The Capital of Barradesh

[SteffenBrand]

There will be more, don't worry
Thank you so much, Pixie!

[Ilanthar]

So, we're gonna have a city map AND a regional map for this? Great!
I'm gonna take some popcorn and watch .

[SteffenBrand]

Yeah, seems so Wasn't planned that way, but now they are both in the Town/City-Mapping section. In the days to come I'll also include some shorter description / moods for some minor cities if you want to, since I have some already finished and you all seem interested. Thanks, Ilanthar! =)


Let's start with a ruin and another one:

Suleymar, the Veiled Ghost City
‚Until the tar swallowed the stars, Suleymar outshowned even the brightest among them.‘
 • Population: Unknown (probably under 200)
What once was an island-spanning trade city on its peak far off in the ocean had become a ruinous necropole after an unknown catastrophe during a revelry. The few remnants are inhabiting a dying city slowly engulfed by smoking tar, dimming the lights of the last soon-to-be-forgotten souls forever. Since it has no commercial worth any longer and it is hard to reach now, what had happened is hiding behind murmours.

Nagara, the Meandering Serpent
‚The longer you dwell in its many delights, the more poisenous they become.‘
 • Population: 14,000
The city winding along the riversides lost its origins in times past in the deep of the steaming jungles of the Naga Swamps. Its secrets seem to hide beneath the steps of the pyramids of cultists best avoided. It is a last stop for those who want to venture into the dense covert in the north, if they are able to bestir themselves to leave again into the harsh reality outside their drug-induced stupor: If you are willing to drown your senses, it gives back its many delirious enjoyments graciously with both hands. As long as you can pay the price.


Best wishes,
Steffen

[SteffenBrand]

And the first draft of the blurb for the Game:

Barradesh is in turmoil.
 The continent tumbles with mortals forgetting their destiny and opt for free will into a profane future. You must unite and collectively, with the Gods on your side, stem against the tides of what is to come. They ripped apart reality and an inexorable tide of beings strange to the world gushed into the realms of mortals. But the lines are blurred in this morally gray world. In the midst of struggle and intrigue, you are challenged to find and stay on your own path to reach salvation; or you fail and pass the torch to those who come after you.
 Even though this game borrows heavily from historic India, no deeper knowledge about the culture or the local past is presupposed on the players part. This book contains a comprehensive fictional world with the blank spaces to write your deeds into history.

The Role-Playing-Game Bodhisattva is made for about 4-6 Players to slip into the roles of fallable mortals who were reincarnated so often, they will soon reach salvation and became the — eponymous — Bodhisattvas. During these last times, you try to change what suffering you previously caused, guide mortals into a better tomorrow, and safe all from collective downfall.
 Heed your Destiny. Safe Barradesh, a life at a time.

This game features and supports a more cineastic play style, with easy to learn rules that don‘t loose their complexity and uniqueness over time. Brave deeds, clever machinations, and being more-than-mortal are core aspects of this game, without uplifting the characters to loose touch with regular inhabitants in this world. Working together is key to achieve your goals, each character growing with his deeds and choices along the way.

[SteffenBrand]

Next little step: The main rivers are done, I don't think I will go more in-depth with them. Maybe one or two will get in additionally, but not a lot more. This will end up to be a more schematic map anyway, the smaller things don't matter on here. I also included the main water currents and included one that warms the island chain on the southeast with warmer water to make it a bit more hospitable and still keep the lands beyond somewhat unchanged and with continental tundra climate. =)

Best wishes, Steffen


klein_2xLetter_TheWorld.jpg

[SteffenBrand]

Another little step, but I'm always having a hard time figuring out fictive names without sounding like a child ;)
I also toned down the rest. I have a few word-parts left that I can use that sound somewhat like Indian, if need be. If you have suggestions, I'm open to it =)

Best wishes, Steffen

_wipC_2xLetter_TheWorld.jpg.jpg

[Mouse]

Wow! Those rivers are certainly pretty huge, going by the size of Germany in the previous map! Lots of room for swampiness

Incredibly complicated map, Steffen. You've put so much work into getting it right. Its going to be spectacular when its done

[SteffenBrand]

Thank you! Well, it is mostly schematic. Of cause this isn't the correct breadth of the rivers, but the art-style limits it to be this way. I wanted the same look for both the city map and the world map, so I had to make concessions. Buuuuuut that also meant that I had to focus on the main features, leaving smaller things out and having the space to explore as players in a gaming world. That was the thought process behind that.

[Mouse]

But fantasy rivers are always longer, wider, faster, and generally all over 10 times better than real ones

Fictitious names...

Have you tried using any of the usual fictitious names generators?

I tend to draw inspiration from the typical historical names of my own country, in the sense that place names are usually suffixed with a little tell-tale ending, like 'ham', 'mouth', 'bray', 'ton', and 'hide'. I don't always use those exact names, but I do tend to invent just a handful of suffixes to add to simple one or two syllable made up words to unify the names in some logical way. For instance I might decide that any town or city built on a river mouth should have the suffix 'mar', like Dolmar, or Inismar - or that all the towns built up around the lowest bridging point of a river should have 'walk', like Abbeywalk, or Grimswalk.

I expect if you look at the names of places that are built in certain situations in Germany you might see similar patterns, and I'm hoping I've just given you a few workable ideas

[mat_r]

Interesting ..
I dont think your names sound childish.
Can you tell us more about the naming concepts you are applying here? Are you trying to establish a feel of different cultural influences in different corners of your world or are you envisioning it more like one big cultural sphere?

I think the names around the center region have a nice indian sound. (at least to european ears) I am curious how "Dawncrag" fits in there, though. That's the first thing that caught my eye... However I just realize that's probably more of a descriptive term than a name, so forget about that

From the area around the Sea of Voss I am getting more of a "Viking" vibe. "Isbreen", "Skovis", "Sjoedland", "Retland" somehow sound Skandinavian to me. Is that your intention?