Fiction Primer:

The World of Mançyr

This document recounts what most characters could or would know about the state of the world. The general notions behind this world are that of: High-Fantasy, Science Fiction, Apocalyptic Fantasy, Ecological Disaster, Post-Human Stories, Eldritch Horror, and Spiritual Fantasy (a la the stories of Hayao Miyazaki). 

In this document you will find:

01. Common Knowledge Articles
02. Possible Cultural Backgrounds 
03. Regional Concepts
04. Pantheons & Sirrotechnology 
05. Tangent Runners
06. Further Reading / Inspiration


Here is the work of human minds and human hands 




Meta Narrative / Cosmos
  • The Nordic 'ø' is pronounced 'eu' as in 'bleu', but is used in this worldbuild more stylistically than functionally. 
  • Mørda is a geographic region that exists on the plane of Tørn, which in itself is crystal dimension. Not necessarily a planet, and not really a flat plane. 
  • If you were to stand on high mountain and look towards the horizon, you might see ‘the rise’ — a plane-specific illusion that looks as if the horizon curves upwards into the sky. Thus revealing the true nature of the Tørnic cosmos. 
  • If you were to take a skimmer, tangent-runner, or floating castle and fly ‘up’ indefinitely, the land beneath you would dissappear and you would find yourself in ‘space’.  This is especially dangerous, and no one has ever come back from this type of journey. 
  • Generally, those who use flying vessels need to at least travel with the land beneath them in view—hence the origin of the name ‘skimmer’. 
  • The mantle of this world seeps with a magical substance akin to Dune’s Spice. In Mørda this substance is called ‘Sirrot’, ‘Døst’, or more colloquially ‘Singing-sand’ 

Common Contemporary Knowledge 
  • Civilization on Tørn only exists where magical anomalies do not. 
  • Some anomalies are benevolent, such as Dragon's Breath which immediately transports you to the location you desire to go. 
  • Some mean certain death, such as Eternal Fire, which displaces victims on a molecular level. 
  • Others are somewhere in between, such as Mind Flayer, which messes with one's perception of reality, but does not harm in a physiological way. 
  • Mancyrs is a term reserved for those who take to a life of adventure, or those who are sensitive to magic (often times, both). 
  • Thus, the most prevalent role that Mancyrs play in the world is that of adventurers and problem solvers. 
  • It is general practice for a Mancyr to take up with a Mancing Guild due to the innate dangers of magic. In larger societies, Mancing guilds are politically dominated by Inquisitions—again, due to the innate danger of magic use. Mancyrs who do not take up with guilds are known as "Apostates" and are often not trusted by any organized faction. 
  • "Magic" is also known as "Sirromancy", the study of which being "Sirrology" 
  • Magical radiation is called "døst" or "static" and can be distilled and reappropriated depending on the context. 
  • Magical technology, technology driven and powered by døst is common-place. In many cities, the word ‘torch’ refers to a battery powered light device. 
  • The un-mapped wilds are often referred to as "the Cant" and there are those who live out here, thought to be out-casts and wasters. 
  • The world is too big and too ever-changing to ever be properly ‘mapped’. 
  • Yet, Cartography continues to be one of the most dangerous and lucrative life-paths one could take, as navigators are a core function of moving from region to region.  
  • Rune-paths are etched and stewarded by an organization known as the MTA or Mørdic Transit Authority. This is a paramilitary, apolitical organization that is solely focused on mantaining routes between regions. Without their constant maintenance, the route would be lost (warbled) to the ever-shifting cant. 
  • Teleporatation magic is strictly forbidden. 

 Mørdic Tales: Post-Scarcity and Vessel Magic
    Generally, those who live in civilization centers do not want for necessary resources. The prevalence of magical technology solves for many things such as food and connectivity. Yet, there exists places where people live more traditionally; such as Rondágvr, a region-state thats known for it’s export of luxury goods: Wine and fine liquors—purposely not made with magical means. 
    In Mørda, conflicts of resource often give way to conflicts of space and magic. People believe that the world is becoming smaller as the anomalous zones become larger, and the use of magic often invites the growth of those zones. There-in lies the ecological struggle. How can people who are so used to the conveniences that magic affords them dare to halt. The most traditional answer to this dilemma is conquest. Thus, many states find themselves in varying degrees of cold-war.  
    Else, there is always the danger of post-human threats. Anomalous zones house and spawn all kinds of beings and dangers—often requiring the use of magic to combat these threats. Thus; another dilemma: If magic use is required to defend society, how can society dare halt its use. 
   Contemporary times are dominated by ‘Vessel Magic’. This is the practice of sacrificing one’s—or many—physical being(s) to become a vessel, something akin to a space-ship. The first vessels took the form of floating castles. Now-a-days, smaller vessels known as Tangent Runners dominate the skies—aiding society in all kinds of ways. A common major conspiracy is the idea that sentient life should soon evolve to take to ‘space’, though many are keen to hold on to ‘land’ as long as societally possible.





