Planets & Details:

Planets:

Arvus (Entr0pic’s Planet):

Name: Arvus

Basic information: it is closer to the sun, to the point that it would be nigh uninhabitable normally. However, corruption and indulgence protect it somewhat, making it hot and humid, but not uninhabitable, just uncomfortable. They also tried to saturate the planet with more water, but they accidentally increased the amount needed. It has one small moon, (Let’s call it Tav) but it’s not notable. The planet is maybe 1.75 times the size of earth.

primary biome: swamplands. The copious amounts of water they supplied the planet waterlogged the ground in most areas.

other biomes: forests, plains, etc.

common flora and fauna: while i don’t have any good ideas for specific things, i have general patterns. 

1) you know how goldfish can change their sex if need be? Lots of animals can do that here (corruption made them artificially to please his intent)

2) big bugs. Lots of trees and plant life leads to higher oxygen, which leads to bigger insect, arachnids, and crustaceans 

Wildlife:

Bav: bavs are a kind of snake-like creature; they have marbled green scales, and piercing yellow eyes, and are usually 17-28 feet long (15-25 Arvish feet). They are mildly invested and use this investiture to grow to their large sizes. They reproduce asexually (which a surprising amount of snakes do irl)

Vaites:  Vaites are small, skittish creatures. They have six legs, an iridescent deep-purple carapace, and are about the size of a small cat. (Think Big shiny purple spiders). They subsist on Vaw, and help clean up after the vawings; they are often welcome in Arvish society, like cats. They are at the bottom of the Arvish food chain. (Yes, I’m making cat spiders. deal with it)

Shadegrass: the native equivalent of grass. They, also, can subsist off vaw, but can also use photosynthesis as well. They have a slightly purple tint to the blades. 

Saval: savals are a kind of fruit, mainly found growing on trees near/in the swamps. They look kind of like a pear on the outside, but on the inside, look/taste like a pomegranate. 

Haf: they’re essentially a yak; not much to them. They’re slightly bigger than a yak. 

They’re the main source of meat.

Stalrel: Stalrels are a kind of centipede-like creature. They are highly venomous & poisonous and act as ambush predators, stalking the swamps of Arvus. However, lately they have been moving to cities in search of more food. They are 8 feet long at max, but on average 6 feet long. 

Arilis: arilis is a kind of common moss, which can be found covering most homes and structures. It’s known for being hard to get rid off, as it grows at a stupidly fast rate. It is edible, but tastes very bitter. Arilis is also a common allergen. It grows all over arvus, but would do very poorly in a cooler climate. 

Jerwes: jerwes are a small, skittish kind of lizard. They are often used as a synonym for coward, (like chicken here IRL). They generally have more muted colors, but the actual color varies, from a Smokey gray to a dull red. They’re 1 foot long at most. They have a mild venom, but not a threat to anything larger than them.

Srav: Sravs are a very prevalent pest on Arvus. They’re small, maybe 3 inches at most. They're scavengers natively and are known for following apex predators around, (primarily bavs and stalrels) and feasting upon the leftovers of their prey. as a defense mechanism, they secrete a poison. While it is not deadly, it is significantly painful and lasts for upwards of a week. And some srav followed stalrels to population centers, leading to them appearing more and more in homes & daily life.  

Matalith: Mataliths are the titans of Arvus. They’re giant lizards (think Komodo dragons but 5 times bigger), with shiny black scales. They are surprisingly fast, that laze around most of the day, but have bursts of speed when they see something that would be worth the energy, usually Bavs or Stalrels. They can go weeks without food. 

Valoh: Valohs are an invasive species on Velia, originating from Yiter. They’re small (for an Avish insect), they’re 2 inches long, with green and purple carapace and bee-like wings. They utterly ruin saval harvests, by eating the crops.

Nawns: Nawns are large, beetle-like flying creatures. They're about 2 feet long, and hunt in swarms. As they don't have fully functional digestive systems, they mostly consume dead plant matter, but if given the chance, will consume dead fungus or dead animal matter. They're slightly invested, and release orange powder that, when fresh speeds decay from their wings. 

