So what is the current story line so far?

[John1]

I see other forums all the time but all the answers are understandably vague. All I really wanted to know is, who is falx? What period was the world in before the "collapse" Why are we blue?

[LadyWYT]

3 hours ago, John1 said:

I see other forums all the time but all the answers are understandably vague. All I really wanted to know is, who is falx?

Jonas Falx seems to be the guy responsible for all the temporal technology and how the player came to exist in the world as we know it. As I understand, he was either a prominent alchemist, or an accomplished engineer from the lower class(perhaps even both!). He may have also been at least partly responsible for the calamity that befell humanity and destroyed the Old World, but there's not yet enough information to determine that for certain. Whether he's still alive or not is also unknown, although there are a few clues that strongly suggest he is indeed still alive somewhere and we may meet him at some point.

What's also worth noting is that many of the Old World eventually elevated Falx to god-like status due to his technical prowess, and humanity's survivors may still revere him as a mythical figure(especially given the prevalence of rusty gears as a trade currency). It's hard to say for certain on the latter until villages and other NPCs are added though.

4 hours ago, John1 said:

What period was the world in before the "collapse"

Given the level of "real world" technology available in the game and mentioned in the lore, I think the Old World was meant to be set in the Late Middle Ages.

4 hours ago, John1 said:

Why are we blue?

The player is not human, hence the oddly colored skin. The traders are human, and if you'll notice that when you stand next to them, you're a bit taller as well. According to the lore, we are entities called "seraphs", although what exactly a seraph is and how much they differ from humans is somewhat vague, at least for now. As I understand it, seraphs were human once, likely ones that allied with Falx in his endeavors to save humanity from the Rot plague. They seem to have been sent forward in time somehow by a Falxian creation, and became seraphs in the process.

I expect this subject may be explored a bit more with the next update, though it remains to be seen.

[ifoz]

11 hours ago, John1 said:

who is falx?

Jonas Falx was a noble-born engineer who made most of the technological advancements found in the world. He also discovered the Prima Materia, a world-bending substance that most likely led to humans turning into Seraphs, which is what we are. He also, in his efforts to stop the Rot plague, probably messed up space and time, potentially bringing about the Rust and making Rot victims corruptible into Drifters. He also built the Salvation Engine, which we do not know much about, other than it is maybe the reason why we suddenly awaken many, many years after the apocalypse.

 

11 hours ago, John1 said:

What period was the world in before the "collapse"

The middle ages. The lore mentions the Hanseatic League, who were a real German merchant league in the 1400's.

 

11 hours ago, John1 said:

Why are we blue?

We play as a Seraph, a human presumably touched by the Prima Materia. We are immortal and do not need sleep, though we can still feel pain and tiredness.
Most likely, our characters were a band of common folk who aligned themselves with Falx, and he gifted this new form onto them. Traders are human, we are not.

Edited May 25 by ifoz

[Rook_Maevsch]

On 5/24/2024 at 1:54 PM, John1 said:

I see other forums all the time but all the answers are understandably vague. All I really wanted to know is, who is falx? What period was the world in before the "collapse" Why are we blue?

A bit late to this part, so I thought I'd chuck my two pence into the ring. Since the first two questions have been answered succinctly enough already. I'll focus on the last question. "Why are we blue?"

We play as a race known as the 'Seraphim'. Tall, oddly skinned humanoids that have recently started awakening all over the world. To me, it seems evident that the Seraphim were humans from the "Collapse" era. Somehow either thrown forwards in time, or otherwise preseved for a long period.

There are several things to note in the game that support this idea. First and foremost. The classes you pick in character creation are in reference to humanity's life in the tunnels. The Blackguard, for example, only existed during that period of time. Serving as the police and peacekeeping force of the underground. Malefactors were criminals of the underground, banished to the surface world. To name a few. The only way we would be able to 'fit' into one of those classes upon awakening into the world, is if we were already one in the past.

Second. All the descriptions of tapestries in the world are written in the first person; from your perspective. This is significant because the deescriptions on the tapestires shed light on events that happened during the Collapse period. Take for example the tapestry "Morning" which has the following description;

Spoiler

"I am unfamiliar with this scene. I suppose there is much I am unfamiliar with now. Life continues unabated through all these years."

Or the Tapestry titled "Seraphim";

Spoiler

"To think we would have a chance to fight again. I do not know why we are returned to this world, but I am grateful."

As for how those humans because Seraphim? I don't really know. What we do know is that the Seraphim are tied to temporality, being able to siphon stability from a temporal gear by (painfully) inserting it into their own bodies. Talking to traders, you'll learn about drifters, and the like. But the one thing they never mention is temporal storms. Whether this is because they're unaffected by them, or it's simply an oversight is unknown. But as it stands, only Seraphim are aware of, and impacted by them.

One journal entry mentioned the discovery of and creation of the "Prima Materia". Which is a concept in classical alchemy. To put it simply, Prima Materia is the starting matter from which all things originate. And was a fundamental step in the creation of the Philospher's Stone, otherwise known as the "Magnus Opus", or Great Work. One aspect people often overlook when considering the alchemists of old, is the pursuit of "self transumation". Not the act of turning lead into gold, but of perfecting the human mind and soul. I wonder if perhaps that was the achievement that then created the Seraphim.

It's also possibly tied to a machine called the "Lens". That seems to be responsible for the temporal instability. In the journal entry "Breakdown", the author (who I presume to be Jonas Falx, but I can't confirm that) writes;

Spoiler

I've begun to see things, even when I'm not gazing through the Lens. Walking down the halls, looking at the prints, suddenly my vision shifts and I'm in a world I cannot comprehend. I am in the other world, and it is leaking into this one.

That's about all I know and have speculated. Hopefully we'll get some more lore soon. I'm itching to see what comes next.

[LadyWYT]

6 hours ago, Rook_Maevsch said:

That's about all I know and have speculated. Hopefully we'll get some more lore soon. I'm itching to see what comes next.

Just in case you haven't seen it: https://www.vintagestory.at/stories/storyexcerpt-ghosts.html/

It doesn't exactly explain much about what seraphs are or how they came to be in the world, but it's still a great read! It's an encounter with both a seraph and drifters, as told from the perspective of the human survivors(that don't currently exist in the game yet, aside from the traders).

[ifoz]

On 8/14/2024 at 12:54 AM, Rook_Maevsch said:

One journal entry mentioned the discovery of and creation of the "Prima Materia". Which is a concept in classical alchemy. To put it simply, Prima Materia is the starting matter from which all things originate. And was a fundamental step in the creation of the Philospher's Stone, otherwise known as the "Magnus Opus", or Great Work. One aspect people often overlook when considering the alchemists of old, is the pursuit of "self transumation". Not the act of turning lead into gold, but of perfecting the human mind and soul. I wonder if perhaps that was the achievement that then created the Seraphim.

Looking at the game, there are many alchemical symbols hidden all over. Schematic D, Forlorn Hope Tunic, the altar block and cave art, just to name a couple that I've spotted.
Considering three out of these four examples feature the alchemical symbol for the philosopher's stone, I'd say it's likely that's how our Seraphs gained their immortality!