Potential CotH custom lore world
#1
a So, I've been doing some brainstorming on how to go about making custom lore for CotH RP that: A. is original enough to avoid copyright fuss and B. would easily bridge existing CotH WoW characters. This would preferably also start on relatively "early" in the lore's narrative, so that players themselves might have more influence in our world. I don't know what medium this would be for, but I do know that I want to make this an open canvas for community custom lore that's less restrictive than some of the stuff in the works for WoWCotH, as there's little existing history to abide by and the only real restriction would be a matter of balancing powerlevels. 


This is still a WiP, (and my first world building lore stuff) so please ask me any questions and make suggestions as to what medium of RP you would prefer this to be in.


Warning: Mega Lore dump ahead




So here's what I've come up with so far:




There exist four primal elements, Earth, fire, air and water. These forces have existed since beyond the dawn of time as alternate planes of existence and as omnipotent entities simultaneously. However, there also exist different sides to each of these elements, which encompass their own "beyond comprehension" matters, but their effects could be categorized as the "physical" and the "metaphysical."


So these forces are all swirling about in existence, but as the physical and the metaphysical meet, they create space and time, at the heart of which lies this little blue planet, Coth. Because this planet exists at the epicenter of this collision of forces, it is here that fragments of the Primal Elements meet, and take on a degree of awareness outside of their own realms. They develop a sort of personality, and it is not long until the elements begin to intermingle on this world. 


As the Primal Elements meet, new, secondary entities develop, taking on features of both their parent elements and the world around them. From Earth and Fire comes Vulcanism, the force of magma and metal, and from fire and air comes Lightning, with dominion over storms and the elusive forth state of matter, plasma. From air and water is Frost, governing snow and cold itself, and lastly Growth, representing plant life and the fertile soil it creates. These entities were born to this world bound by time,space and other constraints, and it was their being unable to cope with the finite nature of their existence that started the conflict of elements.


Meanwhile, the physical and metaphysical forces have long been at work, creating the beasts and spirits that inhabit the world. Like the second caste of elementals, sentient beings of their own form as Angels and Demons, beasts and souls that are unyieldingly dedicated to their individual goals. Angels are beasts refined into entities that relish in physical sensation; beings of passion and instinct. Being ultimately immortal and with little need to procreate, they would spend much of their time doing what their heart urges them to, whether it is to swim among the waters of Coth or to bask in its sunlight, or gorge on its natural offerings of fruits and honey. Angels are well identifiable by graceful plumage if all sorts, which may be groomed into whatever look so pleases the individual.
Demons are entities of the mind, and though do not need to worry about food or procreation, contemplate a great deal on problems and inter-personal relations. Also, like their angelic counterparts, they ebb away at time through their chosen interests. However, those of demons are mental tasks rather than physical experiences, leaving them in an oft obsessive or even manic state.


It was not long after the development of the divine creatures and the secondary elements' beginning their conflict (relatively speaking) that the element of Water decided to take action. Being home to both many angels in its lush shores and demons in its vast depths, it recruited willing individuals from both sides, empowering them both with its life-giving powers. This resulted (somehow) in the creation of the Undine, a race of beings which bore both the passion of angels and the sound mind of demons. Physically, they bear a bipedal form as well as vestigal gills down their torso or neck, though most notably, they bear both the plumage of angelic beings and the horns and quills of demons. 


Though weaker than any one angel or demon, they are plentiful and would reproduce, causing them them and their burgeoning civilization across the world. More importantly, though, is that they could wield any element regardless of their heritage. They would effectively define the concept of Mortals in this world, amd pave the way for the introduction of new mortal races in Coth.


Seeing these creatures spread throughout the world, other elements decided to bring forth their own mortals. Earth was more talented with the manipulation of space, and rather than create creatures in the same manner as the Water, created vessels of life with the help of the element of Growth. Earth then brought forth the souls of people from other dimensions to inhabit these bodies. 


Unfortunately for these people, Earth had a poor understanding of mortals at the time, relying on the blueprint of the dualistic Undine. These creatures were the Elves, though they bore the traits of many different elven people, as well as multiple souls. Their society in confused tatters, they spent many, many years trying to rebuild and organize among the earth and forests of Earth and  Growth.