Sva Tree: The Sva Tree is a very tall tree with hanging branches, somewhere between a redwood and willow. When tapped, the Sva produces a warm, greenish sap that tastes vaguely of sweet citrus. When refined, it turns a vibrant green and hardens into taffy. This taffy is marginally invested, giving a very slight buzz and speeding along recovery from injuries.

Serpent Vines: Large vines that climb on trees. They're carnivorous plants, and tighten around things that touch them, but aren't particularly invested and are generally easy enough for Sapients to escape.

Vilivs: massive arachnids that hunt in the canopy of the sva tree, traveling from branch to branch with the help of the serpent vines. Their feet secret an oil that prevents reactions, and thus dont activate the vines. They can shoot vines, as well, that pulse purple light. Contact with the webs results in paralysis and decay.

Covae: Covaes are a large but relatively common fish, which are often used as a source of meat in coastal areas. They’re deep blue, with a white underbelly. They have venomous spikes the run along their spine, but they’re easily removing once the covae is dead. Covae are known to be curious and smart creatures, often remembering fishermen who spare them and bringing them small gifts, such as shells. 

Varkir: varkir are a common fruit found in the Yitish mountains. They’re small, purple berries, and are incredibly tough. Their branches contain poisonous thorns, and the berries themselves have hard skin. They’re sweet and rather large though, and high ranking Isnians have been supplying peeled varkir berries at parties to demonstrate wealth.  

Zion (CoderDrag0n8’s Planet):

A separate planet cut off from the others

Name: Zion

Basic information: Farthest away from the sun, cold and freezing. Corruption takes main residence with. The humans there all serve corruption. Corruption fastens through them and all they want is change. The 2 main life forms are humans and dragons. There are other beings, but a lot of it is corrupted.

primary biome: Corrupted wasteland. A freezing biome with a cold dead atmosphere that only corruption's blessed may survive in.

other biomes: Lemon fields. Lemons that are so sour that if you eat them, you get transformed into a black hole. The black holes that are generated are wrapped in corrupted investiture and only suck you in if you touch them. They float around, adding to the yellow lemony vibe. The lemons grow on lemon trees. There are myths of a paradise where the corruption is benevolent. The myths speak of them on the poles.

Wildlife:

Lemon Trees (The Zion Lemon Trees): Trees that grow the sourest lemons to have ever existed. They are so sour that they turn you into a black hole. The black holes that are generated are wrapped in corrupted investiture and only suck you in if you touch them.

Lemons (The Zion Lemons): See above.

The Black Holes: The black holes in the lemon fields appear to have some sort of mind of their own. Scientists have been trying desperately to identify what kind of intelligence level they have. But due to their murderous nature, they are hard to document.

The tempters: the tempers are a kind of small animal found in the lemon forests.  They mimic human voices, luring them towards the black holes, hoping that they’d listen and get murdered. The tempters would then consume the corpse, which the black hole seems not to care for.

The mimics: the mimics are a plant that look near exactly like the lemon trees, but the lemons are slightly paler. The lemons that grow on the mimics are entirely safe to eat. They are actually quite sweet

Note: Not much further study has been made in the non-lemon fields. What explorers have found, however, are shown below.

The wasted: the wasted is a colloquial term used to describe any sentient being that has succumbed to too much corrupted investiture. They’re gaunt, sickly things, with a pale purple coloration. They wander the wastes of Zion endlessly, seeking something that they’ve forgotten exists. 

Alrilite: Alrilite is the ancestor of the Arvish arilis. They grow desperately in the wastes, soaking up any water they can find. They are often used as a material to make rags due to their absorbent nature. 

The wanders: the wanders are a group of three giant lizards. (They’re actually ancient chemalurgic constructs). They travel around a circle that appears to be 3 miles in diameter, traveling in periods of 3 hours before stopping for 3 hours. They are harmless, so long as you don’t try to impede their journey. If you try, they will maw you to death, and then sit for the remaining day. There have been cults that worship them, throughout the years.

Civilizations & Species:

Entr0pic’s Civilization:

1: humans, descended from those cultivated by indulgence.

2: they generally have tanned skin, and darker hair. Nothing else to note about them.

3: the swamplands and plains of Velia (continent on Arvus)

4: Humans (and the planet) were created by indulgence, and later nurtured by corruption.

