Mythika has evolved from my attempts during the Spring of 2024 to gamify a curriculum based on Classical Mythology. It can definitely be looked at as a game in which you prepare your character, tackle challenges, defeat threats, and level up. Each student can get as deep into the game and the world it exists in as he or she chooses. The game doesn’t determine the grade; it still boils down to absorbing content and demonstrating skills. However, those that choose to see the course as a game may find the experience far more enjoyable.

The journey through Mythika starts in the metropolis of Alphacite upon graduation from the Mythikan Institute for Adventuring, the education arm of the Mythikan Adventurers Guild. Newly minted adventurers are tasked with embarking out into the world to face challenges that both benefit the citizens of Mythika and develop the skills and abilities of the adventurer. 

On the last day of each week, adventurers will select a new destination on the map. Some weeks, there will be a choice, others not. Players can only come from the place just left, and can only go to where the chosen road leads. On occasion a portal can be accessed which allows players to violate this rule and transport themselves to a location with no direct connection to his or her previous location.

Upon arrival, adventurers will be welcomed by a statement from the local guild master or liaison with information about a situation that needs to be resolved and potential reward upon success.

Over the course of the week, players prepare by researching the threat by completing assignments that will be based on reading passages, videos, or maybe even a podcast. There will often be specific tasks to accomplish based on features of the settlement. There will be an assessment at the end of the week based on the “assigned research”. The better you do on the quiz (against the town’s threat), the more loot you can record in your register. Be forewarned, success, not even survival, is guaranteed!

After the first few weeks of exposure to the basics of world mythology, the roads  selected will allow adventurers to pursue mythologies. There will be a path for all the major mythologies with trails off into lesser known realms for exploration if  so desired. 

Choice. Once you have the basics down, your course of study will be dictated by your choices. It is entirely possible that by midterm, every student finds him or herself at a different point in a different place exploring a different mythology.

At the creation of the universe, there came into existence matter and energy that did not exist before. How you believe this event occurred is irrelevant due to the fact that it obviously, most definitely,  did occur. Should we then heed the seemingly contradictory Law of the Conservation of Matter, what was in existence then is still in existence now. Like spaghetti sauce within twenty five feet of any toddler, the residue of  creation’s might covered everything in existence. This world was no exception. Rock, soil, air, wood, and water were imbued with the powers of creation. Since then, societies would rise and fall with their ability to extract, manipulate, and exploit this undeniable resource. 

As spontaneous creation is beyond the ability of man, so were the powers of Creation. While man came to use materials that contained traces of the power, he has never been master of the actual power. It came to be understood that the occasional, often-unintentional, manipulation of these traces would be referred to as “magik”. While magik does honor the rules of creation, it is possible to violate the rules of man (inasmuch as he understood them). Much magik has been accepted into the rules of man over the centuries and are now seen as mundane concepts and pursuits such as language, mathematics, astronomy, and various other modern “sciences”.  (Note, all “science” began as magik until man could invent a (supposedly) physical explanation for the act or phenomena) 

To address the practical use of magik in the current day, let us explore how an object can manifest some degree of magik. Since magik was injected into the literal substances of this world upon creation, it logically follows that natural matter contained magik. An oblivious pre-Celtic Brithon uses a branch of an oak tree to fashion an ax handle. The tree contained a smidge of Creation force and passed it along (albeit diminished) to the ax handle. As it happens, this “magik” ax is a great help to our witless Brit in the execution of his ax-wielding duties. Perhaps he fells entire trees with a single swing? Perhaps he is unwearied even after hours of labor? Stories stay within the family, within the village, within the area for decades upon decades. The Brit passes on, and the ax is passed down. Soon, it is deduced that it was the man who was special, rather the ax itself. The ‘magik ax’ becomes the stuff of legend

Now as with all things, the degrees to which these basic building blocks held on to that original power of creation varied from type to type, piece to piece, object to object. It is possible that a source could become depleted with use - even a blade dulls with use. Imagine if that blade was in use for multiple millennia. Eventually, there would be no blade remaining at all. This explains why there is never as much magik in one world, or age, than there was in the one previous. It follows then also that man remains unaware of how much magik remains in the world.  This fact is then compounded by the progressive arrogance of the race of man as it has come to believe magik itself never existed and therefore will never exist in his ethereal awareness. 

Editor’s note. The most-posed questions regarding magik in Mythika, “Why doesn’t magik just fix everything? Why does anyone have to work? Why can’t magik do all of the work for them/us?”