Air was a calculating force, which spent many years observing the efforts of other elemental forces in bringing forth mortal life, and eventually settled on a technique for creating its own. By manipulating time and some promising beasts, it hastened their development into creatures resembling the mortals of other races. Demons then manipulated the minds of these beasts to their will until the first of humanity was created. Short lived but prolific, and with a knack for domesticating other beasts, they quickly set upon the world, leaving their mark throughout.


It was at this point that the secondary elements began to strike out with their own mortal children. Growth, particularly shamed by the struggle of the elves, set out to make a new race that could exist more happily among her world. From the beasts and her will came the Minotaur, creatures more delicately influenced by demonic sway than others and thus less prone to obsession, depression and other mental vices. They are far from stupid though, able to take on the cunning of their patron beast.


Vulcanism forged entities of different shapes and sizes from obsidian and iron. These beings were not true mortals, lacking the mind, will and ability to wield any element at will.They emulated the behavior of mortals well enough, though. They spread their mechanical society fourth until encountering the mortal races, and of course someone put their dick in it. 
Those sired by a mortal father and vulcan mother were born into stocky, hearty beings which would come to be known as the dwarves. The less common union of a male vulcan and female mortal resulted in the more diminutive gnomes. All dwarves seemed to resemble truly organic versions of their artificial mothers, though gnomes would come in a wide array of different forms, depending on what their mother was.


The element of storm reveled in the creations of its siblings Vulcanism and Growth, amd soon after their creation, set forth to carve its own beings from their children. With the force of thunder, storm carved the orcs from the vulcan constructs and imbued the souls of the minotaur upon them and a greater gift for the elements and the metaphysical from his lightning. 


Fire and Frost simply watched and waited, both content with their dominion for some time. However, as the mortals began to encroach upon their power through civilization and elemental use, fire lashed out. Being a primarily metaphysical element, fire set forth flaming demons to raze much of mortal life.This caused chaos all over the world, and many mkrtal people sought refuge in the lands of frost and snow among Coth's north and south poles.


Frost offered the leaders of these people a bargain, in which Frozt would remove their need for fire and other elements in exchange for serving him. Desperate, the kings and lords whom agreed were transformed into beings of cold and darkness. In Frost's poor understanding of mortal society, however, he failed to understand that the people under a king were not bound to their ruler's will. This transformation into unfeeling and unliving beings were forced upon refugees of all races and identities. Though at first able to better combat the demons of Fire withoht needing to rely on flame or warmth, this had given Fire exactly what he wanted: to see his element not so carelessly wielded by mortals. Frost and Fire would come to an understanding- even a partnership.


However, they failed to count on the fact that these undead were still mortal, and thus able to wield any element. One rather angry undead man sought the aide of the neglected fire and frost angels, rare as they were, and took on the blessings of both, making him a nexus of power wielding frost as well as fire. He ascended beyond his mortal form but kept his will, becoming the first of the tertiary saints.


General Lexicon


Physical and Metaphysical
Think Light and Shadow, but less black-and-white. These are a byproduct of elements co-existing on the plane of mortal reality, and lay the groundwork for mortal life. Divine beings, entities formed from the mingling of elemental energies and the states of being have emerged, embodying a sole aspect of their patron physical or metaphysical state and a single primary or secondary element.


The physical matters concern themselves with sensations, feelings and emotions felt rather than thought, like love. This is the dominion of nobility and animals, or all living beings that may lack conventional sentience. Angels are divine, immortal beings that form from the physical, embodying one aspect of the Physical. Despite some fearful, beastial angels, they generally have positive connotations for the vast empathy and kindness found in kindness and generosity-based Angels. They take a myriad of forms, but seem somewhat beastial and all bear plumage that can be easily groomed into unique and colorful looks.


The metaphysical is the realm governs thoughts, ideas and more mind-based sensations, like fear and anger. Often existing as whispy or intangiable entities, Demons tend to only interact with the world itself through elemental blasts, or focused cones of energy which manifest themselves as spikes and horns. Because of the dominance of many sinister demons, many mortals insist that there exists a third class of divine entities, Muses. Though ultimately just demons with non-aggressive or destructive tendencies, many demons have gravitated to this term, so that they may better interact with mortal kinds.