5 they’re a trio of countries, each having a separate form of government. Isnea, which uses an oligarchy, Corul, which uses a monarchy, and Sertl, which uses a meritocracy. Isnea and Sertl mutually hate one another, and Corul always tries to keep the peace between them all. Corruption will sometimes intervene, sparking or stopping conflict. It depends on how long peace or war has lasted. 

Factions & Cities:

Velia: Velia is the main continent on Arvus, and the most populated. It’s mainly populated by swamplands, like all of Arvus.

Yiter: Yiter is the frontier continent on Arvus. It, like all arvish landmass, is covered mostly in swamplands. However, this continent has prominent mountain ranges. It also contains Corruption’s perpendicularity, in the heart of the most prominent swamp, known as the “Deathgrips”. Near the perpendicularity, Corruption has stationed Chemalrugic constructs as guards, under his control. 

Sero: Sero is the third Arvish continent, and largely unknown to most people. Only the shifters and Taf’ir really know of it

Cascea: Cascea, the Untamed Continent. Cascea is a smaller continent in the South Pole of Arvus. Before Indulgence, Cascea was a hub of life, one of the few places where the heat wasn’t too overpowering to prevent life. After Indulgence’s arrival, Cascea froze over, and most life died out or was driven underground. Today, very little life exists on Cascea’s surface.

Isnae: isnae is a major country in Arvus. Their main territories take up the northern half of the Velian continent. They also have some colonial territories on Yiter. They are an industrial people, with metal, specifically varium, as the main export. The capital city of Isnae is Soryst

Sertl: sertel is the greatest rival of isnae. They have an agricultural economy, exporting lumber and crops, and their main territory is in the southern end of the Velian continent. the capital city of Sertel is Ergl

Corul: Corul is a small city state directly in between Isnae and Sertl. they are notoriously neutral, often trying to broker a peace between the two (likely because they would get swept up quickly should war break out). the capital city of Corul is Kusket

Desr: a prominent city in Sertl, and main headquarters the mental Fellcasters prefer.

Seks: a prominent city in Corul, main headquarters the physical Fellcasters prefer. 

Nom: an Isnian colony in Yiter, recently made the favored headquarters of spiritual Fellcasters.

Yelsk: Yelsk is a large city state ruled by a single Sin Crown, the Night King, who is both the oldest and most powerful sin crown known. The ground around the city walls seems to breathe, and the very forest is both hostile to intruders, and parts around those welcomed by the Night King. 

The heartlands: the main expanse of Velian swamplands, the main portion is in Sertl, but it encroaches partly in Isnian territory.

Fellcastia: Is an extension of Fellcastia on Zion. 

Corulite royal court: the Corulite royal court is a collection of state officials & high ranking nobility that help the king rule Corul. Important people include: Kilia Minid, Head of the logistical and scholars branch. Cila Iter, head of the king's guard. Rilin Uten, head of economics and the king's personal advisor. And his lordship Hetan Lun, Representative of noble houses.

The Xine: the xine are the 5 most “exemplary People in Isnian society”, according to Isnian propaganda. The xine vote on all laws being passed, with a majority needing to be met in order for it to go through. When a xine is brought into power, they must choose one person to whom their spot in the xine shall go, in the event that they become unfit to rule, abdicate willingly, or die. In the event that a member of the xine dies, and their chosen dies before they can claim their spot on the xine, the remaining members vote on someone to join, with a 50% vote or higher needing to be reached.

CoderDrag0n8’s civilization: 

1. Zionians (Dragons and Humans)

2. Dragons and Humans (And other species to). Zion’s radiation of investiture has slightly changed their very being, and some are no longer entirely human (Or dragon).

3. Made by corruption, though some dragons predate the shattering

4. Zion. Everywhere.

5. Because of the uninhabitable nature of Zion, the Zionians are rough and powerful having slightly enhanced physical traits and feared and revered across the system. They are a strong single 'empire'. They have many independent parts, although they all see themselves as one empire and would help other Zionians. There are more refugees across the planet. Zionians know each other well and some even reside in the dangerous Lemon Fields. Zion is a kind of “hub world” for dragons, and corruption made a deal with them saying “hey, i want control of this planet, but I’ll give you free agency and access to my magics + this will prevent a more conquest-minded shard (verity) from taking over” 

Factions:

Overview: Due to Zion’s uninhabitable nature, the people have created less cities, more refugee camps. The continents of Zion are blurred lines on a map, as due to the harsh nature, all Zionians see themselves as Zionians. Most factions (The word I will be using for the refugee camps) let any Zionians in, some even non-Zionians! However, some are in odd situations, and while they want to let other Zionians in, they cannot. Always assume they are in the wastelands unless specified otherwise.

