Realist Guide

Perhaps unique among the people of the Myriad Worlds, Ogres are massive forms of metal and muscle, awkwardly shaped according the standards of most myriad folk.

While many folk have varying standards in regards to shape and size, Ogres are almost exacting in their similarities to each other. There are unavoidable differences, of course — differing numbers of eyes, fingers, or similar — but in other ways they are precisely the same. For example, I have studied the many Ogres who reside near my domicile, and have not found half a span of difference in their heights: a full nine feet tall to a one of them.

Another land frequented by tourism, the Principality of Gramphank on the world of Wepsanik houses one of the most oft traveled to regions in the entire Velvet, the City of Speer.

I will not, however, advise first-time-travelers to visit the City of Speer. Not for any practical or pragmatic reason, simply because everyone travels to the City of Speer at some point in their lives, and as such it has become a city devoted to the cloying and pleading services of tourism.

Instead, first-time-travelers should consider traveling to a small province on the edge of the Principality called Hellebrach Hills.

Twice as tall as many people of the Myriad Worlds, the Uumphoun are an ancient culture. Historically, ancient texts and stories of the Uumphoun tell of an old Uumphounian empire called KuuThoorrDaaWoo, translated literally as “The Second Risen Place.” This is considered by most scholars to be evidence that the Uumphoun are either the second oldest people, or the first culture to rise after some previous dominant species collapsed.

They have short stubby trunks for noses, half the length of an arm. They are thick bodied, though short-legged, with four fingers on each hand. They have thick pads for feet, with four nails for toes. Small tusks jut outwards from both the top and lower jaws.

Travel through the Velvet has a long and rich history. While much is still unknown to us, the earliest travelers of the Velvet appear to be the Zyth, as some of the oldest ruins on multiple worlds appear to be Zyth in origin. As such, most histories of travel begin with the earliest constructs of Zyth origin. It is generally believed that if the Zyth were not the first travelers of the Velvet, those who were operated along similar principles.

What is it that amazes me so about this marvelous Province of Wren Gallen? The truth is that this province holds no more grand parks of emerald greenery than any other duchy. The plants smell no sweeter nor the fauna move more gracefully. The people are perhaps as kind and cruel as you are likely to meet anywhere across the Myraid Worlds, and their festivities at once joyous and simple as any. The sky is no bluer, nor the water clearer. The trees do not whistle in the wind with any particularly delightful tone.

So what is it, I wonder, that makes the Province of Wren Gallen a wondrous world worthy of its place among this guide to the Myriad Worlds?

While the Myriad Worlds have birthed thousands of millions of cultures, scholars have noted there are several historical similarities that occur with curious regularity. Not the least of these is the legends of Manyfolk

Scholars debate whether this is an indication of an ancient race that has since died out, or a nod towards a universal fear or shared subconscious. Whatever it indicates, no existent Manyfolk has ever been recorded or studied by a reputable source.

I, well traveled as I am, have never stepped behind the door. Well traveled as I am, I have never met any who have done so.

Of all the known residences of Insect-folk, the Circumvexing Hill is perhaps the most notorious, and certainly the most confusing to outsiders. Hidden within its choking depths and dizzying heights, the Circumvexing Hill is known both for its complex and downright obtuse hierarchy, and its overly intricate design.

Perhaps the most interesting and enigmatic aspect of the Circumvexing Hill is its connection between prestige and location. Some may find this awkward or clumsy to maneuver, but rest assured that the Insect-folk of the Circumvexing Hill find the more common practice of wearing one’s honors, such as on a uniform, sash, head, or belt, no less confusing.

Excerpt from The Dreams of Harrison Peak, by Gomph Uspleki:

It hangs there, in the empty velvet, a chain wrapped around its ankle, hanging from an ice-crystal too far away to be seen. Its arm outstretched, its lipless mouth open in delight, or pain, or song. What once might have been wings now dangle uselessly. Its broiling corpus now full of a thousand souls, living or hoping to live as one does, full of shattered dreams and hopeless futures.

Dworgs, also known as Earth-Children, Keepers of the Emerald Path, Twig-beards, Masons, and more derogatorily, Dogs, are an ancient people, perhaps the oldest beings among the Myriad Worlds.

The first mention of the Dworg people is carved into the Plinth of Uilyll, the seventh facet. There, the eponymous Uilyll comes across an ancient ruin who provides them with the secret of the enduring name. (It is presumed this is a perhaps metaphorical explanation for the carving of the Plinth itself. As a people, Dworgs are known for their reverence towards stonework and its enduring nature. The ‘Secret of the Enduring Name’ may simply be a reference to carving Uilyll’s story in stone.) While the debate over the age of the Plinth is ongoing, there are few who challenge the sentiment that Dworgs have existed since before travel between the Myriad Worlds was first attempted.