The oldest existing map of Mørda, penned by an unknown author. This map is now defunct due to the expansion of Anomalous Region FZ-3BA during the Crucible Age. Kept in the Archives Pink Mountain Priory



Cultural Backgrounds
Here is a list of 20 cultural backgrounds presented én procédure (d20). This list is a starting point meant to thread the needle between the world of Mørda and common fantasy tropes. The reality of Mørda is marked by the existance of a countless array of cultures and walks of life. 
  1. I am an Ilfan from the Qara. Many of our brethren exist as tribes, but i'm more worldly, hailing from one of the forest's many city-sized caravans.
  2. I am an Ilfan from the Qara. I am part of a small tribe that trades with larger caravans, but our lives are defined by our nomadic forests.
  3. I am an Ilfan from the region of Black-Bark. My people spend their days in solitude, as we are not very trusting of others. If I am adventuring, i’m doing so for a very specific reason. 
  4. I am an Ilfan from the region of Black-Bark. My home was destroyed by Spider-Kingdom and I have gone to ground, hiding from their assassins. 
  5. I am Human. From the Color Kingdoms. We have strong relations with the dwarven empire, and are known for our resilience and adaptability.
  6. I am Human. From the pioneer country of Albeyónne. I was born into a society of adventurers and innovators.
  7. I am Human. From the fascist nation of Roya. I believe in the pursuit of a perfected magical race.
  8. I am Human. Originally from the fascist nation of Roya. F*CK Roya.
  9. I am a Dwørf. My ancestors vibrated out of stone many millennia ago. My contemporaries now live all across the mountains and valleys of the Mørdic region.
  10. I am a Dwørf from Kingsmouth. Our society is an active participant in ‘The Great Game’—the political thread that connects all regions. 
  11. I am a Hollow-Dwørf. Made of metal and extremely sensitive to sound waves, I must wear protective gear to venture outside of my mountain home.
  12. I am an Ørc. My people believe that competition is what distills the best kind of societies. I am loyal to my house, War or Law.
  13. I am an Ørc. I do not care for the traditions of my fore-bearers, as I have grown up as a transplant in another society.
  14. I am an Automaton. I do not know my origins. But I was awoken by people I now consider my family and home.
  15. I am an Automaton. Truly a wanderer, I have been around as long as I can remember. I wandered into Mørda by chance, and continue to find my own way, with no allegiances other than to my own.
  16. I am a Kinfølk Wanderer. I hail from the Endless March—a massive plane full of all kinds of Kinfølk.
  17. I am a Kinfølk. I belong to a Flock, which takes the form of a wandering band or small settlement. 
  18. I am a Kinfølk Royal. I belong to a long-standing lineage of other Beastfølk. 
  19. I am a Canter, part of a Skip-Crew—I live on a skip-vessel with a found-family, pursuing odd jobs and spending my life riding into the horizon. 
  20. I am a Skyfølk. I live in a sky-castle where my family has lived for generations. 




The Qaraqum
Known primarily for its enigmatic wandering trees—the Qara is the cultural home of the Ilfan who live as stewards to the surrounding nature. Ilfan often live in fungal structures that are grown on the trees themselves. There are all kinds of societies in the Qara; some organize around single trees, others organize around groves of trees that have been found to migrate together. Through collaboration with Mørdic societies, several rune-paths have been etched through and out-of the Qara. 

The Blackbark
The ‘trees’ in the Blackbark are massive, void of leaves, and made of a wood harder than most metals. To the Ilfan that live here, this forest is sacred ground. Unfortunately for them, the forest also contains several region-sized portals to the spider-plane. The most static series of settlements in the Black-Bark is known as Nonnagog. These are nine castles connected by rune-ways. In the center of the castles is a singular super-fortress which houses the Blevian War Council, the supreme authority of the Blackbark Ilfan. This is a culture steeped in constant war with an extra-planar enemy. 

