# Evermore Lore

What anguish plagues those ears which are doomed enough to hear,
And lay witness to affliction embodied.
Behold, the Torment, bleeding through hence pierced veil,
From wounds torn asunder by Betrayal.
Now harrow in wretchedness, bleak futures beset, seeking the edge of time.
To sever the threads, of our great line,
To seal the fate of all.
Yet grim Far sight has forged a path,
Through wars and death and toil,
And shown of Creatures, dominion ours,
To our commandment, loyal.
And should Origin be altered at the emergence of time,
Or when Singularity shows its face,
Our rule shall then, be absolute,
And a new design, in place.

The universe of Evermore is similar to ours, yet it differs in some rather important ways. Instead of the Standard Model of (sub)partical physics, a version of string theory* dictates the relationships of time, space, and matter. These strings, known as 'ethereal strings', act as tethers between the Past, the Present, and the Future and the various realms and planes of existence. The strings contain the essence and energy of Evermore, from which knowledge and power from other times and places can be accessed.

Universe-->

Ethereal Strings/"Web", woven/unwoven threads -->

Access Past, Present, Future -->

Early Historical Overview -->

Elder Prohecy Fulfilled -->

The Creatures of Torment -->

Messiah, Doomsayer access Far Future and create separate prophecies* to defeat the Torment from what they see -->

Factions develop based on adherence to the different prophecies -->

Factions fight (with each other and the creatures) to control the sacred locations of the strings in the various realms, lands, planes, etc. -->

Factions harness the strings' energy to further their prophecy's goals -->

Energy/Knowledge from the Past, Present, Future can be used to find Relics, create new weapons, magic, rewards, etc.* -->

Relics of the Past, Present, and Future(?) embody evermore's essence and grant their holders special traits/abilities/utilty (some Relics can be backed by physical engraved item)

Universe
Evermore is a universe of realms tied together by ethereal strings of time and energy in which knowledge and power resonate between the planes of existance and worlds, Past, Present, Future. Together, the strings create the "web" into which all things are woven and their reverberations are felt by all in this time, the times before, and the times beyond. Wisdom, insight, and raw life force essence flow along these strings as they oscillate through time and space, connecting places many would percieve as being far, far apart, yet are, in fact, teathered together.
Web of All Existance* - (Far Past, Past, Present, Near Future, Far Future) The further back in time, the closer to the center of the web. As time progresses, the web extends outward.
The present time and space is current location on the web which the outer edge of the woven web. Present is connected in the web with the Past through tangible strings which which can be accessed easier than the Future.
There are certain types of strings reaching to the future, however these unwoven threads have not yet come to existance, but are beginning to set anchor as events in the Present continually occur and offer insight into what is likely to occur. The Near Future is comprised of the unwoven threads which are directly connected to the Present. They are more easily accessed and provide a clearer image than the Far Future. Certain classes/races are skilled in accessing the Near Future threads. The Far Future is made of unwoven threads beyond the Near Future.
The Far Future threads extend into the Unknown and is only protected by the veil from the Torment. It is only accessible by the most skilled and wise, and offer only shards of insight to events likely to occur. However, Far Future threads are less stable than threads of the Near Future, having no woven string anchors, and therefore offer a more vague image of what may come.
The "web" is anchored to the veil separating the planes from the Torment.
??Web anchor points/vertices on the web are weighted inversely from the passage of time and extend toward both planes above and below the physical plane, creating "gravity" type conical holes* where the further back in time the closer the physical plane being connected to the planes above and below.
***The spatial/temporal interpretation/explanation/visualization of the Web of All Existence varies dependent on race which will give ample opportunity for race lore, histories, languages (different words to describe the "web" based on race)**
Physical Plane - consists of both the above ground and below ground realms of the physical place. the majority of heroes spend their time on this plane, only using the strings for brief times (ie. spell duration, etc.)
Higher Plane (name?) - situated above the physical plane (or around the physical plane as one part of a double helix) and is where some rare classes get to spend more time. The higher plane allows a hero to better access the past, as the higher plane overlaps the physcal from Far Past to Present and expands at the same rate as the physical plane. the higher plane is separated from the torment by the veil.
Lower Plane (name?) - same as the higher plane except situated below physical plane (or around the physical plane as the other half of the double helix with the physical plane in the center, one potential interpretation of how it's laid out), except for rare dark heroes
The Torment - Situated below the lower plane (or around all planes)? and is ever seeking to permiate the veil to gain access to the physical plane where it can manifest in physical form to feed on and access the etheral strings power
Different planes have access to the "web" in varying degrees, and, as such, have differing perceptions of the Present. ie. Mortal Present, deity Present (higher/lower plane can see events of past, but can't always directly interfere with physical plane unless at Mortal Present.
Early Historical Overview
Over the course of the Great Histories, the wise grew to learn locations where the Ethereal Strings intersected their physical plane and how to tap into their power, learning and exploring their great resources. Through time the wise selectively* passed down their knowledge from one life to the next, however, like most things, the original knowledge became convoluted over time and dispersed throughout the masses and only those versed in harnessing the power of the strings could access the Past to retreive the ancient knowledge in its archetype form. With Achetype Knowledge comes power and access to arcane relics, thus, the beings of the land soon formed orders to protect the sacred sites, conceal the secrets of the Ethereal Strings, and continue to learn of their vast nature, evermore.
the true author of the elder prophecy? ancient one? storyteller? elder prohecy backstory leads to current time.

