The Powder Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan does not gets its due. If you like fantasy books that have lots of war and magic and intrigue, then they are a great read.

When I worked at Target I used to love Halloween because it meant I could waste time just hanging out in all of the decorations with the spooky music we used to play.

Nobody here seems to do much for Halloween which is a real bummer.

Concept:

Hull is a continent dotted with seven massive weapons left behind by the gods of civilization that once wielded them. Huge megacities have sprung up around these vestiges, fueled by the intense magical energy that pours from them. The stories of the inhabitants of these vast fantasy urbans sprawls are many and varied but bound together by that deific magic that moves the world.

History:

In the beginning, Hull was ruled by the primal powers of the world. The raw elements of existence were powerful and wild but resistant to change. When the thinking species came into being, so did their gods. These were the gods of civilization and progress which had one purpose; to tame the primal powers and hand the reigns of existence to their new wards. The war was hard fought and scarred the land, but the gods succeeded and bound the old powers: Fire to the torch, beasts to the farm, plants to field. Once their task was done the gods disappeared from Hull, leaving behind those great weapons that had won the war.
These weapons radiated great power and the young new species of the world gravitated to them. Civilization itself sprung from these fonts of magic and the new towns around them grew rapidly. In the beginning they were towns but soon they were cities and then megacities so big that traversing them from end to end could take months on foot.

Setting:

Hull is a single continent along with a number of nearby islands. It is home to eight megacities build around the seven vestiges; Massive god weapons that radiate powerful magic. Each Vestige radiates a unique form off magic that is a reflection of the god that wielded it. As a result, each megacity is unique and could be a setting all its own. As you move away from the Vestiges the magic weakens, resulting in small camps and villages that eke by on whatever menial amount of magic they can use. Between the cities are open swaths of land where folks who are not welcome or not interested in the larger cities can be found…for better or worse.

Locations:

Truth

A massive alchemical volcano named Plume sits at the heart of Truth. A vestige left behind by the god of deceit and creativity. Plume is not a true volcano but rather a massive flask partially buried within the earth. It is heated by volcanic vents that run below it and constantly bubbles and glows, bathing Truth in a strange light.

Magics of illusion and change permeate the city. Its roads shift ever so slightly as you walk them, lit by dancing illusigns of shop names meant to catch your eyes as you pass. Alchemy is the largest export of this city and its main economic engine. Here you can find hundreds of alchemy guilds and the seekers guilds that are enlisted to procure their ingredients.

The ten largest alchemy guilds run the city, each holding a single seat on a council known as The Arbiters of Change. As part of a tri-monthly ritual, they pour in large quantities of chemicals that shift as the seasons do. This causes the light and smell that pours over Truth to change as well.

• Spring: spark, yellow, static
• Summer: frost, blue, mint
• Autumn: acid, green, acrid
• Winter: fire, orange, cinnamon & smoke

The Cog

The Cog is a megacity that yearns for a war that has long since passed. While its vestige was once wielded by the deity of war itself, Hull has since become unified. Despite this the magical energies of Absolute drive its leaders and citizens to prepare for a war that's long since past or has yet to come. This has driven them to create tools capable of mining the divine ore from the massive sword so they can craft magical weapons for their own army.

While the city primarily produces new technology for war, those creations also serve as its primary source of wealth. There is no other place where magical weapons and armor can be procured.

Precedence

Precedence sits nearly in the center of Hull and serves as the primary seat of government for the continent. It is the megacity that arose around the Vestige Justice, once wielded by the god of law and disciple. The entirety of the city is underground, beneath the shield of Justice that serves as a massive protective dome. The hammer's handle is buried deep in the earth and its head hangs in the sky above The Precedence. At a glance, it would appear that the hammer could fall at any moment, but the people of Precedence believe that their dedication to law and balance are key to keeping it in place.
The ruling council of Precedence pass the core laws which are enforced across all megacities. While other cities have unique laws in addition to the core laws, the core laws are expected to be enforced.