Magik is a wonderful fact, but it is also a terrible one. The creative forces unleashed at Creation are not infinite, despite paradoxically creating an infinite cosmos (as far as we can observe). When magic is used for effect, there is that much less magik to call upon. 

To use magik is to expend the forces of Creation. What many do not consider is that we ourselves, all living beings that were undoubtedly created, use up a little bit of our stored energy as well. Does that mean that using magik slays the user? Perhaps? 

Consider the stone. It was obviously created at the Beginning, and here it rests. Just the act of existence exposes the stone to other forces. With enough exposure and the passage of tyme, to say nothing of any external forces that may hasten the eventual result, that stone will be worn down to merely dust of incalculable traces. Now, if that stone had the mind to burn a few flakes of itself off with some incantation or  other to create some effect it desired, how much sooner would that demise be achieved? 

Does magic simply change state after use, like a log becomes heat when burned? This would allow for “magik” to remain. Once someone figures out how to put the heat back into the ash and create wood, we can then recycle or reanimate magik. We should get the alchemists right on that, shouldn’t we?

Does magik pass from this realm to another one just like the magical and whimsical and awesome beings did from Fyrstworld to Mythika? That does seem to be logical. When magik left there, it came here. Where would it go then? Nothing I have talked to knows. Do you?

The only thing that this writer can say with absolute certainty, as the original author made mention beforehand, is that once the veil of wonder that envelopes magik is ripped away, what was once magikal becomes mundane. It is renamed as fact, labeled logical, and those who still struggle to grasp it are mocked for their inability to embrace the obvious. This is where Fyrstworlders found mathematics, grammar, and physiks, among other unimaginative concepts that are little more than the cold ash of wonder and awe. Much do I pity those smug creatures.

To further elaborate upon the magikal separation of man with other races, let us consider their peculiarities. Be aware that collectively, non-mundane-humans may often be referred to as “folk” henceforth.  

Many beings, creatures, and entities that can be found in Mythika had their origins in that of the dimly illuminated past of the Fyrst World. Whether or not any trace remains in that world is irrelevant to the reality of life found in Mythika. These writings are concerned with the reality of what our distantly removed cousins comfortably tell themselves is mere illusion and falseness. 

A facet of Mythika reality often ignored by cross-dimensional quidnuncs is the individualism of the member of a race.  While there is a limited scope of what is considered normal or usual behaviors from each race, the existence of an individual who has the sentience to go beyond or be counter to the expectations of society is far from noteworthy in Mythika. Never forget this in your dealings with Mythikans!

This is not intended to be an exhaustive exposition detailing a complete list of all races and species that exist here in Mythika; no, tis merely a primer of people for the unexposed to the realm. For the purposes of clarity regarding inter-species or inter-racial persons, it is the norm here for so-called "half-race heritage folk" to claim to claim either or both of the lineage types to suit their purpose; meaning, Fritter may claim to be a half-fae, half-orc, full fae, full orc, or a Fay-orc depending upon the company or circumstance present. As a point of Mythikan culture, rarely are people singularly politically categorized as half anything. You won't see "half-orcs" on any Mythikan census. 

By numbers, humans are the dominant race in Mythika. There are more humans than any other known, sentient race in Mythika. Humans have proven over the centuries to have a superior, inherent trait of suppressing, hiding, or disguising various traits and abilities  acquired through genetics, heredity, or arcane effects or afflictions .

Elves exist. Elves have varied traits and characteristics, tastes, and predispositions finely developed over the eons. Stereotypically longer-lived, taller, slender, and usually more stoic than other races, they are indeed bound inextricably to the magik of creation. 

Dwarves as a race early on embraced the mountains and the mines and harnessed the powers, both magikal and mundane, held in ore, minerals, and jewels. Dwarves have been closer to the core of this world for far longer than man can hope to calculate, making their wisdom and knowledge incalculable. Despite their guarded personalities, the smithing and crafting of tools and materials from these ores have gifted all societies at one time or another.

A word on goblins. Yes, there are goblins who live at the North Pole and who do their part in making Christmas magikal. Goblins traditionally sport a more animalesque visage than their close cousins the dwarves. That has not precluded innumerable goblins possessing amiable personalities and affectionate relations. Goblins are traditionally counted as dwarves in NO census. As such, no exact number of the North Pole goblin population is recorded.