The Color Kingdoms
The majority of human culture persists under the umbrella of the Color Kingdoms. The name stems from the many different house-banners and symbols that have waxed and waned according to the wonts of society. Geographically, the Color Kingdoms span a vast distance and encompass numerous ecologies resulting in a wide array of varying cultures; From the Rainforest Daises of the Vzurathi Resource Lords; to the Olympic Fairs and Wineries of Røndagvr; to the ancient and persisting steppe cities of Tassos—Maijor; to the Lava Towers of the Mazdarian Sultinate; and all of the sub regions and city states in between.


Albeyónne Zo’t’onoume
Meaning: Albeyonne Autonomous Region, this is Mørda’s ‘newest world’. Lacking in region-wide political structure, this is a land popularized by the energy and labor of Pioneers—who have struck out to build their own lives and stories. This is a chaotic place, contested by many, ruled truly by none. Innovation strives here, as well as the unchecked dangers of it. Authority often falls to the one holding the larger stick. 
 
Acranthor 
The Megacity of Acra is another relatively recent discovery. Its outskirts first settled towards the end of the Crucible Era, the ghost-city is now home to leagues of adventurers and miscreants who seek to make their fortune, or dissapear, in a vast ancient ruin. Though politically a territory of Roya, it is simply too big and too dense of an area for any one nation to hold. 

The Thaigs of the Septumviratum
Of the seven great Dwørven thaigs, there now exist only three: The Wall, The Spear, and The Kings’ Mouth. Much of the Dwørven realm has fallen to primeval corruption known colloquially as The Blight. Most paths to the Old Thaigs are destroyed or heavily guarded, but the deep roads care not for the wills of the Stone-Masons (Dwørves). There is an ancient and untennable threat here, and the Septumviratum fights a battle they have been losing for generations. 


Kingsmouth 
Jutting out of a cliff facing the Amaranthine Desert sits Kingsmouth—an ancient Thaig-Necropolis turned surface-city. Here is Mørda’s melting-pot, home to all kinds of people and ways of life. Here is also Mørda’s dead—hosting one of the biggest necropoli in the known world, A large amount of resources are utilized here to steward over the Grand Necropolis, where many aspire as their final resting place. Among the dead-spires are a number docks and sky-guilds, hosting Cant-crews from all over the world. 

The Endless March
The lands of the Kinfølk are pristine, solely for the cultural emphasis to ‘live as has been granted’. The rune-ways are tended to by the Deer and Elk, the wilds are tended by the Wolves, the coasts; by the Birds and  Dragons, the deserts; the Cats, the forests; the forest creatures, the seas; the coral, and so on and so forth. This is how it has been, and this is how it will be, by order of nature. 

The Cant 
Those who find their homes on the fringe of society are often known as ‘Canters’ for they always of a story to tell. There is no cultural through-line here other than many of these canters now live on tangent-runners, flitting from society to wilds and back again. 






‘Gods’ and Pantheons; Death and Afterlife
    The Mørdic cultural zeitgeist is one of ‘animism’ or ‘concept-worship’ rather than the worship of deities with specific identities. This is due to the idea that the old-world ‘gods’ are now understood to be people who manifested so much power that they became gross charicatures of their life pursuits. This is generally frowned upon. Those who pursue indefinite existences—such as lichdom—, and those who worship those who pursue that amount of power, are often ostracized or casted out as societal Pariahs (save for rare and specific cases, such as the pursuit of Lichdom under the Mortalitasi of the Grand Necropolis).
    Otherwise, the worship of ‘gods’ and ‘deities’ is intensely culturally specific and can vary from region to region. ‘Religion’ is often attributed to ways of life or holding to certain spiritual perspectives. Many societies accept that ‘spirits’ exist; more-so, many societies partake in branches of magical practices known as ‘animancy’ or ‘necromancy’ in order to commune with these spirits. What is ‘taboo’ is the ‘forcing’ of these spirits to act in unnatural ways—such as (but not limited to) using their energy as batteries, forcing them into constructs for the sake of slavery, or utterly destroying them. 
    Mørdic people generally believe that when they die their spirits shall persist. No one can say for certain if those spirits mantain any sort of the life they once accrued, though there are numerous perspectives. 

