[b]Introduction[/b]
Ah, Plith. Capitol of Seralia and the first thing new players see upon leaving their isolated Tower of Alendith. In a way, this area should serve as an introduction to the larger world, and as time goes by, continue as a hub of commerce or communication. Unfortunately, with the game as it is, this is merely an extension of the tower. A place to grind levels until you're strong enough to go do the same somewhere else. As such, I would like to change it. This document will cover my plans for the area, and as I work on it, my progress toward those goals.
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[b]History of the Zone[/b]
[i]Immortal[/i]
To my understanding, Plith was one of Syn's areas to begin with. He built the city, tied it in with Dungeon Mystica, and left clues to quests in several other zones. In time, the game moved on, and the area became one of grinding. With the advent of Whisp's ship system, Nibelung took it on himself to remodel the area, adding the docks and fleshing out several npcs. When the ship system proved less than successful, we moved on to other projects, and Plith returned to being a treadmill.
[i]Ingame[/i]
Plith was the first settlement established on Seralia by the Praxis and their Human allies. The northern mountains held something of great power, and were the heart of a magical storm that raged through the astral space of these lands. The Praxis, wishing to explore and, if possible, harness the power source, established one of their gates on the shores of Seralia during a brief lull in the storm, establishing the outpost that would one day be called Plith.
With a stable foothold on the continent, they brought in what supplies they could and began to build, using Humans for the better part of the labor. A century later, when Haven was destroyed during Mishkal's ascension and the Mystic Descent opened in the northern mountains, Heletane was cut off from the gate network, and the Humans, like the Praxis, were cut off from their homeland. The Praxis were focused on the fissure in the mountains, and let the humans explore as they wished. This brought about the first human nations on the continent, along the northern and western coasts of the continent, and when the Praxis disappeared, the great nation dissolved into a number of small, isolated towns.
Those who had remained in Plith had one asset that their neighbors lacked, in the gate that the city had been founded on. They were able to bring in supplies from Naranda and Athemia, building up stockpiles of food and tools that the other cities could not hope to match. Under the leadership of the self-styled Empress Aleyra, herself a descendant of the same line that had birthed Mishkal, they began to expand outward, offering aid to those who would join the Empire of Seralia, and punishing those who would not. Her line continues to this day, and Emperor Yurien worships his distant ancestor in secret, hoping that, should Mishkal return, he would be rewarded for his loyalty and allowed to rule under the dark god.
Those who live within the city do not know of the corruption that runs through their leadership, but there has always been an element of darkness around the palace, and it seems to grow just a little bit stronger with each passing year.
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[b]Geography[/b]
Plith lies on the eastern coast of Seralia, the game's "first continent." It sits on the shore, with the Equidorean Ocean to the southeast, plains and forests to the northeast, north, and northwest, and mountains to the south. It is connected to most of the other major locations on the continent by a series of roads through the wilderness, and a passage to the docks that can lead adventurers out to sea.
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[b]Architecture[/b]
Plith boasts a variety of architectural styles, owing to the mixture of races that have called it home over the years. Northwestern Plith, the oldest part of town, carries hints of Praxis work, mystic runes etched into some of the walls, and a strange fungus that they managed to cultivate from spores found floating around Haven before its destruction. The majority of the city is human built, and by humans maintained. Most buildings have been made for function over form, and nowhere is this more obvious than the Palace. Still, there are hints of beauty, mostly found along the eastern edges of the city where the Elves of Kalandor have had the most influence. All in all, there is much to see for those who wish to explore a bit of Seralia's heritage.
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[b]Important Locations[/b]
[u]The Beginning[/u]
Established to the north of the original gate, the fungus from Heletane took hold here, and kept much of the astral storm at bay. It also seems to act as a beacon for new souls, drawing them here when their time in the Tower of Alendith is complete, rather than letting them wither in the ruins of Old Haven. It is here that many take their first look at the larger world, and where many return to rest when their travels weary them.
----More to come tonight.