The Primal Elemental Kings:
Four elements, Fire, water air and earth, exist in their own planes of existence as omnipotent beings. However, certain tears in the plane of mortals/reality/etc cause small glimpses of their being to be seen within the constraints of time and space. These glimpses of the primal elements have their own personality and temperaments, as listed below:


Fire: The element of passion and energy, it exists almost entirely in the metaphysical, and thus is most prone to metaphysical matters, such as obsession, anger and the likes. Often used by mortals but without a race to call its own, its relationship to the mortal people of Coth is one of creation and destruction in a tenuous balance.


Water: Water is a brooding element, being calm and still in its dark depths and tempestuous at its surface. It is beloved by both the beasts and angels for its sensual experience and by the spirits and demons for its vast nature. Its popularity with divine beings makes it a subject of jealousy for other elements. Water was the first to create a mortal race from its divine allies, which it regrets due to the cascade of violence brought on by the swath of new mortal races and the conflicts between them.


Air: The most calculating and impartial of elements, Air prefers versatility over other aspects within itself and its people. Considering itself the perfect balance of the physical and metaphysical, it considers humanity to be the greatest of mortal races despite their short lives, and may manipulate the nature of time to suit its will for those it considers worthy.


Earth: Earth is a force of dualistic nature, hosting both the delicately building crystalline structures of the world,  as well as the churning magma within Coth's core. After the birth of the secondary elements, and watching as Vulcanism gravitated towards its parent of Fire, Earth has instead more strongly embraced its calmer side, forming a bond between Growth that is more firm than any other inter-elemental relationship.  In its folley, it recreated the extra-planar elves in an imperfect form, through the life bestowed by Growth and souls snatched by Earth's space-bending powers.


Secondary Elemental lords
These entities are vast elemental powers, born from the intermingling of the primal elements, but lack their own plane of existence, and thus are bound to the plane of mortal reality. Being bound by time and space as their forebears were not, conflict soon formed between the forces. They bear a power level only slightly less than the fragments of the Primal Elements that exist in mortal reality, but should they ever oppose the Primal elements in their own realm, they would be destroyed in an instant.


Vulcanism: The offspring of Fire and Earth, wielder of the churning heat of magma and molten metal. Being that Vulcanism can have little power without using the power of the Earth, Vulcanism grew tired of being limited by the offerings of Earth, and looked to Fire to learn how to take magma for its own. Fire, being a temperamental element and pleased by such a powerful follower, gladly took on Vulcanism and made it its prodigy. In order to keep up with the other elements, it eventually created the Vulcans, lifelike constructs, at the behest of Fire.


Growth: the element of plants and soil, and born from the union of water and earth, Growth has a strong relationship to the plants and beasts of the world. When Earth offered to join forces to create a new race of mortals more heavily tied to the Earth, she happily agreed, breathing life into the earthen forms Earth had made. Little did she know, these were models based on the people of another world, and their souls had been stolen for Earth's new people. Their suffering and confusion brought great sadness to Growth, and she spent many years offering her support as a patron to the elves, before creating new children in the Minotaur, whom represented the nature-friendly mortals she had first expected from Earth.


 Storm: A churning force of plasma and lightning, caught between the arrogance of Air and the pride of Fire, Storm could do little but act as a patron force of mortal elementalists until the creation of the vulcan constructs. With their metallic form facilitating his power and with the help of storm angels and demons, he shaped the Orcs from the artificial life forms. These beings are proud, nomadic peoples whom still bear Storm's knack for wielding the elements, fulfilling Storm's desire for a faithful mortal following. Unlike most other elements, Storm does not particularly mind the orcs wielding the powers of other elements, as long as it is in his name.