The Elder(?) Prophecy (Penguin Prophecy)
"Upon the Eve of 13, Beloved Father, Beloved King.
A portal to what has been left unseen.
Upon a blade of glass, thine soul shall open up the pass.
A brother unbeknownst shall bring, about a most chaotic scene.

Regis soul welcome; walks backwards not into heaven, but into hell.
Light's favorite father, cast to the dark.
Divine Redemption's pass now a crack, set open wide the shell.
A doorway for which they come back , a fiery new landmark.
Then the beyond; becomes tomorrow"

Solemn Slaying fulfills the Elder Prophecy --->
King Solemn, Neadmure the Poor, Tyril the Solemn Slayer introductions
(Tyril the Solemn Slayer story), revenge. the old king dies on his deathbed by murder by one of his sworn royal guards just before he dies of natural causes, which fulfills the prophecy violently shifting the near future.
??King Solemn is comdemned due to his past, yet there is hope to rescue his soul from Torment??
Neadmure is absolved of his royal position and cast into obscurity, seeking to forge alliances with those loyal to his cause?
Releases creatures of The Torment - NPC bosses (dragons, demons, etc.)
When the Solemn Slayer assassinates King Solemn the prophecy is fulfilled and the nodes of the unwoven strings of the Near Future are suddenly ripped from their planned vertices/anchors and relocated to accomodate the major change in the course of events. This turn of events causes massive disruption of the Near Future causes the small holes/tears in the plane on which the Near Future lays. This, in turn, sends those connected Far Future threads into a chaotic turmoil, the future very uncertain.
The tears on the plane that occured when the Near Future so violently shifted (upon the fulfillment of the Elder Prophecy), opened passage between the physical plane and plane the Torment and allowed the Creatures of Torment direct access to the Near Future string/vertices in the locations where they intersect the physical plane. The Creatures appropriate certain strings of the Near Future (and therefore Far Future to some degree) and act as doorkeepers to future events on the boundary of the Present and the Near Future.
Messiah, Doomsayer Prophecies create new phophecies to gain insight how to fight against the Creatures of the Torment.
During the (current) era, there became two, who, through dedication and sacrifice, learned to master the practice of harnessing the power of the strings. This was to such extent they set forth to look into the Far Future, to see the course of what events had yet to occur, beyond the Near Future* veil, in order to ascertain what knowledge no other had yet gained. Yet, this was not without great risk or consequence. seeking to look beyond, they sought to look forward on the string, and did so, gaining insight to questions asked and saw certain events which would soon come to be. They eventually reach a fork in the string, a vertex, a corner of the web each goes a diferrent way and see different possible versions of the far future.

Messiah Prophecy - sees the future defeating creatures of torment and releasing them from the torment, slowly deteriorating Torments forces and dark essence
Doomsayer Prophecy - sees the future defeating creatures of torment and holding their dark essence in dominion until the Torment itself is under their control and used to claim authority over all planes.

The physical plane is layered between the higher and lower planes which are then separated from the Torment by a veil/membrane barrier. Entities on the higher and lower planes may travel above or below the "web" able to see the Far Past, Past, and Present at will, yet only being able to interact with the physical plane in the Present,
The Torment is the realm of all negative thought, action, or illwill. It is home to all fear, uncertainty, and doubt. The Torment seeks to conquer all in the physical, higher, and lower planes, yet it cannot pass through the veil unless gateways are opened.
Torment wants to destroy the lower plane to gain more direct access to the Far Past. Until the lower plane is destroyed, the Torment can only access the unwoven threads of the Far Futures of physical plane, as the veil is much thinner there, in attempt to influence the Present course of events. The Creatures of Torment are the physical manifestations of the Torment upon access to the physical plane and the ethereal strings, taking form to stake claim to sacred sites and channel the power of the strings to its own goal of reaching the Origin of the Far Past and beginning a new "web" with a new Origin.

