This system exists to create lore for a high fantasy world players will explore. If anybody doesn’t like the result of a roll, they choose, roll again, or use a spark table. Always try to think about how the result creates the lore of the world. Every player should keep a chronological list of everything they did to affect the world. ## Primordial Era - Create the World 1. Scatter beans, counters, or dice on the table. All players use this as inspiration to draw coastline or barrier mountain ranges along their part of the hex map border. The border can include islands, bays, peninsula, and anything else but it must connect to the border of adjacent players. Make it chaotic and interesting. Each hex is about 20 miles (30km) across. 2. Choose which side of the table is North. The map represents a temperate portion of the world's Northern hemisphere. North tends to be cooler and winds will prevail from the West, carrying clouds and weather with it. 3. Go around the table, on their turn players roll and create either mountains or a major river. Continue until everybody has had one turn. (even). Create 15 hexes of mountains in a long range of any width. (odd). Create a major river originating from somewhere on the map and extending downhill to the nearest coast. Rivers are rarely straight lines. 4. Continue going around the table until about half the map is filled. On their turn players roll a d6 and creates terrain, up to the size listed. 1. Create 12 hexes of forest. 1. Prefer areas near water and the windward side of mountains. 2. Create 12 hexes of hills. 1. Place anywhere, prefer adjacent to mountains or as transitional terrain. 3. Create 12 hexes of drylands (scrub, steppe, rocky desert, dune desert, etc.). 1. Prefer interior, leeward side of mountains, and not near water. 4. Create 6 hexes of mountain. 1. Elongate or branch a mountain range, or create a small new range. 5. Create 6 hexes of Wetlands. 1. Prefer lowlands and near other wet areas. 6. Create 6 hexes of minor river and/or 1-3 tributaries. 1. Start somewhere and connect to larger rivers or coast. 5. All remaining areas are open country: grasslands, plains, prairie, tundra, or scrub. 6. Go around the table; each player rolls on the Terrain Feature table and places that feature on the map. Continue until at least 10 terrain features have been created and everybody has had the same number of turns. **Terrain Features** (d10) 1. A lake: 1-3 hexes 2. Wetland/delta: 1-4 hexes 3. A volcano: 1 hex 4. A canyon: 1-3 hexes 5. An Island: 1-6 hexes 6. Badlands: 1-6 hexes 7. A mesa/butte: 1-3 hexes 8. A lonely mountain: 1 hex 9. A tributary: 2-6 hexes 10. Unusual Terrain, roll below **Unusual Terrain** (d10, 1 hex each, modify existing terrain) 1. Waterfall on a river 2. Crystal caves in mountains 3. Blazing marsh in wetlands 4. Dark forest in forest 5. Toxic desert in drylands 6. Floating stones/islands not in mountains 7. World-tree not in mountains 8. Rock/Ice spires not in mountains 9. Hotsprings/geysers not in waterways 10. A titanic monster builds a home somewhere. ## Prehistory Era - Create Civilizations Each player creates a civilization and places their capital city on the map. Create a Civilization Log and roll d6 for each column. Interpret the results however you want. Some duplication between civilizations is acceptable. | d6 | Ancestry | Specialty | Disposition | Homeland | | ---:| --------------------- | ------------- | ----------- | ------------ | | 1 | Human | Builders | Friendly | River/Lake | | 2 | Dwarf | Expansionists | Inquisitive | Coastal | | 3 | Elf | Artists | Honorable | Wetland | | 4 | Goblin/Saurian | Naturalists | Reclusive | Woodland | | 5 | Special Terrestrial | Lore Keepers | Pious | Open Country | | 6 | Special Aquatic/Avian | Merchants | Aggressive | Highlands | ## Ancient Age - Expand Civilizations At the beginning of this age, each player holds one civilization log sheet. Go around the table. On your turn, expand one of the civilizations you hold. If you hold more than one civilization, pass any civilization you did not update to the next player. Choose one of the civilization's cities for settlers to expand from and roll 1d6. Each result points toward one of the six directions on the hex map; 1 points away from you then count clockwise. Look about 3 hexes in that direction and place a new city somewhere that makes sense for the civilization. Follow suitable features when appropriate. If the rolled direction offers nowhere sensible to settle, shift toward the nearest direction that does. If the roll was **odd**, after placing the city roll an Expansion Event and follow its instructions. If an event creates a new civilization, start a new civilization log and pass it to the next player. Continue around the table until there are at least 20 cities on the map and every player has had the same number of turns, usually producing 4–5 major cities per civilization. ### Expansion Events (d20) Choose or re-roll if the event is invalid. Each description should be one or two sentences. **Near** > Any event that says "near" means "the nearest valid hex at least 2 hexes away from all cities." 