Frost: Frost is a cool and distant force, opposite of its loud twin, Storm, and its motherly sister, Growth. Born of the flighty nature of Air and the deep, hidden mysteries of Water's ocean depths, Frost is content to exist in the far corners of the world, relishing in the creation of perfect snowflakes and absolute zero. When Fire raged angrily at the mortals of the world, Frost reluctantly accepted the refugees as his own, removing their need for warmth, calming Fire's rage and allowing them to live among Frost's world. This state of undeath opposed the nature of Mortal races, however, and frost's rare temper is provoked by the peoples' being so ungrateful for Frost's "Gift." This makes Frost all the more bitter, and though Frost sees no need to rule more than its fair share of Coth, it is willing to empower the undead mortals willing to demonstrate Frost's might.


The Tertiary Saints:
The tertiary saints are lesser elemental lords that are born from mortals and wield two or more seemingly opposed elemental and/ or meta/physical forces. Though less powerful than the four prime elementals and their four offspring, they can wield incredible power of their own when empowered by the will of mortal followings. 
Think the Loa or Ancients in Warcraft lore- powerful enough to create their own religions and subraces, but not so powerful that players couldn't strive to create one themselves, with enough player support. This is where people can go wild with lore. There should be more out there than Matheus, but Matheus is the only one particularly necessary for the races atm.


Matheus: The first of the Tertiary saints, Matheus was a human knight whom followed his Lordship to the North to ask Frost for protection from Fire's wrath. While his patron Lord accepted Frost's offer, Matheus refused, insisting that he serves his Kingdom, not an Element. However, his refusal was unheard, and he as well as all the other refugees of his kingdom were engulfed in Frost's "Gift." Cursed to undeath, he abandoned the banner of his human Lord and instead sought out assistance for himself and the others whom were unwillingly turned into the undead. He found sympathy in the angels of Frost, whom were long neglected by Frost for having too much bestial vigor. Strangely enough (in Matheus's eyes) the angels of Fire also joined his cause, as they embodied the combination of the physical and the element of fire, which Fire had abandoned in his wrath against mortal use.
The angels of frost and fire came together into Matheus's being, and through their power and Matheus's will, allowed him to transcend to a state beyond mortality. He became an angelic being, with the power of Frost and Fire, as well as with the willpower and consciousness of a mortal man. Those undead whom wish for a cure can find it by pledging themselves to Matheus's cause, though few (under 100 individuals) have so far achieved it. He has a plentiful following of other mortal races due to his benevolence and ability to heal.
This is the Church of the Holy Light parallel; a devout, passionate force dedicated to the purity of life and all that is holy.


Mortals
Mortals are beings that exist as a union of the physical and the metaphysical. With finite lifespans and the ability to reproduce sexually, these beings are weaker than other forces but have strength in numbers. Most notably, their willpower can collectively influence the world as a single elemental force may, and can wield any element they wish with proper training.


Undines: The first of the mortal races, these beings were the merging of water-aligned angels and demons. Much to the surprise of the elements, these creatures possessed their own will and freedom from the elemental dispositions of their Divine forebearers. They possess the plumage of angels and horns of demons, as well as general beastial traits, though they are ultimately humanoid beings. They bear ridges on their necks or torso which are vestigal gills, though they can regain functionality if they dedicate themselves to the element of Water.
These are the Draenei parallels. I assume that, with their opposing origins and being the first mortal race, someone could write their own drama to rival that of the Draenei. The feathers are really more a visual parallel to the face tentacles and such; in place of tentacle sideburns, an Undine could have long, feathery ones. 


The Elves: These beings were the second mortal race of Coth, though only their bodies were truly native. Earth glimpsed the mortals of other worlds through his space-manipulating powers, and liked what he saw. He created a physical form from the earth, which Growth made into flesh, and together they bound the souls Earth had stolen into these new forms. However, Earth screwed up the process, resulting in most of the elves possessing more than one soul, and rarely did these souls align well. Wood elves mixed with frost elves, the High elves among the drow, and the likes. 
This led to many years of tumolt and disorganization, which Earth hid away in deep caverns. All the while, Growth nursed the beings with her plentiful foods and beasts until they finally settled into some semblance of order. The Elves eventually settled down into three subgroups: the Deep Elves, taking primarily after Drow culture, the Verdant elves, whom were more druidic in nature and embraced the kindness of Growth, and the Sun Elves, whom eschewed the former cultures and set out to make their own lives away from Earth's caverns and Growth's forests. The second souls of the elves have mostly faded into obscurity, though the wisdom of another world lies within all elves, should they take the time to seek out their second soul. However, they risk losing themselves to the other identity entirely.
These are the elf parallels, obviously, though I wanted to give them something unique from other fantasy elves. Instead of being tempted by generic corrupting magic, they have the potential to unlock the secrets of a lost race found in their "second soul." However, these spirits can corrupt and alter the elves in an extrapalanar fashion, so subraces like Naga and Felblood are possible.


