Summary and Introduction

The Odd Lands is an ongoing project. Its goal is to examine and describe what might happen if a fantasy world didn't get stuck in the middle ages but continued to evolve until it matched the science and culture of the real world today. To put it simple: It's sort of like the real world, except with elves and magic.

This page is a quick summary of the most basic concepts.

Aua
The world described is the planet Aua. It is mostly covered by water but has two large continents. The larger one is Achs Arod and the smaller is Aflachs Arod. The Odd Lands project is currently only concerned with the northern hemisphere. Achs Arod south of the equator and all of Aflachs Arod are both considered to be unexplored.



Magic
Magic is a reality on Aua and can be wielded by its inhabitants, by intelligent sentient beings, animals and even plants. In order to wield magic one has to manipulate something called the Aether. While the aether is everywhere it can't be manipulated by everyone. Among humans roughly two percent of the population is able to channel or weave the aether.

Magic is not permanent. Any enchant or curse on an item or a person will eventually expire. Magical energy can not be stored. It is not possible to wield magic through mechanical means.

History
As humans count time it is currently year 3996 AE. The abbreviation AE stands for After the Eradication and refers to the eradication of the Haman Empire. The Odd Lands project concerns itself with the past 12,000 years of history.

Inhabitants
There are four major races of sentient beings; Elves, Dwarves, Anfylk and Humans. There are also several minor races of varying significance. There are all kinds of animals and monsters.

Elves
The immortal elves arrived through a hole in the sky twelve thousand years ago. There are two types of elves; Original Elves, who arrived from somewhere else and Elves who were born on Aua.

Dwarves
The dwarves are the fruit of the Giant Rock Marshal, a fungus of the Marshal Mushroom family.

Anfylk
The anfylk were created by the goddess Anna roughly two thousand years ago.

Humans
The human race evolved from apes, just like the humans of the real world.

Gods
The gods of Aua, as they are known to the inhabitants of the world, started to appear shortly after the elves arrived on the planet. They're accepted as an integral part of life on the planet. Religion is a big deal in some cultures but not all religions are focused on gods that actually exist.

Technology and Science
The technology of the world is roughly the same as that of the real world with a few notable exceptions.
 * The internal combustion engine is not economically and practically viable. The personal automobile is virtually unheard of. Trains, bicycles and airships are the main methods of transportation.
 * There is no high speed internet. There are computers and there is internet. The rates of data transfer just aren't what they are in the real world.

Dragons
Yes, of course there are dragons.