The World of Near

In days long gone by, Maldor was an empire, stretching from ocean to mountain, uniting the people of the world under one rule. Empowered by a common language and efficient trade, this cornucopia of cultures melded into an economic powerhouse where few were hungry and most were happy.

This empire fell, not to opposing armies, but doom from the heavens. A fiery dot appeared in the sky, bright enough to be seen in midday. The people, well-off but superstitious, grew restless, worried at what this apparition might bring. Absolon, Emperor-General of Maldor, gathered his astronomers and they examined the fire on the edge of existence.

Their counsel was dark. This dot seemed to grow larger by day, as if the sky itself was beginning to burn away. Within three months, this dot grew as large as the sun, and shone bright by night, causing fear and panic in Absolons kingdom. Mothers held their crying children to their breasts, trying to block the fell rays of this celestial re from their babies' eyes; peasants grew fearful as their beasts moaned in confusion at night; priests proclaimed the end of the world was coming.

And all looked to their Emperor, Absolon, for guidance, but Absolon had none. A foreign magician, Hanish, came before Absolon, hundreds of miles of dirt caked on his body from running. He swore that the rituals conducted by Absolon's sorcerers had unleashed this terror, and it must be revoked, else the world would be destroyed. The court sorcerers heard this and were none too pleased. They had Hanish imprisoned and tried to turn Absolon's ear away from his ravings. The words bothered Absolon greatly, though, and he went to Hanish's cell on a dark night, when the clouds obscured the burning among the stars.

Absolon threatened Hanish with death if this curse was not removed from the world. Hanish lay himself before Absolon's sword. Moved by Hanish's bravery and defiance, Absolon took him to his side as his highest advisor and they spent many hours talking alone. Rumors and rebellions ripped Maldor apart. The people said their Emperor spent all his days privately conversing with the man who would destroy the world. Within another three months, this fiery orb illuminated everything in burnt red. The sun could not even be seen.

In the midst of open revolt, chaos, madness, prophets proclaiming the death of all life, assassinations, and depravity, Absolon and Hanish emerged from the Emperor's quarters. The Sky Fire had grown no bigger than half the sky, but its heat was now intolerable and the entire sky was painted in eternal sunset as the globe burned away the air.

Absolon and Hanish stood on the steps of the Emperors Palace, hand in hand, and began a weird chant, intoning ancient syllables which spread throughout the angry crowds outside, calming them. This chant lasted for three days, and it is said that by the end of those three days, the entire Empire had taken up its rhythmic syllables. The Fire moved slowly across the sky, though, and at the end of the three days, crossed the western horizon and night fell again. Absolon and Hanish collapsed on the stairs where they chanted, their spirits gone and bodies broken.

Then, the world halted.

In the midst of night, the world shook with such a rumble that buildings fell, cracks opened spewing lava, and mountains formed out of plains-land. Men wept and tore their clothes, animals stampeded, and the elderly died of shock. A red glow came from every horizon, with black smoky clouds billowing. The clouds grew and grew as the earth continued to shake for days on end, the sun barely visible, and nally even blotted out that orb of life-giving light.

For a year, the earth quivered and the sun rose no more, with only black clouds looking down on humanity. The earth froze. For one year, through the harshest of winters, people died of plague, starvation, and madness. By the end of that year, the population of the known world was a tenth of what it had been.

One year after its disappearance, the sun rose weakly in the sky, barely shining through the breaking clouds. People driven to primitivism stuck their heads out of their caves, hovels, and homes to see the beloved sun as it rose to the middle of the sky and the foul darkness broke around it. When it set, though, living persons everywhere shook with horror.

A moon rose in the sky. Never had a moon been seen in the world. The only object ever seen in the night sky was the dread Sky Fire, which this bore too much a resemblance to. Its pale light threw dark shadows onto the land. Worse, when the sun rose the next day, this moon - three times as large as the sun - eclipsed the sun, a black Shadow Moon rimmed in fire.

Three hundred years have passed. Every night, the moon still rises, a terrible eye over the world. Some people quiver in abject fear. And some heroes fight the Shadow, in the darkest caves, the most decayed of civilizations, and the blackest hearts.

About the setting
The world presented within these pages is a sliver of the entire world in this game. Detailed here is the part known as Near, a section of the world geographically locked-in and saved from total destruction by the Sky Fire. It is also the tipping point for the rise and decline of the Empire of Maldor.

Looking at the map, you will note no clear political boundaries. There are not any. Every border in Near that doesn't have a huge piece of geography supporting it is contested. Some are more contested than others: the Khale-Ammeni border is the most fought over.

Reading the write-ups of the cultures, you will find many references that are not fully explained. There are ideas like The First Man, the Revenant Cult, and a far-north land where elves are kept as slaves. These are not explained on purpose, because ...

Near is yours to discover
That's right. I do not explain every detail of every culture because it should, and will, vary in your game from what I might have in my head. You do not need the author's permission to think up neat things about the setting, but I'm giving it anyway.

Within each culture, I've tried to put in many interesting ideas that you can build upon to flesh them out. This is not a job just for the Story Guide, either. Players should always feel free to recommend answers to questions brought up in play. I have left out what is not important to me and should be determined by your group. If, for example, I do not mention what sort of weapons a culture uses, then feel free to give them anything from swords to bizarre two-ended resin-coated blade-hammers.

In addition, make up your own rules. I've provided guidelines for creating abilities, Secrets and Keys: use them to bring more detail to the cultures I've provided.

And over those hills: who knows what lurks? What sort of mad culture could enslave elves? Who, if anyone, could live in the southern frozen wastes? Does another world lie over the eastern seas? Why has no one returned from expeditions over the western mountains?

If you can believe it, when I originally planned The Shadow of Yesterday, I answered a lot of those questions. In writing the game, it seemed like a stretch, like me trying to make an impressive display of my creative skills instead of helping you use your own creative skills. You will be pleased to know I still have the notes. Nothing should stop you from finding out for yourself what lies over those hills before I get around to telling you what I found, though.

The real deal
I really want you and your group to take this world and run with it. Whatever you decide is up is great. I did invent Neararound a few assumptions, though. Here's what they are.

There aren't any monsters. Sure, throw in killer wolves. I like to use crocodiles, personally. And I could easily see dinosaurs. These are beasts, though. All true antagonists in the game should be living, thinking creatures that have a viewpoint that can be understood, no matter how warped.

There aren't any gods. Mankind and, well, ratkin-kind are alone in shaping their world. That doesn't mean faith in something great isn't powerful, by the way. True belief gives you power, and in this game, sometimes you do get a supernatural benefit for that. That's a little fantasy nod to the power of the mind.

There's just people. Good and evil happen for a reason. And that reason is some guy's making it happen.