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The World of Matyr - A Basic Introduction

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The World of Matyr


A Basic Introduction



By KerianH


Many of the worlds I have come up with in the past have been glaringly generic, had notably obvious inspirations drawn from obsessions or games that I have played or admired, or have otherwise felt marginally incomplete due to constant adaptation, revision, and eventually retconning of whole sections of lore due to a lack of thought put into the project or general disinterest.  For a while I had grown self-conscious of my writing because I always knew, deep down, much of what I wrote was far too inspired by other media that I have exposed myself to, and none of it felt wholly mine and mine alone; something that couldn't or wouldn't be published if it was ever given to a publishing company.

I have grown tired of these insecurities and anxieties that I have developed, and have wanted to get back into the passion of writing again; not just writing fantasy/science fiction, but creating worlds - worlds that are interesting, unique, and have real heart and soul in them, but do not rely solely on being unique on their own.  It is for this reason why I feel that I will not simply dedicate my writing solely to a single universe, such as fantasy authors like Brian Jacques, Terry Brooks, or Robert Jordan did, for I cannot simply stop at one.  I must make more, I must build more, and I must give these worlds life and let them be explored by readers, players, viewers, and listeners alike.  And so I shall.

-Kerian


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They call our world Matyr.  It is an elvish word, one whose meaning is synonymous with the material, the corporeal, and the mundane.  It is, in fact, the root word in the Common Tongue for the word Material, which borrows from many language sources; the elven tongue of Sylvalar being one of them.  It orbits a single sun, called Gallas in Sylvalar (though often referred to as Lus in Remesian documents and charts regarding the heavens).  It in turn is orbited by a single moon, which is called Irythil in Sylvalar (though also called Corpus in Remes, though the name is referred to by many tongues throughout the west).  It also shares its orbit with many other celestial bodies, though their names, for now, are unimportant.

Matyr is a world of many continents and places, but most of the unusual things occur in the single continent that lies near its center; Altherys.  Home to many cultures, nations, creeds, religions, races, and conflicts, Altherys is as beautiful as it is full of strife and discord.  Indeed, it is even spoken of in the ancient texts regarding the world's origin, that strife and discord went hand in hand during the infancy of the world and the continent's creation.


It is said that, long ago, the Allfather looked upon the nothingness and gave it form, igniting the stars in their eternal hearths and seeding the world and all that lay within it with the framework of his master plan.  It was then that he summoned his Firstborn, the Gods, who were instructed to build from the framework and forge the world according to his plan; to nurture life and let it take seed and grow, and to make mortal races in their image.  And so the Allfather went to watch creation unfold upon his Golden Throne, and all was well.

But not all truly was well in creation, for among the gods there was one who felt an envy towards the power of his brothers and sisters.  This envy burned further when the mortal races chose to worship other gods instead of himself; even his own children, who became wild and unruly and fostered a deep desire for independence and sense of self.  This god, Luciron, was the God of Strife, and his envy boiled within him to become a bitter jealousy.

Through coercion, and bearing false witness, Luciron spread lies and seeded the feelings of paranoia among the gods, particularly his brother; the God of Beasts and the Wild Places.  Through his coercion, he convinced them to create monsters and beasts, forcing them to spread strife among themselves.  Eventually the seed of his betrayal sprouted, and he took action; isolating his brother, the God of Beasts, and slaying him; absorbing his energy into his own.  From then on, Luciron the God of Strife ended, and Maalgor, the God of Chaos and Discord, was born.

The Gods made war upon Maalgor, but distrusted one another; the seeds of paranoia and strife having sprouted within them.  For each who tried to fight, Maalgor took some of their strength for his own.  Many of the gods turned on one another, already succumbed to Maalgor's corruption through Luciron.  This era of strife, the Upheaval Era, tore the world asunder the likes of which not seen since the Titan Wars.  It would not end until the combined forces of the Gods stood as one and defeated Maalgor in battle, crippling him and binding him in chains.

The Allfather, who had witnessed all, came to Matyr to pass judgment upon Maalgor; as the gods could not decide his fate, and Maalgor was too strong to be slain by any one power.  And so the Allfather took Maalgor and imprisoned him, sealing him in the depths of the Abyss in the palace of Tartarus, where he would remain until the end of the world.  So it was decreed that the world would be restored as best as it can, but the lessons of the war between the gods remain, for all life is sacred no matter how foul or monstrous.


It has been countless ages since the time of the Lost Era; the period of time between the fabled Upheaval Era and the coming of the Elves.  In that time Altherys was ruled by no one; its only inhabitants were the beastfolk, who lived on the continent much as they do today, in simple nomadic tribes that wander the land.  The Deep Realms, which lie beneath Altherys, held the early civilizations of both dwarves and Goblins, who lived in relative peace with one another for a time.  This peace, of course, did not last as the dwarves claim the Goblins rose up against their people in force.

