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The Obsidian Pillars of Zhar’keth
Description: Towering black pillars arranged in a perfect geometric formation that defy known architectural methods. They appear to have been melted and shaped from a single piece of obsidian but without any visible signs of tools or construction.
Mystery: The pillars hum with an ancient energy that causes nearby animals to avoid the area. People are unsure if they are of natural or magical origin, and some believe they serve as an interdimensional gate. Occasionally, they glow faintly under the light of specific moons or celestial alignments, further deepening the mystery. The medes have put much study into them and believe they are highly magical and potentially dangerous, especially if the wrong person finds out how to use them.
Purpose: Could have been used for astronomical observations, a forgotten magical rite, or as a marker for an ancient civilization that mastered interdimensional travel. They are found in the eastern part of the Roker Territory.
2. The Eternal Flame of Kylor
Description: A large stone basin in a forgotten temple that has contained a mysterious blue flame burning for centuries without fuel. The flame gives off no heat, and it cannot be extinguished by any means known to the current inhabitants.
Mystery: Scholars (especially medes) debate whether it’s a manifestation of divine power, ancient technology, or some long-lost magical incantation. Some believe it was a beacon for the gods, while others see it as a relic of ancient science. It is located just south of the North Eastern mede territory. Magicians have tried to put the light out using various kinds of magic, but without success.
It could be the power source for an ancient lost empire, or perhaps it was part of a ritual that sustained the land’s magic.
3. The Colossal Figures of the Forgotten Kings
Description: Massive statues carved into the side of a mountain, depicting figures whose features don’t resemble any known race or species. They stand several hundred feet tall and have withstood millennia of erosion and earthquakes without damage. These are found on the southern part of the roker’s territory.
Mystery: No one knows who built these statues or what the figures represent. Some believe the statues themselves are living, sleeping giants waiting for an unknown signal to awaken. Others think they are gods from a forgotten age. Some believe that they are cursed beings that were turned to stone as a reminder to never betray the gods.
Purpose: They could be ancient sentinels protecting the world from a great evil, or perhaps they were once kings who ruled a forgotten empire that vanished overnight. There are many theories as to what their purpose is, but no one knows for sure.
4. The Skyward Spire
Description: A perfectly smooth, mile-high spire that stretches into the sky, seemingly made of an unknown metal or stone. The surface is impervious to damage, and it reflects no light, making it almost invisible at night. This is found among the volcanoes in the Northern Western part of Zalonia.
Mystery: Despite its massive size, there are no visible entrances, and no one has been able to scale its sheer surface. Legends say it holds ancient knowledge or houses a sleeping god. On rare occasions, during celestial events, strange symbols appear on its surface, only to disappear as quickly as they came.
Purpose: It could be an ancient lighthouse for interstellar travelers, or perhaps a monument to an extinct race of advanced beings who once ruled the stars. Whatever its purpose, no one knows how it got there. Some people have tried to climb it without success. Magicians who can use flying spells seem to be repelled from it the higher they go up, so they are unable to reach the top. The top remains a mystery.
5. The Glass Forest of Aeolion
Description: A forest of trees, frozen in time, made entirely of a translucent glass-like material. The trees hum faintly in the wind, producing strange, ethereal music. Legends say that when the wind plays the right melody, the forest reveals secrets of the past. They are found in the northern part of the Great Frolm Forest.
Mystery: No one knows what caused the transformation from living trees to their current glass state. Some believe a curse from ancient magic is to blame, while others speculate that a magical cataclysm turned the entire region into glass. Some believe that it was from the Lost Age, just before the time of destruction.
Purpose: The forest might be a memorial to a lost civilization, or a prison for ancient spirits locked within the glass. It could also hide clues to a forgotten age of magic. However, no magician knows how they work.
6. The Floating Monolith of Valus
Description: A massive, floating stone monolith that hovers hundreds of feet above the ground without visible support. It remains motionless in the sky, and its surface is inscribed with runes that no one has been able to decipher. Unlike the Celestial Realms, this can be seen from the ground. This is located just East of Tarvon.
Mystery: How the monolith remains aloft defies all known laws of magic and physics in the world. Attempts to understand or control the monolith have failed, and some believe it contains a terrible secret or curse. The monolith is rumored to “sing” every few centuries, causing strange phenomena in the surrounding lands, for example, there will be a sudden burst of sparkles that are like fireworks.