Shiftatia: The main home of the shifters, most shifters come here at some point in their life. Mostly populated by shifters, they let anyone in. This creates lots of the trade through Zion. They are the center of most goods, and have one of the most easy access to Arvus out of all the factions (Besides Transportia).

Transportia: The main transporter of goods through Zion, they are always looking for new workers! Many people get good income from the many trading outposts at Transportia. Sadly, many of their workers die every year because of the harsh conditions of Zion. They have the most reliable access to Arvus, and almost monopolize trade throughout Zion.

Fellcastia: The main hub of Fellcasters in Zion, has a secluded portal to Arvus available only to Fellcasters and shifters going to Fellcastia on Arvus. Only shifters and Fellcasters are let in, on corruption’s orders. Many of the orders that corruption gives come from here. Many shifters dislike this, and decide to instead go to Shiftatia.

Argenti’s civilization: 

1. Sin Crows

2.  Giant, horned, and sapient Crows. They're around 5 feet in size, and have jet black feathers. Vaw rolls off them, and wearing their feathers gives you resistance to corruptive investiture. Their horns are supernaturally sharp, and are able to pierce Sin Crown's skin. They're naturally followers of Sin Crowns, and serve them as such.

3. Crafted by Indulgence as his spies, later broke away, but are willing and able to follow mortal sin crowns.

4.  Arvus, mostly the mountainous regions, though they go all over.

They have a complex but obscure culture, as they don't speak Arvish. Supposedly they're made of many warring tribes, but who knows?

TheBestTruthWatcher’s civilization:

1. Amphidorans

2.  They are Bipedal with smooth skin that can change colors. They have webbed fingers and toes that help them swim in deep swamp waters. They also have a clear third eye lid that lets them open their eyes underwater. They breathe through their skin (like frogs). Their hair is short and usually only grows as long as a foot. Amphidorans are a branch of Althians.

3. They were made by Corruption shortly after the saturation of Arvus

4. They live on the planet Arvus, and the continent of Sero’s swamplands.

The Amphidorans are a group of nomads with only 20 permanent settlements. Only a few  Amphidorans live in the settlement, mainly those with kids or have important jobs (Farmers, Government workers, fishermen, etc), the rest of the Amphidorans travel around the continent. The Amphidorans are united by a council. The council men are elected by those who permanently live in the settlements

Hoid_slayer’s civilization:

Alright! Time to get down to work

Civilization 1: The Forgotten

1. Blattelans (bug people)

2. The blattelans are anthropomorphic insect-like beings. They have triangular heads and long, spindly legs ending in talons. They have a set of arms coming from their shoulders (like humans), also spindly and with four fingers. Finally, they have a third set of limbs extending from the middle of their torso. These aren’t really legs or arms; they’re a sort of in-between that can be used to grab stuff (also four fingers) but aren’t really good for manipulating stuff, and can also be easily adapted to serve as an extra set of legs. Their ancestors were winged, and current day blattelans still retain wing buds where they used to be. Like bugs, they have an exoskeleton, and their language consists of clicks and chirps. They have two large eyes recently adapted to see in the dark and the cognitive capacity of people.

3. The blattelans are some of the few life forms existing on Arvus before the arrival of Indulgence (but not predating the Shattering). They believe they were created  by a powerful god they call Perfection, or really “The One Who Seeks Perfection”. According to their myths, Perfection created them and then disappeared long before the arrival of Indulgence. (I was hoping this “Perfection” could be Order, my Shard proposal, thus making it canon in this world even if it will have no plot relevance, just as a larger universe tease, but that’s not necessary). When Indulgence arrived, they believed it to be the return of Perfection. When Indulgence proceeded to terraform the world, driving the blattelans underground, they believed it to be the dark version of Perfection, or Havoc (“The One Who Seeks Havoc”).

