Iskios

The campaign world of Twist of Fate is known to its people by many names. Teryl is one such name, but the most common epithet is Iskios.

Iskios is not only one world, but two. The natural world known to men is referred to as either The Waking World or the World of Days. But another world lies just behind a veil, a world also with many names: The Dreaming, The Otherworld, or The World of Night. Iskios is circled by two beauteous moons, one in the Waking World and one in The Otherworld. The first, visible at all times, but most clearly at night is known as Iophis, The Dragon's Eye. The second satellite, usually hidden, is The Ghost Moon, Siabrae. When these moons align, Siabrae is visible and appears to consume the Dragon's Eye. At this convergence, and in the waxing and waning days surrounding this alignment, the World of Night, usually unseen and incorporeal, becomes wholly present in the natural world.

When these worlds converge, The Other, creatures called "demons" by the humans of The Waking World, are corporeal threats. Men and women have fought The Other for thousands of years on Iskios. Always a potential menace at night, The Other are a particular scourge during the monthly convergence of Iophis and Siabrae. Twice a year, at the Sun and Star solstices, this convergence is especially acute and The Other are more active, more aggressive towards human settlements. Every few generations a sort of perfect alignment of the moons occurs and the convergence is cataclysmic. In addition to the overlap of the two worlds, unusual natural phenomenon accompany these lunar events: violent tides, storms, and even earthquakes. As Siabrae approaches Iophis, the people whisper fearfully, "Siabrae is hungry…"

Three-fourths of the surface of Iskios is water. It has one Pangaean super-continent known as Ur and a second much smaller continent called Nuna. Iskios has hundreds of small islands the largest chain of which strings between the two continents.

On Ur, three "civilized" cultures predominate: The Kheth Empire, with their sky barges and floating cities, as well as two land-based peoples, the austere Jovan Confederation, and the politically turbulent Odyssian City States. There are numerous other cultures, mostly deemed "barbarian" by these three which are north and further inland.

A fourth large entity, more ancient than the three above largely inhabits the smaller continent of Nuna as well as the chain of islands between the two continents. These sea-faring people, the "Anu", or the Nuadan culture appeared on the shores of Ur just over five years ago. Their armaments and magery were more advanced than those on the mainland Ur. Word of these mysterious visitors spread quickly through the continent. Fearful, the cultures were just beginning to learn more of one another when the most recent Great Convergence occurred.

The Dragon's Eye and the Ghost Moon aligned perfectly and thousands of corporeal Other were loosed on the cities of Man all at once. The Great War began. The Nuadans allied themselves with the native cultures and helped to fight back the demons until the Convergence had passed. Even with their help, the losses to the military and civilian populations were stagging. Five years later the effects are still seen and the recovery is slow.

It was then that the native cultures grew to understand how it was the Nuadans seemed so familiar with their continent's terrain. They had been there before…

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