Redsky (Sphere)

This Everway Realm was inspired by a particular location/chapter in Nine Princes In Amber. Since the Everway game was a follow-up to an Amber campaign where Eric won and rewrote the universe, this place was specifically tweaked by the victor to prevent a reborn Bleys/Blaze from mustering troops here.

Redsky (Sphere)

The most notable fact about this harsh desert world is that the sky is nearly always the colors of sunset - the world’s most common name is derived from that fact. Everything’s a little off-kilter here, no doubt a result of the magical influence of the unnaturally colored sky.

Usurper Force: The Burning Sky
Normal: Enduring The Unnatural
Inverted: Succumbing To Unexpected Elements

People: Those who live here are, by and large, not human. They are a unique breed of elf, tall and thin, with skin the color of their sky. They are hairless, have sharply pointed ears and slightly pointy heads, and too many digits to their spindly fingers. They dress in bright silks, and carry scimitars with greatly exaggerated curves. They are desert dwellers so they travel light and keep few possessions, living off the harshest of lands. They like to sing while they work or fight, mostly religious songs about the battle between Gods and the foul Pretender.

Economy: Redsky has few appreciable exports. Silks mostly, and some exotic curved swords. The land is not resource-rich, so they have little to trade with, but are constantly in need. More than once in history the Elves of Redsky have raided out into other Spheres to take what they could not make in their own world, but it has always met with disaster.

Military: The Elves of Redsky are skilled swordsmen, but they all employ an exotic school of fighting adapted to the wide open spaces of their homeland. This extremely mobile style is terribly disadvantaged when hemmed in to small spaces - if they don’t have room for exaggerated defensive movements, they are likely to go down fast. The overly curved swords deliver ferocious wounds but are difficult to parry with effectively.
They have a navy as well, composed of enormous catamaran-style ships with very wide decks.

Pretender: The religion of the Elves of Redsky tells of a great evil known as Pretender. Pretender is charismatic, cunning, and seemingly noble - it is easy to like him even when you have better reasons to fear him. He can appear as an elf or a human, the later of which is believed to be his true form. As a human he is often known as Lightning Lie the Burning Sky Demon. Pretender’s chief purpose in existing is to fool and betray those of weak mind or pretentious aspirations. Sometimes he claims to be a God, in other generations he is just a warrior. He has the ability to walk the Spheres without using Gates. With such power, he seeks to tempt the elves into making war on other worlds. He leads them far away from home, promising conquest and paradise. Then he rains down Lightning upon them and delights in their destruction.

Ecology: The entire Sphere is made of mountains, desert and ocean. There are no forests, jungles or swamps. The sunlight burns fiercely. Strange plants and animals grow in such a harsh climate. Several breeds of cactus grow, some of them not merely spiny but also toxic. The local humming birds drink blood as well as nectar, and have been known to attack elves and humans. Tribes of coin-sized purple scorpions build hills not unlike ants in other realms. Several species of large-jawed or spined grubs spin durable silk in unusual colors.

Bird-Eating Rose: This desert flower looks like a very thorny but otherwise normal rose. It’s flower oozes a sweet-smelling sap that attracts scorpions, silk worms, hummingbirds, and foolish spherewalkers alike. The sap however is a strong glue. Any potential sap harvesters become quickly stuck to the flower, which senses their struggle and releases a digestive enzyme. A single flower can trap a hummingbird, kill it after a few hours and digest it completely in a day or two. Humans are generally safe as long as they don’t charge through or jump into such a rosebush.

Gates: There are multiple gates leading out of Redsky, all are small enough that travel through them must be done in single-file. The Gates are scattered through-out the desert. They open up into Boundless, SlideMount, and the Empire of the Stag & Sovna.