I have decided to not continue “Sekai: The Third Age”. Maybe in the future, I will continue it or start it over. But for now, its just too long ago and not everyone is around and the map is in shambles. So, I’ve been working on an entirely different concept (though slightly related in a few ways). Sekai is not dead in this new idea. I welcome you to this idea I have been tossing around, which takes place in the same world (Sekai) but in the Fifth Age (we were playing in the Third Age).
The Third Age came to an end when the large empires of Kandoran and Tyurial once again began an epic scale war. This disturbed central Sekai greatly and forced the kingdoms of that area to band together to protect their lands against two massive empires that were threatening to engulf the entire planet in flames. Unfortunately, this union did not succeed, and all was lost. Kandoran and Tyurial ended up parading over central Sekai with their massive armies and powerful magic. Eventually, great kingdoms were ruined and heroes killed. The entire planet then witnessed the arrival of a massive asteroid. Sorcerers from around the globe came together to attempt to stop the asteroid, and succeeded in at least dampening the blow. The asteroid crashed into the planet, unleashing magical power and melding its magic with that of Sekai’s, creating properties still unknown today. Ferocious beasts were unleashed, massive disasters commenced, and Sekai was placed into a state of panic.
Thus began the Fourth Age. This was an age of ruin and despair. All of Sekai was scorched earth. New magics and monsters were running wild. This was largely an age of survival. Those that survived the end of the Third Age attempted to band together and create city-states and semi-nomadic tribes. These attempts succeeded somewhat, but over time, Sekaians began to notice that a thick layer of the atmosphere had become incredibly poisonous and toxic to breathe. Over the first few years of what was called the Fourth Age, which is generally the Age of Despair, Sekaians realized that their planet’s surface was no longer habitable. Many of the newer breeds of beasts and wild creatures, and even semi-intelligent beings were able to breathe this air, but mostly the trees had become blackened, the mountains covered in inhospitable snow, the oceans either frozen or boiling. Sekai was now a wasteland. Thus the Fourth Age was mostly an era of nomadic groups attempting to survive, finding caves and other areas, attempting to live through this mayhem.
The Fourth Age ended and the Fifth Age began with a single event. This was a union of specialists. Some specialists themselves were from the former large empires of Kandoran and Tyurial, but actually most came from the former realm known as Inner Sekai. This union of specialists included scientists, sorcerers, inventors, blacksmiths, and all kinds of other random professions. These brilliant men and women joined forces and began the invention and construction of several massive magical pillars. These pillars, when placed in certain areas, would rise higher than the toxic area of the atmosphere. It was above this layer of atmosphere that sorcerers were able to combat the elements, successfully clearing some of the powerful magic that came forth from the asteroid that had struck Sekai. Massive cities began to be constructed atop gigantic pillars. Some of the earlier settlements above the troposphere were placed in magical domes or other such structures. Over time, however, research and magic joined forces and created a completely breathable atmosphere above the ruin.
Essentially, Sekai’s Fifth Age is one that might fit into the “steampunk” genre. Science and sorcery have played an equal role in restoring Sekai to its current status. There are definitely factions that represent fanatics on both sides of the spectrum, but these are in their infantile stages. At present, Sekai has enjoyed the Fifth Age for about 150-200 years (pending). This means that new city-states and even kingdoms/nations have risen from the ashes. Elevating these settlements and new lands are massive pillars, which are made from a special type of alloy (each race, people, or kingdom has a different name for this alloy). The alloy is found near the center of Sekai and requires special parties or groups of adventurers to retrieve it. This powerful substance is magically infused by the planet itself and is used to construct the pillars, allowing almost any amount of weight to be supported.
Even railroads are appropriate in Sekai, as well as airships. Railroads are often elevated by the pillars or pushed forward from a starting platform. This Sekai is a bit more modern, and there are factions, some magical in origin, that promote environmentalism and have been known to sabotage railroads and other inventions. There are even religious fanatics who believe that the alloy being taken from Sekai’s center is the land’s blood, and they promote terrorism, attacks on adventure groups going to the center from the settlements above, and other such acts of violence (some even have the ultimate goal of annihilating humanity, as they believe that the gods have willed humanity to be extinct).
All races are still present! Dwarves and other traditional mountain dwellers are obviously some of the finest miners of the interior alloy and were instrumental in constructing the pillars alongside human planning and hard fierce orcish labor. Elves tend to be quite conservative in their acceptance of technology, but still many migrated to the above-ground settlements and were helpful to society by providing powerful weather magics and other such spells to create dense forests on the settlements. Some settlements thus contain wide expanses of nature, thanks mostly to elvish influence. Many of these forests were made from extracting seedlings and other plants that survived the mayhem of the Fourth Age (and by using powerful sorcery). Other such natural beauties exist on some of the settlements – including ponds and lakes. Basically, imagine terrain being raised a little bit from the surface: everything is still there. There are even mountains and hills on the platforms.
Race tensions are still prevalent, of course. Orcs and humans will never be able to live in close quarters side-by-side. Despite a unity of races perpetuating society on Sekai during the Fourth Age, the Fifth Age has seen old rivalries return. There are some exceptions to this, of course. There are tales of cities, massive metropolises in which all races live together. However, even in these cities, there is intense segregation. Dwarves still prefer to live in dwarvish cities, humans still in human cities, orcs still in orcish cities, etc. There are also towns raised above the surface on smaller platforms.
Now to speak of the wasteland that is the land below. This land has toxic air. Beings cannot survive there for long. The toxic mist is magical in nature, and has gotten worse since the Fourth Age. Now, Sekaians are advised to not breathe the air for more than a week or so. Many terrors lie in the land below. The beasts that came forth from the asteroid’s abominating power are some of the most terrifying creatures that have ever lived on Sekai. Their power is far greater than most Sekaians. Fortunately, they require the toxic mist to breathe, and cannot leave that area of the atmosphere or the land beneath. However, exploration / mining parties that venture to the core of Sekai are often massacred by these creatures. Therefore, great strength and courage is required to be part of a mining team. Also on the surface are ruins of kingdoms and city-states. Most of these ruins date from the Third Age, but some date from as far back as the First Age. These areas often contain useful, magical, or legendary items, but are extremely dangerous to approach or explore.
A few more things before I end this massive post. Many of the metallic “poles” as I described them were only the initial structures of these settlements. Imagine their physical appearance to be much more natural. Mountains were grown with magic and elevated higher, so many mountains can reach above the troposphere as well, providing excellent support for these strange settlements I describe. The incredibly durable and strong alloy of Sekai further enforces these settlements, allowing massive amounts of pressure to sustain itself atop the plates. Underneath the plates, and void of sunlight, are sometimes slums, which feature men, women, and children constantly wearing gas masks or other rather post-apocalyptic clothing (imagine the pillars or structures to sometimes have tiers – the highest plate contains the beautiful living space, while underneath that is an area that does not get any of the new atmosphere or sunlight). The alloy that is retrieved from Sekai’s core is the only metal that can be used to elevate the settlements. This is for a few reasons: first, its strength, and second, its magical properties that somehow (its still a mystery) allow it to withstand the elements and magical beasts on the surface. The alloy could potentially be used as a source of energy as well, but the scientific discoveries to allow this have not yet been made.
Welcome to the Fifth Age.
Sekai: The Fifth Age? 
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