Sirro-Tech 
Here is a list of common sirro-tech and their IRL counterparts, with a short description of how they are percieved in the world of Mørda. Note: though these things are common, access to these things are often more nuanced.

  • Spaceship; Tangent-Runner. ships of varying sizes used to navigate the skies. Also known as: Skim-skiffs, Palanquins, Sedans, Hopvessel, Skipship.
  • Car; Autobull. originally metal engines that pulled carts and caravans. 
  • Flashlight; Torch, Glow-sphere. Rods that produce light or more commonly crystal balls enchanted to emit light and follow whoever activated them. 
  • Phone; Sending-Stone. Smaller carved stones that allow for in-region communication 
  • Smart tablet; Casting Tablet. Larger tablets that are often used as journals or ways to document large data-sets. Some have the capacity to communicate on in-region networks. 
  • Gun; Gun. Gun, magical. 
  • Gasmask; Rebreather. Common technology found in industrial zones or with those who make a living exploring anomalous regions. 






Tangent Runners
Generally: A ship; Specifically: a person who has chosen to transform their physical being into a vessel capable of multidimensional travel. Though the souls of these individuals are generally thought to inhabit these ships, they are often incapable of 1:1 communication, and as such require captains—aka:mediators—and navigators to utilize their full capacity. There are a small number of Legendary Tangent-Runners who have fully retained their personalities, goals, and ideals. Knowledge of those tangent-runners and their where-abouts is exceedingly rare—Inside these ships are pocket dimensions that protect its inhabitants from the dangers of interdimensional travel. The experience of riding a Tangent Runner is in itself unique according to the feelings and intentions of the soul it was transformed from. A great majority of them follow templates designed by prominent House affiliated designers, taking the form of a true-to-life space-ship; but it's not uncommon to step on a Tangent-Runner and find yourselve in a grove of trees or a desert oasis.  

Mirror-Broken
The term ‘Mirror-broken’ stems from a cant-specific trauma in which a person becomes confused in regards to where, when, and in what form they exist in. There is to this day no true cure for Mirror-broken individuals, but modern animancy has discovered that the souls of mirror-broken individuals often act in strange and unique ways. 
   It is generally accepted that Tangent-ships will become mirror-broken if it is not fed fresh souls. However, The practice of soul-feeding a tangent vessel is illegal in most societies, as it results in the utter destruction of souls involved (though, this does not meant that there are not fringe societies that continue to practice soul-feeding). 
    Most individuals who chose to become tangent-runners accept the idea that they will at some point be destroyed by their crew. 
    Vessels that have become Mirror-Broken are often lost to the Cant and exist through oral tradition as haunted ships that wander the wastes.  Sky Castle
‘Sky Castle’ is a catch-all term for tangent runners larger than would befit one crew. These specialized and often massive ships are the result of multiple individuals who have transformed themselves (or have been forced to transform into) into a great structure. The current biggest sky-castle—known as The Varátrakán—floats above Roya’s main city: Vidashoon and houses around fifty-thousand clergy. In order to stave off the Varátrakán’s mirror breaking, a nine thousand clergy-members must be sacrificed to its Tangent Engine each year. 
    Since the practice of soul-feeding is illegal in most other regions, sky-castles often originate from Royan Nobleite (Royal Families). 












Major Inspirational Sources
Pillars of Eternity Worldbuild https://pillarsofeternity.fandom.com/wiki/Official_Pillars_of_Eternity_Wiki
Numenara https://numenera.fandom.com/wiki/Numenera_Wiki
The Witcher Book Series https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Witcher_Wiki
Metro Book Series https://metrovideogame.fandom.com/wiki/Metro_Book_Series
Dragon Age Worldbuild https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Dragon_Age_Wiki
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. https://stalker.fandom.com/wiki/S.T.A.L.K.E.R._Wiki
Hayao Miyazaki Filmography, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0594503/
The Elder Scrolls Worldbuild https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Main_Page 
The Matrix Worldbuiild https://matrix.fandom.com/wiki/Main_Page
The Dune Worldbuild https://dune.fandom.com/wiki/Dune_Wiki
Wuxia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuxia
Serenity & Firefly https://firefly.fandom.com/wiki/Main_Page
Star Wars https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Main_Page
Mass Effect Worldbuild https://masseffect.fandom.com/wiki/Mass_Effect_Wiki