Geography, Races, Classes ***(early draft, will redo with updated regions based on new map)***
Factions
Regions under the Elven Council [Above Ground]
Capitol (1) - All Races, Human
Forest (2) - Wood Elf, Moon Elf, Gnome, Hauflin, Entvir, Centaur, Faerie
Riverlands (3) - Gnome, Hauflin
Great Mountains (4) - Deep Dwarf
Frozenlands (5) - Human
Desert (6) - All Races
Dunes (7) - Barbarian
Volcano (above ground) (8) - Star Elf
Island (9) - Archon, Demi-God - passage to higher plane
Regions under the Rule of Darkness [Below Ground]
The Great Caves/Capitol Dungeon (1a) - Goblin, Orc
Dark Forest/Roots? (2a) - Dark Elf, Ogre, Shadow-Fae
Swamplands (3a) - Swamp Troll,
Deep Caves/Carverns (4a) - Hill Giant, Stone Giant
Ice Caves (5a) - All Races
Graveyard/Crypt/Catacomb/Mausoleum (6a) - Undead
Shadow Cistern/Pillar City (7a) - Shade, Lycanis
Lava Temple Complex (inside volcano (8a) - Minotaur, Vampire
Abyss (9a) - Demonseed - passage to lower plane
Half-Elf, Half-Orc have no established home region, however usually are considered outcasts by their respective would-be homelands.

Summary
The universe of Evermore is similar to ours, yet it differs in some rather important ways. Instead of the Standard Model of (sub)partical physics, in Evermore, a version of UST (Unified String Theory*) dictates the relationships of time, space, and matter. These strings, known as 'ethereal strings' (also 'woven'/'unwoven threads' depending on time) act as tethers between the Past, the Present, and the Future, the various realms, and planes of existance. The strings contain the essence and energy of Evermore and together form the infrastructure of the "web"**, from which knowledge and power from other times and places can be accessed. Wisdom thought to be ancient by some measures is yet unknown to others, and with such knowledge the powers of the land can be harnessed.
The basic structure of the Universe consists of the Physical plane, the Higher plane, the Lower plane, and the Torment. The physical plane is layered between the higher and lower planes which are then separted from the Torment by a veil/membrane barrier. Entities on the higher and lower planes may travel above or below the "web" able to see the Far Past, Past, and Present at will, yet only being able to interact with the physical plane in the Present,
The Torment is the realm of all negative thought, action, or illwill. It is home to all Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (see what I did there?lol). The Torment seeks to conquer all in the physical, higher, and lower planes, yet it cannot pass through the veil unless gateways are opened.
The Torment seeks to acheive dominion of all by one of two ways. Either gain direct access to the Origin of the Far Past and begin the universe anew, or gain control over the physical plane at the point of Singularity at the end of this iteration of the universe as it transition to the next. Until either the higher or lower plane is destroyed, the Torment can only influence the Present by accessing the unwoven threads of the Far Future of physical plane, as the veil is much thinner there.
The Creatures of Torment are the physical manifestations of the Torment upon access to the locations where the physical plane and etehreal strings intersect, taking form to stake claim to sacred sites and channel the power of the strings, blocking the Heroes Of Evermore from their Future and ensuring chaos and despair for all life.
The veil between the Torment and the Physical plane is breached by the fulfillment of the Elder Prophecy and the Creatures of Torment have access to the sacred sites of the Physical plane.
Two prophecies regarding how to defeat the Torment are created by wise and powerful Heroes which depict different possible futures (Messiah and Doomsayer Prophecies) and the races and classes of Evermore choose which future they want to see fulfilled.

