FRAG-MENT WIP

 ELEVATOR PITCH:

FRAG-MENT

This extra-dimensional city is a mixture of various locations from various worlds, seemingly pieced together in haphazard fashion. Here you may find all manner of beings and denizens. However, none who come here are ever allowed to leave.

There are also a number of small, "pocket" dimensions that have been created by those with the ability to do so. These are anchored to Frag-Ment and may be accessed by a number of means both mystical and mundane.

Although these locations appear to exist separately from the main space, those visiting them are unable to travel anywhere else except back to Frag-Ment.

The inhabitants of FRAG-MENT (and its attached micro-dimensions) come from every conceivable time and world. Average humans walk amongst elves, monsters, demons, cyborgs, robots, the undead, superpowered beings and even those who would be called gods.

AREAS

DunDen - a crime-ridden concrete jungle that mixes nineteenth century European industrialism with  garish modernism and middle ages feudalism. It is said that anything or anyone can be bought or sold here, if the price is right. 

Downtown - appears to be an average Earth city stuck in the late 20th century. It is as if a large chunk of a city along with its inhabitants was deposited here. It could easily be downtown Manhattan or part of any large metropolis. The humans who came here along with it don't remember where they are from and generally act as if they were on Earth, going about their daily routines, although they of course know the truth.

Folia - is a lush, arboreal paradise by day but a haunted, foreboding place at night. A number of fey and other magical beings inhabit these lands, not all of them goodly creatures. Some of the more settled areas have the look of fairytale cottages, but even the most disarming locations can have some dark and twisted secret.

College of Impossibilities - a place of magical learning and conclave of wizards and other practitioners of magic. They have found that their Art has grown unpredictable here and their strength is greater in numbers. They seek to understand this plane of existence and the mystery of how it came into being, although some suspect that it was some disastrous misuse of magic they performed that caused it in the first place.

Horizon District - part of a city that could exist in some near future, its technology aided by strange super-science and protected by superpowered beings. Its chief scientist has his own theories on how Frag-Ment came to be and is thought to be a suspect of its creation as well.

Agraria - a land of rolling farmland and prairies, maintained by former serfs of some medieval society and folk displanted from the American West frontier expansion. Understandably confused at first, they have since blended to maintain the agriculture that helps feed the other regions. Log cabin homesteads can be found near aging castles and thatch-roofed dwellings. Gunslingers and bladeswingers keep the peace here, although hostilities do arise from time to time.

Oddmeadow - this area of suburbia infused with rural charm is chiefly populated by anthropomorphic animals. Since being transported here, many of the residents found that they needed new jobs to commute to. The community also has some amount of farmland, adding to the influx of food produced by Agraria. And to answer your unspoken question, most Oddmeadowans are omnivores. They also pride themselves on civic affairs and have been responsible for making sure all the districts of Frag-Ment have a voice in a shared governmental system. This has met with some opposition.

Note that a number of other beings have migrated here as well, including some lycanthropes, mutated animals and talking monkeys that weren't always talking monkeys.

FACTIONS

The Families - This is a hierarchy of demonic beings, the structure of which loosely mirrors the Sicilian mafia of old.

There is a head of each family, called a "Fiendfather," with various Lieutenants and Soldiers. All of the heads are ruled by a matriarchal figure, called Mama Diablo. Although she often appears to be a small, matronly figure, those who underestimate her true power do so at their peril.

The Provokers - are a collection of powerful, secretive beings who put the various players and factions of Frag-Ment against each other and often wager on the outcomes. There is a theory that some of them were responsible for creating this patchwork world as some sort of social experiment or form of entertainment for themselves.

Lord Armageddon - is an armor-clad, imposing figure in the vein of a comic book supervillain. He is ever scheming to amass power for himself, be it political, technological or otherworldly in nature. His chief aim is to gain the power to conquer the universe and perhaps all of reality itself. For now, he hatches his plots and machinations from within the Fortress Formidable, a massive, floating keep surrounded by the destroyed remnants of the village it once overlooked.

The College - practitioners of magic make up this secretive order. Their stated goal is the study of this new world and its laws, yet their true goals are known to few.