Inspiration

Inspiration is unique in many ways compared to the other megacities. It is the only one that is not on the continent itself, but rather sprawled across five large islands and dozens of smaller islands all interconnected via a complicated network of ship lanes. Additionally, the trident Vestige Starlight lies beneath the islands on the floor of the ocean. This Vestige was once the weapon of the god of astronomy and travel.

Eastgate/Westgate

A pair of cities that sit at either end of the whip Vestige once held by the god of hunting and animal husbandry. Westgate serves as an entrance to The Path atop which travelers can reach the sister city of Westgate buried deep within the Grand Forest. The citizens and wardens of this area of used the Vestiges magic to obtain mastery over the beasts found nearby. This allows them to protect residents and visitors from the more powerful and more primal creatures that lurk within the mysterious forest.

Two-Suns

Two-Suns is the mega-city built around the Vestige, Rythm. It is the primary source of food across Hull. The magic of this vestige allows nearby crops to grow at more than double the rate of normal. Additionally, the large number of nearby rivers have been leveraged for irrigation and massive stretches of fertile farmland.

The town derives its name from the lucky position Rythm was left in. While the sun is up, it is reflected off the blade of the vestige, causing the amount of sun to be maximized almost all day long.

Purity

Purity is the megacity built along the Mending Coast beside Shepherd, the staff Vestige of medicine and commerce. It is a bustling town rich in coin and good intentions. All sorts of healing magic can be found here along with medicine. The folk of this town live unnaturally long due to the energy of Shepherd and they have little fear of disease.

People travel here from across Hull as a last hope for curing themselves or others. People all around Hull are willing to buy medicinal products that are allegedly produced in Purity at a premium. However, there is no guarantee that any extra potency still exists once the item has been away from Shepherd for too long.

Characters:

Malvus Accelerant (He/Him)

If he had an existence before the experiments in Truth, Malvus is unaware of it. The transmutation magic of Plume has been stitched directly into his flesh resulting in powerful magic and off-putting side effects. His face if an ever-shifting pallet of fictional and real people, a result of his body struggling to contain the magic thrust into him. He is able to release the magic in small bouts, shaping the world around him. Life should be easy for Malvus; In his hands locks melt away, tin is turned to gold, and blades wilt. But his magic is wild and difficult to control, pouring from him in the worst situations. Combined with his off-putting visage, it makes for a person most have no interest in keeping around. Malvus seeks to understand his existence and questions whether a manufactured person is really a person at all.

Hush (she/Her)

A shrewd negotiator and dedicated detective, Hush has become known for her effective investigations in Precedence. She holds no official position but is well regarded for her exceptional skills at gathering hard-to-find evidence, often put to use by the ruling council. While the Core Laws are intended to be followed by all the megacities, some feel they are powerful enough to skirt their enforcement. When this happens, Hush is often contracted to find what is needed to prosecute them. Hush believes that some of the other intend to officially break from the rule of Precedence and she intends to prove it.

Jiro (He/Him)

Jiro is a bugbear of exceptional intelligence who resides in Westgate. The result of his adopted father’s attempts to prove that civilization and the primal powers be brought together, his existence has done little to sway the public. This goal was helped in no part by Jiros violent temper. The primal violence that dwells within him is in constant struggle against the mind his father sharpened. Despite this, Jiro pushes ever forward in hopes of one day showing the region that his father was correct. For now, that hope is placed in his run for a seat on the local council.

Kelwyn Flametongue (He/Him)

Kelwyn has trained for war since the day he could hold a blade. A ward of the state, he was placed into military training in The Cog at a young age. He showed an incredible talent for imbuing weapons with elemental power, with a particular affinity for fire. When he turned 18 Kelwyn was inducted into an elite group tasked with hunting down magical weapons that had fallen out of The Cog’s control. When he initially joined, he understood that these weapons could be used against the city when war breaks out but as the years have gone on, he questions whether a war will ever happen.

