The April edition of the Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen newsletter is now here hot off the presses. In it, readers can learn more about developer Daniel Krenn and community member "Beefcake". In addition, a lot of new information has been revealed about the Ratkin race and about the creation of Black Rose Keep, an explorable "level spanning zone".
As the name implies, Ratkin are rodent-like bipedal creatures that are present in nearly every part of Terminus and are "experts at survival and resourcefulness". "Stealing from other races is regarded more closely to harvesting than theft", though stealing from one another is "an egregious crime".
Nomads of Idolatry. Ratkin have no unifying pantheon. Instead, colonies will often assimilate into a primitive form of devotion to deities from other races in the region. This is due to: 1) The transient nature of Ratkin colonies results in a systemic shallowness of their cultural and religious roots. 2) While Ratkin do have a patron deity far in their past, colonies have so frequently moved physical and spiritual homes over thousands of years that they have lost all connections to that ancient tradition. 3) Ratkin penchant for acquisition and assimilation means they often worship whatever idol, trinket, robe or statue that they acquire from other races.
You can learn more of the Ratkin race lore here.
Black Rose Keep is fleshed out in the article by exploring its lore and history, how the Keep was first conceptualized and brought to life through its unique architecture, weather and even the way the floor plan is designed to provide an interesting aesthetic.
Jared: Staging, for me it's staging. When the floor-plan was made it was laid out with NPC encounters in mind, from the ground up. Nooks and crannies, pockets of deep shadow and spaces of varying size both interior and exterior, purposely designed to house specific NPC encounters. Each room with its' own flavour, pacing and style is bent to that purpose. When at the planning stage every effort was made to ensure that the central space of the Main Hall was well used; a hub providing a way to link and flow from one space within it to another, to weave through it, past it, over it, even under it. There's more to Black Rose Keep than meets the eye presently, and that will be revealed in due time, but for me it was a delight to stage and plot out the layout of this building and her grounds. I'm hoping she will become well received and long remembered in the players hearts. Hey Tim, you said something that resonated with me to Justin before… something about Black Rose Keep being a 'home'...
Read the full newsletter on the Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen site.