The Guardian Legion - a group of superpowered beings who once protected (their) Earth. This team began its time here with only a few members of its original roster but then recruited new members from the District and elsewhere.

The Sinister Gathering - a loosely aligned group of supervillains, some of them also residents of Horizon. The cabal has started to strengthen and expand, forming associations with the Families and even darker powers. They have worked with Lord Armageddon in the past but do not seek to be subservient to him.

Their leadership is ever subject to change, although it is suspected there is one person who guides them from the shadows, directing subordinates for some greater purpose.

RACES

Humes - are humans or other commoners who do not appear to exhibit any special powers or abilities. They may have skills and expertise that are prized, but they make up the bulk of the working caste here. Many newcomers throw themselves in with this lot or hide amongst them to disguise their true nature.

Many of the humes are not human but are content to live their lives among them, or so it may seem. Growing discontent has led to talk of revolt against those in power.

Feyborn - comprise all of the species commonly associated with fey/faeriekind including elves, sprites, pixies, and brownies. Dwarves, gnomes and even some kobolds and goblins may also live among them, although they do not think of themselves as fey creatures.

Monstros - Orcs, trolls, ogres, giants, goblins and all manner of what we might consider monstrous humanoids comprise this category. Although many of them are sinister in nature, a great number of them seem content to toil and build a future here. However they are quick to grow discontented and can be easily swayed to rebel against those who opposed them in the past, reigniting old hostilities.

A great number of them also come under the employ of demons, vampires and other nefarious beings if the pay or promise of reward is attractive.

Supes - powered beings (some of them human,) who often have strange abilities not associated with magic.

12/01/22, Thu

THE BORDERS OF FRAG-MENT

The outermost regions of Frag-Ment seem to extend past the horizon, at least in a visual sense. Anyone reaching the outermost edges of these areas begins to encounter more featureless terrain. Someone can continue to travel for days on end and yet if they turn back and walk only a short distance, they are at the edge of the region again. The phenomenon has defied all attempts by scientists and magicians alike to study and quantify it. Travelers have the sensation of movement, but those seeing them from afar witness them walking or otherwise moving in place. Even flying beings seem to hover and not gain any distance. What's more, persons who attempt to venture out into these border areas report experiencing a vague sort of hopelessness and despair that diminishes once they've returned to the normal confines of the region.

The sky also seems to have an actual, invisible ceiling which may not be breached and produces the same effects as ground travel at very high altitudes.

WEATHER AND THE FIRMAMENT

Inhabitants of Frag-Ment experience normal days and nights and even see a bright orb resembling the sun and likewise a single moon with phases, although trained observers believe these to be artificial in nature.

Weather appears to follow natural seasons and allows precipitation, essential for crop production and continued sustenance. Scientific attempts to predict weather are difficult, although forecasters who base their predictions on magical and psychic divination seem about as successful as 21st century Earth meteorologists.

TIME AND MEMORY

Time passes differently here and long term memory always seems shrouded by a mental haze. Although the populace experiences the passage of time throughout the day, no one seems able to remember yearly dates or can say with any certainty how long they've been here. Some can remember the sudden upheaval and depositing into this realm, but only vaguely. Their initial attempts to learn about other inhabitants and establish their place in this new realm also seem to be a matter of ancient history. Whatever culture shock the various denizens experienced seems to have eased a bit as they tried to establish some sense of normalcy.

Residents of each individual realm have few recollections of the history of their former worlds other than things that directly influenced them. It's as if these microcosms were not only ripped physically from their places of origin but extracted and severed from those realities.

It seems though that even among the human population, there is a change in record keeping and thoughts of long term progress. Children seem to stay at the same age and go to "school," but there is no mention of what grade they attend. Businesses track sales reports, but on a monthly basis. Thoughts of previous year's earnings are only "better or worse." It's as if the laws of physics erode when trying to comprehend any unit of time greater than a year, or some spell has been cast over everyone's minds. And yet life continues, with everyone's thoughts more concerned with the here and now and the immediate future. Thoughts of Frag-Ment as a whole and events that have taken place here are remembered more vividly, even if they never seem marked on a calendar.

Copyright 2021 Roger C. Jones, Brainstorm Books and Games