Last City of the Living
| Expanded Eronidas Lore | |
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| Part of Eronidas lore. |
Kur, the Last City of the Living among the Dead, is a singular city that resides inside the other dimension of the Beyond. Unlike the Void and Exist, which are dimensions in which Alorians cannot exist due to the laws of reality not being a thing, the Beyond is a mirror dimension of the real world of Aloria, where at least some of the laws of reality apply, meaning that one can reasonably visit it. The city of Kur is manned by the Eronidas (and sometimes non-Eronidas Archon), which is built as a large ring-city with 3 surrounding curtain walls around a single hill upon which rests the Gateway of Maru. The Gateway of Maru is defended by the living from repeat attacks of the Ordial Entities that roam the Beyond in an attempt to breach into the world of the living to inflict death. This page will cover the history, function, and roleplay background use of the city of Kur for the Eronidas Race. This page is so-called Expanded Lore, meaning it is not required reading for a roleplay experience on MassiveCraft, but can be used to add additional depth and content to Roleplay.
History
The exact year in which Kur was founded is lost to time. However, legend has it that two Eronidas by the name of Vakgar and Makosh who were gladiators in their own right, had an encounter with an Ordial entity named the Malefica that tried to seduce them to become agents of death. Vakgar was seduced by the promise of power and immortality, but Makosh refused to let his love be taken away from honor and reeled him back before he could commit to the dark deed that would cement their submission to the Malefica. Vakgar, now incensed by the fact that the Malefica even tried to get between him and Makosh, declared a feud so brave and ferocious together with Makosh, that Daiana dreamt of their victory in the Beyond. Through her dreams, it was said that tiny little cracks all over the world that occasionally let Ordial entities through, congealed into one large gateway called the Gateway of Maru. Through this gateway, Vakgar and Makosh lead a whole host of Eronidas into the Beyond to create a beachhead for their supposed invasion to take the fight to the Malefica.
The initial landing in the Beyond was anything but a glorious invasion, the appearance of the Gateway of Maru was just as much a problem to the Beyond as it was to the people in Aloria, as the Malefica had also sent hordes of shades to attack the gateway which defied its ability to control who came and left the Beyond. The Eronidas were victorious in the first few battles, but quickly drew the unending hordes into a stalemate. It became clear to Makosh and Vakgar here that the invasion of the Beyond was never going to feasibly work, just as errant Demons could not bring about the end of Aloria. Still, they did conclude that the existence of the living and the Gateway of Maru was enough of a headache for the Malefica to get the point across.
Over the next century or so, more Eronidas poured through the Gateway of Maru and settled on the other side, building a city of white marble in an otherwise gray and black bleak landscape of death. The first ring wall was called Sina, made out of hastily cobbled together stone which was later reinforced with marble from Guldar. The second wall was named Sekura, which was built with the help of the Archon from other corners of the world. The last wall was named Maarya, which was built very recently when an entourage of Anglian Eronidas with Breizh stonemasons–who were all Archon–arrived to aid in the construction of the final defensive wall. Time does not pass in the Beyond as it does in the real world, meaning that some of the inhabitants of Kur are technically thousands of years old, while Makosh and Vakgar are still only 40-odd years old if they were to return to the real world, but remain in Kur to hold the line against almost daily attacks from the Ordial entities.
Neron Warriors & Death Shamans
Neron Warriors are Eronidas (mostly Azahu, some Zabar, rarely Kissim) who are in service to the Dragons, and enter Kur to join the Legions of the Living in the fight against the Ordial attacks. Neron Warriors are trained in the mundane fighting arts in Kur, as this city is less a city of houses and amenities and more of barracks and military facilities. When they are ready to stand on the walls and defend against attacks, they become Neron Warriors. Their Ordial powers are often a byproduct of their time in the Beyond - they do not actively go out of their way to learn Magic but acquire magical powers spontaneously while fighting long periods on the walls. For many, this manifests as Sinistral Magic of the Ordial Alignment, usually assisting them in their fight against the Ordial entities, for example, magic-induced far-leaping to aid others on the battlefield quickly, or exuding auras of dread that weaken others and bend the wills of weaker shades.
Death Shamans are usually trained in Aloria as opposed to Kur, though occasionally do venture into Kur to guide the Neron Warriors on how to use their powers. Death Shamans are usually born with Magic in Aloria, but can also be taught it by other Death Shamans. Most of their magic stems from the desire and ability to contact the dead and call upon their aid in fights, and this is also why they provide religious services to the Eronidas who grieve over the death of loved ones. While it is, in theory, possible to play an Eronidas who entered Kur 10,000 years ago and re-enters Aloria today as a 25-year-old, it should be noted that the Kurim (Eronidas who spend more than 100 years in Kur) have a particular culture of non-judgment. That is to say, they have spiritually detached themselves from the real world and the developments of Eronidas history or their fate because their sole purpose is to defend the Gateway of Maru. The Gateway of Maru, however, is sometimes also attacked from the other side. The exact location of the Alorian side is unknown (some even speculate it is not a single Gateway, but multiple small ones leading to the same point), but sometimes Neron Warriors or Death Shamans are sent back to Aloria by Vakgar and Makosh to chase down a particularly nasty Spirit that slipped through, or to fight an Ordial cult that is hellbent on destroying the Gateway from the Alorian side.
