Building Your Campaign Setting With The Hollow Earth Hypothesis

If you play RPGs, then chances are the idea of a Hollow Earth is probably not new to you. With games like Hollow Earth Expedition, Adventure To Hollow Earth for Mage: The Ascension, or Terra Incognita, a Hollow Earth setting for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, the concept has been explored in a lot of ways. And that's without discussing Hollow Earth in popular fiction, such as the prehistoric Pellucidar.

However, just because an idea is popular, that doesn't mean everyone has heard of it. And if you haven't read the history of the Hollow Earth theory, it's pretty damn wild!

So, this is the Earth...

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The Origin of The Hollow Earth

According to the Library of Congress, the Hollow Earth theory was originally created back in the 1600s as a radical way of explaining a natural phenomenon. You see, when sailors would go out on their ships to cross the ocean, they would bring all the tools they had with them to make sure they didn't get lost. Star charts were common, as well as tools that helped them easily locate true north so they could orient themselves accordingly. However, it was noted that sometimes the magnetic needles in their compasses did not point north. They would, in fact, go wandering and become completely useless at certain points.

How could this happen? Well Royal Society member and astronomer Edmund Halley (yeah, the guy whose name is on the comet) had an idea... the Earth was actually hollow!

All right, I'm gonna back up. Tell me where I lost you.

So, the basic idea that Halley proposed was that the Earth we know up on the surface is just an outer shell, and there is actually an inner Earth with its own magnetic poles, and that these two Earths spin freely. This change in relative positioning of the inner Earth interfered with the natural magnetic laws on the surface, which is why the compass needles would sometimes wander for no discernible reason. He even went so far as to suggest that this inner sphere would harbor some kind of life.

On the one hand, this is sort of ridiculous... on the other hand, though, he wasn't that far off. We're more of a Jawbreaker Earth, with a bunch of layers, but the molten iron core does actually shift and fluctuate. This is what causes the magnetic drift that was being observed. That explanation, though, is nowhere near as much fun as the idea of there being an entirely different world inside our own!

Making This Concept Your Own

A lot of Hollow Earth games have a very pulp adventure/steampunk vibe to them, because that's when the concept really hit pop culture awareness. Books, short stories, and movies all trying to capture that pulp era really leaned into the Hollow Earth idea. Sadly, it turns out John Quincy Adams didn't believe it, but an alternate history game where he did, and funded an expedition your characters are now part of is just one inspiration for a Hollow Earth game.

However, if you want to build a really unique Hollow Earth game, I would recommend doing something a little different, and mashing it up with games or genres that we don't usually associate with this kind of setup.

A world without sun, you say...?

For example, is this Hollow Earth a place where all the creatures of horror have their origins? A place filled with vampires, werewolves, the walking dead, and other terrifying beings? Is it instead a place filled with alien races who have lived here far longer than humanity, the center of the world filled with horrors like elder things, gugs, and other Lovecraftian monsters? Did the Earth open up to swallow people at the end of the world in Mork Borg, and now this place is being explored by those who were raised on the poisoned prophecies of the basilisk, finding out there were long-lost truths beneath the surface?

Is the Hollow Earth where this fantasy game has been happening this whole time, and it is through finding the boundaries of this world that our adventurers climb out to the outer shell? And if so, what do they find when they reach the upper crust of a world they thought they knew? Is it the modern world as we know it? A ruined hellscape of frozen wastes representing the edges of Snowhaven? Or something else entirely?

If you've been looking to do something different for your next game, but the previous installment of Using Flat Earth Theories To Fuel Your Fantasy Worldbuilding didn't really scratch that itch, then consider what a Hollow Earth game might look like at your table! Even (or perhaps especially) if the game won't be taking place on Earth at all.

Lastly, before you head out today, consider the following articles of mine as some additional reading/inspiration for this week's post:

- 5 Real Underground Cities To Inspire Your TTRPG Campaign

- 5 Tips For Creating Fantasy Towns and Cities

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Fluff post. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Blue Sky, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Additional Audio Dramas (And An Update On Azukail Games' Goals)

As regular readers know, I make a lot of videos over on the Azukail Games YouTube channel. While I have shows like Speaking of Sundara (where I talk about my fantasy setting Sundara: Dawn of a New Age), Discussions of Darkness (where I discuss the World and Chronicles of Darkness setting), and Tabletop Mercenary (which covers the ins and outs of the job of creating tabletop RPGs), I also have a lot of audio dramas on the channel.

These are, honestly, some of my favorite projects to work on. It's hard to get ears on them, though, so I wanted to take this week to talk about some of my recent pieces, and what I'm hoping to do in the near future regarding this art form.