In contrast to the dwarves' connection with the under and inside of this world, fairies favored the flora that covered it. All of the natural world is the realm of the fairy folk. Due to their traditional diminutive dimensions, fairies experience the grasses, woods and the waters of the world much closer than man could ever hope to witness even with his primitive powers of magnification.

Draconi, orcs, trolls, and a myriad other races walk, slither, or fly through Mythika as well. 

Creatures are a difficult topic. First, all animals (even man) serve as a common cog in the gears of this world. Most of the animals on earth spend their days as either hunter or hunted; that is a cold, immutable fact of existence. Yet, some animals in this world find themselves possessing magikal characteristics ranging from simple human traits (language for example) to abilities that are inexplicable even to other magikal folk. These few are reclassified as creatures (shortened from “magikal creatures”). There is neither a set list of species that are exclusively magikal, nor (it is believed) does the entirety of this world’s creatures live at the North Pole. The North Pole does exist as a sanctuary for all of the world’s creatures, and it is the individual creatures prerogative to cross the North Pole’s borders at his, her, or its whim. While many creatures elect to engage with North Pole society - the Pole has established generations of multiple species that have proven to be integral to the success of Christmas -, others have chosen to remain elusive and simply observe our society from afar while enjoying the safety our magikal refuge provides.

Which brings us to the final classification of magikal folk, the corporeal. What sets this group apart is their apparent lack of physical materiality.  Corporeal is the officially acknowledged term here at the North Pole, but elsewhere in the globe these souls may be referred to as ghosts, spirits, specters, shadows, phantoms, haints, and the like. While definitely the least understood of the magikal entities by both man and folk, “Corpses” are generally welcomed at the North Pole with unquestioned hospitality so long as the corpses respect the resident’s privacy, boundaries, and single-occupancy souls. 

The exact moment of the happening known as The Crossing is impossible to determine. Mythikan thinkers have pondered and debated it since consciousness was first detected here to no avail; no absolute truth determined. Some say it was the exact point in time that the last totem of the first god was destroyed. Others propose it wasn’t until the last etched symbol of the first one was defaced. There are those that argue it could not have been any other time than when the final worshipper’s spirit faded causing a god to become totally forgotten by all living creatures. Perhaps it was one of these. Perhaps it was none of these. Perhaps it was a combination of occurrences. No being knows for sure. 

What is known is that beings, both worshipped and worshipping, departed the Fyrst World and arrived here… in the realm that would much later be called Mythika. This was a progressive accumulation of magik, of consciousness, of awareness, of form, and not the lighting of a single torch in the darkness. Undoubtedly, there are deities that came to Mythika that have moved on to other realms - deities long forgotten in this world as well as the First. In the First world, gods knew of the “afterlife”, but it was afterlife that existed in that First World’s reality. The worshipped in Mythika will tell you - should you ever catch one in a contemplative mood - that none of them possess any knowledge of what is after this reality, or even if there is one at all. 

Those that come to Mythika, despite there not being any known crossings for a few thousand Fyrst World years, remember parts of what once was. It is akin to a mortal's memories of being in the womb, or in those first few hours of birth. Few can recall those with any clarity. What memory of that world existed by Those Who Crossed is recorded in books and scrolls and stories. But no one dwells on it. This is a better world for them; there is no place for them in the old one

At the time of The Crossing, the oldest magic left the First World and found its way to what would become Mythika. This assembly had left places unknowable today and it was as unknown to itself as old magik was to this new reality. With time - or perhaps aided by its absence - the congregation established order and the constructs this order would be perceived by.

This establishment of order was not without conflict. There were factions, formidable factions, that wanted to argue that Chaos should reign here in this realm since it was the Order created in the First World that had pushed all of them out. Chaos was deserving.  There was a period of time, since forgotten, of conflict between the beings. Who fought whom and why has not been recorded in any archives known or rumored. Ultimately, it was decided that Order was the only way to ensure survival, but it could not be the Order of the First World.

That was a mistake. This would be different.

So, Order was created that would allow for greater inclusion. This New Order expanded for all those who pledged to it to exist harmoniously. No longer would there be a struggle for dominance over all. All would exist with, around, and among all. 

The agents of Chaos were not to be suppressed; there was no great war, no climatic battle of titanic forces. All those involved were too First-World weary for that. A choice was made by those agents to depart from this realm in search of another. There, they would have no opposition and be free to allow Chaos to guide and rule. The elements that brought those adherents to Chaos to Mythika were cast further into the cosmos, leaving a trail of darkness into the evermore. So many that once were part of the First World departed Mythika upon that trail, never to be known again. None here in Mythika know where Chaos went or if it ever found its place at all. It is possible that Chaos wanders Creation yet… still searching for its place. The most cynical of Mythikans may quietly propose in hushed tones whispered in shadowed corners that Chaos never truly left, and it lies in wait still - waiting. However, no one of any faith truly believes that… right?