The First Era began with the coming of the Elves.  In that age a land bridge existed that sprouted from the Everbog, the vast swamp in the southeast of Altherys; back when it was much smaller and dryer.  This land bridge connected with the Undying Lands, the homeland of all elvenkind.  Elvish legends speak of a civil war among their kind, called the First Kin War.  The losers of this war were sent to exile in the thousands, who all crossed the land bridge into Altherys.  These elves formed kingdoms and empires of their own, creating the many ethnic groups of elvenkind.  This period of migration would last until the Zharr, a race of beastfolk from the Everbog, rose up in revolt against the elves for their mistreatment and slavery of their people.  Their chosen one, the One of Dragon's Blood, led a war and mass genocide of the resident Elves in the Everbog before he made his way across the land bridge and destroyed it with ancient magic.  This spell devastated the surrounding coast, extending the Everbog's swamplands, and creating the island chain called the Fracture where the land bridge once stood.  So ended the time of the elves and began the First Breaking, a period of centuries between the First and Second Eras.

Before the destruction of the Fracture and the end of the First Era the Great War between dwarves and goblins had reached an end with the destruction of the vast kingdoms of the dwarves.  The individual kingdoms could not stand alone against all of goblinkind, and so they fell, and the survivors chose exile over righteous vengeance.  And so the peoples of dwarvenkind made their way towards the surface of the world, following vast tunnels that led skyward into the mountains above.  The first encounters with dwarves and elves was met with blood; dwarvenkind was desperate and needed sanctuary, while the elves of the mountains considered the caverns and tunnels leading downward to be sacred places and graves of the dead.  By the end of the First Era dwarvenkind had established itself firmly in Altherys, and their cold war with elvenkind lasted throughout the time of the First Breaking.

The Second Era of Altherys would begin as the era of another continent came to an end.  Tyrenmor, the homeland of mankind since the Lost Era, had met with a nameless doom; a catastrophe which broke the back of the island continent and the people who called it home.  For seven days and seven nights this storm of darkness tore at its people, while all along the western coast of Altherys its inhabitants were terrorized by its echoes.  Countless refugees fled upon their longships eastwards away from their former shores as Tyrenmor sank beneath the waves and was never seen again.

Though Altherys had been visited by man and some of its shores were colonized, the elves had driven mankind off throughout the First Era.  But never before had Elvenkind met with such vast numbers as they had when the whole of known humanity beached upon Altherys's western shores.  Three different groups of Tyrenmor refugees landed on Altherys, and three founded the different realms where mankind would forever call home.  Those that landed in the north met with raiders and pirates who had called those shores home and grew accustomed to raiding and pillaging the lands of the elves and the dwarves, who had driven them off long ago; these would become the Fryss, named after the realm they called home - Fryslon.  South of Fryslon the refugees there met a better welcome, as the wood elves of Aaravdayn showed compassion to these peoples and brought them in their society in peace.  Offering them sanctuary and salvation after such destruction, the humans slowly intermingled with the Elves, creating a new race altogether called the Aredani, who bear elven blood, and the realm of Aredain was named after them.  Furthest south of all came refugees who found a secluded heartland realm rich in resources and beauty, and so they chose to rebuild their fallen homeland and continue to spread its shining glory.  They named this realm Remes, after an ancient hero of Tyrenmor who beat all the odds, and their empire would spread throughout Southern Altherys from the Pillars of Tyren to the shores of the Fracture.  So began the Second Era, with the crowning of Emperor Tyr Carax I of Remes.

But the Second Era would end much in the same way as the first; in fire and blood.  Throughout the reign of Remes goblinkind began to emerge from tunnels throughout the world.  Having followed the dwarves in their long exile, goblins found a new land of plenty and sunlight unlike anything they had witnessed before.  With new villages to raid and new treasures to plunder, goblins found themselves entering into a golden age for their kind that would be unmatched throughout the eras of Altherys.  They found themselves allies and like minds in the beastfolk, who had endured years of persecution and being driven from their rightful homes; first by the elves, then by the humans; and could see no alternative other than ceaseless war and slaughter.  Madness and strife ensued, and those born from the ravages between goblin and man; and there were indeed many; grew to breed true and form new races of goblinkind.  These were called Orcs after an ancient word referring to raiders, and they grew to prosper in this land of sunlight more than their goblin parents, and added to the ruthless slaughter.

The Second Era ended when the Twin-Tailed comet tore through the sky, bringing with it civil war as empires and realms collapsed.  Aredain fell in a war with dark forces, splitting into many petty kingdoms and city states.  The Remesian Empire collapsed fully, its provinces splitting off and forming kingdoms of their own, leaving only the Heartland as the last refuge of their government and culture.  The Second Breaking sent shockwaves throughout the nations and realms of Altherys, from which many are only just now starting to recover.  Indeed some wonder whether or not we should classify the new era, the Third Era, as an Era at all but rather a continuation from the centuries-long Second Breaking.

