A Clockwork Valley

 A place tainted by order rather than chaos. 

A medieval fantasy land, a high European fairy-tale. A valley up in the mountains, big enough for a forest, a lake, a city, and a very small desert. Several days ride across, well protected by mountains, and an army.

Something happened here long ago. The mines in the valley mine clockwork, deposited in great veins that strain against each other, or lie dormant. The metal is unknown, and does not corrode or melt. Immense physical damage will cause a piece to break into two smaller intact pieces.

Godtech, the Gates, and the Beast in the Pit

Spread across the many worlds of Mappae Solis are fragments of technology. Some are rude chunks of inert metal, others simple toys and trinkets. Others have remnant power, and many a hedge wizard possesses a small collection of minor artefacts. Some however, are not minor. Some have incomprehensible power, and work in bizarre and arcane fashions. Some, are godtech.

Terra and the Humans

Earth suffered the most of any world in the Fall, as its density of both technology and population made the disaster much worse. For all that it was, and still is, the most habitable world with the largest carrying capacity and oldest, most complex biosphere, it is much reduced from its glory days. It has been long enough after the Fall that many ecosystems and biomes have recovered, and in the absence of cities and godtech megastructures, even returned to pre-Industrial levels.

However, many will tell you that Earth, now called Terra, is the most dangerous world.

Mercury and the Halflings:

Mercury and the Halflings:

Most people’s experience of halflings are of jolly and gregarious beings who, despite their odd appearance, are almost universally loved for their good humour and soothing talents.

Halflings, as the name suggests, are half as tall as a baseline human. This is hardly their most obvious visual feature however. They are often portly, with pot bellies and short, thick limbs. They also have an extra set of arms, identical to their top pair, which they keep wrapped around their torsos or under clothing. Halflings are also known for both their talent with first aid and healing, and their knack for repair.