Rigo Thule (3.5e Location)

Author: Eiji-kun (talk) Date Created: 6-13-18 Status: Stuck in the 40s. Editing: Clarity edits only please

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Rigo Thule

This demiplane is part of the prime material, but can be found on no map. It is accessible only through the thick mists which form off the northwestern coasts of islands in the upper north along the sea. With the right means of traversing one slips from the prime material into this demiplane exiting not back to the shoreline that is expected, but the shorelines of Rigo Thule. Rigo Thule is a large island with a series of smaller islands scattered about it which seems to reside somewhere in the northern hemisphere. It is home to a single nation known as the New Republic of Kaali, a dieselpunk era world of tall skyscrapers, art deco and asian influences, deep underground tunnels and subways, and great but pollution heavy factories. It is a realm that was beset by strife and war, and currently holds a steady but oppressive peace over it from its current government.

Planar Traits

Rigo Thule is a demiplane connected to the Prime Material, and possesses all of its traits. It seems to be located high in the northern latitudes with its only anomalous behaviors concerning the slow patterns the sun traces over the sky in a year and the unusually fertile spot located in the center of the island mass. Here lies a great lake formed from a massive ancient crater, which legend says is where the sun came down to rest and blessed the land with warmth and prosperity.

Physical Traits

• Gravity: Normal.

• Time: Normal.

• Size: Finite. The land of Rigo Thule and its surrounding seas span an area roughly 330 miles. The edges of the world are eternally surrounded by thick mists. By passing through them you either loop back around to Rigo Thule or find yourself back in the Prime Material, roughly in an equivalent spot where the island should be on the map.

• Morphic: Alterable Morphic.

Elemental, Energy, Alignment and Magic Traits

• Elemental Dominance: None.

• Energy Dominance: None.

• Alignment Traits: None.

• Magic Traits: None.

Planar Connections

Rigo Thule connects to the Prime Material through the presence of supernatural fog banks. Travelers can pass through accidentally, but typically it requires intentional steering to make the passage between realms.

History

Rigo Thule is dominated by the New Republic of Kaali, formerly the Kaali Empire and before that the Kingdom of Qaanaaq. They have a long history of oppression, emerging from a life of medieval serfdom under an increasingly decadent noble caste which stroked the fires of rebellion but which never got off the ground due to the imbalance of power. It was not until nearly 80 years ago when their kingdom was conquered by a roving planar warlord Ikuchi the Black Storm. The tyrannical warlord brought them rushing ahead in terms of magical and technological progress, but at the expense of many lives and the humanity of its citizens. It became embroiled in an expanding planar conflict which would ultimately end up in the defeat of then Emperor Ikuchi and the liberation of the nation.

However, the forming New Republic of Kaali would be beset with its own problems and bloody civil war between generational rifts occurred until peace finally settled under the brutal but peaceful rule of the new republic. Promising strong law enforcement, plentiful work, and an indirect means of governance the new republic recovered the wonders built during the previous age and transformed the nation into its current state, where it still rules today. Yet even now unrest boils deep below in the city streets, and all too often does it seem that the upper classes are merely becoming new and decadent nobles of the age. Some desire a return to the ways of their brief but prosperous and growing empire, while others speak of more radical ideals in hushed shadows.

In the age of the empire, the old kingdom was taken over by dragons and metal giants. While the dragons have left the land, rumor persists that these metal giants, weapons of war, still exist and are hidden deep underground in the ill-understood catacombs of the undercity.

Inhabitants

Rigo Thule is primarly populated with humans, dwarves, and shortfolk who have naturally made their homes in the ever-expanding underground realms. During the wars of the empire warforged were created as a servitor race and while their status as second class citizens is not an official stance, many in the land may presume their status as workers in the many factories where to this day some still toil away thoughtlessly. Because the old emperor had been big on dragons and the power of the wyrms, dragonblooded individuals are seen with some trepidation and no dragons are known to be native to the area. Due to the presence of a vast underground, a city often clad in twilight, and an unusual solar pattern, it also attracts the attention of light shunning creatures such as vampires. It is rumored that vampires have infiltrated the ranks of high society, though the truth of this reality is in question as such beings would naturally wish to stay underground away from the elites.