1. **Disaster drives the settlers out.** A plague, flood, monster, eruption, war, or other disaster devastates the older city. Describe what happened and how the survivors establish the new city. Mark the older city as damaged, abandoned, or destroyed. 2. **Settlers seek distant lands.** Move the new city so it is 4–6 hexes from the older city. Describe what the settlers hoped to find there that they could not find closer to home. 3. **A new people emerge.** Create a new civilization somewhere unsettled. Describe where these people came from and how your civilization first learned of them. Pass their log to the next player. 4. **The wilderness has inhabitants.** The settlers discover another people already living near the new city. Create a new civilization there and describe the first encounter between them. Pass their log to the next player. 5. **The land is transformed.** A massive natural or supernatural event changes 3 to 5 hexes near the older city. Describe what happened and why it drove people to establish the new city. 6. **Two civilizations converge.** If the new city is near another civilization, it becomes a meeting place between the two peoples and belongs to both civilizations. Each player describes what drew their people to the city. Otherwise, re-roll. 7. **Magic touches the land.** Create an *Unusual Terrain* feature near the new city. Describe what happened there and establish one clue about the nature or source of magic. 8. **Corruption spreads.** Something corrupts or poisons 3 hexes near the older city. Describe how the land changes and establish one clue about the corruption that drove settlers toward the new city. 9. **The new city is besieged by monsters.** Place a titanic monster or den of dangerous creatures near the new city. Describe what it is and why the settlers have been unable to drive it away. 10. **Pirates or bandits prey on the city.** Place a pirate haven, bandit stronghold, raider camp, or similar threat near the new city. Describe who they are and what they take from travelers or settlers. 11. **A barrier is overcome.** The settlers find a way across a mountain range, sea, canyon, dangerous wilderness, or other geographic barrier near the new city. Mark the route and describe how people cross it. 12. **The city becomes a crossroads.** A new route develops through the city, connecting two places that were previously difficult to travel between. Describe where the route leads and what begins passing through the city. 13. **A rival city emerges.** The new city rejects an important custom, belief, ruler, or institution of its civilization. Describe the disagreement and how the older cities regard their troublesome new neighbor. Create a new civilization with a different specialty and/or disposition and pass it to the next player. 14. **Vast caverns lie below.** The new city is settled above an enormous cave system. Describe what the settlers find near the entrance and one sign that the caverns extend much farther than anyone has explored. 15. **The city is built on something ancient.** The new city is settled directly upon an enormous ruin or unnatural structure. Describe what is visible and one part the settlers have incorporated into the city, but leave its original purpose unexplained. 16. **Something claims the surrounding land.** A spirit, monster, ancient guardian, hostile people, or other power claims the territory around the new city. Describe the threat and what the settlers must do to live beside it. 17. **A sacred place is discovered.** Something in or near the new city becomes important to the civilization's religion, beliefs, or traditions. Describe the place and why people consider it sacred. 18. **A valuable resource is discovered.** Something near the new city makes it unusually valuable. Describe the resource and how its discovery begins changing the city. 19. **Strangers found a city.** People arrive from beyond the known continent, across an impassable barrier, or from somewhere nobody expected. Create a new civilization and place its capital somewhere remote. Describe what is immediately unusual about the newcomers and pass their log to the next player. 20. **Something enormous is discovered.