User:GoldenYak/Chronicle/Aggmar

Aggmar, also known as the Realm of Flame and the Burning Realm.

Overview
Aggmar, called the Burning Realm and the World of Fire, is the sixth Titan World. It blisters with the radiant energies of fire, which permeate its lands and people. It shudders and heaves with tectonic activity, lit by a hundred thousand volcanoes that cover its surface, spewing clouds of smoke and burning cinders and pouring forth rivers of lava into fiery magma seas. However, Aggmar is not merely some lifeless, burnt-out hellscape. Its innumerable canyons are filled with riotous jungles, the plant-life nourished by the minerals spewed forth from the volcanoes, the living spirits of nature feeding on the boundless energies within the world. For the element of flame is not simply destruction, but a source of limitless animating energy, energy that the jungles of Aggmar gorge on to spread and grow ever outwards. As quickly as flame storm and magma-river scorch the wildgrowth down to black ashes, plant and tree and vine drink in the energy and grow back, sprouting up from ashen soil to smother the land once again in ever-renewing life.

Aggmar is a world where peace is an illusion. The power of elemental flame keeps passions hot and tempers short. War is a constant, from the level of beasts who fight and kill in the primeval jungles, to the mortal races who war for territory and glory. The only race who seeks lasting order are the dwarves, who build great cities of stone behind fortified walls, driving back the ferocious wilderness. The dwarves of Aggmar are dour and cheerless though - something deep within them responds darkly to the influence of elemental flame. Often they seek order through subjugation and war, intending to set themselves above the other mortal races of the world and force them to conform to the dwarven vision of civilization.

Geography
In Aggmar's distant past, the elemental power of flame did not burn as brightly. The power of flame was expressed instead as vital energies that gave rise to massive jungles that covered most of the world's surface. Savage beasts ruled these primeval jungles, hunting and killing, and mortal races struggled to survive, banding together into tribes to fight back. Some ancient calamity triggered the explosion of great volcanoes all across the surface of Aggmar, unleashing a storm of devastation that burnt away fully half the jungles on the planet and left the world in its present state - half lava-soaked volcanic wasteland and half jungle-smothered primeval wilderness.

Wealth of the Realm of Flame
The ancient calamity that destroyed half the jungles on Aggmar caused untold billions of tons of wilderness and wildlife to be buried beneath stone and magma. Over the millennia, this biological matter has become black oil, a substance greatly sought after the dwarves for use in their engineering and industry. Most of the oil reserves near existing dwarven settlements have been tapped out over the centuries, so dwarves are constantly searching for more of the resource in nearby lands. This can often bring them into conflict with the other races dwelling in these lands, and more than one war has been started by the dwarves thirst for their 'black gold'.

Outposts and cities
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Inhabitants
The humans of Aggmar live in tribes scattered throughout the volcanic landscape. Most shelter in the verdant jungles. They war constantly with the primitive troll tribes.

The dwarves and orcs of Aggmar are bitter enemies. Histories of both races tell different stories about why. The dwarves say that the orcs came to them to learn the ways of civilization, of mining and metalworking, and then turned upon the dwarves and attacked them when they had stolen the knowledge they wished. The orcs tell a different tale - they say the dwarves enslaved the orc clans, using their strength to further the dwarves own industry, until the orcs finally rebelled.

Whatever the truth, the orcs of Aggmar did learn the ways of blacksmithing from the dwarves at some point in the past, and both races have become proficient at the forging of metal weapons, at siege crafting and war engineering. These talents have been employed in battle between the two races for centuries.

Dwellers in Deep Places
In the darkest depths of Aggmar's underground caverns dwell the skardyn, twisted creatures that were once dwarves. The malign influence of dark powers transformed these dwarves into reptilian monstrosities. In the depths, the skagrinn build their terrible black fortresses, raising up hideously carved monuments and making blood offerings to their wicked gods. Skagrinn dwell deeper than even dwarves, but they often come near to the homes of their cousins or to the surface, seeking captives for their sacrificial rituals.

The Dwarven Clans of Aggmar
Many are the dwarven clans of Aggmar, but three have the distinction of being the largest by far.

Clan Grimstone
Grand architects and fortress-builders, golem-shapers and priests of stone. The Grimstone are often dour and cheerless even by normal dwarven standards, but their vision is to shape a world of peace and safety, locking out the chaos of war behind impregnable stone walls. Their flesh is grey as rock, while their beards are jet black, oftentimes streaked with gold and silver. It is whispered that an ancient power remains within them, a gift of the great forger of worlds, the All-Mother Azer. The power to become unbreakable as the world itself, to make flesh into stone. The power of the Earthen.

Clan Darkiron
Masters of siege engineering and weapon forging, sorcerers of flame and shadow. The Darkiron continue the practice of slavery, using orcs and other races as a labor-force to grow their empire. They are characterized by ash black skin and red eyes.

Clan Flamebeard
Ferocious battle-hardened warriors, tamers of great beasts, priests of the wilds and speakers to the elements. The Flamebeards range far and wide across Aggmar, slaying monsters and seeking renown. They often operate as mercenaries for other nations. Their fiery red and orange beards make them a striking sight.

The Orc Clans of Aggmar - The Fire Clans
The orcs of Aggmar are a ferocious and brutal sort. Some clans have mastered blacksmithing and engineering, raising up monuments to war industry, while most remain in the wilds, savage warriors in a battle for survival against the terrifying monsters of the world. Clans that dwell in the wild often have shamans who call upon the elemental spirits to aid their people. All the spirits are respected, though some are seen as enemies - stone and flame are often subjugated and controlled, while air, water, and wild spirits are honored.

The orc population of Aggmar is divided into clans, which are made up of many tribes. Tribes have individual histories and traditions that differ, while the overall clan traditions are typically the same. Orcs of Aggmar are grey skinned, with tones ranging from ash light to coal black.

Hammerfall
The hammer-wielding members of the Hammerfall clan are both brutal warriors and skilled blacksmiths. The echoing clash of hammer on shield is the unmistakable sound of the Hammerfall on the warpath.

Warforged
The Warforged clan constantly seeks battle and bloodshed to prove their valor. Their skill at crafting armor is unrivaled, and their warriors are always clad in formidable plate.

Ashwolf
Dwelling in the jungle-lands surrounding the many volcanoes of Aggmar, the Ashwolf clan rides into battle astride huge fanged wolves with ash-streaked fur, giving them their namesake.

Blackrock
It is said that the Blackrock were the first to lead the orcs to rebellion against their dwarven slavers. They are skilled at engineering and siege-engine building, and talented at masonry and construction as well. Their holdings are heavily fortified against outside threats.

Ironscar
Warriors of the Ironscar are a fearful sight, as they practice ritual scarification. Their hulking bodies are laced thick with patterns of deliberately inflicted scar tissue, and pierced with metal effigies and talismans.

Firetide
The Firetide dwell along the coasts of Aggmar's burning seas, battling the ferocious beasts that dwell there. They are scalded and hairless from lava burns. Their shaman are skilled at leashing elementals of magma to their will.

Burning Blade
Talented weaponsmiths and enchanters, the Burning Blade are a nomadic clan, wandering through the wilds of Aggmar hunting monsters with their great swords. The enchanted blade of a warrior has spelled doom for some of the mightiest beasts in all the Titan Worlds.

Coalfist
Not a widely respected clan, the Coalfist are miners and excavators, skilled at dredging up wealth from the stone and earth. They mainly trade with other clans and even other races.