The Humans: The favored children of Air, humanity was born of beasts transformed by Air's manipulation of time and the subsequent metaphysical alterations of these animals' minds into mortal sentience. Humanity is a race that Air devised to take care of themselves, gifting them with the ability to domesticate animals and adapt to any environment and situation as needed. Their name, "Human" and derivative terms like "Man" and "Humanity" were formerly the impartial term for mortal races as a whole, until Air commandeered it for his people.
Human parallels, of course. They're short lived compared to the other races but have incredible potential. I also feel that the ability to domesticate animals is something that should be emphasized in fantasy, as rarely do you see any other race actually have more than two or three domesticated creatures. I'd say that in, say, three human generations a creature could be domesticated. This isn't actually too outrageous, as the russian fox experiments would prove. 


The Minotaur: The second mortal race Growth has had her hands in making, these embody her initial vision for the elves more closely. They seemingly appear as humanoid bovines, and have a more animalistic mind than other humanoids. Upon their coming-of-age, they set out to discover their spirit beast, one of any of the animals that exist in the wide world of Coth. Most find them before the age of 25, and gain the ability to take on aspects of their guiding beast at will. A snake minotaur might take on fangs and superior smell of a snake, a bird their plumage and brilliant song. A few whom follow the path of druidism are able to take on the form of their beast entirely.
However, those that do not find their spirit beast for whatever reason, slowly but surely lose their connection to nature. They tend to become craftsmen, elementalists or leave their homelands to find a place in other cultures altogether. They tend to be close allies to the Verdant elves, though Minotaur with subterranian spirit beasts may join the Deep elves.
Tauren equivelents, duh. But with more elf-related drama. I figure Minotaur would get a bit more love if they're the primary anthropomorphic race and could basically be worgen with horns.


The Dwarves: Basically, anything male that decided to screw a female vulcan construct could wind up with a dwarven baby. The first of the dwarves were a bitter, neglected people, as their vulcan mothers provided them with the physical necessities, and nothing more. Abandoned by their mortal fathers, the dwarves vowed to become more noble than their horny abandoning fathers, and more creative than their inhuman mothers. They took over the vulcan facilities bordering mortal lands, and begun to create for themselves. 
Though dwarves to their vulcan mothers, the dwarves are not necessarily all that small compared to other mortal races, being on average a head shorter than humans, but otherwise quite similar. (Air's design for humanity was modeled primarily after the vulcan constructs, with a bit more of the elven form thrown in) Internally, though, their physical makeup is quite different, with their bones, teeth and nails often being made of metal or mineral. Depending on their internal element, dwarves may have a stronger affinity for different elements. (stone to earth, bone to Growth, metal to Vulcanism, Fire and Storm, and crystalline materials to Frost. Frost has an impractical love of crystal lattice structures)
Most strangely with dwarves is that, unless breeding with another dwarf, their offspring will always be species of their mate. There are no half-dwarves in existence.
The dwarves. Various degrees of forging and creating, with a strong family bent to them. As nice as warcraft dwarves are with all their diversity, there are so many generic "humans but smaller" that I'd rather have them develop from a smaller population and more insular culture.