I've got plans... come along on this journey with me?

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my bi-weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

Dark Dramas, Noir Mysteries, and One Comedic Sequel

For folks who aren't familiar with my audio drama projects on the channel, each of these little vignettes is a dramatized version of the introductory stories from my TTRPG supplements. So while they tend to jump around between genre and setting, they're meant to give folks a glimpse into the kind of game these splat books are here to help you run.

While most of the following audio dramas are unconnected from the existing series on the channel, consider giving them a watch. And, if you enjoy them, like the video and subscribe over on the Azukail Games YouTube channel.

#1: Dark Destinies of a Dying Day

The introductory short story for my first Mork Borg supplement 100 Prophecies and Proverbs of The Black Basilisk, this tale deals with a hermit trying to live out the rest of his days in a world on the verge of death. When a slayer with venomous eyes invades his sanctum in search of a dark prophecy, cold sweat runs down the hermit's spine... can this man prevent the end of the world? Or will he merely drive his blade into its heart that much sooner?

#2: Drinks With The Devils

The second half of a story I began a while back, this story starts off World's Oldest Profession: 100 Courtesans and Concubines. This tale picks up with our party cleric down in the infernal-themed brothel known as The Pit, when the rest of his companions kick down the door. And now he has to defuse the situation before they start lashing out, thinking this is a dark and corrupt cult, rather than a mere house of pleasure.

#3: Cloak and Dagger

The first tale set in the world of Army Men, this story kicked off Army Men: Medals of Honor. Set in the alleys of one of the biggest cities in United Polymeria, the section chief of naval intelligence goes to meet with a contact. Of course, as with any intelligence operation, there's a chance something goes wrong when you stick your hand into the shadows.

#4: Secrets of The Shadowed Heart

A grim tale taken from the supplement 100 Dark Secrets, this tale takes us inside the mind of a man who used to be a monster. A brutal enforcer for a regime of blood and terror, he has tried to leave that life behind him... but he cannot hide from his deeds in his dreams. A place where a mirror is held up to his memories, and he is forced to see them again, and again, and again.

#5: Born in The Boneyard

The story taken from 100 Effects of a Primquake, takes place in my Sundara: Dawn of a New Age fantasy setting. It deals with an expectant mother willing to do anything she can to ensure her son makes it into the world... but she hasn't asked what the consequences might be of the decision she's about to make.

How Your Views Will Help The Channel (And Me)

For folks who aren't in the know, I've been trying to get the Azukail Games YouTube channel monetized for several years now. And while we have the 500 subscribers that the platform requires, we've been roughly 200 hours short of the 3,000 hours of watched content we need for the platform to start sharing ad revenue with us. And, because you have to get those 3,000 hours of watched videos within the past 365 days, we've been struggling to make up for the views dropping off our record, while still trying to get enough fresh views to get us over that finish line.

That's where you all come in!

My audio dramas tend to run between 8 and 10 minutes long, meaning that if someone watches all 5 of the videos I shared above, that's less than 1 hour of content added to the channel's running total. However, every view, every comment, every like, share, and subscriptions adds up over time. So please, check out the channel, and if you enjoy my audio drams, check out the full Audio Drama Playlist which currently has 49 videos on it!

Now, if you're a fan of audio dramas, but you want to see me do something bigger and more involved than these short pieces, you're in luck! Once we get the channel monetized, my plan is to start work on a long-running audio drama podcast for the Chronicles of Darkness titled Windy City Shadows. Every episode should be between 30 and 45 minutes, taking listeners deep into the shadows as we begin exploring the dark side of this strange and horrifying version of Chicago.

If you're curious about this project, please check out my original pitch "Windy City Shadows," A Chronicles of Darkness Podcast Proposal, as well as the Ask Me Anything video I did on the Azukail Games channel a little while back:

My hope is that we can reach our goal in the near future, and then I can really get cranking on the scripts and recordings. I've also got some previews and trailers ready to record as a juicy little reward for folks who help us get to that 3,000 hour mark. So please, if you want to help push us over the line, consider checking out the channel, and sharing around your favorite audio dramas on your own social media pages so that other folks can give them a listen as well!

What's Next on Table Talk?

That's it for this installment of Table Talk! What would you like to see next? I'm listening for your comments and votes!

For more of my work, check out my Vocal archives, as well as the YouTube channel for Azukail Games. Or, to check out books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, my hard-boiled noir series featuring the street beasts of NYC in Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, or my recent short story collection The Rejects, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter, as well as on Pinterest where I'm building all sorts of boards dedicated to my books, RPG supplements, and greatest hits. Lastly, to help support me and my work, consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron! Even a little donation can have a big impact.

