DMing Chemistry

Throughout the known world, great empires require educated individuals to read, write, copy and otherwise take care of documents, letters, laws, and other forms of written texts. These people are generally referred to as scribes, even though simply copying text is not their only responsibility. Their exact duties vary from empire to empire, but they usually encompass dealing with logistics and other fields that require the use of mathematics as well. Training scribes is not easy or cheap, so usually the people who decide to become scribes come from already wealthy families. In some cultures, such as in the lands of the Reptilians , the position of a scribe is hereditary, and only the children of scribes may become scribes themselves. Scribes are usually trained in temples, and are often priests themselves or acolytes who ultimately failed to become priests. Most empires on the other hand maintain schools independent of the priesthoods as well, as demand for scribes often outpaces the a...

 Neker-ti are species of azhdarchid pterosaurs large enough to prey on humans. Unlike most flying creatures, Neker-ti are also adept burrowers, and will dig places to roost sometimes even into rock. They also like to take over natural caves, or the burrows made by ground sloths, tunnel beasts , giant aardvarks , or other large burrowing creatures. Their unusually flexible necks allow they to unleash a devastating barrage of quick jabs with their beak-like mouths, which in the cramped hallways of their burrows is almost impossible to dodge. Truly there are few opponents more terrifying than a Neker-ti which is defending its nest.  Neker-ti have one more strange capability, the ability to almost perfectly mimic sounds they hear. They use this during mating displays, but also to hunt. Many learn not just the calls made by large herbivores, but to mimic speech as well. It is not unusual for people who live in or near their territories to ignore any cry for help coming from inside ...

 Hashti-Namur has perhaps the most important job of any Underworld deities. He is the one keeping track of all people, when and how they should die, whether or not their soul was received into the Underworld on time, and home much time they still need to wander it, after their memories are gone, and their soul can safely be released. Thankfully Hashti-Namur works hard every day to keep the world functioning as it should. He keeps extensive records of all mortals and even of other deities, so when there is a disagreement between the gods, he is often asked as an impartial judge, or at least he is asked to allow the others to peer into his collection of tablets and scrolls, so they know what really happened. His chief power is that his left eye looks constantly at the past, while his right eye looks to the future. Unfortunately this leaves him blind to the present, which is why the first system of writing he developed was the cuneiform, so that he could feel the words on the tablet ...

 While there are many legends both amongst the Humans and the Orcs about people who are able to turn into wolves, amongst the tribes of Caeledor , there is an unusual myth about some werewolves that are different from the rest. According to the elders, these werewolves don't fear the traditional wolfsbane, and are not harmed by silver. In fact they seem to be wholly unaffected by any weapon or magic, except an eclectic collection of materials.  The first thing anyone can tell you about these wolves is that they can be hurt by weapons made from bone or teeth, but not of claws, talons or beaks. Those even more knowledgeable will say they are also vulnerable to limestone, and sometimes other rocks as well, though other than limestone or chalk, it seems really hard to decode what's actually effective. A legendary hero named Bole is said to have defeated one such werewolf by getting his hand bitten off, then driving his sharp ulna through its neck. Another one called Shelik is re...

 Wings of the Night is the most common name for a magic item with about a dozen known copies. At first glance they look like dark leather cloaks, but closer examination reveals that no tanning process was performed, and the cloak is simply magically preserved skin of some kind. A particularly observant person might note the long grooves along the cloak, which look like they could house wands, or particularly long twigs. When activated (the activation method varies from a single word that needs to be uttered, to simply leaping off somewhere tall) the cloak transforms itself into a pair of batlike wings that the user can use to glide. With enough practice, one may use thermals, or other similar weather phenomena to gain height. As the name suggests, the Wings of the Night are made from actual wings: the wings of Chiropterans to be precise. As one might expect wearing one is a horrible insult to the bat-folk, who will try their best to get revenge on those who would desecrate the bod...

 The Underworld is protected by seven gates, watched over by the White Lady . There used to be six, until a man named Enki built the famous White Gates that bear his name. The next set, however is the one where the Underworld proper begins. These gates are immaterial, as befitting for something meant to keep the spirits of the dead from escaping. They are made of a scintillating blueish mist, that sticks to the dead, forever marking them as the property of the Underworld. For those so marked, these gates are just as solid as the finest steel.  These gates are mostly known as the Cold Mists, and they are often used in euphemisms for death. "Passed through the Cold Mists" is a popular one, and someone who came very close to death is often said to have felt the Cold Mists on their face. Mist-marked is a popular poetic term for the undead, even if most corporeal undead don't have their original souls inhabiting their body, and most incorporeal undead have never passed throu...