Purpose: It could have been created by an advanced, long-lost civilization as a beacon, prison, or magical relic tied to the very fabric of the universe. Some speculate that the gnonows used it as their base during the Lost Age and have cursed it with some kind of magic.
7. The Black Pyramid of Zholtar
Description: A large pyramid made of jet-black stone, sunken partially into the desert sands. Despite the desert’s scorching heat, the pyramid is always cold to the touch. The inside is a labyrinth of traps and shifting walls, with a throne room that has remained sealed for millennia. It is found in the Southeastern part of the Desert Wastes.
Mystery: The pyramid’s exterior walls are covered in strange hieroglyphs that tell the story of a great war between gods. Explorers who enter often disappear, and those who return are said to be cursed, bringing madness or death. Some believe the pyramid houses a powerful, slumbering god or the soul of an ancient conqueror. There are rumors that specters roam the inside of the pyramids, but because the people who have come out have gone mad, it is hard to get any solid information.
Purpose: The pyramid might be a tomb, a prison for a powerful being, or the entrance to a hidden dimension or underworld. Some say that it was used during the Lost Age as a magical portal that led to unknown dimensions.
8. The Whispering Stones
Description: A ring of enormous stones, each covered in intricate carvings of unknown origin. These stones emit a low, whispering sound that grows louder during the solstices and equinoxes. No one understands the language of the whispers. They are found just East of Magdad.
Mystery: Some believe the stones are a map to an ancient city, while others think they are a warning of a long-forgotten catastrophe. Scholars speculate that the stones were once part of a massive magical device or portal. There are said to be glitches of time when roaming nearby, where someone will go forward or backward ten minutes or so in time.
Purpose: They could have once been part of a magical defense system, a calendar for predicting astronomical events, or a communication device with another realm.
9. The Living Tapestry of Ithoria
Description: An ancient tapestry that hangs in a forgotten temple, showing images of history in constant motion. The figures and events depicted are said to change depending on who views it, often revealing significant moments in the past or even the future. This is found on the Northern East side of the roker territory.
Mystery: How the tapestry shows such vivid and shifting images is a mystery, and many believe it was created by a god or a long-lost civilization with the ability to foresee the future. Some scholars fear that what it shows is not always true, but may change events through its very observation. It has similar dangers to giving prophecies, in that they can become self-fulfilling.
Purpose: It could serve as a tool for prophecy or as a historical archive that records pivotal moments in the world’s history. It might also be a manipulative force that alters the course of history based on the whims of those who seek its guidance. The purpose of the temple itself is unknown. There is no indication that it was once a temple of a god or goddess.
10. The Shattered Moon
Description: A moon that hangs in the sky, visibly shattered, with large fragments drifting slowly in orbit around each other. Ancient texts describe it as once being whole, but no one knows what caused its catastrophic break.
Mystery: Some believe it was the result of a divine war, while others think a magical ritual or an unknown celestial event destroyed it. The fragments of the moon still affect the tides and have magical properties, and adventurers seek out pieces that have fallen to the planet. It’s very difficult for humans to see, but medes, with their eyesight being seven times that of a human, can sometimes spot these fragments in the sky.
Purpose: The moon’s destruction could be linked to the downfall of a powerful civilization, or it could be a consequence of an ancient battle between gods. It might also have been a prison for an ancient evil that was released when the moon shattered. Whatever happened, it seemed to be older than written history.
11. The 11 Strange Statues
Description: 11 Statues stand tall. They appear to be humans, but thinner, almost malnourished-looking. They have no legs, but they have arms that point toward the sky. Medes who have studied them think they all point to this one object in the sky that can’t be fully seen. They are located in the western part of the Desert wastes.
Mystery: There is debate about when they were erected and what they stand for. Some think they are endowed with magic, but that theory is uncertain.
Purpose: Those who believe in the Lost Age think that Stiminites built the mysterious statues in the desert. They believe the eleven statues are set up in a symbolic fashion. There are legends such as rebel stiminites, and medes built them to warn people of the gnonows who oppressed the world. The symbols are difficult to decipher and are believed to hold ancient secrets. They seemed to have been built out in the middle of nowhere when they were first discovered in the desert.
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Creating Life – By Ralph Ellefson
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Fantasy World Building: A Guide To Developing Mythic Worlds and Legendary Creatures – By Mark Nelson
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