Laucian (the Immortal) Golonidel (They/Them)

Laucian is an exceptionally long-lived individual, even for the citizens of Purity. The power of the healing magic Shepard produces seems to be magnified for them. They look half the age of their peers and heal from grievous wounds in hours. These gifts could have been used in many ways, but Laucian sought one thing with them: Fame. Nicknamed, “The Immortal” they are perhaps the best-known gladiator in all of Purity. That, however, was not enough for them to find contentment. So, for the first time they have stepped outside of the city to cross blades in the other pits across Hull. Unfortunately, they’re about to find out that away from the magic of Shepard they are of little note.

NPCs:

Perryn Borana (He/Him)

A disheveled old man living on the streets of Truth. He is the keeper of Bok, a stitch-hound capable of reading and influencing the emotions of others. He seeks a simple life, but the unique nature of his companion all but guarantees he will never have it.

Brim Berrywin (She/Her)

A small, but powerful, alchemist serving as the Highbrew Ritesman of the Vial Effervescence alchemy guild. He holds a seat on the Arbiters of Change and has become frustrated with the rituals they enact. He seeks a greater change in the world.

Other Notable Aspects:

• Fantasy Megacities

The size and scope of the cities in this setting set it apart. While there are areas where wilderness can be accessed, most adventures will take place in the sprawling urban environments wrapped around the Vestiges.

• Magic

Magic is derived directly from the Vestiges lefts by the gods. As your distance from them increases, so does your distance from the power of that magic. In the megacities, life is touched by powerful magic regularly, but in the swaths of land in between them people struggle to get by without it.

• Themes & Settings

Due to how unique each megacity is, a variety of different game types can easily be run. While Truth is essentially a fantasy cyberpunk city ripe for questions about the nature of what a person is, Westgate and the Grand Forest make for an excellent place to directly explore the theme of humanity vs nature. In Purity you can explore the ramifications of a location where aging, disease, and injuries are greatly minimized. In The Cog the industrialization of war and its purpose is in question and Presence is ripe for an investigative campaign of political corruption.

• The Vestiges

The Vestiges are the centerpieces of this setting. They are massive, powerful, and would look amazing towering over a city in an art piece. How these incredible monuments affect the world and how people treat them is as important part of this game. To some cities they are monuments treated with reverence. To a city like The Cog, they are a resource to be tapped and converted into something more useful. In Truth the entire city shifts around the powerful Plume, but they seek to examine and understand how it works.

Plotlines:

Quest Idea 1 – “Just an Experiment”

Brim Berrywin has been tired of the ritualistic nature of the seasonal rites undertaken for Plume. She seeks change and is willing to risk everything for it. She comes to the players’ Seekers Guild with a job. A rare piece of mushroom flesh must be used in the upcoming ritual and the guild that was supposed to find it has gone missing. She sends you into the sewers beneath Truth to seek it out and deal with whatever creatures lurk around it.

Little do the players know that their success is moot. Brim plans to sabotage the ritual and blame the group for providing tainted ingredients. All she needs is for them to return from the task, unlike the last group.

• Will the heroes find the fungal flesh?
• Will they uncover her plot before handing it over?
• What will they do if they are framed by one of the most powerful alchemists in the city?

Quest Idea 2 – “A Blade Drawn”

The Cog is a city clearly hungry for war. The other megacities have been on edge for ages, waiting for the inevitable day when they grow weary of waiting and comply start it themselves. That’s what makes it all the more surprising when the Vestige sword Absolute suddenly disappears, along with the war ready city that was built around it. Left in its place is an impossibly large crater and infinite questions.

• It was the most militarily capable city in all of Hull, so who would have the power to destroy The Cog?
• They mined their Vestige for manufacturing, perhaps an angry god finally drew back the blade, taking the city with it?
• Maybe there was a mistake made in their manufacturing and experimentation and they did this to themselves?