Editing Wrath of the Immortals (section)

==Apocalypse in the Hollow World==
Whilst largely glossed over in both the boxed set and the subsequent Poor Wizard's Almanacs, realistically, the week of no magic, which was stated to spread into the Hollow World, would have had catastrophic effects on the great prehistorical preserve. Remember, the ''sun'' of the Hollow World is a magical construct, and it explicitly was turned off for the duration of the entire week. Thus you would have had a solid week of unending freezing cold darkness in a realm that previously had never known night... to say nothing of how, with the Spell of Preservation being turned off, the Burrowers would have been released. The only bright side of it is that the Spell of Preservation and its stifling effects on progress and advancement would have been turned off as well... but still, talk about a baptism of fire... well, ice!

With no warning or way to stockpile anything, the Week of No Sun would have plunged the Hollow World into anarchy; being a completely unprecedented phenomena would have only compounded the chaos and fear. Farmers would have struggled to bring in what portions of their harvest they could be torchlight before the cold ruined it all. More civilized races, who thusly would have stockpiled food, would have weathered the catastrophe better than those that rely on daily hunting and foraging to survive. Forests would have been ravaged to provide lifegiving fuel for the fires keeping civilizations alive - the Merry Pirates would have been locked in their cities by frozen seas and forced to burn their ships instead. Theocracies would have plunged into massive civil unrest as their priestly rulers can neither explain nor lift the darkness, regardless of their prayers - the more malevolent ones like the Azcans or the Nithians would probably be overthrown entirely, since the Spell of Preservation is no longer in effect and their patron [[Mystaran Immortal]]s are no longer able to show up in person to put down revolts.

Whilst this applies all over, it largely focuses on the [[human]] majority of the Hollow World. The [[demihuman]]s have their own unique weaknesses and advantages.
* [[Beastman (D&D)|Beastmen]]: Already adapted for life in the arctic regions of the Hollow World, and with infravision that allows them to hunt freely regardless of the sun's absence, the Grruuk are in a position to weather the Week of No Sun fairly well. They would probably migrate south towards more hospitable climes all the same, likely scavenging from the villages of those who perished from the cold.
* [[Neanderthal|Brute-Men]]: The tougher, hardier Brute-Men would probably suffer in much the same way as the other primitive human peoples of the Hollow World, although their superior hardiness and strength might give them some advantage.
* [[Elves]]:
** [[Blackmoor|Blacklore]]: Most likely these go extinct. Those that don't die from having a magic-powered prosthetic organ be shut off would face starvation, as the servitor robots no longer operate and the lights sustaining their hydroponic gardens cease operating. On the other hand, they still maintain the traditional elfin infravision, their home valley is heated by geothermal vents that would be unaffected by the sun's absence, and they are uniquely adaptable amongst the denizens of the Hollow World. As such, those Blacklore Elves not killed outright are likely to gather in personality cults around the most competent-seeming of their number; the Week of No Sun may, ironically, be the biggest kick in the ass to actually do something that the Blacklore Elves will ever get.
** Gentle Ones: Extinct. Herbivorous and with no self-preservation instincts, the vast majority of the Gentle Ones would simply starve or freeze to death without even trying to save themselves. The rare mutants who ''do'' have some self-preservation instincts (they are a PC race for this reason, after all) would still likely just manage to die somewhat later than their counterpart unless they are taken in by friendly outsiders.
** [[Snow Elf|Icevale]]: Ironically, the Icevale elves would thrive in the Week of No Sun, being infravision-equipped and vital Arctic hunter-gatherers. As the cold intensifies, they would sweep into once-warmer realms, extending their territory.
** [[Shadow Elf|Schattenalfen]]: For the light-averse, darkness loving Schattenalfen, the Week of No Sun is virtually paradise... if only it weren't so fucking cold! They raid the surface freely and openly until the cold forces them back into the subterranean warmth of their lairs.
* [[Hutaakan]]s: Whilst they lack infravision, their heightened senses of hearing and smell compensate for the darkness to an extent, and their civilization is organized enough that starvation isn't a huge risk. The biggest problems they will likely grapple with is social upheaval, as their priest-dominated society wrestles with the sudden powerlessness of those priests and the total absence of support from [[Pflarr]].
* [[Kogolor]]s: Whilst not as well-suited to surviving as their [[dwarf]] cousins, the Kogolors likely won't do too badly either. Like the Icevale Elves, they're used to living in cold environments, and their infravision gives them an edge in the darkness.
* [[Kubitt]]s: In addition to all the struggles facing any other [[Iron Age]] human society in the Week of No Sun, kubitts have to deal with the fact that they're only 18 inches tall. On the bright side, the cold ''does'' kill off all the [[dinosaur]]s that make such a nuisance of themselves. They may move from treetop villages to underground ones, in order to gain increased shelter from the cold.
* [[Lizardfolk]]: Extinct. Cold-blooded swamp-dwellers and a short, sharp ice-age do not mix. 
* [[Orc]]s: Ironically, the Krugel orcs lack infravision as a result of adapting to life in the Krugel badlands. Combined with the scarcity of life in their homeland that forces them to depend on raiding to survive, the Krugel orcs likely go extinct, or massacre each other in desperation-fueled cannibalistic riots that leave them a shadow of their former selves.

[[Category: Mystara]]