You got your Diablo in my Castlevania! Dungeon World
A prophecy foretold a final battle between Law and Chaos to shake the very foundations of Vandelon. The end times, when Gods would walk the land and empires would fall.
What the prophecy didn't mention was that it would end in a draw.
A thousand years have passed since the prophesized armageddon, and Vandelon still reels from the blows. The forces of the abyss and the heavens never left, either; they just called an uneasy truce after a century of divine warfare.
To the south, stretching as far as any mortals have ever explored in either direction, is the Golden Wall. A mile high and beautiful to behold, the Wall divides the kingdoms of mortals from the lands occupied by heaven's forces. No child of Vandelon has ever seen what lies beyond them. It's entirely possible that the angels who once fought bravely have long since abandoned this world, leaving only the Golden Wall to hide their absence.
To the north, however, is the Ocean of Chaos. An unnatural sea of dark waters, none who set sail into it return alive, for it is the realm of demons. Unlike the angels, the forces of chaos are more than willing to make their presence known. Demonic forces often raid the world of mortals, causing chaos and havoc wherever they go before they are driven back to the Ocean from whence they came.
In the middle is a thousand miles of No Man's Land - this is what remains of the world of the mortal races. What remains of the old Vandelon. The land's scars run deep from ancient battles. It isn't unusual to run across mountains cleaved in half, or holes in the earth so deep that they have no discernible bottom, pierced by unknown weapons of times past. The influence of the Ocean of Chaos stretches far beyond its rocky shores - the dead rise from their graves, reanimated by dark magic, and turn against their former compatriots.
However, mortals endure. In some parts of the world, old kingdoms perservere, their armies rallying against invading demons and undead. In others, bands of brave heroes fight back against the tide of darkness. The centuries pass, and the demons crawling out of the dark abyss still never make it to the Golden Wall. Vandelon has not been overrun, and it never will, so long as the strong fight to protect the weak.
Of course, not all villains come from the northern darkness. Mortals are more than capable of their own brand of evil. It is from the race of humans that the dark sorceror Rholvus arose. A man of great arcane power and unspeakable evil, his influence spread like a plague over the land, before a band of heroes, drawn together by each of their own personal vendettas against Rholvus, tore the Sorceror-King of Black Flame from his sinister throne and cleaved his head from his body. The scourge of Rholvus was forever purged from the land.
Or so they thought.
Rumors have begun to spread. Some speak of armies of undead fueled by hearts of dark flames. Some speak of an island within the Ocean of Chaos, where an evil thought to be extinguished yet lives.
Rholvus may not be dead after all...
Discuss:
-What personal grudge brought you against Rholvus five years ago?
-What class are you interested in playing? The options are Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Thief, and Wizard.
-What CR do you have with the rest of the party going into your reunion?
What the prophecy didn't mention was that it would end in a draw.
A thousand years have passed since the prophesized armageddon, and Vandelon still reels from the blows. The forces of the abyss and the heavens never left, either; they just called an uneasy truce after a century of divine warfare.
To the south, stretching as far as any mortals have ever explored in either direction, is the Golden Wall. A mile high and beautiful to behold, the Wall divides the kingdoms of mortals from the lands occupied by heaven's forces. No child of Vandelon has ever seen what lies beyond them. It's entirely possible that the angels who once fought bravely have long since abandoned this world, leaving only the Golden Wall to hide their absence.
To the north, however, is the Ocean of Chaos. An unnatural sea of dark waters, none who set sail into it return alive, for it is the realm of demons. Unlike the angels, the forces of chaos are more than willing to make their presence known. Demonic forces often raid the world of mortals, causing chaos and havoc wherever they go before they are driven back to the Ocean from whence they came.
In the middle is a thousand miles of No Man's Land - this is what remains of the world of the mortal races. What remains of the old Vandelon. The land's scars run deep from ancient battles. It isn't unusual to run across mountains cleaved in half, or holes in the earth so deep that they have no discernible bottom, pierced by unknown weapons of times past. The influence of the Ocean of Chaos stretches far beyond its rocky shores - the dead rise from their graves, reanimated by dark magic, and turn against their former compatriots.
However, mortals endure. In some parts of the world, old kingdoms perservere, their armies rallying against invading demons and undead. In others, bands of brave heroes fight back against the tide of darkness. The centuries pass, and the demons crawling out of the dark abyss still never make it to the Golden Wall. Vandelon has not been overrun, and it never will, so long as the strong fight to protect the weak.
Of course, not all villains come from the northern darkness. Mortals are more than capable of their own brand of evil. It is from the race of humans that the dark sorceror Rholvus arose. A man of great arcane power and unspeakable evil, his influence spread like a plague over the land, before a band of heroes, drawn together by each of their own personal vendettas against Rholvus, tore the Sorceror-King of Black Flame from his sinister throne and cleaved his head from his body. The scourge of Rholvus was forever purged from the land.
Or so they thought.
Rumors have begun to spread. Some speak of armies of undead fueled by hearts of dark flames. Some speak of an island within the Ocean of Chaos, where an evil thought to be extinguished yet lives.
Rholvus may not be dead after all...
Discuss:
-What personal grudge brought you against Rholvus five years ago?
-What class are you interested in playing? The options are Bard, Cleric, Druid, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Thief, and Wizard.
-What CR do you have with the rest of the party going into your reunion?