Despite the appearance, and perhaps the intent, of Mythika being a magikal utopia, certain immutable truths were as undeniable in this reality as in the old. Since there was life, there would be death. Since there was abundance, there would be scarcity, Since there was day, there would be night. Alas, so it is that there is both good and evil in Mythika. What was called evil in the First World could not simply be erased due to its inseparability from good. But evil in Mythika is not the evil that walked the First World hand in hand with Good, but it is the evil that motivates a being to diminish another. Not the world-ending, destroy-the-world kind of evil - for that is not the only evil. Beings, gods and mortals alike, are far too resourceful to limit themselves to only one degree of evil. 

A Tale of Faith and Stone

When the veil between worlds thinned, and the forgotten gods of the Fyrst World stepped into Mythika on the banks of the River Beathe, they were not alone. Clutching their fading totems, their most fervent worshippers, the Fyrst Mortals, followed, drawn by an unbreakable thread of faith. They arrived, bewildered and disoriented, on a low floodplain, a strange world under an alien sky.

Survival was a stark, brutal reality. The land, though vibrant with burgeoning magic, was untamed. Strange beasts lurked in the mists, and the very ground beneath their feet felt subtly alien. They huddled together, a scattered few, facing starvation and exposure. Their prayers, once shouted into a universe that no longer heard them, now rose as desperate whispers. It was then that a benevolent light, barely a shimmer in the twilight, descended upon their most devoted elder, Elara. This was a fleeting manifestation of Hestia, the Greek Goddess of Hearth and Home, herself a recent arrival, diminished but not extinguished. Hestia offered no grand miracle, but a simple vision: the knowledge of which unique plants could sustain them, how to weave shelter from the glowing Lumen Clay, and the rhythm of the river's ebb and flow. This small guidance, a flicker of forgotten comfort, was enough.

Inspired by Elara's vision and Hestia’s subtle grace, the scattered mortal families began to work. They learned to build structures of hardened Lumen Clay, creating the first sturdy homes. They collaborated to fish the Beathe and cultivate the strange, yet nourishing, flora. This shared struggle and the whisper of divine aid forged them into a unified people, bound by common purpose and shared faith. They called their fledgling settlement "Haven's Rest," a testament to their miraculous survival.

But even in this new world, old ambitions lingered. A faction led by Blackheart, a charismatic human chieftain who clung to the Fyrst World's concept of dominance, saw the burgeoning magic and fertile lands as an opportunity for absolute power. He rallied the strongest warriors, promising them mastery over the folk and the very essence of Mythika. His vision of "Order" was a brutal hierarchy, enforced by fear. As Blackheart’s influence grew, threatening to shatter their fragile unity, only one individual dared to openly defy him: Hattusili, the last true devotee of a forgotten Fyrst World god of craft, Enki.

Hattusili, through sheer, unyielding will and the quiet strength of his conviction, refused to yield. He wasn't a warrior, but a builder. He spoke not of conquest, but of cooperation, demonstrating with his own hands how the infused Aetherium Shards could make tools stronger, how the Spiritbloom Moss could heal divisions. His unwavering commitment to the "New Order" — the true order of Mythika that preached inclusion — became a silent beacon. He built stronger walls, not to imprison, but to protect; he crafted tools that served all, not just a few. His individual resistance, an enduring act of creation against Blackheart's destructive ambition, slowly but surely eroded the usurper's support. When Blackheart finally attempted a coup, his followers, swayed by Hattusili's quiet strength, abandoned him, leaving him isolated and defeated.

With Blackheart vanquished and the vision of cooperative order solidified, the mortals renamed their growing city Alphacite, the "Fyrst City" or "Alpha City," a beacon of hope and a testament to their enduring spirit. It was a place where all who sought harmony could find a home. Yet, Alphacite's vibrant growth was tempered by a solemn remembrance. They built a grand memorial, the Whispering Spire, at the very emergence point, to mourn those who had sacrificed everything—those who were too weak to cross, those lost to the wild magic, and even the fading echoes of their Fyrst World gods who had dwindled to mere whispers in Mythika's boundless expanse. It stands as an enduring inspiration for the future, a reminder that new beginnings often rise from profound loss.