*Unified String Theory attempts to explain the relationship between the four forces observed in the natural world, being, gravity, electromagnetism, and both weak and strong nuclear forces. This theory, among others in theoretical physics may be explored including dark matter theories, concepts of universal hierarchy, stabilization of energies, Higgs-boson style particals, supersymmetry, quantum chromodynamics, the Calabi-Yau Manifold, Dual-Resonance Model, etc.
Having semi-accepted theoretical physics play a role in the universe allows the reader to immerse themselves in a world that is vastly different than ours, yet is similar enough to remain visually imaginative and provides enough explainable 'scientific' stabilty to the universe to seem feasible, if not plausible, or perhaps real, based on our own lack of true understanding of the world around us and how we explain concepts of our place/role as we progress in our own universe.*

**The term "Web" of Existance, and the spatial/temporal interpretation/explaination/visualization thereof, varies dependent on race/culture. Some may see it as a great spiderweb, others, more as an atomic structure, and others like neural network. Different cultural names for the various aspects of the universe (physical, higher, lower planes, the veil, the web, etc.) will provide increased options for history, culture, and will allow us not to have to pick just one.
**this is all groundwork and laying the foundation for the stories to live in.**

recent history of Tempus Bellum
-human King ( "Real Name" )/Solemn unites the realms by force with the noble notion of sustained peace and builds Castle in the realm/region of Evermore to hold dominion over the lands.
-brought peace to the kingdom but at great cost, made many enemies above and below ground, the elven council surrendered (but many wished to still fight) as did other aboveground races but the king never fully defeated the darkended lands, instead keeping them at bay underground. The Kingdom imposes an uneasy peace in the land.

-Dragonknights formed from a secretive sect of elite knights of the Kings Army. they would drink the blood of a dragon upon being accepted into the order, aided by ability to subjugate dragons (secret enchnment/relic/orb?)
-Dreadknights formed in alliegance to Deathbringer.

Relics
Obsidian Amulets
-warrior, cleric, mercenary, necromancer, etc.
Created in Past, brought to modern time through a portal
Portalized(?) (Inlayed) Obsidian Amulets
-Amulet of Darkened Flame (hellstone) -dark, taken with doomsayer through the portal
-Amulet of Emerald Promise - light, taken with messiah through the portal
same as obsidian amulets but have also been taken through a portal to a future realm and back as well
Orb
-Collected by King Solemn's surveyors while hunting for enchanted items. Disappeared from the Palace Vault shortly before the kings death. (?) revered among the dragonknights as it is rumored King Solemn could command dragons with its power.
Dagger
-the Dagger and Solemn

