Ages ago, the people who have now called you into creation were one. Sons and daughters of the mythic dragons' will, the kobolds were a force to be reckoned with. They were 'dragonkin,' mortal children of the closest beings to the gods of the world. It was assured they would rule the world - until the Betrayal.
You were betrayed by your own kind, by the other, lesser gods, jealous of the beings you brought into creation. The dragons were too great, their children too numerous. The gods of man, of elf, of fae and dwarf banded together to slay you and to curse your children and grandchildren. They succeeded, or so they thought; you disappeared, and the dragons were destroyed. The kobolds were cursed, scattered from their cities and morphed by powerful magics to little more than beasts.
But they did not truly succeed; you did not die. You only slept, and for ages you have slept as the traitorous gods have continued to guide their disgustingly lesser races.
Now, however, you have awoken. You feel belief stirring, but it is faint. The beast has given way to tribes, and one of your grandchildren seeks the divine. It is only one, but one spark of belief is all you need to awake.
You must live again, and bring your people to glory. First, though, you must orient yourself.
You find your kin have split into four factions, and while they are all certainly kobolds, each is different.
The
Atzli are the closest to the old selves. They are a warrior people, scratching out a living in the Desolation of Arsannit, a vast desert that came into being when the lesser gods smote your children. They know little to nothing of agriculture, and make their time hiding in sandstone caves and raiding caravans travelling between Tawold and Bemlundr. The spirits of the Atzli will grant you influence over the sphere of
War.The
Shoulle live in the cool, misty forests of the Twilight Vale. They are reclusive and suspicious of the outside world. They remember the Fall, as they call it, though it is much superstition and folktale. They have some magic in their veins, though it is barely tapped by shamans and witch doctors. They sustain themselves by gathering in the plentiful woods and growing a variety of mushrooms on dead trees called 'scratches.' They are quite vicious when provoked, however, and will readily consume anything that tries to invade their space. The spirits of the Shoulle will grant you influence over the sphere of
Magic.The
Evara people were once a sect of followers under one of your most trusted children, a great Wyvern who blessed them with the power of flight. While they no longer retain the ability, their stunted wings do allow them the ability to glide and aid in swimming as well. They live in the mountains north of Gabundush, the fragmented remains of a once great fae empire. You are pleased at the empire's fall, but it seems as though your grandchildren have actually established some vague trust with the creatures.They make their living weaving rare mountain shrubs into all manner of clothing and furniture, while trading with the faltering city for goods. They are decent at cultivating Mistberries, a plant that grows only on the highest mountain and is highly valued for its hallucinogenic effects. The spirits of the Evara will grant you influence over the sphere of
Diplomacy.Finally, the
Krou live in the great salt lake south of the Ilechy River. They have adapted to become semi-aquatic even in extremely salty environs, absorbing oxygen through semi-soft skin. It is not enough to keep under forever, but it allows them to stay under for upward of half an hour. They use this ability to farm a specialized form of kelp in the brackish lake, and use the river's yearly floods to fertilize a variety of other plants along its banks. They also harvest fish cared for in the lake.They are occasionally harassed by raids from Harpool, who covet their bountiful crops. The spirits of the Krou will grant you influence over the sphere of
Nature.As you consider your peoples' new forms, you realise you must choose your manifestation form. You come up with four ideas that seem fitting, based on your short 'catching up' with the kobolds.
The
dragon is the oldest form, and the first you took. Taking this form will make it easier to gain followers, but it may be extremely difficult to get them to change. This form will reawaken the old ways and they will be resistant to new ideas or forms of thought. Tradition is king. This form will grant you influence over the sphere of
Strength.The
winged serpent is a great beast of several eyes and infinite, shifting colors. It is a dazzling creature, and should you take it you will become even more glorious when you manifest. This form will inspire your people towards new methods of thought and ideas, but it may take more effort to convince them not to simply stop believing in you from over-rationalization! This form will grant you influence over the sphere of
Intelligence.The
two headed wyvern is a modification of your old children who took to the skies. They were the first to modify their bodies, and you always admired them for their quick tongues and agile selves. The fast talk of two heads in unison is somewhat hypnotic and eases your ability to negotiate, making it easier to settle events and feuds, as well as aiding in your peoples' diplomatic efforts. This form will grant you influence over the sphere of
Charisma.Finally, the
demon of eyes is a form you took once, long ago, before the dream of dragons ever sparked into your consciousness. It is the stuff of terror, but even now it is something that appears in dreams all over the world. All races will fear your terrible visage should you manifest; gaining followers will be extremely difficult, but if they are convinced they will become unshakeable zealots. This is the only form that is likely to gain cross-racial followers early on. This form will grant you influence over the sphere of
Fear.Now you must decide:
Which of your people has begun to pray for a god:Which form will you take:Will your first believer be a Prophet or Shaman:Are they male or female:What will your people call you:First: THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD BEING MADE. This is not accepting players; this is a group game where either the most popular suggestion(s) or my favorite will be chosen. (If there is no 'winner' or general consensus then I will just pick something, yes. I'm an unfair jerk.
)
Stated on the tin: you are a "dead" god, freshly reawakened by your people regaining enough intelligence or influence to do so.
Each turn, you will gain Influence; you will begin by gaining one per turn, but this may increase based on the number of followers you currently have. Influence will allow you to do things, whether they be direct miracles or simply 'nudging' your people to some goal.
Influence costs will be halved when dealing with a sphere that you have influence over. You may gain more spheres later, but there will be drawbacks to the methods. Your starting spheres have no drawbacks in and of themselves.
A turn will constitute one season of time. There are four seasons in a year. A kobold lives around 15-20 years; they are considered an adult after two years. It may be possible to extend this number in play.
During a turn, a Vignette may occur. This is an isolated event, usually taking a day to a week of the season, where you have a chance to directly intervene in the lives of your people (personally, not on a grand scale). The turn will not advanced until the Vignette is dealt with. The manner in which you deal with the Vignette will directly influence your peoples' attitudes, faith, or other attributes.
You will begin with one Prophet or Shaman. You may manifest to a Prophet directly at no cost, but others will not see you. Manifesting to a Shaman will take either Influence (a quarter as much as manifesting elsewhere, while lasting ten times as long) or resources as the Shaman conducts a huge ritual. Manifesting to a Shaman will allow others to see you, though there is no way to guarantee that they will
believe that you are anything more than a hallucination.
For the curious, the world map (generated through Donjon, love that site) is
here. It's pretty big.
I also have done art of the
Atzli and the
Shoulle. Not the other two so far though.
I hope to update this once a day, but work schedule says give me at least a week between posts if it ends up getting super complicated. If something comes up with rl junk I'll be certain to tell the thread.
UPDATES
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4If you have a question about something you may or may not know IC, ask in
lime green.Answers to questions will be posted in
orange.
Author
Topic: Rise of the (Kobold) God [ISG] : Winter Y1 VIGNETTE (Read 20235 times)