magic is a relatively rare, costly and difficult to master line of talent within the setting.

Magic needs a feul source, and a type.

The Fuel Sources are, in order of relative average power:

Soul

Blood

Will

World

Word

The types of magic are:

Destructive

Regenerative

Augmentive

The types are straightforward: Destructive is causing damage/decay to something or otherwise causing something to wear down more quickly than it would naturally, Regenerative is repairing or reinforcing existing things, and Augmentive is adding new traits to something that already exists.

The sources are a little more involved.

Soul, be it the caster's own or those of the dead, is the most powerful magic fuel type, and it alongside Blood Magic were the mainstays of the Mosmordren empire, and were the source of much of their power. After their fall, Soul magic became a capital crime under any circumstance to practice.

Blood is less potent than Soul, but still a far cry above what one can usually expect out of Will. Blood requires a much larger amount of fuel for the same purpose as Soul does, and as such there are no blood mages who use their own blood exclusively (or at least they have very brief careers). Blood magic requires a special permit to be practice without being arrested and potentially executed. The permits can be notoriously difficult to obtain.

Will is the act of forcing magic to occur through the order and strength of one's thoughts. Will mages tire much more quickly than any other mage, and are more prone to burn out than most thanks to how easy it is for them to exceed their safe limits. Mages that become adept at Will magic can expect to be held in high demand and esteem for their prowess.

World is drawing power from the world around the caster, be it from a forest, an ancient mountain, a desert oasis or one of the planet's leylines, there are few accomplished mages that practice World alone, as there are many dead zones around the world where there are no ready sources. Knowledge of World magic usually indicates a laymen learner of magic has started to gain some decent knowledge of the mechanics of magic itself, and may be hired as an adviser or their word given more weight than a simple amateur.

Word is the known tonal combinations that can cause minor magics to occur, such as sparking a fire, snuffing a candle or moving a couple pounds of material about. Most anyone can attempt to learn these, and learning these spells are the firsts steps any would-be mage takes in most cases.

Learning any new magic both requires some source of knowledge from which to learn the spell in question, and the requisite amount of time for the individual to grasp the spell or magical theory in question through practice and study, varying in length by learner. The more advanced magics are harder to learn, and very few have the dedication and the means to become Grand Mages, those recognized in all lands as having master of magic, and because of this, it is no wonder there are less than 100 Grand Mages or better (Such as the Grand Elder Mages, those who command the greatest of power, influence and knowledge)

The magic types (Word/World/Will/Blood/Soul) are just fuel sources for the most part, like different octane gasoline for a car, I suppose. The only thing making this analogy not fit perfectly is that some fuel types are more suited to certain pursuits than others (World magic is best for detecting/manipulating leylines, Blood magic blood, etc.)

Metal Information

Steel is referred to as Base Steel.

Blue Steel: forged with inbuilt Regenerative magicks infused into the metal as it is shaped. More durable than normal steel, keeps sharp longer than normal, and cannot rust. Makes excellent long term armor for any terrain.

Red Steel: forged with inbuilt Destructive magicks that let ever cut it makes be magically widened, such that even a small cut could end up a grievous injury. Causes sharp, vibrating tremors when forged into blunt weaponry. Can destroy Blue Steel with relative ease, but when faced against other Red Steel, will start to warp and wear so long as it is forced to clash against something of it's own nature. Can make armor that magically rusts Blue Steel or below quality metals upon contact. Starts to deteriorate if attacked with Red Steel (said weapons will suffer likewise). Prohibitively expensive, not seen in any mass production form.

Rune Steel: Blue Steel with Runes inscribed into them during a second forging: The effects vary from rune to rune, so while some examples of Rune Steel may be nearly indiscernible from Blue Steel, some examples will have powerful magical enhancements. Price of manufacture varies in proportion with the quality of the rune used. Red Steel cannot be inscribed with runes.

Black Steel: Invention of the now fallen Mosmordren Empire, Steel with augmentive magicks forcibly infused into it by spilling the blood of those actively harvested for Soul Grave fuel onto the Base Steel while it is forged atop enchanted anvils, the souls of thousands ground to dust during their forging to give them a strong connection with death. Now the metal is poison, causing wounds inflicted to rot, and being impossible to wield for long without starting to decay. Only Soul Graves, the golems the metal was forged for, are safe to possess it without harm, as the blood in the metal forms a symbiotic connection with the souls and dark magicks that animate a Soul Grave. The metal is conventionally unbreakable, and causes non-soul/blood fueled magicks cast in the immediate vicinity to be weakened, sometimes outright negated, depending on proximity, the strength of the mage, and the amount of Black Steel present.

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