Recent History
The Dagger and Solemn:
The King united the realms by force with the noble notion of sustained peace and built Castle in the realm/region of Evermore to hold dominion over the lands. Through conquest, he brought peace to the kingdom but at great cost, made many enemies above and below ground. The elven council signed a treaty with the King (but many wished to still fight), as did other aboveground races, but the king never fully defeated the darkended lands, instead keeping them at bay underground. The Kingdom imposes an uneasy peace in the land.
As the king journies throughout the realms he begins to encounter enchanted/sacred places and items and becomes obsessed with their power as he observes their influence in battle. The King instructs his scholars to research ancient scrolls and sends out teams to scour the lands to find the necessary components to craft more enchanted items. He becomes more powerful and more obsessed with rare/unique/sacred ingredients to alter the resulting effect of the enchantments. His obsession begins to change his personality and he becomes stoic, reclusive, unemotional, and King 'Solemn' becomes what he is known as to the people. Against the advice of some of his council, artifacts from the archive deep below the Elven Halls were raided by King Solemn
A thousand years ago(?) the Torment, led by Moloch, passed through the portal gateways and laid seige to Tempus Bellum but were defeated (the Ancient One remembers). Vials of Molochs blood were secretly preserved deep in the elven archives, hidden away because of its great enchanting power. The elves thought that if the torment were to return they could use the power of the blood to repel the demons' seige. Generations and generations passed and no torment returned and the vials were largely forgotten. However, a tattered ancient scroll hidden under countless layers of dusty parchment gives an ancient elven account of the power of the blood, yet the language is archaic and must be translated, if possible, to moden elven and translated to the common tounge. The scroll mentions, among many things, if the demons blood were to mix with regal blood of the physical plane, a connection between planes could occur (completion of the elder prophercy, and opening of the gateways). or maybe they never knew the blood could open the gateways?
When Solemn found the vials when he raided the Elven Halls and his scholars discovered the ancient scroll (based on matching elbems stamped in wax on the vials and the scroll itself), but they arent able to accurately translate from the archaic elven dialect and are ignorant to the dangers in spilling the demons blood (or spilling blood with the demons blood). From the scholars research, Solemn learned the blood power holds vast power and began to search for complementing enchanting components to forge into a dagger with the blood (purple color of blade)
By the king's order, the components of the dagger were to be gathered and prepared by Faerie Enchanter, Miruo Silvermoon, and forged into a blade by Nevaron, Star Elf Weaponmaster.** Miruo set forth to old libraries to gather blueprints/recipes to decide what elements/items to combine in the enchantment of the raw materials for the kings dagger. Miruo journied through the realms searching for rare ingredients; purple amethyst, resin of the Ippocha tree, extract of basilisk venom gland, and many others. Once Mirou had an idea of what components would be included in the enchanted blade, Nevaron began to research how to combine them into a weapon. He was able to find the necessary information on all the components besides one, the demons blood. His reseach leds him to old elven historians who could actually translate the archaic demon blood scroll but the kings scholars had it under guard and lock and key and wouldnt allow anyone access to the document. Instead, the scholars instructed Nevaron to use all the vials of blood in the forging of the blade. Curious and untrusting of the kings scholars, Nevaron made a mock vial and swapped it for a vial of the demons blood, hiding it for safekeeping until he could develop a plan to get access to the ancient elven scroll. Nevaron made alterations to his forge to accomodate the enchanted components, and under the watch of Mirou, forged the kings enchanted dagger. When the dagger is complete, the king keeps it with him at all times and continues to withdraw into paranoid solitude, unaware of its devestating potential
Not all factions/races were willing to immediately bow to Solemn during his conquest over the realms of Tempus Bellum and there were fierce battles between the kings armies and those opposed to his rule. The Elven Council was formed to gather a unified resistance to the king, however eventually yielded and signed a questionable* treaty with Solemn. The king then took (moon elf female) as a/his bride back to Evermore and her brother, Tyril, sought to have revenge/steal her back. Tyril worked to become part of the Dragonknight order to gain access to Solemn. Nevaron knew the was a chance Tyril would be willing to help him get access to the scroll, since it is an ancient elven artifact and Tyril was angred when Solemn raided the archives of Elven Halls. Nevaron then asked Tyril to pen a copy of the scroll, but his plan to distract the scholars went awry and is forced to kill many. As he fled with the scroll, Tyril was approached by King Solemn and the kingsguard and magistrates. There is a struggle and Tyril slays Solemn with the kings enchanted dagger.*** Tyril flees the realm of Evermore. The blade disappears along with the demon blood scroll.
When the blade with the demons blood mixed with the betrayed kingsblood (as he is murdered), the Elder Prophecy was fulfilled and the portals to the Torment begin to open. (The portal gateways, built in ancient times*(Ancient One might have some insight), represent a time and knowledge relatively unknown to modern minds (kind of like stonehenge, mayan temples, pyramids, etc.)). They have been looked upon with both wonder and curiousity throughout the ages, yet only few knew them for what they really were, only some could use the portals to travel to certain times past and future, and only when the ethereal strings were calm.
With the King deposed and vague rumors of creatures of torment beginning to circulate, chaos engulfs the realm of Evermore and all of Tempus Bellum both above and below ground. The half elf son of the King Solemn is foreced into hiding/obsurity to save him from the kings enemies, however he is aided by friends and family of his mother and those who were in resistance to the kings dominion. The Kingdom is now officailly leaderless. The Elven Council is reformed above ground and the Darkened Lands begin stirring below. The Council appoints Devlin the Executioner to bring the kingdom's justice to the Solemn Slayer by any means necessary.
As the Torment begin to pass through the gateways (some gateways are below ground?) into the Darkened Realms, some of those who reside underground flee above ground. Likewise, in certain places those above ground are forced below in attempt to escape the creatures of torment. Leaders of the Council and the Darkened Lands decide they must work together to some degree and send Maxor and Melkec through a gateway to the far future to learn possible ways to defeat the torment. They return with the Messiah and Doomsayer Prophecies.
---Its an irony that the elves kept molochs blood to try and protect themselves from the torment, however it ends up being the blood that allows the gateways to open to the torment in this age (?)
-but also the secret vial of blood that Nevaron hides can be used to help defeat the torement(?)

a scuffle and introduction of deathbringer for the party and as part of tyril betrayal of king solemn. The dagger should be a dagger forged from the sacred lands made of meteorite. The blood of Moloch and blade curse should be done in the dark lands from before the current times. Elves dont usually focus on curses so it makes sense they would rid the world of the curse if they had it not embue it into a weapon. That should have been done by tyril or someone from dark.