The cities and the undercities themselves are safe save for your typical crime for an urban area of this size, but the underground goes far deeper than anyone remembers and the valleys between cities are choked with pollution, mutations, and strange arcane beasts left over from the times of the empire.

Movement and Combat

As part of the prime material, there are no differences between this plane and other prime material planes.

Features of the New Republic of Kaali

The New Republic of Kaali is composed of a series of surface cities all connected by the vast and incomprehensible undercity that was built during the age of the empire. It would almost be accurate to say all the cities are one giant megacity as much of the population lives underground while the elites live in the above-ground downtown skyscrapers built upon the hills, but for sake of clarity the masses are considered separate cities broken into various districts. The capital is the largest and most grandiose of the surface cities, Altima. It is accompanied by the domed city and former capital of Eidola, the airship producing factory city of Ame-Novae, the glassy and sparkling Solas Tile near the titular Lake Kaali, the port town of Yonaguni, and the city of "eternal night" known as Lathan. Between these hill based cities are great valleys filled with natural fogs and more unnatural smogs build up by the many factories scattered across the landscape connected by the underground lifelines between each of the cities. Travel between cities is done either by the vast subway trains or the airships which drift safely above the cloud cover and its dangers.

Details of each of the major cities are as follows:

Altima: The bright city on the hill, Altima is a place of great waterfalls and shimmering lights. Built up from an older city, it was chosen as the capital by Emperor Ikuchi and built up significantly as a shining hallmark to his rule. Filled with cultural icons and great art deco designs, many specific images and statues were torn down with the dethroning of the empire though the overall design still stood. It was adopted as the capital again and serves as an economic and political hub within the entire nation.

Ame-Novae: An older city and former economic and industrial hub, its industry was turned towards the creation of skyscrapers, airships, and great wonders. These days the vestiges of the old city can be found at the base between great walls of iron and stone that form the towering skylines. Airships and the towers themselves routinely block out the sun, leaving the ground dark and damp save for the many gas lamps which line the city streets. Within this city one's altitude often corresponds to one's lot in life, and everyone is struggling to make it up in the world.

Eidola: The domed city, named for its large dome which covers the entire thing, is an older city and former capital during the Kingdom of Qaanaaq. When the old kingdom was razed a new city was built literally atop it. It was not originally intended to house a dome but as pollution from the nearby industries in the valleys belched smoke into the air the city, relatively low to the ground compared to most cities, sealed itself away to keep its atmosphere fresh and unpolluted. Ironically the haze of fog and pollution seems to keep the city in a constant dull twilight and the inability to expand has led to overpopulation. Some say the spirits of the old city still wander, and that out of all places in the realm this place is both the most magically inclined, and the most haunted.

Lathan: The city of eternal night, so they say. It was a mining city which expanded into a great metropolis but due to constant cloud cover both natural and artificial through pollution, and often being within the shadows of tall mountains around it, sunlight rarely makes its way in mass to the city. The city itself is stained black with pollution from oil which is pumped from deep below, refined, and sent all across the realm. It is a place of crime and danger, yet it also attracts the greatest of fortunes to those who can make it big in the industries which are in high demand. The undercity below is vast and busy with miners digging ever-deeper into the crust.

Solas Tile: Once a rural town, Solas Tile was one of the major sources of advancement during the time of the empire. A greater population would need greater food, and so the city was built from glass and iron. Here great greenhouses and massive fountains have converted the sleepy town into a hanging gardens, and the place is somehow simultaneously urban and pastoral. Cleanest of the cities, it remains of low population as so much land is dedicated to these glass towers.