The Orcs: These are a fierce people born from Storm's will, they were plucked from the ranks of the vulcan constructs for their conductive properties. Even now, as beings of flesh, their skin takes on a bronze. brown or green hue from latent deposits of copper in their skin. (gold or silver skin is rare but possible) Sculpted into fiercer looking creatures with metal tusks among otherwise ivory teeth, the orcs were made to be a nomadic and tribal people whom more closely resemble the nature of Storm and tempestuous weather. They are naturally gifted with demonic elemental powers, and can most easily wield Storm's electric power. They are still mortal, however, and thus have joined various societies in lesser numbers and have even united the clans on occasion. 
Think contemporary fantasy orcs (like Warcraft orcs) combined with Mongolian culture. Bonus points to someone writing an arc about how they gain companion beasts.


The Gnomes: Some of the rarest but most diverse of mortal races, they are what happened to the few whom were impregnated by male vulcan constructs. On rare occasion, a vulcan construct could be possessed by wayward demons or muses, whom were bent on romance with mortals. The children of these rondezvous produced physically weak and small creatures known as gnomes. Being more inherently demonic than any other race, they were born intellectuals, whose dispositions were more closely tied to their demonic fathers than to their own wills. Those born from Muses would become what most typically think of as gnomes: small, industrious people. 
Those born from less friendly demonic parents (more often being born from orc mothers) were dubbed Goblins. Goblins would later become defined by their appearance as small gnomes with greenish skin and pointed features, as well as goblin culture, but could have any variety of demonic disposition, pleasant or unpleasant.
Goblins and gnomes are subspecies of the same race here. Not unreasonable, IMO. They tend to not get enough love as-is, so they might as well be lumped together. I'd leave it up to players to make these races stand out. Get on it, Math.


Frostblessed: AKA: the undead. Frost dedicated the same level of dedication and power to transforming existing mortals into a new form, rather than creating his own. The undead can be of any mortal race, and are most easily recognized by being "alive" but with little to no body functions. They can be killed by beheading, but require no heat. To survive, they require the intake of some kind of "life" energy, whether it is that provided by the elemental forces, demons, angels, or stolen from other mortals. They are most easily recognizable by their deathly palor and perpetually frozen-over eyes which glow with a dim light reflecting the element one is most strongly aligned with. Those who lose their eyes can replace them with new ice, thus regaining vision.
These people were mortals whom fled north to escape Fire's wrath, and whose leaders begged Frost for a means of survival. He "blessed" them with the state of undeath, along with their followers, not fully understanding at the time that each individual mortal had their own will. 
The Frostblessed thus splintered into two groups; The Frost Loyalists, whom are thankful for the power they recieve from Frost and campaign to spread his power throughout the world, and the Frost Rebels, whom never wanted the "blessing" and seek their own path. From the latter group came the followers of Matheus, though many rebels seek their own path. Frost does not actively seek to conquer the rest of the world, still content in the lands of eternal winter, but he doles out his power to mortals whom show their thanks to their Frost patron, just to spite the ungrateful rebels.
Forsaken parallels here. They are born from the first real world crisis, and before Fire going nuts and razing civilization, most races kept largely to themselves. I've tied the Holy Light character more closely to the undead  than in, say, Warcraft because life and undeath really should have a more tightly-knit relationship IMO.


Trolls, worgen and many other Non-player races in WoW have no direct parallel in this lore, and tbh, I feel that much of the RP for them can be derived from a combination of the races I've written about above and other Tertiary Staints, whom could create their own subraces. The cultures of these races is also a bit vague, so people may again have some freedom with them.


...So. That's what I have. I lack geographic details, a solid timeline, and any particular depth to these cultures, but I hope I've gotten a decent enough structure for us to start working with. Basically, the various races have kept to themselves in this world until fire went nuts, so players will be playing out the first global inter-species interactions. Or, we could start earlier or later in the timeline. Whatever yall think works. 


Oh, and I seriously need better names for these elemental forces.


But yeah, thoughts?
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#2
...Interesting.
Spoiler:
THERE IS NO POINT TO BE ALIVE, IF YOU CAN'T DO DEADLIFT.
[Image: jon_pall_sigmarsson_b35428d97635b2e7c405...2df3c3.gif]

Spoiler:
[Image: SQ0XvlU.gif]
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#3
I always liked the elemental stuff in WoW, so I can hardly complain about this! This would fit the most on the MUD, I imagine.
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