Global Lore

## History of the Islands

Long ago beyond any history we still have recorded, there world was a much different place. Instead of the world being endless ocean it had huge continents that spanned thousands of kilometers. At some point everything changed, there was a huge disaster that caused the water levels to rise and engulf the world. The great sorcerers of the time harnessed the power of the ars crystals to tear the earth itself asunder, and raise the lands we now know as home into the sky. The great force ars crystals can still be seen to this day throughout the islands keeping them steady in the air. All that lies below is the polluted salt ocean.

## Ars Magic

Ars magic is the harnessing and use of the magic in the ars crystals throughout the islands. The ability to draw out this power is exclusive to the water caste members of Shatterath, and even they have lost the knowledge on how to manipulate the mysterious purple force crystals to the extent that the sorcesers of old did. The use of this magic has thrust Shatterath forward technology-wise with wonderous machines and powerful weapons. Some uses are the lightning rail systems of Shatterath and Battalius, the rare but powerful ars-cannons, and the propulsion systems of most airships. There are five colors of ars crystal; red; blue; green; brown; and purple. These colors of crystals have varying power and are the basis for the caste system of Shatterath.

## Ars Crystals

The crystals behind Ars magic are of mysterious original, they are found underground and mined but due to the very limited land mass, are of a finite supply. Each color of Ars crystal has different abilities and properties that can be manipulated by certain people who have the affinity to do so.

* **Purple** - The rarest and most powerful crystal is purple, which holds the power of gravity. The knowledge on how to use these is long forgotten, but they can be seen all over the world holding the continents themselves up.
* **Red** - The red crystals hold the power of fire, they have the ability to apply great force and generate large amounts of heat. These are most commonly used for airship propulsion systems, blacksmith furnaces, and weapons.
* **Blue** - The blue crystals hold the power of lightning, they have the ability to generate electrical charge and magnetism. These are most commonly used for lightning rails and weapons.
* **Green** - The green crystals hold the power of wind, they have the ability to misdirect force and project images in the air. These are most commonly used for defensive shielding and hologram projectors.
* **Brown** - The brown crystals hold the power of earth, although they do not have the same wondrous powers as some of the other crystals they are incredibly strong and hard while still being very light. They are used for building parts or sometimes even armors that need to be very strong. No normal blacksmith can smith with earth crystal and it must be destabilized and afterwords stabilized by someone with the experience to do so.

## Technology

The world with either limited abilities in or hate of magic rely on advancement of traditional technology. This is very limited compared to ars magic but has still bred some impressive machines. Coal engines are of common use on Tol Varus primarily in steam trains, and to a far lesser extent primitive cars. Firearms exist in very inconsistent quality and advancement. These can mostly be found on Tol Varus and to a lesser extent Vivillion.