Breaking Into Mork Borg... Should I Continue?

Variety is the spice of life, or so the saying goes, and I've found that rings very true in my line of work. Because while I am more than happy to keep working on popular game lines, or to write series of stories and books, there comes a point where the brain needs a break. Even if you've been eating finely-cooked steak, you can only have it for so many meals in a row before you start craving some pasta, pizza, or chicken tacos just to shake up your status quo.

While I had my palate somewhat limited a while back (and I talked about it in Why I Will Have Fewer Community Created TTRPG Products Coming Out), I recently decided to step outside my comfort zone and try something new. I've had a real itch to step into some grimdark storytelling, and Mörk Borg really hit that sweet spot for me. Which is why I wanted to talk about 100 Prophecies and Proverbs From The Black Basilisk, as well as what I'd like to do in the future, if folks wanted to see me keep walking down this road.

We see in part, and thus is the mirror of prophecy darkened...

As always, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! Also, be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree.

Lastly, for hundreds of extra articles on gaming, weird history, and for more free fiction, check out my Vocal archive, too!

There Are Dark Winds Blowing...

While I've been aware of Mörk Borg for some time now, I first gave it a full read about a year ago when I wrote my review The Unrelenting Cruelty of a Dark and Dying World: Looking At Mörk Borg. I was aware of it by reputation, of course, but it wasn't until I read the full text that I realized that for all its darkness and doom, the game's tongue is (at least as written) planted very firmly in its cheek. And while I can certainly appreciate those efforts, I wanted to err more on the side of the darker lore, and to provide some serious resources for Game Masters who wanted to lean more toward the dark aesthetic of the game.

To that end I wrote 100 Prophecies and Proverbs of The Black Basilisk. While I encourage everyone to go take a look at it, the basic idea behind the supplement was to provide some of the supposed prophecies spoken by Verhu, the forward-looking head of the basilisk, and to offer some history and interpretations of those prophecies in the event players wanted to build their backstories around them, or a Game Master wanted to use them as the plot for their game. Because even though you may be days away from utter extinction, there are plenty of prophecies in this list that might prolong that inevitable darkness... at least long enough for your characters to enjoy a few more sunrises.

Now, this isn't the first release from Azukail Games for Mörk Borg. The company has also put out the class The Morbid Bone Picker, as well as Expanded Tables For Mörk Borg in the past. And while Adrian was willing to let me push forward with this latest release, he'd also pointed out that this game wasn't exactly a big seller in terms of numbers... but I had to try for myself to see what kind of results it would net.

So, if you'd like to see us put out more Mörk Borg stuff going forward, consider checking out any of the three lists I've linked in this post, and stay tuned for an audio drama for a grimdark tale from this dying world that will soon appear on the Azukail Games YouTube channel! Also, I have an idea for a campaign for this game that takes inspiration from the game Fear and Hunger... so if that's something you'd be interested in seeing me create, let me know in the comments so that I can figure out whether it's something I should pursue, or if it's something I should put up on the shelf for a rainy day.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the Azukail Games YouTube channel, or my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary! Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, my hardboiled gangland noir series starring a bruiser of a Maine Coon with Marked Territory and Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

Death, and Its Role in RPGs

We've all had that moment of seeing the dice fall, looking up at the Game Master, and realizing it's over. That critical hit from the gnoll raider just drove a spike through your wizard's skull, and they're dead. All the plans you had, all the adventures you've managed, they're all for naught in the face of the grave. And even if the rest of the party piles onto that hyena-faced raider and smashes them to the ground, none of it will be enough to bring back Hedrick... he's gone.

Death is a part of the game, generally speaking, but we don't always stop and ask what role it should play. Which is why I thought I'd share some thoughts I had on death, dying, and questions surrounding it in our RPGs.

Let us hold up a mirror to the reaper, shall we?

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron!

Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

How Common Should Death Be?

Death in RPGs is, generally speaking, supposed to represent the ultimate fail state. Whether it comes because the party was foolhardy or the villains were lucky, the dice giveth, and the dice taketh away. However, it's important to examine what getting that Game Over screen is going to do to your players, and to your game.

Do not worry... I can fix this.

The first question you need to ask about your game to put death into perspective is what sort of game is it? For example, a game like Mörk Börg is meant to have death lurking around every corner ready to come for you, because that's part of the doom metal feeling of the game. It's supposed to be bleak and dark, where no one is safe from even minor threats. On the other hand, death is even more prevalent in games like Paranoia or Dark Souls. However, in these games when you die you don't just roll up a new character. In the former, one of your preset number of clones is activated, and shipped out onto the field, and in the latter you are resurrected to try again.

