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Greetings PaperDemons! A new species has been discovered in the Paperverse. Check out this special event collaboration with Nerdsmith.

New to our Art RPG? Check out our beginner’s guide to get started!

The Goa are a species of sculpted statues made of living stone and bronze armor, brought to life through complex transmutation and golemancy rituals. They are sculpted out of a powerful, transmutable stone known as eirshale . The only surviving remnants of the long-dead civilization that created them, the Goa have only in recent decades presented themselves to the world as a nation of free people. 

They are strongly motivated to discover their cultural identity as they become citizens of the world. Goa society has been secretive and isolated since its founding. Only a select few individuals are 'born' with the purpose and desire to venture from the walled City of Eir into the larger continent of Aruna. These adventuring Goa are always on the hunt for more sources of eirshale, the unique stone material that is used in Goa creation rituals.

Now it’s your turn!

Rewards

For participating in this challenge

• You earn 80 XP

• You earn a random item drop

• You earn x1 Eirshale Dust

• You earn Adventuring Gold

• Your character earns the Ruined Kingdom Portal Badge

• Your character earns 7 Ability Points (AP)

Challenge Requirements

For this Art RPG Portal Challenge, you will be taking your very own original character on an adventure to a new world. You will be using the character you registered in our Character Creation Challenge. If you haven’t registered a character yet, follow that link to do so!

Pick one of the prompts below and draw or write your registered character in this new world!

• If you are submitting art, it should be a full color piece that shows at least half of your character’s body and a background that matches the prompt you have chosen. Shading is optional.

• If you are submitting writing, your registered character should be the focus of the piece. The piece should be at least 1000 words and it must match the content of the prompt you have chosen.

• To receive XP, AP, badge, and random item drop for completing this challenge, submit your entry to PaperDemon.com and follow the steps below.

  • Click the Submit button at the bottom of this page and Upload new submission and then choose art or writing. 

  • Copy paste the prompt you selected into the submission description.

  • After you upload your art, you'll be asked to submit it to the Ruined Kingdom queue. Fill out the form to enter it into the queue and get your rewards. Input 7 in the points box for your AP.

• An admin from our team will process your request, grant your character a badge and 7 AP, and deposit your items into your bank. You’ll receive a private message when the process is complete.
  

Prompts

Prompt #1 - The City of Eir

Deep in the mountains, a ruined city rests at the base of the mountain range. Could this city have…fallen from the sky? It seems ancient and ruinous. Tall towers of alabaster-like eirshale rest between the shadows of massive stone statues. Jagged natural rock makes up its base like a floating island. 

Despite its current state, the City of Eir still held a powerful allure for adventurers and scholars alike. Many believed that there were untold secrets hidden within the ruins, waiting to be discovered. Some claimed that the city's magic still lingered, waiting to be harnessed by those who were brave enough to seek it out. For others, the ruins were a haunting reminder of the fragility of even the greatest achievements of mortalkind. Until recently, it was believed that the city lay dormant and empty. Or perhaps cursed: more than a few foolhardy adventurers delved into the ruined city, never to return.

Show or describe your character exploring the mysterious City of Eir. Your piece must include your character, and a ruined structure made with/of eirshale.

Prompt #2 - Elumis Celebration

Elumis, the final month of the calendar in the world of Vayl, is a winter celebration of the gods of Light and Community. Each day is set aside to give tribute to the spark of memory, heroes, community, and loved ones, all kept safe in the light of the pantheons of Vayl. The Goa in particular celebrate the season with a Festival of Radiance. Eirshale, the material they are sculpted from, is a magical stone that can emit a warm glow (like light through an alabaster lamp). Show or describe your character participating in an Elumis celebration. Your piece must include your character, and some sort of winter holiday tradition involving light or flame.

Prompt #3 - Eirshale Critters

A tremendous amount of eirshale is required to sculpt and bring a Goa to life. The tiny shards of material left over from this process are often ground into an arcane spell component, or, in some cases, used to sculpt small living stone creatures! On the rarest occasion, raw eirshale from deep within the stone mines of the City of Eir can gain sentience on its own! These small eirshale critters can look like animals or imaginary creatures, or can be in more organic stone forms. Many scurry about to explore their surroundings, always in search of new experiences. Some are mischievous, playing pranks on unsuspecting passersby. While still others are skittish, content to observe from the safety of the shadows. Show or describe your character discovering or befriending a small creature made of eirshale! Your piece must include your character and a non-humanoid creature made of eirshale stone.

Prompt #4 - Cyl

Cyl is a young goa, only 50 years old or so, who travels the world searching for new sources of eirshale for her people, and loves discovering new friends and adventure! She carries a sledgehammer around with her at all times. Never know when a rock or a monster needs smashing! She is an exuberant paint-maker with a passion for color and art. She was entirely sculpted from pale eirshale stone. Muscular, androgynous, and also somewhat childlike, Cyl is completely bald save for the bronze inlay of a tree at the back of her scalp. Her face is quite minimalist, almost modern art-esque, with large round eyes and a small flat nose. Cyl usually wears warm, comfortable overalls, and her iconic blue knit hat with braided tassels over her ears. What sets her apart from her fellow Goa most is that Cyl LOVES to paint her face and body in all sorts of colors and designs! Painting is often a very private thing for Goa, reserved for holy festivals and private moments with loved ones, but Cyl openly and happily shares her art with the world! She's always changing her face and body paint when it suits her, and her clothes are often splattered with colors and the odd bloodstain. With near unshakeable enthusiasm, she has taken up a personal mission to represent all that is best about the Goa, and to do the most good in this world that she can. What's the use of being nearly immortal if you don't help the people who aren't?

Draw or write about your character encountering Cyl. Your piece must include your character and at least a half body of Cyl.

Want more Lore?

Looking for more lore about the Goa and the Ruined Kingdom? Check out Goa: A Nation of Living Stone

Acknowledgements

The Goa, The Ruined Kingdom, Eirshale, and the City of Eir are original creations of Angela McCain and the Nerdsmith Network and are used with permission. 

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