In the Third Era many nations have fallen and have attempted to rise again, and to little avail.  The elves have committed themselves to isolation, as have most dwarves, though those of Bronze Kin find themselves homeless and wandering the lands of men and elf.  Mankind struggles and survives, but it is far from united.  The Aredani are content to remain in their state of individuality as its petty kingdoms squabble over land rights and past glories while the city states squabble over trade jurisdictions and rights to roadways and holdfasts.  The Empire of Remes has become a bureaucracy barely ambitious enough to gaze longingly at its past glories, but wise enough to know the futility of reclaiming them.  Goblinkind and beastfolk alike are practically hunted in many realms and barely tolerated in the rest, with many among them fighting to try and survive in this new world.

There is some hope in the Third Era, however, despite its bleakness and strife.  Long-lost treasures that had been left to rot simply wait to be rediscovered.  New opportunities arrive in the form of trade in the east.  Exploration and colonization of new lands have reached new heights as roadways are built to cut through the vast, unexplored interior of Altherys.  Though it is an era recovering from chaos, the Third Era has brought Altherys's peoples a clean slate to work with.  Now is the time where adventurers, explorers, and treasure seekers will find themselves at the height of their power as never before.
Typed this up last night, I still have no clue how to end these little bits of lore.

The World of Matyr is one of several worlds I am working on that I hope to translate into books, games, RPGs, movies/television, and other forms of media as a means of entertaining people and exploring new ideas by reusing some of the old and the traditional.  This group of worlds are what I will refer to as the 'Nine Worlds,' which essentially includes nine different settings (total) that share common themes, tropes, races, and motifs, while approaching each of them in a unique way that sets them apart from one another.  If ever I manage to create an RPG system in the future, these will essentially act as the campaign settings, and as such I am open to the idea of others being able to mess about and make novels or content for them in the future.

Each of the worlds will have the following themes, tropes, and motifs in common with one another:

  - They all have been created by an Allfather deity, whose name changes for each world but whose status as 'the architect' and 'father of the gods' is always present
  - They all have a maximum of 5 native races; these are usually Dwarves, Elves, Humans, Goblins, and Beastfolk.  In every game, these five will be the only races that are playable, though they will also include various ethnic groups, subraces, and culture groups that are unique from one another to provide more choice (e.g. respective to races; Bronze Kin and Iron Kin, Wood Elves and Drow, Remesians and Aredani, Goblins and Orcs, Satyrs and Fauns, etc)
  - For the sake of plot, each world will include a de-facto 'sixth' race, which is unplayable and exists as a group of antagonists.  They will always be evil and against the other races, usually in greater numbers but largely a secret until near the end of the main plot, and they desire to overturn the system in order to be the only race in existence
  - Each world contains similar 'planes' that exist in tandem to these worlds so as to share other plot elements.  These may have separate names from one another (e.g. Tartarus, the Abyss, and the Nine Hells) but all constitute the same general idea, so allowing other worlds to share similar creatures such as demons, fey, angels, and the like without distracting from the world's main theme.
  - Magic in the world functions similarly to magic in D&D and the Warcraft universe; essentially a force outside of the main world but interactable by various characters and objects.  Each of these magic forces are independent of one another; the arcane cannot work with spells used by druids, druids cannot interact with spells made by shamans, shamans cannot interact with spells made by clerics, and so forth.  These powers are often restrictive, meaning only a few races can use them and rarely are others capable, and in this case often only certain numbers of individuals within a race can even use these powers.  (This means that Dwarves can never access the arcane via a mage, but can do so through the use of technology and enchanted items, such as runesmithing, artificing, and alchemy).
  - Finally each world exists independent of one another around their own sun with their own neighboring planets and constellations, though characters can travel between worlds via Waygates.  However, such changes are rarely canon and occur independently from the plot, and are used as tools to allow for easy character movement from one setting to another.  (Incidentally, each world's own separate planets are capable of having life of their own and do not necessarily follow the same racial schemes and other fantays tropes to one another, though it is advised that they do).

Matyr, of course, was the first of these Nine Worlds, which originally included Aerundar until I decided to make Aerundar's 'Realms of the Sky' into a campaign setting for D&D instead.  Matyr was heavily inspired by The Elder Scrolls and as such shares a lot of themes with it (its timeline divided into Eras instead of Ages, for example, and most of the story takes place on one continent with other continents being referenced).  Most of the story will focus heavily on the region of the west of Altherys, specifically the regions of Fryslon, Aredain, and Remes; however it will also occasionally focus on regions such as the Everbog and the Kaframil Desert, which lie to the continent's east, and it will often reference the homeland of the elves, the Undying Lands, from time to time.  

I hope to continue adding lore regarding Matyr and Altherys as I add more chapters to my story, the Throne of Bronze.  Expect more to come in the near future!

-Kerian

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Matyr, Altherys, the Throne of Bronze, and related materials (c) Will Phipps/Kerian-halcyon
© 2016 - 2024 Kerian-halcyon
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writermartin42's avatar
Maalgor sounds a little bit like Tharizdun from D&D canon.

But I like the setup, it seems very interesting. I can't wait to read more.