** The settlers find something impossibly large: a colossal skeleton, buried machine, petrified organism, or unnatural monument. Describe what can be seen and one question about it nobody can answer. ## Present Age - Evolve civilizations At the beginning of this age, each player chooses one civilization to bring into the Present Age. Together, decide what became of the remaining civilizations. They may diminish, merge with another civilization, or fade into history. Faded civilizations leave ruins where their cities once stood. Go around the table creating **Luminaries**, influential people who shape their civilization. A Luminary might be a ruler, general, prophet, or scholar. On your turn, name a Luminary and roll on the Events table. Describe what they did and record it on your civilization's chronological log. Continue until at least 12 events have been created and every civilization has the same number of Luminaries. Each description should be 1-2 sentences. When an event involves another civilization, choose another player's civilization. Each player describes the parts of the event assigned to them. If their accounts disagree, both versions become part of the world's lore. ### Events (d20) 1. **Trade flourishes.** Establish a trade route with another civilization. Each of you describes one thing your civilization imports from the other. 2. **A center of learning arises.** Establish a college, library, academy, or magical school in one of your cities. Describe what it is famous for and how it affects the city. 3. **An unusual creature is domesticated.** Choose an animal or monster. Describe what your civilization uses it for and how it has changed everyday life. 4. **Magic is mastered.** Establish something distinctive about how your civilization understands or practices magic. Connect it to something already established about magic in the world. 5. **A wonder is created.** Build and name a monument, temple, fortress, or magical work. Place it in or near one of your cities and describe why it is remarkable. 6. **A famous journey occurs.** Your Luminary travels to a distant place. Describe there they went and what they brought back. 7. **A famous battle is fought.** Choose a city belonging to another civilization. Describe why your Luminary attacked the city and what your civilization gained from the battle. The other player describes how the battle ended and how the city remembers your Luminary. 8. **A valuable resource is discovered.** Place a valuable natural or magical resource near one of your cities. Describe what it is and how its discovery changed your civilization. 9. **A great dispute divides two peoples.** Choose another civilization and describe how they wronged your civilization. The other player describes how they view the dispute. Each player then decide if they consider dispute resolved or ongoing. 10. **A faith or philosophy spreads.** Establish a religion, philosophy, cult, or spiritual movement that becomes influential. Describe one of its beliefs and how it affects everyday life. 11. **A tradition is born.** Your civilization creates a festival or tradition based on a historical event or nearby anomaly. Describe what it commemorates and how people observe it. 12. **A distinctive craft or art flourishes.** Establish a craft for which your civilization becomes famous. Describe what they make and what makes their work special. 13. **A new ruler reshapes the civilization.** Your Luminary becomes the high leader of the civilization. Describe something about the civilization that is different because of their reign. 14. **Knowledge changes the world.** Your Luminary develops or discovers an important advancement. Describe what it is and how it changes ordinary life. 15. **A mystery draws attention.** Choose an unexplained place, creature, event, or feature already established in the world. Describe what your civilization believes about it. Do not resolve the mystery. 16. **Cultures mingle.** Choose another civilization. Each of you describes one custom, food, belief, or technique your civilization adopted from the other. 17. **A great threat is defeated.** Choose or create a monster, corruption, disaster, or other threat. Describe how your Luminary defeated it and what lasting mark it left on the world. 18. **A revolution changes society.** Your Luminary challenges an established custom, institution, ruler, or faith. Describe what they changed and how it affected the civilization. 19. **An alliance is forged.** Choose another civilization. Describe why your civilization wants the alliance. The other player describes why their civilization accepts. Each of you describes one promise your civilization makes to the other. 20. **A Luminary changes the world.** Your Luminary accomplishes something unprecedented. Establish one important new truth about your civilization or the world and describe how it changed the world. ## Present Day Collectively choose the most interesting location for the players to start their adventure and create a new city near it. Use [[Collaborative Colony]] to develop the city. ## License Asmythe TTRPG is published under the [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Intercivilizational license.](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/)