Fighting the Beyond
Much of what an Eronidas experiences in Kur, is just physical fighting. Shades with conventional weapons in swords and shields assault the walls daily while being shot at with siege engines on the walls, while smaller groups of flying Shades will enter the walls into melee with the defenders. Occasionally a larger terror-class Spirit will appear, a large hulking monster that requires several Eronidas to take down that can claw its way up the walls. Even larger dangers are the Behemoth class Spirits that require all artillery to focus on a single target before it meets the wall, which in turn are outclassed by Worldender class Spirit colonies, massive monstrosities that are larger than the walls themselves. Worldenders assail the walls very rarely but usually require an all-hands-on-deck approach.
Fighting in the Beyond is not overly different from the real world, because many Shades are reflections of what they were like in the real world, and as such, are mostly mundane fighters. Occasional Ordial magic-empowered Spirits that do appear are not overly different from the Ordial Mage antagonists in Aloria, only the massive monsters have no other comparison besides the Akula that assault the Jade Walls of the Sihai lands. Eronidas who aren’t strictly fighters can also occasionally help in Kur but are usually rotated more often than the warriors who spend centuries there. Medics, logistics, cooks, blacksmiths, etc, can all travel to Kur on the invitation of Neron Warriors or Death Shamans in the real world, and spend some time aiding in the fight against the Ordial attacks there.
Non-Eronidas in Kur
Kur does have a number of Non-Eronidas living in it, some of which are extremely strange and rare. Kur is not an Eronidas-only city, even if the Ordial-power connection is an arrangement that is unique to the Eronidas who worship Draconism. Neron Warriors and Death Shamans are in theory allowed to invite anyone in, and so there are several so-called Quarters where unique groups exist. Here are a few of them:
- Melca’s Quarter: One of the quarters in Kur, is the Melcan Quarter which is inhabited predominantly by Sihndar, but more curiously, by a handful of Drovv. The Drovv existing in Kur are aware of the extinction of their Race in Aloria but fight on as their numbers dwindle over the centuries. There are roughly 250 Drovv left in Kur. They however are willing to teach Sihndar who enter the old battle techniques of the Khopesh.
- Archon Quarter: Archon of any Race can also enter Kur and aid in the defense. Many Regulus Anglian Witches provide medical camps in the Archon Quarter, meaning that the Archon Quarter is usually seen as a kind of hospital in Kur.
- Urlan Grove: A Throng of Urlan is housed in the Grove Quarter, where the presence of so many Urlan have somehow allowed for a few bare trees to grow in the Beyond, where nothing normally grows or ages, defying the laws of this realm. The Urlan are a recent addition, having only entered in the last 10 years or so.
- Ohtan Quarter: A group of very alien-like white-furred humanoids with four arms, six eyes, and a head shape reminiscent of goats exists in the Ohtan Quarter. They claim they come from the Northern Expanse (a region beyond northern Ellador) which they called Ohrav, though no living Race has ever been found there, so it is generally assumed their civilization went extinct millennia ago. The Ohtan are excellent slingers, using a strange, blue-glowing stone for ammunition that explodes on impact with blue puffs and shrapnel.
- Diliris Quarter: Perhaps the strangest yet is the Diliris Quarter, which is entirely manned by automatons of extremely alien design, bodies made of unknown metals shaped roughly like a skeleton held together by an invisible force, of a being that can only vaguely be described as bipedal and humanoid. The Diliris do not fight on the wall, rather their Quarter acts like a necropolis of sorts where those who have been mortally wounded and cannot be saved, go to have their minds preserved in the Diliris Grafts, very similar to Qadir Membanks but much more sophisticated, and allowing such a soul to be grafted onto a body of another willing living person to preserve the consciousness of the individual. This is sometimes why Neron Warriors or Death Shamans may in fact be the merger of two distinct consciousnesses, or two separate minds inside the same person.
It is viable for non-Eronidas to enter Kur and aid in the defense of it at any time, though if you do this in Roleplay, it is required that your character has a Neron Warrior or Death Shaman who takes them there through an off-screen ritual and events. Kur is not open to Ordial-aligned characters, Afflicted, or Undead, but other characters can reasonably spend a few weeks or months there helping out in a variety of functions, whether that is fighting on the wall, aiding the wounded, or helping with upkeep of the walls and repairs of the buildings and hauling supplies from the Gateway that are delivered there by the Eronidas Pols in the Kezzeret States.
Trivia
- The City of Kur is not accessible for tourism, because it is obviously a permanent war zone. The locals are keenly aware that every mouth that needs feeding must contribute to the cause.
- Vakgar and Makosh live in a small estate villa on the hill next to the Gateway of Mauru, though they frequently stand on the frontlines with everyone else.
- Throughout history, Caius the Dragon of Draconism has actually appeared in Kur a couple of times to help with particularly nasty attacks of great Ordial Entities, though often quickly disappeared.
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