Yonaguni: The fishing port of Yonaguni is an old town, and one of the first victims of the empire in its growing days. Utterly destroyed, it was rebuilt into a naval fortress with brutalist architecture and effective and vast ports for fishing and for war. When the need for war ceased, the ship builders turned towards other naval needs and slowly but surely they have begun encroaching into the waters themselves. A small but expanding part of the city is actually underwater as they attempt to conquer the seas.

Government of the New Republic of Kaali

Ostensibly a republic, Kaali is ruled by a president and senate who are elected in by representatives such as city mayors and other officials, who themselves are elected by the people. When first starting out this worked as intended but over time one party has effectively been in control for some time, especially after opposing parties fell to corruption, scandal, and other mishaps. Some suspect that the dominating one party control is both unhealthy as it is unfair, but smaller parties get some presence at the table, even if it amounts to very little. The current major party is known as the Determiners, with their emblematic red wolf and black and red color scheme. They are autocratic and highly lawful, representing safety and security through the rule of law. Some find their governance as oppressive as the old tyrants, but they keep their heavy hand off most issues and so through apathy, the common man finds comfort in what may actually be a subtle police state. Other parties do exist, but do not seem to possess the same sort of lasting support as the Determiners have had in recent history and few are willing to risk their safety or even a war with the more inflammatory and maverick other parties.

More important to people are local elections. While the government may or may not be distasteful as a whole, it is the city governors and their elected staff who seem to have a more direct influence on the state of their cities and districts under their rule. Needless to say, these seats are highly contested.

Geography of Rigo Thule

Rigo Thule is apparently located in the north, with cool temperate environments, scattered hills and valleys, and flat tundra planes pockmarked with frozen forests further north. It's position on the planet seems to be inaccurate, as the sun will largely be overhead or at an angle as typical for its expected position but one week out of the year the sun dips so low below the horizon it is night at all times, and at opposite times in the year there is a period of two weeks of constant daytime. The local flora have adjusted to this strange cycle that results in cold snaps and heat waves, but foreign plants often have difficulty adjusting to the new environment without care.

In the center of the landmass lies a vast lake formed from a crater where, as legends go, the sun once fell upon the earth. By some unnatural phenomena the area near and around the lake is both far warmer than normal to temperate climates and largely devoid of fogs and heavy cloud cover. Deep within the center of the lake is a hotspot which at times emits strange and dangerous lights to any who it illuminates. The source remains unidentified, as all attempts to draw near have ended in destruction.

Rain is a common occurrence, especially below the fog line. This water inevitably ends up seeping through ground and rock and sometimes in places where structures have weakened or have intentionally been made porous, water runs into the undercities and forms underground rivers and lakes. The land in general is quite wet, and in places dominated by darkness and a lack of industry or people nearby to keep the land warm it can be chilling to the bone. Further north within the planes and tundra the rain subsides for snow, sleet, and ice instead.

Due to the ever-present fog, farmlands are at a premium. Fishing is a major source of food and income, as well as underground friendly flora such as mushrooms and underdark beasts. With the recent rise of Solas Tile, more farmland has appeared within their artificial glass towers and greenhouses allowing the population to grow beyond its normal limits. It is also possible to grow along the safe warmer edges around Lake Kaali as well. Further north, great shaggy beasts comparable to furry mammoth-boars roam the tundra and are used as meat, with domestication efforts underway.

Encounters

During the wars dragons and magically created creatures like constructs, undead, and some aberrant beings or mutations roamed the land under the command of magic lords. When their masters vanished, they remained wandering within the foggy valleys and deep underground in the catacombs. In addition the pollution, both mundane and magical, has seeped into the land and some strange beasts have popped up as a result. Rather than clear out the mists, most choose to travel the safe subway routes or take to the air traveling from hilltop to hilltop as if they were islands.

Using Rigo Thule

Rigo Thule, and specifically the New Republic of Kaali, is a great place for a dieselpunk magical adventure with old threats slumbering in the shadows and below the earth, cruel robber-barons and hedonistic high society, or airship adventurers above the skies.

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