Even in games where death is an ever-present constant, the purpose it serves is vastly different. And in games where death is permanent, it isn't always common. In some games death can be quite a rare occurrence, happening only when players truly screw up, or when the dice are really against them. So ask yourself what the purpose of death is in your game.

Is death meant to be final; something which the players must avoid at all costs lest they be forced to make a new character? Or is death merely an inconvenience, meant to be something you can overcome through determination, planning or resources? And is death meant to be common, or even expected, whether or not it's permanent? Is death to be used as a punishment, or as a neutral element?

These are all things you should know before making your pitch to someone to join your table.

Does Death Prevent Attachment?

As someone who likes RPGs, I try as many of them as I can when the opportunity presents itself. One of the factors that I find is the more certain death is, and the more often it's expected to happen, the less investment tends to come from the players in their characters. After all, if you know for certain that every roll of the die could lead to your character's death, then you tend not to make any big plans for that character. You avoid getting involved in their story, and you end up not getting very attached to them.

After all, if you get invested in seeing their story to the end, but they die three sessions in because of a random lightning strike, it can take a lot of energy to switch to a new character.

I know it's only been half an hour. You're dead, roll up a new character.

In this case, death in the game needs to be in-line with player expectations. If you're playing something like Dread, for example, then you know going in that you're probably just playing a one-shot game. Maybe 2-3 games at the most, because that's what the system is meant for. This allows players to come in with the right mentality and expectation, and to figure out the proper scope of experience to expect.

On the other hand, games like Starfinder and Pathfinder fully expect that you will keep the same character for the length of the campaign. While death is still a very real possibility in these games, there are lots of ways to avoid it, and there are even methods to reverse it should that be necessary at some point. The goal here is not just to complete the plot, but to expand and explore your own character's story. They're meant to survive, grow, and change so that by the time the campaign is over you've finished not just the Game Master's plot, but also told this particular PC's story. Then once the campaign is over you can close the cover, and move on to someone else.

When you have a game that's geared toward the actions and story of the player characters, players tend to get invested in the stories they're telling. They want to see their characters struggle, sure, but they also want to see them accomplish those goals, and finish the story off. If characters get killed off before they finish telling their story, that can lead to a serious lack of closure for the player. And if that happens often enough, pretty soon they're going to lose that attachment. It's also possible they just start making carbon copies of their last character (or as close as can be managed) and say it's their twin brother, their eldest son, etc. coming to finish what their dead family member started as some way to get a sense of continuity.

Consider Alternative Fail States

Death can serve many purposes in an RPG, but all too often Game Masters just default to death for everyone on the board; PCs and NPCs alike. However, there are alternative fail states to death that can be used, and they can allow the Game Master to lead by example.

Even if you're not just pulling from I'm Back! which acts as a list of back-pocket reasons your bad guys survived what should be very lethal circumstances.

- Capture: The character in question may be valuable in some way. They might be a noble who can be ransomed, a powerful champion of good that can be sacrificed in an upcoming ceremony, or even someone with a bounty on their heads. This can be used to explain why a lot of enemies may not wish to simply execute PCs, and vice versa if the PCs are the one taking the hostages.

- Flee: Enemies and players alike need to be given a chance to flee when things go poorly. They may still fail to get away, but a lot of players believe the choice is either death or victory. Chase decks are great for this, and I talk about them in If You're a DM, You Should Get Your Hands on a Chase Deck.

- Surrender: Whether done by the bad guys or the party, this is an option most of us simply don't consider. After all, the bad guys are just disposable mooks you threw down on the board, and the PCs are often too full of pride to consider this option. Making it clear that surrender can work, and that it's a lose state that's less permanent means some PCs may be willing to put up their hands if things go really poorly.

- Interruption: This can take many forms. Maybe it's a dragon wondering why a battle is taking place on its turf, or a herd of stampeding aurochs. An earthquake, flood, or volcanic eruption might also be appropriate, depending on the terrain. While this shouldn't be used without lead up, it can help add complications to battles that you want the villains and/or the heroes to survive as a kind of deus ex machina that makes fighting one another less important than surviving the new hazard.

I am not someone who advocates the removal of death from RPGs. Just like in any story, I believe that the possibility of death hanging over the narrative increases the stakes of said narrative. But if you add too much death, it can be like over-salting a meal; now the spice is the only thing you can taste. Alternatively, if you bend over backwards to avoid death, you end up with a game that can feel bland, and in desperate need of some spice.

Which one you need will depend on the length of the tale you're telling, what the rules governing your game are meant to support, and the kind of story your table wants to tell. Which is why it's important to stop and think about how you want death to play out in your game as part of your initial pitch to your players.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!