4. The blattelans live in Arvus, in Cascea, the Untamed Continent. Cascea is a smaller continent in the South Pole of Arvus. Before Indulgence, Cascea was a hub of life, one of the few places where the heat wasn’t too overpowering to prevent life. After Indulgence’s arrival, Cascea froze over, and most life died out or was driven underground. Today, very little life exists on Cascea’s surface. Most people on Arvus don’t know about the existence of the blattelans, and vice versa.

5. The blattelans live in a Unity (“That Which Creates Unity”), which is essentially a large alliance between a variety of independent states. Most of the states are on good terms, and they regularly interact, but each has a slightly different culture and language (might flesh them out more later).

Bmcclure7’s Civilization

The Community network of several hundred villages in the dryer part of the swaps The villages surround a large monastery, and are considered vessels to it. The monastery of changes Is inhabited by monks, dedicated to expanding the art of shaping and shifting. The population is mostly human. They were originally created by indulgence, but have since been altered by corruption, resulting in strange mutations. The mutations differ from person to person. Most, however, our subtly mutated enough, that they could still pass as a mutated human to most observers.

 

Lord Ruler Slyphrena’s civilization:

• Althians.

• They are reptilian with webbed feet, tails, and very powerful jaws. Imagine humanoid alligators or the Lizard from marvel.

• They were originally humans but were modified by Corruption to be better suited to the swamps of Arvus.

• Native to the Velian region of Arvus.

• Rather than a unified empire they are a collection of about a dozen city states known as the Althian League. They have a strong warrior culture where the best fighters usually rule as dictators or share power as an oligarchy. Their cities have relatively small populations due to the difficulties of building in swamps but the ones they have are similar to Venice. The cities make most of the money raiding their neighbors or by offering themselves as mercenaries. They worship all 3 shards in the system as a single deity they call the Great Divine. Their religion says that restraining your emotion or desire is a form of lying to yourself and is sinful. In their eyes the Great Divine values passion and self expression above all else regardless of what form it takes. This has led to the development of a lot of art and architectural styles developing in their cities and even their combat values style and showmanship over efficiency. Those who are capable of wielding one or multiple MoIs are seen as blessed and called prophets that will elevate their city above the rest. This belief system has led to corruption being very widespread as things like bribes are not seen as criminal but rather a natural part of self expression, however priests that are able to wield Verity's MoI are tasked with finding and executing those deemed detrimental to the city’s functioning. (I'll come up with names for all the city states later but the cities that have the most invested fighters lead the league in their raids and take most of the spoils due to having the Great Divines favor)

IcedOutPenguin’s Civilization:

[a semi-small empire of a few large cities and smaller villages, they (if possible) are in the jungle or dense rainforest, which has limited contact with outside civilizations, and has impaired development with things like technology to a crawl. I've got a lot more detail about demographics and culture and such that I can divulge at request.]

[The cities are arrayed in the less dense parts of the jungle, and sufficient land around them has been cleared for agricultural use. If you were to go on *most of* the paths connecting the cities, they would be surrounded by dense jungle quickly. Unfortunately for them, most of the more valuable resources are in the thicker and denser parts of the jungle, such as honey, silk, and incense. Travel to these areas is often dangerous because of the lack of a beaten path and dangerous jungle animals like snakes and big cats. 

The cities are usually built in tiers, with an outer wall that usually has houses and other buildings built into the wall, which is decently thick. Inside the wall, you will find the market rows, which run from the main entrances up the tiers along the main roads. The city is based mostly on Burgess's concentric rings model with a few modifications, the first zone is the lower class housing, with the class and status getting higher and more expensive until you reach the aristocratic plaza which is a large circular plaza with exactly 10 estates, the ten wealthiest/powerful family's live there. 

The most common jobs in the cities are farming or building. Farmers usually farm wet rice because of the tropical climate; builders are in charge of clearing the rainforest, moving the logs, and building with them. Quarrieng is not uncommon and is often done near the city wherever stone is found, whether that is a cliff or the side of a mountain.

Resource appropriation is a common issue in the lower class, as much of the valuable resources, such as gold, silver, and other things. Those that are found are sold for high prices to wealthier families. This results in many of the lower class families having few valuable material possessions.]