The Traveller's Guide to Pax

#1

Welcome to the Traveller's Guide to Pax, and thank you for taking the time to read the wealth of information stored in these pages! Inside you will find vital information about the world around you, from where to get a decent drink in the Encampment to what dangerous creatures lurk in the darkest forests of Ana. The worlds of Pax have a rich history and culture, some of it quite bizarre or even dangerous and being forewarned is being forearmed!

An idea spawned on Slack, it has dawned on some of us that A LOT of stuff has happened here at Pax. The world and lore has developed greatly, and I think it would be a great resource for new and old members alike to have a single, unified source of information to throw at people. This wouldn't just be a simple guide or list of things however. I propose we make an in character guide, talking about the world from the perspective of those within it.

As well as entries on people, animals and organisations in Pax, we could have bits of history, rumours, quotes, all sorts of things! I think this would be an incredibly fun and useful group work.

I suggest we gather information split into categories, perhaps:

* Locations
* People
* Organisations
* Historical Events
* Creatures
* Deities/Religions

Let's do this thing!

#2

From the Journal of one Tom Johnson, former leader of the Knights of Insanity

I have come to find a home in a cabin outside the town called the Encampment. In my work for the Knights, I have traveled all over the immediate area, and this is the only settlement I have found.

Population counts are hard to place, but It's large enough to be self-supportive - with at least one person to take up any given job that needs done. The hub of activity in the town is the local pub - The Horn and Halo. Most nights you will find a good chunk of the population there swapping rumors and socializing.

The Encampment sits on a small river no one has bothered to name yet. On the other side of the river from the Pub is the barracks and the fountain. If you keep going out a path that way you will eventually reach the Shrine of Shiranui, then further along the Temple of Au'Marui - who's dome is visible even from town. The other way past the Horn and Halo leads to the Fortress Yorick - I haven't been able to get inside, so I'm not sure what's there.

Outside to the north is the Corrupted Forest, home of the Collector. Do not go there - I have, and I barely survived.

((More to come later))

#3

((How did people feel about a section from Markus on life outside the Encampment? Since as far as I'm aware there aren't many RPs, if any, that deal with the subject a lot of it would be my interpretation.

I've always imagined that a several, much smaller settlements would have sprouted up in Pax, largely farming settlements on Ana and a few rugged outposts on Kata. Any thoughts/objections?))

#4

Life Outside the Encampment - A Mercenary's Travels

A book on Pax eh? I don't know what good it will do, seeing how often the landscape, both politically and LITERALLY, seems to change. But hey, I'm getting paid for this so why not. Also, before I start, why do people seem to think I'm dead? I'm not dead. I mean I probably should be, but I'm not dead. Unless of course you're reading this and I have died, in which case yes I am dead. But I'm not. Unless I am.

So as we all know the Encampment is the capital of Pax, pretty much. Now I know from my travels that not everyone is particularly thrilled with this state of affairs, but I'll get into that later. There are, however, a great many settlements outside the boundaries of the Encampment, from tiny fishing villages to sprawling cities in their own right. This section will NOT list every REDACTED little village out there mind, just the ones of potential interest. If you're missing and feel put out, address your complaints to the publisher of this guide, because quite frankly I don't care.
(Editor's note: The views of Markus do not reflect those of the other authors of this book or it's publisher. We also told him not to use profanity and he did it anyway.)

I'll start with the largest city outside the Encampment, and by far the oldest we know of on Pax, Kalli.
Kalli is the Psiot home city and has definitely been around longer than the Encampment, proving that we certainly weren't the first to arrive on the dual worlds. It is a city of trees, and a place teeming with magic. You could say the Psiot are somewhat in tune with the forest and their home reflects his. My first piece of advice if you wish to explore this city: learn to love climbing. Their extensive use of kinetic magic means their city is designed largely around the idea that you can float. There have been efforts to accommodate for ground-bound creatures such as myself however this takes the form of rope ladders, strong vines, or even just hand holds. Some of the Psiot may be willing to assist you move around the place, but don't count on it. Oh, and ask nicely.
Something else to bear in mind, you will see a lot of animated golems in this city, they seem to do most of the manual labour. I would HIGHLY suggest not ticking them off, they are A) very, very strong and B) psychically linked to the Psiot Council of Twelve. If you give the golems trouble, you're giving the council trouble.

((More to come soon. Hopefully I've not strayed too far from the original vision of the Psiot as they were one of Tavs first ideas for Pax and I want to do them justice. I also feel it's important that they're in the book. I think the only possible deviation is that I imagine them having a bit of an Aztec flair, hence the city name of Kalli (I don't know if the Psiot capital has a name already).))

#5

Life Outside the Encampment - Continued

There is only one other major city on Ana that I have had any real experience in, and that is the bustling city of Passmouth. This huge trading town settled down around Ana's Pass Gate as a supply station of sorts, with a plan to send the resources needed to settle on Kata. Since the discovery that Kata is very much settled thank you very much, Passmouth has instead grown and prospered by transporting and selling goods between the two worlds.

There are two things you can find in abundance in Passmouth. Traders, and pick-pockets. Or rather, traders and all-sorts-of-criminal-types-but-that-doesn't-have-as-good-a-ring-to-it. Now sure, if you stick the touristy parts of Passmouth you'll have a grand time; see the wonder of the Gate, view the lovely coastline not 10 minutes horse-ride away, experience Kata without having to actually go there in the imaginatively titled "Kata Experience".

But, at the risk of giving dangerous advice, that's not where the interesting stuff is. (Editor's Note: The publisher of this book does not endorse risking life and limb too see something "interesting".)

For one thing Passmouth has quite possibly the best variety of pubs and bars in all of Pax, if you're interested in that sort of thing. There are a huge number of shops selling... exciting items shall we say? And of course the local history, short as it is, can only really be explored by diving deep into the city. Yup, Passmouth is my kind of city.

Just watch your coin-purse.

#6

Life Outside the Encampment - Continued

Of course there are other cities on Ana, and it's likely that there are a good many that none of the authors of this book even know about. However we have a whole other world to go over and I'm not even done with this one.

Henge. Now that's a strange little place if ever I saw one. As you can imagine the name comes from a henge that resides in the village, right in the middle as it happens. The henge itself is actually quite interesting, it is a formation of crystalline structures creating a complex pattern. The villagers claim that when Pax and the sun are in perfect alignment, the crystals will sing and a great power will spread around the world. To this end they worship the henge itself, apparently to prepare themselves for this day.

Years ago I would have shrugged that off. These days though? I dunno, I wouldn't bet good money either way. Oh, and a word of warning; the crystals may look (and probably are) incredibly valuable, but don't try to steal any of it. The place looks like a sleepy little settlement in the middle of nowhere, but... well I had a travelling partner at the time and he got that idea.

I didn't get a decent night's sleep for at least a month.